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Meridians are pathways of energy flow inside our body. In Chinese, meridians are known as mai, which also refers to blood vessels. But while blood vessels resemble pipes, as they have fixed boudaries, meridians are like streams, their shapes being formed by the actual flow of energy.

The boundaries and locations of meridians change according to the volumes and directions of energy flow, but in practice the changes are so minute that meridians virtually retain their fairly permanent shapes and locations, though over a period of time, meridians may become bigger in volume as the person's health improves.

Meridians (or more correctly, the energy of the meridians) flow deep inside our body, normally inaccessible to the touch of a finger. There are, however, certain points on the skin, where we may reach this energy flow with a finger, and these points are called energy points, or xue in romanized Chinese.

As these points are used in acupuncture and massage therapy, they are also called acupuncture points and pressure points.




Channel, Collaterals and Extensions

The intricate network of internal energy flow which connects literally every part of our body is called the meridian system, which consists of the following:

1) 12 primary meridians

2) 8 secondary meridians

3) 12 meridian-extensions

4) 12 muscle-meridians

5) 15 branch meridians


The 12 primary meridians, the most important in the system, are the major energy pathways that flow from hand to feet, and vice versa, through the 12 internal organs of the body, and they are named after the respective organs, such as the lung meridian, the colon meridian,etc. They are like main highways connecting major regions in a country.

The 8 secondary meridians or channels do not flow through internal organs. They resemble vertical energy grids that protect the body, and they also act like reservoirs for reserving energy. They resemble trunk roads running the whole length of the country at the boundary, without touching any major regions.

2 of the 8 meridians are very important;they are the ren meridian (conceptual meridian) and the du meridian (governing meridian), which flow the whole length of the front and back of the body.

The 12 meridian-extensions are extended from the primary meridians, and are named after them, such as lung meridian-extension, colon meridian-extension, etc. They flow long and deep into the body, and are important for connecting a primary meridian to another primary meridian, or to an internal organ. They are like connecting roads linking one highway to another, or to a major region.

The 12 muscle-meridians are continued extensions from the 12 primary meridians and the 12 meridian-extensions. Because they usually flow to muscles and tendons, they are called muscle-meridians.

They are found mainly in the limbs and the head, and is located at the body surface, never deep into the internal organs. They are like smaller roads branching from highways or trunk roads to the countryside.

The 15 branch meridians, or collaterals, are issued from each of the 12 primary meridians, and from the ren and the du meridians, as well as include a network of collaterals at the spleen. They are named after their parental meridians, like the lung-meridian-collaterals, the ren meridian-collaterals,etc.

The collaterals at the spleen are known as big collaterals of the spleen, which are different from the spleen meridian-collaterals. Collaterals may go deep into the body reaching internal organs.

They are like country-roads. Collaterals subdivide into smaller and smaller collaterals known as sun lou, or sub-collaterals, which reach every cell in the body. They are small paths leading to every house in the country.




Lakes and Seas of Energy

Chinese medical philosophers often refer to primary meridians as streams --along which vital energy flows; and secondary meridians as lakes--where reserved energy is stored.

There are 8 secondary meridians:

1) Ren or conceptual meridian

2) Du or governing meridian

3) Chong or rushing meridian

4) Dai or belt meridian

5) Yin qiao or in-tall meridian

6) Yang qiao mai or out-tall meridian

7) Yin Wei or in-protective meridian

Yang Wei or out-protective meridian


Of all the meridians in the body, the most important are the ren meridian and the du meridian. While other meridians are considered streams and lakes, these 2 principal meridians are seas. The ren meridian is the sea of yin energy, where all yin meridians flow to;
while the du meridian is the sea of yang energy, receiving all yang meridians.

The ren meridian flows from below the lower lip along the center of the frontal body, pass the navel, right to just before the anus. Numerous energy points (xue) and energy fields (dian tian) are found along the ren meridian.

There are 3 major energy fields along the ren meridian: tanzhong or middle of chest found above the heart; qihai or sea of energy found about 2 inches below the navel; and huiying or meeting of 2 yin just before the anus.

Just after the anus, found at the tip of the spine, is the changqiang (long and powerful) vital point, from where the du meridian starts. The du or governing meridian, which is long and powerful, flows up the spine to the head, then down the front of the face to just above the upper lip.

There are 2 important energy fields along the du meridian: mingmen or gate of life found at the center of the back waist; and baihui or meeting of hundred meridians found at the crown of the head. There are 2 gaps seperating the ren and du meridians--the upper gap at the mouth, and the lower gap at the anus.



There are 72,000 meridian in total that connect and direct energy to all seven subtle bodies.
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