Tuesday, April 19, 2011

The Self and The Shen

According to Jungian philosophy, “the self is a pattern of order and wholeness in the human psyche.” (Gareth Hill, Masculine and Feminine)


According to ancient Chinese philosophy, the Shen or spirit initiates all transformation in the world. It is a self-creating, active principle that connects the sacred realm of non-being with the material realm and form on earth. (Dennis Willmont, The Twelve Spiritpoints of Acupuncture)

The Shen exists before we are born. At the moment of our conception it unites with our Jing or Essence and begins to make its way into residence in our heart (not limited to the anatomical heart). Once the Shen fully enters the body, as the umbilical cord is severed, it extends into the physical world through personality to fulfill its destiny.

The Shen functions as the emperor or empress of the body. It sits firmly on the throne and rules all the officials of the body. The officials carry out all the necessary functions to keep the body up and running. An example, it is the pericardium officials job to protect the heart and serve as its guard. If the Shen is centered securely in the heart and able to rule effortlessly by non- doing, then we experience life being in the “right place at the right time (Willmont)”.

In other words the self is congruent with the environment. We know truth when we see it and we operate from our center. We make decisions from our own place of body intelligence and follow our path. Most of us have known this cycle to be interrupted during our existence. Whether through the influence of traumatic events, other personalities, or mixed information telling us what, who and how we should be.

Unraveling, this process is hard work. It takes time, practice, study and a willingness.

A willingness to work with our human nature, to awaken our hearts, to unearth our curiosity and courage.

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Acupuncture and Disease

"In the most ancient acupuncture texts it is stated that if the mental state is at peace and equilibrated the person is less, indeed not all, subject to illness... He or she will be susceptible to no disease, even infections. This proposition is quite absolute."1

The first question that comes to mind after reading this statement is, can this be true?
As an acupuncturist, I would like to think so, but in my experience I have not found it to be absolute. However, in the trends that I witness through my work, I would say that it is more true then less true. The people that I treat who are actively dealing with their emotional issues, tend to have a better relationship with their physical/internal complaints. They have a greater capacity to heal. The more blocked a person is, the more the illness can balloon.

I read that acupuncture is a translation of the Chinese ideogram for "Needles and Fire"
If we interpret fire as the movement of energy, then we get a sense of the power of acupuncture.
Last week I was at the mall and in my casual observations of the people surrounding me, I was clearly aware of which people could benefit from acupuncture. These people seemed stiffer in their movements and more limited in their dynamic nature, almost taking up less space. Acupuncture is not the only way to move energy, there are plenty of other practices. For the purpose of this blog, I am going to focus only on acupuncture.

The most basic way of explaining acupuncture is that it removes blocks. The environment that we live in creates blocks. We are much more sedentary then our ancestors were. There is completely convuluted information communicated to us via the media, our family and educators concerning how to process our emotions. The entire environment, food and water contain toxins.

The nature of unblocking always feels good. That is why movement feels so wonderful. A powerful emotional connection with another human is so rewarding. The beauty of a sunset, a mountain, the ocean, a work of art all nourish that part inside of us that is looking for expansion.

"I've come to think that fourishing consists of putting yourself in situations in which you lose self-conciousness and become fused with other people, experiences or tasks."2

Traditionally humans lived in villages, tribes and small towns. Now we live in seperate houses. We are often too busy working, raising children, accomplishing endless lists of small tasks to find the time to connect with others, nature, Spirit/God. It is a genetic desire for us to want dyanamic expansion and connection. Acupuncture creates balance, opens up blocks and supports all the facets of self. It may not inhibit all disease but acupuncture can inhance the relationship with disease and the converse health.
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1-Requena, Yves, Character and Health The Relationship of Acupuncture and Psychology, Paradigm Press, Brookline, Mass. 1984, Pg 11.
2- Brooks, David, The Social Animal, From The New Yorker, Jan.17, 2011. Pg 26.