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Diagnosing eye pain: If the red vessels extend from top to bottom, it is a Taiyang disease (disease of the Taiyang channel); if they extend from bottom to top, it is a Yangming disease (disease of the Yangming channel); if they move from the outside to the inside, it is a Shaoyang disease (disease of the Shaoyang channel).

There are five categories of acupuncture. The first is called "Zhen Ai" (Shaking off Dust), the second "Fa Meng" (Clearing Obscurity), the third "Qu Zhua" (Removing Claws), the fourth "Che Yi" (Removing Clothes), and the fifth "Jie Huo" (Resolving Confusion). "Zhen Ai" refers to acupuncture to expel exterior Yang pathogens. Symptoms include rebellious Qi causing wheezing and dyspnea, inability to sit or lie down comfortably, aversion to dust and smoke, and throat obstruction preventing breathing. (These are all symptoms of Yang pathogens located in the upper jiao.) Select Tianrong (SI17, Hand-Taiyang Small Intestine) point. If accompanied by cough with rebellious Qi and chest oppression/pain, select Lianquan (CV23, Ren Mai). Stop needling when the blood color changes from dark to bright red. "Fa Meng" involves needling the Shu-stream points of the Fu organs to treat Fu organ diseases. ("Fa Meng" means removing obsuration.) Symptoms include deafness and blindness. Needling for this condition must be performed at noon. (This is when Yang Qi is prosperous and Qi mechanism is active.) Needle Tinggong (SI19, Hand-Taiyang Small Intestine) and target the eye area. (Tinggong belongs to the Hand-Taiyang Small Intestine channel, which connects with the eyes, thus affecting vision; after needling, sound should resonate in the ear, indicating the correct point.) To expel pathogens, firmly press the patient's nostrils with hands, then quickly have them lie supine; their vocalization will necessarily correspond to the needle sensation.

"Qu Zhua" refers to needling joints and collateral vessels of the limbs. ("Qu Zhua" is like shedding excess claws; thus, selecting joint and limb collaterals can treat blockage in blood pathways.) The lumbar spine is the major joint of the body; the lower legs are the keys supporting movement and posture. The external genitalia (converging sinews) are the pivot of the body, reflecting Yin essence (from which essence is excreted), and serving as the pathway for body fluids. Therefore, if dietary habits are irregular and emotions like anger and joy are unregulated, body fluids overflow internally and flow downward into the testes, causing blood stasis. The testes enlarge progressively without stopping, making flexion and extension difficult and walking impossible. This pathology resembles water accumulation, neither ascending nor descending, requiring treatment with a Pi stone (an ancient surgical knife). The condition is obvious and cannot be concealed; such symptoms resembling hernias should be treated by selecting appropriate joint and limb collaterals based on the affected meridian. Hence the name "Qu Zhua".

"Che Yi" involves comprehensively needling the extraordinary Shu points of all Yang meridians. Insufficiency of Yin Qi causes internal heat; excess Yang Qi causes external heat. Internal and external heat clash, feeling hotter than holding charcoal, with dry skin, parched throat, and loss of taste discrimination. Select Tianfu (LU3, Hand-Taiyin Lung), Dazhu (BL11), and Zhonglü (BL45, both Foot-Taiyang Bladder) to clear heat. Tonify the Hand-Taiyin Lung meridian (Dadu SP2, Taiyuan LU9) to induce sweating. Heat subsides and sweat decreases. (This treats cold damage with pathogenic heat.) Recovery is faster than "Che Yi" (meaning disease resolution is swift, like removing clothes).

"Jie Huo" involves fully understanding the regulation of Yin and Yang, tonification and sedation, addressing excess and deficiency, and restoring balance. ("Jie Huo" is like resolving confusion; one must understand Yin-Yang dynamics to adjust deficiency/excess and alter the disease state.) When severe wind invades the body, blood vessels become unevenly deficient, leading to imbalance in limb weight, erratic movements, worse than confusion. (This resembles stroke.) Sedate excess, tonify deficiency, and restore Yin-Yang balance. Using acupuncture in this manner cures diseases faster than "Jie Huo".

Yin and Yang correspond to cold and heat. In hot weather, rain nourishes from above. (Earth Qi evaporates upward.) Roots and fruits lose juice. (Vital Qi of plants moves upward rather than downward.) In freezing weather, human Qi resides centrally, skin is dense, pores closed, no sweat, blood and Qi are strong, muscles feel stiff. At this time, even skilled water managers cannot make water flow. (Water is frozen.) Skilled diggers cannot break frozen ground. (Ground is frozen.) Skilled acupuncturists cannot treat four reversals (limb coldness). (Blood vessels are congealed, hard, and non-flowing; they cannot be immediately softened.) Thus, water management requires waiting for warm weather and thawing before water flows and ground can be dug. Human meridians are similar. Treating reversal syndromes requires first warming and regulating the meridians via moxibustion/warming on palms/axillae, elbows/feet, neck/spine. Once fire Qi penetrates, blood vessels flow. Then assess the condition: if pulses are moist and slippery, needle to calm them; if hard and tight, break and disperse them. Stop only after Qi descends. This is called "Untying Knots".

Cold above and heat below. (Yang deficiency above, Yang excess below.) First needle Taiyang points on the vertex and retain the needle for a long time. (e.g., Dazhu BL11, Tianzhu BL10, retain needle to tonify.) After needling, warm the neck and scapula with moxibustion until heat merges downward, then stop. This is "Pushing Upward". (After needling, warm the neck/shoulder area; wait for Qi arrival, merge upper heat with lower, then remove needle. This pushes lower Qi upward.) Heat above and cold below. (Yang excess above, Yang deficiency below.) Observe deficient pulses sinking into collaterals and select points accordingly. This is "Drawing Downward". (Observe sunken deficient meridians, tonify to guide Yang Qi downward, then stop. This is drawing downward.) Generalized high fever, mania, hallucinations, delirium. Observe Foot-Yangming Stomach meridian and major collaterals for treatment. Tonify deficiency, sedate blood excess. Have the patient lie supine with head supported. Use four fingers of both hands to press the carotid pulse. (i.e., Renying ST9, Daying LI18). Hold for a long time, roll and press downwards to Quepen (ST12), then stop, repeating as before. Stop when heat dissipates. This is "Pushing and Dispersing". (Three Yang meridians converge at the head, so Renying alone can disperse heat.)

True Qi (Zhen Qi) is received from Heaven (innate) and combined with Grain Qi (acquired) to nourish the body. (True Qi is Yuan Qi.) Correct Qi (Zheng Qi) refers to Correct Wind, coming from one direction, not Excess Wind or Deficient Wind. (Wind conforming to seasonal correctness is Correct Wind; thus Correct Qi comes from one direction. However, Correct Wind arrives gently, while Excess Wind arrives violently, hence contrasted with Deficient Wind.) Pathogenic Qi refers to Deficient Wind, harming humans. It penetrates deeply and cannot self-resolve. (Deficient Wind comes from the counter-direction; see Nine Palaces and Eight Winds chapter.) Correct Wind penetrates shallowly and resolves itself. Its Qi is weak and cannot overcome True Qi, so it leaves. (When pathogen and Correct Qi interact, Correct Qi wins, so it leaves.) Deficient Evil (Xu Xie) invading causes shivering, trembling, goosebumps, and open pores. It penetrates deeply, pressing on bones causing Bone Bi (bone arthralgia); pressing on sinews causing tendon spasms; pressing on vessels causing blood stasis and abscesses; pressing on flesh clashing with Wei Qi (Defensive Qi), Yang excess causing heat, Yin excess causing cold. Cold excess depletes True Qi, leading to deficiency and cold. Pressing between skin and muscle... (Yang excess causes heat, Yin excess causes cold, both are pathogens. Specifically, cold depletes Qi because Qi is Yang, and humans rely on Qi; cold excess leads to Yang deficiency, emphasizing Qi.) External manifestation opens pores, shakes hairs, moving Qi causes itching; lingering Qi causes Bi syndrome; blocked Wei Qi causes numbness. (Pathogens at the surface manifest externally; open pores cause non-retentive sweat; shaking hairs indicate deterioration; moving Qi causes itching; lingering pathogens cause painful Bi. If Wei Qi is injured and fails to circulate, lack of pain/itch sensation is called Numbness.) Deficient Evil lodging on one half of the body penetrates deeply, residing in Ying and Wei. As Ying and Wei decline, True Qi departs, leaving only pathogen, causing hemiplegia. Shallow pathogen causes unilateral pulse pain. Deep invasion of Deficient Evil with cold-heat clash, lingering internally: Cold excess causes bone pain and muscle wasting (Injuring Yang); Heat excess causes rotting flesh and pus (Injuring Yin). Internal bone injury leads to Bone Erosion (deepest level, eroding bone). Sinew diseases starting with sinew contracture, pathogen lingering without returning, causes Sinew Slipping (tumor-like nodules in sinews). Accumulation of Qi and fluids forms Intestinal Slipping (intestinal lipoma/nodule). Long-standing cases form Xi Liu (ancient tumor). Hard nodules deep in bone with Qi accumulation form Bone Abscess (Osteomyelitis). Flesh nodules with Zong Qi (Pectoral Qi) involvement, heat forming pus, no heat forming Flesh Abscess (soft tissue abscess). These various Qi pathogens have no fixed location but have consistent names.