Poem January 1, 2001 Issue

To the women of India

Carol Krishnaswami

Sisters of mine,
I love your beauty, patience, and motherli-
ness. I love your wisdom, humor, sociability,
artistic expression. And I love your devout-
ness. I see in you so much of God — so
much good. As one taken into your midst, I
wear your colorful saris. I hope, also, that I
express a degree of your grace.

I once asked one of you what you thought
of Lord Krishna and his consort Radha, so
often spoken of in Hindu Scripture. You
clasped your hands above your head and
with great emphasis said, “Supreme devo-
tion to each other — far above human love.”

Devotion to the marriage covenant need not
be harmful, as it was to you for centuries
when you were sometimes forced to jump
into your husband's cremation fire. In those
days, your husband was more of a god to
you than an equally devoted partner. The
Bible lifts the concept of “partnership” in
marriage to the highest level, reflected in
this verse from Isaiah 54:5: “For thy Maker
is thine husband”. And expanding on this
idea, Mary Baker Eddy says, “God is ...
man's only real relative on earth and in
heaven” (Miscellaneous Writings, p. 151).