Five Element or Five Phase Theory is something which many people are increasingly familiar with, whether they have a background in Chinese Medicine or not. It sometimes goes by the Wuxing (“Five Phase” in Chinese), and dates back to approximately 200 BC. The five phases are Water, Wood, Fire, Earth, and Metal. The phases areContinue reading “The Five Phases”
Tag Archives: chinese medicine
Jing: The Substance of Vitality
Jing – it’s what you’re made of. CAUTION: Includes explicit topics related to reproductive health. In Chinese physiology, there is a substance that each of us possesses called jing – it’s often translated into English as “essence” or “vitality”. Jing is said to be stored in the kidneys and is believed to decline with age. InContinue reading “Jing: The Substance of Vitality”
Yin and Yang (and Their Imbalances)
Most of Chinese Medical theory can be distilled down to the dualistic concept of yin and yang. For example, the notion that any condition falls into the category of excess or deficient, or that it can present itself as hot or cold (Yang excess or Yang deficient), or dry or damp (Yin deficient or YinContinue reading “Yin and Yang (and Their Imbalances)”
Qi and Blood (and Their Imbalances)
Chinese Medicine is both a physiological and an energetic medicine. We deal primarily with what we call bodily substances. These are Qi, Blood, Yin, And Yang. Bodily substances can take more of an energetic form – as in Qi or Yang – or they can take a denser form – as in the case ofContinue reading “Qi and Blood (and Their Imbalances)”
What is Qigong?
Qigong is a form of energetic exercise that arises from an ancient Chinese tradition of martial arts and meditative movement practices. Qigong is actually a modern term that originated in the mid 20th century to describe the enormous variety of Chinese energetic exercises that had developed over the past several millenia. Taichi (or taiji chuan)Continue reading “What is Qigong?”
What is Qi?
This is one of the most important topics on this website. Qi (also written chi) is a complex Chinese term that has a number of meanings. It is most often translated as “breath” or “energy“, but can also refer to the weather, the mood of a certain day, things having to do with air, oxygen,Continue reading “What is Qi?”