Nurturing Liver meridians to face the new beginning
Updated: Oct 3, 2021
Wood is the quality of growth. It is like a germinating seed sprouting. It is the anticipant pregnant mother and the growing fetus. It is the energy of the plant breaking through the earth toward the sun. It is the dawn of a new day and is related to the process of awakening. Wood is strong and flexible; it stretches and spreads and strives. It is also expansive and spacious. Think of the space in hollow bamboo or the porous wood of any tree. This relates to akasha (ether, space) in Ayurveda. There is air in the wood that pushes it or makes it move. This is why wood is also associated with vayu (air) in the Indian system. In the breath cycle it is associated with the beginning of the in-breath—initiating, opening, and reaching toward the top of the inhale, as the diaphragm descends to compress the liver.
The liver is associated with the wood element in Chinese medicine. It is responsible for the smooth flow of qi and blood, and in certain contexts, we know it can partially regenerate. It has a spreading function, and its energy tends to rise upward or across the body, like branches of a tree or a vine reaching up and out.
The liver is further associated with wind and the spring season. Spring is when everything is sprouting, emerging, birthing, and there is a sense of anticipation and newness in the air and a looking forward. These are all qualities of wood. In addition, the green color that spring denotes is associated with wood and the liver. Many people are drawn to liver cleanses in the spring and use spring herbs like dandelion to cleanse.
Yin Yoga Pose for Liver Meridians
There are many yin yoga pose can help to nurutre liver meridians. The one that demonstrate here is seated butterfly pose.
Benefit of butterfly pose
reduce back pain
lower stress level and help with headache
strengthen inner thighs area
improve reproductive health
helps with fatigue
In the body, there should be a spacious unhindered sensation associated with wood stretching, reaching, and moving forward. If there is a sense of desperation or frustration in striving, the function of wood is out of balance. If obstacles block the growth of wood, it becomes very frustrated, irritable, unhappy, and angry. These emotions and feelings disrupt the smooth flow of qi and blood and are said to injure the liver if intense and sustained. In fact, unexamined, suppressed, or chronic anger is the primary emotion said to harm the liver.
It is frustrated or blocked wood energy that continues to have stretching, expansive momentum that builds up behind the blockage. This stagnated energy can wreak havoc on the qi flow and the mind and, according to Chinese medicine, can not only create imbalance, but also disease.
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Free "TCM nutritions guide, acupuncture points and yin yoga pose to help with your liver" PDF file is ready to download. Inside the file, you will learn how to heal and maintain a healthy liver.
Reference: healthshots , Handbook of Chinese Medicine and Ayurveda