Somadeva May 20, 2013

      In the several instances of disguised women in the Somadeva's "Red Lotus of Chastity", the disguises serve to advance women toward their goals, although their goals are not always met with success. First, a corrupt nun, Yogakarandika,  boasts of her nefarious behavior by sharing the tale of how her pupil "in disguise, contrived to get herself employed"  in a house that she intended to rob (1276). The thieving pupil, Siddhikari, evades capture hidden among the leaves of a tree (1276), literally disguised as part of the tree. The nun had grown rich from the immoral activity of her pupil, and until she meets Devasmita, both she and her pupil have lived well and unpunished.
     The nun, Yogakarandika, then disguises her true, base character by "ingratiating herself with the servants" at the home of Guhasena and Devasmita, thus gaining entry into the house (1276), and sets up her plot to procure the chastity of Devasmita for the merchant's sons from Cathay. However, her disguise as an honorable, religious person will fail her, as Devasmita cleverly sees through her and thwarts her plot. The evil nun and her pupil are both severely punished for their attempted trickery by having their noises and ears cut off; ironically, Devasmita, who avoided adultery, metes out the punishment reserved for adulteresses (1278). Thus, the ploy of disguises was a ultimately a failure for the immoral women, who received their punishment at the hands of a just woman.
     Conversely, Devasmita, a moral woman, twice uses disguise to a successful end. First, she bids her maid to get "dressed up as her mistress" (1277).  In this way the maid and mistress foil the lustful advances of all four of the merchant's sons, humiliating, and with a touch of foreshadowing, "manhandling" (1279) them in the process.  Secondly, Devasmita tells a story of a merchant's wife who persuades her husband's mistress to disguise herself in order to trade places with the wife, enabling the wife to rescue the husband (1278). This story features a weak husband who has placed himself in danger because of his vices, and parallels Guhasena who has placed himself in danger with too much to drink. The story also gives Devasmita the idea to disguise her maids and herself as men and sail to Cathay to rescue her husband (1279).  In both instances, the moral women successfully reach their goals.
     However, in all the instances of disguise, this last one is the only one that includes a gender change, and for that reason it is truly remarkable.  Devasmita is clearly a resourceful and clever woman, yet feels the need to change gender in order to accomplish her goal. In her male clothing, she has taken on a traditionally male role, but the men in this story are quite ineffectual. Devasmita displays not only bravery in sailing unescorted to Cathay, but also extreme confidence, even ordering the king upon her arrival, "Assemble your people" (1279).  She is totally in command of the situation, arresting the four merchants' sons "on their own threshold" (1279).
      Moreover, she has really emasculated the four by displaying "her mark" (1279) on their foreheads. Why the brand of a dog paw?  Perhaps it shows that even a low animal like a dog is above and therefore "steps" on the shameful men.  It could also refer to the story the nun fabricated about Devasmita's dog, who in a previous life had guarded her human chastity and therefore was "reborn a bitch" (1277).
     Devasmita, the chaste bitch, gets the last laugh! Devasmita, who with one hand takes a large ransom to free the merchant's sons, with the other hand leads her seemingly meek husband back to Cathay. No word on if she changes her clothes.


Works Cited

Somadeva. "The Red Lotus of Chastity." The Norton Anthology of World Literature. Ed. Martin Puchner. Vol. I. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 2013. 1274-279. Print.