Clear Your Clutter with Feng Shui (Revised and Updated)

by Karen Kingston

  Curled up inside the human abdomen is about 22 feet of small intestine, leading to about 5 feet of large intestine, also known as the colon or bowel. So that you can visualize it, the large intestine is about 2.5 inches in diameter…or rather, it is supposed to be.

  The first picture shows a healthy colon; the following pictures of unhealthy colons give examples of what can happen to people following a Western diet, which is well documented as being the unhealthiest in the world.

  It’s likely that many of you reading this book have a colon that is distorted and coated in stagnant, impacted feces. Just about everyone who eats Western food does. Certainly if you have a thick waistline or bulging abdomen, this is very likely the case.

  Mucoid plaque forms in the colon, partly as a residue of eating mucus-forming foods and partly because our bodies naturally secrete mucus in our intestines as a defense mechanism against toxins. The mucus can be cleared away by pancreatic juices, but mucus-forming food now forms such a huge percentage of the Western diet that the pancreas cannot cope. Layers of plaque build up throughout the length of the intestinal tract and then compact and harden.

  With our modern-day child-rearing practices, this all begins when you are an infant. NASA research scientists have discovered traces of mother’s milk in colons, indicating that many people carry impacted fecal matter in their colons all their lives.

  A healthy colon contains residual friendly bacteria that weigh up to 5 pounds; encrusted colons have been found at autopsy to weigh 40 pounds or more. Sometimes there is so much putrid matter that parts of the colon expand from 2.5 inches in diameter to an obscene 10–20 inches in very obese people, leaving a channel of only about a pencil’s width in the center through which excreted matter can pass. The colon becomes permanently toxic and all manner of health problems result as these poisons seep into your bloodstream and find their way to all parts of your body.

  If you consume, or have ever consumed, meat, poultry, fish, dairy products, sugar, processed food of any kind, chocolate, caffeine, soft drinks, or alcohol, then you will certainly have mucoid plaque and will benefit from colon cleansing. Even vegans usually need to do it because of mucus buildup from soy and grain foodstuffs (soybeans are the most mucus-forming of all plants). All traditional cultures, whether meat-eating or vegetarian, have certain herbs they take from time to time to cleanse their intestinal tracts.

  In the same way that each part of your home is connected to an aspect of your life, so each section of your colon is connected to a part of your body (see Dr. Richard Anderson’s book, Cleanse and Purify Thyself). Hence many herbalists advocate colon cleansing as the cure for 90 percent of all diseases, and I certainly have found it to be enormously beneficial in terms of both preventative and curative healing. It works because not only do you clean up your internal sewer system, but in the process, all manner of emotional issues that may have been buried for years come to the surface and get released. It is in the emotional resolution that the real healing takes place.

  Eating and Excreting

  Eating and excreting is the most natural process in the world, yet most Western people are totally out of touch with their own bodies. In particular, they feel disgusted at the thought of their own excrement. I have noticed that Balinese babies get toilet trained much quicker than Western babies, and I think this is because they are not trussed up in diapers so they figure out what is going on much faster.

  From all my research into this “not-to-be-discussed-in-polite-company” topic over the years, I have concluded that one of the dumbest things ever invented is the Western sit-down toilet. The squatting position adopted by the millions of people who live in the East opens the colon and makes it much easier to evacuate the bowel than sitting doubled up on a Western toilet. I think it is very likely this is a factor in why colon diseases are so common in the West and so rare in the East. (Note: A useful health tip if you use a Western toilet is to sit up straight and raise both arms high above your head—this opens up the intestinal tract in a similar way to squatting.)

  Maybe this is all getting a bit much for you. I do appreciate how distasteful some people find these topics. However, I consider colon cleansing to be crucial to preventative medicine. If your colon is clear, your body thrives and your life works. If the colon is clogged, it will affect everything you do. If you need any more convincing, consider Dr. Richard Anderson’s account of a very revealing experiment:

  Alexis Carrel of the Rockefeller Institute and two-time recipient of the Nobel Prize was able to keep chicken heart cells alive for 32 years by nutritious feedings and by washing away tissue excretions. The chicken heart cells grew and thrived as long as the evacuations were removed. Unsanitary conditions finally resulted in lower vitality, deterioration and death.

  Constipation and Diarrhea

  The general rule is, “new meal in, last one out,” and researchers who have spent time in remote jungles around the world observing people who have an unstressed, natural way of life and healthy eating habits report that fifteen to thirty minutes is the usual time period between eating and excreting. So if you do not feel the urge to have a bowel movement within half an hour of finishing a meal, you are constipated. And long-term diarrhea is just as much of a problem because it means your colon is so laden with harmful bacteria (and probably parasites, too, which adore putrid, decaying matter) that it is constantly irritated.

  The following symptoms also indicate colon problems: intestinal rumblings, stomach pains, smelly farts, feeling that even healthy food doesn’t nourish you properly (poor nutrient absorption), bad breath, body odor, and smelly feet. You’ll generally feel below par too.

  If you are still in doubt, take the sunflower seed test. Put a handful of shelled sunflower seeds in your mouth, chew them as little as possible, and then swallow them. Now wait until they appear at the other end. If your intestinal transit time is about ten hours, this is good. If it’s longer, you could use some colon cleansing to clear the encrustation. Some people find they have to wait three or four days before the seeds appear! One woman wrote to tell me how proud she and her husband were to notice the sunflower seeds emerging only twelve hours later…and then they noticed they appeared again and again over the next three days. So you need to keep watching.

  The Ideal Poo

  Now here is some information that is difficult to find in any book. Here’s what an ideal bowel movement will be like after you have done thorough colon cleansing:

  ⬦ Comes out easily and noiselessly within seconds

  ⬦ Involves no straining

  ⬦ Is light brown in color (unless you’ve eaten something like beets)

  ⬦ Doesn’t smell much

  ⬦ Is soft and not compacted

  This is why I say that reading material kept near the toilet is a sure sign of constipation—if you have time to read anything while you’re in there, you’re in bad shape!

  The Benefits of a Clean Colon

  So far I have outlined the dire consequences of a filthy colon; now here are some of the benefits of having a clean one. Most people find that after doing a colon cleansing once, they love the results so much that they make it an annual event. After this you can expect to:

  ⬦ Feel and look healthier (better skin tone, fewer wrinkles, stronger nails, shinier hair, etc.)

  ⬦ Feel more buoyant and energetic

  ⬦ Have a stronger immunity to disease

  ⬦ Derive more nourishment from your food and have less desire to eat junk food

  ⬦ Experience more love, joy, and happiness in your life

  ⬦ Be more flexible in your approach to life

  ⬦ Be happy to let go of the old and welcome the new

  ⬦ Enjoy more satisfying sex (because you do not have the internal pressure of an overburdened colon)

  Louise Hay, in her
book Heal Your Body, gives the metaphysical cause of bowel problems as “fear of letting go of the old and no longer needed,” and recommends the affirmation, “I freely and easily release the old and joyously welcome the new.” To reinforce this, when practical, start going to the toilet as soon as you feel the urge instead of waiting as long as possible, as so many people do. In this way you reeducate yourself to physically let go easily and quickly, rather than holding on to things until you are forced to act, and this filters through to mental, emotional, and all other aspects of your life.

  Herbal Colon Cleansing

  Herbal colon cleansing, done in conjunction with a regenerative nutrition program (there is no point in clearing junk out at one end while shoveling the same kind of stuff back in again at the other!) produces remarkable results. The program takes six to nine months, depending on how long you have been eating sugar, mucus-forming foods, or other junk food.

  Never use laxatives. They irritate and weaken the bowel. Colonics are useful as an aid to cleansing the body during fasting but are no substitute for the deep cleansing and rebuilding properties of colon herbs.

  It is always best to work with a qualified herbalist, and be sure to do so if you are pregnant, nursing, elderly, chronically ill, weak, or debilitated. The process invariably brings up emotional issues that you may need support with; you may also want reassurance when your body starts evacuating what looks like bits of old rubber tires. As one man told me, “It is horrifying to see what comes out but very satisfying to see it go.”

  Some excellent books I can recommend on this subject are The Colon Health Handbook by Robert Gray, Dr. Jensen’s Guide to Better Bowel Care by Dr. Bernard Jensen, and Sugar Blues by William Dufty. You can find more information about these and other books in the bibliography. There is also a link on my website to a reputable supplier of Dr. Christopher’s herbal formulas, which are the ones I have found to be the most effective.

  Parasite Removal

  There is a modern myth that worms and other parasites are found only in third-world countries. They also abound in the West, and colon cleansing is a vital part of clearing them from your body. If you read up on this topic, it may well be a revelation to you just how often parasites are implicated in poor health.

  Fasting

  After months of being “on the road” teaching workshops in the West, eating in restaurants, sleeping in hotels, and traveling on planes, it is pure bliss for me to get back home and have the time and space to do some honest-to-goodness juice fasting. Nothing revitalizes and energizes me more than fasting for a while on pure, organic, freshly juiced fruit or vegetables, and best of all, pure water.

  Here’s how it works. When you eat food, it takes a lot of energy for your body to digest it. When you fast on juices, all your internal organs get a vacation, so all that surplus energy is available for repair and revitalization. I believe the dumbest thing a person can do when they are seriously ill is to eat anything at all. Animals know this. They never eat when they are sick.

  Except in medical emergencies, it is always best to do colon cleansing before juice fasting. Most of the unpleasant side effects people report from fasting are simply due to autointoxication from putrid matter caught in their own colon when it stops moving, and from impacted fecal matter that has been there for years. And for those of you who dread feeling hungry if you fast, here is a tried-and-true tip: for the first day or two, mix generous quantities of spirulina powder with your juice or take spirulina in tablet form (several dozen during the day). It is the most complete protein known, is excellent for toning the bowel, and you will hardly feel hungry at all if you take it. By the end of day two, most people find all hunger pangs have ceased.

  The ultimate in fasting is the pure water fast. Again, except in medical emergencies, it is usually best to work up to this rather than taking just water from day one. Gradually dilute your juice more and more until you are drinking only pure water.

  It is vital that you read widely on this subject before attempting a fast. You need to know how long to fast, what to fast on, and especially how to break a fast. Breaking one too quickly or with the wrong type of food can have serious, even fatal, consequences. However, done correctly, fasting is one of the most exhilarating experiences you can imagine. It is such a treat to give your internal organs a chance to rest and to experience what it is like not to stuff your emotions down with food all the time. You will discover new depths of passion and vitality in your life.

  THE KIDNEYS

  Our body weight is made up of approximately 70 percent water, and yet many people barely consume one or two glasses of pure water a day. All cells contain water—the blood is 90 percent water, and even our bones are 22 percent water. Its presence is fundamental to life and good health, to transport oxygen and other nutrients to cells and to take toxins away from cells.

  So my message is: drink water. It is the best thing you can drink. Water cleanses and purifies, bringing you greater clarity in your life. Ideally, drink at least eight 8-ounce glasses of water a day. Freshly juiced fruit and vegetables are also good in addition to water. However, tea, coffee, sugared drinks, and alcohol put a tremendous strain on the body, especially the kidneys, liver, pancreas, and colon, and are to be avoided. They are largely composed of water but they also contain strong dehydrating agents.

  You will know if you are drinking enough water by the very simple God-given mechanism called thirst. Do not ignore it. By the time you feel thirsty, your cells are already dehydrated. You can also check the color of your urine. Dark yellow urine means you are giving your kidneys a hard time. Very pale yellow or almost colorless urine means you are well hydrated.

  There is also an art to when to drink fluids. It is best to drink about half an hour before you eat and then wait for one and a half to two hours after eating before you drink again. Otherwise you dilute the digestive juices in your stomach, which causes internal havoc (the food spoils and ferments, producing acidosis, which affects all body functions). When you chew your food properly you don’t need water to wash it down.

  If you discover you enjoy colon cleansing, you may decide to do an herbal kidney cleanse once a year as well to keep these vital water-filtration organs in good shape.

  THE LUNGS

  Breathe deeply to allow your lungs to do their job of eliminating toxins. Most Westerners subventilate, taking in just enough air to sustain themselves. This is all tied in with feelings of low self-esteem: “I don’t deserve,” “I’m not good enough,” and so on. If you are fearful, your shoulders will slouch forward as your body unconsciously tries to protect your heart region, and this will restrict your breathing still further.

  Straighten your spine. Take heart. It is your birthright to live life to the full. With every breath you take, you are saying yes to life, yes to love, yes to joy, happiness, and abundance. Learn from the native peoples of the world or watch any newborn Western baby and discover that correct breathing is not shallow, involving only the upper chest, but deep from the diaphragm, allowing the internal organs to get massaged with every breath. Breathe through your nose, never through your mouth. Remember also to breathe when you eat, to oxygenate your food.

  Other ways you can help your lungs are to take vigorous walks, avoid mucus-forming food that clogs them, avoid pollutants, and, of course, stop smoking if you’re a smoker. If you need further incentive to quit, find a book or website that shows pictures of how grotesque the lungs of smokers are—it’s quite a shock to see them.

  THE LYMPHATIC SYSTEM

  The lymphatic system cleanses all the tissues of the body. The blood has the heart to pump it around but the lymphatic system relies entirely on the action of the lungs and the muscles of the body, which is why regular exercise is so important. Walking, swimming, other forms of gentle exercise, and rebounding are excellent ways to get the lymph moving. Most types of massage are also helpful. So is dry skin b
rushing (see the next section about the skin).

  One very important consideration is to avoid tight clothing, which will obstruct the flow of lymph in the body. In their book Dressed to Kill, Sydney Ross Singer and Soma Grismaijer warn of the health effects that can result from lymph restriction and toxic buildup caused by wearing bras, as well as “tight pants syndrome” in men.

  From a survey of over 4,700 American women between 1991 and 1993 in their Bra and Breast Cancer study, they concluded that “the average American woman is 19 times more likely to develop breast cancer than is a woman who wears a bra for less than twelve hours daily” and “women who wear their bras all the time have a 113-fold increase in breast cancer when compared with women who wear their bras less than twelve hours daily.” They note that in countries of the world where women have only recently begun wearing bras, breast cancer is just now becoming known. Puzzlingly, no one before or since has conducted a similar study, but in my opinion more research into this is long overdue.

  Underwire bras, especially the sexy push-up variety, inhibit lymph drainage even more, and it is my belief that the metal also acts as a kind of antenna to conduct harmful electromagnetic fields from computers and other electrical appliances into the delicate breast tissue, contributing to the likelihood of breast cancer. Women working as computer operators, sewing machinists, and in other jobs where their breasts are in close proximity to the electromagnetic fields of electrical equipment are most at risk.