Who are Aghoris? Have you heard about them? Being in India, we most frequently encounter them in streets, temples etc but how often can we make an attempt to understand who they really are? Aghoris are sadhus belonging to an unconventional clan who are Shiva worshippers. While some believe that they need divine powers et al. think they’re sadhus with sorcery which may harm people. But undoubtedly they have a mystical personality. Let’s take a glance at a number of the facts about Aghoris.
1. ACCEPTING THE NAKED TRUTH
Aghoris are seen to be mostly naked and accepting of their bodies. You can see Aghori in completely naked bodies covered in ashes from the dead bodies. It definitely scares some people while some people find it enticing.
2. NO HAIRCUT
Aghoris let their hair grow long and believe no haircuts. After all, that’s how we were born and what better thanks to accept our natural self. You will never see Aghori briefly , trimmed hair.
3. CANNIBALISM
It is believed that these sadhus openly eat human meat. They eat already dead corpses and don’t kill to eat and hence nobody questions them. Found mostly in numbers in Varanasi, which is understood for its holy practices, these sadhus are accepted for who they’re . They are also known to eat garbage, human faces and also leftover foods.
4. LORD SHIVA IS EVERYTHING
Aghoris immerse themselves within the devotion of Lord Shiva. They believe that Lord Shiva is that the answer to everything as he’s omnipresent and absolute. They perform penance, which is of three kinds that are called Shiva Sadhana, Shav Sadhana, and Smashaan Sadhana. Some people also believe that they’re the incarnations of Lord Shiva.
5. CURE FOR ALL
Aghori’s are said to possess the cure for all the diseases. According to them, the human oil that they take from the pyre when the body is being burnt is extremely powerful and effective. They claim that they need the medicines for even the incurable diseases.
6. MEDITATING WITH CORPSE
Aghori’s are seen to be meditating during a cemetery on a corpse. They also stand on one leg to meditate over a corpse a bit like Parvati, the goddess standing on the chest of Lord Shiva. Now most folks dread to even go on the brink of the cemetery or dead bodies. So that definitely takes tons of guts.
7. INTERCOURSE WITH THE CORPSE
Aghori is understood to possess sexual activity with dead bodies. They say the rationale is just that they find purity in what’s considered by the main population as filth. Also, just like the believers of the goddess Kali, they assert that it’s the deeper desire of the goddess that they need to satisfy . Also, it’s known to be believed by them that doing sex with the dead give them supernatural powers.
8. NO HATE IN THE HEART
These sadhus share their food with the animals within the cremation ground. Be it a cow or a dog, every life is that the same for them. And they believe the one that hates cannot truly meditate. So, it’s important to measure a hate free life for sadhus to meditate.
9. SAGES AND THEIR AGES
Kina ram, the first aghori who set grounds for the rest of the aghoris is said to have lived for 150 years and his death happened in the late 18th century.
10. SURVIVAL FACTS
These sadhus survive the harshest and extreme weather . They are known to measure within the scariest jungles and also the snow clad mountains. They are also found within the hot desert, in conditions where a traditional person doesn’t survive well.
11. ONENESS OF ENVIRONMENT
Aghoris believe that everyone has Aghori in him/her. They believe that when a toddler is born he/she doesn’t distinguish between faeces, toys, and garbage. But the kid is later taught what’s good and bad consistent with society which is how it starts discriminating.
12. THE FACTS ABOUT DARK MAGIC
Aghoris are known to perform sorcery but to not harm anyone or anything but they assert that it heals them and increases their supernatural powers to speak to the dead. They perform tons of rituals, strange within the eye of a standard man to perform dark magic.