I happened to see a photo on Facebook today. It says:
“Romeo died for love, Valentine died for love, Jack of Titanic, Samson from the Bible, Hercules, Achilles, and even Jesus died for love.”
And then it goes on to say that there is not a single woman who died for love. It challenges women to come with at least five names of women who died for love. I had a strange feeling towards this post. First I felt that it was a challenge to women. A few minutes later, I thought, “This post (most certainly made and circulated by men) is an example of stupidity. It was probably made by an arrogant teenager, who does not care the contributions of women in the world history and even in his life or an ignorant adult, who does not know anything.” But if it was intended to be a challenge, I said to myself, that it is indeed a good question. It checks the intelligence of his girl. This article, thus is an information to those who do not know the answers (or pretend not to know) and a help from my side who would like to get answers.
I have limits, though. I can’t tell anything from the Bible or the Iliad, whose characters appear above. I am unable to provide answers related to the history and literature I do not know. I’ll try my best in providing information of the five women I have known from the history of Nepal, and Nepali, English and Sanskrit literatures.
1. Sati
I guess I had given primary information about her on my previous article. She comes back to show that hers was one of the most painful sacrifices for her love.
Sati, according to the Hindu Puranas was the daughter of Prajapati (King) Daksha and Virani. She was married to Shiva, the Lord of the Lords.
For the reasons that Shiva wandered around Kailash (his abode) on improper clothes taking narcotics, Daksha disliked Shiva. On one Yagya (a sacrificial worship) he did not invite Sati and Shiva but invited all his son-in-laws. When Sati knew of this through Sage Narad, she goes to the Yagya and quarrels with her father. He keeps humiliating Shiva, though. Unable to listen to those words, she sacrifices herself on the burning pyre set up for the Yagya. She burns slowly to death until her body is recovered by Shiva himself after a huge war against the soldiers of Daksha.
This story has been altered by Amish Tripathi in the last book of The Shiva Trilogy. Sati, the wife of Shiva, fights with Daksha, the King of Meluha because he had been using the love of her life in suppressing the poor people of other neighboring countries. When she comes to know that Daksha has planned to kill Shiva, she fights the Egyptian killers. At the end of extremely violent and gory fight, she dies. Shiva comes later to bring about the destruction of Daksha and his country.
2. Muna
Muna is a famous character from Muna Madan, an epic poem by Laxmi Prasad Devkota. The plot follows Madan going to Bhot (Tibet) while Muna awaits at home in Kantipur (old name for Kathmandu).
Madan gets ill on the way returning back home. He is stranded is about to die when a Bhote (resident of Bhot) finds him and saves his life.
At home, however Madan’s friends tell Muna that he has died. Unable to suffer the pain of loss, though false, she dies before Madan comes home. Muna and Madan reunite in the heaven, after Madan dies a few days later.
3. Rajendra Laxmi
If you talk about love and leave away the love for motherland, you are misinterpreting love. This brave woman survived the custom of Sati (I have discussed it on my earlier article) because of her child to extend the territory of Nepal.
After the death of Pratap Singh Shah, the eldest son of king Prithvi Narayan Shah, she took over the responsibility of unifying the small states into a bigger Nepal. Initially, helped by Bahadur Shah- her brother-in-law, she united the eastern states and some of the western states as well. Fighting the unhelpful courtiers and family members, she continued the campaign. By the time she died, Nepal had its eastern territory up to Sikkim and western up to the Kali Gandaki river.
4. Julia Rana
It’s just been some days I have read about her. Born in the Rana family, she was the love of Martyr Dashrath Chand.
Dashrath Chand was a friend of Dharma Bhakta Mathema (another martyr) and was employed at the home of General Rudra Shumsher. There Julia and Dashrath met and both knew sometime later that they loved each other. Rudra Shumsher had agreed upon their marriage but the wedding was cancelled twice because of the deaths in the families. Later, the then Prime Minister, Juddha Shumsher got against Rudra Shumsher and he was exiled from Kathmandu. Almost a month after the exile, Julia died of TB. It was said in that article that Dashrath Chand did the rituals a husband does at the death of his wife and her death also ignited in him the anti-Rana views.
5. Juliet Capulet
My question to the creator of that challenge is- how can you separate Juliet from Romeo? If you have read this world famous work of Shakespeare, you will know that Juliet dies not once but twice- once in a pretence to bring Romeo back and in real when he dies. The pretence is made by the use of medicine (anaesthetic?) but Romeo gets a wrong message to find her dead. So, how could you dare to say that only Romeo died for love.
That’s all from my side. But as I write, I also ask a question- what is the definition of love in that Facebook post? It surely is not only the romantic love between a man or a woman. Jesus is an example for the love of humanity. If he can be included, why not include the names of Mother Teresa and her followers, Florence Nightingale, Eleanor Roosevelt, Benajir Bhutto and so many women who have spent their lives for the care of humanity? If sacrifice is what you call love, almost all women would be included. Women have sacrificed their parent’s house and comfort, changed their surnames, given up their jobs and interests, have died everyday and yet, have smiled just for you and your family. So if your girl or wife adds her name in that list, don’t get surprised. She has given a lot of things just for your happiness.
Oh my god, this is perfect. The last paragraph especially. Thank you for this!
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Thank you so much, Meg. I felt the post on Facebook did not respect women at all. So I just let my words out in the form of this article.
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Very well written. And why does love have to be exhibited only when someone dies. Why can’t we see love in small acts of kindness that we come across everyday.
Thanks for writing this. 🙂
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Love is better exhibited when one is alive. It’s just been a trend to accept tragedies as the real love stories.
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coz its easy to love when you are alive.
its tough to love when you are dead .
chill 😛
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Awesome post, Sandeep. It isn’t just a point of view, but a factual historical presentation. Great work!
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Thank you Anand. I actually wrote this from my mind. I wonder I had the required information.
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Very well researched and very well written Sandeept. Love is love in every for that is displayed whether man or woman. I agree with Piyusha one foes not have to die to prove their love it can be shown thrown living your life too and best example for that is Mother Teresa.
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And our mothers are also such examples I guess. Thank you, Rashmi.
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Reblogged this on Mind and Life Matters and commented:
I don’t reblog as often as I would like to but some posts are just too good to not share! This article by Sandeept is one such post. Everyone who posts/comments on meaningless memes on Facebook and other social media must read this!
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Joan of Arc.
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That’s someone I need to learn about. Thank you, Lola.
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Joan of Arc was the first I thought of too!
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The Portuguese story of Dona Inês de Castro if you’re curious to look it up 😉
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Thank you, I’ll try going through the story as soon as possible.
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WOW! Rashmi good for you. Thanks for mentioning the names of the women. 🙂
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Excellent, Sandeept. A good response.
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Excellent and thoughtful. The person who wrote that only men die for love has little love to offer a woman. Maybe he’ll outgrow his silliness.
By the way, we all die for love in small bits, but we usually recover. A sort of romantic reincarnation.
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Love is the bond that keeps us alive. Romantic reincarnation is a wonderful term you have introduced.
Thank you for the comment.
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I loved this Sandeept! Thanks to Rashmi for reblogging.
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Thank you so much!
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Sandeept252, I am a fellow member of Blogger’s World out this morning to make new contacts. I checking members from there to be sure I am following; thus, I am marking your follow. Hope to see you more and I invite you to visit me also. Your response regarding the love of women is well written, and provokes much interesting comment response. I also though of Joan of Arc immediately but I acknowledge that I do not know her story very well. I’ll see you.
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It’s been months since I surfed WordPress from my computer and the network connection is getting worse. Thank you for the visit and the comment. I will be exploring more once the problem is solved.
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So many women have died for their children while protecting them or giving birth to them.
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Pingback: 100th Post: Thanks Everyone! – Stories of Sandeept
Very good post. I absolutely love this website. Keep it up!
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This is just amazing, thnks so much for this factual historical presentation, more so I think is really good for such a post to come into being so as to enable people like you come out with your intellectual
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Thank you for the comment 🙂
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It was really best explanation of this post and question i am totally agree with this.
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one common example: Most mothers in the world die for love… some die during their child’s birth, some die for the sake of their children… 🙂
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The article just resurfaced on facebook today for me, I guess because “valentines” is coming around again. I am responding to it with some help from you to respond on my instagram. Loved your response by the way.
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Thank you 🙂
Yeah, that post really annoys me.
I am glad my article helped you 🙂
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Well spoken but, why is it that women commented a lot on this???
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Wow thanks a lot.. the post was pissing me off cause it was a disrespect of women
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This post annoyed me as well. I could not stop writing this.
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incredible blog of yours that uplifts the spirit of women
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There are still a lot to enumerate here…The great epic Iliad has a vast list of characters who all died for love.. I initially thought about Joan of Arc, and there the flood of other women came rushing through my head..the guy who posted this needs to do a lot of real reading. Literature reeks of great women who died all for love..Thanks.
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I really enjoy reading your blog after work! Thanks for doing what you do!
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“juliet had dead mentally not physically
evn she could sucide ryt ?”
someone asked me this question whn we wer discussing abt this matter
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I believe almost all of the women mentioned in this article happen to be fictional characters. The post on Facebook, however demands a girl to name 5 women characters who really did exist. Even if sati did really exist, it would just add one to the count. What about the other four?
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Muna was inspired by a folklore women who long for their husbands who have gone abroad.
Rajendra Laxmi and Julia Rana are historic characters.
I would not include Juliet if there had been no mention of Romeo.
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Also Jack and Romeo are fictional, Hercules, none of the men mentioned in the Facebook post have solid historical proofs.
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Dis is a very wonderful piece. can’t help reading it over and over.
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Who is asking u to die for women’s, how many men have died because their parents died, the parents who bought u on this world and made u what u r today
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Nice post. I learn some thing very complicated on different blogs everyday. Most commonly it is stimulating you just read content off their writers and rehearse a specific thing from their website. I’d would prefer to use some while using content on my small weblog whether or not you do not mind. Natually I’ll provide you with a link on your web weblog. Appreciate your sharing.
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Thumb up for this post.
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Superrr you showed that courage to reply to his post. Hats off to you
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Thanks ☺
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Dido, Queen of Carthage killed herself when Aeneas left her to fulfil his destiny in founding Rome.
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Many (hundreds) women in India died for love, jumping into the funeral pyre of their husbands, earning a nickname Sathi. I hear even now this practice exists, but many women are forced to do it!
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Wonderful, amazing post. I loved reading it. Very well researched.
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Thank you 🙂
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