-IBIS-1.5.0-
rx
chinese medicine models
Spleen ~ Pi
psychospiritual approaches

definition

Spleen ~ Pi houses Yi (Thought); governs digestion and manifests in the muscle tissues; includes the functions ascribed to the pancreas; transforms food into Xue (Blood) and Qi; governs the Xue (Blood) and holds it in the vessels; resolves Dampness and Phlegm; maintains upbearing; and relates to the ability to assimilate, stabilize, feel centered and balanced.
» Healthy expressions are fairness, openness, deep thinking and reminiscence.
» Spleen Xu (Deficiency) signs include slightness (deficient "form"); abundant elimination; morning fatigue; cold, wet feet (Seem, p. 28); abdomen taut and distended like a drum; craving for sweets; flatulence; nausea; mild edema; memory failure; heavy feeling in legs; pale lips; loose stools; muscular weakness; and eventually obesity. Unresolved Spleen Xu (Deficiency) predisposes to Spleen Shi (Excess), particularly accumulation of Dampness and Phlegm, as the Spleen's functioning declines. The Heat produced by Liver Stagnation may then transform the Dampness into Damp-Heat. Xu (Deficiency) of the Spleen increases the susceptibility to "invasion" by the Liver.
» Spleen Shi (Excess) signs include heaviness (excess "form"); large abdomen; great sighing; sadness; obsessions and nightmares (Seem, p. 28); abdominal pain; irregular appetite; stickiness in the mouth and on lips; red lips; chest congestion; fatigue; and constipation. Dampness and Phlegm Shi (Excess) usually derive from Spleen Yang and/or Qi Xu (Deficiency).
» The excessive use of the mind in thinking, studying, concentrating and memorizing over a long period of time tends to weaken the Spleen and may lead to Xue Yu (Blood Stasis). This also includes excessive pensiveness and constant brooding. (Maciocia, p. 241) Likewise, inadequate physical exercise, and excess consumption of sweet and Cold foods will also deplete the Spleen. Environmentally, the Spleen is highly susceptible to attack from external Dampness and Cold.
» Mental signs of Spleen channel disorders include mental sluggishness; vertigo; melancholia; obsessions turned toward the past; fixed and rigid ideas; sleepwalking; agitated sleep; and nightmares. (Seem, p. 27)

dreams:
When the Spleen is weak, one dreams of being hungry; during the late Summer, one dreams of building a house.
(from "Simple Questions" as translated in Maciocia, p. 92)

When the Spleen is in excess, one dreams of "singing and being very heavy,... of abysses in mountains and marshes".
(from "Spiritual Axis" as translated in Maciocia, p. 92)


footnotes

Reprinted from The Foundations of Chinese Medicine, Maciocia, Giovanni, pp. 92 and 251, 1989, by permission of the publisher Churchill Livingstone, a division of Elsevier Limited.