Before the 19th century, Indian doctors barely realized that periods were associated with ovulation and the menstrual cycle. It was often thought that women needed to bleed in order to cool their emotional stress and hysterical outbreaks.
The Origin Of Myths Around Menstruation
Besides, it was also believed that menstruating women led to infertile cows, rotting of flower plants when touched, etc. However, India presents a unique transition to menstruation which has left probable effects till today.
Legends suggest that the orthodoxy is connected to the Vedic times which hoists the story of Indra’s slaying of the Vritras which leads to the guilt of killing “a Brahmana” which haunts women every month and the bottom-line is that menstruation occurs in women to eradicate the guilt of all humankind. This deterred a woman from participating in daily life till she is “purified“.
Legends suggest that the orthodoxy is connected to the Vedic times which hoists the story of Indra’s slaying of the Vritras which leads to the guilt of killing “a Brahmana”.
Sinu Joseph, an Indian menstrual health activist, travelled across India to spread awareness about the origins of certain 19th-century practices. She found out that in some areas, the story of the menstrual rituals concerning the Vedic times was repelled and menstruating women were worshipped as a “living goddess”. During their periods, women were restricted from worshipping to avoid the idols from becoming lifeless and powerless.
She also noted that in some cultures like that in Manipur, blood was respected and the cloth used at menarche was mandatory to be kept and gifted once the girl gets married to protect her from the “evil eye.”
The Practice Of “Body Purity And Pollution” In Hinduism
Another practice of celebrating and worshipping menstruation is centuries old – the famous temple of Kamakhya in the state of Assam where the Ambubachi Mela or the four-day celebration is held. The presence of red-soaked cloth all around marks the symbol of the menstruation of the goddess that is later distributed among devotees.
In some regions in India, there prevailed a practice of “body purity and pollution” in Hinduism. Bodily excretions were believed to pollute water resources, and all women, despite their caste were made to believe that they polluted the water by menstruation and childbirth. This signifies the reason for not allowing the menstruating women to bath, while they were on their periods.
In the 19th century India, to commemorate the ritual of garbandhan, the first of the ten fundamental Hindu life cycle, rites in which girls merely ageing 8-9 were married off and were forced into sexual cohabitation within fifteen days of her menarche.
This proved futile and reflected directly on the health of women, leading to early deaths, death of the fetus in the womb, and the damage to the sexual organs in some cases, leading to infertility.
The Vision Of Freedom To Bleed Freely
This Hindu ritual was challenged by intellectuals and the Indian reformers, only to raise the age of sexual content by merely two years to reduce the numbers of child bride mortality. But the scenario of ill-menstrual health has had no change.
A direct transition to menstrual products is noticed to have emerged from the late 19th century which was marked by the use of wood pulp bandages from rags, taking into consideration hygiene. What we today called a pad was perhaps a homemade menstrual cloth made of flannel.
The first product in India was the Southhall pad. It was predominantly marketed by the Europeans, later embraced by the Indian elites. Rubber pants (under-wears lined with rubber) were also highly marketed among the European colonies.
The stigma attached to menstruation, however, has no end, whether the roots lie in the 19th century or not. Different menstruation practices, cultures, and rituals have affected both physical and mental health. Though not much difference to the taboos is spotted till date, yet freedom to bleed freely and responsibly is being envisioned.