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A Invisible Pink Unicorn (IPU) is the goddess of a satiric parody religion aimed at theistic beliefs, revolving around the notion that she will require a form of a unicorn that is paradoxically both invisible and pink.
These are accepted that no actual believers therein mock goddess, however it has turn into popular, especially in atheist web sites & inside-line discussion forums, to feign belief in her for even the sake of humor and as a form of critique or sarcasm of theistical belief. These professions of faith besides produce a point that these are hard to refute avouchment of belief within phenomena outside human being perception.
A IPU is commonly wont to highlight a perceived logical shakiness or even whimsicality of supernatural beliefs — by, for example, replacing a word "God" in any theist statement by using "Invisible Pink Unicorn". a quote from either the el.atheism FAQ sums up their utilise of the Invisible Pink Unicorn:
History
A IPU seems to keep around be guiding light primarily across in-line culture: additionally to el.atheism, within which IPU however often comes higher in discussions, there are nowadays the total of site dedicated to her. A earliest known written information to IPU come from either between 1990 and 1992 on the Usenet discussion group alt.atheism. More sources on IPU state that she was "revealed to us" in el.atheism. Nevertheless, others keep around reported hearing of her inside spoken discussions prior to a 1st mentions in the newsgroup, & these are likely that IPU was a share of spoken culture for a few instance before 1990.
the construct was farther developed by a class action of university student from either 1994 to 1995 on the ISCA Telnet-based BBS. the students created the pronunciamento (at present believed wasted) that elaborate the nonsensical, eventually internally uniform, religion according to a people of invisible pinkish unicorns. These are from either this page that a best known quotation on IPUs originated:
"Invisible Pink Unicorns are beings of great spiritual power. We know this because they are capable of being invisible and pink at the same time. Like all religions, the Faith of the Invisible Pink Unicorns is based upon both logic and faith. We have faith that they are pink; we logically know that they are invisible because we can't see them." -- Steve Eley
Eley's pronunciamento as well spelled out many of the sillier articles of faith on IPUs, like the fondness for raisin bread (which symbolizes the expanding universe) and a association by using misplaced socks. Eley dubbed himself a "Chief Advocate and Spokesguy" of a religion, naming a succession of others High Priest or even Priestess, within accordance by using the declared theory that the 1 world health organization writes the gospels is really a 1 by having all a power in any religion, & is never the a single martyred. A foremost one HPs was Natalie Overstreet, world health organization popularized a above quotation within her Usenet sig.
An additional member of the ISCA board, Wes Schrader, attempted a religious schism by founding the Cult of the Super Stealthy Maroon Pegasus. His revolution was largely abortive.
Dogma
These are green after discussing a Invisible Pink Unicorn to point out that because she is invisible, there are no of these may prove she does not exist. Her ii defining attributes, "invisibility" & "pinkness", come inconsistent & contradictory, & this is a share of the irony.
There are humourous debates amongst her followers on her more attributes, like whether she is entirely inseeable or even visible exclusively to people world health organization use at times faith within her. A bit of one debates come quite elaborate & tortuous, satirizing a disputatiousness of several religions. Despite this, on top period a select few agreement has developed on her attributes, by having a virtually all humourous & incongruous typically gaining a greatest consensus. E.g., these are close to in agreement that she is unfair to ham and pineapple pizza, although some vegetarians dissent that since IPU is vegetarian, it must be pineapple & mushroom. Pineapple, anyway, is agreed upon, when is the fact that she despises pepperoni. An additional point of agreement is that IPU "raptures" socks, which accounts for their otherwise inexplicable tendency to disappear. Socks raptured from either the cleaning come allegedly the "sign" of favor even from either IPU — or even it can be disfavor, based in world health organization is asked, or possibly upon which socks come raptured. Doubter will indicate of these search the deeper understanding by shopping under cleaning's fomenter for "raptured" garments.
Similar to the Devil of the Abrahamic religions, the Invisible Pink Unicorn is said to develop an 'opponent' in the Purple Oyster.
A Purple Oyster, as well referred to as a Purple Oyster (Of End of a world) or even PO(oD), is said to keep close at h& been one of a minions of the Invisible Pink Unicorn, cast away from Her Pastures for the Nifty Evil of attempting to convince believers of the dissident notion that pepperoni & mushroom pizza pie is thomas more pleasing to Her than the pineapple and ham. These are said that the Judgment Day will transpire, a Day of Oats & Hay, once a Purple Oyster (of End of the world) is reconciled sustaining the Invisible Pink Unicorn, & link to to Her service.
In a Eley pronunciamento, IPUs were said to punish nonbelievers by pricking the two by using their horns; the trouble of which was occasionally blamed in mosquitoes, which do not actually biteHumans however were said to exist when drawn to IPUs as horseflies are to horses.
Iconography
Depictions of Invisible pinkish Unicorn unremarkably indicate either the fading pink unicorn, or even only nothing. Images representing "sightings" of IPU, showing an workaday image of a place in which the invisible existence purportedly was "seen", come when well unremarkably conferred as section of the joke. There exists an Invisible Pink Unicorn logo that was created by frequenters of altitude.atheism & adoptive by others, & these are conceivable to acquire T-shirts, coffee cups, & more appurtenance featuring a logotype. Of these site selling these things describes the children as the subtle means for even atheists to recognize 1 an additional while forgoing returning offense to non-atheists, suggesting that IPU has turn into a kinda emblem or mascot for atheists, especially those world health organization frequent on the net venues.
the title of the Invisible Pink Unicorn around jocose discourse is normally followed inside brackets by a phrase like Blessed Exist as Her Holy Hooves, Peace Exist as Unto Her, or even Could Her Hooves Never Become Shod, which successively come typically shortened to bbhhh, pbuh, or even mhhnbs severally. These epithets recall, and come perchance arranged to satirize, a Islamic practice of adjoining epithets to the names of Muslim prophets, most famously Muhammad. (Watch peace be upon him, and Islam and veneration for Muhammad.)
The similar idea to the IPU has been brought forward by Carl Sagan in his essay The Dragon inside our His pickup in his book The Demon-Haunted World: Science As A Candle In the Dark (ISBN 0345409469), namely that an invisible dragon breathing heatless fire is living in his garage [http://www.users.qwest.net/~jcosta3/article_dragon.htm].
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