Indian village where children as young as two are taught to be snake charmers

[mercurial]

It’s the one classroom where everyone’s paying attention at the back.

Being a few feet away from a poisonous snake has a wonderful way of concentrating the mind.

Six-year-old Rekha Bae – like all children in the 600-strong nomadic Vadi tribe in western India – will have first been introduced to cobras at the age of two.

All Vadi children complete a ten-year initiation ritual that culminates in the boys becoming fully-fledged performing snake charmers.

Divided between the sexes, the act of snake charming with traditional flute is the role of the men, while the Vadi women care for the snakes and handle them when their husbands or brothers are not around.

'The training begins at two, the children then are then taught the ancient ways of snake charming until they are ready to take up their roles in our community,' said chief snake charmer Babanath Mithunath Madari, 60.

'At twelve the children will know everything that they can know about snakes.'

More...

 

[blunomore]

I met a real life snake charmer in Goa in 2004. Nice to see it happen in front of you

 

[krycor]

woah

 

[RazedInBlack]

Mind controlling a snake! Grrrrrrrrrrrr.

 

[Ou grote]

Read this somewhere...
They sew the snakes mouth closed, so no danger there.
Snakes don't listen to the flute, they are mesmerised by the charmer's foot tapping.

 

[RazedInBlack]

Read this somewhere...
They sew the snakes mouth closed, so no danger there.
Snakes don't listen to the flute, they are mesmerised by the charmer's foot tapping.

Hmmmm! Thought as much!

 

[blunomore]

Read this somewhere...
They sew the snakes mouth closed, so no danger there.
Snakes don't listen to the flute, they are mesmerised by the charmer's foot tapping.

Hmmmm! Thought as much!

It's mouth is not sewn shut alf!

It's fangs are removed and the snake sways in the same way as the snake charmer is swaying his flute to and fro whilst playing.

I posted one of the pics I took in Goa on the board before - here it is: http://mybroadband.co.za/photos/showphoto.php/photo/8041/ppuser/34306

 

[Empiricism Philosopher]

Thank you come again!

 

[Ou grote]

It's mouth is not sewn shut alf!

It's fangs are removed and the snake sways in the same way as the snake charmer is swaying his flute to and fro whilst playing.

I posted one of the pics I took in Goa on the board before - here it is: http://mybroadband.co.za/photos/showphoto.php/photo/8041/ppuser/34306

Yes, they remove the fangs as well.
Point is, that it's b.s and not dangerous..
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snake_charming

More drastic means of protection include removing the creature's fangs or venom glands, or even sewing the snake's mouth shut. The most popular species are those native to the snake charmer's home region, typically various kinds of cobras, though vipers and other types are also used.

 

[Empiricism Philosopher]

Still a waste of time imo*

 

[Sensorei]

Still a waste of time imo*

Hey they gotta make money somehow... Beats being a nuisance car guard.