Energetic/Spiritual LessonsA fundamental energetic principle presented by Nataraja is in the leg position. When we stand with 2 straight legs we direct energy up (yang). When 2 standing legs are bent, energy is directed down (yin). Nataraja’s Anandatandava, stance is on one bent leg. When we stand on 1 leg we send energy up, but if the one leg is bent, equal energy is sent down. Man is a conduit between Heaven and Earth. We become a fully charged conduit that is both negative (yin) and positive (yang) when we stand on one bent leg, or when we shift from one leg to the other when we walk. This energetic position is how the cell(s) become properly charged. When we are properly charged we are full of grace, we radiate through the ebbs and flows of life. When legs are stretched straight, energy only goes up (yang), with nothing going down (yin) to balance the practitioner. This condition can create dis-ease within the body, breath and mind. Practicing on one bent aligned leg allows gravity to make all necessary therapeutic adjustments. The bend in the leg also releases the inner groin critical to spiritual development. Barbara Levitt, Ph.D. states, “Just as straight legs lead to yang energy rising to the head, right-brained thinking (yang is the right side); so a tight inner groin contributes to repressed sexuality (kundalini). Many cultural practices encourage the bend in the leg: Hawaiian hula, Middle Eastern belly dancing, African drumming and dancing, Eastern practices such as Yoga according to the lessons of Lord Shiva, Qigong (Chi Kung), Tai Chi Chuan and other martial arts derivatives, producing spiritual cultivation.” Ramamand Patel (www.rami.org) often stated in yoga class; “your inner groins control your whole life”. The extended bent arm position protects the liver, heart, lungs, kidneys, and spleen; the yin organs of the body. When the rhomboids are held down the back the yin organs are in neutral state. When the Yin organs are neutral, Yang organs are neutral. Death can be described when Yang (fire) burns ups Yin (water). In Ayurvedic terms as we age we tend to dry up, moving towards vata, air and space. With the legs and arms bent, the entire body is stimulated in yin/yang balance. Lord Shiva’s lessons become an invaluable blueprint for the practitioner. Lord Shiva is found in Chapters 3,6,10,11,12,14,15, and 17 of 18 Buddha Hands Qigong, an equally formidable system in China, offering physical fitness, physical therapy and energetic/spiritual development. Shiva posture is also found in Tai Chi, a branch of qigong, that has many systems “that are the end result of many hundreds of years of development by great thinkers, sages, and other men of vision.”5 |
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