sungazing

[neutrino]

Hello everyone

I also hang out at some raw food forums, and one topic that has come up recently is that of sungazing. ( http://www.rawfoodsupport.com/read.php?f=12&i=35013&t=35013 )
It is claimed by Hira Ratan Manek, a Jain ex-engineer, that gazing directly at the sun in the hour after sunrise or before sunset (when uv levels are low), while standing in direct contact with the earth, will enhance spritual evolution and eliminate the need to eat (because the body can derive energy directly from the sun, rather than via food).

I was wondering if anyone has any direct experience with this, or any comments?

HRMs website is www.solarhealing.com and he also has a yahoo disussion group.

[daem0n]

not in current form of this body

[Leo Volont]

This is the Primary Site for Sungazing.  Many very interesting claims... but India is full of very interesting claims.  Everybody has some kind of a system, and the universal language there is 'exaggeration'... but there may be something to it.  But supposing that Sungazing can replace eating... it seems very unlikely.  Human Beings have existed on this planet for hundreds of millions of year, in various form, and you would have supposed that if it was so easy to live without food, somebody would have stumbled onto it way before now.  

http://www.solarhealing.com/sgprocess.htm


Also, for Americans, here is a Website which provides sunrise and sunset times:

http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/RS_OneDay.html

[aleshah]

solar tones and energiez  resonating equaly with the spiritual evolution.It's not the only power source for all the life on the planet.
How want this people survive during cold days?

[You]

That solar gazing thing seems a bit quacky... so what if the guy doesn't live on solid foods? He could be taking those dietary milkshakes for all we know. Solid food is fine and healthy.

If he went without any sustenance at all, or just water, I'd be more impressed.

Heck, old people usually can't eat solid food anyway.

[Leo Volont]

solar tones and energiez  resonating equaly with the spiritual evolution.It's not the only power source for all the life on the planet.
How want this people survive during cold days?

Yeah, some areas of the world have distinct rainy seasons.  I've been in Europe and Britain and have often almost forgot what sunlight looked like.

And I thought more about sun gazing this morning.  You know the sun's light is reflected from everything all around us -- often so bright during the day that we would choose to look at it through dark glasses.  People who work out of doors are virtually drenched in it.  It makes it quite an Urban Intellectual's Fantasy that Sun Light is the Latest Hip Discovery.  If it were, our rural poor masses would all quite be Supermen, no?

But I do like that Web Site's advice on walking bearfoot everyday... it would be like giving yourself Reflexology Therapy -- all those little aches and pains from stepping upon all those annoying little pebbles would be a rather thorough Reflexology Foot Massage, no?

[You]

I think it only applies to DIRECT sunlight. They mention all the different colours (mixed together in white sunlight, obviously) hitting the eye. If you get light from bouncing off things (other than pure white things like snow... which can give snow blindness... ) it wouldn't work to the same degree and wouldn't give enough of some colours, and definately not in a balanced form.

[Leo Volont]

I think it only applies to DIRECT sunlight. They mention all the different colours (mixed together in white sunlight, obviously) hitting the eye. If you get light from bouncing off things (other than pure white things like snow... which can give snow blindness... ) it wouldn't work to the same degree and wouldn't give enough of some colours, and definately not in a balanced form.

Yeah, that is what they say, but all these people who are selling their own personal systems always have something to 'say'.  It is our jobs, as discerning customers, to evaluate the sense of what they are saying.  So think about it -- out on a brite day, do you NOT get a full spectrum of Sun Light reflected back off of Semi-Lambertion Surfaces?  Certainly we do!

You need to understand how India works.  EVERYBODY wants to be the next Great Guru.  In India nobody wants to be a Rock Star, or a Movie Star -- their BIG Stars are Gurus.  So people spend their entire lives sitting around scratching their heads trying to figure out a system that they can push... not so much for money as for fame and a sense of social accomplishment.  But their over-eagerness should make any reasonable person wary of their product.  As I have said before, the Common Language of India is 'Exaggeration'.

The best way of putting any Indian System in proper perspective is to take all the claims you hear and multiply them by .15, that is, believe about 15% of what they say, and even then, see if you can get a free sample before you 'buy' anything.

This is a little off subject, but there are some signs for determining True Gurus from the false.  For one thing, in the presence of a True Guru, your Agna Chakra will automatically open up very wide.  But always look around the room ... it may be another spectator who has opened up your Agna Chakra, and not the purported 'Guru'.  Believe me, you can tell by looking.  Once in India, hopping from Ashram to Ashram, I was sitting in a crowd waiting for this one Guru's Darshan, when this Old Sadhu wondered onto the premises.  ZAP!  But people who were struck by the Spiritual Power of that Ashram might not have noticed it was from this one anonymous Sadhu who only stayed a day and then was back off into his Jungle Hermitage.

It is hardly ever mentioned, but there are Proxy Gurus in India -- 'Saints' who are invested with Power by the True Gurus who stay back in the shadows.... all the bothersome attention goes to their proxies, and they get to live in peace.  Ramana Maharshi was just such a proxy Guru.

It is remarkable what you can see with your eyes.  A very enlightened Man at this one Ashram in India could be horribly stubborn about money and one time he was arguing with a Taxi Driver over a fair back to The City, I signalled the Cabby to just agree to the man's demands and that I would pay the difference.  Then we went off for tea.  20 minutes later, just from looking at me, the man blurted out "You agreed to pay the cabby full price, didn't you?"  Just like he, we all need to rely on the discernment which comes through the eyes.  When you look around, begin to trust what your Vision is telling you.  If you think somebody is more spiritual than the Nominal Guru, then he probably is.

[Leo Volont]

You know, you don't need to look at the sun.  There is another exercise in which you simply gaze off into space or even toward a wall or a ceiling, but not to focus especially on anything... the idea being to allow the Prana or whatever, to come in thru the eyes.

You will know it is working when you can't decide whether your eyes are still open or not.. for just a moment, that is, as soon as your mind comes back to it you instantly know your eyes were open, but just wondering was enough for you to know that you were not so much looking outward, as allowing the energy to flow inward.

This exercise increases the heat of the Spiritual Energy, so be careful with it.

[aleshah]

The sunbeams get into the skin and create several vitamines in it.Too much progress can cause skin cancer, like on other evolutional levels.
I have tooken some energy from the sun trough my palms and i felt very exhausted after.
The sprititual evolution is a good metaphysical formula
sun evolution = spiritual.It means their progress takes
the same amount of time and afford, as the sun rises like disires.
It was told that people livin in the warmer southern regions have got  more
communication and are more good sinned.thx sun  
This evoultion proceed furhter as the sun dies.Then the formula is maybe spiritual evol. = universal extend.

[You]

Well apparently the risks of the sun giving skin cancer aren't there since you only do it at sunrise and sunset... they say it's been pr oven scientifically... I would like to find some scientific backup for that, I don't want my eyes burned out like in a solar eclipse.

[aleshah]

offidea:Never drunk crystal clear water reloaded the whole day by the sunbeams.

[pod_3]

To go into the sun for extended periods used to be the prescribed cure for skin cancer. These days, it is most likely caused by pollution, which exists in many spectrums.

[neutrino]

Thanks for your input everyone  

Personally I'm torn between scepticism and open-mindedness on this issue. I've no idea if HRM is 'legitimate' or not, & I'm aware of the Indian 'guru' problem, but in fairness to him, he doesn't claim to have discovered the process-  merely that he is publicising an ancient practice that used to be relatively well-known (which we have no way of proving  of course!)

Regarding climate - he says that living in a cloudy or cold country is not necessarily a barrier to the process, just that it'll take longer. Nine months worth of clear sunshine in total is needed to complete the process, so if it's cloudy, more than 9 months will be needed, including the cloudy days. After this period, there is no need to continue sungazing if barefoot walking is practised consistently.

I've no idea if it works or not - many people claim that it has worked for them, but who knows? My attitude is 'suck it and see' - I trust my own experience over anyone elses rhetoric, so I'll probably give it a go at some point (although it could be a VERY long process, living in not-so-sunny England!)

[You]

Right... see where I come from they still say skin cancer can be caused by the sun... not cured by it. I think you're thinking of leprosy.

[neutrino]

One alternative perspective that I've come across on skin cancer is that it (like many cancers and other degenerative illnesses) is fundamentally caused by a build up of toxicity in the body (from years of bad diet, environmental pollution etc). These toxins are stored in cells throughout the body,  including skin cells, (as well as in the interstitial fluid), and may react with UV light in an adverse way, leading to cancer.  So in such cases the sun is the trigger for melanoma development, but only indirectly - the real cause is the toxic condition of the body.

I don't know how accurate this theory is, but it makes some sense in terms of a holistic approach to health.

[aleshah]

+creatures, who eat fast food regularly have an overload of fatty acids in the body.

[You]

Perhaps you don't Leo Volont, but then it would be beneficial for different reasons than listed in this website referenced... as for the one after I can't really comprehend a lot of what you're saying... grammar...

[Wells]

Umm, I really WOULD NOT recommend looking directly at the sun, even if you think it's safe.  You can do damage without realising it.

[pod_3]

I should say that the cataracts of people who live outdoors come from grit. Under a magnifying glass, they look like rows of scratches. Often, there are particles in those.

I have been out in the sun with UV blocking, goggle-like sports shades all day, and my eyes have hurt. I've tried solar gazing for short stints and have not had any problem.  In fact, I had reading glasses as a child and unkowingly looked into the sun often when I had them off.  Ten years later, I can still read all the characters on the eye chart. I am the only person in my extended family with no need for glasses. (I mention having gazed unknowingly to add to the point that no particular meditation is necessary. However, my benefits are minimal.)

Unbelievable, but I will attest personally that it improves night vision!

I liken this to the wall of flourescent lights, which people with winter blues must gaze into. This being as much as the sun does for me, I currently see no hope of it leading to inedia. It could cause a dreamier sleep, but solar gazing doesn't eliminate my need for sleep after only a few minutes.

Also, my findings agree with those of others', who say that other healing energies cause them to tan instantaneously.

No sunset or clouds are necessary. I live in a portion of California know as Greater Palm Springs. Death Valley is a short drive away! The summer swelters in my house, but I can take off my shirt, sweat standing in the sun, and  get cool in the breeze. So, I looked again after reading about solar yoga and still did not go blind.

I would follow up on any suggestions which would allow me to expand upon this, thanks.

[cheezerman]

I got to 10 minutes before I moved to the city (no bare earth, too many buildings blocking the sun )

When I was sungazing daily, I would be able to work all day in the fields without eating anything.  In fact, my energy levels went up.

I plan on finding a nice spot soon, and resuming asap.

Just to clarify; it does NOT damage your eyes.  My eyesight has only improved as a result.

This page has some good info on the safety aspect.
http://mintaka.sdsu.edu/GF/vision/Galileo.html

Oh, by the way, sungazing has started to turn on my etheric vision!  Now I can see etheric entities and on certain days, etheric specks and energies.


Hope this helps.

[You]

Look I can go a day without eating too, it's called fasting and after a while you do almost get euphoric tendencies.

I won't believe this sunlight thing until I can see a guy go a week without passing out or wasting away from doing things, or a guy survive a year on eating just that.

Sunlight can't have everything you need. Even if you were able to convert the energy, you'd still need proteins, fatty acids, nutrients, vitamins, carbohydrates, fiber, etc.

[neutrino]

Thanks Cheezerman, for sharing your experience & the link.

[Mystic Cloud]

The eyes are directly connected to the pineal gland.
So 'excess' light could turn on the hormone production which in
turn could switch on energy centres, which in turn would produce energy
for the whole body.

I also noticed that my eye sight got better with the gazing which I
thought was weird.

[aleshah]

The eyes are directly connected to the pineal gland.
So 'excess' light could turn on the hormone production which in
turn could switch on energy centres, which in turn would produce energy
for the whole body.

NLP and emotional programming modulate the frontal lobes.
While frontal lobes are modulated by light excess /NLP/emotional control *unexpected* shifts in learning/ in clairvoiance/TK/TP/.... and changes of memory/ dejavues.