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The simple use of ones own urine

Introduction:

In February 1996 the First World Conference on Urine Therapy took place in India (in May 1999 the second world conference took place in Germany). The fact that a number of allopathic doctors also visited these conferences shows that this remarkable and sometimes despised therapy, which for a long time was almost forgotten, is coming back to the forefront. And rightly so.
Urine therapy is very effective, and it is always available and quite inexpensive, to say the least, which is absolutely wonderful in a world which sees itself confronted with increasing health- as well as financial problems.
But what is this urine therapy? How does it work? What are its roots? What has the medical world to say about it? And, not the least important, how do you go about it?
Coen van der Kroon covers almost all questions concerning urine therapy and its history in his book The Golden Fountain; The Complete Guide to Urine Therapy. (The book recently appeared at Amethyst Books/Gateway Books; ISBN 0-944256-73-2; 152 pages; illustrated; £8.95 or $14,95).
In the following article connections of urine therapy with the yoga traditions are explored. Also practical tips are given for the application of urine therapy in daily life.
You will find more detailed application programs here. Meanwhile, the below is a reasonable starting point.
If you haven't done it yet, you might be convinced, after reading this article or The Golden Fountain book, to take a sip from your own golden nectar. If not, it's definitely worth reading anyway!

What is urine therapy? How does it work?

Urine therapy means using (your own) urine externally or internally as a way to promote or maintain your health.
The first question that probably comes to mind is whether urine is not a toxic substance and how a toxic waste product could ever be of any benefit for your health. Well, urine is NOT a toxic waste product and this has been scientifically proven.
95% of urine is water, 2.5% consists of urea and the remaining 2.5% is a mixture of minerals, salt, hormones and enzymes. Toxic substances are being removed from the body through the liver and intestines, through the skin and through the outbreath.
The main function of the kidneys is to keep the composition of the blood in optimal balance. When there is to much water, the kidneys will remove it. But that doesn't make water into a toxic waste product. Only the substance urea can be poisonous when present in very large amounts in the blood. However, this is irrelevant in the practice of drinking urine, as urine is not immediately put back in the bloodstream. In the small amounts urea gets back into the body, it is purifying, clears up excess mucus and has a number of specific, very useful effects. Moreover, it has a wonderful healing and tonifying effect when applied to the skin.
You can find urea in many skin products as one of the main components- specifically in many woman cosmetics. Furthermore, urine is entirely sterile after secretion and has an antiseptic effect. We are talking here about urine from the point of view of somebody who follows a reasonably healthy diet, and who does not use chemical drugs or allopathic medicines. Urine therapy is a method based upon the principle of "natural cycles".
As long as we do not interfere chemically with the body's natural cycle, the body produces urine which is perfectly suitable for re-cycling. If you ingest a great deal of chemical substances - and these days all kinds of processed food contain chemicals - part of this will end up in the urine, in which case the composition of the urine changes. Normally, however, urine is a healthy substance which contains healthy, harmless and nourishing components.
Some natural cycles take place more quickly than others, but the cycle in general is the foundation of all life. If we let nature run her course, there will be no waste, and a disturbed equilibrium will always come back into balance. Just as we are capable of disturbing a natural equilibrium, we can also do our part in helping nature recover her balance. In order to support such a recovering of balance, we are equipped with a wonderful, natural "house pharmacy": our own urine provides us with a swift and safe method for using the powers of the natural cycle.

What exactly are the effects of urine therapy?

Briefly, if urine is ingested and/or rubbed into the skin, it purifies blood and tissues, provides useful nutrients and sends the body a signal about what is in or out of balance. This last effect is called (oral) auto-immunization. This brings us to a last important feature of urine. Urine itself is, as said, not a toxic waste product. It does contain however minute particles connected with possible disease processes in the body. These minute particles are mainly antibodies, which upon re-ingesting can help the body to react on specific pathological situations.
Urine therapy has proven helpful in a great number of various diseases, ranging from a simple cold and a throat-ache, to tuberculosis and asthma, from minor skin problems such as itching, to more serious skin diseases such as eczema, psoriasis and even skin cancer.

Urine therapy in the East: therapy or way of living?

Urine therapy has been practiced for thousands of years and has merely fallen a bit into obscurity in the last century.
However much urine therapy may seem to be unorthodox and perhaps revolutionary, it does not introduce anything new or original. It has been known throughout the centuries both in the West and in the East. Especially within yoga and tantra tradition the use of urine has been kept alive. It served partially as a real "therapy", a method to cleanse the physical body of impurities, but also as a way to further spiritual growth. As such it should be considered more as a spiritual practice or lifestyle.Very illustrative in this sense are the following remarks:
Swami Satyananda Saraswati states in "Amaroli - The Way of the Yogi", the preface to the book Amaroli (Amaroli is the practice of ingesting ones own urine):
"I am fully acquainted with the topic of amaroli and have had personal experience with its use. Of course, I did not use it for therapy but in order to perfect vajroli kriya, and I am convinced that those who want to perfect vajroli will have to go through the process of amaroli.
Since 1943, right up to 1978 (date of publication of the book Amaroli), I have never seen bad results from the use of amaroli, either in therapy or for vajroli. Just recently a very ill gentleman approached me and asked me my opinion on amaroli. I suggested that he try it for himself and see what happens. Now, two months later, he has recovered completely.
From the healing point of view, if amaroli proves to be less dangerous than the therapeutic use of drugs, synthetic hormones and various other assorted chemical substances, if it proves less corrosive and nutritionally harmful than Coca Cola and 7-Up, if it is less dependence-producing and intoxicating than alcohol, less distasteful than eating gelatin, manufactured from the hooves and tendons of animals, then I am sure it will be a boon to humanity.
I personally feel that we must state the facts on amaroli in as straightforward, clear and direct a manner as possible. Then mankind may just possibly find that there are many other benefits hidden in the science of amaroli than originally believed." (From: Amaroli, S. S. Saraswati, Bihar School of Yoga, Bihar 1978, out of print)
Some time ago, my attention was drawn to an article in the reputable English weekly journal The New Scientist. It was about the research done by two Australian scientists into drinking morning urine by Indian yogi's and its possible positive effect on meditation practice. The hypothesis is that this might be due to a hormone found in morning urine called melatonin.

Urine therapy in the West

Apart from these effects within meditation context, the use of urine is very practical as far as curing all kind of ailments and diseases is concerned. This practice has been known all over the world and in many cultures. The Greeks and Romans were acquainted with the use of urine as a medicine. But also later in history there are many references to urine as being helpful to combat illnesses.A good example can be found in a major German encyclopedia (Johann Heinrich Zedler's Grossen Vollständigen Universallexikon, 1747), in which the author offers the following tips concerning the use of urine as medicine:
"Useful substances can be found in human as well as animal urine... Human urine has strengthening and curative characteristics concerning many deficiencies:
"For example, a mixture of potato- and sulphur-powder, mixed with heated, old urine helps against hair loss. One should rub this mixture into the scalp; this slows down loss of hair (calf's gall can be added if necessary).
"One can best heal injuries to the eyes with honey dissolved in the lightly boiled urine from a young man. One should wash the eyes as often as possible with this fluid.
"All kinds of throat inflammation can be helped by gargling with urine to which a bit of saffron has been added.
"Trembling hands and knees can be helped by washing and rubbing one's own warm urine into the skin directly after one has urinated.
"In the beginning stages of dropsy, one should drink one's own morning urine on an empty stomach for a prolonged period of time. This also helps against jaundice."
In this century it was the Englishman John Armstrong who was the urine therapy pioneer with his work and with his book The Water of Life, famous both in West and East. Armstrong realized that the powerful medical world entertained other ideas about the usefulness of urine.
Even so, he was exceptionally persistent in his conviction and enthusiasm concerning urine therapy, probably because through urine therapy, he cured himself of tuberculosis which had been declared "incurable".
Armstrong began urine therapy after a long and agonizing journey in which doctor after doctor proved unable to cure him of his TB symptoms. On the contrary, his condition only worsened. He decided to try urine therapy for two reasons. First of all, a quotation from the Bible stimulated his curiosity: "Drink water from your own cistern, flowing water from your own well." (The Book of Proverbs 5:15) Secondly, he had childhood memories of his mother smearing urine on his face which was swollen from a bee sting, and of his grandfather treating animals with urine. Recently, a lot of books have been published on urine therapy, especially in Germany, and some of those books have been written by regular doctors. This shows that there is a development towards a little bit more understanding and acceptance from people working within the regular medical field.
The authors of these books show, just like Armstrong did, how versatile the application possibilities of urine are. It works wonders in many minor problems and diseases such as ear- and eye infections, burns and bruises, allergic conditions (hay fever), fungus infections of the skin, warts, etc.. But it also can help the immune system to cope with more serious conditions such as chronic colds, flu, stomach problems, bronchitis, etc.. Furthermore it has proven very helpful in the treatment of a number of very serious, immune related diseases, such as chronic and severe allergies, asthma, cancer, M.E. and AIDS. In these cases it did definitely not always lead to long term healing results, but it often alleviated symptoms to considerable extent and sometimes indeed resulted into remarkable improvement of the dis-eased condition.

Urine therapy and yoga tradition

Let's go back to the Indian history, where even much older texts describing the practice of urine therapy are available. A presumably 5,000-year-old document has been found which describes the practice of urine therapy in different respects. In this document, there are many references to herbs and medicines still used in present day Ayurveda. This document consists of 107 verses (slokas), is called Shivambu Kalpa Vidhi ("the method of drinking urine in order to rejuvenate"), and is part of a document called Damar Tantra. (The entire text can be found in Chapter 7 of The Golden Fountain) Shivambu literally means the water of Shiva, the highest god in the Indian pantheon. The name Shiva means auspiciousness. In India, at least among urine therapists, one often speaks of drinking Shivambu, which simply means drinking the water of auspiciousness. They also sometimes jokingly refer to it as "Morarji Cola", as India's former prime minister Morarji Desai used to practice urine therapy. He openly advocated this therapy and said India would be well off when more people would use this extremely inexpensive and effective way of treatment. These are the opening verses of the Damar Tantra text, in which the god Shiva begins to speak with his wife Parvati:

Verses 1 - 4:
"Oh Parvati! (The God Shiva speaks to his wife Parvati.) Those who practice this method can enjoy the fruits of their meditation and this method. For this, certain actions have been recommended along with certain types of utensils. The Shivambu is to be drunk from pots made of gold, silver, copper, brass, iron, tin, glass, earth, bamboo, bones, leather, or a bowl made of plantain leaves. The urine should be collected in any one of the above mentioned utensils and should be drunk. However, earthen pots are the best for use."

Practical instructions are given on how to collect and ingest urine, and advice on what is best to eat if you drink your own urine. It has to be kept in mind, however, that this document was written for those who practice yoga, work intensively with their body and soul and adapt their food to this lifestyle. Nevertheless, the following verse contains some helpful general guidelines for everyone who uses urine therapy.

Verse 5:
"The follower of the therapy should avoid pungent, salty ingredients in his meals. He should not over-exert himself. He should follow a balanced and light diet."

Urine was equated with a divine drink which had the power to exterminate all kinds of illnesses and ailments. The following verse suggests that physical purification is connected with a life of meditation.

Verse 9:
"Shivambu is a divine nectar! It is capable of abolishing old age and various types of diseases and ailments. The follower should first ingest his urine and then start his meditation."

As said before, drinking urine is not the only way to apply urine therapy. A number of verses discuss the importance of massaging with urine. For example:

Verse 48:
"Shivambu should be applied to the whole body. It is exceptionally nourishing, and can relieve all ailments."

Verse 87:
"Oh Parvati! If he massages his body thrice a day and night with Shivambu, his countenance will be shining and his heart will be strong. His body and muscles will be strong. He will float in pleasure."

This last text is special because it connects physical purification with purity of spirit and state of mind. Verse 87 is an especially good example of this belief. The hormonal component seems to have a positive effect on the state of mind. Various people with whom I have spoken felt noticeably more emotionally stable, high-spirited and vital after they started urine therapy. Probably this partly has something to do with the aforementioned hormone melatonin.

Other ancient texts which are part of the religious and spiritual heritage of India also contain fragments about and refer either to urine therapy or to "amaroli" ("nectar of immortality"). A few examples:

Hatha Yoga Pradipika 3;96-97:
"In the doctrine of the Kapalikas, amaroli is the drinking of the midstream, leaving the first for it is too pungent (too much bile) and the last, which is useless. He who drinks amari, snuffs it daily, and practices vajroli, is said to be practicing amaroli."

Gyanarnava Tantra, Chapter 22:
"After realizing the exact knowledge of dharma and adharma, every aspect of the world becomes holy - stool, urine, ovum, nails, bones, are all holy things in the sight of that person who has explored mantra. O Parvati, different deities are living in that water from which urine is made, then why is urine said to be contaminated?"

Harit, Chapter 1 on Urine:
"Human urine is basic, bitter and light. It destroys diseases of the eyes, makes the body strong, improves digestion and destroys coughs and colds."

Bhawa Prakasha, Verse 7, Chapter on Urine:
"Human urine destroys poison, properly used it gives new life, purifies blood, clears skin troubles, is sharp in taste and contains many salts."

Yoga Ratnakar, Mutrashtakam Verse 11:
"Human urine controls bile in the blood, destroys worms, cleans intestines, controls cough and calms nerves. It is sharp in taste, destroys laziness and is an antidote to poisons."

How to apply urine therapy?

Below you will find internal and external applications. Please also review our practice programs page for more information.

Internal application

Drinking - Morning urine is best. Take the middle stream. You can start with a few drops, building up to one glass a day. Good as a tonic, as a preventative and in minor illnesses.

Fasting - Drink all the urine you pass, except for the evenings, otherwise you won't get any sleep. You can also take some extra water. The urine will quickly change its taste into almost neutral. Fasting on urine and water cleanses the blood. Toxins are removed through liver, skin and outbreath.

Gargle - Gargling with urine works wonders when having a throat-ache. Also good for toothache and generally when having a cold.

Enemas - Urine colenemas and enemas work very well in cleansing the colon and in providing a direct immune stimulant.

Vaginal douche - Helpful in e.g. yeast problems, white discharge, etc..

Ear- and eyedrops - Ear infections; conjunctivitis, glaucoma. For the eyes, dilute the urine with some water.

Sniffing urine/Neti - Sinusitis and other nose problems. Very good preventative for colds and to clean the subtle channels in the head.

External application

Massaging/Rubbing - You can use either fresh or old urine. Old urine (4 to 8 days) is generally more effective, but it has a strong to very strong smell. Massaging the whole body is a very important complementary treatment when fasting. It nourishes the body through the skin and helps against increased heartbeat. You can leave the urine on or wash it off after an hour or so, just with water or with a mild, natural soap. Fresh urine as an after shave gives you a beautiful soft skin. But it is also very helpful and healing in all kind of skin problems: itching, sunburns, eczema, psoriasis, acne, etc.
Gentle rubbing of urine into acupressure points (e.g. on the ears) - very useful when reactions are otherwise too strong, e.g. with very heavy allergic reaction.

Footbaths - Any skin and nail problems of the feet (athletes foot, ringworm, etc.)

Compress - When rubbing is not appropriate, this is another way of applying urine on the skin.

Hair- and scalp massage - Renders the hair soft and clean. Sometimes stimulates new hair growth.

Some guidelines and warnings:

It is generally not recommended to combine urine therapy with the use of (prescribed) chemical, allopathic medicines or recreational drugs. The combination may be dangerous to your health. If you are taking any form of allopathic medicine, begin with the external application (urine massage) until you are free of all medication, if possible.
If it is not possible or safe to stop the use of certain medicines, start with taking a few drops of urine internally or use a homeopathic tincture or gently rub fresh urine into the acupressure points of your ears. Keep looking and feeling very carefully how you and your body are reacting on the treatment. When suffering from a serious illness or, generally, when in doubt, consult a good natural doctor.

Transmutation and the healer within

"It has always been a kind of vocation for me to connect East and West, ancient and modern, spiritual heritage and science. So with urine therapy: it has a rich history, certainly here in the East. It is connected with spiritual practice as well as with modern scientific research. A good example is the research project at the University of Newcastle, England, into the effect of drinking morning urine by Indian yogis on their meditation practice. This paper is meant to make another such a small connection.
Over the years, urine therapy has proved to be an effective tool for healing. Most urine therapists, some of whom have been practicing urine therapy for decades, have never sought an explanation for why it works: their own experiences were sufficient proof. For some time now, however, there has been increasing interest in the search for a scientific explanation. This is because urine therapists believe it is important for urine therapy to be acknowledged as a valid method of treatment: doctors should be well-informed about the effects of this therapy so that as many people as possible can benefit from it. Since members of the medical world demand an explanation, the interest in scientific research has grown.
Another reason for this growing interest is that a number of "mainstream" doctors have also had positive experiences with urine therapy, which is reason enough for them to investigate how and why it works. This is not a recent development: in the 1930's, for example, the German pediatrician Martin Krebs successfully treated many patients with urine therapy, and subsequently published the results.
As a physician, he was convinced that urine therapy was an effective method of treatment, but he also realized that other doctors would not readily accept this fact since it conflicted with the scientific dogma which formed the foundation of their profession.
A good deal of research has already been conducted within the medical world into the composition of urine and its separate components. The researchers Free and Free published a report listing two hundred substances found in urine. They point out that these are only the most significant substances, and that urine probably contains thousands of components.
Several substances found in urine seem to be of value as medication, some of which have already been processed and used as such. The fact that certain individual components of urine are effective does not prove that urine therapy is effective. Conversely, however, it can be assumed that the components which have a particular effect as an individual substance, have the same effect when taken as a component of urine. In certain cases it could be imagined that the combination of these substances with other components of urine reduces or cancels out the effectiveness, but this is not the most obvious conclusion. We can, therefore, reasonably assume that if an individual substance displays a certain characteristic, it will also have this characteristic as a component of urine. The more individually effective substances found in urine, the stronger the argument that urine as a total entity has a therapeutic effect. A condition of this argument is that urine as a total entity does not contain substances with an obviously harmful effect: as yet there is no evidence to suggest that such substances have been found in urine. The small amounts of possibly toxic substances which can be found in urine largely seem to have a positive effect on the immune system. If urine did contain extremely harmful substances, it would be difficult to explain how many people (myself included) who drink their own urine every day for years could still be in exceptionally good health. So research has not yet been conducted on urine as a total entity which can be therapeutically applied. Still unanswered are questions regarding how and why urine therapy works, since urine is used here as a total entity.
A number of hypotheses have, however, been suggested which can serve as the basis for further scientific research. One of those hypotheses I would like to propose here. This hypothesis deals with the immunological effect of urine therapy and its deeper energetical dynamics. It deals with the so called "healer within". Urine therapy has often been associated with spiritual practice which might make it seem a bit magic. But, as science is discovering today, ancient spiritual ideas come very close to today's most recent discoveries in the field of quantum mechanics and vibrational healing methods.
But back to the basics: Urine therapy (using self-produced urine) can be considered to be an extension of the methods of Jenner and Pasteur.
An important task of the immune system is to rid the human body of diseased or unusable substances that have developed during the course of an illness. When these substances reach healthy tissue, the serum or blood becomes stronger, the activity of leukocytes (white blood cells) increases, and the patient probably recovers. This phenomenon is known as auto-inoculation or self-vaccination and can be seen as mother nature's method of healing an illness without external intervention. Urine therapy can be seen as a form of self-vaccination: certain bodily substances which have been removed from the body, some of which may have been produced as a result of illness, are re-introduced into the body in small amounts. These substances are re-absorbed into the blood through either the intestines or the skin. According to this hypothesis, the immune system is then given the chance to react appropriately. The doctors Remington, Merler and Uhr have demonstrated that a particular part of urine-protein is able to eliminate certain pathogens.
This discovery supports the assumption that urine therapy can be used to treat or prevent certain illnesses. In the early nineteenth century, Dr. Charles Duncan conducted research into therapies with self-produced substances, including urine therapy.
He demonstrated that patients suffering from gonorrhoeic urethritis (infection of the urinary tube as a result of the venereal disease gonorrhea) produce their own medication in the form of their own discharge. Auto-therapy was applied here by placing a drop of a patient's discharge directly on the tongue, in order to stimulate the body's natural powers. This method had a strong healing effect at every stage of the illness: if applied at an early stage, it could cause the gonorrhea to disappear. Auto-therapy is based on the principle that the body can use all fresh, self-produced, unaltered diseased tissue substances which originate from the micro-organisms causing the illness. Seen in this light, patients have their own medication in exactly the form constructed by nature to heal their condition. The results of Dr. William D. Linscott's research suggest that auto-therapy strengthens and stimulates the immune system, in particular with regard to the T-cells. The T-cell population of several patients who initially displayed a low T-cell count increased after treatment with urine therapy.

The Transmutation theory

Most of what has been said here will be valid from a strictly mechanistic point of view. The transmutation theory, though, needs a new, holistic paradigm which is based more on the dynamics of energies.
In recent scientific research, a shift is visible from reductionism to holism. It is beyond the scope of this paper to go into this matter. I nevertheless want to take the new paradigm fully into account here in trying to find explanations for the effectiveness of urine therapy. Urine can be considered to contain an exact holographic picture of the body fluids and tissues. The biofeedback of this holographic information by re-ingesting the urine may well inform the energy system in a way which helps restoring a disturbed balance. The medical doctor and urine therapist Abele cautiously discusses the possible effect of urine as holographic feedback: "The question rises as to whether urine could possibly be considered to be a sort of liquid-hologram. Once the body has been made conscious of urine in an unconventional way (such as it being reintroduced into the body by intramuscular injection) the whole organism evaluates it and subsequently updates its own regulating mechanisms (at least in specific cases)."
The theory of transmutation implies that the body is capable, through energetic exchange within the body itself, to transmute certain substances or molecules into other ones. "Short-circuiting" the system by ingesting one's own secreted body fluids might stimulate the transmutational forces within and challenge the body to transform unusable substances into usable ones without being constantly disturbed by new external input. It could possibly go as deep as to restructure disturbed DNA. This would specifically apply to fasting on urine.
An important aspect here is the theory of structured water. The body consists for the biggest part of water and so does urine. Not all water is the same though. The molecular structure of water can be less or more organized and in the latter case one speaks of structured water. The more it is organized, the better all kind of enzymatic processes can do their job. These enzymatic processes, in their turn, are responsible and necessary for the digestion, absorption and transmutation of all nutrients.
It is scientifically proven how water in biological systems becomes more organized. Water also becomes more organized through exposure to sunlight and through close contact with crystals. The body is both a receptor of sunlight and it contains a high amount of solid and liquid cristallinelike substances. Also body fluids themselves form fluid crystals.
Urine is thus a cristallinelike substance containing a high amount of structured water. This structured water, when taken in again, promotes better enzymatic functioning and it has a higher solubility for minerals. A higher amount of structured water in the body system is correlated with better health and more energy.
The fact that urine is a liquid crystal substance, particularly because of the various salts in it, implies that it contains crystalline vibrations completely in tune with the vibrational condition of the body. Re-ingestion might give the body valuable vibrational information needed for two things. Healthy vibrations will strengthen the already existing, healthy body resonance. "Diseased" or stress-vibrations will counteract any unhealthy resonance in the body. It is known that disturbing sounds of any sort can be counteracted best by confronting it with the same sounds. The vibratory patterns of the body, both in the bones (solid crystals) and in the tissues and fluids (liquid crystals), play an important role in the process of transmutation. The resonance field of a crystal can make a protein, for example, change its form into one that is more useful for the body, or easier adaptable by it.
Seeing urine as a liquid crystalline like substance containing a high amount of structured water may help understanding its healing qualities on the more subtle levels.
This is just one little step in trying to explain the energetical effect of urine therapy on the human organism. This way of thinking should be considered as a kind of scientific, modern "alchemy".
There is nothing wrong or scary about this terminology and the way of thinking that goes with it. It is nothing new and at the same time highly modern. It provides a chance to scientifically explain urine therapy in its fullest potential, while at the same time taking into account its rich, spiritually associated, history.
Urine therapy confronts us with a very concrete "healer within" which works both on a mechanistic and on an energetic level. The latter implies that urine, as a holographic substance, can affect all levels of being, from the physical, through the electromagnetical fields of the emotions and the mind, up to the subtler genetic vibrational information of the soul. In this sense urine therapy can be verily seen as one of the divine manifestations of cosmic intelligence.
Thus the ancient name Shivambu Kalpa, a name and a therapy to be treated with appropriate respect.

Properties and efficacy of auto-urine therapy

It is difficult to convince a majority of people that drinking ones own urine can cure a number of disorders. The reason is that modern medical science has hammered it intoour heads that urine is liquid containing useless and even harmful substances that have been rejected by the body. Traditional cultural influence has also nurtured a kind of disgust for urine in our minds.
Before discussing the effects of urine on our bodies and our disorders, let us first consider the composition of urine.
Normally a human passes from 750-1500 milliliters of urine in a day. The requirements of water increase after consumption of friend or highly spiced foods. This will result in an increase in the total quantity of urine. On the other hand, in summer a large proportion of body water is lost through perspiration, thus decreasing the amount of urine. More urine is passed during the colder periods of the year than during the hotter parts.
Generally urine is clear like pure water, or there may a tinge of yellow in it. When the quantity of urine decreases, due to hot weather or for any other reason, the concentration of substances in the urine increases, in which case it will probably be of a deeper yellow or orange color. The urine of a person suffering from jaundice is generally as yellow as turmeric, and that of a feverish person has a reddish tinge. Disorders of the kidneys or the urinary tract may cause urine to become turbid and red in color.
The urine of a healthy person is a little salty in taste. If the urine is of a more intense yellow color, it may be a little saltier in taste. If there is a reddish tinge in the urine, it may have a slightly bitter taste. Variations in the intake of solids and liquids as well as variations in the weather cause corresponding variations in the color and taste of urine.
The following are the average quantities of the various substances listed below, in 100 milliliters of urine as reported in "Introduction to Biochemistry" byDr. Pharon:

SubstanceMilligrams
Urea nitrogen682.00
Urea1459.00
Creatinin nitrogen36.00
Creatinin97.20
Uric acid nitrogen12.30
Uric acid36.90
Amino nitrogen9.70
Ammonia nitrogen57.00
Sodium212.00
Potassium137.00
Calcium19.50
Magnesium11.30
Chloride314.00
Total sulphate91.00
Inorganic sulphate83.00
Inorganic phosphate127.00
N/10 acid27.80

Some other important constituents of Shivambu are as follows:

Enzymes Hormones Miscellaneous As a knowledgeable qualified doctor has pointed out, there is a strong possibility of there being several other beneficial substances not yet know to science, in addition to the above substances, present in urine.
Urokinase, an enzyme present in urine, prevents the formation of blood clots in the blood vessels, and is even capable of dissolving clots already formed. When such blood clots obstruct the flow of blood in the blood vessels of the heart a heart attack may be precipitated. Dr. Mezel of the Edgewater Hospital of Chicago, IL USA, injects urokinase into the bodies of victims of heart attacks thus aborting the attack and saving the life of the patient.
Dr. Salaria, an eminent surgeon of Ahmedabad, Gugjarat, India, too makes it a practice to give an injection of the patients own urine before undertaking surgery so as to forestall any risk of overburdening or harming the heart during or after the operation.
The hormone erythropoietine, one of the substances usually present in urine, stimulates the bone marrow to increase the rate of production of erythrocytes (red blood corpuscles). This is the reason why a patient of anemia derives substantial benefit from auto-urine therapy.
Another hormone present in urine, adenylate cyclase, co-ordinates the actions of all hormones in the body through the production of a substance known as cyclic A. M. P..
Prostaglandin is a hormone that is essential for the contraction of the muscles of the uterus. Many scientists are of the opinion that this hormone can act as a contraceptive.
Urine contains sex hormones, insulin and growth hormones as well.
The Nobel Laureate Albert Sczent Georgyi has carried out a number of experiments testing the effect of methyl glyoxal, a constituent of urine, on cancer patients, and has had considerable success in several cases.
In addition to the above, one must not lose sight of the high probability of the presence of urine in many substances which are as yet unknown to science. All the beneficial substances are present in urine in very finely divided and highly potentised forms. As a result they are quickly absorbed from the stomach and the intestines within a short time following the imbibing of urine. And despite the extremely small quantities in which they are present in the urine, they have been found to be of great benefits to the body.
Dr. Dharmadhikari of Pune in Maharashtra state, India, has tried auto urine therapy on more than 200 patients, and has carried out scientific investigations related to this therapy. Here are the conclusions he has arrived at as a result of these researches: Dr. Dharmadhikari believes that these changes in body functions play a very important part in curing disorders. In the book 'Yoga' published by the Bihar School of Yoga, Monghyr, a knowledgeable and learned doctor has ascribed the efficacy of urine to the following reasons: Ayurveda and other ancient works on medicinal science have accorded their approval to the drinking of urine as a therapeutic measure. Ayurveda regards urine as an effective antidote against the harmful confluence of excesses of the three humours.
It is believed by some researchers that urine acts like a vaccine, promotingthe generation of antibodies that fight and over the agencies that cause disorders, thus resisting and curing diseases.
The sum and substance of the above discussion is that urine has an undoubtedly salutary effect on the body, but that the details of exactly how it acts in the body have not yet been worked out sufficiently clearly to command universal agreement among the experts.
How far would it be proper to recommend or adopt a remedy, the mode of action of which has not yet been completely understood? The answer to this objection is simple and straightforward. To this day the mode of action of a number of drugs and therapeutic procedures such as aspirin, acupuncture, electric shock treatment, etc., has not been worked out satisfactorily. But this in no way reduces their efficacy. The doctor knows well what effects aspirin will produce in the body after being ingested orally, and accordingly prescribes aspirin (which in fact the world consumption of aspirin exceeds the consumption of any other drug!) for the patient as and when necessary. Knowledge of its mode of action is not essential for the doctor. In the same way, innumerable experiments have established the actual effect of auto-urine on the body. It has always been found to have favorable effects, not a single case of an untoward effect having been recorded so far.
There is a mass of documentary evidence establishing the fact that imbibing of ones own urine has been and is being restored to by criminal elements to obviate physical damage and to augment their powers of endurance of pain inflicted by beatings; by mountaineer's to maintain their vigor and to fight adverse atmospheric conditions; and by numerous monks and ascetics to develop the capacity to complete their penance's successfully.
Briefly, it is nothing more than a conjecture that urine is a useless fluid that has been rejected by the body; no instances of urine having a seriously, or even mildly, harmful effect on the body have been recorded. A renowned heart specialist of Bombay, India once issued an appeal through a newspaper to members of the public, inviting them to write to him about their experience of auto-urine therapy, especially about cases of adverse effects. His purpose was to demonstrate that drinking urine is harmful. Soon there was a deluge of hundreds of letters in response to his appeal; but there was not a single letter among them that reported any adverse effects.
Over the years, urine therapy has proved to be an effective tool for healing. Most urine therapists, some of whom have been practicing urine therapy for decades, have never sought an explanation for why it works: their own experiences were sufficient proof. You too can join the growing legions of urine drinkers. Follow the above logical rules and you will see a marked improvement in your health.

Introduction

Auto Urine Therapy- Amaroli
The Bihar School of Yoga, Bihar, India
Amaroli author: Swami Satyananda Saraswati publishers: Bihar School of Yoga, Munger, India info:
e-mail: yoga@yogavision.net
web: https://www.biharyoga.net/.
Amaroli is the ancient tantric and yogic technique which incorporates the use of urine for fulfilling vajroli kriya. Amaroli comes from the root word amara which means "immortal, undying, imperishable". Amaroli was therefore a technique designed to bring about immortality. It was used in conjunction with tantric kundalini kriyas in an attempt to purify the body so that consciousness could expand to its original and cosmic state.
Because amaroli was originally a spiritual practice rather than a method of treatment, it was accepted and widely used by the yogis and rishis of old, but not by the general populace, and hence it fell into disuse. Recently, however, as Yoga and Tantra have gained worldwide acceptance and esteem, amaroli has reemerged as one of the most useful techniques, and many people are now interested in its particular application.
At the Bihar School of Yoga they have been watching this revival with great interest and have noticed that generally the therapeutic aspect of amaroli is being practiced without its previous association of vajroli.
Since the first contemporary book "The WATER OF LIFE- A TREATISE ON URINE THERAPY" was written by J. W. Armstrong many others have followed. This is especially so in India where the connections between amaroli, Sanskrit and yogic texts, as well as the need for inexpensive yet effective medication, was quickly recognized. In 1967 R. V. Karlekar wrote Auto-Urine Care and this was followed in 1973 by R.M. Patel's Manav Moolra. Just recently a magazine entitled Auto-Urine Therapy has commenced publication in Bombay. The publisher of this magazine, Acharya Jagdish B., has also recently printed Practical Guide to Auto Urine Therapy-Treatment and Diet.
These books and magazines present a sizable number of case histories and some amazing claims, for example, the cure of cancer, gangrene and tuberculosis, which have a considerable impact on the public. Many people have experimented with this technique, some with good results and some with bad. However, the subject still remains wide open; as yet no conclusive proof has been offered that amaroli works or that it does not work.
With these thoughts in mind Swami Satyananda Saraswati decided to pool the resources of the IYFM Research Coordinating Centre in an all out effort to fully research this important subject and to re-introduce amaroli as part of our ancient yogic heritage, bringing it back into its true perspective. Using the expertise of doctors, scientists, psychologists, natural therapists and other specialists, Swamiji initiated various research projects in both the theoretical and practical aspects. This work culminated in a seminar on amaroli in which the opinion on non-scientifically oriented people was also sought. Swamiji's inspiration and presence in all these spheres was the focal point of everyone concerned.
Whether the interest shown by all those involved in this research and by the general public grows into a revolutionary phase in the evolution of our society (the healing professions in particular) is in the hands of time and those proponents who not only have the courage and conviction to partake of their water, but also to scientifically research its beneficial effects. Having utilized these techniques ourselves, we feel that the time has come to accept that amaroli is probably a valid therapy and to scientifically investigate its effects as a healing agent as well as a spiritual practice.

Practice programs

The method of amaroli had lain untouched, shrouded in mist for thousands of years until its recent discovery. Because of this, little has remained of its practical aspects. Therefore we will attempt to fill in this gap by providing some concrete and practical programs for everyday use, which are now being recommended by the proponents of this technique. Please note, however, that we do not take any responsibility for the techniques laid down here. As yet there is no scientific evidence that aramoli works, and no standards as to quantity and quality of urine have been laid down.
If you wish, you wish you may select the aspect that applies to you, follow the recommendation laid down and examine carefully the results you obtain. Any changes in the regime should be noted and the results observed. Here at HPS On-Line we shall be pleased to receive the details of such experimentation for our own records. Eventually this compilation will be made available to others. All particulars will remain confidential, and it is not necessary to send your name and address if you do not want to.
The following information is given as a guideline only. It has been extracted from personal experience of the aspirant, the advice laid down by proponents of amaroli with the proper understanding of the science, and the handful of books available on the subject.

Advise and precautions

During any form of internal use of urine, the following should be observed:

Different modes of amaroli

Amaroli can be divided into two main categories:
  1. Internal use which spans the range of drinking one glass per day, to drinking every drop passed while fasting.
  2. External uses which ranges from rubbing fresh urine on cuts and bruises, to massage or packs with specially prepared urine.

We will present here practice programs and the rules and regulations for each. These programs are merely a guideline and you may have to change them according to your body's demands. Every person is his own best judgment of what his body needs and this is the best criterion on which to judge the timing and quantity of intake.

Basic rules
Initial adjustment phase
Before amaroli can be fully utilized, an initial period of adjustment is usually required. During this period a few obstacles must be overcome. For some courageous and broad minded people this first step will be easily accomplished, whereas others, still opening to the potential therapeutic value of urine, may be a little slower. In either case adjustment is necessary, and the best way to commence the adjustment phase is as follows: Most people have little difficulty in accepting the external use of urine It has been part of many cultures for millennia. However, it takes time to understand and become fully competent in all the phases of aramoli.

Internal practice

This can be divided into three basic programs:
  1. Once a day.
  2. Three times a day.
  3. Fasting.

You may wish to modify the following suggestions, for example, drinking two glasses or four glasses. However, these basic rules and suggestions which have been gained from experience should remain as your guiding light.

Once a day
Use the midstream of the first flow of urine, discarding the first and last ten milliliters. Collect the rest. The best time for this from three to four a.m..
Before drinking the urine, perform you morning ablutions such as cleansing the teeth and mouth.
The urine should be sipped like tea. This is performed every morning so that it becomes a part of your daily routine. You may wish to try this for one or two weeks in connection with some disease, or for an indefinite period in order, as some suggest, to enjoy even better health.
There are no dietary restrictions to this program, however, a low protein, low salt diet will make your urine taste and smell a lot better. Do not commence amaroli if you're under medical treatment.

Three times a day
Midstream urine is drunk at the following times:

  1. The first flow of the day (preferably from three to four a.m.).
  2. At twelve noon or hone hour after the midday meal.
  3. One hour after the evening meal.

Diet: this is a more potent form of amaroli and requires a low protein, low salt diet. When urine is passed one hour after eating, it is said to contain more enzymes and valuable body substances. If elimination problems of the healing crisis type start to occur, then follow the instructions given and decrease the intake to one glass per day.
Over the years, urine therapy has proved to be an effective tool for healing. Most urine therapists, some of whom have been practicing urine therapy for decades, have never sought an explanation for why it works: their own experiences were sufficient proof. You too can join the growing legions of urine drinkers. Follow the above logical rules and you will see a marked improvement in your health.
It's time for us to take personal responsibility for our own health.
Forget the doctor's advice.

Psychological Factors

Amaroli provides a solvent which may dissolve even the complexes and barriers of the mind.
Dr. S: In Tantra, the psychological aspects include not just the intellect, but also the psychic and intuitive components of the mind. The mind is energy, or prana, and is capable of many miracles: thinking, understanding and awareness being just a few. The power of the mind over the body is supreme, and if we can tap its energy through yogic practices, we can control various bodily processes.
If the blocks that prevent such control include neuroses about excretory function, urination, and other "giving out" processes, then working with urine will have many repercussions.
That is, if our unconsciousness attitude is one in which we try to keep, maintain possession of, hold in our bodily wastes, or one in which we use them as "weapons", hurling them out as vehicles for aggression, leaving them as signs of our anger, then the recycling of urine will have a dramatic effect on the mind and the whole personality. The insights that could come from working with our urine would be profound, and could liberate a burst of energy that would greatly increase our physical and mental freedom.
By using our own body processes to heal ourselves, we also open a new door for the healing profession. It intimates that the powers of the body and the universe are vast and limitless, just waiting for us to reach out and grasp them. The chances for individual growth, maturity and expansion of awareness are enhanced and so is the potency of yogic practices which are directed towards expansion and liberation.
The psychological aspects of amaroli are perhaps the most interesting and at the same time obstructing factors in the use of this technique. There are very few people who can approach amaroli without some trepidation and feelings of disgust, especially where drinking is required. The question arises as to the validity of such "innate" reactions, whether they are instinctual or learned, natural or unnatural, appropriate or inappropriate. If the feelings associated with urine are appropriate we must then ask ourselves if this method is valid. Indeed, the whole psychological side of amaroli requires deep thought.
Sw. B: Most people have a psychological handicap when it comes to even touching urine. They do not like so much as one drop to touch their bodies and if this happens, they was themselves with soap and water. At the same time they suffer a kind of psychological upheaval and feelings of revultion even to the point of nausea and vomiting.
Whether urine is a body waste or nectar, this type of reaction to our body fluids is abnormal. It reflects a degree of ignorance, superstition and pre-conditioning programmed on false information and old wives tales. More basic than this thought, it reflects our whole attitude to our bodies, Within us there is a deep abhorrence towards anything to do with the inner workings of the body. Perhaps this is also seen in our revulsion for seeing blood, road accidents or any sort of injury. When an internal part of the body becomes exposed to the outside we immediately turn our heads away to avoid seeing what is leaking out.
All those arise from ignorance, because we do not know about our anatomy, physiology and so on. Due to this absence of knowledge, and absence of awareness of feelings inside the body, many fantasies and potentially harmful thoughts and imaginings go on.
So, to understand the question of aramoli from the psychological point of view, we have to examine our mental attitude, and heighten our awareness. We know that many of our attitudes are the product of our upbringing. Our parents and our immediate environment mold our impressionable minds and we also absorb their views, opinions, habits and cultural framework. This stamp remains indelibly imprinted on most people, being modified only slightly during the course of their lives. Few people have the courage to pull apart, examine and clean the various bits and pieces of their psychic life, in order to establish a higher and better mode of functioning. Yoga is one way of doing this, and its increasing popularity demonstrates that many more people are willing to examine themselves in the hope of raising their consciousness and improving the quality of their lives.
In attempting to restructure ourselves through Yoga, we come across the amazing fact that our attitude to life has been far from perfect, and in many cases unhealthy. We find that our knowledge is limited, our perception hazy, unclear and cluttered with various wrong impressions, memories and so on. Our actions are awkward and not fully within our control. The moment we do become aware, then we can start to do something about it.
Dr. V: Our attitude towards amaroli is not an innate or instinctual drive, something that we know at birth. Rather it is a learned process; we are taught that urine is "bad" or "dirty". Children will urinate on the floor, sit in it, and even drink urine without any fear. We can develop inappropriate fears of urine because our parents teach us this fear and distaste. In an enlightened family, the child is allowed to develop naturally at his own speed by following the example of his parents. However, for some unfortunates, the process is unnaturally pushed and speeded up. Phobias and neuroses develop. We think urine is dirty and actually fear it, yet it is a perfectly harmless substance, derived from the blood, and completely sterile in healthy people. Perhaps we have confused it with other effluents and excretions from the body, but this is a mistake.
At the same time we must put urine into its proper perspective. In a big city it isn't practical or sanitary for people to urinate on the streets. However, in the country, urine adds nitrogen to the soil, and in this we can see natures recycling process managing every thing. When used with the correct attitude, urine is a natural, sterile substance which may have medicinal and therapeutic properties. Even if we do not see urine as a medicine, we should feel free to touch it. After all, we use so many poisons and think nothing of it because we are told they are sage. With a clear mind we ingest insecticides, artificial flavoring and coloring, etc., yet we are revolted by our own urine.
If amaroli proves to be a practical method of breaking down our inappropriate conditioning to urine, it will be easier to break down other neuroses and phobias, and in this way attain psychological health and maturity. By winning one battle with the anxieties of the mind, it is easier to win the rest. The mind plays such a vast role in disease- it is only a matter of common sense that many physical ills can also be cured through this approach.
Probably, the best way to achieve a healthy attitude to urine is the step-by-step approach. First, place some urine on the hands, feel the texture, smell it, and see what reaction take place inside your mind. If there is revulsion and a negative reaction, then continue this process for some time until you feel better about it. When you feel neutral towards urine, put a drop on your tongue and taste it. You may even like it! This develops pure awareness without the interference of thoughts, conditioning and other confusions, and removing them by de-conditioning is used in behavioral therapy by many modern psychiatrists and psychologists.
Sw B: Another reason that people fear urine is that it can sometimes be associated with sexual problems. Urine is closely allied to the genital region, and may be unconsciously associated with the restrictions and guilt's concerning the private parts of the body and sexual expression.
Dr. S: The sexual component of amaroli is a highly charged subject. All neuroses, whether they be a fear of urine or of sex, involve the suppression of energy. The energy that would normally be channeled into ambition, sexual activity and so on, is redirected otherwise into disease. We also need to expend energy to maintain our neuroses, because they are not natural processes.
Nature designs her systems so that the energies released are free and spontaneous. For example, happiness and inner security are natural states of mind. They are energy enhancing. When we develop neuroses, we block the natural energy flow, we disrupt our natural energy. When we have a neurosis about sex, urine or anything else, we create a blockage and lose energy. We are left frustrated, depressed, insecure and fearful of each and every thing.
So the development of freer attitudes towards urine could be a beneficial step, especially if it is taken with the idea that we are removing mental as well as physical blockages. With the growth of awareness, mental and emotional maturity arises. More and more blocks are removed, and energy that was suppressed is released. We feel more alive, more vital and more capable. Self confidence soars, and life becomes heaven on earth.
"All this from amaroli?" we might well ask. Urine itself may or may not contain prana, yet, according to the ancient sages, urine has within it the power to release the pranas of mind and body. Once we break down the essential barriers of the mind that prevent us from using aramoli, we can allow the physical process to proceed unhindered. We can turn objectively the whole process and see for ourselves whether there is anything at all in it for us personally.
It appears that amaroli may be validated from the psychological point of view, the physical therapeutic aspects aside. If we discover that amaroli has something we previously thought unpleasant, we can then be more open and free to discover other miracles of life that once worried us. In this way, we can turn our whole attitude toward the world in a more positive direction so that the unknown becomes a subject of awe and mystery, rather than something to fear and run away from.
Those who wish to practice amaroli are left in a dilemma as to what approach they should take in order to apply this technique to their lives. Should amaroli be used only when people are sick, or every day as recommended in the Damar Tantra? Are there any hidden pitfalls and traps in its use that we have not seen? No doubt many people will find these out for themselves and thereby devise their own individual system for their own individual urine.
How amaroli is used will depend very much on personal experience and need. Some people find that their urine is very strong, or that they react to it with unpleasant results which often occur in any body cleansing process. Others, and this is the majority, suffer no problems whatsoever and only experience the positive results of increased energy, better health and the joy of living.