Wulian's World

At this, the darkest time of the year in Northern Alberta, I like to light up my life with LED, and prepare for new beginnings. I feel much like I imagine some of my plants feel, hunkered down in their pots, waiting for a taste of the sunshine that signals it is time to start growing again. Here in the dark, I keep warm and busily engaged in dreaming up my plans for the new year, and yes, observing what I accomplished this year, and contemplating what changes I might like to make to have an even more successful 2016. I have lots of time this week to reflect on all the changes that have happened over the years, an occupation made even easier by the internet. The fire is burning in my wood stove.  My little hot tub is standing resolute at 40C, offering me respite from the chill outdoors. Life is good to me. May you, too, be warm and enjoy a season of respite as you prepare for the best year ever. Happy 2016!

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The Principle of Freedom to Choose

The natural laws which govern us are as exact as any others in Nature or in the physical world. As humans we may choose to act in accordance with these laws, or we may disregard them. The first great principle of life is choice. The outcomes of choice will always obey the laws of nature, whether or not we are aware of them. We may invent terms such as reward, punishment, luck and karma to explain the outcomes of our choices, but they would still occur whether we could explain them or not, because the universe is itself lawful.

The Principle of Balance

The most basic law which governs humankind is the law of balance. Whether we are struggling against gravity or contending with our inner nature, this law will prevail. Like the Yinyang symbol, all things in life have a corollary with which they stand in balance. Light and dark. Low and high. Sometimes we call these opposites, but they are more truly seen as elements which work together to create balance. The balancing elements for choice and freewill, for example, are responsibility and accountability.

The Principle of Consciousness

Humans are conscious beings. Consciousness is a faculty which exists in a natural state as the awareness we have been born with, but can be raised or developed through practise. We can react naturally, or choose our actions consciously, to the degree we have developed our awareness. To react without consciousness of the outcome will always generate whatever outcome is predicted by the intricate working out of the laws of nature and the universe. To act from consciousness allows us to be creative. Where there is no capacity to consciously choose there is no expectation of accountability. Nature will take its course. When we as conscious humans freely choose however, our creative acts bear responsibility. Accountability balances freedom.

The Laws of the Body

To understand the laws of the body, it is necessary only to observe the needs of the new-born. In those first few minutes of life after birth, the baby demonstrates its need for air, for sustenance, for movement, for contact, for rest and for cleansing. These are the basic physical needs of all humans.

The  Need for  Breathing

While we seldom think about it, because breathing is so automatic, as humans we need to breathe to live. Because breathing is so unconscious, we often are unaware of how well it is meeting our needs.

We need fresh air to breathe, with a good supply of oxygen, and as few toxins and particles as possible. Our bodies do alert us when oxygen is low, or toxins are dangerously high, but we have the ability to habituate to less than ideal circumstances, and many of us have been conditioned to ignore the messages our bodies send us. Modern cities and industry create environments where it is important to ensure that air quality is healthful. Indoor air is usually significantly more polluted than outdoor air.

To care for ourselves, the following guidelines are helpful:

1. Spend time outdoors, unless there are advisories to stay indoors, as in the case of severe smog or smoke from forest fires.
2. Open windows to allow fresh air into your home, and use filters to ensure indoor air quality.
3. Do not allow smoking indoors, and use non-polluting cooking practises. Use your outdoor barbecue rather than your broiler. Ensure that all gas appliances are adequately vented. Also avoid air fresheners which may mask door and contribute to overall air pollution.
4. Take time each day to observe your breathing, and practise breathing deeply.
5. Listen to your nose.

The Need for Nourishment

We also need to eat to live, and we are usually quite attentive to this. Sometimes it may even appear that we live to eat! So many choices are available today that it can be challenging to know what, when and how much to consume. There are many groups with an interest in influencing our beliefs and our choices around food.  Never before in history has eating wholesomely been such a challenge!

The principles of nourishment have not changed over time. Healthy bodies grow and develop only with natural, wholesome foods. To nourish ourselves effectively, the following guidelines are helpful:

1. Live foods, such as fresh fruits and vegetables, nuts, and seeds are preferable to cooked, processed or irradiated foods which no longer contain their life force. It is desirable to eat some live food every day.  Cook foods to the least amount necessary.
2. Proteins build our bodies. They include nuts, milk, eggs, beans and flesh. Include building foods every day and eat them first. Use a thermometer when cooking meat to avoid overcooking, and eat meat as rare as is safe for its type.
3. Eat most foods in moderation.
4. Fibre helps with elimination. Fibre is provided by all fruits and vegetables, and these can be eaten freely, except for bananas, avocados, and potatoes because these have other properties which require limits. Properly prepared, beans are one of the best sources of fibre.
5. When cooking vegetables, drink the cooking water, or use it to make soup.
6. Use sweets and starches sparingly, to add energy only as needed depending on activity level. These include potatoes, breads, pasta, cake, muffins, donuts, gravies, bananas, squash, honey, molasses, dried and canned fruits and unsweetened processed juices. Sweets and starches can cause congestion, and may contribute to diabetes.
7. Do not consume processed sugar, including pop, and also avoid unnatural sugar substitutes such as aspartame, which is toxic.
8. Use natural fats as desired. These include butter, coconut and other cold pressed oils, fish oil, and lard. They are lubricant, and contain many essential nutrients.
9. Do not consume processed or hydrogenated oils.
10. Use supplements sparingly. If extra minerals are needed, consider drying and powdering your egg shells. Dissolved in lemon juice, this organic complement of bone building minerals is readily bioavailable, and will not contribute to hardening of the arteries.
11. Do not eat unless hungry!

All dietary imbalance will manifest as ill health. Excess sweets can manifest as diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Excess starch can manifest as colds, sinus trouble, constipation, and colitis. Excess protein can contribute to arthritis, rheumatism, joint disorders, skin disorders and eczema.

All conditions of ill health may point to an imbalance in nourishment.

The Need for Movement

In order to distribute and utilize the nourishment it receives, the body must be active. Movement, including circulation, is the only distributing agent of the body. Natural movement, including yoga, is preferable to artificial and repetitive movement. The following guidelines may be helpful:

1. Joints and muscles must move to retain strength and power.
2. All joints and muscles need to move every day, ideally, to the point where they tire. A muscle is tired when it no longer feels pleasure from movement.
3. Muscles need to be developed in balance with each other, including the heart.
4. Excess is harmful. Moderation is beneficial.
5. Do not continue any movement past the point where pain begins. Practise to recognize the difference between the feelings of stretching, exertion and discomfort.
6. Move slowly, to be able to listen to your body, and make adjustments to improve balance and prevent injury based on the feedback your body gives you.

The Need for Rest and Recovery

There are three ways in which our bodies recover from expending energy. These are rest, recreation and sleep.

Rest enables relaxation, and can be achieved through ceasing, reducing or changing our activity. Always stop what you are doing when you get tired. If the tiredness is specific to certain muscles, it may be possible to change positions, and continue.  Continuing when tired is harmful. Rest by relaxing the whole body, or at least the part which is tired.

Recreation enables balance, through calling into action body parts which are not ordinarily used. Engage in amusing or expressive activity every day. Laughter is good exercise!

Sleep enables restoration and healing. While we sleep our bodies detoxify, alkalinize and carry out cell repairs. Sleep is also essential to healthy mental functioning. It is important during sleep to have periods of deep sleep and dreaming. Although busy schedules and external demands may cause us to compromise our need for sleep, our health depends on developing good sleep habits. The following guidelines may be helpful.

1. Aim to fall asleep and wake up naturally, to the greatest extent possible. Avoid sleeping pills and alarms. Use your alarm only as a backup. If you are being awakened by the alarm, it may mean you are not going to bed early enough.
2. Keep a balance in your sleep bank. Sleep when you are tired, even if it is not your usual time to sleep. Our sleep needs vary according to stress levels, including physical, mental and emotional activity as well as the demands made on our immune system. Sleeping when we are tired will help to ensure that we will have energy for those occasions when our sleep is disrupted by external demands.
3. Engage in sufficient physical activity each day to ensure you will be tired at bedtime. Many physical activities promote sleep. Know which ones work for you!
4. Calm your mind before sleep. Set a positive expectation for how you will sleep, and how you will wake up.Use meditative techniques to eliminate worry and other mental chatter. This can include listening to calming music.
5. Avoid stimulants in the period before sleep, including mental stimulants such as your unfinished job list, or watching world news on TV. Turn off the TV, cellphone or other unpredictable sources of disturbance.

The Need for Hygiene

In nature, we are cleansed by the sun. Because we can’t always live in a climate where we can rely on the sun for natural cleansing, and so must wear clothes and live in artificial environments, we require bathing to eliminate wastes from our skin and to keep our pores open so they can perform their natural task of allowing for the outflow of unwanted salts, acids and toxins.

Our society abounds with myths about bacteria, and has invented an entire industry to deal with hygiene. Most hygiene products are unnecessary and potentially harmful because they are unnatural and filled with chemicals and preservatives.  Antibacterial products are especially damaging because they interfere with the natural ecology of our skin, as it normally hosts a large number of beneficial bacteria which live in a symbiotic relationship with us. Destroying beneficial bacteria, inside or outside our body, opens the door for harmful bacteria and other organisms. The goal once again is balance.

For external cleansing, the following guidelines are helpful:

1. Cleanse the hands frequently, after using the toilet and before touching food, but avoid the use of antibacterial soap. Read labels on cleansing products. Choose simple formulations, or make your own products, which is really much easier than you might think.
2. Cleanse the mouth and genital areas daily, using warm water and avoiding antibacterial preparations. Avoid using fluoride in toothpaste and mouthwash. Coconut oil is beneficial for both the mouth and the genitals.
3. Frequency of showering or bathing will vary according to preferences, but a healthy, moderately active body with good skin ecology may not need bathing more than once a week. Sweat production is a good indicator for need to bathe the whole body.  Some people sweat much more than others, and will therefore have more toxins on their skin. Also, activities which lead to exposure with contaminants will increase the need for bathing. Unpleasant body odor is the result of undesirable bacteria feasting on our built up waste. Flushing the waste without using antibacterial products will actually encourage the propagation of healthy bacteria. If unpleasant odor persists consider bathing in yogurt!
4. Use soap or body wash only if required. Water is cleansing enough for most purposes. Shampoo does not need to be used more often than once a week. People with oily scalps may want to shampoo more often, especially if exposed to dusty conditions. People with fine, dry hair may prefer not to use shampoo at all. Conditioner alone may be sufficient. Conditioner is mostly optional for healthy hair. Look for natural ingredients.
5. Coconut oil is an excellent body oil which does not interfere with the ecology of the skin. It may be combined with other natural substances including cocoa or shea butter, almond or jojoba oil, and essential oils, to name a few.  This is very easily done at home, but good commercial preparations are available.  Many substances in commercial products are suspected of adverse effects. In particular, be cautious of sodium laureth sulfate and all parabens.
6. Hot baths are more cleansing than cold, because they open the pores and induce sweating.
7. Cold baths are invigorating and tone the skin. Cold can follow hot in the shower effectively.
8. Neutral baths are best when tired, or otherwise low in vitality.
9. Saunas are beneficial when followed by a cleansing shower, and less risky than hot tubs where the temperature is maintained at 40C or more.

Internal Cleansing

Our digestive system is also filled with organisms which live harmoniously and in symbiosis with us. We want to maintain this healthy balance. Antibiotics quickly destroy this balance, and should be avoided unless their use is imperative, in which case the gut will need to be repopulated with healthy flora. The best food is of limited value in the absence of healthy gut flora and the enzymes they facilitate.

The following guidelines may be helpful:

1. Fruits and vegetables are our most important inner cleansers.
2. Eating highly processed and artificial foods promotes death and decay inside our bodies.
3. Sugar feeds unhealthy bacteria and yeast, and may contribute to bad breath.
4. Eating cultured and fermented foods such as yogurt, kefir, kombucha, and naturally fermented sauerkraut, olives and pickles helps to restore healthy gut bacteria necessary for digestion and assimilation.
5. Vitamin B1 is especially important to inner cleansing. Nutritional yeast is an excellent source of B vitamins.
6. Exercise helps speed cleansing by increasing circulation, which brings toxins to the organs of elimination. Also perspiration reduces the load on our kidneys.
7. Drink lots of water. Water flushes, but only actually cleanses when combined with vegetable alkaline, or with lemon juice. Lemon juice helps dissolve insoluble minerals.