THE
THEORY OF
FIVE-ELEMENT
MEDICINE
The genius behind Acupuncture could not find
others of similar genius. He then tried to teach others his
medicine. When he tried to teach how to bring a
patients' high
temperature under
control, he had to liken the
fever with fire. Obviously
fire was a good
way for a non-medical person to understand fever. To put out the fire,
one would kick dirt on it to smother the flames out. Thus the
earth
point was designated to put out the fever. By using these elements as
memory aids, acupuncture, albeit extremely simplistic, could be handed
down from generation to generation in this manner.
As stated in
the introduction the ancient Chinese took these elements and
made up
inseparable mutual relationships to explain observable phenomena
occurring in the natural world. Two primitive
though inventive concepts, the Yin and Yang theory
and the Five Elements were merged together to bring a conceptual and
theoretical tool to analyze and predict human health phenomena. Thus,
the Five Element theory combined with Yin and Yang are used to
generalize and explain the properties of the Zang-Fu organs, the
interrelationships, diagnosis and treatment of human ailments. Again a
system, which consisted of the first memory aids for learning,
which were indeed advanced
concepts for their time. Yet these make believe
concepts albeit disproved today by common sense, are accepted as
scientific entities by those who are of the personality type that often
leads individuals to believe almost anything, absent any viable proof of
existence or reality.
The five
elements are Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water. All phenomena
correspond in nature to, wood, fire, earth, metal or water and that they
are in a state of constant motion and change.
Wood has the
character of growth and development. Fire is hot and can flare up.
The
Earth gives birth to all things. Metal descends and is clear. Finally
water flows downwards and is cold. These form the basis for the 5
principles or elements. For example early acupuncturists then applied these
principals to all aspects of human life, human structure and function, as
well as all phenomena in the world, including the meridians and the
organs. The organ, its Meridian and its corresponding elements follow:
ZANG-FU
MERIDIAN
ELEMENT
Lung
Hand Taiyin
Metal
Large Intestine
Hand Yangming
Metal
Stomach Foot Yangming Earth
Spleen Foot Taiyin
Earth
Heart Hand Shaoyin
Fire
Small Intestine
Hand Taiyang Fire
Urinary Bladder Foot Taiyang
Water
Kidney Foot Shaoyin
Water
Pericardium Hand Jueyin Fire
San Jiao Hand Shaoyang Fire
Gall Bladder Foot Shaoyang Wood
Liver Foot Jueyin Wood
THE LAW OF RELATIONS
(MOVEMENT)
The Five elements law of relations generalizes
five basic functions.
These functions are relative to the Mother-Son identity of an element.
For example wood promotes fire. Thus
wood is the mother and fire the
son or wood interpromotes fire. This type of relationship is extended
to all the elements. Thus wood promotes fire, fire promotes
earth, earth promotes
metal, metal
promotes water and water promotes wood. This can be drawn as follows
(a.):
Wood
a.
Water
Fire
Metal Earth
Interacting refers to how one element brings another
element under control. Thus wood acts on earth, earth controls water, water controls
fire, fire acts on metal and
metal controls wood. This can be drawn as
follows (b.)
Wood
W
W
F
Charts combined:W
F
b.M
E
c.
M
E
In chart b., it is clearly depicted that each element
is acted upon or is under control of the controller element. This
interacting is also known of as intercontroling.
These first two functions that of Interpromoting and
Interacting are inseparable aspects with both properties; opposition and
cooperation. For example; absent the mother-son promotion, there would
be no growth and development. Absent control there would be no
coordination and harmony during growth, development and change. If
there were excess or deficiency of any elements, then there would be
abnormal interpomoting and interacting. These are known as disorders
where the “mother affects the son” and the “son affects the mother”.
Further counteracting is the opposite of acting. For example,
if Vital Qi is deficient, wood counteracts on metal.
This can be
graphed as follows:
W
W F
M E
It is written in Plain Questions,
chapter 67 “when the Qi of a given element is in excess, it will overact
on the acted element and counteract the acting element. When the Qi of
a given element is deficient, it will be attacked by the acting element
and counteracted by the acted element".
THE FIVE ELEMENTS, A MEMORY
TOOL AND CLINICAL GUIDE
The Five
Elements theory is combined with the diagnostic methods you will study
later, to determine pathology and treatment. The Five Shu-Points
correspond well for care. These points are the Jing-Well, Ying-Spring,
Shu-Stream, Jing-River and He-Sea Points. In this order their yin
elements correspond to wood, fire, earth, metal and water. Yang
meridians correspond to metal, water, wood, fire and earth. In other
words Yang Jing-Well=metal, while Yang Ying-Spring=water and so forth. These can
be graphed as follows:
Jing
Ying Shu Jing
He
Well Spring Stream River Sea
Yin Wood Fire
Earth Metal Water
Yang Metal Water Wood Fire
Earth
You can easily remember these points found
below the elbows and knees with another memory tool. Think to get water
you had to drill a well. Thus Jing-Well. From the well the water runs
to a spring. Thus Ying Spring. This small spring empties into a river,
which empties into the sea. This is likened to reservoirs of Qi.
These points are related clinically to human
heath by the mother son relationships as well as yin and yang as well as
the Zang-Fu pathologies.
Gall
Bladder
Wood
Liver
Urinary
Bladder Water
Kidney Heart
FireStomach
Lung Spleen
Metal 
Earth
Large
Intestine Small Intestine
The Chart above lists the Elements with the
Yin aspect at the inner circle, and the Yang aspects the outer. Further
the purple arrows denote the promoting aspects while the large green
arrow demonstrates counteracting nature of the elements. The Inner Blue
arrows denote the controlling or acting nature of the elements. Know
this chart and its correlations cold. Below are the most common
correlations for the Five Elements. Know these correlations.
WOOD
FIRE
EARTH METAL
WATER
ZANG ORGANS Liver
Heart
Spleen
Lung Kidney
FU ORGANS GB SI
Stomach
LI UB
5 Sense Organs
Eye Tongue
Mouth
Nose Ear
Five Tissues
Tendon Vessel
Muscle Skin
& Hair Bone
Emotions
Anger
Joy Meditation
Grief Fright/fear
Colors Green
Red Yellow White
Black
Directions
East
South
Middle West
North
Tastes Sour
Bitter
Sweet Pungent Salty
Season
Spring Summer
Late Summer
Autumn Winter
Environment Wind Heat
Dampness
Dryness Cold
FIVE ELEMENTS EXAMINATION
1.
Water is relative to
a.
Kidney
b.
Ear
c.
North
d.
Black
e.
All of the above
2.
Yin excess damaging yang is due to
a.
Inter-consuming-supporting relationships
b.
Inter-dependence of yin and yang
c.
Opposition of yin and yang
d.
Inter-transforming properties
e.
All of the above.
3.
Which channel belongs to metal
a.
Hand Taiyin
b.
Foot Jueyin
c.
Hand Jueyin
d.
Hand Shoyang
e.
Foot Shayang
4-8.
Link the taste to the element.
Liv/Gb
Salty
Ht/SI
Pungent
St/Sp
Sweet
Lv/Li
Bitter
Kid/Ub
Sour
9.
Fire belongs to
a.
Small Intestine
b.
Vessels
c.
Joy
d.
Summer
e.
All of the above
10.
Mother and Son
a.
Earth and Metal
b.
Metal and Fire
c.
Water and Fire
d.
Fire and Fire
e.
Water and Metal
11.
Liver attacking the Lung
a.
Counteracting
b.
Son-Mother
c.
Overacting
d.
Mother-Son
e.
None of the Above
12.
Son affects Mother
a.
Liver and Kidney
b.
Gall Bladder and Spleen
c.
Spleen and Large Intestine
d.
Heart and Stomach
e.
Stomach and Spleen
13.
5 Shu Points Metal
a.
Li2
b.
L11
c.
L9
d.
S47
e.
G44
14.
Reduce son point or excess heat
a.
H7
b.
H4
c.
H3
d.
H8
e.
H9
by
Dr. Scott David Neff
Brought to you as a service of the American
Academy For Justice Through Science.
InfoJustice
