Host and Guest
Combining sources and networks
Happy New Year
First off, I want to wish everyone a happy new year, and welcome all the new subscribers to the mulch. I’m happy that you’ve subscribed and I appreciate the likes, comments, restacks, emails, etc.
I took a break from the mulch for a few weeks while I put together a new CEU course for TCM Academy of Integrative Medicine. The course is about the brain in Chinese medicine, something I have written about off and on in the mulch. It’s very acupuncture-centric, and I did quite a bit of research in building the course, which means that there is a bunch of information that I didn’t manage to work in… so at least some of it will filter into the posts here. I have a lot planned for 2026, both in terms of courses and publishing, so I will be posting updates on that as time goes on. But for now…
Oh, the places you’ll go…
One of my favorite things about doing research is the places it takes me, either to concepts that are completely novel to me or to re-examine information I have already encountered. In researching treatment of brain fog and cognitive impairment, I came across both. Today I want to touch on the latter. Among the methods that came up in my search was something I learned (and taught) a long while ago but hadn’t really thought much about in the intervening years: the host-guest point combination method.
The Host-Guest Method
As I learned it, the host-guest method is the combination of the yuán-source point of a channel [the host] and the luò-network point of its interiorly-exteriorly paired channel [the guest]. As point combination formulas go, it is a relatively late addition, having first been laid out in the Great Compendium of Acupuncture and Moxibustion [Zhēnjiǔ dàchéng 針灸大成] by Yáng Jìzhōu in 1601.
It is a simple and straightforward point combining method, though how it is normally taught makes it less likely to be used by acupuncturists and students, and it just becomes another data point to memorize for the exams.
Lit review – East and West
I learned (and, for many years, taught) the method as it was written in The Practical Application of Meridian Style Acupuncture by John Pirog (1996). Pirog touches on the method during a discourse on network points, where he states that treatment of concurrent presentation of exterior and interior symptoms is “perhaps the most important clinical role that luo points serve.” Exterior-interior has a more expansive definition in acupuncture than in herbal medicine, he says, in that it can be applied to fǔ-bowels [exterior] and zàng-viscera [interior] as well as, say, a wind-cold contraction [exterior] with organ disharmony [interior].
The method he explains is this: use the source point on the channel first affected [host] and the network point on the channel that is affected after [guest]. To summarize the two examples he gives:
Chronic kidney vacuity results in depleted right qì leading to wind damp impediment in the low back: KD-3 [source/host] and UB-58 [network/guest]
Wind-heat attacks the nose, which leads to chronic cough: LI-4 [source/host] and LU-7 [network/guest].
The acupuncturist must determine which of the channels is replete and which is vacuous in order to apply supplementing and draining; this assumes a “see-saw” relationship between interior-exterior paired channels, i.e. when one channel is full, its paired channel is empty.
Deadman et al., in A Manual of Acupuncture (2007), reiterate this usage of first- and later-affected paired channels. The authors mention that the technique “seems to have been little used” through the history of acupuncture. They cite contemporary usage, which appear to be mostly based on point functions. I summarize the list here:
LI-4 + LU-7: Exterior pathogen invasion
LU-9 + LI-6: Exterior invasion of wind water with upper body swelling
SP-3 + ST-40: Spleen vacuity with phlegm damp
HT-7 + SI-7 Spirit disorders
KD-3 + UB-58: Yīn vacuity with ascending yáng
LR-3 + GB-37: Eye disorders
While further research does indeed confirm that this 1-2 approach is a common one in modern usage, I find it curious that neither of these sources refer to the symptomology in the original source, the Great Compendium:
太陰多氣而少血，心胸氣脹掌發熱，喘咳缺盆痛莫禁，咽腫喉干身汗越，肩內前廉兩乳疼，痰結膈中氣如缺，所生病者何穴求，太淵、偏歷與君說。
肺之主大腸客
Tàiyīn has much qì and little blood; there is qì distension of the heart and chest, palms effusing heat, panting and unbearable pain at the clavicular fossa [Quēpén, ST-12], swollen pharynx and dry throat, the body sweats excessively, the inner front side of the shoulder and both breasts are sore, there is phlegm binding in the diaphragm, and apparent lack of qì. What points to seek for that which has fallen ill? Use Tàiyuān [LU-9] and Piànlī [LI-6] together, I say to you, sir.
Lung is the host and Large Intestine the guest.
A later explanation, from the Golden Mirror of Our Medical Ancestors: Essential Heart Methods of Needling and Moxibustion [Yīzōng jīnjiàn: Cìjiǔ xīnfǎ yào, 醫宗金鑑·刺灸心法要 ] by Wú Qiān, 1742:
肺經原絡應刺病，胸脹溏瀉小便頻，洒洒惡寒，翕翕發熱，咳喘短，木痛皮膚肩缺盆。
The lung channel source and network points should be needled for diseases of: chest distension; sloppy diarrhea; frequent urination; aversion to cold as after a soaking, feather warm heat effusion; coughing and panting with short qì; numbness and pain in the skin, shoulder and clavicular fossa.
The points given in the passage are:
肺經里之原穴太淵，大腸表之絡穴偏歷
The source point Tàiyuān on the interior lung channel, the network point Piānlì on the exterior large intestine channel
While there are certainly exterior symptoms here, there are also gastrointestinal, neurological and urinary manifestations, and no mention of facial swelling.
Encountering the Origins of Acumoxa [Zhēnjiǔ féngyuán, 針灸逢源 ] by Lǐ Xuéchuān, published in 1815, gives us a brief list of the host-guest points without indications, but ends the passage with these general remarks:
難經曰三焦行於諸陽。故置一腧名曰原。凡治病必隨各經主客刺之。主者。原穴也。客者。絡穴也。如肺經有病。可刺本經太淵原穴。復刺大腸偏歷絡穴。余仿此。
The Classic of Difficulties says the triple burner moves through all the yáng [channels]. This is why it has been established that one point on each channel is called the source point. Treating any illness one must follow each channel’s host-guest needling. The host is the source point, the guest is the network point. For example, if the lung channel is ill, one can needle Tàiyuān, the source point on the original channel, then needle Piānlì, the network point of the large intestine channel. The rest of the channels follow suit.
Giovanni Maciocia, in The Channels of Acupuncture: Clinical Use of the Secondary Channels and Eight Extraordinary Vessels (2006), did summarize the original symptomology from the Great Compendium, and while he did mention the 1-2 sequence as an indication for use of the method, the conclusion was more general: the combination strengthens the effect of the source point in channel disorders. He pointed out that network point symptoms often reflect symptoms of its paired channel.
It is also clear that the indications given for the host-guest combination in the pre- and early-modern sources have significant overlap with those of the channels in Yellow Emperor’s Inner Classic Spiritual Pivot [Huángdì Nèijīng Língshū黃帝內經靈樞] chapter 10:
肺手太陰之脈
…是主肺所生病者，欬，上氣，喘喝，煩心，胸滿，臑臂內前廉痛厥，掌中熱。氣盛有餘，則肩背痛，風寒，汗出中風，小便數而欠。氣虛則肩背痛寒，少氣不足以息，溺色變。
Lung hand tàiyīn vessel
These are the main diseases arising from the lung: cough, ascending qì, panting noisily, vexation of the heart, chest fullness, pain and reversal on the inner front side of the arm, heat in the palms. When the qì is exuberant there is superabundance, resulting in pain in the shoulders and back, wind-cold, sweating with wind-strike, frequent urination and yawning. Qì vacuity results in cold pain in the shoulder and back, short qì and insufficiency of breath, and change in the color of one’s urine.
As Lǐ Xuéchuān pointed out in the passage cited earlier, the source point of each channel is a representative of the source qì, and thus it can treat any problem of its channel. One modern criticism (Zhi et al., 2019) of the 1-2 method is that clinical cases often lack a clear etiology and pathogenesis, making the determination of which channel was first affected problematic. Also the common assumption is that source points are always supplemented and network points always drained; if the original source for the symptomology is Língshū 10, which gives both repletion and vacuity manifestations, then this assumption needs re-examination. Harmonizing and regulating techniques may be called for, depending on the presenting pathology. In general, Zhi et al. (2019) say, the current clinical indications for this method are too narrow.
What’s the why?
If the host-guest simply treats problems of a given channel, why favor them over whatever other points are on the same paired channels? I can think of a few reasons, both ancient and modern.
As for the modern research literature, researchers using complex network analysis techniques to investigate point combinations (Wu et al., 2012) cited studies that looked at EEGs and lab biomarkers when testing points used alone and in various combinations. Some of the point combinations they tested, while not antagonistic, weren’t found to produce additional benefit over that of the individual points. Other combinations, however, did exhibit synergistic effects; the two categories mentioned as having these effects were back-shù with front-mù points, and the source-network point pairing method.
In addition, as Zhang et al. (2015) mention, treating complex diseases can result in a large and varied number of points selected, which can cause significant patient discomfort. Picking effective combination strategies can aid in making needling more effective and reduce chances of adverse events.
In terms of ancient reasoning, Classic of Difficulties [Nánjīng, 難經] 66 says the source qì comes from the moving qì between the kidneys, and the source points are said to be the place on each of the channels where the source qì stops and abides [留止]. The source qì is responsible for powering the functional activities of the zàngfǔ organs and channels (Dai et al., 2021), meaning that the source points represent the most fundamental physiologic level of the body.
Network points connect paired channels, but they are also connected to the wider scheme of network vessels. Network vessels are a key driver of chronic pathology. Yè Tiānshì said in Clinical Guidelines to Medical Cases [Línzhèng zhǐnán yī’àn, 臨證指南醫案, 1746] that
初為氣結在經，久則入血動絡
At first the qī binds in the channels, over a long period [the disease] enters the blood and stirs the network vessels
Thus, the host-guest combination method not only mobilizes the source qì, it activates the blood. This makes it useful in a wide array of chronic conditions (which tend to be characterized by mixed vacuity and repletion) but most especially those in which there are signs of underlying yáng vacuity mutually engendering blood stasis.
Back to the mysterious house
Several of the papers surveyed were co-authored by Sūn Yuǎnzhēng [孙远征]. Professor Sūn has formulated a method called the “source-network channel-freeing needling method [yuánluò tōngjīng zhēnfǎ, 原絡通經針法]” which uses various exterior-interior paired source and network points, depending on the pathology. Of the papers I read, the one that most caught my eye was a clinical paper (You et al., 2025) on the treatment of diabetic retinopathy [DR]. In it, the authors postulate on the most important elements of the pathogenesis of DR.
In the early stage, spleen vacuity is the primary pattern, which may be accompanied by phlegm-turbidity as well as liver blood vacuity and/or liver depression qì stagnation. This makes for lack of nourishment to the eye networks, which are tiny and deep, and thus easily stopped up by turbidity and blood stasis. Kidney yáng vacuity characterizes the middle stage of the disease process. Once the kidney yáng is unable to circulate through the dūmài [governing vessel], the xuánfǔ [mysterious house] shuts down, cutting off the communication between the eye connectors and the visual lining [視衣 shìyī, analogous to the retina].
Professor Sūn’s strategy for this is to
Rouse and mobilize [鼓动] the qì and blood of the zàngfǔ [basically summoning the source qì through the source points]
Stimulate network points to activate circulation and free the network vessels
Regulate the yáng qì of the governing vessel [primarily by using the most yáng point of the body, GV-20]
His point selection, depending on the disease stage and presenting pathology, may include one or more of the following source-network pairs:
LR-3 + GB-37, KD-3 + UB-58, SP-3 + ST-40.
To this, add GV-20
He will often add LR-5 and/or HT-5, both network points which connect to the eye’s network vessels.
For me, with a keen interest in xuánfǔ theory and especially how it might be addressed with acupuncture, perhaps the most interesting takeaway was in the way Professor Sūn approached this matter. First, the use of source and network points can be seen to rally the source qì and free the network vessels to unblock the pathways through which the nourishment can flow to the mysterious house, while the dūmài, a powerful conduit of yáng which itself is produced from the source qì (Larre & Rochat de la Vallée, 1997, p.46), can push the circulation of the source qì upward to warm the xuánfǔ and restore its harmonious opening and closing.
Conclusion
The source-network combining method is one that is too often learned and forgotten, but it can be a potent option in the treatment of chronic diseases, in addition to its more commonly-cited uses, such as first- and later-affected illnesses of paired channels. I have started to apply it more in clinic, especially in more stubborn cases.
Okay, that’s it for now. Thanks for reading, and again, I wish you all the best in the new year.
Note: this publication is for information purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Please seek the opinion of a health care professional for any specific medical issues you may have.
References
Dai, Y., Si, L., Lü, Y., Tao, X., Zhao, L., & Gu, L. (2021). Clinical application of original meridian and collateral point combination method in treating multisystem diseases. Asia-Pacific Traditional Medicine, 17(7). DOI:10.11954/Ytctyy.202107055
Deadman, P., Al-Khafaji, M., & Baker, K. (2007). A manual of acupuncture, 2nd ed. Journal of Chinese Medicine Publications
Huángdì Nèijīng Língshū. (n.d.). Retrieved March 22, 2024 from https://jicheng.tw/tcm/book/%E9%9D%88%E6%A8%9E/index.html.
Larre, C., & Rochat de la Vallée, E. (1997). The eight extraordinary meridians. Monkey Press.
Li, X. (1815). Zhēnjiǔ féngyuán. Retrieved December 16, 2022, from https://jicheng.tw/tcm/book/%E9%87%9D%E7%81%B8%E9%80%A2%E6%BA%90/index.html
Maciocia, G. (2006). The channels of acupuncture: Clinical use of the secondary channels and eight extraordinary vessels. Elsevier Health Sciences.
Pirog, J.E. (1996). The practical application of meridian style acupuncture. Pacific View Press.
Wu, Q. (1742). Yīzōng jīnjiàn: Cìjiǔ xīnfǎ yào. retrieved April 26, 2024 from https://jicheng.tw/tcm/book/%E9%86%AB%E5%AE%97%E9%87%91%E9%91%91/%E5%88%BA%E7%81%B8%E5%BF%83%E6%B3%95%E8%A6%81%E8%A8%A3/index.html
Wu Q., Zhang, C., Chen, Q., & Yu, S. (2012). On feasibility of researching acupoint combination by using complex network analysis techniques. Acupuncture Research, 37(3). DOI:10.13702/j.1000-0607.2012.03.017
Yang, J. (1601). Zhēnjiǔ dàchéng. Retrieved December 26, 2023 from https://jicheng.tw/tcm/book/%E9%87%9D%E7%81%B8%E5%A4%A7%E6%88%90/index.html
You, H., Sun, Y., Li, J., & Zhang, Y. (2025). Sun Yuanzheng’s original network-connecting meridian acupuncture method for treating diabetic retinopathy: A summary of clinical experience. Chinese Acupuncture & Moxibustion, 45(4). DOI:10.13703/j.0255-2930.20240524-k0002
Zhang, L., Guan, Y., Wang, L., & Sun, Y. (2015). Professor Sun Yuanzheng’s experience in treating cognitive impairment with the original meridian and collateral acupuncture method. Information on Traditional Chinese Medicine, 32(4). DOI:10.19656/j.cnki.1002-2406.2015.04.024
Zhi, N. , Wu, X., Wu, B. , Luo, Y. , Yang, S. (2019). Clinical research progress of the matching method of original points and collateral points. Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine of Liaoning, 46(6). DOI:10.13192/j.issn.1000-1719.2019.06.064.