Classica Sinica Medica

大僂 简体 大偻

dà lóu

Great hunching

Also rendered: humpback (literal) · da lou (Pinyin)

Pathology

Reviewed · 2026-09

At a glance

Pinyin
dà lóu
Simplified
大偻
Literal
A great hunch; 僂 is a bent back.

In brief

A severe curvature of the spine. The chapter traces it to yang failing to open and close the pores, so that cold settles into the sinews and along the transport points.

Senses in the classical corpus

1
Severe curvature of the spine 大僂
Hunching of the back from cold lodged in the sinews.
開闔不得，寒氣從之，乃生大僂。 — Suwen 3

Occurrences in the classics

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

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1 passages
素問·生氣通天論 Suwen 3 · 生氣通天論 Read in context →
陽氣者，精則養神，柔則養筋，開闔不得，寒氣從之，乃生大僂。陷脉爲瘻，留連肉腠，俞氣化薄，傳爲善畏，及爲驚駭。 阳气者，精则养神，柔则养筋，开阖不得，寒气从之，乃生大偻。陷脉为瘘，留连肉腠，俞气化薄，传为善畏，及为惊骇。
Yáng qì zhě, jīng zé yǎng shén, róu zé yǎng jīn, kāi hé bù dé, hán qì cóng zhī, nǎi shēng dà lóu. xiàn mài wéi lòu, liú lián ròu còu, shù qì huà bó, chuán wéi shàn wèi, jí wéi jīng hài.
The yang qi in its fineness nourishes the shen, in its suppleness nourishes the sinews. If opening and closing do not accord, the cold qi follows it in and there is great hunching. Sunk into the vessels it becomes fistula; lingering in the flesh and its crevices, the qi of the transport points turns oppressive, and what it transmits is a readiness to fear and to be terrified.
「乃生大僂」——大僂謂背曲傴僂；開闔不得而寒氣從之，筋失所養則僂；**「大僂」本篇1見**

Compounds built on this term

How it has been translated

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

This siteGreat hunching

Entry status

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2026-09

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Reading path

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