The Pericardium Organ Network of Chinese Medicine
The heart protector function. Join us for a discussion of the functions of the Pericardium Organ Network—the system responsible for protecting our heart and allowing for true intimacy.
Visions of the Baojun: Donald Trump and the Pathological Large Intestine Archetype in Classical Chinese Medicine
BY HEINER FRUEHAUF
This impromptu three part editorial by Heiner Fruehauf is an attempt to make sense of the recent US presidential elections through the constructive lens of Chinese medicine systems science.
Western Holistic Medicine: How to Truly Integrate Different Approaches to Medicine
Heiner and Laurie interview Dr. Paul Kalnins, a scholar practitioner with an unusually broad and deep perspective on how to truly integrate biomedical approaches with natural medicine approaches. After majoring in physics in his undergraduate studies, Dr. Kalnins attained degrees in Chinese and naturopathic medicine, and pursued additional study of the works of Goethe and Steiner. Dr. Kalnins discusses methods of cultivating one’s own perceptive abilities as a means to more directly understand what part of “the whole” is elucidated by different systems of medicine, and how these systems can be used together to optimize patient care.
Healing Through the Emotions: The Confucian Therapy System of Wang Fengyi
This 5-element emotional release system can result in a rapid and profound return to health. Tamara Staudt, ND, LAc shares with Heiner and Laurie her direct experience with this powerful system of emotional healing. In 2010, Dr. Staudt was a member of the first group of foreigners to attend in a Wang Fengyi retreat in China. Having received great personal benefit as a participant, Dr. Staudt was inspired to lead the first Wang Fengyi retreat in the United States in June, 2011. Of particular note, one woman who entered the US retreat with liposarcoma remains cancer-free since that time. Heiner and Laurie have also participated in this type of healing work, and are big proponents of its powerful simplicity.
Treating Trauma in Times of War and Peace
Acupuncture gives hope to the survivors of trauma–even those suffering from PTSD. It is common knowledge that the long-term sequelae of trauma can be devastating, but how many know there is much hope available in the form of acupuncture and other forms of natural medicine? Laurie interviews Roger Batchelor, DAOM, LAc, who has more than two decades of experience treating trauma survivors in public health and private clinical settings. Roger gives insight into how an acute traumatic event (or series of events) can cause chronic problems, and how these can be reversed through the skillful use of Chinese medicine.
The “Bladder Type” and the “Kidney Type” in Chinese Medicine
BLADDER
The bladder is the organ function that leads to Enlightenment. Heiner discusses how ancient symbol scientists described the functioning of what is arguably the body’s most mystical and esoteric channel network, namely the Bladder.
KIDNEY
What did real “surrender” mean to the ancient Chinese, and why did they deem it to be necessary for a person to live a fully authentic life? We’ll explore this question today, through the discussion of the characteristics attributed to the Kidney Channel Network of Chinese medicine. Ancient wisdom keepers defined the body’s root system as a type of “battery” for the storage of our core vitality, called “Source Qi”.
Natural Medicine Works for Animals, Too (2 Parts)
Our guest this week and next has a unique perspective from which to compare and integrate conventional and natural medicine. Steve Marsden was by all accounts a successful veterinarian, but felt that his toolkit of drugs and surgery was too limited to reliably achieve the kinds of outcomes that he wanted to with his furry, feathered, and scaled patients. Although initially wary of natural medicine, he was willing to investigate whether it could broaden and deepen his ability to help animals heal.
Ascending and Descending in Herbal Medicine: An Interview with Heiner Fruehauf, PhD
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.
Your Body is a Sacred Landscape
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.
The Cosmology and Symbolism of the Twelve Organ Systems of Chinese Medicine
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.
The Empress of all the Chinese Organ Networks—the Heart
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.
Why Classical Chinese Medicine is Relevant Today
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.
The Inspiring Life Story of Chinese Qigong Master Wang Qingyu (2 Parts)
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.
Medicine and the Dao: New Reflections on the Relationship Between Two Vital Aspects of Chinese Culture (3 Parts)
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
Etymological Analysis of the Defining Quote on the Lung Official in Chapter Eight of the Huangdi neijing suwen (肺者，相傅之官，治節出焉)
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
Sacred Chants: Medicine Buddha Chant
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.
Voice from the Mountaintop: Heiner Fruehauf on Traditional Chinese Medicine and Lyme Disease (3 Parts)
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.
Six Conformation Diagnosis in Context: The Six Cosmic Qi (liu qi) and the Six Stages of Qi Transformation (liu jing)
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.
The Liver and Gallbladder: Selected Readings
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.
Chinese Medicine In Crisis: Science, Politics, and the Making of “TCM”
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.
On the Relationship Between Medicine and Philosophy
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.
Reflections on the Relationship of Traditional Wisdom, Precision, and Clinical Efficacy in the Herbal Science of Chinese Medicine (2 Parts)
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
Driving Out Demons and Snakes: Gu Syndrome, A Forgotten Clinical Approach to Chronic Parasitism
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.
Gancao Xiexin Tang (Licorice Purge the Heart Decoction): A Forgotten Key Remedy For the Treatment of Toxic Skin Conditions
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.
Lyme Disease: An In-Depth Interview with Heiner Fruehauf
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.
Gu Syndrome: An In-depth Interview with Heiner Fruehauf
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.
The Flagship Remedy of Chinese Medicine: Reflections on the Toxicity and Safety of Aconite
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.
A Description of the Therapeutic Uses of Aconite by the Ming Dynasty Scholar-Physician Zhang Jingyue (1583-1640)
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).
Zhang Zhicong (fl. 1619-1674): On Fuzi
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.
Yang Tianhui: Notes from My Visit to the Fuzi Growing Area of Zhangming County
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