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The *Suwen: Pulse Essentials and Subtleties* states: "The inner sides of the chi (尺) pulse correspond to the jixie (季胁, hypochondriac region with small ribs). The outer side of the chi pulse is used to inspect the Kidney (Shen, 肾), and the inner side is used to inspect the abdomen (Fu, 腹). The 'outer side' refers to the anterior half of the chi pulse. The anterior part inspects Yang, and the posterior part inspects Yin. The back belongs to Yang, and the Kidney attaches to the back, hence the outer side inspects the Kidney. The abdomen belongs to Yin, hence the inner side inspects the abdomen. By 'abdomen,' it includes the Large Intestine (Dachang, 大肠), Small Intestine (Xiaochang, 小肠), Bladder (Pangguang, 膀胱), and Mingmen (命门, Gate of Vitality). For the following sections, left and right are distinguished, but here they are not, because both chi pulses govern the Kidneys. Moving up from the chi to the middle (zhong fushang, 中附上), the outer side of the left hand pulse inspects the Liver (Gan, 肝), and the inner side inspects the diaphragm (Ge, 膈). 'Zhong fushang' means attaching above the chi and residing in the middle, which is the guan (关) pulse. 'Left outer' refers to the anterior half of the left guan pulse; 'inner' refers to the posterior half. The Liver is Yin containing Yang and is also near the back, so the outer side inspects the Liver; the inner side inspects the Diaphragm. Mentioning the Diaphragm implies the mediastinal membrane and Gallbladder (Dan, 胆) of the Middle Jiao (Zhongjiao, 中焦) are included. The outer side of the right hand pulse inspects the Stomach (Wei, 胃), and the inner side inspects the Spleen (Pi, 脾). The anterior part of the right guan inspects the Stomach; the posterior part inspects the Spleen. The Spleen and Stomach are organs of the Central Earth (Zhongzhou, 中州). Speaking of exterior and interior, the Stomach is Yang and the Spleen is Yin, hence the outer side inspects the Stomach and the inner side inspects the Spleen. The cunkou (寸口, radial artery at the wrist) belongs to the Hand Taiyin Lung Meridian (Shou Taiyin Fei Jing, 手太阴肺经). The Taiyin circulates Qi among the three Yin meridians, hence it is said, 'The three Yin meridians are on the hands and govern the five Zang organs.' Thus, this chapter only mentions the five Zang organs and does not mention the six Fu organs. However, the Stomach is also a Fu organ, yet it is mentioned alone here. Why? The classic says, 'The Qi of the five Zang organs is derived from the Stomach; the Stomach is the root of the five Zang organs. The Qi of the Zang organs cannot reach the Hand Taiyin by itself; it must rely on Stomach Qi to reach the Hand Taiyin.' Therefore, Stomach Qi should be inspected here. Furthermore, the *Wuzangielun* says, 'Flavors enter the mouth and are stored in the Stomach to nourish the Qi of the five Zang organs. The Qikou (气口, radial pulse) also belongs to the Taiyin. Therefore, the Qi and flavors of the five Zang and six Fu organs all originate from the Stomach and manifest at the Qikou.' Thus, although this chapter only mentions the Stomach, the Qi of the Zang and Fu organs is all visible here. Moving up again to the upper section (shang fushang, 上附上), the outer side of the right hand pulse inspects the Lung (Fei, 肺), and the inner side inspects the chest center (Xiongzho ng, 胸中). 'Shang fushang' means moving further up, which is the cun (寸) pulse. Among the five Zang organs, the Lung is the highest. Hence, the anterior part of the right cun inspects the Lung, and the posterior part inspects the Chest Center. The Chest Center refers to everything above the diaphragm. The outer side of the left hand pulse inspects the Heart (Xin, 心), and the inner side inspects the Danzhong (膻中). The Heart and Lung reside above the diaphragm, so the anterior part of the left cun inspects the Heart, and the posterior part inspects the Danzhong. The Danzhong is another name for the Pericardium (Xinbaoluo, 心包络).

[Commentary] The positions of the five Zang organs follow the fixed principles of the Five Elements (Wuxing, 五行). Fire flourishes in the South, so the Heart resides in the left cun; Wood flourishes in the East, so the Liver resides in the left guan; Metal flourishes in the West, so the Lung resides in the right cun; Earth flourishes in the Center and is stationed in the Southwest, so the Spleen and Stomach reside in the right guan. This is the sequence of the He Tu Five Elements. The anterior part inspects the anterior, and the posterior part inspects the posterior. (This reiterates the meaning of upper/lower and inner/outer. Generally speaking, cun is anterior and chi is posterior; specifically, the upper half is anterior and the lower half is posterior. It means the upper part inspects upper diseases, and the lower part inspects lower diseases.) The extreme end of the upper pulse corresponds to matters of the chest and throat. The extreme end of the lower pulse corresponds to matters of the lower abdomen, waist, thigh, knee, shin, and foot. 'Jing' (竟) means 'end.' Saying 'upper to the extreme of the upper,' in the pulse it ends at the Yuji (鱼际, Fish Border) point, and in the body it corresponds to the chest and throat. 'Lower to the extreme of the lower,' in the pulse it ends at the chi section, and in the body it corresponds to the lower abdomen, waist, knees, and feet.

[Commentary] This chapter first discusses the chi pulse, then the zhong fushang as the guan pulse, and finally the shang fushang as the cun pulse, proceeding from inner to outer. This is because the Taiyin meridian runs from the chest to the hand, taking the chi as the root and the cun as the branches. Thus, it is said that in human pulses, one may have roots without branches, but never branches without roots. Additionally, regarding the terms 'inner' and 'outer,' commentators generally interpret them as medial and lateral sides. If interpreted as sides, the pulse shape would be flat and broad, or perhaps two lines could exist; otherwise, the meaning is unclear. Terms like 'anterior inspects anterior, posterior inspects posterior, upper extreme inspects upper, lower extreme inspects lower' all refer to the meaning of inner and outer. Observing the hexagrams of the I Ching, from bottom to top, the upper three lines form the Upper Trigram (Outer), and the lower three lines form the Lower Trigram (Inner); thus, the meanings of upper/lower and inner/outer become clear. Some say, floating pulse indicates exterior, deep pulse indicates interior, which also makes sense. However, if 'outer' inspects the Lung and 'inner' inspects the Chest Center, 'outer' inspects the Heart and 'inner' inspects the Danzhong, implying Zang organs are taken from the exterior and Fu organs from the interior, this is incorrect. Therefore, interpreting them from an upper/lower perspective is more appropriate.

Exerting pressure outward (floating inspection): if the pulse is deep and not floating (interior without exterior), there is accumulation in the heart and abdomen. ('Tui', push/exert, means to examine and seek. In pulse diagnosis, one must first seek outward. If only a deep pulse is seen without a floating pulse, there is interior without exterior, indicating disease with accumulation in the heart and abdomen.) Exerting pressure inward (deep inspection): if the pulse is floating and not deep (exterior without interior), the body has heat. (Seeking inward, if the pulse floats without sinking, the disease is in the exterior rather than the interior; only external pathogens cause bodily heat.) Exerting pressure upward: if the upper pulse is strong and the lower pulse is weak (upper without descending), the waist and feet are cold. ('Qing' means cold. Seeking the upper part shows a strong pulse, while the lower part shows a weak pulse; this is excess above and deficiency below, causing coldness in the waist and feet. 'Upper and lower' has two meanings: referring to cun/guan/chi, cun is upper and chi is lower.) Exerting pressure downward: if the lower pulse is strong and the upper pulse is weak (lower without ascending), there is pain in the head and neck. (Seeking the lower part, if the lower is forceful and the upper is weak, clear Yang cannot ascend, causing head and neck pain; or if Yang deficiency allows Yin to gather, head and neck pain also occurs.) Pressing to the bone, if the pulse Qi is scanty, there is pain in the waist and spine and bi-syndrome (numbness/pain) in the body. (Pressing to the bone relates to the Liver and Kidney. Scanty pulse Qi means weakness. Kidney Water deficiency causes waist and spine pain; Liver Blood deficiency causes body numbness and pain.)

[Commentary] The five Zang organs, six Fu organs, and Pericardium constitute the twelve meridians, distributed across the six pulse positions according to fixed rules that cannot be confused. Carefully studying the *Neijing* makes this clear. The *Neijing* uses the characters chest (Xiong, 胸), diaphragm (Ge, 膈), and abdomen (Fu, 腹) to distinguish upper, middle, and lower sections corresponding to cun, guan, and chi. The Gallbladder is omitted because it is attached to the Liver position; the Large Intestine, Small Intestine, and Bladder are omitted because they are collectively governed by the abdomen. Gao Yangsheng placed the Large and Small Intestines at the upper cun, not knowing they are in the lower jiao abdomen, attempting to inspect them at the upper cun bypassing the middle jiao, which is erroneous. He likely did so because the Small Intestine meridian connects to the Heart and the Large Intestine meridian connects to the Lung. But since the Kidney meridian also connects to the Heart, could the Left Cun inspect the Kidney! The Danzhong is the Hand Jueyin meridian, i.e., the Pericardium. Thus, the classic says, "Left outer inspects the Heart, inner inspects the Danzhong." ('Outer' means upper, 'inner' means lower, as explained previously.) It also says, "The Danzhong is the palace city of the Heart Master." And, "The Pericardium meridian originates in the chest center and emerges to belong to the Heart." From these three passages, it is evident that Danzhong is the Pericardium, and the Pericardium is indeed the mansion of the Heart, which is well-founded. Gao Yangsheng's placement at the Right Chi is absurd. Even Zhu Danxi, despite his acuity, separated the Pericardium and Danzhong into two positions; how much more so for others! The *Neijing* clearly states both left and right chi govern the Kidney, while the Mingmen is between the two kidneys. Examining classics like *Mingtang* and *Tongren*, the Mingmen acupoint is in the depression below the 14th thoracic vertebra of the Du Meridian, between the two kidneys. Moreover, pulses felt under the fingers must correspond to meridians that converge at the cunkou. The *Neijing* mentions no Mingmen meridian. Falsely treating an acupoint name as a zang organ and assigning it to the Right Chi is truly ignorant for millennia. The Sanjiao (Triple Burner) is the mansion of clear fluids, circulating the three Yuan Qi throughout the body. When the Sanjiao is open, Qi flows throughout the body. Thus, the classic says, "The Upper Jiao is like mist, the Middle Jiao is like fermentation, the Lower Jiao is like a ditch." Wang Shuhe's distribution of the Sanjiao to cun, guan, and chi is highly appropriate. Gao Yangsheng's assignment to the Right Chi is even more absurd; the following text reiterates this to clarify.

The classic says: "The inner sides of the chi pulse correspond to the jixie. The outer side of the chi inspects the Kidney, the inner side inspects the abdomen. Zhong fushang: Left outer inspects the Liver, inner inspects the diaphragm; Right outer inspects the Stomach, inner inspects the Spleen. Shang fushang: Right outer inspects the Lung, inner inspects the chest center; Left outer inspects the Heart, inner inspects the Danzhong." This is the three-position inspection method of the *Neijing*. The Gallbladder is omitted because it is attached to the Liver. The Large and Small Intestines and Bladder are omitted because they are governed by the abdomen. Gao Yangsheng's false mantra places the Large and Small Intestines at the upper cun, the Sanjiao at the left chi, and the Mingmen at the right chi, while ignoring the Jueyin Danzhong, and even swapping male and female positions. Therefore,辨析 (analysis/correction) is necessary. The cun governs the Upper Jiao and inspects the chest center; the guan governs the Middle Jiao and inspects the diaphragm; the chi governs the Lower Jiao and inspects the abdomen. This is the fixed position of the body and a universal theory of past and present. The Large and Small Intestines are in the lower jiao abdomen; can the false mantra really place them at the cun bypassing the middle jiao? Bo Ren realized this, stating that the Left Chi governs diseases of the Small Intestine, Bladder, and anterior orifice, and the Right Chi governs diseases of the Large Intestine and posterior orifice, earning him praise for his unique insight. The error of the false mantra stems from the exterior-interior relationship of the Heart-Small Intestine and Lung-Large Intestine. Not understanding that meridian exterior-interior relationships have specific diagnostic positions, one should not confuse them. This is the first deviation from the classic. The *Ling Shu* says: "The Upper Jiao issues from the upper orifice of the stomach, travels along the pharynx, pierces the diaphragm, and spreads in the chest. The Middle Jiao also lies within the stomach, emerging after the Upper Jiao, separating dregs, steaming fluids, transforming essence and microcosms into blood. The Lower Jiao separates from the ileum, pours into the Bladder, and seeps in. Food and water reside in the stomach, become dregs, pass down to the Large Intestine, and become the Lower Jiao." It also says, "The Upper Jiao is like mist, the Middle Jiao is like fermentation, the Lower Jiao is like a ditch." Thus, the Upper, Middle, and Lower Jiao are clearly defined by upper, middle, and lower positions. Placing the Sanjiao at the Left Chi is absurd. It also says, "Those with dense texture and thick skin have a thick Sanjiao; those with coarse texture and thin skin have a thin Sanjiao." And, "Warriors have horizontal Sanjiao textures; cowards have vertical Sanjiao textures." Thus, the Sanjiao has physical form. Claiming the Sanjiao is formless is absurd. This is the second deviation from the classic. The *Suwen* says: "The Liver, Heart, Spleen, Lung, and Kidney are five Yin Zang organs; the Gallbladder, Stomach, Large Intestine, Small Intestine, Sanjiao, and Bladder are six Yang Fu organs." This lists only eleven meridians. Where is the Hand Jueyin meridian? It also says: The Heart is the Official of the Sovereign, from whom Shenming (Spirit/Mind) emerges. The Lung is the Official of the Chancellor, from whom governance and regulation emerge. The Liver is the Official of the General, from whom strategy emerges. The Gallbladder is the Official of Justice, from whom decision-making emerges. The Danzhong is the Official of the Envoy, from whom joy and pleasure emerge. The Spleen and Stomach are the Officials of the Granary, from whom the five flavors emerge. The Large Intestine is the Official of Conduction, from whom transformation emerges. The Small Intestine is the Official of Reception, from whom processing emerges. The Kidney is the Official of Strength, from whom skill emerges. The Sanjiao is the Official of Drainage, from whom waterways emerge. The Bladder is the Official of the Metropolis, storing fluids, which are excreted through Qi transformation. Essentially, the Danzhong completes the count of twelve meridians; thus, the one paired with the Hand Jueyin meridian is actually the Danzhong. However, the *Ling Shu* describes the meridians mentioning the Pericardium but not the Danzhong. Yet, it says "movement leads to incessant laughter," which aligns with "joy and pleasure emerge." Laughter is governed by Heart Fire, indicating the Danzhong corresponds to the Heart and is another name for the Pericardium. The *Ling Shu: Xieke Pian* says: "The Heart is the Great Master of the five Zang and six Fu organs. Its organ is solid, and pathogens cannot accommodate themselves; if they do, the Heart is injured, Shen departs, and death ensues. Therefore, all pathogens affecting the Heart are located in the Pericardium." Only the Danzhong is called the Envoy, a close minister to the Sovereign. From this, it is observed that the Pericardium is the Danzhong, leaving no doubt. Pairing the Danzhong with the Heart has firm evidence. The false mantra ignores this, leaving the Hand Jueyin as a vacant position. This is the third deviation from the classic. The Heart, Liver, Spleen, and Lung each have one position. Only the Kidney is divided into two chi positions because there are two Kidneys, shaped like kidney beans, located on the left and right of the lumbar spine. The *Kanwu* states that both chins inspect the Kidney, deeply conforming to the classic's intent. The *Nanjing* and *Maijue* incorrectly state that the Left Chi inspects Kidney Water and the Right Chi inspects the Mingmen Minister Fire. Examining classics like *Mingtang*, the Mingmen acupoint is in the depression between the two kidneys below the 14th thoracic vertebra. Although both Kidneys are Water organs, Minister Fire resides within them, forming the Kan trigram with one Yang line between two Yin lines. One fails to consider that pulses felt under the fingers must correspond to meridians converging at the cunkou. Detailed examination of the *Neijing* reveals no Mingmen meridian. Without a meridian, how can it be diagnosed and listed at the Right Chi? Nevertheless, Left is Yang and Right is Yin, the constant of Heaven. Left is Water and Right is Fire, the principle of Earth. The two chi pulses: the Left Chi governs the True Yin within the Kidney, and the Right Chi governs the True Yang within the Kidney. One cannot equate Left with Kidney and Right with Mingmen. It must be known that the Mingmen governs both Kidneys overall. (Inspecting Minister Fire at the Right Chi is also acceptable.)