Witnessing the magic show combining snakes and pungi, many people have been mistaken about the ability of this reptile to absorb sounds when they twist their bodies by the music.
For a long time, the image of a flute player controlling cobras bending to the music has become a familiar symbol of India and the Arab world. The art of flute “enchanting” snakes originated in ancient Egypt. However, this form of performance is especially strong in India.
Cobras are the most commonly used species in performances. To ensure their own safety, flute players often remove the fangs and venom glands of snakes. They also keep a safe distance during the performance and avoid getting the animals excited.
The flute player places the snakes in a woven basket and then strung all the baskets on a long bamboo stick to carry on his shoulders. They often choose a place to perform in crowded places. After placing the baskets on the ground, the artisans sat cross-legged and played the flute. When the lid of the basket was opened, the snakes raised their heads, moving to the rhythm of the flute.
When witnessing many magic shows combining snakes and pungi, many people are mistaken about the ability of this reptile to absorb sounds, when they bend their bodies by the music. However, the truth about this magic show is completely opposite to what we think.
Due to the concealment of the trick, the ancient snake handlers were often highly respected.
Snakes actually have no ears
Snakes do not have ears like many other animals. The snake’s ear has degenerated with the outer ear completely gone, while the inner ear is just a piece of bone without the necessary parts such as the auditory nucleus (ossiculum) and eardrum. Therefore, it can be said that snakes have no ears.
Instead, their inner ear connects to the jawbone. The solid jaw receives vibrations from the outside and sends a signal to the brain for analysis. So even without ears, snakes still have the ability to hear, but based on perception for vibrations, especially with vibrations transmitted through the ground.
Cobras are often used to perform, because they are beautiful, aggressive and easy to control.
Simple tips in magic tricks
In trumpet snake magic, the audience is often drawn to the snake’s dance and the mysterious trumpeter’s gesture. On closer inspection, magicians often sit cross-legged, their feet tapping the ground as if to match the rhythm of a trumpet. Footsteps are often very popular with musicians, so the audience often does not realize that it is really the trick used to control the snakes.
Because they are particularly sensitive to vibrations transmitted from the ground, snakes receive signals from the magician’s footsteps to perform dances, which are in fact a snake’s normal response to external movement. Because of not understanding this principle, many people have tried to use music to make snakes dance but failed.
There are quite a few people who are still curious about the snake control magic show.
Controlling snakes with the pungi also sometimes causes misunderstandings…. Many families in Asian countries have employed magicians to chase snakes. When they found snakes in the house, they invited magicians to use pungi to lure snakes out of the house. Similar to the magic trick of controlling the dancing snake, the trumpet is really just a means of hiding the real secrets of controlling the snake.
Later, when these tips were revealed, the magic of controlling snakes gradually lost its appeal. Up to now, only a few people still consider snake dancing as their main livelihood. Usually, they will perform street performances in conjunction with the sale of snake-related items such as snake bile, amulets, snake skins or snake venom remedies.