In search of the elixir
Now about the elixir of immortality, mankind knows for sure only one thing - that it was. But his recipe seems to have been lost. Or maybe it was destroyed, as the heroine of the famous drama by Czapek “Makropulos's Means” did it in a fit of noble but destructive feelings. The science fiction writers Strugatsky acted even more irresponsibly - they entrusted the making of the elixir to nature itself. And they didn’t pass it to the chemical laboratory for analysis. If today's scientists knew the ingredients, they would have reproduced living water in industrial quantities, and the fear of death would have been completely removed from the agenda.
Fearing the inevitable end, ancient and medieval alchemists rummaged through ancient parchments, found some compositions, tried to reproduce them. We also tried to compose their own recipes … Thomas Aquinas, Albert Magnus, Roger Bacon, Cornelius Agrippa and many others. One alchemist is said to have dictated his own recipe for the elixir of immortality … on his deathbed.
But nothing is known about any immortal, except for Ahasfera. Do not consider, in fact, as such Duncan Macleod and his rivals from the famous TV series. This show drags on for a long, long time, but the inevitable will surely happen someday with "Highlander".
The prescription of the personal physician of Pope Boniface VIII (XI century) was prepared very professionally. The most noble materials were mixed in a crushed form - gold, pearls, sapphire, emerald. Powders of ruby and topaz, red and white coral, ivory, sandalwood were added to them. The mixture was flavored with aloe root, musk and amber. It all ended with the addition of a red deer heart. However, despite the regular intake of truly precious powders, Boniface managed to disappear for only nine years. Died …
In oriental collections of ancient wisdom, the recipes are more fanciful. For example, they recommend taking a 10,000-year-old toad and a millennium-old bat, drying them in the shade, crushing them into powder, and taking them in homeopathic doses. It is difficult to overcome European disgust, but one could take the risk if he knew where the pet store, which sells such ancient animals.
But you won't scare Eastern people with any ingredients - you really want to live, live and live too much. The Chinese Emperor Xuanzong (VIII century) even died after taking the elixir of immortality. Apparently, then the Taoist monks had not yet guessed to test their drugs on guinea pigs. They set up an experiment on the emperor right away.
However, they themselves also accepted something. Not so radical, though. Zhai Daolin (34-156), the founder of the philosophy of Tao, at the age of 60 with the help of the elixir he made, managed to rejuvenate and live up to 122 years.
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His followers believed that the elixir should consist of common substances found in nature. The main thing in a reasonable ratio of feminine and masculine is yin and yang. For example, lead, in their opinion, abounded with yin energy, and mercury - with yang energy. From these two substances, the alchemist created Pure Yang. She no longer possessed the properties of either yin or yang and was considered the elixir of eternal youth. Chinese alchemists hoped that by manipulating the energies of yin and yang, they would be able to guide natural rhythms. But they soon became convinced that the absorption of mercury (and lead, too) does not go well with immortality and, in general, with life. Therefore, they switched from the so-called external to internal alchemy. By manipulating the two components of every person - qin (spiritual, heavenly essence) and min (the bodily shell of a person on earth), alchemists attained transcendental knowledge. In which that death, that immortality - all the same …
Live long and happy…
But does a person need immortality? If you think carefully, then God save us from this misfortune! No wonder the wisest king Solomon was wise enough to refuse to accept the elixir offered to him.
But I would like to live for a long time, and preferably in a vigorous and capable state. Well, at least as long as Methuselah, or other Old Testament elders lived. So 800-900 years …
Not only the biblical characters reached a very significant age. An ancient legend says that the Greek priest and poet Epimenides managed to extend his life up to 300 years. Pliny the Elder writes about an Illyrian who lived to see his 500th birthday. According to the chronicles, Bishop Allen de Lispe, being a very old man, took a mysterious medicine in 1218 and lived for another 60 years. For 246 years, according to the municipal records, the Chinese Li Tsunyong (1690-1936) lived, who survived 23 wives during this time. And the twenty-fourth became a widow. Eyewitnesses of the last years of Lee's too long life say that he was incredibly thin. And he constantly took some kind of herbal medicine.
It is known that the recipe for prolonging youth was possessed by Joseph Balsamo, Count Cagliostro (1743-1795). In his "medical" activities, he repeatedly used it, but carefully concealed the composition. However, for some reason he opened up to the pharmacist Kade. And this is what he whispered to him: “For 15 days, simmer 1.5 liters of vodka, 8 g each of cloves, cinnamon and nutmeg, 2 g each of saffron, gentian and uzika, 24 g of sabur, 12 g of myrrh, 24 g pure teriaka, 1 centigram of musk. Then strain it all and add 750 g of Orange Blossom syrup. Kade, of course, widely advertised the drug and took dearly for it. But, apparently, it did not act very well. Because in 1858 a certain Monsieur Dupley called the elixir a fake and had nothing to do with Balsamo. And he declared himself the keeper of the original recipe of the count's potion: “800 g of cloves,the same amount of Chinese cinnamon and nutmeg, 200 g each of saffron, gentian, ouzica, 2400 g of sabur, 1200 g of wine, 2500 g of pure teriak and 36 liters of 85 percent alcohol. Soak all this for 48 hours, distill slowly until you get 36 liters of a good product, add 50 kg of white sugar, 15 centigrams of musk tincture and 3 liters of Orange Blossom. Dilute the composition with water so that you get 100 liters of liquor. Then filter and seal. "Then filter and seal. "Then filter and seal."
Cagliostro himself, alas, could not prolong his life, since he spent his last years in a deep well, chained to the wall, and did not have the opportunity to make a wonderful drink.
Folk recipes are simple but effective
There are numerous traditional medicines that rejuvenate the body, to which even modern doctors are not bad. For example, in Tibet, in one of the Buddhist temples, clay tablets were found with a recipe that monks have been using for 7 thousand years: grate 200 g of garlic, put in an earthenware (glass) vessel, pour 200 g of alcohol and close tightly. Keep the tincture in a dark place for 10 days, strain and take 15 drops three times a day 20 minutes before meals, adding to cold milk.
Ancient Abkhazian doctors also advise to rejuvenate with garlic: mix 400 g of grated garlic with the juice of 24 lemons, pour into a jar, tying the neck with gauze. Take for two weeks in a row a day, 1 tsp, diluted in a glass of boiled water.
In general, different peoples have different opinions about means that prolong life. The French, for example, believe that the truth is in wine. In red. The French paradox is widely known - the level of cardiovascular and oncological diseases in southern France is many times lower than in other European countries and the United States. Because they drink "one glass of red wine." Scientists believe that this is due to the active substances - polyphenols, which are abundant in the seeds and skins of red grapes.
Modern cases of long life suggest that our estimate of human life expectancy may not be accurate, and that we die so early not because of genes, but because of the adverse effects of the external environment, political ill-being and our own negligence. In ancient Rome, the average life expectancy was 20-25 years. Wars, epidemics, lack of hygiene, infant mortality … In disadvantaged countries - on the African continent or in South America - it has not grown very much even now. And in countries convenient for human life, such as Japan, Sweden, Switzerland and France, it is now 70-74 years for men and 80-82 for women.
But these are average values. The extreme borders are reached mainly by residents of ecologically clean regions of the Earth. It is not for nothing that people living in the central regions of Sri Lanka, in the Andes, in the Caucasus are breaking records of life expectancy. And the highest concentration of centenarians (people over 100 years old) is in the small mountain village of Bama in southern China. There are 58 centenarians per 220 people. They are still working in the field and are feeling quite cheerful. They say it is because twice a day they drink a glass of strong rice wine, which is considered the elixir of longevity. It is produced at a local factory in the amount of 300 thousand bottles per year and is intended only for local residents. The composition on which the amazing wine is insisted includes about forty different herbs and plants, dried snakes and lizards, and - from the song the words cannot be thrown out!- dried dog and deer penises.
There is also in Japan "Village of Centenarians" - Yuzuri Hara. Its inhabitants do not sit on special diets, do not drink drugs, smoke, are too lazy to play sports. And yet, over ten percent of the Yuzuri population is 85 years old. There are no signs of old age on the faces of the Yuzurs, and physically they feel much better than many young Japanese. They are unaware of the suffering of Alzheimer's, diabetes and cancer. And, unlike most Japanese people, they have one hundred percent vision. Doctors believe that the substance with which the earth of Yuzuri is soaked literally like a sponge - "hyalurgy oxide", is "to blame" for their amazing health. From the soil, this substance is transferred to rice, sweet potatoes and radish. Accumulating in the human body, it promotes accelerated metabolism and the renewal of old cells.
Arsenal of Immortality
Modern "alchemists" talk about the biological mechanisms of aging at the cellular level, and therefore more purposefully conduct their searches and have already achieved a lot.
To live forever, you need to deal with the molecules of glycoproteins, due to which the connective tissue loses its elasticity, the walls of the arteries harden, the eyes become cloudy, the nervous system works worse, the kidneys cannot cope with the load. While a person is young, glycoproteins are destroyed and excreted from the body. As you age, this process is no longer so smooth and smooth.
Scientists believe that hormone therapy can stimulate the mechanism for the elimination of glycoproteins from the body. Expensive injections of growth hormone for men in their sixties and older stop the typical signs of aging - laxity, thinning of the skin, weakness.
True, hormones can have not only a positive, but also a negative effect on a person, up to the stimulation of the growth of cancerous tumors.
Experiments with brain stem cells are in full swing (they serve as the basis for the formation of new cells). Scientists inject them into the brains of mice with a genetically transmitted defect. Stem cells move to where dead cells need to be repaired, and they work successfully. If stem cells are transplanted to a person, it means getting rid of the consequences of Alzheimer's disease, stroke, multiple sclerosis and a whole series of congenital brain defects.
And of course, no one seems to be fantastic games of scientists with genes. All the components of the human genome are already known. Soon, no one will be intimidated by a genetic predisposition to disease. And this means that a person without diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, will live several decades longer.
Aging genes provide another opportunity for humanity. Changes in them will mean that a person will be less susceptible to the damaging action of free radicals. In one experiment, it was thus possible to increase the life of the worm by six times. If we consider that the maximum life span of a person is 120 years, then for a person the same operation would mean at least five hundred years of life.
In addition to chemicals that can prolong life, scientists are looking more closely at electronics. Artificial intelligence experts predict the fusion of human nervous tissue with computer microcircuits. They implanted a deaf microchip - I began to hear like never before. To the blind eagle sight? Yes, easily. Let's just insert a microchip. And if we imagine what opportunities microchips give us for the development of creative abilities, the manifestation of miracles of memory and the restoration of organ functions, so our head will spin.
Watch what you eat
Institutions are not the only ones dealing with longevity. There are also solo enthusiasts trying to find a recipe for extending life. Biologist Suren Arakelyan, for example, is convinced that it is already possible to plan to overcome the 120-year milestone for most people. In the future, the figure of 300-500 years is quite real. True, for this you will have to go hungry. Because Arakelyan builds his method on the theory of physiologically beneficial fasting and cleansing from toxins.
Any enthusiastic researcher makes an experiment on himself, and Arakelyan (born in 1926) has been living in extreme conditions since 1965. Starves on the first, second and third of every month, one week - once every three months, two weeks - once every six months and a month - once a year. On non-hungry days, the scientist practices a two-time meal consisting of 50 grams of raisins or two raw carrots, or one orange, apple, or 100 grams of fresh cabbage, or 50 grams of peas, beans, lentils, or 100 grams of raw wheat grains, buckwheat (pearl barley) cereals. In his years, Arakelyan feels excellent, plays easily with a pound weight. However, many of us are unlikely to wait for the results of this experiment - after all, the sufferer-experimenter should be 120 years old only after 34 years.
Arakelyan's predecessor, who proposed a similar method of rejuvenation, was Paul Bregg. He ate only food that had not undergone chemical processing, and once every three months he fasted for ten days. At 95, he was extremely strong and mobile, went to the mountains, played tennis, danced, and was fond of surfing. That was the reason for his death - a giant wave covered him off the coast of Florida. An autopsy showed that all the internal organs of the 95-year-old man were in excellent condition. And they would have allowed him to live for a very long time.
Nobel laureate Linus Pauling also believes that prolonging life requires a special diet and the use of certain vitamins and antioxidants. They help prevent premature aging and increase life expectancy. But they should not be taken in the form of colored balls from the pharmacy, but only in their natural form. According to Pauling, you need to eat at least 600 g of beets, cabbage, onions, garlic, potatoes, fresh herbs, at least 300 g of fresh fruits or berries daily. And more - about 400 grams of various fermented milk drinks.
How many doctors, so many prescriptions
Of the antioxidants, experts pay special attention to dibunol.
It has a positive effect on the human circulatory system, increases the elasticity of blood vessels, and has an antitumor effect. It is successfully used in the treatment of myocardial infarction, bladder cancer, stomach ulcers, and various burns. Overall, it seems to slow down aging.
To rejuvenate the body, the Swiss physician P. Nigans suggested introducing serum from the tissues of newborn fallow deer into it. Scientists from the Second Moscow Medical Institute managed to double the life of experimental mice with the help of royal jelly of bees. American Robert A. Wilson returns youth to women with injections of the female sex hormones estrogen and progesterone. The Swedes are trying to do the same with the hormone thymosin. The Russian researcher A. Kostenko is convinced that aging is based on the accumulation of hydroxylapatite Ca5 (PO4) 3OH, the “mineral of death” formed during the life of the body, just as scale is formed in a teapot. The way out is in the artificial acidification of the body (for example, with the help of carbon dioxide). He periodically subjected aged mice to acidic washing in a medium enriched with CO2. As a result, the condition of their eyes and fur improved, the increase in average life expectancy reached 131 percent, and four mice lived to be five years old, which corresponds to about 220 human years!
There is another curious experiment on a rat. Her climacteric period, usually equal to several days, was artificially extended to 40 days. Twice a day, the rat received a drug that did not allow menopause, thanks to which it retained its biological age, time seemed to have stopped for its body. Of course, she did not become younger, but she lived for a long time.
Some researchers are trying to lower the temperature of the human body. It is known that the smaller it is, the slower all physiological processes go. A decrease in body temperature by only 2 degrees will increase life expectancy up to two centuries, while a decrease by 4 degrees will give a fantastic result in general - 700 years of life!
But for this a person needs to become very, very cold-blooded. Colder than snakes. The question is, is it better to lead a long, creeping life, using energy sparingly, or still live with a hot, but, alas, so quickly burning heart.
V. Bogomolova