Freedom to eat cheesecake

Herman Aihara loves cheesecake. As he continues his reflection on macrobiotics and freedom, he relates a funny story about how he once exercised his freedom to eat cheese cake – and learnt his lesson about freedom and limitations.

Click here to read Part I of the article, where Herman talks about patience and difficulties, and Part II where the tells how macrobiotics led him to freedom.

This article forms part of a series based on macrobiotic lectures that Herman Aihara gave in Singapore in 1995. Following that, I published an entire issue of The Good Life, summarising his key teachings in Singapore.

Herman Aihara passed away on 25 February 1998 and Cornelia Aihara passed away eight years later, on 25 February 2006.

“Macrobiotics is freedom,” Herman Aihara says. “Do what you want to do, and take responsibility. Most people forget the second part. They want freedom in terms of ‘I want o do want I want to do’. But they don’t take responsibility.”

To illustrate this, Herman Aihara relates how he loves to eat cheesecake. Once, as he was due to present a series of lectures, he ate cheese cakes for three days in a row...

Some years ago, I was lecturing in Los Angeles at a big health fair at Anaheim. My Japanese friends came to see me and they invited me to dinner. After a big dinner, desserts came: cheese cake.

I could not resist. I enjoy cheesecake very much. The next day, I was invited again. After my lecture, I went there, had a big dinner and dessert. And again, cheese cake. I have the freedom to eat cheese cake.

The third day, again I was invited. Again there was a dinner party. And again, I had cheesecake. I had the freedom to choose, right? So I chose cheese cake. And I enjoyed it.

The next day, I lectured in San Diego. There were many people there in the auditorium. I lost my voice. My voice didn't come. I am responsible for this. Three days of cheesecake – lose voice.

“What happened?” they asked. So I had to confess. In front of the big crowd, I had to tell them I ate cheesecake. I said I found out that my freedom is two cheese cakes instead of three.

Then two years ago, we had a summer camp. Before that, I went to Chico and met my friends there. We went to a coffee shop and I tried the cheese cake and coffee.

A few days later, I went again. And fortunately or unfortunately, I met some friends again and went to the coffee shop again. It was my last chance to have the cheesecake before the Summer Camp. It was only two cheese cakes, so I thought they were okay.

Then I went fishing at the river. It was a beautiful river but there were many mosquitoes there. I was caught by mosquitoes. I caught fish, but the mosquitoes caught me.

I asked Cornelia, “What can I do?”

She applied Dentie (a toothpaste made from burnt eggplant and sea salt.) Immediately, the itching stopped. I realised, then, that my limitation is one cheese cake, not two.

So you, too, have to find out the limitations of your diet. Everybody has limits. You are not free physiologically. If you want to drive a car, for example, you have to save money first. Or get a car. You have to pay for it. That's a limitation.

But spiritually, all of you are free. You can go anywhere, any time you want. You can be happy any time, in any way.

You have to discover your physical limitation. Then you can be happy. You can be spiritually free. This is macrobiotics. Understand the physical limitations. And be completely free in spirit.