Women in the Puranas

Contents Preface vii Acknowledgement ix Puranas: A Brief Survey xi Part-I Status of Women 3-21 Women in Family, Women as Mother, Women as Daughter, Women as Wife, Woman's Beauty, Women as Divinities, Women as Embodiment of Virtues, Appellations of Women, Marrige 22-31 Forms of Marriage, Polygamy and Polyandry, Some Rituals of Marriage Education of Women 32-38 Part-II Some Noteworthy Characteristics of the Legendary Women 41-44 Aditi 45-48 Anasuya 49-53 Arundhati 54-59 Asokasundari 60-64 Asrubindumati (Daughter of Cupid) 65-67 Candramati or Saibya or Taramati (Wife of king Hariscandra) 68-73 Citralekha 74-75 Damayanti 76-88 Devahuti 8997 Gayatri and Savitri (Consorts of Brahma and the Mantra) 98-103 Ila 106 Indrasena 107-108 Jayanti 107-108 Kantimati 109-112 Lilavati 115-120 Madalasa 121 Mangala 122-123 Padmavati (Wife of Vaisya) 122-123 Padmavati (Wife of Ugrasena) 124-125 Rukmini 126-130 Sati 131-135 Savitri (The Wife of Satyavan) 136-141 Saivya 142-145 Sita 146-157 Sudeva 158-159 Sukala 160-164 Sukanya 165-170 Sumana 171-174 Sunitha 175-176 Suniti 177-178 Uma, Parvati, Durga 179-185 Urvasi-The Celestial Woman 186-188 Vira 189-191 Conclusion 19-195