DU20 (Baihui, “Baihui”) is the Sea of Marrow point of the Governing Vessel Meridian. It is located on the midline of the head, 1.5 cun posterior to the point Qianding (DU21), at the center of the vertex. This point is often found in a slight depression within the hair whorl, at the intersection of the midline and a line connecting the apexes of the two ears. It pacifies wind, calms the spirit, raises yang qi, clears the senses, benefits the brain, and treats a wide range of disorders.
On the midline of the head, 1.5 cun posterior to the point Qianding (DU21), at the center of the vertex. This point is often found in a slight depression within the hair whorl, at the intersection of the midline and a line connecting the apexes of the two ears.
Subcutaneous (transverse) insertion, 0.5 to 1.5 cun, often directed anteriorly or posteriorly depending on the desired effect.
Pacifies wind, calms the spirit, raises yang qi, clears the senses, benefits the brain, and treats a wide range of disorders.
Head wind, headache, vertex pain, wind dizziness, vertigo, heaviness of the head, eye pain as if the eye is coming out, inability to look left or right, stroke with slurred speech, lockjaw, hemiplegia, half-body not used, vexation and oppression of the heart, fright palpitations, poor memory, forgetfulness, mental confusion, lack of heart strength, epilepsy, wind epilepsy, infantile convulsions, opisthotonos, foaming at the mouth, sheep-like bleating, frequent crying, indiscriminate speech, sudden death-like collapse (shi jue), mania, manic walking, seeing ghosts, prolapse of the rectum, malaria, stuffy nose, loss of taste, red face after drinking alcohol, deafness, tinnitus, not recognizing people, sudden collapse from wind.
As the highest point on the body and the meeting point of all yang channels, Baihui is a supreme point for raising clear yang, pacifying internal wind, and calming the spirit. It is essential for treating conditions affecting the head and brain, such as headache, dizziness, stroke, and epilepsy. Its ability to lift yang makes it a primary point for all types of prolapse, while its action on the spirit addresses memory loss, palpitations, and psycho-emotional disorders. The classics emphasize its broad application, stating it can treat 'all the hundred diseases.'
Classical text; the translation was prepared with AI and is not clinical advice.
《醫宗金鑑·刺灸心法要訣》 Yīzōng Jīnjiàn · Cìjiǔ Xīnfǎ Yàojué — Golden Mirror of Medicine: Essential Teachings on Acupuncture & Moxibustion, Wu Qian et al., 1742 · 卷七 · 頭部主病針灸要穴歌 · Source: jicheng.tw ↗
百會主治卒中風，兼治癲癇兒病驚，大腸下氣脫肛病，提補諸陽氣上升This verse records DU20 as used for sudden wind stroke, epilepsy and fright in children, and prolapse of the rectum with descending qi of the large intestine, and says it was meant to lift and tonify the yang qi.
《針灸大成》 Zhēnjiǔ Dàchéng — Great Compendium of Acupuncture & Moxibustion, 1601 · 卷十 · Source: Wikisource ↗
百會 在頂中陷中，容豆許，去前髮際五寸，後髮際七寸，針二分，灸七壯According to this text, DU20 lies in the hollow at the centre of the vertex, big enough to hold a bean, 5 cun from the front hairline and 7 cun from the back hairline; needling is 0.2 cun with 7 moxa cones.
《神灸經綸》 Shénjiǔ Jīnglún — Principles of Divine Moxibustion, Wu Yiding, 1851 · 卷之二 · 奇經八脈 · 督脈二十八穴分寸 · Source: jicheng.tw ↗
百會 從後頂上行一寸五分直兩耳尖頂陷中灸五壯一曰頭頂不得過七壯According to this text, DU20 is reached 1.5 cun upward from DU19, in the hollow on the vertex in line with the tips of both ears; it gives 5 moxa cones and notes a view that the top of the head should not receive more than 7.
DU20 is one of 28 points on the Governing Vessel Meridian. Nearby points:
DU20 (Baihui) is located on the midline of the head, 1.5 cun posterior to the point Qianding (DU21), at the center of the vertex. This point is often found in a slight depression within the hair whorl, at the intersection of the midline and a line connecting the apexes of the two ears.
DU20 pacifies wind, calms the spirit, raises yang qi, clears the senses, benefits the brain, and treats a wide range of disorders. Common clinical indications include head wind, headache, vertex pain, wind dizziness, vertigo, heaviness of the head, eye pain as if the eye is coming out, inability to look left or right, stroke with slurred speech, lockjaw, hemiplegia, half-body not used, vexation and oppression of the heart, fright palpitations, poor memory, forgetfulness, mental confusion, lack of heart strength, epilepsy, wind epilepsy, infantile convulsions, opisthotonos, foaming at the mouth, sheep-like bleating, frequent crying, indiscriminate speech, sudden death-like collapse (shi jue), mania, manic walking, seeing ghosts, prolapse of the rectum, malaria, stuffy nose, loss of taste, red face after drinking alcohol, deafness, tinnitus, not recognizing people, sudden collapse from wind.
Subcutaneous (transverse) insertion, 0.5 to 1.5 cun, often directed anteriorly or posteriorly depending on the desired effect. Caution: Do not over-moxibust; the skin on the vertex is thin (Zi Sheng Jing). In infants whose fontanel has not yet closed, needling is contraindicated (Zi Sheng Jing).
DU20 is a point on the Governing Vessel Meridian (Dū Mài).