alous, or vengeful. These are the poisons that enter your
subconscious mind. You were not born with these negative attitude s. Feed your subconscious mind life-giving thoughts, and you will wipe
out all the negative patterns lodged therein. As you continue to do this,
all the past will be wiped out and remembered no more. • The subconscious heals a malignancy of the skin
A personal healing will ever be the most convincing evi-dence of
the healing power of the subconscious mind. Over forty years ag o I
resolved a malignancy of the skin through prayer. Medical ther apy
had failed to check the growth, and it was get-ting progressiv ely
worse. A clergyman, with a deep psychological knowledge, ex-plained to
me the inner meaning of the 139th Psalm wherein it says, In thy book
all my members were written, which in con-tinuance were fashi oned,
when as yet there was none of them. He explained that the term book
meant my subconscious mind, which fashioned and molded all my
organs from an invisible cell. He also pointed out that inasmuch as my
subconscious mind made my body, it could also recreate it and he al it
according to the perfect pattern within it. This clergyman showed me his watch and said, “This had a maker,
and the watchmaker had to have the idea first in mind before the
watch became an objective reality, and if the watch was out  of order,
the watchmaker could fix it. ” My friend re-minded me that the
subconscious intelligence, which created my body, was like a
watchmaker, and it also knew exactly how to heal, restore, and direct
all the vital functions and processes of my body, but that I ha d to give
 44  it the perfect idea of health. This would act as cause, and the  effect
would be a healing. I prayed in a very simple way as follows: “My body and al l its
organs were created by the infinite intelligence in my sub -conscious
mind. It knows how to heal me. Its wisdom fashioned all my organs,
tissues, muscles, and bones. This infinite healing presence wi thin me
is now transforming every atom of my being making me whole and
perfect now. I give thanks for the healing I know is taking pla ce now. Wonderful are the works of the creative intelligence within me. ”
I prayed aloud for about five minutes two or three times a da y
repeating the above simple prayer. In about three months my sk in was
whole and perfect. As you can see, all I did was give life-giving patterns of wholeness,
beauty, and perfection to my subconscious mind, thereby oblitera ting
the negative images and patterns of thought lodged in my
subconscious mind which were the cause of all my trouble. Nothing
appears on your body except when the mental equivalent is first in
your mind, and as you change your mind by drenching it with
incessant affirmatives, you change your body. This is the basis of all
healing. Marvelous are thy works; and that my soul [subconscious
mind] knoweth right well. PSALM 139:14. • How the subconscious controls all functions of the body
While you are awake or sound asleep upon your bed, the ceaseless,
tireless action of your subconscious mind controls all the vit al
functions of your body without the help of your con-scious mind. For
example, while you are asleep your heart con-tinues to beat
rhythmically, your lungs do not rest, and the proc-ess of inhalation
and exhalation, whereby your blood absorbs fresh air, goes on just the
same as when you are awake. Your subconscious controls your
digestive processes and glandular secretions, as well as a ll the other
mysterious operations of your body. The hair on your face continues
to grow whether you are asleep or awake. Scientists tell us that the
 45  skin secretes much more perspiration during sleep than during t he
waking hours. Your eyes, ears, and other senses are active during sleep. Fo r
instance,   many of our great scientists have received answe rs to
perplexing problems while they were asleep. They saw the an-sw ers in
a dream. Oftentimes your conscious mind interferes with the normal rhythm
of the heart, lungs, and functioning of the stomach and intestines b y
worry, anxiety, fear, and depression. These pat-terns of thought
interfere with the harmonious functioning of your subconscious mind. When mentally disturbed, the best procedure is to let go, rela x, and
still the wheels of your thought processes. Speak to your subconscious mind, telling it to take over in pea ce,
harmony, and divine order. You will find that all the functions of your
body will become normal again. Be sure to speak to your
subconscious mind with authority and convic-tion, and it will confor m
to your command. Your subconscious seeks to preserve your life and restore you t o
health at all costs. It causes you to love your children, which a lso
illustrates an instinctive desire to preserve all life. Let us suppose you
accidentally ate some bad food. Your sub-conscious mind would
cause you to regurgitate it. If you in-advertently took some poison, your subconscious powers
would proceed to neutralize it. If you completely entrusted your self to
its wonderworking  power, you would be entirely restored to health. • How to get the subconscious to work for you
The first thing to realize is that your subconscious mind is al ways
working. It is active night and day, whether you act upon it or not. Your subconscious is the builder of your body, but you cannot
consciously perceive or hear that inner silent process. Your busi ness is
with your conscious mind and not your subconscious mind. Just keep
your conscious mind busy with the expectation of the best, and make
 46  sure the thoughts you habitually think are based on whatsoever thi ngs
are lovely, true, just, and of good report. Begin now to take c are of
your con-scious mind, knowing in your heart and soul that your
subcon-scious mind is always expressing, reproducing, and
manifesting according to your habitual thinking. Remember, just as water takes the shape of the pipe it f lows
through, the life principle in you flows through you according to the
nature of your thoughts. Claim that the healing presence in your
subconscious is flowing through you as harmony, health, peace, joy,
and abundance. Think of it as a living intelligence, a lovely
companion on the way. Firmly believe it is continually flowing
through you vivifying, inspiring, and prospering you. It will respond
exactly this way. It is done unto you as you believe. • Healing principle of the subconscious restores atrophied  optic
nerves
There is the well-known, duly authenticated case of Madame Bire of
France, recorded in the archives of the medical department of
Lourdes, France. She was blind; the optic nerves were atrophi ed and
useless. She visited Lourdes and had what she termed a mira culous
healing. Ruth Cranston, a Protestant young lady who investigated and
wrote about healings at Lourdes in McCalls magazine, November,
1955, writes about Madame Bire as follows: “At Lourdes she rega ined
her sight incredibly, with the optic nerves still lifeless  and useless, as
several doctors could testify after repeated examinations. A month
later, upon re-examination, it was found that the seeing mechanism
had been restored to normal. But at first, so far as medical
examination could tell, she was seeing with ‘dead eyes. ’”
I have visited Lourdes several times where I, too, wit-nessed some
healings, and of course, as we shall explain in the next c hapter, there
is no doubt that healings take place at many shrines throughout the
world, Christian and non-Christian. 47  The waters of the shrine did not heal Madame Bire, to whom we
just referred, but by her own subconscious mind, which responded to
her belief. The healing principle within her subconscious mind responded to
the nature of her thought. Be-lief is a thought in the subconscious
mind. It means to accept something as true. The thought accepted
executes itself automatically. Undoubtedly, Madame Bire went to the shrine with expectancy and
great faith, knowing in her heart she would re-ceive a heali ng. Her
subconscious mind responded accordingly, releasing the ever-pres ent
healing forces. The subconscious mind, which created the eye, can
certainly bring a dead nerve back to life. What the creativ e principle
created, it can recreate. Accord-ing to your belief is it done unto you. • How to convey the idea of perfect health to your subconscious
mind
A Protestant minister I knew in Johannesburg, South Africa, told me
the method he used to convey the idea of perfect health to his
subconscious mind. He had cancer of the lung. His technique, as give n
to me in his own handwriting, is ex-actly as follows: “Severa l times a
day I would make certain that I was completely relaxed menta lly and
physically. I relaxed my body by speaking to it as follows


 throughout the world, and in both
gross weight and number of individuals far exceed all other forms of life. Humiliating
as it may be, we must face the fact that th e principal inhabitants of the earth and sea
are not men, not plants or animals, or fish but microbes. After such geniuses as Leeuwenhoek, Pasteur, Koch and others revealed microbes
to the world and demonstrated that they play a part in causing certain deadly diseases,
there was a wave of horror throughout the world, and we have been taught to have an unreasoning fear of all so-called "germs." But the work of many later scientists has
gradually shown that the picture is not all black, that the world of microbes has its
own checks and balances, that all forms of life have natural defenses against them,
and that many kinds of microbes are so beneficial that we could hardly live without them. For the general public, it is mainly necessary to know that the human body contains
clever systems designed by Nature to fight off microbes, and it is only due to these defensive powers which we all have that we are not invaded and killed by microbic
growth. Every breath of air, every mouthful  of food or drink contains microbic life;
our skin, body cavities, and intestinal contents swarm with them. Everyone from the baby in its crib to the king in his castle is fighting their own private battle against the
microbes which are constantly entering the body. Every second of our lives our
defenses are constantly checking and killing the microbes trying to use our bodies as a
free lunch counter and hotel. And likewise all the plants and animals are constantly under microbic attack. But the clever defense systems which Nature has given us cannot effectively operate
unless we give them the proper ammunition by eating good fresh food. History has shown and feeding experiments have confirmed that poorly nourished people and
animals eating stale or inadequate food fall easy prey to microbic infections of many
kinds. Famines are followed by epidemics, sailors and explorers eating stale food
sicken and die, and so on. My caged animals fed stale food suffered skin diseases, lost
their hair and teeth, had sore eyes, runny noses, respiratory infections, etc., and often
died. On the other hand, wild animals and primitive people living in rich areas and
eating fresh food have marvelous physiques and seldom suffer from microbic disease. Likewise, my animals when fed fresh food stayed in beautiful condition and hardly
ever had infections, even when cut by accident or surgery. People eating good fresh food seldom suffer from common microbic infections such
as sore throat, infected tonsils, boils, colds, influenza, pneumonia, etc. 12. TEETH AND STALE FOOD
   Dr. Weston Price found throughout the world that most people who were living on
primitive foods obtained by hunting, fishing, food gathering, and subsistence farming had fine straight teeth, large well develope d faces, all four wisdom teeth and little or
no tooth decay. On the other hand he found members of the same races living a little
nearer civilization so that they were eating store food usually had miserable teeth,
with narrow undersized jaws, crowded and crooked teeth, severe tooth decay, and
missing teeth. His studies included Eskimo s, New Zealanders and Australians both
white and black, Africans, Peruvian indians and whites, Canadian indians, Polynesians, Fijians, Swiss, Gaelic, and so on. In these various groups the native
foods ran the gamut from caribou meat to insects, fish, and seaweed. Somehow it
seems that Dr. Price did not quite perceive that it was simply the freshness  of the
native foods that made the difference, but his findings are none the less valid and significant. My experimental goats fed stale food frequently developed loose abscessed teeth
and lost some of them. The few young goats born during stale feeding of the mothers frequently had underdeveloped short lower jaws, looking like the chinless comic strip
character Andy Gump, as well as being weak and sickly. In tooth decay the teeth are attacked by microbes secreting a corrosive fluid which
eats away the tooth material so that the microbes can absorb it. The microbes are thus
"eating" our teeth. But when good fresh foods are eaten the body obtains the necessary substances to render our saliva toxic to microbes, so that tooth decay is
prevented. In most people a whitish mineral deposit known as dental tartar or calculus forms
around the bases of the teeth which has to be  scraped off by the dentist. It was a
surprise to find in my research that on the fresh food diet this material forms very
little if any at all and the teeth remain clean and white with no attention other than ordinary brushing. 13. PHYSICAL STRENGTH AND RESISTANCE TO INJURY
   Sir Edmund Hillary has recently reported from his travels in the mountains of
primitive Nepal that he found young native women acting as baggage carriers in that
roadless country who regularly carried 80 pounds fifteen miles a day, and these girls
only weighed 85 or 90 pounds themselves. Our forefathers had the strength to reap great fields of grain with hand scythes, and to hand saw timber twelve hours a day. What modern industrial population in the western world could do these things? Nowadays it is common for young men to die from trivial athletic injuries, for
people to suffer broken bones and torn ligaments from minor falls, and for employers
to be sued for huge damages by workers suffering serious disabilities caused by trivial
accidents. Throughout the western industrialized world labor is becoming steadily less
productive, and we are being left behind in competition by eastern countries where bread and other stale foods  are not used as much. We have come to be a sickly, frail,
and fragile people, with thin weak bones and flabby muscles. This is deterioration due to food, not degeneration of our bloodlines. It is a part of
the awful penalty we are paying for eating stale deteriorated food. Properly fed people have the strength and energy to enjoy and take an interest in a
good day's work, and not be forever feeling miserable and put upon by their
employer. Their bodies are tough and resilient, so that they can spring up from a fall
with a laugh rather than suffering broken bones, and when they do get hurt they have
a better chance to rapidly recover. Fresh food builds the tireless bodies and quick
brains required to increase production and reduce costs. 14. FATTY RUBBISH AND FILTH IN FLOUR
   Scientists connected with the flour industry have for many years been publishing
articles in trade journals not seen by the general public which describe in detail the
deteriorated fatty materials and filth found in flour. According to these articles, the
wheat grain from which flour is made has a deep fold or groove on one side going more than half way through the grain. This fold contains dirt, filth and microbes in
such a secluded position that the grain cannot be thoroughly cleaned. Additionally, by
the time grain reaches the mills, it is vermin infested and contains insects, and droppings urine and hair from rats and mice. Many insects, grubs and their droppings are inside the wheat grains, so cannot be separated out easily. The mills do what they can to clean the grain, but flour is such a cheap and competitive product that they
cannot afford to do very much and some of the filth goes on through the mill with the
grain and is ground up into the flour. The flour experts have written that microscopic
examination of flour commonly reveals ground up fragments of insects and rat hair,
and traces of rat dung and urine. Bacteriological tests of flour have indicated an extremely high content of microbes. Flour is thus by the reports of the industry's own
experts a highly contaminated filthy material, the like of which is not to be found in the whole food industry. The experts have also described in gr eat detail how wheat grain contains 3% or
more of oily fatty materials, including sitosterol which is closely similar to cholesterol, and how it is desirable that the resulting fatty content of the flour be in an
oxidized, hardened and dried out form so that the bread will rise higher and make
more loaves per sack of flour. They call this the "baking quality" of the flour, but it
does not improve the eating quality, only cheapening the bread. Long ago, drying out
of the flour oil was done by storing the flour to "age" it before baking, but nowadays the mills add oxidizing chemicals called "maturing" or "improving" agents to the flour so this hardening of the oils is accomplished rapidly by artificial means. Flour is usually made from cheap run-of-the-trade wheat, often wheat which has been stored
for many years as crop surplus, and consequently is very stale. I have found that these hardened oils and other similar hardened materials in flour
are the worst source of the fatty rubbish  which causes arteriosclerosis, and this
rubbish is further hardened by the baking process like baked enamel paint, so it remains lodged in our arteries after we eat bread and other flour products. The
condition that makes fatty rubbish from flour so much more dangerous than any other
food is its finely ground form, so fine that it can slip through the walls of our
intestines with the food stream and get into our blood very easily, whereas if it were coarser most of it would pass on out of the body with little harm. The most recent findings for this sixth edition have shown that even coarse flour, home-made flour,
stone-ground flour, whole wheat flour, oatmeal, farina,


 states,” the editorial declared, “is largely
folklore.”
In response, letters deluged the journal, most of them
from physicians who heatedly disagreed with the editorial’s
conclusion. It certainly seems unreasonable to discount
mental attitu des as a factor in illness, much less as folklore. Every practicing physician knows that the patient’s will to
recover plays a vital part in his treatment. Wedded as they
are to “hard” medicine, most doctors nonetheless cannot
condone the idea that attitude, belief, and emotions do not
play their part. Hippocrates stated at the dawn of Western
medicine that “a patient who is mortally sick might yet
recover from belief in the goodness of his physician.”Numerous modern studies have corroborated this, by
showing that people who trust their doctor and surrender
themselves to his care are likelier to recover than those
who approach medicine with distrust, fear, and antagonism. In the wake of the edito rial, tempers ﬂared and lines of
allegiance were drawn, while the issues became even more
confused. Three separa te studies of breast-cancer survival
rates from the mid-1980s came up with three entirely
diﬀerent results. In one, the women who displayed strong
positive attitudes tended to outlive those who were
negative, and it did not matter if their diseases were more
advanced—positive emotions, it seemed, helped them
recover from a late-sta ge, metastasized cancer, while
patients with negative emotions died from small tumors
that had been diagnosed relatively early. A second study, however, found that any strong attitude,
if expressed rather than held back, helped in survival of
this very deadly disease. While the ﬁrst ﬁnding bolsters
common sense—the idea that positivity is better than
negativity—the second does much the same from  another
angle, the idea being that it is better to ﬁght than to give
up. Publicity was given to a so-called cancer personality,
who bottles up emotions and somehow converts repression
into malignant cells. The opposite would be the “strong will
to live” type, who can be either positive or negative. All of this follows a certain logic, except for the study that
appeared in the New England Journal of Medicine  to begin
with, second ed by supporting studies, which found no
correlation between any emotional pattern and surviving
breast cancer beyond two years. Even as it grew in
popularity, becoming one of the most welcome innovations
since the Salk vaccine, the concept of mind-body medicine
was shaken. Now, a familiar pattern has emerged, in which
the public is informed of some elating break through,followed by disappointing  clinical results that are generally
known only in restricted medical circles. A classic example was the division of heart-attack
patients, more than three-quarters of them middle-aged
males, into high-risk Type A personalities and low-risk Type
B’s. The Type A personality was supposed to be a hard-
driving, compulsive worker, constantly racing deadlines
and churning his system with stress hormones, as opposed
to the relaxed, tolerant, more balanced Type B. Type A
suﬀered from  “the disease of being in a hurry”; therefore, it
seemed logical that his heart would eventually rebel,
leading to a coronary. Unfortunately, controlled  studies have indicated that this
widely accepted division is not so neat. It turns out that
most people have some Type A in them and some Type B,
and that tolerance for stress varies widely, with certain
groups stating that they thrive on it. Finally, a 1988 study
found that if a man actually has a heart attack, Type A’s
survive better than Type B’s. Their drive to succeed
apparently turns into a beneﬁt once the coronary strikes. The intricacies of the mind-body relation were not to be
easily solved. If one asks why a positive mind cannot be
easily correla ted with good health—it appears to be one of
the most obvious facts of life—the answer has to do with
what you mean by “mind ” in the ﬁrst place. This is not a
philosophical question but a practical one. If a patient
comes in with cancer, is his mental state judged by how he
feels on the day of the diagnosis, long before,  or long
afterward? Dr. Lawrence LeShan, author of the pioneering
studies from the 1950s  correlating emotions to cancer,
went back into the childhoods of cancer patients to ﬁnd the
black seed that poisoned their psychology, and he theorized
that it lay dormant in the subconscious for years before
inducing their disease.In my own practice, I saw a lung-cancer patient who had
lived comfortably with a coin-sized lesion in his lungs for
ﬁve years.<|eot_id|><|begin_of_text|>Summarize the following text section accurately and concisely. Maintain specific details and numerical information, and use anti-repetition mechanisms:

        OceanofPDF. comIn order to ensure the privacy of the patients mentioned in this book, their
names, circumstances, and other identifying details have been changed. Copyright © 1989, 2015 by Deepak Chopra, M. D. All rights reserved. Published in the United States by Bantam Books, an imprint of R andom House,
a division of P enguin R andom House LLC, New Y ork. BANTAM BOOKS  and the HOUSE  colophon are registered trademarks of
Penguin R andom House LLC. Originally published in hardcover in the United States by Bantam Books, an
imprint of R andom House, a division of P enguin R andom House LLC, in 1989. ISBN 9781101884973
eBook ISBN 9780804179980
randomhousebooks. com
Book design by Jo Anne Metsch, adapted for eBook
Cover design: V ictoria Allen
Cover art: Francisco Javier Gomez Quesada
v4. 1_r2
ep
OceanofPDF. comContents
Cover
Title P age
Copyright
Foreword
Introduction
Part I: The Hidden Physiology
Chapter 1: A fter the Miracle
Chapter 2: The Body Has a Mind of Its Own
Chapter 3: The Sculpture or the River. Chapter 4: Messengers from Inner Space
Chapter 5: Ghosts of Memory
Chapter 6: The Quantum Mechanical Human Body
Chapter 7: Nowhere and Everywhere
Chapter 8: Silent W itness
Chapter 9: The Mystery of the Gap
Part II: Body of Bliss
Chapter 10: In the Rishi’s W orld
Chapter 11: Birth of a Disease
Chapter 12: “ What Y ou See, Y ou Become”
Chapter 13: Body of Bliss
Chapter 14: The End of the W ar
Acknowledgments
Reading List
Bibliography
Bestsellers by Deepak ChopraAbout the Author
OceanofPDF. comWhenever the word quantum  comes  up, the word physics
follows automatically. This habit of mind made Quantum
Healing  a novel and provocati ve title in 1989, but its
author, a curious-minded endocrinologist outside  Boston,
was implying a legitimate question. If every atom and
molecule in the universe emerges from the quantum ﬁeld,
doesn’t this mean that our bodies do, too. The answer is
undoubtedly yes. In that case, we possess a quantum
mechanical body. Dr. Deepak Chopra then reasoned that
the mysteries of the human body, particularly the mystery
of healing, are inevitably immersed in the quantum ﬁeld. Very few scientists were thinking that way almost thirty
years ago. Medical schools approached the human body
essentially as a machine subdivided into the working parts
of a machine—organs, tissues, and cells. When the body
broke down through illness, something materia l was at
fault. Bacteria had entered to disrupt the mechanical
operation of an organ, or a worn-out part had failed. An
arthritic joint was consi dered similar to a tire with the
tread wearing thin. Modern scien tiﬁc medicin e goes into sophisticated  detail,
but in essence it embra ces the two basic principles that
bind all the sciences together: materialism and
reductionism. Materialism holds that there must be a
physical explanation for every phenomenon. Reductionismholds that complex problems can be broken down into
smaller component parts, wherein lie all solutions and
answers. Quantum Healing  blew the whistle on both
principles, not because they are inherently wrong, but
because they left out some extremely important things,
especially when it came to the human body. Materialism left out the mind-body connection. Mind isn’t
material. Yet our thoughts cause our bodies to move,
something we take for granted the minute we get out of
bed in the morning but which stands as a great mystery. When you break the body down into organs, tissues, and
cells, you can’t ﬁnd the slightest trace of a thought, and yet
the mind must be related to the body. How. Reductionism left out the holistic nature of the body. Trillions of cells cooperate to sustain one another, acting to
preserve overall balance and health. Up to a quadrillion
neural connections in the brain generate a microscopic
electrical storm, and yet the result is organized thought,
not a jumble of static. As skilled as medical science is at
dissecting body and


ANDING THE TOPIC
Looking back, I realize that the concept of a universe based
on vibrations, leading to the concept of the human body as
a bundle of vibrations, was a bridge too far for many. There
have been “vibrational healers” in every culture, if by
vibration we include light, sound, music, mantras, chants,
and shamanistic rituals. Probably the most comprehensive
“science of vibrations” is found in the area of Vedic
knowledge known as shabda,  the Sanskrit word for
“speech.” The intriguing feature of shabda  is that it ﬁts the
demand of Western science for a reductionist model—every
phenomenon is reducible to a unique vibrational state—
while at the same time ﬁtting the “top-down” Eastern
approach, which sees all phenomena emerging from the
ﬁeld of consciousness. Yet anyone in a gotcha state of mind would ﬁnd it easy to
accuse vibrational healing of being a sham—the underlying
concept is too alien to materialistic thinking. Once again
quantum theory may bolster speculation, since there are
physicists now toying with the idea that if the universe
exists in Hilbert space (a strictly mathematical concept)and if Schrödinger’s equation holds true (the classic
equation that accounts for quantum probabilities
throughout the universe), there may be an elegan t way to
reduce creation to a single wave function. (The legendary
physicist Richard Feynm an long ago speculated that all
electrons may be reducible to one electron.) Once again
this would be pure mathematics, yet by reducing the
physical universe to a single wave function that gets
entangled with itself to break down into the inﬁnite waves
that underlie inﬁnite particles, something unique happens. There is no longer a split between reductionism and a top-
down approach. One wave would give us a singular source
from which everything else can be derived. The
entanglement of the wave into countless subdivided waves
would satisfy the demand  for speciﬁc data that can be built
up into complex explanations for higher-order forms like
atoms, molecules, stars, galaxies, and so forth. Anyone who isn’t fully conversant in advanced
mathematics can only watch from the sidelines before such
a theory is accepted or rejected. Shabda  gives everyo ne a
chance to get back in the game, however, because of its
practical extension into healing and the power of
consciousness in general. A thought “in here” is
vibrationally connected to a result “out there,” and so two
worlds, mind  and matter, are bridged. A gotcha mentality is
rarely fair, but skepticism has no rebuttal to the unshakable
fact, stated by Sir John Eccles in an earlier chapter, that
every thought performs telekinesis by inﬂuencing the
chemical state of the brain: We cross the mind-body barrier
every time we think. Shabda  also says that higher states of consciousness are
vibrational. This greatly simpliﬁes the whole issue of
enlightenment, making it a natural phenomenon like
weather, the stars, and hydrogen atoms. Vibration is the
great leveler. Therefore it fascinated me when Dr. Jeﬀery A.Martin started publishing results from his Ph.D. work in
psychology showing that higher consciousness is so natural
that it exists all around us. Martin posted an online message asking for responses
from people who thought they were enlightened. He got
more than 2,500 replies,  and from this pool he intensively
interviewed around ﬁfty subjects. At ﬁrst it was hard to ﬁnd
a common language. Feeling that you are enlightened is
personal, and it also sets you apart from normal society. Martin found that his subjects often were sensitized by
being outsiders, and revealing their unusual mental state
had led to such things as being sent to a psychia trist, put
on medication, or even being committed to a mental
hospital.<|eot_id|><|begin_of_text|>Summarize the following text section accurately and concisely. Maintain specific details and numerical information, and use anti-repetition mechanisms:

        But actually changing the
aging process itself is another, far deeper matter. Oﬀicially, gerontology recognizes no means to reverse or
retard the aging process— a rather stringent positi on, when
you consider that aging has not even been adequately
deﬁned. The rishis would counter by saying that science
has failed to reach the level of awareness where aging can
be defeated. In 1980, a young Harvard psychologist,
Charles Alexander, went into three old-age homes outside
Boston and taught about sixty residents, all at least 80
years old, some mind-bod y techniques. Three were used: a
mainstream relaxation technique (the kind used in typical
stress-management progr ams), Transcendental Meditation,
and a set of creative word games performed every day to
keep the mind sharp. Each person learned only one technique, and the groups
were allowed to use them without supervision. When the
three groups were tested on follow-up, the meditators
scored highest on measures of improved learning ability,
low blood pressure, and mental health—all of which should
decline with age. The people also reported that they felt
happier and not as old as before. But the really striking
result did not come to light until three years later. When
Alexander returned to the old-age homes, about one-third
of the residents had died since he left, including 24 percent
of the participants who had not learned meditation. Among
the meditative group, however, the death rate was zero. These people  had now lived to an average age of 84, one
of the rarest and loveliest instances where science has
performed an experiment that immediately conferred the
gift of life. Although limited in scope, this is one of the most
hopeful results in the whole aging ﬁeld and a victory for the
rishis’ shortcut. It says that expanding your awareness is
enough to extend your life. What will be the life span of
meditators who began in their twenties instead of their
eighties. Time will tell. —
The assumption that smothers life is to feel that you are a
prisoner in your body. The human body seems to work in a
mechanical fashion. One of the best studied of its
mechanisms is the homeostatic feedback loop, a self-
regulating device like that used in thermostats. A
thermostat is given a set point, such as 70 degrees F.,
which is like the set point of body temperature. The
apparatus is sensitive to a temperature range extending a
few degrees too high or too low. By turning the heat or air
conditioning on or oﬀ, it maintains a nearly even
temperature. The know-how in a thermostat is quite
limited; you could call it an intelligent switch, but it has
only one idea on its mind, whereas the body’s feedback
loops manage to balance not just body temperature but
blood pressure, water levels in the cells, glucose
metabolism, oxygen and carbon dioxide concen trations,
and on and on, not leavi ng out the thousands of separate
chemicals produced with exquisite precision every where in
the physiology. Since the thermostat always returns to its norm and so
does the body, isn’t this a kind of hard-wiring that cannot
be denied, that in fact is necessary to our existence. The
greatest of nineteenth-century physiologists, Claude
Bernard, made the famou s statement, “Free life is the ﬁxity
of our interior milieu”—i n other words, the ability of our
thermostats to hold their position makes us free. Brilliant
as this insight was, a drastic mistake has crept in with it. When a thermostat sense s that the room is 65 degrees or
75 instead of 70, those variations are mistakes;  only 70
degrees is right. In us, on the other hand, many settings
can be right; normal is just the point we return to most of
the time. If you ran a marathon without your blood
pressure, heart rate, glucose metabolism, and sweatproduction rising drastic ally above “normal,” you would
collapse. “Normal” is just the zone we like to live in. It is not a rule
but a preference. The Tarahumara Indians, perhaps
because they descend from ancient runners who carried
messages across the Andes to the Incan empire, have
adjusted to a “normal” that is diﬀerent from ours, more
suited to their way of life. In deﬁance of a meager diet,
what they wanted to do—to run ﬁfty miles a day—w as more
important than mere bodily norms. Their bodies adapted to
intelligence, no questions asked, and not the other way
around. Thanks to the habit of following one style of living,
it may be diﬀicult to adapt instantly when the mind desires
a change—o bese people should not jump from their
armchairs to join marathons—but the power of adaptation
can never be totally sacriﬁced. For all our internal “hard-
wiring” and thousands of homeostatic mechanism s, we can
change our skills, forget them, acquire new ones, and so
on


will look forward to and be excited by the challenges in your life. Help ot hers to solve their pr oblems by teaching them the creative
response. T each and use the creative response at work and in your home
life. T ea ch your children how to  perceive their challenges as opportunities
for crea tivity. Flexibility and creativity are the keys to e volutionary
progress. Even in Darwinian te rms, those who are able to adapt survive. Adaptation first requires flexi bility, then creativity. Every evolutionary
jump is a quantum leap in creativity. When you cultivate fle xibility and
practice the creative response you will notice how much younger, more
flexible, and more adaptable you become.<|eot_id|><|begin_of_text|>
Q: What is the first step in releasing toxic habits?,
A: Meditating regularly and avoiding toxic substances and emotions.
Q: How can you increase your daily water intake?,
A: Divide your weight in pounds by two and drink that many ounces of water per day.
Q: What is the secret to longevity, according to Vedic wisdom?,
A: Letting go of attachments and embracing change, and recognizing that love is essential for life.
Q: What is the key to reversing the aging process?,
A: Cultivating flexibility and creativity in consciousness, as well as a willingness to let go of attachments and negativity.
Q: What is the ultimate truth of existence, according to spiritual traditions?,
A: Unity is the ultimate truth of all existence, and love is the key to accessing this unity and reversing the aging process.<|eot_id|><|begin_of_text|>Investing the time and attentio n to create
physical, emotional, and spiritu al intimacy can often result in the most
fulfilling sexual experiences of a person’ s life. T o improve your sexual experiences, you need to divest yourself of your
expectations. Expectations are usually in three areas: (1) performance, as
exemplified by  the question “How am I doing?”; (2) emotions, as
exemplified by the question “ How am I feeling?”; and (3) security, as
exemplified by the question “Do you really love me?” These are
understandable concerns when exploring intimacy with your partner. They
also pro vide a unique opportunity to express your vulnerabilities and create
more intimacy. Intimacy derives  from the willingness to be vulnerable. Ask
for what  you need and give to y our lover what he or she needs. Openness,
vulnerability, the willingness to give, and the readiness to receive are all
qualities of spirit. Relinquish your expectations. When you relinquish your expectations,
you are able to release your resistance. Y our resistance keeps you from
enjoying what is happening. In sex, as in all areas of life, resistance is born
of fear. All resistance is mental a nd derives from a judgment against what is
being felt. Practice releasing your judgments and releasing your
expectations and you will experience the passion and surrender that sex
of fers. The concentrated passio n of sexual lovemaking then permeates all
other aspects of your life. If you find that sex is mixed with hidden emotions such as sha me, guilt,
or a nger, commit to releasing these toxic and inhibiting feelings. Sexual
intimacy is one road to the experience of true freedom, becau se it is one
area of life in which you can become completely uninhibited and free. Sexual fulfillment occurs when the experience comes from playfulness
instead of need. When sex is u sed to fulfill needs, it leads to addiction. When sex comes from playfulness, the result is ecstasy. Despite what you may have been conditioned to believe,
sexual desir e is sacr ed and virtuous. FOR PLA Y
Sex is most enjoyable and creates the greatest amount of love and intimacy
when it is viewed as a process rather than as a goal. W ester n society is
dominated by a goal-oriented worldview. Both men and women are
conditioned to achieve whatever goal is established, as directly, quickly, and
ef ficiently as possible. This at titude plays itself out in our lovemaking
where w e’ve lea rned to prize s exual climax as the sole tar get of physical
intimacy. Althou gh every lover relishes the pleasure of or gasm, the ancient
wisdom traditions of India and China suggest that playing with sexual
ener gy a nd extending the process of lovemaking expands the heart, mind,
and spirit, while intensely enric hing physical delight. Known as T antra in
India and the T ao of Sex in traditional Chinese culture, the basic principles
for conscious lovemaking include ritual, communication, and finesse. RITUAL
If yo u view sex as a sacred act, you will understand the value of  ritual. T ake
the t ime to prepare yourself for lovemaking as if you were jou rneying to a
realm of celestial pleasure. Bath e yourself and prepare your bod y and mind
for t he s haring o f your most pe rsonal gifts. Set the lovemaking scene with
attention to all t he senses. Read inspiring love poems to your p artner. Play
beautiful music  that arouses your passions and opens your heart. (See
appendix for our recommendations.) W ear sensual clothing, employ subtle
lighting with candles, and dif fuse pleasing aromas in the room. Look into
your lover ’ s eyes and silently o r aloud acknowledge the gift of engaging
intimately with your partner. When y ou consider sexuality as simply another physiologica l need, it
only ser ves that  purpose. Recognizing that unlike your animal ancestors,you hav e the ability to channel creative sexual ener gy to expand your heart
and raise your consciousness, you can use rituals to focus your attention and
intention. T ransforming an exc hange between two people from an act of
pure biology to one of body, mind, and spirit generates passion, vitality, and
ecstasy. COMMUNICA TION
Communicate your feelings and  needs to your partner, before, during, and
after sex. Expres s what brings you pleasure and what you need to feel safe,
adored, and aroused. Reorient y our intention from simply releasing sexual
pressure to celebrating the process. Prolonging the act of lovemaking has
ener gy-enhancing ef fects on mind and body. Inform your partner when you
are a bout to clim ax and slow d own the tempo to expand and prolong the
pleasure. Lovem aking is a danc e of body, mind, and soul that c an continue
twenty-four hours a day in physical, emotional, and spiritual domains. Sexual ecstasy is nourished through your willingness to be vulnerable. Asking for what you need to fulfill your deepest desires and fantasies
requires your willingness to be  vulnerable. Through this vulnerability the
boundaries betw een “I” and “thou” and between body and s oul become
blurred. This is the essence of a spiritual experience and the promise of
conscious lovemaking. FINESSE
Like me ditation, lovemaking is  a domain where force, ef fort, and control
fail to result in s uccess and fulfillment. Subtlety, timing, and finesse are the
essence of rapturous lovemakin g. The blossoming of sexual bliss requires
total atte ntion in  the present mo ment and openness to creativity. Sex can be
a too l fo r person al transformatio n when you listen to the signals from your
body an d the body of your lover  and use them to surrender and release yourresistance and fear. Lovemaking  provides access to personal, collective, and
universal domai ns of awareness. Every loving couple is reenacting the
perennial myths of love; every loving couple is reenacting the  reunion of
souls. In  T raditional Chinese Medicine, lovemaking is an opportunity for
the p rimordial inward moving ( yin) and outward moving (yang) forces to
balance. In A yurveda and T antra, sexual union is the personalized
expression of the eternal dance between the impulses of pure potentiality
(Shiva) and creative expression (Shakti). T rue intimacy is union between flesh and flesh, between heart and heart,
between soul and soul. Sexual ener gy is the creative ener gy of the universe. Sexual ener gy is sacred ener gy. When we have restored the sexual
experience to the realm of the s acred, our world becomes divine, holy, and
healed. Thr ough the vulnerability of sexual intimacy,
the boundaries between “I” and “thou” and
between body and soul become blurr ed. Ojas—the Essence of Love
Y ou hav e been using the mantr a ojas in your daily ritual to pe rceive your
body as a field of ener gy, transformation, and intelligence. This subtle
substance is nourishing to your physical, emotional, and spiritu al bodies. It
provides the integrating essence that unifies all aspects of your being. According to A yurveda, we are born with a small reserve of ojas that can
be augmented or depleted as a result of nourishing or toxic e xperiences. Healthy food, loving emotions, nurturing sensory impressions, r ejuvenating
herbs, and creative use of sexu al ener gy all contribute to more abundant
ojas. Ojas reminds every cell in the body of its primary directiv e to support
the wholeness of the mind/body  network. It also strengthens y


 longings for emotional and creative fulllment, although these
are, of course, part of the deeper and more essential desire. This
longing comes  from sensing that another, more fullling state of
consciousness and a larger capacity to experience life must exist. As you translate this longing into conscious terms, you may
become involved in confusion and contradiction. Confusions and
apparent contr adictions come from the dualistic consciousness of
the human mind. The dualism is always present, for humans
perceive reality in terms of either/or, good or bad, right or wrong,
black or white. This way of perceiving life is at best only half true:
One can perceive only fragments of reality; the full truth  can never
be found. Truth always comprises more than what the dualistic way
of seeing reality can grasp. One confusion  might be: “Am I longing for something unreal? Would it be perhaps more realistic and more mature to give up this
longing and accept that life is just this at, dismal, gray place? Do
we not hear over and over that acceptance is necessary in order to
be at peace with oneself and life? Therefore I should really abandon
this longing.”
The way out of your confusio n can only be found when you take a
step beyond the dualism implicit in this dilemma. It is true that you
must accept your present state. It is true that life, as it manifests,
cannot be perfect. Yet this fact is not what truly makes you
unhappy, rather it is your demand that life should be perfect and be
handed to you in its perfection that creates a problem. If you go
deeply enough, you will inevitably discover that there is a part of
you that denies pain and frustration; a place where you are angry
and spiteful because there is no loving authority who will eliminate
undesirable experiences for you. Thus it is true that your longing for
this utopian kind of happier state is unrealistic and should be
abandoned. The False DesireBut does this truly mean that the longing per se stems from
immature, greedy, or neuroti c attitudes? No, my friends, it does not. There is an inner voice tellin g you there is much, much more to your
life and yourself than you are capable of experiencing at this time. How then can we nd clarity  about what is real and what is false
about your deepest longin g? The desire is false when your
personality wishes love and fulllment, perfection and happiness, or
pleasure and creative expansion without paying the price of strictest
self-confrontation. It is false when you do not assume the
responsibility for your prese nt state, or the state you long for. For
example, if you feel sorry for yourself because of your unfullled
life, and if you in any way blame others for your present state, no
matter how wrong those others may be, whether your parents, your
peers, your associates, or life as a whole, then you do not assume
responsibility. If this is the case, then in some way you also wish to
receive the new and better state as an unearned reward. You may
try to be a good little obedient follower of a powerful authority
gure in order to be rewarded. Since the reward in reality can never
come from the outside, no matter what you do, you must feel
disappointed, resentful, cheated, and angry, and you will resort
again and again to your old, destructive patterns that are in fact
responsible for the state that creates your unfullled longing. The Realistic Longing
The longing is realistic when you start from the premise that the
clue to fulllment must lie in you; when you wish to nd the attitudes
in you that prevent you from experiencing life in a fullled and
meaningful way; when you interpret the longing as a message from
the core of your inner being, sending you on a path that helps you
to nd your real self. However, when the inner message of longing is misinterpreted by
the negative, greedy, ungiving and demanding personality,
confusion sets in. The longing is then put into channels of
unrealizable fantasies of magic. You believe fulllment is supposedto be given to you, rather than attained through the courage and
honesty of looking at yourse lf as you now are, even at areas you
would rather avoid. If a life situation is painful and you react with
rage, complain ts, and other defenses against cleanly experiencing
this pain, you are not in truth about your present state. But if you
just let the pain be and feel it, without playing games like “it will
annihilate me,” or “it will last forever,” the experience will release
powerful creative energies to increasingly work for you in your life
and open the channels to your spiritual self. Feeling the pain will
also yield a deeper, fuller, and wiser understandin g of the
connections between cause and eect. For instance, you will see
how you attracted this particular pain. Such insight may not come
immediately, for the more you force it, the more it will elude you. But it will come if you stop the inner ghting and resisting. Do not abandon the longing itself. Take it seriou sly. In fact, cultivate
it and learn to understand it, so that you will follow its message and
take the inner  path to your core; go through that part which you
want to avoid, which is the real culprit solely responsib le for your
less than fullled and joyful state. Do not abando n the longing that comes from the sense that your
life could be much more, that there is a state in which you can live
without painfu l, tortured confusions, where you can function on a
level of inner resilience, contentment, and security, where you are
capable of deep feelings, of blissful pleasure and can express them,
where you are capable of meeting life without fear because you no
longer fear yourself. You will, therefore, nd life, even its problems,
a joyful challenge. If your inner problems can become a challenge
that gives spice to your life, the ensuing peace will be all the more
sweet. The tackling of these problems will give you a sense of your
own strength, resourcefulness, and creative ability. You will feel the
spiritual self owing through your veins, in your thoughts, in your
vision and your perceptions, so that decisions will be made from the
center of your being. When you live this way, occasional outer
problems are the salt of your life and become almost pleasurable. But the times of outer problems will become less frequent, and
peaceful, joyous, creative living will become the norm.Learning to Endure the State of Bliss
Right now, the saddest part of your longing is that deep inside
you know how your own body and soul are not even capable of
accepting and sustaining intense pleasure at this time. Pleasure
exists on all levels: spiritual, physical, emotional, and mental. However, spiritual pleasure, separated from the levels of everyday
functioning, is an illusion, because true spiritual bliss encompasses
the total personality. The personality must therefore learn to endure
a state of bliss. This it cannot  do unless it learns to endure whatever
is locked inside the psyche now: pain, meanness, malice, hate,
suering, guilt, fear, terror. All these must be transcen ded. Then,
and then only, can the human personality function in a blissful
state. Your longing to experie nce more pleasure is a message for you
to embark on a road that aords you the possibility of being in bliss. The state of existence I described need not be given up as
unrealistic or wishful thinking. It need not be given up because you
will earn it and make it your own by going through whatever in you
prevents you from experien cing it. This state already exists as a
dormant potential within you. It is not something that can be given
to you by others, or acquired through learning or eort. It unfolds
organically as a byproduct of your going on a path such as I am
privileged to show you. This brings us to the whole  question of what this path is. This
path is not new: It has existe d in many dierent forms for as long as
human beings  have lived on this earth. The forms and the ways
must change as humanity evolves, but the fundamental path
remains the same. The particular path—the “Pathwork”—in which I
guide you is anchored in ancient and perennial wisdom and yet it is
also new. It oers help for your psychological and spirit ual growth
at this present, critical stage in humanity’s evolution. The Pathwork and PsychotherapyThe pathwork is not psychotherapy, although aspects of it must
necessarily deal with areas psychotherapy also deals with. In the
framework of the pathwork,  the psychological approach is only a
side issue, a way of getting through obstructions. It is essential to
deal with confusions, inner misconceptions, misunderstandings,
destructive attitudes, aliena ting defenses, negative emotions, and
paralyzed feelings, all of which psychotherapy also attem pts to do
and even posits as its ultimat e goal. In contrast, the pathwork enters
its most important phase only after this rst


ented orris root powder,
thickening arrowroot powder, purifying  amla, neem and
sandalwood for their antiseptic properties, and  reetha  or soap nut. Shikakai,  literally “fruit for hair” is another traditional shampoo in
the f orm of a paste: made from  Acacia concinna  bark that contains
high lev els of saponins or foaming agents, it is a mild clean ser. Whilst the lather is rather weak, it has anaturally low pH, so does
not strip hair of  its natural oils. It also acts as a de-tangler and  is a
useful anti-dandruf f tool. Another ancient custom for healthy hair and scalp often given
on a daily basis is an Indian head massage (see page 26). Less time
intensive is a quick application of hair oil: there are liter ally
hundreds of such oils on the market as Indians believe that they help
hair gro w luxuriantly thick, soft and glossy. In addition, they are
supposed to soothe and invigorate the sense or gans and even
remove wrinkles from the face! Popular hair oils contain
bhringaraj,  brahmi  and  amla, often combined with other
strengthening, conditioning and antiseptic herbs and plants. Regenerating for hair and stimulating for the scalp, a henna conditioning treatment
is a staple at many  Indian beauty salons. After application, the paste rests on the
head for half an hour, then is washed of f with lukewarm water.A plant much used in Indian hair care is  mehndi  or henna
(Lawsonia inermis). Antiseptic and nutritious, it is a popular hair
conditioner and gives grey hair a red-orange tint. It has the abilit y to
coat the hair sha ft, thereby protecting and thickening hair. “One of
India’ s age-old beauty secrets is a henna conditioner,” says herbal
beauty advocate, Shahnaz Husain, “Made from henna paste, mixed
with lem on juice, egg and yog urt, it cleanses and conditions hair,
promotes new hair growth and restores good health to the scalp.”
She goe s on to add that, unlike chemical deter gents, it doesn’ t
destroy t he natur al acid nature o f the scalp and leaves hair shiny and
supple. Essential oil of henna is also very cooling on the head. The resin of the  Boswellia serrata  tree is collected in a manner similar to rubber
tapping; the harvested gum is then ground into a powder and used in a charcoal
burner to scent the hair. More commonly known as frankincense, the powder is
also used in religious rites and perfumery. A variety of hair cleansing and conditioning routines are
available at Shahnaz Husain salons and day spas — and over -the-
counter conditio ners, rinses and tonics are plentiful in her 100
percent herbal range. Many other Indian spas of fer the sublime headmassage, often as part of a face or body ritual, and a wonderful treat
for dry, dehydrated and sensiti ve scalp and hair is the Ananda’ s
aromatic hot oil treatment with pure essence of lavender, geranium
and rosemary. For a four -prong ed treat, Neemrana Spa’ s heavenly  sirolepam
is a mus t: T aken  from the word s,  siro  meaning “head” and  lepam
translating as “pack”, the treatment (see photos on previous page)
includes a head, neck, face and shoulder massage along with a head
pack to stimulate hair growth and revitalize the brain. the art of mehndi
The application of  mehndi  (henna) as a colorant on ha ir,
hands and nails is a time-hon ored tradition in India. W ith its
origins in Egypt,  mehndi  was also extensively used in the
Middle East, probably as a cooling device. Coming from the
Lawsonia inermis  shrub, it is known as  madayantika  in
Sanskrit. The small leaves, crushed into a powder and mixed
with water and a little bit of sugar, makes a dark green paste
that turns orange when applied to the skin. Mehndi  has anti- irritant, deodorant and antiseptic properties, and is
used by A yurved ic physicians for skin irritations such as heat rashes
and skin  aller gie s. The paste is also used as an antidote against heat
and sunstroke and, in the past, the leaves were applied to bring
down hi gh fever s. T oday, it ma y be applied to the body during the
intense h eat of the day, and peo ple embarking on a long walk often
apply it on the  soles of feet. Because of its cooling proper ties,
mehndi  leaves and flowers are made into  lotions and ointments that
are u sed externally for boils, bu rns, bruises and skin inflammations. Antiseptic and nutritious to th e head also, it is used as a hair
conditioner and gives grey hair a red/orange tint.Historically, there are many references to this versatile plant. The Muslim prophet Mohammed used  mehndi  for heali ng and he
also dye d his hair and beard with  it. It is recorded in the  Qu’ran  that
his wife and daughters used henna for decoration on occasions such
as Eid celebrati ons and weddings. Some Muslim girls are na med
after the  mehndi  plant. Its small intensely fragrant white flowers
make a wonderfully strong-smelling perfume that is favored by both
men and women. Over time, henna developed into a popular beauty aid, and the
application of  mehndi  in intricate patterns on palms and feet is still
an integ ral part of both Muslim  and Hindu marriage ceremonies. It
is co nsidered a s ign of love — the darker the coloration, the gre ater
the love of the groom for the bride. Sometimes, the  mehndi  is applied with the name of the
husband-to-be h idden in the pattern; if he can’ t find it, he has to pay
a for feit! Often applied with the  singing of songs, there are multiple
patterns, most of which have cultural associations. In Rajasthan
where these photos were taken, patterns typically have lines of v-shaped leaves, peacock feather patterning, a  bhandhej  (tie-dye)
pattern, little acacia leaves and a  laheria  pattern (this literally
translates as “waves of the sea” and is found in geometric or floral
patterns on brightly colored Rajasthani saris). Drawings, powder, paste and examples of henna patterns on hands and feet
photographed at the resort of Amanbagh in Rajasthan. The spa manager at the
Aman spa there learned the art of  mehndi  application from her grandmother:
Using a cone simila r to the type of apparatus used for icing a cake, she painted
hands and feet in intricate patterns. Different henna patterns indicate different
geographical locations and cultural associations. It isn’ t only at m arriages that women decorate their hands and
feet with  mehndi. Ma ny other festivals of fer an excuse for girls to
dress up and adorn themselves, and, increasingly, variations of
traditional patterns may be applied as tattoo-type insignias on other
parts of the body. Many visitors to India try a henna decoration at
least once. As i t is a safe, painless and non-permanent alterna tive
form of body o rnamentation that is gaining favor in the W est,
nowadays you’ll find henna artists in popular tourist destinations
such as beach resorts and bazaars all over India.In the past, large leaves were used for wrapping, as they encouraged swea ting,
thereby removing toxins from beneath the skin’s surface. Here, shiny banana
leaves have been used effectively; in today’ s spas, these have largely been
replaced by plastic, cloth, towels or cling wrap. body wraps
There is something immensely comforting about lying
swaddled in cloth, plastic or blankets while a warming,detoxifying pa ste is doing its work on your body. W ith  its
roots in  Indian bridal tradition, as brides always have a wrap
daily fo r a week prior to their wedding day, the body w rap
in Indi a employs a variety of ingredients. From fruits to
flowers, herbs, spices and clays, a body wrap can be deeply
nurturing. Whatever the wrap components, the idea is that the warmth of the
wrap allows ingredients to penetrate subcutaneously through the
pores of skin. Some wraps are prescribed for their preventative and
curative properties against col d and cough; others are used to
alleviate muscle aches, headaches and fever. Others use minerals
and ingredients  from the ocean such as seaweed to encourage
lymphatic drai nage. All aim to increase blood circulation,
encourage sweating to draw out unwanted toxins, cleanse internally
and on the body’ s surface, and leave skin soft and glowing. In a spa, a polish or scrub may precede a wrap: as skin has been
freshly exfol


 Microcosmic Orbit, and what is its significance?,
A: The Microcosmic Orbit is a process of energy circulation and transformation, which allows for the transformation of sexual energy into a higher form, enabling the woman to experience new and intense pleasure.<|eot_id|><|begin_of_text|>5.1 Deep  breathing issue s from  pelvic  and urogenital  diaphragm s.
1. Pelvic  Diaphragm
   The pelvic  diaphra gm is a muscular  wall that extends  across
the lower part of the  torso. It is suspen ded betw een the s ymphy ses
- 70 -Chapter  V
pubis  (pubic  bones)  in front  and the cocc yx (at the  bottom of the
spine)  in back. (Fig. 5.2) There are several  organs  that penetrat e
this mu scular  partition  as it lies bet ween the pelvic cavity  and the
perineum. These  organs  are the ureth ra, the vagina  and the rectu m.
One function  of the pelvic  diaphra gm is to suppor t these  organs :
therefor e, control  over  this diaphr agm provides  you with greater
control  over  these  orga ns. The pelvic  diaphra gm is also the  floor  of
the abdo minal  cavity, which contains  the stom ach, small and large
intestines,  liver  bladder  and kidney s. It lifts up  and helps  shape
these  vital organs. Anus
Pelvic Diaphra gm
Fig. 5.2 Pelvic  Diaphragm
2. Urogenital Diaphrag m
   At the  perineum, the  point  midway between the anus  and vagina
below the pelvic  diaphra gm, is another  muscular  diaphra gm, the
urogenit al diaphr agm. This is penetrat ed by the urethra, and on its
undersid e is attached  the shaft  of the  clitoris. (Fig. 5.3)
- 71 -Cultivating  Ovarian Power
Urethra
Ovar y
Bladder
Pelvic Diaphra gm
Hood of the Cl itoris
Urethra
Urogenital Di aphra gm
Clitora l Opening
 to the Vagina
Fig. 5.3 Urogenital  Diaphragm
    These  two diaphra gms seal and  hold  the life-force,  or Chi energ y
to preven t its escape  through  the lower openi ngs in the body  when
the openings  passing  throug h these  diaphr agms are  tightl y sealed,
Chi pressur e will be increased  in the  abdo men. When Chi pressu re
(pounds  per square  inch, or  psi) strength ens, it will invigorat e the
vital organs,  helping  to im prove  the flow of Chi  and blood. The im portance  of these  anatomical structures  will become
appare nt as you stud y the Universal  Tao S ystem in its entirety. As
previously  mentioned,  Iron Shirt  Chi Kung  exercises  also help to
develop  power and strength  in these  areas  and are a perfect
comple ment for  anyone seeking  a daily  regimen that  will assist in
the practice  of Ovarian  Kung  Fu. (See the section  at the end of this
book  entitled  “The  Universal  Tao Syst em” for  a furthe r descriptio n.)
- 72 -Chapter  V
D. Sacral and Cranial  Pumps mo ve Chi up the  Spine
    Containe d and protect ed within your spinal  colu mn and  skull  is
the very  “hea rt” of your nervous  system. (Fig. 5.4(a) ) Cushioning  it
is the  cerebrospi nal fluid, “cereb ro” for the head  and “spinal”  for the
vertebra e. This fluid,  as describe d by the Taoists  long  ago,  is
circulated  by two pumps. One  is located  in the  sacrum and  is know n
as the  Sacral  Pump. The other  is in the region  of your upper  neck
and head  and is kno wn as the Cranial  Pump. (Fig. 5.4(b))  Man y
people  who have  activated  these  pumps have  repo rted the
sensation  of a “big  bubbl e” of energ y traveling  up their  spine  during
Ovarian  Breathing. 1. Sacral Pump
    Taoists regar d the sacrum, containing  the Sacral Pum p, as  a
point  at w hich the sexual energy  com ing up from the ovaries  and
perineum can  be held  and then  transformed  as it is given  an upward
push. It can  be compared  with a way station  that refines  the ovaries’
energy, or Ching  Chi, as it circulates  in the body. If the  opening  of
the sacru m to the spinal  column (the  sacral  histus)  is blocked,  the
life-force  cannot  enter  and flow up to the  higher  center:
2. Cranial Pump
   The cranium of the  skull has long  been  regard ed by Taoists as a
major pump for the  circulation  of ener gy from  the lower centers  to
the higher  centers. Medic al researc h has recently  confirmed that
minute mo vements of the  joints of the  eight  cranial  bones  occur
during  breat hing. Cranial  movement is respo nsible  for the
productio n and function  of the  cerebr ospin al fluid  surroun ding the
brain  and spinal  cord,  and this is necessary  for normal nerve  and
energy  patterns  in the entire  body. Strength ening the cranial  joints
can increase  energ y and alleviate  sympto ms such  as headac hes,
sinus probl ems, visual disturba nces  and neck probl ems. - 73 -Cultivating  Ovarian Power
Cranial Pu mp
C-7
T-11
Sacral Pum p
Fig. 5.4(a) Natural Cu rvature
             of the Spine(b) Sacral Pu mp and
    Cranial Pu mp
- 74 -Chapter V
   In Taoism, cultivation  of the movement of  the pelvis,  perine um,
urogenit al disphra gm, anus,  and the Sacral and  Cranial  Pumps is
very important  and necessar y in helping  to mo ve the  sexual  energ y
up the spine. In Ovarian  Breathing,  we use the mind and  a slight  tensing  of
the neck and  jaw to help  activate  the Sacral  and Cranial  Pum ps. In
the Orgas mic Up ward Draw we use a stronge r power lock of the
neck,  teeth  and muscles, a deep  breath,  and eye movement to
assist in the activation  of these  pumps. E. Chi Muscle  assists in controlling  the flow of Chi. As we  have  alread y learned,  one of the ma in objectives  of the
Taoist practice  is to  increase  the flo w of Chi, our  life-force,  to our
organs  and glands. The Inner  Smile and  Micr ocosmic Orbit
Medit ation  are very  important  methods  of reachin g this objective,
especially  in the  Healing  Love  practice,  because  they  can help  you
open  the channel  through  which the sexual  energ y has to flo w up,
assisting  you in controlling  the flow of sexual  power. However
without directing  sexual  healing  energ y to the  organs,  love making
beco mes a normal social act,  ending  up in  the loss and  depletion
of gland  and organ  ener gies. Crucial to  the ability  to control  this
flow of sexual ener gy is the  development  of a strong  Chi M uscle. 1. Perineum  Power
    Included  in the  perineum regio n are the anus  and sexual  organs. The perineum region  is kno wn as the  seat  of Yin (cold)  energ y, and
is closely  connect ed to the  organs  and glands. (Fig. 5.5) The
Chinese  term  for perine um, Hui-Y in, means the collection  point  of
all Yin energ y, or the lowest abdominal ener gy collection  point. It is
also kno wn as the Gate of Death  and Life. This point  lies bet ween
the two main gates. The front  gate,  or sexual organs’  gate,  is the
big life- force  openin g


amskaras beingreleased. They were stored with pain; they are going to release with pain—if
you let them. This is the pain that ends all pain. Chapter 31. Low-Hanging Fruit
The best way to let go of stored pocke ts of pain is to practice. Just as you
practice scales to learn the piano or practice a sport to get good at it, so you
practice letting go to learn how to do it. You start with simple things. We
call these the low-hanging fruit. There are many situations each day when
you create inner disturbance for absolutely no good reason. Bothering
yourself about the car in front of you does no good at all. It only makes you
tense and uptigh t. The cost-benefit analysis is one-hundred-perc ent cost and
zero benefit. Letting go of that tendency should be easy, but it’s not. You
will find that you’re in the habit of insisting and demanding that things
should be the way you want, even if it’s irrational. Things are the way they
are because of all the influences that made them that way. You are not going
to change the weather by complaining about it. If you are wise, you will
start to change your reactions to reality instead of fighting with reality. By
doing so, you will change your relationship with yoursel f and with
everything else. Start with the small things to prove to yourself that you are capable of
doing this. Working with yourself at this level is practicing letting go. Once
you are able to relax and release through the relatively easy stuff, you will
find you are better able to deal with the bigger situations. You are training
yourself to deal with yourself. Lots of differen t experiences in life fall into the low-hanging fruit
category. A good practice for letting go can be found in your relationship
with the weather. Believe it or not, you can use the weather for tremendous
spiritual growth. There’ s alway s weather out there: hot, cold, windy, dry,
humid, and everything in between. The weather has nothing to do with you. It has to do with the forces that are causing it to be the way it is. If you can’t
handle the weat her without getting disturbed, how are you going to handleanything else. Complaining about the weather is a perfect example of
something that has a one-hundred-percent cost and zero benefit. What do
you gain by complaining about the weather. Nothing, except to get upset. “I
couldn’ t handle the heat today. It was terrible. I was sweating. I hated it. ”
Congratulations, you didn’ t have a nice day, and it didn’ t change the
weather one bit. Eventually, you start to work with yourself. When your mind
complains about the weather, don’t fight with it. If you want, you can use
positive thinking. For example, when the mind starts up with, “It’s hot; I’m
so hot,” instead of getting into that, ask yourself, “How did it get hot. What
does that mean ‘it’s hot’. ” Use your mind to remind you that there’ s a star
ninety-three million miles away that is so hot you can actually feel its heat. That’ s amazing. Use your higher mind to appreciate and respect reality
instead of complaining about it. When you do this, you are willfully using
your mind for something positive and constructive. Y ou are raising yourself. Though this practice of positive  thinking is beneficial, ultimately, what
you need to do is relax and release past the disturbance. If you bother to
relax and release, you won’ t be so hot. After all, You in there can’t get hot—
you can only experience that the body is hot. You are way back inside,
witnessing the experience of heat. If you relax and release back into your
seat of consciou sness, you are relaxing away from the part of you that’s
complaining. There is definitely complaining going on in the mind, no
reason to deny that. But if you relax and lean away from where the noise is
coming from, you will be leaning back into the seat of Self. Two things happen when you relax and release. One, you stop fighting
with the causes of your disturbe d mind, and that gives them room to release. Two, you are actually relaxing back into the seat of Self, and you will grow
spiritually. If you will do that with the weather, if you will do that with the
car in front of you, if you will do that with all these low-hanging fruit
situations, you’l l grow every single day. The way to know that you are
working with low-hanging fruit is that the situation is resolved simply by
letting go inside. There is nothing else to do about it. You were the only
problem, and once you let go of creating the problem, the problem is solved. If you accept the weather, there’ s nothing else to do about it. If you accept
the myri ad meaningless things you have decided to bother yourself about,
there’ s nothing else to do about them. That’ s how you identify the low-
hanging fruit. In contrast, if you let go of your reactions to a situation and there is still
something in front of you to deal with, then you have some work to do
outside. If you lose your job and work with letting go of your negative
reaction, that’s good, but you still need to go out and look for a new job. Letting go does not absolve you of your responsibilities in life. You are not
letting go of life, you are letting  go of your personal reactions to life. Your
personal reactio ns do not help you deal with situations in a constructive
manner—they actually cloud your ability to make good decisions. When all is said and done, you’re going to find the majority of your
inner disturbance falls into the category of low-hanging fruit. The only
reason there’ s a problem is because you defined it that way. You are the
problem, and that can’ t be solved outside. It can only be solved inside. Chapter 32. The Past
You’re driving down the street and a billboard reminds you of something
that troubled you in the past. Perhaps it was an event that happened eight
years ago. What is the benefit of getting disturbed by that. You just ruined
your day for no good reason. Just because something bothered  you in the
past doesn’ t mean it should still be bothering you. After all, it’s no longer
happening. You think that since you don’t want to go through it again, you
need to remember how bad it was. That’ s like saying you need a doggy bag
for the food that made you sick so you can take it home, taste it each
morning, and remember how sick it made you. You would never do that
with bad food, so why do you do it with bad experiences. We are now ready to pay attenti on to another area that is very ripe for
spiritual growth, your past. You probably won’ t agree at first, but it also
falls under one-hundred-percent cost and zero benefit. Of what possible
benefit could it be to still be bothered by something that happened before
that isn’t happen ing now. It’s already over. There is zero benefit to being
bothered by something that is not even happening. On the other hand, there
is certai nly an amazing cost: your entire mental, emotional, and even
physical health. Instead, if you let experiences pass completely through you when they
are actually happening, they will touch you to the core of your being and
become part of you without leaving any scars. You will simply be able to
learn from the experience and grow. Once you fully digest an experience,
you will natural ly know how to deal with it should it happen again. If you
touched a hot stove when you were a child, you don’t have to keep the
painful experience in the forefront of your mind. You don’t need to always
remind yourself that stoves are hot and can hurt you. If you do that, you willhave made a samskara out of the experience instead of simply learning from
it. Don’ t worry, you will know darn well not to touch a hot stove again. Similarly, once you have learne d a sport or a musical instrument, you
don’t have to keep thinking about how to play—it becomes second nature. That means it has integrated into your whole being. It becomes totally
natural, and you never need to think about it again as you do it. That is how
all your past learning experiences should be, effortlessly there when you
actually need them, never bothering you when you don’t. If you process
your experiences properly, they will always be there to serve you, never to
haunt you. Perhaps this exercise will help you understand what it means to fully
process somethi ng instead of having to pass it through your thinking mind. Just for a moment, glance at the scene in front of you. How hard was it for
you to see it. Obviously, it took no effort at all; you just instantly saw it. What if the finest artist in the world called you on the phone  wanting to
paint what you saw, right then. How long would it take you to describe
everything to them. We’re talking about every color shade, reflection of
light, grain variation in the wood, every single detail. That would be a


149, 155, 162, 164, 174, 175, 187, 192, 193, 194, 195–196Premarin, 12, 14–16, 17, 23,
24–25, 68, 81–83, 86, 97,
182, 187–189, 193, 205
Prevacid, 40, 42Progesterone, 16, 18–20, 21,
22–23, 25, 26, 33, 39, 40–41, 42–44, 50–51, 54, 55, 57, 62, 65, 70, 71, 77, 80, 85, 87–88, 91, 92–93,
94–95, 96–97, 107–110,
111, 113, 117–118, 120, 128–129, 132, 133–134, 135, 138, 142–143, 144, 145, 146, 155, 157, 170, 174, 183, 185–186, 188, 189, 190, 195
Progestin, 19, 163, 188Prostate, 106–107Prostate cancer, 6, 23, 69, 72,
75, 77, 103, 105, 108, 110, 111–112, 179, 201
Provera, 81–82, 85, 163,
187–189, 205
Prozac, 161, 162Pygeum, 106
Receptor sites, 9, 21, 22, 50,
76, 88, 93, 98, 104, 110, 121, 189
Restless leg syndrome (RLS),
110, 136, 138
Rudman, Daniel, M.D., 177 219 INDEX
Ziac, 31, 162
Zinc, 106, 112Zocor, 30, 150, 152, 164, 194,
201
Zoloft, 162Thyroid stimulating hormone
(TSH), 31–32, 42
Thyrolar, 33T emporamandibular joint pain
(TMJ), 24, 63
Urinary incontinence, 88,
99–100
Uterine cancer, 19, 77, 81, 84,
85, 112, 163, 188, 189
Vaginal cancer, 19, 84
Vaginal dryness, 21, 87, 97
Vioxx, 151–152
Vitamin B, 202Vitamin D, 72–73, 112, 113Vitamin E, 112Vitamin K, 73Vytorin, 151, 164
Weight loss, 10–11, 18, 42, 44,
48, 49, 51, 54–55, 56, 64, 98, 101, 115, 116, 117, 123,
127, 128, 153–159, 161–164, 165–175, 181–184, 186–187, 191–197
Wellbutrin, 162
Wilson, Robert, M.D., 80Women’s Health Initiative, 5,
82–83, 187, 205<|eot_id|><|begin_of_text|>Summarize the following text section accurately and concisely. Maintain specific details and numerical information, and use anti-repetition mechanisms:

        Peoplewith hyperinsulinemia—which is perhaps the majority ofpeople with weight problems—will not be successful on thismeal plan. I had a patient for whom a half cup of split pea soupwould prevent her from burning fat for seven days. For somepeople, one piece of bread, one carrot stick, or one yam willprevent fat-burning for three days. Other low-carbohydrate plans give people the impression
they can eat as much protein as they want. But this is misleading. The body cannot store protein. Any excess protein the bodycan’t use or eliminate is converted into sugar for fat storage. In this situation, you can be burning fat (i. e., be in ketosis)and be storing fat at the same rate, and you will not belosing weight. 171 PERMANENT WEIGHT LOSS  ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS ON
WEIGHT LOSS
In order for the body to burn fat, you have to feed it and
water it. The first requirement means that you cannot skipany meals. The body requires fuel 24 hours a day: your heartis beating, you’re breathing, and there are thousands ofchemical reactions occurring all of the time. When you skipbreakfast, you are going without fuel for 15 hours. Inresponse, the body will automatically store fat for the next 24hours. So even if you are not hungry in the morning, it’sprobably wisest to eat. The other requirement is water. Fifty percent of your
body is water. You cannot burn fat without water. Keep an eyeon the color of your urine. If it’s yellow, you’re dehydrated. Drink more water. T ry to get your urine as clear as possible. Alcohol does not enhance weight loss. The body likes
alcohol as a fuel. It’s an easy fuel to burn, and it burns at sevencalories per gram, almost as much as fat. Given the choice, thebody will always burn alcohol before fat. The bottom line is:if you want your body to burn fat, don’t give it alcohol. There is an old wives’ tale that says if you want to lose
weight, you have to give up coffee. In actuality, caffeine maystimulate insulin production, though not in everybody. People with Syndrome X (high insulin, high triglycerides, andlow HDL cholesterol) traditionally have the worst problemwith caffeine in terms of insulin. T o find out whether you are burning fat, you can use
urine-testing strips called Ketostix, which are available inmost drugstores. The end-stage of fat metabolism producesketone bodies, and these are partially eliminated through thekidneys. If you have ketone bodies in your urine, the Ketostixwill change color, indicating you are burning fat. Everyone’s172 THE MIRACLE OF BIO-IDENTICAL HORMONES  metabolism is different, so using Ketostix will help you to find
out what you can get away with in your meal plan. CORTISOL AND WEIGHT
Recently, there has been a lot of attention on the relationship
between cortisol and fat. Listening to the advertisements on theradio and television, one could almost surmise that this is theonly cause of weight problems. Let me try to put this subject inperspective. The body’s main function in life is survival. Therefore, the body has become extremely efficient over theyears at creating and storing fat, which it considers the mostimportant fuel for survival. The adrenal glands also aid in survival, since in times of
extreme stress they produce hormones that help the bodyeither fight a predator or escape. This system worked prettywell in the caveman days. After a cave person saw a saber-toothed tiger, his or her adrenal glands would produce cortisol,which would raise sugar levels to give the muscles energy forfight or flight. They would also release adrenaline to giveadditional energy, or to stimulate fat cells to release fat for evenmore energy. However, this system is set up for a stress reactionlasting about ten minutes. In this day and age, people are subjected to stress
continuously—at work, while driving, meeting deadlines,and so on. In these situations, the adrenal glands may becontinuously putting out cortisol, which is continuouslyraising sugar levels, which is continuously raising insulinlevels, which is continuously creating fat. Whether or not cortisol is a major source of weight
problems in people is not entirely clear. Suffice to say, however,that high cortisol levels do not promote weight loss. 173 PERMANENT WEIGHT LOSS  Stress is never good for the body. The more in balance you
are with your hormones and your environment, the healthieryou will be. Look for areas in your life that are giving younegative energy and eliminate them. Eliminate timeconstraints, if you can. Say “no” to road rage. One last point: exercise is a great way to reduce excess
adrenal hormones and reduce stress, and maybe help withweight loss. THE MAINTENANCE PHASE
In my practice, when patients reach their goal weight, they
enter the second phase of the program, which is geared towardpreventing fat from returning to the body. As long as a personlimits the amount of carbohydrates to the amount of sugarrequired by muscle tissue, excess carbohydrates will not bestored as fat. In this regard, the amount of exercise a personengages in is the main determinant of weight maintenance. Thebody’s priority is to replace any sugar that the muscles haveburned with sugar—it’s a survival thing. The more sugar(as glycogen) the muscles have burned, the more thecarbohydrates you eat will go into muscle rather than beingstored as fat. If people do not want to exercise, they have to be more
aware of their carbohydrate intake. People who produce excessinsulin because of Syndrome X may require medication (e. g.,metformin, also known as Glucophage) or supplements (e.<|eot_id|><|begin_of_text|>
Q:


;  every thought is followed by a new inspiration. How, then,
can we learn to live within this continuity that is the wholen ess of life? What about a parent’ s emotional devastation when a child dies, or a wife’ s
when she loses her husband? These feelings are natural, of course; there is pain at the loss of anyone
we love. But the pain does not have to be deep and enduring if you have
absorbed the reality of life as an eternal flow in which there is no loss or
gain, only transf ormation. In one of his sonnets Shakespeare wrote, “I weep
to have what I fear to lose”—this is the inevitable result of attachment to
time-bound awareness. The new paradigm holds that aware ness is the
source of reality, and two wholly  different kinds of reality resul t from time-
bound and timeless awareness. RESUL TS OF TIME-
BOUND A WARENESSRESUL TS OF TIMELESS
AWARENESS
aging freedom, autonomy
entropy youthfulness
confusion knowledge of reality
fatigue unbounded ener gy
repression liberated emotions
feeling of victimization expansion beyond body and
ego
separation anxiety peace
conflict power
grief, sorrow harmony
imprisonment in ego and
bodyjoy
fear
death  All of us experi ence aspects of both realities, because our awareness is
fluid: It can bring us devastating moments of grief and fear and wonderful
moments of peace and power. It can choose to identify with the limitations
of a physical body and a selfish ego or it can break free into transcendence
and expansiveness. This flexibi lity is the true genius of human awareness,
because it leaves all possibili ties open. Yet obviously there are great
advantages to living permanently in timeless awareness. India’ s spiritual masters believe there is a natural tendency for the human
spirit to seek unlimited freedom and fulfillment. Like the Gulf Stream
invisibly pushing its way through the Atlantic, our human minds contain
hidden currents ur ging our thoughts and emotions toward a higher reality. In
India this is called dharma,  an ancient Sanskrit word that can be translated
in various ways. It means law, orderliness, duty, and right behavior. A
person’ s dharma is his work or profession; it is also the duty he owes his
family, the higher purpose in his life, and the spiritual ideal to which he is
committed. The root word of “dharma” is a verb that means “to uphold.” In the
broadest sense, dharma is what upholds the universe; it is the guiding force
that makes order out of chaos. Thus, the ultimate way to avoid entropy,
aging, and death is to live in dharma. The universe evolves because the
stream of dharma guides it; it is the invisible intelligence that weaves the
fabric of life. Human awareness is capable of touching dharma  directly, of
latching onto it and thus guiding its own evolution. This, finally, is what
makes us human—that we not only evolve but guide our own evolution. Dharma is not a set of religious teachings but an actual force that can be
discovered and used. In the following In Practice section we will see how this can be
accomplished, for with consciou s guidance our inner intelligence can create
a permanent state of ageless body and timeless mind. All of us experience
moments when  peace, power, and love arise spontaneously, only to
disappear. Far from being random, this drift in and out of Reality reflects
the mind’ s ability to stay on course, for if dharma is followed steadily, there
is no end to peace, love, and power. They are the natural results of the most
natural kind of awareness—timelessness.For me the great joy of writing  this book was to take a subject fraught
with fear—agin g—and make it a vehicle for fulfillment. Humans are not
trapped in time, squeezed into the volume of a body and the span of a
lifetime. We are voyagers on the infinite river of life. This is what Christ
meant when he counseled, “Be in the world but not of it.” This is what
Carlos Castaneda learned from Don Juan when he wrote, “Gone was his
feeling of detac hment, which was what had given him the power to love. Without that detachment, he had only mundane needs, desperation, and
hopelessness: the distinctive features of the world of everyday life.”
Although we often identify love with clinging and possessiveness, there
is a deep truth here: to lose the power of detachment means losing the
ability to love. Detachment is not cold disinterest or lack of feeling. Detachment is a free sense of self unhindered by boundaries. Our voyage
does not begin or end in the physical world. Earth is a beautiful  green-and-
blue jewel hung upon the tapestr y of eternity. However long we stay here to
drink the pure water and breathe the life-giving air, eternity is more truly
our home. We are of timeless essence. We were born in the bottomless pool that
sends up bubbles of time and space. One bubble is a moment, another is a
millennium. But the pool itself is pure spirit, and no matter how many stars
and galaxies rise from it and burst on the surface like fragile foam, nothing
has been taken away or added. Being is deep, clear, permanent, ever the
same. It is amazing to think that our everyday existence springs from this
infinitely renew able source, but life has no other basis. Unbounded
intelligence, freedom, and power are inherent in the unified field that
Einstein and the ancient sages shared in their vision. Immortality dawns
when you realiz e that you deser ve your place in the eternal flow. Knowing
this, you can claim your immortality here and now, in every second, for
time is nothing  but quantified immortality. Nature waits to lavish this
supreme gift upon you. Having nourished us for millions of years, the sea,
the air, and the sun are still singing the song we must begin to appreciate
once more. What is Nature saying all aroun d us, in the space between our atoms and
pervading every thought? The same breath, the same silent whisper courses
through every cell. It is the rhythm of life itself, calling to each of us withgentle insistence. I cherish a verse from the ancient Rig V eda that articulates
this eternal song:
Although my spirit may wand er the four corners of the
earth,
Let it come back to me again so that I may live and journey
here. Although my spirit may go far away over the sea,
Let it come back to me again so that I may live and journey
here. Although my spirit may go far away to the flashing beams
of light,
Let it come back to me again so that I may live and journey
here. Although my spirit may go far away to visit the sun and the
dawn,
Let it come back to me again so that I may live and journey
here. Although my spirit may wander over the lofty mountains,
Let it come back to me again so that I may live and journey
here. Although my spirit may go far away into all forms that live
and move,
Let it come back to me again so that I may live and journey
here. Although my spirit may go far away to distant realms,
Let it come back to me again so that I may live and journey
here. Although my spirit may go far away to all that is and is to
be,Let it come back to me again so that I may live and journey
here. Although my spirit may wander in the valley of death,
Let it come back to me again so that I may live and journey
here. Read this aloud  twice, then be with your body quietly for five minutes,
directing your awareness to every part of your body, knowing that this
awareness is Spirit. Spirit is healing energy, the flow of life and intelligence
in every cell. When we are once more attuned to the innate joy and delight
of our bodies, the signals of deep wisdom will reappear, creating healing
from within. An old Chinese poem by Chang-Tzu says:
That which fills the universe
I regard as my body,
And that which directs the universe,
I see as my own nature. I hear silent music in these words, reminding me that the cosm ic breath is
my next breath and the cosmic dance the next beat of my heart. OceanofPDF.comIN PRACTICE:
The Timeless Way
The deepest reality you are aware of is the one from which you draw your
power. For some one who is conscious only of the material world, power is
limited to material forces; but at a more profound level there is a creative
power shaping mind and body—the power of evolution, or dharma. To get
in touch  with the core of life, you have to get in touch with the creative
power of the universe. That power expresses itself through your personal
creativity. When  you are in the field of creativity, you lose track of time. Only the flow exists. There are three forces pervading all life: creation, maintenance, and
destruction. All three are present in the life span of cells, stars, trees,
planets, and galaxies, since every form must come into being, be
maintained, and pass away. Even though each life span unfolds in a
sequence over time, the three forces themselves exist simultaneously. The
genes of every species include the code for creating new cells,


Hyp.,Lack.,Sil. Toglands(breasts,testicles,etc.):Con. Tohead:Am. cold,inflamed,sensitive,stonyhardlumps,
swollen:Con. Tomuscles:Am. Tonervesnerve-richpartsofthebody:Hyp.,
Stap. Topalmofhandorsoleoffoot:Led. Toshins:Ruta. With:
shock(anxietyandfear):Aco. foreignbody:Sil. Scars:
becomelumpy:Sil. becomered:Lach. arepainful,breakopenandorsuppurate:
Sil. Better:
coldcompresses:Led. Worse:
heat:Led. touch:Hep-s.,Stap. Causes:
accident:Hyp.,Stap. afterdentaltreatment:Am.,Hyp.,Stap. childbirth:Stap. episiotomy:Hep-s.,Hyp.,Sil.,Stap. nails:Led. splinter:Hyp.,Led.,Sil. surgery:Am.,Hyp.,Sil.,Stap. InsectbitesseeBites/Stings
InsomniaAco.,Ars.,Bell.,Bell-p.,Calc-c,Calc-p.,
Cham.,Cocc,Coff.,Con.,Kali-c,Kali-p.,
Mag-c,Mag-m.,Nat-c,Nat-m.,Nit-ac,
Nux-v.,Op.,Pho-ac,Phos.,Puis.,Rhus-t.,
Sep.,Sil.,Sul. Dreams
anxious:Aco.,Ars.,Calc-c,Cocc,Kali-c,
Nat-c,Nat-m.,Nit-ac,Phos.,Puis. nightmares:Ars.,Cocc,Con.,Kali-c,Sil.,
Sul. vivid:Sil.,Sul. unpleasant:Sul. vivid:Nat-m.Sleep:
disturbed:Sul. restless:Aco.,Ars.,Bell.,Cocc,Puis.,
Rhus-t.,Sil.,Sul. unrefreshing:Mag-c.,Mag-m.,Nit-ac,
Pho-ac,Sul. Sleepless:Pho-ac. aftermidnight:Pho-ac,Rhus-t.,Sil. after2a.m.:Nit-ac. after3.a.m.:Bell-p.,Mag-c,Nux-v. afterwaking:Sil. beforemidnight:Con.,Kali-c
Waking:
around3a.m.:Nux-v.,Sep. difficult:Calc-p.
early:Nat-c,Nux-v.
frequent:Pho-ac,Puis.,Sul. fromcold:Puis. late:Calc-p.,Nux-v.,Sul. With:
emptyfeelinginpitofstomach:Kali-p.
grindingofteeth:Bell. sleepiness: Bell.,Cliam.,Op.,Phos.,Puis.,
Sep. Better:
shortnaps:Sul. Worse:
around1-2a.m. :Kali-c
after2a.m. :Nit-ac
after3a.m.:Bell-p.,Sep. after3,4,or5a.m.:Sul. aftermidnight:Ars.,Sil. beforemidnight:Calc-c,Calc-p.,Kali-c,
Puis. Causes:
alcohol:Nux-v.
anxiety:Ars.,Cocc,Kali-p.
coffee:Nux-v.
excitement:Kali-p.,Nux-v.
grief:Nat-m.
mentalstrain:Kali-p.,Nux-v.
nervousexhaustion:Kali-p.
over-activemind:Ars.,Calc<.,Coff.,Nux-v.,
Puis. over-excitement: Coff. overwork:Nux-v.
repeatingthoughts:Puis. shock:Ars. worry:Calc-c
Introspective (seealsoBroody;Morose;
Uncommunicative) Cocc,Ign.,Nat-c,Puis. IntrovertedNat-m. Irritable(seealsoAngry)Ant-c,Ap.,Ars.,Bry.,
Carb-v.,Caust.,Cham.,Cina,Ferr-m.,Hep-s.,
Kali-c,Kali-s.,Lye,Mag-c,Nat-c,Nat-m.,
Nit-ac,Nux-v.,Petr.,Pho-ac,Phos.,Puis.,
INTERNALREPERTORY Jointpain•187
Rhe.,Rhus-t.,Sep.,Sil.,Stap.,Sul.,Sul-ac,
Ver-a.,Zinc. Children:Cham.,Cina,Mag-c.
Beforestools:Bor. Onwaking:Lye
JealousAp.,Lach.,Puis. JointpainAp.,Am.,Bell-p.,Bty.,Calc-c.,Calc-p.,
Caul.,Caust.,Cham.,Colch.,Dulc,Ferr-m.,
Heps.,Kali-b.,Kali-c.,Kalis.,Led.,Lye.,
Mercs.,Nit-ac.,Puis.,Rhod.,Rhus-t.,Sul. Feetcold:Kalis. Joints:
icycold:Led. hot:Led. stiff:Led. Pains:
aching:Rhus-t.
acute:Colch. alternatingwith:
indigestion: Kali-b. cough:Kali-b. arms:Ferr-m.,Kali-c,Rhod. upper:Ferr-m.
inback:Caust. bones:Nit-ac,Puis.,Ruta. burning:Ap.,Caust.,Mercs.,Sul. cramping:Calc-c.
drawing:Rhod. feet:Colch.,Led.,Ruta. fingers:Heps. flyaround:Caul. gnawing:Caust. hands:Colch.,Led.,Ruta. hips:Heps.,Kali-c,Kalis. right:Led. irregular:Caul. injoints:Caust.,Puis. legs:Kali-c,Kalis.,Nit-ac,Rhod. lowerback:Ruta. inneck:Caust. partslainon:Ruta. pressing:Caust. pulling:Heps.,Puis. shoulders:Ferr-m.,Heps.,Kali-c,Rhod. left:Led. insmalljoints:Caul. inonespot:Kali-b. sore/bruised:Am.,Heps.,Kali-b.,Kali-c,
Puis.,Rhus-t.,Ruta. shooting:Rhus-t.
splinter-like: Nit-ac. stinging:Ap. stitching:Bry.,Caust.,Ferr-m.,Kali-c,Nit-ac. tearing:Caust.,Colch.,Ferr-m.,Heps.,
Kali-c,Lye,Mercs.,Nit-ac,Rhod.,
Rhus-t.,Sul.violent:Cham. wandering:Kali-b.,Kalis.,Puis. With:
heaviness:Rhus-t.
lameness:Rhus-t.,Ruta. numbness:Cham. restlesslegs:Kali-c.
stiffness:Caust.,Rhus-t.
swelling:Ap.,Bry.,Colch. weaknessofarms:Kali-c. Better:
afteracommoncold:Led. coldcompresses:Led.,Puis. coldbathing:Led. continuedmovement:Rhus-t.
freshair:Kalis.,Puis. gentlemovement:Ferr-m.,Puis. heat:Caust.,Heps.,Rhus-t.
movement:Dulc,Kali-c,Kalis.,Lye,
Rhod. pressure:Bry. completerest:Bry. stretchingoutlimb:Rhod. uncovering:Led. walking:Kali-c,Kalis.,Lye,Puis.,Rhus-t.
warmcompresses:Rhus-t.
warmth:Caust.,Colch. warmthofbed:Caust.,Lye,Rhus-t. Worse:
around2-3a.m.:Kali-c. inbed:Mercs. beginningtomove:Ferr-m.,Lye,Puis.,
Rhus-t.
bendingarmbackwards:Ferr-m.
changeofweather:Rhod. gettingchilled:Rhus-t.
cold:Bry.,Calc-p.,Colch.,Heps. dampweather:Rhus-t.
drycold:Caust. cold,wetweather:Calc-p.,Colch. afteracommoncold:Puis. duringafever:Lye,Rhus-t.
gettingupfromsitting:Caust. heat:Kalis.,Led.,Puis. liftingarmup:Ferr-m.
lyingonthepainfulpart:Kali-c.
night:Dulc,Led.,Mercs.,Nit-ac,Rhus-t.
slightestmovement:Bry. movement:Colch.,Led. sittingdown:Dulc,Lye,Rhus-t.,Rhod. stormyweather:Rhod. summer:Kalis. touch:Am. walking:Ruta.,Sul. warmweather:Colch. warmthofbed:Led.,Puis.,Sul. J
188Jumpy INTERNALREPERTORY
wetweather:Calc-c,Mercs.,Puis.,Rhod. wine:Led. Causes:
gettingchilledafterbeingveryhot:Bell-p.
gettingcold:Dulc,Heps. damp:Dulc. wetweather:Calc-r. Jumpy(seealsoAnxious;Restless)Bar-c,Bor.,
Kali-c,Kali-p.,Nat-c,Nats.,Phos.,Sil. LabourpainsCaul.,Cham.,Cimi.,Gels.,Kali-c,
Puis.,Sep. Pains:
inback:Gels.,Kali-c,Puis. distressing:Cham.,Gels.,Kali-c,Sep. flyingaround:Cimi. ineffectual:Caul.,Kali-c,Puis. irregular:Caul.,Puis. severe:Cham.,Sep. sore,bruised:Cimi. stop:Caul.,Cimi.,Kali-c,Puis. unbearable:Cham. weak:Cimi.,Gels.,Kali-c