We have active points in the body, by toning which we affect not only health, but also the psychological state – this is evidenced by the teachings of Taoist healers. One of these points is the region of the seventh cervical vertebra, Da Chui. It means “great obstacle”. It allows you to influence the will and energy.
In Chinese traditional medicine, it is believed that in our body there is some kind of qi energy – life force. It is conditionally divided into Yin and Yang.
There are many subtle, not always clear explanations of how these two types of energy differ. But in the practices of qigong and in Chinese medicine, there are many ways to stimulate Yang – the energy of life, fiery, nourishing, seething. The one with which we associate our vigor, strength, mobility.
In the Taoist tradition, there is an idea that this energy feeds the spirit, therefore, the stronger and more energetic a person is, the more prospects for spiritual development he has. In fact, this is not far from the truth. In the region of the seventh cervical vertebra, all the Yang channels intersect – those through which Yang energy flows. This is the only place in the body where they all converge in one place.
Accordingly, if stagnation occurs here, it inhibits the movement of energy throughout the body. And the lower the quality of energy circulation, the weaker the body feels and the lower the background mood – less drive, inspiration, will to live.
Connection with the heart
The region of the seventh cervical vertebra is associated with heart health. There are both scientific and metaphysical explanations for this. From the point of view of science, the heart is innervated through the region of the seventh cervical vertebra, that is, the brain controls the work of the heart through the nerves passing in this area.
You have probably seen people who have the seventh cervical region clamped – so much so that a “hump”, a fat pad, forms above it. Such people either already suffer from high blood pressure and other vascular diseases, or it is possible to “predict” with a high degree of certainty that these diseases will soon manifest themselves.
As for metaphysics, the region of the seventh cervical is the zone responsible for the circulation of yang energy through the channels. Whereas the heart is a muscle that pumps blood around the body. Thus, the function of the point and the organ coincide: they are responsible for the circulation of vital forces throughout the body.
Relationship with the liver
In addition, the region of the seventh cervical vertebra is associated with the liver – or rather, not so much with the liver itself, but with its element. In Chinese medicine, there is an idea that each organ has its own element, taste, color and season. This comprehensive view of the nature of the human body is called the system of five elements.
According to this system, the element to which the liver corresponds is wood. It is a symbol of rapid growth and development, the beginning of everything new. And the substance that accumulates in this element is will.
This figurative relationship can be understood with a simple example.
Sit straight, lean on the back of a chair, straighten your shoulders, open your chest. Evaluate the sensations – how energetic a person you feel when your shoulders are straightened, the seventh cervical vertebra tends inward, and the neck is long and free.
Now stoop: the seventh cervical takes the form of a hump. What happens to the feeling of freedom, the will to live and the feeling of energy? It “shrinks” along with the chest, the area of the seventh cervical vertebra is clamped, and willpower objectively becomes less.
Point disclosure
To release the flow of Yang energy, it is important to open the point of the seventh cervical vertebrae. What does it mean? In Chinese medicine, it is believed that it needs to be cleansed and energized.
The first step towards opening the point is to relax the seventh cervical area: then energy will flow freely here (from the Taoist point of view), the tissues will be well fed with blood, and signals from the brain will pass through the nerves efficiently and accurately (from the point of view of Western medicine) .
It should be noted that this zone – despite its functional significance – is quite immobile. It is not so easy to understand what movement can be made here to relax and release her.
Theoretically, the opening of the point is associated with the movement of the seventh cervical vertebra inward, as if it is pressed in, fused into the body. In practice, you can feel this small movement with the help of an exercise from the qigong course for the spine Sing Shen Juang.
Exercise “Dragon Head”
- Stand up straight, palms on the waist, feet a short distance from each other. The neck is free, relaxed, the crown tends upward.
- Keeping the initial position of the head and neck, begin to make rotations with a small amplitude – as if the crown were describing a circle in the air. The head does not tilt back and does not hang. Rotation occurs at the seventh cervical vertebra.
- As you do this exercise, ask yourself, “How can I make this movement even softer and more relaxed?” Concentrate your attention in the region of the seventh cervical vertebra and look for such a movement that will further relax, soften the tissues around it.