Based on the theoretical origin summary of “Nanzibao”（男子胞， essence chamber） and the understanding of ancient and modern scholars， and guided by the basic rules of visceral manifestation theory in traditional Chinese medicine （TCM）， we demonstrate and enrich the theoretical connotation of essential chamber from multiple perspectives. We hold that the essence chamber corresponds to the prostate in the anatomical sense， and is the execution unit of “kidney governs reproduction” in the functional sense， which participates in part of the process of “kidney governs water”. The physiological functions of the essential chamber are regulated by the

Ren

（任），

Du

（督）， and

Chong

（冲） channels. Exploring and analyzing the connotation of “essential channel” can provide guidance for the diagnosis and treatment of urological andrological diseases.