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Overview: Planetary Herbology Herbs have long been considered the sacraments of healing and are cited throughout the world's ancient scriptures as humanity's safest medicines. All natural medicines, including foods, can be classified as mild, strong or toxic. The herbalist relies mainly on the mild herbs because they are often just as effective as the more toxic substances, but less harmful to the body. There are many herbal traditions practiced in the world today, each possessing strengths that the others lack. However, the student of herbology usually studies one system only, whether Western naturopathy, early American Thomsonian herbalism (based on the work of Samuel Thomson and furthered by Dr. John Christopher), Chinese herbology, Ayurvedic (East Indian) herbology, Native American herbology, Middle Eastern Unani medicine, Tibetan medicine and any of the world's folk medicines, to name a few. Within each system, there is also a great divergence of styles, depending on the individual practitioner. We believe that the field of herbs is evolving to an integrated system of "Planetary Herbology" based upon these many systems. This has been our focus for over 25 years, and the East West Course in Herbology aims to present a synthesis of the principles found in the most important of these schools. An Overview of the World's Healing Systems To understand the concept of Planetary Herbology, let's first examine each school and its herbal system. We will then discuss their similarities and differences, using specific herbs as examples. In Western herbology, herbs are classified according to their therapeutic properties. For example, categories such as alteratives, diuretics, diaphoretics and tonics allow the Western herbalist to group herbs with similar qualities and then use them accordingly. Herbs in this system are recognized primarily by their chemical constituents. In fact, many drugs used in Western allopathic medicine result from extracting an herb's active constituent and synthesizing it, as in the case of aspirin derived from Willow trees, digitalis from Foxglove or reserpine from Rauwolfia. In Chinese herbology, herbs are categorized by their energies, tastes, directions and actions on the body (moving the blood, getting rid of dampness or heat, breaking up stagnation, building substance or energy, etc.). The Chinese traditionally also include animals and minerals, such as Deer antler and Gypsum, as healing substances. Based on a broad bipolar categorization of Yin (cooling) and Yang (warming) energies, this system considers each herb's constitution, and that of the patient, resulting in a more holistic approach to healing. Japanese herbology is similar to that of traditional Chinese medicine, using the same herbs but emphasizing stricter conformity to classical Chinese Han Dynasty formulations, mostly derived from Chang Chung-Ching in his pivotal clinical manual, Shang Hang Lun. Japanese Macrobiotics, recently developed in the West by George Ohsawa and Michio Kushi, bases its dietary and philosophic principles on the concepts of Yin and Yang, just as in Chinese medicine. However, differences in the definitions of Yin and Yang between the Chinese and Japanese systems can create much confusion when trying to learn these concepts. In an attempt to make them more easily understood by the Western mind, Ohsawa reversed certain aspects of Yin and Yang, mainly regarding their directions. These differences are outlined for reference purposes:
Ayurvedic medicine classifies herbs and foods according to the three Doshas or humours. Diseases, as well as a person's constitution, are also categorized in this way. Similar to Chinese and Greek Hippocratic medicines (such as Unani medicine still practiced in the Middle East), the individual is viewed as a union of physical, mental and spiritual energies, with the goal of health achieved through balancing. In the Tridosha system, Vata (Air) corresponds to nervous energy, Pitta (Fire) to circulation, warmth and digestion, and Kapha (Water) to the solid, formative aspects of tissue, fluid and bone. A balance of these aspects ensures health, while an imbalance of any of the three generates disease. The Native American herbal tradition used plants according to their properties and energies. Some tribes, such as the Tewa Pueblos, even divided them into sun and moon aspects, similar to the Chinese concepts of Yang (warming) and Yin (cooling). Native Americans have discovered the uses of hundreds of indigenous herbs, mostly from the North and Southeast of North America, including Echinacea, False Unicorn, Black Cohosh, Blue Cohosh and Slippery Elm. In our herb course, we have classified these herbs based on the energetic principles of Chinese and Ayurvedic herbalism to provide a broader understanding of their applications. For example, Echinacea (Echinacea angustifolia) is one of our most powerful native herbs, and is highly respected for its treatment of infections, blood disorders, septicemia and so forth. However, my own clinical experience has proven Echinacea to be effective only on those who are Fire- or Water-predominant (Ayurvedic Tridosha system) with acute inflammations or Yang-excess conditions (Chinese Yin/Yang system). Individuals suffering from inflammation who are Air-predominant with Yin-deficient conditions would not benefit from Echinacea, instead requiring a combination of nutritive-tonification and purification therapies. (These terms will be explained in the course, so you will eventually be able to make these distinctions yourself.) Differences Between Systems When considering tonics, or herbs that strengthen and build the body, each of the above-mentioned systems has a unique approach. In Western herbal pharmacy, where herbs are classified by therapeutic properties, we might consult the classic herbal by Jethro Kloss to find a list of tonics including White Pond Lily, Ginger root, Capsicum, Balmony, Golden Seal, Comfrey, Dandelion, Valerian, Yarrow, Sage and Vervain. From the Chinese perspective, on the other hand, to say an herb is "tonic" gives us no understanding of an individual's particular situation or constitution. Furthermore, the Chinese recognize herbs by their actions on the body and their warming or cooling energies. Of the herbs just listed, almost none would be considered tonics because most are strongly eliminating rather than building, as the Chinese believe tonics to be. They would instead subclassify these herbs into cooling energies (Golden Seal, Dandelion and Comfrey) and stimulating or warming energies (Capsicum and Ginger). Herbs such as Yarrow, Sage and Vervain would not be considered tonics at all, but rather as medicines used for acute excess and heated feverish diseases. If these tonics were applied inappropriately, severe repercussions could potentially occur. For example, if cooling tonics were given to people already deficient or cold in nature, it might further imbalance them, causing more coldness and deficiency. Likewise, if warming tonics were used in large amounts, they could exhaust the energy of one already in a relatively imbalanced or deficient condition. Ayurveda would describe these herbs according to the humour that each most strongly influences. Yarrow, Sage and Vervain increase the Fire and Air humours since they affect digestion, circulation and the nervous system; Slippery Elm and Comfrey increase the Water humour since they promote lubrication and tissue growth; and Capsicum and Ginger increase the Fire humour due to their effects on digestion and circulation. If we looked at these differences through the lens of Planetary Herbology, we could simultaneously consider each system's classification of the same herbs and broaden our understanding of them. For example:
While all three herbal systems were originally derived from the same place (India), as they extended throughout the world, they adapted to the changing cultural mores and values of each respective area. Some changed so extensively over time that now they only represent a small part of the original, such as the Western application of herbs based on their properties and chemical constituents. Yet the essence of these systems remains the same and we must adhere to this essential truth if we are to create a new planetary system of natural medicine. This essential foundation is energy, a principle based on a dynamic, living ("in vivo"), energetic system of classification, as opposed to a materialistic, laboratory-confirmed ("in vitro") approach. Since all matter is composed of energy, we can view medicines, including foods and herbs, as being energetically based. Not only does this form the founding principle of all healing systems, it creates a bridge with their related spiritual philosophies. Therefore, when working with the energy of plants and humans, we are, in actuality, working with various facets of universal energy. As herbalists, we must first acknowledge with reverence the vast potential of power and consciousness inherent in every manifestation of nature. Certain "natural laws" and "theories" govern creation, and this universal energy seems willing to conform to a certain level of uniformity and predictability. At the same time, we must recognize that in nature there are exceptions to every rule. Energy As One As the ancients did, we will examine these natural laws in order from basic to complex. The most fundamental concept is that energy is One. This is what the Chinese call Qi, the Japanese call Ki and the Yogis call Prana - the primal unified energy that permeates all natural phenomena. This implies that everything shares the same energy, allowing us to treat human diseases with medicines from plant, mineral and animal kingdoms from around the world. This also corresponds to one of the most basic concepts of herbology, the Doctrine of Signatures. This theory holds that anything that resembles some aspect of a disease or body part can potentially be used as its medicine. For instance, Bloodroot is the root of a North American forest herb used for toxic blood diseases; mature Ginseng root resembles the human form and is most potent for elderly people; yellow herbs such as Golden Seal, Oregon Grape root and Barberry root correspond to the yellowish color of bile in the body and can treat the gallbladder and liver, particularly hepatitis and jaundice; and herbs with light blue or purplish flowers have cooling and soothing properties valuable as nervines and sedatives. Chinese medicine historically finds similar medicines in the animal kingdom: a young spring chicken serves as a valuable female hormone tonic; the fetus and placenta of a deer for female infertility; testes of dogs, deer and other animals for male impotency; the horns of a young male deer as hormone stimulators; the stomachs of chickens as digestive tonics; earthworms as bronchial tube dilators; and pickled snake tincture for arthritis of the spine. The list is long and fascinating, and though it may seem incredible, these medicines remain a standard part of contemporary herbology. The only problems with the Doctrine of Signatures are that we have no way of knowing how much of a substance to use, and it ignores any other properties of the substance (such as Bloodroot being an excellent expectorant as well as a blood purifier). Energy As Duality After we recognize Qi as one with and in everything, we can refine it further by dividing it into a level of duality. This leads us to the second natural law, the Law of Polar Opposites, which tells us that everything has its complement: night/day, cold/hot, female/male, light/heavy, etc. As part of the very foundation of natural medicine, this law is defined by the Chinese as Yang (warming) and Yin (cooling). When related to herbs and foods, those substances that are cold, wet, empty or heavy are considered Yin. Usually, this includes the flowers, fruits and leaves of plants. Yin medicines have a superficial action on the body or cause some type of elimination through their laxative, diaphoretic or diuretic properties. Mint, Chamomile, Senna and Uva Ursi are examples. Other Yin herbs help build or reinforce the Yin in the body, or its tissue substance, blood and bodily fluids. These herbs support deep vital organs and structures such as the bones, lungs, kidneys, liver, spleen and heart. Examples include Comfrey root, Burdock root and raw Rehmannia glutinosa. Herbs that are dry, full, warm or bright in color fall into the Yang category. Yang substances stimulate warmth and circulation, break up stagnation, tone organs and move Qi in the body. Examples include Ginseng, Cinnamon bark, Angelica root and Cramp Bark. Energy As Several Elements From the dual polarity of Yin/Yang, we next divide energy into smaller portions, each representing a particular quality. In Ayurveda, it is divided into five elements: Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Ether. In the Chinese system, it is also divided into five elements, although a little differently: Earth, Metal, Water, Wood and Fire. The Native American tradition separates the elements to represent the four directions of East, South, West and North. The Western humoural system expounded by the Greek Hippocrates divides energy into the four humours: Yellow Bile, Black Bile, Phlegm and Blood. By looking more deeply into each of these elemental systems, we can distinguish their similarities and differences. Ayurvedic Humours In the East Indian Ayurvedic system, the five elements are as follows: 1. Earth represents nourishment and solid manifestation. It includes dense substances, sweet and astringent tastes, and the more solid body parts, such as the bones, muscle and mucus. 2. Water represents fluidity and relates to the Earth element in terms of adding to the watery substance of the body. It is represented by medicines with a sweet and salty taste, and includes all the bodily fluids (synovial, interstitial, lymph, etc.) 3. Fire represents warmth and metabolism. It relates to substances with pungent, sour and salty tastes. This element includes the organs of circulation and digestive processes. 4. Air represents motion and is associated with dryness. Thus, it is represented by medicines that increase dryness, have a light quality and exhibit bitter, pungent and astringent tastes. This element includes all the air and spatial systems of the body. 5. Ether represents space in the body and includes the vessels and sockets containing bodily substances. Like the Air element, it is associated with foods and herbs with a bitter taste. In the Ayurvedic system, these five elements combine to form the three humours, or Doshas, by including Earth and Water together, combining Air and Ether, and taking the Fire element alone. The results are the Water (Kapha), Air (Vata) and Fire (Pitta) humours. Chinese Five Elements In the Chinese Five Element system, the elements are as follows: 1. Earth represents nourishment and includes the spleen-pancreas and stomach. Substances with a yellow color and/or sweet taste, such as whole grains, most vegetables, meat, Licorice and Honey, belong to this category. It is represented by the season of Indian summer. 2. Metal represents the power of solidity and the energy of receiving and letting go. It includes the lungs and colon, and medicines with a white color and a pungent, spicy taste. It is symbolized by the season of fall. 3. Water represents fluidity, including the power of love and all the senses. It encompasses the kidneys and bladder, the season of winter, the color black and substances with a salty taste. 4. Wood represents growth or birth and includes the liver and gallbladder. The season of spring, the color green and medicines with a sour taste fall into this category. 5. Fire carries the power of warmth and outward expansion. The heart, pericardium and small intestines belong in this category. The season of summer, the color red and substances with a bitter taste are included here. Pausing for a moment to compare these last two systems, we find many similarities between the Five Element and Ayurvedic approaches. Both Earth elements represent nourishment, the Water elements encompass the fluid components of the body, and the Fire elements include the aspects of circulation, warmth and metabolism. The Chinese Metal and Wood elements do not, however, directly coincide with any single Ayurvedic model, though they overlap with various aspects of the other elements. Native American Directions The holistic healing system of the Native American Indians was represented by the medicine wheel and various animal totems, which described subtle variations of energy and personality types. Native Americans used the concept of the four directions in the same way Chinese and Ayurvedic systems defined the cyclic transformation of energy through the five elements. 1. East is represented by the eagle and the color gold or yellow. It is the place of illumination and of seeing far, just as the eagle can. This direction includes all medicines that stimulate warmth, circulation and digestion in the body. 2. South is symbolized by the mouse, the color green, and by innocence and trust. It is the place of being able to see up close, just as the mouse sees only what is in front of its whiskers. It includes all substances that promote growth and toning. 3. West is represented by the bear and the color black. It is the "looks-within" place and includes inner strength, introspection, dreams and visions. Its medicines are those that strengthen the body, as well as hallucinogens and toxic substances. 4. North is characterized by the buffalo and the color white. It is the direction of purity and wisdom, and includes all medicines that purify the body and possess an eliminative nature. The medicine wheel integrates the spiritual, psychological and material understandings of the Native American people. Like the five element systems of the two previous cultures, it had many practical applications relating to the Indian ideal of "walking in balance" with all elements of nature. This philosophy is also the essence of Chinese Taoist philosophy, though its knowledge of medicinal preparation has been almost completely lost. These last three systems are truly holistic in nature as they encompass the physical, mental and spiritual levels, and represent a whole and balanced way of living. Western-Greek Humours Contemporary Western herbology is not really representative of the healing philosophies of ancient Western Mediterranean and European cultures. Around the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, Western herbalism gradually began downplaying the importance of relevant elemental and astrological systems, which included the bodily "humours" derived from Ayurveda. Hippocrates is believed to have taught what is known as the Hippocratic humoural theory in medicine. He stated that people would enjoy optimal health when these elements were properly proportioned to each other. Pain arose when one of these elements was in deficit or excess, or when isolated in the body instead of being integrated with the others. As with Ayurveda, this system encompassed the entire range of human physiological types and the effects of environment and emotional states on the body. Hippocrates believed that the essence of matter was found in the four primary elements: Fire, Water, Air and Earth. He also relied on the Pythagorean theory of the four qualities: hot, cold, wet and dry. The Greek humours are as follows: 1. Yellow Bile represents the Fire element and is hot and dry in nature. It is thought to arise from the liver and is associated with a choleric temperament. Its season is summer. 2. Black Bile (Sauda) represents the Earth element and is dry and cold in nature. It arises from the spleen and is melancholic. Its season is autumn. 3. Phlegm represents the Water element and is cold and moist in nature. Its season is winter and its temperament is phlegmatic. 4. Blood represents the Air element and is hot and moist in nature. Its temperament is sanguineous and it predominates in the spring. Today's student of Western herbology classifies herbs solely by their therapeutic properties, uses and biochemical constituents. This tends to make Western herbology rather dull and mechanical, and ignores the ancient, more intuitive aspects of energetic classification, which give us the "personality" of each herb and food. The limited approach of Western herbology is primarily symptomatic and does not affect the underlying causes of disease. While this symptomatic approach can be effective, problems occur when situations arise that must be treated "systematically." Under these circumstances, the holistic philosophies of herbal healing become even more vital. Comparative Herbology Let's comparatively consider a few herbs used in the Western and Oriental systems according to the energies discussed so far. Hawthorn berry and flower (Crataegus oxyacantha), for example, are considered excellent cardiac tonics, diuretics and astringents. The Chinese Five Element system says that herbs with a bitter taste and red color directly nourish the heart. Hawthorn berry has a predominantly sour taste, which puts it in the domain of the Wood element where it affects the liver and gallbladder. Yet in the Five Element theory, Wood is said to feed Fire, so by nourishing the liver, we indirectly strengthen the heart. Therefore, Chinese theory considers Hawthorn berry also beneficial for the heart. Additionally, since it stimulates Fire, it helps to increase appetite and digestion (Earth element), as well. In Western herbology, the value of Hawthorn as a cardiac tonic was only discovered toward the end of the nineteenth century. Western scientists found that it contains amydalin and crataegin, both possessing a bitter quality. This reflects back to the Five Element system, which correlates bitter with the taste of the heart. In Europe, the wood of the Hawthorn is considered to make the hottest fire. Here is a fine example of the Doctrine of Signatures pointing toward the value of Hawthorn as an herb related to the Fire element, which encompasses the heart. Furthermore, Hawthorn has diuretic properties, showing its effects on the Water element and the kidneys, which control Fire in the Five Element system. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) uses a particular variety of Hawthorn (Crataegus cuneata) as a digestive tonic, stimulating the appetite. While this is only one variety, it can help us understand how Fire (heart and small intestine), which nourishes or feeds Earth (spleen and stomach) in the Five Element system, translates to how Hawthorn berry (Fire) can stimulate the stomach (Earth). While these theories continue to get more complex, they still show the interconnectedness of all aspects of nature based on the universal unified energy flow. Energy Categories and Directions The Oriental herbal system further defines this universal energy into the categories of cold, cool, warm and hot, and the four directional energies: rising (evaporative), sinking (submerging), floating on top (superficial) or going down (descending). These energies form the core of traditional Chinese theory, which determines an herb's uses and effects. Employing herbs without considering these energies, especially in the treatment of disease, could be detrimental to the patient. To explain, let us compare the energies of several different laxatives. All are known to have eliminative effects, but each has varying qualities of energy that express its uses: 1. Rhubarb root (Rheum officinale) has a cold energy and a bitter taste. It expels heat and breaks down clots. Western herbology recognizes Rhubarb's astringent laxative properties, making it useful for both constipation and diarrhea. It has a special therapeutic effect on the colon, small intestine and liver. 2. Senna (Cassia angustifolia) has a mildly sweet and bitter taste, and a cold energy. It directly affects the colon and eliminates excess heat. Because of its strong downward energy, common among potent laxative herbs, it should be avoided by women who are pregnant, menstruating or lactating. 3. Cascara (Cascara sagrada) has a strongly bitter taste and cold energy. However, it is one of the most tonifying laxatives and will not have the harsh effect of either Rhubarb or Senna. 4. Chamomile flower (Matricaria spp.) has a pleasantly bitter and sweet taste. Though this herb is light and has a rising energy, it is high in calcium and has a calming effect. If taken regularly, it tends to normalize the bowels. 5. Castor (Rincinis communis) is unilaterally used in Western herbology, Ayurveda and Chinese medicine. In Ayurveda, its oil is recommended to relieve all Vata derangements (nervous system-oriented), including pains, constipation and arthritis, both externally and internally. Chinese herbology classifies Castor as having a pleasant taste, although slightly acrid and toxic. Its energy is neutral - neither too cold nor too warm. The Chinese use it to relieve constipation, stop pain, draw out pus on gunshot wounds, boils, abscesses and enlarged lymph nodes, and for joint pains and prolapses of the uterus and anus. Western herbalists usually confine their use of this herb to its laxative effects, though the great American healer-psychic, Edgar Cayce, repeatedly recommended Castor oil as a fomentation to draw out toxins from the body's deep organs, helping the liver to neutralize them. The above examples provide us with an appreciation of the value of a cross-cultural herbal understanding. This will hopefully one day lead us to a planetary system of herbology that integrates the best of all cultures into a unified concept of practice. The Art and Science of Herbology In conclusion, I want to quote from one of our correspondence students living in the countryside of North Carolina. This beautifully succinct statement came to us in response to one of our lesson-end questions: There are many more facets to the herbs than I imagined. It seems there are no simple ways to categorize the herbs, no formulas that can always be used for certain symptoms, and probably no practicing herbalists who don't have a highly developed intuitive "feel" for the herbs they use. Herbs, like human beings, are manifestations of the Eternal Tao and as such, they exemplify the mystery of nature. The energy patterns existing in the herb plant, and the energies of the environment in which it grows are as important as the alkaloids, minerals and other biochemical constituents of the plant. Herbal medicine seems closer to an art than an exact science. The East West Course will teach you both the art and science of herbal practice, and presents a unified herbal system based on the major healing traditions of the world. Through an extensive study of every facet of herbology, you will gain an in-depth knowledge of health, disease and diagnosis, as well as a thorough understanding of the herbs themselves. Click Here To See Use And Origin Of Specific Herbs |