sati

or sa·tī, sut·tee

[ suh-tee, suht-ee ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

a Hindu practice whereby a widow immolates herself on the funeral pyre of her husband: now abolished by law.
a Hindu widow who so immolates herself.

Sati

or Sa·tī

[ suh-tee, suht-ee ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

, Hindu Mythology.

the wife of Rudra, who immolated herself following a quarrel between her father and her husband.

Origin of sati¹

First recorded in 1780–90, sati is from the Sanskrit word satī good woman, woman devoted to her husband

Thou who hast taken the vow of Satī, thou lettest thine eyes wander, not seeing what is to be seen!

Satī, a virtuous woman, especially one who burns herself with her husband.

The sculptures on satī pillars often commemorate the mode of death of the husband.

See ante, Chapter 4, note 6, for remarks on the supposed prophetic gifts of satī women.

April 25, 2024firkin

[fur-kin ]

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