My Alchemy

[Taomeow]

Right, very valuable information Taomeow. But what can you tell about kidneys when the bags under eyes are like those of Michio Kushi as portrayed in the following doc?

 

d2WKYTfy49M

 

That's quite a face to read, thanks for posting! (I hope no macrobiotics fans are reading this, but perchance this is the case, I apologize -- no disrespect to you intended, and your teacher was, briefly, of interest for me too -- waay before TCM and then again at desperate times when I was grabbing at straws... which might be the very pool his followers are recruited from, people not knowing anything about TCM and/or desperate people grabbing at straws.

I've read many a glorified bogus diet protocol and can't say I myself never fell for any... thank god, that's not likely to ever happen to me again, now that I know at the very least what Michio Kushi never learned -- yin-yang dynamics! He has THAT completely bass ackwards, for starters, and that's only a start... nevermind, anti-Kushi rant over and out.)

 

 

OK, staying with his eyes only:

droopy upper eyelids -- depression, melancholy;

eyelids practically hanging off the edge while there's also deep double folds (very uncharacteristic for a Japanese face!) -- connective tissue weakness, severe jing depletion

severe bags under eyes -- bladder and prostate problems, possibly alcoholism, possibly heart problems

brown-yellow pigmentation -- liver and gallbladder problems

 

So... the man is sick as a dog if you ask me. I'd tell him what to do about some of it but he wouldn't listen...

Edited July 27, 2009 by Taomeow

[VCraigP]

somewhat mysterious

blue???

 

while acknowledge the "traditional" color associations of blue/black with kidneys I have received a related tradition.

 

Taomeow's comment "but it is also the color of water in a layer not thick enough to manifest color, which is mysterious indeed." encompasses some of this.

 

Kidneys are also related to the north. North related to pole star and heavens. heavens contain heavenly 3 treasures sun/moon/stars. North pole also has northern lights. Kidneys represent water and that which is hidden. all this and more is summed up by "mystical" qi so called color. It is blue / black, like the night sky, but within there is more hidden there.

 

that is part of my understanding.

 

Craig

[Taomeow]

while acknowledge the "traditional" color associations of blue/black with kidneys I have received a related tradition.

 

Taomeow's comment "but it is also the color of water in a layer not thick enough to manifest color, which is mysterious indeed." encompasses some of this.

 

Kidneys are also related to the north. North related to pole star and heavens. heavens contain heavenly 3 treasures sun/moon/stars. North pole also has northern lights. Kidneys represent water and that which is hidden. all this and more is summed up by "mystical" qi so called color. It is blue / black, like the night sky, but within there is more hidden there.

 

that is part of my understanding.

 

Craig

 

I very much agree.

 

Water is the most mysterious substance in the universe if you ask me. If one starts digging... I mean, diving... deeper into Water, one winds up chalking up pretty much everything happening in the universe to its antics.

 

I was told a long time ago that if you want to understand the behavior of qi, invest your awareness into studying the behavior of Water. Been at it for quite a while and it's inexhaustible... a new surprise every day, a new "aha" every other day!

[rain]

.

Edited July 28, 2009 by rain

[WhiteTiger]

"it is those who are hardest to love, that need it the most" There is no reason to call someone mean and stupid as an eye for an eye leaves everyone blind

 

I admire you for pointing out this.

 

An eye for an eye... when does the fighting end. After not to long you'll be blind.

[Andrei]

That's quite a face to read, thanks for posting! (I hope no macrobiotics fans are reading this, but perchance this is the case, I apologize -- no disrespect to you intended, and your teacher was, briefly, of interest for me too -- waay before TCM and then again at desperate times when I was grabbing at straws... which might be the very pool his followers are recruited from, people not knowing anything about TCM and/or desperate people grabbing at straws.

I've read many a glorified bogus diet protocol and can't say I myself never fell for any... thank god, that's not likely to ever happen to me again, now that I know at the very least what Michio Kushi never learned -- yin-yang dynamics! He has THAT completely bass ackwards, for starters, and that's only a start... nevermind, anti-Kushi rant over and out.)

OK, staying with his eyes only:

droopy upper eyelids -- depression, melancholy;

eyelids practically hanging off the edge while there's also deep double folds (very uncharacteristic for a Japanese face!) -- connective tissue weakness, severe jing depletion

severe bags under eyes -- bladder and prostate problems, possibly alcoholism, possibly heart problems

brown-yellow pigmentation -- liver and gallbladder problems

 

So... the man is sick as a dog if you ask me. I'd tell him what to do about some of it but he wouldn't listen...

 

 

Thank you Taomeow for your comments. I have a question though, why do you consider this guy having a "severe jing depletion"? To me it looks like a typical "excess Yin/internal dampness" syndrome due to excess kidney Jing... you're right because of macrobiotics food. Also you're right usually this bags under eyes appear at some alcoholics (it is a sign of alcoholism) but I believe the real reason behind is due to much fluids intake (water) and too little (metabolic) fire or Qi, in that case you can say Qi deficiency or Yang deficiency. Also I believe this guy is on the contrary a "typical asian old guy" due to their food based on rice, mung beans, soy beans, fish and other food sources that restore Jing, which in their case is excessive because lack of cultivation of Yang energy, Qi circulation or as you say misunderstanding of Yin/Yang dynamics. I just wrote my thoughts, if I'm wrong I am here to learn and I will highly appreciate your answer.

 

In my opinion "my alchemy" is resumed by this image that say everything about alchemy (thanks to Trunk for his site):

Edited July 28, 2009 by steam

[Andrei]

My alchemy:

 

 

 

 

It may be some mistakes in these drawings but at the time I draw them I was unaware of them, anyhow this is how I did my alchemy a couple of years ago

[Taomeow]

Thank you Taomeow for your comments. I have a question though, why do you consider this guy having a "severe jing depletion"? To me it looks like a typical "excess Yin/internal dampness" syndrome due to excess kidney Jing... you're right because of macrobiotics food. Also you're right usually this bags under eyes appear at some alcoholics (it is a sign of alcoholism) but I believe the real reason behind is due to much fluids intake (water) and too little (metabolic) fire or Qi, in that case you can say Qi deficiency or Yang deficiency. Also I believe this guy is on the contrary a "typical asian old guy" due to their food based on rice, mung beans, soy beans, fish and other food sources that restore Jing, which in their case is excessive because lack of cultivation of Yang energy, Qi circulation or as you say misunderstanding of Yin/Yang dynamics. I just wrote my thoughts, if I'm wrong I am here to learn and I will highly appreciate your answer.

 

In my opinion "my alchemy" is resumed by this image that say everything about alchemy (thanks to Trunk Abfor his site):

Thanks for your thought too, Steam (nice name! -- your picture of your alchemy seems to show how you came to produce it )

 

OK, "severe jing depletion" -- that's the sunken-in eyelid folds, according to my sources and personal observations. "Excess jing" is something I've never heard about. I don't think anyone suffers from excess jing these days, only jing deficiency of varying degrees, it's the plague of our time. Jing is energetic and molecular memory of the species and the individual, and one can't possibly have an excess of that, ever. The more the merrier. (I am familiar with misinterpretations of jing as sexual energy or even, god help us all, semen, but these are only the most visible and the most narrow aspects of jing and its manifestations. In an unbalanced bodymind certain manifestations might be excessive, and if one thinks of sexuality as the whole jing enchilada, one might mistake overexpression of that for "jing excess," whereas it's merely an indicator of jing imbalance.)

 

About "excess Yin/internal Dampness." Looks like qi and yin deficiency to me, and -- believe it or not -- dryness, despite the swollen bags of water under the eyes. This is the kind of water they call "sha," it's not structured properly, it is intercellular edema rather than intracellular excess. Intercellular sha, water leaking out into the intercellular space through the cell wall due to the latter's weakness, and cell wall's weakness an outcome of intracellular water having lost its energetic matrix (qi in TCM, ATP in Western terms, both and more in my book) and therefore structural integrity, may indeed look as "dampness" but the underlying cause is "qi deficiency," and also "yin deficiency" because just fluids ain't no yin, yin fluids are "slow yin," the kind that moisturizes the tissues and makes a healthy face appear supple like a juicy fruit, not the kind that goes in and out of the body taxing the kidneys with extra work without taking hold where it's needed. He may eat a lot of slow yin foods but they don't work out for him because fast yang foods are missing to balance them out -- it's like changing oil in your car so it runs smoothly but failing to put in gas! So, yes, we agree on this point, too little metabolic fire, he can't "cook" his yin foods properly in his system... oh, and I forgot, doesn't he prefer to eat stuff raw or semi-raw, grains in particular?! What sad folly. So, anyway, the overall picture is of overall deficiency (I see no excess symptoms whatsoever anywhere, stagnation and blockage, yes, but deficiency-induced, not excess-induced. No energy to move stuff around metabolically. Which all boils down to "jing deficiency," with this going on, everything else follows.)

 

The traditional Japanese diet is jing-restoring, you're right, and very healthy. Kushi hasn't been following that by a long shot. His "macrobiotic" diet is full of idiotic additions (like uncooked grains) and omissions (like red meat, which the Japanese and pretty much all other East Asians eat eagerly, though moderately, the way it should be eaten) but, what's worse, it is another "one diet fits all" deal and this is so very wrong in every single case... and quite unbalanced, and boring to tears. (Boredom at meals does produce life force deficiency! Jing is memory, memorable meals is what restores it, among other things -- whether there's good company and laughter and great wine to remember them by or the superb skill of the cook... or, in the ideal scenario, both. )

 

Of course I'm still learning too, there's no such thing as "knowledge excess" where diet and health are concerned... only deficiencies and imbalances to correct. Been enjoying the conversation!

 

Craig, my apologies for the tangent within your subject. I always do that.

Edited July 28, 2009 by Taomeow

[Aetherous]

Awesome stuff, Taomeow. You really should make your Taoist cookbook.

[Andrei]

To me Jing means "body fluids" but your point of view is more profound an I believe being the correct one.

Thank you again, that clarified the subject.

 

good company and laughter and great wine to remember them by or the superb skill of the cook... or, in the ideal scenario, both

 

This is another excellent alchemical way of enjoying life.

 

Craig, my apologies for the tangent within your subject. I always do that.

 

No need to apologize because this is not tangent, it's right in the center of any alchemy i.e. balanced diet and understanding how our body work and what it needs.

 

Edited July 28, 2009 by steam

[Taomeow]

Thank you, Scotty and Steam!

 

Scotty, I have so much weird stuff cooking on so many burners... ...but appreciate the thought.

Have you tried the pilaf yet?

[hagar]

 

This dude is the president of the Norwegian Soccer Organization. He's a symbol for me as to what kind of lifestyle and attitude towards life that brings him all the way to the top in this very, very important organization.

 

So who's up for a read? Anyone?

 

h

 

It's blue or black traditionally but it is also the color of water in a layer not thick enough to manifest color, which is mysterious indeed.

 

You can see it in the face of someone with weak Kidneys -- a blue tint under the eyes (if you see a black tint there, it may mean more trouble than just weakness.) If in the area of the kidneys projection you see Water's own colors -- blue or black or none at all -- or the colors of her Mother -- Metal -- which is white, or the color of her child -- Wood -- which is green -- it's not the worst case scenario. What's a bad sign is the colors of the destructive or controlling cycles reflecting into Water, the yellow of the Earth (blocks Water) and the red of Fire (evaporates Water). So circles under the eyes can tell the story of the Kidneys in color pictures and in much detail.

 

No color -- Kidneys are fine

Blue -- overworked Kidneys

Black -- Kidneys dangerously overworked

Green -- Liver suffering from overworked Kidneys

White -- Lungs overworked, Kidneys undernourished

Yellow -- Spleen blocks Kidneys

Red -- Kidneys attack Heart

 

(You can tell I've been reading up on Face Diagnostics, right? )

 

I've always wanted a diagnosis of this guy

[Andrei]

You can do it by yourself:

 

 

http://www.facereading.cx/whichelement.htm

 

To me it looks like a Metal-Fire face, with the metal element in excess, internal dryness except the kidney and liver which retain fluids (maybe because drinking too much but also because Fire controls the Metal and generate Water and the kidneys are overworked). Also I think he eats a lot of meat that imbalances even more the energy of the body which can be seen in the wrinkles that show the affected organs. Horizontal wrinkles on the front head are due to worries and grief (stress).

Edited July 30, 2009 by steam

[hagar]

You can do it by yourself:

 

 

http://www.facereading.cx/whichelement.htm

 

To me it looks like a Metal-Fire face, with the metal element in excess, internal dryness except the kidney and liver which retain fluids (maybe because drinking too much but also because Fire controls the Metal and generate Water and the kidneys are overworked). Also I think he eats a lot of meat that imbalances even more the energy of the body which can be seen in the wrinkles that show the affected organs. Horizontal wrinkles on the front head are due to worries and grief (stress).

 

Ah! Very enlightening.

 

h

[VCraigP]

Craig, my apologies for the tangent within your subject. I always do that.

 

Should I go back and rename this thread FACE READING FOR PEOPLE who don't want to leave Craig's thread alone?

 

No worries. We all know how threads evolve, dissolve and transform.

 

I just had felt the urge to transmit a little piece of what I have learned before going to another retreat with my teacher. Just got back last night. Maybe I will have something else to say here to expand on my starting point.

 

PS - Anyone brave enough to post a pic of their own face for general amateur and/or expert analysis? (NOT ME!)

 

With Love Qi

 

Craig

[Lucky7Strikes]

Taomeow,

 

You have a book out? Where?

[WhiteTiger]

PS - Anyone brave enough to post a pic of their own face for general amateur and/or expert analysis? (NOT ME!)

 

With Love Qi

 

Craig

 

I'm brave enough... or stupid and definately ignorant enough to do it.

 

Although I don't have a digital camera I don't really have many pictures of me especially any on the computer. I've even neglected to put a picture of me (because lack of having many at my disposal) on facebook. Which I do want to put a picture of me on there.

[gendao]

I'm brave enough... or stupid and definately ignorant enough to do it.

Sure, me too. Fire away, face readers!

[Aetherous]

Vortex,

 

I'd say you have a lot of mohawk qi...and your Keanu-Reeves-expression qi is okay, but not quite blank enough.