“My Po made the decision” I’m usually skeptical about most explanations of the “Spirit” of the five Zang viscera. Not that I don’t indulge speculation myself, I most certainly do. But given these ideas come down to us from another time, language, and culture. Given they’ve traveled through through the millennia I’m mightily reluctant to stake a claim on     what the ancients might have intended. That said, the guest of today’s conversation Karine Kedar said the above quote towards the...

You don’t need to practice acupuncture for very long to realize that people frequently  slip into a deep state of quietude and repose. Often enough, they come out of a session with a completely different look to their eyes, they move slower and with a more integrated coordination, they’re focused less on the noise in their life, and more on the potency of the present. In this conversation with John Myerson, we explore acupuncture and non-ordinary states of consciousness. This was part of a...

I’ve often enough equated the word Alchemy with Magic. Hoping for something that would quickly and painlessly transform the troubles dogging me. Perhaps this is possible with magic, but alchemy, that is a process of preparation, distillation and attentiveness. It’s a undertaking that requires a kind of containment and the transformative power of time is a key ingredient. Maybe not unlike the process of learning medicine by practicing medicine. In this conversation with Leta Herman we discuss...

It’s surprising the unexpected paths we trod that lead us to our destiny. Especially when you’re headed into a profession or line of work that does not yet exist.  In this conversation with Jake Fratkin, we meander through tales of back pain, bitter herbs, beginner's luck and crooked judges. We reflect on the joys and uncertainties of following your fascination to wherever it leads, and making a go of life on the edge of the establishment.  Listen into this discussion on blackjack statistics,...

There are several foundational texts that lay the groundwork for Chinese herbal medicine. Usually when you think about the Shang Han Lun, you’d immediately think of herbs. And when you think about the various herbs that make up the classic prescriptions, you’ll realize they all have a flavor, direction and character. In essence— a kind of qi. In this conversation with Maya Suzuki we discuss the dynamic of Gui Zhi Tang. How it leaves palpable traces in the body. And how to use acupuncture in a...

Confused by all the diet advice out there? Me too! Seems like there's always a new fad telling us what to eat– or not. I'm a fan of the 80/20 principle and I’ve been wondering if that might apply to diet, especially if you’re using diet as a way to improve health. I chew this over with acupuncturist and nutritionist Brenda Le and see if we can untangle  some of the noise and drama around food.  We’ll discuss the intertwinement of food and emotion, dealing with shame, listening to your body's...

We have plans, but our destiny usually is not found in the maps we make of the world. It shows up in unexpected, random and often unguarded moments. There’s a lot we “do.” It does not come from knowing, but we can spin up a story in retrospect. In this conversation with John Nieters we notice how our work in time tends to simplify. That our plans and often enough lead to an unexpected potently changeable moment. We explore the East and West of blood stasis, and curiosities of the circulatory...

Ghost points. Read those words and let the sound echo into your head, your heart and body. Ghost points. Just the words carry an energy. An energy of spirit, of embodiment, or not. The words suggest something of the spirit that can go astray. Like a decision to never let a particular bad experience ever happen again, or on the other side, the addictive desire to recreate again and again something of the sublime. In this conversation with Ivan Zalava we consider the realm of spirit, ghosts,...

If you don’t know where you want to go, it’s fine not to know where you’re going. Not all journeys have a destination– at least, not in the beginning. In the beginning you’re opening to options, surveying the landscape, getting a feel for who you are in the territory. It's the Open part of “Open, Close, Pivot.” Rick Gold, one of the founders of the Pacific College of Oriental Medicine did not start out to found an acupuncture school. He started out aiming at being a hermit in backwoods...

Li Shi Zhen and Sun Si Miao, they shared an interest in alchemy. Often enough in our clinical work, patients will describe what happened with them as being magical, but as practitioners we know its not magic, its medicine. But it’s a medicine that works outside the parameters of Western thought, and the consensus of settled science. In this conversation with Peter Firebrace we explore being a Zhen Ren, a True Human, and internal alchemical practice. The journey to Emptiness through the three...

Chinese medicine looks to the perspectives of the past to understand the unfolding present. And for sure, there are threads of connection and perspective that come down to us through the curious tides of history. At the same time, there is this unique moment. What we hold, what we discover, these are yin yang aspects of how to make sense of a medicine patinated with history and lore. In this conversation with Volker Scheid we discuss continuity and change in Chinese medicine. And the starting...

I still remember the moment when I realized that the character for Listen in traditional written Chinese was composed of the characters for Ears, Eyes, and Heart. Twenty two little strokes that unambiguously describe what is required to genuinely listen. Deborah Woolf has spent the past year teaching a course on basic Chinese  for East Asian medicine practitioners. And while the content of her course is of interest to me, in this conversation what I’m more focused on is what it is that she’s...

If you’ve studied Traditional East Asian Medicine in English, you no doubt have benefited from the work of today’s guest. Dan Bensky has translated, written, published and taught for more years than most students entering an acupuncture school now have been alive. He set off for Taiwan in the early 70’s to follow his interest in learning Chinese. Taiwan was still under martial law and the mainland… the mainland was going through the horrors of the Cultural Revolution. Chinese medicine, not...

The book we used for studying acupuncture points at the Seattle Institute of Oriental Medicine was Foundations of Chinese Acupuncture. That along with Grasping the Wind were my entry into the study of channels and points. Both of those books had the handiwork of today’s guest, Andy Ellis. Beyond those early translations, Andy has his fingerprints on a wide swath of books on herbal medicine and acupuncture. Andy wandered his way into most of his learning. And he’s been generous with what...

Often enough at the beginning of a sea change, you don’t know what’s coming next. You’re already part of a current, a flow, and while you can steer within current, you’re caught up in a flow that is beyond your capacity to fully understand. In this conversation with Malvin Finkelstein we take a trip in the Wayback Machine to 197xx and his first encounter with acupressure, acupuncture and the potency of nutrition. We visit the early years of acupuncture education, the challenges of making a...

What you grow up with, that’s what becomes normal. You could be smack dab in the middle of something extraordinary, but it’s simply everyday life for you. In this conversation with Yvonne Lau we reflect on her experience of growing up as the daughter of immigrants from Southern China who ran an herb store in San Francisco’s Chinatown. It was a time when a few dedicated young people from the mainstream culture began to show a respectful and insatiable interest in Chinese medicine. The interest...

What do you do if you’re interested in learning and practicing acupuncture, but there are no schools, standards or licensure? You built it yourself; with help of other spirited colleagues. In this conversation with John Myerson we go back to the days when acupuncture was just coming into the mainstream of American life. It wasn’t there yet— but it was close enough to intuit. John was there in the early days of the New England School of Acupuncture. And he helped to create the academic...

The transport points are rich in story, function, connection and seem to have a capacity for engaging qi in profound ways as it flows from the tips of the fingers and toes, up to the elbows and knees. Lou points are particularly interesting as they both connect yin and yang channels. In this conversation with Sean Tuten we investigate the capacity of the luo channels to act as a first defense against overwhelming experiences that come from the outside. How they both protect against and can...

The heart of our work, often enough, leans on the connections and capacity of the heart. In this conversation with Ross Rosen we explore the importance of the patient-practitioner relationship, the concept of negotiating a diagnosis and some Daoist practices in medicine. Listen into this discussion on practical clinical strategies and how traditional medicine intertwines and overlaps with our everyday lives.

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...

The story of the blind men exploring the elephant is alluded to often enough that it’s easily  dismissed as cliche. And yet, the profound truth of how our senses and meaning making influence of our mind are worth pausing to consider. In this conversation with Jason Robertson and Stephen Brown we consider the 理 Li, the patterning or connective coherence that runs through creation. As acupuncture and East Asian medicine are pattern languages, this concept touches on the core of our work. We...

Mind and body are inextricably entangled together. The effect of emotions on the physiology leave a palpable trace. It’s something that we as practitioners can acquire the capacity  to discern and use as part of assessment and treatment. In this conversation with Maya Suzuki we touch on how touch is a potent aspect of treatment. How it gives us direct access to a patient’s inner terrain, and how it gives us reliable information that stands apart from theory and protocol. We also explore...

Is it the end of the world, or the beginning of a new one? That is the question of the day when cultures go through seatide changes. Ever since the turn into of this yin water rabbit year in February, we’ve been hearing about power, potential and perhaps peril of ChatGPT and the other Artificial Intelligences that have burst into the digital landscape. What is in store for us as acupuncturists? That is the question I put to Heidi Lovie who has been getting her hands dirty with various kinds...

The acupuncture channels are a curiosity that practitioners have puzzled, and argued, over for centuries. Even as these structures and processes so fundamental to life have been used for treatment and well being since Chinese medicine first began to emerge far beyond recorded history. In a sense, the channels are maps that help us to orient and navigate life, health and meaning. In this conversation with Jason Brazil we discuss his voyage of discovery as he took his hand's on experience as a...

It can be hard, impossible perhaps, at the beginning to know that you’re at the start of a tidal shift. It’s only in looking back and connecting the pivotal moments that you can see a challenging moment didn’t happen to you, it happened for you. It’s only later that you can see how attempting to solve a troublesome problem would take you down a path your imagination couldn’t dream up in that moment. In this conversation with John Scott we take a trip in the Wayback Machine to a time when...