There is a great deal to be learned from the ancient designs that have been passed down from generation to generation by the women of the East. One of the incredible things that you will discover as you look at the symbols of various cultures is that human beings seem to share a secret language of symbols, even if our oral and written language is very different. The unconscious meanings of symbols that you may encounter every day are often hidden in mehndi designs. Scientists have studied many of the symbols of ancient India and Egypt. They have found, for instance, that some of these symbols resemble fractal geometry and the shapes of cells of the body. There were no microscopes in ancient times, but perhaps the makers of mehndi intuitively knew what they were painting.

There are certain basic forms that you should know before you move into the more complex designs. According to the texts of ancient India, all reality grows from the bija (kernel or seed). Have you seen Indian women wearing bindis? They are small jewels or dots makeup worn in the center of the forehead to symbolize the opening of the third eye. (They have grown super trendy over the past few years in the United States. In a last chapter, we will look at bindis as an example of temporary body art.) The bindu is a point of Supreme Reality for Hindus. It is the place where everything begins and ends. You will always start your designs from the bija. That just means you are starting from the beginning. Some of the basic forms you will use are the line (rekha) and the angle (kona). The angle is simply the joining of two straight lines. Once you have mastered painting a straight line with the applicator (which is not as easy as expert henna painters make it look), you can begin making some geometric shapes rich in meaning. The first is the trikona, or triangle. A triangle with its point facing north is connected to the male principle, or Shiva. A downward pointing triangle indicates the female principle, or Shakti. The joining of these two symbols becomes the satkona, or the six-pointed star. This symbol resembles the Jewish Star of David. It symbolizes the merging of masculine and feminine energies. It is connected also to Lakshmi, the goddess of prosperity. The diamond (vajra) symbolizes fire, water, earth, air, and the heavens. Pentagrams are worn by some people as symbols of protection.