灵枢经·口问 Oral Questions

Huangdi, at leisure, dismissed his attendants and asked Qibo: 'I have already heard the classic of the nine needles, discussed the following and opposing of yin and yang, and completed the study of the six channels. I now wish to receive the oral instructions.' Qibo left his mat, bowed twice, and said: 'How excellent is this question! These are teachings handed down orally by the former masters.' Huangdi said: 'I wish to hear these oral teachings.' Qibo replied: 'Now, the hundred diseases all first arise from wind, rain, cold, and summer-heat; from yin and yang, joy and anger; from food and drink, and dwelling; and from great fright and sudden fear. These cause the blood and qi to separate, yin and yang to be broken and ruined, the channels and network vessels to be cut off, the pathways of the vessels to become obstructed, yin and yang to rebel against each other, the defensive qi to stagnate and linger, the channel vessels to become empty and hollow, the blood and qi to lose their proper sequence — and thus their normal state is lost. Since these matters are not addressed within the classics, allow me to explain their method.'

Huangdi said: 'When a person yawns, what qi causes this?' Qibo replied: 'The defensive qi travels through the yang by day, and at midnight it travels through the yin. Yin governs the night, and night is for lying down to rest; yang governs the upper body, and yin governs the lower body. Hence yin qi accumulates below while yang qi has not yet been exhausted; the yang draws upward while the yin draws downward, and as yin and yang draw against each other, frequent yawning results. When yang qi is exhausted and yin qi is abundant, the eyes close in sleep; when yin qi is exhausted and yang qi is abundant, one awakens. Drain the Foot Shaoyin channel and supplement the Foot Taiyang channel.'

Huangdi said: 'When a person hiccups, what qi causes this?' Qibo said: 'Grain enters the stomach, and the stomach qi rises to pour into the lung. Now, if old cold qi and newly ingested grain qi both return together into the stomach, the new and the old throw each other into disorder, true qi and evil qi attack one another, the qi converges and rebels, and bursts back out from the stomach — hence hiccupping results. Supplement the Hand Taiyin channel and drain the Foot Shaoyin channel.'

Huangdi said: 'When a person sobs with a catch in the breath (xi), what qi causes this?' Qibo said: 'This is when yin qi is abundant and yang qi is deficient, yin qi is swift and yang qi is sluggish, yin qi is abundant while yang qi is nearly cut off — hence this sobbing catch of breath results. Supplement the Foot Taiyang channel and drain the Foot Shaoyin channel.'

Huangdi said: 'When a person shivers with cold, what qi causes this?' Qibo said: 'Cold qi lodges in the skin; yin qi is abundant and yang qi is deficient — hence shivering with cold and chills results. Supplement all the yang channels.'

Huangdi said: 'When a person belches, what qi causes this?' Qibo said: 'Cold qi lodges in the stomach; reversed qi rises from below and disperses upward, then bursts back out from the stomach — hence belching results. Supplement the Foot Taiyin and Yangming channels.' Some say: supplement the root of the eyebrow.

Huangdi said: 'When a person sneezes, what qi causes this?' Qibo said: 'When the yang qi is harmonious and smooth, filling the heart and issuing out through the nose, sneezing results. Supplement the Foot Taiyang channel and the point at the root of the eyebrow.' Some say: above the eyebrow.

Huangdi said: 'When a person's limbs hang limp and listless (duo), what qi causes this?' Qibo said: 'When the stomach is not replete, all the vessels become deficient; when all the vessels are deficient, the sinews and vessels become slack and languid; when the sinews and vessels become slack and languid, and one exerts oneself in intercourse, the qi cannot recover — hence limpness results. Supplement between the interstices of the flesh, according to the location affected.'

Huangdi said: 'When a person weeps from sorrow, with tears and mucus flowing, what qi causes this?' Qibo said: 'The heart is the ruler of the five viscera and six bowels; the eyes are where the ancestral vessels converge, and the pathway by which fluid rises; the mouth and nose are the gateways of qi. Hence when sorrow, grief, worry, and anxiety stir the heart, the heart's stirring causes the five viscera and six bowels all to shake; their shaking affects the ancestral vessels, and when the ancestral vessels are affected, the pathway of fluid opens; when the pathway of fluid opens, tears and mucus flow out. Fluid is that which irrigates the essence and moistens the orifices of the body; hence when the upper pathway of fluid opens, weeping occurs, and if the weeping does not stop, the fluid becomes exhausted; when the fluid is exhausted, the essence can no longer be irrigated, and when the essence cannot be irrigated, the eyes lose their sight — hence this is called the loss of essence. Supplement Tianzhu and the channel flanking the neck.'

Huangdi said: 'When a person sighs deeply, what qi causes this?' Qibo said: 'Worry and anxious thought cause the ties of the heart to become taut; when the ties of the heart become taut, the pathway of qi becomes constricted; when constricted, it becomes unfavorable, and so one sighs deeply to release and expel it. Supplement the Hand Shaoyin channel, the Pericardium (xin zhu), and the Foot Shaoyang channel, retaining the needle.'

Huangdi said: 'When a person drools, what qi causes this?' Qibo said: 'Food and drink all enter the stomach; when there is heat in the stomach, the worms are stirred, and when the worms are stirred, the stomach becomes slack; when the stomach becomes slack, Lianquan opens, and so drooling results. Supplement the Foot Shaoyin channel.'

Huangdi said: 'When a person has ringing in the ears, what qi causes this?' Qibo said: 'The ear is where the ancestral vessels converge; hence when the stomach is empty, the ancestral vessels become deficient, and when deficient they sink downward, so that the vessels are somehow depleted — hence ringing in the ears results. Supplement Kezhuren, and the point where the nail of the thumb meets the flesh.'

Huangdi said: 'When a person bites their own tongue, what qi causes this?' This is when reversal qi rushes upward and the qi of several channels arrives together. When Shaoyin qi arrives, the tongue is bitten; when Shaoyang qi arrives, the cheek is bitten; when Yangming qi arrives, the lip is bitten. Observe which channel governs the disease, and supplement it accordingly.

In all these twelve evils, they are extraordinary evils that travel to the body's orifices. Wherever such evil qi is located, there is always a deficiency. Thus, when qi in the upper body is deficient, the brain fails to be filled, the ears suffer from ringing, the head suffers from tilting, and the eyes suffer from dizziness. When qi in the middle of the body is deficient, urination and defecation become abnormal, and the intestines suffer from rumbling. When qi in the lower body is deficient, wilting, reversal, and oppression of the heart result. Supplement below the outer ankle and retain the needle.

Huangdi said: 'How should these be treated?' Qibo said: 'The kidney governs yawning; select the Foot Shaoyin channel. The lung governs hiccupping; select the Hand Taiyin and Foot Shaoyin channels. In sobbing with a catch of breath, yin and yang are cut off from each other; hence supplement the Foot Taiyang channel and drain the Foot Shaoyin channel. In shivering with cold, supplement all the yang channels. In belching, supplement the Foot Taiyin and Yangming channels. In sneezing, supplement the Foot Taiyang channel at the root of the eyebrow. In limpness, according to the location affected, supplement between the interstices of the flesh. In weeping, supplement Tianzhu and the channel flanking the neck — flanking the neck being the dividing line at the back of the head. In deep sighing, supplement the Hand Shaoyin channel, the Pericardium, and the Foot Shaoyang channel, retaining the needle. In drooling, supplement the Foot Shaoyin channel. In ringing of the ears, supplement Kezhuren, and the point where the nail of the thumb meets the flesh. In biting one's own tongue, observe which channel governs the disease and supplement it accordingly. For dizziness of the eyes and tilting of the head, supplement below the outer ankle and retain the needle. For wilting, reversal, and oppression of the heart, needle two cun above the point between the big toes, retaining the needle' — some say: retain it below the outer ankle.