 of B3, B12, folic acid
and vitamin C. An American doctor Carl Pfeiffer has studied more than
20,000 patients and showed that treating them with nutritional supple
mentation and diet can be far more effective, than using prescription
drugs.
Why do schizophrenic patients have nutritional deficiencies? We already
know that the answer will be found only in their digestive systems. A
French psychiatrist Pinel almost 200 years ago wrote, "the primary seat of
insanity generally is in the region of the stomach and intestines". US
Professor Curtis Dohan, MD, devoted many years to researching what con
nection digestive abnormalities in schizophrenic patients may have with
their psychological state. It had been noticed previously that there is a con
siderable overlap between coeliac disease and schizophrenia and Dr
Dohan found that symptoms of schizophrenia could be dramatically
relieved by cutting all grains out of the diet. He also found that some cul
tures in the South Pacific, which never consumed grains, had no
schizophrenia. Only when they adopted a western diet full of grains did
they start getting cases of schizophrenia. Another good example is Ireland,
where people did not consume wheat until the potato famine in 1845.
Before then there were no cases of schizophrenia or coeliac disease
recorded in Ireland. Since adopting wheat as a staple food Irish have one of
the highest incidences of coeliac disease and schizophrenia in the world.
In the late 1970s it was discovered that gluten from grains and casein from
milk can be turned into opiates in the digestive system, which absorb into
the blood, cross the blood-brain barrier and affect the brain. These opiates
were found in the urine of schizophrenic patients and those with depres
sion and autoimmune conditions. Later on Dr Reichelt in Norway and Dr
Shattock in the UK found the same compounds in the urine of autistic chil
dren. That is how schizophrenia and autism found themselves in one com
pany It became clear that both groups of patients could not digest gluten
from grains and casein from milk.
Schizophrenic patients usually develop psychotic symptoms in their
teens or early twenties. However, when I talk extensively with the parents
of these patients, a picture of GAPS emerges. Mothers of these patients
almost invariably have abnormal gut flora and associated disorders. It
means that she would pass her abnormal flora to her baby. A large percent
of schizophrenic patients were not breastfed as babies, which would
further compromise their digestive flora and immune system. From the
childhood health history it becomes clear that the patient was physically ill long before developing psychotic symptoms. Digestive problems,
allergies and reactions to food, eczema, asthmatic episodes, malnourish-
ment, lack of stamina, hyperactivity, attention deficit, dyspraxia, dyslexia,
fatigue, irritability, poor sleep, night terrors are all common. All these
symptoms indicate, that the child had abnormalities in gut flora with
all the usual consequences: malnourishment with multiple nutritional
deficiencies, compromised immunity and toxicity, coming from the gut.
A mixture of these toxins obviously was not right for making the child
autistic for example, but was enough to cause other problems. In
these cases schizophrenia does not come from nowhere, it comes out of
GAPS.
Seeing that schizophrenic symptoms usually appear around puberty it is
reasonable to suspect that puberty plays some role in the onset of
schizophrenia. It is possible that the hormonal turmoil of puberty in some
way interacts with the toxins in the child's body and tips the child into a
psychotic state. It is also possible that the hormones open the blood-brain
barrier for some of the toxins, which were in the child's body al] his/her life,
but could not get into the brain before. Another interesting possibility is
something wrong happening in the maturation processes of the brain.
Apparently through different stages of growth the brain prunes its recep
tors. The most active pruning goes on around two years of age and at
puberty. It is possible that at puberty opioid peptides and other toxins
escaping the gut of the youngster interfere with this natural pruning pro
cess and tip the brain into psychoses. Hopefully, future research
explain these issues. What is obvious is that psychotic manifestation is only
a progression of the physical problems in the child's body and not a new
disease appearing out of nowhere!
The toxicity produced by abnormal microbial mass in the patient's
digestive system affects the brain and causes the symptoms of schizophre
nia. So, in order to help the patient we need to get rid of this toxicity In
order to do that we need to treat the patient's digestive system.
In my clinical experience the same nutritional management, as I pre
scribe for GAPS children, works very well for schizophrenic patients. I
believe this happens because this nutritional management heals the gut
lining and re-establishes normal gut flora. As a result, the patient starts
digesting and absorbing food properly. The gut stops being the major
source of toxins in the body and becomes the major source of nourish
ment, as it is supposed to be. As the nutritional deficiencies and toxicity go
away the psychotic symptoms go away with them. What about the medication?
This is a very important point that has to be taken into account. It is very
rare to see a psychiatric patient, who is not taking anti-psychotic medica
tion. Anti-psychotic drugs change the biochemistry of the brain and,
according to the latest research, even the structure of the brain. Recent
publications in the Lancet and the American Journal of Psychiatry suggest
that long-term use of neuroleptic drugs cause brain atrophy (shrinkage). It
is not known yet whether these changes are reversible. On top of that, anti
psychotic drugs have got a long list of unpleasant side effects and in
essence are toxic. So, it is a logical desire of any patient to come off the
drugs as soon as possible. However, as we detoxify the patient through
nutritional management it is important not to change his/her medication
until the patient is ready for it. I will explain why. When we are sure that
through diet and supplementation the patient's physical and mental state
has dramatically improved and is stable, we can consider removing the
medication. Despite the fact that the pharmacological companies, who
produce neuroleptics, allow to stop these drugs abruptly, there is a consid
erable amount of published clinical evidence to show that ami-psychotic
drugs must be removed very slowly and very carefully. Sudden removal of
these drugs can cause a severe withdrawal reaction because the brain's bio
chemistry and structure need time to re-adjust to life without the drug.
When the drug is stopped abruptly, unfortunately, the withdrawal reaction
is very often seen as a relapse of the disease itself and the patient is
promptly put back on the drugs. It is vitally important to work closely with
the patient's psychiatrist in order to reduce the dose of the drug very slowly
and very gradually in order to avoid the withdrawal reaction. Depending
on the dose of the drug and how long the patient was taking it, this period
can take months, sometimes years (if the patient was on a cocktail of
drugs). Typical symptoms of withdrawal are to be expected in this period:
nausea, vomiting, absence of appetite, headaches, lethargy, lack of energy,
sleep disturbances and mood swings. One of the side-effects of a lot of
neuroleptic drugs is weight gain and water retention. So, weight loss is also
to be expected on withdrawing these drugs. Though the weight loss can be
quite rapid it usually comes down to the normal range for the person and
should not cause any particular worry.
I would like to emphasise again that it is important to build up the
patient nutritionally first and remove the cause of the problem - the GAPS
- before starting the process of drug withdrawal. It is very important for the patient and his/her carers to understand that in this period of drug with
drawal it is vital to stick to the GAPS Nutritional Programme rigidly! This is
not a good time to be relaxed with diet and supplementation! After the
drugs have been safely removed and the patient has been stable for at least
a year on an occasional basis different foods (not allowed on the GAPS diet)
can be tried, but not earlier.
Pellagra
There is a certain group of schizophrenics who may be not schizophrenics
at all but pellagrines. Pellagra is a deficiency of vitamin B3 (niacin or niaci
namide). The typical symptoms of pellagra can look very much like
schizophrenia: delusions, hallucinations, confusion, headaches, anxiety,
depression, irritability with a lot of physical symptoms: dermatitis, chronic
diarrhoea and inflammation of mucous membranes. It used to affect poor
populations whose diet was mainly corn-based. Until the real cause of this
disorder was discovered pellagrines were treated almost like lepers. People
believed that pellagra was infectious and contagious until it was discov
ered that a diet rich in vitamin B3 completely cures it, A Canadian psychia
trist Dr Abram Hoffer has helped thousands of patients with schizophrenia
by simply supplementing their diet with large doses (2-4 g a day) of vitamin
B


, 2007.  All rights reserved.
This material may not be reproduced in any medium, print or electronic without prior written permission from the author.Page 137Healing the Gerson Way—Defeating Cancer and Other Chronic Diseases
www.thegersonway.comCHAPTER 19
The Gerson Therapy for
Non-Malignant Diseases
From his long clinical practice Dr. Gerson was able to establish that a patient suffering from a
non-malignant disease had a sick, damaged liver, while the liver of someone with a malignancy
was severely toxic (poisoned). Based on this difference, he adjusted the treatment accordingly,
creating a less intensive therapy for non-malignant conditions. At the same time he specified that
if patients in the latter category followed a stricter protocol, closely resembling the full intensive
therapy, they recovered faster.
The less intensive therapy is less demanding and easier to follow, so that patients on this
regime can continue working. This is a great advantage, since most people depend on their earned
income and cannot leave their jobs for any length of time.
Copyright © Charlotte Gerson, 2007.  All rights reserved.
This material may not be reproduced in any medium, print or electronic without prior written permission from the author.Page 138Healing the Gerson Way—Defeating Cancer and Other Chronic Diseases
www.thegersonway.comThis is a typical hour-by-hour schedule for patients on the less intensive therapy:
Enema MealFlax-
seed
OilAcidoll
CapsulesJuicePotassium
CompoundLugol’s
Solution
1/2 strengthThyroid NaicinLiver
Caps.Pan-
creatin
TabletsInjection
Liver &
B12
6:00
am
8:00
am 2Orange 2 tsp. 1 drop 1 gram 50mg 2 3
9:00
amCoffee 2 tsp.
9:30
am
10:00
amCarrot/
Apple2 tsp. 50mg
11:00
amCarrot2
12
noonGreen 2 tsp.
1:00
pm1 Tbsp. 2Carrot/
Apple2 tsp. 1 drops 1 gram 50mg3
2:00
pmCoffee Green 2 tsp.
3:00
pm
4:00
pm
5:00
pmCarrot/
Apple2 tsp. 50mg3
6:00
pmCoffee Green 2 tsp.
7:00
pmDinner 1 Tbsp. 2Carrot/
Apple2 tsp. 1 drop 50mg 2 3
10:00
pm
Make yourself a blank schedule to be filled in later as the medications change and the frequency of enemas is reduced.
Depending on the patient’s condition, it is possible to reduce the number of juices from 10 to
8.  These should consist of 4 carrot/apple juices; 3 green juices and one orange juice.  However,
do not reduce it further!  Also patients with collagen diseases (lupus, rheumatoid arthritis or
scleroderma) should not take orange juice.  Substitute freshly pressed apple juice, carrot or green
juice. It is understood that the food intake, coffee enemas, caution to avoid toxins in the home,
etc. all apply.
For details of how to pursue the Therapy when returning to work, see Chapter 20, sub-
heading Household Help.
Copyright © Charlotte Gerson, 2007.  All rights reserved.
This material may not be reproduced in any medium, print or electronic without prior written permission from the author.Page 139Healing the Gerson Way—Defeating Cancer and Other Chronic Diseases
www.thegersonway.comCHAPTER 20
Things to Remember
In this chapter we present a number of miscellaneous items in support of your efforts to improve
and protect your health. Knowledge is power, and the emergence of the so-called ‘expert
patient’ around the world is a sure sign that more and more people are willing to take responsibility
for their health and well-being. No doubt you are one of them. We hope you will find the following
information useful.
Orthodox Cancer Treatments
Unlike the non-invasive, non-toxic and holistic cancer treatment contained in the Gerson
Therapy, orthodox oncology concentrates on the removal or destruction of the tumor by three
means, namely surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy. In the following we give brief summaries
of each.
Surgery
In many cases of cancer, patients are able to avoid surgery by embarking on the Gerson
Therapy instead.  However, occasionally a Gerson doctor will suggest surgery in order to ‘de-
bulk’ the patient’s tumor load.  It is true that removing a tumor makes it easier for the body to
deal with the remaining disease in order to heal.  This is because malignancies have a different
metabolism from that of normal cells and release toxins into the surrounding tissue, as well as into
the blood stream.  It stands to reason that this process should be stopped.  However, surgery has
serious negative side effects.
To start with, prior to the operation tranquilizers are administered to the patient to keep him
or her calm and prevent a rise in blood pressure.  This is followed by local or general anesthesia
for the operation, plus fairly heavy doses of antibiotics.  On waking up, the patient is in pain and
receives several doses of pain-relieving drugs.  In sum, many damaging toxins are introduced into
the patient’s organism.
In recent times, another problem has emerged.  Due to the excessive use of antibiotics and
poor hospital hygiene, so-called “Superbugs” have come into being, which are resistant to all
available antibiotics.  As a result, large numbers of patients are infected in hospitals with powerful
staph (staphylococcus aureus) bacteria that can’t be controlled.  Especially for cancer patients
who already have a weak immune system, such infections can be life threatening.
Copyright © Charlotte Gerson, 2007.  All rights reserved.
This material may not be reproduced in any medium, print or electronic without prior written permission from the author.Page 140Healing the Gerson Way—Defeating Cancer and Other Chronic Diseases
www.thegersonway.comNevertheless, under certain circumstances surgery is urgent and must be performed quickly to
save a life.  Such a situation could arise from the development of thick scar tissue that is blocking
an organ; it could be bleeding from a large blood vessel, damaged by invading cancer, that has
to be stopped; or a patient may be injured in an accident and the damage needs to be repaired
urgently. But often surgery does not have to be immediate. For instance, when a patient on the
full Gerson Therapy needs to go to hospital for some non-urgent surgical procedure, there is just
enough time to make sensible preparations for the event.
It should be borne in mind that once a person is well detoxified, his or her body will react much
more strongly to drugs, including anesthetics, pain medication and even antibiotics. If a more
or less detoxified Gerson patient tries to discuss this concern with the regular hospital surgeon
and/or anesthesiologist, they simply will not understand what he or she is talking about. For that
reason it is best to prepare the body to accept the unavoidable drugs by making it temporarily less
sensitive, even though unfortunately this means reducing the effectiveness of the therapy. The
way to do it is to double the regular daily helping of yogurt, and to serve two or three meals of
boiled or broiled fish just prior to entering the hospital. This actually puts a temporary stop to the
body’s self-healing activity.
After any necessary surgical procedure it is advisable to leave the hospital as soon as
possible. On returning home the full therapy is resumed, even omitting yogurt for a week or
so and stepping up the enemas temporarily to four or more, in order to clear out the toxins that
have been introduced. Afterwards the patient returns to the level of treatment he or she was using
before preparing for the hospital visit.
Diagnostic Surgery
When a mammogram or MRI discovers a ‘suspicious’ lump or ‘shadow’ in the breast area,
the doctor as well as the patient need to know the exact nature of the lump. The physician will
usually suggest an urgent biopsy and examination of a tissue sample, to ascertain the situation.
The next step is a “lumpectomy,” i.e., the removal of the breast lump. If in the surgeon’s
experience this is likely to be malignant, he will also examine the surrounding tissue, especially
checking the underarm lymph nodes to see if the malignancy has spread. The problem is that when
he starts to dissect the lymph nodes, he is likely to take out not just one or two, but as many as
eight or ten. In orthodox medicine this is done to give the oncologist the information he requires
for choosing what he considers appropriate chemotherapy drugs for the patient. However, if the
latter has already decided to reject chemotherapy, it is pointless to remove a lot of lymph nodes.
To do so would damage her circulation and cause swelling of her arm, due to the accumulation of
blocked fluid, and this in turn would lead to severe discomfort and even make the arm virtually
useless.
Copyright © Charlotte Gerson, 2007.  All rights reserved.
This material may not be reproduced in any medium, print or electronic without prior written permission from the author.Page 141Healing the Gerson Way—Defeating Cancer and Other Chronic Diseases
www.thegersonway.comSo how can this risk be avoided? As a matter of routine, before any surgery the doctor


 body, it is also inadequate to provide for the total needs of even the thyroid
gland. As mentioned previously in this book, the exposure to toxic halides--bromine, fluoride, and the chlorine derivatives--have
been increasing over time. These items not only cause iodine deficiency, they can poison the enzymes responsible for organifying
iodine.
THE UNDERLYING CAUSE OF AUTOIMMUNE THYROID ILLNESSES: IODINE DEFICIENCY AND
ANTIOXIDANT DEFICIENCY
I have already described the apoptotic (i.e., anticancer) effects of the iodinated form of lactone δ-iodolactone. δ-iodolactone
is not only important for preventing cancer, its production is also necessary to help regulate the oxidation of iodine.
Figure 10
(next page) illustrates this regulatory step in the oxidation/organification of iodine.

As previously mentioned, the oxidation of iodide to iodine occurs through the interaction of H
2
O
2
 and TPO. Iodine is a
necessary product in order to provide the correct molecule in the cell so that organification can occur. If organification does not
take place or is blocked, thyroid hormone and iodo-lipids will not be formed. As can be seen from
Figure 10
, this reaction is
controlled by intracellular calcium levels and iodinated lipids—δ-iodolactone.

FIGURE 10: ORGANIFICATION OF IODINE AT 100x RDA
 Intracellular calcium stimulates this pathway.
6
 On the other hand, δ-iodolactone and other iodinated lipids act as a brake on
the system.
7

8
 If there is not enough iodine in the cell to organify and produce adequate amounts of δ-iodolactone, it can set the
stage for damage to the thyroid cell and the development of an autoimmune thyroid disorder such as Hashimoto’s or Graves’
disease.
A Proposed Mechanism For The Development Of Autoimmune Thyroid Disorders
The NADPH oxidase system is found in the mitochondria of our cells. The mitochondria are the energy-producing cells of
our body. The mitochondria produce energy (i.e., ATP) through a complex process called oxidative phosphorylation. All medical
students (and most physicians) are familiar with oxidative phosphorylation because we have to memorize the many steps
responsible for producing ATP. This production of ATP requires many items including: oxygen, magnesium, ADP, vitamins, and
amino acids.
9

10
Many people with chronic illnesses, such as fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, and autoimmune disorders, complain
they have no energy. ATP is the molecule that stores energy for the body. The body is constantly producing and utilizing ATP. Its
production is a complex process that is beyond this book. However, there are two cofactors, vitamins B2 (riboflavin) and B3
(niacin), that are integral to stimulating oxidative phosphorylation and ATP production.
Hydrogen peroxide is a byproduct of oxidative phosphorylation.
11
 It is this production of hydrogen peroxide that
is so critical
to the oxidation process of iodine. Hydrogen peroxide and TPO help to oxidize iodide to form iodine.
If there is a deficiency in iodine, which is common when ingesting the RDA for iodine, there will not be enough substrate (i.e.,
iodine) to produce iodinated lipids. As can be seen from
Figure 10
, the lack of δ-iodolactone and other iodinated lipids results in
a loss of the ‘brake’ in the pathway to oxidize iodide. This may result in a temporary production of too much hydrogen peroxide.
This excess hydrogen peroxide can damage the enzyme TPO.
What Happens If TPO Is Damaged? Autoimmune Thyroid Illness
The body’s response to TPO damage is to produce antibodies against TPO or anti-TPO antibodies. A diagnosis of
Hashimoto’s disease requires the presence of anti-TPO antibodies. As the damage worsens, surrounding proteins can also be
damaged such as thyroglobulin. Damaged thyroglobulin will result in the body producing antibodies against thyroglobulin—anti-
thyroglobulin antibodies.

In most cases of Hashimoto’s disease, there are antibodies to both TPO and thyroglobulin present. Although Graves’ disease
may also possess these same antibodies, antibody production is not necessary to make the diagnosis of Graves’ disease.
However,
my clinical experience has shown that the treatment for both Hashimoto’s and Graves’ disease can follow a similar
course with similar positive outcomes.
EARLY AND LATE STAGES OF AUTOIMMUNE THYROID DISORDERS
It is well known that patients with autoimmune thyroid disorders can fluctuate symptomatically between overactive thyroid
symptoms (hyperthyroidism) and underactive thyroid symptoms (hypothyroidism). These patients can also suffer from a
combination of hypo- and hyper-thyroid symptoms. For those struggling with autoimmune thyroid disorders, it can be an
intolerable situation.
Early Stages Autoimmune Thyroid Disorders
As previously explained, the early onset of the illness seems to be fueled by too much hydrogen peroxide damaging TPO and
causing oxidative damage. As the illness progresses, thyroid hormone production can become unbalanced. Thyroid hormone is
integral to stimulating the mitochondria to produce energy or ATP. If the mitochondria are not producing enough energy
molecules, fatigue will set in. This fatigue can be unrelenting. Patients with this type of fatigue cannot exercise, as exercise will
worsen their fatigue. These same patients will also complain of brain fog, as well as muscle aches and pains.
Late Stages Autoimmune Thyroid Disorders
When the mitochondria are producing adequate energy molecules, we have enough energy to do as we please. When the
illness has progressed and energy levels have declined, the system may be ‘burning itself out’ due to excessive oxidative damage.
It is almost as if an oxidative storm has overwhelmed the energy producing cells of the body. Now, the mitochondria are not
producing ATP (energy) in amounts necessary for health. So what can you do?

As shown in
Figure 10
, providing enough iodine to produce iodo-lipids (e.g., δ-iodolactone) is a start. Next, it becomes
necessary to stimulate the NADPH oxidase pathway. Remember, this pathway is integral to energy production. How do you
increase the production of ATP in the mitochondria? You can provide the correct co-factors in this pathway to increase the
production of ATP. Vitamins B2 (riboflavin) and B3 (niacin) are cofactors in the NADPH oxidase pathway and their use can help
stimulate the mitochondria to produce more energy as well as provide the thyroid cells with enough H
2
O
2
 to properly oxidize
iodide.

The initial treatment in either early or late stage autoimmune thyroid disorders is to correct iodine deficiency. Concurrently, acomplete nutritional program, which includes the use of vitamins B2 and B3, vitamin C, magnesium, and unrefined
salt, can be
instituted to correct mitochondrial dysfunction, oxidant stress and tissue damage as described in the next section.
I diagnosed my nurse Angela with Hashimoto’s disease two years ago. Angela’s complaints included fatigue, difficulty
concentrating, and a general sense of not feeling well. “I am only 23 years old, I can’t imagine what I will feel like when
I am 50,” she said. Angela was treated with iodine (50mg/day) and a complete nutritional program including vitamins
and minerals. Angela did feel somewhat better (approximately 30%) but was not satisfied. When she walked into my
office one day, she saw a bottle of ‘ATP Co-Factors
®
’
(
www.Optimox.com
), which contains 100mg of B2 and 500mg of
B3. She asked me what this bottle was for and I told her that this therapy has been a big help for Hashimoto’s, Grave’s
disease, fibromyalgia, and chronic fatigue suffering patients. She said, “I have Hashimoto’s, how come I am not on it?” I
did not want to tell her that I forgot to tell her to take it, so I sheepishly told her that the next bottle was for her. Angela
took one pill (100mg of B2 and 500mg of B3) and felt her energy improve within two hours. “I have taken so many
supplements without having an effect, either positive or negative. This (ATP Co-Factors) was the greatest. I feel like I
have woken up,” she stated. Angela continues to take the supplement and continues to feel well. Update on Angela’s
case: Angela is still taking B2 and B3 along with iodine and continues to do well. “My antibodies are
gone and I feel
better than I have ever felt. I feel healthy now,” she said.
How to Treat Autoimmune Thyroid Disorders
1. Ingest enough iodine in order to provide adequate substrate to iodinate lipids.
The first step to treating autoimmune thyroid disorders is to assess iodine status. Iodine levels can be measured by checking
blood, urine, and/or saliva. I routinely check every new patient in my office for their iodine levels primarily by measuring urinary
levels. Either a spot urine or 24-hour loading test for iodine can be performed. For more information on testing, please


	death,
which	is	far	from	the	case.
“My	son	died	when	he	was	just	twenty-two,”	a	woman	told	me	recently.
“It	was	a	brain	tumor,	and	I	was	staying	at	his	home	the	day	he	passed	away.
With	me	were	his	sister	and	his	new	wife.	Tom’s	passing	was	peaceful,	and
that	evening	we	three	women	stayed	up	late	talking	about	him.	We	must	have
talked	too	late,	because	we	fell	asleep	together	by	the	fire.
“The	next	morning	his	wife	was	quite	excited	and	told	us	that	Tom	came
to	her	in	a	dream	and	reassured	her	that	he	was	all	right.	His	sister	blurted	outthat	Tom	had	also	come	to	her	in	a	dream	saying	the	same	thing.	They	turned
to	me,	and	yes,	I	had	had	the	same	dream.	We	all	felt	that	Tom	was	so	vividly
present	that	it	had	not	seemed	like	a	dream—it	was	really	him.”
In	this	example	one	sees	a	bleed-through	between	several	levels	of	the
subtle	world:	dreams,	departed	spirits,	and	collective	consciousness.	In	this
case	“collective”	means	an	awareness	shared	by	three	people,	although	the
term	can	be	expanded	much,	much	further.	This	kind	of	blending	is	more
common	than	we	think.	Boundaries,	after	all,	are	arbitrary.	Einstein,	whose
reputation	rests	upon	rational	thought,	declared	that	the	germ	of	the	theory	of
relativity	came	to	him	while	daydreaming.	Shall	we	call	that	a	dream,	a
vision,	or	inspiration?	Shall	we	call	Tom’s	reassurance	to	his	family	real	or
illusory,	inspiring	or	merely	a	projection	of	grief	that	needed	an	outlet?
Sorting	out	the	subtle	world	was	a	project	that	the	Vedic	rishis	set	for
themselves.	By	going	deeper	into	their	explanations	we	can	begin	to	navigate
this	level	of	reality	that	is	closest	to	the	soul.	We	have	arrived	at	the	suburbs
of	immortality,	as	it	were,	which	are	not	quite	eternal	yet	not	bound	by	time
and	space,	either.
The	Five	Koshas
Near-death	experiences,	Tibetan	Buddhism,	and	the	Book	of	Revelation	agree
on	one	thing:	when	we	die	we	will	look	beautiful.	The	“golden	body”	of	the
Tibetan	Bardo	and	the	perfect	body	rising	from	the	grave	at	Judgment	Day	are
untouched	by	age	and	decay.	When	people	are	visited	in	dreams	by	the
departed,	they	usually	appear	in	the	prime	of	life,	somewhere	around	thirty,
rather	than	as	children	or	disembodied	ghosts.	Apparitions	of	the	Virgin	Mary
never	seem	to	be	of	someone	in	old	age	but	of	a	luminous,	lovely	young
woman.	On	the	other	hand,	in	near-death	accounts	of	hell	(much	rarer	than
going	into	the	light),	the	damned	never	look	young	and	healthy.	They	are	old,
withered,	sick,	scarred,	deformed,	or	some	wretched	combination.	Visions	of
reward	and	punishment	deliver	totally	opposite	images.
The	rishis	weren’t	satisfied	with	such	simple,	idealized	images.	Seeing	the
entire	subtle	world	as	a	projection	of	consciousness,	they	focused	on	the
Koshas
,	or	divisions	of	pure	consciousness.
Kosha
	translates	to	mean	sheath,
layer,	or	envelope,	but	it’s	easiest	to	think	of	pure	consciousness	as	a	point
that	wraps	five	bodies	around	itself	like	layers	of	an	onion.	(One	can	also
think	in	terms	of	vibrations,	moving	from	grossest	to	highest.)	The	five	layers
are:
1
.
Physical	body
2
.
Prana	(subtle	breath	or	life	force)
3
.
Mind4
.
Ego	and	intellect
5
.
Body	of	bliss
The	five	Koshas,	operating	in	unison,	give	rise	to	the	self,	or	to	put	it
more	accurately,	the	self	system.	You	and	I	are	multilayered	because	we	are
inseparable	from	our	five	Koshas.	The	fact	that	each	sheath	has	its	own	rules
provides	us	with	a	structure	for	the	subtle
world
.	The	afterlife	is	a	journey
only	in	the	sense	that	a	dream	is—in	both	cases	we	are	taking	our	attention
away	from	one	Kosha	and	placing	it	on	another.	Our	travels	remain	within	the
self	system.
The	Koshas	are	also	shared.	The	universe	has	its	own	layers.	Experiencing
an	angel	or	departed	spirit,	for	example,	is	made	possible	by	the	countless
generations	that	helped	create	that	subworld.	Shared	reality	isn’t	mystical.
You	claim	your	physical	body	as	uniquely	your	own,	but	even	that	is	shared—
the	air	you	breathe	today	contains	millions	of	atoms	of	oxygen	that	were
breathed	out	in	China,	for	example,	just	a	few	days	ago.	You	absorb	ideas
floating	around	in	the	mass	media,	and	at	moments	you	may	have	an
inspiration	only	to	discover	that	someone	else	has	had	the	same	idea
simultaneously.	(As	a	writer	I	am	ruefully	familiar	with	the	occasions	when	a
brilliant	book	or	script	idea	was	anticipated	by	two	or	three	other	writers
within	days	of	one	another.)
So	the	analogy	of	the	onion	built	up	in	layers	breaks	down	at	a	certain
point.	A	Kosha	isn’t	an	individual	possession.	It’s	a	dynamic	realm	with	its
own	laws	and	experiences,	a	realm	we	can	enter	alone	or	with	others.
Annamaya	Kosha
	(
physical	body
)
:
	The	physical	body	is	the	most	separate
aspect	of	the	self	system.	At	birth	most	babies	are	very	much	alike
physiologically,	but	by	age	seventy	no	two	people’s	bodies	are	remotely	alike.
Time	has	made	each	of	us	unique.	This	material	fact	underlies	a	great	deal	of
the	separation	in	the	world,	as	people	struggle	to	grab	their	share	of	food,
money,	possessions,	and	status.	They	want	to	promote	the	well-being	of	their
physical	body,	to	enhance	its	charm	and	beauty,	and	to	protect	it	from	the
threat	of	injury	and	death.
At	this	level
	first	consciousness	is	biology.	It	operates	silently,	without	a
voice,	as	it	organizes	the	myriad	functions	of	the	body.	Yet	even	here,	if	we
look	at	what	is	happening	at	the	cellular	level,	it	turns	out	that	consciousness
transcends	boundaries.	Cells	cooperate,
communicate
,	exchange	functions,
perform	acts	of	self-sacrifice,	remain	in	balance,	keep	aware	of	their
environment,	adapt	to	change,	and	know	that	they	survive	by	being	part	of	a
greater	whole.
Every	Kosha	reveals	wholeness	and	separation	at	the	same	time.	If	we
look	upon
Annamaya	Kosha
	as	the	physical	world,	it’s	obvious	that	ourbodies	are	isolated	from	one	another,	which	keeps	us	in	separation	by	giving
rise	to	the	illusion	that	we	must	struggle	and	compete	with	every	other
isolated	body.	Yet	this	Kosha
brings	us	closer	to	wholeness
	through
cooperation


 strong, and this
results in negativ e thoughts. It takes energy to raise things, and that includes
the level of your thoughts. When the heart is closed for a period of time,
people can even go into deep depression. That doesn’ t happen when the
heart is open. Note that whatever state the heart is in, it feels like it’s going
to stay that way. Yet, you’ve seen at different points of your life that the
heart does change if given the chance. People get so lost in the experience of
the blocked heart that they ruin their lives over it. What the mind says when
the heart is closed is not you. It’s just the mind expressing the state of the
closed heart. Y ou are the one who notices.
What if your heart is in an excited, open state? You’re just as
dangerous because you think it’s not going to change. Generally, something
is going to happ en that curbs the enthusiasm pouring through your heart. If
there is a reason  that the heart opened, then there is a reason it can close.
The world keep s changing; your mind keeps changing; everything keeps
changing. Therefore, if you can point to a reason why your heart is open, be
careful—it will change. If you can point to a reason why your heart is
closed, don’t worry—it will change. If you let it, your heart will go through
fluctuations as different situatio ns cause it to open and close. When you
don’t understand this, you just react to your heart. It takes a truly great being
to understand the heart. This is because they have spent years  objectively
observing the heart’ s behavior rather than running after what it wants or
running away from what it doesn’ t want.
A very important aspect of spiritual growth is understanding the
dynamics of the opening and closing of the heart. In order to fully explore
why the heart opens and close s, we must first bring our discussion to a
deeper level. We said earlier that you experience three things inside
yourself: the world coming in, the thoughts of your mind, and the emotions
of your heart. Truth is, there’ s a fourth thing you experience in there. It’s in
there all the time, but most people are so lost in the first three they don’t
focus on this fourth object of consciousness. Nevertheless, there is a very
powerful energy flow inside of you. In different cultures it has been calledby different names, such as shakti, chi, or spirit. For the purposes of our
discussion, we will use the traditional yogic term shakti.
Once you quiet down enough, you will realize this energy is constantly
flowing inside of you. You sometimes even make reference to it when your
energy level suddenly changes. You say things like, “When she told me she
loved me, I got so filled with energy I was floating on a cloud. I could feel it
rushing through  me for days.” In other situations, you say, “When she told
me it was over, I hardly had the energy to drive home. It left me so drained I
couldn’ t go to work for a week.” These statements are referring to the
surface level of the energy we’re discussing. There is a much deeper, core
flow that you will experience as you transcend your personal self. It is this
deeper energy flow passing through the open heart that you experience as
the sensation of love. Because the energy can only go as high as you let it,
this beautiful love experience does not happen that often for most people.
Nonetheless, there is almost always some energy flowing through your heart
creating your normal emotional state.
The reason the energy flowing through the heart fluctuates so much is
because of the samskaras you’ve stored inside. You inwardly shoved away
the experiences you didn’ t like having and clung to the ones you did. These
unfinished energy patterns are real, and they act as blockages to your inner
energy flow. When your energy tries to flow up, and it is always trying to
flow up, it cann ot because it hits these blockages. The energy of the shakti
flow is much subtler than that of the samskaras—so the shakti can go no
higher.
Before we delve further into the shakti flow, let’s take a look at what
happens when a blockage gets hit, or activated, by a life expe rience. You
may never have thought about it, but you know all too well what happens.
When any particular blockage gets hit, the energy held in that blockage
activates, and you start feeling the emotions and thinking the thoughts that
are associated with the past expe rience. Your inner state becomes dominated
by the unfinished energy pattern s stored inside, and you become totally lost
in them.  In this state, you are not in charge of your thoughts or emotions.
Nor are you in charge of the opening or closing of your heart. The activated
samskara has taken over your life. If you’re not careful, it will determine
your future by the choices you make in that unclear state.
Here’ s an examp le of what the mind sounds like when a samskara has
been hit: “I can’t believe he said that. My father used to say stuff like that tome, and I hated it. That’ s why I left home so young. No way I’m going
through that again. I don’t need  to be in a relationship with someone who
reminds me of my father.” As logical as that may sound—it’ s not. This
person you are interacting with is not your father, and if you didn’ t have
those samskaras  left from your relationship with your father, you would
probably be handling your current relationship much better. In the truest
sense, what was said didn’ t bother you—it hit the samskara, and the
activated samsk ara bothered you. Regardless, to protect yourself from the
disturbance, you closed your heart. Your samskaras  are what cause your
heart to open and close.Chapter 23:
Dance of the Energy Flow
There is a very important interaction between the energy flow and your
blockages. The energy is trying to come up, but it can’t because you stored
these unfinished patterns from the past. It is these past impressions that
determine your preferences in life. If someone manages to stimulate a
negative past impression, you will not like them. If they manage to stimulate
a positive past impression, it may be love at first sight. It is very dangerous
to live this way—you are not in charge of your life, your past impressions
are.
If you work on yourself, there will come a time when you fully
understand your heart. When you have let go of enough blocked energy
patterns, you will begin to expe rience so much energy flowing inside that
you will understand firsthand what the Bible means by “…out of his heart
will flow rivers of living water”  (John 7:38 NKJV). There will be a constant
upward flow of energy coursing  through your entire system. When you get
really open, it will flow out various energy centers like your heart, the point
between your eyebrows, and the palms of your hands. You will become a
being of light, a being of energy. That is when the energy is free to flow—
when it is not obstructed by these personal blockages. We’re going to
discuss this in later chapters, but mentioning it now allows you to
understand why your heart opens and closes in certain situations. The reason
should be obvio us by now—the state of your heart is dependent upon what
samskaras are being activated at any given time.
Whenever you shove an obstacl e into any energy flow, it will create a
disturbance in the flow. It is these disturbances that you experience as
emotions. Let’s say you were very open and feeling a clean flow of love
through your heart. Then your lover said something you took offense to, and
you resisted. Your heart will no longer feel love; instead it will feel anger,fear, or jealousy. These disturbing energy patterns are the direct result of
you shoving a blockage into your heart’ s energy flow. All these emotions
are the same energy manifesting differently depending upon the nature of
the blockage being hit. It is interesting that we choose to give names to
these disturbanc es. Just look at all the names we give to our different
emotions.
So far we’ve discussed the energy flow hitting just one blockage at a
time. The more blockages there are, the more complicated the disturbances
will become. Eventually, the disturbances will start to hit each other and
create very complex patterns of energy. This is what it’s like to live inside
ourselves. This is why emotion s are so powerful and often complex. You
can have  a love/hate relationship with something because you have patterns
inside that can generate different energy flows at different times. Whatever
samskara is most activated at any given time will determine what is
affecting your energy flow the most. We are very complex creatures to
predict, and this is why.
Unfortunately, things can get even worse. At some point, enough
samskaras can be shoved into the heart so that you become totally blocked,
tired, and completely uninspired. Your naturally uplifting energy flow stops
supporting you. This is the power of these samskaras. They


 for mental activity before any activity
arises. I  identif y it with the simplest of all experiences, the  pure “I
am” of existence. This is the simplest of all experiences be cause itrequires no thought. You kno w that you exist; that’s all. As the still
silence of “I am ” starts to vibrate into thoughts, images, feelings,
and sensations, the first stirrings are very faint and subt le. They
are highly fluid and malleable, which is why desires and intentions
that come from our deepest source are not distorted by all the
cruder desires of the ego. “I want peace” is a subtler, fine r desire
than “I want a Porsche.”
At the level of the true self, all desire for change reaches its
goal, because only here is “I a m” enough to bring total fulfillment.
No exte rnal gratification compares with this. It seems strange on
the face of it that the mind at its subtlest level should be more
fulfilled than the mind at more superficial levels. Chasing worldly
desires is what life is all abou t to the vast majority of people. Being
still and quiet, by the same token, feels very uncomfortable for
many. “There’s nothing to do,” we complain. Yet stillness can
unlock new realities. The key is that pure consciousness c ontains
infinite resou rces of creativity, bliss, intelligence, lo ve, and
awareness. By living close to the source, you have access  to this
infinite potential that allows you to be a genuine co-creator of
reality.
I’ve put these three se lves—the ego-personality, the
unconscious self, and the true self—into separate categories only
for the purpose  of description. In daily life we call on all three. As
awareness rise s from its source, any impulse has an unconscious
component and eventually an ego component. A common example
is fr iendship that turns to romantic love. Two friends interact
largely on an ego level, me aning that they present their social
persona to each other. But as friendship deepens, the unco nscious
reveals itself more intimatel y, and sometimes, if the two people
feel safe  enough, the true core of friendship, which is love, reveals
itself. T hat see ms to be the final goal, but at the level of the true
self, no  other person is needed. “I am” already has the q uality of
love, trembling on the edge of pure consciousness.
What th is com es down to is  that the self you identify with is
simply the self you ar e aware of. T here is no fixed self, just as
there is  no fixed body. Fight ing for your place in line at the post
office calls up the ego-personality. Feeling tenderness toward ababy calls up the unconscious personality. Feeling that you matter
in the great scheme of things calls up the true self.
At a  certain po int, the true self dominates the scene, and when
this change occurs, the wor ld changes as well. The wo rld feels
hard, fi xed, stubborn, and inflexible if you are all those things. The
ego-personality finds it easier to resist than to accept, to hold on
rather than to let go. So being hard, fixed, stubborn, and inflexible
isn’t rar e, and seeing the world the same way isn’t rare, e ither. If
someone explo res more deeply and begins to identify with the
unconscious self, then the world seems beautiful, fresh, renewed,
and filled with light. This, too, is a reflection of the person’s state
of awar eness. Look at the gl owing light in French impressionist
paintings and you’ll see where such a state of awareness leads
painters.
Yet you must go deeper to see the world in complete p urity.
This sta te, kno wn generally as “enlightenment,” represents direct
contact with metareality. Sin ce our daily life is dominate d by the
ego’s de sires, needs, and demands, it isn’t possible to conceive of
what it feels like to experience metareality as a constant state. Let
me give a strik ing example in the thinking and teaching of  Krishna
Menon, born in 1883 in the S outh Indian state of Kerala. Although
obscure most of his life—Men on died in 1959—he has come to be
regarded as extremely important among seekers who want to
investigate the experience of enlightenment (as opposed to the
veneration of gurus and spiritual teachers, which has a major
religious component).
The uncompromising nature of his awareness can be gleaned
by read ing the answers that Krishna Menon, later known to his
followers as Sri Atmananda, gave when questions were posed to
him. Time and again he took  every subject back to one e ssential
question: What is reality? Here are some succinct examples:
On pleasure and pain. I feel pleasure at one moment and
pain at another. But I am changeless all along. Thus my
pleasure and pain are not part of my real nature.
How are physical objects related to thoughts?  The question
arises on the assumption that objects exist independentof thoughts. That is never the case. Without thought,
there is no object.
Should we follow a personal God?  I say no, because a
personal God is nothing but a concept. Truth is beyond all
concepts.
Such unshakable certainty feels liberating and audacious at the
same time. But it’s clear that Menon was not speaking merely to
draw at tention to himself; he was speaking from the perspective of
the true self, o nce the ego-personality and the fragmented  mind it
creates have been abandone d. This is made evident in another
question and answer.
Q: Is reality indivisible?
A: Real ity is only one and cannot be affected by quality or
degree in any way. Reality is purely subjective. I am t he only
subject, and all the rest are o bjects. Diversity can be diversity only
through me, the “One.”
You ha ve to reach the end o f this answer to discover tha t far
from being an expression of s olipsism (“I am the only subj ect, and
all t he rest are  objects”), Menon’s viewpoint reflects his sense of
wholeness (the One). This way of speaking echoes an Indian
tradition going back thousands of years, known as Advaita, which
in Sans krit means “not-two.”  One could also call it the perspective
of the whole m ind, because the primary purpose of Advaita (and
metahuman) is to get people to identify with consciousness as a
whole, instead of its fragmented products.
I’ve com e to the point wh ere I hesitate to adopt spi ritual
language, preferring to see the inner journey as an escape from
illusion to reality. The questi on still lingers: If Menon, alo ng with
others who are called enlig htened, are so exceptional, do they
stand to o far outside the norm? I say no. The process of waking up
is natur al; any one can do it. The proof of this is right before our
eyes. Every day we follow the  guidance of the ego-personality, the
unconscious self, and the true self in a kind of jumble. But the very
fact that the true self is speaking to us in moments of love, joy,
creativity, and renewal, even  if only in fits and starts, indicates
that w e are in touch with metareality. Knowing that theconnection exi sts, the whole process of waking up can be explored
in an organized way. How th is is done is the subject of the next
chapter in our journey.I8

G O I N G  B E Y O N D  A L L
S T O R I E S
f m etareality is “everywher e, always, and everything, ” a
startling fact follows. There is  no story we can tell about it. All the
elements of a story—a beginning, a plot, various characters, and
an ending—have no bearing. Yet everything else in the world is
organized arou nd these elements. You are a character in y our own
story, w hich ha d birth as its beginning, death as its ending, and all
kinds o f plot twists and incid ental characters along the way. The
prospect of giving up your story is all but unthinkable— yet it is
totally n ecessary in order to e xperience metareality. We ev en have
to g ive up mystical, religious, and spiritual stories, too, because
they turn pure consciousness into something it isn’t, whether that
something is the Old Testam ent God or Nirvana or a pantheon of
gods an d goddesses. I appreciate that these have been a guiding
light for centuries. Isolated messengers have always existed to
point to another world, bringing inspiring stories with them.
In his depiction s of the Mado nna and Child, Leonardo da Vinci
followed the traditional story that St. John as a boy was a
childhood com panion of Jesus. Leonardo (and other Ren aissance
painters) show him enigm atically pointing upward w ith onefinger, a smile playing beatifically


ills’	ability	to	dissolve	and	with	nutrient	absorption,	but
also	introducing	many	harmful	contaminants	and	allergens	into	your	body.
Most	vitamins	marketed	today	are	synthetics	and	often	contain	petroleum
residues	from	their	manufacture.	Some	of	these	synthetic	molecules	are
fundamentally	different	from	natural	vitamins,	which	affects	the	ability	of	your
body	to	utilize	them.	For	example,	synthetic	vitamin	E	is	far	less	biologically
active	than	vitamin	E	derived	from	natural	sources.	Synthetic	beta-carotene
actually	can	cause	a	deficiency	of	other	carotenes.
Nutritional	supplements	are	available	at	different	levels	of	quality	and	price
because	of	the	variety	of	manufacturing	processes	used	to	create	them.	Each
brand	exhibits	different	properties	and	bioactivities.	Trying	to	select	a	vitamin
brand	can	be	a	bewildering	experience.	I	found	that	comparing	two	different
brands	with	exactly	the	same	list	of	ingredients	was	not	even	possible,	because
how	these	ingredients	are	made	is	just	as	important	as	what	is	printed	on	the
label.	Unless	you	are	a	chemist	or	you	know	exactly	how	the	supplement	was
made	(and	how	the	body	metabolizes	nutrients),	distinguishing	the	difference
between	two	seemingly	identical	products	is	almost	impossible.	The	initial
quality,	chemical	form,	age	of	the	ingredients,	how	they	were	handled	(whether
or	not	they	were	exposed	to	moisture,	heat,	light	and	oxygen	during	their	storage
or	manufacture),	and	what	other	chemicals	they	are	combined	with	in	the
formula	has	everything	to	do	with	the	bioactivity	of	the	final	supplement.
When	I	was	recovering	from	my	chemical	hypersensitivity,	I	was	unable	to
take	most	vitamins	because	of	their	chemical	contaminants.	Vitamin
supplements	were	critically	important	in	my	recovery	process,	but	first	I	had	to
find	pills	that	were	pure,	biologically	active	and	uncontaminated.	The
contaminants	in	most	pills	(that	were	making	me	sick)	also	tax	the	health	of
people	who	are	healthy,	even	if	they	are	not	aware	of	it.
Seeking	manufacturers	who	use	quality	ingredients	along	with	good
manufacturing	practices	is	vitally	important.	Most	of	the	supplements	on	the
market	today	are	not	worthwhile,	as	many	do	not	contain	what	is	professed	on
the	labels,	and	many	are	even	toxic—contaminated	by	substances	such	as	heavy
metals,	solvent	residues,	pesticides,	artificial	colors	and	allergens.	Thesupplement	market	is	unregulated;	you	simply	cannot	trust	vitamin	pills	unless
you	know	how	they	are	made.	Even	the	best-selling	brands	of	vitamins	are	not
something	I	would	take	myself	or	recommend	to	others.
Although	you	cannot	always	trust	labels,	I	have	developed	some	convenient
rules	of	thumb	that	help	me	to	quickly	evaluate	the	quality	of	vitamin
supplements.	First,	check	to	see	if	cheap	ingredients	can	be	recognized	on	the
label.	Cheap	ingredients	usually	suggest	that	the	remainder	of	the	product	is	not
of	high	quality.	Does	cost	matter?	Yes,	because	it	costs	more	to	purchase	pure
ingredients	that	are	in	the	more	bioactive	forms.	For	example,	calcium	carbonate
is	an	ingredient	used	in	many	mineral	formulas,	supposedly	to	supply	calcium,
and	it	does	to	a	certain	degree,	but	very	inefficiently.	Compounds	such	as
calcium	citrate,	calcium	fumarate,	or	calcium	malate	are	far	more	biologically
active	and	are	much	better	choices.	However,	they	are	much	more	expensive.
The	uneducated	consumer	seeking	a	calcium	supplement	will	usually	choose	a
formula	based	on	price	or	appearance	or	how	much	calcium	it	contains	rather
than	chemical	composition	and	bioactivity.
Paying	attention	to	the	chemical	composition	of	the	nutrients	is	more
important.	Some	chemical	forms	are	better	than	others	because	of	their	superior
bioavailability.	The	poor	ones	should	be	avoided.	Below	are	some	guidelines	for
choosing	the	quality	of	mineral	supplements:
Poor
Acceptable
Optimal
Bioactivity
Bioactivity
Bioactivity
Carbonate
Aminoate
Ascorbate
(e.g.,	calcium	carbonate)
Chelate
Citrate
Oxide
Gluconate
Fumarate
(e.g.,	magnesium	oxide)

Malate
Sulfate

Picolinate
Phosphate

Succinate

Tartrate
Now	look	at	the	vitamins.	The	easiest	way	is	to	check	the	B	vitamins,
specifically	vitamins	B
2
and	B
6
.	In	a	high-quality	formula,	vitamin	B
2
(riboflavin)	will	also	be	accompanied	by	its	more	expensive	and	bioactive	form:
riboflavin	5-phosphate.	Similarly,	with	vitamin	B
6
(pyridoxine	hydrochloride)	a
high-quality	formula	will	also	contain	the	more	expensive	and	bioactive	form:
pyridoxol	5-phosphate.
No	foolproof	way	exists	to	check	out	a	vitamin	product	without	knowing
exactly	what	is	going	into	the	product:	how	old	the	ingredients	are;	how	they
have	been	shipped,	handled	and	stored;	and	how	pure	they	are.	But	taking	those
steps	that	you	can	do	on	your	own	will	bring	you	closer	to	buying	an	effectiveproduct.	(Vitamin	products	I	have	selected	for	my	own	use	can	be	found	in
appendix	C.)
Tasty	Choices
The	choices	you	face	as	you	select	a	diet	each	day	rests	on	a	combination	of
the	nutritional	content	of	the	foods	balanced	against	your	own	personal	tastes.
Taste	is	acquired	and	is	based	largely	on	what	we	are	familiar	with.	A	new	taste
can	be	acquired	simply	by	eating	something	new	for	a	few	weeks.	I	found	that	I
lost	my	taste	for	a	lot	of	the	less	desirable	foods	I	used	to	enjoy.	While	taste	and
pleasure	in	eating	are	important	(and	even	psychologically	beneficial),	plenty	of
healthy	foods	are	pleasurable	to	eat.
Our	productive,	fast-paced,	modern	lifestyles,	combined	with	misinformation
about	nutrition,	can	make	the	right	choices	difficult	to	identify.	These	lifestyles
create	a	demand	for	processed,	prepared,	speedy	“convenience	foods,”
regardless	of	economic	status	or	educational	level.	More	parents	than	ever	are
working	to	support	their	families,	while	fewer	and	fewer	are	staying	at	home	to
tend	gardens	or	prepare	wholesome	meals.	Many	of	us	no	longer	even	eat	at
home.	We	eat	in	cafeterias,	restaurants	and	fast-food	chains	where	processed
foods	are	the	norm.
The	food	we	ate	yesterday	is	still	affecting	us	today,	and	the	food	we	eat	at
our	next	meal	will	affect	our	awareness,	energy	level,	ability	to	think,	learn	and
remember	as	well	as	our	mood	and	behavior.	What	we	eat	in	a	week	or	a	month
or	a	year	determines	our	biological	makeup	and	our	health,	as	well	as	the	health
of	our	children	and	grandchildren.
You	must	always	remember	that	the	biological	reason	for	eating	is	to	supply
your	cells	with	the	nutrients	they	need	on	a	daily	basis.	Becoming	healthy	and
staying	well	with	a	d


 outside. The plane then returned but was
unable to reach the outside world because of shortage of fuel. The pilot had to leave it on a
waterway and trudge over the mountains to civilization. The two prospectors undertook to carry
their equipment and provisions over the Rocky Mountain Range into the interior district where they
were to prospect. They found the distance across the plateau to be about one hundred miles and
the elevation ranging up to nine thousand feet. While they had provisions and equipment to stay
two years they found it would take all of this time to carry their provisions and instruments across
this plateau. They accordingly abandoned everything, and rather than remain in the country with
very uncertain facilities and prospects for obtaining food and shelter, made a forced march to the
Liard River with the hope that some expedition might be in that territory. One of the men told me
the following tragic story. While they were crossing the high plateau he nearly went blind with so
violent a pain in his eyes that he feared he would go insane. It was not snow blindness, for they
were equipped with glasses. It was xeropthalmia, due to lack of vitamin A. One day he almost ran
into a mother grizzly bear and her two cubs. Fortunately, they did not attack him but moved off.
He sat down on a stone and wept in despair of ever seeing his family again. As he sat there holding
his throbbing head, he heard a voice and looked up. It was an old Indian who had been tracking
that grizzly bear. He recognized this prospector's plight and while neither could understand the
language of the other, the Indian after making an examination of his eyes, took him by the hand and
led him to a stream that was coursing its way down the mountain. Here as the prospector sat
waiting the Indian built a trap of stones across the stream. He then went upstream and waded
down splashing as he came and thus drove the trout into the trap. He threw the fish out on the
bank and told the prospector to eat the flesh of the head and the tissues back of the eyes, including
the eyes, with the result that in a few hours his pain had largely subsided. In one day his sight was7/29/13 Nutrition and Physical Degeneration
gutenberg.net.au/ebooks02/0200251h.html#toc 169/250rapidly returning, and in two days his eyes were nearly normal. He told me with profound emotion
and gratitude that that Indian had certainly saved his life.
    Now modern science knows that one of the richest sources of vitamin A in the entire animal
body is that of the tissues back of the eyes including the retina of the eye.
    In Chapter 18 I refer to the work of Wald on studies of vitamin A tissues. He states that
extracts of eye tissue (retina, pigment, epithelium, and choroid) show the characteristic vitamin A
absorption band and that they are potent in curing vitamin A deficient rats. He shows also that the
concentration of vitamin A is constant for different mammals.
    I have been impressed to find that primitive racial stocks in various parts of the world are
familiar with the fact that eyes constitute an invaluable adjunct for nutrition. Even the one time
cannibals of the Fiji Islands, and the hereditary king of the Fiji Islands, told me in detail of the
practices with regard to the use of eyes as an adjunct to diet. The chief, his father, and grandfather
had the privilege of reserving the eyes of captives for their personal use. When among the natives
of the islands north of Australia, I learned to enjoy greatly fish head soup made from certain
selected tissues. After the fish had been cleaned the heads were split and the eyes left in.
    The space of the entire book might be used for discussing the nutritional wisdom of the various
primitive races. It is a pity that so much of their wisdom has been lost through lack of appreciation
by the whites who early made contact with them.
REFERENCES
1. SHERMAN, H. C. Chemistry of Foods and Nutrition. New York, Macmillan, 1933.
2. BILLS, C. E. New Forms and Sources of Vitamin D. J.A.M.A., 108:12, 1937, Nutrition
Abstracts and Reviews, 1938.
3. LAWSON, A. and MOON, H. P. A clay adjunct to potato dietary. Nature, 141: 40,
1938.
4. Report Council on Foods. Nutritional value of spinach. J.A.M.A., 109:1907, 1937.
5. COFFIN, J. Lack of vitamin D in common foods. J. Am. Dietet. A., 11:119, 1935.
6. KEMP, W. N. The sources of clinical importance of the vitamins. Bull. Vancouver Med.
A., Dec., 1937.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter 16
PRIMITIVE CONTROL OF DENTAL CARIES
THE essential differences in the diets of the primitive races and those of the modernized groups
have been discussed in the preceding chapter. We are concerned now with discovering whether
the use of foods, which are equivalent in body-building and repairing material to those used by the
primitives will, when provided to our affected modernized groups, prevent tooth decay or check it
when it is active.
   There are two approaches to this problem of the control of tooth decay by nutritional means.
One is by the presentation of clinical results and the other by the consideration of the
characteristics of those nutritional programs which have been successful in producing a high
immunity to tooth decay.7/29/13 Nutrition and Physical Degeneration
gutenberg.net.au/ebooks02/0200251h.html#toc 170/250   We may divide the primitive racial stocks into groups, classified according to the physical
environment in which they are living and the manner in which the environment largely controls their
available foods. It is significant that I have as yet found no group that was building and maintaining
good bodies exclusively on plant foods. A number of groups are endeavoring to do so with
marked evidence of failure. The variety of animal foods available has varied widely in some
groups, and been limited among others.
   In the preceding chapter we have seen that the successful dietaries included in addition to a
liberal source of minerals, carbohydrates, fats, proteins, and water-soluble vitamins, a source of
fat-soluble vitamins.
   Vitamin D is not found in plants, but must be sought in an animal food. The dietaries of the
efficient primitive racial stocks may be divided into groups on this basis: in the first place those
obtaining their fatsoluble activators, which include the known fat-soluble vitamins, from efficient
dairy products. This includes the Swiss in the high Alps, the Arabs (using camel's milk), and the
Asiatic races (using milk of sheep and musk ox). In the second place there are those using liberally
the organs of animals, and the eggs of birds, wild and domesticated. These include the Indians of
the far North, the buffalo hunting Plains Indians and the Andean tribes. In the third place there are
those using liberally animal life of the sea. These include Pacific Islanders and coastal tribes
throughout the world. In the fourth place there are those using small animals and insects. These
include the Australian Aborigines in the interior, and the African tribes in the interior.
   Many of the above groups use foods from two or more sources. Each of the groups has
provided an adequate quantity of body-building material from both animal and plant tissues. It
does not matter what the source of minerals and vitamins may be so long as the supply is
adequate. In our modern life, the location of a group will determine the most efficient and most
convenient source for obtaining the essential foods. Clearly, for those near the coast, the sea may
be most convenient, while for those in the interior or in the far North, dairy products or the organs
of animals may be the only available source. It would be fortunate indeed, if our problems were as
simple as this statement might indicate. We have, however, in the first place, the need for a strength
of character and will power such as will make us use the things our bodies require rather than only
the foods we like. Another problem arises from the fact that our modern sedentary lives call for so
little energy that many people will not eat enough even of a good food to provide for both growth
and repair, since hunger appeals are for energy only, the source of heat and power, and not for
body-building minerals and other chemicals. Still another problem confronts us, i.e., the sources of
fatsoluble activators indicated above, namely: dairy products, organs of animals and sea foods,
may vary through a wide range in their content of the fat-soluble activators or vitamins, depending
upon the nutrition available for the animals. Cows fed on third grade hay, too low in carotene, not
only cannot produce strong calves but their milk will not keep healthy calves alive. (Chapter 18.)
   The League of Nations' Committee on Nutrition has estimated the amount of pasture land
required per capita to provide adequate milk and meat. Owing to the density of population and
cost of land near large cities, it is not possible to provide an adequate acreage for dairy cattle. This
results in stall feeding of shipped fodder. Only those cows can be kept in a herd whose production
of milk and butter fat can pay in volume for their keep. Unfortunately milk may have a high cream
line or butter


 other
diseases. Dr. David Orme-Johnson, a research psychologist, examined the
health of two thousand meditators. All the subjects Orme-Johnson selected
belonged to a group health insurance policy for meditators. To qualify, each
person signed a piece of paper stating that he practiced meditation regularly;
they also agreed to be check ed periodically to ensure that they were
meditating correctly. A major national carrier who covered hundreds of other
groups underwrote this policy. There were no prerequisites about diet or
lifestyle.
Orme-Johnson wanted to see how often a typical meditator went to the
doctor compared to the average person. The difference turned out to be quite
startling. Meditators went for outpatient treatment:
46.8 per cent less often if they wer e childr en (0–19 years)
54.7 per cent less often if they wer e young adults (19–39 years)
73.7 per cent less often if they wer e older adults (40 and over)This represents a striking improvement in health. A middle-aged
meditator, for example, would visit his doctor once for every four times an
average person went. The fact that older people benefited most is also highly
significant. Turning to specific illnesses, the study found that heart attacks
and cancer, the two leading causes of death in America, were reduced far
below the norm. Meditators had:
87.3 per cent fewer admissions to the hospital for heart disease
55.4 per cent fewer admissions for benign and malignant tumors of all types
No one has seen reductions like this with the use of conventional
prevention techniques. If a cholesterol-reducing drug could decrease heart
attacks by 50 percent it would make worldwide headlines (obviously, this
has not happened). This is doubly true for the cancer figures. Any reduction
in this field would be a major breakthrough. After fifty years of massively
funded research, the average cancer rates in the United States remain
essentially unchanged, and the length of time that patients survive their
diagnoses of cancer has barely budged for most types of malignancies. (This
speaks for all patients as a whole; individuals of course may do better than
indicated by the statistics and with certain types of cance rs, such as
childhood leuke mia and localized breast cancer, medicine has made great
progress.)
To get a fair comparison, Orme-Johnson used 600,000 memb ers of the
same health insurance carrier. He examined all the claims filed over a five-
year period to ensure that he was not seeing a short-term deviation from
normal. In all, the average meditator, whether child, young adult, or elderly,
saw a doctor half as often as the average American.
HOW  TO LEARN TO MEDIT ATE
Because it is a subtle and specialized technique, meditation is best learned
from a qualified instructor; it is not as easy to learn it properly from a book.
Through the Chopra Center, we have certified over five hundred teachers of
Primordial Soun d Meditation. The cost of instruction is $225 for adults, inline with other self-development programs. Qualified instruction ensures that
the technique is taught correct ly in every detail and is tailored to your
individual needs.
I recommend that you start with the simple breathing awareness
meditation techn ique described on page 158. Once you taste the benefits of
quieting the mind, seek out a qualified meditation teacher so you are certain
you are practicing meditation correctly. Information on how to locate a
certified Primordial Sound Meditation teacher is provided in Appendix A.
HEALING SOUNDS—NA TURE’S FINEST  VIBRA TIONS
Nature provides a wide variety of vibrations to remind us of our essential
nature. Any sound that helps to quiet and expand the mind can be considered
a healing sound. According to Ayurveda, these subtle sounds are not
incidental: all of nature is made  up of them. In the complete stillness of the
quantum mechanical universe, primordial sounds are born, form patterns,
and in time blossom into matter, energy, and all the infinite variety of things
made of matter and energy— stars, trees, rocks, and human beings. The calls
of wild birds, the buzzing of bees, the crash of waves against the shore, the
rustling of leaves in a summer breeze—all of these sounds can be healing.
Make it a point to spend time in nature and listen to the healing  sounds that
surround you. If you live in a dense urban environment where  you cannot
regularly access natural sounds,  bring nature to you with recordings of rain
forests, ocean waves, or waterfalls. The theory behind healing sound
treatment is that the mind can return to the quantum level, intro duce certain
sounds that may have become distorted somewhere along the line, and thus
have a profound healing influence in the body. Connecting to these healing
sounds on a regular basis is good medicine.
QUANTUM REALITY
Since this is such a foreign concept to people rooted in material  reality, as
all of us are, let’s take a moment to put primordial sound into perspective.Western physici sts already acknowledge that at the deepest level of the
natural world we find the quantum field. A quantum is defined as the
smallest unit of light, electricity, or other energy that can possibly exist. (The
word quantum comes from the Latin for “how  much?”) Quantum reality
defies our comm onsense notion s. There is no solid matter in it, for example.
An atom  used to be considered the smallest particle of matter in creation.
The word atom in fact comes from the Greek for “not able to be divided.”
Yet, up close an atom is composed of tinier bits of matter whirling at
lightning speed around a huge empty space—so empty that it rivals the void
of intergalactic space; the interval between two electrons is proportionately
wider than the one separating the earth and the sun.
If you zero in on these bits of subatomic matter, they are not material at all
but rather mere vibrations of energy that have taken on the appearance of
solidity. This discovery, that matter is a fluctuation of energy dressed up in a
different guise, fueled the quantum revolution led by Einstein and his
colleagues at the beginning of the last century. Instead of relying on solid
particles that move around like billiard balls on a table, physicists were
confronted with ghostly vibrati ons that looked substantial one minute and
abstract the next.
The quantum revolution made it inevitable that our world-view would
change. Quantum  physics proved that the infinite variety of objects we see
around us—star s, galaxies, mountains, trees, butterflies, and amoebas—is
connected by infinite, eternal, unbounded quantum fields, a kind of invisible
quilt that has all of creation stitched into it. Objects that look separate and
distinct to us are in fact all sewn into the design of this vast quilt. The hard
edges of any object, such as a chair or table, are an illusion forced upon us
by the limits of our sight. If we had eyes tuned to the quantum world, we
would see these edges blur and finally melt, giving way to unlimited
quantum fields. Finding this quantum level of nature has had practical
applications; it gave us X rays, transistors, superconductors, and lasers,
things that were inconceivable until science delved deeper into the fabric of
creation.It is now believe d that a single superfield, called the unified field, exists; it
is the ultimate reality that underlies all of nature. Like a tree whose twigs
lead to stems, stems to branches, and branches to one main trunk, the whole
multiplicity of nature comes together in this one all-embracing field. Since
we too are part of nature, we must be part of the unified field. It is in and
around us all the time.
It is possible to experience this all-encompassing field in your own mind,
via meditation. A meditator describes the experience:
I feel the bounda ries of the mind  being pushed out, like the ever-widening
circumfer ence of a circle, until the circle disappears and only infinity
remains. It is a feeling of great freedom, but also one of naturalness, far
more real and natural than being confined to a small space.
This is surely a dramatic shift of awareness, which causes the mind to
grasp a new, profound truth—th at a human being is more than a package of
flesh and blood localized in time and space. In fact we have two homes, one
local, the other infinite. If you turn to physics, you find that in the world of
our senses, electrons, quarks, and other elementary particles also appear to
be localized in time and space. But once you venture over the quantum
threshold, each particle is the tip of a wave that extends infinitely in all
directions throu gh space-time. This means that you cannot see yourself
accurately until you become aware of both your identities.
The same meditator continues:
Sometimes the sense of infinity  is so strong that I lose the sensation of
body or matter in an infinite,  unbounded awar eness, an eternal, never -
changing continuum of consciousness.
It is highly unlikely that this description is just a subjectiv e illusion.
Countless other s like it have been recorded in every spiritual  tradition of
man, both Eastern and Western.
SOUND AS MEDICINEThe obvious question arises: How are we connected to the unified field


	you	feel
uncomfortably	heavy	if	you	consume	too	much	of	it	at	once.	Avoid	bloating	by
limiting	fats	in	your	everyday	diet.	(You	do	need	the	right	amount	and	type	of
fat,	but	you	don’t	need	to	overdo	it.	See
this	page
	for	more	info.)	A	little	bit	of
oil	goes	a	long	way	when	cooking.	Try	getting	a	ceramic	(non-Teflon)	nonstick
pan	that	allows	for	easier	cooking	and	cleanup	while	letting	you	use	less	oil
overall.
SOAK	BEANS,	LEGUMES,	AND	GRAINS	OVERNIGHT
These	foods	contain	sugars	called	oligosaccharides,	enzyme	inhibitors,	and
phytic	acid,	which	bind	to	essential	minerals	and	inhibit	their	absorption.
Soaking	can	help	deactivate	these	substances,	which	in	turn	assists	in	preventing
bloating	while	improving	nutrient	absorption.
CHOOSE	YOUR	VEGETABLES	WISELY
Brassica	or
cruciferous	vegetables	like	broccoli,	cauliflower,	Brussels	sprouts,and	leafy	greens	are	fantastically	high	in	nutrients	but	can	be	particularly	gas
inducing	due	to	the	sugars	and	starches	they	contain.	If	you	are	having	major
bloating	problems	or	especially	if	you	are	transitioning	your	diet,	try
temporarily	cutting	back	on	broccoli,	cauliflower,	and	Brussels	sprouts	and
having	leafy	green	salads	instead	of	kale	salads,	as	kale	(a	popular	new
“superfood”	rich	in	minerals,	vitamins,	and	amino	acids)	also	happens	to	be	in
this	vegetable	family.
EAT
PINEAPPLE
Pineapple	contains	the	enzyme	bromelain,	which	helps	break	down	proteins	in
your	body	and	aids	digestion.	Try	using	pineapple	as	the	fruit	component	of
your	Glowing	Green	Smoothie	(
this	page
)	or	having	a	bowl	of	cut-up	pineapple
midmorning.
HOW	TO	INCORPORATE	MORE
FIBER	(WHILE	PREVENTING	GASSINESS!)
Internal	Nourishment	is	all	about	consuming	plenty	of	veggies	and	natural	foods,	so
by	eating	more	veggies,	plant-based	meals,	and	health	drinks	such	as
Glowing
Green	Smoothie	(
this	page
),	you	are	going	to	naturally	increase	your	fiber	intake.
This	is	a	great	thing,	which	is	a	bit	of	an	understatement.	Fiber	is	important	for
cleansing	and	helps	move	toxins	out	of	your	body	so	that	your	true	beauty	can
shine	through.
But
	if	you	abruptly	increase	your	fiber	intake	from	a	little	to	a	lot,
you	may	feel	more	gassy	and	bloated	as	your	body	adjusts.
The	key	is	to	drink	more	water	to	prevent	gassiness.	Fiber	happens	to	be	an
indigestible	carbohydrate.	That’s	why	it’s	great	for	bulking	up	meals	without	adding
extra	calories	and	helping	you	feel	full	when	you	eat	lots	of	super-beautifying	plant
foods.	But	fiber	also	absorbs	a	great	deal	of	water.	If	there	is	not	enough	water	in
your	system,	too	much	fiber	can	cause	slower	movement	through	the	digestive
system,	which	in	turn	leads	to
bloating	and	gassiness.	Be	sure	to	drink	lots	of	room
temperature	water	in	between	(rather	than	during)	meals	so	it’s	there	to	be	used
by	your	digestive	system	when	you	need	it	to	process	all	that	fiber.	Drinking	too
much	water	at	meals	can	dilute	digestive	enzymes	and	slow	down	digestion,	also
contributing	to	bloating.
Steaming	veggies	rather	than	eating	them	raw	can	also	make	it	easier	to	break
down	fiber,	especially	when	transitioning	your	diet.	Chew	a	little	bit	when	drinking
your	Glowing	Green	Smoothie,	rather	than	chugging	it,	as	it	is	made	up	of	whole
foods.	Soon	enough,	you’ll	get	used	to	eating	more	fiber.	You’ll	be	more	cleansed,
and	your	belly	will	be	more	taut	and	tight	to	boot!
AVOID	SPICY	AND	PUNGENT	FOODS
Especially	if	your	system	is	sensitive,	hot	sauces	and
spices	like	chili	powder,
garlic,	onions,	and	vinegar	can	cause	irritation	in	your	stomach	that	can	lead	to
bloating.	Try	using	flavorful	fresh	herbs	such	as	basil,	oregano,	and	parsleyinstead.
AVOID
STRAWS
Drinking	through	a	straw	makes	it	easier	to	swallow	excess	air,	which	can
contribute	to	bloat.	Along	those	same	lines,	give	up	chewing	gum,	which	traps
air	and	gas	in	your	system,	contributing	to	bloating.	Chewing	is	a	signal	for
your	body	to	start	breaking	down	food	and	begin	digestion.	Gum	chewing	is
therefore	useless	and	confusing	to	your	body	as	it	is	not	accompanied	by
anything	nutritive	to	digest!
Daily
Detoxification
Most	of	us	do	our	best	to	focus	on	what	we	put	into	our	bodies,	but	the	truth	is
that	what	you	clean	out	is	just	as	important.	To	be	your	most	beautiful,	you
have	to	constantly	support	the	removal	of	toxins	from	your	cells.
There	are	two	kinds	of	toxins:
exogenous
	toxins	come	from	pollutants	and
chemicals	in	the	environment,	while
endogenous
	toxins	are	the	normal	by-
products	of
metabolism	that	are	created	within	your	body.	Your	cells	are	being
renovated	daily	by	two	opposite	processes,	either	building	up	(
anabolism
)	or
breaking	down	(
catabolism
).	As	a	result,	your	body	has	to	clear	out	an	enormous
amount	of	cellular	debris	each	and	every	day.	If	this	is	done	inefficiently,	it	can
weigh	down	your	body	and	contribute	to	toxicity	buildup.
Detoxification	happens	naturally,	but	you	can	take	steps	to	raise	the	level	of
efficiency.	Supporting	your	daily	detoxification	processes	is	vital	to	maintain
clear,
glowing	skin	and	a	youthful	appearance.
ARE	YOU	OVERLY	TOXIC?
Which	of	the	following	apply	to	you?

	Unclear	head,	mental	dullness

	Frequent	upset	stomach	or	bloating

	Chronic	aches	and	pains

	Constipation	and	digestive	distress

	Offensive	body	odors

	Bad	breath

	Continual	fatigue

	Sallow,	aging	skin

	Strong	addiction	to	sweets

	Waking	with	a	stuffy	nose
	Coated	tongue
If	three	or	more	of	these	pertain	to	you,	your	ongoing	detoxification	could
probably	use	some	extra	support.	Be	sure	to	pay	attention	and	apply	the	advice	in
this	pillar	to	help	enhance	the	ongoing	cleansing	mechanisms	of	your	body.
Your	Beautiful,	Beauty-Building
Liver
Your	liver	is	a	critical	beauty	organ.	Weighing	around	3	power-packed	pounds,
the	liver	is	your	primary	organ	for	detoxification.	It	works	tirelessly	to	cleanse
your	blood	of	toxins	and	bacteria	and	neutralize	pollutants.	In	fact,	it	filters
around	one	hefty	quart	of	blood	per	minute,	dealing	with	all	the	agrochemicals,
toxins,	pollutants,	food	additives,	preservatives,	resid


 liver is essentially waste, but that, even so, it has its use as a digestive fluid i n health. However, when a fast is in
progress, bile is profusely poured into the intestines, and it is then to be regarded as naught but poisonous refuse excreted  by tissue,
and it is at once to be removed from the system lest it be again absorbed into the  circulation.

When food is no longer being ingested, the bowels proceed to evacuate their fecal contents, receiving and casting out the was te
then deposited in them from blood and the visceral organs; the kidneys, the lungs, and the skin assist in the pu rifying process; in
short, the sewerage system of the body centers its entire energy in supreme effort to overcome toxemia by clearing away inter nal
impurities. The involuntary absorptive functions are, however, still active, and they continue their work, even upon excreted waste;
hence, lest poisonous reabsorption occur, the most expeditious means must be employed in order to remove this refuse from the
intestinal channel. The blood, following its mission, gathers excrete from cell structure, and supplies what it may for rebuilding
purposes. The latter it discovers in that reserve supply of nourishment that is naturally stored in the interstices of tissue. As the
process of elimination or purification continues, as refuse diminishes in amount, the density o f the blood stream is gradually
reduced, and the labor of the heart is thus progressively lightened.

In some diseased conditions the action of the heart is low, in others, it is high. While it is reasonable to expect that the beat of the
heart will show lower register when the blood is laden with waste and is dense in quality, after all, physiological temperament
determines heart action both normal and abnormal. Disease in some subjects is invariably accompanied with fever and a rapid
pulse; in others a s luggish heart with lowered temperature prevails. But whether in disease heart action be high or low, poisonous
Page 25 of  72 substances are present in the blood, and these acting upon the nerves that control the heart, the latter may develop irregula rities that
seem to indicate organic defect, and that are often so diagnosed. But, following the argument of the text, it is obvious that,
whatever the symptom, improvement in heart action must necessarily result in a fast when elimination has advanced sufficientl y to
have re moved the major portion of poison circulating in the blood. No fear need be entertained concerning the ability of the heart
to perform its function during a fast, for the organ, as each day goes by has lighter work to do, and it is served with the i ncreasi ng
nerve power of a system that is gradually purifying itself.

As soon as a fast is entered, elimination asserts its predominance. In many instances desire for food is replaced by repugnan ce, and
there is no hunger until the process of purification is co mpleted. The very odor of food, and even the perfume of flowers are to
some subjects annoying. In aggravated form this symptom offers the possibility of serious organic deficiency. This statement is not
to be taken as conclusive or as a rule, for often in cases in whom bilious excretion predominates, eases whose illness is purely
functional in origin, the symptom described occurs. In any event it should be carefully studied and its immediate causes anal yzed.

In some instances patients have claimed the sen sation of false hunger, of appetite, from the beginning to the end of the fast, but this
was due to irritative conditions. There are variations in this sign, more or less to be attributed to the time devoted to the
preliminaries, and, when the fast is prop erly begun and properly continued, neither false hunger nor true hunger is ever in evidence
until the end.

Another symptom always present is the thick yellowish -white coat donned by the tongue during abstinence from food. This is in
evidence until the im purities of the body are eliminated, and the clearing of the surface of the tongue is one of the positive signals
that indicate a complete and successful fast. This coat deposited upon the tongue is perhaps the simplest sign of a foul inte rnal
state, and i t is also an indication that elimination of impurities is taking place. When food stimulation due to excess supply
dominates elimination, the coated tongue, then invariably present, signifies the effort of nature to rid the system of gather ing
waste. At ti mes during a fast, when the secretions of the body continue to be acid in character, an apparently clean tongue may
develop, and in this event strict interpretation of the symptom might lead to the inference that the system is cleansed and i s ready
again f or feeding. The "acid tongue" is easily recognized, for pulse and temperature assist in guidance, while it is altogether
probable that additional evidence of its cause will be discovered in the appearance of small ulcers or cankers upon the mucus
membrane of the mouth or upon the tongue itself.

Like the tongue, the breath becomes laden with disagreeable evidences of a foul interior, and during the earlier portion of t he
fasting period, its odor is most offensive. Gradual improvement in this respect is an indicator of the progress of purification which
the body is undergoing, and the termination of a successful fast is heralded by an odorless breath.

One of the products of fermentation within the body during disease is known by the name of acetone. There is no doubt that
acetone, the result of the decomposition of organic matter, is present in greater or lesser degree in many cases during the f ast. It is
not at any time necessarily a product of the albumen of food, but is more probably the result of the de struction of that part of the
body albumen that has come from the breaking down of tissue cells, waste that, instead of being normally eliminated, is retai ned
with consequent decomposition. In other words, the material that produces acetone has served its purposes as living cell growth. In
cases under medical treatment its presence is regarded with dread, and at times when it appears, as it is apt to in anaesthet ized
subjects under the knife of the surgeon, operations have been abandoned because of the fear  of death while the paralysis of the
anaesthetic endures. Its appearance in a patient undergoing a fast is an indication of derangement of more than ordinary grav ity. In
health there is no production of acetone, since discarded cell waste is eliminated bef ore fermentation can occur. Once food is
denied and cell refuse is discharged into the channels of evacuation, acetone, when it is present, appears in all the excreti ons, and
its characteristic ether -like odor is most pronounced. In cases like these one of  the signs of the beginning of the end of the fast is
discovered in the disappearance of acetone from urine, breath, and excrete generally. It is then no longer formed, since the body is
again in position to produce normal healthy cell structure balanced b y normal elimination of waste.

In disease it is quite usual to observe body odors that are unpleasant. These are again manifestations of foulness within,
manifestations signifying that toxins exist, and that nature is seeking to remove them through every  organ of elimination, not the
least of which is the skin. One experienced in handling mental disease soon becomes expert in distinguishing the marked odor
attached to most lunatics. Even in the milder forms of nervous derangement, such as hysteria, emanat ion from the body is
distinctly changed, so much so that it is frequently noticed by the patient himself. Effluvium, usually disagreeable in chara cter, is
present in disease other than that connected with the mental processes and with the nerves --witness, for instance, the distinctive
odor of the victim of pulmonary tuberculosis. Because of the predominance of the eliminative function during a fast, the smel l of
the body is then decidedly more perceptible than is the case in functional disease when food is supplied. So true is this that the
presence of a fasting subject can at once be detected by one familiar with the phenomena of the method. The excretions at thi s time
are strongly impregnated with bile, and the peculiar odor that is characteristic of this fluid is most apparent. This results because
the entire system has been called into eliminative action, and temporary saturation is the result. The breath is laden with t his ill -
smelling exhalation until purification is complete, and the skin carries it un til the latter point is reached in the progress of the fast.

In cases of acute illness and in what are characterized as bilious temperaments, after the beginning of a fast, annoying symp toms
Page 26 of  72 may develop --dizziness on rising suddenly, spots before the eye s, and general malaise and weakness. But these signs are not
discovered in all instances and they cannot be established as guides. Some there are who abstain from food for as many as thi rty or
forty days without disagreeable symptoms other than the offensi ve and the coated tongue. In these instances vital organs are fully
capable of function and are equal to their tasks. On the other hand, there are those in whom all of the signs described are i n
evidence in varying intensity until nearly the end of the fas t. The latter are those who suffer from extreme functional derangement
or who possess vital organs that are structurally defective.

To those, who, through high -living and overfeeding, have


 breath more compressed prana accumulates until the
abdomen feels sufficiently energ ized. You may feel this as warmth,
tingling, pressure or any other sensation, you may also imagine that the
prana coils up and condenses in the form of a spiral.
To energize the chakras,  it may feel better to imagine them to pulsate in
rhythm with your slow and deep breathing. We have seven main chakras:
the lowest at the sacrum, the second above the pubic bone, the third at
the solar plexus, the fourth  is the heart centre, then comes the  throat
chakra, the forehead chakra and the last one at the top of the head.
Work on each chakra in turn. With chakras two to six imagine that the
inhaled prana -breath enters at your back, being pulled into the chakra by
a deepening vortex that draws pran a inwards. Then during exhalation,
the energy vortex becomes shallower and expands, and the prana -
breath flows out at the front of the chakra. At the same time imagine an
appropriate feeling for each chakra. With the second chakra you feel
vitality, with t he third one being emotionally satisfied, with the fourth
unconditional love, with the fifth power, and the sixth joy.
To work on chakras one and seven you imagine the breath energy
entering at the base of the spine and flowing out at the top of the head,
while during exhalation the flow is reversed, the energy entering through
the top and leaving at the base of the spine. Also,  different imaginations
may be used. Try to feel the energy moving up and down the spine as
warmth, or tingling, or as bubbling. F or more possibilities, see: Bio-
Energies.
Beaming  is an excellent cooperative method for activating chakras and
improving general health. It can be done alone but is mor e effective in a
group setting.  Ask your guidance for energy, and then imagine a white
spiritual light entering the top of your head and flowing down your arms.
Generally,  hold the hands 15 to 30 cm from the body and point the palms
towards the chakra or org an to be healed. Initially beam for ten to twenty
minutes, with growing experience also longer. Then move to another 116
 area. The further away from the body you hold the palms, the deeper
does the beamed light energy penetrate and vice versa. See also :
Energy Healing.
*   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *

 117
 Chapter Nine
MIND & EMOTIONS
Use Your Mind to Become the Person You Want to Be

Our thoughts, feelings, attitudes, beliefs and emotions form the fabric of
our inner world. They are the main factors that determine whether we are
healthy or unhealthy, happy or unhappy. They have a direct influence on
our body by changing or maintaining our inner blueprint and by directing,
blocking or enhancing bioenergy flows and glandular activities. They also
act in an indirect way by determining which foods we eat, which
environmental factors we choose, which kind of knowledge we acquire
and how we u se it. Therefore, in order to improve our condition, whether
on the social, mental or emotional level, or with regard to our health, we
must first change our inner world. Some steps in this direction are:
• Examine your present condition; make a list of wha t you do not like,
 and how you would like to be instead. Set priorities and make
 changes.
• Your body tries to fulfil the expect ations of your mind, therefore
 remain consistent in expecting to become as you want to be.
• Use mind -control methods to reprogr am your subconscious mind.
• Adopt a holistic or spiritual philosophy of life.
There are specific techniques to accomplish this. However, use mind
methods for emotional and mental problems in combination with
nutritional improvement: control Candida, stabil ize the blood -sugar level,
avoid allergens, and use appropriate supplements. In this way, the
nutritional component of our mind problems such as anxiety, depression,
brain fog, irritation or anger is taken care of, and we can make much
better progress with  the remaining, deep -seated problems.
Techniques for improving our mental and emotional condition are 118
 emotional release, prayer and meditation, and autosuggestion methods
such as relaxation, affirmation, visualization and guided imagery.
Deep relaxation  is essential for success with methods to contact the
inner self. Experiment with the following relaxation methods:
• Sit or lie comfortably and close your eyes. Focus your attention on
 your right foot. Feel it becoming warm and heavy. Then move to the
 left foot, the right calf, the left calf, and so on, moving upwards to
 the head. Include the chin, the jaw, eyes, the back and top of the
 head.
• Imagine being in a red -coloured room on the upper level of a high -
 rise building. Enter an elevator. Feel yourself going down and down
 until you reach an orange room; then go further down to a yellow
 room, a green one, then blue, indigo and finally violet.
• Imagine yourself walking down a bush path to the bottom of a
 waterfall; feel the peace.
• With each slow exhalation feel that you drift lower and lower in a
 long tunnel or  imagine diving towards the bottom of the sea.
• Slowly count backward from 50 to one. With each count imagine
 yourself sinking deeper and deeper.
• Use slow, rhythmical breathing. Inhale for a count of eight, hold for
 two, exhale for eight, hold for two, and so forth. Focus your attention
 on your breath, how it quietly flows in and out. Or focus on your
 slow inhalations and exhalations without pa ying attention to the
 timing.
Affirmations
Look through your list of beliefs that you want to change and select one
of immediate importance. Then work out a short statement to describe
your goal. With breathing problems, for instance, you may state: -
“My breath flows free and easy at all times". Write it down several times,
and then often read it aloud. Do this several times daily. While making 119
 each statement, try to feel your breath fl owing freely at the same time.
Emile Coue, the originator of autosuggestion therapy, used the following
affirmation extensively: "With every day in every way I am better and
better." Note the rhythm and poetic sound of this suggestion. In this way
the rig ht half of our brain, which requires artistic stimulation, can accept
a verbal suggestion, which it otherwise might ignore. The right brain is
intimately linked to our subconscious mind. You may also say something
like: “My days are filled with love and jo y.”
Guided Imagery
For many problems guided imagery is the most powerful autosuggestion
method. Visualization or mental imagery is an effective form of guided
imagery. Enter a state of deep relaxation, visualize your goal or the
desired solution to your problem, then hold th e picture in vivid form for
as long as possible trying to feel it at the same time.
Visualizing a solution provides the form and  may be as a still picture or
like a movie scene. Then focus your breathing and your positive feelings
to fill this form with the energy needed to manifest the imagined condition.
Alternatively, you may produce  a mental movie, also called guided
reverie. Even if not producing a moving scene, visualization is usually
more effective if you do not try to hold on to a still picture, but rather make
it in some way dynamic as with changes or fluctuations in colour, si ze,
intensity of feeling, or by breathing into it.
Picture various scenes eventually leading to the desired solution. See
yourself as you want to be. Use your imagination to create a mental
picture to suit your specific problems. There is no limit to what  you can
achieve.
Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT)
EFT is very effective in overcoming the harmful effects of negative
emotions and memories. The basic principle of this therapy is stated as: -
"The cause of all negative emotions is a disruption of the body’s energy
system." Some problems, such as fear of heights, public speaking, 120
 snakes or spiders may yield within minutes.
Select a problem or memory that still evokes a negative emotion. Then
use the following formula: "Even though I have this ____, I deeply and
completely love and accept myself."
Each time while saying the affirmation, tap each acupuncture point, or
pair of points about 7 times. Do this firmly with the tips of the slightly
curle d index and middle fingers of each hand on both sides of the body:
• At the top of the head
• At the inner end of each eyebrow
• On the bony ridge at the outside of the eyes
• On the bone under the eyes
• Between the bottom of the nose and the top of the upper lip
• Midway between the point of the chin and the lower lip
• Where the breastbone, collarbone and first rib meet
• On the side of the body, level with the nipple or bra strap
• On the inside of each wrist.
For instance, if you had a diagnosis of cancer you may say: