the rites prescribed by the Dharma
Shastras other than brahmins. For
further information see Pandurang
Vaman Kane (trans.), A History of
Dharmasastra, 1968; and Raj Bali
Pandey, Hindu Samskaras, 1969. The
former is encyclopedic and the latter
more accessible; despite their age they
remain the best sources for traditional
Hindu rites.
Child Marriages
Until well into the twentieth century, in
many families it was traditional to marry
off their children before the onset of
puberty. An early marriage was deemed
particularly important for women, lest
they come of age before they were mar-
ried. Some apologists claim that this
practice evolved as a way to preserve the
honor of Hindu girls against the depre-
dations of Muslim raiders. Though this
may have been partially true, such
depredations were not widespread
enough to evolve such a well-accepted
social practice. Traditional Indian cul-
ture ascribes a much stronger sex drive
to women than to men, and an early
marriage would ensure that they did not
disgrace the family under the influence
of their irresistible urges. These mar-
riages were possible because arranged
marriages were the norm, as they
remain to this day.
Many of the Hindu reformist move-
ments that began in the late nine-
teenth century considered child
marriages one of the “corruptions” of
contemporary Hindu life and lobbied
vigorously to forbid it. Modern Indian
law sets the minimum age for marriage
at sixteen for women and eighteen for
men. These guidelines are often flout-
ed, particularly in rural areas, where
one still hears of marriages between
infants. Although child marriages still
occur, it is a very low-status practice in
modern Indian society, associated with
poverty, backwardness, and a lack of
education. In contrast, men and
women from the upper classes often
do not marry until their late twenties,
after pursuing advanced degrees. See
also marriage ceremonies.Child Widows
This term refers to girls who had been
married as children and whose hus-
bands (whether older men or boys their
own age) died before the girls reached
puberty and the marriage had been con-
summated. Although the lives of such
child widows varied according to the
status of their families, their lives were
often quite grim, given the traditional
prohibitions on widow remarriage and
the strict behavioral codes mandated for
widows. Reformers in the nineteenth
century, such as Ram Mohan Roy,
championed the drive to promote
societal acceptance of second marriages
for child widows. Due to the sharp
decline in the frequency of child mar-
riages, child widows are extremely
uncommon in modern times. See also
marriage prohibitions.Chillum
Implement used for smoking. The
chillum is a graduated cylinder of baked
clay that is usually about six inches long,
which is about an inch in diameter at
the top and half that at the bottom. A
pyramid-shaped piece of clay is wedged
point-down in the cylinder to cut down
on the airflow. The top part of the cylin-
der is filled with tobacco, cannabis, or a
mixture of tobacco and hashish (cha-
ras). Smoking is a communal activity in
which the chillum is passed from one
person to another. The bottom of the
chillum is covered with a cloth called a
safai, which is sometimes changed from
person to person and is often dipped in
waterto mellow the smoke. Chillum eti-
quette holds that one should not place
one’s mouth directly on the bottom of
the implement, which would render it
impure. Because of this, the chillum is
generally held between one’s fingers,
often in highly elaborate and symbolic
ways. Among many ascetics, smoking
the chillum is a part of daily life, aChild Marriages