Earth

The Spleen supplies nourishment and sustains the organism.  SUSTENANCE.

Food (and experiences) is ingested, digested, and assimilated into FUEL—called the Nutritive Essence— which is extracted and converted into Qi and Blood.

The Earth gathers and holds together. The Spleen is the constant provider, maintaining proper integrity of the body, space and relationships. The Spleen distributes Moisture by adjusting the circulation of blood and fluids “through the vascular and lymphatic systems, the density of flesh and the total mass of the body” (114, BH&E). The entire form, shape, weight, and tone of tissue results in how the Spleen disseminates Moisture and assimilates nutrients.

The “faculties of concentration, ideation, recollection, and reflection emanate from the Spleen.” (114, BH&E). Memory and the power to focus the mind come from a healthy Earth. “Intention is a means of gathering the momentum necessary to transform will, the impulse of the Kidney, into action, the drive of the Liver. Maintaining the necessary motivation necessary to sustain effort over time arises from the Spleen.” (113, BH&E).  So the Spleen is a major provider of homeostasis: it distributes nutrients, maintains balance, sustains healthy mental functioning, and creates the impetus to adapt smoothly to changes, while maintaining equilibrium.

The Spleen provides continuity of

·       Of body size

·       Mental orientation

·       Psychological perspective

·       Sense of identity in relationship to place, people and values

·       “Such constancy supports adaptability, the capacity to endure stress without harm” (115, BH&E).

·        “When the Spleen circulates fluids from tissues the flesh becomes less dense and the body becomes lighter and more mobile. “ (115, BH&E).

Breakdowns occurs when:

·       Feelings of overwhelm

·       Overburdened by excessive input

o   Either food or information

o   Creates congestion

·       When the Spleen is exhausted the mind becomes easily distracted by “scattered, superficial and elusive thoughts” (115).

·       The body feels fatigue

·       “The Spleen attempts to balance disequilibrium by slowing down or speeding up the conversion of nourishment to Blood and Qi”

·       If the Spleen thickens fluids and tissues: congestion, stagnation, movement retards the body.

o   Feeling weighed down

·       Dampness occurs

o   When tissues become saturated, the excess is experiences as

§  “Spongy tender flesh, swelling of the belly, joints, and lymph nodes, edema under the skin, painful swelling of the breast or reproductive organs, and copious or sticky discharges from the nose, throat, mouth and other mucous membranes” (115, BH&E).

·       Secretions are determined by the way Dampness interacts with Heat and Cold

o   Cold affecting the Spleen: clear and fluent discharge

o   Heat entangled with Moisture: sticky discharge

o   Accumulated Dampness: congealed phlegm, stagnant sputum/mucus.

Deficiency of Qi: Spleen forms the Blood and Qi (with nutritive essence)

Symptoms are anemia, dry skin and hair, blurry vision, pale lips and nails, dizziness, fatigue. (116)

·       If Spleen Qi descends, diarrhea, prolapse of the organs and veins occurs; hernias and hemorrhoids.

·       If Stomach Qi ascends, belching, burping hiccups, nausea, and puke.

The SPLEEN ASSISTS THE LIVER AND HEART (yin)

                  “By maintaining the integrity of the blood vessels, nourishing the Blood, and maintaining proper viscosity so that if flows fluidly” (117). Spleen Qi moves UP, bringing pure Essence to the Lung (116)

·       Relationship with Small Intestine/Heart?  (Child)

·       Relationship with Gallbladder/Liver?  (

THE STOMACH (yang)

                  Active one; rots and ripens food. Moistens and decomposes food. Stomach Qi, DESCENDS, bringing impure matter and liquid to the Intestines.

Fire

The dynamic of Fire and Water, Heart and Kidney, organizes the continuum of our reality. The Heart evokes communication and contacts with the world, while the Kidneys processes our inner impressions and establishes our root and substance of our individual and ancestral identity.

o    It is necessary to clear excessive Qi in the Heart, which can damage the Yin of the Kidney and Lung. Clearing heat and generating moisture can do this: Yin can balance the Yang. (184, BH&E)

Fire is like a Wizard. Fire seeks to imbue the mundane with the extraordinary, merging human aspirations with divine purpose*. “Just like the fire of love unites male and female to form new life, so the Wizard wields a miraculous power to overcome separation by welding divergent elements into one” (177, BH&E, Beinfield, Korngold). With excitement and enthusiasm—the catalyst—to energize, the Wizard, brings transformation with the power of light, love and awareness into the world. (177).

 "The Fire aspect represents fulfillment: the total expression and integration of our being, to the full extent of our expansion, maturation and development" (109). The emotions that unfold are of awe and joy. Love is astonishingly powerful, and with the clearest of intentions, it transforms life into fullness and beauty. Love brings happiness and a feeling of completeness. 

But what happens when one feels a sense of lack? When the liveliness of humor, affection and feeling of connection, seems to be missing from one’s momentary possession? Is it truly a lack of fire that exists in absence, or is it possible that we have been conditioned to believe that fire is contingent upon others’ responsibility to light our flames? Do we teach a man to fish, or merely provide him with the sustenance he does not know how to harvest himself?

Fire is enchanting, persuasive, and inclusive. In people, fire is expressed with a jovial outlook for life— an optimistic and generous attitude. There is genuine concern about the happiness of others, in which brings involvement with the needs and desires of friends, families and even strangers. Fire expresses a passion for contact through touch and conversation. This capacity makes reaching out and making friends easy.

Thoughts and feelings are readily available, Ready access to intuition, Fire types are often “considered by (their) friends to be a mind readers because (they) know what’s happening without being told” (178, BH&E). This beautiful trait, but it can also create disconnect when others do not respect or understand the power of intuition. “He scans his world with antenna like intelligence, receiving and integrating a plethora of information and impressions” (178, BH&E). An exhausting activity if not followed by solitude and time to process what has been observed and collected.

There may be a requirement for stimulation, contact, expression and recognition. To feel delight by making contact with those it desires, fire freely shares that delight with others. Bright and magnetic, fire pulls you closer.

Glowing, warm energy.

Sparkling dazzle.

Fire can be awesome and seductive.

Pulling you into a trance of dance and heat.

Flames have the power to inflame,

Transforming solids into ash.

The spirit looks on towards transcendence.

Take me beyond this world of forms and banality,

Focus my sights on union and oneness. 
Stimulate. 
Excitement is so alluring,
consuming the perfect Lover. 
How can I express what it is I feel, 
I see, 
and hear. I sense this world with love and pleasure. 

“Because [fire] has trouble insulating [itself] from the constant barrage of external influences… powers of discrimination and discernment can be overloaded, resulting in anxiety and confusion” (178, BH&E). Who influences you? What are you influenced by? When do you feel confused with anxiety, a lack of clarity? There is love in you. Do you know how to separate your thoughts from those who have influenced you? Which thoughts are truly yours, from your heart, and which are given to you from family and friends?

Confusion can develop into a sense of dread, if Fire feels “bombarded by unwanted and unpredictable events” (178, BH&E). Like a clear lake that becomes muddled with too much movement, confusion needs time to settle from upset, back stillness and transparency.

Under stress, Fire expresses itself as overactive, hyperactive, nervous, and distracted. Warmth and intimacy turn to isolation and melancholy. In order for Fire to generate joy and fulfillment, it must remain within bounds. Fire must maintain calmness and clarity, surprisingly by preserving boundaries, setting limits, and maintaining defenses (Lung) (181, BH&E). Senseless babbling and disjoined thoughts are the outcome of this disorientation and homelessness of the Spirit. When exaggerated or collapsed, Fire’s sense of boundaries are soft. They easily expand or shrink under emotional stress. During intense moments, the challenge is to maintain an anchored sense of self, a clear discrete identity without sacrificing intuitive sensitivity and openness. Conflicts heighten when the desire for expansion and effusion struggle with the need to preserve boundaries and mystery.

Fire’s virtue is compassion—the capacity to know, feel and understand what others are experiencing.

When the Lung cannot nurture the Kidney, the weakness shows as damaged Yin. Painful scanty urine, soreness of the back, disturbance of libido and potency; attention, expression and sensation are disturbed. A person becomes easily distracted and doubtful. The warm confidence of self-assurance dries up, becoming unreliable and overwhelmed. The stress on the integrity of Shen-Jing, Spirit and Essence, Fire and Water, shows through dehydration, unstable mental functioning and disturbed circulation of the blood. The unstable expression of Fire can be seen in “metabolic activity as well as the pace of thoughts and impressions in the mind, [they] become unpredictable with surges of energy and emotion alternating with periods of vapid dullness” (181, BH&E).

The goal for Fire is to maintain fluidity and steadiness. Gentle inhibition from extreme excitation, the body needs to maintain its juiciness through preservation of the self. Drink sufficient liquid. Create time and space for solitude and restitution, to regain the calm and clarity. Develop discipline and powers of discrimination (the Metal aspect) and the rootedness of Water through identification with family, ancestry and history will help with the steadiness.