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A foreigner who loved India and left an ever-lasting legacy in the form of the Theosophical Society.
Annie Besant, a foreigner who loved India and left an ever-lasting legacy in the form of the Theosophical Society.
Annie Besant was born as Annie Wood in England in 1847. Having lost her dad quite early, she was acquainted with adversity from a young age. After parting ways with her husband over personal and political differences, she became an earnest champion for women’s rights and fought for several social issues. She was a powerful orator well-known for her passion and public persuasion skills.
She courted controversy by writing about the need for birth control, more so because she was a woman who dared to speak about it. She also created a furore when she helped the women working in matchstick factories protest against the inhuman and unfair treatment meted out to them.
She was always an avid traveller and arrived in India in 1893 and immediately immersed herself in working towards the betterment of society. Annie Besant was also a dedicated educationist and she founded the Central Hindu School and College in Varanasi.
Around 1913, Annie Besant also got pulled into politics and became an advocate for the Home Rule Movement. She was elected as the President of the Indian National Congress and contributed to a national awakening through her journalistic publications.
In 1907 she became the President of the Theosophical Society and held the post for over two decades, until her death in 1933. The Theosophical Society still stands in Chennai as an island of peace and harmony while Besant Nagar in Chennai is named in her memory.
Why we find her inspiring:
– For believing in her ideals and following them dedicatedly
– For her dynamic vision, positive “can do” attitude and untiring work
– For being an agent of change in both the country of her birth as well as her adopted country
– For encouraging women to speak out and fight for themselves and their rights
*Photo credit: The Theosophical Society
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Neena was the sole caregiver of Amma and though one would think that Amma was dependent on her, Neena felt otherwise.
Neena inhaled the aroma that emanated from the pan and took a deep breath. The aroma of cumin interspersed with butter transported her back to the modest kitchen in her native village. She could picture her father standing in the kitchen wearing his white crisp kurta as he made delectable concoctions for his only daughter.
Neena grew up in a home where both her parents worked together in tandem to keep the house up and running. She had a blissful childhood in her modest two-room house. The house was small but every nook and cranny gave her memories of a lifetime. Neena’s young heart imagined that her life would follow the same cheerful course. But how wrong she was!
When she was sixteen, the catastrophic clutches of destiny snatched away her parents. They passed away in a road accident and Neena was devastated. Relatives thronged her now gloomy house and soon it was decided that she should be married off.
Women today don’t want to be in a partnership that complicates their lives further. They need an equal partner with whom they can figure out life as a team, playing by each other’s strengths.
We all are familiar with that one annoying aunty who is more interested in our marital status than in the dessert counter at a wedding. But these aunties have somehow become obsolete now. Now they are replaced by men we have in our lives. Friends, family, and even work colleagues. It’s the men who are worried about why we are not saying yes to one among their clans. What is wrong with us? Aren’t we scared of dying alone? Like them?
A recent interaction with a guy friend of mine turned sour when he lectured me about how I would regret not getting married at the right time. He lectured that every event in our lives needs to be completed within a certain timeframe set by society else we are doomed. I wasn’t angry. I was just disappointed to realize that annoying aunties are rapidly doubling in our society. And they don’t just appear at weddings or family functions anymore. They are everywhere. They are the real pandemic.
Let’s examine this a little closer.
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