Voices of Experience
Throughout history, notable practitioners have spoken openly about their experience with Shivambu. Their testimonies span decades and continents.
Morarji Desai
Prime Minister of India (1977-1979) • Lived to 99
Morarji Desai was perhaps the most prominent modern advocate of Shivambu. He practiced for decades and discussed it openly, including in a famous 1978 interview with Dan Rather on CBS's 60 Minutes.
On His Daily Practice
"I drink five to eight ounces of urine every morning on an empty stomach."
"For the past five or six years, I have drunk a glass of my own urine — about six to eight ounces — every morning. It is very good for you, and it is even free."
On the Biblical Connection
"Even in the Bible, it says to drink from your own cistern. What is your own cistern? It is your own urine. Urine is the water of life."
Responding to American Skepticism
"It is not a strange practice. In America scientists are preparing extracts from urine for heart trouble. You probably don't know that."
On Pharmaceutical Hypocrisy
"So your people are drinking other people's urine but not their own. And it costs dollars, thousands of dollars, while theirs is free and more effective."
On the Purification Process
"If you drink all your urine (urine fast), in just a few days the body becomes purified. By the third day your urine is without any color or any smell or any taste and it will be pure almost like water."
Healing His Brother
In October 1977, Desai startled a meeting of India's Tuberculosis Association by claiming he had cured his own brother of tuberculosis using urine therapy.
Desai lived to age 99, attributing his longevity to urine therapy. He believed it was the perfect medical solution for millions who could not afford treatment.
John W. Armstrong
Author of "The Water of Life" (1944) • Pioneer of Western urine therapy
His Personal Healing Story
In 1915, at age 34, Armstrong failed the medical examination for the British army — he was diagnosed as "consumptive" (tuberculosis). Over the following year, he consulted various doctors with no success.
Feeling very weak and ill, Armstrong recalled the biblical verse from Proverbs 5:15: "Drink waters out of thine own cistern." He interpreted this literally and began his famous 45-day fast.
The 45-Day Fast
Armstrong undertook a forty-five day fast consuming nothing but urine and tap water. Simultaneously, he massaged urine all over his body "at given intervals for two hours at a stretch."
He emerged cured of tuberculosis.
His Method
- Removal of all medicines
- Fasting for 5 to 45 days
- Drinking water and most of their own urine
- Rubbing the whole body with urine regularly
Powerful Quotes
"Urine is not a specific for any given disease, it is a specific for health."
"All diseases (except those caused by traumatism or structural disorders) can be cured by one simple means."
"A fast of urine and pure water, plus frequent, lengthy, and thorough urine massages, and, if necessary, the application of urine compresses, would cure pretty well anyone of almost anything."
His Legacy
Armstrong went on to treat thousands of patients. His book "The Water of Life: A Treatise on Urine Therapy" (1944), written after 26 years of practice, became the foundational text for urine therapy in the West.
Coen van der Kroon
Author of "The Golden Fountain" • Dutch researcher and practitioner
The Foot Injury That Changed Everything
In 1990, while staying at an ashram in India, van der Kroon suffered an accident and cut his foot badly. Conventional antiseptics did nothing — the infection worsened.
In desperation, he wrapped his foot in a cloth soaked with his own urine.
The wound began to heal completely within days.
The Research Journey
This experience prompted van der Kroon to research urine therapy worldwide. He attended the first World Conference on Urine Therapy and eventually wrote "The Golden Fountain: The Complete Guide to Urine Therapy" — one of the most comprehensive modern books on the subject.
He continues to run a urine therapy counseling service in Amsterdam.
Sarah Miles
English actress • Practiced for 30+ years
Sarah Miles, the acclaimed English actress known for "The Servant" (1963), "Blowup" (1966), and "Ryan's Daughter" (1970), practiced Shivambu for over thirty years.
How She Started
"It started when she went to a Californian clinic where they gave it in injection form."
When she couldn't afford the treatment, the therapist simply said: "Drink it."
Meeting an Elder Practitioner
"When Robert was researching a film about Gandhi, we'd visited his ashram in India where we met this 90 year-old woman who looked about 58. She said they all drank their own pee there."
On the Taste
"It tastes like every lavatory you've ever smelt."
On Diet and Purity
"The essence of who you are is in your pee. You couldn't do it if you had a bad lifestyle, but my food is pure and I only drink water and the occasional glass of wine."
Health Benefits
She stated the practice "cured all her allergies."
Other Notable Practitioners
Juan Manuel Marquez
Mexican professional boxer
"This is something I have been doing for the past six or seven fights, and it has given me good results."
Bear Grylls
Survivalist and TV personality
Drinks his own urine for survival situations and teaches contestants to do the same on his television programs.
Madonna
Singer and performer
"It's really good to drink urine after you've got out of the frozen bath."
Also stated that urinating on her feet helped cure Athlete's Foot.
Moises Alou
Six-time MLB All-Star
Urinated on his hands to alleviate calluses, allowing him to bat without gloves throughout his career.
J.D. Salinger
Author of "The Catcher in the Rye"
The reclusive author reportedly practiced urine therapy as part of his interest in alternative health modalities.
Thousands of Years, Millions of Practitioners
These notable testimonies represent a tiny fraction of the practitioners throughout history. From ancient India to modern America, from prime ministers to athletes, people have discovered the practice and found it valuable. The tradition continues.