Sungazing 101

2008-4-10 06:41:00

About six months ago I received an ad for a couple e-books on sungazing. I had heard of this practice before but never read anything about it so I ordered the books.

I was amazed at the claims that were made. Perhaps the most famous proponent of the art is an Indian man named Hira Ratan Manek. He claims to have gone as long as seven years without eating -- that he gets all his nourishment from gazing at the sun. In addition to this sungazing is supposed to cure all disease and lead to vital health and energy.

Here is what he says to do.

Only gaze at the sun within one hour of sunrise or sunset. During these hours you have extra protection from harmful UV rays.
Start out gazing for ten seconds and increase your gazing for ten additional seconds each time you gaze until you reach 45 minutes. After you reach the 45 minutes you will be charged up for life.
When gazing stand on bare earth in your bare feet. This facilitates a correct circulation of energy.
Energize water by placing it in clear glass jars and placing them in the sun for 6+ hours. This has been scientifically proven to kill germs, but according to sungazing doctrine the water is also energized with extra prana.

This sounded interesting so I thought I would try it out.

There were two problems in achieving success. First it was difficult to schedule in the sungazing at the right time of day. The second was that cloudy weather often prohibited sungazing, especially during winter months. Also an hour before sunrise and sunset is more likely to be cloudy than the middle of the day.

Anyway I continued and got up to 4-5 minutes. I didn't notice anything miraculous but did get a greater sense of well-being and kind of balancing of my energies.

Then I noticed I started getting a little discomfort and slight headache.

In checked with my inner self and here was the answer I received.

One size does not fit all. Because of my age (63) my body is not as flexible as when I was younger and I need to proceed with caution. I must develop a sense of how much sun is of the greatest benefit to me and how fast to proceed with increases.

After this I joined a Sungazing list and found the owner to be an interesting character. He also had the philosophy that one had to proceed as directed by one's inner self. Amazingly he started out by sungazing for 20 minutes in the heat of the day. He's been sungazing for quite a few years with no ill effects. He's so into it that I figure he must have been a sungazer in a past life.

He's dispelled some myths around the subject. For instance, he doesn't believe Hira Ratan Manek went seven years without food. He's been told by people who put him up overnight that they caught him raiding the refrigerator in the middle of the night and others have spotted him at a buffet.

Right now I stare at the sunset for about five minutes about every other day. I may increase this amount if I feel so impressed.

If I feel I am getting more sun than I need I will alternate and look at the sun for about 10 seconds with my eyes closed and then about 20 seconds with them open.

One of the follies of my youth was to plunge into things like the wild hare, but as I get older I am more satisfied proceeding slow and steady like the tortoise who won the fabled race.

Overall I believe sungazing is a beneficial practice though not as magical as adherents would have you believe. I plan on moving ahead with the practice, experimenting as I go. We also place all our drinking water in the sun before using it.

"I keep the subject of my inquiry constantly before me, and wait till the first dawning opens gradually, by little and little, into a full and clear light."
-- Isaac Newton (1642 - 1727)