Bindi

Bindi (decoration)

A bindi (Hindi:, from Sanskrit bindu, meaning "a drop, small particle, dot"; see below for alternative designations) is a forehead decoration worn in South Asia (particularly India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Mauritius) and Southeast Asia. Traditionally it is a bright dot of red colour applied in the centre of the forehead close to the eyebrows, but it can also consist of other colours with a sign or piece of jewelry worn at this location.

Religious significance

Traditionally, the area between the eyebrows (where the bindi is placed) is said to be the sixth chakra, ajna, the seat of "concealed wisdom". The bindi is said to retain energy and strengthen concentration. The bindi also represents the third eye.The Nasadiya Sukta of the Rig Veda, the earliest known Sanskrit text, mentions the word vindu/bindu.
The red bindi has multiple meanings which are all valid at the same time. It is also a spiritual symbol.
By one simple interpretation it is a cosmetic mark used to enhance beauty.
From Vedic times, the bindi was created as a means to worship one's intellect. Therefore, it was used by both men and women. The worship of intellect was in order to use it to ensure our thoughts, speech, actions, habits and ultimately our character becomes pure. A strong intellect can help one to make noble decisions in life, be able to stand up to challenges in life with courage, and recognise and welcome good thoughts in life. The belief was that on this a strong individual, a strong family and strong society can be formed.
In meditation, this very spot between the eyebrows (Bhrumadhya) is where one focuses his/her sight, so that it helps concentration. Most images of Buddha or Hindu divinities in meditative pose with their eyes nearly closed show the gaze focused between eyebrows (other spot being the tip of the nose – naasikagra).
Alternative terms

A bindi can be called:

    Phot (literally meaning a small pressing mark) in Assamese
    Tip (literally meaning "a pressing") in Bengali
    Tikuli (literally meaning "a small tika") in Madhyadeshi areas
    Chandlo in Gujarati meaning moon shape
    Tilak in Hindi
    Tilaka in Kannada
    Kunkuma or Bottu or Tilaka in Kannada
    Tilakaya in Sinhala
    Tilo in Konkani
    Kunkoo or Tikli in Marathi
    Tikili in Odia    Bindi in Punjabi meaning long red mark
    Pottu in Malayalam and Tamil
    Chukka or Bottu or Tilakam in Telugu
    Gopi dots are the small dots over the eyebrows used in marriage or festivals.
    Nande is a term erroneously used to describe a bindi in Malaysia. It may contain pejorative connotations although not in most cases.
    Tika in Nepali

How to Apply

Traditional bindi is red or maroon in color. A pinch of vermilion powder applied skillfully with practiced fingertip make the perfect red dot. Women who are not nimble-fingered take great pains to get the perfect round. They use small circular discs or hollow pie coin as aid. First they apply a sticky wax paste on the empty space in the disc. This is then covered with kumkum or vermilion and then the disc is removed to get a perfect round bindi. Sandal, 'aguru', 'kasturi', 'kumkum' (made of red turmeric) and 'sindoor' (made of zinc oxide and dye) make this special red dot. Saffron ground together with 'kusumba' flower can also create the magic!

Toe ring

Toe ring

A toe ring or Bichiya, is a ring made out of various metals and non-metals worn on any of the toes. The second toe of either foot is where they are worn most commonly. This is because proportionately it's the longest toe and thus the easiest toe to put a ring on and stay without being connected to anything else. In most western countries they are a relatively new fashion accessory, and typically have no symbolic meaning. They are usually worn with barefoot sandals, anklets, bare feet or flip flops.

Like finger rings, toe rings come in many shapes and forms, from intricately designed flowers embedded with jewels to simple bands. Fitted toe rings are rings that are of one size, whereas adjustable toe rings have a gap at the bottom so they can be easily made to fit snugly.

Toe rings in India (bichiya)

Wearing of toe rings is practiced in India. Toe rings have been a part of the Indian culture since the Ramayana times, there has been a mention of Sita, when abducted by Ravana, threw her toe ring in the way, so that lord Rama could find her. So from the Ramayana times, till now, toe rings have been a part of a married woman’s jewellery box. In many different Indian cultures, the husband puts the toe rings on his wife’s second toe of both feet, during the wedding ceremony. It is worn as a symbol of the married state by Hindu women and is called bichiya (pronounced: bee-chee-ya) in Hindi, minji in Malayalam jodavi in Marathi, Mettelu  in Telugu, Metti/Kanaiyazhi in Tamil, Kaalungura in Kannada. They are usually made of silver and worn in pairs (unlike the trend in Western countries, where they are worn singly or in unmatched pairs) on the second toe of both feet. Traditionally they are quite ornate, though more contemporary designs are now being developed to cater to the modern bride. Some 'bichiya sets' may have pairs for four of the five toes, excluding the little pinky. 'Bichiyas' may not be made of gold, as gold holds a 'respected' status and may not be worn below the waist by Hindus, but this is not followed very strictly and toe rings made of gold and diamonds are commonly seen. The Chala (toe ring) symbolizes a chaste woman. This rings would be put on the toes and never removed. The rings would show that the woman is married and feminine.

In the 19th century mirror rings (i.e. rings with a small mirror placed on them) were sometimes worn on the great toe assumed to be for decorative purposes. Traditionally a large ring was worn on the great toe of the left foot to indicate a married status. Some men frequently wore a ring on the big toe for curative purposes or to augment their masculine vigor. These rings were seldom closed circles but open hoops so that they could easily be removed

Toe rings in USA

Toe rings were introduced to the United States by Marjorie Borell who, after returning from India began manufacturing and selling them in New York in 1973. Her first retail outlet was Fiorucci, a trendy fashion retailer located on 59th Street in New York. The "Original Toe Ring Boutique" sold toe rings in silver, gold and with diamonds. She eventually sold them in Bloomingdale's and many other retail outlets but due to the fact that her designs could not be patented, she moved on to other ventures but retains the title of Toe Ring Lady to this day.

bangle

Bangle

Bangles are traditional ornaments worn mostly by South Asian women in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. It is a common tradition to see a new bride wearing glass bangles at her wedding and the honeymoon will end when the last bangle breaks. Bangles also have a very traditional value in Hinduism and it is considered inauspicious to be bare armed for a married woman. Toddler to older woman could wear bangles based on the type of bangles. Bangles made of gold or silver are preferred for toddlers.

Some men wear a single bangle on the arm or wrist called kada or kara. In Sikhism, the father of a Sikh bride will give the groom a gold ring, a kara (steel or iron bangle), and a mohra. Chooda is a kind of bangle that is worn by Punjabi women on her wedding day. It is a set of white and red bangles with stone work. According to tradition, a woman is not supposed to buy the bangles she will wear.

History

Bangles—made from sea shell, copper, bronze, gold, agate, chalcedony etc.—have been excavated from multiple archaeological sites throughout India. A figurine of a dancing girl—wearing bangles on her left arm— has been excavated from Mohenjo-daro (2600 BC).
Other early examples of bangles in India include copper samples from the excavations at Mahurjhari—soon followed by the decorated bangles belonging to the Mauryan empire (322–185 BCE), and the gold bangle samples from the historic site of Taxila (6th century BCE). Decorated shell bangles have also been excavated from multiple Mauryan sites. Other features included copper rivets and gold-leaf inlay in some cases.Bangles are circular in shape, and, unlike bracelets, are not flexible. The word is derived from Hindi bungri (glass).They are made of numerous precious as well as non-precious materials such as gold, silver, platinum, glass, wood, ferrous metals, plastic, etc. Bangles made from sea shell, which are white colour, are worn by married Bengali and Oriya Hindu women. A Special type of Bangle are worn by women and girls, especially in Bengal area commonly known as "Bengali Bangle", which is used as a substitute of costly Gold bangle, and is produced by fixing a thin Gold strip (weight varies between 1 to 3 gms.) is thermo-mechanically fused onto a bronze bangle, followed by manual crafting on that fused Gold strip.

Bangles are part of traditional Indian jewellery. They are usually worn in pairs by women, one or more on each arm. Most Indian women prefer wearing either gold or glass bangles or combination of both. Inexpensive bangles made from plastic are slowly replacing those made by glass, but the ones made of glass are still preferred at traditional occasions such as marriages and on festivals.

Design

The designs range from simple to intricate handmade designs, often studded with precious and semi-precious stones such as diamonds, gems and pearls. Sets of expensive bangles made of gold and silver make a jingling sound. The imitation jewellery, tends to make a tinny sound when jingled.

 Production  

Hyderabad, India has a historic world famous market for bangles named Laad Bazaar.    Glass bangles are mostly produced in the old Indian city of Firozabad in North India.

 Pakistan glass bangles are produced mainly in Hyderabad, Pakistan.

Bangles are usually made of glass, gold, metal, plastic, rubber, silver or wood.

anklet

Anklet

An anklet, also called ankle chain or ankle bracelet, is an ornament worn around the ankle. Barefoot anklets and toe rings historically have been worn for centuries by girls and women in India, where it is commonly known as payal. They have also been worn by Egyptian women since predynastic times. In the United States both casual and more formal anklets became fashionable in the late twentieth century. While in western popular culture both younger men and women may wear casual leather anklets, they are popular among barefoot women. Formal anklets (of silver, gold, or beads) are used by some women as fashion jewellery.[citation needed] Anklets are an important piece of jewellery in Indian marriages worn along with saris.

History

Egypt

Anklets were worn as an everyday ornament by Egyptian women of all social classes in ancient Egypt from as early as predynastic times. The name for anklets was not much different from that of bracelets being menefret (mnfrt) except by adding a phrase to denote connection to the feet. They were made of different metals and in multiple shapes, with more expensive metals like gold being more common among the rich, while less expensive ones like silver and iron more common among lower social classes. During the fourth, fifth, and sixth dynasties, anklets were usually made of beads threaded in several rows held together with spacer-bars. Anklets were also worn by dancers like those shown in the tombs of Kagemni, Ti, and Akh-hotp.

Europe

Bronze anklets are visible as early as the Bronze Age in temperate Europe, in an area roughly along the Danube, in the Alpine foreland, up the Rhine to the Atlantic, and also down the Rhône (Sherratt, 2001). These were found among hoards in these areas, along with other bronze items characteristic of this time (c. 1800 BCE onwards), and are attributable to the Tumulus culture that spread across this region.

South Asia

A first-century CE epic of Tamil literature called Cilappatikaram ("The story of the anklet") dealt with a woman whose husband was killed while trying to sell one of her anklets to a dishonest goldsmith. The anklets are described in great detail in the poem.

Rajasthani 

women wear the heaviest type of anklets, which are silver and signify tribal adherence. The women wear this for costume jewelry, but also to show their bravery as a tribe against other rival tribes. The fashion for heavy anklets is declining in India now, but is still common in the rural areas.

The word Payal is a word for the anklet in Hindi and Punjabi.

As an ornament

Anklets can be made of silver, gold, and other less precious metals as well as leather, plastic, nylon and other such materials. In the western world anklets or ankle chains are mainly worn by younger females, but some older women also wear them.

Metal anklets are of two types - flexible and inflexible. The flexible ones, often called paayal, pajeb or jhanjhar in India, are made by tying links in a chain. Subsequently, sonorous bells can be attached to the chain, so that the wearer can make pleasing sounds while walking. Inflexible ones are usually created by giving shape to a flat metal sheet.

The sound was also a reminder for people that there was a woman around, during the times of Purdah.

Salangai or Ghunghru

Salangai or Ghunghru are small bells that bharatnatyam, kathak, kuchipudi, and odissi dancers tie around their ankles.

Left or right?

In eastern cultures, particularly India, anklets are worn on both ankles. In the west they are normally seen worn on one ankle.

In scuba diving

Scuba divers sometimes wear lead anklets to stop a tendency for their legs to float up when diving in a drysuit.