Featured at BME Women in STEM exhibition
Date:
International Women's Day 2018
Location:
Bush House, London
Dr. Raghavan's contributions to widening participation, STEM outreach and student welfare were featured the International Women's Day 2018 exhibition organised by the Faculty of Arts & Sciences at King's College London and BME Women in STEM Society alongside other successful women from BME (Black & Minority Ethnic) groups in the UK. Through a live stream from an Indian government school she volunteers at, Sweta shared insights from Indian culture and history on women empowerment through her talk titled 'Shakti: Lessons from India" .
Summary of Speech
Shakti which means power or strength in Sanskrit (which assigns grammatical gender to nouns) is associated with women. The embodiment of strength and prosperity is depicted as a Divine female form in the Indic mythology. It’s scriptures, works on law and governance are all emphasis the importance of women. For example, the excerpt below is from the Manu Smriti, an elaborate legal document of ancient India, which highlights the need to honour women.यत नायरसुपूजनेरमनेतत देवता: । यतैतासुन पूजनेसवारसताफला: िकया: ।। Meaning : Where Women Are Honored , Divinity Blossoms There; And Where They Are Dishonored , All Action Remains Unfruitful.
Gender equality was practiced to such an extent that me and women worked should-to-shoulder at times of war and peace. India history has a plethora of female roles models in all fields; politics, academia, science, literature, arts and music. In fact, not only did native Indian women feel empowered in India but also women who subsequently migrated to the subcontinent and made it their home; India gave the world its first Muslim women ruler, Razia Sultana. The secret to India's gender equality lies in its deep seated traditions and practices. Therefore, when it comes to celebrating women, Indian culture is unparalleled.
