According to ancient Indian history, Brahmastra refers to a supernatural weapon used in times of war. Just like in Mahabharata, where Arjuna used the brahmastra against his nemesis, Karna, to win the war, similarly our PM Narendra Modi has declared Social Distancing as the brahmastra against Coronavirus.
Social distancing means staying at home and avoiding crowded places, public spaces where close contact is likely. It’s the only way through until a vaccine is developed. Social Distancing is an essential way to slow down the spread of COVID-19.
The two most devastating pandemics -The black Plague and 1918 Flu is being used as a reference to develop strategies to fight COVID-19. India began its fight towards it quite early when virus spread was in initial stages, this helped in containing the virus and eliminate community spread.
The brahmastra has three variants namely – Brahmashirsha Astra, Brahmanda Astra, and Bhargavastra. I believe these weapons have transcended into the future with their purpose still remaining the same but names changed, ie, Testing, Tracing, and Treatment.
Brahmashirsha Astra is capable of killing devas. Which means no person whatsoever can be protected from it. Similarly, Testing is needed because this virus can happen to anyone, be it poor or rich.
Next, Brahmanda Astra is capable of destroying the entire universe. Similarly, if this virus is not traced then it can affect the world on a larger scale. Community spread may take place, and the only way to protect people will be the development of a vaccine.
Lastly, Bhargavastra when used for defensive purposes or as a counter to Brahmastra and Brahmashirsha Astra it will swallow the above-said astras and neutralize it and when used for an offensive purpose – nothing can stop or escape from it. Thus, to stop the further spread of COVID-19, the development of proper treatment facilities is a must. The use of PPE and taking safety precautions go hand in hand in this stage.
Another term comes in mind when we discuss social distancing, and that is Quarantine. The term ” Quarantine” originated during the times when the Black Plague was sweeping Europe. So, in an attempt to slow down the spread, Venice formed the first quarantine island – Lazzaretto Vecchio, Santa Maria di Nazareth Island. It’s impossible to know how many deaths were prevented from this but it proved to be a successful technique to contain it. The 1918 Flu was the largest NPI practice ever carried out. It included quarantine, self-isolation, school closures, and social distancing which resulted in a considerable decrease in cases.
In other words, until a vaccine is developed, Self-isolation and Social Distancing are the strongest tools to fix this problem.
Staying away from people makes us feel cut out from the world. Due to this people are tempted to break restrictions and act against them. People should realize that the norms enforced are for their betterment itself. For industries like Mechanical, Civil, Automation, etc where people are required to work close to each other, it’s difficult to ensure that social distancing norms are followed but as a citizen, one should take the responsibility on himself to ensure utmost care. Various modern technologies like face shields, sanitization tunnels are being used but a much better approach is yet to be developed.
If we recognize that NPI has the potential to help but not fix the problem, the question still remains, how long should social distancing practices and stay-at-home orders remain in place? Unfortunately, the answer is not very straightforward.
I wish just like Arjuna had Krishna to guide him, we too had someone to give us hope and take us through these rough times.
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