MENSTRUAL HEALTH IN INDIAN TRADITION
MENSTRUAL HEALTH IN INDIAN TRADITION
In today's world menstrual health is explained on basis of using certain products during menstruation in a hygienic way. With the increase in availability of sanitary napkins or tampons why does women increasing suffer from various menstrual disorder?
Even with many NGOs clamming poor menstrual hygiene in India Indian women suffers less from menstrual disorders and rural Indian women suffer less comparatively than urban Indian women. The answer lies in the roots of Indian tradition which derives the explanation from Ayurveda.
The tridoshas VATA , PITTA & KAPHA governs all the activities of the body and so is the menstrual cycle so rules and regulations are laid according to the predominant doshas in each phase of the cycle.
The 1st to 5th day of the cycle is governed by VATA that pushes the menstrual blood out of the body.
The week following the flow is governed by KAPHA which helps in building up the endometrium in the uterus and also the follical development.
The ovulation week and the premenstrual week is governed by PITTA... when there is a raise in body temperature in the former and mood swings in the latter week.
Keeping all this in mind certain rules and regulations were charted in olden days which has now been regulated to a single religion.
Here I have listed certain practices in India that has helped in maintaing the menstrual health in Indian women.
One can still find these practices in southern India, the brain stores each and every memory. When puberty is considered as a celebration the brain stores menstruation as a joyous event and every period hence forth will be joyous and not as a shock or irritation or fear. The emotions faced when you experience anything new is stored as the memory of the event.
This has now been now interpreted as women are considered unclean on the contrary this was done to protect the menstruating women from getting cramps or tired or feeling wasted due to the aggravation of VATA dosha that controls the menstrual flow. This is the same reason why she is given light food so its easily digestible, and also to kept away from sour and hot foods like pickles etc, so that she may not experience any irritation or burning sensation during the flow.
INDIAN architectural methods of building the temples was to help to pull the human energy upwards. if a menstruating women enters these shrines the force inside pulls the vata upwards when all it should do is to be pushing the menstrual flow downwards...
Certain yogic postures like SHIRASASANA, HALASANA, SARVAANGASANA, CHAKRASANA are not advisable for a menstruating women as it may lead the reverse flow of the menstrual blood.
In modern medical terms the cause of an disease called ENDOMETRIOSIS is the reverse flow of the menstrual blood which is due to unexplained causes.
While modern medicine directly relates the menstruation to reproduction Ayurveda sees it as a tool to find out the anomalies of the body with the colour, odour and flow of the menstrual blood.
One may think that you have not followed any rules and still you have no disorders. Since we are used to only noticing whats loud and not whats subtle, mild changes in the doshas nature that may lead to constipation, cramps, disturbance in the menstrual flow, or bloating of the stomach usually goes unnoticed by us.
A STUDY BY THE LONDON SCHOOL OF HYGIENE & TROPICAL MEDICINE FOUND NO ASSOCIATION BETWEEN THE BACTERIAL VAGINOSIS( a reproductive tract infection in women) & MENSTRUAL HEALTH MANAGEMENT ( like using sanitary pads or clothes or tampons)
The Indian menstrual practices has been shamed and deemed anti feminist and most of us has blindly followed the westernization thinking that all our traditional knowledge as old school thoughts and ignoring it, which has lead to the rise of menstrual disorders like DYSMENORRHEA(painful menstruation), MENORRHAGIA( excess flow), PCOS, etc.
DEEPER UNDERSTANDING OF OUR ROOTS WILL LEAD TO THE CURE OF MANY LIFESTYLE ORIENTED DISORDERS
In today's world menstrual health is explained on basis of using certain products during menstruation in a hygienic way. With the increase in availability of sanitary napkins or tampons why does women increasing suffer from various menstrual disorder?
Even with many NGOs clamming poor menstrual hygiene in India Indian women suffers less from menstrual disorders and rural Indian women suffer less comparatively than urban Indian women. The answer lies in the roots of Indian tradition which derives the explanation from Ayurveda.
The tridoshas VATA , PITTA & KAPHA governs all the activities of the body and so is the menstrual cycle so rules and regulations are laid according to the predominant doshas in each phase of the cycle.
The 1st to 5th day of the cycle is governed by VATA that pushes the menstrual blood out of the body.
The week following the flow is governed by KAPHA which helps in building up the endometrium in the uterus and also the follical development.
The ovulation week and the premenstrual week is governed by PITTA... when there is a raise in body temperature in the former and mood swings in the latter week.
Keeping all this in mind certain rules and regulations were charted in olden days which has now been regulated to a single religion.
Here I have listed certain practices in India that has helped in maintaing the menstrual health in Indian women.
- CELEBRATING PUBERTY
One can still find these practices in southern India, the brain stores each and every memory. When puberty is considered as a celebration the brain stores menstruation as a joyous event and every period hence forth will be joyous and not as a shock or irritation or fear. The emotions faced when you experience anything new is stored as the memory of the event.
- STAYING AWAY FROM HOUSEHOLD WORKS
This has now been now interpreted as women are considered unclean on the contrary this was done to protect the menstruating women from getting cramps or tired or feeling wasted due to the aggravation of VATA dosha that controls the menstrual flow. This is the same reason why she is given light food so its easily digestible, and also to kept away from sour and hot foods like pickles etc, so that she may not experience any irritation or burning sensation during the flow.
- NOT VISITING HOLY SHRINES
INDIAN architectural methods of building the temples was to help to pull the human energy upwards. if a menstruating women enters these shrines the force inside pulls the vata upwards when all it should do is to be pushing the menstrual flow downwards...
- AVOIDING CERTAIN AASANAS
Certain yogic postures like SHIRASASANA, HALASANA, SARVAANGASANA, CHAKRASANA are not advisable for a menstruating women as it may lead the reverse flow of the menstrual blood.
In modern medical terms the cause of an disease called ENDOMETRIOSIS is the reverse flow of the menstrual blood which is due to unexplained causes.
While modern medicine directly relates the menstruation to reproduction Ayurveda sees it as a tool to find out the anomalies of the body with the colour, odour and flow of the menstrual blood.
One may think that you have not followed any rules and still you have no disorders. Since we are used to only noticing whats loud and not whats subtle, mild changes in the doshas nature that may lead to constipation, cramps, disturbance in the menstrual flow, or bloating of the stomach usually goes unnoticed by us.
A STUDY BY THE LONDON SCHOOL OF HYGIENE & TROPICAL MEDICINE FOUND NO ASSOCIATION BETWEEN THE BACTERIAL VAGINOSIS( a reproductive tract infection in women) & MENSTRUAL HEALTH MANAGEMENT ( like using sanitary pads or clothes or tampons)
The Indian menstrual practices has been shamed and deemed anti feminist and most of us has blindly followed the westernization thinking that all our traditional knowledge as old school thoughts and ignoring it, which has lead to the rise of menstrual disorders like DYSMENORRHEA(painful menstruation), MENORRHAGIA( excess flow), PCOS, etc.
DEEPER UNDERSTANDING OF OUR ROOTS WILL LEAD TO THE CURE OF MANY LIFESTYLE ORIENTED DISORDERS
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