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| - Several social media users are sharing a photo of a what seems like a seer sitting and meditating with the claim that it shows a yogi (seer) covered in snow and meditating in the Himalayas.
However, we found that the claim is false. The man seen in the photo is a seer named Baba Sarbangi also known as Bhale Giriji Maharaj from Rindhana village in Haryana. In the photo he is seen covered in ashes and performing 'Agni tapasya', a form of prayer in Hindu religion where one meditates around fire.
CLAIM
The photo of the seer sitting and meditating is being shared along with the caption that reads, "An ice clad Yogi in Himalayas. Hail Sanatan (Dharma)."
The photo has over 4,000 likes on Twitter at the time of writing this article.
WHAT WE FOUND
We conducted a reverse image search on the photo and found the photo in a Facebook post that identified him as '1008 Mahant Baba Bhale Giri Ji Maharaj'.
We found the photo in the account of 'Baba Sarbangi' who is also known as 'Mahant Bhalegiri ji Maharaj'.
While scrolling through his photos on his profile, we also found the same photo posted on 18 June 2019. More photos of the seer sitting in the same position can be seen here, here and here.
In the photographs, the seer was seen convered in what seems to be ashes and not snow, as claimed in the viral posts.
Next, we looked for videos about the seer and found a YouTube channel named 'Baba Sarbangi vlog'. We found several videos of the seer performing the 'Agni Tapasya'.
In a video from 24 June 2018, he can be seen sitting inside a ring with fire lit inside heaps of cowdung and people can be seen circling around the ring.
Further, we also looked for news reports about the seer and found one story in Dainik Jagran from 12 March 2018. In the report, which said that devotees flocked to the Goddess Sheetla temple at Rindhana village in Sonipat district of Haryana. Devotees also took the blessings of the temple's chief priest Bhale Giriji Maharaj, the report read.
Clearly, an edited image claiming that a seer covered in snow was meditating in the Himalayas is being shared on social media.
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