Editing Firewalking

{{Short description|Practice of walking over hot embers or stones}}
{{Redirect|Firewalk}}
[[File:Fire Walking (1234969885).jpg|thumb|right|260px|Firewalking in [[Sri Lanka]]]]
'''Firewalking''' is the act of walking [[barefoot]] over a bed of hot [[ember]]s or stones. It has been practiced by many people and cultures in many parts of the world, with the earliest known reference dating from [[Iron Age India]] {{circa|1200 BCE}}. It is often used as a [[rite of passage]], as a test of strength and courage, and in religion as a test of faith.<ref name="History of Firewalking">{{cite web|title=Firewalking|url=https://h2g2.com/edited_entry/A1152947|website=H2G2|date=22 October 2003 |access-date=2025-03-04|ref=10/22/2003}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Pankratz|first=Loren|date=1988|title=Fire Walking and the Persistence of Charlatans|url=http://muse.jhu.edu/content/crossref/journals/perspectives_in_biology_and_medicine/v031/31.2.pankratz.html|journal=Perspectives in Biology and Medicine|volume=31|issue=2|pages=291–298|doi=10.1353/pbm.1988.0057|pmid=3281133|s2cid=40278024|issn=1529-8795|via=Project Muse|url-access=subscription}}</ref>
[[File:Takao Firewalking 2016 3 13.webm|thumb|260px|Firewalking festival in [[Japan]], 2016]]

[[Modern physics]] has explained the phenomenon, concluding that the foot does not touch the hot surface long enough to burn and that embers are poor conductors of heat.<ref name="Willey_David">{{cite web|last=Willey|first=David|title=Firewalking Myth vs Physics|url=http://www.pitt.edu/~dwilley/Fire/FireTxt/fire.html|publisher=[[University of Pittsburgh]]|access-date=June 29, 2010}}</ref>

==History==
Walking on fire has existed for several thousand years, with records dating back to 1200 BCE.<ref name="watchandlearn">{{cite news | url=http://www.livescience.com/othernews/060814_mm_firewalker.html | title=World's Watch and Learn: Physics Professor Walks on Fire | publisher=[[Livescience.com]] |date=2006-08-14 | first=Corey | last=Binns | access-date =2007-04-13}} (livescience.com)</ref>{{Unreliable source?|date=March 2010}} Cultures across the globe use firewalking for rites of healing, initiation, and faith.<ref name="watchandlearn" />

Firewalking is also practiced by:
* The [[Sawau]] clan on the island of [[Beqa]], {{convert|10|km|mi|0|abbr=off}} to the south of [[Viti Levu]] in the [[Fiji|Fijian Islands]].<ref name="Pigliasco">{{cite web | url=https://evols.library.manoa.hawaii.edu/handle/10524/1515 | title=The Custodians of the Gift: Intangible Cultural Property and Commodification of the Fijian Firewalking Ceremony. Ph.D. Dissertation | publisher=Department of Anthropology, University of Hawai‘i. Sponsor: Institute of Fijian Language and Culture, Ministry of Institute of Fijian Language and Culture, Ministry of Fijian Affairs, Culture and Heritage | date=2007 | access-date=February 8, 2018 | author=Pigliasco, Guido Carlo}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | title=We Branded Ourselves Long Ago: Intangible Cultural Property and Commodification of Fijian Firewalking | author=Pigliasco, Guido Carlo | journal=[[Oceania (journal)|Oceania]] | date=July 2010 | volume=80 | issue=2 | pages=161–181 | doi=10.1002/j.1834-4461.2010.tb00078.x}}</ref><ref name="Tourism in Beqa">{{cite book | title=Science of Pacific Island Peoples: Education, language, patterns & policy | publisher=Institute of Pacific Studies | author=Burns, Georgette Leah | year=1994 | pages=29 | isbn=978-9820201071 |editor=R. J. Morrison |editor2=Paul A. Geraghty |editor3=Linda Crowl | chapter=Tourism Impact in Beqa | chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EpuRnl_ZJoQC&pg=PA29}}</ref><ref name="What is Firewalking">{{cite web | url=https://www.captaincookcruisesfiji.com/blog/what-is-firewalking-in-fiji/ | title=What is Firewalking in Fiji? | publisher=Captain Cook Cruises Fiji | date=February 15, 2016 | access-date=February 8, 2018 | author=Admin}}</ref> The phenomenon was examined in 1902 when it was already a tourist attraction, with a "Probable Explanation of the Mystery" arrived at.<ref>{{cite journal | url=http://rsnz.natlib.govt.nz/volume/rsnz_35/rsnz_35_00_001290.html | title=Art. XIII.—An Account of the Fiji Fire-walking Ceremony, or Vilavilairevo, with a Probable Explanation of the Mystery | author=Fulton, Robert | journal=[[Transactions and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute]] | year=1902 | volume=35 | pages=187–201}}</ref>
* [[San Pedro Manrique]], a village of Soria, Central Spain
* [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Eastern Orthodox Christians]] in parts of [[Greece]] (see [[Anastenaria]]) and [[Bulgaria]] (see [[nestinarstvo]]), during some popular religious feasts.<ref>Xygalatas, Dimitris, 2012. [http://www.equinoxpub.com/equinox/books/showbook.asp?bkid=498&keyword= ''The Burning Saints. Cognition and Culture in the Fire-walking Rituals of the Anastenaria''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120902130327/http://www.equinoxpub.com/equinox/books/showbook.asp?bkid=498&keyword= |date=2012-09-02 }} London: Equinox.  {{ISBN|9781845539764}}.</ref><ref>{{Cite journal | doi=10.1080/02757206.2011.546855|title = Ethnography, Historiography, and the Making of History in the Tradition of the Anastenaria| journal=History and Anthropology| volume=22| pages=57–74|year = 2011|last1 = Xygalatas|first1 = Dimitris|s2cid = 154450368|url = https://pure.au.dk/ws/files/51974539/Ethnography_Historiography_and_the_Making_of_History_in_the_Tradition_of_the_Anastenaria_Hist._Anth.pdf}}</ref>
* Tribes throughout [[Polynesia]], documented in scientific journals (with pictures and chants) between 1893 and 1953.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.umuki.com/articles/Firewalkers_of_the_South_Seas.html |title=Firewalkers of the South Seas &#124; The Fire Walking Temple (Ke Umu Ki Heiau) |publisher=Umuki.com |date=2009-08-22 |access-date=2015-05-19}}</ref>
* The [[Pà Thẻn people]] of Vietnam celebrate the Fire Dancing (or Fire Jumping) Festival, which includes walking, jumping, and dancing over fire and burning embers.<ref>Vũ Quốc Khánh. 2013. ''Người Pà Thẻn ở Việt Nam [The Pa Then in Vietnam]''. Hà Nội: Nhà xuất bản thông tấn.</ref>

==Persistence and functions==
Social theorists have long argued that the performance of intensely arousing collective events such as firewalking persists because it serves some basic socialising function, such as social cohesion, team building, and so on. [[Émile Durkheim]] attributed this effect to the theorized notion of collective effervescence, whereby collective arousal results in a feeling of togetherness and assimilation.<ref>Durkheim E. ‘’The elementary forms of religious life’’. New York: Free Press 1995.</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Vilenskaya|last2=Steffy|first1=Larissa|first2=Joan|title=Firewalking: A New Look at an Old Enigma|date=December 1991|publisher=Bramble Co|isbn=978-0962618437|pages=[https://archive.org/details/firewalkingnewlo00vile/page/n253 253]|edition=First|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/firewalkingnewlo00vile/page/n253}}</ref><ref name="Experience of Fire and Ice">{{cite book|last1=Leonardi|first1=Lewis|title=The Ultimate Experience of Fire & Ice|date=1998|publisher=Davinci Press|location=Google Books|isbn=978-0966467703|edition=1st}}</ref> A scientific study conducted during a fire-walking ritual at the village of [[San Pedro Manrique]], Spain, showed synchronized heart rate rhythms between performers of the firewalk and non-performing spectators. Notably, levels of synchronicity also depended on social proximity. This research suggests that there is a physiological foundation for collective religious rituals, through the alignment of emotional states, which strengthens group dynamics and forges a common identity amongst participants.<ref>Konvalinka, I., Xygalatas, D., Bulbulia, J., Schjoedt, U., Jegindø, E-M., Wallot, S., Van Orden, G. & Roepstorff, A. 2011. [http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2011/04/26/1016955108.full.pdf+html “Synchronized arousal between performers and related spectators in a fire-walking ritual”], ‘’Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 108’’(20): 8514-8519</ref><ref>Xygalatas, D., Konvalinka, I., Roepstorff, A., & Bulbulia, J. 2011 [http://www.landesbioscience.com/journals/27/article/17609/ "Quantifying collective effervescence: Heart-rate dynamics at a fire-walking ritual"],''Communicative & Integrative Biology 4''(6): 735-738</ref><ref name="A Guide for the Spiritually Curious">{{cite book|last1=Houff|first1=William H.|title=Infinity in Your Hand: A Guide for the Spiritually Curious|date=2001-07-01|publisher=Skinner House Books|isbn=978-1558963115|edition=2nd}}</ref>

==Physics==

Per the [[second law of thermodynamics]], when two bodies of different temperatures meet, the hotter body will cool off, and the cooler body will heat up, until they are separated or until they meet at a temperature in between.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a3_036.html | title=Can you walk on hot coals in bare feet and not get burned?  | publisher=[[The Straight Dope]] |date=14 June 1991 | access-date =2007-04-13}}</ref> What that temperature is, and how quickly it is reached, depends on the thermodynamic properties of the two bodies. The important properties are [[temperature]], [[density]], [[specific heat capacity]], and [[thermal conductivity]].

The square root of the product of thermal conductivity, density, and specific heat capacity is called [[thermal effusivity]], and determines how much heat energy the body absorbs or releases in a certain amount of time per unit area when its surface is at a certain temperature. Since the heat taken in by the cooler body must be the same as the heat given by the hotter one, the surface temperature must lie closer to the temperature of the body with the greater thermal effusivity. The bodies in question here are human feet (which mainly consist of water) and burning coals.

Due to these properties, [[David Willey (physicist)|David Willey]], professor of physics at the [[University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown]], points out that firewalking is explainable in terms of basic physics and is neither supernatural nor paranormal.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.pitt.edu/~dwilley/Fire/FireTxt/fire.html | title=Firewalking Myth vs Physics | publisher=[[University of Pittsburgh]] |year=2007 | first=David | last=Willey | access-date =2007-04-13}}</ref> Willey notes that most fire-walks occur on coals that measure about {{convert|1000|F|C}}, but he once recorded someone walking on {{convert|1800|F|C}} coals.<ref name="watchandlearn" />

Additionally, [[Jearl Walker]] has postulated that walking over hot coals with wet feet may insulate the feet due to the [[Leidenfrost effect]].<ref>{{cite web| first = Jearl | last = Walker| title=Boiling and the Leidenfrost Effect | url=http://www.wiley.com/college/phy/halliday320005/pdf/leidenfrost_essay.pdf| publisher=Cleveland State University|access-date=2015-05-19}}</ref>

===Factors that prevent burning===
* Water has a very high [[specific heat capacity]] (4.184&nbsp;J&nbsp;g<sup>&minus;1</sup>&nbsp;K<sup>&minus;1</sup>), whereas embers have a very low one. Therefore, the foot's [[temperature]] tends to change less than the coal's.
* Water also has a high thermal conductivity, and on top of that, the rich blood flow in the foot will carry away the heat and spread it. On the other hand, embers have a poor thermal conductivity, so the hotter body consists only of the parts of the embers which are close to the foot.
* When the embers cool down, their temperature sinks below the [[flash point]], so they stop burning, and no new heat is generated.
* Firewalkers do not spend very much time on the embers, and they keep moving.

===Risks when firewalking===
* People have burned their feet when they remained in the fire for too long, enabling the thermal conductivity of the embers to catch up.
* One is more likely to be burned when running through the embers since running pushes one's feet deeper into the embers, resulting in the top of the feet being burnt.
* Foreign objects in the embers may result in burns. Metal is especially dangerous since it has a high thermal conductivity.
* Embers which have not burned long enough can burn feet more quickly. Embers contain water, which increases their heat capacity as well as their thermal conductivity. The water must be evaporated already when the firewalk starts.
* Wet feet can cause embers to cling to them, increasing the exposure time.
A myth that persists is that safe firewalking requires the aid of a supernatural force, strong faith, or an individual's ability to focus on "[[mind over matter]]".<ref name="DeMello_Margo">{{cite book|last=DeMello|first=Margo|title=Feet and Footwear: A Cultural Encyclopedia|year=2009|publisher=Macmillan|isbn=978-0-313-35714-5|pages=30–32|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5QdKSxajwP0C&q=barefoot%20middle%20ages&pg=PA30}}</ref>

Since the 20th century, this practice is often used in corporate and team-building seminars and self-help workshops as a confidence-building exercise.<ref name="Contemporary Ritual and Transformation">{{cite web|last1=Edwards|first1=Emily D.|title=Firewalking: a contemporary ritual and transformation|url=http://libres.uncg.edu/ir/uncg/f/E_Edwards_Firewalking_1998.pdf|website=MIT Press|access-date=2015-10-17}}</ref><ref name="The New Perspective">{{cite book|last1=Reynolds|first1=Ron|last2=Reynolds|first2=Denny|title=The New Perspective: Ten Tools for Self-Transformation|date=2005|publisher=[[Trafford Publishing]]|location=Google Books|isbn=978-1412047852|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MxEi3yaCae4C}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Bed of nails]]
*[[Fire eating]]
*[[Timiti]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* [[Kendrick Frazier]], ''The Hundredth Monkey: And Other Paradigms of the Paranormal''—The author describes his participation in a firewalking exercise, his observations, and possible explanations of the phenomenon

==External links==
{{commons category|Firewalking}}
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* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNfgq-7VAKc Firewalking in San Pedro Manrique]
*[http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a3_036.html Can you walk on hot coals in bare feet and not get burned?] from [[The Straight Dope]]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20200303120745/https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/9/why-fire-walking-doesnt-burn-science-or-spirituality/ Why Fire Walking Doesn't Burn: Science or Spirituality?] from [[National Geographic (magazine)|National Geographic]]

{{Circus skills}}
{{Worship in Hinduism}}
{{Culture of Oceania}}

[[Category:Circus skills]]
[[Category:Barefoot]]
[[Category:Walking]]
[[Category:Fire in culture]]
[[Category:Fire in Hindu worship]]
[[Category:Traditions involving fire]]