Johnny Lovewisdom born John Wierlo, and known as Hermit Saint Of The Andes, was an American-Finnish author who wrote about diet, health, natural living, religion and spirituality.

Early diet ideas

Johnny Lovewisdom originally promoted a strict fruit diet

Fruitarianism

Fruitarianism involves the practice of following a diet that includes fruits, nuts and seeds, without animal products, vegetables and grains. Fruitarianism is a subset of dietary veganism....

 but later changed it to the "Vitarian" diet with vegetables, raw yoghurt

Yoghurt

Yoghurt, yogurt or yogourt is a dairy product produced by bacterial fermentation of milk. The bacteria used to make yoghurt are known as "yoghurt cultures"...

, clabber

Clabber (food)

Clabber is a food produced by allowing unpasteurized milk to turn sour at a specific humidity and temperature. Over time, the milk thickens or curdles into a yoghurt-like substance with a strong, sour flavor. In rural areas of the Southern United States, it was commonly eaten for breakfast with...

, kefir

Kefir

Kefir is a fermented milk drink that originated with shepherds of the North Caucasus region, who discovered that fresh milk carried in leather pouches would occasionally ferment into an effervescent beverage...

 and avocado. Experimenting with many diets throughout his life, including a diet of papaya leaf salads with clabber, which he claimed healed an avascular tumor, he also promoted "Modern Live Juice Therapy", breatharianism (the idea that humans do not need food or water and can live on "spiritual energy" alone.), aquarianism (water fasting), heliovorism (solarism), and a number of other unusual "lifestyle" diets. He suffered from paralysis, poor eyesight and neurological problems, which he claimed to be a result of working as a farm laborer in the pesticide contaminated orchards of California.

Emigration

In 1938, he made plans to emigrate to South America to avoid being conscripted as a soldier in World War 2. In 1944 a U.S. newspaper article reported how in 1940 a group of young Americans including Lovewisdom and the Windish family of Marian, James, Dick and Fred set out to found a nature colony in the equatorial forest. The article, which was to be titled Father Of The New Age, depicted Lovewisdom as the biological father of the new age and race, even though he wanted nothing to do with the scheme. The reporter later changed the title to Danger In Paradise. When Walter Siegmeister

Walter Siegmeister

Walter Siegmeister , later and better known as Dr. Raymond W. Bernard A.B., M.A., PhD, was an early 20th century American alternative health, esoteric writer, author and mystic, who formed part of the alternative reality subculture.-Biography:...

 met Lovewisdom in Ecuador in 1941, they spoke of plans for creating a paradisian utopia and a super-race in the Ecuadorean jungle, but Lovewisdom later stated that he only wanted to begin what he called a Propitiatory Shelter For The Apocalyptic Camp of the Saints

Later life

In the 1960s, Lovewisdom lived as a hermit in the mountain crater lake, Quilotoa

Quilotoa

Quilotoa is a water-filled caldera and the most western volcano in the Ecuadorian Andes. The wide caldera was formed by the collapse of this dacite volcano following a catastrophic VEI-6 eruption about 800 years ago, which produced pyroclastic flows and lahars that reached the Pacific...

, in Ecuador

Ecuador

Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...

, which he felt would shield residents from nuclear fallout. This was further documented in Lovewisdom's book Ecstatic Recreation Thru Paradisiacal Living where he invited 'paradisians', to build a 'camp of saints' in Quilotoa. Lovewisdom believed that the thin air at high altitudes would allow him to develop clairvoyance and "drink alcohol like water without getting drunk."

An article about Vilcabamba

Vilcabamba, Ecuador

Vilcabamba is a village in the southern region of Ecuador, in the Loja province, about from the city of Loja. The etymology of the “Vilcabamba” apparently derives from the Quichua “huilco pamba.” Huilco denotes the sacred trees, Anadenanthera colubrina, that inhabit the region and pamba is a...

 - an 'island of immunity' from cardiovascular disease, in Reader's Digest

Reader's Digest

Reader's Digest is a general interest family magazine, published ten times annually. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, its headquarters is now in New York City. It was founded in 1922, by DeWitt Wallace and Lila Bell Wallace...

 ignited Dr. Lovewisdom's interest, besides its abundant fruit varieties, so he moved there from Otavalo in the north of Ecuador. Dr. David Davies of University College London

University College London

University College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and the oldest and largest constituent college of the federal University of London...

, and Dr. Alexander Leaf of Harvard University

Harvard University

Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...

, both gerontologists, visited Lovewisdom due to his many articles on the longevity of the Vilcabamban people. Lovewisdom became a consultant for them, on the centenarians.

Reincarnation

Lovewisdom believed himself to be the reincarnation of Ananda (the primary disciple of Buddha), Milarepa

Milarepa

Jetsun Milarepa , is generally considered one of Tibet's most famous yogis and poets. He was a student of Marpa Lotsawa, and a major figure in the history of the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism.- Life :...

 and John the Baptist

John the Baptist

John the Baptist was an itinerant preacher and a major religious figure mentioned in the Canonical gospels. He is described in the Gospel of Luke as a relative of Jesus, who led a movement of baptism at the Jordan River...

. As the official successor to Kuthumi Lal Singh, Tashi Lama and Maha Chohan, he founded the International University of Natural Living at Vilcabamba, Ecuador in 1962 with its credo "build paradise and eat the fruits thereof" and correspondence school which issued the degree 'Doctor of Vitalogical Science' or D.Vit.Sci., and Ph.D in 'Vitalogical Science and Agronomy'. He founded the "Pristine Order of Paradisian Perfection", a religious order, which was registered with the Ecuadorean government, and later founded the International University of the Vitalogical Sciences.

Final years

The early 20th century nature cure movement inspired authors such as George R. Clements, Walter Siegmeister

Walter Siegmeister

Walter Siegmeister , later and better known as Dr. Raymond W. Bernard A.B., M.A., PhD, was an early 20th century American alternative health, esoteric writer, author and mystic, who formed part of the alternative reality subculture.-Biography:...

, Theos Bernard and Johnny Lovewisdom. Siegmeister told of his search for the safest place on Earth from radioactive fallout in order to build a paradise, an idea later developed by Lovewisdom in Handbook on Radioactive Nuclear Fallout. Lovewisdom's many beliefs were documented in Viktoras Kulvinskas' Survival Into The 21st Century in the 1970s, which sold over a million copies.

In 1998, near the end of his life, inspired by Spanish fruitarians who visited him, he returned to promoting a strict juicy fruitarian diet, which he called the "Vitarian Fruit-Salad Diet", described in The Ascensional Science of Spiritualizing Fruitarian Dietetics (1999). His low fat stance was also corroborated by Dr. Corwyn Samuel West of the International Academy of Lymphology, Dr. Douglas N. Graham who warned against high raw fat diets, Otto Carque and Arnold Ehret

Arnold Ehret

Arnold Ehret was a German health educator and author of several books on diet, detoxification, fruitarianism, fasting, food combining, health, longevity, naturopathy, physical culture and vitalism.- Background :...

. Lovewisdom died in Quito, aged 81. His life-story is chronicled in the autobiography Maitreya: The New Age World Teacher.

Legacy

Lovewisdom produced many books in English and Spanish on breatharianism, fasting

Fasting

Fasting is primarily the act of willingly abstaining from some or all food, drink, or both, for a period of time. An absolute fast is normally defined as abstinence from all food and liquid for a defined period, usually a single day , or several days. Other fasts may be only partially restrictive,...

, fruitarianism

Fruitarianism

Fruitarianism involves the practice of following a diet that includes fruits, nuts and seeds, without animal products, vegetables and grains. Fruitarianism is a subset of dietary veganism....

, natural hygiene

Natural hygiene

Natural Hygiene can refer to:* a school of medical thought also named orthopathy, founded by Herbert Shelton* naturopathy* a reference to the hygiene hypothesis...

, naturopathy, orthopathy

Orthopathy

Orthopathy or natural hygiene is an alternative medicine originating from the nature cure movement. It is a form of vitalism that considers self-healing the best and only cure for disease, and favours fasting as restorative and favours dietary and other lifestyle measures as preventative...

, parthenogenesis

Parthenogenesis

Parthenogenesis is a form of asexual reproduction found in females, where growth and development of embryos occur without fertilization by a male...

, vitalism

Vitalism

Vitalism, as defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary, is#a doctrine that the functions of a living organism are due to a vital principle distinct from biochemical reactions...

, yoga

Yoga

Yoga is a physical, mental, and spiritual discipline, originating in ancient India. The goal of yoga, or of the person practicing yoga, is the attainment of a state of perfect spiritual insight and tranquility while meditating on Supersoul...

 traditions, aquarian eugenics and ascensional science. Further topics included: anthropology

Anthropology

Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...

, clairvoyance, body chemistry, comparative anatomy, geophysical changes, lemurian genesis, neuro-cerebropathology, organiculture, plant botany, tropical colonization and esoteric dietetics in religion

Religion

Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...

, history

History

History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...

 and metaphysics

Metaphysics

Metaphysics is a branch of philosophy concerned with explaining the fundamental nature of being and the world, although the term is not easily defined. Traditionally, metaphysics attempts to answer two basic questions in the broadest possible terms:...

. From the 1990s, Lovewisdom's books were published by Paradisian Publications, San Francisco.

Notable writings

• Spiritualizing Dietetics: Vitarianism (also called Vitarianism: Spiritualized Dietetics), where he promoted a raw food diet called Vitarianism, which included raw fruit, raw yogurt and vegetables.
• The Buddhist Essene Gospel of Jesus (originally The Essene Gospel Of John), which explained John the Baptist
  John the Baptist
  John the Baptist was an itinerant preacher and a major religious figure mentioned in the Canonical gospels. He is described in the Gospel of Luke as a relative of Jesus, who led a movement of baptism at the Jordan River...
  
  's fruitarian diet as written in the original Syriac Peshito Scriptures and handed down through the centuries, through direct translation into English from the original Aramaic tongue (a Syriac dialect) spoken by Jesus and recorded by John. The translation showed how words in Aramaic lexicons, have dual or triple meanings, and how previous translators such as Edmund Bordeaux Szekely
  Edmund Bordeaux Szekely
  Edmond Bordeaux Szekely was a Hungarian philologist/linguist, philosopher, psychologist and natural living experimenter.-Life:Szekely's grandfather was Sándor Székely, poet and Unitarian Bishop of Kolozsvár; his mother was French and Roman Catholic, and his father was a Hungarian Unitarian...
  
  in The Essene Gospel Of Peace, used imprecise definitions, ascribing a biogenic diet to John and the Essenes, instead of a fruitarian one. The 2004 edition featured a new Appendix entitled The Healing Transition Diet.
• The Ascensional Science Of Spiritualizing Fruitarian Dietetics, his penultimate book, where he promoted the juicy fruitarian diet which excluded fat-rich fruits.
• Truth About Healing, his final book, on diet and natural health, the problems of alternative medicine, and the dangers of nuclear fallout.
• Maitreya: The New Age World Teacher: The Lovewisdom Autobiography (2 Volumes).
• Modern Live Juice Therapy.
• Vitalogical Hygiene.
• The Lovewisdom Message On Paradise Building.
• Mystical Anthropology.

Criticisms

Dr Teofilo de la Torre of Panama, critiqued Lovewisdom declaring nuts and seeds were optimal foods, though earlier advised against them, in the same book. Health writer Gabriel Cousens attributed Lovewisdom's health problems to B12 deficiency, although Lovewisdom attributed these to pesticides exposure and hospitals.

English

• A 5000 Year Worship Of A God Of Death, 1967
• A Brief Paradisian History Of The Buddhist Essenes
• A Cosmic Universal Order Of The Holy Life: A Cosmic Universal Conception Of Religious Living, 1947
• A God-Given Method Of Birth Control, 1960
• A Look In A Nook Of A Vitarian's No-Cook Book (with Ruth Marie Lovewisdom)
• A Master Course On Foodless Living
• A New Vitalogical Natural Living Or Vegetarian Version Of The Christian Bible
• Andean Home Of Humans
• Apocalyptic Camp Of Saints Handbook On Radioactive Nuclear Fallout
• Apostolate Of The Living Lovewisdom Message, 1977
• Buddhist Essene Contemplatives Of Paradisians
• Caravan Books/Caravaners Handbook, 1952, 1954
• Dietetic Science Of Chastity
• Ecstatic Recreation Thru Paradisiacal Living, 1959, 1977
• Equatorial Andean Home Of The Human Form, 1969
• Handbook On Radioactive Nuclear Fallout, 1999
• Heavenly Ecclesia Of The Living God In Aeonian Revivification & The Pristine Order Of Paradisian Perfection
• Heavenly Life Without Eating!, 1960
• How To Grow & Eat The Vitarian Fruit Salad Diet
• If You Like What We Write, Why Not Teach It
• Lessons From The Life Of Love-Wisdom: An Autobiography, 1962, 1945
• Live Juice Therapy, 1964
• Maha Maitreyana: Shambhala 1981, 1984, 1985
• Maitreya: The New Age World Teacher: The Lovewisdom Autobiography (1919–1985) Volume 1, 1977, 1978
• Maitreya: The New Age World Teacher: The Lovewisdom Autobiography (1919–1985) Volume 2
• Meditation, 1999
• Modern Live Juice Therapy, 1962, 1964, 1973, 2000s
• Mystical Anthropology Constituted As A Fundamental Vitalogical Science
• Mystical Anthropology, 1979
• Never Sick, 1959
• New Vitaological Natural Living Version Of The Christian Bible, 1967
• Nine Months In A Snake Pit, 1956, 1959
• Oh Sweet Mystery Of Life!, 1985
• Poignant Memoirs Of My Virgin Birth & Consequent Vocation In Life
• Powerful Muscular Strength Thru Fruitarian Continence In The Paradisian New Age
• Remedies For Re-Establishing Religious Relevancy, 1991
• Satya Sai Saba
• Search For Reality, 1960s
• Spiritualizing Dietetics: Vitarianism, 1950s
• The Ascensional Science Of Spiritualizing Fruitarian Dietetics, 1999
• The Buddhist Essene Gospel Of Jesus Volume 1, 2004, San Francisco: Paradisian Publications
• The Buddhist Essene Gospel Of Jesus Volume 2, 2007, San Francisco: Paradisian Publications
• The Buddhist Essene Gospel Of Jesus Volumes 1,2,3, 1994
• The Buddhist-Essene Connection, 1997
• The Healing Godspell Of Saint John: The Essene Therapeutics, 1978
• The History Of Naturistic Tropical Colonization, 1970s, 1964, 1967, 1952, Connecticut: OMango d'Press
• The Inescapable Book Of Life
• The Inner Rule Of Paradisian Perfection & How The Paradisian God-Spell Became The New Testament Bible Scripture, 1984
• The Inner Rule Of Paradisians, 1984
• The Keys To The Mysteries Of The Kingdom Of Heaven
• The Lord Made Flesh Dwelt Among Us
• The Lovewisdom Intuition: Unveiling The Divine Mysteries, 1992
• The Lovewisdom Message Of Paradise Building, 1976
• The Lovewisdom Message Of Paradise Building, 2006, San Francisco: Paradisian Publications
• The Order Of Paradise: Lessons From The Life Of Lovewisdom, 1945, 1962
• The Original Diet & Sin
• The Paradisian God Spell: The Syriac Peshito Scripture of the Nazarene Savior, 1982/1983
• The Pristine Order Of Paradisian Perfection, 1962
• The Reclamation Of The Garden Of Eden
• The Resurrection Seal Of Lovewisdom
• The Sacred Science Of Sexual Sublimation/Sacred Spiritualized Sex Science, 1972
• The Sacred Theology Of The Seven Churches Of Asia, 1972
• The Science Of Science: Vitalogy
• The Seven Churches Of Asia
• The Strictest Discipline On Earth: Paradisian Perfection, 1984
• The Sublime Theology Of The Heavenly Ecclesia Of The Essenes, 1998
• The Syriac Peshito Scripture Of The Nazarene Jesus
• Their Extremes Made Them Saints!, 1959
• Those Strong Powerful & Extraordinary Vegetarians, 1994
• Transcendent Truth Teachings, 1974
• Tropical Paradises & Colonization/Tropical Colonization History Of Naturistic Paradisian Contemplatives, 1952, 1984
• Truth About Healing, 2000
• Understanding Self-Realization Of Buddhahood & Christhood Thru Divine Wisdom
• Vitalogic Version Of The New Testament Bible
• Vitalogical Anthropology
• Vitalogical Healing & Hygiene Volumes 1,2,3, 1972, 1975, 1977, 1966, 1971
• Vitalogical Healing, 1971
• Vitalogical Hygiene, 1996, 1997
• Vitalogy, 1946
• Vitarianism: Spiritualized Dietetics, 1973
• Why Paradisian Contemplative Hermits Will Live Longer By Migrating To The High Andes Proven By Scientific Research, 1984
• Worldwide Lovewisdom Message, 1984

Spanish

• Absologo
• Actas De La Asamblea De La Junta De La Orden Pristina De La Perfeccion Paradisiaca De Loja Ecuador En Su Concurrencia De, 1984
• Compendio Ideologico De La Ecclesia Celeste De Dios Viviente En Revivificacion Eoniana / Constitucion De La Order Pristina De Perfeccion Paradisiaca
• Copca Para Corregir / La Reclamacion Del Jardin De Eden / Esos Fuertes, Poderosos Y Extraordinarios Vegetarianos!
• Curso De Antropologia Vitalogica
• Declaraciones Sobre La Misione De Los Paradisiacos En El Ecuador
• Designios Celestes
• El Despertamiento De La Fe
• El Evangelio Del Senor Buddha Remedios Para El Restablecimiento De Relevancia Religiosa, 1991, 1996
• El Evangelio Esenio Buddhista De Jesus: Quitando El Velo De Los Divinos Misterios, 1993
• El Evangelio Nazareno Siriaco, Escrito En La Lengua Apostolica, La Orden Mistica De Los Paradisiacos, Y Su Paraiso
• El Monte Chimborazo
• El Reglamento Interno De La Orden Pristina De La Perfeccion Paradisiaca De La Celeste Ecclesia De Dios Viviente En Revivificacion Aeoniana, Y Su Celeste Jerarquia Superior
• El Tercero Volumen Del Evangelio Esenio Buddhista De Jesus
• Estudios Avanzados En Las Yogas Joanica Y Jñana, Contemplaciones Por El Corazon Y La Super: Mente, 1991
• Evangelic De Salud De San Juan
• La Auto: Realizacion De La Divina Sabiduria, 1992
• La Ciencia De La Dietica Espiritualizadora Para Lograr La Continencia Vitalogica, June 1996
• La Ciencia Dietetica De La Castidad
• La Experiencia De Samadhi Del Autor, Los Maestro De Las Himalayas, Un Guru Chquetero Y Sri Roma Krishna Paramhansa, 1991
• La Leyenda Del Buddha O “Buddhacarita” Escrito Por Asvaghosha Bodhisattva, 1992
• La Nueva Era Paradisiaca Vuelve A Yoga Para La Veraz Auto: Realizacion Divina: Le Vedanta, Los Upanishades, Yogo Jñana Y Jaanico, 1991
• La Orden Pristina De Perfeccion Paradisiaca
• La Primavera Silenciosa Por Rachel Carson
• La Sutra Muy Amplio Corazon De La Perfeccion De La Sabiduria Suprema
• Los Secretos De Longevidad En La Nueva Era Dorada
• Mensaje De Lovewisdom Sobre La Vocacion Paradisiaca / La Order Pristina De Perfeccion Paradisiaca
• Prospecto De La Universidad Naturista Internacional
• Quiere Ud. Ayudar A Moldear El Futuro Humano
• Quitando El Velo De Los Divinos Misterios
• Sukhavata Ashram Lamasary
• Superior Snedero De Yoga Budhista Mahayana Con Meta En Sambodhi, Y Lo De Bhagavar/N Sri Ramana Maharishi, 1991
• Terapia Moderna De Los Zumos Vivos: Una Aproximacion Veraz De La Medicina Botanica
• Textes Choices
• Un Santo En Los Andes
• Vida Joven Y Eterna

Other Writings

• Eternal Youth Life 1947-1985: The Lovewisdom Message For The Paradisian New Age The Northern Pontifical Academy (Journal Compendium). Journal restarted 1996.
• Eternal Youth Life 1982: The Syriac Peshito Scripture Of The Nazarene Savior
• International University Of Natural Living (Article)
• International University Of Natural Living Sciences Of Man, 1978 (Catalog)
• International University Of Natural Vitalogical Sciences (Catalog)
• Universal Spiritual Union (Article)
• Vitalogical Food Class Chart (Chart)
• Paradigm Of The Pristine Order of Paradisian Perfection (Catalog)
• American University Of The Natural Vitalogical Sciences (Catalog)

Articles on Lovewisdom

• Johnny Lovewisdom: Hay Partido, Dr Cesar Davila Gavilanes
• Johnny Lovewisdom: Vive Todavia Con Nosotros, 1989, Dr Cesar Davila Gavilanes
• En Maternas/Materias Sanatonas Del Doctor Johnny Lovewisdom, Dr Cesar Davila Gavilanes
• En Yoga Y Cristianismo, 1988, Dr Cesar Davila Gavilanes