Have you been shopping again? And things are popping out of your stuffed closets and packed drawers, maybe stashed behind doors and under your bed?
There is a strong correlation between a healthy colon and a healthy house. An unhealthy colon can seriously create a toxic environment. Together with its partner, the lungs, the colon is responsible for input and output of pure and impure substances. TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) considers human beings a manifestation of mind body spirit, and in feng shui we add the home environment to this trilogy of existence. It is a functional system of intake and output. When you correlate all of this with your house, where you replenish your supplies, but eventually accumulate more and more, there is such a thing as a “constipated house.”
This process of accumulation and elimination is a function of the metal dynamics in the cycle of Chinese elements. When nature reaches full capacity, it has to eliminate what earth has been amassing. Thus in autumn fruit needs to be harvested and trees will shed their leaves. Organisms contract within themselves and prepare for hibernation and dormancy. Plant nutrients are stored underground. Autumn is growing dominance of yin. Our tao connection to nature and the plant kingdom is an essential part of the ecosystem as plants absorb respiratory waste and produce life-giving oxygen. The lungs are a constant reminder of intake with every inhale of fresh oxygen and output with every exhale of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
The lungs are the official of rhythmic order, and the colon is the official of space clearing and elimination. It gets rid of excess baggage that has been useful but is no longer needed. Chinese medicine sees the colon as the official that removes rubbish on every level. TCM also relates the lungs to the skin, describing it as the third lung. Cleansing, purity and refinement are the ongoing mandate on the agenda of these interdependent functions.
Perhaps it is time to seriously engage the metal element for feng shui adjustments and purification of your home. Metal element personality types are very orderly. They like to have everything clean and pristine. They tend to be the aesthetes and minimalists, and they like to make things shine. They pay attention to detail, and they tend to embrace high standards of moral values and integrity. They take pride in a meticulous appearance and prefer quality to quantity.
If we aim to adopt some metal characteristics, we might succeed in checking off our list of feng shui do’s and don’ts for beautification and preservation of a healthy environment. Ask questions and answer with the discerning acumen of a metal type:
• As you enter your space, is there a single point focus for your gaze to come to rest?
• Take photos and get a two-dimensional view of your visual field.
• In your collection of objects, is there anything that stands out as particularly pleasing or edifying?
• With the discerning and discriminating eye of a metal type, could you assess and eliminate what might be too much and not essential?
• Empty spaces attract new opportunities, and empty containers are receptacles for the gifts from the universe.
• Have you thought of adding metal foods and flavor to your nutrition – fruits or vegetables with thick peels, white and pungent ingredients, daicon radishes, cauliflower and garlic?
• Have you polished your shiny surfaces – mirrors, metal knobs, jewelry, white countertops, silver flatware and your “golden globe”?
• Think of your metal target as round and pure while you engage in the creative process of distillation and elimination.
• Strong lung energy will keep you in the present moment with healthy respiration and creative inspiration.
• A clean colon will keep you motivated and focused.
