NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Basava Premanand

Basava Premanand is an eminent skeptic and rationalist from Tamil Nadu, India. Image File history File links COURTESY WWW.CICAP.ORG File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File links COURTESY WWW.CICAP.ORG File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Tamil Nadu (தமிழ் நாடு, Land of the Tamils) is a state at the southern tip of India. ...

History

Premanand was born in the year 1930 in Kozhikode, Kerala. His parents were followers of Theosophical movement. , For the district with the same name, see Kozhikode District. ... , Kerala ( ; Malayalam: à´•àµ‡à´°à´³à´‚; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of southwestern India. ... Seal of the Theosophical Society Theosophy is a body of belief which holds that all religions are attempts by man to ascertain the Divine, and as such each religion has a portion of the truth. ...

Around 1975 Premanand started publicly denounced the Indian godman, Sathya Sai Baba, and now devotes his life to expose the godmen and paranormal phenomena.^[1] Year 1975 (MCMLXXV) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Sathya Sai Baba (born Sathyanarayana Raju on November 23, 1926,[1][2] or later than 1927 â€” with the family name of Ratnakara) is a guru from southern India, religious leader, orator and philosopher often described as a godman[3][4] and a miracle worker. ... // Paranormal is an umbrella term used to describe a wide variety of reported anomalous phenomena. ...

Originally an amateur magician and uses these skills in an attempt to give a natural explanation of the alleged miracles of gurus and godmen. Since 1976 his most famous target is Sathya Sai Baba.^[1] This article does not cite any references or sources. ... A miracle, derived from the old Latin word miraculum meaning something wonderful, is a striking interposition of divine intervention by a God in the universe by which the ordinary course and operation of Nature is overruled, suspended, or modified. ... Sathya Sai Baba (born Sathyanarayana Raju on November 23, 1926,[1][2] or later than 1927 â€” with the family name of Ratnakara) is a guru from southern India, religious leader, orator and philosopher often described as a godman[3][4] and a miracle worker. ...

Premanand was arrested in 1986 by the police for marching, together with 500 volunteers towards Puttaparthi, the town where the main ashram of the guru is located. In the same year he sued Sathya Sai Baba for violation of the Gold Control Act for Sathya Sai Baba's materializations of gold objects. The case was dismissed, but Premanand appealed on the ground that spiritual power is not a defence recognised in law.^[1] Puttaparthi is the birth place and abode of Bhagwan Sathya Sai Baba. ... An Ashram (Pronounced aashram) in ancient India was a Hindu hermitage where sages (See Rishi) lived in peace and tranquility amidst nature. ... A materialization is the creation or appearance of matter from nowhere and out of nothing. ...

He later founded the Federation of Indian Rationalist Associations, which tours the villages of India to educate people by debunking gurus and fakirs whom he considers frauds or self deceived.^[1] He also is the convener of Indian CSICOP, a Tamil Nadu based skeptic group which is an affiliate of CSICOP. He is the owner-publisher-editor of the monthly magazine, The Indian Skeptic, which "publishes articles on the scientific investigation of apparently paranormal occurrences with a special emphasis on cases from India". Federation of Indian Rationalist Associations (FIRA)is an umbrella body of about 65 rationalist, atheist, skeptic, secularist and science organisations in India. ... A fakir or faqir (Arabic: ÙÙ‚ÛŒØ± poor) is a Sufi, especially one who performs feats of endurance or apparent magic. ... Self-deception is a process of denying or rationalizing away the relevance, significance, or importance of opposing evidence and logical argument. ... Indian CSICOP is a well-known rationalist group based at Podannur, Tamil Nadu, India. ... Tamil Nadu (தமிழ் நாடு, Land of the Tamils) is a state at the southern tip of India. ... The Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal, or CSICOP, is an organization formed to encourage open minded, critical investigation of paranormal and pseudoscientific claims from a responsible, scientific point of view. ...

Described by BBC as India's leading guru buster^[1], Basava Premanand has "been honoured by the government with its highest award for the promotion of scientific values among the public."^[2] The British Broadcasting Corporation, which is usually known as the BBC, is the largest broadcasting corporation in the world in terms of audience numbers, employing 26,000 staff in the United Kingdom alone and with a budget of more than GBÂ£4 billion. ...

The Challenge of Basava Premanand

In 1963, Abraham Kovoor offered an award of INR 100,000 for anyone who could demonstrate supernatural or miraculous powers under fool-proof and fraud-proof conditions. After the death of Abraham Kovoor in 1978, Basava Premanand continued his challenge by offering INR 100,000 to any person who would demonstrate any psychic, supernatural of paranormal ability of any kind under satisfactory observing conditions. The challenge remains uncontested. Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 450 Ã— 600 pixelsFull resolution (1944 Ã— 2592 pixel, file size: 616 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Photograph of Basava Premanand taken by MANOJTV on 12 May 2007 at the residence of Premanands sister, in Bangalore File history Legend: (cur) = this... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 450 Ã— 600 pixelsFull resolution (1944 Ã— 2592 pixel, file size: 616 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Photograph of Basava Premanand taken by MANOJTV on 12 May 2007 at the residence of Premanands sister, in Bangalore File history Legend: (cur) = this... Abraham Thomas Kovoor (April 10, 1898 - September 18, 1978) was a Keralite Indian professor and Rationalist who gained prominence after retirement for his campaign to expose as frauds various Indian god-men and so-called paranormal phenomena. ... In the year 1963, Abraham Kovoor declared an award of Rs. ...

Criticism

Basava Premanand has been accused of making outrageous and baseless claims. "^[3]

Books/Pamphlets authored by Premanand

In English

In Malayalam

See also

There are many individuals and groups past and present that offer money for proof of the paranormal in an observable setting. ... Prabir Ghosh is the head of the Science and Rationalistsâ€™ Association of India, based in Kolkata. ... An astrological chart (or horoscope) _ Y2K Chart — This particular chart is calculated for January 1, 2000 at 12:01:00 A.M. Eastern Standard Time in New York City, New York, USA. (Longitude: 074W0023 - Latitude: 40N4251) Astrology (from Greek: αστρολ&#959... Narendra Nayak Narendra Nayak is a well known rationalist from Mangalore, Karnataka, India. ...

References

The British Broadcasting Corporation, which is usually known as the BBC, is the largest broadcasting corporation in the world in terms of audience numbers, employing 26,000 staff in the United Kingdom alone and with a budget of more than GBÂ£4 billion. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... February 24 is the 55th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

Categories: Indian skeptics | Critics of Sathya Sai Baba | Rationalism | Atheist thinkers and activists | Indian atheists | Prizes for proof of paranormal phenomena Sathya Sai Baba (born Sathyanarayana Raju on November 23, 1926,[1][2] or later than 1927 â€” with the family name of Ratnakara) is a guru from southern India, religious leader, orator and philosopher often described as a godman[3][4] and a miracle worker. ... This article is about Sai Baba of Shirdi, an Indian saint who lived from the mid-19th to the early 20th century. ... Prema Sai Baba will be the male reincarnation of Shakti in the 21st century according to the prediction by the Indian guru Sathya Sai Baba (hereafter abbreviated as SSB). ... It has been suggested that Sathya Sai Baba be merged into this article or section. ... The Sathya Sai Organisation is the organisation founded by Sathya Sai Baba . ... The Sri Sathya Sai University (formerly Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning) is the university founded by Sathya Sai Baba, under Section 3 of the UGC Act of 1956. ... Bibliography of Sathya Sai Baba Note: the books often do not mention year of publication. ... Prasanthi Nilayam is the name of the main ashram of the Indian guru Sathya Sai Baba located in the town Puttaparthi. ... Puttaparthi is the birth place and abode of Bhagwan Sathya Sai Baba. ... Sai Global Harmony is a WorldSpace digital satellite radio channel airing discourses, bhajans by/on Sathya Sai Baba of Puttaparthi, India. ... Sanathana Sarathi is the name of the official monthly magazine of the Sathya Sai Organisation, published by the Sri Sathya Sai Books and Publications Trust, named after the title for Krishna. ... Shrinivas Sugandhalaya is an Indian manufacturer and exporter of incense. ... Bill Aitken (William McKay Aitken) is a Scottish born, naturalized Indian writer and traveller. ... Vladimir Antonov, Ph. ... Joan Brown was the mother of Alan Alda. ... Alice Coltrane (b. ... Walter Maynard Ferguson (May 4, 1928 â€“ August 23, 2006) was a Canadian jazz trumpet player and bandleader. ... Dahlia Gillespie (1949- ) is a British actress and singer. ... Erlendur Haraldsson is a Professor emeritus Faculty of social science at the University of Iceland who, despite having retired from his former post at the University of Iceland, continues to be an active academic. ... This biographical article does not cite any references or sources. ... Professor Narayana Kasturi: [1]He was born in North Travancore. ... Girija Prasad Koirala at the UN Summit Girija Prasad Koirala (born 1921) is the incumbent Prime Minister of Nepal. ... Image:Murphett. ... Pamulaparthi Venkata Narasimha Rao (Telugu: ) (28 June 1921 â€“ 23 December 2004) was the twelfth Prime Minister of the Republic of India[1] and led one of the most important administrations in Indias modern history overseeing a major economic transformation and several incidents affecting national security. ... Arnold Schulman (born August 11, 1925 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - ) is an American screenwriter and producer. ... Isaac Tigrett (born 1947) is a native of Jackson, Tennessee. ... This biographical article does not cite any references or sources. ... Shivraj Patil outside the Indian Parliament Shivraj Patil is the Union Home Minister in the Manmohan Singh government. ... Motilal Vora is a former chief minister of Madhya Pradesh and a former governor of Uttar Pradesh . ... Tal Brooke (born as Robert Taliaferro Brooke) is the chairperson of the Spiritual Counterfeits Project, a Christian countercult and apologetics organization. ... Abraham Thomas Kovoor (April 10, 1898 - September 18, 1978) was a Keralite Indian professor and Rationalist who gained prominence after retirement for his campaign to expose as frauds various Indian god-men and so-called paranormal phenomena. ... Dr. H. Narasimhaiah Dr. H. Narasimhaiah (6 June 1920 â€” 31 January 2005) was a physicist, eminent educator, freedom fighter and rationalist from Bangalore. ... Robert Priddy (born 1936) is the British author of the book Source of the Dream - My Way to Sathya Sai Baba, a book about the Indian guru Sathya Sai Baba. ...

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