August: Patriotism and Religious Fervour
The month of August in India, is a time of euphoric celebration of both national and religious festivals. However, in this euphoria of the celebrations, people forget to look at the other side of those events. This post tries to look at that side of these events which people usually miss out.
First, let's take the celebration of 15th August, the day India got independence from the British Raj. But, what was the other side of the story of independence? Well, it was partition. 15th August marks not just the freedom of the nation but also its partition into three different nation-states. Millions of people migrated and got displaced because of this. But their stories remain veiled under the euphoria of the freedom struggle. The partition led to communal riots, which of course wasn't a happy phenomenon. And let's not forget that much of the post independence literature focuses on these unheard voices of displacement, migration and the feeling of terror prevailing during the communal riots. When we read them, these words of K.R.S Iyengar are proved true:
"Freedom had come indeed, but it was not exactly the freedom that our writers of yesterday had dreamed or sung about or the freedom that generations of patriots had visualized and striven for. it was a flawed freedom born in the hour of communal disturbances of unprecedented ferocity and unbelievable bestiality. Tens of Millions crossed the border, homes were shattered, lives were wrecked, and human values were crushed under foot."
In the colonial discourse this condition would lead to blaming the colonial masters for dividing the nation and so and so forth. However, now, in the post colonial understanding of the nation-states, this situation would be looked at differently. Colonialism was a two-way phenomenon and therefore arguing that John Radcliffe or Mountbatten were responsible for the partition of India, would reflect a very bad understanding of history. Let's not forget that the partition was the only option available for the national leaders like Gandhi as well, who thought that people are no longer ready to engage in a rational debate on the issue of their demands. The consequent result therefore was the Radcliffe line which partitioned the nation into India, East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) and West Pakistan. In today's formation of the Indian nation-state, there is a heightened sense of nationalism, which if thought about rationally and a good historical sense, isn't a good phenomenon.
Coming to the religious aspect of the August month; a prominent traditional practice is that of fasting. According to the Hindu calendar, this time of the year marks the month of Shraavan. One of the major festivals celebrated during this Shraavan month is that of Shiatala Satam. Though I don't know if it is celebrated across India, it is a major festivity in Gujarat. Shitala is another for small pox. As common among religious practices, the fear of small pox led to the creation of the goddess shitala who is worshipped on this day. Small Pox was a threatening danger during the 70s, killing almost 15,000 people in 1974. So, as a cure for the disease, goddess shitala was worshipped and it was believed that it could be cured by not eating fresh food on that particular day of Shitala Satam.
Now, where's the problem? Well, the problem lies in the fact that shitala satam is still celebrated, when the disease has been almost eradicated and its cure and vaccination has been discovered. Religion and science always are at par with each other when it comes to human health. Even after the discovery of the vaccination of small pox by Edward Jenner, people still don't eat fresh food on this day every year, with the excuse that it is good for vitamin B12. How much does this help in B12 deficiency is still a question. Another claim which nationalists make today is that the vaccination was first discovered in India. Well that can be proved true but the amount of people it could help is much lesser than Jenner's vaccination. To read more about this issue click on the following links:
https://dilipbarad.blogspot.com/2019/08/shitala-saatam-religion-vs-science.html
https://www.infinityfoundation.com/mandala/t_dy/t_dy_Q14_frameset.htm
One thing to be understood from both these cases is that without a rational historical sense, the problems of the 21st century cannot be addressed. Without it arguing on any of these matters would prove pointless.
First, let's take the celebration of 15th August, the day India got independence from the British Raj. But, what was the other side of the story of independence? Well, it was partition. 15th August marks not just the freedom of the nation but also its partition into three different nation-states. Millions of people migrated and got displaced because of this. But their stories remain veiled under the euphoria of the freedom struggle. The partition led to communal riots, which of course wasn't a happy phenomenon. And let's not forget that much of the post independence literature focuses on these unheard voices of displacement, migration and the feeling of terror prevailing during the communal riots. When we read them, these words of K.R.S Iyengar are proved true:
"Freedom had come indeed, but it was not exactly the freedom that our writers of yesterday had dreamed or sung about or the freedom that generations of patriots had visualized and striven for. it was a flawed freedom born in the hour of communal disturbances of unprecedented ferocity and unbelievable bestiality. Tens of Millions crossed the border, homes were shattered, lives were wrecked, and human values were crushed under foot."
In the colonial discourse this condition would lead to blaming the colonial masters for dividing the nation and so and so forth. However, now, in the post colonial understanding of the nation-states, this situation would be looked at differently. Colonialism was a two-way phenomenon and therefore arguing that John Radcliffe or Mountbatten were responsible for the partition of India, would reflect a very bad understanding of history. Let's not forget that the partition was the only option available for the national leaders like Gandhi as well, who thought that people are no longer ready to engage in a rational debate on the issue of their demands. The consequent result therefore was the Radcliffe line which partitioned the nation into India, East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) and West Pakistan. In today's formation of the Indian nation-state, there is a heightened sense of nationalism, which if thought about rationally and a good historical sense, isn't a good phenomenon.
Coming to the religious aspect of the August month; a prominent traditional practice is that of fasting. According to the Hindu calendar, this time of the year marks the month of Shraavan. One of the major festivals celebrated during this Shraavan month is that of Shiatala Satam. Though I don't know if it is celebrated across India, it is a major festivity in Gujarat. Shitala is another for small pox. As common among religious practices, the fear of small pox led to the creation of the goddess shitala who is worshipped on this day. Small Pox was a threatening danger during the 70s, killing almost 15,000 people in 1974. So, as a cure for the disease, goddess shitala was worshipped and it was believed that it could be cured by not eating fresh food on that particular day of Shitala Satam.
Now, where's the problem? Well, the problem lies in the fact that shitala satam is still celebrated, when the disease has been almost eradicated and its cure and vaccination has been discovered. Religion and science always are at par with each other when it comes to human health. Even after the discovery of the vaccination of small pox by Edward Jenner, people still don't eat fresh food on this day every year, with the excuse that it is good for vitamin B12. How much does this help in B12 deficiency is still a question. Another claim which nationalists make today is that the vaccination was first discovered in India. Well that can be proved true but the amount of people it could help is much lesser than Jenner's vaccination. To read more about this issue click on the following links:
https://dilipbarad.blogspot.com/2019/08/shitala-saatam-religion-vs-science.html
https://www.infinityfoundation.com/mandala/t_dy/t_dy_Q14_frameset.htm
One thing to be understood from both these cases is that without a rational historical sense, the problems of the 21st century cannot be addressed. Without it arguing on any of these matters would prove pointless.
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