Six Position Pulse Diagnosis
Part 2
This is the second in a set of two articles and an ongoing series on basic Japanese meridian therapy (JMT). If you haven’t yet, you may want to read Pulse Diagnosis part 1, as well as the articles on Four Sho and Abdominal Diagnosis.
Comparing Pulses Using Generating and Control Cycles
If you look closely at the pulse positions, you can see that they follow a sort of pattern with regard to the generating and control cycles of the five phases. The generating cycle follows each wrist from proximal to distal pulse position, and between both wrists makes a sort of infinity symbol:
The control cycle shows up as a kind of zigzag between the pulse positions on the wrist:
The most efficient way to do this comparative examination is to take the pulses at both wrists simultaneously. This is commonly done with the patient lying supine (face-up) on a table. I find this awkward to do with the patient in a chair, so if I am doing a community-style treatment I generally take each wrist separately, note what I find, and line everything up mentally.
When taking the pulses simultaneously, the process of looking at the control cycle goes like this:
Compare both distal positions (Heart and Lung) with the index fingers. Which is stronger/weaker?
Compare right distal and left middle positions with your left index finger and right middle finger (Lung and Liver). Which is stronger/weaker?
Compare both middle positions with both middle fingers (Liver and Spleen). Which is stronger/weaker?
Compare right middle and left proximal positions with your left middle and right ring fingers (Spleen and Kidney). Which is stronger/weaker?
When learning this method, I would sometimes make a quick note with pluses and minuses to indicate the stronger and weaker pulses, respectively. So, for example, a pulse comparison might look like this:
Heart +, Lung -
Lung -, Liver +
Liver +, Spleen -
Spleen -, Kidney +
Add up the pluses and minuses:
Heart +
Lung - -
Liver + +
Spleen - -
Kidney +
Lung and Spleen are the weakest positions. The two meridians line up nicely in a mother-child relationship (Lung follows Spleen on the generating cycle), which is what we are looking for. Since the child is the primary meridian to treat, this would be the pulse picture for a Lung sho.
A Shortcut
I discovered a useful shortcut when teaching this material. When I was first taught to take pulses, the objective was to find the most deficient pulse position on the yin level. But this was soon forgotten as one pulse position does not a sho make; rather, the pattern of two deficient yin pulse positions along the generating cycle is the major diagnostic indicator. But, it does make sense that if one finds a noticeably deficient pulse position, it will likely be part of the sho. The only thing one needs to figure out is whether it is the position of the mother or the child. So, rather than go through every pulse position comparing each to one or two others, a much quicker way to answer this question is to compare the mother and child of the most deficient position. It may be easier to illustrate with an example.
After orienting yourself to the pulses and their yin and yang levels, you sink your fingers to the yin level. You are looking for the most deficient pulse position.
As you sink your fingers, you notice that the left proximal pulse, that of the Kidney, disappears before the others and has seemingly little strength. So the Kidney, you surmise, must be part of the sho.
You then check the left middle position (Liver, the child of Kidney) against the right distal position (Lung, the mother of Kidney).
You decide that the Liver position feels a little more empty than the Lung.
Thus you have a Liver sho, since the Liver and Kidney are deficient together along the generating cycle. This is the case even though the Kidney feels more deficient; this is because the sho is named for the child. Had the Lung been weaker than the Liver, the sho would have been designated a Kidney sho, since the Lung is the mother and the Kidney is the child in the relationship between those two organs.
Note: this post 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.