8 patterns of illness - Ruqiyah Shariah

In TCM, one method of understanding the basic nature of an illness is to assess the ailment in terms of the "8 patterns". These are in fact 4 sets of opposing concepts viz. Hot / Cold Internal / External Excess / Deficiency Yin / Yang

When determining if an illness is suited to treatment by Hijamah we are mostly concerned with 2 of these sets, viz. hot/cold and excess/deficiency. There are a number of ways to determine and differentiate how the ailment relates to these concepts such as through asking about the presenting symptoms, as well as looking at the tongue and feeling the pulse.

Pulse and tongue diagnosis are specialist fields that require practical training and therefore full detail is not provided on these aspects of diagnosis. Briefly, for Hijamah to be suitable for the ailment, the pulse should be rapid, floating or surging, not slow, deep or weak, it also should not be floating and hollow in the center.

Asking about the symptoms in order to determine the nature of the illness is a method that is accessible to most and can provide enough information in the majority of cases to come to a diagnosis vis. a vie the pattern of illness.

When determining heat we differentiate between excess heat or deficient heat.

Excess heat has the following characteristics: Main Signs: Fever (sometimes), thirst, red face, red eyes, constipation. Urine is scanty and dark.

Pulse: Rapid and Full Tongue: Red with a yellow coating

The following are some general signs of an Excess Heat pattern though the exact symptoms depend on the organ(s) affected.

1. Raised, red skin eruption that feels hot e.g. acute urticaria 2. Any burning painful sensation e.g. urine or stomach pain 3. Loss of blood with large quantities of bright red blood indicates Heat in the Blood 4. Extreme mental restlessness/manic behavior (Heat in the Heart) 5. Thick, yellow, sticky, malodorous secretions/ excretions

Excess Heat patterns are caused by excess of energy and blood in the body and individuals presenting with this type of pattern will respond very well to Hijamah.