I cannot believe this is a record. Throughout history there have been countless religiously-motivated persons who have lived isolated existences, many in caves. Surely some monk somewhere lived below ground for more than two years at a go.
In Guinness context, "record" is no doubt defined in terms of some trademark registrations. Any rising competitor "recording" world records would probably be defending themselves in court rather quickly.
Nor the credit cards necessary to put deposits down prior to the record attempt.
"To enable us to continue to be a part of thousands of personal achievement journeys, we can only provide access to use services such as an official adjudicator through our fee-based Consultancy service."
The article doesn't say they never left the cave during this time. It does mention them surviving by eating dates and the fruit of the carob tree which likely means they left their hiding place in the cave upon occasion to gather them.
Good call. Ajanta caves in India had isolated rooms where monks supposedly spent long long times. I believe Mahavira (Jain saint) was supposed to have isolated for 12 years at one point..
The Ajanta caves were monasteries, but they still had contact with each other. The monks would also have responsibilities and chores to do around the site, plus interaction with the lay public who bought offerings, and presumably with visiting aristocrats and officials who paid for their upkeep.
