E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898.
Tarakee,
the Brahmin, was the model of austere devotion. He lived 1,100 years, and spent each century in some astounding mortification.
1
1st century. He held up his arms and one foot towards heaven, fixing his eyes on the sun the whole time.
2
2nd century. He stood on tiptoe the whole time.
3
8th century. He stood on his head, with his feet towards the sky.
4
9th century. He rested wholly on the palm of one hand.
5
11th century. He hung from a tree with his head downwards.
6
“One century he lived wholly on water, another wholly on air, another steeped to the neck in earth, and for another century he was always enveloped in fire I don’t know that the world has been benefited by such devotion.”—Maurice: History of Hindostan
