by
Natalia Perera
Nexus
Magazine, Volume 9, Number 4
2002
from
Nexus
Magazine Website
The ancient Ayurvedic practice of urine therapy is undergoing a
resurgence,
as its myriad health benefits are being explored by scientists,
health practitioners and the general public.
Author’s Note:
The material in this paper is not intended to replace medical
treatments. It is an attempt to broaden the awareness of Shivambu
Shastra. Readers interested in Self-Urine Therapy are encouraged to
discuss it with their health practitioner. |
AWAKENING THE HEALER WITHIN
We are in a very magical era: all around us, on all levels, we are
witnessing the connection between the East and the West, the ancient
and the modern, spiritual heritage and science.
We are so truly
fortunate to be living in such an exciting time, and to be able to
watch in awe the way life unfolds before our very eyes. Modern
scientific research is discovering today that ancient spiritual
ideas come very close to today’s most recent discoveries in the
field of quantum physics and vibrational healing methods.
One such powerful practice for healing that is continuing to
flourish today is Shivambu Shastra, respected for thousands of years
as the "Mother of Ayurvedic Medicine" and commonly known as
"Self-Urine Therapy".
Shivambu means literally "Water of Shiva",
referring to the auspiciousness of the practice.
Its "method of
drinking urine for rejuvenation" is outlined in the Shivambu Kalpa
Vidhi, part of a 5,000-year-old document called the Damar Tantra,
linking this practice back to the Vedas, the sacred Hindu texts.
Self-urine therapy has been seen as one of the divine manifestations
of cosmic intelligence, and has been used as such by Indian yogis to
unleash kundalini up to their third eye.
There is something esoteric about urine. It is considered to be a
supernatural, living food because it is a by-product of the blood
and contains "life force" or prana. Using urine as a therapeutic
tool mirrors to us the "healer within" who works on a mechanistic
level as well as on an energetic level.
This implies that urine, as
a holographic substance, has the ability to affect all levels of
being - from the physical, through the electromagnetic fields of the
emotions and the mind, up to the subtler vibrations of the soul.
Urine is considered to be an invaluable source of nourishment and
healing that perhaps has been too controversial or not financially
rewarding enough for it to be talked about and encouraged as a
potent medicine. One’s own urine, a living food, contains elements
that are specific to one’s body alone.
The body is constantly
producing a huge variety of antibodies, hormones, enzymes and other
natural chemicals to regulate and control its functions and combat
imbalances that one may not be aware of.
Clinical studies have proved that the thousands of critical body
chemicals and nutrients that end up in urine reflect the individual
body’s functions. When re-utilized, these chemicals and nutrients
act as natural vaccines, antibacterial,
antiviral and anticarcinogenic agents as well as
hormone balancers and allergy
relievers. The information that urine contains therefore cannot be
duplicated or derived from any other source.
Just as nature produces
no two people who are exactly the same, there are no two urine
samples in the world that contain exactly the same components.
A STERILE BY-PRODUCT OF BLOOD FILTRATION
Urine is not a dirty and toxic substance rejected by the body. Urine is a by-product of blood filtration, not waste filtration.
Medically
it is referred to as "plasma ultrafiltrate". It is a purified
derivative of the blood itself, made by the kidneys--whose principal
function is not excretion but regulation of all the elements and
their concentrations in the blood. Urine can be compared to
leftovers from a meal, and this metaphor may help us understand why
our bodies excrete elements that are valuable to our health and
well-being.
Nutrient-filled blood passes through the liver where
toxins are
removed to be excreted as solid waste.
Eventually, this purified
"clean" blood undergoes a filtering process in the kidneys, where
excess water, salts, vitamins, minerals, enzymes, antibodies, urea,
uric acid and other elements not usable at that time by the body are
collected in the form of a purified, sterile, watery solution that
is urine. The function of the kidneys is to keep the various
elements in the blood balanced.
The important elements in the blood
are not filtered out because they are toxic and harmful to the body,
but simply because the body does not need a particular concentration
of an element at that specific point in time.
It is this very
regulating process of the kidneys that allows us to eat and drink
more than our bodies need at any one time.
BIOCHEMICAL COMPONENTS
Urine is estimated to have thousands of biochemical compounds, but
only 200 or so have been studied. It contains an incredible array of
critically important nutrients, enzymes, hormones, natural
antibodies and immune defense agents.
Some of these components are well worth further consideration--such
as:
-
allantoin (also found in comfrey, known as "bone-knit", and in
aloe vera, which guards against sunburn)
-
the amino acid creatinine
(popular with body-builders)
-
DHEA hormone (proven by research to
have anti-ageing, anticancer and anti-obesity properties)
-
melatonin
(known for its calming effect while strengthening the physical body
and immunity)
-
sex hormones such as testosterone, androgen and oestrogen
In view of such an array of ingredients, it is easier to understand
urine’s effects:
-
antibacterial
-
antifungal
-
antiviral
-
antineoplastic
-
anticonvulsive
-
antispasmodic
Dr A.H. Free published in his book,
Urinalysis in Clinical
Laboratory Practice, a list of constituents which in 1975 was by no
means exhaustive:
- Alanine
- Arginine
- Ascorbic acid
- Allantoin
- Amino acids
- Bicarbonate
- Biotin
- Calcium
- Creatinine
- Cystine
- Dopamine
- Epinephrine
- Folic acid
- Glucose
- Glutamic acid
- Glycine
- Inositol
- Iodine
- Iron
- Lysine
- Magnesium
- Manganese
- Methionine
- Nitrogen
- Ornithine
- Pantothenic acid
- Phenylalanine
- Phosphorus, organic
- Potassium
- Proteins, total
- Riboflavin
- Tryptophan
- Tyrosine
- Urea
- Vitamin B6
- Vitamin B12
- Zinc
|
38 mg/day
32 mg/day
30 mg/day
12 mg/day
2.1 g/day
140 mg/day
35 mg/day
23 mg/day
1.4 mg/day
120 mg/day
0.40 mg/day
0.01 mg/day
4 mg/day
100 mg/day
308 mg/day
455 mg/day
14 mg/day
0.25 mg/day
0.5 mg/day
56 mg/day
100 mg/day
0.5 mg/day
10 mg/day
15 g/day
10 mg/day
3 mg/day
21mg/day
9 mg/day
2.5 mg/day
5 mg/day
0.9 mg/day
28 mg/day
50 mg/day
24.5 mg/day
100 mg/day
0.03 mg/day
1.4 mg/day |
|
ACTIONS, BENEFITS AND APPLICATIONS
Anything that was in the blood cannot be harmful to the person that
it came from.
Besides, when taken internally, the urine does not go
straight into the bloodstream but travels through the digestive
system, where its constituents are sorted out. The useful ones are
used up again, while others are rejected as solid waste. When the
level of toxins in the blood increases, this stimulates the
intestines and the lymphatic system into flushing themselves out to
eliminate any stagnated excrements accumulated in the colon.
The
amount of toxins found in the urine of each person is related to the
amount of stagnated excrement in the colon. So the toxins, in such
minute amounts in urine, stimulate a cleansing reaction in each
individual and vaccinate and protect the body from illnesses.
Studies on urea, considered the poisonous organic solid in urine,
have shown it is converted into an essential amino acid once it is
recycled by ingestion, helping our bodies use protein more
efficiently.
Urea has also been proven to be an extraordinarily
effective antibacterial and antiviral agent, one of the best natural
diuretics and one of the most effective skin moisturizers ever
discovered. Urea actually increases the water-binding capacity of
the skin by opening skin layers for hydrogen bonding and thus
attracting moisture to dry skin cells.
As a natural diuretic, it is
unparalleled and is also widely prescribed in cases of oedema or
swelling, glaucoma, epilepsy and meningitis and to reduce excess
cerebral and spinal pressure. Urea is an FDA-approved medicinal
agent, and its remarkable and comprehensive antineoplastic
properties are well utilized in anticancer drugs and treatments.
Even uric acid, normally thought of as a waste product that can
cause gout, has tremendous medicinal implications, such as acting as
a defense against cancer and ageing by actively destroying free
radicals.
Urokinase, an enzyme also found in urine, is used in drug form to
dissolve blood clots and is widely used for unblocking coronary
arteries in victims of heart attacks.
One of the world’s largest fertility drug-producing companies makes
use of the ovulation-enhancing hormone in human urine to make
Pergonal, reported to have had US$855 million in sales in 1992 (a
figure that has continued to increase since then).
More examples of commercial medical applications of urine and urea
in use today include:
-
Murine Ear Drops and Murine Ear Wax Removal
System
-
Ureaphil, a diuretic made from urea
-
Urofollotropin, a
urine-extract fertility drug
-
Ureacin, a urea cream for skin
problems
-
Amino-Cerv, a urea cream used for cervical treatments
-
Premarin, a urine-extract oestrogen
for skin ulcers, burns, infected wounds, and other
purposes
A SUBTLE SCIENCE
Most urine therapists have never sought a scientific explanation for
why or how it works; their own experiences have proven to be more
than sufficient.
However, as modern medicine’s interest in the
powerful healing aspects of Shivambu Shastra grows, more research is
being undertaken and a lot is being revealed to substantiate
scientifically the therapy’s very rich history in healing.
Ayurveda considers disease to be caused by a shift in the internal
metabolic balance, manifested as the five elements of aether, air,
fire, water and earth in that individual. To create health involves
rebalancing that unique metabolism to attain elemental equilibrium.
In scientific terms, one can consider self-urine therapy as an
extension of the methods of Jenner and Pasteur, as auto-inoculation
or self-vaccination. Certain bodily substances which have been
removed from the body, some of which may have been produced as a
result of an imbalance, are re-introduced into the body in small
amounts and re-absorbed into the blood through either the intestines
or the skin.
This gives the immune system all the information that
it needs and the chance to react appropriately to achieve
homeostasis.
Coen van der Kroon, in his book The Golden Fountain, proposes what
he calls the "transmutation theory" for the underlying mechanics of
Shivambu Shastra. His proposal is coherent in terms of the visible
shift in recent times from reductionism to holism in scientific
research.
The theory implies that the body is capable, through
energy exchange, to "short-circuit" the system by ingesting its own
secreted body fluids to stimulate the transmutational forces within
and challenge the body to transform unusable substances into usable
ones.
Van der Kroon proposes that self-urine therapy could possibly
restructure disturbed DNA, especially if one is fasting on urine.
The medical doctor and urine therapist Dr Johann Abele puts it as
such:
...the question rises as to whether
urine could possibly be
considered to be a sort of liquid hologram. Once the body is made
conscious of urine in an unconventional way (such as it being
reintroduced into the body by intramuscular injection or by
ingesting it), the whole organism evaluates it and subsequently
updates its own regulating mechanisms...
An important aspect of this theory is the concept of "structured
water".
Both the body and urine are mainly made up of water, in
varying degrees of molecular organization. The more water molecules
are organized, the more efficiently enzymes responsible for
digestion, absorption and transmutation can do their job.
It has been proven that water molecules in biological systems become
more organized through exposure to sunlight and through close
contact with crystals. The body is a receptor of sunlight and
contains a high amount of solid and liquid crystalline-like
substances; indeed, body fluids themselves form fluid crystals.
Urine itself is a crystalline-like substance containing a high
amount of structured water, and when retaken it promotes a better
enzymatic functioning and higher solubility for minerals, thus
improving health and increasing energy reserves. Seeing urine as a
liquid crystal implies that it contains vibrations completely in
tune with the vibrational condition of the body it comes from.
Re-ingestion might give the body valuable vibrational information
needed for two things: first, for maintaining the existing healthy
body resonance, and second, for counteracting disease or stress
vibrations and any unhealthy resonance in the body. By way of
example, disharmonious sounds can been counteracted by employing the
same sounds.
The vibratory patterns of the body, both in the bones (solid
crystals) and in the tissues and fluids (liquid crystals), play an
important role in the process of transmutation. The resonance field
of a crystal can make a protein, for example, change its form into
one that is more useful for the body or more easily adaptable by it.
This can be described as "modern alchemy", and it resonates with the
principles of homoeopathy.
Homoeopathy refers to a therapeutic method which clinically applies
the "law of similars" and uses medically active substances at
infinitesimal doses and never at full strength, where the original
substance has undergone a dilution process.
When the body is given a
homoeopathic remedy, it is stimulated into action not because of the
physical or chemical nature of the substance but because of the
energetic nature that is received through new vibratory information.
Isopathy is another valid hypothesis worth considering. Once
microbes have evolved in the blood to a pathogenic level, then
de-evolving them back to a stage where they are less harmful would
facilitate recovery. The primary way to do this is through diet to
rebalance the pH in the blood.
But in severe cases, the process can
be accelerated biologically, as demonstrated by Professor Enderlein’s results from his research on the development life cycle
of the internal parasite. A rather evolved pathogenic microbe
causing disease in the body can be mated with the same type of
microbe at an earlier developmental stage to breed a form that is
less strong and non-pathogenic.
This process is probable since the colloids or somatids are in fact so small that they are unfilterable
by the kidneys; therefore, once urine is consumed, one can receive a
dose of these pure somatids which biologically proceed to support
the immune function and possibly lead to taking the pathogenic
microbes in the blood back down to apathogenic states. This is the
basis of isopathic remedies; they promote gentle yet effective
self-healing through biological means.
Allergy treatment illustrates this method quite well.
By using the
same substance that is causing the allergy and reintroducing it to
the body, the immune system is allowed to develop antibodies to the
antigen receptors found in the urine to stop the allergic response.
HEALTH POINTERS FOR SELF-THERAPY
To begin with, Dr Beatrice Bartnett (author of Urine Therapy - It
May Save Your Life) suggests making a prayer, thanking our bodies
for providing us with this divine elixir, and drinking the urine
slowly, willingly and with cheerfulness!
This is all very well,
considering that most people who start drinking urine find the taste
much too sour, bitter or pungent and the odour way too strong. Even
if the urine is diluted, they may experience nausea, headaches and
other strong reactions before they get used to it and start seeing
results.
Martha Christy (author of Your Own Perfect Medicine) suggests not
taking copious amounts of water to flush out the kidneys, as this
dilutes the healing properties of the urine.
It is good to remember that urine is a mere sample of what is
flowing through the body’s veins, and any repulsion should be used
as a motivation to improve the internal conditions rather than as an
excuse for not using this miraculous therapy for creating health.
Urine is actually less toxic and more alive than much of the food
and drink that we take into our bodies, which somehow manage to
digest the junk foods and devitalized liquids and still produce a
valuable, medicinal drink. However, how much more valuable for
medicinal and cleansing purposes if the urine is the product of a
body fed healthy, natural, organic and raw foods?
Drinking urine makes us think seriously about what we eat. Since it
is a by-product of the blood, it makes sense that the cleaner the
blood is, the healthier the urine will be. But even urine from
relatively unhealthy blood contains valuable immunological factors
that can improve health if recycled.
Urine drinking’s cleansing
effect on the blood can be observed by the change in taste and the colour of the urine: as it is more and more recycled, it becomes
purer and clearer. If one has difficulty urinating - and it has been
said that a weak flow is a sign of a weak life-force - then this
practice actually strengthens the flow of urine, consequently increasing the vital life-force.
Ingesting more toxic substances in the body, however, may
neutralize
the good effects of self-urine therapy. So it is recommended that
anyone embarking on the therapy give up tobacco in all forms and
restrict consumption of cold drinks, spices, fried foods, junk
foods, refined foods and sugars as much as possible. Above all, it
is best to avoid alcohol, meat and coffee as well as recreational
drugs. It is also advisable to follow a low-salt, low-protein diet.
Like all other natural therapies, this is not a treatment that needs
to be stopped after the relief of certain symptoms, but can be
incorporated into one’s health regime.
More subtle, yet very real
effects of this therapy as a lifestyle choice include feeling
stronger, more relaxed, more self-confident, invigorated and
generally happier and lighter emotionally and physically.
SELF-THERAPY METHODS
The middle stream of fresh, warm, morning urine is the most potent,
and drinking it mixed with freshly squeezed orange juice is probably
the fastest way to accomplish this task, although it is best not to
mix urine with other foods or drinks or to take it within an hour
before or after eating.
Oral drops of fresh urine can be placed directly under the tongue.
Urine therapists suggest their patients start with 1-5 drops of
fresh morning urine on the first day, increase to 5-10 drops on the
second day, and take 5-10 drops on the morning of the third day and
the same amount that evening before going to bed.
Once patients feel
comfortable with this therapy, they can gradually increase the
amount as they see fit to obtain the results required for their
body’s condition. Over time, they can learn to adjust the amount
that is needed by observing their reactions to the therapy; their
dosage may become as much as one full cup at a time!
Self-urine may be used as eye drops and ear drops, in foot baths and
even as effective enemas. Nose drops can help loosen mucus and clear
up blocked nasal passages. Gargling with it is helpful for a sore
throat, and inhaling it relieves sinus and respiratory congestion.
Taken internally, it has a laxative and diuretic effect, as it
cleanses the digestive tract.
Dr John Armstrong (author of The Water of Life)
emphasizes the need
to massage with urine. He insists that cures work faster and more
effectively in those who are bathed, massaged, rubbed and soaked in
their own urine.
He highly recommends it for more serious illnesses,
since urine is absorbed through the skin and the hormonal and
protein-based contents are slowly reabsorbed into the system,
bypassing digestive juices that otherwise may have neutralized their
potency. In this way, it also works as an excellent cosmetic for
moisturizing and healing skin blemishes, burns and scar tissue.
However, for this usage, it is preferable to use urine that is 4-8
days old. The smell of ammonia in the old urine is not toxic but
actually beneficial if used topically only, and not taken
internally.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Can a woman drink her urine during her menses?
Yes, and although the urethra and the vagina are two separate
organs, there is nothing in the menstrual fluid that can harm a
person if it is accidentally mixed with urine.
Can a person drink their urine while on medications?
The short answer is no, because of the remote possibility of
overdosing on any particular medication by recycling the portion of
what is discharged in urine.
However, hormone, vitamin and
mineral
supplements can be taken while drinking urine, as long as the intake
is frequently monitored and the amounts reduced accordingly as the
imbalance improves.
In what cases can Shivambu Shastra be used?
Regarded truly as a "panacea",
Shivambu Shastra is said to be
effective in over 175 health conditions.
Diagnosis plays no
practical part in the therapy, since the urine sample reflects so
perfectly the individual’s most intimate details about the state of
their health. In fact, it works brilliantly on the more subtle
health imbalances that are very real, yet often too evasive to label
medically.
Urine can be massaged topically for the most chronic and stubborn
skin problems, such as acne, eczema, psoriasis, ringworm, sores,
fungal infections, insect bites, wounds, burns and even gangrene.
Internally, the therapy is said to be effective in treating
AIDS
(since the AIDS antibodies are found in urine) as well as
cancer,
chronic fatigue syndrome, anaemia, all sorts of urinary diseases,
weight loss, colds and flus, candida, diabetes, digestive problems,
jaundice and more.
It has been medically proven to work against
polio and tuberculosis, and doctors have injected it intramuscularly
to treat immunological illnesses such as psoriasis, basal cell
carcinoma and asthma, to name a few.
Why does urine therapy seem ineffective in some cases?
There are times when there is a
chronic deficiency of one or several
minerals, and in such cases there is none of that mineral in the
urine; therefore, although the general health and other metabolic
imbalances in that person improve, that particular problem may
remain the same.
For instance, a diabetic person may need to take
chromium for the cells to use blood sugar and vanadium to produce
insulin. These supplements may be necessary to eradicate diabetes or
any other blood sugar problem that is not correctable with
self-urine therapy.
A GOLDEN FUTURE
Although much attention has been focused on many elements in urine
and their potential for medical use, comprehensive research has not
yet been conducted on urine as a total entity that is
therapeutically applied.
Still to be proven are the theories regarding how and why urine
therapy works--so let us welcome and support the scientific
community that is interested in undertaking studies using urine as a
total entity.
More than 600 scientists --many of whom believe that human urine can
treat everything from baldness to cancer and AIDS-- gathered in Goa,
India, for the First World Conference on Auto-Urine Therapy in
February 1996. The Second World Conference on Auto-Urine Therapy was
held in Germany in 1998.
These are certainly signs that Shivambu Shastra is flourishing all
over the world, and that people are ready to take responsibility for
their own health and well-being and are ready to overcome their
prejudices and open their minds to embrace such an ancient spiritual
and magical practice.
It is certainly crucial in these times, when we ache for deeper
healing, that Shivambu Shastra be acknowledged and adopted as a
valid and profoundly effective method of creating health in body,
mind and spirit.
References
-
Armstrong, John (Dr), The Water of Life, Health Science Press, Rupa
and Co., 1990.
-
Bartnett, Beatrice (Dr), Urine Therapy - It May Save Your Life,
Lifestyle Institute, 1994.
-
Christy, Martha M., Your Own Perfect Medicine, Futuremed, 1996.
-
Desai, Morarji, Miracles of Urine Therapy, Pankaj Books, 1998.
-
Free, A. H. (Dr), Urinalysis in Clinical Laboratory Practice, CRC
Press, Cleveland, 1975.
-
Van der Kroon, Coen, The Golden Fountain: The Complete Guide to
Urine Therapy, Amethyst Books, 1996.
|