Jing (TCM)

Encyclopedia : J : JI : JIN : Jing (TCM)

Jīng (Chinese: 精; Wade-Giles: ching¹) is the Chinese word for "essence", specifically kidney essence, or semen. According to traditional Chinese medicine, jīng is stored in the kidneys and is the most dense physical matter within the body (as opposed to shen which is the most volatile). It is said to be the material basis for the physical body and is yin in nature, which means it nourishes, fuels, and cools the body. As such it is an important concept in the internal martial arts. Jīng is also believed by some to be the carrier of our heritage (i.e. DNA); semen, in the man, and menstrual blood, in the woman, are believed to be part of jīng. One is said to be born with a set amount of jīng (pre-natal jīng, also sometimes called yuan qi) and also can acquire jīng from food and various forms of stimulation (exercise, study, meditation.) Theoretically, jīng is consumed continuously in life; by everyday stress, illness, substance abuse, sexual intemperance, etc. Pre-natal jīng, it is said, cannot be renewed, and is completely consumed upon dying. In traditional Chinese medicine, one "secret" of long life is to use the least amount of pre-natal jīng and the most of post-natal. Many disciplines related to qigong are devoted to the replenishment of "lost" jīng, by restoring the post-natal jīng.

Jīng (精; essence) should not be confused with the related concept of jìn (勁; power).

Scientific interpretation

There is no scientific evidence that any one real, physical substance that has all the properties ascribed to Jing. Genetic material is contained in DNA. Blood is the primary heat transfer fluid of the body, and it is known to consist of many components. It carries many nutrients; the primary energy-carrying substance is adenosine triphosphate. Red blood cells carry oxygen from the lungs. The immune system is complex and consists of many different types of cells and substances. It is true that it is affected by exercise, diet, stress, and substance abuse. Semen and menstrual blood are completely different substances. Semen does carry reproductive cells (gametes) by menstrual blood are not. Semen is produced in the testes and does not flow through the kidneys. The kidneys do regulate the fluid balance of blood, remove wastes, and excrete various hormones, but do not store blood. Caloric nutrients are generally stored in adipose tissue (body fat).

References

This does not cite its .
You can Wikipedia by introducing appropriate citations.

Jing (TCM)

Scientific interpretation

References

See also