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Chapter 6 of 10
难经
Overall Paraphrase
Thirty-ninth Difficulty | Five Fu, Six Zang, and the Life-Gate The classics state, "There are five Fu and six Zang." Why is this? As for the so-called six Fu, when matched according to the five-zang correspondence, they are actually five Fu; the reason the five Zang are referred to as six Zang is that the kidneys consist of two — the left is the Kidney, and the right is the Mingmen (the Gate of Life, a functional concept related to kidney qi). The Mingmen is the place where spirit and essence reside; in men, it stores essence, and in women, it maintains the uterus. Its qi communicates with the kidneys, so it is said there are six Zang. Why then are the Fu said to be five? Because each of the five Zang is paired with one Fu; although the Sanjiao (one of the six Fu, governing qi transformation and water passages) is counted as a Fu, it does not belong exclusively to any single Zang, so it is said there are five Fu.
Fortieth Difficulty | Why can the nose and ears detect aroma and sound? The classics say the Liver governs color, the Heart governs smell, the Spleen governs taste, the Lung governs sound, and the Kidney governs fluids. The nose is the external manifestation of the Lung, yet it can detect fragrance and odor; the ear is the external manifestation of the Kidney, yet it can hear sounds. What is the principle? The Lung belongs to Western Metal; Metal is generated at Si, and Si belongs to Southern Fire. Fire corresponds to the Heart, and the Heart governs smell, so the nose can know fragrance and odor. The Kidney belongs to Northern Water; Water is generated at Shen, and Shen belongs to Western Metal. Metal corresponds to the Lung, and the Lung governs sound, so the ear can hear sounds.
Forty-first Difficulty | Why does the Liver have two lobes? The liver has only two lobes — what does this correspond to? The Liver belongs to Eastern Wood, and Wood corresponds to Spring. In spring, all things first come into being and are still young and small, with nothing yet to be close to. It is still near the Great Yin (cold and yin qi) and not far from the Great Yang (warm and yang qi), as if it has two minds. Therefore it has two lobes, which also reflects the image of branching leaves.
Forty-second Difficulty | Anatomical data of the Zang-Fu What are the lengths of the human stomach and intestines, and the amounts of water and grain they can hold?
Weights and forms of the Zang-Fu:
Forty-third Difficulty | Not eating or drinking for seven days If a person does not eat or drink, they will die in seven days. Why? The stomach normally retains two dou of grain and one dou five sheng of water. A normal person has two bowel movements per day, each discharging two sheng and a half, so five sheng per day in total; in seven days, that is three dou five sheng, and the water and grain are exhausted. Therefore, if a normal person abstains from food and drink for seven days, when the water, grain, and fluids are all depleted, death will occur.
Forty-fourth Difficulty | Seven Chong Gates Where are the seven "Chong gates"? The lips are called the Fei Gate (Flying Gate), the teeth the Hu Gate (Door Gate), the epiglottis the Xi Gate (Inhalation Gate), the stomach the Ben Gate (Cardia), the lower opening of the Taicang (stomach) the You Gate (Pylorus), the junction of the large and small intestines the Lan Gate (Iliocecal Gate), and the lowermost end the Po Gate (Gate of Feces; anus). Together they are called the Seven Chong Gates.
Forty-fifth Difficulty | Eight Confluent Points The classics say, "What are the Eight Assemblies?" The Fu will meet at Taicang (Zhongwan), the Zang will meet at the Jilye (Zhangmen), the sinews at Yanglingquan, the marrow at Juegu (Xuanzhong), the blood at Geshu, the bones at Dazhu, the vessels at Taiyuan, and the qi at Tanzhong, which is outside the Sanjiao and between the two breasts. For heat diseases in the interior, the corresponding meeting points may be selected. This is a component of the ancient acupoint theory for specific points.
Forty-sixth Difficulty | Differences in sleep between the elderly and the young and strong Old people lie down but cannot fall asleep, while the young and strong fall asleep and are not easily awakened. Why? In the young and strong, blood and qi are vigorous, the flesh is smooth and lubricated, the qi passages are unobstructed, and the movement of the Ying and Wei (nutritive qi and defensive qi — the circulatory functions of qi and blood) does not deviate from its normal course; therefore they are spirited during the day and not easily awakened at night once asleep. In old people, blood and qi decline, the flesh is no longer smooth, and the pathways of Ying and Wei become rough and sluggish; thus during the day they are not spirited, and at night they cannot fall asleep. From this, the reason that the elderly have difficulty sleeping may be understood.
Forty-seventh Difficulty | Why is the face resistant to cold? The human face is especially resistant to cold. Why? The head is the Meeting Place of All Yang. All the yin vessels return at the neck and chest, whereas all the yang vessels ascend to the head and ears. Therefore the face is resistant to cold.
Thirty-ninth Difficulty It introduces the important proposition of "left kidney and right Life-Gate," dividing the kidney into two: the left as the Kidney and the right as the Mingmen, which stores essence and anchors the uterus, communicating with kidney qi. This is one of the early sources of the Mingmen doctrine in Chinese medicine, which later developed into theories such as "Mingmen as the root of the prenatal" and "dynamic qi between the kidneys."
Fortieth Difficulty It uses the generating cycle of the Five Elements to explain the indirect connections between organ functions and orifices. The nose is the orifice of the Lung, but the Lung belongs to Metal, and Metal is generated at Si fire; Fire corresponds to the Heart and governs smell — hence the nose can detect fragrance and odor. The ear is the orifice of the Kidney, but the Kidney belongs to Water, and Water is generated at Shen metal; Metal corresponds to the Lung and governs sound — hence the ear can hear. This reflects that in Chinese medicine, the relationship between "Zang-Fu — Five Elements — five senses" is not a mechanical one-to-one correspondence, but a systematic linkage.
Forty-first Difficulty It uses an analogical and categorical method to explain the anatomical form of the liver. The Liver belongs to Wood and governs Spring; spring is the time of nascent, young life, so the liver lobes resemble the early growth of young trees and thus have two lobes. This "correspondence between heaven and humanity" pattern of thought is typical of the Nanjing.
Forty-second Difficulty It systematically records ancient anatomical data on the length and capacity of the digestive tract, as well as the weights and forms of the viscera, and explicitly states the five Zang store five spirits: the Liver stores the ethereal soul, the Heart stores the spirit, the Spleen stores intention, the Lung stores the corporeal soul, and the Kidney stores will. This is an important early text for the "unity of form and spirit" organ-image concept.
Forty-third Difficulty It calculates the body's reservoir of water and grain by daily stool output, explaining "death after seven days without food or drink." This demonstrates the high importance the ancients placed on the water, grain, and fluids of the spleen and stomach.
Forty-fourth Difficulty It introduces the concept of the Seven Chong Gates, dividing the digestive tract from mouth to anus into seven key passages: Fei Gate, Hu Gate, Xi Gate, Ben Gate, You Gate, Lan Gate, and Po Gate. This represents an early systematic understanding of the digestive channel in ancient Chinese anatomy.
Forty-fifth Difficulty The Eight Confluent Points are an important category within the specific acupoint theory of acupuncture and moxibustion, referring to the areas where eight types of Essential qi converge in the body. The ancients held that for heat diseases in the interior, one may select these meeting points, embodying the therapeutic idea of "selecting each according to its meeting."
Forty-sixth Difficulty It explains sleep from the perspective of Ying-Wei circulation. The young and strong have vigorous blood and qi, with free circulation of Ying and Wei — hence they are alert by day and sleep soundly at night. The elderly have declining blood and qi, with sluggish Ying-Wei pathways — thus they are not alert by day and cannot sleep at night. This indicates that sleep is closely related to the flourishing or decline of qi and blood and the circulation of Ying and Wei.
Forty-seventh Difficulty It introduces "the head as the meeting place of all Yang" to explain the face's resistance to cold. Since all the yang meridians ascend to the head and face, where yang qi gathers, the face is better able to withstand cold. This is an important expression of the "yang channels ascending to the head" in meridian theory.
Bu Gua reminds you: This content is based on ancient Chinese medical classics and is provided purely for traditional cultural learning and scholarly study. It does not constitute any medical diagnosis, medication, or treatment advice; if you feel unwell, please seek medical attention promptly.