Blood Pressure issues are common in our society, especially as we age. And while a healthy diet, exercise, and the care of a physician are the best way to maintain blood pressure levels, awareness and maintenance of your body’s energy system can also be a great help. To understand what the energy system is and how it works, you must start with an understanding of its main component…chi.
Chi – The Energy of Life
Chi can be best described as the power source of the human body, or the energy of the body. Its physical counterpart is the nervous system. The circulation of chi through the body not only gives it life, but it also greatly influences its health and well-being. Chi moves in an internal pattern that links the various functions of each of the body’s systems, animating every cell in order to maintain vitality and create unity to the body as a whole. It also connects the body to its environment, enabling you to feel and interact with the world around you. A balanced, even flow to the circulation of chi throughout the body is the most desirable for optimal health. However, the main pathway of chi can be diverted or disrupted, depending on one’s habits of eating, sleeping, moving, resting, feeling and thinking. When this happens, illness results.
The good news is that chi is responsive to the energy of thought. This means that you can direct the flow of your own, internal energy, by way of mental focus. Various ancient, eastern philosophies and practices, such as Tai Chi Chuan, Qigong and Esoteric Taoism, have developed intricate systems of study and practice that demonstrate chi and its effects on your body. But don’t take their word for it, try it yourself. The following Taoist technique not only temporarily lowers, or raises, your blood pressure, but it may also serve as personal proof that the power of your own thought has direct and immediate effect on your being.
How to Move Chi to Affect Blood Pressure
The main storage area for chi in the body is the navel center. Life begins here when the body enters the world as a fetus. The fetus remains linked to the mother at the navel through the umbilical cord, enabling it to survive and grow until the moment of birth. Throughout life, the navel center continues to serve as the main generator of chi by collecting energy from the external environment through the navel, and circulating it around the body via the breath.
Chi can be best described as the power source of the human body, or the energy of the body. Its physical counterpart is the nervous system.
Before you begin this practice make sure to take your current blood pressure reading so you can compare your results. Be prepared to take another reading right after you complete the practice. Find a quiet spot where you will not be disturbed; one which will enable you to focus for a few minutes. The entire practice can take as little as 2 minutes, or up to 10, as long as you feel it necessary to continue.
The Practice
The first step to begin the practice of either lowering or raising the blood pressure is to concentrate your focus on the navel center. To do this, simply relax, close your eyes and put your mind on the area one-and a-half inches below the skin, right at your navel. It is not necessary to worry about your breathing, nor force your concentration. If you are having trouble focusing on the navel, it may be helpful to place one of your fingers on the area with a slight pressure.
As you continue focusing, you may experience the sensation of warmth, tingling, or fluttering at the navel. This is a good sign, and one that indicates it is time to move on to the next step. If you don’t feel anything, do not worry that you are doing it wrong, as the experience is not the same for everyone. Keep your focus on the navel for a minute or so, then move on to the next step according to your desired results.
To Lower Blood Pressure
After you have focused on the navel center, bring your awareness to the feet, and focus your mind there. Chi follows thought, so when you think of your feet, your chi will flow to them. The effect will also cause the blood flow to move toward the feet, serving to lower the overall pressure in the body. Stay focused on the feet until you feel a change in your energy, taking at least a minute. This will create a downward flow to your internal energy and, most likely, the pressure of your blood.
To Raise Blood Pressure
To raise your blood pressure, focus your mind on the area between the eyebrows, in the center of your head. This area is also known to some as the third eye. Focusing here for a minute or longer will direct chi into an upward flowing momentum in the body, likely causing the blood pressure to rise.
What if it doesn’t work?
It should be noted that the lasting effects of these practices are not long-term. However, you may want to make this a daily practice to help your body form a healthy pattern of chi flow. Doing so can only serve to help, and not hamper, the overall balance of your blood pressure.
If you find that lowering your pressure makes you feel dizzy, weak, or unstable in any way, it is best to stop the practice. Likewise, if you find that raising your chi causes you to have headaches, tension, or any other discomfort, stop the practice. There is always the possibility that you can over-do it. Like everything in life, chi flow is about balance. Please use caution and common sense to keep yourself safe.
Your current stress levels, surroundings, food and drink consumption are just a few of the factors that may hinder the effects of this practice. If you find that the practice did not work for you, you might try altering your environment, or you may want to try again at another time. Your ability to focus your thoughts, even for a moment, is crucial to the success of this practice. If this is difficult for you, try a daily meditation practice to exercise your ability to calm the mind and still the thoughts.
Realizing the Reality of Chi
You may have learned that the world and everything in it, including your own body, is made of energy, but practices such as this one can give you the direct experience of this knowing. The success of this practice has lasting implication for you to ponder, for once you realize how powerful your thoughts can be at directing energy, you can apply it to all others areas of your life. A positive mental attitude, and command of your own energies, can help you to enjoy the endless possibilities for health and happiness that life has to offer you. If you enjoyed this practice and want to learn more, look to the various schools of thought and discipline, such as aforementioned Tai Chi Chuan, Qigong, Taoism, and the many other energy practices available for further explanation and exploration.
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