Classica Sinica Medica

首風 简体 首风

shǒu fēng

Head wind · shou feng

Also rendered: Head wind (this site; shou feng given at the headword) · Wind in the head (the plainer rendering)

Pathology

Reviewed · 2026-09

At a glance

Pinyin
shǒu fēng
Simplified
首风
Literal
首風 shǒu fēng — wind caught with the hair freshly washed. Its sign is a headache that keeps the patient indoors, and its oddest feature is its timing: the disorder is worst on the day before the wind comes, and eases once the windy day arrives.
Shuowen
《說文解字》以「𦣻」為正篆，訓「頭也」，「首」為其古文。「首」讀 shǒu，**本篇2見**：**「則爲首風」「首風之狀」**；**「沐」讀 mù，濯髮也**；**「少」讀 shǎo**，**本篇「少」1見，即「病少愈」之少**。

In brief

Head wind is wind caught after washing the hair; Wang Bing says the wind lodges in the head, which is why it is called head wind. Chapter 42 is the source of the clinical detail: the headache comes ahead of the wind, keeps the patient from going out, and abates on the windy day itself.

Senses in the classical corpus

1
What the graph says 首
頭也；說文正篆作𦣻
則爲首風 — Suwen 42
2
How it is caught 新沐中風
沐髮而中風
新沐中風 — Suwen 42
3
Why the head 沐髮中風，舍於頭
王冰：風舍於頭，故曰首風
則爲首風 — Suwen 42 (Wang Bing)
4
Its signs 頭面多汗惡風
汗在頭面，惡風
頭面多汗惡風 — Suwen 42
5
Its timing 當先風一日則病甚
風未至而病先甚
當先風一日，則病甚 — Suwen 42
6
How it ends 至其風日，則病少愈
風至之日，病反少減
至其風日，則病少愈 — Suwen 42

Occurrences in the classics

Passages where the term does real work, with the original, pinyin and English on the same line.

Display
1 passages
Suwen 42 Suwen 42 · 風論 Read in context →
首風之狀，頭面多汗惡風，當先風一日，則病甚，頭痛不可以出内，至其風日，則病少愈。 首风之状，头面多汗恶风，当先风一日，则病甚，头痛不可以出内，至其风日，则病少愈。
Shǒu fēng zhī zhuàng, tóu miàn duō hàn wù fēng, dāng xiān fēng yī rì, zé bìng shèn, tóu tòng bù kě yǐ chū nèi, zhì qí fēng rì, zé bìng shǎo yù.
In head wind the head and face sweat freely and the patient loathes wind. On the day before the wind comes the disorder is at its worst, and the headache keeps him from going out or in; once the windy day arrives, the disorder somewhat abates.
**「新沐中風，則爲首風」——「沐」讀 mù，濯髮也**；**王冰：「沐髮中風，舍於頭，故曰首風」**；**「至其風日，則病少愈」之「少」讀 shǎo，稍也**——**本篇「少」1見，非經名之少，不讀 shào**；**「出内」謂出户外、入室内**。

Compounds built on this term

首風
shǒu fēng
head wind
本篇二見
新沐中風
xīn mù zhòng fēng
wind struck after washing the hair
首風之由
頭痛不可以出内
tóu tòng bù kě yǐ chū nèi
a headache that keeps one from going out or in
首風之甚
當先風一日
dāng xiān fēng yī rì
on the day before the wind
首風之候

How it has been translated

Every rendering below is a decision about which reader is being addressed. There is no neutral option.

This sitehead windtranslated, with shou feng at the headword
Unschuldhead windthe same
Wisemanhead windthe same

Entry status

Review pending — who reviews this?

2026-09

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Reading path

Guided routes through the corpus, each built on a handful of chapters and their key terms.

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