Energetic Winter and Transcending the Emotion of Fear: The Kidneys are the Root of Life, Regeneration and Vitalit

The energetic Winter season is associated with the element of Water according to traditional Chinese medicine, and Water’s associated organs are the yin kidneys and the yang bladder. 

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In traditional Chinese medicine, the kidneys are where our core vital energy is located so when kidney is strong and in balance, we promote regeneration of the body, youth, vibrancy and vitality. We could say that the kidneys contain our blueprint for health. They are considered to be the body’s most important receptacle of essential energy, known in traditional Chinese medicine as the “Root of Life.” The kidneys are also the root of all yin and yang energy in the body.

Consider how important the kidneys’ function is by the following:

• They filter waste metabolites from the blood.

• They control sexual and reproductive functions.

• With the large intestine, they control the balance of fluids in the body.

• They regulate the pH balance (acidity/alkalinity) of the body by either retaining or filtering out certain minerals.

• They control the growth and development of the skeletal system and nourish the bone marrow.

Kidney chi is approximate terminology for the functional combination of kidney energy. It is almost never in excess but it is frequently deficient. 

A good lifestyle helps ensure good kidney health.

Simply do all the things you would think are good for you and refrain from the things you know are not:

• Keep hydrated.

• Eat healthily, especially fresh organic fruits and vegetables; aside from their nutritional content, they tend to have a high water content beneficial for the kidneys and entire body.

• Get an appropriate amount of exercise that is enjoyable to you.

• Get friendly flora into your intestinal system by eating naturally fermented foods.

• Drink green juices and smoothies.

• Detox in epsom salt baths to help detoxify the kidneys.

• Moderate your use of over-the-counter drugs.

• Refrain from smoking.

• Don’t overdo sugar, salt and fat.

• Moderate your alcohol consumption.

Physical stressors compromise the Water energy and lead to imbalance. This can then exacerbate the fears and mistrust that lie under the calm waters of the well adapted Water Type person. Do not physically overextend yourself through excess of exercise, sleep, sports, or work.

Causes of kidney deficiency may include:

• overwork over a long period of time

• too much brain work

• a long vitality-draining illness

• overindulgence in sexual activity

• acute fever

• prolonged hemorrhage

• overconsumption of drugs

“During the winter months all things in nature wither, hide, return home, and enter a resting period, just as lakes and rivers freeze and snow falls. This is a time when yin dominates yang. Therefore one should refrain from overusing the yang energy. Retire early and get up with the sunrise, which is later in Winter. Desires and mental activity should be kept quiet and subdued. Sexual desires especially should be contained, as if keeping a happy secret. Stay warm, avoid the cold, and keep the pores closed. Avoid sweating. The philosophy of the Winter season is one of conservation and storage. Without such practice the result will be injury to the kidney energy…”

— The Neijing Suwen

The Spirit Quality of Water
Water’s spirit quality is known in traditional Chinese medicine as zhi. It may be expressed as the mental abilities of will and intent including the concepts of will power, ambition, and self-actualization.

Zhi, the energy of will, purpose and destiny, is the will we tap into in order to survive ordeals, persevere through challenges and overcome obstacles. With zhi we utilize our will to overcome our greatest fears, to transform ourselves and to create healing. It assists us to persist in life against all odds.

The Water element is considered the root of our constitutional energy. It correlates with having adequate energetic reserves bringing us the potency to overcome obstacles. Strength, determination and persistence arise and thrive in the Water element.

The Water element requires quiet and stillness to flourish. In traditional Chinese medicine, the kidney energy is considered the most interior and yin with the greatest power and potential for change. Tapping into that energy gives the courage to try, even when the outcome is unknowable. 

Emotions of the Water Element and Kidneys
Fear is the primary emotion associated with the Water element and the energetic Winter season which runs from November 8 to January 7 every year. 

While fear is the negative emotion of Water, will power is the positive emotion of the kidneys.

The kidneys control our short-term memory and provide us the capacity for strength and industriousness.

When the kidney energy is strong, we’re able to work hard and diligently for long periods of time. We have the will power to live life with focus and a good sense of direction.

When kidney energy is weak, we lack strength and endurance. We become susceptible to fear and anxiety.

The Water element stores the memory of who we are and the potential of who we can become. All of our accumulated experiences are stored in the Water element and therefore enhance our survival, adaptation and balance.

“In a sense, this element contains stories of survival and triumph passed down through the generations that can be used to ensure our own adaptive powers.

With any chronic condition, loss of the memory of wellness complicates recovery. Deep in the pool of the Water energy are the renewal and revitalization needed to recover wellness. Deep within the brain lies potential for change, knowledge, and wisdom.”

— Charles A. Moss, MD

The Water element corresponds to determination, energetic reserves, faith and trust.

On a physical level, it’s important to note that having a strong sense of faith affects regulation of the stress hormone cortisol. Cortisol release is necessary but left unregulated, it directly and negatively impacts our health and even our weight.

By connecting to our zhi, the power of the kidney energy and the root of life, we reconnect to the spirit of life and are better able to restore our enthusiasm, confidence, and sense of direction in life. Connecting with the power of the kidney energy and our zhi may also assist us to recover from trauma or medical challenges.

Spirit storehouse that kidney is, it provides us with a reservoir of energy we can tap into to regain self-assurance, trust, and faith in surviving our challenges in life.

For zhi to flourish, we must have a strong trust and faith in the process of life, in ourselves and in other people. When we are balanced in the energy of the Water element, our zhi assists us to overcome abnormal fears.

Some fear, as we know, is necessary to reinforce our survival instinct. It simply must be used wisely and in balance with heightened awareness but not hypervigilance, otherwise that hypervigilance will lead to imbalance.

If you feel you lack faith and trust, search your daily experiences to see how often the mistrust and fear you have felt were actually unjustified. We can all recall a times when we were fearful about something only to find out afterwards that there was nothing to be afraid about after all. Coming to this realization will help rebuild your faith and trust. This simple practice will prove especially valuable for when the next situation arises.

We can also dispel doubts and fears through meditation, prayer, and practicing self-awareness. In meditation, conjure a connection to your deep reserves and potential of the Water energy. Doing so can reinforce the faith you need to overcome obstacles and trust that you’ll not only survive but flourish in life just as Water does.

Another way to strengthen your faith and trust is by accepting reassurance from others. It can help to neutralize the fear-based experience and will strongly encourage all the positive attributes of the Water element within you. 

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Endnotes:

This blog was originally published November 21, 2017 but has been expanded here for freshness and comprehensiveness.

Sources:

Clogstoun-Willmott, Jonathan. Western Astrology and Chinese Medicine. Aquarian, 1985.

Ni, Maoshing. The Yellow Emperor's Classic of Medicine: a New Translation of the Neijing Suwen with Commentary. Shambhala, 1995.

Moss, Charles A. Power of the Five Elements: The Chinese Medicine Path to Healthy Aging and Stress Resistance. United States, North Atlantic Books, 2010.

The Water Type Personality According to Traditional Chinese Medicine: Understanding Your Archetype for Harmony and Balance

At the time of our birth, the prevailing cosmic and telluric energies have an important effect on our personality. It can be said that at the time of birth these energies give us our own individual rhythms that seem to transcend our genetic makeup and upbringing.. Traditional Chinese medicine embraces a fivefold concept known as the Five Element or Five Phase Theory that help explain these rhythms. Traditional Chinese medicine points out that we all tend to be one predominant ‘type’ from among the five elements of Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water, though no one is one hundred percent one type alone. In this article we discuss both the in-balance and out-of-balance (maladapted) Water type personality.

The Mystery of Water

Water, hidden and unseen, is the deepest part of our energetic system. It’s the root of aliveness and vitality in the human body. Water is essential for the maintenance of life. It carries evolutionary memory and powers the activities of the body including healing and regeneration.

Traditional Chinese medicine has assigned a color to each of the elements and Water’s color is black. Appropriately, we begin our life’s journey in the unknown—in water, floating in amniotic fluid—our eyes closed creating black darkness in a womb which, too, is absent of physical light, it, too, mirroring that black darkness. The Water element is the most yin of the five elements.

The Primary Archetype

The archetype that best describes the Water personality in balance is the wise one or philosopher. The wise one strives to bring the dark black mysteries of life into the light. She knows when to be active and when to retreat. She understands the intricacies, paradoxes and enigmas of life and is able to astutely share these insights she has developed in order to help others live more fulfilled lives.

The Water personality is all about searching for meaning. Water runs deep and so do Water type personalities.

“The Sage, the Water element archetype, represents the power of the Water energy to transform fear and doubt to wisdom and trust and to promote acceptance of the unknown and the unknowable as part of life.” —Charles A. Moss, M. D. in Power of the Five Elements: The Chinese Medicine Path to Healthy Aging and Stress Resistance

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This wise Water personality knows he has benefited from all the knowledge and experience he has garnered from generations before him. He loves applying the lessons he has learned from that history. At the same time, it takes all the wisdom Water has developed to maintain his or her equilibrium, grounding and balance in this type.

“The cafés in Paris, the hookah lounges in the Middle East, and the urban coffeehouses in America are filled with them. They love to sit with close friends, ruminating about life, waxing eloquent about all this is right and wrong with the world. They are great conversationalists, and the deeper the conversations, the better.” —Dondi Dahlin in The Five Elements: Understand Yourself and Enhance Your Relationships with the Wisdom of the World's Oldest Personality Type System

Water loves to plumb the depths of life, losing themselves as blissfully in the arts as they do grocery store aisles searching for just the right wine. Water takes life very seriously often not getting the jokes along the way.

Theirs is a slower rhythm. They take their time. They have patience. Hurry is not part of their consciousness. Calm is evident in their manner of speaking and speech, their gait, their breathing and their response to life. They find rituals, symbols and traditions alluringly poignant. You have to be well-read to keep up intellectually with an in-balance Water.

Water type personalities are very people oriented and will readily allow new people into their lives but tend not to initiate these relationships. Water loves to help other people succeed. If Water can help others succeed, then Water has succeeded.

A good listener, Water does not enjoy confrontation and will work to achieve harmony among people however he can.

Water must live a life that is fully aligned with his core values and beliefs. Deeply philosophical and profound, Water tends to see menial tasks as art. In fact, Water types are very artistic themselves. The most creative and artistic people the world has ever seen tend to have strong Water personalities. Their creations are awe-inspiring.

Water type personalities live in their minds. They prefer predictability. They need to make sense of life, but out-of-balance or maladapted Water will have difficulty reconciling a world that looks very warped to them. This causes them to feel depressed as the world looks murkier and quite different from what others perceive.

Two Types of Water

For most people Water is the most challenging of the five element personality types to understand. This is because there are two types of Water: 1) the wise philosopher archetype and 2) the new baby full of wonder, delight and playfulness.

The philosopher spends time reading, journaling, writing, studying, and contemplating life. The philosopher prefers time spent alone. He or she has a keen interest in the past and how it has influenced the present. Even when it comes to meeting a new person, the wise one type of Water wants to know everything about her new acquaintance's history so that she can better understand who is before her.

The second archetype, that of the playful new baby, is the adult who is still quite childlike, bubbly and radiant. This type of Water will follow a crowd or easily make new friends simply because she is curious and finds it fun and interesting. This Water type can be very endearing, delightful and even spontaneous.

Their primary challenge is that they have so many ideas they never follow through on many. They lack motivation to see their ideas through. They need someone to push them along.

Both archetypes of Water, the philosopher and the playful baby both have a yin energy. The influence of the strong yin energy is translated as intense inner focus. Both archetypes of the Water personality tend to be quieter than others, more introverted and more private.

Water-in-balance can be an enormously captivating personality with a zen-like air, but out-of-balance can have inhibitions, low self-esteem, a tendency to overcautiousness with a preoccupation for worry and agitation. False bravado is another of maladapted Water’s personality traits.

The maladapted Water type will tend to feel overwhelmed, agitated through crisis, resigned to what she cannot conquer, isolated and fearful.

She finds a pathway back into balance through tapping in to her innate sense of calm and wisdom where she can once again begin to confidently manage life’s crises. Regaining her balance by diving in to her core essence she will no longer feel alone but instead supported by the universe whether she has people around her or not.

Whether you are in- or out-of-balance as a Water type, embrace your wondrous archetype of wise one, philosopher and playful child. Stand in your essence of life. You are Water.

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Endnotes:

Dahlin, Dondi. The Five Elements: Understand Yourself and Enhance Your Relationships with the Wisdom of the World's Oldest Personality Type System. United States, Penguin Publishing Group, 2016.

Moss, Charles A. Power of the Five Elements: The Chinese Medicine Path to Healthy Aging and Stress Resistance. United States, North Atlantic Books, 2011.

Wake Up More Mature Dehydrated Skin with Hydroxyproline, An Important Component of Collagen

As the most abundant protein in the body, collagen is essential to maintain the normal structure and strength of connective tissue, such as bones, skin, cartilage, and blood vessels. It helps skin cells adhere to one another and also gives the skin strength and elasticity. The amino acid precursor hydroxyproline, along with amino acid* proline, play key roles for collagen stability. For this reason, hydroxyproline is a key unique ingredient in PHYTO5’s Water element Yogi Body Gel. The Water line is one of five quantum energetic lines formulated according to the Five Element Theory of traditional Chinese medicine.

Collagen is second only to water in terms of content of the body. It contains high amounts of the amino acids arginine, glycine, proline and hydroxyproline. These particular amino acids are imperative for keeping skin supple, hair shiny, and nails, bones and joints strong.

Hydroxyproline comprises roughly 13.5% of mammalian collagen. The majority of the body’s collagen is made up of interwoven chains of glycine, proline and either arginine or hydroxyproline, depending on the type of collagen.

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Type I collagen accounts for about 90% of our body’s collagen. Type 1 collagen supports our skin, tendons, ligaments, bones, joints and muscle health.

Type II is more rare, found mainly in cartilage and eyes, and is actually manufactured by the body.

Type III collagen, the second most abundant type of collagen in the body is quite similar to Type I and it also is manufactured by the body. It helps restore skin’s elasticity and supports the lymphatic system, liver, uterus and intestines.

Collagen’s amino acids are considered “conditionally essential” meaning you can survive without them but if your body is under stress of any kind such as when you are fighting an illness, they become essential. For most people, because stress is so much a way of life for them, these conditionally essential amino acids are actually essential.

It takes a conscious effort to consume collagen rich foods in order to absorb the most appropriate amount of collagen especially as we get older. Collagen is abundant in bone broth, gelatin and the skin of chicken and fish. There are other foods that help us boost our body’s collagen production or at least mitigate its reversal including: avocado, berries, garlic, spinach, kale, chard, tomatoes, beets, carrots, sweet potatoes, red pepper, egg whites and ghee. Hydroxyproline itself is common in many gelatin products.

A vitamin C deficiency decreases the conversion of proline to hydroxyproline and this leads to reduced collagen stability.

Foods rich in vitamin C, antioxidants and Omega 3 fatty acids have been proven to significantly support the body’s production of collagen whiling guarding the body against the somewhat inevitable loss of collagen.

In addition to rejuvenating hydroxyproline, PHYTO5’s Water element Yogi Body Gel is formulated with high tech natural compound Aquaxyl to hydrate and revitalize the skin, horsetail silica for the synthesis of collagen, aloe and apricot kernel oils to hydrate and nourish, and essential oils of juniper berry and eucalyptus.

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Endnotes

*a group of organic compounds that form the building blocks of proteins that comprise 75% of the body; they are involved in almost every body function, including growth and development, healing and repair, normal digestion, and energy production.

Hydroxyproline. National Center for Biotechnology Information. PubChem Compound Database, U.S. National Library of Medicine, pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/hydroxyproline.

Li, Peng and Wu, Guoyao. Roles of Dietary Glycine, Proline, and Hydroxyproline in Collagen Synthesis and Animal Growth. Amino Acids, U.S. National Library of Medicine, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28929384/.

Axe, Josh. Collagen Diet: A 28-Day Plan for Sustained Weight Loss, Glowing Skin, Great Gut Health and a Younger You. Orion Spring, 2020.

The Chinese Medicine Water Element

By observing the Chinese medicine(1) Water element and studying Water’s characteristics we can see how we get sick and feel out of balance. Nature always gives us cues. So take the following cues from the Chinese medicine Water element to live a better life.

The Five Element Theory of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) provides a comprehensive template organizing all natural phenomena into five master groups or patterns in nature.

In fact each of TCM’s five elements—Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water—reflects particular natural characteristics or phenomena including:

• direction

• environmental factor

• internal organ

• sense organ

• body tissue

• emotion

• aspect of the soul

• sensation

• sound

• color

• taste

• direction and

• time of day.

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The Chinese Medicine Water Element: Essence of Life and Balance

Water is the essence of life. Water makes it possible for each of the other four elements of TCM to function properly.

Water’s the first place to look when your body feels chronically out of balance. Imbalance in Water causes physical symptoms like:

• lower back pain

• fatigue

• shortness of breath

• vertigo

• dizziness and

• high blood pressure.

The Chinese Medicine Water Element: Kidney Support

The kidneys are associated with the Chinese medicine Water element.

The kidneys primarily store and regulate what TCM calls our Essence—the foundation of blood and chi energy.

Kidney’s energies nourish our body fluids, lubricate our joints, and provide warmth and movement in our bodies.

The kidneys directly connect with our deepest reserves, resources and will.

Energetically speaking, balanced kidneys support our ability to flow even in chaos and lack of clarity.

Emotionally speaking, the kidneys are the seat of our will. Too much fear means our kidneys are out of balance. This imbalance causes us to get stuck over-thinking and leave our bodies energetically drained.

The Chinese Medicine Water Element: Attributes According to TCM

When you embrace the Chinese medicine Water element characteristics you’ll live in harmony with its corresponding season of Winter. And anytime you live in harmony with a season and its element you live better and healthier.

• Season: Winter (November 8 to January 17)

• Skin condition: dehydration, lack of tone, wrinkles; PHYTO5’s quantum energetic Water line of skincare super-hydrates mature very dry skin, increases elasticity and balances moisture retention; and because it’s quantum energetic, it also balances emotion so you can have a sense that all is well.

• Aspect of the psyche: wise, reflective, private

• Virtues: strength, courage, wisdom

• Emotion: fear, dread, anxiety, paranoia, indecisiveness, worry, grief, regret

• Yin organ: kidney

• Yang organ: urinary bladder

• Colors: deep violet, blue and black

• Flavor: salty

• Tissues: bone and marrow

• Five sense organ: ear

• Sensation: hearing and balance

• Sound: the deep sigh or groan

• Direction: North

• Environment: cold

The Chinese Medicine Water Element: Best Foods to Eat

Part of living in harmony with any of the five seasons of TCM including Winter and Water, we should eat foods that share the qualities of that particular element.

Water’s colors are dark blue and blue-black.

The Chinese medicine Water element gives you clues about the color of foods you should increase in your diet during Winter. And you’ll find examples of black and blue-black nourishing foods for Winter and your Water balance in the comprehensive list at the end of this article.

Click here to also read our creative and comprehensive blog on blue and blue-black foods for energetic Winter.

Also ensure your food intake is very hydrating and nourishing at this time.

Good food choices for the Chinese medicine Water element balance include:

• nuts

• seeds

• legumes

• shellfish

• salt water fish

• seaweed

• dark colored berries

• root vegetables

• whole grains

• stews and soups.

During energetic Winter, eat mostly warm and cooked foods. Limit your consumption of cold and raw foods. Cook with warming spices like garlic, ginger, and cardamom.

The Chinese Medicine Water Element: Best Foods List

• adzuki bean

• amaranth

• avocado

• bamboo shoot

• beet

• black bean

• blackberry

• black currants

• black fungus

• black garlic

• black mission figs

• black lentils

• black quinoa

• black rice

• black sea salt

• black sesame seed

• black soybean

• black pepper

• black tea

• black vinegar

• black wheat flour

• blueberry

• blue corn

• broccoli

• cabbage

• cardamom

• cantaloupe

• carrot

• cashew

• celery

• chia seed

• chives

• coconut

• cucumber

• daikon radish

• eggplant

• garlic

• ginger

• grape

• green bean

• leek

• lotus root

• millet

• mulberry

• mustard greens

• oregano

• parsnip

• pea

• peanut

• pear

• pearl barley

• potato

• quinoa

• raspberry

• salt water fish

• seaweed

• sesame seed

• shallot

• shellfish

• shitake mushroom

• snow pea

• soybean

• spinach

• squash

• walnut

• watercress

• watermelon

• wild rice

• winter melon

• zucchini

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Endnotes:

(1) Traditional Chinese medicine or TCM

Sources:

Russell, J. Lei. TCM Foods: Cooking with the Five Elements. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform; 2nd edition. November 19, 2015.

Photo courtesy of Valeria Boltneva at Pexels