Indian women protest temple that wants to scan them for 'impure' periods
Indian women protest temple that wants to scan them for 'impure' periods
A popular Hindu temple has reportedly said it will only allow women to enter if a scanning machine is designed to ensure none of them are menstruating.
The Sabarimala temple in Kerala currently prohibits the entry of all women in the menstrual age group because it believes that bleeding makes them impure.
Recently Prayar Gopalakrishnan, head of the Devaswom Board that manages the temple, reportedly told media: “There will be a day when a machine is invented to scan if it is the 'right time' (not menstruating) for a woman to enter the temple.
“When that machine is invented we will talk about letting women inside.”
Menstruation is mistakenly considered impure in Hinduism due to confusion over ancient traditions, where women didn’t go to the temple when they were bleeding.
People have since assumed it was due to impurity - but it was actually a tradition designed to allow women to rest when they had cramps and were in pain.
Indian women have responded to the temple’s suggestion with a social media campaign to prove that there’s nothing impure about menstruation.
They are sharing selfies and messages with the hashtag #HappyToBleed to counter menstruation taboos.
Indian women protest temple that wants to scan them for 'impure' periods
A popular Hindu temple has reportedly said it will only allow women to enter if a scanning machine is designed to ensure none of them are menstruating.
The Sabarimala temple in Kerala currently prohibits the entry of all women in the menstrual age group because it believes that bleeding makes them impure.
Recently Prayar Gopalakrishnan, head of the Devaswom Board that manages the temple, reportedly told media: “There will be a day when a machine is invented to scan if it is the 'right time' (not menstruating) for a woman to enter the temple.
“When that machine is invented we will talk about letting women inside.”
Menstruation is mistakenly considered impure in Hinduism due to confusion over ancient traditions, where women didn’t go to the temple when they were bleeding.
People have since assumed it was due to impurity - but it was actually a tradition designed to allow women to rest when they had cramps and were in pain.
Indian women have responded to the temple’s suggestion with a social media campaign to prove that there’s nothing impure about menstruation.
They are sharing selfies and messages with the hashtag #HappyToBleed to counter menstruation taboos.
