Role of Yoga in Ancient Menstrual Ethics with special reference to concept of Citta śuddhi

One of the objectives of Yoga is to achieve and maintain purity of Citta. The entire practices of Yoga are intended to achieve purity of Citta by any means and ways, and in all conditions. It keeps working on its objective so that human beings would be able to achieve the state of supreme bliss or the state of ānanda. To attain the level of antaḥ śuddhi, covering various aspects of Citta, one has to adhere zealously to yama and niyama with Haṭh Yoga or āṣṭānga Yoga then they would be able to reach the avacetana mana and after that they try to attain the level of Citta śuddhi. Fortunately women are granted a great opportunity or a golden chance by nature in the form of menstrual phase which is known as Rajaḥsrāva kāla whereby she has to do nothing from the practices of Haṭh Yoga or Rāja Yoga and she can just sit by herself and may try to choose any way to open up her inner self and reach the avacetana mana very quickly by practicing the dhāraṇa, dhyāna, mantra chanting and various relaxation techniques. She may thus work to purify her Citta at a greater speed and able to attain peace and bliss sooner, because there are certain ancient ethics related to the menstrual phase, like; isolation, keeping away from cooking, avoids mingling with other people, etc. These can actually be conducive to thinking and taking action for awakening the inner self, the true and ultimate purpose of life. This research work is an attempt to throw light on some hidden phenomenon behind the ancient ethics related to menstrual phase, with guidelines and suggestions for women intended towards realising their real potential and leading them towards ultimate aim of life.