Photo by W. M. Zumbro 



I.IVING ON A wire: 



As a thoroughly comfortless method of existence, few can surpass that adopted by the 

 Sadhu in the picture, who spends nine-tenths of his time balanced on a slack wire in the 

 forest. Most Indian ascetics wear strings of beads about their necks or carry rosaries in 

 their hands, reminding one that it is from the East, probably during the time of the Crusades, 

 that Christendom borrowed this aid to devotion. 



body so affects its nature that even after 

 the separation through death the taint of 

 the gross body still remains, and this in- 

 evitably brings about the reincarnation 

 of the subtle body along with the soul ; 

 but, for the soul, rebirth is a most terrible 

 hardship. Escape is possible only pro- 

 vided the subtle body is freed from the 

 influence of the senses, weaned from the 

 afifections and desires of earthly life. 



The release may be obtained in two 

 ways : ( i ) by reasoning with the soul, 

 persuading it to believe that the undue 

 attraction for the body cannot conduce 

 to happiness, for the body does not en- 

 dure forever; (2) by mortification of the 

 body, thereby preventing the soul from 

 deriving any pleasure from its union with 

 the gross body. 



MANY ASCE^TICS ARE) NOT INSPIRED BY 

 IvOFTY MOTIVES 



It should not be thought, however, that 

 such complex philosophy lies back of all 

 or most of the self-inflicted penance of 

 the present-day Sadhu. 



Sometimes a man will cut himself in 

 a belief that his enemy will be made to 

 feel the pain equally with himself, or he 

 will undergo torture in order to bring 

 ruin on his enemy whom he could not 

 ruin in any other way. 



It also happens that the path of the 

 ascetic is one of the surest paths leading 

 to wealth and fame. In India heroic 

 contempt of pains and pleasures has al- 

 ways commanded the wondering atten- 

 tion and respectful homage of the multi- 

 tude. Very well, then ; a man intent on 



1285 



