The first month of Winter - Moving Slow and Staying Low

According to the Su Wen classic, those of us in the Northern hemisphere are entering the first month of Winter on the 7th Novembre. In more northern parts of our part of the globe the first White Frost has already appeared in the past week. Those more south have noticed the temperatures drop significantly as we have moved into the season of the Water element.

The Sun at this time is said to be "in the tail of the Scorpio". What could be more focused, concentrated and potent than a tail of a Scorpio? That is exactly the energy at the beginning of Novembre. It is especially so after the 4th Novembre New Moon in Scorpio, the influence of which we are still feeling. The drop in temperatures and shorter days, among other, have made us more concentrated in our actions, aiming to engage in and complete only that which is absolutely necessary.

We have started the process of retracting and contracting to preserve our energies for the entire period of Winter. The symbol of Water element in Classical Chinese is associated with a Turtle, which is small but has the hardest physical body known and it lives a very long life. Turtle represents the concentrated strength of our Kidneys. It also depicts the most appropriate way to conduct oneself during the Winter months. So, we go slow, preserving our concentrated essence of Kidneys in order to live a long life.

We also stay low, just as the leaves that have fallen down, the hustle and bustle of our lives has diminished and we take more rests, or at least we should if we want to live a long life. The Winter months are the best months in the year's cycle to recuperate the essences consumed during previous months.

"The Heaven and Earth are no longer communicating" which means there is so much less activity in nature, less growth and less fertility. The Nature is beginning to close down its life force into its seeds and shells. Therefore, diet-wise, we should focus on eating seeds, nuts and other foods that have a shell, including molluschi. That will help strengthen our Kidney essences.

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The third month of Autumn - Breathing Space

According to the Classical text Su Wen, on the 8th of October we enter the third month of Autumn. Right now we are in the midst of what the ancients called the Dew Season. We recognise this more as the Autumn fog. The dynamic of still warm Earth evaporating during the day and colliding with the harsh cold of the autumnal Heavens bring the fog and dew all the way back down to Earth.

That energetic dynamic is so characteristic of this season. The collision of hot and cold; of Yin and Yang. After the Equinox, it is the Yin that is on increase overall but before it becomes dominant in Winter, it clashes with Yang which by nature does not give up easily. Therefore the energy of this season tends to be rather dramatic, in all aspects including social, natural and health related.

We tend to blow hot and cold with people if we are not careful. If we are more conscious we recognised the need for more "breathing space" for us. For example concentrating the social life to the selected ones without filling up all the space with chats and meetings as we did during the summer months.

Our diet is also a mix of hot and cold. Hot soups are prefered during the damp evenings and cold salads during warm days. We go to bed early as the evenings are not inviting to stay outdoors but we rise early as the mornings are still very welcoming and warm.

It is the season of fevers, according to the ancients, we call them seasonal colds. The heat and cold have an impact on our Lungs and the best way to maintain healthy Lung energy in Autumn is to practice the balance between the inspiration and expiration. The length of inspiration should match the length of expiration. It is advisable to drink teas or diffuse essential oils of coniferous trees during that period. It will help eliminate the excess mucus and heat from the Lungs.

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Coniferous trees help maintain healthy Lungs