The Role of Yin-Yang Theory in Health
What is yin-yang theory? How does it relate to health and disease? How does East Asian medicine use yin-yang theory in diagnosis and treatment?
The philosophy at the root of the traditional East Asian approach to health and well-being I use at Creekside Acupuncture is yin-yang theory. In this theory, yin and yang describe all known phenomena. They are descriptions of easily observed processes such as day turning into night, youth into old age, one season into the next.
The application of yin and yang to real life is far reaching. Your own observations have probably shown you that if a plan is based on an unchanging structure that does not adapt with people’s needs, its long term success is unlikely. Creative adaptability is the crux of yin-yang theory.
The yin-yang principle holds that all the phenomena of the universe can be understood as limitless pairs of opposites that interact according to these principles:
The source of yin and yang, and all dualities, is that which is unified and unchanging.
Yang is active and yin is passive, but nothing is pure yin or pure yang.This is why there is a dark spot within the white area of the yin-yang symbol and vice versa.
If either yin or yang predominate, the one in excess tends to consume the other.
Some examples of yin-yang pairs are passive/active; substance/function; inside/outside; body/mind; dark/light; space/time; cold/heat; contraction/expansion.
When something yin or yang reaches its extreme it transforms into its opposite. For example, extreme activity necessitates rest. Extreme yang activity (violence) leads to extreme yin (death). Extremely energizing substances such as caffeine or sugar usually lead to a crash in energy after they wear off. In meditation, concentration on a single object ultimately results in universal awareness.
Applying yin-yang theory to health is a dynamic and practical framework. In a normal state of health, yin and yang harmoniously support and depend on each other for existence. Food in the body transforms into energy. Energy in the body assimilates nutrients which build the substance of the body. A balanced interplay of yin and yang is a state where they are in a constant state of transformation of one to the other, without ever reaching a state of extreme yang or extreme yin.
A condition of ultimate health occurs when the moment-by-moment transformation of the body and mind are harmonious. In a broad sense, disease results when there is not a state of flowing transformation between yin and yang.
Traditional East Asian medicine employs a multitude of techniques to diagnose and address imbalances of yin and yang. Diagnostic techniques include detailed questions about one’s history, lifestyle and diet, and observation of such things as the pulse, tongue, abdomen and complexion. Methods for addressing yin-yang imbalance including acupuncture, massage, herbal medicine, diet, and lifestyle changes.