Tending Your Heart's Fire

Tending To Your Heart’s Fire

How are the fires of your heart burning?

Do they glow with a steady, nourishing flame? Or do they waver between raging intensity and near exhaustion, leaving only a faint flicker behind?

In Chinese Medicine, the Heart is associated with the element of Fire and governs our capacity for joy, connection, presence, and spirit. During the height of Summer—Fire season—we are invited to pay attention to the quality of this inner flame.

When the fire burns too intensely, we may push beyond our limits, fall out of balance, struggle with sleep, experience excess heat in the body, or seek relief through distractions and addictions. When the fire grows weak, we can feel disconnected, uninspired, depleted, or unable to access the vitality that lives within us.

The Heart, known as the Emperor in Chinese Medicine, oversees the entire kingdom of our being—our emotional, mental, physical, and…