Buddhist monks starved and poisoned themselves to death.

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24 Buddhist monk mummies were discovered in July of 2010 confirming the belief that Buddhist monks starved and poisoned themselves to death. Sokushinbutsu, as the practice was called, was tried by hundreds of monks in Japan. To start this process the monks would of eating only nuts and seeds to eliminate all body fat for 1000 days and exercises vigorously. Then for another 1,000 days, the monks only ate bark and roots and began drinking a poisonous tea made from the sap of the Urushi tree, normally used to lacquer (eliminate) their bowls. In other words, there was profuse diarrhea occurring among the participating monks. Though the vomiting and diarrhea was important to later mummify themselves, the ideal outcome of drinking the sap of Urushi trees was to make their body poisonous and inedible to maggots. In turn, their body would not deteriorate by natural processes. Finally, a self-mummifying monk would lock himself in a stone tomb barely larger than his body, where he would not move from the lotus position. His only connection to the outside world was an air tube and a bell. Each day he rang a bell to let those outside know that he was still alive. When the bell stopped ringing, the air tube was removed. When the tomb was opened, if the body was preserved, the monk was believed to have achieved Buddha. It is believed that the mummies can cast spells and perform healings. They can also remove spells. Thought you might be interested in this all the best urban