Tuesday, December 29, 2015

The Spirit of Womanhood

In Spiti and in the hills, in general, women are the driving force behind every family in all actuality. They are there, at the home making tea and breakfast, preparing the children to go to school, doing daily household chores and they are there, even in the fields tilling the land, weeding the fields, watering them and manuring them. You will often find them carrying their small kids on their back like a hero everywhere in Spiti too!


The solitary reaper 
It goes without saying that they are the strongest pillars of every household and the society that every village is composed of. Every work that needs to be done requires women to be a part of it.
Here, playing the role of a good elder sister!
The women of Spiti are an essential part of the Ecosphere's ecological initiatives in Spiti like the farming of the wonder berry called 'seabuckthorn' that is found abundantly in the Trans Himalayas, but whose nutritional values were unknown to people of Spiti earlier, but through Ecosphere's initiatives, seabuckthorn has empowered the women of Spiti and their villages. Earlier seabuckthorn bushes were merely used for fencing fields, homes and roofs,and now seabuckthorn farming has provided the people of Spiti especially the women who do the majority of work(no shame in admitting that) with another source of income that is both economically benefiting the people and ecologically benefiting the environment. The jams and juices produced through this initiative are marketed under the name 'Tsering' that actually means 'long life' in Tibetan.
Here, working in the fields and taking care of her child with utmost sincerity!
Back to home, as the evening peaks!
Here, being an absolute sweetheart, getting me flowers so that I would hold her upside down to help her see the upside world :)
The best thing about the Women of Spiti is that they don't seek recognition for their pivotal role in their families and the society. Even after returning from a tedious day in the fields, they'll greet you with 'julley' and a smile and ask you if you want a cup of tea?
Goddesses in all dimensions.

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About the author: Purvash Jha is a student of Delhi University with a keen interest in Photography. A lot of our facebook albums are courtesy him :) Purvash volunteered with Ecosphere in July 2015.

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