This book, *Walk Barefoot*, was written during a great turning point in the history of civilization, marked by the COVID-19 pandemic which divided the history of human civilization into pre- and post-COVID eras. It stems from an agony over why the whole world came to a standstill while so many people died or suffered due to COVID-19, as well as from a serious reflection on modern human civilization, where the reality is even more severe: more people die each year from numerous chronic diseases than from the actual deaths caused by COVID-19.
The cause was revealed through my, the author's, a truly simple factual insight that while wild plants, animals, fish, and other living things walk on the ground or live in contact with the earth, living vibrant lives without getting sick at all, modern humans wear non-conductive shoes and pave their roads with non-conductive asphalt, cement, and urethane, living 24 hours a day, 365 days a year with their connection to the earth cut off.
Since then, I, the author, have walked barefoot for the past 25 years and have personally taught and lectured on barefoot walking at Mt. Daemo in Gangnam, Seoul, and Global Cyber University of Korea for the past 10 years. Through the testimonies of participants, I have confirmed that numerous diseases are prevented and improved by barefoot walking. Based on these cases, three theoretical frameworks of barefoot walking have been established: 1. The theory of natural acupressure, 2. The grounding theory of Clint Ober and scholars and physician from the United States and Poland and 3. The theory of the arch and toes of the sole of the foot. Applying these theories allows for the interpretation of the causes of any disease and confirms the fact that walking barefoot prevents and improves these conditions.
And to verify this, the author personally demonstrated the amazing and wondrous difference between being connected to the earth and not being connected through grounding experiments using onions, milk, goldfish, and rubber trees, thereby confirming that one must walk barefoot and live a life grounded to the Earth to live a life of life, a life of healing, and a life of youth, just as grounded onions maintain their original healthy appearance, milk ferments without spoiling, grounded goldfish excrete feces and maintain vigorous vitality even after not being fed for five days, and grounded rubber trees grow vigorously and healthily without drying out.
In order to make this known to the world and encourage its practice, in 2023, an official letter was sent to the Director-General of the WHO, requesting that barefoot walking be included in the WHO's global 'exercise recommendations' or that the movement be switched to barefoot walking. It was also appealed to scientifically research and prove, together with my, the author's, Walking Barefoot National Movement Headquarters of Korea, the evidence that barefoot walking prevents and improves diseases.
With the publication of this book, *Walking Barefoot: A Healing Gift from the Earth*, I, the author, wrote the following at the end of the epilogue: "Through the publication of this book in 2026, I, the author, would like to present a significant topic regarding the healthy lives and health of all humanity. It is to create a healthy world free from disease and aging through barefoot walking. This is precisely the 'great and glorious dream of realizing the longevity and health of all humanity', which has been the dream of human salvation for the past thousands of years."
