Hi. I posted a topic some time ago about ghosts and whether there is any scientific evidence of their existence. I was surprised when I saw that the majority of voters said that yes they believed in ghosts, but the majority of those who commented ridiculed the whole idea. See the thread here.

In this topic, I'm curious to find out whether sorcery/voodoo/witchcraft/magic is supported by any scientific evidence.

Please correct me if I'm wrong, this is what I understand: Some people claim that they can influence one's perceptions, and probably actions, through demonic intervention. Those 'sorcerers' claim that all they need is a piece from the victim, e.g. a hair or a nail. They they make a mysterious mixture with some sort of a spell. The end product supposedly will influence the victim, and this influence can be nullified if the mixture is found and dissolved or something like that.

I noticed that this idea is very very popular in some areas, e.g. southeast Asia and the Middle East. I made a quick search and found some links:

Magician with powers to heal, unite couples, find love nabbed (Kuwait)
http://www.arabtimesonline.com/NewsDetails...ed/Default.aspx

TV presenter gets death sentence for 'sorcery' (Saudi Arabia)
http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/meast/03/19/...arabia.sorcery/

Rumors of sorcery at an Indonesian university (Indonesia)
http://www.jstor.org/pss/20062742

Graveyard sorcery? (Malaysia)
http://www.malaysianmirror.com/homedetail/45/31120

Understanding Witchcraft and Sorcery in Southeast Asia
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Understan...e/9780824815158


Why does this idea seem VERY popular?????

only one anwser, NO

If such things exist then we wouldnt need to hire professional killers to kill a figure because we can kill them remotely.

Hard to say because we havent seen it, and most of them who has seen it arent credible because their wackoo,uneducated, delusional and the list goes on.

This post has been edited by ate: Apr 1 2010, 12:16 PM

It is ironic that people do not believe in sorcery today but can accept telepath, clairvoyance, psychic, and David Copperfield. If these people had lived in those times would they not be branded as a witch?

definitely NO....

David Copperfield is a magician, magic trick is nothing supernatural. it is just misdirection of your eye.

Back in the times when witches were at large misdirection of the eye would be deemed as witchcraft, Robert.

of course, it is all bullshit that they can summon supernatural power.

Well Robert, if you had those abilities back in the times that scientific knowledge was zero, you would throw in some mumble jumbo or hocus pocus to stand out in the crowd.

How about your beilef in clairvoyance, Robert. There is a good deal of people who can predict the future with some accuracy but they can see the future all the time. So they played it up. Seeming going in to trance ... But we dont call them witch craft. Some are called gypsies. In other societies shaman, bomoh, medium. Yet some who dont do mumbo jumbo scientiest just call them claivoyance.

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Added on April 1, 2010, 4:20 pmopps some correction in Full Cap

There is a good deal of people who can predict the future with some accuracy but they CAN'T see the future all the time. So they played it up. Seeming going in to trance ...

This post has been edited by faceless: Apr 1 2010, 04:20 PM

people that predict future made tons of prediction, some of them are correct by chance so they use it to prove that their can predict the future, all those failed prediction will not be mentioned again.

claivoyance have never been proven, there are million dollar offer for anyone can demonstrate a single reproducible psychic event, after 30 years no a single person have been able to claim that money.

This post has been edited by robertngo: Apr 1 2010, 04:45 PM

What is your nationality, by the way, Miss Apples?

If sorcery really work, why dont we see more of it? Instead of fixing football matches, why dont punters just resort to sorcery to influence the results they want and win lots of money that way. Or maybe its already happening just that we dont realise it?

Why bother with scientific explanation when practical explanations cant even be answered.

This post has been edited by teongpeng: Apr 2 2010, 12:00 AM

I couldn't have agree more. This is a nice piece of rebuttal.

People who comes up with many wrong prediction are just make educated guess. There are many analyst making hundreds of prediction on the economy. Robert would you consider Nostradamus to have prediction abilities?

no one could understand what Nostradamus is talking about in his book when it published, then people started to read into the book and come up with prediction for stuff that already happened, then the legend start growing on Nostradamus ability, but no one have predict any future event with Nostradamus's book.

If you make a general prediction, then wait for it to happen, it will happen. It's mix the words and match the event, generally you can find a pretty good match. In fact the prophecy will happen many times over, in the hands of believers, that proves their favorite deity.

It is VERY popular because it is of the unknown. What irritates me the most is that people swallow such claims so easily at such speed without investigating on the claims. Meh, people.

very well said...

In Penang there is an infamous self proclaimed ghost king that will do anything for money even killing using sorcery. Rumour that the police also dun dare to kacau him.

I offer one last resistance to this Robert. It would be a situation in which we can argue till we are blue to the face and we will still hold on to our own views. Hindsight is always 20-20. Foresight is always blurred.