October - Acceptance

According to the classic Su Wen text the 8th of October marks the beginning of the third month of Autumn. We have just been through the Autumn Equinox, which is the celebration of the equality of Yin and Yang in Nature. From now on, for the next six months in the northern hemisphere, we will be surrounded by the dominance of Yin in Nature. Of course, it is progressively increasing until the Winter Solstice and will be progressively diminishing after that.

Yin is that which is passive, receiving, slow, closed in, dark and cold, etc. Hence, the Equinox is a prelude to all those qualities. What is helping in the process is the element of Metal - the Element of Autumn. Metal is associated with Lungs and Large Intestines. Metal element is introducing us into the Yin phase of the year by its Lung-related quality of acceptance. Acceptance is what keeps our Metal element in balance. If you think of the air you breathe, you take in and accept all that enters your Lungs without a filter (except some large particles filtered by nasal hair). With the very first breath, you accept coming here to Earth at birth and you continue accepting this life with each breath you take. The air that falls into your abdomen is like the leaves falling down to the ground in Autumn.

If you are in conflict with the life around you, you may develop Lung problems as your breath becomes short and shallow with habitual rejection of the present life. Many of you would have gone through major life changes in the last couple of years which have asked of you a great deal of acceptance. Big and fast changes can create resistance to accept everything, inflicting on your breath and Lungs.

Accepting is not the same as assimilating. Once the passive act of breathing is complete the Metal element inside of you judges what is valuable to hold and what is not. That which you consider unworthy, you will eliminate through Large Intestine. The Colon clears all that you subjectively consider simply "rubbish". Hence, some well placed judgement will help your guts work smoothly.

Imagine when this natural physiology and balance between the Lungs-Colon is infringed. Do you know what happens? You either feel emptiness in your life, leading to melancholy and depression, or you are full of debris held and not eliminated.

You will feel emptiness if you cannot accept things as they are, since you do not breathe with full Lungs. That habitual rejection a priori makes you disconnected from as-it-happens life. Further, it does not give you the essential material from which to extract your precious gemstones, leading to a lack of meaning in life, in what you do, at work, or perhaps in relationships, and eventually leads to a lack of meaning in your existence. That could make you feel empty inside. As a result we reach for substitutes that make us feel "alive" or "connected", such as cigarettes, alcohol, gambling, etc.

At the other end, literally, in Chinese Medicine we say that in order to take things in we must empty first. Ancients would say that we should have a bowel movement after each meal. However, our sedentary lifestyles have already changed that. It is acceptable as a healthy rhythm to empty once a day. If you consume regular meals and do not empty once a day, you mostly probably hold onto stuff you should eliminate. My master teacher would vow that if we wake up at 6am each morning we would not have emptying issues as we stimulate the Colon movement by getting up and about. The 5am to 7am correspond to Colon time in the Chinese Medical Clock.

Even my singing teacher used to say: empty completely your Lungs of all the air and then the next breath will come automatically and will be deeper. In fact, to sustain the health of Autumn related organs, we can help ourselves with breathing exercises (including singing!) and movement: stretching, yoga, Qi Gong, walking and bike-rides in the Nature, will stimulate our Lungs and Colon to extract more meaning from our existence and regularly get rid of trash.

If you nevertheless experience problems with elimination on physical, mental or emotional level, or feel depressed not finding meaning and value in life, there couldn't be a better time to get some acupuncture treatment and Chinese Medical diagnosis to help you with the process of accepting and letting go.

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September - homecoming

The 7th September marks the beginning of the second month of Autumn according to the Su Wen division into four seasons. However, energetically, dividing the seasons into Five Elements, we are still in Late Summer and the Earth Element season. Depending on the geographical position you live in, Autumn will distintly be felt coming, at some point during this month.

Actually one of the tell tell signs of Autumn coming is the formation of the White Dew in the morning. We have had copious amounts of it even here in Italy since August. The sign of Late Summer is the presence of much higher humidity in the air and the sweet smell of ripe fruits.

September is the month of centering ourselves after flying high during the Summer months. That centering energy was already present in August, however, it is much more sobering now. With the warmth of August temperatures we felt more cuddled and pampered by the Earth energy. Now we are approaching and intertwining more with the oncoming Metal energy of Autumn. And it is that Metal energy which is adding more sobriety.

Apart from the physical "homecoming" after summer holidays, it is the most auspicious time for entering in contact with our inner selves. We are helped by the Earth energy, which is associated with the centrifugal force. In classical Chinese philosophy it is known that the centre holds all the directions, like the axle of a wheel. "Everything has to be organised from the centre if you want to command or exert influence" (Elisabeth Rochat commentary on Su Wen Ch.4).

That means you need to give careful attention to yourself, recognise your needs and address them. Are you feeling well in body, mind and spirit? If not, what is it that is missing in your daily life that could nourish and nurture you better? Ensure you add what is missing to your daily routine during this month and you will feel the strength coming back to you tenfold.

How about the balance between what we give to ourselves and what we give to others? The axle of a wheel holds everything together only if it is strong itself.

Earth Element is associated with sweet taste, which is slowing energy down. Combining it with heaviness of the climatic humidity of Late Summer you may want to actually reduce or cut out sugars and sweets (including dairy) to avoid feeling too sluggish. It applies to any time of the year, but it is felt strongly in Late Summer.

Humidity may contribute to reappearance of skin fungus, or candida. In those who have chronic conditions, flare-ups may occur. In some of you the digestive system may feel more sluggish now for apparently no reason. More so in persons whose predominant energy is Earth Element. If you wish to find out what Element / energy is predominant in you, take a very short Quiz to find out www.dorotao.com

The key is to avoid humidity producing foods (as mentioned before) and get more movement. The best kind of movement for Earth energy is walking, however, working out the muscles by stretching and free-weight exercises will add to your centrifugal strength.

This month, dedicate time to yourself and you will enjoy the fruits of your work!

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August the month of Late Summer - care and devotion for a plentiful harvest

This is technically the first month of Autumn in the classical division of the year into four seasons. Practically, with so much Yang energy still in Nature, it feels like we are still in Summer. However, the 8th of August marks the beginning of the Late Summer, the transition from Summer to Autumn. Late Summer in Five Element philosophy is linked to the Earth Element.

It is the balancing and stock taking month; the beginning of harvest.

After nearly uncontrollable growth in Spring and a diffusing expansion of Summer energy, the Late Summer is the time where the nature is just beginning to turn its energy inwards in order to produce and mature fruits. So, grass is not growing as high, foliage of plants is not as expanding now, however, fruits are getting bigger and more mature. That inward energy after months of very active Yang feels somehow balancing off. It is also the time when we are seeing what all that Yang activity has produced.

Looking at my garden I can see the quantity and quality of fruits my tomato plants have produced. I begin to assess how the Nature has gifts my efforts in growing tomatoes. We have had a lot of drought this year and had it not been for me watering the plants regularly they would have withered and died just like the grass that's besides them. Had I not been constant and dedicated to watering them nearly daily, I would not be seeing lush green plants producing fruits now. I can also see that this year my lack of constancy in timely tending to the plants, such as tying and cutting regularly, has produced fewer fruits than last year. Whenever we grow something, the rhythm is really crucial for adundant harvest. When the nature receives everything necessary at the right time and in the right amount, it gifts us with abundance.

Now, that can make us think analogically about our being, be it our body, mind or spirit, we need to tender to it with constancy, dedication and attention if we would like to see satisfying results. It is easier to think about the body. Giving it the right kind of food and regular meals, makes our bodies function well.

How about our mind? It is slightly more abstract, however, giving it good food for thoughts will make it produce marvellous ideas and concepts. Have you ever noticed that after reading an interesting book or seeing a beautiful exhibition or travelling you come back home and feel so mentally creative? That's because you've nourished your mind.

How about our spirit? It is even more abstract to imagine how we can best nourish our spirit. But you can imagine that analogically to our body and mind we need to nourish it just as regularly to satisfy our higher-selves. The nourishment of our spirit is when we feel our life is fulfilling (in our vocation, our relationships, etc) and when our efforts bring the abundant fruits in those areas, or when we make acts of kindness or practice stillness and perceive all encompassing state of peace and harmony.

So, this month is just that; assessing our efforts and what fruit it has bore for us so far. It requires us to turn our gaze inwards. After months of expanding our energy on many activities, socialising, trying out new things and places, we are now looking at the effect it's had on our being.

The Mother Earth teaches us how constancy, dedication, devotion and rhythm are important in caring and nourishing. You hardly ever spend a day without nourishing your body, without eating something. Why would you not need to nourish your soul and spirit daily?

Those qualities of the Earth Element were so important to the ancient Chinese that they associated it with their legendary Yellow Emperor (Huang Di) and his assistant Sovereign Earth (Hou Tu).

This month give care and attention to what you want to see flourishing in your life and water just that, tender to it daily; whether it is a work project, your wellbeing, family love, home harmony, sharing and dreaming, or other part of your life that has not yet produced the fruits you need. Consider that during the month of August. I hope your reflections will be truly abundant. And finally, feel free to write me comments or questions on the topic.

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