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(clarified butter) (4) oils, (5) sugar and (6) salt. Of the remaining four years, two are to be spent in reducing the quantity of food and the avoidance of the rasas, then a year in living on reduced "rations", after which six months should be spent in performing some sort of less trying asceticism, and the last six months, in practising some of its severes. Thus disciplined the saint may hope to be able to control his inner conditions and future destiny both at the moment of death.
The time for sallekhanā death should be such as is pleasant, and not likely to add to the discomfort of the saint. The place should also be one where trouble and inconvenience and discomfort are not very likely to be encountered. The saint, who peforms sallekhanā, places himself under the guidance of a well qualified and experienced achārya (leader of saints), who superintends the ceremony, and appoints other saints to take care of and attend upon him.
Sallekhanā is performed either at a time deliberately chosen, or in case of accidents when the probability of death is almost tantamount to a certainty. If there be doubt, and the saint is not willing to undertake sallekhanā at once, he should adopt a qualified vow for a certain period of time, after which sallekhanā is to be terminated if death does not occur in the interval, but there is no other difference between the qualified and the regular form.
Even when deliberately undertaken, sallekhanā death is not suicide. It is not inspired by any of
those sorrowful or gloomy passionate states of the ESTE SECRETSEPTIEMBRES DE LA ESCUELA 93 STELLEICESTER EIGENES DE ARTERIES
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