5 Element Review

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In Penel's post on acupoints contraindicated in pregnancy she mentions that

Jeanne Elizabeth Blum uses the 5 element theory.

 

In TCM the 5 elements are Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water.

 

The Liver is Yin Wood; the Gallbladder is Yang Wood.

The Heart is Yin Fire; the Small Intestine is Yang Fire.

(The Pericaridum is also Yin Fire, and the Triple Heater also is Yang Fire.)

The Spleen is Yin Earth; the Stomach is Yang Earth.

The Lung is Yin Metal; the Large Intestine is Yang Metal.

The Kidney is Yin Water; the Bladder is Yang Water.

 

The 5 Element Theory is another tool for diagnosis. In your reading you will

see something called the Mother-Son rule, and the Victor-Vanquished rule.

 

The Mother-Son rule states that there is a direct relationship between an

element and the one one that follows it. The Fire element follows Wood, so

Wood is said to be the Mother of Fire, and Fire is the Son of Wood. In

theory, if you tonify (add energy to) the Mother, your automatically tonify

the Son because the Mother will pass on energy to the Son. If you sedate

(take energy from the Mother), you automatically sedate the Son.

 

Sometimes both a Mother and a Son will be messed up. For example, Water Not

Generating Wood. Water is the Mother of Wood, and Wood is the Son of Water.

You're more familiar with this pattern using the terminology of Kidney and

Liver Yin Deficiency. The important thing about the Mother-Son rule is that

it sometimes gives insight into treatment strategies. If a person has both

Kidney and Liver Yin Deficiency (Water Not Generating Wood), it is going to

do very little good to just tonify the Liver Yin. (Give a person a Yin Tonic

that targets the Liver, or use acupoints to tonify Liver Yin.) The Root of

this problem is that the person is Kidney Yin Deficient. The Kidney Yin

Deficiency is triggering the Liver Yin Deficiency. You have to tonify the

Kidney Yin in order to straighten out the Liver Yin Deficiency. In

practice, a Yin Tonic formula that targets both the Kidney and the Liver or

acupoints for tonifying both the Kidney and Liver Yin at the same time are

given, though the emphasis often will be on the Mother.

 

The Mother-Son sequence is:

Wood Generates Fire

Fire Generates Earth

Earth Generates Metal

Metal Generates Water

Water Generates Wood.

 

The Metal Not Generating Water pattern is also known as Kidneys Not

Receiving Qi (from the Lungs).

 

The Victor-Vanquished Relationship is harder to explain without readers

having a chart in front of them to refer to. This is an indirect

relationship. If you tonify the Victor, you will sedate the Vanquished.

 

Wood controls Earth. Wood Over-acting on Earth is also known as Liver

Invading Spleen.

Fire Controls Metal.

Earth Controls Water. Earth Over-acting on Water occurs when a Deficient

Spleen can't do its job of transforming and transporting fluids which then

accumulate and cause problems with the Kidneys.

Water Controls Fire - in theory, Maciocia says this pattern never occurs.

Fire Controls Metal, and this pattern also is known as Excess Heat in the

Lungs.

Metal Controls Wood.

 

Again, sometimes the Victor-Vanquished Rule can provide insights into

treatment strategies. For example, when Liver Invades the Spleen (Wood

Over-acting on Earth), this is a situation where the Liver is too powerful

and it's causing the Spleen to be Deficient and not be able to do its jobs.

Sure, you can tonify the Spleen, but as long as the Liver is Over-acting on

it, you're not going to get very far and you're going to have to keep

tonifying the Spleen. The treatment is to reduce the Liver Imbalance. Once

the Spleen is no longer being invaded by the Liver, the Spleen can recover

from the Deficiency problems.

 

Sometimes, the Victor-Vanquished relationship will work in reverse. Instead

of Wood Controling Earth, Earth Insults Wood. This is a situation where the

Spleen cannot perform its job of transforming and transporting fluids.

Dampness accumulates as a result. The Dampness in turn interfers with the

free flow of Liver Qi and bile from the Gallbladder. This is a pattern that

can manifest as jaundice.

 

Again, this offers insights into treatment. In the case of Wood Over-acting

on Earth (Liver Invading Spleen), the accent needed to be on correcting the

Qi flow problems because the Root of the Spleen problems is in the Liver.

In the case of Earth Insulting Wood, the accent has to be on correcting the

Spleen imbalance and Dampness problems because the Spleen problems are

causing the Qi flow (and bile production) to be messed up.

 

Victoria

 

 

 

 

 

 

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