Water Element - Winter Solstice

Galignment -- Winter Solstice 2012

It seems appropriate that my first post on taoworlds is timed with the upcoming 2012 Winter Solstice, as it has been a recurring topic in my astrological blog, starworlds. Although the primary focus of this blog will be healing traditions of Chinese medicine and yoga, it is impossible to separate the two because the macrocosm is reflected in the microcosm.  As ancients alchemists might say, "as above, so below."  Even the great modern astronomer Carl Sagan recognized the underlying source of creation:
  

The nitrogen in our DNA, the calcium in our teeth, the iron in our blood, the carbon in our apple pies were made in the interiors of collapsing stars.  We are made of star stuff. 

The column on the right side of this blog illustrates the basic Taoist cosmology.  The primary Taoist text that I will allude to is the Tao Te Ching, or The Classic/Canon of the Way/Path and the Power/Virtue, written by the legendary mystic Lao Tzu in the 6th century BC.   It begins with a creation story:  "Tao gives birth to one. One gives birth to two. Two gives birth to three. Three gives birth to ten thousand things."  In my mind's eye, I can almost see the birth of stars, the creation of helium (2) from hydrogen (1), and the exponential explosion of galactic life.  I also rely heavily on the wisdom of the I Ching, or Book of Changes, an ancient divination system, which pre-dates written history.  This collection of 64 trigrams illustrates how yin and yang shift and change, and how these energy phases manifest on the physical plane.  There are many modern studies that reveal the extraordinary similarities that link the I Ching to modern knowledge of DNA structures.  The underlying philosophy at the root of this oracle system is Taoism.  And finally, another valuable treatise that I often will refer to is the Neijing Su Wen, or The Yellow Emperor's Classic on Medicine.  It is the primary original source for any study of Chinese medicine.

The Winter Solstice and the Water Element

In Taoist traditions, the Winter solstice is considered the most yin day of the year, when the forces of contraction strike a still point and give birth to yang, barely glimmering with its promise of light and expansion.  This year the Winter Solstice also coincides with the last day of the Mayan Long Count Calendar.  Its synchronicity with the end date of this 5,125 year calendar, which is one fifth, or one season of the Great Year (26,000 year cycle) in fact marks a galactic still point.  While the Earth-Sun relationship finds a still point of yin and yang at the Winter Solstice, so does the Sun with the Galactic Center.  On the darkest day of the year in the northern hemisphere of Earth, the Sun rises on the horizon in exact relationship to the center of our Milky Way Galaxy.  Many believe this alignment signals a shift in the galactic season known as world age -- literally the return of galactic light during the winter season of consciousness.  No wonder there has been so much media hype about this upcoming point in time and space.  In any case, this once-in-many-lifetimes cosmic configuration has the potential to bring forth a new light that I hope my blog will reflect.

In Taoist traditions, the winter season is associated with the water (shui) element, whose character resembles the phase shift of ice to water itself .  Dr Masuru Emoto has captured a piece of ice about to melt forming a shape that looks remarkably like the Chinese character shui.  Emoto's controversial research suggests that water takes on form reflecting the thought-energy directed at it.  Because it changes shape with different thoughts, Emoto theorizes that water acts as a messenger medium.  Its ability to transmit information is expressed in many ways in the physical world.  For example, it is called the universal solvent because of its tendency to form weak bonds with other molecules.  This ability of water to disassemble and rearrange other molecules is essential to the chemistry of life.  Water is also a perfect conductor of electricity and this becomes important in the day to day operation of our bodies, which certainly depends on this messaging element. In Chinese medicine, the water element is said to govern DNA, our stores of ancestral wisdom.  And most fascinating of all, unlike Ayurvedic traditions, the water element is associated with the planet Mercury, the traditional indicator of communication.

In Chinese medicine, water is one of five elements (wu xing), or energy signatures, that describe interactions and relationships between phenomena.  For example the water element is expressed in the winter as a period of retreat in which stillness pervades, whereas the fire element is expressed in the summer as a period of blossoming in which expansion pervades.  Each element has associations or resonances with a certain key emotion, a particular time of the year, a time of day, a climate, a color, a sound, as well as control over specific organs and areas of the body. Water resonates with the emotions of fear/courage, the sound of groaning, the season of winter, the time of evening (3 pm-7 pm), the color of blue/black, and the body structures of ears, teeth, and bones. Over the course of the upcoming year, I plan to discuss each element during its season and how we can tune our bodies to its wave form in order to harmonize with these inherent forces of nature and the eternal Tao. 

The season of winter is considered the most yin time of the year because yang is low producing cold and dark, during which much of nature goes into hibernation. Thus the water element is related to slowing down, being still, and getting rest.  Energy is condensed, conserved, and stored.   It is a gestational time of replenishing our resources so that when spring comes, the growing yang force will burst forth with new growth.  According to the oldest acupuncture text, the Neijing Su Wen (The Yellow Emperor's Classic on Medicine):

The three months of winter are called closing and storing.
Water freezes earth cracks. Do not disturb the yang at all.
Early to bed, late to rise. (One) must await the daylight.
Make that which is of the heart/mind as though hidden,
as though concealed, as though (one) has a secret intention,
already obtained. Leave the cold, seek warmth. 
Do not leak the skin (sweat).  Urgently hold onto the qi.
This is the winter compliance of qi and the cultivation of the Tao of storage.
To oppose these principles injures the kidneys.
(Consequently) spring will bring paralysis and fainting (and) there will be little to offer one's sprouting.  ~  (Nei Jing Chapter 2)

As this passage indicates, the organs associated with the water element are the kidneys and its yang mate, the urinary bladder.  Functionally the kidneys control water and the bladder controls of the storage of water.  During the winter it is critical to hold on to qi, the life force of every living being.  Activities like over-exercising and sweating, not getting enough sleep, and over-working use up valuable stores of qi and can manifest as adrenal exhaustion, depression, and weak immunity.  In healing traditions of Taoism, Chinese medicine, and Ayurveda, it is considered essential to follow the natural cycles of the seasons as much as possible in our own lives.  Thus in winter we should aim to rest more by going to bed earlier than we would at other times of the year, to eat warm, kidney tonifying foods like black beans, seaweed, and fish, and sip on herbal teas like angelica and ginger.

The color black is associated with the water element and kidneys.  Therefore, in Chinese medicine black foods like black sticky rice, black beans, and black sesame seeds are considered kidney tonifiers.

Each yin organ also houses an aspect of consciousness called shen, or spirit energy (kidneys-zhi, liver-hun, heart-shen, earth-yi, and lungs-po).  The zhi, or will, resides in the kidneys, where it holds our destiny stored in the DNA.  One of my favorite Five Element authors, Lonnie Jarrett, writes:

As with many concepts in Chinese medicine, zhi has both an internal and external aspect. When the will is turned inward, the mind is channeled into an act of introspection to know and then to manifest through the governing of qi (which leads to actions) heaven's will as stored in the jing [ie DNA].  With the manifestation of heaven's will, the individual establishes ming in the world and emanates the light of inner illumination.  This light can be seen in the brilliance of the heart spirit sparkling in the eyes.  When the will is turned outward, the jing is consumed as the individual expends qi, striving to satisfy the mind's worldly desires.  Actions performed solely in the service of ambition undermine the integrity of the individual, ultimately leading to ruin and never to the fulfillment of destiny.

Thus the zhi connects us to the unified field of consciousness, to our instincts, and to our life's destiny.  The water element gives us the courage to to follow our innate wisdom and align with the Tao.  When we turn our will outwards to satisfy the sensory desires of the mind, we are at risk of losing our connection with the eternal Tao and of not fulfilling our destiny. On an emotional level, unsteadiness, fear and an unwillingness to face our spiritual pain are all symptomatic of  this type of disconnection from the deep wisdom of our bodies. While kidney issues can manifest any time of year, the winter is our season to take extra care with them.  I see many patients who complain of the increased need for sleep during the dark months of winter, especially in Seattle, a city ruled by the water element.  Their bodies are begging them to realign with nature and the Tao.  Instead of running around wasting precious qi during the holiday season, I suggest more meditation, adequate rest and exercise like qigong water practice, gentle yoga, or yoga nidra (the yoga of sleep). One of my favorite remedies are mudras.  These simple hand exercises activate the meridians and can be done anywhere.

Varuna Mudra (water), click here for directions

Shivalinga Mudra

The shivalinga mudra is one of my favorites.  It can be used to heal the water element with the following affirmation (from Hirsch's Mudra): Healing light illuminates every cell of my body, dissolves everything that should be dissolved, and builds up what must be built up again.

Perhaps the greatest  advice for the water season comes from the famous martial artist, actor, director, and philosopher, Bruce Lee.  Listen closely, and you can hear the sound of water in his voice:  Empty your mind, be formless, shapeless - like water. Now you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup, you put water into a bottle, it becomes the bottle, you put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend.





Be water my friends. Be water.
Namaste!