From Lonny Jarrett

[Guest guest]

Dear friends,

 

In the fall of 2004 I gave the Keynote address to the British Acupuncture

Society in London on CM and the Evolution of Consciousness. Peter Deadman

followed up with a letter stating that CM cannot treat the mind or spirit and

that we should refrain from saying it can or attempting to do so. Here is my

response just published in their fall '05 newsletter. Warm regards, Lonny

Jarrett

 

 

 

Lonny S Jarrett: The Primacy of Spirit

 

It has been almost a year since I had the privilege of addressing the BAcC in

London. I've noted that my lectures have generated a lively discussion. Peter

Deadman has questioned Chinese medicine's (CM) ability to effectively treat

the spirit, or psychological states, and has warned us that we need to be

careful when making the claim that it can. The central issues raised by his

letter

emphasize the importance of recognizing the natural hierarchical relationships

between the body, mind, and spirit, between student and teacher, and between

practitioner and patient.

 

Spirit and hierarchy

 

It is not my intention as stated by Mr Deadman to suggest that the practice

of CM is necessarily, in and of itself, a path to enlightenment for

practitioner or patient. My point is that Chinese medicine, in the context of a

spiritual

life, offers those of us who understand the primacy of spirit the opportunity

to practice and be treated in a way that is consistent with our core value

system. I agree with Mr Deadman when he warns us that we must be careful about

making claims that CM can treat the mind or spirit. Generally we tend to have a

very casual notion of what spirit is or of what constitutes a spiritual life

and it is best to be humble. Yet those of us who have recognized the primacy

of spirit must account for, and speak responsibly about, the simple fact that

CM is indeed a profound science of the physiological impediments to the

manifestation of spirit through the human vehicle.

 

The spiritual revelation illuminates the true and right relationship of all

things and in it we discover that the body is a vehicle for the evolution of

spirit and of consciousness. And in this an obligation is discovered that

becomes the foundation of what we might call a spiritual life. Contemplation

will

reveal that the two questions, 'who am I?' and 'how shall I live?' are the

motivating force of the universe itself. Simply put, the highest purpose of

medicine is to illuminate the answers to these questions and to remove all

obstacles

to their realisation. From a spiritual perspective, the only authentic

medicine is consciousness awakening to its own self nature. And there is no

healing,

in the deepest and highest sense, that does not contribute to the journey of

the spirit through the flesh and into this world. The focus of my work has been

to elucidate our medicine in this regard in a context that is relevant to the

time and culture we are living in.

 

Mr Deadman defines the spirit as either 'the psychological make-up' of a

person or their 'spiritual state'. I understand a person's 'psychological

make-up'

to be constituted of the personality as it is enmeshed with thoughts, as

interpretations of life experience, and feelings. This illusory finite self is

deeply conditioned by inherited and cultural factors and is what I would call

ego. From a spiritual perspective it is the antithesis of spirit. The false self

doesn't meaningfully change and this is alluded to when Mr Deadman refers to,

" the time, sweat and pain required to achieve insight into, and the smallest

change in, " it. The ego constitutes the very stagnation that the highest

medicine endeavors to eliminate. And, the part of ourselves that wants to take

time

in the process of healing isn't the part that's interested in recognizing the

fundamental truth of who we really are now. From my own experience I know for

a fact that 'long-standing psycho-emotional problems' can resolve in one

instant. This can happen by grace (a gift conferred from on high) or, more

importantly, by a decision made with conviction.

 

When I speak of treating the patient at 'the spirit level' what do I mean?

The yin aspect is the deepest part of the best part of ourselves, It is rooted

in that unborn ground of being and represents our anchor in that eternal source

that lies beyond this world. In CM terms it is ling and represents the

mysterious power by which something comes from nothing. The yang aspect is the

extension of that unborn potential into the manifest as the creative impulse

itself. This authentic self corresponds to the shen. These two spirits are One

and

represent the deepest and highest line of development along which a human life

unfolds. Fulfilment of destiny means becoming One with this absolute axis of

positivity in life. And, as the Shen nong ben cao jing so aptly states, " The

highest class of medicines govern the nourishment of destiny. "

 

From this perspective the spirit is that best part of ourselves that is

untouched by life and doesn't need treatment. It doesn't have a problem, is

always

positive, never references the past or the self, and is always pushing forward

into the next moment. It is the motivating force of evolution itself and CM

is replete with words that describe it as elaborated in my texts. The single

pointed nature of spirit is perpetual change so that when we identify ourselves

as spirit, and act in accordance with spirit, deep and significant change

takes no time at all. Hence, the spiritual practice of medicine does not

necessarily involve 'healing the spirit' per se, but rather removing all

impediments to

the spirit's manifestation in our lives as the soul source of healing. It is

our conditioning and our delusions that make us crooked and it is the

realization of, and striving for, spirit that once again makes us straight (in

the sens

e of de, zhenqi, and zhengqi for example). The highest purpose of medicine is

to help purify the vessel to better reflect spirit and every herb,

acupuncture point, and clinical interaction holds the potential to further this

goal in

the hands of the serious practitioner.

 

Hierarchy: practitioners and patients

 

Many of us know as patients and practitioners that CM can powerfully alter us

by bringing consciousness into alignment with spirit. The highest medicine

may restore the memory of what has been forgotten by awakening in our experience

that best part of ourselves that is never harmed by life. In this, patients

may have a higher state experience. It is our responsibility as practitioners

to then contextualize our patients' experiences and guide them through the

process of making the higher state they experienced in the treatment a new stage

of development. Of course the patient's interest, will, and work are critical

to the process as suggested by Mr Deadman. However it is our obligation to

support the patient's efforts by striving to become living examples of what is

possible ourselves. Hence there needs to be a natural hierarchy between patient

and practitioner where we as practitioners, through our own tireless efforts,

are striving to move ahead and live up to the highest we have seen. It is

perfectly reasonable that a practitioner of integral medicine leading a patient

toward wholeness should be further along on the journey. And, evolutionarily at

this point in history, that degree of 'further along' is quite a leap for many

of us! Still, for the sake of our patients it is a leap we must take now.

 

The importance of our own development is alluded to by Mr Deadman when he

states that he does " not question the ways that the spirit of a practitioner can

affect a patient. " After 20 years of practice why one patient heals and

another does not remains a mystery to me. But I am sure that the most

significant

contributing factors to healing are grace, the patient's genuine interest in

change, and the level of development of the practitioner. And I'm sure that the

most substantial part of our development as healers does not lie in the realms

of our technical or academic knowledge. What does it mean to take full

responsibility for our contribution to our patient's healing? How far can we

practitioners go in our development as human beings whose lives are given to

spirit?

We know of no limits. And how profoundly can our alignment with spirit

positively contribute to a patient's healing? Again, we know of no limits. And

though

we are only in our infancy of even understanding these questions it is clear

that the upside potential of pursuing them is infinite.

 

It is common now to hear talk of 'holistic' and 'integral' medicine. There

are few readers here who would question that CM is an evolved holistic science

and yet the deeper implications of this might not be obvious. These terms imply

more than just a collection of Eastern and Western modalities that a

practitioner picks and chooses from. Simply put, the purpose of holistic and

integral

medicine is to move the patient toward a state of wholeness and unity. That

means that there is only One of us and not two. It means that our divided state

has been healed and that all fundamental contradictions have been resolved at

the root. The integration of yin and yang back to the one is a foundational

principle of Chinese physiology. To say that CM does not address the evolution

of consciousness and spirit is to say that it is not holistic and does not

constitute an important part of integral medicine. I disagree.

 

Hierarchy: teacher and student

 

Enlightened consciousness has passed down through the ages like a fire from

one individual to another. A serious student of any discipline seeks out the

best teacher they can find. If one is a student of reality then one seeks out a

fully unified teacher, one who has attained liberation and has demonstrated an

unshakable conviction in living it. In the presence of such a person we

should be brought into an experience of enlightened consciousness fairly

quickly.

Such an experience lifts the veil off of our own narrow view and opens a window

into the infinite to reveal the true and right relationship of all things. In

this, the soul (hun and po) is straightened as we experience the living

possibility of perfection discovered in the absolute (represented

physiologically

as the heart/kidney axis).

 

We have made the effort to seek for the teacher and the gift of reality is

bestowed by grace. And yes, once we have set our wills with conviction it will

take continual work for us to become living examples of that higher reality we

have seen. The teacher cannot do it for us, and yet, a living example is proof

that what we have seen can be made flesh. We must be no less an example to

our patients than to be a human who strives to live up to the highest we have

seen. For this is the very foundation of the moral authority to hold one's self

out as a healer as opposed to a technician. And it is the foundation of

developing our own confidence in the fact that changing doesn't have to take

time,

only will (zhi) and interest (shen).

 

When Mr Deadman states, " I have never heard of a psychotherapist or spiritual

teacher (outside a small number of cult-like gurus) who would maintain that

one person can 'treat' or substantially change another's spirit in any way. " he

reveals either his lack of experience, misunderstanding, or cynicism

regarding the guru-disciple relationship. As previously stated, the issue is not

one

treating or changing the spirit of another but of awakening and aligning

consciousness to the soul and spirit. Mr. Deadman states that spiritual teachers

don't claim that they can rectify a person's spirit and then goes on to subtly

denigrate those who say they can by calling them 'cult-like gurus'. Let's be

clear, a real guru is nothing less than a fully unified human being who awakens

unity consciousness in others and guides them to live that realization in the

world. There is the North Star as the heart of heaven, the sun, the emperor,

the guru, and the human heart. Each are different physical manifestations of the

absolute, that center that never moves from truth. My experience is that a

sincere relationship with such a fully unified human being does indeed rectify

the spirit's journey into this world.

 

Conclusion

 

Evidence based studies have their place in an evolved integral medicine. But

the only rational perspective on what questions to ask, on the interpretation

of data, or application of outcomes can come from a core value system that

recognizes the primacy of spirit. Clearly at this point in history we have ample

evidence that scientific achievement divorced from a spiritual core value

system leads consistently to less than desirable consequences. And I will be the

first to acknowledge that 'spirituality' divorced from rationality results in

superstition and is no less dangerous. However, at this late date, the rational

perspective reveals that spirit is primary and is the foundation upon which

any science that can serve humanity must be built.

 

If our reference point is spirit, we are in the fortunate position of being

able to let in the whole clinical picture and embrace all relevant

physiological findings in practice. This is because we recognize the natural

hierarchical

relationships between that which we designate as body, mind, and spirit. A

materialistic perspective, however, will never be able to embrace the

foundational role of spirit, of consciousness, in driving the development of the

material

universe. Therefore, research or a clinical practice oriented to such a

perspective will always be based on irrational conclusions and be blind to the

highest potential our medicine offers.

 

How something came from nothing remains forever a mystery. How consciousness

or the soul evolves through the physical body is also a mystery. And, how

putting needles in a human being can empower the evolution of the spirit and

consciousness is a mystery as well. Demanding evidence of the spirit and its

relevance to medicine is a denial of who and what we already are. The body/mind

duality is alive and well and I'm no more inclined to wait for it to be resolved

before acting or speaking about the spiritual practice of medicine then I am to

study global warming for the next 100 years before advocating for a sane

environmental policy here and now. After all, how much time do we think we

really

have?

 

It's imperative that those who recognize the primacy of spirit stand up for

the emergence of a licensing structure in the UK that recognizes CM, first and

foremost, as a science of spirit. That means honouring diversity and putting

in the effort to understand what integral medicine means and what its deepest

and highest implications are. A structure is needed that allows the non-TCM

traditions to fully flower on their own terms without infringement from those

who

seek to materialize and scientize (sanitize) the medicine.

 

It is not a question of whether or not the practice of CM can alter a human

being's relationship to, and experience of, spirit. It is only a question of

whether we as practitioners have the integrity of interest in such matters to

pursue them seriously in our own lives. As patients we do not doubt the degree

to which our souls have been touched by our medicine. And as practitioners we

do not deny the degree to which our own patients' souls have been touched by

the medicine through our hands. That is why we echo the Lingshu in saying that

CM, above and beyond all else, is rooted in spirit.

 

Lonny S Jarrett is author of both Nourishing Destiny and, The Clinical

Practice of . His UK teaching schedule can be found online at

spiritpathpress.com He may be reached at acutkd

 

Definition of terms

 

Body: The physical vehicle through which the spirit and consciousness evolve.

 

Mind: An emergent facility of the nervous system that allows us to orient in

time and in space. In general, the mind is so conditioned by thought and

feeling that our interpretations of, and reactions to, life become mechanical

and

devoid of humanity. Meditation reveals that who we are in our deepest and

highest selves is always prior to thought, feeling, and the mind.

 

Spirit: The absolute and impersonal axis of human development having a yin

aspect corresponding to ling, and a yang aspect corresponding to shen.

Physiologically we recognize this as the heart/kidney axis. In the highest sense

it may

be considered to be synonymous with consciousness.

 

Soul: The personal soul constituted of the hun and po. The development of the

soul must follow the spirit. For the most part, the materialistic perspective

of post-modern consciousness is dead to the soul.

 

Consciousness: In the highest sense synonymous with spirit. That which

initiated, sustains, and drives the development of the material universe. That

which

is looking through the vehicle. Often, consciousness is so enmeshed with the

mind that the only experience of self is through thought and feeling.

Self-reflective consciousness offers humans the ability to experience

consciousness on

its own terms independent of the mind (time and space), thoughts and

feelings. Perceiving consciousness in this way is the very perspective of the

spiritual experience itself.

 

Ling: Potential; the mysterious ability of nothing to manifest something. The

yin aspect of spirit.

 

Shen: Consciousness; interest. The yang aspect of spirit.