SPREADING

STRESS
GERMS

DR.
SHRINIWAS
KASHALIKAR
One of the major stressors; in our
society is; advertising spree on print
and electronic media; of products
detrimental to the individual and
universal welfare.

Whether we are involved in creating

and telecasting; these ill conceived, ill
informed, ill intentioned and ill
informing advertisements; or we are
victims of these advertisements; in
either case; we are bound to undergo
pathological stress; and ruin ourselves
and others.

When we are shamelessly and

unabashedly obsessed by our petty
pursuits; we get blinded to the most
vital principles; viz. individual and
universal blossoming. Because we get
blinded to such a sublime principle; we
create laws, policies, rules and
administrative system; which promote
manufacture, promotion, and use of
products, which are detrimental to
individual and universal health and
well being. Alternatively; because as
we are blind; we use and make
publicity by word of mouth; of the
products detrimental to individual and
universal health and well being.

The case in point is advertisements of

disinfectants, washing powders,
washing bars and toilet soaps!

The illusory fear of germs; is conceived

and spread through the media
systematically, followed by suitable
policies, plans and programs; to
benefit the manufacture, marketing
and sale of germicides; in various
forms!
The advertisers blatantly claim
anywhere from 90 to 99 percent
disinfection, when no one knows the
number of organisms; before and after
the use of a particular disinfectant. But
we; because of our blindness,
ignorance, indolence and non-
receptivity to wisdom; believe and fall
prey to such advertisements; and also
become party to spread the “stress of
germs” and “germs of stress”!

Actually the medical science is in total

agreement on the fact that the “germ
theory”, which proposed that the germ
is a singular cause of infective and
infectious diseases, is far from being
completely true. The mass of germs,
which include; viruses, bacteria,
ricketssiae, fungi, protozoa and so on;
constitutes; according some
authorities; approximately 100 times
the mass of human beings. In other
words; they are ubiquitous. We are
surrounded in and out by them!
Moreover the germs are not always
harmful. There are symbiotic
(beneficially dependent on each other),
commensals (harmlessly coexisting
together) and saprophytes (living on
dead tissues), which are harmless
and/or useful germs. Even those
germs, which can infect and harm us
(referred to as virulent or pathogenic);
do so; only when our immune system
i.e. body resistance is relatively
inefficient and/or their number is
excessively increased, in very short
time so that we can not resist.

By overproduction, deceitful
advertisements; and sale; of the soaps,
disinfectants, and germicides; we are
destroying the natural oil (sebum) and
useful organisms in our skin, thus
rendering our skin dry and lusterless
and vulnerable to infections; and
rendering our sewage and sullage (the
silt washed down); detrimental to the
fertility of our soil.

Once upon a time; we (if urgently

required) used (and very rightly so)
fruits such as lemon, ritha, gram flour,
milk, honey and such natural products
for body cleaning and neem, cow urine
and such natural and harmless
products for disinfection.

Thirty nine years ago I bought; a toilet

soap and used it with great (idiotic)
pride! But ever since, for last thirty
nine years; I have been feeling very
happy (and wisely so); in not using
toilet soap for either bath or washing
face; barring in few exceptional
circumstances! As a rule, I take bath
(which has ten different health
benefits, according to Hindu Shastra)
twice a day, instead of once! I am
happy to share with the readers, that
excepting once, (due to reduction in
my body resistance due to metabolic
problems) I have never suffered with
fungal infection of skin or bad body
odor. Without any cosmetic efforts, my
hair and skin do not look weary,
lusterless, older or more wrinkled than
friends of my age.

What is true about disinfectants, soap

and germicides; is also true for tooth
pastes.

The advertisers of tooth pastes and

tooth powders variably claim that
there is 90 to 99 percent disinfection
within few minutes. How can one
measure the quantity and/or count the
number of different varieties of germs
and/or identify and confirm their
harmful nature (virulence or
pathhogenicity) or otherwise; before
and after the use of tooth paste?

But we blindly “see” some mercenary

voluptuous model brushing teeth and
grinning to show her or his teeth; and
embracing some other mercenary
individual; and begin to brush with the
same tooth paste!

I also used to get influenced by such

gimmicks and hence brush teeth with
some popular and hyped tooth paste;
only to show that I was “modern,
progressive and advanced”! This was
also because foreign ideologies and
way of life were hailed and hyped as
superior; and being Hindu and Indian
was inculcated (directly and indirectly
and knowingly and unknowingly) to be
retrogressive, primitive, unscientific,
lowly and backward!
But today, I am pleasantly
disillusioned. I do not any more think
that daily brushing with some hyped
tooth paste; is essential! I use tooth
powder and rub my teeth and gums in
a prayerful attitude and with great
happiness and self esteem! To my
great satisfaction, I don’t have
halitosis (bad mouth odor) and I do not
have any tooth problems; for last at
least 20 years!

Like disinfectants, soaps and

germicides and tooth pastes, there is
propaganda of products depending
upon the season and situation. Thus
spread of germs through water is
hyped during monsoon. It is true that
water borne diseases are common in
rainy season. But they are common due
to scarcity of water during summer
also; and not merely due to
contamination of drinking water; by
sewage and sullage; as often occurs;
during rainy season.

In any case; that is no excuse for

blatantly threatening the people with
the fear of diseases and coaxing them
to buy water filters and/or mineral
water bottles. What is actually
required is adequate supply of safe
drinking water.

We are abysmally ignorant about the

truth (and ignorant about ignorance)
underlying the claims; of killing a
specific organism such as swine flu,
specific percentage of killing such as
99 percent, specific stoppage of hair
fall such as 98 percent, specific
stoppage of splitting of hair such as 97
percent, and specific certification of a
particular product about its efficacy by
some medical or dental association
with respect to the content,
dependability, guarantee and basis
such certification such as double blind
clinical trials!

Can we “see the truth” and defeat the

“stress of germs” and “germs of
stress” caused by wrong policies, plans
and programs; promoting
overproduction, propaganda, hype and
inadvertent and indiscriminate use; of
potentially harmful disinfectants,
soaps, germicides, tooth pastes, water
filters and mineral water?

Yes! We can!

As regards the “stress of germs”; we

can take certain simple precautionary
measures, such as drinking sufficient
water in morning, eating two leaves of
neem, tulasi (holy basil) and bel each;
taking juice of aloe Vera (korphad i.e.
kumari) and tinospora cordifolia (gulvel
i.e. guduchi), eating Chyavanaprash 1
teaspoon daily, drinking a cup of cow
milk with turmeric (halad), dry ginger
(sunth) and honey (madh), doing
Kapalbhati i.e. active abdominal
expiration without discomfort; (while
making sure that we don't have
trauma, surgery, hernia of any kind
and pregnancy and any other wound on
abdominal or related regions), taking
bath, changing clothes and washing
hands; at least twice a day, applying a
drop of cow ghee, anu tail, shadbindu
tail or panchendriya vardhan tail in
both nostrils, taking a capsule of
multivitamin and B complex alternate
day, avoiding lifts (elevators) and
crowded places and centrally air
conditioned places such as railway
stations; and cinema halls, theatres,
and malls respectively; to reduce the
chances of infections, taking decoction
of jaggery, pepper (kali mirch) and
ginger (or adding it to tea) if we are
suffering from cough and cold, and
thereby get fair degree of protection,
though; no one, including the
advertisers of various products
mentioned above, can give any
guarantee!

But over and above all, we can conquer

all the varieties of stress; by;
practicing NAMASMARAN on the top
priority basis, getting its universal and
eternal empowerment and
enlightenment, seeing the truth; and
responding wisely, fearlessly and
appropriately in any and every
challenging situation.