Mummified monk found inside 1,000-year-old Buddha statue

By Ryan Kilpatrick, February 25, 2015

CT scans of an ancient Song Dynasty Buddha statue have revealed a man's body hidden inside.

The body, which belonged to Chinese Meditation School member Liuquan, dates from around the year 1100. Rotten materials and paper scraps were discovered where there had once been organs.

Liuquan's body is believed to be a case of self-mummification, a practice whereby monks followed a strict diet and administered gradual poisoning, allowing themselves to be buried alive as they approached starvation.

Earlier this month, the 200-year-old mummified body of another Buddhist monk was discovered in Mongolia - although some religious scholars have argued that he's not dead at all and just in a (very) deep meditative state.

[Image via CBC]

more news

Fujian government angry that Hungarians stole their mummified monk

Regular statues are so boring.

200-year-old mummified monk is just meditating, totally not dead

Soon-to-be-Buddha, or half-frozen corpse?

Human skull found in 1,400-year-old Ningxia tomb of European origin?

Skull from tomb located on the Silk Road has 'typical features of Europeans.'

Bodies of 5 year old girls missing since December found in well

The bodies of two missing five year old girls were found in a well Monday in Luohe, Henan province.

5 year old found dangling from 6th floor ledge

A five-year-old boy in Danyang, Jiangsu Province suffered a near-death-experience after he fell out of a sixth-floor bathroom window and was hanging on to the ledge last Saturday. Luckily, he was saved by the swift and methodical reaction of his neighbours.