Life in the new FARC resembles the old rebel routines in many ways.

The day begins before sunrise. The fighters wake up in their hammocks, drink coffee and begin classes, discussing Karl Marx and Latin American revolutionaries like Cuba’s José Martí. Every day or two, they break camp and march through the forest for hours.

But this is a more impoverished rebellion than the previous one.

The old FARC was financed from taxing the coca crop. The area this group now operates in has few plantations and no illegal gold mines. The fighters instead take food from nearby towns when it can be found.

Many fighters do not have uniforms. Some sleep on the ground for lack of hammocks.

“Yes, we go hungry, we suffer everything, but we are clear about what we need to do,” said a fighter who uses the alias Piscino.

The goals of the rebels also seem much reduced: They admit they will never overthrow the government and they do not want to fight the provincial police. They do intend to defend villages from other armed groups, they said, though since they are on the run, it is likely they will mostly defend themselves.

The fate of this latest rebellion in Colombia is uncertain. It may grow, be crushed or simply fade away. The road ahead is likely to be rough — but no matter, said Piscino, who lost his left hand to a land mine.

These hardships are necessary sacrifices, he said.

“Those who have armed again,’’ he added, “we are ready to die in this struggle.”