Can you believe that we are already in the second week of June? We are standing in the threshold between the season of Spring and Summer. The next few weeks, you may feel the shifts in your body and mind as you instinctively and intuitively adapt and adjust for the approaching Summer. Sometimes that comes with ease, and other times, it can be a roller coaster of emotions. We too are being pulled upon by the changes in the natural world. If you feel that your are betwixt and between, know that it is uniquely yours to work with AND it is something that is much bigger than you that we are all going through in our own ways.
In ancient Chinese Medicine, from which acupuncture arose, this is a shift between the Wood Element of Spring, that represents renewal and growth (liver/gall bladder chi) and the Fire Element of Summer that brings forth maturation (heart/small intestine, pericardium/triple burner chi)....And because we are transitioning from one season to the next, Earth Element is present (stomach/spleen chi) to assist us in getting grounded in a new routine and way of being.
Think of it this way, Wood Element assists you with your visionary self, dreaming and imagining what you want to do or be, what feels like it brings out the most true version of yourself (Liver Chi). This energy also assists you in taking those visions and turning them into tangible action or change (Gall Bladder Chi). Like the season of Spring, it symbolically takes life that has been hidden during the Winter and starts it on its outward growth and expression, this energy aids you in the beginnings of new ideas, projects and personal missions.
Fire Element is the transformative energy that brings maturation in your vision so that your actions (or feelings/inner dialog) align with the Heart. The Heart is the benevolent ruler on the throne of your inner kingdom. Like a good sovereign, Heart Chi nourishes all and yet controls nothing. Heart works in service of bringing calm and order to the inner realm. Heart's partner, Small Intestine, is like the "Hand of the Queen/King" and serves to discern so you can more easily sort what is important to preserve in you life as part of YOU... and what to acknowledge and release because it is not nourishing or serving you. As you can imagine, these roles get played out in many physical, psychological, and spiritual ways.
These teachings and concepts may be themes that you have explored on your own or with me in previous seasons/years, or these may be ideas that are really new or foreign to you. Either way, I am going to be sharing teachings from traditional medicine in my Yin Yoga classes over the coming 6 weeks. I promise it will be offered in a digestible, approachable and applicable way for you in your life.
These practices and explorations into the subtle energies can really anchor us through the seasonal shifts and provide tangible ways to support our bodies, minds, and spirit in grounded and meaningful ways.
Check out the schedule of class themes below! I look forward to taking a deeper dive with you in the coming weeks.
Yin Yoga Themes for the Coming Weeks
with Machelle Lee
Yin Yoga Classes are Offered
Saturdays 9:00-10:30am (EST)
Mondays 7:30 - 8:30pm (EST)
Thursdays 4:15-5:30pm (EST)
Themes for the next few weeks
Heart/Small Intestine - Physical Associations
June 11th, 13th, 16th
Summer Solstice, Heart/Small Intestine - Psychological Associations
June 18th, 20th, 23rd
Pericardium/Triple Burner - Physical Associations
June 25th, 27th, 30th
Pericardium/Triple Bruner - Psychological Associations
July 2nd, 4th, 7th
Archetypes and Storytelling for the Heart/Fire Element
July 9th, 11th, 14th
Poems for Summer Chi
July 16th, 18th, 21st
These classes are offered in-studio, online LIVEstream, or you can register for the online class and receive a recording to enjoy for 6 days at your own convenience. If you are reading this blog later and would like to request a copy of these classes, email machelle@rootsandriveryoga.com