Photographer Poulomi Basu’s project, A Ritual of Exile, captures the lives of child widows in Nepal. The author quotes Basu to explain the rituals of widowhood in this culture with a focus on widowed child brides. Basu notes that widows are denied many freedoms, including clothing choices, the ability to remarry or even make eye contact with men, eating meat, wearing jewelry and attending social gatherings. Widowhood, in this culture, is seen as a time of atonement for sins committed in past lives. While this is difficult for widows of all ages, it is especially burdensome for child widows who have been “stripped of their childhood and choices.”
Basu hopes her project will enlighten others about the devastation of both child marriage and the rituals of widowhood. She advocates for gender equality and education to combat these issues.
From my Western perspective, I’m appalled at the idea of child marriage in general. Paired with the rituals of widowhood, it becomes a lifetime of oppression for these girls. I personally believe that these are issues of human rights rather than a lack of cultural relativism, but I’m open to and welcome differing opinions.
http://www.refinery29.com/2015/10/94675/nepal-child-marriage-young-widows#slide
Brandi Bragg