What are the traditional Hindu beliefs regarding menstruation?  

Hinduism views the menstruating woman as “impure” or “polluted”.The impurity lasts only during the menses, and ends immediately thereafter. During their menstruation, women must leave the main house, and live in a small hut outside the village.They must rest, and do no work; they cannot comb their hair or bathe , They are not allowed to partake in the Naulas, or traditional water springs. In other words, menstruating women do not have access to water when they need it for personal hygiene. They are not allowed to cook food and must keep separate utensils.Women may not enter the pooja room (the prayer room within each home) and may not enter the temple. There is a strong taboo against menstruation being made known in a public sphere

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Answered by Arle Rambabu at 5:50 PM on September 28, 2008

The relationship between culture and menstruation is expressed in many ways. A variety of menstrual-related traditions exist. One group of authors has even theorized that menstruation may have played a key role in the development of symbolic culture in early human society.
In Hinduism, a woman having periods cannot be part of religious ceremonies for the first 4 days of the cycle.
In South India the first menstural period of a girl was celebrated very grandly, in the old days. She would be asked to sit in a seperate room, & not allowed to enter the kitchen or face the men in the house.On the fourth day women will gather with lots of sweets, new clothes & jewellery give the girl a ceremonial bath & adorn her.
Every month during these days she was not allowed to touch water or clothes other than what was given to her. Only after the bath on the fourth day she could enter the kitchen. Now nobody observes all these.

Answered by Tingtong at 10:06 PM on September 27, 2008

According to Hindu scripture, human life begins when the male semen fertilizes the female egg.

karmana daiva-netrena jantur dehopapattaye striyah pravista udaram pumso retah-kanasrayah (SB. 3.31.1)

"By divine arrangement in accordance with the principle of karma, the living entity enters into the womb of a woman through the particle of male semen to assume a particular type of body."
So there is no debate within Hinduism as to when life begins. Thus abortion involves killing, which in most cases is not acceptable. Although I have not studied the argument, it is likely that on similar grounds Hinduism would oppose stem cell research, which as I understand it is most effectively done on the stem cells of aborted fetuses.
Oftentimes the women in my family are not allowed to go to the temple, practice pujas, or even go into the kitchen when they have their menstrual period. When I was in India, my aunt said she was "cursed" because she always got her period during important festivals, and could not participate in the ceremonies. Although it may have been hygienic in the olden days, now it seems pretty useless--after all, there are clean and sanitary ways to handle the situation. I would like to know where it states (in Hinduism) that women are not allowed to do anything during their period? And why do we continue to practice this seclusion even in these days; after all, isn't the menstrual cycle (which allows a woman to procreate) one of the most natural and important of bodily functions?

Prohibitions regarding women's involvement in ritualistic worship during their menstrual cycle are implied throughout the scripture. At least this is how those who have formed lineages have interpreted sections of the scripture that discuss this period. The Bhagavata Purana for example attributes the menstrual cycle to one fourth the karmic reaction to Indra's inadvertent killing of a brahmana. According to that Purana, Indra killed a brahmana and was then chased by the karmic reaction to this killing. He then negotiated with four groups who each agreed to absorb one quarter of the reaction in exchange for a blessing. Women got the blessing that they could have sex during pregnancy without endangering the embryo in exchange for accepting the monthly menstrual cycle.

sasvat-kama-varenamhas turiyah jagrhuh striyah
rajo-rupena tasv amho masi masi pradrsyate (BP. 6.6.9)
It is also stated in this Purana that one should not eat food seen by a woman during her monthly period, bhunjitodakyaya drstam (BP. 6.18.49). You may also find something about this in Manu Samhita.

Answered by Ashish Yadav at 6:53 PM on September 26, 2008

According to Hindu scripture, human life begins when the male semen fertilizes the female egg.

karmana daiva-netrena jantur dehopapattaye striyah pravista udaram pumso retah-kanasrayah (SB. 3.31.1)

"By divine arrangement in accordance with the principle of karma, the living entity enters into the womb of a woman through the particle of male semen to assume a particular type of body."
So there is no debate within Hinduism as to when life begins. Thus abortion involves killing, which in most cases is not acceptable. Although I have not studied the argument, it is likely that on similar grounds Hinduism would oppose stem cell research, which as I understand it is most effectively done on the stem cells of aborted fetuses.
Oftentimes the women in my family are not allowed to go to the temple, practice pujas, or even go into the kitchen when they have their menstrual period. When I was in India, my aunt said she was "cursed" because she always got her period during important festivals, and could not participate in the ceremonies. Although it may have been hygienic in the olden days, now it seems pretty useless--after all, there are clean and sanitary ways to handle the situation. I would like to know where it states (in Hinduism) that women are not allowed to do anything during their period? And why do we continue to practice this seclusion even in these days; after all, isn't the menstrual cycle (which allows a woman to procreate) one of the most natural and important of bodily functions?

Prohibitions regarding women's involvement in ritualistic worship during their menstrual cycle are implied throughout the scripture. At least this is how those who have formed lineages have interpreted sections of the scripture that discuss this period. The Bhagavata Purana for example attributes the menstrual cycle to one fourth the karmic reaction to Indra's inadvertent killing of a brahmana. According to that Purana, Indra killed a brahmana and was then chased by the karmic reaction to this killing. He then negotiated with four groups who each agreed to absorb one quarter of the reaction in exchange for a blessing. Women got the blessing that they could have sex during pregnancy without endangering the embryo in exchange for accepting the monthly menstrual cycle.

sasvat-kama-varenamhas turiyah jagrhuh striyah
rajo-rupena tasv amho masi masi pradrsyate (BP. 6.6.9)
It is also stated in this Purana that one should not eat food seen by a woman during her monthly period, bhunjitodakyaya drstam (BP. 6.18.49). You may also find something about this in Manu Samhita.

Answered by Anju Singh at 6:34 PM on September 26, 2008