Fakirs wounding themselves, India 19th Century
Illustration from an Illustrated history of India published by Cassell, Petter & Galpin circa 1876. Info from wiki:Faqirs are characterized by their attachment to dhikr (a practice of repeating the names of God, often performed after prayers).[2] Sufism gained adherents among a number of Muslims as a reaction against the worldliness of the early Umayyad Caliphate (661–750 CE[3]). Though, Sufis have spanned several continents and cultures over a millennium, originally expressing their beliefs in Arabic, before spreading into Persian, Turkish, Indian languages and a dozen other languages.[4] The term is also applied to Hindu ascetics (, sadhus, gurus, swamis and yogis).[5] These usages developed primarily in the Mughal era in the Indian subcontinent. There is also a distinct clan of faqirs found in North India, descended from communities of faqirs who took up residence at Sufi shrines. In Bangladesh and India: The Fakir and Goshai was with the stronger religious influence, and there are even Bauls who would shave their heads as in their past and kept on practicing and believing in many of the basic creeds of Vaishnava-Sahajiya.[citation needed][dubious – discuss] So all followers of different religions and religious practices came under the nomenclature Baul, which has its etymological origin in the Sanskrit words Vatula ("madcap"), or Vyakula ("restless") and used for someone who is possessed or crazy. They were known as performers 'mad' in a worshiping trance of joy - transcending above both good and bad. Though fond of both Hinduism and Islam, the Baul evolved into a religion focused on the individual and centered on a spiritual quest for God from within. They believe the soul that lives in all human bodies is God.
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