Theory of yin and Yang

Yin and Yang are a pair of categories in China's ancient philosophy. The original meaning of yin and yang is very simple, indicating that the sun faces the back, the sun faces the sun, and the back faces the sun. Later, it was extended to the warmth and coldness of the climate, the up and down or so, the internal and external directions, and the restlessness and tranquility of the movement state. Philosophers in ancient China saw that all phenomena have positive and negative sides, so they used the concept of Yin and Yang to explain the two opposing and reciprocal material forces in nature, and thought that the opposition and fluctuation of Yin and Yang were inherent in things themselves. For example, Lao Tzu said that "everything is negative and holds Yang", and further believed that the opposition and rise and fall of Yin and Yang are the basic laws of the universe. For example, Yi Zhuan said, "One yin and one yang is the way". Yin-yang theory is a cognitive framework combining world outlook and methodology.

(1) Contradiction between Yin and Yang

Everything in the universe can be distinguished by yin and yang attributes. Generally speaking, everything that is vigorous, extroverted, rising, warm and bright belongs to Yang; Relatively static, introverted, healthy, cold and gloomy all belong to Yin. "Su Wenyin Yang Ying Xiang Da Lun" said: "Heaven and earth, everything is up and down; Yin and Yang, the blood of men and women; Left and right, the way of yin and yang is also; Fire and water are signs of yin and yang; Yin and Yang, everything can only begin. " In terms of heaven and earth, "the sky is yang and the earth is yin", which belongs to yang because of the light weather and yin because of the heavy turbidity of the atmosphere; In terms of fire and water, "water is yin and fire is yang", which belongs to yin because Shui Han is moist and yang because of fiery inflammation; In terms of motion and static, "the static person is yin and the dynamic person is yang". Because yin dominates quietness, relatively static things belong to yin, and yang takes the initiative, so things that exercise vigorously belong to yang. As far as the movement change of matter is concerned, it means that when a matter is in the movement state of transpiration and gasification, it belongs to the function of yang, and when it is in the movement state of condensation and formation, it belongs to the function of yin.

Yin and Yang are infinitely separable. Everything can continue to be divided into Yin and Yang, and the Yin or Yang inside everything can be divided into Yin and Yang, thus, endless Yin and Yang Can were born. For example, the day is sunny and the night is cloudy, while the morning is sunny in the sun and the afternoon is cloudy in the sun. Compared with the second half of the night, the first half of the night is the yin in the yin, and the second half is the yang in the yin. In the morning, afternoon, the first half of the night and the second half of the night, we can continue to distinguish yin and yang. Therefore, there are still yin and yang. Su Wen's Theory of Yin and Yang Clutch said: "Yin and Yang Can are counted by tens, pushed by hundreds, pushed by thousands, and pushed by tens of thousands, and thousands are countless, but it needs one."

The opposition between yin and yang is mainly manifested in the mutual restriction and mutual growth and decline between them. Yin and Yang form a moving unity in dynamic balance through mutual restriction and mutual growth and decline. For example, there are cold and warm climate changes in spring, summer, autumn and winter. It is warm in spring and summer because the rising of yang in spring and summer inhibits the cold in autumn and winter (the sun shines directly in the northern hemisphere and the yang rises in the northern hemisphere), and it is cold in autumn and winter because the rising of yang in autumn and winter inhibits the heating in spring and summer (the sun shines directly in the southern hemisphere and the yin rises in the northern hemisphere). Spring, summer, autumn and winter, this cycle, year after year, is the result of the mutual restraint and growth of yin and yang in nature.

The reverse side of everything restricts the other side through its ups and downs. If the unity of Yin and Yang does not have the opposition and growth and decline of Yin and Yang, it can not be restricted and unified. Without restriction and unity, the opposition between Yin and Yang will end and things will disappear.

(2) Interaction of Yin and Yang.

Yin and Yang are the unity of opposites. They are both independent and interdependent, and neither party can exist alone without the other. Above is Yang, below is Yin. Without it, it doesn't matter, without it, it doesn't matter. External yang, internal yin, exterior without interior, exterior without interior, and so on. Yang depends on Yin, Yin depends on Yang, and each side regards the existence of the other as its own existence condition. "Yi Guan Bian Yin and Yang Theory" said: "Yin and Yang have their own roots, the Yang root is in Yin, and the Yin root is in Yang; Without yang, yin can't live, and without yin, it can't be transformed. " This interdependent relationship between yin and yang is called the interaction of yin and yang.

The relationship between yin and yang is reflected in three aspects: ① the interdependence between the relative substances of the body; (2) Interdependence among related functions of the body; ③ Interdependence of body material and function. There is no substance that does not move, and there is no substance that has no function and no material movement function. "Su Wen Yin and Yang should be like a big theory" said: "What Yin contains is what Yang keeps; Yang is outside, and Yin enables ",that is, starting from the theory of mutual root and interaction of Yin and Yang, it summarizes the interdependent relationship between material, function and function of the body.

The interaction of yin and yang is the internal basis of the mutual transformation of yin and yang. If, for some reason, the relationship between Yin and Yang is destroyed, it will lead to "the solitary Yin is not born, and the solitary Yang is not long", which will lead to the disorder of the relationship between matter and function, and the endless opportunities of the body will be destroyed, causing diseases of the body.

(3) Balance of Yin and Yang

Yin and Yang are opposites, mutual roots and mutual utilization. They are not in a static state, but are always in constant movement and change, so it is called "balance of growth and decline". The so-called "balance of growth and decline" refers to the balance between yin and yang, not a static and absolute balance, but a relative balance maintained within a certain limit and time.

Balance is relative, growth and decline is absolute, and things are constantly biochemical and develop in the growth and decline balance. Take the climate change of four seasons as an example: from winter to Sunday to spring and summer, the climate gradually turns from cold to warm, that is, the process of "yin disappears and yang grows"; From summer to Sunday to autumn and winter, the climate gradually turns from hot to cold, which is the process of "Yang disappears and Yin grows". Climate changes in the four seasons, especially in cold and summer, reflect the ups and downs of Yin and Yang. Although there are differences between "Yin eliminating Yang" and "Yang eliminating Yin", they are still in a relative dynamic balance as a whole.

Although the ups and downs of Yin and Yang are absolute and the balance is relative, the importance and necessity of relative balance can never be ignored. Because only constant growth and decline and constant balance can promote the normal development of things. If there is only "yin eliminating yang's length" without "yang eliminating yin's length", or only "yang eliminating yin's length" without "yin eliminating yang's length", then the relative balance of yin and yang will be destroyed, resulting in the imbalance of yin and yang's growth and decline, which will lead to pathological changes in the body. "Su Wen Yin and Yang should be like a big theory" said: "Yin wins Yang disease, and Yang wins Yin disease; Yang Sheng is hot, and Yin Sheng is cold. "

(4) Mutual transformation of Yin and Yang

The transformation of Yin and Yang refers to the two opposite sides of Yin and Yang, which can be transformed in opposite directions under certain conditions, that is, Yin can be transformed into Yang and Yang Can can also be transformed into Yin. The mutual change of yin and yang is generally manifested in the "extreme" stage of things, that is, "extreme things must be reversed." If the "growth and decline of yin and yang" is a quantitative change process, then the transformation of yin and yang is a qualitative change based on quantitative change. Although there are also abrupt changes in the transformation of Yin and He, most of them have a development process from quantitative change to qualitative change.

The reason why the opposition between Yin and He can be transformed into each other is that these two opposites are essentially interdependent and transformed into opposites. When new things are born, they are already relying on the factors of destruction; When the old things perish, they also breed factors that produce new things. The development of old things is the process of "change". The emergence of new things is the process of "change", so it is said: "Things change when they are born, and the extremes of things change."

To sum up, Yin and Yang are relative attributes of things, so they are infinitely divisible. The opposition and restriction of yin and yang, mutual utilization, balance of growth and decline, mutual transformation, etc. It shows that the relationship between Yin and Yang is not isolated and static, but interrelated, interactive and complementary.

According to the theory of yin and yang, the fundamental cause of the occurrence and development of diseases is the imbalance of yin and yang, so adjusting yin and yang, supplementing its deficiency, purging its surplus and restoring its relative balance are the fundamental principles of treatment. Therefore, it is said that "we should observe Yin and Yang and adjust them to the normal period." Yin-yang theory is used to guide the treatment of diseases, one is to determine the treatment principle, the other is to summarize the performance of drugs.

(1) Determine the handling principle.

Treatment principle of excess of yin and yang: excess of yin and yang, that is, excess of yin or yang, is empirical. Because yang wins as yin disease and yang wins as heat, excessive yang heat is easy to damage yin fluid. Too much yin leads to yang disease, and too much yin leads to cold, which makes Yang Qi vulnerable. Therefore, when adjusting the surplus of yin and yang, we should pay attention to whether there is a corresponding decline of yin or yang. If the yin or yang is excessive and the opposite side does not constitute a virtual loss, the method of "making up for the excess loss" can be adopted. If the other party is weak, it should take into account its shortcomings and cooperate with the method of supporting yang or benefiting yin. Yang is better than heat, so it is advisable to control Yang with cold medicine and treat heat with cold, that is, "heat is cold". When yin is abundant, it is cold, so it is advisable to control yin with warm drugs and treat cold with heat, that is, "cold is hot". Because both of them are empirical, the principle of this treatment is called "the damage outweighs the gain", that is, "the diarrhea causes more than enough"

Treatment principle of deficiency of yin and yang: deficiency of yin and yang, that is, deficiency of yin or yang on one side, or deficiency of yin or yang. Yin deficiency can't control yang qi, leading to hyperactivity of yang. It belongs to deficiency-heat syndrome. Generally, cold medicine can't reduce it. Therefore, we should use the method of "controlling yang with strong water", that is, nourishing yin and restraining yang hyperactivity with strong water. Neijing called this treatment principle "treating yang with yin". If yang deficiency can't control yin, leading to yin excess, it belongs to deficiency-cold syndrome. Xin Wen San Yao should not be used to dispel yin cold. We must use the method of "benefiting fire and eliminating yin stagnation", that is, the method of supporting yang and benefiting fire and eliminating yin deficiency. Neijing called this treatment principle "treating yin with yang".

In short, the basic principle of treatment is to get rid of it and make up for it. Excess of yang dispels heat, while excess of yin dispels cold; Those with yang deficiency support yang and those with yin deficiency replenish yin, so that the abnormal phenomenon of the rise and fall of yin and yang will return to the normal state of balance and coordination.

(2) Summarize the performance of drugs.

Yin and Yang are used in the treatment of diseases, not only to establish the principle of treatment, but also to summarize the sexual and taste functions of drugs as the basis for guiding clinical medication. To treat diseases, we should not only have correct diagnosis and exact treatment methods, but also master the nature of drugs skillfully. According to the treatment method, choose the right medicine to get good curative effect.

Generally speaking, the performance of drugs mainly depends on their qi (nature), taste and ups and downs, and the qi, taste and ups and downs of drugs can be summarized and explained by yin and yang.

Medicinal properties: cold, heat, warmth and coolness are the main factors, also known as "four qi". Among them, cold belongs to yin (cool is second to cold) and warm belongs to yang (warm is second to heat). Drugs that can relieve or eliminate heat syndrome are generally cold; Drugs that can relieve or eliminate cold syndrome are generally warm or hot.

Five flavors: pungent, sweet, sour, bitter and salty. Some medicines are weak or astringent, so there are actually more than five kinds. But it is customary to call it five. Among them, pungent, sweet and light belong to Yang, while sour, bitter and salty belong to Yin. Su Wen Zhi Zhen Da Lun said: "Sweet overflows into Yang, sour overflows into Yin, salty overflows into Yin, and light taste permeates into Yang".

Up and down: up is up, down is down, floating is floating, sinking is a major town, etc. Generally speaking, most of the drugs with the effects of rising yang, expelling wind and dispelling cold, stopping vomiting and inducing resuscitation are external rising, and the ascending drugs are yang; However, drugs with purgation, clearing away heat, diuresis, calming the heart and calming the nerves, suppressing yang, calming the wind, eliminating depression, descending the adverse flow, converging and other effects are mostly endogenous, and all of them are determined, and the definite one is yin.

In short, the treatment of diseases is to determine the treatment principle according to the situation that the yin and yang of diseases are on the high side and on the low side. Combined with the yin and yang properties of drugs, the corresponding drugs are selected to correct the imbalance of yin and yang caused by diseases, so as to achieve the purpose of curing diseases.

Yin-yang theory emphasizes the viewpoint of "one divides into two" to explain the relationship between two aspects of relative things or a thing, such as mutual opposition, mutual utilization, balance of growth and decline, mutual transformation and so on. Yin-yang theory is used to explain the universe, and the whole universe is considered to be the unity of opposites. Because the universe and life are very complicated, there are still many things that have not been discovered and recognized by human beings. Although the theory of Yin and Yang has important applications in real life, it still has its own limitations. Therefore, when applying the theory of yin and yang, we must proceed from reality, seek truth from facts and analyze specific problems.

[1] Yinhe, Zhang Bona. Basic theory of traditional Chinese medicine [M]. Shanghai: Shanghai Science and Technology Press, 1984, 1 1- 18.