Classical Chinese medical symbolism: Wood, Metal and Spring
Today I am featuring the first part of a two part guest post by my friend and colleague at NCNM, Michael “Delli” Dell’orfano. His article is a fine elaboration of the ideas I briefly presented in my post about Rest and Activity in the Year of Sagely Living. I will post the remainder of the article over the next few days. It will be followed up by another series that I’ve authored myself concerning treating external invasions with Classical Chinese Medicine. Before I get on with the article, a few housekeeping announcements. First, if you haven’t read through the comments on the last post, “Does Chinese Medicine Cure Disease,” I definitely recommend you do so. Second, if you have interest in following my progress in the Year of Sagely Living, be sure to visit that page and scroll down a bit where you can read my somewhat frequent updates. Third, if you haven’t already subscribed to the RSS feed or email newsletter, why don’t you take the time to do so now? Without further ado…
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As the vernal equinox approaches we find ourselves situated in the season of spring according to the Chinese calendar, yet the organ systems clock tells us that this time of year corresponds with the Lung and Large Intestine organ systems. How does one make any sense of this?
The relationship of the Wood organ systems and the Metal organ systems of Chinese Medicine can be understood through the use of Yin Yang theory. Yin Yang theory is one of the fundamental principles upon which our medicine was founded, and so I think it is worthwhile to explain a bit about the Taiji (太極) symbol (often called the Yin Yang symbol) and how it originated. It is important to keep in mind that ancient Chinese medicine is a science of movement and energy consisting of symbols. Symbols are bridges between matter and consciousness since they have the potential to resonate at the same frequency. The quality of the frequency can reveal to us similarities between the physical world and the holographic world. On one level, symbols are meant to be a simple way to convey an idea, but at the same time these symbols contain vast amounts of information that we must first comprehend in order to use them effectively.
Upon observation of the symbol we can notice the contrast in color. Light and dark are contained within it, but do not disregard the fact that a dark circle exist within the light area and vice versa. The fact that Yin always exists within Yang, and Yang within Yin, tells us that nothing is purely Yin or purely Yang, but rather that all life is a mixture of Yin and Yang. In my opinion, this clue leads us to reason that the two are mutually dependent on one another for the continuation of life. The shape of the Taiji is a circle, which tells us that it relates to infinity or completeness. We also get a sense of movement when we look at the way the dark and light shades are drawn in. These clues turn out to be very important because the Taiji is telling us that yin yang theory can be used to explain the movements of nature, because it is based on the movement of the seasons, and thus the Wu Xing (五 行, five elements, five phases, five phase movements) are closely related to it.
The Taiji symbol originated from the ancient sages who observed the cycle of the Sun using an eight foot long pole posted in the ground at a right angle to record the position of the Sun’s shadow throughout the year. They found that the length of the year was 365.25 days and then divided the year up into twenty-four segments including the solstices and the equinoxes using the sunrise and Big Dipper positions. They used six concentric circles, marked twenty-four segments points, divided the circle into twenty-four sectors, and then recorded the length of the shadow each day. After connecting the lines and dimming the portion between the solstices they created a picture that looked like the modern day Taiji symbol.
The Taiji symbol is actually a diagram charting the movement of the Sun so that the ancients could then use this information to better understand the world. This scientific breakthrough would allow the ancient sages to better understand our relationship to time and space and give them a starting point for classifying different types of energies.
The yin yang theory background is pertinent to understanding the Wu Xing (五 行, five elements, five phases, five phase movements) because they resonate on many levels. Both the wu xing and yin and yang move in cycles throughout the seasons. One interpretation/understanding of the Wu Xing I came across stated that the elements are not five distinct things, but are one cosmic force, differentiated into five appearances by time and space. Maybe this is good way to think about them because when first learning Chinese medicine many students tend to think of Jin (金, metal) and Mu (木, wood/flora) as being enemies since “Metal chops down Wood”. It is better to think of them as having a complementary relationship, because truly they balance one another out in a physiological state. When the relationship is in balance, Jin/metal works along the Ke (control) cycle to keep Mu in check since wood/flora can become relentless. If Jin over controls
Mu, then our internal “forest” would be destroyed and a pathological process would be underway.
Nature can also be described by Tian Gan Di Zhi (天幹 heavenly stems and 地支 earthly branches). Together, the ten Heavenly Stems and twelve Earthly Branches create the energy of the time and space continuum. Chinese think of the year as energy moving in a circular motion, while in the Western civilization we think of time as linear. The stems and branches were originally a counting system used to keep track of hours, days, months, and years by the ancients after they had discovered the world moves in circles or cycles as proven by the Sun diagram. In the seasons, Jin/metal represents fall and relates to the Tian Gan (heavenly stems) Geng 庚 and Xin 辛, while Mu/wood represents spring and relates to the Tian Gan Jia 甲 and Yi 乙. Jia is the first Tian Gan, and it is classified as yang wood in character, while Yi, the second Tian Gan, is considered yin wood in character. Both are associated with the springtime.
Jia 甲 is picture of a very hard tree with scales or armor around it. The traditional Chinese etymology is the idea of a helmet on a big man. It also had the meaning of a claw gripping tightly on to something, meaning very great strength and protection. Yi 乙 represents the idea of a seed of a plant which is breaking through the earth. Together Jiayi means the movement of life as it bursts open. The spring season represents the movement of Heaven and Earth coming together after being separated in the fall and winter.
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Editors note: I regret having to cut off Delli’s article here, there were really no great stopping points. However, the whole article would be too long to digest on the web in one sitting! In the next part of this article, we will learn more about metal and the interplay between the symbolism of both metal and wood.
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Tags: autumn, Character, classical-chinese-medicine, etymology, fall, five phases, guest-post, Organ systems, Seasons, spring, symbolic-thinking, symbolism, taiji, yin yang symbol, yinyang
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5 Responses to “Classical Chinese medical symbolism: Wood, Metal and Spring”
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Great to see others writing on Eric’s Blog! Delli, I really appreciate your article. Thanks for writing such a detailed description of these fundamentals of our medicine.
It is interesting if you compare the diagram you provided of the Taiji with the most ancient representation of it (which I wish I could provide here; perhaps refer to Eva Wong’s work…). It is a picture of a half white (on the left) and half dark (on the right) circle surrounded by a half dark (on the left) and half white (right) ring, surrounded by another ring with the left half being white again and the right half dark. If you combine these two images (yours and this one) I think it reveales the beauty of this symbol even more.
The Taiji in this light I think can be seen as a map of both time and space, for the concentric circles of dark and light provide depth. This early depiction of the Taiji also shows how it is more than just a map of the path of the sun, but about the sun and the moon, about the seasons and the day and night, as well as an image to invoke a sense of unity within duality (much like the description you read of Delli regarding the wu xing being one cosmic force).
I’m very interested in the very clear distinction between the wu yun and liu qi (the five wanders in the sky and six atmospheric conditions) with regards to the tian gan and di zhi (the ten Heavenly Stems and the twelve Earthly Branches). The ten Stems are obviously related to the yin-yang pairs of the five dynamic movements, which relate to the five inner planets. The ten stems also relate to the old ten day week of the Shang, and so have to do with the inner realm of life due to the connection with the sun and the planets and finally related directly with the five zang.
The twelve Branches though, relate more to the the twelve constellations (or houses) and are yin-yang pairs of the six Qi, which connects them to the six conformations and the twelve channels.
What do you (Delli, Eric, anyone else reading…), make of the difference between the ten Stems and the twelve Branches in terms of how they relate to the five zang and six conformations? Do the wu xing tell us something more about the internal zang, whereas the twelve constellations and Branches tell us something different about the six conformations (and twelve channels)? How can we use this difference in clinic? Finally, I wonder how this changes the notion of the “cosmic unity” of the wu xing, or at least brings up the question: “is there a different kind of cosmic unity to the liu qi?”
Of course, I’m responding to only half of an article, so perhaps I should have waited. But, you got me thinking Delli!
Thanks!
Michael
[...] Here is the continuation of Michael “Delli” Dell’orfano’s article on the symbolism of wood, metal and the spring season in Classical Chinese medical symbolism. Please feel free to leave any thoughts you have on this two-part article in the comments. Lively discussion is always appreciated! If you missed the first installment, read it here.——————— [...]
Hi Michael,
Thanks for your comments and questions. I do not think I have ever seen the original taiji diagram that you speak of, but I would love to take a look at it if you can give me more info where to find it. The only Eva Wong work I am familiar with is her translation of the Lie Zi, (which happens to be one of my all-time favorite reads)but I would be interested in getting the name of the book in which the diagram appears.
It is true that the taiji represents a whole lot more than just the movement of the Sun. One of the original meanings of yin is “shady side of a hill” and one of the original meanings of yang is “sunny side of a hill”. I think we can see an obvious correlation to the Sun and moon here. During the day when the sun is out we consider it yang, and when the sun goes down and the moon is apparent he have the yin night. This is an infinite cycle just like the taiji. Lots can be said about the taiji, but I had to control myself and limit what I said since it wasn’t the main topic of the article. I would have loved to say more about it, but I just wanted to introduce the concept and its origins in lieu of the discussion on Metal and Wood.
Perhaps someday one of us will write a book on the hidden symbolism of the taiji! I do want people to realize that the symbol is such a powerful one that it can be used to describe anything in nature. That is why the theory is applicable in many different ways to Chinese Medicine on a microscopic level, and is not just a way of describing the laws of the macrocosm.
I was actually just reading a handout from Dr. Edward Neal from 1/2/06 CPD class in which he states, “The circular motion of the Five Movements (Wu Xing) are generated directly from the interactions of Yin and Yang. These movements are found everywhere from the farthest reaches of our Galaxy to our backyard. The movement of the Six Qi (liu qi) are manifestations of Yin and Yang that exist on our planet because of the fact that our Earth’s axis is tilted 23 degrees in relation to the Sun. They are responsible for the change of season.”
In other words, Yin and Yang exists everywhere in the Universe, while Wu Yun applies to this galaxy, and the Liu Qi specifically go with this planet. All of these have the same origin- Dao.
Much can be said about the Stems and Branches, but I think this would best be saved for a future article when I have a better grasp on it. Studying Chinese Astrology will give you a much better understanding of how the Stems and Branches influence us. It is true that the Stems originally were used to keep track of the 10 day week and the Branches correspond to the 12 months and 12 hour segments of the day. This was the original counting and calendar system used by the ancient Chinese to keep track of time. Every hour, day, month, and year have a Stem and Branch combo. These combos tell us about the energy of the world at that time. This information is used in Chinese Astrology to create the Ba Zi, or “the pillars of destiny” chart. I believe this information to be extremely important for clinical purposes. Part of my goal is to do Chinese Astrology charts for my patients BEFORE I even meet them for the first time. This can tell us much about a person’s constitution. I believe Chinese Medical Astrology is a crucial part of the medicine that has been forgotten. In my opinion, it is also the most challenging part of the medicine to understand, and so maybe that is why it has been disregarded over time. I have been studying it for two years now, but I feel like I have barely scratched the surface. I am excited that our school has decided to have a weekend intensive course on it this spring. Maybe I can report back with more precise info on the Stems and Branches and write an article at that time.
-Delli
Hi Delli,
Eva Wong has written so many great translations and books! Check out “Cultivating Stillness” and her text called “Taoism”. The symbol is also in Derek Walter’s book “The Complete Guide to Chinese Astrology” which I’m sure you’ve seen.
I like to put these concepts into historical perspective so that I can grasp our medicine more clearly. I find that, especially in all of the TCM literature, chronology and sources are thrown out the window.
For instance, it is fascinating to consider that the Taiji symbol itself most likely was not circulating during the Han dynasty or prior. Of course, the theory of Yin and Yang and the Wu Xing are attributed to Zhou Yen (350-270bc), and most would agree that prior to him, these theories were not as we understand them to be today. In the Zhouyi, there is obviously the precursor to all theories of yin and yang in the form of the hexagrams, and some argue that the Yellow river map and the River Lou map (pretty ancient symbols if you ask me) are precursors to the taijji symbol, but this does not seem acurate to me, and the symbol itself is not documented until the early Song dynasty! (See Zhuxi).
There are descriptions in some Neo-daoist writings in the Wei dynasty (220-265ad) that imply the image of the taiji; and, the term Taiji (used in the context that the Great Ultimate is the Great Non-being/ Wuji)is first used as well, as (quite interestingly) a counter-response to the Confucian correspondence theories (for instance that the five elements in nature correspond to the human body!). So, what I’m getting at is that these historical references are complicated.
But, I’ll have to work on our collective book on the Taiji some other day!…
Right now I am still very curious about the difference between the five zang and twelve channels, for, though I can enjoy Ed Neal’s “Great Ultimate” concept of the five elements, historically (during the Han dynasty, when our medicine was emerging as a system of understanding), they were exclusively related to the five specific planets (though the source of these five movements is still under debate), and the twelve channels have been historically related to the twelve houses (stellar constellations), the twelve rivers and the six atmospheric qi.
The twelve branches, from about the time of the Waring States period were used as a means of measuring the movement of Jupiter through the twelve houses, and to measure the twelve directions. They as symbols were a later addition to the cycle of 60, and the Ten Stems of course are extremely ancient. They have been used to describe directionality, the movement of the stars, moon, planets, etc. Astrology in its Daoist form is quite late, from my perspective; in it’s early form it is fascinatingly not metaphysical or personal (in terms of astrological birth charts, etc.), but more philosophical and scientific.
However, the five elements and the twelve houses (more specifically in the Neijing, the six conformations and their yin-yang pairs) are much more directly related to the Neijing concepts of the five zang (xiang) and the twelve channels. The eight extraordinary channels too are also related to the bagua and the eight directions. This means to me that the inner planets and the outer stars and fixed directions are quite different, and the outer fixed stars seem to be pretty far away, in comparison to the five inner planets. The fixed directionality of the 8 and the 12 seem very different from the dynamic movement of the 5 (the wu yun, or five wanderers).
What can this tell us medically, physiologically and academically about the difference between channels and organs?
Sorry for the lengthy comment. I’d like to hear what you and others have to say about this last question, so I’ll keep quiet for a while.
Thanks!
Michael
I must say both the parts are very well written
Forwarding this link to as many as I can
Good Work
Keep it up