Three Heater points – Hand Shao Yang channel

Jonathan Clogstoun-Willmott

February 12, 2021

The Three Heater channel (Hand Shao Yang channel) starts on the ring finger lateral to the nail, runs up the lateral side of the arm, to shoulder, neck and head, where it circles and enters the ear then accesses the underside and outer canthus of the eye.

But internally the path reaches to the cervical vertebrae, to the chest, upper and lower parts of the abdomen, and specifically to points such as Stomach 12, Ren 17, Re 12 and the pericardium, and the lower abdomen. A special point associated with Three Heater is Ren 5.

So its points have influence over a huge range of processes in the body, and help to harmonise imbalances wherever occurring.

I’m not aware of this channel or the properties of its zangfu having any correlation or equivalence yet in Western Medicine.

Three Heater (Hand Shao Yang) channel points

If a point is in red in the table below, it links to a full page on the point in question.

Three Heater 1	Guanchong	Rushing Pass
Three Heater 2	Yemen	Fluid Secretion Gate
Three Heater 3	Zhongzhu	Middle Islet
Three Heater 4	Yangchi	Yang pond
Three Heater 5	Waiguan	Outer frontier gate
Three Heater 6	Zhigou	Branch ditch
Three Heater 7	Huizong	Assembly of Ancestors
Three Heater 8	Sanyangluo	Three Yang junction
Three Heater 9	Sidu	Four Oceans
Three Heater 10	Tianjing	Heavenly Well
Three Heater 11	Qinglengyuan	Pure Clear Abyss
Three Heater 12	Xiaoluo	Dispersing Luo River
Three Heater 13	Naohui	Upper Arm meeting
Three Heater 14	Jianliao	Shoulder depression
Three Heater 15	Tianliao	Heavenly depression
Three Heater 16	Tianyou	Window of Heaven
Three Heater 17	Yifeng	Wind Screen
Three Heater 18	Qimai	Spasm vessel
Three Heater 19	Luxi	Skull’s Relaxation
Three Heater 20	Jiaosun	Precise ear point
Three Heater 21	Ermen	Ear Gate
Three Heater 22	Erheliao	Ear Harmony Bone
Three Heater 23	Sizhukong	Silk Bamboo Hollow

Three Heater

This is not an easy concept to get one’s head around, I’ve found. I’ve been to many talks, read lots of books about it and can’t say I feel certain of my knowledge.

But it is important for harmonising the body’s working. Often a treatment starts working better when you include a point on the Three Heater channel.

Three Heater 5 Waiguan, an outer frontier gate? — Photo by Thom Holmes

In some situations, Three Heater points are vital, such as Three Heater 5, Waiguan or Three Heater 6, Zhigou.

Chinese medicine discounts the importance of Three Heater 9, Sidu, while some Japanese acupuncturists regard it as one of their most important points! (I’ve learned to agree with the Japanese, by the way, although they locate it differently – and no, I haven’t completed my page on it yet.)

Control points on the channel

Some acupuncture points on meridians between elbow and finger-tips are particularly important. Since antiquity, acupuncturists have respected them for the special actions they perform. These actions are not just local to the points themselves but affect the metabolism of the body.

These special points are the Five Transport or Shu points.

In another context they become the Five Element points. Read our page on 5 Element theory to understand more about this.