by Sue Lanzon

Cartoons by Alison Louttit

This is an attempt to explain an energetic view of the major organs in the body.

It is based on the Chinese system in which there are five major organs, (which do not include the brain). These are all yin which, in this case, means solid as opposed to the hollow yang organs, and are seen as the deeper organs concerned with storage and regulation of fundamental substances. 
 
It also contains further insights given in a lecture by Robert Davidson, Principal of the College of Practical Homoeopathy and famed homoeopath of these parts.

This is useful information if one is to look beyond a physiological picture of an illness to the energetic disturbance which may lie beneath.

It is only a map, one of many, and is therefore not written in stone, but is offered as a guide. It can be used in conjunction with other maps, such as the chakra system and the anthroposophical view, to interpret the reality of the patient and discover where the energy  block which is either causing, or preventing resolution of, illness lies and why it exists. It is also useful to pass on these insights to one’s patients, where relevant, so that they may begin to have a dialogue between their bodies and their minds. 

It is important to remain fluidly connected to any possibility when using this kind of map. The organ which is manifesting a disturbance energetically may not be where the original problem lies, as most people have layers of history which contain multiple examples of cause and effect.
The place to focus treatment is not necessarily where the energy is stuck.

We reduce the flow of energy to an organ when we withdraw our awareness of it from unwanted emotions, (which are localised in various organs). When we live what isn’t true, it hurts us. That’s when we pull our awareness away. The organ is then less able to deal with toxins etc.

LIVER

The liver determines the quality of the blood. If the liver doesn’t function properly, there is general deterioration of the system.

The liver stores anger. There is not the ability of kindness.
Anger is the result of the damage - what causes the damage is unhappiness.
Happiness can rebuild the liver.
Unhappiness usually comes with blame - it’s someone else’s fault.

Regret and remorse create sluggish liver.
Sclerosis of the liver - Fixed remorse. 

The liver is not just for storing good stuff, but also for letting go of old stuff. It’s the factory of the body.
When the liver is balanced , then we can be flexible and respond to sudden change. When it is impaired there is a tendency to become rigid and over-controlling.

Anticipatory anxiety originates from the liver.
The Liver = One who Lives. Liver problems are often to do with past or future issues, the person can’t be in the present.

Liver energy is expressed through the eyes. Yellowy whites indicate poor liver function.



KIDNEYS

The kidneys are the organs of discrimination and choice.
They decide what to keep and what to get rid of. They filter.

Kidney problems can be to do with sexual insecurity.
Because we have property, family structures, inheritable possessions, we have got into more complex sets of choices re sex, mating. It’s no longer biological.
This can cause massive indecision, which hurts the kidneys.
Kidneys are concerned with judgement. 
Indecision on a sexual, biological level, undermines their energy.
Inflammation is over-judgement.

We store our fear in the kidneys. e.g. big fright, pee your pants.
Fear is connected to the Will. The sense of personal power and will to fulfill one’s potential in life are rooted in healthy kidney energy. Poor kidney energy produces weakness and timidity, a feeling of being unable, or unwilling, to deal with the demands of life.
Kidney stones - solidified fear.

Also the kidneys hold our ancestral energy, our inheritance, our “jing” vitality which promotes longevity. It is stored energy, which is why urine therapy works.

The kidney energy is expressed through ears and hair. Prematurely greying hair denotes kidney weakness, as the ancestral energy is weak.

Skin problems are often caused by poor kidney function, which together with poor bowel function means that toxins seek their way out of the body via the skin.

In chinese medicine the kidneys and adrenals are one system. Western medicine sees them as separate. The adrenal glands sit on top of the kidneys. Adrenalin is a response to fear, (Fight or flight), so there is a clear connection in this context. Dark circles under the eyes denote adrenal exhaustion.

HEART

The capacity for joy determines the health of the heart.
What hurts the heart is anger.

Anger is an emotional state, which can build up and become an act - violence.
If you own the anger, “I feel angry”, you don’t need to act violently.

Anger is usually a perceived receipt of injury.

Anger in the heart  that has been suppressed through fear of losing control will often kill, especially men.

The heart holds our aspirations. It is concerned with the quality of our desires.
Corrupted desires  can lead to heart disease. (Buddhism - desire is suffering)
When we become healthy, our desires decrease. 

It is yin. Not forceful, but accepting,  (unconditional love). The heart is capable of relating to the whole world.
(The small intestine is its yang complement. Concerned with smaller issues, race tribe, family, isms).

The heart harbours the Shen, the myriad of mental, psychological and spiritual faculties which together form the personality.
If the heart has not got a successful hold on the Shen, mental and psychological disorders follow.
It is not difficult to extrapolate this idea to encompass the global disorder as being a collective imbalance of heart energy, and that the formation of a new paradigm requires that we all learn how to open our hearts.

Heart energy is expressed through the complexion and the tongue.
The quality of the voice indicates the quality of the heart.



LUNGS

Air. Thoughts. “Inspiration”.
What thought processes  do we need to get healthy, and what do we need to discard. 

(The upper respiratory tract -the site of the throat chakra - which rises from the lungs, is what connects the brow centre, the third eye with the heart. We speak from here, and when we connect the head and the heart we are able to speak our truth).

The lungs are in the area of the heart chakra. This is where we hold our grief. Smoking is an effective way of supressing grief, one reason why it’s so addictive.

Tolerance and intolerance.
Intolerance shreds the lungs. Disdain and judgement of others in relation to ourselves. Scorn, contempt, prejudice.

The lung energy is expressed through the skin, which is also an organ of respiration. Hence the link between eczema and asthma.

Polarity -  giving and taking.
In order to breathe in,  you must first breathe out.

SPLEEN

The solar plexus is the centre of transformation, like a telephone exchange. This is where we take in feeling, which then gets stored somewhere else. Often, it is this area that may need treatment first although the patient is presenting with an imbalance elsewhere, especially if in the heart/lung area e.g. asthma. 

“The desires of the personality are met by converting the energy of an idea into an emotion, and then allowing this to be expressed. Unfortunately, the desires of the personality are often linked with expectations and conditions....Expressing an impulse without conditions frees one to enjoy life to the fullest and live totally in the present” *
e.g. “ I am happy” rather than “ I am happy if...you love me; it doesn’t rain; my horse wins the 3.30”. etc.

Too much thinking, and mental effort or worry affect the spleen, resulting in lethargy, fatigue and inability to concentrate. The stomach is closely connected to the spleen, and poor diet can exacerbate the problem. 

Anxiety about the future damages the spleen.
What heals the spleen is faith in the future, and the letting go of expectations. The feeling of ”butterflies” in the stomach, are a common signal of anticipatory anxiety, and this in turn relates to the liver, (see above). As these 3 organs reside together in the abdominal cavity, or solar plexus chakra it is easy to see the way they link up.


I have included a sixth organ, the bowel or large intestine, as bowel disease is on the rise , and the bowel has important links with liver, spleen and lung energy.

BOWEL

Issues of self-worth. “Feeling like shit”.

Guilt gets put in the bowel. Also unexpressed anger and fear. 
“You are what you eliminate”.

F.E.A.R.  acronym:  False Expectation of an Altered Reality.

In chinese medicine, the large intestine is the yang complement to the lungs - it ties up with the need to discard what is not useful.

The bowel relates to the liver and anxiety. This is the area of the base chakra - which is concerned with security, structure and basic survival.
There can be a desire to be perfect, a need for control. These indicate a fear of letting go. 
Constipation is an inability to let go.

If one looks at diseases as disturbed normal processes rather than entities, inviting the patient to integrate with their disease instead of  seeing it as a random assault from outside, healing can be facilitated much faster.

Emotional shifts require moving out of the comfort zone. As the storage capacity of these major organs is perverted by negative emotions, so can it be rejuvenated by new information, leading to an active response by the patient and improved health.

Sue Lanzon. March 2000


*Christine Page: The Frontiers Of Health

healing@physikgarden.com 

Back to the Healing Room