Liver-Qi and Taste
In analogy, if we liken the liver to the earth, then the earth's atmosphere can be equated to the "qi" or energy of the liver, which we refer to as "Liver-Qi." As winter ends and all living things vigorously spring back to life, there is a corresponding energy within our bodies that seeks to disperse, and this is what we call liver qi. In the natural world, this energy in spring triggers the vibrant growth of plants.
When spring arrives, and our bodies are not adapting well to the season due to weakness, it's important to consume spicy foods to help disperse any blockages that might have accumulated during the winter. For instance, people who feel sluggish in spring may be unable to digest their food properly. Additionally, since spring is a warm and expanding season, foods with a spicy taste and warm nature become nourishing for those influenced by the spring energies.
During springtime, consuming foods like ginger can be beneficial if you often experience indigestion or nausea. Generally, for individuals who feel weakened during spring, mixing sesame seeds or sesame oil into their diet more than in other seasons can be helpful. If someone severely lacks energy and feels lethargic, drinking a little rice wine or eating Chinese chives and cinnamon can be beneficial.
These foods share the characteristics of being both spicy in taste and warm in nature, which align with the increasing bodily energy during spring.
Anatomical Liver and Taste
While liver qi disperses to unblock and communicate, the liver body gathers to give them form. From there, the qi disperses again, ensuring it sustains the form without dissipating. This is the underlying logic of Eastern philosophy and medicine: the organ that performs this action, storing the energy of the dispersing springtime energies and ensuring continuous energy movement, is anatomically referred to as the liver.
The taste responsible for preventing the dispersion of life-sustaining substances is the "sour" taste. A continuous supply of sour taste allows the renewal of liver cells that would otherwise deteriorate. In Eastern medicine, the sour taste is believed to be the first to enter the liver when a person eats. This concept has been proven over thousands of years of clinical practice. Therefore, if there is a deficiency in sour taste supply or liver function, the body naturally craves sour-rich foods, encouraging the consumption of these foods to replenish the liver.
The Liver in Traditional Chinese Medicine
The concept of the liver in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is comparable to the constant movement of the atmosphere within the Earth. If we consider that without the Earth's mass, the atmosphere would not remain, we can understand the coexistence of the anatomical liver and the intangible liver qi in TCM. In other words, the typical liver, which gathers energy to form shape, and the intangible liver qi, which continuously disperses from it, is the TCM concept of the liver.
The desire within the human body for liver qi to disperse during the spring season, as influenced by the revitalizing energy of spring, can harmonize with the contrasting nature of sour taste. This is similar to the natural phenomenon on Earth where the desire for dispersion in the atmosphere and the gathering characteristics of the land coexist, allowing the Earth to maintain its balance. Essentially, the harmony of liver qi's dispersing energy and the liver body's gathering nature reflects the natural order, which is also consistent in other organs.
Dr.Ahn Acupuncture and herb
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