The Origin, Establishment And Prospect Of The Theory Of Channels

Meng Zhaowei (Department of Acupuncture Anaesthesia and Channels, Anhuei College of Traditional Chinese Medicine)

This paper deals with a complete designation on the theory of the channels.

Origin

The traditional opinion is that the channels were formed on the discovery of the points, corresponding connections of which constituted the channels. That is, points first, channels next. However, after the discovery of the old moxibustion records, excavated in Mawangdui  district (a material of 2100 years ago belonging to the West Han Dynasty and before the period of Neijing), this old point of view was overthrown. So it turns to be the channels came first and then developed into points. It was recorded the clinical basis of channels seemed to be built upon the chief complaint of the propagated sensational lines of the patients and that the origin of the theory of the channels was earlier than the theory of the viscera, since there was no writings on the coordination of the channels and the viscera.


Establishment

The theory of the channels in the present category had been entirely established in Neijing. It covered two aspects, "qi" and blood which seemed to be nerves and blood vessels. The accurate determination of the period of Neijing would reveal the period of the establishment of the theory of the channels. The traditional agreement of the period of Neijing was in the period of Spring and Autumn and the period of Warring States. It was about 500 B.C. There were additions made in the following years and periods. Neijing was finally written in the East Han Dynasty (25-220 A.D.).


Evidences showed that the relationship between the visera and the Five Elements before 6-2 B.C., during the period of the book Taixuan  Was entirely different from the relationship written in Neijing. The relationship between the visera and the Five Elements at 200 A.D., during the period of the passing away of Zhen Kang-cheng , was completely the some as that in Neijing. Furthermore in the Spring and Autumn of L , a book of the early Jin Dynasty, the relationship between the viscera and the five elements was completely the same as that in Taixuan, with the absence of one of the visera. It showed that the relationship between the visera and the Five Elements during these two hundred years was entirely different from Neijing. Neijing could only be written after this period.


The relationship between the vicera and the Five Elements is as follows:

Except the assignment of the kidney to water written in Taixuan, there were also assignments of the lung to fire, spleen to wood, liver to gold, heart to earth; while in Neijing, the assignments were the lung to gold, spleen to earth, liver to wood, heart to fire. Such relationships in Neijing appeared in the East Han Dynasty only.

Besides, it has been investigated that the theory of pulse originated from the theory of the channels.


The determination of the period of Neijing is not only beneficial to the arrangement of the original materials and the investigation of the development of the channels, but also to the establishment and development of all the fundamental theories of the Chinese medicine.

Prospect

The channels are closely related to the treatment of diseases.

Based upon the extensive investigations of today, channels seem to be a kind of semi-nervous system. They possess a slower activity than the autonomic nerves. The velocity of the propagated sensation of the channels is about 1/10 of the propagation of impulse in the autonomic nerves. The function of the channels is the read-justment of the visceral function through the surface of the body. If we say that the somatic nerves being responsible to the quick equilibrium as the first equilibrium, the autonomic nerves being responsible to a comparatively slow equilibrium as the second equilibrium, then the channels being responsible to a much more slower equilibrium between the viscera and the body surface as the 3rd equilibrium. All these three kinds of equilibriums are responsible to the general equilibrium of the body as a whole. They are integrated parts of the equilibrium system in the regulation function of the whole body.