five elements
The Five Elements is China's ancient material view. Mostly used in philosophy, Chinese medicine and divination.
Five elements refer to: gold; Wood; Water; Fire; Earth. It is believed that nature is composed of five elements, and with the rise and fall of these five elements, nature changes, which not only affects people's fate, but also makes everything in the universe circulate endlessly.
The Five Elements Theory (which first appeared in Taoism) holds that everything in the universe is made up of five basic substances: wood, fire, earth, gold and water. It emphasizes the whole concept and describes the structural relationship and movement form of things. If Yin and Yang are an ancient theory of unity of opposites, the five elements can be said to be a primitive general system theory.
At the end of the Western Zhou Dynasty in China, there was a simple materialistic "Five Things Theory". From Yu Zheng's "Earth is mixed with Jin Mu's fire, water and soil to form all things" to Zuo Zhuan's "Five natural things are used by the people, and nothing can be discarded", and then to Shang Shu Hong Fan's "Five elements: water, fire, wood, gold and earth", which are moist, inflamed, straight, golden and fertile. It is salty when wet, bitter when inflamed, sour when straight, spicy when leathered and sweet when cultivated. "Record, began to abstract the attributes of the five elements, deduction to other things, constitute a fixed combination. In the late Warring States period, the idea that the five elements win each other (grams) was put forward, which fixed the order of victory (grams) and fate, formed a model of the interconnection between things, and spontaneously reflected the internal structural relationship of things and their overall grasp. During this period, Neijing applied the theory of five elements to medicine, which played an important role in studying and sorting out a large number of clinical experiences accumulated by the ancients and forming a unique theoretical system of traditional Chinese medicine.
The five elements coexist: Jin Kemu, Muketu, Tuke Water, Fire, Water and Fire.
The five elements are born together: gold begets water, aquatic wood, wood makes fire, fire begets soil, and soil begets gold.
Through long-term contact and observation, the ancient working people realized that the five elements had different performances. "Straight wood is straight" means that wood has the characteristics of growth and rising; "Fire is said to get angry", which means that fire has the characteristics of heating up; "Soil-made crop wall" means that the soil has the characteristics of planting crops and biochemical substances; "Gold says that it changes with leather" is that gold has the characteristic of killing change; "Moisturizing" means moistening downward. Based on this understanding, the ancients classified all kinds of things in the universe into five elements, so conceptually, they are not wood, fire, earth, gold and water, but abstract attributes shared by a large class of things and phenomena with comparable characteristics.
The category of five elements thought in the history of China's philosophy: "Up to now, we have basically analyzed the various meanings of the five elements. For the sake of clarity, we comprehensively list these meanings as follows:
It refers to the five principles of behavior, and doubt is held by Xunzi.
It refers to five physical attributes, such as those in Shang Shu Hong Fan and Zhou Zi Taiji Map.
It refers to the five essential material conditions of life, such as those held by Cai Mo in Zuo Zhuan.
It is the five principles of taxonomy, such as those held by Lu Chunqiu.
It refers to five "forms of existence" that exist through the flow of yin and yang, such as Baihutong and Huangdi Neijing Suwen.
Refers to wood (plants), fire, earth, gold and running water. Their symbolic meanings are vitality, activity or change, gestation or cultivation, prohibition and concealment. Xiao Ji took this.
The five elements and six meanings mentioned above, except (1) and (3), are the complete meanings of the five elements in the thought of Yin-Yang and Five Elements if the other four elements (2), (4), (5) and (6) are combined.
▲-Five elements.
* Five elements: golden water, wood, fire and earth.
* bearing: east, west, north, south and middle.
* Five elements: Jinshui, aquatic wood, Muhuo, Huotu and Primary Gold.
* Five elements: Jin Kemu, wood, earth, water, water and fire.
Five elements of theft: gold steals soil, soil steals fire, fire steals wood, wood steals water, and water steals gold.
* The five elements belong to drowning: gold steaming water, water drowning wood, wood drowning fire, fire drying soil, and soil covering gold.
* the relationship between heavenly dryness, five elements and orientation;
A is a wooden pillar, east. B is the tree of flowers and fruits, the East.
C is the fire of the sun, south. Ding is the fire of lamps and candles, Nan.
E is the soil of the city wall, China. I am an idyllic land, China.
Gengzi is axe gold, western. Xin is the gold in western jewelry.
Ren is the water of the northern rivers. The deck is rain and dew, north.
* the earth support collision (excite):
The son (mouse) collides with the afternoon (horse), the ugly (cow) collides with the sheep, and the yin (tiger) collides with the Shen (monkey).
Mao (rabbit) collided with You (chicken), Chen (dragon) collided with Xu (dog), and Si (snake) collided with Hai (pig).
* the ground branches hurt each other (wear):
Children (rats) harm sheep, ugliness (cows) harm horses, and yin (tigers) harm snakes.
Mao (rabbit) is harmful to Chen (dragon), Shen (monkey) is harmful to Hai (pig), especially to Xu (chicken).
* Punishment in the form of land support (obstruction);
Son (mouse) hair (rabbit) punishment, ugly (cow) dog (dog) punishment, Yin (tiger) punishment (snake).
Chen (Long) and Chen (Long) were punished, Si (Snake) and Shen (Monkey) were punished, and Wu (Ma) and Wu (Ma) were punished.
Don't (sheep) ugly (cow) punishment, Shen (monkey) yin (tiger) punishment, unitary (chicken) unitary (chicken) punishment.
Xu (dog) and Wei (sheep) were punished, and Hai (pig) and Hai (pig) were punished.
* harmony in the ground (harmony);
Three branches of the earth:
Son (mouse) Chen (Long). Shen (Monkey) Water Affairs Bureau; Si (snake) You (chicken). Ugly (cattle) alloy bureau;
Yin (tiger). Noon (horse). Xu (dog) fire station; Hai (pig) Hair (rabbit) Wei (Sheep) Bureau;
Dizhi Liuhe:
Children (rats) and ugly cows (cows) merge into earth, while yin (tigers) and sea (pigs) merge into water.
Mao (rabbit) and Xu (dog) combined to melt fire, Chen (dragon) and you (chicken) combined to melt gold,
Snakes and monkeys make water, horses and sheep make sun, noon and moon.
* The relationship between the earthly branch and the five elements and directions;
Son (mouse) belongs to sunny water, north; Hai (pig) belongs to yin water, north.
Yin (tiger) belongs to poplar, oriental; Wool (rabbit) belongs to the shade wood, oriental.
The fourth (snake) belongs to yin fire, south; Noon (horse) belongs to yang fire, which is in the south.
Shen (monkey) genus, western regions; You (chicken) belongs to Yin Jin, the Western Region.
Chen (Long). Xu (dog) belongs to Yangtu and Hanfang;
Ugly (cow) Not (sheep) belongs to dirt, China people.
▲-Five elements.
There are "multiplication" and "mutual insult" in the five elements.
Take the opportunity to enter, insult is bullying.
Multiplication is excessive restraint, aggression (anti-gram) is that you can resist your own line.
▲-Five elements characteristics.
1, the characteristics of gold?
Golden doctrine and "follow the reform", follow, smooth, smooth and reform, so gold has the characteristics of flexibility, flexibility, extensibility, reform and elimination. ?
Kim: He is strong, strong, and has four pillars. He has a square face, delicate bones, healthy and clear body, is loyal to others, resolute and decisive, is not afraid of violence, helps the poor, hates evil and knows his shame. ?
The golden pillars are too taboo, reckless, brave, greedy, ruthless, unjust, and those who fail are worried, indecisive, greedy, cruel and vicious. ?
2. What are the characteristics of wood?
Muzhuren: Muyue: "straight", bent, bent, straight and stretched, so wood has the property of flexibility and extensibility. Mu Na's soil and water can only grow and develop, so wood has the softness of growing up and being slender. ?
Wood: its straight nature, its harmony, the wood among the four pillars, kindness, gentleness, fraternity, compassion, helping others, generosity, slender figure, chic behavior, thick and bright hair, lively and positive. ?
If the wood in the four pillars is too taboo, it will appear stubborn, extreme, cowardly, jealous, ungrateful and cold. ?
3. What are the characteristics of water?
Water governs wisdom: water is called "moistening the lower part", the moist part is moist, and the lower part is downward, so water has the characteristics of moistening the lower part and studying hidden. ?
The water is smart and kind, and the four pillars are full of water. They have gods on their faces, flexible minds, resourcefulness, unique talents, strong adaptability and clever language. ?
Too much water in four pillars is taboo, greedy, lustful, scheming, extreme in speech, and easy to cause trouble. Those who fail are short, dark-faced, capricious, timid and narrow-minded. ?
4. What are the characteristics of fire?
Fire is the main ceremony: fire says "inflammation", inflammation, heat and upward. Therefore, fire has the characteristics of heating, warmth and upward, has the function of driving away cold and keeping warm, and can forge metallurgy.
Fire is impatient and respectful: those with four pillars are aboveboard, positive, courteous, pay attention to appearance, warm and heroic, frank and friendly. ?
Those who are too jealous of fire in the four pillars are flushed, impatient, impulsive, aggressive and prone to trouble. Those who are inferior to themselves are thin and arrogant, treacherous and jealous, and have no end. ?
5. What are the characteristics of soil?
The local boss thinks that the local saying is "crops and crops", sowing crops and harvesting crops. Crops and crops have the ability to transport things and store them biochemically. The native land is carried in all directions, and it is the mother of all things and has made great contributions.
Earth: heavy in nature, affectionate, four-legged, round in waist and moist in nose, beautiful in eyebrows, eloquent, honest and sincere, bold and generous, willing to pay and accept anything. ?
Too much dirt in the four pillars, taboo, introverted, stupid, stubborn, unreasonable, self-abased, with a low face and nose, a worried look, not believing a word, vicious, stingy and selfish.
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First, the basic concepts of the Five Elements Theory
The five elements are the movements of wood, fire, earth, gold and water.
According to the theory of five elements, everything in the world is produced by the movement and change of five basic substances: wood, fire, earth, gold and water. At the same time, the relationship between things is explained by the relationship between the five elements, and it is believed that nothing is isolated or static, but maintains a harmonious balance in the constant movement of mutual growth and mutual resistance. This is the basic meaning of the five elements theory.
Second, the basic content of the Five Elements Theory
Characteristics of wood: The ancients called it "straightness of wood". "Straight" actually refers to the growth form of trees, which are straight branches that extend upward and around. Therefore, things with growth, rising and smooth functions or characteristics belong to wood.
Characteristics of fire: The ancients called it "fire is inflammation". "Shang Yan" means that fire has the characteristics of warmth and rising. So what is warm and uplifting belongs to fire.
Characteristics of soil: The ancients called it "soil for crops", which means that soil has the function of planting and harvesting crops. Therefore, things with biochemical and bearing functions belong to soil. Therefore, there is a saying that "soil carries four lines" and "soil is the mother of all things".
Characteristics of gold; The ancients called it "the golden jade is outside, and the defeat is among them." "From the skin" means "change". Everything that has cleanliness, depression and astringency belongs to gold.
Characteristics of water: The ancients called it "moist". It means that the water is wet and downward. Everything that is cold, moist and flowing downwards belongs to water.
2. Five-element classification of things.
① Classification: The five-element attribute of things is derived from the nature of things and the characteristics of the five elements by analogy. If things have similar characteristics to wood, they belong to wood; Similar to the characteristics of fire, belonging to fire and so on For example, the five internal organs belong to five elements, the liver belongs to wood, the heart yang belongs to fire, the spleen belongs to earth, the lung belongs to gold, and the kidney belongs to water. If you belong to the five elements in orientation, then it belongs to wood, because the sunrise is in the east, which is similar to the rising characteristics of wood. It is hot in the south, which is similar to the inflammatory characteristics of fire, so it belongs to fire; Sunset in the west is similar to the decline of gold, so it belongs to gold; The north is cold, similar to the characteristics of water, so it belongs to water.
② Deductive method. For example, if the liver belongs to wood, then the main reinforcement of the liver and the opening of the liver are also wood for the purpose of "tendon" and "eye"; If the heart belongs to fire, the pulse and tongue also belong to fire; Spleen belongs to soil, so do "meat" and "mouth"; If lungs are gold, so are fur and nose. Kidney belongs to water, so do "bone", "ear" and "two yin".
(3) The Five Elements Theory also holds that things belonging to the Five Elements are related. For example, wind, wood and acid substances in the East and nature are all related to the liver. The five elements of nature and human body are listed as follows.
For the human body, it is to summarize the various tissues and functions of the human body into five physiological systems centered on the five internal organs.
3. The five elements of life, abuse and abuse
(1) develop and restrict each other. Mutual development means that this thing can promote, encourage and cultivate another thing; Mutual respect means that one thing can restrain and restrict the growth and function of another. Mutual growth and restriction are considered to be normal phenomena in nature in the theory of five elements; It is also a normal physiological phenomenon for human physiology. It is precisely because of the connection between things that nature can maintain ecological balance and human body can maintain physiological balance, so "control is biochemistry"
The order of the five elements is: wood fires, fire produces soil, soil produces gold, gold produces water, and aquatic wood.
The order of the five elements is: Mutuke, Tukeshui, Shuihuoke, Huojinke and Jin Kemu.
Because of the relationship between the five elements, from any line of the five elements, there are four links: giving birth to me, giving birth to me, rejecting me and rejecting me.
"Giving birth to me" and "giving birth to me" are metaphors of the relationship between "mother" and "son" in difficult scriptures. The one who gave birth to me is the mother and the one who gave birth to me is the son, so the relationship between the five elements can also be called the mother-child relationship. Take fire as an example, because wood makes a fire, the person who "gives birth to me" is wood; Because fire gives birth to wood, "I am born" is earth. In this way, wood is the "mother" of fire, and soil is the "child" of fire; That is, wood and fire are "mother and son" and fire and earth are "mother and son".
"Beat me" and "beat me" are called "invincible" and "victory" in Neijing. That is, those who resist me are invincible and those who resist me win. Take fire as an example. Because fire can kill Kim, the person who "kills me" is Kim. Because of this fire, "I" is water.
Mutual development and mutual restriction are two inseparable aspects. Without life, there will be no occurrence and growth of things; Without gram, it is impossible to maintain the change and development under its normal coordinated relationship. Only by being born in turn and overcoming it in turn, such as an infinite cycle, can we be biochemical and maintain the dynamic balance between things.
(2) Multiplication and aggression. The multiplication and mutual loss of the five elements refers to the abnormal phenomenon of mutual restraint after the normal relationship between the five elements is destroyed.
Multiply: Multiply means bullying the weak. Multiplication in the five elements means that a certain "line" in the five elements is too restrained to the victim's "line", thus causing a series of excessive restraint reactions.
When a certain "line" in the five elements is too strong, it will cause the victim's "five elements" to be excessively restrained, which will weaken the victim's "one line", thus causing abnormal restraint between the five elements. For example, if the wood is too strong, the soil will be too strong, resulting in insufficient soil. This is the so-called "wood borrowing". On the other hand, it can also be due to the weakness of a certain "line" in the five elements, so its mutual containment is relatively enhanced and even weaker. For example, woody plants are not too strong, and their ability to inhibit soil is still in the normal range. However, due to the shortage of soil itself, the strength of soil is relatively enhanced, which makes the soil even more insufficient. This is the so-called "soil virtual wood multiplication"
Mutual insult: insult, here refers to "anti-insult." The reciprocal contradiction in the five elements means that one line in the five elements is too strong and resists the original line of "self-denial", so the inverse is also called inverse. For example, when wood is particularly strong, it will not only be restrained by gold, but also resist gold (that is, resist gold), which is called "wood invading gold", or an aspect of resisting gold. On the other hand, because of the weakness of gold itself, it is not only unable to restrain wood, but is resisted by wood, which is called "gold virtual wood humiliation"
Multiplication and mutual humiliation are abnormal phenomena, and they are both different and related. The main differences between multiplication and reciprocal are as follows: the first is that there are too many constraints in the reciprocal order of the five elements, thus forming a deformed relationship between the five elements; The latter is a restraint phenomenon in the opposite direction to the order of the five elements, thus forming an abnormal relationship between the five elements. The connection between them is that when they are multiplied, they can also be insulted at the same time; Mutual attacks can also multiply at the same time. For example, if the wood is too strong, you can borrow soil to humiliate gold; If gold is weak, wood can resist, but fire can take it away.
3. Application of Five Elements Theory in Chinese Medicine
1. Explain the physiological function and relationship of viscera.
① Explain the physiological characteristics of the five internal organs. For example, the liver is "wood" because it has the function of stopping diarrhea and has no hair growth characteristics. Heart yang has the function of warming, and fire has the characteristics of yang heat, so heart belongs to "fire"; Spleen is the source of biochemistry and soil has the characteristics of biochemical things, so spleen belongs to "soil"; Lung qi governs purgation, and gold has the characteristics of clearing away diarrhea and converging, so lung belongs to "gold"; Kidney has the function of controlling water and storing essence, and water has the characteristic of moistening the lower part, so kidney belongs to "water".
② Explain the internal relationship of physiological functions of human viscera. For example, the essence of kidney (water) nourishes the liver, the liver (wood) stores blood and nourishes the heart, the heat of heart (fire) warms the spleen, and the spleen (soil) turns into the essence of water valley to fill the lung, and the lung (gold) helps the kidney. This is the relationship between the five internal organs. The decrease of lung (gold) qi can inhibit the hyperactivity of liver yang; The smoothness of liver (wood) can relieve the depression of spleen and soil; The transportation of spleen (soil) can prevent the flooding of kidney water; Moistening kidney (water) can prevent excessive heart fire; Yang-heart heat (fire) can excessively restrict lung-qi-Jin-Qing-Su, which is the relationship between the five internal organs.
③ Explain the relationship between human body and external environment, such as the four seasons and five flavors of food. In a word, the application of the theory of five elements in physiology lies in explaining the unity of the interrelationship between human viscera and tissues, as well as between human body and external environment.
2. Explain the pathological influence between zang-fu organs.
For example, liver disease can disperse the spleen, and it is a tree to borrow soil; Spleen disease can also affect the liver, which is an insult to wood; Liver and spleen are the same diseases, which affect each other, that is, wood stagnation and soil deficiency or soil stagnation and wood stagnation; Liver disease can also affect the heart, which is a maternal disease and a child disease; Affecting the lungs is a disgrace to gold; Diseases that affect the kidneys, for children and mothers. This is true of liver disease, as is the pathological changes of other organs. The relationship between the five elements can be used to explain their pathological interaction.
3. Used for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases.
Application of (1) in disease diagnosis
Diagnosis of visceral diseases from color, taste and pulse. If you see a blue face, like to eat sour taste, and see a string pulse, you can diagnose liver disease; Red face, bitter taste and red pulse can be diagnosed as excessive heart fire. Patients with spleen deficiency have a blue face and take soil as wood; Heart disease patients, see the dark, take fire as water, and so on.
Diagnose the spread of five zang-organs diseases from its color, taste and pulse. For example, patients with spleen deficiency have a blue complexion and a string-like pulse, which disperses the spleen for liver disease (wood with soil); People with lung disease have a red face, red ears and red pulse. This is the spread of heart disease to the lungs. Any one of the five internal organs has pathological changes, which can spread to the other four internal organs. According to the theory of five elements, there are four transmission and change relationships: reproduction, mutual offense, maternal disease, child disease and maternal disease.
Judging the prognosis of diseases from the relationship between color and pulse. If the liver disease looks blue, see the string pulse, which is consistent with the color pulse. If you don't see the string pulse but see the floating pulse, it is a mutually winning pulse, and the pulse of Kese (Jin Kemu) is reverse, and the main prognosis is poor; If the pulse condition is deep, it belongs to the interrelated pulse condition, that is, the color-producing (aquatic wood) pulse condition, which is smooth and has a good prognosis.
(2) Application in disease treatment
(1) Control the spread of diseases of the five internal organs. If liver disease can disperse spleen (wood with soil), replenish spleen in advance to prevent its spread. "When you see the disease of the liver, you know that the liver has to pass on the spleen, so you must first consolidate your temper."
② Determine the principle of treatment. It is summarized as the method of "tonifying the mother and purging the child", that is, "deficiency is tonifying the mother, but it is actually purging the child" Tonifying the mother is aimed at the deficiency syndrome of mother-child relationship, such as tonifying the kidney because of liver deficiency, because the kidney is the mother of the liver, so tonifying the kidney water can produce liver wood. Diarrhea is treated according to the evidence of mother-child relationship, such as liver excess purging heart, because heart is the son of liver, purging heart fire helps purging liver wood.
According to the relationship between the two, the principle of treatment can be summarized as "suppressing the strong and reducing the skin", that is, purging the strong of the suppressed and supplementing the weak of the suppressed. If the liver wood is too strong and the spleen soil is too strong, it must be diarrhea and the spleen soil is weak, so it must be supplemented.
(3) Formulate treatment methods. In terms of drug treatment, such as nourishing water and burying trees, it is a method of nourishing kidney yin and preserving liver yin, which is suitable for diseases with kidney yin deficiency and liver yin deficiency. Another example is the method of nourishing the soil and producing gold, that is, the method of invigorating the spleen and benefiting the lung, which is suitable for the diseases of spleen deficiency and lung deficiency. Another example is the method of supporting soil and restraining wood, which is a method of treating liver depression and spleen deficiency with drugs that soothe the liver and strengthen the spleen.
In addition, in acupuncture and psychotherapy, the restraint of the five elements can be used to select points and adjust emotions. If sadness can overcome anger, it is because sadness belongs to the lungs and anger belongs to the liver.
In the process of practical application, the theory of Yin-Yang and Five Elements is often interrelated and inseparable. The combination of yin-yang and five elements theory can not only explain the general relationship between two contradictory sides of things, but also explain the more specific and complex relationship between things, which is conducive to explaining complex life phenomena and pathological processes.
In martial arts, ancient martial artists used the five elements of gold, wood, water, fire and earth to represent the five basic boxing methods in Xingyiquan, namely, split, collapse, drill, cannon, horizontal, or five footwork in Tai Ji Chuan.