Spring: The season of revitalization and rebirth
For many around the world, spring represents a return to life and family. People begin to look forward to improved weather, spending more time outdoors and to finally working towards some of the New Years goals/plans they created. This is often a time for people to also reconnect to God through their religious or spiritual practices as evident with the numerous holidays from many different religions and cultures.
As with the other seasons, spring has a major impact on our lives, nature and Earth as well. According to Huang Di (aka Yellow Emperor: Taoist Sage and Emperor):
“The three months of the spring season bring about the revitalization of all things in nature. It is the time of birth. This is when heaven and earth are reborn. During this season it is advisable to retire early. Arise early also and go walking in order to absorb the fresh, invigorating energy. Since this is the season in which the universal energy begins anew and rejuvenates, one should attempt to correspond to it directly by being open and unsuppressed, both physically and emotionally.
On the physical level it is good to exercise [Internal Exercises] more frequently and wear loose fitting clothing. This is the time to do stretching exercises to loosen up the tendons and muscles. Emotionally, it is good to develop equanimity. This is because spring is the season of the liver, and indulgence in anger, frustration, depression, sadness, or any excess emotion can injure the liver. Furthermore, violating the natural order of spring will cause cold disease, illness inflicted by atmospheric cold, during summer. (The Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Medicine by Maoshing Ni p.5)”
It is important to also protect oneself from the effects of wind by covering the head, protecting the throat, keeping the body warm with jackets etc… If one does not protect themselves from the effects of wind or at least expel the trapped wind during spring they will suffer problems with their spleen resulting in diarrhea, indigestion and food retention/poisoning.
Qi Bo (Huang Di’s Taoist adviser and physician) informed Huang Di that:
“…with the arrival of spring the weather warms the earth. All plants begin to sprout and put forth green leaves, so the color associated with spring is green. Since most fruits and trees are immature and unripe at this time, their taste is sour. This sour taste can strengthen the liver, and the liver can then nourish the tendons and tendomuscular channels. The wood element of the liver can produce the fire element of the heart… (The Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Medicine by Maoshing Ni, p.20)”
Thus the liver as the bodies representation of the wood element helps to nourish and protect the heart, thus if a person suffers from liver problems or has anger and stress issues, they will eventually harm their heart. This is also reflected in the connection between a weakened liver affecting cholesterol and saturated fat problems in the blood which will lead to heart disease and other cardiovascular problems.
There is much wisdom to be learned from the five elements/five phases of change and the associated seasons and its impact on our overall health and longevity.
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10 Snake Years of the modern era: a retrospective list
As mentioned in the prior Year of the Snake article; Snake Years often contain many major global events. It is not uncommon for war, famine, disease and natural disasters to occur during these years. Of course, these are not the only events and many good stories are reported as well, however, one cannot deny the high occurrence of catastrophes and tragedies as well.
The nature of a snake is to be elusive, intelligent, cunning, sharp, powerful, reserved, patient etc… Snake years are often times to act on prior plans and launch skillful, well thought out strategies and programs. Often there is a fine line between a “good outcome” and a negative one, does the Snake bring peace and positive results which benefit all or strike with ferocious speed and cause negative consequences; this is determined by ones intentions dear reader.
Let’s review the major events from some of the prior Snake Years.
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2001 Year of the Snake
- 20,000 People Die in Violent Earthquake in India, 7.9 earthquake
- Human Genome Sequence Revealed
- September 11 Terror Attacks in the United States, World Trade Center destroyed
- China’s Entry into WTO
- The United States Unilaterally Withdraws from the Anti-ballistic Missile Treaty
- World Economic Slowdown
- Wikipedia launched
- US invades Afghanistan
- IPod released
1989 Year of the Snake
- Eastern Bloc Revolutions (Revolutions of 1989 led to Dissolution of Soviet Union)
- World Wide Web invented
- First text message sent
- Tiananmen Square massacre in China
- Mini stock market crash (known as the Friday the 13th mini crash)
- Berlin Wall torn down
- Real Estate bubble burst/Crash
- Exxon Valdez oil spill
- Loma Prieta earthquake, San Francisco CA (during professional baseball’s World Series game)
- Belgian UFO wave begins
- US invasion of Panama
1977 Year of the Snake
- Apple computers incorporated
- Snow falls in Miami, Florida (first time in history)
- New England blizzard kills 100 people
- USSR completes nuclear test
- France performs nuclear test
- KLM-Pan Am flight disaster (kills 583 people)
- US performs nuclear test
- Panama Canal Zone accord
- Department of Energy created to deal with oil crisis
- New York City blackout lasts 25 hours and results in looting and disorder
- World Trade Center in NY is completed
- Atari 2600 released, credited with creating the home video game industry
1965 Year of the Snake
- Watts Riots (Watts, California)
- Lyndon Johnson announces program to create Medicare and declares war on poverty
- Northeast US and parts of Canada experience widespread blackouts
- US Voting Rights Act passed
- US increases troop numbers and Australia joins the Vietnam War
- Malcolm X assassinated
- Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. leads famous civil rights march in Selma Alabama
1953 Year of the Snake
- Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay perform the first successful ascent to the summit of Mount Everest.
- Coup d’ etat in Iran authoritarian monarchy established
- Stalin dies
- Korean War ends
- Polio vaccine developed
- F5 Tornado strikes Waco in Texas leaving 114 dead and 597 injured, The Tornado was one of the many storm disasters for the development of a nationwide severe weather warning system.
- The strongest storms ever recorded break through flood defenses across the UK leaving 150 dead
- North Sea flood of 1953 kills 1,835 people in the southwestern Netherlands
1941 Year of the Snake
- US enters WWII as war rapidly escalates
- Mt. Rushmore completed
- Japan attacks Pearl Harbor
- FDR become only US President to serve a third term
- US declares war on Japan, Germany and Italy
- Germany attacks Soviet Union
- Plutonium discovered
- Blizzard of 1941 strikes Minnesota and North Dakota becomes the most severe blizzard in modern history.
1929 Year of the Snake
- Total of over 200,000 die from Influenza Epidemic
- Vatican City gains independence from Italy and is created as its own State
- Great Stock Market crash occurs and creates the Great Depression in the United States and world
- The German airship Graf Zeppelin completes a round-the-world flight.
- The first car radio is made by Motorola
- 1929 Palestinian riots breakout over control of the “Western Wall”
- All India Congress declares independence from Britain
- Weimar Republic (Germany) begins to collapse along with currency
- Hitler and Nazis (National Socialists) come to power in Germany
1917 Year of the Snake
- Russian revolution, Tsar overthrown
- US declares war on Germany, enters WWI
- US President given authority of conscription
- Balfour Declaration proclaims British support for a Jewish state
- British troops take Jerusalem from the Ottoman Empire in the Battle of Jerusalem
- Albert Einstein publishes first paper on cosmology
- British Indian Army captures Baghdad Gandhi establishes Sabarmati Ashram
- China enters WWI declares war on Austria-Hungary and Germany
1905 Year of the Snake
- Second year of Russian-Japanese War, war ends (more than 100,000 people die)
- Albert Einstein publishes foundations of his theories (specialized theory of relativity, Brownian motion, mass-energy equivalence)
- Kangra earthquake in India kills over 20,000 people
- US and Canada begin the great western expansion in their respective countries
- Wright Brothers complete first airplane test flight to last more than 30 minutes
- Union between Norway and Sweden is dissolved
1893 Year of the Snake
- Gandhi ejected from South African train, motivating him to fight for Indian rights in the British Colony
- Frederick Douglass delivers speech at World Fair
- Kingdom of Hawaii overthrown
- Nikola Tesla and George Westinghouse introduce the world to electrical power by illuminating World’s Columbian Exposition
2013 is the year of the Yin Water Snake
Some of you may be aware that the Chinese calendar is divided into 12 months represented by 12 animals. What you may not be aware of is that the Chinese calendar is the oldest calendar still in use. Our modern view of the calendar stems from a very basic understanding of the ancient Chinese calendar. The explanation of this tidbit of historical data will need to wait for a future article.
The common 12 animal delineation that many of you have seen while dining in a Chinese restaurant is purely for entertainment value and it does not carry much scholarly weight. In fact, most interpretations of the 12 animals are quite comical and fun to read for their entertainment value.
This year the Yang Water Dragon is transitioning to the Yin Water Snake as the cycle of change continues from Yang to Yin. The snake is also known as the minor or little dragon and has some of the same attributes of Dragon years.
In general, Snake years are regarded as auspicious years and a time for great change. It is also not uncommon for natural disasters, war and financial crisis to occur during these years as well. According to Master Zhongxian Wu in his Year of the Snake greetings newsletter:
“In general, I [Master Wu] expect that the climate will be drier than it was during the Yang Water Dragon year. Si Fire will transform to JueYin 厥陰 Wind Wood, which provides a clue that the first half year will be windy and the second half of the year will be warm, including an unseasonably warm winter (in the Northern hemisphere).”
In our next article we will look back over the last 150 years to examine prior Snake year occurrences.
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Can citrus help to lower your risk of stroke?
Citrus has long been a favored fruit, especially during long winter months, when the bright colors of its skin and flesh, remind us that winter cannot last forever and the warmth of the sun will soon return.
A new report featured in “Stroke: a journal of the American Heart Association”, states that eating citrus may lower the risk of ischemic strokes (clots), especially in women. Ischemic stroke occurs when blood flow to the brain is blocked.
The researchers analyzed 14 years worth of data on 69,622 women nurses that participated in the nationwide study. Every 4 years the participants had to fill out a survey listing their food intake. The women, who consumed the most citrus, in particular oranges and grapefruit, had the lowest stroke risk.
One flaw in the study was the over emphasis on the high intake of flavanones, which is found in many foods including chocolate and red wine. The largest concentrations, however, are in oranges.
What did the study leave out and what is the major flaw?
The study, as many do, did not consider the fact that people who consume daily fruit, will also on average consume daily vegetables, eat a healthier diet and usually have healthier lifestyle habits such as proper exercise, not smoking etc…
The main flaw however, as mentioned earlier, was the focus on flavanones as the key to reducing strokes. This is a flaw rooted in reductionism which is ever active in Allopathic medicine and research. While flavanones may, or may not, be important, to focus on one component at the exclusion of the other components that make up oranges and grapefruit, as well as, other citrus is misleading and potentially counterproductive.
What would a Taoist interpretation involve?
Using the Taoist understanding of the five tastes, we can determine how, or why, citrus could lower the risk of strokes. According to the five tastes, and the Taoist understanding of the organs/bowels, citrus, as well as raw fruit in general, is labeled as a sour food type. The sour taste affects the liver and gallbladder, and provides the essential energy and nutrition for the liver/gallbladder to function normally and maintain balance. If the sour taste is consumed too frequently or too infrequently, the liver/gallbladder could be harmed.
When the liver and gallbladder are functioning normally the liver is able to remove toxins from food and together the liver and gallbladder are able to remove fat and properly handle harmful oils as well. Thus, reducing the amount of fat in the blood stream will reduce the risk of stroke. Citrus, also has the added benefit of containing mild acids, which also help to breakdown fat and oils.
So according to Taoism, the results of this study, has less to do with flavanones, and more to do with how the sour taste affects the liver and gallbladder, and the role that a properly functioning liver and gallbladder plays in sustaining health and wellness.
Taoist nutrition has long advocated eating one apple and a half an orange daily to help keep the liver and gallbladder healthy.
What are the benefits of oranges according to Taoism?
Maoshing Ni states in “The Tao of Nutrition” that oranges:
“lubricate lungs, resolves [removes] mucous, increases appetite, strengthens spleen, quenches thirst, promotes body fluids”. It can also be used to invigorate the Qi (energy) and remove dampness…”
In “Chinese Natural Cures”, Dr. Henry Lu states that:
“orange leaves relax the liver, promote energy circulation, remove phlegm, heal swelling; orange peels regulate energy, remove phlegm and congestion, strengthen the spleen; sour orange peels remove phlegm, stop vomiting, promote digestion; tangerine orange seeds regulate energy flow in the body and relieve pain…”
As you can see, there are many benefits to eating the entire orange including finding interesting ways to utilize the peels and seeds as well. Also, Taoism would recommend eating the entire fruit rather than drinking the juice, as fruit juice is too concentrated and lacks the balancing effects of the other components found only in the pulp, seeds and skin.
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Do you have a story, photo or video from your area that would be of interest to Taoists? Feel free to email (TJ@theQiInstitute.com) and they may be included or featured in a National Taoism Examiner article.
This winter we will experience the water dragons’ transformation
As you may recall, in Taoist Cosmology, 2012 was the year of the water dragon. For most of this year we were quite fortunate because the strong nature of the dragon was partially tempered by the water element which…(read more)
Pearl River: New York City’s best kept secret
For over 30 years a trip to New York City would not be complete without visiting Pearl River Mart in SoHo (477 Broadway, NYC, between Broome St. & Grand St., 800-878-2446). According to their brochure, Pearl River…(read more)
Interview with Dr. Stephen Chang: Traditional Chinese medicine is at a crossroad
What do you think of the current state of Chinese Medicine?
Chinese Medicine is now at a crossroads in its existence. The key to moving on lies in the understanding of its definition and the content of “internationalization of TCM” as well as the consciousness of the Chinese people.
What do you mean by internationalization of TCM?
The “internationalization” of Chinese medicine has two different explanations.
- To popularize the academic culture of TCM in international society and greatly enhance the exports of TCM to earn foreign exchange for the country.
- To westernize TCM or integrate TCM with Western medicine.
It is understood that many people believe that to add scientific factors to TCM would mean to convert TCM into Western medicine. It can also be called “Westernized traditional Chinese medicine”, which is the general significance of international integration of TCM.
Who is behind integrating TCM with Western (Allopathic) medicine?
In fact, this is an ongoing issue. The true story was told in an article – “The truth about the Rockefeller Drug Empire” written by Hans Ruesch and published a few years ago. The article gives details on why the Rockefeller family is willing to “donate” to the medical circle in China under the name of an academic foundation.
According to Hans Ruesch: “Rockefeller had always had a particular interest in China, where Standard Oil was almost sole supplier of kerosene and oil “for the lamps of China”. So he put up money to establish the China Medical Board and to build the Peking Union Medical College, playing the role of the Great White Father who has come to dispense knowledge on his lowly children. The Rockefeller Foundation invested up to $45,000,000 into “westernizing” (read corrupting) Chinese medicine.
Medical colleges were instructed that if they wished to benefit from the Rockefeller largesse they had better convince 500 million Chinese to throw into the ashcan the safe and useful but inexpensive herbal remedies of their barefoot doctors, which had withstood the test of centuries, in favor of the expensive carcinogenic and teratogenic “miracle” drugs Made in the USA, which had to be replaced constantly with new ones, when they fatal side-effects could no longer be concealed; and if they couldn’t “demonstrate” through large-scale animal experiments the effectiveness of their ancient acupuncture, this could not be recognized as have any “scientific value”. Its millenarian effectiveness proven on human beings was of no concern to the Western wizards.
But when the Communists came to power in China and it was no longer possible to trade, Rockefellers suddenly lost interest in the health of the Chinese people and shifted their attention increasingly to Japan, India and Latin America.”
What is the purpose of this movement?
Its purpose is to make Chinese people doubt the origin and system of Chinese medicine and so abandon it. The move was made under the cover of “Westernizing traditional Chinese medicine”. It is a conspiracy to completely destroy TCM.
So in other words Western (Allopathic) medicine is threatened by TCM?
Western medicine used to deny the existence of TCM. For example, before it [Allopathic medicine] discovered the thymus gland and spleen, it did not agree with the TCM theory that is based on these important organs. It believed that TCM was not scientific. Even after it proved the existence of the two organs, it still claimed that TCM as not scientific.
Who else is involved in destroying TCM?
Under the influence of the Rockefellers, the World Trade Organization issued a decree forbidding each of its members from trading in TCM. It was echoed by the European Union that decided not to import TCM and Chinese healthcare food. The US followed suit, banning the import and sales of TCM. All of these moves are targeted at TCM.
Did any country oppose the WTO decree?
Germany was the first to oppose such a decision. Its judicial department overthrew the WTO decree. Canada also resisted the decree through its legislative procedures.
What is the importance of saving or preserving TCM?
Traditional Chinese medicine is one of China’s greatest scientific achievements. It is the crystallization of its academic wisdom. Its theory and practice are all based on Chinese culture [Taoism]. In terms of treatment effectiveness and the methodology of understanding some particular diseases, it is far more reasonable and effective compared to Western medicine. It also has no serious side-effects.
This self-complete theory has included the mechanism of timely progress. There is absolutely no need for TCM to be Westernized. China owns the complete intellectual property rights of traditional Chinese medicine. It can never be “stolen” by others.
Are there other countries trying to claim the rights to TCM?
Japan has recently applied to the World Health Organization for the definition of TCM. It wants to give TCM a Japanese name. The purpose of the move is to separate TCM from China and thus make the school of medicine its own. Quite naively and ridiculously, Japan believes that once this happens, Japanese medicine will be the sole beneficiary.
Note: parts of this article originally appeared as a longer article Dr. Chang wrote for China Daily www.chinadaily.com, adapted for interview format and content added with Dr. Chang’s permission.
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Morikami Japanese Gardens offers the art of Bonsai workshop for beginners
Bonsai is the Japanese term for “plants in a tray”; it is based on the word bon which is a tray like pot. The art is based on ‘an earlier meditation and self cultivation practice of…(read more)
2012 a Taoist year in review
2012, the year of the Dragon was an interesting year indeed. We witnessed many examples of transformation and change, good and bad, as well as apocalyptic failures of apocalyptic predictions, and a continuing slide (or fall) down an ever… (read more)
Winter: the season of conservation, storage and rest
Many people associate winter with: colder weather, storms, snow, holidays, family, gifts, New Year’s etc… Farmers and gardeners are aware that this is the time of year to cultivate and harvest certain frost and freeze friendly fruit and vegetables such as beets, cabbage, broccoli, broccoli rapini, cauliflower, clementines, grapefruit, kiwi and mandarin oranges just to name a few.
This is also the time of year when we begin to notice an increase in the common cold, flu, respiratory infections and other “winter” or cold weather ailments. Those with arthritis are particularly fretful during this season as the daily fluctuation of temperature directly impacts their symptoms and sensations.
What are the greater implications of this season and how does the season impact our health and well-being? Is there a connection between the winter season and the preceding autumn or succeeding spring seasons?
For these answers, lets look at what Huang Di stated in one of the oldest books in the world, the great classic of Taoism, “The Yellow Emperor’s Classic of the Internal ” the Neijing Suwen:
“During the winter months all things in nature wither, hide, return home, and enter a resting period, just as lakes and rivers freeze and snow falls. This is a time when yin [energy] dominates yang [energy]. Therefore one should refrain from overusing the yang energy. Retire early and get up with the sunrise, which is later in winter. Desires and mental activity should be kept quiet and subdued. Sexual desires especially should be contained, as if keeping a happy secret. Stay warm, avoid the cold, and keep the pores closed. Avoid sweating. The philosophy of the winter season is one of conservation and storage. Without such practice the result will be injury to the kidney energy. This will cause wei jue, consisting of weakness, atrophy of muscles, and coldness in spring, manifesting as paralysis, wei/flaccid syndrome, arthritis, or degeneration of the bones and tendons. This is because the body has lost its ability to open and move in the spring. (Maoshing Ni, p. 6)”
If we do not properly retreat and store our energy during the winter months, then our body will have a difficult time, opening up in spring. This is also seen in nature when plants grow or sprout prematurely only to die in early spring, since they exhausted their vital energy.
Let us observe and follow the Natural Laws at work and use this time to bring our energy inward, nourish our roots, and warm the interior; in the same manner that trees pull their energy into their deep roots to survive the coldest and harshest of winters. In spring, life will begin to emerge and we can once again safely begin to increase our activity and energy levels. As you will see in a future article, spring appears much earlier than our calendars indicate.
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