My son sent me this link recently http://bodyodd.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2010/05/10/2299480.aspx?GT1=43001 and asked me the possibility of “starving yogi”. It is a very interest topic and I would like to share what I know with you all.
We also have similar cases in China, and they are related to religious field like Buddhism practice, Taoism practice, and Qi Kung practice.
Meditation, a main practice for Taoism practitioners and Buddhists, can be done for a few seconds to a few years; the longer a person meditates, the less food the person consumes. It is similar to animals entering the hibernation stage during the winter. During a deep and long meditation, the person will breathe slowly as if he/she doesn’t feel it at all.
Remember the Bodhidharma Story in my previous blog entry? When Bodhidharma arrived Siu Sut Mountain 少室山of the Siu Lam Temple 少林寺, he meditated in a cave for 9 years. During this time, he didn’t consume any food or liquid.
One reason for the religious people to practice “starvation” is that they want to keep their body to show Dharma exists. Before they get into nivana, they know the time is coming; hence, they start eating less until they only have water. At the last few days before they passaway, they will not drink. In this situation, they clean up their digest system so that no more disease can be created inside their body. Their muscles become very thin that there is only skins attached onto the bones. Once they pass away, their body become as dry meat. For some monks who are not totally clean, their body – except the anus – will be brushed with a special paint which we call “Chut 漆”. The painted body will then be placed into a ceramic container with a hole in the bottom, and buried under the ground for several years until the organs melt and dissolve into the ground. The 6th generation of Bodhidharma, Wei Lung 慧能, used this method to maintain his body.
In the Qi Kung field, we call this starvation practice “Pig Kuk 闢穀”. Only people who practiced Qi Kung for a long period of time would start proceeding this. As the person starts doing the starvation practice, the body will start changing. Since the food consumption drops, the body will get nutrients from the Qi. The initial process begin with starving for one day, then the person will increase the number of days of starvation until they can live without food. However, this method might not be suitable for everyone and it is highly advised that a practitioner should be guided by a master. People who practice this wrongfully will cause serious harms to their body. Hence it is a very danger exercise.
Why does the starving Qi Kung work? First of all, we need to analyze what are some components contain in the air,
Gas | Volume |
Nitrogen (N2) | 780,840 ppmv (78.084%) |
Oxygen (O2) | 209,460 ppmv (20.946%) |
Argon | 9,340 ppmv (0.9340%) |
Carbon dioxide (CO2) | 380 ppmv (0.0380%) |
Neon | 18.18 ppmv (0.001818%) |
Helium (He) | 5.24 ppmv (0.000524%) |
Methane (CH4) | 1.79 ppmv (0.000179%) |
Krypton (Kr) | 1.14 ppmv (0.000114%) |
Hydrogen (H2) | 0.55 ppmv (0.000055%) |
Nitrous oxide (N2O) | 0.3 ppmv (0.00003%) |
Xenon | 0.09 ppmv (9 × 10−6%) |
Ozone | 0.0 to 0.07 ppmv (0% to 7 × 10−6%) |
Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) | 0.02 ppmv (2 × 10−6%) |
Iodine (I) | 0.01 ppmv (1 × 10−6%) |
Carbon monoxide (CO) | 0.1 ppmv (0.00001%) |
Ammonia (NH3) | trace |
Not included in above dry atmosphere: | |
Water vapor (H2O) | ~0.40% over full atmosphere, typically 1%-4% at surface |
Reference coming from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atmosphere_of_Earth
To maintain a life, we need to have oxygen, water and food. From the table above, we can get water from the moisture in the air. Without oxygen, we will die within 5 minutes; without water, we will died within 10 days; and without food, we will die within 4 to 8 weeks.
Since the moisture in the air can solve our needs for water, it is possible for us to starve for 4 to 8 weeks.
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