Daniel: April 18, 2021, 1:05pm
I was thinking the other day about the temporal context of Sa’Am. It’s almost hard to believe this. In ‘TCM’, as we
all know, we are taught ‘oppositional pairs’ constituted by the Yin and Yang within each phase . . . . Large Intestine
– Lung, Gall Bladder – Liver, Bladder – Kidney, etc etc. And as we all know, the Sa’Am ‘innovation’ was to relook
at pairings and come up with different counterbalancing pairs – consistent with the 6 Qi groupings but across
phases within those groupings – but as we have all come to experience, offering impressively WAY MORE
therapeutic power and intensity (its undeniable once you begin to put it to work in clinic)! What I find fascinating
is that the more ‘traditional’ pairings we were all taught in school – its a 2000 year old framework – laid down in
the Nei Jing – certainly fully codified in the Jia Yi Jing not much later. Assuming the pairing framework discovered
and developed for Sa’Am was really an innovation, never emergent into Chinese Medicine before about 300 years
ago, its really quite fascinating that it took a full 1700 years (given the brilliance of so many generations of
physicians over that time frame – that is 34 generations of physicians!) for this powerful and insightful pairing to
appear!
George_Mandler: April 18, 2021, 1:19pm
Yeah I still am amazed at this monks deep contemplation.
As Brenda Hood immediately pointed out in the Portland class – as it was so obvious to her but a major aha
revelation to me is to look at the clock. The channel pairings are grouped as every other on the clock.
Daniel #3April 18, 2021, 3:46pm
What I am incredulous at – is the apparent fact that 34 generations of brilliant physicians never twigged to this – at
least not to the point of writing it down, that we know of . . . .
sweiz: April 19, 2021, 10:55am
Hi Daniel,
Yes, I see what you mean, especially because, once you learn it, it is rather obvious. I mean, when you put the four
together, which is a no-brainer, Liv-GB-SJ-PC, and look at Yin Yang pairs, there they are!08/01/2024, 14:231700 Years for the Sa’Am Counterbalancing Pairs to Emerge! – Qiological Community
https://forum.qiological.com/t/1700-years-for-the-saam-counterbalancing-pairs-to-emerge/1552/print2/3
I am pretty sure that this pairing is not even one of Dr. Tan’s pairings. Am I wrong about this? It is not one of the
basic five systems for sure. I also love the direct relevance of the Trigrams and how accurate they are: Mountain
LI, lake Sp etc.
I especially love the way the 5 and 6 interact with Saam. I mean how the Zang organ interacts with the six Qi to
give the quality of that organ. Very Wuyun Liuqi. This also seems obvious once you learn it so I am with you
Daniel, marveling that this was not revealed, that we know of, before.
Daniel: April 19, 2021, 3:31pm
Hi Sharon . . . yes, it all seems so obvious . . . so elegant, so simple . . . and as we all know through clinical
experience, generative of an unrivalled clinical power. It’s beyond remarkable this lay ‘hidden’, ‘unseen’ within the
framework (apparently) for 34 generations!! I feel it is the pinnacle of elegance in the world of Acupuncture.
George_Mandler: April 20, 2021, 1:33pm
sweiz:
I am pretty sure that this pairing is not even one of Dr. Tan’s pairings. Am I wrong about this? It is not one of
the basic five systems for sure.
It is not, but isn’t it because the Tan Balance system is about channels that can treat other channels? In Saam
pairings it is putting 5/6 together to create opposite dynamics so BL will not treat HT for example. So I’d say it is
consistent with Tan as I don’t think we find the Saam counterbalance pairs as one of the “can treat each other”.
(certainly not in the 5 basic pairings as you mentioned)
sweiz:
I also love the direct relevance of the Trigrams and how accurate they are: Mountain LI, lake Sp etc.08/01/2024, 14:231700 Years for the Sa’Am Counterbalancing Pairs to Emerge! – Qiological Community
https://forum.qiological.com/t/1700-years-for-the-saam-counterbalancing-pairs-to-emerge/1552/print3/3
Yes it makes so much more sense then at the pairings that I see in my Tan notes! I have so much gratitude that you
introduced Sa’am in the Sept 2018 GMP class Sharon!