Update: As a few people informed me, there was some problems with the twitter & RSS feed notification system, however I think it has been resolved. Furthermore, while finishing up the final stages of my book I have had little time to post, so for those that  actually may have checked the website recently, I apologize for the lack of activity. However, at the moment I have more time and will resume posting. Please let me know if there is…

By: Qin Bo-Wei Translated By: Jason Blalack The names in the warm disease current are extremely complicated. Besides the name, warm disease itself, there is wind-warmth, spring-warmth, summerheat-warmth, autumn-warmth, winter-warmth, damp-warmth, warm-epidemic, warm-toxin, warm-malaria, as well as lurking summerheat, autumn-dryness etc. All of these are within the scope of warm disease. I think that these should be restructured with some added explanation. Only after we rectify these terms will we be able to perform some judicious pruning.

1. Spring-warmth: Warmth

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A Touch of Ling: Learning from ancient case records This article originally appeared in The Lantern, Volume 7, No.3 September 2010. by Jason Blalack Studying Chinese medicine case records is an invaluable way to enhance one’s clinical skills beyond basic textbook knowledge. Qin Bo-Wei, one of the most important educators and clinicians of the 20th century, strongly advocated detailed study of case records, and said that they are the “intimate integration between theory and practice.” Their study enables one…

Further thoughts on understanding Ye Tian-Shi’s case records. By: Jason Blalack Ye Tian-Shi is quite arguably one of the most important clinicians in Chinese medical history. His most important contribution, Case Records as a Guide to Clinical Practice (lin zheng zhi nan), is a compilation of case records by his students. It should be noted that, for a period of time in the Qing Dynasty that doctors/students would only study this book while ignoring the “classics.” Although criticized for this…

By: Charles Chace The first systematic discussion of the extraordinary vessels in Chinese herbal medicine appears in Li Shizhen’s 李時珍Exposition on the Eight Extraordinary Vessels (Qijing bamai Kao奇經八脈考, circa, 1576).  In our forthcoming translation and commentary on this text, Exposition on the Extraordinary Vessels, Acupuncture, Alchemy and Herbal Medicine, Eastland Press, 2009, my co-author Miki Shima and I describe Li’s approach to herbal prescribing as an overarching “meta-diagnosis” encompassing a wide range of possible zangfu presentations. For instance, Li Shizhen…

A Model for a Mode of Inquiry in Chinese Medicine By: Bob Damone According to Wiseman and Feng (1998), Vacuity Detriment (xū sǔn 虚损) is “any form of severe chronic insufficiency of yīn-yáng, qì-blood, and bowels and viscera arising through internal damage by the seven affects, taxation fatigue, diet, excesses of drink and sex, or enduring illness.” (p.646) I have found this Chinese disease category helpful in evaluating and formulating treatment strategies for patients with enduring diseases such as Chronic…

By: Jason Blalack Ye Tian-Shi was one of the most influential doctors in Chinese medical history in developing clinical applications of the eight extraordinary channel herbal theory. Following is a translated excerpt that summarizes some of the core ideas that he used. Following this piece will be numerous case studies demonstrating these principles in action. Ye Tian-Shi’s Pattern Differentiation and Treatment of the Eight Extraordinary Channels Ye Tian-Shi used eight extraordinary channel theory in 165 recorded cases.

Understanding Ye Tian Shi’s Cases

Sunday, November 1st, 2009 with 0 comments
Tags:Qing Dynasty  Ye Tian-Shi

Charles Chace recently brought this following passage to my attention. We both found it interesting in helping to understand Ye Tian-Shi’s case studies and putting into context the shorthand style that his cases are presented in. It is an excerpt from Thinking with Cases — Specialist Knowledge and Chinese Cultural History(2007) by Charlotte Furth. A great read. “… the admirers of Ye Gui (1666-1745) saw to it that after his death some of this legendary doctor’s personal clinical…