My personal thoughts on how to maintain a healthy existence
are far from mainstream. Living how nature has intended
us to live is my supreme guideline and thankfully, a
rapidly growing phenomenon for many. I want to share
with you the knowledge I have been accumulating since
I was a very young child, and how I have integrated
that knowledge into my personal lifestyle. Please take
my ideas as intended. They are my educated opinions,
not gospel or medical advice. Here
in Holistic Living, I will continually present ideas
for you to consider adopting into your own lifestyle
as well as the means to do it. That change can range
from a shift in your thought pattern, or the use of
a particular item. In the case of material goods, I
encourage you to look for the items yourself. Wherever
I am able, I will provide the ability for you to order
those items conveniently, on site. Going forward, I
am making it my job to find more of these items see
shopping that can be delivered
right to your door. Living healthily should after all,
be easy!
"How Holistic Living is Related to Spirituality"
This section evolved from a conversation I had at one of
my most loyal student's office, only months after we
met. After a long meeting with her and her boss concerning
the concept of what is now this site, she volunteered
to walk me down to my car. I knew something was about
to transpire, but I do not believe either of us knew
what then.
After a few minutes of closing discussion about the meeting,
Theresa politely asked if I would tell her my age. Clearly
shocked when I did, she remarked that I was only a year
or two younger than she was, and yet I looked about
a decade younger. I assumed she would know what I meant
when I wryly said that I had "yoga-ed my whole life",
but her expression assured me she hadn't a clue where
I was going.
So I explained to her as I will now explain to you, all
the things I have done in my life, not expressly to
remain youthful looking, but to retain my shakti, chi,
or life force energy. For me all these things are common
sense, but the more I live, the more I realize for many
people my suggestions for a healthy lifestyle are--well,
esoteric.
If you want scientific evidence that these things actually
do work, I'm sorry, but you will have to dig that up
yourself. Although I am ravenous about collecting information
on how to live healthily, I operate firstly from instinct
and inspiration on all matters in my life. Therefore,
these ideas are merely a description of what I have
decided is right living for me. I cannot legally prescribe
them for you or anyone. I am simply offering you an
insight into my lifestyle. Surely, it has created health,
clarity, happiness and sensitivity for me. I think you
understand ...
Ok, so Theresa wanted to know more. I said, "Look, Theresa,
there are many things you do on a daily basis, that
I have eliminated from my life. Whenever possible,
breathe re-circulated air, as in an office building sit under florescent lights, as in an office building. eat junk food for lunch and wash it down with a soda. drink out of Styrofoam, or eat off plastic plates
and I especially do not eat with plastic utensils. drink much liquid with meals, especially iced drinks
or liquor. eat chemical preservatives of any kind. That means absolutely
no mono sodium glutamate (MSG), or nitrates, or hormone
or antibiotic fed animals. take prescription drugs especially antibiotics. eat foods made with hydrogenated oil, especially margarine
or other butter substitutes. ingest any of the sugar substitutes, and very little
processed, white sugar eat unripe or waxed vegetables and fruits eat bleached white flour consume iradiated vegetables or spices eat when I am not hungry drink when I am not thirsty breathe or use air fresheners (i.e. Many automatic
room deodorizers in restaurant restrooms are designed
to anaesthetize your sense of smell by coating the
little hairs in your nose with an thin, airborne emollient
film that deadens the olfactory sense for up to one
hour! Not my idea of an appetizer!) use bug repellant or extermination fluid on my skin or
in the house/office sitin front of a computer that emits negative electromagnetic
impulses (EMI's) use poor quality sunglasses use synthetic eye drops made to reduce redness breathe fumes from chemicals, including: paint, paint
thinner, lye, varnish, lacquer, formaldehyde, cigarettes,
magic markers, gasoline, instant glue, acrylic nails,
hair dresser's chemicals, etc., etc. Simple rule:
if it stinks, get out of it! wear commercial perfume use commercial sunscreens ,especially those containing
PABA, and those that do not filter out UVB and UVC
rays use perfumed or dyed laundry detergent use fabric softener use perfumed, bleached or synthetic (usually rayon) tampons. use perfumed or dyed toilet paper wear clothing made from purely synthetic fibers like
nylon, acetate, polyester, etc. worry much; get too attached to my ideas about the way I
think life should go. (that one's tough!)
work under natural light (sunlight), or full spectrum light
bulbs. have plants in the room where I work during the day,
and have fresh air from an open window, or use an
air purifier when needed. protect myself from negative electromagnetic impulses.
drink lots of room temperature, purified water between meals from glass.
drink juice that is squeezed immediately before consuming. drink
lots of herb tea, warm not scalding, throughout the day and evening.
eat delicious, fresh, pesticide and chemical free food
daily. I spend the extra and buy organic goods whenever possible. use unheated extra virgin olive oil liberally and butter
or ghee sparingly. eat local and in-season fruits and vegetables as close
to the day it was picked as possible. Shop in order of preference at the weekly farmer's
market, at the health food supermarket. I use the
regular supermarket only for emergencies. eat free-range, hormone-free meats, dairy, and poultry.
use unprocessed honey in the winter and a natural sugar
like turbinado, sucrose, or fructose in the summer.
eat whole grain bread. scrape my tongue every morning with a tongue scraper,
not my toothbrush, to remove toxins or ama that accumulate
there overnight. use natural, saccharine-free, flouride-free toothpaste
like Thom's of Maine brand. take herbal nutritional supplements
daily, making sure to at least taste them before swallowing
them, or letting them completely dissolve in my mouth. sensitively monitor my body for subtle changes that
may benefit from some change in routine. check the back of my upper arms for the little bumps
that tell me I need more beta-carotene. (If so, I drink some carrot juice or eat papaya, cantaloupe
or yams) oilate my entire body with sesame oil every day, performing
see abhyanga.
use pure jojoba oil lavishly and frequently as a sunscreen mix essential oils in a sesame seed oil base as perfume take B vitamins and wear essential oil of citronella to
discourage bug bites get some ultra-violet ray exposure in my eyes daily burn stick of Nag Champa incense to relax wear natural fibers: cotton, silk, linen, & wool.
meditate. practice Pranayama.
yoga postures pray give people warm smiles for no reason at all appreciate beauty as a materialistic expression of
love think of both the past and future daily, yet remain
mostly in the present. wish the best for all those I know and all those I do not
know by extending an energetic generosity to them.
So that is a lot. You may want to try incorporating these,
one at a time, starting with the ones that seem easy
to you. Remember it is a process. If you keep at it,
soon it will become second nature, and you will start
to spot ways of your own to detoxify your life.
The benefit for me is that my senses are keener. That makes
life more sensuous. I know for a fact that I see more,
hear more and feel more than most people as a result
of my efforts. It is not until you take some of these
very ordinary toxins out of your life that you will
realize what you have been missing. It is actually very
simple. My understanding is that because our bodies
work continually to remove these toxins, we may not
have the energy left to do all the things unnecessary
to survival. That is actually the brilliance of our
being. Our bodies automatically take care of what is
absolutely needed first, then what is preferred, then
it gets around to the fineries such as:
growing lustrous hair, growing smooth, even nails having glowing skin, seeing very small or far objects clearly, hearing delicate sounds, etc ...
Next
our energy goes to our mind. The more energy we have
available, the more clarity in thinking. (By this I
do not refer to the common over-tired, hyper, type A
energy that is so common. That is actually a Vata imbalance.
see doshas.)
When all the basic needs of the body are met, and clarity
of the mind is established, awareness of the spirit
becomes more easily accessible. So that is the point
of all this. Simply put, a sound body and clear, calm
mind is fertile ground for the evolvement of the spirit.
In the process we:
feel better, life is fuller and more alive think better can be more productive can be more compassionate, understanding and loving evolve as a species and as individual souls
If this seems (see My habits) like a lot to do, you are
right. Our world culture's manufacturing, over-refinements
of goods, hyper-processing of food, creation of petroleum
laden, artificial environments are not very supportive
of our well being. When we see that toxic products and
conditions are present, we need to demand better from:
stores we shop in our mangers at work our farmers the pharmaceutical companies chemical companies energy companies manufacturers our governments the FDA builders our friends, relatives and spouses, & teachers.
Remember, in our society your voice is often heard by how you
spend your dollars. If we continue to consume substandard
goods, they will continue to make them. We have the
power to change all of this, if we are brave enough
to speak up.
Nature is, as God created it, a perfect system. It is supportive
to our needs. That is why getting back to nature is
so essential to your well-being and spiritual evolvement.
Our challenge is to be in congruency with it.
Good luck! Good health and happiness to you!
- Yogi Marlon |
