Don't touch that pickle jar

Among the various myths that we Indians believe in, this is the weirdest. We Indians consider periods, a natural bodily function, to be impure and it is considered not safe to touch the pickles jar when you are on your periods for your impure vibes may ( not sure) can spoil the pickles. Our grandmother's were so naive. What has periods to do with pickles is something that these ladies who believe in this myth fail to explain. However, my question to them is, what do women's working in pickle manufacturing industries do during their periods? Do they get paid for not turning up for the work for those 5 days of the month? I am pretty sure that it doesn't work like that.

Image source : https://bit.ly/2wKrqnj

Well, this is not the only superstition that is associated with periods. Girls on their periods are restricted from entering temples and other religious places because, again, they are considered impure. Really? Well, good has created us and it was he/she who empowered with this power of reproducing and periods are an integral part of this process. If God knew it was impure, why did he/she plan something impure in the first place? I wonder what goddesses did when they were on their periods, we're they also made to stay away from pickle jars? And for any reason if you believe that goddesses never ever bled then you should visit this famous temple ' Kamakhya Devi' in Assam, India to believe that goddesses did bleed.

The plight of young girls in southern India scares me. To begin with, the parents hold a grand ceremony to declare that their daughter has started getting her periods and if that was not enough to embarrass her, she is made to sit isolated during those 5 days every month. Her family members behave as if she is an outcast making her eat and sleep away from other members of the family. If you think this works only in some uneducated households, you are absolutely wrong. I had a friend who was made to follow strict rules that her engineer parents had framed. She was made to sleep on a mat and not on her regular bed, she was given a different steel plate which she was supposed to wash by herself, she was not allowed to enter inside the kitchen, there was a separate bottle for her to drink water from and what not.

I cannot imagine what life would be like if my parents were so impractical. I am happy that my parents are progressive and I didn't have to undergo the humiliation that many young girls are facing for no fault of theirs.