Entering the Flow
Whither Sagely Living?
Across a divide of space spanning a continent, a partnership in exploration has opened whose wellsprings lie removed further still across a span of centuries and oceans. I am speaking, of course, of this latest project that Eric and I have conceived in the course of our conversations over the last few months and weeks. If this is the new development of the Year of Sagely Living, then I count that undertaking a success. I perceive a greater alignment with the operating principles of that concept becoming active in our new pursuit. Or, rather, we have awakened to its possibilities, and take seriously the precepts of the Classical view we hold dear. Above all we are entering a flow. Let me explain.
A Story
I’ve been inspired almost as much by the College of Mythic Cartography as I have been entranced by Deepest Health. Willem Larsen, who is the genius behind CoMC, and is another resident of Cascadia, articulates what he terms “invisible technologies” that underlie his practice of rewilding: that is, decolonizing the mind from the non-indigenous. Another way to put this, is that he recognizes that some of the most important aspects of indigenous cultures, critical components of any definition of sustainability, lie in the cultivation of relationships based on mutual trust and support, and in story as an expression of those relationships to one’s land-base and greater family. He writes eloquently, and if I may borrow a phrase, appears to “live deliberately,” or as I am wont to say, with rigor. His explication of associative reasoning, and t
he role of riddles and story in enlivening knowledge struck me as deeply resonant with the conversations that Eric and I have shared, and with my entire orientation to practicing Chinese medicine.
Further back it correlates with what I’ve learned through many years of association with Leon Hammer. I read his first book, Dragon Rises, Red Bird Flies
The next insight, a thrill, to be honest, a thrumming indication of things to come, came at an interesting time. After years of practice I had decided to pursue further training in medical school, with the intention of seeking a psychiatric residency. The Baker Act places an acupuncturist in a unique bind. I’ve had patients whom I knew required 24-hour evaluation and supervision -in crisis- but was faced with the certainty that appropriate herbal medicine and acupuncture could resolve the condition more rapidly and with less trauma to the patient. So I conceived of enrollment in medical school as a means of surmounting institutional barriers. I enrolled in courses to prepare for the MCAT, and contemplated at length the options, when suddenly, in an intensely liberating flash of realization, I abandoned the plan resolutely. I felt renewed. I felt like I had been handed $200, 000 in cash and been given a reprieve that granted me 15 years of my life back. I went from being amongst the oldest of potential med students to being again among the youngest teachers in the Chinese Medicine field. Above all, I realized that the plan amounted to a digression that was perhaps the world’s greatest attempt at procrastination. In other words, my work had already begun and there was more to do.
Literally the first thing I did was sign up for the Associates program at Heiner Fruehauf’s site. And then it happened. The article and videos related to Wang Fengyi, the late nineteenth and early twentieth-century founder of a unique lineage of storytelling healers curing with their stories, chants and humble, ethical behavior gave me back the feeling that had enlivened me in Leon’s book, and in every subsequent, often wordless, intimation of the realities laid out before me. It also unleashed a period of intense creativity that led to new insights into everything from the underlying structures of Dr. John Shen’s herbal formulas, to aspects of Dr. Hammer’s methodology and model, and even provided the impetus for the Year of Sagely Living. I discovered Rewilding not long after that.
Rewilding is ultimately predicated on awareness, just like the others practices that inform my life. As a Muslim, I cannot endorse the animist beliefs, and according to some this would indicate that I do not understand the movement. Where awareness is the focus I am fully in accord. I would even argue that awareness is the crux of the critique of modern civilization.
Through a Dark Wood
So this is where our project unfolds: from these disparate elements, we intend to construct an experiment in awareness. Not in terms of normative practices, but in terms of opening ourselves to the symbolic fields articulated by Chinese medicine, and with a commitment to document our findings and chart our exploration. We are saying, “Yes! And…” to the implications a symbolism rooted in antiquity, as a method for creating new symbolic content that is appropriate to the times and places where we are. It is not enough to rehearse old mythologies. That is not to disparage the Classics in any way. Rather, it follows Basho’s admonition to seek what the master’s sought. Where else are these patterns to be articulated if not in our lives?
Another very significant element is our engagement with the concept together. We hypothesize that by allowing the conversation to publicly unfold, much as it has in private, and also to avoid setting arbitrary limits upon it, we will create a free-wheeling and unfettered mode of expression about Chinese medicine. I am the control group in this particular experiment; because like all-too-many clinicians I am not as steeped in the Han Dynasty symbolism that informs the pristine logic of NCNM’s program. And this with having studied Classical Chinese at UC Berkeley! And my estimation is that the conversation will enrich us. After all, dialogue is the form that the Classics assume, both in structure, and in the rich legacy of commentaries that exist. In fact, I’ve dubbed it: Han Dynasty 2.0.
Improvisational Classical Scholarship
This is also not to suggest a mere modernization or even urbanization of an alien cosmology. Every patient encounter is an opportunity to approach the unknown. What mysteries are in each of us? What stories? Riddles? In the meeting of microcosm and macrocosm, there is a grain of sand. If there’s a universe in a grain of sand, then what of the pearl produced by its slow gestation?
As Eric quoted earlier: “it’s a way of effortlessly being with awareness and allowing Chinese philosophical and medical concepts to shape the perspective.”
Sapere Aude
How can this become a practice that is effortless and yet produces insights that will carry over into our clinical work? It is quite simple. In my estimation, the most integral question is a simple one: why? But that does not obviate the need for us to likewise attend to the what’s of our experience. In other words, our answers will be as good as our questions. Everything has its voice, and it may speak to us in a way that we can understand. One way that I describe pulse diagnosis is as a way of listening to the ever-communicating body. So, we will take the rich world of symbolism and metaphor that we’ve inherited from Chinese medicine, and simply frame our questions according to what we want to investigate. In the process we will learn to apply this method to anything that strikes us, and also begin to see the webs of meaning that inhere in the very messages that are being communicated in multivalent means by the body. And we can use all of our senses to seek our answers, and in so doing we will begin to inhabit our bodies and experience our lives in wholly new ways.
Abdallah
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Tags: abdallah stickley, classical-chinese-medicine, commitment, content, creativity, Cultivation, heiner fruehauf, imagination, patterns, scholar, symbolism, The Project, visionRelated posts
7 Reasons why cool people don’t blog
One of the greatest benefits of blogging is the many relationships you build with other bloggers and blog readers. I believe this is the especially case in a small niche like Chinese medicine. There simply aren’t many active blogs (or even, really, non-blog websites) out there. This creates a pretty small pond in which for fishes of any size to swim. It’s a positive thing in some ways - it’s easy to get to know the folks in the field and the relationships built are pretty intimate. But, having more folks as part of the conversation makes for a more robust conversation! Further, when there are a lot of folks working in a given niche a kind of ecosystem evolves that allows for lots of fruitful cross-pollination, traffic building and ultimately more potential profit for everyone.
I’ve done a lot of thinking about why there aren’t more active bloggers in the world of Chinese medicine. In my research, I’ve discovered that there are a number of niches in the general category of “conscious living” that are bizarrely unfilled or under filled. While there are plenty of people searching for information about more “alternative” topics (like veganism, meditation and Eastern spirituality, simplicity, naturopathic medicine, homeopathy, eco-consciousness, local food, etc…) there aren’t that many people having robust and interesting conversations about these topics. In talking with my friends and reading through some forum and email exchanges, I think I have at least one (mildly tongue in cheek) reason why this phenomenon is occurring.
Simply - consciously living folks who are knowledgeable about these topics are too cool for blogging. :) What can I possibly mean by that? I’m obviously joking a bit, but I do encounter a quite perplexing attitude when I talk about blogging to people in the Chinese medicine and naturopathic community. They look at me as if I’m a creature from another planet, a traitor to my kind or some hybrid of both. After some long thinking, I think I’ve discovered some reasons that these wise, conscious and unbelievably cool people haven’t yet discovered the power of blogging.
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1. They don’t want to spend so much time with computers : I think this is the most crucial item on the list. There is a perception that, in order to be a blogger, you have to be married to your computer. Seeing me blogging probably doesn’t help that perception much. But many people have managed to create active, exciting and profitable blogs on around two hours of active work per day. Further, even creating a blog and posting your thoughts just a couple of times a week can do a lot to counter the weak and outright bad information out there about all the topics I’ve listed above. My point is simple - you don’t have to have your computer glued to your hands in order to be a successful blogger!
I think behind this is the latent idea in the natural medicine community that computer technology is inherently bad. I meet and greet this misperception nearly every day. I understand where it comes from. Many people who use computers frequently don’t lead very healthful lifestyles - long hours of sitting, staring, eating whatever is at hand, terrible posture, etc… it can be a detriment to balance, to be sure. It doesn’t have to be that way. I’d argue that it isn’t that way in the majority of cases. In my time blogging, my lifestyle has become MORE healthful - not less. I don’t believe that I am being invisibly eviscerated by rays of death emanating from my machine. I simply haven’t seen or felt any evidence that this is the case. I think it’s high time that we as natural medicine practitioners and supporters of all kinds of alternative lifestyles take another look at our perceptions of computers and computer technology. Let’s find a way to make it a boon, not a bane.
2. They don’t have time because they’re doing cooler things : A lot of us are very busy. I’m very busy. Oh man, you don’t even know. So very busy. A quick glance at my active project lists shows over sixty currently active projects pulling at my attention. I’m not exaggerating. I have an eleven year old daughter (going on sixteen), I’m in my intern year, I’m student body president at NCNM, active in a number of other organizations, working on projects for both of my main mentors, I’m starting a business and trying to keep up in a number of fields by self-educating. That’s just for starters and doesn’t include my personal projects. What keeps me alive? Self cultivation and the power of the relationships I cultivate both online and offline.
Regardless - this “reason” is related to the first — that blogging has to take a lot of time. It doesn’t. To be truthful, at first it does take some time to get set up and to get used to the work flow. After that, things get easier and only have to get time consuming if you decide to change or expand something. At the most basic level, it can easily be 5 hours or less of your working week. Easily!
3. They’re not self absorbed : As I discussed in a recent article, many people have the perception that you have to be very into yourself in order to project your thoughts to the universe online. I don’t think this is the case. When you’re blogging about a topic that you care about, even if you blog in very personal terms, your focus is the topic - not yourself. Even if you do a little self-promotion (like in promoting your private practice, or a lecture series or a product you just released) the focus is really on informing people about something that might be of interest to them. Further, if we keep in mind that the desire should be to get great information about natural medicine (or whatever topic) out there for people to find - you can have a very giving mindset and be somewhat ego-less in the whole process.
4. They communicate in other, cooler, ways : Some people don’t understand the blogging format and feel that their thoughts are better projected in other, more traditional, ways. Perhaps they have a mailed newsletter or publish articles in industry journals. Perhaps they are fortunate enough to have book deals or a regular newspaper or magazine column. All of these types of people can benefit from blogging. By leveraging this simple and powerful communication medium, they can help magnify the positive educational effects of their print media offerings. My friend and colleague, Abdallah B Stickley, provides a good example of this method with his blogging about his Chinese Medicine Times article.
5. They know it doesn’t make any difference what people say on the Internet: I have been on the Internet since the Internet was born. That’s just a simple truth that, I think, explains why I believe so much in the power of this medium of communication. From the very beginning, I saw how it was changing how people talked to one another (in good and bad ways) and when blogging first began, I rejoiced at how it might allow ordinary people to discuss their experience of life and how they live it. There is something very powerful in sharing one’s take on the world with others and something even more powerful about stumbling upon the works of someone from a very different background with whom you have some resonance. This is made more possible, in my opinion, by the Internet and blogging in particular. I have been changed by the things I read on blogs, and I know people have been changed by what I’ve written here. If that doesn’t matter, I don’t know what does.
6. They’re not techno-savvy because of number one and two above : I think the first two things I mentioned on this list keep people from becoming acquainted with the technology involved in blogging. At my school, NCNM, I would say about 50% of the student population gets confused by simply checking their email. Though it puts me at risk of offending them, I want to say that I feel like this is a kind of feigned helplessness. Because many have this ideological stance against technology (as I’ve said, I think its an erroneous stance) and because they believe themselves to be too busy - they do not learn the requisite skills needed to blog.
What are those requisite skills? Well, checking email is a good start. The ability to navigate a basic word processor is necessary - since most blogging software has similarities to basic word processors. You have to have some familiarity with how the Internet works and how to find information using search engines. From there, you can learn the rest as you go. As I mentioned in my article yesterday, there are training programs available for people who would like to learn to blog - and I can highly recommend Yaro Starak’s Blog Mastermind program. Please read those above linked articles if you want to learn more about the program.
7. Secretly, they don’t think they have much to say : I think the majority of people, at least in the United States, have been trained to think of themselves and their thoughts as fundamentally meaningless. The vast majority of public education in this country kills creativity, makes people question their ability to think and generally tries to produce a buzzing hive of listless worker bees. To put it mildly. Because of this, most people grow up thinking that OTHER people have important things to say and that noone could possibly want to hear what they are thinking or what they believe. It may be that you don’t have much to offer in the way of blogging content - but I doubt it.
Have you faced a major illness, whether in yourself or in someone else? Have you started a business? Do you specialize in something within your field? Have you travelled to a foreign country? Learned another language? Do you have a garden? Do you have any hobbies? Do you have strong political beliefs? Are you an avid researcher of one topic or another? Do you have a family with a strong tradition in something? Do you have allergies or particular food preferences that other people don’t have? Do you excel at finding interesting photographs or stories? The list of questions could go on - if you can answer yes to any of these and similar questions - you can be a blogger. In fact, you SHOULD be. Your adoring public awaits. :)
Note: I should mention that a subset of this last point is the group of people who may have something to say, but don’t think they can write. Yaro actually goes into some detail about the “but I can’t write” objection - but let me assure you - you don’t need to write the next Great American Novel. If you can get your point across, you can blog.
Thanks for reading,
Eric
PS: If you’re interested in blogging and even making some money at it, feel free to download the Blog Profits blueprint written by Yaro Starak, my blog mentor. Also, please check out the articles that I linked to above if you haven’t already. Finally, I’m always happy to talk with folks some more about my experience with Blog Mastermind - just email me at d e e p e s t h e a l t h @ g m a i l . c o m, with no spaces between the letters. Also, as always, feel free to share your thoughts and questions in the comments!
Tags: Blogging, Business, community, content, creativity, education, fun, internet, Technology, websitesRelated posts
Creativity, Classical Chinese Medicine and our right to be wrong
Image via Wikipedia
The impact of this video should be experienced by everyone. How does it relate to Classical Chinese Medicine? How does it relate to this blog? Where do I begin?
All over the planet, there are people who think like I do. There are people who find a sense of hope in Classical Chinese Medicine, its way of treating human beings and its way of opening our minds to a perception of reality alternate to the one most of us are schooled within. I’m not talking about anything you can dismiss rapidly, so please, let rest your assumptions. For 20 years, I’ve been frustrated by the oppressive, soul killing, pervasive worldview that so dominates everything one sees through the mass media and through public education. This worldview says that the left brain is where it’s at, that logic (narrowly defined as it is in most University philosophy departments) should always rule, that there are no ghost or fairies or spirits, that something isn’t real or useful if it can’t be tested placebo-controlled and double blind and that intuition is a chemical reaction and nothing more. I’ve been frustrated by this worldview, but also enticed by it.
Why?
Because it brings the promise of security. Of safety. Of making the chaotic and gut-wrenching world into something that can be calculated, predicted, understood and dealt with. Also, because some of the most dynamic and interesting people in my life have been ruled by this worldview. Only sometimes I forget that they are dynamic and interesting despite their religious fervor for the elements of this worldview as described above. I’ve also variously drawn close to this worldview because sometimes the alternatives make me ill. It seems, at times, that the only choice is between what I’ve described and a kind of dreamy-eyed, crystal worshipping, close your eyes tightly and hope for a better future kind of stance. Neither is an option for me, and I guess the former seems more likely to be productive of something worth having.
Chinese medicine, for me, opens the door for an alternate interpretation. The world is both chaos and order. Both predictable and unpredictable. We predict with caveat and we accept unpredictability with tools to deal with the result of that unpredictability. We embrace chaos while seeing the beauty of the order within. We calmly respect order while allowing space for the chaos that whirls in the eddies of the human soul. We breathe in, we breathe out. We dream. We memorize. We try and fail. We fail and get back up again. I have learned all of these things and so many more in my brief three or four years seriously seeking to understand Chinese philosophy and its flowering in the most complex and promising medical system ever to grace our planet.
I know that for some of you all of this is easy to dismiss. But, I’ve grown tired of caring. I’ve grown tired of stifling myself for the sake of avoiding conflict with people who simply don’t think like me. Rest assured, this is not the abandoning of logic. It never has been, not for me. Watch that video again. Does that seem like a guy who has abandoned reason? Do his arguments ramble with no sense? Sure, you could probably find a way to logically refute his arguments - but what does that feed? Where does that go? I think we can all see where the worldview I have described is leading us. I refuse to walk that path.
Classical Chinese Medicine rests firmly on a scientific basis that accepts contradiction, embraces the totality of human experience and - perhaps most of all - makes a real difference in the lives of real human beings. It resonates deeply with the essence of the TED lecture linked above and, really, the essence of the entire TED project. That creativity and inspired intelligence are the deepest inheritance of humankind, that these traits are what will save our species and take us into a beautiful tomorrow. That color and sound and movement, art and introspection and perception, that THESE THINGS are what will lead us towards cures for disease - regardless of what else is necessary. That the symbols contained within Chinese characters are instructive, that symbolism in general is a language we can all understand. All of this I take to be self evident.
On a more personal level, I really feel that this lecture has unlocked the last little bit of reservation I have had about stepping into my power as a scholar, as a clinician, as a blogger and as a person. As you know from reading some of my recent posts, I’ve been struggling with what to write. This struggle has come primarily from my worry that others would attack me, would call me “wrong,” that I would make my teachers and my program look bad - a pervasive perfectionism shaped by a misguided sense of self preservation. I cannot always be right, and neither can you. But those of us who care about the world, who care about human beings, who love the beauty and the power of Classical Chinese Medicine (and, of course, other modalities) need to speak out, speak freely, and be willing to be wrong.
It’s our responsibility and our right.
Eric
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