Enlightened: The Bizarre World of the Breatharians

For thousands of years, human beings have sought spiritual
connection and enlightenment. A lot of us are seekers by nature, we
want to know why we’re here and what—if anything—comes next.
Sometimes it can seem like most of humankind is walking around with
their heads in the sand, and we don’t wanna be one of those people.
We want to chase after the secrets. We want to be plugged in.
There’s a long tradition, as part of this search for truth, of
self-deprivation as a spiritual virtue. Taking a vow of silence or
poverty. Forbidding alcohol or dancing or sex. Fasting. Some people
believe it strips away everything extra and leaves the spirit more
open to connection with the infinite. Others prefer a more balanced
approach to life, like the Buddhist Middle Way. But for those who
choose to throw away worldly pleasures, the path can get pretty
extreme. Today we’ll tell you about a group who claim they’ve given
up one of our most basic needs—food—and have learned to live on
nothing but light and air. Are these people just fully spiritually
attuned, or are they just grifters?

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Sources: 
Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ascended_master
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jasmuheen
Cult Education
Institute: https://culteducation.com/group/848-breatharianism/3279-prison-for-air-cult-discipless.html

Cult Education Institute:
https://www.culteducation.com/group/848-breatharianism/3269-three-deaths-linked-to-living-on-air-cults.html

ABC News:
https://abcnews.go.com/Health/International/man-eat-drink/story?id=10787036

GQ
Magazine: https://www.gq.com/story/breatharians-the-people-who-think-air-is-food
Vice:
https://www.vice.com/en/article/the-one-hundred-day-fast/
YouTuber “Atrocity Guide”
Skeptical Inquirer:
https://skepticalinquirer.org/2020/01/living-on-air-the-crazy-ideas-and-consequences-of-breatharians/

The Independent:
https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/gaunt-and-weak-the-sham-diet-guru-who-refuses-to-see-the-light-737972.html
The Guardian:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/1999/sep/28/millennium.uk Daily
Mail:
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2135324/Woman-starves-death-spiritual-journey-trying-live-sunlight-alone.html

CNN:
https://money.cnn.com/2017/06/21/media/breatharian-couple-news-outlets/index.html#:~:text=After%20it%20was%20contacted%20by,the%20New%20York%20Post's%20story.


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