Mystic who claimed survival without food and water dies

Prahlad Jani popularly known as Chunriwala Mataji, a breatharian monk who claimed to have survived without food or water for over 70 years, died on Tuesday morning in Gandhinagar district.

He was 90.

Jani breathed his last at his native village Charada. After he developed cough and cold, he was tested for Covid-19 but his test results were negative. Barring weakness, he had had no physical ailment.

Jani’s claims of surviving without food or water were tested in 2003 and 2010 by scientists. “Mataji’s case was a novel case,” said Dr Sudhir Shah, consulting neurophysician and head of the team of doctors that conducted the studies on him.

“His bladder had urine, but it was absorbed and may be recycled in the body. If someone doesn’t pass urine for four days, the kidneys fail. If he is not put on dialysis on the fifth day, he dies. But nothing happened to Mataji,” added Dr Shah.

He will be given a ‘samadhi’ on Thursday, where his followers will be allowed to attend on condition of maintaining social distancing. Jani had followers across the country including states like Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Punjab.

Being a devout believer of goddess Amba, he used to wear a red saari (chunri) all the time and dress like a woman, because of which, he was known as Chunriwala Mataji.

Jani had left his parent’s house at a very young age in pursuit of ‘spiritual experience’. His followers claimed that he had stopped taking food and water at the age of 14.