Male sex organs from monitor lizards, called hemipenis, are being sold on online platforms Amazon, Ebay, Alibaba, Snapdeal and Etsy among others.
Scientists from World Animal Protection, working in conjunction with investigators and Manchester Metropolitan University have uncovered the fraud.
“Deceitful dealers claiming to sell holy plant root labelled as “Hatha Jodhi”, are in fact peddling dried lizard penis to their unwitting customers,” says Dr Neil D’Cruze, a lead scientist at World Animal Protection.
Buyers of the sex organs, according to reports, are mainly of Asian origin, who practice Tantric religious beliefs. The penis of a monitor lizard closely resembles the root of hatha jodhi, a rare species, believed by Tantric practitioners, if appropriately energised by a guru, can change a person’s life: bringing immense wealth and happiness.
The root of hatha jodhi resembles two hands joined in prayer – hence the beliefs that they bear divine providence. In a statement sent to our newsroom World Animal Protection said that the potential value of the lizard penises in the UK is about Sh6.6 million (£50,000).
Hatha Jodhi is only in remote areas of Nepal and Central India. So far, in Kenya, there haven’t been any confirmed purchases but that possibility has not been ruled out either. Kenyans can make purchases from many online market spaces – including Ebay and Alibaba.
Also, so far, there haven’t been any reports suggesting the harvesting of penises from Kenyan monitor lizards for sale anywhere.
According to the animal welfare body, any persons engaging in the trade will be breaking international laws as all Monitor lizards are Schedule I animals.
Lead investigator in India, Aniruddha Mookerjee, is quoted by the BBC saying that there is concern for the continued survival of the lizard species.
As part of its mandate, World Animal Protection has approached all major international online retailers, requesting that they remove all illegal Monitor lizard body parts currently being sold as ‘Hatha Jodhi’ from their websites.
