Aghoris Of India

The Aghoris are a small group of ascetic Shiva sadhus who stand out from the crowd for their Ash smeared body , knotted hair and little or no clothing. Their jewelry doesn't fail to attract people either, they wear long necklaces made of bright beads and human bones.

Notice the bones hanging around his neck.

Found in most numbers in northern and eastern India,these Aghoris consider Ravindrapuri , Varanasi to be their main spot for pilgrimage. They inhabit cremation grounds for easy access to their mystic needs and an aura necessary for meditation. Being staunch worshipers of Shiva or Bhootnath ( which means "God of ghosts") and the Mahakali , the patrons of ghosts ,spirits and demons .

Aghoris celebrating at a cremation.

It take twelve years for an Aghori to be considered a graduate in his or her spiritual journey before which they need to meditate on a corpse and drink blood from the 'kapala' or the skull of a human . The 'kapala' is of vital importance to an Aghori , it is believed to have magical powers as it is the last thing to turn into Ash when a body is burnt . Cannibalism is also practiced to mark the complete transformation into an Aghori.

An Aghori holding a human skull.

The main objective of Aghoris is to achieve 'moksha' or to be one with God through mystical practices and renouncing worldly ties. They do so by embracing all things considered profane by the society. They eat food considered to by dirty and defiled. The Aghoris consume rotting human flesh, garbage, human waste matter, engage in necrophilia and ritualistic sexual practices with menstruating women. By embracing these taboos they claim to be embracing God , because God is said to be present in everything. One may ask out of curiosity about how the Aghoris get access to dead bodies , this is because a lot of corpses are just left in the Ganga for supernatural beliefs or convenience.

Regular and heavy consumption of pot and hashish from 'chillams' cause Aghoris to appear in a trance-like state . They also consume country made liquor which forms an essential part of their lifestyle and rituals. The Aghoris believe that being dazed helps them let go of their earthly ties , distaste for conventionally dirty things and get them closer to God.

An Aghori smoking from a chillam.

Despite the heavy consume of narcotics and appearing in a state of daze, they are surprisingly alert about their surroundings with an eery , unnerving spark in their eyes-thus justifying the name "Aghori" which translates into " one who is not sleepy" .