We instinctively place our hands on our Hearts when we feel love and appreciation. We instinctively know when our Hearts are open and generous. And we have observed that while our Hearts carry out an incredibly vital physical function, there is far more to the function of Heart than this and it involves the emotions of love, peace and equanimity.
In traditional Chinese medicine, the Fire element governs the heart, small intestine, circulatory system, autonomic nervous system (including parasympathetic and sympathetic branches), the small intestine and the triple heater meridian.
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The Heart is considered the home of Shen—the higher consciousness which descends from ‘heaven' and resides within us. The Shen is the universal consciousness that exists in every person.
Chinese medicine believes the various functions of the Fire element exist to protect Heart from injury especially on the levels of mind and spirit.
For example, the master of the Heart which is the pericardium together with the sympathetic nervous system works to protect us against hurts resulting from emotional vulnerability especially in relationships. They work to provide us the circulation of love and consciousness from the heart throughout the entire body and to other people as well.
The element of Fire relates to our desires and passions in life and also to the emotion of joy. If we become overly driven by any of these we may find ourselves with a clumsy Heart/Fire-based emotional issue.
Conversely, expressing heartfelt caring and developing deep connections with others from our humble quiet Heart demonstrates what Chinese medicine calls the art of the Heart.
The quantum energetic Fire element line of skin and hair care by PHYTO5 does more than work at the level of skin. It is also capable of bringing balance to an emotional state of out-of-balance joy. It is formulated in such a way that it penetrates the deepest core of the mind-body system where healing begins—the point where consciousness actually starts to have an effect.
Medical research appears to confirm that the health of our physical Hearts depends on good diet, exercise and a connection not only to our spirit but with good social interactions. Studies show that the incidence of heart disease increases in situations of social isolation, difficult marital status and depression.
We see that heart attack victims who live alone experience twice the mortality of those who don't.
Depression doubles the mortality rate after bypass surgery.
Coronary atheroscleros is worse the more strained a relationship is.
In a study of 11,000 heart attack patients, those living with high stress levels were more common among that number.
A research team discovered that simply by asking patients with acute heart problems to discuss what and who they loved most in life led to less arrhythmias and lower blood pressure.
The art of the Heart involves quieting, peacefulness and an embracing of relationships. The Small Intestine energy does similarly as it quiets the mind by disallowing excessive or irrelevant thoughts or distractions to overwhelm the heart.
For the Heart to remain strong and healthy or to return to that state, the Heart must be able to maintain this calm and quiet. This is how we become able to adapt to the stresses of life and live long lives of substance and quality.
By being able to live strong with peaceful well functioning Hearts, we are, in turn, able to use these abilities to assist others in need of them.
Discrimination, prioritization, judgment, and simplification come from the Small Intestine in balance.
But confusion, hesitation, anxiety, and insomnia commonly result when the energy of the Small Intestine is out of balance. Shyness, moodiness, and fatigue can also occur when Small Intestine energy is not strong.
In traditional Chinese medicine, the triple heater meridian is responsible for encouraging the circulation of chi (vital energy), blood, fluids, and hormones throughout the body. It is also extremely encouraging as we maneuver our way through our many social and emotional relationships.
The triple heater meridian provides an appropriate milieu for the optimum transformation of food to energy which is needed to support the function of the Heart. When it is obstructed, fatigue and erratic behavior commonly result.
Traditional Chinese medicine calls the Heart the Emperor—the King who serves and reigns over the body with wisdom and equanimity. When people say with conviction, "I am coming from my heart," they are actually expressing an authenticity of belief and knowing that come from the Emperor one heartbeat at a time.
When the Heart chi energy is healthy and free flowing, this chi creates a rhythm in the body that is universal and available to all people whose hearts and triple warmer meridians are in balance.
Symptoms arising when Heart chi is out of balance include insomnia, anxiety and experiencing life as chaotic. This is because a Heart that’s not in control causes the Heart to beat irregularly, blood pressure to fluctuate, and even sometimes causes a loss of consciousness. Ultimately, we experience chaos both within the body and in our external lives.
Essentially, any situation that overstimulates the mind or emotions whether it’s a trauma or we feel overburdened with responsibilities and stress, may create too much Fire in the Heart potentially leading to emotional conditions such as nervousness, anxiety, and in extreme cases, mania.
When Heart energy is weak, holding to our beliefs can be difficult. When Heart is well adapted it grandly reigns with purpose and integrity. Grounding and a sense of self-assured sovereignty are ours.
“The Heart holds the office of lord and sovereign. The radiance of the spirit stems from it.”
The Heart is the supreme controller. It is partly human physical and partly divine spirit. Heart, residing in its palace, the protective pericardium, houses the spirit and keeps us in contact with love, peace and all that is of spiritual essence.
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Endnotes:
Anderson, Sandra K. The Practice of Shiatsu. Malawi, Mosby Elsevier, 2007.
Hicks, Angela, et al. Five Element Constitutional Acupuncture. United Kingdom, Elsevier Health Sciences, 2010.
Moss, Charles A. Power of the Five Elements: The Chinese Medicine Path to Healthy Aging and Stress Resistance. United States, North Atlantic Books, 2011.
Photo courtesy of Monica Turlui at pexels (pexels-monica-turlui-8218377.jpg)