![]() ![]() 667) Xu Gaoseng Zhuan (續高僧傳, or Continued Biographies of Eminent Monks) records five monastics who self-immolated on the Zhongnan Mountains in response to the 574–577 persecution of Buddhism by Emperor Wu of Northern Zhou (known as the " Second Disaster of Wu"). ![]() Based upon analysis of Chinese historical records from the 4th to the 20th centuries, some monks did offer their bodies in periods of relative prosperity and peace, but there is a "marked coincidence" between acts of self-immolation and times of crisis, especially when secular powers were hostile towards Buddhism. The religious and lay witnesses were described as being "full of grief and admiration".įollowing Fayu's example, many Buddhist monks and nuns have used self-immolation for political purposes. Yao tried to dissuade Fayu, but he publicly swallowed incense chips, wrapped his body in oiled cloth, and chanted while setting fire to himself. He first informed the "illegitimate" prince Yao Xu 姚緒-brother of Yao Chang who founded the non-Chinese Qiang state Later Qin (384–417)-that he intended to burn himself alive. 396) carried out the earliest recorded Chinese self-immolation. Zarmanochegas was a monk of the Sramana tradition (possibly, but not necessarily a Buddhist) who, according to ancient historians such as Strabo and Dio Cassius, met Nicholas of Damascus in Antioch around 22 BC and burnt himself to death in Athens shortly thereafter. Diodorus Siculus called him Caranus ( Ancient Greek: Κάρανος). 398 – 323 BCE), was an ancient Indian gymnosophist, and philosopher from Taxila who accompanied Alexander the Great to Persis and later, after falling ill, self-immolated by entering into a pyre, in front of Alexander and his army. Kalanos, also spelled Calanus ( Ancient Greek: Καλανὸς) ( c. There are several well-known examples from antiquity to modern times. Certain warrior cultures, such as those of the Charans and Rajputs, also practiced self-immolation. Later, Daksha was revived by him and Daksha Yajna was completed when Daksha apologized. Shiva, Parvati and their army of ghosts attacked Daksha's Yajna and destroyed the sacrifice and Shiva beheaded Daksha and killed Daksha. An example from mythology includes the practice of Sati when the Hindu goddess Parvati's incarnation of the same name (see also Daksayani) legendarily set herself on fire after her father insulted her in Daksha Yajna for having married Shiva, the ascetic god. Self-immolation is tolerated by some elements of Mahayana Buddhism and Hinduism, and it has been practiced for many centuries, especially in India, for various reasons, including jauhar, political protest, devotion, and renouncement. The self-immolation ( jauhar) of the Rajput women, during the Siege of Chittorgarh in 1568 If the self-immolator has over 80% burns, the survival rate drops to 20%. If no more than 80% of their body area is burnt and the self-immolator is younger than 40 years old, there is a survival chance of 50%. If the self-immolator is not taken to a burn centre in less than four hours, they are more likely to die from shock. This response leads to blood and body fluid loss. The body has an inflammatory response to burnt skin which happens after 25% is burnt in adults. ![]() Some self-immolators can die during the act from inhalation of toxic combustion products, hot air and flames. ![]() Later the burns become severe, nerves are burnt and the self-immolator loses sensation at the burnt areas. Self-immolation has been described as excruciatingly painful. This, combined with the self-immolators' refusal to protect themselves, can produce hotter flames and deeper, more extensive burns. Self-immolators frequently use accelerants before igniting themselves. Its etymology was from Latin immolare "to sprinkle with sacrificial meal ( mola salsa) to sacrifice" in ancient Roman religion. The English word immolation originally meant (1534) "killing a sacrificial victim sacrifice" and came to figuratively mean (1690) "destruction, especially by fire". It has a centuries-long recognition as the most extreme form of protest possible by humankind. It is typically used for political or religious reasons, often as a form of non-violent protest or in acts of martyrdom. However, it most often refers specifically to autocremation, the act of sacrificing oneself by setting oneself on fire and burning to death. The term self-immolation broadly refers to acts of altruistic suicide, otherwise the giving up of one's body in an act of sacrifice. ![]()
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