Why are you scared of snakes?

We do not know about snakes.All we know is the bundle of unfolded beliefs inculcated in us from childhood and handed down from generation to generation as myths,superstitions,grandma tales, folklore and so on. First of all 80% of the snakes in rural India are non poisonous.Among the snake bites, poisonous bite are rear. fatality from a poisonous snake bite is also uncommon because around 50% of poisonous snake bites are dry bites or minimally venoumated bites. Okay..Now we shall consider venom of the snake.It is not targeted toward humans.The sole purpose of the snake in its life is not to bite humans. Venom is a glandular secretion developed over years in the snake to catch its prey and to digest it.Snakes bite humans only when it is attacked or injured.Remember it is we "homosapiens" the brainiest of all the species have invaded its space, built multistoried houses and buildings, cut down trees and left the snakes homeless. Poor thing!! Where else can it go? It has been in the planet earth much earlier than the humans evolved. Researchs say around 135 millions

years ahead of us!
It comes around humans during rainyseason and winter for warmth, or in search of rodents-their prey, or water. But why are we scared?
Mr Vijayraghavan rightly tells us in his book SNAKE BITE:A BOOK FOR INDIA the reason for the fright! I shall quote it as it is from his book-From the earliest times of the human race the snake had evoked a profound
sense of wonder,even reverence, and unspeakable fear in us.Its custom of silently appearing all on a sudden in unexpected places and disappearing equally suddenly and its ability to move in great speed despite being
limbless,its unblinking hypnotic stare,its forked tongue moving back and forth menacingly,its ability to hear inspite of having no earholes, its ability to swallow whole animals larger than itself,its ability to shed its skin entire periodically and emerging as it were a new life everytime,its presence of all manner of terrains in earth,under the soil,on high mountains,on trees,in lakes, rivvers and oceans and in all kinds of climate,its ability to go without food for months together,its psychosexual body imagery..
What we find too awesome and spine chilling about the snake is its capability to deliver death with a single strike.While most other animals kill their enemy with a lot of horrible voilence and blood shedding, the snake does that with speed ,effortless and neat!!

So take home point for today is- Yes! we are scared of snakes.But we need not. I shall in the subsequent posts try and share my views and numerous stories in my hospital about snake bite.