Classica Sinica Medica

大谷

dà gǔ

The great valleys

Also rendered: the great valleys (Literal) · the large clefts (Anatomical) · the great confluences (Explains 會) · the twelve divisions (Follows 王冰)

Physiology

Reviewed · 2026-09

At a glance

Pinyin
dà gǔ
Simplified
大谷
Literal
大 great; 谷 a valley, the watercourse between two hills — in the body, the hollow at a joint.
Shuowen
《說文解字》：谷，泉出通川爲谷（引申為肢體筋骨之會）。

In brief

The chapter’s anatomy of meeting places. 王冰：大經所會，謂之大谷也；十二分者，謂十二經脈之部分。小絡所會，謂之小谿 — three hundred and fifty-four of them, less the twelve transport points. These are where the defence qi comes to rest and where evil qi lodges as a guest, and needle and stone are sent along them to drive it out. 張介賓 counts the eight ravines as the two elbows, two armpits, two hips and two hollows behind the knees.

Senses in the classical corpus

1
The twelve meetings of the great channels 大谷十二分
王冰：十二經脈之部分
人有大谷十二分 — Suwen 10
2
The lesser ravines and the eight ravines 小谿／八谿
Three hundred and fifty-four lesser meetings, less the twelve transport points
小谿三百五十四名，少十二俞 — Suwen 10
3
Where defence qi rests and evil qi lodges 衛氣之所留止
The reason the chapter counts them at all
此皆衛氣之所留止，邪氣之所客也，鍼石緣而去之 — Suwen 10

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·五藏生成 Suwen 10 · 五藏生成 Read in context →
人有大谷十二分，小谿三百五十四名，少十二俞，此皆衛氣之所留止，邪氣之所客也，鍼石緣而去之。 人有大谷十二分，小溪三百五十四名，少十二俞，此皆卫气之所留止，邪气之所客也，针石缘而去之。
rén yǒu dà gǔ shí èr fēn, xiǎo xī sān bǎi wǔ shí sì míng, shǎo shí èr shù, cǐ jiē wèi qì zhī suǒ liú zhǐ, xié qì zhī suǒ kè yě, zhēn shí yuán ér qù zhī.
A person has twelve divisions of the great valleys and three hundred and fifty-four named lesser ravines, less the twelve transport points. These are where the defence qi comes to rest and where evil qi lodges as a guest; needle and stone follow along them and drive it out.
本篇谿谷之數：大谷十二分，小谿三百五十四名，少十二俞。王冰疑「三百五十四」當為「三百五十三」之傳寫之誤；新校正云別本「俞」作「關」。

Compounds built on this term

小谿
xiǎo xī
the lesser ravines
Three hundred and fifty-four, less the twelve transport points
八谿
bā xī
the eight ravines
張介賓：兩肘、兩腋、兩髖、兩膕
十二俞
shí èr shù
the twelve transport points
俞通「腧」，讀 shù
衛氣
wèi qì
the defence qi
What rests in these places

How it has been translated

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

Common Englishthe large valleys / the stream cleftsBoth circulate; 谷 and 谿 are usually flattened into one anatomical word.
This sitethe great valleys and the lesser ravinesKept as two words because the text keeps them as two: 谷 is the greater watercourse and 谿 the lesser, and the chapter is counting places where things meet, not naming acupoints.

Entry status

Review pending — who reviews this?

2026-09

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