The night of December 21st will be the longest of the year and a seasonally-supported opportunity for you to bask in the nourishing silence of the Dark.  Take a moment, right now as you are reading these lines to STOP. Let the phone or computer enter “hibernation”. Bring your attention to your sit bones and allow your body to enter Silence…

Winter dreams

Winter invites us to return home: some animals hide and enter a resting period; deciduous trees loose all their leaves… Winter exposes Nature’s naked essence.

This is a time when Energy storage grows larger than Energy spending. a time of self-recollection, when we can go inside to that place where we are unadorned Essence. It is the concentrated, internal force of winter that enables your inner seeds to burst forth in spring growth.  Give yourself permission to sleep longer and rest deeper in the long and cold winter nights. Dim the overhead lights at sundown or use lamps or candles instead of electricity to reconnect with the healing and humbling power of the Unknown in the form of darkness.   Allow yourself to be more receptive, introspective and storage oriented. There is work going on, but inside…

Warm, hearty soups, whole grains, and roasted nuts feel good on cold days. Dried foods, small dark beans, seaweeds, and steamed winter greens fortify the Kidneys (the organ that corresponds to winter time according to Chinese Medicine). You may want to cook foods for longer, at lower temperatures and with less water.

This Taoist practice will not only support you in your physical and spiritual renewal but it will also help you refresh and refocus your direction in life.  If you are drawn to story telling and listening, I strongly recommend that you look into Dr Sharon Blackie’s invitation to re-enchant the Winter Solstice. You can also invoke the ceremonial Yule Log as a metaphor to invite the New Light forth into the next cycle.  For those of you who would like to sing the Sun back, join author Michael Mead, on December 20th, in this free online Solstice event  called “in this Darkness Singing”

I trust that you will find simple and yet deep ways to reconnect with the Light born out of the darkness of your Ocean floor!

Warmly

Yamin Chehin L.Ac. Dipl. O.M