Aghori Sect

The aghori Sect is one of the most extreme practicing spiritual groups in india. It comes from the ancient Avadhoota Gorakhnath and many branches have developed from that saint. He practised mauna (no speaking), agnikarya (sitting inside a fire in summer time), varunakarya (sitting in icecold spring water in winter time in the himalayas) while chanting plenty of rounds of holy recitations (Mantras) and other very complicated vratas (vow). He got many followers in north india, and has his main seat in Varanasi (see pic) by the command of Goddess Kali. He organized a more solit programm of practice, even that kind of devotees living outside the society, while worshipping spirits or Lord Bhairava (ferocious form of Lord Shiva) exisited from the time of creation. They want to shed off the shackles of material life by practicing very extreme sadhanas, like living on burning ghats (were humans are burned), living from the dead, do asanas on the dead bodies and smear the ashes of the dead all over (from toe to the hairs). The living dead... a hollywood movie of zombies cannot compete with this practice. They eat stool and drink urine to overcome material comforts and tastes, eating remnands of the dead from a special collection, a human skull (only from a dead saddhu or a child they will take such a skull). That human skull is for their rituals very important, and a special spirit who helps him in his sadhana will be invoked there. Normally this spirits are servants of a higher Demigod, mostly from Lord Shiva or Goddess Parvathi/ Kali.