We have all heard the term “Sexual Healing”.  And we all know it works.  But do we know HOW it works, WHAT it means, WHEN to use it, or WHY we do?

Before we get into the nitty-gritty, let’s start at the very beginning.

In the Taoist traditions, it is commonly taught that there are 3 different types of energy in our bodies.  The names for the different energy have multiple translations into English and other languages. 

Chi is our bioelectric energy.  This refers to the electrical impulses that occur in our brain and nervous system. This energy could also be referred to as our Essence because, without it, our physical body would cease to function.

Ching-Chi is our sexual energy. If you have lived through your teenage years, you know how powerful this energy can be and how it has the ability to affect all areas of your life.  Our sexual energy is also called our energy of Vitality and a source of creativity

Shen is our spiritual energy.  This is the energy that is commonly experienced during times of connection to one’s divinity or source of life through prayer, meditation, or other religious/spiritual rituals.  This form of energy is translated as Spirit across most languages.

Where to store this energy

There are 3 reservoirs within the body that can house this energy. 

The Lower Reservoir is in the gut region of your body.  This is the same area that is associated with but should not be mistaken for, the 3^rd or Solar Plexus Chakra.  This area houses the stomach, which is the reservoir for the food we eat, and the kidneys, responsible for filtering and purification.  Other responsibilities of the stomach include the breakdown of food into usable forms with acid and enzyme secretion, as well as being playing a role in maintaining the motility of the digestive tract.

The Middle Reservoir is in the upper torso area.  In the Yogic tradition, this area is home to the 4^th or Heart Chakra.  This energetic center is typically where we experience our source of love, compassion, peace, kindness, and acceptance. 

The Upper Reservoir is in the center of the skull, where the Pineal Gland also resides.  This area is associated with higher brainwave frequencies as well as clairvoyance, intuition, and imagination.  This area is associated with the 6^th or Third Eye Chakra. 

How Energy moves throughout our body

In the Taoist tradition, it is taught that our body is a microcosm of the universe.  This idea could also be explained this way: The universe is not a “thing”.  The universe is a constantly happening “process”.  Our body is never NOT doing something.  Our body is constantly undergoing a process of some kind, which refers to any metabolic process that occurs, digestion, recovery, or otherwise.

Because our body is a smaller version of the cosmos, it is quite appropriate that the mechanism that carries energy through our body is named the “Microcosmic Orbit”. 

This is a circular system that travels around our torso and skull, following the medial line of our body. 

In this system, energy travels downward along the “Front Channel” and travels upward the “Back Channel”.  The front and back channels are separated by the perineum and the area between your nose and upper lip.

Non-ejaculatory Orgasms – Retaining your semen

Why is it a common joke that guys only want to eat and sleep after sex?  Well, because it's true!  Have you ever wondered why this is? 

There is a natural law that says when an organism gives its seed to produce life, that original organism begins to wither and die.  This is so because all things have an opposite and equal reaction.  Stated another way, death and rebirth are part of the same process...one cannot exist without the other.  This principle is true of all opposites.  North implies south, good implies bad, something implies nothing, and so on. 

Our biology does not know the difference between ejaculation for a true pregnancy attempt or ejaculation into your sock because you're bored.  In both instances, the male body is producing the substance that it expects to initiate the formation of a living being.  The importance of this is that all of the organs of the male body are producing their highest quality energy, proteins, and nutrients to contribute to this substance.  This is necessary because fertilize a female egg is hard.  Those things are super picky.  Men produce an average of 100 million sperm per ejaculation and only one of those typically fertilizes an egg.  Producing semen is the 2^nd most metabolically taxing process the male body completes.  Digestion is the most metabolically taxing.  It makes sense that you get tired after a big meal and avoid eating too close to sleep to avoid disrupting your sleep quality. 

If men can produce semen and avoid ejaculating, the body will naturally absorb that semen back into itself.  This is SO beneficial because it means the body gets fed high-quality protein and nutrients. 

Energetically, as a man increases his arousal level on the way to orgasm and ejaculation, his Ching-Chi progressively gathers in his genital region. 

With specific practices, that energy, or excess of that can be pulled upward into the lower reservoir to be “digested” and absorbed back into the body safely.  When an excess of energy is in the genital area, this is when ejaculation occurs. 

As a human, orgasm and ejaculation are separate bodily functions.  Both men and women can ejaculate.  Also, both men and women can have an orgasm that is not paired with ejaculation. 

This explains the healing aspect of Taoist sexuality.  Absorbing your own vitality instead of constantly exhausting yourself with ejaculation actually gives you more vitality, leaving you energized for the pillow-talk and cuddles she enjoys after having sex. 

If retaining semen gives you such vitality, it also implies that this high-quality protein and nutrients, or fuel, will help your body undergo its physiological healing processes much more effectively.  This same line of reasoning implies retaining your semen will increase your overall health, because our fuel quality affects all of our systems, and increase your lifespan. 

Because a male ejaculation is not necessary, this now means that the male ejaculation does not have to be the finish line of sex. 

The new finish line is mutual satisfaction  

How lovely, right??

This allows both partners to approach the session of lovemaking as just that: creating love and nurturing each other’s well-being.

Men and women not only differ biologically but also energetically.  The male energy is associated with Yang and the female energy is represented as the Yin in the well-known symbol of Taoism, the Yin Yang.  Again, all things have an equal opposite.  Male/Yang implies Female/Yin. 

Each person has both energies within themselves.  This explains why there are seemingly masculine and feminine men as well as masculine and feminine women.  Some personalities are more Yin and some personalities are more Yang, regardless of biological sex.  The sexual practice of cultivating this Ching-Chi also focuses on balancing the Yin and Yang energies within everyone.

This balance of energy results in a balancing of hormones and neurotransmitters that calms one’s central nervous system and cortisol levels.  If practiced chronically, we can avoid mental and physical diseases associated with chronic stress.

Your Pleasure is Your Responsibility

Though these strategies are most effective with a trusted sexual partner, anyone can practice this energetic cultivation on their own, referred to as self-cultivation or masturbation.  Masturbation is commonly condemned.  This results in a poor initial psychological development in relation to one’s own sexuality.  Needless to say, an unhealthy relationship with sex as a concept is potentially dangerous for the individual and anyone they are sexually active with. 

Ignorance in this case is absolutely not bliss.

When masturbation is encouraged, it allows an individual to explore the waters of their pleasure, however deep or complex they may be.  This early exploration of one’s pleasure allows one to approach sex in a manner that is much less toxic than the developed world’s current cultural norm.

It’s important to know what pleasures you so that you can make sure to reach your orgasm, ejaculatory or not while making love to your partner.   It is selfish to expect your partner to make you orgasm.  Don’t burden them with such an expectation.  They can’t feel the sensations you’re feeling.  It’s up to each person to know how to “get themselves there”.  Your partner’s job is to help facilitate the movement of this energy between you both to increase the net power, frequency, and balance of the 3 types of energy. 

This is a lifelong practice that takes time and skill development.

Don’t be too hard on yourself if you don’t get it down right away.

Live well with a new approach to sex!