Most of you probably know what Chinese animal you are from going to eat at Chinese restaurants… what does it mean? What do those animals represent and what is the connection between “what animal we are” and the reasons we are getting sick at times or experiencing life in a certain way? And how is it related to acupuncture?!
The ancient Chinese observed astronomical phenomena and watched cycles in the universe such as day and night, the changing of the seasons and so on. All the information gathered allowed them to reach great understandings about nature’s cycles and the ways in which these cycles affect us as an integral part of the same system.
According to Classical Chinese Medicine (Stems & Branches) each individual is “stamped” at the moment of birth with a unique combination of energies that act as a very broad frame in which this person interacts with other energies. At every moment in time there are 4 pillars of energetic interactions (year, month, day and hour) and each pillar is assembled by a stem and a branch (the branch is what you might know as the “Chinese animal”).
Chinese medicine is based on the “Dao” which says we are all particles of one entity and at the same time we are a perfect representation of this “one” as our self. In order for us to maintain good quality of life and better health we should try to be in sync with our own nature, with our own Dao. Our Dao is determined by our four pillars. With acupuncture, the ultimate goal is to bring a patients’ individual Qi (energy) into sync with the Qi of the universe, and this action will promote healing.
Treatments are done using limited number of acupuncture points (between 1- 6 typically, different numbers of points have different energetic impact) and the sessions are done every three weeks to allow the body to process the change that was made by the treatment.
I truly believe healing is a long term life work process, it can’t be rushed and it should be a constant practice. It is extremely important to maintain what is not broken, but when something does brake, it can be fixed …one piece at a time. All we are is a moment in time; we should try make it a positive one.
“Do the difficult things while they are easy and do the great things while they are small. A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.” (Lao Tzu)
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