 
Indian temple is very vibrant with the spiritual culture, with thousands of temples which are considered to be sacred by the devotees. Some of the temples, however, contain rules and regulations that prohibit women from accessing them, and this issue, as a result, emerged from ancient customs and remains a burning controversy. Here, we take a glimpse behind Indian temples that prohibit the entry of women and the cultural reasons associated with it.
Sabarimala Temple, Kerala
Sabarimala Temple is one of the most famous Indian temples in Kerala, and it even restricts entry to the temple because of the age group of women. The temple is dedicated to Lord Ayyappa, a celibate deity. Women in their menstruating age between 10 and 50 years are not allowed entry into the temple. This is based on the conviction that menstruating women should not visit temples in general due to their biological cycle. Even if certain courts had recently issued judgments trying to end the practice, it remains a contentious topic and controversies strongly related to faith versus gender equality, particularly as recorded in
Assam’s Patbausi Satra, Assam.
While Patbausi Satra is one of the most important Vaishnavite monasteries in Assam, women are strictly not allowed inside this temple. The temple is to accommodate Srimanta Sankardev and hence is a spot of high spirituality for the people here. The Indian temple authorities feel that women are not allowed inside this temple to maintain the sanctity of the temple. Of course, this ritual seems some sort of an outdated ritual, but it is supposed to be a necessary part of the whole rituals and spiritual beliefs of the temple.
Ranakpur Jain Temple, Rajasthan
Ranakpur Jain Indian Temple, one of the most beautiful architectural wonders in Rajasthan, does not allow women during their menstrual cycle. The management of the temple holds that during menstruation, a woman is impure and therefore should not enter. Women are left to visit and view the architecture of the intricate carvings and design. A practice that shows how spiritual beliefs often clash with the normal biological process.
Kartikeya Temple, Pehowa, Haryana
The Kartikeya Temple in Pehowa, Haryana, does not permit female entry inside it. The temple is dedicated to Lord Kartikeya-the celibate son of Lord Shiva-and the management of the temple fears that a female’s presence will interrupt the religious rituals in which the lord is engaged. Females, therefore, are never allowed to visit this temple.
Lord Brahma Temple, Pushkar, Rajasthan –
Although women are permitted inside the Brahma Temple in Pushkar, Rajasthan, there are certain restrictions. No married woman is allowed to go near the idol of Lord Brahma’s wife, Goddess Savitri. The reason behind such a restriction goes into the study of mythological tales that describe conflicts between Lord Brahma’s wives. Despite such a restriction, this is still one of the most visited temples by Hindus.
Kamakhya Temple, Assam
The Kamakhya Temple in Assam is dedicated to Goddess Kamakhya. The celebration of the Kamakhya Temple consists of the cyclic menstrual flow through women, and hence it does not allow women into the temple during their menstrual cycles. This is primarily because of a myth; in the Amubhachi Mela festival, which is held every year, the Indian temple is believed to experience periods or menstrual flow. To uphold the sanctity of the temple, menstruating women are not allowed into the temple during these times.
Shani Shingnapur Temple, Maharashtra
Shani Shingnapur Temple in Maharashtra has its own history of denial from the right of entry into sanctum sanctorum to women, because of existence in an open-air form of Lord Shani. According to the people’s faith, women’s existence causes bad luck and antagonism towards the deity. This restriction was revoked for women in 2016 after a strong protest and intervention by the court. In the meanwhile, previous restrictions on this temple have created and continued to reflect the battle between male and female as far as gender equality in religious spaces is concerned.
Trimbakeshwar Temple, Maharashtra
Trimbakeshwar Temple is one of the twelve Jyotirlingas of Lord Shiva and, till sometime ago, had restrictions on the entrance of women to the sanctum sanctorum. Like other temples, it believed that women should not pollute the sacred space; especially during their menstruation cycles. But at one point or the other, after due legal battles and protests, the temple relaxed its restriction and now allows women to perform pujas in some areas. It is a clear example of changing traditions in response to greater societal changes.
Ayyanar Temple, Tamil Nadu
The Ayyanar Temples in Tamil Nadu are dedicated to the village guardian deity Ayyanar. It does not admit women to many of the rituals. The deities in the temple believe that the presence of male priests and devotees satisfies the deity more when important rituals occur. Women are allowed in the temple but excluded from important religious ceremonies. It indicates a patriarchal nature of many rural temple practices in India.
Haji Ali Dargah, Mumbai
The Haji Ali Dargah in Mumbai is an important religious place, despite not being a temple. Thus, women were not allowed to enter the inner sanctum. The management quoted religious reasons for enforcing this ban since women’s entry was said to disturb the sanctity of dargah. However, after legal intervention in 2016, the dargah withdrew the bar and allowed women equal access.
Conclusion
The temples that refuse to allow women entrance still stand as a real representation of deeply rooted traditions and beliefs. While some temples are still hold their hard stance about these things, others have begun to give way due to strict law pressure and changes in social conditions. These are controversional matters when viewed on the grounds of faith, culture, and gender to begin with. In fact, these temples remain in the thoughts of each devotee and feminist where the debates on gender equality still rage in the religious spaces.
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