Learning about the Large Intestine using the Chinese Organ Clock, Part II
In the first part of this post on the Large Intestine organ system, we discussed some basic information including: the name and official related to LI, the five element and six conformation designation and more. In this post, I’d like to dig a little deeper into the symbolism of this important organ system. In particular, I’d like to reflect on the way that the Large Intestine organ system, similar to its Metal partner the Lung, creates a conversation about purity and impurity in the body.
Hexagram 34 : Da Zhuang : 大壯
There was some discussion of this hexagram in Delli’s post about the balance of Wood and Metal energy, and I’d just like to add to that description. Stephen Karcher interprets the name of this hexagram as “Invigorating Strength” in his Total I Ching, others call it variously Great invigoration or Great strength and of course many other translations exist. I think that Karcher puts it well when he interprets the text as indicating,
“The way to deal with it is to focus your strength through a central creative idea. Putting your ideas to the trial will bring profit and insight. Beware of hurting others through excessive use of force” (Karcher 271).
This is, in a way, a perfect encapsulation of all that I talked about in the previous article! In the energy of Large intestine, we have great capacity to focus (transmit the Dao, give birth, get things done - just PUSH) and the danger for that focus and force to turn destructive (the Dictator, great fevers). On a more psychological level, Large Intestine energy gives us the ability to focus our power on a single point and move through any difficulty until our deed is done. This is a great skill whether we are employing it in the bathroom (!) or the boardroom. (Editors note: How could I resist?)
The more esoteric factors come in when we consider the trigrams that this hexagram is composed of - which Delli already elegantly spoke about in the article referenced above. The combination of Wood over Metal, Thunder over Heaven creates a situation of invigoration, movement, excitement and - ultimately - new beginnings. We must clean out the old to bring in the new, and the force that allows us to do this must be up to the task. Heiner Fruehauf would often talk about the Large Intestine as being the purest of the organ systems, because it has to deal with the least pure of substances - it requires great purity to maintain deep purity for the body. We can think about the use of colonics on a base level to represent the essence of this ideal - keep the colon clean and free flowing and your body can detoxify.
More about Metal
Metal has many characteristics and associations that resonate with what we’ve discussed about Large Intestine. The color of Metal is white - the purest color in the spectrum, the reflection of all color back to the observer - nothing “sticking” to the object. Most Western cultures tend to associate white with purity, chastity, even divinity. The scent of Metal is pungent - which I always associate with much incense. Incense and other pungent things can be used to open the mind, to communicate with Spirit. All of these upward, brilliant, pure things infuse the Large Intestine with the ability to deal with impurity - the ability to “transmit the Dao/way” and to create “change and transformation.”
Importantly, the Yin emotion most often associated with Metal is sadness or grief. When people have a great injury to a Metal organ system, they have a tendency to stay in grief, to not let go. This is a malfunction, in a way, of the descending quality of Metal. You are unable to let things fall where they may. On the other hand, we can think of it as becoming dragged down in the filth, unable to let the filthy things leave our view but instead stay there creating toxicity. Of course it is normal to have sadness when a sad event has occurred - but the tendency to hang on to these things is never healthy. We must learn to let go of the things that are ready to pass (Large Intestine) and take in the freshness of the new world we are privileged to live in (Lung).
Large Intestine 1 : Metal point of the Yang Metal channel : 商陽, shāng yáng, the metal note
To show how this can manifest on a very specific practical level, consider the metal point on the Large Intestine channel - LI1, the Jing-well point of the Large Intestine channel. As many Jing-well points, LI-1 is excellent at clearing acute accumulations of heat, but on the Yangming Large Intestine channel, perhaps this effect is even more emphasized. Its use in descending the fire in cases of high fever certainly resonate with what we’ve been discussing so far. It is also known for its ability to descend Qi stagnation in the chest through its connection to the Lung - again we see use of the physiological descending property of the Large Intestine. Some Worsley-style five element acupuncturists use this point to descend mental stagnation, encouraging the patient to “let go” of old emotions that no longer serve. Certainly the rest of us could learn something from this usage.
I will end this article here, though clearly there is much more to say. I’ve only provided a brief glimpse into the symbolism of this mediator of the pure and impure. I’m interested to hear comments from readers - how does this resonate with your picture of Large Intestine and how does it clash? Can you see any practical benefits to working with this kind of knowledge? NCNM students, chime in with your further understanding of this material - we’ve learned so much - let’s share! :)
Eric
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Tags: chinese-organ-clock, hexagram, large intestine, metal, organ system, Organ systems, organ-clock, symbolismRelated posts
Learning about the Lung through the Chinese medicine organ clock
To this day, some of my most popular posts involve the organ clock. I find the organ clock to be fascinating, but lately I haven’t thought that much about it. Thus, I haven’t posted much about it. As our education has focused more and more on the superficially practical information (points, needling, formulas) it’s become easier to ignore all that esoteric stuff we learned earlier on. However, in my mentorship with Heiner Fruehauf, I’ve come to understand how important this symbolism can be on a very practical level. Because of this realization, I’m going to delve back into that material and offer it to my friends here at Deepest Health. I’m going to go in the order of the clock, starting with Lung. I’ll offer basic information and a few deeper gems. Please remember that I’m a student and what I offer here is either a repackaging of what I’ve understood from my Professors or is my speculation and experience based on that material. One more note - not all of this information comes strictly from the organ clock, per se, but much of it is informed by that symbolic powerhouse.
Lung : Minister of Purity
Name and official : Lung is called Fei 肺 in Chinese. The term Fei is related etymologically to a word Pei (I believe the character is 佩, I could be off) that anciently was a term for the insignia that ranked officials would wear on the outside of their garments to denote their rank. Through this and many other symbols, I have come to associate the Lung with the face we show to the world and the external surface of our body. It’s also a clear relationship to the official of the Lung, the Minister or Prime Minister.
The Minister is the functional arm of the Emperor in the world. The Emperor (Heart) proclaims the direction of the nation (body) and the Minister figures out the practical implementation of the edict. One way I think about this physiologically is through considering the role of metal connecting fire down to water. It is through the descending power of metal that the fire of the Heart is able to warm and animate the cold Kidney water, thus steaming it upward - Shaoyin circulation.
As the minister, Lung gathers Qi from the entire body and distributes it where it is needed. Some texts say that the Lung is like a lid on the whole system, catching everything that makes it up to its exalted level. When this function of Lung is damaged, disorders of Qi are the result. For instance, a Lung deficiency can create symptoms of Qi deficiency like fatigue and difficulty moving about.
One last important point is that I have learned never to call the Chinese organ system LUNGS as that makes too much of the physical aspect of this organ system. Instead, simply call it Lung. Remember that Chinese organ systems are both physical and energetic. Further, the physical aspect includes a number of things that the Lung organ system energy regulates. In the case of Lung, for instance, we have to consider the skin surface, the respiratory features of each body cell, etc… Why is this important? Language is powerful. If you continually say Lungs Lungs Lungs, you will slowly (or quickly) come to oversimplify this broadly useful concept.
Element (Wu Xing) : The Lung is the metal zang/solid organ, paired with the metal fu/hollow organ Large Intestine. This is the first place that the balance of purity and filth come into play for Lung. The Lung is often said to be the sensitive organ system. We can think about this from an elemental perspective - metal is malleable, manipulable by external circumstances (heat) to the degree that it can be melted. In a polished state it also easily reflects the world around it. On the Western side of things, we can think simply of how easily our lungs are affected by the outside world. Dust, heat, cold, viruses and bacteria - the lungs are subjected to a wide variety of insults and while it’s amazing they take what they do (resiliance is another, perhaps paradoxical aspect of metal) they do become irritated relatively easily.
Thus, it is important for the Lung to have some degree of purity to function properly. It likes things to be on the middle road, not too hot, not too cold, not too damp, not too dry. Like cool, clear mountain air - unencumbered by heavy particulates. One more note about purity - in Chinese medicine, metal is associated with the color white. I think of pure white snow and the shining white of great white cumulus clouds. These bring to bear the image
ry of water and dampness (discussed below) but also the purity of this organ system. We need Lung’s purity to help us mediate the impurities in our environment, to distribute clean clear Qi throughout the body.
We can also consider the descending function of Lung through the lens of metal. Lung sits in the highest place of any organ systems (though we often think of Heart as occupying this space) and extends fairly deeply into the body cavity. Breathing, through the rhythm of the attached diaphragm, shifts all of the organs around at least a bit. From such an exalted position, the only direction to go is down. Further, through the association with the great descender - Large Intestine - the metal system of the body goes from upper orifice to lower, allowing the most complete passage through the human body. (Clearly from a Western physical perspective, the Lung and Large Intestine do not connect - work with me, here.) Lung is easily afflicted by problems in downward movement - the funniest example being hiccups/hiccoughs. Note, hiccups aren’t funny for everyone.
Conformation (Liu Qi) : Lung is Taiyin damp, partnered with Spleen. Taiyin is the first conformation on the Yin level - sandwiched between Shaoyang and Shaoyin. Taiyin disease, from a Shang Han Lun perspective, is comprised mostly of digestive symptoms - not Lung symptoms (which are usually more at a Taiyang level). So, what can Lung being Taiyin tell us about Lung? Lung is closely associated with fluid metabolism in the body. Taiyin fluid congestion can cause phlegm at the Lung level. The Lung is also said to catch the fluids steaming upward from Kidney and Spleen. We can think again about the sensitivity of Lung, not only to heat and cold, but to dampness and dryness. Everyone can recall an experience of their Lung fluid metabolism being out of whack - coughing up huge amounts of white phlegm on the one hand or having a dry, hacking cough on the other.
Going back to the relationship of the Lung to Qi, we can consider the deep relationship of Spleen and Lung. Spleen Qi and Lung Qi deficiency both involve similar symptoms of a low energy state. When the Spleen is failing to lift essence of what we consume up to the Lung or when the Lung is failing to spread that essence throughout the body, the result is great fatigue and symptoms of low energy in all the organ systems.
The first month and spring Agricultural Periods : We’ve already had some discussion about the Spring association of the Lung on Deepest Health. Lung is on the first position of the organ clock, kicking off the year around the time of the western zodiac sign Aquarius, encompassing the Chinese New Year. Aside from the obvious water associations with Aquarius, the water bearer - we can simply consider the early spring. This period is associated with the two Agricultural Periods 立春 lìchūn (beginning of spring) and 雨水 yǔshuǐ (rain water/establishment of spring). Again we find water symbolism! However, the greater issue here is that of spring energy. The spring energy available at this early time is mostly submerged. Sensitive people (and animals) can sense it - of course. But anyone can see the early croci. The world is under a kind of tension at this time. The Yang energy is rising, but the cold Yin is still firmly in predominance. It is this quiet tension, the calm before the spring storm, that exemplifies Lung energy. Quiet, unhurried, life giving tension.
Lung 7 (LU-7) : 列缺, liè quē/Broken Sequence: I thought I would look at a commonly used point on the Lung channel to try to dig a little deeper into this material. Lie Que is one of Ma Danyang’s 12 Celestial Points (Tain Xing Shi Er Xue), which are 12 points determined to be maximally effective for a wide range of conditions (compiled as such, I believe, around the 1400’s) and is a point used quite often in clinical practice. It is the Luo connecting point for the Lung channel (thus an access point to the associated fu organ, Large Intestine). It is the Ruler point for the back of the head and neck, so has an influence on pain and tightness in that area. It is also the Master point for the Ren Mai/Conception Vessel.
I’ll quickly review the top 3 most important and interesting functions of Lie Que. The first, most obvious, function is that this point strongly regulates Lung Qi and can be a great help in releasing the exterior in external invasion situations. This relates to the metal element association of Lung and metal’s relationship to the surface of the body. We can also think about the connection of Large Intestine and the way that this allows for swift purging of things out of the system. The second interesting function relates to the Master connection to Ren Mai. Ren Mai is most often associated with female reproductive physiology and pathology. We can relate back to the descending function of metal to consider how this point might help to expel downward anything being retained in the uterus. Particularly combined with Large Intestine-4 (contraindicated in pregnancy) we have a powerful, metal descending ability. Finally, consider LU-7’s ability to treat urinary disturbances. In the West, we don’t commonly think of the Lung when we think of urination. But through the deep association of Lung with water, we can easily understand how a powerful point on the Lung channel might help to resolve incontinence or difficult urination.
—-
As always, there is so much more symbolic information that could be included - consider this an introduction. I’d be interested to hear any thoughts this has started for folks, and as always I would be happy to hear your contributions. Thanks!
Eric
Tags: chinese-organ-clock, lung, Organ systems, symbolic-thinking, symbolismRelated posts
Learning how to keep life in balance
It’s time for my March Year of Sagely Living update! I believe that my efforts were successful, overall. My true goal this month was two-fold. First, I wanted to pay close attention to the two hour time periods associated with each organ system on the Chinese medicine organ clock. Second, I wanted to create and maintain space for my family and myself amid the festering chaos of medical school.
Attempting to pay attention to the times associated with the organ clock was more difficult than it may sound. I found that I looked at the clock and really paid attention at the same times each day. This was usually around mealtimes, when I had a natural break in my work cycle. Regardless, it was valuable to take a few minutes to really absorb the energy of those times. Interestingly, I noticed that my ability to clearly take in the energy of the “day time” organ systems became stronger as the sun became stronger. I also found that my ability to access the energy of each organ system was easier during the period associated with that organ system. I tested this by doing meditations on organ systems during other than their associated times.
I noticed how attempting to align my daily activities with the various organ system times yielded some appreciable benefit. For instance, eating breakfast closer to “Stomach time” (7-9am) definitely yielded less indigestion given the same meal than eating breakfast closer to “Heart time” (11am - 1pm) or even earlier during “Lung time” (3-5am). I also noticed that the general cycle of the 12 organ systems and their associated time made a lot of sense and following this flow more often than not created a harmonious feeling within me. By the end of March (aside from some rocky times during Finals week) I had settled into the following pattern (taken and edited from my journal notes):
- Waking up and doing breathing exercises doing Lung time (3-5 am) considerably easier than any other time, yields greater benefit in energy through the day. I always found that taking a nice walk, alone and in a natural area, yielded a lot of intuitive insight and positive emotional breakthroughs.
- Going to the bathroom between 5 and 7am (Large Intestine time) seems easier, more complete and now that I do this I find that I have far fewer digestive problems overall - all things being equal. Maybe a funny thing to point out, but important from a medical standpoint.
- Eating as close as possible to 8 am (in the 7-9am period, Stomach time) seems to yield relatively few digestive problems through the day. You can see above for more explanation.
- Avoiding too much exercise during the 9-11am time frame (Spleen time) seems to enhance my digestion. I like to spend this time doing more “passive” work like reading, easy writing projects and hanging out in the back yard. When I have to go to a difficult class during this time, I invariably have indigestion.
- Heart time (11am-1pm) is especially well used doing work that connects firmly to my purpose. I find that if I do creative writing projects, formulas study and conscious business development during this time I get really good work done. Much harder to do anything else like eating, doing menial work, heavy physical activity, etc…
- 1-3pm is a great time for more menial or “have to” projects. I connected this with the Small Intestine’s function as the fu organ of the Heart - it transmits the vision and purpose of the Heart which is best expressed through SACRIFICE. Perhaps most interestingly, I found this to be the best time for lunch. When I eat closer to noon, it tends to upset my digestion.
- 3-5pm was a little difficult to nail down. In my journal I have listed the following observations: good time for spiritual activity like prayer and devotional reading, best time for just sitting with family, excellent period for a daily review. In the end, I think that Bladder time is best for more “visioning” activities, taking a larger view of my life and embracing that aspect of daily living.
- Kidney time 5-7pm seems best suited for evening walks and deep relaxation. For instance, Qigong during Kidney time seems to be particularly fruitful - which is a surprise. I’ve always done my Qigong in the morning.
- 7-9pm, Pericardium time, is absolutely beautiful for sharing a meal with my family and really nourishing my connection with them. This was the best family time and I experienced no trouble with digestion as long as I ate by 9pm. After 9pm, I just wasn’t hungry.
- Triple burner time, from 9-11pm, is when I must go to bed. If I stay up much into Gallbladder time, I’m in trouble - when it gets to be about midnight, I’m usually up until 3 or so. I just can’t settle down. I think this makes a lot of sense given the mysterious Triple Burner network, the organ system of dreams, of in-betweens and of delving deeply into the Yin.
- I didn’t have much experience of either Gall Bladder or Liver time, although I did have a stretch of insomnia that would have me waking smack dab in the middle of the two (always right around 1:30am) needing desperately to go for a walk or eat something terribly bad for me. :)
All of this being said, I’m not entirely sure how I feel these two hour periods should be viewed and used. I can’t say that the experience was so profound that I would want to live my life aligning my activities closely with them. It’s also quite difficult for me to do as little work as the organ system cycle seems to demand. But it did remind me that I need to make sure to take time for myself and for my family. It also made me much more intense about continuing to wake up around 5am to do walking and breathing. SUCH a benefit - I can recommend it to absolutely everyone. But there was, for me, clear benefit in the exercise. Overall, I think a few basic lessons were learned by engaging in this habit during the month of March:
- The general progression is valuable to experience.
- Great alterations away from the basic progression usually yields feelings of dis-ease.
- For the purpose of understanding organ systems, spending time observing nature or human society during key periods is very instructive.
- I think that further research could be helpful, especially in terms of learning more about chrono-acupuncture.
- It may be that like everything, there are acceptable individual variations from the norm that are still supportive of health. However, straying far from the basics is probably never healthy.
The other major goal, making sure to leave weekends open for my family and myself, was the most wonderful part of March’s Year of Sagely Living activity. I was very good at keeping this time open, even when I had a lot of very pressing work to do. I would frequently do work on Saturday mornings, but often it was in tandem with my partner. I can’t tell you what this did for my psyche. Even though my finals week was extremely difficult, I was able to weather it and did wonderfully well on my tests. I felt that I integrated a lot more of what I was learning and feel more open to the lessons of next term even though we only get a week off. I am going to continue this habit because it was so powerful.
I think that this is one of the most potent lessons we can teach our future (and current) patients - our culture asks us to be “on” ALL the time. We are told that if we aren’t willing to “go hard” we should “go home.” I do believe in the immense power of hard work and I believe that many people are working far below their capacity. However, it is an absolute MUST to leave time to reconnect with the source of your personal power. This means your friends and family, visioning your personal and professional life and simply having time to relax in your garden or go for leisurely walks. While these activities don’t pay much per hour and they can often be VERY hard to justify in a maelstrom of work commitments, they are what ultimately pays the greatest dividends.
Coming next, my commitment for the month of April. Stay tuned and thanks for reading.
Eric
Tags: activity, Acupuncture, balance, chinese-organ-clock, Organ systems, organ-clock, rest, Year of Sagely LivingRelated posts
The Year of Sagely Living: 12 months of Classical Chinese Medicine habits
If you sift through all the posts here at Deepest Health, you will find that I have a passion for personal development. In particular, I have a deep and abiding interest in using principles taken from my study of Classical Chinese Medicine to develop myself into a high level Chinese medicine scholar and physician. Now, all hubris aside, I understand that even in an extremely devoted lifetime I am highly unlikely to reach the heights that the ancients point towards. However, I believe it is my responsibility as a future CM doctor to do my best to struggle in that direction. I look to the Classical texts of Chinese medicine for my main inspiration on how to live and learn, but fill in the gaps in my understanding with other ancient works such as the Dao De Jing, the Confucian classics, Buddhist texts and the Bible. I also consult contemporary personal and business development gurus, particularly around organizational issues. In fact, I think a wide variety of texts are applicable in developing a set of principles to take me towards becoming a great physician.
I’ve discussed these teachings and the practices they explicitly or implicitly reveal with many people. My discussions seem to have reached a critical point and are now spilling over into a plan for action. In particular, in conversations with my friend Abdallah Stickley at Even Unto China, a life-changing project has taken shape and is ready to see the light of day.
We propose a year-long public effort to live the principles that will take us in the direction of becoming the doctors the Classics talk about. In other words, we’d like to take the principles of Chinese medicine seriously and let them guide our life. We have mined our understanding of the principles that underlie the education of great physicians (who are, by default, great people) and came up with twelve categories of practice. Our thought is if one works diligently to adopt practices associated with each category, one will be taking great strides in the direction of becoming a great, or sage, physician. However, for folks not in the medical field - these practices will take you far in achieving great heights in whatever profession in which you are currently involved. These twelve categories we then associated with a different month, using the Earthly branches and twelve officials as guides. The idea is that we want to be working with the seasonal and bodily energy, not against it. So, for instance, we wouldn’t want to begin a rigorous program of physical exercise in the deep of Winter.
We will focus on one category each month. Participants will assist in articulating practices in each category, though we have come up with quite a few already. Participants will pick one or more practices in each category and publicly commit to doing them throughout the month. The public component is actually quite crucial, as it has been affirmed again and again that when a person believes themselves to be held accountable by others in some action they are more likely to accomplish it. Thus, it is best if people either have an online journal, website or blog already. Alternatively, participants can sign up for one (many are available for free - more details in a future post). Regular updates will be posted, and experiences will be discussed by all involved. There will be other options for people unwilling or unable to have an online home of their own.
Below is a listing of the categories, a brief description of each as well as their timing and an explanation of the pairing of time and category. If you’re confused by the symbolism I discuss, read my post about the Chinese medicine organ clock. In future posts, probably a couple a day for the next 2-3 days, I will explore the categories in more detail and list the practices we have come up with so far. Further, I will explain how I see this project playing out in my own life. Hopefully this will help interested people to understand the project and get involved. For more background, you can visit the links I provide below and also read posts about the Year of Sagely Living at Even Unto China.
January - Gall Bladder, Zi 子 (Rat): Scholarship/Study: This category will contain practices to develop us into true scholars in the Confucian/neo-Confucian tradition. Why this pairing? The seasonal energy is still in winter, a contemplative mood prevails, but the Yang is rising. Similar to this, we can see scholarly pursuits as ACTIVE passivity. One generally sits still, but one’s mind is hard at work.
February - Liver, Chou 丑 (Ox): Strategy/Business: This category will contain practices in the realm of business development and strategic planning in the professional world. Why this pairing? The Liver is the general of the body, so has a natural affinity for this kind of activity.
March - Lung, Yin 寅 (Tiger)- Activity/Rest: This category will contain practices having to do with appropriate cycles of rest and activity in daily life - for instance, appropriate waking times throughout the seasons. Why this pairing? This earthly branch and the essence of the Lung Zang is all about peaceful tension between opposites, like the time of the year associated with both. Further, being mindful of our need for balance between rest and activity is great preparation for the often overactive spring/summer energy.
April - Large Intestine, Mao 卯 (Rabbit) - Care of the planet/consumption: This category will contain practices that develop us into compassionate and sane consumers, while helping to develop our deep relationship with the natural world. Why this pairing? April is a time when we can see the beauty of nature all around us, so is a great time to contemplate our dependence on it and responsibility towards it. Also, the negative side of LI/Rabbit is a tendency to run rough-shod over the needs and wants of others, these practices will seek to counterbalance this.
May - Stomach, Chen 晨 (Dragon): Physical cultivation: This category will contain practices that help us to shape our physical bodies into ideal vehicles for the transmission of healing energy. Why this pairing? The natural world has exploded into full splendor and the weather in the Northern hemisphere will be warm enough in most places to warrant moving around outside. The ST is an Earth organ and is related to the flesh of the body, which we will be building with these practices. Think also of the dragon and its association with martial arts and other physical cultivation practices.
June - Spleen, Si 巳 (Snake)- Food choices - This category works in tandem with the previous one to help maintain the physical form of the body in an optimal way. Why this pairing? June is actually a great time to do fasting or other food restriction activities because most of us don’t feel any great desire to eat excessively in the summer heat. Further, reducing the burden on digestion will help us to focus on absorbing the pure Yang energy so abundantly available in June.
July - Heart, Wu 午 (Horse) - Community building/charity - This category speaks to our need to be an integral and contributing member of a number of communities. It also involves the practice of compassion in a world where inequality is the norm. Why this pairing? The summer is a wonderful time to participate in community-oriented projects! Also, the Heart and Fire (the Heart’s element) are about intimacy, about connection to Spirit — both of which are well represented in the idea behind this category.
August - Small Intestine, Wei 未 (Sheep)- Ethical Behavior - This category will include practices not covered in other categories that have some ethical dimension. These practices are likely to be very individual and defined by a person’s background, spiritual/religious practice and culture. For example, practicing “Right Speech” through abstinence from cursing. Why this pairing? The Fu (hollow, Yang) organs are said to transmit the essence of their associated Zang (solid, Yin) organs. SI exemplifies this relationship in its devotion to sacrifice as a way to manifest the Heart’s mandate of connection to Spirit in the purest sense. Also because many of the “ethical behavior” practices we discussed are somewhat prohibitive, it resonates with the descent into metal energy that the earthly branch Wei represents.
September - Bladder, Shen 申 (Monkey)- Arts/Aesthetics: This category involves the use of our creative faculties - particularly as they pertain to the arts associated with Chinese medicine, such as calligraphy. Why this pairing? These activities are Yin within Yang - they are still, yet active - like scholarship. More importantly is the symbolism of 申. One of the meanings of this character is to stretch, and the oracle bones show it as two hands pulling something in opposite directions. We might think about this as the intercourse between Heaven and Earth, the Human Being in the middle being the substrate that is stretched between those two poles. I think Art facilitates this threefold communication.
October - Kidney, You 酉 (Rooster/owl): Chinese medicine specific skills: This category includes the refinement of Chinese medicine related skills, such as hand techniques in acupuncture. For those not in the field, you might look into developing skills that will help you in your work. Why this pairing? The Kidney is often said to be the root of all skill and expertise. Also, with the cool calm energy of autumn, one can become focused enough to substantially increase specific skills.
November - Pericardium, Xu 戌: Relationships: This category will involve practices that help us develop more mature and meaningful relationships with others. Why this pairing? Pericardium is frequently said to mediate intimate relationships. One interesting symbolic note is the association of the earthly branch Xu, which means - essentially - weapon. This speaks on many levels to me. For instance, we must be careful to avoid violence in relationships, on whatever level. Also, relationships are a bit like handling weapons — if you’re not careful and mindful, it can come back to bite you. Finally, the late fall and winter are good times for relationship oriented activity, given that most of us desire to stay at home with family and friends as the weather cools.
December - Triple Burner, Hai 亥: Spiritual cultivation: Although we will be looking at spiritual dimensions of all kinds of activity throughout the year, this month we will give it special attention. These practices will probably be quite individual, but there may be some shared goals - such as having a daily meditation practice. Why this pairing? I’ve always learned about TB as being the mysterious “in between,” the mover between worlds, the ultimate stillness. What a metaphor for spiritual practice!
The project begins on January 1, 2008. However, you can join in at any time. Simply comment on this post to let everyone know you’re “in” and let us know how you will be “reporting back” to the rest of us. I will be providing brief descriptions of the categories along with the list of practices we’ve come up with so far in a post in a few hours. That post would be a great place to comment with your ideas for specific practices. To make sure you keep up with all of the Year of Sagely living articles, be sure to subscribe to this blog via RSS feed or via email.
PS: For folks in the Southern hemisphere - you can still participate! Simply reverse the correspondences. The list goes, essentially, winter solstice to summer solstice - so you can turn things around to meet your energetic reality.
Eric
Tags: Acupuncture, Character, chinese-medicine, chinese-organ-clock, habits, Personal Development, productivity, professional-development, scholar, Seasons, symbolism, Year of Sagely LivingRelated posts
5 Symbolic categories that teach us masterfully about the Triple Burner
I’m working hard to get ready for the term that starts on September 10, 2007. This is an incredibly big year for me, academically, and I really want to be prepared. On top of that, I’ve got to get my daughter prepared for what will be her last official “elementary school” year - next year it’s on to middle school! Yikes! Oh, and one more thing - I’m the main worker bee behind the current redesign of Helfgott Blog, which is quickly becoming a tremendous resource for the discussion of issues of social responsibility, professional and scientific ethics, public health and inspiration insofar that those topics are related to natural medicine. Over the next four or five weeks I think you’ll see this site become a go-to point for that kind of conversation and information. For now, it’s a work in progress. ;) Anyway - lots of work.
So, I thought I would share with you a few pieces I’ve put together over the years - they won’t have the copywriting flair you’ve come to know and love from me, but I hope it will provoke some interesting discussion. Today and tomorrow we’ll look a little at the Triple Burner, one of my favorite organ networks (it gets the biggest presents under the Christmas tree) and five categories of symbolic information about it that we can glean from the organ clock, prefaced by the Neijing Chapter 8 line on Triple Burner. Enjoy.
三焦 - San Jiao, Triple Burner/Heater
Master of the Networks
Metaboliser of Water
Hub maker
The source of the sources
Unnamable and unknowable, like the Dao
Master of the In-Between
Neijing Line
三焦者决瀆之官水道出焉
San1 Jiao1 Zhe3 Jue2 Du2 Zhi1 Guan1 Shui3 Dao4 Chu1 Yan1
My best translation:
“The Triple Burner is the official of dredging the low-lying waterways, the Way of Water emerges from it.” <I’m a pretty literal kind of guy sometimes>
Tags: Character, chinese-organ-clock, Classical Texts (general), neijing, Organ systems, organ-clock, triple burner
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