Yin & Yang in Chinese Medicine
We utilize perhaps the oldest philosophical understanding in Chinese medicine, namely Yin and Yang.
Historically, Yin and Yang were understood to be fundamental balancing forces, with night (Yin) balancing day (Yang), winter (Yin) balancing summer (Yang), and cold (Yin) balancing hot (Yang).
From this ancient understanding of Yin and Yang there has developed a system for understanding how these balancing forces show up in the world and in our lives.
The eight principles of Hot/Cold, Excess/Deficeint, Internal/External and Yin/Yang are another deep-reaching way of understanding health and sickness in body, mind and spirit.
While the five elements describe the seasons, the eight principles describe the weather, both within us and within Nature.
As both of these traditions developed from an agricultural society, they can help us tend to our own well-being as would a skillful farmer.