Summer - An Invitation to Curiosity

Summer solstice is here, the longest solar day of the year for those of us in the northern hemisphere. We are immersed in June gloom here in San Diego, but I’m still contemplating what the season invites us to pay attention to. Just as the intense solar energy of summer brings tomatoes to full juicy fruit, this same energy dominates our physiology, and also has the potential to bear incredible harvests. 

My questions this week have been, what if summer is a season of “unknowing"? Of curiosity? Of wonder? What if curiosity fuels and contains the fire energy of summer in service of connection and creative expression? What if curiosity is the antidote to a fire out of control that would otherwise potentially fuel frustration, anger and inflammation? 

We often equate the energy of fire in the mind with intensity, with knowing, with a sharpness of tongue and wit, with competitiveness and drive. A fire out of control can be destructive, consuming all in its path. In the body, fire produces heat and energy but also can fuel inflammation. And, we often speak of ways to temper this force, to cool or dampen the heat. There are all kinds of tips for how to cool a body that has become overheated and inflamed and many of these are available in my summer webinar which is now free to download. This webinar explores the times of day which support work, play, integration and rest. And, there are food recommendations and seasonal invitations to be in rhythm with this season of high solar energy. You can download the webinar here. 

I’d love to explore today how fire energy fuels self expression and connection, through curiosity and delight. What if the forces that make up our very being: the elements of fire, water, earth, air and ether are inviting us to play; not simply be tempered? What is it to be human, made of all the elements, here to explore and create and most importantly to connect? And, what if fire is a key element of connection? 

The fire element expresses most strongly in our solar plexus; the general area of our body where the stomach, liver, kidneys and spleen reside. The fire element (or pitta dosha) drives digestion and metabolism: the transformation of food to energy and materials for building our own structure. The solar plexus is also often associated with personal will. I think of it as the area where life, in its infinite possibility, becomes and circulates as you in your uniqueness, and as me in mine. Here, out of the infinite energy and possibility, our individuality takes form.

Life, capital ‘L’ Life, expresses through us, individually, as Desire, capital D Desire. Sometimes desire is said to be the root of suffering, but capital D Desire is as innate as the Desire for a bird to sing or a lily to bloom. Consumptive desire, desire that is purely for our own whims and that has gone unquestioned and unexamined can be destructive. It often burns through the fuel it consumes quickly and fizzles out, leaving little heat or satisfaction. Think of the instant sugary infusion from a donut fueling a fleeting rush of cellular energy, that leaves everything in our body feeling a bit more depleted than before. 

However, Desire, as the urge of Life itself to express, to create, to serve, to connect - this is a desire worthy of our attention. This is where curiosity comes in. In unknowing, we get to experience the delight of witnessing how life is expressing in ourselves and in others, moment by moment.

One of the questions I often ask myself as I wake in the morning is; how does Life want to work with and through me today? I find this invites a certain curiosity and wonder to my morning that is enticing; a very different energy from the presumed certainty of a to-do list, of a determination to share what I think I know, of any certainty that I know what the day will hold or what will invite my attentive care. 

I listened to an interview this week with Ross Gay, poet and author. He defines joy as the evidence of connection. Joy makes us aware of connection, of the feeling we have when we connect. He affirmed the power of wonder, of curiosity and of unknowing in the art of connection. Connection is inherent - we don’t survive with out it. Joy reminds us and keeps us coming back for more. Joy and delight are the warmth of a well tended fire, of sparks of shared inspiration, of meeting one another with open curiosity and learning how to give and receive care.

Imbalanced pitta/fire energy is often an energy of presumed knowing. It is the energy of getting something right and of defending that right. It can become rigid and fixed. It can scorch all who might offer another option or opinion. However, curiosity stokes the fire of exploration, of approaching everything in life from a place of unknowing. It is the intimate and absorbing delight of learning something new and of connecting with ourselves, with others and with the world around us deeply and tenderly. 

Approaching every moment with curiosity sets up what Ross termed a “laboratory of care.” Care for ourselves as we listen for how Life wants to express, create, learn and move through us. Care for others as we stay in infinite awe, experiencing the joy of connection that is otherwise impossible if we already think we know. Unknowing breeds curiosity and curiosity breeds care. Unknowing breeds inspiration and inspiration breeds creative expression, insight and more skillful ways to support one another. There is perhaps nothing more soothing than delight, and witnessing what delights another. This is fire energy at its best. 

What delights you? Where does curiosity allow you to witness what delights another? What can you unknow about yourself and another that opens up more space for wonder? And, how does this cultivate and spark intimate connection and care? With curiosity we may be able to inuit what will cool our bodies on a hot day, and what will soothe the fiery rigidity that is often bred of fear or uncertainty. It will invite a deepening of response to how life wants to express in me. 

Today’s summer invitation is to tap in to that fire energy and notice how it may fuel inner connection and curiosity. Listen for the capital ‘D’ Desire of Life itself. What does Life want to learn, explore, create and express through you today? 

May your summer solstice be blessed,
Dr. Amy