Healing Our Bladder For Courage And Resilience

The bladder channel in the Chinese medicine classics is one of the main meridians in the body and associated to the element of water.

Water,

Both destructive and creative,

Symbolises both life and death.

It is the womb from which life emerges and the waters to which we return.

Nothing exists that is not touched by water.

Our bladder channel plays a crucial role in storing and eliminating waste.

In a metaphorical sense he gathers and releases,

Related also to our emotions.

It is also associated with the balance of yin and yang energy in the body,

Helping to maintain overall health and vitality.

On a mental and emotional level,

Our bladder channel is linked to our ability to release fear and tension,

As well as to have a strong sense of courage and resilience.

By addressing imbalances in our bladder channel we can improve our emotional well-being and overall mental health.

Our bladder is connected to the concept of fight-or-flight response and working with this channel helps us to let go of patterns of fear and reactivity.

By harmonising his flow of qi we can experience a greater sense of empowerment and self-awareness.

The first or root chakra houses the bladder.

Its colour is red and essence and instinct is feeding,

Safety,

Shelter and an ability to provide for oneself.

Here we digest and metabolise emotional energies from physical and emotional trauma,

And turn into sources of power and light.

If you have a blue-green fluoride known to promote tissue flexibility or a citrine with its natural unwinding action,

Place this on your root chakra now.

The dolphin is our bladder channel archetype.

Dolphins are known for their graceful movements,

Agility and adaptability in water,

Just as the bladder channel is known for its ability to provide support and structure to the body.

Similar to how a dolphin's streamlined body allows it to move effortlessly through the water,

Our dolphin is a highly intelligent and social animal which reflects the bladder channels role in maintaining the body's internal balance and communication between our other organs and he exhibits qualities such as adaptability,

Fluidity and intuition whilst governing the flow and distribution of fluids throughout the body.

So find a quiet place,

Sit or lay down,

Uncross your legs and allow your spine to go soft.

And just begin with four deep cleansing breaths to supplement our bladder chi.

Soften your eyes behind your eyelids and gaze,

Soften your jaw and allow your tongue to go loose in the bottom of the palate.

Lower your chin onto your chest and feel the neck elongate up into the back of the skull and feel the weight of your neck soften.

Soften your shoulders,

Shoulder blades and the top of your spine.

Put your attention on the palms of your hands,

Feel them soften and become heavier.

Put your attention on the soles of your feet,

Feel them soften and become heavier.

Visualise your dolphin behind your eyes,

Visualise him gently and gracefully exiting now from your lowest chakra and coming to rest beside you.

This animal of the seas and oceans is highly intelligent and closely in tune with his instincts.

He is your symbol of protection and resurrection.

He symbolises cooperation and freedom.

His energy is generous and protective and he teaches us to save ourselves but also protect others.

Like a powerful river,

The bladder channel begins at the inner corner of the eyes,

Travels up over the head,

Down the back of the neck.

It then splits into a double line down the back either side of the spine,

Through the lower back,

All the way down the back of the legs,

Around the outer edges of the foot to end at the little toes on the feet.

Connect and visualise your dolphin.

He will encourage you to become more aware of your innermost thoughts and feelings and intuition as he slowly accompanies you along your bladder channel.

He may dance,

Play,

Swim or rest at each point,

Allowing our waters to be intelligent and fearless with strong moral conviction and self-confidence.

Beginning at the inner edges of our eyes,

The first ten points,

Bladder one to ten,

Govern our illumination,

Light and yang,

Of the highest aspects of our inborn potential,

As they combine with heavenly chi,

Moon,

Star and sunlight.

So starting at bladder one,

Eyes bright,

At the inner corners of the eyes,

They represent the source of bladder chi,

Serving to brighten our eyes,

Empowering accurate perception and reality.

The eyes are said to be the windows of the soul.

This point helps clear away darkness and restore our sense of wonder and fascination,

The freshness of our vision.

It deepens our appreciation of the divine gifts within and all around us.

Bladder two,

Collect bamboo,

Is a gathering of chi on the inner edge of each eyebrow,

As our focus of our spirit condenses and gains strength.

Here we clear the mind and restore its natural quietude.

Our quiet mind is aware and receptive to wisdom.

Eyebrows rushing bladder three,

Represents the forceful ascent of chi as it is guided upwards to the top of the head.

And bladder four,

Crooked servant,

Serves as a reserve of chi to empower the flow of the channel to reach the summit of the head.

The ascent of chi at this point requires work,

And the crooked servant can help us go the distance,

When our minds are fatigued from overstrain.

Pooling of resources as it reaches the top of our head is bladder five,

Five places,

And bladder six,

Receive light.

Receiving here illuminates the mind from the heavens and provides access to our ancestors wisdom.

Bladder seven,

Penetrate heaven,

Here the ascent is complete,

As it literally penetrates the heavens at the top of our head,

Our embodiment of the pole star.

Here our chi descends over the rear of the head,

And down the back like a mighty waterfall.

We pause here with our dolphins,

As the waterfall,

With all its power of descent,

Prepares to feed and nourish the functions and qualities of the back points with heavenly chi.

Bladder eight,

Connecting decline,

And bladder nine,

Jade pillow,

On the rear of our head,

Are where we momentarily rest,

Like our heads on a pillow,

Gathering our reserves ready for the descent.

Our illumination concludes at the base of our skull with bladder ten,

Heavenly pillar.

Pillars are the most enduring of structures.

If we are referred to as a pillar of strength,

Or a pillar in the community,

We know the term refers to being of reliable and essential support.

This pillar is heavenly.

It brings the qualities of unshakable spiritual strength with a high and exalted view.

This point takes us to a place beyond our avoidances,

Hindrances and anxieties,

To where we can clearly see what is,

And feel strong enough to deal with it.

Bladder 11 to 35,

The inner bladder line,

Runs two inches either side of the spine,

Starting at the neck and right down to the buttock.

A powerful waterfall of chi running straight down either side of the spine.

Here are the physiological reserves of chi that support the functioning of all other officials.

The channel,

Like a river,

Runs down either side of the spine,

Flowing through special points directly connected to the function of the other channels.

These points,

Related to the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system,

Are like small tributaries entering and leaving the spinal cord,

Connecting our bladder channel to all other rivers of chi,

Like a river reaching out to the furthest villages.

Allow our dolphin to dance just between our shoulder blades,

Where we connect with our lungs,

Our heart's protector,

And our heart.

These are our receiving officials,

Organs and functions.

Across our middle back,

Our dolphin connects with our liver,

Gallbladder,

Spleen and stomach,

Our triple burner,

And these are our processing officials.

And in our lower back,

Down into our pelvis,

Our dolphin connects with our kidney,

Large and small intestine,

And our bladder,

Our eliminating functions and officials.

Starting back up at the neck again,

Is our outer bladder line,

Bladder 36 to 49,

This time four inches each side of the spine,

Regulating our spiritual reserves,

Manifesting and supporting our virtues,

Our behaviours or moral excellence.

As we descend a second time,

Powered by our waterfall of chi,

We pass through some of the most beautiful points on the body.

Names like soul door,

Spirit hall,

Spiritual soul gate,

Rich for the vitals,

Thought dwelling and ambition room.

When these doors and gates are opened and nourished,

We are able to be inspired,

Able to take in new vistas of richness and quality.

Shock and trauma can slam doors shut,

Keeping us from the very spiritual essence that we seek.

We may go on spiritual quests to find it,

Not perceiving its presence within ourselves already.

We try to contact the spirit but cannot.

Nourishing this part of the channel,

We allow access to the deepest levels within us.

It is the way to the innermost dwelling of the spirit,

Its home,

Where the eternal riches await.

Joining at the bottom of the buttock to the lower limbs are points 50 to 67 and provide us access to our element command points.

Finally our waterfall cascades now down to the earth through the back of our legs,

Connecting our journey from the heavens above to mother earth down below.

Our dolphin rests on the back of the calf muscles at bladder 58 fly and scatter,

Directly behind the middle of each calf muscle,

Just on the outer edge.

As the junction point of the meridian,

Here we can create balance and harmony between our two water officials,

Bladder and kidney.

This point brings peace,

Order and harmony to scattered components,

Especially thoughts and feelings.

It creates order from chaos.

Harmony in the bladder official means using only the appropriate amount of reserve the task at hand,

Neither over nor underdoing.

However,

When the water is not contained or within boundaries,

It scatters and flows everywhere,

Randomly and uncontrolled.

This is the place where we can restore the calm and containment vital to our sense of security and our instinct of survival.

Three finger widths up from the outer ankle is bladder 59 foot bone yang,

A cleansing place to clear our waters from toxicity in our body,

Mind and spirit and to quell our anxieties.

Just at the top of our outer Achilles is bladder 60,

Our fire point,

Kunlun Mountain.

This is a mountain that connects heaven to earth,

The axis of all creation.

This place balances yin and yang within us,

Stokes our fire for its ascension into wisdom,

Bringing back any loss of sparkle or vitality that we may have had.

At the bottom of the Achilles heel is bladder 61,

Servants aid and here is a place of return and renewal.

Just before the end of the channel,

This servant is in service to our bladder and we gather nourishment so we do not fail in our final steps down.

Just below the outer ankle bone is bladder 62,

Extended meridian.

It is here we address the relationship between our utilization of resources,

The strength of our limbs and the quality of our wills.

We move on to the outer edge of the foot,

Bladder 63,

Golden gate.

This is a gate that opens the sensory orifices and can help to dispel any fears and empower a clear perception of reality and better align us with the Tao and going with the flow.

Inching along the outer edge of the foot to bladder 64,

Capital bone,

Our source point.

A source to steady and reassure us,

Strengthening and balancing our water.

Just before the knuckle of the little toe is bladder 64,

Our wood point,

Bone binder.

We connect to our wood element here.

Water might be the deep origin but wood allows us to begin things so that we can move upwards and outwards in all directions so that our chi can remain free of stagnation.

At the base of the little toe is bladder 66,

Penetrating valley.

As the water point on a water meridian,

This point can clear away accumulated debris and obstructions.

In nature,

Water traverses all sorts of terrain,

Hills,

Mountains and valleys on its way to the sea.

When it flows unobstructed,

It finds its way over,

Under or around any barrier.

In our lives,

We too encounter varied terrain and sometimes seemingly insurmountable barriers.

Our path may seem blocked.

We can get stuck in a valley and perceive no way out.

We can in essence become frozen with fear.

This is the valley where we can penetrate into the depths and clear the way,

Lifting us beyond the obstacles,

Liberating us from the fear of an unknown future.

Finally,

Our dolphin reaches bladder 67,

A metal point on the outer edge of the little toenail,

Extremity of yin.

As the metal point of the meridian,

Extremity of yin is for those of us who have reached our limit or extremity of endurance and are just ready to throw in the towel.

Feelings of exhaustion,

Fearfulness,

Anxiousness,

Depression,

Ready to give up,

Feel like we have no more to give.

This is the place where we can re-energise and deeply replenish our bladder channel when our storage tank is just nearly run out.

Now smile the length of your bladder channel,

Thank your dolphin spirit and remember he reminds us to keep a strong and fearless sense of connection to his healing medicine and wisdom and have a lovely day.