With corona virus gripping the whole world and countries taking several precautions, Indian gesture Namaste is getting popular for greeting people rather than handshake or a kiss.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has asked the people in his country to greet each other through ‘Namaste’ instead of handshake to prevent the spread of the deadly disease. He said that it is better to avoid handshake and adopt Namaste while greeting each other. The prime minister said this after a review meeting.
He said that the government will soon announce several measures to prevent the spread of the virus. However, simple measures like “Namaste” for greeting each other can go a long way in preventing the spread of corona virus. He also demonstrated how to greet through Namaste.
Netanyahu’s familiarity with Indian tradition is not surprising. Netanyahu is close to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Israel has 15 confirmed cases of Comovirus and about 7000 people are in quarantine. The country has not reported any deaths. About 7,000 people are in home quarantine. Moreover, the country has banned public gatherings and has also asked the people to refrain from travelling abroad.
In India, Namaste gesture is used to welcome guests or relatives or even to greet elder persons. The gesture is used to express courtesy, honour, politeness, gratitude and hospitality to others. The word is derived from Sanskrit language. Namste is formed from two words – Namas and te. Namas means bowing and te means ‘to you’. As such Namste means bowing to you”
