September Newsletter— Back to School

Membership Drive

We are kicking off our first annual membership drive Starting September 20 and ending Oct 1st. Tai Chi students who are enrolled in the monthly unlimited package ($130/month) will receive 25% off their next month when they sign a friend up for the New Student Special, $30 for 30 Days Unlimited Classes Trial (must be a news student). If their friend enrolls for the regular monthly unlimited package ($130/month) after the trial, the new student will receive 25% off that first month’s package. Please ask at the front desk for further details.

New Retail items

We have just got in a shipment of wonderful Tai Chi and Yoga books. These have been hand-picked by Master Zi and the advanced students as books that help deepen your practice. They range from the practical to the philosophical on topics from the Tao, the Bhagavad Gita, Traditional Chinese Medicine and Ayurveda. Our store is also now stocked with Yoga props and Tai Chi swords.


	Rob doing Taichi on the Great Wall of China

Welcome

Shakti’s Elements would like to give Rob Hoffman a warm welcome as our newest addition to the Shakti’s team. Rob recently became a partner with Nzazi and Nisha Malonga. Professionally, he is already a busy individual who is a full-time music producer and vice-president of our non-profit organization, D.A.R.T. Personally, we are honored to work with such a gentle and sincere spirit. He possesses a big heart with a true understanding of the benefits of tai chi and yoga both individually and on a global perspective. We feel very fortunate to have him as a student, friend, and part of our team. Feel free to congratulate him or harass him with questions if you see him.

August Self-Healing Tips —Traditional Chinese Medicine

written by: Julie Festa, L.Ac.

By the time you read this you may have seen a leaf or two turn yellow. You may have noticed the weather change, the days getting shorter, the air seeming different. Autumn is here as of September 23 this year. It is time for the bright, warm yang to move inward to our cores to be consolidated and conserved through the coming winter. Fall also brings the harvest, both energetically and physically. All the work we did during spring and summer begins to pay off, and the earth releases her bounty.

The Metal element in Chinese medicine is associated with autumn. It is a time to focus one’s energy more internally, towards work, home, and loved ones. The energy of Metal brings organization and inspiration, as well as a cleansing and release in preparation for the winter months ahead. The organs of Metal are the Lung and Large Intestine. The Lung is yin; it is responsible, as we all know, for respiration. Through respiration we bring in air, and by doing so, we take into ourselves the external environment. The ability to take in a breath of fresh air requires a certain state of receptivity and a willingness to take energy inward. As we exhale, we release the CO2 and other cellular waste products – things we no longer need – back out into the environment. As the yang component of the Metal element, the Large Intestine is responsible for the formation and release of solid waste. This also requires a certain willingness – to let go.

Chinese Nutrition: Baked Apples

To ensure a healthy and inspiring transition into autumn, cleansing foods and cleansing breaths are essential. Apples are in season, and they are a wonderful way to cleanse the body, reduce any residual summer heat in the body, nourish the Yin and fluids, moisten dryness, and cool heat in the Lungs. Apples stimulate appetite and resolve indigestion. They inhibit the growth of unwanted bacteria in the digestive tract, remove cholesterol, soften gallstones, and cleanse the body of heavy metals. Apples enter the Lung, Stomach, and Large Intestine.

Try this: Get yourself a delicious organic apple. My personal favorites are Gala and Fuji, but you can really do this with any apple. Cut your apple into wedges, sprinkle with cardamom and cinnamon, wrap it in foil, and bake it in the oven for varying lengths of time, depending on how sweet and gooey you like it. The longer the baking time, the gooey-er the apple. Take it out of the oven and let it cool. Just before eating you can add a small amount of raw honey if you like your apple extra sweet.

Chinese Acupressure: Zhong Fu (Central Treasury)

The ancient sages that devised much of Chinese medicine believed that the very first breath in a baby’s life at the moment of birth activates the acupuncture point Lung 1. This makes it an excellent point to awaken the Lung and prepare the Metal element for its time of glory. Zhong Fu, or Central Treasury, is the Front Mu point of the Lung.

Location: Relax the arm at your side. Start at the top of the crease of the armpit, and follow the groove where the chest meets the shoulder about halfway up. From the halfway point, go inwards toward the midline about 1 inch. The point will be very tender on palpation. Acupressure on Lung 1 is an excellent way to help oneself breathe more deeply. This point regulates Lung Qi, stimulates the Lung’s ability to take in a deep breath, resolves the sensation of a tight, full, stuffy chest by relieving pressure, alleviates cough, phlegm and wheezing, and nurtures Lung Yin. Because it helps take in oxygen, which is energy in the air around us, this point is also great for fatigue

Try this: Several times a day take a moment to locate the Lung 1 point on yourself. Push on it firmly and massage it in a gentle circular motion. While doing this, take a deep, cleansing breath in. Notice how much more deeply and fully you can breathe with pressure on this point. If you do this daily for the next three months, your lungs, your colon, and your overall experience of Autumn this year are sure to reap great benefits.

Simple Monthly Home Practice - Blossoming

Written by Yuko Miyahara

“Blossoming” is one of the most basic Tai Chi movements that guides you to be totally present and get in touch with your inner power. Master Zi always says “let the intent guide the breath, let the breath guide the movement.” Blossoming is a perfect movement to practice this teaching.

First, place the picture in your mind, then your breath will respond to that picture, and finally your body will follow the breath to fulfill the intent. It is amazing the power of imagination and how our body works. Since breath and body are just following the intent you have, the most important part of Tai chi practice is to clarify the intent—and become the intention. Everything else will follow once you have taken care of that. You cannot “do” blossoming. You become the blossoming. You are blossoming. Once you physically experience this concept through practice, you will be amazed at the power of intention in your life as well.

Step 1) Open your leg about shoulder width and feet parallel. Squat down until the knees just over the toes. Put your hands on the side as if you are sitting on the chair with arm rest. Imagine your head is pulled from the top and your spine pushing downward.

Step 2) Imagine the flower responding to the first light of sun and start to blossom. Breath in.

Step 3) Breath out and the two arms come up to the level of the head. As you do this, imagine that you have strings attached to your wrist and someone is pulling you up. Keep your shoulders and hands relaxed. Your body become light as you breathe out and your leg straighten.

Step4) As you breath in, let the elbows sink as if the bottom became heavy. Then the wrist. Hands will look like you are framing picture in front of you. Bring the arms down and start bending your knees as you do this.

Step 5) When the hands reach the lower stomach area, allow the body to return to the starting position. (Repeat)

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August Self-Healing Tips —Traditional Chinese Medicine

Simple Monthly Home Practice - Blossoming

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