The Liver is home to Hun, the ethereal soul. It is a kind of “soul personality” and lives on after death.

This concept is found in Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism. According to traditional ideas, the liver establishes the connection to the universal or divine and is an essential carrier of spiritual growth.

This aspect of the soul nourishes our imagination, one of the roots of our creativity. Through dreams and lived emotions there is a connection to the subconscious, the origin of our strength and our courage.

Developing a vision or the ability to dream something in the future is an expression of a powerful liver energy.

Ideally, our urge for life and creative expression would be balanced by the emphasis on peaceful coexistence – peaceful coexistence is a quality that complements the Wood Element.

This urge is often suppressed in our upbringing. Under these circumstances, anger is a means of making oneself heard.

The balance between the strength of our Wood-Energy and the power of its suppression determines how our anger expresses itself and what direction the Ki-flow that accompanies it will take.

Either the Ki will shoot up and cause severe symptoms (e. g. severe headaches, eye complaints, etc. ) or, if anger is suppressed, the flow of Ki will often slow down and create horizontal blockages (e. g. in the throat, diaphragm and pelvic floor).

Organ
Liver, gallbladder

Sense Organ
Eyes

Orifices
Eyes

Body Structures
Tendons and muscles

External, Physical Expression
Nails

Ability
for control

Releated Chakra
Chakra 3

The five Phases of Change symbolize cycles of the seasons of the earth and of human life. The wood stands for the directed movement of existence („being“).

A simple tree gives a good idea of ​​the Wood Element. He is a rooted, growing being that stretches outwards and inwards, up and down at the same time. If one grows like a tree in the forest, then the energy is healthy and clear. One is grounded and growing, one is adaptable and strong, carries the seeds of new life and goes through a cycle from season to season.

In the Zen Shiatsu theory, Masunaga describes “storage and distribution of nutrients” as the main physical functions of the Wood Element.

He attributes storage rather to the Liver and distribution to the Gallbladder – but their functions sometimes overlap. All these activities are at the service of choice and realization of our life plan – the purpose of the Wood Element.

The liver Ki embodies the function of long-term planning of our actions

“seeing” on all levels

Enables us to work hard on the realization of our projects

The Liver keeps track, the Gallbladder takes care of the details

Maintains the inner order of body and soul

Regulates the free flow of the Ki; stores and provides the blood

Emotionally, our right to grow and express our self

Flexibility of body and mind

Supply of muscles and tendons

Liver-Ki stagnation -> a large number of mental health problems that can manifest as psychosomatic, psycho-vegetative, psycho-emotional and psycho-mental disorders

Excessive behavior and detoxification: if we suppress the creative expressive possibilities of our self, our life-path can not naturally unfold before us -> conditioned behaviors (in the form of habits or substitute behavior). Very often, “excessive behavior” occurs, e.g. excessive drinking or eating or even anorexia; substance abuse (drugs)

Eye problems; blurred vision

Headache on skull apex

Sound sensitivity

Dry throat, tight or globular sensation in the throat

Asthma

Facial and nape redness

Problems of bending the upper body forward or backward

Dizziness on standing

Muscle and tendon hardening; muscle cramps

Tendency to fever without obvious causes; inflammation

Pain or swelling of the genitals; prostate and testicular complaints; reduction of libido

Menstrual disorders of all kinds and also abdominal pains and cramps; irritability; PMS

Bloated stomach; loss of appetite; nausea; feeling of pressure in the right hypochondrium

Sacrum and coccyx pain

Hemorrhoids

Loss of vitality, replaced by short flaring motivational thrusts with subsequent extreme fatigue a.o.

Ability to anchor one’s personality

Ability to control in times of change

In case of liver problems it is important to check the connections to other organs. If the connection to the Small Intestine Meridian is disturbed, “the liver gets upset about the way of thinking”.

Problems in the connection to the Heart Meridian are the way “how love is lived”.

If the connection with the Spleen Meridian is disturbed, “the liver gets angry about dealing with itself” and you often get upset if you do not achieve the goals you have set yourself.

Principle
Creative self-expression

Emotional difficulties (!)

Suppressed anger or suppressed resentment

Medicaments, such as Anti-inflammatory preparations, Tranquillizer, the anti-baby pill or hormone replacement

Alcohol

Drugs like opium, cannabis and heroin

All holistic natural healing methods, such as Acupuncture, Homeopathy or similar

Holistic body therapies such as Shiatsu and others

Psychotherapy, especially methods that promote the active expression of the personality, e. g. painting therapy; family therapy or couple counselling, including family constellations, etc.

Makko Ho Exercises

Yoga – especially twists and sideways bending

Martial arts; all dynamic physical exercises

Dancing

Expressing individuality according to creative talent – e.g. by painting, playing music, writing

Gardening etc.