Notes on Anatomy and Physiology: The Hand and The Tiger’s Mouth
The Hand’s Arches
The hand, like the foot, has three arches: the distal and proximal transverse arches running across the hand, and the
Notes on Anatomy and Physiology: The Hand and The Tiger’s Mouth
The Hand’s Arches
The hand, like the foot, has three arches: the distal and proximal transverse arches running across the hand, and the longitudinal arch coursing along the hand’s length.
The distal transverse arch lies where the fingers meet the metacarpal bones of the palm. The flexibility of this arch allows the palm to flatten as the hands open and go out in the tor yu with the fingertips up. And with Whip To One Side, it permits the outside first, fourth and fifth metacarpals of the right hand to fold about the more fixed second and third metacarpals while the tips of the fingers come together to form a beak. The two central metacarpals form the keystone of the arch.
The proximal transverse arch arises from the bones of the wrist. Although much more rigid than the distal arch, it opens and flattens over time as a result of placing the hand in Tiger’s Mouth. Gradually, the appearance of the heel of the hand changes.
The longitudinal arch, running the length of the hand, is centered about the second and third metacarpals which run to the index and middle fingers. Stiff at its proximal end where it joins the wrist, this arch is very mobile distally, as active flexion and extension of the fingers demonstrate. Each arch supports the other two, illustrating how elements weave together for strength.
The Soft Tissues of the Hand
Thus far, we’ve referred to the bony architecture of the hand. But layer upon layer of soft tissue contribute to the hand’s structure as well – sheets of fascia, tendons, tendon sheaths, muscles, nerves, arteries, veins and lymphatics.
Without worrying about the names of all these constituents, let’s look quickly at four drawings from Netter that give us a sense of those layers. These are views of the front of the hand; similar layers also exist at the dorsal aspect of the hand.
Don’t get lost in the details. Just note that these successive layers exist beneath the skin of your palm. And because we may not describe this for other regions of the body, remember that this complexity is found everywhere. Which is why we keep things simple and work with metaphors like Tiger’s Mouth when we play at tai chi.
Having spent a few moments re