By Sunil Kumar
Wonderful, eloquent and comprehensive work by Arundhathi Subramaniam. Liked her response to my questions and the appreciation displayed, which prompted me to explore more of her work. Glad that I read this. Profound in places, it has enhanced my understanding of the sacred feminine through different perspectives.
My only gripe with such new-age feminist retellings is the blanket disregard for the sufferings of minorities in our neighbouring countries that can be loosely referred to as the ‘Indian Subcontinent’. Merely ignoring and obfuscating atrocities in Pakistan or Bangladesh because the people suffering do not belong to the currently ‘cool’ cause to identify with me smacks of cowardice even from feminists who seek to reclaim lost ground and pronounce the power and compassion of a subtler, more womanly approach in global politics or the contemporary gender dynamic.
Along with the gentler goddess of learning Saraswati, we also have the dark and fierce Kali that took on Raktabija when all the men had failed. The divine feminine also means engagement with the world, not merely wooly-headed mysticism. Transcendence and immanence in the service of Dharma. Shivaji, Rana Pratap and Gobind Singh would agree as they were all worshippers of Shakti in some form or the other.
The sheer amount of research, erudition, eloquence and thougtful curation makes this book worth reading.
