Abstract
The mass media have occasionally been reporting miracles such as stone idols sipping milk or bleeding in India. The author argues for viewing such irrational happenings as the examples of the social psychological phenomenon of conformity to the group norms (i.e., informal, unwritten prescriptions of what the group might think to be right and desirable). By identifying people as likely (1) sources of accurate information and (2) standards of desirable behaviors in a given situation, it is proposed that a shift from conformity to the norms to compliance to the laws might be helpful in building a New India.
Highlights
Academics from the Indian Institute of miracles such as stone idols sipping milk or bleeding in India
In the early morning of September 21, 1995, a Hindu priest in the temple of Lord Ganesh in New Delhi witnessed the stone idol sipping milk from a spoon. Those who heard of the miracle rushed to their adjacent temples across India and observed the same
Comparable miracles have recently been reported in case of idols in other temples as illustrated by the following news: Savan 2019 Miracle in Lord Shiva Temple Nandi and Ganesh Idol Drink Milk
Summary
One can determine one’s height through a measuring tape and weight through a weighing machine. These yardsticks supposedly provide accurate information about physical reality. The Constitution of India envisages developing “the scientific temper [emphasis added]... The spirit of inquiry and reform [emphasis added]” as one of the fundamental duties of the people of Republic of India Does the news about stone or metal idols sip milk qualify to be a Should one worship Lord Shiva or Vishnu? If the phenomenon is different from the news reports or the individual beliefs, how can social scientific inquiry unravel its possible mechanisms and inform subsequent social reforms and policy intervention in India? Phenomenon? If the phenomenon is different from the news reports or the individual beliefs, how can social scientific inquiry unravel its possible mechanisms and inform subsequent social reforms and policy intervention in India?
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