We have reached the Moon. We have sent orbiters around most of the planets of our solar system. We have mathematical laws of nature which agrees with experiment up to one part in \(10^{13}\), we also have theories which shall be called as facts (since they are widely accepted in scientific community) like evolution and the big bang. Even then the philosophy of cause and effect is yet to reach the minds of large number of people.
Not in just ordinary workplaces, even in academic settings people wear crystal rings, threads, chains in hopes of getting protection from all sorts of fictitious devil which does not even exist in our nature. People praying and are taking shower in holy river during solar eclipse in hopes of protecting their almighty god (Sun). People consulting "saints" in order to get medical/financial/educational/career/relationship problems resolved. The fear of unknown future often creates anxiety in such people and such problems are often resolved via consulting astrologers, tarot card readers, and other similar people claiming to reveal the future and change it by wearing their costly crystals or by some other methods. These are just few of the many practices which fall under the category of superstitions.
The rise of digital world have made it easier for the 'thugs' to offer such fake promises online with heavy fee that too in the age of unemployment. This "business" of fear is rising day by day. The ignorance of inner working of natural world have created a trillion dollar fraud industries (ex. Homeopathy, astrology) around the world.
There could be many reasons to have belief in thaumaturgy.
One of the major reasons of its presence could be due to family members and friends who themselves believes in these things. The statement often tossed around "Many people can't be wrong" is an huge assumption based on the thinking that the older believers might have found some evidence of such supernatural stuff, and that's why they are believing for thousands of years. We must ask- Since when the custom and traditions makes something true?
Sharing common belief helps to bond better with their parents and friends. The reason could be biological or sociological in nature and that is why it is very hard to let go of such beliefs.
Why would someone discard their beliefs, if it provides them the psychological benefits? Little did they know that it is just a placebo effect. It becomes hard to not believe in these hokas-pokas if they have little psychological benefits to us. But the danger of having such beliefs creates more anxiety and fear by assuming anything can happen in this world regardless of its natural laws.
What would you do if you are sick; you go to a doctor. Similarly, if you want to know about natural world: what it is made up of, how does it functions, what it does not have and all sorts of similar doubts shall be cleared from a physicist rather than from a "baba".
I believe that the biggest reasons of believe in thaumaturgy is due to religion. Their belief in supernatural starts right from there. We don't choose religion and race; we just inherit it from our parents. I am sure that if all of us were given a choice of choosing one; we would have chosen to be a person with scientific temper.
It is very hard to change someone if their beliefs are deep rooted for various reasons mentioned above. It takes empathy and kindness as opposed to the arrogance of "I know better" in order to free them from such beliefs. It is very slow process which we all ourselves have to go through in accepting the nature the way it is.
The very acts of superstitions shall be ignored by each one of us, since the younger generation is watching us. Moreover, rejection of such beliefs requires courage, knowledge of inner workings of this nature, ready to face isolation from believers, and presence of skeptic mind to put everything under scrutiny.
I would like to recite sayings of the first scientist:
“The seeker after truth is not one who studies the writings of the ancients and, following his natural disposition, puts his trust in them," the first scientist wrote, "but rather the one who suspects his faith in them and questions what he gathers from them, the one who submits to argument and demonstration and not the sayings of human beings whose nature is fraught with all kinds of imperfection and deficiency. Thus the duty of the man who investigates the writings of scientists, if learning the truth is his goal, is to make himself an enemy of all that he reads, and, applying his mind to the core and margins of of its content, attack it from every side. He should also suspect himself as he performs his critical examination of it, so that he may avoid falling into either prejudice or leniency.”
― Ibn al-Hotham
I would like to complete the article by stating one of the fundamental duties:
Article 51 A(h) states: It shall be the duty of every citizen of India to develop scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of inquiry and reform. We can at least be true to our constitution.
Acknowledgements:
This article is motivated from a talk by Prof. V. Balakrishnan.
Images are produced by DALL-E.