India’s unfinished battle for scientific temper

Every year, August 20 is observed as National Scientific Temper Day in honour of Narendra Dabholkar.

In 1600, Italian philosopher Giordano Bruno was burned alive in Rome for daring to suggest that the universe was infinite, that stars were suns with their own planets, and that not everything in scripture was beyond question. A few years later, Galileo Galilei, widely recognised as the father of modern science, narrowly escaped the same fate for supporting Copernican heliocentrism; but spent his final years under house arrest.

These were not isolated tragedies but cautionary tales of what happens when unreason rules. The Western societies that once persecuted free thinkers eventually came to honour them. More importantly, they separated the Church from the State, and built institutions that championed dissent, evidence-based reasoning, and science, which paved the way for prosperity and technological progress.

India’s retreat from reason

While Europe has moved forward, India shows troubling signs of sliding backward. On August 20, 2013, Narendra Dabholkar, a tireless campaigner against superstition, was shot dead in Pune during his morning walk. To honour his legacy, each year August 20th is observed as National Scientific Temper Day.

For years, Dabholkar challenged miracle cures, black magic, and exploitative practices, espousing the Maharashtra anti-superstition Bill and urging people to embrace reason. His killing was not an isolated act, but part of a grim pattern that later claimed the lives of rationalists Govind Pansare, M M Kalburgi, and journalist Gauri Lankesh. These crimes leave us with a sobering question: why does India, with its deep intellectual tradition, now struggle with rising intolerance and retreat from reason?

Monetisation of superstition and pseudoscience

India, with its long tradition of rational inquiry, from Charvaka to Aryabhata, Buddha to Ramanujan, is now engulfed by blind faith, superstition, and revivalism disguised as spiritual awakening. Today, superstition is not only tolerated, but also monetised, televised, and weaponised. The tragedy lies not only in the gullibility of the poor, but in the zeal with which the educated and affluent have championed unscientific fads.

This decline has coincided with the rise of new-age godmen and self-styled gurus who, in the name of spirituality, command vast wealth, political patronage, and blind devotion. They wield electoral power, shape public discourse, and distort science, history, and philosophy to suit their agenda. Their organisations are unregulated, multi-billion-dollar empires built on dubious practices, manipulation, and aggressive marketing. Beyond selling commercial products, they peddle pseudoscience, hyper-nationalism, and conspiracy theories, fuelling public gullibility, fear, and euphoria.

Despite being mired in scandals involving sex, murder, land grabs, and fraud, public faith in these godmen remains unshaken. They continue to command massive followings, from tech-savvy urban youth to CEOs, and from film stars to sports icons. This craze reflects not spiritual yearning but mass hypnosis hijacking the nation’s mind. Even traditional spirituality, once grounded in reflection and humility, and search for deeper meaning, has been hollowed out. What survives is a loud, performative religiosity thriving on fear, spectacle, fakery, and jingoism.

Communal flashpoint

This erosion of reason is not limited to the followers of new-age gurus or fringe outfits. It spills into the streets, where cultural festivals, once symbols of joy and unity, have turned into overt displays of communal strength and provocation. Religious processions are becoming flashpoints of violence and disruption. Armed mobs, vandalism, stone-pelting, and arson during religious gatherings now fuel social unrest and division.

Today, the gravest threat to scientific temper comes from the official endorsement of pseudoscientific claims made by elected representatives and public figures. From ministers touting cow-based cures to absurd tales of ancient aviation, public discourse is increasingly shaped by uncritical allegiance to a mythical past.

Instead of fostering free thought and innovation, leaders promote fringe ideas, indulge in historical revisionism, and nurture slavish nostalgia for fictitious achievements of the past. When genuine inquiry is sidelined for ideology or cultural nationalism, the fallout is real. It distorts reality, fragments society, and stifles the scientific and technological progress needed to tackle future challenges.

The irony is stark: while India’s religious and spirituality market is booming with immense wealth, critical sectors such as education, healthcare, poverty alleviation, employment, and scientific research remain chronically underfunded and plagued by inefficiency. Our R&D spending is just 0.65% of the GDP, compared to a global average of 1.8% and over 2% in developed nations. If quality education and employment are denied to India’s youth, they will remain vulnerable to communal mobilisation and street violence.

Path forward

Superstition is not a harmless tradition, but a parasite feeding on fear and ignorance. The scientific temper, enshrined in Article 51A(h) of the Constitution, was meant to protect society against it. We ought to defend scientific thinking and evidence-based reasoning not only in laboratories but also in daily life, classrooms, and ballots.

There is hope. Across India, grassroots organisations, activists, and science educators continue to spread awareness tirelessly. Teachers still explain eclipses without invoking gods, students still ask inconvenient questions, and every time a parent chooses vaccination over faith-based remedies, a small battle is won.

The battle for scientific temper is a battle for the soul of India. If we fail, future generations will live in the shadow of superstition. If we prevail, we reclaim our heritage of reason and our right to think, question, and dream without fear.

(Ravinder Banyal is scientist at the Indian Institute of Astrophysics, Bengaluru.)

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are the author's own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of DH.