The triple energizer is a special fu-organ, serving to divide the internal organs in the chest and abdomen and generalize certain functional systems of the body.

     

The triple energizer is composed of three parts, i.e. the upper energizer, middle energizer and lower energizer. The diaphragm and the navel are regarded as the lines to divide the triple energizer. The part above the diaphragm is the upper energizer, the part below the diaphragm and above the navel is the middle energizer, and the part below the navel is the lower energizer. The upper energizer includes the thorax, the heart and the lung; the middle energizer includes the upper abdomen, the spleen, the stomach, the liver, the gallbladder and the small intestine; the lower energizer includes the lower abdomen, the kidney, the bladder and the large intestine.

The triple energizer is an independent functional system which is based on the morphological structure of the internal organs and tissues. In fact it is a generalization of the physiological functions of the internal organs. The physiological functions of the triple energizer include the following two aspects:

The triple energizer serves as a transmitting system, through which substances like the primordial qi and water are transported and transmitted.The primordial qi, the root source of qi, comes from congenital essence and nourishes the acquired base of life. It is the primary motivation of life activity. The primordial qi originates from the kidney and, through the transportation and transmission of the triple energizer, is distributed to all parts of the body for warming and nourishing the viscera and the tissues so as to activate and promote the physiological functions of the other viscera and tissues. If the primordial qi is deficient and the transportation of the triple energizer is not smooth, it will lead to qi deficiency in certain areas in the body.

      

When taken into the stomach and transported and transformed by the spleen, the water is transmitted upwards to the lung which, by means of regulating the water passage, transmits the water downwards to the kidney. The kidney separates the lucid from the turbid with its function of transforming qi. Such a continuous circulation maintains normal metabolism of water inside the body. The lung is located in the upper energizer, the spleen in the middle energizer and the kidney in the lower energizer. 

It is the triple energizer that organizes these three organs into a system for transmitting and metabolizing water. That is why triple energizer is regarded as a very important passage of water. If the triple energizer is obstructed, the functions of the lung, the spleen and the kidney will certainly be affected, leading to oliguria and edema.

      

The generalization of the physiological functions of certain viscera with the triple energizer is mainly concerned with the digestion and absorption of food, distribution of food nutrients and metabolism of water. Huangdi Neijing used three similes to describe the functions of the triple energizer, the upper energizer is like fog, the middle energizer is like maceration and the lower energizer is like sewer.

    

The heart and the lung are located in the upper energizer. This simile describes the functions of the heart and the lung to distribute essence. That is to say that the function of the heart and the lung to distribute food nutrients is just like fog permeating everywhere. When exogenous pathogenic factors invade the upper energizer, it not only affects the dispersion and distribution of essence, but also leads to the symptoms of dysphoria, palpitation, cough and chest oppression due to dysfunction of the heart and lung.

     

This simile describes the digestion and absorption of food by the spleen and the stomach. In fact the digestion and absorption of food are not only related to the spleen and the stomach, but also to the liver and the gallbladder. The stomach governs reception and digestion of food; the spleen governs transportation and transformation of food nutrients; the liver and the gallbladder smooth the activity of qi, excrete the bile and promote digestion. 

Since the spleen, the stomach, the liver and the gallbladder are located in the upper abdomen, this simile is actually a generalization of the digesting and absorbing functions of these organs. If pathogenic factors are retained in the middle energizer, the digesting and absorbing functions will be affected, leading to distending fullness of the upper abdomen, vomiting, diarrhea and jaundice.

      

This simile describes the functions of the kidney and the bladder that move the turbid liquid downward and discharge it out of the body. This is in fact a generalization of the functions of the kidney and the bladder in producing and excreting urine. If pathogenic factors invade the lower energizer, the excretion of urine will be affected, leading to oliguria, frequent urination, urgent urination and pain in urination.