Fireless Cooking Session with Maran G and Laughter Therapy

Fireless Cooking Session with Maran G and Laughter Therapy – Workshop at Bangalore on 22 July 2017

Participants of the workshop

The fifth-year anniversary celebration of the Swarnaprashna Parenting Community, which happened in June with over 40-50 parents and their family and children, was a one of a kind meeting of like-minded parents who share a common vision for health and spirituality alike. One of the super hit sessions at this celebration was the session of Dr. Maran G, who is a raw food activist and a firm proponent of Naturopathy. All of us were so bowled over by his enthusiasm and his super helpful attitude towards knowledge sharing, that it is but inevitable that we will all demand for a repeat (this time, more detailed!) session with Dr. Maran.

So, with the stars aligning, we were fortunate enough to enjoy two wonderful sessions with Dr. Maran in the last month – one in Chennai (organized by parent Priya) and one in Bangalore – which happened this past Saturday. I was part of the session at Bangalore and feel honored to share the knowledge gained at the session which Dr. Maran so gracefully shared with us all. But before we dive in straight to the learning, let me write a bit about Dr. Maran.

Dr. Maran getting ready to wow the audience

Maran G or Maranji as we liked to call him, is what you might call a food and health revolutionary. Hailing from Tamilnadu, Dr. Maran, who must be about 60 or so years old, has been tirelessly working the last 20 years (or perhaps even more) with a single motive to help families avoid expensive medical costs and realize that they can cure themselves of all diseases with a simple belief that Food is Medicine and Medicine is Food. A very humble soul and a great orator, Dr. Maran, who is a Naturopathy doctor, also runs a small all natural food restaurant at Sivakasi. One of the notable achievements of this restaurant is that they don’t use any of the five whites (Sugar, Salt, Maida, Milk and White Rice/Wheat) – and yet, over 250-300 people regularly visit this restaurant every single day in search of healthy and safe food. Dr. Maran regularly travels across South India to talk about healthy food habits and healthy lifestyle practices to lead a healthy and happy life. For all his wonderful knowledge and status, he might be one of the most humble men you might ever meet. The world certainly needs more of his kind.

As you might have guessed, any time we spend with such a person is bound to be filled with so much learning and so much realization of the simple truths about life. So it was the session that happened in Bangalore. Dr. Maran spent about 5-6 hours addressing all of us non-stop with not a single pause or break – that itself can be the proof of how the right food and lifestyle habits can help someone face all the demands of a day without breaking a single sweat! Dr. Maran, nonetheless to say, is a man who practices what he preaches and is an inspiration to all of us – if we can be half of what he is at that age, I am sure that will be a great achievement given the rush and mindlessness that we live in.

Participants listening attentively

As I sit now and try to pen down what I learnt this weekend, my mind simply boggles at the task before me! Every single second of the session was so useful and so full of information, that it would be impossible for me to capture every single one of it here without being confusing or overwhelming. So I will try to share the essence of what I learnt (given that I have about 15 pages of hurriedly scribbled notes to decipher). I am going to write it down as we covered it during the session without putting my own wrapper or inference around it though I will try to bracket it into categories wherever possible so that it is easy for you to read and remember. If you are unclear about what a certain point might mean, do comment and I will see if I can recall and try to elaborate it out for you.

Before the day’s session began, as has become our usual practice, Velu did a guided meditation for all parents gathered around. Few peaceful moments where we were called into recognize our own consciousness and its power to go far and beyond our immediate comprehension. By the end of this meditation, all of were feeling so centered and calm – just the right mindset to receive the downpour of wisdom all of us got from Dr. Maran! One of Dr. Maran associates, Mr. Mukesh Jain, who is a laughter and yoga therapist, joined us soon after to kick start the day with a quick laughter session that will set the trend for the day – a fun and jovial mood to break the seriousness and magnitude of the topic at hand. And then, it was time for Dr. Maran (many thanks to Parent and healer Anand who helped translate).

Meditation session in progress
Bhastrika Pranayama – one of the most easy ways to cleanse your lungs and detox

So, without further ado, here are some of the pearls of wisdom shared by Dr. Maran:

The Basics:

  1. The basic premise is that we are what we eat. One must understand that Food is Medicine and Medicine is Food. So, if we want a healthy body, all we need to do is look at our food habits.
  2. All causes of diseases and the many symptoms of the many diseases are just one – which is Morbid Toxin Accumulation in the body. So what are these toxins? It can be the polluted Air we breathe, the contaminated water we take OR it can be the bad food we consume – that is all.
  3. With that understanding, it will be easy to know that if all diseases are a result of one root cause, however different the disease or its symptoms are, all of them can be dealt with the same treatment – i.e. Complete Detoxification and a return to healthy food habits and lifestyle giving the body time and energy to heal itself.
  4. While Modern Medicine has been a great life saver (in the case of emergency surgeries, accidents and such), it has not been very kind to humans in its very quick recommendations for synthetic-chemical based medicines (more toxins to the already toxic loaded body!), operations and unnecessary amputations and eviscerations. So before one turns to this option, one must firmly look at one’s own lifestyle and food habits and identify the root cause of the disease instead of asking for quick-fixes from the Doctors of modern medicine.
  5. So how can we avoid toxin accumulation due to food? How can Food be medicine? How can our food habits help us live a healthy life and help our body heal itself? The answer is very simple – It is just about consuming food straight from the greatest kitchen in the world, without any secondary processing. That’s right, the greatest kitchen in the world is that of Mother Nature’s and the best kind of food is the one that comes straight from her – raw and clean of any contamination (including pesticides, fertilizers, etc.)
  6. One must understand and go back to our elementary school lessons that all of us have forgotten – Cooking takes away the essential nutrients in our food. Cooking is an unnecessary wastage of energy. Cooking is not required for a man to consume food. The early man might very well have been a fruitarian and if he could have in that harsh environment, we very well can be now.
  7. But given that we have got used to eating cooked food in the past few generations, how can we go back to this basic healthy way of living? Where do we start? Simple – Just switch 30% of your food intake to raw and clean – that should be more than enough to see you through. This roughly translates to a minimum of ONE COMPLETE raw meal (consisting of fruits, vegetables and plain juices/milk extracted from millets/grams/grains) per day.
  8. It doesn’t, however, stop at only food. We must also look at our overall lifestyle and make sure it is healthy. For instance, our good food habits must be complemented by good eating habits – i.e. for instance, giving complete attention to what we eat, biting each morsel minimum twenty or times till all the saliva is mixed with it (which is what helps digestion – as digestion starts right from mouth and not just in stomach as we believe).
  9. Physical Exercise is also mandatory as is cultivating a good mind.
  10. Finally, you can reverse most if not all diseases if you are totally willing to commit to a raw and clean food habit. Dr. Maran has cured many a people with his simple diet plans and lifestyle modification recommendations.
Our wholesome food getting ready – helped by kids!

What we must remember and most importantly practice:

  1. Replace the five whites mandatorily. Sugar can be replaced by Jaggery or Plam Sugar. Salt can be replaced by Sea/Rock Salt or Himalayan Pink Salt. Maida and White Rice can be replaced with traditional millet or unpolished rice varieties. Milk can be replaced with Milk alternatives such as Coconut Milk or Sprout’s Milk.
  2. In addition to nutrients, Cooking takes away the natural taste of the food as well which is why we need to add extra spices to dishes. If we get used to eating raw for a minimum one week, our taste buds will stop asking for “spicy stuff”. So start by consuming at least one raw meal a day. Every meal must begin with fruits or raw vegetables (30-60 minutes before the meal itself).
  3. Consume plenty of water. Look at detox waters to help detoxify and restore body balance.
  4. Water must also be consumed like solid food. Sip by sip mixed well with saliva.
  5. Practice Bhastrika Pranayama to detox your lungs and handle pollution in the air we breathe in.
  6. Assimilation and Elimination must happen smoothly for the body to function well. Pay attention to both these processes.
  7. Chew completely to ensure food is mixed well with Saliva. Saliva is the one that helps in digestion and it is also an insulin balancer if you will.
  8. Never control body urges including the urge to urinate and defecate. One must defecate at least twice a day. This will automatically get streamlined if one switches to natural/raw food at least once a day.
  9. Eat only when hungry and never go by the clock. Eat slowly and without distractions such as TV or mobile. Try not to talk as well while eating. Pay complete attention to what you are eating.
  10. Physical exercise and body activity is a must for healthy living. One must walk barefoot at least for half an hour a day outdoors. If not possible, at least walk in the shape of eight inside the house.
  11. Get up before sunrise. Do “Angapradikshina” and super brain yoga to keep your digestive system and nervous system active and healthy.
  12. Be childlike and cultivate a happy mindset.
  13. Dressing is also important for a healthy body – avoid tight and clingy dresses made out of unnatural fibers such as polyester and such.
  14. Help others and derive mental satisfaction. This, in turn, will help you reach a feeling of satiation and happiness.
  15. Never have a physical relationship with your partner within 3 hours of eating. All the blood will be re-directed to the physical act and food will turn to toxins. The best time, thus recommended by our elders probably keeping this in mind, is in the early morning well away from the last meal of the deal.
  16. Never eat after 7 pm.
  17. Practice Oil Bathing regularly without fail. If your lifestyle doesn’t allow it, at least do oil pulling.
  18. Have seasonal fruits. Consume desi (non-hybrid only) and organic fruits only as much as possible. For all other food, wash with salt and lemon to get rid of chemicals as much as possible before consuming.
  19. Don’t consume too much water just after a meal. Give at least 30-60 minutes gap. You may consume Detox water if you feel thirsty during this time.
  20. Finally, practice fasting as well to complement your healthy food habits.
A complete meal of the day – totally fireless cooking (all raw and natural)

Recipes:

So, all of us might have the same questions in our mind the minute we hear we must switch to at least 30% raw food in a day- how can we survive without any spices and simply eat just fruits and raw vegetables every single day? Well, it need not be that way. We can definitely create some wonderful recipes with spices such as dhania, jeera, and pepper and create some lip-smacking raw recipes. Do lookout for the English translated publications of Dr. Maran’s recipe books. For now, here are a few recipes Dr. Maran shared during the meet (he shared some more as well – but I haven’t been able to blog them all). We also had the great fun of eating all of these items (and more) prepared by Maranji’s assistant/cook Mr. Ramesh (who was helped by many parents as well including Divya, Nandhini and others).

Here are some of these items/recipes:

A healthy alternative to Cow’s Milk and Morning drinks:

  1. Curry Leaves Kheer
  2. Carrot/Beetroot Kheer
  3. Greens Kheer
  4. Sprout’s Milk

A healthy Starter/Snack:

  1. Sweet and Raw Ladies Finger Starter (or alternate with Snake Gourd)
  2. Raw Ground nut / Till Laddu Snack
  3. Sprout Salad
Sweet and Raw Ladies Finger Starter
Sprout Salad

Main Course:

  1. Mix Vegetable Kootu (or stew)
  2. Gourd Salad
  3. Lemon Aval (Flattened Poha) Rice
  4. Sweet Aval (Flattened Poha) Rice (Flattened Poha)
  5. Coconut Chutney
  6. Ridge Gourd Chutney
  7. Curd Aval
Mixed Veg Salad
Sweet Avalakki
Ridge Gourd Chutney
Lemon Avalakki
Kootu
Curd rice (avalakki)

Desserts:

  1. Aval Payasam
  2. Stuffed Snake Gourd Sweet Treats/Cutlets
Aval Payasam
Stuffed Snake Gourd Sweet/Cutlet
Never knew Snake Gourd can be so yummy eaten raw (Of course the Jaggery filling helped 😛 )

Other Accompaniments:

  1. Beetroot Pickles
  2. Ginger Pickles
  3. Detox Waters
Beetroot Pickles

What I have shared is probably just 50% of what Maranji shared or even lesser. I hope you get a chance to attend his session yourself and get to learn as we all did this time.

Before I wrap up, I must also thank Mr. Mukesh Jain – who spent well over an hour making us all laugh – the only thing we didn’t do was ROFL (rolling on the floor laughing). We did everything else laughing – yoga, exercise, talking, moving, dancing, the formation of an energy circle….and what not. My god, Mr. Mukesh never let his smile or laugh dim even for a single second – such was his commitment to giving us all a memorable day of laughter. As they say, a day without laughter is a day wasted. Though it will by no means be a day wasted, Mr. Mukesh’s child-like enthusiasm in engaging all of us left us all grinning ear-to-ear well after the day was over.

As an ending note, let me express my gratitude to Dr. Maran, Mr. Ramesh, Mr. Mukesh Jain, Velu, Mani, many parents and volunteers who made this event happen (Devika, Divya, Nandhini, many more I am sure ). God bless them with a happy, healthy life!

Author: Vaijayanthi

Vaijayanthi is a freelance business writer and full-time gardener. She coaches people on adopting a chemical-free lifestyle through her initiative called the Kaustubam for Sustainable Living Practices. She also conducts various physical workshops and training sessions on sustainable living and Gardening for children in Bengaluru through the initiative The Happy Child.

An Interview with Lao-Shi Dr. R.G.Balachandar by Healer Anandh Ji.

Dr. Balachandar. Founder of ‘Magical Life Solutions’. A master Healer and Trainer in Zhineng Chi-Gong * Ho’oponopono Technique (Ancient Hawaiian Secret of Problem Solving)

This specialty is in the field of energy medicine and tai-chi (Qi-gong, enengy cultivation), in providing all aspects of health and supreme wellness to an individual, also in creating awareness and clarity about finding ones own inner balance towards healthy life thought ancient hawaiian system of life solutions.

Author: Anandhji

Anandh. G, Trainer and teacher in Hospitality field for 18 years, Professor and HOD at a Hotel Management College in Wayanad, Kerala. Found his passion in Energy medicine and Healing sciences from the year 2003, starting helping people to heal from 2005 onwards. Apart from his work he is pursuing and practising Indian Classical Acu-puncture, popularly known as Touch therapy. He can be reached at anandhanu@gmail.com

Indian Classical Acupuncture Popularly known as Touch Therapy.

Mind-Body Wisdom, Path to Well-being
Objectives:
1)To develop keen in depth practical knowledge on Mind-Body intelligence and its functions
2)To understand & follow natural life enhancing rhythm conducive to our Mind and body.
3)Becoming medicine free by restoring and strengthening the natural ability of our immune system.

Continue reading “Indian Classical Acupuncture Popularly known as Touch Therapy.”

Author: Anandhji

Anandh. G, Trainer and teacher in Hospitality field for 18 years, Professor and HOD at a Hotel Management College in Wayanad, Kerala. Found his passion in Energy medicine and Healing sciences from the year 2003, starting helping people to heal from 2005 onwards. Apart from his work he is pursuing and practising Indian Classical Acu-puncture, popularly known as Touch therapy. He can be reached at anandhanu@gmail.com

Specialized Yoga with Yogacharya Sri. B. Shankaranarayana Shastri

When Yoga is a Multi-billion dollar Industry, Meet the man, who spent almost half a century in teaching yoga as service all at “Free of cost”.

It is a privilege to invite Yogacharya Sri. B. Shankaranarayana Shastri to share and guide our parenting community.

He has more than 50 years of teaching yoga as a service. Trained from “Sadhana Sangama Yoga Pitha – The center established in the linage of the renowned “Himalayan Yogi – Swami Rama”.

  1. Imparting yoga training for the Teachers and Students of the education institutions from Pre-primary to Postgraduate centers and professional institutes like Medical Colleges and Technical Engineering Collages to redress –
    1. Learning disabilities
    2. Lack of concentrations
    3. Abnormal behaviors in the teenagers
    4. Emotional problems
    5. Health ailments
  2. Designed syllabus for “Yoga teachers training” and headed the workshop for the preparation of “Yoga Text Books” – under National Curriculum guidelines – D.S.E.R.T
  3. A unique “Yoga Sandhya” program is designed for the benefits of “Gayathri Upasakas” and conducted training on that.

Till today, He has conducted more than 900+ till date and has benefited more than 89000+ people from all walk of life. Apart from regular camp, He has enriched more than 150+ educational institutions.

Problems of the Children solved by regular practice of Specific Yoga activities:

  • Learning disabilities
  • Exceptional behavior disorders
  • Concentration and memory problem
  • Bedwetting problem
  • Stammering
  • Lack of interest and perseverance in studies

Some of the Health problems solved by regular practice of specific Yogic activities:

  • Depression
  • Diabetes
  • Blood pressure
  • Asthama
  • Exima
  • Migrane
  • Insomnia
  • Obesity
  • Side effects of Cancer treatment
  • Monthly cycle problems faced by women
  • Nervous disability
  • Memory problem
  • Side effects of cancer
  • Under development in children
  • Thyroid problem

He is town this weekend, 3rd July, 2016 a 10.30 AM-12.30 PM. It is a indeed an honor to invite him to our whatsapp parenting community. Hopefully we end up doing a workshop in future soon.

Please Books your Invite for Google Hangout-On-Air.

Author: Roopa

By Roopa Prasanna I am a homemaker with two kids a son and a daughter aged 9 and 6 yrs respectively. I love telling stories to my kids. It has helped them to grow up better and they are more relaxed at the end of the day. My other hobbies are listening to music and reading. I have always believed our ancient wisdom holds the key to many of our questions. You can reach me at roopa.hebbar AT gmail.com

Stargazing with Shiva

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Stargazing is one of the most ancient and enthralling of human scientific endeavours. From ancient times till now, people have looked up at the dark night sky and been fascinated by what they have seen. Amateurs, artists and scientists alike have made the study of the heavens one of the most compelling of hobbies and inspiring of activities. However, this basic joy is getting harder and harder to experience as our cities and countryside have become brighter and brighter with electric lights. Astronomers consider this “light pollution” the worst kind of hindrance, made even worse by the air pollution in our big cities.

Bangalore still has a couple of oases at night, where some basic stargazing is possible. One such location is the Raman Research Institute (RRI) Trust property in Kengeri. Set amidst 50 acres of woodland, this secluded spot is protected from the worst of Bangalore’s light pollution. Moreover, the old house on the property is an ideal place to spend the night for up to 30 people (4 bedrooms and bathrooms, and plenty of space to spread out sleeping bags) and enjoy an entire night of stargazing.

Procheta Mallik, An astronomer by training, guided us view moon, to planets such as Jupiter and Saturn, to star-forming regions such as the Orion Nebula and the Pleiades Cluster from 10cm Celestron GoTo Telescope.

We plan to do this in association with Relaxedness during Dec 2016 to Feb 2016. In case if you like to join us, do write to swarnaprashana@gmail.com

Author: Shiva Kumar

Shiva kumar bharathi is a Professional Certified Coach engaged in understanding of his own being in engagement with people, communities, time and trees. Shiva's area of expertise is in understanding how building healthy practices happens through the involvement of senses and how to sustain them through the support of physical and virtual communities using game based approach. He is interested creating new experiences with the groups by creating events on star gazing, potluck through millets, fruit wine tasting and so on. you can reach him at shivaimp2025@gmail.com

Ancient Hawaiian Secret System of Problem Solving

Master Healer Dr. R.G. Balachandar’s short talk on ancient Hawaiian secret system of problem solving, which brings us to the reality, that there is only one world which is within us.

When we change the world within us, the so called outer world changes automatically. It’s a mind cleansing, time tested ancient method, which involves complete transmutation of negative energy within oneself.

Author: Dr. R.G. Balachandar. BDS., D.A.Sc.

Dr. R.G.Balachandar is a dentist by profession, due to his quest in finding 9the root cause of diseases and restoration of health he did extensive research in the field of mind-body medicine for more than a decade. He realized Energy medicine can play a vital role in mind-body wellness rather than using synthetic chemical drugs. His speciality is in the field of Energy Medicine and Tai-chi (Qi-gong, energy cultivation), in providing all aspects of health and supreme wellness in an individual, also in creating awareness and clarity about finding ones own inner balance towards healthy life through ancient Hawaiian system of life solutions. As a master healer he works towards the growth of human consciousness, peace and wellness, he feels more responsible to create independent beings by giving them take home products based on Energy medicine and Qi-gong, with which the art of growing healthier will stay with them for life-time through their own daily practices. He can be reached at atmavishram@gmail.com | +91.9489 486 977

Heal Your Past, Transform Your Present, Create Your Future.

A common question I hear when I am introduced as a practitioner of Past Life Regression is: “I have enough going on in my life, why would I want to bring up more problems from my past and add to it?” I can understand the concern. But there is a twist.

What if I told you, that you are already carrying the burdens of your past, you are just not aware of it, and Past Life Regression is a way to drop the past. Resolve the past, and free yourself from the negative effects of past karmas, repetitive patterns, stuck emotions and limiting belief systems.

Close Your Eyes. Open Your Heart

It is the same reason why we study History: if we are interested in a subject and wish to solve its problems and excel in it we need to study it deeply, and to really understand it we need to look into its history to know what factors have shaped it. We study history to learn from the past and to not repeat the same mistakes again. A forward progress in any field, be it science or medicine or art builds on what came before it and uses the past as ladder for growth. To know more about your own self, to master your challenges, overcome weaknesses, to make sense of your story and excel in living your life, you need to study your own history. Past Life Regression is a study of your personal history. It is an exploration into your past in this current lifetime including childhood, followed by a study of previous lifetimes.

Modern psychology, genetics, medicine and behavior science are restricted to studying only the effects of the current lifetime. However, ancient scientific wisdom traditions like Yoga and Ayurveda and spiritual texts like the Vedas and Tibetan texts speak clearly about the influence of our past and the benefits of past life healing.

You Are The Sum Total Of All Your Experiences

Soul

Some past experiences you can remember well, some not so clearly, while others are stored deep in the recesses of the subconscious mind, hidden from your conscious memory but nevertheless there. These experiences from present lifetime and previous lifetimes influence our physical health, relationships, career, prosperity, emotions and beliefs. If we wish to bring about transformation in any of these aspects of our life or even if we want to know ourselves better we need to look into our past. We carry forward what we have not yet learnt, healed, resolved with the aim to do so in the future.

Regression brings up the past that we have to learn from, emotions and beliefs that we need to let go of, wounds that need healing and helps us achieve that. This remembering is actually natural process. Most children have access to their past life memories until around the age of seven, after which the veil of forgetfulness descends and they are also conditioned by family and society to not trust their visions and experiences. Many people also have past life dreams which they are unable to comprehend, or déjà vu experiences which are also a clue to the past.

Reincarnation can no longer be denied. There are well documented cases that prove it beyond doubt. We reincarnate over and over again to heal our selves, learn valuable life lessons through experience, to grow and evolve, remember our true nature and realize our essence.

Stories Of Healing

In my own experience, I was able to overcome a deep fear of losing loved ones which made me cling to them and also made me very anxious in their absence. Through regression I was able to re-experience many past lifetimes where I had lost people I loved due to various reasons. I was able to release a lot of that pain, trauma and sadness. I also experienced that in many lifetimes I was reunited with these souls and I realized I never really lost them. This brought about a great peace in me and also improved the quality of my relationships.

A client of mine who was suffering from years of body pain and burning sensations that could not be diagnosed and had not responded to any kind of treatment, relived past lives where there was a lot of physical torture especially to the limbs. This trauma had not been released and was carried forward as cellular memory. After a few sessions immense relief was felt.

An adult who was experiencing severe low confidence, inability to make decisions and not having clarity in what they wanted. This was causing a lot of problems in their professional life. They were able to recall child hood experiences of severe parental disapproval. A very strict upbringing, punishments and not being allowed to do what they wanted resulted in a lot of self-doubt, low self-esteem and being unsure of the self. Healing brought about self-approval, self-confidence and a sense of knowing they will make the right decisions.

Hope For A Better Future

These are just a few experiences from a repository of hundreds of sessions. People’s life stories never cease to fascinate me. The ability of the human body, mind and spirit to heal, be resilient, find strength, transform and forge ahead is simply amazing. We all have that power within us, a light waiting to be ignited.

Our past experiences and choices have created our present. And the choices we make in the present moment create our future. This awareness empowers us to take responsibility for our lives, live consciously and choose wisely. It liberates us from feeling like victims of life and gives us hope that we can create something better for ourselves.

Author: Kapila Ramakrishnan

Kapila is an experienced Life Coach, Healer and Spiritual Teacher, trained in Past Life Regression, Rebirthing Breathwork, Inner Child Work, Mindfulness practice and other Holistic healing systems. Her own awakening happened while she was still in the corporate field, during which intense inner transformation led her to the path of self discovery and healing. After years of study and practice, Kapila shares wisdom and applies techniques that have helped her and others live fulfilling lives, through personal consultations, workshops for groups, talks and articles. Kapila shares a deep connection with animals and nature, and is actively involved in animal welfare work. You can write to Kapila at kapilaramakrishnan@gmail.com