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1200-Year-Old Statue Takes A CT Scan, The Result Is Really Shocking

Started by anubhav jain, Nov 18, 2016, 11:05 AM

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anubhav jain

Asian countries like China, Thailand, and Vietnam are teeming with ancient statues of Buddha. Some are famous for their size, others because they are carved from solid gold and precious stones. However, very few can lay claim to being the final resting place of a 1,200-year-old mummified monk.

Researchers first discovered this 1000-year-old Buddha statue's secret in 1997, when its private owner was trying to restore its gold-painted exterior. When the preservationist detached the statue's wooden platform, he saw two pillows. Intrigued, he removed them and encountered an unexpected sight – the bottom of a human, perched in a lotus position on a carpet inscribed with Chinese characters. Tests revealed that the mummy tucked away inside the statue was about 200 years older than the rug. This led researchers to speculate that it had not spent its entire life encased in the Buddha. Since the preserved remains were too fragile to extractfrom the statue, the investigation was halted there.

he fact that he was not entombed inside this golden home for 200 years leads experts to suspect that the holy man went through the process of "self-mummification" to transform himself into a "living Buddha." The ancient ritual involved a monk gradually starving himself on a diet of nuts, berries, tree bark and pine needles until he was on the brink of death.

The monk would then retire to an underground chamber that was completely sealed except for a bamboo tube for breathing and settle down in a lotus position. He would spend his remaining days praying. The onlycommunication with the outside world was through a bell that was rung once a day. When that stopped, the devotees knew the holy man had died. They would then remove the air tube and reseal the chamber for three years. After that, the mummified body would be carefully extracted and transported to a nearby temple so that all could worship the "Living Buddha".