عورت ، حرم اور کئی چاند تھے سرِ آسماں: تاریخی تناظر
The Historical Perspective of Women in Harem and Kai Chand Thy Sare Aasmaan
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.56276/7t69xx32Keywords:
Nobles and Urdu Novel, Mistress, Concubine, Courtesan, Wives, History, Harem, MonarchyAbstract
The concept of harem is associated with monarchy. The practice of harem has existed in the ancient kingdoms of the world. In the Mughal harem, there was a ranking system for women, the rank of the Sultan's mother came first, followed by the first wife. Other wives were generally called Begums, after them came the status of Khwases or courtesan and lastly the concubines who were in the service of Begums and Mistress. Among the Mughals, free women were also admitted to the harem due to their skill in music, dance,arts or etiquette. Later nobles and Nawabs also started decorating their Harems. Seeing these Nawabs and nobles, the Britishers also started keeping native women as harems in their palaces, but the purpose of harem women was only to fulfill their sexual desires.
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References
Dr. Mubarak Ali, “Gulbadan Begum Ba Hasiat Muarrikh,” in Tarikh Mein Aurat Ka Maqaam
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Malik Ram, Babuli Tahzeeb-o-Tamaddun (Delhi: Maktaba Jamia Limited, 1992), 39-40.
Ibid.
As is written in Book Genesis, Ch.6, verse 1to 6: Now Sarai Abram's wife bare him no children:
and she had an handmaid, an Egyptian, whose name was Hagar. And Sarai said unto Abram,
Behold now, the LORD hath restrained me from bearing: I pray thee, go in unto my maid; it may
be that I may obtain children by her. And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai. And Sarai
Abram's wife took Hagar her maid the Egyptian, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of
Canaan, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife. And he went in unto Hagar, and she
conceived: and when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her eyes. And
Sarai said unto Abram, My wrong be upon thee: I have given my maid into thy bosom; and when
she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her eyes: the LORD judge between me and thee.
But Abram said unto Sarai, Behold, thy maid is in thy hand;do to her as it pleaseth thee. And when
Sarai dealt hardly with her, she fled from her face.
Bible, Book Exodus, Ch. 19, Verse 29.
Bible, Book Malachi, verses 11-16
Acharya Chanakya, Arthashastra, trans. By Shan-ul-Haq Haqqee (New Delhi: National Council
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Maulana Abul Ala Maududi, Khilafat wa Malukiat (New Delhi: Markazi Maktaba Islami
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Dr. Mubarak Ali, Mughal Darbar ( Lahore: Nigarshaat, 1984), 20.
Shorish Kashmiri, Us Bazar Mein (Lahore: Maktaba Chattan, n.d.) 54.
‘ Young, talented slave girls were selected and given an appropriate education to enable them to
pursue this art. Thus, they belonged to the same branch of feminine slavery as the slave singers,
the qiyan, who were also slave courtesans, and, occasionally, concubines, typically for the elite
and growing urban classes. The institution of the slave courtesan opened up possibilities of social
mobility for women. If they performed well and their fame spread, they gained access to high
society and its wealth.’
Pernilla Myrne, “A Jariya’s Prospects in Abbasid Baghdad,” in Matthew S. Gordon, and Kathryn
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Bano, Shadab. “MARRIAGE AND CONCUBINAGE IN THE MUGHAL IMPERIAL FAMILY.”
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Cf. Sudha Sharma wrote: “During the time of later Mughals, it became a fashion to patronise a
prostitute. The literary writings of the time Make frequent references to prostitution, thus, showing
the popularity This institution had gained in the society.”
Sudha Sharma, The Status of Muslim Women in Medieval India (Los Angeles: SAGE, 2016), 73.
Dr. Tabassum Kashimi has discussed in detail the erotic culture of Lucknow darbar, for details
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Najmul Ghani Rampuri, Tarikh-e-Awadh (Lucknow: Munshi Nawal Kishor, 1919), 2.
Sharar has categorically explained different type of nikah’s and relationships the rulers of
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Niaz Fatehpuri, Targheebat-e-Jinsi (Lucknow: Nigar Book Agency, 1941), 23.
For analyses of household lives of females in Urdu Novel please see: Fahmida Kabir, Urdu Novel
mein Aurat ka Tasawwur: Nazir Ahmad se Prem Chand tk (New Delhi: Maktaba Jamia Limited,
; Dr. Fakhrul Karim Siddiqui, Urdu Novel mein Khandani Zindagi ( Allahabad: Dr. Fakhrul
Karim Siddiqui, 1994); Dr. Aqeela Javed, Urdu Novel mein Tanisiat (Multan: Baha-ud-Din
Zakaria Univeristy, 2005); Sughra Mehdi, Urdu Novel mein Aurat ki Samaji Hasiat (New Delhi:
Sajjad Publishing House, 2002); Sumaira Umar, “Urdu Novel mein Aurat ki Samaji Peshkash”
(PhD Dissertation, University of Sargodha, 2021)
Nazir Ahmad, Muhsinat (Delhi: Dar-ul-Asha’t, 1885), 206.
Ibid, 183.
Khadija Mastoor, Angun (New Delhi: Modern Publishing House, 1984), 15.
Usloob Ahmad Ansari, Urdu kay Pandra Novel (Aligarh: Universal Book House, 2003), 147.
Quratulain Hayder, Aag Ka Darya (Delhi: Urdu Kitab Ghar, 1984), 217.
Heidi Rika Maria Pauwels, The Voice of the Indian Mona Lisa: Gender and Culture in
Eighteenth-Century Rajasthan (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2023), 2.
Shamsur Rahman Faruqi, Kai Chand Thay Sar-e-AsmaN (The Sun That Rose From the Earth)
(Jhelum: Jhelum Book Corner, 2020), 158.
Ibid, 163-4.
Ibid,169.
Ibid, 214.
Ibid, 343-4.
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