Many people I meet assume that as I look Chinese and practice Chinese Medicine, I must have grown up having Acupuncture. This is not the case, I got to know Acupuncture, which wasn't very common at the time in Malaysia, a little over 25 years ago. I was in the US at university at the time and was experiencing an injury of my own from dance training. I began by talking to a friend of a friend, who was Native American; she had had Acupuncture for her issues and had a very positive experience. This inspired me to try it and it opened up a whole new world of my body that I had never been aware of. At first, it all seemed so mystical and supernatural, my practitioner sticking needles into my injured ankle, which then began a healing process that required me to become observant of my own body. It was this new awareness of my body that inspired me to begin my journey into healing. I began researching Acupuncture Meridian/ Channels and Points, trying to understand how Acupuncture works, realizing that actually there is a logical body of knowledge and understanding in Chinese Medicine that dates back thousands of years. It is one that does not just focus on the physical, material world but also the energetic; what our eyes may not see but our beings can sense if we are open and ready to sense it. As we walk out into Nature, we may not see what moves the trees or the rivers, but we "know" that this power exists. The ancient Chinese called this force Qi. 
  
I like to view Acupuncture Meridians as Rivers of Qi flowing through our bodies in very distinct patterns and configurations. The Chinese civilisation, like many civilisations around the world, was born along 2 Rivers, the Huang He and the Yang Zi. As such Water shaped a lot of their understanding of Nature and reality. These Qi Rivers are essential to the flow and nourishment of life in a living body. If for some reason the flow is blocked or stopped at a place in the body, this area or other areas further downstream will become undernourished or depleted of Qi. This can then manifest pain, swelling, necrosis or other symptoms that may cause discomfort. The complete absence of Qi in a being would then result in death.
 
As a student in Chinese Medicine school, I often asked the question, "Which came first, the Channels or the Points?" This question was not clearly answered until I was a practitioner at a continuing education course in Shonishin (Japanese Children's Acupuncture-Massage). As we learned to massage children along specific Meridian pathways, I became aware that most Acu-Points are not mature at birth but actually develop through years of movement, nourishment, experience and growth. As such, we can deduce that the body's Qi Rivers begin flowing first and with time the Acu-Points develop. Through my practicing of Acupuncture and Tui Na massage, I have gained the perspective of Acu-Point as being like access locations to the Qi flow of our body, like access sites at the bank of a River. We could also therefore describe Acu-Points as doorways into our Qi pathway that are already in flow. Through pressing or needling an Acu-Point, we could influence this flow of Qi to increase, decrease its volume and force, or to divert its flow into an area or an organ of the body.  
 
There is an Acu-Point called Yŏng Quán 湧泉, Kidney 1 (KI-1), the first Acu-Point of the Kidney Channel and the closest Acu-Point to the Earth. It is on the bottom of the foot, in the centre-line of the foot, on the area just below the ball of the foot. This is translated as "Gushing Spring." (Ellis, Weissman, Boss, 1989) The Kidneys are associated with the Water element, as such a body of Water like a Spring indicates to us that this is where the source of life manifests. This is an Acu-Point that can revive consciousness, like in the case of fainting or a stroke, by taking the Qi upward, like a gush from the source. Another name for this Acu-point is Dì Chōng 地沖 Earth Surge. (Ellis, Weissman, Boss, 1989) This explains the other function of this point to root the Qi down to the Earth by descending Qi blocked in the head. This point can be used for headaches but also to dispel local foot pain. In a blogpost a few years ago, I wrote about Earthing, walking barefoot on the Earth to create connection. This is clearly the Kidney 1 Point being stimulated.
 
I mentioned in my last blogpost about honouring the Rivers we live by, stimulating your Acu-Points on your body is like honouring your Rivers within. Try taking off your shoes to walk barefoot on the Earth, or bathe your feet in Water, or even both at the same time in a River near you.
 
   

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Reference
Ellis, Andrew / Wiseman, Nigel / Boss, Ken (1989): Grasping the Wind. Brookline, MA, USA: Paradigm Publications
 
 
Image Baby Feet by 5921373 on Pixabay, adapted by Elaine
Image Okavango Delta River by Lion Mountain on Pixabay

Not so long ago, I watched an interview with the charismatic, eloquent astrophysicist, Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson. He was describing why we have observed Earth Day on April 22th since 1970. He talked of how humans had just made it to the moon and from there images of the Earth were sent back. He described that for the first time, we humans finally saw visually that the Earth wasn't just a thing that we live on but a living organism with "blue ocean, dry land, clouds and pollution." Thus, beginning the current environmental protection movement, which still isn't very successful, in my view. This image touched me but I realised that some of us, even before 1970 were already reverent of the earth, like in traditional cultures that live/d off the land for thousands of years.   
 
All this got me thinking of the Earth and what my experience of it is. I recall myself as a young child running around without shoes in the garden, my mother calling out to me to put on my shoes to protect my feet. She told me at some point too that worms, can go through my feet to infest my body. That sure made an impact on me, so I put on my shoes to walk outside even until adulthood, especially in the tropics. She was correct that some worms, such as hookworms do that. But I have also now learned to go barefoot too, on the sand at the beach, on river rocks and on grass. I realise that I was missing a whole tactile world under my feet when I closed my feet off in socks and shoes, not to mention the sunlight and fresh air. My family and I are often barefoot inside our house, which is how most Asians live inside their homes. My partner is more so the barefoot-person outside but I'm learning to do that and sensing much more with my feet. 
 
Then a few weeks ago, I just watched a documentary, The Earthing Movie: The Science of Grounding. I really recommend it. It is about how the Earth heals us when we connect with it, from a scientific point of view. It wasn't just your imagination when you took your shoes off, went barefoot on the grass in the park and felt so much better. Science is showing us that the negative-charged electrons are being absorbed through your feet and into your body, to neutralize Electromagnetic Field (EMF) radiation that have been absorbed into our body. It is extremely effective for healing inflammation. The movie explains the science, the studies, the whole theory behind how it works and also shows people who have experienced the benefits of Earthing. There is also a book called, "Earthing," which further explains it and available in many languages including German. Basically, Earthing is free and we can all do it without having anything to lose. Just go outside, take off your shoes, be barefoot and begin connecting to the Earth. No excuses, it's warm outside. 


Image Earth by WikiImages on Pixabay
Image Barefoot by Jackie_Chance on Pixabay