Other fakirs hold their two arms above their head, the hands crossed, and remain perpetually in such a position.  Others again have one or both arms extended.  Some hang by their feet from the limb of a tree by means of a cord, and remain head downward for days at a time, with their face uncongested and their voice clear, counting their beads and mumbling prayers.

One of the most remarkable peculiarities of fakirs is the faculty that certain of them possess of remaining entirely buried in vaults and boxes, and inclosed in bags, etc., for weeks and months, and, although there is a certain deceit as regards the length of their absolute abstinence, it nevertheless seems to be a demonstrated fact that, after undergoing a peculiar treatment, they became plunged into a sort of lethargy that allows them to remain for several days or weeks without taking food.  Certain fakirs that have been interred under such conditions have, it appears, passed ten months or a year in their grave.

Tortured Fakirs.—­Fakirs that submit themselves to tortures are very numerous.  Some of them perform exercises analogous to those of the Aissaoua.  Mr. Rousselet, in his voyage to the Indies, had an opportunity of seeing some of these at Bhopal, and the following is the picturesque description that he gives of them:  “I remarked some groups of religious mendicants of a frightfully sinister character.  They were Jogins, who, stark naked and with dishevelled hair, were walking about, shouting, and dancing a sort of weird dance.  In the midst of their contortions they brandished long, sharp poniards, of a special form, provided with steel chains.  From time to time, one of these hallucinated creatures would drive the poniard into his body (principally into the sides of his chest), into his arms, and into his legs, and would only desist when, in order to calm his apparent fury, the idlers who were surrounding him threw a sufficient number of pennies to him.”

At the time of the feast of the Juggernaut one sees, or rather one did see before the English somewhat humanized this ceremony, certain fakirs suspended by their flesh from iron hooks placed along the sides of the god’s car.  Others had their priests insert under their shoulder blades two hooks, that were afterward fixed to a long pole capable of pivoting upon a post.  The fakirs were thus raised about thirty feet above ground, and while being made to spin around very rapidly, smilingly threw flowers to the faithful.  Others, again, rolled over mattresses garnished with nails, lance-points, poniards, and sabers, and naturally got up bathed in blood.  A large number cause 120 gashes (the sacred number) to be made in their back and breast in honor of their god.  Some pierce their tongue with a long and narrow poniard, and remain thus exposed to the admiration of the faithful.  Finally, many of them are content to pass points of iron or rods made of reed through folds in their skin.  It will be seen from this that fakirs are ingenious in their modes of exciting the compassion and charity of the faithful.