Hathras incident: Why is the illusion of Babas increasing in the country, understand the inside story

It is important to consider this fact

We must now pause and reflect on the fact that unlike other religions of the world, Hinduism does not require collective prayers. One may pray alone, even have a particular family deity. One may not participate in collective worship. In a village, where social ties are strong, such a trait leads to easy integration, but city life leads to anonymity. This is what creates the need for a collective buffer, also known as community.

Different trends in village and city

In a village where social bonds are strong, the lack of collectivity is not strong. In a city where one feels lonely, the need for a collective gathering is felt. This is why all-night jagarans and crowds in the ashrams of babas are meant to fill this void. The blessings of a guru and his/her discourses provide a healing touch to those urban people.

Is poverty the reason?

Such Babas are not worshipped because there is poverty. If that were the case, then with the continuous decline in the number of poor, these Babas would also have suffered. On the other hand, such Godwomen are also flourishing and their number is also increasing. This is happening because there is a different kind of poverty in our society and its presence has not gone unnoticed till now. Such Babas or Gurus remain in the news because there are millions of people who start breaking down in sorrow and pain. In such a situation, they start trusting these Babas.

what do the experts say

A recent study by Professor Sonalde Desai shows that while poverty has declined, more than half of the people living in poverty are actually the ‘new poor’. This is because they are distressed by some event such as illness or job loss. This uncertainty is faced by those who live mainly in urban India. It is this uncertainty that drives people to seek solace. Eventually, those living in towns and cities start to rely on fate. This is also seen in non-rural settings. You find most of the migrants in our country who leave their homes and go to live in other places for jobs. They constitute about 37 per cent of the total population. That is 45 crore people in total. Hard to believe? Well, look at the 2011 census.

This is why the illusion of Babas is increasing!

Not just the employed or the entrepreneurial, people are also worried about the uncertainties and policies. Even the rich class is not completely free from worries. When a lot depends on luck and less on self-confident skills, it is natural that their faith in babas will increase. There will be a constant need to build stone walls around sand castles and protect their ramparts by ‘designer’ gurus who have a special deal with God.

The situation is no different in America

A similar phenomenon, with slight variations, is seen in the US. According to a 2019 Pew Research poll, the number of churchgoers in the US has fallen by a whopping 6 per cent in 10 years. In the US, this gave rise to the phrase ‘church shopping’, which is like ‘guru shopping’ here. Charismatic figures like Billy Graham and Jerry Falwell led the American evangelistic movement and were very much like Bhola Baba or Osho. Evangelism and church shopping increased in Reagan-era America because the old family churches were oblivious to the issues raised by neoliberalism. Church shopping is now constant. Once our social conditions are sorted out, our gurus may be right-sized too.

What is the logic behind this

Finally, there is a problem of perception that particularly troubles die-hard rationalists. They cannot see a shred of scientific reasoning behind the adoration that godmen like Bhole Baba receive from their followers. According to rationalists, these babas are frauds who dupe people. Many gurus have luxurious ashrams around the world and some have even been convicted of rape and murder. Their followers are usually skeptical about these allegations and this adds to the confusion of rationalists. How is it that despite all the evidence, these gurus still retain their followers, they ask? Rationalists make a big mistake in their reasoning here because science is not everything.

Both Kant and Vivekananda argued ages ago that science and religion should not be mixed and should be kept separate. Vivekananda had clearly stated that their methods are different. This is because, to quote Vivekananda, religion deals with the truths of the spiritual world in the same way that chemistry and other natural sciences deal with the truths of the physical world. Like Tagore, another great spiritual master, Vivekananda was also a strong supporter of the scientific endeavours of Jagadish Chandra Bose. Rationalists go wrong because the lens through which they view the world is not bipolar. They know and see only one way. So asking why religious believers are not scientists is the most unscientific question.
(The author is a sociologist)