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I grabbed this bottle of Claire Brightwater water at a Whole Foods on Columbus Circle in Manhattan and when I sat down to drink it, I read the copy on the label. It makes more sense than a Dr. Bronner's screed, but just barely.
This water has been programmed with music, crystals & prayers for good health, happiness, creative energy & prosperity.
Here's an excerpt from a 2007 New York Times article about Brightwater's "programming" technique:
It is a complicated process. Once the bottles arrive from their source near Saratoga Springs, N.Y., Ms. Brightwater said, she lays out tumbled stones that she has "programmed for love, health and prosperity" around and on top of each case.
She burns sage and sweet grass, herbs used by the Native Americans, to clarify and purify the energy of the water, and prays for its drinkers to experience good health, good luck and prosperity. She said she then asks "the Great Spirit to help feed the hungry children, keep the waters clean and to protect the two- and four-legged on this planet."
She plays CDs of Native American and Buddhist healing chants for 12 hours a day, until the cases of water are delivered.
Ms. Brightwater has found a powerful distribution channel for her water: two Whole Foods Markets in the city have started carrying it this year. Bottled water, measured in units, is the company's top-selling item, and she said she is already hearing from appreciative shoppers. "So many people have e-mailed me to tell me they can feel the energy flowing through them when they drink the water," she said. "I'm astounded."
