In what has got to be on of the most vile and disturbing
things ever put to print, a man in eastern India was arrested for his
unconventional and downright insane method of curing the common cold in
children.
Santosh Singh, who
served as a spokesman for the police on the case, stated that the parents who
allowed this self-described holy man were most likely unaware of his methods.
When asked about them, the guru claimed that he was merely speaking for God,
and as such needs no other defense.
Although an isolated
incident, it serves as a grim reminder of the dangerous religious traditions
observed by many Hindus in India,
many of which are done so for the health of their children. One such ritual
involves throwing infants off of a fifty foot tower, a tradition thought to
bring good health and luck to the child throughout his or her life.
The children are
tossed from the tower onto a tightly stretched sheet below, where they
seemingly bounce safely and are then handed to their mothers. This bizarre and
dangerous ritual, which has been practiced for 500 years, has yet to count any
fatalities, but that hasn’t stopped critics from deriding it as unsafe.
The ritual is
typically performed by Hindus and Muslims alike in the Indian district of
Solapur, which is located in Maharashtra, as
well as smaller outlying villages. Before the event happens, the parents of the
babies being take a vow at a temple.
A more recent
incident highlights the case of Nek Singh, an Indian guru who employs brutal
beatings to “cure any ailment,” including cancer. Oddly enough, all of his
“patients” were women. The treatment involved savage kicks and punches, and
even standing on the head of the individual. The guru proclaimed that the
goddess Kali possessed him, enabling him with the power to heal through
physical violence.
Based out of the
Etah district of Uttar Pradesh in India, police eventually raided the
village, but the self-proclaimed spiritual healer managed to evade capture.
Although his whereabouts are unknown, I would be surprised if he and his neck
stompin’ buddy are enjoying a cold beer somewhere in hiding.
Another similarly
disturbing tradition is the practice of burying disabled children alive up to
their necks for six hours during a solar eclipse for approximately six hours.
This is seemingly done to offset the negative effects that are thought to be
caused by a prior solar eclipse.
Although genuine
testing has been done to test the relationship between mud therapy and the
eclipse, no conclusions have been drawn, despite many mothers stating their
children have experienced improved mobility after undergoing the terrifying
ritual.
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