rolling stones don't gather...

There's always a lot of talk in Spring of cleansing one's liver. With good reason - the liver is a big, important organ that helps us digest food and cleanse toxins from our blood. I'd like to give a shout out to the liver's lesser-acknowledged cousin, the gallbladder. Because gallbladders need love and spring cleaning too. And here's why:

First of all, they are related. In Chinese Medicine, they share a similar wavelength of energy, commonly referred to as "Wood". Wood can be like a sprout (pushing, growing, young) or like a sapling (flexible, smooth); like a strong oak (stable, powerful, commanding) or a heavy board (obstinate, stubborn, inflexible). All of these qualities live in us, albeit in different measures at different times. But during Spring, those energies are generally stronger because they're stronger in the planet. To capitalize on that, we do detoxes and cleanses to make sure our Livers are performing at their best and getting some love and acknowledgment for it.

Meanwhile, when you check out the Gallbladder's Robin-to-Batman status, you'll often find the biomedical world has little remorse about kicking it to the curb. The Gallbladder's function is primarily to digest fat, but if your eyes have yet to glaze over, hang on for the really interesting stuff that Chinese Medicine has to offer on this organ and the "digestion" it assists.

The fluid that breaks down fat is bile. The Liver produces it, the Gallbladder stores it. (PS, if you're wondering why these organs are capitalized, it's because that's how we do it in Chinese Medicine - because the organs have important roles, and not just for the physical body.) Sufi Five-Element guru Thea Elijah describes bile in this way:

Bile is the power to overcome big obstacles by using main force to break them down. This is what bile is for. Not subtlety. You could combine it with subtlety, but nothing says you have to. Bile is the capacity for direct assault. Hammers. Using force. Demolition power. All right, here comes my best shot; I’m going to tackle this situation. There’s a lump of fat in your gut, and bile breaks it up no matter how thick and chunky it is. This kind of power is what makes bullies, and conversely what gives us the power to stand up to bullies. Bile is really great for taking on bad guys. Bile makes you feel strong, able to demolish obstacles.

Can you relate? So imagine what happens when that kind of energy can't flow, or gets stuck.

Somebody is making stupid rules, and your Kick Ass Vigilante Superhero bile self is held in, is squelched, is not coming out and saying “you can’t do that!” boom, boom, boom, like cannon fire, bringing up your full forcefulness out there...And if that energy is aroused and then held in, this leads to damp heat, a simmering “muzzled dragon” syndrome. There are a lot of people who have this; often they are constrained and unable to assert on the outside, but inside they live with a very acute awareness of just how much ass ought to be kicked. That constant awareness is arousing bile in them - and then it’s not coming out into the world where it is needed, where it could be used constructively and heroically for the betterment of all beings. It’s just held as simmering simmering simmering rage that then starts getting squirted out at inopportune moments in the gut and they end up with colitis or they end up with gallstones, held in there.

Testify. Part of Thea's genius is that she uses very strong, clear language to describe this - but if you scale it back a notch, and think about other, more subtle situations, I submit that this kind of thing happens all the time. Partially because this world has its share of trouble and there is a TON of ass that ought to be kicked. But also because anger (bitterness, frustration, resentment) is a really difficult emotion to manage well.

Paul Pitchford, author of the seminal "Healing with Whole Foods", suggests another telling source for Liver and Gallbladder disharmony:

Too many desires - whether for sex, fame, power, security, money or rich-tasting foods - can stimulate a person to eat excessively. Even in cases where not much is eaten, desire can blind proper judgment, so that inappropriate actions and diet may be chosen. (p.283)

Pitchford says symptoms that indicate Gallbladder sediment are indigestion, flatulence, periodic pain below the right front side of the rib cage, tension in the back of the shoulders near the neck, bitter taste in the mouth, and chest pain. You can ask your acupuncturist about these symptoms as well. Pitchford suggests some brilliant, natural ideas on how to treat this with food: the mild version of his Gallbladder Flush is taking two tablespoons of olive oil followed by two tablespoons of lemon juice, on an empty stomach, for five consecutive days. I've done this Flush and I like to do it first thing in the morning. Lemon juice has the added benefit of helping to adjust your pH balance at the start of your day. There's a more intense version of this that involves apples, and a gradual version of this that happens over many weeks.

If you dig these ideas, Pitchford's book is a very worthwhile investment. And if you're curious about the emotional aspects of Wood energy, scroll down to the bottom of this page and click on "Wood Pattern Trans". And if you're REALLY interested in an East-v-West comparison of the Liver, check this out.

Lastly, at the risk of outing myself, I will admit I am very intimately familiar with Wood energy - and I am always happy to listen to your personal cannon fire.

Peace,

Athena