The Five Elements (五行)

The Five Elements in TCM

The five elements, also called "Wu Xing" (五行), namely wood, fire, earth, metal and water (木, 火, 土, 金, 水) and they represent the processes that are fundamental to the cycles of nature, and therefore correspond to the human body. This theory was most likely conceived in or around 476 – 221 BC during the warring states period.

The five elements, their characteristics, and their inter-relationships with the body can be defined as:

Wood (木)
Strong, rooted. The wood element represents the liver, yin (肝阴), and the gallbladder, yang (胆阳).

Fire (火)
Hot, ascending, light and energy. This is embodied in the TCM functions of the heart, yin (心阴) and small intestine, yang (小肠, 阳).

Earth (土)
Productive, fertile, growth. The earth element relates to the stomach, yang (脾阳) and the spleen, yin (胃阴). The stomach begins the process of digestive breakdown, while the spleen transforms and transports the energy from food and drink throughout the body.

Metal (金)
As a conductor, this element includes the lungs, yin (肺阴), which move vital energy throughout the body, and the large intestine, yang (大肠, 阳), which is responsible for receiving and discharging waste.

Water (水)
Wet, descending, flowing. The water element represents the urinary bladder, yang (膀胱阳), and the kidney (肾阴). The bladder receives, stores, and excretes urine. Water metabolism dissipates fluids throughout the body, moistening it, then accumulating in the kidneys. The kidneys also store the essence, and serve as the root of yin and yang for the entire body.