MY AREAS OF FOCUS
Those who are familiar with the rules of play in the game of life, the Laws of Fate, the Shadow Principle and the basic principles that underlie all of life(*) will be able to navigate well through life. Genuine healing, true prevention of illness and the ability to make intentions become a reality all become easier. In line with all of these aspects, Ruediger Dahlke is also vocal on issues related to good health and the environment.
Nevertheless, as a physician, his focus naturally remains on medicine. In addition to the topics mentioned above, Ruediger Dahlke is perhaps even more well known for the symbolic interpretation of disease patterns, as described in "The Healing Power of Illness" and "Disease As A Symbol". Raising awareness of the benefits that eating “Peace Food” and fasting regularly have on our health and the environment are two further topics that are also dear to his heart.
As evidenced by the fact that it shares the same “med” stem as the word “meditation”, the original meaning of the word “medicine” alludes to this centred state of each individual. To this day, meditation is all about finding the way to this centred state. By contrast, in the course of its long and impressive history of success, modern medicine, has increasingly begun to lose sight of this aspect, which was originally its ultimate goal. In ancient medicine, the Latin expression "re-medium" which was used to describe healing substances, testified to this relationship to the centre. Literally translated, it means “back-to-the-middle” and has survived to this day in our modern word "remedy".
On the way to this centred state of being, we endeavour to make use of the symptoms of illness to enable development and growth instead of just trying to repress these symptoms. In this way, such symptoms may even transform from being perceived as an unpleasant burden to instead becoming a valuable fertilizing agent for development and growth.
(*)These concepts are all described in detail in three of Ruediger Dahlke’s most important and foundational works – "Die Schicksalsgesetze", "Das Schattenprinzip" and "Die Lebensprinzipien". Currently, however, these are only available in German and a selection of other languages, which can be viewed on the website in the section on International Editions.
PSYCHOSOMATICS
Ruediger Dahlke's comprehensive manual on psychosomatics – Disease as a Symbol – takes pride of place in the bookshelves of many households, and for those families, serves as a faithful reference book for the understanding of disease patterns. Similarly, The Healing Power of Illness and Krankheit als Sprache der Seele (Illness as the Language of the Soul*) have also become standard works since their publication several decades ago and have faithfully accompanied countless patients around the world along a path to greater self-responsibility.
The word “psychosomatics” already indicates the primacy of the soul, since the aspect “psyche” appears before “soma”- the aspect that refers to the body. Nevertheless, this certainly does not mean that the latter is unimportant. Psychosomatics explicitly refers to both, but in this specific hierarchical order. Additionally, this hierarchy extends even higher in an upward direction: the highest position is occupied by consciousness, as already indicated in the pediment of the temple of health of Hippocrates. Below that, the world of feelings still ranks before that of emotions, followed by our behaviour and the pillars of good health, such as nutrition, exercise, relaxation, and our environment.
“Nowadays, as a counterpole to good nutrition, I would add fasting; to relaxation, the counterpole of good sleeping habits, and I also would assign connected breathing its own pillar. Those who keep this hierarchy in mind follow the more effective order of sweeping the stairs of good health from top to bottom, instead of the other way round," says Ruediger Dahlke.
(*)This second title has not yet been translated into English. See the International Editions section for versions in other languages.
BOOKS ON THE TOPIC IN GERMAN
BOOKS ON THE TOPIC IN ENGLISH
NUTRITION & PEACE FOOD
Healthy nutrition is the decisive foundation for fundamentally good health. But what exactly does eating properly involve?
Ruediger Dahlke has not eaten meat since his early adulthood, and for the past ten years has additionally been following a "wholefood, plant-based" diet. This style of eating has not only afforded him many positive benefits in his own life, but also in the lives of the countless patients that he has interacted with. In the meantime, these beneficial effects have also been backed up by the results of an extensive range of research studies.
The desire shared by so many people for a more responsible handling not only of their own health, but also of the world around them, as well as the people and animals in it can be met by consciously following a vegan lifestyle in the sense of “Peace Food”. This lifestyle offers the chance for peace within each individual, as well as for humanity as a whole, on the only home planet we have.
In online nutrition courses and cooking classes held at the TamanGa center, we make this knowledge and experience available to others. (*)
Following in the wake of the earliest books on wholefood, plant-based nutrition, the continually-expanding Peace Food series has become one of the main drivers of the vegan lifestyle, especially amongst the younger generation.
Further Peace Food variants, such as the "Peace Food Keto regimen", have proven to be effective for specific disease patterns, in this case, cancer, various neurodegenerative diseases, diabetes I, II, III and weight reduction.
*Currently, these courses are only offered in German. Please contact us if you are interested in being informed when courses in English become available.
BOOKS ON THE TOPIC IN GERMAN
THE PRINCIPLES OF LIFE
Life serves many things and many serve many masters in their lives. Those who want to understand life better are well advised to know the rules of the game. In this respect, Hindus actually speak of “Lila”, the cosmic game. Would anyone be able to play soccer, handball, Ludo or Monopoly in a satisfactory manner without knowledge of the rules? How infinitely more important are then the rules of the game of life?
From the point of view of the world’s great spiritual traditions and religions, life is, first and foremost, a school, in which various laws and rules apply, for example, the 10 Commandments. What forms the backbone for practically all important holy scriptures are the two decisive "Laws of Fate", namely 1) Polarity: "Be hot or cold, I will spit out the lukewarm ones" and 2) Resonance: "Thy will be done in heaven as on earth," or in short: "as above so below".
Every life is unique and individual - and yet, there are these laws and an underlying deeper order. With regard to the former, we speak of the "Laws of Fate" and refer to the underlying patterns as the "Principles of Life". In the end, as all religions know, everything is one.
Nevertheless, in our world of polarity, we can always first divide everything into the basic contrast between Yin and Yang. From there, we can then recognize the four elements which arise from these two poles, and finally, in each of these elements, we can identify three stages of development. This leads to 4 X 3 = 12 Life Principles or "Stages of Life" in total, which are worth being dealt with in detail.
In his keynote presentations, Ruediger Dahlke addresses these principles in a more general form. In his seminars on Integral Medicine, however, he explains them in great detail. These seminars are also accompanied by practical exercises to help the course participants to acquire them through hands-on experiences (*).
*Currently, these courses are only offered in German. Please contact us if you are interested in being informed when courses in English become available.
BOOKS, CDs & DVDs IN GERMAN
INTEGRAL MEDICINE
Albert Einstein, Werner Heisenberg, Max Planck, Nils Bohr and Erwin Schrödinger are the most important representatives of contemporary physics, with its completely new understanding of the world. If their quantum physics model was not so contrary to the simple, mechanistic world view that we are more familiar with, we would find it easy to accept and its principles would have long since become firmly anchored in the consciousness of all of us.
These great physicists knew that they could not evade the aspect of spirituality: the indeterminate, all-encompassing universal force - which many call God - is the endpoint of all the logical conclusions of quantum physics. Werner Heisenberg found God “at the bottom of the cup of natural science”; Max Planck tried to prove the existence of spirituality in 1929 with his famous proof of God; Bohr chose the Tai Chi symbol as his coat of arms when he was raised to the rank of nobility; Schrödinger recognized man as a light-consuming mammal, and Einstein’s general theory of relativity should not be traced back to dry and unimaginative intellect, but instead to his visionary intuition. Isn't that a beautiful message?
And then there is an approach to medicine that is based on human experiences stemming all the way back to primeval times. This approach involved reading from the signs of nature or the sky and drawing conclusions from those signs, which have since been re-confirmed time and time again in the work of doctors throughout the ages. Integral and all-inclusive, it is an approach to medicine that recognizes parallels between the microcosm of the human being and the macrocosm of Earth (Paracelsus). From this, conclusions are drawn about disease patterns, in which “coincidence”, is interpreted in its original Latin sense of “that which has befallen us" and Fate not only means "one's lot or predetermined course of life;" but also "one's guiding spirit". This is an approach to medicine, which recognizes the primal or fundamental life principles that are at play in the background and accepts the operation of universal laws. Additionally, it is an approach, which includes pathogenesis, the science of the origin of disease patterns, as well as salutogenesis, the science of becoming healthy or healing. In this respect, it is an "integral" approach in the best sense of the word.
Unfortunately, the knowledge regarding such interconnections has been supplanted by a conventional approach to medicine that has become mired in the mechanistic worldview - often in the service of its pharmaceutical financial backers. It is both easier for physicians and more enticing for patients to quickly suppress what is hurting with tablets or cut it out altogether. As an acute solution, this may often represent a tried-and-tested technique. However, the original task that was set has not been solved, because everything that gets cleared up in this way has simply been pushed aside and driven into the shadows. The end result of this is that it will eventually show up again in a clearer and therefore worse form. Those who understand this connection early enough and recognize pain as a cry for help from the soul will properly pay attention to it and can save themselves a lot of problems, as well as furthering their self-development at the same time.
We can learn from the symptoms of illness, because they betray the primal or underlying principles of life that are involved in a destructive, unredeemed form. By learning to read the symptoms, we can understand which underlying life principle is hiding within them, and in this way, recognize what is "missing" in our life (for healing, or in effect, becoming whole to occur. This recognition makes it possible for the constructive-redeemed form of this principle to take its place instead.
Quantum physics has since proven what the ancient sources had always described, namely that everything is connected with everything. The task of the medicine of the future will be to connect with this knowledge. Never has this been more important, never have the opportunities of modern medicine been greater, given that age-old concepts, such as fasting, wholefood, plant-based nutrition, forest bathing and walking barefoot in nature are increasingly being (re-)discovered by modern science and supported by scientific evidence.
Ruediger Dahlke conveys this concept in his Integral Medicine training series. His students are able to experience this learning journey with him, not only via theory alone, but also by means of journeys into their own inner world of soul imagery, as well as in the form of practical experiences. In keeping with this, the theory modules in TamanGa and at other training centres or online are also complemented by hands-on, practical courses. In this way, as we look inwards, our ability to perceive this new, and yet at the same ancient, long-buried stratum of medicine grows and stretches out before our mind’s eye as a path to our own centre. This makes this training attractive, not only for therapists, but also for people from many other fields of work and interest.*
*Currently, this training is only available in German, but there are plans to offer it in English as well. Please contact us if you are interested in being informed when courses in English are available.
BOOKS ON THE TOPIC IN GERMAN
FASTING
Ruediger Dahlke has been accompanying people along their individual fasting journeys for over 40 years. Fasting is not primarily about losing weight, but instead about casting off ballast, both literally and figuratively, on a physical and spiritual level. During the various fasting weeks that are held in TamanGa, it is not only waistbands that become more expansive, but consciousness as well.
In the meantime, the health advantages of fasting have been scientifically proven many times over, which has resulted in fasting becoming a new megatrend in recent times. According to Professor Valter Longo, who considers fasting to be the optimal fountain of youth, the immune system already regenerates to well over 40% in as little as four days. A study by Professor Andreas Michalsen demonstrated that the CRP value (an important marker of inflammation) sinks rapidly, and in this respect, fasting acts as a protection against different kinds of infection, for example, the flu. A subsequent change in eating habits to a wholefood, plant-based diet in the sense of Peace Food strengthens this positive immune-boosting effect even further. In general, fasting, coupled with a change in diet, helps reduce the severity of a wide range of disease patterns, from heart attacks to cancer, and in many cases, to even prevent these illnesses altogether.
Dr. Dahlke has documented the many positive experiences with fasting therapy that he has gathered over the years in numerous books that he has written on the topic (see below*).
All in all, fasting is a great gift to oneself that can be given so easily. Those who have experienced the freedom of not having to eat at all for a time, generally discover that it is an experience that they definitely glad not to have missed. Fasting weeks accompanied by competent advisers in an ideal location such as TamanGa open up a wealth of possibilities for encouraging and enriching personal and spiritual development.
The opportunity to breathe good, fresh air, drink water of the highest quality that you have personally selected, walk barefoot on healthy soil, bask in the southern Austrian sun and finally find time for contemplation while drinking homegrown herbal teas, enjoying base-forming soups made from vegetables that also preferably stem from our own organic cultivation, all the while experiencing moving meditations and going on hikes in the local natural and cultural landscapes with the supportive sense of community that the group provides - all of this is at the heart of what makes the fasting weeks at the healing biotope TamanGa so beneficial.
The two traditional pillars in our program of fasting retreats that are designed to enhance self-awareness, namely “The Body - Temple of the Soul” and “Zen: Fasting - Silence - Meditation” have been popular for the last 40 years. In a very practical way, they offer the possibility to find the way back to one’s own roots. In line with older fasting traditions, which can be found in all religions, there are deep insights to be gained through physical, mental and spiritual purification. The seven-day fasting retreat "Body - Temple of the Soul" represents an ideal starting point. The nine-day "Zen: Fasting-Silence-Meditation", based on the Zen tradition, is incomparably more demanding due to the 8 intensive Za-Zen sitting periods per day and the long silence involved. Both of these retreats can be combined to a total fasting period of 15 days and build harmoniously upon each other. In the spring, these two seminars mark the beginning, and in the autumn, the end of the year of fasting retreats with Ruediger Dahlke in TamanGa.
In between these starting and ending points and also very popular, there are various fasting hiking weeks, as well as a detox week, and the fasting with hiking and wine week, all of which take place against the impressive and soul-inspiring backdrop of the southern Styrian landscape.(**)
** Currently, these guided fasting retreats are only available in German. However, guests are always welcome to fast on their own while enjoying the stunning landscapes of southern Styria and spending time in the ideal fasting environment of TamanGa.
BOOKS ON THE TOPIC IN GERMAN
*Dr. Dahlke’s books on fasting include Das große Buch vom Fasten (The Big Book on Fasting), Bewusst Fasten (Fasting Consciously), Jetzt Einfach Fasten (Just get Fasting), Kurzzeitfasten (Interval Fasting), Fasten-Wandern (Fasting and Hiking), Körper - Geist - Seele - Detox (Body - Mind- Soul - Detox) and Verdauungsprobleme (Digestive problems). Currently, these books are not yet available in English. Please contact us if you wish to be informed when English versions become available.
CONNECTED BREATHING
Our breath is the clearest expression of our life in polarity. People have been aware of the connection between breath and life, and in particular, in connection with the soul since ancient times. The Indian word "Mahatma" not only means Great Soul, but also Great Breath. The ancient Greek term "psyche" similarly has the dual meaning of soul and breath, and the word "inspiration" from Latin "in" and "spirare” "to breathe" speaks for itself. Expanding and growing with the intake of breath has always been and will always be a wonderful opportunity for development and spiritual growth.
The Connected Breathing technique is a kind of guided meditation that floods the body with energy (prana), allowing participants to be carried along in a river of consciousness, swept out of habitual ruts and patterns of thought. In the process, everything anything is able to, and of course, allowed to emerge, ranging from a state of deepest relaxation, to a feeling of liberation from narrow confinement, the reliving of the birth experience or other significant events to experiences of the sensation of being at one with everything. What has been important in life (or for the soul) up to this point and anything that still is relevant enters with the flow of the breath, and along the riverside, everything and anything may rise to the surface that is related to one's own life and that is longing to be perceived from a new perspective. During this "bath in an overflowing abundance of energy" an energy field is built up by the participants as a group, which equally promotes development and healing.
BOOKS ON THE TOPIC IN GERMAN
*Dr. Dahlke’s books on breathing include Die wunderbare Heilkraft des Atmens (The Wonderful Healing Powers of Breathing), Schwebend die Leichtigkeit des Seins Erleben (Experiencing the Lightness of Being in a Floating State), Jetzt Einfach Atmen! (Just get Breathing), Reisen nach Innen (Journeys Within), Allergien (Allergies). Currently, these books are not yet available in English. Please contact us if you wish to be informed when English versions become available.
SOUL IMAGERY-WATER THERAPY /
GUIDED MEDITATION
As all of us are aware from nightly dreams in which water appears: water represents the soul element. (Dream) images are the messengers sent to us by our soul and the unconscious. Being moved in warm (thermal) water that is close to body temperature and thus feels similar to pre-natal amniotic fluid, while surrendering oneself completely in the arms of a therapist, is a sign of great trust. While floating in this state, feeling free (of fear), experiences of a sense of unity with everything and thus the emergence and experience of primordial trust are made possible. Many a soul feels transported back to the prenatal state in the womb, which was characterized by warmth, trust, and a state of oneness with the maternal world.
AQUA EMOTION is the name that we have given to this method of soul-imagery-water therapy, which can move so much in us if we simply allow it to happen. "Guided meditations" make use of image-rich language to dive deep into these worlds of soul imagery.
Experiencing this form of soul-imagery-water therapy or/and learning it yourself gives is a gift to the heart that allows it to open more fully. Guided meditations accompany you as you journey into your own landscape of the soul, in order to ultimately become one with everything as was the case at the very beginning of life.
