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From:	beno (201.229.141.62)
Subject:	Essene Diet
Date:	July 3, 2009 at 9:34 am PST

I meandered into the fruits/greens diet the traditional way--vegetarian, strict vegetarian, vegan, raw foods, fruits/greens--with an interesting stop before the last of the Essene Diet. The Israeli Essenes and their counterparts, the Egyptian Therapeuts (from which we get "therapy", "therapeutic", etc.), as you may or may not know, practiced in their communes over centuries if not millenia the perfection of diet, fasting and enema as a means of curing illness and preserving health, therefore, we should pay close attention to what they recommended. Their diet is a raw foods diet with emphasis of fruits, greens and nuts. The only major difference, other than the nuts and "Essene bread" (baked by the sun) is the quantity of food they eat. The diet recommends 1 - 2 minas a day, which amounts to about 13 - 26 ounces. This seems way too low, unless one eats lots of bread and nuts, which is not favorable. However, the concept of keeping food injestion to a minimum of course is favorable, for it relaxes the digestive system. I am currently discovering my own body's needs, but I would appreciate your input on this matter of quantity.
Also, in the apocryphal Essene Gospel of Peace where the Essene Diet is laid out, Jesus mentions the spiritual wisdom of eating only one meal a day. It so happens that the Buddha also stated as much, Hsuan Hua, the living Buddha (until he died last decade) that brought Ch'an [Zen] Buddhism to America concords, as does Sathya Sai Baba, the living avatar in India. With these four great spiritual masters in agreement, I tried to follow their counsel and did so successfully for several months, but I can't find why it is healthier, physically or spiritually (which, of course, builds on the physical) to eat one giant meal a day, which is necessary if one is getting one's calories mainly from fruit, instead of three or more smaller meals, so I am reverting. But I am bewildered, because I have a hard time fathoming how these four great spiritual giants could come to the same conclusion on so specific a point as diet and yet all be wrong, especially when one of them followed a raw foods diet! Your thoughts?
The Essene Diet indicates one should limit not only the food one eats, but even the liquid one consumes. The reason for this, I believe, is because excess liquids also tax the system, as they, too, need to be eliminated, just like toxins. Eating such large quantities of fruits obviously also increases the liquids one consumes. Your comments?
You state that one should eat a variety of foods. I tend to agree; however, the Essene Diet specifies that one should refrain from eating such variety, and rather that one should eat as few different foods as possible. Do you have any scientific evidence to back up your position, or is it merely opinion?
Finally, you espouse that we should all follow this fruits/greens diet. The Essene Diet agrees with your position; however, it also states that one should specifically and only eat food found locally. Edgar Cayce, in his countless readings on health, often made a similar comment. Such a philosophy also seems to lend itself to what appears to be the basis of your philosophy; namely, to eat what is readily available and naturally appealing, just as a primitive man would have done. Now, that works just fine for me, since I live in the Dominican Republic and is in fact part and parcel of the reason I live here, but for the rest of you, how do bananas flown in from a far distant place qualify? Furthermore, this concept of eating locally while sticking to a fruits/greens diet could give rise to a contradiction. For example, when I lived in Washington State, I found it impossible to continue as a strict vegetarian, and even had to eat meat, because my body could not adjust to living so far north. That, incidentally, corresponds perfectly to the macrobiotic philosophy of the yin and yang of foods being dependent on the yin and yang of location and climate. Your comments?
Thanks,
beno

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