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Home > English > NEWS AND ANALYSIS > Religious Rites in the Time of COVID-19

Religious Rites in the Time of COVID-19

Friday 1 May 2020, by Sumanta Banerjee

It has now been confirmed that one of the primary causes of the global spread of coronavirus is the trend of religious congregations and rituals followed by the faithful all over the world, irrespective of religious denominations. The Tabhlighi Jamaat’s reckless and irresponsible act of bringing together in Nizamuddin in Delhi, some thousands of its followers (many among whom carried the virus and spread it to others), is only the tip of an iceberg of the large mass of blind faith and superstitious beliefs that float among all religious communities. This has not only led to the spread of the pandemic, but also to the rise of religious charlatans who are sprouting forth remedies for the pandemic which are even more frightful.

One major lesson from the global experience of the pandemic is the need for governance of religious demonstrations of all communities, restriction of their religious practices to private space, and an overall assault on superstitious adherence to fake remedies (like drinking cow urine by Hindus, or kissing images of deities by Catholics).

World-wide prevalence of religious superstitious beliefs and customs

To examine first, the global dimension of the religious sources of the spread of the pandemic, let us take reports from a few countries. In South Korea, till February more than 1,000 people tested positive and more than 11 died. About half of these patients were linked to a cult called the Shincheonji Church of Jesus. Some 200,000 of its followers gathered to listen to sermons by the godman Jun Kwang-hoon, defying the government’s ban on large gatherings. He led an anti-government rally in central Seoul on February 22, where he told his followers that god would cure them of the disease if they caught it ! (Re: Quartz - How Religion is playing a role in the spread of cornavirus in Korea’ by Isabella Steger, February 26, 2020). Curiously enough, a few weeks later in Nizamuddin in Delhi, a godman of another cult Tablighi Jamaat, Maulana Saad Kandhlawi, addressing a similar gathering of thousands of his followers assured that the virus can never enter the mosque as long as they remain there. Godmen all over the world, despite their different religious masks, appear to have one common mother - the deity of superstition.   In Malaysia in late February, over 16,000 people gathered in a mosque complex in the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur for a four-day meeting. Soon after, the corona virus cases increased by leaps and bounds. Of the over 790 cases till mid-March, nearly two-thirds could be traced to that meeting. In Iran, it was the holy city of Qom that was the main source. Pilgrims touch and kiss the sacred sites that are spread over the city. The first case of COVID-19 and resulting death was reported from Qom, and it soon spread to the rest of Iran. Among the Western countries, in France a Christian Open Door gathering on February 18, attended by hundreds of devotees from around the world, sparked the spread of the pandemic. It was traced to one of the attendees who tested positive. Later, it was estimated that at least 2,500 cases out of France’s total figures, could be linked to the gathering. (Daily Mail, March 30). In the same way, in Spain it was a follower of a superstitious religious custom who inadvertently spread the disease. There is a Spanish pre-Easter tradition where Catholics flock in droves to kiss statues of Jesus and Mary. In the course of such devotion, this follower left the imprint of his lips on the statue - from which those who followed him caught the infection. It was estimated that till the first week of March, at least 365 had been infected and five died. (www.USnews.com). In convents in Christian establishments in Europe, nuns live in close contact with each other, and their religious obligations often bring them into contact with the general public . This is how in Italy’s Lazio region in March, some 59 nuns belonging to two convents got infected, and were tested positive.     {{Hindutva’s contribution to the spread of COVID-19 in India}} India had been the traditional homeland of those gullible people, who immersed in the dunghill of obscurantist beliefs, are fond of indulging in delirious rituals and turning pilgrimages into occasions of mass frenzy. The coronavirus has offered an excellent opportunity for the demonstration of such ritualistic frenzy. Let us take a few cases and pose some questions relating to the role of religious preachers and the ruling BJP politicians during the coronavirus outbreak. Amidst the cacophony of panic and furore over the Tabhlighi Jamaat’s March event, one of the best hidden secrets is the government’s inaction with regard to similar gatherings held under the aegis of  non-Muslim preachers and organizations at around the same time. Have investigations been undertaken by the government to trace the possible spread of the virus to these gatherings ? Have the authorities - who have been so meticulous in identifying the Muslims pilgrims of Nizamuddin - pursued with equal zeal the preachers and pilgrims in these cases ? In Punjab, a seventy year old religious preacher, Baldev Singh participated in a gathering, Hola Mohalla in Rupanagar’s Anand Sahib between March 7 and 9. Soon after, he died from coronavirus. Following this, several people tested positive in the area. (Deccan Chronicle, April 2). Did the authorities follow it up by tracing those who attended the gathering and by carrying out tests to explore the possibility that they might have infected many among the 100 odd people in Punjab today who have tested positive, and the seven who have died? In Uttar Pradesh, on March 25, the first day of the nationwide lock down called by Prime Minister Modi, his own party’s leader, no less a person than Adityanath, the chief minister of the state, presided over a Ram Navami congregation in Ayodhya to place the idol of Ram at a temporary structure. Conducted at 4 a.m., it attracted nearly a hundred devotees. (Economic Times, March 26). Defending the event, a UP government official said that no norms were violated since “the shifting (of the idol) was held inside the mandir precincts.” But so also, the Tablighi Jamaat event was held inside the Nizamuddin dargah. Admittedly, the latter numerically outnumbered the one held in Ayodhya. But by the common standards laid down by the government, should not the hundred attendees of the Ayodhya ceremony be subjected to the same scrutiny and tests? Should not the authorities trace them and find out whether they spread the infection in UP, where till now more than 300 have tested positive, and four have died? Kerala, which is one of the highest-affected states, is the home of the famous Sabarimala temple, which draws about one lakh Hindu devotees a day during the annual season of ceremony to pay obeisance to the deity. Concerns had been raised earlier about the health hazards emanating from such large gatherings. In the context of the present pandemic, it is all the more necessary to trace the pilgrims who attended the last ceremony and through tests, find out whether any of them tested positive and passed on the infection to some among the 357 who have been found to be affected, and that has led to the death of at least three till now, in Kerala. But it is West Bengal which takes the cake. It is COVID-19 itself which has provided its citizens with yet another opportunity for a special religious gathering. On April 2, on the occasion of Ram Navami, there were crowds of Hindu devotees who queued in front of temples in Kolkata - praying for relief from the coronavirus pandemic ! (PTI, April 3) Did the authorities trace those who gathered there and test them ? It is important to find out if any among them tested positive and as a result, could have spread the infection to some of the 100 and more people who have been detected so far in West Bengal. {{Godmen, religious charlatans and fanatical bigots}} The spread of the pandemic has come as a boon to the business of religious quacks all over the world. In the West, the leading among them is the US televangelist Jim Bakker, who in a television broadcast on February 12, held up a blue and silver bottle containing a liquid, claiming it to be thesilver solution’ for curing coronavirus, and selling each four ounce bottle for $ 80. Bakker was later sued by the state of Missouri. Another radio host, Alex Jones promoted a toothpaste called Silverblue,’ urging people to buy it to cure COVID-19. He was later served legal notice. The choice of the colours, blue and silver, by the two quacks was not coincidental. Both were trying to play on a popular religious belief among Christians who think that these two colours have healing powers, as they had been assigned a special place in the Bible.   But we have to turn to India again to find how the politico- religious charlatans are having a heyday, attracting crowds and duping them, thanks to COVID-19. On March 16, in Kolkata, a BJP activist called Narayan Chatterjee organized a cow urine festival, offering mud bowls filled with the urine to people urging them to consume it as it would prevent coronavirus infection. It was only later when one man fell it after drinking it that the police became alert and arrested Chatterjee. (PTI, March 18). The campaign against COVID-19 is increasingly becoming Hinduized. The tone has been set by prime minister Narendra Modi himself. He chose April 5 (the 9th day of the national lock down) for congratulating the medical community on their brave efforts in fighting the pandemic. As a mark of respect, he urged citizens to switch off lights at 9 p.m. for 9 minutes, and then stand at their doors or balconies and light candles and diyas, again for 9 minutes. The choice of the number 9 is significant. Observers have pointed out that in Hindu mythological tradition this number is regarded as auspicious. Further, the festival of Chaitra Navaratri, which goes on for nine days, had just come to an end. Explaining the significance of Modi’s announcement, a former head of the Indian Medical Association, Dr. K.K. Aggarwal in a social media message said that it was based on Yoga Vasistha, Chapter Six, adding: “So we should all follow what Modiji said.” (The Wire, April 3). Following this message of Modi’s, some of his admirers have begun indulging in atrocious behavior. In Pingore village in Haryana, around 35 people belonging to the Gujjar community barged into the house of a Dalit family on April 5, and ordered them to keep their lights switched off the whole night in response to Modi’s call. When the family objected, they beat up the family members with iron rods and sticks, injuring eight including two women. (The Hindu, April 9). The prime minister’s admirers and his party leaders turned his call to light candles and diyas into a Diwali festival of sorts. A BJP MLA from Telengana, Raja Singh, accompanied by a large number of his followers came out in the open with lighted torches (mashal’), and shouted “China virus go back.” (The Hindu, April 6). He made a mockery of his leader’s advice to keep indoors and maintain safe distance from each other.

The Indian state’s attempts to Hinduize the anti-COVIND-19 campaign often reach such a ridiculous extent as to invite rebuff from foreign countries. To take a recent example, on April 2, the Union Minister of State for AYUSH, Shripad Naik claimed that Ayurvedic medicine helped Prince Charles of UK to be cured of the pandemic. He was snubbed the next day by Ella Lynch, a spokesperson for Prince Charles, who issued a statement saying: “This information is incorrect. The Prince of Wales followed the medical advice of the NHS (National Health Service) in the UK and nothing more.” (The Indian Express, April 4). One hopes that our ministers stop indulging in such behaviour that makes India a butt of ridicule in world opinion.

Will sanity dawn on our government and ruling party ?

In his April 8 video interaction with Opposition MPs on the future scenario after the outbreak of COVID-19, Narendra Modi made an interesting observation: “Massive behavioural, social and personal changes will have to take place.” It sounds a sane statement. But since charity begins at home, if Modi is serious he will have to start by bringing about these changes in his own backyard. He must see to it that his partymen and his followers change their behaviour towards the Opposition and political dissidents (who are damned as anti-national,’tukre tukre gang’, etc. by them) and recognize their right to criticize the government. He should force the Hindu supremacist groups who operate under his party’s patronage and protection, to change their social habit of adhering to obscure religious practices and frustrating thereby the goal of developing a scientific temperament as envisaged in our Constitution. He has to bring about a change in the personal attitudes of his followers towards Muslims and Dalits, among other suppressed sections, who are daily targets of the lynch gangs of the Hindutva brigade.

This is a tall order, that is hardly expected to be carried out by a child of the Sangh Parivar. But to give him the benefit of doubt, let us hope that sanity dawns on him.