The monks sought to dry the body from the inside out, eliminating the self of fat, muscle, and fluids before being buried in a pine box to meditate during their final days on Earth, using a rigorous diet foraged from the neighboring mountains of Dewa, Japan. They would eat nothing but water and mountain plants for two years so that at the end of that time, their bodies were completely free of waste material. There are several ways in which monks have preserved the bodies of saints for worship after their deaths. Some of them involve drying or otherwise removing all moisture from the body, such as by burying it whole with its head toward heaven and its feet toward the earth. This is done to make it possible to open the chest cavity and remove the heart, which is believed to be the source of spiritual power. The organs of the body are then donated to holy men who will burn them as an offering to God. Other methods used by monks include stuffing the body with cotton until it can be buried in its own clothing, which was common in India. Still others freeze their bodies so they can be transported across long distances by camel or ship. There are even some monks who strip their corpses of flesh! In conclusion, monks have been known to mummify themselves for preservation purposes.