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Chapter 65 of 81
黄帝内经·灵枢
The original text of this section contains many transmission errors, such as "wei" (微) often written as "zhi" (徵), "guan" (官) often written as "gong" (宫), and "wei wei" (味威) should be "wei xian" (味咸), etc. The following interpretation follows the generally accepted emended text.
Overall Paraphrase
This chapter primarily addresses three layers of content:
I. Classification of the Five Tones and Their Correspondence with Channels and Five Viscera 🌿
The ancients further classified the Five Tones (jue, zhi, gong, shang, yu—the five basic notes of ancient music) according to left/right, upper/lower, tai/shao, zhi/pan, etc., believing that different tone categories could correspond to the treatment of a specific side and specific channel at its upper or lower portions. For example, "Right zhi and minor zhi regulate the upper part of the right Hand Taiyang channel" means that certain tone categories correspond to treatment of the upper portion of the Hand Taiyang channel. Since the original text has many misplaced bamboo slips, these entries need not be understood mechanically word by word; the core idea is to establish a correspondence framework of "tone—channel—constitution."
The chapter then provides the correspondences between the Five Tones and the Five Viscera, Five Grains, Five Domestic Animals, Five Fruits, Five Colors, Five Flavors, and Five Seasons:
Following this, a series of correspondences between tone categories and the upper/lower portions of the Hand and Foot Yang channels is listed, such as "Great gong and Upper jue correspond to the upper portion of the right Foot Yangming" and "Left jue and Great jue correspond to the upper portion of the left Foot Yangming," etc. These contents reflect the ancient classification system that took the Five Tones as the framework, integrating sound attributes, visceral and channel systems, seasonal diet, and other factors.
II. The Relationship Between the Thoroughfare Vessel, Conception Vessel, and Beard Growth 🩺
The Yellow Emperor asked: Why do women have no beards? Is it because they lack blood and qi?
Qi Bo answered: The Thoroughfare Vessel and Conception Vessel (two of the Eight Extraordinary Vessels, governing reproduction and the qi and blood of the entire body) both originate from the uterus (baozhong), ascend along the interior of the back, and constitute the Sea of the Channels (the gathering place of qi and blood of all channels). Among them, the superficial branch that surfaces on the body ascends along the right side of the abdomen, meets at the throat, and sends a branch to connect with the lips and mouth. When blood and qi are abundant, the skin is full and moist and the flesh is warm; when blood is especially abundant, it permeates and nourishes the skin, generating fine body hair. Because women have relatively more qi but insufficient blood, and regularly lose blood through menstruation, the Thoroughfare and Conception Vessels cannot fully nourish the lips and mouth—hence no beard growth.
The Yellow Emperor further asked: Some men suffer injury to the genitals, rendering them unable to erect and functionally impotent, yet their beards do not fall out—why is this? And why do eunuchs who have been castrated lose their beards?
Qi Bo said: Eunuchs have had their ancestral sinew (external genitalia) removed, which injures the Thoroughfare Vessel. Blood drains downward, the skin becomes internally bound, and the lips and mouth lose their nourishment—hence no beard growth.
The Yellow Emperor asked again: There are those called "natural eunuchs" (tian huan) who have never been injured and have never lost blood, yet still do not grow beards—why is this?
Qi Bo said: This is due to congenital insufficiency. The Conception and Thoroughfare Vessels are not vigorous, the ancestral sinew is underdeveloped, and there is qi without blood, so the lips and mouth receive no nourishment—hence no beard growth.
The Yellow Emperor exclaimed with admiration: A sage comprehends all things, like the light and shadow of the sun and moon, or sound and the beating of a drum—hearing the sound, one can know the form. Were it not for you, sir, who could clarify the subtlety of all things? Therefore, the sage observes the complexion: those with yellow-red coloring have abundant heat qi; those with green-white coloring have scant heat qi; those with black coloring have abundant blood but scant qi. Those with fine eyebrows have abundant blood in the Taiyang channels; those with thick sideburns have abundant blood in the Shaoyang channels; those with handsome beards have abundant blood in the Yangming channels—these are corresponding manifestations. The constant pattern of the human body: the Taiyang channels normally have abundant blood and scant qi; the Shaoyang channels normally have abundant qi and scant blood; the Yangming channels normally have both abundant blood and qi; the Jueyin channels normally have abundant qi and scant blood; the Shaoyin channels normally have abundant blood and scant qi; the Taiyin channels normally have abundant blood and scant qi. This is the natural constant.
Isomorphic structure of Five Tones—Five Viscera—Five Seasons: This chapter further subdivides the Five Tones into categories such as "Upper, Great, Minor, Right, Left, Zhi, Pan," and matches them with the Five Viscera, Five Grains, Five Domestic Animals, Five Fruits, Five Colors, Five Flavors, and Five Seasons. This reflects the typical analogical categorization (qu xiang bi lei) thinking of the Nei Jing: things sharing the same Five Elements attribute exhibit a "mutual resonance of the same qi" relationship across sound, color, flavor, season, and viscera.
Thoroughfare and Conception Vessels as the Sea of Channels, externally manifesting at the lips and mouth: The text clearly states that the Thoroughfare and Conception Vessels originate from the uterus, ascend along the interior of the back, and their superficial branches connect with the lips and mouth. This explains why the reproductive system is related to secondary sexual characteristics such as beards and body hair. The theoretical basis is that "abundant blood permeates and nourishes the skin, generating body hair," emphasizing the nourishing role of blood on surface hair.
The constant amounts of qi and blood in the Three Yin and Three Yang channels: Taiyang has abundant blood and scant qi; Shaoyang has abundant qi and scant blood; Yangming has abundant blood and abundant qi; Jueyin has abundant qi and scant blood; Shaoyin has abundant blood and scant qi; Taiyin has abundant blood and scant qi. This constant served as an important basis for ancient acupuncture supplementation and drainage techniques and for assessing constitution, and is echoed in later texts such as Suwen·Blood Qi Xing Zhi.
The Five Tones classification system: Although modern acoustics and music therapy discuss the relationship between sound and psychosomatic states, the precise correspondence of specific tone categories to specific sides and upper/lower portions of channels in this chapter belongs to an ancient empirical model without current modern medical evidence to support it. It more reflects the ancients' classificatory attempt at "sound—constitution—channel" relationships rather than a directly operable diagnostic tool.
Thoroughfare/Conception Vessels and hair growth: Modern medicine understands that secondary sexual characteristics such as beards are primarily influenced by androgens, genetics, and hair follicle sensitivity. The traditional Chinese medicine concepts of "abundant blood generates body hair" and "Thoroughfare and Conception Vessels failing to nourish the lips and mouth" cannot be simply equated with androgen levels. However, the "Thoroughfare/Conception—uterus—reproduction" axis bears some functional analogy to the modern reproductive endocrine axis. The observation that eunuchs lose beard growth after castration is generally consistent with the modern understanding of the relationship between androgens and secondary sexual characteristics—a valuable contribution at the level of empirical observation.
Qi and blood amounts in the Three Yin and Three Yang channels: The "blood" and "qi" here cannot be equated with modern blood and gas. They represent the ancients' generalized description of channel functional states, with a distinctly empirical character that is difficult to directly quantify or verify in modern terms.
Note (Bu Gua): This content is based on classical Chinese medicine texts and is provided solely for traditional cultural learning and study. It does not constitute any medical diagnosis, medication, or treatment advice. Please consult a qualified healthcare professional if you experience any discomfort.