It’s hot out. You need henna! Believe it or not, the practice of mehndi started out as an answer to the need for air-conditioning in the desert. The henna plant has several medicinal properties, chief among them its ability to cool down the human body. When the desert people of Rajasthan, Punjab, and Gujarat became …
Depending on the country, henna customs vary wildly. Here is the first in an occasional series on henna rituals and customs, as practiced in India, Africa and throughout the Middle East. Pregnant Moroccan women in their seventh month seek out well-respected henna practitioners called hannayas in order to have certain symbols painted on their ankle, …