ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses Pandita Ramabai’s contribution to the cause of women empowerment. She fought for the social, economic, and political rights of women. She was critical to the concept of patriarchy and the structure in which such practices function and lead to the subjection and oppression of women. The chapter dwells on many important themes related to her personal life and her concern for gender justice. She believed that only through the power of education can women be empowered and emancipated. She combined ideas she had learned from the sisters and friends of different ethnicities and races at Wantage. Ramabai saw caste as a great flaw in Hindu society. She also believed caste associations promoted narrow self-interests and prevented the development of a democratic spirit in the real sense. Feminist scholarship remains in debt to the philosophy and work of Pandita Ramabai. Her vision continues to drive the feminist movement and scholarship even today, as it also continues to impact on the lives of many women and young girls. Ramabai remains one of the most prominent women leaders of Maharashtra and India. Through this chapter, the reader will understand the biographical sketch of Ramabai and her views on patriarchy, gender justice, and civil rights leading to the empowerment of women.
