THE MERIDIAN WALK

Reports of acupuncture and healing methods based on it have existed for approximately 5,000 years. Descriptions of the meridians can be found in literature as early as the Nei Ching, the first text on internal medicine, written during the reign of Huang Ti, the "Yellow Emperor" (around 2690–2590 BCE).

As you can see, knowledge of the meridians is very ancient—and so are the healing methods that consider and utilize these meridians for healing.

The Meridians

You can imagine the meridians as energy channels that run through your body, supplying it with vital energy and balancing your energy.

If such an energy channel is blocked, your highly intelligent body will show you this through symptoms, and illnesses can develop as a result.

Therefore, it is so important that they remain unobstructed.

You can imagine the meridians as energy channels that run through your body, supplying it with vital energy and balancing your energy. Let's take a closer look at the map of the meridians:

Traditional Chinese Medicine distinguishes between 12 main meridians, which are paired and symmetrically located on both sides of the body, and 2 extraordinary vessels, or special energy pathways, which run through the front and back of the torso and terminate in the head. We can imagine the main meridians as rivers and the extraordinary vessels as lakes, which, like reservoirs, store energy in order to release it back to the meridian flow as needed.

Each meridian is associated with an organ system, a specific functional circuit within the body, to which specific muscles, connective tissue, nerves, etc., are connected. The meridians also interact with the psyche and emotional states. We can already begin to imagine the healing influence that working with the meridians can have, not only on the health of our physical body but also on our emotional well-being.

The "Meridian Clock"

Each meridian is most active at a specific time of day.

01:00 - 03:00 Peak phase: Liver, Rest phase: Small intestine
03:00 - 05:00 Peak phase: Lungs, Rest phase: Bladder
05:00 - 07:00 Peak phase: Large intestine, Rest phase: Kidneys
07:00 - 09:00 Peak phase: Stomach, Rest phase: Circulatory system
09:00 - 11:00 Peak phase: Spleen, Pancreas, Rest phase: Triple burner
11:00 - 13:00 Peak phase: Heart, Rest phase: Gallbladder
13:00 - 15:00 Peak phase: Small intestine, Rest phase: Liver
15:00 - 17:00 Peak phase: Bladder, Rest phase: Lungs
17:00 - 19:00 Peak phase: Kidneys, Rest phase: Large intestine
19:00 - 9:00 PM Peak Phase: Circulation-Sex, Resting Phase: Stomach
9:00 PM - 11:00 PM Peak Phase: Triple Burner, Resting Phase: Spleen, Pancreas
11:00 PM - 1:00 AM Peak Phase: Gallbladder, Resting Phase: Heart

During the meridian walk, we follow this natural flow. Below, I've provided a simple body map so you can quickly identify the meridians. If you wish, you can research the exact course of the meridians down to the centimeter, but this isn't necessary for this exercise.

What's more important is your intention to promote the flow of energy.

Let your imagination work: Perhaps you'd like to visualize your meridians as streams, and imagine your hands gently pushing aside the pebbles or mud in each stream so that your streams can flow freely, clearly, and vibrantly.

The Meridian Walk – A Highly Powerful Tool

A wonderful, balancing, and simultaneously energizing exercise is the so-called "meridian walk."
This exercise allows you to strengthen your meridians and bring your entire system into harmony.
At first, this "walk" might seem like a complicated excursion into unfamiliar territory. But your brain will soon memorize these new pathways, and you'll be able to follow them without even thinking about it.
Ideally, you should incorporate it into your daily routine.
For example, in the shower or after brushing your teeth.
During this process, you trace the individual meridians with your hand. You can touch your body or stroke a few centimeters above the physical surface – this exercise is particularly effective there. You can't go wrong as long as you trace the meridians in the correct direction of flow.

And now we begin:

1. Start with the Central Vessel:
Stroke from the beginning of the meridian in the center of the pubic bone up to its endpoint below the upper lip.

2. Now stroke along the Governing Vessel from the base of the spine up the spine, over the center of the head and the nose, to its endpoint above the upper lip.

The following meridians are located on both sides of the body. You can now stroke along them with both hands simultaneously or activate one side first and then the other. For some meridians, it's much easier to work on one side first, then the other – you'll find out soon enough.

3. The Stomach Meridian begins below the eyes. From there, stroke downwards in a wide arc, outwards around the eyes, upwards to the forehead, then downwards over the inner corners of the eyes and further down to the inner side of the collarbones, then slightly outwards along the collarbones and directly down to the tips of your chest. From there, the meridian moves slightly towards the center of the body and down to the hip, along the front of the leg to its endpoint at the outer nail fold of the second toe. ("Inside" always refers to the center of the body, so the "outer nail fold" of the second toe is on the same side as the middle toe!)

4. The spleen meridian begins right next to it on the big toe, at the inner nail fold. From here, stroke along the front of your inner thigh, across your abdomen and torso to just below your shoulder joint, and from there down the outside of your ribcage to just below the 6th rib. (Have you ever counted your ribs? If not – enjoy exploring your wonderful travel companion, your body!)

5. Stroke the Heart Meridian from your armpit crease, along the inside of your arm, to its endpoint at the inner corner of your little finger's nail fold.

Caution: This meridian must not be stroked in the wrong direction!

6. To stroke the Small Intestine Meridian, simply switch to the outside of your little finger and stroke along the outside of your arm to the underside of your shoulder blade, then back up to your shoulder, up the side of your neck to your cheek, and from there to just in front of your ear.

7. Now, for the Bladder Meridian, start at the angle between the bridge of your nose and your eye sockets and stroke down over your head to your buttocks (about two finger widths). (Lateral to the spine). For this meridian, pause briefly and jump up to the top of the shoulder blade. Now, continue down about two finger widths further out, over your buttocks and the back of your knee to the middle of your lower leg. There, bend slightly outwards and continue over the outer ankle to the edge of your foot and from there to the outer nail fold of your little toe.

8. The easiest way to find the beginning of the Kidney meridian is to pull your toes downwards. It starts at the lowest point of the sole of your foot. From there, stroke along the inside of your leg, over your abdomen to your ribcage, to the small hollow you can feel under your collarbone.

9. To activate the Heart Governor meridian, stroke from the side of your nipples, along the inside of your forearms and upper arms, over your wrist to the tip of your middle finger.

10. The Triple Burner meridian begins at the nail fold on the little finger side of your ring finger. It runs over the back of the hand, the back of the forearm and upper arm, over the middle of the shoulder, across the side of the neck, circles the ear and ends just before the outer edge of the eyebrow.

11. The Gallbladder Meridian begins at the outer edge of the eye socket. From there, stroke to the jaw joint, then up to the temple, around the ear to the mastoid process (palpable as a bulge behind the ear). Return to the center of the forehead and then back again over the parietal bone, down the back of your head over the shoulder and along the side of your chest, to the hip, the outside of the leg, around the outer ankle, and to the outer nail fold of the fourth toe.

12. The Liver Meridian begins at the lateral nail fold of the big toe, runs across the top of the foot, down the lower leg and inner thigh, across the abdomen, over the free end of the 11th rib, and ends on the front of the chest below the nipple.

13. Now, start below the collarbone at the coracoid process (palpable anteriorly below the collarbone) to activate the Lung Meridian. From there, stroke along the outer inner side of your upper and lower arm to the outer nail fold of your thumb.

14. The Large Intestine meridian begins at the nail fold on the thumb side of your index finger. From there, stroke along the side of your hand, the outer side of your forearm and upper arm, over your shoulder, along the side of your neck, and to the side of your nose.

After a little practice, you'll become familiar with the meridians. I do this exercise whenever I notice that something within me has become stagnant, I feel pain somewhere in my body, and I wish my life energy would flow freely again.

Of course, you can also ask your loved ones to stroke along your meridians or support them in getting theirs flowing. It can be especially fun with children to discover these invisible energy flows in the body and learn to interact with them playfully.

Remember that your intention is particularly important. You want to get these powerful streams of life energy flowing in your body, and your hand has the power to do so.