Between religion and superstition we need to discriminate well and proper

                 That’s what makes individuals, societies and nations grow and prosper

                 My post for you this weekend my friends is a brief note about it all  

                 While this hot summer day what we need is a burst of good rainfall

                                          

                                             Religion yes; superstition no                 

“Religion is the opiate of the people,” Karl Max famously said.  And Lenin added, “It is spiritual booze.” I don’t know how well these expressions fit in the Indian context. Perhaps we will have to look for stronger and different vocabulary for the good, the bad and the ugly that is unleashed by religion in India. Yes, religion is a great unifying force that binds people together. Yes, it serves as an anchor for hope and faith and provides succour and relief to the suffering humanity. Yet this same religion has also bred wars and killed millions. It has also bred superstition which clogs the minds of millions across this big wide world. Sadly, India too is one of its worst victims. Even the most highly educated, with awesome academic degrees to flaunt, are ensnared in the cobwebs of basest kinds of superstition. That’s why fake babas adept at exploiting religious sentiments of gullible masses have a field day. They use their glib tongues and felicity of expression to perfection in hoodwinking people- Indian woman being particularly vulnerable to their guiles and religious chicanery. No wonder such dubious babas make millions and lead a life of luxurious splendour at our cost… and those of the women devotees who arouse these babas’ lust, end up in their ‘gufas’ and beds.

 

Well, all of us nurse superstitions of various kinds. It runs in our veins and has been so since the times of our ancestors- the Neanderthals. But the degree varies. I see nothing wrong with being innocuously superstitious: A cat crossing the path is a bad omen for most of us; so is a sneeze by someone while setting off from home or on the launch of a new project. Sounds absurd; but no problem with nursing such irrational notions. But problems do arise when superstition becomes the guiding mantra of life often leading to disastrous consequences. Driven by blind faith, a lot many people rush to the babas, tantrics and other kinds of self-proclaimed healers for miracle cures for several fatal or chronic ailments and mental disorders. And more often than not, treatment administered by the ‘godman’ proves worse than the disease. Even the snakebite incidents which should make us run fast to the nearest hospital for anti-snake venom treatment, we often end up iat the door of some such fake healer. Vital time thus lost, sad and tragic death is the result when the bite is venomous.

Well, I don’t want to preach or pontificate too much on this. But I believe that the extent and degree of superstition that afflicts a society or the nation is a crucial index of its health, progress and development. And when even the highly educated and highly placed people practice and perpetuate superstitious practices, it not only speaks of the quality of our education system but also bodes ill for the nation. We need not only study science and get good scores but also need to make it integral to our day-to-day living.

My ex-students - including the lively, exuberant batch I taught at a private university in my brief post retirement stint recently - are my best blog readers. I do expect them to well and truly develop and propagate scientific temper and keep off (fake) babas, their charms, spells, miracles and mantras for cures.

                               

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