As practitioners of Life Cultivation, we understand that once our breath is smooth, we will feel comfortable throughout. Therefore, let us talk about how we can take good care of our lungs and large intestine.
Inside our body, our lungs and intestine are shaped like an ancient couple living together in the large intestine house. Traditionally, the male or the lungs works outside the house, and the female or the large intestine governs whatever happens inside the house. The male works outside the house to earn a living, while the female manages housework at home.
The lungs inhale fresh air and send it home. The large intestine then is full of air which allows it to function normally. It will then remove the dross, and keep the house clean.
The large Intestine
As practitioners of life cultivation, we pay close attention to the health of our lungs and large intestine. In part one of this article, we have discussed how to take care of the lungs. Here we will discuss how we will take care of the large intestine.
The health of the large intestine is related to the Large Intestine Meridian as depicted by the red line in the diagram above. It goes from the large intestine to the shoulder and then it branches into two directions. One goes to the face, and the other goes to the fingertips. The route to the fingertips is more important. The route is longer and thus more easily blocked.
Once the Large Intestine Meridian is blocked, we will suffer certain symptoms described below. Then we will try to clear the meridian. Once our intestines are cleared, the whole body will relax.
Here are four symptoms and the specific methods to open up the large intestine meridian to relieve the particular symptoms.
01 Symptom: Thick upper arms and swollen lower gums
Locating the Shangyang Acupoint: at the tip of the index finger
For those with thick upper arms and swollen lower gums, the large intestine meridian may be blocked. In order to unblock the intestine meridian to relieve the symptoms, you may puncture the Shangyang Acupoint on the tip of the index finger to let the blood out. This will relieve the inner heat in the large intestine, and the effect is extremely obvious. This is a safer method compared with taking medication to relieve inner fire.
Down along the index finger is the Hegu Acupoint. Hegu Acupoint is the valley formed between the thumb and the index finger. Herbal medicine indicates that the head and face are influenced by the Hegu Acupoint of the valley. It means that treating the Hegu Acupoint can get rid of the head and face diseases. Thus if you massage the Hegu Acupoint, it will reduce any acne on your face and head.
The large intestine meridian also passes through the lower gums. If the lower gums are swollen or in pain, or the corners of the mouth are prone to acne, you may consider that there is excess inner heat in the large intestine. When you tap or massage the large intestine meridian at this point, it should reduce the symptoms.
02 Symptom: Swollen upper arms
Locating the Shouwuli Acupoint: indicated by the red dot, about three inches from the elbow.
If the upper arm is swollen, or the Shouwuli Acupoint of the upper arm is in pain, it indicates that this section is blocked by blood stasis. You may then rub the area one by one. You may also use a suction cup to treat the area one by one.
Sometimes the Shouwuli Acupoint can also be used as a substitute for the Zusanli Acupoint which is located on your leg.
Once, a woman in an acupuncture class suddenly had an unbearable stomach pain. She couldn’t bend her head down and rub the Zusanli Acupoint, so she pressed the Shouwuli Acupoint on her arm instead. Of course it was very painful, but after rubbing for two minutes, the stomach pain gradually eased.
03 Symptom: Constipation
If you have a constipation problem, try this remedy. Shake our shoulders every day, the stool will come out more smoothly. Why?
The large intestine meridian passes behind our shoulders. If the stool is dry and does not go out smoothly for a few days, it may indicate that the large intestine has excessive inner heat drying the stool. To remedy the situation, you may rub the acupoints at your shoulder and arm frequently. You should apply a larger force to be effective because the shoulder muscles are thick.
Generally, the pain points can be found on the shoulder line. It is better to knead it for two to three minutes at a time, or use a vacuum cup to get rid of the inner heat.
04 Symptom: Itchy or sore throat
Locating the Futu Acupoint: the first dot on the neck. Locating the Tianding Acupoint: the second triangle on the neck.
If you take good care of the Futu Acupoint and the Tianding Acupoint on your neck, your throat will not be itchy or sore. These two acupoints are both on the outside of your neck.
If you have a sore throat, you can try rubbing slowly for a few minutes to dissolve the stasis at these two points, and the sore throat will be relieved.
If you watch people in anger, you will notice that they express their anger differently. Some people use their voices. Some people use their eyes. Some people use their trachea, and some people use their noses. Why?
In fact, this shows that a certain meridian in the body of the angered person has been blocked for a long time. Once the person gets angry, his body cannot resolve it normally. It will manifest in different positions.
Many people have chronic inflammation (inner heat) which may show up as sores on the tongue, dry stools, or thirst. The proper remedy is to dredge the meridians and the symptoms will go away rapidly.
A man suffered from toothache for the same reason. After two years of meridian conditioning, he rarely suffers from toothache now.
05 Symptom: Bulging besides the nose
Locating the Yingxiang Acupoint: at the sides of the nose as indicated by red dots.
The large intestine meridian goes up along the corners of the mouth on both sides, and joins with the stomach meridian at the Yingxiang Acupoint at the nose as indicated by the two red dots in the diagram above.
If you suffer from bulging in this area, it is mostly due to inner heat in the large intestine meridian (of course, the stomach meridian is also inseparable). Then, you should carefully rub through the entire large intestine meridian in order to reduce the fire at the root.
Additional considerations
01 Manifestations of large intestine deficiency
Deficiency of the large intestine will mostly manifest as bowel sounds, abdominal pain, diarrhea, shoulder numbness and so on.
02 Manifestations of large intestine excess heat
When you have a dysfunctional large intestine, the common symptoms are hot, red, swollen, painful, bleeding, dry, swollen with painful gums, epistaxis, constipation, and dry intestinal fluid wherever the meridian passes.
03 Checking on meridians
There are many different meridians passing through various parts of our body. When you feel uncomfortable, you may test the meridians one by one.
First carefully find the pain point, and then look up the meridian diagrams to see which meridian the pain point is on, so as to find out which meridian is blocked by blood stasis. Next, search further for the pain point on the meridian line on your body, and rub it forcefully. Sometimes you will feel severe pain at the pain point. You will just have to bear it.
Another way to treat your body is to use the cupping method. It is not painful at all. However, it is more difficult to do it on our own although you can learn the treatment with new equipment and tools. It is up to you. Most of us will get the services from a professional technician. However, once it is treated, your body will be safe and sound for a long time.
Call to Action
Folks, that is all for now. If you think this article may be beneficial to your friends and loved-ones, feel free to forward this article to them. Life cultivation is mostly for older people with declining body health. If you are young and energetic, this may not be your cup of tea. However, if you have family members or friends who are middle-aged or older, they may want to practice life cultivation to maintain a life without pain or medication.
This is an extract of the full treatise published in the Mustang BodyWorks Series, a paid-subscription. You may buy this full treatise for the price of US$10.00, using your PayPal account.
Stay tuned for the next episode: Unblock your meridian for health.
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