Hi all,
It has been a long time, since I have written anything. To be really honest, I was not getting any motivation or subject to write on....specially with global financial meltdown and other things like election in India and all the Gundas, Chors and Thugs associated with that ...I mean all these politicians trying to squeeze out the life from our India and its needy citizens.
Well, you must have got the picture, what I am on about ........all these political thugs trying to cling to the power so that they could continue to milk Bharat Maata and Bharatvasi. All these issues were really making me sad and than all of sudden this news happens ...............
"Susan Boyle" a sweet singing sensation from Scotland as people describe came from nowhere but, I would say definitely God send....took the world by storm and touched the heart of old, young, modern, old fashioned, nerds, snotty....I mean all types of people from all walks of the life. She is inspiring the whole world and the message is clear for everyone never give up. We all have this beast deep inside us known as X-Factor .......find it and share with the world in order to live a meaningful and satisfied life.
So, my friends I believe Susan came as a ray of sunshine in our life to cheer all of us in order to move forward and keep enjoying the life.
Watch Susan Rock the world....click the link below
www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Time to celebrate - Festival of Holi
Best wishes to everyone for the Holi Festival filled with sweet moments and memories to cherish for long..... Happy Holi!
To all wonderful readers those who are not aware about holi, below is a brief description of the festival......
Left: My Family (Brother, Ma & Pitaji) in happy Holi mood.....
Holi, also called the Festival of Colours, is a popular Hindu Spring Festival observed in India and around the world, it is known as Dolyatra (Doljatra) or Boshonto Utsav ("spring festival").
The main day, Holi, also known as Dhulheti, Dhulandi or Dhulendi, is celebrated by people throwing coloured powder and coloured water at each other. Bonfires are lit the day before, also known as Holika Dahan (death of Holika) or Chhoti Holi (little Holi).
The bonfires are lit in memory of the miraculous escape that young Prahlad had when Demoness Holika, sister of Hiranyakashipu, carried him into the fire. Holika was burnt but Prahlad, a staunch devotee of Lord Vishnu, escaped without any injuries due to his unshakable devotion.
Holi is celebrated on the full moon day in the month of Phalugna or Falguna (Phalgun Purnima), which usually falls in the later part of February or March. This year, Holi (Dhulandi) is on
11th March and Holika Dahan is on 10th March.
Rangapanchami occurs a few days later on a Panchami (fifth day of the full moon), marking the end of festivities involving colours.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Our duties as a global citizen - "stop the blame game"
In light of a heinous terrorist act yesterday in Pakistan, one should stop and think of individual duties towards the society rather embarking on blame game. All what blaming others achieves is fuelling the hatred further into today’s Global Society and continuation of conflicts all around the globe.
I am an Indian born global citizen, and am ashamed of how hypocritical our people are, including me. We wear the most expensive clothes and give hardly anything to charity; we have the most lavish parties, while the poor can’t even afford a day’s meal; we love making our homes as western as possible, while people don’t even have a roof on their head! We are running around drunkard wanting things(being materialistic) rather being content with our needs.
The fundamental question I ask is what we really expect from the system! The only difference between us and our politicians are that we do not have access to the presidential palace nor do we have billions in our Swiss accounts but at the end of the day our political masters are a multifold reflection of us. It is only us who are to blame to start with.
Without further generalizing, as an Indian (or in this instance whole subcontinental thinking) one tends to think majority of us have developed a strange habit of never putting our hands up to help others rather just complain. Having said so, let me be clear that I am one of you, I don’t help as much I should or could, when it comes to giving my 100%, I have conveniently adjusted to the feeling of helplessness, infect revel in it, and in order to always shift the blame further commentate on our system by stating after all what could you do with a government/ bureaucrats like that?......this is what we call passing the buck.
We are so-called largest functioning democracy; shouldn’t we be able to do something more than what we are actually doing, and when it comes to blaming the government, I believe we are the one who chose these leaders by voting for them, and because they are from within us, so infect they are us!
Hence, my recommendation is, first look deep down within ourselves and try to locate the weakness in us, before we go and attack the system and its masters. Because, they are laughing at all of us – and saying that look at those idiots, they are the one who voted for us.
"Bura Jo Dekhan Main Chala, Bura Naa Milya KoyeJo Munn Khoja Apnaa, To Mujhse Bura Naa Koye" St. Kabir
Translation
I searched for the crooked, met not a single onewhen searched myself, "I" found the crooked one
I am an Indian born global citizen, and am ashamed of how hypocritical our people are, including me. We wear the most expensive clothes and give hardly anything to charity; we have the most lavish parties, while the poor can’t even afford a day’s meal; we love making our homes as western as possible, while people don’t even have a roof on their head! We are running around drunkard wanting things(being materialistic) rather being content with our needs.
The fundamental question I ask is what we really expect from the system! The only difference between us and our politicians are that we do not have access to the presidential palace nor do we have billions in our Swiss accounts but at the end of the day our political masters are a multifold reflection of us. It is only us who are to blame to start with.
Without further generalizing, as an Indian (or in this instance whole subcontinental thinking) one tends to think majority of us have developed a strange habit of never putting our hands up to help others rather just complain. Having said so, let me be clear that I am one of you, I don’t help as much I should or could, when it comes to giving my 100%, I have conveniently adjusted to the feeling of helplessness, infect revel in it, and in order to always shift the blame further commentate on our system by stating after all what could you do with a government/ bureaucrats like that?......this is what we call passing the buck.
We are so-called largest functioning democracy; shouldn’t we be able to do something more than what we are actually doing, and when it comes to blaming the government, I believe we are the one who chose these leaders by voting for them, and because they are from within us, so infect they are us!
Hence, my recommendation is, first look deep down within ourselves and try to locate the weakness in us, before we go and attack the system and its masters. Because, they are laughing at all of us – and saying that look at those idiots, they are the one who voted for us.
"Bura Jo Dekhan Main Chala, Bura Naa Milya KoyeJo Munn Khoja Apnaa, To Mujhse Bura Naa Koye" St. Kabir
Translation
I searched for the crooked, met not a single onewhen searched myself, "I" found the crooked one
Monday, March 2, 2009
“Karma is not our past but everything to do with the present”
I believe "Karma" actually should have been every persons' work in this life rather than mysterious early life work!!!
Why the religions were created at all when no one has actually seen God or had a lunch with him or her ? Why were religions imposed on man so ruthlessly especially the muslims and catholics?
Why were 1,2,3....created when they are abstract?? Why is time hours, minutes, seconds invented when they happen everyday???
Fortunately or Unfortunately, Human is blessed with brainpower relatively superior to other animals on this planet by .let us say we call it GOD!
As we all know, man being the most intelligent species is able to think in abstract terms and come up with solutions!! So, 10 apples are ten in number and so are other items on your desk like pens or oranges..... so, man began counting them and derived abstract stuff like Mathematics etc.,
Now, he expanded it with multiplactions or substractions, additions....and thinking went on and built on top of it.
NECESSITY IS THE MOTHER OF INVENTION!!
So, if you are a tribal chief and your son has reached age 16, biological needs made him court a girl. Now, he brought her home but confusion prevails on relationships as other brothers also have competition in a primitive life. So, customs form. But, favouritism etc., come up..so, intellegentsia like old people in the neighbourhood play a priest or chief like role... so, a contract occurs named 'marriage' and this middleman is invited and the customs grow out to name him as 'priest' and a job is assigned as man's intelligent mind begins to ORGANIZE society....
Now, greed strikes society and they want to feel superior over a drinking party and they decide to show off their superiority by attacking next village.
See, like the way amoeba turned into species.... religion, philosophies, grew out from nowhere due to necessity.
But when 10000 years ago when a tribal boy in India gave away 10 grams of salt to somebody and so he has nothing and a person gets an idea that now he has nothing and so gives a term ZERO!! Fine, we invented ZERO in INDIA when no one came up with the idea but WE STILL HAVE TO MOVE esp. when computers are pushing counting almost at infinite levels at infinite faster speeds.
So, spirituality, religion etc., have to MODERNIZE and AMEND with TIMES!!!
Catholicism has become a FARCE due to institutionalizing by popes, elites and every corrupt you can conceive of... so is Islam or Hinduism or Judaism.................
Today, man has ability to acquire infinite wisdom by having a computer and internet connect infront of him!! So, man has powers of God and he has choice and freedom to be what he wanted to be... But even then, certain rules and regulations are forming on Internet too due to certain odd behaviour of people and this will be the new RELIGION of Internet on how a man must behave in society!!
Earlier, Cyber laws were not strong but now they are getting stricter as people are abusing....
Religion is important; Otherwise, a stallion will go and take over all the mares in the ranch at the cost of suffering of other horses :))))))))
Human by nature is God when left alone but could become a devil in a anarchaic society!!!!
Why the religions were created at all when no one has actually seen God or had a lunch with him or her ? Why were religions imposed on man so ruthlessly especially the muslims and catholics?
Why were 1,2,3....created when they are abstract?? Why is time hours, minutes, seconds invented when they happen everyday???
Fortunately or Unfortunately, Human is blessed with brainpower relatively superior to other animals on this planet by .let us say we call it GOD!
As we all know, man being the most intelligent species is able to think in abstract terms and come up with solutions!! So, 10 apples are ten in number and so are other items on your desk like pens or oranges..... so, man began counting them and derived abstract stuff like Mathematics etc.,
Now, he expanded it with multiplactions or substractions, additions....and thinking went on and built on top of it.
NECESSITY IS THE MOTHER OF INVENTION!!
So, if you are a tribal chief and your son has reached age 16, biological needs made him court a girl. Now, he brought her home but confusion prevails on relationships as other brothers also have competition in a primitive life. So, customs form. But, favouritism etc., come up..so, intellegentsia like old people in the neighbourhood play a priest or chief like role... so, a contract occurs named 'marriage' and this middleman is invited and the customs grow out to name him as 'priest' and a job is assigned as man's intelligent mind begins to ORGANIZE society....
Now, greed strikes society and they want to feel superior over a drinking party and they decide to show off their superiority by attacking next village.
See, like the way amoeba turned into species.... religion, philosophies, grew out from nowhere due to necessity.
But when 10000 years ago when a tribal boy in India gave away 10 grams of salt to somebody and so he has nothing and a person gets an idea that now he has nothing and so gives a term ZERO!! Fine, we invented ZERO in INDIA when no one came up with the idea but WE STILL HAVE TO MOVE esp. when computers are pushing counting almost at infinite levels at infinite faster speeds.
So, spirituality, religion etc., have to MODERNIZE and AMEND with TIMES!!!
Catholicism has become a FARCE due to institutionalizing by popes, elites and every corrupt you can conceive of... so is Islam or Hinduism or Judaism.................
Today, man has ability to acquire infinite wisdom by having a computer and internet connect infront of him!! So, man has powers of God and he has choice and freedom to be what he wanted to be... But even then, certain rules and regulations are forming on Internet too due to certain odd behaviour of people and this will be the new RELIGION of Internet on how a man must behave in society!!
Earlier, Cyber laws were not strong but now they are getting stricter as people are abusing....
Religion is important; Otherwise, a stallion will go and take over all the mares in the ranch at the cost of suffering of other horses :))))))))
Human by nature is God when left alone but could become a devil in a anarchaic society!!!!
Saturday, February 28, 2009
It is all about what you need ......not want!
Australians who live on slumdog millionaires' row - and love it
Matt Wade In New Delhi
February 28, 2009
Consumer detox ... in their bedroom-sized home. Photo: Brendan Esposito
MARK and Cathy Delaney don't need to see the hit movie Slumdog Millionaire. The Brisbane couple experience slum life in India every day.
For 13 years they have lived in the shanty towns of the Indian capital, New Delhi, raising their children and sharing their lives with the locals. Their two sons, Tom, 12, and Oscar, 7, were born in India and have lived most of their lives in slums.
The family home, in a neighbourhood called Janta Mazdoor Colony, is about the size of a typical Australian bedroom. They have no running water, no TV, no fridge and no washing machine. Two mattresses, used to sleep on at night, double as a "lounge" during the day. Meals are eaten sitting on the floor and they share with neighbours a squat toilet in a small bathroom.
But the Delaneys are not complaining. For them, living in a slum has been deeply enriching.
"It baffles us that more people in Australia who say they are sick of their lives don't do something like we have," says Cathy Delaney, who holds a masters' degree in pure mathematics.
"The longer we have stayed here the more we can see the positive effect it has had on us as people. I feel much freer of money and possessions - these things don't define my life."
Mark Delaney, a 42-year old lawyer, says more than a decade in Delhi's squatter settlements has been a "radical detox" from consumer society.
"For the first couple of years I thought, 'We'll do this for a while and then we'll go back to Australia, get a deposit and build a house', and so on, but I've let go of all that now," he said.
Mark works part-time for a Delhi-based medical organisation but the family's main focus is on their slum. They are strongly motivated by their Christian faith, believing that life is more about caring for others than comfort and success.
"Our main purpose is simply to experience what life is like here, to live with and learn from the poor and contribute something positive to people's lives," says Mark.
The Delaneys moved into their current neighbourhood on the eastern outskirts of Delhi in 2003. About 60,000 people are packed into the illegal settlement which is less than half a square kilometre. It is one of an estimated 1500 squatter settlements scattered across Delhi that house at least 3 million people.
The settlement started 30 years ago as a cluster of makeshift humpies in an open field but as time went by, people gradually upgraded. Flimsy walls were replaced with bricks, slab roofs were added in place of black plastic. Even so, open drains still run along the slum's maze of narrow alley ways and empty into a putrid canal not far from the Delaneys' front door.
Properties are bought and sold in the slum and there are even informal titles exchanged to prove ownership. Although these documents would not hold up in court they give those purchasing a slum hut a sense of security. A three-level slum house in the area recently changed hands for 190,000 rupees (about $6000).
The Delaneys pay 1800 rupees ($56) a month in rent, although many small rooms in the slum are half that. Each day the family witnesses some of the vulnerability and powerlessness of the characters portrayed in the film.
Witnessing this has nurtured a strong sense of social justice in the boys.
"I have realised that the most important thing is to help other people," says Tom.
"But I have also realised that I have limits."
There is hot debate in the household about how simply they should live.
"Cathy is a bit harder line than me," says Mark
"Sometimes she says 'let's move down a bit' but I'm usually a bit resistant. Most people think we are pretty stupid already."
Once Tom asked how much income his neighbours had to live on and insisted their family do the same.
So for the experience, they cut their monthly budget from 10,000 rupees ($310) to 5000 rupees.
"First we ran out of cornflakes and then we ran out of jam. Our diet got much simpler," says Cathy. "It was a hard experience but a really good one. It gave us so much more respect for the people who live here."
Mark has been pleasantly surprised by how much their boys have benefited from the experience of living in a poor neighbourhood. Oscar is in year 2 at a local school and Tom has recently switched to home schooling.
When the boys were asked if they wanted to move back to Australia later this year or stay in the slum, they chose to stay.
"I used to think that, with the kids, we would just endure living here for a while and then go," said Mark.
"But now I'm thinking this is a good thing for them and I want to stay not for my sake, but for the sake of my kids."
Things that most families take for granted bring the Delaneys great satisfaction.
Such as electricity. The power goes off in the neighbourhood several hours each day.
To help the family cope, Cathy got a small solar panel worth about $100 for her 40th birthday that powers a lamp during the blackouts.
A striking feature of the Delaneys' lifestyle is their small environmental footprint. They use very little electricity, create only a small amount of waste and rely exclusively on public transport.
Matt Wade In New Delhi
February 28, 2009
Consumer detox ... in their bedroom-sized home. Photo: Brendan Esposito
MARK and Cathy Delaney don't need to see the hit movie Slumdog Millionaire. The Brisbane couple experience slum life in India every day.
For 13 years they have lived in the shanty towns of the Indian capital, New Delhi, raising their children and sharing their lives with the locals. Their two sons, Tom, 12, and Oscar, 7, were born in India and have lived most of their lives in slums.
The family home, in a neighbourhood called Janta Mazdoor Colony, is about the size of a typical Australian bedroom. They have no running water, no TV, no fridge and no washing machine. Two mattresses, used to sleep on at night, double as a "lounge" during the day. Meals are eaten sitting on the floor and they share with neighbours a squat toilet in a small bathroom.
But the Delaneys are not complaining. For them, living in a slum has been deeply enriching.
"It baffles us that more people in Australia who say they are sick of their lives don't do something like we have," says Cathy Delaney, who holds a masters' degree in pure mathematics.
"The longer we have stayed here the more we can see the positive effect it has had on us as people. I feel much freer of money and possessions - these things don't define my life."
Mark Delaney, a 42-year old lawyer, says more than a decade in Delhi's squatter settlements has been a "radical detox" from consumer society.
"For the first couple of years I thought, 'We'll do this for a while and then we'll go back to Australia, get a deposit and build a house', and so on, but I've let go of all that now," he said.
Mark works part-time for a Delhi-based medical organisation but the family's main focus is on their slum. They are strongly motivated by their Christian faith, believing that life is more about caring for others than comfort and success.
"Our main purpose is simply to experience what life is like here, to live with and learn from the poor and contribute something positive to people's lives," says Mark.
The Delaneys moved into their current neighbourhood on the eastern outskirts of Delhi in 2003. About 60,000 people are packed into the illegal settlement which is less than half a square kilometre. It is one of an estimated 1500 squatter settlements scattered across Delhi that house at least 3 million people.
The settlement started 30 years ago as a cluster of makeshift humpies in an open field but as time went by, people gradually upgraded. Flimsy walls were replaced with bricks, slab roofs were added in place of black plastic. Even so, open drains still run along the slum's maze of narrow alley ways and empty into a putrid canal not far from the Delaneys' front door.
Properties are bought and sold in the slum and there are even informal titles exchanged to prove ownership. Although these documents would not hold up in court they give those purchasing a slum hut a sense of security. A three-level slum house in the area recently changed hands for 190,000 rupees (about $6000).
The Delaneys pay 1800 rupees ($56) a month in rent, although many small rooms in the slum are half that. Each day the family witnesses some of the vulnerability and powerlessness of the characters portrayed in the film.
Witnessing this has nurtured a strong sense of social justice in the boys.
"I have realised that the most important thing is to help other people," says Tom.
"But I have also realised that I have limits."
There is hot debate in the household about how simply they should live.
"Cathy is a bit harder line than me," says Mark
"Sometimes she says 'let's move down a bit' but I'm usually a bit resistant. Most people think we are pretty stupid already."
Once Tom asked how much income his neighbours had to live on and insisted their family do the same.
So for the experience, they cut their monthly budget from 10,000 rupees ($310) to 5000 rupees.
"First we ran out of cornflakes and then we ran out of jam. Our diet got much simpler," says Cathy. "It was a hard experience but a really good one. It gave us so much more respect for the people who live here."
Mark has been pleasantly surprised by how much their boys have benefited from the experience of living in a poor neighbourhood. Oscar is in year 2 at a local school and Tom has recently switched to home schooling.
When the boys were asked if they wanted to move back to Australia later this year or stay in the slum, they chose to stay.
"I used to think that, with the kids, we would just endure living here for a while and then go," said Mark.
"But now I'm thinking this is a good thing for them and I want to stay not for my sake, but for the sake of my kids."
Things that most families take for granted bring the Delaneys great satisfaction.
Such as electricity. The power goes off in the neighbourhood several hours each day.
To help the family cope, Cathy got a small solar panel worth about $100 for her 40th birthday that powers a lamp during the blackouts.
A striking feature of the Delaneys' lifestyle is their small environmental footprint. They use very little electricity, create only a small amount of waste and rely exclusively on public transport.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
"BITTER TRUTH....A TOOL FOR REVOLUTION"
Yes, Truth is always a bitter medicine but one needs it for reality check. Otherwise, we all would live under illusion that everything is hunkydory while a big wave storms through our lives and civilizations!
But the truth is that there are those who believe that MIGHT IS RIGHT and those who believe that God is ultimate truth! The real truth in my opinion is halfway between the both as one needs strength or energy to do anything while one needs a fierce moral conviction too!
Otherwise, we live in a time where nations like America (USA)........
1)--Killed millions of Native Americans and taken over lands and yet hypocritically celebrates
'Thanksgiving' as a sort of thanking gesture for the Natives who offered Turkey, Corn,....when Europeans arrived! So, the response is......Offer us food and we will offer you death!
2)--Many Africans were brought in as slaves and so many untold rapes, lynching, brutal oppression, denial of education etc., etc., have been enforced on them!
3)--Even last week, President Barack Obama was characterized as a Chimpanzee in NewYork Post and it has insensitively apologized to only those who got "offended"!
4)-- A nation that kills 1million Iraqis without a proof that Saddam was building Weapons of Mass Destruction reveals the agressive mindset!
5)--A Nation that preaches Globalization, WTO etc., etc. but yet goes for protectionism as its Financial sector is frought with corruption, looting etc.,
6)--A Nation that opposes Communism but befriends China for trade!
7)-- A Nation that gives $10bn to Pakistan while knowing that Pakistan is the reason for Taliban and indirectly Al Qaeda!!
8)-- A civilization that has no regard to marriage, 50% divorce rate, drugs, prostitution, no moral conviction but everything based on political opportunities...
9)-- Look at the positive side of Western civilization with its outstanding scientific progress but yet Two World Wars, conflicts everywhere, wars, famine, ethinic cleansing, Holocaust, slavery etc., etc., and every soulless devilish action you could not even imagine in your wildest dreams!!
If this is not moral cannibalism, what do you call it???
So, Truth like a freshly minted coin is on two sides of the same coin!!
But, how do we proceed from here when the mighty is stuck in his own mindset while the weak nation like India is dead to even think to come out of their stagnant mindset????!!!!
Who needs to do soul searching??
Only west or India and Africa or both!!
That is why we need a comprehensive revolution...
But the truth is that there are those who believe that MIGHT IS RIGHT and those who believe that God is ultimate truth! The real truth in my opinion is halfway between the both as one needs strength or energy to do anything while one needs a fierce moral conviction too!
Otherwise, we live in a time where nations like America (USA)........
1)--Killed millions of Native Americans and taken over lands and yet hypocritically celebrates
'Thanksgiving' as a sort of thanking gesture for the Natives who offered Turkey, Corn,....when Europeans arrived! So, the response is......Offer us food and we will offer you death!
2)--Many Africans were brought in as slaves and so many untold rapes, lynching, brutal oppression, denial of education etc., etc., have been enforced on them!
3)--Even last week, President Barack Obama was characterized as a Chimpanzee in NewYork Post and it has insensitively apologized to only those who got "offended"!
4)-- A nation that kills 1million Iraqis without a proof that Saddam was building Weapons of Mass Destruction reveals the agressive mindset!
5)--A Nation that preaches Globalization, WTO etc., etc. but yet goes for protectionism as its Financial sector is frought with corruption, looting etc.,
6)--A Nation that opposes Communism but befriends China for trade!
7)-- A Nation that gives $10bn to Pakistan while knowing that Pakistan is the reason for Taliban and indirectly Al Qaeda!!
8)-- A civilization that has no regard to marriage, 50% divorce rate, drugs, prostitution, no moral conviction but everything based on political opportunities...
9)-- Look at the positive side of Western civilization with its outstanding scientific progress but yet Two World Wars, conflicts everywhere, wars, famine, ethinic cleansing, Holocaust, slavery etc., etc., and every soulless devilish action you could not even imagine in your wildest dreams!!
If this is not moral cannibalism, what do you call it???
So, Truth like a freshly minted coin is on two sides of the same coin!!
But, how do we proceed from here when the mighty is stuck in his own mindset while the weak nation like India is dead to even think to come out of their stagnant mindset????!!!!
Who needs to do soul searching??
Only west or India and Africa or both!!
That is why we need a comprehensive revolution...
Three Musketier
"Our most basic instinct is not for survival but for family. Most of us would give our own life for the survival of a family member, yet we lead our daily life too often as if we take our family for granted."
Here is the picture of love, joy & sense of happiness in my life. Believe you me, this is what life is all about......
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
The Benefits of Fasting.... By Alan Goldhamer, D. C.
I thought to start blogging on a lighter note and give everyone something to think for....... A food for thought!!
Happy blogging.....
IN THIS ARTICLE YOU WILL learn about some of the tremendous benefits that can be derived from a properly conducted fast. When properly utilized, fasting is a safe and effective means of maximizing the body's self-healing capacities. The results can be truly amazing. Before going on to describe some of the many advantages of fasting, let's define it. Fasting is the complete abstinence from all substances except pure water, in an environment of total rest. Let's also keep in mind that fasting is only one part of the total health-supporting program we call Natural Hygiene.
Health results from healthful living. No matter how successful a fasting experience might be, it needs to be followed by a consistently healthy lifestyle. The requirements of health must continue to be provided — especially in the areas of diet, environment, activity and psychology.
The examples that follow are just a few of the many beneficial uses of fasting.
An aid in transition
During the past seven years I've worked with thousands of patients from all over the world who had a wide variety of disorders and health concerns. A great many of these patients required a period of supervised fasting to achieve their health goals. Virtually all of them needed to make lifestyle changes to achieve improved health. Fasting made the transition easier!
My observation is that the best motivating factor in helping people adopt healthful living practices is often the positive reinforcement that comes with feeling good and healthy.
Fasting, for as few as five days to as many as 40 days, will often dramatically shorten the time it takes for an individual to make the transition from a conventional diet and lifestyle (with all the associated addictions, pains, fatigue and disease) to the independent and energetic state associated with healthful living.
People who undertake a fast in a supervised setting, tend to achieve health more quickly than those who attempt changes without a fast. The intensive health education, plus the emotional support they receive during their stay, result in increased compliance with dietary and lifestyle recommendations.
A speedy recovery
When individuals try to make major dietary changes without the benefit of a fasting experience, they often become frustrated. The transition to a healthful eating pattern can make you feel sick. Symptoms such as fatigue, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain and bloating, joint pain, headaches, skin rashes, irritability, depression, etc. are just a few of the common problems that can arise as the body attempts to eliminate toxins, metabolic byproducts, etc., and adjust physiologically to a health promoting diet.
It is difficult to get people to practice new healthful living habits for long unless they begin to experience some benefits quickly. Changes that may take months (or even years) with careful eating may occur much more quickly if a properly supervised fast is utilized. This is an important consideration because once people begin to realize their health potential, they become a likely candidate for a lifelong commitment to healthful living.
Overcoming addictions
Addictions to drugs such as alcohol, cocaine, nicotine and caffeine are examples where fasting can dramatically reduce the often protracted withdrawal symptoms that prevent many people from becoming drug-free. Most people are surprised at how easy it is to quit smoking or drinking with the help of fasting.
Uterine fibroid tumors
Fasting can often be especially important in situations where drugs or surgery have been recommended. When uterine fibroid tumors contribute to pain and excess bleeding, a hysterectomy — removal of the uterus — is often recommended. A proper fast will often dramatically reduce the size and effect of these tumors. I have treated numerous women who have been able to successfully avoid hysterectomy using conservative methods. Ovarian cysts and cervical dysplasia also often respond favorably.
Back and neck problems
Back and neck pain are remarkably responsive to conservative care. In my institution I utilize fasting, rest and exercise, improved posture and body use, and when appropriate, chiropractic manipulation and physical therapy. It is interesting to note that often patients with chronic pain who have received extensive treatment, including drugs, surgery and manipulation, will experience dramatic improvement through the use of fasting.
A case history
I recently treated a young man, a Natural Hygienist since birth, who had been in a severe automobile accident four years ago. He had suffered with constant neck pain and headaches since the accident. His greatest concern was his tendency to pass out unexpectedly. Apparently the dysfunction in his neck had interfered with the autonomic portion of his nervous system altering blood flow to his brain.
After a period of four weeks of care, which included a fast, followed by careful re-feeding and, in his case, spinal manipulative therapy, this individual made an excellent response. At his three month follow-up he reported complete absence of neck pain and headaches and had not felt faint or passed out since his stay at the Center.
Cardiovascular disease
Most cases of cardiovascular disease are also responsive to conservative care. In 154 consecutive cases of high blood pressure [hypertension] that I have fasted, 151 (98%) have been able to achieve and maintain normal blood pressure without the use of medications. [Complete details of this study will appear in an upcoming issue of Health Science.]
Angina and intermittent claudication are examples of conditions that will often respond rapidly to fasting. Often patients can achieve freedom from pain and medications within a few days or weeks. It is not unusual to see cholesterol levels drop as much as 100 points with diligent effort.
Gastrointestinal disorders
Disturbances of the gastrointestinal system — including esophagitis, gastritis, colitis, constipation, bloating, and the symptoms associated with so-called "candidiasis" — usually respond well to conservative care.
My most recent case of gastrointestinal disturbance was a young woman with severe colitis [inflammation of the colon]. She reported severe, constant bleeding through the rectum. She said that despite continual medical treatment with cortisone, implants, and a wide range of other medication, she had bleeding with every bowel movement for eight years. Her physician had explained that surgery would have to be performed.
After we had eliminated her medications, a period of fasting was undertaken. Within a week, the constant pain was resolved. By the 10th day, the passing of blood and mucus had stopped. After two weeks of fasting we began to carefully feed her. Her bowel movements were blood-free from the first. At her three-month follow-up she reported feeling great and completely free of any significant bleeding or problems.
Diabetes
Many chronic degenerative conditions respond well to fasting and a Natural Hygiene lifestyle. Diabetes is no exception.
Working with diabetic patients is very satisfying because the consequences of the disease are so devastating and the results with conservative care are usually so dramatic. Most adult onset diabetics can be brought under control and freed from the use of insulin and other medication through the use of fasting and a carefully followed diet and lifestyle program. Such a program will allow most diabetics to achieve a high level of function and the ability to maintain normal sugar levels without medications.
There are exceptions
Not everyone is a candidate for fasting. There are a number of factors to consider before a fast is recommended. My procedure is to first review the patient's medical history and perform a comprehensive physical examination including appropriate laboratory or specialized diagnostic tests. I then review my findings with the patient and make appropriate recommendations. These may include dietary and lifestyle recommendations. These may include dietary and lifestyle changes, exercise programs, etc., and, when indicated, fasting. When fasting is indicated, patients stay at my institution.
Not every individual or every condition will respond to conservative treatment. Occasionally medical care may be necessary. When a medical consultation or treatment is indicated, the safest methods available should be utilized.
Where to fast
With the possible exception of very short fasts in acute disease — such as a cold, fever, etc.— all fasting should be undertaken in an institution under the direct supervision of a doctor trained in fasting supervision. A certified member of the International Association of Hygienic Physicians would by far be your best choice.
Fasting in an institution offers several advantages. The most important is the constant availability of an experienced doctor to guide and advise you. Most institutions have an educational program designed to help you better understand Natural Hygiene — the science of health. The benefits of being in a clean, quiet and emotionally supportive environment should not be underestimated.
In addition, a timely and proper termination of each fast is critical to the long-term success of the patient. Fasting under the supervision of a trained, qualified doctor is your best assurance of a well-conducted, beneficial fasting experience.
A Case Study:
Chronic gastrointestinal disorder
"A woman came to the Center recently who had suffered chronic constipation for more than 20 years. She complained that she had not had a single spontaneous bowel movement during that time without the assistance of enemas, colonics or laxatives.
"She fasted with us for a period of 12 days, during which time she experienced mild discomfort and referred low back pain. On the fifth day of feeding after the fast, she was having spontaneous, normally formed bowel movements — and she had continued to have them since.
"The long-term follow-up for people who stay on the Natural Hygiene dietary program is excellent. Chronic constipation is definitely a problem that people can learn to live without."
Alan Goldhamer, D.C.
A natural process
"Fasting, or the abstinence from food, is a means used in nature by all creatures from the beginning of time. Either by instinct or intelligence this means has been used to assist the body to relieve itself from discomfort, pain and disease.
"Regulatory and reparative processes of the body are given unimpeded encouragement by the temporary omission of food. No other form of health care can boast the rewarding and gratifying results in the elimination of disease and the restoration of health.
"Fasting, once considered a fad, has gained acceptance not only by a constantly increasing segment of society — and has also earned the stamp of approval by many in the scientific community.
"Under qualified and experienced supervision, fasting is the greatest gift which can be given to an overburdened, sick body without benefit of any other form of therapy or treatment."
William Esser, N.D., D.C.
An empowering rest
"Fasting is simply a process of deep physiological rest. This rest period helps you rebuild functioning power and recover from the energy dissipation caused by hectic daily schedules and abusive living habits.
"When outside stressors, dietary and therapeutic influences are eliminated during the fasting state, fasting reveals the baseline status of your body. This enables you to become more sensitive and connected to your body. This connection fosters a greater awareness of the instinctive biological and emotional requirements that are essential for the maintenance of health and wholeness."
Frank Sabatino, D.C., Ph.D.
Unfounded fears about fasting
"Unfounded fear is a peculiar state of disease within the imagination, arising largely out of a lack of knowledge.
"If we are slaves to unfounded fears, we are also slaves to beliefs and practices and action which are inconsistent with our well-being. So it is a matter of necessity that we understand fasting and all its facets if we are to overcome the fears that are associated with it.
"Many people attempt to solve the problems of life, the distresses of the body and the anxieties of the mind with food and drugs. They have great fear about not eating because they have experienced the headaches, the weakness and distress they associate with it, and they are convinced that food and drugs are the answer to their problems.
"How can you convince someone that going further without food is a matter of necessity for the recovery of his health? Only through knowledge and enough suffering to change his attitudes.
"The best way to dispel unfounded fear about fasting is with knowledge — knowledge that breeds confidence, confidence that engenders beliefs, and beliefs that result in correct action."
D.J. Scott, D.C.
Making wise decisions
"Not everyone is a good candidate for fasting. Many factors need to be considered before a fast is undertaken. Not every condition will respond optimally to fasting and conservative care alone. Occasionally, medical care may be necessary.
"At the Center we have established good working relationships with some of California's best specialists. When a medical consultation or treatment is indicated, the safest methods available should always be utilized."
Jennifer Marano, D.C.
Heightening your awareness
"A wonderful thing about fasting is that it puts an interval between the behavior that you are accustomed to and the behavior that you aspire to. We tend to be creatures of habit, and the ways that we are accustomed to eating and living feel as natural to us as breathing. That is why it is so difficult for people to stop bad habits. But fasting brings your present lifestyle to an abrupt halt. It gives you an opportunity to pause, reflect and decide how you are going to conduct your life afterwards. This enables you to make a break with your past and set off in a new, more positive direction.
"There is nothing routine about eating after a fast. Each meal is a celebration. After fasting, you tend to be very conscious about what you are eating, and why. Fasting heightens your awareness, as well as your appreciation for food. By fasting, we learn to eat with reverence.
"It is the non-doing aspect of fasting that enables us to make behavioral stopping and pausing and interrupting our usual patterns, as we learn to take more conscious control of ourselves.
"There is no better way to stop a vicious cycle of self-destructive behavior than by fasting."
Happy blogging.....
IN THIS ARTICLE YOU WILL learn about some of the tremendous benefits that can be derived from a properly conducted fast. When properly utilized, fasting is a safe and effective means of maximizing the body's self-healing capacities. The results can be truly amazing. Before going on to describe some of the many advantages of fasting, let's define it. Fasting is the complete abstinence from all substances except pure water, in an environment of total rest. Let's also keep in mind that fasting is only one part of the total health-supporting program we call Natural Hygiene.
Health results from healthful living. No matter how successful a fasting experience might be, it needs to be followed by a consistently healthy lifestyle. The requirements of health must continue to be provided — especially in the areas of diet, environment, activity and psychology.
The examples that follow are just a few of the many beneficial uses of fasting.
An aid in transition
During the past seven years I've worked with thousands of patients from all over the world who had a wide variety of disorders and health concerns. A great many of these patients required a period of supervised fasting to achieve their health goals. Virtually all of them needed to make lifestyle changes to achieve improved health. Fasting made the transition easier!
My observation is that the best motivating factor in helping people adopt healthful living practices is often the positive reinforcement that comes with feeling good and healthy.
Fasting, for as few as five days to as many as 40 days, will often dramatically shorten the time it takes for an individual to make the transition from a conventional diet and lifestyle (with all the associated addictions, pains, fatigue and disease) to the independent and energetic state associated with healthful living.
People who undertake a fast in a supervised setting, tend to achieve health more quickly than those who attempt changes without a fast. The intensive health education, plus the emotional support they receive during their stay, result in increased compliance with dietary and lifestyle recommendations.
A speedy recovery
When individuals try to make major dietary changes without the benefit of a fasting experience, they often become frustrated. The transition to a healthful eating pattern can make you feel sick. Symptoms such as fatigue, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain and bloating, joint pain, headaches, skin rashes, irritability, depression, etc. are just a few of the common problems that can arise as the body attempts to eliminate toxins, metabolic byproducts, etc., and adjust physiologically to a health promoting diet.
It is difficult to get people to practice new healthful living habits for long unless they begin to experience some benefits quickly. Changes that may take months (or even years) with careful eating may occur much more quickly if a properly supervised fast is utilized. This is an important consideration because once people begin to realize their health potential, they become a likely candidate for a lifelong commitment to healthful living.
Overcoming addictions
Addictions to drugs such as alcohol, cocaine, nicotine and caffeine are examples where fasting can dramatically reduce the often protracted withdrawal symptoms that prevent many people from becoming drug-free. Most people are surprised at how easy it is to quit smoking or drinking with the help of fasting.
Uterine fibroid tumors
Fasting can often be especially important in situations where drugs or surgery have been recommended. When uterine fibroid tumors contribute to pain and excess bleeding, a hysterectomy — removal of the uterus — is often recommended. A proper fast will often dramatically reduce the size and effect of these tumors. I have treated numerous women who have been able to successfully avoid hysterectomy using conservative methods. Ovarian cysts and cervical dysplasia also often respond favorably.
Back and neck problems
Back and neck pain are remarkably responsive to conservative care. In my institution I utilize fasting, rest and exercise, improved posture and body use, and when appropriate, chiropractic manipulation and physical therapy. It is interesting to note that often patients with chronic pain who have received extensive treatment, including drugs, surgery and manipulation, will experience dramatic improvement through the use of fasting.
A case history
I recently treated a young man, a Natural Hygienist since birth, who had been in a severe automobile accident four years ago. He had suffered with constant neck pain and headaches since the accident. His greatest concern was his tendency to pass out unexpectedly. Apparently the dysfunction in his neck had interfered with the autonomic portion of his nervous system altering blood flow to his brain.
After a period of four weeks of care, which included a fast, followed by careful re-feeding and, in his case, spinal manipulative therapy, this individual made an excellent response. At his three month follow-up he reported complete absence of neck pain and headaches and had not felt faint or passed out since his stay at the Center.
Cardiovascular disease
Most cases of cardiovascular disease are also responsive to conservative care. In 154 consecutive cases of high blood pressure [hypertension] that I have fasted, 151 (98%) have been able to achieve and maintain normal blood pressure without the use of medications. [Complete details of this study will appear in an upcoming issue of Health Science.]
Angina and intermittent claudication are examples of conditions that will often respond rapidly to fasting. Often patients can achieve freedom from pain and medications within a few days or weeks. It is not unusual to see cholesterol levels drop as much as 100 points with diligent effort.
Gastrointestinal disorders
Disturbances of the gastrointestinal system — including esophagitis, gastritis, colitis, constipation, bloating, and the symptoms associated with so-called "candidiasis" — usually respond well to conservative care.
My most recent case of gastrointestinal disturbance was a young woman with severe colitis [inflammation of the colon]. She reported severe, constant bleeding through the rectum. She said that despite continual medical treatment with cortisone, implants, and a wide range of other medication, she had bleeding with every bowel movement for eight years. Her physician had explained that surgery would have to be performed.
After we had eliminated her medications, a period of fasting was undertaken. Within a week, the constant pain was resolved. By the 10th day, the passing of blood and mucus had stopped. After two weeks of fasting we began to carefully feed her. Her bowel movements were blood-free from the first. At her three-month follow-up she reported feeling great and completely free of any significant bleeding or problems.
Diabetes
Many chronic degenerative conditions respond well to fasting and a Natural Hygiene lifestyle. Diabetes is no exception.
Working with diabetic patients is very satisfying because the consequences of the disease are so devastating and the results with conservative care are usually so dramatic. Most adult onset diabetics can be brought under control and freed from the use of insulin and other medication through the use of fasting and a carefully followed diet and lifestyle program. Such a program will allow most diabetics to achieve a high level of function and the ability to maintain normal sugar levels without medications.
There are exceptions
Not everyone is a candidate for fasting. There are a number of factors to consider before a fast is recommended. My procedure is to first review the patient's medical history and perform a comprehensive physical examination including appropriate laboratory or specialized diagnostic tests. I then review my findings with the patient and make appropriate recommendations. These may include dietary and lifestyle recommendations. These may include dietary and lifestyle changes, exercise programs, etc., and, when indicated, fasting. When fasting is indicated, patients stay at my institution.
Not every individual or every condition will respond to conservative treatment. Occasionally medical care may be necessary. When a medical consultation or treatment is indicated, the safest methods available should be utilized.
Where to fast
With the possible exception of very short fasts in acute disease — such as a cold, fever, etc.— all fasting should be undertaken in an institution under the direct supervision of a doctor trained in fasting supervision. A certified member of the International Association of Hygienic Physicians would by far be your best choice.
Fasting in an institution offers several advantages. The most important is the constant availability of an experienced doctor to guide and advise you. Most institutions have an educational program designed to help you better understand Natural Hygiene — the science of health. The benefits of being in a clean, quiet and emotionally supportive environment should not be underestimated.
In addition, a timely and proper termination of each fast is critical to the long-term success of the patient. Fasting under the supervision of a trained, qualified doctor is your best assurance of a well-conducted, beneficial fasting experience.
A Case Study:
Chronic gastrointestinal disorder
"A woman came to the Center recently who had suffered chronic constipation for more than 20 years. She complained that she had not had a single spontaneous bowel movement during that time without the assistance of enemas, colonics or laxatives.
"She fasted with us for a period of 12 days, during which time she experienced mild discomfort and referred low back pain. On the fifth day of feeding after the fast, she was having spontaneous, normally formed bowel movements — and she had continued to have them since.
"The long-term follow-up for people who stay on the Natural Hygiene dietary program is excellent. Chronic constipation is definitely a problem that people can learn to live without."
Alan Goldhamer, D.C.
A natural process
"Fasting, or the abstinence from food, is a means used in nature by all creatures from the beginning of time. Either by instinct or intelligence this means has been used to assist the body to relieve itself from discomfort, pain and disease.
"Regulatory and reparative processes of the body are given unimpeded encouragement by the temporary omission of food. No other form of health care can boast the rewarding and gratifying results in the elimination of disease and the restoration of health.
"Fasting, once considered a fad, has gained acceptance not only by a constantly increasing segment of society — and has also earned the stamp of approval by many in the scientific community.
"Under qualified and experienced supervision, fasting is the greatest gift which can be given to an overburdened, sick body without benefit of any other form of therapy or treatment."
William Esser, N.D., D.C.
An empowering rest
"Fasting is simply a process of deep physiological rest. This rest period helps you rebuild functioning power and recover from the energy dissipation caused by hectic daily schedules and abusive living habits.
"When outside stressors, dietary and therapeutic influences are eliminated during the fasting state, fasting reveals the baseline status of your body. This enables you to become more sensitive and connected to your body. This connection fosters a greater awareness of the instinctive biological and emotional requirements that are essential for the maintenance of health and wholeness."
Frank Sabatino, D.C., Ph.D.
Unfounded fears about fasting
"Unfounded fear is a peculiar state of disease within the imagination, arising largely out of a lack of knowledge.
"If we are slaves to unfounded fears, we are also slaves to beliefs and practices and action which are inconsistent with our well-being. So it is a matter of necessity that we understand fasting and all its facets if we are to overcome the fears that are associated with it.
"Many people attempt to solve the problems of life, the distresses of the body and the anxieties of the mind with food and drugs. They have great fear about not eating because they have experienced the headaches, the weakness and distress they associate with it, and they are convinced that food and drugs are the answer to their problems.
"How can you convince someone that going further without food is a matter of necessity for the recovery of his health? Only through knowledge and enough suffering to change his attitudes.
"The best way to dispel unfounded fear about fasting is with knowledge — knowledge that breeds confidence, confidence that engenders beliefs, and beliefs that result in correct action."
D.J. Scott, D.C.
Making wise decisions
"Not everyone is a good candidate for fasting. Many factors need to be considered before a fast is undertaken. Not every condition will respond optimally to fasting and conservative care alone. Occasionally, medical care may be necessary.
"At the Center we have established good working relationships with some of California's best specialists. When a medical consultation or treatment is indicated, the safest methods available should always be utilized."
Jennifer Marano, D.C.
Heightening your awareness
"A wonderful thing about fasting is that it puts an interval between the behavior that you are accustomed to and the behavior that you aspire to. We tend to be creatures of habit, and the ways that we are accustomed to eating and living feel as natural to us as breathing. That is why it is so difficult for people to stop bad habits. But fasting brings your present lifestyle to an abrupt halt. It gives you an opportunity to pause, reflect and decide how you are going to conduct your life afterwards. This enables you to make a break with your past and set off in a new, more positive direction.
"There is nothing routine about eating after a fast. Each meal is a celebration. After fasting, you tend to be very conscious about what you are eating, and why. Fasting heightens your awareness, as well as your appreciation for food. By fasting, we learn to eat with reverence.
"It is the non-doing aspect of fasting that enables us to make behavioral stopping and pausing and interrupting our usual patterns, as we learn to take more conscious control of ourselves.
"There is no better way to stop a vicious cycle of self-destructive behavior than by fasting."
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