TO RELEASE AND TRANSFORM TROUBLING EMOTIONS, the Six Healing Sounds integrate four modalities: sound, arm movement, visualized color, and intentional smiling. The sounds release the unwanted emotions. The arm movements activate the meridians, or energy channels, of the affected organs, increasing the flow of chi. The visualized colors nourish these organs and support their positive emotions. Smiling to these organs creates a feeling of gratitude for their functions. Each of these four methods can be a powerful transformer of turbulent emotions — and together they are amazing!
A surgeon studying with Mantak Chia reported that patients who die of heart attacks have hearts that look like they’ve been cooked! In Traditional Chinese Medicine, the heart is covered with a protective membrane, or sac, called the pericardium; this sac absorbs heat and releases it through its meridians (energy pathways) to the skin, preventing the heart from overheating and malfunctioning. These two ideas, and Mantak Chia’s own intuition and body awareness, led him to the following theory: that the recurrent painful emotions that are denied or repressed cause the fascia, the membranes enclosing corresponding internal organs, to overheat, contract, and stick to these organs, in this way blocking the normal cooling process. The overheated organ malfunctions and causes disease. Eventually, the heat spreads to other organs and to the muscles, causing further problems. When the Six Healing Sounds are practiced regularly, in the correct order, excess heat is released through the esophagus, and the organs and whole body are restored to their optimal temperature.
When we do the Sounds, we may sometimes yawn, burp, or pass gas. Or our eyes may tear and our saliva increase. Some people may have loose bowel movements because their bodies are cleansing themselves of toxins that may have accumulated for years. These are all positive signs: we are releasing negative emotions and, possibly, excess heat.
Another beneficial sign is greater physical flexibility. The range of movement in our arms, neck, shoulders, shoulder blades, and spine will increase as our muscles lose some of their tension. Feldenkrais therapist and Taoist teacher Joyce Gayheart taught her clients with back problems to do the kidney sound to help increase their spinal flexibility.
Chi kung and TCM view each emotion and its paired organs as connected to a season of the year. In this season, those organs are working the hardest and so are more vulnerable to emotional or physical stress. The Sounds are most effective when done in the natural order of the seasons: fall, winter, spring, summer, late summer. This is the order of the Creation Cycle, explained in chapter 2.
FIGURE 11: Creation Cycle of the Organs
Generally, we repeat each Sound three times, six times, or more. Taoism favors multiples of threes, as in the three sources of external energy called “the Three Pure Ones”: Universal Energy, Cosmic Energy, and Earth Energy. However, when an emotion and its organs are in their season, we increase the number of repetitions to six, twelve, or more to give them extra support. For example, sadness and depression are most prevalent in the fall, because the lungs and large intestine are working hardest then. So, in the fall, we do double the number of sadness-lung sounds, relative to the other sounds.
It’s always optimal to do the whole sequence of Six Healing Sounds one or more times each day. But if you have one troubling emotion running rampant, or if you have a related physical symptom, you’ll get relief by repeating the appropriate sound by itself many times. If, for example, you’re depressed, do the lung sound until you feel lighter and happier. You can also do the Releasing One Emotion practice, concentrating on sadness. And if your lungs are stressed by a cold or flu, do the lung sound until your lungs or nose feel clearer.
After the initial learning period, it will take you about twenty to thirty minutes to do the Six Healing Sounds. When you do them is not crucial. What is crucial is that you do them regularly. The quickest and most profound results come from daily practice. As Mantak Chia says, you do it — you get it; you don’t do it — you don’t get it!
Most people prefer to do the Six Sounds at night, before sleep. This promotes a deep, peaceful sleep; many people have cured insomnia this way. Doing the Sounds in the morning is also excellent; it will improve your entire day. If you have a physical exercise program, do the Sounds right after you finish it. If you do heavy exercises such as running, playing tennis or basketball, or dancing, doing the Sounds immediately afterward will release any excess heat. If you have a particularly challenging task ahead, doing the Sounds beforehand will help you carry it out in the best possible way. You’re likely to astound yourself with your tact and graciousness.