Rheumatoid Arthritis-Gluten Intolerance-Roasted Barley Tea-Macrobiotic Diet-Humid Weather

Roasted Corn Tea for Summer

Well, the hot, humid weather has returned here in NYC prompting me to come back and check my previous posting on "roasted barley tea". There were a few comments and questions regarding options for teas that do not contain gluten. So, I want to share some more thoughts on the roasted teas.
To Lady EZ: I'm so glad that you are having some benefits with the symptomology of your rheumatoid arthritis from eating macrobiotically. One thing to monitor is if you get too internally cold from the diet. It has a lot of energetically cooling foods (very good if you have an inflammatory condition. But you also want to monitor that you don't weaken your foundational yang/warming energy of the body that gives functional strength to the organs). Its best to do the macrobiotic diet with a practitioner trained in this dietary therapy. Each person has a unique constitution so there is not one diet that is good for everyone. Keep attuned to your body and I'm sure you'll find the path forward.I want to repeat, if you suspect you have any gluten intolerance (which can contribute to inflammatory conditions) do not eat Barley.
For those who wish to branch out and try another roasted Asian tea I want to suggest"Korean Roasted Corn Tea" also known as "Oksusu Cha". For my readers who were asking for gluten-free roasted teas. Here is a terrific option!
This is a large kernel corn grown in Southern Korea and it is traditionally roasted then brewed in hot water to make a lovely, mildly sweet tea. It is traditionally used to support kidney health, help lower blood pressure and help with diabetes. Its mild sweet flavor is one of the five phase therapeutic flavors that strengthens the Spleen (considered the chief organ of digestion).Corn tea will help with stomach bloating and pain from indigestion and is also helpful in relieving fatigue and malaise. This is because its tonification benefits to the Qi of the Spleen help with digestion, with fluid metabolism and with the Spleen's role in building Qi and Blood which fuel and nourish the body.This tea, like "Roasted Barley Tea", is good for hot and damp weather. It will help the body metabolize fluids in the heavy, damp and turbid weather of summer that can cause so many issues around digestion (soft stools, cramping, bloating), swelling of joints, headaches, and malaise.Sometimes people mix the "Roasted Corn Tea" with the "Roasted Barley Tea". The sweetness of the corn tea will offset the bitterness of the roasted Barley.
If you go to Korean food stores you will often find the Roasted Corn tea in bags. It is simply the roasted corn.Here is an easy recipe for the tea:
1/4 cup of roasted corn5 cups boiling water
Bring water to a boil in a pot and add the roasted corn. Turn the heat down to a simmer and let the corn steep in the water for 15 minutes or until a nice light golden brown color.Strain the tea to remove corn.You can drink this tea hot or cold. Its absolutely refreshing as a chilled drink in summertime! read more..

Transformative-Yang Qi

Happy Year of the Yang Water Dragon!

I want to wish my readers a very Happy New Year! It is the Year of the Yang Water Dragon.The Qi of this time has great potential. Yang Qi is very transformative, Water Qi is dissolutive and Qi of the Dragon is the most powerful of all the 12 Chinese Animals, creating great change as it winds through space and time.
There is great potential to let go of old struggles and to transform and overcome difficulties.
I offer you best intentions for a year of Health and Happiness! read more..

Qigong and Ritual Fasting on Mt. Qincheng

Qigong and Ritual Fasting on Mt. Qincheng

Many of my patients have asked me to explain "Qigong" to them. This is a Chinese word that derives from two terms. "Qi" is the character in Chinese that refers to "universal fire" or "metabolic force" if we're discussing medicine. "Gong" refers to the traditional character that means "practice". "Qigong" is a modern term that has come to describe breathing, meditational and internal energetic practices that strengthen the constitution, support spiritual transformation, develop sensory perceptions and if practiced in specific ways, can be considered longevity practices.Historically, these practices may have arisen from the shamanastic people of ancient China.While in the city of Changsha I had the great privilege to visit the MawangDui Museum. This an ancient archeological site that contains ancient tombs from the Han Dynsasty. It was discovered intact with many important artifacts including drawings of people doing "Daoyin" or stretching and health exercises. Each of the exercises is accompanied by explanation for which illnesses it can be used to treat. These are some of the earliest recorded Qigong exercises. (I'll discuss the shamanistic roots of Qigong in a future entry).In later times, both Buddhists and Daoists used internal alchemical practices/Qi practices to support spiritual transformation. Healers of all these traditions have used Medical Qigong.
On my trip to Sichuan, China this past summer, I traveled to Mt. Qingcheng to the Tianlonggong (Temple of the Heavenly Dragon Training Institute) where I spent time studying with my Qigong master.He is the recipient of many lineages that encompass, shamanistic, Buddhist, Daoist and Tibetan Qigong. It was transformational to do the practices with him in his ancestral home on the side of a mountain, considered a holy place. One of the central themes in the practices that kept coming back to me is that Universal Love is transformational. Doing these practices on the mountain under the sky it was easy to find this connection. Many people purportedly learn Qigong practices from classes or off the internet or DVD's, but often what is missing is the inner energetic methods that drive these practices like an internal engine. Without the knowledge of how to do this, the practices are mostly ineffective.
We had the great privilege of participating in a Daoist fasting ritual for several days. Traditionally this is called "bigu", or "giving up the grain". It is a Daoist practice that is used to purify the body and spirit and there are rituals of bathing and purifying the body, while using Qigong practices to nourish one's body during the fast. In Daoism these practices have been used for thousands of years. In some cases these practices are said to be used to attain immortality, as food is substituted first by herbs and then given up altogether and the practitioner then lives on Qi alone. This requires a tremendous amount of self-cultivation.
I found for myself that bigu was immensely beneficial. We would rise early each morning and perform ritual cleansing of one another, then we would practice Qigong together, and drink specially prepared Qi-water and herbs and we would repeat this twice more during the day.The cleansing ritual included "pai da". This is a slapping technique on the skin that breaks up stagnation/toxins in the flesh and in the meridians and benefits circulation of Qi and Blood. We used towels soaked in basins of soapy water and we would do this ritual on one another (slapping eachother's arms, legs, abdomen and back with the towels) and then we would each thoroughly clean ourselves. I found this ritual incredibly powerful. I felt very clean and purified afterwards. My muscles and skin felt incredible.
A memory that I will carry with me forever is with two other gentlemen, both from China.One was a young man who had come to the institute to participate and learn. The other was a Shaolin monk who had come to observe and study as well. He had the read more..