In some parts of the world, especially in India, snake charming is a roadside show performed by a charmer. In such a show, the snake charmer carries a basket that contains a snake that he seemingly charms by playing tunes from his flutelike musical instrument, to which the snake responds. Snakes lack external ears, and though they do have internal ears, they show no tendency to be influenced by music.

Snake charmers walk the streets carrying their serpents in baskets or pots covered with cloths hanging from a bamboo pole slung over the shoulder. The charmer sets up to perform cross-legged on the ground as his team of assistants or apprentices typically set his pots and baskets about him. The lid is removed as the charmer begins playing a flute-like instrument made from a gourd — known as a been, pungi, or Makuti. The serpent slowly emerges swaying to and fro in time with the musician’s tune, apparently lulled and hypnotized by the skill of the performer’s magical melody.

The snake never strikes, and the charmer may even kiss the creature on the head. The charmer may handle his animals, daring his audience to touch them, but almost no one does. As if on cue, the snake slowly returns to its container, and the charmer replaces the lid. A typical performance may also include handling the snakes or performing other seemingly dangerous acts, as well as other street performances such as juggling and sleight of hand. Amazed onlookers throw coins to the successful practitioner, he gathers up his earnings, and moves on to perform somewhere else.

The real truth of the matter is that standing erect and extending the hood is a normal defensive reaction for a cobra and simply indicates the reptile’s startled reaction to losing its darkened environment. Charmers may even wave their instrument over the opening in a manner to prompt the serpent to emerge while not arousing his audience’s attention to the action. As for the snake’s swaying movement, it’s actually a reaction to the movement of the performer’s instrument and sometimes the tapping of his foot. The snake cannot actually hear the tune being played, though it may feel some of the sound vibrations and any tapping by the charmer.

Most snakes are actually timid in nature and prefer to scare off possible predators rather than fight them, which explains the creature’s reluctance to attack. Snake charmers typically reduce the chances of being bitten by sitting just out of striking range, about one-third of a cobra’s body length. What may appear as a dangerous feat to kiss the creature on its head is in fact nearly harmless, as cobras are incapable of attacking anything above them. Snake charmers learn to read their animals and can usually tell when they’re ready to strike, typically trained in rudimentary methods of treating snakebite should it ever occur. Some claim that snake charmers drug the snakes.

The creature’s container also plays a large part in subduing the animal, as it keeps the snake’s blood temperature down and makes it groggy. The snake returns to its container simply by the snake charmer stopping his waving motion.

Snake charmers frequently supplement their performances with juggling, sleight of hand, and other tricks, such as “turning a rod into a serpent” — a ruse that goes back to Biblical times — said to be accomplished by putting pressure on a specific nerve behind the snake’s head which causes it to stiffen up.

Snake charming has a reputation for being cruel to the snakes themselves. Snakes are taken from their natural habitats. The snake’s fangs are often yanked out without painkillers and their mouths are sewn shut, only leaving a tiny gap to pour milk and water down. The snakes often die slow, painful deaths. Snake charming was so cruel that the Indian Wildlife Law of 1972 banned snake charming.