天有阴阳日分昼夜阳生于子而尽于午阴生于午而尽于子人身之阴阳亦与之应故灸法从阳
必取
阳旺之时以正午下火为最善正时既得次第须分如上下皆灸先灸上后灸下阴阳经皆灸先灸阳后
灸阴若颠倒错乱则轻者重浅者深致多变症
丁卯 庚午 甲戌 丙子 丁丑 壬午 甲申 丙戌 丁亥 辛卯 壬辰 丙申 戊戌
成日 开日 执日 天医日
忌辛未扁鹊死日 男忌除日 女忌破日
神常在心 春在左胁 秋在右胁 冬在腰 夏在脐
初一日足大指 初二日外踝 初三日股内 初四日在腰 初五日在口 初六日在小手小
指
日在牙 十四日在胃 十五日遍身 十六日在胸 十七日气冲 十八日股内 十九日在足
二十日内踝 二十一日手小指 二十二日
外踝 二十三日在肝 二十四日手阳明 二十五日在足 二十六日在胸 二十七日在膝 二
十八日阴中 二十九日在胫 三十日在趺
子在左右内外踝 丑在头 寅在耳 卯在面 辰在项 巳在乳肩 午在胁 未在腹 申
在心主 酉在膝 戌在腰背 亥在股
生人体质有强弱虚实皮肉有浓薄坚柔不可不分别灸之如头与四肢肌肉浅薄若并灸之恐肢
血难堪必分日灸之或隔日灸之其炷宜小壮数亦不宜多背腹皮肉深浓艾炷宜大壮壮数宜多使火
气充足始能去痼冷疾也有病必当灸巨阙鸠尾二穴者必不可过三壮艾炷如小麦恐火气伤心也古
人灸法有二报三报以至连年不绝者前后相催其效尤速或自三壮五壮以至百壮者由渐而增多
天地有阴阳之分，一天分为昼夜。阳气生于子时（夜间11点至凌晨1点），至午时（中午11点至下午1点）达到极盛而尽；阴气生于午时，至子时达到极盛而尽。人体的阴阳之气也与天地相应。因此，施灸之法应当顺应阳气，必须选择阳气旺盛的时辰，以正午时分施灸为最佳。
既然确定了正确的时辰，施灸的次序也必须分明：如果上下部位都要施灸，应先灸上部，后灸下部；阴阳经脉都要施灸，应先灸阳经，后灸阴经。如果颠倒错乱，就会导致病情轻变重、病位浅变深，从而引发多种变证。
（以下列出吉凶宜忌时日）丁卯、庚午、甲戌、丙子、丁丑、壬午、甲申、丙戌、丁亥、辛卯、壬辰、丙申、戊戌日，属于成日、开日、执日、天医日，适宜施灸。
忌讳辛未日（传说为扁鹊逝世之日）。男性忌讳除日，女性忌讳破日。
神气所在之处：平时在心，春季在左胁，秋季在右胁，冬季在腰部，夏季在脐部。
每日禁忌施灸的部位（避灸法）：
初一在足大指，初二在外踝，初三在大腿内侧，初四在腰部，初五在口部，初六在小手小指，初七在牙齿，十四日在胃，十五日遍身，十六日在胸部，十七日在气冲穴，十八日在大腿内侧，十九日在足部，二十日内踝，二十一日在手小指，二十二日在外踝，二十三日在肝脏，二十四日在手阳明经，二十五日在足部，二十六日在胸部，二十七日在膝部，二十八日在阴部，二十九日在小腿胫骨，三十日在足背。
地支与身体部位的对应关系：子在左右内外踝，丑在头部，寅在耳部，卯在面部，辰在颈部，巳在乳房和肩部，午在胁部，未在腹部，申在心包络，酉在膝部，戌在腰背部，亥在大腿部。
人的体质有强弱、虚实之分，皮肉有厚薄、坚柔之别，不可不加以区分而施灸。例如头部与四肢肌肉浅薄，如果同时施灸，恐怕肢体血脉难以承受，必须分日施灸，或者隔日施灸。其艾炷宜小，壮数也不宜多。背部和腹部皮肉深厚浓密，艾炷宜大，壮数宜多，使火气充足，才能去除顽固寒冷的疾病。如果有病必须施灸巨阙、鸠尾两个穴位的，绝不能超过三壮。艾炷大小如小麦粒，恐怕火气会损伤心脏。古人的灸法有两种：一种是“报灸”，即一次灸后，待反应过去再灸，直至连续多年不绝，前后相继，疗效尤其迅速；另一种是从三壮、五壮逐渐增加到百壮，由少渐多。
Heaven and Earth possess Yin and Yang, and a day is divided into day and night. Yang Qi arises at Zi hour (11:00 PM to 1:00 AM) and reaches its peak and ends at Wu hour (11:00 AM to 1:00 PM). Yin Qi arises at Wu hour and reaches its peak and ends at Zi hour. The Yin and Yang of the human body also correspond to these celestial rhythms. Therefore, moxibustion therapy should follow Yang; it is essential to select times when Yang Qi is flourishing, with midday (Wu hour) being the most auspicious time for applying fire.
Once the correct time is determined, the sequence must be distinct: if both upper and lower parts are to be treated, moxibustion should be applied to the upper part first, then the lower part; if both Yin and Yang meridians are to be treated, Yang meridians should be treated first, then Yin meridians. If this order is reversed or chaotic, mild conditions may become severe, and superficial conditions may become deep, leading to various complications.
[The following lists auspicious and inauspicious days] Ding Mao, Geng Wu, Jia Xu, Bing Zi, Ding Chou, Ren Wu, Jia Shen, Bing Xu, Ding Hai, Xin Mao, Ren Chen, Bing Shen, and Wu Xu days are considered Cheng (Completion), Kai (Open), Zhi (Hold), and Tian Yi (Heavenly Doctor) days, which are suitable for moxibustion.
It is taboo to treat on Xin Wei day (legendarily the death day of Bian Que). Men should avoid Chu (Remove) days, and women should avoid Po (Break) days.
The location of the Divine Spirit (Shen): Generally in the Heart; in Spring, in the left hypochondrium; in Autumn, in the right hypochondrium; in Winter, in the waist; in Summer, in the umbilicus.
Daily contraindicated areas for moxibustion (avoidance method):
On the 1st day, the big toe of the foot; on the 2nd day, the lateral malleolus; on the 3rd day, the medial thigh; on the 4th day, the waist; on the 5th day, the mouth; on the 6th day, the little finger of the hand; on the 7th day, the teeth; on the 14th day, the Stomach; on the 15th day, the whole body; on the 16th day, the chest; on the 17th day, Qichong (ST30); on the 18th day, the medial thigh; on the 19th day, the foot; on the 20th day, the medial malleolus; on the 21st day, the little finger of the hand; on the 22nd day, the lateral malleolus; on the 23rd day, the Liver; on the 24th day, the Hand-Yangming Meridian; on the 25th day, the foot; on the 26th day, the chest; on the 27th day, the knee; on the 28th day, the genital region; on the 29th day, the tibia; on the 30th day, the dorsum of the foot.
Correspondence between Earthly Branches and body parts: Zi corresponds to the medial and lateral malleoli on both sides; Chou to the head; Yin to the ears; Mao to the face; Chen to the neck; Si to the breasts and shoulders; Wu to the hypochondrium; Wei to the abdomen; Shen to the Pericardium; You to the knees; Xu to the lumbar back; Hai to the thighs.
Human constitutions vary in strength and deficiency/excess, and skin and flesh vary in thickness and firmness/softness; these must be distinguished before applying moxibustion. For instance, the muscles of the head and four limbs are thin and shallow; if moxibustion is applied simultaneously everywhere, the blood vessels of the limbs may not withstand it. Therefore, treatment should be distributed over different days or every other day. The moxa cones should be small, and the number of "zhuang" (cones) should not be excessive. Conversely, the skin and flesh of the back and abdomen are thick and dense; the moxa cones should be large, and the number of zhuang should be numerous, ensuring sufficient fire energy to eliminate chronic cold diseases. In cases where moxibustion is necessary on the Juque (CV14) and Jiutui (CV15) acupoints, it must not exceed three zhuang. The moxa cone should be no larger than a wheat grain, lest the fire energy damage the Heart. Ancient practitioners employed two methods of moxibustion: one is "Bao Moxibustion" (reporting/repeating moxibustion), where treatment is repeated after the previous reaction subsides, continuing for years without interruption, with successive applications yielding particularly rapid effects; the other involves gradually increasing the dosage from three or five zhuang up to one hundred zhuang, increasing incrementally.