Anti-Covid Issue: Science versus Superstition

By A. HETTIARACHCHI

hetti-a@sltnet.lk

In October the second wave of Corona infections appeared in Sri Lanka and started spreading at a much higher rate than the first wave. To control its spread, the Ministers dealing with the health sector – Minister of Health, State Minister of Production, Supply and Regulation of Pharmaceuticals, and State Minister of Indigenous Medicine Promotion, Rural and Ayurvedic Hospital Development and Community Health – with the objective of controlling the spread of the disease dropped to the Kalu Ganga and Kelani Ganga several pots containing water claimed to be blessed by a certain miracle healer who treats VIPs. In addition to those health sector Ministers, two other Ministers also dropped to the rivers pots containing the same blessed water. Apparently, they have done this under the advice of the miracle healer. Despite this blessed water dropping to rivers the number of Corona infected cases continues to increase. However, the people of Sri Lanka should be thankful to this group of Ministers and the miracle healer for what they did in good faith, although they made themselves a laughing stock.

Subsequently, the health sector Ministers started promoting syrups prepared by different individuals – Sudarshana Peniya, Ravana Peniya and Dhammika Peniya, as prophylactics against Covid. They even consumed the syrup – Dhammika Peniya-in front of the media, and also got the Speaker of Parliament to consume it. Thereby, these Ministers gave a message to the public that consumption of Dhammika Peniya is a reliable preventive measure against Covid. The law of the land requires any manufactured product be labelled with information concerning its ingredients, dates of manufacture and expiry, name and registration number of the manufacturer, place of manufacture, method of use, etc. No such information was available concerning Dhammika Peniya. The person who prepared and presented it to the ministers and the Speaker says he got its formula from Goddess Kali in a dream and keeps it as a secret. Are these Ministers telling the public to believe this person’s dream? Everybody knows it is common for people to dream many things, but nothing seen in dreams becomes true. Some people see in dreams some of their dead and loved ones living. Do such dreams mean that such dead persons are living?

When the public, through mainstream and social media, asked what the qualifications of the producer of Dhammika Peniya are, one other minister responded by saying that nobody asked for the qualifications of Sir Isaac Newton when the latter formulated the laws of motion and gravity, thus equating the producer of Dhammika Peniya to Sir Isaac Newton, the great British mathematician, physicist and astronomer educated at Cambridge. At a Cabinet media briefing held subsequently, one other Minister, who is one of the Cabinet spokesmen, said the Dhammika Peniya was being tested. Is it worth spending government resources for testing such a product, produced by somebody who claims that he got its formula in a dream?

Why didn’t the Goddess Kali give this formula to the Minister of Health or the Minister in charge of production of pharmaceuticals? Further, it was reported that the Government has approved Dhammika Peniya as a food supplement. Is this type of product safe to consume as a food? Approval of foods come under the jurisdiction of the Food Act enforced by the Director General of Health. Has it been approved under the Food Act? A large number of people, including members of the Police and Security Forces, were seen gathered at the place of the producer, disregarding the quarantine regulations currently under force, to get Dhammika Peniya for their consumption to save them from Corona. These innocent people have been totally misguided by the irresponsible acts of the group of Ministers concerned.

The group of Ministers who are promoting Dhammika Peniya includes a person who worked as a professor of the medical faculty of the Rajarata University. His name also appeared in the group of scientists who found the cause of the chronic kidney disease of unknown aetiology (CKDU) prevalent in the dry zone, from God Natha through a dream seen by a woman. Is a person who treats a dream seen by somebody as true, fit to be a professor of a medical faculty? Further his guru who led the CKDU group of scientists, when he was the Dean of the Faculty of Science of the University of Kelaniya, used to say that western science is a palpable lie (pattapal boruwak). His guru also justified the utterances of the Dhammika Peniya producer to the Chief Monk of Atamasthana when the Chief Monk rightfully denied him entrance to the Sri Maha Bodhi carrying a vessel containing the Peniya.

Sri Lanka has eradicated many diseases using scientific methods. For instance, smallpox was eradicated using smallpox vaccine, malaria using DDT and quinine, polio using polio vaccine. These eradications have been made without the guidance of God Natha, Goddess Kali, or any other god or goddess or any devil as seen in somebody’s dream. They were done based on policies of sensible decision-makers.

Some people who speak in favour of Dhammika Peniya say we have to safeguard and promote traditional practices. Yes, it is agreeable. However, certain traditional practices are not under practice now, as the people have found that they are not logical. For instance, earlier during the days of the kings, a complaint of theft against a person was determined by getting both the complainant and accused to dip their fingers in boiling oil and examine whose fingers were burned. We are not continuing that practice and nobody is asking to continue with it.

Many developed countries are in the process of developing and manufacturing vaccines against COVID-19. It is reported that over 50 prospective vaccines are being developed and clinically tested. Six vaccines have already been approved by national health agencies of various countries, and they are being used in mass vaccination campaigns against Covid. According to media reports, 10 billion doses of anti-Covid vaccines have been preordered by mid-December. That is how people with responsibility face the pandemic. It is a shame that our Ministers do not make science-based decisions, but rely on superstitious methods to address this issue. However, the people may rely on the newly appointed State Minister of Primary Health Care, Epidemics and Covid Disease Control for not promoting superstitious methods for Corona control.