Kikuchi Kouso｜About the Enzyme Bath

The enzyme bath is a steam bath that uses the heat generated by microorganisms fermenting within rice bran. Fermentation is a traditional technique used worldwide in foods like bread, wine, and cheese. Research into enzyme baths also required extensive time, similar to the aging process for wine or cheese. With daily maintenance, enzyme baths can maintain a cycle where heat is reliably produced each day. Just as kneading flour and baking bread in the oven is a daily ritual, caring for an enzyme bath is an essential routine that sustains the microorganisms’ life.

Inside the enzyme bath, millions of microorganisms, are actively interacting. The world of microorganisms is constantly changing. Just like humans, these microorganisms breathe, feed on the bran and human waste, and excrete byproducts, repeating this cycle to generate heat. By utilizing the life force of these microorganisms in the heated rice bran, we create a type of steam bath, benefitting from the warmth they produce to sustain life. Enzymes containing countless microorganisms are a biological catalyst which penetrate the body through pores, activating the cells from within.

This heat-producing rice bran is completely sustainable as long as it’s properly maintained daily. It continuously self generates heat without electricity or gas. All that’s needed is rice bran and water. While it requires some manual work, the only cost involved is the price of rice bran which can be used indefinitely, if properly maintained. With the maintenance technique we teach, which is similar to caring for a child or pet with love and attention, the rice bran will continue to produce heat indefinitely. The maintenance, which is completely different from making fertilizers, involves stirring the rice bran with a shovel to add air. Although this requires arm strength, the process of mixing feels similar to mud therapy or earthing. Once you get used to the maintenance, it is an enjoyable task, much like farming.