Urine therapy - Traditional
Use in East & West
Urine therapy has been practiced for thousands of years
and has merely fallen a bit into obscurity in the last
century.
However much urine therapy may seem to be unorthodox and
perhaps revolutionary, it does not introduce anything new
or original. It has been known throughout the centuries
both in the West and in the East. Especially within yoga
and tantra tradition the use of urine has been kept alive.
It served partially as a real 'therapy', a method to cleanse
the physical body of impurities, but also as a way to further
spiritual growth. As such it should be considered more
as a spiritual practice or lifestyle. Very illustrative
in this sense are the following remarks:
Swami Satyananda Saraswati states in 'Amaroli - The Way
of the Yogi', the preface to the book Amaroli (Amaroli
is the practice of ingesting ones own urine):
"I am fully acquainted with the topic of amaroli
and have had personal experience with its use. Of course,
I did not use it for therapy but in order to perfect vajroli
kriya (a technique of washing the bladder) and I am convinced
that those who want to perfect vajroli will have to go
through the process of amaroli.
Since 1943, right up to 1978 (date of publication of the
book Amaroli), I have never seen bad results from the use
of amaroli, either in therapy or for vajroli. Just recently
a very ill gentleman approached me and asked me my opinion
on amaroli. I suggested that he try it for himself and
see what happens. Now, two months later, he has recovered
completely.
From the healing point of view, if amaroli proves to be
less dangerous than the therapeutic use of drugs, synthetic
hormones and various other assorted chemical substances,
if it proves less corrosive and nutritionally harmful than
Coca Cola and 7-Up, if it is less dependence-producing
and intoxicating than alcohol, less distasteful than eating
gelatin, manufactured from the hooves and tendons of animals,
then I am sure it will be a boon to humanity.
I personally feel that we must state the facts on amaroli
in as straightforward, clear and direct a manner as possible.
Then mankind may just possibly find that there are many
other benefits hidden in the science of amaroli than originally
believed."
From: Amaroli, S. S. Saraswati, Bihar School of Yoga,
Bihar 1978, out of print
Some time ago, my attention was drawn to an article in
the reputable English weekly journal The New Scientist.
It was about the research done by two Australian scientists
into drinking morning urine by Indian yogi's and its possible
positive effect on meditation practice. The hypothesis
is that this might be due to a hormone found in morning
urine called melatonin.
Urine therapy in the West
Apart from these effects within meditation context, the
use of urine is very practical as far as curing all kind
of ailments and diseases is concerned. This practice has
been known all over the world and in many cultures. The
Greeks and Romans were acquainted with the use of urine
as a medicine. But also later in history there are many
references to urine as being helpful to combat illnesses.
A good example can be found in a major German encyclopaedia
(Johann Heinrich Zedler's Grossen Vollständigen Universallexikon,
1747), in which the author offers the following tips concerning
the use of urine as medicine:
"Useful substances can be found in human as well
as animal urine... Human urine has strengthening and curative
characteristics concerning many deficiencies:
"For example, a mixture of potato- and sulphur-powder,
mixed with heated, old urine helps against hair loss. One
should rub this mixture into the scalp; this slows down
loss of hair (calf's gall can be added if necessary).
"One can best heal injuries to the eyes with honey
dissolved in the lightly boiled urine from a young man.
One should wash the eyes as often as possible with this
fluid.
"All kinds of throat inflammation can be helped by
gargling with urine to which a bit of saffron has been
added.
"Trembling hands and knees can be helped by washing
and rubbing one's own warm urine into the skin directly
after one has urinated.
"In the beginning stages of dropsy, one should drink
one's own morning urine on an empty stomach for a prolonged
period of time. This also helps against jaundice."
In this century it was the Englishman John Armstrong who
was the urine therapy pioneer with his work and with his
book The Water of Life, famous both in West and East. Armstrong
realized that the powerful medical world entertained other
ideas about the usefulness of urine.
Even so, he was exceptionally persistent in his conviction
and enthusiasm concerning urine therapy, probably because
through urine therapy, he cured himself of tuberculosis
which had been declared 'incurable'.
Armstrong began urine therapy after a long and agonizing
journey in which doctor after doctor proved unable to cure
him of his TB symptoms. On the contrary, his condition
only worsened. He decided to try urine therapy for two
reasons. First of all, a quotation from the Bible stimulated
his curiosity: "Drink water from your own cistern,
flowing water from your own well." (The Book of Proverbs
5:15) Secondly, he had childhood memories of his mother
smearing urine on his face which was swollen from a bee
sting, and of his grandfather treating animals with urine.
Recently, a lot of books have been published on urine therapy,
especially in Germany, and some of those books have been
written by regular doctors. This shows that there is a
development towards a little bit more understanding and
acceptance from people working within the regular medical
field.
The authors of these books show, just like Armstrong did,
how versatile the application possibilities of urine are.
It works wonders in many minor problems and diseases such
as ear- and eye infections, burns and bruises, allergic
conditions (hay fever), fungus infections of the skin,
warts, etc.. But it also can help the immune system to
cope with more serious conditions such as chronic colds,
flu, stomach problems, bronchitis, etc.. Furthermore it
has proven very helpful in the treatment of a number of
very serious, immune related diseases, such as chronic
and severe allergies, asthma, cancer, M.E. and AIDS. In
these cases it did definitely not always lead to long term
healing results, but it often alleviated symptoms to considerable
extent and sometimes indeed resulted into remarkable improvement
of the dis-eased condition.
Urine therapy and yoga tradition
Let's go back to the Indian history, where even much older
texts describing the practice of urine therapy are available.
A presumably 5,000-year-old document has been found which
describes the practice of urine therapy in different respects.
In this document, there are many references to herbs and
medicines still used in present day Ayurveda. This document
consists of 107 verses (slokas), is called Shivambu Kalpa
Vidhi ('the method of drinking urine in order to rejuvenate'),
and is part of a document called Damar Tantra. (The entire
text can be found in Chapter 7 of The Golden Fountain)
Shivambu literally means the water of Shiva, the highest
god in the Indian pantheon. The name Shiva means auspiciousness.
In India, at least among urine therapists, one often speaks
of drinking Shivambu, which simply means drinking the water
of auspiciousness. They also sometimes jokingly refer to
it as 'Morarji Cola', as India's former prime minister
Morarji Desai used to practice urine therapy. He openly
advocated this therapy and said India would be well off
when more people would use this extremely inexpensive and
effective way of treatment. These are the opening verses
of the Damar Tantra text, in which the god Shiva begins
to speak with his wife Parvati:
Verses 1 - 4:
"Oh Parvati! (The God Shiva speaks to his wife Parvati.)
Those who practice this method can enjoy the fruits of
their meditation and this method. For this, certain actions
have been recommended along with certain types of utensils.
The Shivambu is to be drunk from pots made of gold, silver,
copper, brass, iron, tin, glass, earth, bamboo, bones,
leather, or a bowl made of plantain leaves. The urine should
be collected in any one of the above mentioned utensils
and should be drunk. However, earthen pots are the best
for use."
Practical instructions are given on how to collect and
ingest urine, and advice on what is best to eat if you
drink your own urine. It has to be kept in mind, however,
that this document was written for those who practice yoga,
work intensively with their body and soul and adapt their
food to this lifestyle. Nevertheless, the following verse
contains some helpful general guidelines for everyone who
uses urine therapy.
Verse 5:
"The follower of the therapy should avoid pungent,
salty ingredients in his meals. He should not over-exert
himself. He should follow a balanced and light diet..."
Urine was equated with a divine drink which had the power
to exterminate all kinds of illnesses and ailments. The
following verse suggests that physical purification is
connected with a life of meditation.
Verse 9:
"Shivambu is a divine nectar! It is capable of abolishing
old age and various types of diseases and ailments. The
follower should first ingest his urine and then start his
meditation."
As said before, drinking urine is not the only way to
apply urine therapy. A number of verses discuss the importance
of massaging with urine. For example:
Verse 48:
"Shivambu should be applied to the whole body. It
is exceptionally nourishing, and can relieve all ailments."
Verse 87:
"Oh Parvati! If he massages his body thrice a day
and night with Shivambu, his countenance will be shining
and his heart will be strong. His body and muscles will
be strong. He will float in pleasure."
This last text is special because it connects physical
purification with purity of spirit and state of mind. Verse
87 is an especially good example of this belief. The hormonal
component seems to have a positive effect on the state
of mind. Various people with whom I have spoken felt noticeably
more emotionally stable, high-spirited and vital after
they started urine therapy. Probably this partly has something
to do with the aforementioned hormone melatonin.
Other ancient texts which are part of the religious and
spiritual heritage of India also contain fragments about
and refer either to urine therapy or to 'amaroli' ('nectar
of immortality'). A few examples:
Hatha Yoga Pradipika 3;96-97:
"In the doctrine of the Kapalikas, amaroli is the
drinking of the midstream, leaving the first for it is
too pungent (too much bile) and the last, which is useless.
He who drinks amari, snuffs it daily, and practices vajroli,
is said to be practicing amaroli."
Gyanarnava Tantra, Chapter 22:
"After realizing the exact knowledge of dharma and
adharma, every aspect of the world becomes holy - stool,
urine, ovum, nails, bones, are all holy things in the sight
of that person who has explored mantra. O Parvati, different
deities are living in that water from which urine is made,
then why is urine said to be contaminated?"
Harit, Chapter 1 on Urine:
"Human urine is basic, bitter and light. It destroys
diseases of the eyes, makes the body strong, improves digestion
and destroys coughs and colds."
Bhawa Prakasha, Verse 7, Chapter on Urine:
"Human urine destroys poison, properly used it gives
new life, purifies blood, clears skin troubles, is sharp
in taste and contains many salts."
Yoga Ratnakar, Mutrashtakam Verse 11:
"Human urine controls bile in the blood, destroys
worms, cleans intestines, controls cough and calms nerves.
It is sharp in taste, destroys laziness and is an antidote
to poisons."
