I think at the end of the day,
everything comes down to your own
beliefs. I have heard many stories
doing the rounds where the most
incurable diseases have been cured
by him in a relatively short period
of time. His advocacy of yoga
techniques may be unparalleled but I
think the means that he has adopted
does not blend well with a 'param'
guru. A guru who is spiritually
equipped will guide you on the path
to good health and spiritual
enlightenment but he will never
force his followers to hand over a
certain lump sum, not at the cost of
running his organization.
The true yogis of India since time
immemorial have advocated yoga
techniques to their disciples and
followers but never forcefully
charged them to run their
organizations. Those gurus told
their followers "only give if your
heart wishes to and I will accept a
small token only to encourage a
sense of charity in you." There were
others who accepted small
contribution only towards 'guru-dakshina'.
These were exemplary souls who were
well attained and guided their
followers without any vested
interest, on the path of spiritual
enlightenment. They never cared much
for running their organization.
Going on those lines Baba Ramdeo has
made this extremely commercial and
well he may say I exempt the poor
from paying anything. This also
indicates his partisan approach
towards his believers. A true guru
will never differentiate between the
rich and the poor. It is another way
of telling the poor because you are
poor I am letting you go or another
way of telling the rich - listen you
are rich so I am free to charge you
my grand prize money. The school of
thought that has been inculcated in
me by my spiritual mentor does not
support the approach Baba Ramdeo has
adopted. I don’t doubt his
capabilities but commercialization
of yoga is something I don’t
support. - Siddharth Verma - Mar.
21, 2006
I
do believe yoga has the power to rid
people of many ailments but to
lampoon the modern medical
facilities and chastise medical
practitioners is going a little too
far on Baba Ramdeo's part. - Anil
Kumar - Mar. 21, 2006
What is wrong if Ramdev has
political intentions? In my view it
will be good if he joins politics.
By joining politics he can make
mandatory rules for physical
exercises and on doing this people
can feel healthier and energetic and
many diseases will be pre-cautioned
or will disappear.
I even support his remarks about
doctors as these doctors for the
sake of money engage in un-necessary
operations during pregnancy, steal
the vital body parts such as kidney
etc.
The MNCs like Pepsi and Coke have
planned an all-out war against him
as he publicly tells his followers
to forego it.
In this commercial world where
everything is commercialized from
education to election, the Yoga also
needs to be commercialized for
sustenance, transparency and further
research. By commercializing, he is
generating job opportunities for
many. Now he has many disciples who
are teaching on his behalf and
earning money.
It is good to charge hefty fees to
attract only serious practitioners.
It will be a mess, if things were
free.
No best Guru ever taught his
disciples free of cost. It is good
that Gurudakshina of Ramdev is open
and transparent without any hidden
thought and cost.
The Guru who doesn't ask for money
is more vulnerable as he may have
hidden expectations of getting
"More". - Tarakeswar Dubey - Mar.
22, 2006
I understand all the ministers in
Bihar are attending Guru Ramdev's
yoga classes. The CM has decided to
start yoga classes in schools.
I wish CM had requested Ramdev to
allot some of his students to go to
every village of Bihar and explain
to them the necessity of Yoga as
preventive treatment for various
ailments. Today, villages remain
totally neglected. People in
villages have abandoned all the
traditional routines of physical
exercises. There are hardly any
Akhara where young men of villages
used to exercise and practice
wrestling to keep themselves fit.
That annual function of organizing
sports (long and high jump, kabaddi
and wrestling) contests has
disappeared. The villagers are also
fast changing their life style and
food habits. With richer food, Yoga
practice or exercises are a
necessity. Moreover, hardly some
villages are fortunate enough to
have doctors to advise the residents
for the preventive action.
Can the government take guru Ramdev
help to provide this facility to
Bihar's villages? Bihar itself has
its own famous school of Yoga in
Munger or in some place that I am
forgetting this moment. The services
of that school must be sought to
popularise yoga in rural Bihar.
However, at least for the government
many urgent priorities require
attention. Let guru’s yoga lessons
make the ministers more efficient
and hard working too. - Indra -
Mar. 22, 2006
Firstly , I take a very strong
exception on the language used by
Dr. Pankaj Kumar Mishra in
expressing his anguish on the
statement published by Patna Daily
on the habits of the doctors.
In case I also say that 90% of the
doctors are not doctors but robbers
in disguise, will it sound correct?
We hear doctors drugging and raping
patients (someone from the 90% list)
stealing body parts and treating
their patients as Guinea Pigs? I
vehemently slam such scum suckers
who are more criminal-minded than a
person who is A known criminal.
Baba Ramdev is a mass movement who
has brought these so called
lifesavers in the right picture, by
his yoga practice if lakhs could be
cured then he is and must be
considered a demi-god and he is, in
this world of today.
India is a country of 100 crores, so
if 5-10 lakh people follow Baba
where is the fear to these doctors,
these doctors are merely raising
objections for the sake of it and
nothing else.
It is also noteworthy to note that
the doctors from Bihar have raised
the maximum objection (correct me if
I am wrong) so one can safely say
that the 90% are more in Bihar, any
takers?? - Sanjay - Mar. 27, 2006
Baba Ramdev is definitely done
something which nobody else did
before. I myself follow his Yoga
once in a while. I even got
confirmation from my parents that
Baba Ramdev's Yoga is helping them.
I also ignore some of his remark
regarding Coke, chocolate, doctors
etc because I understand that like a
salesman, to sell his stuff i.e
"Yoga", he will have to oppose his
competitors. If "Coke" is a venom
or poison then think 50% the
Americans would be dead by now.
Tall claims by him like cure for
serious diseases in small time etc
are more hype than truth. Many
sadhu-sanyasis claim to have all
kind of magical powers but when they
fall sick, they go to doctors or if
their "chelas" are rich, then they
fly to America.
"Yoga" at best is an alternative
medicine and there are some
definitely some which are not in
normal medicine. Baba Ramdev has
definitely made this a mass movement
and for that he deserve praise.
He is no God or Demi God by any
means though. - Kaushal Das -
Mar. 28, 2006
In response to my article 'A Guru or
Wannabe Politician' some people have
raised serious objections. I wonder
where were these people when Baba
said in reference to a doctor (an
office bearer of IMA) that the
particular doctor has lost his
mental balance. I do not know the
concerned doctor. I have got nothing
to do with him or Baba personally.
But suppose Baba uses similar words
for me and I also call a press
conference calling the Baba an
insane person who should be referred
to a mental asylum will baba and his
supporters have the tolerance and
understanding to take it in their
stride? The type of language baba
has used against doctors (sometimes
personal attacks) if the doctors
start using such language I am sure
Baba and his supporters will lynch
the concerned doctor immediately.
That is my point. Baba is trying to
bring alternative medicine and
modern medicine on a confrontational
path. What I want to emphasise that
these are and should be
complimentary to each other. Yoga is
good for your health - everybody
knows that - you don't need a Baba
to tell you that. Cigarette smoking
is injurious for your health - do
you really need a cardiologist to
tell you that? You already know it.
Baba is doing a good work in
spreading this message. But at the
same time he is also passing
inflammatory speeches like L. K.
Advani
which is wrong. He should not try to
create hype around Yoga - he should
try to spread facts. He should tell
the masses that if someone gets
stabbed, suffers accident or you
have an infant born with congenital
birth defects then please rush to
the nearest hospital. Don't start
performing yogas in the middle of
the road - it won't help you. Same
applies to heart attacks.
If you refer to my original article
the first few lines quoted from
PatnaDaily.Com was the basis of my
article. I agree there must be some
black sheep in the medical
fraternity. But to generalise it and
quote a percentage (>90%) is
ridiculous. There is corruption in
army as well, as exposed by Tehelka.
com. But then Baba cannot say that
>90% of army officers are corrupt
forgetting that he is standing next
to Kargil Chowk which was erected in
the memory of selfless sacrifices
made by army officers. If they had
not sacrificed their lives, all of
us would have been performing Yogas
in one of the jails in Lahore or
Peshawar.
I am an expert in my own field
having received the highest medical
degrees in India and abroad. I
perform Yogas and meditation daily.
(Baba is yet to emphasise on the
value of meditation. But I never
waited for it). But that does not
give me the right to pass derogatory
remarks against alternative
medicines (ayurveda, yoga,
homeopathy etc). The emphasis should
be on development of a tolerant
society where all specialties can
develop for the betterment of human
beings.
Please don't quote it as a movement.
A couple of years back Laloo Yadav
was a movement in himself. Don't
forget the crowd at his Lathi rally
- I am yet to decipher out what
purpose that rally served. Jyoti
Basu, Jayalalitha are all a movement
in themselves. Please don't forget
that all these movements are not
always good for the society. - Dr
Pankaj Kumar Mishra UK -
Mar. 31, 2006 |
