Sir Henry Lawrence verified
the foregoing statements. The chest in which the fakir was buried
was sealed with the Runjeet stamp on it, and when the man was
brought up he was cold and apparently lifeless. Honigberger also
states that this man, whose name was Haridas, was four months in
a grave in the mountains; to prove the absolute suspension of
animation, the chin was shaved before burial, and at exhumation
this part was as smooth as on the day of interment. This latter
statement naturally calls forth comment when we consider the
instances that are on record of the growth of beard and hair
after death.
There is another account of a person of the same class who had
the power of suspending animation, and who would not allow his
coffin to touch the earth for fear of worms and insects, from
which he is said to have suffered at a previous burial.
It has been stated that the fakirs are either eunuchs or
hermaphrodites, social outcasts, having nothing in common with
the women or men of their neighborhood; but Honigberger mentions
one who disproved this ridiculous theory by eloping to the
mountains with his neighbor's wife.
Instances of recovery after asphyxia from hanging are to be
found, particularly among the older references of a time when
hanging was more common than it is to-day.
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