It is most likely that the five elements theory
started with the ancient Chinese calendar where five types
of energies were assigned to different days, months and years.
The energies were given the names of five elements - wood,
fire, earth, metal and water.
These five elements were
associated with the equinoxes and solstices to hep farmers
plan ahead and organise their agricultural cycles. As you
can imagine having a calendar was of incredible benefit to
an emerging agricultural civilisation.
So the calendar was arranged by using the names
- wood for the spring equinox, fire for the summer solstice,
metal for the autumn equinox and water for the winter solstice.
The fifth element, earth was at the centre of the calendar.
Human relationships to the cycles of the day,
seasons and moon were of interest to traditional Chinese healers
and the five element theory became a fundamental part of traditional
Early writing on the five elements can be found
in the classic Chinese text Inner Canon of the Yellow Emperor
commonly dated to between the first and forth centuries BC.
Here in a medical context the five elements were arranged
into a circle where earth was moved from the centre to being
part of the circle between fire and metal.
The principles of the five elements became
widespread and are fundamental in practices such as acupuncture,
feng shui, shiatsu, chi gong, astrology and healing through
EACH FIVE ELEMENT ENERGY
It is helpful to remember that the elements
are just names used to describe five different types of energy.
They are not the energy itself. The easiest way to experience
the energy itself is to go out into nature at the appropriate
time of year and day. Here you can be aware of your experience
of nature and how it influences you in terms of your emotions,
thoughts and feelings.
Walk barefoot on the grass to feel the dew rise in March
and watch the sunrise.
You may feel the energy rise around you. Note your feelings
at the beginning of the day.
You might feel enthused and ready to move forward into the
Relax in the midday sun in June and be aware of the flowers
in bloom, colours,
radiant heat, brightness and activity. You may become aware
of your own energy
moving to the surface. Perhaps you will experience feeling
more expressive, outgoing and social.
Walk with the soil underfoot in the afternoon during July
or August and be aware
of the sun moving down in the sky. Note the fruits ripening
on the vine, nature moving
from growth to sweetness. You may feel cosy, comfortable,
secure or even like having a nap.
Watch the sun set over the water in September and note
the sun contracting as she dips
below the horizon. Be aware of the end of the day feelings
and see if it brings sensations
of contentment or satisfaction. Is there a sense of joy
Go out into nature at night in December. Pick a clear night
so you can see the stars and
the universe above you. You might be deeply aware of yourself
and yet at the same time
conscious of the vastness of the cosmos. You may experience
a stillness, peace and tranquillity.
You might find a new perspective on a problem.
If we stay with the five elements in terms
of agriculture then the elements follow on from each other
in the order of wood / spring, fire / summer, earth / late
summer, metal / autumn, water / winter and then wood again
as the cycle repeats.
This is considered a harmonious reflection of nature. However
if one of the five elements is weak then the following five
element or phase of an agricultural growing cycle will be
In a person a disruption of our five element
energies increases the risk of emotional disturbances and
eventually a disturbed pattern of flow in our life energy.
In theory this might lead to a predisposition to certain ailments.
In Chinese medicine each element is associated
with a pair of organs and different kinds of emotions. The
emotions in classical texts are what we would consider to
be negative emotions and I have added other typical characteristics.
Each element is associated with a direction
according to the movement of the sun at the time of day that
an element is associated with. For example wood is associated
with the sunrise and the flow of energy is upward. Here is
a table putting this information together for each element.
In addition each five element is considered
to have a taste that most closely
represents its energy flow.
Wood - sunrise - spring - upward - liver and gallbladder
- anger, impatience, activity, positive attitude, enthusiasm.
Fire - midday - summer
- outward - heart and small intestine - hysteria, excitement,
Earth - afternoon -
late summer - downward - spleen,
pancreas and stomach - jealousy, quality of life, practicality,
stability, homely. Sweet.
Metal - evening - autumn
- inward - lungs and colon -
depression, playfulness, contentment, contained, inner strength.
Water - night - winter
- flowing in any direction - kidney and
bladder - fear, objective, artistic, original, flexibility.
In the macrobiotic application of the five
elements we can look to see if a deficiency or excess of one
of the elements could be contributing to a physical health
or emotional issue and then look to resolve this by making
adjustments to our diet.
To do this we need to think of foods in terms
of which of the five element energy they might increase inside
our body. This is open to interpretation but here are my suggestions
for a few examples.
WOOD - Leafy green vegetables, raw, steamed or boiled
thirty seconds or so. Sauerkraut, vinegars and lemon.
FIRE - Fried onions,
garlic, ginger, spring onions / scallions.
Mild spices, coffee, alcohol, oils, nuts, seeds and herbs
such as parsley.
EARTH - Sweet root
and ground vegetables cooked into a soup,
stew or casserole. Stewed fruits, apple juice, syrups.
METAL - Baked, pressure
cooked or long cooked grains such
as brown rice, wheat, rye, barley, oats or spelt. Long pickles
including takuan diakon pickles.
WATER - Miso soups,
bean soups, stews or casseroles.
Miso, shoyu, mild use of sea salt.
So for example to increase the presence of
rising wood five element energy we might eat more steamed
green vegetables, to experience more fire energy we could
eat more fried foods and include onions, garlic and ginger
in the dish. To feel more earth energy we can experiment with
more pumpkin and carrot soups and stewed apples for desert.
To increase the presence of metal energy we might try more
pressure cooked brown rice, barley and wheat. When we want
to experience more water energy we can eat miso soups and
bean and vegetable stews.
Similarly we could reduce our exposure to a
certain five element energy by eating less of the five element
foods associated with that element. So if we felt too withdrawn
less metal energy foods and more fire energy foods could help.
In China and Japan the five elements have been
used in terms of face reading for both making a character
reading and a five element health reading. The five elements
can be read in the face providing clues to the type of energy
inside. Someone with a fire complexion will have more fiery,
midday, summer energy inside. Another person might have sunken
cheeks that signify metal energy and he or she may have more
of the energy of the sunset and autumn.
A study of five element face reading can help
our understanding of the five elements in a human being and
help us see how the five elements work in terms of human energy.
Ultimately five element face reading can give us a useful
means to help others identify which five element energies
might be in excess or deficiency and then make appropriate
The five elements form an important part of
feng shui thinking. As each element is association with a
time of year and day it is also possible to link each five
element energy with a direction. So as wood energy describes
the feeling of the sun rising in the east we can also add
the direction of the east to wood energy. In this way fire
is associated with the south and the midday sun, earth with
the south-west and the afternoon sun (or in traditional thinking
the centre), metal with the west and sunset, and water with
Once this connection is made it becomes easy
to see how different parts of a home could contain more of
a certain five element energy. So for example the east side
of a building will be energised by the morning, rising sun
each day and therefore will often have more of a wood energy
atmosphere. Sending more time there can help absorb more wood
We could also increase a five element energy
in a whole part of our home using colours, materials and various
features. For example if we want to give a room more of a
wood, spring, morning feel we could try a shade of green that
reminds us new springtime shoots, lighter upward moving materials
such as wood and emphasise upward movement with tall objects.
The five elements make up a strong component
of two types of astrology, Four Pillar astrology and Nine
Ki astrology. In four pillar astrology the hour, day, month
and year of birth are looked at in terms of five element energy
and used to see if there are astrological excesses or deficiencies
in any of the elements. Nine ki astrology consists of nine
types of energy and each of these are recognised as having
more of a particular five element energy.
Both of these systems can lead to interesting
insights that if correct can then be used for ideas regarding
food, feng shui, shiatsu, chi gong, acupuncture and other
aspects of Chinese and Japanese healing arts.
can use acupressure point diagnosis and meridian diagnosis
to detect imbalances in energy and to then try to correct
this through stimulating or calming the chi or ki flowing
through each meridian.
As the five elements
are essentially a reflection of the daily and seasonal cycles
in nature they can be helpful in shiatsu in observing that
natural energetic cycles. Pains or emotions that surface at
certain times each day can be explored in terms of the five
element daily cycle giving more clues as to a possible energetic
To find out about Simon Brown and his
services visit www.chienergy.co.uk/index.htm
You may also be intrested to read:
Energetics of Foods for Health and Healing
Principles of Opposites