
Photo: Desi Dime
For all the efforts made, the practice was actually banned last year, as announced by the district Deputy Commissioner (DC) N.S. Chennappa Gowda. He had taken the decision after several protests made by activists. But the day before the Madey Snana, things took a turn for the worse. The DC was forced to lift the ban after coming under pressure from the Dalits and the government. A particular section of the Dalits, called the Malekudiyas, insisted that they be allowed to practice their ancestral tradition. They threatened that if they weren’t, they wouldn’t take part in any of the events scheduled at the temple during the festival. After a social activist, K.H. Shivaram was beaten up for protesting against the practice, the ban had to be lifted and devotees allowed to pursue their ritual.
An explanation for the otherwise bizarre-sounding Snana is given by one of its staunch believers, astrologer Kabyadi Jayarama Acharya. According to him, the Snana has nothing to do with caste distinctions. “The Brahmins who eat there are considered the representatives of Lord Subramanya himself, and their spit is that of the Lord. When I was 16, I myself rolled on the food and got my skin ailment cured. (According to legend) Lord Krishna’s son Samba was cured of leprosy after rolling on the leftovers, as stated in the Skanda Purana (an ancient text). All castes roll on food and believe their problems will get solved. It is a psycho-therapeutic solution that also has its roots in Ayurveda. It should not be banned without some scientific basis,” he said. Activists, however, are quick to dismiss Acharya’s theory. They say that the ‘scientific basis’ may have been true many years ago when the shrine used to be a snake pit. “The mud from the snake pit was said to have healing capabilities, so perhaps that is how the practice began. But later it took the shape of a Vedic ritual and came to be dominated by upper caste people. It is nothing but an affront to the dignity of human life,” insisted activist K.Y. Narayanaswamy. While the debate over the need for the ritual continues, the only way it can be banned is if the people practicing it are convinced. And that, for now, might just take a very long time. Sources: India Today, BBC