Meridian Muscle Testing
The human body has a bio-energy-circulation system similar to the blood-circulation system. The bio-energy flows along 12 main meridians, or channels. These are symmetrical on each side of the body, each pair being related to a specific organ.
In addition, there are two single meridians following the midline of the body, one at the front and the other along the spine. Many points are distributed along the meridians. These points are essentially transformer stations through which bio-energy flows into the muscle structure to allow organized activity to take place.
In disease, imbalances develop in these energy flows, causing some of the transformer points to become irritated or congested. This results in pain or weakness in the surrounding muscles. Stimulating these points with special needles (acupuncture) or pressure (acupressure) helps to normalize impaired conditions. In addition, you may use electro-acupuncture to treat points with a weak DC current. Electro-acupuncture instruments are relatively cheap and easy to use.
Try to find tender points by pressing with a thumb or finger in a circular motion around the area indicated for each point on the charts of the meridians. For treatment concentrate on the most painful spots, pressing them frequently as explained for reflexology in Chapter 2. Generally, the pain decreases after some time of pressing, but should it increase instead, then interrupt the treatment for several days.
Tender pressure points may stem from either a local condition or a problem in the main organ associated with that particular meridian; also, the pain may be referred from a more distant body part connected to the same meridian. There is, of course, an interaction between these different areas.
When the main organ is inflamed, most points along its meridian will be tender. The points especially useful for diagnosing and treating the organ directly are located around the ankles and wrists. They are called 'source-points'. Further source-points are situated along the bladder meridian close to the spine, and also as local-points on various meridians near the target organ.
Rules for Selecting Points
The following general rules are useful for selecting points for treatment.
Points above the knees or elbows reflect mainly local conditions, while those below these joints reflect local as well as distant conditions at other parts of the meridian.
Generally, the closer the points are to the fingertips or toes, the closer to the other end of the meridian will be the related sphere of influence.
For acute, painful conditions treat mainly distant-points, for chronic conditions add local-points.
This means, for example, that if you wish to treat an acute eye or ear pain you select points near the toes and fingers, while to treat shoulders and hips you move close to the elbows or knees. For a more chronic condition you press in addition the tender spots around the ears and eyes, and hips and shoulders.
You may also add points of other meridians that have a direct relationship to the problem. Eye problems, for example, are often associated with poor kidney and liver functions. Therefore, some points of these organs may be treated as well.
Furthermore, the points at the shoulders, the shoulder blades and the base of the neck control the circulation to the arms and hands; while the points at the hips, the buttocks and around the base of the spine control the circulation to the legs and feet. Therefore, treat poor circulation, numbness and pain in the extremities by pressing the points in the indicated control areas.
Frequently, the pressure points of a pair of meridians will be more sensitive on one side of the body than on the other side. This indicates an imbalance in the energy flows. The meridian with the more tender points requires sedation, relaxation and withdrawal of energy, while its counterpart on the
Instead of needling or pressing acupuncture-points, you may place the north pole of a small magnet on a point for stimulation or the south pole for sedation.
Meridian Therapy
A main problem in healing is the balancing of the energy flows. Usually, this balancing occurs unrecognised as a by-product of other successful treatments. However, healing can be initiated and accelerated by deliberately treating the meridians with the express purpose of balancing.
A useful method for this is to follow the outline of a meridian (see the Meridian Chart below), with one finger or with several fingers held closely together. Following a meridian in the normal flow direction is strengthening, while tracing in the opposite direction will weaken and sedate the meridian. The results of these tracings may be checked with muscle testing.
In order to perform a meridian tracement, pause with your fingers for a moment at the starting-point; then follow the meridian in a quiet, fluent motion. The fingers should be close to the body. They may touch the skin or clothing but do not actually need to touch. It is enough to remain within about 5 cm of the actual course of the meridian.
Start by energising your hands. If you are experienced in working with energies you may just do that with your imagination, otherwise shake your hands for about ten seconds and during the actual tracing try to feel or imagine feeling energy streaming out of the tips of your fingers. Related meridians on both sides may be traced simultaneously. In repeated tracings move the hands back to the starting-point in a wide sweep to avoid following the meridian in the reverse direction. At the end of each tracement lightly flick the fingers to remove any accumulated negative energy.
You may trace all the main meridians once or several times daily, or you may concentrate on the meridians most in need of improvement. Important meridians may be traced repeatedly during the day for 20 times or more. The strengthening effect may be increased if after several tracings you do a muscle-tensing exercise, Taking a deep breath while tensing your whole body and then relaxing it during exhalation.
The meridian system allows us to understand why many disease symptoms appear in certain body parts when the originating cause is a weak or inflamed organ in another location. The diagrams show only the surface courses of the meridians; inside the body each one is connected to its associated organ. In this way the deranged energy pattern of an organ is easily transmitted to other body parts along the course of the meridian.
Diseases of the ear, migraine and hip problems can now be seen energy-wise to be associated with the gall bladder. Arthritis of the hip, therefore, is often a gall bladder problem, while arthritis of the shoulders may have its cause in the intestines. Gout, affecting the big toes, stems from the liver, while swollen ankles are related to the kidneys. See the enclosed Table of Meridian-Disease Relationships.
Furthermore, each organ-meridian system has a two-hour period of maximum activity, and a period of minimum activity 12 hours later. An inflamed organ is often more painful during its active period, while a weak system should not be stressed during low periods.
In acupuncture books you may find different names for two of the meridians. The circulation meridian is also called the pericardium meridian, while the gland meridian may be called the triple-warmer meridian.
While pulse diagnosis is the expert Chinese way of determining the energy balance of the meridians, you may often be able to judge by the kind of diseases or symptoms present. Generally, overacidity, pain and inflammation along the course of a meridian or in its target organ call for sedation, while coldness and weakness call for stimulation.
According to Chinese teachings, some interesting characteristics are associated with the meridians of the kidneys and liver. Weak kidney meridians are indicated by a lack of will and sexual impulse, and furthermore by negativity, unease, timidity and impatience. In the case of an overactive kidney meridian, on the other hand, the energy level is abnormally high and you cannot stop working.
The liver is similar. A weak meridian shows itself in dizziness, a clumsy walk, easily tiring eyes and a short temper. An overactive liver meridian causes excessive excitability, crying moods and a compulsion to continue working.
According to Chinese traditions, the main organs and their meridians are also associated with different emotions. An excessive amount of these emotions can damage the associated organs, while a disease of these organs may, in time, lead to excessive displays of these emotions.
Accordingly, anger is associated with the liver; excessive laughter and gayness, but also fright, with the heart; worry and emotional tension with the spleen and pancreas; grief, sorrow and negativity with the lungs; and fear and timidity with weak kidneys.