There was a story in a medical journal. "Typhoid Mary"

Expressions researched:
"There was a story in a medical journal" |"Typhoid Mary" |"Wherever she used to go, there was typhoid fever, so many people suffering, but she was not suffering"

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

"Typhoid Mary." A girl whose name was Mary, wherever she would go, all the people associating with her will be attacked with typhoid. Then the medical board examined her blood, that she is full of typhoid germs. So therefore wherever she goes, people become infected.

Lecture on SB 1.15.34 -- Los Angeles, December 12, 1973:

So there are so many diseases. Therefore eating is so important thing. And the germs, they come out from the mouth very easily. Very easily. Formerly there was politics. They were called viṣa-kanyā, "poison girl." The politicians used to keep. I do not know whether nowadays the politicians keep. But we find from Vedic literature, viṣa-kanyā. Viṣa-kanyā means a girl, from the childhood, is injected poison, little by little, little, little, little, little. So when she is grown up, she, whole body is poisonous. So the politician used to engage such girl to kill his opponent politician. Very nice, beautiful girl, and (s)he will go, and as soon as the kissing will be there, he will die. Just like poisonous. Yes, it is fact. It is not story. I read in medical journal. There was one... Not medical journal. In logic class. It is called some "Typhoid Mary." "Typhoid Mary." A girl whose name was Mary, wherever she would go, all the people associating with her will be attacked with typhoid. Then the medical board examined her blood, that she is full of typhoid germs. So therefore wherever she goes, people become infected. These are medical facts.

So therefore association is so important. Saṅgāt sañjāyate kāmaḥ. According to association we infect different qualities. That they do not know. But nature's law is so particular, as soon as you infect by association a particular type of quality, you have to suffer for that. Therefore Caitanya Mahāprabhu, He was asked by one devotee, gṛhastha devotee, householder, "Sir, what is the duty of a gṛhastha devotee, Vaiṣṇava?" Devotee means Vaiṣṇava. So He immediately informed him, asat-saṅga-tyāga ei vaiṣṇava-ācāra: (CC Madhya 22.87) "A Vaiṣṇava's behavior should be that he should give up the company of asat, nondevotee." That is his first business. He should give up the company of nondevotee. This is first business. Because he will be infected. Therefore we insist our students that "Don't go out." Even you are discomfortable, you should tolerate, but you should not go out of the society. Then you will surely fall down, surely fall down.

So there was a Mary contamination. What is that? Typhoid, yes. Wherever she used to go, there was typhoid fever, so many people suffering, but she was not suffering. So by analysis of the blood, it was found that this girl, the blood was full of typhoid germs, but she was so strong that she could resist. She was not suffering, but wherever she used to go, everyone was infected with typhoid.

Lecture on SB 6.1.44 -- Los Angeles, June 10, 1976:

There is a scientific story that one doctor friend, perhaps you know, the Dr. Ghosh who came. When he was student, he read in a medical magazine that one girl..., her name was Mary. So there was a Mary contamination. What is that? Typhoid, yes. Wherever she used to go, there was typhoid fever, so many people suffering, but she was not suffering. So by analysis of the blood, it was found that this girl, the blood was full of typhoid germs, but she was so strong that she could resist. She was not suffering, but wherever she used to go, everyone was infected with typhoid. So that is the explained. Kāraṇaṁ guṇa-saṅgo 'sya (BG 13.22). If you are strong enough, then the lower qualities will not affect you. And if you are not strong, if you are weak yourself, then where you are going to convert, they will induce their infectious quality, and you will be victimized. So kāraṇaṁ guṇa saṇgo 'sya. So in the Western countries, everywhere, all over the world at the present moment, Kali-yuga, the guṇa, the rajo-guṇa and tamo-guṇa, is very prominent. The rajo-guṇa... How it is understood that the rajo-guṇa, tamo-guṇa, is prominent? Now, the rajo-guṇa, tamo-guṇa, the symptom, rajas-tamo bhāvāḥ kāma-lobhadayaś ca ye... Tada rajas-tamo-bhāvāḥ kāma-lobhadayaś ca ye (SB 1.2.19). When one is infected with tamo-guṇa and rajo-guṇa, the symptoms will be that he is very greedy and lusty. This is the symptom. If one is very greedy and lusty, then you should know that he is infected with rajo-guṇa and tamo-guṇa. And if one is not greedy and lusty—satisfied in every circumstances, and is Kṛṣṇa conscious or trying to become Kṛṣṇa conscious—then it is sattva-guṇa. He is turned.

So by the culture of this Kṛṣṇa consciousness, one comes to the sattva-guṇa, the immediate effect, sattva-guṇa. Just like our students: little association with this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, they immediately come to the sattva-guṇa, at least officially. Although rajo-guṇa, tamo-guṇa, was there, but it overlaps.

1968 Conversations and Morning Walks

There was a story in a medical journal. "Typhoid Mary." Typhoid Mary... One girl, whenever she was present everyone was being infected with typhoid. Then she was examined, that she is full of typhoid germs. But she was immune. But she infected wherever she went.

Room Conversation -- July 16, 1968, Montreal:

Śivānanda(?): When do we become attracted? When do we begin to become attracted?

Prabhupāda: Forget that. You are attracted. That you take account of. When you become diseased, that is useless. You are diseased. Take medicine. There is no necessity of asking when you became diseased. You are diseased. Take medicine. That's all. What is the use of tracing the history? Everything has his history, that's all right. But my immediate necessity is that "I am diseased. I want to be cured. Give me some medicine." But there is history. The history is this. Just like disease. You have fallen victim of disease. That means you have given chance to the infection. That's all. That is the sum and substance of disease. You are infected with some disease. That means you have given chance for that infection. There was a story in a medical journal. "Typhoid Mary." Typhoid Mary... One girl, whenever she was present everyone was being infected with typhoid. Then she was examined, that she is full of typhoid germs. But she was immune. But she infected wherever she went. The medical journal reported. So we should be careful not being infected. And that how you can become free from infection? These four rules. "Don't have this, don't have this, don't have this, don't have this." Then you are free from infection. So you should be careful from being infected. There is no use tracing out the history when you become infected. You should not be infected. That should be your business. And as you are now infected, you try to avoid the causes of infection and take the medicine; you become cured.