1. Tea qi is not just heat
Many people think tea qi is simply heat, but this is not the case. Usually, drinking hot tea creates a sensation of heat and causes sweating. Some say, "That's because it's hot; drinking hot water also makes you sweat." Indeed, drinking hot water cup after cup can also induce sweating, but the heat comes quickly and fades quickly. Tea qi, on the other hand, produces a sustained feeling of warmth in the chest and abdomen. Moreover, sweating from hot water mostly occurs on the front of the body—the chest and abdomen—while the back rarely sweats. In contrast, drinking tea often causes sweating on the back, especially along the spine. The front skin is closer to the digestive tract, while the back, especially the spine, is separated by many muscles and bones. This indicates that tea qi not only carries heat but also has the primary effects of penetration and unblocking.
2. A rising sensation to the head does not mean strong tea qi
Many people believe that if tea qi rises from the back of the head, it indicates strong tea qi, but this is also not necessarily true. Some old-tree teas (especially those with a certain degree of fermentation) can cause heat to accumulate in the upper abdomen, resulting in a strong sensation of warmth at the back of the head. The human brain is located in the upper part of the body, so people tend to think that sensations moving upward are more remarkable. However, tea qi rising to the back of the head often occurs because it cannot descend, or because the body has a low level of adaptation to that tea infusion. For example, some very bitter and astringent teas can cause the entire head to sweat, but after sweating, a feeling of weakness may ensue. To explain more deeply, the heat from naturally good tea flows from top to bottom, gathering at the dantian (lower abdomen), first sinking and then rising. Although it rises, it always remains rooted. Though intense, it is comfortable. A proper experience involves sustained warmth on the entire front of the body and uniform sweating along the entire spine. Those who regularly practice meridian exercises or are naturally sensitive to meridians may experience a process of sweating from the inside out. This is also not the tea qi itself, but the process of interaction between tea qi and the body. It indicates that the body's meridians are very unobstructed, leading to a stronger experience of tea qi.
3. The experience of tea qi should not be guided by intention
As everyone knows, people have a strong capacity for subjective self-suggestion. For example, if something unpleasant happens today and you believe it is because you are having bad luck, you are likely to encounter more misfortune afterward. Reflect on whether you have had such experiences. This is the effect of subjective self-suggestion. Therefore, when experiencing tea qi, one should avoid self-suggestion and refrain from identifying any internal sensations.
4. Use the state without tea qi as a comparison
Before drinking tea, use the same method to feel the state of the body. Then, after drinking tea, compare the two states. Subtract the initial state from the later state, and the remaining sensation is relatively more genuine.
Those who can truly experience tea qi itself must have thoroughly unobstructed meridians in their bodies. Such a body is like a transparent tunnel. To borrow a phrase from a tea enthusiast: "Still and unmoving, yet sensing and penetrating."
By tracking and experiencing tea qi, we can gain deeper awareness of our own meridians. The deeper the experience of tea qi, the stronger the perception of the meridians. Moreover, tea qi has a notable effect on unblocking meridians, which is why the "Shennong Bencao Jing" (Shennong's Classic of Materia Medica) records: "Shennong tasted a hundred herbs and encountered seventy-two poisons in a day, but he resolved them with tea."
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