 Bladder,
Small Intestine, and Large Intestine ).
The strength, rate, rhythm,  and size of the pulse express the
integrity of the Qi and Blood  and the functional activity of the Five
Organ Networks. A healthy pulse is regular, with four to ve beats
per cycle of respiration and a smooth, owing feeling as it rises and
falls. It is both elastic and resilient, evoking a sense of relaxed and
vigorous rhythm and harmony.
As many as thirty-two pulse qualities are described in the classical
texts, each indicating a particular type of disturbance. For example,
if the pulse is “oating”—that is, it can be felt with light pressure
but fades away as the pressure increases—it indicates an AdverseClimate  (Wind, Cold, Heat, Dampness, or Dryness ) has penetrated the
surface from the outside. If the pulse is oating and rapid, or
oating and strong, this reects the inuence of these Adverse
Climates  in con ict with the vigorou s defensive Qi of the body. The
“sinking” pulse is its counterpart. It is perceived only with deeper
pressure and feels like a stone settling in water. Since it is relatively
hidden or buried, it indicate s that the problem exists at the deeper
internal level.
Left
Heart : all organs and functions above the diaphragm, especially on
the left side of the body
Liver: all organs and functions between the diaphragm and the navel
especially in the lateral areas of the body
Kidney Yin: all organs and functions below the navel, especially in
the pelvic region on the left side of the lower abdomenHeart
Inch Position:
(Upper Burner): cun
Liver
Bar Position
(Middle Burner): guanKidney Yin
Cubit Position
(Lower Burner): che
Right
Lung: all organs and functions above the diaphragm, especia lly on
the right side of the body
Spleen : all organs and functions between the diaphragm and the
navel, especially in the central area of the abdomen
Kidney Yang: all organs and functions below the navel, especially in
the pelvic region on the right side of the lower abdomenLung
Inch Position:
(Upper Burner): cun
Spleen
Bar Position
(Middle Burner): guanKidney Yang
Cubit Position
(Lower Burner): che
The slow pulse suggests that Cold is retarding  movement,
manifesting in a lack of warmth, whereas the rapid pulse suggests
that the presence of Heat is accelerating  movement and activity. A
thin and forceless pulse is associated with weakness and a lack of
sucient Qi and Blood. A big, full pulse that “pounds” against the
ngers suggests excess and may be felt when too much Heat is found
in the Heart, Stomach, Liver, or Intestines. Generally, problems of a
Yin nature are indicated by a frail and weak pulse, while problems
of a Yang nature are indicated by a strong and full pulse. A given
individual may exhibit a full and forceful pulse in one position and a
soft and weak pulse in another, suggesting that one system is
hyperactive and another is underactive. Stagnation tends to produce
a tense and erratic pulse It can be generated by both conditions of
excess  or deciency. Heat  can be generated by a lack of Yin as well as
an excess of Yang or Fire. Most people are not diagno sed as having
problems of a purely Yin or Yang nature, and often more than one
Organ Network  is involved in their disorder.
THE EIGHT GUIDING  PRINCIPLES
The Eight Principles  are four sets of polar categories that distinguish
between and interpret the data gathered by examination. These
include Yin-Yang, Cold-Heat, deciency-excess, and interior-exterior.
They determine the relative nature, quality, and location of the Qi,
Moisture, and Blood  within the body as a whole and within each of
the Five Organ Networks.
The energetic activity of the organism is determined by qualities
that distinguish between Heat and Cold. The locale of a disturbance
is judged by the presence of symptoms in the exterior  region
(aecting skin, hair, muscles, tendons, joints, peripheral bloodvessels, nerves, and meridians) or the interior  region  (aect ing the
visceral organs, deep vessels and nerves, brain, spinal cord, and
bones). The virulence of a pathology is compared with the inherent
strength of the body by the presence of symptoms and qualities that
indicate excess  or deciency.
Excess  refers to noxious pathogenic inuences such as the Adverse
Climates  or Emotions  and abnormal accumulations of Qi, Moisture,
and Blood. Deciency  refers  to a lack of the fundamental
constituents, Qi, Moisture, and Blood. Any condition can then be
summarized in terms of the relative dominance of Yin and Yang.(see larger image)(see larger image)
Click  to download a PDF of Syndromes of Distress
Using the Eight Principles  enable s the practitioner to formulate
certain therapeutic objectives. Where Cold predominates, the body
must be warmed. Where excess  persists, it must be dispersed. When
the disease is internal, deep-acting remedies must be employed.
Similarly, Heat is cooled, deciency  tonie d, and external  ailments
are treated with remedies that act on the surface.THE ACUPUNCTURIST AND THE  HERBALIST
Just like an irrigation engineer needs dierent data than a soil
analyst, the acupuncturist needs dierent information, or the same
information organized dierently, than the herbalist. Herbs are
classied by categories descr ibing the disruption of Qi, Moisture, and
Blood  corresponding to the Eight Principles  and Adverse Climates. For
example, the herb poria dispels Dampness ; angelica nourishes
decient Blood ; astragalus generates Qi; forsythia and
chrysanthemum clear Heat
Five-Phase Theory  is more critica l for acupuncture. It is not enough
to know that Dampness  or Heat need to be dispersed, or that
deciencies of Qi and Blood  need to be tonied. The acupuncturist
also needs to know which Organ Network  assumes primary
responsibility for the disru ption of Qi in order to treat the
appropriate channel. The methods of the acupuncturist emphasize
the direct manipulation of Qi within the Organ Networks.
The properties of herbs are assimilated metabolically by the
internal organ s and then dispersed throughout the body as Qi,
Moisture, and Blood. There are particular herbs that clear Damp Heat
from the body. With acupuncture there is a dierent process—the
elimination of Damp Heat is accomplished by adjusting the
circulation of Qi of the Organ Networks  respon sible for distributing
and transforming Moisture  and generating heat. The Damp Heat is
not treated directly, but rather through the functional relationship
within and among Organ Networks. If the relatio nships among the
Organs  are harmonic, the pathologic condition resolves itself. Five-
Phase Theory  puts the relationship among Organ Networks  into
perspective. The doctor who practices both herbal medicine and
acupuncture gathers all the evidence and synthesizes and interprets
it, using both the Eight Principles  and Five-Phase  approaches.
SAME SYMPTOM, DIFFERENT  DISORDERS
To use Five-Phase Theory  it is necessary to identify which Organ
Network  is disturbed. The evaluation identies where the symptomis located, when it occurs, whether anything makes it better or
worse, and what other events may have occurred just prior to or at
the same time as the sympto m. This information is interpreted via
lines of correspondence that link symptoms, timing, and
circumstances with Organ Networks.
In the West, a symptom like a headache may be treated
universally with aspirin or Tylenol. This same headache needs
dierentiating in Chinese medicine. It’s like the many words in the
Eskimo language that describe varieties of “snow.” In Chinese
medicine a multiplicity of disease patterns produce what in Western
medicine is one named symptom or disease.
For example, disturbance of the Liver Network  can produce
migraine or bilious headaches associated with nausea, vomiting, and
sensitivity to light and noise. These headaches may be provoked by
anger and occur more frequently in the spring. Disturbance of the
Stomach  and Intestines  may cause headaches associated with nasal
and sinus congestion, acidity, atulence, and constipation. This type
of headache may appear in the morning and improve in the evening.
Especially in hot, humid weather, disturbances of the Spleen  and
Heart  may cause headaches associated with fatigue, dizziness,
perspiration, and anxiety. In winter, headaches associated with
backache, chilliness, and profuse urination may suggest a
disturbance of the Kidney. The headache could be a simple matter of
acute indigesti on or related to a complex and chronic problem such
as hypertension, asthma,


 add as much cream as fruit
and a pinch of salt. To one pint of this mixture add two
ounces of powdered sugar. Beat this with a whip until it is
light and frothy. Serve in gl asses and sprinkle blanched or
powdered almonds over the top. In the centre of each place a
candied cherry. Serve cold.

BANANA CREAM (No. 3.)
Mash to a pulp four good, ripe bananas, and add to the
stiffly beaten whites of two eggs. Mix thoroughly, sweeten to
taste. This should be used as soon as possible as the bananas
turn dark very soon.
 APPLE, ALMOND CREAM.
 8 or 9 Sweet Apples,   1 Egg,
 ½ pound Sweet Almonds, ½ Teacup Seeded Raisins,
 A little Nutmeg,   ½  cup Thick Cream.
Peel and grate the apples, blanch and grind the almonds,
add a little nutmeg, one-half t eacup chopped seeded raisins,
and the white of one egg beaten stiff with one-half cup of
thick cream. Mix all ingredients thoroughly and serve.

NUT CREAM.
 Pecans,   Sugar,
 Almonds,   Jelly Powder,
 Cream,   Whipped Cream.
Take three ounces of pecans, one ounce of blanched
sweet almonds, chop or pulverize. Then add one pint of
cream and three or four tablespoonfuls of sugar and over this
pour one-half package of jelly powder, which has been
thoroughly dissolved in warm water. Put it upon the ice.
When about to thicken, stir it until very smooth, then stir in
lightly one pint of whipped cream, and put it into a mold.

PEACH CREAM.
 ½ dozen Peaches (very ripe),  1 cup Sweet Cream,
 1 Box Bro-man-gel-on,   1 pint Whipped Cream.
Mash peaches through a colander, sweeten to taste. Have
prepared a package of jelly powde r and when cool add to this
peaches and one teacup of sweet cream, stirring well. Set on
ice, add one pint of whipped cream and stir as this is
thickening. Then place in a mold.

STRAWBERRY CREAM.
 2 quarts Berries,   1 pint Whipped Cream,
 1 box Jelly Powder,  Sugar.
Select nice, very ripe strawberries, wash and mash
through a colander, sweeten to taste, prepare jelly powder
with one-half pint hot water. When cold add the strawberry
juice and strain pan. Set on ice and stir until it thickens. Then
add whipped cream and mix thoroughly. Pour in a mold, and
set in a cool place to harden. Serve with whipped cream.
ICE CREAM, ICES AND DRINKS.

ICE CREAM.
If one gallon is to be made use two quarts pure cream,
one quart unskimmed milk, one quart crushed fruit, sweeten
to taste.
First pack freezer with ice and salt. Then pour into a
gallon receptacle, the cream, milk and sugar, and stir until
sugar is dissolved. Pour this into the freezer, adding the
crushed fruit last so as to avoid curdling.
To make good, pure ice cream only use rich milk and
pure cream in about equal parts. Any fruit desired may be
used.

RASPBERRY ICE.
 4 cupfuls of Water,   2 cupfuls of Sugar,
 2 cupfuls of Raspberry Juice,  2 Lemons.
Mix the juice of the raspberries and lemons with the
sugar and let them stand for an hour. Strain through a wire
sieve, add the water and freeze, same as ice cream.

PEACH ICE.
 Peaches,   Sugar,
Whites of Eggs.
Into one quart of very ripe peaches (mashed) stir in a
cupful of water, one pound of sugar, and the unbeaten whites
of five eggs. Turn all into the freezer and grind until firm.
Any ripe fruits desired can be used in the place of peaches.

SORBETS.
Sorbets are simply sherbets half frozen, and they are
generally served in glasses after the second course of a
dinner. They 'are frozen without beating and with very little
stirring, and the result is a rough, icy substance. Any kind of
fruit juice may be used for these, or several kinds mixed.

STRAWBERRY ICE.
 3 pints Crushed Ripe Berries,  1 pint Picked
   Berries, (whole).
 1 pound of Powdered Sugar,  3 pints of Water,
Wash thoroughly and crush the berries with a silver fork
and cover with one pound of pow dered sugar. Let stand aside
in a cool place for half an hour. Then add to the fruit three
pints of water. Pass through a fine hair sieve or cloth, and just
before freezing add a pint of picked berries.

STRAWBERRY SHERBET.
 Sugar,   Lemon Juice,
 Berry Juice,   Whites of Eggs. To one pint of granulated sugar add one and one-half
pints of warm water. To this add one and one-half pints
strawberry juice or berries after they have been run through a
coarse sieve add the juice of one large lemon. (Freeze like ice
cream.) Just before it becomes stiff, add the whites of two
eggs lightly beaten.

ICED CANTALOUPE.
Divide a cantaloupe in half. Remove seeds. Place upon
the ice until very cold. Chip off the ends so they will set level
on plate. Fill with ice cream or ices of any kind. To make an
ornamental dish, one or two cherries can be slightly pressed
into the cream.
We regard it as unnecessary to give recipes for the
following drinks, as the method of making them is so
universally known:
 Lemonade,   Buttermilk,
 Grape-juice,   Milk Shake,
 Cider,   Egg-nog, etc.
Very delightful and refreshing drinks can be made by
crushing thoroughly any ripe fruit or berries, and straining the
juice from the pulp, and adding water and sugar.

NECTAR.
 3 Oranges,   Crushed Ice,
 3 Lemons,   Sugar,
 1 pint Water,   A bit of Mint.
Extract the juice of oranges and lemons, mix with water
and crushed ice, sugar and mint, stir well and serve.

ORANGEADE.
Roll as many oranges as you desire to use, squeeze the
juice, allowing eight to one pint of water. Use the juice of two
lemons to eight oranges. Sweeten to taste.

MEDLEY NECTAR.
Crush one pound of berries. A dd to them one quart of
water, one lemon sliced and the juice of one orange. Let these
ingredients stand in an earthen bowl for three or four hours.
Then strain, squeezing all juice out of the fruit. Dissolve one
pound of powdered sugar in it, strain again, and put on ice
until ready to serve.
MENUS.

From the following menus given some idea can be
formed as to the order in which elementary meals should be
served. The highest object to be attained in the preparation of
a single meal or for an entire day or week is a perfectly
balanced bill of fare; that is, to serve such foods as will
furnish to the body all the elements of nutrition in the right
proportions.
These menus are made up to meet the requirements of a
normal body. When the digestive, secretive or excretive
organs are abnormal or disordered, special selections and
combinations of food are required to counteract these
conditions.

SUGGESTIONS FOR SEVEN DAYS' MENUS.

MONDAY

BREAKFAST.
Apples.
 Protoid Nuts.   Filberts.
Turkish pulled figs with cream.

LUNCHEON.
 Pecans.   Olives.
Vegetable salad with Hygeia dressing.
 Unfired crackers.   Sweet butter.
Evaporated peaches and raisins.
Milk.

DINNER.
Oranges.
Apples.
 Pecans.   Protoid nuts.
 Ripe Olives.   Lettuce.
Flaked Oats, Dates and Cream.
 Unfired Crackers.   Sweet Butter.
 Fruit Salad   Egg-nog.

TUESDAY.

BREAKFAST.
Apples.
 Pecans.   Bananas and Cream.
 Unfired Wafers.   Seeded Raisins.
Milk.
 LUNCHEON.
Apples.
 Chestnuts.   Pecans.
 Celery Salad.   Unfired Crackers.
 Date and Nut Butter.   Dates.
Persimmons with cream.

DINNER.
Sliced Pineapple.
 Pecans.   Blanched Almonds.
 Ripe Olives.   Celery.
 Unfired Wafers.  Combination Nut Butter.
Sliced Bananas, Dates and Cream.
Egg-nog.

WEDNESDAY


 cures like'. A substance that produces disease-like symptoms in
healthy people will in properly dilute d form cure a sick person with similar symptoms. For example, onion juice will cause watering,
irritated eyes and sneezing; but in a very diluted form (Allium cepa) it is useful in relieving symptoms of eye and nose irritation, as in
hayfever. To distinguish it from homeopathy, conventional medicine, in which symptoms are treated with large doses of opposing
agents, is known as allopathy.
However, homeopathy cannot be understood as a substance based method, such as drug medicine or herbalism where any healing
effect is due to chemical reactions. A simple calculation shows that in the higher potencies not a single molecule of the original
substance will be present. But these high potencies are often more effective than low potencies. Therefore, homeopathy can only be
understood as working with energy remedies.
The explanation is that every natural substance has an etheric ﬁeld around its molecular structure. The special shaking action or
potentizing used in homeopathy separates the etheric ﬁelds from their material substance. The latter is then discarded and the former
concentrated. These concentrated etheric ﬁelds are much more potent in this way than when they were combined with matter. Similar
etheric concentrates can be produced with radionics instruments. The healing effect of such concentrates depends on their
vibrational frequency. Because of this the name vibrational medicine has been coined for these methods.
Homeopathic medicines, properly diluted or 'potentized', may be used as prophylactics; they will also combat allergy reactions. A
homeopathic medicine's sphere of curative action is found by administering it in high doses to human volunteers of both sexes and
recording the emotional, pathological and physiological reactions to the medicine. This test is called a proving, and hundreds of
substances have been proved in this way. Consequently, homeopathic remedies are effective over the whole range of mental and
physical disorders. The medicines are made from plants, minerals, animals and chemicals. Remedies from diseased animal products
are called nosodes. Sometimes a product of a disease  is used in potentized form for treating the same disease; this is called
isopathy.
Homeopaths may either use the classical approach or practice clinical homeopathy. The classical approach is to use only one dose of
one remedy at a time and another dose or remedy only if any effect of the previous remedy has worn off. More commonly clinical
homeopathy is used where several remedies are combined and taken several times daily.
Use Your Own Body Fluids
While for general treatment of common symptoms it is more convenient to use established homeopathic remedies, to overcome
obstinate individual problems it is frequently more effective to prepare remedies from your own body ﬂuids; this a form of isopathy
known as autotherapy.
Urine, for example, contains traces of almost all body chemicals: the normal ones such as enzymes and hormones, as well as foreign
and toxic substances, viruses, and so on. A properly diluted sample of your urine will initiate the correction of all unbalanced,
unnatural body chemistry, while normal, balanced amounts of body chemicals are harmless. This, then, is an excellent way to
improve the balance of your glandular system, which is difﬁcult to inﬂuence directly by any other method.
Other body ﬂuids that may be used are a drop of diluted blood to treat blood disorders; diluted pus if there is an infected wound or a
boil; sputum for mouth and throat disorders; tears for eye problems; feces for intestinal diseases; ear discharge for ear diseases, and
so on. Apart from balancing gland activities and general body chemistry, this method is known to be very effective in stimulating the
body's immune system, so essential to combat cancer and other degenerative diseases.
How to Prepare Your Own Remedies
To prepare remedies from your own body ﬂuids, dilute a small sample of the selected ﬂuid 1:100 with pure water. This means 1 part
sample and 99 parts water, for instance 1 teaspoonful of sample and 99 teaspoonfuls of water. The water should be puriﬁed, that is
distilled or ﬁltered.
Shake the mixture vigorously 40 or 50 times in a bottle or jar, accentuating the downward stroke. Alternatively, strike the mixing bottle
40 to 50 times on a resilient surface. This sample is now in the ﬁrst potency, described as 1 C. Take 1 part of this, dilute it again with
99 parts water, shake, and you have a potency of 2C. This process is repeated until the desired potency is reached.
If dilution proceeds in steps of 1:10 instead of 1:100, the ﬁrst potency is IX, the second 2X and so on. A potency of 12X corresponds
in dilution strength to 6C. However, the number or potencies as well as the overall dilution are important for the quality of a remedy.
Home About Diseases Healing the Body Healing Foods Healing the Mind Healing the Emotions Energies Science & Spirituality Spirituality Contact10/30/24, 3:03 PM Health-Science-Spirit - Homeopathy
https://health-science-spirit.com/Energies/Homeopathy.html 1/3Start using your own diseased body  ﬂuids at a potency of 12C. If this does not bring an improvement after some time, experiment
with higher and lower potencies. However, use urine in 6X potency and start foods to which you may be allergic at 4x before
increasing in steps to 5X and 6X. Use remedies made of your own body products only for yourself, not for anyone else
To produce your own remedies from herbs, make a'mother tincture' by soaking a fresh or dried sample in high-grade alcohol - vodka
or brandy. After a week or two you may dilute part of the mother tinctur e as previously described, but for the ﬁrst 1:10 dilution, use
alcohol and water half and half. Using this technique, you have to buy a speciﬁc commercial tincture only once. If the bottle is almost
empty, dilute its contents with either 9 parts or 99 parts water-alcohol mixture and shake for some time.
You may also try a combination of homeopathy and herbalism. Herbs often seem to be more effective when used as low-potency
homeopathic remedies. In this way any undesirable side effects of conc entrated herbs are lessened, while speciﬁc healing effects,
especially cleansing actions, are greatly strengthened. You may experiment by potentizing 1 part of an unheated herbal extract or
tincture with 4 or 9 parts water.
If you did use a strong mother tincture of a rather potent herb then start by taking only one or two drops several times daily; keep
them in the mouth; increase the dose gradually. If the extract was rather weak or of a harmless herb, then take spoonfuls or even a
cupful at a time. You can make a watery extract of fresh or dried herbs in a blender or better by shaking the powdered or pureed herb
in water. Alternatively, you may make a tincture by keeping them covered with alcohol or glycerine in a jar for several days.
If the remedy is to be stored for more than a few days a mixture of half vodka or brandy and half water should be used for the last
step. This gives the solution an alcohol content of about 30 per cent and will prevent the growth of bacteria and fungi. Alternatively,
refrigerate the remedy but it may lose its ef fectiveness due to the strong electromagnetic ﬁeld.
How to T ake Your Remedies
Take homeopathic remedies with a clean mouth; the best time is before meals and at bedtime. The usual dose is three to ﬁve drops
in a little water (about 2 ounces) sipped slowly over ﬁve minutes. Alternatively, you may keep three drops in a little water under the
tongue. Generally, take one dose four times daily, for chronic conditions twice daily, for severe or acute conditions every 10 minutes
until some improvement is noted, then reduce the frequency. If the patient cannot swallow, moisten the inside of the lips and the
tongue with the remedy. Try not to have the remedy come in contact with metal, use a plastic spoon rather than a metal spoon.
If a reaction to the remedy is noted (sometimes as a temporary aggravation of symptoms) this is a sign that the correct remedy was
selected, but wait until the reaction has subsided before giving the next dose. Any overdose of homeopathic remedies is harmless.
Store homeopathic remedies protect ed from heat and light as well as away from magnets and strong electromagnetic ﬁelds. For best
results, you should not change remedies too frequently.
If tablets are used, do not touch them, but shake a tablet into the bottle cap and from there directly into the mouth; keep it under the
tongue. Generally, however, it is not recommended to use homeopathic remedies in tablet form because of the possibility of
intolerance to lactose or sucrose. This is accentuated by keeping the tablets in the mouth, which provokes stronger allergic reactions
than swallowing them, and swallowing is not desirable for homeopathic remedies.
Which Potency to Use
The most commonly used potencies are 6X, 12X, 12C, 30C, 200C, l000C (M), l00M (CM


ciou sly, willingly. When you suffer
consciously, physical pain can quickly burn up the ego in you since ego consists
largely of resistance. The same is true of extreme physical disability. “You offer up
your suffering to God,” is another way of saying th is.

***

You don't need to be a Christian to understand the deep universal truth that is
contained in symbolic form in the image of the cros s. The cross is a torture
instrument. It stands for the most extreme sufferin g, limitation, and helplessness a
human being can encounter. Then suddenly that human  being suffers willingly,
consciously, expressed through the words, “not my w ill, but thy will be done.” At
that moment, the cross, the torture instrument show s its hidden face.

It is also a sacred symbol, a symbol for the divine. That which seemed to deny the
existence of any transcendental dimension to life, through surrender becomes an
opening into that dimension. <|eot_id|><|begin_of_text|>“Wheninspirationandinformationarecombinedinhealthcare,theresultsexceedexpectations.ExtraordinaryHealingcanhelpyoubringbothintoyourlifeandenjoytheresults.”
BernieSiegel,M.D.Authorof365Prescrz~tionsfortheSoul
andHelpMetoHeal
“ArtBrownsteinisnotonlyaninspireddoctor,he’salsoamasterfulteacher.Inthemostengagingandsimpleways,hedescribestheremark
ablemiraclesofhealingwhileatthesametimedemystifringthesciencebehindthesemiraclessothatwecanallaccessourownextraordinaryhealingpowers.IhighlyrecommendExtraordinaryHealingtoanyonewhowantstoachieveoptimumhealthandwellbeing.”
LarryPayne,Ph.D.FoundingPresidentInternationalAssociationofYogaTherapists
“Inanerawhenpreventionandtakingpersonalresponsibilityforyour
ownhealthisparamount,Dr.Brownstein’sadviceisespeciallytimely.Theimportanceofmentalandphysicalhealthandtheirintegrationwitheachotherisparticularlyrelevant.Thisisanexcellentguidefor
allwhoaspiretoalongandhealthylife.”
JamesE.Banta,M.D.,M.P.H.,F.A.C.P.M.VisitingProfessorandInterimChair,GeorgeWashingtonUniversity
ExtraordinaryHEALING
ExtraordinaryHEALING
TheAmazingPowerof
YourBody’sSecretHealingSystem
ArthurH.Brownstein,M.D.,M.P.H.
HARBORPRESS
GicHARBOR,WA
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Brownstein,ArthurH.,1950—Extraordinaryhealing:theamazingpowerofyourbody’ssecrethealingsystem/ArthurH.Brownstein
p.cm.Includesbibliographicalreferences.ISBN0-936197-49-8(alk.paper)Healing.2.Health.3.Mindandbody.I.Title.
IMPORTANTNOTICE
Theideas,positions,andstatementsinthisbookmayinsomecasesconflict
withorthodox,mainstreammedicalopinion,andtheadviceregardinghealth
mattersoutlinedinthisbookoronitscoverisnotsuitableforeveryone.Do
notattemptself-diagnosis,anddonotembarkuponself-treatmentofanykindwithoutqualifiedmedicalsupervision.Nothinginthisbookshouldbeconstruedasapromiseofbenefitsorofresultstobeachieved,oraguarantee
bytheauthororpublisherofthesafetyorefficacyofitscontents.Theauthor,
thepublisher,itseditors,anditsemployeesdisclaimanyliability,loss,orriskincurreddirectlyorindirectlyasaresultoftheuseorapplicationofanyof
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RZ4O1.B8252005
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2004040615EXTRAORDINARYHEALING
TheAmazingPowerofYourBody’sSecretHealingSystem
Copyright©2005byArthurH.Brownstein
Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthisbookmaybereproducedinanyformbyanymeanswithoutpermissioninwritingfromthepublisher.
PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica.
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HARBORPRESSandthenautilusshelldesignareregisteredtrademarksofHarborPress,Inc.
hisbookisdedicatedtoNormanCousins(1915—1990)andto
hissurvivingfamilymembers.Arareandmostunusualhumanbeing,Cousinswasaninternationalemissaryofpeace;apoliticaladvisortostatesmen,politicians,popes,andpresidents;aprolific,best-sellingauthor;amusician;ahumorist;andanextraordinaryhealer.Considered“healerofthemedicalprofession”and“foundingfatherofmind-bodymedicine,”hewasalsoapioneeringresearcher
andoutspokenproponentofpsychoneuroimmunology, anewbranchofmedicalsciencethatstudiestheinteractionsamongthemind,thenervoussystem,andtheimmunesystemtohelpusbetterunderstandhowourbeliefs,thoughts,feelings,andattitudescanaffectourphysicalhealth.
Eventhoughhewasinthemiddleofintensefundraisingandresearchinpsychoneuroimmunologywhenwemetinhisofficeat
theUCLASchoolofMedicine,NormanCousinstooktimeoutof
hisbusyscheduletotellmeaboutthehealingsystem.Hespokeatlengthaboutwhyheconsidereditthemostimportantsysteminthebody,andhowresearchneededtobeconductedinthisvitalareaofhumanhealth.Although,overthepast15years,Ihavesinceheard
andreadaboutthehealingsystemmanytimes,andhavegoneontoconductmyownclinicalstudiesandobservationsaboutit,NormanCousinswasthefirstonetomakemeawareofitanditsprofoundimportancetohumanity’songoingbattleagainstdisease.Icredit
himformakingmeabetterdoctor,andfortheinspirationtowrite
thisbook.
CONTENTS
ForewordxiAcknowledgmentsxiiiIntroductionxxiii
PARTONE
YourExtraordinaryHealingSystem
Chapter1YourHealingSystemandYourNaturalStateofHealth3Chapter2YourHealingSysteminAction23Chapter3TheTeamMembersofYourHealingSystem57Chapter4StrengtheningandFortif~iingYourHealingSystem73Chapter5FuelingYourHealingSystem113Chapter6ThePowerofYourMindandYourHealingSystem135Chapter7Aging,Long-LastingHealth,andYourHealingSystem183Chapter8TheHealingSystematWork:PersonalStoriesofExtraordinaryHealing219
PARTTWOActivatingYourHealingSystemWhenYou’reSick
BeforeYouBegin249
GettingStarted:ADailyProgramforEnhancingYourHealingSystem263ConqueringCommonHealthConditions281
SkinProblems282Abrasions,Contusions,Lacerations,andPunctures282
viii Contents
Abscesses283
Acne283Boils,Carbuncles,Furuncles284
Burns284
Cysts285Folliculitis285Impetigo285
SkinRashes286
AllergicRashes286InfectiousRashes287Nerve-RelatedRashes287Eczema288Psoriasis288Shingles288ProblemsoftheHead289DizzinessandVertigo289Headaches290HeadInjury291
EyeDisorders292Conjunctivitis293CornealAbrasions293
Styes294
EarProblems294ImpactedEarWax294Meniere’sDisease295Middle-EarInfections295Noise-InducedHearingLoss296Outer-EarInfections296PerforatedEarDrum297Surfer’sEar297Tinnitus298RespiratorySystemDisorders298
Asthma298Bronchitis299Colds299EmphysemaandCOPD(ChronicObstructivePulmonaryDisease)299
Contents ix
Pharyngitis300Pneumonia300RespiratoryAllergies301SinusInfections302
StrepThroat303Tonsillitis303Tuberculosis303DigestiveSystemDisorders304Appendicitis305ColonCancer305Constipation306Gastritis306Gastroenteritis306Hepatitis307InflammatoryBowelDisease308StomachUlcersandDuodenalUlcers309
UrinarySystemDisorders309
KidneyStones310Urinary-TractInfections310
FemaleReproductiveSystemDisorders310
CanceroftheFemaleReproductiveSystem311Menopause311PremenstrualSyndrome(PMS)312
MaleReproductiveSystemDisorders313
MaleMenopause313ProstateCancer313ProstateEnlargement313TesticularCancer314LymphaticSystemDisorders314
NervousSystemDisorders314
CentralNervousSystemDisorders315PeripheralNeuropathies316MusculoskeletalDisorders316Fractures316MuscularInjuries317Osteoporosis317
X Contents
JointDisorders318
Gout318Osteoarthritis318RheumatoidArthritis318DisordersoftheHands,Feet,andExtremities319
HandProblems319CarpalTunnelSyndrome319
FootProblems319Corns,HeelSpurs,PlantarFasciitis,andPlantarWarts320DisordersoftheSpine320
Back


:
The thirty-three Discourses contained in this book were dictated over a visible Light and
Sound Ray in our home during 1932 by the Ascended Master Saint Germain and those other
Ascended Masters directly concerned with this Activity. The sound of His Voice was
physically audible to everyone in the room. … Never before, except in the Retrea ts of the
Great White Brotherhood, has such inten sified, transcendent Instruction concernin g the “I
AM” been given to individuals.6
I am simply presenting this to you as what is written in the Foreword of
the book. It is of no concern to me to delve into the veracity or authenticity
of channeled material—to me, everything is channeled from God. I don’t
know where these words I’m writing come from—I certainly don’t own
them, and I feel that they come fast and furious when I stay in spirit or
inspired. What I am concerned with is the magnificence of these messages
and my awareness that our world could be a world of love, peace, and joy;
and we have the power to access unlimited fulfillment of wishes that are
aligned with our source of being. And that is why I present the essence of
the “I AM” teachings and encourage you to dig deeply into their content.
The essence is quite simply that I am is the full activity of God, and that
each and every one of us can realign ourselves so that our I ams reflect the
God that we are, rather than the ego that most of us have become.
Here is one more very important observation from the First Discourse
offered by Saint Germain:
The first expression of every individual, everywhere in the Universe, either in spoken
word, silent thought or feeling is “I AM,” recognizing Its Own Conquering Divinity.
The studen t, endeavo ring to understand and apply these mighty, yet simple Laws, must
stand guard more strictly over his thought  and expression—in word or otherwise; for every
time you say “I AM not,” “I cannot,” “I have not,” you are, whether knowingly or
unknowingly, throttling that “Great Presence” within you.7This speaks so directly to me and the message I wish to convey. Every
time you think of the expression I Am, you initiate God in action. Why not
continually remind yourself that I live, move, and have my being as God,
the I am that I am?
I’m going to detour here for a few paragraphs to bring you back to a
transmission that is recorded in a book that you’re probably familiar with,
which is the Holy Bible—both  the Torah (the first five books of the Old
Testament) and the New Testament. If you’ve been raised Christian or
Jewish, you will see that these tidings of spiritual truth I’m delivering here
are dramatically harmonized with your core teachings. These five words— I
am that I am—contain a message that has been encoded in your soul.
According to ancient spiritual teachings dating back 1,300 years before the
birth of Christ, the words I am align you with the Divine, and at the same
time remind you that you are the Divine, possessing the same power to
create as God.
God Speaks as I Am
The infant Moses, you may recall, was put in a basket and left in the reeds
by the Nile Rive r because he was the son of an Israelite slave. The pharaoh
had ordered every male child born to Israelite slaves to be drowned in the
river. However, as luck or Divine intervention would have it, the pharaoh’ s
daughter discov ered the floating infant and rescued him to be raised as a
prince among his despotic enemies.
As a young man, Moses witnesses an Egyptian soldier abusing an Israelite
slave and responds by killing the soldier and hiding the body. But his
adoptive grandfa ther the pharaoh discovers his misdeed and orders him put
to death. Moses escapes to the land of Midian and finds refuge with Jethro,
a local priest, whose daughter Zipporah he marries. Moses lives primarily
as a shepherd and husband for some 40 years.
Now here is a man born to an Israelite slave, who was suppo sed to be
killed at birth by order of the pharaoh but was saved by the pharaoh’ s
daughter and raised as her son, and is now a shepherd. He’s out tending his
flock when he encounters a burning bush, which continues to burn without
consuming the bush itself. Mose s, then, the ancient scriptures tell us, hears
God speaking:And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush. So
he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed. …
God called  to him from the midst of the bush and said, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I
am.” Then He said, “Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the
place where you stand is holy ground.” Moreover, He said, “I am the God of your father—the
God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob” (Exodus 3:2–6).
The story contin ues in the book of Exodus, and God was said to have told
Moses that he was to go to the pharaoh and free the childre n of Israel,
saying, “Come now, therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may
bring My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt” (Exodus 3:10).
Then Moses questions how he could do such an enormous task all by
himself, and God replies, “I will certainly be with you” (Exodus 3:12).
Moses follows up by inquiring, “Indeed, when I come to the children of
Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and
they say to me, ‘What is His name?’ what shall I say to them?” (Exodus
3:13). “And God said to Moses, ‘I AM THA T I AM.’ And He said, Thus
you shall say to the children of Israel, “I AM has sent me to you.” … This is
My name forever, and this is My memorial to all generation s’” (Exodus
3:14–15).
This is also a memorial to you and me in this generation. The name of
God, which is you and me, is I am.  This is the fundamental teachin g of The
“I AM” Discourses  and becoming acquainted with your highest self.
Still having trouble seeing yourself as God? Try this: Imagine God as the
ocean. If you take a bucket of water out of the ocean, is the water in the
bucket the ocean? Yes, indeed, it is altogether ocean—and the ocean, even
though it is larger, is still altogether the whole of the ocean in the bucket.
Now think of yourself as a bucket of God. Altogether God; and God is
altogether you. It is only when you stay separated from the ocean that the
water dries up. This is your task in grasping your highest self—staying
aligned and not separated from your Source, and remembering what God
says in Psalms 46:10: “Be still, and know that I am God.”
In The Moses Code, author James Twyman makes a powerful case for
getting to this truth—in fact, the subtitle is, “The Most Powerful
Manifestation Tool in the Histo ry of the World.” (I also encourage you to
read James’s fascinating book for a much fuller treatment of the power ofthe words that God reputedly spoke to Moses in response to his question
regarding His name.)
The Torah is presumed to have been written some 1,300 years before the
birth of Christ. The holy place where God first manifests and tells Moses to
remove his shoes is where Moses discovers who he truly is by his very first
words to God: “Here I am.”
I say this to you with absolute certainty—the I am that has been with you
in all the physic al forms you’ve occupied since your birth is God. The two
words I am are God’ s name. How do you use these words? You strive to
know —just like God taught when He said, “Be still, and know that I am
God”—that with the use of God’ s name, you release all doubt about being
able to manifes t your desires, and you live from the exalted pinnacle of
your highest self.
Just to reinforce this idea that you are indeed the I am that I am, or God,
consider moving  forward to the time when Jesus the man was on Earth. His
words let you know that this idea of declaring yourself as I Am God is not
some New Age interpretation, and in no way is offensive to Christianity.
You are not guilty of blasphemy by allowing this belief to be alive within
you. If you’re experiencing pangs of guilt, reread the display quote at the
beginning of this chapter, whic h was written by Saint Paul. Yes, you are
equal with God. It’ s okay!
Jesus Speaks As I Am
In the book of John, when Jesus is asked if he has seen Abraham, he
responds with these words: “Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham
was, I AM” (John 8


At best, raw grains taste unpleasant and bitter, even when they are
sprouted. More often, they are inedible or poisonous if eaten in the field.
Even birds, the only natural grain eaters, feed their young on insects, as
grains are deficient in protein and nutrients.
It is common for people to experience severe cravings for refmed
grain products, and often to binge on them. When starches are consumed,
people wake up the next day and go through unpleasant periods of
feeling foggy, hung-over, or sedated. Should they stop consuming grains,
symptoms of detoxification and withdrawal emerge. It is best to avoid
substances that result in sttch powerful dependencies, whether we choose
to call the1n drugs or foods.
Anatomically, humans are classed as anthropoid primates, along with
gibbons, chimpanzees, bonobos, gorillas, and orangutans. There is not one
example in nature of an animal with anatomy and physiology similar to
There isn't even any bread on a breadfruit tree.
10 It is easier to overeat on starches than on
any other food. People who shun starches
are simply never overweight.
ours that consumes grains. All of the anthropoid primates thrive on a
diet composed almost exclusively of fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds.
(Some do eat insects, small vertebrates, or even. flesh, on occasion, but
more than 99% of their diets consist of plant matter.)
Bonobos, our closest genetic "cousins," are considered the most
intelligent (after humans). They consume mostly fruit and eat about five
percent of their calories as vegetable matter. The anthropoids that are
farthest from us in terms of both genetics and relative intelligence
(mountain and lowland gorillas), rely mostly on vegetation and eat much
less fruit in the wild, as they have limited access. In zoos, they eat a diet
predominated by fruit.
Fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds comprise the complete list of
foods to which we are biologically adapted. The consumption of grains,
and any other foods that do not suit our design, is a seriotts step down,
nutritionally. Cotlpled with the habit of cooking, a food adulteration not
practiced by any other species, the outcome is nutritional bankruptcy.
Because they must be cooked to be consumed,
grains cannot, by definition, be considered
a ''natural'' food for mankind.
11 In school, the teachers called it ''worthless white
bread. '' They said there was more nutrition in the
cardboard box than there was in the cereal.
Nutrition
Our greatest nutrient needs are for water and simple carbohydrates;
starches provide neither, while fruits are the best source of both. Fruits
offer much more than sugar and water; they are rich in vitamins and
minerals, while starches are markedly low in both. In particular, vitamin
C, a water-soluble complex we must derive from our diet, is absent in
starches, yet abundant in fruits.
Cereals, breads, pastries, pastas, pretzels, pizza cntsts, and other
grain-based foods lose much of their original food value during refine
ment and other processing to make the grains edible. Even cooking a
food counts as a refining process, as not only are the nutrients compro
mised but antinutrients are created and water is driven off. This results in
food that will not sustain us. In spite of advertising insinuations to the
contrary, no cooked food can properly be considered a whole food.
Vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, proteins, fats, enzymes, coen
zymes, antioxidants, and phytonutrients are damaged, deranged, or de
stroyed by the heat of cooking. This is not news. Such inforn1ation has
There is no scientific basis
for eating cooked food.
12 Did you ever try to eat
even a tablespoonful of flour?
been available to the mainstream for more than forty years, some of it a
lot longer than that.
What does remain after cooking are the calories. Therefore, when we
eat starches, we consume the maximum number of calories with the
minimum amount of nutrients. This ratio is the exact opposite of what
anyone would desire. Dr. Emmet Densmore, author of How Nature Cures,
one of the first to speak out against grains, pointed out that humans are
fruitarian animals and declared bread to be "the staff of death."
A substance known as phytic acid, found in raw cereal grains, is well
known for its tendency to bind with calcium and interfere with its absorp
tion. Grains also contain substantial quantities of acid-fotming minerals,
such as phosphorus, potassium, and magnesium. During the process of
digestion, the body must yield up calcium from the bones, a powerful
alkaline mineral, in order to neutralize the acidity of grains. Eventually,
people on a high-grain diet run predictably low on calcium, often resulting
in a common bone-thinning condition known as osteoporosis.
Grains contain very little calcium, and they are also low in sodium,
choline, iodine, sulfur, and other alkaline minerals. On the other hand,
Wheat is simply not
all that it is cracked up to be.
13 Utopian islands invariably offer fruit,
not bread.
fruits and vegetables contain from ten to one hundred times as much
calcium and other alkaline minerals as do grains, when measured in tert11s
of calories.
Does it ever seem peculiar to you that dog and cat food commercials
stress the fact that optimum nutrition gives your pet the best chance of
growing well and living healthfully? Why, do you ask, are children's
foods marketed instead for their colors, shapes, and exciting flavors, but
rarely for their nutrient quality? Why are adult foods promoted for their
convenience, or their zest, zing, and sizzle, but seldom for their health
building qualities.
Why are these food commercials invariably followed by commer
cials for antacids? Do you ever wonder?
When it comes to empty calories,
starches take the cake.
14 Fat cells almost never die.
Instead, they shrink up and lie dormant,
waiting for their chance to flourish.
Nutrition: Fat
Heating foods generates the creation of substances known to be harmful
to humans. Free radicals, created by the heating of fats, have been proven
to be carcinogenic, as is acrolein, a violently neurotoxic vapor emitted
from frying oil. (Acrolein is also one of the powerful irritants present in
cigarette smoke and automobile exhaust.) Heated fats lower the blood's
ability to cany oxygen and also block capillaries with large fat globules.
Additionally, the stickiness of heated fats causes deposits to build up on
the vascular walls, a major contributing factor in atherosclerosis and
other conditions that lead to heart disease.
Unfortunately, it has become traditional for us to use generous
quantities of heated fats (such as milk, butter, lard, sour cream, cheese, oils,
margarine, and the fats that are inherent in meats) whenever we consmne
starchy foods, and our health suffers accordingly. Cereal and milk;
bread with butter, margarine, mayonnaise, cheese, or meat; bagels with
cream cheese, baked potatoes with sour cream; potatoes fried in oil;
tortillas fried in lard; cakes and cookies made with butter, eggs, and milk;
these are typical of our love affair with the starch/fat combination. This
habit is easy to understand, because it is the fats, and not the bland starches,
Western man traditionally consumes
a higher percentage of fat with his starches
than with any other foods.
15,
Calorically, the starch-based diet
could be referred to as the fat-based diet.
that provide a sense of satiation and heightened flavor. These cooked-fat
accompaniments tend to be animal based, and the cholesterol, casein, uric
acid, and other toxic, disease-causing substances in them seriously
compound the health consequences of their consumption.
Excess fat in the diet is never a good idea (I recommend a diet where
fat makes up only 10% of total calories consumed). While plant fats are
healthier for us than animal fats, and raw fats are more nutritious than
cooked fats, still, too much fat is too much fat. In order to steer clear of
grain damage, and the high fat consumption that almost always accompa
nies it, it is necessary to drop starchy food from the diet altogether and
replace it with copious amounts of fresh fruit.
Not only do heated fats cloud one's thinking,
hasten cancers, and foster heart disease,
they are fattening.
16 The nutritional damage done by eating grains cannot
be undone by an otherwise healthful diet. This would be
like trying to make up for smoking with extra exercise,
or compensating for axing a tree by feeding it fertilizer.
Nutrition: Protein
Proteins are broken down into their component amino acids through an
enzymatically catalyzed process referred to as proteolysis, usually in the
presence ofhydrochloric (stomach) acid. This is n


 not just out there in space — it is also within
you. When you are utterly and totally pr esent, you encounter it as the
still inner space of no-mind. W ithin you, it is vast in depth, not in
extension. Spacial extension is ultimately a misperception of infinite
depth — an attribute of the one transcendental reality.

Accor ding to Einstein, space a nd time ar e not separate. I don’ t r eally
understand it, but I think he is saying that time is the fourth dim ension of
space. He calls it the “space-time continuum.”
 Y es. What you perceive extern ally as space and time are ultimately
illusory, but they contain a core of truth. They are the two essential
attributes of God, infinity and eternity, perceived as if they  had an
external existence outside you. W ithin you, both space and time  have an
inner equivalent that reveals their true nature, as well as your own.
Whereas space is the still, infinitely deep realm of no-mind, the inner
equivalent of time is presence, awareness of the eternal Now. Remember
that there is no  distinction between them. When space and time are
realized within as the Unmanifested — no-mind and presence —
external space and time continue  to exist for you, but they beco me much
less imp ortant. The world, too, continues to exist for you, but i t will not
bind you anymore.
Hence, t he ultimate purpose of the world lies not within the wo rld but in
transcendence of the world. Just as you would not be conscious of space
if there  were no objects in space, the world is needed for the
Unmanifested to  be realized. Y ou may have heard the Buddhis t saying:
“If there were no illusion, there would be no enlightenment.” It is
through the world and ultimately through you  tha t the Unmanifested
knows itself. Y ou are here to enable the divine purpose of the un iverse to
unfold. That is how important you ar e!
CONSCIOUS DEA TH
Apart fr om dreamless sleep, which I mentioned already, there is one
other inv oluntary portal. It opens up briefly at the time of physic al death.
Even if you h ave missed all the other opportunities for spiritual
realization during your lifetime, one last portal will open up  for you
immediately after the body has died.
There are countless accounts by  people who had a visual impression of
this portal as ra diant light and then returned from what is co mmonly
known as a near -death experience. Many of them also spoke of a sense
of blissful serenity and deep peace. In the T ibetan Book of the Dead, it is
described as “the luminous splendor of the colorless light of Emptiness,”
which it says is  “your own true self.” This portal opens up o nly very
briefly, and unless you have al ready encountered the dimension of the
Unmanifested in your lifetime, you will likely miss it. Most people carry
too muc h residual resistance, too much fear, too much attachment tosensory experience, too much identification with the manifested world.
So they see the portal, turn aw ay in fear, and then lose consciousness.
Most of what happens after that is involuntary and automatic. Eventually,
there will be another round of birth and death. Their presenc e wasn’ t
strong enough yet for conscious immortality.

So going thr ough this portal does not mean annihilation?

As with all the other portals, your radiant true nature remains, but not the
personality. In any case, what ever is real or of true value in your
personality is your true natur e shining through. This is ne ver lost.
Nothing that is of value, nothing that is r eal, is ever lost.
Approaching death and death itself, the dissolution of the physical form,
is al ways a grea t opportunity for spiritual realization. This opportunity is
tragically missed most of the time, since we live in a cultur e that is
almost totally ignorant of death, as it is almost totally ignorant of
anything that truly matters.
Every portal is a  portal of death, the death of the false self. When you go
through it, you cease to derive  your identity from your psych ological,
mind-made form. Y ou then real ize that death is an illusion, just as your
identification wi th form was an illusion. The end of illusion — that’ s all
that death is. It is painful only as long as you cling to illusion.CHAPTER EIGHT
E N L I G H T E N E D
 R E L A T I O N S H I P S
ENTER THE NOW FROM WHEREVER YOU ARE
I alw ays thought that true enlig htenment is not possible except thr ough
love in a r elation ship between a man and a woman. Isn’ t this wh at makes
us whole again? How can one’ s life be fulfilled until that happens?

Is that true in your experience? Has this happened to you?
Not yet, but how could it be otherwise? I know that it  will happen.
In o ther words, you are waiting  for an event in time  t o save you. Is this
not the core err or that we hav e been talking about? Salvation is not
elsewhere in place or time. It is here and now.

What do es that statement mean, “salvation is her e and now”? I don’ t
understand it. I don’ t even know what salvation means.

Most pe ople pur sue physical pleasures or various forms of psyc hological
gratification because they believe that those things will make them happy
or free them from a feeling of fear or lack. Happiness may be perceived
as a heightened sense of aliveness attained through physical pleasure, or
a m ore secure a nd more complete sense of self attained throu gh someform of psychological gratificat ion. This is the search for salvation from
a state of unsatisfactoriness or insuf ficiency. Invariably, any satisfaction
that they obtain is short-lived, so the condition of satisfa ction or
fulfillment is usually projected o nce again onto an imaginary po int away
from the here and now. “When I obtain this  o r am f ree of that  — then  I
will be okay.” T his is the uncon scious mind-set that creates the illusion
of salvation in the future.
T rue salvation is fulfillment, pea ce, life in all its fullness. It is to be who
you are,  to feel within you the good that has no opposite, the joy of
Being that depends on nothing outside itself. It is felt not as a passing
experience but as an abiding presence. In theistic language, it is to “know
God” —  not as something ou tside you but as your own innermost
essence. T rue salvation is to know yourself as an inseparable part of the
timeless and formless One Lif e from which all that exists derives its
being.
T rue salvation is a state of freedom — from fear, from suf fering, from a
perceived state of lack and insu f ficiency and therefore from all wanting,
needing, graspin g, and clinging. It is freedom from compulsive thinking,
from ne gativity, and above all from past and future as a psychological
need. Y our mind is telling you that you cannot get there from here.
Something need s to happen, or  you need to become this or th at before
you can  be free and fulfilled. It  is saying, in fact, that you need  time —
that you need to find, sort out, do, achieve, acquire, bec ome, or
understand something before you can be free or complete. Y ou see time
as the means to salvation, whereas in truth it is the greatest obstacle to
salvation. Y ou think that you can ’ t get there from where and who you are
at this moment b ecause you are not yet complete or good enough, but the
truth is that here  and now is the only point from where you can  get there.
Y ou “ge t” there by realizing tha t you ar e  there already. Y ou find God the
moment you realize that you do n’ t need to seek God. So there i s no only
way to salvation : Any condition can be used, but no particular condition
is neede d. How ever, there is on ly one point of access: the Now. There
can be no salvation away from t his moment. Y ou are lonely and  without
a pa rtner? Enter the Now from there. Y ou are in a relationship? Enter the
Now from there.
There is  nothing you can ever do or attain that will get you closer to
salvation than it is at this moment. This may be hard to grasp for a mindaccustomed to thinking that everything worthwhile is in the future. Nor
can anything that you ever did or that was done to you in the past prevent
you from  saying  yes to what is  and taking your attention deeply into the
Now. Y ou cannot do this in the future. Y ou do it now or not at all.
LOVE/HA TE RELA TIONSHIPS
Unless a nd until you access the consciousness frequency of pre sence, all
relationships, an d particularly intimate relationships,


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Noorden


�erent
types of gold listed in alchemy in the T'ang dynasty. The
most prized was the ‘purple-sheen gold.’ Gold leaf was
used extensively in gilding images of gods in the Taoist-
Buddhist pantheon.
Although the term ‘yellow  and white’ was used for alloys
and the counterfeiting of gold and silver, it was also the
esoteric name for the actual science and art of alchemy
itself. Here a distinction is made between the exoteric and
the esoteric, the former being a purely scientiﬁc work of
transmuting base metal into ﬁner metals, a work having no
other signiﬁcance than attaining health, longevity or
immortality; one which Ko Hung maintained was
invariably successful. The esoteric ‘yellow and white’ of
the real alchemy was a work so secret that ‘the ancients
refrained from speaking openly about it and resorted tolanguage known only to the initiates... much of what
they say is so secret that only a small portion can be given
a clear explanation.’ Nor can such a work be undertaken
by ‘the impure and unintelligent or those with little
experience of the occult arts. Certain matters can only be
transmitted orally and must be learned from a teacher.’
‘Also you must go to a pure spot in the mountains, so that
the illiterate crowd will not know what you are
undertaking.’
The most prized and potent of all minerals, though, was
cinnabar, the ‘red stone’ or ‘red sand’ (tan sha ), a light red
mineral mercuric sulphide, found in Szechuan and Hunan
provinces; it was esteemed above gold both as a mineral
and medicine. The same plant-versus-mineral argument
was used for it: ‘The fact is that the least of the minor
cinnabar elixir is far better than the best of thing s of the
plant world. When submitted to the ﬁre all plant
substances are burnt to ashes, but cinnaba r when
calcinated produces liquid silver [quicksilver] and this,
after a whole series of transformations, can revert to
cinnabar again. That far exceeds what plants can do;
hence such chemicals  can confer longev ity and
immortality.’3 The state of immortality  conferred is much
superior to the earth hsien  power  of silver since ‘cinnabar
may be transmuted into pure gold and the latter when
swallowed will make one rise as a heavenly hsien.’
‘Returned cinnabar’ and the returned or ‘reverted’ gold
were ‘things of the highest importance. These two, it
seems, mark the peak of the divine process leading to
hsien -hood.’ Cinnabar was puriﬁed by roasting, in the ﬁrst
stages to expel the mercury; after that, heating the
mercury with sulphur produced a puriﬁed cinnabar or
‘vermilion.’ Quicksilver can be obtained from solid
cinnabar by a process of roasting in a luted container; it
then produces quicksilver, the ‘living metal.’ Ko Hungsays: ‘Quicksilver is originally cinnabar, which is roasted to
make it quicksilver. In this case quicksilver is roasted and
becomes returned cinna bar, the cinnabar returns to its
original substance. That is why it is called “returned
cinnabar.”’ In the Pao P'u Tzu he also deals with two kinds
of elixir, the Golden Cinnabar, (chin tan—the Philosophers'
Stone of the West) and the Gold Juice, the latter being
simpler but more expensive to make. These are
distinguished from the yellow and white art of transmuting
base metals into gold and silver: again a purely scientiﬁc
exoteric work. His recipe for making cinnabar solution is
to
prepare and insert one pound of cinnabar into a
green bamboo tube; add two ounces each of copper
sulphate and saltpeter above and below the cinnabar;
close the tube openings and seal them with hard
lacquer, which must be allowed a time to dry. Place
the whole in strong vinegar and bury it three feet
deep in the earth. After thirty days it will have
liquiﬁed and become red in colour and bitter in taste.
The red colou r of the natural cinnabar and the vermilion
of returned cinnabar made it of value in itself. In China, as
elsewhere, red is the zenith of the colour representing the
sun, ﬁre, royalty, energy. It has always been a highly
auspicious colour in China, being the brightest of all and
therefore associated with, and attractive to, good spirits;
evil spirits fear all light and brightness. It is also the bridal
and good-luck colour, so that any red-coloured stone, and
cinnabar in particular, shared this virtue. It had a
particular alchemical signiﬁcance in the white-to-red
transformation, the powers of water and ﬁre, opposing but
complementary, in the Work. Cinnabar was yang  to the yin
of quicksilver; in alchemy the two were spoken of as ‘the
ﬁre of the heart is red as cinnabar, the water of thekidneys is dark as lead,’ and ‘as medicines we value the
kinds which  are as red as a cock's comb and have a
brilliant lustre.’
Red pigment was painted on images and sacred objects,
such as buried bones, and the lettering on the bamboo
tablets of the hsien  was red in colour. This sacred-magic
quality of red is not conﬁned to China but is found in many
other cultures, both primitive and advanced. It is also the
sacred colour of the life-blood and this attribute was easily
carried over into the notion of giving ‘life’ to the baser
metals and to the idea of life being contained in the red
cinnabar.
OceanofPDF.com– 8 –
THE ALCHEMIST AS MIDWIFE
Common to both western and eastern alchemy is the
concept of the alchemist as midwife. The alchemist
believed that minerals, like all else in creation, were
endowed with life and grew in the womb of the Earth
Mother, the matrix. Metals were in embryo in the womb
and grew there gradua lly, developing from the lower
stages to the perfection of gold. The alchemist was the
midwife assisting at the birth but ﬁrst hastening the
development in the womb and decreasing the period of
gestation; an acceleration and extension of the work of
Nature in generation.
The idea of the ores in embryo is also met in the term
‘foetus,’ used in both Chinese and Babylonian alchemy.
The symbol of the Earth Mother runs right through as the
prima materia. Mirce a Eliade suggests  that the sacriﬁces
performed on alchemical  occasions, occurring in diﬀerent
parts of the world, would be comparable to obstetric
sacriﬁces. A further association with the embryo is the fact
that the human embryo is forty weeks in the womb  and the
furnace under the alchemical stove must burn for the
same period. African sorcerers, even today, use an aborted
foetus to secure the success of the fusion of metals, ‘to
bring the metal to birth.’
All metals were regarded  as the same in essence but in
diﬀerent stages of devel opment; they could be matured
and brought to perfection as gold, this being the highest
aim in Nature; there was thus a total analogy with the
spiritual growth of the human being. This analog y was sopersistent and consistent that man and meta ls were
spoken of in the same terms, such as the ‘base’ metal lead
and the ‘imperfect’ metals as the base and unregenerate
nature of humanity, both striving towards the perfection of
gold, of regeneration and transmutation. Man and metals
were both possessed of body, soul and spirit, the soul
being individ ual while the spirit was universal, a kind of
‘over-soul’ common to all. Belief in the possibility of
transmutation of base metals into gold implied that all
metals are potentially gold, as the human being is
potentially divine. The whole cosmos, as one living being,
in its properties and potentialities, is capable of evolution
and development from the state of imperfection to that of
perfection; everything has innate and wonderful
possibilities.
At the back of this symb olism of the Earth Mother and
the reverence for Nature is the ancient and universal
worship of the Great Mother, she whose body was the
earth, the stones her bones and the rivers her blood: the
whole a living being. It is in this original worship, not as
an early science or chemistry, that many authorities see
the beginnings of alchemy. The reverence for the life of the
earth, the prima materia, and cooperation with the laws
and rhythms  of Nature were fundamental; experiments
came later. Sciences were born from alchemy after the
initial stage of the magico-religious element had declined


 fr om a life lived only for
myself.DA Y 260
FOR REFLECTION
O n  B u r n i n g  T h r o u g h  P a i n
C haos often fosters the greatest creativity. Breakdowns often precede
the g reatest breakthroughs. And  when the pain is greatest is of ten when
we’re on the brink of the greatest realization.
The ego would prefer that we not look directly into the darkness. It
would not have us investigate  our pain, for th at is when we can learn
from it. The ego knows that crisis often leads to that pivotal moment
when we fall to our knees and a sk God for help. The ego is endangered
by crisis, prefer ring that a mild  river of misery simply run through the
background of our lives, never bad enough to make us question where it
comes from or what it means.  Y et that painful moment, endured and
transformed, is our chance to “rout Satan and remove him forever.”
When th e pain is burned through rather than numbed, when our darkness
is brought to light and then for given, then and only then can we move on.
And move on w e do. The ego knows this, and stakes its life on the fact
that we don’ t.DA Y 261
W h a t  I  g i v e  t o  o t h e r s  I  w i l l  r e c e i v e.
W hat I put into the universe, the universe will put to me. I cannot
escape the law o f Cause and Ef fect, which is my protection when I am
loving a nd my teacher when I am  not. T oday I choose to be gene rous, for
generosity is in my self-interest. What I give to others I receive.
I will not be tempted today to deny, however subtly, the ways I
withhold love from others. I will not feign confusion about the g enesis of
unfortunate even ts in my life, when I know in my heart what I did or did
not do to cause them. I atone for my errors and begin aga in today,
knowing love and love alone will guide me truly.
I seek to give today what I wish to r eceive. May I give love,
understanding, for giveness, and encouragement. May I liste n
well, nurtur e well, and speak w ith kindness. And when I deviat e,
may I be for given.DA Y 262
M a y  I  r e m e m b e r  t h a t  e v e r y  h e a r t  i s  f r a g i l e.
I  am always so sensitive to my own fragile heart, while for getting that
others are as fragile as I am. All of us fear at times, and all of us love. All
of u s struggle, and all of us year n. All of us hurt at times, and all of us at
times hurt others.
May I be less sensitive to my every emotional cut and bruise, and
more se nsitive t o the pain of others. May the scope of my com passion
extend f ar beyond myself, and i nclude a deeper consideration for hidden
suf fering in everyone. The scars  of the heart might be hidden fr om view,
but all of us carry them and all of us desire love.
Dear God,
Please heal my selfish heart
And make me mor e sensitive
T o the pain of others.
May I feel compassion
For all suffering,
Not just my own.
May Y our heart beat
Thr ough mine.
And so it is.
Amen.DA Y 263
G o d  i s  b o t h  m y  m o t h e r  a n d  m y  f a t h e r.
W hether I had the most wonderful parents, abusive ones, or even none
at al l, God is my ultimate mother and father. He is my source  and my
continual nurturer. My spiritual self is parented by God.
As an adult, I  am reparented by Him. I receive the hea venly
inheritance of the mind that He  bequeaths to me. I am entitled as His
child to the miracles that follow, whenever I remember whose child I am.
May I think and act as befits my true origin.
I r eceive  God’ s par enthood and my identity as His child. I detach
fr om the  false conditioning of the world, r eceiving the love that is
my past,  my pr esent, and my fut ur e. I r ejoice in that which is my
true origin and my true life. Amen.DA Y 264
W h e n  j u s t i c e  c a l l s  t o  m e,  m a y  I  a l w a y s  r e s p o n d.
T hough I live a life of plenty, there are those in the world who suf fer
unjustly. They are bowed down in sorrow and suf fering by systems over
which they have no control. May my life, in whatever way possible, help
ease the burden of those who suf fer from the injustices of the world.
May I not for get that I am here to extend the compassion of God, to
help repair the w orld, to heal th e heart of humanity. Whatever I can do,
with my love an d with my ef for ts, may spirit guide me and give me the
power to do.
Dear God,
May love pour down upon me
And use me as its vehicle.
May my life in some way be of service
T o those who suffer.
May my efforts in some way bring justice
T o those in need of it.
May my life in all ways be
Y ours.
Amen.DA Y 265
FOR REFLECTION
O n  K n o w i n g  T h a t  W h a t  W e  W a n t  A l r e a d y  E x i s t s
T he Bible’ s adage “Blessed are those who have faith and cannot see”
means “Empow ered are those who remember there is a truer truth, even
when circumstances tempt them to believe otherwise.”
When a pilot cannot see the ho rizon because of low visibility he or
she does n’ t assu me that the hor izon has disappeared. At a tim e of low
visibility, the pilot flies on instru ments that can gauge the situation more
clearly t han he or she can. Faith is like flying on instruments: i t’ s acting
on the assumpti on that just be cause you can’ t see a possibili ty at the
moment doesn’ t mean that it’ s not there.
It’ s easy enough to have faith in  God’ s infinite abundance when we
have mi llions of dollars sitting in the bank; it’ s easy enough to have faith
in love when we’re receiving a  lot of it; and it’ s easy enough  to have
faith in the power of peace whe n there is no war. But when it’ s hard to
have faith is wh en we need it the most. By faith, we bring forth what we
want, by knowing that it already exists in a realm we cannot yet see.DA Y 266
M y  b o d y  i s  a  t e m p l e  t o  t h e  s p i r i t  o f  G o d.
M y bo dy i s but a learning device, n ot my eternal home. I surrender  it to
God to use for H is purposes. May my body be a shining exampl e of how
the t hings of the  world, when re flecting holiness, take on the ra diance of
the spirit.
May my  hands and feet, what I say, and what I do, all glorify the
higher purposes of God. May His guidance within my mind determine
the doings of my body. May my body be a temple to the emanations of
my soul.
Dear God,
I surr ender to Y ou my body.
Please use it for Y our purposes
And fr ee it fr om the clutches
Of fear.
May love determine
Both its function and its activity.
May I live in my body
In health and joy.
Amen.DA Y 267
M a y  w a r  b e  n o  m o r e.
I n a world where every child is born of God’ s love, where ever y heart
yearns to connect, and every mother prays that her child be p rotected,
still yet we wage war. God for give us.
In a wor ld where  every heart yea rns for peace and every nation needs
a rest from violence, where everyone prays that war not come near them
if it need come at all, still yet we wage war. God for give us. Show us
another way.
Dear God,
Please for give humanity
For the heinous thoughts
And cold, cruel actions
That occur on this blessed earth.
May thoughts of peace
And yearnings for love
Swell up as though a mighty wave.
May the world be washed clean
Of the wicked thoughts
Of fear and separation
That tear at our


, diﬀicult task,
given the complexity of the immune system—then after
years of testing and millions of dollars, a new drug may
emerge that can beneﬁt the population as a whole.
Yet, what everyone really  needs is the ability to make this
wonder drug himself, just as the person who ﬁrst produced
it did, and that ability cannot be synthesized. Isn’t buying
the drug as good as making it? Not by a long shot. The so-
called active ingredient in a man-made drug contains very
little know-how compared to the original chemicalproduced by the body. It would almost be fairer to call the
drug an inert ingredient.
The reason for this lies at the level of our cells. The outer
membrane of each cell, or the cell wall, is outﬁtted with
numerous sites called receptors. The cell wall itself is
smooth, but these receptors are “sticky”—they are made of
complex molecular chains whose last links are open-ended,
each one waiting for another molecule to come along and
bind with it. In other words, receptors are like keyholes
into which only very speciﬁc keys will ﬁt. For a drug to
work—whether morphine, Valium, digitalis, or almost
anything else—it must be the key that ﬁts some precisely
chosen receptor on the cell wall and no other.
The hormones, enzymes, and other biochemicals
produced by our bodies  have superb knowled ge about
which receptors they should ﬁt into. The molecules
themselves actually seem able to pick and choose among
various sites—it is uncanny to follow their tracks under an
electron microscope as they make a beeline to where they
are needed. Also, the body can release hundreds of
diﬀerent chemicals at a time and orchestrate each  one with
regard to the whole.
If you hear a hot rod backﬁre on the street outside your
window and jump in your chair, your insta ntaneous
reaction is the outcome of a complex internal event. The
trigger for the event is a burst of adrenaline from your
adrenal glands. Carried into the bloodstream, this
adrenaline signals reacti ons from your heart, which starts
to pump blood faster; from your blood vessels, which
contract and force up your blood pressure; from your liver,
which puts out extra fuel in the form of glucose; from your
pancreas, which secretes insulin so that more glucose can
be metaboliz ed; and from your stomach and intestines,
which immediately stop digesting food so that more energy
can be shunted elsewhere.All this activity, happeni ng at a furious pace and with
powerful eﬀects everywhere in your body, is coordinated by
the brain, which uses the pituitary gland to guide many of
the hormonal signals just described, not to mention various
other chemical signals that go racing down your neurons to
focus your eyes, prick up your ears, jerk your back muscles
upright, and swivel your head in alarm.
To make this whole react ion happen and then to make it
go away again (for the body, unlike a man-made drug,
knows how to reverse every one of these processes just as
neatly as it began), the same key-in-the-lock mechanism is
employed everywhere. It is all so deceptively simple, yet if
you attempt to duplicate this event with a drug, the results
are nowhere near as precise, orderly, and beautifully
orchestrated. In fact, they are chaotic. Injecting adrenaline,
insulin, or glucose separa tely into the body gives it a crude
jolt. The chemicals immediately ﬂood all the receptor sites
without coordination from the brain. Instead of talking to
the body, they assault it with single-minded insistence.
Even though the chem ical make-up of adrenaline is
identical no matter where it is derived, the critical
ingredient of intelligence must be present; other wise, the
drug’s action is a mockery of the real thing.
Here is a related example to show the complicated
results of giving a drug that seems simple. Hypertension
patients are generally told to bring down their elevated
blood pressure with diuretics—drugs that take water from
the cells and pass it out of the system through urination.
This is exactly what the kidneys do all the time as they
delicately monitor your blood chemistry to make sure that
the balance of water, waste products, and the necessary
salts, or electrolytes, is precisely maintained. A diuretic,
however, has only one idea in mind, and obsessed with that
one idea, it careens through the body, demanding, “Water!
Water!” from every cell it meets.The result is that the ﬂuid tension in the blood vessels is
reduced, which is what the doctor wants to happen, but the
water level everywhere else is aﬀected at the same time.
The brain may be forced to give up some of its water, which
under normal conditions it does only in the direst
emergency, causing the patient to feel dizzy and drowsy. In
many cases nothing more  serious happens, but sometimes
other brain functions may also then be thrown oﬀ,
especially in older patients: if they happen to drink alcohol,
even in moderation, these people can become so confused
that they forget to drink  enough water or to eat properly.
This can lead to malnutrition combined with severe
dehydration. In the view of some endocrinologists, the
dehydration induced by diuretics in the presence of alcohol
or tranquilizers is the leading cause of death among older
Americans.
All of these consequences, whether mild or severe, are
usually called the undesirable “side eﬀects” of diuretics,
but that is not an accurate name. They are just its eﬀects—
the good and bad ones necessarily come together in the
same package. A diuretic basically work s by latching onto
sodium atoms, causing the body to discard excess  salt, and
this in turn indirectly brings down the water level in the
tissues, since  water is bound up with salt in our bodies, just
as in sea water. The diuretic cannot help it if too much salt
is taken where water is still needed. Since potassium is
close to sodium in its atomic structure, the diuretic also
causes it to be depleted, leading to weakness, fatigue, and
leg cramps. (Less-adverse eﬀects are generally noticed by
the leaching  of other trace elements, such as zinc and
magnesium.) Besides these common signs of potassium
deﬁciency, there can be other complications—digitalis, the
drug commonly given to heart patients to strengthen their
weak heartbeat, becomes more toxic if the body is low on
potassium. Ironically, a potassium deﬁciency is nowsuspected to be a causal link in high blood pressure, which
means that the diuretic may be promoting the very
condition it was meant to cure.
The frustrating reality, as far as medical researchers are
concerned, is that we already know that the living body is
the best pharmacy ever devised. It produces diuretics,
painkillers, tranquilizers, sleeping pills, antibiotics, and
indeed everything manufactured by the drug companies,
but it makes them much, much better. The dosage is always
right and given on time; side eﬀects are minimal or
nonexistent; and the directions for using the drug are
included in the drug itself, as part of its built-in
intelligence.
—
Thinking about these well-known facts has led me to three
conclusions. First, that intelligence is present everywhere
in our bodies. Second, that our own inner intelligence is far
superior to any we can try to substitute from the outside.
Third, that intelligence is more important than the actual
matter of the body, since without it, that matter would be
undirected, formless, and chaotic. Intelligence makes the
diﬀerence between a house designed by an architect and a
pile of bricks.
For the moment, let’s keep our deﬁnition of the word
intelligence  as simple and practica l as possible. Rather
than referring to the intelligence of a genius, which may
seem both exalted and abstract, I deﬁne it simply as “know-
how.” There is no doubt, whatever you think about
intelligence in the abstract, that the body must be credited
with an immense fund of know-how.
The body’s inner intelligence is so powerful that when it
goes awry, the physician is faced with a truly formidable
antagonist. Every cell in the body is programmed by itsDNA, for example, to divide at a certain rate, producing
two new cells after the mother cell splits in half. Like
everything else regulated by our inner intelligence, this
process is not purely mechanical. A cell divides in response
to its own internal need combined with signals generated
from the cells around it, the brain, the faraway organs that
are “talking” to it via chemical messages. Cell division is a
carefully considered and well-thought-out decision—except
in the case of cancer.
Cancer is wild, anti-social behavior, whereby a single cell
reproduces itself without check, heeding no signals from
anywhere except, apparently, its own demented DNA. Why
this occurs, no one know s. It is a good bet that the body
it


 less
hypertension, he art disease, anxiety, and depression. They find  it easier to
give up life-damaging habits s uch as cigarettes, excessive alcohol, and
drugs. They also show improvem ents in their immune function and reduced
susceptibility to infections. Research on people who meditate demonstrateswide-ranging h ealth improvem ents and a reversal in ma ny of the
biomarkers of aging.
Studies have shown that the longer people have been p racticing
meditation, the younger they sc ore on tests of biological age. For example,
long-term meditators show biological ages almost twelve years younger
than their chronological age. Other studies have shown that certain
hormonal changes usually assoc iated with aging can be slowed or reversed
through regular meditation. One of the most interesting ones fo und that the
hormone DHEA  is higher in people who meditate than those who do not.
W e know  that levels of DHEA steadily fall as we age. This h as led some
people to suggest that suppleme nting the diet with this hormone  can reverse
aging. W e believ e it is better to raise your DHEA levels through meditation
than supplementation. There is good evidence that you can reverse your
biological age by taking time to quiet your mind and experience the restful
response.
It sh ould be obv ious that the restful awareness response (medita tion) is a
very imp ortant way to reverse the aging process. Although you may wonder
when yo u’ll eve r find the time to meditate, we strongly encou rage you to
make m editation an important part of your life. It will actually create more
time for you, because you will be much more ef ficient when y our mind is
calm and centered. W e recommend twenty minutes of restful awareness
(sitting meditation with your eyes closed) twice a day. The best times to
meditate are shortly after awakening in the morning, and again in the later
afternoon or early evening. The morning meditation starts your day with a
fresh, calm mental attitude. The late afternoon or evening session helps
freshen your mind after a day’ s activity.
The time you ta ke to experience restful awareness will yield im mediate
rewards. Y ou will notice relax ation during the meditation and increased
ener gy a nd creativity during your day. If you have not meditated before,
start with the So  Hum meditation technique. After you have practiced this
procedure for a while, we recommend you learn a more specific and
personalized process called Primordial Sound Meditation (PSM), taught by
one of our certified instructors. PSM uses individualized mantras that arebased on the tim e, date, and pl ace of your birth. There are now over five
hundred certified Primordial So und Meditation teachers in the world. See
the appendix for information on finding a PSM teacher in your area.
So Hum Meditation
Sit comfortably, where you will not be disturbed, and close your eyes.
T ake a slow deep breath through your nose while thinking the word So.
Exhale slowly through your nose while thinking the word Hum.
Continue breathing easily, silently repeating, “So... Hum...” with
each inflow and outflow of your breath.
Whenever your attention drifts to thoughts in your mind, sounds in
your environment, or sensations in your body, gently return to your
breath, silently repeating “So... Hum.”
Continue this process for twenty minutes with an attitude of
ef fortlessness and simplicity.
When the time is up, continue to sit with your eyes closed for a few
more minutes before resuming your daily activity.
When practicing this technique, you will have one of several experiences.
Regardless of your experience, have an attitude of “no resistance.”
Relinquish your need to control or anticipate what is occurring during the
practice. Any of the following experiences are indications that you are
meditating correctly:
Y our attention is on your breathing as you silently repeat the mantra
“So Hum.”
Y our mind drifts of f into a stream of thoughts. Sometimes these
thoughts will be almost dreamlike and other times you may feel that
you are just thinking with your eyes closed. In either case, when youremember that your attention has drifted away from your breath and
the mantra, gently return to it.
Occasionally at first, and more regularly after a while, you will have
the experience of a thoughtless state. Y our mind is silent and your
body is deeply relaxed. W e call this “going into the gap,” or the
experience of timeless mind. W ith regular practice, the inner silence
you experience in the gap will infuse every aspect of your life.
There may be times in your meditation when you fall asleep. Because
meditation is a gentle, natural process, if your body is fatigued, it will
take this opportunity to sleep. Listen to this message from your body
and commit to getting the deep rest you need.
One of the most  common complaints of a new meditator is “I a m having
too m any thoughts.” Thoughts a re a part of meditation and you c annot force
your mind to stop thinking. Jus t let the thoughts come and go and before
long you will find your mind quieting. When you first begin meditation,
you will experience relaxation w hile sitting with your eyes closed, but may
revert to your typical stressful reactions when resuming your usual
activities. Over time, more of the restful awareness gained in meditation
will carry over into your life. As you face the daily challeng es of being
human, you’ll find it easier to maintain your calm center. As you learn to
avoid unnecessary and overreac tive stress responses, you’ll slow the aging
process.
The r estful alertness r esponse r everses the aging pr ocess.
Restful Sleep
In addition to re stful awareness, you need a minimum of six to eight hours
of restful sleep e ach night. Restful sleep means that you drift of f easily once
you turn of f the light and sleep soundly through the night. If you have to get
up to go to the bathroom during the night, you are able to easily get back tosleep. Y o u will know you have h ad restful sleep if upon awakening you feel
ener getic, alert, and vibrant. If you feel tired and unenthusiasti c when you
wake up in the morning, you have not had a night of restful sleep.
Restful sleep provides the foundation for your mental and physical well-
being. Millions of people suf fer  with some form of insomnia, resulting in
fatigue, lack of mental alertness, and weakened physical and mental health.
It al so contributes to both mino r and major injury accidents. Studies have
shown that if you wake up at three in the morning and do not get back to
sleep, your immune cells do not work as well for the next twenty-four
hours. O nce you have a full night of sound sleep, they regain th eir disease-
fighting abilities. Like the rest of you, your immune cells get tir ed and need
their rest.
It takes just a small shift in your attention and behavior to hav e sound,
restful s leep eac h night. Not gaining restful sleep is usually a result of poor
habits. B y chang ing your habits, you will avoid the entropy that comes with
fatigue and enliven the creativity, vitality, and age-reversing benefits that
come with restful sleep.
PREP ARING FOR RESTFUL SLEEP
After a day of s timulating activity your body is ready for and  needs deep
sleep. Aim for a nightly six to eight hours of sound slumber without the aid
of medi cation. Hours of sleep before midnight are generally the most
rejuvenating. Th erefore, if you are sleeping eight hours between ten P.M.
and six A.M., you will feel more rested than if you slept eight hours
between midnig ht and eight A.M. T o promote restful sleep, try the
following routine:
Evening RoutineEat a relatively light dinner. This should be no later than seven P.M. so
you do not go to bed on a full stomach.
T ake a leisurely stroll after dinner.
T o the extent possible, minimize exciting, aggravating, or mentally
intensive activities after 8:30 P.M.
Bedtime
Aim to be in your bed with the lights out between 9:30 P.M. and 10:30
P.M. If you are not used to getting to bed this early, move your bedtime
up by half an hour every week until you are in bed by 10:30 P.M. For
example, if you usually watch television until midnight, try shutting it
of f by 11:30 for a week. Then aim for a half hour earlier, and finally
10:30 P.M.
About an hour before bedtime, run a hot bath into which you place a
few drops of a calming aromatherapy essential oil such as lavender,
sandalwood, or vanilla. Y ou can also dif fuse this scent in your
bedroom.
As your bath is running, perform a slow self-administered oil massage,
using sesame or almond oil (see the massage description on page 54).
After your massage, soak in the warm tub for ten to fifteen minutes.
While soaking, have the lights low or burn a candle, and listen to
soothing music (see our recommendations in the appendix).