Pativrata

Pativrata is a term used in Hindu traditions to refer to a married woman who is loyal to her husband.

Pativrata literally means a woman who has made a vow (vrat) to her husband (Pati) of her devotion and protection. The belief is that if a wife is devoted to her husband and protects him, then he will prosper and will bring good fortune to her and their family. If not, then there might be misfortune and death. A pativrata protects her husband in two ways. Firstly, she attends to his personal needs and encourages him to do his duty (dharma). Secondly, she undertakes various rituals and fasts to please the deities, hoping that the Gods will protect her husband from harm and grant him a long life.^[1] Sati is often used as a synonym for a pativrata -one who preserves her purity (sattva)- physically, mentally and emotionally. It is also used to denote a woman who immolates herself on the funeral pyre of her death husband.^[2] Brahaspati, a law-giver who lived between 300 and 500 A.D — “She is someone whose state of mind reflects that of her husband. She shares his distress, his delight, grows sickly and dresses unattractively in his absence, and dies when he does.”

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