BOOK-of-the-MONTH
|
Todd
Luger's Mini-Review
|
|
|
My favorite new materia medica
since I got my first Bensky. This is truly a series of lectures
or commentary on the herbs rather than just another rote recitation of
the hard data. While written in Wiseman terminology, the authors
prove again (as they did in their shanghanlun) that these terms can be
rendered in a very readable prose that really brings Jiao to
life. The book is chock full of comparisons, combinations,
formula examples and biomedical speculation. Jiao is a great
teacher and pioneer in the spirit of Zhang xi chun.
|
|
|
An excellent discussion of the
practice of chinese medicine in modern china by an anthropologist who
is also a practitioner. Scheid makes the case that chinese
medicine has always been pluralistic and remains so today. He
traces the development of modern TCM by a survey of books over the past
50 years representing various trends, debunking many common
misconceptions along the way. The book is not just for scholars,
though. It has practical examples of cases analysis and tables
detailing various diagnostic schemes. It is an enjoyable read on
several levels, but especially for the serious student of chinese
culture. The more one understands chinese culture, the better is
one's context for practice. Scheid's work contributes greatly to
this dual goal.
|
|
|
With this book, Paul Unschuld
has launched a herculean task. The translation of the nei jing su
wen and all relevant commentaries. This first volume introduces
the project and discusses the relevant concepts that will be explored
in the translations and commentaries to follow. In this volume he
writes about the meaning of the title nei jing su wen and formulates
hypotheses on the nature of qi, blood and the contents of the
body. He places this all in a historical and anthropological
context. While a superb book, this one is definitely more for
those who have scholarly leanings. It is not the type of book you
walk away from with immediate clinical insights. But for those
who believe studying the nei jing is a desirable undertaking, this book
lays an important foundation for that endeavor. Without the
context this book provides, one could easily get lost in the depth of
the su wen. While I do not necessarily agree with all Mr.
Unschuld's conclusions, this book is the best basis for developing any
point of view on the matters it addresses. It is filled with
passages and quotes from the classics to modern scholars of both east
and west. You can't argue another point of view without first
being fully conversant with that of Mr. Unschuld's.
|
|
|
Deke Kendall proposes that the
contents of the nei jing su wen are largely based upon anatomy.
Yet, ironically as I read Deke, I have developed a newfound interest in
classical acupuncture. While Deke may be dismissed as a reductionist, I
think he is actually a great example of the trend espoused by zhang xi
chun and embodied by jiao shu de. Maintaining the spirit of CM while
integrating with the west. Deke most definitely accomplished that
goal. His entire presentation of phsyiology and anatomy is
completely from the perspective of Western Medicine serving Chinese,
not vice-versa. He asserts that CM will be proven to be real just as it
is written, not by scrapping large parts of the corpus to make it fit
science (as the modern chinese did somewhat in their state texts). He
believes every word of nei jing and he makes strong cases for pulse
diagnosis and classical point selection that never made sense to me
before. Far from reducing CM to prevailing reductionistic ideas,
Deke shows that there is different way of understanding the
neurovascular system and its role in health and disease and the neijing
details that. His model explains all the effects of acupuncture
satisfactorily and he attempts to ground his ideas in a reading of the
classics. Rather than reducing CM with his model, Deke has actually
paved the way for EXPANDING western science to accommodate explanations
of phenomena hitherto inconceivable. I think work like Deke's is
exactly what leads to a paradigm shift. The structures of normal
science are challenged from within and a more expansive model is
developed as a result.
|
|
|
I was immediately struck by the
readability of this text. It is written in a very accessible style that
distinguishes it from similar texts that are scholarly translations
from the Chinese. It was written in English for a western audience.
However, the text is filled with liberal use of quotations from
classical texts on warm diseases. This is a literary device also put to
good use by one of my favorite writers in the field, Stephen Clavey, in
his Fluid Physiology and Pathology in TCM. I like to have access to
both direct translations and more accessible commentary and clinical
guides like this new one. To me, that is the best of both worlds. Books
like this one from Dr. Liu are immediately clinically useful and
provide an entry point into a complex subject. Then one can seek out
directly translated source material such as Paradigm's Wen Bing Xue to
deepen one's knowledge. Conversely, if one is using the Paradigm text,
one may turn to the Eastland book to illuminate difficult concepts in
straightforward language. In addition to having ample classical
quotes to wrestle with, Dr. Liu provides considerable insights from his
own long experience as well as gems from many of the senior physicians
he has mentored with over the years. He is always very clear when he is
giving his own opinion or that of a colleague to distinguish these
offerings from opinions that are general consensus in China. That is
very important and a point upon which others have erred in the past.
Dr. Liu takes a broad approach to the warm disease concept, applying it
beyond just the treatment of acute infectious diseases. But to his
merit, he asserts in the introduction that the primary use of this
material is just that. When Dr.Liu expands beyond the idea of
treating infectious disease with this methodology, he does it in a
careful and methodical way that does not rend the fabric of the
concept. It grows but remains rooted in its sources and prior
commentary. Thus, his discussion of chronic allergies being related to
a lurking (or hidden) pathogen is particularly illuminating. I think
readers will especially enjoy the material on hidden pathogens as it is
certainly the clearest and most scholarly presentation yet in the
English language. Also intriguing is his discussion of the use of
purgatives in exterior invasions, which he supports with both classical
quotes, modern commentary and his own clinical experience.
|
|
|
A phenomenally readable and
instructive text. The book includes pinyin and
characters for all clauses. The text covers many basic
characters
still used today, making it an
ideal language learning tool. However the best part of the text
for me is the
extensive commentary section. The book is arranged by grouping
together
all the clauses on a single topic, which also makes it more
accessible to the beginning student. However the original text is
included in the original order as an appendix. The extensive
commentaries are a great fount of chinese thought, especially on
pathomechanisms and symptoms. It is the the elegant way Zhang Zhong
Jing addressed various pathomechanisms with a relatively small number
of herbs and formulas that has made his legacy so durable. The
inclusion of the commentaries thus makes this ancient classic both
contemporaryand pragmatic. A study of the shang han lun gives a
window into the use of herbs in a very remote time and deepens one's
ability to construct focused formulas.
|
|
|
Guillaume's Rheumatology, a
translation from the french, is an interesting work. While the
authors do not use a standardized terminology, they are clearly careful
translators and explain all their interpretations in some detail.
The book includes selected classical tracts on the treatment of bi
syndrome and an excerpted translation of a modern chinese manual on bi
(mostly herbal and familiar, but some gems here). Finally, the
authors's own approach to treating various areas of the body.
They are influenced by van nghi's brand of vietnamese acupuncture,
which relies heavily on rectifying qi flow in the channels.
|
|
|
Kudos to Dagmar Riley for her
book on pain. It is well done, concise and includes information
not found elsewhere in english. Of note are the small number of
ingredients in many formulas, as well as the variety of doses, from 10g
TID of ground herbs in draft form to huge doses of blood moving herbs
after injury. the acupuncture draws upon classical ideas, not
just TCM. One other thing I really liked about this book is the
liberal use of pinyin and chinese characters. This book thus
makes a good choice for those learning to read chinese.
|
|
|
This is a great book for
learning about herbs. The author makes the best didactic use of
flavor and temperature I have ever seen. While there are some
inconsistencies in this book and some information differs form the
board exam standard, it is of great value to the serious student and
perhaps even moreso, the serious teacher of materia medica. It
supplements the information already available on herb comparisons and
goes into much more detail where it overlaps. Very well rendered
in English.
|
|
|
One of series of recent releases
from Blue Poppy. This series focuses on integrative medicine and
is arranged by western diseases. This is a departure for blue
poppy, which as published many books organized by chinese
diseases. However this book takes on an important task: the
reframing and conceptualization of numerous common western diagnoses.
Our patients often present with western diagnoses and this may pose a
challenge to both the serious beginner and the advanced
practitioner. Flaws shares his personal insights on many
conditions while Philippe Sionneau provides much of the treatment
protocols, some of which are clearly adapted from his 7 volume series
organized by chinese conditions. Flaws presentation is textbook
TCM on one hand, with careful attention to modern PRC diagnostic
standards, pattern naming and term choice. However, it also
embodies the yin fire approach to the treatment of complex disorders
characterized by numerous mutually engendering patterns. While
the book canbe used to practice a simplistic style of cookbook
treatment, it encourages the practitioner to dynamically combine
patterns to create individualized treatment for patients. The
lengthy introductory chapter provides valuable information on how to go
about this latter process and each subsequent chapter reinforces that
goal.
|
