LATE SUMMER: The fifth season According to Traditional Chinese medicine
THE WISDOM OF LATE SUMMER
According to Traditional Chinese Medicine there are 5 major seasons in a year: spring, summer, late summer, fall, and winter. “Late Summer” is its own season, and an important one, falling between mid-August and fall equinox.
This golden season of transition from the strong Yang energy of summer to the softer Yin energy of fall can be a bumpy ride without nurturing practices and support for transformation.
In our culture, this can be an extra busy time as people get ready to go back to school and also feel the loss of summer fun if they don't vibe with the upcoming colder seasons.
Since we are beings of light, sound, and vibrations, the seasonal changes in our environment affect how we embody Nature... Climate change is also shifting the way our bodies respond to these changes, and the approach we might take to seasonal health. As weather patterns are not as reliable as they once were, it is even more vital to slow down and become present to the moment..
Summer in general is suited for heart healing, resilience, and opening. It is the base camp for sincerity, joy and appropriate connection to self, others, and our environment, as well as a location to take your seat to meditate.
In Late Summer, it is recommended to slow down when life seems to be ramping up. Increase your meditation practices or ask for more quiet time if you have a busy household.
I recommend including a heart based practice into your life this time of year, or bringing your heartfelt self into whatever you're doing, like cooking, gardening, artwork etc.
A LATE SUMMER PRACTICE TO NURTURE THE HEART
Make a fist and squeeze and release it a few times and then rub your hands together to stimulate the Qi (energy, warmth) in your hands.
Put your hands on your heart. Relax your jaw, collarbone, armpits, elbows and abdomen. Soften your heart. Invite and feel your breath. Give your breath a spacious home to roam in. Release your neck with a gentle rolling of the head and shoulders.
Dedicate kindness and acceptance to your physical and energetic heart. Know that your physical heart is also feeling the effects of your thoughts so choose your thoughts kindly.
Take the approach of sitting inside a very huge golden field inside your heart that connects you to everyone else’s golden field in their heart and feel into the interconnectedness of everything.
(This practice can become a little tea or coffee break for your nervous system. No pressure to do it perfectly or to do it for more than 1 min either).
