Chinese System of Channels, Organs and Points

Abstract

Traditional Chinese medicine recognizes a system of lines covering the human body like an orderly network. These lines follow a polar course longitudinally round the body; European doctors compared them to the meridian system of the earth and for this reason called them meridians (and later channels in English). As early as 200 years B. C. the channels and their acupuncture points were described in minute detail in the classic ancient work on acupuncture, the Huang Di Nei Jing. In this work they were compared to the great rivers in China, which extend to all parts of the country and keep it alive by providing the essential water.