In recent years, as traditional Chinese medicine has become increasingly popular, acupuncture therapy has also been loved by many people. Acupuncture therapy has the advantages of fast efficacy and minimal side effects. Many people marvel at how a thin silver needle can alleviate pain. Today, I will take you to see how ancient Chinese medicine reveals the number of acupuncture tools used in ancient times.
1. Chan Needle
The Chan needle is one of the nine acupuncture tools in ancient times. According to the "Ling Shu · Nine Needles Theory" collected and organized by the Medical Education Network: "The Chan needle is derived from the Jin needle, with the tip removed by half a cun, and sharpened. It is one inch and six fen long, mainly used to treat heat in the head and body." This needle is shaped like an arrowhead and is mainly used for shallow bleeding, treating fever and skin diseases.
2. Round Needle
One of the nine acupuncture tools in ancient times. The needle body is cylindrical and the needle tip is oval. It is mostly used for massaging acupoints to treat muscle diseases.
3. Di Needle
Di needle is one of the nine acupuncture tools in ancient times. According to the "Ling Shu · Nine Needles Theory": "The Di needle is derived from the sharpness of millet and grain, three and a half inches long, mainly used for pulse diagnosis and removing pathogenic factors." Also known as pushing needle, it is a method of treating diseases by pressing on the surface of meridian acupoints. The Di needle is about 3-4 inches long, made of thick steel wire, bone, or hard wood. The needle tip is blunt and round, so it does not penetrate the skin. It is used for surface pressure on acupoints. The handle can be wrapped with aluminum wire, and the nail can be scraped up and down during pressing to enhance the sensation.
4. Feng Needle
One of the nine acupuncture tools in ancient times. It is also known as the "triangular needle" commonly used today. The needle body is round and the needle tip is triangular with an edge. It is mainly used to puncture subcutaneous veins and small blood vessels to treat abscesses, fever, acute gastroenteritis, etc.
5. Bei Needle
The Bei needle is one of the nine acupuncture tools in ancient times. It is also called the Bei knife or sword needle. According to the "Ling Shu · Nine Needles Theory": "The Bei needle is derived from the sharpness of a sword, two and a half fen wide, and four inches long. It is mainly used for large abscesses and intense fever." It is a needle tool shaped like a sword with blades on both sides. It is mostly used in surgery to puncture abscesses and drain pus and blood.
6. Round Sharp Needle
One of the nine acupuncture tools in ancient times. It is shaped like a horse's tail, with a round and sharp needle tip. It is mostly used to treat abscesses, rheumatic diseases, and certain acute illnesses.
7. Fine Needle
The fine needle is made of metal, with stainless steel being the most commonly used material. Stainless steel fine needles have high strength and toughness, straight and smooth needle bodies, heat resistance, rust resistance, and resistance to corrosion by chemicals, so they are widely used in clinical practice. There are also fine needles made of other metals, such as gold needles and silver needles, which have better conductivity and heat transfer properties than stainless steel needles. However, they have thicker needle bodies, lower strength and toughness, and higher prices, so they are less commonly used in clinical practice. Iron needles and ordinary steel needles easily rust and have poor elasticity, toughness, and firmness. They are no longer used except occasionally in magnet therapy.
8. Long Needle
One of the nine acupuncture tools in ancient times. The needle body is longer, generally six to seven inches (equivalent to 20-23 centimeters) or longer. It is mostly used for deep puncture to treat chronic rheumatic diseases, sciatica, etc.
9. Big Needle
The needle tip is shaped like a staff, slightly round, similar to a sharp needle, four inches long. The big needle is mainly used to treat conditions where there is water stagnation in the joints, and it is used to drain water. This needle can also be used to unblock the nine orifices and eliminate evil qi from the 365 joints.
Now that you have a rough understanding of the types of acupuncture tools used in ancient times, it is worth noting that in ancient times, due to the lack of medicine, many diseases were left untreated. However, with the wisdom of the ancients, the invention of acupuncture therapy solved many incurable diseases. Today, although medicine has become quite advanced, traditional Chinese medicine and acupuncture therapy are still treasures of the Chinese nation and are favored by many people!
