Hinduism(1) is the third largest religion in the world, with more than 950 million adherents. Although Hindus live predominantly in India and Nepal, they are scattered throughout the world. In some ways Hinduism and Islam can be thought of as polar opposites. Two of the most basic beliefs of Hinduism conflict completely with the most basic beliefs of Islam. In Islam worship is for One God, Muslims do not worship idols, statues or representations of God. Hindus, on the other hand worship many gods and deities.(For more information on this subject, please, click here.)
Muslims believe that we each have one life, upon which we will be judged and rewarded or punished accordingly, whereas Hindus believe in reincarnation, the process of rebirth and the transmigration of souls. In this article we will talk about the status of women in Hinduism and compare it with the teachings of Islam.(For more information on this subject, please, click here.)
Women in India suffer from a wide range of social injustices and the status of women is usually discussed on a nationwide basis. However it is important to note that more than 80% of Indians are Hindu and the majority of negative behaviors towards women can be attributed to Hindu practices. Indian women rank high in worldwide statistics on prostitution, the murder, neglect and abuse of young girls, the number of women sold into slavery, as victims of AIDS, and living below the poverty line.
Infanticide, the killing of a child soon after birth, has been prevalent in India for centuries. In 1834 it was reported that, “in some villages, no girl babies were found at all; in a total of thirty others, there were 343 boys to 54 girls.” One hundred and fifty years later the killing of girl babies has been streamlined. In a 2007 article, Reuters reported on the high level of female feticide (the practice of aborting female fetuses) in India. According to UNICEF, ‘A report from Bombay in 1984 on abortions after prenatal sex determination stated that 7,999 out of 8,000 of the aborted fetuses were female.
Reuters also reports that “Around 10 million girls have been killed by their parents over the last 20 years. Female infanticide and feticide, although illegal, are still prevalent with boys preferred to girls.” A 2006 government survey found that 45 percent of girls were married before the legal marriageable age of 18. India’s adult female literacy rate in 2004 was 47.8%, compared to the adult male rate of 73.4%. What is it about Hinduism that allows such blatant discrimination against an entire gender?
Some
argue that the Hindu scriptures allow such practices. An obsession with
sons stems from the age of Atharva Veda when it was written “Let a
female child be born somewhere else. Here let a son be born.” However
Hindus believe that all life is sacred, to be loved and revered,
although this appears to not make a great deal of sense, it does, in the
sense that Hinduism is a mixture of religious and cultural practices.
The Hindu religion calls for rituals to be conducted in honor of women
yet at the same time, women are denied any form of last rights at death
or a fair share in family inheritance. In a letter to an Indian
newspaper in 2002 one woman tried to explain the increase in feticide.

Islam exalted the position of woman as she
was considered a means of amusement, and remained deprived of her
humanity for long times.

Islam exalted the position of woman as she
was considered a means of amusement, and remained deprived of her
humanity for long times.
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