Chinese Medicine (my third week)!
Forum Discussion: Five-phase personality assessment quiz results
Complete the Five-Phase Personality assessment quiz
Report your element type (Earth, Metal, Water, Wood, Fire) From the set text delve into your element and look for further correspondence or concordances applicable to you; Wood (Chapter Eight) pp160-175, Fire (Chapter Nine) pp176-189, Earth (Chapter Ten) pp190-203, Metal (Chapter Eleven) pp204-217, Water (Chapter Twelve) pp218-231 (Set Text – Between Heaven and Earth, Beinfield and Korngold).
Share your results with the class in your forum discussion
I did the Play buzz test and I thought it was very short. The test reported I’m a ‘Water’ type. This doesn’t resonate with me. I do have some psychological traits of water, but this is usually my behaviour when my life is out of balance. For example, when I’m exhausted psychologically or physiologically, I retreat to the ‘Water’ type to replenish my energy.
Between Heaven and Earth (BHE) talks about this; 1. a person can develop or support another element to provide balance when the physiology is imbalanced. 2. The elements they would like to develop, can be nourished mindfully to bring about change. BHE also talks about a person’s element type as being assigned from birth, which isn’t something that can be changed like you can change clothes, or hair color, rather we cultivate our life from the soil we have been given so to speak. I would like to know, Is it possible to have characteristics of a few elements in the body type?
I did the test in BHE page 147. I scored most highly overall in Earth, Wood, then Metal, but also, the life I have lived has required a lot of Wood characteristics, perhaps to create definition. Interestingly BHE says that together the above three can make a Wood type (I think). BHE states “The triad of Metal, Wood, and earth characterises the dynamic of Wood Type..’ Page 157. I see the Ke relationships are linked together, and I do relate to a WOOD type overall. I also see that some of my Earth traits are high right now as my body is balancing its elements, I’m manifesting some ‘Earth’ patterns physiologically. After checking with the Lecturer and chatting with other students I see that I was born, predominantly ‘Wood Type’.
BHE page 173 Wood characteristics See Below
Wood – Pioneer / Liver
Mental
Clarity, judgement, foresight, decision
Biological
Filling, arousal, expansion, acceleration
Organs Tissue fluids
Liver and Gallbladder, eyes and eyebrow, tendons and nerves, nails, bile, tears
Things I’ve experienced
Psyche (defined by 1. undistorted, 2. exaggerated, 3. collapsed, 4. difficulty )
1. Committed 2. Antagonistic 3. Erratic 4. Intensity
Soma (defined by 1. undistorted, 2. exaggerated, 3. collapsed, 4. difficulty with..)
1. Supple square physique 2. Cramps of long muscles hands and feet 3. Dry brittle nails 4. Painful menses
Revision Questions and Activities
1. What are the five elements?
Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water
2. What are their corresponding organs in the body?
Liver gallbladder, Heart and Small Intestine, Spleen and Stomach, Lung, Large Intestine, Urinary bladder and Kidney
3. What are the relationships of the Shen, Ke, Insulting, and Overacting cycles?
Sheng – Supporting Sequence – BHE Page 97
Wood engenders Fire
Fire engenders Earth
Earth engender Metal
Metal engenders Water
Water engenders Wood
BHE Page 97
Ke – Restraining Sequence BHE page 97
Wood controls Earth
Fire controls Metal
Earth controls Water
Metal controls Wood
Water controls Fire
BHE Page 97
Insulating Cycles
The overacting cycle is the same as the ke/controlling cycle.
Wood overacts Earth
Fire overacts Metal
Earth overacts Water
Metal overacts Wood
Water overacts Fire
(Endeavour Lecture)
The insulting cycle is opposite to the ke cycle:
Wood insults Metal
Metal insults Fire
Fire insults Water
Water insults Earth
Earth insults Wood.
(Endeavour Lecture).
4. The theory of facial diagnosis is interesting but how may a TCM practitioner use this in clinical practice
The practitioner will look at the skin to see it’s tone, and by the Colour will identify which elements are predominantly working in the constitution. The area of the eyes will give an indication of how the body is working, for example, if the eyes are puffy, there could be kidney imbalance. The whites (sclera) of the eyes will give an indication of whether the liver is strained for example, if they’re yellow, or red, from excess liver energy, or heat energy in the body. Lines in between the eyebrows occur with aging, but if they occur prematurely they are signs of stress, and liver strain. The tongue will also give an indication of how the kidneys, spleen, heart, small and large intestines, and liver are currently (Endeavour Lecture).
Feedback from Teacher
‘When we discuss Five Element, we need to know, in the healthy condition, one person, prenatally and post-natally, has five balanced system running. They support each other and control each other as well. But as the effect of all kinds of factors prenatal and postnatal, each person may have one or two element/s is/are a little bit stronger to others. This will make them have special physiological, psychological and pathological conditions. For example, prenatally, one person is water side potential. physiologically, the shen/kidney system is stronger. psychologically, this person has strong power to keep calm and has strong wish to do things and has very clear target to do things. But pathological, this person may suffer xin/heart issue easily, could be a little bit cold, or not sympathetic, etc. So we need to consider all this things in a general/whole view. Actually, five element theory is the basic theory for TCM to give a diagnosis and make a treatment plan‘ (Endeavour Lecture).