Crafting the Buddha Papers is extremely easy, you just need 6 sheets of construction paper (as listed below), scissors or knife, ruler, and some glue. You will want 4 different colors. I prefer bright colors to make them stand out more. You could make it all black, white, and gray, but it would all kind of blur together. (With the right routine… you may want that?)
Crafting The Buddha Papers
Each piece of paper is cut slightly smaller than the previous. I start with a standard sheet of 8.5×11 inch. Depending on where you buy the paper, it might be A4, which is very similar. It really does not matter too much. You can use any size you want. The measurements I include below are for 8.5×11 because that is what the store had the day I bought the paper.
Gathering the Materials
1 piece – Color one – 8.5×11, standard page (uncut)
1 piece – Color two – cut ¾ inch (2 cm) off length & width
2 pieces – Color three– cut 1 ½ inch (4 cm) off length & width
2 pieces – Color four – cut 2 ¼ inch (6 cm) off length & width
Each piece of paper is ¾ inch (2 cm) smaller than the one before.
Trim The Paper
The largest sheet is not cut. The largest 2 sheets are single sheets. Trim 2 cm off one length and one width of sheet 2. Use any measurement that looks right for you sized paper – just be consistent on each cut. The smaller 2 pieces of paper will be 2 sheets each. Cut each size at the same time to assure they are exactly the same size. On the 3rd size, cut 4 cm of the 2 sides. The 4th size will be cut 6 cm on both sides. When done, your papers should look similar to Figure 1.
You can use a ruler and scissors to trim the paper, but I prefer a cutting mat and a hobby knife. I get much straighter cuts with the knife.
The exact amount you cut is not as important as the consistency of the cut.
The Folds
Cutting the papers consistently is very important. The fold is as important – if not more so. First find the middle of the paper length. Fold both sides into the middle (right paper, Figure 4). Then find the middle of the width. Fold both sides into the middle (left paper, Figure 4). On the 2 smaller sizes or paper it is best to fold both pieces of the paper together. You want the folds to look the same so the audience does not notice the switch. Different folds would stand out.
Use a flat edge to press the creases into the paper. My hobby knife has a good flat end and makes a good press.
Making The Gimmick
Separate the 2 smaller sizes of paper. Set aside size 1, 2, and both pieces of size 4 for now. The gimmick is in the 3rd size paper. Separate the 2 sheets of the gimmick. Fold both pieces of size 3 (my red) along the folds you previously made. With the folds facing out, you will glue the flat sides of the paper together. Be very careful with the alignment of the edges and corners. You can use any type of glue, but I prefer a glue stick. You may want to put it under a weight to press it while the glue dries; a stack of books work well. After the glue dries you can assemble the final product.
Fold the 2 smallest pieces and set aside. Lay the first 2 sheet of paper down. Set the gimmick on top of the 1st 2 sheets. Place one of the smallest papers inside the gimmick and fold that side. Turn the gimmick over, put in the other small paper, and fold the gimmick. Fold the remaining 2 sheets of paper to finish the Buddha Papers.
The Setup and Handling
If you want to make an item disappear, leave the final load paper empty. If you want to transpose an object (or make one appear), place the object in the final load paper when assembling the trick. Place the gimmick in the stack of papers – final load side down.
Start the routine with the papers open in a stack. Put an item in the open load paper, to make it disappear or transpose it into something else. To make something appear you can leave the initial load side empty. Fold the load paper normally. When you fold the gimmick fold in the first 2 sides normally, then fold in one side of the 2nd fold. Instead of folding in the 2nd fold, turn the packet over in the direction of the fold. This puts the hidden load on top ready to be revealed.
Many people will fold each piece of paper and wave it around. When waving the gimmick, being careful not to flash the 2 sets of folds, they rotate it while placing it down – final load side will be up. Either way works, but I prefer the simplicity of turning over the packet. Waving the paper around feels unnatural to me, and I think it really makes it look like you are trying to distract them. You are trying to distract them, but let’s not draw attention to that fact.
Start with the initial load packet on top. Fold over the top of the gimmick.
Fold the up the bottom of the gimmick. Fold over one side (I will use the description of my handling, adjust it depending on your handling preference). So – fold over the right side of the gimmick.
DO NOT fold over the left side. Instead, lift the packet from the right, and turn in over towards the fold on the left.
As you fold over the packet, drag it over to the right. When you place the packet down it should be in the same position it would have been had you folded the left side over. It is in the same position but it is now upside down. The final load is on top, the initial load is on bottom.
Now you simply continue to fold the last 2 pages. Once the packet is closed you can do whatever magic movement you do, and begin opening the papers. The final load side is up, so the inner packet will have whatever you loaded backstage.
The size I used is big enough to vanish/appear/transpose playing cards. I also like to use 4 quarters and a dollar. Or, in the video below, I use a 20 pesos coin to see what magic supplies I get… a paper clip? What a rip off.
History of the Buddha Papers
This trick was fun to read about because there is so much history existing about it.
Magicpedia states that the name “Buddha Papers” began appearing in magic catalogs by the 1930s, but that the effect has also been called “The Witched Paper”,”Buddha Money Mystery”, “The Hindoo Paper Packet Trick”, “Bengali Papers”, “Hindu Magic Papers”, and the “E-Z Money Vanisher”.
The effect is also found in ‘Hocus Pocus; or The Whole Art of Legerdemain, in Perfection’ by Henry Dean, which was published in London in 1722. It was later published in Philadelphia, 1795.
The entire book, with illustrations, can be downloaded freely from Project Gutenberg –
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/57217
There are no pictures of the trick, and it is not given a name, in the book. He uses a single piece of paper (the gimmick only), not a stack of papers. Here is an excerpt from page 28, if you just want to see what they say about this trick:
Another experiment of the like nature.
Take two papers three inches square a-piece, divided into two folds, into
three equal parts, at either side, so as each folded paper remains one inch square;
then glue the back side of the two together, as they are folded, and not as they are
opened, and so shall both papers seem to be but one, and which side soever you
open, it shall appear to be the same, if you have handsomely the bottom, as you
may well do with your middle finger, so as if you have a groat in one hand, and a
counter in the other, you having shewed but one, may, by turning the paper, seem
to change it; this may be the best performed by putting it under a candlestick or a
hat, and with words seem to do the feat. This is no inferior trick.
‘Hocus Pocus; or The Whole Art of Legerdemain, in Perfection’ by Henry Dean Page 28
Check out the video for examples of the performance, handling, and crafting of the Buddha Papers. https://youtu.be/J8SvDf_lcR0
