How many people know that the silk
one wears or uses involves violence and that one wears it with great pride
in the places of worship? It is sad that one follows traditions blindly
without questioning the origination or it�s making process.
It all started around 1133 A.D. at
the time of King Kumarpal, the King of Gujarat, a state in Western India.
During his rule he was greatly influenced by a great Jain teacher Acharya
Hemchandra who was a disciple of a Jain Prophet named Mahavir. The King
was so inspired by his teachings of Ahinsa and Compassion that he declared
in his entire state to stop killing for food, sport or fun.
It is said that he was further
inspired by the saint to lead a religious life and perform puja (a
symbolic worship to an idol in the temple) everyday to show his devotion
to Lord Mahavir. The King was asked to wear the best, the most expensive
and new clothes to perform the puja and so he ordered the best of the
material to be obtained. His men went and purchased the most costly, fine
and soft material from China for their King. At that time the King did not
know that the material purchased for him was imported silk, made from
killing silkworms, which involved sheer violence. If he knew that he would
not have used silk for puja. But since then the tradition continues.
Unfortunately even today people wear silk clothes in religious rituals
justifying that King Kumarpal used it.
It is time one wakes up to the fact
and knows the true story of silk. Beauty Without Cruelty organization in
India has done a great work in this field and brought to light the cruelty
involved in making silk.
Soft, smooth and shimmering silk is
perhaps the most attractive textile ever created. More than two thousand
years ago, this beautiful fabric was imported from China known as "Chinanshuk"
in Sanskrit language. The method and source or its production was a very
highly guarded secret -may be because it involved the killing of millions
The filament of silk is what a
silkworm spins for its cocoon. The cocoon is constructed as its shell to
protect itself during its cycle of growth from caterpillar to chrysalis to
The female moth lays about 400-600
eggs. The eggs hatch in about 10 days and the larvae (1/12 inch in length)
emerge. They are fed on mulberry leaves for 20-27 days till they are fully
grown (3-3 1/2 inches length).
A fully-grown caterpillar emits a
gummy substance from its mouth and wraps itself in layers of this filament
to form a cocoon in 2 to 4 days. The caterpillar develops into a moth in
about 15 days. To emerge it has to cut through the cocoon - thereby
ruining the filament of the cocoon. In order to save the filaments from
being broken, the chrysalis are either immersed in boiling water or passed
through hot air or exposed to the scorching heat of the sun, thus killing
the lives inside. The filaments of the cocoons are then reeled.
To produce 100 grams of pure silk,
approximately 1,500 chrysalis have to be killed. Certain chrysalis are
chosen and kept aside to allow the moths to emerge and mate. After the
female moth lays eggs, she is crushed to check for diseases. If she has
any disease, the eggs laid by her are destroyed.
Generation after generation of
inbreeding has taken away the moth's capacity to fly. After mating, the
male moths are dumped into a basket and thrown out.
India produces four varieties of
silks obtained from four types of moths. These are known as Mulberry,
Tussar, Eri and Muga. Mulberry is also produced in other silk-producing
countries: China, Japan, Russia, Italy, South Korea, etc. but Eri and Muga
are produced in India only.
The other materials that look
somewhat like silk are from man-made fibers known as artificial silk (art
silk). Of these, rayon (viscose) is of vegetable origin; where as nylon
and polyester (terrene) are petroleum products. Silk, once woven is known
by different names depending on the weave, style, design and place where
it is woven. Materials like boski, pure crepe, pure chiffon, pure gaji,
pure georgette, khadi silk, matka silk, organza, and pure satin are 100%
silk. Saris from Calcutta, Gadhwal, Madurai and Shantiniketan can be in
100% silk or 100% cotton.
Irkal saris from Narayan Peth (Andhra
Pradesh) can be of 100% silk or part silk and part cotton yarn.
Venkatgiri saris may be in all cotton
or part silk/cotton. Chanderi, Tissue, Poona, Ventakgiri and Maheshwari
Saris of Madhya Pradesh have silk yarn in warp and cotton yarn in weft.
Manipuri Kota and Munga Kota have
both silk and cotton yarn. Matka silk is also 100% pure silk. In this, the
yarn in warp is the usual silk yarn, whereas the yarn in weft is obtained
from the cocoons that are cut open by the moth to come out. Later these
moths are crushed to death after they lay eggs.
Materials like crepe, chinon,
chiffon, gaji, georgette, satin etc. can be made from man-made fiber
called artificial silk. Cheaper quality of Tanchhoi can contain silk yarn
in warp and artificial yarn in weft.
The Japanese and Indian materials
known as "China Silk" (not Chinese Silk) is not pure silk but polyester.
Those who would like to know what
yarn is used in particular materials, can test in the following way:
To identify silk, you must burn some
yarn (a few from warp as well as weft). Since human hair also burns like
silk, it will be easier to learn by burning a strand of hair. Take some
fallen hair, hold it with a tweezer and burn it. See how it burns. When it
stops burning, a very tiny (pinhead size) ash ball is formed. Take it
between your fingers and rub it. Smell the powdered ash. The smell of
burnt hair, silk, wool and leather will be the same and the way it will
burn (to form an ash ball), will also be the same. If it is cotton or
rayon yarn, it will burn in flames and will not form any ash ball nor will
it smell like silk. If it is a petroleum product like nylon or polyester,
it will burn forming a tiny, hard glass like ball.
100% Silk Materials: Boski, Pure
crepe, Pure chiffon, Pure gaji, Pure georgette, Khadi silk, Organza, Pure
satin, Raw silk, Matka silk and many more that we may not be aware of."