Shen Garden Acupuncture : North Kingstown, Rhode Island

We hope that you visit often to read and share in discussions with me about Five Element Acupuncture and Chinese Herbal Medicine. Whether you are already a student of nature-based approaches to healing or just discovering them for the first time, I'd like to hear from you.

Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water are all metaphors for what is otherwise unquantifiable in our bodies and lives. To understand the energetic nature of the five forces we need to let go of the western analytical process and embrace a more holistic approach. For over 8000 years the system of medicine known as Acupuncture has been rigorously tested and refined. The wise sages through the ages made many keen observations of nature and applied this wisdom when they sought to restore balance back to an ailing tree, or a human or even a whole village. They saw health as the reflection of the balance between the individual and it’s surrounding environment. Illness whether it manifest as physical, emotional or spiritual was a sign that balance had been lost. Only when balance was restored could illness be transformed and real healing occur. It is with great humility and deep respect that Five Element Acupuncturist today continue this lineage of Healership.

“Where do we go from here?”

When we are challenged to change, grow, expand or heal we are engaging our Wood Element. Wood is the whole movement from where we are to where we need to be. The movement from oppression towards freedom. From lost and floundering to goal oriented visionary.

Wherever there is movement, there is opposition, either from within or without. How we deal with opposition depends on the state of our Wood Element. Can we be sleek, graceful, almost effortless in our continuous dance with life? Or does our interactions feel awkward and jerky? Are we fully alive, responsive, and committed to being constructive even if it means giving up being right? Can we find creative solutions to complicated issues?

The interface between challenge and response. Wether it be the challenge of finding a good parking spot or the challenge of figuring out where we are going with our life. Both require keen vision and good sense of perspective.

It is our Wood Element that allows us to meet all opposition as an invitation to grow, maybe in a way we never would of imagined. It is our ability to dance and move responsively to the challenges of this life. As opposed to just digging in our heals, Wood challenges us to find a way where we all get what we need.

Anger is the acute awareness of the need to grow. Sometimes it is we who need to grow and sometimes it is the outer world that needs to change, move, evolve, expand, adapt, heal etc.. Wisdom is knowing the difference. When do we push and when do we yield?

The birthing process, healing old wounds, stepping into the next chapter of our lives, negotiating opposition. Nothing is born into this life without a bit of elbowing and pushing. How graceful we can be with transformation depends on the flexibility and creativity of our Wood Element. Our ability to come back to life regardless of what happened, resilience, choosing growth over death, this is Wood.

The season associated with the Wood Element is Spring. Everything you need to know about the Wood Element can be observed in nature as Spring comes alive. The power of those little seedlings bursting through the ground. The explosion of growth. All that it takes to come back to life after the long cold Winter. The ability to heal, and say a resounding Yes to life even if it hurts.

The two main organ systems that belong to the Wood Element are the Liver and Gall Bladder.

Signs and symptoms that our Wood Element may need support:

Anger which may manifest as irritability, frustration or stress will be the most dominate emotion
Feeling light headed, dizziness
Tight muscles
Numbness
Hypochondria (under rib’s) pain
Poor vision, floaters in vision
Defensiveness
Low self esteem
Fatigue that is better with exercise
Depression, lack of hope
Pain that is better with movement
Migrating pain
Many forms of headaches, especially sides and top of head
Fixed stabbing and continuous pain
PMS
Irregular menstruation issues of all kinds
Bitter taste in mouth
Jaundice
Medical issues related to the Liver or Gall Bladder
Muscle spasms, including eye twitching and facial ticks
Difficulty planning and organizing
Lack of creativity

Thoughts on the Metal Element. Falling leaves making way for the deeper beauty of Autumns naked honesty. Breathing in and letting go, aware of my present station, significance and insignificance, humble and grateful.

Metal is our animal, instinctual nature, keenly aware of the border between self and other, it is what keeps us real. It forces is to deal with the truth of “what is”. Metal is what holds us fully in our bodies and makes us animated and responsive. Metal is our inner prophet. Our connection to the Unity. Our built in honing device. Metal forms our truth detector, our ability to smell a lie. Metal forms the structure of our value system. Honor and respect. Metal is that part of us that still remembers the perfection that we came from and encourages us to hone and perfect our walking so that we may re-enter the Garden.

Beautiful simplicity. All creatures just being their authentic nature. Birds being birds, trees being trees, clouds being clouds. There is a natural order of things. There are natural laws and hierarchy which give structure and context to this life. All creatures are playing their part not by pretending, rather by being real. When we are true to our authentic nature as it was intended to manifest in us, there is a feeling of correctness. It just feels right. This may take practice.

In nature all the creatures are plugged in. Fed by the same source the trees, birds and butterflies all instinctually know their original nature and their place in this world. They “just do it”, and there is harmony and balance, what I would call the Unity. Everything just humming along nicely. It is the Metal Element that keeps all creatures plugged in so that they never forget their original nature nor stray from their unique authenticity.

When we are in alignment with the Unity and engaging our unique authentic nature we become beautiful. We all know true beauty when we see it. There is something special about it. Something that is awe inspiring when we see or feel it. It seems honest, unashamed, almost unworldly. Grace is beauty in motion.

Right and wrong, good and evil, pure and impure, truth or lie. How do we know the difference? Who am I? What is my purpose? Do the “10,000 things” actually fit together? If so, then what does the completed puzzle look like? The lion eating the baby Gazelle, how does that piece fit? My mother died when I was 6. How could that be a part of any divine plan? These are all the big questions our Metal Element wrestles with.

The primary way that the Metal Element works with these questions is through discipline. Discipline being the continuous cycle of learning, honing and reevaluating and further fine tuning. It requires rigor and a commitment to honesty. It requires that we let go of what no longer serves in order to make room for what is of true importance. Inner cleanliness. Being very clear what we are and are not about. When done well it fosters perfection for the sake of beauty all in response to witnessing the Unity. This is Artistry.

May we all find the Peace, Love & Mercy necessary to sustain us and our families as we enter into the realm of Winter. May we stay anchored in our Hearts and remember that “Life is supposed to be about Love.”

The season associated with the Earth Element is late Summer/early Autumn. The time of year when the harvest is collected from the fields. Everything we need to know about the Earth Element can be observed in nature during this time of year. After the joy and excitement of Summer, the season of Earth brings us back around to the fundamentals of caring for the needs of our community as well as tending to our own basic needs.

We all have needs. How we go about satisfying our needs and the needs of others depends largely on our Earth Element.

Are we able to acknowledge our needs? Are we able to ask for help without feeling guilty? Can we take our place in community knowing that “community” means shared responsibilities, shared burdens and shared accomplishments? Can we see that when one hand feeds the other, then we all get fed? For such a community there needs to be an equal and free flowing exchange of giving and receiving.

The whole movement of the Earth Element is a never ending cycle of receiving, digesting and offering back. In order to “receive” we must first acknowledge that “I have needs!” On a physical level it is about how we meet our basic needs of home and hearth, ecology. On a mental level it is about thoughtfulness, the ability to perceive and respond to our communities needs. On a spirit level it is about our ability to receive nourishment from, and be in communion with the whole of existence. If we are able to feel satisfied on all three levels then most likely owe it to our well functioning Earth Element.

When our Earth Element gets out of balance, our minds can get stuck in obsessive worrying. The famous teacher of Chinese medicine, Elizabeth Rochat, once said “Any thinking which does not lead to constructive resolution, is pathological.” Obsessive worry damages the Spleen causing fatigue and digestive issues.

The theme of Earth is “don’t worry, be satisfied”. Take in the free teachings being offered by nature during this time of year. Take some time to evaluate your relationship to needs and neediness. Acknowledge your own needs and practice asking and receiving? Acknowledge the needs of others and practice offering and giving. A healthy life consists of equal amounts of both giving and receiving.

May you all find peace and satisfaction in all your Earthly endeavors. May your harvest be bountiful and all your needs be met. May your Hearts be open to receive the ocean of Love from the Divine. May you be deeply fed and nourished by this Love and further share this Love with all beings.

Growing up on a small farm in Maine, there would come a time in spring when the cows would be let out of the barn, back to the open pasture. So much running and kicking up of heels, freedom from the confinement of winter. For them, the transformation from Winter in to Spring happened in one day.

No time of year is more volatile then Spring. The transformation from frozen tundra to luscious green gardens, how does that happen? The emerging from our long winter slumber, facing head first into a new year. This is not an easy transition for many people. What will be our theme this year? What seeds do we need to plant now? Physical or otherwise. What potential deep rooted transformation is rumbling in your soil?

Spring is the season of hope, a time to dream, explore, create, grow, and set intentions of what we want from this new year. Be aware that Spring tends to bare strong emotions. Frustration and irritability are common as we shake off the dead branches of Winter. Take it as a clear reminder of the need grow. What kind of growth spurts are building in you? Can you find a creative direction to focus that energy?

“Being”, requires no planning. We can all just be here in this moment and be present to the mysterious beauty all around us. But if there is a part of you that is aching for change, aware of the need to grow, or heal, then you will need a strong and agile Wood Element. One that is capable of seeing the way forward and executing the correct actions to achieve that way. Save your basking in the warmth of the present moment for Summer. Now is the time to start a movement, grow, surge! It is through our ability to adapt and change that we will find our deliverance from pain and suffering.

But beware to those who’s growth is not anchored by the deep will of the Heart; for such growth will bare bitter fruit.

If you really want to feel your Water Element venture out on to a frozen pond. Standing on the ice with the fathomless unknown below. There may only be a few inches separating you from death. Growing up in Maine, each year someone would be lost to the perils of thin ice. As a chid this fact had burrowed it’s way deep into my Water Element.

Whether we be standing on a frozen pond or driving on an icy road, Winter is always tapping on the shoulder of our Water Element saying “Be carful!” Our hearing becomes more acute. Listening for the first tiny crack of ice or the revving of the cars engine as the tires begin into spin.

Winter is the season of survival and our Water Element is our natural response to Winter. It all comes down to two basic factors; our ability to accurately asses approaching danger and our faith that we have what it takes to handle that danger effectively. Awareness and confidence. This relationship between our awareness and our self confidence shapes the parameters of our Water Element. Hyperawareness with low self confidence leads to paranoia. Lack of awareness and over confidence leads to fool hearted danger.

Winter is the best time to fine tune our survival skills. Whether we like It or not. In what ways has this Winter challenged your faith? What unknowns are you facing that could use more courage? What strengths have you discovered in yourself that you never would of found if you were not pushed in to a corner. Can you embrace these teachings and revelations as the hard earned gifts of Winter?

Fear not. Spring is coming.

As the trees are letting go of their leaves, Autumn also is encouraging us to let go of what ever is no longer serving us. To let fall away all that is not essential as we prepare for this coming winter. This is the time of year associated with the Metal Element.

For me, this time of year, Metal time, is the time for internal house cleaning. A time to reassess where I am in my life. Is the outer world that I have shaped a true reflection of my personal values and belief structure? Am I living a life that is authentically me? Am I walking my talk? Am I living a life that has purpose and deep meaning? If not then what do I need to do in order to bring my life back in to alignment?

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Can you feel what is happening out there? Here in Rhode Island it feels like consolidation, a great gathering, home coming. Throughout the Summer we were all scattered outward in all directions, vacations, the beach, barbecues. Frenzy, excitement, joy as if it were to never end. Then it did end, so slowly that we almost did not see it happening. The season of the Earth Element came to call it’s children back home again. Playtime was over, time to settle into a routine again, to reform all that scattered energy. Come back to the circle.

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We are entering into the season of the Earth Element.

Recently I spent some time with my teacher, Thea Elijah. I confided in her about my personal struggles with perfection and maintaining a holy/sacred life. How I felt at times like a shoddy human being because I was unable to consistently live up to my own high standards of what I considered a purposeful and meaningful life. I do have imperfections. I do struggle with tendencies that lead me away from love and down dark paths. And I am quite hard on myself regarding these facts.

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I am seeing something intriguing about the people I have treated for a year or longer. The ones that come in for monthly tune ups. They are becoming more beautiful! There is this way that they walk and talk which says “I am at home in this body and in this life that I have created around me.” They are more graceful as if their entire being is moving collectively, as an integrated whole with a sense of purpose and dignity.

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