Arnold Ehret’s Legacy

The following in an excerpt from a recent interview of Prof. Spira about Arnold Ehret and the Mucusless Diet Healing System by Marcus Vinícius Brasil for the Brazilian technology magazine INFO (info.abril.com.br) that took place on March 26, 2015:

Marcus Vinícius Brasil’s Question:

Hi Prof. Spira!

First I’d like to know, why do you think that Ehret’s legacy has continued strong so many years after the original publishing of his books?

Prof. Spira’s Response:

Ehret’s methods and message have helped to transform the lives of countless people, many of which do not even know that their lives have been influenced by him. Many, if not most, of the plant-based diet “gurus” studied Ehret’s work, even if they did not always give him the credit or respect that he deserved.

Overall, Ehret’s legacy was kept moving forward thanks to a few dedicated people. Fred Hirsch took over after Ehret and kept his books in print from the 1920s to 70s when he sold Ehret publishing to Alvin Last. Practitioners such as Brother Air mastered and revolutionized the art of Ehret’s transition diet while being living examples of his message.

Alvin has since sold Ehret publishing, and I’ve found it important to do what I can to bring Ehret’s work into the 21st century for new audiences using updated methods (eBooks, social media presences, blogs, etc.). Because of the work of Hirsch, Brother Air, and others from around the world, today the plant-based movement is ready more than ever to recognize Ehret’s legacy and pioneering role in the natural health field. Also, Ehret’s works are being translated into more and more languages, fostering a new level of international exposure that crosses linguistic boundaries.

Check out Arnold Ehret’s Full Biography Here

Marcus Vinícius Brasil’s Question:

Great! You talked about these new methods for spreading his work… Do you think the internet may put the MDHS in another level of reach and influence over people’s health?

Prof. Spira’s Response:

Yes, the internet and this time in history is perfect for the elevation of Ehret’s work. Especially for those of us who have very little money or resources. I’ve reached thousands with my Youtube channel, etc., and all of these accounts were free. In the information age, if you have solid information that people want to see, it can spread. In the past, it would have taken a lot more money to be able to spread the information as widely as we have in the past several years. Also, up until now, it has only been a courageous few that really took Ehret’s work to heart. But the internet has allowed us to come together as a world-wide community to share experiences and support one another.

One of the reason’s that Ehret’s message did not take off or become mainstream in the past is because it’s not easy to get rich promoting his methods. Most diet gurus and people in the natural health field that I’m aware of sell or promote a number of products that we find worthless from the perspective of the Mucusless Diet. Vitamin supplements, special elixirs, probiotics, etc., are things that many people make their living selling. Yet, through Ehret’s work people find that these things are unnecessary and in some instances dangerous. When you teach people how to heal themselves naturally, you give them what they need to take their health into their own hands. In an age when people are being told that they need to take certain drugs or supplements for the rest of their lives, the search is on for real answers to why we are in the conditions that we are in. And many people are starting to jump at the opportunity to heal without being told they need to buy a number of supplements.

Another important element the internet has allowed is to be able to clarify misconceptions about Ehret’s message. For too long, people (often extremists) have used Ehret as a sort of mascot, but framed him in their own image. Raw foodists have pegged him as the ultimate raw guy, while aspiring fruit-only eaters see him as the original fruitarian, while some vegetarian thinkers have taken and promoted long-term non-vegan interpretations of his work. What I’ve tried to do on my social media accounts and publications is to dig into Ehret’s original work. What did Ehret really say about raw foodism? What was his perspective on fruit-only diets? Vegetarian diet? I find that Ehret’s message is the ultimate “middle-way” for the plant-based world, and when we go back to Ehret’s message we can find the rational approach necessary for being successful along this path.

Marcus Vinícius Brasil’s Question

Great. And do you think that this “unintentional” promotion in the form of the adoption of the Mucusless Diet Healing System by famous people, like Steve Jobs, helps or harms Ehret’s legacy?

Prof. Spira’s Answer

If there is a vacuum in nature, something tends to fill it. So, if there are no authority figures or dedicated communities of people practicing and promoting Ehret’s works, it is almost inevitable that someone will try to use it to further their own agenda. In the past, there have even been people who have misappropriated the term “mucusless diet” as the title of their own books. Not only did they fail to mention Ehret or credit him as the creator of the term “mucusless” in their book, but they included foods that Ehret would have considered pus and mucus-forming as okay to use on their so-called “mucusless diet.” This is unacceptable, but it takes a community of people to see such an injustice and bring it to light so that people are informed about what is and is not Arnold Ehret’s Mucusless Diet. And that is what is happening now.

I think that everything happens for a reason. There is nothing we can do about certain people misunderstanding Ehret’s work, or putting out misinformation about it. However, if there is no community of practitioners to refute and clarify these problematic arguments, then Ehret’s legacy is up for grabs. Energy flows where attention goes, and thanks to the efforts of a new generation of Mucusless Diet practitioners, the understanding of Ehret’s works, and the importance of his legacy, is becoming well-established.

Peace, Love, and Breath!

Prof. Spira

 

Short Biographical Documentary of Prof. Arnold Ehret

The interviewer, Marcus Vinícius Brasil, is a contributor to the technology magazine INFO (info.abril.com.br), and webmaster of Hackpedia — hackpedia.com.br — that promotes learning how to use internet coding.

 

 

 

 

Check out the New Annotated, Revised, and Edited Edition of the Mucusless Diet Healing System from Amazon.