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Huangdi Neijing · The Yellow Emperor’s Inner Canon
Lingshu 63 · Discussion of the Five Flavors
Read in English. Switch to Original for word notes, or select text to ask a question.
The Yellow Emperor asked Shao Yu: “The five flavors enter the mouth, each with its course and its illness. Sour goes to sinews; much of it causes blocked urination. Salty goes to blood; much of it causes thirst. Acrid goes to qi; much of it causes a hollow, disturbed feeling at the heart. Bitter goes to bone; much of it causes a change to vomiting. Sweet goes to flesh; much of it causes heart oppression. I know these effects but not how they arise. I wish to hear the reason.”
Shao Yu replied: “Sour enters the Stomach with rough, contracting qi. Rising to the two burners, it cannot pass in and out. Unable to emerge, it remains in the Stomach. With the Stomach harmoniously warm, it pours downward into the Bladder, which is brittle, thin and soft. Sour makes it contract and curl, constricting passage so that the waterways do not flow; hence blocked urination. The yin region is where the gathered sinews end, so sour enters and goes to sinews.”
The Yellow Emperor said: “Why does salty go to blood and, when eaten much, cause thirst?”
Shao Yu said: “Salty enters the Stomach, and its qi rises to the middle burner and pours into the vessels. Blood and qi follow it. When blood and salty meet they congeal; the Stomach’s juice pours toward them and is exhausted. The throat pathway is then scorched, making the tongue root dry and thirst frequent. Blood vessels are the middle burner’s route, so salty enters and goes to blood.”
The Yellow Emperor said: “Why does acrid go to qi and, when eaten much, cause that hollow disturbance at the heart?”
Shao Yu said: “Acrid enters the Stomach and its qi travels to the upper burner, which receives qi and nourishes the yang channels. Ginger and chive qi steam into it. Nutritive and defensive qi receive them out of due time and they remain long beneath the heart, causing its hollow disturbance. Acrid travels together with qi, so after entering it comes out with sweat.”
The Yellow Emperor said: “Why does bitter go to bone and, when eaten much, cause a change to vomiting?”
Shao Yu said: “Bitter enters the Stomach and none of the five grains’ qi can overcome it. Entering the lower stomach cavity, it closes all the Triple Burner’s pathways, preventing passage and bringing a change to vomiting. Teeth are where bone reaches its end. Thus bitter enters and goes to bone; its entering and then coming out again shows that it goes to bone.”
The Yellow Emperor said: “Why does sweet go to flesh and, when eaten much, cause heart oppression?”
Shao Yu said: “Sweet enters the Stomach with weak, slight qi that cannot rise to the upper burner. Remaining with grain in the Stomach, it makes things soft and moist. A soft Stomach relaxes; its relaxation stirs gu, and the stirring causes heart oppression. Its qi communicates outwardly with flesh, so sweet goes to flesh.”
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