Free The Secret of Shambhala: In Search of the Eleventh Insight by James Redfield Page A

one type or another appears and senses all this acid and says, ‘Oh, this
     body is ready to be decomposed.’
    “Do you get that? When any organism dies, its body quickly changes to a highly acid environment and is consumed by microbes
     very quickly. If we begin to resemble this very acid, or death state, then we begin to come under attack from microbes. All
     human diseases are the result of such an attack.”
    What Hanh was saying made perfect sense. A long time ago, I had run across some information about body pH on the Internet.
     Moreover, I seemed to know it intuitively.
    “You’re telling me that what we eat directly sets us up for disease?” I asked.
    “Yes, the wrong foods can lower our vibrational level to the point that the forces of nature begin to return our bodies to
     the earth.”
    “What about diseases that aren’t caused by microbes?”
    “All disease comes about through microbial action. Your own research in the West is showing that. Various microbes have been
     found to be associated with the arterial lesions of heart disease, as well as the production of tumors in cancer. But remember,
     the microbes are just doing what they do. Diets that create the acidic environment are the true cause.”
    He paused and then said, “Grasp this fully. We humans are either in an alkaline, high energy state or we are in an acid state,
     which signals the microbes living within us, or that come by, that we are ready to decompose. Disease is literally a rotting
     of some part of our bodies because the microbes around us have been given the signal that we are already dead.”
    He looked at me mischievously again.
    “Sorry to be so blunt,” he said. “But we don’t have much time. The food we eat determines almost entirely which of these two
     conditions we are in. Generally, foods that leave acid wastes in our body are heavy, overcooked, overprocessed, and sweet,
     such as meats, flours, pastries, alcohol, coffee, and the sweeter fruits. Alkaline foods are greener, fresher, and more alive,
     such as fresh vegetables and their juices, leafy greens, sprouts, and fruits like avocado, tomato, grapefruit, and lemons.
     It could not be more simple. We are spiritual beings in an energetic, spiritual world. Those of you in the West might have
     grown up thinking that cooked meat and processed foods are good for us. But we know now that they create an environment of
     slow disincorporation that takes its toll on us over time.
    “All the debilitating illnesses that plague mankind—arteriosclerosis, stroke, arthritis, AIDS, and especially cancers—exist
     because we pollute our bodies, which signals the microbes inside that we are ready to break down, deenergize, die. We always
     wondered why some people exposed to the same microbes don’t get a particular disease. The difference is the inner-body environment.
     The good news is that even if we have too much acidity in our bodies and begin to decompose, the situation can be reversed
     if we improve our nutrition and move to an alkaline, higher energy state.”
    He was now waving both arms, his eyes wide, still twinkling.
    “We are living in the dark ages when it comes to the principles of a vibrant, high-energy body. Human beings are supposed
     to live more than a hundred and fifty years. But we eat in a way that immediately begins to destroy us. Everywhere, we see
     people who are disincorporating before our eyes. But it doesn’t have to be that way.”
    He paused and took a breath. “It’s not that way in Shambhala.”
    After another moment Hanh began to walk around, looking me over one more time.
    “So, there you have it,” he concluded. “The legends say that humans will first learn the true nature of foods and what kinds
     to consume. Then, the legends say, we can fully open up to the inner sources of energy that increase our vibration even more.”
    He slid his chair back from the table and looked at me. “You are handling the altitude very well here in