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Indian tribe eats human flesh, drink from skulls and live in cemetries

The formidable Aghori monks of Varanasi feast on human flesh in search of spiritual enlightenment.

The mysterious tribe members live in cemeteries and drink from human skulls, chewing the heads off live animals and meditating on top of cadavers as part of their rituals.

They trace their roots to 17th-century puritan Baba Kinaram, who is said to have lived to the age of 170. Feared by the Indians, they are believed to predict the future, walk on water and do evil prophecies. The monks use a combination of marijuana, alcohol and meditation to help them reach a disconnected state of heightened awareness and bring themselves closer to revered Hindu god Lord Shiva.

The Aghori also believe that by immersing themselves without prejudice in what others deem taboo or disturbing, they're on course to achieving enlightenment.

The Aghori are said to collect dead bodies and use them for their spiritual enlightenment, wearing the corpses, consuming them or building alters from them.

The monks believe that flesh and blood are transitory and that the body is ultimately inconsequential.

The Aghori shun material belongings and often walk around unclothed. This encourages detachment from what they see as earthly delusions and better signifies the human body in its purest form.

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