[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next]
[Main Index][Thread Index]

# RE: Hermetic Accupuncture

#### Message 02875 of 3835

- To: BardonPraxis@yahoogroups.com
- Subject: RE: Hermetic Accupuncture
- From: "Jon Heiner" <jonheiner@...>
- Date: Sat, 31 Jul 2004 19:28:44 -0400
- Bcc:

    Anton-

`I'm not an expert, and i'm sure there are a few people on this list who are classically and mystically trained in Oriental Medicine, but I have done a fair bit of research on the topic and may be able to point out some pitfalls and guide you to definitive sources.`
`Firstly, the 12 meridians, to my knowledge, do not correspond to the 12 signs. The signs are archetypal, as I understand them, and serve more to indicate predilections for personality and "ethereal bodies" as one might say on this list. [This is my understanding and it is quite limited as i've not studied Astrology, but I believe it to be an adequate stance for the topic at hand.] The 12 meridians do literally correspond to lines on the body that influence the energy and health of the physical body. Whether these 12 meridians correspond to higher energies of the body, above the physical, I do not know, but thus far I have not seen anything to indicate that they relate to the astrological signs. I believe it would be possible to tack together some correlations, but this is more a by-product of the fact that there are only so many archetypes and there is a lot of crossover.`
`As far as interest in Oriental Medicine, I would encourage you to seek out texts that are geared toward Western readers. There are a lot of "fluffy" books out there, so let me recommend two. "The Web That Has No Weaver" by Ted J. Kaptchuk is a good introductory text that is technical enough, but easy to read. And "The Fundamentals of Chinese Medicine" by Wiseman/Ellis is a translation of the first-year medical textbook for Beijing. It is extremely technical, but will address any questions you may have had on the pragmatic side of OM.`
`Secondly, the five Chinese elements. Don't try to make analogies between the four Western elements and the Earth/Air/Fire/Water/Metal of Eastern philosophy. You CAN, but again, it's due to crossover, not any real correlation. One way to understand the 5 elements is thusly, life and many aspects of life are difficult to balance. Entropy would state that life is NOT a balanced state, and in fact energy must continually be added to the system [of life] to keep it harmonious. This is also stated in the second law of thermodynamics. The 5 element theory is an appropriate and _qualitative_ way of saying the same thing. Simply put, Life can be hard; how does one cope?`
`The 5 elements have been used in every aspect of Chinese life to explain and help create a qualitative model for getting a grip on complexity. In martial arts, an example dear to me, they are used to exemplify the complicated movements of the body and in particular the interactions between two or more individuals in conflict. In cooking, they address both the flavour and the health properties of the food. In Eastern Medicine, and you will find this if you read the books mentioned above, the elements outline the interactions of the ten major systems of the body. However, the analogy is not perfect, and modern Eastern Medicine emphasizes the fact that the 5 elements do NOT model all cases and DO fall apart in a non-trivial number of cases.--an important point.`
`This is why I keep emphasizing the word qualitative. Western thought is much more quantitative and focuses on so-called scientific thought. And this is a key reason why trying to mix the two is a recipe for confusion. They are complementary areas of knowledge, but not correlative. Knowledge of both can be helpful, depending upon why you are studying it, but should be kept separate.`
`Lastly, understand that Eastern philosophy is mired in cultural context and history. Many of the teachings go back thousands of years. The concepts of Yin/Yang, Five Elements, and 64 Trigrams, are all certainly complementary, interelated, and may have political/cultural significance that is completely lost on someone not raised in the culture. As such, you will see "explanations" of esoteric concepts that are so obviously contrived as to turn you off the entire subject. The latter is quite common. Frankly, this is one of the major up-sides to studying philosophies that are grounded in your own culture.`

    Good luck. I hope that you find what you're looking for.
    Jon

    ---original message---

    I am very interested in acupuncture and chinese medicine however I
    find it very hard to get on with the chinese elements. I know that
    both the Japanese and the Tibetans use the western/ Emperdolican
    (earth air fire water) elements so I was wondering if any one could
    help me find a correspondence to the meridians using these elements?
    In addition to this I once read that the 12 meridains corresponded
    tith the 12 astrological signs does anyone know if this is true?

    I would be very gratefull for any help.

    Anton

`_________________________________________________________________
Is your PC infected? Get a FREE online computer virus scan from McAfee® Security. http://clinic.mcafee.com/clinic/ibuy/campaign.asp?cid=3963`

- Prev by Date: Fw: Welcome to BardonPraxis
- Next by Date: Reality Versus Perception-to rawn&all
- Previous by thread: Re: the occult body / particulars
- Next by thread: Reality Versus Perception-to rawn&all
- Indexes:
  - Main
  - Thread

Main Index | Thread Index