New Delhi, Aug 03: A firm believer in traditional medicine, the Union minister of state for human resources development, Dr Sanjay Paswan, is all set revive "holistic and spiritual healing," which he says is known as the "spirit of ancient India."
Under spiritual healing, the minister intends to re-establish treatment by "ojhas and "bhagats (traditional healers)" and invoke spirits to cure the "body, mind and soul." In an exclusive interview to The Asian Age, Dr Paswan says, "I don’t believe in black magic and witchcraft, but I believe in the concept of ojhas, the traditional healers."
Dr Paswan plans to organise a gathering of ojhas at Darbhanga on August 11 and ask them to display their skills, for which the healers would be paid Rs 551 each. The minister has decided to set up a centre for "spiritual and holistic healing" under his organisation "Vanchit Pratishthan." It would be known as the "Holistic Healing Home."
"I recall that when I was seven years old, ojhas came to my house and sought my mother’s permission to put my hand in a bowl of piping hot kheer. My mother was against the idea. Yet I did it, and believe me, nothing happened," Dr Paswan said, sitting in his modest room which had several bottles of herbs collected from all over the country. Once an ojha asked him to walk on fire.
Paswan was told that if succeeded, he would be a "bada aadmi (big man)." The minister claimed to have done that too at the tender age of seven.
Some time ago, the minister had taken up the "cause" of roadside sellers of aphrodisiacs who pitch up tents on pavements to sell strength-inducing potions, libido-enhancing multi-coloured pills and oils made of various species of lizards (saande ka tel) to shoo away people’s bedroom blues. Unlike others, Dr Paswan does not believe that all roadside sellers of aphrodisiacs are "quacks." Instead, he believes they are the descendants of Rana Pratap, who had fled into jungle and learnt all about herbs that can treat various ailments, apart from sex-related ones. He claimed that tortoise flesh "can cure tuberculosis" while "gonga (snail) can cure asthma." Dr Paswan now plans to prepare an address book of these "healers" and seek them out.
He has approached the health ministry to start a course on holistic healing. He wants this "medicinal branch" to get recognition. In the first phase of his operation, the minister plans to set up the "Holistic Healing Centre." This would include counselling, naturopathy (treatment by the three elements of earth, air and water), yoga, acupressure (Sasaran Vidya) and homeopathy. The second phase would include "spiritual healing." This would include cures by ojhas and bhagats and by invoking spirits. Unlike the so-called "educated class," Dr Paswan does believe in spirits. "What else is an atma (soul)," he argued. To create awareness for this form of treatment, the minister plans to set up a group of "health workers" and leaflets will be distributed all over New Delhi for publicity. Counselling would be free of cost, but Dr Paswan intends to pay the health workers. Bureau Report