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On June 15, we will see the century’s longest and darkest lunar eclipse. On this occasion,dnaindia.com gives you all that you need to know about the phenomenon. Here, Gayatri Kaul explains what the eclipse signifies in different cultures.
Shrouded in tales of mystery and superstition, the human psyche has always possessed the spirit of the moon in dark fantasy.
From howling werewolves to ghosts and ghouls, little is left to the spooked imagination. Naturally, an infrequent occurrence of a lunar eclipse would plunge such thoughts into a fathomless abyss foretelling imminent doom and destruction.
In China, it is the dragon eating the moon
For the Chinese -- the earliest to have noted a lunar eclipse (around 1000 BC during the Zhou dynasty in the Book of Songs) -- the sight of a crimson-smeared moon engulfed in darkness led them to believe such an event portended ill-fated occurrences of famine and disease.
Literally cannoning their fears into the air, the Chinese aimed to defend themselves against the ‘dragon’ that ate the moon. The red eye in the sky was also used to determine the emperor’s success.
In Japan, it’s the earthquake
Their Japanese neighbours too, did not hold the moon in bright colour, holding lunar eclipses to be synonymous with earthquakes, a phenomenon quite scientifically explainable in modern times owing to enhanced gravitational pulls during the event. Even today, one could find people aiming shots at the moon to battle the eclipse.
In India, it is bad for pregnant women
Back home in India, the colloquial term Chandra Grahan throws superstition generously at the event where several rituals are undertaken to defeat the ill-luck the eclipse bears.
Covering of food and water with tulsi, bathing after the eclipse, refraining from eating food during the event, are all customarily followed to cleanse oneself of suffering that might arise.
Pregnant women assume prominence, protecting their unborn from deformities and scars by abstaining from common household work like weaving, cutting vegetables and fruits, or even sewing.
In Pakistan, it’s time for seeking forgiveness
Across the border, one would find such women undertaking the same precautions. A woman reportedly told a Pakistani daily about the unfortunate birth of her son with a missing finger. The missing finger was attributed to her having cut an apple during the eclipse — an act that superstition circumscribes.
However, Islamic culture, rather than populating the phenomenon with superstition, ascribed a more godly annotation to it. The sun and the moon in Islam are both connected to Allah’s reverence. Thus, a gradually swallowed moon would duly be followed by reverberations of the salatul-kusuf (a special prayer for the lunar eclipse) to Allah, seeking forgiveness and bestowing greatness upon him. The customary two bows and two prostrations during the two-cycle prayer called rakat are observed in congregations during the duration of the eclipse.
In the Christian world, it’s wrath of god
Similarly, a bloodied moon in the Christian mind symbolizes the wrath of God, casting his anger over man. Very often have lunar eclipses been conjoined to Jesus’ crucifixion, describing a charred sky with an angry moon. A gobbled moon again, relates to the coming of Judgment Day and the end of the world.
Beating drums to canons
So, from Chinese scriptures to 21st century telescopes, be it a Christian, Hindu or Muslim — a phantom moon in an inked sky prompts people to weave myths and folklore about the eerie occurrence. If it’s beating drums in India, canons in China or a rationalist on his terrace, June 15 will certainly have everyone moon-gazing.
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