The Tradition

There once lived a man, he had a cat.

Whenever the man did puja his cat got 

all excited, she jumped on the plates 

he used for puja and drank the milk he had placed 

as an offering for the god.

The man had to get up a hundred 

times during the puja to put the cat 

away.

One day he decided enough is enough

and started to tie her on a leash

in the corner. 

Years passed by, the man got married,

had kids, when the kids were a

little older they started to tie the cat 

in the corner before the puja started.

One day the man died and the kids 

started doing the puja,

then the cat died and they got a new 

cat because a cat needed to be tied in

the corner during the puja.

The man probably assumed that 

his kids will know why the cat had 

to be in the corner.

Generations passed and the man’s 

descendants were still tying a cat

in the corner before puja. 

I just told you the story of all our 

traditions.

we follow them without asking -

when and under what circumstances 

did this tradition begin?

Why am I following this?

is it important and relevant 

in today’s time?

Rakshabandhan is the tradition 

that I want to talk about today,

where a girl does aarti of all her 

brothers and ties a thread on

their wrists asking them to protect 

her, and then the brothers give 

her gifts, and the brothers 

apparently need a reminder about 

this once every year. Quite a tradition.

This tradition started when women 

were distinctly seen as inferior 

sub-humans, 

who would stay confined 

at home, behind a veil, cook, 

produce children,

take care of the in-laws and entertain 

their husbands.

They were not allowed to get an 

education or go out and work.

So if something had to go wrong 

with their husband or marriage 

then they were financially 

dependent on other men in 

their family. 

I don’t need to tell you this but 

Women since then have

challenged the stereotype,

they have stepped out, surpassed in 

education and employment.

They have asserted their independence,

opinions, financial freedom

and are demanding equal treatment. 

And yet we are following a tradition 

which is a reflection of women’s

dependence, helplessness and 

something that started because

they had no other option. 

I have discussed this with many 

women around me and some said

‘but this has to be followed, this is our 

tradition,

We can not follow things just because 

our ancestors did it,

because we today are more evolved 

and advanced species than

what they were and it is only natural 

to do things in a more

evolved and advanced way.

some women said this is how we 

show love for our brothers’.

Respect, caring and understanding 

shows love in any relationship,

you don’t need to tie any damn 

thread to show love.

Just like you don’t have to celebrate 

valentine’s dayto prove that you love 

your partner.

And some women I talked to also 

went on to say that they don’t

care because they love the gifts they 

get on Rakshabandhan.

Ladies, if you haven’t noticed then

women are earning their own gifts,

it is high time that you

start doing that too.

Let’s see how many little girls will 

choose to tie a rakhi after

hearing what tying a rakhi implies. 

it implies that a female cannot fend for 

herself and is dependent

upon her brother to protect her and 

it implies that she is weak and

incapable

of being independent. 

There are other such festivals like  

“Bhau Bij” when the sister prays

for the

long life of her brother and Padava 

when a wife does aarti of her husband.

Don’t you see a pattern here? there are 

no such festivals when

brother prays

for sister’s long life, or a man does 

his wife’s aarti. 

I wonder If the women from the past 

came to life somehow

what will they think

of today’s women? Wouldn’t they feel 

proud that we have surpassed

so many obstacles

and have achieved so much, reached 

places even been to space?

Or will they feel proud that we are still 

following a tradition that reflects

woman as a helpless dependent being?

rather than blindly following a 

tradition one needs to understand

what the tradition

stands for, what is its origination, 

what is the message that it conveys,

is it relevant today

and are we following something 

regressive? 

If we have to then we need to leave

traditions for the next generations

that are a reflection

of today’s society, we need to send a 

relevant message for them that

women are strong,

independent, free, we earn our own 

gifts and we are capable to protect

ourselves,

our family and for that matter our 

society. 

Before you celebrate Raksha Bandhan 

next year Think about it.

This change needs to happen. 

If not now, when? And if not you, who?