The
following is an excerpt (chapter 3, pp. 63f) of the book
The Joy of
Feeling: Bodymind Acupressure by
Iona Marsaa Teeguarden
The journey towards becoming "that self which we truly are" is a journey into the psyche, which involves listening to feelings and emotions as weil as thoughts. All psychic events are guides to discovering our inner selves, but making sense of feelings and emotions may not be the easiest of projects. Some feelings and emotions are direct responses of the inner self to the outer life. Others result from the repression or denial of some more basic emotional response. Still others may come up just because some part of ourself has been asleep too long. Some emotions are celebrations; others point out homework. Some seem negative; others appear to be positive. Feelings and emotions - all of them - are guiding and driving forces. They can also be like nudges, or even kicks, from some aspect of the inner self which is saying, "Wake up! Pay attention to me! Let me out, let me be!"
Self-actualization is a search for the center of our being, which paradoxically is meanwhile directing the search. In a way, self-actualization takes place by itself, for there is an innate urge towards living out our inherent nature. However, living out our human potential means consciously connecting with the core Self. Doing so depends on being willing to listen to the messages of the Self, which take the form of psychic events: feelings, emotions, intuitions, thoughts, images. To listen to these messages is to explore the psyche and seek out something not yet known - the inner Self. It is also to discover ways that the psyche and psychic events can impact on the body, and ways that the body can influence the psyche.
As we set off on this journey, perhaps we could use a map. A map could help us journey with more speed and ease. More importantly, perhaps, a map could help us to find interesting areas which we might overlook. Taoist philosophy, as reflected in acupressure theory, is one such map, showing five inner lands called
Shen, I', P'o, Chih and Hun. These five aspects of the psyche are essentially five ways in which we relate to life. Our feelings and emotions are messages from one or more of these five inner lands. Each is functionally related to certain parts of the body, including an organ, sense organ, body fluid, and particular body parts or tissues. Each is also influenced by certain groups of acu-points. We can use these acu-points to help release physical or emotional tension, and to help us contact our inner nature.Let's take a short guided tour through the five inner lands described by the Taoists - the lands of Shen, I', P'o, Chih and Hun. Like many guided tours, this one will be short. We won't stop long enough at any one place to really explore it all. We'1l try to stop long enough to see and feel some of the beauty of the place, but we'll have to go back later if we want to take it all in and see the details. The tour guide is the ancient Taoist philosophy; my role is providing a modern psychological interpretation. After this introductory tour, I hope that you will be able to come back to play in these inner lands with the comfort of some feeling of familiarity.
(from the book Iona Marsaa Teeguarden : The Joy Of Feeling - BodymindAcupressure)
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