Our Honour is Greater Than Our “Purity”

Trigger warning: Rape, abuse, and violence

Patriarchy always has very strong roots in South Asian culture. A lot of the times, womxn are not encouraged to enjoy their bodies or to even feel comfortable in their skin. A massive amount of emphasis is put on a womxn being a virgin or “untouched,” thereby placing her “honour” in her virginity.

We also find evidence of “honour” being placed in virginity from Bollywood. Back in the day, the term abhla naari (weak woman) was used to describe heroines who were captured them or raped by villains, only for the heroes to save them.

But why are we abhla? Why are we the weaker sex?

The current scenario for the safety of womxn is terrible. It is shocking to see the amount of violence they are subjected to.

“My Honour” ponders on these evils and emphasizes how crimes against womxn are rapidly increasing while society is more concerned about the honour between their legs.

[Read Related: Reclaiming my Sexuality After Assault]

My Honour

My honour was kept between my legs
And for years it led to matters of unrest.

It wasn’t a place for me to see,
It wasn’t a place to even be seen.

“He who shall circle around the fires with you,
Would be commanded by the gods to discover you”

Years have passed and fires burnt out the land is still barren,
until my fingers were found.

I let out a sigh, I let out a moan
While the patriarchy looks at me as their secrets, I unfold

“Your body is a temple, respect it”
Well I am a Hindu and “Gita” states “to please the gods that reside within it”

“But this is a sin”

My Sins are termed bigger than Rape,
My Sins are termed bigger than the innocent womxn the society has framed.

They bow in front of Ganga, while another Rapist is set free,
They bow in front of Ganga while another womxn is burnt, and the assaulters yet again set free.

I stand there shouting on the top of my lungs, yet my voice doesn’t qualify their “checks”
It’s then when I realize that the biggest matter will always be the relationship of my fingers and the space between my legs.

[Read Related: Why Aren’t More Womxn Having Orgasms?]

The opinions expressed by the guest writer/blogger and those providing comments are theirs alone and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Brown Girl Magazine, Inc., or any employee thereof. Brown Girl Magazine is not responsible for the accuracy of any of the information supplied by the guest writer/bloggers. This work is the opinion of the blogger. It is not the intention of Brown Girl Magazine to malign any religion, ethnic group, club, organization, company, or individual. If you’d like to submit a guest post, please follow the guidelines we’ve set forth here.