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Prahlad Jani, also known as "Mataji", is an Indian sadhu born Chunriwala Mataji, August 13, 1929 in Charada, Mehsana district. He claims to have lived without food and water since 1940, and says that the goddess Amba sustains him with amrita, an immortality-granting nectar.

Early life

Born with the name Chunriwala Mataji, Jani grew up in Charod village in Mehsana district. According to Jani, he left his home in Rajasthan at the age of seven, and went to live in the jungle.

At the age of 11, Jani underwent a religious experience and became a follower of the Hindu goddess Amba. From this time, he has chosen to dress as a female devotee of Amba, wearing a red sari-like garment, jewellery and crimson flowers in his shoulder-length hair. Jani is commonly known as Mataji (" The Great Mother"). Jani believes that the goddess provides him a lifegiving and invisible elixir, called amrit which filters down through a hole in his palate, allowing him to live without food or water. According to ancient yogic texts (e.g. Hatha Yoga Pradipika, Ch.3. slokas 48-50) amrita is produced in the body of highly spiritually evolved human beings and is described as extremely beneficial for body and mind. The immortality of the gods is attributed to their consumption of this ambrosia-like substance.

Since the 1970s, Jani has been living as a hermit in a cave in the rainforest near to the Gujarati temple of Ambaji, awakening at 4am each day and spending most of his time meditating.

Investigations

Two observation studies of Jani have been conducted by Sudhir Shah, a neurologist at the Sterling Hospital in Ahmedabad, India, in 2003 and 2010, along with other researchers. The investigators support and endorse Jani's claims. These claims have not been published in the scientific literature. Doctors and other critics have questioned the validity of the studies and warned that people have died trying to replicate the claims of mystical advocates of food and water withdrawal.

2003 tests

In 2003, Sudhir Shah and other physicians at Sterling Hospital, Ahmedabad, India observed Jani for ten days. He stayed in a sealed room and was given only 100 milliliters of water to use as mouthwash each day. Doctors say that he passed no urine or stool during the observation, but that urine appeared to form in the bladder. A hospital spokesperson said that Jani was physically "normal," with the exception of the abnormal hole in his palate.

Critics observed that Jani did not engage in strenuous exercise during the ten-day trial, and that longer trials were not recorded under similarly strict observation. The fact that Jani's weight dropped slightly during the 10 days has cast some doubt on his claim to go indefinitely without food.

2010 tests

From April 22 until May 6, 2010, Prahlad Jani was again observed and tested by Sudhir Shah and a team of researchers from the Indian Defence Institute of Physiology & Allied Science (DIPAS). The director of DIPAS said that the results of the observations could "tremendously benefit mankind", as well as "soldiers, victims of calamities and astronauts", all of whom may have to survive without food or water for long spells. The tests were again conducted at Sterling Hospital.

The team studied Jani with daily clinical examinations, blood tests, and scans. Round-the-clock surveillance was reportedly followed with the help of continuous CCTV (multiple cameras) and personal observation. The researchers say that Jani was taken out of the sealed room for tests and exposure to sun under continuous video recording.

According to the researchers, Jani's only contact with any form of fluid was said to be during gargling and occasional bathing. Jani reportedly did not eat, drink or go to the toilet, and the doctors described him as "more healthy than someone half his age". The doctors reported that the amount of liquid in Jani's bladder fluctuated, but he did not pass urine. Based on Jani's reported levels of leptin and ghrelin, two appetite-related hormones, researchers posited on the website of the Defence Research and Development Organisation that Jani may even enjoy starvation and water restriction.

Reactions

Dr. 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 liver failure, tachycardia and heart strain. A spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association remarked that the human body could survive on water alone, although not healthily, and that a person could not expect to meet their body's vitamin and mineral requirements without ingesting food. Nutrition researcher Peter Clifton also disagrees with study results. He accused the research team of "cheating" by allowing Jani to gargle and bathe, stating that humans die after "15 to 20 days" without water. Australia's Sydney Morning Herald wrote that people who avoid food and water to emulate mystical figures often die. Sanal Edamaruku characterized the experiment as a farce for allowing Jani to move out of the CCTV cameras' field of view, claiming that video footage showed Jani was allowed to receive devotees and to leave the sealed test room for sunbathing. Edamaruku also said that the gargling and bathing activities were insufficiently monitored, and that he was denied access to the site where the tests were conducted in both 2003 and 2010. He accuses Jani of having "influential protectors" responsible for denying Edamaruku permission to inspect the project during its operation, despite having been invited to join the test during a live television broadcast. The Indian Rationalist Association stated that individuals making similar claims in the past have been exposed as frauds.

Television and video appearances

In 2006, The Discovery Channel aired a documentary called "The Boy with Divine Powers" featuring a five minute interview with Jani and Shah. In 2010, the Independent Television Network (ITN) posted an article and video featuring Prahlad Jani, commenting on the 2010 tests.

References

1. ^ Rajeev Khanna (2003-11-25). "BBC NEWS". Retrieved 2008-06-07. {{cite news}}: Text "Fasting fakir flummoxes physicians" ignored (help); Text "South Asia" ignored (help)
2. ^ Rawstorne, Tom (7 May 2010). "The man who says he hasn't eaten or drunk for 70 years: Why are eminent doctors taking him seriously?". Daily Mail.
3. ^ "Scientists Baffled by Prahlad Jani, Man Who Doesn't Eat or Drink". Abcnews.go.com. 2010-06-01. Retrieved 2010-06-17.
4. ^ "Yogi beaten by bear necessities of life without food" Glenda Kwek, May 14, 2010, Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney, Australia.
5. Mirror, Ahmedabad. "Man who lives on air undergoes defence tests". Ahmedabadmirror.com. Retrieved 2010-08-04.
6. "Hermit Claims 70 Years Survival Without Food". Wusa9.com. Retrieved 2010-08-04.
7. "Yogi sans food gives medical fraternity food for thought". Dnaindia.com. 2010-04-27. Retrieved 2010-05-10.
8. "Prahlad Jani Breaks a Record,No Food & Water for 74 years". Kerala365.com. 2010-04-28. Retrieved 2010-06-17.
9. "Experts baffled as Mataji's medical reports are normal". Dnaindia.com. 2010-05-07. Retrieved 2010-08-04.
10. Radha Sharma, TNN, Jul 17, 2010, 05.41am IST (2010-07-17). "Fast-hungry Mataji's claim endorsed". Timesofindia.indiatimes.com. Retrieved 2010-08-04.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
11. ^ Edamaruku, Sanal (2010-05-18). "India's man who lives on sunshine". The Guardian. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
12. Indian hermit stuns doctors surviving without food http://itn.co.uk/a91d4f3a764a424d652db8d5d4b8661d.html

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• Living people
• 1929 births