ated lactic-acid fermented food fall in this
category, as do fresh edible ﬂowers, such as nasturtium, impatiens and (male) pumpkin ﬂowers. While the stamen of pumpkin ﬂowers
that bears the pollen is somewhat bitter, ﬂower petals are especially high in bioﬂavonoids, which help ﬁght and prevent allergies and
inﬂammations.
Pollen is one of the best foods or supplements available, a raw food rich in enzymes and hormones in addition to vitamins and
minerals. You may take one to three teaspoonfuls several times daily or use the lot to ﬂavor your freshly pressed vegetable or grass
juice. To make it easier to digest, soak the pollen in liquid for some time before ingestion. Alternatively, you may use a coffee grinder
to make it into a powder. It is also a good addition to yogurt or other food to be fermented.
Foods high in sulfur may be increased to improve detoxiﬁcation. Such foods include raw egg yolk, onion, horseradish, watercress,
turnip or other raw food of the cabbage family. Most of these are also helpful in treating digestive ulcers; horseradish can be used to
help treat mucus complaints. A supplement high in organic sulfur is MSM.
Bananas are good energy providers for those with a weak digestion. However, overripe Cavendish bananas (this is the most common
variety) often cause digestive discomfort or allergies in sensitive individuals. This problem is commonly caused by over-gassing the
bananas shortly before sale with ethylene gas to make them ripen very quickly. Ladyﬁnger bananas or other small varieties do not
normally cause problems. Sensitive individuals generally should avoid overripe fruit. Acid citrus fruits are excellent for improving liver
functions, high blood pressure, high blood sugar, cholesterol and fat levels in insensitive individuals.
Jerusalem artichokes in frequent small quantities are beneﬁcial for kidney functions and for those with diabetes. Eat about one the
size of an egg every other day. Store  Jerusalem artichokes in soil, not in the refrigerator. Also eating (organic) liver often helps those
with diabetes and so does eating avocados and green beans. Fruit and vegetables grown in your own area are generally more
health-giving than those grown far away.
Sprouted Seeds
Sprouted seeds and young shoots such as wheat grass provide a higher degree of vitality and rejuvenation than other foods. I
recommend sprouted seeds as a mainstay of a good diet. Most commonly used for sprouting are legumes such as lentils, peas,
mung beans, fenugreek and chickpeas but also almonds, peanuts and sunﬂower kernels may be spouted. Sunﬂower and buckwheat
seeds make a tasty salad when grown in seed boxes and cut close to the soil when 5-10 cm/2-4 inches high.
Home About Diseases Healing the Body Healing Foods Healing the Mind Healing the Emotions Energies Science & Spirituality Spirituality Contact10/30/24, 2:37 PM Health-Science-Spirit - Health Foods & Nutrients
https://health-science-spirit.com/Healing_Foods/Health-Foods-and-Nutrients.html 1/5Alfalfa sprouts are high in a detergent-like saponin that may damage the intestinal wall in sensitive individuals. They have been
shown to aggravate autoimmune diseases and possibly cancer. For others they may be a good food after allergy testing. Alfalfa
sprouts should be exposed to light after leaves have emerged while other sprouts usually taste better before leaves develop. Alfalfa
seeds easily rot in wet conditions. They are best sprouted in an upturned jar covered with muslin held in place with a strong rubber.
It is important to use seeds with a high germination power. Buy a small quantity for testing and if they sprout well buy a larger quantity
from the same source and keep them in an airtight container. Lentils and mung beans are easy to start with. Just soak the seeds
overnight and then rinse several times a day, drain well, spread out lightly and keep covered. Wash well again just before eating to
remove any bacteria and fungi. If seeds are of poor quality and start rotting easily, use them when the germs just start to appear,
otherwise wait until they are up to one inch long, which is usually within three days. Different compatible seeds may be germinated
together.
Mung beans may retain hard pieces after soaking that can damage the teeth. This can be avoided by pouring some boiling water
over the seeds initially and letting them soak in the cooling water. Peas and lentils, on the other hand, like it cool and sprouts easily
deteriorate in hot conditions. Sprouted seeds may be refrigerated in a closed container after they have reached the desired length.
Individuals who are rather sensitive to fungi and microbes may wash sprouted seeds in diluted hydrogen peroxide shortly before use.
If you have difﬁculty chewing or if sprouted seeds cause much wind, try using them as part of your fresh juice.
If seeds do not sprout well, the cause may be as follows:
•  Seeds may not be not viable - too old or poor storage
•  Temperature during sprouting is too high or too low
•  Seeds are kept too dry or too wet during sprouting
Experiment and adjust conditions.
Fermented Food
The use of fermented food was widespread in former centuries. Well-kno wn are yogurt, cheese, cottage cheese, beer, cider and cider
vinegar, pickles, miso, sauerkraut and sourdough bread.
The advantages of fermenting are several:
•  Minerals can be more easily absorbed
•  Enzyme inhibitors and other anti-nutrients are eliminated
•  The amount of vitamins and enzyme is greatly increased
•  It preserves the food and can introduce delicious ﬂavors
•  The food becomes much more easily digestible, being essentially a predigested food, suitable for anyone with a weak digestive
   system
However, there can be one drawback: some individuals are very sensitive to fermented products and should avoid fermented foods.
Today most traditionally fermented foods are commercially made by purely chemical means, for example, vinegar, pickles, cheese
and cottage cheese, baking products, and some beer and wine substitutes. This disuse of the fermentation process in preparing our
staple foods is a contributing factor in the cause of chronic diseases.
In all fermentation it is important that a desirable strain of bacteria develops. This depends on the bacteria already present or
introduced, as well as on the temperature during fermentation. Basically we want lactic-acid bacteria that convert glucose into lactic
acid. In order to ensure the development of pure bacterial cultures, the food is often heat-treated and then inoculated with the desired
strain. However, I believe the product is nutritionally superior if it has not been heat-treated.
Grains such as rye, oats, millet, wheat, brown rice, and vegetables  such as cabbage are best fermented at a warm room
temperature, while cultures containing yogurt or acidophilus bacteria do better between 300C and 400C (850 and 1050 F).
There is a distinction between the fermentation of yeast and that of lactic acid bacteria. Yeast fermentation is used in traditionally
made beer, wine and bread. Due to the overuse of antibiotics in recent decades, many individuals are now allergic or sensitive to
yeast. Therefore it is advisable for sensitive individuals to restrict yeast products and for others to abstain periodically or after
antibiotic treatment and test for incompatibility.
When fermentation is uncontrolled,  as it is for instance when making  sauerkraut or rejuvelac (water in which grains have been
soaked for several days), a mixture of lactic-acid bacteria and yeast usually develops. These products are not a problem for many,
but sensitive individuals need to watch out and may have to avoid them.
In making yogurt, sour milk, sour cream and cheeses the natural way, lactic-acid fermentation is the preferred method and still widely
used. However, due to the mucus-fo rming potential of lactose, these products should be used with caution, especially if made from
cow's milk. The curd causes less of a problem than the whey and goat's milk less than cow's milk. The whey contains most of the
lactose. Most commercial, fermented milk products are heat-treated and often very high in lactose, best avoided them.
On the other hand, as a health food seed cheese or seed yogurt may be used. This is commonly made from oily seeds such as nuts,
almonds or sunﬂower kernels by adding acidophilus culture to the soaked and blended seeds. Washing the seeds in diluted hydrogen
peroxide before blending can minimize contamination of the seed cheese with yeast, also adding a large amount of starter helps and
letting it ferment for only a short period. The same applies to sourdough baking, which is also recommended.
Do not use strongly fermenting products that have become very sour. You may discard the whey and wash the curd to make it
acceptable. Nevertheless, do not use any fermented food that has a foul smell or taste. The water used for fermentation should be10/30/24, 2:37 PM Health-Science-Spirit - Health Foods & Nutrients
https://health-science-spirit.com/Healing_Foods/Health-Foods-and-Nutrients.html 2/5free of chlorine and ﬂuoride, as these will poison the enzymes.
Fermenting or fermented products


 person's body.
v' ;}.. TH£ VRTN£ OF H£Al THY PERSONS
If one looks at the urine of a healthy person, one finds that its
color is more or less the bright, cheerful yellow of the butter
on top of the milk from a "dri", the female counterpart of the
yak [yak only being males]. The odor is like that of the cream
that rises to the surface of milk. The vapor is neither terribly
strong or weak, neither big or small, and the duration of the
vapor-before the urine gets cooler and vapor stops-is neither
terribly long or short. The bubbles or froth are nothing
spectacular- neither terribly long or short, big or small, rather
moderate froth on top of the urine.
The albumin, for a healthy person, is simply mixed up together
with the urine, pervading it. Also, for a healthy person there is
not much chyle {the oily substance normally rising to the
surface of the urine}; just a little bit comes to the surface.
As the vapor gradually vanishes, one finds that a little darker
color converges toward the center of the cup of urine, just as
breath on a mirror gradually converges in the center and
disappears. After the urine has cooled off, its color is light,
clear, and yellowish; it is transparent.
60 v" 6}. TH£ VRlN£ Of' DlS£AS£D 1'£RSONS
Concerning the urine of persons with disorders,
there are two aspects to the discussion:
general and specific diseased urine.
7}. DlAGNOSlNG VRlN£
There are three times for diagnosing the urine:
when it is hot, then when it is lukewarm,
and finally when it is completely cooled off.
There are three times for diagnosing the urine:
when it is hot, then when it is lukewarm, and finally when it is
completely cooled off.
There are nine types of diagnosis that are broken down into
three groups relative to the three times. First, when the urine is
hot, one checks the color, the vapor, the odor, and the type of
bubbles or froth. When it is lukewarm, one checks the cloud
like albumin and the oily chyle that rises to the top.
When the urine is cooled off completely, one checks the time
of the variation of the color, then how it changes, and finally
postponed analysis. When patients are not able to come
themselves, their urine is sent, in Tibet by yak,
in India by other means. It is rather old by the time it arrives,
and so the doctor checks anything, but with a different type of
diagnosis, because the urine the older.
This is called "postponed analysis".
We return to the first of the nine, the color,
which is investigated when the urine is still quite hot.
The urine of a person with a wind ailment ailment is like water
from a mountain spring, light blue in color and transparent.
A bile disorder will manifest in the urine as a more yellow,
perhaps even an orangish, color. If the urine is very pale, or
whitish, this indicates a phlegm disorder.
Question: Is there a difference between the blueness of the
urine or wind disorder and the paleness of a phlegm disorder?
Answer: The urine of a person with a phlegm disorder is a bit
milky as if someone took milk and dropped it into the urine;
you cannot see through it. For the wind disorder it is very
clear, like mountain spring water.
61 If the urine is red, it indicates a blood disorder.
If the urine is rust color, this indicates a lymph disorder.
If the urine is brownish, it indicates a complex disorder of all
three humors- wind, bile and phlegm.
If the color is a mixture of red and yellow, it is a disorder of
blood and bile. If it is a mixture of white and yellow, this
indicates a disorder of both phlegm and bile.
If the urine is yellow, like mustard oil, and oily, it indicates
both a bile disorder and contagious disease.
If it is orange, thick, and has a foul color,
this indicates a type of disorder that spreads from organ to organ or
a general disturbance of the body, such as with a heat ailment.
If the color of the urine is generally dark but has a spectrum of color,
like a rainbow, this indicates poisoning; it could be of any variety of
poisoning- mineral, meat, and so on.
. The second of the nine types of diagnosis is vapor,
which is investigated while the urine is very hot. If the urine
has a large vapor, this indicates a developed heat ailment.
If there is little vapor but it lasts a long time, this indicates
either a hidden heat ailment or an old, chronic heat ailment.
If there is little vapor that lasts a short time, it is a cold ailment,
involving phlegm and wind-an excess of cold in the body.
If there is an alternation in the amount of vapor, then in that
case there exists a combination of heat and cold disorders in
the body. The vapor is seen just as, for example,
you see steam rise from a cup of hot tea.
Bubbles, color, and vapor are visual.
The odor of the urine is, of course, to be smelled.
If the urine has a foul odor and there is albumin in the urine,
this indicates a strong heat disorder. If there is either no odor
or a very slight odor, this indicates a cold disorder.
If the urine smells of different foods such as cabbage, meat,
and so forth, this indicates that the digestion is not working
properly; the digestive heat is not up to par.
62 If the froth or bubbles on the urine have a bluish tint and are large,
this indicates a wind disorder. If the bubbles are small and many
and, when stirred, pop quickly, it indicates a bile disorder.
If the bubbles remain static on the surface of the urine like the
bubbles of saliva, as if you spit into water, this indicates a phlegm
disorder. If the bubbles have a reddish tint, this indicates a blood
disorder. If they are varicolored like a rainbow, this indicates
poisoning. If they form in the cup and then very quickly disband like
a flock of pigeons or doves who are dive-bombed by a hawk and go
off in all directions, this indicates an old disorder which now
pervades the body; it has become serious.
Four points have been described for urinalysis while the urine is still
hot: color, vapor, smell and froth.
When the urine has become lukewarm, one analyzes the a1bumin
and the oily chyle. The albumin or cloud-like substance in the urine
appears, for the most part, only in cases of heat disorder- illnesses
of blood and bile. If, when the albumin forms in lukewarm urine,
it is very subtle, like a hair on the arm, this indicates a disorder of the
wind. If the albumin forms on the surface like the wool-like film on
the edge of a stream, this indicates a disorder of blood and bile.
If the albumin forms subtly on the surface of the urine,
like the white tips of the hairs of a rabbit, and you almost have to
squint to see it this indicates a phlegm and cold disorder.
If the albumin forms like a cloud bank pervading the urine, this
indicates a lung disorder such as tuberculosis. If the albumin is like
pus in the body, possibly in the stomach or kidneys.
If the albumin congeals on the surface in little grains like sand, this
indicates a disorder of the kidneys.
Remember that when albumin appears in the urine, it usually
indicates a heat disorder, as it basically arises from bile and heat.
If the albumin appears on the surface, this indicates a heat disorder
of an organ in the upper part of the body, specifically the heart or
lungs. If the albumin appears in the bottom of the urine, it indicates a
disorder of the kidneys. If it is in the middle, it indicates a disorder of
either the spleen or the liver. If the albumin pervades the urine, this
indicates that the physical constituents as well as the heat/cold
factors of the body have been disturbed, agitated by the winds.
63 Concerning the thickness of the albumin, if it is quite thick,
this indicates a heat disorder. If it is very thin, this indicates a
cold disorder, though, as mentioned above, the presence of
albumin generally indicates a heat disorder.
The color of the albumin will be that of the urine of the
particular person at that time. For example, a bile disorder will
make the albumin orange. Or, for example, if the urine itself
were like rainbow color from poisoning, the albumin would
likewise be of different colors.
If the chyle-which, being an oily substance, always comes to
the surface of the urine-is thin, this indicates a cold disorder.
If it is


 mind is fixed on sex, you must live out that impulse, study it,The Sexual Economy 49
and know its source before you can transcend it. Taoists are al-
ways flexible; your energy can be cultivated no matter what your
situation in life is. But the basic principles remain the same. Sexual
activity without love and with frequent loss of fluid is physically
and mentally destructive to any path. Engaging in sexual love with
a partner—but without any esoteric practice to cultivate the chi—is
an incomplete path to transforming oneself.
Love will spontaneously transform any couple to a higher
level of awareness, but at the same time the repeated loss of seed
will hasten their physical decline and slow their progress. It's like
climbing a mountain slope with loose rock scree—you take three
steps up and slide back down one. This pace may lead to emotional
and mental happiness found at the top of the first ridge. But it may
deprive you—for the lack of time and energy—from seeing the
valleys, mountains, rivers and ocean beyond. This is the fullness of
the Tao, the attaining of a lasting experience of your higher spir-
itual self.CHAPTER 5
SEX IN THE ESOTERIC TRADITIONS OF THE
WORLD
"... It is impossible for us to learn elsewhere what we are incapa-
ble of learning within our own bodies."
—Schwaller de Lubicz, The Temple In Man
Religions have nearly always tried to control the sexual habits of
their followers. Their success seems to swing in cycles of the pub-
lic submitting and rebelling, but I would guess that ultimately they
have failed because for most people the experience of sex is more
powerful than their experience of religion. As a biological impulse,
sexual drive so completely permeates our actions and desires that
it is not easily harnessed by any system of belief, however dog-
matic. Hence the adage that prostitution is the world's oldest pro-
fession.
In my travels I have noticed that prostitution seems to flourish
side by side with the most fanatic religious communities. Sex is like
an inflatable ball floating on the surface of a pool—the deeper you
push it down into the water, the more strongly it presses back up. If
you lose control of the ball for even a split second, it will shoot up
into the air out of control.
The attempt by religions to publicly dictate sexual morality is
actually a vestige of an earlier, less material era when spiritual
experience was more intense than the fleshly pleasures of sex. The52 Taoist Secrets Of Love
founders of the earliest religions—then known as Mystery Schools
or Fertility Cults—understood the role of sexuality in spiritual de-
velopment, which is why their practices and rites held such power-
ful experiences for converts. Many modern spiritual leaders,
whether Catholic, Jewish or Hindu etc., have forgotten the link in
their religious rites connecting sexual power and spirituality. Cir-
cumcision rites, Spring fertility festivals (e.g. Easter), and commu-
nion ceremonies are all remnants of a time when the esoteric and
hidden meaning of sexuality was understood and incorporated into
religion.
The task for twentieth century man is to peel off the layers of
his outer or "exoteric" religious beliefs and free his mind to experi-
ence the ecstatic core of his existence in his body. Then the outer
ritual and the beliefs of the old religions will either fall way, or take
on a new and profound meaning. By accepting sex as sacred, the
role of religion will be revitalized in society and made more mean-
ingful in ordinary personal relationships.
Taoism is different from the major religions in that it is a
spiritual philosophy and not an organized religion with a body of
believers obeying a holy scripture. Faith in God (or the Tao) is not
enough for the Taoist; devotion to higher harmony must be accom-
panied with the self-knowledge that comes from cultivating one's
own energy. In a sense, a Taoist must "grow" his soul in order to
fully gain knowledge of it. Every human has the same seed within,
but unless it is properly nourished, its bearer will never see its fruit.
The divine world within man is patterned after the natural world—
as a child will never know its full self until adulthood, so must a
man cultivate to maturity his subtle spiritual energy if he wishes to
enjoy and participate in the fullness of the Tao.
There were some folk cults with Taoist priests that rose up to
compete with the arrival of Buddhism in China, but I am concerned
here only with the original esoteric teachings of the Taoist masters.
These Taoists are famous for permitting the use of sex on their
spiritual paths. There were many Taoist sects which sprung up on
the five holy mountains of China, and each emphasized different
aspects of chi cultivation in their spiritual development. A few
sects taught the path of "single cultivation", which utilizes the
Taoist principle of mating male and female subtle energies withn
one body, but strictly forbids physical sexual intercourse as either
unnecessary or too risky.Sex In the Esoteric Traditions 53
The practice of "dual cultivation" was widely accepted by
most Taoists for both its hygienic and spiritual virtues. Even in
these schools the danger of becoming deeply attached to one's lover
was acknowledged as a possible stumbling block for those se-
riously aspiring to become immortals and enjoy full union with the
Tao. This sexual attachment was never viewed as sinful, and no
sense of guilt was encouraged as in the Christian tradition. Becom-
ing sexually attached to one's partner simply means that the aspir-
ing yogi might experience only the union of a man and woman in
this lifetime instead of the greater union of Heaven and Earth. This
is no condemnation of the couple, as such a union might be a high
accomplishment for them.
The Christian religions have a strong tradition of a sacred
marriage, but church politics—mostly male priests afraid or jealous
of women's earthy, "dark," yin power—led the Christian world
into periods of woman-hating witch hunts that alternated with54 Taoist Secrets Of Love
woman-worshipping cults of the Virgin Mary. China, whose
culture was molded by a blend of Taoism and Confucianism, was
spared this vicious cycle. The yin energy of the universe—person-
ified by woman—was always viewed as necessary to its function-
ing and to the well-being of man.
Even when the original Taoist teachings on the perfect bal-
ance between yin and yang fell into periods of decline after the
Manchu reign in the Eighth Century A.D., women were not sub-
jected to the same abuse seen in some other cultures. Chinese
society became increasingly paternalistic and women were viewed
as a kind of male property, but at least the general cultural senti-
j ment favored treating this female "property" with respect. Many
of the Taoist sexual manuals which survive today come from this
period, and are somewhat lopsided in advising the aristocrats who
read them on how to get healing yin energy from the woman.
These manuals totally ignore how men can help to heal
women with their powerful yang energy. They do correctly advise
men to conserve their seed while suggesting that a man make love
to as many as eleven concubines a night. The manuals are really
medical textbooks, with a very cut-and-dried clinical approach to
sex that treats it solely as a means to harmonizing one's health.
Although these manuals fail to stress the higher path or teach medi-
tative practces for exchanging energy with the women they do
reflect the basic esoteric Taoist teachings that sex, when properly
practiced can be incorporated into daily life with tremendous bene-
fits to health.
The Taoists may have one of the oldest esoteric traditions of
cultivating sexual energy in the world, but they certainly were not
alone. The idea for transforming sexual energy for spiritual pur-
poses is well known in all the esoteric traditions of the world, both
Eastern and Western, although generally it has been guarded as a
great secret. Whether in Egypt, India, Tibet or Europe, the infor-
mation that was revealed to the public was usually kept to a vague
or abstract theoretical/theological level. A practical method to hold
and transform the sex energy in the body was never taught to the
public.
The best place to begin a brief historical survey of this field is
with Theophrastus Bombastus Paracelsus, the famous 16th century
physician and alchemist extraordinaire. Paracelsus' credentials as
a medical scientist are impeccable; more than 400 years ago heSex In the Esoteric Traditions 55
discovered the mercury cure for syphilis. Yet, he came to the same
conclusion as the Taoist masters of what was known as sexual
alchemy—the seemingly magical but entirely natural transforma-
tion of the sexual seed.
Paracelsus experienced the seminal fire with as much reality
as an ordinary person feels when his hand is burned in a hot oven.
Regarding the constituent elements of the substance, he wrote:
"All the organs of the human system, and all their powers and
activities, contribute alike to the formation of semen... The se-
men is, so to say, the essence of the human body, containing all the
organs of the latter in an ideal form." This position is strikingly
similar to the Taoist description of "ching chi," or sexual essence.
Taoist cultivation also emphasizes balancing the


 the Tao by removing all
associations that you have with violence. Stop supporting entertainment that
promotes any type of it, for instance. Monitor your vocabulary to remind
yourself to remove words that direct hatred 42nd Verse or killing toward
any living creature. Explore avenues for resolving disputes peacefully, and
get involved with organizations that discourage violence. Remem ber that
the one fundam ental principle of the Tao Te Ching is that if you take up
savagery in any way, then you’re signing up for a savage end on this planet.
And this includes your mental activity as well as behavior, so seek kind and
forgiving though ts in place of revenge and hatred. Change the way you look
at life to seeing a picture that’s free of violence and melts into harmony as
you live and die.Examine your attachments with the idea that you gain by losing and
lose by gaining.
Your attachmen ts to objects, status, your culture, and even other people
prevent you from being free in the Great Way of the Tao. The more stuff
that accumulates, the more you have to watch it, insure it, worry about it,
protect it, polish it, distribute it, and identify with it. In other words, you
lose harmony while seeking to gain. Practice giving your possessions away
and loosening your need for who and what you have. Imagine strings
attached to everyone and everything that you feel you own; then
symbolically cut those strings and be an observer rather than an owner. This
is how you melt into harmony with the T ao.
The poet Hafiz advises:
Start seeing everything as God
But keep it a secr et.
Do the T ao Now
Think of one person who may have wronged you at some time in your
life: someone who abandoned or mistreated you, someone who stole from
or cheated you, someone who abused you or spread ugly rumors about you.
Spend one day putting all thoughts of revenge aside, and instead feel
forgiveness and love for that individual. Notice the difference in your body
when you don’t have violent thoughts... this is the essential teaching of
the T ao.
OceanofPDF.com43rd Verse
The softest of all things
overrides the har dest of all things.
That without substance enters wher e ther e is no space.
Hence I know the value of nonaction.

Teaching without wor ds,
performing without actions—
few in the world can grasp it—
that is the master ’s way.
Rare indeed ar e those
who obtain the bounty of this world.
OceanofPDF.comLiving Softly
The T ao Te Ching is full of parallels to nature, and in fact the pure essence
of the teachings  seems to be to help us become Tao-inspired sages through
oneness with the environment. The opening lines of this 43rd verse remind
me of the way of water, of its softness and ability to enter everywhere, even
where there’ s seemingly no space to do so. Water is used symbolically in
many reference s to Taoism, such as in the title of the outstanding
contemporary work by Alan Watts, Tao: The Watercourse Way. To live
softly is to live the watercourse way.
In this verse, Lao-tzu invites you to change the way you view hardness.
To you, the concept is probably equated with strength. You may work out
because the firmer your muscles, the tougher you think you are. Do you
consider diamon ds more valuable than a soft mineral, like volcanic ash,
which crumbles in your hand? Perhaps you subscribe to the idea that doing
a difficult task makes you a better person. Now imagine emulating water,
this basic element that is the embodiment of nature (after all, it does
comprise 75 percent of both the world’ s surface and our physical makeup).
Think about the way water courses, flowing to the lowest place, and how in
order to experien ce it, you can’t just grab a handful. You must instead relax,
lightly placing your fingers inside of it.
Reflect upon how the gentle water compares to the solid stone and marble
it’s capable of carving through. The soft water overrides hardness—deep
valleys surround ed by mountains of granite have been carved away over the
centuries by the patient, quiet, moving liquid. Imagine being able to enter
where no space appears to be available, and to move slowl y, speaking
seldom and allowing yourself to be harmoniously intact as you seek a
lower, less noisy and noticeable place... a place where all others desire to
come to you. This is the watercourse way.
There’ s value in the nonaction of being able to flow like water, naturally
and ef fortlessly. I can’ t help but think of this when I enter the ocean to swim
for an hour or so. I want to go with the current rather than swim against it,
so my first choice involves seeing which way the water is coursing. As I
move through the sea, emulating its naturalness, I trust my instinct andswim without trying to direct my arms and legs in their strokes. I think of it
as doing, but not interfering—th at is, I’m allowing my body to propel  itself
through the water without my mind telling it how to move. As I’ve changed
my thoughts about “hard” and “soft,” I don’t have to do anything but be in
the water. I’ve chosen to make my daily swim a soft, silent experience that
requires very little action on my part. And my swimming world has
changed, becom ing easy, joyful, and almost effortless. I’ve learned “the
value of nonaction,” as Lao-tzu expresses it in this verse. It’s performing
without action!
Apply this way of seeing everything in your world: Tasks will be
simplified, your performance level will increase, and the pressure to be
better than others by using superior hardened strength will cease to be a
factor. You’ll naturally incorporate the wisd om of peaceful harmony that’s
found in the martial arts by letting the efforts of others become a source of
your own power. Your softness will override the hardness of others.
This principle is clearly seen when you look at great champio ns as they
perform their chosen activities. The greatest golfers are effortless in their
swing. The most successful ballplayers run, jump, throw, catch, and shoot
with a softness that seems to stupefy most observers—they don’t use force,
nor can they find words to descr ibe how they do it. The most talented artists
dance softly, without effort; paint quietly, without force; and write easily,
without struggle, by allowing the words to come to them. As Lao-tzu
reminds you, 43rd Verse these are rare beings who live the master ’s way.
These sages “obtain the bounty  of this world,” which is availab le to you,
too.
As I contemp late Lao-tzu’ s counsel, he urges me to offer you
encouragement to apply the spirit of the watercourse way that’s found in
this 43rd verse of the T ao Te Ching:
Introduce a soft, nonaction style to your life.
Practice the way of nonaction, or performing without effort. By letting go
of your inner drive to push ahead, you’ll see that you ironically do better
than when you tried so hard. In your work, become more tolerant in your
drive to achieve by softening your attitude and behavior. You’ll see that
customers and larger opportuni ties are attracted to you. Why is this true?Because you’re allowing  the perfect flow of the Tao, like the great gray
heron lets the tide recede in order to reveal the nourishment he needs to
live. Notice how your life changes as you change the way you look at it.
Practice perform ing without effort in other areas of your life, too. For
example, some marathon runners say that they’ve learned to relax and stop
pushing, letting their legs, arms, and torso simply be as their bodies begin
experiencing extreme exhaustio n with only a few miles to go. They report
that when they shut down the mental interference and instructions, they
magically cross that finish line. Soft always has its place, for it is the
watercourse way... the way of the T ao.
Encourage desir es to fr eely flow in your imagination.
Consider what you’ve wanted to have in this life as if it’s behind a locked
door. Examine what you’ve been telling yourself about the prosperity,
superb health, good luck, business success, or wonderful relationships
you’ve craved—that no matter how hard you’ve tried, it’s all come to
naught. Then imagine yourself flowing like water through the barrier of that
locked room. Do it softly, gently, and silently in your mind. In other words,
just spend some time getting used to practicing the watercourse way of the
Tao.
As you allow softness to be part of the picture of your life, the hard way
will soften. Begin to exercise this kind of effortlessness in all areas of your
desires. According to Ralph Waldo Emerson, “It is the condition of
Inspiration—marry nature, don’t use her for pleasure.” I urge you to
consider this kind of marriage.
Do the T ao Now
Have a day of silence. Don’ t speak aloud to anyone; instead, just observe
and see if you can be in a state of softness without telling yourself or
anyone else what to do. Gently


 master of your fate.
You will no longer accept the dominance of outside conditions or circumstances. You will not accept life
on the basis of the world without. Having achieved control of the movements of your attention, and having
discovered the mystery hid from the ages, that Christ in you is your imagination, you will assert the
supremacy oi imagination and put all things in subjection to it.
Neville - THE  POWER  OF  AWARENESS.doc                                                          Page 23 of 51Chapter Thirteen
                                ACCEPTANCE
Man's Perceptions are not bounded by organs of Perception: he perceives more than sense (though ever so
acute) can discover.
HOWEVER MUCH you Seem to be living in a material world, you are actually living in a world of
imagination. The outer, physical events of life are the fruit of forgotten blossom-times results of previous
and  usually  forgotten  states  of  consciousness.  They  are  the  ends running  true  to  oft  times  forgotten
imaginative origins.
Whenever you become completely absorbed in an emotional state, you are at that moment assuming the
feeling  of  the  state  fulfilled.  If  persisted  in,  whatsoever  you  are  intensely  emotional  about  you  will
experience in your world. These periods of absorption, of concentrated attention, are the beginnings of the
things you harvest. It is in such moments that you are exercising your creative power the only creative
power there is. At the end of these periods, or moments of absorption, you speed from these imaginative
states (where you have not been physically) to where you were physically an instant ago. In these periods
the imagined state is so real that when you return to the objective world and find that it is not the same as
the imagined state, it is an actual shock. You have seen something in imagination with such vividness that
you now wonder whether the evidence of your senses can now be believed, and like Keats you ask, was it a
vision or a waking dream? Fled is that music... Do I wake or sleep?
This shock reverses your time sense. By this is meant that instead of your experience resulting from your
past, it now becomes the result of being in imagination where you have not yet been physically. In effect,
this moves you across a bridge of incident to the physical realization of your imagined state. The man who
at will can assume whatever state he pleases has found the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven. The keys are
desire, imagination, and a steadily focused attention on the feeling of the wish fulfilled. To such a man any
undesirable objective fact is no longer a reality and the ardent wish no longer a dream.
Prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour
you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.  Malachi 3:10
The windows of heaven may not be opened and the treasures seized by a strong will, but they open of
themselves and present their treasures as a free gift a gift that comes when absorption reaches such a degree
that it results in a feeling of complete acceptance. The passage from your present state to the feeling of
your wish fulfilled is not across a gap. There is continuity between the so-called real and unreal. To cross
from one state to the other, you simply extend your feelers, trust your touch, and enter fully into the spirit
of what you are doing.
Not by might nor by power but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts.
Assume the spirit, the feeling of the wish fulfilled, and you will have opened the windows to receive the
blessing. To assume a state is to get into the spirit of it. Your triumphs will be a surprise only to those who
did not know your hidden passage from the state of longing to the assumption of the wish fulfilled.
The Lord of hosts will not respond to your wish until you have assumed the feeling of already being what
you want to be, for acceptance is the channel of His action. Acceptance is the Lord of hosts in action.
Neville - THE  POWER  OF  AWARENESS.doc                                                          Page 24 of 51Chapter Fourteen
                                THE EFFORTLESS WAY
THE PRINCIPLE of "Least Action" governs everything in physics from the path of a planet to the path of a
pulse of light. Least Action is the minimum of energy, multiplied by the minimum of time. Therefore, in
moving from your present state to the state desired, you must use the minimum of energy and take the
shortest possible time. Your journey from one state of consciousness to another is a psychological one, so,
to  make  the  journey,  you  must  employ  the  psychological  equivalent  of  "Least  Action,"  and  the
psychological equivalent is mere assumption.
The day you fully realize the power of assumption, you discover that it works in complete conformity with
this principle. It works by means of attention, minus effort. Thus, with least action through an assumption
you hurry without haste and reach your goal without effort.
Because creation is finished, what you desire already exists. It is excluded from view because you can see
only the contents of your own consciousness. It is the function of an assumption to call back the excluded
view and restore full vision. It is not the world but your assumptions that change. An assumption brings the
invisible into sight. It is nothing more nor less than seeing with the eye of God, i.e., imagination.
For the Lord seeth not as a man seeth, for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on
the heart.
The heart is the primary organ of sense, hence the first cause of experience. When you look "on the heart"
you are looking at your assumptions: assumptions determine your experience. Watch your assumption with
all diligence for out of it are the issues of life. Assumptions have the power of objective realization. Every
event in the visible world is the result of an assumption or idea in the unseen world.
The present moment is all-important, for it is only in the present moment that our assumptions can be
controlled.  The future must become the present in your mind if you would wisely operate the law of
assumption. The future becomes the present when you imagine that you already are what you will be  when
your assumption is fulfilled. Be still (least action) and know that you are that which you desire to be. The
end of longing should be Being.  Translate your dream into Being.
Perpetual construction of future states without the consciousness of already being them, that is, picturing
your  desire without actually  assuming  the  feeling  of the  wish fulfilled,  is the  fallacy  and mirage  of
mankind.
                                It is simply futile day-dreaming.
Neville - THE  POWER  OF  AWARENESS.doc                                                          Page 25 of 51Chapter Fifteen
                             THE CROWN OF THE MYSTERIES
THE ASSUMPTION of the wish fulfilled is the ship that carries you  over the unknown seas to the
fulfilment of your dream. The assumption is everything; realization is subconscious and effortless.
Assume a virtue if you have it not.
Act on the assumption that you already possess that which you sought.
Blessed is she that believed; for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the
Lord.
As the Immaculate Conception* is the foundation of the Christian mysteries, so the Assumption† is their
crown.
                    * Mary's birth without Original Sin. However, Neville seems to have in mind the Virgin
                       Birth of Jesus. -Ed.
                       †The taking up of the body (usually, the body of Mary) into heaven? - Ed.
Psychologically, the Immaculate Conception means the birth of an idea in your own consciousness unaided
by  another.  For  instance  when  you  have  a  specific  wish  or  hunger  or  longing,  it  is  an  immaculate
conception in the sense that no physical person or thing plants it in your mind. It IS self-conceived. Every
man is the Mary of the Immaculate Conception and birth to his idea must give.
        * The Assumption is the crown of the mysteries because it is the highest use of consciousness.
When in imagination you assume the feeling of the wish fulfilled, you are mentally lifted up to a higher
level. When, through your persistence, this assumption becomes actual fact, you automatically find yourself
on a higher level (that is, you have achieved your desire) in your objective world. Your assumption guides
all your conscious and subconscious movements towards its suggested end so inevitably that  it actually
dictates the events.
The drama of life is a psychological one and the whole of it is written and produced by your assumptions.
Learn the art of assumption, for only in this way can you create your own happiness.
*Stylistic inversion deriving from quotation not cited= "…and must give birth to his idea."-Ed.
Neville - THE  POWER  OF  AWARENESS.doc                                                          Page 26 of 51Chapter Sixteen
                              PERSONAL IMPOTENCE
SELF-SURRENDER IS essential, and by that is meant 'the confession of personal impotence.
I can of mine own self do nothing. [ The father in me doeth the work. ]
Since


 ideals and enjoy what you do because that is how you
choose to think, success will come to you in ways and abundance beyond your
dreams.
 Notes from Dr Wayne Dyer Gifts from Eykis  ©2009 Author Jackie Paulson

Gifts from Eykis  Page 9
 Success will arrive in your life in whatever form you need it.  All your creative
geniuses, i ncluding, a rtists, musicians, architects,  writers, actors, chefs, designers,
mechanics do not do what they do  for money, even though it may appear that
way to you.  The actual act of doing whatever it is that you do should provide
satisfaction to you inde pendently of any external reward.  The pay is a
 bonus.  The bonuses arrive when you stop focusing on them and turn your
thoughts to enjoying your life and what you are doing in the moment.

I would  encourage management to focus on what they can do to mak e all work
personally fulfilling.  The secret is to  try to find jo y and seren ity within themselves
and ta ke that energy into everything they do.
Most have the “disease of more…”
More is the sickness that keeps people from ever arriving at now.

Once yo u believe your values derive from what you accomplish, then it must also
follow that when you fail to accomplish, then you have no value.  Hence you see
people all over who when their profit pictures turn sour, become depressed, even
to the point of needin g treatment from others who are suffering from “more ”.  I
have observed human’s feelings useless when they retire because they believe
they are what they do.
You only grow when you fail.
Many  businessmen say that the most important things in the lives are their
family, loved ones…yet spent almost no time with them.  They were busy
accumulating money, which they must have believe d would provide that
happiness.  Still their marriages were breaking up and they were clearly strange to
their own children.  I ronically, they had no time to be with the very people they
described as most important to them.
You see their thinking is in error.
This “money lust ” seems to run rampant, all for nothing.  People just think
incorrectly and raise their children to do the same exact thing.

 Notes from Dr Wayne Dyer Gifts from Eykis  ©2009 Author Jackie Paulson

Gifts from Eykis  Page 10
 Children in schools:  it is a known fact that most individuals who display any
creativity or free thinking seem to be perceived as threats and trouble makers.
It’s like the people who conform the best, to those who please their teache rs or
do their assignments quickly and neatly are rewarded and praised.   There are few
rewards for independent thinking and in fact in most instances it appears;
punishment follows.  A child who is truly independent of the need for approval,
who shows no signs of guilt or anxiety about it, is considered a troublemaker.
A child who refuses to be just like everybody else is signaled out and asked to feel
guilty and repent.  Yet these qualities of being guilt free, independent, and free
thinking are what yo u label as no limit or self actualized behaviors.  Again, it just
seems unreal to me to find you stating one thing as an educational objective and
doing exactly the opposite.
The problems start when as children the students are told to sit in their assig ned
seats and quietly do as they are told. This leads straight to the incorrect, neurotic
thinking.
It is not a question of proper or improper environment.  It simply is not a learning
environment.  You know each person is unique and special.
How can you tap that uniqueness when each child is treated the same exact way?

Here, society teaches students the same way; the same amount of time, and call
those who can learn exactly that way the fastest the smartest.  In my reality,
being able to assimilate something faster than someone else has to do with one
thing, speed.  The educational logic guarantees there will always be average and
below average students.  Our society insists that everyone conform to a standard
norm.  You teach all your young people to think and act alike.  But what do you
have to offer your world if you a re just like everybody else?  You insure this
through the insane pursuit of grades; those educational merit badges you
dispense on report cards and transcripts.  These are the real obsessions of
educators here, not knowledge and self -discovery, but the pur suit of those
external rewards called grads.  These grades have been elevated to the biggest
status and have nothing to do with being educated in reality.   Notes from Dr Wayne Dyer Gifts from Eykis  ©2009 Author Jackie Paulson

Gifts from Eykis  Page 11
 A grade is an external mark.  It signifies for an individual that he or she has
participated in the  game of education.  Knowledge is an inner mark.  It is reflected
in:
1) How you feel about what you have learned.
2) How it aids you in pursuing your ideas.
3) What you as a person can do with that knowledge.

Knowledge breeds self awareness : grades b reed self deception.  A grade on a
transcript has nothing to do with reality.  It is a symbol of having conformed, and
even here where people misperceive their  reality so regularly, grads still have  very
little relation  to reality.  Nobody  looks a t a transcript two years after college, and
certainly you wouldn’t want to assess grownup  person’s  ability on the basis OF AN
ACADEMIC TRANSCRIPT.  The person who receives  all As only a year ago might fail
every one of those same examinations today.  Today it is h ow well you currently
produce that earns you respect and personal advancement.  It is known that even
if you have great grades you can fail in the real world today.  It is often the ones
who do not do well in grades that do so well in the world today.

When you place a person in a system in which the reward is the grade it is
unrelated to the actual learning activity, motivation is lowered.  For example, if
you give an A to a person who read five books, or completes fifty pushups, a B for
four books and f orty pushups  and so o down the line, who do you think will ever
want to read a hundred books or do a thousand pushups?  Almost no one -that is
who!  The system says, strive for the reward and work only when you are being
rewarded, since the reward for an A has nothing to do in reality with either;
reading or pushups, then motivation will cease when the reward is achieved.
SO how could it be changed?
First, the rewards for learning must be aligned with the actual activity of learning.
The reward for read ing is not located on a transcript, it’s within a person.  It’s the
joy of being able to comprehend life through writers, the thrill of getting lost in a
novel or discovering and applying a new idea; the freedom one achieves by being
able to experience wha t others have thought; the inner glow and self - satisfaction
of reading for personal growth.  These are the rewards of reading.  Similarly, the Notes from Dr Wayne Dyer Gifts from Eykis  ©2009 Author Jackie Paulson

Gifts from Eykis  Page 12
 personal sense of accomplishment one feels when they are in good physical
condition, the glorious feeling that c omes from being physically fit, the ability to
climb stairs without pausing to catch your breath, to run without feeling
exhausted, to eat and sleep peacefully, to bask in your own self pride at being
superbly healthy these are the rewards for doing push -ups.  When you begin to
align your rewards in education with the actual educational activity, motivation
will increase and apathy will decline, and no one moment before.

What about the role of teachers>?  No One can teach you anything, you make a
decision to know what you know, and any experienced teacher will tell you that
when confronted with a student who has decided not to know something, such as
algebra, no amount of teaching is going to get that algebra across.  That is your
reality.  When a student d ecided to learn algebra, no amount of teacher
interference will alter that decision.  It seems to me that all people have the inner
capacity to learn anything either with the aid of, of in spite of, teachers.  Truly
great teachers understand this, and deli berately go about their business of
providing a unique environment for individuals to make chooses to learn.
Furthermore, they emphasize learning for mastery, rather than striving for
grades.   See in mastery the goad of education is to mater the curricul um.   How
long it takes is quite irrelevant.  It means s that individuals take test when they
are ready to see how much they have mastered, rather than on a test day set
aside for everyone.  Mastery means no punishment for being slower or faster at
masteri ng a subject.  Mastery means that when you acquire knowledge, you get
inner satisfaction, plus the A if you need the


, you’re studying health,
help me! I feel so sick – like I’m dying!”. “Mr. Wilson,” I
told him confidently, “if you will follow the natural system
of healing I outline for you, you can get well”!
Knowing these teachings will mean true life and good health for you.
 – Proverbs 4:22 From Sickness to Superb Health
I knew I could help him, but I wondered before
making my offer if he was strong enough of mind and
wanted to achieve health passionately enough? “I will
follow your instr uctions to the letter,” he stated in
desperation, like a drowning man grasping a helping hand.
“Good! T oday you will start on a 10 day cleansing
fast.” I picked up the bottles on the bedside table. “Soon
all this m edication will go down the drain.” I brought
him some of my distilled water, pur chased apple cider
vinegar, lemons and honey for him and star ted him on
his first fast day.  It was not easy for this man to fast. Mr.
Wilson was so full of toxic poisons, so full of sticky mucus
in his head, throat and lungs that he had a great deal of
discomfort and trouble getting rid of it. But he was an
Englishman with plenty of fortitude. He passed a lot of
toxic wastes from his body. At the end of the 10 day fast,
he felt better than he had for many years!
Then, I put him on a natural live food diet consisting
of fresh fruit and vegetable juices and distilled water.
Within 3 weeks after his fast, he climbed the 5 flights of
stairs to my apartment – something he had not done in
7 years! His wife became enthusiastic about my natural
way of living and began to follow the program which
became The Bragg Healthy Lifestyle. She started to shed
the fat from her body that she couldn’ t lose before.
After 6 months you could not tell the W ilsons were
the same people. They were healthier, stronger and
happier! Mr. Wilson ran up to my
apartment twice a day. Now Mrs.
Wilson looked trim and slim and
had to have all her clothes taken
in. Their married daughter lived
in Canada and came to visit. She
could not believe what she saw.
The W ilsons’ health troubles were
47
gone. They were now The Wilsons thanked me and said they
enjoying life fully and felt “reborn.” By following The Bragg Healthy
it made me happy! Lifestyle, they found new, vigorous health.
Perfect Health is above gold; a sound body before riches. – Solomon These were the first two cases who followed my new
Bragg Healthy Lifestyle. The results gave me confidence
which grew as I studied the teachings of the world’ s great
healers. It was Hippocrates, the father of medicine, in
400 B.C. who gave these wise words to the world to use:
Let food be your medicine and medicine
be your food. – Hippocrates, 400 B.C.
Mother Nature and God’ s Way
48 We give thanks for the millions of people who r ead
our books and have come to us for advice through the
years and have literally been reborn healthy again by
living The Bragg Healthy Lifestyle which is God and
Mother Nature’ s Way! W e feel blessed to know we’ve
inspired people to make healthy changes in their lives.
This is Mother Nature’ s own natural lifestyle. Ther e
is a big difference between feeling well enough to car ry
on one’ s daily activities with no sensation of anything
wrong, and that more exhilarating state of health which
fills one with enthusiasm for life and its challenges. An
adequate amount of that important commodity – vibrant
health – supplies sufficient energy for life to go on
serenely, but it takes more to give one a sense of
exuberance. People who live by Mother Natur e’s Eternal
Laws will enjoy an exalted feeling of well being that is
not euphoric (abnormally happy and buoyant), but is
the result of a natural joie de vivr e or joy of living.
The W ilsons discover ed this joy of living when they
changed from their unhealthy lifestyle and went on
The Bragg Healthy Lifestyle. They learned through their
own experience that the body is a naturally self-repairing
and self-healing instr ument. Mr. Wilson found out that
the stiffness in all his moveable joints was not due to
the number of years he had lived, but due to the wrong
kinds of food, water and lack of exer cise! He lear ned that
time is not toxic, but it’ s lifestyle and habits that count.
When pure rules of business and conduct are observed, there is true religion.
Walk in the path of duty, do good to your brethren and work no evil towards them.
Mother Nature and its beauty is the signature of God. – Patricia Bragg, N.D., Ph.D. Mr. Wilson’ s stiffness was brought on by a combination
of toxic acid cr ystals from an unbalanced, acid diet and
drinking water saturated with inorganic minerals and toxic
chemicals. Fasting helped to dissolve these encrustations
which had been deposite d in his joints. A n atural diet and
distilled water continued the cleansing and healing process
and helped prevent a recurrence of his former ailments.
The same thing happened with Mrs. W ilson’ s weight
and kidney problems. She felt remarkably improved. By
switching from their old unhealthy ways to The Bragg
Healthy Lifestyle – Mother Natur e’s Way – they were
able to enjoy their full potential and experience the true
joy of healthy living and superb energy!
Jack LaLanne, Patricia Bragg, Elaine LaLanne & Paul C. Bragg
Jack says, ”Bragg saved my life at age 15, when I attended the Bragg
Health and Fitness Crusade in Oakland, California.” From that day,
Jack has continued to live The Bragg Healthy Lifestyle, inspiring
millions to health and fitness! – visit Jack at: jacklalanne.com
49
Ponce de Leon
Searched for the
“Fountain of Y outh.”
If he had only known
It’s within us...
Created by the food we eat!
Food can make or
Break your health!
50
Studies Show
Exercise Keeps
You Youthful,
Stronger and
Healthier!
Paul C. Bragg and Patricia Lift W eights 3 T imes W eekly
An Old English Prayer
Give us Lord, a bit of sunshine,
A bit of work and a bit of fun.
Give us, in all the struggle and sputter,
Our daily whole grain bread and food.
Give us health, our keep to make
And a bit to spare for others’ sake.
Give us too, a bit of song in heart
And a tale and a book, to help us along.
Give us Lord, a chance to be a blessing,
Our goodly best for ourselves and others
Until men learn to live peacefully as brothers.
50 Chapter 4
Water and Its Effects
On the Human Body
The Stones W ithin Us
The more we learned about biochemistr y (life
chemistr y), the more we realized why so many people
were prematurely old, stiff and suffer ing from pain
throughout their bodies. During our visits to London’ s
largest hospitals, we learned more about stones forming
within the human body.
Why do stones form in our bodies? What does this
mean with regard to human health?
The most common places to find such stones are in
the gallbladder, the kidneys, the passageways between
kidneys and bladder (known as the ureters) and within
the bladder itself. Another organ where stones are
sometimes revealed, by an ultrasound, x-ray or CT scan,
is the pancreas. This is the glandular organ which lies
behind the stomach and has both an internal and an
external secretion. Stone formation anywhere in the
body has always been regarded as a diseased condition.
In our opinion, all these stones are formed by the
unbalanced, acid, toxin-producing diet that most
humans eat; further aggravated by the chemicalized,
inorganically mineralized water they drink. Add to this
the heavy concentrations of salt most people use, plus
the tremendous amount of waxy cholesterol (saturated
fats) ingested by the average person, then unhealthful
conditions result! Unbalanced diets form toxic poisons
which the body cannot metabolize or easily eliminate,
so these toxins are formed into stones by the body’ s
chemistr y. Practically all drinking water contains the
inorganic mineral calcium carbonate. This and other
inorganic minerals and toxins play a big part in the
formation of painful stones within the body’ s organs. 51 52 Silent, Painless Gallstones
May Suddenly Become Noisy and Painful
“Silent” gallstones are those which remain quietly
in the gallbladder and do not produce the acute
abdominal pain which is known as gallstone colic.
However, these silent stones may at any time – per haps
at an inopportune moment – become raucously “noisy”
and extremely painful!!!
Noisy gallstones may involve not only the gallbladder
itself but also the common duct – a vital structure


 “good” variety.
They leave fatty deposits in the arteries, cause digestive disorders, and reduce the absorption rate
of essential vitamins and minerals.
 Transfats. are created by heating vegetable oil to a very high temperature, turning it solid,
so it can be used in margarine, pastry, pies, ice cream, confectionery and countless convenience
foods. (Uninformed shoppers often fall for advertisements, which claim that margarine, made
from sunflower oil, is healthier for the heart than, say, butter; they don’t stop to wonder just
how the golden liquid oil had become snow white and solid….) Hydrogenated fat is cheap, has
no flavor and secures any product a long shelf life, hence its popularity in the food industry.
However, recently evidence has piled up to show that far from protecting the heart, Transfats
actually damage it, are essentially toxic, cause obesity and have even been linked to some forms
Copyright © Charlotte Gerson, 2007.  All rights reserved.
This material may not be reproduced in any medium, print or electronic without prior written permission from the author.Page 3 8Healing the Gerson Way—Defeating Cancer and Other Chronic Diseases
www.thegersonway.comof cancer. A long-term study carried out at the Harvard School of Public Health on 18,555 healthy
women trying to get pregnant found that for every 2% increase in the amount of calories a woman
got from Transfats, her risk of infertility increased by 73%. The British Transfat expert Dr. Alex
Richardson commented, “Transfats shouldn’t be in our diet. They are toxic and have no known
health benefits and many known health risks.” The World Health Organization has recently urged
consumers to exclude Transfats from their food intake, and in Britain all the leading supermarket
chains have pledged to ban hydrogenated oils from their own-brand foods and drinks as fast as
possible
 The Harvard School of Public Health has estimated that at least 30,000 people and more,
probably 100,000 die every year in the US from cardiovascular disease, caused by eating HVOs
found in most convenience foods. The American nutritionist Mary Enig has stated that Transfats
disrupt the cellular function of the body, weakening its power to expel wastes and toxins. This
opens the door to heart disease, diabetes, cancer, poor immunity and obesity.
 The good news is, that since January 2006, under US Government regulations food
manufacturers must state the amount of Transfats contained in their products. Some of them have
already started to remove Transfats from their output. And the British Soil Association, flagship
of the organic movement in the UK, has recently declared that all additives, including Transfats,
MSG and aspartame are absolutely banned from all organic products.
The only way to exclude these and countless other harmful additives from one’s diet is to
avoid all manufactured foods, and take the more labor-intensive but health-restoring path of
eating only fresh organic natural foods, and limit restaurant meals to rare occasions.
 But additive-filled junk food doesn’t just harm the body: it is also a powerful trigger for anti-
social behavior. Researchers both in California and in England have run experiments in prisons
housing young male criminals, giving them supplements containing vitamins, minerals and
essential fatty acids over several months, and monitoring their behavior. In both countries minor
offences dropped by 33%, and serious ones, including violence, by 37-38% 6.  Take those findings
out of the prison setting and it becomes obvious that much anti-social behavior in society can be
ascribed directly to harmful toxic food additives—yet another powerful argument for avoiding
junk foods of all kinds.
Fluoride
Among the factors undermining the body’s defenses this substance deserves special attention,
because while exorbitant dental health claims are made for it by commercial interests, in fact it is
a dangerous poison, an industrial waste containing small amounts of lead, mercury, beryllium and
arsenic. The official reason why the US Government promotes the compulsory addition of fluoride
to drinking water is to improve children’s dental health, which, as common sense recognizes, is
not undermined by shortage of fluoride, but by an unhealthy diet, insufficient dental hygiene and
Copyright © Charlotte Gerson, 2007.  All rights reserved.
This material may not be reproduced in any medium, print or electronic without prior written permission from the author.Page 3 9Healing the Gerson Way—Defeating Cancer and Other Chronic Diseases
www.thegersonway.comtoo many sweets. According to some experts, fluoride only protects the teeth of children up to
the age of 5. Since that age group makes out only a small percentage of the population, it seems
indefensible to force this highly controversial chemical onto everybody, irrespective of their age
and dental condition.
        Moreover, there is evidence to show that fluoridation does not lastingly improve children’s
dental health. On the other hand it causes fluorosis to one in every eight children, resulting in
mottled, discoloured teeth. In the US, according to figures released in 2003, despite fluoridation
more than half of children aged 6-8 and two-thirds of all 15-year-olds suffer from dental decay.
And there is worse to come. It is claimed that the prolonged intake of fluoride can be linked to
increased risk of cancers, hip fractures, osteoporosis, kidney trouble and even birth defects. The
late Dr Dean Burk, who had worked for more than 30 years as chief chemist at the US National
Cancer Institute (NCI), declared, “Fluoride causes more human cancer deaths, and causes it
faster, than any other chemical.”  Following a 17-year study, the NCI found that as fluoridation
increased, so did oral cancer, and also osteosarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer, in young men.
The rate of increase in those two cancers has been established as 33-50, viz. 70%.
        Despite the NCI study’s conclusions, the pro-fluoride camp is doing its utmost to hide
and deny the harmful effects of the chemical. One such attempt led to an uproar among scientists
in 2006, when it transpired that Professor Chester Douglass of the Harvard Dental School had
kept secret the findings of his graduate student Elise Bassin for four years. In her 2001 thesis
Bassin discussed the association between fluoride and cancer, particularly osteosarcoma —bone
cancer—in young males. When her findings were finally published in May 2006 and the truth
came out to general consternation among researchers, Harvard exonerated Professor Douglass
from any wrongdoing and conflict of interest, although he is widely known to be a paid consultant
for the toothpaste industry, which is a major user of fluoride. Up to 500 letters of protest have been
sent to Harvard’s President Bok, among them a blistering one from Professor Samuel Epstein,
Chairman of the Cancer Prevention Coalition, demanding “a full and watertight explanation of
this extraordinary action.” At the time of writing the issue has not been resolved.
        This story is just one of many examples showing how assiduously vested interests fight
to protect their profitable products, even at the risk of endangering public health. To guess the
truth about the claimed harmlessness of fluoride, we only have to read the warning on any tube
of commercial toothpaste: “Keep out of the reach of children less than 6 years of age. If more
than used for brushing is accidentally swallowed, get medical help or contact a Poison Control
Center. Children 2-6 years: use only a pea-sized amount and supervise child’s brushing and
rinsing to minimize swallowing.”
        Many brands of toothpaste, infant formulas and commercially prepared beverages use
fluoridated water. Great care must be taken to avoid them all.
Copyright © Charlotte Gerson, 2007.  All rights reserved.
This material may not be reproduced in any medium, print or electronic without prior written permission from the author.Page 4 0Healing the Gerson Way—Defeating Cancer and Other Chronic Diseases
www.thegersonway.comNicotine and Alcohol
 The health ravages caused by smoking have been widely known for a long time, yet the habit
persists. Smokers use cigarettes either as a stimulant or as an aid to relaxation. In either case
the desired effect wears off quickly and has to be renewed, hence the self-destructive routine of
chain-smoking
 The main active ingredient of tobacco is nicotine, authoritatively described as “one of the
most toxic and addictive of all poisons that acts as swiftly as cyanide.”7
Yet nicotine is not the only toxic product of smoking. The tars produced by the burning
process line the lungs and eventually cause emphysema and cancer. Smokers tend to assume
that they are only damaging their lungs. However, the poisons contained in cigarettes pervade
the entire organism, damaging all organs. Bladder cancer, for instance,  occurs more frequently
among smokers than abstainers. There is also the detrimental effect of the well-documented
“second-hand smoke” on the smoker’s family and workmates. What may appear to many even
today as an acceptable social habit is in fact a serious attack on our natural defenses.
 The same applies to alcohol, which ideally should only be consumed occasionally, and in
small amounts. If consumed in excess, alcohol can lead to chronic alcoholism. It is poisonous to
the brain and even more so to the liver, can cause gastr


 out.
Not being attached to the outcome is really your higher self at work.
When yo u are calm, patient, and compassionate, you respond to life with
that very calmness, patience, an d compassion. This gives you a n enormous
benefit, such as reducing the physiological reactions that come from being
an angry, irritated, easily annoy ed individual. Y ou find yourself less at the
mercy of the eg o, which really likes to keep you out of balance and of f
center. It wants to keep you in a state of conflict because whe n you have
dif ficulty and struggle, then yo u won’ t turn to your higher self, which is
what the ego always fears the most.
Of c ourse life has its storms, but you are able to keep calm rig ht in the
middle of any turbulence. This isn’ t even something you have to do
deliberately: As you become more serene and reliant on your higher self,
you’ll naturally find yourself less and less irritated. Y our blood pressure
won’ t be af fected by an insult, your heart isn’ t going to have to  race when
you’re contradi cted, and all th e vital parts of your body are going to
function optimally. What a powerful idea that is for you—every single
aspect of your whole body wo rking not because you are healthier, but
because you’re no longer at the  mercy of all of these external stimuli that
are controlling you. Y ou have achieved authentic fr eedom.
— Y ou have an ab sence of r esentment.  Y ou realize that the ego tries
mightily to keep you focused on yourself and all the things that are
seemingly very important to yo u. When you let go of that an d allow the
Divine within you to rule, when you embrace higher awareness, what
happens is that resentment seems to go out the window.
A re sentful person is someone w ho finds occasions for of fense a lmost all
the time, tending to see it jus t about everywhere they go. In this way,
driving o n the freeway can be an  occasion for resentment. Family members
not doin g things how they should is another occasion for resentment. The
cat scrat ching on the furniture in stead of on the post, or the refr igerator nothaving any beer in it at the moment, can be occasions for resentment.
Reading the news and finding out that one political party said this, and
another one said that—there’ s another occasion for resentment. On and on it
goes, until pretty soon they become someone who’ s looking for resentment
in v irtually everything they see, which just means that the control of their
life isn’ t theirs.
Authentic freedom comes when  you can go through your days and see
such thin gs not as occasions for  resentment, but as the way they are. As for
those thi ngs that you’d like to see changed, you can work at changing them
without being self-absorbed. Th e more you meditate, the more peaceful you
get, and the more you get to kno w the God force that is within all of us. Y ou
discover that the universe is on purpose, and all the things that are
happening are part of God’ s plan, even though you don’ t understand them. I
think one of the greatest insights  you can have is that the Divine plan works
and yours doesn’ t. If it did, you wouldn’ t be having any of the se kinds of
resentments or be so self-absorbed.
— Y ou bec ome mo r e pr oductive and have mor e energy.  The less you
are attac hed to outcome and self-absorption, the more ener gy y ou have left
over for  what you’re here for in  the first place. The ego says, “Y ou must be
concerned with everything.” Th e higher self says, “If you surrender, serve,
go w ith the flow, have an overri ding spiritual objective, and know that you
are here for a purpose, there will not be time for what of fends you.”
As y ou go throu gh the process of moving from your ego to the higher
part of yourself, you open up an  ener getic gateway. Y ou can then try a very
powerful thing called “recapitulation,” which is a whole process  that I truly
believe i n. I’ve read some work s by people who have done it, a nd they said
that every experience you’ve ever had in your life is there. The process
helps you remove the negative e ner gy from your life, and when you do, you
open up a space for new, positive ener gy. It’ s as if removing something
from this place inside of you opens up an opportunity for God to come in.
I did  this recapi tulation process myself through meditation. I went back
to my fourth-grade class and saw Fred there next to me. In front of Fred
was Jani ce, and then there was Earlene, and then Mrs. Engel w as sitting at
the head of the class. I said, “My G od, I was able to get the entire fourth-
grade class! They are all there.”This was the year my mother had taken my brothers and me o ut of the
orphanage. I found that I could move the ener gy of that time—all this stuf f
that I had stored, the anguish I w as feeling, the anticipation that things were
going to get better but then they didn’ t. My mother remarried somebody
who wa s just like my father—she hadn’ t learned her lessons yet, so she
went through another cycle wit h another abusive, alcoholic man until she
got it. Through recapitulation, I was able to let all that ener gy go.
Y ou can  go back and send out o f your own life any negative ener gy that
has accumulated, which will also help to open yourself up. Returning to
what we  learned earlier in the book, cultivating the witness doesn’ t only
mean that you watch yourself;  it’ s a process of detaching yourself from
your problems and understandin g that you are not whatever troubles you.
Y ou get  to a po int where you can understand that nothing in your life is
going or  has ever gone wrong; everything is and always has be en the way
it’ s supposed to be.
When yo u allow  the higher part of yourself to focus on what’ s right with
the world instead of what’ s wrong, you become more productive. Releasing
negativity from your life, and n ot allowing the ego or your sel f-absorption
to ge t in  the way, helps you fee l more powerful, in control, and  at peace. I
know re capitulation changed m y entire outlook, and I had much more
ener gy after experiencing that.
— Y ou disc over what your deep, driving desir e is.  Pers onally, it se ems
that the reason I showed up on this planet has something to do with
teaching self-reliance. I haven’ t been able to escape it at any time in my life.
When I was a l ittle boy living in the orphanage and various f oster homes
and the  new children would come in, the folks in char ge would ask,
“Where’ s W ayne?” Some littl e girl would be crying, and they’d say,
“W ayne, why don’ t you come t alk to her.” I’d take my new fr iend by the
hand and say, “It’ s a great place, and you’re going to have such a good time.
There ar e no parents here or anyone telling you what to do all t he time. It’ s
fantastic.” This was when I was six or seven years of age, and I’ve been
doing it ever since.
When I was in high school, I wrote essays and even novels ab out these
kinds of issues o f self-reliance. When I was in the military, I gave courses
on e pistemology and self-direc tedness on my own time. I’d get 30 guys
coming to my “classes,” and we’d discuss these kinds of things. I alsohelped people who were havin g to deal with the system there, all the
bureaucracy and  regimented rules. Then I got out and went to college, and
when I started teaching, I would have after -school seminars about the
subjects that we’ve talked about in this book. I’ve been living t his stuf f for
as long as I can remember. This deeper, more purposeful part  of my life
seems to be what I showed up on earth for.
When you get tuned in to what your purpose is and that beco mes your
primary motivat or, you have an overriding spiritual objective. Y ou know
that all the petty things you en counter on a daily basis are simply minor
distractions from your deep desire. Y ou don’ t need anyone’ s approval, nor
will you feel the need to dominate others. As you tame your eg o and leave
behind y our self-importance, yo u become focused on what you’re here for.
Y our en er gy is placed only o n that, nothing more, and anything that
anybody else says that’ s in opposition to that will be seen as just where


.
Process	all	ingredients	through	your	juicer	and	serve	well-chilled!

3.
It	is	good	to	know	that	pears	can	help	us	to	lower	a	risk	of	type	2	diabetes.Healthy	Red	Treat
(Ready	in	about	10	minutes	|	Servings	2)

Ingredients

1.
1	sweet	potato,	peeled

1.
1	beetroot,	peeled

1.
2	apples,	cored

1.
1	½"	ginger,	peeled

Directions

1.
Clean	all	ingredients	and	add	them	to	your	juice	extractor.

2.
Process	all	the	above	ingredients	through	a	juicer	and	serve	at	once.

3.
Thanks	to	this	juice,	you	can	get	a	significant	amount	of	beta-carotene	and
vitamin	A.Bloody	Mary	Juice
(Ready	in	about	10	minutes	|	Servings	4)

Ingredients

1.
4	tomatoes

1.
1	carrot

1.
2	red	bell	peppers

1.
2	ribs	celery

1.
1	small	handful	parsley

1.
1	small	handful	basil

1.
A	pinch	of	salt

1.
1	teaspoon	olive	oil

Directions

1.
Add	all	ingredients	through	a	juicer.

2.
Pour	into	four	chilled	glasses.	Serve	at	once.
3.
This	juice	with	its	specific	combination	of	ingredients	has	amazing	mind-
body	benefits.	Parsley	is	a	great	diuretic,	basil	has	an	ability	to	clear	your
skin	and	celery	is	known	as	a	great	antioxidant	and	cancer-fighting	food.
Enjoy	it	because	you	deserve	it!Pineapple	Blueberry	Juice
(Ready	in	about	10	minutes	|	Servings	2)

Ingredients

1.
1/2	medium	pineapple

1.
2	oranges

1.
1	cup	blueberries

1.
1	tablespoon	fresh	mint	leaves

Directions

1.
First	of	all,	remove	rind	from	pineapple	and	oranges.	Then,	transfer	them	to
a	juice	extractor.	Add	the	rest	of	the	above	ingredients.

2.
Process	the	ingredients	until	they	are	thoroughly	mixed.	Pour	the	juice	into
individual	serving	glasses.

3.
Pineapple	can	lower	our	blood	pressure	and	help	in	asthma	prevention.	The
juice	can	lower	blood	glucose	levels,	so	it	is	a	great	choice	for	diabetics.
Enjoy!Plum	Tomato	Juice
(Ready	in	about	10	minutes	|	Servings	2)

Ingredients

1.
3	plum	tomatoes

1.
1	bell	pepper,	seeded

1.
1	fennel

1.
1	small	handful	parsley

1.
1/2	lemon,	peeled

1.
A	pinch	sea	salt

1.
A	pinch	of	dried	oregano

1.
1	teaspoon	coconut	oil

Directions

1.
Clean	all	ingredients	thoroughly.

2.
Add	all	ingredients	through	a	juicer.	Adjust	the	seasonings	to	taste.
3.
This	is	a	very	refreshing	drink,	which	is	great	for	cleansing	the	body	of
toxins.	Enjoy!Fresh	Summer	Limeade
(Ready	in	about	10	minutes	|	Servings	2)

Ingredients

1.
1/2	medium-sized	honeydew

1.
1/2	medium-sized	watermelon

1.
1/2	cup	fresh	mint

1.
1	lime

Directions

1.
Remove	rind	from	honeydew	and	watermelon.

2.
Wash	all	ingredients	thoroughly	and	transfer	them	to	a	juice	extractor.

3.
Simply	juice	all	the	above	ingredients	and	serve	immediately.

4.
The	juice	helps	you	to	improve	your	digestion	and	weight	loss.	Did	you
know	that	mint	is	a	natural	stimulant,	so	it	gets	your	brain	function	on	a
high	level?!Grapefruit	Mint	Juice
(Ready	in	about	10	minutes	|	Servings	2)

Ingredients

1.
3	carrots

1.
1	grapefruit

1.
1	small	handful	mint

1.
1/2	fennel

1.
1	lime

1.
5	leaves	kale

Directions

1.
Scrub	the	carrots,	and	peel	your	grapefruit	and	lime.

2.
Then,	wash	all	ingredients	thoroughly	and	transfer	them	to	a	juicer	along
with	the	rest	of	ingredients.

3.
Process	the	ingredients	and	serve	the	juice	in	individual	glasses.
	4.
Keep	in	mind	that	blood	oranges	yield	more	juice.	Enjoy!Post-Workout	Drink
(Ready	in	about	10	minutes	|	Servings	1)

Ingredients

1.
1	carrot,	scrubbed	and	coarsely	chopped

1.
1	small	sweet	potato,	scrubbed	and	coarsely	chopped

1.
2	oranges,	peeled	and	cut	into	chunks

1.
1/4	cup	raw	almonds

1.
1	apple,	cored	and	cubed

1.
1/2	cup	water

Directions

1.
In	a	blender,	combine	all	the	above	ingredients:	then;	blend,	scraping	down
sides,	until	uniform	and	smooth.

2.
Strain	juice	and	add	some	additional	water	if	needed.	The	ingredients	help
you	build	and	repair	your	muscles.	Enjoy!Asparagus	and	Tomato	Juice
(Ready	in	about	10	minutes	|	Servings	1)

Ingredients

1.
1	stalk	asparagus

1.
1	large-sized	tomato

1.
1	cucumber

1.
1/2	teaspoon	ground	allspice

1.
1	orange,	peeled

Directions

1.
First	of	all,	wash	your	ingredients	thoroughly.	Process	the	asparagus	and
tomato	through	your	juicer	according	to	the	manufacturer’s	directions.

2.
Add	the	rest	of	the	ingredients.

3.
Mix	the	juice	until	everything	is	well	combined;	serve	over	crushed	ice.

4.
Asparagus	is	a	natural	diuretic	because	it	is	extremely	rich	in	vitamins	A
and	E,	as	well	as	in	folic	acid	and	iron.Carrot	and	Maca	Limeade
(Ready	in	about	10	minutes	|	Servings	2)

Ingredients

1.
2	carrots,	trimmed

1.
1	apple,	cored

1.
1	pear,	cored

1.
1	lime,	peeled	and	seeded

1.
1	teaspoon	Maca	powder

Directions

1.
Process	the	ingredients	through	your	electronic	juicer	according	to	the
manufacturer’s	directions.

2.
Whisk	your	juice	in	order	to	combine	well	and	enjoy	right	now.

3.
Maca	is	a	plant	from	central	Peru.	It	is	used	for	chronic	fatigue	syndrome,
athletic	performance,	good	memory,	anemia,
etc.Artichoke	and	Carrot	Cocktail
(Ready	in	about	10	minutes	|	Servings	2)

Ingredients

1.
4	Jerusalem	artichokes

1.
4	large	radishes,	tailed	and	trimmed

1.
1	celery	stalk,	chopped

1.
1	handful	baby	spinach

1.
1	bunch	fresh	cilantro

1.
3	medium	carrots,	trimmed

Directions

1.
Process	the	artichokes,	one	at	a	time,	through	your	electronic	juicer.

2.
Don’t	forget	to	roll	the	spinach	and	cilantro	into	a	ball	to	compress	while
adding	them	to	a	juicer.

3.
Add	all	the	ingredients	and	juice	them.
	4.


The kidneys will release water, which triggers the need to urinate and
signals to our brains that we should consume more liquid. W e get thirsty,
and we need to pee more. A lack of vasopressin explains not only my ownirritable bladder but the constant, seemingly unquenchable thirst I have
every night.
There are several books that describe the horrendous health ef fects of
snoring and sleep apnea. They explain how these af flictions lead to bed-
wetting, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), diabetes, high
blood pressure, cancer, and so on. I’d read a report from the Mayo Clinic
which found that chronic insomnia, long assumed to be a psychological
problem, is often a breathing problem. The millions of Americans who have
a chronic insomnia disorder and who are, right now, like me, staring out
bedroom windows, or at TVs, phones, or ceilings, can’ t sleep because they
can’ t breathe.
And contrary to what most of us might think, no amount of snoring is
normal, and no amount of sleep apnea comes without risks of serious health
ef fects. Dr. Christian Guilleminault, a sleep researcher at Stanford, found
that children who experienced no apnea events at all—only heavy breathing
and light snoring, or “ increased respiratory ef fort”—could suf fer from
mood disorders, blood pressure derangements, learning disabilities, and
more.
Mouthbreathing was also making me dumber. A recent Japanese study
showed that rats who had their nostrils obstructed and were forced to
breathe through their mouths developed fewer brain cells and took twice as
long to make their way through a maze than nasal-breathing controls.
Another Japanese study in humans from 2013 found that mouthbreathing
delivered a disturbance of oxygen to the prefrontal cortex, the area of the
brain associated with ADHD. Nasal breathing had no such ef fects.
The ancient Chinese were onto it as well. “ The breath inhaled through
the mouth is called ‘Ni Ch’i, adverse breath,’ which is extremely harmful,”
states a passage from the T ao. “Be careful not to have the breath inhaled
through the mouth.”
As I lie in bed tossing and turning, fighting the ur ge to run to the
bathroom again, I’m trying to focus on the positive, and am reminded of a
skull from Marianna Evans’ s collection that of fered a much-needed dose of
hope.
•       •       •It was morning, and Evans was seated in front of an oversize computer
monitor in the administrative of fice of her orthodontics practice, about a
half hour west of downtown Philadelphia. W ith white walls and white-tiled
floors, the place looked futuristic. It was the opposite of the tan-stucco
strip-mall blocks with ferns, goldfish tanks, and Robert Doisneau prints of
all the dental of fices I’d been to. Evans, I learned, ran a dif ferent kind of
practice.
She brought up two images on a computer monitor, one of an ancient
skull from the Morton Collection, and the other of a young girl, a new
patient. I’ll call her Gigi. Gigi was about seven in the photo. Her teeth jutted
from the top of her gums, outward, inward, and in all directions. There were
dark circles under her eyes; her lips were chapped and open as if she were
sucking on an imaginary Popsicle. She suf fered from chronic snoring,
sinusitis, and asthma. She’d just started developing aller gies to foods, dust,
and pets.
Gigi grew up in a wealthy household. She followed the Food Guide
Pyramid, got plenty of outdoor exercise, had her immunizations, took
vitamins D and C, and had no illnesses growing up. And yet, here she was.
“I see patients like this all day,” said Evans. “They are all the same.”
And here we are. Ninety percent of children have acquired some degree
of deformity in their mouths and noses. Forty-five percent of adults snore
occasionally, and a quarter of the population snores constantly. T wenty-five
percent of American adults over 30 choke on themselves because of sleep
apnea; and an estimated 80 percent of moderate or severe cases are
undiagnosed. Meanwhile, the majority of the population suf fers from some
form of breathing dif ficulty or resistance.
W e’ve found ways to clean up our cities and to tame or kill of f so many
of the diseases that destroyed our ancestors. W e’ve become more literate,
taller, and stronger. On average, we live three times longer than people in
the Industrial Age. There are now seven and a half billion humans on the
planet—a thousand times more people than there were 10,000 years ago.
And yet we’ve lost touch with our most basic and important biological
function.
Evans painted a depressing picture. And the irony wasn’ t lost on me as I
sat in a sparkling clinic looking at one modern face after another and
comparing them with the ideal form and perfect teeth of Samuel Morton’ s
specimens, which he derided as “Australians and degraded Hottentots.” Atone point I scooted closer and saw my reflection in the monitor glass—that
mangle of disjointed bones, the sloping jaw, stuf fy nose, and mouth too
small to fit all its teeth. Y ou fools,  I imagined that ancient skull saying. And
for a moment, I swear, it looked like it was laughing.
But Evans hadn’ t invited me to see her research just to lament the
present; her obsession with tracing the decline of human breathing is just a
starting point. She’d studied it for years, entirely at her own expense,
because she wants to help. She and her colleague, Kevin Boyd, are using
the hundreds of measurements they’ve taken from ancient skulls to build a
new model of airway health for modern humans. They are part of a
bur geoning group of pulmonauts exploring novel therapies in breathing,
lung expansion, orthodontics, and airway development. Their goal is to help
return Gigi, me, and everyone else to our more perfect, ancient forms—the
way we were before it all went haywire.
On the computer screen, Evans pulled up another photo. It was Gigi
again, but in this shot there were no dark circles, none of the sallow skin or
drooping lids. Her teeth were straight and her face was broad and glowing.
She was nasal breathing again and no longer snored. Her aller gies and other
respiratory problems had all but disappeared. The photograph was taken
two years after the first, and Gigi looked transformed.
The same thing happened with other patients—both adults and children
—who’d regained the ability to breathe properly: their slack-jawed and
narrowed faces morphed back into a more natural configuration. They saw
their high blood pressure drop, depression abate, headaches disappear.
Harvold’ s monkeys recovered, too. After two years of forced
mouthbreathing, he removed the silicone plugs. Slowly, surely, the animals
relearned how to breathe through their noses. And slowly, surely, their faces
and airways remodeled: jaws moved forward and facial structure and
airways morphed back into their wide and natural state.
Six months after the experiment ended, the monkeys looked like
monkeys again, because they were breathing normally again.
—
Back in my bedroom, staring out at the shadow play of branches in the
window, I’m hoping that I too can reverse whatever damage I’d done in the
last ten days, and the past four decades. I’m hoping I can relearn to breathe
the way my ancestors breathed. I suppose I’ll see soon enough.T omorrow morning, the plugs come out.Part Two
THE LOST ART AND SCIENCE OF
BREATHINGThree
NOSE
“Y ou look like shit,” says Dr. Nayak.
It’ s early afternoon and I’m back at the Stanford Department of
Otolaryngology Head and Neck Sur gery Center. I’m splayed out on the
examination chair while Nayak nudges an endoscope up my right nostril.
The smooth desert dunes I journeyed through ten days ago look like they’ve
been hit by a hurricane. I’ll skip the details; let’ s just say my nasal cavity is
a mess.
“Now your favorite part,” says Nayak, chuckling. Before I sneeze or can
consider running away, he grabs the wire brush and pushes it a few inches
into my head. “It’ s pretty soupy in there,” he says, sounding somewhat
pleased. He repeats with the left nostril, places the gunk-covered RNA
brushes into a test tube, then scoots me out of the way.
For the past week and a half I’d been waiting for this moment. I’d
anticipated removing these plugs and tape and cotton to be a celebratory
scene involving high-fives and nasal sighs of relief. I could breathe like a
healthy human again!
In reality, it’ s minutes of discomfort followed by more obstruction. My
nose is such a mess that Nayak has to grab a pair of pliers and insert several
inches of cotton swabs into each nostril to keep whatever is up there from
spilling onto the floor. Then it’ s back to the pulmonary function tests, an X-
ray, the