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The Magic Banana: Sliced by a Jinn?
In September 2026, a “healer” in Malappuram auctioned a banana that a jinn had sliced inside without cutting the peel. Then villagers brought their own banana. Learn the trick with a toothpick, and the simple test that made the magic disappear. A Young Skeptics activity for ages 9–14, with a printable worksheet. Try the activity…
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The 1995 Milk Miracle:Can a Statue Drink?
On 21 September 1995, statues across India seemed to drink milk, and millions queued to watch. Where did all the milk really go? With a spoon, a white figure and a little colour, solve the mystery that fooled a whole nation. A Young Skeptics activity for ages 9–14, with a printable worksheet. Try the activity…
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Weeping Idols
Reports of weeping idols have been rampant throughout history, where they were viewed as portents foretelling misfortune. B. Premanand exposes these tricks by detailing how the illusion relies on simple fluid mechanics: a hollow idol or crown is filled with water, sealed with wax, and secretly unsealed, allowing gravity and surface tension to release tears.
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Charvaka and the Tradition of Dissent
A Review of Wendy Doniger’s Beyond DharmaBy reading Beyond Dharma through a skeptical and rationalist lens, the reviewer reframes Wendy Doniger’s survey of dissent into a focused study of Indian materialism. What Doniger treats as an intriguing chapter becomes, in this review, the logical culmination of ancient skepticism—where practical statecraft and pleasure give way to radical epistemology.
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Ramar’s Herbal Petrol:Oil From Leaves?
In 1996, a man in Tamil Nadu claimed he could turn leaves and water into petrol, and even ministers watched his show. Using cooking oil, a straw and a little butter, recreate his trick safely, and learn the test that exposed it. A Young Skeptics activity for ages 9–14, with a worksheet. Try the activity…
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The Pendulum That Knows the Answer
A ring on a thread swings “yes” or “no”. People use it to find lost things, choose medicines and even predict a baby’s sex. Nobody seems to push it. So who does? With a thread, a ring and a blind test, discover the surprising answer. A Young Skeptics activity for ages 9–14. Try the activity…
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The Balloon That Won’t Burst
A man hands out balloons and needles, and every balloon goes BANG. Then he slowly pushes a needle into his own balloon, and nothing happens. “My mind protects it,” he says. Can you find his secret and do the trick yourself? A Young Skeptics activity for ages 9–14, with a printable worksheet. Try the activity…
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An Activist’s Guide to The Demon-Haunted World
Carl Sagan’s 1995 masterwork, The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark, stands as one of the most vital manifestos for critical thinking ever written. While framed around scientific skepticism, its message is profoundly radical: without the tools to spot deception, question authority, and resist pseudoscience, a society cannot remain free.
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Modi Sarkar: Unfolding of Hindutva Agenda
Ram Puniyani’s new e-book offers a critical assessment of the Modi administration’s initial tenure. It contrasts political rhetoric with reality, detailing economic shortcomings, rising social intolerance, and the RSS-led push for Hindu nationalism, while highlighting the regime’s impact on India’s pluralist and democratic ethos. Click through to read the full analysis
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The Chemistry of the Amulet’s ‘Holy Ash
Beyond divine claims lies aggressive chemical reaction. When sacred amulets heat up and spontaneously yield “holy ash,” basic metallurgy—not miraculous force—is at play. Through single displacement, oxide layer disruption, and rapid oxidation, simple chemistry creates intense heat and grey residue. Discover the scientific mechanics exposing this illusion, alongside its severe chemical hazards.
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The Ouija Board’s ‘Spirit Messages’
The Practice: The Ouija Board — Science versus Miracles — Charvaka.net Science versus Miracles Deconstructing Supernatural Claims T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S 01The Practice: The Ouija Board 02 The Experiment • Effect • Materials • Method 03The Science Behind the Illusion ⚠️ Exploitation…
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Water Divining with a Y-shaped Twig
Introduction In this brief expository piece, B. Premanand demystifies the ancient practice of water dowsing using a Y-shaped twig. He reveals how apparent psychic abilities are actually governed by the ideomotor response—unconscious muscle movements triggered by environmental cues—and explains how water diviners exploit natural surface indicators to simulate supernatural water detection.
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Pendulum Dowsing and Ideomotor Response
In this hands-on demonstration, B. Premanand illustrates how simple subconscious focus can trigger physical movement through the ideomotor response. By guiding readers through a classic pendulum experiment, he reveals how micro-muscular contractions—amplified by a simple thread—generate apparent mysteries, debunking the supernatural claims behind pendulum dowsing, water divining, and Ouija boards.
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Curing Jaundice by Psychic Power
In this exposé, B. Premanand unmasks a widespread medical hoax where faith healers claim to extract jaundice using spiritual powers. By demonstrating how simple mustard oil mechanically emulsifies with saliva to produce a thick, bile-like liquid, he exposes the chemical illusion behind the fraud and highlights the urgent need for scientific temper in healthcare choices.
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Shakuntala Devi, the Human Computer
B. Premanand demystifies the phenomenon of “human computers,” focusing on famed mental calculator Shakuntala Devi. By highlighting how rapid calculations depend on specialized algorithmic shortcuts and heuristics rather than supernatural abilities, the article explores the boundaries of mental math and encourages readers to evaluate extraordinary claims through a scientific lens.
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Psychic Surgery
In this exposé, B. Premanand dismantles the fraudulent practice of “psychic surgery,” where healers claim to extract diseased organs bare-handed. By revealing how sleight-of-hand, hidden animal blood, and folded skin create a graphic illusion, the article exposes the grave dangers this medical hoax poses to vulnerable patients seeking genuine, life-saving care.
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Should RSS Volunteers be permitted to join Government Services?
The debate over allowing government employees to participate in RSS activities strikes at the core of Indian democracy. Central to a functional parliamentary system is a politically neutral civil service. Permitting bureaucratic involvement in an organization with explicit political ambitions risks the systematic communalization of the state apparatus, directly threatening the impartial, secular administration guaranteed…
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Is Astrology a Science?
Stars do not care, nor do distant planets shape human destinies. Long severed from real astronomy, astrology remains frozen in ancient ignorance—rejecting the light of modern discovery and the fundamental laws of cause and effect. Beneath its scientific veneer lies a static, closed dogma that mistakes celestial illusion for cosmic power while life’s infinite complexities…
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A World Gripped by the Cancer of Terror
Behind the global epidemic of terror lies a double-edged sword: imperial geopolitics and domestic fundamentalism. From gun violence in America to religious extremism across South Asia, mass violence is rarely about divine faith. Instead, toxic political forces systematically weaponize religion—twisting spiritual traditions into authoritarian tools to enforce social hierarchy, gain power, and mask economic greed.
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March to Jantar Mantar
Justice for Dabholkar, Pansare, and KalburgiA national and international protest campaign titled “Against Violence, Towards Humanity,” will be launched in Delhi on July 20, 2016, and run until August 20, 2016. The campaign will conclude in Pune on August 20, 2016, with a mass demonstration joined by all like-minded organizations. We urge everyone to participate in this protest with full…
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Goddess Drinking Blood
Beneath sacred rituals lies simple natural science. When tricksters claim a deity consumes blood from a dish, physical laws—not divine appetite—are at work. Thermal expansion, oxygen depletion, and atmospheric pressure cause the liquid to rise inside the vessel. This experiment demonstrates how air pressure differentials create a vacuum, transforming a mystical illusion into observable physics.
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Licking a red-hot poker
Beyond mystical claims lies observable physics. When performers touch red-hot iron without harm, natural thermal principles—not divine immunity—are at play. Through rapid contact, moisture barriers, and steam cushions, physical laws temporarily slow heat transfer. Discover the scientific mechanics behind this classic illusion, along with the extreme hazards that make it dangerously deceptive.