The symmetrical movements in yoga practice should be left first and then right

There are many symmetrical movements in yoga practice. Should I start from the left side of the body first, or should I start from the right side of the body? Different coaches and different books have different answers to this question. Originally, I also thought that since it was a symmetrical movement, as long as it was done on both left and right sides, there was no need to distinguish the order! However, reading a book on traditional Chinese medicine during the May Day holiday gave me a new understanding of this issue.

Traditional Chinese medicine has the term "left liver and right lung", which is exactly the opposite of the distribution of liver and lung in Western medicine anatomy. It is also a major weapon for Western medicine to attack traditional Chinese medicine. However, people who understand the essence of traditional Chinese medicine can know that the so-called "left liver and right lung" means that the functions and systems on the left side of the body are dominated by the liver, and the functions and systems on the right side of the body are dominated by the lungs (Summarizing the connotation of "left liver and right lung" in such a simple sentence is not very comprehensive and accurate, but fortunately, the topic we are discussing today only starts from "left liver and right lung". This simple understanding is enough.).

Traditional Chinese medicine believes that the left part of the human body is the part where gas and subtle "grow". All useful things we obtain from the outside world start from the left side. The right part is the part that mainly "suppresses the descent", that is, the left side produces the useful substances that converge into the body and store them.

According to this theory, when we practice yoga, symmetrical movements should start from left first and then right, that is, start from the left side, finish the left side and then do the right side. With breathing, we can achieve the purpose of letting the body breathe out and absorb new things. (Internship Editor: Wu Jinyu)