Nourishing care

Five-organ nourishing care: understanding the Heart, Liver, Spleen, Lung and Kidney to care for the right place, the first module of the Specialist course

Lương Y (traditional healer) Tống Văn Huynh · Tong Gia Acupoint Wellness (Huyệt Đạo Tống Gia) · 21/10/2026

Quick summary: Five-organ nourishing care is a way of looking after the body according to the five organs of Eastern medicine: Heart (Tâm), Liver (Can), Spleen (Tỳ), Lung (Phế) and Kidney (Thận). Instead of only working on the tired spot, the practitioner looks at which organ is weak or in excess, then chooses the areas, acupoints, hand rhythm and lifestyle advice to match. At Tong Gia, this is the first module of the L3 Specialist course, studied over 1 month together with therapeutic-style massage for spinal nerve-reflex balancing and advanced Y Tướng Học (face reading for wellness).

What is five-organ nourishing care?

Eastern medicine divides the body into five main organs: Heart, Liver, Spleen, Lung and Kidney. Each organ is linked to one element of the Five Elements, a season, an emotion and certain areas of the body. The five organs do not stand alone; they nourish and restrain one another, like five people in one household.

Five-organ nourishing care means looking after the body through that lens. A client comes in saying their back is tired, but the practitioner does not just ask "where is it tired?" They go on to ask: how are you sleeping, how are you eating, have you been worried or angry lately, what does your body need this season? Only then do they choose how to work.

Tong Gia often says: "A person's best feng shui is their health." Five-organ nourishing care is a way to keep that feng shui from the inside, without waiting for fatigue to pile up before acting.

An organ in Eastern medicine is different from an organ in anatomy

This is where beginners most often get confused. When Eastern medicine says "Liver", it does not mean only the liver you see on a scan. The Liver is a whole group of functions: keeping the tendons supple, keeping qi and blood flowing, keeping the emotions at ease, keeping the eyes bright. Likewise, the Kidney in Eastern medicine includes stamina, the bones, the lower back, the ears and the hair.

So five-organ nourishing care is not "making the liver healthy" or "making the kidneys healthy" in the anatomical sense. It is caring for the areas, habits and daily rhythms that Eastern medicine assigns to each organ. Practitioners must tell clients exactly that, without overstating.

The five organs and what a practitioner needs to notice

• Heart (Fire element, summer): linked to sleep, alertness, complexion and the tongue. Clients who often feel jittery, sleep poorly or feel hot inside are usually noted for the Heart.
• Liver (Wood element, spring): linked to the tendons, eyes, nails and emotions such as irritability and tension. People who often tense their shoulders, grind their teeth or have tired eyes are usually noted for the Liver.
• Spleen (Earth element, the turn of the seasons): linked to digestion, muscles, the lips and worry. People who eat irregularly, worry a lot or have heavy, tired limbs are usually noted for the Spleen.
• Lung (Metal element, autumn): linked to breathing, the skin, the nose and sadness. People who breathe shallowly, often get a blocked nose when the weather changes, or have a chest that is hard to open are usually noted for the Lung.
• Kidney (Water element, winter): linked to the bones, lower back, ears, hair and stamina. People with tired lower backs and knees, cold hands and feet, or who tire quickly are usually noted for the Kidney.

These are prompts for the practitioner to ask questions, not to draw conclusions. One person may both worry a lot and sleep poorly, meaning the Spleen and the Heart both need care. Learning five-organ nourishing care is learning to connect these prompts in an orderly way.

Why working practitioners need to learn five-organ nourishing care

Most practitioners are skilled at the area level: neck and shoulders, back, legs. The client feels less tired for a few days, then goes back to how they were. The reason usually is not hand skill, but that we have only cared for the surface.

Once they understand the five organs, practitioners gain three things:

1. A reason for everything they do: why this session spends longer on the lower back, why that session focuses on opening the chest and the breath.
2. Advice for clients to take home: bedtime, how to breathe, foods to eat by season, how to rub a few acupoints themselves. Clients feel cared for even outside the session.
3. A deeper way of talking: explaining to clients in easy-to-understand nourishing-care language, without scaring them and without making promises.

How an organ-based nourishing session differs from a regular massage

In principle, an organ-based nourishing session as taught by Tong Gia follows this sequence:

1. Initial observation: ask about daily routine, sleep, eating and recent emotions; look at the complexion and posture.
2. Choose the focus organ: do not try to cover all five organs in one session; choose the one or two organs that most need care.
3. Follow that organ's routine: the areas worked, the acupoints chosen, the hand rhythm and the duration differ for each organ.
4. Check and advise: ask how the client feels after the session, and give them a few nourishing-care tips for home.

These organ-by-organ nourishing routines are used every day at Tong Gia's two service branches in District 12 and Vinhomes Grand Park. Students learn the routines that are really running, not lessons on paper.

Safety limits in five-organ nourishing care

Tong Gia is a hands-on wellness and nourishing-care service, not a medical service. Five-organ nourishing care does not replace seeing a doctor and does not replace medicine prescribed by a doctor.

When a client has long-lasting pain, numbness or weakness that keeps increasing, unexplained weight loss, is pregnant, has just had surgery or has an underlying condition, the practitioner must know not to work, or to work only lightly once the client has asked their doctor, and advise the client to see a doctor at a healthcare facility. Knowing when to stop is part of the lesson.

Learning five-organ nourishing care in the L3 Specialist course

Tong Gia's L3 Specialist course is studied over 1 month and has 3 consecutive modules:

• Five-organ nourishing care (this article): understanding the Heart, Liver, Spleen, Lung and Kidney and the care routine for each organ.
• Therapeutic-style massage for spinal nerve-reflex balancing: reading the spine by hand and working on it in an orderly way. See the article therapeutic-style massage for spinal nerve-reflex balancing.
• Advanced Y Tướng Học: reading the face to find areas of imbalance before working. See the article advanced Y Tướng Học.

The three modules connect along Tong Gia's two pillars: Y Tướng Học gives us a hypothesis about which organ is weak, the hands on the spine cross-check it, and five-organ nourishing care chooses how to care. "The organ is the cause, the face is the effect": caring for the organs is caring for the root.

The course is for practitioners who already have a foundation of hand skills. Beginners should start with L1 Introduction and L2 Basic Vocation. About 70% of class time is hands-on practice on real people, with Lương Y Tống Văn Huynh coaching each person. Fees for each level are on the 4-level vocational ladder; the schedule is given by a consultant when you register. Tong Gia does not promise jobs or income after the course.

How to register

Come to the free trial class on Saturday morning, 8:30–12:00, 10 places per session, at unit T16-21, Manhattan area, Vinhomes Grand Park, Phường Long Bình, TP. Thủ Đức (Long Binh Ward, Thu Duc City). The Lương Y looks at your hand skills, then suggests whether you should go straight into L3 or strengthen L2 first.

Reserve a place via Zalo 0888 264 559; message "CHUYÊN GIA" (Specialist) for advice on the L3 course schedule.

Frequently asked questions

Which organs does five-organ nourishing care cover? The Heart, Liver, Spleen, Lung and Kidney, as in Eastern medicine. Each organ is linked to one element of the Five Elements, a season, an emotion and certain areas of the body.

Is five-organ nourishing care about caring for the liver and kidneys in the anatomical sense? No. An organ in Eastern medicine is a group of functions, not just an organ in anatomy. Five-organ nourishing care is wellness care and does not replace seeing a doctor.

How long does it take to learn five-organ nourishing care at Tong Gia? Five-organ nourishing care is one of the 3 modules of the L3 Specialist course, and the whole course is studied over 1 month. A consultant gives the exact schedule when you register.

Can I learn five-organ nourishing care if I am not yet working in the field? The L3 course is for people who already have a foundation of hand skills. Beginners should start with L1 and L2. The Lương Y looks at your hand skills at the trial class and suggests a suitable level.

Related articles

• The 3 zones of the face in Y Tướng Học: how they are divided and how to read them for the right care
• How are the spine and the nervous system related? Understanding it properly to care for the body
• Learning acupressure to care for your parents at home: what to do and what never to do on your own
• Learning Eastern-medicine nourishing spa care: what to learn so your service has roots, not just the scent of herbs
• All articles on vocational learning

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Reserve a free Saturday-morning trial class or ask about the learning path: message Zalo 0888 264 559.