The cannibal monks of an Indian tribe that feasts on human flesh, drink from skulls and live among the dead

The Aghori monks of Varanasi are feared throughout India and are believed to be able to see the future

Feared across India, the exiled Aghori monks of Varanasi feast on human flesh and reside near cremation sites in search of spiritual enlightenment.

Showing the monks with painted faces and beads strung around their necks, these incredible images were taken by Italian photographer Cristiano Ostinelli, who spent time with the tribe to discover more about their way of life.

The mysterious tribe members live in cemeteries and feast on human flesh as part of their rituals, as well as drinking from human skulls, chewing the heads off live animals and meditating on top of cadavers in search of spiritual enlightenment.

 

  

Italian photographer Cristiano Ostinelli spent time with the mysterious tribe to capture their mysterious way of life

 

The tribe's belief extend to them often walking around without clothes to signify the human body in its purest form

 

The monks use their unusual rituals to bring them closer to the revered Hindu god Shiva

 

 

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

They emphasise this notion through their habit of dwelling in cemeteries and by surrounding themselves with death and decay.

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.

Today's Aghori trace their roots to 17th-century puritan Baba Kinaram, who is said to have lived to the age of 170.