In a string of different measures suggested to rid India of COVID-19 infection, the latest is by Bhopal Member of Parliament Pragya Singh Thakur, who has called for mass recitation of Hanuman Chalisa (prayers to Lord Hanuman) for 10 days to free the country of the pandemic.
Pragya Thakur has released a video appeal on social media calling the Hindus of Bhopal and other parts of the country to recite Hanuman Chalisa five times every evening at 7.00pm from July 25 to August 5. The chalisa is traditionally recited by believers whenever they are in some trouble.
Thakur said she was confident that the mass recitation of the Hanuman Chalisa would help in ridding the country of the pandemic and made a prayer to Lord Ram in this regard.
आइए हम सब मिलकर कोरोना महामारी को समाप्त करने के लिए लोगों के अच्छे स्वास्थ्य की कामना के लिए एक आध्यात्मिक प्रयास करें आज25 से 5 अगस्त तक प्रतिदिन शाम 7:00 बजे अपने घरों में हनुमान चालीसा का 5 बार पाठकरें5 अगस्त को अनुष्ठान का रामलला की आरती के साथ घरों में दीप जलाकर समापन करें pic.twitter.com/Ba0J2KrkA8
— Sadhvi Pragya singh thakur (@SadhviPragya_MP) July 25, 2020
The appeal comes on the day the chief minister of Madhya Pradesh Shivraj Singh Chouhan tested positive for COVID-19 and was hospitalized. Several of his cabinet colleagues are undergoing tests and have quarantined themselves, especially as the chief minister had conducted one-to-one review with them for the past three days.
COVID-19 pandemic is surging in the country as well as Madhya Pradesh. With 716 fresh cases on Saturday, the tally in Madhya Pradesh now stands at 26,926, of which 13,333 (50 per cent) have been reported in the month of July alone. The death toll stands at 799 with eight new deaths on Saturday. The COVID-19 tally in India is currently at over 13.74 lakh with 31,952 deaths till Saturday evening.
Several people’s representatives in Madhya Pradesh, including a cabinet minister, have tested positive for COVID-19 over the past month.
Thakur in her appeal said that the Madhya Pradesh government has imposed lockdown from July 25 to August 4 in Bhopal in a bid to control the disease spread. However, the people should also make a spiritual effort to rid the country of the pandemic by participating in the mass recitation, she said.
She added that the spiritual effort will culminate on August 5, coinciding with the bhoomipujan ceremony of Ram Temple at Ayodhya. On this day, she said, the effort should conclude with the Hanuman Chalisa recitation, lighting of lamps and aarti of Ramlala again at 7.00pm. This effort will also be made viral on Facebook, Thakur said in the appeal.
