Friday afternoon I was visiting with my Shifu, Wang Fengming. When I got to the house his wife (one of the legendary Feng Zhiqiang’s daughters) asked me if I had enough red dates at home. This is the time to consume red dates (紅棗) she said, because this week was the start of Spring in the Chinese calendar. Red dates nourish Liver blood, and since the Spring is the season of Wood, it is time to nourish the Liver.
While westerners are accustomed to placing the beginning of Spring in March, the Chinese calendar marks time more by relative daylight. As the days are now getting longer, we are in the time of everything waking from Winter’s slumber. The darkest and longest nights are now 6 weeks behind us, and in only another 6 weeks we will be at the Equinox – half way to when the days will get shorter again.
The Chinese use both a lunar and a solar calendar to mark time, and because of this there are two dates that are considered the beginning of Spring. One is called Li Chun (立春) – the “Beginning of Spring,” which is one of the twenty four seasonal nodes. The solar beginning of Spring happens every year February 4th or 5th, and this year it started last Tuesday (February 4th). The other beginning of Spring is the lunar, also known as Chun Jie (春節), the Spring Festival. This day is the Chinese Lunar New Year, and it falls on the second new moon following the Winter Solstice (with the rare possibility of it falling on the third new moon in some years with an intercalary month). The Lunar New Year is one of the most important traditional holidays in China, and is a time for people to visit with family and friends (we discussed this in our last blog post). The lunar festivals traditionally last about 2 weeks until the full moon, which happened just yesterday on Saturday.
This time of year the Yang influences are growing in the natural world. As mentioned already, we are only about 6 weeks away from the Vernal Equinox (Chun Fen 春分), one of the times of year where the Yang and Yin are balanced and we have more equal day and night. Even with cooler weather lingering this week the days are getting longer. Where I am in northern New Jersey there is dramatically increased songbird activity in the mornings. This increased activity in the natural world is also reflected in the names of the shorter 5 day segments (the 72 Material Manifestations of the year) that make up Beginning of Spring – Dong Feng Jie Dong 東風解凍 (The East Wind Liberates From Icy Shackles), Zhe Chong Shi Zhen 蟄蟲始振 (Hibernating Insects Begin to Stir), and Yu Shang Bing 魚上冰 (Fish Rise Up to the Ice).
Beginning of Spring is the time of year for all new beginnings. It is also time to continue growing the ever-expanding Yang in our bodies so as to mimic the expanding Yang in the natural world. One of the basic health exercise recommendations for Beginning of Spring is to frequently comb the hair (or head if there is no hair). In Chinese, this is called Shu Fa 梳法, or “combing therapy.” Combing therapy has been around since at least the Sui dynasty, and is found in both Yang Sheng texts as well as Tuina manuals.
To apply Combing Therapy comb the hair (or scalp) daily, 100 times each sitting. This can be done either in the morning upon waking or in the evening before bed, and the traditional recommendation is to use a comb of either bone or wood. That said, simply combing with the fingers is even more effective since the fingers are living and contain Qi, which bone and wood do not. This is such a simple exercise that anyone can be taught to do it.
Combing has several functions. By stimulating the head we are stimulating the top of the body, meaning the most Yang area of the body. Since Spring is a time of Yang growth and expansion, stimulating the Yang area of the body is appropriate. Gently working the surface of the body also stimulates Wei Qi movement in the head and channels of the head. This in turn helps expel wind, and avoiding wind is one of the basic “avoids” for the Beginning of Spring. Furthermore, the scalp is a microsystem of the entire body, so stimulating the channels on the scalp mobilizes Qi and Blood in the entire body.
Spring is the time associated with the Wood phase and the Liver, and the Liver is a Yang viscera (with Heart being the other Yang viscera). A traditional saying for Beginning of Spring is “Li chun yang gan shun tian shi, qu chu ji bing bao jian kang” – “At the beginning of Spring nourishing the Liver means to following the timing of Heaven, expel and rid yourself of disease and protect your health.” Diet recommendations at the Beginning of Spring then are designed to help and nourish Liver.
As a general rule this is the time to consume foods that help maintain normal Liver function, especially the Yang of Liver. Since the Liver governs free coursing, eating mildly acrid and warm foods will support this function. For example, appropriate foods this time of year include scallions, leeks, chives, cilantro, and garlic. Here is another phrase for this time of year: “Duo chi jiu cai chao rou si, yang hu gan yang zhu sheng fa” – “Eat a lot of leeks and pork to nourish and protect the Liver yang and develop the nature of birth.” In the Huang Di Nei Jing the Spring is associated with the term sheng 生 or “birth.” This is the same sheng as in, for example, Sheng Jiang 生薑 – fresh (or living) ginger. Tung recommended eating beef stewed with garlic for the treatment of Liver Vacuity (Tung, 1973). While he didn’t mention it specifically for Beginning of Spring, we can say that this recipe is perfect for the warming and strengthening of the Liver Yang that is now appropriate.
Patients with chronic Liver fire should take care this seasonal node as Yang is on the rise everywhere. A traditional Beginning of Spring drink for these patients is Yin Chen Da Zao Tang. For this drink take 20g of Yin Chen Hao and 30g of Da Zao. Place in a pot with about 2 ½ cups water. Bring to a rapid boil then reduce and simmer for 30 minutes. Separate into 2 doses and drink in the morning and evening. This formula benefits qi, generates fluids, and protects the Liver. In the clinic we can mimic this basic formula with points such as Mu Yan 11.20 or Gan Men 33.11.
One more traditional dish for Beginning of Spring is Pork Bone Red Date Soup. Yes, even before bone broth became the latest health trend here in the US, it was considered an important food for health the world around. This dish can be taken daily; it builds blood, warms the interior without being too warming or drying, and can be taken both to prevent and treat colds.
Pork Bone Red Date Soup 豬骨紅棗湯
Ingredients:
Pork bone, about 3 lbs
Chinese dried red dates (Hong Zao, or Da Zao), about 6 pieces
Ginger
1 Large scallion white
Salt
Instructions:
Place washed pork bones into a slow cooker and add enough water to cover bones (about 2 quarts)
Cut ginger and scallion into large pieces, place in slow cooker with bones; add dates as well to slow cooker
Cook on low for 8 hours or more (the prep can be done in the evening and left to cook overnight)
Drink broth daily
Other vegetables or ingredients can be added to this soup as desired. To read more about general Spring health care please click here.
I wish everyone a very happy, health, and prosperous Year of the Metal Rat. Happy New Year, and Happy Spring!