How I understand ki energy from outside myself

In my last article I was looking at my understanding of the phenomenon of energy (in the eastern chi/ki sense) and how I've come to see it as an (ex)scientist. I described my experiences of feeling waves or rushes, sometimes jolts, of pleasurable sensations travelling through my body during certain yoga or meditation practices, and concluded that these body-felt sensations are what I feel when the electromagnetic field in my body generated by the movement of electric current within my nerves and other cells comes into coherence. The reason why we don't all feel these is due to blockages and restrictions that have built up in our bodies over time (tight muscles, imbalances, etc), and a general lack of sensitivity.

I've been told for many years by various yoga and meditation teachers that it's not only possible to feel this ki energy moving within us, but it’s also possible to feel and even receive ki energy from sources outside yourself. As I said in the previous article, both in traditional Chinese medicine and modern physics, everything can be seen as a form of energy – but things being energy, and being able to receive that energy are two different things. So does this make sense?

Let's consider the chairs we're sitting on right now (assuming you are sitting on one!). The chair is made of solid matter (wood, metal, etc), which, as Einstein showed us, is just a form of energy (remember E=mc^2). Can I feel that energy? Sure I can – just by the mere fact that I'm still sitting on the chair and haven't passed straight through it means that my body is experiencing the physical energetic forces that make the chair solid. But does the fact my chair is really just energy mean there can be an exchange of that energy with me, or that I can feel that energy at a distance?

Well, I don’t have an answer about chairs yet, but as I've been tuning in to these shimmering, pulsing sensations in my body, my teachers have been encouraging me to see whether I can feel ki energy from other things – particularly organic things like people and plants, but also places.

And as crazy as it sounds, I can actually feel something! Trees have been a big source of these sensations.

London Plane tree

At first I would be in the park here in London and I'd try feeling a tree... Being acutely aware of how weird I might appear(!), I would would try approaching a tree surreptitiously when no one was looking and lightly touch the bark. Sure enough, whooff, waves of tingling, pulsing sensations would often (not always) ripple through my body. Some trees do it more than others (generally big old ones are best!). Now, when I really tune in, I can feel these familiar tingling sensations when I just come near a tree, or even stand under its branches – just being in its presence. I can't feel it every time, just when I'm trying to tune in, and I'm feeling particularly open. It happened pretty powerfully a week or two ago when I was standing between four very fine beech trees, and for the first time the other day with just a house plant!

Taoist masters throughout the centuries have observed that trees are tremendously powerful plants. Taoist master Mantak Chia explains how, in the Taoist view, trees are seen to be constantly in meditation and are natural processors of ki energy. The best trees for healing, they say, are big trees, especially pines and those growing near running water. But again, all this is ideas and beliefs. How do you explain it?

It turns out that, like animals, plants too have electrically charged cells (so-called cell action potentials) and use them to rapidly send signals through the plant. This came as a surprise to me. So plants generate their own electromagnetic field as well… (Apparently by attaching electrodes to the leaf and root they be made to sing.) When you think about it, we all know that plants depend on light, which is just electromagnetic energy, for their nourishment. We learn that at school. They photosynthesise the carbon monoxide in the air together with water that they draw up from the earth and the energy from sunlight into sugars and proteins – and oxygen which they expel.

So sensing the bioelectromagnetic field (or ki energy) of a plant doesn’t sound so weird, even when it’s at a distance. And the fact that plants can excite a response in your own bioelectromagnetic field also doesn’t sound so strange. I think of it like a form of induction, like how your electric toothbrush charges or how an induction hob works. Changes in the field of one object influences the field of the other.

My teachers also say that one can feel and receive ki energy from the Earth. In fact one of the first times I felt these strong energy pulses I've mentioned was when doing what my yoga teacher Jonathan Monks calls the root meditation. As he describes it, this is about opening your root (the energetic centre in your pelvic floor) so that you can connect with and receive the energy of the Earth. The sensation was clear enough, but energy in the Earth...?

It's known that the Earth's magnetic field is generated by electric currents moving through the highly conductive layer of molten iron alloys in the planet’s outer core. The currents are formed as the molten iron moves around due to convection. But how this relates to potential ki energy at the surface of our planet is much harder to understand. Some people talk about ley lines being paths of energy in the ground, some people about feng shui and the harmonisation of ki in the wind, water, stars, and earth.

Personally I haven’t found a way of understanding Earth energy yet. I feel it in my root (pelvic floor), in the soles of my feet on the ground, and in my hands when they’re on the ground, but that’s all I can say.

As always, your comments are very welcome - here on the blog, on FB or by e-mail. More on this in the weeks to come...!

From the ground up: where your roots become your trunk

In this third article in the series looking at how we can best take care of our roots, I'd like to concentrate on the top of our root structure – where our roots turn into our trunk. In the first article we looked at the tips of our roots, our feet, and some of the common problems that arise in that area. In the second article, we looked at the middle section and our knees, focusing on alignment and stability.

As I said previously, I define our roots as everything from the pelvic floor downwards, so here we're going to zoom in and have a look at that very important area – the pelvic floor. It's important both physiologically and energetically in the context of our yoga practice, and it's associated with the practice of Mulabandha (more on that later).

To start off with, let's look at this area physiologially – and for this I've enlisted the help of my sister Kim, a physiotherapist who lives in Stockholm.

In Latin, "pelvis" means basin. The pelvic floor or pelvic diaphragm is composed of muscles and fascia (connective tissue) which span the area of your undercarriage (between your anus and genitals). Physiologically it's function is to provide support for the lower organs (bladder, intestines, the uterus for women) and maintain intra-abdominal pressure (if it wasn't there, each time we took a breath in our organs would slip out between our legs...), to give us control over our bladder and bowel, and to help in child birth (only for women of course). They're also important for sex – for erectile function and ejaculation in men, and for sexual sensation and arousal in women.

The muscles of the pelvic floor are composed basically of three layers or structures. The deepest layer is the pelvic diaphragm (the levator ani), which supports the rectum, and in women the upper two thirds of vagina. The levator ani is actually made of two main muscles, the pubococcygeus and the ileococcygeus. The former is found in the middle, whereas the latter is found along the outer edges of the pelvic floor area. Next there's the urogenital diaphragm. It closes around the urogenital organs supports and has a sphincter-like effect around the vagina in women and contributes to continence. The third structure we find between the anus and the vagina is a structure called the perineal body (or the perineum). This fibromuscular structure is shaped like a pyramid with its base sitting between the genitals and the rectum and its tip pointing upwards.

Image from the book "Mulabandha" by Dr. Kathleen Summers (www.theYogaDr.com)

Back in the 40s, a gynecologist in California called Dr. Kegel started encouraging his patients to practice pelvic floor contractions in order to build up and strengthen the muscles in this area since he thought that would help prevent urinary incontinence and uterine prolapse. Decades of research since has shown that he was onto a winner. So-called "Kegel exercises" are now the first-line therapy for urinary incontinence, primarily resulting from ageing, childbirth, obesity, and the associated straining of chronic constipation. They've also been found to be effective in men undergoing prostate surgery.

So how should we go about finding this complex and rather obscure set of deep musculature? Start off by trying to lift up the whole area by contracting the entire pelvic floor. You’ll feel this as a tightening of the muscles around the anus (as if you are trying to stop a bowel movement), the genitals (as if stopping the urine stream) and the bit in between. This is basically a Kegel exercise.

How did that go? Did you feel a contraction?

If you did, then we can start looking at this in more detail, and try to identify some different structures within the pelvic floor.

First try activating only the muscles you need to stop yourself from peeing – this will be the urogenital diaphragm and the sphincter around the urethra.

Now try activating just the muscles around your anus – you should feel the contraction towards the back of your pelvic floor in the anal sphincter. (Personally I can't do these two separately, but Kim can, and I know others who can too – don't ask me how that came up in conversation though!)  

If you've successfully managed to isolate those two, try activating (contracting, pulling up) the area of the pelvic floor that's between. Now there should be no movement of the anus, the urethra, or the penis/clitoris. What we're finding here is the perineal body and the central portion of the pelvic diaphragm (levator ani) – and can be quite tricky to do. You might need a good bit of time and practice to find this subtle contraction (or it might just work straight away!).

Let me know how you get on using the comment box below.

Next week we'll be looking at why all this physiological detail is necessary for understanding and accessing the more subtle, energetic side of the pelvic floor area. We'll look at why all this is so important in yoga and how it relates to things like the practice of mulabandha (or root lock).

From the ground up: legs and knees

This is the second in a series of articles I've been writing with my sister Kim, a physiotherapist in Stockholm, looking at how we can best take care of our roots. In the first article we looked at our feet – our sole mates (...groan) – and how we can strengthen them and work on some common problems.

In this article we're going to look at another part of our roots: the knees. But before we get onto that, let's talk a bit more about roots.

Do humans have physical roots? This might sound like a strange question. Of course not - we're not plants...

"Root"
pronunciation: /ruːt/
1) a part of the body of an organism that grows downward into the ground, anchoring or supporting the organism.
2) the basic cause, source, or origin of something

Don't we have a part of ourselves that grows downwards, supporting us on the ground? Thousands of years of self-exploration by various sages, yogis and spiritual practitioners have revealed that there is a very important area around your pelvic floor called in yoga the Muladhara or Root chakra. It is here that our roots begin, and extend all the way down our legs to our feet (and with our mind, out of the feet into the ground). Our roots and root chakra are associated with "things of the earth" – stability, grounding, physical health, vigour, nourishment, and is the basis of both our masculine and feminine energies. This means that having healthy roots is vital for living in this world!




The knees: Locking and overextending

You might have often heard yoga teachers talking about 'locking' (or not locking) the knees. You might also have been told that you are 'over' or 'hyperextending' when you think you are 'locking'. Hyperextension of joints is in fact chronic in the yoga world.

Locking and over/hyper-extending:
The knee joint is simple – it moves in two directions, bending and straightening. When the leg is straight the thigh bone (femur) and the chin bones (tibia & fibula) should be directly aligned with one another. When we push into (or for some people, relax) into the back of the knee, this is called overextension or hyperextension. The body's weight is no longer transferring directly through the bones one on top of the other, but is 'hanging' in the soft structures (ligaments) at the back of the knee. These structures are not designed to be put under so much pressure and so this can be very damaging for your knee (see this nice article for more info).

Try: standing upright. Now see if you can 'push' your knees back beyond straight.

Hyperextended knee joint

If you could, then chances are you don't naturally hyperextend in your knees. If you discovered you couldn’t push your knees back any further, then there's a good chance you were already 'hanging' in the ligaments at the back of the knee. It's important for the knee to be soft and not locked back so it's able to cope with impact and help us keep our balance. This is why in yoga teachers often encourage you have a 'micro bend' in your knees. You can also try this little test in a more challenging yoga posture (e.g. standing forward bend, warrior) to check if you are hyperextending.




Knee stability:
To give the knees the most strength and stability, we need to be engaging the muscles on the back and front of the thigh. Some teachers advise their students to 'lock' their knees in certain postures to presumably give strength, but the word 'lock' implies rigidity and blockage. Really it's the opposite that we're trying to do – it's the openness, strength and alignment of our knees that facilitates connection to the ground and allows the energy to flow (see below).

Try: Come into Trikonasana (triangle pose) as our skeleton is showing below. This is a pose that's particularly tricky when it comes to knee stability – especially the front knee. We'll now try to find how to engage those muscles on the front (quadriceps) and back (hamstrings) of the thigh to help stabilise the knee.

Credit: www.bandhayoga.com/keys_knee_hype.html

Bend the front leg slightly (as in the picture to the left) and draw your foot backwards against the friction on the mat. Can you feel your hamstrings activating? Now to find the muscle at the front of your thigh (the quad), straighten the leg again and try lifting your kneecap upwards. This should get it working.

You might need to practise this a few times to reliably find and activate these muscles. If you find it difficult try one at a time, with straight legs or bent. When you have found both muscles you can try activating them at the same time to stabilise your knee in all your postures (skeleton picture to the right). Your knee will thank you dearly in the years to come!


Knock knees or bow legs

Knock knees describes a condition where the knees fall in towards each other rather than staying neutrally aligned. Interestingly, most kids under the age of 6 appear to have knock knees, but grow out of it as their body shape changes. It can arise either structurally in the knee joint or the surrounding bones, and it which case it's just your natural body shape. Or it can arise due to a muscle weakness in the legs or hips: weak external hip rotators causing the thigh to internally rotate, weak hip abductors allowing your knees to drop in, or tight/asymmetric quads or hamstrings causing a misalignment of the knee joint. If you see someone who appears to have knock knees (particularly as they walk) and their kneecaps face inwards, then it's most likely down to muscle weakness.

Bow legs are much less common, and most often due to true structural issues in the bones. It's normal for babies to have bowed legs before the bones ossify (solidify). From a muscular point of view, bow legs can arise when the opposite of the aforementioned muscles are weak.

Unless your knock knees or bow legs arise from the shape of your bones or joint, it’s not actually the knees that are the culprit. The real culprits are their muscular neighbours: the thighs, hips and feet. The feet were the subject of the last post in this series, and in the next post we'll be looking at the top of our roots – the pelvis, hips and thighs – so stay tuned!


Knees and energy flow
Energy ('prana' in yoga or 'qi/ki' in Chinese/Japanese) flows around the body through certain channels known as 'nadis' in yoga or 'meridians' in Chinese medicine.
When our limbs are properly aligned through balanced muscles and correct posture, energy can flow like water or electricity, connecting and nourishing all the parts of the body. Locking (or hyperextending) our joints restricts this current, and like a kink in a hose, it can cause a build-up or blockage. In Qigong they say "When Qi flows freely along the meridians, people are free from illness. If the Qi is blocked, then pain follows" – so blockages can result in pain or illness (an obvious one is arthritis). One of the principles of Tai Chi and of my yoga practice is to keep the knees (elbows, and all other joints) soft (bent) for this exact reason.

In this system, the knees are one of the primary connection points between our upper body and the ground. This is why it is so important not to lock or misalign them, so that we can maintain that all-important sensitivity to and connection with the ground.

Come and join me in exploring your roots at one of my yoga classes at ZenYoga in Camberwell. See my website for my class schedule and more details.

I'd love to hear from you

Have you suffered from leg and knee problems in the past? How have you got on with these exercises? I'd love to hear from you! Leave a comment below, join the discussion. 

Pass it on

Enjoyed this post? Then please tweet it, share it on Facebook or send it to friends via e-mail using the buttons below.