In DIET AS A CAUSE OF ILLNESS the three
main sources of imbalances are presented – the spiritual, psychological, and
dietary – which can bring about the emergence of an internal physical
illness. If we want to stop such development and achieve again the balanced
condition of the internal environment, called
homeostasis
we need to develop:
- virtue of temperance in the domain of nutrition –
that is, not going into extremes in regard to consumption of foods and
drinks; [1]
- balance between our food preferences and what is good for our body –
that is, liking the foods which are beneficial to us and disliking those
that harm us;
- healthy eating habits – that is, eating ‘the right quantity of a proper
choice of good quality food’ in a rhythmical manner as much as possible.
The Development of the Virtue of Temperance in Regard to Food
If we wish to avoid extremes in the domain of nutrition then we need to
be aware that we can sin in this domain in two directions. The first extreme
is when people for various reasons give themselves without hindrance to the
pleasures of eating. From the past we know about excessive feasts of the
members of the Roman ruling class; in present times there exists epidemics
of obesity which is among others the consequence of excessive eating too
much junk food, causing diverse health problems and illnesses and is even
contributing to premature death.
Another form of an extreme in regard to food is eating too little food.
This can be caused by outer reasons, such as in the case of famine; or by
human voluntary decision, such as in the case of ascetic fasting. We can
count in this group also cases when people stop consuming specific food on
the basis of this or that kind of scientific evidence about their harmful
effects on human health. All these examples lead to malnutrition – that is,
to the situation when the body doesn't get what it needs for its proper
functioning. This is not surprising for a person who is acquainted with the
therapeutic effects of food described in FOOD AS REMEDY FOR HUNGER and
NUTRITION AND 'INNER HEALER'.
How can a modern person navigate between consuming too much or too little
food? "Temperance is the virtue that enables the human being to avoid both
of these extremes. Temperance is neither asceticism nor self-indulgence, but
the proper mean between the two. This is the virtue of
consciousness soul.
With regard to this virtue, we have not yet progressed beyond the
instinctive behaviour. On the whole, people are still very much given to
sampling the two extremes; they tend to swing back and forth between them.
This alternation between indulgence and deprivation is present everywhere.
In this area people are still in a very instinctive condition."
[2]
There are many signs which demonstrate that people are gradually losing
even this instinctive ability to find the balance between too much and too
little food. How can we get out of these troubles? The solution is in the
proper understanding of the nature of the human being and the role of
nutrition which is possible only through mediation of spiritual science.
When people will assimilate spiritual-scientific explanations there will be
among many positive results also the following one: "Certain things that
still taste good to people today will no longer taste good to those who have
absorbed spiritual-scientific thoughts. These act upon the whole organism in
such a manner that what is good for it will also taste good. What is not
good for the organism will be smelled and found unsympathetic. This kind of
appetite – whereby one loves and prefers to eat certain things, and hates
and will not eat others – this will emerge as a consequence of
spiritual-scientific work. Such things will become more and more common if
people work selflessly on their higher development." [3] In this manner the
striving to develop the virtue of temperance becomes an integral part of our
striving for spiritual development. And one of the important consequences of
this striving will be seen in the improved health of our whole organism.
The Task of Balancing between Enjoyments and Bodily Needs
In THREE TYPES OF THERAPIES it is explained that "there are
certain ailments in man's organism that point to an illness of the astral
body and which therefore affect the external expression of the astral body,
the nervous system. The first thing to consider in the treatment of this
sort of complaint is diet and finding the right balance between what a
person enjoys and what is good for him. What matters is his way of life, not
with regard to externalities but regarding what has to be digested and
worked through by him." [4]
We see in the above description of the dietary treatment a similarity
with the description of the virtue of temperance. This is no surprise when
we take into consideration that "the human astral body has become the worst
part of man, because it seeks all kinds of pleasures
and can have all sorts of desires that have a harmful effect on the physical
body." [5] This is especially true in regard to the
eating preferences and habits of people living in modern cities. The aim of
nutritional therapy is to find the balance between what people like to eat
and the health consequences for the whole organism. For that reason it makes
sense that dietary treatment is the most suitable therapy for irregularities
of our astral body – that is, our soul body. This means that we need to
start to re-educate ourselves in regard to our food preferences to such a
degree that we will enjoy eating what is good for us and dislike eating what
is harmful.
If we take into account that the astral body is involved via the
autonomous nervous
system in the maintenance of
homeostatic balance
[6], then we can understand
the importance of dietary treatment not just for acute illnesses – that is,
illnesses which are the first manifestation of an upset balance in the
organism [7] – but also for other types of illnesses
which are more deeply impressed in our inner constitution. [8] However, in
the case of other types of illness we need to apply other therapies as well
in accordance with guidelines in the description of
THREE TYPES OF THERAPIES.
When we take into account manifold and many-sided effects of everything
that enters our bodies via foods and drinks – which are presented on this
website – then we can understand why we will achieve the best result if we
also include, in the treatment of any internal disease, modifications of
eating preferences. In this way the striving to harmonise our food
preferences with the needs of our organism becomes an integral part of the
therapy. And because as adults we have the power of conscious
self-reflection we can change even those preferences that we have gained in
the first years of our life.
Conscious Establishment of New Eating Habits
If we investigate the origin of our eating habits we will find out that
the greatest influence on their formation was made by the specific food
culture we belonged in our childhood. Our lives might have brought us in
situations to experience one single or a few different food cultures. These
influences happened before we were really fully capable to understand their
consequences. In the period of puberty and as adults we can make personal
decisions to try this or that diet or eating style on the basis of this or
that reason. Thus we can say that the first kind of eating habits are more
or less ‘inherited’ from the community we were part of in the past, while
the second kind of habits are the result of our own initiative.
Because the seat of our habits is in the etheric body [9], it is not an
easy task to change them. However, with the help of a holistic understanding
of the role of nutrition, we can find proper motivation and strength to
pursue such a goal. We have ability to learn, and in this way transform our
food preferences – that is, what we like to eat – to such a degree that we
can really start enjoying eating food which is good for our whole being,
even if new food choices are radically different from what we used to eat
before. And with persistent repetition of our new choice we are slowly
establishing a new eating habit.
When, due to any internal disease or as a preventive measure, we start to
consciously transform our existing eating habits, we are making an important
step in our spiritual development as well. For one of the highest goals of
spiritual strivings is to really know ourselves as beings of body, soul and
spirit. This means that for any successful dietary treatment we need to
expand understanding of our own being. For "all
dietary measures are completely individual and are absolutely dependent upon
the way and manner in which the person is developed in this or that way.
Individuals differ much more from each other than one thinks, for the human
soul no longer relates entirely to the body and this makes human beings very
complex today." [10] This might seem an arduous task,
but not more than in the case when we decide to take responsibility for our
own spiritual development.
For complementary perspectives see:
♦ LOSS OF HEALTHY EATING INSTINCTS
♦ DEVELOPMENT OF NEW EATING 'INSTINCTS'
DIETARY CONCLUSIONS & PRACTICAL INSTRUCTIONS
The task of any dietary treatment is to prompt a person to establish new
eating habits which will enable healing and will maintain his or her own
health in the best possible manner. This includes the following general
conditions:
- Consumption of good quality food
- Consumption of right quantities of food
- Rhythmical intake of meals [11]
- Food choices which suit individual needs and preferences
The most attention we need to dedicate is to the issue of
food quality.
It is extremely important that we understand the difference between good
and bad quality food. This distinction is an essential part of what may be
called ‘general preventive nutritional therapy’ that constitutes the
fertile ground on which all other nutritional therapies can thrive. If one
succeeds in replacing bad quality foods with the foods presented in
HOLISTIC FOOD ‘PYRAMID’
one has made an extremely important step towards maintaining a healthy
internal environment. There are many scientific researches which
demonstrate the negative health impact of modern food which are the
consequences of its bad quality. The only problem is that scientists cannot
or do not want to see this.
♣ In
GENERAL NUTRITIONAL GUIDELINES there are a few additional general
principles which can be used with the aim of balancing nutrition.
All the rest is the question of individual nutritional needs. For this
purpose we need to know what we want to achieve in our life and then fashion
our diet accordingly. Such an approach is used for professional sportsmen,
but in principle is applicable for other professions as well. The diet
either supports or hinders us from what we want to achieve in our life. If
you wonder how one can find out one’s own individual nutritional needs, then
you need to start with the polarity of GENERAL vs INDIVIDUAL DIET. If one
keeps away from the bad quality foods, then one is quite safe to experiment
with various diets under the condition of listening to the body – that is,
not persisting if one doesn't feel well after adopting a new diet.
Another situation is in all cases when one is confronted with an illness; then one
needs the help of a qualified
nutritional therapist.
We need to know that there exists different nutritional schools [12],
each with their own nutritional therapists. Whoever one chooses it is very
important that one stays the most active person in the search for a healthy
balance. For whatever we do in regard to nutrition it is always the question
of addressing the imbalances existing in our own being. For that reason we
should be taking as much responsibility as we are capable to carry, while it
is good that we stay open to the diverse professional advice.
[13]
WARNING: You always have to put the above
practical dietary instructions inside the framework of
GENERAL NUTRITIONAL
GUIDELINES with the aim to know their limits when looking for a solution
of a specific nutritional problem. You also need to be familiar with
THE ROLE OF NUTRITIONAL GUIDELINES
with the aim to avoid any one-sided conclusions.
