Astrologers encash on eclipse fears

New Delhi: As some people prepare to watch the total solar eclipse on July 22 from vantage points in India for scientific study, curiosity or just fun, a larger number is gripped with fear, rather than excitement.

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Expectant mothers scheduled for caesarian deliveries on July 22 have asked doctors in Delhi to change the date. Most parents have decided not to send their wards to schools. And most Indian politicians have engaged priests to perform special ceremonies to ward off its evil impact on their career.

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An undeclared battle is one between scientists on the one hand and astrologers and self-proclaimed godmen on the other over the celestial event.

Perhaps no country manifests the extremes between blind belief and science like India. ''As an ancient civilization that reveres the Sun and Moon as gods, Indians are deeply superstitious. As torchbearers of an emergent scientific power, they don`t want to miss a unique opportunity to learn,'' says Prof. Sabyasabhi Chatterjee of the Indian Institute of Astrophysics.

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''Many people have superstitions that an eclipse is harmful, that pregnant women will lose their babies, that there will be biological effects on human beings. Many people believe that these rays are poisonous, that something toxic takes place,'' he adds.

Quick to capitalise on the occasion, astrologers are outbidding each other to forecast the doomsday.

''A major spurt in violence or a devastating natural disaster can be accepted in Southeast Asia,'' foresees Delhi astrologer Vishnu Kant Shastri. ''In the past, whenever Saturn has gone into Virgo there has been either a world war or a mini world war,'' he argues.

Avadhesh Pandey, head priest at Delhi`s popular Laxminarayan Temple endorses him. ''It is an inauspicious time when the Sun god is in trouble. Eclipses spell disorder, wars and destruction, so 15 of us priests will do the yagna (fire rituals) to nullify its malefic effects,'' he informs.

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The likes of Shastri and Pandey still have many takers in India. Millions are expected to offer water to the Sun god and take a dip in the holy rivers and sacred lakes in different parts of the country to ward off the evil effects of the eclipse.

But there are those who think otherwise.

''We can use it as an occasion to appeal to people for scientific rationality. Astronomy is the easiest way to explain science to common people because they can easily see the moon and the stars,'' says Sanal Edamaruku, president of the Indian Rationalist Association.

Organisations associated with science and astronomy are arranging events and expeditions, some chartering planes for a view of the eclipse. Teams will camp at central cities like Ujjain to witness the spectacle against heritage monuments and astronomical observatories.

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Scientists are determined to step up their fight against superstitions and mumbo-jumbo. ''The eclipse provides a crucial opportunity to fight superstitions by raising awareness to remove the fears foisted by some people and electronic media,'' says N Rathnasree, director of the Nehru Planetarium in Delhi.

The Indian Rationalists Association, which claims membership of over 100,000 admits that fighting such deep-rooted superstitions is not easy.

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''These soothsayers and astrologers are looking for opportunities to enhance their business with predictions of danger and calamity. They have been very powerful in India but over the last decade they have been in systematic decline,'' claims its president, Sanal Edamaruku.