Episode 7: Virtual Brunch #1
In this episode, we sit down for a ‘light and loose’ conversation about neurology, the state of the world, and how our bodies move like plants.
Episode 6: Light and Breath
In today’s conversation, we have a very special guest Pere Garcia from Barcelona, who has had extensive experience in the practice of Sufism and Neijing Medicine. He will join us for a great conversation on “Light and Breath”.
Episode 5: Decoding Nature with the Neijing
Join us this week as we decode nature with the Neijing, and discover what the cyclical patterns of nature have to do with global economic systems, human health, and starting a new career. At this pivotal moment in human history, let’s draw wisdom from ancient understanding of transformation and nature to navigate towards a harmonious future.
Episode 4: The Sacred Dance of the Seasons
In this week’s episode we discuss how the Neijing describes seasonal patterns and changes in relation to our bodies’ natural patterns. What does it mean to breathe with the seasons? When we learn to live with the seasons we learn to go with the flow of life.
Episode 3: The Natural Ecology of the Acupuncture Points
In this episode, we begin to unearth how the Neijing describes a complete physiological understanding of the human body, with the points being anatomical descriptions and not just numbers on a line.
Episode 2: Blood Rivers and Channels
Join us as we delve into the story behind acupuncture channels. Discover how the Neijing describes these channels, potentially as blood vessels, and the implications for modern practice.
Episode 1: The Original Meaning of the Five Phases (Wuxing 五行)
What are the origins and original meanings of the concept of the Five Phases (五行 Wuxing)? What is the role of storytelling in healing? Why is breathing the essential pattern of the universe? These idea's and more are explored in our inaugural episode.
Reflections on Studying the Huang Di Nei Jing in the West
ARTICLE
By Dr. Edward Neal, MD
First published in Chinese Medicine and Culture
Volume 7, Issue 1 (March 2024)
Huang Di Nei Jing ( 黄帝内经 The Yellow Emperor’s Inner Classic) has been the source text of Chinese medicine knowledge and innovation for over two thousand years. Despite this key relevance, many of its ideas and practices have proven difficult to understand and implement fully into clinical practice. Cultural and language differences can be compounded with these challenges but may also present new opportunities for advancement and insight when studied by researchers outside of the originating culture. This article introduces the method of Classical-Text Archaeology and delves into the author’s two-decade journey of researching this text, with a discussion on cultural differences and issues of medical scholarship.
Reading the Seasonal River Tides
VIDEO
In the initial descriptions of Chinese medicine set down in the Huangdi Neijing, acupuncture was described as a traditional form of ecological surgery. Its primary aim was to restore the natural watersheds of the body by regulating the flow of the blood circulating through these regions. These writings compare the vascular rivers of the body to rivers in nature, understanding them to be formed by the same basic forces and patterns of nature. Similar to rivers in nature, the flow qualities of the vascular rivers display different seasonal variations or 'tides'. We assess these seasonal tides in the pulse qualities of the major blood vessels of the body. This allows us to synchronize the bodies of our patients with the seasonal patterns of nature.
Qiological Podcast: Nature in Medicine
PODCAST
with Michael Max and Edward Neal
East Asian medicine is a nature based medicine. And nature… nature is weird, and mysterious. And as much as we like to come up with “Laws of Nature” they are more like approximations. Useful for sure. But you’re asking for trouble if you confuse the map with the territory. And with nature, the territory is always changing. How do you keep your senses open and unencumbered with habit and belief? How do you stay present to what your patient might need in this particular moment? How do you wisely use knowledge in such a way that it doesn’t become dogma?
