Getting back to the basics : critical importance of understanding FIRE

Ive been asked to work on a course that would cover the foundational concepts of a deep, engaged Chinese medicine understanding. Im not talking about the same tired diagrams of the five elements and their interactions, Im not talking about simplistic review of the fact that everything is yin and yang, Im talking about the things that feed into the roots, that feed the branches, and let the leaves flourish. Im talking about the 5 evils and 19 lines of pathology in the Neijing Suwen(aff link),Im talking about the basics of the Chinese calendar and the flow of energy through the seasons, Im talking about the interactions of the channel system, the 6 conformations, the five elements and the other systems of looking at the body in Chinese medicine.

Im talking about creating a course that would take people from zero to sixty in a few weeks

Its daunting, for sure, but I think Im up for it. While Im creating the course, Im going to share with you little tidbits Ive picked up. Im not 100% sure when the course will be up and ready for consumption, but due to the ongoing redesign process, it will probably take a little longer than I want it to.

In the interest of always giving you something you can sink your teeth into, a little tidbit that caught my interest:

In the 19 lines on pathology in the Neijing arguably what should serve as the absolute FOUNDATION of our clinical understanding- there are five lines that pertain to ministerial fire. My apologies, Im not certain whose translation follows, I believe someone involved in ICEAM. Please let me know if it is you!

All heat, muddled ! consciou sness and convulsion belongs to fire.

All clenching, locking and shivering, as if losing control, belongs to fire.

All disease with edema and soreness, as well as fright and scare belong to fire.

All unrest, mania and excessive behavior belongs to fire.

All adverse upward rushing belongs to fire.

If you had a patient walk in with clear mania, including convulsions, you might think of fire. Depending on the herbal tradition you were trained in, you might use a variety of herbal prescriptions and acupuncture approaches. However, how many of us look at a case of clenching, locking and shivering seizures or cases of muddled consciousness, fright or scare, as having something to do with ministerial fire? Some of us, for sure, might consider the actions of fire but would we consider it the primary culprit? How might we approach that?

Of course, not every case of these experiences necessarily implicates ministerial fire. I can imagine scenarios where, for instance, the consciousness is muddled due to a mild stagnation of Gallbladder qi, such as can be found in Sini San cases. This is why we have to take this theoretical information and expose it to the world through our diagnostic methods (the pulse in a ministerial Fire case is quite clear), our understanding of herbs & acupuncture, and see how things work in the bodies of our patients.

Still, reading over these lines does excite me and cause me to rethink some of my difficult cases. Does it do the same for you? I am easily excited by even the simplest information from the classical texts of Chinese medicine, so I may be alone in this. Have you used this information in clinic? For good or not? Have things youve learned elsewhere changed your perception of these lines? Id love to hear any and all of this in the comments. I know it can be strange to put yourself out there on the Internet if youre not used to it. But, healthy conversation online and offline is part of what creates a thriving profession. Wo! nt you j oin me? Its easy just scroll down

Getting back to the basics : critical importance of understanding FIRE