CHAPTER II
Historical Background Towards
The Dowry System
27
Dowry
institution
given either
his family.
system
of
gives
associated
In the marriage
with
paramount
dowry might
be
by bride or her family or by the bridegroom
What it is called depends upon who gives it
bridegroom
it,
closely
marriage.
who receives it.
dowry,
is
or
and
If the bride’s party gives it, it is called
price etc.
If
the
it is called bride-price.
bride-groom’s
The practice
party
existing
in some countries is given below:
Table - 01
Marriage Transactions And Continent
Bride
Dowry
service
Gift Sister
Transact­
exch­ exchange ions
absent or
ange
token
Countries
Bride­
wealth
CircumMed.
65
(68%)
1
(1%)
13
(14%)
3
(3%)
0
(0.0)
14
(15%)
East
Eurasia
53
(56%)
5
(5%)
8
(9%)
2
(2%)
0
(0.0)
26
(28%)
Africa
195
(82%)
19
(8%)
0
(0.0)
1
(1%)
10
(4%)
13
(5%)
Insular
Pacific
47
(38%)
6
(4%)
2
(1%)
20
(16%)
15
(12%)
37
(29%)
North
America
40
(18%)
28
(13%)
0
(0.0)
28
(13%)
0
(0.0)
122
(56%)
South
America
7
(8%)
37
(42%)
0
(0.0)
1
(1%)
2
(2%)
41
(48%)
Total
407
55
27
96
23
253
Source : Bride wealth & Dowry by Jack Goody and S.J.Tambiah
Cabridge at the University press - 1973.
28
The
above
emphasise
that
Table
01
brideprice
circum-Mediterranean
Europe
lands,
and
literature
is prevailing
East Eurasia,
marriages
in
and Asia are
payment.
Though the bride-price system is
of
in
the
world
marriages
Africa,
characterised
more
in
whereas
by
dowry
prevalent,
the prime concern of the researcher is on dowry system.
Let
us see first the dowry system among the people
of
some other countries.
Dowry
among
out
system is the accepted form of marriage
the modern Chinese people.
Olga Lang
payment
(1946)
points
that modern and independent woman of China is very
conscious about her dowry.
much
She has to work hard and save
order to come to her husband's house with good furniture
clothes.
With
the help of the inheritance laws
now
and
girls
have begun to receive their share in the form of dowry.
it
is
stated that in the villages the new laws
unknown.
Only
a few facotry girls
actually
are
But
almost
obtain
their
City
women
the
rural
share of their father's land and other property.
are
in
more aware of their new property rights than
women.
Ting
Hsien
bridegroom's family
in
his study of Hopech
points
of China has to spend from $ 45
29
out
to
that
120
(rich peasants) whereas the bride's family has to spend
from $ 70 (poor peasant) to $ 400 (rich peasant).
the
author
clearly
points out the preference
more
Therefore,
for
son
Chinese society in the following sentence - " The people
willing
since
to
feed the boys and unwilling to
feed
daughters are an economic liability on
in
are
the
girls
parents
(Olga
Lang - Chinese family, 1946).
Public
Chinese
and ceremonial display of dowry can be seen
literature.
On
the day
before
girl's dowry is sent to the boy's home.
dowry
the
wedding,
the
All articles in
the
are carried on the shoulders of hired labourers
procession
through the streets.
in
For example, the
family.
Usually it consists of two
three
tables with drawers and cabinets, two
a
following
list of articles can explain the nature of dowry of a
class
in
middle
leather
chests,
real
lacquered
square stools, two smaller square stools, also red
lacquered
two
bottles
of face powder, two little tins
of
rouge
application on Chins, two bottles of glycerine, one
for
Chineses
writing ink container, two glass plate stands (for containing
fruit)
several sticks of writing
glasses,
long
two western
gowns
brushes,
writing pens, several
eight
pencils,
one of wool, one of red silk and one
30
drinking
of
three
yellow
silk.
About
shoes
fifteen suits of cotton cloth,
six
(a girl never receives land or houses as
that
a
procession
containig the
above
article would be quite a long affair.
accompained
clear
pairs
dowry).
listed
by a band of drummers and ushers.
It
is
was
quite
or
two
It consist only
movable articles and there is absolute exclusion of
things
of
Such a procession
but an array of many articles.
immovable
So
number
from the above that dowry consists not of one
articles
of
like land, house, etc (Francis
of
valuable
L.K.
HSU.
1949).
Italian
about
the
community.
literature presents the symbolic
dowry
Here
articles
among
the
illustration
people
dowry acts as a safeguard
of
of
Molise
the
social
integrity of the group in southern Italy from the 18th to the
20th
the
century.
system
economic
The
It gives legality to the
marriage,
of family authority and underlines
the
women's
dependency as the main cause for the dowry
system.
dowry included money, jewels, furniture,
kitchen
reflects
utensils
and
possibly a house
or
linen
land.
sheets,
Another
important element was kitchen utensils, stressing the woman's
role
in the kitchen.
But in advanced contemporary Italy
has disappeared.
31
it
Let
us
see
dowry system among the
rural
people
Yugoslav
Macedonia, Rheubottom (in,The meaning
of
payments
by
his
wedding
Comaroff,
Macedonia.
He
festivities are a very
families
incur
heavy
is of
the
opinion
costly affair.
article
expenditure
that
wedding
which requires
They
years
have
of
Yugoslav
One has to see his economic position
of
the
One important point with the families
Mecedonia is that ordinarily a household
does
expand
their herd of sheep and then sell part
flock as the occasion draws near.
many
families
are
ready
to
of
On the contrary, in
mortgage
their
of
not
sell its land or livestock to finance a wedding, although
will
to
careful
to what extent he will be able to meet expenses
marriage ceremony.
in
It creates tension in
of both bride and bridegroom.
planning and husbandry.
and
in
marriage
celebrations in Skopsca Crana Gora, a rural area
Yugoslav
the
1980) has examines
of
it
the
India
property
in
purchasing the happiness of a daughter by giving dowry at her
marriage.
The
of
items
Yugoslav Mecedonian dowry consists of three
endowed
by the bride's natal
family.
They
types
are
firstly a trousseau of clothing and linen; some furniture and
kitchen appliances and a gift of money constitute dowry.
32
As
a
matter of fact, the things to be given in dowry
are
well
discussed before the engagement ceremony.
The
trousseau
blankets.
Some
woven
as well.
rug
includes clothing,
bed
linen,
had woven bed spreads and perhaps
Most of the embroidered by
towel,
a
the
handbride.
Some are purchased as ready made and have been collected over
a
period
family
of
to
years.
another.
The trousseau size
for public display.
the
things given.
clear
the
from
one
wealth
and
The things in dowry are
put
It is an indication of the
prestige of the bride's family.
on
differs
There one can observe the
Here the author wants to make
value
one
Mecedonian people are not offering dowry
marriage
of
their daughter because of quest
for
whereas
in India many families are purchasing
offering
heavy dowry for their daughters in their
of
point
in
the
prestige,
prestige
by
marriage.
They are proud to say about their heavy dowry and expenses of
their
marriage
Yugoslav
ceremony.
But it is
Mecedonian rural people.
not
the
case
with
is
more
Here the family
careful and tries to keep a close balance between the
amount
spent on one wedding and the others to come.
Higher dowry is most welcome in the Indian context, but
it
is not the case with the rural people of
33
Macedonia.
If
the family
offers a huge dowry
at the marriage ceremony
of
one daughter, there is a chance to suspect that the bride has
a
serious
short-coming on the contrary if boy is
ready
to
marry a girl with small dowry or without dowry in India there
is a chance to suspect that the boy has some defect.
On
other
smaller
hand,
size
of
trousseau
daughter
to another daughter
It
affect
the
the
kinds
compared
is clear that even the size of
first
another
might
of
Indian
is that boys in general, girls in particular
should
matrimonial
alliance.
The
the
notion
This principle is also
Yugoslav Mecedonian rural families.
To
of short - comings rising out of a smaller
dowry,
to
dowry
get married at a proper age.
in
little
her would be feel insulted ; he might seek
pirl.
parents
if Mecedonian people offered a
the
families
try to maintain a fixed ratio
working
avoid
or
bigger
between
amount spent on a daughter's marriage and that spent
all
on
the
the
son's.
What is the rational principle behind the dowry
of rural area of Yugoslav Mecedonia?
system
The author writes
that
what the daughter of village gets as her dowry at the time of
her
marriage from her natal home is a compensation
contribution to her natal household.
34
for
her
There peasants say that
a bride only needs a token dowry, if a girl has
occupational
skills.
He had
his
He quotes the example of one richman.
daughter
that
to train to be a dental technician.
sent
He
said
there was no need of other heavy dowry for her.
Since
she has a job and will be able to contribute her share to her
new
household.
contribute
It
means that if a girl will
economic support,
be
able
to
then there will be no need
to
think of givincr heavy dowry.
Rhebottom (1980)
wants to make it clear that dowry and
inheritance resemble one another neither in timing, value
the manner in which they are allocated.
dowry
According to him the
system in Skopsa Crana Gora is operating on the
basis
of labour theory.
He considered this dowry as nothing but
form
wage for her
of
delayed
household.
household,
contrary,
daughter
The
longer
the
in
larger
time
daughter
parents
by
works
her dowry should
will create problems.
responsibility
contribution
to
her
natal
for
her
natal
be.
But
It is a risky job to keep
So the notion of urgency of
take a risk and try to get
a boy of a decent family
35
on
marriage
of marriage of their daughter at
getting
a
to
the Indian context, delay in the
grown up girl at home.
forces
a
or
even
the
of
a
marriage
rid
of
the
the
proper
by
paying
money.
One interesting feature of a rural Yugoslav Mecedonia
dowry is that both bride and bridegroom are very much free to
use
the dowry-money.
How much money is given by
a
bride's
natal family to the bridegroom is not known by any member
of
the
It
is
groom's family.
not
the
This matter is kept always secret.
case with the money of
the
India
dowry.
Its
ownership rests with the head of the family or husband.
That
is why daughters of Skopsca Crana Gora get dowry not in
lieu
of
her
their right to property but it is their delayed wage
contribution
system
supports
to her natal family.
the
theory
of
This type
labour.
of
for
dowry
Higher
the
contribution of labour to the familial fund, greater will
the
share
of daughters in the form of dowry,
whereas
be
sons
will get their property in the form of share.
In
in
Greece, both daughters and sons get an equal
their parental propety.
mechanism
by
generation
to another.
is
which
It is said that it is a kind
property
is
transferred
The parental property of the
and
the daughters of a family are
their share at marriage in the form of dowry.
out
from
divided equally among all the children, sons get
inheritance
share
that with the development of choice marriages
36
one
family
through
entitled
It is
of
to
pointed
and
high
economic
development,
disappeared
the institution of dowry
has
almost
in the United States, England, Russia and
also (Ernestine Friedl, 1962 ; Leela Mullatti, 1978).
the
Due to
revolution in Russia the dowry system had died a natural
death without any special measures to abolish.
countries
had
ever
felt this custom to be
problem as in India now.
and
Japan
Japan
couple
Even today in USA,
None of these
as
of
a
England, Russia
a variety of presents are given to
by
much
the
marrying
parents of both sides and by friends to
help
to
dowry
as
establish the new household.
In
indicators
states
article
the
of
social
"The
role
change in
of
dower
Pakistan",
and
Korson
both types of marriage payments are
that
so
(1968)
highly
institutionalised that they will continue in its present form
indefinitely.
Even the Anti-Dower legislation
also
failed
to stop the practice of giving dower. The study reveals
the
dowry
system
burdensome.
(Dei)
among the
Pakistanis
has
that
become
However, without any hurdle both dower and dowry
systems are continuing in society.
A
glance
inhabitants
at
the
dowry
system
among
the
Tamil
of Jaffna in north Ceylon reveals to us that
37
the
life style of Tamil inhabitants of Jaffna in north Ceylon
is
administered according to the customs put by "The Sawalamai".
The etymological meaning of "The Sawalamai", is a
of
the customs of the land.
collection
Let me quote here one among
the
many customs about the "Dowry system".
The
Chidenam (Dowry), term derived from
the
concept "Stridhanam" - gives the meaning of female
property.
Actually
the chidenam is hereditary property
[the
property
which
as
(Chidenam)
is
she
brought at her marriage
transferred to her daughters alone
marriage as their dowry] brought by the wife.
Sanskrit
mother's
her
dowry
at
their
This
chideman
includes
all category of property namely immovable
property
such
fields, gardens (land) and movables such
as
of
riahts.
dowry
hereditary
him
is a strong indication
Daughters
father's
cash,
and household effects (Slaves are included).
jewellery
type
as
get
property,
chideman
whereas
of
(dowry)
sons
get
This
female
property
from
mothers'
"Modesium".
modesium property (i.e. goods and land
brought
to the marriage) is inherited only on his death
The
by
by
his
acquired during
the
sons alone.
"Thediathetam"
-
the
property
marriage is divided among the sons and daughters alike.
38
Here
Tambiah (1973) points out that as a result of the above
the
invariably
husband's property always remains
rule
with
the
male heirs and the wife's property with the female heirs.
also points out that so many changes took place
during
particularly
Portuguese times, but the above mentioned
Modesium
and
Thediathetam) three categories
He
(Chidenam,
of
properties
remain in tact.
Daughter(s)
chidenam
of
the Tamils of north
Ceylon
get
the
(dowry) as a kind of pre-mortem inheritance at
the
time of her marriage through dotyola (i.e. a legal documentry
transaction). She does not have further claim on the parents.
There
is
also
chidenam
years.
if
It
a
chance to lose the
claim
on
she does not take possession of it
is customary law.
It is
the
given
within
pre-mortem
inheritance
precisely because it can be used to effect a marriage and
find
a
enioying
dauahters
size
the
husband who himself looks forward
its
proceeds.
But
it is
not
to
a
managing
rule
should get dowries of identical values
of chidenam depends upon the value of a
marriaae market.
ten
to
and
that
all
since
the
bridegroom
in
The strong claim over the chidenam
is
even more consolidated by the following points. If a
dowried
married
persons
daughter dies without issue, the
39
following
get preferences, first her other sisters,their daughters
and
their
her
grand
daughters.
If there are no sisters,
then
brothers, their sons and their grandsons etc. It proves
female
right
inhabitants
to
property is very strong
of Jaffna in north Ceylon.
with daughters of an Indian family.
among
that
the
It is not
Tamil
the
case
Though the daughters
of
an Indian family are legally eligible to get property in
the
20th century in theory, practically no Indian parents or
any
male members of family are interested even to talk about
the
provision
of
property rights of daughters
except
in
some
cases.
Dowry System In India :
Dowry
institution.
voluntary
dowry.
is
But
ancient times what
in
loving
The
marriage
system
compulsory
one
for
with
books suggest
of
the
that
important
the
was
gift but not the present
ancient
was
associated
given
day
in
marriage
ancient
all
a
conditional
sanskaras,
all Hindu men in general and
was
times
almost
women
in
bond
and
particular, but not the dowry system.
During
could
the
Vedic age marriage was a sacred
not be broken by any human action. It was a
40
religious
ceremony.
At
commonly
among
that time monogamy form of marriage
accepted
the kings.
people
but polygyny form of marriage
There were very simple rules
in consideration of marriage.
India
states
about
the
was
was
found
followed
Literature of
dowry was usual
more
at
the
by
ancient
time
of
marriage, but some times money had to be paid by a son-in-law
to purchase his bride (Mahajan pp. 19, 1986).
The
main obiectives of the marriage in
ancient
India
were : firstly, to get a male child, secondly one should
get
married within his own caste to carry out the rituals of that
caste and thirdly to continue family lineage (Gangrade,1979).
In
the
beginning daughters were denied the
right
of
inheritance : only sons inherited their father’s property. In
such
a
situation the affection of
daughters
marriage
voluntary.
when
might
they
parents
were leaving their
natal
have started the dowry system.
home
But
after
it
background of the dowry system, has
Hooja, in
stated
information can be had from the marriage hymns
41
was
Indian
titled Dowry system in Indian 1969, while quoting
historical
some
their
In support of voluntary notion of ancient
people the following prediction will help us.
book
towards
of
her
some
that
the
Riaveda
and
allegory
the
Atharvaveda. These hymns
begin
with
the
of the marriage of Surya, the daughter of the
Sun,
with Soma or the Moon. The bride bearing a beautiful robe and
a
coverlet eyes daubed with unguents, head dressed upon
the
Opasa or Kuriya style, started for the house of her
intended
lord
friends.
Her
in
a canopied chariot accompanied by
treasure
chest
(kosa) containing her
in
her
refers
to
royal brides bringing with them the
cows.
mentioned.
In
The
Atharvaveda
dowry
placed
hundred
chariot.
bridal
once
also
incidently
dowry
In the marriage hymn "Vahatu"
or
of
dowry
the Atharvaveda, a king is cursed
queen may not fetch dowry for him.
his
though
There is
of "Pasuvivaha"- it means animal marriage
a
is
that
It indicates that
dowry was voluntary, it was expected indirectly.
reference
was
in
a
the
Aitaraya Brahmana. In this vivaha bridegroom or his party had
to bargain to purchase a bride.
In the epic age, the condition of society had
In
the changed atmosphere the institution of
its
sacredness.
were
prevalent.
Draupadi
Polygyny and Polyandry forms
For
example,
Dasrath
had
changed.
marriage
of
lost
marriages
three
married the five Pandavas, though there was
wives,
no
so
much freedom in the selection of life partners for daughters.
42
But
it
in the royal families the swayamvara system existed
is proved by the example of the swayamavara
and
of
Draupadi
Draupadi, Subhadra and Uttara were also given
valuable
and Sita.
presents of horses, elephants and jewels by their parents
the
to
time of marriage.
rich
presents
merchants
like
handsome
There is also a reference in
being given to
the
bridegroom
the father of Visaka king of
presents to his sister Indumati
at
Jatakas
by
rich
Vidarbha
sent
immediately
after
the marriage at the time of her departure (Hooja, 1969).
According to Hooja (1969) the presentations made by the
parents
they
to daughters can hardly be called
were
affection.
will
made
voluntarily
after
the
dowries.
Because
marriage
out
In this way the incidents depicted in
help us to understand to what extent there
of
literature
was
giving
and receiving the things or gifts in connection with marriage
in
ancient
India.
ancient society.
But dowry system was not
a
problem
It is clear that only among royal
in
families
they had elaborate giving and taking of gifts in practice.
In modern times two forms are in vogue i.e. Brahma
Asura form of marriage.
and
In the Asura form of marriage man is
43
procuring a wife through payment of brideprice.
speaks
of an ardent but undesirable suitor
The
Rigveda
(Vijamata),
who
had to please the father of the bride through heavy payments.
The
the
Asura form of marriage though it has been
one
forms of marriaqe, it had been criticised since
of
ancient
times. As a matter of fact severe criticism against the Asura
form
of
marriage
following
can
be traced
in
Manu
Smriti
in
the
sentences "Wise fathers, who know where.to
accept
monetary gifts and where not to, should on no account
accept
Sulka
do
or dowries
for their daughters,
for, if they
so
through greed they are sure to be branded as sellers of their
own
progeny and killing cows and selling one's own
are
both
friendly
enioy
great sins.
Those
persons,
who through
ignorance
even
clothes,
to
equally
hell.
fathers
children
and
and
similar
inadvertance
the smallest portion of the wedding
gifts
ornaments received by their daughters go
like
downwards
In the Asura form of marriage, of course,
fathers
have to accept something in consideration of marriage by
jtroom or by his party.
viz.,
the
And another thing is to be noted here
if the father-in-law give voluntarily anything to
fathers of brides and if fathers hand over the same to
daughters
lovingly,
then
everything is all
44
right
the
their
and
no
question
raised
of
daughters selling and dowry
here
accepting
at all (Manusmriti ; 3, 51-54).
can
be
According
to
Apastamba Smriti not even a Sudra should accept money,
while
giving away his daughter.
In the epics there was strong support to the
with
brideprice.
guardians
of
hesitated
which
brideprice
also
criticised
was
paid
Hadri.
by
to
the
Marriage
with
many.
Some
to practice it, for example, the great
people
hesitation
Salya felt in informing Bhishma that if he
secure
to
heavy
Kaikeyi, Gandhari and
was
brideprice
A
marriages
wished
his sister Madri as a bride for Pandu, he would
pay
a
custom.
good brideprice.
Good nor bad, it
I have to follow.
is
a
to
have
family
It shows that brideprice was
an
undesirable one and practiced in the name of custom.
In
Jain
brideprice.
literature
In
Tevalipura
who
goldsmith
asked
There
also
married
above
is
a
the
also
we
get
the
Nayadhammakaha, case
desirous
of
marrying
the
of
reference
of
minister
of
daughter
him about the amount of money to
a story of a robber
of
great
woman after paying the desired
explanation
proves
the
45
fact
that
be
wealth,
brideprice.
marriage
of
a
paid.
who
The
with
brideprice
is
not a dignified form of marriage but
it
has
bestows
his
been from ancient to the present.
In
the
daughter
Brahma form of marriage,
decked
with ornaments on a young man who
conduct and wellversed in the vedas.
girl
father
of
good
Here the father of
the
gives his daughter to the bridegroom without getting
sum
of
money or any thing in exchange.
This has
ideal
form
day.
One can observe pure parental affection towards
daughters.
of marriage since ancient times to
been
the
Daughters happiness is the aim, not any
a
the
present
their
monetary
benefit.
In
It
was
imposed
this
earlier society advanced maidenhood was
only
and
later on that the element
to
compulsion
pre-puberty marriage come into
practice in vogue.
anxious
of
dispose
of
tolerated.
was
existance
with
The father of the girl became
very
the girl
within
a
limited
Ethical and economic reasons were instrumental in making
time.
the
custom of dowry rigid.
In
the
medieval social historical
records,
one
can
trace the social practices like suttee, Kulinism, etc.
among
the
child
Hindus and among both the Hindus and the
46
Muslims
marriages
system
and dowry system.
also
Literature
period
proved
the
dowry
particularly
1962
;
stepped
into
beyond
system
It means the practice of
dowry
the
also.
Muslim
doubt that
during
assumed
alarming
among royal aristocratic
Hooja,
1969).
community
As a matter
the
proportions
families.
of
medieval
fact,
(Altekar,
during
the
medieval period India was in Chaos socially, economically and
politically.
dowry
to
The situation forced the parents to give a huge
get rid of the responsibility of
their daughter.
responsibility
this.
child
talcing
care
According to Manu, after marriage the
fully rested with husband's family.
marriages
were more popular
in
the
of
girls
Due
to
medieval
period.
In
the medieval period dowry system
consolidated
base and started to effect on the royal families.
and
They
its
took
used it as protector of individuals, dynasty and status.
In this way dowry got institutionalised in India.
Prom the 18th century A.D. till the middle of the
century, the amount of dowry was nominal in common
It
was a voluntary gift of pure affection and
hurdle
in
the settlement of the daughter's
47
19th
families.
presented
marriage.
no
But
during
the last 50 or 60 years the amount of the
dowry
has
began to assume scandalous proportions (Altekar, 1962).
The
through
first
was
bridegroomprice
can
be
trace
its literature at the end of the 19th century.
social play written on the evils of dowry
by
Guruiad
literature.
After
that,
Sulka
Appa Rao, the harbinger
It
was written in
according
Vijayanagaram,
marriages
parties
acceptance
document
marriaaes
the
celebrated
in
the
bride
great
recorded
The
dialect
modern
titled
order
Telugu
Kanya-Sulkam.
of
Maharajan
ordinary
of
Brahmin
tracts
of
The list is by no means exhaustive
concerned were naturally
of
of
to
1897
of
in
a list was prepared ten years ago of
Viiavapatam district.
the
(dowry) of Andhra
money.
value
reached
averse
But, as it
and
one
interest.
thousand
to
is,
as
admitting
it
forms
a
The
number
of
and
thirtyfour,
givina an average of three hundred and thirty four at four
;
ninetynine at five ; six at two and three at the age of
one,
the
from
babies
three
in the last instance carrying a
hundred to four hundred rupees ahead.
price
of
It is so
clear
that brideprice marriages are not only practiced by low-caste
people
or tribal people but it was even among the so
upper caste Brahmins also.
48
called
In
1923, one more play came to be wfitten by
Rao Kulkarni titled "Varavikrayam".
hiahlighted
plays
are
practice
In this drama the author
the problem of bridegroom money.
enough to show that writers
The above
two
condemned
the
have
of brideprice and dowry severly.
unfortunate
Narayana
But still
that this social evil is not wiped out.
contrary it has worsened through the years.
it
On
is
the
Now dowry system
has become a universal practice of Telugu society as a whole.
Sharma
(1973)
affecting
less affluent in general and the middle
particular.
lend
has pointed out that dowry problem
has
been
class
Middle class people undergo much suffering
themselves
to
indebtedness
(Dowry
custom
in
and
among
the
Andhras by Sharma, 1973, V.K.P.)
With
young
men
the introduction of English education
with
gainful employment
in
civil
in
India,
service
and
professions gained the status of the most eligible bachelors.
Parents
of boys are tempted to recover money spent on
education and job by demanding a high rate of dowry from
helpless
parents of girls.
Indian parents are always
son's
the
under
pressure of social and moral obligation of early marriages of
their
daughters, whatever be their
49
financial
circumstance.
So
parents of poor girls are always ready to mortgage
their
little property also to give dowry.
In modern India greater importance is attached to dowry
system in consideration of status and prestige.
parents
had
clothing,
to
give
household
Gradually,
a
particular
articles
amount
etc., in
So a
of
jewellery,
addition
the dowry system gathered so much
girl's
to
cash.
rigidity
unless
and until the girl's parents give away
amount
in cash and also costly jewellery not only
to
but also some gifts to her-in-laws they
could
not
In the 19th century
the
daughter
get
their daughter married at all.
dowry
system
a
that
stipulated
got the upper hand in the arrangement
their
of
any
marriage.
Puthenkalam
(1977)
has
traced growth of the both dowry and
stated
hand.
getting
He
upper
The educated and employed boys were more valued in the
Such a boy's parents would always look
bride who could bring a fat dowry.
system
Kerala
brideprice.
that day by day dowry system was
marriaae market.
a
in his book Marriage and family in
is
Trivandrum
not
every
districts
where
in
But in
Kerala.
it has become common.
50
general
In
dowry
Palghat
Nayars
for
and
having
taken the clue from Christians and Tamil Brahmins, among whom
the
dowry
data
will
system was well entrenched.
The
help us to see the prevalence
author's
of
dowry
field
system.
(Table - 02)
Table - 02
Dowry System In Kerala
Existing
No
Perce­
ntage
Non-existing
No
55
18
32.7
37
67.3
Central
Kerala
161
48
29.8
113
70.2
South
Kerala
151
36
24.0
114
76.0
Total
366
264
71.2
Sample
No
Area
North
Kerala
.
102
27.8
Perce­
ntage
Source : Marriage and family in Kerala by Puthenkalam (1977).
Let
Mullatti
me
(1989),
Kanyasulka
Hindus
was
but
Kshatriya,
it
one
more
field
survey
Her article reveals that
conducted
by
practice
of
the
present in India not only amongst low
was wide spread
Vaishyas,
Kanyasulkam
Brahmins
quote
in
all
Shudras, tribals).
castes
The
(Brahmins,
practice
was present in India until 1920 or 1930
and until 1940 or 1950 amongst Lingayats,
51
caste
of
amongst
Marathas
and all other low castes.
Many
Brahmin
women
aged between
65-70
said that they were married between 8 and 10 years
their
acre
and
irrespective
were
of
married
Kanyasulka.
caste superiority giving
practiced by all people.
thouaht
with
It
bride
means
price
was
In this context, what many thinkers
about the compensatory theory related to
will be failure one.
of
brideprice
Since Brahmin women are not working out
side house, specially as a collies.
The
the
brideprice consisted of both cash and
size
person,
of
brideprice was not the
family to family etc.
same
kind.
from
person
In case of an old or
or handicapped man he was required to pay a high
like Rs.200 to Rs.400.
of
dauahter-in-laws
compulsory
work
expressed
their
practice
among
(Karnataka)
about
20
that
There was no problem of
because of the
high
was expected from them.
opinion regarding the
the
people of
the dowry practice
years ago.
elderly
illtreatment
brideprice.
of
started
But
respondents
existance
It indicates that dowry
of
Dharwad
in
dowry
city
Kamalapur
system
recent phenomenon in South India (Leela Mullatti, 1989).
52
to
brideprice,
Many
Kamalapur
But
is
a
So
far from the available literature it is
seen
that
from Vedic age to Modern contemporary society both the
(Dowry and Brideprice) of marriage payments have been
Brideprice
is not much of a problem but dowry has
recmlar menace to society.
types
there.
become
There is a pressing cry from
social milieu for its eradication.
53
a
the