Lemyao Shimray
Once upon a time, a long, long time ago, men and women lived happily together and worked in harmony. The man would venture out each day into a hostile and dangerous world, his life as a hunter to bring food back to his woman and children. The woman’s role was equally clear, being appointed the child bearer she was considered sacred, magical, for she alone held the secret to giving life. Her day would spend caring for her children, collecting fruits, vegetables, and nuts and interacting with the other women in the group. Things were simple! He was the lunch- chaser, she was the nest -defender. Her success was measured by her ability to sustain family life and his, by how well he can provide food and defend his family.
Survival was different but relationship was easy. This was the way it was for hundreds of thousands of years. Men were not considered lazy and women were not seen as their oppressed handmaidens. This simple rituals and behaviours still exist among ancient civilisations in place like Borneo, Indonesia, Inuit’s and with some aboriginal Australians. Each sees other as uniquely contributing to the family’s survival and well being.
Then, one day came society where rules and a division of labour have to be made in order to survive, still men and women tried to live in harmony but later came where women were suppressed and started taking for granted. Men as a major defender of safeguard started making rules for their benefit. As in Nagas society, women were not allowed to inherit lands, women were not allowed to take part in any major discussion, Gone as a history where men appreciate women as a nest –defender .for men and women, who live in modern civilised world, these old rules have been thrown out and chaos, confusion and unhappiness have been in their place. Customs and laws were planted in communist society. Lost is the equality of our species even though they are not identical. Respects are reducing to dust which have been going on till now.
For the first time in the history of our species, in this changing world most men and women are confused about their job descriptions as new western culture influence and in the verge of having melting pot culture. For the first time ever, we are looking to our partners for love, passion and personal fulfilment because basic survival is no longer critical. Our modern social structure usually provides a basic level of subsistence through social security, national health, consumer protection laws and various government institutions.
An era of feminism has left all the stereotype idealistic philosophies and society a victim in claiming that men and women are the same. Differnces is not the opposite of equality. Equality means being free to choose to do the things we want to do and difference means that, as men or women, we may not want to do the same thing.
MEN and WOMEN are different. Not better or worse…just different. Bodies physically changed to adapt to their specific functions, so did their minds. All things are not equal, it shows the wiring of our brain in the womb and the effect of hormones will determine how we think and behave. Most since 1960’s which claim that government, religions and education systems have added to nothing more then a plot by men to suppress women is how it appears but it is partly false. It is just the opportunity grabbed to dominate by the dominator but it doesn’t mean that all the rights of women for right to equality should be abolished.
Men and women should be equal in terms of their opportunities to exercise their full potential, but they are definitely not identical in their innate abilities. Most are confused between equal and identical.
Since from the beginning, men and women change their rules and the way of life according to their convenience and for their living comfort. Nagas, the head hunters law which use to stone thief to death have change; many customary laws which we feel is barbaric have change after the arrival of Christianity, then why still there is hardly any change in the equality of women in our society? Why still the right to inherit for women has not been given? Why there are still more oppressed law for women in our society and lesser to men?
We are not to be blamed on neither education system nor the religion but if we traced back the history, the Christianity in Nags have brought so many hope and reformation in culture and custom as well as it brought an oppression to women to such extend that the beauty of opposite gender and respect were more reduced. It is not the religion but the interpreter that let to such result. Is it because almost all the interpreter is men and they don’t want to give up their enjoyment of dominating the other gender? Time do change, people do change as the customs that chain the women must change. Let there be change in Nagas customary law, let there be respect for each gender, then can only Nagas be brought to light and harmony as the true ancient Nagas.
