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Modern Miracles
Describes paranormal phenomena of extraordinary variety and strength attributed to one of the most remarkable men of the century, Sathya Sai Baba, whose position is unique among India's holy men.
300 pages, Paperback
First published December 12, 1987
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July 5, 2023
A SERIES OF INTERVEWS SUPPORTING THE ‘MIRACLES’ OF SAI BABA
Icelandic social scientist Erlendur Haraldsson wrote in the Introduction to this 1987 book, “In Western investigations of psychics the main purpose and difficulty has always been to separate genuine phenomena from exaggerations and fraudulent imitations… research on such claims from India has been scanty… In fact, despite India’s legendary reputation, very few attempts have been made to investigate the supposed abilities of individual psychics. One of the reasons may be that the paranormal and the divine, miracles and religion, are closely interwoven in India… investigations of a swami’s alleged psychic feats border on the sacrilegious for many Indians, and this greatly complicates research efforts. In addition, both such an attitude and the religious setting can serve as a cloak of protection for fraudulent individuals against ‘doubting Thomases.’ We were therefore very aware of the difficulties involved in the investigation of claims of paranormal phenomena when we first heard about Sai Baba during a scientific project in India in 1972-1973.
“My colleague, Dr. [Karlis] Osis, and I were frequently told that astounding miracles abounded around a certain Sri Sathya Sai Baba… Many of these alleged miracles, we were told, resembled those we read about in the New Testament, such a multiplication of food, ‘changing of water into wine,’ wondrous healings, and the reading of a person’s innermost thoughts at a first meeting… Myths---unchecked rumors---are a solid part of the swami-scene in India, that I was keenly aware of through my previous acquaintance with the country. But the rumors … about Sai Baba far exceeded in magnitude and frequency all that I had known before. We were at that time working on a project in Northern India for the American Society for Psychical Research…
“[W]e had several long interviews with Sai Baba… The first visit led to another a year later. This time we were equipped for laboratory observations… the swami’s final words were that his powers were not for display,.. he continued … in allowing us to observe him ‘in action’ and also gave us … help in contacting people who had frequently observed his alleged miracles.. After our second trip to Sai Baba in 1975 the American Society for Psychical Research withdrew its support… I decided to continue the investigation alone… With Baba’s refusal to participate in experiments, the only way open was to embark upon extensive enquiries by interviewing a number of witnesses. These would be not only his followers and close associates, but also his critics and those who had left him for whatever reason…
“I made six further journeys to India, the first in 1976and the last in 1983… In four of these eight journeys I was accompanied by fellow researchers… I interviewed dozens of people who had known Sai Baba and observed his feats… I did my very best to trace critical rumors, in fact anything that I thought might throw some light on the nature of the perplexing phenomena that have made Sai Baba boldly affirm that ‘miracles are my visiting cards.’ This book is the result… The primary purpose of this book has been to report basic data and to the testimony of various witnesses.”
Karlis Osis wrote in the Foreword, “This book is a record of ten years’ work of a highly qualified European psychology professor trying hard to find reliable answers. It was not easy for him… Sleight of hand and other arts of the magician are well developed in India… as I have personally observed… Neither Haraldsson nor I were able to persuade Baba to participate in experiment. Nothing would have clinched the matter as well as, say, a week or two spent in the best psychological laboratories in the world, and that we offered. Nevertheless I could understand the reluctance of a religious leader of millions to submit to experimental protocol designed by people of different beliefs and cultures.
“In the absence of laboratory evidence Haraldsson states his reservations. In the Western tradition … nothing that has not withstood the controlled experiment is considered certain. Many social scientists, however, including myself, have later put more trust in observations of real-life events, which often reveal what the lab distorts. Haraldsson wisely presents all sides and asks intelligent readers to judge for themselves.” (Pg. 9-10)
In an early meeting with Baba, he seemingly produced ‘two rudrakshas grown together like an apricot stone.’ Haraldsson comments, “Magicians cannot produce objects by sleight of hand without prior preparation. Could Baba have planner to give me the double rudrakshas…? However, the incident seemed unprepared to both of us… We could not be sure either way.” (Pg. 26-27)
When Baba failed to show up for a meeting, he mused, “Had something unexpected come up? Or was he simply a capricious and whimsical personality spoiled by the constant adoration and subservience of his hordes of devotees? We found no answers to the enigmas of Sai Baba’s personality.” (Pg. 41)
Was hypnosis a factor? “Sai Baba has been filmed extensively while producing objects outdoors, and those present have reported seeing the same movements as were recorded on the film. Also, the objects that he produced for us … are still in our possession and were therefore not illusory. For these reasons we can reasonably reject the hypothesis of hypnosis as an explanation for the materializations.” (Pg. 50)
He summarizes, “There is no clear answer to the question of the genuineness of the phenomena… These are the points to be considered; The first point in favor of the paranormality … is Sai Baba’s lengthy history of producing objects apparently without being detected in fraud…. The second point concerns the variety of circumstances in which objects appear… The third point is that Sai Baba is reported to produce objects in response to specific situations or on demand. Stage magicians… have a fixed, limited repertoire of objects that they can produce… A fourth point … In India we met prominent scientists who had become convinced of the genuineness of the phenomena after having had the opportunity to observe Sain Baba extensively… [But] At least one magician has asserted that reputable scientists can be deceived by magicians’ tricks just as easily as the general public… Finally, one more point… we mat a British-trained dental surgeon … [who] told us in an interview that he has had numerous opportunities to observe Baba when producing objects… but that he has found no evidence of fraud.” (Pg. 52-54)
He did devote a chapter to one skeptic, Dr. H. Narasimhaiah, then vice-chancellor of [Bangalore] University, who has a Ph.D. in nuclear physics, and established a 12-member ‘Miracle Committee,’ but according to Haraldsson, “There never was any investigation of Baba, and Dr. Narasimhaiah never observed him produce or any object or exercise any of his alleged miraculous powers… And why did he come to the conclusion that Sai Baba is a fraud? ‘Firstly, he did not reply to my letters. Secondly, he did not give me an interview… I have my doubts because whatever objects he ‘creates’ … are always smaller than the size of his fist.’” (Pg. 203)
This book will hardly satisfy any skeptics; but those supporters of Sai Baba will probably find it interesting.
Icelandic social scientist Erlendur Haraldsson wrote in the Introduction to this 1987 book, “In Western investigations of psychics the main purpose and difficulty has always been to separate genuine phenomena from exaggerations and fraudulent imitations… research on such claims from India has been scanty… In fact, despite India’s legendary reputation, very few attempts have been made to investigate the supposed abilities of individual psychics. One of the reasons may be that the paranormal and the divine, miracles and religion, are closely interwoven in India… investigations of a swami’s alleged psychic feats border on the sacrilegious for many Indians, and this greatly complicates research efforts. In addition, both such an attitude and the religious setting can serve as a cloak of protection for fraudulent individuals against ‘doubting Thomases.’ We were therefore very aware of the difficulties involved in the investigation of claims of paranormal phenomena when we first heard about Sai Baba during a scientific project in India in 1972-1973.
“My colleague, Dr. [Karlis] Osis, and I were frequently told that astounding miracles abounded around a certain Sri Sathya Sai Baba… Many of these alleged miracles, we were told, resembled those we read about in the New Testament, such a multiplication of food, ‘changing of water into wine,’ wondrous healings, and the reading of a person’s innermost thoughts at a first meeting… Myths---unchecked rumors---are a solid part of the swami-scene in India, that I was keenly aware of through my previous acquaintance with the country. But the rumors … about Sai Baba far exceeded in magnitude and frequency all that I had known before. We were at that time working on a project in Northern India for the American Society for Psychical Research…
“[W]e had several long interviews with Sai Baba… The first visit led to another a year later. This time we were equipped for laboratory observations… the swami’s final words were that his powers were not for display,.. he continued … in allowing us to observe him ‘in action’ and also gave us … help in contacting people who had frequently observed his alleged miracles.. After our second trip to Sai Baba in 1975 the American Society for Psychical Research withdrew its support… I decided to continue the investigation alone… With Baba’s refusal to participate in experiments, the only way open was to embark upon extensive enquiries by interviewing a number of witnesses. These would be not only his followers and close associates, but also his critics and those who had left him for whatever reason…
“I made six further journeys to India, the first in 1976and the last in 1983… In four of these eight journeys I was accompanied by fellow researchers… I interviewed dozens of people who had known Sai Baba and observed his feats… I did my very best to trace critical rumors, in fact anything that I thought might throw some light on the nature of the perplexing phenomena that have made Sai Baba boldly affirm that ‘miracles are my visiting cards.’ This book is the result… The primary purpose of this book has been to report basic data and to the testimony of various witnesses.”
Karlis Osis wrote in the Foreword, “This book is a record of ten years’ work of a highly qualified European psychology professor trying hard to find reliable answers. It was not easy for him… Sleight of hand and other arts of the magician are well developed in India… as I have personally observed… Neither Haraldsson nor I were able to persuade Baba to participate in experiment. Nothing would have clinched the matter as well as, say, a week or two spent in the best psychological laboratories in the world, and that we offered. Nevertheless I could understand the reluctance of a religious leader of millions to submit to experimental protocol designed by people of different beliefs and cultures.
“In the absence of laboratory evidence Haraldsson states his reservations. In the Western tradition … nothing that has not withstood the controlled experiment is considered certain. Many social scientists, however, including myself, have later put more trust in observations of real-life events, which often reveal what the lab distorts. Haraldsson wisely presents all sides and asks intelligent readers to judge for themselves.” (Pg. 9-10)
In an early meeting with Baba, he seemingly produced ‘two rudrakshas grown together like an apricot stone.’ Haraldsson comments, “Magicians cannot produce objects by sleight of hand without prior preparation. Could Baba have planner to give me the double rudrakshas…? However, the incident seemed unprepared to both of us… We could not be sure either way.” (Pg. 26-27)
When Baba failed to show up for a meeting, he mused, “Had something unexpected come up? Or was he simply a capricious and whimsical personality spoiled by the constant adoration and subservience of his hordes of devotees? We found no answers to the enigmas of Sai Baba’s personality.” (Pg. 41)
Was hypnosis a factor? “Sai Baba has been filmed extensively while producing objects outdoors, and those present have reported seeing the same movements as were recorded on the film. Also, the objects that he produced for us … are still in our possession and were therefore not illusory. For these reasons we can reasonably reject the hypothesis of hypnosis as an explanation for the materializations.” (Pg. 50)
He summarizes, “There is no clear answer to the question of the genuineness of the phenomena… These are the points to be considered; The first point in favor of the paranormality … is Sai Baba’s lengthy history of producing objects apparently without being detected in fraud…. The second point concerns the variety of circumstances in which objects appear… The third point is that Sai Baba is reported to produce objects in response to specific situations or on demand. Stage magicians… have a fixed, limited repertoire of objects that they can produce… A fourth point … In India we met prominent scientists who had become convinced of the genuineness of the phenomena after having had the opportunity to observe Sain Baba extensively… [But] At least one magician has asserted that reputable scientists can be deceived by magicians’ tricks just as easily as the general public… Finally, one more point… we mat a British-trained dental surgeon … [who] told us in an interview that he has had numerous opportunities to observe Baba when producing objects… but that he has found no evidence of fraud.” (Pg. 52-54)
He did devote a chapter to one skeptic, Dr. H. Narasimhaiah, then vice-chancellor of [Bangalore] University, who has a Ph.D. in nuclear physics, and established a 12-member ‘Miracle Committee,’ but according to Haraldsson, “There never was any investigation of Baba, and Dr. Narasimhaiah never observed him produce or any object or exercise any of his alleged miraculous powers… And why did he come to the conclusion that Sai Baba is a fraud? ‘Firstly, he did not reply to my letters. Secondly, he did not give me an interview… I have my doubts because whatever objects he ‘creates’ … are always smaller than the size of his fist.’” (Pg. 203)
This book will hardly satisfy any skeptics; but those supporters of Sai Baba will probably find it interesting.
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