The Fountain of Youth & Shangri-La

The Fountain Of Youth is a very popular myth that has survived throughout the ages, and smaller little legends have grown from this; springs that have healing waters, drinks concocted from waters of such and such area that will cure all manner of ails, etc. And then there are still people that believe somewhere in the world there is a key to living forever. So, although it comes from a different angle, such as consuming something that takes away the years, it’s the same theory.

People began hunting for a means of longer life, and a way to cure all illnesses, practically since there was death and illness, but when it began it earnest was during the 1340’s, after the Black Death had ravaged England. During the 15th and 16th centuries in Europe, many people began taking alchemy and sorcery for the use of extended life much more seriously. The Spanish conquistador’s and explorers led them on, and gave the title “The Fountain Of Youth” to a supposed spring in Florida that gave eternal life. Many cheats and scoundrels also used this against people for monetary gain. To prove that potions, mineral water, or even “snake oil” worked, they’d try to find an extremely old personage, and claim this person as proof that the cures worked. This is a practise still used today; for an example, Dannon yoghurt’s claims in the 1970’s.

Shangri-La is an extension of the Fountain of Youth in Florida; according to legends, you could not expect to live forever from just taking a potion in any old place. You had to pack up and move to Shangri-La. The people spreading the Shangri-La tales also made sure to claim that this was a village full of people that were over one hundred years old. However, perhaps in a more credible source of information, Pliny wrote a census  of a particular region in Italy where many people were well over the ages of one hundred. Four people were 130, and others were even older; they were the youngsters!