Covid versus Goliath

"Nature is a great Experimenter," asserted Preethaji, in one of her recent sermons. A spiritual Guru, Preethaji was responding to the question 'Why the Corona virus outbreak?'.

As I write this, the Corona virus has physically infected just over 0.009 percent of us. However, it has mentally infected the entire human species. There is little else that occupies our collective minds today. It is astonishing how a particle as tiny as 0.06 microns, has held the entire intellectually all-powerful human species to ransom. It is no wonder then, that I remembered David versus Goliath.

Goliath is described as a 'Philistine' giant by Wikipedia. The word Philistine originally had a positive connotation according to Philologist Friedrich Kluge. It identified a tall and strong man, such as Goliath.

'Basically, it discards the species," continued Preethaji, bringing me back from my distraction to the video explaining what she meant by Nature as an experimenter. Citing examples of extinction from Dinosaurs to Neanderthals, she claimed that Nature discards species that do not support the whole.

With our ability to 'think' -or more importantly- 'imagine', our superiority over the other species is indisputable. And we must rightly take pride in it. What appears though, is that we have overused the two to go against the Nature rather than go with it.  We are 'using' Nature like we were aliens. Whether mining or cutting trees, we are either blissfully ignorant or utterly callous. Eying every other species as food is an extension of the same callousness.

I am sure we were not like this. I am sure our ancestors were wonderstruck by Nature's creations and were appreciative. I am sure they hunted only when hungry and killed only when threatened. However, like the Philistine, we too seem to have acquired a derogatory connotation in Nature's eyes.

The term Philistine, in its transition to a derogatory connotation, now means 'a man or a woman of smugly narrow mind, whose materialistic views and tastes indicate a lack of cultural and aesthetic values.' We seem to have become the Philistine for the Nature.

Experts have debated over decades that Goliath might have had acromegaly, a disorder that leads to a person growing extremely tall, but also often developing severe near-sightedness. It is widely believed that David exploited this very disorder to hit Goliath dead with a single slingshot between the eyes. The human species today needs to overcome its acromegaly.

"Are you sure we're going to survive forever?" asked Preethaji, and my answer is a resounding 'yes'! The current pandemic is the proverbial wake-up call. But Covid is no David. It's only a matter of time before a vaccine is developed. A bit of patience and farsightedness, and this Covid versus Goliath is bound to go in favour of Goliath.

But more importantly, the lockdowns have allowed us to experience what absence of human activity means to the Nature. We don't need to think or imagine it. From clear blue skies and fresh air to wild animals on city roads; we have already savoured a lot in a week's time. And we are craving for more!