Stomach, Spleen and Earth - An Introduction

Hi. Today I would like to do a more physical session that helps you connect with the Earth element. We’ll be working on the spleen and stomach. From my experience, this is one of the most tricky but interesting body systems to work with in Chinese medicine. First of all, the spleen is mostly linked to your digestive function. Your stomach, your digestive function, that whole system in the middle of your body, is like a closed system where food comes in. You transform and assimilate what the body needs as substances and nutrition, and then let go of what you don’t need through the large intestine. And the urinary bladder is also part of Chinese medicine. Then your spleen is the “tree producer.” Anytime you feel you don’t have enough qi or energy, you always go to the digestive function and look at what in this whole system isn’t working. Is it on the emotional level—worrying about things all the time and not being able to bring your energy back to your center? As you need to digest your food, you also need to digest what’s going on in your life. Sometimes it’s too much, and we can’t keep harmony. We have too many things going on, and it makes us worried because we can’t see that we have control over everything. On the emotional and mindset level, your Earth element wants things to be in harmony. You want peace—peace in your family and your group—and you want to invest in things so you have good outcomes. You want the kids to be happy, you want enough food on the table. This small-group, home-circle energy is very important for the Earth element. This is directly connected to your digestive function. The spleen in Chinese medicine is sensitive and needs exactly this sense of harmony. This is how we look at things holistically in Chinese medicine. Now I’ll go to the mat and we’ll do more physical exercises to work with the Earth element. Physically, the tissue connected to your Earth element is the muscles. A person with a lot of Earth element in their personality might build muscles well but might also really enjoy good foods and dishes, sitting around the table and sharing food and recipes. They might also tend to be a bit overweight. This is a common challenge for an Earth element or for someone with a weak spleen. There can be weakness that makes it hard to build muscles. So the muscles here are important. Now you will do some exercises to stimulate the muscles and feel them. Good muscles help your digestive system. A good balanced digestive system helps your muscle tissues. It goes both ways. Okay.