Meridian of the Month | Gallbladder

Apr 16

The meridian lines of the body are energetic highways that provide a path for Qi and other substances to flow. This year, we will learn details about one of the meridians each month as they coordinate with the time of year / season that we are currently in. For April, let's discuss the Gallbladder pathway!

Meridian Art Collection

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The Journey of the Gallbladder Lines

This meridian line begins at the outside of the outer corner of the eye, moves down toward the ear and then up to the forehead just within the hairline. It then moves behind the ear to the corner of the skull. At this point it returns to the forehead above the center of the eye and moves down the head to the bottom of the skull.

As it continues, it moves down the neck to the shoulder as it connects with the governing vessel, then crosses over the shoulder and descends the side of the body along the ribs, to the waist and pelvic crest before deepening its route to meet the bladder channel at the sacrum. It then moves down the outer leg to the ankle before ending at the fourth toe. Internal channels connect with the stomach channel (on the jaw) and the small intestine channel, and join the liver and gallbladder organs.

The Gallbladder Meridian | Honorable Minister

The Gallbladder is the only yang organ that does not deal with food directly. The primary role of this organ is that it stores and secretes bile required to digest and metabolize fats and oils. The energy generated by the Gallbladder helps provide strength and vitality for the muscles. It also helps control the joints of the body. The health of the Liver will directly impact the health and functionality of the Gallbladder.

The Gallbladder works alongside the lymphatic system to clear toxic products of metabolism from the muscular system. In doing this, it helps to release ache and fatigue related to the muscles.

There are 44 points along this meridian line and the element of the Gallbladder channel is wood. The energetics of this meridian are related to our daring and decisiveness. In Chinese, the word for daring is "da dan" (meaning big gall). Think about the English phrase "having the gall" (confidence, bravery). An old Chinese phrase says "The Gallbladder is daring, the Heart is careful." This phrase simply highlights the generative influence of wood to fire. Every meridian has a yin or yang counterpart or complimentary meridian. The Gallbladder lines are yang and the Liver lines are the yin counterpart that also share the wood element. The active season for the Gallbladder meridian is spring and the time of day the meridian is most active is between 11pm - 1am.