Manusmriti enters NCERT's new Class 9 textbook; quoted on respect for women

The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has included a verse from the Manu-smriti in its newly introduced Class 9 Social Science textbook to explain that women were accorded respect during the Vedic period.

However, the book also says that the position of women did not remain the same and "fluctuated, even declined" over time.The Manusmriti has remained controversial for years. Many critics say it justified social inequality, while others defend it as part of India's civilisational heritage and say its teachings are often misunderstood.In the NCERT book, in chapter State and Society up to 1000 CE, the textbook says the Vedic period is "often described as a period during which women held a high and respectful position in society".

It states that women took part in scholarly learning, performed rituals alongside men in certain situations, attended public gatherings and that several hymns in the Rig Veda are traditionally attributed to women sages such as Apala, Visvavara, Ghosha and Lopamudra.The textbook adds that the tradition of respecting women continued in texts written after the Vedic period. It then quotes Manu-smriti 3.56, which says: "Where women, verily, are honoured, there gods rejoice; where, however, they are not honoured, there all sacred rites prove fruitless."

Soon after citing the verse, the textbook says women's status changed over time. It states, "Over time, the position and roles of women fluctuated, even declined, as social and political conditions changed. However, there are many examples of women continuing to contribute to household management, agriculture, crafts, and religious practices."The chapter also gives examples from later periods. It says literary works from the Gupta-Vakataka period describe educated women skilled in the arts and mentions queens who played important roles in governance and religious patronage.

It refers to Prabhavati Gupta, who ruled as regent of the Vakataka kingdom, and also highlights women mentioned in Sangam literature as active participants in society and the economy.The textbook also revisits the concepts of varna and jati. It says early Vedic society did not assign social status solely on the basis of birth. According to the book, social identity was shaped by several factors, including ethnicity, region, language, occupation and cultural relationships.To support this, it cites a hymn from the Rig Veda: "I am a poet; my father is a physician; my mother is a grinder of corn." The textbook says this points to occupational diversity within the same family.It further explains that the four varnas gradually became linked to specific roles but were originally conceived as functional categories rather than rigid divisions. "Thus, the concept of varna was based on a system of values in which knowledge was given the highest status, followed by political power and wealth," the textbook says.The chapter also quotes the Buddhist Sutta Nipata, stating: "No outcaste is such by birth but only by his deeds. A brahmana is such by his deeds."According to the textbook, the jati system later developed through intermarriage among communities, endogamy and territorial differences. It adds that while the number of varnas remained fixed at four, there was no limit on the number of jatis, which continued to increase as new occupations and social groups emerged.The book also says that varna and jati "were not always rigid social categories" and cites examples of rulers from different social backgrounds and evidence of occupational mobility from later inscriptions.