Meridians: Emergent Lines of Shape Control

Abstract

A new model of human movement (the contractile field) is used to gain an understanding of the enigmatic Chinese meridial map. Mammalian vertebrates laterally flex, flex and extend, twist, and squeeze the body wall in their movement patterns. A noxious stimulus (such as a Han Dynasty acupuncture needle or a scarring moxibustion) will elicit a reflex that coherently moves the body away from pain and danger, a whole organism response that involves many muscles. Lines emerge on the living body wall and the limbs that initiate a similar recoil vector. This article hypothesizes that Meridians are “emergent lines of shape control.” From this perspective, traditional point prescriptions are a 3-dimensional manipulation of subtle shape. Shape and function are closely coupled.