oldchakra.com

RVC: Why Only Your Son?
By Georgina

Dear Prabhus,

Haribol.

As an ex-temple devotee, now a teacher (of psychology at sixth form) and currently also studing for my MSc in Psychology, I am disheartened by the "give your son the highest eduation" slogan. Once again ISKCON sidelines women.

As a teacher of psychology I can only laugh at such a fallacy as the "small brain" theory recently debated on CHAKRA. The weight of someone’s brain has nothing to do with levels of intelligence. Nor are women "naturally" interested in "mundane" concerns as opposed to philisophical debate. Such ideas are absurd!

Let's therefore leave aside such futile arguements. Some women are hightly intelligent, some not so; some men are highly intelligent, some not so. Yet it remains a fact that the daughters of ISKCON need education— most have to leave ISKCON to get it. Women in ISKCON also need a deeply scholarly Vedic education and grounding in Shastra. How else can they give class?

As a bhaktine many years ago at Chaitanya College in England, I recall taking the Bhakti Shastra course (right name?), and how many of the girls would get higher marks than the boys. Many girls are naturally studious, and in my experience have far better concentration spans than boys.

It’s all very well glorifying mothers (over fathers). As brahmins, devotee women must have a brahminical education. Although I have obtained my degree(s) outside of ISKCON, it does not mean I have lost faith in Krsna or Srila Prabhupada. Studying science in fact has strenghtened my faith. For example seeing how psychologists endlessly debate the mind/body question, makes me appreciate even more the wisdom of the shastras in relation to the situation of the body/mind/soul and the gross and subtle material natures.

Your servant,
Georgina

© CHAKRA 19 May 2002