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Objective Given the up to 70% fatality rate of self-immolation, with tragic consequences for survivors, proposals have been made for a global task force to prevent self-immolation. However, little research has recently been conducted on the actual situation of patients who attempt self-immolation in Japan. The current study aimed to investigate the actual situation of patients who attempt self-immolation in Akita Prefecture. Result Within Akita Prefecture, 13 individuals had attempted self-immolation in the past 5 years, with a predominance of a history of psychiatric disorders (46%). The following three novel findings were also revealed. First, patients with low a prognostic burn index tended to commit arson, while those with a high prognostic burn index tended to self-immolate. Second, patients attempting suicide tended to have a higher incidence of carbon monoxide poisoning. Third, those whose clothes caught on fire tended have more severe burns, regardless of whether suicide was attempted. Conclusion Self-immolation tends to be serious, and prevention is imperative. In Akita Prefecture, the percentage of patients with a history of psychiatric disorders may be higher than commonly believed, and a more detailed understanding of the mental state of self-immolation is necessary in the future to develop effective prevention measures.

The article was submitted on 12.07.2019. This article examines the historical continuity between the self-immolations of the Old Believers and the radical aspirations of Russian revolutionary intellectuals, the aesthetics of sacrifice in the civil poetry of the 1880s, and the Russian modernism and avant-garde of the early twentieth century. The relevance of the article is due to its search for a metaphor that unites different spheres of Russian political and cultural life at the turn of the century. The author analyses self-immolation as a metaphor in the essays of G. Fedotov and D. Merezhkovsky, the paintings of G. Myasoedov and I. Repin, the poems of S. Nadson, K. Fofanov, V. Bryusov, N. Klyuev, V. Ivanov, and A. Blok, and the novels of M. Gorky and A. N. Tolstoy. The extreme symbolism of self-sacrifice united different strata of Russian culture, primarily the subcultures of the narodniks and literary bohemians. The most detailed metaphor of the creative and comprehensive ritualisation of intellectual subcultures is provided in O. Mandelstam’s memoirs The Noise of Time. Virtual self-immolation could become real, as when M. Grachevsky and M. Vetrova committed suicide in prison by self-immolation. The methodology of this article is based on historical and comparative analysis of poetic metaphors, characters, and visual motifs of paintings on historical topics and the socio-psychological attitudes of political radicals as manifestations of a ritual-like self-sacrifice plot. Even though self-immolations among Old Believers had almost completely stopped, the phenomenon was a challenge for Russian intellectuals. It turned into a metaphor in both the aesthetics of Russian political poetry and Russian symbolism. The cult of self-immolation in lyrical poetry found reflection in the extremely intense psycho-emotional and creative sentiments of biographical authors and their characters, where self-immolation is portrayed as the most perfect form of self-destruction. During and after the revolution, Russian philosophers and writers used this metaphor to condemn the Russian mentality and analyse the failure of the Russian intelligentsia’s mission to enlighten the people. Исследуется историческая преемственность между самосожжениями старообрядцев и радикальными устремлениями русских революционеров, эстетикой жертвенности в гражданской поэзии 1880‑х гг., модернизме и авангарде начала ХХ в. Актуальность обусловлена поиском метафоры, объединяющей разные сферы российской политической и культурной жизни рубежа веков. Основными источниками стали сочинения русских публицистов Г. П. Федотова, Д. С. Мережковского, картины русских передвижников Г. Г. Мясоедова, И. Е. Репина, стихи С. Надсона, К. Фофанова, В. Брюсова, Н. Клюева, Вяч. Иванова, А. Блока, романы М. Горького и А. Н. Толстого. Экстремальная символика самопожертвования объединяла различные слои русской культуры, прежде всего субкультуры народников и литературной богемы. Наиболее развернутая метафора всесторонней ритуализации интеллигентской субкультуры была дана в мемуарах О. Мандельштама «Шум времени». Виртуальное самосожжение стало реальностью в тюремном самосожжении М. Грачевского и М. Ветровой. В основе методологии исследования – историко-сопоставительный анализ поэтических метафор, визуальных мотивов и персонажей картин на историческую тему и социально-психологических установок политических радикалов как проявлений подобного ритуалу сюжета о самопожертвовании. Несмотря на исчерпанность самосожжений старообрядцев, этот феномен стал вызовом для радикальной части интеллигенции, а в качестве метафоры – элементом эстетики как русской гражданской поэзии, так и русского символизма. Культ самосожжения как события внутреннего мира в поэзии привел к предельной интенсивности переживания лирического автора и его героев, которое было воплощено в метафоре саморазрушения. После революции эта метафора была использована русскими философами и литераторами скорее для осуждения экстремизма, присущего русской ментальности, и для анализа провала культуртрегерской миссии русской интеллигенции.

Objective: To assess the important socio-demographic inequalities in self-immolation in between genders. Methods: A cross-sectional study, 2011 to 2016, was conducted. A total of 540 completed suicides were recruited to the study. Data were collected by systematic registration suicide data (SRSD) and Legal Medicine Organization (LMO). The concentration index (CI) was used to determine the inequality. The inequality line was decomposed to find out the main sources of inequality in self-immolation between genders by Oaxaca-Blinder approach. Results: The mean ratio of self-immolation was 21.8% among completed suicides. The decreasing trend was found in self-immolations during 2011-2016 (z = -2.07, p = 0.039), the mean rate in six years, was 2.98 per 100.000 populations. Unemployment −.043 (−.07, −0.01), married subject’s −.016 (−.03, −0.00) and low educational level −.005 (−.01, −0.00) were the main inequality source in females compared to males. Conclusion: Our results suggest that despite the incidence decreasing in self-immolation within 6 years of study period, the inequality was detected in self-immolation. The main socio-demographics in inequalities were lower educational level, married persons and unemployment that prevention programs should be more concentrated in females to a decrease of inequality in self-immolation.

Background: Suicide is one of the top ten leading causes of death in the world as well as India. Poisoning is one of the most common modes of attempting suicide. Self-immolation is a devastating form of suicide attempt. Impulsivity has been demonstrated as an important risk factor for suicide. Lethality and intent were found to be interrelated in previous studies. But a comparative study of impulsivity, lethality and intent between self-immolation and poisoning was not found in a literature search. Objectives: To compare socio-demographic characteristics, impulsivity, intent and lethality in those who attempt suicide by self-immolation and poisoning. To find the intercorrelations between intent, impulsivity and lethality. Methods: A cross-sectional comparative study was done among persons attempting suicide by self-immolation (n=40) and poisoning (n=50). Barratt's impulsivity scale, Smith's LSARS (lethality of suicide attempt rating scale) and Beck's suicide intent scale were used to assess impulsivity, lethality and intent, respectively. Percentages, mean, median and range were used to describe the data. Chi-square test, t-test and Pearson correlation were used for statistical analysis. Results and discussion: There were significant associations between occupation, family income and socioeconomic status and mode of suicide attempt. Lethality was higher in self-immolation. Lethality and intent were significantly intercorrelated in both groups. Impulsivity and lethality were negatively correlated in the self-immolation group. Conclusion: Self-immolation is a highly lethal method of attempting suicide. Highly lethal suicide attempts have high intent. Greater the impulsivity, less lethal the attempt is likely to be.

Objective To determine whether the increased restrictions, isolation and stressors associated with COVID-19 led to an increase in rates or severity of self-immolation burn injuries. Design Retrospective review of a prospectively-collected database of New South Wales burn patients, comparing 2020 data with the preceding 5 years. Setting Both adult units in the New South Wales Statewide Burn Injury Service (Concord Repatriation General Hospital and Royal North Shore Hospital). Participants All adult patients in New South Wales with self-inflicted burn injuries between 1st January 2015 and 31st December 2020. Outcome measures Demographic information, precipitating factors, burn severity, morbidity and mortality outcomes. Results There were 18 episodes of self-immolation in 2020, compared to an average of 10 per year previously. There were statistically significant increases in burn size (43% total body surface area vs 28%) and revised Baux score (92 vs 77). Most patients had a pre-existing psychiatric illness. Family conflict and acute psychiatric illness were the most common precipitating factors. Conclusion 2020 saw an increase in both the frequency and severity of self-inflicted burn injuries in New South Wales, with psychiatric illness a major factor.

On 14 April 2018, lawyer and environmental activist David Buckel burned himself to death in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park in what has been called the first self-immolation in the name of climate change. Yet, few people have heard about his final, extraordinary act of protest and even fewer people witnessed it. Some in the press and the attentive public, conditioned by conventional dramatic expectations, have critiqued Buckel’s protest as a failed performance. However, drawing from Hans-Thies Lehmann’s theory of postdramatic theatre, I propose that climate change—causally diffuse, non-linear, slow-moving and often invisible—presents, among other things, a challenge to dominant modes of perception. I argue that, when viewed through a postdramatic lens, Buckel’s self-immolation successfully interrupts our politics of spectacle, gesturing towards a new aesthetic for environmental activism that eschews conventional dramatic narratives and decenters the human.

Background Suicide-attempts have increased across the world and have become higher among females. There has been a high prevalence of self-immolation in Iran, mostly young married women admitted to the burn centers. This study aimed to explore the factors and experiences of self-immolation in Iranian married women to develop prevention strategies to prevent the personal, social, and economic impacts of suicide and suicide attempts. Methods A qualitative descriptive approach using open-ended, in-depth, face-to-face interviews was conducted in a purposive sample of 16 married Iranian women aged 16–40 years in the burn centers in Urmia city, a place in northwest Iran. Conventional content analysis was used to analyze the data. Results Three themes emerged from the data, including (1) antecedents of self-immolation, (2) suicidal ideation method, and (3) pathway to recovery. Each of these themes is supported by sub-themes. Conclusions The study highlights the demand for health professionals to support self-immolation survivors to continue their normal lives. According to survivors’ needs, a comprehensive supportive program is recommended to support their pathways to recovery in all its complexities. Health professionals should also not forget that the survivors’ family also will need help to overcome this trauma. A family counseling program may also be provided.

Статья посвящена исследованию уголовно наказуемого деяния доведение до самоубийства путем самосожжения. Данное деяние относится к категории малоизученных в системе криминологического знания; этим обусловлена актуальность ее анализа, выявления истоков / корней, а также причин и условий, порождающих анализируемый вид общественно опасного и политически резонансного деяния, с целью разработки мер по предупреждению такого рода уголовно наказуемых деяний. Надо иметь в виду, что практически все акции самосожжения проходят в общественных местах, где пострадавший стремится привлечь к себе и к своей проблеме общественное внимание. Такие противоправные действия в общественных местах являются резонансными; они обусловлены экономическими, политическими и социальными требованиями или радикальными религиозными мотивами, во многом связаны с действием или бездействием властных структур различного уровня, а также с негативными последствиями несовершенства действующего законодательства., The article is devoted to the study of the criminally punishable act «Incitement to suicide: by self-immolation». This act belongs to the category of poorly studied in the system of criminological knowledge, thus the relevance of its analysis, identification of the origins-roots, as well as the causes and conditions that give rise to the analyzed type of socially dangerous and politically resonant act, in order to develop measures to prevent such criminal acts. It should be borne in mind that almost all actions of self-immolation take place in public places, where the victim seeks to attract public attention to himself and to his problem. Such illegal actions in public places are resonant, caused by economic, political and social demands or radical religious motives, are largely associated with the action or inaction of government structures at various levels, as well as with the negative consequences of imperfect current legislation.

This bachelor thesis explores a possibility of preparation and usage of oxime prodrugs. Thesis aim is to deliver oximes by using self-immolative phosphorous-based linkers that undergo cyclization reaction, leading to the release of oxime from the phosphorous. For this purpose, model systems containing: (1) a photolabile DMNB group, or they could contain enzymatically activable ester group, (2) self-immolative arm with the phosphate core, and (3) oxime as the leaving group, were prepared. Acetophenone oxime, cyclohexanone oxime, and griseofulvin oxime were used as the model oximes. In particular, the synthesis of target molecules and their self-immolation (i.e., controlled breakdown) have been studied. These reactions were monitored by 31 P NMR spectroscopy. The stability study of the prepared substances in buffer solutions has also been performed. Key words: oxime, prodrug, self-immolation, self-immolative linkers, photoactivation

The article was submitted on 14.05.2021. This article describes Old Believer polemics about sacrifice via selfimmolation and other forms of ‘self-inflicted death’ between the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. The main object of condemnation by the Russian state and church authorities was the Old Believer system of sacralising one’s own sufferings (the creation and distribution of related narratives, appeals to popular religiosity, and the veneration of new martyrs). The author examines Old Believer writings and decrees, admonitions, and texts created by the authorities as parts of one discursive field and concludes that rational methods for combating Old Believer martyrs were consolidated in the Petrine era at the conceptual level in order to preserve the taxable population. Feofan (Prokopovich) offered the most original explanation for the widespread Old Believer veneration of new martyrs by interpreting it as bliss at being ‘persecuted for righteousness’ (1722): this interpretation was the basis for his admonition On the Invalidity of Unauthorised Suffering. The active disciplinary intervention of the authorities in the sacrificial discourse and the misinterpretation of selfsacrifice that spread among the Old Believers led their leaders to speak of piety as an indispensable condition for salvation. The desire of various participants in the discourse to speak on this topic generated, if not to a specific “language”, then a whole set of experiences embodied in genetically different rhetoric. Описывается полемика о старообрядческой жертвенности конца XVII – начала XVIII в., вызванная многочисленными случаями самосожжений и других вариантов «самогубительной смерти». Основным объектом обличений со стороны российской государственной и церковной власти была система сакрализации староверами собственных страданий: создание и распространение соответствующих нарративов, апелляция к народной религиозности и почитание новомучеников. Рассматривая разножанровые старообрядческие сочинения и созданные властью постановления, увещания и другие тексты, предназначенные для всенародного внимания, как части одного дискурсивного поля, автор приходит к выводу о закреплении в Петровскую эпоху рациональных методов борьбы со старообрядческими мучениками на понятийном уровне в рамках курса на сбережение податного населения. Наиболее оригинальные объяснения «бума» почитания старообрядцами новомучеников были предложены Феофаном Прокоповичем в толковании на блаженство изгнанных «правды ради» (1722), послужившем основой увещания «О недействительности самовольного страдания». Активное дисциплинарное вмешательство власти в жертвенный дискурс и превратное толкование самопожертвования, распространявшееся среди староверов, заставляли их лидеров высказываться о благочестии как непременном условии спасения. Стремление разных участников дискурса высказываться на эту тему породило если не особый язык, то целый набор переживаний, воплощенных в генетически различной риторике. Исследование выполнено при финансовой поддержке гранта Российского научного фонда, проект № 19–18–00186 «“Культура духа” vs “культура разума”: интеллектуалы и власть в Британии и России в эпоху перемен (XVII–XVIII вв.)».

Objectives: Women confront many problems after self-immolation, so the purpose of this study was to explore the challenges facing women survivors of self-immolation in the Kurdish Regions of Iran. Method: This study used a qualitative approach and conventional content analysis. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 19 Kurdish women who attempted self-immolation in Iran. They were sampled through purposeful sampling and snowball sampling. The Lincoln and Guba criteria were used to strengthen the research. Results: The results of data analysis were categorized into five main categories: 1�psychological problems, 2�lack of social and legal supportive structures, 3�incomplete treatment, 4�poor self-care, and 5�social problems. These categories consist of 19 subcategories. Conclusion: Having been rescued from self-immolation, the women confront many challenges returning to normal life. Reducing these women�s problems and paving the way for their return to life requires multi-dimensional and community-based interventions. Therefore, all social organizations and institutes can cooperate and each of them paves part of the way. © Copyright © 2020 Yoosefi Lebni, Abbas, Khorami, Khosravi, Jalali and Ziapour.

Objective: To perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of self-immolation epidemiology and characteristics in Iran. Methods: This was a systematic review and meta-analysis study. PubMed, Scopus, Web of science and Science Direct were searched for English literature and SID and Magiran for Persian in the time period of 2000 to 2016. The retrieved studies were screened and reviewed then quality assessed. Random Effect model was applied for meta-analysis. The qualitative data were analyzed by content analysis method. Results: After literature screening, 39 studies included in the analysis. Women were subject to self-immolation more than men. The rate of self-immolation estimated to be 4.5 cases in every 100,000 populations and it was the reason of 16% of hospitalized burns. The average length of hospital stay calculated to be 12.24 (95% CI: 8.85-15.59) days. The total burnt surface area was 65.3% (95% CI: 56.71-73.89). Death due to self-immolation was 62.1%. The major risk factors of self-immolation were having mental health issues, family problems and characteristics and problems in relation/communication with spouses. Conclusion: Despite the low rate of self-immolation in Iran, it comprises one sixth of the hospitalized burns. The mortality rate of self-immolation also is high and this highlights the importance of providing special care. Psychological consultations and mental health screening in the primary health care would help to prevent the self-immolation.

Piotr Szczęsny set himself on fire in protest of the Polish government in October 2017. Charged with political orientation, his selfimmolation posed a challenge to the news media, forcing it deep into the gutter the suicide archive, where commentators debated appropriate aesthetics of protest in a country whose imagery imagery is predominately thanatic; in a nation-state that has been resurrected after its many occupations yet still remains within a sacrificial grave, with death as the cornerstone of community. In this article, I situate Szczęsny’s death within the nightmare-bound post-Soviet political scene through historically contextualizing the debate around his suicide, where the act itself was criticized on the basis of its inappropriate aesthetics of irrational selfharm. I argue that such binding of a/political catastrophe in a bundle of representations corresponds to what François Laruelle calls media intellectualism, a form of engaging suffering that relies on its mediation. Seeking an alternative discourse of engaging the a/political act, I look to Katerina Kolozova’s non-standard politics of pain and to Oxana Timofeeva’s work on “the catastrophe.” These positions, which I call stances of the unsubject, offer us different starting points for creating solidarity in spaces of void, pain and depression. For the unsubject, pain is the prerequisite for forming the political, albeit in a non-standard manner, where politics cannot oscillate around representations, ideologies or identities. Rather than mediate self immolation, I ask whether the way that we define “the political” could benefit from a subtraction of mediation, from a catastrophic thinking in parallel with the brutality of the real, rather than the repetition of (national) trauma. Author(s): Bogna M. Konior: Title (English): Media Intellectualism or Lived Catastrophe? Mediating and Suspending the A/political Act Journal Reference: Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture, Vol. 15, No. 1-2 (Summer 2018) Publisher: Institute of Social Sciences and Humanities – Skopje Page Range: 166-185 Page Count: 20 Citation (English): Bogna M. Konior, “Media Intellectualism or Lived Catastrophe? Mediating and Suspending the A/political Act,” Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture, Vol. 15, No. 1-2 (Summer 2018): 166-185.

This poetic inquiry paper is a reflection on the phenomenon of self-immolation committed as compassionate protest. Whether the self-directed social protest of Vietnamese monk, Thích Quảng Đức, and Tibetan monastics and lay people, expresses selfless, altruistic action, dedicated to the greater good, merits reflection. Individuals seeking social justice in today’s troubled times may be interested in cultivating ahimsa, or non-violence, within themselves before attempting to implement it within their communities. In brief, they should change themselves before they change the world. With self-compassion that broadens to loving kindness and compassion for all, they may try to understand those from whom they seek justice before they commit to action. This inquiry concludes with ekphrastic poetry, “interpreting, troubling and addressing” (poets.org) the Tibetan painting, “Wheel of Life,” a depiction of the Buddhist concept of the “three poisons,” ignorance, desire, and anger, and contemplates their antidotes.

Background: Suicide is a major psychiatric emergency that has always been a topic of great interest to researchers. Self-immolation is a heinous suicide method that is common in Eastern societies. The present study was conducted to explore probable issues which might lead to self-immolation in young Kurdish Iraqi women. Methods: The present qualitative study was conducted in Soran, Erbil Governorate in Iraq, and the surrounding villages of Soran District (March 2015 to May 2016). Using purposive sampling, we conducted 24 in-depth interviews with women who had done self-immolation. The obtained data were analyzed using conventional content analysis. Results: The analysis of the data obtained from the interviews led to the extraction of five categories which seems to be related to self-immolation attempts, including not having control over personal life, marital conflicts, seeking attention, instilling guilt in the family members, and resentment towards male dominant community. Conclusion: Self-immolation is a multidimensional phenomenon that has not come to exist overnight and is rooted in various factors that join to encourage self-immolation attempts by women in critical situations. Comprehensive preventive strategies, such as cultural changes, along with education are required to help lower the rate of self-immolation.

This article critically considers the representation of death within the song tradition of modern Irish Republicanism. I explore how such representations have changed in parallel with the various ideological metamorphoses that Irish Republicanism has undergone, specifically in the twentieth century. I argue that the centrality of self-sacrifice has resulted in the development of ballad narratives that deliberately obfuscate on the issue of Republican violence, resulting in the deaths of all Republican militants (regardless of cause or context), ultimately portrayed as a form of heroic self-martyrdom. San alt seo, déantar anailís chriticiúil ar léiriú an bháis i dtraidisiún amhránaíocht Phoblachtach na hÉireann. Tugtar faoi deara na hathruithe a d’éirigh don léiriú seo mar throradh ar na claochlaithe idé-eolaíochta éagsúla a tháinig ar an bPoblachtachas le linn an fichiú haois go háirithe. Maítear ann go maolaítear foréigean Poblachtach sna bailéid atá faoi chaibidil d’aon ghnó, chun bás an mhíleataigh Phoblachtaigh a chur in iúl mar fhéiníobairt laochúil, beag beann ar chúis nó ar chomhthéacs.

Цель данной работы является изучения развития Тибетского автономного района и выявить причины возникновения явления сепаратизма. Задачи для выполнения поставленной цели ставятся следующие: 1. Познакомиться с преобладающей тибетской народностью; 2. Изучить основные моменты в истории отношений между Китаем и Тибетом; 3. Исследовать национальную политику, проводимую КНР в отношении национальных меньшинств в Тибете; 4. Рассмотреть понятие сепаратизма, пути его реализации; 5. Узнать мнение других стран по вопросу Тибетского сепаратизма; 6. Сделать прогноз развития конфликта. В процессе написания работы применялись методы анализа исторических документов, а также литературы, написанной ведущими специалистами востоковедами и лингвистами России и других стран, методы описания, прогнозирования и модулирования. В результате были выделены особенности проживающей на территории Тибета народности, изучена история развития отношений Китая и Тибета, процесс вхождения в состав КНР и влияние ее политики на сепаратистские настроения населения, рассмотрен феномен самосожжения, как наиболее характерного для района способа протеста и выказывания поддержки правительства в изгнании, проанализированы мнения других стран по вопросу, сделаны прогнозы относительно дальнейшего развития событий., The aim of this work is to study the development of the Tibet Autonomous Region and identify the causes of the occurrence of separatism. Tasks to achieve this goal are as follows: 1. Get to know the predominant Tibetan people; 2. To study the main points in the history of relations between China and Tibet; 3. To study the national policies pursued by the PRC regarding national minorities in Tibet; 4. Consider the concept of separatism, the ways of its implementation; 5. Learn the opinions of other countries on the issue of Tibetan separatism; 6. Make a forecast for the development of the conflict. In the process of writing the work, methods of analysis of historical documents, as well as literature written by leading experts on Orientalists and linguists of Russia and other countries, methods of description, forecasting and modulation were used. As a result, the peculiarities of the nationality living in Tibet were highlighted, the history of the development of relations between China and Tibet, the process of joining the PRC and the influence of its policies on the separatist sentiments of the population were studied, the phenomenon of self-immolation was considered as the most characteristic way of protest and showing support of the government in exile for the region , analyzed the opinions of other countries on the issue, forecasts are made regarding the further development of events.

The body of a 53-year-old man was found in a burning car. The ignition key was in start position and the accelerator pedal was held down by his right foot. Autopsy revealed a gunshot entrance wound in the hard palate, a bullet track through the anterior cranial fossa and a projectile lodged in the left frontal lobe. The brain stem was free of lesions and any signs of secondary brain injury, such as brain oedema and intracranial haemorrhage, were not significant. Soot deposits and thermal injury to the mucosa were observed in the airways below the glottis and carboxyhaemoglobin (COHb) saturation was 40%. A single bullet case and a handgun were recovered next to the driver's seat. Fire investigators identified the motor as the beginning of the burning: therefore, the conclusion was that the car had caught fire due to overheating of the engine. Differential diagnosis between complex and complicated suicide was essential. The cause of death was identified as carbon monoxide intoxication, and the injuries to the brain were not felt to be immediately fatal. The case has been classified as a complicated suicide. There are no other published cases of a complicated suicide involving exposure to fire or the use of firearms.

Self-immolation is a dangerous method of committing suicide which is prevalent in individuals who attempt to escape a stressful situation and is considered a significant social and medical disorder in both the economically developed and developing countries. Тo find out demographic characteristics (age, sex, marital state, level of education and occupation), and complication of Self-immolation cases in 2012 - 2014 in Kabul Afghanistan. Тhe research was designed as a descriptive-cross sectional study. The data collection were done in a census manner. Target population were all self-immolation cases that were referred to burn surgery ward of Isteqlal Hospital, the only hospital in Kabul which has burn surgery ward which were referred during 2012-2014. Data which include demographic characteristics and complication of burning obtained from hospital medical record, and data were analyzed in SPSS verion 21. The results of the study indicate that the incidence of self-immolation in Kabul is rising and the highest incidence has been observed in young and adolescents, most of it occurred between the ages of 15-30 and mostly among married house wife women who had a low level of primary education. The number of fatalities was much higher than the number of improved cases Key word: self-immolation, demographic, cross-sectional.

Статья посвящена изучению самоубийства путем самосожжения в Казахстане. Автор рассматривает причины, проводит анализ современной ситуации, сложившейся с самоубийством путем самосожжения, по регионам Казахстана. Приходит к выводу о том, что эта проблема является одной из серьезных и мало изученных в криминологии и уголовном праве.

Hinduism, being the oldest religion has many sacraments in it. Sati (also known as suttee); burning a woman alive with her husband's dead body is the most influential and controversial sacrament. A woman dies alongside her husband because she believes it as her duty. When and how sati originated is a controversial topic among scholars because of conflicting data about it. However, Hindus regard it as a sacred tradition because many religious texts of Hindus have either directly or indirectly mentioned Sati practice and its afterlife benefits.Some scholars believe that the first person to burn herself was Goddess Sati. The word sati is derived from the name of the Goddess Sati since she was the first person to immolate herself. Mass suicide known as Jauhar is an another form of Sati, it was performed by Rajput Hindu women at the end of the battle to prevent themselves from falling in the hands of the enemy. In some Indian kingdoms when a king died his court officers and his servants accompanied him to his death. This tradition has been followed since ancient times in India. Sati is considered as a dignified sacrifice, a glory and a way to clean the sins of the spouse and his family but some consider it as a private matter of spouses who follow his/her loved one into death and with time it became public and society being a male dominant restricted it only to a woman. Globetrotters such as Al Biruni (973-1048 CE), and Ibn Battuta (b. 1304 CE) and many others who travelled to India have mentioned in their travel books about sati being performed openly and publicly. Some scholars claim that sati is an obligatory duty of a woman and she has to die alongside her husband’s body to ensure that all the sins of them and their family are cleaned and to prevent from bringing disgrace to herself and her family. Sometimes when women denied to perform sati many people forced her to immolate herself and many even tried to forcefully throw her into the fire. But many other scholars say otherwise that the sati is an optional and a voluntary act and not a compulsory one. They believe that a Hindu widow is given some time to think about sati whether she wants to die alongside her husband’s body or continue with her life. Sati became common after the 13th century in India it was because of the religious texts of Hindus such as Puranas, Mahabharata which talks about sati. Some religious texts of Hindus talk about sati in a clear way but some don’t. In Indian history, some Hindu scholars and poets have condemned the sati tradition. The first one who tried to put a stop to this inhumanly tradition were Muslims rulers of India namely Mughals and Nizmas. But when the Muslim rulers tried to end this tradition they were criticized by many people and the attempts made by them were proven unsuccessful. However, in the 19th century, during the British rule in India, Sati was abolished by the governor of India at that time, William Bentick. Practicing Sati was continued despite being banned and prohibited time and again by Muslim rulers, Britishers who invaded India and the Indian constitution and Indian law. Some women still practice sati in some rural and remote places in India. This is because many Hindu women consider fire as a sacred thing and Sati as their duty. Their religious texts promise them an afterlife in haven with their husbands. Thus, they continue practicing Sati, believing that fire will not harm them, and they will be with their husband’s even after death. Many people idolize and deify the woman who performs sati. The people and the family member of the dead construct a temple of the woman who performed sati. Many studies states that religious beliefs, social pressure and lack of education plays a big role in this barbaric tradition. Today in India almost every Indian citizen believe that sati is not a religious tradition even if it is mentioned in their sacred texts and they interpret those texts differently in a more moral and human way. This paper will focus on the historical background of the Sati tradition., Hinduizm, en eski din olup içinde birçok ayın bulunmaktadır. Sati, bir kadını kocasının cesediyle beraber canlı yakmak demektir ve günümüzde bu tartışmalı bir konudur. Bir kadının kocasıyla beraber ölmesi bir görev olduğuna inanılmaktadır. Sati'nin ne zaman ve nasıl ortaya çıktığı hakkında akademisyenler arasında tartışmalı bir konudur zira Sati uygulaması hakkında çelişkili veriler bulunmaktadır. Sati kelimesi Tanrıça Sati isminden türemiştir. Bazı bilginlere göre ona bu isim tarihte ilk defa kendini yakan kadın olması sebebiyle verilmiştir. Bununla birlikte, Hindular bunu kutsal bir gelenek olarak görmektedir, çünkü Hinduların birçok dini metninde Sati pratiği doğrudan ya da dolaylı olarak zikredilmiştir.Sati, Hindistan'da 13. yüzyıldan sonra yaygınlaştı, bunun nedeni Sati hakkında içeriklere sahip Puranas, Mahabharata gibi Hinduların dini metinlerinden kaynaklanmaktadır. Hinduların bazı dini metinlerinde Sati uygulaması hakkında net bir şekilde bilgi bulunurken, bazılarında ise bulunmamaktadır. Hint tarihinde, bazı Hindu bilim adamları ve şairler Sati geleneğini kınamışlardır. Bu insanlık dışı geleneği durdurmaya çalışan ilk kişi, Hindistan'ın Müslüman yöneticileri olan Moğollar ve Nizamlık idi. Ancak Müslüman yöneticiler bu geleneği sona erdirmeye çalıştıklarında birçok kişi tarafından eleştirilmişler ve yaptıkları girişimler başarısız olmuştur. Fakat 19. yüzyılda, Hindistan'daki İngiliz yönetimi sırasında Sati, Hindistan valisi William Bentick tarafından kaldırılmıştır. Müslüman hükümdarlar, Hindistan'ı işgal eden İngilizler, Hint anayasası ve Hint yasaları tarafından defalarca yasaklanmasına rağmen Sati uygulaması bugüne değin devam etmiştir. Bazı kadınlar hala Hindistan'ın bazı kırsal ve uzak yerlerinde Sati uygulamasını tatbik etmektedirler. Çünkü birçok Hindu kadın, ateşi kutsal ve Sati uygulamasını da bir görev olarak görmektedir. Hindu dini metinleri, kocalarıyla birlikte onlara bir ahiret hayatı vaat etmektedir. Böylece, ateşin onlara zarar vermeyeceğine ve ölümden sonra bile kocalarının yanlarında olacaklarına inanarak Sati'yi uygulamaya devam etmektedirler.

Aims: The reason of selecting self-immolation as a mean to commit suicide is unclear. This study was designed to compare 2 groups of people with and without intention to suicide that had self-immolated. Instrument & Methods: All 227 self-immolated patients who had been admitted to the burn unit of Imam Khomeini Hospital of Kermanshah City, Iran, during 2003 to 2004 participated in this cross-sectional study. All the samples and their families were interviewed and a psychiatrist completed DSM-IV symptom checklist. Data were analyzed by SPSS 11 using descriptive statistic methods, two-sample T and Chi-square tests. Findings: 126 of the patients (55.5%) had suicidal intent and 97 (42.7%) reported prior suicidal plan. The mortality rate of the suicidal intent patients was 61.1% and non-suicidal intent patients was 36.6%. Personality disorder was the only psychiatric problem that was significantly different between two groups of patients with and without intent of suicide. Conclusion: Self-immolation cannot be considered as a suicidal attempt in Kermanshah City, Iran.

WOS: 000489028200025 PubMed ID: 31202529 Self-immolation is one of the most painful methods of suicide which is widespread among women in Kurdish regions of Iran. The present study aimed to explore the causes and sociocultural groundwork of choosing self-immolation methods by women in Kurdish regions of Iran. This present study was conducted using a qualitative approach and conventional content analysis. The research population included women who self-immolated and were rescued in Kurdish regions of Iran. The data collection method was a deep interview as well as observation. The sampling method was based on objective and snowball sampling. The data collection continued to theoretical saturation, the number of participants reached 25 in the end, and Lincoln and Guba criteria were used to strengthen the research. From the analysis of the data obtained in this study, the 8 sub-themes related to cause of suicide attempt from the participants' viewpoints including unbridled coherence, lack of supportive social and environmental structures, economic pressure, aggravation of violence, humiliated ego, dominance of modern values over the local and indigenous ones, incoherent family, and giving up on changing conditions as well as 6 sub themes based on the cause of choosing the method of self-immolation including protesting, frightening the family, catching more attention, championing and showing courage, inducing more guilty feelings in the family and society, fashion or imitation, and easy access were revealed. Self-immolation is one of the most important problems in the Kurdish regions of Iran, which is rooted in various economic, social, psychological and cultural causes. To reduce this social harm, there is a need for comprehensive programs that cover all dimensions. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd and ISBI. All rights reserved. School of Public Health, Iran University of Medical Sciences This study was financially supported by the School of Public Health, Iran University of Medical Sciences.

Thich Quang Duc was a Buddhist monk protesting in South Vietnam, when his image captivated the world. Malcolm Browne won the World Press Photo of the Year in 1963 photographing Duc committing an act of self-immolation, burning to death. Current research into mindfulness and meditation gives neuroscientists, scientists, and clinicians a glimpse into the physiology, structure and function of the brain of expert meditators such as Duc. A growing body of literature indicates that basic breathing techniques and meditation can alter cortical structures with very little training. Structural and functional MRI has revealed the anterior cingulate and insular cortex are altered in functioning due to meditation and mindfulness practice. Continued research into mindfulness and expert meditators should help us gain a greater understanding into how a monk like Duc was able to commit such a powerful behavioral act, becoming the monk on fire.

Platesniame kontekste savižudybės susideginant kaip protesto prieš komunistinę sistemą apraiška nesulaukė didelio tyrėjų dėmesio. Galima paminėti tik kelis, šiek tiek jau nagrinėtus atvejus: be lietuvio Romo Kalantos dar yra Jano Palacho anuometinėje Čekoslovakijoje, Ryszardo Siwieco Lenkijoje ir Oskaro Brūse- witzo Rytų Vokietijoje atvejai. Galima pamėginti nurodyti kelis veiksnius, kurie mažino tyrėjų motyvaciją domėtis šia tema. Pirmiausia, tai dažna šaltinių, leidžiančių nuosekliai rekonstruoti įvykius, stoka. Antra, mokslininkus gal šiek tiek glumino tai, kad yra itin sunku suprasti ir paaiškinti priežastis, pastūmėjusias rinktis tokią dramatišką protesto formą. Pagaliau tyrėjai — taip pat žmonės, tad nebūčiau linkęs nuvertinti jų elementarių, žmogiškų reakcijų, kaip antai šiurpo pagalvojus apie savanorišką savo kūno atidavimą liepsnoms. Šio rašinio pirminis tikslas — trumpa tokio pobūdžio savižudybių sovietų bloke apžvalga. Antras siekis — pamėginti išanalizuoti geriausiai žinomus atvejus ir rasti juos siejančius bendrus bruožus.

The master thesis titled "Self-immolation of Jan Palach - from reality, newspaper/TV news to film cover and film reviews of Burning Bush" concerns of film cover of real events in three parts drama called Burning Bush, which is the main topic of the movie. The thesis aims to ascertain to what extent it is the movie with a documentary elements, where authors would have to represent only real events and to what extent it is artistic movie where authors have more space in creativity and could change reality to impress spectators with theatricality and emocionality, with the risk they will change the meaning of real events, therefore they would manipulate with the spectator. The thesis also essays the media content before the 1989 and after the 1989, while it aims to find out not only what is the difference in the newspaper and TV news, but also what difference is in the quantity of the content regarding to Jan Palach in the times of totality and democracy.

BACKGROUND: Self-immolation is the most common method of suicide in Ilam province. AIM: This study aimed to estimate the survival rate in self-immolation attempters in Ilam and identify the associated factors. METHODS: A descriptive-analytic study was conducted based on data collected at Taleghani Hospital in Ilam, Iran. All persons passed away due to self-immolation or those hospitalised in the centre of the self-burned patients located in Ilam during 2011 to 2015 were assessed. Survival rate was calculated based on Kaplan-Meier. To compare the survival rate between groups, Univariate Log Rank and for multivariate analysis, the Cox test of STATA12 software was used. RESULTS: During 2011 to 2015, 236 persons including 168 females and 69 males committed self-immolation. The mean and median of survival time in attempters were 32.2 ± 4.7 and 3 ± 0.33 days, respectively. In Univariate Log-Rank test, the following variables including age, sex, burn degree, Total Body Surface Area (TBSA), and burns in neck and head and lower limbs had a significantly meaningful relation with survival, while in multivariate Cox Regression test only two variables including Total Body Surface Area and age remained in the model. CONCLUSION: The mean and median survival rate in self-attempters are very low. Quickly hospitalisation without waste of time should be considered. Providing prompt treatments and compensating dehydration in early hours especially within the first 24 hours of self-immolation are very vital. Younger persons and those with lower burn surface have more chance for longer survival and recuperation.

In April 2016, Armin,1 an asylum seeker in a village of Switzerland, set himself alight in the public square of the town, one of a few cases reported across Europe. He performed the act following a denied request for asylum and was saved by bystanders. We present the results of two qualitative interviews conducted with Armin, his translator and his roommate following the incident. The act is theorized through the lens of a dialogical analysis focusing on the concept of social recognition. The notion of trauma is considered as a key mediating mechanism, theorized as creating ruptures in time, memory, language, and social connections to an Other. We conclude this communicative act to represent both “being-toward-death” and a relational striving toward life; a “destruction as the cause of coming into being.”

Background: approximately 1,500 to 2,000 people die due to self-immolation every year in Iran. This phenomenon is more pronounced in young women who comprise an active and reproductive segment of the population which can lead to numerous negative consequences in the individual, family, and community. However, since self-immolation is a preventable public health issue, the healthcare system is required to take seriously into account. Methods: In this narrative review, several online databases, including PubMed, PsycINFO, Google Scholar, ISI, Scopus as well as offline resources, including textbooks and theses were searched for the published information about the risk and protective factors of self-immolation. An attempt was made to analyze and identify the epidemiologic patterns and prevention strategies of this phenomenon briefly. Results: Our review revealed that the phenomenon of self-immolation is particularly frequent among young women in Iran and adjustment disorder is the most common risk factor for self-immolation. Conclusion: This study shows that self-immolation is a significant health problem in some parts of Iran, suggesting that the health care system and authorities should be more attentive to this public health challenge. Furthermore, low-cost precautionary and preventive measures including counseling services can manage this phenomenon and should be of high priority for health officials.

Background: Despite considerable loss of life by deliberate self-burning in low and middle-income countries, few scholars have examined psychiatric factors such as adverse life events that may be related to self-immolation. Methods: This case-control study investigated adverse life-events as risk factors for self-immolation patients admitted to a burn center serving the western region of Iran. Variables inves-tigated included the following adverse life-events: unplanned pregnancy, infertility, homelessness, financial hardship, problems with friends, intimate relationship break-up , school or university failure, anxiety about school/university performance, problems at work, personal history of suicide attempts, family history of suicide attempts, individual history of mental disorders, and malignant disease. Results: Financial hardship (OR=3.35, 95% CI=1.19-9.90), intimate relationship break-up (OR=5.45, 95% CI=1.20-11.99), and personal history of suicide attempts (OR=7.00, 95% CI=1.38-35.48) were associated with increased risk of self-immolation. Conclusions: This study suggests that financial hardship, intimate relationship break-ups, and personal history of suicide attempts are risk factors for self-immolation. Other variables studied did not play a role as individually protective or risk factors for self-immolation. Further study is needed to substantiate findings of this study and direct research toward tailoring culturally sensitive, empirically-supported interventions for prevention of self-immolation.

Suicides involving more than one suicide method are termed "complex suicides" and need to be differentiated from murders. Self-immolation is the action of setting fire to oneself and is an infrequent method of suicide method in Western countries. However, burned corpses must be carefully examined because setting fire to a body after death can be a way of covering up a crime. Complex suicides involving self-immolation are rare, but careful analysis is necessary if we are to identify the manner of death. A systematic search of the literature concerning self-incineration in cases of complex suicides was carried out. This covered the age, gender and psychiatric condition of the victims, any history of previous suicide attempts, the existence of suicide notes, evidence of fire accelerants, signs of vital exposure to the fire, toxicology, the other suicide methods used in combination with burning and the characteristics of the burns. 46 cases were found in 22 papers published since 1985, but few of these studies provide any detailed analysis and in several cases many important data were missing. There is, therefore, a need to study this topic and to use an approach based on careful examination of the corpse, detailed investigation of the scene, toxicological examination and an evaluation of the victim's physical and psychiatric state.

Self-immolation refers to ascetic Buddhist practices that include the voluntary termination of one’s life or the offering of parts of one’s body usually by setting oneself ablaze. In both the Northern (Mahāyāna) and Southern (Theravāda) Buddhist traditions, self-immolation has been considered a heroic bodhisattva act to end one’s life with a spiritual motivation and strong sense of determination. In modern times, self-immolation is often used as an extreme form of protest or an act of martyrdom. In early Indian Buddhism, self-immolation was not justifiable for the following reasons: First, self-immolation cuts short one’s opportunity to attain liberation before having made proper use of one’s life to its fullest potential. Second, self-immolation is a form of self-modification or severe asceticism because it causes extreme physical pain and may lead to death. Third, self-immolation is an act motivated by a craving for non-existence (vibhava-taṇhā) and is rooted in the “personality-view” (sakkāya-diṭṭhi) or “ego-view” (atta-diṭṭhi). Lastly, self-immolation goes against the concept of “self-love” (attā-piya) or “self-affection” (atta-kāma), which is considered a necessary prerequisite for expressing “loving-kindness” (mettā) toward other beings. Thus, I can safely say that self-immolation is not in keeping with the original teachings of the Buddha and that self-immolation cannot in any way be recognized as heroic or noble.

Background: Self-immolation is one of the most violent methods of suicide, which is spreading in Iran. The highest rate of deaths due to committing suicide and self-immolation in Iran is observed in Kermanshah province. This research was conducted to study the survival rate and the factors that influence survival among the ones who commit self-immolation in Kermanshah province. Methods: In this study, all the cases who did not survive, as well as all the ones who were hospitalized due to self-immolation in Kermanshah province during 2010 and 2011 were examined. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to estimate the survival function, and in order to do the comparisons, Logrank test and Cox Regression were employed using Stata 12 software. Results: The results indicated that during 2010 and 2011, 343 individuals committed self-immolation in Kermanshah Province, while, 288 (84%) were women. Also, it was found that 184 (53%) did not survive, the mean and median of survival time in those who committed suicide deliberately, were 33±2.6 and 11±2 days respectively. Estimation of survival rate using Logrank test indicated that survival rate had a significant relationship with age, mental disorders, drug addiction, and TBSA (Total Body Surface Area), while it did not suggest a statistically significant relationship with gender, marital status and cause of injury. After multivariate analysis using Cox regression, only two variables of age and TBSA could remain in the model and the other variables were excluded from the model. Conclusion: The death toll due to self-immolation is very high and the mean and median of survival time among the people who committed self-immolation is very low. Therefore, it is recommended that remedial action be performed quickly without wasting time.

Background: Self-immolation and intentional poisoning are two common methods for suicidal attempts in developing countries. Few studies have compared the characteristics of people who commit suicide by self-immolation or intentional poisoning. Hence, the aim of this study was to compare demographic, social, and psychological features between these two groups. Methods: In the present study, patients hospitalized after suicide by self-immolation in Shaheed Motahari Hospital, Tehran, were compared to patients hospitalized due to intentional poisoning in Loghman Hakim Hospital, Tehran, in 2011. Demographic and psychological data were collected by interviews and questionnaires and analyzed by SPSS software (version 16). Results: Overall, 50 patients with poisoning and 21 patients with self-immolation were enrolled in this cross-sectional study. The mean age of the patients in the poisoning group was significantly lower than the self-immolation group (P=0.007). The number of married people in the self-immolation group was significantly higher than the poisoning group (P=0.014). Substance abuse was also significantly higher (P=0.048) and educational level was significantly lower (P=0.023) in the self-immolation group. However, the prevalence of anxiety disorders (P=0.001) and adjustment disorders (P=0.007) was significantly higher in the poisoning group than the self-immolation group. Conclusion: The findings of this study suggest the presence of differences between individuals who commit suicide by self-immolation or by poisoning in terms of demographic and psychological factors. Identification of these differences can be important in planning suicide prevention measures and education.

WOS: 000388951300158, Chemiluminescent detection of H2O2 has been achieved by using self immolative dioxetane based probe which enables the signal amplification via disassembly of two chemiluminogenic modules at the same time in response to single analyte. Upon treatment of the probe with H2O2, boronate ester was deprotected subsequently to trigger the decomposition of 1,2-dioxetane ring via CIEEL mechanism which results in light emission as a selective sign of H2O2. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

International audience; Aim: This paper sheds light on the context that leads some querulous patients to self-immolate in front of, or into, public buildings (e.g., tribunals, city halls, and employment agencies).Method: The author defines paranoid querulousness. A psychoanalytic perspective, but also a judicial and a psychiatric point of view, over querulous claimants is presented. The links between political or social claims and self-immolation are studied. The expression of suicidal thoughts voiced by four querulous subjects is analyzed. Eight examples of self-immolation are presented.Results: The querulous subjects' self-aggressive behaviors seem to be caused by a loss of hope to obtain compensation for a prejudice they allegedly suffered. Querulous individuals tend to self-immolate in front of, or into, public buildings when no answer is given to their claims. These gestures may be both a consequence of some personal distress and triggered by a difficult social or professional context.Discussion: Five sets of assumptions derived from Freudian and Lacanian psychoanalytic theories are advanced. The status of the object over which the querulous claimants wish to assert their rights is clarified. The meaning of self-aggressive gestures is outlined by making reference to the concepts of instinct for mastery, symbolic other, chain of signifiers, masochism, pleasure principle, and reality principle.Conclusion: Prevention of self-immolation could involve that members of the legal professions, social workers, civil servants, and mental health professionals in contact with querulous subjects openly show their will to listen to these claimants' voice: self-aggressive gestures might be avoided by supporting the querulous person's hope to obtain compensation for the prejudice allegedly suffered.

International audience; Aim: This paper sheds light on the context that leads some querulous patients to self-immolate in front of, or into, public buildings (e.g., tribunals, city halls, and employment agencies).Method: The author defines paranoid querulousness. A psychoanalytic perspective, but also a judicial and a psychiatric point of view, over querulous claimants is presented. The links between political or social claims and self-immolation are studied. The expression of suicidal thoughts voiced by four querulous subjects is analyzed. Eight examples of self-immolation are presented.Results: The querulous subjects' self-aggressive behaviors seem to be caused by a loss of hope to obtain compensation for a prejudice they allegedly suffered. Querulous individuals tend to self-immolate in front of, or into, public buildings when no answer is given to their claims. These gestures may be both a consequence of some personal distress and triggered by a difficult social or professional context.Discussion: Five sets of assumptions derived from Freudian and Lacanian psychoanalytic theories are advanced. The status of the object over which the querulous claimants wish to assert their rights is clarified. The meaning of self-aggressive gestures is outlined by making reference to the concepts of instinct for mastery, symbolic other, chain of signifiers, masochism, pleasure principle, and reality principle.Conclusion: Prevention of self-immolation could involve that members of the legal professions, social workers, civil servants, and mental health professionals in contact with querulous subjects openly show their will to listen to these claimants' voice: self-aggressive gestures might be avoided by supporting the querulous person's hope to obtain compensation for the prejudice allegedly suffered.

The dissertation looks beyond the dominant frames of Western epistemology and philosophy that largely determine the ways revolution and revolutionaries are conceptualized and remembered in modern society. Rather than focusing on historically grounded political projects that conform to a particular revolutionary doctrine, our focus will be on common people whose praxis posed, and still poses, an alternative to a social order premised on the separation and stratification of the commons and its people. The revolutionaries we will meet in these pages see through what we will unravel as the myth of separateness. They see through a mythic reality that veils people’s interconnections with each other, with the commons, and with the cosmos from which all life emerges. Their praxis touches this deeper reality. To ground our discussion, we will look deeply at three flashpoints of revolt against the myth as it manifested itself in the liberal capitalist regimes of the 19th and 20th centuries: The Paris Commune of 1871, the student protests of 1968 in Paris and Mexico, and a self-immolation in protest of the Vietnam War that occurred in 1970. We will thread these flashpoints together to see how, despite the distance that separates these revolts in time and space, they illuminate an alternative way of being that stands in contrast to the atomized, competitive, and militant existence that is formed in the crucible of liberal capitalist empire. Threading these flashpoints together, we will begin to reconceptualize what is meant by success and failure, beginnings and endings. Though these revolts may end with defeat and death, the way of being that they touched continues on past their historical or biographical endpoint. Like the light from a dead star or from an extinguished candle, their revolution travels across space and across time waiting for the right conditions to manifest itself again in renewed praxis. Cultural production, particularly art and literature, will serve as our vehicle for illuminating this revolution and its continuations.

The subject of this thesis is self-immolation in Buddhist countries. The author shows examples from both history and the present and interprets them as a ritualised pattern passed on from the fourth century until the present time, the continuity of which was based on literary tradition as well as on historical occurrences. She demonstrates that self-immolations in Vietnam and Tibet also follow the centuries long tradition and prove to have the same components. The author intends to answer the question of the origin of the tradition in Buddhism and its broad popularity compared to other forms of self-sacrifice. Reasons for self-immolations among the Buddhists might have been manyfold: to demonstrate their loyalty to the buddhist doctrine and the Buddha, to use it as means of attaining enlightment immediately or as a form of a political protest. All of the above can be understood as a sacrifice to the Three Jewels of Buddhism, i.e. the Buddha, the Drarma and the Sangha. The author also handles self-immolation in Buddhism as a question of ethics in order to present the problem in its completeness. In doing so, she concentrates on the point of view of the followers of Buddhism themselves. The phenomenon proves to have many forms and therefore even the Buddhists are nor united in their opinions....

1Epidemiology and Biostatistics Department, Occupational Environmental Research Center, Rafsanjan Medical School, Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences, Rafsanjan, IR Iran *Corresponding author: Mohsen Rezaeian, Epidemiology and Biostatistics Department, Occupational Environmental Research Center, Rafsanjan Medical School, Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences, Rafsanjan, IR Iran. Tel: +98-3915234003, Fax: +98-3915225209, E-mail: moeygmr2@yahoo.co.uk

BACKGROUND: To investigate factors related to prevention of self-immolation in west of Iran. METHODS: In a case-control study, 30 consecutive cases of deliberate self-inflicted burns admitted to the regional burn centre (Imam Khomeini hospital in Kermanshah province, Iran) were compared with controls selected from the community and matched by sex, age, district-county of residence, and rural vs urban living environment. The following characteristics relevant to preventing self immolation were collected from all cases and controls: main domestic fuel used in the household, awareness about complications of burn injuries, and use of counseling services. RESULTS: Descriptive analyses revealed that kerosene was the main domestic fuel in the household for 83% of cases. Not surprisingly, the main means of self-immolation in 93% of the patients was kerosene, with other fuels such as petrol and domestic gas used in remaining cases. The majority of cases and controls were aware of the potential complications of burn injuries. Use of counseling services was more common in controls. CONCLUSIONS: All three aspects of preventing self-immolation - having kerosene and other fuels in the home, being aware of the complications of burn injuries, and using counseling services were present in both the cases and controls. This suggests a large portion of residents in rural Iran are potential self-immolation victims. Increasing preventive strategies may reduce risk of suicide by self-immolation. Language: en

The paper investigates the conceptual dichotomy of violence and nonviolence in reference to the self-immolations that have been taking place in Tibet for the last several years. First using the insights of Hannah Arendt to distinguish between the categories of violent, nonviolent and peaceful, I approach the question of violence as the problem of acts that transgress prohibitions against causing harm. Using that heuristic, I examine the ways multiple ethical systems are vying for recognition regarding the selfimmolations, and how a certain Buddhist ambivalence around extreme acts of devotion complicate any easy designations of the act as ‘violent’ or ‘nonviolent’. I conclude by suggesting how any such classification inculcates us into questions of power and assertions of appropriate authority.

This paper assumes a relationship among life, death and power in order to underline the following: under certain conditions, self-sacrifice—or the form of death broadly associated with self-immolation—has the power to mobilise political life. This hypothesis has been theoretically supported by Biggs’ and Bradatan’s work on self-immolation at large, as well as Murray’s work on thanatopolitics and Mbembe’s thesis on necropolitics. On these grounds I argue that photographic imagery of people who set themselves on fire can perform a political function; such a performance is feasible insofar as the visibility of their ‘communicative suffering’ in the process, and not death itself, relies upon some constructive (‘positive’) instead of merely destructive (‘negative’) aspects of human mortality. Whether a desired (or sometimes undesired) transformation may occur depends upon the ethics of images: their capacity to implicate viewers into a common cause must invoke a ‘responsive gaze’: not only in terms of survivors’ sense of empathy but, first and foremost, guilt., peer-reviewed

Background: Suicide is an action deliberately initiated and performed by a person with complete awareness of its fatal outcome, prevalence of which is very rare in developed countries, but it is reported with more frequency in Middle East including Iran. Aim: This study was carried out to analyze the characteristics, mortality, and related factors of burned patients who attempted to suicide by self‑immolation in Northern Iran. Materials and Methods: In this retrospective study, the archived files of 101 cases that referred to the main burn care center located in northern Iran (Included: Mazadaran, Golestan cities) ‑ cause of suicide attempting by self‑immolation during 2 years 2010‑2011, analyzed. A record sheet designed to extract data such as: Age, education, occupation, gender, residence, marital status, drug abuse, and extent of the burn injuries as a percent of burned total body surface area (TBSA). Results: The incidence rate of suicide attempted cases were 1.98/100,000 person‑years. The mean ages for cases were 31.8 (13.6). The mean age for males and females were 36.1 (14.8) and 30.1 (12.9) years, respectively. In, about 84% (84/101) of the patient’s burned TBSA was more than 40% (41/101). Burn injuries were more frequent, larger, and included higher mortality in females than males. Kerosene was the most common used material to self‑burning. The mortality rate was about 74% (74/101), which showed a high mortality rate in this study. Other social factors such as marital status, employment, and education level have a role as individually protective or risk factors for self‑burning. Conclusion: Finding of the current study manifested high rate of suicide by self‑immolation among young, married, and low educated women in Northern Iran. It implies a social problem, and need to an arrangement of a cultural program aimed to improving health, psychological habits and educational level.Keywords: Iran, Northern Iran, Self‑immolation, Suicide

Suicide by self-incineration is an uncommon method of suicide in the western world in contrast with Asian countries, where this type of suicide is more common. If there is a lack of witnesses, genetic analysis for identification is mandatory, especially when anthropologic or dental identification is barely significant.The authors report a case of self-incineration of a 55-year-old white man, which occurred near Siena, Tuscany, Italy.The recovered bones were classified according to the Crow-Glassman scale and assigned to category 5 (the highest extent of combustion according to this scale). Therefore, because of the extent of the bone damage, analyzing the residual soft tissue around the pelvic bones was the only way to reach a genetic identification.The authors report this case to emphasize that even if the highest level of burn injury to human body is reached, an accurate analysis of the findings may lead to a genetic identification. In these cases, an efficient cooperation among police, fire experts, and forensics is necessary, especially because it is the only way to determine if the modality of death was accidental, suicidal, or homicidal. Language: en

International audience; We present a surprising case of suicide by self-immolation. A surveillance camera filmed the victim's agony. We were able to ascertain that he survived 13 min after ignition. This case was the starting point for a review of the literature of the forensic elements required to correctly analyze cases of suicide by self-immolation and to establish the causal link between the burn lesions and death. The authors will focus on the forensic and medical aspects in favor of suicide by self-immolation and on the forensic aspects required to understand the ignition process, the circumstances surrounding the fire with a particular emphasis on determining whether an accelerant was doused on the victim before ignition.

Since 2009, more than 130 Tibetans have self-immolated in an act of ritualized religious warfare. The role of secular and religious authority shapes both the steps of the ritual itself, as well as the significance of enacting it. Historically, this has always been the case. With the current behaviors of outside authority unchanged, there is no reason to expect the cycles of auto-crematory rituals to come to a halt.

Self-immolation is a fatal and devastating method of committing suicide used around the world. The chief aim of the present article is to look at the trend of indexed papers in PubMed covering different aspects of self-immolation. PubMed search engine (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov) was searched by using six keywords i.e. "self-immolation", "self-inflicted burn", "self-burning", "self-incineration", "suicidal burns" and "suicide by burning". These keywords should appear either in the title or the abstract of the articles. The time frame was set as to retrieve papers expanding from early indexing time up to end of the year 2011. Based on the search strategy 132 papers were retrieved from these total numbers; 12 (9%) were categorized as review papers; 24 (18%) as case reports and the rest 96 (73%) were original studies. It seems that the number of papers increased during the years of investigations and the highest indexed papers i.e. 14 (10.6%) belonged to the year 2011. While most journals, published only one article the highest indexed papers i.e. 35 (26.5%) belonged to Burns. There was an increasing trend in the number of self-immolation articles indexed in PubMed since 1965. Three journals i.e. Burns, Journal of Burn Care and Rehabilitation and Journal of Forensic Sciences hosted for more than 37% of all those indexed articles. However, given the increasing trend of self-immolation still more studies are needed to shed light on the diverse aspects of this appalling human behavior.

The 34 cases of suicide by self-immolation admitted to the Institute of Forensic Medicine, University of Rome 'La Sapienza', during a 50-year period (1947-1997) were investigated. The nature of this phenomenon in relation to sex, age of the victims, location of the suicides and combination of methods used is discussed. Finally the distribution and extent and characteristics of the lesions are considered from a forensic point of view.

BACKGROUND: Burns are among the most common injuries affecting a great number of people worldwide annually. In Iran, especially in its western region and in Kermanshah province, burns have a relatively high incidence. The present study was aimed at investigating epidemiological characteristics in Western Iran. METHODS: Within a cross-sectional study, the data on all patients attending the Burns Center at Imam Khomeini Hospital (Kermanshah, Iran) during 2010-2011 and 2011-2012 (24 months) were collected. Then, age, gender, cause of burns, total body surface area, and time of the occurrence were extracted from the hospital records. The data were analyzed using the SPSS statistical package (Version 19, for Windows). We used chi-squared test when we compared the categorical responses between two or more groups. For comparing means between two groups we used t-test. In addition, trends were investigated using linear regression. RESULTS: Overall 13 248 people were referred to the Burns Center at Imam Khomeini Hospital (Kermanshah, Iran) during the period of study, including 328 cases of self-immolation. The mean age of the patients was 27±19 years and 29±13 years for unintentional burns and self-immolation respectively. Out of the total number of unintentional cases, 6 519 (50.5%) were men, while the corresponding percentage of men among the self-immolation cases was 16.6% (p less than 0.001). Trends in the number of cases were cyclic, with the highest and lowest number of burns cases being in March and May. Overall, hot liquids and flammable materials were the two most important causes of unintentional burns. However, flammable materials were the main cause of burns among self-immolation cases. During hospital admission, 168 (51%) self-immolation victims and 43 (0.33%) unintentional burn victims died. CONCLUSIONS: While major preventive measures are not adequately used in developing countries, burns and their burden can be significantly reduced by increasing public awareness and by applying simple preventive measures. © 2013 KUMS, All rights reserved. Language: en