The Fire point of the wrist. Yanggu (SI-5) clears Heat from the head and jaw, calms the Shen, and brings the channel's Yang energy to bear on the eyes, ears and tongue — a small point with a sharp, focused action.
Contraindications
Yanggu SI-5 is a safe point on the wrist with no special contraindications noted in the classical or modern sources. Standard clean needling technique and appropriate depth apply.
Name & story
The name 阳谷 Yanggu means "Yang Valley". Picture the gentle hollow on the outer wrist — not as deep as a ravine, not as wide as a pool, but a quiet dip between two bones where Yang Qi gathers and flows. The "Yang" reflects the nature of the Small Intestine Meridian (SI) itself, a Yang channel on the outer arm; the "Valley" describes the little depression where the point sits. As one classical source beautifully puts it: "it is located in a hollow that is less deep than a ravine and less wide than a pool — thus it is given the appellation Yang Valley."
Point family & character
Yanggu SI-5 belongs to the Small Intestine Meridian (SI). In character it is the Jing-River point of the channel and, crucially, its Fire point — fire on a fire channel, the paired Yang companion of the Heart. These two roles together give the point its distinctive personality: a focused ability to clear Heat and Fire, especially from the upper regions of the body.
Five-element dynamics
The Small Intestine is the Yang Fire channel, the exterior partner of the Heart. SI-5 is the Fire point of that channel — "Fire upon Fire". This double Fire nature makes it particularly adept at draining excess Heat and calming flare-ups in the head, jaw, eyes and ears. And because the Small Intestine and Heart are interiorly-exteriorly related, excess Fire in the Heart can overflow into the Small Intestine channel; Yanggu SI-5 draws that fire out, quieting the spirit in the process.
Location
Find the bony prominence on the little-finger side of the wrist (the head of the ulna). Yanggu SI-5 sits just distal to it, in the natural hollow between that prominence and the small triangular bone of the wrist. It is the next point along the channel from Wangu SI-4, just a short step toward the forearm.
Anatomy & fascia
The point lies on the ulnar border of the wrist, in the depression between the styloid process of the ulna and the triquetral bone.
Needling
The needle is inserted perpendicularly into the depression.
Safe depth
Safe depth — 0.3 to 0.5 Cun.
Moxa, cupping & Tui Na
Moxa is appropriate at this point, particularly when Cold is present in the channel. Gentle acupressure or massage in the wrist hollow can also stimulate the point's clearing and calming effects during self-care.
Functions
Activates the Small Intestine Meridian (SI) and alleviates pain. Clears Heat and reduces swelling in the head and face. Clears Fire from the Heart and calms the Shen. Clears Damp-Heat.
Indications
Head, face and sense organs: swelling and pain of the cheek radiating to the ear, swelling of the neck and submandibular region, lockjaw, toothache (upper and lower jaw, per the 7th-century physician Sun Si-miao), contraction of the tongue in babies, tongue thrusting, tinnitus, superficial visual obstruction, lacrimation. Febrile conditions: febrile disease without sweating, chills and fever, malaria, wasting and thirsting disorder. Local wrist and arm: pain of the wrist and hand, pain of the arm, shoulder pain. Other: jaundice, agitation and fullness, painful haemorrhoids.
Mind & spirit (Shen)
Because Yanggu SI-5 is the Fire point of the channel that is interiorly-exteriorly paired with the Heart — the home of the Shen — it has a direct line to the mind. When Heart Fire runs high, the Shen loses its anchor: the person becomes agitated, restless, even manic. Classical sources specifically note this point for mania and "mad walking" — vivid images of a mind driven to its edges by heat. By clearing that excess Fire through the Small Intestine Meridian (SI), Yanggu SI-5 helps draw the Shen back to stillness, like cooling a room that has grown too hot.
Point combinations
With local and adjacent points for wrist and hand pain along the channel. With Heart channel points to clear Heart Fire and calm the Shen in agitation and mania. Classical prescriptions from Sun Si-miao pair it with other channel points for toothache of both jaws.
Clinical spotlight
Yanggu SI-5 occupies a precise niche: as the Jing-River and Fire point of the Small Intestine Meridian (SI), it focuses its energy upward and outward — to the jaw, neck, eyes and ears — rather than across the whole length of the arm. Deadman notes that, compared with the more distal SI points, it has relatively less broad channel action on the arm and shoulder, but a sharper, more targeted effect on the head and face. Its most striking classical use is in clearing Fire from the Heart to calm severe mental agitation and mania. Sun Si-miao's inclusion of this point in prescriptions for toothache of both the upper and lower jaw — an extension beyond most classical sources — is a piece of clinical history worth knowing.
The golden tip
Find the small hollow on the outer (little-finger) side of your wrist, just beside the prominent wrist bone. Press gently but firmly with the tip of a finger for one to two minutes. This can help ease wrist discomfort and, through the channel's connection with the Heart, bring a sense of calm when the mind is overheated or restless. Keep pressure gentle over the bony area.
For education only — not medical advice. Consult a qualified practitioner.