This post is dedicated to Masaru Emoto, the author of ‘The Hidden Messages in Water’, who died 10 days ago. His book on the impact of different types of energy on water was embraced by many and criticized by others, mostly scientists. Regardless of the response, his observations about water opened a new dimension to this amazing element.

‘The Hidden Messages in Water’, Dr Emoto’s first book, was a New York Times Bestseller. Originally it was self-published in Japanese then translated into English. In it he wrote about water being deeply connected to our individual and collective consciousness and that our emotional energy could change the physical structure of water. This book was followed by others that focus on the healing properties of love and gratitude, a message that Masaru Emoto says he learnt from water.

Three books on the messages in/from water by Masaru Emoto (2001, 2005 and 2010).

The appeal and accessibility of Dr Emoto’s work lay in his photography of water (as frozen crystals) that had been exposed to different words, pictures or music. He developed a technique to take microscopic images of frozen water after appreciating the significance that no two crystals of snow were identical. After some experimentation the first picture of a frozen water-crystal was taken in 1994.

Illustrations of snow crystals on the front cover of Bentley and Humphreys (1962; first published in 1931). It was the appreciation of the difference between snow crystals that inspired Dr Emoto to take photographs of frozen water crystals.

Using a technique his lab developed, photographs were taken of water crystals that came from different sources (polluted or spring water); of water from the same source that was exposed to positive and negative intentions; and of polluted water that prayers were said over. Depending on the nature of the water, and the energies it received, the crystals would either be aesthetically pleasing or deformed.

Photographs by Masaru Emoto of frozen crystals sourced from natural and polluted water (Source: quakersoatslive blog). The water crystal from the polluted water is brown and deformed.

Masaru Emoto said that the photograph of crystals was neither science nor religion and that he hoped it was enjoyed as a new type of art. Nevertheless, he believed that the world shown by the crystals showed the truth and that many messages essential to our lives were hidden in water.

Dr Emoto’s ideas and legacy will be continued through the Emoto Peace Project, as described in a recent post on Green Shinto. For those interested in discovering more, Masaru Emoto’s English web-site can be found here.

Further detailed information and ongoing initiatives based on Dr Emoto’s pioneering work can also be found at the website hado.com. The material is in Japanese – for those unable to read this language, the ‘translate’ function on your browser comes in handy.

Some scientists are skeptical about the research methods used by Masaru Emoto and are likely to continue to be so. This does not downplay the value of ideas that allow us to consider water in a different light, to help us better appreciate its nature. Adult bodies are 60% water, on average, and the surface of planet earth is around 70% water, so understanding the relationship between people and water is very important.

With around 70% of the planet covered in water, and water making up around 60% of our adult bodies, it’s important to understand the two way relationship between people and water.

Twenty years after Dr Emoto took the first image of a frozen water-crystal, Wallace J. Nichols has published a book called ‘Blue Mind’ (2014). Drawing on scientific evidence, Dr Nichols writes that our brains are hardwired to react positively to water. In this context he explores the benefits that being in, under or even near water have for human health. More material on the ‘Blue Mind’ can be found in my post on Neuroconservation.

The work of Drs Nichols, Emoto and others shows that our health (and that of other living organisms) is related to our relationship with water and water’s health is related to how we treat it. Both relationships make sense.

This 1962 publication from New Zealand beautifully illustrates the patterns of life in ponds and streams, life that is also dependent on water.