East Meets East: TCM and Ayurveda

Umm … your cosmos is showing! What? You have no idea what I am talking about? Well isn’t that silly of you, you must not be familiar with Traditional Chinese Medicine or Ayurveda. Well thank goodness you have Rachel DaPron and Kelsey Gordon to help you understand a little better. You see Rachel and Kelsey are an Acupuncturist and an Ayurvedist respectively, and over lots of wine they discovered their respective modalities have a LOT in common.

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) comes from China and is thousands of years old. It started as an oral tradition but was eventually written down about 5,000 years ago in a book known as The Yellow Emperor’s Classic. Strangely enough…. Ayurveda (Sanskrit for Science of Life) comes from India and is thousands of years old. It started as an oral tradition but was eventually written down about 5,000 years ago in a series of writings known as the Vedas.

Whoa. Did that seem a little repetitive there? Hmmm … it’s probably just a fluke. Let’s just keep going.

That little “your cosmos is showing” joke at the start of this article, was because TCM says you are connected to the cosmos and that you must live harmoniously with nature for perfect bodily balance. Perfect balance is the mind, body and spirit all functioning in a safe and effective way in accordance of that person’s individual constitution.  Ayurveda says you are connected to the cosmos and that you must live harmoniously with nature for perfect bodily balance. Perfect balance is the mind, body and spirit all functioning in a safe and effective way in terms of that person’s individual constitution. 

Ok, this is just getting a BIT freaky. And by a bit, I mean let’s fine out more.

Both TCM and Ayurveda say that there is a subtler life energy that flows all around us. Ayurveda calls it Prana (Life Breath) and TCM calls it Qi or Chi. Regardless of whether you are speaking Chinese or Sanskrit, both modalities say if this stuff ain’t flowin’ you are in for a bad time. Stagnation or lack of energy flow is the root cause for a majority of the issues seen in the body (AKA aches, pains, and disease). Ayurveda and TCM’s goals is to keep the energetic channels open and the energy flowing.

A flowy Chi or Prana makes things seem vital and healthy, more in tune with the cosmos, nature, other humans, and that glass of wine flowing into the cup. Stagnation though… It sucks. Like a lot. It makes you feel sluggish, dull, blah, and allows for disease to find a nice little niche to start growing from. Does this seem a little too “out there” for you right now? That’s ok. Energy can be super subtle, or it can be tangible. Feeling constipated? Stagnant energy. Feeling unmotivated? Stagnant energy. Do you stand up and groan as you do so? Super stagnant energy.

“If you are experiencing Stagnant Energy go see your local Ayurvedist or Acupuncturist today. Side effects include feeling dull, being boring, not wanting to get off the couch, having a hard time getting motivated, and sluggish digestion.” 

Despite originating 3,000 miles apart from each other and way before modern conveniences (like the internet, phone calls, or even telegraphs) both TCM and Ayurveda came to some pretty awesome conclusions.