Balancing of the Hot and Cold Elements in the Body and the Mind
With Buddhist Dhamma Medicine Philosophy

Researched and Written by: Jaiphet Klajone (Mor Keaw)

The Expert in Buddhist Dhamma Alternative Medicine, Bureau of Alternative Medicine,
Ministry of Public Health

Chairman of Buddhist Medicine Foundation of Thailand
Independent Researcher and Scholar

 

Balancing of the Hot and Cold Elements in the Body and the Mind 

With Buddhist Dhamma Medicine Philosophy

According to the Buddhist Dhamma Medicine Philosophy, the imbalance of the hot and cold elements creates many types of sicknesses and diseases including cancer, heart diseases, diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol, infectious and other diseases.  Knowing how to balance these two elements will enhance health and decrease many types of sicknesses.

80% of the current population is generally prone to illnesses caused by overheating of the body and the mind.  The primary reason is that a sickness derives from consuming or contacting food or herbs, which carry excessively “heating” elements.  These hot elements, if consumed too much, can lead to many types of serious illnesses.  On the other hand, upon consuming or contacting “cooling” foods or herbs, the body will feel balanced and comfortable.  Therefore, applying a cooling formula can help in adjusting the balance of the body.

5% of the population has symptoms in the so-called “overcooling” group. The sickness in this category derives from consuming or contacting cooling food or herbs in excess.  This type of behavior can lead to several types of serious illnesses as well.  Therefore, by applying in this case a heating formula when consuming food or herbs can help in adjusting the balance of the body.

15% of the population has overlapping symptoms, having concurrently overheating and overcooling symptoms which are caused by consuming or contacting either heating or cooling food or herbs.  This type of situation can lead to several types of serious illnesses as well.  Therefore, combining both formulas can help in adjusting the balance of the body.

The nine techniques to balanced health, or the nine “pills” of Buddhist Dhamma Medicine are as follows:

1. Taking natural herbs to balance your health factors

To address overheating symptoms, drink cooling herbs or chlorophyll beverages to help adjust the hot and cold elements.

Instructions:  Using fresh plants, select from the following “cooling” plants the most suitable ones for your treatment: yanang (Tiliacoratriandra  Diels) 5-20 leaves, 1-3 pandanus leaves, buabok (Centellaasiatica Urban) from a half to one handful, Bejing grass 3-5 stems, omsaeb or benjarong (Justicia Gangetica) froma half to one handful, morning glory from a half to one handful, saled pangporn (Clinacan thusnutans Lindau) from a half to one handful, 3-5 inches of the inner core of the banana plant, and wan ka-ab hoy (Tradescantia spathacea Stearn) 3-5 leaves.  Pound, rub or grind everything together with a couple of cups of water. Then strain the mixture through a sieve.  You can have a  cup of this chlorophyll drink before meals one to three times a day, or when thirsty – even if your stomach is empty.  The suitable quantity and concentration of the beverage to drink depends on the amount needed to make you feel comfortable and energetic.

When overheating and overcooling happen at the same time

There are 3 ways to heal this symptom. First, you prepare cool element herbs (see above) and then mix them with hot water. You can also boil cool element herbs and drink the liquid. You may mix it with hot element herbs such as: turmeric, ginger, galanga (khaa), lemon grass, holy basil, sweet basil, garlic, rhizome, bael fruit or mix it with drinks made from plants with heating effects. The quantity of herbs to use depends on how you feel. The right balance you‘ll find by sensing. You will determine the right amount of herbs to use by sensing it.

To treat overcooling symptoms, you can drink the heating type of beverage one to four times a day, depending on your health condition.

2. Gua-Sha or skin detoxification

Gua-Sha is a simple technique of rubbing and scraping the skin repeatedly on various parts of the body.

Instructions:  First, you should lubricate the skin with pure water, balms or oils that are made of herbs with either heating or cooling effects depending on each person’s condition.  However, if a lubricant is not available, it is not necessary to apply anything on the skin.  Next, use a small smooth-edged object to rub or scrape, repeatedly applying pressure strokes near the areas that are sore, painful, uncomfortable, or are located on the toxin outlets such as the back, arms, legs, gaps between ribs, etc. You can rub directly on the skin or through thin clothes.  Avoid rubbing in areas that are sensitive or on soft tissue, such as areas that have wounds or polyps, near eye balls, or sex organs.  Apply pressure strokes to the same area 10-50 times, less or more depending on the health condition  of the person.  During this treatment, reddish rashes will develop, but don’t worry.  They will usually disappear within a few days.  Don’t use excess force. It may rupture the skin.

Remarks:  you should wait 4-8 hours before taking a bath after Gua-Sha to allow toxins to release out of the body before the pores close up.

3. Detoxification of the large intestine (Enema)

Instructions:  Prepare the enema solution by mixing herbs with either heating or cooling effects, as required, with pure water at room temperature, or boil the herbs with water for 5-10 minutes and mix it with enough water to make it the right tempuratere to use, depending on how you feel. Next, pour 0.5 – 1.5 liters of the solution into the enema kit.  Remove the air from the tube by running some solution through it and then close the valve.  Apply a lubricant (Vaseline, aloe vera gel, vegetable oil or the enema solution) to the tip of the tube for a couple of centimeters.  Then insert the tube into the anus 3-5 inches in depth. Hang the enema kit on the wall at about an arm’s length above the anus, and start releasing the solution into the intestine by opening the valve. Rub the stomach and hold your breath while the solution is being released into the anus. Take as much solution as you can and try to hold it for 10 – 20 minutes. Healthy people may do an enema 1-3 times a week, while severely ill patients should do it once or twice a day, according to their health condition.

4. Soaking hands and feet in a herbal concoction

Select the herbs you expect to improve your health condition, boil a half to one handful of one or several types of herbs of your choice with approximately 1-3 liters of water for 5-10 minutes.  Then, add room temperature water until it’s at the right temperature to soak the hands and feet to the depth to cover the hands including the wrists and ankles.  Do it for three minutes at a time, with a one-minute gap in between, for a total of three mini-sessions.  If any person feels uncomfortable from using the warm solution, then use pure water of room temperature containing fresh herbs of your choice instead.  Healthy people may do this detoxification approximately 1-3 times a week, while severely ill patients should do it once or twice a day according to their health condition.

5. Use an herbal concoction as a poultice on the skin, as ear and eye drops, as herbal balls for compression or with steam or in bathing, as desired.
   

6. Do the right form of exercise, yoga and acupressure

Regarding techniques of exercise, Buddhist Dhamma Medicine has promoted exercise methods that combine body stretching, yoga and acupressure along the meridian lines, which boost both strength and elasticity of the bones and muscles, as well as one’s overall “chi/prana” energy.

Choosing the accurate and suitable forms of exercise, acupressure, and yoga will make each individual feel comfortable and energetic.

7. Balanced diet (adjusting the diet to balance  your body with the temperature or the environment)

Eat protein from beans or grains instead of meat. Sick people who still cannot stop eating animal protein should eat eggs or fish instead.  Add more fresh vegetables and less-sweet fruits to your meal.  Apply minimal amounts of spices to your food, as little as possible.  Try to use salt as the primary condiment  when preparing the food.  To maximize the digestion, eat food in the following sequence:

1. Start by drinking fresh herbal beverages, for example chlorophyll drinks.
2. Eat more “cooling” fruits and fewer “heating” fruits.

Cooling fruits, such as:  saba banana, dragon fruit, santol (kraton), pineapple, pomelo, rose apple, mangosteen, watermelon, cantaloupe, raw mango, raw tamarind, raw papaya, partially ripe papaya, monkey mango.

Heating fruits include durian, ripe jackfruit, ripe mango, Morinda citrifolia (noni), lychee, rambutan, longan, Baccaurea motleyana (rambai), star fruit, Sweet Plum Mango (ma-prang), Bael fruit (matoom), Salacca (sala), tangerine, grape, guava, custard apple, passion fruit, sapodilla, ripe papaya, sweet tamarind, preserved or processed fruit.

3. Eat more cooling vegetables and fewer heating vegetables.

Cooling vegetables, such as: Chinese violet (om saeb), morning glory, cucumber,  cabbage (napa), romaine lettuce, bean sprout, lotus stem, Centella asiastica (bua bok), eggplant, gooseberry leaves.

Heating vegetables, such as: all kinds of spicy and strong smelling vegetables, all kinds of seasoning herbs, chilies, ginger, lemon grass, galangal (khaa), turmeric, pepper, chives (hom), sweet basil , Climbing wattle (cha-om), Chinese broccoli, cabbage, carrot, beetroot, string bean, winged bean, bitter bean (sataw), water mimosa, acacia, Chinese ginseng, Korean ginseng, Morinda citrifolia leaves (bai yaw), spinach, pumpkin, bamboo shoot, seaweed, lotus root.

4. Eat non-processed rice with various side dishes. Stop or reduce eating high carbohydrate foods, which include sticky rice, red rice, black rice, wheat, barley rice, taro, potato.  Moreover, avoid all kinds of desserts, bread, flour snack, instant noodles, fermented rice flour noodles, etc.

The various side dishes should be prepared by using more cooling vegetables, which include all cooling vegetables mentioned above as well as zucchini, all types of squash, the inner core of banana plant, banana flower, banana tip, raw banana, cauliflower, broccoli, radish, lettuce head, young pumpkin, pumpkin flower and tip, corn, raw jackfruit, and moringa.

5. Eat soups prepared with cooling beans or grains.  Cooling beans or grains include white beans, green beans, soya beans, sweet peas, chickpeas, pearl barley.

Stop or avoid eating high protein food, such as: meat, milk, eggs, peanuts, red beans, black beans, fried beans, shiitake mushrooms, ganoderma lucidum, chi mushroom as well as fermented or preserved protein from vegetables and animals.

Stop or avoid eating high cholesterol food, such as: vegetable and animal oil, rice bran oil, sesame, coconut milk and meat, sunflower and pumpkin seeds, almonds, and cashew nuts.

 

8. Stopping wrong actions, making good deeds, purifying one’s mind, associating with good companions, creating good society and environment

Do only meritorious acts, applying Dhamma to your daily life to create a peaceful mind.

9. Knowing the balance of perseverance and rest

This philosophy of Buddhist Dhamma Medicine aims at balancing the state of one’s body and mind.  An individual can use only one or several types of techniques at the same time as long as it helps one feel comfortable and energetic during the treatment.  On the other hand, any type of techniques that makes the individual feel sick or lethargic should be discontinued.  This requires constant self-observation and creative re-adjustment.  In general, the simple premise is to treat “overheating” symptoms with cooling foods, and vice versa.  In certain cases, one may have to switch back and forth several times before arriving at the balanced level of comfort.

 

Jaiphet Klajon (Morkeaw)

• The Expert in Buddhist Dhamma Medicine, Bureau of Alternative Medicine, Ministry of Public Health
• Public Health Technical Expert, Professional Level, Amnatcharoen Hospital, Ministry of Public Health
• Buddhist Dhamma Medicine Physician and the Trainer of Thai Traditional Medicine of The Sufficiency Economy and Self-Reliance Health Center (Buddhist Medicine) – Suanpanaboon, Dontan District, Mukdaharn Province
• Chairman of Buddhist Dhamma Medicine Foundation of Thailand

Degrees:

1995        Bachelor’s Degree in Health Science, Public Health, Sukhothai Thammathirat University

1997        Bachelor’s Degree in Science of Health Management, Public Health, Sukhothai Thammathirat University

• Completion of Traditional Thai Medicine including ideas and theories of traditional Thai medicine, Thai ways of treatment, pharmaceutical botany, Dhamma health (way of living a healthy life), medicinal sociology at Sukhothai Thammathirat University
• Research and training in alternative medicine in Malaysia and Taiwan

2010        Master of Arts in Integrated Science for Sufficiency Economy, Ubon Ratchathani University, topic of research: “Illness and Taking Care of Oneself Using Sufficiency Economy” according to Buddhist Dhamma Medicine at the Sufficiency Economy Center at Suan Pa Na Bun, Don Tan District, Mukdahan Province

2012        Honorary Doctor’s Degree of Science, Department of Community-Public Health, Sisaket Rajabhat University for “The Person that Discovered the Buddhist Dhamma Medicine for Self-Dependency According to Sufficiency Economy”

2016   Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Regional Development Strategies (Community-Public Health), Surin Rajabhat University with his dissertation on “Volunteers of Buddhist Dhamma Medicine for Humanity”

Suanpanaboon – The Learning Center for the Sufficiency Economy and    Self-Reliance Health Care

114 Moo 11 Tambon Dontan, Amphur Dontan, Mookdahan.

Suanpanaboon 2 – Nakhon Si Thammarat, Suanpanaboon 3 – Pathum Thani

Suanpanaboon 4 – Nakhon Phanom

For course attendance, please call 045-511940-8 ext. 1222 or 1224

Mobile: 082-347-3898

Email : suanpanaboon.app@gmail.com

Translated from “Balancing of the Hot and Cold Elements in the Body and the Mind With Buddhist Dhamma Medicine Philosophy” by Dr. Jaiphet Klajone, Expert in Alternative Buddhist Dhamma Medicine, written for The Buddhist Dhamma Medicine Foundation of Thailand