Sosan – The 3rd Zen Patriarch (a.k.a. Seng-ts’an) November 27, 2007
Posted by Geoffrey Wilson in : Courses,Meditations,Philosophy,Psychology , 1 comment so farThis is another exceprt from my new Oriental Psychology Distance Learning Course
About Sosan
There is little information about the life of the Third Patriarch. His birthplace and birth date are unknown. According to the Denko-roku (“The Transmission of the Lamp”), written by Keizan Zenji (1268-1325), he was a layman over forty years of age suffering from leprosy when he met the 2nd Patriarch, Hui-k’o (Japanese: Eka), for the first time in 551 AD. Being deeply impressed with this layman’s capacity for the Dharma, Hui-k’o shaved the future 3rd Patriarch’s head and named him Sengts’an (Jewel of the Community). He was gradually cured of his illness and, after they had been practicing together for two years, Hui-k’o gave him the traditional robe and bowl signifying the
transmission of the Dharma.
Note
In Module 5, students will explore the metaphysical causes of disease. Do not forget to reflect on this when contemplating Sosan’s leprosy and his cure.
It is said that during the infamous Buddhist persecution in 574, Sosan was forced to feign mental illness in order to escape execution, and that finally he went into hiding for ten years on Mount Huankung. His mere presence there is said to have pacified the wild tigers, which until that time had caused great fear among the local people. The authorship of Hsin-Hsin-Ming (Japanese – Shinjinmei) is attributed to Seng-ts’an (Sosan). It is one of the earliest Ch’an writings. It expounds on the basic principles of Chan Buddhism (Zen) in poetic form and suggests a strong Taoist influence.
The Hsin-Hsin-Ming begins with a famous sentence, which comes up again and again in Ch’an Buddhism (Zen) literature (for instance, in Pi-Yen-Lu): “The venerable way is not difficult at all; it only abhors picking and choosing.” In this early Ch’an poem, the fusion, typical for later Ch’an (Zen), of the mutually congenial teachings of Mahâyâna Buddhism and Taoism, appears for the first time (The Encyclopedia of Eastern Philosophy and Religion, page 311).
A Few Comments on Hsin-Hsin Ming (a.k.a ‘The Book of True Faith’)
The title of the Hsin-Hsin Ming may be explained in the following way:
Hsin means “belief” or “faith.”
This is not faith in the ordinary sense. It is an understanding that comes from firsthand experience, a faith that arises out of supreme knowledge and the wisdom of enlightenment. This understanding is an affirmation that all existence or reality is essentially the Buddha mind, which is our true nature.
Hsin is also the conviction that at the root of all phenomena lies the One Mind, the Buddha Mind, which is one with our real nature, the Buddha-nature.
Hsin literally means heart.
It means Mind, not the delusional mind, but the Buddha-Mind. Hsin is the mind that merges with the all-encompassing One Mind.
Ming literally means ‘inscription’.
It also means written expression or record and infers the meaning of warnings or admonitions.
The famous Hsin Hsin Ming (Japanese: Shin Jin Mei) is known as the first Zen poem. It consists of 146 four-word lines, directly and vividly expressing the Zen spirit in a simple, compact form. An outstanding characteristic of the poem is that it is written in genuine Chinese without using any Sanskrit or Pali Buddhist terms.
The main themes expressed in the Hsin Hsin Ming derive from Two Entries and Four Acts, one of the few authentic writings of the great Zen Patriarch Bodhidharma, who brought Buddhism from India to China in the sixth century. The roots of Bodhidharma’s work can be traced to the Vimalakirtinirdesa Sutra, written sometime before the 3rd century AD in India.
Translation of the ‘Book of True Faith’ (Hsin Hsin Ming)
The following translation of Sosan’s masterpiece is by Richard B. Clarke.
The Great Way is not difficult
for those who have no preferences.
When love and hate are both absent
everything becomes clear and undisguised.
Make the smallest distinction, however
and heaven and earth are set infinitely apart.
If you wish to see the truth
then hold no opinions for or against anything.
To set up what you like against what you dislike
is the disease of the mind.
When the deep meaning of things is not understood
the mind’s essential peace is disturbed to no avail.
The Way is perfect like vast space
where nothing is lacking and nothing is in excess.
Indeed, it is due to our choosing to accept or reject
that we do not see the true nature of things.
Live neither in the entanglements of outer things,
nor in inner feelings of emptiness.
Be serene in the oneness of things
and such erroneous views will disappear by themselves.
When you try to stop activity to achieve passivity
your very effort fills you with activity.
As long as you remain in one extreme or the other
you will never know Oneness.
Those who do not live in the single Way
fail in both activity and passivity,
assertion and denial. To deny the reality of things
to assert the emptiness of things is to miss their reality.
The more you talk and think about it,
the further astray you wander from the truth.
Stop talking and thinking,
and there is nothing you will not be able to know.
To return to the root is to find the meaning,
but to pursue appearances is to miss the source.
At the moment of inner enlightenment
there is a going beyond appearance and emptiness.
The changes that appear to occur in the empty world
we call real only because of our ignorance.
Do not search for the truth;
only cease to cherish opinions.
Do not remain in the dualistic state
avoid such pursuits carefully.
If there is even a trace of this and that, of right and wrong,
the Mind-essence will be lost in confusion.
Although all dualities come from the One,
do not be attached even to this One.
When the mind exists undisturbed in the Way,
nothing in the world can offend,
and when a thing can no longer offend, it ceases to exist in the old way.
When no discriminating thoughts arise, the old mind ceases to exist.
When thought objects vanish, the thinking-subject vanishes,
as when the mind vanishes, objects vanish.
Things are objects because of the subject (mind);
the mind (subject) is such because of things (object).
Understand the relativity of these two
and the basic reality: the unity of emptiness.
In this Emptiness the two are indistinguishable
and each contains in itself the whole world.
If you do not discriminate between coarse and fine
you will not be tempted to prejudice and opinion.
To live in the Great Way
is neither easy nor difficult,
but those with limited views
and fearful and irresolute: the faster they hurry, the slower they go,
and clinging (attachment) cannot be limited;
even to be attached to the idea of enlightenment is to go astray.
Just let things be in their own way
and there will be neither coming nor going.
Obey the nature of things (your own nature),
and you will walk freely and undisturbed.
When thought is in bondage the truth is hidden,
for everything is murky and unclear,
and the burdensome practice of judging brings annoyance and weariness.
What benefit can be derived from distinctions and separations?
If you wish to move in the One Way
do not dislike even the world of senses and ideas.
Indeed, to accept them fully
is identical with true Enlightenment.
The wise man strives to no goals
but the foolish man fetters himself.
This is one Dharma, not many: distinctions arise
from the clinging needs of the ignorant.
To seek Mind with the (discriminating) mind
is the greatest of all mistakes.
Rest and unrest derive from illusion;
with enlightenment there is no liking and disliking.
All dualities come from
ignorant inference.
They are like dreams of flowers in the air:
foolish to try to grasp them.
Gain and loss, right and wrong:
such thoughts must finally be abolished at once.
If the eye never sleeps,
all dreams will naturally cease.
If the mind makes no discriminations,
the ten thousand things are as they are, of single essence.
To understand the mystery of this One-essence
is to be released from all entanglements.
When all things are seen equally
the timeless Self-essence is reached.
No comparisons or analogies are possible
in this causeless, relationless state.
Consider movement stationary and the stationary in motion,
both movement and rest disappear.
When such dualities cease to exist
Oneness itself cannot exist.
To this ultimate finality
no law or description applies.
For the unified mind in accord with the Way
all self-centered straining ceases.
Doubts and irresolution’s vanish
and life in true faith is possible.
With a single stroke we are freed from bondage;
Nothing clings to us and we hold to nothing.
All is empty , clear, self-illuminating,
with no exertion of the mind’s power.
Here thought, feeling, knowledge, and imagination
are of no value.
In this world of Suchness
there is neither self nor other-than-self
To come directly into harmony with this reality
just simply say when doubt arises, ‘Not two.’
In this ‘no two’ nothing is separate,
nothing excluded.
No matter when or where,
enlightenment means entering this truth.
And this truth is beyond extension or diminution in time or space;
in it a single thought is ten thousand years.
Emptiness here, Emptiness there,
but the infinite universe stands always before your eyes.
Infinitely large and infinitely small;
no difference, for definitions have vanished
and no boundaries are seen.
So too with Being
and non-Being.
Don’t waste time in doubts and arguments
that have nothing to do with this.
One thing, all things:
move among and intermingle, without distinction.
To live in this realization
is to be without anxiety about non-perfection.
To live in this faith is the road to non-duality,
Because the non-dual is one with the trusting mind.
Words! The Way is beyond language,
for in it there is no yesterday, no tomorrow, no today.
For more information click here!
Body, Breath, Mind
Posted by Geoffrey Wilson in : Articles,Courses,Meditations,Philosophy,Psychology , 1 comment so farThis excerpt is taken from my new Oriental Psychology Distance Learning Course
Taoist meditation exerts a profound influence on the ‘Three Treasures’: Essence (the body), Energy (the breath), and Spirit (the Mind). Essence is associated with not only the reproductive and generative power responsible for development (the Kidneys), but also drive and determination. Energy is equivalent to the Post-Natal Qi derived from food, drink and the air that we breathe (the Spleen and the Lungs). Spirit is the Mind and though it resides in the Heart, each organ is nonetheless affiliated with its own mental-spiritual aspect. In other words, Spirit is a complex of inter-connected and interdependent relationships.
There are several simple steps to follow when embarking on the journey of discovery that is learning the art of meditation. They are easy to implement and sustain, especially with practice and dedication.
1) Adopt a comfortable posture, balance your weight evenly, straighten the spine, and pay attention to physical sensations such as heat, cold, tingling, trembling, or whatever else arises.
2) When your body is comfortable and balanced, shift attention to the second level, which is breath and energy. You may focus on the breath itself as it flows in and out of the lungs through the nostrils, or on energy streaming in and out of a particular point in harmony with the breath.
3) Focus attention on thoughts and feelings forming and dissolving in the mind, your awareness expanding and contracting with each breath, insights and inspirations arising spontaneously, visions and images appearing and disappearing.
Eventually you may come upon (and perhaps randomly discover) intuitive flashes of insight regarding the ultimate nature of the mind: that in essence it is open and empty as space; that it is clear and luminous as a cloudless sky at sunrise; that in terms of its true nature, it is infinite and fundamentally unencumbered (this is called the original mind).
There are also some more specific instructions regarding posture:
Floor Position
Sit cross-legged on the floor in ‘half-lotus’ position (the foot of one leg placed to rest on the calf of the other), with the buttocks slightly elevated on a cushion or pillow. The advantages of this method are that this position is quite stable and encourages energy to flow upwards towards the brain.
Chair Position
Sit erect on a low stool or chair, feet parallel and a shoulder width apart, knees bent at a 90 degree angle, and spine erect. The advantages of sitting on a stool are that the legs do not cramp, the soles of the feet are in direct contact with the energy of the earth, and internal energy tends to flow more freely throughout the lower as well as the upper torso.
Cautions and Warnings
Most practitioners who follow Taoist Meditation techniques use both methods, depending on conditions (such as availability of chairs). When sitting cross-legged, Western practitioners, whose legs tend to cramp more easily than Asians, are advised to sit on thick and firm cushions, perhaps with a phone book or two underneath, in order to elevate the pelvis and consequently take pressure off both the legs and the knees. This also helps to keep the spine straight, without putting any strain on the lower back.
Placement of the hands is also quite important. The most natural and comfortable position for many is to rest the palms lightly on the thighs, just above the knees, with palms facing up. However, some experienced practitioners find it more effective to use one of the traditional ‘mudras’, or hand gestures (for example, thumb and index finger touching with other fingers outstretched). Experiment with different combinations of both posture and mudra until you find a style that is most suitable.
The Medicines of Fire and Water
Taoist meditation masters teach and demonstrate three basic ways to control Fire (the mind of emotion) with Water (the mind of intent), so that the student’s goals in meditation may be cultivated, refined and ultimately realized.
Stop and Observe
The first method is called ‘stop and observe’. This involves paying close attention to how thoughts both arise and fade in the mind, learning to let them pass like a freight train in the night, and certainly without clinging to any particular one. This develops awareness of the basic emptiness of all thought, as well as non-attachment to the rise and fall of emotional impulses. Gradually one learns simply to ignore the intrusion of abrasive and discursive thoughts, at which point they cease to either come and go if only for the sheer lack of attention.
Observe and Imagine
The second technique is called ‘observe and imagine’, which of course refers to the technique of visualization. Put simply, the student employs intent to visualize an image – such as a dignified and glorified spiritual giant like Buddha, Jesus, Krishna, a sacred symbol, the moon, a star, or whatever – in order to shift mental focus away from thoughts and emotions and stabilize the mind in one-pointed awareness.
You may also visualize a particular energy centre in your body, or listen to the real or imagined sound of a bell, gong, or cymbal ringing in your ears. The point of focus is not important: what counts is shifting the focus of your attention away from idle thoughts, conflicting emotions, fantasies, and other distracting antics of the ‘monkey mind’ (fire) and concentrating attention instead on a stable point of focus established by the mind of intent, or ‘wisdom mind’ (water).
Intent
The third technique in cultivating the ability to control the mind is called ‘using the mind of intent to guide energy’. When the emotional mind is calm and the breath is regulated, focus attention on the internal energy. Learn how to guide it through the meridian network in order to energize the vital organs, raise energy from the sacrum to the head in order to nourish the spirit and brain, as well as exchange stale energy for fresh energy derived from the external sources that are heaven (the yang sky) and earth (the yin ground).
Begin by focusing attention on the Lower Elixir Field (the area below the abdomen), and then moving energy from there down to the perineum, up through the coccyx, and up along the spinal centres into the head, at which point the attention shifts to the Upper Elixir Field (between the brows).
Though this may sound vague and perhaps veer on the strangely esoteric side of things (at least to the uninitiated), a few months of practice, especially in conjunction with Qi Gong exercise and balanced dietary habits, usually is sufficient to expose the subtle worlds of energy and awareness that are hidden within our physical bodies and minds. All one has to do is sit still and shut up long enough, for the mind to fall into line.
For further information on the new Oriental Psychology Certificate Course click here www.artofhealth.com.au/more_info2.html
The Root of Shen Disturbance June 15, 2007
Posted by Geoffrey Wilson in : Psychology , 3 commentsThe focus of my clinical experience as a practitioner of oriental medicine for more than 20 years has ultimately been on the recovery of a patient’s psycho-emotional and spiritual balance. In terms of the oriental healing arts, this can be equated to the transpersonal exploration of Taoism and Buddhism as primary sources of both diagnostic and treatment protocol. Unfortunately, few realise that one of the essential aims of diagnosis is to unveil the subtle nature of inner turmoil. Even fewer understand that the main objective of treatment is to nourish the ‘abode of spirit’. In the clinic, this can be successfully accomplished first and foremost, by providing contemplative reference points for the patient, as well as lifestyle strategies that are able to serve as substantial and practical resources for personal transformation.
The ancient sages (as masters of reality) understood the cause of all physical, mental, emotional and spiritual afflictions to be a disturbance of the ‘shen’ (spirit). One can therefore readily appreciate the relevance of Buddhist and Taoist teachings to medicine. In fact, their influence on the evolution of the oriental healing arts is often hidden between the lines of every classic ever written. In some cases, the influence is obvious and apparent.
According to the teachings embodied in the classics of spiritual alchemy, the ‘rooting out’ of disturbance is achieved by governing the ‘five thieves’ (anger, excitement, worry, sorrow and fear) through the diligent application of the ‘five virtues’ (benevolence, compassion, sincerity, true justice and wisdom). When yin and yang divide and are no longer in complementary relationship, the five elements separate. To recover balance, the five elements must be properly assembled again. The restoration of yin and yang involves making use of what is called ‘the firing process’ – the elimination of negative, harmful and destructive behaviour in order to cultivate stability and calm.
In a clinical context, a patient’s psycho-emotional demeanour predicates not only the nature of dysfunction within the organ systems, but the kinds of devices required to be employed in the salvage operation. To the extent that ‘sadness and worry move the heart and the organs tremble’, lifestyle modifications are mandatory and within them, behavioural adjustments of a kind that significantly alter the way a challenge is approached.
Diagnostic skill relies upon personal development and cultivation as much as the capacity to administer refined treatment depends on heightened sensitivity and freedom from the distractions of emotional interference. Diagnostic skill and treatment excellence are spiritual qualities and ultimately the practice of oriental medicine is a spiritual journey for both the practitioner and patient alike. It is governed by the aim to recover a meaningful relationship to ‘spirit’ and of course, the ‘Tao’.
The consummate practitioner will address the patient’s disorder as a spiritual phenomenon. Psycho-emotional stability can only be truly recovered when self-knowledge is used to flesh out and expose whatever ‘leaks’ may exist in the proverbial ‘hull’. This usually requires a comprehensive investigation of the patient’s motives, pursuits, intentions, fears, cravings and desires. Indeed. How can the patient discover equilibrium if the Mind is burdened by the excesses of emotional unrest?
The art of restoration for the practitioner offering treatment then, is to precisely identify the source of the presenting problems and then design strategies to correct them. The diagnosis will have confirmed the dangers implied by the pursuit of specific lifestyle practices that injure the organs and the treatment plan must necessarily focus on eliminating these dangers.
Regardless of whether or not a practitioner strictly adheres to following either Taoist or Buddhist protocol, the patient must be able to walk away from a clinical session having experienced a shift in perspective. This includes engaging in some kind of transformational process whereby awareness of the problem and its challenges is heightened and the means to achieve it is thoroughly addressed.
The Legacy of Ziyang June 14, 2007
Posted by Geoffrey Wilson in : Philosophy,Psychology , add a commentThe Brief
Several weeks ago, I received an email from a curious and recent TCM graduate. He informed me that he had stumbled across several of my books and that he would like to know more about the relationship that exists between oriental medicine and the Taoist healing arts. Naturally, I obliged. Before clinic one day, we had breakfast and talked it through. It occurred to me during our conversation that for the most part, students are rarely inspired by their teachers to investigate the spiritual roots of their profession. What a pity! There is a reason for saying that they are missing out on the truly good stuff.
Ultimately, the practice of oriental medicine is a spiritual journey for both practitioner and patient alike. Though this journey is experientially developmental, it is nonetheless governed by the aim to recover a meaningful relationship to spirit and of course, the ‘Tao’. Consequently, an investigation of the influences of Buddhism and Taoism cannot be avoided. Given that the sages (as masters of reality) understood the cause of all physical, mental, emotional and spiritual afflictions to be a disturbance of the ‘shen’ (spirit), one can appreciate the relevance of Buddhist and Taoist teachings. In fact, their influence on the evolution of the oriental healing arts is often hidden between the lines of every classic ever written on the subject of oriental spirituality, from ‘Huainanzi’ to ‘I-Ching’. There is more to the story, however.
Clinical Modus Operandi
The focus of my clinical experience as a practitioner of oriental medicine for more than 20 years has ultimately been on the recovery of a patient’s psycho-emotional and spiritual balance. In terms of the oriental healing arts, this can be equated to the transpersonal exploration of Taoism and Buddhism as primary sources of both diagnostic and treatment protocol. Unfortunately, few realise that one of the essential aims of diagnosis is to unveil the subtle nature of inner turmoil. Even fewer understand that the main objective of treatment is to nourish the abode of spirit. In the clinic, this can be successfully accomplished first and foremost, by providing contemplative reference points for the patient, as well as lifestyle strategies that are able to serve as substantial and practical resources for personal transformation.
Invariably, many patients do not tend to have a particularly strong relationship to inward honesty. Their habituated patterns of thinking and feeling are so deeply ingrained that it takes much soul-searching to penetrate the thick defensive shield that is denial. It is therefore of importance for practitioners to cultivate their observational skills in order to discern when and under what circumstances, their interrogations will be met with either hostility or capricious defiance. There are occasions when uncompromising firmness is the antidote for patient obstinacy. In some circumstances, flexible receptivity is the only approach capable of dealing with a stalemate! It all depends on the aggregate of yin and yang energies presenting in a patient at any given time. A seasoned practitioner will know what this means and direct proceedings accordingly. Newcomers will expose deficiencies in their inter-personal skills and either stand corrected, or learn through trial and error.
Diagnosis and Treatment
In identifying all disorders as ‘shen’ disorders (and certainly those of a chronic nature), I have discovered something of the truth behind the sage’s maxim that ‘the diagnosis is the treatment and the treatment is the diagnosis’. Unfortunately, this premise is difficult to understand, especially if one views sickness as an opportunity to excuse oneself from accepting responsibility for the part one plays in manifesting the law of cause and effect. After all, the present is a result of the past and the future is governed by it.
Furthermore, mulling over the past, while simultaneously entertaining wild imaginings about the future, guarantees disturbance. The practitioner who can shed light on this conflict of the mind is equipped with the skill to act as an agent of change. Those that cannot, drown in a sea of unfathomable variables destined to produce mediocre, if not unfavourable, results. Indeed, diagnostic skill is incredibly hard to cultivate because it relies upon personal development as much as the capacity to administer refined treatment depends on heightened sensitivity and a certain freedom from emotional interference. Diagnostic skill and treatment excellence are spiritual qualities that come into being when intelligence is awakened and humility is summoned.
In short, the greater the grip one has in coming to terms with the ‘book of life’ (a benefit of Buddhist and Taoist investigation), the greater the chance for discovering the secrets of balance and harmony. In as much as the heart is the abode of spirit, all efforts must be directed to affecting stabilisation of the ‘shen’.
Ziyang
For those of us somewhat perplexed by the deeper meaning of the aforementioned riddle, and at the risk of ignoring Ziyang’s lament when he said, ‘I am yet to meet a single perceptive person’, the inner teachings of Taoism nonetheless remain as a pivotal guide to clarify the matter. Diagnosis is as much a spiritual transaction as treatment is a vehicle through which to facilitate the exchange.
Ziyang (a.k.a. Chang Po-Tuan) holds a special place in the annals of oriental spirituality. Not a great deal of anecdotal reference exists to either assert or deny his legendary status, but we do know that he wrote the classic of spiritual alchemy ‘Wu Chen Pi’en’ (‘Understanding Reality’) while in his 90s and then disappeared leaving behind a remarkable book of instruction on the cultivation and refinement of spiritual balance and harmony. To this day, luminaries and esteemed practitioners of the Taoist healing arts salute his concise rendering of the process of spiritual transcendence. Those yet to be enchanted by Ziyang’s recondite lyricism, should put their skates on immediately! The ride will not be a disappointment and nor will discovery abate.
One can also appreciate the fact that history is always a revelation in so far as it has the capacity to reveal the many extremes implied by the human condition. As Harold of England was capitulating in his Battle of Hastings to the wiles of William the Conqueror in 1066 and lost an eye for his trouble, Ziyang, on the other side of the globe, opened his. He had just about put the finishing touches to his masterpiece and had also arranged for the dissemination of its wisdom through various branches of the Complete Reality School of Taoism, both in southern and northern China. One branch served the needs of younger students. The other accommodated the requirements of the elderly.
Liu I-Ming
Approximately 800 years later, a Taoist adept by the name of Liu I-Ming settled down in his cliff-top hermitage with a dozen disciples. There in an austere environment, he wrote commentaries on many of Ziyang’s works, and methodically composed explanatory notes on the hexagrams of the I-Ching, in order to demystify not only the symbols and language, but to expound on the psycho-emotional qualities inherently embodied in the original text.
Liu I-Ming established that without immersing oneself in the symbols used by the sages to extrapolate the essence of their teachings, the meanings are obscure. Without clarification, interpretation is at best hopeful and at worst, spurious. He clearly understood that the human condition is generally subject to three insidious but nonetheless metaphysically challenging, diseases. The first of these is an inability to escape from the labyrinth of endless births and deaths. The second is a failure to resolve the conflict of the mind. The third is our struggle with mundanity! Liu I-Ming therefore devoted his old age to explaining Ziyang’s modus operandi, step-by-step, knowing that by doing so, he would perhaps contribute to the evolution of spiritual development for serious minded students and secure for them, an introduction to the mechanism of the Tao.
The modern practitioner can only be grateful for such a demonstration of compassion. Liu I-Ming may well have practiced concealment of illumination as evidenced by the humble nature of his lifestyle and his obvious attempts to be freed from the constraints of vanity. But his extraordinarily lucid commentaries, especially the beautifully simple ‘Awakening to the Tao’, leave no doubt as to the value of Taoist teachings and their potential impact on the development of oriental medicine as it applies to the provision of spiritual succour for those seeking a connection to spirit.
The Dilemma
Not surprisingly, the move towards standardising TCM across the board has come at a price. For the most part, the glaringly obvious consequence of choosing to ignore the spiritual traditions at the root of oriental medicine has rendered it virtually helpless to deal with the kinds of spiritual problems presenting as shen disturbance in the average patient.
Regardless of pathological identification, the pathogenesis of frequently manifested disease states in the clinic will tend to indicate the severance of a connection to spirit and with it, a lurking anguish and despair that eventually culminates in the kind of sorrow not even a mask can hide. Is the modern graduate capable of seeing this? It would seem that the push for institutionalised TCM education at the tertiary level has failed to impress upon the budding graduate that intellectualism is a poor substitute for understanding. That human beings competing for market share in the work place struggle to keep it together at the best of times, suggests they also might need more than a weekly fix to deal with their spiritual crisis!
Spiritual Alchemy
The teachings of spiritual alchemy, otherwise known as ‘Hsing Ming Hsueh’ (the science of essence and life), maintain that the aim of practice is to unite the true qualities of yin and yang. In many respects, Liu I-Ming’s commentaries, especially those that accompany his responses to Ziyang’s ‘400 Words on the Gold Pill’ (a condensed version of ‘Wu Chen Pi’en’), elucidate the principles upon which the true energies of the male and female, heaven and earth, are to be modelled.
Philosophically, this serves to enlighten us as to the subtle roles that might otherwise be played out by men and women to nurture their daily life experience. Spiritually, his contribution defines our aspirations and suggests something of the possibilities at our disposal to change and transform belief systems caught in the net of stagnation.
Thieves and Virtues
According to the teachings, this is achieved by governing the ‘five thieves’ (anger, excitement, worry, sorrow and fear) through the diligent application of the ‘five virtues’ (benevolence, compassion, sincerity, true justice and wisdom). When yin and yang divide and are no longer in complementary relationship, the five elements separate. To recover balance, the five elements must be properly assembled again. The restoration of yin and yang involves making use of what is called ‘the firing process’ – the elimination of negative, harmful and destructive behaviour in order to cultivate stability and calm.
In a clinical context, a patient’s psycho-emotional demeanour predicates not only the nature of dysfunction within the organ systems, but the kinds of devices required to be employed in the salvage operation. To the extent that ‘sadness and worry move the heart and the organs tremble’, lifestyle modifications are mandatory and within them, behavioural adjustments of a kind that significantly alter the way a challenge is approached.
Without a holistic orientation to both diagnosis and treatment, most approaches to finding solutions to health problems are summarily reduced to fragmentation and this can oftentimes lead to the calamity that is ‘robbing Peter to pay Paul’! In other words, superficial solutions can never eliminate the rot that has set in! A woman suffering from a complex of spleen and liver disorders that have produced massive yin deficiency, cannot move forward until her relationship to the feminine principle has been addressed and steps have been taken to adjust not only her attitude towards being a woman, but also the lifestyle practices embodied by it.
To prevent a wound from festering, the poison must be extracted from the depths. Psychologically, conditioned emotions cannot be ignored and they most certainly contribute to mischief that will eventually give rise to profound disorder.
Where Mind wanders, Qi follows.
When Shen is homeless, Mind hallucinates.
Case in Point
An exhausted and adrenaline compromised male of 45 with a wife and kids, an angry leg sporting the ravages of psoriasis and a hefty mortgage on the family home, is at the cross roads. Getting out of bed in the morning may marginally nullify his fear of insecurity, but it won’t do much to settle the deeper disturbances of the ‘shen’ he experiences as an insomniac. Nor will the herbal formula designed to shift the dampness and eliminate the heat, necessarily be effective in tandem with his regular acupuncture, unless the core of the problem is identified and appropriate strategies implemented.
The consummate practitioner will address the patient’s disorder as a spiritual phenomenon. This is not to suggest that the patient is doing anything wrong, but rather that his lifestyle approach is infected by a destructive strain of emotionalism. How can the patient discover equilibrium if the mind is burdened by the excesses of emotional unrest?
Psycho-emotional stability can only be truly recovered when self-knowledge is used to flesh out and expose whatever leaks may exist in the proverbial hull. This usually requires a comprehensive investigation of the patient’s motives, pursuits, intentions, fears, cravings and desires. Such investigation demands the patience of a saint and the tolerance of a sage. It also must be accompanied by attentiveness and a capacity to accurately listen that is supported by the ability to concentrate for long periods of time.
The art of restoration for the practitioner offering treatment then, is to precisely identify the source of the presenting problems and then design strategies to correct them. The diagnosis will have confirmed the dangers implied by the pursuit of specific lifestyle practices that injure the organs and the treatment plan must necessarily focus on eliminating these dangers. Regardless of whether or not a practitioner strictly adheres to following either Taoist or Buddhist protocol, the patient must be able to walk away from a clinical session having experienced a shift in perspective. This includes engaging in some kind of transformational process whereby awareness of the problem and its challenges is heightened and the means to achieve it is thoroughly addressed.
However, the recovery of a connection to spirit is the only real catalyst for change and students of oriental medicine and the healing arts would do well to contemplate this. Therein is to be found the key to success. Health is not a result, but a process.