by Rya Joshi

Created on: October 26, 2009   Last Updated: October 28, 2009

It dawns to an Indian woman with a fresh bindi on her forehead. She gets up early in the morning, takes a bath and adorns herself with a bindi on her forehead and only then she greets her husband with a loving call. A bindi shows that she is a sincere and dutiful wife of her husband.

EIGHT SALIENT FEATURES OF BINDI

1) Bindi, the Marital Symbol of an Indian Woman

Bindi, pottu, kumkum, tilak, sindhur or whatever may it be called, is the mark of an Indian woman which stands for her marital status and personality. It is a cultural and social protection. Indian literature depicts the significance of bindi beatifying the faces of married women. A bindi declares the culmination of a woman's marital life. It is sad fact that it is removed when she loses her husband in death. A woman without bindi is considered a cursed one!

2) The Health Aspect of Bindi

Bindi has much to do with a healthy point of view. Indian medical sciences, like Ayurveda and Siddha, say that the spot where the bindi is worn has much physiological importance. The shining bindi on the woman's forehead between the eyes is believed to mesmerize her lover. It is a very sensitive part of the body controlling the nervous system. Yoga sciences call it as the Agna Chakra which provides warmth to the pineal and pituitary glands located near the Thalamus. The Indian medial systems as well as the acupressure system state that the bindi is found to be very helpful for the good health of the brain, eyes, ears and the nose. This point maintains a fine pull on the veins and nerves underneath the forehead and helps flow of blood and also helps the marital life. Besides, it can focus the concentration and enrich ones ability of thinking.

3) Bindi, the Mark of Culture

As stated above, bindi is the cultural ornament of an Indian woman worn on her forehead. It is the dot that the Indian woman places on her forehead as a mark of her cultural and social status. There are variations in the shapes and colors of bindi. Generally it is round in shape and red in color. That makes it more visible to others. But bindi has undergone a lot of changes through centuries.

4) In the North, Bindi is the Marital Symbol

In North India, the bindi is generally a common mark of marital status. The brides are adorned with a whole line of red and white dots over their eyebrows on the wedding day. But on the contrary in South India, females of all ages except widows wear it as a mark of personality and decoration. Children, both male and

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