🌿 Folk Prescriptions

The great health preserver of the Song Dynasty, Chen Zhi, said: "In autumn, bleak winds and dreary rains make elders prone to melancholy. If their mood is gloomy, one must employ various methods to distract their mind and spirit, thus forgetting autumn’s sadness." "Bleak winds and dreary rains" describes the scene after autumn winds sweep away fallen leaves—when people encounter the desolation of withered grass, fallen leaves, and dying plants at night. By frost descent, the autumn wind and rain often evoke feelings of autumn sorrow. Especially for the elderly, this frequently triggers feelings of desolation, loneliness, and twilight melancholy, stirring up depressive emotions. China’s literary masterpiece *Dream of the Red Chamber* includes Cao Xueqin’s touching lines: "Already feeling sorrow in the autumn window, how much worse with autumn rain adding to the gloom!" And "autumn wind and rain sadden people." Why do autumn wind and rain sadden people?
Medical research proves that in the human brain, there is a pineal gland that secretes "melatonin." This hormone induces sleep and can also cause depression and apathy. Sunlight reduces melatonin secretion. Conversely, after autumn cooling, skies are often overcast and sunlight weak, leading to relatively increased melatonin secretion. Moreover, melatonin regulates other hormones in the body (like thyroid hormone and adrenaline). This suppresses thyroid hormone and adrenaline, lowering their physiological concentration. Since thyroid hormone and adrenaline are hormones that stimulate cellular activity, their relative reduction causes cells to "become sluggish and inactive," leading people to feel emotionally low and overly sensitive.
From the above, autumn's "wind and rain" easily trigger emotional lows. How to overcome this? First, let sunlight surround you—ensure adequate lighting at work. Second, when in a bad mood, the best remedy is distraction: engage in physical exercise like tai chi or walking, or perform suitable physical labor. Muscle tension can relieve mental tension because exercise improves mood and brings joy. Ideally, travel to scenic spots—mountains and rivers. Being near water brings openness; climbing mountains brings tranquility. Floating on water brings ease; young people climbing rocks and mountains hones willpower. Additionally, use music, chess, calligraphy, and painting to regulate emotions, as Wu Shiji wrote in *Li Yue Pin Wen*: "For emotional disorders, reading alleviates boredom, listening to music relieves sorrow—far better than medicine." Thus, during "autumn wind, autumn rain, autumn sorrow," one can listen to music, enjoy drama, or watch humorous crosstalk—thus dissipating gloom.
Based on the TCM theory of "harmony between heaven and man," *Huangdi Neijing* explicitly outlined the principles for mental adjustment in autumn. *Su Wen: Si Qi Tiao Shen Da Lun* states: "Keep the will tranquil, to mitigate autumn’s severity; gather and conserve the spirit to match autumn’s calmness; do not let the will wander outward, to preserve the lung’s clarity. This is the way to harmonize with autumn’s nature and the method of nourishing and gathering." Meaning: in autumn, one must maintain mental tranquility to reduce the impact of harsh autumn energies. One must continuously gather and conserve the spirit to adapt to autumn’s balanced nature, avoiding mental wandering to preserve the lung’s clarity—this is the mental approach to nourishing and gathering in accordance with autumn’s seasonal characteristics. We can summarize autumn mental adjustment as: "Calm the mind and nourish the spirit." To achieve this, one must eliminate distractions and attain a serene mental state.
Common saying: "Ordinary people cannot lack desire, nor can they lack competition"—this is human nature. But desires should not be excessive or unrealistic. Laozi in *Dao De Jing* proposed: "Embrace simplicity, hold to purity, reduce selfishness, minimize desires"—the essence of "tranquility and emptiness," and a concrete measure for maintaining mental serenity. Selfishness and cravings stem from the heart; excessive selfishness and endless desires disturb the spirit, disrupting its clarity. Thus, *Huangdi Neijing* also advocates: "When the will is weary and desires are few, the heart is at peace and free from fear." Reducing selfishness and lowering desires lessens unnecessary mental burdens, aiding spiritual clarity. Ancient wisdom says: "Four walls of wine, women, wealth, and power—everyone hides within. Step outside these walls, and even if not a immortal, one lives long." This clearly warns against obsessing over wealth and profit, advocating inner peace and minimal desire.
In daily life, one should channel energy into career pursuits rather than "striving for fame in court, competing for profit in markets." View fame and fortune lightly, do good deeds, contribute more. If selfishness is excessive and desires too high, unmet goals lead to sorrow, grief, and distress. Excessive rumination harms the spirit and causes illness.