Lessons from the monsoon for Our Menstrual Cycle & Cyclical Living
Last week, I attended an Indian classical music concert. The theme was monsoon ragas; the melodies dedicated to the rains – nicely coinciding with the current season in India: monsoon.
The music carried a freshness, a longing, and a playfulness that touched me.
I’ve been wanting to explore the sensations, qualities, energy, and gifts of the monsoon in relation to our menstrual cycle and cyclical living for a while. That evening, listening to the fluid notes, I felt the inspiration land. And as I’m personally moving through the transition from ovulation to luteal right now – my own shift from inner summer to inner autumn – there is no better time to write.
Monsoon in India
In India, and according to the Hindu calendar, the monsoon is not just a transition between summer and autumn; It is a full season in its own right, called Varsha Ritu.
After the scorching heat of summer, the rains arrive as relief. Skies are filled with grey, rain-heavy clouds, humidity rises, and days shorten slowly.
Most of the country’s annual rainfall pours down during this time – vital for agriculture, water supply, and life itself.
Nature flourishes: landscapes turn lush green, trees – such as the Jarul (aka “pride of India”) and Oleander – sprout a second wave of leaves, and flowers from other trees – such as champa and earpod wattle – burst into bloom.
There is a sense that the Earth is renewed.
Quite opposite to Europe, the monsoon in India carries a celebratory, poetic, and romantic connotation. It is not only a season but a cultural heartbeat – bringing communities together in festivals filled with food, music, and dance.
The beauty of the earth, bathed in rain, has inspired countless poets, musicians, and painters. There are more than fifteen Sanskrit words for clouds and nearly as many for lightning – an abundance of language that reflects just how cherished this season is. How many words exist in your own language?
In Bollywood films, rain often becomes a character of its own – dancing, singing, longing in nature’s warm showers.
Artists, too, have painted timeless scenes of myths and melodies infused with monsoon moods.
One traditional poem – accompanying the central painting – captures this essence nicely:
“The rivers look so exquisite, as they rush to meet the ocean
The vines mesmerize the eye wrapped around young trees beautifully
The lightning flashes rivetingly as she plays with rolling clouds.
With their strong cries, the peacocks announce the meeting of earth and heaven.
All lovers unite in this month of Shravana, why leave me then, my love?”– Poem inspired by the Baramasa, featured on Exotic India Art’s website
These verses tell the story of a heroine persuading her lover not to leave her alone through the weather & beauty of the twelve months of the year, weaving longing, union, and nature’s rhythm into one.
Overall, rains in India are seen as a time of celebration, love, playfulness, separation, and sensuality.
Monsoon in the Menstrual Cycle
If we take a 28-day cycle as reference, monsoon aligns with the days just after ovulation, before the luteal phase begins: around day 16–19.
It therefore happens between our inner summer and inner autumn.
It’s the start of the second half of the cycle, when hormones shift – as the released egg wasn’t fertilised. Oestrogen drops (as low as during menstruation), progesterone rises, and our energy naturally begins to turn inward. Just like the rain softens the heat of summer, we soften out of ovulation’s peak into something slower, deeper, and more rooted.
Five Lessons from the Monsoon for Cyclical Living
No matter where we live, we can draw wisdom from the monsoon.
To me, it feels like a well-needed, fun & smooth slide from summer into autumn – inviting us to celebrate, play, release, and root.
Read my five main teachings of this monsoon below.
1. Celebrate Before You Turn Inward
In Europe, summer often stretches until we’re suddenly thrown into autumn- colder days, darker skies, and a sense of abrupt ending. We hold onto summer as long as we can, fearing the loss of light.
But in India, the monsoon itself is celebrated. It’s not just the end of summer; it’s a season of music, rituals, and joy.
This holds a crucial lesson: before turning fully inward, pause to honor what you have created. Celebrate your efforts, acknowledge your achievements, and let joy buffer your inner critic —who will come to your front stage in inner autumn, often with a sharper voice than you’d like.
➺ Taking this into menstrual cycle awareness means beginning the second half of your cycle with pride and gratitude – for who you are and what you’ve done – rather than getting sucked straight into contraction. It means celebrating yourself.
2. Wash Away What No Longer Serves
Rain cleanses. It washes dust off leaves, cools the air, and releases tension from the ground.
And yet, where life is disrupted – where too much was intervened with nature, where people (or governments) have not cared enough for the environment – monsoon can be terribly destructive. Sadly, we currently see many images of that across the subcontinent.
In our cycles, too, cleansing can feel messy or overwhelming – especially when we resist it, suppress it, or haven’t tended to ourselves along the way. Still, the invitation is the same: to make space to let go of what feels heavy, stuck, or outdated. Allow emotions to surface and move through you. Create space for what is to come by releasing what no longer fits – otherwise, this second half of the cycle will flood you in the future.
➺ Taking this into menstrual cycle awareness means practicing gentle release – whether through journaling, movement, or simply allowing feelings to flow.
3. Growth also Happens in Stillness
During the monsoon, life slows down. Roads flood, plans pause. Yet nature thrives – green shoots emerge, trees flower, and the Earth pulses with abundance.
This mirrors the post-ovulatory phase: after the peak of outward energy, we may feel slower, but growth is happening beneath the surface. Creation doesn’t always look like doing; it also needs to be receiving, gestating, and nurturing.
In fact, research shows how our brains are making connections way more actively when we are relaxed. When we rest, we can feel & receive better, bringing us more effortless inspiration and big realisations.
➺ Taking this into menstrual cycle awareness means trusting your body’s quieter growth, allowing space for receptivity, and knowing that not everything needs to be pushed into action.
4. Root and Ripen
Kālidāsa, one of India’s greatest ancient poets, wrote of the monsoon:
“Darkness deepens in the clouds, thunder splits the sky,
The earth drinks deeply, preparing to bear new fruit.”
The monsoon is about rooting and ripening. The rains prepare the soil for harvest, nourishing the roots.
In our cycles, this is the time to turn back to our own roots. Receive nourishment, insight, and rest. This allows deeper creativity and expression to emerge – in different shapes than in the first half of our cycle.
➺ Taking this into menstrual cycle awareness means valuing rest and receptivity as much as action, trusting that grounding leads to future blossoming.
5. Embrace Sensuality and Play
The monsoon is inherently sensuous: the smell of wet earth, the touch of rain on skin, dripping leaves, sticky clothes, dancing barefoot in puddles, hugging a loved one. It’s romantic, childlike, and alive.
➺ Taking this into menstrual cycle awareness means giving yourself permission to feel. To savour your senses. To allow playfulness, intimacy, and even messiness. This soft sensuality connects us more deeply to our cyclical bodies.
For full disclosure – I haven’t had my romantic Bollywood rain dance yet. Still waiting for that one.
But we did have a fun dance session on our rooftop!
Rituals of Abundance
As mentioned earlier, Indian monsoon is tied to festivals, rituals, and community gatherings. People sing, dance, and honor the rains. It is both joyful and sacred.
This offers another lesson: make space to ritualize your own transitions. Whether between seasons, moon phases, or cycle phases, pause to mark the shift. Light a candle, journal, move your body, or gather with others. It doesn’t need to be grand – small rituals are powerful too.
Here’s inspiration for bringing the spirit of monsoon into your own cyclical living through rituals, related to the five lessons above 👆🏽:
🌀 Inspo: Monsoon Practices for Your Cycle
💧 Celebrate Before You Turn Inward → At the end of ovulation, take a moment to name three things from this cycle you’re proud of — big or small. Write them down, or speak them aloud. Place them somewhere visible, so that when your inner critic gets loud later in the luteal phase, you can return to your own words of recognition. This simple ritual creates a soft & smooth landing into the second half of your cycle.
💧 Wash Away What No Longer Serves → When it rains (or in the shower), imagine the water washing away what no longer serves you. As it flows off your body, breathe out what you’re ready to release - an old thought, a tension, a judgment. Let the water carry it away.
💧 Growth Happens in Stillness → Schedule one pause in your day where you do nothing—no scrolling, no planning, no producing. Sit or lie down, while simply noticing your breath. Remind yourself: “Even when I rest, life grows through me.”
💧 Root and Ripen → Place your bare feet on the earth (or on the floor, imagining roots growing down). With each exhale, send energy into your roots. With each inhale, imagine drawing nourishment up through them. Feel how rooting allows space for ripening.
💧 Embrace Sensuality and Play → Awaken your senses. Stand in the rains, light a candle, smell spices, feel the texture of your clothes, taste something juicy, put on music and move your body, practice touch with your friend or partner. Allow yourself to enjoy without agenda—messy, playful, sensual.
Read my previous blogpost to learn about rituals and get inspired on how to bring more ritual into your life.
Closing Thoughts
The monsoon teaches us how to move from outer summer into inner autumn: not with resistance, but with celebration, play, and gentle surrender.
Even if we live far from India, we can bring its lessons into our own cycles. By celebrating achievements, allowing release, honouring rest, and savouring sensuality, we align more deeply with our bodies.
And just as the rains can turn destructive when the earth is not cared for, our own inner ecosystem can become turbulent when we neglect our needs. If we push too hard, resist rest, or ignore the signals of our bodies, imbalance arises. When we do not listen, the second half of our cycle will eventually flood us – emotionally, mentally, or physically.
When we welcome these transitions – joyfully, ritually, and with reverence – we create space for our own inner abundance to root, ripen, and flourish.
With love,
Stéphanie 🌞🌙
Awareness. Embodiment. Alignment. Transformation.
