WITH HEINER FRUEHAUF
INTERVIEW BY BOB QUINN
Heiner Fruehauf sat down recently with his long-time student and colleague at National University of Natural Medicine, Bob Quinn, to discuss ascending and descending functions in the body. While on the surface a seemingly simple topic, it is in reality crucial to understand the up-down movement dynamic if one is to practice herbal medicine effectively.
Listen to the messages conveyed by your physical symptoms. In our culture, we are conditioned to think of symptoms as problems to fix. We have our growths removed with surgery, our fevers lowered with aspirin, and our rashes removed by steroid creams. While this kind of approach can have the blessing of alleviating our suffering, and even be a valuable component of our healing process, it alone does not address why the symptoms were there in the first place. Heiner and Laurie discuss the importance of listening to your body’s messages about what is out of balance, and learning to make corresponding choices that support the movement toward health. Even in a state of good health, our physical form can be understood as sacred reflection of the inner working of our being.
This week, we open the door to a rich understanding that has come from more than a decade of research by a study group led by Heiner. Through excavation of the profound and timeless knowledge held in the ancient Chinese record, this team has uncovered multi-layered, symbolic meaning behind the system of 12 meridians that play a central role in Chinese medicine. Commonly thought of as pathways of qi flow in the body, these meridians, or organ systems, relate to sets of physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual functions in the microcosm of the human body.
This week we explore the Heart Organ Network. The primary function associated with Heart in Chinese medicine is to move our awareness in the direction of unity, and enable us to experience true community and connection. Join us as we explore how the ancients conceived of this fundamental role in our human experience, and what their insights have to offer us in today’s increasingly alienating world.
Co-host Laurie Regan interviews Heiner Fruehauf to learn about the basic principles of classical Chinese medicine, and why this ancient knowledge still holds so much relevance for us today. Many ancient cultures had the practical realization that everything that exists is an inseparable mix of energy and matter, and is interconnected with everything else. Nothing is coincidence. In the realm of medicine, this means that every illness has meaning, and every symptom is a physical marker for the energy and consciousness that forms it. We can learn to read and interpret symptoms to understand the root cause of illness and find true solutions for restoring health.
In this two-part podcast, Laurie narrates and Heiner translates the biographical story of master Wang Qingyu. The story begins with Master Wang’s birth, literally on a battlefield during the Japanese invasion of China. Especially touching are his remembrances of his beloved Daoist teacher, Li Jie, a legendary Daoist hermit who taught young Wang the real value of cultivation practices–to know one’s own heart and become a truly good person.
WANG QINGYU
HEINER FRUEHAUF
After a similar lecture series Daoist Medicine: the Alchemical and Shamanic Root of Chinese Medicine that we offered 10 years ago, Prof. Wang Qingyu, China's premier expert of Daoist medicine and the ancient science of nourishing life is back with us at the ripe age of 80 to give us another round of reflections on his favorite topic.
Total running time: 3 hrs. 5 mins.
Mandarin Chinese, translated into English by Heiner Fruehauf
TRANSLATED BY HEINER FRUEHAUF
National University of Natural Medicine,
College of Classical Chinese Medicine
A collection of classical texts are used etymologically to define the symbolic significance of the language in Huangdi neijing suwenChapter Eight, the defining quote about the lung organ network.
GERMAN TRANSLATION BY MARKUS GOEKE
HEINER FRUEHAUF AND FRIENDS
AUDIO RECORDING
The Yaoshifo Mantra, or Medicine Buddha chant, is from the Chinese Buddhist Chants CD, one of four volumes from Sacred Chants, a beautifully recorded and designed 4 CD box set of over 2 ½ hours of sacred chants collected from spiritual healing communities in China by Heiner Fruehauf.
WITH HEINER FRUEHAUF
INTERVIEW BY REGINA WEICHART
Chinese medicine continues to be an extremely relevant clinical modality in modern times, in part because an increasing array of chronic disorders with autoimmune implications remain unrecognized, unexplained and unresolved by the parameters of western medicine. In this interview, Heiner Fruehauf explains the unique benefits and potential advantages of the Chinese medicine approach to patients and practitioners working with Lyme Disease, Fibromyalgia, and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.
BY HEINER FRUEHAUF
GERMAN TRANSLATION BY MARKUS GOEKE
The six conformations represent another system of symbolic methodology that is of great importance for the practice of classical Chinese medicine. Its origins are related to both yin-yang and five phase element theory, yet it is often the primary diagnostic modality that certain practitioners, especially those trained in the lineage of Shanghan lun herbalism, choose to utilize.
BY VARIOUS AUTHORS
TRANSLATED BY HEINER FRUEHAUF
The nature of wood is to spread. Once food qi enters the stomach, it relies entirely on the spreading and dredging function of liver wood, and it is only because of this influence that the food is transformed. If the liver's pure Yang does not rise, it cannot spread and dredge the grain and fluids, and distention and discomfort in the middle region will be the inevitable result. The liver is associated with wood.
BY HEINER FRUEHAUF
GERMAN TRANSLATION BY SEPP LEEB
This article is based on the conviction that the traditional art of Oriental medicine is dying—both in mainland China, home of the mother trunk of the field, and consequently overseas where branches of the tree are trying to grow. It may be an anachronistic piece, written at a time when TCM administrators around the world are celebrating major advances in the field, such as increasing numbers of students, practitioners, patients, colleges, universities, and hospitals, which all appear to reflect a booming state of Oriental medicine.
BY ZHANG XICHUN (1860-1933)
TRANSLATED AND INTRODUCED
BY HEINER FRUEHAUF
GERMAN TRANSLATION BY MARKUS GOEKE
Zhang Xichun (1860-1933) is one of China's great scholar-physicians. He is primarily remembered for his prominent role in spearheading the early movement of Chinese-Western medicine integration during the first three decades of this century. The depth of his knowledge and the broad range of his activities, moreover, distinguish him as one of the last of the classical cast of renaissance physicians.
BY HEINER FRUEHAUF
National University of Natural Medicine,
College of Classical Chinese Medicine
This essay represents Heiner’s contribution to 2011’s Fuyang suntan (Discussion Forum on Supporting the Yang), China’s premier conference dedicated to upholding the roots of classical Chinese medicine. He notes the enormous transformative potential that natural medicine holds in the precarious times we live in, and underscores the importance of clinical efficacy in the process of promoting our medicine. In particular, he points out the importance of the “technological” details of the clinical encounter in Chinese medicine, which have been the basis for optimum clinical results in the past. In Part 2, he shares some aspects of his personal journey toward mastering the details of precise herb prescribing.
ENGLISH / GERMAN / CHINESE
GERMAN TRANSLATION BY MARKUS GOEKE
BY HEINER FRUEHAUF
GERMAN TRANSLATION BY MARKUS GOEKE
This presentation is an attempt to participate in the process of ‘medical archaeology’ by exploring one of the submerged areas of Oriental medicine, namely the complex and variegated clinical approach to the diagnosis and treatment of Gu syndrome (gu zheng). A review of the modern research literature shows that this topic has remained virtually unexplored in both China and the West. Although there are too many classical references to entirely ignore the phenomenon of Gu syndrome, mainland Chinese scholars generally dismiss it as an “ancient, feudalist and superstitious” belief in demons and exorcist practices that has little or no value in modern clinical practice.
BY HEINER FRUEHAUF
GERMAN TRANSLATION BY MARKUS GOEKE
Gancao Xiexin Tang was first recorded by the Han physician Zhang Zhongjing about 1,800 years ago. Both Shanghan lun and Jingui yaolüe, the now separated parts of his classic guidebook on herbal formulas (Shanghan zabing lun), cite this particular formula. In modern times, this formula is usually regarded as a variation of the widely used Pinellia Purge the Heart Decoction (Banxia Xiexin Tang) and thus most often prescribed as a remedy for Banxia Xiexin Tang symptom complex (discomfort in stomach area, belching, diarrhea). This is precisely the usage suggested for this remedy in the Shanghai lan, where Gancao Xiexin Tang and Shengjiang Xiexin Tang are listed as variations of the standard Banxia Xiexin Tang.
WITH HEINER FRUEHAUF
INTERVIEW BY BOB QUINN,
WITH ERIN MORELAND
In the spring of 2011 Heiner Fruehauf, PhD, LAc sat down with his student and colleague, Bob Quinn, DAOM, LAc to discuss the finer points of “Brain Gu” syndrome, specifically as it pertains to the treatment of Lyme Disease. This discussion is best understood as a follow-up to and elaboration of the ideas presented in Heiner and Quinn’s earlier interview about Gu syndrome published in the fall of 2008 and available in the public part of this website.
WITH HEINER FRUEHAUF
INTERVIEW BY BOB QUINN,
WITH ERIN MORELAND
GERMAN TRANSLATION BY SEPP LEEB
In the autumn of 2008 Heiner Fruehauf, PhD, LAc, sat down with two of his students, Bob Quinn, DAOM, LAc and Erin Moreland, LAc, to discuss the finer points of Gu syndrome treatment. This discussion is best understood as a follow-up to and elaboration of the ideas presented in Heiner’s earlier article on Gu syndrome published in the 1998 May issue of The Journal of Chinese Medicine.
BY HEINER FRUEHAUF
GERMAN TRANSLATION BY MARKUS GOEKE
In this paper, a seasoned practitioner of classical Chinese herbalism explains how one of the most important herbs in the Chinese materia medica can be used, once properly grown and processed, without the side effects associated with the toxic alkaloid aconitine. Heiner Fruehauf summarizes some of the dramatic lore surrounding the use of the herb aconite (Fuzi) in East and West, while exploring how Chinese medicine practitioners can utilize the herb safely in modern times to treat a wide range of medical conditions.
BY ZHANG JINGYUE (1583-1640)
TRANSLATED BY HEINER FRUEHAUF
GERMAN TRANSLATION BY MARKUS GOEKE
The flavor of Fuzi is pungent and sweet, and becomes extremely salty if immersed in brine. Its qi is very hot. This herb, therefore, carries within the energy of yang within yang. It is described as toxic. Its (toxic) effect is controlled by Renshen (ginseng), Huangqi (astragalus), Gancao (licorice), Heidou (black beans), Lüxijiao (green rhinozerus horn), Tongbian (human urine), Wujiu (Herba Stenolomae), and Fangfeng (siler).
BY ZHANG ZHICONG (1610-1674)
TRANSLATED BY HEINER FRUEHAUF
GERMAN TRANSLATION BY MARKUS GOEKE
The flavor of Fuzi is pungent, its qi is warm, and it is extremely toxic. It treats wind cold pathogens that induce coughing and other counterflow issues, wind damp arthritis causing wandering pain and constriction, and knee pain with inability to walk. It breaks up tumors and masses, and heals blood accumulations as well as wounds caused by metal objects. The best Fuzi is produced in Mianzhou in the region of Shu.
BY YANG TIANHUI (Song Dynasty, 1039 CE)
TRANSLATED BY HEINER FRUEHAUF
The following text represents the most detailed pre-modern description of the traditional cultivation of medicinal aconite in China. It was written more than 900 years ago by a Sichuanese official in charge of Zhangming County. Zhangming is situated in the location of today’s Jiangyou County, epicenter of the recent Sichuan earthquake, which has been identified by all ancient materia medica experts as the only place where genuine Chinese aconite should be sourced from.
GERMAN TRANSLATION BY MARKUS GOEKE
WITH HEINER FRUEHAUF
INTERVIEW BY BOB QUINN
GERMAN TRANSLATION BY MARKUS GOEKE
On February 19, 2009 Heiner Fruehauf, PhD, LAc, sat down with his colleague Bob Quinn, DAOM, LAc, to discuss the importance of aconite (fuzi) in classical Chinese medicine. The discussion also covers aspects of the fuzi story not covered elsewhere in the west, namely its proper processing. Heiner also touches on some of the “nuts and bolts” of the Sichuan Fire Spirit School of herbal prescribing. As Heiner explains, fuzi used to be referred to as the “King of the 100 Herbs.” This information is crucial to understanding the scholarship and clinical power behind formulas that contain aconite.
BY HEINER FRUEHAUF
GERMAN TRANSLATION BY MARKUS GOEKE
Heiner Fruehauf has researched the ancient symbolism that defines the finer points of Chinese organ network function for 10 years. His prolific research project will eventually culminate in the creation of an illustrated compendium on the macrocosmic and microcosmic ramifications of organ network theory. Since the publication of this effort is still years away, he has decided to make a selection from his cache of existing research papers available now by publishing them on ClassicalChineseMedicine.org. The first installment of these papers consists of a detailed etymological analysis of the character of fei 肺 (lung), and the defining statement on the lung’s function/office in chapter 8 of the Huangdi neijing suwen.
BY HEINER FRUEHAUF
GERMAN TRANSLATION BY MARKUS GOEKE
This from a series of transcripts of video lectures from ClassicalPearls.org, the site for herbal formulas based on over thirty years of clinical and academic research by Prof. Heiner Fruehauf. Thunder Pearls Chinese herbal formula is a unique remedy for the important clinical phenomenon of “Abdominal Gu Syndrome”: difficult and treatment resistant diseases caused by chronic, often undiagnosable parasitic infections of the digestive system. This formulation, as Dr. Fruehauf presents, is sourced from ancient Daoist medicine texts and personally proven many times in modern clinical practice.This statement has not been evaluated by the FDA.
REPRINTED WITH PERMISSION FROM CLASSICAL PEARLS HERBAL FORMULAS
WANG QINGYU
Direct Transmission shares the faces and stories of several remarkable practitioners of classical Chinese medicine, people who are a living link to the treasures of the past. It is our hope that the nature of this unprecedented material, woven of colorful and emotionally moving stories, interviews, and treatment sessions, will inspire expanded interest in, and understanding of, the profound value of traditional knowledge in general, and classical Chinese medicine in particular.
WANG QINGYU, LIU LIHONG, AND HEINER FRUEHAUF
In this video conversation at Jiashan Monastery in Hunan Province, China, two masters of the classical healing arts spontaneously share some of their insights into how information in classical Chinese medicine gets passed on in the magic of the moment.
WANG QINGYU AND HEINER FRUEHAUF
Presentation about the root of Chinese medicine by one of China's only remaining elders of Daoist medicine.
LIU LIHONG AND HEINER FRUEHAUF
A concise introduction to the forgotten symbolism of the Twelve Organ Network System of Chinese Medicine, and how it enhances the more commonly used Five Phase Element System with much needed details for diagnosis and treatment.