Ninth Energy Center: Yin-Tang/Brow Point between Eyes

The Yin-tang is the pituitary gland and is called the “Tsu Chiao” or

the Original Cavity of the Spirit by Taoists. In fact, there are many

names for it in the Taoist Encyclopedia (Life Palace, Yu Ting, Jade

Cauldron, etc.). This point is located between the eyebrows, above

the nasal cavity. It is the master endocrine control gland, regulating

growth, gonadal function, the adrenals and the thyroid.

It is said to govern the forebrain, vision, the right eye, as well as

being the seat of love, compassion, knowledge, integration or personality,

love of humanity and devotion. It is further said to be the

seat of intelligence, conceptual memory (reading, thinking, studying),

linear sequential time consciousness, abstract and conceptual

thinking, compulsiveness, racism, sexism and paranoia.

The pituitary and the pineal gland are extremely important when

completing the routes, for it is at these two points that you can

check your power flow. When you concentrate on the navel and

store power there, energy suddenly rises up and passes through

the Niwan (the pineal gland). The next checking point is the Yin

Tang (the pituitary gland). When you have completed the Microcosmic

Orbit you can use these two, the Niwan and the Yin- tang, to see whether indeed there is a power flow. The rest of the points

are usually not sensitive enough for this. To complete the route, the

power has to flow down from the soft palate, through the tongue,

into and through the throat, the Hsuan-chi, the Shuan-chung (heart

chakra) the Chung-wan (solar plexus) and finally the navel again.

When the power has passed from the midbrain to the forebrain

and then to the pituitary gland and the mammalary bodies, many

students will feel pressure in both the left and right sides of their

forehead, which is due to resistance to the flow often found when

the route narrows as it comes down through the nose. This may

stimulate the release of mucous or even lead to sinus trouble, if

you are inclined that way.

After some time you may experience a fragrance. This is said

to be caused by hormone glands purifying the internal organs. The

aromas vary from person to person and also depends upon the

degree of one’s development. It is impossible to describe all the

various senses that have been reported but flowers, perfumes,

wine bouquet and coconut water have been mentioned. Along with

the fragrance, there may be needle-like sensations or a feeling as

if something were pressing down on one’s forehead or hammering

in the middle of one’s head. This is again due to the fact that there

is resistance to the flow of energy. If you can ignore these feelings,

the condition will gradually abate.

Concentrating on the brow point reduces the jarring effects of

sudden loud noises. By contrast, students who concentrate on the

navel do not have this facility. A degree of stability is reached, then,

by the time you reach the point between the eyebrows. The tendency

to worry will diminish and disappear as practice progresses.

From then on you feel more saliva being released, which is said to

be caused by hormones which are activated in the pituitary gland.

With continued practice, the saliva will become more sweet and

fragrant, at which time it is referred to as nectar.

This nectar helps to stimulate appetite and to activate all of your

bodily systems. When your appetite is good, your digestion and

assimilation are improved and you feel both content and invigorated.

To top it all, you will also feel very calm. Students at this level

report that they hear internal noises ranging from the beating of the

heart and the magnified sound of their breathing to the rushing

sound of the blood as it passes through blood vessels and the

workings of their various inner organs. They even describe sounds which Indian Yogis have for centuries referred to as divine. Most of

these smells and sounds have always been there, but have been

overshadowed by our attention to other things. As you grow quieter,

and become less distracted, these ever present sounds become

evident with the exception of the nadis, the divine sounds,

which alter characteristically as one progresses spiritually.

When you have finally reached the point between your eyebrows,

you are half-way finished. This doesn’t only refer to opening the

Microcosmic Orbit and other routes, but to what follows as well.

The next stage (after the routes have been opened) involves the

transportation of vital materials, the hormones as well as chi in the

practical application to one’s daily life of these new found abilities.

These steps have already been described as organ purification,

stimulation and development of the vital flow for the healing of illness.

It brings strength and vitality to those who have been weak

and finally rejuvenation and long life.

This calls for a very subtle balancing of powers and methods of

approach to avoid the many pitfalls that side-effects can bring. The

danger here is real. Without the proper knowledge as to how to

proceed, outright physical and emotional damage can result. Some

of the side-effects, again, are sensations of tightness or heaviness

in the head, sleepiness, ear-noises, toothaches, sinusitis, nervousness,

anger and irritability, all of which are due to having too much

power accumulated in the head. The precaution, again as a reminder,

is to be sure to bring the power back down along the route

it travelled on its way to the head and/or being sure to end each

practice period by returning it back to the navel in the prescribed

manner. At the navel circulate the chi clockwise (if you are male)

36 times and then counterclockwise 24 times, ending by pushing

in at the navel (reversing the direction of circling if you are female).

If you concentrate solely on the forehead or if you do so for long

periods of time without having properly opened the routes, you will

have most of these ill effects. Of the hundreds of students I have

taught, most of them have reached higher levels of practice without

much, if any, such trouble. Our aim here is to acquaint you with

the side effects that can occur and how to prevent them so that

you can be alerted to what can happen as you practice and thereby

be more successful in your endeavors. Younger people, who have

stronger power, must be more careful and should be sure to bring

the power down to the navel at the end of each session.