Organizing Principles
 Many
of the readings’ pronouncements on diet, exercise, and meditation
are key parts of the current holistic paradigm. The Cayce readings
agree with the adage that “nature is much better yet than science,”
and they most frequently recommended osteopathy and hydrotherapy
combined with herbal preparations. Like other holistic systems,
the readings start with clear spiritual premises about the universe.
Unlike some other systems, they are equally at home in the world
of the cell and the molecule, agreeing with science that the disease
process occurs at this level of our physical bodies. The Cayce readings
can shift within a single discourse from a discussion of the kundalini
forces, to the effects of anger on the body, to the balance of electrolytes
in the blood.
All but a few of the physical
readings were given for specific individuals. Patterns emerge, however,
when they are all considered together. They demonstrate a remarkable
consistency and appear to present a deep coherent picture of how the
body functions in health and disease. While the readings couch these
concepts in the language of a poet/mystic, they are interpretable
and testable. From the readings’ perspective, the physical body exists
in the world of cause and effect. While the prescribed therapies recognized
the mystery of the spirit/mind/body interaction, they did not rely
on magical influences. Every single suggestion demanded effort – physical,
mental, and spiritual – on the part of the patient and those working
with the patient. All the recommended therapies have real effects
on the body, from castor oil acting as a prostaglandin precursor to
adjustments working with facilitated neurons. Forty years before the
advent of psychoneuroimmunology, the Cayce readings described the
effects of our moods “as electronic energies ... [leaving the] blood...with
a glow from the emotions controlled through the centers or lines of
the nervous systems for both positive and negative natures.” (263-13)
To better understand our bodies, the Cayce
readings suggest, we view ourselves as being composed of three parts:
a physical body, a mental body, and a spiritual body. Each is separate
from the other and, at the same time, they are one and the same
thing. Each can be worked with in its own realm and yet they are
constantly affecting each other. Change in one is reflected as change
in all of them, similar to the integrated “body-mind” continuums
now being recognized in science. A premise in the Cayce readings
which helps to understand and start working with these components
of ourselves is Spirit is the life, Mind is the builder, and the
Physical is the result.
Spirit
Is the Life | back to
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 Spirit
is the enlivening essence in our bodies, most clearly represented
as the “reproductive principle.” Our cells’ ability to renew and
regenerate themselves is the most fundamental of universal laws
and, according to the readings, is the first principle of spiritual
forces. Our bodies contain within them the pattern to be whole and
are continuously trying to achieve that pattern. Far from being
a passive victim to disease, the human body can rally its healing
forces and repair itself with more vigor than the world’s best-trained
medical team. The Cayce readings are clear that this innate healing
ability – and ultimately all healing – is the direct result of the
manifestation of Spirit within the body. Healing requires “attuning
each atom...to the awareness of the divine that lies within each
atom, each cell of the body” (3384-2), and “whether there is the
application of foods, exercise, medicine, or even the knife, it
is to bring the consciousness...of creative or God forces.” (2696-1)
This premise forms the core of a coherent
and profound philosophy of healing, which in its simplicity has
major ramifications. The implications range from conclusions that
can be drawn about the origin and meaning of illness to the choices
of therapeutic approaches. Since all healing requires concomitant
inner response and change, it follows that “not by the method does
the healing come, though the consciousness of the individual is
such that this or that method is the one that is more effective
in the individual case.” (969-1) Generally, the best therapeutic
systems are those that work with, not against, the body’s own healing
abilities. The therapies recommended in the readings are consistent
with this premise, and they have the primary objective of both working
with the body’s own healing ability and coordinating each system
to work with the whole.
At the level of the physical
body, the Cayce readings described the physical points of contact
for our spiritual bodies as our glands, which “secrete that which
enables the body, physically, throughout, to reproduce itself.” (147
5-1) While the capacity for regeneration applies to all of the body’s
glands, the readings identified seven endocrine glands as special
vortexes of energy, corresponding to Hinduism’s chakras. These seven
major spiritual correlates are: the gonads, the cells of Leydig, the
adrenals, the thymus, the thyroid, the pineal, and the pituitary.
As transmitters of energy, these seven “spiritual centers” play an
important role in our connection with the divine.
The principal reason that therapies were
directed to the glands in the readings is based on the role they
play in helping each cell and organ to reproduce and regenerate.
The use of small cyclic doses of a compound called Atomidine – which
is principally iodine trichloride – was the most frequent method
suggested to give extra incentive to the glands. Also, a device
called the wet-cell battery in combination with gold or iodine was
sometimes recommended.
Mind
Is the Builder
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 The
part of us that begins the process of setting us apart as unique individuals
is our mental body. It is here that the patterns leading to health
or illness are created. The analogy of a film projector can be helpful
in understanding this concept: The light bulb and projected light
represent the Spirit, and the images on the screen are the physical
result. The film, which patterns the light to create the images, is
comparable to our mental body. The Cayce readings clearly take a much broader view
of mind than the brain itself They agree with the concept that “thy
brain is not thy mind, it is that which is used by thy mind.” (826-1
1) The Cayce material divides the nervous system into three functional
components: the cerebrospinal system, the sympathetic system, and
the sensory system. From the readings’ perspective, the significance
of the sympathetic nervous system is the most underestimated. The
Cayce readings make some intriguing statements regarding this system,
including calling it “the brain manifestation of soul forces in the
body.” (4566-1) They also named the solar plexus region as being the
control center of the mental body.
A number of mind-body techniques were recommended in the readings
to individuals in their attempts to get well: visualization exercises,
breathing techniques, working with dreams, the role of positive
emotions, and expectancy, among many others. The readings stated
that an important first step toward health is to choose one’s “ideal,”
a word the readings used to describe the principal motivating force
in our daily living. Meditation tops the list of the readings’ suggested
techniques for pursuing spiritual growth and health. The readings
say that all of us eventually need to learn to meditate, just as
we once had to learn to walk. Meditation, with the use of proper
attunement and affirmations, works physically with the endocrine
and nervous systems to create new patterns of health.
The
Physical Is the Result |
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 Cayce
readings emphasize that each of our seventy trillion cells is a
“universe in itself” (433-1), with its own awareness, purpose, and
needs. Each cell is working toward its own process of self-actualization,
and it can reach a higher state of health as it has its basic needs
taken care of. To create the best environment for each cell to perform
its tasks depends on three key processes: cellular nutrition, tissue
drainage, and coordination. When these occur, each cell is free
to fulfill its purpose and manifest its fullest potential. Let’s
examine each of these in turn: Cellular nutrition. In terms of nutrition,
the Cayce readings recognize that each person is an individual and
that what may “be poison for someone, to another may be a cure.”
(1259-2) Implicit in this assumption is that right diet for your
body should make you feel better, and over time you should be healthier
as a result. With this said, the Cayce readings gave some general
dietary guidelines that seem to apply to everyone. Their recommendations
are in line with current practice guidelines from the American Cancer
Society and the American Heart Association. These include no fried
foods and significantly less red meat and refined sugars.
The Cayce material puts a heavy emphasis on eating more fruits
and vegetables. This recommendation is made for several reasons,
one being to help accomplish the recommendation of consuming a ratio
of eighty percent alkaline-producing foods to twenty percent acid-producing
foods. Alkaline-producing foods, which include most fruits and vegetables,
leave a digested ash in which the majority of elements are positively
charged ions, such as potassium, sodium, calcium, and magnesium.
The residual ash of cereals and meats has a greater number of negatively
charged ions, such as chlorine, phosphorus, iodine, and sulfur,
which have an acid-producing effect on the body.
Another important dietary principle the Cayce readings involved
cautions about food cornbining. More emphasized than the need to
avoid any one food, it was rather “the combination of foods that
makes for disturbance with most physical bodies.” (416-9) This included
admonitions not to combine proteins, other starches, and citrus
fruits with starches in our diets. Tissue drainage. An equally important
process in maintaining a healthy body is the ability to maintain
adequate eliminations. The Cayce readings identify four separate
waste disposal systems: the skin and sweat glands, the lungs, the
kidneys, and the liver and digestive tract. Therapies were directed
toward each in order to maximize its functioning.
One relationship particularly stressed was a balance between the
functioning of the liver and of the kidneys. This relationship seemed
to correspond to the electrical nature of the body, with these organs
referred to as maintaining the poles of the body’s battery. A disturbance
would have the effect of short-circuiting their functioning, causing
poisons that should be eliminated to be thrown back into the system.
Central to the functioning of the elimination systems is water.
The Cayce readings were big on hydrotherapy in all its manifestations.
This included drinking eight glasses of water a day, use of Epsom-salt
and fume baths, and the use of colonics occasionally for an internal
bath. The latter were to be administered professionally using a
mixture of salt and sodium bicarbonate to maintain the colon’s electrolyte
and pH balance, with the final rinse containing GlycoThymoline.
Another Cayce aid for eliminations as well as for enhancing abdominal
physiology that has gained international prominence is the castor
oil pack. Used since ancient times for a variety of medicinal purposes,
the oil from the Palma Christi plant is recommended in the Cayce
readings predominantly as part of a hot pack applied to the upper
and lower right side of the abdomen. Its major impact is to stimulate
the functioning of the liver, but in the process also stimulates
the gall bladder and ascending colon, improves lymphatic circulation,
dissolves adhesions, reduces inflammation, and improves assimilation
in the intestines. Coordination. Inherent in the Cayce readings’
approach is the concept that optimal health requires coordination
of the body’s various systems.
The readings placed special emphasis on the role of coordinating
the nervous systems as the path to accomplish this. The two systems
described by the readings involved the central nervous system and
the sympathetic nervous system. Two-thirds of the physical readings
recommended osteopathy as a tool to help accomplish the coordination
between the nervous systems. The key areas where the cerebrospinal
system interfaces with the sympathetic nervous system are located
approximately at four spinal levels (C 3, T4, T9, and L4). Other
important centers noted by the readings are the parasympathetic
vagus center and the coccyx center. Injuries to this latter region,
the coccyx, often resulted in more chronic coordination issues that
could lead to a number of conditions, including epilepsy and schizophrenia.
Finally, the Cayce readings recognized that one of the best ways
to promote the healing of any condition is to improve the circulation
to the involved region, both to carry nutrients to the area as well
as to carry away wastes and byproducts. Many of the therapeutic
approaches presented, ranging from osteopathic adjustments to castor
oil packs, deal with enhancing circulation in one form or another.
Two frequently recommended therapies that also addressed this were
exercise and massage. The Cayce perspective on the proper role of
medicine is to “create a different element of consciousness in the
system.” (331-1) The ideal use of medication from the readings’
perspective was for short-term assistance in giving the body stimulation
or strengthening, while working with nutrition, eliminations, and
systems coordination in rebalancing the body. While the readings
occasionally endorsed some of the medications available at the time,
much more commonly did they suggest herbal combinations. The readings
saw surgery as a last resort, with the concept that most conditions
were treatable without it by working to restore balance in the system.
The one exception to this was in the case of cancer, where the involved
cells were seen to have created a new activity separate from the
rest of the body and were no longer reachable by the normal intracellular
methods of communication and coordination.
Final
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The full potential of the readings’ applicability is still not known.
There are many anecdotal stories of success, but like many other
holistic approaches, the health readings have only begun to be scrutinized
in a systematic fashion. The Cayce readings themselves, however,
encouraged people to verify their principles, and they gave ideas
for experimentation to accomplish this.
Presently, this effort is moving forward through the work of Meridian
Institute . Meridian Institute is
an independent nonprofit organization created in 1989 to study the
Cayce health approach. HRC, now three years old, is a department
of the A.R.E. that supports Meridian research, networks with other
organizations, and helps disseminate health information to A.R.E.
members. Both organizations work cooperatively to accomplish their
goal of exploring the Cayce health readings and making this information
practical for use today.
Eric Mein, M.D.,
one of the founders of Meridian Institute,
is a physician, author, and speaker.
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More
than fifty years ago, an important body of information about health
and healing presented itself through the work of Edgar Cayce. For
over forty years, Cayce would lie on a couch and, from a sleeplike
state, present information and respond to questions covering a wide
range of topics. Significantly, of the more than 14,000 of these transcribed
discourses now called “readings,” sixty-eight percent
were “physical readings” – dealing directly with
the physical conditions of individuals seeking Cayce’s help
and recommending treatments to help them. Recognizing the influence
of this work, the Journal of the American Medical Association’s
first editorial on holistic health linked the beginning of the American
holistic health movement with the birth of Edgar Cayce in 1877.
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