Hilarious TV event in India

Post by **_Tarski** » Sun Mar 16, 2008 5:52 pm

http://www.rationalistinternational.net ... /en_1.html

Post by **_Mercury** » Sun Mar 16, 2008 6:14 pm

The original discussion program should have ended here, but the “breaking news” of the ongoing great tantra challenge was overrunning all program schedules.

Heh. wow.

Post by **_Chap** » Sun Mar 16, 2008 6:37 pm

Well, this guy just didn't have the Power of the Priesthood. Now if he had been an LDS Tantrik ...

The seriously LDS-relevant point here is the way the 'tantrik' was drawn into more and more reckless promises, rather than just ducking out with some excuse like the 'protected a by powerful god' business.

He must have had a modicum of belief in his own nonsense. if he was a completely conscious fraud, then he would never have accepted the challenge to demonstrate his powers in public. I think we can see something like the same process at work when the Egyptian mummies and their accompanying papyri show up in town. Joseph Smith's followers embarrassingly buy the papyri, and confidently expect their prophet to translate them.

Now a more cautious man would have said something like "I can only translate Reformed Egyptian" or "I can only translate stuff when God wants me to". But Joseph Smith took the risk, perhaps fortified by a belief that he really was a prophet, produced the Book of Abraham - and didn't get found out for over a century and a half. Pretty good going - better than the tantrik guy, certainly. No TV in those days, of course.

Post by **_Moniker** » Sun Mar 16, 2008 7:31 pm

Ha! I love it!

My favs:

After nearly two hours, the anchor declared the tantrik’s failure. The tantrik, unwilling to admit defeat, tried the excuse that a very strong god whom Sanal might be worshipping obviously protected him. “No, I am an atheist,” said Sanal Edamaruku.

Only seven more minutes before midnight, the tantrik decided to use his ultimate weapon: the clod of wheat flour dough.

tee hee -- I'll never think of wheat flour dough in the same way! :)

Post by **_moksha** » Sun Mar 16, 2008 9:31 pm

I am glad that the scientists did not have to cross the matter streams on that dough.

Rational science locked and loaded

Post by **_cinepro** » Mon Mar 17, 2008 9:08 pm

The tantrik's first and last mistake was agreeing to the challenge in the first place. He must have been sick the day they taught the "Never try to prove yourself on live TV" lesson at tantrik school.

If he was smart, he should have accused Sanal of being an adulterer, saying "Everyone who needs a sign is an adulterer." For added effect, he could have someone there in the studio shout out "It is true. I saw Sanal with another woman just last night!" Cut to commercial...

Post by **_Tarski** » Mon Mar 17, 2008 9:20 pm

cinepro wrote:The tantrik's first and last mistake was agreeing to the challenge in the first place. He must have been sick the day they taught the "Never try to prove yourself on live TV" lesson at tantrik school.

If he was smart, he should have accused Sanal of being an adulterer, saying "Everyone who needs a sign is an adulterer." For added effect, he could have someone there in the studio shout out "It is true. I saw Sanal with another woman just last night!" Cut to commercial...

hah! So true

Post by **_Dr. Shades** » Mon Mar 17, 2008 9:44 pm

cinepro wrote:If he was smart, he should have accused Sanal of being an adulterer, saying "Everyone who needs a sign is an adulterer."

Hmm, VERY interesting. I hadn't thought of it that way.

Food for thought. . .