目眦

mù zì

The corner of the eye · mu zi

Also rendered: The corner of the eye (plain, and it is the anatomical sense) · The canthus (exact, and it is the clinical Latin)

Reviewed · 2026-10-18

At a glance

Pinyin
mù zì
Simplified
目眦
Literal
目 mù — the eye; 眦 zì — the corner of the eye, where the lids meet. The corner that goes blind when one water cannot beat five fires.
Shuowen
《說文》:目,人眼,象形。眥,目匡也,從目此聲;底本作「眦」,與「眥」一字異寫,全站首見此形。「目眦」本篇1見,即「故目眦盲」;「目」字10見、「眦」字1見。眦為目之兩角,血氣所聚,故火盛則先病於此。

In brief

The corner of the eye. The sentence runs 夫一水不勝五火,故目眦盲 — one water cannot overcome five fires, and so the corner of the eye goes blind. The five fires are the five viscera’s yang; the one water is the essence. In reversal the yang gathers above (陽氣并於上), the fire alone gives light (則火獨光也), and the corner, where the eye’s vessels gather, is scorched. The base writes 眦 and not 眥, and the site prints the base’s form.

Senses in the classical corpus

1
The name 目眦
目之兩角
The two corners of the eye.
故目眦盲 — 素問·解精微論
2
One water 一水
五藏之陰精,其數一
The yin essence of the five viscera, one in number.
夫一水不勝五火 — 素問·解精微論
3
Five fires 五火
五藏之陽氣,其數五
The yang qi of the five viscera, five in number.
夫一水不勝五火 — 素問·解精微論
4
The outcome 故目眦盲
火盛爍精,目角失明
Fire in excess scorches the essence, and the corner of the eye loses its sight.
故目眦盲 — 素問·解精微論
5
Why the corner 則火獨光也
陽并於上,火聚於目
Yang masses above, and fire gathers in the eye.
則火獨光也 — 素問·解精微論
6
The wind behind it 衝風泣下而不止
風中於目,火氣燔目
Wind strikes the eye, and fire qi burns it.
衝風泣下而不止 — 素問·解精微論

Occurrences in the classics

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

Display
4 passages
素問·解精微論 Read in context →
夫一水不勝五火,故目眦盲。是以衝風泣下而不止,夫風之中目也,陽氣内守於精。 夫一水不胜五火,故目眦盲。是以冲风泣下而不止,夫风之中目也,阳气内守于精。
Fú yī shuǐ bù shèng wǔ huǒ, gù mù zì máng. Shì yǐ chōng fēng qì xià ér bù zhǐ, fú fēng zhī zhòng mù yě, yáng qì nèi shǒu yú jīng.
“One water cannot overcome five fires, and so the corner of the eye goes blind. Hence the tears fall without stopping when one faces the wind: when the wind strikes the eye, the yang qi keeps guard within, in the essence.”
「目眦」本篇1見,即「故目眦盲」;「目」字10見、「眦」字1見。一水五火,以數相形:陰精唯一,陽火有五,故不勝。底本作「眦」,與通行本「眥」一字異寫,各隨底本,不并軌。
靈樞·經筋 Read in context →
足少陽之筋,起于小指次指,上結外踝,上循脛外廉,結于膝外廉;其支者,别起外輔骨,上走髀;前者結于伏兔之上,後者結于尻;其直者,上乘䏚季脅,上走腋前廉,繫于膺乳,結于缺盆;直者,上出腋,貫缺盆,出太陽之前,循耳後,上額角,交巔上,下走頷,上結于頄;支者,結于目眦,爲外維。其病小指次指支轉筋,引膝外轉筋,膝不可屈伸,膕筋急,前引髀,後引尻,即上乘䏚季,脅痛,上引缺盆、膺乳,頸維筋急,從左之右,右目不開,上過右角,並蹻脉而行,左絡于右,故傷左角,右足不用,命曰維筋相交。治在燔鍼刼刺,以知爲數,以痛爲輸,名曰孟春痺也。 足少阳之筋,起于小指次指,上结外踝,上循胫外廉,结于膝外廉;其支者,别起外辅骨,上走髀;前者结于伏兔之上,后者结于尻;其直者,上乘䏚季胁,上走腋前廉,系于膺乳,结于缺盆;直者,上出腋,贯缺盆,出太阳之前,循耳后,上额角,交巅上,下走颔,上结于頄;支者,结于目眦,为外维。其病小指次指支转筋,引膝外转筋,膝不可屈伸,腘筋急,前引髀,后引尻,即上乘䏚季,胁痛,上引缺盆、膺乳,颈维筋急,从左之右,右目不开,上过右角,并𫏋脉而行,左络于右,故伤左角,右足不用,命曰维筋相交。治在燔针劫刺,以知为数,以痛为输,名曰孟春痹也。
zú shào yáng zhī jīn, qǐ yú xiǎo zhǐ cì zhǐ, shàng jié wài huái, shàng xún jìng wài lián, jié yú xī wài lián; qí zhī zhě, bié qǐ wài fǔ gǔ, shàng zǒu bì; qián zhě jié yú fú tù zhī shàng, hòu zhě jié yú kāo; qí zhí zhě, shàng chéng miǎo jì xié, shàng zǒu yè qián lián, xì yú yīng rǔ, jié yú quē pén; zhí zhě, shàng chū yè, guàn quē pén, chū tài yáng zhī qián, xún ěr hòu, shàng é jiǎo, jiāo diān shàng, xià zǒu hàn, shàng jié yú qiú; zhī zhě, jié yú mù zì, wéi wài wéi. qí bìng xiǎo zhǐ cì zhǐ zhī zhuǎn jīn, yǐn xī wài zhuǎn jīn, xī bù kě qū shēn, guó jīn jí, qián yǐn bì, hòu yǐn kāo, jí shàng chéng miǎo jì, xié tòng, shàng yǐn quē pén, yīng rǔ, jǐng wéi jīn jí, cóng zuǒ zhī yòu, yòu mù bù kāi, shàng guò yòu jiǎo, bìng qiāo mài ér xíng, zuǒ luò yú yòu, gù shāng zuǒ jiǎo, yòu zú bù yòng, mìng yuē wéi jīn xiāng jiāo. zhì zài fán zhēn jié cì, yǐ zhī wéi shù, yǐ tòng wéi shū, míng yuē mèng chūn bì yě.
The sinews of foot shaoyang begin at the fourth toe, knot at the outer ankle, ascend along the outer side of the shin and knot at the outer side of the knee. A branch separates from the outer shin bone and runs up to the thigh; the front part knots above the crouching rabbit, the back part knots at the sacrum. The straight branch rides up over the hollow below the lateral ribs, runs up the front of the axilla, ties at the breast and nipple and knots at the supraclavicular fossa. The straight branch emerges from the axilla, pierces the supraclavicular fossa, comes out in front of taiyang, follows behind the ear, ascends to the corner of the forehead and crosses at the vertex, then runs down the chin and knots above at the cheekbone. A branch knots at the canthus and forms the outer stay. Its diseases: the fourth toe pulls and cramps, the outer knee cramps, the knee cannot bend or stretch, the popliteal sinews tighten, the front pulls the thigh, the back pulls the sacrum, and it rides up over the hollow of the lateral ribs so that the ribs hurt; it pulls upward at the supraclavicular fossa and the breast, the stay of the neck tightens, and the trouble passes from left to right so that the right eye cannot open. It crosses the right corner of the forehead and runs with the qiao vessels; the left is bound to the right, and so when the left corner is injured the right foot is useless. This is called the crossing of the stays. Treat with heated needle and swift piercing, taking recovery as the measure and the painful spot as the point. It is called the first-spring bi.
「目眦」經筋第2段見,義與本條相合,引全段為證。
靈樞·癲狂 Read in context →
目眦外決于面者,爲鋭眦,在内近鼻者,爲内眦。上爲外眦,下爲内眦。 目眦外决于面者,为锐眦,在内近鼻者,为内眦。上为外眦,下为内眦。
mù zì wài jué yú miàn zhě, wéi ruì zì, zài nèi jìn bí zhě, wéi nèi zì. shàng wéi wài zì, xià wéi nèi zì.
The canthus that opens outward on the face is the sharp canthus; the one inside, near the nose, is the inner canthus. Above is the outer canthus, below the inner canthus.
「目眦」癲狂第1段見,義與本條相合,引全段為證。
靈樞·𤍠病 Read in context →
𤍠病,嗌乾多飲,善驚,臥不能起,取之膚肉,以第六鍼,五十九。目眦青,索肉于脾,不得索之木,木者肝也。 𤍠病,嗌干多饮,善惊,卧不能起,取之肤肉,以第六针,五十九。目眦青,索肉于脾,不得索之木,木者肝也。
rè bìng, yì gān duō yǐn, shàn jīng, wò bù néng qǐ, qǔ zhī fū ròu, yǐ dì liù zhēn, wǔ shí jiǔ. mù zì qīng, suǒ ròu yú pí, bù dé suǒ zhī mù, mù zhě gān yě.
For heat disease with a dry throat, much drinking, easy fright and inability to rise from bed, take the flesh with the sixth needle, fifty-nine. If the canthi are blue, seek the flesh in the spleen; if not found, seek it in wood, for wood is the liver.
「目眦」𤍠病第9段見,義與本條相合,引全段為證。

Compounds built on this term

目眦
mù zì
the corner of the eye
本篇本文
目眥
mù zì
the corner of the eye, the usual graph
通行字形
眦盲
zì máng
blindness at the corner
本篇語
目系
mù xì
the eye's connecting vessels
與此相參

How it has been translated

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

This sitethe corner of the eyewhere the eye's vessels gather
Literaleye canthusexact, and it needs a glossary itself
Clinicalthe inner canthusnarrower than the text, which does not say which corner

Entry status

Review pending — who reviews this?

2026-10-18

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Reading path

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