LI-1 Shangyang - Merchant Yang

Merchant Yang is the Metal point and Horary point on the Colon, the Official who drains the dregs, keeping what is still of value and letting go of the rest so the Lung has room to breathe in. In Chinese terms the merchants know the value of things, and in the Metal element this is the ability to know the value of things, to know the quality within us and to know it is there. As a revitalization and resurrection point, it allows direct communication with the meridian's essence. It helps someone express something, bringing out whatever is on the inside, and it revives consciousness. Clearing things out makes room for new inspiration and for carrying it out into the world, giving a sense of purity and wholeness. As the Horary point it shakes up the Official and brings Yang where heat and vitality are lacking. It can help with letting go or with holding on, and it helps us become aware of our own values. It releases holding and congestion in body, mind and spirit, letting light and clarity in, and breaks through the rubbish.

• Worsley gives it as a First Aid point for toothache.

Location: At the nail point on the radial side of the index finger.
Needle depth: 1 fen
Moxa: 3 cones

• When a patient gets very cold, cannot communicate and cannot see clearly
• When a patient is withdrawn, very stubborn, or clogged up with rubbish
• When someone needs help to express what is held on the inside
• When the outer mask needs to come off so the person can be more honest
• When a person has become inert and rigid, stuck in believing things can only be done one right way
• When a backed-up system leaves someone jaded and cynical, or clinging to possessions and feelings for fear of having less
• When disappointment with the present keeps a person looking back to the past
• For those who are never good enough, which can show as ruminating and going in circles because the person cannot let go

• LU-8 Meridian Gutter with LI-1 Merchant Yang: commonly used together for cleaning out, often on a physical level, and especially cleansing in the Autumn
• ST-45 Hard Bargain with LI-1: uses the Bright Yang relationship to clear and calm a restless or congested mind

• Metal point, Horary point (5 to 7 am) and Well point of the Large Intestine
• Do the Horary point in the Autumn season; it is very cleansing
• An excellent way to begin removing the first layer of the mask
• Can be used to get a clear idea of the state of the Officials
• Large Intestine problems can make a person very stubborn, emotionally constipated or withdrawn
• A question to sit with: how does heat show up in Metal? Perhaps as manic Fire, or simply so much Fire that the person cannot settle into their Metal: too much party and not enough of the sacred