The snake rose into the air as if pulled by an invisible thread. The cobra was less than a foot away. It stared at me. I stared back as the cobra flattened the upper part of its body in agitation. This was my first lesson with an Indian snake charmer. Sitting cross-legged in front of a basket containing the snake, I puffed on the traditional flute. The snake followed the motion of the flute. I felt light-headed. Puffing on the flute is like hyperventilating. I thought, "Great. What would happen if I passed out and fell head first into the basket with the snake?" Little did, I know, I was going to find out the answer to that question a little later.

The man instructing me follows the teachings of the Nath religion. The cobra swaying to my movement is part of that religion. It still has its fangs and poison glands. Every two to three months, this master of snakes collects a black cobra from the wild. They can be as thick as a man's arm and up to seven feet long. Using a secret religious prayer, known as a mantra, he calms and trains the snake. This takes only two to three days. He then cares for the snake, and the snake, through performances and donations provided by the audience, cares for the snake charmer. At the end of a period determined by astrological signs, the snake is returned to the wild.

I go from working with the snake in a basket to holding the snake in my hands. I do this cautiously. At one point, while handling the snake at the mid-point of its body, it turns back towards my hand and I drop it with a resounding "THWAP" on the paving stones. This is not good snake-handling etiquette. I pay for my fear by learning how to apologize to a cobra. Holding the coiled snake in my hands, I touch it to my head. At one point, I have the snake wrapped around my neck like a necklace.

I ask to see how the snake is fed while under the snake charmer's care. He produces a hollow bone and inserts it into the snake's mouth. He then pours milk down this makeshift funnel. As the snake's body fills with milk, the man strokes the cobra to move the milk into its stomach. He has been doing this for over 20 years and his father did the same before him.

In the next journal entry, we will tell you what happened with the camel purchase.