The hado of water is a timely metaphor for our lives, suggests Lerae Rowney.

Water. It is fascinating to think that as Earth is a virtually closed biosphere, the same water that existed on the planet millions of years ago is still here in one form or another. The only natural substance found in all three states - liquid, solid and gas - water is constantly being reused and recycled as it changes form. Perhaps the water you drank today flowed in the Amazon River thousands of years ago.

Essential for survival, we drink it, cook with it, bathe in it, swim in it, wash with it.

While covering much of our planet, around 97.5 per cent is salt water, 2.09 per cent is frozen and 0.4 per cent is fresh. Yet just 0.01 per cent of that fresh water is directly available for drinking and much of this is not considered clean. And the United Nations estimates that more than 4000 children die each day as a result of a lack of clean drinking water.

Once revered and worshipped for its life giving properties and as a symbol of purity, today water is mostly taken for granted, and often wasted. How and when did we lose our spiritual connection to what is sometimes referred to as the medicine, and also oil, of the 21st Century? After all, we can survive without oil, but not without water.

Is our relationship with water in need our nourishing? Undoubtedly, says Lawrence Ellyard in The Spirit of Water - The Hidden Message for all of us: The more we can begin to foster a relationship to water as something sacred, the more this responsibility will be engendered and, collectively, with increased awareness, we can not only improve the quality of water but also improve the fair consumption of this precious resource."

Ellyard was trained by Masaru Emoto. Renowned for his ice crystal research and photography proving that water reacts to positive and negative stimuli including words and phrases, images, sounds and even thoughts, Emoto described the subtle vibrational energy of the universe and all within it as hado, a Japanese word meaning wave or vibration.

Others have sought to explain, quantify and validate this concept. First recognised by Christian Huygens in the 17th century through observing clock pendulums, the phenomenon of sympathetic resonance or entrainment (the law of attraction) proves that a resonating vibration will affect another vibration and cause it to respond at the same tone, level or frequency.

More recently, Deepak Chopra, in Power Freedom and Grace discusses the quantum universe and the "on/off switch" for pulsing energy that permeates everything and, in fact, creates our reality.

Emoto's ice crystal photography is compelling; the images alternating between exquisitely beautiful, unsettling and downright chilling. Backed by double blind experiments, it is impossible to ignore their implications. Water exposed to positive words, images or music (for example, John Lennon's "Imagine") forms beautiful, structured crystals, while water exposed to negative stimuli (such as profane heavy metal music) either does not form crystals or displays distorted, fragmented, jagged ones.

"If our thoughts can do this to water, imagine what our thoughts are doing to us...to others and our fragile world," says Ellyard, who believes his mentor's work has enormous implications. "We are metaphorically at the tip of the iceberg and as we delve deeper into the potential each one of us holds, we will learn more about water and how we can collectively create peace in our time. This is the true Spirit of Water and the hidden message it holds for all of us."

Indeed, his book's title refers to the concept that "our consciousness or spirit can be imbued and carried by water". In it, Ellyard underscores and advances Emoto's findings by presenting methods for the practical application of hado in our daily lives and how we may benefit ourselves, others and the planet through an attitude of positivism and gratitude.

"Most people agree that the ice crystal of love and gratitude is one of the most beautiful and balanced formations. If the hado of love and gratitude can do this to water, imagine what love and gratitude can do for us. If we look at ourselves as constituted mostly as water, aligning with the hado of love and gratitude is a direct and positive way to raise our vibration.

"To thank water before we drink it and to feel gratitude for its life giving properties is an attitude we all can share. It is from this place that we can once again honour water and likewise ourselves. It is this mind of gratitude which creates an impetus for change," says Ellyard.

Strangely, while I always bless my food, it had never occurred to me to bless water, yet it makes spiritual sense. Water, like oxygen, is vital for life - and it is worth reflecting that water is, after all, composed of oxygen (and hydrogen).

By giving thanks for what sustains and nourishes us, we return positive energy (hado) to the collective consciousness of the universe, thereby nourishing it and all within it, ourselves included.

As such, I see Ellyard's conclusions as a metaphor for how we relate to ourselves, each other, all living organisms, the world and the universe at large. His timely, if controversial, message is compelling and inspiring.

Philosophical and practical in equal measure, The Spirit of Water ultimately cannot be ignored on a number of levels - scientific, physiological and spiritual. While I feel the book would have benefited from reversing the order of its two sections, and presenting the hado and spiritual side before the drier (no pun intended) scientific side, it is truly a handbook for healing ourselves, others and the planet.

In addition to describing the chemistry and properties of this vital and precious resource plus current issues of pollution, scarcity, supply and usage, and placing water in an historical and spiritual context, Ellyard reveals how it is affected by stimuli and adds practical advice on how to tap into its healing powers.

Of particular interest are the chapters on the sacred geometry of the hexagon and number six in nature (and, therefore, religious and cultural symbolism), and the significance of this shape forming the heart of ice crystals (and also honeycomb cells).

Practical and useful topics include why we should filter water both for consumption and bathing, storage of water and why glass and ceramic is best, why drinking distilled water (most soft drinks contain this) is not good for you, and why we need to energise water, not merely purify it, and how to do this easily and quickly.

As for companies cashing in on the ever increasing demand for bottled water and the energy used to make plastic containers, Ellyard is thought provoking: "Imagine how dramatically the world would change if this same amount of money was invested in cleaning up our water sources and creating sustainable sources of pure water."
The final chapter, "Practical Hado Exercises", offers meditations and affirmations. An accompany CD is available, narrated by Ellyard, which includes the hado water blessing meditation featured in his book.

In closing, Ellyard offers Emoto's Grand Invocation: "May the eternal energy of the universe by crystallised in truth here and now, for the era of great harmony has come."

I'll drink (blessed) water to that.

The Spirit of Water - The Hidden Message for all of us
Lawrence Ellyard
O Books RRP $A29.95