Magic is myth for this rationalist professor

An invitation to set up a rationalist association in distant Greece hardly surprised Mangalore-based Prof Narendra Nayak who has been campaigning against superstition all his life.

Since 1976, as the secretary of Dakshina Kannada Rationalist Association (DKRA), Nayak has been assiduously promoting atheism through education.

Ever since he was made president of the Federation of Indian Rationalist Associations (FIRA), an apex body of 50 rationalist associations, this senior rationalist’s mission has been taking him places.

An assistant professor of bio-chemistry at the Centre for Basic Sciences in Kasturba Medical College (KMC), Nayak landed in Greece in November. After a few days of ‘counselling’ on a cult ‘Radhaswamy Sat Sangh Bihas’, he set up the Greek Rationalist Association.

He travelled from Greece to England and with help of the Asian community there set up an Asian Rationalist Society of Britain (ARSB). Travelling extensively, he conducted ‘demonstrative lectures’ on superstitions at Birmingham, Leicester and Derbyshire.

Do not such programmes reinforce the West’s perception of Indians as rustics forever wallowing in superstition? Prof Nayak disagrees. True to its objective to develop a scientific temper and humanism, FIRA is not popularising myths but denigrating them showing that acts like swallowing fire can be done by anyone.

“I am also highlighting the fact that my country is culturally rich with an ancient history and wonderful people,” he asserts.

The mission to spread rational thought led Prof Nayak to visit Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal and Orissa soon after his return. He visited a tribal belt at Itarsi in MP and interacted with ‘sapheres’ (branded as criminal tribes) on demystifying miracles.

He held a lecture demonstration on ‘fire walking’ at the Army Ammunition Training Centre in Mirzapur.

Following a request from the Sundargarh Superintendent of Police, Prof Nayak exposed the methods behind black magic to over 1,000 tribals.