Tuesday 11 June 2019

Resilient


夫氣足耐寒,血足耐暑,神足耐饑,精足力綿
One can endure cold when vapours are sufficient, heat when blood is sufficient, hunger when spirit is sufficient, the force is continuous when essential liquids are sufficient.




This passage belongs to the 精神氣息解, “Explaining essential liquids, spirit, vapours and breath1” paragraph. To the usual trio essential liquids, spirit and vapours, breath has been added, probably to show that it is equally important. In the quote, it is blood which has been added. Internal practices use to pay more attention to what is happening inside the body, the organs and the liquids they produce, the blood… and what is not visible but has an impact on one’s performance, what we call vigour, vitality, which they theorised as vapours and spirit.