Ran gu · the projecting bone

At a glance

Pinyin

rán gǔ

Simplified

然骨

Literal

然 rán — thus, so; and in this name, the first half of 然谷. 骨 gǔ — a bone. The chapter uses the word three times and never alone: it is always 然骨之前, in front of the projecting bone, and it is always the place to bleed for trouble in the foot lesser yin network. 邪客於足少陰之絡，令人卒心痛，暴脹，胸脅支滿，無積者，刺然骨之前出血，如食頃而已. Then, for the man who has fallen and is holding blood inside him: 刺足内踝之下，然骨之前血脉出血，刺足跗上動脉. And then for the throat that has swollen shut: 嗌中腫，不能内唾，時不能出唾者，刺然骨之前，出血立已. 王冰 says what it is in one line: 然骨之前，然谷穴也。在足内踝前起大骨下陷者中，足少陰滎出 — it is the point 然谷, in the hollow below the great bone that rises in front of the inner ankle, where the foot lesser yin's 滎 comes out. So the bone gives the point its name, and the point is the one the chapter is telling you to bleed. 然谷 is the second point on the kidney channel in later numbering; the chapter knows nothing of numbers, only of a bone you can feel and a hollow beneath it.

Shuowen

**「然」讀 rán，本篇3見；然者，如是也；此則骨之名**；**「骨」讀 gǔ，本篇4見，皆在「然骨」之内**；**「然骨」本篇3見，皆作「然骨之前」——本篇不單用「然骨」二字**；**王冰注：然骨之前，然谷穴也。在足内踝前起大骨下陷者中，足少陰滎出**；**「然谷」之谷讀 gǔ，穴名从然骨而得之；後世列為足少陰之滎穴**；**「踝」讀 huái，本篇4見；「足内踝」zú nèi huái**；**「内」此讀 nèi（在内），本篇「内」8見，「不可内食」「不能内唾」二見讀 nà**；**「跗」讀 fū，足背也；「動脉」dòng mài——動而可診之脉**；**「血」讀 xuè，本站一律如此；「出血」本篇3見**；**「食頃」shí qǐng——一飯之頃，謂其速也**；**「嗌」讀 yì、「唾」讀 tuò、「腫」讀 zhǒng**