Pilgrims thought they were drinking holy water: it was water from the condensation of an air conditioner

In India, temple-goers believed that holy water flowed from an elephant sculpture, but this was not the case.

A video posted on the News State media YouTube channel actually shows dozens of people collecting water flowing from the mouth of a figurine representing an elephant head to splash it on themselves or drink it.

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Small problem: the water was not sacred at all, quite the contrary. Rather, it came from condensation from an air conditioner placed higher up on the building.

In the scene, which took place at the Shri Banke Bihari temple in the town of Vrindavan, the pilgrims believed that the clear liquid was the Charan Amritholy water because it is said to have touched the feet of the god Krishna.

Since it was rather droplets of condensation coming from the center’s air conditioning unit, the center’s authorities had to clarify the situation and convince the religious people to stop drinking it.

“We respect the faith people have in God, but it is essential to inform them,” said Dinesh Goswami, a cleric at the temple. “The water they believe to be Charan Amrit is actually just water from the air conditioner. The real Charan Amrit would contain ingredients like Tulsi and rose petals.”

Upon learning the truth, several devotees who were waiting to try the so-called Charan Amrit were disappointed and ultimately blamed the temple for not explaining the “miracle” to them.

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Drinking air conditioning condensation may seem harmless, but air conditioners have been shown to harbor all kinds of bacteria and fungi that can cause serious health problems like Legionnaires’ disease, for example.