“After generations of this pasteurized, homogenized, two percent spirituality, the body-politic has lapsed into a deep cattlepsy. And without this direct connection to the Fodder, we’ve allowed a powerful few to bulldoze Mother Nature and seek immortality in their own creations… And that’s why the sacred cow is nowhere to be found, but the bull is everywhere.” ~ Swami Beyondananda, Duck Soup for the Soul

For most of my adult life I’ve tried to eat healthy.

Disclaimer: this does not mean (1) that I believe in ‘You are what you eat’—so if I wolf down a hunk of pork that makes me pigheaded? Hell no!

And (2), that I pander to this food preference label crap—so no, I’m not vegetarian, vegan, carnivorous, omnivorous, herbivorous, paleo, or pescetarian!

I’m just an earthy, simple-living guy, who supports those who (sustainably and permaculturally) grow their own food; and I invariably seek out the healthiest, most economical, and most nutrient-dense foods available.

One day I hit the jackpot, and it changed my life…

I was at a farmers market in Alameda, CA about five years ago and one vendor’s product piqued my interest: she was selling Raw Milk, yoghurt and kefir.

The ‘raw’ attribute of these foods threw me for a loop. Since childhood I had only ever known and drunk store-bought, pasteurized and homogenized dairy products—apart that is from occasional visits to the ‘cousins on the farm’ who shared their creamier, off-white milk with us.

This was much to our disdain, as it had invariably been left out on the kitchen table all day and was warm and (at times) slightly souring.

So I didn’t come to the ‘Raw Milk’ vendor’s table with a glowing historical relationship with said product. But boy did she open my mind to the benefits and superiority of raw verses sterile / pasteurized milk.

She educated me on everything from probiotic bacteria, enzymes, minerals, whey protein, and the rich, healthy butter fats overflowing in natural milk, to the severely compromised or sterile absence of these nutrients in pasteurized / homogenized ‘milk’.

And as for the consumption of animal fats and cholesterol —well that theory has now truly been debunked by the medical profession. And then we moved on to the legalities of the acquisition and sale of raw milk in the U.S.

When I think of our profit-driven health care industry, I think of a worldwide community dying from preventable and treatable diseases; the historical and perennial suppression of the science of natural, biodynamic, and energy healing; and the unrelenting hegemony of agribusiness corporations.

By contrast, this young farmer left me with a clarion call to support my local dairy farmer in the face of a centralized and self-serving dairy industry.

This in the midst of a spin-doctoring culture where the food industry operatives gerrymander their sponsored research studies in favor of their sub-quality products.  

I was sold!

And since that farmers market encounter I’ve done my own diligent research on raw milk—all of which has corroborated and expanded on what my friend had taught me.  And, of course, since that 2009 meeting, I’ve been an avid consumer of hygienically-managed, pasture-fed, fair-priced, raw milk to this day.

And the spiritual connection?

I consider the unremitting, extravagant outpouring of the sun’s energy; the melting snow-capped mountain springs; the summer rains and electrical storms that charge the earth with teeming life, billions of organisms, and rich minerals—all of which blend seamlessly (if we don’t interfere with our chemical fertilizers and pesticides) to produce a lush pasture that is all a cow needs for health and growth.

And when I consider that a cow pumps 700-800 gallons of blood through its udder to produce one gallon of rich, nutrient-dense milk (all a human body needs for optimum health), I rest in a spirit of awe, reverence, wonder, amazement and deep, deep gratitude!

If that isn’t ‘spiritual’ then I don’t know what is.

Until our next yarn: Be informed, stay aligned with the natural rhythm and order of creation’s bounty, and above all, support your local farmers!

~

For the curious and intrigued, a few references:

1. My review of Dr. Ron Schmid, ND’s The Untold Story of Milk,

2. Real Milk Website,

3. Mark McAffee (leading U.S. raw milk producer) YouTube videos.

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Editor: Renée Picard

Photo: Temari09 at Flickr