Yin and Yang and the Basics of Balance

Yin and Yang - a Roadmap on the Path to Balance

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, we often talk about the idea of yin and yang.  This concept is really a whole system of understanding natural phenomena.  It is like putting on a set of glasses in which to view the world-an epistemology, a way of thinking. It is the fundamental beauty of Chinese medicine, in my opinion. It is what makes it "wholistic"- what differentiates it from the reductionist viewpoint of Western medicine. Western medicine zeros in on the tree. Chinese medicine steps back and looks at the forest and how each tree inter-relates.  In this sense, it shares the idea of interdependence of multiple factors in a system with the science of ecology.  The jewel of Chinese medicine is that this elegant framework can help us achieve a healthier life in all aspects of our existence.  We can keep it in our pocket like a map or a GPS to help steer us down the path of balance.  

There are a few basic rules that are important to keep in mind as we later talk about the different realms of health and how to apply the ideas of balance.

1. Everything can be understood in relation to its opposite.
Yin and yang are a system of correspondences attributed to natural phenomena and nothing can be seen in isolation. Day is yang, night is yin. Activity is yang, rest is yin.

2. Yin and yang are mutually engendering.
Day transforms in to night, night transforms into day.  Activity eventually necessitates rest, after rest we awaken and become active.

3. Yin and yang are mutually interdependent.
You can't have day without night. Both are important for balance and have distinct roles. You can also think of this in that nothing is inherently good or bad, but how it affects the balance of the system is what makes it so. Too much activity can be harmful just as too much rest can be harmful. The answer is not to get rid of one or the other, but to balance them appropriately.

And what is appropriate to maintain balance in our self is constantly changing depending on the factors that affect us any given day. What amount of activity and rest are appropriate one day may not be the same as another day.  We are dynamic organic systems in a constant state of flux. We are not machines that can be understood and fixed by being reduced to its parts.  Western medicine can intervene quite well in cutting out offending parts with surgery, but it does less well with nourishing our inherent healing potentials and healing chronic disease.  Through the lens of yin and yang, Chinese medicine is yin, Western medicine is yang. Both have a role to play in health and disease.  We have gotten into trouble by relying too much on Western medicine. We need this yin of Chinese medicine wisdom, of ecological philosophy, to heal healthcare, our society and our lives.