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Herman Aihara on macrobiotics and freedom Herman Aihara talks about macrobiotics and freedom in Part II of this article, which is based on a public lecture that he gave in Singapore in 1995.
In March year, Herman and his wife Cornelia presented a series of macrobiotics lectures, workshops and cooking classes in Singapore, at the invitation of the Macrobiotics Society, Singapore, of which I was the President. Click here to read Part I of the article, where Herman talks about patience and difficulties, before moving on to macrobiotics and freedom. I had been wanting to post these articles on my website ever since Herman's passing. This, then, is a long-overdue, belated tribute to Herman and Cornelia Aihara. Part II: macrobitics and freedom “To me, macrobiotics is freedom,” Herman Aihara says. “I went to America because it is the land of freedom. I was very unfree in Japan, because of tradition...”
Herman Aihara was also very unhappy. At nine, he was adopted. But he didn’t know that until he was 17, when he was told that his real mother had just passed away. Later, he married. But his wife could not get along with her mother-in-law, and she committed suicide.It was during his search for happiness and meaning in life that Herman Aihara learnt about macrobiotics and freedom through George Ohsawa. Macrobiotics and freedom / responsibility “Ohsawa’s lecture changed my life,” Herman recalls. “One night’s lecture can change one’s life. Is that too much to expect? I went to Ohsawa’s school and I learnt freedom. That’s my principle of life – my meaning of life.” “People have gone through wars and revolutions in their struggle for freedom. Yet they don’t know what id freedom. The smart answer is in the Chinese language. The Chinese word for freedom means ‘depending on your self.’ “Do what you want to do, and take responsibility,” Herman says. “Most people forget the second part. They want freedom in terms of ‘I want o do want I want to do’. “You are making sickness,” he explains. “You eat what you want to eat. Then you become sick. But you don’t take responsibility. That’s modern people’s freedom. “The teaching of macrobiotics and freedom is this: You eat what you want to eat. But the result, you take responsibility. If you fall sick, you have to cure yourself – not the doctor, not drugs. “When I have a stomach ache, that’s my responsibility. So I don’t go to the doctor. In 50 years, I have gone to the doctor only once. “It was a mistake,” Herman quickly adds. “Not my will. I was unconsciousness. I was feeling so painful that I lost consciousness. So my friend took me to the hospital. Recalling another incident about macrobiotics and freedom and responsiility, Herman relates how he loves to eat cheesecake. Once, as he was due to present a series of lectures, he ate cheesecakes for three days in a row. As a result, he developed a sore throat and could not speak when the time came for his leacture. The incident not only taught him about macrobiotics and freedom, but also also limitations -- he learnt that his limit was not more than three cheesecakes on three consecutive days! Macrobiotics and freedom from fear of death “If you have pain, don’t worry. If you lose your consciousness, no more pain, right? If you didn’t do such bad thing, you will not die,” Herman assures. “You die only when you have given up. If you are no longer interested in money, or sex, or anything else, then you will die. If you have something to do, you will never die. “So don’t worry. If you have pain, keep the pain. If you have cancer, keep the cancer. If you have an infection, keep the infection. “But look for the meaning. Ask the bacteria, ‘Why do you live in my body?’ It will give you answer. Macrobiotics and freedom from modern medicine “Modern Medicine,” Herman says, “is a big mistake. Doctors hate microbes. They hate cancer. They hate Aids. They hate all sickness. “But why sickness comes, they never think. That’s why they never change. They never think: Why I have cancer? Why I have infection? They just try to eliminate. “Sickness is not microbes. Sickness is not cancer. These are the symptoms of hating cancer, hating microbes, hating viruses... Until you understand why you are sick, you cannot cure your sickness. Macrobiotics teaches you to think, why are you sick? “I teach macrobiotics so that people will self reflect, ‘Why I am sick? Why I am unhappy?’ Then they will start thinking. They will change their attitudes, their eating and their drinking. Then they will become healthier and happier. “You don’t need sickness. Sickness is not necessary. You are born so that you can enjoy 80 years, 90 years, 100 years on Planet Earth. Living on Planet Earth is temporary. “I am picnicking on Earth. My permanent residence is in Heaven. Every night, I go back. That’s my home. And in the morning, I rush back to Earth. You do the same thing. But if you eat bad food, you cannot go back to Heaven. Every night you get nightmares. Because you eat bad food – having constipation! “If you eat brown rice, miso soup, vegetables... It never happens. Always Heaven. It’s so easy. Too easy, so people don’t believe. But some people believe. And they change.
Macrobiotics and freedom from cancer “Two years ago, I met a man with cancer. He had a most difficult cancer. According to medical statistic, the cure rate is only 5 percent. “He was about 60 years old, with lung cancer, and his lungs were half-filled with water. Doctors said he was hopeless. (*Albi or taro potato plaster is a traditional remedy for drawing out tumours. Instructions can be found in most macrobiotics books.) “After three and a half months, all the water was gone. He continued the diet for one year. His oncologist was surprised. He said he was 95 percent cured. Three and a half months of albi plaster – that’s patience. Where does this patience come from? |
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