Finding Balance Within

On a summer morning as I was doing a few minutes of yoga on my patio, I noticed that my body was curiously moving into a kind of involuntary dance. Oddly, I felt a bit like a marionette, some subtle outside force seemed to be gently directing my strings.  My right arm lifted up perpendicular to my right side, I observed myself pointing my index finger as if it were the nose of a gun. I played along and closed my left eye as I aimed over an imaginary barrel. Another similar movement followed, I observed my left arm pull back on a make-believe bow and arrow, my torso and left shoulder turned to my left with a particular erect sense of posture as my eyes focused toward an invisible target. 

Then came the action of a quick thrusting forward, my right arm stretched as in a fencing or jousting position, my knees bent slightly outward. I felt fiercely intent within and yet light on my feet.  These momentary gestures became a bit of a game, one after another. As my body shifted again, I reoriented as if I held a knife in my right hand, in a stance of aggression and unlike anything I am familiar with in my current female oriented incarnation.

Strangely, my thinking mind was not a part of this process. Who was pulling the strings?  Perhaps some subconscious guidance connecting me to understanding my own balance, I do not know. But, as I relaxed into this odd mid-summer dream I noted another shift of movement arising from the left side of my body. I was in a duet with my own body. Softly, a gentle rocking motion began to sway my hips. I leaned a bit to the left, cradling an imaginary form within my arms, as if nursing a baby. Though I hoped none of my neighbors witnessed these spontaneous expressions rising up, this patio pantomime was genuinely instructing me of many things. Shiva and Shakti are the universal aspects of the masculine and feminine as they are expressed in Tantric cosmology. There is not Shiva without Shakti nor Shakti in the absence of Shiva. Together they embody the One.

I thought I understood this on an intellectual level but during and after this sequence of movements, I had a full body inner comprehension. We hold the mystery of life -energy within our cells; we know that when we transmit a smile, show kindness to another, actualize frustration, or express anger. We embody both the giver and the receiver when we engage our energy patterns. It doesn’t matter whether we are male, female, trans or non-binary, we all have varying degrees of these yin and yang qualities within us. These attributes are simply words to describe archytypes more than gender.

As the world turns, there is great unrest in the Middle East and it is easy to fall into fear, and to lose our balance, serenity and sense of safety when purusing the headlines. In the Holy Lands, profoundly significant to Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, at this time there is zero sense of calm and order. Imbalance seems to be leaning entirely toward the unhealthy dominance of one side, let's call it the yang principle. In Traditonal Chinese Medicine, too much yang typically manifests as increased heat/activity causing high fever, anxiety, and anger. Calming practices are what is needed to restore balance. 

Cove Acupuncture in East Hollywood, Los Angeles has this to offer in terms of descrbing these principles: 

A healthy body is a body in equilibrium, with equal parts yin and yang. We get out of balance when we have too much or not enough yin and yang. There are four basic patterns of imbalance in the body (there are actually many more, but at their most basic...):

Yin Deficiency: too little yin in the body. This is characterized by thinness, dryness, a slight fever, malar flush (rosy cheeks, chin, and forehead), and night sweats (among other symptoms). Extreme yin deficiency can be seen in wasting diseases, including cancer and AIDS. Yang levels are normal, so fever is low grade.

Yang Deficiency: too little yang in the body. This is characterized by heaviness/overweight, excess dampness (phlegm, edema), feeling cold, and having a pale face. Patients with yang deficiency may also have slow digestion and loose stools. Because yin levels are normal, the patient only feels slightly cold. Yang is the motive force behind all types of metabolism, so metabolism is slowed in yang deficient patients.

Yin Excess: Similar to yang deficiency, but heavier, wetter, and slower. The patient will feel more cold; edema will be worse. Yang levels are normal, so the motive force is still there, but it is handicapped because it has to move greater amounts of heavy yin.

Yang Excess: Too much heat in the body. At its extreme, this is seen in high fevers, including hemorrhagic fevers such as Ebola. Less extreme yang excess can be characterized by restlessness, anxiety, and fidgeting (as well as skin rashes, burning stools, heavy sweating, and a fully red face). Yin levels are normal, but prolonged yang excess will burn away yin.

How can we restore balance within? From the outset, the one thing we have control over is our response. We do not--contrary to popular belief-- need to be reactive. We can find peaceful practices such as walking in the woods; going to a large body of water; hiking in the mountains; establishing a regular meditation, there are various forms; eating healthy nutritious food; and definitely avoiding the things that tend to scorch our serenity. May peace be with you.