Why do the people from the Middle East wear those red dots on their foreheads? And do the children wear them too? I've always wanted to know what the sagnifigance was to wearing the dots.
No, I'm not racist and all of that bull, I just want to know!!
2007-01-08 16:08:47 · 19 answers · asked by Wutz it worth 2 ya? 6 in Society & Culture ➔ Cultures & Groups ➔ Other - Cultures & Groups
Not middle East people but Indian Hindus, and some Bangla Deshis.
Most women (including small girls ) put on the red Bindi or Kumkum on their foreheads.Males do not.
It is a mark of good fortune & long life for the husband. Once a married lady loses her husband, she stops wearing the Kumkum.
2007-01-08 16:15:52 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Actually People from middle east don't even wear those red dots...people from south Asia do and the have different significance to different people... some just think of it as a fashion thing while for others it represents marriage it has no one official reason
2007-01-09 00:13:37 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
They are not people from the middle east, they are from the far east....as in India. I think it used to specify a married woman just as a person form the western hemisphere would wear a band on the left hand.
2007-01-09 00:17:47 · answer #3 · answered by angelam219 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
What's WRONG with that ***** evilive? The first answerer had no right to say that to you, nothing about your question is "not smart." People ask questions to learn about things they don't know. I'm going to go slap evilive now.
Wish I could give you an answer about the dots, but I don't know. Although you might like to know that American Sign Language for "India" is to press your thumb against your forehead, where they wear their dots.
2007-01-09 00:21:54 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Though it dates back to pre-Aryan society, the origins of the tilak are quite unknown. But, it is believed to have been derived from the traditional tribal practice of smearing one's body with different colours.
Denoting "a red mark with a pleasant odour", the tilak is a refined adaptation of this tribal practice - done for decorative purposes and religious reasons.
In the Aryan society, the groom used to apply his blood on his bride's maang (parting in the hair on the head) as recognition of wedlock.
The practice continues till date, with a difference though - today, married Indian women apply a round vermilion dot called tilak, bindi or kumkum on the forehead and also in the maang.
While the Vaishnavites (worshippers of Lord Vishnu) apply the tilak in the `U' shape, Shaivites wear it as three horizontal lines - on the forehead, forearms and abdomen. Sindhoora (orangy red powder), bhasma (cinders), abhira (soot) and gandha (sandalwood paste) were the diversified versions of the bindi in earlier times, in different hues of red, yellow, saffron, white, grey and black.
When looked in the present-day context, the bindi has acquired different sizes, shapes and `shades' - not only in terms of colours but also the negative connotations that go with it.
2007-01-09 00:15:24 · answer #5 · answered by Sabine É 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
It's part of culture, but their significance actually does vary from place to place...
some, as already mention, is for "goodness", "third eye", and "marriage"...
I have heard from friends on campus that they are also a religious devotion, much like Americans wear the silly cross on their forehead on Ash Wednesdays.
2007-01-09 00:17:06 · answer #6 · answered by Telkandore 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The dot on the forehead has something to do with Hinduism, it's not necessarily people from the middle east.
it has something to do with their marital status.
You don't sound smart ***. you just want to know.... it's ok to get informed.
2007-01-09 00:14:21 · answer #7 · answered by GMaster 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The dot is worn by some Hindu women and has a mystical meaning based in their religion.
2007-01-09 00:15:04 · answer #8 · answered by Michael da Man 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It's symbolic of the third eye.
From wikipedia:
"In Hinduism and Buddhism, the third eye is a symbol of enlightenment (see moksha and nirvana). The third eye is the ajna chakra (sixth chakra) also known as brow chakra or brow centre This is commonly denoted in Indian and East Asian iconography with a dot, eye or mark on the forehead of deities or enlightened beings, such as Shiva (God of Destruction), the Buddha, or any number of yogis, sages and bodhisattvas. This symbol is called the "Third Eye" or "Eye of Wisdom", or, in Buddhism, the urna. In Hinduism, it is believed that the opening of Shiva's third eye is the end of the universe.
Many Hindus wear a tilak between the eyebrows to represent the third eye."
And condensing what I read about the tilak, the women usually wear it to indicated they're married, but many devout men wear one too.
2007-01-09 00:12:29 · answer #9 · answered by T.M.Y. 4 · 6⤊ 2⤋
I'm not an expert, but from what I understand the dots symbolize a woman's status - such as, married or unmarried. I'm sure if you did a search on the net you could find the proper information.
2007-01-09 00:12:45 · answer #10 · answered by Rawrrrr 6 · 1⤊ 2⤋