Topic by Bharani
Do cultural Practices that have Scientific / Logical reasoning?
Responses
Venkat Raghavan
Certainly, there are customs where one could see practical reasons if not solid scientific explanation. But there are others which look completely irrational. But at times, I see attempts to ascribe some kind of half-baked explanation to what is obviously completely absurd and it is annoying. But I am not saying such customs need to be completely discarded for this reason. It is possible we are yet to decipher teh meaning.
The practice of using cow dung mixed water for cleaning is indeed scientific. It is a disinfectant and a sanitizer. This is proven.
Vilvam and Thulasi are great medicines. Thulasi for instance is an antioxidant, anti-carcinogenic, detoxicant and diuretic all in one. Vilwa was used (and still used) in Ayurvedic and Siddha systems for treating range of ailments starting from sinusitis, gastro problems to tuberculosis.
Manjal and Kumkumam have held great significance for women. Manjal (turmeric) we all know is antiseptic and kumkumam is nothing but a mixture of turmeric and lime component (Calcium Carbonate). They signified well-being for a woman not without a reason. It protected woman’s complexion. And we all know Lime has bleaching properties.
Why do we exactly wear the kumkumam on the forehead between the eyebrows?
The third eye!
One thought is, it goes back to pineal gland. Pineal gland is located in the hypothalamus inside the brain but right behind this location. The pineal gland controls biological clock. So, it has got something to do with intuitive properties. Interestingly it contains retinal cells. What does light sensing retinal cells have got to do sitting inside the body? There are many questions here. There is a hypothesis that this was once located right on the forehead and it was pushed back inside later. There is another thought that kumkumam connects back to this gland. It is here we begin to get rather speculative and deviate from science. So we stop here.
But in all cases, this benefit does not hold good for “sticker pottu” in ALL CASES!!
Swarna Ramesh
I agree with Venkat that there are as many rational practices as there are those which are irrational.
To stick to the topic, some practices which are beneficial:
a) Surya namaskaram for the men, and dawntime kolams for the women : improves fitness, while also ensuring ample Vitamin D from the early sun rays.
b) fast on ekadasi - very beneficial to the digestive system
c) eating nellikkai, agathi keerai on dwadasi - very good after a day's fast
d) women to chew betel leaves with sunnambu - aren't many of us women short in iron and calcium and have several problems due to this deficiency?
e) feeding a crow with some freshly cooked rice and dal (definitely with salt) every morning before we take the food? - we can still see the crows here, unlike in Singapore where the crows are wiped out.
Surya Kolluri
thanks for raising a thoughtful topic! You have tee-ed up a conversation that has been welling for a while including mythology, and finding all sorts of scientific formulas in the vedic literature, including nuclear weapons!
I am in the Venkat and Dev camp on this one - only maybe a bit more radical. But I do hasten to add that I supported rituals in general for social meaning in a previous post.
It is only when we mix science with rituals that I get my dander up!
A. Ascribing today's knowledge and understanding to an ancient ritual is reverse engineering. And then to credit the past with that modern insight, while making one feel good, is misleading. I particularly glaze when people insist on finding our very modern inventions in ancient texts (Mayabazaar had video conferencing!)
B. Because a ritual made sense in the past, does not mean it makes sense now with new understanding. (Not eating Ham in some traditions because of disease in ancient times)
C. Our attempts at giving scientific meaning to the past, at least in my conversations and experience tend to be vague and imprecise (eg. Using cow dung as the base for kolum in front of the house keeps snakes away)
D. I am fully in favor of new rituals the recognizes new social order (eg. Kwanza was created by the African American community in the 1960s as a way to assert their own identity)
E. I am in favor of ritual = social and science = learning and am loath to mix the two.
Srinivasan
Surya, we agree on gravity and relativity without ourselves testing these theories in any lab, on the authority of 'scientists'.
So theists accept a world view based on the authority of 'seers' and "saints".
I know that you would not agree with me and am still fully convinced that science in also accepted by a vast majority of people on the basis of 'authority' and not personal validation.
Velayuthan
The act of body piercing by devotees during various temple festivals, a form of acupuncture?!
Do cultural Practices that have Scientific / Logical reasoning?
Responses
Venkat Raghavan
Certainly, there are customs where one could see practical reasons if not solid scientific explanation. But there are others which look completely irrational. But at times, I see attempts to ascribe some kind of half-baked explanation to what is obviously completely absurd and it is annoying. But I am not saying such customs need to be completely discarded for this reason. It is possible we are yet to decipher teh meaning.
The practice of using cow dung mixed water for cleaning is indeed scientific. It is a disinfectant and a sanitizer. This is proven.
Vilvam and Thulasi are great medicines. Thulasi for instance is an antioxidant, anti-carcinogenic, detoxicant and diuretic all in one. Vilwa was used (and still used) in Ayurvedic and Siddha systems for treating range of ailments starting from sinusitis, gastro problems to tuberculosis.
Manjal and Kumkumam have held great significance for women. Manjal (turmeric) we all know is antiseptic and kumkumam is nothing but a mixture of turmeric and lime component (Calcium Carbonate). They signified well-being for a woman not without a reason. It protected woman’s complexion. And we all know Lime has bleaching properties.
Why do we exactly wear the kumkumam on the forehead between the eyebrows?
The third eye!
One thought is, it goes back to pineal gland. Pineal gland is located in the hypothalamus inside the brain but right behind this location. The pineal gland controls biological clock. So, it has got something to do with intuitive properties. Interestingly it contains retinal cells. What does light sensing retinal cells have got to do sitting inside the body? There are many questions here. There is a hypothesis that this was once located right on the forehead and it was pushed back inside later. There is another thought that kumkumam connects back to this gland. It is here we begin to get rather speculative and deviate from science. So we stop here.
But in all cases, this benefit does not hold good for “sticker pottu” in ALL CASES!!
Swarna Ramesh
I agree with Venkat that there are as many rational practices as there are those which are irrational.
To stick to the topic, some practices which are beneficial:
a) Surya namaskaram for the men, and dawntime kolams for the women : improves fitness, while also ensuring ample Vitamin D from the early sun rays.
b) fast on ekadasi - very beneficial to the digestive system
c) eating nellikkai, agathi keerai on dwadasi - very good after a day's fast
d) women to chew betel leaves with sunnambu - aren't many of us women short in iron and calcium and have several problems due to this deficiency?
e) feeding a crow with some freshly cooked rice and dal (definitely with salt) every morning before we take the food? - we can still see the crows here, unlike in Singapore where the crows are wiped out.
Surya Kolluri
thanks for raising a thoughtful topic! You have tee-ed up a conversation that has been welling for a while including mythology, and finding all sorts of scientific formulas in the vedic literature, including nuclear weapons!
I am in the Venkat and Dev camp on this one - only maybe a bit more radical. But I do hasten to add that I supported rituals in general for social meaning in a previous post.
It is only when we mix science with rituals that I get my dander up!
A. Ascribing today's knowledge and understanding to an ancient ritual is reverse engineering. And then to credit the past with that modern insight, while making one feel good, is misleading. I particularly glaze when people insist on finding our very modern inventions in ancient texts (Mayabazaar had video conferencing!)
B. Because a ritual made sense in the past, does not mean it makes sense now with new understanding. (Not eating Ham in some traditions because of disease in ancient times)
C. Our attempts at giving scientific meaning to the past, at least in my conversations and experience tend to be vague and imprecise (eg. Using cow dung as the base for kolum in front of the house keeps snakes away)
D. I am fully in favor of new rituals the recognizes new social order (eg. Kwanza was created by the African American community in the 1960s as a way to assert their own identity)
E. I am in favor of ritual = social and science = learning and am loath to mix the two.
Srinivasan
Surya, we agree on gravity and relativity without ourselves testing these theories in any lab, on the authority of 'scientists'.
So theists accept a world view based on the authority of 'seers' and "saints".
I know that you would not agree with me and am still fully convinced that science in also accepted by a vast majority of people on the basis of 'authority' and not personal validation.
Kanchana
# Wearing silk clothes, traditionally followed for emitting colorful & bright appearance, rises the energy flow and vibration levels within our body as silk attracts & stores electromagnetic energy,.
# holi in Mumbai is a very colourful event with the loud music around keeping the whole crowd bountiful joy,..the colors spread has a logical thought behind that the dye enters the pores strengthening the ions in the body giving beauty and healthy fresh looks ..the holika dahan as the people go around the fire the heat kills the bacteria , giving a cleansing effect,..
# rising early in Brahma Muhurtham, a tranquil pleasant time elevating healthy glow, fresh mind, intellect level, and we feel high powered,..
# kumkum pottu, a spot between eyebrows cools the forehead, protects us and prevents energy loss,.
# touch feet of elders (upasangrahan),,the more we do eliminates backaches,
And other practices Namaste, Aarathi, visiting temple, theertham, prasadham, kalasha worship, pradakshina, neivedya surely holds logical reasoning linked to healthy living & elevating positive energy.
Krishnan
Applying Vibhuthi gives the body a little warmth in the early mornings and thus prevents the catching of cold.
S.K. Ravichandran
Cultural practice generally refers to the manifestation of a culture or sub-culture in regard to the traditional and customary practices of a particular ethnic or other cultural group.
Cultural backgrounds consist of historical ways of life, beliefs and practices of a given people. This may include foods eaten, naming systems, religious practices
Culture is everywhere, it is all over the world. Culture is on a persons home and heart. Each person was raised with his or her own families cultures.
The act of body piercing by devotees during various temple festivals, a form of acupuncture?!
Devanand
One practice that I always hated was wearing a string around our hip. Does it have any meaning. To me it was necessary in those days for the kind of garments they used to wear . It sounded weird to me since childhood.