So what about this “orgasm” function that’s related to the Penetrating Vessel?  (See “The Penetrating Vessel and Protective Qi: A New York Story.”) Another story.

shutterstock_1614456811

Whenever I have a chance I teach Chinese Medicine through theater because I teach bodyworkers and we like to experience things physically.  In one class I was demonstrating the interrelated functions of the twelve meridians and the eight strange flows (extraordinary vessels) by having students physically demonstrate how they connect. People playing the “twelve meridians” were in a circle in the order of the 24 hour cycle of qi. I’ve done this with water in paper cups, but this day we were in a space that had a large quantity of small pillows scattered around the room, so they were being passed from meridian to meridian to signify the qi. I then gave the group situations that would divert the qi and each “strange flow” demonstrated how it would help to restore balance. At one point, “Penetrating Vessel,” who was in the very center of the circle, began collecting the pillows from all the “meridians” until she had them all clutched precariously in her arms. In a giant burst of energy, she threw them all into the air and yelled “Orgasm!”  

And there you have it.

It’s pretty much the same function as in emergencies. It draws qi in to the center from all the meridians, only in this case, instead of rushing up or down it all gets “thrust” out in all directions so strongly that it “blasts through the kinks” in the twelve meridians.  Wilhelm Reich was such a great believer in the benefits of orgasm that he wrote a whole book about it. I think of it like a plumber’s helper that blasts water through the pipes with great force to dislodge the clogs.  And that’s why it feels so good and why you feel so relaxed after a good one.