Some thoughts on sound….

Listening to the sound of communication is like putting our finger on the pulse of culture. Language is the invisible thread that weaves ideas together; bonding one being with another as a new dimension of reality is created in real time. I’ve realized as I’ve observed and contemplated the art of communication that the words one chooses to relay their thoughts is important, not because of the definition of the words, but more because word selection comes from an energetic urge to communicate and create something. Sound is the vibration, a form of energetic expression that flows into being every time we speak or create music, etc. It literally creates this higher dimension of expression, creation, and potentially shared values.

As I reawaken my sense of hearing I am discovering that the key to truly hearing is about placement of attention. Attention is guided by intention. If I intend to hear what is being said I will find more subtlety and more depth than when my intention is to just listen to what the person has to say. The distinction between hearing and listening is more than a matter of semantics; it describes the discernment between sensing what is deep and what is superficial. Hearing the sound of communication is different than listening to the words that one is speaking. I'm finding the importance in really digging in and unpacking details like this because I think all too often us post-moderns are prone to settle on sloppy thinking, accepting whatever is out of laziness or our strong adherence to "non-judgment." There is no doubt in my mind that energy medicine is the medicine of the future, but whether that future reflects our highest potential or not entirely depends upon the depth that practitioners are willing to take it, embody it, be it.

What’s in a virtue?

I’ve been investigating the relationship between the virtues and pathologies of the elements. Each element has its strengths and its weaknesses. For example, some of the strengths of Wood is its ability to discern, plan, and take action. Pathologies might include, lack of inner vision, over controlling, and rigid. As an acupuncturist, if someone came in with Wood constitution it would be my job to help steer them toward transforming the not so good qualities into shining gems. But, I wonder, is that really making that much of an improvement? It has been my experience that one can embody the virtues that we commonly associate with the elements and yet still be operating from an egoic position in life. Many of what we consider virtues today don’t actually lift an individual up and out of the realm of ego… it’s merely that they are operating from a higher place within the ego.

This isn’t to undermine the transformation from pathology to virtue, or say that it isn’t needed, of course it is. It is the first step in the right direction, but I think all too often it is viewed as reaching the finish line. But the movement from one to the other could be endless, especially if the patient is depending on someone else to do it for them.

It seems like the virtues that we commonly associate with the elements are outdated. I think it’s time that we step back and reexamine what it really means to be a person of virtues and how acupuncture can play a role in helping one go beyond the elements. What lies beyond the elements is pure consciousness. A relationship to life that is enlightened and pure. It is one where integrity is ignited into action, where responsibility replaces the emotional whims- where one recognizes that they are responsible not just for their own self, but for the good of the whole.

We’ve all heard the saying, “the body is a temple,” but what if we viewed it more like a vessel? Like a cannon that is primed for the explosion of pure Authenticity? That body would need to be operating at its optimal health, so of course acupuncture would address such conditions, but it would be doing so all while having one eye on the horizon, holding a vision of higher potential and seeking to heal from that grounded intention.

I wonder what an acupuncture practice would look like if it were to strive to go beyond nurturing personal virtues (element virtues) of the patient and endeavor to help guide the patient to have a higher relationship with life…to become a vessel of pure intention, integrity and responsibility.

What is beyond the elements?

The Chinese saw humans as a part of the natural process, not separate from it. Therefore they believed if you could see it in nature, it could be found in the person. As I understand it, the elements describe one way in which consciousness is filtered through into being. Today the predominate opinion is that each individual is a completely unique and personalized expression of the elements. However, the weight of this opinion is beginning to lessen as we push beyond this post-modern viewpoint and begin to understand the universe through a more integrated and totalistic perspective. It is up to us to chart into a new territory of medicine. It is only when we are living on the razor edge of what is known and what is unknown that we can actually begin to create something new.

Welcome Spring

Despite our recent snow flurries here in the Northwest, we are on the cusp of spring. The quality of light is shifting, melting the blue winter haze that coats the horizon and shifting into a lighter and brighter tone. Despite the cold yawns of the wind, we can look to the sky on a sunny day and feel it gently warm our face. This morning I stood outside with my eyes closed and just felt the brilliant mixture of the cold rising up from the ground and the warmth rushing down to greet it, as if to gently coax nature to open her sleepy eyes and come out to play.

The energy of Wood is rising, bursting forth, breaking free from the frozen ground and birthing something new. It is the fascination with possibility, newness, and what the future may bring, that drives Wood’s energy. It is the energy of creation, that impulse throbbing through our veins, urging us to try again. It courses through Mother Earth’s soil and penetrates our entire universe. It is the energy of Eros, the impulse of evolution, the passion to explore, the movement of life.

As I contemplate the essence of Wood, I find myself struck by many things. Wood speaks of vision, future, planning, and decision making. It evokes frustration in us when an obstacle blocks our way. I recall the moments when I’ve been so transfixed by the desire to create, the desire to write, the desire to paint, the desire to run, that I lost all concept of time and self reflection. In these passion-drunken affairs I feel as though I am melding with something much bigger than my little self, little amber holding the brush, or whatever it may be. From this experience, I can now understand why so many people say they were inspired by or moved by God. However, I leave the topic of God to another discussion board, what I am most interested in is the energy that drove such actions. As I understand it, this is the energy of Wood. Had I run out of paint, or broken a shoelace, surely frustration would have formed.
The last thought that has been steeping in my mind lately is the art of paying attention. I think there is a beautiful and intimate intertwining between Wood energy and paying attention. I say that it is an art to pay attention, because like art, anyone can do. However, to transform art into a breath taking masterpiece, it takes attentive awareness and much practice. To pay attention is like to focus the lens of a camera. If we simply pick up the camera and start shooting whatever comes into view, we may end up with some lovely photos. Likewise, if we simply bumble along through life, we may indeed have some lovely experiences, deep insights and live a satisfactory tale. However, if we focus the lens we find that there are actually different depths to observe. We can zoom in or zoom out; we can capture a single tiny blade of grass or an entire field. Through discernment we can include the most captivating elements, we can decide what to include and what to leave out. As I endeavor to pay more attention to life and my experience in it, I am finding that what while I have always been paying attention to something, my awareness has only begun to scratch the surface of what is really to be seen. I am looking forward to finding that which lies beneath… more on paying attention later.

Welcome to 5 Element

5 element acupuncture can be seen as the art of paying attention and engaging with life on and from the most subtle levels. The most commonly studied form of 5 Element was formed by JR Worsley. His work is being expanded upon and given a 21st century facelift by evolutionary practitioners, a path pioneered by Lonny Jarrett. What interests me most about this form of acupuncture is not how effective it has been in healing people’s relationship to life, or the beauty of its simple nature, but the potential that it holds. I consider 5 element to be on the leading edge of medicine, with the potential to catapult not only medicinal modalities into new, more intricate and integrated realms, but contribute to guiding humanity’s moral compass by facilitating a new ground for which individuals operate from.

There are many beautiful gifts that 5 element blesses the practitioner and the patient with. For the practitioner, it gives perhaps the most gracious gift of all- the recognition that life is inherently good and beautiful. It undresses life, leaving it naked for senses to feast upon. For the patient, it is ever so mysterious. It has been my experience as a patient that it quenches a thirst deep inside me that before the treatment I was unaware I craved. I have found it to be nothing short of radically transforming.

As a student of this form of acupuncture I find that I am really a student of nature. I find nature is truly my classroom, whether it be a walk in the woods, a run on the beach, or cruising the mall, or chatting with friends in a coffee shop. Anywhere there is life there is something to be learned. I find I pay attention to life at a depth and intensity like never before. I am watching for color, smells, how the plant grows around the tree, how the tree wavers in the wind and yet does not fall. I watch a mother cradle her child, I see the lover’s tears fall in sorrow. I have found that by paying close attention, these observations translate into knowledge and if I contemplate this knowledge, they become a part of me, embedded in my being. My self is changed with the embodiment of this wisdom and I find I am a more refined tool for healing.

In the blog posts to follow I will be sharing my observations and seeing how they tie into each of the elements (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water). It is my goal to push beyond observation and stimulate deep contemplation.