Summer Solstice & the Heart of the Matter
Happy Summer Solstice! As we cross the threshold into the most sweltering season of the year, our hearts are given the opportunity to lift and expand. In Chinese Medicine, the Heart governs Summer, representing the emperor or empress of the inner realm. We feel a sense of lightness as we bask in the brightness of the days and soak up the warmth of the sun. The inherent radiance of the Heart shines its light upon all of the other organs of the body, encouraging them to perform their tasks with a liveliness that can only come from being shone upon by this fiery organ itself. Each part of the body uplifted by the empress' lustre, all the tasks within the body-mind-spirit are performed with extra vim at this time of year, operating with efficiency and quickness. Yet because the weather is generally hot, we must take care of our Hearts so that they, and we, don't overheat and scorch the fluids of the body, and so that the spirit stays calm and harmonized.
I generally liken the Heart in Chinese Medicine to Leo the Lion, and although we're not there yet from a Western astrological perspective, this connection is too clear to ignore! Leo is archetypically represented the King or Queen, easily enough paired with the Emperor or Empress. Leo is associated with the Lion's Heart, which is another obvious relationship with the Western zodiac sign. Lastly, both the Heart and Leo are associated with the emotion of Joy. Leo seeks to express itself creatively, needing to share its heart with the world through taking vulnerable risks that allow it to expand like the Heart in Chinese Medicine does. Leo shines its brightness on those around it, encouraging them to also shine in the ways they naturally do, feeling inspired by the warmth of the King or Queen. Leo needs to be creative, expressive, and silly, allowing its warmth to radiate into the room in a way in which all are uplifted. And in just one month's time, we'll be there to celebrate and play like Leo loves to do. Until then, we return to the realm of Chinese Medicine, and eventually to Cancer Season...
When we allow ourselves to rest deep within during the Winter months, recharging our bodies, minds, and hearts to be birthed again in the Spring, we are given an opportunity to focus our energy on important projects that bring meaning to our lives. In the Summer, after having accomplished the task we set out to do in the season prior, we naturally experience the satisfaction and joy that comes from this undertaking. Chinese Medicine finds it important to rest in this period of growth, naturally allowing the Heart to open and expand as it loves to do. Only then can we truly be ready to move into the next phase of the cycle without feeling like we've rushed through the best part of a novel, movie, and most certainly our own lives. Rather than hurrying up to accomplish the next thing on the agenda, the Heart encourages us to pause in this place of openness, letting it uplift our spirits so that we can carry this experience with us wherever we go.
The Heart is associated with the spirit, known as the shén in CM, and when this part of us is in balance, we know it, and so does everyone else! We can see a bright shén in people's eyes and feel it in their energy. If we chase experiences that bring us Joy and a "high" without the aforementioned space to enjoy the natural expansion of the Heart, we quickly reach burnout, and the body pays a price in the form of erratic sleep or wild dreams, insomnia, palpitations and anxiety, issues with the blood vessels, speech complications, or spontaneous sweating. In order to keep the shén bright without burning out, we're invited to pause and rest between life's activities and intensities, as well as to take the time to breathe well, meditate, and practice soothing activities like yoga.
The Summer is also a time to partake in the Bitter Flavor that the Heart loves to much. My favourite herb for the Heart (though perhaps not favourite to taste!) is Huang Lian, also known as Coptis Rhizome. This root moves to the Heart, Stomach, Liver, and Large Intestine Channels, and is Cold, clearing heat, fire, and toxins from the body. Not that you need to run out and buy it, but if you're like me and tend toward heat in the Heart, it's quite a good one! As well, the acupuncture point called Shén Mén, or Spirit Gate, is a wonderful point to calm the spirit, as well as to tonify and regulate the Heart. It's located just beneath the pisiform bone on the ulnar side of the wrist (underside). Doing a bit of acupressure at this point can definitely calm the shén and nourish the Heart!
Now we move in what might seem like a totally different direction, for in the Western zodiac, we have just crossed the threshold into Cancer Season. Known as the tortoise in Babylonian times, this sign is that of the mother and the healer, the one who nourishes all of life. This time is one of connecting with the Heart in totally different ways than those we've been talking about, but these ways will actually help bring just the balance that the Heart in Chinese Medicine needs. We're encouraged to a practice I like to call "healing through feeling," allowing our emotions to take the centre stage, letting them move through us fully and completely, over and again. The sign of "big feels" and deep nurturance, Cancer encourages us to experience our emotions with tenderness, to draw our soul families close, and to trust our own emotional experience with all of ourselves, letting it take us where we need to go, even (and especially) if it's not what we expected. This is the sign where we learn to mother ourselves, honouring our body's and heart's needs in a way that no one else can. We also learn to listen within, tuning into the deep inner realm, gaining access to our soul's yearnings and longings, and nurturing them to life in just the right ways and at just the right times. It's through this connection with the intuitive, sensitive realm within that we begin to know the love that is there within, waiting to bloom and grow so that we partake of its joyful presence, over and again. Only when we trust this delicate flow of life can we taste the fullness that's been waiting to express itself, there all along.
The Force is always with you! May you know it deeply within and share it in all that you do.
