Mahendi is an erasable art that penetrates deep without words

Henna is something very common in India. It is such a fun experience to sit with someone, draw designs on their hands or feet and talk about life and the adventures that India has bestowed upon us. Henna is called Mahendi in India and it acts as such an adornment to woman that it brings beauty to them and expresses a type of fashion that is admired by all ages.


I have had the opportunity to either receive or provide the henna experience 3 times in India. Once with Carly who did an AMAZING job at drawing designs on my hand and arm. We spent about 3 hours one evening searching for designs, doctoring the mahendi that had already been placed and talking about life, our direction, and reflecting on our shared family nights in Ghandi Mati’s room.

A different time, Leigh Anne and I spent an entire afternoon in separate house mothers rooms, having our feet, hands, and forearms adorned with this magical paste. One of the house mothers is very direct and bold with her speech. My house mother had started a design while another one was consulted and quickly smacked her lips with a disapproving look (this is how Indian’s show that they do not support what is happening and now feel the obligation to see it changed). Kala quickly grabbed some water and instructed me to wash my hands off. She grabbed another house mother and together they looked through a design book and began to construct the most beautiful reflections of Indian designs. The kids, as well as Jason, kept me informed of how Leigh Anne was doing with her henna on the opposite side of the hostel and when we met back up, we both had to do some fun/awkward poses to show off the Indian’s art work.

The last was at a colony called Moote, where I had the privilege to draw impromptu designs on the 3 different woman that lived at Moote. Moote is a very unique colony. It was organized because those who had leprosy in certain parts of Chennai were exiled to nearly an hour into the rural areas of India. The colony was established in 1972 and there have not been any new additions to the colony but now the colony is made up of only 7 members. They are the most lively and healthy members though. Every time we visit Moote, the people make our days memorable. I will write more about the magic at Moote in a different entry. I had so much fun being there though and seeing the excitement of the ladies show off their hands. Saranraj does not have fingers, and she uses her palms to get around the colony, so I drew designs on her forearm instead. One of the women that had persistently kept asking for Henna to be done on her hands kept hitting her hand against her saree, other people, or merely forgetting to let the paste dry. Therefore many "Mahendi emergencies" occurred at Moote, but we managed to have it all work out and the women were so very excited to see the designs on their hands. When I had first pulled out the Mahendi tube and started a design on Saranraj’s forearm, another woman walked over to me and pointed with a huge smile and held her hands, offering a blank canvas for Indian designs of Mahendi. All I could do was smile and see the joy and excitement of the anticipation reflect on this woman’s face. 

Directions for Henna:
- apply paste to area in small areas so that it makes full  contact

- after allowing the design to dry for about 5-10 minutes, apply heavily sugared water
-let sit for 1-2 hours

-take off with coconut oil (NOT water)