Extra point · Back
Lumbar Eyes
腰眼Yāo YǎnAnatomical location
In the lateral depression, approximately 3.5-4 cun lateral to the inferior border of the spinous process of L4.
Same point as CP74 · Yāo Yǎn — Curious Points catalogMain function
Strengthens the Kidney, tonifies the lumbar region.
Therapeutic indications
- Chronic low back pain
- weak knees
- menstrual irregularities
- Kidney exhaustion
Name and classical tradition
Yaoyan, 腰眼, are the “eyes of the waist”: 腰, the waist; 眼, the eyes. They are the two depressions that form on either side of the lumbar spine, level with the fourth vertebra, when the person is standing: two dimples that look like eyes.
The word is ancient as a name for that part of the body. The Qianjin Yaofang (Essential Prescriptions Worth a Thousand Gold) uses it as a reference for locating other points, for example in chapter 15: “穴在腰眼下三寸挾脊相去四寸.” As a point with its own indications, however, it does not appear in the works we were able to check, and its textual history remains unclear.
