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Agnihotra and Microbes,
A Laboratory Experience
Agnihotra
Ash and Water Soluble Phosphates
Agnihotra and
Grapes
Agricultural
Experience with Vanilla Plants
Agnihotra and Microbes,
A Laboratory Experience
Dr. Arvind D. Mondkar M.Sc; Ph.D (Micro)
Our way of life has intensified the quantum of pollution. No
place can be
called safe from pollution. What varies is the type of pollutant
and the degree of
pollution. Pollution is of various types such as gaseous pollution,
water pollution,
food pollution, radioactive pollution and so on. Of these types
microbial pollution is
the most important type of pollution for people in the medical
or paramedical field.
Microorganisms are ubiquitous in nature.
There are mainly two types, namely non-pathogenic or saprophytic
(harmless and not causing any disease) and pathogenic (disease
producing). There are certain opportunistic pathogens which,
given a chance, can produce disease in human beings. Thus the
mere presence of these microorganisms in a definite strength
in various media can produce contaminants.
Microorganisms like Salmonellae, Shigellae or Vibrios contaminate
water,
eatables, milk and milk products. When the contaminated eatables
are consumed
the individual suffers from typhoid, bacillary dysentary or
cholera. Similarly,
organisms like Staphylococci cause food poisoning by increasing
toxins in food.
This microorganism also causes wound infections with pus formation.
Streptococci
infect the respiratory tract after inhalation of the droplet
nuclei on which they are
settled. Hospital infections by Staphylococci and Pseudomones
are not
uncommon. Recently, Pseudomonas aeruginosa has been reported
to have entered
the space age. This microorganism was isolated from the lining
of the fuel tank of
a jet engine and was found to be responsible for the corrosion
of the tank.
It is stated that Agnihotra helps to undo the effects of pollution.
In this respect it was decided to observe the last type
of pollutant, i.e., microorganisms and the effect of Agnihotra
on them. The present article restricts only to the effect of
Agnihotra on microorganisms as observed in a microbiology laboratory.
Agnihotra Effect on Bacterial Population
A preliminary experiment was carried out to study the effect
of Agnihotra on
the bacterial population in a room where Agnihotra was performed.
For this study,
two rooms of equal dimensions (13¼’ x 8’ x 11’) were
selected. In both rooms fire
was prepared from dried cowdung cakes in copper pyramids and
the basal reading
of number of microorganisms in both the rooms was taken by exposing
blood agar
plates at four corners of the room for 10 minutes. This was
done exactly half an
hour before Agnihotra time. Agnihotra was performed exactly
at sunset in one of
the rooms. Bacterial counts were taken again in both the rooms
in a similar manner
at half hour intervals. Thus readings were taken in both the
rooms up to two hours
after performance of Agnihotra. It was quite interesting
to note that microbial
counts in the room where Agnihotra was performed were reduced
by 91.4%
whereas the room where only fire was generated did not show
appreciable changes
in the microbial counts. This leads one to think that
it was the process of Agnihotra
which was responsible for the reduction of bacterial counts
and not the mere
presence of fire.
Two other similar experiments revealed similar findings.
The phenomenon
could be explained by giving two reasons:
- Agnihotra fumes are rich in formaldehyde and other substances
which have
inhibitory effect on microorganisms.
- A phenomenon like smog formation and its diffusion in the
upper strata might be
a likely postulation.
In the regions of North and South poles, many times, carbon
particles accumulate
to form a layer called “smog”. When fire is lit the hot currents
push the smog into
the upper strata and it is diffused in such a way that the carbon
particles are no
longer harmful in the residual concentration. In the present
study perhaps
Agnihotra fumes might have dissociated the microorganisms in
such a way that the
residual population was no more harmful and was well within
tolerable limit to
human beings.
Agnihotra Effects on Bioenergetic Systems of Individual Microorganisms
This kindled our interest and it was decided to study
the effect of Agnihotra
on the bioenergetic systems of individual microorganisms.
A strain of
Staphylococci pyogenes isolated from a pus sample was selected
for the study. The
strain showed all the characteristics of a pathogen. It was
isolated from a lesion,
produced beta haemolyses on blood agar, showed a positive coagulase
test and
fermented mannitol with the production of acid. The strain was
innoculated on a
pair of blood agar plates, one of which was kept away from the
Agnihotra
atmosphere (control plate). The other one was exposed to Agnihotra
fumes for five
minutes and was allowed to remain in that atmosphere till next
Agnihotra was
performed (approximately 12 hours). Agnihotra is to be performed
on the
biorhythm of sunrise/sunset. Surprisingly, it was observed that
the plate exposed to
Agnihotra (test plate) showed a tremendous reduction in the
zone of haemolysis as
against a wide zone of haemolysis in the control plate.
Organisms from both the plates were then subjected to
coagulase test. The
organisms from the test plate showed a negative coagulase test
demonstrating their
inability to produce coagulase. Finally, the organisms from
both the plates were
emulsified in one ml. of normal saline separately to give suspensions
of equal
strength. This was achieved by use of Brown’s opacity tube no.
3. The suspensions
were then injected intradermally into the thighs of an albino
mouse. The mouse
was kept under observation for five days.
It was very interesting to note that the suspension from
the test plate failed
to produce any lesion in the mouse wheras the suspension from
the control plate
produced typical abscess. These results suggest that Agnihotra
played a pivotal role
in controlling the metabolic activities of this microorganism.
In this case, a
pathogenic strain of Staphylococcus pyogenes showed characteristics
of a
nonpathogenic strain ofter exposure to Agnihotra atmosphere.
This was just an
observation and triggered quite a number of questions in the
mind:
- Is this effect phenotypic or genotypic?
- Is it necessary to expose the strain for a prolonged time
interval or will a short
exposure cause a similar effect?
- Will the progeny of these microorganisms behave in a similar
manner?
- Does the small or microdose of substances released from Agnihotra
process boost
the immunity mechanism of the patient to get rid of the infection
or does the
infecting agent lose its virulence? Perhaps both the effects
go hand in hand.
Answers to these questions are still beyond sight and
show a need for further
experimentation in this field.
Therapeutic Effect of Agnihotra Ash
An attempt was then made to study the therapeutic use
of Agnihotra ash
against scabies in rabbits. Rabbits are quite often infected
with scabies—marked by
snow white crust formations on their nose, ear margins and skin.
The infection
then becomes systemic and the animal dies. Normally this sort
of scabies is cured
by daily application of benzyl benzoate and salicylic acid for
about 6 to 8 days,
depending upon the severity of the infection.
In one study, Agnihotra ash was homogenized with an equal
volume of
cow’s ghee (clarified unsalted butter) and applied over the
infected area above the
nostrils of a rabbit. Agnihotra ash worked extremely well and
the crust was
detached on the third day of application—and that too with a
single application.
With benzyl benzoate and salicylic acid, it took five days for
the crust to detach
itself from the control rabbit. Another notable advantage of
this was that the
preparation was not irritating like benzyl bezoate or salicylic
acid. The rabbits
always lick that application because of irritation and the young
ones die of
poisoning. This risk could be avoided with Agnihotra ash.
These results promise a solution to microbial pollution by
the performance
of Agnihotra and ingestion of Agnihotra ash medicines.
(Reprinted from Satsang Vol. 9, No. 20, 3/4/82)
Agnihotra
Ash and Water Soluble Phosphates
Dr. Tung Ming Lai, Denver, Colorado
I did some lab testing on Agnihotra ash. The results are
interesting. 0.10 g. of ash
was shaken with 25 mi. of water for forty-eight hours and
then the water soluble
phosphate content was measured. The same amount of ash was
shaken with two
different soils (5 g.) from Colorado (also 25 mi. of water)
and phosphate content
was measured after forty-eight hours of being shaken. The
results are as follows.
(The values are the average values of duplicates.)
|
SOIL
USED
|
ASH
ADDED
|
WATER
SOLUBLE
PHOSHATE EXTRACTED
|
|
None
|
Non-Agnihotra ash
|
0.68 mg. P/.02 g.
ash
|
|
|
|
|
None
|
Agnihotra ash
|
1.78 mg. P/.02 g.
ash
|
|
|
|
|
Weld loam
|
Non-Agnihotra ash
(0.02 g. ash/g. soil)
|
4.2 mg. P/ g. soil
|
|
|
|
|
Weld loam
|
Agnihotra ash
(0.02 g. ash/g. soil)
|
17.2 mg. P/ g. soil
|
|
|
|
|
Red Feather loamy
sand
|
Non-Agnihotra ash
(0.02 g. ash/g. soil)
|
2.3 mg. P/ g. soil
|
|
|
|
|
Red Feather loamy
sand
|
Agnihotra ash
(0.02 g. ash/g. soil)
|
11.5 mg. P/ g. soil
|
|
|
|
The non-Agnihotra ash was produced with the same ingredients
in the same copper vessal as Agnihotra ash. The only difference
was the non-Agnihotra ash was not produced at sunrise or sunset,
and no mantras were chanted.
(All growing plants need phosphorus; however, regardless
of how much
phosphorus is added to the soil, only the water soluble
portion can be utilized by
the plant. On an average, only about five percent of the
phosphorus in conventional chemical fertilizers is
water soluble.--Ed.)
Agnihotra
and Grapes
Dr. B. G. Bhujbal, Research Officer Maharashtra
State Grape Growers' Association, Poona, India (Satsang Vol.
8, No. 17, 1981)
Grapes are a difficult crop to grow under Maharashtra's climatic
conditions and also equally difficult to study. I have been
associated with research work on grapes while studying for
my M.Sc. degree at the University of Poona, India since 1967.
Various problems faced by the workers since then were finally
put before the research workers at the Agricultural College,
Poona.
Hybridization work with grapes had already commenced before
my association with this work. I have been observing the results
of that work. It was reported that the germination of hybrid
grape seeds had been very late and low. When I conducted hundreds
of crosses at the Ganeshkhind Fruit Experimental Station,
Poona-7 and sowed the seeds after treatment by advanced techniques
which included hormones, scarification, stratification etc.,
the results were discouraging. The germination percentage
was very low, i.e. below 20 % and some of the seeds even took
300 days for germination.
Meanwhile I came to learn of Agnihotra and Homa Therapy farming
and thought why not have a trial of this therapy in grape
research. There was a solar eclipse on 16th of February 1980.
I had also read previously that the no-moon day was the best
day for seed treatment and sowing. With this background and
not to miss the opportunity I coIlected seeds of the Anab-e-shahi,
Pandhari Sahebi and Kali Sahebi varieties, local vinifera
varieties, as well as some crossed seeds which were collected
using the Thompson seedless variety as a male parent to make
the cross. In order to conduct the experiment properly, I
applied for leave on 20th of February 1980 in time for the
treatment to commence on 16th of February, 1980. Some unrooted
cuttings of local grape varieties were also collected for
additional treatments.
Experimental Plot
All the seeds and the unrooted cuttings were kept in an environment
open to Agnihotra fumes. As far as mantras were concerned,
I began with the "Tryambakam" Mantra and Homa continued for
2 hours, after which the samples were treated with Agnihotra
ash and then put into pots ready for planting. An untreated
lot of samples served as a control.
Observations
It was indeed a surprise not only to me and my wife but also
to friends who had been laughing at my expenments to observe
the first seedlings sprouting on the 21st day of sowing. Some
of the recorded observations are given in a table below. The
second experiment concerned making raisins. At present, raisin-making
is not carried out in Maharashtra except on an experimental
basis using the dehydration and sun-drying methods. I collected
a few bunches of grapes from growers and hung them in the
environment where I was performing Agnihotra. Similar clusters
were kept with the growers for making raisins using their
own method of sun-drying. After 21 days the drying was almost
complete, and after 35 days I collected the clusters and tested
them. The raisins were very good in appearance and taste.
Special interest rallied around the evidence that the raisins
prepared from the Anabe-shahi variety and having low TSS contact
were also good. Equally good results were obtained by the
Thompson seedless variecy growing in the Agnihotra environment
as compared to those varieties generally available in the
market.
Another experiment was performed in a grower's field. Mr.
Pundlik Khode, a small farmer from the village of Pimpalgaon-Baswant,
Nasik District had been much worried about his crop and was
doubtful regarding repayment of his bank loan obtained for
the vineyard. Agnihotra was done regularly and Agnihotra ash
was applied to his vines. The observations which were recorded
at harvest time proved very good. The grower, Mr. Khode, had
never believed in such a possibility until he saw the actual
results. The individual berry as well as the cluster was superior
in colour, taste, sweetness and weight. About 150 observers
said that the crop was the best in that locality.
|
EFFECTS
|
REGULAR
FERTIZING PRACTICE
|
ONLY
AGNIHOTRA
|
REGULAR
PRACTICE AND AGNIHOTRA
|
|
Seed germination
|
More than 6 months
required for germination
|
21 to 28 days required
|
***
|
|
Rooting of cutting
|
80 % rooting
|
100 % rooting
|
100 % rooting
|
|
Bunch development
|
Av. bunch wt. 0.45
Kg.
|
Av. bunch wt. 0.45
Kg.
|
Av. bunch wt. 0.525
Kg.
|
|
Disease
|
More disease
|
No disease
|
Less disease
|
|
Colour
|
Green yellow
|
Golden yellow
|
Pale yellow
|
|
Quality
|
TSS 22 %
|
TSS 24 %
|
TSS 23 %
|
|
Loss of harvest
|
About 30 % loss
|
No loss
|
10 % loss
|
Effect of Agnihotra on Grapes
The above experiment was conducted in the vineyard of Mr.
Pundlik Khode on Thompson seedless grapes at Pimpalgaon Baswant,
Nasik, during the year 1979-80.
1. Agnihotra was performed by Dr. B. G, Bhujbal, Asst. Horticulturist,
M, Phule Agricultural University. 2. Other Homas were performed
by Mr. Ranade, Manager, State Bank of India.
3. Regular operations
were carried out by Mr. Pundlik Khode, owner of the vineyard.
Mr. Khode was very happy with the Agnihotra results.
Agnihotra was also performed for raisin-making. This was
done in March 1980. Clusters were hung from the roof, and
under the clusters Agnihotra was performed regularly, twice
daily. In 21 days the grapes dried under room conditions and
the quality of the grape raisins was excellent. The variety
used was Thompson seedless.
Agricultural
Experience with Vanilla Plants
Abhay Mutalikdesai,
Karnatak, India
Nature is a silent performer and I was anxious to see her
work. Since hundreds of farmers are closely observing
our Homa Therapy work at Sutagatti, I was slightly under tension.
Our faith and devotion has started working in this after three
months of regular Homa.
The single infected banana plant has gotten the first healthy
leaf. The shoot appears disease-free. I will soon
send the earlier and later photograph.
I am also very happy to inform that the first vanilla produce
for the year 1999-2000 is of excellent quality. The
vanilla bean curing process (three months) was started along
with Homa Therapy. The cured vanilla beans were tested
at Spice Board testing laboratory in Cochin. The following
are the results:
|
Year
|
Place
|
Vanillin%
by weight
|
|
1998
|
ernanakulam
(kerala)
|
2.56
|
|
1999
|
myladumpara
(kerala)
|
2.71
|
|
2000
|
sutagatti
(karnatak)
|
2.91
|
The above results have given immense joy to all of us, including
our fellow organic farmers who had participated in our Homa
Therapy.
Now a person with deep knowledge about farm seeds has approached
us. He is ready to offer voluntary services in developing
a seed bank, seed plots and demonstration plots for fellow
farmers in our area.
In this month we had three heavy rains at Sutagatti.
First occasion was when I was performing Om Tryambakam Homa.
The other two rains came during evening Agnihotra. However,
the first occasion was special. It rained only over
Parashanatti and Sutagatti. This rain was very essential
to us because the electricity transmission transformer was
burnt and we had no power for fifteen days. Our mud
barrage built across River Ghataprabha remains now full; otherwise,
it dried up by middle of May. Availability of abundant
water for farming during summer has happened, after many,
many years.
My workers, their children and neighbors are very much influenced
by Homa Therapy. Two of my workers who were alcoholic
and non-vegetarians have stopped consuming since last two
months. One of them is doing regular Om Tryambakam Homa
and Agnihotra during our absence.
All these positive things are due to Yajnya.
Abhay Mutalikdesai
Karnatak, India
Questions or comments may be directed to:
Fivefold Path Inc. 278 N. White Oak Drive, Madison, Virginia
22727 USA
E-mail:
info@agnihotra.org
540-948-5463
