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Fire Walker

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The mastery of man over flames has for many centuries been an essential part of many religious and magical rites. Holy men in Fiji and Sri Lanka and even in the Balkans traditionally have the power to walk unharmed and without flinching across red hot coals or stones.

A legend:

On the Fijian island of Beqa, the gift of fire walking was, according to this legend,  granted to tui-na-iviqalati, a prince and leader of the islanders, who caught an eel that transformed itself into the god Tuimolawai.

The god begged to be spared and promised to make his captor into the greatest fisherman or warrior. The prince refused. He was already both those things.

The god then offered him immunity from fire. The pact was sealed. A pit was dug and lined with stones, which were heated by fire that burned for four days and nights. Tuimolawai invited the prince to lie on the stones and cover himself in fire to achieve complete immunity. Tui-na-iviqalati, not trusting the  god, replied he would be content to merely walk on the glowing stones.

Fire walking in Beqa is performed by a priest, called mbete and his novices. he is said to be a direct descendant of Tui-na-iviqalati.

A 15 to 20 foot diameter pit is dug, usually 4 to 5 feet deep. A great pile of logs and stones is paced in it, and as the logs burn, the stones sink into a compact layer. The mbete tests the stones by scattering dried leaves. If the leaves instantly explode into flames then the stones are ready. The mbete then leads the fire walkers slowly over and around the glowing stones and they emerge unscathed.

A similar ceremomy takes place annually at a small fishing village north of Colombo in Sri Lanka. There, beside an old Hindu temple, a pit is filled with coals so hot that the men tending it have to douse themselves with water. The fire walkers are then led to the pit by a priest who is the first to cross it. He does so with unhurried dignity. The procession follows and moves across the coals at a faster pace without mishap.

Similar rituals are performed in many parts of India, notably in Madhya Pradesh and in south Cochin ang Mysore. In the Balkans a Greek sect, the Anastenaria, practices fire walking to honor the feast day, May 21, of St. Constantine and St. Helena.

Western science can offer no rational explanation as to why fire walkers should not be badly burned. Doctors examined fire walkers in Fiji and Sri Lanka. Their soles were not burned, and they still had normal sensitivity. It seems that the walkers are able, as a result of long religious training, to put themselves into a profound trance, in which they feel no pain and need fear no harm.

Excerpts from Fire Walkers of the World, Strange and Amazing Stories