E-motion: Energy In Motion

The Taoist view of emotions is that they - like all else - are forms of energy. More specifically, they're forms of energy that are rooted in the organ systems as described by Chinese Medicine. When energy is flowing in a balanced way through our organ systems, the emotions that manifest are what are called the "virtues" of the organs. These are things like joy and kindness, wisdom and equanimity, i.e. useful and enjoyable states of bodymind. They are considered to be an expression of the "natural state" of the organs - rather than something that needs to be fabricated, produced or created via effort.

When the flow of energy through our organ systems is imbalanced, or stuck, the emotions that manifest are things like fear and anger, sadness and pensiveness, i.e. rather uncomfortable states of bodymind. It's natural, of course, for us to experience these kinds of emotions in certain circumstances, for limited amounts of time. The problem is when a particular emotional state gets stuck inside - takes up residence - instead of just passing through, like a guest. When this happens, the emotion becomes something like a lens through which we perceive our entire world, and, potentially, a cause of physical disease.

The "Healing Sounds" qigong practice is a great way to transform stuck emotional energy: a kind of composting which allows the freed energy of those gnarly emotional states to then serve as nourishment for the "virtues" of the organs. In the coming weeks, I'm going to be adding this practice - which uses the vibration of sound and color as tools - bit by bit, organ system by organ system. Each of these mini-practices will be a way of working with one particular "stuck" emotion - to free its energy once again into balanced motion.