TECHNICAL / THEORETICAL INFORMATION FOR ORIENTAL PRACTITIONERS ONLY

Sanjiao and TCM Embryogenesis Stages in Humans. Is the ‘Gate of Life’ Ming Men the Blastocyst?

Western and TCM Embryogenesis Stages in Humans Compared. Ming Men aka ‘Gate of Life’, Yuan Qi and the Origin and Inauguration of the Sanjiao aka Triple Energizer are all Intimately Involved in the Embryogenesis Stages in Humans, aka the Origin of Human Life. TCM Embryogenesis Explained. Is Ming Men the Blastocyst? 

My name is Dr Louis Gordon and I am an acupuncturist. I practice acupuncture from ANTRAC Acupuncture Clinic in Middle Ridge, Toowoomba, 4350, Queensland, Australia.

1360310678_Facebook1360314606_Twitter1360314763_youtube_old1360323267_Linkedin

  TCM Embryogenesis Explained. How do Western and TCM Embryogenesis Stages in Humans Compare? In TCM Ming Men aka ‘Gate of Life’, Yuan Qi and the Origin and Inauguration of the Sanjiao aka Triple Energizer are all Intimately Involved in the Embryogenesis Stages in Humans, aka the Origin of Human Life. Is Ming Men the Blastocyst? 

The study of embryogenesis stages concerns the mysteries of how human life begins. Incredibly, ancient traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) discusses in great detail this very topic under the topic of Ming Men. Similar to a Chinese jig-saw puzzle, Ming Men (‘Gate of Life’), Yuan Qi and the Origin and Inauguration of the Sanjiao aka Triple Energizer are all intimately involved in the origin of human life. The ‘fu of uniqueness’ the Sanjiao is unique in that of all the 12 Main TCM organs, it has ‘no form’ just like the established and recognised endocrine system and immune system of the human body. It is very fascinating that “‘origin’ is an honorable designation for the Triple Burner”. Imagine that, the Sanjiao is called ‘Origin’ by ancient scholars. Once the ‘Gate of Life’ is opened a new and unique life form is engendered. So what is Ming Men, the ‘Gate of Life’ or the ‘Gate of Vitality’? How is the ‘Gate of Life’ opened? 

This easy-reading enlightening book is indispensable for everyone wishing to know all about the ‘Gate of Life’ (Ming Men), Yuan Qi, and the origin, function and location of the literal, yet formless, Sanjiao Organ (aka San Jiao, Triple Warmer, Triple Heater, Triple Energizer). This enlightening book can be securely purchased by clicking the ‘BUY NOW’ button at the bottom of this page.

38.18 The Fire of Ming Men Begets the Triple Burner to Engender Breath and Life

As I have discussed above, when the ming men or gate of life is successfully opened and an embryological life form is initiated, the primordial fibroblasts and the Primo Vascular System initiate the development of the 3-D structural matrix required by all other systems, structures, and organs for them to be supported and positioned. Fire, in the form of highly activated liquid crystalline EZ, then diffuses within the connective-tissue component of the Triple Heater throughout the entire body. This allows all the other necessary systems, structures, and organs that develop later on to be correctly juxtaposed so that all the embryo’s parts are in the right place and, at the same time, are supplied with water and fire from the same supportive structure. Obviously, yang fire is required to manufacture this complicated array of biological structures. Once parturition occurs and the baby is born, it must take its first breath to survive. As Larre states, ‘When something is a living being then there is breath’.

38.19 The Triple Heaters Engender ‘the Origin of the Life of a Being’

From the above passages, it is seen that there is an intimacy between the Triple Heater and ming men (gate of life) and the kidneys, especially the right kidney. Embryogenesis explains why. After successful fertilization of the ova occurs, after about five days, blastocyst formation begins. The gestational sac is a structure that surrounds the embryo (which is a baby in the very early stages of development) and the yolk sac (umbilical vesicle), which supplies the first blood and circulation for the embryo. The gestational sac is filled with amniotic fluid, which helps to nourish and protect the developing baby throughout the pregnancy.

From the earliest embryological development, membranous bags filled with fluid are engendered. The description ‘membranous bags filled with fluid’ sounds exactly like a description of the Triple Heater, does it not? The fascial membranes support the tissues that undergo differentiation into the myriad of diverse systems, structures, and organs. I believe that the ming men, aka the gate of life, is the blastocyst that engenders life, and that the omnipresent membranous structures of the Triple Energizer constitute the organizational 3-D connective-tissue matrix that orchestrates the intricate tissue differentiation that allows life to begin, exist, and be perpetuated. Thus, I believe that the Primo-Vascular-System/Connective-Tissue- Metasystem complex constitutes the Triple Heater aka the Triple- Energizer Metasystem, and that it is the first TCM organ to form initially during embryogenesis.

38.20 Regarding Embryology, Chinese Ideographs Imply the Notion of the Origin of Life

Peluffo continued, ‘These mentions of the Classics show that, from ancient times, the anatomical presence of the interorganic membranes linking spleen and stomach together with their internal trajectories were well known.’ It is important to note that in the text above regarding ancient Chinese embryology, Peluffo states, ‘Because fetal organic development and its connective tissues, fascias, membranes allowed them to understand many of the classic ideas upon life, health and illness.’ Peluffo shows in the text above that the ancient Chinese connected the earliest processes of embryogenesis with connective tissues, fascias, and membranes. This agrees with my theory that when the gate of life is opened, the primordial organ that forms is the Primo Vascular System, closely followed by the Connective-Tissue Metasystem. Throughout this book, I prove that the amalgamation of these two complexes is actually one and the same as the Triple- Energizer Metasystem (aka Triple Heater, Triple Burner, or San Jiao).

Interestingly, by ‘approximately day 22 of human gestation, the paired pronephri appear . . . arrange themselves in a series of tubules called nephrotomes’. So by day 22, the paired primordial Kidneys (pronephri) have already formed, but it is believed that they ‘cannot excrete filtered material outside the embryo; therefore the pronephros is considered non-functional in mammals’. So because they are supposedly not functional, according to embryologists, they are not considered to be the first organ to be formed. The Heart ‘begins to beat in humans by day 22–23, thus the Heart is generally considered to be the first functioning embryonic organ formed’. Going out on an embryological limb (pun intended), I suggest that the primordial kidney, as the pronephros, actually is functioning as a simple pump, thanks to the novel mechanism described in detail by Professor Pollack (27) at KL 666–667 in his book. He stated, ‘Water suspensions of tiny spheres pumped through (hydrophilic) gel tunnels mimicked the blood flowing through vessels.’ His other book dedicated to the topic was titled Cells, Gels, and the Engines of Life. This novel research has not yet reached the embryology mainstream for their consideration.

I thus propose that immediately after the gate of life is opened, the first organ to be engendered is the Primo Vascular System and, shortly thereafter, the Connective-Tissue Metasystem. I propose that the amalgamation of these two organ complexes constitute the Triple- Energizer Metasystem or San Jiao and believe that this is the first TCM organ to be produced. I propose that the Second organ to be formed by the PVS is the Kidney in pronephros form. This would explain the intimate relationship that the gate of life has with the San Jiao and the Kidneys and Yuan Qi. I propose that, very shortly after the pronephros Kidneys are formed at day 22, the Third functioning organ, the Heart, is formed at day 22–23.

38.22 The Mammalian Embryonic Heart Is at First a Simple Tube

An interesting point that the article cited directly above revealed pertains to the embryonic heart. In the article, Douglas Dewar (143) advises that the reason the mammalian embryonic heart is at first a simple tube is that the embryo must have a simple functioning heart or pumping organ at a very early stage to keep the evolving being alive and that the head region requires a copious blood supply. Further heart developments occur such that two tiny tubes are formed, which run parallel. Those two tubes coalesce to form a single tube, and dedicated tissue differentiates to form valves. As further mammalian development proceeds, the design of the heart becomes a more complicated four-chambered heart to meet the increasing demands as rapid growth continues.

Note that the initial Heart pump organ was derived from a simple tube and then later two simple tubes. Note well that in Professor Pollack’s (27) research, such simple hydrophilic tubes acted as fluid pumps and generate EZ living water.

38.23 The Three Anatomical Stages of the Embryonic ‘Kidney’ and the Formation of ‘Living Water’

Note that remnants of the hind kidney are transformed into structures that carry male genital products, which agrees with the TCM concept that kidney controls such structures. I find it interesting that the primary pronephros kidney pump is derived from a simple tube. In Professor Pollack’s research, such simple hydrophilic tubes acted as fluid pumps and generate EZ living water. I believe that this living water, in the form of , continues to be engendered by the Kidneys and circulated throughout the entire body by the San Jiao during our lives. This would explain why the Kidneys and the Triple Energizer has such a close relationship associated with the gate of life and why they are both associated with the constant circulation of life energy and Yuan Qi and with the circulation of fire in the water.

38.24 Prenatal Jing Is Ready to be Passed on to the Next Generation by as Early as the Third Week

In an article by creationist biologist Dr Gary Parker (143), he points out, ‘The so-called “yolk sac” is the source of the human embryo’s first blood cells, and death would result without it!’

Primordial germ cells appear in the endodermal lining of the wall of the umbilical vesicle in the third week and subsequently migrate to the developing gonads. They differentiate into spermatogonia in males and oogonia in females. (Emphasis is mine)

Primordial germ cells can already be found in the primary ectoderm (epiblast) of human embryos in as early as the second week. Remarkably, at such an early stage in embryological development, primordial germ cells differentiate into spermatozoa in males and oocytes in females and subsequently migrate to the developing gonads. Thus, the life force of future generations is already spawned by the third week after fertilization. Thus, when the gate of life is opened by the successful fertilization of the ova by a sperm, by the third week of differentiation, a small group of the primordial germ cells are ‘put aside’ to later form spermatozoa in males and oocytes in females. This essentially means that, after the gate of life is opened for one human life form, by the third week of differentiation, the gate of life’s components (spermatozoa in males and oocytes in females) are already set in place for the next generation. This is certainly a representation of Yuan Qi in action. In TCM, it is believed that, at conception, the Prenatal Jing is passed to the fetus from the parents. This is certainly the case here in that the Prenatal Jing from the parents engenders the developing embryo to ensure the Prenatal Jing is ready to be passed on to the next generation by as early as the third week after fertilization. I find that fact truly amazing!

38.26 The Gate of Life Is the Utensil that Stores and Transforms the Essence

In the 36th Difficult Issue in the commentaries on page 385 of Unschuld’s (1) translation of the Nan Ching, Yeh Lin states, ‘The gate of life is the root of the Triple Burner and the sea of the original influences of the 12 conduits; it is the utensil that stores and transforms the essence, and it is the place to which the womb, which conceives the embryo, is tied. Thus, it is the origin of man’s life. Hence, it is called gate of life’ (emphasis is mine).

Yeh Lin states above that ‘the gate of life . . . is the utensil that stores and transforms the essence, and it is the place to which the womb, which conceives the embryo, is tied’. I just mentioned above that the female reproductive organs, including the uterus, are derived from the Kidneys while the Kidneys are still differentiating through their early embryological stages. So the gate of life cannot be the uterus as some claim because as Yeh Lin states, the gate of life is tied to ‘the womb, which conceives the embryo’. Yeh Lin states that ‘the gate of life is . . . the utensil that stores and transforms the essence’. The ‘utensil’ is said to store the essence and transform the essence. The utensil cannot be an ovum, for every month, ova are released and do not open the gate of life unless they are fertilized. Likewise, the utensil cannot be the millions of sperm that are released at each ejaculation as they only open the gate of life when a successful fertilization occurs.

I suggest that the ‘utensil’ forms at conception, when the sperm successfully fertilizes the ovum, such that the DNA from both the successful sperm and the ovum commence the miracle of life. Only then is the gate of life opened, allowing the DNA that stores and transforms the essence in both the ovum and the sperm to initiate the marvellous cellular differentiation that produces all the necessary structures according to their allotted time thanks to the DNA code. As stated elsewhere in another Chapter of this book, I have shown that the Primo Vascular System and the fibroblasts are the first structures to develop and start the construction of what will become a human being. As the fibroblasts and the PVS are connective-tissue components, the first major TCM organ is the PVS/Connective-Tissue Metasystem complex, which is intimately associated with the Triple- Energizer Metasystem (Triple Burner). Thus, the gate of life is the root of the Triple Burner. As the PVS/Connective-Tissue Metasystem amalgamation engenders all the structures within the body, the Connective-Tissue Metasystem (Triple Burner) also fabricates ‘the sea of the original influences of the 12 conduits’. Remember that the Triple Burner is the very first TCM organ formed and is even responsible for the first membrane ‘bag’ or sac and the first accumulation of water in the new life form, namely the gestational sac and the embryonic fluid therein respectively. I propose that this new ‘utensil’ is called the blastocyst. What did Yeh Lin say about the blastocyst? He said, ‘It is the utensil that stores and transforms the essence, and it is the place to which the womb, which conceives the embryo, is tied. Thus, it is the origin of man’s life. Hence, it is called gate of life.’

38.31 Could Vestigial Organs of the Embryo Constitute ‘the Tie between the Kidneys’?

Note that the male and female reproductive organs are derived from the same tissue that the Kidneys are derived from. This explains their close association in TCM. Note too that the authors (148) point out that these vestigial organs (prostatic utricle and Gartners’s ducts in the male and female respectively) ‘demonstrate special properties of these regions’ and ‘might be of clinical interest’. Interestingly, the female Gartner’s ducts are located ‘in the broad ligament lateral to the uterus’. Could this be the ‘greasy membrane’ between the kidneys? It is of further note that the prostatic utricle is a small dimple located in the prostatic urethra near the ejaculatory ducts, the remains of the fused caudal ends of the paramesonephric ducts. It is the male homologue of the female uterus and vagina. It is believed that during coitus, the prostatic utricle contracts and allows the semen to be ejaculated. For a supposed vestigial organ, it sure has lots of synonyms, including utriculus prostaticus, masculine uterus, Morgagni sinus, sinus pocularis, vagina masculina, vesica prostatica, and the Weber organ. During embryological development, these vestigial organs are in close proximity and medial to the Kidneys. However, in an adult, the Kidneys occupy an anatomical location well away from and superior to these vestigial organs.

Perhaps masterful control over this supposedly vestigial prostatic utricle in males is associated with how the sages and devotees perform practices, like tantric sex or sexual qi gong, whereby climax is reached but ejaculation is avoided. Once mastered, this practice can prolong the sex act for many hours and is believed to preserve precious jing.

Summary of Chapter 38

In the commentaries of the eighth Difficult Issue in Unschuld’s (1) translation of the Nanching, on pages 136–137, regarding the origin of the Triple Burner, Katō Bankei says, ‘At the very beginning of the fetal , the true influences of heaven take their residence in the gate of life mansion between the kidneys. This is called the “origin of the vital influences.” The mystery on which all beginnings depend, on which all life depends, works from here.’ What is the origin of the vital influences? Katō Bankei clearly states they are called the gate of exhalation and inhalation or the origin of the Triple Burner. Katō Bankei is here, clearly stating that the opening of the symbolic ‘gate of exhalation and inhalation’ is synchronous with the origin of the Triple Burner. Note that at this early stage of embryological development, the literal Lungs have not even differentiated and the continuing life force is dependent on the maternal blood supply replete with all the necessary nutrients and oxygen to sustain life. For exhalation and inhalation to occur in a creature, that creature must be alive. When breathing stops, death very quickly follows. Thus, the term the gate of exhalation and inhalation is synonymous with the gate of continued breathing or continued existence as it were, the so-called gate of life.

In the article entitled ‘Bioelectric Responsiveness of Fascia: A Model for Understanding the Effects of Manipulation’, the author, Judith A. O’Connell (111), stated, ‘Connective tissue is a major derivative of the mesodermal germ cell layer in the embryo. . . . A special property that connective tissue maintains throughout life is embryologic plasticity.’ The embryologic plasticity required for successful embryonic growth and development continues with us throughout our lifetime. In total agreement with what O’Connell states, Myers (110) states, ‘Understanding fascia is essential to the dance between stability and movement—crucial in high performance, central in recovery from injury and disability, and ever-present in our daily life from our embryological beginnings to the last breath we take.’

Regarding the origin of the embryological development of the fascial system, in the 2014 article entitled ‘Fascia & Tensegrity’, Myers (110) states, ‘Our single fascial system starts about 2 weeks into development as a fibrous gel that pervades and surrounds all the cells in the developing embryo. It is progressively folded by gastrulation and the rest of the motions of development into the complex layers of fascia we see in the adult.’ Note that O’Connell and Myers place fascia at our embryological beginning, at our very origin of life. It is now known that the Primo Vascular System (PVS) is the very first system to develop after fertilization occurs. While the PVS is composed of connective tissue and is probably a specialized subset of the connective-tissue system, the fascial system proper ‘starts about 2 weeks into development as a fibrous gel that pervades and surrounds all the cells in the developing embryo’. Note that the fascial system, or what I call the Connective-Tissue Metasystem, ‘pervades and surrounds all the cells in the developing embryo’ just as the Triple- Energizer Metasystem pervades and surrounds all the organs and systems in the adult body.

Andrew Taylor Still, MD (1828–1917), an American physician and the founder of osteopathic medicine, taught 115 years ago that the fascia control fluids in the body and that if the fascia fails, then we shrink, swell, or die. This indeed sounds exactly like a description of the Triple Energizer. Still described fascia as a ‘network of nerves, cells and tubes, running to and from it’ such that ‘no atom of flesh fails to get nerve and fluid supply therefrom’. Once again, these properties of fascia (communication via the associated nerve connections and control over fluids) are identical to those of the Triple Energizer. Note that Still also stated that the fascia is a network of tubes. I propose that it is most likely that these ‘tubes’ also include a part of the Primo Vascular System’s network of microtubules, a microsystem that was not known about in Still’s time.

That the Triple Burner is ‘also the fu of the fire in the middle of the water’, I suggest, pertains to the fact that bulk water, in touch with the omnipresent and hydrophilic collagen of connective tissue, generates the energized, living liquid crystalline EZ water that generates the fire or energy-yielding battery that is EZ water. I suggest it is this spark-of-life energy coming from the EZ water that accompanies the origin of life and sustains the subsequent life form.

The Yuan Qi is the vibrant life force that activates the diverse necessary biochemical activity of all the internal organs and is the genesis of activity and vitality. Yuan Qi circulates throughout the body to all cells, relying on the transporting system of the San Jiao (Triple Burner). It dwells between the two Kidneys, at the Gate of Vitality (Ming Men). Yuan Qi expedites the metamorphosis of Qi. Yuan Qi is the conductor of transformation, transmuting Zong Qi into Zhen Qi. Yuan Qi is integral in the manufacture of blood by enabling the transformation of Gu Qi into Blood.

Tang Zonghai wrote in his work A Refined Interpretation of the Medical Classics (Yijing Jingyi), ‘The root of the triple burner is in the kidney, more precisely right between the two anatomical kidneys. Right there is a greasy membrane that is connected with the spine. It is called mingmen, and constitutes the source of the three burners.’ Which anatomical structure constitutes the root of the Triple Burner in/near the Kidney? I suggest that this structure of greasy membrane between the kidneys is an already known anatomical structure possessing an as-yet-unrecognized dynamic piezoelectric property—e.g. thoracolumbar fascia or perinephric fat(?)—that connects to the neural pathways, where it is connected with the spine and subsequently the brain. The significance of this structure will become obvious when I discuss the understated significance of the membranous neurofascial system that covers and interconnects and communicates with every single cell in the body. As I believe that the Triple Burner is predominantly the Connective-Tissue Metasystem and as ‘the root of the triple burner is in the kidney’ (more precisely, medial to the right Kidney), it would make sense that this Kidney-engendering Triple Burner root or origin would be a greasy, membranous connective-tissue structure medial to the right Kidney, proximal to the level of L2–L3. Time and a vigilant anatomist or physiobiologist will tell.

In the article titled ‘Ming-Men: An Acupressure Point with Power-Full Implications’, the author (139) states, ‘The Chinese admiration for the Ming-men is captured in the disagreement on how to describe it. It has been called the Gate of Power, Proclamation Gate, Gate of Destiny, and Gate of Life. No matter how you define it, the healing ability and energy properties of the Mingmen abound.’

On page 38 of the book Heart Master Triple Heater, Larre and Rochat de la Vallée (11) both believe that the ming men or gate of life is the original primitive life force that initiates the beginning of life and that the ming men is ‘some sort of first condition of the embryo’. I suggest that the Gate of Life is not the ova in women and not the sperm in men. In women, every single month, ova are released, and no gate of life is opened such that an embryo forms. Subsequently, the unfertilized ova are broken down along with the endometrium that did not have to support a fertilized ovum. Similarly for men, sperm are regularly released and fail to fertilize an egg to generate a new life form. Note too that the gate of life is not the womb but that the gate of life is obviously tied to the womb when successful fertilization results in pregnancy.

I have discussed in great detail elsewhere in this book what I believe happens when the gate of life is opened. Briefly, the Primo Vascular System initiates the primordial differentiation process within hours of fertilization. By two weeks postfertilization, the Connective-Tissue Metasystem proper allows the tissues to differentiate into organs and systems. Regarding the nature and properties of ‘ground substance,’ which permeates the entire body, in the article titled ‘More about Connective Tissue and Myofascial Release’, Glenda Poletti (135) advises that ground substance is found in all connective tissue and that it is produced by fibroblasts, which are among the earliest cells to develop in the embryo, and that these fluid ground substances are the immediate environment of every cell in the body.

I propose that the Connective-Tissue Metasystem, in amalgamation with the PVS, is one and the same as the Triple-Energizer Metasystem. Thus, simply stated, at conception, when the gate of life is opened, the primordial fibroblasts generate the Connective-Tissue Metasystem, which I believe is closely associated with the Triple Burner. Thus, it can be stated that ‘the gate of life is the root of the Triple Burner’. Thus, ‘the triple heater is rooted at the deepest level of being’ because the Triple Heater was formed at the beginning of life. In the presence of all-pervading, hydrophilic connective tissue, bulk water is converted into the fiery energy–supplying battery that is life-sustaining liquid crystalline EZ water that flows within and throughout the Connective-Tissue Metasystem. This phenomenon accounts for ‘the mixing of water and fire, allowing the development of all life.’

As I have discussed above, when the ming men or gate of life is successfully opened and an embryological life form is initiated, the primordial fibroblasts and the Primo Vascular System initiate the development of the 3-D structural matrix required by all other systems, structures, and organs for them to be supported and positioned. Fire, in the form of highly activated liquid crystalline EZ, then diffuses within the connective tissue component of the Triple Heater throughout the entire body. This allows all the other necessary systems, structures, and organs that develop later on to be correctly juxtaposed so that all of the embryo’s parts are in the right place and, at the same time, are supplied with water and fire from the same supportive structure. Obviously, yang fire is required to manufacture this complicated array of biological structures. Once parturition occurs and the baby is born, it must take its first breath to survive. As Larre states, ‘When something is a living being then there is breath.’

From the earliest embryological development, membranous bags filled with fluid are engendered. The description ‘membranous bags filled with fluid’ sounds exactly like a description of the Triple Heater, does it not? The fascial membranes support the tissues that undergo differentiation into the myriad of diverse systems, structures, and organs. I suggest that the ming men, aka the gate of life, is the life force (blastocyst) that engenders life and that the omnipresent membranous structures of the Triple Energizer constitute the organizational 3-D connective-tissue matrix that orchestrates the intricate tissue differentiation that allows life to begin, exist, and be perpetuated. Thus, I believe that the Primo Vascular System/Connective-Tissue Metasystem is the first TCM organ (Triple Energizer/Triple-Energizer Metasystem) to form initially during embryogenesis.

I thus propose that immediately after the gate of life is opened, the first organ to be engendered is the Primo Vascular System and, shortly thereafter, the Connective-Tissue Metasystem. I propose that the amalgamation of these two organ complexes constitute the Triple-Energizer Metasystem or San Jiao and believe that this is the first TCM organ to be produced. I propose that the Second organ to be formed by the PVS is the Kidneys in the pronephros form. This would explain the intimate relationship that the gate of life has with the San Jiao and the Kidneys and Yuan Qi. I propose that very shortly after the pronephros Kidneys are formed at day 22, the Third functioning organ, the Heart, is formed at day 22–23.

Douglas Dewar (143) advises that the reason the mammalian embryonic heart is at first a simple tube is because the embryo must have a simple functioning heart or pumping organ at a very early stage to keep the evolving being alive and because the head region requires a copious blood supply. Further heart developments occur such that two tiny tubes are formed, which run parallel. Those two tubes coalesce to form a single tube, and dedicated tissue differentiates to form valves. As further mammalian development proceeds, the design of the heart becomes a more complicated four-chambered heart to meet the increasing demands as rapid growth continues.

During initial embryological development of the Kidney, the head kidney ‘consists of a row of two or three nephridia on each side of the body. These nephridia are tubes, one end of which opens into the body-cavity and the other end into a common duct leading to the exterior. . . . As the embryo increases in size new nephridia are formed behind the first ones. These are of more complicated structure and are described as a second kidney, the mesonephros or middlekidney’. As the middle kidney matures, the pronephros gradually undergoes atrophy. Then as the far more complicated and final hind kidney develops, ‘the mesonephros become absorbed, but their duct persists, being used to carry the male genital products’.

When the gate of life is opened by the successful fertilization of the ova by a sperm, by the third week of differentiation, a small group of the primordial germ cells are put aside to later form spermatozoa in males and oocytes in females. This essentially means that, after the gate of life is opened for one human life form, by the third week of differentiation, the gate of life components (spermatozoa in males and oocytes in females) are already set in place for the next generation. This is certainly a representation of Yuan Qi in action. In TCM, it is believed that at conception, the Prenatal Jing is passed to the fetus from the parents. This is certainly the case here in that the Prenatal Jing from the parents engenders the developing embryo to ensure the Prenatal Jing is ready to be passed on to the next generation by as early as the third week after fertilization. I find that fact truly amazing!

It is interesting that the female and male reproductive organs are derived from the kidneys while they are differentiating through their early embryological stages. This is very important because TCM teaches that the main physiological functions and indicators of the kidneys are storing essence and controlling human reproduction.

Remember that the Triple Burner is the very first TCM organ formed and is even responsible for the first membrane ‘bag’ or sac and the first accumulation of water in the new life form, namely the gestational sac and the embryonic fluid therein respectively. I propose that this new utensil is called the blastocyst. What did Yeh Lin say about the blastocyst? He said, ‘It is the utensil that stores and transforms the essence, and it is the place to which the womb, which conceives the embryo, is tied. Thus, it is the origin of man’s life. Hence, it is called gate of life.’

The gate of life is not the right kidney as many believe, but it is located between the two kidneys. Why is it the gate of life? If something goes wrong in the cellular differentiation process and the zygote or morula or blastocyst dies and then aborts, then the gate of life fails to open. So I propose that if the gate of life opens and stays open, the blastocyst will implant in the uterus and will continue to grow in utero and be successfully born at full term as a living individual. However, that is not the end of the matter. It is just the beginning of a new phase. The newborn has to accept independence from the mother and take that one first highly critical life-perpetuating breath that will trigger the sustained and ongoing independence of the new being. It is only when the individual takes their first breath upon the earth under the heavens that the Triple Energizer has completed their primary task of constructing the bodily infrastructure upon which every tissue, structure, and organ is suspended. After the first breath, the Triple Energizer must continue to support the individual by ensuring all the drinks and grains consumed are correctly processed into the necessary qi and fluids and circulated efficiently throughout the entire body to sustain life.

Regarding the possible physical anatomical location of ming men after parturition, the posterior pararenal space is usually fat-filled, while the anterior pararenal space is often empty. The posterior pararenal space is developed by bluntly dissecting between the posterior renal fascia (Zuckerkandl’s fascia, posterior perirenal fascia, retrorenal fascia) and the transversalis fascia that lines the posterior abdominal wall. The many organs and structures located between the kidneys include the vertebral column, including the neural canal, inferior vena cava, abdominal aorta (the half of the descending aorta below the diaphragm), anterior renal fascia, posterior renal fascia, two ureters, and the thoracolumbar fascia. Note that the ligamentum flavum is yellow and that some of it is between the kidneys. This ligament connects the laminae of adjacent vertebrae, all the way from the second vertebra, the axis, to the first segment of the sacrum. If a section of this system or any of the other anatomical structures located between the kidneys is further differentiated and more specialized than the rest, it certainly matches the criteria for a possible hypothetical anatomical location of ming men after parturition. Note too that the authors (148) point out that the vestigial organs (prostatic utricle and Gartners’s ducts in the male and female respectively) ‘demonstrate special properties of these regions’ and ‘might be of clinical interest’. Interestingly, the female Gartner’s ducts are located ‘in the broad ligament lateral to the uterus’. Could this be the ‘greasy membrane’ between the kidneys? It is of further note that the prostatic utricle is a small dimple located in the prostatic urethra near the ejaculatory ducts, the remains of the fused caudal ends of the paramesonephric ducts. It is the male homologue of the female uterus and vagina. For a supposed vestigial organ, it sure has lots of synonyms, including utriculus prostaticus, masculine uterus, Morgagni sinus, sinus pocularis, vagina masculina, vesica prostatica, and the Weber organ. During embryological development, these vestigial organs are in close proximity and medial to the Kidneys. However, in an adult, the Kidneys occupy an anatomical location well away from and superior to these vestigial organs.

Remember, many new organs have been recently uncovered (gut microbiome, PVS) and many new functions of existing organs have been elucidated (adipose tissue has an endocrine function). It would be appropriate that the residual structure derived from the original blastocystic ming men would occupy a location between the umbilicus anteriorly and Governing Vessel 4 (Ming Men) posteriorly, and that via a conduit of PVS/Connective-Tissue Metasystem/Acupuncture Meridian Metasystem the residual ming men component communicates with Governing Vessel 4 (Ming Men) and other systems and structures throughout the body.

Rochat de la Vallée believes that ‘the triple heater does not exist until after the first breath is taken’. I do not agree with that comment, and I have shown elsewhere in this book that the Triple-Energizer Metasystem is the first embryological TCM organ complex to develop and that the subsequent differentiation of all the other organs and structures occurs in close connection with the Primo Vascular System. The Triple-Energizer Metasystem then manages all the necessary qi and fluid movements to ensure that embryogenesis proceeds successfully, including controlling the amniotic sac, which is just another ‘bag of water’ for the Triple Heater to control until term. I believe that there is a swap-over at birth, whereby the Kidneys initiate the first inhalation ‘in a single breath’ and then continue to initiate involuntary inhalations for the rest of our life. While in the fluid-filled amniotic sac in utero, the baby is completely dependent on the mother to supply every single nutrient to sustain life. However, the inauguration of the new life form is when the first single breath was taken, and all the organs then have to operate independent of the mother. Because the Triple Heater was the original first-formed organ, Yang could rightfully state, ‘“Origin” is an honorable designation for the Triple Burner.’ This primordial organ should rightfully be responsible for governing and distributing primordial qi (Yuan Qi or Original Qi).

REFERENCES:

(1) Unschuld, P. U., Nan Ching: The Classic of Difficult Issues (e-book edn, Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1986), 771. With commentaries by Chinese and Japanese authors from the third through the twentieth century.

(11) Larre, C., and E. Rochat de la Vallée, Heart Master Triple Heater (Norfolk: Monkey Press, 1998).

(27) Pollack, G., The Fourth Phase of Water: Beyond Solid, Liquid, and Vapor (Kindle edition, Seattle: Ebner and Sons Publishers, 2014).

(110) Myers, T., ‘Fascia & Tensegrity’ (2014). Available from <http://www.anatomytrains.com/fascia/>.

(111) O’Connell, J. A., ‘Bioelectric Responsiveness of Fascia: A Model for Understanding the Effects of Manipulation’, Techniques in Orthopaedics, 18/1 (2003), 67–73.

(135) Poletti, G., ‘More about Connective Tissue and Myofascial Release’. Available from <https://sites.google.com/a/seattlemfr.com/www/moreaboutconnectivetissueandmyofascialre>.

(139) Anonymous, ‘Ming-Men: An Acupressure Point with Power-Full Implications’ (2014). Available from <http://taichibasics.com/ming-men-an-acupressure-point-with-power-full-implications/>.

(143) Lamb, A., and J. Sarfati, ‘The Human Umbilical Vesicle (“Yolk Sac”) and Pronephros—Are They Vestigial?’ (updated 2 May 2009). Available from <http://creation.com/the-human-umbilical-vesicle-yolk-sac-and-pronephros-are-they-vestigial>.

(148) Jacob, M., F. Yusuf, H. J. Jacob, ‘The Human Embryo’ (2012). Available from <http://cdn.intechopen.com/pdfs-wm/30625.pdf>.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:

I wish to sincerely thank Dr Paul U. Unschuld for the selfless and tireless work he has committed to make many ancient Chinese medical classics available in English for study and research. My book is based predominantly around his scholarly work ‘Nan-Ching: The Classic of Difficult Issues’. I also wish to sincerely thank Professor Unschuld for permission to use citations of his translation in my book. His translation of ‘Nan-Ching: The Classic of Difficult Issues’ can be purchased from the following link: https://www.amazon.com/Nan-ching_The-Classic-Difficult-Comparative-Studies/dp/0520053729

To Securely Purchase the Book, Click the ‘BUY NOW’ Button!

xlibris-buy-book-mystical-triple-energizer-mysterious-sanjiao-mysterious-triple-warmer-mysterious-triple-heater-button
             Sanjiao’s Mystique Demystified