Hinduism 
Panchkanya
Women of Substance – 7

The remarkable character of this fisher-girl emerges from this interaction. Though she has just reached puberty, she is not overawed by a sage, howsoever famous he might be. Instead, she reads him quite a lesson in propriety, resisting his advances with remarkable presence of mind. Noticing his violent passion, she takes care not to refuse him outright, lest in forcing her he should capsize the boat. She buys time till they reach land, hoping his passion will have cooled by then. Reaching the other shore, she voices her irritation and disgust at his animal lust and draws attention to her own repulsive body-odor more than once. With a maturity and frankness that astonishes us even at the beginning of the twenty first century, she points out that coitus ought to be mutually enjoyable. Even after becoming musk-fragrant she does not give in, objecting to beastly coupling in daylight in public. Once again the sage bows to the logic of her arguments and shrouds all in a mist. Yet she does not give in and raises the ultimate objection: what will be her status when he has deflowered her and departed? No one will point a finger at the high-caste sage, but what about her? With a maturity that is astounding for a pubescent, uneducated girl, she harbours no illusions that the sage might wed her. Hence, she obtains assurances of regaining her virgin status and the fame of the illegitimate offspring. Only after these practical aspects have been taken care of does she allow the eternal feminine to come forward, desiring to remain forever young, forever fragrant—a gift that was Helen’s, and one that women of all time, everywhere, have craved. The Mahabharata version provides a fascinating glimpse into the feminine psyche:

“And she, ecstatic with her boon, 
"Conceived the same day 
From her intercourse with Parashara.” (Adi Parva, 63.83, the P. Lal transcreation) [[1]]

When Matsyagandha tells the sage that, being ruled by her father, she is not independent to respond to his demand, and then breaks away from this to assert her liberty of action, she achieves that “one-in-herselfness”[[1]] which is unique to the virgin. After the intercourse she does not become dependent on Parashara, does not cling to him or insist that the moment be made eternity through formalised marriage. The purpose of the encounter fulfilled, both break off without any lingering backward glances or mushy sentimentality. No romantic hope is expressed of meeting again, no guilt, not even any anguished query about the child to be born. Is she any less modern than a 21st century feminist?

Satyavati takes Hastinapura by storm, maneuvering the royal Bhishma out of reckoning and ensuring that her blood runs through its rulers by forcing her princely son’s widows to be impregnated by her illegitimate mixed-caste offspring, Vyasa. Neither Dhritarashtra nor Pandu carry any of the Puru dynasty’s blood in them. With her low caste birth, Satyavati does not suffer from high caste hesitations in bringing her illegitimate son into the limelight[[1]]. She makes him the decisive factor in the fortunes of Hastinapura, rivaling the shadowy authority of Bhishma who is ruled by her. Her disregard of social opprobrium stands out all the more when we find that her royal granddaughter-in-law Kunti dare not emulate her. It is Kunti’s illegitimate son Karna who becomes the mainstay of Dhritarashtra’s sons and also challenges Bhishma time and again. It is Satyavati who turns the Kuru dynasty into the lineage of a Dasa maiden and brings about a fascinating reversal in Puranic history.

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