Preserving Original Essence: An Online Winter Workshop

Concord MA

11 December, 2021

Description

Preserving Original Essence: An Online Winter Workshop to Fortify and Nourish the Kidneys Winter is almost here, a time when the Water element flourishes and the energy of the season aligns with and supports the energy of the kidneys. Now is when the yin kidneys, along with their yang counterpart, the urinary bladder, may be most advantageously addressed to improve health and optimize their many functions and attributes. One quality of Water is storage, a gathering of all the preceding energetic phases of growth and development occurring throughout the year and throughout the arc of our life. It requires a quiet, still inward focus to most fully absorb and store, replenishing us at the deepest levels of our being, while preparing us for the next cycle of growth beginning with the emerging energy of Spring. Storage also refers to the kidneys’ storage of our original, pre-birth essence, kidney jing (a yin substance that contains the energy of yang qi). Inherited from our parents, we have a finite amount of original essence. It can be depleted either quickly, causing more rapid aging with associated health problems, or slowly, allowing us to age gracefully, with abundant energy and few ailments. Depletion of kidney essence directly causes all of the common signs and symptoms of aging. In this half-day online workshop, you’ll learn four separate, interrelated Daoist life cultivation approaches to conserve original jing and replenish post-natal jing, strengthen kidney functions, open the kidney and urinary bladder meridians to enhance internal Water element qi flows, and generate internal stillness with a focus on storage in the kidneys. When combined, in addition to improving physical and energetic health, these practices smooth and harmonize the energies of your emotional and mental bodies. They will also lower your level of stress, one of the most common ways jing and qi are depleted on a daily basis. (Note: If you’d like to learn more about the kidneys and Jing essence right now, read the kidney section in Chapter Five of my book, Chinese Holistic Medicine In Your Daily Life.) Here are the topics covered in this workshop. Part 1. Chinese Self-Care and Meridian Exercises These address the more exterior part of kidney health, opening up the kidney and urinary bladder muscle-tendon meridians to allow for the free flow of qi through the more superficial parts of our body. This releases physical restrictions, relieves many aches and discomforts, and sets the stage for fuller access to deeper qi flows. Part 2. Herbal Formulas Supporting Kidney Yin, Yang, and Essence Yin and Essence are substances, and in order to effectively nourish them quickly and easily, supportive herbal nutrition should be included daily as a sort of “super food” for Kidney health. 2A. Special Topic For Women: Nutrition for Osteoporosis 2B. Special Topic For Men: Nutrition for Prostate Health Part 3. Nourishing Original Essence: A three-phase daoyin/qigong practice to guide qi to the kidneys and urinary bladder, through their related acupuncture meridians. Part 4. Kidney Healing Meditation This profoundly restful and restorative meditation unifies everything learned in the first three parts of today’s workshop. For complete details and enrollment information, please visit my website: