Volume 3, No. 4, August, 2014
Oriental Medicine
& On Human Conditions
Chapter Four
Lung: Sadness, Courage, and Dissolution No. ４
樹葉凋落時如何
When
leaves shrivel and fall, how do you feel?
大露金風
The
Absolute Golden Wind
(Absolute: purest, truest, clearest,
none-other-than)
(Golden
Wind: autumn wind)
Perhaps, this simple conversation is one of the most
famous of all Zen utterances made by Chinese masters. A monk, obviously himself was old and an accomplished
Zen-ist, asked his master Ummon (雲門), how
he felt about looking at a tree in an autumn day. Literal translation of the answer is: totally naked (bare) golden wind
(gold-metal/fall: Five
Element). What Ummon said was that
everything and everywhere was the Golden Wind. There is no hesitation, no uncertainty, and confusion: clear as the autumn sky and cool as the
wind, for he is in the state of absolute “Nothingness.”
The monk who asked did not have any desire (the
nakedness); void of a position, fame, and money. Only thing he knew he had was his aliveness and
livingness. I believe that he
wanted assurance from his master that his as-is-ness was as close as the
master’s. (In so doing, he tested
his master’s awareness: very gutsy
thing to do). His worry was
answered by a spontaneous response by the master. Their hearts met.
They understood each other, and they were one. When we are ready to shed everything that we believe
valuable and dear, even a god, and therefore, stand totally naked, the cool
autumn wind permeates through us and makes us realize that it is the “Life”
that “Is” everything and everywhere.
For most of us, fall is about the following. Cool autumn air tightens our
lungs. Leaves fall and remind us
of time passing, making us feel slightly sad. It is the time to reflect and move inward. Sensitivity comes back after summer of
activities. It is the time to
defend ourselves from pathogens once again. Yet, it is the time to be poetic and creative. New ideas flourish. Renewed desire once again burns within
us.
As my readers know that fall belongs to the Metal
Element and it is represented by the Lung and Sadness. In Oriental Medicine, the
contraction of the lungs is the sadness (Chinese character 悲: the upper portion of the word
characterizes the protracted lungs and the lower characterizes the heart or
feeling.) When the lungs are
protracted and contracted, we cannot breathe well. Pathogens come in and make the matter worse. It is very important for us to
strengthen the function of the lungs by drink less alcohol, less sweating,
resting and sleeping well, and intake more vitamin C and phytoagents. Some spices and plants open up the
lungs such as peppers and peppermint.
Apple cider vinegar increases the immune system. Physiologically, rubbing the sternum
while taking shower, gargling with salt, keeping the neck and the feet warm
help to keep the lung functions.
Acupuncture greatly helps the lung function. I can stop coughing and a progress of cold and flu
(especially caught early). Four
major acupuncture immune points in
the body system are: the base of
the neck, the navel, at the elbow where the line of crease folds, and UB-13 (at
both sides, about 1 ½ inches away from the third thoracic vertebra).
Fall is the time of emotions. Sadness prevails as it gets darker earlier in the day;
colors of flowers and trees fade; and the temperature drops. It is the time for yearning and
belonging, but at the same time, it is the time to be aware of self, physically
and spiritually. The dissolution
of sadness is to become a friend with the emotion. If you feel profound sadness, go ahead and go deeper into
the emotion and experience it.
From the experience, you will know how to become a friend with
sadness. Once this happens, a
sensation of sadness will last only a few seconds and you will be able to put
it aside in a proper place in your mind.
The ultimate dissolution happens when you can truly “experience” and
understand the following poem by the same Zen master, Ummon.
The Cool Wind gently blows
through my mind,
No matter what happens!
No matter what happens,
The Cool Wind gently blows
through my mind.
雲門 (Ummon)
Epilogue:
When you let go everything in your life, totally, then
you understand that it is “Love*” that gives the Life
*Compassion
© 2014 Dr. Y.
Frank Aoi (NM State)/Japanese Acupuncture, LLC
