The more things change...

Lynn Bennett’s 1983 book explored how myths and rituals shaped gender roles in Nepali households. Forty years on, her findings remain relevant.

Why do we follow the traditions without questioning them? Why are we so staunched to uphold them? What exactly are we taught, and how do we internalise it? We barely consider the deeper beliefs or reasons behind the sanctimoniously followed customs of Brahmin and Chettri families. Many, like me, must have thought they were rooted in some mythical fable. However, reading ‘Dangerous Wives and Sacred Sisters’ changed that perspective entirely.