In love with jewellery

Priya S Tandon

Akshaya Tritiya is round the corner. It is the third day of the Shukla Paksh in the month of Vaisakh in the Hindu calendar. ‘Akshaya’ means unending and ‘tritiya’ means third. The day is considered auspicious for starting any new business or pooja or anything new for that matter. It is also believed to be the birthday of Lord Parshuram, and the day on which Ved Vyas started narrating the Mahabharata while Lord Ganesha wrote it down. It falls on April 18 this year.

The day is also considered to be one of the most auspicious days to buy jewellery. So the jewellers are gearing up for a day of brisk business. Women with an extra buck in their wallets are eyeing pieces of jewellery or maybe wishing their budget was a little more generous.

I wonder if jewellery is meant to be kept in bank lockers only? The younger generation prefers to wear it only at weddings. If you ask young girls about this, they think you are orthodox. Ignorance is bliss, but knowledge is valuable too. Here my endeavour is to throw some light on why wearing jewellery is considered auspicious and important for women. There are some age old beliefs that have been passed on to us by our mothers, grandmothers and aunts.

The first piece of jewellery an Indian girl gets is probably earrings when her ears are pierced at a very tender age. Besides embellishment, it acts as an acupuncture that is effective for girls to ease out their menstrual problems. Besides, the tinkling sound of bangles is akin to that of a temple bell and attracts positive energies, at the same time keeping negativity in abeyance. Glass bangles are my all-time favourite. I think they are the best, for you can have them in all colours!

Garlanding with flowers is an ancient way of honouring someone. Wearing a necklace, be it of gold or silver, is like increasing the value of honour manifold. The Hindus talk of seven Chakras in the body. The Vishuddha Chakra (also called the throat chakra) is at the base of the neck and the Anahata Chakra is located at the centre of the chest (also called the heart chakra). Necklaces of different lengths with pendants resting on these areas protect and adorn these chakras. Mangalsutra, which is worn by married Indian women, usually rests at the Vishuddha Chakra. The black beads in it ward off evil.

Rings are popularly associated with love! The index fingers’ nerves are connected to the brain. Wearing a ring on it stimulates those nerves. The nerves connected to the ring finger are evenly spread all over the brain. It is common practice to adorn this finger on the engagement and wedding. Wearing rings is like constant acupressure on the points that stimulate the brain.

Wearing nose rings is not so common but it is believed that piercing the left nostril at a particular point eases menstrual pain and aids in easy childbirth. Think about it!

Toe rings are usually made of silver (a good conductor). They are said to pass on energy from the Earth and pass it on to the body of the wearer. It is also believed that wearing a toe ring in the first finger next to the big toe keeps the Pranic force in equilibrium. Anklets are also worn to recycle energy back to the body as bangles do. Because there is no endpoint, the energy generated by friction is not lost, but resonates back to the wearer.

So, my point ladies, is that.. whatever your pocket allows, be it gold, diamond, silver or even artificial, do wear some jewellery. We don’t need to be decked up like a Christmas tree all the time, but a little trinket here or there does add to the charm of a woman. What say?