Thursday 26 March 2020

Social Distancing, Sanatana Dharma , Samaritan Woman : A Juxtapose in the context of COVID-19 Lockdown


Social Distancing, Sanatana Dharma , Samaritan Woman : A Juxtapose in  the context of COVID-19 Lockdown

Social distancing is the new term that is being profusely used during this severe pandemic COVID-19 which is threatening the lives of many all over the world. Measures and ideas of social distancing have been strictly adhered to prevent the spread of COVID-19 through community. It’s quite alarming to see plethora of memes, videos and hoaxes shared on social distancing and Sanatana dharma on Social Media platforms such as Facebook, whatsapp and Tik Tok.

A critical juxtapose  to shed light on truths, facts and scripture can be a solace at times as these than succumbing to all that is shared on social media.
Social distancing has taken various definitions according to nations that have been infested with COVID-19. Furthermore there are parallels that are been drawn and various expressions have been identified with social distancing. Whereas the definition of social distancing according to Merriam Webster dictionary is

‘The practice of maintaining a greater than usual physical distance from other people or of avoiding direct contact with people or objects in public places during the outbreak of a contagious disease in order to minimize exposure and reduce the transmission of infection’ [1]

And as we see the above definition evidently cites that social distancing is done only when there is an outbreak of a contagious disease and it isn’t a lifestyle or any phobia, rather a proactive and preventive restraining of an individual to break the chain of the spread.

Sanatana Dharma
Santana Dharma is propagated as a holistic and humanistic way of life offered from Vedic scriptures and traditions and its followers are ones to pursue peace and harmony. A Sanatana devout does clarify with his definitions of Sanatana dharma likewise  

‘God (Brahman), the individual self (atman), prime materiality (jagat, or prakriti), Truth (satya), the Veda (Truth rendered into literary form), and Dharma itself all have necessary existence. They are sanatana. They always have been - and they always shall be.’[2] 

Sanatana is thus defined as the everlasting existence of the above referred pointers with an understanding that everything has an attribute.
 Therefore according to Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya  Dharma

An existent thing’s dharma is that which constitutes the thing’s very essence, without which, the very concept of the thing would be rendered meaningless[3]  Dharma was humanity’s attempt to incorporate the will of the transcendent Divine into the everyday, phenomenal concerns of this world, and to live and explore politics, economics, the arts, music, philosophy, literary expression, and life itself as an everyday, every-moment celebration of the omnipresent imminence of the Divine.[4]

The propagation of Santana dharma has always been so welcoming with mirage that offers no respect and mutual co-existence among fellow beings. However literatures so heart-warming are published, harsh realities of oppression and violence that Sanatana Dharma has offered is more than the viable existence for fellow beings that it promises.

Neo Santana Dharmic Ideologies 
The rise of fundamentalism and fanaticism is surging over years in the nation sponsored by right wing extremists. While the violence over the common has been unleashed and resulted in killing spree in the name of vigilantism. A new rise of Sanatana ideologues are all over the Social Media. In the light of COVID-19 There has been a flurry of memes and pictures circulated that Sanatana Dharma ideologies and methods have always taught us cleanliness and hygiene and following this would help us in being unaffected by any diseases.
Some of them have created a wave of implicitly accepting Sanatana Dharma and its oppressive ideologies as natural way of life.

Namaste vs Handshakes
Namaste was never a way of greeting among the common. In a Manu inspired Sanatana Dharmic fanatic society it was always an expression of untouchability. The Namaste was to escape the clasp or grasp any individual. The casteist society never stops with a Namaste after knowing one is of the same caste. It is followed with a warm hug. Whereas, if a person not of their leaning happens to meet, it’s a reluctant gesture to abruptly end of a meeting. The rise of modernism and globalisation however tried to elude such expressions and introduced handshakes and hugs. Neo sanatana dharmic ideologies proliferated by implicit casteist claim that Christian Missionaries, Mullahs and white supremacists have brought to us this pandemic with this annihilation of culture and Sanatana dharma.
But the truth is that Handshake is not always a carrier of viruses. It’s the virus that is spread to the hands from the face or the cough that one sustains in his day to day living.
According to  Adeodata Czink, who runs Business of Manners as reported in World Economic Forum states that

‘The gesture is a super-efficient way to spread germs, given that we also touch our faces unwittingly about one or two dozen times per hour, according to studies, most often touching our eyes, nose, or mouth. Performing the perfectly unnecessary custom of shaking someone’s hand raises the likelihood that you’ll infect yourself with any virus that’s going around.’[5]

Thus handshakes do not really spread the viruses every time but only during outbreaks.

Banging Thalis , ringing Ghantis and chanting Go Corona Go
In spite of the Prime Minister announcing that nation has strictly follow social distancing  as the nation was on the verge of stepping into the most crucial state of community spread of COVID-19 . There were gatherings and groups of mostly with the understanding that that Banging Thalis (plates) , ringing Ghantis(bells) and Chanting Go Corona Go  would chase Corona out of India than thanking the doctors, nurses and  healthcare professionals for their battle over corona. Some vehemently spread hoaxes iver the internet that the vibrations and the chanting would reverberate and kill the virus. The chaotic break of the 12 hour quarantine was mostly from the elitist and right wing enthusiasts who ardently went to the extreme of chanting Jai Shree Ram and Bharat  Mata Ki Jai. The celebration was more than the celebration of India wining the world cup. If COVID-19 was a person it would thank for such a rousing welcome that these people rendered. The so called masses that are slum, pavement and lower middle classes were more obedient to the Prime Minister’s request.

With these ideologies of Namaste and Banging Thalis, ringing Ghantis and Chanting mooting the oppressive ideologies that are zealously expressed and reiterating that Sanatana dharma is no joke claims at times of such a pandemic is a subtle and sublime means of overarching the efforts annihilation of caste that was ignited by B.R. Ambedkar and his enlightenment to the nation.

The challenge is to educate the Social Media Centric younger crust of the nation that haplessly believes every whatsapp hoaxes,  Facebook Memes and Tik tok videos. The Millennial society has to be more critical in analysing everything that is spread and shared on Social Media.

While these erratic exhibitions of oppression and fanaticism that happen incorrigibly at times such as this, there is an alternative that is offered by Samaritan Woman who with  an imposed, dominant fixed lower social status,  social stigma, complex of inferiority, repression of religion , a sense of indignity, and legitimate untouchability all endorsed by then dominant Jewish community overcomes these errands in her conversation with Jesus Christ. She offers a counter conversation. In the  pericope John 4 : 1-45   the woman who is predominantly considered   as an illiterate and lesser in knowledge of the Hebrew Scriptures comparing to the that Jesus had,  goes on to raise questions until she arguably unravels that Jesus is the long awaited Messiah. 

Elizabeth Schusller  Fiorenza elucidates that  the theological argument from the mouth of the woman signifies the historical leadership women had opening up Jesus' movement and community to non-Israelites. The woman is thus representative of an exemplary disciple: an apostolic witness.[6] This reversal of social stigma and religion sponsored oppression of the Samaritan woman is a directive for us to unlearn and critically engage with scripture, ethics and science on every dominant ideology that is spread and shared in the name of glorifying and  propagating vice oppressive culture, religion and faith.

Rev. Raj Kumar Johnwesley








[2] Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya , Sanatana Dharma: The Eternal Natural (Omaha : USA , 2014) 44.
[3] Ibid (Omaha : USA , 2014) 46.
[4] Ibid (Omaha : USA , 2014) 51.
[6] E. S. Fiorenza, In Memory of Her: A Feminist Theological Reconstruction of Christian Origins (New York: Crossroad, 1983)327.

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