Social Scientist

Ganikas in Early India: Its Genesis and Dimensions

Author(s): Monika Saxena
Source: Social Scientist, Vol. 34, No. 11/12 (Nov. - Dec., 2006), pp. 2-17
Published by: Social Scientist
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/27644180
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Ganikas in Early India: Its Genesis and
Dimensions
rd
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M
Q Women are regarded as 'silent voices of history', perhaps, because
y~ women had little or nothing to do with its creation. What we get,
therefore, is a self-perception of women with regard to their social self
rather than a social construction of their individual identity. But as
women have been subordinated and oppressed in the past, standard
interpretative frameworks and methodologies have not always been
useful for the analysis of their role. The gaps are so many and the
evidence is so varied that no clear or sequential narratives can emerge.
However, this need not return us to either a theory of changelessness or
one of fragmentation. It is not their total invisibility as subjects of
history that we need to take cognizance of, what is equally urgent is to
remove some of these layers before we begin to restore their history to
them.1 Gender relations in historical societies within the overarching
frame of patriarchy are inevitably becoming a focus of the social history
of such societies.2
The domestic sphere has often been regarded as the valid location
for historical research on the problematic issues regarding women and
their social status in early India. However, the subordination and
confinement of women was not limited to the domestic sphere. Even the
'public sphere' was a confined space for women, be it in temples, in
visual arts (representations), in performing arts (music and dance) and
physical pleasure (prostitution). Women were given a secondary
position even when their lives were not directly dominated by men. The
public space offered to them by society was in strictly defined
parameters.
Despite incessant debates, flurry of writings on 'gender relations'
whether in a post-modernist or a subaltern scenario, the basic question
about a women's place in a 'public arena' continues to incite scholars in
more ways than one. Apart from the queen, if any other category has
received considerable attention of scholars exploring early India, it is
that of the courtesan setting her apart from the 'family woman'.
According to Kirit K. Shah, she was a woman without a family in the
recognized sense of the term with neither paternal ties nor affinal ones,
and yet, she had her own familial world.
The present article proposes to talk about (i) ganikas in early India,
the ironies and paradoxes that exist in the perception regarding the class

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 Ganikas in Early India

o?ganika and that of prostitution; (ii) it also attempts to present an analysis of 3

the major trends on the history of prostitution within the broader framework of 3
ancient Indian society. S~
en
eu
Women as Chattel X
Since ancient times a patriarchal framework dominated w
cultural space, women tended to be under the protection of males w
were qualified to represent the family in the material and spiritual sph
as mistresses of the household they were excluded from participatin
equal footing with men. This provided the sastric motivation for dec
women to be non-sharers and women could be co-partners.3 The
reference that we have of the bracketing of women and sudras appear
Satapatha Brahmana where it was held that a woman, a sudra and a cow
embodiments of untruth, sin and darkness.
Whereas women in the Rgvedic age enjoyed relative freedom
subsequent period of the Smrits and Puranas, they were reduced to v
complete subservience, they were bracketed along with the sudras and
individual property.4 Women in the early Vedic period could partici
chariot races5 and take an active part in the proceedings of the assem
sabha and vidhatha.6 During the early Vedic period women were also e
various economic pursuits as indicated by the occurrence of terms suc
(female weaver), pesaskarf (female embroider), bidalkarf (female spli
bamboos) and upalapraksini10 (women corn-grinder). In such a socio-e
order, women naturally enjoyed some degree of social status.11
With transformations in the institutions of marriage, yajna,
widowhood, caste structure etc., there was a corresponding chang
position of women. From being active producers, the role of women
have been restricted to procreation, or at best, meeting family obligat
occurrence of terms like stri, yosa and jaya suggest their increasing depen
the male counterparts. There were even controls on women's sexuality
chastity was sought to be strictly guarded by placing them under the sur
of some male member, be it the father, husband or son. Nur Yalman ar
a fundamental principle of Hindu Social organization was to construc
structure to preserve land, women and ritual quality within it.12 A girl bo
family was no longer an occasion of celebration and dowry became a m
serious concern. Various terms have been used for dowry kanyad
haranam, yautakam13 etc. The position of women within the family m
been comparatively better but there is not a single hint in which a d
female child is expressed. The crucial place occupied by the wife in t
system of perpetuating the social order and enabling men to get imm
through their sons is explicitly articulated by Manu: 'The production

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 Social Scientist

o the nurture ofthose born, and the daily life of men, of these matters the wife is
cvi visibly the cause.depend on the wife alone' (IX. 26-27). While on the one
oj hand whereas the wife was constructed as an instrument of procreation, on the
cz other, educational deprivation of women lowered her ritual status and placed
u her at par with sudras.14
? The lowering of the status of women and the social construction of women
c? being the 'property of men' is not entirely unconnected with the question of
cz prostitution. Implicit in these arguments is an understanding of women being
> restricted spatially, economically and ideologically to their own domain.15
Z Promiscuity in the case of women came to be severely condemned though men
?n could enjoy a great deal of sexual permissiveness in the form of polygamy and
? prostitution. An aspect of patriarchal arrangements that accompanies the
^ structures of reproduction in any society is the institution of prostitution.
-5 Prostitution, known as the world's oldest profession came to be recorded
throughout history. While this is undoubtedly true it does not explain under
what conditions and exactly at what point of time it became institutionalized in
> a given society. We have no way of knowing how and when prostitution arose as
a recognizable profession in the ancient society. The problem still remains to
identify factors that led women into prostitution. Historical inquiry is hampered
by limited information available on certain aspects of these women's family life.
Still, it might be helpful to focus on one striking feature i.e., their social origins.
Stress has been laid on the broken family background which, it is felt, rendered
them economically vulnerable. Unable to cope with the circumstances of life they
found their way into the 'market'. It becomes important to consider the levels of
subordination and therefore extremely limited opportunities available to
working-class women. What also needs to be considered is the consistent
undervaluing of daughters by society, their financial exploitation and the
constraints placed upon them. Their personal histories need to be placed in a
larger social and economic framework in order to look at the various
environments facilitating their entry into this profession. There are many
variations within prostitution, especially in early social formations, which
include ritual prostitution associated with the temple or with sacral duties like the
devadasi system which appears prominently in South India.
The growing number of studies on prostitution is making up for the years of
neglect, or rather the avoiding of what had seemed to some historians as a
frivolous topic of research. There is in fact no single model for the analysis of
prostitution with moral, demographic, commercial and social dimensions.16
Despite the age-old opprobrium attached to the profession, there is a curiosity
about how Indian society viewed it through the ages. There are various myths
and legends regarding the origin of prostitution. By making women and
a property as one of the underlying themes of our enquiry, this paper attempts to

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 Ganikas in Early India

point out that how women were placed under subordination and what -?
mechanisms were adopted for their oppression. Gerda Lerner's The Creation of 3
Patriarchy has been a pioneering work in the study of gender stratification. pl>
Lerner recognized the fact whereas women seemed to have belonged to different <?>
classes, and often enjoyed economic independence, their sexuality was q
nevertheless controlled by men. The concept of women as chattel or a pj
commodity for a man's enjoyment is borne out by the inclusion of women -
pretty and young - in large numbers in any list of gifts given to priests in return
for dana or daksina. Women were pawned, lost or gained in battles, given as gifts
at sacrifices and weddings and must have been relegated to the position of slaves
and chattels in palaces and rich households.17 Such gifts were given to the priests
or chiefs and women were regarded as inanimate 'objects of enjoyment'. This
prepares the ground for viewing the institution of prostitution in social terms
rather than as the inevitable outcome of the 'promiscuous nature' of either men
or women. Kautilya states that courtesans were either born as prostitutes'
daughters, were purchased, captured in war or were women who had been
punished for adultery.18
Gradually there arose a section of women who on account of extreme
poverty, disturbed married life, or being given as gifts in religious/secular events
or other social pressures were violated, abducted or forcibly enjoyed and were
denied an honourable status in society. Such women may have been forced to
adopt prostitution as a profession.19 Girls of poor families were sold and became
prostitutes and there is mention of the display of daughters.20 In the Rgveda
reference is made to brotherless girls who wished to take up this profession
because they had no proper protection.21
Women taking up this profession had to be sure of an independent
livelihood and had to depend on clients to make it a viable proposition. A section
of girls had to adopt this profession because their mothers earned their
livelihood by way of prostitution.
Though in most historical explanations the place of women within the
family as also her divinity is the subject of discussion, there is a tendency in
research to also see women as a class in themselves. Recent decades have
witnessed a growing interest in the ganikas, a term often used for the prostitute in
ancient Indian literature. Studies of ganikas still have not received adequate
visibility in studies on history and gender relations. While the possibility and the
need for wide ranging surveys and studies are obvious, this paper is an attempt
to fill this gap by analysing the data available in works like Vatsyayana's
Kamasutra22, Sudraka's Mrichchhkatika23 and Damodaragupta's Kuttanimata24.
The time period suggested by these textual sources would be A.D. 100 to A.D.
800. The composition and compilation of most of these works were evidently a
part of a complex process connected to particular representations of human c

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 Social Scientist

o lives present in the trivarga consisting of dharma, artha and kama. Hence all these
cn texts should be located within a specific socio-political context. The Kamasutra is
cQ directly related with the construction of nagaraka (citizen) who is expected to be
c: 'cultured' and 'prosperous'. Damodaragupta in Kuttanimata shows
u Bhattaputras (officer's sons), rajasutas (feudal princes) and the religious
Q acharyas as the patrons. The nagaraka ethos was missing.
oj In terms of chronology the Kamasutra has been placed between the 2nd and
cz the 4th century A.D. It refers to virtually all the regions of the country and as such
> is difficult to localize, although, given its geographical position, it is likely that it
Z pertains to northern India. The chapter on courtesans which is in six Adhyayas
cn and twelve Prakarans emphasizes the behaviour of a compliant courtesan, ways
? of obtaining money, pecuniary gain and other considerations. The date and the
authorship of Mrichchhakatika has not been fixed with accuracy. However, in all
2 probability it seems to be a product of the fifth century A.D. It is a drama in ten
acts based on the story of the love of Charudatta, a prominent inhabitant of
Ujjayani and Vasantasena, a beautiful but a pure minded ganika of the same city.
> Among the literary works of the post-Gupta period, the Kuttanimata by
Damodaragupta is particularly rich in information related to eroticism (8th -
9th Century A.D.). As indicated by the title, the poem aims at exposing the whole
craft of prostitution in the form of the advice of an experienced bawd (kuttani)
to a courtesan, and from this point of view it occupies a unique place in the whole
range of Sanskrit literature highlighting the social climate of the period.
Various terms varangana, varastri, varavadhu, panyastri signify that some
women were not the responsibility of any one person and that their favours
could be bought with money. This means 'pleasure outside home' had to be paid
for, hence prostitution had to be institutionalized. Varangana has its roots in
vara i.e., group, clan and gateway. The synonyms used, varvilasini, varsundari,
varvani, etc., are indicative of the status of a ganika.
Against this background we can locate and explore possible linkages between
the ganika by suggesting a link between prostitution and urbanism. Professional
prostitution presupposes an economic condition in which surplus was produced
though agriculture, trade and commerce. It also presupposes the rise of petty
principalities, the breakdown of tribal society, the rise of the joint or extended
family and the social subjugation of women in general. In a settled agricultural
community, the woman gradually lost social mobility and a measure of freedom
that she had been enjoying. Therefore, instead of looking at this class of
prostitutes in isolation, emphasis, should be given to the socio-economic nexus
in which this institution was embedded. It is likely that all these developments
generated pressures for regulating social intercourse. Most of the texts,
Vatsyayana's Kamasutra, Sudraka's Mrichchhkatika and Damodaragupta's
z Kuttanimata reveal to us some of the channels through which women came into

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 Ganikas in Early India

prostitution. More specifically a study of these texts also leads to an investigation J?

of the meaning of the term ganika. The terms ganika and vesya have even been 2
used as synonyms in scholarly works. However, our study of the usage of these ST
terms shows that there was a clear difference between a ganika and a prostitute. ff
It does not seem to be fair to call an accomplished woman like a ganika a mere ^
prostitute and therefore a distinction has to be made. What we wish to point out 3
is that a section of women were psychologically free from the hold of patriarchal
norms as enshrined in classical and legal literature.

Nomenclature
It needs to be borne in mind that before the term ganika came into usage, it
went through centuries of transformation both literally and conceptually. There
were other terms used synonymously with ganika but the proliferation of
different terms is also connected to the difference in the constituents of their
status. In Sanskrit works, we can find numerous examples of the use of the word
ganika. It is also frequently used with other synonyms. It is not possible to quote
all of them but a few of them could be referred to. In early literature we find
abundant references to secular prostitutes, dancers and courtesans. Secular
prostitution as against temple dancer or devadasi cult dates back from the time
of the Rg veda where the term nrtu25 occurs denoting a female 'dancer'. In the
Rgveda the bright Maruts (storm gods) are said to have become associated with
the young lightning just as men became associated with young courtesans.26 The
earliest mention of this class of women occurs in the Rgveda where vra,27 a female
elephant denotes the same as ganika. In early Vedic literature we hear of the
women of easy virtues, of wives having illicit love affairs. But clearly, by the later
Vedic period a regularized form of prostitution became more prominent. The
Vajasaneyi Samhita28 seems to regard prostitution as a profession.
In the Mahabharata and Ramayana, both the word ganika and vesya are
used for prostitutes. In the Udyog parva, Yudhisthira sends greetings to the
vesyas of the Kauravas. Courtesans are described as going out to welcome Krsna
when he came on a mission of peace to the Kaurava court.29
The Dharmasastras look down upon prostitutes. The Smrits30 make thieves
and other criminals the constant companions of public women. In almost all the
Smrtis, decent people are forbidden from partaking food cooked by a ganika and
gana. Manu associates the gana and the ganika in one verse saying that food
offered by both maybe refused by brahmanas.31 The Smritis however are more
concerned with the social and legal position of the ganikas while most Puranas
condemn them.32 We get several references to courtesans like kalayani, kamini,
varastri, vesya etc. in the Puranas.33 The Puranas lay down that the woman who
attached body and soul to one husband is called pativrata, one who lends herself
to two paramours is a kulata, to three is a dharsini, to four is a pungschalee and j

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 Social Scientist

o the one attached to five is branded as a vesya. The wo

cN more than five people is a yungi and above that she
v Notwithstanding the normative injunctions in the
cz discussed so far, ganika continued through the early
u7 into early medieval times.
CD
Q The position of ganikas as depicted in Buddhist and Jain literature is
oj different from the one found in Brahmnical sources. In the Jatakas,35 the word
c: ganika, is very often used. The ganikas were called nagara-sobhani or
> nagaramandana (ornaments of the city), literally meaning those who rendered
Z the town beautiful. This was a matter of pride for its citizens. The Jatakas
cN mention vannadasi, vesi, muhuttia and janapadakalyani in the sense of the mot
-1 beautiful women. The Khantivada Jataka mentions four branches of music and
^ dancing constituting a part of royal entertainment, i.e., gita, vadya, nrtta and
-2 natya36 (gita-vadita nacchesu ceka nattakitthiyo gitadini payojayimsu). These
xi dancers are described as accomplished in music and dance ( naccagita vadita
?n
kusala or nacagita vadita kusala).37
> In the Jain literature too, a ganikas' position was highly respected by kings
and she was considered a 'jewel' of their capital. Almost all big towns had a chief
courtesan. The ganika was originally a woman accessible to all members of the
gana, the accessibility being measured by the ability to pay her charges
(professional fee). The fact that a vesya is different from a ganika is clear from
such references as vesica, ganikayo ca, vesis and ganikas,38 i.e., a vesya lived by
selling her physical charms and had no cultural accomplishments as such.
Amongst the secular works, if we study the provisions of the Arthasastra, we
learn that a woman, if pretty and accomplished - rupa-yauvana-sila-sampana -
received a fixed sum of money from the king as her 'installation' expenses, so that
she could set up herself as a ganika.39 Kautilya uses the words ganika, dasi,
rupadasi, kumari, vesya. Vesya in the Arthasastra is a generic term for all kinds of
prostitutes. Kautilya has provided for a superintendent of brothels
(ganikadhyaksa).40 We known from the Arthasastra that the art of dance was
taking a definite form and natacaryas were given the responsibility of training
courtesans.
Vatsyayana gives a list of women of'easy virtue' whom he includes among
prostitutes. They are kumbhadasi, kulata, svarini, nati, silpakarika, rupajiva, and
ganika. Vatsyayana says that all these women formed different types of
prostitutes.41 Vesyavisesah and ganika was the highest in the rank of prostitutes.
Vasantasena, the heroine of Sudraka's Mrichchhkatika can be used as the best
example of an idealised ganika literally called the 'mistress of youth'.42
However, from the eight century onward the institution of ganika
underwent a change. Like the Kamasutra, the Kuttanimata of Damodaragupta
o amply reflects prostitution and refers to vesya, aniyapumsa, sula, cetika, jivika

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 Ganikas in Early India

etc.43 The text in particular furnishes a lot of evidence on the general 31

characteristics of courtesans, their 'greed' for money and the risk involved in 3.
consorting with them. By the early medieval period the decline in the position of S~
the trading class also meant a decline in the institution of the ganika. As a ff
consequence of the donations to the temple, it is possible that the qanikas may ^
have been maintained by the temples. In keeping with the growth in prostitution 2
the number of synonyms for prostitutes also grew. Hemachandra in
Abhidhanacitamani gives the following names for a prostitute, sadharanastri,
ganika, vesya, panyangara, bhujisya, lanjika, varavadhu, varamukhya. Halayudh
in Abhidhanaratnamata enumerates ksudra, rupajiva, vesya, qankia and
panangana. Amarsimha in Amarakosa mentions jana, varastri, ganika,
rupajiva.44 The Rajatarangini of Kalhana (Eleventh Century A.D), and
Kathasaritasagra of Somadeva (tenth to twelfth centuries A.D.), etc. give detailed
references to them.45 One of the later texts - Hammira Mahakavya of
Nayachandra Suri - refers to dancing girls from Gujarat having being sent to
Persia. It may be speculated that they may have been associated with
professional dances in the court or the temple. It also mentions that large
revenues were 'squandered' on musicians and dancers.46 However, in all the
sources the word ganika always denotes the highest class of courtesan who
entertained her lovers by the knowledge of fine arts. These numerous synonyms
only testify to the widespread presence of this class through the ages.
The rupajiva was not accomplished like the ganika and lived on her beauty
and charm. The rupadasi like the vannadasi was unaccomplished and
entertained customers and wealthy men. It is clear that only a ganika like the
geishas of Japan were trained in various arts and were partonised by the royal
courts.

Socio-economic status
The position and status that the ganikas enjoyed in ancient Indian society is
an interesting study. It has to be pointed out that the source material available
from Kamasutra, Mrichchhakatika and Kuttanimata is not concerned about
moral condemnation of the system. Rather is its specially imperative to analyse
how this system operated in the social milieu of the times. In this period,
spanning approximately eight centuries, the status of the ganika must be seen
against a dynamic socio-economic backdrop.
A ganika was a social celebrity because of her intellectual and artistic
accomplishments. As townships and cities arose and maritime trade flourished,
towns and cities became centres housing prostitutes, attracting money from
travellers. They are recorded to have lived in capital cities and large commercial
centres such as Ujjain, Vaisali, Varanasi, Pataliputra. These mercantile centres
boasted of rich merchants who spent millions in maintaining their splendid q

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 Social Scientist

o establishments and patronizing ganikas well-versed in the art of eroticism. A

cN ganika was supposed to cultivate her mind through sastraprahatabuddih.47
(? Vatsyayana very clearly lays down that it is only when a 'courtesan is well versed
~? in both the series of sixty four arts or kalas enumerated by him, whose conduct
u is marked by respect to superiors, who possesses strength of mind and tenacity
? of purpose, punctuated with a sense of delicacy and smoothness in temper that
^ she acquires the designation of ganika and receives a seat of honour in the
c: assemblies of men.' In a 6th century A.D. Jain work we have an exhaustive list of
> a ganika's attainment according to which altogether seventy two arts and
Z sciences were to be mastered by her called vaisikatanra.48 It is said that in order to
rN learn these arts people from different places approached a ganika. Instruction in
? these arts were not confined to ganikas alone but formed an integral part of
liberal education imparted to princes, princesses, bankers and merchants visiting
2 ganikas regularly to enjoy their pleasant and refined company. Ganikas also
^ provided
CO an intellectual forum for educated clients.
_ The artistic and literary accomplishments possessed by ganika coul
> attained by a girl who was married and had to manage a household. W
proliferation of child marriage women of well-to-do families cea
connoisseurs or even acquire any training in vocal and instrumental m
dancing. These became the exclusive accomplishments of a ganik
aristocratic families, maidens and daughter of high officials did rece
education in the kalas but it was only the ganikas who from their very ch
went to gandharvasalas to diligently learn the sixty four arts subsidiar
highest technical knowledge of the erotic.49 They formed, as Vatsyay
acquaintance with the sons of wealthy citizens. The ganikas were fre
invited by respectable citizen and members of the corporations to r
festivities, social gatherings and literary conferences either as spectato
active participation.50 The Kamasutra describes the different sports and
which depended on the seasons and the auspicious days of the year to
ganikas were also invited. At the centre of it stood the nagaraka51 - a
man. Everybody could not aspire to lead the life of a nagarka. In such
ethos, it would be interesting here to know something about th
background of clients visiting these courtesans. A ganika, accor
Vatasyayan, had dealings with police officers, astrologers, wine-merc
fortune tellers, and other such people who had access to houses of po
clients and were of consequent help to her.52 The Kuttanimata also give
about an 'ideal lover' who would be an eligible client for a ganika
elaborate list of physical characteristics and psychological traits.53 Besides
have evidence of brahamanas and religious teachers visiting the ganika
to keep in mind the changing social scenario from 5th century A.D.
| q outcome of this development was that the temple was gradually emergi

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 Ganikas in Early India

new socio-economic centre and thereby interaction with the brahamanas was IZ
inevitable.54 The spurt in temple-building reached a climax in the tenth century 3
A.D. and the largest number of temples came to be concentrated in Orissa, S"
Bengal, Central India, Rajasthan and Gujarat. Temples emerged as the wealthiest <-J>
institutions of the time, as a result of the large amount of endowments made to ^
them.55 This process increased the temple- building activity followed by a 5
proliferation and complexity in the nature of the rituals performed in it.56
Although clients hailed form different strata of society, they mostly belonged to
the aristocracy. Also all courtesans could not always attract youthful clients; the
best courtesans had to possess good qualities to be able to attract people and
gain money. On the whole, temples were patronized by a wide section of the elite
in society, including kings, provincial, military and town officials, merchants and
traders.
These developments marked a transition and the ganikas played an
important role in contemporary social life. The gosthi particularly was a very well
known institution of ancient India in which cultured members of the society met
and discussed questions relating to various arts. The gosthi usually met in the
house of a ganika or nagarka. On many occasions they met in the sabha, the
public hall of the city or assembled in the gana or corporation to which every
citizen belonged. It is very much evident from the Harsacarita of Bana that by the
seventh century A.D. functions of a gosthi had by nature become varied in
content and extremely diversified.57 Similarly the institution of samaja indicated a
social gathering of which music, dance and acrobatic performance constituted
favourite forms of amusement. Music was regarded as a heavenly gift. The
Mrichchhakatika contains numerous references to sangitaka and gadharva-kala
or musical concerts58 whereas the Kuttanimata gives a detailed description of
musical instruments like vadya and atodya. In the Kuttanimata specific references
are found for regular dance teachers like nrtyacarya, nrtya-opadesaha,
nartakacarya etc.59 Chief courtesans of prosperous cities maintained their own
troupe of singers and dancing girls who were in most cases courtesans and
temple maids. It is stated in the Mrichhakatika that daughters of courtesans were
taught sasringaramnatyam or erotic acting.60 Over a period of time these dancing
girls became the most important repositories of classical forms of dance and
music. They became an inspiration for the sculptural representation of dancing
figures on the walls of the temples.61
At another level we need to focus on economic relations surrounding
women around prostitution. The sources once again are very limited, but a
study of the history and evolution of legal ideas and institutions can serve as an
entry point in understanding the issue of women and their access to property.
The rules of property, inheritance etc. described in the Dharmasastras, mainly
refer to women who were widows and their increasing access to such rights. The i i

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 Social Scientist

o historiographical trends in the writing of women's history have hardly

rs recognized the effective control women could exert over their property and its
oj disposal and on the other,62 have completely ignored the history of those women
c: about whom information was not available from literary texts and about whom
u even if information was available (courtesans and temple girls), were not much
Q discussed. In defining the nature of property that these girls had, factors such as
v the distinctions of status, which necessarily accompanied ownership among
cz them, makes the issue more complex. Most of the women donors were wives of
> kings, nuns and ganikas.63 While women generally were economically dependent
Z on men, ganikas were independent and supported themselves by professional
cN skills and artistic attainments. It is very difficult to ascertain how much a ganika
? received by way of payment. Abiding by the needs of the profession, a ganika was
not content by being attached to a single lover. On the contrary, a ganika
2 undoubtedly earned large sums of money by courting men of high social classes
^ which gave them a high social standing.
_ In the Kamasutra, a ganika's fee for one single night was fixed in
> consideration of the place, the customs of the country, the time of the year,
habits of the people, her own wealth, relative splendour and her position in
comparison with other local courtesans.64 We have references in the Kuttanimata
stating that the fee charged by a ganika was referred to as mulya, grahanaka and
bhati. Fee paid in gold is referred to as kanaka-bhati. Mrichhakatika mentions
10,000 gold coins and ornaments, being sent in advance by the king's brother-in
law to lure Vasantasena.65 The Kuttanimata says that the temple prostitute
tridaslayajivika got paid by temple authorities and her income was fixed by
tradition.66 It is also evident that the contractual penalty mentioned in the
Kuttanimata and elsewhere, amounting to twice the agreed bhoga, was to be paid
by the prostitute if she declined to abide by her contractual obligations.67
Although according to Vatsyayana, the ganika herself fixed the payment of
enjoyment (bhoga), Kautilaya, in contradiction to the statement of Vatsyayana
notes that the bhoga was not fixed by the ganika but the ganikadhyaksa, who, in
turn, transferred it to the treasury of the king.68 In the case of her death, or if she
ran away, her daughter or sister could take over the establishment or her mother
could appoint another courtesan. The sons were passed over in succession here.
This fact of the mother being the first associate and the son being the last
indicates that matriarchy mattered much more in the world of courtesans. Even
the ranking of the familial status was radically different from the one prevailing
in the familial world.
The Smrits have prescribed a set of rules governing the conduct and
relationship of ganikas within and amongst themselves. Narada states: "If a
public woman probably identified with a prostitute declined to receive a man
12 after having received her fee, she shall pay twice the amount of fee. The same fine

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 Ganikas in Early India

shall be imposed on a man who does not pay the stipulated fee after having 12
connection with a woman of this description. "69 3
Despite variations in the status of different prostitutes, all avenues of (5~
prostitution did not offer the same kind of economic security for all categories of j-f*
courtesans. The ganikas were most accomplished and also formed the category ^
with highest professional charges. It is significant that during this period of 5
urban affluence ganikas made rich donations. The dana by this category of
women were usually made out of their personal belongings. Our sources reveal
that besides giving alms of cooked meals to beggars and religions mendicants,
ganikas constructed temples, gardens and provided for the worship of deities.70
The purposes to which a ganika put her money is characterized by a desire for
tendencies of her cultural mind. In clear contrast to her commanding position in
the literature, she manifests herself in an epigraphic record which belongs to the
corpus of Jaina inscriptions from Mathura:
"Adoration to the Arhat Vardhamana! By the lay-pupil of the ascetics
(sramana-sravika), the courtesan (ganika) Nada, the Vasa, the daughter
(dhitu) of the courtesans (ganika) Danda the Lenasobhika (or the adorner
of caves), a shrine for the Arhats, a hall of homage, a reservoir and stone
slabs were set up in the Arhat temple of the merchants (nigamana
arhatayatane) together with her mother (matar?) her sister (bhaginiye)
her daughter (ahitare) her son (putrena) and all her retinue (savina ca
parijanena) for the worship of the Arhats."71
Thus, her desire to make multiple benefactions not only bestowed honour
on her but lent legitimacy to her status in society, though she lived outside the
social pale is evident.
Though belonging to the class of'public women', the ganika appears to have
been treated with special consideration. In fact, it was only when the courtesan
class was marked out by high intellectual attainments and striking pre-eminence
in the arts that they could earn the coveted title of a ganika. From the readings in
the epics, classical plays, Puranas, and other texts, one can form an image of the
highly accomplished women dancers, singers and artists whom these texts call
ganika, vesya, heavenly and earthly apsaras, maharis as well as devadasi.
However, our study of the usage of these terms show that there was a clear- cut
difference between a ganika, a vesya and a devadasi. But they all played an
important role in the contemporary social life and were an indispensable factor
in all public and religious functions. Lest one think that ganikas were attached
only to the court but not to the temple and hence differentiating between them
and the devadasi may be wholly justified, mention should be made that in
Kalidasa's play Meghaduta, vesyas were the fly-whisk in the temple of Siva at
Ujjain. Clearly, asparas, ganikas, vesyas and devadasis, even though contrasted to
chaste wives and even sometimes reviled in the texts as low and as not deserving 1 3

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 Social Scientist

O of respect because of their lack of chastity, have a place and time in which their
O
rs function is required, highly appreciated, and in its context highly respected.
i
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? Monika Saxena is with the Department of History, Ramjas College, University of
?
0) Delhi, Delhi
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O
Z Notes
rs
1 Mary R. Beard, Women as a Force in History: A Study of Tradition and Realities,
1987, p. 1 and Karen Offen, 'Defining Feminism: A Comparative Historical
Approach', Signs, Vol. 14, 1988-89. See in particular Juliet Mitchell, Women's
Estate, 1971, p. 179; Sandra Harding, Feminism and Methodology, 1987; K.K.
Shah, The Problem of Identity, 2001; S. Jay Klienberg, (ed.) Retrieving Women's
History: Changing Perspectives of the Roles of Women in Politics and Society,
UNESCO, 1988, p. 319; U. Chakravarti, 'Conceptualising Brahmanical Patriarchy
O
> in Early India: Gender, Caste, Class and State', Economic and Political Weekly 3
April, 1993, p. 579, K. Sangari and Uma Chakravarti, (ed.) From Myths to
Markets: Essay on Gender, 2001.

2 These ideas are more fully treated by Gerda Lerner, The Majority Finds its Past:
Placing Women in History, 1979; Kumkum Roy, (ed.) Women in Early Indian
Societies, 1999.

3 G. Sontheimer, The Joint Hindu Family, 1997, p. 45.

4 Agni Purana, 253. 63-64, R.S. Sharma, Perspectives in Social and Economic History
of Early India, 1983; pp. 39-40, Manu Smriti, X. 217; IX. 130: Yajnavalkaya
Smriti, II, 135-36; Brhaspati Smriti, XXV. 55.

5 Rgveda, X 59.10
6 Rgveda, I. 167.3
7 Rgveda, X. 71.9
8 Vajasaneyi Samhita, XXX 9; Taittiriya Brahmana, III, 4.5.1.
9 Vajasaneyi Samhita, XXX 8.
10 Rgveda, IX, 112.3
11 G.S. Ghurye, Vedic India, 1979; p. 285, Women in the Rgvedic period were also
free to attend samana or social gatherings.

12 Baudhyayana Dharmasutra, II 2.50-52, Manu Smriti, V. 146; D.N. Mitter,

Position of women in Hindu Law, 1913; p. 110, Nur Yalman, 'On the Purity of
Women in the Castes of Ceylon and Malabar', Journal of the Royal Anthropological
Institute of Great Britain and Ireland, 1962, pp. 25-28.

13 S. Jayal, Status of Women in the Epics, 1966; p. 65.

14

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 Ganikas in Early India

14 D.R. Bhandarkar, Can women perform Srauta Sacrifices of their own Accord, B.C.
o
Law volume, pt. I, pp. 159-163. A sage declares (Rgveda VIII. 19.36) that
Trasadasya gave him fifty young women, presumably slave girls.

15 Joan Kelly, Women in History, Chicago, 1985. CO

X
16 S.N. Singh and K.B. Basu, History of Marriage and Prostitution, 1992; B. Joardar, (D
13
Prostitution in Historical and Modern Perspectives, 1984. N.N. Bhattacharya,
History of Indian Erotic Literature, 1977, Moti Chandra, World of Courtesans,
1973; Leah L. Otis, Prostitution in Medieval Society, 1987.
17 R.S. Sharma, Material Culture and Social Formations in Ancient India, 1983; pp.
37-40.

18 S. Bhattacharji, 'Prostitution in Ancient India', Social Scientist, vol. 15.No. 2,

1987; p. 35.
19 Bhattacharji, 'Prostitution in Ancient India', p. 33.

20 J. Hastings, (ed.) Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethics, vol. 10, 1918; pp. 406-07.

21 The New Encyclopaedia Britannica in 30 vols. pp. 596-97.

22 S.C. Upadhyaya, Vatsyayana's Kamasutra, 1974; Indra Sinha, The love teachings
of the Kamasutra, 1980.
23 M.R. Kale, Sudakays (Mrichchhakatika\ 1962.

24 Atrideva Vidyalankera (Trasn.), Kuttanimata or Sambhalimata, 1961.

25 J. C. Jain, Life in Ancient India as depicted in the Commentaries, 1984, p. 216.

26 Rgveda, I. 67.4; P.V. Kane; History of Dharmasastra, vol. 2, Part I, 1941, p. 637.

27 L. Sternbach, 'Legal Position of the Prostitutes according to kautilyas Arthasstra',

Journal of American Oriental Society, vol. 71, 1981, p. 27.
28 See Vedic Index, 1, Under Dharam, pp. 395.396.

29 Udyoga, 30-38, 86.15; Kane, vol. 2, Part I, p. 637.

30 J. Jolly, (Jr.), The Minor Law Books: Fragments of Brihaspati, 22.9, 1889; pp. 360
361.

31 G. Buhler, The Laws of Manu: Sacred Books of the East, vol. 25,9.259, pp. 387-388.

32 Narada Smriti 6.19 deals with salary and wages. It also provides that for
committing unnatural sex act with a prostitute, and forcing her to unite with
several persons when the contract was only for one, the offender will have to pay
eight times the fee; M.N. Dutt (tra), Agni Purane 1967, pp. 641-42,168,1-12, pp.
665, 172, 50-54; Garuda Purana, 1908, p. 340.

33 Agni Puran, 168, 1-12; Matsya Puranam, LXX, 26-32.

34 Matsya Parana, 70. 92-93, 70-41; Agni, 394-41; Brahmananda Purana III, 27-14,
VI, 49.23.
35 Vattaka Jataka, Vol. I, No. 118, Atthana Jataka, vol. 3, No. 425.
15

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 Social Scientist

O 36 Jataka, III, 40.

O
CNl
37 Jataka, II, p. 249, p. 328
i_
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38 D. Chanana, 'Notes on some Ancient Indian Works', Journal of the Oriental
E
<L> Institute, 1958, p. 309.
U
O)
? 39 R.P. Kangle; Kautilya"s Arthasastra, Book II, Section 44, 1963; p. 159.
?
cu 40 Ibid, 2, 27.12-2, 27.28, pp. 182-85.
-O
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<L>
41 S.C. Upadhyaya; Kamasutra, Sutra 54, pp. 230-31.
>
O 42 40. M.R. Kale (Jr.) Mrichchhakatika, pp. 50-51.
Z
43 A. Vidyalankara, 'Kuttanimata or Sambhalimata', verses 485, 560, 565, 797; A.M.
Shastri, India as Depicted in the Kuttanimata of Damodargupta, 1975; pp. 111
12.

o 44 L. Sternbach, 'Legal Position of the Prostitutes according to Kautilya's

Z Arthasastra', Journal of American Oriental Society, Vol. 71, 1951; p. 26-27.

45 Rajatarngini of Kalhana and Kathasaritisagara of Somadeva give detailed refer

O ences about them. The Kathasaritisagara mentions the presence of dancer at the
>
grand festival (Mahautsava). A dancer surbhidatta is described as Apsara and other
dancers are mentioned as nartiki (translated) K.S. Saraswat, 1996; Ch. 6, p. 606.

46 The 'Hammira Mahakavya of Nayachandra Suri' (translated), N.J. Kritane; Indian

Antiquary, 1879, vol. VIII, pp. 61-62.

47 H.C. Chakladar, Social Life in Ancient India: Studies in Vatsyayana's Kamasutra,

1929; p. 198.

48 Abhindhanarjendera, Vol. Ill; Moti Chandra, World of Courtesans, 1973; pp. 38

41, p. 376.

49 The Vaisika section of the Kamasutra enumerates the sixty four arts in which the
ganikas had to be accomplished. Vaisika is also mentioned in Mrichchhkatika, Act
I, p.9, Dattaka is mentioned as an author of Vaisika in Kuttanimata, p. 16. v. 77,
p. 25. V 123.

50 S.C. Upadhyaya, p. 84, Sutras, 27-33, 1974; I. Sinha, The Love Teaching of
Kamasutra, 1980, p. 28.

51 N.N. Bhattacharya, History of Indian Erotic Literature, 1977, p.78 depicts the
social life as reflected in the Kamasutra; D. Desai, Erotic Sculpture of India, 1975,
p. 178.
52 I. Sinha, 1980; p. 15, S.C. Upadhyaya, pp. 205, Sutras, 7-8.

53 Kuttanimata, pp. 9-13, w, 37-59, p. 65, v. 335, p. 367, p. 78, w. 393-44, p. 80, v.
400, p. 105, v. 529, v. 538, p. 146, v. 753.

54 N. Bhattacharya, 1977, p. 98.

55 P. Niyogi, Contributions to the Economic History of India from the tenth to the
twelfth century A.D., 1962, pp. 286-291; B.P. Majumdar, The Socio-Economic
History of Northern India, 1960, pp. 67-69.
16

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 Ganikas in Early India

56 R.S. Sharma, Material Culture, Chapter V; B.P. Majumdar, pp. 9-11; D.C. Sircar,
o
Studies in the Religious Life of Ancient and Medieval India, 1971: R.N. Nandi,
'Growth of Rural Economy in Early Feudal India', Presidential Address, Section 1,
Proceedings of the Indian History Congress, Annamalainagar, 1984, pp. 25-91. en
&
57 S.C. Upadhyaya, p. 82, Sutras, 34-36, Kuttanimata, p. 155, v. 795-796, VS. X
CD
Agrawala; Harsacharita ek - Samskritika Adhyayane (Hindi), 1953; pp. 12-14. =5

58 M.R. Kale, Mrichchhakatika, Act. IV, p. 73

59 Kuttanimata, Verses 83, 793-94, p. 18, p. 155,

60 Mrichchhakatika, Act. I, Introduction, p. 29, p. 47.

61 K. Vatsyayan, Classical Indian Dance in Literature and the Arts, 1997, p. 154.

62 R.S. Sharma, Perspectives in Social and Economic History of Early India, 1983, pp.
35-40.
63 H. Luders, A List ofBrahmi Inscriptions from the Earliest Times to about A.D. 400,
Allahabad, 19, No. 102; J. Ph. Vogel, Catalogue of the Archaeological Museum at
Mathura, pp. 184-86, Kumkum Roy, 'Women and Men Donors at Sanchi: A
Study of the Inscriptional Evidence' in L.K. Tripathi (ed.), Position and Status of
Women in Ancient India, Vol. 1, 1988. pp. 209-200.

64 Kamasutra, Sutras, 1-4, p. 223.

65 Mrichchhatika, Act. IV, p. 134.
66 Kuttanimata, Verses 563.

67 Kuttanimata, Verses 338-342, pp. 66-67.

68 Arthasastra, 2.27.12, pp. 184-85.

69 J. Jolly (translated), The Minor Law Books: Narada Smriti, 1889, 6.18-19, p. 143.
70 Kamasutra, Sutra 25, p. 224.

71 Indian Antiquary, Vol. XXXIII (1904), p. 153.

17

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