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Module 6   Lesson 6   Qiao Mai, Wei Mai

Yin and Yang Qiao, Yin and Yang Wei

Why do your eyes close in the evening and open in the morning, and which vessels hold the interior and exterior together?

After this lesson you know the function, the schematic pathway, the opening pair, the Xi-Cleft point and the main crossing points of the two Stepping Vessels and the two Linking Vessels, you recognise their classical picture, and you know when a practitioner chooses one of the four.

inner corner of the eye blue Yin, red Yang; solid Qiao, dotted Wei Yin Qiao, the Yin Stepping Vessel inner heel to inner corner of the eye KI-6 with LU-7; Xi-Cleft KI-8 Nan Jing 29: inner side tight Yang Qiao, the Yang Stepping Vessel outer heel to eye and occiput BL-62 with SI-3; Xi-Cleft BL-59 Nan Jing 29: outer side tight Yin Wei, the Yin Linking Vessel inner lower leg to throat PC-6 with SP-4; Xi-Cleft KI-9 Nan Jing 29: heart pain Yang Wei, the Yang Linking Vessel outer foot to side of head and neck TE-5 with GB-41; Xi-Cleft GB-35 Nan Jing 29: chills and fever
Schematic, not a point location; the four vessels run on both sides, drawn here on one leg. Pathways are textbook knowledge, after Maciocia ch. 53 (Yin Qiao p. 922, Yang Qiao p. 925, Yin Wei p. 931, Yang Wei p. 934); the picture of each vessel from Nan Jing 29, paraphrased.

Know by heart

  • The two Qiao. From heel to eye. Yin Qiao on the inner side: opens with KI-6 (with LU-7), Xi-Cleft KI-8. Yang Qiao on the outer side: opens with BL-62 (with SI-3), Xi-Cleft BL-59. They meet at the inner corner of the eye (BL-1). mnemonic: Qiao is heel and step, the Stepping Vessels.
  • Eyes open, eyes shut. By day the Wei Qi flows through the Yang Qiao: eyes open, awake. At night through the Yin Qiao: eyes shut, asleep. Too much in the Yang Qiao: insomnia; too much in the Yin Qiao: sleepiness.
  • Nan Jing 29 on the Qiao. Yin Qiao: the Yang slack, the Yin tight, the inner side tense. Yang Qiao: the Yin slack, the Yang tight, the outer side tense.
  • The two Wei. The Yin Wei links the Yin channels and governs the Interior: opens with PC-6 (with SP-4), Xi-Cleft KI-9. The Yang Wei links the Yang channels and governs the Exterior: opens with TE-5 (with GB-41), Xi-Cleft GB-35. mnemonic: Wei weaves the net.
  • Nan Jing 29 on the Wei. Yin Wei: heart pain. Yang Wei: chills and fever. If they fail to hold Yin and Yang together, a person becomes dejected and can no longer hold themselves together.
  • Four Xi-Cleft points. KI-8 Yin Qiao, BL-59 Yang Qiao, KI-9 Yin Wei, GB-35 Yang Wei. mnemonic: the Yin vessels on the Kidney channel, 8 and 9; the Yang vessels on the Bladder and Gall-Bladder.
  • Red flags. Insomnia with snoring and pauses in breathing, or with suicidal thoughts; chest pain; fever with a stiff neck; a sudden facial droop or a weak arm: see a doctor first, with loss of function emergency services.

The rest of this lesson is reference.

Yin and Yang Qiao, Yin and Yang Wei: Why do your eyes close in the evening and open in the morning, and which vessels hold the interior and exterior together?
The chart as an image, to save or share

Three practice questions from this lesson

Which point opens the Yin Qiao?
  1. PC-6
  2. BL-62
  3. KI-6

Answer: KI-6. KI-6 opens the Yin Qiao, with LU-7 (Ren) as the coupled point. BL-62 opens the Yang Qiao.

Which point opens the Yang Wei?
  1. TE-5
  2. BL-62
  3. GB-41

Answer: TE-5. TE-5 opens the Yang Wei; GB-41 is the coupled point and opens the Dai.

What is the Xi-Cleft point of the Yang Qiao?
  1. KI-8
  2. GB-35
  3. BL-59

Answer: BL-59. BL-59 Yang Qiao, GB-35 Yang Wei, KI-8 Yin Qiao, KI-9 Yin Wei.

The rest of this lesson

In the course you get the step-by-step explanation, 15 case-based practice questions, 21 spaced-repetition flashcards, the pitfalls and the bridge to physiology with evidence grades. This lesson belongs to module 6: Points.

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