Overcome Mass Fear with Public Good - The Hair Cutting Demon

From time to time, irrational fears of supernatural spread through human society. There is one going around presently in northern India about a demon that cuts of the hair of women in secret without their knowledge and indeed many such cases have been reported from several northern states of India.

One can only guess how this is happening short of an actual demon playing a prank or some weird ritual of their own. It is likely that women are cutting their own hair to adapt the look of some fashion models on TV and using this rumor as a pretext. Most families would not approve the short hair look otherwise or it may be to get attention. Whatever is the reason, the fear is widespread and newspapers report some women going to bed with helmets on.

In time the demon will get tired and go away as other such have before in history. In the meantime the possibility of utilizing this fear for public good arises. While the women are busy at prayers to keep the hair loving demons at bay, they may be advised that planting a fruit tree, preferably more than one to make sure, at home, farm or village common grounds, making a wire or thorn guard around to protect it from cows, incase in the fields, and watering it with a bucket of water with a little milk or cow urine, just a cupful, mixed in it, and praying to mother Earth to protect them from the hair cut demon shall more than likely protect them for sure. The fruit can be any that is popular in the area but not short lived fruit trees like Papaya and Banana. Mango, Jamun, Lemons, mulberry etc. will be great. The family members may help in the task but the tree must be put inside the ground by the woman’s hand alone.

Mother Earth shall surely listen to their prayer, for a tree is a gift to mother Earth and she is certainly more powerful than any demon on earth even those in minds. To expect Her to help without any gift is wrong for as the Bhagvat Gita says, Offer the gods your gifts and receive their blessings and help in return;. to take anything from the gods without giving anything in return is to be like a thief.

While the women in rural India have been praying and offering gifts of Prasad etc. at temples, at the present time of global environmental degradation, it is Mother Earth that needs their offering most and planting a fruit tree is one of the nicest gifts for her aside from cleaning her rivers and ponds.

This post may cause a rush for tree saplings all over North Western India and even Southern India for the demons seem to be spreading fast and it would be nice if forest departments across the land  help in the task. Some may have to raise a sapling from seed but this would take too much time and the women may lose their hair before the sapling is ready. This blogger is not sure if some fruit trees can be grown from cuttings and which ones. The drumstick tree does grow well from cuttings in the monsoon season as on presently and may be used as a replacement but it produces a bean rather than a fruit. However its flowers and fruit, the bean is edible.

As said at the outset, perhaps there is no demon at all but just a mass delusion. Whatever be the case the women will be protected and the village and planet benefit from the many fruit trees that all the women and girls of villages plant with the help of their families. Imagine the improvements to the village ecology.

A link of this post shall be sent to some media channels hoping they will help in this social responsibility for planet and country, while saving our sisters and mothers from fear and from losing their lovely long hair. What better gift to them on Raksha Bandan. Please anyone who reads this message spread it to help our sisters overcome an unnecessary fear in a manner that leads to public good.