Raksha Bandhan is a festival profoundly celebrated by the believers of Hinduism in which sisters tie a decorated sacred thread (rakhi) on the wrist of their brothers and urge for protection in exchange; in reciprocation, the brothers give them money or gifts. In some cultures, the sisters observe a fast that day until they tie the rakhi, coupled with prayers for longevity of their brothers.
A Festival Conditioning Gender Superiority
The way this festival is being celebrated is one example of how patriarchal thought conditions its targeted gender to accept its inferiority. The girl who ties rakhi on her brother’s wrist starts following this ritual way before she hears the word ‘patriarchy’. As soon as she becomes capable of tying a knot anyhow, she starts performing this festivity.
Maybe that’s why she never asks the potential questions: why should I depend on someone else for my protection? Why can’t this society let me be capable of fighting my own battles? Why doesn’t my brother tie the same rakhi on my wrist and ask for his protection? Why am I declared to be weak enough to ask for protection? From whom do I need protection? And what if one day I need protection from my protector?
The moment she becomes aware of her consciousness is the moment when patriarchy starts corrupting her brain against herself. The moment she performs the Raksha Bandhan ritual silently, she is being fed the thought that her brother is stronger and more important than her.
Imagine if she doesn’t have a male sibling. Then she would tie the rakhi to her cousin brother. Do we ever question what negative impression such a custom can engrave on a little heart? She may feel unlucky to not have a male sibling. She can compare herself to the girls who have that, and that can trigger various negative emotions such as insecurity/jealousy, which her little self doesn’t know how to handle.
The brother-sister relationship is her first interaction with the other gender of the same generation, where she could have demanded equality. And maybe that’s why, at such an early age, she becomes a target of patriarchy.
Through teaching her the importance of her brother, she is taught to prioritise the other gender, the consequences of which she sometimes suffers throughout her life. As this conditioning starts in early childhood, by the time she becomes aware of her gender and the disadvantages this society imposes on her gender, these rituals become her habit as if they were always there and she doesn’t have any right to question them.
Gifts versus Property Rights
As mentioned, the girls are offered money (shagun) or gifts. But do we question: what these gifts teach such a young child? Can these little children understand that it’s just a custom? Do we tell them that these gifts which they are getting aren’t just because of what gender they are? Can we affirm that we aren’t conditioning economic dependency in girl children through these rituals?
Even if one girl out of a thousand would be conditioned that she would get gifts or money just by taking care of or pleasing the other gender, who would be to blame? Do we question these gift offerings to a specific gender in the name of shagun/respect/dowry? Why can’t this society treat them equally in property rights as their sons instead of following these social vices?
The constitutional and social reality of the property law between siblings is antithetical in our society. While the Constitution provides equal rights to male and female siblings, the social implication of the same portrays an opposite picture. “National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) data collected in 2019 reveal that women own only 12.9 per cent of the landholdings in the rural areas and 13.2 per cent in the urban areas, although they constitute half the population”.
Firstly, females are conditioned to believe that it’s their moral duty to give their share of the ancestral property to their brothers. If they do not do so, then they would face social shame. Availing their constitutional right has been made a social stigma. Other than shame, fear is also at work, as they are frightened to be forsaken by all the relatives, including even their parents and siblings. Who would like to avail such a right if these were the repercussions?
Importance of Having a Home
Do not our daughters deserve to have the security of having a home to return to in any crisis in their lives? When we say that it’s a society where being a woman in itself is the most difficult part, then what do we practically do to strengthen them? Instead of giving them the burden of these gifts, shouldn’t we offer them social equality without shame to avail their property rights? Are we even ready to consider the need for equal property rights for our daughters to be empowered, specifically in a patriarchal society?
If we really want to empower our daughters, we have to redefine many of our socio-cultural practices. Because constitutional amendments without social implications can change nothing. We have to make sure that the sacred threads on Raksha Bandhan don’t strangle the gender equality we aspire for our future generations. So we should root for a protection band to protect the loving relationship between siblings for their mutual progress.
Related: Euphoria (2026): Revealing the Hypocrisy of Our Society