Posted on 10 Feb, 2011 -
Crazy Chinese ritual that works WONDERS!
There are green buds appearing on the trees… people in cafes talking about the sudden appearance of snow drops…
With Spring beginning on March 20th, we’re all beginning to get ready for its arrival
But could your ‘wood energy’ (one of the Five Elements in Chinese Medicine) be getting stuck?
Dear Reader,
If I told you to tap up and down the inside of your legs with your fist, you’d probably think I was crazy, right?
Well, when I read this piece of advice sent in by a reader a couple of days ago, I thought it was a little bit crazy too. It wasn’t until the next day, in fact, when I actually gave it a go that I found out how lovely it is to do - at exactly THIS TIME OF THE YEAR.
And it isn’t actually crazy - it comes from Chinese medicine…
As Carla Hanreck - who is a back pain specialist from Somerset - wrote in to tell me recently, a lot of people can feel somewhat anxious, tetchy, wound up or crabby at this time of year.
According to Chinese medicine, the reason for this is that the new, quickening, green energy of the emerging spring can often get trapped as Spring first starts to emerge out of winter.
This emerging spring energy is seen as a ‘wood energy’ - “flowing, humorous, strong yet flexible”. It is a time of year for activity and future planning, for growth and renewal. So if you’re beginning to feel that energy inside you, then make sure you find an outlet for it.
Make sure you have a chance to connect to nature. Make plans for the future. Engage your sense of humour. And have some form of vigorous physical outlet if possible - whether it’s marching up a hill or just bashing at an old cushion.
Try this energising Chinese ritual
And of course… try this powerful meridian stimulating exercise from China to get the wood energy flowing.
Here’s what Carla recommends: “give the inside of your legs a good tapping with a closed fist - ideally from inside of foot to top of leg but direction is not that important. This is where one of the wood meridians live (liver) and it really likes to be kept moving and stretched. It can have amazing effects in seconds ( I know!!). Your whole mood can change!”
And as I’ve said, I’ve now tried it too and it really does feel great.
But what exactly is this ‘wood energy’ and where does the idea come from?
The importance of the Five Elements in Chinese Medicine - and how to spot if you’re out of balance
Years ago when I lived in China, the Five Elements were probably the part of Chinese Medicine that fascinated me the most.
According to the Chinese system, the natural world is made up of five basic elements - wood, fire, water, metal and earth. These do not refer so much to the actual material themselves as to a kind of force or energy.
To enjoy perfect health, human beings must contain a perfect balance of all five elements. Whenever there is illness, a Chinese Medicine doctor will look for an imbalance in these elements and try to help the patient regain a good balance of all five.
Unfortunately, as modern man becomes more and more disconnected to the natural world and his natural way of living, even more of us fall out of balance with one or more of the elements - and can have elements that become too strong or over-dominant. This can result in a decrease in positive health, a loss of a feeling of wholeness and oneness with the world… and a loss of euphoria and a connection with creative power.
It can also result in illness and a lack of emotional stability.
Do you have a strong wood element - or could you do with a boost of this element?
As well as being about Spring, the wood element also has a strong connection to trees. A person with a healthy amount of the wood element is strong yet flexible like a tree. With strong roots deep in the ground, and flexible branches up above, they can adapt easily to the strong forces of life that push and pull us - always remaining happily grounded while on top they sway with life as it passes through them.
A person with a strong wood element will possess the energy and the enthusiasm it takes to be continually celebrating life anew, to celebrate the eternal freshness of the world. They will be a person with a strong, forward-looking energy who will makes plans efficiently and carry them out successfully. Emotionally they will be gifted with patience and good spirits.
What might a doctor of Chinese Medicine tell you to do?
If you were to visit a Chinese medicine doctor who found you to be lacking in the wood element (indicated by a certain colour in the face or the patients reaction to different tastes on the tongue), what might he prescribe?
First of all, get out in nature to greet the arrival of Spring and form an emotional bond with nature. Make sure you eat plenty of green foods and try wearing green clothes or looking at the colour green. Start putting some thought and energy into making plans for the future. And allow the energy to flow inside you.
Also, try meditating on the idea of being more like a tree - with its strong roots and branches that bend energetically in the wind. Remember also that you too are constantly being renewed. That you have the ability to recreate yourself, revitalise yourself and start anew.
You might also like to get some inspiration from these poems and lyrics:
Awake, thou wintry earth -
Fling off thy sadness!
Fair vernal flowers, laugh forth
Your ancient gladness!
Thomas Blackburn, “An Easter Hymn”
Yesterday the twig was brown and bare;
To-day the glint of green is there;
Tomorrow will be leaflets spare;
I know no thing so wondrous fair,
No miracle so strangely rare.
I wonder what will next be there!
L.H. Bailey
Love is in the air everywhere I look around
Love is in the air every sight and every sound
And I don’t know if I’m being foolish
I don’t know if I’m being wise
But it’s something that I must believe in
And it’s there when I look in your eyes.
Love is in the air, in the whisper of the trees,
Love is in the air in the thunder of the sea,
And I don’t know if I’m just dreaming,
I don’t know if I feel safe,
But it’s something that I must believe in
And it’s there when I call out your name.
John Paul Young, From the hit song of 1978 ‘Love Is In The Air (1978)
P.S. Thanks also to Ray who sent in an interesting email about using fireglow red lightbulbs to create a nice warm glow in Winter. He also reminded me that:
“The Sun is always shining in the daytime only sometimes little clouds get in the way, that’s all, so brush away those clouds and let the sun shine into your life”
Best wishes
