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The organs of Chinese medicine – the zang-fu (臟腑) – are not identical to the anatomical organs of Western medicine. Each is understood as a functional system with physical, energetic and psychological roles, defined more by what it does and the relationships it holds than by its anatomy. They are divided into the zang (the yin, solid organs that store the vital substances) and the fu (the yang, hollow organs that receive, transform and transport food and waste).
The five zang (yin) organs
- Heart – governs the blood and the blood vessels and houses the shen (mind-spirit). It is responsible for consciousness, mental clarity, memory and sleep; it ‘opens into’ the tongue and manifests in the complexion. A harmonious Heart gives a calm mind and restful sleep.
- Lung – governs qi and respiration, disseminates and descends qi and fluids, controls the exterior and the defensive (wei) qi, regulates the water passages, and houses the po (corporeal soul). It opens into the nose and manifests in the skin and body hair.
- Spleen – governs transformation and transport (the centre of digestion), produces qi and blood from food, raises the clear yang, holds the blood in the vessels, and houses the yi (intellect). It controls the muscles and four limbs, opens into the mouth and manifests in the lips.
- Liver – ensures the smooth, free flow of qi (and so of the emotions and digestion), stores the blood, controls the sinews, and houses the hun (ethereal soul). It opens into the eyes and manifests in the nails.
- Kidney – stores the essence (jing) and governs birth, growth, reproduction and ageing; produces marrow and fills the brain; governs water; grasps the qi (anchoring the breath); controls the bones; and houses the zhi (will). It opens into the ears and the two lower orifices, and is the root of the yin and yang of the whole body.
The six fu (yang) organs
- Small Intestine – receives food from the Stomach and separates the ‘pure’ (to be absorbed) from the ‘turbid’ (to be excreted).
- Large Intestine – receives the turbid residue, reabsorbs fluid, and forms and conducts out the stool.
- Stomach – receives and ‘rots and ripens’ food, and sends it down to the Small Intestine; with the Spleen it is the root of acquired (post-heaven) qi.
- Gall Bladder – stores and excretes bile to aid digestion, and governs decisiveness and courage.
- Bladder – stores and excretes urine through the transforming (qi-hua) action of qi.
- Triple Burner (San Jiao) – the ‘organ’ with a name but no single form, overseeing the movement of qi and fluids through the upper, middle and lower regions of the body.
The extraordinary fu
Beyond the familiar organs, Chinese medicine describes the extraordinary fu – the brain, marrow, bones, blood vessels, gall bladder and uterus. Shaped like fu (hollow) organs but functioning like zang (storing) organs, they store deep, essential substances and are closely tied to the Kidney and the essence.
The organs in relationship
No organ acts alone. Each yin organ is paired with a yang organ through the channels (for example Liver with Gall Bladder, Heart with Small Intestine), and the organs support and regulate one another through the generating and controlling cycles of the five elements. Digestion, for instance, depends on the Spleen and Stomach working together, the Liver keeping the qi flowing, and the Kidney providing the underlying warmth. Disease in one organ readily affects another along these established relationships.
Body and mind as one
A distinctive feature of Chinese medicine is that each zang organ is linked with an emotion and a mental-spiritual faculty – the Heart with joy and the mind, the Liver with anger and the ethereal soul, the Spleen with pensiveness and the intellect, the Lung with grief and the corporeal soul, and the Kidney with fear and the will. Body and mind are therefore inseparable: a disorder of an organ can disturb the emotions, and sustained emotional strain can injure its organ. Treatment always aims to restore the harmonious functioning of the organ systems as an integrated whole.
This article is for general information and educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.