Natural Health System
and Taoist Principles
Why we become ill
Staying healthy is all about of staying in balance and living as natural life as possible. Everything we do affects our body and mind in some way. Body will affect the mind and mind will affect the body. We will be just fine if we favor natural approaches, practice correct breathing, learn to relax and 'let go', feel the restorative effect of home, eat organic foods, drink clean water and avoid doing anything in excess. By avoiding negative emotions and thoughts, we create the correct circumstances for healing. Negative thoughts easily create heat and stagnations to our internal organs, which will eventually start causing various problems and symptoms. You may already know the destructive effect of stress, sorrow or hate. Follow the nature and you will be healed. Here is list of common causes of health problems and tips on how to overcome them:
Eating and drinking habits. Abusing your digestive system will gradually weaken your body's ability to assimilate and use the nutrients from the foods you eat. When choosing the right foods, use mainly your intuition. Your body has an inner capability to inform you everything it needs. Good meal tastes good and leaves you well satisfied and nurtured. Remember to eat calmly, bite well and concentrate on the eating. Allow yourself to be led by your stomach, thoughts will easily block it from working smoothly causing lack of appetite and taste. Thinking tasty foods will activate the spleen and pancreas to produce digestive fluids. If you think you suffer from heavy stress or negative thinking (which are both bad for the digestive system), try to visualize a smiling face in front of you as often as you can, and connect it with your stomach.
Improper breathing. Breathing is the main source of energy and regulates many of the vital functions in the body. Bad posture can cause breathing problems. Drop your mind to your tan tien area ( behind navel, your bodys center ) and do deep abdominal breathing through your nose, using the deepest parts of your lungs. Feel the energy consending there while outbreathing. Eliminate surface breathing. Learn to relax and 'let go' the stomach, and become aware of the Earth below you.
Your voice resonates to your internal organs. By exercising your voice you can solve the blockages and stimulate the organs. It is called sometimes internal massage.
Here is one chapter from tao te ching:
"Carrying your spiritual body on your head
Can you embrace the One and not let go?
Concentrating the breath
Can you become supple as a child?"
Unable to relax or lack of relaxing. Muscles are connected to the digestive system through spleen's vital function of transformation and transportation of foods and fluids. Under chronic stress, over-thinking, excessive exercise or bad posture the muscles become very tense which no stretching or yoga can cure. Melt down all the tension and pain in your muscles, and totally let go of your body. Feel the Earth's magnetic force relaxing each cell of your body while relaxing in lying position (you may pull your body slightly downwards to become aware of the earth's gravity). Use your mind to melt down any hardness, especially in the stomach as it is the relaxation center. Having faith in God may help you to totally relax your mind and body, just like you relaxed on your mother's arms when you were born. You may know how the parents cherish and care for their children. Why not do this to yourself, and feel also nurtured?
Pay special attention to relaxing the stomach and eyes. Feel how the blood flows smoothly throughout your heart, and release the bloodflow to your legs and arms. Do not create stagnations with your mind, as stress often tend to do. Afterwards make sure to keep your body light and agile, having no resistances in the body.
When relaxing, try to feel yourself as warm and cozy as possible, positive self-talk may help you to accomplish this. If you can set your mind to correct state, the body will follow. It is entirely possible to cure stress with relaxing practices.In order to heal you have to stop controlling your body, let go of your thoughts and allow the healing forces of nature to enter your body. If you keep your mind too much concentrated on artificial or stressful things, or overly observe your body, it can prevent the healing altogether. When your awareness stops, the flow of energy stops. Have trust in heaven and earth, they will heal you if you give them a chance.
If you don't know how to stop controlling and observing your body, simply try to step out of your mind and become aware of something near you. Then forget that you are there. Simply leave your mind and body alone. Practicing this will bring the body naturally back to balance. You may observe trees, people, your environment etc... During your meditation session, or when going to sleep, you may picture yourself doing something creative, like painting, to completely allow your mind to relax.
Powerful method for curing the racing mind syndrome and stress: Visualize yourself, or physically touch the Earth. Keep your grasp tight, and do not release your hands. Gradually you will make a strong connection with the Earth and cure the racing mind pattern that affects your spleen and digestive system negatively. The key point is to not allow your racing thoughts to lighten your grasp from the Earth. This is very effective method.
When you do your relaxing practices ( preferably in lying positions ), do not forget your eyes. According to TCM, eyes and liver/gallbladder are connected. Let your eyes drop in the eye socket and feel the strain melting away while relaxing the eyes. You may even squeeze your eyes vigorously and feel how the tension is released deep inside your head and neck. Let your consciousness reach a deep relaxation state at the same time. This is a must if you are using frequently a computer or otherwise strain your eyes excessively.
Over-exciting your heart by listening i.e. loud stimulating music every day may cause a setback on your health and spirit.
Old saying: Love your enemy is certainly not said needlessly. Having hate and anger in your heart and liver is very degenerative for health.
If your heart is troubled with hate and anger, picture yourself sitting in your favorite place among your closest ones during your meditation sessions. Visualize yourself holding their hands, smiling directly to them, and feel all the emotional blockages opening. Forgive all the problems someone has caused you. Imagine also giving a hug to your closest ones. To build a strong energy and to heal yourself, you need to pay attention also to the quality of your energy and mental/emotional blockages. If the body is full of blockages, either physical or emotional, the healing rate is not good. Open your heart, don't close it. If you have problems with looking at people's eyes, your heart is blocked. Practice visual meditation methods to open it.
Some person create stagnations to their blood flow due to stress, excessive sitting or computer usage, over-thinking, emotional problems etc. Feel always how the blood flows smoothly through your heart, hands and feet.
You can try positive self-talk also.
Blood, nervous or energetic congestion anywhere in the body. Whole body massage, stretching, yoga, tai chi, qi gong,... these are all good tactics to overcome the blockages and stimulate the bloodflow. Especially good is the whole body massage every evening before retiring.
Bad energy economy. Living too active life which burns more of your energy than what you acquire from your practice and diet, will make your organs gradually very weak. You will age prematurely so to speak. Pornography ( robs you from your masulinity ), drugs, alcohol,... these will all drain your vital strenght.
Too much sexual activity which depletes your body of vital energies. This advice is especially for males. What gives life, takes life. Ever wondered why men become easily tired and frustrated after ejaculation? Excessive dreaming, fantasizing and constantly sub-ordinating oneself to sexual desires ( porn ) will drain the body from its most precious substances. The male seed contains the males strentgh. It is recommended to have sex/masturbation/ejaculation once every 1-2 weeks. We can not stop sexual practices altogether ( and we do not even want to ) since it is un-natural. Moderation is best.
Preserving the vital energy lost in ejaculation/masturbation will help men acquire longevity and good health. Please read this link on how to regulate the correct ejaculation frequency for health and vitality. Also few quotes here:
"The body must invest a lot of essence and energy to fully replenish semen supplies and re-establish proper hormone balance after a man ejaculates.
When ejaculation frequency exceeds the capacity of the body to fully replenish semen, men experience chronic fatigue, low resistance, irritation and other symptoms of essence and energy deficiency. They also lose all sexual interest in their partners, who may well be ready for more action.
An ejaculation should leave a man feeling as light and refreshed as a woman feels after orgasm- not exhausted, empty and uninterested in further sex.
Every man must establish his own ideal emission rate as an overall guideline, but he must also consider the unique circumstances of each occasion before deciding whether it is appropriate to ejaculate or not."
http://www.hps-online.com/tsy4.htm Ingestion of toxins and chemicals through cosmetic products, air pollution, food additives, drugs ( legal or illegal ), non-natural foods will cause the toxins to accumulate to your body especially to the liver. Always prefer clean organic foods and avoid artificial substances.
It is very important to ensure that there is enough warmth in your body. We people usually think that what separates the dead from living is the warm feeling of our bodies. Of course, it is actually our life-force or energy ( chi, qi ) which ultimately keeps us warm so by conserving and increasing our energy we will solve the cold patterns. But still always keep warm clothes and never expose your back to the cold environment!