So we all witnessed the Solar Eclipse today! Din we?
Well if you are shaking your head in disagreement, then you missed something. I know an eclipse happens every year and its not like you have missed a life-time opportunity. But still think of it in this way, supporting such a thinking process how many eclipses you must have missed in your lifetime.. The simple thing is one should always try and enjoy whatever happens around…
Btw…I am loading you with so much of philosophy only because I witnessed the Solar Eclipse this time…and now that I have witnessed it, I will simply ignore the umpteen number of times I have missed it. But that only because its me.. 😛 (I should stop before someone hits me!)
The eclipse looked amazing. The sun was partially covered when I witnessed it but I could see the ring forming. It looked so divine and all of a sudden my imagination took me through several movies where they show an eclipse…I imagined myself standing in the deserts of Egypt…in a different era and the Eclipse will open doors to many a hidden secrets! But it din take me long to come back to reality thanks to the only UV glasses being shared among everyone at my Office! They wanted the glasses…. 🙁
Having lost the chance to go ahead with my imagination I walked away. Well that wasn’t the only reason – my stomach was grumbling, telling me…”Dude, it’s lunch time. Better fill me up or I can torture you with my super fumes(gas)!” I couldn’t ignore that threat and headed to my regular luncheon. The cafeteria was surprisingly quite peaceful and not at all crowded. It did not strike me before I took my food and gulped in some of it, that it’s an old ritual that one should not eat during a Solar Eclipse! But that din make me stop eating….c’mon don’t make faces! Yes, I am a foodie..
I do not understand why is it that one shouldn’t eat anything while an eclipse is in progress! People online on various social networks like Twitter, Facebook seem to be wondering the same thing without actually been able to pin-point the reason. Surprising, that we follow a ritual just because its being followed for years. I did find some answers related to how the UV rays are harmful and damage food but they din convince me. Come on…its not like the food will prepared after the eclipse or the food will let go the harmful rays they have absorbed later on…
So the question that comes is why we follow something when we are not aware of the reason? I have nothing against our culture…I am just curious! Also, I don’t like anything coming between me and foood. 🙂
So do you have a convincing explanation??
4 replies on “Solar Eclipse and Food!”
well i dun hv convincin xplanation btw thr is always sumthin logical behind ol dese old customs…might b science has nt proved it yet btw one day dey ll find a gud reason behind it…(somehow realted to uv rays only)!!
nyway its gud till v dun noe d xact reason behind nythin v shudnt follow dat..so it was gud for u, u hd lunch.. keep eatin 😉 btw it was kinda bad for me..:(
wel its gud to get curious coz widout curiosity v dun learn n find nythin…!!
well elaborated n xplained…! i think no1 wud b able to xplain dis so u rock..!!:)
Today we have got the best of both the worlds(here i mean the west and the east).Thanks to technology their exposure to the outside world is far more and much early in the age as compared to their elders.We have a strong scientific temperament and they are eager and enthusiastic to explore.
Today we see everybody celebrating valentine’s day,halloween’s day,etc.with the same enthusism and fervour as they celebrate sankranthi,pongal,holi,diwali etc.So far so good,as sugar in milk these western festivals have become a part of our culture today. But just a word of precaution here,won’t too much sugar mar the taste of the milk?Similarly aren’t we losing our own flavour on the pretext of globalization and being modern.
I am strongly in favour of the questioning mode of the youngsters.India is a land of varied and innumerable traditions,beliefs and culture.And definitely we shouldn’y accept everything just because it has been a part of our tradition but then again,as we are indians,isnt it our cultural and social responsibility to find out why in the first place such a tradition was observed,did it serve the purpose of only those times or is it going strong in today’d time also.
I am definitely not against gastronomical delights,but then once in a while it will help to think beyond food so that when we have it we can savour it much more.
Too happy eating,
and exploring……………..
(P.S)- When you find a rational and convincing reasonto fast during an eclipse please don’t shy away from posting it………
After all “TO err is human”.)
@Pratibha – I agree with all you said except the gastronomical delights bit… Come on, one needs to have food to live. I am simply following the norm of living. 😛
But yes, we are very open in accepting the western traditions/culture/festivities but in the process we shouldn’t let go out Indian tradition. All agreed. I also believe that there must have been some strong reasons behind having these customs though not all would be scientifically correct…I am not against them. I am against passing on customs, rituals through generations and following them blindly. The meaning/reason behind a belief should be known and spread too along with the ritual..
And yup, I will do post the reason to fast once someone enlightens me with the fact as well. 🙂
@ruchika – Scientifically even I feel the reason would be in some way related to the UV-rays but the actual answer is what I am seeking. Also I seek the reason which made this belief a practice in 1st place. If there is any way to find that I mean…
And don worry…m not skipping meals just like that… You gotta convince me hard to let me let go foooooooooood!! 😀 You too don’t let your curiosity die.