	per	formulation,	including	ingredients	linked	to
hormone	disruption	and	sperm	damage. 11
	Exposure	to	these	types	of	chemicals
can	adversely	affect	your	central	nervous	system	and	even	affect	your	mood,
making	you	more	irritable. No	good-smelling	shampoo	is	worth	being	moody! Check	out	products	with	essential	oils,	which	smell	great	and	are	nontoxic. NATURALLY	BEAUTIFUL
TEETH	AND	GUMS
A	beautiful	smile	stemming	from	authentic	joy	is	one	of	the	most	compelling
features	you	can	possess. Feeling	confident	about	your	teeth	can	help	you	smile
more	naturally. Oil	pulling,	or	swishing	sesame	or	another	oil	around	your	mouth	for
a	few	minutes	in	the	morning	before	spitting	it	out,	is	something	you	can
incorporate	into	your	morning	routine	to	help	keep	your	mouth	beautiful. It	is
another	increasingly	popular	ancient
Ayurvedic	practice	that	benefits	your	mouth,
teeth,	and	gum	health. Oil	pulling	is	believed	to	encourage	detoxification	by	attracting,	binding,	and
removing	bacteria,	toxins,	and	parasites	from	your	mouth	(where	a	lot	of	bacteria
tend	to	accumulate)	and	lymph	system,	while	helping	to	clear	out	mucus	and
congestion	from	your	throat	and	sinuses. Some	even	believe	that	oil	pulling	can
help	activate	the	vagus	nerve,	which	sends	information	between	your	brain	and
the	enteric	nervous	system	in	your	gut,	which	controls	digestion. Stimulating	the
vagus	nerve	is	said	to	activate	anti-inflammatory	pathways	in	the	digestive	tract. 12
Directions	for	oil	pulling	are	simple:
1. Warm	1	to	2	teaspoons	(or	a	bit	less,	if	you	have	a	tiny	mouth!) of	pure,	cold-
pressed	sesame	oil. (You	can	do	this	by	parceling	the	sesame	oil	you	are	using
into	a	small	vial,	and	then	holding	the	vial	under	hot	water	for	a	few	seconds.) 2. Swish	the	warmed	oil	vigorously	around	all	parts	of	your	mouth	and	back	and
forth	across	your	gums	for	2	to	6	minutes. Don’t	move	it	into	your	throat,	and
resist	the	temptation	to	gargle! Although	sometimes	you	hear
recommendations	to	swish	the	oil	for	far	longer,	traditional	Ayurvedic
teachings	believe	that	is	unnecessary. When	you	are	done,	spit	out	the	oil	into
the	garbage. In	addition	to	oil	pulling,	another	component	of	the	Ayurvedic	morning	routine	is
chewing	2	or	3	teaspoons	of	black	sesame	seeds,	moving	them	around	the	entire
span	of	your	teeth,	for	1	to	3	minutes	before	spitting	them	out. This	is	believed	to
help	polish,	strengthen,	and	mineralize	the	teeth;	remove	stains;	and	also	keep	your
gums	healthy. The	black	sesame	seeds	are	extremely	high	in	calcium,	as	well	as
phosphorus,	iron,	and	magnesium.Radical	Beauty
Nail	Care
It’s	important	to	take	care	of	your	hands	and	nails,	which	are	an	extension	of
your	beauty. They	undergo	a	great	deal	of	daily	wear	and	tear,	from	relentless
exposure	to	heat	and	cold	to	abrasive	soaps	and	excessive	water	from	hand
washing	and	detergents. RADICAL	BEAUTY	NAIL	WHITENING	TIP
To	brighten	yellowed	nails,	try	scrubbing	them	with	white	vinegar. Your	nails	are	largely	made	of	a	tough	protective	coating	called	keratin. A
proper	diet	and	excellent	circulation	are	of	utmost	importance	for	growing
healthy,	strong	nails. There	are	also	great	external	ways	to	support	nail	health:
•
Rather	than	cutting	cuticles,	soak	your	nails	in	warm	water	to	soften	cuticles
and	then	gently	push	them	back. Only	trim	off	hanging,	dead	skin	when
necessary. •
Look	for	polishes	free	of	the	“toxic	trio”:	dibutyl	phthalate	(DBP),	toluene,
and	formaldehyde,	which	have	been	associated	with	development	and
reproductive	issues	and	dizziness	and	are	potential	hormone	disruptors	and
carcinogens. 13
	Look	for	brands	labeled	“DBP-,	toluene-,	and	formaldehyde-
free”	or,	specifically,	“three-free.”	There	are	even	vegan	polishes	free	of
solvents	and	other	toxins,	including	some	that	are	“ten-free,”	and	some	that
are	water-based. (You	may	need	to	reapply	these	more	often	due	to
chipping.) •
Avoid	frequent	use	of	nail	polish	removers,	which	can	dry	your	nail	bed,
leading	to	potential	splits. Also	look	for	nail	polish	removers	that	are	free	of
acetone. •
Avoid	quick-dry	nail	polishes	that	contain	a	great	deal	of	acetone,	which	can
dry	out	your	nails. •
Use	gloves	when	washing	the	dishes,	and	otherwise	try	to	keep	your	hands
out	of	hot	water	as	much	as	possible. •
Before	going	out	into	the	cold,	always	moisturize	your	hands	and	protect
them	with	gloves. Avoid	direct	exposure	to	cold	air. •
Massage	and	moisturize	your	nails	and	cuticles	with	almond,	jojoba,	or
coconut	oil	often.Nail	Strengthening	Scrub
The	combination	of	castor	and	avocado	oils	enhances	nails’	flexibility	and	renders	them	more	pliable
and	less	prone	to	chips	and	breakage. Ground	walnuts	are	high	in	nourishing
omega-3	fatty
acids,
while	the	walnuts	themselves	help	to	slough	off	dead	surface	cells,	allowing	more	moisture	and
nutrients	to	be	absorbed. Honey	is	nourishing	and	softening,	and	it	also	contains	antibacterial	and
antiseptic	properties. ¼	cup	raw,	shelled	walnuts
1	tablespoon	castor	oil
1	tablespoon	first	cold-pressed	avocado	oil
1	teaspoon	raw,	organic	honey
Grind	walnuts	to	form	a	coarse	powder. Mix	in	the	oils	and	the	honey	to	make	a	thick	paste. Rub
your	entire	nails,	hands,	and	cuticles	vigorously	(but	not	in	an	overly	abrasive	way)	for	a	few	moments
before	rinsing	with	warm	water. Try	this	treatment	once	or	twice	weekly	for	best	results.On	location	at	the	Chopra	Center	in	Carlsbad,	California,	Deepak	and
Kimberly	ready	to	discuss	the	new	science	and	ancient	wisdom	contained	in	the
six	pillars	of	Radical	Beauty. Copyright	©	2016	by	Ylva	ErevallAntioxident-	and	vitamin-rich	fruits	build	and	protect	your	beauty. Foods	rich	in	omega-3	fatty	acids,	such	as	chia	seeds,	promote	excellent
circulation	that	helps	create	radiant	skin	and	glowing	health.The	Glowing	Green	Smoothie	is	a	staple	of	the	Radical	Beauty	and	Beauty
Detox	programs. Copyright	©	2016	by	mllevphoto/Shutterstock
Ayurvedic	spices	such	as	turmeric	have	now	been	shown	in	modern	research	to
have	far-reaching	beauty	and	health	benefits.Pillar	4
,	Primal	Beauty,	discusses	how
earthing
,	or
grounding
,	has


  as an awakening experience, and
begin living the greatest life anyone ever dared to dream. WHY  WE RESIST

We have become accustomed to thinking of ourselves as our physical
body rather than as an inner energy. We look into the mirror and
believe that what we see is who we are. We live in a culture that
reinforces this belief. We are bombarded with messages every  day to
remind us to perfume, shave, cleanse, feed, rest, and decorate our
bodies so that we can be happy, healthy, and successful. Many of us
have been subje cted to this philosophy since childhood and thereforetreat ourselves as primarily a package whose contents are irrelevant. It
is under standable that we would resist the idea that we also have a
significant self which is invisibl e and impervious to the demands of an
external world. The story of the man searching for his lost key outside his home,
under the streetlight, illustrates my point. When a stranger inquired if
she could help him look for the lost key, he was most grateful. After
thirty minutes of fruitless searching, the stranger asked, “Where did
you drop your key?” “Oh,” he replied, “I dropped it inside the house.”
“But why are you looking outside under the streetlamp if you dropped
it inside the house?” she asked. “I have no light inside the house, so I
came out here to look where there is light.”
   This is precise ly what we do every time we look outside of ourselves
for the solutions to problems. We live inside, we think inside, our
humanity resides within, yet we spend time ceaselessly looking outside
of ourse lves for the answers because we fail to illuminate the inside
with our thoughts. We resist the principle that thought is everything we
are, because it seems easier to look outside. It seems easier to define ourselves by the packaging rather than by the
inner qualities we cannot touch, see, smell, taste, or hear. Taking the
easier -appearing path is one of the predominant reasons for resisting
the princ iple of thought as the basis for our humanity. Besides, when
everyone else is perceived as defining himself or herself this way, it
seems easier to go along than to be different. I notice this with the
young people in my neighborhood. When I suggest the possibility of
thinking of themselves as separate from the crowd, they tell me, “Then
I would be seen as an oddball or weird.” They are concerned with how
others perceive them, unaware that their thoughts are a crucial
component of who they are. They do not realize that they can process
their world in any way they choose, and they often opt for the easier -
seeming choice of simply fitting  in. Many of us choose to act as others
do without examining our nonform reality. We may be unwil ling to
take the criticism  that goes with thinking independently. We may resist
seeing ourselve s as something beyond that form, because we have
totally identified with this kind of approach to life. To change, we have
to redefi ne our self and our priorities, to give ourselves permission toobserve where we are without being defensive or judgmental about our
point of view. We facilitate the next step on our path when we note our
present position uncritically. By identifying with form we are able to function exclusively in the
realm of things, excluding what may appear to us to be irksome
thoughts. Acquisitions become a way to demonstrate our competence
in life, while our nonform nature is relegated to a closed cupboa rd. We
behave as if we did not have a responsibility to the feelings and
thoughts of others by insisting that they find happiness in the material
things we provid e. We justify ourselves by saying, “I work hard, I pay
the bills, I give them all that they want—what else can I do?” The what
else we can do is to be receptive  to what they are thinking, to talk with
them about their aspirations, to touch them in that godlike  space
behind their form and encourage them to experience their life their
way. We work at accumulating, achieving, goal-setting, and acquiring
wealth and possessions. We identify success with the measurement of
things, never knowing happiness within. We are continually striving,
never arriving. I believe we are more, that we are intelligence within
our form, just as the rose is an intelligence that delivers the fragrance
and appearance of the flower. We can never create a rose by ourselves. We need the life force in the form that we call rose. Similarly, we need
to touch  the intelligence or god force behind the form that is us as well
as that of those with whom we come in contact. We may resist simply
because we are unfamiliar with this aspect of humanity and because
the unfamiliar is frightening. Ask yourself if that is a worthwhile
reason for you to remain exclusively in form. In the world of form, blame is a convenient excuse for why our life is
not exactly what we would like it to be. We blame the world for
illness, the stock market for financial conditions, the bakery for
causing overweight, and parents for our personalities.<|eot_id|><|begin_of_text|>Summarize the following text section accurately and concisely. Maintain specific details and numerical information, and use anti-repetition mechanisms:

        When you get the
broccoli home you are still so attracted to the picture that you empty the
contents into the garbage and proceed to prepare the wrapper for dinner. As
you put the picture of the broccoli on your plate, you suddenly  realize that
you are going to be very hungry if all you have is the packaging. Your life may be just like that. You may be paying so much attention to
the pack age that contains the real you that you toss away the most vital
ingredients. Your form is the package, and while its beauty and appearance
may seem all-im portant, it primarily serves to contain all the rest of your
magnificent humanity. The container cannot give you the pleasure and
satisfaction and nourishment that the contents do. Even though you cannot
see what is inside that beautiful package, you know that whatever it is
provides you with important and irreplacable nourishment. A lifetime of
focusing exclusively on the package will result in a spiritually
undernourished and quite unhappy you. OceanofPDF. comTHOUGHT

You are not a human being having a spiritual experience. You are
a spiritual being having a human experience. Thought is much more than something that you do. It is in fact what you,
and all the rest of us, are as well. Thought constitutes our entire being
except for the portion of us that is form, or the packaging that carries
around our mind s. Try thinking of thought as something that exists not only
within you, but outside of you as well. This may be difficult, because you
are accustomed to believing that your thoughts are an internal  mechanism
that guides the part of you that is form. Try instead to consider thought as a
universal that you were born into. It is something that you do, as well as
something that you are. Once you get used to this new idea, it will become
easier and easier for you to view all thought as something that is very much
a part of you. Here is a mini-le sson in what thought is. Your desir e to impr ove your life
is really your thought to improve your life. Your will to live is really your
thought to live. Your attitudes  about your entire life are really your thoughts
on these  matter s. Your entire past up until this moment is really nothing
more than thought. Your entire futur e from this moment onward is nothing
but thought. Your relationships  to everyone in your life are nothing more
than thought. Your determination  to succeed is nothing more than your
thought to do so. The idea of success is really the thought  of success. Since you can never get behind the eyeballs of another human being and
feel as that person does, you are actually one step removed from that
person’ s process and experience  him or her also through thought. You relate
to every thing and everyone on this planet through the mechanism of
thought. It is not what is in the world that determines the quality of your
life, it is how you choose to process your world in your thoughts. So many highly respected thinkers in disparate disciplines have
concluded that thought, the mind, is the total determiner of how our lives
will go. The Dutch philosopher Spinoza said, “I saw that all things I feared,
and which feared me, had nothing good or bad in them save insofar as the
mind was affected by them. ” Albert Ellis, the founder of Rational EmotiveTherapy, stated, “People and things do not upset us, rather we upset
ourselves by believing that they can upset us. ” “We become what we think
about all day long,” according to Ralph Waldo Emerson. “There is nothing
either good or bad, but think ing makes it so,” Shakespeare tells us. Abraham Linco ln said, “People are about as happy as they make up their
mind to be. ” “Change your thoughts and you change your world” was how
Norman Vincent Peale put it. Jesus tells us, “As you think, so shall ye be. ”
Our futures are formed by the thoughts we hold most often. We literally
become what we think about, and we are all given the gift of being able to
write our own story. For me this is


. Concentrating on the perineum,
alternately contract and relax it in a comfortable rhythm for
five minutes. Part 2: Contract and relax the lower abdomen, including
the genital area, with full awareness for five minutes, con
centrating on the svadhishthana chakra. Part 3: Inhale deeply. Imagine prana being absorbed
through the throat and flowing down to the navel, and apana
*Two varieties of prana within the body which control respiration and
excretion, respectively. See Chapter V. 117
flowing up from the muladhara chakra to the navel. Slowly
assume inula bandha (Chapter III, p. 90). Hold the breath,
concentrate on the navel, and visualize there the unification
of apana and prana. Continue to hold the breath as long as
possible and then exhale. This cycle should be repeated for
10 minutes. Part 4: Change from siddhasana to Vajrasana and separate
the knees a little. Clasp the hands with fingers interlocked,
close the eyes and be still. Concentrate attention on the tip of
the nose for a while, directing the closed eyes at the same
point. Slightly open the eyes and gaze attentively towards the
tip of the nose. Again close the eyes, maintaining concentra
tion. Repeat the process for ten minutes. After this, return to siddhasana and again repeat part (3)
for 20 to 30 minutes. This is the final stage of this practice. The techniques for Parts 1 and 2 are useful because they
stimulate the two lowest chakras, facilitating the rise of kun-
dalini to the manipura. As stated, Part 3 is the main practice,
as the unification of prana and apana - which may be imag
ined as the vital energy in the upper and lower sections of the
trunk - is the key to awakening the manipura chakra. The effectiveness of the manduki kriya and Vajrasana in
Part 4 in stimulating the manipura is an interesting phe
nomenon. Swami Satyananda explains it by stating that the
manipura is directly connected with the eyes and the feet,
but he gives no details. However, the connection is easily ex
plained in terms of the acupuncture meridians, as follows. The manipura chakra is said to control the digestive
organs; the relevant meridians are the stomach, large in
testine, liver, gallbladder, and spleen. The large intestine
meridian passes beside the ala of the nose, where it intercon
nects with the stomach meridian. The latter starts in the or
bital cavity directly below the pupil, descends the face, the
front of the trunk, and the lateral side of the front of the leg,
terminating at the second toe. The gallbladder meridian
flows from beside the lateral corner of the eye, around the 118
back of the ear, back into the temporal region, then down the
side of the neck, trunk, and leg (lateral to the stomach meri
dian) to the end in the fourth toe. A yin-yang relationship exists
between the spleen and stomach as well as between the
liver and gallbladder meridians; consequently, these com
plementary meridians exert a strong influence on each other. Further, the spleen and liver meridians flow up the medial
side of the leg. All this indicates that the meridians control
ling the digestive organs are closely connected with the eyes,
nose, and legs; and these meridians, as stated above, have a
close relationship with the manipura chakra. Therefore, when the eyes and nose are stimulated through
mental and visual concentration on the tip of the nose in
manduki kriya, this stimulation activates the manipura
chakra through the digestive organ meridian framework. Similarly, through direct pressure on the legs, Vajrasana
stimulates the meridians located in the legs which are related
to the manipura. The following practices of trataka, uddiyana bandha, and
nauli kriya are also recommended as techniques which help
to awaken the manipura chakra. (4 a) Trataka
The following is the easiest and most common of a wide
variety of forms of trataka - the practice of gazing at an ob
ject. In a dark or darkened room sit in siddhasana or some other
comfortable position. Place a lit candle at eye level 45-60 cm. (18-24 inches) away. Relax the whole body with the eyes
closed and spine erect. Once a comfortable position is found,
keep still. Do not move in any way or for any reason
throughout the entire practice. Open the eyes and gaze in
tently at the brightest spot of the flame just above the top of
the wick. With practice, it becomes possible to gaze at the flame for a
few minutes without moving the eyeballs or blinking. Gaze at 119
the flame so intently that awareness of the body is lost. The
gaze should be absolutely fixed on one point. After a few
minutes, the eyes will probably become tired or begin to
water, and then they should be closed and relaxed. Again, do
not move the body, but concentrate on the after-image of the
flame in front of the closed eyes. Hold it just in front of, or a
little above, the center of the eyebrows. When it begins to
fade, open the eyes and again concentrate on the actual
flame. Trataka may be performed by gazing at a variety of objects:
a small dot, the full moon, a shadow, a crystal ball, the nose
tip, water, darkness, an empty space, a shining object that is
not excessively bright, and many other things. If appropriate,
you may concentrate upon an image of your personal deity
or a photograph of your guru's face, while trying to feel his
spiritual presence and grace. The rising sun, one's own im
age in a mirror, or the eyes of another person may also be
used as an object of concentration. These practices should be
done under expert guidance, however, as there are certain
risks involved. Trataka practice can be divided into two categories: ba-
hiranga (outer) and antaranga (inner). The methods men
tioned above are all "outer" practices. Inner trataka is the
practice of inner visualization (for example, of a chakra or a
personal deity), generally performed with the eyes closed. Even if the eyes are left open, the concentration is directed
inward to such an extent that no external objects are per
ceived. Duration: Generally 15-20 minutes is sufficient. This period
may be lengthened considerably for spiritual purposes, or to
correct eye defects. Sufferers of insomnia or mental tension
are advised to practice trataka for 15 minutes before going to
bed at night. Specifically, the best time for trataka is 4-6 A.M.,
after asana and pranayama practice, but it is beneficial at
any time. Preferably, the stomach should be empty as this
facilitates concentration. 120
Precautions: There is no danger in the simple form of
trataka (on the candle flame), but undue strain must be avoid
ed in the beginning stages. The ability to keep the eyes open
without blinking will gradually develop with practice. Benefits: The benefits of trataka are many - physical, men
tal, psychic, and spiritual. Physically, it aids weakness and
certain defects of the eyes, including nearsightedness. It
calms and stabilizes the mind, and provides relief for insom
nia. Furthermore, it develops the power of concentration
necessary for true meditation practice. The eyes are the gates
to the mind; when they are steady the mind itself becomes
steady, and the thinking process automatially ceases as con
centration deepens. Trataka is one of the most powerful
methods for controlling a restless mind filled with waves of
constantly changing thoughts. This control is a prerequisite
for effective spiritual practice. Satyananda does not explain why trataka is effective in
awakening the manipura chakra. However, as explained
previously, the stomach and gall bladder meridians flow
around the eyes, and we can therefore postulate that the
stimulation the eyes receive in trataka is transmitted along
these meridians to the manipura chakra. (4b) Uddiyana Bandha
Satyananda recommends uddiyana bandha (Chapt. III, p.
92), in conjunction with agnisar kriya (Chapt. IV, p. 106) and
jalandhara bandha (Chapt. III, p. 89), as a method to awaken
the manipura. The stimulus provided to the manipura should
be evident from the descriptions of these practices in the
relevant sections. (4c) Nauli Kriya
Stand with the feet a little less than a meter (1 yard) apart. Stage 1: Contract the recti abdomini muscles (the two col
umns of muscles on either side of the navel), in isolation
from the other abdominal muscles (madhy


 questions an ted to see the relevant sections •
and guidance, the readers are reques
in the book.. 7 Q Which diseases can be remedied by unne therapy..
... ~ n particular disease. It IS a means •
A. Urine is not a medlctne orha ~ lth of the body and cure and
provided by nature to keep up t e ea. r
disease thereof irrespective of any denomma IOn. D ou mean that even diagnosis is unnecessary?. Q. 0 Y ·a nose any particular d1sease. A It is not necessary to. ddl. g ·n the manner a police
Auto~urine itself traces out th~ ISe~se I. searches out a thief in hiding and turns It out.. C ou give an example or two? Q. any.. stratin a historical fact. Perfect
A. I shall clarify the po~n~?Y. lllu in ~ a practic;!es otherwise
h_ealth is essential for tnltlatdl?n b d ybyg bodily disorders. Even
.. likely to be lstur e h t concerntratlon IS'd sentery or stomach-ac e, e c.
mild attacks of catarrh, he~da~he, I y. therefore essential that a
are likely to disturb medltaftlonf. ta ~~I physical troubles. ·But how.. f a must be ree rom... f I pract1t1oner o yog. f 1 d' out of intuition or out o ong r h. 7 The mystiCS 0 n Ia
to accomp IS lt. h cure of urine for such trouble;;.. experien~e foullnd :~~~e~f:~r:ut why was this philosophy of this sure
. Q. It IS rea Y '. unknown till now? ·
199 200 : AUTO-URINE THERAPY
A. This old philosophy and· cure never disappeared at all. It wa!>
round about us and is still there; but our modern prejudiced
mentality does not allow it to be understood. Insects, birds, fishes
and quadrupeds, etc. are already using this means instinctively. Only human beings intoxicated by their intellectual power have
neglected it. They are using their skill and knowledge mainly for
selfish ends. Q. Do you mean Jhat human beings should not utilize their
intelligence which God has bestowed upon them? A. Man should use his intelligence in co-operation with nature. To go against nature is a misuse of intelligence and contrary to
human welfare. Now the same ~ubstance, which is used by animals
profitable through sheer instinct, is used by man after intelligent and
careful thought; and it can yield far better results. Q. How is it that we happened to forget such a valuable
substance? A. We have lost the real substance in the false pursuit of external
polish. Q. You will have to admit that this natural substance is imperfet:t
in one respect. It is not tasteful and its smell also is not likable. Is
there any way out of this? A. Your argument seems correct only apparently. Taste and smell
are a matter of individual habit. An African Negro dislikes the
fragrance of 1Khas1 and abhors it. A teetotaller dislikes the very smell
of wine. In my opinion, ljkes and dislikes of a particular taste or
smell are merely caprices or habits which hold good as long as
one1s interest is not affected. We are willing to swallow the
extremely bitter and ill-smelling medicines to get rid of physical
pains. The main consideration, therefore, is not obejectiv~ but
subjective. In the bygone months, I made a good number of persons
to drink urine. They were reluctant in the beginning but gradually
were accustomed to the taste and smell of urine and freed them
selves from the clutches of pernicious, obstinate and chronic A REVIEW OF URINE THERAPY : 201
diseases.. Q. Is it not desirable that its smell and taste are removed through
some chemi.cal process? A. 1 am doubtful about its preacticability. A person1s ~wn ur~ne is
useful to himself in its natural state. According to med1cal ~c~ence
also its utility is confined to that organism only. The detiCJency
caused by the ·loss of certain ingradients from one1s body can be
made up only if they are restored only b~ a.uto-urine. If the smell and
taste or urine are chemically changed, 1t IS do~btful whether t~ose
ingredients will not be affected. This fact shoul~ be, ex~mmed
scientifically. 1 believe it will lose its value cons1derably 1n any
\\
chemical process. q. Will you please tell me something about its application on
different diseases? A. 1 have already said that urine does not cure a particular
disease only. ft is an invaluable gift of nature to pr_eserv~ a~d restore
spoiled health. This point must be kept in view while usmg 1t. Q. Will you tell me something about urine?. A. It is clear that a healthy person does not require the use of
· d ·1 Even then he can continue to take it in sma!.l doses as a unne a1 y.,....
precautionary measure. During the time of an ep1de_m1c or even
prior to it, such intake of auto-urine has a great precautionary value. Urine can be effectively used in any disease as follows:
1. Take it regularly in proportion to the gravity of the disease
and constitutional requirement. 2. Keep fast exclusively on urine and water as it is necessary
to eliminate all toxins in the body.. ·. 3. Rub old urine on the entire body for considerabfe time
every day. 4. In case of wounds, swelling, eruption, burns, etc. when
rubbing is not possible, the patient is advised to keep a piece of.,.,... :lt
I
202 : AUTOcURINE THERAPY
cloth soaked in urine on the affected part and keep it constantly wet
by sprinkling urine. s. A soaked piece of cloth is also advised for delicate parts
like stomach where rubbing may not be comfortabel. Q. will you tell me about the right way to begin with urine
treatment? A. Yes. knowledge is very necessary for a novice. The patient is
advised to be extremely careful and methodical in its application. No feeling of hesitation, abhorrence or uneasinses in drinking urine
should be entertained. He may begin with rubbing. Meanwhile he
should try to overcome the feeling of nausea. For that he can rub his
teeth and gums with urine which will give an additional benefit of
strengthening them. Q. Will you please tell me more about the procedure? A. One is advised to start with drinking urine after about a four
days' rubbing. Early in the morning after leaving bed one is advised
to clean the mouth, collect auto-urine in a glass and drink it with
complete faith. He may drink a littel water after that. If the treatment
is adopted in this way and one is gradually accustomed to' it, the~e is
no fear of any adverse reaction. Any abrupt step may cause react1on. We should try to avoid it as far as possible. Q. Is it that a certain number of fasts is required in a particular
case? A. Nothing can be said beforehand regarding the duration of
fasts. Sometimes major troubles are accompanied by minor ones. As
· the rubbing and drinking is begun, minor troubles start disappearing
from the body. A number of disease are cured merely by rubbing. Diseases of serious and chronic nature are also removed by rubbing
and keeping fast on urine and water, It is difficult to specify and
time-limit for a particular disease. Q. Is there any likelihood of other troubles arising during the
treatment? What is the'remedy for it. A REVIEW OF URINE THERAPY : 203
A. If the treatment is started carefully according to the prescribed
manner, there is no danger of other trouble in the beginning. But
during the process of cure, urine cleans out every part of the body of
all its impurities. The filth, phlegm or any other foreign or foul matter
obstructing blood circulation or nerve currents, is eliminated by
urine.. This process of elimination is executed in three ways : 1,
Loose motions, 2. Vomiting and 3. Boils or eruptions. Sometimes,
itching or heat-eruptions appear. This should not cause fright. It only
indicates that urine has begun its function of internal purification. We should frimly continue our experiment and wait for the result. No medicine or any.other foreign substance should be administered
in spite of heavy pressure or inducement of friends, relatives and
dear ones. Any. transgression of this warning deliberately or
unknowingly is open to serious danger.. Q. How long such reactions are likely to continue? Will they
subside by themselves? A. These reactions will subside by themselves as toxins are
eliminated. The patient should wait peacefully and allow urine to do
its function


. Systems	theory,	as	summarized	by	Laszlo,	helps
to	explain	this	interaction. When	two	particles	touch,	they	are	carrying
information,	and	as	they	meet,	they	“speak”	to	each	other:
Here’s	how	fast	I’mgoing,	how	much	I	weigh,	where	I’ve	been,	and	where	I’m	going. This	conversation	doesn’t	happen	in	isolation. The	field	is	listening	in,
and	on	hearing	what’s	happening,	it	stores	the	information	for	reference,	since
it	needs	every	single	bit	to	run	the	cosmos. “Bit”	is	a	technical	term	in
information	theory,	referring	to	a	single	mathematical	unit—either	zero	or	one
—with	which	any	kind	of	information	can	be	expressed. When	the	two
particles	separate,	their	future	is	changed	because	of	the	information	they	just
exchanged. This	exchange	brings	to	mind	the	possibility	that	these	photons
know	what
they	are	doing. Most	speculative	thinkers,	including	Laszlo,	can’t	quite	bring
themselves	to	claim	that	the	field	is	conscious;	he	speaks	instead	about	“the
roots	of	consciousness. ”	From	a	physicist’s	standpoint,	atoms	don’t	need	to
think,	much	less	be	alive. They	meet,	they	interact,	they	separate. If
complicated	things	happen,	they	may	be	mysterious,	invisible,	and	fiendishly
difficult	to	calculate,	needing	far	more	computing	capacity	than	all	the
mainframe	computers	in
the
	world. Still,	as	long	as	numbers	explain	how
matter	behaves,	there	is	no	need	to	drop	something	alien	like	consciousness
into	the	equation. Well	and	good,	but	leaving	out	mind	doesn’t	work,	since	you	are	leaving
out	yourself. Imagine	that	someone	wanted	to	figure	out	the	rules	of	football
and	had	a	silent	videotape	to	work	from. With	no	knowledge	of	the	game,	it
would	still	be	possible	to	watch	enough	plays	and	come	to	reliable
conclusions	about	what’s	going	on. All	you’d	need	to	observe	is	the	way	the
ball	flies	and	how	the	players	hit	each	other,	or	don’t. Every	time	the
quarterback	is	knocked	down	with	the	ball	still	in	his	hands,	for	example,	both
teams	line	up	to	start	a	new	play. Seeing	this	happen	a	few	times	would	lead	a
scientist	to	conclude	that	the	quarterback	must	either	throw	away	the	ball	or
run	with	it. Yet	it	would	be	impossible	to	make	sense	of	the	game	if	you	assumed	that
the	players	were	mindless,	inert	objects. They	are	too	coordinated,	they	form
too	many	complex	patterns,	they	repeat	and	remember	those	patterns,	and	the
scoreboard	makes	sense—somebody	wins,	somebody	loses. To	go	a	step
further,	it	would	be	a	mistake	to	start	your	research	by	saying	that	football
ipso	facto	cannot	be	based	on	the	existence	of	mind	or	consciousness. You
would	wind	up	with	wildly	wrong	conclusions	if	you	insisted	that	no	matter
what	the	videotape	shows,	football	cannot	be	a	game;	it	must	remain	a
random	collision	of	objects. In	trying	to	figure	out	the	apparently	random	activity	in	the	quantum	field,
we’ve	come	to	see	that	there	is	incredible	timing,	coordination,	memory,
information	exchange,	and	self-interaction. But	what	is	the	point	of	it	all. The
observer	effect	adds	the	missing	link. The	observer	effect	is	related	to	one	of
the	cornerstones	of	quantum	physics,	called	“complementarity,”	which	holdsthat	it	isn’t	possible	to	know	everything	about	a	quantum	event. When	an
observer
looks
	at,	or	measures,	an	electron,	whatever	is	being	observed	is
limited. Each	and	every	electron	has	a	probability	of	appearing	anywhere	in
the	universe. Only	under	observation	does	an	electron	jump	from	virtual	reality	into	the
visible	universe,	and	as	soon	as	the	observer	stops	looking,	it	falls	back	into
the	field	again. Erwin	Schrödinger,	the	great	German	physicist,	devised
Schrödinger’s	equation,	one	of	the	foundations	of	quantum	theory,	which
precisely	calculates	what	these	probabilities	are,	and	yet	the	notion	that	an
electron	is	everywhere	until	an	observer	calls	it	into	existence	defies	logic. For	those	readers	who	haven’t	read	about	Schrödinger’s	cat,	a	famous
paradox	that	grows	out	of	the	observer	effect,	here	it	is:
A	cat	is	placed	in	a	closed	box	with	a	fatal	device	inside. The	device	will
release	poison	cyanide	gas	if	it	is	triggered,	and	the	trigger	is	a	bit	of
radioactive	matter. If	the	radioactive	matter	releases	a	single	electron,	that	will
be	enough	to	trigger	the	device,	release	the	poison,	and	kill	the	cat. Here	is	the	paradox:	according	to	quantum	physics,	an	electron	has	no
visible	reality	until	it	is	observed. It	occupies	a	“superposition,”	meaning	that
it	can	be	in	more	than	one	place	at	the	same	time	(a	fact	that	has	been	verified
experimentally	with	subatomic	particles	that	do	in	fact	occupy	multiple
positions	at	once). Being	in	a	closed	box,	the	cat	is	outside	the	field	of
observation;	it	could	be	dead	or	alive,	so	according	to	quantum	theory,	it	must
be	both. Only	when	the	box	is	opened	and	the	observer	determines	the
situation	will	we	know	which	state,	dead	or	alive,	has	been	decided	upon. Until	then,	both	must	coexist. Many	physicists	have	escaped	the	paradox	of	a	cat	being	dead	and	alive	at
the	same	time	by	pointing	out	that	what	is	true	on	the	micro	level	isn’t	true	on
the	macro	level:	superposition	holds	for	electrons,	not	for	everyday	objects
like	cats. But	this	begs	the	question,	since
the
	observer	effect	is	alive	and	well
in	the	Schmidt	and	Princeton	experiments,	where	the	mere	attention	of	an
observer	altered	the	quantum	field	and	the	material	world	at	the	same	time. The	crux	of	the	paradox	is	that	you	cannot	know	any	outcome	in	the	quantum
world	until	you	observe	it	(i. e.,	it	is	impossible	to	know	if	Schrödinger’s	cat	is
dead	or	alive	until	you	look,	and	the	looking
makes
	it	one	or	the	other). Akasha	solves	this	problem	by	making	every	event	participatory	at	every
level. All	observers	are	inside	the	Akashic	field,	and	whatever	they	do	causes
the	whole	field	to	respond. Therefore,	we	are	not	falsifying	the	universe	to
describe	it	as	behaving	like	ourselves. The	predictable	and	the	unpredictable
coexist. A	cat	can	be	dead	and	alive	at	the	same	time	without	shaking	up	how
the	world	usually	works. In	fact,	it	is	through	the	unpredictable	universe	that
we	know	ourselves	and	vice	versa. The	Vedic	rishis	realized	that	time	and
eternity	have	to	be	related,	and	their	conclusion	was	that	time	is	an	illusionwhile	eternity	is	real. This	turns	the	tables	on	the	five	senses,	which	must
operate	as	if	time	is	real,	since	every	event	we	participate	in	occurs	in
spacetime. The	rishis	declare	that	dying	allows	us	to	see	eternal	reality	clearly
and	to	participate	in	it	more	fully. In	Laszlo’s


, she cried for days, and found that for the first time
she was able to accept the child within her. At the end of her letter, she
wrote, “This was the first time I had ever given myself the privilege and
dignity to mourn my own pains and agonies. Now that all the debris has
moved from my soul, my [inner] child and I are one. I feel total integration,
self love, and for giveness. I need never judge others, for I no longer need to
judge myself. ”
Spirituality, unconditional love, and the ability to see that pain and
problems are opportunities for growth and redirection—these things allow
us to make the best of the time we have. Then we realize that the present
moment is all we have, but it is infinite. We see that there is no real past or
future, and that as soon as we start thinking in terms of past and future—
regretting and wishing—we lose ourselves in judgemental thinking. In one
of the countries where people regularly live to be a hundred, people have a
saying: “Y esterday is gone, tomorrow isn’ t here yet, so what is there to
worry about. ”
Many people are able to let go of their fears and resentments only when
they are nearly dead. Several years ago Dr. Ellerbroek described one such
case in the following terms:

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

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

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

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

Ellerbroek has concluded that patients with far advanced cancer must be
near death before the turnaround can happen, but I know from my
experience that people can change at any time. The earlier it occurs in the
course of a disease, the greater the chances of recovery. If a person takes the
spiritual path before becoming sick, he or she becomes practically
invulnerable to disease and misfortune—at least in the psychological sense,
and very often in the physical sense. As Norman Cousins wrote after his
self-cure of ankylosing spondylitis, “I have learned never to underestimate
the capacity of the human mind and body to regenerate, even when the
prospects seem most wretched. ”
Dr. Granger Westber g, founder of numerous Wholistic Health Care
Centers, in which doctors, nurses, and ministers work as a team, believes
that the illnesses of about half to three-fourths of all patients originate in
problems of the spirit rather than in breakdowns of the body. As he phrases
it, the physical symptoms are often only the “tickets of admission” to a
process of self-discovery and spiritual change. To begin that true healing,
each of us must make the leap of faith described by French poet Guillaume
Apollinaire, who once wrote:
Come to the edge. No, we will fall. Come to the edge.<|eot_id|><|begin_of_text|>
Q: What is the author's concern about the ECaP study's results?,
A: The author is concerned that the results may be skewed due to self-selection, as some members had already exceeded predictions before joining the group.
Q: What is the author's approach to dealing with patients?,
A: The author prefers to focus on individuals and effective techniques, rather than relying solely on statistics.
Q: What is the author's view on the concept of love?,
A: The author believes that love is incredibly powerful and can be a source of healing and redemption, and that it is essential to cultivate self-love and forgiveness.
Q: What is the author's opinion on the concept of forgiveness?,
A: The author believes that forgiveness is essential for healing and that it is not about ignoring or condoning the actions of others, but rather about releasing negative emotions and choosing to love.
Q: What is the author's perspective on the concept of death?,
A: The author believes that death is not a failure, but rather a natural part of life, and that it is essential to choose to live each day with faith and trust in the universe.<|eot_id|><|begin_of_text|>Again she asked,
“Do you really believe that?” And I said, “Y es, I do.”
“Well,” she said, “I was sitting in the living room. He was late for
dinner, and the town fire alarm went of f. I knew it was about him. I jumped
up, and his voice came to me and said, ‘Do not leave the room for one
hour.’ So I sat down and waited. When I got to the scene of the accident,
they were just lifting his body out of the car. I thought to myself, ‘If I had
been out here for an hour, I would never have survived.’”
I worried about her but several months later I mentioned her story in a
conference on drawings, and a physician who was there told me he’d
delivered her child and she had done beautifully. Recently Janet wrote me a
letter, offering her help to anyone in a crisis similar to what she had
survived. This physician also beckoned me over to a corner and told me of a
precognitive experience. While his wife was pregnant she had said to him,
“I must study total communication for the deaf.” He said, “Honey, why do
you need to do that?” She said, “I must.” And of course their first child was
born deaf. So the physician was a believer, but he had motioned for me to
come into a corner to talk about this. I know that finger


, each
one, especially Shannon and Gary for loving and caring. Publisher’s Acknowledgments
We’re proud of this book; please send us your comments at
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contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at 877-
762-2974, outside the U.S. at 317-572-3993, or fax 317-572-4002. Some of the people who helped bring this book to market
include the following:
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Project Editor: Elizabeth Kuball
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John Wiley & Sons Canada, Ltd.
Deborah Barton, Vice President and Director of Operations
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Publishing and Editorial for Consumer Dummies
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Composition Services
Debbie Stailey, Director of Composition ServicesIntroduction
I’m excited to be writing this book, and I’m even more excited
that you’re reading it. I’m delighted to have the chance to share
all that I know about being healthy and preventing disease,
along with my tips and recipes for making great smoothies and
juices. I’m thrilled that you’ve chosen this book to help start
you on an adventure that can take you, your body, and even
your mind and emotions to places you never thought you’d go. And I’m glad to be part of the spark that guides you toward
drinking your way to better health. I call this decision to make juices and smoothies part of your
diet an adventure because, although it may not give you the
breathtaking adrenalin rush of bungee jumping or rock
climbing, you’re starting out on a journey that could change
your life. You’ll be doing something that may be outside your
normal routine, and you’ll likely be exploring options you may
not have considered before. Like any good road trip, this book
offers you a map — but you’re the one behind the wheel. You
call the shots and you determine just how much you’ll beneﬁt
from this trip into health and well-being. Do you want to lose weight? Have more energy? Get stronger? Stop getting colds? Remember more? Have vibrant skin, hair,
and nails? Slow the aging process? It’s all possible by eating the
right foods, exercising, and including fruits and vegetables in
your daily regime. I know this because I haven’t just listened to experts and read
about and researched ongoing medical studies, but actually
experienced the beneﬁts of good food and a healthy diet that
includes juices and smoothies. I’ve experienced the “juice high”
from cleansing and detoxifying, and I’ve come to agree with
dietitians, nutritionists, food scientists, and medical researchersin many ﬁelds when they say that diet, exercise, health and well-
being are inextricably entwined — modern disease is a curse
that is a product of chemical pollutants; high-fat, high-sugar,
highly reﬁned and processed foods; over consumption of
caffeine and alcohol; and a lack of physical exercise. Even though there may seem to be contradictory, complicated,
or even depressing news about food and disease, there is one
constant fact that was expressed over 7,000 years ago by
Hippocrates, the father of Western medicine: “Let food be your
medicine and your medicine be your food.” This is just as true
today as it was then. I’m convinced that eating a wide variety of
colorful fresh fruits and vegetables is key to experiencing
optimum health. Turns out that it’s pretty simple: Eat or drink
more fruits and vegetables to be well. About This Book
Juicing & Smoothies For Dummies is a reference book. You don’t
have to read it straight through, from beginning to end, to get
what you need out of it. Instead, you can use the table of
contents and index to locate the information you need when
you need it. The book is loaded with recipes — 50 juice recipes and 50
smoothie recipes — so you’re bound to ﬁnd a wide variety of
drinks you’ll love. But this isn’t just a recipe book — I also
provide a wealth of information on equipment, fruits and
vegetables, and a healthy lifestyle. Conventions Used in This Book
I don’t use many conventions in this book, but I do use a few
that you should be aware of: When I introduce a new term, I italicize it and deﬁne it
shortly thereafter (often in parentheses). I use monofont  for all web and e-mail addresses. Note: When this book was printed, some web addresses may
have needed to break across two lines of text. If that happened,
rest assured that we haven’t put in any extra characters (such
as hyphens) to indicate the break. So, when using one of these
web addresses, just type in exactly what you see in this book,
pretending as though the line break doesn’t exist. What Y ou’r e Not to Read
You can skip sidebars (that’s the text in gray boxes). Although
the sidebars are interesting, they’re not critical to your
understanding of the subject at hand. You also can skip
anything marked with the Technical Stuff icon (see “Icons Used
in This Book,” later, for more information). Foolish Assumptions
I don’t make a ton of assumptions about you as the reader (after
all, you know what they say about assuming). But I do assume
the following:
 You’re interested in being healthy by replacing meals with
juices and smoothies. You’re interested in trying new juice and smoothie recipes. If this is you, you’ve come to the right book! How This Book is OrganizedThis book’s 20 chapters are divided into ﬁve parts. Here’s a
guide to what each part covers. P a r t  I :  A n  I n t r o d u c t i o n  t o  J u i c i n g  a n d
S m o o t h i e s
Part I gives you the what, how, and why of juicing and
smoothies. This is where you discover the difference between
the two drinks and what each will do for you. This part gives
you tips for buying a juice extractor or a blender and loads you
up with great information on shopping, handling, and storing
fresh fruits and vegetables. Finally, it shows how juices and smoothies can meet the needs
of people at every stage of life, from babies to teenagers to
seniors and people who are pregnant or diabetic. It even gives
you some help with healthy choices for your pet. P a r t  I I :  L i q u i d  G o l d :  T h e  H e a l t h
B e n e f i t s  o f  J u i c i n g  a n d  S m o o t h i e s
In this part, you explore the beneﬁts of smoothies and juices. I’ve researched a wide number of sources in order to give you
up-to-date information on nutrients and where to ﬁnd them in
foods. Part II also shows you how to use these drinks to look
younger and live longer; improve your skin, hair, and nails; lose
weight; increase energy; and boost your memory and immune
function. Part II is also where you ﬁnd the details of cleansing and
detoxiﬁcation. I outline the difference between a cleanse and a
detox program and explain how to safely enjoy one or the other. Finally, I lay out a short, ﬁve-day detoxiﬁcation plan and a
longer, 28-day plan with lots of room for personalization.P a r t  I I I :  G e t t i n g  J u i c e d
Part III gets you going with the ingredients and techniques of
juicing. This is where all the juicing recipes are located. Chapter
11 has fruit juices for every time of day. Vegetables are juiced in
Chapter 12. Chapter 13 explains how you can deal with all the
pulp you’ll be left with when the juicer extracts the juice from
the fruit or vegetable. P a r t  I V :  S e r v i n g  U p  F r e s h  S m o o t h i e s
Part IV gets you making smoothies. It explores a pantry of
healthy ingredients that can be added to smoothies and gives
you some great recipes for fruit and vegetable smoothies that
will take you from breakfast to lunch, as well as snacks. I


, and still are,
attempting to find, isolate and identify some evanescent, evasive
"germ" to blame for the common cold. Sometime during the middle 1920s, science made the headlines
with the "discovery" of a "germ" which was definitely responsible
for the common cold, but that it was too small and elusive to be caught
61 or even to be visible by means of the most powerful microscopes then
available. Yet, they "discovered" such a "germ". In the march of progress in the field of enlarging the image of
matter, electronic microscopes have made such vast strides that what
is virtually invisible can be magnified many thousands, even hundreds
of thousands of times. Scientists are still playing with the thought
that "the germ" can be caught, but to my knowledge and as a result of
all the research and investigations which I have been able to make, no
such "germ" has yet been seen, caught or harnessed. During the past years—actually since 1946—according to word I
have from England, some "Scientists," under the $150,000 a year
patronage of the British Government's "Medical Research Council,"
have been hunting—and, you know the British are notorious for their
hunting. —For a COLD BUG, a GERM orVIRUS as the culprit, which
could be blamed for or accused of being responsible for the starting
or the generation of the COMMON COLD. So far, from every available report they have not yet after many
years, been able to find, catch, harness nor "develop" one. Surely
they have been able to identify about 100 different germs, virus or
bacteria, but not one of these was able to start a cold. Every one of
these was feeding on the mucus of Common Colds, the very purpose
for which they were created, namely to dissolve, break up, decompose
and so dispose of the mucus that manifests the Common Cold. As I understand it, these British "Scientists" have some kind of a
research hospital where they not only invite people to come there and
stay for 10 days or so, free of charge, all meals and everything else
provided, but patients are paid something like five shillings a day to
come there and submit themselves to the Scientists' attempts to find
a germ or virus that will GIVE them a cold. It has become quite a fad
for some 30 people at a time to go there once or twice a year for a
very inexpensive vacation with pay. I understand that so far only a handful of people during the past
few years did develop a cold, but the germ or virus that was supposed
to create it has never been discovered. No, indeed, there is not a germ in existence which can cause one
to have a cold. The electrical analogy in reference to a cold is worth
remembering. The electric system in your home is equipped with
fuses. Right. What happens when the electric circuit is overheated
because you have overloaded the line with too many lights and
appliances. Does a "germ" notify you that a fuse will blow out or
62 that the overheating of the wires may burn down your home. No,
indeed. If the fuse fails to blow out, the overloaded and overheated
wires will start a fire. Think this over when you "catch a cold. " The waste matter in the system, if not eliminated, builds up
fermentation and heat in the body in the natural course of events. When such fermentation has reached a sufficiently toxic state. Nature
becomes worried about our neglect to keep the body clean within,
and gives us a warning in the form of mucous elimination which has
been labeled "a cold. " It is just as simple as that, and we have seen it
demonstrated over and over and over again, that if the warning is
ignored and disregarded, more serious conditions develop, conditions
which are so well-known that a list of them covers a medical
encyclopedia. Never curse a cold which has caught up with you. Rather be
thankful for the timely warning, and do something about it. No drug
was ever known to cure a cold without the development of eventual
afflictions of a more serious nature, rarely attributed to such drugs. To put it briefly, a cold is the result of the secretion of too much
accumulated waste, and insufficient and improper elimination. The
Colon is the recipient of all this corruption. Toxins spread throughout
the body generating unhealthy mucus in the sinus cavities. Excessive
waste matter is the contributing factor in the generation of mucus. The result —A COLD. An intelligent individual will give due consideration to these facts,
and as a matter of course will do what innumerable other people have
done at the first signs of a cold, namely, take enemas and colon
irrigations to remove the cause. Fruit juices and fasting for a day or
two — using nothing but water and fruit juices — have been very
effective during such cleansing procedures. A regimen of raw foods and juices has been found to be the best
means to prevent the accumulation of waste and mucus when the
body, and the colon in particular, has been kept consistently clean. YOUR ENDOCRINE GLANDS
The human body could not function were it not for the
ENDOCRINE GLAND system. The glands in our body are the
activating mechanisms responsible for, and involved in, every function
and procedure taking place within our system. 63 There are glands of internal secretion and glands of external
secretion. These glands all manufacture in micro-microscopic
quantities a substance known as HORMONES. Hormones are a product generated and elaborated in the glands
and discharged into the blood or lymph, in most cases, while in some
instances their action is somewhat like making an electrical contact
in one place, to start, stop, or to modify an action in a separate and
perhaps remote place. Endocrine means that the manufacture of hormones takes place
within the gland, with no duct for its discharge from it. The discharge
takes place by osmotic transmission from within the gland through
its covering, and is collected by the blood or the lymph from outside
the gland. Glands of external secretion are those with a duct or ducts leading
directly from the generating plant in the gland, out of the gland into
the blood or the lymph or into its environment. The Tonsils and the
Appendix are external secretion glands, the former injecting its product
into the throat, while the Appendix injects its product into the colon. The volume of hormone secreted at any one time is so
infinitesimal, so infinitely small, that in order to obtain one-quarter
of an ounce of the Pineal Gland Hormone extract, for example, it
would be necessary to collect hormones from more than 20,000,000
individual glands. Like every other part of the human body, glands must have
constant nourishment in order to be able to operate efficiently. Such
nourishment should be of the very finest quality, because of the
important, intricate, and delicate work which the glands are called
upon to perform. I have made and drawn a Chart of the Endocrine Gland System,
showing the human form, and radiating from it are explained and
indicated the various Endocrine Glands and their relation to one
another. The chart indicates the nature of their function and of their
disfunction, reviews what stimulates them and what inhibits them,
lists the elements of which they are composed and shows what fresh-
raw vegetable juices we have found to be of help and benefit for their
well-being. This Chart measures about 17" by 22" and is intended to
be framed for hanging on the wall of your study, office or your home. The extensive ramifications of the hormone chain is nothing short
of stupendous, and even a superficial study of this Chart is enough to
64 make us appreciate our Creator for furnishing our insignificant body
with such a marvel of ingenuity. The least we can do to help our wonderful glandular system to
function at its highest state of efficiency is to keep our body thoroughly
cleansed of waste and corrupt matter, nourish the body with the best
natural raw foods and juices available, and completely learn to control
our mind and our emotions. With due and careful attention to this program, we should acquire
the energy we need to live a full, happy, useful, joyous and intelligent
life. VINEGAR
All references in my previous publications to the injurious effects
of VINEGAR applied definitely ONLY to the white distilled vinegar
and to wine vinegar, in which the destructive element is the
predominance of ACETIC ACID. Pure APPLE CIDER VINEGAR, on the other hand, made from
whole apples and not diluted, contains the constructive MALIC ACID,
an ingredient needed in the digestive processes. There are three kinds of Vinegar which are generally used in this
country, Apple Cider and the white distilled Vinegar. There is also
Wine Vinegar which is a commonly used condiment in Latin countries,
and which, like the White Distilled Vinegar contains ACETIC ACID. White Distilled Vinegar is injurious to the system. It rapidly
destroys red blood corpuscles resulting in anemia. It also interferes
with the digestive processes, retarding them and preventing the proper
assimilation of food. Such Vinegar (C2H40,) is


 test. Not everyone in every city has easy and af fordable access to
blood testing. But if it’ s available in your town, it can be a real help. Imagine how good you will feel when you see that after only two weeks of
being on the E2 Diet, your cholesterol has dropped 20, 30, maybe even 40
percent. Your lethal LDL  is falling. And your blood pressure is dropping. Your weight will be dropping, too. What better way to tell of f the naysayers
than by showing them hard-and-fast numbers? (Y ou can read more about
benchmarks and measurements in Engine 2 Vital Signs, page 97.) Keep healthy options handy. You don’ t want to find yourself craving a
snack only to discover there’ s nothing in the cupboard. Carry something to
nibble with you at all times, and keep healthy food handy in your of fice or
car. One of the participants in the Engine 2 Pilot Study, Paul Koeningsman,carried a small cooler containing baby carrots, bell pepper slices, fruit,
healthy crackers, and Fig Newtons everywhere he went. It paid of f: His
cholesterol went from 199 to 143, and his LDL  from 98 to 35, and he tells
me his painful diverticulitis came to an end. ON JUL Y 28, 2003, CYCLIST  LANCE ARMSTRONG  won his fifth and most dif ficult
Tour de France—the world’ s most prestigious cycling event—by just under
one minute over his great rival, Jan Ullrich of Germany. In so doing, Lance
tied four other cyclists who had won the Tour de France five times. On August 12, I received an e-mail from Lance asking if I would help
him with his diet. I wrote back saying I would be happy to help. I also asked, “Y ou want to
win number six, don’ t you?”
“Do I want number six?” he replied. “Why do you think I’m asking you
about this? Hell yeah, I want number six. More than I wanted number five
actually. This year was not acceptable.”
Not only do I love Lance’ s kick-ass attitude, but I also love that less than
two weeks after his fifth victory, he was already thinking about the next
one. Is there something you’d like to improve in your life? Your
performance? Your health? Your ener gy? Your longevity? Your weight? Make these goals a reality. Think about the sweet taste of success, and how
good you will look and feel, inside and outside, in four weeks! OceanofPDF.com2
E2 VITAL SIGNS
How many people know their height and weight? Probably almost
everyone. But how many know their total cholesterol, LDL  cholesterol,
HDL  cholesterol, triglycerides, fasting glucose, blood pressure, and BMI? Probably very few. I want this situation to change. You should be able to rattle of f these
numbers as easily as you do your address and phone number. These
signposts are important clues as to the current state of your health and
potential for disease. Though we’ll be talking about each of these markers individually,
understand that all of them af fect the others. If you see improvement in one
area, more than likely you’ll see it in others as well. WEIGHT
One of the best parts of the E2 Diet is that you will lose weight in a
sustainable, healthy, and permanent way. You will not be depriving yourself
of any nutrients. Far from it—you will consume more nutrients than you
ever have in the past. And you won’ t be hungry, because you can eat as
many plant-happy foods as you wish. However, this wonderful weight loss may not happen immediately—
sometimes it can take up to two weeks for your body to transition to
burning these cleaner fuels. Unlike some of the trendier diets that eliminate
carbohydrates so you’ll lose 10 to 15 pounds of water weight in the first
two weeks, on E2 you’ll lose real weight—i.e., fat, not just water—
honestly and naturally.So while you may lose only a few pounds or so a week for the first two
weeks, the next two weeks should give you something to cheer about. Check your weight regularly while on the plan; besides the joy you will
feel as you watch the pounds drop, there is another advantage: If you are
not losing as much as you’d like, it’ll give you a chance to make a course
correction. Pay careful attention to see if you are consuming too many
calorie-dense foods, such as olives, avocados, peanut butter, nuts,
smoothies, and fruit juices. These items can impede weight loss, and should
be minimized or eliminated, depending on your goals. For example, when thirty-six-year -old E2 Pilot Study participant
McClaine Sampson complained that she wasn’ t losing weight, I asked her
to send me a one-week food log (see box, opposite), and I quickly saw that
she was eating peanut butter, olives, and guacamole at almost every meal;
i.e., she was simply substituting plant-based fats for animal ones. When we
took these items of f her menu, McLaine lost 8 pounds over the next two
weeks. If you’re trying to lose weight, but not succeeding as rapidly as you’d
like, I recommend at least three cardiovascular exercise sessions, along with
two E2 Functional Training sessions, a week (see The Engine 2 Exercise
Program, page 69). This will increase your resting metabolic rate (as noted,
the rate at which you burn calories at rest). By exercising regularly, you can
replace lazy fat with ener getic muscle, burning calories at your desk or in
bed as well as at the gym. Some people actually lose too much weight on the E2 Diet—particularly
men. At six feet, six inches, Jef f Brinker weighed 225 pounds when he
started the diet. Over the next six months, he dropped down to below 185
pounds. So one night he called me, saying that he didn’ t want to lose any
more weight (although he was thrilled that his cholesterol had dropped from
185 mg/dl to 1 11 mg/dl). I told him to consume more of the calorie-dense,
plant-based foods McClaine had been eating, and to drink smoothies and
fruit juices and eat more whole grains and cereals. Soon enough, his weight
was back to normal. THE E2 FOOD LOG
A food log is a daily journal in which you write down every single
thing you eat and drink during the day—breakfast, lunch, dinner,
dessert, and especially snacks, as snacks are what often kill a diet.My father first introduced me to the concept in 1985; he insisted
that every one of his patients keep one, and every two weeks he
would go over it with them to make sure they were correctly
implementing the diet. These people kept this routine going for five
years, so when you think twenty-eight days is a long time to keep a
food log, think again. Here’ s the way I like to do it: In a notebook, write in six columns
that you fill in daily with your breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, daily
activities, and observations. Find a time at the end of the day to write
everything down, or better yet, make notes throughout the day so you
don’t forget anything. For your convenience, feel free to sign up and keep one online at
www.theengine2diet.com. Keep the food log for the entire twenty-eight days and it will give
you some very valuable feedback—Am I eating enough leafy greens? Am I overdosing on breads and grains? Am I getting into a rut with
my food choices? Am I skipping meals? Do the packaged foods I’m
eating meet the E2 labeling standards? I can’ t emphasize enough the importance of keeping a log for the
whole twenty-eight days. Everyone in the Pilot Study—and I mean
everyone —remarked on what an eye-opening process it was and how
much junk they were unconsciously throwing into their systems. For example, one participant remarked how the food log kept him
honest; he knew if he drank a Coke or ate a piece of chicken he’d
have to write it down, and that was the one thing that kept him from
caving in. Another E2 participant ate oatmeal for breakfast, peanut
butter and jelly for lunch, pasta for dinner, and a scoop of sorbet for
dessert the entire first week. I told her I wanted her to diversify her
foods; eat more fruits and more vegetables from every color of the
rainbow. She agreed, started eating a lar ger variety of foods, and
immediately enjoyed the dif ferent flavors and textures she hadn’ t
even realized existed. BEFORE YOU BEGIN THE FOUR-WEEK E2 DIET, please consider having the
following tests done so you can track the dramatic changes that will occuras your body becomes healthier. And of course, talk to your physician about
them. TOTAL CHOLESTEROL
The average American has a total cholesterol above 200 mg/dl. The
average American will also die of cardiovascular disease. I’d like to see you aim to get yours below 150, even though your doctor
may tell you that below 200 mg/dl is good enough. It can be done, and done quickly. At the start of the E2 Pilot Study,


 your feet
parallel. Bend your knees and lif t your right leg up to cross it over your left. If you can, wrap your toes be hind your left calf. Y ou will now be in a
seated-chair squ at with one leg wrapped around the other. If it’ s too dif ficult
to wrap your toes, place your right foot on the side of your left leg. Y ou can
also plac e a yoga block next to  your left foot and place your r ight toes on
the bloc k. Next, bring your ar ms up and bend them so they look like
goalposts. W rap your right arm underneath your left, and threa d it around
until your two h ands meet at the top. Y our arms will be interlac ed together
like you r legs. W ith your arms  wrapped, bring both palms together. Y our
focal point will be your hands. Bring your elbows up and your shoulders
down. Hold the pose for four to six breaths, and then repeat o n the other
side. Dolphin Pose — Ardha Pincha Mayurasana :  Dolphin pose is a mild
inversion, or a y oga pose in wh ich the head is at a lower position than the
heart. As a gene ral rule, inversions are good for all the upper chakras. Even
though dolphin pose looks easy, it’ s actually quite challenging a s it requires
some upper body strength. Y ou can work your way up to holding dolphin
pose by taking frequent breaks. Dolphin pose is also good practice to build
your strength for a yoga headstand. Begin on your h ands and knees on your mat. Lay your forearms on the
mat with  your elbows directly u nderneath your shoulders. Fold your hands
together in front of you, and lock your shoulders back to create a stable
base. Y o ur hands and elbows will form a triangle. Gently lift yo ur knees of f
the floor  and walk your feet tow ard your elbows until you’re in an upside-down letter V. Y our head will  float above the  floor. Lift your tailbone high
into the sky. T o enhance the ene r gy toward the Ajna chakra, lif t your head
so the third eye is facing direct ly down to ward th e earth. Stay in the pose
for four to six breaths, then low er your knees to the floor and take a child’ s
pose as a counterpose: lower y our hips to the floor, and then extend your
torso fo rward an d rest it betwe en your thighs, with your fore head on the
floor. Healing the Emotional and Energetic Body
Then God said, “Let ther e be light,” and ther e was light. And God saw that the light was good. Then he separated light fr om the darkness. — G ENESIS  1:3–4
A great obstacle in healing the emotional body, especially at the sixth
chakra l evel of consciousness, is the struggle of light versus dark. Earnest
spiritual seekers can be so inte rested in attainment of enlightenment that
they for get some crucial steps along the path. In the beginning of the chapter I discussed the duality dynamic of this
world. The push-pull of the world of opposites doesn’ t only live in your
environment; it also lives in you. There are aspects within you that seem to
work ag ainst eve rything you stand for on your spiritual path. Y et there they
are, either ever present or looming around the corner. The novice on the
spiritual path will try to push them away, hoping that they will n ever return. But these shadows must be con fronted and accepted in order to experience
the light fully. A  perfect example is if you never saw darkness, you could
never ex perience the night sky filled with stars, planets, and other astral
bodies. Often it is throu gh your own dar kness that you discover the light. In the
Bible, God created light out of the darkness since the darkness came first. My expe rience with cancer enabled me to help countless people  through my
writing about healing. When I talk to people in recovery from alcohol and
drug addiction, they all say that they would never have arrived at the
spiritual lives they now live if it weren’ t for the dark days of addiction. W e have all see n instances in the media demonstrating that pushing
away the darkness only makes things worse. Look at the sex scandals of
politicians, stories of embezzlement, and improper use of campaign funds. One of the grea test teachers I ever had, Dr. David Simon, used to say,
“Y ou can do al l the meditation in the world, but if you don’ t work on
emotional healing, you can’ t reach enlightenment. ” Emotional healing
doesn’ t mean you have to spend twenty years in therapy. It sim ply means
facing your demons, the shadow  aspects of you that aren’ t fun to look at. Invite th em in and have a conv ersation with them. T ell them they aren’ t
going to rule your life anymore. I use d to have quite an issue w ith anxiety. At dif ferent periods in my
life, it ruined my daily experiences. I became paralyzed by stories in my
head tha t, for the most part, simply weren’ t true. But I let my mind entertain
those stories. I used to say in jest that the great thing about being a writer is
that I have a wi ld imagination, and the worst thing about being a writer is
that I have a wild imagination. Learning and practicing meditation saved
me because I learned that I can control my thoughts and their direction. The best  way to face your shado ws is to transmute them. T ransf orm the
shadow ener gy into something great that can help humanity. Sen d light into
the d arkness. For example, if your shadow is that you succumb to obsessive
cleaning and or ganizing in your home, you co uld start a business where you
help others or ganize closets and  living spaces. If you’re a shopaholic, you
can contact your local women’ s  shelter and ask them what they need in a
care box. Y ou c an then use you r shopping skills to find the best prices to
make ca re boxes for women and children in a safe home. The greatest thing
about being human is that you a re human. There is no reason to be ashamed
of your weaknesses or your shadows as long as you are not harming
anyone, includin g yourself. In f act, it’ s often when we bring our shadows
into the light that their power dissipates. Professional help can assist you in
this process, but sometimes a simple decision to act is all you need. Healing the Spiritual Body
Meditation is the primary practi ce that will help you attain the s ixth chakra
level of awarene ss. T alk about m editation is bubbling under the surface ofAmerican culture these days, and ef forts to include meditation in daily
activities are popping up in hosp itals, corporations, and even schools. More
than the  word meditation, you may hear the word mindfulness, which refers
to a type of med itation. As a me ditation teacher, I find the word mindfulness
to be  a bit of a misnomer when it comes to the ultimate goal of meditation. A wareness is certainly the key to everything we have discussed up until
now. Y ou must be aware of your thoughts, words, and actions, as well as
your bo dy and mind. However, when I think of mindfulness, I think of
concentration or  fullness of the mind. T o meditate, you need focus instead
of concentration, and release of the mind rather than fullness of it. Most people come to meditation saying, “I’m too much in my mind. Get me out of it. ” Y ou are liter ally going out of your mind in meditation. (That pun was completely intended. ) Everyone has experienced the ef fects
of monk ey mind. Y our mind fl its from thought to thought lik e a monkey
swinging from branch to branch. W ithout awareness that you are  the thinker
of your though ts, you become subject to the mind’ s unwiel dy habit of
flitting a bout wi th no sense of control. It comes as no surprise that millions
of peop le suf fer from anxiety and depression. If you are under the
impression that you have no c ontrol over your thoughts and the strong
impulses of the mind, of course you have reason to feel anxiou s. However,
the g ood news is that you do have control. Y ou simply need to le arn tools to
exercise the control muscle. By realizing that there are separate roles at play inside you, you can
harness the forces of your mind and get it to do what you want. Y ou achieve
this by cajoling your mind rathe r than forcing it to go in the direction you
desire. How do most of us try to control the mind. Let’ s sup pose you’re
trying to break a bad habit, such as eating a chocolate bar every night. Y ou
may try to break this habit by se tting a goal such as not eating chocolate at
all or eating chocolate only once per week. Then you might tr y to abstain
from ch ocolate by not purchasing it, distracting yourself in oth er ways,


 The reactions of sympathetic nerves are mass reactions
such as a constriction of arteries, acceleration of heart rate and slowing of
gastric movement. Sushumna is the central canal of the spinal cord; it continues into the
cavities of the brain and is in direct contact with the hypothalam us and
pineal gland. The spinal cord lies only in the upper two-thirds of the
vertebral column. In the lower third of the spine it tapers off abruptly into a
conical extremity. From the apex to this conical extremity a delicate non-
nervous filament called the filum terminale descends to the coccyx, the
lowest bone of the vertebral column. The lower part of the filum terminale is
in the vicinity of the inferior hypogastric plexus. There are various other
autonomic nerve plexuses situated on the two sides of the vertebral column;
these are the lotuses associated with our chakras. The suggested anatomical
sites for the chakra lotuses ar e as follows:
◼ muladhara (base root) chakra: inferior h ypogastric (pelvic) ple xus
◼ swadhisthana (sacral) chakra: superior h ypogastric plexus◼ manipura (solar plexus) chakra: coeliac or solar ple xus
◼ anahata (heart) chakra: car diac plexus
◼ vishuddhi (throat) chakra: plexuses connecting the superior, middle
and inferior cervical g anglia
◼ ajna (third eye) chakra: inter nal carotid plexus
◼ sahasrara (crown) chakra: pineal bod y.
Glands of the endocrine system
The holistic approach to health fully acknowledges the integration of mind
and body; the well-being of one depends on the good health of the other. Human bodies consist of two kinds of glands: exocrine and endocrine. Exocrine glands are the glands that release their secretions through ducts
such as the liver and gall bladder. Endocrine glands do not have ducts and
release their secretions, known as hormones, directly into the bloodstream. These glands are responsible for our bodies’ physiological functioning. The
hormones secreted by the endocrine glands are chemical messenger s, and
together with the autonomic nervous system they maintain the parameter s
for optimum growth. Since the nervous and endocrine systems are
interconnected, then functionally an imbalance in one will af fect the other. Each of the seven main chakras is associated with a particular endocrine
gland. Chakra health is affected by the functioning of the endocrine glands
and vice versa: any imbalance  in the chakras may affect the associated
endocrine g land, manifesting in ter ms of physical or ph ysiological symptoms. The hypothalamus gland
The hypothalamus gland is a small region of the brain that activates and
regulates that part of the nervous system responsible for controllinginvoluntary body functions, the hormonal system and many other body
functions such as sleep regulation, body temperature and appetite. With
complex interconnections with the cerebral cortex and the other parts of the
brain that are little understood, it links emotions with the body’s autonomic
nervous system. It is r egulated by the ajna (thir d eye) chakra. The pituitary gland
The pituitary gland is a pea-sized structure that looks like an upside-do wn
mushroom; it hangs by a stalk from the undersurface of the brain. This vital
gland influences growth and metabolism and stimulates the activities of other
glands. It orchestrates the secretion of hormones from other endocrine
glands by producing a range of controller hormones such as human growth
hormone, follicle-stim ulating hormone, prolactin and thyroid-stimulating
hormones (vasopressin and oxytocin). The hypothalam us gland controls the
pituitary gland and indir ectly master minds its or chestration. The pituitary gland has two lobes — anterior and posterior — that
release a wide range of different hormones, including those responsible for
contractions during childbirth and those that regulate the release of breast
milk by a nursing mother. It is interesting to note that the intuition of a
mother is at its peak while nursing. The process of nursing and intuition are
also associa ted with the thir d eye chakra. Adrenal glands
The adrenal glands are attached to the top of each kidney. They are
associated with the muladhara (base root) chakra. Each of the adrenals has
two parts: an outer corte x and an inner medulla. In response to the release of adrenocorticotr opic hormone (ACTH,
which stimulates the release of cortisol) from the pituitary gland, the cortexsecretes a number of steroid hormones that directly affect
the balance of salt, water and glucose in the body. Cortisol is usually secreted by the adrenal cortex and
affects glucose metabolism according to our daily sleep
and wake cycle; its concentra tion in the blood is much
higher during the day than it is at night. During a stress
response, cortisol secretion rises in proportion to the
degree of stress; this is mor e marked when the str ess arises
from physical injury. Cortisol increases the concentra tion
of glucose in our body by breaking down proteins, fats
and carbohydrates. As a result, stress increases the level of
blood sugar, an appropriate response to acute stress to
ensure adequate energy supply for both the brain and
skeletal m uscles at a time w hen immedia te physical activity ma y be required. Besides ACTH, the pituitary produces endorphins and other related
compounds. The precise mode of operation of these compounds is still not
completely clear; however, it is assumed their pain-relieving properties, along
with other postulated effects on mood and perception, may combine to allow
life-saving exertions by a person despite serious injury, which is similar to acts
of heroism in extreme danger situa tions. The adrenal medulla is intimately associated with the sympathetic
nervous system. Its main secretion — adrenaline — is related to
noradrenaline, one of the most important neurotransmitter s of the
sympathetic system. Adrenaline secretion is initiated by direct stimulation of
the adrenal medulla b y the sympa thetic nerv es. Exposure to a stressor produces an immediate increase in sympathetic
nerve activity, which in turn results in the release of significant quantities of
adrenaline from the adrenal medulla into the bloodstream, therebypreparing the body for fight or flight. Once this hormone is released into the
blood it can quickly permeate the tissues of the body, augmenting the activity
of sympathetic nerv es. The effects of this ar e well known: increased heart ra te
and breathing rate, palpitation, trembling, hair rising and so on. Along with
these predominantly physical responses, the feedback to the brain arouses an
emotional response to stress that is normally manifested as some degree of
fearfulness and anxiety, therefore impacting the base root, solar plexus and
heart chakras. Gonads
The gonads, including testes and ovaries, are associated with the muladhara
(base root) and swadhisthana (sacral) chakras. The physical aspect of sex and
sexuality is connected with muladhara, while the physiological aspect is
connected to swadhisthana. Adrenal fatigue or depletion of physical energy
affects physical relationships. The gonads play an important role as hormone-producing endocrine
organs, responsible for producing sperm and egg cells. The manufacture and
release of sex hormones in both the sexes during reproductive life is
controlled by the hypothalam us and pituitary glands, in much the same way
they control other endocrine organs. Acute and chronic emotional stress can
affect the balance of the female reproductive system, leading to hormonal
imbalances and irregularities of the menstrual cycle along with a disturbance
or inhibition of ovulation. This is quite common in the presence of both
physical and emotional stressors. Men are also affected by emotional and
physical stress, which can lead to common sexual dysfunction such as
difficulties with erection and premature ejaculation and sometimes affect
sperm production, causing infertility.Pancreas
Most of the pancreas is non-endocrine in nature, being concerned with
producing digestive juices for the gut. Its function is regulated by the
manipura (solar ple xus) chakra. The pancreas is situa ted behind the stomac h.
Embedded within the bulk of its tissue lie numerous clusters of endocrine
cells called islets of Langerhans that secrete insulin and glucagon, two
substances with essentially complementar y actions in the maintenance of
normal glucose levels. Insulin lowers blood sugar levels by encouraging body
cells to absorb more glucose, and raises blood sugar levels by mobilising the
sizeable store of carbohydrates present in the liver and converting it to
glucose. Thymus gland
The thymus gland, which is regulated by the
anahata (heart) chakra, is called a gland
although it is now accepted that its primary
function is regulatory, mainly for the immune
system. It is most active before birth and
during early life, after which it reduces in size. Despite its size in adult life it continues to
secrete significant volumes of the hormone
th


 than
morphine and other opiates. Inspired by this breakthrough, Silvers
found that she could get long-term suerers of migraines, arthritis,
and lower-bac k pain to produce highly eective pain relief on
command. This may seem like a simple application of the body’s painkillers,
which all of us call upon. But our use is not voluntary, and few if
any researchers in the eld claim to know how endorphins are
actually switched on. They are highly unpredictable chemicals. Under certain circumstances, such as being wounded in battle or
being injured in a highway collision, the body may feel no pain for
hours, while at other times a minor headache or dental pain may be
impossible to suppress. Faced with this baing unpredictability, Silvers devised a
disarmingly simple approach. She told her patients in an
authoritative voice that the brain’s inner pharmacy could  treat any
disorder. She would be giving them a simple technique for tapping“brain drugs” that would successfully deal with the most intractable
chronic pain. Next, she told each patient to close his eyes and to
imagine that he was creating  a supply of endorphins inside his head
but without releasing it. The painkilling dose had to be built up to
the appropriate  level. For the next few minutes she kept her patients
in suspense as they felt the dose becoming bigger and bigger, until
nally she gave a signal, and each person mentally injected a ood
of endorphins into his bloodstream. At this point, almost everyone felt a surge of pain relief sweep
over them, as if morphine were being fed into them through an IV
needle. Chronic pain that had resisted all previous treatments
improved dramatically or disappeared entirely. When the patients
were sent home to use the “brain drug” technique on their own,
many were able to wean themselves completely o prescribed
painkillers. Remarkably, Silvers made the further observation that if
a patie nt with chronic pain was also a drug addict, using the
technique seemed to sweep away all drug cravings along with the
pain. This occurred even among patients who had been abusing
drugs for twenty years, and there seemed to be no withdrawal
symptoms. By 1986 Silver s was condent enough to test her
methods on a group of hard-core addicts. She selected twenty adults who had spent from ve to forty years
hooked on cocaine, alcohol, Valium, or heroin, either alone or in
combination. They were desperate people, almost all of whom had
gone far beyond getting any satisfaction from their xes. They
continued on drugs basically  to escape their deep feelin gs of guilt
and to alleviate the constant  physical pain that their abused bodies
were aicted with. Most had completely ruined their family life and
career. Silvers taught the group her standard technique, but after telling
them that the brain produces  its own painkillers, she went on to say
that it produce s the exact equivalent of any drug sold on the street. Besides giving an addict a lifetime supply of pure drugs with no side
eects, the brain’s pharmacy  would make it unnecessary for him to
feel guilty. Silvers told the group: “You have been using drugs for a
very good reason. The drugs that get abused are precisely  those thatmimic the natural substance s which the brain uses to make people
feel normal. When we say that we feel a certain way, our mood is
always produced by one brain chemical or other—there is no state
of mind without a biochemical foundation. “In the brains of an addicted  person, the internal drugs for feeling
normal—happy, calm, balanced, and in control—are in short supply,
either because of a hereditary or spontaneous shortage, or because
taking outside drugs lowers the brain’s ability to produce its own
supply. “Your addictive cravings have been telling you that your brain
was having a problem, and your habit was a way of solving it. Although drug abuse has dangerous consequences, it is nothing to
be ashamed of in itself. You were just medicating yourself, like a
diabetic taking insulin.”
Here Silvers was mixing astute therapy, the power of suggestion,
and rather tenuous science. Neuroscientists have not yet proved that
the brain produces the equiv alent of some addictive drugs (alcohol,
nicotine, and cocaine, for example), much less that such substances
can be deliver ed on command. But there is no doubt that our cells
are outtted to latch on to street drugs. That undeniable fact implies
that addictive substances must fulll some purpose that is closely
matched by a chemical we make inside ourselves; otherwise, we
would have to assume that nature gave us a receptivity  for street
drugs millions  of years before they arrived on the scene, which
seems highly improbable. After Silvers delivered her talk, the members of the group closed
their eyes, mentally built up a massive dose of their favored drug,
and released it when she gave the signal. What followed was
astonishing. The eyes of the subjects glazed over; each person was
lost on a dierent trip, according to the kind of drug he was
addicted to. The cocaine addicts felt a rush that left them
speechless. They laughed quietly and later said that they had relived
childhood memories. The Valium addicts became so tranquilized
that they stuttered at the beginning of words. The alcoholics
sprawled in dreamy relaxatio n and lost their inhibitions; they talkedcalmly about threatening subjects that had arouse d massive
defensiveness before. In every instance the drug x was so strong that Silvers had to
wait twenty minutes before  the group was coherent enough to
describe their experiences. All were elated and convinced by what
had happened, although they had approached the session quite
skeptically. “For years the drug has been in control of you,” Silvers
assured them, “now it will be the other way around.”
I nd this a superb example of how awareness can heal. When
Silvers told addicts that their guilt was unfounded, she set the stage
for an outlook  most of them  had not entertained but were eager to
accept. Once a plausible tool was oered, the mind allow ed itself to
break out of an old bounda ry. My explanation assumes that the
brain acted as a neutral agent here; having no will of its own, the
brain would have been capable of continuing the addiction or
abandoning it. The brain cannot free itself; it needs instructions
from the mind. Silvers follows the current trend to seek explanations within the
brain’s chemistry, but she admits that the exact brain mechanism
she has been tapping is unknown. She places great weight on the
notion that feeling like a normal person depends upon a proper
balance of many interconnected neurochemicals. This seems
undeniable, but it bypasses the mystery of how a single  technique
could tap into brain chemicals that are not even know n to exist. Besides, could  an addict’s brain, so grossly impaired by outside
substances, really cure itself through chemical means? As I see it,
the wound of addiction was cured instead by a new ingredient in
awareness. The brilliance of her whole method was that it gave the mind-
body connection credit for doing anything it wanted to, even in the
face of people ’s enormous conditioning. As support for the view
underlying Silvers’ method, consider the power of the placebo
eect. If you give a dummy drug to a group of cancer patients,
telling them that they are receiving a potent form of chem otherapy,
a large  percentage will exhibit the typical side eects of
chemotherapy. They will feel intensely nauseous after taking thedrug; their hair will begin to fall out and sometimes  falls out
completely. Clearly we were not born with a xed brain mechanism for losing
our hair at will; nor do chemotherapy drugs mimic natural
substances in the brain. In order for the placebo to work, the mind
created someth ing new—it was not dependent on the brain’s known
abilities. Rather, the brain was the mind’s innitely resourceful
servant, able to carry out what it was told to do. When Silvers
oered these addicts a drugle ss x, they discovered on the spot that
addiction was not a prison but an illusion. Years of pain, frustration,
and demolishe d self-esteem were suddenly irrelevant. “Curving back
upon myself,” Lord Krishna expounds to Arjuna, “I create again and
again.” This is not only a transcendent god speaking, but the creator
inside each person. OceanofPDF.com11
The Field of Power
In India, if a person appears to be living in a state of grace,
people will admiringly say, “Let him walk where he likes, owers
will grow under his feet.” I’m sure Sidney has never heard this
poetic saying, but it could easily apply to him, now that he has
stepped into a wonder world. “I was the last person who should have started performing
miracles,” he began, talking in a soft, musing voice. “In my circle,
you know, religion means next to nothing. I abhor ‘the gradual
descent into woolly mysticism,’ as Stephen Hawking so aptly put it,
and I agree with Freud that people who pray to an all