Classica Sinica Medica

窗籠 简体 窗笼

chuāng lóng

The window cage · chuang long

Also rendered: The window cage (literal, and it keeps both halves of the image) · The ear window (plain, and it drops the cage)

Vessels

Reviewed · 2026-10-24

At a glance

Pinyin
chuāng lóng
Simplified
窗笼
Literal
窗 chuāng — a window; 籠 lóng — a cage, a cover. A hollow enclosed and open at once, which is what the ear is.
Shuowen
《說文》：窗，通孔也，或作牕；籠，舉土器也，引申為罩。「窗籠」本篇2見，皆在「結于窗籠，窗籠者，耳中也」。

In brief

Where the shaoyang is knotted, and the chapter defines it at once: 窗籠者，耳中也 — the window cage is the middle of the ear. The image is exact: a hollow that admits sound and holds it, open and enclosed at the same time. As with the life gate, the interest is topographical. The three yang of the foot are knotted at the eye, the cheek and the ear, which is to say that all three end at the head, and the chapter’s list of their roots and knots is in effect a map of how the leg channels reach the face. Later needling identified 窗籠 with Tinggong, in front of the ear; the chapter itself only says the middle of the ear.

Senses in the classical corpus

1
The knot 窗籠者，耳中也
少陽結於耳中
Shaoyang is knotted in the middle of the ear.
結于窗籠，窗籠者，耳中也 — 靈樞·根結
2
The image 窗籠
窗牖籠罩，喻耳之空
A window cage: the hollow of the ear.
少陽根于竅陰，結于窗籠 — 靈樞·根結
3
The point 窗籠
後世指聽宮
Later texts identify it with Tinggong.
窗籠者，耳中也 — 靈樞·根結

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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2 passages
靈樞·根結 Read in context →
太陽根于至陰，結于命門，命門者，目也。陽明根于厲兑，結于顙大，顙大者，鉗耳也。少陽根于竅陰，結于窗籠，窗籠者，耳中也。太陽爲開，陽明爲闔，少陽爲樞。故開折則肉節瀆，而暴病起矣。故暴病者，取之太陽，視有餘不足。瀆者，皮肉宛膲而弱也。闔折則氣無所止息，而痿疾起矣，故痿疾者，取之陽明，視有餘不足。無所止息者，真氣稽留，邪氣居之也。樞折即骨繇而不安於地。故骨繇者，取之少陽，視有餘不足。骨繇者，節緩而不收也。所謂骨繇者，摇故也，當窮其本也。 太阳根于至阴，结于命门，命门者，目也。阳明根于厉兑，结于颡大，颡大者，钳耳也。少阳根于窍阴，结于窗笼，窗笼者，耳中也。太阳为开，阳明为阖，少阳为枢。故开折则肉节渎，而暴病起矣。故暴病者，取之太阳，视有余不足。渎者，皮肉宛膲而弱也。阖折则气无所止息，而痿疾起矣，故痿疾者，取之阳明，视有余不足。无所止息者，真气稽留，邪气居之也。枢折即骨繇而不安于地。故骨繇者，取之少阳，视有余不足。骨繇者，节缓而不收也。所谓骨繇者，摇故也，当穷其本也。
tài yáng gēn yú zhì yīn, jié yú mìng mén, mìng mén zhě, mù yě. yáng míng gēn yú lì duì, jié yú sǎng dà, sǎng dà zhě, qián ěr yě. shào yáng gēn yú qiào yīn, jié yú chuāng lóng, chuāng lóng zhě, ěr zhōng yě. tài yáng wéi kāi, yáng míng wéi hé, shào yáng wéi shū. gù kāi zhé zé ròu jié dú, ér bào bìng qǐ yǐ. gù bào bìng zhě, qǔ zhī tài yáng, shì yǒu yú bù zú. dú zhě, pí ròu yù jiāo ér ruò yě. hé zhé zé qì wú suǒ zhǐ xī, ér wěi jí qǐ yǐ, gù wěi jí zhě, qǔ zhī yáng míng, shì yǒu yú bù zú. wú suǒ zhǐ xī zhě, zhēn qì jī liú, xié qì jū zhī yě. shū zhé jí gǔ yáo ér bù ān yú dì. gù gǔ yáo zhě, qǔ zhī shào yáng, shì yǒu yú bù zú. gǔ yáo zhě, jié huǎn ér bù shōu yě. suǒ wèi gǔ yáo zhě, yáo gù yě, dāng qióng qí běn yě.
Taiyang is rooted at Zhiyin and knotted at the life gate; the life gate is the eye. Yangming is rooted at Lidui and knotted at Sangda; Sangda is the pincer ear. Shaoyang is rooted at Qiaoyin and knotted at the window cage; the window cage is the middle of the ear. Taiyang is opening, yangming is closing, shaoyang is the pivot. Therefore when the opening snaps, the flesh joints leak and sudden disease arises. Hence for sudden disease one takes taiyang, observing excess and deficiency. To leak means the skin and flesh are withered and weak. When the closing snaps, the qi has nowhere to rest and atrophy arises; hence for atrophy one takes yangming, observing excess and deficiency. Nowhere to rest means the true qi is detained and the evil qi dwells there. When the pivot snaps, the bones shake and are not at ease on the ground; hence for shaking bones one takes shaoyang, observing excess and deficiency. Shaking bones means the joints are slack and not gathered. What is called shaking bones is shaking, and one should exhaust its root.
「窗籠」本篇2見，皆在「結于窗籠，窗籠者，耳中也」。三陽之結皆在頭：太陽結目，陽明結顙大（鉗耳），少陽結窗籠（耳中），故三陽之病多見於面與耳目。後世以窗籠為聽宮，此篇但言耳中，不舉穴名。
靈樞·衛氣 Read in context →
足少陽之本，在竅陰之間，標在窗籠之前，窗籠者，耳也。 足少阳之本，在窍阴之间，标在窗笼之前，窗笼者，耳也。
zú shào yáng zhī běn, zài qiào yīn zhī jiān, biāo zài chuāng lóng zhī qián, chuāng lóng zhě, ěr yě.
The root of the foot shaoyang is between qiaoyin; its tip is before the window cage, and the window cage means the ears.
「窗籠」衛氣第5段見，義與本條相合，引全段為證。

Compounds built on this term

耳中
ěr zhōng
the middle of the ear
本篇定義語
聽宮
tīng gōng
Tinggong
後世所指之穴

How it has been translated

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

This sitethe window cagethe name is an image and the chapter defines it
Literalwindow basketexact to 籠, and it loses the ear
Clinicalthe middle of the earthe chapter's own gloss, and it is not a name

Entry status

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2026-10-24

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Reading path

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