Shitala Saatam - Religion vs Science

Welcome Readers!

Festivals play vital role in human's life. In our routine and monotonous life, festivals fill the empty gap of happiness, jubilation, and encouragement. Indian festivals are firmly connected with religion, mythology and legend stories. There are many festivals which are not directly connected with the original myth or scriptures, but still they have their space. Naag Pacham, Chhath, and Shitala Satam are such festivals. If a rational and critical thinker visits India and observes some rituals of worshiping of disease like smallpox, what impression he will take about India? Natural elements like vegetation, water, fire, air, all the seasons like, autumn, spring are majorly seen through the eye of religious thoughts. Fear is the deeply rooted feeling in the conscience of human being. Whichever thing he can't control, he submits and surrenders himself and bows in front of it. Whether it be a natural calamity or deadly disease like smallpox which we call it Shitala (શીતળા).

Here's one link of blog about this topic, posted by Dr. Dilip Barad.
Click Here to visit blog.

What's in the air ?

Shitala (smallpox) was once a deadly and incurable disease, which is now fully curbed. One pioneered the idea of vaccination in the medical field, none other than Edward Jenner was the first to find the cure of smallpox from cowpox. Iron cuts iron. The disease of cowpox became the vaccine of smallpox. Jenner experimented this for the first time in 1796. At that time, Indians were worshiping this deadly disease as Mataji (Goddess), because it was incurable. There is also one rational idea that eating cold food like curd, buttermilk, hotchpotch, cold roti, thepla, helps with deficiency of vitamin B12. But of course for Indians it was not followed with intention to cure the deficiency but to be saved from the wrath of Shitala Maa.

Edward Jenner (1749-1823) and cowpox infected udder of cow, human arm (Source: Wikipedia)

Edward Jenner performing his first vaccination to James Phipps (14th May 1796)

Here's one link of article, which will break many misconceptions and will demolish the 'excessive pride', which Indians take about curbing the disease on first hand. Click here to read the article. When we see falsified manifestation of any visible object and yet people, by becoming sheeple, blindly follow the lead, somewhere in the corner truth is being revealed in the form of articles and write-ups. Just a little ray of light, enlightens the dark corner and we find the truth that bring awareness.

Awareness is All

While India was busy in worshiping this Shitala Mataji, people in Britain were afraid of taking the cowpox vaccine, which was the cure to smallpox. This image is mocking at the fear of people, who are imagining that they will grow cow heads on their bodies. At least this fear of people was good rather than worshiping the disease as Goddess. Even after having the fear, they are sitting there to take the vaccine.

If people will not be aware of the current diseases, then how will rumors be stopped ? In the 21st century people should think every aspect with multidimensional views. In this image we can see how Edward Jenner is doing good karma by advising a farmer to vaccinate his family. Unless we start thinking, re-looking on issues, our minds will always be captured by such fake mentalities and will never be free from 'Conditioning'. Let's be hopeful that India will be fully free from superstitions and let's spread this thought to people. Let's be aware together.

Citations: Images from Wikipedia

August: A Month of Patriotism

Welcome Readers!

August is a month of patriotism. As we all know that on 15th August, 1947, India became free form British Raj. Indians celebrate this day as Independence Day. After 72 years of freedom, India has changed a lot. The country has found new horizons in most of the fields and developed in its advanced terms. Many industries were born, grew and died, but the evergreen film industry hasn't found any drawback or setback in it's history. Indian film industry has found new ways and mediums in production, distribution and releasing of the films. Literature has no boundaries. We can maintain here, that literature and films are two pillars of India's social and cultural reflection. Here are two short films which makes us think our ideas about the word 'Freedom' again.

1. Indian Short Films

(1) In defense of Freedom : A film by Nandita Das
Actor : Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Character : Saadat Hasan Manto

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What to write and what not to write ? We should write on everything which is in front of us. In this short film, Manto talks about writing a fair and transparent visual of any current scenario or situation. Manto says that writing about prostitution or the people connected with it, isn't wrong. they are also the part of our society. In a class many intelligent people are sitting, few of them don't like this thought, so they walk out from the room. Many accusations have made against such writers who depict or portray things as it is. This short film makes us think about the freedom of thought and freedom of expression.

हकीकत से इनकार करना क्या हमें बेहतर इंसान बनाएगा ?

"जो हमारे सामने मौजूद है वह हर चीज़ के बारे में लिखा जाना चाहिए।"


(2) This Bloody Line
Writer and Director: Ram Madhvani

This short film makes us feel that this line between two countries, is nothing else but the partition of one heart into two. Earlier before partition, when there was no such country like Pakistan, people were living very happy life, there was no such thing like religious blindness. Peace and brotherhood was here. But in 1947, Sir Cyril John Radcliffe drew a line that divided a country forever. Many people became homeless overnight and around one million people were massacred. W. H. Auden writes a poem about this Radcliffe line namely, "Partition".

In this short film, Radcliffe asks the Chancellor that, "I've never been to India, why me ?"
Chancellor: Do it in the service of your country. At the End of the video, Cyril remembers Mahatma Gandhi and recalls that once he warned that this line was going to create a lot of violence. He repents at the decision of drawing THE BLOODY LINE.

"It was one country, one heart cut into two.

The line divides us."

TILL TODAY THIS LINE MAKES US BLEED

2. देश एक राग है। 

In this video, the idea of using the word nation and country is well described. In which context the word 'nation' is used rather than 'country' is elaborated by poem of Bhagwat Rawat. Nation is a formal word and we don't find any patriotic feeling while uttering it. While 'country' makes good impact on one's heart and makes a person feel patriotic.

Nation which we call in Hindi - राष्ट्र, and Country we call it in Hindi - देश.

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देश एक राग है,
सुवासित सुभाषित सा फैलता हुआ धीरे धीरे,
स्नेहिल तरंगों की तरह,
बाहर से भीतर तक, भीतर से बाहर तक।
स्वयं अपनी सीमाएं लांघता,
सुगन्धित मंद मंद पवन की तरह,
सारी दुनिया को शीतल करता धीरे धीरे,
सारी दुनिया का हिस्सा हो जाता...

मैं भारत देश का नागरिक हूँ।  मैं भारत राष्ट्र का...

Theories and arguments are many, but I love to use the word Desh instead of Rashtra.

Thank You.

Indian Writing In English: The Purpose by T. P. Kailasam

Hello Readers !

The study of Indian writing in English has become an integral part of the English literature. T. P. Kailasam was a prominent Kannada playwright and writer. This blog is related to the task assigned by Prof. Vaidehi Hariyani. Click here to view blog. In her blog, there are pre-task in which students have to read the original play The Purpose by T. P. Kailasam. In post-task students answer the questions accordingly.

Guru Dakshina (Source: Wikipedia)

Click Here to read full play.

1.) Compare and Contrast Arjun and Eklavya's Character.

Ans. In this play the character of Arjuna in different. He is some kind of arrogant and blunt with his Gurujee, Dronacharya. Eklavya is noble and humble student who wishes to save the creatures of jungle.

2.) What is Subaltern? Who do you think is the Subaltern in this play? Explain with examples.

Ans. Subaltern means the person whose voice is unheard and oppressed, and neglected. In this play, Eklavya is subaltern because his voice is suppressed and Dronacharya refused to teach him archery because he is Nishadha.

3.) Write your views about Education system in India with reference to Past and Present time.

Ans. Education system was very different in ancient India. There was Gurukuls and Ashrams, in which parents leave their children for their education and the teachers in Gurukul take care of the child until he becomes mature and learned. At the age of around 15 or 16, that child learns many different things from different experiences and through the guidance of the Sages and Acharyas. In this span of time a child used to learn many lessons not only from studies but from lives also. Guruji or Acharya used to send their Shishyas in jungle to cur some tree branches, they used to fill water from deep wells, pulling the rope from well and filling a potful of water was not easy task then. Students were learning archery, dual fights, animal hunting, etc. In this Gurukul education system, multi-dimensional development of students was happening.

Whereas now in Today's India, education has become a big business. Every owner of school thinks about a student as a tool to earn money. Nowadays all institutes are giving their advertisements in very big posters and hoardings just in order to attract students and make them take admission in the institute. School and university owner hire very low qualified teachers and even if they get a good teacher luck by chance, they don't give them sufficient salary. We all know that money plays a vital role in every persons life. By getting this much low salary, a teacher gets frustrated and always remain in stress, so even though having a good qualification he can't teach their students with full attention and devotion. Earlier it was seen that if student comes from very poor background, teacher used to teach him free without any fees. Whereas there are numberless private schools, colleges and universities which takes a massive amount of fees in the form of donation or charity funding. In a nut shell we can say that The place of Saraswati (Goddess of Learning) has taken by Lakshmi (Goddess of Money).

4.) Is Dronacharya an ideal teacher? If yes, then how? and If No, then Why? Explain with examples.

Ans. Dronacharya is partial in educating Eklavya because he only teaches Kshatriya students whereas Eklavya is Nishadha. After the refusal of Dronacharya Eklavya makes an image of Gurujee and practices archery. Being a teacher one cannot be partial with students. So Dronacharya is not an ideal teacher.

5.) Write something about your experience like Eklavya or Arjuna with any teacher during your study phase till now.

Ans. There were no such experience like this during my studies.

Thank You!