In the modern Western world, women sometimes forget the conditions of their ancient past. Freedom to speak your mind, freedom to vote for your choice of leader, freedom to govern, to hold public office, freedom to marry whomever you choose, freedom to shop, hike, or walk the streets or trails without a veil.
As a “Power Woman,” you treasure your right to accomplish, to choose, to voice your concerns. However, that is in the West. Women from other lands, like Pakistan, still hazard stoning for holding a man’s hand. Think on this when you see local women marching for “Their Rights.”
The ancient mantra of an “eye for an eye,” retribution for a crime, an insult, a mistake, is age-old. Ancient literature documents the punishment women suffered for adultery or rape––real or imagined––was public stoning.
The smug satisfaction of a jealous neighbor who accused the young woman, the self-righteous tribal elders who fancied themselves “guardians of the law,” and the zealous local athletes whose accurate aim with the handy stones was a source of pride—all gathered to put the accused “in her place” for her transgression. “Habibi” would end her fifteen years shivering with fear, crouching on the rough, dirt ground to protect the soft tissue of her nubile breast, her belly, her private parts. Soon that would not matter. There was no protection from the unrelenting pummeling of palm-sized stones. Her nude, crouched body made a small knot, an easy target for the well-aimed stones that would knock out her teeth, puncture her eyes, end her hearing, break her knees, and mercifully crush her skull, sending her into welcome unconsciousness and slow death while the accusers––and the young man who had held her hand––stood silently at the edge of the crowd––watching.
When the stoning was over, the crowd went home, the marksmen dispersed to congregate, replay, and brag about the final deadly blows, and the young woman’s frail, battered body, oozing with blood and body fluids, was exposed to the jackals and raptors. Soon––like Queen Jezebel, who was murdered in 843 BCE––there would be nothing left of this innocent young woman but the clotted, bloody hair on her battered skull and the bones of her defenseless hands. The Law was fulfilled. The elders were satisfied. The family was humiliated, and the people were warned.
From a thousand years before the time of Christ to the present, “the blood red fabric of tribal life” still clothes women whose people have not advanced up the ladder of civilization to see their laws as primitive, their behavior inhumane, and their women as human.
Dear Fellow History Lover,
I appreciate your response to this blog. Please leave an opinion, input, or question by clicking on the Leave a Comment button, or communicate directly with me at drpd@mac.com .
Grātiās tibi !
Dr. P. D. Sargent,
Ancient Scribe sharing new ideas twice a month