Last verified: April 2026
Head and Neck Marma — 37 Vital Points
शिरो-ग्रीवा मर्म — Shiro (head) + Griva (neck) Marma
Sushruta Samhita, Sharira 5 documents 37 Marma in the head and neck region — the highest concentration of Sadyah Pranahara (immediately fatal) Marma in any region, reflecting the classical understanding that the head is where consciousness, the primary sense organs, and the major arterial supply converge.
Sushruta Samhita, Sharira 5.21
Uttamoottamam angam shiro — The head is the most important of all body parts. It contains Adhipati (the supreme Marma at the crown), which governs the entire body through the Prana channels descending from it. Injury to the head Marma therefore produces the most serious consequences of all Marma injuries.Key head and neck Marma
| Marma | Location | Category | Significance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adhipati | Crown of skull | Sadyah Pranahara (immediately fatal) | Governs all sensory organs and consciousness. Injury produces immediate death. Therapeutically: the most powerful Marma for Shirodhara and head oil treatments. |
| Sthapani (Ajna) | Between eyebrows | Vishalyaghna (fatal if foreign body removed) | The classical 'third eye' Marma. Governs intellect (Buddhi) and the Pranavaha Srotas to the brain. The primary target point for Shirodhara oil stream. |
| Shankha | Temples (bilateral) | Sadyah Pranahara | Temporal artery location. Thin bone over the middle meningeal artery — injury causes epidural haematoma. Classical documentation of this as immediately fatal precisely matches modern neurosurgical understanding. |
| Apanga | Outer eye corner (bilateral) | Vishalyaghna | Governs vision. The orbital-temporal junction. |
| Avarta | Supraorbital notch (bilateral) | Vaikalyakara | Supraorbital nerve — injury produces persistent supraorbital neuralgia. |
| Phana | Nostrils (bilateral) | Vaikalyakara | The nasal passages — connected to Pranavaha Srotas and Nasya procedure entry points. |
| Sringataka (4) | Hard palate and pharynx | Sadyah Pranahara | Four Marma at the junction of the four channels meeting at the palate — the classical basis for Gandusha (oil pulling) and Kavala (gargling) as protective practices. |
| Krikatika | Cervical junction — base of skull (bilateral) | Vaikalyakara | Junction of skull and cervical spine — the atlantoaxial joint. Governs head movement and the descending spinal channels. |
| Manya | Anterior cervical — carotid triangle (bilateral) | Sadyah Pranahara | The carotid artery location. Injury produces death from haemorrhage or vasovagal collapse. Classical prohibition on pressure to this area in massage. |
| Nila | Bilateral cervical, lateral to Manya | Sadyah Pranahara | Jugular vein location. Complementary to Manya. |
Therapeutic applications of head Marma
The head Marma are the primary targets of: Shirodhara (oil stream targeting Sthapani/Ajna and Adhipati simultaneously); Shiro Abhyanga (scalp massage targeting all 37 head Marma); Nasya (nasal administration reaching the Phana Marma and through it the Sthapani and Adhipati Marma); and Shirovasti (oil held on the scalp). The classical documentation of these procedures lists their therapeutic effects by Marma — each procedure is understood to work through specific Marma stimulation.