The yang wood Dragon year is right around the corner. Its fast and bold influence will affect us on both a personal and global level.
The Dragon has an affinity for ambition and power. When unchecked, the wood phase for this year brings an intense desire to control the human experience.
The Dragon and our world view:
Individually, we may struggle with being swayed by polarized viewpoints. This can be stoked by influences amplifying division to further their aspirations. If that sounds dangerously close to what our national focus will be in 2024, well, I leave that to your interpretation.
With the Dragon’s affinity for entrepreneurialism and adventure, you can easily be carried away by its energy and try to do too much. The Dragon is a sign of great creativity and for many signs, an auspicious time to start a new venture. But like all things, anything taken to its extreme doesn’t bode well for our psychological and physical health.
So how do we harness Dragon energy in a good way?
I stumbled across this verse for the Dragon from the Dao De Jing recently. It strikes a balance between action and acceptance of an intelligence greater than our own.
We must participate in the world. Asserting ourselves while accepting that we’re not in control of the outcome is a way to remain centered. This balance is also a lifelong practice.
Do you want to improve the world?
I do not think it can be done.
The world is sacred.
It cannot be improved.
If you tamper with it you’ll ruin it.
If you treat it like an object you’ll lose it.
There is a time for being ahead, a time for being behind.
There is a time for motion, a time for being at rest.
A time for being vigorous, a time for being exhausted.
A time for being safe, a time for being in danger.
The Master sees things as they are without trying to control them.
She lets them go their own way and resides in the center of the circle.
The Dragon and personal health:
The Dragon is an earth creature but this year is a wood phase in a yang year. In Chinese Medicine, earth is controlled by wood.
You can think of how a tree determines the boundaries of the earth. And if the tree is very strong, its roots will even break up the ground around it. This is the effect we may experience internally if we aren’t prepared to assimilate a strong animal like the Dragon in a yang wood year.
In Chinese medical physiology, the earth plays a central role in our digestive system while wood can be seen as our reaction to stress, or the nervous system. This clash of earth and wood can aggravate digestive conditions like IBS. Also, many headache sufferers have some type of digestive imbalance but don’t realize the two are interconnected.
Although we could dive very deeply into many conditions, let’s talk about what it means for those who experience migraines.
Migraine sufferers should be more vigilant this year. The gallbladder channel system may flare up. It is part of the wood phase while also aiding in digestion. This is especially true during the first half of the year when wood is more intense.
Yang wood energy’s affinity for the gallbladder network can sometimes get stagnant. This blockage creates pain along the temples and side of the head.
Other symptoms one might have are high blood pressure, being quick to anger, depression, difficulty falling asleep, a history of rib side pain or headaches after eating.
Some quick self care tips for a healthy gallbladder network:
1. Eat gallbladder friendly foods especially green and bitter ones like dandelion greens or mustard greens.
2. Make sleep a priority, preferably going to bed before 10:30 PM when wood energy rises.
3. Get outside and move.
4. Research ways to better handle stress, including regular acupuncture and Chinese herbs.
5. Avoid over extending yourself and only focus on what truly serves you.
6. Limit your screen time and exposure to news and politics.
7. Practice compassion which softens wood energy so that it isn’t quick to anger and judgment.
8. Avoid chronic late night eating.
