Guest guest Posted January 3, 1988 Report Share Posted January 3, 1988 _____ LETTER FROM CHINA February '00 (2) A newsletter on and modern China by Dagmar Riley ______ In this issue: THE 5 ELEMENTS ....(A)Short Revision ....(B)Balancing Liver Disharmonies - 1 MEETING LAO WEN ....experiences with a Qigong master - by Julia Turnau DISCLAIMER SUBSCRIBE/UNSUBSCRIBE information ______ Please feel free to FORWARD this newsletter to friends. ______ THE 5 ELEMENTS - WOOD (A)SHORT REVISION: The 5 Elements are a symbol for the 5 basic energies of the Universe. The 5 Elements are: Wood - Fire - Earth - Metal - Water. The Element WOOD is associated with: Spring - Birth - Anger - Wind - Liver - Gallbladder - Eyes - sour. WOOD energy is a strong, dynamic energy of expansion and growth. For the BACK ISSUE on " The Liver " and other back issues of this series, please visit http://www.topica.com/lists/Letter-from-China or send an e-mail to gesund2000 (B)BALANCING LIVER DISHARMONIES - 1 Balancing Liver Disharmonies includes 3 aspects: *your lifestyle including stress reduction, energy work and dealing with your emotions. *nutrition (nutrition is part of your lifestyle, but it's a large enough issue to be treated separately) *medical (self-)treatment including herbal products, acupuncture, acupressure and foot massage. In this issue, we will look at the first aspect: Lifestyle. Remember what we said about Wood-personalities in " Letter from China - January (1) " : *are driven by an internal force to always remain active and look for a new challenge: Once a goal is reached, the achievement becomes uninteresting and a new goal is sought out. " Woodys " need physical or mental activity to feel good and often find it difficult to relax. *are ambitious and love competition. They always want to be the best and feel compelled to win. Woodys love it when they are admired for their success. *are stimulated by difficulties, deadlines and people doubting their success. I am a typical Wood-personality, and it shows: Every second Tuesday, there is a note in my diary: " Write outline of newsletter " . On Thursday noon, I actually write it. The newsletter gets written Thursday night. I tried once to write the outline on Tuesday. It was agonizing - no challenge, no time pressure, just too relaxed! My creativity is stimulated by a race: Against time, a competitor, myself...I need to feel challenged. That's us Woodys, and there is nothing wrong with it. BUT, our ability to get energized by challenge can turn on us: Guess what we do when things go wrong, when we are overworked and exhausted: Yup, we work even more, challenge ourselves even more, stuff our days with 20 more tasks than we could ever possibly accomplish, and the failure to accomplish these tasks will lead to even more frantic activity on our part. Ever heard of the benefits of relaxation? The Wood-personality hasn't. The Woody has to learn to relax in order to regain that suppleness, that harmonious movement, that free flow that is so essential for a healthy Wood Element. As the Woody loves and needs movement, sport is a great way to relax, but remember, I said relax! Don't get caught up in highly competitive sports if the goal is to relax. It's great to play for a team, run marathons or go mountain climbing, but balance these very active sports with calming exercises. Woodys with deficient Wood energy (e.g. the pattern Liver Blood Deficiency) will have difficulties to get motivated for sports. Whenever they actually get moving though, they feel that it does wonders for them. If you are a beginner in sports and don't want to join a team sport, join a gym! The gym instructors will work out a program tailored to your abilities. Sports are also an active way to fight depression and low self- esteem, typical symptoms of Liver Blood Deficiency. So do it! You will feel wonderful, your energy will flow freely again, and you will be in your (Wood-) Element! Meditation is a great relaxation exercise, and highly recommended for everyone, but as a Woody you might have difficulties in the beginning (Comment of a Woody-friend of mine: " After 20 minutes of meditation I want to take my head and hit it against the wall " - clearly not the objective of the exercise...) Prepare yourself by doing some calming exercises that involve movement, like Yoga, Taijiquan (also called Tai Chi) or Qigong. " Standing Pole " is a popular Qigong exercise in China that is practiced by many people in public parks. As you are standing during the exercise and not sitting down as during meditation, it is much easier to keep concentrating on the exercise and not start daydreaming. " Standing Pole " deeply relaxes all muscles and joints and is particulary recommended for patients with insomnia. At the start of each practice, use your mind to consciously first relax the head, then face, neck, shoulders and right down to the toes. Stand with feet apart at shoulder width, toes pointing forward or slightly outward. Bend the knees slightly, weight centered firmly on the soles of the feet. Keep the head and spine erect, chest relaxed and slightly drawn in, never stuck out. Keep the stomach relaxed and not pulled in. Gaze straight ahead, eyelids slightly closed but still permitting you to see. Rest the tip of the tongue on the upper palate behind the front teeth, lips and teeth slightly parted. Arms hang loosely by the sides. Your body should be relaxed but not slack, breathing completely natural. Every joint should be relaxed, as if the body is suspended in air, hanging from the top of the head by a string. Stand like this for 5 Minutes (less in the beginning), before you assume the following posture: Raise the arms forward and upward as far as the level of your navel, keeping them curved as if holding a ball in each arm. Keep the fingers apart and slightly curved, palms pointing in. Hands 3 fists apart and about 3 fists distance from the chest. Elbows should be slightly below the level of the wrists. Keep the shoulders relaxed. Hold the posture for as long as you feel comfortable, 5 Minutes is fine, 20 Minutes even better, 40 Minutes and you will be at Beijing Park beginner's level... Areas of blocked Qi (energy)in your body will feel tense and uncomfortable during the exercise. For some people it's their shoulders, for some the waist, the knees, the neck, etc. With practice these areas will start to feel warm and comfortable. Obviously, you can also relax by reading a good book, or taking a walk, whatever makes you calm and comfortable. Physical exercise, though, remains an important factor for the Wood-personality's well-being. And it's a good way to deal with emotional tension, too. Ah, yes, those emotions... Not only does the Woody react with angry outbursts to anything not going his way, " Liver Qi Stagnation " typically results in (repressed) anger, frustration, irritability, moodiness, or depression, " Liver Fire flaming up " causes irritability and outbursts of anger, " Liver Blood Deficiency " patients have the tendency to break into tears and show high irritability and nervousness,... What do we do with all these emotions? If we repress them, we harm the Liver. If we express them, we hurt our fellow human beings and feel guilty and angry with ourselves, which in turn impairs the Liver. And an impaired Liver will cause emotional tension...a vicious circle? Not really. In , there is no separation of body and mind: A disharmonious mind can impair the body and vice versa, BUT harmonising the body can cure the mind as well as a harmonious mind will cure the body. You will have many tools to harmonise the emotions from the body side: means for stress reduction like sports and energy work, nutrition, herbs, acupuncture, acupressure and foot massage. But what to do about the emotions right when they attack us? We can learn a lot about keeping a right frame of mind about negative emotions from David K. Reynold's book " Constructive Living " . The following 2 of the basic principles of " Constructive Living " are quoted from the official ToDo Institute Website (http://www.anamorph.com/todo)and are part of David K. Reynolds' book " Constructive Living " : <<1)Feelings are uncontrollable directly by the will. You can't simply make yourself feel what you want to feel. You can't make yourself fall in love with someone or feel grateful to someone who has just hurt you. You can't willfully and reliably change your feelings when you're feeling depressed or lonely. [...] 2)Feelings must be recognized and accepted as they are. Rather than try to fix, transform, ignore or " work through " unpleasant feelings, Constructive Living simply advises people to accept their moment to moment feeling states, shifting attention to what can be DONE to change the situation constructively. 3)Feelings can be indirectly influenced by behavior Though we can't control our feelings directly by our will, we can often influence them by what we do. Taking action often causes us to feel differently. A lonely person who asks someone out on a date or organizes a dinner party is likely to affect his or her feelings of loneliness. Feelings of depression or lethargy are often influenced by vigorous exercise.>> Don't become the slave of your emotions, express your anger if you must, but then don't dwell on it and take some constructive action to rebalance yourself! To prevent Wood imbalances, don't procrastinate. Keep things flowing. Try to solve problems and clear away obstacles promptly. Express your feelings clearly (but politely!) and communicate well to your fellow human beings in order to prevent frustration in your relationships. Take your personal development and creativity serious, but also explain your needs to your partner so that he can understand, instead of just getting angry at him/her for " restricting you in your development " . It is also beneficial for the Woody to think about the following questions from time to time in order to stay flowing: What is my objective in life? Is this my true objective? Am I living in harmony with my objective in life? Am I in harmony with my surroundings? What are the main obstacles on my way and how can I clear them away? Are you in harmony with your own rhythm? Everybody has their own rhythm, their own clock. Our internal organs also have their rhythm, their clock. Every Element's energy is strongest during a certain time of the day/ night. Wood energy is strongest between 1:00 A.M. and 3:00 A.M. If your Wood energy is impaired, you'll do well resting during this time. If you are a Wood personality and your Wood energy is strong, this is " your " time to be creative, think, write... It's early in the morning and my Wood-time is up. See you next time! *********************Ad 1******************************* Emphasis Newsletter For Moms is a monthly publication geared to encourage moms not only as parents but as individuals. The goal is to help moms treasure their role by creating a warm environment at home for their families while also getting the much-needed support for themselves. You can at no cost: //Emphasis *********************Ad 2******************************* Lift Your Life from Acceptable to EXCEPTIONAL! Subscribe to Get LIFE LINED UP! Weekly ezine. Tips, Quotes & Strategies for Creating SUCCESS on your own terms, personally & professionally. -llu *********************End Ad***************************** ______ [i met Julia when a Hungarian student introduced me to a Qigong master called Lao Wen. At a Qigong seminar given by Lao Wen's master in South China, we became great friends. Julia came to China in 1988 and graduated from the Beijing Language Institute in 1993. She left China in 1996. I miss her very much. Dagmar] MEETING LAO WEN by Julia Turnau I can remember very clearly the corner of the temple, with the red column and the inclined roof, as well as the crisp air around us, but I can neither remember the year nor the season. Anyway, it was many years ago. Through a friend I was introduced to this tall Chinese man with a deep voice. He looked at me kindly for a while and then asked me casually if I had any problem with my belly. I had. Having already been in China some years, I had been approached by quite a few Chinese people who wanted to tell what was wrong or right with my health, and I was not interested, but this man had such an extent of kindness in his eyes that I did not feel invaded, but only touched by concern. We then talked a little about my stay in China as a student, and Lao Wen said I should feel free to come and visit him in his home whenever. I am not sure he said anything about being a qigong master, if he did it was very lightly. Meeting Lao Wen was like finding the key to open any door you have in front of you, but it did not happen in a day and when I went to visit him the first time I had no idea, I only wanted to see what kind of person would be that man who had a quality very rare in China: total kindness with no intention behind. The day I arrived at his home, I found there were three Hungarian students with him. Lao Wen' s apartment was like many other Chinese apartments in a normal block of houses somewhere in Beijing, but there was and atmosphere of extreme cleanliness, and warmth. Lao Wen said they were going to meditate, and invited me to join. Sitting on the floor cross- legged for a long time was not easy, but I could feel all along kindness and care surrounding me. Afterwards we had tea and talked. Lao Wen had this unique capacity of explaining theories of Buddhist qigong without falling into dogmatic talk and the three Hungarians were so natural and direct; I was quite amazed when I took my bike for the 45 minutes ride back to the university and realized I had spent the whole afternoon there so easily. For a long time afterwards, I spent many afternoons and evenings with Lao Wen practicing qigong and learning about Buddhism, life, about nutrition, Chinese literature and so many other things. Sometimes it was difficult, like spending hours in the open air, with snow around and many degrees below zero standing still in a qigong position. Lao Wen was always kind but he could make one feel like a failure sometimes: one cold evening in someone's room in a university dormitory, one of us had a terrible cold, headache, cough and complained he could not practice qigong properly. Lao Wen simply said someone who has been practicing qigong seriously for some years does not get a cold. Lao Wen had such a clear conscience that whatever he did he did well: his work, teaching qigong, treating sick people all over Beijing, cooking, and learning Italian later. There was a period of time I will always remember as a sort of paradise-like pause in normal difficult life, when I was helping Lao Wen with something he needed me to do, and every other evening, when I arrived in his house he cooked for me such wonderful meals I have never eaten anywhere else again: he first went outside to buy fresh vegetables, then I helped cutting (I was no good!) and Lao Wen explained what kind of vegetable is good for one's health depending on the season, what spices to use, and so on, while cooking. I just listened and learned, and ate so well. In this same period of time, I was learning Taijiquan, and Lao Wen sometimes also went to my same Taijiquan master. When he had time, before dinner we practiced together in the courtyard among bicycles and stares of neighbors. These were occasions of dreadful shame for me, because I practiced Taijiquan frequently and Lao Wen was so busy he only rarely did, but he always corrected my mistakes and did everything perfectly! If I was to write all about the things Lao Wen taught me, the people like his own masters he introduced me to, the amazing experiences he made me go through, I would write a book. This is not the point. What I wanted to try and say here is that meeting a person like him was like seeing in reality what is, for me, of one of the most important aspects of practicing Qigong: doing even the smallest thing in a special way, with care. Lao Wen is a living example of this. [bEIJING MEMOIRS OF MY CANADIAN FRIEND ROBIN normally featured here will be continued in the next issue.] ______ DISCLAIMER The material in this newsletter is intended for informational purposes only. I do not prescribe and I do not diagnose. If you use the information in this newsletter without the approval of a health professional, you prescribe for yourself, which remains your constitutional right, but the author assumes no responsibility. _______ SUBSCRIBE/UNSUBSCRIBE The Letter from China is published every two weeks on Fridays. New rs will be forwarded the current issue. by sending a BLANK email to: Letter-from-China- by sending a BLANK email to: Letter-from-China- submit your own personal stories gesund2000 and write " article submission " in the subject line. comments, suggestions or criticism gesund2000 and write " comment " in the subject line. for back issues gesund2000 and write " back issues " in the subject line or visit http://www.topica.com/lists/Letter-from-China _______ 2000 by Dagmar Riley. All rights reserved worldwide. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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