It is often said that the power of the feminine resides in the womb. It is where creation happens. It is where a new life is born. The Goddesses may be representing different energy forms or characteristics. But there is one thing that unites all the Devis and that is the power of the womb. We all know that a woman bleeds every month. I’m sure many men would have stopped reading this by now. That’s understandable. But this is a slight push from my side to go on and complete reading. Judgements, disgust, denial can come later.

The ovaries release hormones which create a lining inside her womb to fertilize the egg and start developing into a new life. When a woman isn’t carrying a baby, she is letting go of the lining that has been formed for nurturing the baby (which isn’t there). This comes out along with blood as the tissues tear out from the womb. It takes about 28 days for the lining to form so a woman bleeds once a month. It is simply a biological process from the eyes of a normal human being. Just like urination and excretion. Since this process is painful, (cmon! we bleed), a woman can go through cramps, pain, fatigue, weakness, hormonal changes etc which need her to be resting. To the women reading this, it is okay to rest. It doesn’t take any power away from you or make you seem weaker, if you want to take rest. Don’t believe these sanitary napkin ads which set unrealistic standards about how free a woman can be during her periods. She can be. But she can take rest and take a break from her routine as well. It is absolutely okay to do so. She can also feel low and tired. In the idea of being cool, modern and woke, don’t forget to respect your body and its needs.

Moving forward, when we speak about feminine energy, when a woman is conceiving, she is at her highest energy self. She is the most powerful version of herself. Her body is going through tremendous changes where her womb is the central energy point. Creation is taking place, so it requires the energy possessed by God. The Goddess energy. Now you know how powerful a woman is capable of being?

Now when a woman is not conceiving, she is still powerful. Not having a child doesn’t take anything away from how powerful she is. So everytime she bleeds during the month, her body is high on energy with the womb being central energy point.

In Sanatana it is believed that this power of the feminine or the Garbha Shakti (Energy of the Womb) is so powerful that it makes the power of the other person or energy beings null. This is exactly why a woman was stopped from going to temples during her menstrual cycle as a women in her periods could be so powerful that the power of the murti (idol) in a temple could become null. Again this is an energy concept which maybe termed as poppycock until someone from the Western world propagates it and everyone would start believing.

In the Vedas, there have been women performing yagnas and other rituals. Nowhere has it been explicitly mentioned that a menstruating woman is ‘impure’. Even during normal circumstances, when any person bleeds (male or female) we tend to ‘clean up’. Same happens during periods. So cleanliness is of outmost importance during periods. Cleanliness is different is from discrimination.

In India, when a girl hits puberty there is a celebration. When a girl starts her periods, she gains the power to create and give birth to new life. It is only a small token of respect that it is celebrated.

Now why the taboo? A woman needs rest during her cycle. She needs to do no work, take care of her energies, allow her body to go through the biological process that it needs to undergo and let go of the unwanted from the physical body as well as the emotional state (mood swings). This ‘need’ was changed to ‘should’. A women ‘needs’ to take rest became a woman ‘should’ take rest. This became like an oppression and patriarchy which seemed unacceptable to gender equality. I don’t deny that discrimination exists. But it is because of misinformation and societal conditioning.

Our culture has celebrated women. It is time to celebrate the feminine even more by understanding what is right and what is misinformation!

As men, we need to understand and support the women during her cycle. Have an open mind to talk about it and educate yourself. Google it. Or just ask your wife, mother, daughter, sister, girlfriend or any female friend and know more. It is not embarrassing. It is a necessity.When someone talks about it,try your best to not cringe or change the topic.

As women, we need to respect our bodies during this time. No it is not always about breaking traditions. Understand the traditions before getting your feminazi minds into it. If you need rest during your periods, it is okay to rest. Doesn’t make sense proving yourself right when your body is saying the opposite. And if any man is being weird about it, be kind and educate them. It is not always their fault that they see it as something disgusting. Encourage other women to talk freely about it too.

Those going through several period related issues, this is mainly because we have lost the connection with our womb. Connect to your Garbha. Everyday before you go to bed, as you are lying down, place your hands on your lower abdomen. Send your energies to your womb. Talk to your womb. Talk to her with kindness, love and compassion. That is your energy point. Talk to her and say how grateful you are for having the ability to create life and give birth. Embrace your womanhood without feeling shy, weak or embarrassed.

And the next time someone talks about periods, don’t be in denial, whether you are a man or a woman!