Early Macrobiotic Passings

[Ohio]

It is perplexing that many people who lead a healthy macrobiotic lifestyle, seem to die young, even before the average life expectancy. I am semi-macrobiotic, and am at a loss as to how to respond, when asked about this. Even the leader of the macrobiotic movement, Michio Kushi, lost his spouse and a child to cancer, the one disease he is known to help alleviate in so many people. His sposue, Aveline, certainly adhered to a macrobiotic diet (at a minimum, she did not eat steaks, fast food, dairy, etc.). And yet, I (and most people) know many people who have lived longer than she, while indulging in foods which are known to cause medical problems. If she (and others in the movement) were not eating so good, why could they not have eaten strictly - as they probably did - with more positive results?

Any suggestions on how to respond to people who raise this question (?)

[Roy Collins]

Ohio. Macrobiotics, vegetarians, wild animals, zooplankton, and almost every species on earth can and do get cancers and other serious maladies during their lifetimes. Millions of species have died off, even before the coming of modern technology. The factors are varied and numerous. They include climate, environmental pollution, radiation from nuclear fallout, improper eating habits, genetic predisposition, evolutionary trends, global warming, ice ages, war, chemical pesticides and fertilizers, social stress, etc., etc.

Some macrobiotics, but not all, have held to George Ohsawa's belief that all disease is curable (sometimes in as little as 10 days) with proper food selection and cooking. This, of course is far from the truth and George Ohsawa died of unnatural causes before he was 70. You mentioned Aveline and others as well that have died prematurely, and there are dozens of others. Most of those who follow this belief that macro is a cure-all are living in a world of make-believe; at best macro is the way of balance but there are are some invisible factors that are beyond our abilities to change in this lifetime. We all come to macrobiotics for different reasons at different times in our lives. Some are very unhealthy to begin with. My blind friend came to macro after a stroke and had diabetes. His diabetes was cured but optical nerve could be repaired.

A lot of the longevity factor comes from how you were fed while still in the uterus and also early years. We are a product of our ancestors blood and the environment. We can change only so much. Life is so fragile. But over and above all this we need to accept that we can change and control only so much of what we take into our blood. Macrobiotics offers the best opportunity to make the best form of balance of health. WE need also to realize that macrobiotics does NOT mean only LONG LIFE but also WIDE LIFE, which means quality of living and not to worry about too many things, be happy, accept fate, enjoy what the earth offers and appreciate/respect all life.

Many hard-line macros like to use the excuse when another macro gets some disease, that they did not follow macro correctly, or that they were arrogant, etc. This is simply not the truth and we see wild creatures living how they have been for millenia but dying from drinking bad water, from slash burning of forests, from industrial smoke emmissions, etc. Even though they and we try to live a natural life, there are some things that are beyond our control. So when your fiedns ask about premature macro deaths, you say, "yeah, food does help to a great degree but not 100 %, there are numerious other factors that are at play here."

ANother case in point: A friend of mine has a daughter that was born without the cochilla in the ear and is deaf. Before I knew this I made a suggestion to use certain external macrobiotic remedy as well as dietray suggestions. The mother asked: "will this make the cochilla grow back?" Reality teaches us hard lessons. I hope you have a long and wide life. Not all macros follow the same belief system, nor agree with the HEROIC "macro can fix anything" approach. Time will soon prove them wrong. I know this very well.

In peace, Roy

aware of the "ice-age" of this thread, nevertheless a very deep and interesting one; I do agree, I have been in the holistic food branch for decades and write and teach about it.
So thanks Roy for pointing out that the human race and others species have been on this earth plane for Billions years, and yes, the awesome Age in which all was pure and bio, but still Yin Yang interaction determined everything, our DNA, our fate, our life-spann, our emotions...and so forth...
some of us might live for ages now, well over 80 in our "modern world side" but how do we live this 80 years ? in active, lucid, healthy life-style ? or artificially from birth to death ?
Is is better to die stupid/senile/idiotic/addicted/dependent when you'r 90 y.o. or wise, clever, humble, in harmony, rich in greatfulness at (only)60-70 ?
Is quantity better then quality ? if I have to take one, I take the later.
Some ancient exceptional villagers (that live in areas free of civilization/stress/confort) have reached some long age too, but they are the exception; remember it. What is good and and achievemnent for some might not be so for others.
some macro die early, is that so awfull ? what do we know about complicated human destiny ? not much... aiming at staying alive just for the sake of it is not a great motivation anyway...maybe some of those early dying Macros, would have died even ealier in a misarable condition if they did not encounter the Divine Order...some did so just in the last stage of their life, or the last few decades...and even if you are luckily born as a macro...there is still your own spiritual path and destiny at place there...who are we to know, ??? please let stay humble !
in peace
Vega

[Klara]

Vega,

Am grateful that you re-opened a worthy topic (some topics never enter "ice age" and are always relevant). And kudos to both you and Roy for responding well.

I agree that life has many factors which we cannot control - but beyond that, I believe the questioning comes not only from what we expect of mb, but also how death still has a mysterious hold on us. We (well, I for one) see death as the enemy, to be conquered, and yes life is the victor. On an obvious level I know no one lives forever, and that death is part of life. Accepting death, or understanding death is for me the question which may put the bigger picture of life/death into a different content. I'd love to hear thoughts on the macro take on death.

Klara