02/13/2024
In the human body, essence (jing), energy (qi), blood, bodily fluids, and spirit (shen) depend on and restrain each other. Essence, energy, blood, and bodily fluids are considered "form," while consciousness, thought, and emotions, which are mental activities, belong to "spirit." Under the dominion of the organs and spirit, the unity of form and spirit allows for mutual dependence, promotion, and transformation.
**Firstly, Essence:**
The essence in the human body refers to a vital substance formed from the combination of the life essence inherited from one's parents and the refined essence of postnatal food and water. It is the source of human life and the most fundamental substance for constituting and sustaining human life activities.
The functions of essence include: reproducing life, nourishing the organs, transforming into blood, transforming into qi, and transforming into spirit.
Types of essence include: prenatal essence and postnatal essence; essence of the organs and reproductive essence.
**Secondly, Qi:**
Qi in the human body is an extremely fine and vigorously active substance. It is one of the basic substances that constitute and maintain human life activities.
How is qi generated?
Human qi = Prenatal essence (inherited from parents) + essence of food and drink + the clear qi from nature
The source of qi generation is prenatal qi, known as the original qi, which comes from prenatal essence and is the driving force of human life activities. Postnatal qi, known as ancestral qi, is generated from the essence of food and water and combined with the clear qi from nature.
Which organs are related to qi generation and their functions?
The kidneys are the root of qi, holding the essence, where abundant essence leads to strong qi, and depleted essence results in weak qi.
The spleen and stomach are the source of life-giving qi: they receive, ripen, and transport food and water, transforming it into the refined essence of qi.
The lungs are the master of life-giving qi, governing the qi of respiration, inhaling clear qi and exhaling turbid qi; the lungs combine the qi of food and water with clear qi to generate ancestral qi.
How does qi move within the body?
The movement of qi within the body, known as the qi mechanism, includes ascending, descending, exiting, entering, gathering, and dispersing.
The movement patterns of organ qi are:
The heart and lungs are located above, where qi should descend;
The liver and kidneys are below, where qi should ascend;
The spleen and stomach are central, acting as the hub for qi's ascent and descent;
The movement of qi in the six organs is descending, incorporating ascending.
When the qi mechanism is disrupted, conditions such as qi stagnation, qi blockage, qi reversal, qi sinking, qi collapse, and qi closure can occur, each more severe than the last, with qi collapse and qi closure being critical.
**Qi Transformation:**
Qi transformation refers to the various changes produced by the movement of qi, driven by the body's qi, involving the metabolism of substances and energy such as essence, qi, blood, and bodily fluids, a fundamental characteristic of life. It includes the generation of essence, the transformation of essence into qi, essence into marrow, the mutual transformation of essence and blood, and the mutual transformation of bodily fluids and blood; as well as the generation and metabolism of blood, the transformation of blood into qi to generate spirit, the generation of bodily fluids and their transformation into sweat and urine, and the generation and metabolism of qi, among others.
What are the functions of human qi?
Qi has a propelling function, such as promoting growth and development; a deficiency in original qi can lead to developmental delays in children or premature aging in adults.
Qi has a regulatory function, with yin qi and yang qi needing to be balanced; an excess of yin qi can suppress and calm, while a deficiency in yin leads to excess yang.
Qi has a defensive function, as pathogens gather where qi is deficient.
Qi has a consolidating function, governing blood and consolidating sweat, urine, and gastrointestinal fluids.
Qi serves as an intermediary, for example, during acupuncture, when the acupuncturist hits the right spot and the needle technique is effective, there is a sensation of "obtaining qi."
**Classification of Human Qi:**
Qi is classified into the qi of the entire body, original qi, ancestral qi, nutritive qi, defensive qi, as well as the qi of the organs and meridians.
Firstly, the qi of the entire body is a vigorously active, extremely fine substance that circulates throughout the body. When moving within the meridians, it is known as nutritive qi; outside the meridians, it is known as defensive qi. When the essence of food and water gathers with the clear qi from nature in the chest, it becomes ancestral qi, which is distributed to the organs and meridians as organ qi and meridian qi.
*Original qi* is the fundamental driving force of human life activities, the most essential and significant qi, generated by the kidneys' prenatal essence and nourished by the spleen and stomach's transformation of the essence of food and water. Original qi originates in the kidneys, travels through the triple burner, circulates throughout the body, enters the five organs and six bowels, and reaches everywhere, including the skin and muscles.
The physiological functions of original qi include propelling and regulating the growth, development, and reproductive functions of the body, as well as the physiological activities of the organs, meridians, form, and orifices.
Thus, when people say "greatly damaged original qi" in everyday language, it indicates a very serious condition.
*Ancestral qi* is accumulated in the chest by the combination of the essence of food and water with the clear qi from nature, gathering at the "sea of qi," the famous acupoint Danzhong. Ancestral qi accumulates in the chest, exits through the respiratory tract, penetrates the heart meridian, and disperses throughout the body via the triple burner.
The physiological functions of ancestral qi primarily involve driving respiration, related to breathing, speech, and voice; it also drives blood circulation, related to the movement of qi and blood, the strength and rhythm of heartbeats; and ancestral qi descends to the lower Dantian below the navel to support the original qi.
*Nutritive qi*, circulating within the meridians and having a nourishing function, is also known as nutritive blood or nutritive yin. It is a specialized part of the refined essence of the spleen and stomach's transformation of food and water, circulating with blood, continuously circulating to generate blood and nourish the entire body.
*Defensive qi*, circulating outside the meridians and having a protective function, is also known as defensive yang. It is the vigorous qi among the refined essence of food and water, spreading throughout the chest and abdomen and reaching every part of the body.
The physiological functions of defensive qi mainly involve defending against external pathogens, warming and nourishing the entire body, and regulating the pores (adjusting the opening and closing of sweat pores).
This concludes the discussion on qi. Next, the article will discuss "blood," "bodily fluids," and "spirit."
**Thirdly, Blood:**
The residence of blood is the vessels.
Blood = essence of food and water + kidney essence = nutritive qi + bodily fluids
The organs related to blood generation are the spleen, stomach, heart, and kidneys.
The organs affecting blood circulation are the heart, which governs the blood vessels; the liver, which governs the smooth flow and storage of blood; the spleen, which governs blood; and the lungs, which face all vessels.
Additionally, blood has the function of generating spirit, serving as the material basis for mental activities.
**Fourthly, Bodily Fluids:**
"Bodily fluids" distributed in the skin, muscles, and orifices are generated by the large intestine; "fluids" infused in the joints, organs, brain, and marrow are generated by the small intestine. Additionally, the organs most closely related to the distribution of bodily fluids are the spleen, lungs, kidneys, liver, and triple burner.
The main functions of bodily fluids are to moisturize and nourish the entire body, replenish the blood vessels, and maintain a relatively constant body temperature through the mutual transformation of bodily fluids and blood.
**Fifthly, Spirit:**
Spirit is the master of human life activities and the general term for their external manifestations. Many idioms use the concept of "spirit," such as "bright-eyed," "radiant," "refreshed," "energetic," "emotionally disconnected," and "restless," among others. Essence, qi, blood, and bodily fluids are the material basis for nourishing and generating spirit.
The classification of human spirit includes the five spirits: soul (hun), spirit (shen), intent (yi), corporeal soul (po), and will (zhi); and the five emotions: anger, joy, thought, sadness, and fear.
The functions of human spirit mainly involve regulating the metabolism of essence, qi, blood, and bodily fluids; regulating the physiological functions of the organs; and dominating human life activities, including unconscious life activities such as heartbeat, organ function, and the circulation of essence, qi, blood, and bodily fluids, as well as conscious life activities such as movement. Breathing is a life activity that bridges consciousness and unconsciousness, explaining why deep breathing can relieve tension.
The article introduces essence, qi, blood, bodily fluids, and spirit, discussing their interrelationships.
**Firstly, the Relationship Between Qi and Blood:**
Qi is the commander of blood, manifesting as qi generating blood, qi moving blood, and qi holding blood. Clinically, when treating blood stasis, qi-moving and qi-supplementing medicines are often used because qi can move blood; when
treating blood deficiency, qi-supplementing medicines are used because qi can generate blood; when treating severe bleeding, qi-supplementing and loss-preventing methods are used because qi can hold blood.
Blood is the mother of qi. Blood can nourish qi and carry qi.
**Secondly, the Relationship Between Qi and Bodily Fluids:**
Qi can generate bodily fluids, move bodily fluids, hold bodily fluids, while bodily fluids can generate qi and carry qi. For example, "After vomiting and diarrhea, there will definitely be incomplete qi," which refers to the serious condition of severe vomiting and diarrhea, leading to significant loss of bodily fluids and resulting in qi deficiency.
**Thirdly, the Relationship Between Essence, Blood, and Bodily Fluids:**
Essence and blood share the same source, so "those who lose blood have no sweat," meaning patients with severe bleeding do not sweat.
Bodily fluids and blood share the same source, so "those who lose sweat have no blood," meaning patients who sweat excessively also show symptoms of blood deficiency.
**Fourthly, Essence, Qi, and Spirit Can Be Separated But Not Divided, Together Called the "Three Treasures of the Human Body."**
