Naag Panchami: Cruelty to Animals?

[Guest guest]

Our last Goddess of the Week was Manasa Devi, the Snake Goddess.

Today is Naag Panchami, a major festival involving snake worship.

During our discussion, the point arose that She is often worshiped in

the form of actual, living snakes. This past Sunday (August 11),

India's Sify News service published this feature on a sad truth about

these ceremonies. Would any members care to comment or share their

opinions?

 

FESTIVAL FOR PEOPLE, DEATH FOR THE DEITIES

 

NEW DELHI, Aug 11 - Naag Panchami, a festival for the worship of

snakes, is gradually becoming the cause of their death. This is

because the milk offered to snakes on this day often results in

severe diseases and allergic reactions.

 

Snakes are also tortured when they are captured in bags that are

suffocating, kept in tiny dark boxes, and given no food or water so

that they can drink the milk on the holy day which falls this year on

August 13. Many snakes are blinded when the tikka applied to their

hoods during the worship gets into their eyes.

 

Added to this is the problem created by people who kill these snakes

for selling their skin or giving them to laboratories, or ornamental

and medicinal purposes.

 

Snakes' teeth are often violently yanked out, and their venum duct

pierced with a hot needle, causing their glands to burst, according

to People For The Ethical Treatment Of Animals(PETA).

 

"The festival has always left behind a trail of dead and mutilated

cobras. Nowhere have we heard of so many snakes being killed on one

occasion," according to naturalist Vijay Awsare.

 

Lilyn Kamath of World Wild Fund for Nature India says,"The snakes are

extracted from their burrows, their mouths stitched, their poison

sacs punctured, and fangs broken. These snakes are then kept in

earthen pots hung from trees, until the holy day".

 

Appealing to people to help in saving the snakes, PETA has drawn

attention to the security offered by Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972

and the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 which also lay

down provisions for punitive action against those indulging in

cruelty.

 

Meanwhile, the Bombay High Court has banned exhibition and procession

of snakes in Battis Shirala village in Sangli district of western

Maharashtra during the festival, following a public interest

litigation(PIL) filed by two environmental organisations "Nisarga

Pratishthan" and "Maanad Banya Jeev Rakshak".

 

The court directed the formation of a committee comprising the Sangli

District Collector, Superintendent of Police and state forest

officials to supervise the conduct of the festival in the village to

ensure that the ban is enforced.

 

Source: http://news.sify.com/cgi-

bin/sifynews/news/content/news_fullstory_v2.jsp?

article_oid=11815369&category_oid=-20611&page_no=1

Courtesy: Hindu Press International

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 8/13/2002 8:36:43 AM Eastern Daylight Time,

devi_bhakta writes:

 

> Lilyn Kamath of World Wild Fund for Nature India says,"The snakes are

> extracted from their burrows, their mouths stitched, their poison

> sacs punctured, and fangs broken. These snakes are then kept in

> earthen pots hung from trees, until the holy day".

>

 

OK, now I love snakes and have kept them as pets in the past. In fact, my

interest in Hinduism sort of began with the snake! I used the metaphor of the

skin shedding as a motivation toward evolution and change -death and rebirth.

 

I like some of the Indian snake charming music with the Pungi players. I have

a CD recorded at the temple of Pashupati in the Himalayas. These men are

pictured with Cobras and all kinds of snakes. I can't see how you could hurt

something in the process of worshipping it and only hope that the Karmic

wheel for animal abusers will turn around and bite them from behind!

 

I'm sure some really revere the animals and do no harm. From what I know of

the snake charmers, since it is their livelihood, they really take care of

the animals. I am sure sommay stitch their mouths also

 

It really is just sad since the snake has incarnated in the flesh just as

willingly as the person injuring it!