After watching the movie Bhool Bhullaiya, I was bowled over. Though it is not the best entertainer, it contained an extra-ordinary message. The message appeared very subtly interwoven with the story. And the message was simple - our ancestors were brilliant! So many people believe that spirits (or Gods/Ghosts) capture people and make them behave extra-ordinarily (like it happens to Vidya Balan, people assume that the spirit of the dancer has captured her). Whereas the truth is that it is actually a psychological illness. If you have noticed, the remedy applied by Akshay Kumar in the movie, was to make Vidya Balan believe (in her excited state) that the demands of the spirit have been fulfilled ( i.e. the dancer has killed the king). This is exactly what people do when they think a ghost/God has captured a human. It is a common sight at the various religious, especially in Maharashtra. They are no psychiatrists, they are simpletons following the directions passed on over generations by our ancestors.
I have been audience to a few such acts personally. During those acts, the spirits' demands were not as outrageous as in the movie. All they asked for was small things like stuff to eat, or clothes or sometimes a bit of jewellery. Giving it to them is actually a scientific solution to the psychological disorder. Giving it a form of divinity, is the act of our brilliant ancestors who found it easier to make people believe it's the act of spirits rather than explaining to them all about psychology. Similar example can also be found in the movie Lage Raho Munnabhai. Munna seems to talk to the spirit of Gandhiji, which is later proved to be a psychological illness. Maybe this is what happens to all the people who claim they've seen a ghost/God.
Our ancestors (Indian) were very smart people, though not very farsighted I would say. Whenever a new idea or concept is presented to people, it is found that there is an inertia that resists any change of their mindset, irrespective of who is presenting it. The facts that are most readily accepted are those pertaining God or religious customs.
Most of the earlier sages or holy men were actually very learned people. They studied mathematics, economics, politics, medicine, etc. During their age, education was restricted to a privileged few and people did not have access to mass communication systems like TV, newspaper or the internet. So, there was little exchange of ideas and the majority of people were generations away from these sages, as far as their knowledge of such subjects was concerned.
These sages invoked the power or God to solve the problems of people and thereby circumvented the inertia of people to accept the solution. This they did in a very interesting manner. A very good example is the disease of chicken pox. It was found that the leaves of neem plant cured chicken pox. The sages could not explain this to people as the people lacked the level of education required for understanding it. So, the sages invoked the power of God, they told people that when a person is suffering from chicken pox, a particular Goddess captures his/her body. To pacify her, the person should be bathed with hot water containing neem leaves. That was all that was required! People accepted the solution as it came from the sages who were virtually the authority to define God's will.
This is example goes a long way in bringing out the reason for existence of most religious customs. Anything that was difficult to explain to the people was impressed upon them by invoking the power of Gods. A lot of such examples can be found in many religions. E.g. The namaz of muslims includes quite a few yogic poses which help people in staying fit. People who offer namaz 5 times a day stay fitter than those who don't (assuming rest all things are same). Most importantly, maybe the concept of God was supported by these sages simply because it helps people develop psychologically and socially. God gives humans the security, the strength, the confidence they need as well as keeps their actions in check by using the carrot of heaven and the stick of hell!
Whatever it is, our ancestors were brilliant because they found the easiest way to make people do the right things. But, like other systems, even this system is not ideal. All the sages were not necessarily philanthropists. Many must have used this system for their own personal goals of power, glory, money, etc. So, we see many meaningless or illogical rituals or customs. Also as time moves on, the solutions to problems change and today's experts are no sages so, they cannot invoke the power of Gods to present a solution for any problem. Hence, it is now more difficult to impress new solutions to older problems on people. The methodology of the ancestors is proving to be the greatest bane of today's experts. So, the ancestors were not very farsighted. Filling the gap in education would have ensured a different level of maturity in people. But, with the spread of modern education, this scenario is changing and changing for the better, I think.
Agree with me? Disagree with me? Leave a comment…..
Author: Vj
