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Basic Concepts in Traditional Chinese Medicine: Yin and Yang

The theory of yin and yang comes from ancient Chinese philosophy. It served as the framework through which the natural world could be observed, analyzed and understood. The theory states that there are two opposing influences, yin and yang, which comprise all related entities in the universe. Yin is the negative force, yang the positive.  Yin is the moon, yang is the sun, yin is winter, yang is summer, yin is cold, yang is hot, yin is female, yang is male, yin is passive, yang is active, and so on. While these forces oppose one another, they also balance each other and are interdependent:  one could not exist without the other.

Yin and yang wax and wane and can transform into one another as well (e.g., daytime giving way to night). Furthermore, everything in the universe- despite its yin or yang character- possesses BOTH yin and yang properties. For example, daytime is yang and nighttime is yin, but within daytime, there is yang (the early half of day) and yin (the later half of day). Thus, everything can be infinitely divided into yin and yang aspects.

The familiar symbol of yin and yang (below) is a circle divided into two halves (black yin and white yang) flowing into one another. Within each portion exists some of the other: there is a bit of yang within the yin (the white dot inside the black area), a little yin within the yang (the black dot within the white area). The swirling shapes of the symbol convey the nature of yin and yang: ever-changing, never static, constantly interacting.

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) draws from ancient Chinese thought, and so the yin and yang theory plays and integral role in this approach to healing. In TCM, there are yin and yang aspects to the body and the various physiological functions. For instance, the outside of the body is considered yang, the inside of the body is yin; the upper part of the body is yang, the lower part yin. The organs possess yin and yang energies and the meridians are also classified as yang and yin types. Vitality is considered to be a balance between the yin and yang energies of the body; the internal organs and the meridians must contain a yin-yang harmony for optimum health.

Yin and yang may seem like an abstract concept, but it is one that can easily apply to explain the root of a disharmony within a person. Point selection for acupuncture treatment is also dependent on whether a patient has a yin or yang-type problem. For instance, if a woman goes through menopause, her hormone levels change and menstruation eventually stops. Usually, as this hormonal shift happens, the yin of the woman’s body becomes deficient resulting in a preponderance of yang. This condition is termed a “yin deficiency.” Symptoms might include hot flashes, sweating, feeling warm, restless sleep, irritability, a red tongue, rapid pulse- these are all of yang character. Acupuncture treatments should address this imbalance and focus on quelling the yang-type symptoms while nourishing the yin of the woman’s body. So, yin and yang are not only significant concepts in the fundamentals of Chinese medicine, but they are essential principles used in diagnosing and treating pathological changes of disease and disharmony.