Today, I will talk about the fifth characteristic: the feeling of often being harmed or persecuted.
If the Wood element is too strong, we tend to say things that hurt others and, at the same time, attract harm or persecution from others.
What is Wood? Wood represents the characteristics of trees, and trees signify life. The Wood element is associated with the liver. The liver is a large organ located (in the abdomen) on the right side. Because it is on the right side, we say that the liver is always oriented toward righteousness, meaning truth, goodness, and beauty. Therefore, a person with a healthy liver is someone who always strives for righteousness, truth, goodness, and beauty.
Wood is the characteristic of the liver, but it is also the characteristic of the soul. Westerners often say "seed of the soul." The soul is an energy that moves toward truth, goodness, and beauty. No soul is ever corrupt, evil, or bad. The soul is reflected in the eyes, which is why there is a saying: "The eyes are the window to the soul." Some people, when you look into their eyes, radiate immense kindness because the righteousness and truth in their liver are strong.
The characteristic of Wood is openness. Why? Because trees always grow upward, seeking for space above, reaching for sunlight, and the sky is the realm of truth. Trees never grow sideways or downward. Therefore, the nature of Wood is always to strive upward toward truth, goodness, and beauty. The act of growing, of reaching for openness, is extremely important.
Within the Wood element, there are two aspects: Yin and Yang.
Yang Wood is symbolized by a strong, tall tree with lush foliage, abundant greenery, and a sense of openness and beauty. This is something everyone desires. In the winter, Yang Wood trees are evergreens that remain beautiful and full of life, retaining their leaves year-round.
Yin Wood, on the other hand, represents a withered, frail tree, lacking water, unable to fully grow toward the sun. It stops growing halfway due to a lack of nourishment, love, and compassion. Yin Wood lacks vitality, appearing dry and lifeless. When looking at a Yin Wood tree, people tend to avoid it because its branches and leaves have an eerie color.
Yin Wood leads to dryness, stagnation, and misalignment with the light. Sometimes, it grows chaotically in all directions. Trees that belong to Yin Wood often survive by entangling themselves around other trees, draining their nutrients, and eventually killing them. Similarly, a person with an excess of Yin Wood tends to harm others, stealing their energy and life force rather than thriving on their own.
Yang Wood represents openness, strength, and vitality, while Yin Wood is destructive and depletes life energy. That is why people with a Yin Wood nature tend to either attract harm or harm others. It’s true that some trees kill others. Their roots invade one another, disrupting and destroying. Instead of growing toward the sunlight, they grow chaotically, harming nearby trees. It’s truly frightening.
Therefore, when Yang Wood is strong within a person, they feel open and free. When Yin Wood is dominant, they feel blocked and stagnant.
A person with a lot of Yang Wood has kindness in their eyes—their gaze is warm and benevolent.
A person with excess Yin Wood has harshness in their eyes—their gaze appears fierce and unpleasant.
The standards of right and wrong differ between Yin Wood and Yang Wood individuals.
Yang Wood people understand right and wrong, but they only direct their anger toward themselves. They work on self-improvement and strive to grow, just like a tree reaching upward, towards the light.
Yin Wood people often have a distorted sense of right and wrong. They only see the faults in others, rather than improving themselves. Instead of focusing on personal growth, they criticize and correct others.
Sometimes, Yin Wood individuals act in ways that contradict their own beliefs, much like branches that tangle and clash instead of growing upward. They are filled with inner conflict and tensions. As a result, their words are often harmful and hurtful—not only to others but also to themselves.
A Yin Wood person is not only hard to be around but also intensely difficult in their interactions.A Yang Wood person is easygoing and uplifting.
Yang Wood people help others succeed.
Yin Wood people try to prevent others from succeeding.
Yin Wood individuals often make cutting remarks that discourage and deflate others. Their words are not just playfully teasing but are sharp, hurtful attacks.
Both types have a direct and blunt nature (since trees grow straight), but Yin Wood does not grow straight—it grows crooked and twisted, causing immense suffering. This leads to stagnation and destruction, ending life instead of nurturing it.
That’s why a Yin Wood person often says things that kill joy. When you're happy, they say something that deeply hurts you, abruptly ending your happiness.
However, it’s not entirely the person’s fault. When Yin Wood energy is too strong, it affects the liver and manifests in negative speech and actions that harm others. It’s a sign of an unbalanced internal state rather than a deliberate intent to cause harm.
How to Transform Yin Wood into Yang Wood?
To shift from Yin Wood to Yang Wood, you need to cultivate openness, vitality, and righteousness. Here are some key practices to achieve this transformation:
1. Practice Speaking Without Causing Harm. Avoid negative speech that discourages or harms others.
2. Engage in Physical Exercise. Practices like Integral Tai Chi and yoga help dissolve Yin Wood in the liver and cultivate Yang Wood. These exercises follow the principle of Metal which overcomes Wood and helps regulate excessive Yin Wood energy.
3. Adopt a New Mindset Rooted in Righteousness. Develop a sense of justice and fairness—learn to recognize right and wrong within yourself first.
Cultivate kindness in your gaze. Train your eyes to be gentle and compassionate.
Smile often. Even a slight smile can shift your energy toward positivity. The mouth belongs to the Earth element, and Earth generates Metal. Since Metal controls Wood, a balanced Earth element (through smiling) can nurture Metal, which in turn regulates Yin Wood energy.
We should think this way: Everyone is right in their own way. Everyone has their own sense of righteousness because everyone has a liver (the organ associated with righteousness and decision-making). Each person sees themselves as right based on their own experiences and values. Accept people as they are—acceptance is a quality of the liver.
Openness comes from an open heart—a generous and expansive mindset allows us to coexist peacefully. We should not impose our standards on others. Everyone has different standards. We can be honest, clear, and righteous, but we shouldn’t use our righteousness as a weapon to judge or attack others.
Avoid a Mindset of Constant Rebellion and Correction. Stop always being outraged or trying to "fix" others. Avoid seeing yourself as a hero whose job is to correct the world—this only makes people around you uncomfortable. Instead, aim to become someone who is easy to be around and easy to deal with. Create an atmosphere that is comfortable and breathable for those around you. Stop saying things that cause pain or frustration in others.
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