Part Eight: THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE ZANG-AND FU-ORGANS

    While the relationship among the zang-fu organs is quite a complicated matter--so much so that (so such an extent that )it deserves to be devoped a lot of pages, yet, thanks to TCM's concise and brilliant summarization, it may just as well be briefed in a broad outline. In TCM, the zang organs pertain to yin and are thought of as interior, while the fu-organs to yang and, naturally enough, as exterior. The interior-exterior relationship between them is formed by the connections of their meridians. This relationship as well as their physiological cooperation and pathological interaction can be clearly seen in the interrelations between the heart and the small intestine, the lung and the large intestine，the spleen and the stomach, the liver and the gallbladder and the kidney and the urinary bladder.

    尽管五脏与六腑之关系如此之复杂，需要大量篇幅加以论述；但由于中医学精辟的概括性，这种关系仍可以简要概述如下。中医认为，脏属阴、属里，而腑则属阳、属表。它们之间的表里关系以经脉相连。它们的这种关系及其之间在生理上的协调和病理上的相互影响可以清楚的体现于心和小肠、肺和大肠、脾和胃、肝和胆及肾和膀胱之间的相互关系中。

    The heart and the small intestine are connected by the heart meridian and the small intestine meridian to form an exterior-interior relationship. Thus making the two pathologically related to each other. The excessive heart-fire tends to go into the small intestine resulitng in oliguria, burning pains during urination,etc. Conversely, the excessive heat in the small intestine may go upward along the meridian to the heart and cause internal hyperactivity of heart-fire. Leading to dysphoria, crimson tongue, oral ulceration and so on.

    心和小肠由心经和小肠经相连形成表里关系。因此，也使它们在病理上互相关联。心有实火，可移热于小肠，引起尿少，尿痛等症。反之，小肠有热，亦可循经上炎于心，使心火内炽，引起心烦，舌赤，口舌生疮等症。

    The lung and the large intestine form an exterior-interior relationship by mutual connections of their meridians. The dispersing and deseending functions of the lung help the large intestine to perform its transporting task. When the lung functions normally, the large intestine does well. Conversely when the descending function of the lung qi do not work well, it will affect the functionof the large intestine in transportation, causing difficult bowel movements. On the other hand, loose stools and the stoppage of fu-qi may affect the descent of lung-qi, giving rise to asthmatic cough and chest distress.

    肺和大肠通过它们的经脉相互联系形成表里关系。肺的宣发和肃降功能助大肠完成传输的任务。肺的功能正常则大肠的功能也正常。相反，当肺的肃降功能异常时，大肠的传化功能将会受到影响，使肠运动困难。另一方面，便溏和腑气郁滞可以影响肺气的肃降造成喘咳和胸闷。