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Understanding
the Five-element theory
In our last newsletter, we have
introduced the Five-element theory. The Five-element theory
makes the Yin-Yang theory more practicable. In later newsletters
we will explain this in each practical case.
The five elements in our body influence each other. They are
connected, cooperated each other to maintain our health. None of
the elements should be either too much or too short. Extra or
short is a status of illness. In the body, some elements could
be in extra status, while some others may in a short status. A
element that is in short status might result in other element(s)
in either extra or short status. The relationship of the five
elements can be listed in the following chart.
In the nature, the Wood nourishes (promote, trigger, start,
help…) the Fire (the wood could burn as fire); the Fire
nourishes the Soil (ash is part of the soil); the soil nourishes
the Metal (the metal mine is formed in soil); the Metal
nourishes the Water (water can be formed on the cold surface of
the cold metal material); and the Water nourishes the Wood (the
out side nourish circle of the chart above). At the same time,
the Wood suppresses the Soil (the roots of the plants break the
soil); the Soil suppresses the Water (soil, such as dam, block
the flow of the river); the Water suppresses the Fire; the Fire
suppresses the Metal (fire melts the metal); and the Metal
suppresses the Wood (such as knife cuts the trees).
The suppressing relationship could turn opposite under some
condition.
It is interesting that there could be several ways in the TCM
system to re-balance the body function. This is because the
multiple relationship between elements in the Five Elements
theory. For example, for extra energy in the liver system, we
can use the TCM ways to release the extra energy from the liver
system (if the illness is caused directly by the liver system),
or to release the extra energy from the heart (since the liver
is the mother of the heart), or to strengthen the function of
the lung system, since the function of the lung system has
suppression effect to the liver system naturally (if the extra
liver energy is because the previous weakness of the lung
system). Therefore, the
therapies used by the TCM doctors could differ largely from
doctor to doctor. In TCM, there are more ways to ROMA,
unlike in Western Medicine in which if the illness is caused by
bacteria, we may kill the bacteria by use of the biotic
material, may or may not use some immune boasting methods. The
variation is the use of the biotic stuff.
It sounds simple and easier, but it also means that we
can expect the same or much similar therapy, as well as the
healing effects, from doctor to doctor, and from hospital to
hospital.
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