Women’s empowerment today has simply become a display of how women can also do what men can and that if they can do it then they should be given equal importance and respect as men. This concept does make sense, but partially. First, the difference between a male and a female exists only on a biological level. Beyond that, everything is the same, which includes their potential as well. Thousands of years ago, when there was no technology, and labor prevailed as the source of income, it was natural that men stepped out of the house for work, fueling the survival process while women managed household chores, taking care of ambiance and making sure it was worth living in. But, over the years, somewhere this role of women has come to be seen as a menial one compared with the other technical jobs that they now are efficient in.
One must understand that nurturing a baby is such a tremendous task. It is a minimum 20-year investment. That’s no joke at all. There’s a difference between a human and an animal. A newborn puppy takes hardly a minute to take its first steps. It can grow on the streets as well. It does not require special attention. But that’s not the case with a human baby. It needs a certain level of care and attention or else it will die. In addition, cooking, managing household chores and maintaining a certain level of atmosphere in the house are all vital for human well-being. We are underestimating these jobs of a woman. Why? Is it because it’s not a professional one or because there is no pay scale associated with it?
In the nature of life, there is masculinity and femininity associated with every human. One should carefully note that Masculine and Feminine is not being Male and Female respectively. Feminine refers to the more gentle, beautiful, aesthetic and subtler aspects of life while masculine refers to the more formal nature of providing and surviving aspects of life. Adiyogi – the originator of yoga and who is considered the first enlightened man on the planet—has all his images depicted as a half male and half female, signifying the importance of possessing a perfect and equal combination of the masculine and the feminine natures. Every woman is as capable as a man to be masculine and every man is as capable as a woman to be feminine.
But over the last decade, economic well-being has become the only important thing on this planet. When such is the case, why wouldn’t the masculine nature of humans be at the top? Masculine ideals are becoming the most important ideals. Hence, survival has become the only aim. The wrong perception of “masculine is powerful and masculine is the right thing” has seeped into society so deeply that working, achieving, and providing have become the meaning of life. Society considers feminine nature as a weakness. Without the ambiance of femininity around masculinity, masculinity’s survival is meaningless. The rape culture across the world is also a consequence of the lack of understanding of this fact. The physical prowess that masculinity brings with itself has been misjudged and misused, resulting in sexual assaults on women. But unfortunately, this movement of empowering women across the globe is heading towards being more masculine.
Hence, for every individual, it’s important to have the right balance of masculine and feminine qualities. And with this realization, the movement of women’s equality will take an easier and a faster route as I believe that the best way of achieving women’s empowerment is by realizing the importance of what feminine energy is capable of and how deep-rooted it should be within every individual—along with the masculine.
