WOMEN UNDER POLYGAMY
of clauses relating to marriage. A man is forbidden to marry a woman of a lower caste. No woman having six fingers can be married, nor one having lost one of her limbs.
There is a curious prohibition against marriage with a woman of decidedly red hair. Light, or golden, hair is, of course, extremely uncommon among the dark- skinned races. The blonde is not fitted to survive in very hot countries, nor, it is said, in highly-civilised states. A distrust of persons with red hair is fairly common in many countries. Certain specific physiological, moral, and mental characteristics are supposed to accompany red hair. Generally-speaking, red hair is not admired by the uneducated classes, but it is sometimes highly attractive to men of the artistic type.
It would seem, from the proscription against marrying red-haired women, that an ancient prejudice existed in India regarding the hair so much admired by many of the old Italian painters.
The Hindu prefers the woman "robed in the long night of her deep hair." He looks upon red hair as abnormal among the women of his race, and the abnormal is often dreaded and disliked in other countries besides India. As the Hindus admire soft and silky hair, we can, in part, trace here the prejudice against auburn hair, which is usually dry and coarse to the touch.
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