My Period Story: Taboos Don’t Have Boundaries
Period taboos in Indian culture aren’t blocked by borders. I’m an American born Indian girl who also had to confront taboos associated with menstruation, even though I’ve been in America my whole life.
It all started with the festival Navratri’s Kanjak Puja. I was considered a “kanya” since I was an infant, and was happily given offerings every year, in the name of Goddess Durga. I did look forward to eating delicious puri, tasting spicy chana and letting Desi ghee in halwa melt in my mouth. It was always fun to be blessed with additional gifts. But I was more excited to tie the bright red Kalaava on my left wrist as a “kanya”. Every Navratri, I cheerfully showed my new Kalaava to all my friends, who weren’t Hindu, by the way. I called the Kalaava a friendship bracelet that keeps me close to religion, so they would understand. With a big smile and a glow in my dark brown eyes, I proudly taught them how my religion honors girls and even worships Goddesses.
I also mentioned that girls would get honored in such a way until they turn 16 years old, like my elders told me. Little did I know, I stopped getting honored when I was 11. My smile turned into a frown and tears started to come out of my eyes, when I found out the truth. I got my first period, which nobody taught me about, despite living in America. The thing that made me more confused than the blood coming out all of a sudden, was that I was no longer to be counted as a “Kanya”. So much blood dripping from my body was shocking but not as shocking as finding out that everybody had to know, in the name of religion, otherwise it would be a grave sin. This was just the beginning of bloody surprises (Pun intended).
I found out that there are so many taboos. The main taboo I have had to deal with is staying away from everything religious. Despite being outside of India, my family is from India and I’m blessed to call myself a Hindu. Religion has always been important to me. The Divine is my childhood best friend forever! My heart ached knowing that I would have to stay away from religion, just due to the way my body was designed. It was more painful than the (period) cramps to think that the deities only find females who don’t menstruate worthy enough. I needed my favorite bestie the most when it felt like my insides were ripping out and someone’s gut punching me. I didn’t understand why the Almighty would invent periods, then consider them impure and disgusting.
As I grew up, I realized that periods = human life. Menstrual blood is the same blood every human being born in this wonderful world was in, when in the uterus of their dear mother. If the same blood could be used to create a cute baby and a human can live in it for 9 months, then in reality, it couldn’t be impure nor bad. Otherwise everybody, including males, wouldn’t be unholy. Now I love to believe that The Divine is still my bestie, even though my body started to bleed.
Written by: Isha Gupta