Multiple Husbands | National Geographic

it's called polyandry one woman several husbands it's an unusual arrangement today polyandry only persists in isolated villages in the Himalayans when it was time for Sunita Kumari with her family like many in India made arrangements but they involve more than a doubt celebration Sunita has not one husband not two systems but three all brothers what muster life be like Westerners might find the practice shocking but for this community it works fine one reason sheer practicality in the Himalayas arable land of scarce farms are tiny if each generation divided each family's holdings everyone would starve polyandry preserves the farm and the family's future unlike most men in India husband's here handle domestic duties they're willing to help with the cooking and childcare in fraternal polyandry a family picks a wife for its oldest son the marriage can also include his younger brothers they don't have to join in but most do no one takes a decision regarding one's own marriage everyone at home sits down together and then it's decided with the consent of everyone polyandry also functions as a form of birth control no matter how many husbands she has a wife can get pregnant only so often if each man were to Wed separately the population here would explode but what about sex the forbidden core of a polyandry taboo in truth it's a matter of scheduling and on the wife's part forbearance is very important the wife has to understand everything the older brother's nature the younger brothers nature had Toto make you say what about jealousy that vain of even the most mundane marriage if the wife is smart she will take turns each night asleep with all the brothers let's get wives in India I say it's not like the older brother wants or old Todd I thought okay who knows until recently no one here much cared what the outside world thought isolation had preserved a way of life that had withered everywhere else but a road now links the region to distant cities and on roofs once decorated only with prayer flags satellite dishes sprout this village has entered the modern world whose images of romance stand in sharp contrast to polyamory but polyamory here faces a bigger threat education as more people are becoming more educated we are also practicing the family planning if a father has only one son there will be no question about the land therefore common marriages will come to an end in two perhaps three generations polyandry may vanish here but for now those who practices find comfort in the familiar feel that common marriage is very good I feel like everyone should live like our family even if we do not have anything to eat or drink we sit happily we live peacefully

Channel: National Geographic

Views: 362,966

Rating: 4.4639177 out of 5

Keywords: multiple, husband, polyandry, polygamy, sister, wives, brother, husbands, himalayas, family, traditional, national geographic, nat geo, natgeo, animals, wildlife, science, explore, discover, survival, nature, documentary

Id: h22-wHytFF0

Length: 4min 9sec (249 seconds)

Published: Thu Oct 14 2010