Can any of our Indian brothers shed some light on this?

[LindaL.]

Here in Italy, as well as in Australia, first a news article and now also a YouTube video have started circulating stating that, "Indians throw thousands of idols on the street for not protecting them against the virus." The source is shiawaves.com, of 5 days ago.
 

I haven't been able to find anything else about this and there is some debate amongst the brothers as to whether the news is authentic or not.

 

Can any of our Indian brothers shed some light on the matter? And what about Shiawaves.com? Is it a trustworthy website? Thank you!

 

 

 

PS  What a timely article on jw.org: "Protect Yourself From Misinformation"! 

https://www.jw.org/en/bible-teachings/peace-happiness/conspiracy-theories-misinformation/

[Hope]

I think that video may not be quite factual.. https://thelogicalindian.com/fact-check/hindu-ritual-immersion-covid-19-coronavirus-21266

[Sofia]

It’s a fake:

 

https://www.google.pt/amp/s/thelogicalindian.com/amp/fact-check/hindu-ritual-immersion-covid-19-coronavirus-21266

 

Sorry sister @Hope I didn’t see you find same link 😊😉

thank you

Edited May 11, 2021 by Sofia

[Sofia]

I have found this recent video.

Can someone please translate this for us? Thank you

 

 

[Sofia]

immersing idols on water is part of hindu´s rituals...

 

https://citymonitor.ai/horizons/idols-are-polluting-indias-rivers-and-lakes-903

[LindaL.]

Thank you so much, Uani and Sofia. That's perfect!

 

One thing I observed in the article and the video that were sent to me was that they don't include any date or any place. That immediately made me sceptical.

 

When I read the article on our website about misinformation, I wondered, what exactly is a meme? Now I know!! 

[Sofia]

7 hours ago, Sofia said:

I have found this recent video.

Can someone please translate this for us? Thank you

 

 

She is saying that Indian people are breaking their idols like God statue's because these are not helping hindus during Covid 19 critical situations
a sister from Hindi congregation told me

 

i still don’t know if this is her real feelings or she s being an actress

[daydream]

Recently I read in the papers (something related to the super spreader events in India) that Hindus have a few billion gods (maybe more than 2 B). So what's there to fuss about if the believers break a few idols. Nothing to get so excited about. They have plenty more to spare. 😂

 

https://edition.cnn.com/2017/03/03/world/believer-hinduism-nine-myths-debunked/index.html

This source says 330 millions gods. That is still a lot. Read on.

 

9 myths about Hinduism, debunked

Myth No. 1: There are 330 million Hindu gods

 

Reality: There is one supreme God that cannot be fully known or understood.

 

Hindus are encouraged to relate to God in the way that suits them best, like worshipping many deities who are believed to be manifestations of God. The trimurti or three main deities are Brahma, the creator; Vishnu, the preserver; and Shiva, the destroyer. That's why Hinduism is often thought of as polytheistic. It is not.

 

Ok right, folks. Nothing to see here. Get back to reading your prophecies. 😄

Edited May 12, 2021 by Mclove

[Intercore]

As I understand, this fact-checking article was written on May 24, 2020. Does that mean that these fake claims were spread already last year?

[Intercore]

Also, that one video with bulldozer, interesting, where it's from?

[Sofia]

2 hours ago, Intercore said:

Also, that one video with bulldozer, interesting, where it's from?

 

 

The clip which shows idols being gathered on the roadside by an excavator was recorded on or before August, 2019. According to tweets featuring similar visuals, Dashama idols were kept beside the banks of the Sabarmati river instead of immersing them to avoid water pollution.

https://www.boomlive.in/fact-check/video-makes-fake-claim-of-indians-smashing-hindu-idols-because-of-covid-13122

[Omoyeme]

Whether these video images are genuine or not, it makes a powerful statement that many in the populace are turning away from idol worship.

 

Edited May 13, 2021 by Omoyeme

[Hope]

4 hours ago, Omoyeme said:

Whether these video images are genuine or not, it makes a powerful statement that many in the populace are turning away from idol worship.

 

Except that this video is a misrepresentation and does not confirm that people are turning away from idol worship at all.

 

The fact that it's *not* genuine pretty much says it.. 🤷🏽‍♀️

[carlos]

In that location there is a ritual during which worshippers put their idols in the river. But in order to reduce polution, in 2019, when those images were recorded, people were encouraged to leave their idols on the riverbank instead of throwing them to the river itself. After the ritual was over, bulldozers disposed of the idols.

 

It doesn't mean that Hindus are throwing away their idols. They were just participating in a ritual. When they throw their idols to the river they also end up being destroyed. It's a bit like the emblems in our Memorial. After the Memorial is over, the emblems do not hold any special significance. They can be consumed or discarded.

[Shawnster]

On 5/13/2021 at 4:09 PM, Omoyeme said:

Whether these video images are genuine or not, it makes a powerful statement that many in the populace are turning away from idol worship.

 

No it does not because that is not what they are doing.  They are not throwing their idold away. 

 

 

 

This is an annual event in celebration of Hindu religion, not a mass rejection of Hindu idols. 

 

Fake news is fake news. We should not try to find some way to twist this into what it is not. 

 

 

 

[Sofia]

3 hours ago, carlos said:

In that location there is a ritual during which worshippers put their idols in the river. But in order to reduce polution, in 2019, when those images were recorded, people were encouraged to leave their idols on the riverbank instead of throwing them to the river itself. After the ritual was over, bulldozers disposed of the idols.

 

It doesn't mean that Hindus are throwing away their idols. They were just participating in a ritual. When they throw their idols to the river they also end up being destroyed. It's a bit like the emblems in our Memorial. After the Memorial is over, the emblems do not hold any special significance. They can be consumed or discarded.

In fact, they used to drown the godess for her to meet her partner god. It was horrible because the river waters became poluted. It seems the plastic / materials / inks filled the waters with paint. It IS A RITUAL, not anything else.

The next year the city hall convinced the hindus NOT to throw to river anymore but leave the godess images on the river sides. That´s why so many  "trash" to clean. It was supposed to be drowned, but for environmental causes they were left outside the water instead. and of course, after the rituals, they were remooved.

[Omoyeme]

On 5/18/2021 at 7:35 AM, Shawnster said:

No it does not because that is not what they are doing.  They are not throwing their idold away. 

Then may I suggest you take what I posted with a grain of salt. Lime. And tequila.

 

[Shawnster]

29 minutes ago, Omoyeme said:

Then may I suggest you take what I posted with a grain of salt. Lime. And tequila.

 

Ooh yes.