Harnessing the Power of Strong Fire

Dear Friends,

 image from http://images.businessweek.com

 

For a roller-coaster, it takes a huge amount of energy/effort (man’s effort) to bring the car  from the bottom to the top of the curve against the gravity (nature).

However, just before the top, just a minimal effort (man’s effort) is needed to push the car over the curve. After which, the force of gravity (nature) will do the job in moving the car forward quickly without much effort.

• In TCM, one of the most powerful concept is to take advantage of the forces of nature to assist the body to defend/cure itself of illnesses.
• This concept has many application, the primary objective being to find the point of least resistance, giving the body the minimal push for it to gain momentum in curing itself with the best of external cosmic forces.

2008 is Strong Fire year and so far what we have witnessed are anything but positively exciting.

• From TCM’s perspective, actually this Strong Fire can be the manna from heaven. Harnessed appropriately it can help some patients in fighting off difficult chronic illnesses that have troubled them for years.

Imagine some of the following patients with conditions that get worse in winter/old environment :

• asthma,
• lower back pain (with/without lower limb numbness and pain),
• cold syndrome, generally feeling cold in the limbs etc

Above are some examples of chronic illnesses that get worse in Winter or colder environment and get better in Summer. They come every year and never seem to go away completely. Patients tend to seek help when the symptoms get worse. However, as seen in the analogy of the roller-coaster car at the bottom, it will take tremendous external effort to turn this around during the Winter.

• An easier way is to start treating these illnesses in the middle of Summer, when the symptoms are  least and patients more comfortable. It is equivalent to the roller-coaster car near the top of the curve. All they need is a small external push and the Summer energy will help maintain the momentum forward to fight the illnesses. (this is called 冬病夏治 “dong bing xia zhi”, i.e. treating winter illnesses in summer.)
• The Strong Fire of 2008 will make it much easier to help push the patients over the top of curve against their Winter/cold illnesses.

Separately, there is a strong tendency for people to take cold/very cold drinks or foods in Summer. From TCM’s perspective, “cold” is one of the most destructive element to human health. It accumulates bit by bit over time, just like the heavy metals.

• When cold accumulates upto certain level, it will start to block the channels/meridians, causing numbness and pain. When the cold accumulates in inner organs and deeper regions, it will create condition for tumour/cyst growth.
• Cold is also Enemy #1 to women, especially when it attacks the lower abdomen region. It causes all sorts of gynecological illnesses. Infertility is one of the result. (Any wonder why families tend to be larger in tropics than colder countries, all else being equal ?). It is trendy these days amongst young girls to expose their abdomen. What do you think may happen to them later ?

We can also do the reverse, i.e., start medical treatment in winter for illnesses that will get worse in Summer but improve in Winter or colder environment.

Have fun leveraging on the power of cosmic forces, in the right direction and don’t overshoot.

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