The vessels in Chinese medicine
All blood belongs to the Heart.Yellow Emperor Inner Classic, Suwen, chapter 10 Wuzang Shengcheng
Heart qi drives blood through the vessels, Heart blood is what is driven and the vessels are the road. When all three are sound the complexion is pink and moist and the pulse even and strong. When Heart qi is weak there is palpitation and a weak or intermittent pulse. When Heart blood stagnates there is stabbing chest pain, purple lips and tongue and a rough pulse. Pulse taking at the wrist, at the cun, guan and chi positions, is precisely listening to Heart qi through the vessels. The chapter Wuzang Shengcheng says all blood belongs to the Heart, so every blood disorder in Chinese medicine carries the shadow of the Heart.
The vessels in Western medicine
Harvey showed in 1628 that blood circulates in a closed loop driven by the heart, something the Inner Classic had described as nutritive qi moving in the vessels without rest. Western medicine divides vessels into arteries, veins and capillaries, lined by an endothelium that regulates their width and clotting. The wrist pulse is a pressure wave made by the left ventricle, so pulse rate equals heart rate, and an irregular pulse signals arrhythmia. Where the two part is the spirit. Western medicine places consciousness in the brain and treats the heart as a pump, while Chinese medicine keeps the spirit in the Heart, so palpitations, anxiety and insomnia are all referred to it.
Where they meet and where they part
| Area | Chinese medicine | Anatomy | Match |
|---|---|---|---|
| The heart drives blood through the vessels | The Heart governs blood and vessels | Closed circulation, the heart as pump | Matches |
| Irregular pulse | Knotted or intermittent pulse, Heart qi deficiency | Cardiac arrhythmia, needs an ECG | Matches |
| Anxiety, insomnia, palpitation | Heart spirit unsettled | Brain and autonomic nervous system, the heart only responds | Chinese only |
Related pages
Questions and answers
Can pulse taking replace an ECG?
No. Chinese pulse taking reads the overall state according to its own system. An ECG measures the electrical activity of the heart and detects arrhythmia and ischaemia. Palpitations, chest pain or fainting call for an ECG.
Explore the atlas
Sources
- Yellow Emperor Inner Classic, Suwen, chapter 10 Wuzang Shengcheng and chapter 23 Xuanming Wuqi. Lingshu, chapter 18 Yingwei Shenghui.
- William Harvey, Exercitatio Anatomica de Motu Cordis et Sanguinis in Animalibus, 1628.
- 3D model: Z-Anatomy (CC BY-SA 4.0), built on BodyParts3D, The Database Center for Life Science. Meridian paths are drawn by the atlas on the skin of this model as an approximate illustration, not a measured atlas of points.
Compiled and reviewed by Master Ung Khiem
© 2026 Master Ung Khiem · UK MASTER CORP. The text of this library is protected by copyright. Reposting all or part of it without written permission is not allowed. Short quotations must credit the source and link back to the original page. The 3D model is from Z-Anatomy and BodyParts3D (The Database Center for Life Science) under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license.
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Cite this page
Ung Khiem, Master. (2026). The Vessels and the Heart: blood, pulse and where medicines agree. Body and Five Elements Atlas, UK Master Academy. https://thayungkhiem.vn/en/nhan-the-ngu-hanh/mach
@misc{ungkhiem_2026_mach,
author = {Ung Khiem},
title = {The Vessels and the Heart: blood, pulse and where medicines agree},
year = {2026},
howpublished = {Body and Five Elements Atlas, UK Master Academy},
url = {https://thayungkhiem.vn/en/nhan-the-ngu-hanh/mach},
note = {Accessed 2026-11-01}
}Last updated November 1, 2026 · Revision history