束骨 : Shugu : Restraining Bone

Classifications:

Shu-Stream and Wood point
Son point of the Bladder channel

Location:

On the lateral side of the foot, in the depression posterior and inferior to the head of the fifth metatarsal bone.

Needling:

Perpendicular insertion 0.3 - 0.5 cun

Classical Needling:

"The Taiyang usually has much Blood and little Qi" (Su Wen 素問 ch. 24) implying this channel should normally be bled.
"The foot Taiyang is to be pierced 5 fen deep and remain inserted for seven exhalations" (Ling Shu 靈樞 ch. 12).
"It is needled to a depth of three fen, (the needle) is retained for a duration of three exhalations, and it is moxaed with three cones" (Huangfu Mi 皇甫謐, 3rd Century, Zhenjiu Jiayi Jing 針灸甲乙經).

TCM Actions:

Clears the head and eyes
Clears Heat and dissipates swelling
Activates the channel and alleviates pain

TCM Indications:

• Headache, occipital headache, stiff neck, deafness, Visual Dizziness, redness and pain of the eyes, redness and erosion of the inner canthus, yellow eyes.
  
• Chills and fever, aversion to wind cold, heat in the body, Malarial (瘧, Nue) Disorders, Mania-Withdrawal (癲狂, Dian Kuang), carbuncular swellings on the back, clove sores on the back, haemorrhoids, diarrhoea.
  
• Pain of the lumbar region and back, thigh pain.

Neuroanatomy:

Superficial Innervation: Sural nerve (L5 - S2)

Dermatome Segment: S1

Deeper Structures: Sural nerve (L5 - S2)

Martial Applications & Effects of Injury:

See Montaigue, Dim Mak Locations, Taijiworld.com for explanation of effects.

Major Combinations:

• Headaches, a heavy head and dizziness with falling down due to disturbing Qi in the head causing counterflow:
    First needle Tianzhu Bl-10 and Dazhu Bl-11. If this does not work needle Zutonggu Bl-66 and Shugu Bl-65
    (Anon, 400BC-260AD: Huang Di Nei Jing Ling Shu, 黃帝內經靈樞, Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic: Spiritual Pivot, Ch. 34, On the Five Disturbances).
  
  
• Stiff neck with great aversion to wind:
    Shugu Bl-65 and Tianzhu Bl-10
    (Gao Wu, 高武, 1529: Bai Zheng Fu, 百症賦, Ode of a Hundred Symptoms).
  
  
• Redness and erosion of the inner canthus:
    Shugu Bl-65 with Jingu Bl-64
    (Wang Zhizhong, 王執中, 1220: Zhen Jiu Zi Sheng Jing, 針灸資生經, Classic of Supporting Life with Acupuncture and Moxibustion).
  
  
• Dian Kuang (Mania), incessant talking without rest:
    Shugu Bl-65 with Kunlun Bl-60 and Fengfu Du-16
    (Sun Simiao, 孫思邈, 625: Bei Ji Qian Jin Yao Fang, 備急千金要方, Essential Prescriptions Worth A Thousand Gold).
  
  
• Lumbar pain as if broken:
    Shugu Bl-65 with Feiyang Bl-58 and Chengjin Bl-56
    (Sun Simiao, 孫思邈, 625: Bei Ji Qian Jin Yao Fang, 備急千金要方, Essential Prescriptions Worth A Thousand Gold).
  
  
• Hip pain:
    Shugu Bl-65 with Huantiao GB-30, Jiaoxin Kid-8, Sanyinjiao Sp-6 and Yingu Kid-10
    (Sun Simiao, 孫思邈, 625: Bei Ji Qian Jin Yao Fang, 備急千金要方, Essential Prescriptions Worth A Thousand Gold).

Zhou Yi Hexagram:

䷂ Zhun 屯 Sprouting.

Trigrams: Zhen (Thunder) below, Kan (Water) above.

Movement within, danger without — the impulse to act meets a perilous environment. This is the difficulty of birth, of any new beginning.

Nuclear Trigrams: Lines 2-3-4 form Kun (Earth). Lines 3-4-5 form Gen (Mountain). Beneath the difficulty, there is receptivity (Kun) and a need to stop and wait (Gen). The hidden message: do not force your way through. The ground will receive you if you are still.

Judgement:

元亨利貞。勿用有攸往。利建侯。
Supreme Opening. Burning is beneficial.
This point can reach the Yuan level, open the channel to remove obstructions, and tonify through moxa.

利建侯。
It is beneficial to appoint feudal lords.
Support this point with assistance from other points.

Overall: Something new is being born. The energy is real, but the environment is dangerous. Do not push to hard at the point but investigate others to gather support.

Lines:

Image:
雲雷屯，君子以經絲。
Clouds and thunder: Zhun. Thus the gentleman brings order out of confusion.

The image is of a thunderstorm gathering — clouds above, thunder below. Chaos before rain. The gentleman does not panic. He weaves — he takes the tangled threads of the beginning and begins to organize them.

Acupuncture Point Connections:
Shared with Yongquan Kid-1.
Inverted into ䷃ (Yinlingquan Sp-9 or Neiting St-44).
Opposed by ䷱ (Yinxi He-6 or Yanglao SI-6).

Hexagram attributions are my own with an explanation given in the glossary.
Translations are my own, assisted by DSeek and compared to Richard Rutt's interpretion (2002).

Notes:

In five element acupuncture this point is reduced to drain excess in the Bladder. Its traditional indications of head and eye problems, chills and fevers, sores on the back and lumbar pain reflect this same function but focusing on the channel rather than the organ.

Ling Shu Ch. 19, on the Four Seasonal Qi, advises using the Shu-Stream points, unless the diseases are in the Fu organs, in which case the He-Sea points are chosen.

Cecil-Sterman explains that combining the Shu-Stream and Jing-Well points directed outwards is a method of expelling Pathogens from the Taiyang.

In Thai massage:
Acupressure point (Salguero & Roylance, 2011, Encyclopedia of Thai Massage)

Reference Notes:

Basic information on location, needle depth, TCM actions, indications and combinations is taken from Deadman et al (2001): A Manual of Acupuncture with additional anatomical information researched by reference to Gray's Anatomy (38th Ed., 1995) unless otherwise referenced. Images were found on acupunctureschoolonline.com and can be traced back to Claudia Focks (2008) Atlas of Acupuncture originally. I cannot claim any credit or rights over them. Other sources should be quoted in the text.

For some of the more unusual terms I have created a glossary here