Evolution, Science & Education in India

I have always admired how Indians seemed to have accepted and understood evolution better than most developed nations. I used to attribute it to Indian belief systems being more flexible and not as bound by scriptures.

But then the country’s education minister said this yesterday… “Nobody, including our ancestors, have said or written that they ever saw an ape turning into a human being.” and later called for removal of evolution theory from textbooks! #FacePalm

So thought of penning this quick note.  Hope to soon enhance this piece or write a new detailed piece based on my understanding of evolution. Read more

Vaishnava Jana To… A good man is one who feels another’s pain, shares another’s sorrow

Narsinha Mehta – Postal Stamp- India. Poet: Vasihnava Jana To

On Gandhi’s birth anniversary (2nd October), thought of writing this quick post about one of Gandhi’s favourite hymns.  A hymn that also often helps me form an opinion and decide on the course of action.

Almost every Gandhi feature includes a rendition of  “Vaishnava Jana To …” and many even think that it was Gandhi’s creation.

However “Vaishnava Jana To …” was actually written by the poet Narsinh Mehta, in the Gujarati language, way back in the 15th century.

While the entire poem is beautiful and profound, I have always been most drawn to the first two lines Read more

Learning From History – At Peace With History (The Sceptical Patriot)

Just finished reading “The Sceptical Patriot”, a book that examines the veracity of popular “India Facts” like Invented the zero, Sanskrit is the best language for computers, India never invaded another country, India was once the most prosperous nation, Plastic surgery was developed in India … The author deals with several such “facts” that gets bandied over email, facebook, dinner conversations and more. He deals with them in a layman-friendly and mildly-funny text of 200 odd pages.

The aim of the book and also this post is not to mock, belittle or ignore India’s past achievements but to take a realistic view based on the evidence available. Read more

Spare The Tree – This Gudhi

Happy Gudhi Padwa! The new year day for many Marathi households and also the day when thousands of mango, neem trees and many other plants get ripped of their leaves and flowers for a symbolic Gudi decoration.

The leaves and flowers are supposed to make the Gudhi more appealing. but maybe it is time to consider if the leaves and flowers are better off ‘alive and well’ on the plant or ‘dead’ on the Gudhi? Maybe the tree could be your Gudhi (put a silver pot over it for a day the tree wont mind 🙂 Or even better, maybe we could welcome the new year by planting a sapling?

As students of science, shouldn’t we also be examining customs and beliefs in the light of the science of the day and with the context of the times we live in?

गुढी पाडवा आणि नवीन वर्षाच्या हार्दिक शुभेच्छा !

Wish you a Goody Gudi Padwa 🙂

I Believe In Dr. Narendra Dabholkar

DabholkarI have been volunteering for Maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmulan Samiti (Maharashtra Committee for Eradication of Blind Faith), usually referred to as Anis, for over 3 years and was fortunate to be closely associated with Dr Dabholkar over that period. I write this in great shock, disbelief and sorrow.

For over two decades, Dr. Dabholkar fought against rampant superstitions in our society and for the cause of rationalism and humanism. While radicals and those with vested interests regularly tried to malign him and project him as someone opposed to religion, that was never the case. Read more

Astrology vs Science & Reason | Which side are you on?

A few months back came the shocking news of the Palkar family suicide in Pune, where Arun Palkar(40), a well off electrical contractor consumed sleeping pills along with his wife (37) and children aged 11 & 6. He did so because he believed that Shani (Saturn) and Mangal (Mars) were so unfavourably placed in his horoscope that irrespective of what he did, he & his family would never be happy. It is likely that he even planned the suicide so as to rescue his family from present & future suffering. Read more

Savarkar – The Grey Icon Of India

Savarkar (above) and Gandhi politely agreed to...
Savarkar

I see Twitter abuzz with #Savarkar on the 130th birth anniversary of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar ( Veer Savarkar ). So thought of writing this quick post on the man.

Savarkar has to be one of the most intriguing icons of India. An icon you can’t possibly categorize as black or white. Savarkar has to be the grey icon of India. Read more

Andhashraddha Nirmulan Samiti – 20 Yr Convention

For the past 6 months or so, I have been associated with Andhashraddha Nirmulan Samiti (ANS), an organization that aims to promote rational thought in society and works for the elimination of superstitions, blind faith & customs. Many social movements tend to peak in about 3 years since inception and then tend to die out in another 3-5 years. However the ANS has been at work for a remarkable 20+ years. Read more

Terror Attacks – Why Ahmedabad? Why Bangalore? Why India?

Terror Attacks In Ahmedabad Bangalore Cities In IndiaIndia has again seen a painful chapter of bombings. Over 20 bombs targeted the Indian cities of Bangalore and Ahmadabad and killed 10s of innocent civilians and injured 100s.

While I feel very sad and rattled by the developments, I also fail to make sense of them. I only have questions for the militants on a killing spree and also questions for myself and all Indians.

Read more

Magical Men Of 21st Century India

“The Key Selling Point Of The GodMen Is Their Talk About Things That Make No Sense”

Right from childhood, stories that had their foundation in magic and ‘chamatkars’ always appealed to me. I must have watched 10s of combinations of stories like – Ramu’s son is ill and no doctor is able to cure him; Ramu goes to a godman who whips up a magical powder; Ramu applies the powder on his son’s forehead and the kid is magically cured. As a child, I remember being in awe of the godman and thinking, “Wow! This man is amazing!”. Friends readily contributed their own stories of how the godman was indeed magical.

Read more

Creating a competing and city friendly ganesh festival

Creating a parallel organized Ganesh festival could be the way forwardLokmanya Tilak initiated public ganesh festivals with the noble intent of creating a forum for people to come together and work for the nation’s independence. However, I am sure Tilak would have been saddened to see the avatar that his creation has taken today. Although the festival celebrated in each home is still vibrant and fun, the public festivals are loud, rowdy, political and disconnected from the ordinary masses. The demerits are endless while the benefits are a handful. Also it doesn’t end with just the 10 days of the festival, as even throughout the year the idols are placed in cabins that almost always are on encroached public land, in most cases footpaths. At times I even feel like writing to the Tilak family, saying “Please stop this thing you’ve started!”.

Unfortunately that won’t work. The fact is that ganesh mandals today are well established, used to getting their way and enjoy support from some political party or the other. So sweeping measures like banning the mandals from using public property are not going to work. Also a ban will face stiff resistance and will only result in burnt down PMT buses. Over the last decade or so, we have all experienced that the products and services that have improved have been those where healthy competition has emerged. So why not learn from this experience and create a parallel, planned and well organized version of the public ganesh festival that will compete with the public festival on the street? We can keep writing and complaining about all that’s wrong with the public ganesh festivals but that’s unlikely to make much difference. Why not instead toss ideas on how the ganesh festival could be revamped? I am sure many ideas might seem fanciful, but unless we start discussing and working on a way out of the mess we will only see things going from bad to worse.

(Cont…Click the scanned article image on the left). Published as part of my column for the Maharashtra Herald that’s published on alternate Saturdays )

Blind Belief Brings No Relief

Herald Column 14 April 2007 - Blind Belief Brings No Relief

“We are complicating our lives with superstitions. Instead, let logic and science be our guide.”

Lately I have been spending some time looking for an office space. Apart from the sky rocketing prices, the other thing that has struck me has been the popularity of “Vaastu Shastra”. Vaastu compliance is mentioned as a key feature in many property listings and apparently is an important factor based on which people are buying property today.
In one recent interaction, I asked the owner of a place about the direction of a window, so as to figure out the light and wind that the room would get. In reply I got information on how the place was “Vaastu” perfect and how all previous owners and their families had prospered because of the Vaastu merits of the place.

For quite some time I was under the false impression that Vaastu Shastra only consisted of logical guidelines for construction. Although there are some practical aspects involved, Vaastu Shastra as it is practiced today also leverages religious beliefs; it claims that the changes suggested affect the health, wealth, marital success and even longevity of life of the owner. Vaastu suggestions are based on not only the building specifications, but also on things like the birth date of the owner and his/her astrological sign.

Vaastu Shastra’s claims about how it affects wealth, health, well-being, etc. have nothing to do with science or mathematics. However the feel given by the name and proponents of Vaastu Shastra is that it’s a complex topic that relies on precise science and mathematics.

If a person makes a decision based on which card a fortune teller’s parrot picks, he is well aware that there’s no science involved and he is just relying on superstition to help him make a tough decision. But with things like Vaastu Shastra, an attempt is made to make it seem like a science and so the ill- informed might actually rely on a Vaastu Shastra suggestion believing that it’s a precise science. Moreover,Vaastu Shastra claims to be based on the Vedas and most Indians tend to have blind faith in anything which makes such a claim.

People today are bringing down portions of their dwellings, redoing their interiors and going to remarkable lengths for Vaastu reasons. Look for Vaastu Shastra on the Internet and you will find a number of experts giving Vaastu advice that will solve problems ranging from debt, sorrow, stress, accidents, robberies and even untoward death. True believers I am sure can find some logic in most suggestions but it sure would be difficult to justify how robberies can be caused because my kitchen faces a certain direction.

Looking at current trends, architects who have studied the subject in colleges might soon become irrelevant. Vaastu Shastra experts will decide the layout of a building and the builder would then build it. Who needs architects? Vaastu Shastra however can be a great profession as you can become an expert without any specific qualifications.

Despite repeated efforts we still haven’t been able to pass any anti-superstition laws. So it would be far fetched to expect the government to pass some law that would regulate things like Vaastu Shastra. Many leaders right from the President of India talk of the need of a scientific temper, but on the ground we are further sinking in the superstition quick sand.
TV channels seem to have made a habit of contributing towards spreading superstitions rather than education. Not just the faith-based channels, but even mainstream entertainment channels are airing entire programs dedicated to Zodiac Signs, Tarot Card, Vaastu Shastra and what not. Believe it or not there’s even a book that claims to tell you how to develop websites which are Vaastu Shastra compliant!

There’s no denying that it is only human to seek divine intervention or help from super natural forces in times of calamity. However in today’s time when we are far more aware of the science inherent to nature and our surroundings, we need to try and take as best a scientific approach as possible. Science does keep changing and sure is still ignorant about many things; yet taking an approach in line with the science of the day is our best option.

Dr. Jayant Narlikar in his book “The Scientific Edge” talks at length about science in India and also a little bit about Vaastu Shastra. He says “Can Vaastu Shastra be called either architecture or science? Both the architects and the scientists reply in the negative. These rules have neither rational justification nor proof of their efficacy, but believers think that defiance could cost them their well- being”. “The Scientific Edge” is a must read for any educated Indian. One of the important learnings I took from the book was that it’s really up to aware citizens to stand up and voice their opinion against superstitions. If we keep turning a blind eye to superstitions, we are only contributing to the decline of Indian society.

I am no scientist but I don’t think it takes much science to see that a bathroom door can affect my health only if I accidentally bang into it. Vaastu Shastra is one example, but other fads like zodiac signs, numerology or Feng Shui are standing on just as shaky a foundation.

On a lighter note, there’s one way to make Vaastu Shastra beneficial to society. One house owner in my neighborhood recently brought down an unauthorized construction because it was improper as per “Vaastu Shastra”. So Vaastu Shastra achieved what the administration couldn’t in years. We can do wonders for Indian cities if somehow we can sneak in a tenet into Vaastu Shastra that says “If you build or stay in a structure that is not in compliance with the law of the land, it will lead to instant ruin of your health and wealth”.

Finally coming back to my search for office space, I am now considering if I should specifically advertise for properties that are fine as per architectural principles but are not “Vaastu Shastra” complaint. I might just be able to land a super deal.

(Continued… Click here “Blind Belief Brings No Relief” for the entire article). Published as part of my fortnightly column for the Maharashtra Herald)

Bachchan Temple Treks Are Disappointing

I used to think that Amitabh Bachchan was a great role model for Indians. But his regular  treks to temples across India are consistently eroding his stature in my eyes.

Ref- Bollywood’s Bachchan walks barefoot to pray

India is anyway full of religious fanatics and superstitious people who would believe and follow so called god men and waste their lives believing in some hocus pocus.

The biggest name in India acting in such fashion only makes things worse. I am sure thousands of Amitabh followers would soon imitate Amitabh and maybe even try to make the idols drink milk!

In today’s India it seems “Science” and “Scientific Temper” are topics meant only for speeches but never for actual implementation.

Yoga, Religion and Swamis on TV

Although I like early mornings, I very rarely manage to get up early. Today was one of those rare days. As the newspaper had not come in, I switched on my TV set and had a look at some of the early morning religious preachings being aired on various channels.

While many channels had people talking about religion and god, there were some that also aired a mix of Yoga and religion. I do not remember the name of the swami I watched but I was impressed by the way he held the audience and made them do various yoga poses.

TV swami’s have become very popular in India and some like Baba Ramdev have become even more popular due to some recent controversies. The one thing I like about these swami’s is that they ask the listener to do good. The yoga swamis I think have had a good impact on society as Yoga today is more popular in India than it might have been in 100s of years.

I too was fairly ignorant of yoga until a few years back and used to associate yoga with PT drills that we had in school. Yoga is nothing like Physical Training (PT) and the mind plays just as important a role as the body.

Anyway, teaching yoga is fine, but preaching religion to 1000s of people through the medium of TV however I don’t think is such a good idea. Religion and mass media is a very dangerous combination.

Religion in India – Faith vs Reason

In my previous post, I wrote about the absence of scientific temper in India and the need for those well informed, to voice their opinions against superstitions and customs that have chained our society.

India today seems completely at the mercy of ill-placed faith. Instead of individuals standing on the shoulders of faith and rising to a higher level, we find that it’s today working the other way round. As festivals, miracle babas and religious processions get bigger, they are further pulling down the person caught in it.

What’s worrying is that despite affluence and higher education getting to the cities, the queues outside temples on a so called auspicious day, just keep getting longer. Even youngsters are caught in this. What’s the sense in visiting temples on the day of an exam? Why would God be good to you only because you visited a certain temple on a certain supposedly auspicious day? Wouldn’t God find good deeds and behaviour, the only thing that mattered?

Astrology: The dates for most marriages are determined by astrology that has no logical or scientific basis. I unfortnately too complied with this and married on a day that was supposed to be auspicious. It wasn’t because I believed that marrying on that date and time would really make a difference, but more because I just played along with what the elders in the family decided.
I think that was a mistake and I should have refused to comply, as that would not only have helped me feel better about doing the right thing, but perhaps might have also built up some awareness at least amongst those close to me.
Vaastu Shastra: I saw a TV show about “Vaastu Shastra” (Art of Building) a few days back and the lady expert was confidently dishing out rubbish on live TV. If a person has come to a stage where he believes that the reason why his business is not doing well is that his toilets are facing in the wrong direction, then I think he needs immediate medical attention and not Vaastu Shastra.