Savitribai Phule – India’s First Female Teacher

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Knowledge always demands to be spread. It is like fire which must first be kindled by someone, but afterwards will always expand itself.

Savitribai Phule

The status of women in history and even in today’s day and age, remains to be very poor. Be it in terms of the number of opportunities offered to them, the criticism and backlashed they face, or even the vast number of responsibilities dumped upon them, the female sex has always been subjected to a much worse treatment than the males. When problems of these kind continue to haunt the women of 21^th century, have you ever wondered about the kind of difficulties women would have faced two centuries ago, all the way back in the 19^th century? Allow me to offer you a glimpse into the life of one such ‘rebel’, who challenged and attacked the very core of the system upon which patriarchy survived and thrived – Savitribai Jyotirao Phule.

An artist’s representation of the legendary Savitribai Phule

3^rd January, 2021, marked the 190^th birth anniversary of Savitribai Phule. Born in the village of Naigaon, in the Satara district of Maharashtra, in 1831, Savitribai Patil belonged to the Mali community which is now recognized as a part of the Other Backward Caste (OBC). She was the eldest daughter of Lakshmi and Khandoji Nevase Patil. She was married off at the young age of 9 years to the 13-year-old Jyotirao Govindrao Phule, in-keeping with the tradition at the time of marrying off girls before they hit puberty. Savitribai Phule’s marriage is the one of the few examples of the 19^th century wherein the husband has actively advocated for the rights and education of his wife. Yet another example of such a supportive marriage is the marriage of Anandibai Joshi and Gopalrao Joshi. Anandibai went on to become India’s First Female Doctor, because of the constant encouragement and motivation she received from her spouse. The only trivial difference here, was that Savitribai and her husband Jyotiba Phule worked together for the upliftment of women and untouchables in the Indian society.

An artist’s representation of Jyotirao Phule

While people do speak greatly of Savitribai Phule, and rightly so, they tend to forget the immense impact and role that her husband Jyotiba Phule, played in her life. Having studied the Hindu scriptures in detail, Jyotiba had come to the conclusion that all humans were equal, and refused to bow down to the rules set by the upper class of the society. Jyotiba’s strong views against the caste system and other such precedents set up by the orthodox Indian society, were further amplified by what he witnessed in his daily life. He saw the heavy discrimination that the ‘untouchables’ or the ‘shudras’ faced. They were not allowed to ‘pollute’ others with their long shadows in the mornings and in the evenings, they had to tie a broom behind their backs to sweep the very street they had walked on. But, Jyotiba’s fight against the orthodox society was not only limited to the rigid caste system. He also witnessed first-hand the treatment that the widows, especially the younger ones, were subjected to – they had to shave their heads and refrain from including any form of pleasure or beautification in their life. Furthermore, he noticed that women who belonged to the ‘shudra’ caste and were also widows, suffered the most – these ‘untouchable’ women were made to dance naked as the very status of women was reduced to a pleasure-object for men.

Statues of Savitribai and Jyotirao Phule in Aurungabad, Pune

The only way out of this was education. Unfortunately, education was also seen as a taboo at the time, especially if it was a woman who was to be educated. Jyotiba Phule realised that the first step towards launching this movement, would be to start close to home. So, he decided to get his young, illiterate wife, educated. Every afternoon when Savitribai would bring lunch for her husband in the fields where he worked, Jyotiba Phule would sit her down and teach her all that he had learnt in the course of his short life. This went on for a while, till Jyotiba’s father caught whiff of this news and threatened the couple. He warned the young Jyotiba and his wife that both of them would be thrown out of the house if they did not pay heed to his warning. But, the fire of revolution was already lit and nothing could douse it. Savitribai decided to follow her husband’s steps and walked out of their relatively protected lifestyle, onto a path that nobody before her had walked upon.

A painting in the Madhubani style by artist Malvika Raj, titled ‘Mai’, celebrating the life of Savitribai Phule; Courtesy – Mint

While Savitribai completed her primary education at home, under the guidance of her husband, the responsibility of her further education was given to Jyotiba’s friends – Sakharam Yeshwant Paranjpe and Keshav Shivram Bhavalkar. Post the completion of her secondary education, Savitribai enrolled herself in teaching programs to fully prepare herself for the role she was about to assume – that of a teacher. The first institution she enrolled herself at, was an American Missionary School run by Cynthia Farrar (herself a missionary), in Ahmednagar. After moving out of Jyotiba’s father’s home, the Phule’s moved in with the family of one of Jyotiba’s friend – Usman Sheikh. Usman’s sister Fatima Begum Sheikh, soon became Savitribai’s close friend. In fact, since her brother was a friend of Jyotiba Phule, the two shared very similar views on women’s education, and this ensured that Fatima Sheikh also had the opportunity to learn to read and write. Thus, the two women, both encouraged to take up a teaching course, attended the school in Pune and graduated from it, together.

Jyotirao Phule in his later days

The Phule’s, soon after the completion of Savitribai’s education, established their own school at Bhide Wada, Pune in 1849. But even her life as a teacher wasn’t easy. When she would make her way to school, the young Savitribai would carry an extra sari with her, in fear of being pelted with stones, cow dung, rotten eggs and tomatoes. She would also be abused by the orthodox men she passed by, in an obscene language. After sometime of observing silence, Savitribai couldn’t take it anymore and responded, in Marathi, to the threats of her abusers –

Savitribai and Jyotiba Phule

“My brothers, I am doing the noble job of educating your sisters. The cow dung and stones that you are pelting on me are not a deterrent but rather an inspiration for me. It is as if you are showering petals on me. While I vow to serve my sisters, I also pray, ‘May God bless you.’”

Savitribai Phule

It was her husband who had the idea to give her an extra sari, after Savitribai approached him, tired of the abuse she was forced to face every day. He asked her not to give up, but to find a solution to the problem. So, Savitribai would wear one sari on her way to school and then change into a fresh one, upon reaching the school. On her way back home, she would don the filthy, garbage-ridden sari once again, in preparation for the junk that was going to be thrown upon her. Despite the fact that Savitribai tried for so long, to ignore the orthodox society’s bullying, things got out of hand one day. A well-built thug, once stood in front of her and blocked her way, refusing to move. He threatened her and told her that if she did not stop educating the Mahars and the Mangs (the lower caste), she would have to pay a heavy prize. A huge crowd gathered around the two to witness the drama that was unfolding, but no one came forward to help her. A furious Savitribai slapped him hard, across his face. The stunned ruffian ran away and so did the quiet onlookers. This piece of shocking news soon reached every nook and corner of the city, finally silencing Savitribai’s every-day abusers.

Jyotirao summarising Savitribai and his work in an interview given to the Christian missionary periodical, Dnyanodaya, on 15 September 1853

By 1851, the Phule’s had established 3 such schools for girl’s education, and within the next year, a total of 18 schools had been established under their name. But, women’s education and the prejudice against it, was not the only social evil that the Phule’s wished to eradicate from the Indian society. Soon enough, the couple gained recognition for their exemplary work and they decided to move ahead and step into other fields that also desperately required their attention, such as the welfare of widows. Once, in the mid-1800’s, there was a case of a widow who had been arrested for killing her child, born outside her marriage, an act that could very well have been the result of pressure from her in-laws. Many more cases like these, wherein widows were sexually exploited and then dumped on the streets to care for themselves and their unborn children, were brought to the attention of the Phule’s. In order to protect them, the couple set up several homes for them. Savitribai, also fought against the practice of the shaving of widows’ heads, by organizing a boycott against barbers. On December 25, 1873 the couple organized the wedding of a young widower with the daughter of a woman who was a close friend of Savitribai’s, without a Brahman priest. Despite the presence of vehement opposition, the Phule’s went ahead with the wedding anyway.

Bust of Savitribai Phule in Pune

On September 24, 1873, Jyotiba and Savitribai Phule established the now-famous, ‘Satyashodhak Samaj’ (Society for Truth-Seeking), in order to emancipate the ‘lower-caste’ from the clutches of the Brahmins. In 1874, the couple committed yet another ‘act of defiance’, by adopting the son of a Brahmin widow, ‘Yashwant’ in 1874. His mother was about to end her life when Jyotiba Phule rescued her. Savitribai decided to take the young Yashwant under her wing and the Phule’s opened a delivery home for women in forced pregnancies called ‘Balhatya Pratibandhak Griha’, (‘Child-killing Prohibition Home’).

Left – Savitribai Phule on a 1998 stamp of India; Right – Jyotirao Phule on a 1977 stamp of India

The Phule’s in their lifetime, established 52 boarding schools for orphans, 18 schools for girls’ education, and numerous widow welfare homes. On November 28, 1890, Jyotiba Phule passed away, aged 63. Even in his death, Savitribai Phule showed grit and challenged the societal norms by lighting her husband’s pyre making it one of the rare instances when a wife lit the funeral pyre of her husband in India. In 1896, a severe famine struck the area around Maharashtra, and Savitribai along with her son successfully lobbied with the British-Indian government and set up relief measures. It is said, that she would feed around 2000 children every day during the pandemic. In 1897, the bubonic plague struck Pune. Sadly, the trailblazer passed away on 10^th March, 1897, after contracting the disease herself while tending to a sick child. Her adoptive son, Yashwant, lit her pyre and officiated her funeral.

Aside from being India’s First Female Teacher, and working for the welfare of the backward castes and the widows, Savitribai was also the First Female Poetess of India. Her first book of poetry ‘Kavya Phule’ was published in 1834, when she was just 23-years-old. Her second book ‘Bavan Kashi Subodh Ratnakar’ was published in 1982.

Savitribai’s poem ‘Go Get Education’ in her book ‘Kavya Phule’

Gutsy, courageous, fierce – this was the life of the legendary Savitribai Phule. One of India’s first feminist icons, Savitribai was the pioneer of women’s education in India, as well as the upliftment of the oppressed and backward classes. However, the contribution of men like Jyotiba Phuleto the upliftment of women, widows and the lower castes, at a time when the upper caste clearly dominated all aspects of their daily life, must not be forgotten.

This article is a tribute to the exceptional lives of Savitribai and Jyotirao Phule.

Sources:

Savitribai Phule – Wikipedia

Jyotirao Phule – Wikipedia

How Savitribai Phule, India’s first female teacher, dealt with abusers hell bent on preventing her from educating girls – India Today

Explained: Savitribai Phule’s impact on women’s education in India – The Indian Express

The life and times of Savitribai Phule – Mint

Savitribai Phule, the revolutionary who still inspires millions – The News Minute