Prahlad Jani, a yogi from India has made the claim that years ago a goddess blessed him with the power to not require food or drink. Rather than simply laughing it off, several scientists actually did tests of the Yogi and found that during a fifteen day observation period he consumed absolutely nothing. Scientists and doctors are baffled by this incredible feat.
A person can survive approximately 40 days without food, though political prisoners of average weight have been observed to survive up to 43 days without food. Some incredibly obese individuals can survive up to 100 days without food, but doing so is incredibly hazardous to their health. So surviving for fourteen days without eating is an impressive feat of willpower, but by no means miraculous. Water is another matter entirely. During the time he was under observation, Prahlad Jani did not drink any water. A typical human being can survive for anywhere from two to ten days without water depending on the temperature and the amount of exertion they undertake. In the desert this can be reduced to mere hours even. On average it is assumed that in a reasonable climate a person can survive about eight days if sitting in the shade. If we lose even 2.5% of our body’s water weight, then we immediately lose 25% of our mental and bodily efficiency. We will become more tired, irritable, and find conversations harder to follow. Prahlad Jani spent fifteen days under these conditions and was just as lucid and able to function on his own as when he entered the experiment.
The entire observation period he was observed in Gujarat in a hospital with 30 medics and under heavy video surveillance. During this period he never went to the bathroom either. The only contact he made with water was while bathing, and even this was under close surveillance. As he was released, Jani said he would return to his home where he would continue to practice his daily meditation route. He says that this meditation is what provides him with the nourishment he requires in order to survive.
If this ability were understood, astronauts could one day train themselves to require no food or water as they traveled to distant colonies such as mars, and it could even be taught to members of starving nations in order to help them survive famines and droughts. In fact many people around the world would like to know if there was an alternative to eating and drinking. The end result could be an end to world hunger that quite literally begins with the self. Still, even after the observation scientists suggest that the evidence must be analyzed carefully, and that even some further tests could be constructed so that the world could one day be able to put down the fork forever. Jani did, however, say that it was a special power given to him by a goddess. Is it something specific about his body? Or is it something all human beings share?