San Jiao - Body Model

Body Model

There are three "burning spaces":

• The Shang Jiao (upper burner) - Is located in the cranial cavity. Shang energy is often referred to as psychic energy, corresponding to the third eye and crown chakras. Shang Jiao *may" have relationships to the thoracic cavity, and possibly includes Fei (lungs) and Xin (Heart), and is associated with respiration.
• The Zhong Jiao (middle burner) - Is located in the heart region, contained within the rib cage. Zhong Jiao corresponds to the central part of the dorsal cavity. This space *may* include Wei (Stomach), Pi (usually called "Spleen", but better called the "nutrient uptake system", e.g. in WMS terms the Hepatic Portal System, various secretory pancreatic cells, perhaps the duodenum, portions of the lymphatic system carrying chyle, as well as catabolic and transaminoic functions of liver cells) and is associated with digestion.
• The Xia Jiao (lower burner) - Is located in the "bowl" of the pelvis, or pelvic girdle corresponding to the lower part of the dorsal cavity. This space includes Xiao Chang (small intestine), Da Chang (large intestine), Shen (Kidneys), Pang Guang (Bladder) and is associated with elimination.

Other Zang Fu organs were not included in the San Jiao model.

The Hand Channel of San Jiao Shao Yang is so called because of its generalized effects across the San Jiao. San Jiao is not an organ. In fact, many Zang Fu organ translations do not directly correspond with their defined western organ.

The Shao Yang channel is the second shallowest channel in the six divisions of channel theory, and its hand division - San Jiao - starts at the fingernail of the ring finger, travels up the outside center of the hand and arm, encompasses the elbow, continues to the back of the Acromio-clavicular joint (part of the shoulder), meeting with the other Yang channels at the junction of the seventh cervical and first thoracic vertebrae (GV-14 "da zhui"), before travelling up the neck to behind the ear, encompassing the external ear and terminating at outer tip of the eyebrow. Aside from Wai Guan (TE-5), its points' most common clinical uses are for local problems.