Page i Acupuncture and Moxibustion Formulas & Treatments Cheng Dan-An Compiled & Translated by Wu Ming Blue Poppy PressPage iv Published by: BLUE POPPY PRESS 1775 LINDEN AVE. BOULDER, CO 80304 First Edition, January, 1996 ISBN 0-936185-68-6 LC 95-83248, COPYRIGHT 1996 © BLUE POPPY PRESS lll rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval, transcribed in any form or by any other means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other means, or translated into any language without the prior written permission of the publisher The information in this book is givin in good faith. However, the translators and the publishers cannot be held responsible for any error or omission, Nor can they be held in any way responsible fr treatment givin on the basis of information availible to English language readers for scholarly and research purposes only. ‘The publishers do not advocate nor endorse self-medication by laypersons. Chinese medicine isa professional medicaine. Laypersons interested in availinf themselves of the treatments described inthis book should seek out a qualified professional practitioner of Chinese medicine. COMP Designation: Compilation of functional translations using a standard translational terminology Printed at Johnson Printing in Boulder, CO on acid fiee, recycled, elementally chlorine-free paper 10987654321Page v Preface Cheng Dan-an was a major contributor tothe renaissance of acupuncture in China inthis century. During his illustrious career, Cheng taught many students who have since gone on to spread Chinese acupuncture throughout the world. One of these students ‘was Dr. (James) Tin Yau So. Dr. So was the founder ofthe New England School of Acupuncture (NESA), one ofthe very first American schools of acupuncture and Chinese medicine, Graduates of NESA such as myself have gone on to found or participate in a number of other American acupuncture schools. | believe that I was very fortunate to be one of Dr. So's students at NESA. This makes me a grandehild-hei to the gift of Cheng Dan -an’s knowledge. | am very proud of what Dr. So taught me. Acupuncture training in America in the early 1970's was limited by the small number of textbooks available in English, the scarcity of English-speaking teachers, and the brevity of existing courses. Even so, I believe the training I received from Dr. So was special. | was able to gain a glimpse of a system of acupuncture techniques that is rarely seen in practice today. This traning in time-honored tradition has given me a sense of confidence I have observed in few other of ry fellow practitioners. However, it was not until reading this book by Dr. So's teacher, Cheng Dan-an’s Acupuncture & Moxibustion Formulas & Prescriptions , that [ truly began to grasp the deeper theoretical premises within which Dr. So's work ‘was grounded. For example, Dr. So was a big advocate of direct moxibustion, and this is frequently mentioned inthis book as having been a powerful tool in Dr. Cheng's arsenal. It is now easy for me to understand, given the underlying principles at work, hhow Dr. So became so adept at and confident in his frequent use of moxibustion.Page vi This book also describes special points, ways of ordering and using points in treatment, and specific lengths of times for treating Points. In addition, there are many point and herbal formulas as well as special diagnoses for specific disease patterns —all explained in an easy-to-understand styl. Perhaps even more importantly, itis Dr. Cheng's case histories which speak most clearly. Although these were orginally written 50-60 years ago, one sil gets the sense of the master behind the words. These stories of Dr, Cheng's experiences read as if they were written today in a style which enriches and vivites the text and helps the reader commit these valuable techniques to memory and then to practice. In the early chapters of the text, Dr. Cheng’s discussed the projection of qi. Focusing of the spirit, qi development, and gi projection are crucial factors in obtaining the therapeutic results of acupuncture. I believe itis such spiritual and gi development extending beyond the personal self which makes a great practitioner. There are many way’ in which this can be accomplished according to each individual, but it remains as true today as it has for centuries that an important part of the healers ability to heal lies in learning how to project your qi through your medicine and your self. This essential can be learned through many types of pyscho-spiritual practices: gi gong, fai chi or the internal martial arts. As Dr. So likewise taught, lived, and practiced, we must ‘understand thatthe journey into a realm beyond self is an integral part of an acupuncturists ability to heal and make whole. In reading this book, itis obvious that Dr. Cheng possessed great confidence in what he was able to do. I was able to see those same skills as they were transferred to Dr. So and exhibited in his quick and strong needle technique, his use of direct moxibustion, and his very strong sense of spirit. In all my years of training, I have never witnessed the effectiveness of what I saw under the tutelage of Dr. So. Though some of these techniques, such as direct scarring moxibustion, are not able to be practiced today due to thorny legal issues, still they can be modified to fit a modem practice. IL is my ownPage vit ‘many years experience that one can still use with confidence the overwhelming majority ofthe techniques described in this book if ‘one personalizes them to ft each patients comfort zone, In Asia, Chinese doctors study the works of farnous practitioners as a matter of course. Students of famous doctors constantly ‘write down the prescriptions and treatments of their teachers for publication so that all can benefit from their masters’ singular styles. So far, however, few ofthis type of book has been translated into English. Hopefully, with the flourishing of our profession in the West, more such books recording the insights and experiences of individual old master will be translated so that we in English-reading countries may more fully understand our art and better apply it within our own cultural contexts. As prac ‘we must study to practice, practice to study, and then study more if we are to be sucessful. The field is so broad, the tradition so rich, and the results for our patients so important, that we must put our hearts and souls totally into our medicine. By studying texts such as this, we can excel at our medicine, which will then enable us to serve society to the highest degree. ‘This isa special moment when the teacher is glorified through the student's performance. But this was the sense I had as 1 watched Dr. Cheng's treatments being performed by and through the hands of Dr. Tin Yau So. Iam fortunate to have been able to watch what centuries of practice have bome through the methods and intentions of special master practitioners and I know that we in the West will continue in this magnificent tradition in our own uniques ways. Iam personally thankful forthe experience of watching history being passed down through time, through my teacher, and through this book. STUART WATTS, L.Ac., O.MD., FNAAOM DIRECTOR, ACADEMY OF ORIENTAL MEDICINE, AUSTIN, TEXAS, OCTOBER, 1995Page ix Editor's Preface ‘This book is another of Blue Poppy Press’ Great Masters Series. Cheng Dan an was one ofthe greatest Chinese acupuncturists ofthis century. He lived from 1899-1957. This was a time when the art of acupuncture was ata great ebb in its history, and it ‘was Cheng who helped catalyze its resurgence mid-century through the establishment of the first modern acupuncture school in China. Graduates ofthis schoo! have gone on to be important agents in the spread of Chinese acupuncture throughout the world, For instance, James Tin Yau So, founder of the New England School of Acupuncture, and Ted Kaptchuk, author of The Bb That Has No Weaver, were both trained by students of Cheng Dan an. Besides being a teacher, Cheng Dan-an was also the author ofa large number of works, among which the most famous are Zhong Guo Zhen Jiu Zhi Liao Xue (A Study of Chinese Acupuncture & Moxibustion Treatments), Zhong Guo Zhen Jiu Xue Jiang Vi (Teaching Materials of Chinese Acupuncture & Moxibustion , Shang Han Lun Xin Zhu (New Annotations to the Treatise on Cold Damage »), Jing Xue Tu Jie (Ilustrations & Explanations of the Channels & Points), Shi Si Jing Jing Xue Gua Ta (An Atlas of the Points of the 14 Channels), and Xin Kan Jiao Zhu Shi Siling Fa Hui (The Latest Collated Enlightenment on the 14 Channels with Annotations ). His many works cover nearly every area within the province of acupuncture, from theory to clinical practice, and he showed profound understanding ofall the fundamentals, such as the channels and network vessels, the viscera and bowels, the five phases, the constructive and defensive, and the qi and blood. As readers of this book will see, Cheng was very familiar with all the important Chinese classics and premodern authors, However, Cheng Dan-an is also important because he is considered one of the architects of modem tem acupuncture. By tem, 1 amPage x referring to a specific style of Chinese acupuncture developed in the 1960s and 70s and exemplified by the treatment methodology contained in Chinese Acupuncture & Moxibustion , a.k.a. CAM, Foreign Languages Press Beijing. The hallmark of tis style isthe basing of treatment on a discrimination of patterns. Although Cheng is revered today as one ofthe founders of ‘modern Chinese acupuncture and moxibustion, there are some very interesting and important differences between Cheng’s ‘writings and more contemporary books such as CM, ‘What one will sce when looking at Cheng's acupuncture and moxibustion formulas contained inthis book is that they are based on a combination of disease diagnosis and pattern discrimination. However, the disease diagnosis isa traditional Chinese disease diagnosis. Rather than compiling treatments for hypertension, diabetes, or bronchial asthma as in modern Chinese treatment manuals, Cheng uses the older, more traditional and certainly more Chinese nomenclature of shang han, warm heat diseases, tetanic inversion, mania and withdrawal, drum distention, the three wastings, shan qi, strangury and turbidity, te ‘When it comes to pattern discrimination, Cheng also uses an older terminology than that with which most contemporary Western students and practitioners are familiar. For instance, the five accumulations ( wu i) are subdivided into heart accumulation, liver accumulation, spleen accumulation, lung accumulation, and kidney accumulation. Diarthea is simply subdivided into hot diarrhea and cold diarrhea. Coughing is subdivided into hot coughing, cold coughing, repletion coughing, and vacuity coughing. In other words, Cheng uses a pattem discrimination which is based primarily on hot and cold, repletion and vacuity the five viscera, and yin and yang. Unlike contemporary tem pattern discrimination, he does not combine these into complex visceral patterns such as Stomach fire or spleen vacuity cold. Thus Cheng's patter tend to be somewhat simpler than those in modem tem textbooks, and, when it comes to acupuncture and moxibustion as opposed to Chinese internal medicine, one may not need more complexity than this.Page xi Likewise, Cheng's descriptions of disease mechanisms are generally much simpler than those found in more modem Chinese texts. Using very sparing prose, Cheng cuts to the quick of the most common disease mechanisms he saw in the China of his day. Another difference between modern tem acupuncture and Cheng's style is that Cheng inserted each needle or did moxibustion in definite order. He did not insert the needles in a treatment in a random order, nor did he retain the needles in the points fora standard 20-30 minutes. Rather, Cheng specifies the order, the depth of insertion, and the amount of time the needle is to be retained and stimulated. Students of Dr. So mentioned above will recognize this approach which was taught in the early days of the New England School of Acupuncture. Further, practitioners will note that Cheng makes much more use of moxibustion than do most contemporary and especially ‘Wester practitioners, Often Cheng first needled and then applied moxibustion, Other times, Cheng would needle certain points and moxa others within the same treatment. And yet at other times and frequently by contemporary standards, Cheng would only ‘use moxa. It is clear from Cheng’s descriptions of treatment that he mainly used moxa cones as opposed to indirect moxa from rolls. Direct, non-scarring moxibustion using very tity moxa cones is a very powerful method and should not be overlooked in clinical practice. Cheng also uses moxa on points, such as Xing Jian (Liv 2), which most contemporary Western practitioners ‘would not think of moxaing. This suggests that there is more to moxibustion than many modem practitioners believe. Cheng also makes common use of bleeding, Due to concems over the transmission of blood -borne pathogens, such as hepatitis and hiv, many contemporary practitioners make litle or no use of bleeding in their treatments, However, bleeding is also a very powerful treatment modality which may not be replaced by other needling methods, especially in the treatment of warm heat diseases.Page xi ‘We have commissioned the compilation of this book because we believe it is important for Western practitioners to have some sense of how this art has developed in China during this century. Cheng Dan-an is one of the main people responsible for the renaissance in acupuncture oecurring both in China and worldwide. Cheng is also a transitional figure inthe devetopment of ‘modern Chinese tem acupuncture, Hopefully, readers will find the treatments in this book thought -provoking, In these pages, Cheng does not explain the theory behind his choice of points. However it is my experience that insight can be gained by thinking, about the rationale for Cheng's choice of points. In some cases, Cheng used a lot of needles in a treatment, Yet af other times, he used only a very few with marked results. Further, his comments on the role of the practitioners jing shen or affect as part ofthe healing encounter, his belie inthe necessity of qi gong practice for acupuncturists based on his assumption that part ofthe efficacy of acupuncture lies in the transference of healthy qi from practitioner to patient, and his emphasis on training the force of the fingers all merit serious consideration by contemporary practitioners. Although Cheng Dan-an did prescribe Chinese internal medicinals as “adjunctive treatment,” Cheng is, in my opinion, nonetheless an acupuncturis's acupuncturist ‘Wu Ming has compiled and translated this book primarily from Cheng's Zhong Guo Zhen Jiu Xue (4 Study of Chinese Acupuncture & Moxibustion) , published by People's Health & Hygiene Press & Printing, Beijing, 1957. This book is a functional translation since Wu has not identified each source for each section. However, he has used a standard transnational terminology when it comes to Chinese medical technical terms. That standard is Nigel Wiseman's Glossary of Chinese Medical Terms and Acupuncture Points , Paradigm Publications, Brookline, MA, 1990, The few exceptions, such as network vessels for Iuo (#), are based on revisions to that book made by Dr. Wiseman and made available to us by Bob Felt of Paradigm Publications, or are translations of very simple signs and symptoms where we believe their literal translation is both accurate and technicallyPage understandable; for instance low back pain instead of lumbar pain for yao tong (52%), Our style of translation endeavors to preserve the feel and logic of the Chinese. Hopefully this will help Wester practitioners ‘when they finaly bite the bullet of learning to read medical Chinese, the necessary and indispensable prerequisite for relly knowing something about Chinese medicine. Point identification nomenclature is based on the World Health Organization Standard Acupuncture Nomenclature with the following differences: fist, we prefer to give the Pinyin first and the numerical identification second, When it eomes tothe Pinyin we have separated each Chinese character's transliteration, Just as I do not write my name as Bobflaws nor New Jersey as Newjersey, we do not think He Gu (Union Valley, # #¥) should be written as Hegu. Secondly, in keeping with our house style and for the sake of consisteney with others of our books, LU becomes Lu, ST is St, SP is Sp, TE is TB, PC is Per, and LR is Liv. Further, EX-CA becomes M. ~CA, and EX-B becomes M. -BW as used in ‘Wiseman's Glossary. ‘Medicinal ingredient identifications for formulas given by Cheng by name only are based on Bensky & Barole’s Chinese Herbal Medicine: Formulas & Strategies. , Eastland Press, Seattle, 1990, and on Peng Huai-ren's Zhong Hua Ming Yi Fang Ji Da Quan (Great Collection of Chinese Doctors' Formulas & Prescriptions), Golden Shield Press, Beijing, 1990. BOB FLAWS SEPTEMBER 1995‘Table of Contents Preface Editor's Preface 1 Cheng Dan-an On the Importance of Spirit, Qi Gong & Finger Force Training 2 Damage Due to Cold 3 ‘Warm Heart Diseases 4 ‘Summetheat 5 Sudden Turmoil [:e., Cholera-like Disease] 6 Wind Stroke 7 ‘Tetanie Inversion 8 ‘Mania & Withdrawal 9 Epilepsy 10 Diamthnea & Dysentery Wl Retching & Vomiting 12 Esophageal Constrition 3 Drum Distention 4 Cough 15 Phlegm Rheum 16 Wheezing & Dyspnea 7 Vacuity Taxation ks Page xv18 Blood Ejection & Spontaneous External Bleeding 19 Blood in Urine & Stools 20 Hemorthoids & Fistulas 2 Concreations & Conglomerations, Gatherings & Accumulations 2 ‘The Five Accumulations 23 Shan Qi 4 The Three Wastings 25 Jaundice26 ‘Sweating Disease 1 Waking & Sleeping 28 tony & Bi 30 Strangury & Turbidity 31 Dribbling & Blockage 32 Diseases of the Hands & Feet 3 Chest & Abdomen a Lower & Upper Back 35 ‘The Region of the Head 36 Eye Diseases 37 Ear Disorders 38. Nose Disorders 39) ‘Tooth Disease 40 ‘The Mouth & Tongue 4 ‘Women's Disorders General Index Formula Index. E B Page xviPage 1 1 Cheng Dan-an on the Importance of Spirit, Qi Gong & Finger Force Training [The following are excerpts from a speech given by Cheng Dan -an in 1956.] On Essence Spirit Interaction A great many acupunctursts think that acupuncture treatment, which is @ physiotherapy, cures disease through stimulating nerves (o adjust the functions ofthe local parts, internal organs, or tissues, Facts, however, prove this isnot exactly true, Based on 30 _years of clinical experience, I have come to realize that this idea explains only partly one of the causes of [acupunctur's} curative effect but fails to provide an explanation of ts main causes... [The effect of needling], though having something to do with the instrument... depends on the concentration of one's mind, faith, and essence spirit, ‘My stand is not based on results obtained through scientific equipment in the laboratory. My starting point is the facts of my own, My conclusion isthe result of my analysis of medical effets taken wholly from my personal experience and close observation. In my opinion, the afestion by and cause of disease, the elie of that affliction, an the restoration of health may have something to do with the environment, but the main factor underlying these are one's psychological or mental stat. According tothe instructions of my late father and my own clinical experience, the effect of needling lies mainly in three points: first essence spirit interaction |e, mental emotional interaction}; second, concentration;Page2 and third, physical stimulation, Its the combination of these three that works instantaneous wonders, As stated above, every treatment should be accomplished with concentration or, in other words, abundant essence spirit, resoluteness, and confidence in overcoming the disease. Only thus can one achieve double the curative effect with half the effort. ‘This is because a person, when harassed by a disease, tends to be full of apprehension and fear and is thus depressed in spirit. If the attending physician intentionally makes a favorable analysis of the disease to the patient, stressing thatthe signs and symptoms are not serious, thus relieving the patient of their mental burden, this will enhance their confidence in their recovery and will enlist a substantial aid in achieving the desired effect of therapy. Suppose the condition of a patient is critical. Ifthe attending physician discloses this frankly or even exaggerates the severity with «view to taking credit [later] in case of recovery or shifting the blame in case of failure, the mental burden of the patient will increase so thatthe condition will be exacerbated. Ifthe patient is a sensitive person, the consequences of this will be all the gvaver. All this merits our deep consideration, The reason why T advocate imparting essence spitit encouragement is to fice the sprit of the patient from the talons of disease. ‘To extricate the patients thought from being immersed all day in worry, anxiety, and depression over the disease, one should, by all means, inspire the patient with hope and cheer up their spirit. If ths is combined with correct treatment, the effect will surely excel that of usual treatment, Furthermore, in needling, such spiritual encouragement may enhance the action ofthe spirit ofthe practitioner as well, empowering the practitioner to use the fine needle as a bridge when he or she comes tothe aid of the patient in combatting disease, This wll futher strengthen the patient's role in resisting disease.Page 3 Some people may think this point of view scientifically groundless, but I have been holding this theory for scores of years. Clinically, this [essence spirit] action truly underlies the art of needling. Only it never finds expression in scientific experiment. On Qi Gong ‘What is known as essence spirit is qi. What the ancients meant when they declared, "One should cultivate magnificent qi? was to cultivate essence spiit. When living, my late father repeatedly instructed me to practice qi exercise but he did not explain the reason [for so doing]. Therefore, he failed to evoke my confidence [in such exercises}. In clinical practice, however, I was always inferior to him in obtaining effects through needling. Later, I began to believe in the teaching of my late father and have kept on doing qi exercise [to this day]. Sure enough, my needling effect was heightened greatly. For that reason, afer I had retumed home from Japan, I included a course of qi exercise and needle manipulation exercise in the curriculum of the acupuncture school I established in 1935, In 1938, when I resumed the acupuncture school in Sichuan [having moved because of the Japanese invasion of eastern China], ‘among the students there was one named Huang from Guangdong who was skilled in fencing. He, too, believed in the existence of electricity [in the human body). Whenever he performed massage on a person, he kept his hands about an inch over the surface of the patient's body. Nevertheless, the patient could feel a current of hot gi penetrating their muscles and {then] rele ‘Wherever [Huang’s} hands moved, [the feeling of] this hot qi moved. In the case of a slight malady, such as wind cold, Huang said [he could] effect recovery after performing such massage for only a short while. He came to my school to lear the theory of the channels and network vessels in order to incorporate this into his massage practice, thus treating disease forPage 4 others [more effectively] while making use of human physiological electricity One night, [Huang] was sitting quietly in a small, dark room, two short swords in his hands pointing toward each other. At the beginning, the tips of the swords were 2-3 inches apart. Between them there appeared a white beam of light like the glow of fireflies. Little by litle, it [grew longer] and connected the tips ofthe swords. [Then Huang] increased the distance between the tips of the swords and the beam grew until it became about one chi [approximately one foot] long. This verified [for me] the truth of my late father’ teaching. Regrettably, before long, Mr. Huang went away for some reason, and, [not knowing] where he was in such a vast country, Ihave never met him again, Even today, I feel sorry [for not having the chance to meet him again}. In a word, there exists electricity in the human body. Qi exercise discussed in this part isa practice of concentrating the electricity of the body in the fingers in order to enhance the effect of needling by the strength of this electricity... The magnificent qi thatthe ancients referred to may be nothing else but this electricity. People who cultivate Daoism or lived under a self-cdisciplined regimen probably attempted to gain control of and exploit human Physiological electricity. In terms of its characteristics, this electricity can be described as a wild horse and dust I is as hard to control as a wild horse and to collect as dust which pervades the ar. If we are to make use of it, we should first concentrate [our minds] and gain control over it, ‘What is meant by maximal control [of qi] is concentration of one’s thought, to concentrate the force [of one’s attention] Acupuncturists practice cultivation of qi solely forthe purpose of expediting the healing disease. They have no higher ambition. ‘Therefore, inthis practic, they need not obey such rigorous disciplines as those livingPage 5 the life of a Daoist [monk]. 1am for a method of practicing qi cultivation that can be applied anywhere, anytime, in other words, a method requiring no fixed observances. It does not matter whether one sits or stands or lies down. The only requirement is forthe trunk to be kept straight with the limbs posed as the practitioner likes. The most important thing is to concentrate one's mind and attention on the point three ex below the navel [ie., the lower dan tian |. Coordinating with one's respiration, one expands the abdominal muscles on exhalation and contracts the muscles on inhalation, With each process of expiration and inspiration, the stomach] bulges and contracts. The more slightly and more slowly [the stomach so moves), the more easily one gains progress [in cultivation of qi]. However, one should not pay attention to breathing instead ofthe abdominal movement of bulging and drawing in. The exercise can last § 20 ‘minutes, and one can practice it during any spare time. [Another posture is} sitting up, legs erect on the ground, eyes and mouth closed, [the tip of] the tongue in touch with the upper [inside] gums. Except for the above, other points in the exercise are the same as forthe first, and this exercise is equally effective, On Finger Force Training Inthe past, to learn the art, an acupuncturist spent his enerey mainly in practicing gi cultivation and training in finger force, This took to thirds of their time. There are thee objectives in finger force training: one, to cultivate the habitual response of the fingers to the feeling of human physiological electricity; two, to make it easy to thrust in the needle and [hence] lessen the sense of pain in the patent; and thee, to strengthen the force with which to manipulate the needle and move the i