‘In order to make all acupuncture thorough and effective, one must first cure the Spirit.’ 

-Yellow Emperor’s Internal Classic

 

Learn your constitutional element, according to the Five Element system of East Asian medicine. With this information, foods, herbs, types of exercise, and meditations can be better utilized to support life long physical health and spiritual practice.

Using the time divination method, observing your pulse, and discussing your concerns, we can determine your natural elemental disposition. With herbs and lifestyle changes, the Three Treasures of Life: Essence, Energy & Spirit, can be nourished.

The Five Elements are a way to understand the process of change and the nature of the world. For humans, this a physical, emotional, and spiritual constitution. The body has five major elements (fire, earth, metal, water, and wood) that represent organ systems, emotional states, and bodily functions.

Each hour, day, month, and year are related to a broader cycle of elemental energies. An aspect of traditional East Asian medicine is to take into account time when giving treatment and diagnosing illness. Specific acupuncture points are considered activated at different times of the day as the body goes through its natural cycles as well. By extension, the ‘elemental weather’ of a particular time has a reaction with the elemental make up of an individual. Astrology uses placement of planets in relationship to each other. While in this method of diagnosis- cosmic cycles of time in relation to Earth are used. 

As part of spiritual practice and meditation, it is vital to keep the body healthy and balanced. This is reflected in the traditions of Taoist, Buddhist, and Hindu sages through the exercises that harmonize movement, breath, and intent into one. You may know these forms as qi gong, tai chi, or yoga.

The spirit and body are united in this lifetime. They exist together without separation. To treat our body, we must also take care of the spirit. If you begin meditation, over time, you will notice physical sensations, blockages, and movement within the physical body. These can be due to material changes, emotions, or strong thoughts. Sensitivity to the integrated spirit-mind-body gradually develops. 

It is essential to learn to still the heart, transform emotion, and adjust the body. Life and practice are not one-dimensional, cultivating the various aspects of our being is a dynamic and organic process.