March, 2010 Archives

Awakenings: The Vernal Equinox

Post Date:March 19, 2010 | PermaLink | Comments

The birds were singing brightly this morning at 6:30, and as the dawn crept over the tree tops, the darkness was broken by a bustling of energy.  Everything was awakening.  Spring arrives tomorrow, the 20th of March, at 1:32 P.M., and the vernal equinox marks the shift from the yin of winter to the yang of spring.
    My own energy has had a noticeable lift as the week has gone on, and I have begun my annual transition from concentrating upon mostly meditative Chi Kung (qigong) internal practices to more vibrant ones such as 5 Animals Sport Chi Kung (Wu Qin Xi) in order to vitalize Chi.  More, it is also a time to turn toward other “external” internal arts such as T’ai Chi weapons forms in order to refine the Chi and revitalize the meridians and channels of the body.
    As mentioned in my previous post (“To Be a Tiger: Breathe Deep and Find the Root of the Earth”), the end of winter is a period of regeneration and the storage of Chi for the upcoming year.  The results of such regeneration are all around us now:  the crocuses, which were buried under two feet of snow two weeks ago, are in bloom.  The lesson is that we need to constantly prepare ourselves to respond at the appropriate time in the appropriate ways too.
    Our Chi is our lifeline to the Tao—the natural order of the universe.  The vibrancy of our Chi is the window upon our own inner design.  Too often we expend our energy upon worthless endeavors and inappropriate emotions such as anger and desire.  To complicate matters even more, when attention (which is itself Chi) is given to anger and desire, further fuel is given to those emotions, thereby exacerbating suffering, which, in turn perpetuates a vicious circle of more anger, more greed, and more and more suffering.  As Lao Tzu writes in the 13th chapter of the Tao Te Ching,

    The reason we have a lot of trouble
    Is that we have selves.
    If we had no selves,
    What troubles would we have? 

It is the idea of an autonomous self—as if we are separate from the Tao—that creates suffering.
    The return of Spring is a reminder of the eternal return of life, of which we are a part.  It should be a reminder that we too must return to what is “natural”—to be like the birds that sign and the flowers that bloom.  True to their nature and not striving to be more than their own being.  If we too would simply be, we would bring ourselves into balance, harmony, and equanimity.  We too would discover our own inner design and would cease pushing against the natural harmony of the world.  We too would awaken.

To Be a Tiger: Breathe Deep and Find the Root of the Earth

Post Date:March 05, 2010 | PermaLink | Comments

The image of a tiger evokes strength, nobility, energy, and courage.  As the year of the Earth Ox plods into the past and the year of the Metal Tiger has sprung in, we might imagine that the new year promises a radical shift of tone and energy.  Fortunately, the year is supposed to offer some welcome relief from the suffering and difficulty of the past year.  Overall, the year of the Tiger is marked with tumultuous energy--frenetic and perhaps difficult at times—that should result in a positive upswing over the last year.
    Nevertheless, even though we have entered a new lunar year, we should not expect our own yin energy to swing immediately to full yang.  We are still within the last throes of Winter--which we should perhaps measure in feet of snow instead of weeks given the temperament of this prolonged and snowy stretch of February.  This period, though,  leaning toward the Spring equinox at 1:32 P.M. on the 20th of March, should be one of rest,  recuperation, and storage.  In other words, this last stretch of the winter season seems to resemble more the Earth Ox than a leaping Tiger. 
    While such a period of rest may seem antithetical to our conception of the Tiger, it reveals an often overlooked and significant aspect of the Tiger's character.  The Tiger is usually depicted as poised to spring into action.   In other words, the tiger is latent, pure energetic potential.  The energy of the Tiger is coiled inward ready to unfurl in a devastating pounce.  Like a Tiger hidden in the swaying grass—ever vigilant and poised to respond—we need to be reminded that we need to “recharge” ourselves Tiger so that we too are poised for the coming yang seasons of Spring and Summer.
    During this time of year, it is vital that we rest and restore our depleted energy resources through such activities as Chi Kung (qigong), meditation, and the attention to our breath.  All of these activities focus our attention inward, and the emphasis upon the breath is used to lead Chi to our Dantien, our battery, in order to replenish and store energy. 
    In Taoist scriptures, such breathe techniques of longer inhales/shorter exhales are known as “yin” breathing exercises, which are associated with the Tiger as well.  As Chang San-Feng, the famous Taoist hermit credited with the creation of T’ai Chi, writes,
 
    It is said that when you breathe out you contact the Root of Heaven and experience a sense of openness, and when you breathe in you contact the Root of Earth and experience a sense of solidity.  Breathing out is associated with the fluidity of the dragon, breathing in is associated with the strength of the tiger.

With the beginning of the year of the metal tiger, it is vital to be poised for the vernal equinox by focusing upon the breath of Earth, the inhalation, which mirrors the inner strength of the tiger.  Turn the attention inward and cultivate the energy of the Tiger—ever vigilant and vibrant.  Hopefully in the new year, all of us can remain true to the root of earth—to breathe deeply and manifest the energy to ride the tiger throughout this entire year—prepared to deal with whatever it may bring.