TCM book recommendation for beginner/intermediate?

[Guest guest]

Chinese Traditional Medicine , " mrasmm " <mrasmm wrote:

>

> I would like to ask the board about some good TCM books to read.

 

It sounds like you're ready for The Foundations of

by Giovanni Maciocia, ISBN 0-443-03980-1. It's a hardback textbook

so it is fairly expensive. But there's a way for you to check it out

to see if it's what you need.

 

Libraries in the US and other countries have something called

interlibrary loan. If the local library system doesn't have a copy

of the book, it will send all over the country until it locates a

copy for the person. BTW, copies of Maciocia's Foundations often are

found in college, university, and allopathic med school libraries.

 

In some localities this is a free service, in others you pay the

book rate postage.

 

After checking the book out this way, if it's one you would like to

own, there are places on the Internet that will help you locate the

best buy on the book in your country.

 

The important thing to remember about Yin and Yang from a healing

aspect is that Yin cools, calms, and moistens, and Yang heats,

activates, and dries. Also that the Chinese think in terms of how

everything is in relation to something else. For example, the head

is Yang compared to the feet which are Yin compared to the head. The

back of the body is Yang compared to the front which is Yin compared

to the back. BTW, the Yang meridians transverse the back and the

lateral (outward) sides of the arms and legs. The Yin meridians

transverse the front and the insides of the arms and legs.

[Guest guest]

im a first year student at AAAOM. its great.

 

 

 

-

igneous_bear

Chinese Traditional Medicine

Wednesday, July 05, 2006 3:17 AM

Re: [Chinese Traditional Medicine] TCM book recommendation for

beginner/intermediate?

 

 

AAAOM (a small but very good school in Minnesota)

recommends these books:

http://www.aaaom.org/AAAOM%20Recommends%20Top%20100%20TCM%20Books.html

 

This link is to descriptions of a few of the classical

works:

http://www.aaaom.org/CHINESE%20MED%20CLASSICS.htm

 

-s

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Version: 7.1.394 / Virus Database: 268.9.9/382 - Release 7/4/2006

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Mercurius' lists are the basics and a good one for students to keep

for further reference - one can find excellent lists at Amazon on

TCM.

 

Two other reccomendations for Intermediate and advanced students -

 

Steven Clavey's book 'Fluid Physiology and Pathology in Traditional

' in my mind is an essential book for understanding

the foundation issues in human pathology.

 

There are two core issues that differeniate between Ayurveda and

they appear to be contradictions on the surface but they are

not really contradictory they are simply different ways of looking

at the same problem. Ayurveda postulates that majority of acquired

disease patterns begin in the Stomach -TCM postulates that the

majority of accquired disease begins in the Kidneys - meaning that

the post heaven Jing determines human success and disease. In the

ancient Ayurvedic literature the Master's postulate that when

digestion is ineffecient the food is not digested properly this

damages the stomach by creating excess acid and fermentaion

processes - this process creates a toxic substance which is called

Ama in Sanskrit - this is phlegm in TCM terms- once these toxic

substances enter the blood and the small intestine then we are in

the first phase of almost every accquired disease syndrome - with

the first organ being effected being the Kidneys since it is the

Kidneys which are responsible for trying to eleminate these toxic

substances - furtermore the Ama component is interfering with and

slowing down dozens of processes of metabolism including those in

the Kidneys - this is where Ayurveda and TCM merge and come to a

common understanding of pathology.

 

TCM postulates that it is the weak Kidneys (defecient Preheaven

Jing) which is the source of the weakened Stomach - this of course

is true but there is an important distinction that needs to be made -

it is not just defecient Jing that is at fault it is also bad

habits and erroneous choices in eating which can overwhelm even a

healthy strong Stomach - too much food - insuffecint movement to

support the quantity of food eaten - wrong food combinations - foods

with powerful excessive qualaties like cold, hot, acidic, bitter,

sweet, etc.- so many things interfere with good digestion. We can

see that there is no real contradiction in these two ideas coming

from TCM and Ayurveda - these are the basic concepts held at the

core by most traditional systems of medicine. The point is that if

we have preheaven defeciencies then we may be more susceptible to

all diseases caused by excess - since defecient people are more

prone to accumulations because they are less effecient in their

metabolism. Weakened people are easily made weaker - creating many

defecient states caused by excess - meaning more than can be dealt

with.

 

Ayurveda and TCM both state the first problem caused by poor

digestion is water accumulations caused by the acid toxins in the

Stomach - this is the source of the damp accumulations in the Spleen

(a critical factor in the cascading pathological process) - acid

water accumulation along with the poorly digested food substances

(Ama/phlegm) - is what poisons the blood because the Spleen is

unable to seperate the righteous Qi from the Turbid - so the toxic

blood circulates bringing these toxins to every cell. This is the

beginning of disease at the organ and cellular level. Most disease

process can be traced along this pathway.

 

When the Kidneys and Spleen are not able to perform their functions

water is not distributed properly and thousands of pathological

processes will begin to manifest. Steven Clavey' book goes into this

process in depth. Anyone who can understand Steven's book can

understand most of the ordinary pathology that is encountered.

 

In my classes in India I reccomend this book to most asspiring

physicians since I think it deals with the real and core issues of

clinical practice. One of the great things about the Internet is any

person in the world who can afford books can order them through the

Internet. In India the availability of books (especially scientific

texts)is very limited.

 

Another book that plays a similar role and indeed is closely related

to the general issues of fluid physiology and pathology is a book by

Yan De-Xin 'Aging and Blood Stasis' - although this book is

basically a clinical handbook on TCM geriatrics it is one of the

best books on the general subject of blood stasis - blood stasis is

a critical issue in clinical practice as it is a core issue in most

defeciency processes like hypometabolism. Stagnant ineffecient blood

carrying toxins explains many of the most common patholgies in

severly defecient people (including but certainly not limited to the

aging). This is an important aspect of fluid physiology and

pathology that must be understood by aspiring clinicins. I reccomend

this book to all hypometabolic people regardless of their age. By

the way this book is considered revolutionary in China because Dr.

Yan De-Yin has developed a new theory of the role of blood stasis in

hypometabolic processes - Dr. Yan De-Xin is one of the greatest

living clinicians in China and has played a major role in

revitalizing TCM clinical practice - bringing it into the modern

age. I consider this book to be a major contribution in the evolving

new medical paradigm that is modernizing traditional clinical

practice - making it more effecient and effective. Such thinkers are

putting a new emphasis into TCM which is pulling together many loose

ends in traditional systems. Anyone wanting to avoid the major

problems of aging should come to understand these concepts - also

anyone with hypometabolism diseases like CFS.

[Guest guest]

Chinese Traditional Medicine , " Vinod Kumar " <vinod3x3

wrote:

>

> Steven Clavey's book 'Fluid Physiology and Pathology in

Traditional

> ' in my mind is an essential book for

understanding

> the foundation issues in human pathology.

 

This is an excellent book. Yes, it's definitely for advanced

students and not a light read. But one can learn a lot from it. I'm

going through it chapter by chapter and making notes on what I read

in order to help myself better understand it.

 

> Another book that plays a similar role and indeed is closely

related

> to the general issues of fluid physiology and pathology is a book

by

> Yan De-Xin 'Aging and Blood Stasis' - although this book is

> basically a clinical handbook on TCM geriatrics it is one of the

> best books on the general subject of blood stasis - blood stasis

is

> a critical issue in clinical practice as it is a core issue in

most

> defeciency processes like hypometabolism. Stagnant ineffecient

blood

> carrying toxins explains many of the most common patholgies in

> severly defecient people (including but certainly not limited to

the

> aging). This is an important aspect of fluid physiology and

> pathology that must be understood by aspiring clinicins. I

reccomend

> this book to all hypometabolic people regardless of their age.

 

This is another very good book. It's not as difficult as the Fluid

Pathology book, but it still has a lot of very important info in

it. As you point out, Blood Stasis is not limited to the elderly

but can strike anyone of any age.

 

> By

> the way this book is considered revolutionary in China because Dr.

> Yan De-Yin has developed a new theory of the role of blood stasis

in

> hypometabolic processes - Dr. Yan De-Xin is one of the greatest

> living clinicians in China and has played a major role in

> revitalizing TCM clinical practice - bringing it into the modern

> age.

 

For the readers who are unfamiliar with the situation, declining

Kidney function as people age traditionally has been considered the

Root of so many of the problems that the elderly experience. Dr. Yan

De-Xin has documented that the elderly also tend to have more

problems with Blood Stasis than younger people do, and so many of

the typical problems of aging are Blood Stasis problems.

 

They are both very good books.

[Guest guest]

Thank you both igneous_bear, and Mercurius Trismegistus. This looks

like a very good list of books to go with. Several people have

recommended the book " The Foundations of : A

Comprehensive Text for Acupuncturists And Herbalists " by Giovanni

MacIocia, and from what I gather it is one of the main books for say

the CA board exam, and it is also on that list you sent, so I think I

will probably start there.

 

Thanks again for the list =)

[Guest guest]

I really appreciate the detailed response on how to check out this

book through interlibrary loan, it really helped. I've got it on

order at the local library, then I'll take a look at it as see if it

is what I am looking for, and then probably buy it. From the few

pages I read of it on amazon.com, it seems just what I am looking for.

 

Thanks again!

[Guest guest]

The Maciocia book is very good. I also like " the web

that has no weaver " and the qi gong books listed there

(as good overviews on theory). And of course you'll

want to get a hold of the classic books, so that you

can read from the original sources.

 

Right now I'm reading " Hara diagnosis: reflections on

the sea " by Matsumoto and Birch (it's about japanese

meridian therapy). I like it because the authors dig

around in the classics quite a bit and I also want to

become skilled at palpation, which stressed in the

japanese style.

 

-s

 

--- mrasmm <mrasmm wrote:

 

> Thank you both igneous_bear, and Mercurius

> Trismegistus. This looks

> like a very good list of books to go with. Several

> people have

> recommended the book " The Foundations of Chinese

> Medicine: A

> Comprehensive Text for Acupuncturists And

> Herbalists " by Giovanni

> MacIocia, and from what I gather it is one of the

> main books for say

> the CA board exam, and it is also on that list you

> sent, so I think I

> will probably start there.

>

> Thanks again for the list =)

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Thank you both igneous_bear, and Mercurius Trismegistus. This looks

like a very good list of books to go with. Several people have

recommended the book " The Foundations of : A

Comprehensive Text for Acupuncturists And Herbalists " by Giovanni

MacIocia, and from what I gather it is one of the main books for say

the CA board exam, and it is also on that list you sent, so I think I

will probably start there. Thanks again for the list =)

 

 

MT: its my understanding that the board exams are mainly based on CAM, or

CHINESE ACUPUNCTURE AND MOXIBUSTION. gont remember the author. but maciocia is

one of the main texts we use in classes. peter deadman's book is very good too.

maciocia is very highly thought of and also has a book on diagnosis, which we

use as a textbook.

mercurius trismegistus

 

 

[Guest guest]

Chinese Traditional Medicine , igneous_bear <igneous_bear

wrote:

> Right now I'm reading " Hara diagnosis: reflections on

> the sea " by Matsumoto and Birch (it's about japanese

> meridian therapy). I like it because the authors dig

> around in the classics quite a bit and I also want to

> become skilled at palpation, which stressed in the

> japanese style.

>

 

This book is a masterpiece - it is both the best of tradition as well

as a particular vision of one of the great modern Japanese

practioners. The work of a true modern master.