January Self-Healing Tips

When our economy plummeted, the mainstream finally had a realization – we need change.  Many people were saying this for some time.  Now that we have become this unpopular in the eyes of other nations, now that we are this much struggling in our own financial crisis, now that we are this dire for a revolution, we have finally elected for change.  The nature of the earth, human beings, and the universe is change.  It is only through resisting change that we incur national problems, housing market collapses, and personal illness. 

There are two guarantees in the temporal energy of this life – birth and death.  Neither of those is about staying with what is comfortable.  Both are incredible – unfathomable – change, as much for the person being born and dying as for the ones who know and surround them. 

Winter is like this, and the transition into Winter is especially crucial.  Being stable and solid through changes – in presidencies, seasons, and economic climates – in all things – requires a depth of personal clarity.  It involves knowing what to keep and what to let go, knowing what is most important, and what can wait until a warmer brighter season.  It’s about knowing ones energies and also one’s limitations – and honoring those as they naturally ebb and flow with the moments, seasons, and eras of life.  Sitting still in the midst of great change, accepting the year’s end and the birth of a brand new year, meditating and rooting back to the self during the coldest and darkest part of the year – this is what fosters health, well-being, and insight with the transition into Winter.  When we sit still, quiet the body, and listen, we consolidate the Yang energy of the body, and we reconnect to the Kidney energy that is the Self.

Kidney 1, Yong Quan, is an intensely rooting point on the body.  It is located on the sole of the foot, 1/3 of the way down the length of the sole, on the line drawn from between the second and third toes toward the center of the heel.  It may be tender, soft feeling, or in some, very tense and sensitive.  The more we practice tai Qi, the more this point fills in with Qi over the years.  The English translation for Yong Quan is Gushing Spring.  When the point fills with Qi through Qi cultivation, it fills the body with the energy of a Gushing Spring.  This is very good for the Qi - and represents abundance, solidity, and strength in the Water element.  To augment your Tai Qi or Qi Gong practice, or even to augment your health when simply going for a walk, try to breathe up the earth’s energy through KI 1.  Imagine the breath coming up through the Earth as if you were pulling it up through roots growing down into the Earth from KI 1.  When you exhale, send the energy back down into the earth.  You will find new strength and stability with which to face your fears and to weather these changes.  You will find your health, practice, and inner strength benefiting greatly.

Nutritionally, celebrate the rooting energy with root vegetables.  Certain roots are more watery than others – daikon, carrots, celery, parsnips, for example.  Wash and steam these as a regular part of your winter diet to support the Kidney energy and consolidate the Yang.  It will nourish your Water energy and benefit your root.