Mind over body, Tummo secrets to Wim Hof's ice toleration
Wim Hof, or known by his nickname, "Iceman", is a Dutch world record holder of longest immersion in ice bath (1 hour and 44 minutes). Hof has also reached the top of Mount Kilimanjaro in his shorts within 2 days, and also completed a full marathon 42.195 kilometers above the polar circle in Finland in temperatures close to -20 degrees Celsius, dressed in nothing but shorts and sandals. On March 16, 2000, he swam 57.5 meters (188.6 ft.) under three feet of an ice lake near the Finnish village of Kolari, deep inside the Arctic Circle, using no special equipment, and dressed only in swim shorts and a pair of goggles (video below).
Researchers and Hof himself attribute his extraordinary ability to Tantric practice Tummo (a Tibetan word for inner fire). Tummo has been practiced by Yogi monks in Tibet and apparently Wim is the only known non-monk to have mastered Tummo. Wim describes his ability to withstand extreme cold temperatures as being able to turn his own thermostat up by using his brain.
Most people simply allow the energy to churn into chaotic thoughts and emotions or dissipate in a superficial pursuit of pleasure. Kundalini yoga and Tummo meditation offer a range of techniques to harness the powerful psycho-physical energy coursing through the body through chakras (image below). A yogi consciously accumulates and then directs energy to transform and evolve his/her consciousness so that 'wisdom' (prajna) and 'compassion' (karuna) are manifested in him/her.
Tummo-meditation is commonly associated with descriptions of intense sensations of body heat, which are a partial effect, rather than a goal, of the practice. Researchers who have studied Indo-Tibetan Yogis in the Himalayas have found that these subjects exhibited the capacity to increase the temperature of their fingers and toes by as much as 8.3°C.
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