 |
Location Guides: |
On the medial side of the lower leg, 3 cun inferior to Yinlingquan Sp-9, or at the junction between the upper third and lower two-thirds of a line drawn between the popliteal crease and the prominence of the medial malleolus.
Perpendicular or oblique insertion 1 - 1.5 cun
"The Taiyin usually has much Qi and little Blood" (Su Wen 素問 ch. 24) implying this channel should normally be needled.
"The foot Taiyin is to be pierced 3 fen deep and remain inserted for four exhalations" (Ling Shu 靈樞 ch. 12).
"It is needled to a depth of three fen and moxaed with five cones" (Huangfu Mi 皇甫謐, 3rd Century, Zhenjiu Jiayi Jing 針灸甲乙經).
Regulates menstruation and invigorates Blood
Harmonises the Spleen and resolves Dampness
Moderates acute conditions
Superficial Innervation: Saphenous nerve, from femoral nerve (L2 - L4)
Dermatome Segment: L4
When struck, this point will cause an immediate numbing of the lower leg is the with a full feeling around the point, local pain and an obstruction in the meridian and thus Spleen problems such as stomach disorders, varicose veins and bladder problems.
Often used as a set up point for a strike to ‘the third eye point’ just between the eyebrows where it
is said that this combination will ‘explode the head’ (direct translation) but requires a high level of fighting skills to use (Montaigue, Dim Mak Locations, Taijiworld.com).
蠱 (gu) is composed of:
蟲 (chong) — worms, insects, venomous creatures
皿 (min) — a vessel, a bowl, a container
The original image is insects in a sealed vessel. This refers to an ancient practice: poisonous insects were placed together in a container and left to devour one another. The survivor, having absorbed all the poisons of the others, was considered the most potent. This creature was called 蠱, and it was used in curses, black magic, and poisoning, to devour its target from within.
Trigrams: Xun (Wind) below, Gen (Mountain) above.
Penetration within, stillness without — wind beneath the mountain. The wind is trapped and cannot circulate. What is sealed inside begins to fester. This is gu: poison, curse, decay. Something alive and harmful is trapped within, consuming from within.
Nuclear trigrams: Lines 2-3-4 form Dui (Lake). Lines 3-4-5 form Zhen (Thunder). Beneath the decay, there is joy (Dui) and movement (Zhen). The hidden message: the poison is alive. It is not passive rot. It is active, working, consuming. But the joy and movement also mean it can be transformed.
Judgement:
蠱：元亨，利涉大川。先甲三日，後甲三日。
Gu. Sublime success. Favourable to cross the great river. Before the first day, three days; after the first day, three days.
Gu is poison, curse, decay — something alive and harmful trapped within. But it can be purified. The work requires courage (crossing the great river) and understanding (the full cycle of before and after). What has been cursed can be transformed.
Lines:
| Line | Yin/Yang | Image | Literal Translation | Commentary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yin | 幹父之蟶，有子，考無咎，厲終吉 | Working on the father's gu. There is a son. The deceased father has no trouble. Danger, but in the end Gain. | Yin at the bottom. The beginning of purification. The poison inherited from the ancestors. The son takes on the work that the father left. The father is not blamed — the son purifies. Danger because the poison is real. In the end, Gain because the purification succeeds. |
| 2 | Yang | 幹母之蟶，不可貞 | Working on the mother's gu. Cannot be persevered. | Yang at 2, central and correct. The mother's poison is different from the father's. It requires gentleness, not firmness. "Cannot be persevered" means: do not apply the same method. The poison of the mother is subtler, more insidious. It must be coaxed out, not forced. |
| 3 | Yang | 幹父之蟶，小有悔，無大咎 | Working on the father's gu. Small remorse, no great trouble. | The threshold. The work of purification is difficult. The poison resists. There is small remorse — perhaps the method was too harsh. But no great trouble, because the intention was correct. |
| 4 | Yin | 裕父之蟶，往見吝 | Indulging the father's gu. Going brings Regret. | Yin at 4. The first yin line above the threshold. Instead of purifying the poison, it feeds it. This is the danger of denial — of pretending the curse is not there. Going on brings Regret because the poison grows stronger. |
| 5 | Yin | 幹父之蟶，用誉 | Working on the father's gu, using praise. | Yin at 5, the place of honour. But it is yin — the one who purifies through praise and recognition rather than through force. This is the correct way: not by condemning the past, but by honouring what was good in it. The ancestor is recognised, and the curse is lifted through that recognition. |
| 6 | Yang | 不事王侯，高尚其事 | Not serving kings and lords, highly esteeming one's own affairs. | Yang at the top. The purification is complete. The one who has purified the poison no longer serves the system that created it. He esteems his own affairs — he has gone beyond. This is the sage who has cured the curse and now lives outside the cycle of decay. |
Image:
山下有風，蠱。君子以振民育德。
Wind beneath the mountain: Gu. Thus the gentleman stirs the people and nourishes virtue.
Wind is beneath the mountain — the air is trapped and stagnant. This is the sealed vessel where the poison breeds. The gentleman stirs the people (振民, zhen min) and nourishes virtue (育德, yu de). The work of purification is not just fixing what is broken. It is revitalizing what has become stagnant and cultivating the virtue that prevents future decay. You do not just purge the poison — you create the conditions where poison cannot breed again.
Acupuncture Point Connections:
Shared with Liangqiu St-34.
Inverted into and balanced by ䷐ (Sanjian LI-3 or Shaoshang Lu-11).
Hexagram attributions are my own with an explanation given in the glossary.
In Tung acupuncture point Shen Guan, Kidney Gate, or Tian Huang Fu, Heavenly Emperor Appendage (77.18) is located 1.5 cun above this point, midway between here and Yinlingquan Sp-9. It can be used singly for shoulder pain or in combination with Di Huang (1 cun above Lougu Sp-7) and Ren Huang (at Sanyinjiao Sp-6) for a variety of symptoms relating to Kidney Qi deficiency (Chu, 2015)
The Hexagram associated with this point is ䷑ 蠱 Gu, referring to a worm or insect that causes spoilage and was used as a means of cursing enemies. This point's grouping as a Xi-Cleft point on the Stomach channel gives it actions on acute gastrointestinal symptoms common in Gu illness.
Lad and Durve (2008) in Marma Points of Ayurveda call this point medial Indrabasta and associate it with the doshas: Apana Vayu, Vyana Vayu, Ranjaka Pitta and Sadhaka Pitta.
They give the following functions:
- Promotes circulation in the lower extremities
- Benefits the legs and relaxes the muscles
- Regulates menses
A posterior Indrabasta is located at Chengjin Bl-56.
In Thai massage:
Acupressure point (Salguero & Roylance, 2011, Encyclopedia of Thai Massage)
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
Woodley Bioenergetics
90 Deane Croft Road,
Eascote, Pinner, Greater London. HA5 1SP
Tel/WhatsApp: +44 (0) 7946 174 829
Email: steve@steve-woodley.co.uk
