… There were among others such penances as were never heard of or about which nothing was read anywhere. Some of them were beyond imagination. What was seen in the beginning is even beyond the scope of writing. Some were sitting on the ground, some on water, some even in the air were meditating in Padmasana. Some were doing all sorts of Asanas. Some were meditating on slabs of ice; some were lying on beds of nails. Some were simply sitting in Padmasana. Some were standing only on one leg. Some were dancing with song and music, while some were silently doing the same. Some were hanging with tree-branches clasped between their legs, with fire blazing below them. Some were naked, moving about, some standing still on one leg. They had big tridents in their hands.

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