
The Japanese Art of Self-Preservation - ca98am79
http://www.damninteresting.com/sokushinbutsu-the-ancient-buddhist-mummies-of-japan/
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yourapostasy
If this interests you, also read about Dashi-Dorzho Itigilov.

[1] [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dashi-
Dorzho_Itigilov](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dashi-Dorzho_Itigilov)

~~~
zeckalpha
> The Buddhist monks approach him as a living person and shake hands with him.
> Some devotees even claim that Itigilov is still alive, only immersed in a
> hibernation- or nirvana-like state.

> In April 2013, Vladimir Putin went to Buryatia to "hold a conversation" with
> Itigilov and other lamas.

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blinkingled
So the monks drank Urushi tea which is poisonous. They also drank water from
nearby river which had near fatal doses of arsenic. Both the tea poison and
arsenic stay in the body after death preventing decay. They also fasted to
remove excess fat and water from the body which would otherwise attract
insects and bacteria.

But this still doesn't explain why some monks succeeded and not others.

~~~
tantalor
Another variable is the sterility of the tomb, clothing, etc.

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deepvibrations
The article reminds me of how incredibly different the modern world has become
and whilst we may consider ourselves to be at the most 'advanced' stage in
human history, I think these ancient cultures could teach us a lot. We have an
abundance of knowledge about the external world, yet very little knowledge on
the internal.

~~~
mfoy_
What do you mean by external / internal?

Do you mean physical / spiritual?

~~~
mercer
While I can't speak for the person you're responding to, my recent interesting
Zen Buddhism has left me quite impressed with the things they figured out
centuries ago that only really entered our social world relatively recently
via the field of psychology.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), for example, as one of the few proven
effective approaches in therapy, is in many ways not so different from (zen)
Buddhist practices. And the growing body of research on meditation and
mindfulness is at least indicating that these things are very good for an
individual's well-being.

While I personally do not care much for the more spiritual and religious sides
of all this, I've definitely become less dismissive of these things.

~~~
Retra
Those things were known before psychology named, published, and formalized
them. They were just called "common sense" and presented alongside a number of
competing ideas. Buddhism is no different in this regard: everything it gets
right is not known to be right until someone uses a reliable process to verify
it. Until then, there is little reason to accept it as a known truth.

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altonzheng
Fascinating. I wonder if their meditation practice enabled them to live on
such a restricted diet. Surviving a year eating only bark and pine needles
does not seem possible...

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nambante
A very-very good audio, well made and interesting. Especially well made
because of authentic noises and sounds. Very natural. Does anybody know of any
other similar podcasts?

And I like the British ascent.

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adaml_623
"losing their chance at immortality"... author is not really paying attention
to the idea of reincarnation there.

~~~
logfromblammo
Elsewhere in the article, it says that the monks believed that their
asceticism alone would allow them an incarnation in Tushita Heaven, home of
the devas and the bodhisattva, for 1.6 million years. As there is a time
differential of 146097:1 (400y:1d) there, that would be about 11 years of
Earth time.

They also believe that while in Tushita, they will retain spiritual abilities
on Earth for as long as their physical bodies remain preserved.

So by the meditation and asceticism, they get off the reincarnation hamster
wheel for about 11 years, get a subjective 1.6 million years studying under
the next Buddha [0] before then, and if they also elect to self-mummify, they
may possibly get to channel positive mojo to their hometowns through their
dessicated flesh while they wait for their next turn.

Immortality never comes into play, anywhere.

[0] Or training with Goku?

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Fastidious
I am not sure it can be called an "art" nor "self-preservation." Not even sure
about "self-mummification" ([http://io9.com/the-gruesome-and-excruciating-
practice-of-mum...](http://io9.com/the-gruesome-and-excruciating-practice-of-
mummifying-yo-1515905564)). Yet, because the uniqueness of what's described,
an interesting read for the curious.

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zhemao
Well that was kind of horrifying.

