The Semmelweis Reflex

Most of us have either experienced or faced this reflex.

Ignaz  Semmelweis was an Austrian obstetrician, who in his role of obstetrician's assistant in Vienna General Hospital in 1838 discovered that the washing of hands before obstetrical examination could reduce the incidence of the deadly Puerperal fever. However this was in contradiction to the prevailing thinking of the cause of diseases which postulated that disease occurred due to bad blood or bad air or bad bowels!!!!

His findings were rejected and he was denied a deserved post in the hospital. Rebuffed , he moved to Budapest where after a long struggle, he attained a post of Professor of Obstetrics. However, his practice and findings continued to be ridiculed and rejected in Europe . Frustrated. he became obsessed with his theory, denouncing all and sundry who criticized him, by writing open letters and giving strident lectures.

He started losing his memory, behaved erratically, and  became a misfit in normal society. He was finally put in an asylum, severely beaten up by the guards, developed internal injuries and gangrene and died at the age of 49.

20 years later, Louis Pasteur proposed his "germ" theory of disease which conclusively proved that Semmelweis was right and well before his time.

Finally Society woke up to his worth. A modern health university was named after him,  and a 50 $ Austrian coin and stamp covers  was brought out in 2008 by the government.

 

But his reflex lives on as an initial outright rejection of any new ideas and practices which challenges the entrenched present thinking and actions.

How many times have we as parents labelled our children's work as childish and their questions undeserving of an answer?

How many times have we rejected suggestions for streamlining professional work because we were unwilling to change our current interpretations and actions?

How many times have we refused to even listen to the words and suggestions of people living in a different social strata, because we were always sure that we knew best.....

Hillary Clinton

Semmelweis  reflex is all over, in all fields. To counter it, we have to, like President Obama, change in all our spheres.....

Till that day some ideas which may have changed the world we live in, will be cruelly decimated  at the wayside. All of us have to ensure that these numbers get smaller and smaller.......

As usual, Anjan says it all!!!!

Chawlo Bodlai.mp3

 

Puri 3--On to Konarak

We visited the temple of Lord Jagannath the next day with a lot of expectation and a feeling of tranquillity. That was rudely shattered by the Pandas at the temple premises. Most of them are actually con artistes masquerading as religious assistants. With glib talk, force, persuasion often reaching imposition, and promises of bad luck to gullible ladies, specially the uneducated--they fleece money like any local goonda or thug. Their sole aim is to get money for themselves. I saw no signs of prayer or meditation--only a mad rush to thrust some flowers or trinkets(supposedly holy) into unsuspecting hands, and then demand and grab money in the name of the gods.

Hindu religion in these places leave nothing for the original concepts of prayers, introspection, meditation and faith--and it is slowly sinking under the trappings of rituals ,mindless utterances of mantras, and the highhandedness of some priests who are forming a mafia inside these holy places of prayer and devotion. I am a Hindu, and am pained by the desecration of this magnificent , erudite and tolerant religion by some who practise it inside the temples. We did ultimately get a person who managed to impart the true meaning of the prayers and its necessity and restored peace and contentment to our ruffled minds--but he was hopelessly outnumbered by his opposite counterparts. But then, I suppose all religions face this problem.

Having paid more than Rs 1000 for bhog cooked by priests who hold their breaths  while cooking and where everything is hand made, we made our way back to the hotel.

The next day we went to Konarak via the Chakratirtha road and the National Highway 260. It was a marvellous drive beside the sea coast and a wildlife sanctuary.

 

The road wound this way and that, and there were surprises at almost every bend. We stopped a while 3 kms ahead of Konarak and made our way through some Akanda plants--and then on topping a crest we saw a deserted , almost virgin beach stretching away for miles.... Naturally it is a coveted place for picnickers, couples and the indefatigable fishermen.

We entered the premises of the Sun Temple and found it in semi-ruins thanks to the environmental assault and the periodic cyclones and floods. Though a massive restoration project is on, the originals are damaged. Yet in areas the completed figures still represent the prowesses of the courtesans, as well as paying homage to the Sun God. The chariot wheels are still intact and the lion crouching on top of the elephant still reminds us of the King Narasimharaja who had the vision to build this unique edifice.

Works of architecture, religion, philosophy, science, and art in its various forms are strewn throughout my country in all corners and from all ages---- and I am so glad that I was born an Indian and I stay in India.

Puri 2

Next morning, Pluto and I went for a walk. At 6 am in the morning, there was quite a crowd on the beach, all of them in a mistaken hope that the early morning breeze would clean out their pollution laded lungs. As usual, overcome by the surroundings, most of the pot bellied Bengalis and Marwaris did a few hop,skip and jumps also. Pluto looked up astonished, pausing in his permanent pursuit of interesting smells. A watery sun, previously obscured by the morning haze , suddenly spread a swathe of golden ripples across the sea, enough to cause a local fishseller to look up away from her customers, and the religious minded to dip their feet in the cold foam of the incessant waves and fold their hands in silent prayers.

We all then decided to explore the Mohana, where the tributaries flow into the sea. This part of the beach is quite deserted except for the fishermen. One end of their long blue nets are taken far out to sea by the boats, while the other end stays on the land. This net is slowly then dragged in and the fishes are beaten into the net by the men who thrash the water and shout and splash vigorously. It's hard backbreaking effort and requires coordinated strength.

The fishermen start working from sunrise and continue till sundown, day after day, bringing their lunchboxes to the beach every day.....

Meanwhile the tourists are warming up, as the new rides and riders get ready....

Large crowds gather to see the catches which are increasing hour by hour.

Mainly mackerel, sardines, pomfrets, bholabhetki are caught and specially sold at Rs. 20--Rs 50/Kg.

Our appetites are whetted!!!!!

In the next post ,I will detail our Konarak excusion.