WHY BOTHER?

Why bother getting up in the morning? What drags your butt out of bed everyday? It has a lot of names but it is just the impulse of life doing its best to move you. In Oriental medicine we call it Shen (_). We translate Shen as spirit. We all talk about spirit. We say, "his spirits are up" or, "that girl has spirit". We talk about the spirit of a place or a piece of music. We hear about the "spirit of a nation". Spirit is a big part of our everyday life. In Oriental medicine theory, it is spirit that motivates you. Where it comes from and what to call it are all distractions from the fact that we all experience it. It is spirit that drags you out of bed. It is spirit that inspires you and guides you through life.
Spirit comes to us from heaven according to Oriental medicine thinking. It comes to us from above and permeates all that we are. It is spirit that gives us the ability to experience the world around us and within us. Most people live lives that are not very accommodating to spirit. Overwork, emotional indulgence, physical indulgence and apathy smother spirit. Some people are so far gone that there seems to be no light left in them. The ancient Chinese knew, as we do today, that the eyes are the best indicator of a person's spirit. You can tell a lot by looking into someone's eyes. You can tell a lot by the fact that today many of us don't look each other in the eye. It hurts to remember what we are losing. It hurts to feel warmth when your life has become cold. When a person gets hypothermia you can't warm them up too fast. They have to come back in due time. So do you. You have to come back in due time. Sometimes the time it takes to come back doesn't fit the little schedules you make up. The difficulties of coming back are innumerable. There are a million excuses not to do what you know good and well you should do and only one reason to do it. That one reason outweighs all the excuses. The reason is that if you don't listen to spirit, if you don't follow what you really are, you are faking it. Nature doesn't abide fakes for too long. It is in your best interest in every measurable and immeasurable way to be true to that impulse of life that is spirit.
No one owns spirit. It can't be sold or modified. You can follow it or ignore it. Those are the choices. The former leads to life and the latter to death. That is just the way it is. The power of life is in what's working. We tend to focus on what's "wrong" with our lives. There is no power there, that's why we call it "wrong". You have to retreat from all of your failed plans and preconceived notions of how life should be back to what is real. We can all do this even if the only thing in your life that's real is the air in your lungs and the blood in your veins. That is why breathing plays such a role in meditation. It is our connection to spirit, to life. It is real. We don't make breath up. It just happens.
Most of us don't really have to retreat that far to find something good in our lives. Anything that brings true joy (not just empty pleasure) has power. It has the power to gather around it other people, events, and energy that are good for you. These other things resonate with you because you are being what you are rather than something you think you are. You can't find your way by rehashing the same old crap that never worked for you and never will. You have to get back to your core and wait. Get there and wait for life, for spirit to move you. When you move with spirit you are a force of the universe. Acupuncture and Oriental medicine and all of the exercises and hygiene practices associated with them have the singular goal of reuniting you with reality and what you really are. Here are some of the best ways I know how to start getting in touch with spirit in your life and to get healthier in mind and body:

MEDITATION: you can't get there without it. Sit quietly anywhere, anytime. Just breathe, pump blood and listen. Whatever goes on, just listen. Observe life quietly. All the incense and special techniques are fun for a while but in the end just sit. No thought, no analysis, no intentions, no meaning, just let it settle on its own. Your spirit will find you on its own. You just need to quit running around so much.

MINDBODY EXERCISE: take some of the classes I offer. You can learn the very best practice I've ever encountered for absolutely no money. All you have to do is get off your butt one Sunday morning and get started. Do something! Join a yoga class or take Tai Chi somewhere. Join a dance class. Do something that takes coordination and discipline. Do something that puts your mind in your body.