DEVOTEE MATAJI's APPEARANCE

"Women should dress distinctively as women. If a woman artificially dresses herself as a man, that is not appreciated. Of course, nowadays it is very fashionable to have coat and pants like the men."

So that is not liked very much. It is artificial. As much as possible, devotee women should wear saris. Srila Prabhupada did not like Western women's dress.

When Srila Prabhupada performed the marriage ceremony for Nandarani in 1967, he asked her to wear a sari, although before that she had only worn jeans. He said that "This is the way our women should always look. No more jeans and dresses. They should always wear saris."

Srila Prabhupada expressed that the sari is a most feminine dress that increases the beauty of women: "A woman who wears a sari looks very feminine." "This Vedic dress is very beautiful. It increases the beauty a hundred times."

The sari fulfills a woman's needs both to be dressed nicely and to be dressed modestly. It is not only a chaste covering for a woman's body, protecting her from lusty gazes, but a "spiritual uniform," identifying her as a person dedicated to higher values of life. It expresses a commitment to a way of life and the values that go with it.

There are European and American girls present in Iskcon. For krsna-bhakti they have sacrificed everything.

Even they do not dress attractively so that they may be attractive to other boys, and their life may be spoiled. Why? For bhakti. For Krishna. This is bhakti. That is wanted.

The sari is also the most practical dress for lactating mothers, who can breastfeed their babies under its folds in any place without compromising their modesty.

Holding babies under the sari also helps to protect them from cold wind or hot direct sun.

Traditionally, the proper way to wear the sari is with a kacha, as required for women assisting their husbands in sacrifices.

This style is still current in parts of India; although Srila Prabhupada never indicated that he wanted his female disciples to adopt it.

Modesty dictates that women dress to disguise the contours of the body, not emphasize them.

Tight-fitting clothing such as jeans, tee-shirts, and sweaters are not suitable for chaste women.

Devotee women who due to social circumstances feel obliged to dress Western style should choose conservative dress only.

Best are long skirts and loosely fitting clothes that disguise rather than accentuate bodily features.

Once Srila Prabhupada chastised two of his female disciples for wearing their saris in a fashionable, revealing style. He wanted his followers to represent the highest order in society and to set an example for the world to follow. He wanted his lady disciples to wear saris in the style worn by wives of brahmanas engaged in temple service.

The ideal in Indian culture is for women to cover their bodies as fully as possible. Srila Prabhupada explained, "By nature a woman is ashamed to be seen undressed. She should be so covered that even the sun cannot see her. And who can hide themselves from the sun?"

Then he praised the women in the Parsee community who were so covered that only their eyes showed.

Women's' legs should always be fully covered. Although common nowadays, it is extremely low class and lascivious for a woman to exhibit her legs for all the world to see. Higher caste women wear their saris with the lower rim reaching below the ankles.

It may seem convenient to wear the sari higher, but chastity in dress is far more important than convenience.

Many Western women devotees wear a tee-shirt or sweater with their saris but better is the choli, the traditional blouse.

The modern fashion is to wear cholis that leave much of the body exposed, but women for whom modesty is more important than fashion wear long-sleeved colis that fully cover the arms (up to the wrists), shoulders and midriff. The choli, especially the front part, should always be further covered by the sari cloth."

"In traditional Vedic culture, married women cover their heads with their sari cloth in the presence of unknown or respected persons. Married ISKCON ladies, or those of marriageable age, should observe this practice, even though modern Indian women commonly neglect it. Even if many modern Indian women do not dress or behave very chastely, theirs is hardly an example to follow.

However, Srila Prabhupada did not think it necessary for his female disciples to completely cover their faces with their saris, as some Indian women do.

The sari veil (ghuitan in Bengali) should gracefully cover the head, not be tucked behind the ears.

Saris made from synthetic (polyester type) cloth are highly flammable and therefore dangerous. Kitchen accidents in which women wearing synthetic-cloth saris suffer severe burns or even death are not uncommon, so it is strongly recommended not to wear such cloth.

Within the last fifty years, it has come to be accepted in India that young girls wear the salwar khameez (the Indian trouser suit, originating in Muslim countries), wearing saris only after marriage. Salwar khameez is a more chaste dress than modern Western clothing, but should be worn with a dopatta (covering cloth) over the breasts, and the kameez (upper part) should be long enough to fully cover the backside.

However, the real tradition is for all females except infants to wear saris.

It is suggested that women living in temple communities not wear saffron or similar colored saris, lest male devotees inadvertently look freely at them, mistaking their dress for that of a brahmacari. For women to daily dress in saffron in imitation of sannyasa dress is contrary to tradition and has not been approved by any bona fide acarya. White is the only acceptable color of dress to signify renunciation in women. short wears in white

It is natural for women to try to attract men by their dress, but devotee women should resist this impulse and dress modestly. Saris so thin as to be see-through should only be worn over a full-length petticoat. Revealing dress, such as short skirts, low bustlines, bikinis and the like are absolutely taboo for devotee women.

Kasyapa Muni advised his wife not to go out onto the street unless she was well decorated and well dressed. He did not encourage the miniskirts that have now become fashionable.

In Oriental civilization, when a woman goes out onto the street, she must be fully covered so that no man will recognize who she is. All these methods are to be accepted for purification.

"Queries, suggestions, and other kinds of feedback are welcome."

All glories to Guru and Gauranga
All glories to Srila Prabhupada!
Hare Krishna!