Friday, September 13, 2013

Temple, Ritual pseudoscience and now the pseudoscience of cultural traits!


Hopefully to break ice with the frosty pause caused by the misgivings from the previous two posts, and to get back to the business of myth and baloney busting, I am penning below an email exchange with one of my dear relations, who keeps sending me nuggets of Hindu inspired pseudoscience and baloney. 

 Earlier I had an occasion to argue with Hindu-inspired baloney on this post on Hindu ritual pseudoscience.

As you may notice below, this has two parts:
  • First being the circulated content on the 'supposed' science behind the custom or cultural trait of Indian women wearing toe-rings.
  • Second is my response and attempted rebuttal of the claims made in that circulated content.

Why Indian women wear toe rings (BICHHIYA)? there is a Science Behind this..read n share    Most Indian women who are married wear a toe-ring. It’s not only a sign that the woman is married, it’s also science. Indian Vedas (Vedham or Vedam) say that by wearing this in both feet, it is believed, that their Menstrual cycle course is regularized with even intervals. This gives good scope for conceiving to married women. Also it is said just because that particular nerve in the second finger from toe, also connects the uterus and passes through heart. If you notice, the toe ring will always be on the second toe of the right leg and also the left leg. It will control the uterus and keep it healthy by producing evenly balanced blood pressure to the uterus...  As Silver being a good conductor, it also absorbs the energy from the polar energies from the earth and passes it to the body, thus refreshing whole body system.    In great Indian epic called 'Ramayana' toe ring plays a vital role. When Sita was abducted by Ravana, on the way, she throwed her toe ring (kaniazhi) as the identification for lord Rama. This shows that toe ring is used from ancient time.    Toe rings were introduced to the United States by Marjorie Borell who, after returning from India began manufacturing and selling them in New York in 1973. Her first retail outlet was Fiorucci, a trendy fashion retailer located on 59th Street in New York.

PART 1 - Email Content circulating on some internet forums:
Why Indian women wear toe rings (BICHHIYA)? there is a Science Behind this..read n share

Most Indian women who are married wear a toe-ring. It’s not only a sign that the woman is married, it’s also science. Indian Vedas (Vedham or Vedam) say that by wearing this in both feet, it is believed, that their Menstrual cycle course is regularized with even intervals. This gives good scope for conceiving to married women. Also it is said just because that particular nerve in the second finger from toe, also connects the uterus and passes through heart. 
If you notice, the toe ring will always be on the second toe of the right leg and also the left leg. It will control the uterus and keep it healthy by producing evenly balanced blood pressure to the uterus...

As Silver being a good conductor, it also absorbs the energy from the polar energies from the earth and passes it to the body, thus refreshing whole body system.

In great Indian epic called 'Ramayana' toe ring plays a vital role. When Sita was abducted by Ravana, on the way, she throwed her toe ring (kaniazhi) as the identification for lord Rama. This shows that toe ring is used from ancient time.

Toe rings were introduced to the United States by Marjorie Borell who, after returning from India began manufacturing and selling them in New York in 1973. Her first retail outlet was Fiorucci, a trendy fashion retailer located on 59th Street in New York.


PART 2 - My response to the above content and its claims:

Given the background that I have on the many attempts that conservative Hindus make at revising the meanings of their ancient verses and customs and their attempts to mislead general Hindu public by wrapping pseudo scientific jargon and scientific sounding catch words around them, I would be very skeptical and dis-trusting of the so-called science of the toe-ring.

Still giving the benefit of doubt, I would be interested and curious as to the source of these findings.

My specific questions would be:

Which Veda and what verse in that Veda talks about the health benefits of the toe-ring?. (We can then investigate whether that rik or verse really says that and provides what detail to validate that claim or is it just made up or imagined by Hinudtva crazies.)

Also the claim of the text below says that it is believed in the Vedas that toe-ring can properly regulate menstrual cycle. Belief is not equal to science as science is not based on belief or writ/word of the scripture. Science requires proper validation and proof. 


Is there a proof or validation of this statement/claim either in the Vedas or in any other ancillary text that can be looked into and analyzed for veracity and authenticity.? 

Modern gynecology has advanced a lot and is being updated in its systems and methods, such that it can very easily verify claims like:
  • Menstrual cycle can be regularized by constricting the toe with a ring/hoop.
  • Because the nerve in the 2nd toe passes thru uterus and heart, its constriction can affect menstrual cycle.
  • Control and transfer of blood pressure to the uterus in the right amounts can be achieved by the toe-ring grip.
Are there gynecological studies and experiments that have clinically tried and established these claims and have they been published and peer-reviewed?. Can we look at such sources of clinical evaluation?.

What studies have been conducted on Indian ladies wearing such toe-ring  and has there been any survey/record of the results of periodicity/regularity of their menstrual cycles? 

What is the definition of the polar energies of the earth (and I am guessing that they are in the North Pole and South Pole)? what kind and how many kinds of energies are these.?

What mechanism does Silver use to transmit the polar energies of the earth from their source to the toe of the Indian woman? (Do people know how far the poles are from India or even other regions of the world and what kind of magnetism can pull those energies (if at all they exist) across thousands of miles and that too without any deflection into that one toe?)

I would be be very curious for these answers/replies since my very own understanding of science and reasoning is at stake!!

1 comment:

  1. I do not have any answers to your question. But this post of yours reminds me of a similar BS I heard from my parents about the Hindu rationale behind the tradition of married men wearing a similar ring on the second toe. I do not remember the rationale now. I will let you know after I talk to them.

    ReplyDelete