Indeed, those humans who developed the ideal of medical knowledge throughout human history, realised from an early time that the bodies of animals were neither structurally or functionally that different from the human-beings who hunted, observed or avoided them! Although daily habits vary widely between different species of animals and between animals in general and human-beings specifically, there was understood to be a definite similarity of biological function that allowed certain parallels of assumption and conclusion to be formulated. Human-beings, for instance, sweated when subjecting their bodies to the tasks of arduous labour, cooled-down when resting in the shade or sitting in water, and often sweated when illness was present. The husbandry rules that applied to oxen could easily be modified and applied to the human-body as a form of medical management. Of course, humans may well have been aware of the functionality of their own bodies a long time before oxen were domesticated, but when developing an objective observational science about another species, it could well have been the case that this served as the foundation for a more incisive understanding of the human condition, and at the very least generated the conditions for a further dialectical progression in human medical thinking.
Within traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), human sweating outside of regular exercise is viewed as an imbalance of inner qi-energy within the body. As sweats can be ‘hot’ or ‘cold’ this in-turn is defined as too much ‘yin’ or too much ‘yang’ being present (with yin and yang being viewed as differing polarities of a collective qi-energy flow). This also means that too much yin (cold qi) suggests that there is a lack of yang (hot qi) – and too much yang (hot qi) means that there is a lack of yin (cold qi), etc. These imbalances are rectified by regulating the living environment by opening a window, increasing or decreasing bed-covers, increasing or decreasing sun-light, as well as regulating the diet with the increase or decrease of yin or yang foods as required. A further regulatory step requires regular exercise such as Taijiquan. Sometimes, a healthy ‘sweat’ is achieved on the surface of the upper body whilst slowly performing the movements of the internal martial arts even though the heart-rate remains slow and strong, and the mind and body remain in a calm and relaxed position. This is viewed as successfully ‘expelling’ impurities from the body in the form of negative qi – with the Taijiquan sweat being either ‘cold’ or ‘warm’ depending upon the imbalance being corrected. If an excess of yang is being expelled – then the Taijiquan sweat will be ‘warm’ - whereas if too much yin is the issue, then the expelled Taijiquan sweat will be ‘cold’, etc.
The schools of Philosophical Daoism, however, have developed a method of self-cultivation known as ‘Sweating Ox’ (汗牛功 - Han Nui Gong) - which appears to be designed for men of 40-50 years-of-age – as a means to regain sexual vigour and all-round robust health after the natural youthfulness has left the body. At least many men who practice this method confirm that after just a short-time of circulating ‘qi’ and ‘jing’ through the Governing and Conception Vessels – their daily (morning) erections are again evident after being virtually non-existent for a period of time. Not only this, but bones, nails and teeth strengthen and improve, as well as hair ‘thickens’ and becomes less brittle and dry. The mouth retains a natural moistness, and vision and hearing become sharper. The mind increases its ability to remain calm and yet focus intently upon a subject. Certainly, within the Qianfeng School, ‘Sweating Ox’ is performed as part of a daily schedule of Taijiquan-like exercises preserved within the tradition (a type of proto-Taijiquan). The digestive system becomes much more flexible and regular, as a sense of deep inner strength manifests throughout the body. Master Zhao Ming Wang states that the mind must be kept calm so that a permanent inner peace can be attained. During this time, the qi-energy channels of the body must be ‘dredged’ of all their impurities. This is how an expansive conscious awareness (shen) is developed which embraces all-things! A practitioner ‘sweats’ as the focused concentration of ‘will’ is directed through the qi-energy channels and encounters all the blocked energy which needs to be removed through pressure and persistence. This resistance to pollution causes the ‘sweat’ which diminishes in scope as the blocking energy is slowly but permanently banished from the body!
The diagram above is from a Chinese Medical Dictionary and forms one of twenty-four exercises ascribed to ‘Chen Xiyi’ (陈希夷). These are the old ‘导引’ (Dao Yin) - ‘Stretching and Loosening’ exercises designed by the ancient sages which form the basis of all modern qigong and other internal exercises. These twenty-four exercises are linked to the twenty-four segments of the Chinese ‘solar’ calendar – which was referenced when setting the preferred lunar calendar and agricultural year. The exercises themselves are designed to ‘regulate’ heat in the body just as the sun shines upon the country of China, its crops, animals and humans. If heat is lacking, then the exercises generate and store ‘yang’ (heat), and if heat is in excess – the exercises will dissipate and expel excessive ‘yang’ (heat). As some of these exercises can be performed in the seated, meditation position, and given that a Master can perform ALL the movements on the inside of the body (as if ‘moving’ the outside of the body when it is in fact ‘still’), these exercises are known as ‘坐功’ (Zuo Gong) - which implies the mastery of inner and outer transformation that is beyond both ‘movement’ and ‘stillness’. In the above exercise, the time of day should be between 5am – 7am. After a few minutes in seated meditation, the practitioner stands-up with feet shoulder-width apart (breathing-in fully through the nose) and swings both arms (palms-up) above the head with the eyes looking upwards (breathing-out through the mouth). The arms drop to the side in a controlled manner (breathing-in) and the mind and body re-sets – prepared to go again. This exercise should be repeated at least thirty-times.
Whilst performing these movements, the teeth should be gently knocking against one another continuously with any accumulated mouth liquid ‘spit-out’ in a hygienic manner. Remember to allow for a curving of the lower-spine when lifting the arms – with the bodyweight dropping straight down through the centre of the bones into the floor – and rebounding back upwards to the top of the extended fingers when stretching upwards. Although the bodyweight drops and rises spontaneously every moment – this process is more observable at different time depending upon the type of postures and movements we are assuming, as some positions emphasis the ‘dropping’ of bodyweight – whilst other focus on the bodyweight ‘rebounding’ and forming the shocking striking power associated with the internal martial arts.
Treatment: waist and kidney accumulation of negative (yin) qi-energy, general fatigue and dryness, headache, heartache and desire to drink, yellow eyes, hypochondriac pain, diminished thirst, cures sadness and encourages laughter and clears forgetfulness, whilst preventing cough and vomiting, body heat and thigh pain, heart grief, head pain and cheek discolouration.
Chinese Language Reference:
https://www.chinaqw.com/hwjy/hykt/200901/17/147224.shtml
https://www.ccdi.gov.cn/lswh/wenhua/wenyuan/202102/t20210220_236116.html
http://fashion.chinadaily.com.cn/2018-05/23/content_36255405.htm
https://zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/376608093
http://wudaowang.org/qfgf/2534.html
http://bencao.5000yan.com/bbzz/323.html
https://yijing.5000yan.com/mingci/2403.html
https://zhidao.baidu.com/question/85573135.html