Loading article...
Loading article...
Stream/Area:
-
Subject:
-
Paper ID:
IJSREM66932
Volume:
10 |
8 |
Aug 2026
Pages:
1-14
Publication Frequency:
Monthly (12 issues per year)
License:International Journal of Scientific Research in Engineering and Management follows the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0) License, allowing free use and distribution with proper attribution.
School of Sciences (BCA)
KK Modi University Durg
School of Sciences
KK Modi University Durg
The cultural worship of the divine female, personified as Goddess Durga, creates an amazing ideological dichotomy in the Indian society where the mortal woman is subject of systematic oppression. In the past, ancient Indian ideas identified women as the physical manifestation of spiritual and cosmic energy, called Shakti, in culture. This symbolic worship, however, often hides a strong tradition of patriarchy that is oppressive of women's autonomy and perpetuates patriarchal dominance. An ideology of goddess worship is vastly different from the daily experience of women, who are socially stigmatised as widows, the powerful women are labelled as ‘witches', and safety for women is defined as having strict patriarchal control over them. This paper will examine the relationship between mythological worship and earthly outcast. It goes to argue that the traditional provision of safety by males is fundamentally problematic, because it depends on the restriction of behavior, not on individual autonomy. The ideology of protection and empowerment of Goddess Durga can be realized through the use of a modern feminist approach in Indian society, where the mythological characters are not subjugated but given the opportunity to act independently. This study suggests that just as with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5, a rights-based approach toward gender justice must be meshed with the veneration of myths, otherwise it cannot be realized.
KEYWORDS
Goddess Durga's overall concept depicts a very strong and independent, intellectually powerful and ferocious Goddess. As the present comprehensive review has shown, there exists a vicious dichotomy in Indian society that while it celebrates women's power in a mythological fashion, it actively disempower, restrict and marginalise women in real life on earth (Jasvi, 2021; McDaniel, 2023). The original idea of women safety in the early Vedic times, which was an egalitarian society, was marred by institutionalized patriarchy in the later Vedic times (Aich, 2025). It redefined safety as a very strict system of male guardianship, and women are left with 100% of safety and vulnerability when they lose male protection, which is evident in the socially marginalised status of widows and the socio-economic precarity of Dalit and working women (Barot & Parmar, 2024; Dixit & Yadav, 2026). Such traditional, limiting and restrictive notions of patriarchy must be discarded and categorically rejected from the society to actualise the real protective and empowering ideology of Goddess Durga in the contemporary world. The transition to a rights-based approach is an immediate need to achieve the global target of Sustainable Development Goal 5, which is to ensure women's constitutional equality, economic independence and absolute bodily autonomy (Kumar & Saran, 2026). As seen in modern feminist literature and changing perspectives from different generations, it is an essential step in the sociological process to reimagine a mythological narrative, ultimately transforming it in the process (Poddar, 2026; Sharma, 2024). The celebration of women as intellectual leaders, independent decision makers and warriors in their own right, without being bound by the pigeonhole of subservient roles, is the long overdue chance at rectifying the ancient reverence of the divine feminine with the pressing need of gender justice that Indian society has been facing for centuries (Sharma, 2024). It is only in this multi-faceted feminist approach with the understanding of rights that the power of Goddess Durga can be rendered in true and undeniable protection, dignity and equality for all women.
Aich, S. (2025). "Did Indian women in ancient India enjoy equal freedom and status in every aspect compared to men?". International Journal on Science and Technology (IJSAT), 16(3), 1–7. Barot, T., & Parmar, C. (2024). Responsibilities and challenges faced by widow women: A sociolwork study. ShodhKosh: Journal of Visual and Performing Arts, 5(7), 166–174. https://doi.org/10.29121/shodhkosh.v5.17.2024.2218 Beauvoir, S. de. (1949). The second sex. Vintage Books. Begum, M., & Mukherjee, A. (2026). From roots to glamor: Gendered transformations of adapted folk songs in contemporary Bollywood. Frontiers in Sociology, 11, 1747205. https://doi.org/10.3389/fsoc.2026.1747205 Buhler, G. (Trans.). (1886). The laws of Manu (Sacred Books of the East, Vol. 25). Oxford University Press. Butler, J. (1990). Gender trouble: Feminism and the subversion of identity. Routledge. Carrin, M. (2018). Children of the goddess: Devotion and female priesthood in Bengal. Primus Books. Chakravarti, U. (2003). Gendering caste: Through a feminist lens. Stree Publishers. Chaudhuri, A. B. (1987). The Santals: Religion and rituals. Ashish Publishing House. Dixit, P., & Yadav, V. (2026). A systematic review of empirical research on gender inequality and women's empowerment in India. Discover Sustainability. https://doi.org/10.1007/s43621-026-03125-9 Jasvi, M. A. (2021). Social status of a woman in Hinduism and reason for abusive attitude of Hindus towards women in India. International Journal of Science, Technology and Society, 9(5), 216–221. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijsts.20210905.12 Jha, A. (2024). Women as custodians of folk art traditions in India: Gendered narratives and cultural continuities in context to Madhubani art of Bihar. ShodhKosh: Journal of Visual and Performing Arts, 5(7), 1669–1675. https://doi.org/10.29121/shodhkosh.v5.17.2024.6279
Publication Date
8/25/2026
Peer Review Type
Double-Blind Peer Review
Review Rounds: 2
Documents
Article Views
3
Total views since publication
PDF Downloads
2
Total downloads since publication
Geographic Reach
5
Digital Preservation: This article is permanently archived on Zenodo and complies with all data preservation standards across major indexing platforms.
Plagiarism Screening
This manuscript has been checked for plagiarism using TurnitinPlagiarismChecker software.
Conflict of Interest
The authors declare no conflict of interest related to this research work.
Funding Information
No funding information available for this research.
Related research in the same subject area
Loading similar articles...