Dark · 8 min
The night circuit
A read of this page, with the plate.
The second half of the clock runs through evening and night. Again, this is classical Chinese medicine theory, not Kapel's teaching, and not health advice.
Kidney and pericardium (17–21)
Late afternoon and early evening go to the kidney and then the pericardium, which the tradition calls the heart's protector. Classical writing links these hours with turning inward and with closeness to other people.
Triple warmer, gallbladder, liver (21–3)
Late evening goes to the triple warmer, then the gallbladder around midnight and the liver in the small hours. In the tradition this is the quiet, resting part of the circuit. At dawn the lung comes round again and the circle closes.
Living with it
You don't have to keep to this, and there is nothing to get right. The clock is not a moral system. At its best it's a gentle reminder that 3 p.m. and 3 a.m. feel like different rooms.
Practice
This evening, glance at the Living Clock page once and see which meridian the tradition names for that hour. Notice the hour. That's the whole practice.
Check
In the tradition, early evening (17–21) belongs to:
- Lung and large intestine
- Kidney and pericardium ✓
- Stomach and spleen
Kidney 17–19, pericardium 19–21.
The pericardium is described in the tradition as:
- The heart's protector
- A gland ✓
- A gate
That is its classical name.
Around midnight the classical clock names:
- The gallbladder
- The stomach ✓
- The heart
Gallbladder 23–1, then liver 1–3.
A true line from this lesson:
- The clock is a moral system
- The clock is not a moral system ✓
- Missing an hour causes illness
There is nothing to get right.
This course as a whole is:
- Kapel's own teaching
- Classical TCM theory for literacy, educational, not medical advice ✓
- A treatment plan
Background literacy only.