Research help!

[d-r-love.livejournal.com]

I have heard stories of in early civilizations womyn being sent away to live in huts while they were menstruating I was wondering if anyone here new the specific details and could inform me or send me some links.
thank you

Comments

[http://users.livejournal.com/_last_serenade_/]

read "the red tent" by Anita Diamant...not only is it an excellent book, but it's a pretty interesting look at how women lived in biblical times.

ps, it's a quick read, i promise.

[rainbowpussy.livejournal.com]

I was just about to say that...I'm re-reading it for the 3694837267028736th time (that's just an approximation, however) for a book club at my school...it's wonderful. I've definitely found new respect for my body after reading that book.

[marcelle42.livejournal.com]

I was under the impression that The Red Tent, while a fabulous book, was pretty much entirely fictional. Not that it doesn't give a great new perspective on the way we view our periods and women's space, but I'm not sure it's at all an accurate representation of the way women lived in biblical times.

I've heard vague things about women spending their periods in a separate space from men, but I was never sure if it was something known to be true, or if it was a myth similar to the myths of ancient matriarchies. Does anyone know of any research to indicate one way or the other? I know that many modern religions (like Islam and Orthodox Judaism) have specific rules about touching women during their cycles, but that's not exactly the same thing.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_last_serenade_/]

right...it is mostly fiction, but i thought it was historical fiction, which means (if i remember right) that the lifestyles, the major events, the everyday "stuff" is pretty much true to life of the people who lived at the time. maybe it's not...maybe it's just a straight work of fiction, but i thought that's what my mom told me when she gave me the book.

[lionsmiles.livejournal.com]

I know that in some indian tribes (in the past, not sure about now) menstrating women were thought to be very powerful. They would spend their cycle in a "hut" with other menstrating women. Giving the blood back to mother earth. They were not allowed near men esp. the medicine man because it was thought that she would steal his powers.

Not sure if this is totally fact or not. It has been a long while since I heard this.

[twink138.livejournal.com]

Also, in ancient Greece, womyn menstruating were often sent into the hills. Then, the men would make up stories about them having wild orgies and dancing and singing and blah blah blah.....

The womyn were supposedly sent off because the men could not compete with them while they were bleeding. They were too strong for the men.

Hehehe.

[kwokj.livejournal.com]

there's stuff about that at http://www.mum.org/MenstHut.htm (am I being redundant by suggesting what it supposed to be the website of this journal?)

Careful, it's easy to surf the site endlessly!