5 elements

[AcEs]

I have some questions about these 5 elements Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Space.

 

1.How important is it that these elements are in balance?

 

2.Can an imbalance of one or more cause mental and emotional problems.

 

3.How does one know your out of balance with one or more and how do you balance these elements?

 

I have read about this but i would like to know what you guy's  have to say about it. If you have some experience with theses elements i would love to hear your stories.

 

Thank you

 

[Andrei]

1. Very

2. yes

3. Do a BaZi analysis

[Gerard]

Hi,

 

The Five Elements are in fact:

 

1. Water...embodied by the Kidney-Urinary Bladder network in the human environment

2. Wood...as above but Liver-Gallbladder

3. Fire...Heart-Small Intestine

4. Earth...Spleen-Stomach

5. Metal...Lung-Large Intestine

 

All these elements interact with each other in various ways/cycles. You must learn their workings in order to maintain your whole body-mind paradigm in a state of balance and harmony. It's challenging especially if one happens to live in the 'real world' (society).

 

Background reading:

 

Introduction

Relationships

 

 

Your questions:

 

1. Yes, very. Purifying the mind involves refining them

2. Yes, certainly

3. Your lifestyle and behaviour

 

 

The practice of Bagua brings the five elements to a pre-heaven state (prior to birth). It's a long and ardous process but very well worth it. Priceless, I pay my respects to the art itself, my teacher and teachers of my lineage, ancient Daoists and Nature itself as a result.

 

Good luck!

 

 

[RiverSnake]

There are many systems of Elements. The one you are referring to is Western-Hermetic system which was influenced by Vedic traditions. Gerard is referring to the Chinese elemental system. 

 

1. It's important. 

2. Yes 

 

3. Lot of different ways to reach internal harmony. Franz Bardon in Initiation into Hermetics spends a great deal of time and emphasis on elemental balancing exercises. Aryuveda and TCM also looks at elemental balancing of the body. I don't personally spend much time dwelling on the elements but just focus on working through blockages. If you have an internal practice already that your getting good results from....i'd say just keep doing it. Cheers. 

[Mudfoot]

Gerard is writing about wuxing, the five phases, often translated as the five elements. Earth-water-fire-air-space has come down through buddhist methods, and are not the same.

In my system I work on the wuxing with dynamic exercises, and with the five elements during zhan zhuan. Although with overlaps in name, they are not the same.

[Wu Ming Jen]

I would not worry about the five elements. If you are doing 5 element Chi gung designed to work with specific organs and meridians feel,(this is the communication of mind and body no words needed).  knowing is doing and doing is knowing

 

The five agents to go (Taoist system) refer to the energetic properties of all creation not something static, like fire it rises, water it sinks, wood pushes up through the ground, bendable strength and metal is compressed. With out earth there is nothing to keep these elements together and to interplay in creation. The five elements are part of all Taoist systems, music, medicine,science,  martial arts and so on. It gets deeper there is the creative cycle, destructive cycle and a third cycle.

 

Go to the source and find the balance mentally or emotionally the elements will naturally find their proper place with no effort at all. Good luck. 

[Mudfoot]

AcEs

 

As you can see, you can adress this subject from more than one angle.

 

Someone coming from a system of medical qigong who sets a diagnosis might prescribe exercises based on your current inbalance.

 

Others would say that you should work, consciously, with all the elements which will make the system strong, flexible and balanced as a long term practice. And by all means, some systems will do that for you without using five element theory at all.

 

Just pick a method.

[AcEs]

Thanks allot guy's, wow did not think i would get so much reply's and that it's so confusing but i have a starting point to look at.

 

Will look into what your all are saying.

Edited September 9, 2016 by AcEs

[Gerard]

...and make sure you look at the 'Princess' of the organs first (The Lung, The Master and Commander of Qi), because it is easily bullied by the excesses of the Heart and its healthy and balanced state will depend on its Mother: The Spleen, which in turn is the Heart's son.

 

Further reading:

 

Lesson 4: Zangfu Theory – Lung and Large Intestine

 

As you can see the Five Element Theory should become the major aspect of your practice. A product of China's ancient wisdom.

 

 

Best!

Edited September 10, 2016 by Gerard

[AcEs]

Thanks Gerard 

 

Very interesting, allot of reading to do, thanks for the info!!!

 

Just what i was looking for.

Edited September 10, 2016 by AcEs

[doc benway]

I have some questions about these 5 elements Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Space.

 

1.How important is it that these elements are in balance?

 

2.Can an imbalance of one or more cause mental and emotional problems.

 

3.How does one know your out of balance with one or more and how do you balance these elements?

 

I have read about this but i would like to know what you guy's  have to say about it. If you have some experience with theses elements i would love to hear your stories.

 

Thank you

 

Tibetan medicine and healing are based on the five elements as you describe them.

They view the balance of the elements as the fundamental ingredient for mental and physical health.

Each element has characteristics that help one assess balance.

I have gradually studied, cultivated, and experienced the five element paradigm in my daily practices and life.

They provide a very insightful view of our life experience and are very effective in achieving and maintaining mental and physical balance.

 

 

A succinct introduction:

http://www.lujong.org/medicine/elements/

 

Here are a few videos that touch on the Tibetan approach:

 

Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche from a free 6 month online course he led in 2015. 

This is part two. I believe all parts are available online for free - it presents a beautiful and simple lifelong practice for health. This part focuses on the elemental nature of the 'soul' in the Tibetan paradigm and how soul retrieval achieved through balancing the elements. Rinpoche presents a progressive approach to this practice which is very accessible.

 

 

 

Here is the guided meditation practice extracted from the above presentation.

 

 

 

Elsewhere we can find more traditional presentations including the dakinis (goddesses), mudras, mantras, and other "religious" aspects.

 

Geshe YongDong presenting a traditional approach of chanting mantra and offering mudra.

 

 

 

Dmitry Ermakov presents a discourse on traditional Tibeatan view of the soul and its elemental nature.

 

Edited September 18, 2016 by steve