天府 : Tianfu : Palace of Heaven

Location Guides:

Classifications:

Window of Heaven point

Meetings:

Meeting of Lung with Large Intestine Divergent and Lung Divergent

Location:

On the antero-lateral aspect of the upper arm, 3 cun inferior to the axillary fold and 6 cun superior to Chize LU-5, in the depression between the lateral border of the biceps brachii muscle and the shaft of the humerus

Needling:

Perpendicular insertion 0.5 - 1 cun

Warnings:

According to the Systematic Classic moxa will cause counterflow and disordered qi

Classical Needling:

"The Taiyin usually has much Qi and little Blood" (Su Wen 素問 ch. 24) implying this channel should normally be needled.
"The hand Yin and Yang receive their Qi via nearby paths so their Qi arrive swiftly. The depth of piercing must not exceed 2 fen and must not remain inserted for longer than one exhalation" (Ling Shu 靈樞 ch. 12).
"It is needled to a depth of four fen and (the needle) is retained for a duration of three exhalations" (Huangfu Mi 皇甫謐, 3rd Century, Zhenjiu Jiayi Jing 針灸甲乙經).

TCM Actions:

Clears Lung Heat and descends Lung Qi
Cools Blood and stops bleeding
Calms the corporeal soul (Po)

TCM Indications:

• Wheezing, dyspnoea, cough, asthma, nosebleed, spitting blod, coughing blood, much spittle.
  
• Somnolence, insomnia, sadness, weeping, disorientation and forgetfulness, floating corpse ghost talk, melancholy crying ghost talk.
  
• Goitre, swelling of the throat, pain of the inner (antero-lateral) aspect of the upper arm, dizziness, swelling and distension of the body, Malarial (瘧, Nue) Disorders, purple white wind blotches (pityriasis versicolor), Visual Dizziness, short-sightedness.

Neuroanatomy:

Superficial Innervation: Upper lateral cutaneous nerve of the arm from C5- C6

Dermatome Segment: C6

Martial Applications & Effects of Injury:

A powerful slashing strike to this point may sever the cephalic vein causing profuse bleeding (Kaiser, 2019, The Dangers from Knife and Weapon Slashing).

One of the 36 vital points of Feng Yiyuan 馮一元 listed in the Wu Bei Zhi 武備志 (Treatise on Armament Technology) by Mao Yuanyi 茅元儀 (1621) (McCarthy, 2016, Bubishi: The Classic Manual of Combat).

Upon striking there is an immediate electrical shock that goes up and down the arm causing momentary or long lasting paralysis of the arm. Being a Window of the Sky point it will also totally upset the balance between Heaven and Earth, or head and body, causing great emotional problems that will only get worse if left untreated. Emotionally caused problems such as confusion and loss of memory will occur at a later stage. This strike will also give an extreme case of instant vertigo (Montaigue, Dim Mak Locations, Taijiworld.com).

Major Combinations:

• Heat like burning coal with inability bear to have clothes touch the skin or to lie on a mattress, closed pores with no sweating, scorched tongue and desiccated lips, dried up flesh, parched throat and inability to tell good from bad food:
    Tianfu Lu-3 with Dazhu Bl-11 and Zhonglushu Bl-29 to initiate a sweat, then supplement the Taiyin channels of hand and foot, Lung and Spleen, to diminish the sweat
    (Anon, 400BC-260AD: Huang Di Nei Jing Ling Shu, 黃帝內經靈樞, Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic: Spiritual Pivot, Ch. 75, On Piercing to Regulate True and Evil Qi, see notes below).
  
  
• Rebellious Qi with dyspnoea and inability to catch the breath:
    Tianfu Lu-3 with Shufu Kid-27 and Shencang Kid-25
    (Wang Zhizhong, 王執中, 1220: Zhen Jiu Zi Sheng Jing, 針灸資生經, Classic of Supporting Life with Acupuncture and Moxibustion).
  
  
• Dyspnoea with Rebellious Qi, breathing with raised shoulders and inability to taste food:
    Tianfu Lu-3 with Qihu St-13, Yunmen Lu-2 and Shenmen He-7
    (Sun Simiao, 孫思邈, 625: Bei Ji Qian Jin Yao Fang, 備急千金要方, Essential Prescriptions Worth A Thousand Gold).
  
  
• Nosebleed:
    Tianfu Lu-3 with Hegu LI-4
    (Gao Wu, 高武, 1529: Bai Zheng Fu, 百症賦, Ode of a Hundred Symptoms).
  
  
• Goitre, tumour of the neck and swollen throat:
    Tianfu Lu-3 with Naohui SJ-13
    (Sun Simiao, 孫思邈, 625: Bei Ji Qian Jin Yao Fang, 備急千金要方, Essential Prescriptions Worth A Thousand Gold).
  
  
• Goitre, tumour of the neck and swollen throat:
    Tianfu Lu-3 with Qishe St-11, Naohui SJ-13
    (Wang Zhizhong, 王執中, 1220: Zhen Jiu Zi Sheng Jing, 針灸資生經, Classic of Supporting Life with Acupuncture and Moxibustion).
  
  
• Painful obstruction with difficulty bending and extending the elbow joint, pain and heaviness or the arm with acute pain of the axilla:
    Tianfu Lu-3 with Qishe St-11, Naohui SJ-13
    (Sun Simiao, 孫思邈, 625: Bei Ji Qian Jin Yao Fang, 備急千金要方, Essential Prescriptions Worth A Thousand Gold).
  
  
• Purple-white blotches (pityriasis versicolor):
    Tianfu Lu-3 with Xiabai Lu-4
    (Probably Yan Zhen, 严振. c. 1575: Xun Jing Kao Xue Bian, 循經考穴編, Investigation Into Points Along the Channels).

Notes:

Ling Shu Ch. 21, On Cold and Heat Diseases, advises this point when Liver Qi stagnation causes bleeding from the nose and mouth. This is due to Liver Heat causing the Blood to move recklessly. This chapter is the origin of the first five "Window of Heaven" points, although this name was not given until modern times.

Ling Shu Ch. 52, On the Wei Qi, considers this to be the tip of the hand Taiyin meridian with the root being at Taiyuan Lu-9.

Ling Shu Ch. 75, On Piercing to Regulate True and Evil Qi, recommends this point as part of the "Undressing" treatment. Its indications are when there is a surplus of Yang and insufficiency of Yin Qi causing Heat in the interior and exterior. The two heats combine to become hot like burning coal and they cannot bear to have clothes touch the skin or to lie on a mattress, the pores are closed and there is no sweating, the tongue is scorched, the lips are desiccated, the flesh dries up, the throat is parched and they cannot tell good from bad food. It is treated by removing the Heat from this point, Dazhu Bl-11 and Zhonglushu Bl-29, then supplementing the Taiyin channels of hand and foot, Lung and Spleen, to diminish the sweat. Presumably the initial piercings are supposed to induce the sweat or this contradicts the earlier symptom of the pores being closed and the sweat not leaving.

In the Jade Purity Tradition this would be a suitable addition to the fourth trinity of Ghost Points (Yuen, 2005, 3 Spirits & 7 Souls).

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