Traditional chinese medicine: Many Branches, one root
by Michelle manto
Traditional Chinese Medicine: Many Branches One Root
by Michelle Manto
When trying to make sense of Traditional Chinese Medicine, which for a practitioner may well take the better part of a lifetime, it is helpful to remember that it is the result of thousands of years of study and observation. It encompasses our participation and interaction with our environment; including our immediate surroundings, our world at large and the universe in which we live. So, most times if not all the time, the imagery and words used to describe this medicine come from nature. As simple as that sounds, it can be most elusive. Many branches one root refers to so many things in our lives; from our family relationships to our chosen (or not chosen) profession to our beliefs and opinions. The root may support the branches but the branches create the root, one only exists because of the other.
Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chinese medical philosophy and theory, consists of eight branches. These eight branches or specialties all stem from the one root of Traditional Chinese Medicine…one creates eight which in turn forms the one. The eight branches, designed as guidelines, allowed practitioners to group their common professions as one unit and supported people in understanding their roles and responsibilities in maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
The eight traditional branches are:
Belief was that by using the eight traditional branches, harmony and balance would return. As a result, a person would become more in tune with themselves and with their environment. This is easy in theory but most difficult in reality. It was a challenge then and it is a challenge now. Nevertheless, anything we can do to restore our individual and collective cohesiveness is the reason behind all that is.
After all, a little harmony and balance in today’s world would be a good thing.
To Learn more about Michelle and her acupuncture offerings, click here.
by Michelle Manto
When trying to make sense of Traditional Chinese Medicine, which for a practitioner may well take the better part of a lifetime, it is helpful to remember that it is the result of thousands of years of study and observation. It encompasses our participation and interaction with our environment; including our immediate surroundings, our world at large and the universe in which we live. So, most times if not all the time, the imagery and words used to describe this medicine come from nature. As simple as that sounds, it can be most elusive. Many branches one root refers to so many things in our lives; from our family relationships to our chosen (or not chosen) profession to our beliefs and opinions. The root may support the branches but the branches create the root, one only exists because of the other.
Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chinese medical philosophy and theory, consists of eight branches. These eight branches or specialties all stem from the one root of Traditional Chinese Medicine…one creates eight which in turn forms the one. The eight branches, designed as guidelines, allowed practitioners to group their common professions as one unit and supported people in understanding their roles and responsibilities in maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
The eight traditional branches are:
- Acupuncture, the most popular of the branches, involves the insertion of very fine needles along designated pathways called meridians,
- Chinese Herbal Medicine, a highly refined science, details formulas that focus on each person’s signs, symptoms and constitution,
- Tuina, Chinese therapeutic massage, is a specialized form of bodywork therapy that does not use oils or lotions,
- Chinese Food Therapy or Chinese Nutritional Medicine bases food choices on the season, the person and the desired result,
- Taichi (Taiji quan), a type of inner martial arts, develops strength and power,
- Qigong, a breathing and meditation exercise, balances the mind, the body and the spirit,
- Fengshui, the art of placement or Geomancy, coordinates the person with their environment, and,
- Chinese Astrology, perhaps the least popular of the branches, connects the person with the cycles of nature, the movement of the planets and their place in the universe.
Belief was that by using the eight traditional branches, harmony and balance would return. As a result, a person would become more in tune with themselves and with their environment. This is easy in theory but most difficult in reality. It was a challenge then and it is a challenge now. Nevertheless, anything we can do to restore our individual and collective cohesiveness is the reason behind all that is.
After all, a little harmony and balance in today’s world would be a good thing.
To Learn more about Michelle and her acupuncture offerings, click here.