One refreshing perk that comes with living in a busy neighbourhood is that there will always be some form of drama. Ranging from couples arguing on the street to people breaking rules.
This time around, there was a situation of imposition which got me thinking. We live in a world where people have different opinions and beliefs but it always peaks when religion is involved.
A person could castigate a fellow human being just because they are not part of their religion. This has been a very huge societal issue for a while now and I wonder, is it right? Why treat your neighbour like trash just because they do not worship in the same church as you?
More often than not, the person being castigated doesn't pay too much heed to the situation at hand because whatever they believe in works for them. So it usually ends with the both parties going their separate ways, unharmed. Untouched.
However, I witnessed an occasion where the person being castigated was helpless and couldn't leave, even when they wanted to. Why? Let me briefly share the story with you.
Friday morning was really cold and cloudy. I rushed out of the house as I was on the brink of being late for an early morning lecture. On reaching the junction where I usually board a bus to school, I met lots of people just standing around.
The first thing that came to mind was ‘’I hope nobody is hurt' because people usually gather that way whenever there is a hit and run incident. Thankfully, that wasn't the case. However, the case was more ludicrous.
I quickly scanned around to get an idea of what was going on and right there, in the middle of the road was a mentally ill person manned by two muscular men. Did the mentally ill person do anything to warrant such treatment? I doubt it.
The mentally ill person was trying to break free from the grip of the men beside him but they overpowered him.
About a minute later, a “self acclaimed pastor” emerged from the crowd and claimed that he could cast out the evil spirit that caused the mentally ill person to be mentally ill just like Jesus did in the bible. This was the first ludicrous part.
On saying this, more people gathered, waiting to see a “miracle”. Honestly, I wasn't interested in the show because I had somewhere to be but the bus driver and the rest of the passengers in the bus seemed to be so interested in what was going on and so the bus wasn't moving. No bus was moving at all and so I was basically stuck, left with no other option but to watch.
The “pastor” walked up to the mentally ill man and started hitting his head. The mentally ill man probably didn't like that his head was being hit so he tried to break free again.
As the mentally ill man was still struggling with the men that held him down, a random stranger emerged from the crowd with a rope! He handed it over to the men and casually uttered...
“Today, your evil spirit shall be cast out” before returning to his position. This of course was the second ludicrous part. I didn't even realise when I screamed “what the actual hell!”
They tied the mentally ill man's hand posteriorly and kept holding him down. The pastor returned more equipped this time around. He poured water on the mentally ill man, poured oil and started praying profusely.
At this point, the mentally ill person was literally helpless, so he stopped resisting. He just sat there, looking at the pastor. Once the self acclaimed pastor was done, he ordered the men to untie the mentally ill man and they did. Guess who the mentally ill person went after immediately he was set free? Yes! The pastor. He probably went after him in a bid to revenge for all the pain he inflicted on him.
Luckily, there were people to hold him back. The furious mentally ill man just stared the pastor in the eye and then walked away. This brought the drama to an end. Obviously, the self acclaimed pastor wasn't successful with his mission and people were disappointed at him for wasting their time.
After everyone dispersed, vehicles started moving freely once again. Luckily, I reached my class before the lecturer came in. However, I felt that every single thing about that incident was fluffing wrong.
First off, the mentally ill person was held down against his will. They definitely wouldn't have done that to a sane person. This only goes to show that once people are termed as mentally ill, a majority of their rights are snatched from them.
Second, why impose your beliefs on him? Again, that wouldn't be done to a sane person. What if the mentally ill person is an atheist or has different beliefs? I thought this miracle thing is supposed to work when the person is willing? Because if that's the case, the mentally ill person already showed his unwillingness from the start and it was ignored.
I feel a majority of people in my country still think that mental illness is caused by an evil spirit. I've heard of a few cases where voodoo is used to make a person run mad but if we're dealing with mental illness, chances are that it's a neurological issue. So, instead of casting out imaginary evil spirits it would be a better option to take them to a psychiatrist–if they really want to help.
Mental illness can be caused by a number of factors including; genetics, environment, life experiences, “substance abuse(which is a common cause here)” or even medical conditions. Which makes it ludicrous when people think that evil spirits cause mental illness.
Quick question: do you think it's right to impose your views and beliefs on another person in any circumstance?
Love🤍
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Wes & Grindan