Spring – Life after Death and the Spirit of the Liver/Gallbladder in Chinese Medicine
An Article by Natalie Ponce, Acupuncturist & Chinese Herbalist, Sound Healer
What exists within can always be found out there in the external world too. From a more expanded view, nothing exists in separation, as much as the mind has found comfort in and is accustomed to perceiving things this way. So the seasons too are real life representations of deep internal processes, always inviting us to come closer to that ever-present, eternal truth. Each time we enter a new season, another aspect of our lives (and life in general) is brought into focus. Altogether, the seasons represent the entire cycle of human existence, revealing its hidden meanings and wisdom.
Spring is associated with the Wood element, the Liver and Gallbladder in Chinese medicine, and represents the transition from deep, dark, silent Yin, to exuberant, playful, lighthearted Yang. It is the death, loss and introspection of Winter that gives Spring all of its life and allows us to experience this brightness with gratitude and fullness. The Wood element is felt through the color green, is related to birth, change and growth, the inner child, the innocence of curiosity and wonder…and is related to the “up and out” movement. The Liver itself is associated with strong intention, directionality, vision, planning and expansiveness, the ability to see…and therefore this organ opens to the eyes. The gallbladder on the other hand is associated with courage, judgement, our ability to make decisions that bring our visions to life in the material world, in between states, travel between realms, the shaman archetype. These organs together hold the blueprint of Wood energy in our bodies, and account for the aspect of the human experience associated with individuation, finding one’s soul purpose, the experience of the spiritual seeker, the hero’s journey. Wood is also involved in the act of playing and engaging with the world through the body, in a physical way that can be creatively manifested and felt.
When Spring time comes around, it is this part of the psyche and journey that is illuminated. For those with healthy wood, or who work with this element as their primary element, Spring can be a time of great inspiration and freedom in movement. For those who have imbalances with this element, it can be a time of frustration, anger, repression, fear, feelings of not being able to get to where you want to be even if the vision is clear, or the feeling of being lost, stuck, confused or disconnected…being able to see this life happening all around you and not being able to engage with it, finding it difficult to move, being creatively blocked. In the physical realm this can express itself as allergies, fatigue, skin related issues like eczema, migraines, headaches, insomnia or sleep disturbance, menstrual irregularities and digestive issues.
Spring is also associated with wind, which we see in Chinese medicine as representing change, the constant flow and unpredictability of life which cannot be grasped or contained, only lived…and in the living, constantly letting go. One of the teachings associated with wind is that…in all this change and chaos, somehow divinity is still putting everything in its rightful place, and that the need to control is truly the fear of life. Sometimes, resistance we feel to this inherent part of life can also show itself during this time, and instead of the natural “up and out” movement of Spring, we retreat further inward and away from the outside world, afraid of letting anyone in that might pull us out of that dream.
The Liver also anchors a spirit called the Hun. This is the spirit that holds our akashic records and stores all our memories from this lifetime and previous incarnations, as well as ancestral memory. This spirit is what gives us a sense of time: past, present and future…allowing us to have physical body experiences of this world and others. The Hun carries out one’s divine destiny, sending the vision of this information up into the heart where it can be made conscious and lived out in the external world. The Liver holds the blood in Chinese medicine, and it is through the blood that we store memory, emotion, and experience. When the Hun is grounded through healthy amounts of blood and yin, qi flows smoothly through the meridians via the Liver. This feels like being in total flow and alignment with your highest purpose, as well as the collective’s highest purpose during this time in history.
One of the great beauties of Chinese medicine is that we can access these information circuits and directly communicate with the energetics of spring in the body. It is an esoteric medicine at its core…and all physical states of imbalance are always reflecting deeper psychological and spiritual states. In a world where so many are filled with a deep fear of life and death, and being constantly busy, distracted, and overstimulated has become the norm, how else would we know that something is truly wrong if it did not manifest as some physical issue that forces us to stop and look? In the never-ending ceremony of life and within the altar of our bodies, every physical hurt or emotional pain is always a divine message leading us back home. As we heal and come back into right relationship with mother earth and our deepest truth, we begin to get our vitality back, reclaiming that highest wish for our lives, remembering all that we are, and the magic of this world. It is our Wood element that inspires us to take another step forward, to release ourselves from the past and breathe in a new tomorrow.
I am here to provide spiritual support through the prayer that is this medicine. If you’d like to learn more or schedule an appointment, please reach out to Lunita Spirit Healing at 201-677-2493 by text or call. You may also email me at lunitahealing@gmail.com.
Always a blessing to be of service, Natalie.
