Prahlad Jani
Prahlad Jani | |
---|---|
Personal | |
Born | Prahlad Jani 13 August 1929 Charada, India |
Died | 26 May 2020 Charada, Mehsana district, Gujarat, India | (aged 90)
Resting place | Ambaji, Gujarat, India |
Religion | Hinduism |
Known for | Inedia |
Other names | Chunriwala Mataji |
Prahlad Jani, also known as Mataji or Chunriwala Mataji (13 August 1929 ― 26 May 2020) was an Indian
Biography
Prahlad Jani was born on 13 August 1929 in Charada village in India (now in Mehsana district, Gujarat, India).[1] According to Jani, he left his home in Gujarat at the age of seven, and went to live in the jungle.[citation needed]
At the age of 12, Jani underwent a spiritual experience and became a follower of the Hindu goddess Amba. From that time, he chose to dress as a female devotee of Amba, wearing a red sari-like garment, jewellery and crimson flowers in his shoulder-length hair.[citation needed] Jani was commonly known as Mataji ("[a manifestation of] The Great Mother"). Jani believed that the Goddess provided him with water which dropped down through a hole in his palate, which allowed him to live without food or drink.[1]
Since the 1970s, Jani had lived as a hermit in a cave in the forest in Gujarat. He died on 26 May 2020 at his native Charada. He was given samadhi in his ashram at Gabbar Hill near Ambaji on 28 May 2020.[2][3]
Investigations
Two observational studies and one imaging study of Jani have been conducted. The observational studies were one in 2003 and one in 2010, both involving Sudhir Shah, a neurologist at the
2003 tests
In 2003, Sudhir Shah and other physicians at Sterling Hospitals, Ahmedabad, India observed Jani for 10 days. He stayed in a sealed room. Doctors said that he passed no urine or stool during the observation, but that urine appeared to form in the bladder.[1] A hospital spokesperson said that Jani was physically normal, but noted that a hole in the palate was an abnormal condition.[1] During the tests, Jani's weight dropped slightly.[9]
2010 tests
From 22 April until 6 May 2010, Prahlad Jani was again observed and tested by Dr Sudhir Shah and a team of 35 researchers from the Indian
The team studied Jani with daily clinical examinations, blood tests, and scans. Round-the-clock surveillance was reportedly followed using multiple
After fifteen days of observation during which he reportedly did not eat, drink or go to the toilet, all medical tests on Jani were reported as normal.[16] The doctors reported that although the amount of liquid in Jani's bladder fluctuated and that Jani appeared "able to generate urine in his bladder",[15] he did not pass urine. Based on Jani's reported levels of leptin and ghrelin, two appetite-related hormones, DRDO researchers posited that Jani may be demonstrating an extreme form of adaptation to starvation and water restriction.[17] DIPAS stated in 2010 that further studies were planned,[18][19] including investigations into how metabolic waste material is eliminated from Jani's body, from where he gets his energy for sustenance, and how he maintains his hydration status.[20]
2017 Brain Imaging Study
Independent of DRDO studies, IIT Madras team has conducted an imaging study in 2017. They have collected Jani's brain images and measured the size of Pineal and Pituitary glands. The result of the imaging study shows that the size of Jani's Pineal and Pituitary glands are of the same order of a 10-year-old boy. The study results have been published in scientific journals.[21]
Reactions
Michael Van Rooyen, director of the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative, dismissed the observation results as "impossible", observing that the bodies of profoundly malnourished people quickly consume their own body's resources, resulting in renal/
In September 2010, Shah announced that scientists from Austria and Germany had offered to visit India to carry out further research on Jani, and scientists from the United States had also offered to join the research. Jani expressed interest in cooperating in further investigations.[23]
Television, video and public appearances
In 2006, The Discovery Channel aired a documentary called "The Boy with Divine Powers" featuring a five-minute interview with Jani and Shah.[24] In 2010, the Independent Television Network (ITNA) posted an article and video featuring Prahlad Jani, commenting on the 2010 tests.[25] In 2010 Prahlad Jani was featured in an Austrian documentary "Am Anfang war das Licht" (English title In the Beginning There Was Light).[26][27]
In October 2010, the Italian television station Rai 2 broadcast a program named "Voyager" which presented an extensive report on Prahlad Jani and the tests.[28][29]
In October 2011, Jani was the param pujya (master of ceremony) in a large shobha yatra (religious procession) held near Gandhinagar.[30]
References
- ^ a b c d Rajeev Khanna (25 November 2003). "Fasting fakir flummoxes physicians". BBC News. Retrieved 7 June 2008.
- ^ "Prahlad Jani death news | Yogi Prahlad Jani, who claimed to have survived for over 70 years without food and water, no more | India News". 26 May 2020.
- ^ "Prahlad Jani, known as Chundadiwala Mataji passes away". 26 May 2020.
- ^ a b c Edamaruku, Sanal (18 May 2010). "India's man who lives on sunshine". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 25 August 2010.
- ^ "DRDO watching man who hasn't eaten 'in 70 yrs'". The Indian Express. 28 April 2010. Retrieved 9 November 2010.
- ^ a b "Scientists Baffled by Prahlad Jani, Man Who Doesn't Eat or Drink". ABC News. 1 June 2010. Retrieved 17 June 2010.
- ^ a b c d "Yogi beaten by bear necessities of life without food" Glenda Kwek, 14 May 2010, The Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney, Australia.
- ^ Magistretti, Pierre et al. "Brain Energy Metabolism Archived 19 November 2014 at the Wayback Machine" American College of Neuropsychopharmacology. 2000.
- ^ Nelson, Dean (28 April 2010). "Man claims to have had no food or drink for 70 years". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 11 November 2010.
- ^ Mirror, Ahmedabad. "Man who lives on air undergoes defence tests". Ahmedabadmirror.com. Archived from the original on 1 May 2010. Retrieved 4 August 2010.
- ^ "Hermit Claims 70 Years Survival Without Food". Wusa9.com. Archived from the original on 5 May 2010. Retrieved 4 August 2010.
- ^ "Defence study on ascetic's claim of surviving on air". Thaindian.com. Retrieved 29 January 2011.
- ^ "Yogi sans food gives medical fraternity food for thought". Daily News and Analysis. 27 April 2010. Retrieved 10 May 2010.
- ^ SRISTI. "SRISTI official site". Sristi.org. Archived from the original on 9 February 2011. Retrieved 29 January 2011.
- ^ a b "Man survives without food, water for 65 yrs - India News - IBNLive". Ibnlive.in.com. 3 February 2010. Archived from the original on 2 May 2010. Retrieved 9 November 2010.
- ^ a b "Experts baffled as Mataji's medical reports are normal". Daily News and Analysis. 7 May 2010. Retrieved 4 August 2010.
- ^ Radha Sharma (17 July 2010). "Fast-hungry Mataji's claim endorsed". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 4 August 2010.
- ^ Manas Dasgupta (9 May 2010). "DIPAS concludes observational study on 'Mataji'". The Hindu. Retrieved 29 January 2011.
- ^ "Tests on Gujarat's miracle Yogi concludes, researchers amazed!". Deshgujarat.com. 6 May 2010. Retrieved 29 January 2011.
- ^ "Study proves Gujarat man's claim of living without food, water". Daily News and Analysis. 17 July 2010. Retrieved 29 January 2011.
- PMID 31000968.
- ^ Randi, James. "James Randi Speaks: Powered by Sunlight". Archived from the original on 21 December 2021 – via YouTube.
- ^ "Mataji to go under international scanner". In.com. Archived from the original on 10 March 2012. Retrieved 29 January 2011.
- ^ "The Boy with Divine Powers". Discovery Channel. 2006. Retrieved 15 July 2011.
- ^ Indian hermit stuns doctors surviving without food "Indian hermit stuns doctors surviving without food". Archived from the original on 1 July 2010. Retrieved 31 August 2010.
- ^ "Am Anfang war das Licht". Kino-zeit.de. 28 October 2010. Retrieved 9 November 2010.
- ^ "Am Anfang war das Licht". Dw-world.de. 29 October 2010. Retrieved 9 November 2010.
- ^ "L'uomo che non-mangia e non-beve". Rai.it. Archived from the original on 18 October 2010. Retrieved 29 January 2011.
- ^ http://www.ilsussidiario.net/News/Programmi-e-ascolti-Tv/2010/10/13/VOYAGER-Anticipazioni-stasera-13-ottobre-2010-In-questa-puntata-Prahlad-Jani-l-uomo-che-non-mangia-e-beve-mai-21-05-Rai-Due/119435/ VOYAGER/ Anticipazioni stasera 13 ottobre 2010. In questa puntata Prahlad Jani l’uomo che non-mangia e beve mai.
- ^ "Chandi yagna performed near Gandhinagar". Daily News and Analysis. 19 October 2011. Retrieved 29 July 2013.