Women empowerment. The role of religious and spiritual organisations as exemplified by the Ramakrishna Mission

Project Report from the year 2012 in the subject Sociology - Social System, Social Structure, Class, Social Stratification, grade: 5, , language: English, abstract: The Ramakrishna Mission is a Hindu religious and spiritual organisation which forms the core of a worldwide spiritual movement known as the Ramakrishna Movement or the Vedanta Movement. As this mission bases its work on the Vedic principle of Karma Yoga, along with spiritual teaching, the organisation focuses on the socio-educational activities.
In this book a vivid presentation is made regarding the Educational and philanthropic activities done by this mission for the spread of qualitative education, skill development, medical facilities, vocational training among girls.
In the beginning the status of women and mission for women empowerment in global and Indian scenario is presented. Afterwards, the socio-cultural perception of Indian society towards women during the ancient, medieval and post-independence period and the individual and organisational initiatives, taken to ameliorate those conditions, are presented. In the following, the perception and contribution of three master minds, Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, Sarada Devi and Vivekananda towards women empowerment are presented. Finally, the author shows the detailed works done by Ramakrishna mission in different places of West Bengal, India in order to provide quality education, medical facilities, and skill development in general and girls in particular.
Women empowerment is a global mission due to its very spirit of inclusive development irrespective of caste, sex, colour, ethnicity or other facets of disadvantages but in the country like India the unequal treatment of women, differentiation of role, responsibility and status between male and women has a long rooted socio-cultural perspective. As result women are perceived as culturally devalued group. Although constitutional, legislative and policy measures are taken by the government of India for safeguard and upliftment of women, but the present data regarding differential developmental indictors like literacy, health, income, socio-political participation show that the development has not happened up to mark or at per the other gender.