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Colour Mandalas

Mandala # 23 The Sky Blue Scope relates to the sound chord of F#, the stone of Sodalite and the animal Superb Blue (Fairy) Wren

In my work I often use colour mandalas to support clients through the changes they may experience after a session. Each mandala relates to an acupuncture point on the body, so they complement my kinesiology practice. The following is an excerpt from the Peace Space Colour Deck describing how the mandalas work.

While I look at the points from a Traditional Chinese Medicine approach to the physical and psycho-spiritual perspective, the use of the mandalas can extend our understanding further. The mandalas bring in the frequencies of colour and shape, and offer a different insight into the psycho-spiritual aspects of the points. Each mandala also has a sound, stone and an animal associated with it, so, many vibrations can be drawn in as supports for healing. A client can then work with the aspect that resonates with them best.

The adrenals and stress

Every client I see at the moment is showing signs of adrenal overload. We have been through an extremely challenging couple of years and the pressure is still not really letting up. This takes a toll on the triple heater meridian and our adrenal glands.

The adrenals relate to our fight/flight/freeze responses and if we get stuck in any of these stress responses we can end up in a state of vigilance and ultimately adrenal exhaustion. There are some simple measures we can take to support our adrenals using vitamins, herbs, essential oils and relaxation techniques.

Some easily accessible herbs we can take are herb robert, licorice, nettle, parsley and tumeric. Vitamin B complex, vitamin C, magnesium and zinc may help. The essential oils of lemongrass, sandalwood and spruce support the adrenal glands.

You might also find that gentle exercise such as walking or yoga may help. Being in nature is highly beneficial for our well being so try to spend some time outdoors. Have a bath, meditate or do any other activity that works for you.

If your stress levels do not respond to the herbs, vitamins or activities outline above then please seek help, Many modalities can help you to move through adrenal stress – naturopathy, homeopathy, TCM or kinesiology may all be of benefit. Stress is the underlying cause of much disease so it is a really good idea to address this problem to support your overall health.

The Current Time

Lately I’ve found myself waking at 5am. I’m not just a little bit awake where I can roll over and go back to sleep – I’m wide awake and getting up to do yoga. Yesterday I gave myself a balance. 5-7am relates to the large intestine, common emotions found here are grief, guilt and letting go. The emotion for me was grief. I’ve been aware of the grief, but was not able to release it. The point that tested up was large intestine # 6 Side Passage. This point relates to dryness (I’ve been very thirsty) and feelings of loss and grief. It is also the luo point to the lung meridian and can be seen as “providing an external vent through which lung stagnation whether it be emotional (grief) or physical (phlegm), can exit one’s being”. (Jarrett, The Clinical Practice of Chinese Medicine, p596)

The Key of Faith

The energenetic symbol that sits at this point is blue/amber, the other side of the coronavirus symbol amber/blue which I’ve written about here. ”With this experience you will be required to master the strength you carry so your authority and authenticity will have to be controlled with balance…The passing of this fear associated with past learnings will close out the shadow that walks with you, and allow new strands of hope and aspiration to rise up within you.”

After two years of living in limbo due to the virus and the restrictions we have been placed under, there is a lot of grief in need of release. Grief for the people we couldn’t visit, for the funerals we couldn’t attend, for the loss of our dreams, our jobs, our inclusion in society. For the people we are unable to talk to because our understanding and experience of this time are so vastly different. Grief for those affected by flood, war and now the constant sound of ambulances as more people succumb to the harm caused by a medical trial.

So, I’m back to placing my attention on The Key of Faith and trusting that “another world is not only possible, she is on her way. On a quiet day, I can hear her breathing. “(Arundhati Roy). Part of me is already there.

A frosty morning

At the weekend we had the Winter Solstice and we’ve now moved into the really wintery weather. I’m sure you all felt the shift into a deeper level of cold last week. In Bendigo we can have some heavy frosts in Winter and with such cold weather we can go into a bit of hibernation. Winter is our time of renewal, for going within and readying ourselves for a new beginning in Spring.

So spend some time in your inner world, putting energy towards what you hope to create in Spring. You can read more about Winter and the meridians here. Stay warm, eat warming food and relax in front of the fire. This should be a time to nourish yourself deeply.

Fog

It’s a beautiful foggy morning in Bendigo today – I like the feeling of being blanketed in fog.  This wintery weather emphasises the yin nature of Winter, it’s time to sit, rest and reflect.  You can read more about the energy of Winter here.  I’d planned to do some gardening today, but feel more like reading a book in front of the fire…

 

Time to slow down…

It’s almost mid winter and we should be taking some time out in front of the fire and slowing down.  My Winter post from last year can give you more information on the Water Element and the kidney and bladder meridians.  Nurture yourself with warming winter soups and stews.  Allow yourself to relax and regenerate, don’t keep pushing on when you are tired.  Resting now will enable you to be ready for action in Spring.

 

ESR – Emotional Stress Release

ESR – Self help with kinesiology

This very simple technique is also very powerful and it’s something that you can easily learn to do for yourself and others.  Quite simply, the points in the picture below are gently held, either with the whole hand (easier than exactly locating the points) or with two fingers on each point.

For your own personal use you can hold these points while focusing of any situation that you are finding stressful.  Call the situation to mind, think of how it makes you feel, any colours, smells or sounds associated with the issue.  Remember to breathe while you are holding the points. You could also put an essential oil on your fingertips for greater relaxation.

You could now imagine how you would like the situation to be.  Continue holding the points until you lose focus on the issue.

Now revisit the original stressful situation and see how it feels.  Has it changed?  Has the emotional charge reduced?

I once did ESR for my small niece when she fell off a swing.  I held the points (whole hand over the forehead) and said to her “what happened”, she gave me a blubbery, incoherent answer.  I continued to hold the points saying “what happened” a few times, then she took a deep breath, calmed down and went back to playing.  The stress of the incident had been released.  It is great to use with stressed children.

The points we are working with here are Gall Bladder 14.  This is a neuro vascular point for many muscles in the body, including muscles that relate to the Central, Stomach and Bladder meridians.

 

Spring

spring4After a time of withdrawal and rest in Winter, we enter Spring – a time of new growth.  In Spring, seedlings push up through the earth demonstrating the power of the Wood Element, its Yang energy giving us the vision, drive and initiative to change and grow.

The Wood Element corresponds to the colour green, the taste is sour, the sound is shouting and the emotion is anger.  Anger is often seen as a “negative” emotion, but the energy of anger is necessary to bring about change, it forces the Qi to rise, pushing us into activity.

Anger or frustration become a problem when they turn into either depression/apathy or rage, both of these extremes shut down the possibility of finding an alternative way to proceed.  Here we may slip into chronic patterns of overactive or underactive Qi.  “Balanced Wood, however, usually manifests with the ability to express frustration, assert one’s needs, consider alternative plans, go to higher ends, and not move too strongly towards rage or apathy.” (Hicks, Hicks & Mole, Five Element Acupuncture)

The Liver and Gall Bladder meridians sit in the Wood Element.  The Liver produces bile which is then stored and secreted by the Gall Bladder;   they are dependent on each other.  The Liver has the function of a military leader who excels in strategic planning;  the Gall Bladder occupies the position of an important and upright official who excels through his decisions and judgements. (Nei Jing) Any disruption to the flow of the Liver will affect how the Gall Bladder secretes bile. In terms of our activity in the world the Wood Element organs influence our ability to make decisions and will lead us towards either rash decisions or timidity and indecision.  As discussed above we need the ability to see alternatives paths of action in order to maintain flexibility.

The archetype of the Wood Element is The Pioneer.  “Metamorphosis is the organising principle for the Pioneer…Inexorably drawn to travel roads not yet mapped, she treks wild mountain ridges, explores star-clustered heavens in an astronaut’s suit, launches a business from scratch, or embarks upon research in yet unrecognised fields.” (Beinfield & Korngold, Between Heaven & Earth) The Pioneer reflects the drive inherent in the Wood Element.

Nutrition for the Wood Element includes eating liver and other vitamin A rich foods such as yellow and green vegetables, leafy greens, green pepper, carrots.  It is good to reduce or avoid fatty foods and alcohol – things that the liver has to work hard to process.

Spring is a great time for a cleanse.  You could drink green smoothies or green soups.  Get up and get active again, shift the sluggishness of Winter hibernation  and move into an energetic Spring.

Winter

winterAs we enter Winter life slows down and nature rests.  Animals go into hibernation and seeds lie dormant, but beneath the surface is hidden activity that will bring renewal in Spring.  In Winter, if we live according to the seasons, we should go to bed early and reduce our activity.  By slowing down we preserve and conserve our Qi so that it is there when we become active again in Spring.

Winter brings us into the Water Element, the most Yin of all the Elements.  This is the realm of the personal and collective unconscious.  “It is the primeval ooze out of which form materialises as life.  It links our past and future, ancestor and descendant, and is the source of our inherited intelligence.”(Beinfield & Korngold, Between Heaven & Earth) Water is also the most prevalent Element in the human body.

The Water Element corresponds to the colour blue, the taste is salty, the sound is groaning and the emotion is fear.  While fear is mostly seen as a negative emotion it’s positive side is the caution and also the motivation that allows our survival.  Fear protects us from predators by keeping us aware and our fear of not being able to survive drives us to work and find ways to support ourselves.  Out of balance we may suppress our fears or become overly fearful.

The Kidney and Bladder meridians belong to the Water Element.  The Kidney meridian holds our essence or Jing, the source of reproduction, development and maturation.  Jing enables conception and growth to maturity.  It declines as we age.  The Kidneys sort fluids into clean and turbid, the clear part is sent upwards to the Lungs, while the impure goes to the Bladder and is excreted.

The archetype for the Water Element is the Philosopher.  The Philosopher is on a search for truth and meaning, looking underneath the surface for hidden gems, dispelling ignorance.  The Philosopher is able to see what is possible and so may be disappointed with what is.  “The Philosopher yearns for meaning that transcends the rudderless  meandering of human affairs.”(Beinfield & Korngold, Between Heaven & Earth)

Nutrition for the Water Element includes salty, purple,black and blue foods. Vegies such as kale, mushrooms and seaweed; buckwheat; aduki, black and kidney beans; black sesame seeds, walnuts, sunflower and pumpkin seeds; pomegranate, blueberry and mulberry to name a few.

This Winter try to find some time for sitting by the fire, going to bed early and just slowing down a little.  This will enable the Qi to be ready for the Spring.

 

 

Autumn

Autumn leaves Autumn is the time of withering and decomposition, the life cycle is completed here.  Leaves fall, decompose and return to the earth, rotting down to fertilise the soil for crops the following year.  In Autumn we gather what we have grown, putting food aside for the coming Winter.  As we move into Autumn we enter the Metal Element.

The Metal Element corresponds to the colour white,  the taste is pungent,  the sound is weeping, the emotion is grief and also letting go.  If grief becomes stuck we may end up in a joyless, even anxious state. Too much control may need to be balanced with a little passion and spontaneity.

The Lung and Large Intestine meridians belong to the Metal Element.  These organs take in and let go – the Lung sucks in Qi and pushes it down through the body spreading nutrients, and on each out breath there is a release of toxins.  The Large Intestine lets go of waste from the body it is known as the “drainer of the dregs” extracting any remaining nourishment and then excreting the waste.

The Chinese character for the Metal Element “…suggests something small in quantity, but of great value, buried deep within the earth.” (Hicks, Hicks & Mole, Five Element Constitutional Acupuncture)  If we look at the action of breathing as inspiration – breathing in spirit we can have a different view of this element.  It is here that we may be able to uncover our own “nugget of gold,” our inspiration.

The archetype for Autumn is the Alchemist whose guiding principle is transmutation.  The Alchemist “seeks the perfection of form and function.  Through his power of discernment, he distills what is good and pure from what is coarse and primitive… providing the structure that enables people to apply the metaphysical to the mundane.” (Beinfield and Korngold, Between Heaven & Earth)

Nutirition for the Metal Element includes vitamin c rich foods for the Lung meridian and yoghurt, buttermilk, honey and carbohydrates for the Large Intestine meridian.  Pungent foods such as garlic, cinnamon and ginger can move energy in the lungs when “invaded”and can produce sweating to shift any pathogens present.

Autumn is also a good time for any sort of breathwork – getting the energy of the lungs moving, taking in a deep breath of spirit and perhaps finding that nugget of gold.