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The six sounds are related to the major organ systems of the body, and their associated energy channels. The first sound, “ssssss,” the sound of hissing, acts on the lungs and colon, and is related to the nose. The sound is said to be useful for physical problems such as colds, coughs, and congestion and for emotional problems such as grief and sadness. The second sound, “whooo,” the sound you make when you blow out a candle, acts on the kidneys and bladder, and is associated with the ears. This sound is said to be useful for increasing your overall vital energy, and for problems such as cold feet, dizziness, and lack of sexual energy, as well as for emotional problems such as fear. The third sound, “shhhh,” the sound that you use when you want someone to be quiet, acts on the liver and gall bladder, and is associated with the eyes. This sound is said to be useful for eye problems, anorexia, and vertigo, and for helping to transform the emotions of anger and jealousy. The fourth sound, “haaa,” acts on the heart and small intestine, and is associated with the tongue. It is said to be useful for heart disease, insomnia, ulcerations of the tongue, and night sweats, and for transforming emotions such as hatred, arrogance, and impatience. The fifth sound, “whoo” (guttural, in the back of the throat), acts on the spleen and stomach and is associated with the mouth. It is said to be useful for digestive problems, mouth ulcerations, muscle atrophy, and menstrual disorders, and for transforming worry and anxiety. The last sound, “heee” (hissed through the teeth), acts on the triple warmer (the three breathing spaces). It is used to help harmonize the overall energy flow of the body, and is said to be effective for sore throats, abdominal distention, and insomnia.

PRACTICE

To ensure the overall health of all the organs and the harmonious movement of energy throughout the body, the six healing exhalations or sounds should be practiced daily in the order given above. Each sound should each be done at least three times. If you have a particular problem associated with a specific organ or emotion, you can spend more time with the associated sound, repeating it as many times as you like. The practice itself is extremely simple. You can undertake it in any posture. Whichever organ you are working with, sense that you are inhaling energy directly into that organ. As you exhale using the associated sound, simultaneously sense any toxins or excess heat in the organ being carried out of your body with your exhalation. In addition to exhaling audibly, you can also experiment with exhaling inaudibly, concentrating the vibration of the sound inside the organ. The sounds can be practiced safely at any time.

HEAD BREATHING

Head breathing is a little-known technique that can be used to help get rid of headaches or to clear your mind of nervous energy. This practice depends on being able to experience the upper energy centers of the microcosmic orbit—especially the mid-eyebrow point, the crown point, and the jade pillow at the base of the skull—and to sense energy moving through the pathway that connects these centers.

PRACTICE

Figure 36

Sit or stand comfortably. Bring your attention to the mid-eyebrow point. As you breathe in through your nostrils, sense your breath moving your chi from this point up through your forehead and around to the crown point at the top of your head and then down the back of the head to the jade pillow at the base of the skull. As you exhale through your nose, sense your breath moving your chi in the reverse direction—from the base of the skull over the top of the head and back to the mid-eyebrow point (Figure 36). Breathe in this way from three to six times, sensing that each inhalation and exhalation is helping your chi clear the pathway of any stagnation or nervous energy. If you have trouble experiencing your energy moving through this pathway, use your fingers to trace the pathway and to massage these points, and then try again. If you can work in this way without tensing the