As we move into the chill of winter, it is vital to keep your energy warm and flowing. Associated in Traditional Chinese Medicine with the kidneys, winter is the season to nourish and support this important organ, which regulates and balances water and fluids in your body.
The seat of the adrenal glands, which produce the fight / flight response, the kidneys are also associated with the emotion of fear. Whether that fear has to do with growing fully into your own power or wrestling with your “inner critics” or external challenges, this is a perfect time of year to turn and face those voices, while keeping the inner flame of your consciousness alight to sustain your vision of where you want to go.
Winter is a time you can call on the wisdom of the Water element, which can shift into a myriad of forms from a raging river or to a delicate crystalline snowflake. In the same way, you can cultivate your ability to adapt and flow as you move into the hush of the season.
What follows is a medical qigong practice I call “The Water Wheel” to balance and tonify your kidneys.
FREE EVENT COMING UP!! Nourish the Flame: A Winter Workshop in the Way of Joy. Launch 2013 with renewed clarity, purpose, and vitality by giving yourself the time, space and energetic support to manifest your goals for the year ahead. Dec 30 11 AM-3 PM
Vicki Dello Joio, founder of The Way of Joy: A Spiritual Fitness Program, is a teacher, speaker and performing artist. Integrating over 40 years of Chi Kung practice with other martial arts as well as her work in Yoga, Feldenkreis, physical fitness and theater, Vicki has developed a dynamic set of tools to increase awareness, transform obstacles into opportunities and enhance creative potential. Book: The Way of Joy, CD: Short Meditations for a Busy Life.