The Heart (
心, ) is one of the
zàng organs stipulated by
Traditional Chinese Medicine
Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an alternative medical practice drawn from traditional medicine in China. It has been described as "fraught with pseudoscience", with the majority of its treatments having no logical mechanism of action ...
(TCM). It is a functionally defined entity and not equivalent to the anatomical organ of the same name.
In the context of the zang-fu concept
As a zàng, the Heart is considered to be a
yin
Yin may refer to:
*the dark force in the yin and yang from traditional Chinese philosophy and medicine
*Yīn (surname) (), a Chinese surname
*Yǐn (surname) (), a Chinese surname
*Shang dynasty, also known as the Yin dynasty
**Yinxu or Yin, the S ...
organ. Its associated yang organ is the
Small Intestine
The small intestine or small bowel is an organ in the gastrointestinal tract where most of the absorption of nutrients from food takes place. It lies between the stomach and large intestine, and receives bile and pancreatic juice through the p ...
. Both Heart and Small Intestine are attributed to the
Fire element.
Regarding its stipulated functions, the Heart
*‘’stores‘’ (藏, ) the ''
shén'' (神, ‘’Aggregate Soul‘’, usually translated as ''mind'')
*governs
xuě (blood) and vessels/
meridians
*opens into the tongue
*reflects in facial complexion
*governs joy (喜, )
The Heart's function is said to be strongest between 11am and 1pm. Disturbed function of the Heart typically presents as palpitations, arrhythmia, insomnia, dream disturbed sleep, poor memory, restlessness, or even delirium.
[Cultural China 2007]
Notes
References
*中医世家 (2006-07-18)
"第一节 五脏" ''中医基础理论'', retrieved 2010-12-18
*Cultural China (2007)
''Kaleidoscope → Health'', retrieved 2010-12-21
Further reading
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{{Traditional Chinese medicine
Traditional medicine
Traditional Chinese medicine