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A very few people are documented to have survived lethal crucifixion, most notably the three friends of the historian Josephus, two of whom later died from their injuries while one recovered. While lethal crucifixion was almost always fatal, survival is possible if the victim receives immediate and excellent medical care. There are also modern devotional practices of non-lethal crucifixion where people volunteer to be nailed to a cross for short periods.  

Historical Record: 

• Josephus’s Account: The Roman-Jewish historian Flavius Josephus recorded the case of three of his friends who were crucified. When he pleaded with the Roman commander Titus for their lives, Titus ordered them to be taken down and provided with care. While two died despite the medical attention, the third survived.

There is historical and archaeological evidence of one well-documented case of a person surviving crucifixion – a man named Yehohanan ben Hagkol whose remains, including an iron nail through his heel bone, were discovered in Jerusalem. Ancient historical accounts also mention instances of survival, though they are rare, with a surviving person from a triple execution reported by Josephus. 

Yehohanan ben Hagkol 

• Archaeological Evidence: The sole known archaeological example of crucifixion is the skeletal remains of Yehohanan ben Hagkol, discovered in an ossuary in Jerusalem.
• Calcaneus (Heel Bone): An 11.5cm iron nail was found still embedded in his right calcaneus (heel bone), with the tip bent, suggesting it hit a hard knot in the wood of the cross or a pre-existing nail.
• Context: Yehohanan was buried in a tomb during the Roman period, though most crucified individuals were left on rubbish heaps to be scavenged by animals.

Ancient Literary Accounts 

• Josephus‘s Testimony: The Jewish historian Josephus provides the only known account of survival from a Roman-intended crucifixion.
• Titus‘s Intervention: Josephus recounts seeing many captives crucified and asking the Roman general Titus to take them down.
• Outcome: Titus ordered three of the captives to be taken down and cared for, but only one ultimately survived while the other two died under the physicians’ care.

Why Survival Was Rare

• Suffocation (Exhaustion Asphyxia): The primary cause of death in crucifixion was often asphyxiation, as victims struggled to breathe by pushing up on their feet and wrists to expand their rib cages. 
• Other Factors: Other contributing factors to death included dehydration, stress-induced cardiac arrhythmias, and congestive heart failure. 
• Lack of Medical Care: Unlike the case reported by Josephus, victims rarely received immediate and extensive medical attention, which was critical for a chance at surviva

I am a fan of going against the stream of what most people do, and taking a step back. Is it really worth it? Is this the best way? Are we losing our lives to busy-ness and distraction?

What if we did less instead? Of course, I’ve been suggesting doing less for six years here on Zen Habits, but it’s a topic worth revisiting, because it is so necessary. Today I offer a short guide to doing less, for those willing to give it a try.

The Benefits

I could probably write an entire book on the benefits of doing less, but here’s the short version:

• You accomplish more. No, you don’t get more done (you’re doing less, after all), but if you do less and focus on the important stuff, you actually achieve better results, more meaningful accomplishments. This is how I’m able to work less but still write hundreds of posts a year (on various sites), create ebooks and courses, and more.
• You have less anxiety. When you let go of the distractions and the non-essential, you free yourself from the fear that you need to do these things. You learn that your world doesn’t fall apart when you let these things go.
• You enjoy life more. Taking time to really focus on an important task, or enjoy the little things, rather than rushing through them, is much more enjoyable.
• You create time. When you do less, all of a sudden you have free time! What can you do with all that time? How about spend some time with loved ones, read, write, make music, exercise, cook healthy meals, start your own business, meditate, do yoga?

I’ll stop with those benefits — they’re sufficient for getting started. But I think you’ll discover others as you give this a try.

Savor Your Tasks

I wrote recently about how to savor life … and this applies to your to-do list.

When you do a task — let’s say writing something — create space around that task. Really pay attention, really pour yourself into it, and enjoy it. Any task can be enjoyable with the savor mindset — yes, even cleaning and doing taxes.

When you do the task, don’t rush through it, but be mindful, be present, and smile. When you’re done with the task, savor your accomplishment instead of just looking for what’s next. Breathe between tasks.

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat. Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exerci tation ullamcorper suscipit lobortis nisl ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.

Curate Your Tasks

If you normally do 20-30 things a day (as an example), small and large tasks and meetings, that’s great — but are these things important? Are they good enough to make the cut of what should be in your life?

Instead, think of yourself as a collector. Each day is limited, our lives are limited, and we can try to cram as many things as we possibly can into these containers, or we can collect just the experiences worthy of being in these limited days.

What would you include in your day if you were culling experiences and tasks down to the best ones? My day, as an example, often contains these things I love: meditation, writing, coffee and reading, spending time with my wife and kids, exercise, eating healthy meals, helping people, going for a walk, more reading, drinking a glass or two of red wine. Not every day has those things, and not in that order, but those are some of the things I find worthy of my day.

Creating a Day of Less

Can you do less today? How would you do it?

The answer is yes, you can do less today, even if you’ve already started with a rush of small tasks. Here’s what I suggest:

1. Take a breath. Take a moment to pause in your busy day, and breathe. Pay attention to your breath for a minute, then pay attention to your body, how you’re sitting, whether your jaw is clenched, what is tense.
2. Now consider your day. What have you done already today? What is on the horizon for the rest of the day? Is there anything you can let go of? Can you create spaces between your tasks? Can you cull your tasks, getting rid of the non-essential, just leaving the best?
3. Learn to know the essential. It takes time to figure out what tasks give you the most impact on your life, your career, your ability to help others and change the world. But start learning today — pick what you think is most essential, clear some space, and just work on those things. Savor them.
4. Reduce distractions. Consider going on a digital cleanse — take a day or a week off of social media, news, entertainment/gossip sites, the places you usually spend on distractions. What will you do when you feel like some distraction? Meditate, exercise, create.

Breathe. Enjoy the new space. Savor the beauty of doing less.

I am a fan of going against the stream of what most people do, and taking a step back. Is it really worth it? Is this the best way? Are we losing our lives to busy-ness and distraction?

What if we did less instead? Of course, I’ve been suggesting doing less for six years here on Zen Habits, but it’s a topic worth revisiting, because it is so necessary. Today I offer a short guide to doing less, for those willing to give it a try.

The Benefits

I could probably write an entire book on the benefits of doing less, but here’s the short version:

• You accomplish more. No, you don’t get more done (you’re doing less, after all), but if you do less and focus on the important stuff, you actually achieve better results, more meaningful accomplishments. This is how I’m able to work less but still write hundreds of posts a year (on various sites), create ebooks and courses, and more.
• You have less anxiety. When you let go of the distractions and the non-essential, you free yourself from the fear that you need to do these things. You learn that your world doesn’t fall apart when you let these things go.
• You enjoy life more. Taking time to really focus on an important task, or enjoy the little things, rather than rushing through them, is much more enjoyable.
• You create time. When you do less, all of a sudden you have free time! What can you do with all that time? How about spend some time with loved ones, read, write, make music, exercise, cook healthy meals, start your own business, meditate, do yoga?

I’ll stop with those benefits — they’re sufficient for getting started. But I think you’ll discover others as you give this a try.

Savor Your Tasks

I wrote recently about how to savor life … and this applies to your to-do list.

When you do a task — let’s say writing something — create space around that task. Really pay attention, really pour yourself into it, and enjoy it. Any task can be enjoyable with the savor mindset — yes, even cleaning and doing taxes.

When you do the task, don’t rush through it, but be mindful, be present, and smile. When you’re done with the task, savor your accomplishment instead of just looking for what’s next. Breathe between tasks.

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat. Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exerci tation ullamcorper suscipit lobortis nisl ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.

Curate Your Tasks

If you normally do 20-30 things a day (as an example), small and large tasks and meetings, that’s great — but are these things important? Are they good enough to make the cut of what should be in your life?

Instead, think of yourself as a collector. Each day is limited, our lives are limited, and we can try to cram as many things as we possibly can into these containers, or we can collect just the experiences worthy of being in these limited days.

What would you include in your day if you were culling experiences and tasks down to the best ones? My day, as an example, often contains these things I love: meditation, writing, coffee and reading, spending time with my wife and kids, exercise, eating healthy meals, helping people, going for a walk, more reading, drinking a glass or two of red wine. Not every day has those things, and not in that order, but those are some of the things I find worthy of my day.

Creating a Day of Less

Can you do less today? How would you do it?

The answer is yes, you can do less today, even if you’ve already started with a rush of small tasks. Here’s what I suggest:

1. Take a breath. Take a moment to pause in your busy day, and breathe. Pay attention to your breath for a minute, then pay attention to your body, how you’re sitting, whether your jaw is clenched, what is tense.
2. Now consider your day. What have you done already today? What is on the horizon for the rest of the day? Is there anything you can let go of? Can you create spaces between your tasks? Can you cull your tasks, getting rid of the non-essential, just leaving the best?
3. Learn to know the essential. It takes time to figure out what tasks give you the most impact on your life, your career, your ability to help others and change the world. But start learning today — pick what you think is most essential, clear some space, and just work on those things. Savor them.
4. Reduce distractions. Consider going on a digital cleanse — take a day or a week off of social media, news, entertainment/gossip sites, the places you usually spend on distractions. What will you do when you feel like some distraction? Meditate, exercise, create.

Breathe. Enjoy the new space. Savor the beauty of doing less.