As Spring is unfolding here in the Northern Hemisphere, it arouses in me the need to release; the energetic action of Spring is the upward-outward movement of Qi. This inspires me to let go of things, behaviors, routines that have not served me and hinders me to feeling well within myself. One of the ways of doing this is Fasting.

I was exposed early on in life to Fasting; I grew up in Malaysia where Islam is the official religion. Many of my classmates in school fasted during Ramadan every year, even from the age of 7 onward. I was brought up Christian, which also has its own tradition of Fasting, whether at Lent or Advent, or even the Friday meat abstinence. Personally, I did not try Fasting until later in my teenage years, but we did observe meat abstinence on Fridays. As such, Fasting had for me a religious/ spiritual significance early on. Later, I became aware that one could fast for health purposes too. One of my teachers in Chinese Medicine school made us try Fasting as a project for class. After this, it inspired me to Fast on the New Moon of every month for almost a year. In this year, I went from Fasting for my own personal themes, to dedicating my Fasting for the benefit of others. It taught me that our bodies are actually quite resilient and can withstand a certain amount of time without food. It also gave me a stronger sense of connection to others, for whom I dedicated my Fasting to.

These days, Intermittent Fasting is all the trend. This does not surprise me. We live, at least in the Western world, in a time of plenty, of fullness; we are actually bombarded by too much – too much food, too much information, too many choices, etc. It is no wonder that we seek to “declutter” our bodies and minds. Many use Fasting as a way to lose weight, which is not the best goal to have with this method, since we know that most of the weight you lose in Fasting will probably come back the moment you resume eating as before, without making any alterations. But it can be a way to begin the process of change; after the Fasting period is over, begin building up a practice of eating in a different manner.

What is Fasting? For some, it can mean not eating and/ or drinking at all for a certain amount of time. It can also mean eating a single type of food, or eliminating one or more foods, for a particular time frame. Fasting can also be about not consuming something else, like cigarettes, alcohol, information or digital media-binging, which we often times hear these days as digital-detox. I believe Fasting is and has to be a very personal process, as each being is unique with different constitution, life history and circumstances. There are so many reasons for Fasting; these can include spiritual intentions, emotional purification, physical detoxification, medical intervention, to name a few. Recent studies have shown that Fasting, as short as 7-days and modification to a plant-based diet, can improve the symptoms of Rheumatoid Arthritis and inflammatory conditions. They all entail some form of letting go, of changing the regular, everyday behavior or practices.

One of the best ways of practicing Fasting is to be on a retreat, where one is secluded from her/ his everyday life habits. Much of our everyday events, habits and time are built around food and meals; we are either thinking/ planning a meal, shopping/ preparing a meal and cleaning-up from a meal. When we go into retreat, we are allowed to take a break from this rhythm. This can be done alone or in a group with a common goal. It is probably the best manner, as it is supported by the change in the environment, as well as rhythm and/ or by someone with Fasting knowledge or a supportive group during the process, to maintain focus on Fasting. One is not exposed to regular activities that trigger the need to follow old, established patterns and may provide a clear intention for a specific time. Of course, not all of us can afford the time or space financially or life circumstances may prevent us from doing a retreat. But this does not mean we can’t practice Fasting; it just means we have to put a little more effort, discipline and focus.

Obviously, there are certain individuals and life circumstances that do not need to or should not do Fasting from food-drink. These include pregnancy, breastfeeding, emaciation, serious physical and mental degeneration. Fasting in the middle of Winter or in cold weather can be non-beneficial and dangerous, as we get warmth from food, as well as expose the body to cold when we undergo detoxification. If you tend to get cold easily, plan Fasting in the warmer times of the year, like closer to summer, or do a milder Fast, like taking only one kind of food out of your diet.

The feeling I get after Fasting is often gratitude and space; I realize after this period that I am blessed to be alive and that I have space within myself again. I am then reminded of a children’s story, which is also a song, that I used to read to my kids when they were young. It’s written by Julia Donaldson and illustrated by Axel Scheffler, “A Squash and a Squeeze.” It tells of an old woman, living in a house, which she thinks is too small, until an old man comes along with some advice to bring in her animals: a hen, goat, pig and cow. She does this and begins to see how tight this is and takes them all out once more, realizing that she actually has lots of space in her house. In the end, it is all a matter of perspective – Less is more.
 
 
 
Image by Claudio-Duart-Design on Pixabay
 

The principles of Chinese Medicine tell us that a human being comes into the world with Pre-Natal Jing (Pre-Birth Life Essence) and Post-Natal Jing (Post-Birth Acquired Essence). Pre-Natal Jing determines the individual’s constitution basis, strength, vitality and its amount is finite; which means that we can’t choose what kind of genetics we get from our parents as well as ancestors, and what amount of “good” Essence we possess. Post-Natal Jing comes from us eating food, drinking fluid and breathing air, which our Spleen, Stomach and Lungs extract as well as refine the Essence of food, fluid and air for its creation. In contrast to Pre-Natal Jing, Post-Natal Jing is deeply rooted in our choices; we may not be able to change our genetics but we are able to choose the foods, drinks and environment that we live in as well as with our everyday habits. In fact, if we understand and accept the boundaries of our constitution, we will be able to influence the unfolding of our Jing, both Pre and Post-Natal, that we may flourish and thrive in this lifetime.
 
One of the pillars of Chinese Medicine is Chinese Nutrition and Dietetics. It is a part of the medicine that requires action and/ or modification in habits from the individual; hence, is challenging. Many a time, patients come in with an enthusiasm to change the way they eat and often ask me what they should or shouldn’t eat, as they want to lose weight. Often times, they are looking for a “simple quick fix.” Then we discuss strategies from the Chinese Medicine perspective and they realize that it isn’t going to be as simple as they had imagined. Why is this? I believe one of the reasons is because food is related to culture and social conditioning, which we inherited from generations that came before us and the patterns that shape its production as well as availability are dictated by what is around us. So it is not just the individual constitution that we need to look at, but the environment, the practices of the culture, the emotional connection of this particular individual to food, their habits with food shaped early on in their lives by upbringing, etc. Short answer - THERE IS NO QUICK FIX. Food and nutrition shouldn’t be a quick fix. If we understand that food shapes our Post-Natal Jing and therefore the development of our being, then we realize that it is essential for survival and living a life of quality. Is this not worth time and effort, instead of a look-like-simple diet fad that we saw on some social-media post which may help us lose a few kilograms of weight today but gain it all back next week and some, as it was never really addressing our true essence?

I recently came across a treatise on Daoist practice by Jampa Mackenzie Stewart, Daoist-Buddhist and Chinese Medicine practitioner, which I find gives a good summary to Daoist Nutritional Therapy. First and foremost, moderation, flexibility and a diet that matches your constitution; this also means you should get to know your body well, in order for you to know your constitution. Eating and drinking in excess “dulls the mind and strains the body.” He discusses a way, and there are many other ways, to classifying food into building foods and cleansing foods:

“Building foods are those that help build the body’s substances; foods such as meats, grains, and the more starchy vegetables and fruits are building foods. Cleansing foods are the more watery fruits and vegetables; foods such as green leafy vegetables, celery, bok choy, strawberries, tomatoes, peppers and the like. In general, a diet should be made up of both categories to stay in balance, with a higher ratio of building foods eaten during the fall and winter to provide warmth and energy, and a higher ratio of cleansing foods eaten during the spring and summer for cooling and flushing.”   

Another theme that often comes up for many patients I treat is that they eat healthy but are still feeling unwell. Mackenzie Stewart distinguishes between a mountain yogi and a city Taoist.

“The mountain yogi, undisturbed by the hectic pace of the city, living in the pure air and sun with few distractions to stir the passions and emotions, usually eats a pure and light diet of simple vegetables and fruit, and eventually consuming only tonic herbs (…) If a city person tries to eat too rarefied and pure a diet, he or she may become overly sensitive to the gross influences of the city environment and may be too easily thrown out of balance and become ill. Thus city dwelling Taoists often practice “strategic impurity,” ingesting moderate amounts of meat, alcohol, caffeine, white flour or sugar in their diet. Again, moderation is the key word, and this is never to be construed as advice for those with a propensity for addiction.”

Many, if not most of the people I know and treat are city or at least urban dwellers. As such, I believe this view provided above is very applicable. Until we, including myself, city-dwelling Taoist can retreat into the mountains, it would be beneficial for us to be moderate in our intake of food as well as information, if I may add.

Many blogposts ago, I mentioned that cooking our food is actually the beginnings of the digestive process. Mackenzie Stewart supports this by providing an analogy that I find is very appropriate for our current entry into Spring. “Lightly cooked foods are preferred to raw foods. Eating raw foods is compared to burning green wood: hard to burn, lots of smoke and waste, and little heat.” As Spring arrives and the warmth of the Sun returns, our beings will show us the need for more cleansing and lighter foods, maybe even a fast. We’ll get into that in further blogposts, stay tuned. Until then, stay warm, eat in moderation, be well.
 
 
Reference
Jampa Mackenzie Stewart: Foundations of Taoist Practice. E-Book on www.holybooks.com.




Image by Ruttikal Chularom on pixabay

​If you go to the mountains or in a city in Switzerland and walk into a café with a bakery, you may get a warm drink and, order a zvieri, a snack like Apfelstrudel with cream or vanilla sauce. Or you may take home something from a mountain bakery, like a Birnenbrot, perhaps a Zimtschneken from a regular city bakery, or make Swiss traditional Christmas cookies like Zimtstern, never giving it a second thought. We may associate these with Switzerland but never really realized that one key ingredient which has become traditional food, does not have its roots here but in faraway places. I am referring to Cinnamon. It sits in the spice cupboard of most households in Switzerland and probably Europe but we don't give a second thought about where it comes from, what it actually is or what it does to our bodies. Europeans went in search of spices in the 15th century, which were previously lacking or expensive if they actually managed to get them. This led to colonization of lands, so that the supply of spices became commonplace, as it is today.
 
Cinnamomum has 2 varieties: Cinnamomum verum and Cinnamomum cassia. C. verum means "true cinnamon," which comes from Sri Lanka and is more expensive, as it is rarer. C. cassia or just Cassia is originally from China and has multiple varieties that is now grown in Indonesia, Vietnam and many other South-East Asian countries. Most of the Cinnamon that we get in our stores is actually Cassia, which has a stronger, pungent scent than true Cinnamon and is obviously cheaper, as more countries grow and produce it. If you look at the picture above, you will the see the 2 quills with many thin layers on the right, packed together to create 2 thick quills. This is Cinnamomum verum, true Cinnamon from Sri Lanka. The other 3, which are one thick bark curled to form the quill, are Cinnamomum cassia. In Malaysia, which also grows Cassia, we call Cinnamon Kayu Manis - Sweet Wood. It is often used in curries but seldom in sweet foods.
 
In Chinese Medicine, we use Cassia regularly. In fact, it has many classical formulae In the Chinese Materia Medica with Cassia as a base. In the Shang Han Lun (Treatise on Cold Disease) written in ca. 200 CE by Zhang Zhong Jing, Cassia-based formulae are some of the most important formulae to treat cold conditions. We have 2 forms of Cassia that we use: Guì Zhī, Saigon Cassia Twig and Roù Guì, Saigon Cassia Inner Bark. Both have spicy and sweet flavors, but their temperature differs; the twig is warm and the bark is hot. It makes sense that the younger twigs would be less hot than the inner bark of an older tree. Their organs and functions slightly differ too. Guì Zhī enters the organs of the Heart, Lung and Bladder, while Roù Guì enters the Heart, Kidney, Liver and Spleen. Both will warm and enter the Heart, as such a very important herb in treatment of issues that affect the chest, like chest colds, palpitations or even circulation issues. They can also be used for edema, or swellings in the body, which is often an issue of the lack of circulation of Yang in the body. If you are experiencing any of these themes, talk to your practitioner about using Herbal Medicine.
 
There is a school of thought in Chinese Herbal Medicine called the Fire School. The basic precept of this school of thought is that humans come into the world with a strong Yang capacity, i.e. the capacity to self-heal. As we get older and/ or drain our Life Essence, this capacity to self-heal diminishes. One of the herbs that this school of thought favors in its treatments is Cinnamon, as it is seen as an herb that will replenish the Yang in the body.
 
Cinnamon is one of those underrated herb. We use it in so many dishes and desserts yet we barely give it our attention as a medicine. But we also know that as a spice, if we put too much of it in a dish, it can be unpleasant and even nauseate. As stated in previous blogposts - Food is Medicine. Use Cinnamon sparingly in a dish but use it regularly. Drink the Indian Chai Masala regularly on cold days; it contains Cinnamon and Ginger, as well as other herbs that warm the body. Put a dash of powdered Cinnamon in your oatmeal, or in your apple compote. It brings a little zing into an otherwise plain food, in terms of flavor, but supplements warmth that we are lacking at this present moment in winter.  
 
 
 
 
Image Cinnamon by Elaine

Many years ago, I watched a movie with my husband; it was a Chinese movie involving a student with his Daoist master. The student asks his master for some wise life lessons and the master replies, "Eat when you eat, sleep when you sleep."
 
Not long later, I was writing a letter to my university administration, to express my dissatisfaction with how certain class dates were changed at short notice that it had affected my travel plans, which involved flights that had already been booked. In the middle of my constructing this letter, my husband invited me to eat the hot meal that he had prepared and I decided to leave the letter aside to have the meal. However, my mind was still rummaging through the discontent I was experiencing with the school. Later, I had to spend time in the bathroom, dealing with my digestion that was reacting to my emotional state. In this moment, I became very aware how the Daoist master was right - "Eat when you eat." 
 
How often does this happen to so many of us? Many times we try to reflect on what we had eaten to find the "culprit" to blame for the indigestion and diarrhea we are experiencing, but actually it may have been how we were eating, with too many thoughts, among other things, and not what we were eating. Just as when we couldn't fall asleep, worrying about the events of tomorrow. Often times it was our minds being too busy with what was or will be, while expecting that our bodies calm down - "Sleep when you sleep."
 
Such simple advice, yet profound and sometimes feels unattainable. It is these very simple things in our everyday lives that make the difference, but we, unfortunately, seldom give recognition to the simple. We, as a society, love the complicated and the superheroes; hence, the overload of movies in the theatres about them, yet they are the flawed ones, who developed superhuman capabilities due to some deficiency or dis-ease that they experience. Take Batman for instance; his "normal-life" character being Bruce Wayne. Mr. Wayne becomes a vigilante, crime-fighting superhero after witnessing the murder of his parents as a young child. Basically, he experienced Post-Traumatic-Stress-Disorder (PTSD) as a child and as an adult compensates for his inability to control the events that shaped his life, by having "super" toys as well as assumes a different identity, behind a mask, in order to shape the life of others. Therein lies the complicated.
 
Actually, it is the simple and the steady regularity that gets us through life in a wholesome manner. In the 20 years of being a practitioner of Chinese Medicine, I have observed that those who find this regularity and consistency often also have habits that positively affect their lives. This begins already as children. When as children, we are served regular, homecooked meals, which we are maybe a part of the process of making, we become used to taking time to cook and eat with others. This then shapes the digestive system, in terms of rhythm and environment. I once treated a patient, who shared honestly with me how dietary changes that would require him to cook would not likely be successful. He realized that his growing up in a boarding school shaped his relationship to food; food was served to him and his fellow boarding schoolmates, of which they were not involved in its preparation process. He associated food with just going into a cafeteria, consuming enough so that he would have enough energy to go on with his day. I was thankful for his disclosure of his experience, as it helped me understand what he needed and my becoming aware of other realities of life. Many of us consume what is easy and fast, sometimes as we are moving to our next appointment, as we are trained as such. If we didn't give our digestive system the time or the space needed to digest what we just ingested, how can we expect that it will process it well. Just as when we humans were not given the time and space to do our work, how can we be expected to submit a successful, finished project. So maybe it is not just what is eaten, but also how we eat it, that shapes what we produce out of our bodies. But this does not mean we cannot change what we learned as children. This is where we have a choice, to be conscious of our habits.
 
Similarly with sleep; we drop into our beds after working on stressful projects or doing mind-stimulating activities, expecting that our body-mind would just calm down on its own, at a snap of a finger, enough to fall into regeneration mode. Maybe just like with our digestive systems, they will for a time, until they don't anymore. We are then confronted by our insomnia, tossing and turning in our bed, wondering why we can't fall asleep. Then, we imagine what it will be like when we have to work the next day with little sleep; thus, solidifying our inability to find the peace to sleep. The downward spiral continues on and on until we choose to stop it by becoming conscious.
 
Simple is not always easy, especially in our modern, complicated manner of doing things, which is often times neither efficient nor beneficial to us or our environment, even though we are told it should be. But if this is what we need, then it is time to become conscious of our everyday habits. Let go of the complicated that has not served us. Honour the simple, honour the everyday space and time! - "Eat when you eat, sleep when you sleep." 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Image Sleeping Dog by Chris F on pexels.com

​A few days ago, I looked into a book that was passed on to me and extremely invaluable as I attended university in the 1990s - an English dictionary. Since my last post about Sweet Potatoes and Roots, I have been contemplating this word "Root." So I looked in to find the definition of Root and I find 12 different possibilities as a noun and as a verb. Most of them have something to do with having a "base" or "core" or "source," whether referring to human, plant, language or mathematics, and even to encourage. Fascinating, isn't it? 
 
Many of the Herbal Medicines in the Chinese Materia Medica are Roots. One that particularly stands out is Ginger and is listed in a few different forms. They are fresh Ginger (Rhizoma Zingiberis Recens, 生姜 Shēng Jīang), Ginger peel (Cortex Rhizoma Zingiberis Recens, 生姜皮 Shēng Jīang Pí), dried Ginger (Rhizoma Zingiberis Officinalis, 干姜 Gān Jīang) and quick-fried Ginger (Zingiberis Rhizoma Praeparata, 炮姜Páo Jīang).
 
In its fresh form, just like we get them here in the normal grocery store, Rhizoma Zingiberis Recens, 生姜 Shēng Jīang, is a food-grade herb. As such, one can cook it with other ingredients to enhance the taste of that particular food, like fish, meat or vegetables. In some Asian supermarkets, you may find young ginger, that which is yellowish in color with a green stem protruding out of the rhizome. This form is a little less warming than the older brown version. Herbal decoctions regularly containing multiple Herbs, prescribed by a Chinese medical practitioner, often includes Ginger to harmonize the Herbal Formula combinations; aiding better absorption of the Herbs into the body and to prevent possible toxic side-effects from other potent Herbs. In fact, I have read that Ginger can be used as a remedy for food poisoning, and in fact is cooked with fish in order to neutralize toxins in many traditions. 
 
In the everyday, we can grate it, make an Herbal infusion out of it just by adding hot water and letting it steep for 10 minutes just as a beverage. This can be very helpful too if you had symptoms like chills and/or fever caused by the common cold virus. In fact, making a foot-bath or a whole-body-bath with this infusion till one gets warm and sweaty would also help expel what we call "Wind-Cold Invasion" in Chinese Medicine. If you wanted to enhance the digestive effect of Ginger, then you can throw in a couple of slices of Ginger into a pot with water and cook it for at least 15 minutes. This infusion would be less spicy but more warming for the Stomach, good for stopping nausea and vomiting in pregnancy or otherwise, help relieve bloating and digestive distress. Shēng Jīang enters the Lung, Spleen and Stomach, is spicy and warm. In contrast, Shēng Jīang Pí, Ginger Peel is spicy-cool and is good for edema and promoting urination. 
 
As with anything, too much of a good thing transforms it to a hindrance. If you tend to heat in your system, then too much Ginger will overheat you. A spicy flavor will circulate Qi and too much circulation will dry out the body. Use moderately or speak with your practitioner, if Ginger is appropriate for you. I find that this is one of the many simple Herbal foods that I almost always have at home or with me when I travel. One of our favorite meals is rice with chicken, cooked with Ginger, soya sauce and Sesame oil; a simple but scrumptious recipe passed down to me from my mother. Like so much around the world, people have used food as medicine since time in memorial. It is only us modern urban-dwelling, city-folk, who are often times disconnected from nature, who question the validity of food as being able to affect our health or never really realizing that what we put into our bodies might affect who we are. Just because something doesn't come in a form of a pill, doesn't make it less potent. In fact, it is this that I challenge; something in its purest form, like the Ginger Root, may be the strongest medicine as it is whole. In its wholeness, it helps us to find unity in ourselves, to reconnect us to our source, to our core. 
 
 
 
 
Image Ginger Root by Engin Akyurt on pexels.com
 

​​We just passed the phase of the Autumnal Equinox, around the 21st of September here in the Northern hemisphere. The "change" from Late Summer to Autumn has reared its severe head. Here, we have been presented with 20-degree temperature difference overnight; warm and sunny in the day hitting mid-20s, then down to 5 degrees in the night. Our bodies, with pores wide open like windows of our houses in Summer, were shocked into closure. If not, we got sick with a cold or digestive distress, forcing us to stay in bed under warm covers, which in a way is a form of drastic closure. 
 
After the Autumnal Equinox passes, the light of the sun diminishes every day; over a minute at sunrise and over 2 minutes at sunset. What does this do to living beings on this hemisphere? It makes us, animals and plants, focus more inward; our energies begin to be more Yin concentrated. It is then not surprising that we modern humans stay more indoors, as it is colder, darker and we feel less active, possibly even tired. If you have been feeling this way these past few weeks, there is nothing wrong with you. Nature and the weather affects us because we are a part of nature. What we can do is to honor this connection by taking time to do quiet things, to rest and sleep more. Also, to eat certain foods that will help the process of moving inward, such as with root vegetables. There is this idea in Chinese Medicine and other forms of Complementary Medicine that "like treats like"; if we want to feel more rooted, we should ingest roots, as they will guide our energetic body to create more "rooted connections."
 
One of my favorites is Sweet Potato, 番薯 Fān Shǔ, Ipomoeas batatas in Latin. That's the plant pictured above. For the past few years, we have been planting this wonderful vegetable in our garden as it is a plant that almost all parts - leaf, stem, flower and root, are edible. Its leaves are heart-shaped and they creep and hang off the edge of our veggie-raised-beds, with its blossom so like the Morning Glory. They can propagate by leaf-cuttings but if you had a root that was sprouting, like many root vegetables, you can put this root in a bit of water to allow the sprout to grow leaves and then place them in the Earth. One can boil the roots in water with a little salt, add them to curries, fry/ bake them like Sweet Potato fries or make Sweet Potato pie with walnuts, like they do in the US for Thanksgiving. In East Asia, we make Rice Congee with Sweet Potato roots, deep fry them with a batter to make tempura in Japanese cuisine or in ball-form as a sweet snack in Malaysia (fān shǔ dàn) or served in a sweet soup in China. We also eat the leaves and stems, in the Spring-Summer seasons, as a stir-fry like you can with spinach, with a little garlic and soy sauce. They are beautiful beings that thrive in sunny, warm conditions, but are very sensitive to frost, as they are originally from Central/ South America like the regular potato. As such, it is now soon time to harvest the roots in our garden.
 
In Chinese Medicine, Sweet Potato is sweet in flavor, neutral to cooling in temperature and, affects the Spleen, Stomach, Large Intestine and Kidney meridians. When a food or herb is naturally sweet in flavor, it often will tonify Qi. As such Sweet Potato's functions include strengthening Spleen to promote Qi, increase mother's milk production, as well as helps support bowel movements, remove toxins from the body, builds the Yin in the body, which then treats dryness and inflammation. From a Western nutritional perspective, its orange color already suggests that it is high in Beta-Carotene, Vitamin A. Sweet Potato is also high in Vitamin C and E, potassium and fiber. Its natural sweetness and being a root vegetable, versus fruits, has a low-glycemic index and can help stabilize blood-sugar imbalances such as diabetes. Hence, one can eat it as a dessert without having any processed sugar or fructose. I know people who do not tolerate night-shade vegetables, such as potatoes and tomatoes, but Sweet Potatoes are not night-shades, as such very agreeable with those who have these issues. As often the case with most things, too much of a good thing transforms it to a hindrance. Eat it or anything with consciousness, LESS IS MORE.  
 
I find the Sweet Potato plant so versatile and resilient, taking root all over the world; from the Americas to Asia-Pacific, Africa and Europe through the Columbian Exchange, but also it has been found that Polynesia had cultivated this plant before the British came to the islands. We can learn a lot from this plant in being adaptable yet being able to root almost in every continent on the Earth. Best of all to go inward to find our own roots at this time of year.
 
 
 
Image Sweet Potato Plant and Blossom by Elaine
Image Sweet Potato Roots by Suanpa on Pixabay

When I was in my Chinese Medicine studies in San Francisco, I had a classmate who was of Japanese ethnicity but grew up in Hawaii. We laughed about how we thought that Pears were meant to be eaten crunchy. Where we both grew up, Pears were imported so when it was shipped to us, they were not yet ripened. This is how I got to know Pears as a child, as sweet, juicy, crunchy beings.
 
The Pear is called 棃子 lí zi in Mandarin. There are 3000 known varieties of Pyrus around the world. We have come to know Pears as "pear-shaped," but there is also the Nashi Pear which is rounder. In Chinese Medicine, Pears are cooling in temperature, with sweet and sour flavors. They enter the channels of Lung, Large Intestines, Gallbladder and Spleen. Like Apples, Pears are from the Rosaceae family, the same family of the Rose. Their main function is to tonify Yin and moisten dryness, especially in relation to the Lung with symptoms like thirst, dry throat as well as skin. They may also help with constipation, specifically when the stools are hard and dry, indicating a Yin deficiency, which can often happen when we get older. Another function of Pears is to cool heat in the Lungs and dispel phlegm. Here we have once again food that is medicinal. One of my teachers in Chinese Medicine school gave us a recipe for a lovely dessert with Pears for the Autumn to help moisturize the Lungs that tend to get irritated in this season. Simply steam the Pears on a plate for 15 minutes and then remove from heat. Then drizzle a teaspoon of honey over the steamed Pears to enhance the Lung moisturizing effect. Definitely drink the juice that has been released from the steaming process. 
 
I have a Pear tree growing in my garden, which my husband and I planted when we moved into our home a few years ago. Last year, as the Spring and Summer were warm and sunny, our young, tender-branched tree bore an incredible amount of fruit, something like 30. Its branches began to bend from the load of the fruit, we had support them with sticks. This year was a totally different story; it was raining in Spring and the Summer cool, as such, we had ONE Pear growing, which has already been harvested. The fruit harvest was meager but the life lesson rich. I learned that Nature is intelligent, a lot more intelligent than us humans. When it produces too much in a year, the next year's harvest will be milder. Sometimes even no fruit. In this way, the being, whether plant or animal, will be able to conserve its life energy for a longer period of time. Thus, ensuring a higher chance of survival for the coming years. We humans, unfortunately do not understand this concept of respecting limits and Nature's rules. We push things to extremes, "bigger and more is better," making bigger cars, buildings, cities and even more as well as bigger humans. We don't just want a 100 percent, we want a 110 percent! So, what happens then is that we overdraw on our resource account and then we have a deficit, which we will be paying back for generations or even the possibility of not surviving. It is simple math that even a primary school child can solve but we adults just can't seem to figure it out. 
 
The answer is simple, USE LESS. Find balance, just take enough and put back what we take. Treat every being with respect, even the common Pear. It has many lessons to teach us.  


​
Image by Elaine

This past week, we experienced what it is like to have summer after a cool, wet Summer; it was scorching hot and humid. It reminded me a little, and I mean really just a little ;-), of the tropics. We were all feeling the heat as well as heaviness, sweating, and it felt like no one really had an appetite. This is what we call Summer-Heat in Chinese Medicine.
 
Growing up, I never really thought about how food affected me. I remember my mother making foods to cool us down, due to the ever-constant warm temperature in Malaysia. We ate and drank lots of fruit/ juice in general. I never really thought about it until I began studying Chinese Medicine. Fruit in general has a cold temperature and is often sweet in flavor, as they ripen in the heat of Summer. This means most fruit will cool down heat and influence the Spleen and Stomach, as the sweet flavor is associated with the Earth element.
 
One fruit that comes to mind for this season is the Watermelon, Fructus Citrullus vulgaris. It's juicy, refreshing and cooling. This is one of the most common fresh-made juices one can get when you are in Malaysia, because it cools Summer-Heat. It grows locally all-year round there and in the Summer in most warm-weathered countries. One of my teachers called it the "Chinese aspirin," as it clears heat from the body like when we experience feverishness, though I must emphasize it's not the best herb for fevers. The Chinese call it Xī Guā, 西瓜 , which translates as "Western Gourd/Squash/ Melon." This was because in ancient China, Watermelon grew in its Western regions. Interestingly, I found out that Watermelon has been found to have originated in North Africa, possibly Sudan, and even in ancient Egypt there were seeds found in the pyramids and references in carvings dated 2000 BCE. Africa is West of China and it may be that it made its way to China through trade. 
 
Watermelon is one of those fruit that almost all parts can be eaten and act as medicinal food. The part which we all eat is the red-juicy-sweet core enters the Urinary Bladder, Heart and Stomach channels in Chinese Medicine. Hence, it functions to cool the Summer-Heat, generate fluids, expel jaundice and promote urination. The peel is used for its stronger effect on promoting urination. Watermelon seeds are eaten regularly as a snack in Asia; it is first sun-dried and roasted with salt. The skin of the seed is peeled off and the inside is eaten. This is said to help clear urinary tract infection and lower blood pressure. Watermelon is sweet in flavor and cold in temperature. Therefore, if one has blood sugar imbalances or a cool digestive system, tending to loose stools/diarrhea, then be careful to keep the Watermelon intake to a minimum, or for that matter fruit/juice as well.
 
Like so many of our foods, Watermelon's journey on the Earth from Africa and its transformation from a water-bearing possibly bitter/bland fruit into sweet, red nectar is a fascinating story of migration and resilience; just as us humans migrating to greener pastures, surviving and adapting. It not only nourishes and heals us but also inspires our creativity. I watched the famous jazz musician and composer, Herbie Hancock describe how and why he wrote his famous song, "Watermelon Man" in 1962. So as you eat your Watermelon next time, listen to the Mongo Santamaria's version of the song and get into the Watermelon groove.
 


Image Watermelon by Jorge Furber on Pixabay
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Spring is here! When I look outside I see not only blossoms but "spring green" leaves, sprouting out of previously leafless brown branches. It is the time of leaves. When I think of leaves, I think of a very common leaf that most of us have in our homes or have at some point came in contact with but have no idea of its story; the Tea leaf.  
 
Growing up in Malaysia, I drank Tea often, even as a child. When I say Tea, I mean Black Tea or Wu Long Tea. When we went to a Chinese restaurant, they always served Wu Long or Pu Er Tea in a pot for the whole family to go with the meal. We had Afternoon Tea, around 4 to 5 o'clock, with some snack or pastry, something we learned from being a former British colony. It would often be a Black Tea, Orange Pekoe, which the British set up plantations for in the highlands of peninsula Malaysia. I only began to drink the classical Chinese style of Tea, Gong Fu Cha, when I was in the US. A Tai Ji brother (how we call a fellow student in Tai Ji class) was a student of a master calligrapher as well as of Tea. In Gong Fu Cha, we drink, smell and experience Tea in a ritual, that requires a certain state of calmness as well as introspection; this style of Tea drinking is more relaxed and is less elaborate than the Japanese Tea ceremony. Speaking of Tea rituals, my husband and I were married by performing a (semi-) traditional Tea ceremony, where elders of the family were served Tea; in their acceptance by drinking the Tea served by us, they symbolized their acceptance of us as a couple.
 
What is Tea? There are many misconceptions about Tea. Technically, when you say you are drinking Tea, then you are referring to the infusion of the leaf of the Camellia sinensis plant. All other teas, such as peppermint or chamomile, are not teas but "herbal infusions." Tea is the most widely drunk beverage in the world after water. Camellia sinensis originated in China but has spread all around the world and enjoyed, as well as adopted as their own. My research into Tea has revealed that we can trace how Tea came to that particular region or culture by the terms, Cha or Tey or even La. If the plant came by land through the Silk Road or from northern China then the term Cha or Chai was adopted, such as in Russia, Japan, Turkey or the Middle East. However, if the plant came by the water route from the South of China, by ship mostly brought by the European traders, then it was/is called Tea, The or Te, with the exception of Portugal, which uses the word Cha. The term La was passed on through South-West China to the neighboring countries like Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar.
 
The Chinese believe that Tea was discovered by Shen Nong, The Divine Farmer or God of Agriculture; he is also the mythological emperor who taught the Chinese to farm and use plants as medicine. He passed down his knowledge through his tasting and testing of the herbs on himself through the The Classic of Herbal Medicine, Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing. Shen Nong is said to have used Tea as an antidote to counteract any poisonous plants. In old pottery found in the Tian Luo Shan region in Fu Jian province in China archaeologists believe Tea was being cultivated almost 6000 years ago; that would be around 4000 BCE. But it wasn't until China's flourishing golden age of the Tang Dynasty (618-907 CE) that Lu Yu wrote Cha Jing, The Classic on Tea, that drinking Tea became an art, a philosophical pursuit practiced by the cultivated scholarly class. It was the Cha Jing that also influenced the spreading of Tea into Japan, who then in turn created their own manner of drinking Tea, which is more well-known in the West. Chado, The Way of Tea, is influenced by Zen Buddhism and has become not just a cultural ceremony but a meditation, as well as a way of life.
 
In Chinese Medicine, in the lineage of Shen Nong, we use Tea as medicine. In the Materia Medica, we have 2 types of Tea. One is Lu Cha (Folium Camellia sinensis), Green Tea. It is bitter and cool, affects the Stomach organ. It harmonizes the Stomach, sinks the Qi down in cases of nausea and vomiting. A classical usage is to clear the head; Green Tea has an effect to clear headaches due to its circulatory effect. However, one has to be careful with Green Tea, as it can be too strong for people with weak digestive systems, those who have cool systems; this may result in digestive issues such as nausea and too stimulating for people with sleep issues. Green Tea has become a trendy drink due to its ability to aid in weight-loss and metabolism, as well as being high in anti-oxidants. In the Chinese medical point of view, it helps to dispel dampness in the body, as such aid in weight-loss. But no amount of Green Tea without dietary changes and increase in movement  can stimulate weight-loss. One common mistake that many make with Green Tea is to brew it with boiling hot water (100 degrees Celsius). As these leaves are not oxidized, one has to use 80-degree hot water, so as not to burn the leaves. If you have found that your Green Tea was too bitter, it is because it was burnt from 100-degree water, which stimulated too quick a release of catechins from your Tea or that it was left too long to steep. So, to make good-tasting Green Tea, use no more than 80-degree (spring/filtered) water, 30-90 seconds brewing time and use good quality Green Tea leaves; often teabags do not contain good quality Tea. 
 
When you drink a cup of good Green Tea, it should taste like a cup of Spring; like liquid fresh spring leaves or grass in your mouth. That's why the best Green Tea is harvested in Spring. The Chinese and Japanese grow as well as produce the best Green Teas. They have made Tea not just a beverage but an art.
 
 
 
 
Image Tea Plantation by Dendhy Halbaik on Pixabay
Image Green Tea in Gai Wan by apple deng on Pixabay
​Image Shen Nong/Shinno from Wikimedia Commons

Many years ago, as I was reading books on Chinese Nutritional Therapy, which is a big part of Chinese Medicine, a "lightbulb" moment occurred. One book was about treating children's issues by Bob Flaws and how about 90 percent of the time children's ailments have to do with digestive/ nutritional issues. This by the way, in my experience with working with children over the years, is true. The author stated, and I may be paraphrasing it, that "cooking is the beginning of the digestive process." It sparked an awakening in my understanding of food and its transformation within our system. I had never thought about cooking as being food digestion before we ingest it inside us. 
 
In Malaysia, possibly most of Asia and many other parts of the world, food is more than just eating to get energy. It is culture, identity, a socially-binding force, the joy of life...the list of descriptions goes on and on. People in Malaysia talk, cook, eat, breathe and live food. Food is boiled, steamed, braised, stir-fried in a wok, deep-fried, baked in clay...you name it, it gets done. I was exposed to this creativity in cooking early on in life and I too enjoy cooking, as well as eating. But I had never thought of cooking as digestion. What a revelation! But it makes sense! Take rice for instance, if you just took raw grains of rice into your mouth and chewed it, it would be hard and arduous, probably crack your teeth, before you could even swallow a few grains. Would it even taste good and could our digestive system even be able to break it down for energy?
 
The process of cooking is not just a hobby, it is an essential part of life as a human being in order to survive. It goes even further when you look at the theories that have been suggested over the past few years. One such hypothesis was proposed by biological anthropologist and primatologist Dr.Richard Wrangham. He suggests that the human brain evolved to its current size as we began cooking our food. As heating/ cooking what we ate, whether meat, grains or tubers, breaks-down starches, denatures protein and helps kill pathogen, the human body began having more energy to develop other body parts, such as the brain. Through this evolution came other changes in human development and social structure. Crazy to think that something so normal and under- appreciated as cooking could have such an impact on a whole life species and also the whole of the living world since our brain development led us to create a more complex style of living. I watched a documentary on the evolution of the digestive system. Part of Dr. Wrangham's research is featured at the end of the documentary.
 
One of the trends that we have at the moment is the Smoothie/ Juicing trend. I hear and read of many who swear by these methods of obtaining nutrients. As with many things in life, what fits some may not fit others. In Chinese Medicine, we have the view that some individuals tend to have heat in their system and others cold; these individuals who tend to heat may benefit from smoothie/ juice drinking, as most fruit and vegetables that have not been cooked have a cooling nature. From the Chinese medical nutrition perspective, this time of year requires us to eat warm food; one aspect is to have food in a certain temperature that our bodies do not have to expand more energy to warm the food further in order to digest and another aspect is that we receive warmth that will help our bodies stay at the ideal temperature of ca. 37 degrees Celsius. This is not to say that we do not eat any fresh vegetables and fruit, but that our food should be predominately warm and then supplemented by raw produce in winter. This will change as the season changes and the temperature warms up. If we look at the nature surrounding us right now in Switzerland, we will notice that there are little to no fruits growing on trees. They have all been harvested before the end of autumn. What fruit we have that are still fresh here, such as apples and pears, are harvested and stored in special conditions to last through winter. Tropical fruits or citrus fruits that we get from the supermarket are imported from places that are still having warm/ temperate climates currently. Therefore, it is best to eat these sparingly, like 1 to 2 fruits a day. Too many will cool our systems down too much and we will either feel cold often or be unable to digest the fruit well, leading to loose stools or diarrhoea.
 
One of the most beloved food for the Chinese is Congee, Bái Zhōu in Mandarin, Jūk in Cantonese or just simply rice porridge. It's rice cooked in a lot of water over a longer period of time. When I was ill as a child, this was the food my mother cooked for me, as I do for my children. But we cook a hardier version with meat in regular life in winter. It is easy to digest, yet very nutritious, providing enough fluids and nutrients. I have fasted on just water and plain Congee over a span of a week, and felt that I could actually perform everyday activities, including working, without feeling drained. It is simple, wholesome and easy to incorporate into your diet, even and especially if you are not used to cooking regularly but want to begin. Be creative, use the classical recipe as a base and then modify the ingredients to create your own personal Congee. Try it and start enjoying the warming nourishment!

Congee Recipe as pdf in English  

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Image Chicken Congee by Maria & Elaine