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THE ACADEMY OF HEALING NUTRITION
Holistic Health Counselor & Nutrition Coach Professional Certification Course
THE ORGANS and their Major Functions and Energetics
with Roger Green
Yin Organs (Wu-Zang)
1. Heart (Xin)
Position:1 The Emperor.
Function: Master of blood, stores shen, receives and ripens food and drink, separates waste, governs downward movement.
• The heart rules the blood and blood vessels by regulating the flow of blood. When the heart is functioning properly, the blood flows smoothly. Thus, the heart, the blood, and the blood vessels are united by their common activity. If the heart blood and heart qi (which are mutually dependent on each other) are abundant and normal the pulse will be even and regular.
• The heart also stores the shen (spirit). When the heart’s blood and qi are harmonious, shen is nourished and the individual responds appropriately to the environment.
Opens Into: The tongue. Chinese tradition says, “The tongue is the sprout of the heart.” The tongue is closely related to heart qi and heart blood. This means that if disharmonies occur in the heart they are sometimes discernible in the tongue. A pale tongue might indicate deficient blood in the heart; a purplish (cyanotic) tongue might indicate stagnant blood in the heart. The connection between the heart and tongue also means that pathological changes of the tongue, such as inflammations or ulcerations, can often be treated by acupuncture or herbal therapy directed at the heart.
Because the heart controls the tongue it also controls speech. Quick speech indicates strong yin and yang (spicy foods, meat). Voice loss indicates disturbed shen and chronic yin and yang deficiency.
Manifests in the: Face. If the heart blood is abundant, the face will have a normal reddish complexion and will be moist and bright. If the heart blood is insufficient, the face will be pale and without luster. If the heart is stagnant the face may be purplish.
Primary Symptoms: When the shen storing ability of the heart is impaired the individual may show symptoms such as insomnia, excessive dreaming, or forgetfulness. More serious disorders of this type are hysteria, irrational
1 In Traditional Chinese Medicine the body is seen as an environment; therefore the organs are named according to their position in an army.
behavior, insanity and delirium. In all mental illnesses it is the shen that is disturbed.
Heart Summary Yin/Yang and Element: Yin Fire
Partner to: Small Intestines
Functions and Characteristics:
• Houses the shen
o Disturbed shen = Restless, insomnia, depression, timidity
o Wandering shen = Madness, delirium, coma, anesthetic
o All heart disorders are precipitated by emotions
• Rules the blood vessels and circulation
o Strong shen = Strong circulation
• Blood condition revealed in the pulse, complexion, tongue
• Tongue is the throne of the heart, heart also controls recognition of the 5 flavors
• Pericardium protects the heart from external perverse heat
• Small intestine relieves heat from the heart
2. Lung
Position: The Judge, in control of jurisdiction.
Function: Master of qi, administers respiration, moves things down, descends qi to the kidney, moves and adjusts water canals2, readjusts fluid in the body, rules the outside (exterior of the body), keeps pores closed.
• The Nei Jing calls the lungs “the lid of the yin organs” because they form a cap or lid on top of the thoracic cavity. They are also called the “tender organ” because they are the yin organ most easily affected by external pernicious influences (discussed
2 The words water and fluids are often used interchangeably, but sometimes one or the other is preferred. Water has a more general connotation than fluids.
below). The lungs can direct movement in two directions, “descending and liquefying” (su-jiang) and “disseminating or circulating” (xuan).
The lungs administer respiration and regulate the qi of the entire body. They are the place where qi outside the body meets qi inside the body. They take in the natural air qi, via inhalation, and propel it downward by their descending property. The disseminating property of exhalation allows for expulsion of “impure” air. When the lungs are healthy, qi enters and leaves smoothly and respiration is even and regular.
• The lungs also move and adjust the water channels in the same two directions that they move qi. The descending function of the lungs liquefies water vapor and moves it down to the kidneys. The disseminating function circulates and scatters water vapor throughout the body, particularly through the skin and pores. Chinese medicine postulates that water in liquid form descends while in vapor form it circulates or ascends. The Nei Jing calls the lungs “the upper organ of water.”
Rule: The exterior body. The word exterior in relation to the lungs is a standard usage referring to the skin, sweat glands and body hair (the quality of the body hair indicates the condition of the lung qi). In other words, the lungs regulate the secretion of sweat, the moistening of the skin, and resistance to external pernicious influences. These functions also depend on the protective qi (Wei Qi), which in turn depends on the lungs’ disseminating function. This particular relationship is considered another example of the lungs ruling qi. If the lung qi is weak there may be too much or too little sweat and the resistance of the protective qi will be poor.
Open into: The nose. The nose is the “thoroughfare for respiration” and is intimately connected to the function of the lungs. The throat is said to be the “door” of the lungs and the “home” of the vocal cords, so both the throat and the vocal cords are also related to the lungs. Many common nose and throat disorders are therefore treated through the lungs.
Primary Symptoms: Symptoms from an imbalance or obstruction interfering with the lungs include cough, dyspnea, asthma, or chest distention.
The disseminating or circulating function of the lungs is very closely allied with the qi of the chest. Because the qi of the chest is involved with the movement of all the qi and blood in the body, a disharmony of the lungs can produce deficient qi or stagnant qi anywhere in the body. Disturbances involving the disseminating function may also produce respiratory problems.
Imbalances with the water descending function of the lungs can manifest in urination problems or in edema, particularly edema in the upper part of the body.
Lung Summary Yin/Yang and Element: Yin Metal
Partner to: Large Intestines/Colon
Functions and Characteristics:
• Rules the qi
o Zhen qi originates in the lungs
• Respiration
• Descending and Dispersing
o Descending function causes inhalation
o Dispersing function causes exhalation
• Controls the release of Wei qi on to the surface of the body
• Moves and adjusts the water channel
o Sends fluid down to the kidney
o Disperses fluid through sweat
o Welcomes damp from the spleen
• Rules the External Body
o Sheen of skin and hair
o Regulates opening and closing of the pores
o Controls release of Wei qi
• Rules the Voice
• Opens at the nose
• Manifests the po(po means instinct, and is one of the ‘spirits’ that is manifested by the organs.)
3. Spleen
Position: The Official of Granaries (soil energy).
Function: Provides digestive energetics: it looks after food and stores it, rules transportation and transformation, controls and feeds the four limbs, manufactures and governs the blood, nourishes the flesh and muscle, and tastes the five tastes.
The spleen is responsible for digestion and transformation of food and fluids into usable qi, keeping blood from leaking out of the vessels, and holding structures in place against the pull of gravity.
Spleen qi is the primary source of the body’s qi. Spleen qi nourishes the body’s defensive qi (Wei qi), which regulates the opening and closing of the pores, preventing the entry of pathogens and bolstering immunity.
• The spleen rules the processes of transformation and transportation. This makes the spleen responsible for converting what is consumed on all levels—physical, mental, emotional and spiritual—into useable units of energy. This converted essence is mixed with air through physiological processing and distributed through the body as a substance.
• The spleen is the crucial link in the process by which food is transformed into qi and blood. For the Chinese it is the primary organ of digestion. The yang “ascending” aspect of the spleen is like an internal cooker in that it provides warmth and extracts the pure nutritive yin essences of ingested food and fluids and sends it upward to the lungs, where the synthesis of blood and qi takes place. Without yang the raw materials cannot be processed. Without yin there is no nutrition. Because the spleen is the source of sufficient blood and qi in the body, it is traditionally referred to as the “foundation of postnatal existence.”
• The spleen governs the blood by keeping it flowing in its proper paths. In general, qi commands the blood and the spleen qi holds the blood in place. If the spleen qi is weak the spleen’s governing function loses its harmony and the blood can escape its pathways and “move recklessly.” This leads to symptoms such as vomiting blood, blood in the stool, blood under the skin,
menorrhagia, or uterine bleeding. Many chronic bleeding diseases are treated through the spleen.
• The spleen also nourishes the flesh and muscle. Not only is the spleen the origin of qi and blood, but the spleen also transports these substances to the muscles and flesh. The movement of the muscles, flesh, and consequently the four limbs depends on the power of the spleen. Muscle tone or the appearance of the limbs often indicates the relative strength or weakness of the spleen.
Opens into: The mouth. The mouth and lips are closely related to the spleen. If the spleen is harmonious the mouth will be able to distinguish the five tastes and the lips will be red and moist. If the spleen is weak the mouth will be insensitive to taste and the lips will be pale.
Primary Symptoms: If the transformative and transporting functions of the spleen are harmonious, the qi and blood can be abundant and the digestive powers strong. If the spleen is in disharmony, the whole body, or some part of it, may develop deficient qi or deficient blood. If digestion is affected, symptoms such as abdominal distention or pain, diarrhea, or anorexia may appear. Other symptoms include: poor appetite, anemia, chronic hepatitis, hemophilia, lethargy, obsessions, gynecological problems, inflammatory digestive problems, and urino-genital problems.
A Closer Look at the Spleen: Understanding Digestion
The spleen transforms and absorbs food in order to generate and distribute qi, moisture and blood. It governs all activities along the digestive tube from the mouth to the large intestine, including functions of the liver, gallbladder and pancreas that enter into the process of digestion and assimilation.
The spleen can be likened to a cooking pot warmed by the kidney’s living fire. The spleen depends upon the ascension of heat from below to convert food to qi and blood.
The refined qi from food rises from the spleen to the lung, where it joins with the qi from air. This pure essence of food and air then begins its journey through the body’s channels and viscera.
Denser, unrefined qi descends from the stomach by way of the small intestine to the kidney and large intestine.
The kidney further purifies the liquid products of digestion, storing some and eliminating the rest by way of the bladder. The large intestine receives the coarse, solid, unusable products of digestion and discharges them.
The function of the spleen can be harmed by incompatible foods, stress, overeating, extreme hunger, and emotional upsets. This results in obstruction of qi.
Qi obstruction results in congested foods and fluids that can then generate conditions of deficiency and excess. This prevents the spleen from doing its job well, which means it cannot generate blood and qi, resulting in weakness.
When it cannot distribute qi and blood, stagnation occurs, which creates excesses such as heat, cold, dampness, and wind. This then aggravates other organ networks.
An example of what an aggravated organ network might look like: Stagnant qi in the spleen agitates the liver. This leads to an accumulation of heat in the liver that over stimulates the heart. This leads to congestion of fluids and produces phlegm in the lung. This leads to excess cold and depresses the fire of the kidney.
Spleen Summary Yin/Yang and Element: Yin Earth
Partner to: Stomach
Functions and Characteristics:
• Transforms and transports qi
• Transforms and transports fluids
o Sends impure fluids to the lungs, then turn into to kidney yin
o Spleen hates damp
o Damp spleen causes damp lungs
o Weak spleen can cause kidney disorders
• Rules the 4 Limbs
• Involved in blood production
• Governs the blood in the vessels
• Holds the internal organs in position
• Opens at the mouth
• Involved in female reproduction
• Psychologically manifests in mindfulness, obsession, excessive reflection
4. Liver
Position: The General.
Function: Maintains evenness and harmony of movement throughout the body. Rules flowing and dispersing, regulates the body’s activities, adjusts and makes bile and sends it to the gall bladder, stores blood at night and detoxifies it, and rules tendons (connective tissue).
• The liver is responsible for flowing and spreading the smooth movement of qi and regulating the body’s activities by moving the qi and blood in all directions, sending them to every part of the body. Words such as soft, subtle, light and gentle begin to characterize the desirable state of the liver. A modern Chinese text uses the word sprinkle to describe its activity. One classic herbal treatment to restore liver harmony is called the Free and Easy Wanderer. Creating this ambiance can be thought of as the function of the liver, as well as a basic need of the liver itself. A liver disharmony, then, would be the converse of smoothness, and so the liver is the organ most sensitive to stagnation or “stuckness.”
There are three functional aspects to the liver activity of “flowing and spreading:”
o The liver “adjusts and makes smooth.” The smooth movement of qi throughout the body is dependent on the flowing and spreading action of the liver. All activity that depends on qi—the movement of qi itself, of blood, of meridian qi and the activity of all the organs—depends also on the liver. Any impairment of liver function can influence the circulation of qi and blood, leading to either stagnant qi or congealed blood. The liver qi can even become stagnant in its own pathways and will then manifest symptoms like pain or distention in the flanks, swollen or painful breasts and genitals or lower abdominal pain.
The liver’s adjusting activity is especially important in digestion. If the liver loses its harmonious movement it can move in the wrong direction and “invade” the stomach and spleen. This may be accompanied by such digestive problems as abdominal pain, nausea, belching, intestinal rumbling or diarrhea.
o The second aspect of liver function is that is controls bile secretion. Bile is necessary for the digestion of foods and fluids. If the liver cannot perform its spreading and flowing activities, bile production may be disrupted, causing symptoms such as jaundice, bitter taste in the mouth, vomiting of yellow fluid, distention of the flanks, or loss of appetite.
o In its third aspect the liver harmonizes the emotions. Its gentle “sprinkling” movement is responsible for creating a relaxed, easygoing internal environment—an even disposition. Any sudden change in the normal pattern of emotions can affect the flowing and dispersing function of the liver; conversely, a disharmony of the liver will directly affect the emotional state of the individual. Anger and emotional frustration are especially intertwined with the liver. Chinese practitioners will often diagnose repeated instances of “flying off the handle” as due to a liver disharmony.
These three aspects of liver activity have been separated only for the purposes of discussion; in the human body they are interrelated. Disharmony of the liver’s flowing function can affect the bile or the emotions and vice versa. In this interconnectedness lies one of the basic principles of Chinese medicine—medical theory never departs from the physical body, but its definition of that body includes what the West calls psychology.
• The liver also stores and regulates the blood. Traditional thought states, “when a person moves the blood moves to the meridians” and “when a person rests the blood returns to the liver.” During periods of physical activity when the body needs more blood for nourishment, the liver allows the blood to move freely outward. When the body is inactive, this blood returns to and is stored in the liver.
There are two types of blood storage disharmonies. One is insufficient blood quantity for storing. A common affliction of this disharmony is insufficient blood to nourish the eyes, making them rough and dry. The second kind of disharmony is loss of ability to store properly. This manifests as an unusually heavy menstrual flow. If the liver malfunctions it won’t store blood, leading to stress (burnout), which is identified as reckless liver qi (chronic liver deficiency).
Rules: The tendons and manifests in the nails. The proper movement of all tendons in the body is closely related to the liver. In Chinese medicine, tendons relate to a broader category than defined by Western anatomy, for it includes
ligaments and, to some extent, muscles. In TCM this is the nervous system. If the liver blood is insufficient and incapable of nourishing the tendons, symptoms such as spasms, numbness of the limbs and difficulty in bending or stretching may result. Liver disharmonies may also cause the nails to be thin, brittle and pale. When the liver blood is plentiful the tendons are supple and the nails appear pink and moist.
Opens Into: The eyes. All of the yin and yang organs contribute the purest part of their energy to the eyes, creating the brightness or awareness that characterizes harmonious spirit. The liver, however, has a special relationship to the function of the eyes. The Nei Jing says, “When the liver is harmonized the eyes can distinguish the five colors,” and “When the liver receives blood, the eyes can see.” Therefore, many disorders of the eyes and of vision are taken to be liver related.
Liver Summary Yin/Yang and Element: Yin Wood
Partner to: Gallbladder
Functions and Characteristics:
• Rules the flowing and spreading of qi, blood, emotions
o Smooth flow of qi through the body
o Controls bile secretion and production in the gallbladder
o Harmonizes the emotions
• Stores the blood
• Controls the tendons and muscle tone
o Hair and nails, extensions of the tendons, indicate liver condition
• Opens into the eyes
• Houses the soul
• Minister of defense
o Stores Wei qi
o Body’s last line of defense in the 6 divisions
• Psychologically manifests as stuck LV qi, often of emotional origin, anger, repression, depression, stress, melancholy, boredom, sadness, tension
• Can attack the Middle Heater
5. Kidney
Position: The Official who Rules through Cleverness.
Function: Stores the jing; rules birth, development and reproduction; rules water, nourishes bones and produces marrow; eliminates toxins.
The kidneys store jing, which is ancestral sexual energy that is necessary for sex and the substance most closely associated with life itself (reference jing in the Five Fundamental Substances section). The entire body and all the organs of the body need jing to thrive. Because they store jing, the kidneys bestow this potential for life activity. They have, therefore, a special relationship with the other organs in that they hold the underlying material of each organ’s existence and are the foundation of each organ’s yin and yang. In other words, the life activity of each organ ultimately depends on the yin and yang of the kidneys.3 Thus, the kidneys are the “root of life.” As the medical tradition states, “The kidneys are the mansion of fire and water, the residence of yin and yang, and the channel of death and life.”
The kidneys are also called the root of life because jing is the source of reproduction, development and maturation. Conception is made possible by the power of jing; growth to maturity is the blossoming of jing; and the decline into old age reflects the weakening of jing. As time passes the jing decreases in both vitality and quantity. Because the kidneys store jing they govern these processes. Therefore, reproductive problems such as sterility, impotence, and developmental disorders like retarded growth or lack of sexual maturation are seen as dysfunctions of the kidneys’ storing of jing. Aging is considered a normal process and when it proceeds gracefully it is not seen as an illness or a problem. If aging is premature, or if it lacks the dignity of a sense of completion, it may be the result of kidney jing irregularities.
Rule: Water, bones and inhalation.
3 All the organs can be characterized as either yin or yang. But every organ has both a supportive, nourishing yin aspect and an active yang aspect. For example, the heart’s storing of shen is a yin function, while ruling blood is a yang function. The liver’s storing of blood is yin, while its spreading of qi is yang. As the primal organic material, jing can be thought of as coming “before” yin and yang; but because of its undifferentiated, primordial character, it is yin as well, and that within that yin there is another yin and yang differentiation.
• Like all organs the kidneys have both yin and yang aspects. The left kidney is yang and the right kidney is yin. The yin of the kidneys, depending on context, is called either jing or water. The yang of the kidneys has a special name—Ming-Men Huo, or Life Gate Fire.
• The kidneys rule water4 because while the lungs “move and adjust the water channels” and “liquefy vapor,” and the spleen “raises the pure,” including pure fluids, the kidneys are the foundation upon which this entire process of water movement and transformation is built.
The yin of the kidneys, water, is ruled through the yang aspect of the kidneys, the Life Gate Fire. This fire, or heat, transforms water into a “mist,” a necessary first step before fluids can ascend or circulate. All the circulation of water in the body depends on the vaporizing power of the kidneys. The spleen also vaporizes pure fluids as it raises the pure essences of food and fluids, but its vaporization power—its fire—is ultimately dependent on the kidney fire, which acts as a kind of pilot light.
The system of water movement may be summarized as follows: Fluids are received by the stomach, which begins a process of separation in which the unusable portions of food are sent to the intestines as waste and the pure water is extracted. This process is continued by the spleen, which then sends the pure fluids in a vaporized state upward to the lungs. The lungs circulate the clear part of the fluids throughout the body and liquefy whatever has become impure through use and send it downward to the kidneys. The kidneys further separate the impure part into relatively “clear” and “turbid” parts. The clear part is transformed into a mist and sent upward to the lungs, where it rejoins the cycle. The final impure portion goes into the bladder, where it is stored and subsequently excreted. Because the kidneys eliminate toxins, clear kidneys are synonymous to clear thinking.
• “The kidneys rule the bones and produce marrow.” These two functions are an aspect of the kidney jing’s control of birth, development and maturation. The kidneys store jing, and it is said that jing produces marrow. The marrow, in turn, is responsible for creating and supporting bones. Therefore, the
4 The words water and fluids are often used interchangeably, but sometimes one or the other is preferred. Water has a more general connotation than fluids. While fluids refer to water in its particular aspects (perspiration, urine, etc), water refers to all the moisture in the body. Water is also thought of as the opposing principle to fire, the yin to fire’s yang. Since water and fire are two of the basic forces at work both in the body and in the universe, water is the broader, more metaphorical term.
bones’ development and repair depend on the nourishment of the kidney jing. In a child, insufficient kidney jing may result in soft bones or incomplete closure of the bones of the skull. In an adult, insufficient kidney jing can produce weak legs and knees, brittle bones or stiffness of the spine.5
The teeth are considered the surplus of the bones, so the kidneys rule them as well. When a child’s teeth develop poorly or fall out, or an adult’s teeth are a constant problem, a Chinese physician will suspect an insufficient kidney jing.
• “The kidneys rule the grasping of qi.” While the lungs administer respiration, normal breathing also requires assistance from the kidneys. The kidneys enable natural air qi to penetrate deeply, completing the inhalation process by what is called “grasping the qi.” The kidneys are thus the “root of qi”, while the lungs are the “foundation of qi.” Proper breathing thus depends on the kidneys; and kidney disharmonies may result in respiratory problems, especially chronic asthma.
Open Into: The ear. There is a close relationship between the kidneys and the ears. As the Nei Jing says, “The kidney qi goes through the ear; if the kidney is harmonized, the ear can hear the five tones.” Many hearing problems are treated through the kidneys. The poor hearing common in the elderly, for example, is a consequence of weakened kidney jing.
Manifest in: Head hair. The relative moistness and vitality of head hair are also related to the kidney jing and the loss of hair that accompanies aging is another manifestation of weakness of the kidney jing. The head hair also depends on the blood for nourishment, which is why the tradition calls head hair “the surplus of the blood.”
Kidney Summary Yin/Yang and Element: Yin Water
Partner to: Bladder
Functions and Characteristics:
• Both kidneys together control the yin/yang balance
• Controls energy of the body
o Stores Yuan qi
5 In old people kidney yin is deficient, which is why their bones break easily.
o Stores Jin qi
o Stores Zing6 qi
o Produces Wei qi
• Rules
o Water via kidney fire
o Bones
o Brain and spinal cord
o Ears
o Hair
• Grabs the qi from the lungs
• Psychologically manifests in fear, paranoia, fatigue, no will power
6. Pericardium (Xin-Bao)
Position: The public relationship officer to the Heart.
Function: Provide an outer protective shield of the heart.
For clinical purposes the pericardium is considered a sixth yin organ. But in general theory the pericardium is not distinguished from the heart except by virtue of its being the first line of defense against external pernicious influences attacking the heart. In acupuncture it has a separate meridian.
Primary Symptoms: Mouth sores, epigastric pain, belching, nausea, vomiting.
Pericardium Summary Yin/Yang and Element: Yin Fire
Partner to: Triple Heater
Functions and Characteristics:
• Protects the heart
• Related to kidney yang
6 Zing is the end product of jing; zing is the sperm and egg.
• 6 Division partner of liver (6 Divisions is an acupuncture theory where the 12 main meridians form 6 pairs to act as a defense for the body. The PC and LV combination represents one of these pairs).
• Relates to stomach via internal pathways of the meridians
• Disharmonies manifest psychologically as depression, sexual expressions, perversions, anxieties, impotence, and sterility, and addictions
Yang Organs (Liu-Fu) The main function of yang organs is to receive food, absorb the usable portions, and transmit and excrete waste. The yang organs are less directly involved with the fundamental substances than are the yin organs. They are also considered more exterior that the yin organs. The word exterior has more to do with the ultimate life significance of an organ than with its physical location. Thus, the important yin organs are thought to be more interior than the less important yang organs.
1. Gallbladder
Position: The Strategist and Decision Maker, or the Body and Mind.
Function: Stores and secretes bile.
Bile is a bitter yellow fluid continuously produced by the surplus qi of the liver. The gallbladder sends bile downward, where it pours into the intestines and aids the digestive process. The liver that produces bile and the gallbladder that secretes it are very dependent on each other. Any disruption of the liver’s flowing and spreading activity will affect the gallbladder’s bile secretion.
Rules: Decision-making, therefore behavior characterized by anger and rash decisions may be due to an excess of gallbladder qi. Indecision and timidity may be a sign of gallbladder disharmony and weakness.
Primary Symptoms: Disharmonies of the gallbladder will affect the liver, possibly resulting in such symptoms as vomiting bitter fluid and jaundice generated by the “brimming over” of bile.
Gallbladder Summary Yin/Yang and Element: Yang Wood
Partner to: Liver
Functions and Characteristics:
• Stores the bile and continuously secretes it to the intestines
• Concerned with decision making
• Housed in the liver, and disorders strongly linked with the liver
• Relates to the mental and psychological energy in the body
2. Stomach
Position: Officer of Storage.
Function: Responsible for “receiving” and “ripening” ingested food and fluids.
The stomach is called “the sea of food and fluid.” Food begins its decomposition in the stomach. The pure part is then sent to the spleen, which transforms it into the raw material for qi and blood. The turbid part is sent to the small intestine for further digestion. Stomach and spleen activities are closely related. While the spleen rules “ascending” movement, the stomach rules “descending” movement—it makes things move downward. Thus, the directions of their qi activity complement each other.
Primary Symptoms: If the stomach’s receiving and descending functions are impaired, symptoms such as nausea, stomachache, distention, belching or vomiting may ensue.
Stomach Summary Yin/Yang and Element: Yang Earth
Partner to: Spleen
Functions and Characteristics:
• Receives and ripens
• Sends qi downward
• Root of acquired qi
• Prefers a wet climate, dislikes damp
• Related to the Large Intestine/Colon in yang-ming (part of the 6 divisions in acupuncture terminology)
• Closely connected to the tongue coat
• Psychologically manifests as digestion of ideas, suspicion, anxiety, hysteria, lethargy
3. Small Intestines
Position: The Secretary to the Heart
Function: Receives what stomach has not completely decomposed and continues to process it.
Rules: Separation of the “pure” from the “turbid.” It receives what the stomach has not completely decomposed and continues the process of separation and absorption. The pure or clear food is extracted by the small intestine and sent to the spleen, the turbid food continues downward to the large intestine. Some impure ingested fluid is also sent directly to the kidneys and bladder.
Primary Symptoms: Vomiting, gas, intestinal rumblings, bloating, abdominal pain, diarrhea or constipation.
Small Intestines Summary Yin/Yang and Element: Yang Fire
Partner to: Heart
Functions and Characteristics:
• Separates and assimilates pure from impure qi
• Transforms and transports fluids
• Problems are digestive or urinary
• Disharmonies manifest psychologically as not being able to assimilate ideas
• Relieves heat from the heart
4. Large Intestine (or Colon)
Position: Officer of the Ditches.
Function: Continues downward movement of more turbid parts of food and fluid, absorbs water, forms and eliminates feces.
The large intestine continues to move the turbid parts of the food and fluids downward, while at the same time absorbing water from this waste material. At the end of this process the feces are formed and eliminated under the control of the large intestine.
Primary Symptoms: Abdominal pain, intestinal rumbling, dry stools, diarrhea or constipation.
Large Intestine/Colon Summary Yin/Yang and Element: Yang Water
Partner to: Lungs
Functions and Characteristics:
• Receives food residue from Small Intestine
• Eliminates wastes and poisons
• Absorbs some fluids
• Maintains fluid balance in the body
• Prefers a cool atmosphere
• Relates to the skin
5. Bladder
Position: Officer of Water Storage.
Function: Receives and eliminates urine.
The function of the bladder is to receive and excrete the urine. Urine is produced in the kidneys from the final portion of the turbid fluids transmitted from the lungs, small intestine and large intestine.
Primary Symptoms: Disharmonies of the bladder may lead to urinary problems such as incontinence, burning or difficult urination. The coupling of the bladder and the kidneys reflects a clinical importance based on their complementary functions.
Bladder Summary Yin/Yang and Element: Yang Water
Partner to: Kidneys
Functions and Characteristics:
• Temporary storage of urine, elimination after a certain amount is collected
• Prefers a cool atmosphere
• Assists in regulating body temperature by regulating body fluids
• Bladder problems often caused by weak kidneys
• Often the first meridian to absorb external attack
• AEP points are on this meridian
6. Triple Heater / Triple Burner
Position: Official of the Bursting Water Dam, or Assistant Public Relations Minister to the Heart.
Function: In the context of digestion, the triple heater provides the relationship between various organs (i.e. the lungs, spleen, and kidney) that regulate and distribute bodily fluids and controls temperature.
The Chinese word for this organ can be translated as triple burner, triple warmer or triple heater. Literally, it means “three that burn” or “three that scorch.” The triple burner is the sixth yang organ, although its exact organ nature is not clear from the classical texts. Ambiguity and dispute surround this organ.
In Chinese medical thought fire is necessary to control water. The name triple burner implies fire and the Nei Jing emphasizes the triple burner’s control of the body’s water. The triple burner is referred to as “where the water channel arises.”
The majority of Chinese physicians agree that the triple burner has a name but no shape. It is best understood as the functional relationship between various organs that regulate water. These are mainly the lungs, spleen and kidneys, but they also include the large and small intestine and the bladder. The triple burner does not exist as an entity outside of these organs, but rather it is the pathway that makes these organs a complete system.
There is also general agreement on another definition of the triple burner. This concept considers the triple burner a demarcation of three areas of the body. The Nei Jing states,
• “The Upper Burner is a mist.” A mist is pervasive; traditionally this would correspond to the vaporized water in the lungs that is
later disseminated throughout the body by the heart. Therefore the Upper Burner is the head and chest, including the heart and lungs.
• “The Middle Burner is a foam.” This is traditionally interpreted as referring to the digestive churnings of the stomach and spleen. Therefore the Middle Burner is the area below the chest but above the navel and includes the spleen and stomach.
• “The Lower Burner is a swamp.” It is in charge of excreting impure substances. The reference here is primarily to the kidneys, large and small intestines and the bladder. Therefore the Lower Burner corresponds to the abdominal area below the navel and especially encompasses the liver and kidney (the location of the liver is related to its meridian pathway in the lower groin).
Triple Heater Summary Yin/Yang and Element: Yang Fire
Partner to: Pericardium
Functions and Characteristics:
• Largely concerned with qi production and transformation
• Provides thermal regulation of the body
• Conducts the fluids
• Upper Heater intakes air and food sends energy down
• Middle Heater is responsible for rotting and ripening
o Nourishes the whole body
o Blood production
• Lower Heater drains and flushes pure and impure
o Elimination of urine and feces
o Prevents the Middle Heater from getting water-logged
o Stores qi in the kidneys
Relationship of Yin and Yang Organs
Each yang organ is coupled with a yin organ in what is called an interior-exterior relationship. This means that the meridian pathways of coupled organs are connected.
Coupled Yin and Yang Organs
Yin Organ & Yang Organ
Heart & Small intestine
Lungs & Large intestine
Spleen & Stomach
Liver & Gallbladder
Kidneys & Bladder
Pericardium & Triple burner
EXAMPLE OF USING ALL DIAGNOSIS FEATURES-USING SPLEEN
Spleen Pathologies Abbreviation Legend
Pathology Abbreviation
Spleen qi deficiency SP QX
Spleen qi not producing blood SP NB
Spleen not governing the blood SP NG
Spleen qi not Holding SP NH
Spleen Yang deficiency SP Yg
Spleen Empty, Edema, and Cold Damp (spleen distress)
SP DP
Spleen Damp Heat SP DH
General diagnostic indication of imbalance
G
Alarm point on the meridian MU PT
Conception vessel meridian CV
*The spleen holds organs and blood in place. Spleen qi not holding indicates a deficient spleen.
Four Examinations: Spleen
1. Looking
General Appearance
• Abdominal distension (G; SP QX; SP DP; SP Yg)
• Body heavy (G; SP DP)
• Overweight (SP DP)
• Thinness (SP QX)
• Scoliosis bends body to right side (G)
• Muscles wasting, loose flesh, poor bulk, no elasticity (G)
• Chest, depression in (G)
• Breasts large (G)
• Hips, big (G)
• Skin
o Bruising (SP NG)
o Broken blood vessels (SP NG)
o Pink blood vessels on skin surface (SP NG)
o Loose, no elasticity (G)
o Dry (SP NB)
o White spots, like freckles (G)
• Hair
o Dandruff and greasy (SP DP)
• Dry face (SP NB)
• Lines on forehead (G)
• Line on the inner earlobe (G)
• Eyebrows
o Any discoloration, pimples, moles or other markings on the middle of the eyebrow (G)
o Widely spaced (G)
• Eyelids
o Below and above eyelid puffy (G)
o Swollen upper (G; SP DP)
• Face
o White and bright (SP Yg)
o Pale and dry (SP NB)
o Complexion, yellowish (G; SP QX; SP DP)
• Kneecap, thickening of fat below (G)
• Swelling inside knees and thighs (G)
• Edema
o Face, especially below eyes (SP DP)
o Ankles and lower legs (SP DP)
o Hips and thighs (SP DP; SP Yg)
• Pale nails (SP NB)
• Bunions (G)
• Scar at CV 2 affects channel (G)
• Wrists can't bend back at 90 degrees (G)
• Manner and Emotions
o Anxiety (SP DP)
o Emotionally weak, lifeless, sensitive, vulnerable (G)
o Low spirit (SP QX)
o Memory poor (SP DP)
o Inability to concentrate (SP QX)
o Lethargy (SP QX; SP DP; SP Yg)
o Overly sympathetic (SP DP)
o Scatty, vague (SP QX)
o Tiredness (SP QX; SP DP; SP NB)
The Outlets
• Nose
o Big bulbous tip (SP DH)
o Red (G)
• Lips
o Dry, pale, poorly defined edge (SP QX)
o Too moist (SP DP)
o Yellow (G)
• Tongue
o Teeth marks (SP DP; SP NB)
o Swollen (SP QX; SP DP; SP Yg)
o Coat partially peeling off (SP QX)
o Pale (SP QX)
• Mouth
o Dry mouth (SP DP)
o Mouth ulcers (G)
Bodily Secretions
• May cough mucous (SP DP)
• Mucous excessive (G)
2. Asking—The Eight Traditional Questions: Spleen
Cold and Hot
• Feels cold (SP Yg)
• Extremities cold (SP Yg)
• Shivering (SP Yg)
Pain
• Abdominal pain (G)
• Abdominal pain, intermittent, better with warmth and pressure (SP Yg)
• Fullness in chest (SP DP)
• Fullness in chest and abdomen, relieved by pressure (SP Yg)
• Hernia, inguinal (SP NH)
• Head heavy (G; SP DP; SP Yg)
• Indigestion (SP QX)
• Nausea (SP DP)
• Pain/Spasm at L4-L5 (G)
• Stomach pain before and after eating, feels better after eating (SP QX)
• MU PT: LV 13 sore when pressed (G)
Perspiration
• Hands clammy and damp (G; SP Yg)
• In daytime, but feels cold (SP Yg)
• On the front (G)
• Only on arms and legs (SP QX)
Headaches and Dizziness
• Headache, like a tight band around head (SP DP)
Urine, Stool, and Flatulence
• Blood in stools (SP NG)
• Constipation in old people, but with loose stools (SP QX)
• Diarrhea (SP NB; SP NG)
• Loose (G; SP QX; SP DP; SP NG)
• Contains mucous (SP DP)
• Contains undigested food (G; SP QX; SP Yg)
Thirst, Appetite and Tastes
• Appetite: none or poor (G; SP QX; SP Yg)
• No appetite (SP QX; SP Yg)
• No thirst, but likes warm drinks (SP DP; SP Yg)
• Taste flat (SP QX)
• Taste sticky and sweet (SP DH)
Sleep
• Dreams (SP DP)
• Insomnia from over thinking (SP DP)
Gynecological Concerns and Medical History
• Menstruation and Discharges
o Periods: pale, watery, for 1-2 days, scanty, delayed, far apart (SP NB)
o Early, heavy, bit watery (SP QX)
o Late, from blood xu, (SP QX)
o Very heavy (SP NG)
o Uterine bleeding (SP NG)
o Discharges, vaginal (SP DP)
o White, watery, with no fishy smell (SP Yg)
o Leukorrhoea (SP DP)
• Medical History
o Anorexia (SP QX)
o Anemia (SP NB)
o Polio (G)
o Abdominal distension (G; SP QX; SP DP; SP Yg)
o Anemia (SP NB)
o Burping after eating (G; SP QX)
o Hiccoughing after eating (SP QX)
o Borborygmus (G; SP QX; SP DP; SP Yg)
o Digestive problems (G; SP QX)
o Food retention (SP DP)
o Dizziness (SP NB)
o Hemorrhoids (SP QX; SP NG; SP NH)
o Genitals, internal, controlled by spleen (G)
o Nausea (SP DP)
o Polio (G)
o Prostate problems (G)
o Prolapse: uterus, bladder, stomach, rectum (SP NH)
o Retroverted uterus (tilted, abnormal position of prolapse) (SP QX; SP NH)
o Sitting and reading too long (SP DP)
o Symptoms worse in mornings (G)
o Synovial fluid (fluid in spine that lubricates the vertebrae) (G)
o Thyroid gland (G)
o Tiredness (SP QX; SP DP; SP Yg)
o Throat (G)
o Weakness on exertion (SP QX; SP DP)
o Weakness of the 4 limbs (SP QX)
o Weight loss (SP QX)
o Wrists limp (G)
3. Listening and Smelling: Spleen
Voice and Respiration
• Sing song (G)
Body Odors
• Burping after eating (G; SP QX)
• Farting (G)
4. Touching
• AEP BL 20 (G)
• Clammy hands and damp (G; SP Yg)
