What is hidden behind the unspoken rule of India's poor: what is hidden behind sending beautiful girls to temples for many monks to play with at will, while girls' parents rush to send their children into the tiger's mouth?
(Source: China News Network 2009-08-28 - Indian girl is called a saint with blood and tears (picture); CCTV 2012-02-01 - Unveiling the ancient customs of saints in India: young girls become monk sex slaves (Photos))
In some remote and impoverished areas of India, there is a disturbing tradition of young girls being sent to temples by their parents to become so-called holy women, ostensibly incarnated as divines, but in reality they are reduced to the tools of temple monks to vent their desires, a practice that has a long history of causing untold suffering to countless families and women.
In the Hindu tradition, women are seen as the embodiment of the gods, and saints are considered to be the spokesmen of the gods on earth, but behind this seemingly sacred title, there is a chilling reality.
Poverty is the root cause of forcing parents to make this difficult choice, under the influence of Hindu teachings, many families regard their daughters as a burden, once the family is in distress, sending their daughters to become saints seems to be the only way out, and the young girl is separated from her family and enters a completely strange world.
The process of becoming a saint is brutal, and usually these girls come from India's poorest families, mostly around the age of 10, and are sent to temples by their families to undergo a series of rigorous screenings.
This screening process focuses not only on the physical appearance of the girls, but more importantly on their purity, and the girls must maintain a complete body without any flaws, not even a small scar is allowed, this almost harsh requirement reflects the extreme objectification and control of the female body in Indian society.
The chosen girl will go through an elaborate ritual to officially become a saint, which usually includes bathing, wearing special costumes, and a series of religious ceremonies, at the end of which the girl is declared the bride of the gods, and her life will be very different from that of ordinary girls.
The young saint undergoes a series of celebrations to swear allegiance to the gods, but beneath this sacred façade lies a chilling fate.
The monks took possession of their bodies and minds with impunity, while these girls had to endure in silence, they were not only physically traumatized, but also mentally devastated, the saints had no freedom of choice, marriage and children were extravagant, and fleeing meant breaking their vows.
As they grew older, the saints who had lost their usefulness were often expelled from the temple, and the poor women were not accepted by their families and society was prejudiced against them, leaving them with nowhere to live, but living on the streets by begging, and some even becoming prostitutes, among whom AIDS raged and tormented these helpless women.
The children born to the saints are equally unfortunate, the boys are thrown into the garbage heap, the survivors are raised in the temple, and the girls may repeat the mistakes of their mothers, one by one, born without dignity and future, a vicious circle passed down from generation to generation, and countless women are traumatized physically and mentally.
The Indian government has tried to abolish this bad practice, but with little success, the power of the law is difficult to reach people's hearts, traditional customs are deeply rooted, and the tragedy of women is still repeated.
