Spiritual capacity of Wood: houses the ethereal soul

The ethereal soul or Hun (pronounced to rhyme with ‘tune’), housed in the Liver, is a kind of ‘soul-personality’, which survives after death. This concept, the closest Chinese thought comes to our Western idea of the human soul, is common to Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism. It links the Shen to the physical body and includes the individual personality which enacts each human being’s life purpose. It is also considered to be the part of our consciousness connected with our ‘ren’ or benevolence during our lifetime. After leaving our body at death, it does not dissolve for three generations, nourished by the remembrance of our descendants; it then joins the clan ancestral spirit, or a cosmic deity, according to different beliefs.

This concept of Hun clearly illustrates the essential role of the individual in harmonious relationship with the group, which is central to our understanding of Wood. Our spiritual existence, according to this idea, is partly created by our own goodwill towards others during our lifetime and continues to be created as long as that goodwill survives and is nourished by the remembrance of those who come after us. As individuals, we are part of a larger community also on the spiritual level. Because the Hun is receptive to the links between the individual and the group it has an ambiguous relationship to territory when Wood is out of balance, so that we may become either overbearing and aggressive, taking up too much space and insensitive to others, or conversely timid, over-sensitive and lacking in self-esteem, allowing others to usurp our territory.

The Hun also shares in the activities of storage and distribution which are the functions of the liver. Ideally, it distributes goodwill and benevolence during our lifetime and this is stored and distributed back to us by our descendants after our death.

The Hun, however, does not exist only for others. As plant life grows, so the Hun grows, shaping our unique destiny. In the best-case scenario, our actions and decisions create and nourish our Hun, in the worst they inhibit and stunt it. The developed Hun is adventurous and curious; it can go ‘astral-traveling’ through dreams, linked to the body by a thread, similarly to the Western idea of the soul. It is also the source of our creativity and self-expression. All our creative, imaginative and benevolent acts come from our mutual feedback cycle with our Hun, which starts out in life with us as small and undeveloped as a seed and grows with us into a personality as complex and exquisite as a mature plant.

Movement of Wood energy: upwards

The growth of plants is essentially in all directions; the roots grow downwards and outwards, the shoots upwards and outwards. Similarly, when in a state of balance, the Liver ensures the free moving of Ki in all directions in the body. Wood Ki, however, has all the strength of spring, birth and new beginnings, and can easily become too Yang in nature. The movement of Yang is upwards, and this is the direction which Wood energy often takes in disharmony. The other expression of Wood in imbalance is Stagnation, which usually manifests in a horizontal plane, and this is discussed further in the following section.

Wood emotion: anger

The Chinese word for the Wood emotion is essentially untranslatable, and ‘anger’ is only an approximation of the meaning; it could be translated better, but more lengthily, as ‘irrepressible spontaneous outburst of energy’. The strength of a blade of grass as it pushes upwards can break through solid asphalt: the urge for action and self-expression is so strong that it cannot bear obstruction. In an ideal human culture this urge would be balanced by an emphasis on the complementary Wood quality of peaceful coexistence. However, it is more usually repressed in our earliest childhood, by the authority figures who surround us. In these circumstances anger is a way of demanding to be heard.

It is the balance between the strength of the Wood energy and the force of the repression in the environment which determines the way in which Ki flows and whether anger manifests. If the urge to grow and express is stronger than the forces acting against it, the Ki will push upward, like the blade of grass through the asphalt, with the additional impetus of anger behind it –

If this is our habitual mode of expression, we will manifest anger openly, describing ourselves as having a ‘short fuse’, or a quick temper. The upward movement of Ki which accompanies this tendency may result in violent headaches, eye problems, a red face, high blood pressure and the ensuing complications.

If the force of repression is stronger than the urge to grow, then the anger cannot manifest openly; if the asphalt is too thick, the blade of grass must direct its energy horizontally or in upon itself, seeking expression, yet weakened because it cannot get the light and air it needs. The movement of Ki in the human body, similarly, often slows down and creates horizontal blockages, particularly in areas where the body structure is already primarily horizontal, namely the throat, the diaphragm and the pelvic floor. This is where symptoms associated with repressed anger, linked in Oriental medicine with the Liver and Gall-Bladder, may manifest. Repressed anger is very common in our society, particularly in women, who have been traditionally encouraged to suppress their natural assertiveness; the anger bottled up inside often turns against the self, becoming depression. In these circumstances syndromes such as Liver Ki Stagnation or Liver Blood Deficiency are common.

When the individual is truly recognized, and encouraged to be his or her self, neither anger nor depression is an issue; then the positive qualities of Wood – creativity and harmonious coexistence – can function to their best advantage.

Wood color: green

Green is the color of the plant kingdom. It is also the diagnostic color perceived in cases of Liver or Gall-Bladder disharmony, around the eyes or mouth. The Chinese word for this color means ‘blue-green’ and the subtle hue can be this shade, but it is also common to see yellowish green.

These subtle colors come and go – they are not the same as the skin tone, but there is also a particular skin tone common in chronic Liver imbalance, which is often described as ‘sallow’ or ‘olive’. It is dark, with a greenish or yellowish tinge. If this skin tone is not a racial characteristic, it may be a sign of Liver Blood Deficiency.

In some cases, where the Liver or Gall-Bladder Ki is rising too strongly, the skin tone can be an unvarying, uniform red.

Wood sound: shouting

Shouting is the tone which we adopt when we want to draw attention to what we have to say, or to what we want. We can ‘shout’ in different ways, by amplifying our voice, by projecting it with force, or by clipping and shortening our words to convey emphasis.

Most of us do any or all of these things when the occasion calls for it, but when any of them becomes a permanent feature of our speaking voice, it usually indicates a Liver or Gall-Bladder imbalance. A voice can be loud or emphatic without sounding angry; it can be clipped without sounding angry; but it is still a shouting voice. When we repress our anger, on the other hand, we usually also repress any tendency to raise our voice or sound assertive, so that a gentle, soft, placatory tone of voice is our invariable mode, and this in itself an indication of a disharmony in Wood. A gentle voice is not in itself a bad sign; it is the inability to change it which suggests a problem.

Wood odor: rancid

Although the smells which indicate disharmony are often difficult to classify and to detect, the smell of the Liver and Gall-Bladder is the easiest. It is strong, like Wood energy, and has a slight undertone of rotting meat. If you notice an unpleasant smell when you are giving Shiatsu, it is most likely rancid.

Wood sense organ: the eyes

Our sense of sight allows us to seize the broad scope of the situation before us, in order to choose a course of action, to ‘see a clear way forward’. There are two aspects to this capacity, the Yang aspect of focusing and seeking, and the more Yin, receptive aspect of simply receiving and absorbing, allowing ourselves to see without directive intent. These two aspects can also apply on levels other than the physical – on the intellectual level of ‘far-sighted’ planning and decision-making (Yang) and the intuitive level on which, through images, we may receive ‘second sight’ (Yin). Because we must see how the land lies before we can act, the eyes are the domain of Wood.

Problems affecting the eyes, therefore, often indicate a disharmony in Wood. The Yin aspect of Wood nourishes the eyes with Liver Blood and if we over-use the Yang aspect of the eyes –for example if we use the computer for much of the working day – the Liver Blood and Yin will suffer. Blurred or fuzzy vision, whether in short or long sight, is often a sign of Deficiency of Liver Blood, and so are ‘floaters’ in the eyes. Dry, gritty-feeling eyes accompany Liver Yin Deficiency. Red or painful eyes may be a result of Liver Fire, and yellowing of the whites of the eyes is associated with Damp Heat in the Gall-Bladder.

Wood taste: sour

The taste classically associated with Wood is the sour taste, which is astringent or contracting. We can thus relate it to the experience of constriction which arises through unexpressed emotion; often the sensation of a lump in the throat or a knot in the stomach is accompanied by a sour taste, which is the physical manifestation of unpleasant emotions. Imagine sucking a lemon, and see what kind of grimace begins to form. Think also of the language we use to describe people who carry repressed anger; ‘a vinegary old woman’; a ‘sourpuss’. Sometimes the sour taste manifests from within, as a permanent taste in the mouth; sometimes the sour taste in foods is particularly craved or, alternatively, disliked.

The sour flavor, however, is useful in medicine to draw loose tissues together when they are slack (perhaps through Blood Deficiency), to tone and brace. Examples of sour foods are quinoa, most fruits, coriander seed, aduki beans, pheasant and cheese.

Wood season: spring

It is in spring that the force of Wood can be best seen. There is a particular moment in spring when shoots push up through the soil at a visible rate, a time when the rapidity of change all around can induce a feeling of disorientation. Spring is a time of rebirth after the quiescence of winter; new growth cycles begin, and our adaptability and motivation is challenged. For those whose individuality has been suppressed and who feel themselves to be ‘dead wood’, the new growth springing all around can be too much to bear. Spring is a revitalizing time for many people, but for those whose Liver or Gall-Bladder Ki is out of balance it can bring an intensification of physical and mental discomfort, and often symptoms get worse at this time.

Wood is associated with all times of beginning, not only with the spring season. Each morning is the beginning of a new cycle, and people who feel out of sorts at this time may be experiencing a Liver or Gall-Bladder disharmony. The power ‘to give birth’ is traditionally ascribed to Wood, and the birth of any major life change, whether outer, such as a change of career, or inner, such as a new relationship, can test our adaptability. Men tend to experience this more in the field of achievement of goals; women are also made aware of it in the hormonal cycles within their bodies; each menstrual cycle potentially involves the power to give birth. Wood is linked with the menstrual cycle (also via its ability to supply Blood), and with the menopause, which is a beginning as well as an end, the time when a woman ‘gives birth’ to her mature self.

Wood climate: wind

Wind is the aspect of the weather which most resembles Wood, in its force and its ability to change direction. Trees respond to wind; it shakes, strips, prunes and strengthens the strong ones; the weak trees fall. People with an imbalance in Wood often suffer in windy weather. Wind is the most dynamic and penetrating of the climatic influences and can combine with Heat or Cold to ‘blow’ them into the body (see p. 129), giving rise to sudden aches and pains, head colds or other acute infections, and those whose Liver or Gall-Bladder Ki is out of balance may be particularly susceptible.

Wind can also affect our moods; the general incidence of depressive illness rises sharply after a prolonged bout of strong wind, and certain European countries have their own malefic regional winds such as the French mistral, the Italian tramontana or the Swiss fön, which bring illness and malaise.

Symptoms in a Wood imbalance can also mimic wind in their behavior. Symptoms may move around confusingly, appear and disappear and change without warning.

A Liver or Gall-Bladder imbalance can also allow a condition known as Internal Wind to arise. Internal Wind causes tremors, spasms or tics to manifest, like leaves and branches shaken by the wind. Severe Internal Wind can cause ‘wind-stroke’, which the West also calls a stroke, with loss of consciousness and subsequent paralysis or other complications.

Wood time of day: 11pm–3am

Although our Wood Ki determines how we face the beginning of our day (see above), the specific times of the Gall-Bladder and Liver meridians according to the Chinese Clock are 11pm–1am and 1am–3am, respectively. The diagnostic significance of this is often an increase in energy, so that the individual with a Wood disharmony is wakeful at these times. This tendency to stay awake late, combined with malaise in the morning, often leads to a sense of being a ‘night person’ and a lifestyle which accommodates this preference.

Stores the Blood

The Liver is considered to act as a reservoir for the Blood of the whole body. When the body is at rest, all Blood flows back to the Liver where it is stored until needed. When the body requires Blood to nourish the tissues for action, the Liver supplies it. The Liver can fail in this function in three ways; it can be slow in making the Blood available when it is needed; it can fail to release it at all, causing Blood Deficiency; and if the Liver is hot, it can impart Heat to the Blood.

Governs free-flowing of Ki

The Liver is responsible for maintaining a free flow of Ki throughout the meridian network and the whole body. Its action in this respect is described in the texts as ‘sprinkling’ rather than pumping. When the Liver is distributing Ki well, the flow is gentle, spontaneous and even. When it is not, the result is Stagnation, which can occur in any part of the body. Stagnation of Liver Ki is responsible for a host of symptoms, commonest among which are; pain accompanied by a feeling of distension, mood swings, depression, pre-menstrual irritability with painful breasts, menstrual pain, the feeling of a lump in the throat or difficulty in swallowing. There can also be many digestive symptoms such as nausea, hiccups, abdominal distention or pain, constipation or diarrhea (often irritable bowel syndrome), caused by the Stagnant Liver Ki invading the Stomach, Spleen or Intestines. Discomfort in the chest, breathlessness and cough can result from Liver Ki Stagnation affecting the Lungs. Characteristically, the symptoms come and go depending on the person’s emotional state. If Ki stagnates over a long period of time, it can lead to Stagnation of Blood, which is often a more serious condition.

Affected by emotions

If we remember that the nature of the Wood phase of energy is the expression of the individual self, we can see that repression of feelings must affect the Wood organs. In TCM, emotional problems are usually thought to affect the Liver. Disharmonies of Liver Blood and Liver Ki are commonly caused by emotional problems, which impair the Liver’s ability to store Blood and ‘sprinkle’ Ki. It is usually the suppression of the emotions which causes the problem, rather than their free expression, and suppressed anger and resentment are the commonest causes of all. Depression can be a symptom of both Liver Blood Deficiency and Liver Ki Stagnation, and the Shiatsu giver needs to take these syndromes into account as well as considering the external factors which appear to be causing the depression.

The eyes

The eyes are the sense organ associated with the Wood Phase, and eye problems are most often part of a Liver or Gall-Bladder disharmony (although the Water meridians can also be responsible). The problem can be with vision itself, as in the blurred vision and ‘floaters’ of Blood Deficiency, or with the physical aspect of the eyes; red or bloodshot eyes, dry eyes, painful eyes. External Wind can attack more easily when the Liver is out of balance, causing twitching eyes or watering eyes among other symptoms.

The Yin of the Liver moistens the eyes. It is also involved in our tears, whether they are tears of rage or of compassion, the two emotional poles of the Wood Phase.

Liver Yin is vulnerable

On the physical level, the energy of the Liver tends to be strong and forceful, or Yang in nature. On the emotional level, the Liver asserts our individual right to growth and self-expression, a Yang function. The Yin physical attributes of the Liver, therefore, which are mainly concerned with the nourishing qualities of Liver Blood, and its Yin emotional attributes – openness and sensitivity to others – are often compromised. If the Yin of the Liver is deficient, the Yang becomes relatively preponderant and rises upwards, giving symptoms such as headaches on the top of the head, tinnitus or vertigo, accompanied by irritability. Liver Yang rising can also result from Deficient Kidney Yin, which fails to nourish the Yin of the Liver (Wood is the ‘child’ of Water in the Creative Cycle of the Elements). This is a very common condition, especially among menopausal women.

The tendons

The tendons are the body tissue dominated by the Wood Phase; the word can also be translated as ‘sinews’ or ‘muscles’. What is meant is the connective tissue which confers strength and elasticity to the muscles, and roots them to the bone. When Liver Blood is Deficient, the tendons are not nourished, and can be easily damaged or strained. Repetitive strain injury is an example of Deficient Blood, often depleted by over-use of the eyes at a computer screen, which fails to nourish the tendons. Tendons surround the joints, and help to hold them together, so that joint problems often involve the Liver or Gall-Bladder.

The nails

The nails are a ‘residue’ of the Wood Phase. In clinical practice, cracked, brittle, flaky nails are a sign that Liver Blood is Deficient and not nourishing the nails. The nails, when strong, are our ‘claws’, useful for gripping supports when climbing and for defending our territory. If they are weak, that vital source within us which desires to move forward and grow is also weak.

The ‘Ethereal Soul’

When reading in the texts that the Liver houses the Ethereal Soul (Hun in Chinese), one should remember that Chinese philosophy does not, like Western thought, admit the existence of only one soul. The Ethereal Soul is one of many aspects of the human spirit, and is the counterpart of the Po, or Corporeal Soul, which is housed by the Lungs. The Lungs come at the beginning of the cycle of the meridians, and the Po comes into being with the first breath and leaves with the last. The Liver ends the cycle of the meridians, and the Hun, which it houses, survives the body after death, though not for ever; the survival time of one’s Hun is influenced by the virtue of one’s ancestors and the dutiful remembrance of one’s descendants. The Hun can leave the body during sleep; this concept of the soul’s astral travels is also found in some Western mystical traditions. It is also said to follow the Shen in its comings and goings. The developed Hun is a courageous explorer, embodying many of the qualities we associate with the Wood Phase, and thus, ending the cycle of the meridians, is able to make the decision to begin new cycles, whatever they may be.