The Microcosmic Orbit

The Microcosmic Orbit is a kind of an ornate name for a Daoist practice that comprises of circulating of attention, energy etc. around the two channels that connect at the upper palate of the mouth just behind the teeth via tongue. Touching of the tongue at the upper palate closes the Orbit, and creates a seemless circuit so to speak.


The two channels that make up the Orbit are the front channel which includes, the perineum, the top of the pelvic bone, the chi hai, solar plexus, point of the heart, point of the throat, point right under the nose, pineal gland, upper forehead, and the very top of the head. The back channel is made up of the sacrum, the kidney point, the adrenaline point, the point in the middle of the back, the base of the skull, and finally the top of the head.


The energy in a healthy body circulates from bottom to up the front channel, and then, over the top of the head down the spine. However, the Daoist practice goes a step further and recommends reversing that pattern...Why? Because it becomes evident that in order to survive the ordeals of life, one needs extra energy, which is the major precept of the Daoist view in general. "We are given", it is believed "a limited amount of it upon our hour of birth, and it gradually disperses throughout our lifetime. We are encouraged to collect this energy back and thus revert to our "original state", that of a child, of a Buddha". And why not? Perfectly functional, happy, and care free. In order to accomplish this seemingly uneasy task the Daoist adepts would go out into the rugged terrain and seclude themselves, not unlike Naïve American tribesmen, hoping and sure to receive guidance from the invisible world, patron forces, and connect with their innermost essence. Then they would be back and all would be in awe of their newly developed abilities, their stout health and would look for them to advise in the matters of life and death, as well as progeny and basic well being, money and success etc.


One of the major sources of postnatal energy in our body is eating, so it matters what we eat. However, it is good to keep in mind that food doesn't really cause a permanent change in the body unless any particular diet is adhered to for a long time. So we have to look to food for sustenance, aesthetic pleasure as well as remember that its essence will come back to us as our basic energy, our basic chi. The other kind of postnatal energy is sexual, or the jin. Since it is a very complicated topic I will leave it for the experts. But I look at it as a process of pickling! Yes, you heard me right! It is just like pickling tomatoes, cucumbers, or any other of your favorite vegetables. You pickle them in the summer so you would have them in the colder month. So save yourself in the summer of your life, so it could keep you warm later. Sexual energy is cultivated in the Tai Chi practice, as well as the Orbit and other meditations peculiar to the Daoist tradition. Cultivation means nurturing like you would nurture a baby or a plant. In that sense Daoist view is very self-centered: we are urged to love ourselves truly and deeply, if we do, then we will be capable of exerting that strength of love with all its potency on the others
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So back to the Microcosmic Orbit. We attempt to open these points, and try to reverse the flow of energy through the back. It is a lifetime of practice, but from my point of view, once you get a knack for what is really happening through practice, it doesn't seem that esoteric, but rather natural. It has become more natural for me to be more relaxed and more at ease, but I also feel that due to the increased sensitivity I feel that various parameters of life are stronger too. Like dreams, or side effects of interacting with other people.


What we circulate is attention, but we plug other energies into it. For example we could circulate the spinach energy, if we knew exactly what we are getting when we eat spinach -  I hope that's clear. The Daoists circulate the sexual energy since they know exactly what it feels like, and it is the most potent and intense one; one aims to gain control over it, and uses it to prolong life. But like anywhere else, balance is the key.


The Microcosmic Orbit is a practice of awareness, and it is a nature of awareness expand. We are a microcosm incased in this body. Somehow the record of that immense power exists within our very own cell structure - its very own existence in fact, as well as the infinitely complex interactions between various systems within the body. It is a sight to behold, but how do we understand and gain control over what is happening in our bodies? One such practice could be understood as a way to look deeper into the workings of the body. The points as you have probably guessed are not really points, they are more akin to charkras in the yoga system.( It helps to study the charkras and the lore surrounding them. i.s.)

In other words they are stopovers on the way to somewhere, and they are complete plains of awareness in and of themselves. For example bringing your attention to the "point of adrenalines", which is right above the "point of the kidneys"  may increase the work of the gland. Concentration is a profound thing, since we are always concentrating on something - all our lives in fact are a product of us concentrating on the objects which are very important to us. We never question their importance, but we should.