E25003

     This year I will be sixty-eight years old. I am hale and physically put younger men to shame. I still hike mountain trails quite a bit, but because I have stronger legs than the younger people around me, I am continually having to slow down for them. They ask me if I am fatigued but to be honest, because I am not tired at all I am really in a quandary as to how to answer them. Every night I go to bed at two thirty or three o’clock and rise at seven or seven thirty, so I sleep about four to four and a half hours a night. As for work, the members of my staff know very well that my labor is the equivalent to that of ten persons and the young people struggle to keep up. That is just the way it is and they put up with it.
     The above is my way to maintain good health. I am sure there are those who will find it peculiar, because my way of maintaining good health is practically the reverse of that of contemporary people. To maintain good health, people nowadays do things such as avoiding physical strain, amply sleeping, taking sufficient nourishment, masticating thoroughly, and eschewing mental strain, but I am the opposite. As I am often asked about my way of maintaining health, I will describe it here.
     First of all, I try to push myself. I push myself because human beings can improve their health to the degree that they strain themselves. But, because I overexert myself, it can be uncomfortable or physically painful so I overdo only to a certain extent. The amount of sleep required varies by age, but for me, four or five hours is just right. What I eat is an interesting topic because I am concerned that what I eat is overly nourishing. Many of my believers donate foodstuffs to my household, actually too much, and due to the fact that I try to partake as much as possible, even if in small amounts, of the love and sincerity offered by members, it is fair to say that I am a gourmet. I try to regulate my diet by apportioning what I eat throughout the day as follows. After breakfast, I eat sweet potatoes, and before going to bed at night, I make it a rule to eat chazuke, that is, boiled rice soaked in tea. Neither do I fail to eat one bowlful of Japanese red bean soup.
     Another aspect to eating is that foods have a yin, negative attribute, or a yang, positive attribute, and neither attribute should be overemphasized. Yin is represented by vegetables and yang by fish and meat. I try to regulate my diet so it leans to neither extreme. Everyday I eat about seventy percent yin and thirty percent yang at breakfast; at lunch, about one half of each; and at dinner, seventy percent yang and thirty percent yin. There is also a yin and yang to the Japanese style of pickled foodstuffs. Yin comprises the pickled vegetables and yang, the root plants like the white-colored Japanese radish daikon. I try to keep the percentage of pickled foods I eat to about half of each attribute.
     Among other practices I follow is that of not masticating thoroughly. I swallow my food after I have chewed it only by half. This is because overly chewing food will eventually weaken the stomach’s functions. Another practice is not to rest or take naps after eating but immediately rise from the table and get on with activities. Regular activity directly after eating is a way to improve the constitution of the stomach. I had success in healing my own stomach condition this way. Nor do I ever set limits on how much to eat. The principle of my nutritional method is to eat as much of what I want when I want. In the course of my daily life, however, I am not able to be so self-indulgent, but I do try to eat as reasonably and as appropriately as possible.
     Here I would like to introduce another habit you may find unexpected. I try to use my head and brains as much as possible. Actively using the head is one way to maintain good health, and those who do so live longer. But the head should be not used to worry. The head and brains should be used for interesting, pleasant matters. Herein lies another aspect where the value of faith can be shown. If something occurs that could cause worry, you can leave the matter in God’s hands so your worries are greatly decreased. In other words, have God take over the burden of worrying. This may seem truly impudent, but it is this kind of impudence that pleases God.
     For a long time now, I have made it a point to get out of the house at least once a day. I never miss a day, whether it is raining or the wind is blowing. At these times, I also make it a point to walk as much as possible. I understand that this is the secret of those who get healthier as they age. As far as alcohol is concerned, at one sitting I do not drink more than three small cups of alcohol, or one glass of beer, and I smoke about the average amount[*] of cigarettes a day.
     The above illustrates my way of keeping healthy. Germs, of course, do not concern me in the least. Briefly, it is the hygiene of unhygienics and has many points in reverse of contemporary medical science. If people were to follow my way of health, I guarantee all would become healthier. Because you will not become like some pasty-faced egghead, I do recommend that you follow these methods without anxiety.

“Watashi no Kenkōhō” first appeared on the second page of Hikari, Issue 43, January 1, 1950, and was revised by Meishu-sama and reprinted three and a half months later in Shinji no Kenkōhō, Jikan Sōsho, Daijippen (The Divinely-Inspired Approach to Health, Jikan Library, Volume 10), page 69, April 20, 1950. The newspaper version of “Watashi no Kenkōhō” was reprinted on page 129 of the anthology Igaku Kankei Goronbun Shū (Collected Essays Relating to Medical Science) that did enjoy a limited circulation. Igaku Kankei Goronbun Shū contains no publication data, but internal evidence suggests that its editing stopped several months preceding Meishu-sama’s Ascension. Furthermore, since the book lacks publication data, whether the volume had Meishu-sama’s imprimatur or not is unknown, so details concerning this volume are probably impossible to research. The book version of “Watashi no Kenkōhō” has appeared in translation. Citation is given below for reference.