As we explore balance in our lives this month by examining the way we eat and tuning into what is important in all aspects of our lives – it is great to look at philosophies that are based on balance and the interconnected nature of things. Chinese medicine is a wonderful example that embodies the concept of finding an ever-changing equilibrium.
In Chinese culture, as in their medical philosophies, they take a step back and look at the entirety of things, the way they interrelate and connect – seeing life as one harmonious and balanced whole. The concept of yin and yang is an example of this, for these two forces represent the bipolar manifestation of all things in nature. Simply put, there are two sides to everything – happy and sad, tired and energetic, cold and hot. Yin and yang are the opposites that make the whole. They cannot exist without each other and nothing is ever completely one or the other. There are varying degrees of each within everything and everybody. Generally, anything that is moving, ascending, bright, progressing, hyperactive, including functional disease of the body, pertains to yang. The characteristics of stillness, descending, darkness, degeneration, hypoactivity, including organic disease, pertain to yin.
It is important to note that the balance of yin and yang is not always exact, even when the body is healthy. Like other aspects of balance, there is always change based on what we experience internally and externally. If we get in a fight with our spouse, we might explode with anger and thus a burst of yang. When the dust settles and you reconcile with your partner, the yang subsides and yin might even be present. This is a normal reaction and a normal return to balance. BUT if the body, mind and emotions are constantly dominated by either yin and yang, it brings about an imbalance that can result in ill health.
A clinical diagnosis in Traditional Chinese Medicine is mainly based on the yin-yang, as well as the five element, theory that apply the phenomena and laws of nature to the study of the physiological activities and pathological changes of the human body and its interrelationships. When the practitioner determines the exact nature of the imbalance, they then correct it through the use of acupuncture, herbal remedies, exercise, diet and lifestyle. As balance is restored in the body, so is health.
The yin-yang theory also has a visual symbol that is a representation of the philosophy. The symbol is a circle divided by a curved line into a black (Yin) side and white (Yang) side. The curve represents the constantly changing balance between yin and yang. Each side contains a small circle of the opposite color which symbolizes that there is some of yin in yang and some of yang in yin.
