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Menstrual Taboos and Physical Distancing
The training for COVID-19 quarantine that women didn’t know they have had
All major religions of the world, without exception, have either ongoing practices or recorded history of how they have(d) constantly placed restrictions on menstruating women.
Islam, Hinduism, Judaism, Buddhism, and Christianity have all made statements of varied degrees about menstruation, the “impurity” of it and its negative effect on women (and hence on others), leading to prohibitions about physical intimacy, cooking, attending places of worship, and even forcing the women to live away from men during their menstrual period.
Even though how people practice this today varies from society to society, as a male, I can’t help but recollect my early childhood in South India and be mildly shocked by the memories of some repressive rituals enforced on many women of my family including my mother. Menstruating women were not allowed to touch certain cookware, religious objects, etc. and in short were expected to maintain a 6 feet physical distance (or what was physically possible within the confines of the house) from other members of the family. Six feet of physical distancing. No hugs. No touching. Sounds familiar?
