New Delhi, Sept 26: After walking on fire and dancing with a brace of cobras hanging around his neck before an amused audience in Patna, the tantrik Minister of State for Human Resource Development, Dr Sanjay Paswan, now plans to bring his Pandora's box to the capital. "I will organise a tantrik assembly in Delhi in November to prove the effectiveness of the traditional Indian way of spiritual and physical healing," says Mr Paswan. But there is a catch here. Those who believe in tantra also believe it is like a double-edged sword, which could inflict harm on its practitioners if not handled correctly. Dr Paswan may well heed this warning. His recent controversial tantrik jamboree in Patna triggered a spontaneous demand for his removal from the ministry from many quarters, including the Congress, the Rashtriya Janata Dal and all brands of rationalists, for attempting to bring on the government's agenda what lay in the realm of superstition.
But the professor-turned-politician is not concerned about the possible adverse political fallout of his foray into the dark world of tantra. "For me, tantra is a matter of faith and commitment. I won't compromise on it for anything," he says. Narrating his experience of walking barefoot on fire for over 50 metres, the minister said, he did not feel any burning or pain. "It was like any other walk. There were 50 others with me. It was not magic. It was the power of mantra which the tantriks evoked," he said.
Similarly, Dr Paswan claims that the cobras which hung around his neck during the performance were poisonous. "They were under control of tantriks and would not bite," he said, adding, "If tantra could tame fire and snakes, why should we doubt its effectiveness in dealing with our day-to-day problems." Dr Paswan claimed that he would scientifically prove the effectiveness of tantra. "We will prove with the help of scientific equipment that psychosomatic changes do take place after tantrik healing. Experiments have shown that blood pressure and pulse rates show distinct change after tantrik healing. If people in the West can fall on mesmerism, hypnotism, and faith healing, then why should we be shy of reviving what was once the backbone of our traditional medicare?" he asks. Dr Paswan says he would involve thousands of such tantriks in his mission and set up country-wide retreats and care homes for people in need of cheap healthcare. Ridiculing RJD chief Laloo Prasad Yadav for demanding his dismissal from the Union Cabinet, Dr Paswan reminded him of the night-long enunch dances that are regularly held at the Chief Minister's residence in Patna. "I don't take any notice of any criticism by a man who takes pride in such vulgarity. After all, if I am arranging the assembly of tantriks, I am only trying to bring into the mainstream people who have been victims of ignorance," he says. In a quick pot-shot at the Congress , the minister says said most of its leaders often visited all sort of phony gurus and tantriks for their blessing.