Narendra Nayak
From Philosopedia
Narendra Nayak (1951 - )
A biochemistry teacher by profession, Narendra Nayak is known for his interest in investigating and exposing paranormal phenomena. As the secretary of the Dakshina Kannada Rationalist Association, he has spent three decades in the pursuit of paranormal phenomena. He is also a founder member of the Federation of Indian Rationalist Associations and was elected as its president in 2004.
Born to a Hindu, Gowda Saraswath Brahmin family of Mangalore, he spent the first decade of his life (that is, after he developed a memory), in play, studies and prayers to god, not necessarily in that order till he became wiser in the second decade. One of the important reasons for him to reject god was that he found prayer to be a one way conversation with the party at the other end never responding. After discovering the futility of prayer he turned his attention to the many other prevalent superstitions and found them to be equally, if not more, useless.
After graduating with a major in chemistry from Loyola College, Chennai, he worked for a few years as a technical assistant in a clinical biochemistry laboratory. He then went on to do his masters degree in medical biochemistry from the Kasturba Medical College, Manipal. His first feat after graduation was to initiate the rationalist movement in Dakshina Kannada district in 1976. Dakshina Kannada Rationalist Association, the organization that he started with a few interested individuals, continues to be one of the most active such organizations in the country.
Nayak has the credit of conducting thousands of miracle exposure programs all over India and in other countries too. He has been filmed by the Discovery channel, National Geographic, Australian TV, BBC and many others. In the state of Karnataka whenever any paranormal event is reported, the media seeks his opinion and explanations for it.
Typically, in his miracle exposure programs, he demonstrates the "miracles" of those who claim to have supernatural powers and provides the scientific explanation for them. The miracles of notorious godmen and godwomen like Satya Narayan Raju aka Satya Sai Baba, Yuri Gueller, Sudha Mani aka Mata Amritananda Mayi, and others, are performed and explained.
These campaigns have been conducted all over the country including the tribal areas which are notorious for burning of witches and such superstitions in collaboration with police. He has been also invited to a number of national conferences like the Indian Science Congress, Children’s Science Congress, and Teacher’s Science Conference.
The so-called miraculous occurrences that he has investigated and exposed include lamps burning without oil, psychic surgery, poltergeist phenomena, and other so-called miracles and paranormal phenomena.
Nayak has trained hundreds of volunteers in order to carry forward the movement and many of them are still active in the field. He has published innumerable articles on rationalism. He has also published books in Kannada about miracles and his research into paranormal phenomena and numerous articles about his investigations into paranormal phenomena. (101, Noel Park Microwave Station Road, Mangaore - 575 006) (mailto:narenyen@yahoo.co.in) (mailto:narenyen@gmail.com)
