View source for Aghori

{{short description|Sect within Shaivism}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2015}}
{{Use Indian English|date=June 2018}}
{{Infobox ethnic group
|group= Aghori
|image = Aghoree, Hindoo mendicant, Benares.jpg 
|caption = An Aghori with a human skull, {{circa|1875}}
|total = 70
|total_ref = <ref name=today>{{cite news|url=https://www.today.com/popculture/indian-doc-focuses-hindu-cannibal-sect-wbna9842124#.UsLVWdIW1A0|title=Indian doc focuses on Hindu cannibal sect|work=Today|date=October 27, 2005|agency=[[The Associated Press]]|access-date=2019-11-05}}</ref>
|popplace = [[Varanasi]]
}}
[[File:DevelopmentofShaivism.jpg|thumb|350px|The Aghori in [[Shaivism]].]]
The '''Aghori''' (from [[Sanskrit]] {{lang|sa|अघोर}} ''{{lang|sa-Latn|aghora}}''; {{lit|"not-fearful", "fearless"}}) are a small group of [[asceticism|ascetic]] [[Shaivism|Shaiva]] [[sadhu]]s based in [[Uttar Pradesh]], [[India]]. They engage in post-mortem rituals. They often dwell in [[charnel ground]]s, smear [[cremation]] ashes on their bodies, and use bones from human corpses for crafting [[kapala]]s ([[skull cups]] which [[Shiva]] and other [[Hindu deities]] are often iconically depicted holding or using) and jewellery. 

Their practices are sometimes considered contradictory to orthodox [[Hinduism]].<ref>"The Meanings of Death" By John Bowker, John Westerdale Bowker, p. 164, Cambridge University Press.</ref> Many Aghori [[guru]]s command great reverence from rural populations, as they are supposed to possess healing powers gained through their intensely [[hermit|eremitic]] rites and practices of [[renunciation]] and ''[[tapas (Sanskrit)|tápasya]]''.
{{Saivism}}

==Beliefs and doctrines==
Aghoris are devotees of [[Shiva]] [[Avatar|manifested]] as [[Bhairava]],<ref>"Shiva: The Wild God of Power and Ecstasy" Page 46, by Wolf-Dieter Storl</ref> and [[monists]] who seek ''[[moksha]]'' from the cycle of [[reincarnation]] or [[saṃsāra]]. This freedom is a realization of [[Ātman (Hinduism)|the self]]'s identity with [[Brahman|the absolute]]. Because of this monistic doctrine, the Aghoris maintain that [[Nondualism|all opposites are ultimately illusory]]. The purpose of embracing pollution and degradation through various customs is the realization of non-duality ([[Advaita Vedanta|advaita]]) through transcending social [[taboo|taboos]], attaining what is essentially an [[altered state of consciousness]] and perceiving the illusory nature of all conventional categories.

Aghori rituals, which are performed precisely to oppose notions of purity commonplace in orthodox Hinduism, are typically [[macabre]] in nature.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Suri|first=R.|last2=Pitchford|first2=D.|date=2010|title=The Gift of Life: Death As Teacher in the Aghori Sect|url=https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/The-Gift-of-Life:-Death-As-Teacher-in-the-Aghori-Suri-Pitchford/9d5640ce2868af621f1e229959df32f292148eb3|doi=10.24972/IJTS.2010.29.1.128}}</ref> Practices of Aghoris varies.<ref>{{cite book|title=Aghor Medicine: Pollution, Death, and Healing in Northern India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BSeYR93tIzwC|pages=147-148|author=Ronald L. Barrett}}</ref> Some of them also live in cemeteries, smear cremation ashes on their bodies, use human skulls for decoration and bowls, [smoking marijuana, drinking alcohol, and meditate on top of corpses.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Sharma|first=Nitasha|last2=Rickly|first2=Jillian|date=2019-11-02|title=‘The smell of death and the smell of life’: authenticity, anxiety and perceptions of death at Varanasi’s cremation grounds|url=https://doi.org/10.1080/1743873X.2019.1610411|journal=Journal of Heritage Tourism|volume=14|issue=5-6|pages=466–477|doi=10.1080/1743873X.2019.1610411|issn=1743-873X|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Holden|first=Lynn|title=Taboos: Structure and Rebellion|publisher=The Institute for Cultural Research|year=2001|isbn=978-0904674330|pages=19}}</ref>Although contrary to mainstream Hinduism, these practices exemplify the Aghori philosophy of criticizing commonplace social relations and fears through the use of culturally offensive acts.<ref name=":0" /> Furthermore, they demonstrate the Aghoris’ acceptance of death as a necessary and natural part of the human experience.<ref name=":0" /> Despite the thought behind such actions, outsiders (particularly tourists) have typically viewed the sect with suspicion and horror, with their lifestyles being described as morally damaging to the Indian youth, akin to living like animals, uncivilized compared to modern Hindu society, or outright dangerous, due to belief that the Aghori are willing to kill live humans for their rituals.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Sharma|first=Nitasha|date=2020-03-14|title=Dark tourism and moral disengagement in liminal spaces|url=https://doi.org/10.1080/14616688.2020.1713877|journal=Tourism Geographies|volume=22|issue=2|pages=273–297|doi=10.1080/14616688.2020.1713877|issn=1461-6688|doi-access=free}}</ref> This particular claim, as of the present, has yet to be substantiated with hard evidence.

Aghoris are not to be confused with [[Shivnetra|Shivnetras]], who are also ardent devotees of Shiva, but do not indulge in extreme, [[tamas (philosophy)|tamasic]] ritual practices. Although the Aghoris enjoy close ties with the Shivnetras, the two groups are quite distinct, Shivnetras engaging in [[sattva|sattvic]] worship.

Aghoris base their beliefs on two principles common to broader [[Shaiva]] beliefs: that Shiva is perfect (having [[omniscience]], [[omnipresence]] and [[omnipotence]]) and that Shiva is responsible for everything that occurs: all conditions, [[Karma in Hinduism|causes and effects]]. Consequently, everything that exists must be [[perfection|perfect]] and to deny the perfection of anything would be to deny the sacredness of all life in its full manifestation, as well as to deny the [[Supreme Being]].

Aghoris believe that every person's soul is Shiva, but is covered by ''{{IAST|aṣṭamahāpāśa}}'' "eight great nooses or bonds", including sensual pleasure, anger, greed, obsession, fear and hatred. The practices of the Aghoris are centered around the removal of these bonds. [[Sādhanā]] in cremation grounds is used in an attempt to destroy fear; sexual practices with certain riders and controls attempt to release one from sexual desire; being naked is used in an attempt to destroy shame. On release from all the eight bonds, the soul becomes ''sadāśiva'' and obtains ''moksha''.<ref>{{cite web|title=Aghori|url=https://sladeviper777.wordpress.com/2015/11/01/aghori/|work=True Hindu|access-date=14 February 2017}}</ref>{{better source|date=October 2020}}

==History==
[[File:agori.JPG|thumb|250px|Aghori in [[Satopanth|Satopant]]]]

[[File:Agori Tribe.jpg|thumb|250px|An Aghori man in [[Badrinath]] smoking [[hashish]] or [[Cannabis (drug)|cannabis]] from a [[Chillum (pipe)|chillum]] in 2011]]
Although akin to the [[Kapalika]] ascetics of medieval [[Kashmir]], as well as the [[Kalamukha]]s, with whom there may be a historical connection, the Aghoris trace their origin to [[Baba Keenaram]], an ascetic who is said to have lived 150 years, dying during the second half of the 18th century.<ref>Parry, J. P. (1994). ''Death in Banaras''. Cambridge University Press.</ref>  [[Dattatreya]] the [[avadhuta]], to whom has been attributed the esteemed nondual medieval song, the ''[[Avadhuta Gita]]'', was a founding [[:wikt:adi-guru|adi guru]] of the Aghor tradition according to Barrett (2008: p.&nbsp;33):
{{quote|Lord Dattatreya, an antinomian form of Shiva closely associated with the cremation ground, who appeared to [[Baba Keenaram]] atop Girnar Mountain in Gujarat. Considered to be the ''adi guru'' (ancient spiritual teacher) and founding deity of Aghor, Lord Dattatreya offered his own flesh to the young ascetic as ''prasād'' (a kind of blessing), conferring upon him the power of clairvoyance and establishing a guru-disciple relationship between them.<ref>Barrett, Ron (2008). ''Aghor medicine: pollution, death, and healing in northern India''. Edition: illustrated. University of California Press. {{ISBN|0-520-25218-7}}, {{ISBN|978-0-520-25218-9}}. Source: [https://books.google.com/books?id=BSeYR93tIzwC&pg=PA33&dq=dattatreya+aghor&ei=fhCBS-zuIYfulQSl8oCUCg&client=opera&cd=1#v=onepage&q=dattatreya%20aghor&f=false] (accessed: Sunday February 21, 2010), p.33.</ref>}}

Aghoris also hold sacred the [[Hindu]] deity Dattatreya as a predecessor to the Aghori [[Tantra|Tantric]] tradition. Dattatreya was believed to be an incarnation of [[Brahma]], [[Vishnu]], and [[Shiva]] united in the same singular physical body. Dattatreya is revered in all schools of Tantra, which is the philosophy followed by the Aghora tradition, and he is often depicted in Hindu artwork and its holy scriptures of folk narratives, the [[Puranas]], indulging in Aghori "[[Vamachara|left-hand]]" Tantric worship as his prime practice.

An aghori believes in getting into total darkness by all means, and then getting into light or self realizing. Though this is a different approach from other Hindu sects, they believe it to be effective. They are infamously known for their rituals that include such as ''shava samskara or [[shava sadhana]]'' (ritual worship incorporating the use of a corpse as the altar) to invoke the mother goddess in her form as Smashan [[Tara (Devi)|Tara]] (Tara of the Cremation Grounds).

In Hindu iconography, Tara, like [[Kali]], is one of the ten [[Mahavidya]]s (wisdom goddesses) and once invoked can bless the Aghori with supernatural powers. The most popular of the ten Mahavidyas who are worshiped by Aghoris are [[Dhumavati]], [[Bagalamukhi]], and [[Bhairavi]]. The male Hindu deities primarily worshiped by Aghoris for supernatural powers are manifestations of [[Shiva]], including [[Mahākāla]], [[Bhairava]], [[Virabhadra]], [[Avadhuta]], and others.

Barrett (2008: p.&nbsp;161) discusses the "[[charnel ground]] sādhanā" of the Aghora in both its left and right-handed proclivities and identifies it as principally cutting through attachments and aversion and foregrounding primordiality; a view uncultured, undomesticated:<ref name=":1" />
{{quote|The gurus and disciples of Aghor believe their state to be primordial and universal. They believe that all human beings are natural-born Aghori. Hari Baba has said on several occasions that human babies of all societies are without discrimination, that they will play as much in their own filth as with the toys around them. Children become progressively discriminating as they grow older and learn the culturally specific attachments and aversions of their parents. Children become increasingly aware of their mortality as they bump their heads and fall to the ground. They come to fear their mortality and then palliate this fear by finding ways to deny it altogether.}}
In this sense, the Aghora sādhanā is a process of unlearning deeply internalized cultural models. When this sādhanā takes the form of charnel ground sādhanā, the Aghori faces death as a very young child, simultaneously meditating on the totality of life at its two extremes. This ideal example serves as a prototype for other Aghor practices, both left and right, in ritual and in daily life."<ref name=":1">Barrett, Ron (2008). ''Aghor medicine: pollution, death, and healing in northern India.'' Edition: illustrated. University of California Press. {{ISBN|0-520-25218-7}}, {{ISBN|978-0-520-25218-9}}. p.161.</ref>

==Adherents==
Though Aghoris are prevalent in cremation grounds across India, Nepal, and even sparsely across cremation grounds in [[South East Asia]], the secrecy of this religious sect leaves no desire for practitioners to aspire for social recognition and notoriety.<ref name=today/>

==Spiritual headquarters==
[[Hinglaj Mata]] is the [[Kuladevata]] (patron goddess) of the Aghori. The main Aghori pilgrimage centre is Kina Ram's [[hermit]]age or [[ashram]] in Ravindrapuri, [[Varanasi]]. The full name of this place is [[Baba Keenaram Sthal]], Krim-Kund.  Here, Kina Ram is buried in a tomb or [[samadhi]] which is a centre of pilgrimage for Aghoris and Aghori devotees.  Present head (Abbot), since 1978, of [[Baba Keenaram Sthal]] is [[Baba Siddharth Gautam Ram]].

According to Devotees, Baba Siddharth Gautam Ram is reincarnation of Baba Keenaram himself. Apart from this, any cremation ground would be a holy place for an Aghori ascetic. The cremation grounds near the [[Shakti Pitha|yoni pithas]], 51 holy centres for worship of the Hindu [[Mother Goddess]] scattered across South Asia and the Himalayan terrain, are key locations preferred for performing [[sadhana]] by the Aghoris. They are also known to meditate and perform [[sadhana]] in haunted houses.

==Medicine==
Aghori practice healing through purification as a pillar of their ritual. Their patients believe the Aghoris are able to transfer health to, and pollution away from patients as a form of "transformative healing", due to the believed superior state of body and mind of the Aghori.<ref name="ProQuest Central">{{cite book|author=Attewell, Guy|title=Aghor Medicine: Pollution, Death and Healing in Northern India|journal=Social History of Medicine|publisher=University of California Press|year=2008|volume=21|issue=3|pages=608–609|doi=10.1093/shm/hkn067|isbn=978-0-520-25219-6|url=https://archive.org/details/aghormedicinepol0000barr/page/216}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Aghor Yoga]]

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==Further reading==
{{Refbegin}}
*{{cite book|author=Patel, Rajan|title=Feast of Varanasi|publisher=Raafilms|year=2016}}
*{{cite book|author=Dallapiccola, Anna|title=Dictionary of Hindu Lore and Legend|publisher=Thames & Hudson|year=2002|isbn=0-500-51088-1}}
*{{cite book|author=McDermott, Rachel F.|author2=Kripal, Jeffrey J.|title=Encountering Kālī: in the margins, at the center, in the West|publisher=University of California Press|year=2003|isbn=978-0-520-23239-6}}
*{{cite book|author=McEvilley, Thomas|title=The Shape of Ancient Thought: comparative studies in Greek and Indian Philosophies|publisher=Allworth Communications, Inc.|year=2002|isbn=978-1-58115-203-6}}
*{{cite book|author=Parry, Jonathan P.|title=Death in Banaras|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=1994|isbn=0-521-46625-3}}
*{{cite book|author=Svoboda, Robert|title=Aghora: At the Left Hand of God|publisher=Brotherhood of Life|year=1986|isbn=0-914732-21-8}}
*{{cite book|author=Svoboda, Robert|title=Aghora II: Kundalini|publisher=Brotherhood of Life|year=1993|isbn=0-914732-31-5}}
*Vishwanath Prasad Singh Ashthana, ''Aghor at a glance''
*Vishwanath Prasad Singh Ashthana, ''Krim-kund Katha''
{{Refend}}

==External links==
*{{Commonscatinline}}

{{Shaivism}} 

[[Category:Shaiva sects]]
[[Category:Varanasi]]
[[Category:Left-Hand Path]]