प्राचीन भारत में शिक्षा (डॉ. ए.एस. अल्तेकर - गुरुकुल एवं बौद्ध विहार शिक्षण इतिहास)

[IX] FEMALE EDUCATION 217
a great set-back during this period, it continued to
receive attention in rich, cultured, aristocratic and
royal families.¹ Girls in these families were given a
fairly good literary education, though they were not
allowed to study the Vedic literature. They could
read and understand Sanskrit and Prakrit works and
even detect mistakes accidentally committed by their
male relations.² Special effort was made to give them
a good grounding in domestic and culinary arts and
fine arts like music, dancing, painting, garland-making
and household decorations.³ Tutors were appointed
in rich families to train girls in these arts and
accomplishments, as is shown by the employment of
Gaṇadāsa and Haradatta in the household of king
Agnimitra. Most of this education was finished before
the marriage ; but famous lady scholars of the age, to
be mentioned in the next para, probably continued
their education and reading even after their wedlock.
Lady Authors of the Age : Educated ladies in
cultured families continued to make their own
contributions to literature, as was done by the lady
scholars of the earlier period. During this age, there
flourished several poetesses in south India, who

1. पुरुषवद्योषितोऽपि कवीभवेयुः ।••••। श्रूयन्ते दृश्यन्ते च राजपुत्र्यो
   महामात्रदुहितरो गणिकाः कौटुंबिकभार्याश्च शास्त्रप्रहितबुद्धयः कवयश्च ।
   Kāvyamīmāṁsā, p. 53.
2. Stories are current in learned circles of how clever wives
   would bring milk to serve at the dining party when the order
   given was dadhimānaya ; they could at once see the blunder
   committed by the husband and in order to save him from the
   reproach of ungrammatical speech, would pretend to understand
   the order, not as dadhim ānaya bring curds (which would have been
   incorrect as dadhi is not a word in masculine gender), but as dadhi
   mā ānaya, ‘do not bring curds’
3. Vātsyāyana, (Kāmasūtra, 1. 3. 16.) lays down that girls
   should be trained in all the 64 arts and crafts.