Bindi is a piece of jewelry that represents a dot, and it’s worn on the forehead of people between their eyebrows. Although bindi is a fashion trend nowadays, and many people find it exotic, that wasn’t the case before.

Bindi was originally worn by South Asian women, specifically the Hindu and Jain women. As it’s worn due to fashion nowadays, a lot of people don’t even think that there could be any other significance to this. However, the bindi has deep cultural, religious, and spiritual ties, and today we’ll talk about those.

The Origin:

As we’ve said before, bindi was worn by Hindu and Jain women only at some point. Previously, bindi wasn’t available in the many designs we see now. The women used to wear a red dot in between their eyebrows. The term ‘bindi’ itself comes from the Sanskrit word ‘Bindu’ that means a drop. There are other names for it as well. You will find people referring to as Kumkum, Tikli, Sindoor, Teep, or Bottu.

We don’t know for sure for how many years the women are using bindi, but scholars have found scriptures dating back to the 3000 BC that talks about bindi. These scriptures are written by the ancient Hindu seers, also known as the Rishi-muni, and they talk about the religious and spiritual significance of the bindi.

Significance of a Bindi:

The significance of it? Well, there are a few. A common tradition was that a married woman must wear a bindi as it resembled her marital ties. Then again, if a woman becomes widowed due to some unfortunate event, she is prohibited from wearing a bindi.

Then again, there is another cultural significance of a bindi as well. When a woman gets married, she is adorned with a bindi. This is a sign that she became the guardian of a family’s welfare, which is respected highly in the Hindu community. The bindi acts as a visual aid that signifies that the wearer is in charge of the welfare of a certain family and that she’s married.

This was the cultural significance. However, there are more to a bindi than that. There are tons of spiritual and religious significance to it, and now we’ll take a look at those.

The Nasadiya Sukta of the Rig Veda is one of the earliest Vedic and Sanskrit texts, and we find the mention of Bindu in those texts. According to the Vedic scriptures, the point in the middle of our eyebrows is the seat of wisdom. This point is also called Ajna, or the sixth chakra. Chakras are healing centers of our body. If you put a bindi at this place, it will help you retain the concentration and strength of that point.

The middle point between our eyebrows is also known as the third eye. The Ajna is symbolized with two petals of a sacred lotus. It’s also thought that at this point the Nadi Ida and the Pingala terminate. Then again, they merge with Sushumna at this point, which is also known as the central channel, which is why it’s also thought that this point signifies the end of duality.

Bindu is also a significant thing in metaphysics. According to metaphysics, bindi is the sacred symbol of the cosmos, but in an unmanifested state. Then again, it’s also thought that at this point, the universe was created, and at this point will it meet again in unity. It’s also thought that the Mandalas or the realms were created surrounding the bindi.

It’s also said that ajna deals with intuition. It deals with visual consciousness, as well as clarity. The role of the bindi is to enhance the power of this chakra.

Thus, we can understand that wearing a bindi can provide clarity to one’s life. Then again, it allows one to access her inner wisdom. As the ajna is related to intuition, the bindi also allows a person to perceive things that aren’t there but is likely to happen.

According to some experts, while our physical eyes were designed to help us witness the world, our ajna, or our third eye was meant to help us see god. Wearing a bindi can help us do so in a better manner.

Then again, there are blood sacrifices in different religions, including Hinduism. In such events of blood sacrifice, the blood of the sacrifice is worn as a bindi.

Modern Use of the Bindi:

As you can see, there are tons of different significances of the bindi. However, there are many people who wear bindi unknowingly, and this is not a positive occurrence.

A bindi holds great meaning in the lives who believe in it. However, recently we observe a growing trend of wearing bindi by those who aren’t Hindu or don’t understand or respect its significance. They wear it only because it makes them look exotic.

This action is very irresponsible and ignorant, as it does nothing but to disrespect those women who are wearing it out of faith. Fashion and trend are okay, but there are certain limits that should never be crossed.

In a recent event, Selena Gomez had worn a bindi on stage while she was dancing to some of her songs. It’s evident that she knew nothing about the significance of it and was wearing it only because it made her look exotic.

Then again, there are people who not only accept this, but they praise it as well. For example, after the performance of Selena Gomez that has been criticized by the religious gurus, Priyanka Chopra, an Indian actress, praised it by saying that Selena has embraced the Indian culture.

Conclusion:

Bindi holds a deep and special significance in the lives of many women, and it shouldn’t be used in a manner that would rather disrespect it. If someone disrespects a bindi, he or she is disrespecting the entire population of women who are wearing it with true faith.