Is Nature Reclaiming Its Corona?

Coronavirus has been wreaking havoc on humankind. With more than 2 lakh cases of positive infection, the fear and hysteria are quite unavoidable. Countries are taking extreme precautions to forestall the infection from reaching a deadly stage where cure might seem like a shaky possibility. In the midst of all this chaos, there are opinions of millions of people floating on social media, some encouraging the patients, some mocking the government restrictions, some blaming the infected and some being responsible for ‘self’. Amidst all these, the one idea/ notion that makes complete sense to me is the idea of re-setting the universe to its original healthy form.

The word Coronavirus has been derived from a Latin word ‘Corona’ which means ‘Crown’ or ‘Halo’. The symbolic meaning of a ‘Halo’ is holiness or a circle/ arc of light around the head of a saint/ holy person. It is an indisputable notion that Earth is our provider. It is the basis of our living. Being pure and sacrificial in nature, the Earth has come a long way in serving our needs and fueling our ambitions to go beyond the known. Now consider our planet to be ‘the saint’ that is sacrificing himself for the amelioration of the human condition. Over the years, the deterioration of the saint’s health has reached the zenith. A halo (the virus that aims to infect and kill the people) around the head of the saint (Earth) symbolizes the presence of divine power that has taken control of healing our planet.

You might think that I have gone crazy. But that’s what a writer’s mind does when its thinking capacity is in full bloom! I am not asking you to follow what I write. I am just asking you to give it a thought. With the pandemic getting worse day by day, the only silver lining in the grey cloud that is visible is the healing process of nature. Here are a few changes that have happened over the course of two months:

-Educational institutions, offices, entertainment centres and public spaces have closed down; tourist spots are empty; there are less number of cars of the road; the pollution levels have declined, waterbodies are cleaner and noise pollution has decreased

– Dolphins have returned to Italy’s coast. The lack of cruise ships and people has brought back these creatures to their habitat (view news here)

-Swans have returned to the canals of Italy which are otherwise huddled with gondolas (view news here)

-Otters are able to roam freely in Singapore owing to free spaces which are otherwise occupied by people (view news here)

-A bunch of geese were spotted strolling fearlessly on an unused tarmac at an Israeli Airport owing to grounded flights and the restrictions imposed on travel (view news here)

-Chicago Shedd Aquarium is witnessing a once-in-a-lifetime sight- a Penguin show wherein the penguins (Edward and Anny) are looting the fun of ambling along the tiled floor without any fear of human intervention (view news here)

The skies have become clearer, the air has become cleaner, the trees have become greener and the water has become purer. It wouldn’t be wrong to say that Planet Earth would heave a sigh of relief if humans were to vanish. And quite literally they have vanished in many places. In just two months, nature has shown its aggression and its conviction in reclaiming its rightful place. We, humans, have never thought even once before encroaching the territory of other living beings and usurping their natural habitat. We have been living in oblivion, we have been killing animals, polluting air and oceans, overusing resources and cutting down forests. We might be following Darwin’s theory of survival of the fittest but in the process, we have forgotten that we all are meant to coexist and follow the principle of harmonious cohabitation.

Our planet is not for us to destroy. The karmic force will eventually get the better of us. Let this coronavirus pandemic leave us with a lesson that is if not by choice, Nature will eventually find extreme ways to reclaim its corona. And those ways will leave the human race vanquished!