an antibiotic) and alliin, flavonoids,
phenolic acids, and sterols. History & Folklore  Authorities throughout
the ancient world recommended onion for a variety of health problems. Bunches were hung  on doors to ward off the plague in medieval Europe. Wild onion (A. sibiricum) was also used extensively by Native North Americans to treat stings and help relieve colds. Medicinal Actions & Uses  Onion boasts a
long list of medicinal actions—diuretic, antibiotic, anti-inflammatory, analgesic, expectorant, and antirheumatic. It is also beneficial to the circulation. Onions are taken the world over for colds, flu, and coughs, much like garlic (A. sativum, p. 59). Onion offsets tendencies to angina, arteriosclerosis, and heart attack. It is also useful in preventing oral infection and tooth decay. The warmed juice can
be dropped into the ear for earache, and baked onion is used as a poultice to drain pus from sores. Onion has a longstanding reputation as an aphrodisiac, and it is also used cosmetically  to stimulate hair growth.Related Species  In Chinese herbal medicine, the
scallion (A. fistulosum) is given to encourage sweating, to unblock the nose, and to relieve bloating. It is also used to help drain boils and abscesses. Self-help Use  Mild fever, p. 311. Allium ursinum (Liliaceae)
Ramsons
Description  Bulbous perennial smelling strongly
of garlic, growing to 11 in (28 cm). Has a triangular stem and broad elliptical leaves. Clusters of white, star-like flowers grow from a common stem. Habitat & Cultivation  Ramsons are native
to Europe and Asia. They carpet shady sites in damp woods and by streams. The plants are gathered in early summer. Parts Used  Bulb, aerial parts. Constituents  Ramsons contain volatile oil,
aldehydes, vinyl sulfide, and vitamin C.
History & Folklore  Ramsons (and many other
onion-like plants) have been highly regarded as preventative medicines, as an old English rhyme attests: “Eat leeks in Lide and ramsons in May/And all the year after physicians may play!” More prosaically, Gerard (1597) wrote that the leaves “maye very well be eaten in April and Maie with butter [by those of] a strong constitution.”
Medicinal Actions & Uses  Used mainly as
a folk remedy and as a food, ramsons are similar
to garlic (A. sativum, p. 59) but weaker in
action. They lower high blood pressure and
help to prevent arteriosclerosis. As ramsons
ease stomach pain and are tonic to the
digestion, they have been used for diarrhea, colic,
gas, indigestion, and loss of appetite. The whole herb is used in an infusion against threadworms, either ingested or given as an enema. Ramsons are also thought to be beneficial for asthma, bronchitis, and emphysema. The juice is used as an aid to weight loss. Onion juice is mixed
with honey as a
remedy for colds.Allium cepa (Liliaceae)
Onion
Description  Bulbous perennial growing to 3 ft
(1 m). Has hollow stems and leaves, and white or purple flowers. Habitat & Cultivation  Native to the
northern hemisphere, onion has been cultivated  in the Middle East for millennia. It is now grown worldwide as a vegetable.Alnus glutinosa
syn. A. rotundifolia (Betulaceae)
Alder
Description  Small tree with fissured bark,
growing to 65 ft (20 m). Has notched oval leaves
and male and female catkins. Habitat & Cultivation  Alder is native to
Europe, Asia, and North Africa. It thrives in damp places and along riverbanks. The bark and leaves are gathered in spring. Parts Used  Bark, leaves. Constituents  Alder contains lignans, tannin
(10–20%), emodin (an anthraquinone), and glycosides. US_158-179_Abies_balsa_Boswe_serratta.indd   164 07/04/16   4:37 pm165 other medicinal PlantsAm A r A nthus hypochondri Acus
History & Folklore  Water-resistant, alder
was used in the construction of Venice. Wooster
Beech (1794–1868), founder of the Eclectic
healing movement, used a decoction of the bark to
“purify the blood.”
Medicinal Actions & Uses  Alder is most
often used as a mouthwash and gargle for tooth,
gum, and throat problems. The drying action of
a decoction of the bark helps to contract the
mucous membranes and reduce inflammation. A decoction may also be used to staunch internal
or external bleeding, and to heal wounds. It is also
used as a wash for scabies. In Spain, alder leaves
are smoothed and placed on the soles of the feet
to relieve aching. Leaves are used to help reduce
breast engorgement in nursing mothers. Alstonia spp. (Apocynaceae)
Fever Bark
Description  Evergreen trees growing to 49 ft
(15 m). Have glossy oblong leaves and creamy-
white, star-shaped flowers. Habitat & Cultivation  A. constricta  is native
to Australia, and A. scholaris  to Australia and
Southeast Asia. Both are now found in tropical
regions around the world. Parts Used  Stem bark, root bark. Constituents  The bark of both species contains
indole alkaloids. A. constricta  contains reserpine,
a powerful hypotensive. Medicinal Actions & Uses  Fever bark has
been taken to treat malarial fever (and has been
called Australian quinine), but its efficacy against
malaria remains unclear. The bark is antispasmodic
and lowers blood pressure, and is now used mainly
to reduce high blood pressure. Strongly bitter, the
bark is also taken to treat diarrhea. QCautions  T ake only under professional
supervision. Fever bark is toxic in large doses. The herb is subject to legal restrictions in
some countries.Constituents  Marshmallow root contains about
37% starch, 11% mucilage, 11% pectin, flavonoids,
phenolic acids, sucrose, and asparagine. History & Folklore  The philosopher
Theophrastus ( c. 372–286 bce) reported that
marshmallow root was taken in sweet wine for
coughs. Marshmallow was once a key ingredient
in the sweets of the same name. Medicinal Actions & Uses  Useful
whenever a soothing effect is needed,
marshmallow protects and soothes the mucous
membranes. The root counters excess stomach
acid, peptic ulceration, and gastritis. Marshmallow
is also mildly laxative and beneficial for many
intestinal problems, including regional ileitis,
colitis, diverticulitis, and irritable bowel syndrome. The leaves treat cystitis and frequent urination. Marshmallow’s demulcent qualities bring relief
to dry coughs, bronchial asthma, chronic
bronchitis, and pleurisy. The flowers are applied
to help soothe inflamed skin. The root is used
in an ointment for boils and abscesses, and in
a mouthwash for inflammation. The peeled root
may be given as a chewstick to teething babies. Other Species  Hollyhock ( A. rosea ) and
common mallow ( Malva sylvestris, p. 232) are
used in a similar fashion. Self-help Uses Allergic rhinitis with mucus,
p. 300; Earache due to chronic mucus, p. 312;
Urinary infections, p. 314.Amaranthus hypochondriacus
(Amaranthaceae)
Amaranth
Description  Sturdy, upright annual growing
to about 3 ft (1 m). Has deeply veined, lance-
shaped, purple-green leaves that grow to 6 in
(15 cm) and tufts of small, deep crimson flowers
on long spikes. Habitat & Cultivation  Native to India,
amaranth grows wild in many countries, including
the U.S. A common garden plant, it is harvested
when in flower in late summer and early autumn. Parts Used  Aerial parts. Constituents  Amaranth contains tannins,
including a red pigment used to dye foods
and medicines. History & Folklore  Amaranth comes from
the Greek word meaning “unwithering.” The
amaranth was sacred to the goddess Artemis,
worshipped at Ephesus, and was thought to have
special healing powers. As a symbol of immortality,
it was used to decorate tombs and images of
the gods. Medicinal Actions & Uses  Amaranth is an
astringent herb that is used primarily to reduce
blood loss and to treat diarrhea. A decoction of
amaranth is taken as a remedy in cases of heavy
menstrual bleeding, excessive vaginal discharge,
diarrhea, and dysentery. It is also used as a gargle to
soothe inflammation of the pharynx and to hast


150 ml) of water, or use the tincture neat or diluted in water. Apply either preparation to the wound. Note Calendula tincture will sting strongly, but it has a
greater antiseptic action. Herb Aloe vera (Aloe vera, p. 60)Remedy Cleanse the wound with the gel  and cover with a dressing soaked in gel. Change frequently. Herb Witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana, p. 102)
Remedy Apply distilled witch hazel (available over
the counter) to the affected area 2–3 times a day. Cold Sores, Chicken Pox, & Shingles
Herbs Echinacea (Echinacea spp., p. 92), St. John’s
wort (Hypericum perforatum, p. 106)Remedies T ake
1⁄2 tsp of tincture of either
herb with water 2–3 times a day. Alternatively,  take echinacea tablets or capsules, or make
an infusion of St. John’s wort and drink up to
3/4 cup (150 ml) a day. Herbs Garlic (Allium sativum, p. 59), ginger
(Zingiber officinale, p. 155), lemon (Citrus
limon, p. 82)
Remedy (Internal) Eat 1–2 cloves of garlic and 1–2 slices (1 g) of fresh ginger a day.Remedy (External) Apply either fresh ginger, half a clove of garlic, or lemon juice to unopened cold sores, shingles, or pockmarks up to 6 times a day. General Remedies
Herb Comfrey (Symphytum officinale, p. 138)
Remedy Make a poultice and firmly apply to the affected area for 1–2 hours each day. Caution Do not use comfrey on broken skin. Herbs Tea tree (Melaleuca alternifolia, p. 112), clove (Eugenia caryophyllata, p. 97), calendula (Calendula officinalis, p. 73), thyme (Thymus vulgaris, p. 143)Remedy Mix 5 drops of tea tree, clove, or
thyme essential oil with 1 tsp of calendula ointment. Apply 1–2 times a day. Caution Do not use thyme oil during pregnancy.Healing Wounds
Herbs Comfrey (Symphytum officinale, p. 138),
aloe vera (Aloe vera, p. 60)
Remedy Apply comfrey ointment at the edges of the wound or, once a scab has formed, use a comfrey poultice. Use aloe vera gel to cleanse the wound (see left). Caution Do not use comfrey on an open wound. Bruises
Herbs Arnica (Arnica montana, p. 172), witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana, p. 102)Remedy Apply arnica ointment to bruises and swellings 2–3 times a day, or use distilled witch hazel, as above. Caution Do not use arnica on broken skin. Herb Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis, p. 113)
Remedy (Internal) Make an infusion and drink up to 3 cups (750 ml) a day.Remedy (External) Make a lotion by infusing 1
1⁄2 tbsp of fresh or 3 tsp of dried leaves in
3/4 cup (150 ml) of water for 10 minutes. Strain and dab onto spots 3–5 times a day. Warts
Herb Aloe vera (Aloe vera, p. 60)Remedy Apply the gel directly to the wart 2–3 times a day for up to 3 months. Herb Arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis, p. 276)
Remedy Apply neat tincture to the wart 1–2 times a day for up to 3 months. Herb Garlic (Allium sativum, p. 59)
Remedy Rub on
1⁄2 clove 2–3 times a day. Athlete’s Foot
Herbs Turmeric (Curcuma longa, p. 90), calendula (Calendula officinalis, p. 73)Remedy Mix
1⁄2 tsp of turmeric powder with
3 tsp (15 ml) of calendula ointment. Rub in between and under the toes each day. US_300-307_Allergies.indd   304 26/02/16   4:43 pm305 herbal remedies for home useAcne & Boils
StomachacheAcne and boils are the result of local infection,
hormonal imbalance, or internal toxicity, which
cause inflammation of the hair follicles and, with
acne, sebaceous glands. They should be treated
on the surface of the skin and internally. Acne  generally occurs during the teenage years
and results in whiteheads, pustules, and cysts,
usually on the face and back. Boils  are large, pus-filled areas of skin. They either
disperse or burst in a week. As boils are often
the body’s way of expelling toxins, recurrent
boils may indicate a weakened immune system. They can also suggest diabetes or a deep-seated
bacterial infection. Herbs  such as tea tree and garlic are antiseptic
and antibiotic. Calendula and comfrey promote
healing, and comfrey helps to mend scarring. Self-help
Increase intake of vitamin C and garlic. QGeneral cautions Do not squeeze or burst boils
or acne pimples as the infection may spread. Seek
professional advice for recurrent boils. Cramping pain is a sign that the stomach and
intestines are sore and irritated. This is normally
due to poor digestion, excessive nervous tension,
food poisoning, or infection. Stomachache may
occur on its own or lead to vomiting and
diarrhea (in which case, use the remedies on
p. 306). Garlic and calendula are antiviral and will
help clear digestive infections. Relaxing herbs,
such as German chamomile and cramp bark,
relieve stomach spasm. For maximum benefit,
they are mixed with carminative herbs to help
relieve gas. QGeneral cautions Seek professional advice if
stomach pain is severe or recurrent. All species of mint
(Mentha  spp.) are unsuitable for children under 5.External Remedies
Herbs Tea tree ( Melaleuca alternifolia, p. 112),
clove ( Eugenia caryophyllata, p. 97), garlic ( Allium
sativum, p. 59)
Remedy Dab 1 drop of neat tea tree or clove
essential oil onto the pus-filled head of a boil or
pimple twice a day. Alternatively, cut a clove of
garlic in half and rub over the area twice a day. Herb Calendula ( Calendula officinalis, p. 73)
Remedy Apply ointment or cream, or dab
undiluted tincture onto the pus-filled area
twice a day.<|eot_id|><|begin_of_text|>Summarize the following text section accurately and concisely. Maintain specific details and numerical information, and use anti-repetition mechanisms:

        1Place the herbs in a saucepan. Cover with
cold water and bring to a boil. Simmer for
about 20–30 minutes, until the liquid is
reduced by about one-third. 1Place the herb in the
strainer of the teacup and
place a strainer in the cup. Fill
the cup with freshly boiled
water. US_290-291_Making_Herbal_Remedies. indd   291 26/02/16   4:43 pm
292
herbal remedies for home useTinctures are strong preparations, and it is essential
to check the recommended dosage. Never use industrial alcohol, methylated spirits (methyl alcohol) or rubbing alcohol (isopropyl alcohol) in tinctures. Alcohol-reduced Tinctures
Alcoholic tinctures should sometimes be avoided,
for example during pregnancy or a gastric inflammation. Adding 1 tsp (5 ml) of tincture to a small glass of almost boiling water and leaving it for 5 minutes allows the alcohol to evaporate. To make nonalcoholic tinctures, replace the alcohol with vinegar or glycerol. Tincture Ratios
Tinctures are made in different strengths,
expressed as ratios. In this book, a 1:5 ratio
(1 part herb to 5 parts alcohol) is used, unless otherwise stated. Reputable herbal suppliers are the best place
to buy powdered herbs and, in general, the
finer the powder the better the grade and quality. Gelatin or vegetarian capsule cases
are also available from specialist outlets. Powdered slippery elm (Ulmus rubra, p. 145) makes a useful base for poultices (see p. 295), and astringents such as witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana, p. 102) may be applied to weeping skin or mixed into ointments (see p. 295) for hemorrhoids and varicose veins. Tinctures
Tinctures are made by soaking an herb in alcohol. This encourages the active
plant constituents to dissolve, giving tinctures a


 not indulge in
much c onversation while eating. W e simply ate! Imagine that! That
naturally made us mindful of eating and experiencing what it was like to
feel full and satisfied. W e developed an internal reference as to how much
to ea t. Chapati w as made fresh at each meal and served hot of f  the grill as
soon as it was ready. When we were full, we simply did not take any more
food. W e were never told to finish what was on our plate, as not all of the
meal was served to us at once. It is interesting how the “clean  plate club”
and the idea of “overeating” in our society are concepts that d eveloped as
our eating, cooking and lifestyl es changed. W ith so much stru ggle around
overeating in our society, genera lly, I wonder if cooking food fresh for each
meal might be the ideal solution for us all. I had never heard of processed food while I was growing up. I left India in
my teen years t o study in T oro nto. While going to school in T oronto, it
never occurred to me to look at the list of ingredients in the foo d I bought. The idea that there would be something else in my food other  than food was
foreign to me. S o, I happily ate those Kraft cheese singles thinking that they
were made only of cheese. I am  cer tain my  story speaks to  many of us. T oday, some 35 y ears on, we
have a plethora  of food plans, diets, guilt-free and zero-calorie foods,
calorie-logging programs and apps, and an epidemic of illnesses never
heard of before. Coincidence? I think not! Moreover, the information
overflow and limitless choices w e face around food keep us wondering and
worrying whethe r we’ve got it all, whether we really know everything there
is to know. Reg ardless of how h ard we try to wrap our heads around food,
we keep missing the mark.How did we get  here? On one hand, we are fortunate to have an  abundance
and vari ety of foods, yet, on the other hand we are anxious and worried and
we struggle to eat healthily. Is it the information overflow? Is  it the ease
with which we can obtain so m uch food? Is it our sedentary, stressful and
push-button lifestyle? In a world of quick and easy recipes, power foods and shakes, groceries
delivered to our doorsteps and meals prepared and dropped of f for us, we
are saving a lo t of time, yet the biggest dilemma of our ti mes is our
perceived lack of time. W ith  the most nutrient-dense foods possible
available to us, the worry about nutritional deficiencies remains. Hand-in-
hand with that is fear, anxiety and confusion. I have often w ondered if
having t oo man y options isn’ t part of the problem. Those who love the
“options” world —and don’ t get me wrong, I do too—may frown upon this
idea. I am certai n this is a problem, although I’m not sure what the solution
is. But it makes me want to say, “W ait a minute!” When a so-called solution
(endless informa tion) comes with another set of problems (co nfusion and
anxiety), then perhaps we are b etter of f with the original problem. Either
way, going back to the basics may be the way to solve it. Knowing less and applying wha t we already know may be what’ s needed,
instead of figuring our way out of this mess with another m iracle food,
more re cipes, or  another diet p lan. From the beginning of tim e, food was
meant to sustain, to nourish, to heal, to connect and to ce lebrate life. Perhaps much of the food-relate d illnesses we are suf fering as a society are
the r esult of not just the “bad f ood” but rather from the lack of emotional
and psychological nourishment we receive. Is there something we are
bypassing when  we don’ t chop, cut, stir and prepare our own meals? Our
body is made up of a complex set of processes that occur step b y step. Can
we real ly outs mart our bodies and skip steps just for the sake of
convenience and time? The pro cess of chopping, cuttin g, mixing and stirring is an understated yet
important part of our digestive system. It inspires the senses and starts the
digestive proces s. As we smell the food, we begin to salivate, w hich wakes
up o ur digestion in anticipation of a delicious meal. Moreover, the aromas,dif ferent texture s, and colors wa ke up our subtle senses and make our entire
body receptive of the nourishment it is about to receive. The sub tle part of our being is the most powerful part that drives the
intelligent funct ioning of our internal or gans and systems. The digestive
process allows us to not just enjoy the foods we are eating, but also to be
nourished by what we eat. When food goes straight from the  box to the
mouth, we have to ask if our body is truly ready to digest, to process, and to
make use of this food as fuel for our soul, our psyche and our physical
body? I wonder  if we don’ t take a hit on more than just the ph ysical level
every time we end up in front of the window of a fast food re staurant, or
grab that frozen meal. In o ur busy lives, we have begun to value convenience, but I w onder if we
have forsaken joy and happiness for the sake of convenience. Quality and
fullness of life are a result of the experiences we have. I t might be
constructive to ask what adds value to our lives and what diminishes it. Nothing gets more in the way of  our aspirations, our goals and our ability to
live a purposeful life than ill hea lth, and nothing can stop us from living our
rich and meaningful life when we are healthy from the inside out. Food and
nutrition represent one of the big ways that we can all create real health. Food is a metaphor for life; if we can heal our relationship with food, we
can heal our life. If we continue t o search for the  “perfect” food or diet out there, we have
bought i nto the belief that someo ne else has the power to change our health. It is this belief that we need to shift. W e must take the reins of our health
into our own hands. What’ s out ther e is information, b ut to transfo rm our health what we
need is wisdom. That sour ce of wisdom is w ithin each one of us. All
that’ s needed is our willingness to try to access it! I am convinced  that the solution to our food-related probl ems lies in
returning to basics, in simplify ing nutrition, and in building a healthier
relationship with  our food and food sources. Most importantly, it lies in our
willingness to use our common sense and ask the bigger questions when itcomes to  our struggles with foo d. I am certain that when we v iew food as
our ally in creating long-lasting  health and healing, we may be taking the
single most important step in healing our relationship with food, regardless
of w hat background, beliefs and associations we may have. I believe that
food can  be the source of health  and healing. And, when viewe d as such, it
can be our most valuable resource in dealing with stress. Food is life-giving and it is a celebration of life. May we cook t ogether, eat
together, laugh, rejoice and sha re stories over good food. May  no one go
hungry! May this simple need and pleasure be bestowed upon  all human
beings! May there be enough in  our pantry, our fridge and our kitchen and
may the  kettle be always on. M ay our doors and, most impo rtantly, our
hearts, always be open to share this blessing with all!H O W  T H I S  B O O K  I S  O R G A N I Z E D
This boo k is or ganized into four sections. Each new concept or thought is a
new ch apter. Where appropriate, the chapters end with a reflective
statement or an action step to help you process the material a  little more
profoundly. Client and personal stories are included for teaching purposes
and they are italicized. The client names are changed to maintain
confidentiality and only what is needed for teaching purposes is shared. Here is a little tour of each section:
S E C T I O N  I  -  O U R  C H A L L E N G E S
These a re the top five challenges that I have encountered in m y practice. Understanding the source of these challenges and how they af fect our
relationship with food have allowed me to address the problems  that I see in
people’ s lives. Everyone’ s chal lenges are unique and yours may not fit
perfectly into any one category that I have listed. Reading through what I
have pre sented may provoke thought, however, and help clarify for you
where your dif ficulties lie. There are five c hapters in Section I. The first chapter talks about guilt and


:

The miracle of physicality is accomplished by The Energy and The Essence through a
process that could best be described as “a quickening of the s pirit.”
The primal sound of the Universe is the lowest note in the score of God’s symphony. It is
the sound of om... a rumble so deep, it almost sounds ominous. In recent years, deep -space
listening devices have actually been able to pick up this sound. It is the Original Vibration. It
is The Energy and The Essence, oscillating at its slowest speed. When this speed increases, the pitch goes up, from a deep rumble to the gentle melody
of life as we know it. Everything begins with the First Vibration. Ever ything begins with
sound (“In the beginning was the Word....”). And The Sound said, Let there be Light. And it
oscillated Itself so fast that its very Essence became white hot. And Light was born. And then, through the simple yet elegant process of shif ting its oscillation between
various frequencies, The Energy and The Essence produced other manifestations of
physicality. And the deep sound of om became the sweet sight of life. (“And the Word was
made flesh, and dwelt among us.”)
The faster The Energy a nd The Essence vibrated —that is, the higher the frequency  of its
oscillations —the more solid that which is not solid appeared. Think of it this way: if a point of energy can move rapidly enough in a straight line
between Point A and Point B, it will appear  to be at neither Point A nor Point B, but at every
point in between. Its incomprehensible speed makes it appear to the human eye to be
nowhere in particular at any given moment, but everywhere at once —because it is moving
so fast, we can’t “spot” it in an y single block of time and space. Therefore, the rapidity of its
movement makes it appear as a solid line  between A and B. You can prove this to yourself with a little experiment. Paste a big black dot on the end
of a transparent straw. Now hold the straw in front of your face and move it left -to-right
against the background of a white wall. You will see the dot move, of course, and you will
be able to point out exactly where it is at any moment. Now, increase the speed with which
you move the dot, finally getting to the place where you are moving your hand back and
forth so fast that the dot cannot be seen as being in one place or the other, but, in fact, in all
places at once. If you squint just a bit this will appear to the naked eye to be a straight line. The human mind cannot compute the data that it is seeing fast enough to keep up with
the new  data it is seeing. The data stream is faster than the mind’s ability to analyze it. Therefore, the mind does not know what it is seeing. The world is 2 percent m atter and 98 percent space, but it looks to us “for all the world”
as if it is exactly the other way around. Thus, we live in a world of our illusion. Yet it was purposefully created this way by the
Originating Intelligence. The mind is a device beautifull y designed to analyze a limited
amount of data from an unlimited source. It was never intended  to comprehend all of it at
once. That is the job of the soul. Likewise, the body is a device. Your body is the physicalization of Spirit in a particular form in a particular place at a
particular time for a particular purpose having to do with the Particularization of Every
Particle of The All. The All is that which is not particular. It is Everything —and therefore, it is nothing in
particular. Yet The Everything could not experience Itself as Everything, since there was
Nothing Else with which to compare it. So, It chose to individuate  Itself in order that All
That Is could experience Itself as something in particular. This Process of Particularization created wha t I have here called the Realm of the
Physical. Again, it is a process by which the primal vibration simply increased the
frequency of its oscillation. The All of you is wonderful —that is, full of wonder —yet your body is the least of these. Next comes your  mind, and the most wonderful of all is your soul. Your mind is so wonder -
full that it can actually impact your body... and, indeed, all things physical. That is, your mind can create your physical reality. I said... your mind can create your
physica l reality. Not only can it  do this, it is doing this. Your mind is creating your reality every minute of
every day, whether you know it or not. The question is not whether the You that you are is
creating your reality, the question is only whether you are doing it consciously or
unconsciously. You make things physical in your reality through a quickening of the Spirit. This is the
benefit of what you might call fast thinking. You know how people are praised for being a
fast thinker? There is more to that ap pellation than you might have imagined. You would be amazed at how fast your mind can think. It can think twice as fast as it
ordinarily thinks through the simple process of ignoring all Past Data. You might call this
Skipping Past the Past. And the extrao rdinary insight is that you can instruct your mind to
do this; you can train your mind to do this. How? How can you train your mind to ignore everything it thinks it knows about a
subject? By making a quantum leap to the awareness of the soul. Always, in e very moment, the decision you get to make is, shall I consider the data of the
mind or the awareness of the soul? When you move to the awareness of the soul you raise
your consciousness to the top of the triangle, to the place of Being. To be or not to be, that is the question. Now here is the irony of how everything I’ve just described works... are you ready for
the supreme irony? This is a secret of secrets; that which no one has ever told you:
In order to access the awareness of the soul, you need to slow down. Now wait a minute! Didn’t I just say that you had to “think fast”? Yes! You have to think
fast when things are happening around you... fast enough to tell yourself to slow down. The fi rst thing your mind will want to do when incoming data is deluging you is analyze
the data  and present you with all your options for response. It does this very, very rapidly. In
order for you to short -circuit this process you must “think fast.” So fast th at as your mind
begins to take you deep into your Past Data about what is going on right now, you literally
stop your mind from going there. You Skip Past Your Past. Then you re -route your energy (your mind, you know, is electrical energy! You can
physical ly measure the impulses). You route your energy to Awareness rather than Data. This is like switching tracks in a train yard, from the track that just goes back around to where the train has just been, to a spur that takes it to a place of rest. You can do  this quite
literally on the spur of the moment, moving from the mind to the soul. You know how some
people are described as having a “one -track mind”? This is about changing that. There are
times when we all have a one -track mind. We keep thinking about w hat we’re thinking
about —going to all the same places over and over. As you would know if you rode an actual
train through its entire route, this gets you nowhere. You wind up right back where you
started. Soooo... to change all that, you have to be fas t enough to slow down. You have to be quick enough to stop your mind from racing on, and slow your process of
particularization, dropping your vibe to the level of your soul -frequency. Your soul’s
oscillation is so slow that you cannot see it. Now I know t hat this is the exact reverse of everything you’ve ever learned, everything
you’ve ever been told. You’ve been told to “raise your vibration,” and that enlightenment is
about “consciousness -raising.” Actually, it’s just the opposite. It’s about lowering yo ur
vibration. It’s about slowing down to the frequency rate of the Invisible. It’s about getting
closer to the Primal Sound. That is why monks and some others who meditate often sit
together and chant the sound of Om in a deep, rich tone. It is about slowi ng down the vibe. It is about being out of your mind. The place of your body in all of this? It is, as I said, simply and only an instrument. The
question is, are you using it as an instrument of the mind or an instrument of the soul? And
what I am saying here is that, at best, it should be an instrument of both. I don’t want to paint the mind as the enemy here. It is not. Most decidedly, it is a miracle
machine. Yet we must let the mind do what the mind was designed to do, and the soul do
what the soul was  created to do. We must remember that we are tri -part beings, and that
the body —also a “miracle machine” —


 unfair. You can be smart, gifted in all kinds ofways, ambitious, and celebrated for your achievements, yet there’s
no guarantee that you won’t suffer the fate of Mozart. In the late sum mer of 1791 Mozart went to Prague, where one
of his operas was the centerpiece of festivities for the A ustrian
emperor. He began to feel ill but returned to Vienna and te nded to
the prem iere o f The Magic Flute, o ne of his gre atest masterpi eces,
on September 30. By t hen his hea lth had taken an alarming turn—he experie nced
swelling, vomi ting, and severe pain. His wife and doctor d id their
best to nurse him back to health as Mozart’s mind tu rned to
writing a new commission for a requiem, which he never finished. Occupying him self with his musical genius was in vain, and an
hour after midnight on December 5, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart,
the most precious of musical minds, died of still-unknown causes
at the age of t hirty-five. There were heartrending scenes toward
the end of his life of him sitting up in bed to sing ditties from The
Magic Flute  with friends. Few who love classical music consider
Mozart’s death anything but a great loss. I don’t  bring up this sad story, which reached m any
nondevotees of classical music through the 1984 movie Amadeus,
to mou rn a death or to speculate about what modern medicine
could h ave done to save Mo zart’s life. (Nearly twenty causes of
death have been conjectured, including rheumatic fever, kidney
failure, and blood poisoning. Most of them are infections curable
today with antibiotics. ) I merely want to point out that the greatest
among us is still controlled by unseen causes. The drama we cling
to sim ply does what it does, on its own terms. The
spell/dream/illusion mysteriously generates unpredictable events
that cannot be fathomed. How do  we get beyond the sense that we are helpless b efore
random chance or invisible Fate. Without a doubt there are
moments when hidden links are revealed. The notion of
synchronicity h as become popular for describing a special kind of
coincidence. You think of a person’s name, and a few minutes later
that person calls. You want to read a certain book, and, without
being told, a friend brings you the book. Synchronicity  is defined
as a meaningful coincidence, setting it apart from randomcoincidences that have no meaning, like seeing the same make of
car as yours show up beside you at a stoplight. Metareality ha s a way of sending us messages now and  then
that co ntradict our fixed views. Synchronicity is one kind of
message. It says, “Your world is disorganized, but reality isn’t. ” In
a fle eting glimpse, we see th at a higher intelligence can o rganize
events so that meaning pops up unexpectedly. Moreover, a
synchronous e xperience defi es our limited conception of cause
and effe ct. Inst ead of A causi ng B, the two are invisibly meshed. If
you think of a word and the n ext minute someone on TV says that
word, you didn’t create the coincidence. But something  did. You can feel yo ur physical body and listen to your thought s, but
the som ething that organizes all events cannot be sensed. Yet it is
here and now. The following exercise will show you what I mean. E x e r c i s e :  I ’ m  S t i l l  H e r e
Wherever you  are now, look around the room and tak e an
inventory of what it contains. Notice the furniture, knickknacks,
books, even the windows and the view outside. Now cl ose your eyes and s ee the room mentally. Begin to
remove its contents. (You can open your eyes to refresh your
memory if you need to. ) See the furniture go poof. And n o longer
exist. Strip the room of the  knickknacks and books, then the
windows and the view outside. You will be left standing in an
empty b ox. If you have a me ntal image of your body stan ding in
the room, send it away, too. In one final str oke, remove the ceiling, walls, and floor. You will
be standing in a space with no objects. It’s hard to have a n image
of noth ing, so you probably see white light or blackness. Notice,
after removing everything, that you are still here. Now re verse the process. Bring back the floor, walls, and
ceiling. Reinstate the furnitu re, knickknacks, and books. Replace
the win dow and the view outside. Notice that you are still here. Nothing about the room, whether full or empty, changed you. To p rove that you are still h ere, try to get rid of yourself. See
yourself stand ing in the roo m when it is full or the sp ace left
behind when the room has d isappeared. In either state, can you
remove yourse lf. No. “I’m still here” is untouchable, because you
are the one thing. This ex ercise helps remind you of your true status. If you find
yourself in a busy place, full of distractions or stress, take an
inventory of everything you see. Close your eyes and empty the
place until there are no objects, people, or room. As you arrive at
nothing but emptiness, you a re still here. This gives you a feeling
of blissful self-sufficiency. To know that you are imperishable,
right this moment, is the ultimate validation that you are here
now. You have discovered your bei ng. After that, everything you say,
do, or think is a passing shadow. Simply by being, you have
mastered the art of not-doing. The next stage is to let one thing
show you what it is capable of. P r a c t i c a l  I m m o r t a l i t y
When you see yourself as th e unmoving point around which
everything mo ves, you are in  a special state of awareness. We can
call this the state of practical immortality. Countless people
already live such a life if they  are part of a religion that believes in
a personal God. Believing that God is watching and judging them,
devout believers are basing their lives on an immortal being. The
ultimate rewar d from such a  being is going to Heaven, where the
believer gets to join in immortality. In societies dominated by traditional religion, rules of morality
tend to be rigid and narrow. Dogmatic religions nail a set of rules
to the wall saying, “If you want to know what God wants, obey
these ru les. ” The rules can be as basic as the Ten Comman dments
and the Golden Rule or as  complex as the hundreds of daily
instructions th at pertain to the life of an orthodox Bra hmin in
Hinduism. But living by the r ules depends on believing that therewas a line of communication between God and whoever delivers
the rul es here on Earth. R eligions tend to agree about what
constitutes a devout life (i. e., trying to please God and obey the
rules), but they disagree on which messenger to trust. The direct path doesn’t propose that kind of practical
immortality. There are zero rules or even injunctions. Instead,
there is  a path that arrives at waking up. Once you are on the path,
you mu st comm unicate with immortality yourself, as best you can. Moses, Jesus, and Buddha aren’t going to help you (a lthough,
because there are no rules, if you want to follow a religion, the
choice i s yours ). To begin to  communicate with immorta lity, the
first step is to believe that you can, which isn’t easy. For our entire lives, all of us have been taught how to live i n the
state of practical mortality. Everything is gauged according to how
it fits in betwe en birth and death. People who squeeze the most
pleasure out of life, master many skills, work hard and play hard,
travel to  many places, amass money and possessions—they  are the
winners in the scheme of pr actical mortality. At its most basic,
however, every one lives in th e shadow of mortality. You see this in
our wo rship of youth, our o bsession with fending off aging, our
fear that our bodies might ge t injured. Protecting the body lies at
the heart of getting rich— money offers a surrogate form of
invulnerability. The rich and powerful come close to being
invulnerable to  life’s hardships. (Yet nothing is more untr ue than
the saying, “It’s better to die rich than poor. ” Finality is finality, no
matter how much money you amass and throw around. ) In t his context, how can you believe that you can commun icate
with immortality, much less turn it into a way of life. All you
actually need is the insight that you are doing it already. Wholeness—the one thing we ’ve been talking about


atural	foods
and	preparing	simpler	food	will	help	you	become	more	sensitive	to	the	taste	of
salt. It’s	also	a	good	idea	to	add	sea	salt	to	your	food	right	before	you	eat	it,	so	it
tastes	more	salty	without	using	more	actual	salt. PILLAR	2:
External	Nourishment
Now	that	you	know	how	to	lay	the	foundation	for	your	beauty	with	your	diet,
we	are	going	to	talk	about	the	best	forms	for	the	outer	care	of	your	skin. This
includes	the	safest	and	most	effective	skin-care	products	and	ingredients	as	well
as	self-care	practices	that	will	help	you	grow	strong	nails;	healthy,	shiny	hair;
and	clear,	glowing	skin. Incorporating	superior	inner	and	outer	care	will
nourish	your	whole	body	from	the	outside	in	and	let	your	natural	beauty	shine
through	to	the	highest	degree	possible. In	this	pillar	we’ll	cover	the	best—as	well
as	the	worst—ingredients	and	practices	so	you	can	allow	your	most	beautiful	self
to	be	authentically	reflected. SHIFT	6:
Incorporate
Natural	Skin-Care
Ingredients
Your	Amazing	Skin
Our	largest	organ,	the	skin,	is	a	fascinating	one. It	is	an	elimination	organ,
meaning	it	helps	dispel	wastes	from	your	body	through	sweat. Your	skin
receives	roughly	a	third	of	all	the	blood	that	is	circulated	throughout	the	body. It	makes	sense	that	if	the	blood	is	congested,	this	is	reflected	in	your	skin. Your
skin	is	the	last	organ	to	receive	nutrition	in	the	body,	yet	is	among	the	first
organs	to	show	signs	of	an	imbalance	or	deficiency. But	skin	does	also	work	in	the	opposite	way,	absorbing	what	is	applied	to	it
on	the	outside. It	is	therefore	critical	to	be	strategic	about	putting	the	best
ingredients	on	the	surface	of	your	skin	to	help	repair	and	support	its	health
from	the	outside	in. This	seems	obvious,	but	there	is	a	great	deal	of	marketing
hype	to	weed	through	to	determine	what	works	and	what	is	merely	an	empty
claim. It’s	also	critical	to	avoid	the	numerous	toxic	ingredients	that	can	be
absorbed	and	not	only	tax	your	skin	but	also	enter	your	bloodstream	and
burden	your
liver. Your	skin	is	also	influenced	by	your	emotions	and	mental	state. Research
shows	that	stress	can	cause	visible	aging	at	the	cellular	level,	including	a	study
published	in	the
Proceedings	of	the	National	Academy	of	Sciences. 1

Elissa	Epel,	one
of	the	researchers	for	this	study,	states,	“This	is	the	first	time	that	psychological
stress	has	been	linked	to	a	cellular	indicator	of	aging	in	healthy	people. ”
2
Luckily,	many	of	the	techniques	in	this	pillar	will	help	relax	your	mind	and
body	while	nurturing	your	skin	from	the	outside	in. Healthy,	smooth,	and	radiant	skin	is	considered	the	holy	grail	of	beauty. If
you	survey	any	woman	(and	most	men,	even	though	they	might	not	discuss	it	as
openly. ),	you	will	find	that	beautiful	skin	is	at	the	very	top	of	her	beauty	wish
list. Well,	the	time	has	come	for	you	to	get	your	wish. By	working	with	yourskin	and	incorporating	ingredients	into	your	routine	that	will	help	nourish
your	skin,	you’ll	create	an	optimal	environment	for	your	skin	to	grow,	repair,
and	heal	itself. The	result	will	be	skin	that	glows,	reflecting	your	highest	beauty. Natural	vs. Chemical	Ingredients
Some	may	think	that	the	expensive,	scientifically	created,	cutting-edge	products
on	the	market	are	automatically	the	most	effective	choices	out	there,	but	this	is
not	necessarily	the	case. The	antioxidants	found	in	natural	plant	ingredients	are
still	widely	considered	to	be	among	the	most	powerful	skin-care	ingredients,
and	this	is	consistently	proven	in	research. As
Richard	Baxter,	MD,	of	the	University	of	Washington
School	of
Medicine,	states,	“There	is	enough	published	work	to	convince	me	that	the
antioxidant	botanicals	will	be	the	next	big	thing	in	skin	care. ”
3
	They	may	be	the
“next	big	thing,”	but	they	have	also	been	around	for	thousands	of	years—much
like	ancient	practices	like	yoga	and	meditation	are	tagged	as	“new	age. ”	(Ironic
and	illogical,	right. ) Synthetic	ingredients	may	have	properties	to	help	boost
your	skin,	but	some	may	tax	your	skin	and	even	be	toxic. 4
	That	toxicity	can	be
absorbed	right	from	your	skin	into	your	system. 5
As	with	your	diet,	the	best	approach	to	skin	care	is	to	understand	the	power
of	nature. Nature’s	beauty	is	unparalleled,	and	if	you	live	closer	to	nature	in	all
aspects	of	your	lifestyle,	your	natural	beauty	will	increase. Choose	nontoxic
products	that	contain	natural,	plant-based	ingredients. As	long	as	they	aren’t
toxic,	scientifically	created	ingredients,	like	concentrated,	isolated	peptides,	that
are	aimed	at	a	specific	purpose	such	as	minimizing	the	appearance	of	fine	lines
and	wrinkles	can	work	together	with	natural	ingredients	to	create	powerful
combinations. Nature	and	science	can	most	certainly	work	together	in	a
balanced	way. Organic	ingredients	are,	by	definition,	pesticide-	and	GMO-free. But	keep	in
mind	that	products	may	contain	some	organic	ingredients	but	may	not	be
100
percent
	organic	if	other	ingredients	are	processed	in	some	way	to	make	them
usable	or	if	they	are	actually	lab	created. Natural	minerals	such	as	mica	are	not
considered	organic	because	they	are	not	plant	based. Also,	water	and	salts	are
excluded	when	determining	a	product’s	percentage	of	organic	ingredients. This
means	that	some
great	products	may	be	an	effective	blend	of	nontoxic
ingredients	derived	from	nature	and	science,	but	may	not	be	necessarily	labeled
100	percent	organic. There	are	literally	tens	of	thousands	of	beauty	products	on	the	market,	all
virtually	screaming	at	you	from	store	aisles	with	their	bold,	brightly	coloredpackages. If	you	glance	at	magazines,	you’ll	see	the	latest,	hottest	new	skin-care
ingredients	pop	up	every	month. It	can	be	very	confusing	to	determine	the
best
(and	worse)	choices	for	your	skin. HOW	TO	READ	SKIN-CARE	PRODUCT	LABELS	(IT’S	NOT	WHAT	YOU’VE	HEARD)
The	FDA	requires	that	ingredients	be	listed	in
INCI	(International	Nomenclature	of
Cosmetic	Ingredients)	language. These	labels	often	are	not	easily	read	and	usually
contain	long	words	and	names. An	overly	simplified	and	false	statement	you	hear	a
lot	is	that	if	you	can’t	pronounce	it,	you	should	not	eat	it	or	use	it	on	your	skin. But	if
you	look	at	the	INCI	language	required	for	a	natural	ingredient	like	shea	butter,	you
would	see
Butyrospermum	parkii
,	and	for	avocado	you	would	see
Persea
gratissima. These	hard-to-pronounce	words	(which	are	the	binomial	plant	names)
would	scare	anyone	who	tried	to	follow	this	rule. If	you	are	unsure	of	an	ingredient
or	INCI	language	name,	you	can	search	the	INCI


announcement, I was in shock. Here I was only in the talking  stages with
my family, and yet I was making a public announcement. Apparently my
form was following the invisible force of my inner world. The morning came when the picture was very clear in my mind. I saw
myself all alone in my venture, without any guarantees, and yet as peaceful
as I had ever been in my lifetim e. I knew that this was the day, that within a
few hours I would officially be out on my own, no longer able to rely on a
paycheck. When I arrived on campus, I went immediately to the dean’ s office. I had
not told my wife or family members that this was the day. It was the vision I
had had that morning that made it clear for me. The entire process of my
entering the dean’ s office was a mental one. All thoughts. All visions that
were private to me. All images  of myself that I could no longer erase. I
could hardly believe it myself. Here I was waiting to announce to the dean
that I was resigning, effective within a few weeks at the end of the current
semester. Our conversation was brief. I said I wanted to go out and do something
that I genuinely believed in. She asked me to reconsider and discuss it with
my family and some of my colleagues, but I told her that it was already
accomplished in my mind—my thoughts—and that I was now simply going
through the formality of making it real in the physical world as well. She
pointed out all of the risks, how unlikely it was that I would be able to make
a living writing and speaking, and that jobs such as the one I held wereexceedingly difficult to come by in the 1970s because of a glut of
professors and very few openin gs in the academic world. I told her that I
was aware of the risk, and that was one of the big reasons why I was taking
this turn in my life. I was head ed down the path that Robert Frost called
“The Road Less Traveled.”
Two roads diver ged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the dif ference. When I left the dean’ s office, I walked to my own with an inner glow. I was
free, free to advance confidently in the direction of my dreams. I cleane d out my desk, made some announcements to my students and
doctoral advisees, and drove home along the expressway knowing that I
was taking the biggest step of my lifetime. Here I was, complete ly unknown
to the media, leaving my secure position to go out and tell the world about
the ideas  in my new book. Yet, I was ecstatic, for I had seen all of it in my
mind before experiencing it in the world of form. I discussed my new adventure with my wife and daughter, and they gave
me their full support and encouragement. Since I had always been a
responsible person, had always met my financial obligations, I relied on this
history, rather than creating in my mind some kind of impending disaster
concerning my family obligation s. We would use our accumulated savings;
I would borrow money if need be; and we would scale down some of our
expenditures if that became a necessity. My family was in complete
agreement with me: money was not going to be the reason to avoid
following my bliss. They seeme d to know that this was something that I had
to pursu e, and, as is almost alwa ys the case when people love you, they not
only encouraged me, but also seemed to have the same intuitive  feeling that
everything was going to work out just fine. They too were willing to take
the risks, in the knowledge that we would all be happier for the ef fort. Every obstacle that came my way became an opportunity. I was told that
there were a minimal number of copies of my book in print, and that even if
I did go out and talk to people in the media, it would do no good because
most bookstores  would not have my book in stock. So I decided  to buy up a
large quantity of books and take them out to the people myself. I literally
became my own distributor initially.I left my books  on consignment with store owners across America in
1976, and I had the great fortune to have some wonderful peopl e come into
my life at just the right time. One such person, Donna Gould, became such
an ardent believer after reading my book that she worked on her own time
to help me get bookings all across the country. Donna knew I was paying
most of my own expenses, and she contributed many many hours of her
time and tons of her energy to help me. My publisher became more of a
believer as he saw the results of my excitement about this project. Before
long I was out in my own car, traveling from small city to smaller city
appearing on talk shows and doing local newspaper interviews. First I went up and down the East Coast, then to the Midw est, and
ultimately on a long cross-country tour with my wife and daughter, paying
my own expenses, staying in cheap motels, and, most important, enjoying
every single minute of this new adventure. I seldom thought about making
money. I had published three successful textbooks and many professional
articles without financial profit; consequently, I was not motivated now by a
desire to make a fortune. I was simply doing something that I loved to do
and answ ering to no one along the way. Since I was using my own savings
to finance this trip and to purchase the books, I had total contro l over every
aspect of this promotion. As the months rolled by, my interview schedule increased to as many as
fifteen a day. Bookstores in cities that I had visited began to reorder from
the publisher. At the start, I had been able to get bookings only in the
smaller cities, but now the medi a in larger cities were beginning  to book me
on their shows. I had been told by an “expert” in publicity and publishing that the only
way to talk to everyone in America in the 1970s was on networ k television,
but that this option was pretty much closed to me because I did not have a
national reputati on. He suggested I should be happy if I sold a few thousand
books in the local New York area, had a couple of printings, and got a
publication credit toward a promotion at the university. This was the view
of many  others who knew the publishing industry inside out. They seemed
to me to be unaware of the great truth of Victor Hugo: “Nothing is more
powerful than an idea whose time has come.”
What is an idea but a thought? The experts had their own ideas, and they
acted on them. I too had my idea. I agreed that the easiest way to talk with
everyone in America was throug h the network media, but I believed it wasnot the only way. I could reach everyone in America if I was willing to take
the time, spend the energy, and absorb the risks that go with such an
approach. I was willing and very eager as well. I would use every barrier as
an opportunity to see if I could get past it. And it worked every single time. As much as I was making things happen through my thoughts, I was also
letting things happen by not fighting anyone or anything, by doing it all
with good cheer and love. It was great fun, every single day, every
interview, every new city, every new friend. All very exciting. The months became a year, and my family and I were still on the road. Somehow the financial stuff took care of itself, and then one day, while I
was appearing on radio station KMOX in St. Louis, I received a call from
Arthur Pine, my friend and agent, who informed me that my book would
appear on the New York Times nationa l best-se ller list the following week,
debuting at position number eight. I had accomplished what almost
everyone said was impossible. Without one national television or radio
appearance, I had been able to go to the people of this country and have
enough of those people buy my book to put it on the national best-seller list. I was in awe and in shock. But this was only the beginning of how my internal images, my thoughts,
began manifesting. I was becoming in form what I had been thinking about
each day, and most important, I was opening myself to allowing my
purpose to find me. I had begun clearing myself of the negativity and
judgment that had previously interfered with the flow of my process. Other changes started then. I began exercising each day. Slowly at first,
but very much an everyday thing. In August of 1976 I ran my first mile
without stopping. At the end I was huffing and puffing and in a state of
exhaustion, but nevertheless I finished with a wonderful sense of inner
satisfaction. The next day I made the effort to accomplish this task again. Then again on the following day, and within one week I was running a mile
comfortably. Two months later, I ran eight miles without stopping, and thus
began my running streak, whic h continues today, of eight miles per day,
every day witho ut fail, since October 7, 1976. I became more attentive to
my eatin


. Release
the perineum contraction, slowly raise the head, and slowly
exhale. Repeat the process. This bandha can also be performed by initially exhaling
and holding the breath out while executing the locks, or by
maintaining the contraction for long periods with normal
breathing but without jalandhara bandha. Duration: As long as the breath can be retained without
strain. Repeat up to ten times. Concentration: On the muladhara chakra. Sequence: Practice after asana and pranayama, but before
meditation; ideally, in conjunction with the mudras and
pranayama. 92
Precautions: This bandha must be practiced carefully
under expert guidance. Limitations: Refer to jalandhara bandha. Prepatory technique: Beginners may find it difficult to con
tract the muscles of the perineum strongly and maintain the
contraction during breath retention. Such people should
regularly practice ashvini mudra (see Chap. IV), to strength
en the perineal muscles and develop control over them. Benefits: The perineum (the region of the muladhara
chakra) is contracted and pulled upwards. This forces the
apana vayu (the vital energy acting in the part of the body
below the navel) to ascend and thereby unite with the prana
vayu (the vital energy acting in the region of the body be
tween the larynx and the base of the heart). This generates
energy of a higher dimension. This bandha facilitates the
awakening of kundalini, and it helps to maintain celibacy by
acting to sublimate sexual energy and raise it to higher
chakras. The pelvic nerves are stimulated and the associated
urogenital organs are toned. Constipation and hemorrhoids
show improvement because the sphincter muscles of the
anus are strengthened and intestinal peristalsis is stimulated. The benefits of jalandhara bandha are duplicated. (3) Uddiyana bandha 93
Sit in any meditational pose, resting the knees on the floor. Relax the whole body with the palms on the knees and the
eyes closed. Exhale deeply and hold the breath outside. Per
form jalandhara bandha and contract the abdominal
muscles, pulling them upward. This is the final pose and
should be held as long as is comfortable. Slowly release the
stomach muscles and then jalandhara bandha, and inhale. When the breathing has returned to normal, the process may
be repeated. Duration: For as long as the breath can be retained without
strain. Repeat ten times. Concentration: On the manipura chakra. Time: Practice after asana and pranayama, but before
meditation; ideally, in conjunction with the mudras and
pranayama. Precautions: Practice this bandha only when the stomach
and intestines are empty. Release the chin lock before inhala
tion. Limitations: Persons suffering from heart problems, peptic
or duodenal ulcers, and pregnant women should not practice
this asana. Preparation, Alternative: Agnisara kriya (see Chap. IV) may
be practiced as a preparatory technique or as an alternative. Benefits: The diaphragm is pulled up into the thoracic cavi
ty and the abdominal organs are drawn toward the spine. This bandha therefore benefits all abdominal ailments,
providing relief from constipation, indigestion, worms, and
diabetes. The "digestive fire" of the manipura chakra is
stimulated, improving the function of the abdominal organs. The liver, pancreas, kidneys, and spleen are all massaged,
enhancing their functioning, and regular practice of the ban
dha can eliminate associated diseases. The adrenal glands
are normalized, so that a lethargic person gains vitality and
an anxious or overwrought person is calmed. The sym
pathetic nerves of the solar plexus are stimulated and the ab-94
dominal organs they control, are stimulated. As mentioned above, the manipura chakra, located in the
region of the navel is stimulated. As the manipura is the
center of prana in the body, the distribution and flow of
prana throughout the body - especially prana which rises
through the sushumna nadi - is improved. Now that we have discussed the three basic bandhas, let us
turn our attention to our next topic, the mudras. IV
The Mudras and the
Awakening of the
Chakras
Now that we have discussed the three basic bandhas, let us
turn our attention to the mudras. Not merely physical
postures, these are practices which generate a strong
psychic effect upon the inner being of the student,
facilitating spiritual advancement. Their specific aims are to
aid in the awakening of kundalini, to bring about the
awareness and control of prana in the astral dimension, and
to generate siddhis (paranormal abilities). When these goals
have been attained, the student is able to transmit prana at
will through the subtle chakras and nadis to cure a diseased
area of his own or another's body. This type of paranormal
ability inevitably appears when a degree of advancement has
been attained. In its broadest sense, the term "mudra" encompasses all
methods for awakening the chakras, including pratyahara
(sense withdrawal). Of course, in addition to their spiritual
benefits, the mudras effectively promote physical health. It is
important that they be studied under the guidance of an ex
perienced teacher. Here we shall briefly describe some of the
basic mudras. 95 96
(1) Jnana and Chin Mudras
Sit in a meditation asana and bend the index finger of each
hand so that the tip touches the inside of the root of the
thumb. Keeping the other three fingers of each hand straight,
place the hands on the knees with the palms turned down and
the three unbent fingers and thumb of each hand point
ing at the floor in front of the feet. This is jnana mudra. Chin mudra is performed in the same way as jnana mudra
except that the palms of both hands face upward. Duration: Either of these mudras may be performed in any
of the meditation poses for the duration of that pose. Benefits: Jnana and chin mudras are simple but important
psycho-neural finger locks which complete the meditational
asanas such as padmasana and siddhasana and make them
more powerful. My long experience of yoga and acupuncture theory sug
gests this explanation: Prana or ki energy absorbed through
the manipura chakra reaches and sustains the lungs, and
then flows along both lung meridians to the thumbs. Some of
this prana is emitted from the sei ("well") point of the lung
meridian at the tip of the thumb. When the index finger and
thumb are touching in jnana and chin mudras, the energy
that would otherwise be discharged is transferred to the 97
large intestine meridian that begins at the tip of the index
finger. As the body's vital energy is conserved by these
mudras, the student can meditate for long periods. In the traditional Indian explanation, symbolic signifi
cance is attributed to each of the fingers. The little finger
represents tamas (inertia, lethargy); the ring finger
represents rajas (activity, action, passion); the middle finger,
sattva (purity, wisdom, peace).<|eot_id|><|begin_of_text|>Summarize the following text section accurately and concisely. Maintain specific details and numerical information, and use anti-repetition mechanisms:

        I consider the nadis to be essen
tially equivalent to the meridians of Chinese acupuncture;
from my research, it appears that these channels are formed
of connective tissue and filled with body fluid. It is at the
joints that the flow of ki energy (equivalent to the grosser
form of prana) is easily impeded. Poor flow here can cause
rheumatic pains and result in deficient energy flow
throughout the entire body, the root cause of many disorders. The main objective of the first group of asanas, then - called
pawanmuktasana, the "wind-releasing" exercises - is to pro
mote the unimpeded flow of prana through the nadis, pri
marily by releasing the blockages in the joints. Before pawanmuktasana, or any asana practice, shavasana
(the "corpse" pose) is recommended. This relaxes the body
and allows prana to be easily absorbed and distributed. 44
Shavasana (corpse pose)
Lie flat on the back with the arms at the sides, palms facing
upwards. Move the feet slightly apart to a comfortable posi
tion. Close the eyes. Relax the whole body. Do not move at all
even if discomfort arises. The breath should be rhythmic and
natural. Be aware of inhalation and exhalation. Count the
breaths - 1 in, 1 out, 2 in, 2 out, and so on - for five minutes. If the mind starts to wander, bring it back to the counting; if
the number is forgotten, start from 1 again. As awareness of the


 it to his wife the whole night. She came to her senses in the morning and her life was saved." Swamiji n_ar:ated another incident : "Ahmedabad Municipality
had started killmg stray dogs by poisoning. Unfortunately my dog
al~ got involved in that by chance. My dog took his share of
pmsoned swe:ts from other dogs by force. Consequently he too was
affected by po1son. ~she came to me staggering, 1 at once suspected
th~t ~e had been po1soned. So I made him drink a glassful of urine. W1th1n a short time the effect of poison disappeared." Apart from the above incidents, Swamiji quoted a number of
other illustrations about his successful experiments with urine. ·
CHAPTER XXIII
TOOTHACHE
~anu~hai too C~nverted: An interesting episode took place one
even1ng 1n our soc1ety regarding urine. Some young workers of
Ahmedabad Congress_ take a good deal of interest in criticizing urine
therapy. They have n1cknamed auto-urine as "Kaka-Cola" in fun. So
whenever somebody complained of any minor trouble, they at once
recommended "Kaka-Cola"! I enjoyed their remarks. One night
a~ut 9 p.m., _all these friends were sitting in a house in my
ne1ghbourhood 1n Panchsheel Society where 1 lived and these were
gossiping heartily. Shri Manubhai Patel, organizer of Gujarat
~r~desh Sevadal and once a Deputy Minister of the State, was also
s1ttmg along with them. He was suffering from toothache for the past
one month an_d as the gums started bleeding, he consulted a dentist. The doctor suspected pyorrho~a, which meant extracting the full set TOOTHACHE : 169
of teeth. Shri Manubhai was narrating this story when I reached
there. 1 suggested to him urine treatment. He interrupted me an~ said
· that he had no faith in it and a hearty joke followed. Accord1ng to
him it would be advisable to channelize all municipal urinals
towards urine therapy centre and there to bottle urine on a mass
scale label it 'Kaka-Cola' and to put it in the market and make an
additlonal source of income to the Ahmedabad Municipality! All his
friends sitting there had a very hearty laugh at th_is big joke at_ my
cost! Even then 1 insiSted upon an urine-pack on h1s gums that mght. My request did not appeal to him and so he kept silent. B~t ~e
got at 5 a.m. and per force applied a urine-pack due to acute pa1n In
the tooth and.then slept again. When he got up at 5 a.m., he
experienced a magical effect. There was great relief and the entire. pain had vanished. Consequently, the amagol'lism that Shri Manubhai was
harbouring against urine therapy evaporated by this experience. He
related this experience to his friends with great eAtnusiasm. Shri MaAUbhai then continued the treatment. He pressed out foul
blood and mucus from the gums and went on taking mouth-washes
with urine. He also drank it a little and by the fourth day he was al1
rtght. Later on a friend of Shri Man!Jbhai·'·s company told me joking :
nvou have conva:ted Shri M.allubhai as well,!" NTtiMA:t:H Of 0\S.ES
1. SAri wam ~mPws $kwi ~asidas BrahmacOO:ri who too i.s.a
prapagandlst of uri-ne tilel'apr. SM. banarasidas had toothache in
1 966 aAlJ of a sucidef'l. Me ~aA ~ ~et~ amd me f.oon-d gr.eat
rel-ief in oRLy 20 minwtes. lfl thooe d~s be COJ\l'W!etel¥ curs;! his
toothadre by oR-iy gatgrmg of U!!tne. 2. Shri H:aribhai Desai (Asbacteep, Br:allmapttri, Baroda) tnforll'ted
i·n h-is letter dated 15-2-62 that hrs homoeopath friend uses urine
therapy for himself and wiNing pat~ents to cure their diseases. He
could cure pyorrhoea of one patient by this treatment. I
'I
I
,-
,,~ 170 : AUTO-URINE THERAPY
3. Shri Hans very enthusiasticall the inmates of the Brahm v·d y nar~ates that he found many of
urine therapy for self-curea T~ ya hMandrr, Pavanar (Wardha) using
therapy. · ey ave shown great interest in this
. 4. Shri Balkobaji, younger brother f h.. evrnced great interest in urine thera o S rr ~rnob_a Bhave, has
of Naturopathy He ad.. py and considers rt as a branch
that they have f~ith in it~rses people to use this therapy if he funds
CHAPTER XXIV
CONCLUSION
When I started writing the cha ters f. that enough material would be o ~hrs book, I did not expect
conclusions. But by God'.. h avarlable to draw suitable
h d. s grace, I ave got th d. a~e elrberately avoided in this book e esrred material. I
whrch appeared dubious Wh t.. the accounts and statements
scrutinized. Nevertheless. 'to :r/sisst~~ed h~rein. has been thoroughly
any error made inadvertently.. mna' so I ask for pardon for
Sincere Research Needed T
medical science so this bo k h: ·do me urine is not a subject of
' 0 a not bee · · propound a new branch of medicin. n_ wrrtten wrth a view to
restoration of health and ~ h de. Urrn: rs a perfect tonic for the or t e estructron of 1 d.
even an aged person the vitali d. ma a res. It gives
an anti-poison In fact. ty an vrgour of a youth. It acts also as · urrne rs a nat 1. provided not only to man b ura equrpment of the body
b'rth · ut to every living b · f''. Urrne can never fa"rl 'f t erng rom the very
D'reatment is t k r. Armstrong of England evolved a a en sy:tematically. Late
l?ng experience for years together and ~~~hod of thrs :reatment after
srngle case. so there. 1 not meet farlure even in a
h I.. was not a srngle cha f.... ea rng flurd as defective 0. ft. nee o crrtrcrsrng the.. r rne 1ectrve we t h 11 h a srmrlar method and expert. · 00 s a ave to evolve s rn anatomy and pathology will have to CONCLUSION : 171
make a thorough research. But such a research will neither require
much time nor create any complexity unlike other therapies. What
is required here is the concentration and honest and intelligent
labour on one fluid only. In allopathy, it is quite possible that years
may pass in the study of diseases and experiment with thousands of
medicines even on a single disease. Still two allopaths may disagree
in choosing a particular medicine for particular disease! Urine
therapy is far from all the~ defects. Here a single liquid is a s1,1re
cure of. all diseases. The only thing required is the proper
understanding of the condition of the ailing person. As a matter of
face even diagnosis in unnecessary. But it is essential that the
vitality of the patient, local climate, the quantity of urine to be used,
the method of application, the diet before, during and after the
treatment etc., should be fully considered beforehand. The follower
of this treatment should be careful in his general behaviour also
because mental attitude also plays an important role in the physical
health. A Treatment with Self-restraint: The accounts of the most of the
cases which I have received have one common purpose and that is
people want to survive somehow by whatever means it may be
possible. Moreover it has been our habit not to do anything
methodically or rationally. But this would not be allowed in this
treatment. otherwise it would bring discredit to this therapy. one
should not take up this treatment if one lacks inself-restraint,
moderation in food and lacks patience. I have to put a question to such half-hearted patients who have
been benefited in sptie of their being unrestrained. But what woul~
they have said if the results were unfavourable? Would they have
boldly admitted that it was only due to their own faults that harrn
had been done to them? I ·do not think such would have been their·
reaction if the result was not


being
broadcast. Our	Western	prejudice	against	the	invisible	isn’t	easy	to	overcome. Mind
will	only	be	proved	to	exist	outside	the	brain	if	it	leaves	some	kind	of
footprint,	a	visible	sign	that	is	as	convincing	as	the	MRIs	that	provide
concrete	evidence	of	neural	activity. One	such	piece	of	evidence	isinformation,	which	we’ve	touched	on	before. If	information	permeates	the
entire	quantum	field,	it	can	bridge	mind	and	matter	in	terms	more	acceptable
to	a	materialist. No	scientist	has	a	problem	believing	that	matter	and	energy
cannot	be	created	or	destroyed,	and	the	cutting	edge	of	physics	is	grappling
with	the	notion	that	information	cannot	be	created	or	destroyed,	either. What
we	see	in	the	universe	is	constant	transformation. Helium	atoms	that	fuel	the
sun	send	heat	to	Earth	that	gets	transformed	by	photosynthesis	into	plants	and
all	other	life-forms. It	can	fairly	be	said	that	life	consists	of	the	sun’s	atoms
exchanging	information	with	atoms	on	Earth. (Energy	is	information	in	the
sense	that	all	chemical	or	electrical	charges	can	be	expressed	as	plus	or	minus,
positive	or	negative,	zero	or	one.) It	doesn’t	matter,	then,	that	your	body	bears
no	resemblance	to	a	fiery	star. Both	are	part	of	the	same	information	field,
which	undergoes	endless	transformation	within	itself. Or	as	Lord	Krishna
says	in	the	Bhagavad-Gita,	“Folding	back	in	on	myself,	I	create	again	and
again.”
Amit	Goswami,	a	prominent	physicist	who	writes	extensively	on	the	self-
aware	universe,	says	that	creativity	is	just	another	face	of
transformation
. “The	universe	is	always	putting	new	wine	into	old	bottles,	or	new	wine	into
new	bottles.”	The	same	energy	packets,	containing	the	same	information,	are
being	endlessly	shuffled	in	the	Zero	Point	Field. Goswami	approaches
reincarnation	in	the	same	context. Identities	are	passing	through	the
information	field,	exchanging	data	with	new	identities	that	feel	like	a	new
“me”	but	are	actually	transmutations	of	indestructible	zeros	and	ones	strung
into	long	chains	of	ideas	and	experiences. Right	now	you	are	a	bundle	of	information	in	mind	and	body. You	have
unique	memories;	your	cells	have	undergone	chemical	changes	shared	by	no
one	else	in	the	world. When	you	die,	none	of	this	information	will	vanish,
because	it	can’t. There	is	nowhere	for	plus	and	minus,	positive	and	negative
to	go	since	the	field	contains	nothing
but
	information. Therefore	their	only
alternative	is	to	recombine. How	do	they	do	that? The	answer	lies	in	the	root	word	of	information,	which	is	“form.”	We
inhabit	an	“in-formed	universe”	according	to	Ervin	Laszlo,	which	strings
atoms	along	the	double	helix	of	DNA,	bits	of	information	in	physical	form,
just	as	it	strings	together	information	in	nonphysical	form	as	ideas. This
brings	us	one	step	closer	to	the	breathtaking	notion	that	the	whole	universe	is
God’s	mind;	that	is,	a	dynamic	field	of	infinite	information	undergoing
infinite	transformations. But	we	can’t	take	that	step	unless	we	know	how
small	ideas	survive,	much	less	cosmic	ones. The	rishis	taught	that	ideas	survive	in	the	Akashic	field	as	memories. You
and	I	constantly	access	Akashic	memory	when	we	assume	that	we	are
accessing	our	brains. In	esoteric	circles	Akashic	memory	functions	to	give	us
information	from	departed	spirits	and	past	lifetimes. In	Jungian	psychologythe	same	memory	accounts	for	cultures	sharing	the	same	myths	and
archetypes. Venus	and	Mars	are	invisible	beings,	yet	present	and	alive. The
Akasha	remembers	every	god
created
	by	humans	and	every	epic	battle,
romance,	and	quest. We	tap	into	them	all	the	time	as	the	human	story
continues	from	age	to	age. The	brain	has	a	locatable	memory	center,	but	mind	isn’t	confined	to	the
brain. Consider	a	deeply	meaningful	experience	in	your	life—a	first	kiss,	or
the	last	time	you	saw	a	beloved	grandparent. That	memory	is	the	remaining
trace	of	an	event	in	time	and	space. The	experience	can	still	be	activated	in
your	brain,	which	means	that	millions	of	molecules	that	could	be	flying
randomly	through	your	neurons
know
	that	they	have	to	stay	together	in	order
for	your	memory	to	continue,	year	after	year,	without	fading. How	could	they
know	this,	since	molecules	aren’t	intelligent? The	physical	basis	for	memory
remains	totally	unknown	to	neurologists,	so	we	can	only	speculate. Somehow	your	first	kiss	has	an	afterlife. The	afterlife	isn’t	physical,
because	there’s	absolutely	no	difference	between	the	hydrogen,	oxygen,
nitrogen,	and	carbon	in	a	neuron	and	those	same	elements	in	a	tree,	a	dead
leaf,	or	decomposed	soil. Neurons	aren’t	immortal. They	die,	just	as	the	rest
of	the	body	does,	and	atoms	fly	in	and	out	of	them	every	second. How,	then,
does	a	memory	get	transferred	to	a	new	atom,	or	to	a	new	neuron	when	the
time	comes	for	the	old	one	to	perish? No	physical	process	for	this	has	been
identified,	so	perhaps	memory	actually	persists	on	a	nonphysical	level. Neurologists	would	defend	to	the	hilt	the	opposite	idea,	that	mind	arises	only
in	the	brain,	using	CAT	scans	and	MRI	imaging	to	prove	the	point. But	those
images	are	only	maps. They	show	the	terrain	of	the	brain	as	an	idea	or
emotion	crosses	it;	they	don’t	prove	that	the	brain
is
	the	mind,	any	more	than
a	footprint	in	the	sand	is	the	same	as	a	foot. Imagine	that	you	could	map	every
vibration	in	the	tiny	nerve	endings	that	line	the	inner	ear. When	graphed	on	a
chart,	there	would	be	an	extremely	complicated	pattern	for	every	word	and
sentence	the	ear	receives,	but	that	pattern	is	only	a	map	of	a	word,	not	the
territory	itself. A	powerful	sentence	like	“I	love	you”	is	more	than	the	map	of
its	vibrations,
since
	even	the	most	perfect	map	cannot	contain	love’s	power,
meaning,	significance,	and	overall	intent. Memory	seems	to	be	a	field	effect. For	you	to	think	the	word	“rhinoceros”
and	see	a	mental	image	of	that	animal,	millions	of	brain	cells	have	to	act
simultaneously. (We	will	leave	aside	the	more	difficult	question	of	why	you
picked	“rhinoceros”	out	of	all	the	words	you	could	have	chosen,	since	any
word	choice	can	be	based	on	reason,	emotion,	nonsense,	or	private
associations	in	memory. A	computer	can	be	taught	to	select	any	given	word,
but	it	has	no	special	reason	to	do	so—you	do.) The	neurons	involved	in
choosing	the	word	“rhinoceros”	don’t	run	through	the	alphabet	until	they	get
to	“R”;	they	don’t	sound	out	one	syllable	at	a	time,	nor	do	they	leaf	through	azoological	photo	archive	to	match	the	right	word	to	the	right	image. Instead,
the	correct	brain	activity	arises	simultaneously. The	brain	is	acting	like	a	field,
coordinating	different	events


despair that many people nurture. Many people have a lifetime of
unresolved angers circulating through their minds and causing new stress
with each recall. Confronting them and letting go of them involves honestly
facing your own part in the problem, and for giving yourself as well as the
others you’ve resented and feared. If you do not for give, you become like
your enemy. The children with whom Jerry Jampolsky works have expressed the
lesson of transcendence superbly in the conclusion of a book they wrote
together, called There Is a Rainbow Behind Every Dark Cloud:

In summary, we think that your mind can do anything. You can learn to
control your mind and decide to be happy “inside” with a smiling heart, in
spite of what happens to you on the “outside.”
Whether you are sick or well, when you give help and love to others, it
makes you feel warm and peaceful inside. We learned that, when you give
love, you receive it at the same time. And letting go of the past and for giving everyone and everything sure
helps you not be afraid. Remember that you are love. So let your love expand, and love yourself
and everyone. When you love and really feel joined with everyone,
everything, and with God, you can feel happy and safe inside.And don’ t forget, when you have total Faith that we are always
connected to each other in love, you will surely find a rainbow on the other
side of any dark cloud. The phenomenal ener gy that can be liberated by surrendering our
negative emotions was described to me in a letter from Denise, a breast-
cancer patient who visited the congregation of a faith healer in Worcester,
Massachusetts. She wrote:

After his sermon, he said that each one would know in their heart if they
were the one to be called. He turned around to his audience of over 1500
people and said, “I have a strong experience with someone concerning a
rose. She has a disease in her chest area.” I felt my insides move as I
recalled the night before while I was at dinner, when I took a fresh rose out
of the vase on our table, and smelled it. Someone had told me I had to take
time to smell the flowers of life. However, I didn’ t stand up. I thought it
couldn’ t be me. The healer then approached a woman who had stood up. Her name was
Rose, and she had breast cancer. He blessed her but said, “Y ou are not the
one I am experiencing.”
He said, “She also has breast cancer, and is wearing a beige top.” That
morning I had put on a pair of black slacks and a long-sleeved black blouse. Then I decided to put on my short-sleeved beige blouse as an overlay, felt
too fat, and took it of f, and then decided to put it back on again. At this point I stood up, and he called me down to the front of the
audience. He asked me about my illness, and as I stood there full of tears
and emotions, I shall never for get how his face looked. He didn’ t have any
eyes, just dark pools of infinity. As he anointed my forehead, he said, “ You
have to let go of your anguish.” And with this, I experienced a bolt of
energy that passed through my body. I felt a scream come from my mouth,
and I fell toward the floor into the arms of the ushers behind me. This experience was a turning point for Denise. She began to be able to
set priorities for herself and make choices based on her own needs. She
used psychotherapy and chemotherapy, ended a relationship she felt to bedamaging to her, and sold her business, which had been a major source of
stress. Finally allowing herself to express a lifetime of pent-up anger,
frustration, and sadness, she cried for days, and found that for the first time
she was able to accept the child within her. At the end of her letter, she
wrote, “This was the first time I had ever given myself the privilege and
dignity to mourn my own pains and agonies. Now that all the debris has
moved from my soul, my [inner] child and I are one. I feel total integration,
self love, and for giveness. I need never judge others, for I no longer need to
judge myself.”
Spirituality, unconditional love, and the ability to see that pain and
problems are opportunities for growth and redirection—these things allow
us to make the best of the time we have. Then we realize that the present
moment is all we have, but it is infinite. We see that there is no real past or
future, and that as soon as we start thinking in terms of past and future—
regretting and wishing—we lose ourselves in judgemental thinking. In one
of the countries where people regularly live to be a hundred, people have a
saying: “Y esterday is gone, tomorrow isn’ t here yet, so what is there to
worry about?”
Many people are able to let go of their fears and resentments only when
they are nearly dead. Several years ago Dr. Ellerbroek described one such
case in the following terms:

Her pelvis, bladder and rectum had been removed—until she seemed to
be nothing more than a bag of flesh draped over a skeleton that of fered
shelter not for internal or gans but for spreading tumors. She asked to be
allowed to die on the shore of a local lake. In those peaceful surroundings,
something happened; she jettisoned her anger and depression, her spirit,
like a balloon freed of useless weight, soared—and her tumors started to
shrink. She was cured. Later Ellerbroek reflected on this and similar cases with these words:

It is my primary belief that we were sold a big bill of goods when we
were little. We were taught that under certain circumstances it is appropriate
to be angry, and that under all circumstances it is appropriate to be
depressed. I’m here to say that in my own personal, solitary opinion—and
totally contrary to the beliefs of almost all the psychiatrists I know—Ibelieve that anger and depression are pathological emotions, that they are
immediately responsible for the vast majority of human ills, including
cancer. I have collected 57 extremely well documented so-called cancer
miracles. A cancer miracle is when a person didn’ t die when they
absolutely, positively were supposed to. At a certain particular moment in
time they decided that the anger and the depression were probably not the
best way to go, since they had such a little bit of time left, and so they went
from that to being loving, caring, no longer angry, no longer depressed, and
able to talk to the people they loved. These 57 people had the same pattern. They gave up, totally, their anger, and they gave up, totally, their
depression, by specifically a decision to do so. And at that point the tumors
started to shrink. (I use the word “resentment” instead of “anger,” because I think anger is
a normal emotion if it is expressed when felt. Then it is over with. If one
keeps a lid on it, it develops into resentment or hate. Sooner or later,
resentment and hate explode, destroying others, or they are held in,
destroying oneself.) The transcendence described by Ellerbroek is precisely the essence of
the religious experience as it was described by Jung in Psychology and
Religion:

They came to themselves, they could accept themselves, they were able
to become reconciled to themselves and by this they were also reconciled to
adverse circumstances and events. This is much like what was formerly
expressed by saying: He has made his peace with God, he has sacrificed his
own will, he has submitted himself to the will of God. To those rationalists who ar gue that any such experience is a self-
delusion, Jung adds an especially apt reply:

Is there any better truth about ultimate things than the one that helps
you to live? This is the reason why I take carefully into account the symbols
produced by the unconscious mind. They are the only things able to
convince the critical mind of modern people. They are convincing for very
old-fashioned reasons. They are simply overwhelming, which is an Englishrendering of the Latin word “convincere.” The thing that cures a neurosis
must be as convincing as the neurosis; and since the latter is only too real,
the helpful experience must be of equal reality. It must be a very real
illusion, if you want to put it pessimistically. But what is the dif ference
between a real illusion and a healing religious experience? It is merely a
difference in words. You can say, for instance, that life is a disease with a
very bad prognosis, it lingers on for years to end with death; or that
normality is a generally prevailing constitutional defect; or that man is an
animal with a fatally over grown brain. This kind of thinking is the
prerogative of habitual grumblers with bad digestions. Nobody can know
what the ultimate things are. We must, therefore, take them as we
experience them. And if such experience helps to make your life healthier,
more beautiful, more complete and more satisfactory to yourself and to
those you love, you may safely say: “This was the grace of God.”

Ellerbroek has


 small amount of coconut oil the same as you would another cheekbone cream to give yourself a
naturally beautiful glow. 98. After Wax Moisturizer
Since it works so well to moisturize after shaving, it only makes sense that applying coconut oil after waxing
would help prevent those pesky bumps and potentially ingrown hairs. 99. Preserve Eggs
Paint a thin coating of coconut oil over the eggshell to preserve quality and extend shelf-life. The oil prevents degradation from exposure to oxygen, and studies have found that the oil coating maintained an AA grade up
to 3 weeks after storage, as opposed to when a glycerol coating was used. The grade refers to the Haugh unit,
which measures the quality of the egg protein in the white. 100. Maintain Lawn Mower Blades
Apply a thin layer of coconut oil over clean lawn mower blades to prevent grass clumps from sticking and jamming the mower. Get a FREE 15oz Jar of Organic Coconut Oil - just pay $1.95 S&H!101. Grease Baking Pans
There’s nothing like slaving over a beautiful baked good and then watching it crumble as you try to take it out
of the pan. Avoid this heartbreak by greasing pans lightly with coconut oil first. 102. Clean Makeup Brushes
Preserve your delicate make up brushes by cleaning them with coconut oil. Simply melt down some of the oil in a glass and dip the brush into the liquid, coating it thoroughly. Then gently swirl the brush on a paper towel
or wash cloth until the color or product is gone. Rinse under warm water, and dry. Any bit of residue tends to
make the bristles quite soft, but you can also use a mild soap and water to remove it if you find it bothersome. 103. Eyelash Enhancement
Long thick eyelashes are something many people desire, but that doesn’t mean they’re easy to come by. To get those luscious upturned ‘lashes, apply a little bit of coconut oil to your eyelashes nightly. The proteins can help
encourage growth and seal in moisture, preventing brittleness and breakage. 104. Lubricate Kitchen Appliances
Rub a thin layer over the blades of kitchen appliances to keep them running smoothly. Be sure to store in a
cool place so the layer stays firm. 105. Mane & Tail Conditioner
Like you, horses can benefit from coconut oil as well. A thick, healthy, flowing mane and tail are wonderful to behold but for those with horses, well, we know it’s not always an easy thing to achieve that look. They get
dirty, rubbed out, and downright ratty looking. Coconut oil can help get you closer to that luxurious tail, but
things will get worse before they get better. Clean the tail/mane thoroughly and run in a very liberal amount of coconut oil. It will look greasy and, quite frankly, unappealing. Do this for 5-7 days, and then rinse clean with
shampoo. Prepare for a shiny, silken, soft mane and tail. It can also help ease irritation from things like sweet
itch that may cause your horse to rub. 106. Target Eczema and Psoriasis
Eczema and psoriasis, while not the same thing, are both generally red, irritated, often times chronic skin diseases, and both are uncomfortable. Use coconut oil to target patches of your body that are being affected,
and rub on a thin layer to keep the area moisturized and healthy, while also fighting off fungus or bacteria that
could set in as a secondary infection if you’ve been scratching. 107. Reduce Dandruff
If you suffer from true dandruff (as opposed to just dry scalp) it is possible that you have an overgrowth of a common fungus on the scalp. Use coconut oil 2-3 times a week to provide some anti-fungal action to help keep
the itching and flakes at bay. Get a FREE 15oz Jar of Organic Coconut Oil - just pay $1.95 S&H!<|eot_id|><|begin_of_text|>Summarize the following text section accurately and concisely. Maintain specific details and numerical information, and use anti-repetition mechanisms:

        1. Moisturize Your Skin
The very first thing on this list, before even delving into the “edible” benefits of coconut oil, has to be
moisturizing. In lieu of your regular lotion, coconut oil delivers a refreshing, healing, burst of moisture that
penetrates your skin and works to truly heal it (not just soak in and dry up. ) It can feel oily at first, but that’s
why it’s important to only use a little-it goes a long way. Give it a minute and it will dry beautifully. Use as you would regular lotion. 2. Conditioner
When the teeny tiny overlapping plates that make up our outer hair shaft get rumpled and out of whack, coconut oil is there to smooth those tiny little cells right back into place, and hold them there. You can use it
on your entire scalp/head for deep conditioning, but you can generally just use it on your ends, where it’s the
hardest for the body’s natural oils to reach, and where the most breakage occurs. 3. Make Homemade Soap
If you’re interested in soap making, coconut oil serves as a wonderful pure base that can simplify ingredients, add hardness to the soap, and help break down grease and oils. It can break them down so effectively, in fact,
that too much will have a drying effect (when in soap form. ) To prevent this, you need to “superfat” your soap-
that is, adding more oil than the lye turns to soap. All you need is coconut oil, water, and lye. Don’t be shy of lye. While it should be handled with care, I find it essential to soap making, and it eliminates a slew of other
chemicals that you would need to add to recreate its effects. 4. Weight Loss
Coconut oil and weight loss-what’s really going on. Well, if you sit around eating coconut oil, you aren’t going
to lose weight. However, if used to substitute other fats, it can help you drop the pounds by taking the place of
those other calories. Unlike most saturated fats, it’s mainly comprised of medium chain fatty acids, versus long
chain fatty acids. This difference in molecular structure means that it doesn’t get packed away as fat as easily and instead is sent straight to the liver to be metabolized, giving you a boost in energy. This energy in turn
makes exercising easier, and the exercise in turn helps you lose weight. Another major factor that it plays is as
an appetite suppressant. Craving something you shouldn’t be. Have a tablespoon or 2 of coconut oil, and that sensation won’t last long. 5. Energy Booster
If weight loss isn’t your goal, just run with the fact (no pun intended) that it gives you a great boost in energy-and who doesn’t need some help in that department every now and again. Some people also feel it helps
boost their mental alertness. There’s been a lot of hype about coconut oil lately, and there are so many claims
being made that it sounds nothing short of a miracle. Well it’s really not a cure-all, and what works for other people may not work for you, but it still is pretty dandy to have around. With a little bit of resourcefulness and a dash of creativity, you can find over one hundred ways to utilize this handy product. Get a FREE 15oz Jar of Organic Coconut Oil - just pay $1. 95 S&H. 6. Prevent Stretch Marks
There is no proven way to completely prevent stretch marks- if or how extreme you get them actually comes
down largely to genetics-but anecdotal evidence is strong: keeping your belly soft and moisturized seems to
help. Coconut oil is deeply nourishing, and doesn’t just provide empty moisture that dries up quickly. Rich in
fatty acids and vitamin E, it penetrates the skin to provide moisture and (possibly) elasticity, as well as forming a barrier to help retain moisture. Apply 1-2 times daily over the course of pregnancy. 7. Itchy Dogs
My pup has atopic dermatitis, also known as the world’s worst allergies. He gets goopy eyes, scabby ears from scratching them too much, and will literally scratch himself raw and bloody without treatment. In addition to
his daily care regime, he gets coconut oil. From the inside out, coconut oil can help nourish the dry, irritated,
or inflamed skin that is the result of the inappropriate response to various allergens. It did not cure him of his allergies, though there are people who say it has gotten rid of their dog’s allergies completely, but it does
help reduce the itching. If your pup chews their paws and stains them red/pink/brown it can help in that
department as well, as that is also a sign of allergies. Start with ½ teaspoon a day and work your way up to 1 tablespoon for 40+ pound dogs, and 1-2 teaspoons for dogs that weigh less. They usually go crazy for it. 8. Fungal Infections
The medium chain fatty acids found abundantly in coconut oil are incredibly effective natural fungicides. In a (coco)nut shell, they naturally insert themselves into the fungal membrane, which is crucial to maintaining
the life of the fungus. This destruction of the membrane leads to the destruction of the fungus as a whole
and voila. The fungus is eradicated. It is important to be diligent with applications of the coconut oil until your symptoms have cleared. 9. Cold Sores
Cold sores