If you’ve started abstaining, chances are you’ve run into nocturnal emission. Almost everyone who begins abstaining experiences it, and it is one of the most common questions people trying to quit ask. Many are truly suffering from it. They search high and low and still can’t find a way to reduce or control it.
The kidney energy you’ve worked so hard to cultivate gets wiped out in a single night, and it feels like going back to square one. It is distressing and disheartening. This article looks closely at nocturnal emission, with the hope of helping you overcome it completely. Read it carefully.
Why nocturnal emission hits so hard
Nocturnal emission is not considered a relapse, but it generally leaves you feeling physically unwell, especially if you have severe kidney deficiency. For you, it further weakens an already weakened state. The day after, you may feel noticeably uncomfortable; some people even feel like their bodies are falling apart.
Nocturnal emission and other unhealthy habits involve different forms of energy leakage, but the result is similar: essence is lost, and once it’s gone, the body feels unwell. If you are very healthy and your kidney energy is sufficient, an occasional nocturnal emission will likely go unnoticed. But if your kidney energy is already depleted, the reaction will be very noticeable, and the discomfort becomes more pronounced with age.
It also strikes at your confidence. Even though it isn’t a relapse, the loss of essence weakens your spirit, leaving you like a deflated balloon. Traditional Chinese Medicine emphasizes “accumulating essence and energy,” and the leakage of essence is strongly discouraged.
The Taoist view: the 100-day threshold
Taoism calls nocturnal emission “walking the elixir.” The original aim is to “refine essence into qi.” But once the essence has leaked out, what is left to transform into qi?
The “Hundred Days of Foundation Building” requires going 100 days without nocturnal emission. Very few ordinary people achieve this; only those who have attained enlightenment can. In reality, it is like breaking through a thin layer of paper. Once you know the method, it is incredibly simple. Without it, even reducing the frequency is very difficult, let alone going 100 days without one.
Note that this 100-day period is not the same as the first 100 days of abstaining. Many people have severe kidney qi deficiency after years of bad habits, and nocturnal emission may recur after six to eight months. The 100-day period refers to the second stage after you begin abstaining.
The search that goes nowhere
Maybe you’re having nocturnal emissions three to five times a month, sometimes two nights in a row. It may not sound like a lot, but for an already depleted body, it can be unbearable. You might be recovering well, and then one emission causes your condition to decline significantly.
Perhaps you’ve kept a record of every one: the date, the time, whether you dreamed. After each, you search online for solutions and read countless articles and posts on medicinal supplements, various exercises, and suggestive therapies. Nothing reduces the frequency.
You may even start to wonder whether it is simply “sperm overflowing naturally.” But that notion doesn’t hold, because many people have significantly reduced or even eliminated nocturnal emissions through practice. Highly skilled individuals can do this.
The Small Heavenly Circuit in Qigong can eliminate nocturnal emissions, but it requires a qualified teacher. You can’t practice it haphazardly, or you may develop problems. Standing meditation in Qigong can also reduce them, but achieving 100 days without one is very difficult.
Nocturnal emission is an “iron threshold” in the cultivation world, and countless people cannot get past it. If you can’t, it is extremely difficult for your physical constitution to make a qualitative leap, because everything you replenish is lost again. It’s like a water tank being filled at the top while leaking at the bottom. It can never be full.
Why most advice leaves you confused
You may have read articles on this before without grasping their deeper meaning. Many are overly complicated and demanding, leaving you lost. The more you read, the more complex it seems. Even if you try, you may not get the hang of it, and the result is the same: the nocturnal emissions continue.
In reality, an article of several thousand words can be summed up in a single sentence. As the saying goes, “A thousand books of false teachings, a single sentence of true teachings.” Once you understand it, you understand completely. There’s no need to read so much; the more you read, the more confused you become. If you don’t understand, that thin layer of paper feels like a mountain. If you do, it’s as simple as breaking through paper.
Once this principle is understood, it is possible to go three months without a single nocturnal emission, with kidney energy becoming increasingly abundant and a real sense of energy returning. And if you understand it, you save money: no need for supplements or trips to the hospital.
Understanding the “seminal gate”
First, understand a concept called the “seminal gate.” Think of it as a dam. If the dam is strong enough, floods cannot breach it. The problem arises when the seminal gate is weak, which leads to frequent nocturnal emissions. If your seminal gate is very strong, even excessive sexual activity will struggle to break through.
It’s like a spear and a shield. If the shield is strong enough, no matter how powerful the spear, it cannot pierce it. So the problem to solve is how to strengthen the seminal gate, your “shield.”
The exercise: Hands Grasping the Feet to Strengthen the Kidneys and Waist
The answer lies in one movement from the Eight Pieces of Brocade (Baduanjin), called “Hands Grasping the Feet to Strengthen the Kidneys and Waist.”
The movement is very simple: stand with your legs straight and touch the ground with your hands. A similar movement appears in radio calisthenics; in fact, the radio calisthenics taught in schools are derived from this traditional Chinese Qigong practice.
Don’t underestimate it. It holds a profound secret. By stretching the bladder meridian on the back of your thigh, it strengthens the seminal vesicle. The kidney and bladder meridians are interconnected, sharing functions as well as qi and blood. Stretching the bladder meridian affects the kidney meridian, which strengthens the seminal vesicle.
Doing this movement is like tightening a screw on the seminal vesicle. Once the seminal vesicle is strengthened, nocturnal emission resolves itself. You may have read about the Eight Pieces of Brocade before without paying enough attention or grasping its essence. Its practical power is greater than any tonic. And it is simple and easy to maintain. Those who understand its secret will treasure it; those who don’t will disregard it.
How to do it correctly
- Do only this one movement. From the Eight Pieces of Brocade, focus only on “Hands Grasping the Feet to Strengthen the Kidneys and Waist.” It specifically targets nocturnal emission.
- Find the right tension. Doing it correctly means finding the right feeling. You should feel the ligaments on the back of your thighs being stretched, straightened, and lengthened, like a rubber band.
- Keep reinforcing that feeling. Once you find it, keep reinforcing it. This is what tightens the screw on the seminal vesicle.
- Build up the volume. Do it 500 times a day, with 200 of those before bed.
- Always do it before sleep. Doing it before bed is like locking the seminal vesicle. Skip it, and you’re more prone to nocturnal emission, because the seminal vesicle may be in a relatively loose state.
- Don’t overexert yourself. Excessive fatigue can also lead to nocturnal emission, so be extra careful not to push too hard before bed.
Going further: the nature of essence
Essence is a remarkable substance. When given, it gives life to others; when retained, it nourishes you. One of its characteristics is that it can be “internalized.” Through Qigong practice, essence can be refined into qi and used to replenish the brain.
The theory of “essence overflowing when full” applies only to ordinary people who haven’t practiced Qigong. Without practice, their understanding stops at that level, with no deeper experience. It’s like seeing only white swans and concluding that every swan is white. Black swans exist too; they simply haven’t seen one.
The bottom line
At a certain stage of abstaining, almost everyone experiences frequent nocturnal emissions. You need to learn to control the frequency and aim to keep it below three times a month. With this one simple movement, done correctly and consistently, you can get rid of this problem as soon as possible.
