Filipino Psychic Surgery

Superior Essays
The widespread popularity of psychic surgeons makes the Philippines a metaphorical goldmine for research on the validity of the practice as well as its’ psychological and social aspects within the general public. In another investigative journal of Filipino psychic surgery, titled “‘Psychic Surgery’: Close Observation of a Popular Healing Practice”, written by Philip Singer, many of the trickery that these “surgeons” use is revealed. They noted how the operator would use clever angles and lighting techniques to assist with the optical illusion of making his hand appear to pierce the patient without actually doing so. The practitioner would then “remove harmful debris” from the patient 's body while leaving no openings in the flesh. When in reality these foreign items in the …show more content…
The evidence from these investigations strongly suggests the use of fakery and illusions. The idea of these surgeries is no longer a matter of much debate. In 1993, a documentary was published with the title: Secrets of the Psychics. The film features ex magician and master illusionist James Randi, a man who is well known for his track record of testing and debunking a publicly falsify the abilities of a multitude of false psychics and scam artists alike. A particular clip in this documentary shows him demonstrating a “psychic surgery” where he successfully creates the illusion of piercing a man’s stomach and pulling out a chicken gizzard with the simple technique of dramatic physical acting combined with the right angle and animal blood to simulate realism. By doing this, he expertly demonstrates the fact that psychic surgeries are merely a trick that anyone can perform. James Randi goes on to tackle another form of fraudulent

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