Patrick's Commentaries on ACU-Polarity

Fountain of Youth, Anti-aging & rejuvenation via TCM

Introduction

 

Acupuncture / acupressure can minimize fine lines and wrinkles, lifts the face and chin, plums the cheeks, reduces the depth of deeper lines resulting in a brighter and smoother face.  Acupuncture produces collagen and elastin, and improves muscle tone.  It also slows the aging process.

Most wrinkles are caused by loss of muscle tone, loss of energy and balance.  Treatment increases the energy and tonifies or sedates the proper lines of wrinkles.

There are 57 muscles in the face.  All connected to each other.  Acupuncture can re-tighten the face.

Treatment typically includes insertion of about a dozen needles for about 20 minutes and some facial massage.

Acupuncture increases the blood flow to skin and muscles; as a result the face lifts itself.  The wrinkles will stay, but they are not as deep, and the whole face becomes more radiant, glowing and not sagging as before.  There is a gradual reduction in the depth of lines.

The Physiology of Aging

The physiology of aging on the face involves the skin, which covers our body like an invisible shield.  It also maintains body temperature, keeps fluids in and bacteria out.  It is the first line of defense.

The skin is the body’s biggest organ.  Continual cellular and tissue regeneration determines its health and vitality.  The top layer of the epidermis is made up of keratin, a protein material, which is effective in absorbing harmful ultraviolet rays before they penetrate the skin’s surface.  The skin needs to be kept well-cleansed, free of ashy buildup and lubricated.

The dermis is just below the epidermis.  The dermis is the skin layer most affected by the aging process.  This is where collagen and elastin is located, which is the support system as a network of interlocking protein fibers that makes the skin firm and resilient.  Collagen is the most abundant protein in the body.  It is found in the skin and all connective tissues.  It is the basic glue that binds the cells together.  As we age, it becomes increasingly rigid and inflexible.

The collapsing of collagen is what contributes to the wrinkling and sagging of the skin.  Wrinkle patterns can be inherited, but the extent of the wrinkling has more to do with life style and general health.

As the skin ages, epidermal cell generation slows, decreasing by 50% postmenopausal.  The skin becomes thinner and less flexible.  It is less able to repair damaged cells, and less capable of retaining its moisture level.  The sebaceous glands, which discharge oil, begin cutting back as estrogen and progesterone levels drop. With the reduction of these natural oils, the skin becomes dry and rough, making wrinkles even more apparent.

Nature, as the law of gravity, pulls our face down as we age even though wrinkle patterns vary from person to person.  The tissue under the eyes is extremely thin and delicate.  It stretches easily to accommodate fat and fluids.  As the ligament that normally supports the protective layer under the eye weakens, the tissue begins to sag.  Sagging skin and protruding fat causes shadows, which show up as dark circles.  This typically occurs after 40.

The Anatomy of a wrinkle –

Different types of wrinkles are caused by different kinds of stress, and as a consequence, the treatment varies.  There are 4 kinds of lines, or wrinkles that develop on the face.

 

1) – Wrinkles

Technically, wrinkles are the most superficial, fine lines that run in many directions.  They are primarily caused by sun damage and other stresses that dry the skin.

2) – Creases

Creases are deeper, thicker individual lines cause by movement, sleep position and sun damage.

3) – Folds

Folds are elevations on the skin’s surface as a result of gravity and facial movement acting on skin that has lost subcutaneous fat and elasticity.  Such loss may be due to age or sun damage.

4) – Furrows

Furrows are the reverse of folds and are similarly caused by loss of fat and elastic tissue, as well as facial movements or repeated expressions.

The loss of skin elasticity and subcutaneous fat is the earliest natural aging event.  This affects the cheeks first, then spreads to the temples, progresses around the eyes, and finally to the chin and neck.  The condition of our skin indicates our age, health, emotions and habits.

 

The TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) Way to Racial Rejuvenation

Acupressure uses pressing, rubbing, tapping and shaking techniques. Acupuncture is done along with acupressure .

The stomach and large intestine channels pass the face area, as well as the head and neck, plus local points.  The spleen regulates muscles on the face and the lungs rule the skin.

Minor side effects of acupuncture on facials such as bruising, bleeding and skin irritation do occur from time to time.

Herbal remedies can be used in conjunction with acupressure and acupuncture.

 

ACU-Polarity Facial Massage

Face and Head

1. Wash your face with water and leave wet.  Cup your left hand and pour some cold pressed oil into it.  Brahmi oil is suggested as it is said to clear the mind or you can use a moisturizer.

2. Take the index finger of your right hand. Dip into the oil that is in the cup of your hand and massage your teeth and gums.

3. Rub your hands together and bend forward and massage the oil into your hair.  Start at the hairline and massage to the back of the head with your fingertips in a claw 10 to 36 times.

4. Place your hands so that the fingertips are touching at the back of the head, with the palms covering the ears.  Bump your ears 10 to 36 times.  This makes a gentle popping sound.

5. With the palms still covering the ears, place your index finger over the middle finer.  Thump the occipital ridge 10 to 36 times.  This makes a somewhat loud drumming sound.

6. Your face is still wet and your hands are slightly oily.  Lightly rub your face with a motion like you are washing your face with a cloth; first straight up and down, then in circles – 10 to 36 times.

7. Place your thumbs on the temples with the fingers slightly curled in.  Massage in the orbital ridge surrounding the eyeball in circles 10 to 36 times.  Then massage above and below starting at the nose root and moving out to the thumb at the temples 10 to 35 times.

8. Fix your index fingers pressing into and behind the middle fingers.  With the middle fingers massage the ridge of the nose from the nostrils to the sinus cavity at the root of the nose 10 to 36 times.

9. Turn your palms facing in making a claw.  With the fingertips, rub down from the hair line as you wrinkle your brow upward.  When you reach the eyebrow with your fingertips, push back up as you wrinkle the brow downward.  Do this 10 to 36 times.

10. Curl you fingers in with the thumb up like you are hitch hiking.  With the sides of the thumb and starting above the eyebrow, massage in lines from the middle to the sides across the forehead until you reach the hairline.  With both thumbs alternating, start from the middle of the hairline rubbing to the ear 10 to 36 times.  End by placing your thumbs at the top of the hairline and in one motion rub down the hairline to the ears.

11. Split your fingers so that the index finger is against the middle and the ring finger is against the little finger.  There is a gap between the middle and ring fingers.  Place your hands beside the ears so that the ear is in the gap.  Rub up and down rapidly beside the ears causing heat and friction 10 to 36 times.  Now massage the whole ear and pull on the ear lobes.

12. Turn you palms so they are facing in toward the face.  Wipe your face with alternating palms as you turn the head side to side 10 to 36 times.

13. With the thumbs and curled index fingers of both hands, alternate pinching the throat, around the Adam’s apple 10 to 36 times.

14. Place a drop of oil on the little finger and massage the nose and inner ear; or you can drop your head back and drop in 1 to 5 drops of Brahmi oil.  Nasya oil contains Brahmi, Calamus, skullcap, and eucalyptus essential oil.  It is said to help decongest the sinuses and promote awareness and concentration and is especially made for dropping in the nose.

Next time you are in the office I can show you the details of how to do this massage.

 

 

 

I have contacted the U of Ark Philosophy department to see if the Master’s thesis “Supra-Mental Evolution in the Philosophy of Sri Aurobindo” can be retrieved, which I submitted in 1980.  Thereby checking progress, regress or philosophic static homeostasis.  While waiting, a few excepts from his book The Synthesis of Yoga are offered, beginning with the introduction:

 

“All truth and practice too strictly formulated becomes old and loses much, if not all, of its virtue; it must be constantly renovated by fresh streams of the spirit revivifying the dead or dying vehicle and changing it, if it is to acquire a new life.  To be perpetually reborn is the condition of a material immortality.”¹

Paraphrasing: Yoga, in its essence, is a special action or formulation of certain great powers of Nature and potentially is a dynamic element of the future of humanity.

Yoga is the expression of immemorial ages, preserved by its vitality into our modern times.  It is now emerging from the secret schools and ascetic retreats in which it had taken refuge and is seeking its place in the future sum of living human powers and utilities.  But it has to first rediscover itself, being like a psychological adventure into the unknown.

A right view of both life and Yoga is that the unceasing aim of Nature is consciously or subconsciously a Yoga.  All life, when we look beyond the appearances, is a vast Yoga of Nature attempting to realize her perfection and unite herself with her own divine reality.  In man/woman, her discriminating and discerning thinker, she devises self-conscious means and willed arrangements of activity by which this great purpose may be more swiftly and powerfully attained.

A given system of Yoga can be no more than a selection or compression, into more narrow but energetic form of intensity. These general methods are already being used loosely, with a profuse apparent waste of material and energy, by Nature in her vast upward labor.  It is this view of Yoga that can form the basis for a sound and rational synthesis of Yogic methods.  Then Yoga ceases to appear something abnormal, which has no relation to the ordinary processes of the World-Energy.  And which has the underlying purpose of subjective and objective self-fulfillment.  Wu!

¹ (The Synthesis of Yoga. by Sri Aur0bindo Pages 1 – 2).

 

The yin aspect of the metal phase manifests as the lung meridian. Its function is to control respiration, turn part of body fluid into sweat and disperse nourishment to the body surface.  It regulates opening and closing of the pores and sends its energy downward.

Lungs control and regulate the chi of the entire body.  The chi circulates freely when the lungs are healthy and respiration is smooth and regular.

The lungs are said to be the upper origin of water as the moisture from the air is taken in and expelled through the process of respiration.  There could be signs of edema or perspiration problems if there is a disharmony of the water descending function of the lung.  Swollen eyelids would be an example.

The protective chi (wei chi) is very much dependent on the lung chi.  If the lung chi is weak there could be poor resistance to external pathogens.  The quality of the body hair is said to indicate the condition of lung chi.

The external organ for the lungs is the nose said to be the door to the brain and the thoroughfare for respiration.  The throat is the door of the lungs and the home of the vocal cords.  Many common nose and throat disorders are treated through the lungs.

Arm Greater Yin Lung Meridian – Lu

The Lung channel begins in the middle burner at CV 12 (1) and passes downward to connect to the large intestine and comes up along the upper orifice of the stomach (2). It crosses the diaphragm (3) and enters the lung (4). It emerges from the area between the lungs and enters the throat (5). The lung meridian descends along the anterior aspect of the upper arm (6) and reaching the elbow crease (7), continues along the anterior aspect of the forearm (8) to the anterior margin of the styloid process at the wrist (9). It crosses the radial artery at the pulse, and extends over the thenar eminence (10) along the radial border (11) to the tip of the thumb (12).

A branch splits from the main channel above the styloid process at the wrist (13) and travels to the radial side of the tip of the index finger.

Special note: all organ related meridians are bilateral, they are the same on both sides of the body.

 

 

Heart

In basic Oriental medical theory the yin fire pattern manifests as the heart. The heart controls blood and vessels, and houses the mind.  This means the heart is the organ governing mental activities, consciousness, memory, thinking and sleep.  It regulates the flow of blood.  If the heart blood and chi are good, the pulse will be even and regular and blood circulation will flow smoothly.

When heart chi and blood are abundant, the shen (like spirit with a physical presence) is nourished and the individual has response-ability.  A disturbed shen may show symptoms such as insomnia, intense unpleasant dreaming, poor memory, irrational behavior or unsanity.

The heart circulates energy and opens to the tongue.  The color of the tongue body relates to the heart chi and heart blood.  A pale tongue or face might indicate deficient blood.  A purplish tongue might indicate stagnant heart blood.  Abundant heart chi and blood will promote a pinkish looking face and skin.

Another aspect of the yin fire phase is the pericardium which has the function of protecting the heart.  Pericardium is the outer protective shield and a membrane of the heart.

Arm Lesser (Shao Yin) Heart Meridian – H

The Heart Meridian (channel like a nadi or srotas) begins in the heart (1).  It emerges through the blood vessel system surrounding the heart downward (2) across the diaphragm where it connects with the small intestine.

A branch of the main channel separates in the heart (3) and ascends beside the esophagus (4) to the face where it joins the tissues surrounding the eye (5).

Another branch goes directly from the heart to the lung (6), then slants downward to emerge below the axilla (7).  From here, the channel descends along the medial border of the anterior aspect of the upper arm behind the lung and pericardium channels, to the antecubital fossa (8), where it continues downward to the pisiform bone proximal to the palm (9).  It then enters the palm (10) and follows the medial side of the little finger to the finger tip (11).

 

 

From the book The Synthesis of Yoga

The Way of Equality¹

Paraphrasing from the book The Synthesis of Yoga:  When the thought mind waits on the Truth with a detached awareness, observation, and witnessing, refusing to be carried away by attraction or repulsion, it promotes dissociation that regards the passions of the mind as born of illusion.

This develops three results:

1 – It recognizes that the mind is bound by petty joys and troubles in life.

2 – There grows an inner calm, which watches the commotion.

3 – Awareness becomes fixed in delight of Spirit in submission to the will of All There Is.

This is implemented by:

1A – Detached awareness and observation promotes inhibition of the normal reactions of the mind to outward things, becoming the witness and an expression of the Divine.

2B – Detached awareness, observation and witnessing promotes separation of the self from outward actions of natu

3C – Consciousness of All There Is brings seeing the Will of the Spirit and taking possession of the spiritual Truth.

This requires new knowledge, knowledge of unity; all things as one’s self and all things in All There Is – equal acceptance of all things.  Avoiding resistance and anger towards any idea or being, living or dead, formed or formless.

¹ (The Synthesis of Yoga. by Sri Aurobindo Pages 681 – 692).

 

THREE

The Basic Attributes of the Three Physical Constitutions (Tri-dosha) – Vata Constitution, Pitta Constitution, & Kapha Constitution

 

The five elements group into three basic types of constitutional energy or functional principles present in everybody and everything.  These are vata, pitta and kapha – the three doshas or tri-dosha.  Dosha is organization into what is considered a person’s constitution.  Doshas are the energetic agents behind DNA (the main component of chromosomes) and are the materials that transfer genetic characteristics in all life forms, which form a blueprint for anatomy & physiology.

Vata is the energy of movement, pitta is of transformation, and kapha is of structure.  If the doshas go out of balance, they corrupt or pollute or ‘vitiate’ the body tissues (the seven dhatus).

Dosha means three principles that govern psycho-physiological response and pathological changes.  The doshas – vata, pitta, and kapha – bind the five elements into the physical body that we are familiar with.  The doshas are combinations of the five elements that manifest detectable patterns in the physical world.

The ‘universal’ gunas, the three gunas – tri-gunas are the subtle energies of positive, negative and neutral (rajas, tamas, and sattva) as the electronics of the process organized to carry out the multifarious functions of the universe.  The world is nothing but the transformation of the three gunas.  These universal gunas are more associated with the movements and manifestations of the mind.

Tridoshas are the energies working on the elements as more physical manifestations of the body.  Vata is Air and Ether.  Pitta is Fire and Water.  Kapha is Water and Earth.

Attributes (Gunas) and Their Effects on Physical Constitution (Doshas)

20 basic attributes are the static potential nature of a substance.  Actions equal kinetic energy.   It is possible to understand the universe in its entirety in terms of the interactions of opposing basic attributes.  It is the law of karma played out, the opposition and interplay of yin and yang spinning in a neutral field.

Vata – Dry, Light, Cold, Rough, Subtle, Mobile and Clear.

Pitta – Hot, Sharp, Light, Liquid, Mobile and Oily.

Kapha – Heavy, Slow / Dull, Cold, Oily, Liquid, Slimy / Smooth, Dense, Soft, Static, Sticky / Cloudy, Hard, Gross.

A Person’s Body Type: Prakruti

The combination of the three doshas, which forms the person’s constitution and is set at conception, is called prakruti.  Prakruti is simply the unique psycho-physical makeup and process of that particular person.  The karmic background of a person, technically known as ‘sanskaras,’ are the underlying forces developing a person’s disposition.  Prakruti also means nature.

The present state of the three doshas is known as vikruti.  It is the difference between physical constitution (prakruti) and a person’s present state of balance of the doshas (vikruti) that provides theoretical information to formulate a program for promoting a balanced state of psycho-physical health.

When the soul enters the fetus, and after when we take birth (at the first breath), the karmic background from the causal to the mental body, from the astral body to the physical body, takes effect.  This aspect is the genetic constitution, which is determined at the moment of conception.

There is a destiny associated with this life’s current bodily constitution.  It reflects the karma associated with a particular birth.  This is the present physical expression of the causal, mental and astral bodies.

The ratio of doshas present at the time of birth, when the baby takes its first breath, is the doshic constitution.  It determines if the person is vata, pitta or kapha constitution or some combination such as vata / pitta or kapha / pitta, etc.

The mental constitution is described in terms of the universal gunas of rajas, tamas and sattva.  The mental constitution (manas) is also part of the genetic code.  At the time of fertilization, the sperm and ovum join, carrying vata, pitta and kapha from the parents and one’s karmic background.  Dr. Lad says they also carry sattva, rajas and tamas from the cosmic mind.

In order to determine your constitution, you can take the following test. On a piece of paper write V P K. Mark one under each question that pertains to you. For example, you might have V7 P8 K5. If any constitutional number were more than twice as large as the next nearest, you would be considered either vata or pitta or kapha. If the next constitution were more than one half the largest number, you would be considered vatta with a secondary pitta, for example.

Vata                                                   Pitta                        Kapha

1. Frame __ Thin                            Moderate                       Thick

2. Weight __ Low                           Moderate                        Heavy

3. Skin __ Dry; rough                   Oily, Warm,              Fair Thick, Pale, Cool

4. Hair __ Dry, Kinky                  Oily, red/yellow, gray   Thick, oily, wavy

5. Teeth __ Crooked                        Sharp, yellowish             Strong, white

6. Eyes __ Dry, small                   Sharp, penetrating         Big,                                                                                                                                                 thick eyelashes

7. Appetite __ Variable                Good, excessive                 Steady

8. Taste __ Sweet, sour, salty    Sweet, bitter, Astringent

Spicy, bitter, Astringent

9. Thirst __ Variable                     Excessive                             Scanty

10. Elimination__ Dry, hard,       Soft, oily, loose                 Thick,                                                                                                                                        oily, heavy

11. Activity __ Very active              Moderate                          Lethargic

12. Mind __ Restless                       Aggressive, intelligent   Calm, slow

13. Emotions __ Fearful,               Aggressive,                     Calm, Attached                                                                                        Unpredictable;      irritable

14. Faith __         Changeable         Fanatical                             Steady

15. Memory __ Quick to learn     Detailed                   Good long term                                                                                                  &  forget;

16. Dreams __ Fearful, flying,    Fiery, angry,       Watery, romantic                                                                                                   activity;

17. Sleep __ Scanty, Interrupted       Little but sound               Prolonged

18. Speech __ Fast                  Sharp and cutting               Slow, monotonous

19. Spending __ Spends on trifles    Spends on luxuries      Spends on food,                                                                                                                                                                      Saver

20. Pulse __ Thready, Snake like     Moderate, frog like    Slow, broad, Swan                                                                                                                                                                                         like

In summary, it is the teaching of Ayurveda that the genetic code, at the time of fertilization, does not change.  The mental constitution (manas prakruti) is subject to change.  A person can change through meditation, yoga, contemplation or the guidance of a spiritual teacher.

Vata Dosha, It’s 5 Subtypes & Chi (Qi)

The Basic Attributes of the Three Physical Constitutions (Tri-dosha) – Vata Constitution, Pitta Constitution, & Kapha Constitution

Vata and Its Subtypes

Vata is classified as five types: prana, udana, samana, apana and vyana.  How do the different functions of vata relate to their location structures in the body?

Vayu equals vata.  Vayu is more commonly in use than vata when referring to its relationship with prana and the other subtypes of vata.

Prana vayu

Prana vayu is located in the head and brain.  The governing element is ether.  It is space and it functions to fill space with a downward, inward direction functioning as the fundamental life energy.

Prana creates a meeting of the macrocosmic with the microcosmic.  Prana creates movement in the mind with thoughts, feelings, emotions, sensation and perception.

The moment there is movement, awareness becomes attention given to sensation.  Indriya means the awareness of sensation from the sense organs.  Chitta, as the possibility of awareness, means attention and consciousness.

Udana Vayu

Udana is located in the diaphragm and throat.  Its governing element is air.  It functions to move upward with the movement of the diaphragm.  It affects memory when it goes into the brain.  Udana vayu is responsible for exhalation of CO2.

Samana Vayu

Samana is located in the small intestine and navel.  Its governing element is fire.  It functions to isolate, split and separate with a linear direction.

Samana provides the energy to secrete enzymes and digestive juices from the stomach, pancreas and liver.

Apana Vayu

Apana is located in the colon and pelvic cavity.  Its element is earth.  It functions to hold with a downward, outward direction with the expulsion of urine, feces and the fetus.

Disorders below the belly button are associated with apana.

Apana vayu nourishes the bones by absorbing digested minerals through the colon mucous membranes.

Vyana Vayu

Vyana is located in the heart and whole body.  Its element is water.  It functions as pulsation and throbbing with a circular direction.

The main function of vyana vayu is to maintain cardiac activity, circulation, nutrition and oxygenation of cell tissues and organ systems.  It maintains the circulation of arterial blood, venous blood and lymphatic circulation.  And it is responsible for the movement of the joints and skeletal muscles through the reflex arc (the nerve pathways followed by an impulse during a reflex).

It is of interest to compare vata with the Oriental medicine concept of chi (qi).  Chi is very much like prana.

According to TCM (traditional Chinese Medicine) theory, there are said to be three sources of chi:

1) Source chi is transmitted by the parents at the time of conception.  Ayurveda also recognizes that the incarnating soul brings karmas from its past which will determine a major part of the present life.  This is an individual’s inherited constitution.  It is also referred to as original or congenital chi and is stored in the kidneys.

2) Grain Chi, which comes from the essence of food and drink.

3) Air Chi comes from the atmosphere in the process of breathing.

Acquired Chi is formed from the combination of grain chi and the clean air chi.  It is the energy we can acquire after conception.

Essential Chi is formed from source and acquired chi that gathers in the chest.  Essential chi nourishes the heart and lungs in their functions of moving blood and respiration.

Nutritive Chi is formed from the essence of food nutrients.  This circulates in the vessels and supplies nutrition to the organs.

Protective Chi (Wei Qi) is also formed from the essence of food nutrients.  This circulates outside the vessels, in the muscles and between the skin and flesh.  This defensive chi controls the opening and closing of the skin pores protecting the body from invasion of external pathological factors (wind, cold, summer fire, damp, dryness and heat.   Heat can be like a bacterial factor, or, combined with other external pathogens, as a viral factor).

Organ Chi – every organ has its own chi in order to carry out the function that it was designed for such as spleen chi, heart chi, lung chi, etc.

Meridian or Channel Chi – every organ has a meridian or energy pathway to carry out its various functions throughout the body.  This is the energy moving in the various meridians / channels.

The basic patterns of chi disharmony are deficiency or vacuity and stagnation.  Deficient Chi is a condition where the chi has simply become too little to perform its functions.  Symptoms might include exhaustion.  Deficient chi can be for the whole body or a particular organ unable to perform its functions.  Deficient / vacuous lung chi, for example, may cause shortness of breath.

Stagnant Chi – the chi is there but is not flowing freely.  Stagnant chi in the liver can cause pain in the ribs and abdomen, anger and depression.

Rebellious Chi – the chi is moving, but in the wrong direction.  For example, coughing is considered rebellious lung chi.

Pitta and Its 5 Subtypes

Physiologically speaking, Dr. Lad points out the locations and functions of Pitta: in the small intestine it is present as digestive enzymes; in the stomach as hydrochloric acid, pepsin, and gastric intrinsic factor (a glycoprotein secreted by the gastric mucosa that is involved in the intestinal absorption of vitamin B12); in the blood as hemoglobin; and in the liver as bile.

The five types of pitta are pachaka, ranjaka, sadhaka, alochaka and bhrajaka pitta.

Pachaka Pitta

Pachaka pitta is located in the small intestine and stomach and its governing element is fire.  Its function is digestion, absorption and assimilation.

Pachaka pitta includes hydrochloric acid, digestive enzymes, and pepsin.  It is a part of stomach fire( jathara agni).  Stomach fire is composed of pachaka pitta, prana vayu, samana vayu and kledaka Kapha.  It governs digestion in the stomach within the first two hours.

Ranjaka Pitta

Ranjaka pitta is located in the liver and spleen, and is the intrinsic factor in the stomach, and its governing element is water.  It functions to produce bile, liver enzymes and gives color to the blood.

Skin color, hair color and the color of eyes are related to ranjaka pitta. It is responsible for the generation of red blood cells in the bone marrow with its connection between the liver and spleen.

The fire component of the liver (bhuti agni) corresponds on the physical level to the liver enzymes.  Different fire components manifest as specialized enzymes that govern the transformation of unprocessed elements of food into the processed elements of tissue (the seven dhatus – tissues).  There are five of these liver enzymes technically known as bhuti agnis, which are associated with the five elements.

Sadhaka Pitta

Sadhaka pitta is located in the grey matter of the brain and heart and its governing element is ether.  It functions in conscious thinking and emotions. The outer layer of grey matter, approximately 2 mm thick, covers the entire surface of the cerebral hemispheres. The cerebral cortex is made up of neurons and supporting cells and functions to correlate information from many sources to maintain cognitive functions such as perceiving, thinking and remembering.

Sadhaka pitta is responsible for knowledge, understanding, comprehension, and appreciation.

Prana vayu, sadhaka pitta, and tarpaka kapha work together in brain functions.  Sadhaka pitta transforms physical sound into nerve impulses.  As a nerve impulse it is translated into meaning.  Meaning understands through feeling.

Experience is recorded on tarpaka kapha with the effect of sadhaka pitta, as memory. Sadhaka pitta penetrates the memory and can choose a file from the RNA/DNA molecules.  This is a function of buddhi, the intellect.  The manas (the sense perception mind) processes both external and internal sensory experiences.  The “I” memory is called ahamkar, the sense that “I am.”

There are two kinds of knowledge: knowledge from memory and knowledge from direct perception.  Knowledge from memory is only information.  ‘Insight’ comes from direct perception without interference of information.  This is also an important function of sadhaka pitta.

Alochaka Pitta

Alochaka pitta is located in the eyes and its governing element is air.  It functions to maintain iris color and visual perception.

Alochaka pitta governs the luster, color and translucence of the eye.  Along with prana, it functions in the ability to focus.

Photosynthesis requires certain enzymes to be present in the retina.  These enzymes and neuropeptides transform the optical image into the sensation.  One of these is rhodopsin (a biological pigment known as visual purple involved in the first perception of light) and is the anatomical expression of alochaka pitta in the eye.  It generates the visual impulse, which prana then carries to the mind, to buddhi, where interpretation of the impulse is accomplished by sadhaka pitta.  The meeting point of alochaka pitta and sadhaka pitta is in the occipital cortex, the posterior portion of the head.

Bhrajaka Pitta

Bhrajaka pitta is located in the skin and its governing element is earth.  It functions in maintaining the skin color, texture and temperature and  the ability to determine the shape and weight of an object by touching or lifting it (stereognosis).

The skin is kept functional by bhrajaka pitta.  Bhrajaka fire component maintains the tactile sense of touch, pain, temperature, and stereognosis.

Underneath the skin is connective tissue and within that connective tissue we accumulate unresolved anger and frustration.  In Oriental medicine, the liver controls the tendons.

Blood

Since blood is pitta, it might be of interest to look at the blood from an Oriental medicine point of view in relationship to pitta.

Blood originates through the transformation of food from digestion (stomach receives and ‘ripens’ the food).  This could be termed as derived from the essential chi (formed from source and acquired chi that gathers in the chest) from the food of the stomach and spleen.  This first step of transformation of food would be known as the formation of plasma and would still be related to what is considered a ‘fluid’.

The blood becomes red blood after being transformed by ying chi and the lungs.  Ying chi is nutritive chi. It is produced by combining the fresh air inhaled by the lung with the food nutrients absorbed and transported by the spleen. Nutritive chi is considered the most ‘essence part’ of the air, food and drink nutrients. The function of nutritive chi is the transformation of air, food and drink nutrients into blood to nourish the whole body, especially the internal organs to maintain their physiological functions.

The spleen absorbs the clear essence (spleen includes the pancreas).  The spleen chi then transports this essence upward to the lungs and heart, which transforms it into blood when it mixes with oxygen.  The blood now actively circulates continuously through the body, nourishing and maintaining various body parts propelled through the body by the heart chi.

Kidney chi is also involved by promoting the process of food absorption by the spleen / stomach and the transformation of food essences by the lung and heart.

The heart chi “rules the blood” by making it move.  The liver “stores the blood” when the body is at rest.  The spleen “governs the blood” in that it keeps it in the vessels.

Chi is involved in creating, moving and holding blood in its place.  Blood nourishes the organs that produce and regulate the chi. Chi ”commands the blood.”  Blood nourishes and is the ‘mother of chi.’

There are two major disharmonies of blood:  deficient, also termed vacuity and stagnant. Technically blood forms a stasis and it is chi that becomes stagnate.

The body, a particular organ or a body part is malnourished by the lack of blood.  Having a pale face, dry mouth or dry skin, or experiencing dizziness may indicate blood deficiency / vacuity.

Stagnant blood means the blood is not flowing smoothly.  This can manifest as symptoms of sharp, stabbing pains.  If the stagnant blood becomes further congealed it can form blood stasis manifesting tumors or cysts.

Kapha Dosha and Its 5 Subtypes

The gray matter of the brain is largely water and the water component is kapha.  The tactile sensations of touch, pain, temperature, stereognosis, and motor responses are governed by the gray matter in the motor and sensory area of the brain.  These sensations are governed by sadhaka pitta and prana vayu, but the structure of the gray and white matter are Tarpaka kapha.

The five types of kapha are Kledaka kapha, Avalambaka kapha, Bodhaka kapha, Tarpaka kapha, and Shleshaka kapha.

Kledaka Kapha

Kledaka kapha is located in the stomach and GI tract with the governing element of fire.  Its function is gastric secretions, digestion and absorption and nourishing plasma tissue (rasa dhatu).  It is liquid, soft, slightly oily, and slimy.  This kapha creates a protective lining.

Avalambaka Kapha

Avalambaka kapha is located in the lungs, pleural cavity, heart, respiratory tract, and spine with a governing element of air.  It functions to support and to hold emotions and it supports all kapha systems.

Avalambaka kapha carries pranic energy from the lungs to every cell, tissue and organ.  The liquid and sticky qualities of Avalambaka kapha maintain the lumen (passageways) of the bronchi.

Grief and sadness can affect the lungs. When this happens avalambaka kapha becomes sticky and lung function is affected

Bodhaka Kapha

Bodhaka kapha is located in the oral cavity with a governing element of water.  Its function is salivary secretions, taste, swallowing and speech. It is represented by saliva, which is liquid, sticky, sweet, and slightly oily.

There are six salivary glands with ducts that open in the sides of the cheeks.  At the base of the tongue, there are two salivary glands.  There are also two submandibular glands, which account for about 70% of the saliva volume and two parotid salivary glands situated below and in front of each ear.  The parotid glands are the largest and assist in mastication and swallowing and the in digestion of starches. When food is chewed, the food mixes with the enzymes present in the saliva and Bodhaka kapha helps to move the food down into the stomach to mix it with Kledaka kapha.  Kledaka kapha works in conjunction with Bodhaka kapha in the digestion of protein, starch and carbohydrates.

Dr. Lad points out that this kapha is called Bodhaka (buddhi) because it helps to receive the knowledge of the taste of food.  Each taste bud sends messages about taste to the brain.  The tip of the tongue perceives sweet taste, which is related to the spleen and stomach.

On the sides, the taste buds perceive sour taste related to the lungs.

The central part of the tongue perceives the bitter taste, and according to Ayurveda, relates to the liver.

On the sides of the tongue in the central area is the salty taste, which relates to the kidneys.

The back of the tongue is where the astringent taste is perceived, which relates to the colon.

Tarpaka Kapha

Tarpaka kapha is located in the brain (white matter), myelin sheath and cerebrospinal fluid with a governing element of ether.  White matter consists mostly of myelinated axons. Myelin is composed largely of lipid tissue. It functions in subconscious thinking and emotions and memory.  Tarpaka means to nourish, to retain, to record in Sanskrit.  It nourishes the brain.

DNA memory – Tarpaka kapha stores factual memory.  Biological memories can be stored in organs and tissues.

If our thoughts are crystallized and grief and sadness get stuck in Tarpaka kapha we can carry those wounds in the subconscious mind.  If Tarpaka kapha becomes thick and firm, there is crystallization and attachment.

Shleshaka Kapha

Shleshaka is present all over the body, especially in the joint spaces where two bones come together with a governing element of earth.  It lubricates the joints (synovial fluid) and nourishes the bones, articular (joint) surfaces and cartilages to promote easy movement.

Vigorous exercise can change the quality of Shleshaka kapha and hurt the joint.  The best forms of exercise are yoga, aerobic water exercises, tai chi, brisk walking and swimming.

Summary

The five elements are the building blocks.

The doshas are the organizing principles.

Each dosha has two dominant elements, but its specialized functions in specific locations require that the dosha make use of the other elements as well.

Subdosha theory helps us to understand the more specific functional relationships between the doshas and the elements.

 

 

TWO

Universal Attributes (Gunas)2

The inanimate world is connected to the animate through the life energy inherent in all matter as one of the three qualities – positive [rajas], negative [tamas] and neutral [sattva]) of nature, which manifests as one’s physical constitution (dosha). Through the universal attributes (gunas) and karmas (actions) there is a link from a model of mechanical physics to a model of the movement of the life energy in physiology. Gunas equal attributes and karmas equal actions.

The Five Elements and Their Attributes

The five elements make up the long currents of the body: they go down the front and up the back on the right side, up the front and down the back on the left side.  Long currents carry a tamasic energy quality.  Tamasic is a negative [-] polarity as in building the final material product. The long currents are behind the gross fundamental building blocks of the physical body.  The physical body is built from the gross five elements, but within the body – i.e., within consciousness – are all aspects of mind and soul.

The ‘what’s happening?’ of life on this plane basically breaks down to time, space and the law of karma (cause and effect).  Across the vast expanse of this creation, the law of karma maintains a perfect record of action and reaction, giving and taking.  It is this one law that is the fundamental underlying force of creation, as we know it.  (Four dimensions: 3 spatial, one time, and the law of karma).

Through the principle of opposition (yin & yang), actions and reactions, this universal law generates the force that produces the multitude of natural laws governing the physical universe.  This includes the laws of physics, genetics, and environmental balance – by which modern science explains the life we experience.  It also governs all activity at the more subtle levels of mind, which lie within the realm of the subconscious.  This simple principle of cause and effect creates all diversity.  It marks the line between ‘oneness’ (of spirit) and ‘complexity’ (of mind and matter) – the “10,000 things.”

Wu Chi = the unmanifest.  From the unmanifest comes the vibration of the subtle cosmic unstruck sound. From the subtle sound, the field for the game of life is laid out as the ether element (time and space) on the physical plane.

The spaces in the body – mouth, nose, G.I. tract, abdomen, capillaries and tissues are all related to the ether element.

ETHER ENERGY CENTER (CHAKRA)

The fifth, ether chakra is physically located in the throat. It is responsible for voice / speech and hearing (sound).  When the ether principle is dominant and imbalanced, it can bring negative emotions of separation / grief, greed / desire, anger, indulgence and attachment / fear.  From the energy center, the ether element runs through the middle of the body to the thumbs and the big toes.

Movement in the field of ether is represented by air. Air carries ‘prana’, the life energy.    The prana that pervades the body is classified in five main categories in Ayurvedic medical theory according to the various functions it performs:

1) Prana pervades the heart and controls respiration.

2) Apana is located in the lower abdomen and controls the functions of elimination and expelling the fetus.

3) Samana stokes the gastric fires to aid digestion.

4) Udana dwells in the thoracic cavity and controls the intake of air and food.

5) Vyana pervades the entire body and distributes the energy derived from food and breath.

AIR ENERGY CENTER (CHAKRA)

The air chakra (energy center) is located in the center of the chest.  This center is responsible for respiration and circulation.  It involves the organs of the lungs and heart.  When air combines with ether, the physical constitution of vata (vata dosha) is formed. A dosha is a biological, psycho-physical disposition that makes up an individual’s constitution.  Vata dosha is a most powerful energy because it is associated with prana, the life energy, and the 3 nervous systems (central, sympathetic and parasympathetic).

Response to movement affects the movement of the nerves carrying impulses (as the life energy) toward the central nervous system. These are sensory impulses in which the nerve cells (neurons) gather information from the external environment. Nerve impulses moving away from an organ or system are motor movements, which carry directions from the brain and organs to create motor impulses and responses.

Most disease processes are involved with an imbalance of ether/air, vata dosha.  Prana is similar to chi or qi in Chinese medicine.  Vata’s center is in the colon.

*Reproduced from POLARITY THERAPY, the Complete Collected  Works by Dr. Stone.  The two volume set is available from CRCS Publications, P.O. Box 1460, Sebastopol, CA 95473

Dr. Stone points out that “psychic sense” can be developed by concentration of mind energy on these centers.  Even the effects of psychedelics work on these centers.  Whether psychic sense or the effects of psychedelics is desirable is another question.

Then he points out that the ‘six ventricles’ of the brain relate to the six spinning chakras.  In most anatomy texts, one only finds 4 ventricles of the brain.  So it is not totally clear what Dr. Stone is referring to unless he is counting the cranium and space created by the spinal cord as 2 additional ventricles.

“Mind and prana function thru the fields of matter and its centers.”  (Dr. Stone from above).

The cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is produced by cells of the choroid plexus found in all four aspects of the ventricular system. The choroid plexus (CP) consists of many capillaries, separated from the ventricles by choroid epithelial cells. Liquid filters through these cells from the blood to become cerebrospinal fluid.  CSF flows from the lateral ventricles via the foramen of Monro into the third ventricle, and then the fourth ventricle.  From there CSF can pass into the central canal of the spinal cord or into the cisterns of the subarachnoid space.

Three layers of tissue, called spinal meninges, protect the spinal cord. (1) The dura mater is the outermost layer, and it forms a tough protective coating. (2) The arachnoid mater is the middle protective layer.  The space between the arachnoid and the underlying (3) pia mater is the subarachnoid space. It is the subarachnoid space that contains (CSF).

The CSF is eventually reabsorbed into the venous system. CSF within the spinal cord can flow all the way down to the lumbar area at the end of the cord (at L1 or L2 area) around the cauda equina, a structure in the lower end of the spine that consists of nerve roots and fine branches of the nerve roots.  The cauda equina is shaped somewhat like a horses tail.

The spinal cord is the main pathway for information connecting the brain and peripheral nervous system.   Right and left pairs of spinal nerves form along the cord, some sensory (yin – receiving information) and some motor (yang – expressing the need for action).

From the Polarity perspective it is the CSF that carries the mind patterns into the 3 nervous systems (central, sympathetic and parasympathetic) to all the nerve roots to carry out specific functions.  It is the life energy as prana that moves these patterns into the nervous systems.

According to Polarity teachings, the energy lines arise from the chakras and form the five sensory and five motor currents flowing through the body.  The five senses (as yin receiving energy) we are familiar with as hearing, touch, vision, taste and smell.  The five motor functions (as yang outgoing energy) are the mouth as in speech, the skill of the hands, the running or movement of the feet, the organ of reproduction, and the organs of elimination.

Quoting Dr. Stone, “The center line through the body is the Ultra-Sonic energy substance as the primary life current and core of being.  It flows through the sixth ventricle of the brain and spinal cord.”  Here it does appear the he refers to the cranium and spinal cord as the 5th and 6th ventricles.

The centers whirl in a clockwise motion.  If you can see the crank in the energy centers on the above chart, it is inserted in the spine from the back through to the front and turned to the right, clockwise.  This creates the energy flow from these five centers as the five long currents, which are associated with the five elements of ether, air, fire, water and earth.  The five long currents have a tamasic quality.  Tamas is a guna or quality that relates to heaviness with a negative (-) charge.  The other two gunas are sattva, which is light and balanced (o), and rajas (+), which is active movement.

The five long currents go up the front and down the back on the left side and down the front and up the back on the right side.  ”Each of the five centers gives off one wave of its special quality of vibratory energy.  In this manner, the sensory and the five motor senses are created and function in the body.”

AJNA CHAKRA

The 6th center in the forehead is the two petalled center and the seat of consciousness in the brain.  It is from here that the three currents, known in Ayurveda as ida (-) on the left, pingala (+) on the right, and sushumna (0) in the center descend polarizing each of the five centers below.  These are the three major nadis (an energy ‘tube’). These are the channels through which the energies of the subtle body flow. The chakras are the special points of intensity where they connect.  It would be nice to say these 72,000 nadis (as they are traditionally listed) corresponded to the meridian system of Acupuncture but there is some disparity between the two energy systems that cannot be neatly correlated.

The hand is the functional neuter pole. The thumb corresponds to the 5th, ether chakra in the throat and cervical vertebra of the spine.  It is associated with sound frequency.  In hearing, it is yin – sensation and in speaking, it is yang – motor function.  Being in the throat, it is associated with swallowing.  In association with hearing, it is related to the ears.  The feet are negative in relation to the neutral hands.  In the feet, the ether element is associated with the big toes.

The index finger corresponds to the 4th, air chakra in the center of the chest and in between the scapula in the back. It is associated with the sensation of feeling and touch, respiration and circulation, and the heart and lung. The motor function of air is the skill of the hands. The second toe is related to air chakra.

The middle finger corresponds to the 3rd, fire chakra located around the navel area in the front and below L2 in the spine.  It is associated with digestion, assimilation and caloric energy.  It involves the stomach (HCL) and the small intestine as the location of the solar plexus.   The middle toe is the fire toe.

The ring finger is associated with the water element and 2nd chakra below the navel in the front and at the base of the sacrum and below L5 in the spine.  It is the creative energy of reproduction. It is the placement of the gold wedding band for enhanced sexual energy and the silver band for the cooling of 2nd chakra energy. It is the forth toe in the foot and is associated with the vital force of ojas, or what is referred to as jing in Oriental medicine. It involves the genito-urinary organs.

The little finger is associated with the earth element 1st chakra. It is the smallest chakra located below the apex of the sacrum and above the coccyx.  It is the eliminative function of the bowels – the rectum and large intestine. It is the downward energy of apana.

 

*Reproduced from POLARITY THERAPY, the Complete Collected Works by Dr. Stone.  The two volume set is available from CRCS Publications, P.O. Box 1460, Sebastopol, CA 95473

To repeat what Dr. Stone says in the above chart, “Electro-Magnetic Waves of the Body and Their Polarity; and also, Currents from each of the Lobes of the Brain.” The four lobes of the brain as an anatomical and physiological description follows:

The frontal lobe - It is located at the front of the brain and is associated with conscious thought, reasoning, motor skills, sexual urges, emotions, problem solving, judging, higher level cognition, and expressive language.  It is this process that shapes personality. The frontal lobe is made up of the anterior portion responsible for higher cognitive functions (prefrontal cortex) and the posterior portion, which consists of the premotor and motor areas where the motor cortex is located, which governs our voluntary movements.  It is divided from the parietal lobe by the central sulcus. This area of the brain receives information from various lobes of the brain and utilizes this information to carry out body movements.

The parietal lobe - It is located in the middle section of the brain behind the central sulcus, and above the occipital lobe.  It has four anatomical boundaries; the central sulcus, which separates the parietal lobe from the frontal lobe, the parieto-occipital sulcus which separates the parietal and occipital lobes, the lateral sulcus which separates the parietal from the temporal lobe, and the medial longitudinal fissure which divides the two hemispheres (right and left). The optic nerves pass through the parietal lobe to the occipital lobe. The functions of the parietal lobe include information processing, movement, spatial orientation, speech, visual perception, recognition, perception of stimuli, pain and touch sensation, and cognition. Thus it plays an important role in integrating sensory information in the manipulation of objects. Damage to the parietal lobes could result in abnormalities in spatial processing.

The temporal lobe – It is located on the bottom section of the brain where there are two lobes, located on each side of the brain, at about the level of the ears. The temporal lobes contain the primary auditory cortex, which is important for interpreting sounds and the language we hear, and hence is responsible for all auditory processing, sensing smell and sound, as well as processing of complex stimuli like faces, scenery and language. The hippocampus is also located in the temporal lobe, which is why this portion of the brain is also heavily associated with the formation of memories and sorting new information.  The function of the left temporal lobe is involved in verbal memory and the right controls visual memory; thus hearing, speech and memory is processed in this area.

The occipital lobe – The smallest of all the four lobes and is located at the back portion of the brain and is associated with interpreting visual stimuli and perceptual information. The primary visual cortex, which receives and interprets information from the retinas of the eyes, is located in the occipital lobe.  The functions of the occipital lobe include visual reception, visual-spatial processing, movement and color recognition.

To repeat: what Dr. Stone says in chart #3 from above, “Electro-Magnetic Waves of the Body and Their Polarity; and, also Currents from each Lobe of the Brain.”

How do we connect the electro-magnetic energy flow with the anatomy / physiology of the physical body?  This is the question.

On the door to my office the caduceus current is depicted as it spirals out of the eye center into positive (the pingala current), negative (the ida current) and neutral (the sushumna current).  As these currents meet in the lower centers, know as chakras, they form the great five elements of ether, air, fire, water and earth.  These five elements form the basis for the five senses (hearing, touch, vision, taste and smell) and the five motor functions (speech, skill of the hands, movement of the feet, reproduction and elimination).

What Dr. Stone refers to as “a neutral core of supra sonic energy giving vibratory impulse to every cell” for simplicity and clarity we could refer to as ‘soul frequency’, hence its ability to give “vibratory impulse to every cell.”  And “In conjunction with the cosmic energy current latent in oxygen.”  Thus the cosmic energies step down, so to say, to a lower frequency for use in physical forms. In respiration, the air chakra, in the intake of oxygen, carries the life energy of prana to every cell.

The five lower chakras spin off the five long currents with a tamasic (negative, heavy, dull and thick) energy frequency that are the building blocks for anatomy and physiology.

The sattvic (neutral, light, subtle and balance) current comes out of the center of this “neutral core of supra sonic energy” out the top of the head and through the spinal cord spinning in a clockwise direction when a crank is placed in the top of the head (pictured in the above chart).  These lines of force determine the body’s ability to stand erect and the alignment of all the joints.  They are, as pointed out in the above chart, the East / West Currents as contrasted with the North / South Currents of the long element currents coming out of the five lower chakras.

In conjunction with this are the lines as “extensions of the brain,” which coordinate spinal alignment by the tension of gravity pulling on the muscles of the back.  Here it is good to look at the difference between structure and function.  Gravity, muscle weakness and tension, and injury can cause structural misalignment.  Poor organ functions below the muscles can also reflect in distorted alignment.  Looking at the spine as such, a trained eye can detect the distortion of the spine and try to make corrections by manipulations, exercise and nutrition.

One thing not pointed out in the above chart is the rajasic current, which is pictured below.

RAJASIC / FIRE CURRENT

A spiral pattern of energy emerges from the umbilical center. It is related to the solar plexus and links to physical life through the umbilical cord from the mother’s uterus. This centrifugal spiral (being rajasic) relates to the sympathetic nervous system.

To elaborate on Tamas, Rajas and Sattva – In nature, there is a triad polarity in the three conditions - the gunas - of matter.  Matter is composed of the 5 elements. Again the gunas are: 1) positive / rajas; 2) negative / tamas; and 3) neutral / sattva. They manifest physically as the three doshas of: vata (air and ether) related to sattva, pitta (fire and water) related to rajas and kapha (earth and water) related to tamas. The triad patterns function through the five elements to weave the physical body. The doshas determine the physical constitution.   The gunas determine one’s mental constitution.

So now you can see how “Electro-Magnetic Waves of the Body and Their Polarity; and also Currents from each of the Lobes of the Brain” relate to this physical body that we are somewhat familiar with.  Wu!

FIRE ENERGY CENTER (CHAKRA)

The third chakra is the fire energy center. The fire of digestion cooks the food and prepares it for assimilation by the intestines and spleen. This center includes the bowels. The first 1/3 of the small intestine, the duodenum, is the location of the solar plexus. Here the fire of hydrochloric acid of the stomach is mixed with the enzymes from the pancreas and the bile from the gall bladder to ‘cook’ the food.

From fire comes sight. A dominant fire element produces hunger and thirst. When fire combines with water, it forms the physical constitution of pitta (pitta dosha). When pitta dosha is imbalanced, you may find ulcers, inflammations, rashes, etc. The pitta constitution may be prone to anger (heat) and intelligence (the fire of brilliance). Pitta’s seat is in the duodenum, which as mentioned, is the first one-third of the small intestine.

The precipitation from fire produces the water element. Water involves the secretions of digestive juices.

WATER ENERGY CENTER (CHAKRA)

The second chakra is the water chakra. This center has to do with the generative, reproductive force and all of its emotional ramifications. This center is also responsible for all the glandular secretions. The water element brings the ability to taste. When the water element is dominant, saliva, sweat, urine, semen and blood are produced. Also associated with this center is the formation of ojas. Ojas is the subtle essence of body fluids responsible for health, a sense of well-being and what Dr. Stone termed the vital force. It is referred to as “jing” in Oriental medicine.

When water condenses, the earth element is formed.  Earth – all solid structures are derived from Earth.

EARTH ENERGY CENTER (CHAKRA)

The first chakra is the earth energy center. This center is involved with the elimination of solids and liquids. Its organs are the rectum and bladder. The earth element brings the ability to smell. When earth is dominant, hair, skin, blood vessels, flesh and bones are formed. When earth combines with water, the physical constitution of kapha is formed (kapha dosha). Kapha’s seat is in the stomach and lungs.

All five elements and their respective energy centers originate from the energy within cosmic consciousness and all five manifest and are present within matter; thus, energy and matter are one, but matter is condensed like ‘frozen energy.’

The Five Elements and the Tanmatras -
The tanmatras are the way in which the objective material world is sensed. It is the experience of the sense perception mind technically known as ‘manas.’ Tan means subtle and matra means the elements; so the subtle aspects of the five elements are: sound (ether), touch (air), form or vision (fire), taste (water) & smell (earth).


           As this chart indicates (taken from Dr. Stone’s writings, Chart No. 11 in the 25 chart series), he recognized the existence of many centers above the five element chakras. 
 No. 1 is the astral plane, location of the thousand petalled lotus.  Center No. 2 is the causal plane, source of mind energy.  No. 3 through 8 are the supra mental regions of soul awareness.

Even though these mental / spiritual and purely spiritual centers are acknowledged, they are inaccessible through the practice of acu-polarity, 
polarity or acupuncture alone, but through meditation under the guidance of an adept who is present to give personal guidance and instruction.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

34 FAVORITE HERBAL FORMULAS

TONIC FORMULAS

1.         Ginseng and Astragalus (Bu Zhong Yi Qi Tang)

2.         Tang Kuei and Ginseng 8 (Ba Zhen Tang) +

3.         Rehmannia 6 Combination (Liu Wei Di Huang Wan)

4.         Rehmannia 8 Combination (Ba Wei Di Huang)

5.         Jade Screen (Yu Ping Feng San)

6.         Ginseng and Logan (Gu Pi Tang)

7.         Ginseng & Zizyphus (Tian Wang Bu Xin Dan)

8.         Two Immortals (Er Xiang Tang)

DIAPHORETIC FORMULAS

9.         Lonicera and Forsythia (Yin Qiao San)

10.         Pueraria Nasal Combination (Qing Bi Tang)

11.         Tang Kuei & Arctium Combination (Xiao Feng San)

12.         Minor Blue Dragon (Xiao Qing Long Tang)

13.         Pueraria Combination (Ge Gan Tang)

14.         MaHuang & Gingko (Ding Chuan Tang)

15.         Xanthium RS

 

BLOOD FORMULAS

16.         Clematis & Stephania Combination (Shu Jing Huo Xue Tang)

17.         Du huo & Loranthus Combination (Du Huo Ji Sheng Tang)

18.         Persica & Carthamus (Xue Fu Zhu Yu Tang)

19.         Peony and Licorice (Shao Yao Gan Cao Tang – SPZM)

20.         Imperata 9

ANTI-RHEUMATICS

21.         Notoptergium & Turmeric (Chuan Bi Tang)

DIGESTIVE FORMULAS

22.         Curing (Huo Xiang Zheng Qi San)

23.         Six Noble Ingredients (Xiang Sha Liu Jun Zi)

HARMONIZING FORMULAS

24.         Bupleurum and Peony (Jia Wei Xiao Yao San)

25.         Tang Kuei & Bupleurum (Xiao Yao San)

26.         Tang Kuei and Peony (Dang Gui Shao Yao San)

27.         Minor Bupleurum (Xiao Chai Hu Tang)

28.         Bupleurum & Dragon Bone (Chai Hu Jia Long Gu Mu Li Tang)

29.         Bupleurum & Cinnamon (Chai Hu Gui Zhi Tang)

30.         Gentiana Combination (Long Dan Xie Gan Tang)

31.         Chronic Liver C (Gan C Pian)

 

FEVER CLEANSING

32.         Isatis Combination (Chuan Xin Lian Kang Yang Pian)

WIND DISPELLING FORMULAS

33.         Gastrodia and Uncaria (Tian Ma Gou Teng Yin)

DIURETIC FORMULAS

34.         Dianthus Combination (Ba Zheng San-Akebia Moist Heat)

*Treatment protocols for various ailments are at the end of this post.

 

An herbal formula normally contains four types of herbs: the chief herb or herbs (the main or chief components of the formula), supporting or ministerial herbs (which promote the chief), assisting herbs (to reduce side effects), and conduction or servant herbs (to harmonize and coordinate all the herbs in the formula and direct the formula to the desired area of the body o be treated).

 

TONIC FORMULAS nourish and supplement energy, blood, yin or yang.  They treat lack of energy, anemia, cold hands and feet, impotence and infertility.

1.         Ginseng and Astragalus (Bu Zhong Yi Qi Tang): Astragalus 18%, Ginseng 14% White Atractylodes 9%, Baked Licorice 9%, Dang Kuei 9%, Cimicifuga 7%, Bupleurum 7%, Citrus Peel 9%, Red Date 9%, Fresh Ginger 9%..

Nourishes and replenishes chi; tonifies spleen and stomach; uplifts yang.

Indicated for chi deficiency with prolapse; fatigue, loose stool, weight loss.

Pulse: weak, large.  Tongue: Pale, slightly swollen with white coat.

Add Bitter Orange (Zhi Ke) and extra Ginseng for prolapse of the uterus or rectum,

Add Vitex and Ligusticum Wallichi for headache,

Add Clematis, Siler, and Notopterygium for bi (blockage) pain,

Add Dioscorea, Poria and Psoralea for diarrhea,

Add Stellaria and Artemisia (Qing Hao) for fevers,

Add Wheat Levis and Calcium / magnesium for spontaneous sweating,

Add Atractylodes (Cang Zhu) and Pogostemi (Huo Xiang) for damp accumulations with thick tongue fur and glomus,

Add Dioscorea, Psoralea, Lindera and Alpina for bedwetting,

Add Red Peony, a larges dose of Coix and Poria for hemorrhoids with deficiency and local inflammation.

2.         Tang Kuei and Ginseng 8 (Ba Zhen Tang):  Ginseng 11%, Rehmannia (cooked) 12%, Tang Kuei 11%, Ligusticum 11%, White Peony 11%, White Atractylodes 10%, Poria 10%, Licorice 6%, Fresh ginger 11%, Jujube 7%.

Nourishes and replenishes spleen chi and liver blood, and regulates the flow of blood.

Indicated for amenorrhea, loose stools, dizziness, dry hair and skin, irregular menstruation, postmenstrual fatigue, threatened miscarriage and postpartum anemia.

Pulse indications: Thin and weak.  Tongue: Pale body, swollen, thin white coat.

Combination of Tang kuei four – Si Wu Tang for supplementing blood & four Gentlemen – Si Jun Zi Tang for boosting chi.

Add Zizyphus and Biota Seed for insomnia due to chi and blood deficiency,

Add Eucommia, Psoralea and Rosa for low back pain due to blood, chi and kidney deficiency,

Add Apricot Seed and Aster for cough with chi and blood deficiency,

Add Artemisia (Ai Ye) and Imperata for uterine bleeding with chi and blood deficiency,

Add Hemp seed (Huo Ma Ren) for constipation,

Add Leonurus for irregular menses or postpartum bleeding due to chi and blood vacuity,

Add Cinnamon Bark and Astragalus to treat weakness after illness regulate constructive nutrition (ying) and rectify defensive (wei) chi – this addition makes the well-known formula Ginseng & Tang Kuei Ten.

3.         Rehmannia 6 Combination (Liu Wei Di Huang Wan): Rehmannia (cooked) 32%, Cornus 16%, Dioscorea 16%, Alisma 12%, Moutan Bark 12%, Poria 12%.

Reinforces the yin of liver, kidney and stomach.

Indicated for dry eyes and mouth, thirst, retarded growth, lumbago, diabetes, hyperthyroidism, hypertension, deafness and chronic urinary tract infection.

Pulse indications: Thin, slightly rapid.  Tongue: Red, thin body with scant fur.

Add Zizyphus and Polygonum (Ye Jiao Teng) for insomnia related to kidney yin vacuity,

Add Stemona and San Qi for lung yin deficiency cough,

Add Trichosanthis Root and Smilax (Tu Fu Ling) for Yin vacuity thirst,

Add Eucommia, Loranthus and Mulberry Leaf for yin vacuity high blood pressure; can also add Gastrodia and Gambir Combination,

Add Eucommia and Achyranthes for pain and weakness of the low back or knees.

4.         Rehmannia 8 Combination (Ba Wei Di Huang Wan or Jin Kui Shen Qi Wan): Rehmannia (cooked) 28%, Cinnamon 5%, Poria 12%,, Moutan 12%, Dioscorea 14%, Cornus 14%, Aconite 5%, Alisma 10%.

Reinforces kidney yang.

Indicated for weak or cold knees or back, loose stools, diabetes, nephritis, edema, cystitis, urinary incontinence, night urination, diabetes, impotence, lumbago and sciatica.

Pulse: sunken, slow and weak in kidney position.  Tongue: Pale.

Add Eucommia and Dipsacus for pain and weakness in the low back or knees,

Add Epimedium, Cuscuta and Lycium for impotence due to kidney deficiency,

Add Schizandra for asthmatic breathing,

Add Pseudostellaria, Achyranthes and Plantago Seed for thirst due to kidney yang vacuity in diabetic like disorders.

5.         Jade Screen (Yu Ping Feng San): Astragalus 10-15 grams 36%, Sileris 9-12 grams 32%, Atractylodes 9-12 grams 32%.

Tonifies Wei (defensive) chi.

Indicated for people born of asthmatic parents, who have “hidden phlegm,” to fortify their lungs.  Used for frequent colds, allergies, flus and perspiration from weakness.

Best used when symptoms are not present.  Protects the body from external pathogens like a ‘screen of jade.’

Pulse: Can be floating, weak in spleen and lung.  Tongue slightly red or normal.

Combine with Pueraria Nasal combination plus Red Peony and Scutellaria for acute allergic rhinitis,

Add Xanthium and Magnolia Flower for seasonal allergies,

Add Dioscorea, Euryale, Codonopsis and Schizandra for breast vacuity leakage,

Add Ginseng and Licorice for Chi deficiency,

Add Tang Kuei and Ligusticum Wallichii for blood deficiency headaches.

6.         Ginseng and Logan (Gui Pi Tang): Ginseng 9-10 grams 10%, Longan Fruit 9-10 grams 10%, Atractylodes alba 9-10 grams 10%, Poria 9-10 grams 10%, Zizyphus Seed 9-10 grams 10%, Astragalus 9-10 grams 10%, Tang Kuei 9-10 grams 10%, Polygala 9-10 grams 10 %, Fresh Ginger 6%, Saussurea 5 %, Licorice 5%, and Jujube 4%.

Boost spleen chi, supplement heart blood, strengthens the spleen, and calm the spirit (shen).

Indicated for palpitations, racing heart beat, insomnia, and fatigue with pale complexion.  Also, can be used for damage to spleen due to overeating.  Excessive thinking or worry causing taxation to the heart and spleen that leads to forgetfulness.

Pulse: thin and weak.  Tongue: pale body.

Add Polygonum Multiform (Ye Jiao Teng) for insomnia,

Add Hemp Seed (Huo Ma Ren) for constipation,

Add Moutan and Sanguisorba for blood heat with spotting,

Add Cardamon (Sha Ren) for poor appetite,

Add Cooked Rehmannia for night sweats when there is no spleen vacuity,

Add Ailanthus and Lotus Seed for vagina discharge,

Add magnesium for palpitations,

Add Lycium for vacuity fatigue,

Add Sanguisorba for blood in stool,

Add Gardenia and Bupleurum for liver chi stagnation with heat.

7.         Ginseng & Zizyphus (Tian Wang Bu Xin Dan): Raw Rehmannia 10%, Scrophularia 8%, Ophiopogon 8%, Asparagus 8%, Salvia 8%, Dang Kuei 6%, Poria 8 %, Biota Seed 8%, Polygala Root 6%, Schizandra 10%, Jujube (Suan Zao Ren) 8%, Platycodon 6%, Ginseng 6%.

Nourishes Heart and kidney yin, heart blood and yin.

Indicated for shen disturbance for insomnia, forgetfulness, restlessness, fatigue and hypertension.

Pulse: Thin, could be weak, rapid or irregular.  Tongue: red, dry or thin coat.

Combine with Tang Kuei and Bupleurum Combination for excessive thinking.

Add Coptis and Moutan for tongue and mouth sores,

Add Hemp Seed, Zhi Shi and Magnolia Bark for dry stool constipation,

Add Polygonum Multiflorum (Ye Jiao Teng) and Albizzia Flower for insomnia,

Add Euryale, Cal/Mag and Rosa for dream emissions.

8.         Two Immortals (Er Xiang Tang): Curculigo 22 %, Epimedium 22%, Morinda 14%, Tang Kuei 14%, Phellodendron 14%, Anemarrhena 14%.

Replenishes Kidney Yin and Yang.  Clears Heat.

Indicated for irregular menstruation, dizziness, tinnitus, menopause symptoms of hot flashing and night sweats.

Pulse: Thready and rapid.  Tongue: pale.

Add Eucommia for high blood pressure,

Add Stellaria and Picrorhiza for hot flashes,

Add Polygala and Zizyphus Seed for insomnia.

Add Nine Flavor Tea Combination for night sweating.

 

DIAPHORETIC FORMULAS promote sweating, relieve muscular tension and expel toxins on the surface.  These formulas treat colds, flu and fevers.

9.         Lonicera and Forsythia (Yin Qiao San):  Lonicera flower 16%, Forsythia 16%, Arcticum 11%, Mentha 11%, Schizonepeta 7%, Prepared Soybean 7%, Platycodon 11%, Bamboo leaf 7%, Phragmitis 7%, Licorice 7%.

For invasion of wind and heat.

Indicated for the initial stages of fever without chill.  Symptoms and applications include fever, headache, little or no sweating, thirsty, cough, sore throat, measles, flu, swollen lymph and tonsillitis.

Pulse indications: rapid & floating.  Tongue indications: Red or red tongue tip.  Not to be used for wind and cold which would have a tight pulse and no red tip on the tongue.

Typically used in large dose for the first 24 to 48 hours.

Add Gypsum, Anemarrhena and Scutellaria for high fevers,

Add Isatis Root, Belamcanda and Scutellaria; or, Scrophularia for sore throat,

Add Peucedanum and Apricot Seed for cough,

Add Pueraria Nasal Combination for nasal congestion,

Add Chrysanthemum, Vitex and Tribulus for wind-heat eye disorders,

Add Tribulus for wind-heat skin rashes and/or combine with Tang Kuei & Arctium Combination,

Add Pueraria Root for Chicken pox to ‘outthrust’ pox,

Add Dandelion and Coptis for toxic swellings,

Add Tienchi Ginseng (San QI), Mastic, Myrrh and Angelica for acute traumatic injury (sprains, strains, contusions),

Add Trichosanthis Root for thirst,

Add Pogostemi and Curcuma for damp characterized by chest oppression,

10.         Pueraria Nasal Combination (Qing Bi Tang):  Pueraria 4 grams 19%, Ma-Huang grams 9%, Ginger 2 grams 9%, Jujube 2 grams 9%, Cinnamon twig 1.5 grams 7%, Peony 1.5 grams 7%, Licorice 1 gram 6%, Magnolia flower 1.5 grams 7%, Cnidium 1.5 grams 7%, Platycodi 1.5 grams 7%, Gypsum 1.5 grams 7%, Scutellariae 1.2 grams 6%.

For stuffy nose, with heat-type syndrome (colored phlegm, yellow or green).  Bitter, sweet and cold.  Lung wind heat, invasion of wind cold, lung phlegm damp.

Indicated for runny nose, sneezing, fatigue, headache, sinus infection, fever, itching nose and throat, loss of smell, snoring and impatience.

Pulse: Superficial, could be slightly fast and slippery. Tongue: Red tip, yellow coating.

Add Scutellaria, Red Peony and combine with Yin Qiao San for wind heat patterns with nasal congestion and thick yellow discharge.

11.         Tang Kuei & Arctium Combination (Xiao Feng San): Tang Kuei 8 grams 10%, Arctium 8 grams 10%, Schizonepeta 8 grams 10%, Siler 8 grams 10%, Fresh Rehmannia 8 grams 10%, Sophora Root 8 grams 10%, Atractylodes (Cang Zhu) 8 grams 10%, Anemarrhena 8 grams 10%, Gypsum 8 grams 10%, Licorice 6 grams 6%, Akebia 4 grams 4%.

Treats rashes caused by wind, heat and damp, which can manifest as papules with itching.

Indicated for hives, eczema, dermatitis, heat rashes, drug reaction skin rashes and various allergic skin rashes.  Best used for the initial treatment only.

Pulse indications: Floating, rapid and forceful.  Tongue indications: Red with white or yellow tongue fur.

Combine with Bupleurum and Peony combination for liver qi stagnation,

Add Lonicera, Forsythia and Scutellaria for severe itching and red rash,

Add Smilax and Kochia for damp discharge,

Add Red Peony, Lithospermum and extra Raw Rehmannia for heat in blood where itching is worse at night with a bright red or purple rash or purpura.

12.         Minor Blue Dragon (Xiao Qing Long Tang):  Ma-Huang 6-9 grams 9%, Cinnamon twig 9-12 grams 11.5%, Peony 9-12 grams 11.5%, Dry ginger 9-12 grams 11.5%, Asari, 6-9 grams 9%, Schizandra 9-12 grams 11.5%, Pinellia 9-13 grams 12%, Magnolia flowers 6-9 grams 9%, Xanthium Fruit 6-9 grams 9%, Licorice 3-6 grams 6%.

Warm and pungent.  For lung cold.

Indicated for wind/cold with interior fluids with signs of lung congestion, sinus congestion, diarrhea, headache, allergic congestion, common cold, flu, chronic bronchial asthma, and emphysema.  Lung cold is indicated by clear or white mucus.

Pulse indications: Floating, slippery.  Tongue indications: white tongue fur.

Add Gypsum and Scute for signs of heat in the lungs,

Add Mustard Seed and Perilla Seed for cough and wheezing with copious phlegm,

Add Fresh Ginger Peel and Poria for water swelling in the limbs.

13.         Pueraria Combination (Ge Gan Tang): Pueraria 6-9 grams 20%, Ephedra 6-9 grams 20%, Cinnamon twig 6-9 grams 20%, White Peony 6-9 grams 20%, Ginger 3 grams 6%, Licorice 3 grams 6%, Jujube 4 grams 8%.

Dispels wind/cold with muscle ache, particularly in the neck.  No perspiration.

Indicated for common cold, headache, stiff neck and frozen shoulder.

Pulse indications: Floating and wiry.  Tongue indications: pink with coat.

Add Turmeric, Notopterygium, Carthamus and Aconite for stiff neck and frozen shoulder and increase the dosage of Pueraria,

Add White Peony, Saussurea, Scutellaria and Coptis for acute wind-cold patterns, with diarrhea add extra Pueraria,

Add Red Peony, Scutellaria and Xanthium for chronic rhinitis.

14.         Ma Huang & Gingko (Ding Chuan Tang): Gingko Nut 20%, Perilla Seed 12%, Tussilago 12 %, Mulberry Bark 12%, Apricot Seed 12%, Pinellia 9%, Ephedra 9%, Scutellaria 9%, Licorice 5%.

Clears heat in the lung.  Expectorant.

Indicated for Asthma, chronic bronchitis, and emphysema.

Pulse: Red with yellow or greasy coat.  Tongue: Slippery and rapid.

Add Gypsum and Scutellaria for prominent lung heat,

Add Rhubarb and Benincasa for constipation,

Add Zhi Ke and Bamboo (Zhu Ru) for fullness in the chest,

Add Peucedanum for cough.

15.         Relieve Wind Combination: Xanthium 9%, Magnolia Flower 9%, Platycodon 9%, Schizandra Fruit 9%, Angelica Root 9%, Chrysanthemum 9%, Siler 9%, Schizonepeta 9%, Astragalus 12%, White Atractylodes 10%, Licorice 6%.

Functions to clear wind conditions.  Opens nasal passages, dispels damp and removes toxins.

Indications for allergic reactions, itching skin rashes and stuffy or runny nose and sinus headache.

Add Arcticum for skin rash,

Add Vitex and Ligusticum Wallichi for headache,

Add Atractylodes (Cang Zhu) and Pogostemi for damp accumulation with thick tongue fur and glomus.

 

BLOOD FORMULAS circulate the blood, increase the hemoglobin, stop bleeding and cool or warm the blood.  These formulas treat poor circulation, stagnation, hemorrhage, vomiting blood and bloody urine or stool.  There is more ‘blood stasis’ as contrasted with ‘wind, cold and damp’ in the anti-rheumatics formulas to follow in the next section.

16.         Clematis and Stephania Combination (Shu Jing Huo Xue Tang): Peony 11%, Tang Kuei 9%, Raw Rehmannia 9%, Persica 7%, Poria 5%, Atractylodes – Red 7%, Notopterygium 5%, Angelica root 5%, Citrus peel 7%, Clematis 7%, Siler 5%, Stephania 5%, Gentiana 5%, Achyranthes 7%, Ligusticum 3%, Licorice 3%.

Invigorates circulation of blood in channels and tendons, dispels wind, cold and damp.  Used for gout, arthritis, lumbago, sciatica, edema and postpartum pain.  Nourishes blood more than chi.

Pulse indications: tight.  Tongue indications: pale or pink with purple spots.

Combine with Tuhuo & Loranthus Combination and add Dipsacus and extra Eucommia for chronic low back pain,

Add Carthamus, Mastic and Myrrh for second stage trauma to the lower extremities,

Add Pinellia for phlegm,

Add Ginseng and Atractylodes Alba for chi deficiency,

Add Clematis, Phellodendron Bark, Coix and Chaenomeles for obstruction pain in the lower body.

17.         Du huo & Loranthus Combination (Du Huo Ji Sheng Tang): Angelica Du Huo 9 grams 10%, Loranthus 6 grams 6.5%, Eucommia 6 grams 6.5%, Cyathula 6 grams 6.5%, Asarum 6 grams 6%, Gentiana Macrophylla Root 6 grams 6.5%, Poria 6 grams 6.5%, Cinnamom Bark 6 grams 6.5%, Siler 6 grams 6.5%, Ligusticum 6 grams 6.5%, Ginseng 6 grams 6.5%, Licorice 6 grams 6%, Tang Kuei 6 grams 6.5%, White Peony 6 grams 6.5%, Rehmannia, cooked 6 grams 6.5%.

Tonifies liver and kidney, supplements chi and blood, dispels wind, cold and damp and relieves pain.  Used for knee and low back pain, numbness or any pain below the waist.

Pulse indications: fine and weak.  Tongue indications: pale with white coat.

Combine with Clematis & Stephania and add Phellodendron Bark, Mastic and Myrrh for acute conditions;

Add Astragalus for chi deficiency,

Add Dipsacus for low back pain,

Add Chaenomeles, Coix, Phellodendron Bark and Cyathula for redness and/or swelling in the lower joints,

Add Lonicera, Stephania and a small dose of Gentiana for redness and swelling that moves around,

Add Salvia and Carthamus for blood stasis.

18.         Persica & Carthamus (Xue Fu Zhu Yu Tang): Persica 16 %, Carthamus 12 %, Tang Kuei 12 %, Fresh Rehmannia 12 %, Cyathula 12 %, Zhi Ke 8 %, Red Peony 8 %, Platycodon 6 %, Ligusticum 6 %, Bupleurum 4 %, Licorice 4 %.

Moves blood and dispels stasis, moves chi and relieves pain.

Indications: Intercostal neuralgia, breast nodulations, upper body bleeding during menstruation, heart blockages.

Pulse: Hesitant, or wiry.  Tongue: dark red with purple spots.

Add Gao Ben for the top of the head blood stasis headache; side headache add White Peony, for occipital region – Pueraria Root; for forehead – Angelica Root.

Add Salvia Root and Corydalis for intercostal neuralgia,

Add Vaccaria Seed, Glenditsia Spine and Dandelion for breast nodulation,

Add Albizzia Bark, Zizyphus Seed, and 2% Coptis for insomnia,

Add Rhodiola, Dragon Blood, and Salvia for angina pain.  If deficiency, add Ginseng and Schizandra.

19.         Peony and Licorice (Shao Yao Gan Cao Tang – SPZM): Peony Root 20%, Licorice 20%, Pueraria Root 20%, Millettia 15%, Clematis 15%, Cal / Mag 10%.

Invigorates blood, moistens and nourishes the sinews, relieves stagnation and opens channel flow.

Indication muscles spasms or pain affecting the upper body.  Numbness, tremors or lack of strength in the limbs; wrist pain, carpal tunnel syndrome.

Pulse indication: wiry.  Tongue indications: scant tongue fur.

Add Fennel and Corydalis for Hernia pain,

Add Saussurea and Cyperus for abdominal pain,

Add Saussurea and Coptis for cramping due to camp-heat diarrhea,

Add Achyranthes and Chaenomeles for leg cramping,

Add extra Millettia for blood vacuity joint pain.

20.         Imperata 9 Combination: Imperata 15%, Agrimony 15%, Sophora Fruit 10%, Scutellaria 10%, Cat Tail pollen 10%, Rehmannia, Raw 10%, Lotus Node 10%, Sanguisorba 10%, Biota Leaves 10%.

Clears Heat to inhibit bleeding.

Indications: Hemoptysis with lung infection, urinary tract infection, urinary bleeding, rectal bleeding associated with hemorrhoids or ulcerative colitis and uterine bleeding due to infection or fibroids.

Combine with Bupleurum and Peony formula for functional uterine bleeding,

Combine with Gentiana Combination (Long Dan Die Gao Tang) for uterine bleeding related to infection,

Combine with Celosia 10 (7 Forest) for retinal bleeding,

Combine with Ginseng and Astragalus Combination for ulcerative colitis,

Add Dianthus, Talc, Plantago and Alisma for hematuria,

Add Belamcanda, Houttuynia, Apricot Seed, Morus Leaf and Ophiopogon for hemoptysis,

 

ANTI-RHEUMATICS treat “bi” syndromes, which are caused by ‘obstruction’.  This includes sciatica and muscular pain, arthritis caused by wind, cold and damp.

21.            Notoptergium & Turmeric (Chuan Bi Tang): Notopterygium 14%, Tumeric (Jiang Huang) 14%, Astragalus 16%, Dang Gui 14%, Red Peony 14%, Siler 14%, Fresh Ginger 6%, Licorice 6%, Jujube 2%.

Relieves wind, cold and damp obstruction.  Removes blood stagnation.  Best to use when pain is the predominant symptom.

Indicated for arthritis, Bursitis, difficulty in moving joints and limbs, upper body pain, and spasms.

Pulse: wiry or choppy.  Tongue: Wet with greasy coat.

With damp swelling add Coix Combination.

 

DIGESTIVE FORMULAS aid digestion and dissolve congestion and undigested food due to a malfunction of spleen and stomach.  Treat nausea, belching, distention, diarrhea and tumors.

22.         Curing (Huo Xiang Zheng Qi San): Coix 10%, Poria 10%, Magnolia Bark 7%, Red Atractylodes, 7%, Pogostemon 7%, Pueraria 7%, Angelica 7%, Saussurea 7%, Trichosanthis Root 7%, Oryza 7%, Massa Fermentata 7%, Gastrodia 5%, Chrysanthemum flowers 4%, Citrus 4%, Mentha 4%.

Transforms damp, resolves the exterior and harmonizes the center.

Fragrant and warm.  For digestive complaints – abdominal pain, gas, nausea, morning sickness, vomiting, stomach flu and diarrhea.

Tongue indications: Swollen, greasy, white coat.  Pulse indication: slippery.

Add Peucedanum for cough,

Add Capillaris and Stephania for summer heat when damp heat is present,

Add Bamboo Shavings for morning sickness,

Add Mastic for a strong exterior pattern,

Add extra Coix and Plantago for damp,

Add Crataegus, Massa Fermentata, Hordia (Mai Ya) and Areca Seed for digestive stagnation.

23.         Six Noble Ingredients (Xiang Sha Liu Jun Zi): Saussurea 10%, Cardamon (Sha Ren) 10%, Ginseng 15%, White Atractylodes 15%, Poria 10%, Citrus Peel 10%, Pinellia 15%, Licorice (Zhi Gan Cao) 10%.

Fortifies the spleen, disperses damp accumulations and relieves abdominal pain.

For poor appetite, belching, abdominal distention, nausea and diarrhea.

Pulse indications; slippery or weak.  Tongue pale with a greasy coat.

Add Fennel and Dried Ginger for stomach cold pain,

Add Curcuma, Hordia and Cyperus for liver invading the spleen,

Add Hordia, Massa Fermentata and Crataegus for digestive accumulation with belching and food stagnation,

Add Magnolia Bark for abdominal distention,

Add Perilla (Su Ye) and Bamboo Shavings for vacuity cold morning sickness,

Add Cardamom Cluster (Bai Dou Kou), Ginger and Psoralea for spleen vacuity diarrhea with undigested food particles.

 

HARMONIZING FORMULAS harmonize chronic and acute, deficient and excess conditions.  Treat prolonged symptoms of cold, flu, asthma and bronchitis and gynecological disorders.  Harmonizes liver, spleen, stomach and intestines.

24.         Bupleurum and Peony (Jia Wei Xiao Yao San):  Moutan bark 6-9 grams 12%, Gardenia fruit 3-6 grams 6%, Bupleurum 6-9 grams 12%, Tang-Kuei 6-9 gm 12%, White Peony 9-12 gm 18%, White Atractylodes 6-9 grams 12%, Poria 9-15 grams 18%, Mentha 1-3 grams 2%, Fresh Ginger 1-3 grams 2%, Baked Licorice 3-6 grams 6%.

For blood deficiencies with heat.  Soothes liver chi stagnation, fortifies the spleen and regulates menstruation.  Bitter, acrid and cold.

Indicated for symptoms resulting from abortion or hysterectomy, hormonal imbalances, menstrual irregularity and menopausal disorders, liver chi depression and blood deficiency.  Headaches, dry eyes, flushed cheeks, dry mouth, irregular menses, difficult or painful urination and anger / irritation.

Pulse indications: wiry, fast.

Add Sanguisorba and Fresh Rehmannia for excessive menstruation due to heat,

Add Fresh Rehmannia (Black Easy Wandering) for blood deficiency.

Add Vitex and Gambir for headache.

Add Chrysanthemum for red eyes.

Add Plantain Seeds for damp heat in the lower burner manifesting as painful urination

Add Siler, Lycium bark, Fresh Rehmannia for skin disorders due to blood heat.

25.         Tang Kuei & Bupleurum (Xiao Yao San): Tang Kuei 16%, Bupleurum 16%, White Peony 16%, Poria 16%, White Atractylodes 16%, Fresh Ginger 5%, Mint 5%, Licorice 10%.

Tonifies blood and blood stasis, resolves liver depression due to deficiency.

Indicated for headache, dizziness, dry mouth and throat, lassitude, abdominal distention, irregular menstruation, breast pain, premenstrual acne.

Pulse indications: wiry, but deficient.  Tongue indications: pale tongue body.

Combine with Tang Kuei and Tribulus (Dang Gui Yin Zi) for skin disorders like eczema,

Add Cooked Rehmannia for yin vacuity with heat,

Add Raw Rehmannia when there is no heat.  Can also add White Peony and Dang Gui.

Add Cyperus, Salvia and Cat tail Pollen for menstrual pain,

Add Akebia Fruit, Qing Pi and Cyprus for breast distension,

Add Ginseng and Astragalus for energy deficiency,

Add Citrus Peel to rectify chi,

Add Cyprus and Curcuma for chi stagnation,

Add Albizzia Bark and Polygonum Vine (ye Jiao Teng) for insomnia,

Add Melia, Glenditsia Spine, Fritillaria Zhe, and Vaccaria Seed for breast lumps,

Add Chrysanthemum and Lycium for eye disorders,

Add Pueraria Nasal Combination and Red Peony for allergic rhinitis,

Add Scrophularia for chronic sore throat,

Add Dioscorea, Euryale and Cardamom Cluster (Rou Dou Kou) for chronic diarrhea.

26.         Tang Kuei and Peony (Dang Gui Shao Yao San): Alisma 17%,  Tang-Kuei 12%, White Peony 25%, White Atractylodes 17%, Ligusticum 12%, Poria 17%.

Sweet, bitter and warm.  Replenishes blood, promotes circulation and moves moisture.

Can be taken by a person showing signs of PMS, pale face, fatigue, anemia, irregular menstruation, pregnancy disorders, recurrent vaginal or urinary infection, dizziness, tinnitus, low back pain, palpitation, edema, cold feet, menopausal symptoms and infertility.

Pulse: Slippery or wiry.  Tongue: Pale, normal, could have a slimy fur.

Add Persica, Cyperus, Lindera and Akebia Fruit for menstrual pain,

Add Eucommia and Loranthus for hypertension during pregnancy,

Add Corydalis, Lindera and Fennel for abdominal pain,

Add Cat Tail Pollen and Salvia for immobility pain due to blood stasis,

Add Cardamom for poor appetite.

27.         Minor Bupleurum (Xiao Chai Hu Tang): Bupleurum 30%, Pinellia 22%, Scutellaria 22%, Ginseng 10%, Fresh ginger 6%, Licorice 6 %,  Jujube 4%.

Disharmony of liver and spleen, liver chi stagnation, chronic disorders, stomach phlegm, spleen chi deficiency, and liver heat.

Chronic hepatitis, prolonged cold or flu, muscular tension in neck and shoulders, anxiety, chills and fever and poor sleep.

Pulse: wiry.  Tongue: Red on sides.

Add Platycodon and Peucedanum for copious phlegm and cough,

Add Zhi Shi and Qing Pi for thoracic glomus,

Add Curcuma, Corydalis, and Melia for flank pain,

Add Persica and Moutan for heat and blood stasis in the uterus,

Add Cyperus, Zhi Shi, and Corydalis for abdominal fullness.

28.         Bupleurum & Dragon Bone (Chai Hu Jia Long Gu Mu Li Tang): Bupleurum 10%, Cal/Mag 10%, Jujube 10%, Fresh Ginger 10%, Ginseng 10%, Poria (Fu Shen) 10%, Scutellaria 10%, Cinnamom Twig 10%, Pinellia 10%, Rhubarb 10% (Rhubarb can be removed if there is loose stool.  Leave out when mixing).

For liver chi stagnation, rising liver yang, shen disturbance, spleen chi deficiency, stomach phlegm, liver and large intestine heat.

Indicated for epilepsy, headache, hypertension, insomnia, irritability, palpitation, restlessness and smoking or drug withdrawal.

Pulse: wiry, can be slightly rapid.  Tongue: red sides can have greasy coat.

Add Zizyphus Seed and Albizzia Flower for Shen disturbance,

Add Prunella and Gentiana for liver fire mania,

Add Bai Shao and Asparagus for yin depletion,

Add small amount of Coptis for heart heat,

Add Curcuma and Coptis for stomach pain due to liver invading the stomach,

Add Polygonum (Ye Jiao Teng) Rhodiola, Zizyphus Seed, Salvia, and Coptis for irregular or racing heartbeat,

Add Achyranthes, Gambir and Pueraria Root for hypertension,

Add Anemarrhena and combine with Bupleurum and & Peony Combination for heat symptoms and emotional instability during menopause.

29.         Bupleurum & Cinnamon (Chai Hu Gui Zhi Tang): Bupleurum 28%, Pinellia 9%, Cinnamom 9%, Scutellaria 9%, Ginseng 9%, White Peony 9%, Fresh Ginger 9%, Licorice 9%, Red Jujube 9%.

For disharmony of liver and spleen, liver chi stagnation, stomach phlegm, spleen chi deficiency and liver heat.

Indicated for Abdominal pain and distension, Common cold with chest distention, gas, headache, irritability, muscular tension, nausea, vertebral subluxation (needing frequent Chiropractic adjustments) and vomiting

Pulse: weak, wiry or slippery.  Tongue: Pale, swollen, can be greasy.

Add Corydalis, Saussurea and extra White Peony for abdominal pain due to liver invading the spleen,

Add Curcuma and Lysimachia (Jin Qian Cao) for gallstones,

Add Capillaris, Curcuma and Gardenia for jaundice,

Add Cimicifuga and Pueraria for vexation pain in the joints.

30.         Gentiana Combination (Long Dan Die Gao Tang): Gentiana 6%, Scutellaria 12%, Gardenia 9%, Alisma 9%, Plantago 9%, Akebia 9%, Fresh Rehmannia 12%, Dang Gui tails 9%, Bupleurum 9%, Phellodendron 6%, Sophora 6%, and Licorice 6%.

Clears damp heat in the liver, and bladder.  Clears liver fire.

Indications for Bitter taste, eye pressure, hepatitis, herpes, prostatitis, red eye scrotal eczema, urinary tract infection and vaginitis.

Pulse: wiry, rapid.  Tongue: red sides, yellow greasy coat.

Combine with Tang kuei and Arctium formula for damp heat skin rashes and severe outbreaks of eczema,

Combine with Dianthus formula for urinary tract infection,

Add Chrysanthemum, Vitex and Tribulus for eye disorders,

Add Capillaris and Curcuma for hepatitis and jaundice.

Add Scrophularia, Chrysanthemum and Isatis root and leaf for herpes zoster sores,

Add Isatis root, Forsythia, and Lonicera Flower for tonsillitis,

Add Dandelion and Glenditsia Spine for breast abscess,

31.         Chronic Liver C (Gan C Pian): Ganoderma 9%, Red Peony 9%, Astragalus 8%, Lycium 8%, Salvia 8%, Capillaris 8%, Oldenlandia 8%, Bupleurum 8%, Gardenia 8%, Curcuma 8%, Polygonum (Fo Ti) 7%, Schizandra 6%, Melia 5%.

Supplement chi and blood, clears damp heat and toxin, relieves pain.

Indications for chronic hepatitis, liver enzymes elevated, fatigue from hepatitis, and early stage of cirrhosis.

Pulse: wiry.  Tongue: red.

Add Dandelion for hepatitis,

Add extra Schizandra for high liver ALT indicating liver inflammation.

 

FEVER CLEANSING FORMULAS reduce fevers with cold and cool herbs.  The treatment depends on the location of the fire.  It can be in the blood, and/or chi, firm or weak, or located in the organs.  These formulas can treat infections and care should be taken that they not be given to someone who has a false fever from a deficient condition.

32.         Isatis Combination (Chuan Xin Lian Kang Yang Pian): Isatis root and leaf 25%, Andrographis 40%, Dandelion 10%, Prunella 10%, Burdock 5%, Viola 5%, Lithosperm 5%,

For cold, flu – wind heat condition in liver and lungs.

Indications for common cold, sore throat, flu, lymphatic congestion, or infection.

 

WIND DISPELLING FORMULAS also known as liver calming

33.         Gastrodia and Uncaria (Tian Ma Gou Teng Yin): Gastrodia 10%, Gambir 10%, Cal/Mag 8%, Loranthus 10%, Eucommia 10%, Cyathula 10%, Gardenia 6%, Scutellaria 10%, Leonurus 10%, Polygonum (Ye Jiao Teng) 10%, Poria (Fu Shen) 6%.

For liver wind, rising liver yang, deficiency of liver yin and liver heat.

Indications for Dizziness, Dry eyes, ear ringing, headache, hypertension, light headed and pressure behind the eyes.

Pulse: Thin, slightly rapid.   Tongue: red on the sides.

Add White Peony, Ilex, and extra Gambir for hypertension.

Add Vitex and Chrysanthemum for headache,

Add Chrysanthemum and Tribulus for eye disorders,

Add Zizyphus for insomnia.

 

DIURETIC FORMULAS Increase the flow of urine, drain damp and reduce swelling.

34.         Dianthus Combination (Ba Zheng San): Akebia 12%, Dianthus 12%, Polygonum (Bian Xu) 12%, Talc 12%, Juncus 4%, Plantago 12%, Gardenia 12%, Rhubarb 12%, Licorice 12%.  (Leave out Rhubarb when mixing and when person has loose stool).

Damp heat in bladder and kidney.

Indicated for kidney infection, prostatitis, painful or difficult urination, kidney stone, and urinary tract infection.

Pulse: can be forceful in kidney position.  Tongue: red, red on sides, yellow coat in back.

Remove Rhubarb for loose stools,

Add Imperata for blood in the urine,

Add Coptis and Fresh Rehmannia if mouth sores, irritability and other heart fire symptoms.