DR. S. BHAGAVANTAM AND SEIKO WATCH MIRACLE
by Basava Premanand

In Dr. Dale Beyerstein's letter of 7-3-1988 to Dr. Erlendur Haraldsson, he mentioned about the Seiko watch materialization as researched by Sam Dalal, Magician, Calcutta.

Dr. Haraldsson in his letter dated 21-10-1988 said that the story is only a hearsay and there seem to be many editions of it and one cannot use these unverified second hand stories as argument for anything until they have been verified.

In his reply dated 6-4-1988 Dr. Haraldsson said that he had not heard about Sam Dalal and that there had been a few of them.

The story of materialization of a seiko watch was originally authored by Dr. S.Bhagavantam in 1973 and published in a Malayalam weekly titled "Malyalanadu". The editor S.K.Nair and his wife were Sai Baba devotees and to neutralise the publicity got by Abraham Kovoor, S.K.Nair started a debate in his weekly on the spiritual powers of Satya Sai Baba. He first published Kovoor's article explaining that Satya Sai Baba is a hoax and then published a series of articles by Sai Baba devotees, which included a High Court Judge and other well known personalities like Dr. Bhagawantam.

Based on the story of the Seiko watch authored by Dr. Bhagawantam, Kovoor started investigation by first writing to Dr. Bhagavantam to give him the name and address of the Japanese. And when Bhagavantam kept silent he wrote to the Japanese Embassy and got the address of the manufacturers of Seiko watches and wrote to the President, Shoji Hattori. In his reply he disclaimed any knowledge of Satya Sai baba.

A copy of this letter was sent to Bhagawantam by Kovoor asked him to inform him the correct name and address of the person if Mr. Shoji Hattori was not the person concerned with his story. Again Dr. Bhagawantam kept silent.
His investigation was published by innumerous newspapers and journals, but still Dr. Bhagawantam was keeping silent. Only when the report was published by Times of India dated 12-9-1976 titled "of Scientists and Godmen" he had no other go except to open his mouth, and in the Open Forum of Times of India dated 28-11-1976 his signed reply was published.

In the letter Dr. Bhagawantam says that he had no knowledge of Kovoor's letters to him and he did not think it worthwhile making any public statement about it.
His reply is meaningless when he says that he doe snot know malayalam and so how he could write articles in malayalam weekly.

He says that he was informed by one of his Kerala friend's about the article and his silence without taking any action against the Editor is surprising. Moreover the Editor and his wife were well known Sai Baba devotees owning big cashew factories.

If one takes each and every story published about Satya Sai Baba's miracles, until it is proved false, Satya Sai Baba and his inner circle members accept the authorship of the stories and once they are proved false, they disown them. That is what happened to Sai Krishna who was exposed by Dr. Narasimhaiah's Miracle Investigation Committee.

Dr. Bhagawantam is dead now. Most of Sai Baba's inner circle members have died of heart attack. The rural sorcerers to which group Sai Baba had belonged in his youth, murder people by twisting the head of a doll. Actually what they do is to mix a root in food which lowers the blood pressure and the person dies immediately. In 1981 he had left Satya Sai Baba. It was his articles as a scientist which boosted Satya Sai baba's image. When he left him, he had the moral duty to speak of his experiences with Sai Baba and tell the people the truth so that those who had joined the Sai Baba band wagon because of his certificate would retreat. But he did not have the courage but was afraid of murder and left India for good.

From the explanation given by Dr. Bhagawantam in his published letter about the Seiko watch story, several questions have to be answered by him which he did not answer while alive.

1. Is it necessary that one has to know malayalam language for one's article to appear in malayalam journals? If that be so how did his article in malayalam and other languages appear in Sai baba's journals "Sanathana Sarathi" in different languages?

2. If the article published in Malayalanadu by the editor who is a Sai Baba follower is not his, why did he not refute it in the journal? and if the Editor refused to publish the same go to the Press Council whose chairman was also a Sai devotee?

Dr. Bhagawantam was no exception to it. Just look to the fate of my letters dated 15-12-1981 and 17-3-1982 received by him on 15-1-1982 and 25-3-1982. Along with the letter I had sent Rs.5/- postal order to him for sending his reply by registered post. Because the miracles published in that article authored by him were proved false after investigation, he kept silent. I wanted to know whether he would refute the authorship of that article also and it was in english and published in several journals including Sanathana Sarathi the official magazine of Satya Sai Baba.

Dr. Haraldsson mentions in his letter of 21-10-1988 about his meeting Dr. Narasimhaiah recently and Dr. Narasimhaiah telling him that he did not think it would be worth while for Haraldsson to spend two days visiting me and he says such was the quality of my work. He says that my committee is practically unknown in India because of the quality of its members.

After my return from United States, I had gone to Bangalore to interview one of the old photographers of Satya Sai Baba who had to run away from the ashram leaving all his wealth there as he was to be murdered on that night. I also came to know that one of his watchmen also was murdered, and his body burnt. I phoned Dr. Narasimhaiah about Dr. Haraldsson's letter to Dr. Dale Beyerstein and his reply was interesting: "When I know of the great work you are carrying to educate the masses in scientific temper and the investigations you have done on paranormal phenomena in India, do you think I would have told Haraldsson that he would be wasting his time meeting you?" I am waiting for Dr. Narasimhaiah's letter in this matter.

Moreover I was called to Bharatiar University in Coimbatore by Prof. Ganesan to meet Dr. Haraldsson in October 1988. I had informed Prof. Ganesan that I would like to video tape my discussion with Dr. Haraldsson. The next day students from the University had come to take me there in the evening. At the University Campus I found Prof. Ganesan and Dr. Haraldsson missing. The students searched for Prof. Ganesan and Dr. Haraldsson missing. The students searched for Prof. Ganesan and Dr. Haraldsson everywhere in the campus and at his house. They were missing and I had to return back.

BEGONE GODMEN!
ENCOUNTERS WITH SPIRITUAL FRAUDS
By Dr. Abraham T.Kovoor.
(First Jaico Impression 1976, Published by: Jaico Press Pvt. Ltd., 121 Mahatma Gandhi Road, Bombay, Chapter 3)

Dr. Bhagavantham and Sathya Sai Baba

During my visit to Madras in 1972 to appear in my own role in the film "Punarjanmam", I was invited to give a lecture at the Indian Institute of Technology at Guindy. During a conversation before the lecture one of the professors at the institute told me that the majority of youths who take to the study of science and technology do so not because they have any scientific attitude or aptitude, but just because such a course helps them to get lucrative jobs. The reason why some of the eminent scientists of India have given up their science, and become "devotees" of Godmen of that country was because they have found that they can make more money by being in collusive devotion to such hoaxers than by continuing scientific pursuits.

A few months ago the editor of a mass-circulating weekly of India wrote me a letter saying that the Editorial Board of his weekly has decided to publish a symposium on "SATHYA SAI BABA - IS HE AN INCARNATION OF GOD OR A CHARLATAN?", and wanted me to be the first contributor to the series.

My article was serialised in three issues. It was then followed by two articles countering my thesis by Dr. S.Bhagavantham, M.Sc., D.Sc., Ph.D., a former scientific adviser to the Government of India.

Dr. Bhagavantham started his article by saying that in his youth he was a rationalist like me, but after witnessing some of the 'miracles' of Bhagawan Sathya Sai Baba, he had to give up his rationalism!
He then continued to describe numerous 'miracles' said to have been performed by Sathya Sai Baba at various times in various places. There was absolutely no mention in the two articles of any one having conducted investigations to establish that they were all genuine miracles, and not conjurer's tricks. The two articles appeared to be clear examples of how unscientific even a good scientist can become if he is a victim of religio-maniacal neurosis or avarice for lucre!

In the whole lot of the miracle stories mentioned by Dr. Bhagavantham, there was only one that was amenable to investigation. I quote below that story:

"The wonderful experience, some years ago, of a world-famous watch manufacturer of Japan, while he was on tour in India, was awe-inspiring.
"After completing the Seiko series of watches he made the model of a more superior type, and kept it in his safe for further tests.
"While touring in India he paid a visit to Sathya Sai Baba's abode just out of curiosity. On seeing the japanese gentleman among the devotees Sathya Sai Baba materialized a small parcel from the air and gave him. On opening the parcel he was astonished to see the same watch that was kept in his safe. When he saw along with the watch the silk ribbon and the label with the new name of the watch and its price marked on it, all his doubts about the divine powers of Sathya Sai Baba simply melted away. He fell prostrate at Sathya Sai Baba's feet and worshipped him. Since then he is an ardent devotee of the Bhagawan.
"On his return to Japan, he was shocked to see that the watch he had kept in his safe was not there. What his Personal Secretary told him was still more startling. The Secretary said that a divine-looking person with bushy hair walked into the office one day, opened the safe and walked away with the watch."

Does Dr. Bhagavantham, who is the holder of covetable qualifications in science, think that a thesis of this nature to prove the miraculous powers of a man, by any scientist, will be accepted by an academic body of scientists if it is not backed by scientific investigations and fool-proof evidence? Although Dr. Bhagavantham is reluctant to test the veracity of his Godman's miraculous powers, I decided to do it myself. With this aim in view I wrote the following letter to Dr. Bhagavantham:

As there was no response from Dr. Bhagavantham even after two months, I decided to pursue the matter on my own. The Japanese Embassy in Sri Lanka was kind enough to provide me with the name and address of the proprietor of the Seiko watch manufacturing firm.
In my letter dated 30th October, 1973 to Mr. Shoji Hattori, president of K. Hattori & Co. Ltd., the manufacturers of Seiko watches, I reproduced Dr. Bhagavantham's story about the miracle, and requested him to provide me with answers to the following questions:
1. Did you or any other partner of yours visit Sathya Sai Baba of India any time?
2. Did Sai Baba materialise a watch from air and present it to you or to any of your partners?
3. Did your personal Secretary tell you or any of your partners that a stranger opened the safe and walked away with a watch?
4. Are you or any of your partners a devotee of Sai Baba?
For the benefit of numerous innocent devotees of Godmen of India I reproduce below Mr. Hattori's reply. This I do with the sincere hope that they will be sensible enough to realise the truth that these charlatans who go about in the garb of holy men have numerous agents like Dr. Bhagavantham everywhere working in collusion to propagate the huge hoax and profit materially.

On receipt of this letter I wrote the following letter to Dr. Bhagavantham enclosing a photostat copy of Mr. Shoji Hattori's letter.

Since there was no reply so far to this letter also, I had to confirm my belief that Dr. Bhagavantham is in collusion with the charlatan Sathya Sai Baba to do false propaganda for him with ulterior motive and vested interest.