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Location Guides: |
Shu-Stream and Earth point
Yuan-Source point
Father point of the Kidney channel
Nine Points for Returning Yang (Second Trinity: Transition)
Binding point of the foot Shaoyin Sinews
In the depression between the medial malleolus and the Achilles tendon, level with the prominence of the medial malleolus
Perpendicular insertion 0.5 - 1 cun or join to Kunlun Bl-60
"The Shaoyin usually has little Blood and much Qi" (Su Wen 素問 ch. 24) implying this channel should normally be needled.
"The foot Shaoyin is to be pierced 2 fen deep and remain inserted for three exhalations" (Ling Shu 靈樞 ch. 12).
"It is needled to a depth of three fen, (the needle) is retained for a duration of seven exhalations, and it is moxaed with three cones" (Huangfu Mi 皇甫謐, 3rd Century, Zhenjiu Jiayi Jing 針灸甲乙經).
Nourishes Kidney Yin and clears deficiency Heat
Tonifies Kidney Yang
Anchors the Qi and benefits the Lung
Strengthens the lumbar spine
䷦ Jian 蹇 Obstructed, lame & ䷇ Bi 比 Alliance
䷦ is shared with Weizhong Bl-40 and balanced by ䷥ (Lingdao He-4 or Shaoze SI-1).
䷇ is shared with Feiyang Bl-58 and balanced by ䷍ (Tongli He-5 or Wangu SI-4).
Hexagram attributions are my own with an explanation given in the glossary.
Superficial Innervation: Medial calcaneal branches of tibial nerve (S1 - S2)
Dermatome Segment: S1
Can be a target for disabling an opponent with a sword or knife by severing the Achilles tendon and possibly causing large amounts of bleeding from the posterior tibial artery. Its location makes it most likely to be struck on an already immobilised opponent and was most often used as a punishment on a captive.
Listed in the Wu Bei Zhi 武備志 (Treatise on Armament Technology) by Mao Yuanyi 茅元儀 (1621), Article 21: Delayed Death Touches with Twelve-Hour (Shichen 時辰) Diagrams. This point along with Kunlun Bl-60, Jiuwei Ren-15 and Baihui Du-20 it is associated with Si 巳 Snake (9-11 am) and if struck during this time is said to cause death within 3 years from trauma to the posterior tibial artery. In Article 24: Bronze Man Statue, which divides the body into zones associated with the Twelve-Hour branches (Shichen 時辰) going from top downwards, the ankle and Achilles tendon are the vital points of You 酉 Cock (5 - 7 pm) and considered most vulnerable to being kicked, stomped on or squeezed during this time (McCarthy, 2016, Bubishi: The Classic Manual of Combat).
A hard strike here causes extreme local pain, Qi drainage and even black out. Combined with Yingu Kid-10 it causes the legs to become weak, while also weakening Kidney Jing leading to long term weakness in the body and disease later in life. It also affects the Kidneys ability to store Qi for emergency use (Montaigue, Dim Mak Locations, Taijiworld.com).
Foremost point for treating Kidney deficiencies of Yin and Yang.
In five element acupuncture, as father point of the Kidney channel this can control excesses in the Kidney.
Along with Shuiquan Kid-5 this is a possible location for the posterior tibial pulse. The ideal location is halfway between them at Pimenta's Point, the exact midpoint of a line drawn between the bony prominence of the medial malleolus and the insertion of the Achilles' tendon.
The Su Wen Ch. 20, Discourse on the Three Sections and Nine Indicators, describes "The earth [indicator] of the lower section: the foot minor yin [locations]... The earth [indicator] serves to examine the kidneys". Wang Bing's commentary says this means "This is to say: the kidney vessels. Their movement can be felt at the 'big ravine (大溪)' section in the hollow behind the ankle and above the heel bone" at this point (Huang Di Nei Jing Su Wen, trans. Unschuld & Tessenow, 2011).
Ling Shu Ch. 1, On the Nine Needles and the Twelve Origins, describes this point as the origin of the Taiyin in the Yin.
Ling Shu Ch. 6 suggests piercing the Ying and Shu points of the Yin channels if a disease is in the Yin of the Yin realm (e.g. the Zang organs) suggesting this point and Rangu Kid-2 in diseases of the Kidney.
Ling Shu Ch. 9, On Ends and Beginnings, advises that in the case of Heat associated with receding Yin Qi the Yang conduit should be pierced once and the Yin conduits twice. Based on other recommendation to use the He-Sea of the Yang conduits (Ch. 19) and the Yuan-Source with the Ying-Spring points (Chs. 6, 19 and 24) to clear Heat from the Zangfu, that would suggest this point, Weizhong Bl-40 and Rangu Kid-2 as a protocol to clear Heat in the Kidney/Bladder. Next it advises that in Cold associated with receding Yang Qi the Yang should be pierced twice and the Yin once but no such obvious protocol is evident for this situation. Another interpretation that would match with common practice today, based on the idea of odd numbers being Yang/moving/clearing while even numbers are Yin/tonifying/reinforcing, is that the points on the channel to be cleared are pierced on one side only while those on the channel to be tonified are pierced bilaterally.
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.
Ling Shu Ch. 24, On Counterflow Diseases, employs the point combination mentioned in Ch. 6 for the treatment of Heart pain. It advises piercing this point and Rangu Kid-2 when treating a severe piercing pain in the Heart associated with the Spleen.
Ling Shu Ch. 34, On the Five Disturbances, advises this point and Yuji Lu-10 to remove disturbing Qi in the Lung causing a raising and lowering of the head, panting, shouting and pressing their chest with their hands to breathe.
Ling Shu Ch. 44, On the Qi Moving in Accordance with the Norms, indicates that the Shu-Stream points should be pierced in summer or when the disease becomes milder and then more severe again. The seasonal aspect should not be interpreted literally as it describes the time periods of weakness and severity as "controlled by summer". It also describes the morning, afternoon, evening and night cycle of the day to be like the four seasons of the year with afternoon corresponding to summer.
The Shang Han Lun, line 292, advises using seven cones of moxa on Shaoyin if the pulse fails to arrive normally in a Shaoyin pattern with symptoms of vomiting and diarrhoea, absence of counterflow but presence of heat effusion. No points are given but Zhang Nan suggests this point while Ke Qin suggests Fuliu Kid-7 and Yongquan Kid-1 (Mitchell, Ye and Wiseman, 1999, Shang Han Lun).
In ancient medical practice, pulses were assessed at various points on the body. The Maishu (from Zhangjiashan tomb, closed 186 BCE) advises taking pulses at the ankle, wrist and carotid, associated with the foot Shaoyin, hand Taiyin and hand Shaoyin respectively (Lo, 2018). Disease was located where there was roughness in one pulse but not the others.
This may suggest a system of evaluating the Jing, Qi and Shen or Lower, Middle and Upper Jiao. This pulse would be the pulse for the Jing and Lower Jiao, with the others being assessed at Taiyuan Lu-9 for the Qi and Middle Jiao, while Renying St-9 assessed the Shen and Upper Jiao.
Su Wen ch. 20 presents a similar but more detailed model like this, with nine pulses being used to evaluate the Heaven, Earth and Man aspects of the upper, lower and central parts of the body,
When dispersed and combined with Renying St-9 and Chongyang St-42 this point relates to the Fifth Level of Manifestation of the Soul or the Vishuddha chakra concerned with true expression of yourself as an Authentic Character or Realized Being (Yuen, 2005, 3 Spirits & 7 Souls).
Both Renying St-9 and Chongyang St-42 are on branches of the Chong Mai, the extraordinary vessel that runs between the Ren (Yin) and Du (Yang) vessels and combines elements of them both. Taixi Kid-3 is also one of the few points that simultaneously accesses Kidney Yin and Yang, representing this combination's focus on the unity of Yin and Yang, as opposed to some of the other combinations which select points that are an extreme of Yin or Yang.
In Sufism this level would relate to the Valley of Unity described by Attar in the Conference of the Birds as:
"When faces are turned to this desert and wake
All heads are raised from a single neck;
If many you behold or few in the valley
They are all but one, they are one wholly ...
Everything can be summarized into one substance
Everything is one word, even in different shapes"
Here everything becomes a single unity.
The Nine Points for Returning Yang are used for assisting those close to death. They may be used to resuscitate collapse from deserted Yang, or if it is their time, to assist them in their passage. They are divided into three trinities, related to separation, transition and reunion.
This point belongs to the second trinity, related to transition, visionary experiences, the Hun dimension and loved ones. They open the orifices, astringe leakages, restrain Yin and anchor the Shen. Symptoms include:
- Connecting to another dimension, usually manifesting as visions of loved ones, ancestors or parental figures.
- May become relatively alert, energetic and strong in spirit, keen to talk about what they are seeing but less present in memory and talking about the past.
This point deals with fear, helps course inversion bringing someone out of a comatose state, rectifies Qi enabling forgiveness, remorse, regrets and disappointments to be expressed, and helps regenerate and reconstruct so we can come face-to-face (with Kid-1) with our fears and have redemption (with Ren-12).
J. Yuen lectures on death/dying and the spirit of points, posted as Facebook comments, 19 Dec 2020.
In Tung acupuncture this point is called Shui Xiang, Water Image (66.14). It is indicated for Kidney deficiency and Water signs, e.g. nephritis, oedema, fatigue and lumbago (Chu, 2015).
In early Chinese medicine, the pulse felt near this point, on the inner face of the ankle, was taken as an indication of the health of the Kidney channel (Wang et al., 2012).
Taixi is also a homonym for "embryonic breathing" (胎吸), the Daoist practice of regulating the breath in order to attain unification with the Dao (Yang, 2018, Dao De Jing: A Qigong Interpretation), hence the use of this point to connect the breath with the Kidneys. This may also be a reference to Zhuang Zi, The Great and Most Honoured Master, where it says "The breathing of the true man comes (even) from his heels, while men generally breathe (only) from their throats".
The alchemical text Zhouyi Cantong Qi (周易參同契 attributed to Wei Boyang, 2nd century CE) represents the lunar cycle in sequence of 6 groups of 5 days governed by the waxing and waning trigrams. These correspond to a rotating cycle of the Early Heaven sequence, with Kan in the west and Li in the east governing the whole Yin and Yang parts of the cycle respectively.
These attributions can be mapped onto the body with the inner trigram representing the Early Heaven trigram that rules the period of 5 days and the outer trigram being its Late Heaven pair, corresponding to the Channel that governs that period. This results in a sequence that has relevance to the menstrual cycle which also corresponds to the moon.
䷭ Xun within Kun : Days 1-5 : Danzhong Ren 17
Front Mu of Pericardium, Hui of Qi and Sea of Qi point. Gathers Qi to make Blood.
䷠ Gen within Qian : Days 6-10 : Pishu Bl-20
Back Shu of the Spleen. Raises and holds the Blood by strengthening the Spleen, completing the endometrial lining and holding it in place.
䷇ Kun within Kan: Days 11-15 : Taixi Kid-3
Yuan-Source of Kidney, Kidneys govern fertility and this point in particular tonifies Kidney Yang as well as Yin, initiating the return of Yang from within Yin, representing ovulation and the start of the Yang part of the cycle.
䷚ Zhen within Gen: Days 16-20 : Yinbai Sp-1
Return of Yang. This point has many indications for stopping bleeding, especially uterine bleeding which would indicate a disorder of Yang failing to uphold the Blood. It is also a Ghost Point so has an influence on the Shen.
䷼ Dui within Xun: Days 21-25 : Jianshi Pc-5
Strong regulator of the Shen and menstruation for the pre-menstrual phase.
䷍ Qian within Li: Days 26-30 : Tongli He-5
Luo of the Heart, a strong invigorating Blood point to govern the days of the period.
One notable pattern that emerges is that the points which govern the 5 day periods corresponding to the ordinal directions only involve the Spleen and Pericardium, which are the channels that were chosen to open the Chong Mai and Yin Wei Mai. The cardinal directions of north and south are governed by the Heart and Kidneys that make up the Shaoyin Axis.
Another pattern is that the Yin part of the cycle draws upon the Ren, Du and Kidneys that connect to the Jing, while the Yang half of the cycle comprises of points that affect the Shen. This connects them to the principle of the Curious Organs, where Jing and Shen combine, and includes the uterus.
The two directions that are not part of the waxing and waning trigrams are Kan and Li. These govern the 15 day Yin and Yang halves of the cycle as a whole and correspond to:
䷮ Kan within Dui: Days 1-15 : Chize Lu-5
Water point of Taiyin, which is a term for the moon, thus representing the moon's influence on the tides and its corresponding influence on Yin aspects of the body.
䷶ Li within Zhen: Days 16-30 : Xingjian Liv-2
Fire point of Jueyin, reverting Yin, representing the return of Yang. Clinically this point clears Liver Fire, spread Liver Qi and stops bleeding due to Heat and so is appropriate for any number of issues stemming from overactive Yang in this half of the cycle.
Medieval phlebotomy point (John de Foxton, 1408: Liber Cosmographiae, maa.cam.ac.uk)
In Tibetan medicine:
Moxa point (AMNH, Tibetan Medical Paintings)
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
Steve Woodley Acupuncture & Traditional Medicine
90 Deane Croft Road,
Eascote, Pinner, Greater London. HA5 1SP
Tel/WhatsApp: +44 (0) 7946 174 829
Email: steve@steve-woodley.co.uk
