Fundamental Cold is a basic principle of Shakuju Therapy and of life 
Defining Fundamental Cold
Fundamental Cold is synonymous with the natural decline of our body’s vitality as we go through life. In Japanese it is called Hie. Everything that comes into being eventually dissipates into non-being. This is a natural process. We are born with the greatest amount of vitality we will have in this life. It slowly decreases as we age until we die.
To fully understand Hie, we must understand the nature of our vitality. Vitality is our life-sustaining warmth. Our ability to make this warmth is necessary for life. When we are alive our body is warm; when we die it is cold.
Therefore, we say Fundamental Cold (Hie) is fundamental because it is a universal principle. This is natural and unavoidable. It is cold because it is the diminishing of our life-sustaining vitality, which is warmth.
Fundamental Cold is the ultimate cause of disease
The process of Hie begins at birth. Hereditary factors like genetic predispositions can speed this progression. This is not to say that Fate determines our lifespan and that if we are born with a lesser amount of vitality we can’t live a long and happy life. The rate of our vitality’s decline is the biggest factor in determining our life span.
Our living environment, lifestyle habits, and the amount of stress we are under also affect the rate of this decline. Another important factor would be traumatic accidents or injuries.
Symptoms appear, and the disease process begins, when our vitality (warmth) is weakened for whatever reason. Our ability to produce warmth is compromised. We get “chilly”. This chilliness is Fundamental Cold. Therefore, we say Fundamental Cold is the ultimate cause of all disease.
What does it look like?
We usually think of cold in terms of temperature. Hie includes this understanding, but is broader. It is the decline of the body’s vitality. As vitality declines, symptoms appear. Symptoms of disease are a manifestation of Hie.
Hie manifests as various symptoms. Here are a few examples to give you an idea:
- subjectively feeling cold, or feeling cold to the touch, like the hands or feet
- decreased sensitivity, such as numbness
- pain
- pale complexion or skin
- fatigue, sluggish or slow movements
- medical diagnosis, such as low blood pressure or hypo-function of organ systems
It’s not just cold
Believe it or not, Hie doesn’t just look cold. Symptoms of abnormal heat such as fever or inflammation anywhere in the body also indicate Hie. A person might have skin rashes, burning stomach pain, hepatitis, or tumors for example.
It might not make sense at first, but heat symptoms indicate the cold is getting worse. As Hie progresses, we lose our our ability to regulate heat – the heat gets out of control. Our thermostat mechanism no longer works. Inflammation is always against a backdrop of Hie.
When it has progressed
Eventually, our vitality just runs out. We no longer have the ability to make our own bodily warmth, to generate energy. When we reach this point, all of our body functions slow down. Appetite disappears, breathing becomes shallow, muscle tone slackens, and lethargy is severe. We reach a state of extreme exhaustion.
Role of Shakuju Therapy
Our concern in Shakuju Therapy is the unnatural decrease in the body’s warmth, which is the disease process that hastens Hie. Through Shakuju Therapy we empower our vitality to warm the Cold and relieve symptoms. This restores our vitality to its appropriate level for whichever phase of life we are in.
Final thoughts
By living well we can preserve our vitality and slow the progression of Fundamental Cold. This includes receiving Shakuju treatments as soon as possible after symptoms appear to warm the cold and restore your vitality to the level it should normally be.
In future posts I will teach you how to slow the progression of Fundamental Cold, and guide you in ways to boost your vitality. You will be able to work with this process to live a happy, healthy life.
Are you interested in strengthening your vitality?
732.687.2937
Acupuncture Red Bank