Monday, September 12, 2005

Chinese Medicine and His Nibs

I had actually been planning to write about how Chinese Medicine sees America since it was the subject of intense discussion while I was in Acupuncture school. Then my friend Suzanne sent me this link and I thought maybe I should do something right now.

Chinese Medicine incorporates many different systems to classify or explain an object or phenomenon. At the core is Yin and Yang, the simplest yet most complicated. Then you branch out into the Three Jiaos, the Four Levels, the Five Elements, the Six Divisions and the Seven Emotions. We like to mix and match as we see fit, depending on the person and circumstance being viewed. From outside it doesn't look very scientific on a grand scale, but individually you can nail a personality and predict with pretty good accuracy how they will respond under stress.

firedoglake: 09/11/2005 - 09/17/2005: "Dry drunks are choking on rage, usually barely able to constrain it, and given to flashes of incredible temper -- as George Bush reputedly is. One of those reasons may be purely physical, in that people who abuse drugs and alcohol for long periods of time usually thrash their livers, which Chinese medicine believes to be the seat of anger."

I wish it was that simple. The emotions of the:

  • Liver are Anger/Patience, the season is Spring, the time of life would be infant, the element is Wood
  • Heart is Joy/Sadness/Hate, the season is Summer, the time of life would be teenager, the element is Fire
  • Spleen is Empathy/Anxiety, the season is Indian Summer, the time of life would be adult, the element is Earth
  • Lung is Grief/Courage, the season is Fall, the time of life is elderly, the element is Metal
  • Kidney is Fear/Fright/Calmness, the season is Winter, the time of life is death, the element is Water

I put them in the order known as the Generating Cycle. One becomes the other. The simplest, most basic and the way it normally works. Where it gets interesting is the Control Cycle.

  • Liver controls Spleen
  • Spleen controls Kidney
  • Kidney controls Heart
  • Heart controls Lung
  • Lung controls Liver

If the positive emotions are in control, most things work pretty well. When the negative gets out of balance you get a hungry monster that knows no limits. Yes, alcohol does have an effect on the liver, but it is first and foremost a drug, and as such it affects the Kidney. His nibs has had reported cocaine use which definitely destroys the Kidney.

I personally practice from the school of Spleen/Stomach, but the Kidney rules everything. Even though it is related to water, it is the fire that runs the body. It rules your bones, teeth and ears, it is responsible for making all your hormones. But most importantly, it rules the Brain. Otherwise known as an Extraordinary organ. You are born with a finite amount of Kidney energy, it is never in excess. How you live your life determines how quickly you burn it. Overindulging in anything can have consquences. Bill Clinton's big love affair is with food. His sex life may have embarrassed him, but Mickey D's darn near killed him.

The Heart is the emperor. His job is to be in the right place at the right time, grand and benevolent, ceremonial. In ancient times Heart points were never needled, you treated the Pericardium, the protector. The emperor appeared when needed and then returned to his life. The Heart is how you see the world with the eyes being the windows to the soul. His are glassy and usually focused slightly off center.

His nibs cocaine use took a heavy toll on his brain. Multitasking is not his strong suit, neither is focus. I see a major imbalance between the Kidney and Heart. He operates from fear and fright which prevents him from seeing the world clearly. You are either with us or against us screams fear and paranoia.

He does not see the world the way most people do. His reactions are either slow and sluggish, as if his words were wading through jello before surfacing, or fiery like someone had recently added habaneros to his kool aid. We call this Phlegm Misting the Orifices. His reactions are determined by whether phlegm or fire is predominant. His aides don't want to approach him anymore than you want to approach that homeless guy talking to himself at the bus stop.

You think he is a dry drunk, I think he has access to something, the swings are becoming more pronounced.

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