Daoist texts, like the Dao De Jing (Classic on the Dao), refer to the nature of water in the environment as a guide for our lives. The images are crisp and portray an entity that has both a Yin aspect, when static – placid, and contained by forms – and a Yang (energetic) aspect when dynamic, a more terrifying aspect when it really gets moving. In these texts, Ocean is referred to as the commander of Water.
In the physical sciences, water remains enigmatic, even after many decades of study. Science opens new windows into the behaviors of this triatomic molecule, HOH. Water is a very “social” molecule, rarely alone, and found in clusters. That is the magic of H-bonding, and ion-dipole interactions.
The properties of all the biomolecular constructs of life – from DNA/RNA (gene products) to proteins (enzymes and structural elements of cells), to sugars (e.g., cell adhesion molecules) and even our cell membranes, which are made up of lipids (i.e., fats) – are all stabilized by tightly held shells of water that allow for stable interactions with their surroundings, known as “bulk” water.
Water is everywhere but its regular (proper) uses to protect health are rarely discussed in detail.
Proper hydration of tissues – e.g., nasal and oropharyngeal mucosa, will reduce risks associated with attacks by pesky infectious viruses. Something to consider, while we enjoy the comforts of our warm and dry homes in winter.
So, if water is so important to good health, why do we have so much difficulty in remembering to drink it. That seems to be a mystery.
Borrowing from Samuel Coleridge (Rime of the Ancient Mariner), “Water, water everywhere, nor any drop to drink…”
When one exercises regularly, however, its importance is hard to miss. Athletes who forget to hydrate properly feel an immediate decrease in performance. After a while, the message sinks in, so to say.
The short message for activating Waters’ powers: drink water, move the body.
I realize that many lifetime prescription drugs – e.g., antihypertensives, like beta (adrenergic) blockers, and diuretics like hydrochlorothiazide – can leave our mouths feeling dry. We get used to it. However, in these times of Covid-18, that is a bad idea. When Oregon’s Health Authority speaks of mortalities associated with the pandemic, they refer to “underlying health conditions”.
However, we never learn about the drugs these unfortunate people were on, and their iatrogenic impacts. So it is up to us to overcome what these drugs have done to cloud our senses and our sensibilities.
Pay attention to how the mouth feels. Is it dry?
Drink deep. Move.
Be well.