Sacred Blood

Do you Feel that your period blood is sacred?

 

It has power. It has been and is used in rites in certain religions. Many misogynists are really afraid of it, (Jeez, it is JUST blood, but some people are actually afraid of it!) I know men who won't have sex with their womyn (not including strangers, which of course could increase the risk of STDs, but that is a different story.) when they are menstruating. Never undstood that, as long as it was a commited relationship. Bear doesn't have any problems with it. (Nuthin can keep that man away, LOL! )

There are warnings in books like the Bible and the Q'ran about coming in contact with menstrual blood (but those warnings are similar to coming in contact with semen in any other situation other than vaginal intercourse.)

Do I feel it is sacred? I dunno. I am not afraid of it, it does not gross me out, (menstruating for 30 years, I hope not!) I was into some New Age stuff some years back and did some "menstrual hut" type activities. Sacred, yeah, I guess so. It is life giving.

 

I feel that we are all sacred. Every part of us to me is a reflection of God within us. Wether is be blood from a cut, or blood from the womb.


One of these days I would like to do a Womyn Ceremony out in the desert. It would be a night of drums, sage, fire, and positive energy directing. And I would like to dance and bleed on the earth.

 

I think it's sacred, yes... especially in the sense that it is something that belongs to WOMEN alone. It's one thing that men can't take for themselves. Women have it, women understand it, and it's a part of us. And it's part of the life circle, which is sacred too. Now granted, there are some times when my period grosses me out (see thread on "Bad Period") but in the end, it's part of my identity as a young, healthy woman. Cosmic Butterfly, I've never heard of a "Womyn Ceremony" - what's it about?

 

Just were a bunch of sisters get together on there Moons (period) and have a powerful bonding time together. Click this:
http://www.menstruation.com.au/periodpages/moonflow.html (FIXED)
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0838/is_n58/ai_9332502

It usually corresponds with the cycles of moon. Women naturally follow the cycles of the moon. Well, they used to...It is much harder now in this day and age because of our environment (artificial lighting, hormones in food, medications etc). When it is a full moon(think big egg) it usually meant that we were ovulating, and new moon (no moon) meant that we were bleeding.

If a group of women spend alot of time together their period starts to synchronize. A household of sisters will start to have their Moons together.

Just wanted to add the ceremonies are very good for us humans. It really helps to heal us as a whole.

FIXED THE FIRST LINK.

 

Hell no. Hellllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll NO. Don't even get me started.

 

Similar to the Menstrual Hut activities I did in the early 90s. Cool stuff. Womyn have such little communtity these days.......sigh....

 

I don't beleive participation is mandatory, Strawberry, Jeez, it's only Menstrual blood. Don't blow a clot.

 

Exactly--it is only menstrual blood, so what's the point in pretending it's sacred? What's the point in over-romanticizing something that can be absolutely horrible and traumatic for some women?

 

Some womyn feel this way, it is their right to participate in these rites, if they want.

For whom is menstruation traumatic? I mean, I have had endometriosis so badly that I needed surgery, yet I still don't see menstruation as "traumatic." But, that said, if a womyn thinks her period IS traumatic, then she can do a couple of things,

1. Get some emotional & medical help, cuz it shouldn't be THAT traumatic
2. join a group like the above mentioned to change her opinion of menstuation
3. forget the whole thing, ignore those who celebrate Moon Days, and just carry on as before
4. Go on Depo Provera and stop menstruating

It is not like we are talking about legisalation here. Celebrating Moon Days is NOT mandatory. Why would someone doing so make you so upset? It isn't that big of a deal, if you don't like the idea, don't participate. But some womyn do, and they enjoy the celebration.

Damn, I haven't bled on some good earthy moss in a goodly number of years.......

 

I used to not really think my blood was anything but blood. But that's because I didn't know any better. I hhave read a few things in the past years about this but the two things that I have read that talk a lot about this are shakti woman and a book I'm reading now called the circle of life the thirteen archetypes for every woman. Chapter 3 so far is all about "blood bonding" and there are some very intresting concepts to consider.

Blood bonding: Using the power of menstral blood to clarify ourselves and unite with others.

Our culture discredits and degrades the blood mysteries of women. Taboos.

But there are so many th ings to learn about this! Every month we have this thing happen to us...it helps us through ever transformation of life...from your first period to having a child to sexuality to menopause. We just let it happen. We don't know the history of it. But as I have began to read more about it I know that it is VERY sacred. The history of it and how it became "taboo" Is totaly intresting to me. As a woman I think we need to learn these things. It's part of all of us and it's part of our social conditioning to believe about it only what we know about it and that's that it means nothing..hide it..hate it..etc. NO! If you bleed over 3000 days of your life don't you want to know more about it? If not that's fine. But I do. I think as the creaters of this planet we should know our power. We should use it to lead us to wisdom at each crossraods of our lives.

There was one thing I thought was ver intresting I was reading about " Envy and fear of woman's blood have lead men to imitate menstration Perhaps the most classic example is the act of subincision, practiced in New Guinea, Australia, the Philippines and Afraica. This operation involvesslitting the underside of the penis, so when places upright on the abdomen it resembles the vagina. Sometimes blood is caused to flow periodicly from this wound, known as "man's mentration". According to Phyllis Chesler, the slash in Christs side and his bloody crown of briars are allusionsto menstral magic of earlier spiritual traditions. Male bloodletting rites such as circumcision and the Native American Sun Dance are further examples. Even the ritual paraphranaia of the priesthood suggests imitation of woman in order to obtain their magic-the wand was origionaly used by women to mark their cycles."

Men hunger for blood by hunting, watching graphic vioence, and engage in bloody warfare and yet menstral blood scares them. (And women too)

It does not matter what culture or religion you come from way back in the past there were sacred rituals that delt with this blood and most of these rituals have since been lost to the taboos of today. We need to relearn our rights and powers we can regain our primal knowledge of who we are as women and take back our sacred times to be meaningful. Blood touches you every moment. You should not be scared of it it flows in you. And it flows out.

 

I feel that my blood is the combination of water, red blood cells, white blood cells, and other molecules that happen to be floating around in there.

 

But you have semen. Almost as sacred as menstral blood but not quite hehe

 

Hell, there's nothin "sacred" bout them lil fellas. 'S jus genetic code.

 

those were really interesting links cosmic



there's a book, called shakti woman (women?) right?

 

i have the shakti moman. its a really nifty book

 

well, i can say....that during the time that i bleed (and after!!), i have A LOT of mental clarity.

 

Yes, I absolutely feel our blood is sacred and I've used it in rituals (I worship both God and Goddess).

 

I'd like to add something, having read one of the excellent links our sister Cosmic Butterfly posted for us. (NB - the first link didn't work!!) The idea of menstrual blood being "taboo" makes me angry... I remember last year, when I was taking gender studies, talking about two specific things when discussing menstruation and gender:

1) why are "feminine products" (e.g. pads, tampons) kept in the same aisle in the drug store as diapers?? Why aren't they kept with "family planning" (condoms, ovulators) since that's what menstruation is? It's not remotely parallel to an infant who isn't toilet trained.

2) Why do commercials use blue liquid to show that their feminine products don't leak? It's like the men who "accidentally" see these commercials (cos you know they change the channel anyway) are gonna freak out if the liquid is red, because it will make them thing OH MY GOD, WOMYN BLEED and run for the hills. It's like it's something to be afraid of, and totally ashamed of. I actually remember as a young girl watching these commercials and wondering what kind of people have blue liquid coming out of them. Very confusing! And insulting, later on. I have a uterus, it bleeds, get over yourselves.

Ooooh one more point - I'm on a role here... must be because I'm actually on my period right now = deep insight! All the stupid euphanisms for period... "I'm on my rag" "aunt flow is in town" "it's my *time of the month*" etc... why are we so embarrassed to say period? or menstruating? or menses? *lets out a growling sound* It's a natural bodily function. Sure, sometimes it's not fun, but it's part of who we are, and that makes it beautiful.

*super_grrl takes a deep, calming breath, and jumps off her soap-box*

 

Here is what my book says in chapter 3 about it in that cycles book im reading:::In many indigenou cultures, women have been isolated when menstrating. The menstral hut symbolizes seperation from the ordinary concerns of daily life. Sometimes this has bee by choice and other time its because cultural taboos have removed menstrating women from the rest of societe. In neolithic times some women may have been isolated in order to protect the rest of the tribe...sent up trees so that their blood would not attract preditors ( the scent of it) and endanger the tribe.

Here are a few otehr taboos that may be the cause of removal of a woman durring this time. These are things that opressed this time for women and brought us the taboos of today:

The Talmud says that if a menstrating woman passes between two men one will die. The Brahmins maintained that men who lay with a menstrating woman should suffer as sevier punnishment for his crime. In Vedic Mythology, Vishnu copulated with goddess Earth when she was menstrating and thus concieved monsters who nearly destroyed the planet. Zoroastrains upheald this belief saying that a man who slept with a menstrating woman would beget demons. Persion patriarchs clamed menstrating women were poison and belonged to the devil, the glance of the woman was feared as the glance of a dragon...like that of the effect of medusa. o this day the book says that orthodox jews refuse to shake hands with a woman fearing she may be menstrating. It was said to lay with a menstrating woman during a lunar eclips that one would surely die. In christianity in the seventh century the archbishop of Canterbury forbade menstrating women to take comunion. From the 8th to the 11th centtury there are laws outlawing women from access to church facilities if menstrating. Medical authorities used to believe that demons were produced from menstral flow. Menstral blood was the only blood on any altar until women were disshonored and power ignored.

In Shakti woman it talks more about woman shamans etc. Talks about how women were alowed this time to reflect and would have beds of straw to lay upon and were alowed time to themselves etc.