Water, the ultimate harmony

A quick guide to Zen Vegetarian Cooking, using natural and organic foods
by Palma Bellardoni

Which foods are “local”?

Nowadays, it’s easy to get confused, as we see on the shelves exotic and ethnic specialties from around the world. What to do? Don’t worry, here is an easy way to understand what is best to eat!

It is a general principle that food should come from our most immediate environment. If we want to be in harmony with our surroundings, we should vibrate at the same rate. Just remember what our ancestors were doing when there was no fast transportation and no refrigeration! Nature would supply them with foods that were in harmony with their own environment, for proper health and balance.

Today, we live in a modern world and are able to travel great distances in a very short period of time. Our horizon has expanded and the cultural mix has enriched us in many ways. Seasons are mixed, as we import foods from the opposite hemisphere. We definitely have more choices, but we want to choose with awareness. Let’s take a look!

Fruits and vegetables absorb the electromagnetic energy from the soil they grow in, and we will in turn absorb that energy from them when we eat them.

The most effective carrier of electromagnetic energy is water (just imagine what would happen to us if the radio fell in the tub while we are taking a bath!).

Istinctively, you know that you want to drink water that is the freshest possible – if you could, right out of the source. You’d rather get up in the middle of the night and go to the kitchen, than drink from that bedside glass that has been sitting there for 3 days.

While travelling through glaciers and underground streams, water absorbs the minerals and trace elements from the region it flows through and starts vibrating in resonance with it. The higher the water content of the food (like fresh fruits), the closer to us it should grow.

As food gets progressively drier (like grains, beans, seaweeds, dried fruits, etc.), the area they can come from becomes wider.

Salt, at the other end of the spectrum, is the driest form of food. It is crystallized ocean water, and because the ocean is a stable environment, it can come from anywhere within your hemisphere.

Below is an easy reference list, from Yin to Yang:

WATER	Your most immediate environment
FRUIT	Same region or State
VEGETABLES	Similar geographical area (like a neighboring State)
GRAINS AND BEANS	More extended geographical area with overall similar climate (like North America)
SEAWEEDS	Same climatic belt around the hemisphere you live in (either Northern or Southern)
SALT	The whole hemisphere you live in (either Northern or Southern)

Please note that it’s best to avoid consuming frequently foods coming from the opposite hemisphere. That’s because energy spirals up and down in the opposite way. Did you know that water drains down the sink spiralling counterclockwise in New York and clockwise in Sydney?

A real life story

I was teaching a class, explaining the importance of drinking local water, especially considering that our bodies are made over 65% out of water.

Suddently a student said: “Unbelievable! I live in Alaska and for a while I have been drinking every day bottled water coming from Maine. Recently, I seriously considered of moving out to Maine and I couldn’t understand why… now I know!”

She was not in electro-magnetic harmony with her own environment… she was resonating mostly with an area across the country!

Five easy lessons will give you an understanding of what a Zen Chef is all about. If you want to know about the seasons and the five elements — and how to approach the year cycle – read next!