In Brahmin and Chhetri culture, women’s menstrual period is looked upon as sinful and physically squalid. Especially the first three days of the period, women are said to be contaminated and they are kept away from their ordinary routine as if they’re untouchable. They’re not allowed to enter the kitchen and touch food, are not permitted to prepare and fix meals; or worship god at a temple. What makes things even worse is when they’re shun even from doing personal chores such as combing their hair or using a beauty kit if they desire to attend any external function.
Research in Dangerous Wives and Sacred Sisters, Social and Symbolic Roles of High-caste Women in Nepal, carried out by Lynn Bennett on 1983 delves into traditional practices and their impact. Her research paper further explains that village women have no knowledge on ovulation and its connection with their period of fertility. Instead, they associate the fertile period directly with menstrual blood.
It has been almost three decades since the research was carried out and Nepal’s developmental landscape has made significant improvements over the years, the aforementioned predicament of rural women, however, continue to plague the society in general, and women in particular. When a woman has to live separately from other family members with a designated bed, utensils and few clothing for a period of three days, where people follow dismal sanitation and hygiene practices with no access to electricity, safe water and medical care, one can only imagine how hazardous her health can be. Further, the irony is that such practices are said to be exercised so as to avoid from committing sin and to please god.
A lass in her mid-teens from a remote village of Arghakhanchi shares her melancholic experiences during her first menstruation period. With limited utensils, clothes and toiletries at her disposal, she was given fixed meals two times a day delivered to the cowshed by another female member of the family. She was barred from seeing male members of the household for 10 straight days with a dogma that she would transmit evils to them. Much has been talked about and done over the years—proclaimed to be women empowerment— but hers is an example of denial and rejection that speaks volumes of what we do in practice in inhibiting the development and growth of women in all walks of life.
The research work done by Bennett is a sophisticated read and of course, an extensively studied topic of paramount importance especially in Nepali culture. Researchers, academics and anthropologists have historically used the emic or etic approach to understand the real meaning of culture. Any ongoing research and study, however, should be directed towards addressing the problem rather than just to embrace the work of humanities and social sciences. Efforts, any and all, should continue to bring positive changes to society without hurting and humiliating cultural cohesion.
As I flip through Bennett’s book, I grow restless just to notice the vast chasm between rural villages and urban cities. Here in these thousands of villages, innocent women have been suffering from age-old evil practices like discrimination at the time of menstruation when they need family support, love and good care.
Funds and policies aimed at addressing the problems are solely focused on urban women in the name of grandeur receptions, sophisticated workshops and lavish conferences. What policies!
When I visit villages in various districts in course of my official work, I find it deplorable talking about the menstruation period—still, women are termed as ‘polluted’ during this time, living three days each month away from the care and comfort of family. In contrary, when I go to the municipalities and Kathmandu, the menstruation period is no more taboo even to those who have temporarily moved to these cities for study or work. But, the menstruation time actually bears cardinal importance in terms of health, hygiene and sanitation of women, no matter where they live. Urbanites may not even believe that a woman living in the village still has to live separately in a cowshed during the menstruation period.
I asked a young single lady who hails from a small village of western Nepal and has been living in Kathmandu for the last five years about how she manages to live during her menstruation period. she quickly replied, saying that she strongly follows the cultural practice when she home in the village, but when in Kathmandu, she has rooted out such practice to oblivion. The paradox here shows that the evil practices that endanger the health of human being are followed only in the villages and can only be attributed to lack of education, awareness and information.
Democracy has given rights to the people, irrespective of location. Since the dawn of democracy and multiparty system in the nation, we have witnessed several and substantial changes, not only in national development, but also in cultural dynamics. Analysis of culture, from other countries enriches the knowledge on imbalance of rights, power and the decision making process among a wide range of issues in Nepal. Nonetheless, the very minimal has been accomplished when it comes to education and empowerment of rural women. A broadened interpretation of culture, meticulous analysis of what is right and what is wrong, with the sincere effort to empower Nepali women in different walks of life has to be our priority—both at the government and non-government levels.
As women in the villages continue to live an arduous life during menstruation and are seen as despicable, while their urban counterparts live a regular life, it brings to question where our developments efforts are directed to. It is lucid and clear for the readers to decipher what the reason is, that makes the same culture so different in two places. It is obvious, where and why the workshops, education, training and interactions need to be concentrated.
Bhandari has a Masters degree in Anthropology
Posted on: 2011-08-07 09:13
Kathmandu Post link-
http://www.ekantipur.com/the-kathmandu-post/2011/08/06/oped/menstruation-paradox/224891.html
