Autumn: Season of Completion
Element: Metal
Theme: Returning to the Source; Inward, Soul Searching
The Autumn season is characterized ironically by both the bounty and peak abundance of the earth's harvest and simultaneously by the inward flow of our life force. This period marks a time of fruition resulting from all our labors of both body and mind however it also launches an invitation to dive deep within as a symbolic experience of energetic closure. Nature can teach us via active observation, about the pivotal qualities and movements of our natural rhythms as they parallel changes in the seasons. This observation can help us connect with ourselves and become more aware of the cycle between self-expansion and the full energetic expression of summer's light compared to the contraction of light, warmth and a returning to our innermost source. As Metal is formed deep within the veins of the earth, the Autumn season represented by this element, symbolizes the decent into our core being. This season provides an opportunity for insight, focus and the healing of deep loss. Simultaneously, Autumn is represented in the moment to moment experience of breath during respiration. Each inhalation is an opportunity to reconnect with the richest most nourishing aspects of our very hearts while taking in the gestalt of the world around us and each exhalation an opportunity to let go and make an offering or contribution to the world.
To observe the transformation of a deciduous tree as it adapts to less water, less light and greater cold is a remarkable experience. The tree prepares in advance for winter and avoids unnecessary damage by storing its precious nutrient, chlorophyll and withdrawing from its most energy demanding function of maintaining it's foliage. Nature offers us guidance here for how our own body's system is shifting and the lifestyle changes we need to make in order to be in greater harmony with our environment. It is true that the seasonal changes within our bodies are not as dramatic as a tree losing its leaves, however the changes are there in more subtle ways. For example, although our hair doesn't all fall out like leaves, it does lose moisture and even though our skin doesn't change color, it does get dryer, tighter and colder.
All over the world, cultures celebrate this time of year with unique rituals and food. On the Isles, this is the time of Samhain. The light begins to change and the air becomes cool and dry. It is the end of summer and a time to study the "dark mysteries". It is the time represented by the Crone or dark mother who represents the transformation of our life experiences into deeper wisdom. It is theorized that the numerous great stone circles built throughout the Isles were an aid in the contemplative decent into the underworld of oneself and a decent into the energies of the death process. In Greek mythology, this is a time marked by the decent of Persephone, returning to the underworld to comfort the dead and Demeter, the great Earth mother, causing the cold winds to blow as a sign of her loss and grief. In our neighboring country of Mexico, it is a season when Dia de los Muertos, the day of the dead is celebrated and the ancestors are brought back to life and honored. A day when the dead return to be fed and feast with treats such as marzipan skulls and hot chocolate spiced with chili peppers and cinnamon to nourish them.
At this time, we can recognize a shift in how we think, feel and interact with the world around us. During the season of falling leaves, we are also falling, that is falling inward. We don't have as much dynamic force and energy, there can be a greater sense of grief, loss and sadness as our emotions are intimately connected with the environmental changes. In Chinese medical thinking, this season is connected with the lungs. We may experience ourselves weeping more or feeling more melancholy and if we have chronic lung conditions, we may notice them to be more pronounced at this time. There have been studies linking a seasonal depression called Seasonal Affective Disorder to changes in light intensity beginning in Autumn and continuing throughout the winter months. This condition from a Chinese medical perspective is linked to a deficiency in the strength of the lungs in addition to an imbalance of the Water and Fire elements within the body.
We are most familiar with the lungs in disharmony connected with colds and flu or with smoking conditions, however after thousands of years of observation, Chinese medicine throws a broader patho-physiological net connected with the lungs. Chinese medicine expands lung conditions to include symptoms such as dry skin, dry nails and lips, dry throat and nose, no perspiration or too much, nasal polyps, sinusitis, skin rashes, hair loss, constipation, headaches, stiffness in the spine and muscles, allergies, fatigue, and strong feelings of depression. In addition to the lungs, Metal is ruled by the large intestine, an organ which regulates the discharge of physical impurities and influences our mental capacity for acceptance and letting go. Large intestine patterns include symptoms of diarrhea and constipation plus conditions such as diverticulitis, colitis, ulcerative colitis, irritable bowel syndrome, polyps and carcinoma of the rectum or colon. Recognizing some of these conditions as either seasonal or related to the Metal element can offer tools for prevention and self-treatment of all the various lung and large intestine imbalances.
To observe the transformation of a deciduous tree as it adapts to less water, less light and greater cold is a remarkable experience. The tree prepares in advance for winter and avoids unnecessary damage by storing its precious nutrient, chlorophyll and withdrawing from its most energy demanding function of maintaining it's foliage. Nature offers us guidance here for how our own body's system is shifting and the lifestyle changes we need to make in order to be in greater harmony with our environment. It is true that the seasonal changes within our bodies are not as dramatic as a tree losing its leaves, however the changes are there in more subtle ways. For example, although our hair doesn't all fall out like leaves, it does lose moisture and even though our skin doesn't change color, it does get dryer, tighter and colder.
All over the world, cultures celebrate this time of year with unique rituals and food. On the Isles, this is the time of Samhain. The light begins to change and the air becomes cool and dry. It is the end of summer and a time to study the "dark mysteries". It is the time represented by the Crone or dark mother who represents the transformation of our life experiences into deeper wisdom. It is theorized that the numerous great stone circles built throughout the Isles were an aid in the contemplative decent into the underworld of oneself and a decent into the energies of the death process. In Greek mythology, this is a time marked by the decent of Persephone, returning to the underworld to comfort the dead and Demeter, the great Earth mother, causing the cold winds to blow as a sign of her loss and grief. In our neighboring country of Mexico, it is a season when Dia de los Muertos, the day of the dead is celebrated and the ancestors are brought back to life and honored. A day when the dead return to be fed and feast with treats such as marzipan skulls and hot chocolate spiced with chili peppers and cinnamon to nourish them.
At this time, we can recognize a shift in how we think, feel and interact with the world around us. During the season of falling leaves, we are also falling, that is falling inward. We don't have as much dynamic force and energy, there can be a greater sense of grief, loss and sadness as our emotions are intimately connected with the environmental changes. In Chinese medical thinking, this season is connected with the lungs. We may experience ourselves weeping more or feeling more melancholy and if we have chronic lung conditions, we may notice them to be more pronounced at this time. There have been studies linking a seasonal depression called Seasonal Affective Disorder to changes in light intensity beginning in Autumn and continuing throughout the winter months. This condition from a Chinese medical perspective is linked to a deficiency in the strength of the lungs in addition to an imbalance of the Water and Fire elements within the body.
We are most familiar with the lungs in disharmony connected with colds and flu or with smoking conditions, however after thousands of years of observation, Chinese medicine throws a broader patho-physiological net connected with the lungs. Chinese medicine expands lung conditions to include symptoms such as dry skin, dry nails and lips, dry throat and nose, no perspiration or too much, nasal polyps, sinusitis, skin rashes, hair loss, constipation, headaches, stiffness in the spine and muscles, allergies, fatigue, and strong feelings of depression. In addition to the lungs, Metal is ruled by the large intestine, an organ which regulates the discharge of physical impurities and influences our mental capacity for acceptance and letting go. Large intestine patterns include symptoms of diarrhea and constipation plus conditions such as diverticulitis, colitis, ulcerative colitis, irritable bowel syndrome, polyps and carcinoma of the rectum or colon. Recognizing some of these conditions as either seasonal or related to the Metal element can offer tools for prevention and self-treatment of all the various lung and large intestine imbalances.
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