Today I want to talk about the foundations of pregnancy.
This is an article I wrote in Hebrew, and is the first part of 2 articles about pregnancy.
I read a lot about the 8 Extraordinary Meridians (some called it an obsession…hmmm…) as I was fascinated by them (aren’t everybody??), and studied more about Gynecology and found the CM to be probably the ultimate medicine for women. No kidding.
Please note that I mentioned things briefly, there is a lot to be said about almost every single thing I wrote here, and you are more than welcome to share your knowledge here, I will be more than happy if you do so.

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The Heart is like a personal metronome for each individual woman, and each woman has her own rhythm where the uterus and monthly cycle are concerned.
The woman’s physiology according to the Chinese is based on the relationship of the Heart and the Uterus via the Bao Mai, and the Kidneys with the Uterus via the Bao Luo.
The Bao Mai connects the Pericardium and the Uterus, in which case the Pericardium doesn’t function as an organ in it’s own right but as a vessel surrounding the Heart. The Bao Mai transfers Qi and Blood to the Heart and Uterus (it is stated in the Suwen that Amenorrhea comes from the Bao Mai being closed).
We can therefore conclude that in order for the Uterus to function well, we need the Heart to function well.
Many are the times where we see emotional situations affecting the cycle or affecting the ability of a woman to get pregnant. When we see the direct connection to the Heart we are not surprised.
The Yin organs of the Water Element provide us with a net of meridians surrounding the Uterus with Kidney-Jing. This net is the Bao Luo, which also provides the Uterus with Yin (according to the Suwen chapter 47).
The ability of the woman to have a monthly cycle and to get pregnant, depend on the Heart and the Kidneys functioning well and in their ability to nourish the Uterus.

The Uterus is one of the 6 extraordinary fu, according to Chinese Medicine.
The Suwen, chapter 11 defines the Bao as Nu Zi Bao, the special Bao of the woman, which is very similar to the Uterus.
The radicals that describe the Uterus show the flesh, the body and a connective protection system around the Heart. Etymologically, it symbolizes a fetus in his mother’s uterus. Thus the Bao carries different things, like a mothers carrying her child in her uterus, where she guards and protects him.
In chapter 33, the Uterus- the Bao Mai, is presented as an organ with a co- dependent relationship with the Heart. With the Bao Zhong- central protection of life (1), the Uterus has a similar relationship to that of Yin organ and a Yang organ through the connecting points.
According to this chapter, the idea of Bao is not just the uterus itself but the whole system which includes the Ren Mai and the Chong (which are also responsible to the correct flow of Blood in a deeper level in the body), which is connected to the monthly cycle.

A Yuan dynasty text from the 13th century B.C, indicates that the Uterus is also called Zi Gong (a child’s palace). Other names- Bao Zang, Zi Zang. This is the area where the fetus is kept after conception, which is the meeting of Yin and Yang. In the text, the Uterus is described as a center to which Qi and Blood flow from 4 direction (2) and from all the Zang organs.
Here are, in short, a few relationships between the Uterus and different organs and the 8 Extraordinary meridians:

The Uterus and the Kidneys
* They connect through the Chong.
* Another connection is from the Bao Luo which connects to the Kidneys (Suwen chapter 47) and transports Jing and Yin to the Uterus.
* Through the 7 year cycles: 7 years- the Kidneys are full; 14 years- the power of fertility is strong, Ren and Chong have completed their development and the monthly cycles being (Tian Gui) (3).

The Uterus and the Liver
* Indirect connection through the Ren Mai: the Ren and Liver meridians meet at Ren2.
* indirect connection through the Du Mai: the Du and Liver meridians meet at Du20.
* A connection through Blood.

The Uterus and the Heart
* A connection of Blood- through the Bao Mai the Heart generates Blood to the Uterus.
* Bob Flaws says that the connection between the Heart and the Uterus is not direct, and is being done through the connection of the Pericardium to the Bao Mai (as was stated at the beginning of this post).

The Uterus and the Spleen
* Indirect connection to the Ren: the Spleen and Ren meridians meet at Ren3, the base of the tongue and the throat.
* A connection of Blood: Spleen keeps the Blood in it’s vessels.
* A connection with the Chong Mai: through the Stomach meridian and through SP4.

The Uterus and the Lungs
* The Lungs move fluids and Blood down towards the Uterus.
* Indirect connection to the Spleen: the Spleen is connected to the Lungs through the Tai Yin.

The Uterus and the Chong Mai
* Blood! The Chong Mai is also called “The Sea of Blood”. It moves Blood in the body and renews the Blood along with the Stomach (connection through ST30).
* Some say that the Chong Mai is actually the Bao Mai and the Bao Luo, others say that these are 3 separated meridians.
We mentioned the Blood, but the Neijing and other texts emphasis that the Chong Mai is also in charge of Qi, therefore the name “Sea of Meridians”.
According to Elisabeth Rochat de la Vallee, the firt function of the Chong Mai is to create a good circulation of Qi flow in the whole body.
Another important function is to connect between Ren6 and Ren17, which are both The Sea of Qi points.
Ren17 is the Front Mu point of the Pericardium, and the Ren Mai, like the Pericardium, is strongly connected to pregnancy and the bond the mother has with her baby. From this point there’s a strong movement of Qi to the whole body. This point along with the Heart and the Lungs are critical for the correct function of the meridians.

The Uterus and the Ren Mai
* A connection of the Ren Mai with the Spleen, Liver and Kidney meridians: the essence of this connection is the Jing and Blood that flow between these four meridians. the Ren Mai needs the 3 organs for Jing and Blood, and on the other hand we can see the Ren Mai as a “prototype” of the 3 meridians, which were created according to the Ren Mai where Blood and Jing are concerned.
* Indirect connection through the connection between Ren and Stomach: the Stomach nourishes and sends fluids to the Ren Mai.
* The Ren Mai unites the Yin aspects of the body and nourishes the fetus in the Uterus.
* The radical for Gui is the phonetic part of the Ren radical. This means there is a movement of the deep waters which can’t be seen, which is an analogy to the deep fertility movement of women.
The Ren Mai has the line of defense that can face challenges that awaits us. The radical speaks of the ability to face different phases in life and take responsibility.
The Ren Mai should nourish life- whether in a man or a woman (pregnancy or no pregnancy). The Ren Mai nourishes us with Blood and fluids, and during pregnancy it does so to the fetus.
If we look at the role of a mother in a family- they need the ability that is being shown through the radical of the Ren Mai, to be some sort of buffer (between the children and the father, between the family and the outside world, between herself and the family), and the ability to take it all in from others and still nourish life at the same time- for her husband, for her children or for herself. Many are the times that women take it upon themselves to keep the family united (many are the times that it is expected of them). There might be a strong connection to the Ren Mai.

The Uterus and the Du Mai
* The Du Mai ascends from the same place of the Ren Mai and the Chong Mai.
* A connection between the Kidenys and Du4: it is a big power of Yang which is needed to nourish the Uterus, just as it needs Yin.

The Uterus and the Dai Mai
* Dai Mai: as it is the girdle meridian, it holds and affects all the 12 meridians in the body.
* A connection between the Kidneys and DU4: chapter 11 of the Lingshu says that DU4 is in the same height of the Dai Mai, and there are practitioners who refer to that point as the beginning on the meridian itself.

The Uterus and Tian Gui
* Tian= heaven; Gui= linked to the Yin of winter, a hidden power of the water in the deep earth.
This means- the ability to get pregnant, something that is like fertility. It is also the name of the 9th stem which is associated with water- Kidneys.
* Some refer to Tian Gui as the bleeding phase of the monthly cycle, and some think Tian Gui is the vaginal discharges that come just before the bleeding.

Notes:
1. Bao Zhong- central protection of life: this is the origin of life in the body, this is where the Ren Mai and Chong Mai stem from (Lingshu chapter 65).
2. Reminds the 5 Elemnts, the Earth in the middle and it is reached from 4 directions= the 4 other elements.
3. More information regarding the 7 and 8 year cycles can be found in the book The Way of Heaven, Suwen chapters 1,2- by Father Claude Larre.

Bibliography:
8 Extraordinary Meridians- Elisabeth Rochat de la Vallee and Claude Larre
Extraordinary Fu- Elisabeth Rochat de la Vallee and Claude Larre
My Sister The Moon- Bob Flaws (out of print)
A Handbook of Mentrual Diseases in Chinese Medicine- Bob Flaws
ChineseGynecology studies with Yael Saslove- 2006- Israel
A workshop about the 8 Extraordinary with Yair Maimon and Rani Eyal- 2001- Israel