Japan Acupuncture Located in downtown Phoenix, Arizona

Japanese Acupuncture, Phoenix, Arizona （日本鍼灸アリゾナ）

2011-12-14T22:25:00.007-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona

Volume 3, No. 6: December #2., 2011

Japanese Acupuncture (480) 246-0624

600 N. 4^th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions

Chapter Three

Spleen: Worry, Harmony, and Illumination #6

As I wrote in my last newsletter, it is quite important to know who we are by knowing an exact sentence that follows “I am.” However, as you are aware, the usage of “I” is a dualism. “No sooner had he defined and delineated himself-then he was afraid. Fear is the first response to being something, to imagining yourself…he wishes that there were someone else in the world. So now comes desire. First fear and then desire come right out of having said “I.” (Joseph Campbell: Myths of Light). Transcendence is the realm of non-dualism, free from differentiations and meanings. We must go beyond concepts and symbols. Unfortunately, transcendence cannot be taught. We can only learn to walk on a right pass toward it (hence, the Dao – 道).

Each person has his/her own reality and experience. Since intellectual is in the domain of dualism, only thing we have is an experience. It is an experience of “This,” “It,” “Is,” and “Being.” The universe does not have a meaning or a purpose, it only has This moment at the present time*1. We fail to understand This because we use will and were, forgetting to live in the moment of now. Worry is a great example. If you are worrying about finance, change all your verbal sentences to the present tense, then money happens because you create possibilities of the future today. Creativeness doe not happen in the future. It only happens in the moment of now. Worrying is procrastination, it only gives us future troubles and sorrows. Since we are higher consciousness beings, we must strive to achieve This moment. Ignorance is our worst enemy.

Since the Spleen is the Element of digestion, here are some psychosomatic symptoms associating with it. Bear in mind, these are my own assessments.

Diarrhea: fear*2, worry

IBS: rejection, abandonment

Constipation: holding pattern (fear, worry)

Ulcer: fear and anger (strong anger or hysteria)

Worrying reduces the digestive function and weakens the absorption rate of nutrients. We feel weak and depressed since not much nutrients are absorbed. My primary protocol for acupuncture is to increase the absorption rate and smooth out the digestive function. For the purpose, I usually start from the front side (supine position).

My suggestion for all of you is to have natural herb supplements for the digestion in your medicine cabinet. There are many Chinese herb formulas that are superior to any chemical medication. If you have a weak constitution, you should also have digestive enzymes.*3

Since is it is now almost at the end of 2011, I would like to end this newsletter with a famous Buddhist story. When Buddha was a young man still straining to seek out the truth, he went to a high mountain (the Himalayas) where he met a ferocious demon that ate human flesh. The demon was reciting holy verses. Young Buddha was given the first half about all things were impermanent and the truth was the cause of suffering. In order to hear the second half, the demon demanded that young Buddha threw himself from a cliff so he could eat him. Young Buddha obliged and was given the second half about an obliteration of endless cycle of life and death was the way to non-suffering, nirvana. Upon hear this, young Buddha went up a cliff and fell. But the demon was actually Indra in disguise, caught him in the air, and brought him down to the ground. Upon confirming the seriousness of young Buddha, Indra bowed and asked to be illuminated.

諸行無常 是生滅法

生滅滅已 寂滅為楽 『大般涅槃経』 Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra

All existence is in a state of flux: impermanence.

The endless cycle of birth (life) and extinction (death) is the law (truth, view) = suffering

Obliterate the endless cycle (no life, no death),

The obliteration is nirvana: non-suffering

Note:

It is not that we suffer because the flux exists. Suffering rises from our perception (or belief) that the permanence exists (a bondage).

Namaste, and have a great new year!

*1 Of course, quantum physics has many dimensions.

*2 Fear shows up mostly in the neck and the shoulder. Anger shows up in the lower back.

*3 Certain foods such as diakon have a large amount of digestive enzymes.

Spleen: Worry, Harmony, and Illumination #5　（日本鍼灸　アリゾナ）

2011-11-30T21:22:00.007-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona

Volume 3, No. 5: Dec., 2011

Japanese Acupuncture (480) 246-0624

600 N. 4^th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Happy Holidays To Everyone

Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions

Chapter Three

Spleen: Worry, Harmony, and Illumination #5

The Spleen Element is in the center and its emotional component is worry. When worry goes down to the kidneys, it becomes fear. When it passes through the diaphragm and entered the lungs, it becomes sadness, and when it enters the heart, it turns to joy*1. The Spleen controls digestive issues, if its functions are weak, it does not help the liver and worry becomes depression and could become paranoia. Caroline Myss talks about the chakra system in which she says it is easy for the wisdom to get stuck in the throat chakra and therefore the heart desire does not communicate with the brain. How many times do we experience what we say through the mouth turns out to be exactly opposite of what heart desire tells us? When worry successfully passes through the diaphragm, meaning you know how to breathe right, like the yoga breathing technique, it enters the heart and turns to joy. When there is joy in the heart, emotions become wisdom; only then, the brain will follow the heart desire. We are grounded. We speak the truth (without lying to ourselves).

Our problems reside in not knowing who we really are. Our brain is constantly lying or denying and thoughts always betraying (remember from my past newsletters, all emotions are illusion and thoughts only give us the endless thoughts), and we suffer. How to rise above? Know the sentence after “I am…” I am “what?” Make a couple of sentences you feel right about yourself. For example: I am a good man. I am an honest man. I am the best teacher, etc. When you practice the simple exercise everyday and every moment, our subconscious has no other choices but to make you who you are. One important thing is that the sentence has to be in the present tense. Will and was would never work. You must address in the present tense (where do you think the Power of Now comes from?). Many of you know that this is exactly how hypnosis works. Presenting a false statement in the present tense and making it real. If you follow the logic, anything is possible: there is always hope.

As for Oriental Medicine, placing one’s Self back in the right place starts with a treatment of the digestive system. My style of acupuncture calls for reduction of pains in the abdomen first. Pain in the abdomen is a diagnostic tool many Japanese masters have followed*2. Persons with diabetes, GERD, IBS, Crohn’s Disease, celiac disease, and other digestive problems must be treated with the Spleen/Stomach meridians (of course, LI/SI meridians are good, too). However, as I wrote in the last newsletter, treating just the Spleen and the Kidney suffices in many occasions*3.

Remember, when worry takes over you, learn how to breathe, let go the emotion, pay more attention to the sky and trees, and surrender. Sometime (most of the time for me), it is better to let the Universe takes care of you. Attune to it, and you are just fine. When you start feeling like you are guided, you are on the right road.

Namaste.

*1: In Oriental Medicine, the Heart itself does not ever go dysfunctional (it is the peripheral such as the pericardium which becomes impaired), therefore, it is the only Element that has a positive emotional attribute. But keep in mind, if too much joy, it becomes delusional and manic.

*2: Popular among the Japanese practitioners are the abdominal and the pulse diagnoses.

*3: I yet to prove this point firmly by more of my own treatments.

Japanese Acupuncture, Phoenix, Arizona （日本鍼灸アリゾナ）

2011-08-31T21:35:00.004-07:00

Flu Season Is Upon Us

Here are tips to prevent catching cold & flu.

Start preparing in the month of September. Preparing in October when people around you are already sick is too late. Remember, we catch cold either from the feet or from the neck. Slight sensation of cold air at the feet or the neck is the sign that pathogen is entering your body system. Keep your feet and neck warm. Stop wearing sandals and flip-flops. Start wearing socks and shoes. Be aware of other signs such as slight headache, chills, coughs, body aches, and yellow-green mucus.

Drink more fluids, especially alkalized water. Eat balanced diet with green leafy vegetables. Take extra supplements such as Vitamin C. Reduce alcohol consumptions. Alcohol seriously compromises the immune system. When you drink alcohol, remember to drink three times as much water soon after.

Sleep well. Sleep extra hours in winter. Preserve your energy: not exercising to exhaustion and do not sweat too much.

Be careful when you transit from one environment to another. For example getting up from bed to cool morning air, or after getting out of hot shower. If you feel chills, you are catching cold.

Avoid large gatherings. If someone blows breathe to your face, you will get sick. Avoid smoking and toxic environment.

Early detection and prevention is crucial. Remember, when pathogen goes through the diaphragm, it is too late: meaning, if you have a diarrhea, stomachache, or fever, then it will take a long time to recover. Go and see a doctor. However, if treated early, you will develop an immune system for the season, and you will be free of cold and flu unless a different strand comes to our city.

Japanese Acupuncture, Phoenix, Arizona （日本鍼灸アリゾナ）

2011-08-18T20:00:00.015-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona

Volume 3, No. 4: Aug, 2011

Japanese Acupuncture (480) 246-0624

600 N. 4^th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Article From New York Times August 9, 2011

A Campaign to Carry Pregnancies to Term by Jane E. Brody

The article writes, “as many as 36 % of elective deliveries now occur before 39 weeks, and many of these early deliveries are contributing to an unacceptable number of premature births and avoidable costly complications…those delivered at 36 to 38 weeks had two and a half times the number of complications compared to those delivered at 39 to 40 weeks…respiratory distress, jaundice and low blood sugar.”

Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions

Chapter Three

Spleen: Worry, Harmony, and Illumination #4

As I mentioned in my last newsletter, I found many Americans, especially women, to be Spleen Deficient. Below is the basic Five Element Theory on the Spleen Element for you to understand the type.

Element: Earth

Season: in between seasons: late summer

Direction: center

Color: yellow

Sense: lips/mouth

Tissues: muscle/flesh

Smell: fragrant

Taste: sweet

Emotion: worry

Voice: singing

Action: sitting

Liquid: saliva (drooling) (spitting is the Kidney
Element)

Weather: damp

Spirit: intention (and intelligence)

A Spleen type person*1 tends to wear yellow clothes*2, likes yellow color foods, smells nice, and sometimes humming. But may have a yellow skin tone, weak stomach and digestive functions. Loves to eat, especially sweets and meats. Tends to be overweight (could be picky about foods) and sits a lot. Can withstand damp weather. Has good intention and is grounded, but worries a lot. Sometimes, a poor decision maker, not so strong willed. Easy to develop neuralgia. Could be sexually excessive, and may need to refrain from sex for longevity. If the Liver is excess, becomes nervous and irritated.*3

*1: in general

*2: in the subconsciousness

*3: IBS, Crohn disease, etc.

Keep in mind, it is a generalization. However, the Five Element is quite useful in treatments of acupuncture. Indeed, if a person is really Spleen Deficient or Excess, his skin tone is yellow, has flabby muscles and digestive problems.

One quality I admire about a Spleen type is the trait that can manage all the other four types. He can get along well with everyone (the Element in the center). Sometimes, he is not even fazed by anger emanated by a person like me, a Wood type. His character is more rounded in personality, not edgy. There is a sense of serenity around him: easy to be friend with, and easy to speak to.

Yet, constant worry gives him digestive problems. When he does not have them, his intention is clear and his intelligence radiates. He becomes a traffic controller in the middle of an intersection, confidently directing what must be done. How does he get out of difficulties and how does he achieve his full potential?

Once again I need to remind readers that worry is an emotion, therefore, it is a thought pattern: a chain of thoughts that leads to endless thoughts. The merry-go-round in the mind must stop by realizing that all emotions are illusions, and they come and go. Observe emotions rise and fall, and you realize that every time worry is subsided is the time you thought about something positive. Ok, even a positive thought is a thought that has an endless cycle too*4, but at least, you know how to counter balance the worrying cycle. First defense against worry is to be positive and to feel great. Purge negative emotions and thoughts. One of my clients said to me once: “god's gifts have many different forms.” If it is a bad day, think of it as a god’s*5 gift in a different form: a word “bad” is a thought, and therefore, is always relative.*6

Another way to avoid worry is to be creative. Set a goal and allow the stream-of-consciousness takes its own course. When you are faced with a canvas, a mold for sculpture, or a musical instrument, every step you take to create is a decision-making. Creativeness is in the “doing” not in the “trying.*7” Trust the stream-of-consciousness*8: there is no worry to be worried about. Let go, and enjoy creative life.

Third way is to trust tomorrow. Future is always uncertain. The best we can do is to trust. Future has nothing to do with worrying about finance or relationship. It just comes. Live in the moment today, and let the future comes to you. If you do something right today, there is something right tomorrow: trust me, this is how future works.

Fourth way is more practical: eat right. If you are eating heavy cheese, greasy, fried, salty, and overly sweet foods, yes, you do get depression and anxiety. Cut down on foods that make you sick by stagnation.*9 A Spleen type has problem with weight, and needs to be careful and aware of what he eats, and he tends to sit a lot, so, do some exercises.

As for practicality of acupuncture treatment, I am amazed that treating the Spleen, the center, indeed, is good for almost everything. It has become my focal point on the back of the body. Master Sawada said that all diseases pass through the diaphragm, go to the Liver, then to the Spleen, and end up at the Kidney.*10 Idea is to treat in the reverse order and everything would get better: placing priorities to the Spleen and the Kidney*11 to cure all diseases, and it works! (There is an order to the treatment, however) More I practice, deeper I bow to former practitioners and ancient Chinese masters.

Namaste.

*4: Giddy to weird

*5: I am not a Christian, but, by “god,” I mean the Universal Love,
or I can also call it It. I am more of a Zen-ist but do not belong to
Zen or to Buddhism.

*6: Wished that we were taught how to cope with emotions in our schools
as basic education.

*7: All Zen art works are just that!

*8: In the context of this newsletter, “trying” is “worrying.”:
you worry, therefore, no “doing.”

*9: As many of you already know, cheese is a phlegm and highly acidic
and stagnant food. It (phlegm) creates “1000 weird diseases” according
to the Chinese classic.

*10: For the fist time reader: all organs are capitalized to distinguish from
the western medicine. Their functions are slightly different.

*11: The Spleen is Intention and the Kidney is Will, together, they generate
Wisdom and Intelligence.

一霊有万霊　 一霊顕万霊 万霊帰一霊

一魂有万霊 一魂顕万霊 万霊帰一魂

霊魂是神

Indirect Translation:

Within the One Spirit, there are Ten Thousand. Ten Thousand Spirits return to the One.

(A living cell has tens of thousands of elements and has the power to mobilize them. A living cell reflects all intentions and thoughts of a person and is influenced by them. Within a single living cell, the wholeness of a person resides. By Master Shirota)

Welcome New Members

2011-08-14T15:18:00.003-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, Phoenix, Arizona （日本鍼灸アリゾナ）

August 11, 2011

Welcome New Members

In the past few weeks, quite a few of you become members and I thank you. I plan to give more benefits for members as we go along. Please read the bottom page for this month special.

About Acupuncture:

In the simplest term to describe how acupuncture works and why it works is that:

1) All living cells strive to be balanced. They always (every minute and every second) want to be healthy.* The human body developed an elaborate system such as the endocrine and the immune systems to balance, to be in homeostasis. Acupuncture restores the balance, and this is the primary reason why an acupuncturist treats the whole body rather than aiming for a segmented, specialized approach common in western medicine.

2) Hairs and nails will grow until death. We have the healing power within to regenerate until we decide to go. Doctors still do not know the source of the regenerative power and are unable to tap into it. Qi (in Chinese, Ki in Japanese) is the Life Force Energy. Where and how does this happen? It is written in the Chinese classic text written 2000 years ago. “The Mist of the Lungs (oxygen) combined with the Gu Qi (food energy – carbon/carbohydrates) which is produced by the Spleen (and the Stomach) to become the Blood.” Blood and Qi must flow. All diseases are caused by a stagnation of the Two. The stagnation manifests along an acupuncture line called the meridian (like the foot reflexology). Acupuncture restores the flow and maintains the balance of the two energies by treating the lines. As long as the Two flows properly, we have a stronger power to regenerate cells.**

Suggestion:

Try not to be your own doctor. Do not assess a prognosis by yourself. Once in a while, ask me how many sessions you need. Most of the time, when people assess themselves, they end up prolonging symptoms and not getting healthier. Concentrate now. You will get better and healthier in the least amount of time, and in a long run, you will save money.

Special Of The Month For Members Only (Ends on August 31, 2011)

30% off from regular price of Ba Wei Di Huang Wan (H-07), the kidney Chinese formula: regularly $32, 30% off = 22.40 + tax = $24.48

Benefits of this formula: any kidney/bladder ailment, diabetes, edema, vertigo, tinnitus, night sweat, cold hand/cold feet, cataract, Alzheimer, ED, low libido, etc.

I recommend anyone over the age of 40. Aging is the weakening functions of the kidneys. Order and pick up at the time of your appointment.

(Next Month: alkalizing droplets by TriMedica)

*This is deep down in the cellular level. Each cell has memories. If you doubt it, ask any organ transplanted person. They can tell you stories of the past which were the donor’s history.

**Yes, meniscus disk eventually be regenerated (we use knees everyday, so wearing is greater but it does not mean we need to live with pain forever). Yes, spine is also regenerate. Degenerative disease is, to me, just a word. Aging is about degeneration. We are loosing proteins and are aging but we do regenerate at the same time.

Japanese Acupuncture, Phoenix, Arizona （日本鍼灸アリゾナ）

2011-06-08T13:56:00.003-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona

Volume 3, No. 3: June, 2011

Japanese Acupuncture (480) 246-0624

600 N. 4^th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Note From Wall Street Journal, May 18, 2011:

McDonald's Under Pressure to Fire Ronald by Julie Jargon

"More than 550 health professionals and organizations have signed a letter to McDonald's Corp. asking the maker of Happy Meals to stop marketing junk food to kids and retire Ronald McDonald...The letter from the health providers urges McDonald's to cease marketing food high in salt, fat, sugar and calories to kids, from the use of Ronald McDonald to Happy Meal toys." I think it is about time we demand corporate responsibility in creating a healthy diet.

Reminder:

As a member, you receive 25% off from any product by Natural Partners (www.naturalpartners.com) and TriMedica (www.trimedica.com) from us. Sorry, no shipping. You need to pick them up at our clinic.

Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions

Chapter Three

Spleen: Worry, Harmony, and Illumination #3

I love myself,

I love you.

I love you,

I love myself.

Rumi

The above poem is close to the following zen poem:

The cool wind gently blows through my mind,

No matter what happens.

No matter what happens,

The cool wind gently blows through my mind.

Ummon

Mara, the Devil or the Death, who confronted the Buddha is the metaphor of "conditioned" existence we all live. We suffer because we are conditioned to attach ourselves to emotions. It is the ego of "I" telling us this is how and why we exist (so, we've been "told."). Joseph Campbell writes: "Death can't touch you if there is nothing you desire. So the Lord of 'I' presents himself to the Buddha in the aspect of Mara, …Unfortunate for them, there is nobody there, so when these weapons reach this field of nobody being there, they are transformed into bouquets of adoration." Jesus had to go through the similar temptations. What do we do with endless desire, temptation, death, lust and fear? The Buddha touches the Earth with his fingers, achieves illumination.

Acupuncture's power is not in reducing pain (although it is an extremely efficient tool) or in stop smoking. These are rather tertiary compare to its power to heal emotions and to nurture spirituality. Its purpose is to open the Third Eye, moving the energy to the sahasrara, the seventh chakra. It is an instrument as a yana, a ferry boat to reach the other shore of enlightenment.

For the purpose, my style requires to reduce pain by acupuncture needles as much as possible (my mentor once said: "if it is painful, it is not acupuncture."). Induction of pain is not about achieving or bringing about Qi, the life force energy.* Acupuncture is far more subtle than giving pain and thinking it is good for people.

I have found that most American women are Spleen deficient. Obesity, IBS, celiac disease, diabetes, hypothyroidism, all fall into the category. When their symptoms are combined, especially with adrenal imbalance, their whole body becomes pain sensitive. In some cases, they could be under severe stress and depression. Yet, the Spleen is the one to harmonize all. For example, the Liver Element I wrote about in past newsletters is greatly helped by the Spleen. In fact, to balance the right side and the left side of the body, harmony between the Liver and the Spleen is essential (which leads to the Heart and the Kidney balance – the upper and the lower).

How do we then change the negative aspect of the Element, which is worry, into the positive aspect, harmony? The way to do it is when worry comes in start loving ourselves. We need to affirm that we love ourselves and are comfortable with what we are and who we are. Accept, as I have mentioned many times before, that things are As-Is at the moment of Now. The affirmation becomes self-confidence, and we achieve illumination of self-realization that is totally free from emotion, judgment, temptation, desire, and even death: "Cool wind gently blows through my mind."

Acupuncture gently redirects your thought energy to be free from worry because its fundamental purpose is to balance and harmonize the body and the mind. The Spleen** connects crucially to the Heart Element, mainly to the PC (pericardium). The PC is more closely connected to spirituality and the Heart is connection to the function of the heart. For example, if it is depression, take the Spleen points, and if it is an irregular heartbeat, take the Heart points.*** Lastly, the Spleen pairs with the Stomach, therefore, harmonizing the digestive system is utmost importance in balancing the Element.

Start loving yourself. If you do not and don't know how to love others, you will have hard time understanding my next chapter, the Lung Element, which connects with sadness.

*However, when I need to disperse energy, slight sting would be induced.

**The Spleen Element is considered to be a small heart within the heart.

***Of course, other practitioners have different opinions.

Japanese Acupuncture, Phoenix, Arizona （日本鍼灸アリゾナ）

2011-02-15T08:30:00.009-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona

Volume 3, No. 2: February, 2011

Japanese Acupuncture (480) 246-0624

600 N. 4^th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Dear Friends,

Please do not forget to tell people suffering from cancer that I am having a special session on each Sunday in March, 2011, from noon to 6 pm. I know I can help them. Let them know.

Thank you. Frank

Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions

Chapter Three

Spleen: Worry, Harmony, and Illumination #2

"Every thought creates a story."* Our identity is determined by thoughts of the past arising in the present moment. We are incessant about the psychological identification to be “I or Me.” Therefore “I or Me” has full of stories to tell. What we think as a person is made up with a concept of endless thoughts. As everyone knows that Rene Descartes’ famous words were: “I think, therefore I am.” (Cogito ergo sum). If we discard all five senses, what we are left with is an identification of one’s self that is thinking. Nobody can take away our thoughts and ideals even we are in jail.

However, unfortunately thing about thought is that it is an illusion.*1 It comes and goes constantly. It is ever changing and intangible. Thought is also dualistic, for example love and hate, anger and happiness. Tragedy is that since we are so dwelled on thoughts, we forget that it is the thought doing the interpretation of “I or Me.” Most of us, most of the time, we do not realize the illusionary cycle and we suffer by attaching “I or Me” to thoughts, not knowing who we really are. When we are calm, we know that past and future are simply presently-arising thoughts, then we know that the awareness of being is here and now regardless of thoughts. Take away all your thoughts, (Remember, Descartes took away all five senses but thought) what you are left with is the undeniable awareness that you exist at the moment of now. *2 When we become aware of the Awareness, we can replace the Descartes words with “I Being, therefore Being.” No thoughts necessary. Thought does not see, only awareness does. When we become aware of true being, we can liberate ourselves from endless interpretation of “I or Me,” and see the true self in the real light, which is endless (universal) love and compassion, and freedom from pain and suffering.

We often mistakenly believe that the end of our suffering comes from further thinking. However, what we are really seeking is the end of seeking itself. Whys, hows, and what-to-dos are all ego driven way of resolving conflicts arising in the chain of thoughts. By doing so, we are deceiving and lying to ourselves by creating stories that are not true. The process creates suffering within ourselves and with the others. Many relationships go down this road and many times we repeat the same process over and over. Enlightenment is knowing what we already are. Away from endless story telling, but accepting and knowing that no “I or Me” is doing the seeking. There is no us to be enlightened: we simply already are. Awareness sees thought and emotion rising, but not attached to them. Awareness is free of thought, time, and dualism. Awareness is simply Is. Take away all our senses and even thoughts, and we know this is to be true.

People come to see me for pain and attachment to pain. May it be lower back pain or anxiety depression, there are many people who are suffering. How do we make them to reach the other shore of non-suffering? It is a very difficult task, but as I mentioned in my last newsletter, that a proper function of the digestive system must be attained to bring the self in the body (remember, the Earth Element function is to bring the body into harmony). In order to bring out the strong self- awareness, I have recently started to think that the PC (pericardium), the Heart, and the Lungs are effective. My readers would know that the combination of the PC and the Liver or the PC and the Spleen are great pairs. The combination of the Lungs and the Liver would give more energy.

I would like to end this page with a customary Chinese poem. Chen Zi Ang was a soldier. I believe he was in the moment when he came across a vast and barren landscape which overwhelmed him with the awareness of being rather than sad about a circumstance. It is, to me, a very bold poem to be alive and free, in the moment, as you can read the first two lines.

No one from the past in front of me

No one from the future in back of me

In the vast landscape, understanding the grief (his

circumstance) of the heaven and the earth (nature)

I, alone, indistinct, …tears dropping

前不見古人

後不見来者

念天地之愁愁

独蒼然而涕下

陳子昂（Chen Zi Ang)

*1: Time is thought, an illusion: we cannot touch past or future except through thinking. A Buddhist monk will always tell you to go beyond time and space.

*2: Baruch Spinoza: “By substance, I understand that which exists in itself, and is conceived by itself, that which does not need the conception of any other thing in order to be conceived.”

*: from the book, "Reflections of the One Life" by Scott Kiloby

Japanese Acupuncture, Phoenix, Arizona (日本鍼灸アリゾナ）

2011-01-25T22:18:00.002-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona

Volume 3, No. 1: January, 2011

Japanese Acupuncture (480) 246-0624

600 N. 4^th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions

Chapter Three

Spleen: Worry, Harmony, and Illumination #1

In a Buddhist mandala, the Buddha of the East is Aksobhya who represents the integrity of illuminating experience. The Buddha of the South is Ratnasambhava who represents the radiance of beauty of illumination. The Buddha of the West is Amitabha who is the symbol of great compassion. The Buddha of the North is Amoghasiddhi who represents directed effort. Vairocana, the Illuminator, sits in the center. Together, the mandala points to the way of releasing fear and desire and to harmonize our individual life.

In Five Element Theory, the Spleen Element, also called the Earth Element*1, contains the Stomach and the Spleen. Implication of the Earth Element is quite important since the acupuncture meridian line starts from the center of the Stomach. Most acupuncturists belong to the Stomach School which regards the digestive system is the key to balance the other Elements and the whole body. The last words of Master Nagano in Japan were I-no-Ki (胃の気: Wei-Qi in Chinese). Master Sawada dedicated Ren-12 (the point directly above the stomach) as the primary protocol treatment point. Settlement of Stomach Qi is for all ailments. Without proper stomach functions, there will be no recovery. For example, weak absorption rate of foods makes us susceptible to many illnesses. Proper digestive functions must be restored and the process must start from the Stomach. When the Stomach is restored, the energy moves and settles at the Dantien (丹田), about an inch below the navel. This is an important physiological fact that not only acupuncturists should understand but all of us. Anyone who practices martial arts, Tai-Qi, yoga, or meditation knows that the area of the lower abdomen is the center of concentrated energy. The life force comes from here, and the skin tone of the area must be taut and supple. Softness, droopiness, and weakness of the area indicate a weak body function and a sickness (life span maybe limited in a certain case).

Regarding major acupuncture points on the center of the abdomen, Ren-4, 6 and 12 (plus Ren-10 and Ren-13), Master Sawada said when we “Open” the area, “it becomes San Jiao, and (properly) Store, it becomes the Three Guans. *2” The sentence only comes from an experienced practitioner who has practiced the art of acupuncture for years. You may not understand what I write here, but the center of the abdomen is quite important in treating people, especially for the Tai Qi Treatment (whole body treatment). Like the real estate slogan, “location, location, location,” the same is said of acupuncture: stomach, stomach, and stomach (or digestion, digestion, digestion). Arguably, the Stomach is the center of Five Element and it is the harmonic Element.

As the name of the Element suggests an Earth personality is grounded and gentle. However, an Earth type is susceptible to worry. We all experience, a second after we start to worry, we feel queasiness in our stomach. As if our thought in the brain has a direct connection to the stomach.*3　　Emotion and illness are inseparable, and attachment to worry will result in a chronic digestive problem.

How we detach ourselves from emotions and bring the whole body in balance is the subject of this chapter. It is interesting to know that Buddha had a chronic digestive issue, yet he attained illumination and realization.　　Let us hope we can all do the same.

*1 Earth Element: the paired combination of Spleen and Stomach Elements. It is said in a certain school, when a baby drinks the first milk from mother, the meridian lines start to function from the moment on.

*2: 開けば三焦、納むれば三完

*3: I believe western science is considering the stomach or the intestine as the second brain.

Japanese Acupuncture, Phoenix, Arizona, 日本鍼灸アリゾナ

2010-09-13T18:54:00.002-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Arizona

Volume 2, No. 10: September, 2010

Japanese Acupuncture (480) 246-0624

600 N. 4^th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions

Chapter Two

Heart: Joy, Arrogance, and Transcendence #10

I would like to end the Heart Element with the following simple poem by Wang Wei.

独坐幽篁裏 sitting alone in quiet bamboo forest

弾琴復長嘯 playing an instrument, breathing deeply

(Qi Gong)

深林人不知 in the forest, nobody knows my presence

明月来相照 only the luminescent moon light shines upon

at the Bamboo Lodge (竹里館) 王維 (Wang Wei)

Unlike Du Fu (杜甫) I wrote about in my last newsletter, Wang Wei was talented in being a bureaucrat. Common to the both is that they were once arrested in the turbulent time and almost died. Wang Wei loved the quietude of nature and he left many master poems praising mountains and waters (山水).

I like this poem because of its simplicity and the realization: deeply in meditation, reflecting on his life, accepting AS-IS-ness. It tells us that the transcendence is an acceptance: very simple.

Through out this chapter, I mentioned about the nature of emotions and how to overcome and transcend beyond. However, when come down to the core, we understand that it is the simple lifetime wisdom of acceptance with a pure heart. Trick here is how do we achieve the pure heart? We need to let go everything we hold dear and be content in the instance of this realization. Namaste.

Epilogue: What is the sound of one-hand clapping? Zen Koan

My answer: the sound of the wind

What is yours?

Japanese Acupuncture, Phoenix, Arizona 日本鍼灸アリゾナ

2010-09-12T20:08:00.004-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Arizona

Volume 2, No. 9: September, 2010

Japanese Acupuncture (480) 246-0624

600 N. 4^th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

This newsletter is dedicated to my good client and friend, Andrey Polischuk who really, really, and really knows how to live AS-IS with full happiness every single day. I admire you greatly.

Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions

Chapter Two

Heart: Joy, Arrogance, and Transcendence #9

鼓角緑辺群 川原欲夜時 秋聴殷地発 風散入雲悲

抱葉寒蝉静 帰山独鳥遅 万方声一概 吾道竟何之

杜甫

All of us once in a while loose who we are and what we are. Shall I say, a middle age crisis is one of them? Like the Chinese master poet above (Du Fu) who quitted a bureaucratic job (he was about 48 year-old) he never liked, an uncertain mind created a distant drum beat reverberating with the time, echoing his pessimism: no longer sure about His Way (Du Fu went on producing master pieces from this time on).

It is a terrible feeling not knowing what to do to be happy again. Self-criticism turns negative and the deep pessimism sets in. However, a difference between a person who hits the bottom and able to rise up and a person who cannot is, the Japanese calls it, paper-thin: flip a paper, one survives and an other does not. It is a mental constitution, either you have it or you don’t (although, definitely, you can train to possess it). How do we get out from all negative thoughts? I met quite a few people who could give me a dozen negative answers to each suggestion I gave: always can’t do this and don’t have that with certain disdain and anger. It is too bad that we are not taught in school how to unlearn all the mores and rules we were taught from childhood. Their negative thoughts were constructed with what other people said in the past, therefore, they thought they supposed to (behave negatively). Most of the time, we do not know how to differentiate the free will and what we are taught to behave and desire. When we filter out all the what-other-people-said syndrome, in a deep meditation, when the mind is clear, we can come close to the answer. In real life, it actually happens all the time: a painter who concentrates in painting can have a glimpse of so-called a zen-moment; musicians create the mysterious unison that is pure music (beyond descriptive words). Once you see the other side, we see the infinite possibilities and abundance (Dr. Michael Bernard Beckwith calls it the abundance consciousness). This is because we discover once again our excellence and creativity. When we are depressed, not certain about the future, it is the best time to concentrate on creativities. However, one thing we must accept is that everything is AS-IS at the moment. Our life energy force is meant to be what it Is at this very moment, never meant to be otherwise, and that there is nothing wrong with us being depressed. We live in the moment (not in the past and not in the future), and only thing to do is to accept it as AS-IS and move on. Spend money on a wonderful meal or a chocolate paffe, feel the joy in being alive. There are many things available right now which give you the joy of life, find it out! (you might go back to your early childhood and rethink what really made you happy: an ice cream cone? riding bicycle?

Since Joy relates to the Heart Element, the opposite emotion will affect the heart functions. How do we change pessimism to joy and lead to creativity with acupuncture? My style calls for treating the Du-line. Du-9/12 are powerful points for creativity. Treat the liver with UB-19s. Since the Heart Element is affected, you need to palpate T-4 and 5 to see if there is any pain. If pain, needle UB-14 or UB-15. (remember UB-14 and DU-8 and UB-18 are related). If T-5 is tender, you need to treat the heart itself: left SI-11, left HT-7 and SJ-6 would be effective. Ren-12 is essential for neurosis.

I Am The

2010-09-12T12:22:00.004-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC: 480-246-0624

Y. Frank Aoi, L.Acu (AZ)

What I Am

I am the bringer of health, happiness, and hope.

The Foundation of Oriental Medicine

Qi (in Chinese)/Ki (in Japanese) is a relationship. It is the relationship of polar opposites, creating the Universal Harmony of the Yin and the Yang (positive vs negative, male vs female, matter vs anti-matter, etc.). All diseases are caused by the imbalance and the stagnation of the two energies.*1

The Yin and Yang concept has never changed over millennia, therefore Oriental Medicine has the strong foundation to base its medicine (whereas Western Medicine, because of a modern scientific approach, appears to have a strong background but it is always changing as a new discovery unfolds).

Essence of Acupuncture

Ancient Chinese observed the body and the natural and cosmic phenomena and applied and incorporate them in treatments. They started out by following the natural cycle of seasons and the human life growth and life span. They knew that the menstrual cycle and the moon cycle were not merely coincidence. To observe the cosmos was to observe the micro cosmos of the body. They cannot be separated.*2 They also knew that our emotions greatly influence our health and wellbeing. An attachment to a certain emotion would manifest in the body physiology: for example, worry gives you queasiness in the stomach; sorrow makes the lungs weaker, excessive fear makes you neurotic, etc. Since acupuncture deals with energy and its field by incorporating emotional components, as in yoga, the ultimate goal is to awaken the body and mind to spirituality.*3

*1: Scientifically, we are made of vibrating atoms with certain frequencies. Sickness is the state of desynchronization of the energy.

*2: Nuclear physicist would agree.

*3: Acupuncture is not a religion. It makes you aware and attune to the bliss and the happiness of being alive by realigning body functions.

Treatment Prices

Adult: $95/first session $70/second time on

Senior Age 75 or Over: $65/first session $50/second time on

Child Age Between 16 and 10: $65/first session $50/second time on

Child Under 10:

Parent must experience my acupuncture first. First session is free, $40/session
Short sessions are available on the third or fourth Sunday: $55/first session, $40/second time on

Occasionally, I give a special discounted offer: please inquire

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2009-08-20T21:59:00.005-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Arizona

Volume 2, No. 8: September, 2009

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions

Chapter Two
Heart: Joy, Arrogance, and Transcendence #8

My spiritual teacher, Zeerahk Khan, has made me realized that the transcendence is in the "breathing."

Breathing without consciousness, living through here and now in our truest form, and permeating Love through us and to be one with the Creation.

Acupuncture
How do we perform acupuncture when we are in the state? There are no forms, styles, or accumulated knowledge. No more measurements and technics. No more teachers. One senses where deficiency or
excess is. One also senses the Evil Qi (malady) and knows exactly what to do. There will be no set points.

This will be my life time endeavor.

Namaste.

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2009-08-07T21:50:00.016-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Arizona

Volume 2, No. 7: August, 2009

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions

Must Check This Website

I urge everyone to check out the Zeerahk Khan's website. Zee is almost ready completing her first book. Once it comes out, I am certain that she makes a great contribution to our world. She truly walks her words and also her life. Every word comes out of her mouth is the manifestation of her experience and from the deepest and purest love. All I can say is that she is really really REAL.

Her website: www.zeerahkkhan.com

Namaste.

Chapter Two

Heart: Joy, Arrogance, and Transcendence #7

"The bliss of the heart cannot be stated in words." Upanishad

Joy is a part of love, and Love is transcendental. Love exists before the Creation. Love is causeless. Love is always Is and always will Be. Love is the Before and the After. It just exists. It is the fundamental energy, the vibration, and the cause of All. Joy and arrogance are just the parts of or the transitions of Love.

We must be careful here using the word love, for it contradicts as long as we use it as a word, and the contradiction is an illusion. Speaking about love is not Love, but only in living and in experience, do we understand it. Only then, Love becomes sublime.

To transcend, first, we must get rid of words, or learn not to rely on them. Words cannot describe the ultimate truth. Words are second rated compared to Nirvana. Seeking words of wisdom may give you an eternal wondering and longing for salvation. Wisdom is in experience. May it come in a zen moment, in a silent prayer, in a near death experience, or by the sound and the smell, but not with words. Words make us think, and the thought is an illusion. An experience is spontaneous. Remember, the word aum contains the silence as the fourth word.

The ending paragraphs of Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse read:

"Give me, my honored friend, another word, give me something that I can grasp, that I can understand! Give me something to take along on my way. My way is often arduous, it is often dark, Siddhartha.

Siddhartha silently looked at him with his still and unchanging smile. Govinda stared into Siddhartha's face with fear, with yearning. Sorrow and eternal seeking were written in his gaze, eternal failure to find.

Siddhartha saw it and smiled.

'Lean toward me! he whispered in Govinda's ear. 'Lean toward me here! Right, a bit closer! Very close! Kiss my forehead, Govinda'........................

Govinda bowed low. Tears ran over his old face, but he was unaware of them; the feeling of deepest love, of humbling veneration burned in his heart like a fire. He bowed low, down to the ground, bowed to the motionless sitter, whose smile reminded him of everything that he had ever loved in his life, that had ever been valuable and holy to him in his life."

*translated by Joachim Neugroschel

In acupuncture clinic, sometimes, if you listen to the words of a patient, your treatment may fail. It is very difficult to connect with our brain and the heart desire, especially when we are sick. However, the body does not lie. Illness and symptoms would manifest on the body as discoloration of the skin, pain upon pressure, weak muscles, abnormal pulse, etc. Mostly likely, if a patient tells you that he does not feel any progress, he has an alternate desire which he has not yet expressed. In this case, if you do not have a strong foundation of basic measurement, you will fall into his trap.

Basic aim for an acupuncturist is, of course, to treat and make one healthy. Ultimate aim is to recognize wisdom in each patient's experience, make peace and rejoice in the transition, and move to the higher consciousness.

How do we give a patient the higher level of consciousness with acupuncture? Here is one of the ways.

First, make a patient totally relaxed with deep abdominal breathing technique. Then, ask him to relax especially the muscles around the eyes. Carefully touch the neck, place fingers of both hands at the occiput, and pull the head gently superiorly (the occipital life). After a few minutes, go to his side, and with your thumb, gently but firmly press PC-8 (the center of the palm), making sure your energetic lasts longer for a patient. Do this on both hands. Come back to the head, place one finger of the weaker hand on DU-16 (at the occipital ridge), and place one finger of the dominant hand on Yin Tang (the Third Eye). Do not press, but gently touching. Pay attention to his breathing. If he takes a deep breath, this is a sign of the parasympathetic nervous activation. Keep the position as long as you like, but you must sense when to lift your finger (the body may reject you). Needle Ren-4 (the lower abdomen area) and moxa (kyu-toh-shin: above needle moxibustion). Needle Ren-12 (half way between the navel and the xiphoid process) an dmoxa. Needle HT-7 (on the crease of the wrist, at the small finger side). Needle DU-24 (on the head, at the hairline). Do the occipital lift again. All the while, pay attention to the emotional content of the body. For example, an anxiety issue always comes up as a zigzag energy pattern. Pay attention to the vibration of the body. Most of all, pay attention to your intuition, and follow whatever your intuition tells you to do.

Good luck.

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2009-07-28T22:56:00.010-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Arizona

Volume 2, No. 6: July, 2009

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

New Fourth Beginning

I will be renewing myself again soon when the time comes. I believe that the reinvention is necessary to grow my acupuncture while remaining true to the fundamental of the Tai Chi Treatment. The Tai Chi Treatment differs from a practitioner to a practitioner. It is what we make up of it. I sincerely hope by the later years of my life, if I can reinvent myself as Beethoven did with the late piano sonatas, no more forms, free spirited, and transcendental, I would be very happy.

Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions

Chapter Two

Heart: Joy, Arrogance, and Transcendence #6

In my last newsletter, I talked about an Emily Dickinson’s poem, I heard a fly buzz when I died. Dickinson, in my perspective, was the most zen-ist of all American poets. Her poems are very close to my heart. From the deepest psyche of death to jubilant joy, she renews herself in each poem she writes: an each creative stage is the jubilation of experience.

When you are ready for change, no one can disturb your joy. In the creation, transcendence happens. It is an experience of profound. Nirmanakaya (Trikaya: The Three Bodies Doctrine, 三身, San Shen in Chinese, San Mi in Japanese), the human form (with time and space), Sambhogakaya (Body of Intense Joy/Bliss), and Dharmakaya (Body of Dharma, no limits and boundaries), are all experiences. The first is the experience of suffering, the second is the experience of spiritual, and the third is the experience of the absolute. Sukha is translated as happiness. It connotes the end of all suffering, therefore, it is a state of consciousness unaffected by pleasure and pain. It is intense abiding joy.*

*Eknath Easwaran: from The Dhammapanda

How can we direct people to joy (the Sukha) with acupuncture? If you are an acupuncturist, you may already aware that many things in Oriental Medicine come with three. A set of acupuncture points is no different. A formation of triangle is common and is important. For example, any triangle made by the following points is clinically important: Ren-9, Kid-16s, ST-25s and Ren-6, or upside down triangle made by, Ren-6, Kid-16s, ST-24s, and Ren-9.*

*Master Sawada’s triangles

I personally think Du-9 and UB-67s (Reaching Yang and Reaching Yin) are interesting points to conjure (UB-67s may not be clinically comfortable). Du-9 controls the entire spine*, so a combination with other two points will make an interesting result. Du-16, Ren-4, and Ren-12 are other important master points to consider. Since the Heart Element is Joy, any combination with heart points would be interesting. For example, HT-7s with Du-24 or Ren-15, and Du-11 with UB-45s, UB-47s, UB-49s, UB-52s, or even GB-25s would make some emotional changes. A triangle combination is endless and it all depends on how an acupuncturist proceeds. If you have found a good set, please share with others.

*Du-9 controls all Du points and also adjusts the scoliosis.

At the end of all possible set points, can we reach closer to the mind of Beethoven in his later years? Namaste.

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2009-05-03T21:31:00.005-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Arizona

Volume 2, No. 5: May, 2009

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions

Chapter Two

Heart: Joy, Arrogance, and Transcendence #5

I heard a fly buzz when I died;

The stillness round my form

Was like the stillness in the air

Between the heaves of storm

…

I willed my keepsakes, signed away

What portion of me I

Could make assignable, and then

There interposed a fly.

With blue, uncertain, stumbling buzz,

Between the light and me;

And then the windows failed, and then

I could not see to see.

Emily Dickinson

Emily Dickinson was, from my perspective, one of the most zenist American poets and I present the above poem as the prime example. She is about to commit suicide but when she is just ready a fly buzzes by and interferes with her contemplation. The window of opportunity shuts and she could not see to see.

This poem is similar to the most famous haiku by Basho.

The old pond,

A frog jumps in...

The sound of the water

At the most quietest and private moment, a fly or a frog interferes, and the sound jets through the ear and the brain, transcending the consciousness to the dimension of non-duality: the self dissolves, everything becomes transparent as if all the questions in the universe are answered. You are at peace. You are one with the vibration of the Universe.

It is very interesting to note that Dickinson used the words, "and then" three times. Each time, it was the realization, perhaps lasted only 1/1000 of a second, nonetheless, it was the deepest experience of her life. In the Daoist term, she had realized the Three: 夷(Yi in Japanese), 希(Ki), and 微(Bi). We look at it, and we do not see it, and we name it the Equitable (Yi: 夷). We listen to it, and we do not hear it, and we name it the Inaudible (Ki: 希). We try to grasp it, and do not get hold of it, and we name it the Subtle (Bi: 微)*.

*Lao Zi: "With these three qualities, it cannot be made the subject of description; and hence we blend them together and obtain The One." Translated by James Legge

What does Dickinson has to say about joy?

'Tis so much joy! 'Tis so much joy!

If I should fail, what poverty!

And yet, as poor as I,

Have ventured all upon a throw!

Have gained! Yes! Hesitated so –

This side the Victory!

Life is but Life! And Death, but Death!

Bliss is but Bliss, and Breath but Breath!

…

We know all emotions are illusions and nothing to do with the realty. Joy she speaks is not emotional but an ineffable one. It has transcended so that she has nothing to fear or desire. She is in bliss at the moment of Now which is her victory, letting go her ego and attaining the realization or in Dickinson's term "Heaven."

Can an acupuncturist give such bliss? Try one needle technique as a starter. A patient my have many symptoms, but choose only one point. See if you can treat all symptoms with the one. Think about it. Namaste.

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2009-03-29T20:53:00.013-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Arizona
Volume 2, No. 4: April, 2009
Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions
"… to live in the world as though it were not the world, … to renounce as though it were no renunciation, … he is aware of the existence of that mirror in which he has such bitter need to look and from which he shrinks in such deathly fear." from Steppenwolf by Hermann Hesse
Chapter Two
Heart: Joy, Arrogance, and Transcendence #4
How do we cut the physiological manifestation of the Ko Cycle between the Kidney/Water Element and the Heart/Fire Element and restore health? (from my last newsletter)
When you have the Water Stagnation in the body, you might have general obesity, edema in the legs, puffy face, fatigue, shortness of breathe, etc. When the Water is not moving properly, it may cause a pulmonary edema affecting the heart function in its process. Fluid may retain in the liver likewise and causes a systemic organ failure. In this case, mostly likely, you will find pain at the lower abdomen, especially around ST-27, inferior and lateral to the navel, or at Ren-9*. You may choose such points as Kid-7, 9, 10 and Spl-5, 7, 11. If Ren-9 is painful, needle the right ST-24 (Nagano/Matsumoto) to reduce the pain, then Ren-9. Ren-4 also reduces pain at the abdomen. You want to treat the lung function then the heart (choose PC points). To cut the Ko Cycle, ancient Chinese wrote that the Kidney Heat manifested at Du-9*. Disperse the energetic at the point. It is up to you to decide if you want to needle the point before Ren-9 or vice versa (you must know how to trace the disease).
*Ren-9: appropriately named the Water Separation = on the midline of the abdomen, about 1/2 inch superior to the umbilicus.
*Du-9: from Su Wen
For any dysfunction related to the Kidney, we must assume that the San Jiao is affected since the Kidney controls the Water and so does the San Jiao. The difficulty is that, to the day, the San Jiao* is hard to understand exactly what it is. There is the meridian line and the related manifestations, but not much anatomy behind it. In my opinion, whoever master the San Jiao can give amazing treatments. The three Wans, for example, Ren-10 (下完: Xia Wan = Lower Cavity), Ren-12 (中完: Zhong Wan = Middle Cavity), and Ren-13 (上完: Shang Wan = Upper Cavicity) will be in misalignment when the Ko Cycle is in progress. Particularly in a severe case, we must bring back the functions of the Three Wans properly: you are aiming for the Tai Chi (太極) treatment. There is simply no other way. I am sure you find the way yourself.
*San Jiao: I am sorry it is too hard to explain the concept. Please read on to get a whole picture if not the understanding.
*Three Wans: here is one of the great reasons why the meridians need to start at the Stomach.
Once the Three Wans or Three Dantiens* are properly in their orders, and the Stomach functions* are restored, you will see a better Shen in a patient's eyes and mind.
*Three Dantiens: read my past newsletters.
To be a ferry boat operator (the Mahayana Buddhism) is no easy task. Sometime, you could only watch the flow of river, but somehow, if you have a right skill and the mind, they turn around and get on the boat since we are all curious creatures. Compassion without attachment is the key. Namaste.

開経偈*

無上甚深微妙法

百千万劫難遭遇

我今見聞得受持

願解如来真実義

*Did not want to translate the above verse from a Buddhist scripture. It is fine as is at the moment. It is my wish.
© 2009 Dr. Y. Frank Aoi/Japanese Acupuncture

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2009-02-27T20:29:00.015-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Arizona
Volume 2, No. 3: March, 2009

Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions

Even a little effort toward spiritual awareness will protect you from the greatest fear.
   The Bhagavad Gita

Chapter Two
Heart: Joy, Arrogance, and Transcendence #3

…break the flower-tipped arrows of Mara. Never again will death touch you.
   The Dhammapada

In Buddhist terms, many of us are ever wandering at the shore of pain and sorrow, not knowing how to cross the river to the other side. It is up to the Mahayana Buddhism to ferry us to the destination.

In my past newsletters, I mentioned about the Shen Cycle, the Harmonious Cycle, where every organ is in order and balanced. When the health of a person starts to fail, the Shen Cycle turns to the Ko Cycle, the Destructive Cycle, where each organ starts to affect in a negative way and reduces the function of a related organ. For example, when the Kidney starts to fail, it influences the Heart function. The functions of the two organs are related just as the lungs' and the heart's are. In Oriental Medicine, the Kidney Element embodies Fear and Will. Its element is Water. The Element represents death* and the beginning of life. Just as fear resurrects will, making you stronger, water creates life. A cancer patient may fear death, but out of the fear and frustration, emerges hope. Hope dissolves fear and transcends us to the Heart Element of joy in knowing the true self, the Atman.
*death: some place it in the Metal Element.

In the past, I presented that it was important to know which point to take between the Elements to move the Shen Cycle in the right direction. For example, the Liver/Wood Element to the Heart/Fire Element. It is an equally important and more difficult task to know which point to take to break the Ko Cycle of destruction, for this point would be the ferryboat of the Mahayana Buddhism.

I struggle with the point on a daily basis. Most of my patients do not have their priorities in the right places. They lack focus and patience. They are the wanderers at the shore. How do we ferry them to the other side with acupuncture?

Needless to say that sometimes it is not an acupuncture point that really matters. It is our choice of words and compassionate manner* or intuition to read their concerns that is the key.
*words and manner: the Noble Eight Path = right understanding, right purpose, right speech, right conduct, right occupation, right effort, right attention, and right meditation.

However, for the physiological transformation to happen, it would be nice to know which point to take to break each of the Ko Cycle. I will be writing about it in my next newsletter.

For now, I would like to ask you this: At what point do you drop fear and reach the other side of the shore?

"Let me tell you what I lost through meditation: sickness, anger, depression, insecurity, the burden of old age, the fear of death." Buddha

Namaste

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2009-01-29T00:00:00.011-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Arizona
Volume 2, No. 2: February, 2009

Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions

Chapter Two
Heart: Joy, Arrogance, and Transcendence #2

I love myself
I love you
I love you, and
I love myself
                             Rumi

江月照我心(1)   江水洗我肝(2)   端如径寸珠(3)
堕此白玉盤(4)   我心本如此(5)   月満江不波°(6)

               蘇軾(Su Shi) (蘇東坡Su Dong Po: b.1036 )
°Could not find the right Chinese character, but a close approximation.

1: The moon over the lake (蒼梧江: Chuang Wu Jian) illuminates my heart.
2: The water of the lake cleanses my gut (liver).
3: Truly the gem of treasures,
4: Like this White Jade reflecting onto the bowl,
5: My heart is as Is (such):
6: The moon is full, and the lake has no waves.

When you know exactly who and what you are, you are in the bliss (ananda). Joy emanates through you and you lead to destiny. You are the unmovable mountain. Here is an another poem.

Cool wind gently blows through my mind
No matter what happens.
No matter what happens,
Cool wind gently blows through my mind.

                           Ummon

How do we ground people with acupuncture? It is quite common for health care personnel to meet people with worries and fear. If he fails to address the emotions and treats only physical symptoms, prognosis would be slow.

Fortunately, there are many acupuncture points to choose from. Needless to say, all Shen (Spirit: 神) points are important. But, we must keep in mind that all emotional disturbances stem from imbalances of organs. We need to treat especially the five zang fu organs ( Liver, Heart, Lung, Spleen, Kidney).
For example, if a patient has an anger issue with irritability and red eyes, need to treat the Liver. If the same patient has digestive problems, need to treat the Spleen and the Stomach. My point is that when a patient has, say, a diarrhea, avoid addressing the spirituality by using Shen points.

For a patient with neurosis, a combination of HT-7s (Shen Men = 神門: God Gate) and Du-24 (Shen Ting = 神庭: Courtyard of the Spirit) is good. You may certainly add Du-20 (Bai Hui = 百会: Hundred Meetings). If bipolar, choose the Metal/Water points of meridian affected (Nagano/Matsumoto style)* Adding Du-9 (Zhi Yang = 至陽: Reaching Yang) or Du-12 (Shen Zhu = 身柱: Body Pillar) is also effective.
*There has been a long time discourse on Nang Jing's chapter 69 and 75 among acupuncturists of the past and present as to why chapter 75 was added to the list. I believe a case of bipolar is one of the reasons why.

If a patient has dizziness, needle Hua Tuo Jia Ji (華陀穴) of T-4 and T-5. If it is due to pituitary imbalance, choose the Metal/Water points of the Stomach line or other points such as Liv-2 (Xing Jian = 行間: Moving Between).

If a patient has a headache or migraine, need to treat Liv, SJ, and PC line appropriately after treating organs.

For anxiety, do not forget that a hands-on therapy is also extremely effective.

For any grounding or reduction of nervousness, Ren-4, 6, 12, and 14 are essential (I have already mentioned the effectiveness of these points in my past newsletters).

Overall, if we intend to ground a patient and possibly awaken the spirituality, we need to see God or the Self within each person. Perhaps, letting go of our egos is the most difficult practice we need to learn.

Namaste.

© 2009 Dr. Y. Frank Aoi/Japanese Acupuncture

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona （日本鍼灸、アリゾナ）

2008-12-04T22:21:00.031-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Arizona
Volume 2, No. 1: January, 2009
Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions
You are what your deep, driving desire is.
As your desire is, so is your will.
As your will is, so is your deed.
As your deed is, so is your destiny.
(Brihadaranyaka Upanishad: IV.4.5)
Chapter Two
Heart: Joy, Arrogance, and Transcendence #1

知不知　上、不知知、病
老子
To realize that one does not know is superior,
Not to realize that one does not know is a (spiritual) disease. Lao Zi (Tao Te Ching, 71)
A virtuous person learns ten and thinks he has learned one, but an arrogant person thinks he has mastered ten by learning one. It is important here that Lao Zi used the word "disease (病: Bing in Chinese, Byo in Japanese)" to describe the arrogance of man. His teaching also tells us that irrationality (craziness) comes from ignorance and conceit comes from shallowness. We could say that arrogance is the beginning of mania.* He concludes that a sage knows that it is a disease, therefore, he does not get sick (聖人不病…是以不病).
*Mania: The Heart of the Fire Element is represented by joy, but ancient Chinese warned us that over-joy is a mania, a disease. In Ling Shu chapter 8*, it reads: when the Heart (energy) is Excess, there is an unceasing laughter.*Ling Shu (Spiritual Pivot): from Huang Di Nei Jing (Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon).
The Heart is the Element that radiates and creates with respect and confidence. It is the realm of "I think, therefore I am." Its purpose is to transcend like a phoenix rising from the ashes of fire. Before the transcendence, however, we must cut off an illusion, arrogance. The ultimate ignorance is to think that one is superior without realizing that there is yet a higher entity, God, or not realizing the Self within.
Before I lead you to the spiritual level of the Heart Element, I would like to start with its physiological aspect. I often mention in my lecture series that men are terrible at taking care of themselves, and whereas women are more aware of their bodies and act when they need help. They are more survival oriented. Men are suicidal. Whereas men are blocked by their own egos and arrogance, they tend to wait too long for help. I have a good friend whose father died of heart disease, so he is subconsciously fearful that he may face the same fate. Yet, he has not gone to see a doctor or to have a blood test done in the past 15 years. All he does is complain about how expensive his health insurance premium is.
Once a man experiences a stroke and brushes with death, he understands that he is no longer invincible (or at least the awareness that he is no longer a 20 year old but a middle-aged man). The primordial fear of death sinks in and he starts to search for more meaning in life. He may have a pale complexion and slightly fearful eyes that do not focus and his face always turned away from you as he speaks. His Spirit (the Heart stores Shen (神), the Spirit) is weak and wandering. He is in search for spirituality.
Oriental Medicine is always whole body balancing. While western medicine focuses on the heart itself, Oriental Medicine focuses on the Liver, the Kidney, meridian channels, and other organs. Nan Jing* says that the Heart itself does not malfunction but the peripherals do. According to the book, treating the heart alone cannot cure the disease.
*Nan Jing: one of the must read Chinese classics, written by Bian Que during Han Dyansty.
As in the Chakra system, a certain energetic in the body has a spiral movement.* Ren and Du,* and to some extent the Spleen, are spiral in motion. Ren energy is not only spiral in nature, but as with the Chakra, it entwines like a snake, connecting with organs in its pass. The one branch of the Ren energetic passes through the left Kidney, then moves to the right, connects with the Liver, then turns once more to the left, connecting with the Heart. Ren then connects with the tongue and the eyes.
*Spiral movement: I believe this movement is primordial, since the beginning of life form (when a life form developed a mouth and an anus: (the mouth to anus connection: Dr. Kiiko Mastumoto).
*Ren & Du: Ren, the mid-center energy line of the anterior of the body; Du the mid-center energy line of the posterior of the body)
*Connecting with the Heart: note here that this is the Sheng Cycle (相生: please read my last newsletter).
Therefore, from the Oriental Medicine perspective, treating the Kidney and the Liver is essential, especially when the Heart is disturbed by Liver Excess energy or it is weakened by Kidney Deficiency or Excess (Kid Excess: Japanese understanding; i.e., any kidney failure). Master Sawada mentioned that Heart ailment was due to the imbalance and unstableness of San Jiao*. Since his approach is directly on the Ren line, it is a spiritual treatment* as well.
*San Jia: one of the 12 main meridians.
*Spiritual treatment: three Daintiens must be balanced (please read my past newsletter).
The Heart has a direct connection with the Kidney. Any kidney ailment will affect the heart function. They are inseparable. They form a symbiotic Yin and Yang relationship and are inseparable. If you have read my past newsletter, you will know that the Heart has also a direct relationship with the Uterus (the Bao Mai).
The Five Elements diagram shows that the Liver is the Mother element of the Heart. Therefore, any ailment of the liver will affect the heart function as well. It is common in the case of a heart attack which occurs at night. During the time 1 am to 3 am belongs to the Liver. At this time, the Liver is the strongest and if it is excess in energy, it disturbs the Heart during the hours. Conversely, if the Liver is deficient and weak, then during the hours between 1 pm and 3 pm, when the Liver is the weakest, one might feel palpitation and other heart symptoms.
How do we treat the Heart with acupuncture? For prevention, the adrenal system must be in balance. We can needle Kid-6 and Kid-27 (Matsumoto-Nagano style) or Ren-4, Ren-6, and Ren-12 to calm the autonomic nervous system (avoid Ren-4/6 if a patient has very slow pulse). Ren-14 as I mentioned in the past newsletter is an important point for prevention. Add, Sp-4 or Sp-3, but avoid Sp-4, if a patient has an ischemic condition, for Sp-4 draws blood away from the heart (Dr. Matsumoto). Any Heart or Pericardium point is good. If you choose a Pericardium point, I would advise to combine with a Spleen point.
With almost all heart ailments, SI-11 (天宗)* on the left side is tender. In this case, perform the Dr. Matsumoto's Zong Qi treatment: Right Hua Tuo Jia Ji at L-2 (Ming Men), bilateral Hua Tuo Jia Jia at T-7, and the Left SI-11. This will alleviate pressure pains for the heart reflex (for details, please read her book, Kiiko Matsumoto's Clinical Strategies, Vol One/Two).
*SI-11 (天宗: Tian Zong = Heavenly Gathering, on the scapula, about one third of the distance from the midpoint of the inferior border of the scapula spine to the inferior angle of the scapula).
For angina with mental and emotional stress, HT-7, PC-4 (Japanese point), Ren-14, Ren-17, Du-11, Du-12, etc. For arrhythmia, HT-7, PC-4, SJ-5 or 6, Ren-12, Du-12, UB-15, UB-18, UB-20, etc. In addition, I would loosen up the scapula* and all the muscles of the neck.*
*Scapula: the scapula bone is not attached to any other bone but floats by attached muscles. Freeing the movement of the scapula will help reduce tension in the pectoral muscles and the heart function.
*Muscles of the neck: mainly, all the scalenes, the SCMs, the upper trapezii.
Reduction of stress and changing of habits are most important in our daily life. Since the Heart stores the Shen, the Spirit, emotional stability and balance is important as well. How to balance the Joy, the Heart element and the Fear, the Kidney element, is the topic of my next newsletter.

Lao Zi

© 2009 Dr. Y. Frank Aoi/Japanese Acupuncture

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona （日本鍼灸、アリゾナ）

2008-11-26T20:47:00.008-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Arizona
Volume 2, No. 1: December, 2008

Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions

"How communicate to people who insist on the exclusive evidence of their senses the message of the all-generating void?" Joseph Campbell

Chapter One
Liver: Anger, Love, and Redemption #10

It is time to review the Liver (Wood) Element of the Five Elements.

Organ    Liver
Paired Organ   Gallbladder
Element   Wood
Direction   East
Season   Spring
Emotion   Anger
Color   Green (also blue green)
Dislike   Wind
Governing   Tendon
Manifestation   Eyes
Taste   Sour
Transformation   Redemption
"Transforming anger into excitement rendering the process to personal salvation, and transforming it to spiritual love is the Liver Element of healing. Out of the healing comes compassion. However, compassion is met by its opposite, attachment, especially to love. We must turn attachment to virtue so that true compassion manifests and radiates the transcended love." Newsletter Vol. 2 No. 1, Chapt 1/#9, November, 2008)

A Wood type person may be skinny, muscular, and bony. He is prone to digestive problems. He is easy to get angry but displays extreme tenderness. He may not sit still and moves swiftly from one place to another. He may smell sour, has a greenish or yellow greenish tint (as in jaundice), and is weak against wind (a long time exposure to an air conditioner or a fan makes him sick). He could be a very good leader or a healer.

In The Beginning
When our ancestors did not have technical knowledge to observe and understand the human body, they relied on empirical observations of external manifestation to infer the functions of organs within. They were apt to grasp nature, or the Intention* and the manifestation of diseases, and they perfected observation of the exterior and insight to the interior. They emphasized the human body as a whole to the relationship with the natural phenomena they experienced; such as day and night, light and dark, hot and cold, and four seasons. By regarding the human body as a small universe* (therefore, part of the Universe), astronomy and Ba Gua (八卦) were further refined to incorporate physics and mathematics. By applying and establishing laws, they strived to attain the fundamental truth that transcended time* (The Tai Qi = The Oneness). To this day, the fundamentals of Oriental Medicine have not changed over millenniums.
*Intention: Yi (意)
*Small Universe: we are made of atoms that are constantly vibrating (the energy).
*The fundamental principle of western medicine is always changing.

© 2008 Dr. Y. Frank Aoi/Japanese Acupuncture

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona （日本鍼灸、アリゾナ）

2008-10-26T21:31:00.014-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Arizona
Volume 2, No. 1: November, 2008
Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions
(This newsletter is dedicated to the late Joseph Campbell.)
Chapter One
Liver: Anger, Love, and Redemption #9
月落鳥啼霜満天 (1) 江楓魚火対愁眠 (2)
姑蘇城外寒山寺 (3) 夜半鐘声到客船 (4)
--- 張継『楓橋夜泊』
The above Chinese poem has long been loved by the Japanese. Personally, I think because it has a characteristic that Japanese uniquely love, namely 情緒 (pronounced Jou-Cho in Japanese). The word is quite hard to translate but roughly is aesthetic atmosphere, emotional longing, delicate emotions, or thoughts on living, on nature, etc.* The poem is an honest and straight forward explanation of what the poet saw, heard, and experienced. It explains his pure experience in the style of Jou-Cho.
*Japanese Wikipedia does not have a page on the word.
The first line reads:
"The Moon had set, crows cried, mist is rising, filling the area as if to fill the Heaven."
The second line reads:
"Barely awake, seeing the fisherman's fire and maple trees, sensing melancholic (愁)"
The third line reads:
"Outside of Ku Su City, there is a temple called Han Shan (Cold Mountain)"
The fourth line reads:
"Past mid-night, the sound of the temple bell could be heard even on my boat (making me more melancholic)"
Zhang Ji (張継) traveled to Su Zhou (蘇州). Su Zhou is known for its canals and round bridges. He was tired and sleeping on a boat. When he woke up a little in the late hours, he realized the scenery around him had something reminiscent, then as if to tally the feeling, he heard the sound of the distant bell of Han Shan Temple, intensifying the experience of being there at the moment. Because of this poem, many Japanese visit Han Shan Temple (寒山寺) today.
The poet's experience is about transforming what is on the level of sentiment (the melancholy and the reminiscence) to become (identification of himself with the moment), and what has become has transcended to being (the sound of the bell triggering a Zen moment of "Oneness") on the plane of consciousness.
In my last newsletter, I have encouraged readers to experience life as it reveals to you without judgment. Find out what the universe provides for you, and then you will find a doorway to bliss. The poem is a perfect example of experiencing life as it reveals. Nothing complicated. The poet just jotted down what he had experienced. Can you be as sensitive to nature and life as he was? Can you live in the moment? Can you merge your psyche to your own inner nature as it reveals to you? Zen master said to an apprentice, "what did you hear this morning?" Young apprentice said, "a chirping of birds," and the master replied, "why don't you start from there?"
The direction, east, is assigned to the Liver in the Five Elements.* Its virtue is benevolence (仁): the highest virtue that Confucius gave. In the Buddhist mandala, the east is represented by Amida (in Japanese) or Amitabha (in Sanskrit). Amida means compassion and "bha" means radiance. Amida is a celestial Buddha whose compassion radiates and permeates even the darkest places of hell, transcending time and space. It is the realm of Dalai Lama.*
*Five Elements: please read my past newsletters.
*Dalai Lama: Joseph Campbell, The Mythic Dimension.
Transforming anger into excitement rendering the process to personal salvation, and transforming it to spiritual love is the Liver Element of healing. Out of the healing comes compassion. However, compassion is met by its opposite, attachment, especially to love. We must turn attachment to virtue so that true compassion manifests and radiates the transcended love (Amida and Christ in us all).
How do we free ourselves from attachment by acupuncture? This is a very difficult question, for it is more of psychological and spiritual province than the physical domain of acupuncture. I may evade the cardinal rule that what is best is not teachable and cannot be expressed in words (行不言之教---老子: teach without words---Lao Zi*).
*Teach without words, for the second best is easily misunderstood.
I believe I must refer back to the Five Elements once more. As I mentioned in my last newsletter that there is a natural transition of five Elements which is called the Sheng Cycle (相生-AKA: Harmonious or Generating Cycle – the cycle of health and living). As in Yin and Yang, there is a counter movement to the cycle called Ko (相剋-AKA: Controlling or Destructive Cycle – the cycle of harmful imbalance and unhealthy relationship). For example the Heart (Fire Element) can adversely affect the Lung (Metal Element), and the Lung can affect the Liver (Wood Element). It mutually destroys their functions and the end result of the cycle is death.
We have been talking about the Liver, the Wood Element, and as I have already mentioned that the Lung, the Metal Element, destroys the Wood Element. If the Metal Element is not controlled, it influences the negative aspect of the Liver, such as anger, to rise. Now, the emotion assigned to the Metal Element is grief or sadness. Going back to attachment, attachment is clinging; and grief is also clinging, and is intensified by fear (Water Element). We must cut this destructive cycle if the Wood Element were to transcend.
There are a few emotional points in the acupuncture body system for grief and sadness. Some were already introduced in my past newsletter, such as Ren-17* as the Receiver of Emotion, and Ren-9* (the Water Point) as the Carrier of Sadness. In addition, we have UB-42,* the Door of the Corporeal Soul* and all the points in the Lung Meridian line. UB-42 is indeed the door to the lungs. It is not only good for the functions of the lungs but also for any emotional disturbance by lung ailments. I would choose Lu-6, 7, 8, or 10 among the Lung Meridian. Lu-6 is a Xi-Cleft point.* Lu-7 is a Luo-Connecting point and opens the Ren Mai.* Lu-8 is the Metal Point* of the Lung Meridian (metal of the Metal).
*Ren-17 (壇中: Zhong-Wan = Middle Cavity, on the centerline, at the 4th intercostals, between the nipples).
*Ren-9 (水分: Shui-Fen = Water Separation, on the centerline, about ½ inch superior to the navel).
*UB-42 (魄戸: Po-Hu = Door of the Corporeal Soul, level with the third thoracic vertebra, about 3 inches lateral to the midline. When there is heat in the zang organ, you need to disperse the energy
*Corporeal Soul (魄: Po): connects between the corpus (body) and the spirit (psyche).
*Xi-Cleft Point (aka: Alarm Point): where energy gathers
*Luo-Connecting Point: connected to the paired organ, in this case, with the Large Intestine. Lu-7 opens the Ren Mai (an extra Meridian, closely related to spiritual functions).
*Metal Point: each Meridian line has its own five Elements (elements within the Element).
I would tonify* UB-42 with moxa* or may disperse the Metal energy from Lu-8 (or 10), and may open the Ren Mai by Lu-7. Ren-17* and Ren-9* may be needled or just a gentle touch by a finger would suffice. Keep in mind it is more important to sense how the body is reacting than performing techniques. You must sense that grief, sadness, or anxiety is dissipating, or at least, whether the body is relaxing or not.*
*tonify: strengthening
*moxa: Chinese herb to warm the body
*Ren-17: if there is pain, you first need to take the pain out. If there is pain on the right side, it is due to the Blood (Yin/female) and the left side is due to the Qi (Yang/male). Try to find out which points reduce the pain at Ren-17 for youself.
*Ren-9: if there is pain, needle the right ST-24 first.
*anxiety is dissipating, or … at least: sorry, I cannot teach you this - you must experience.
In addition to cutting the destructive connection of the Ko Cycle, two others must be done. The Liver, the Wood Element, is the time of regeneration. It is the springtime, a beginning of the year and the season when seeds start to germinate and come up from the ground as young plants or trees. Everything is the Yang energy. In order to help the Yang energy further, we need to strengthen it by cutting out the Yin energy, especially from the Kidney (Water Element). Not only do we need to shut down the fear aspect of the Kidney, but also reduce its Yin energy so that the Yang energy of the Wood Element is nourished (by the Yang energy of the Kidney). I might choose Kid-4 or Kid-6* to disperse the Yin energy of the Kidney, or tonify the Yang energy by UB-23, UB-52, or GB-25.* I might use Hua Tou Jia Ji* at L-2 (the Ming Men*: at the second lumbar vertebra).
*Kid-4 (大鐘: Da-Zhong = Great Bell, at the anterior border of the Achilles tendon): Kiiko Matsumoto suggests this point for over worrying and obsessive thinking.
Kid-6 (照海: Zhao-Hai = Shining Sea, slightly inferior to the medial malleolus): Manaka's Mu Point of the kidneys, the adrenal reflex point (for shock, trauma, stress, fear of dying, psychological abuses, etc.).
*UB-23 (腎喩: Shen-Shu = Kidney Shu, lateral to the lower border of the second lumbar vertebra): the kidney point.
UB-52 (志室: Zhi-Shi = Residence of the Will, lateral to the UB-23): activates the will to live. Master Sawada took this point slightly lower than a regular location
GB-25 (京門: Jing-Men = Capital Gate, anterior and inferior end of the 12t rib): the Source point of the kidneys.
*Hua Tou Jia Ji (華陀穴: Hua Tou's Paravertebral Points, slightly lateral to the depression of each vertebra): According to Master Sawada, this line is the first UB line. Master Sawada was the master of the points.
*Ming Men, the Gate of Life: please read my last newsletter.
The third is to tonify the Liver itself. UB-18, UB-47, Liv-3, Liv-8* come to mind. Lastly, the three steps should be performed in the sequence starting from cutting off the Ko Cycle and helping emotions to settle, then to disperse the Yin energy and tonify the Liver.*
*UB-18 (肝喩: Gan-Shu = Liver Shu, lateral to the lower border of the spinous process of the ninth thoracic vertebra): the liver point.
UB-47 (魂門: Hun-Men = Gate of the Ethereal Soul, lateral to UB-18): increases the spiritual as well as the physical aspect of the liver.
Liv-3 (太衝: Tai-chong = Great Rushing, on the dorsum of the foot, in the depression between the first and the second digits): the Source point of the liver.
Liv-8 (曲泉: Qu-Quan = Spring at the Crook: tonifying, particularly good for GYN functions.
*and to tonify the Liver: this strategy of tonifying the Wood Element is culturally ingrained in Chinese and Japanese springtime traditions. Hiroko Yoshino: Yin & Yang Five Elements and the Japanese People (陰陽五行と日本の民俗).
Selected points are arbitrary. They are meant to inspire you. Acupuncture is merely a tool and guidance. We transform attachment by identifying with the inner nature, finding happiness and having strength to turn it to its highest virtue. In another words: strike the ground and find the root being. When we can do this, we see the bright light of enlightenment.*
*The bright light of enlightenment: I often think that enlightenment is like going down the black hole. It is the dark matter that sucks everything in the universe (including the light), and when we pass the point of no return, we get sucked into the vortex, our body elongates, atoms of the body disintegrate, approaching the speed of light, and then what do we see in the abyss? We will be illuminated by zillions of lights trapped by the black hole, and that is our end.* We become one with the Light. (*The end (nirvana): a dissipation of the Self like a drop of drew into the vast sea.)

"All is impermanent. All is without self."

Namaste!

蘇州楓橋　Su Zhou, Maple Bridge

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona （日本鍼灸、アリゾナ）

2008-09-21T23:23:00.019-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Arizona
Volume 2, No. 1: October, 2008
Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions
Chapter One
Liver: Anger, Love, and Redemption #8
巻土重来未可知
----杜牧「題鳥江亭」
There is always hope. Tragedy lies in not trying or doing. We do not know the outcome of a war unless we try till the end. When a doctor says that a symptom will be permanent, or there is no cure, people tend to swallow the words and fall into despair. Yes, pain is real and it seems impossible to get rid of. But, unless you are about to die any minute, the universe provides you with alternatives if you have the will to pursue.
Anyone who can read the above Chinese poem understands that life is full of ups and downs, glories and defeats, but we do not know the outcome unless we try. The poem is a lamentation for a famous Chinese general (項羽) who was defeated in battle and had a second chance to win by crossing the river to a neighboring country to regroup. At the edge of river, he decided not to, perhaps thinking about the dishonor and shame he carried. He committed suicide to present himself as a war prize to a good friend who had become a general of the enemy. Had he crossed the river, his new army might have defeated the enemy and thereby changed history.
Hope can change history. It always does. What you must do is to find courage in pain, joy in dying, and bliss in living. Sticking with the agony of pain or lamenting on death that certainly comes would not produce any change. It only propagates the situation.
How do we improve? Clear your mind. Close your eyes and take a deep breath. Relax the muscles around your eyes. Relax your forehead, your cheek and chin. Relax your fingers and toes. Relax your abdomen. Let go. Tell yourself, that it is dark here, but comfortable and relaxing. Your eyelids are now heavy, and you try to open them but cannot. Tell yourself that you are in a comfort zone; may it be a favorite room, at the beach, etc, and you are safe and relaxed. At this moment, take yourself back to your childhood. Remember what made you really happy when you were a child. Was it your mother's voice or an apple pie? Was it your birthday party, a Christmas morning, going to Disneyland? Whatever it may be, your healing starts from this point. Identify the happiness and pursue it once more in your life. Put aside pain: make it a secondary importance and a nuisance. Your goal now is to attain happiness. You had it once before, and there is no reason whatsoever that you cannot have it again.
Try not to classify what comes to you. Do not judge and shut down. Experience it as it comes. Let go of your ego, and you can let go of your pain. Face the experience of life, and in the redemption you will find happiness and bliss.
There is a Zen story. A young man wanted to become an apprentice to a respected Zen master. The master invited him to his room, and asked him to look at an image painted on a scroll hanging on wall. He then asked the young man to tell him what it meant. The image was of a poor and worn out old man sitting on a tree stump, looking vainly into space.
Not wanting to give an answer in haste, he carefully thought about it, and thought about it for four days. On the fifth day the master walked into the room and asked him if he had an answer. The young man replied that he really did not understand the meaning of the picture, but he surely could understand how hungry and miserable the old man was. Upon hearing, the master accepted him as an apprentice.
It is the experience that matters. Unless we experience, we do not know what the universe provides. Ego and intellect do not provide answers. We need to open up a doorway to bliss.
How do we open up a doorway to bliss in acupuncture?
In Oriental Medicine, we have the Five Element Theory (五行: Wu Xing)*. It is a system in which natural phenomena are categorized in five basic elements: the Water, the Wood, the Fire, the Earth, and the Metal. Five Element Theory has a cycle. Its proper movement* is from the Wood (Liver) to the Fire (Heart), the Fire to the Earth (Spleen), the Earth to the Metal (Lungs), the Metal to the Water (Kidneys), and the Water back to the Wood.
*Five Element: Eastern Indian has a similar idea of the Five: the Five Koshas of Vedanta which encloses the Atman (the Self). For an acupuncturist, the numbers, 1, 3, 5, and 9 are important. My Hopi friend once told me that the numbers 4, 7 and 11 are important for the people.
*Sheng Cycle (相生, aka: Harmonious Cycle): the cycle of health and living.
Each transition between the Elements of the Five Element Theory is a realization. It is the point where the dynamic process of being connects with the consciousness.

Every acupuncturist knows what points to take for each Element, but not many know what points to take for the space between two Elements. For example, what points do you take for the transition of the Wood (Liver) transforming to the Fire (Heart)?

The transition of the Wood into the Fire, as you have read in my past newsletters, is the transition of anger into excitement, and in so doing, to realize "I Am." Needless to say, it is an important transition of self-realization (or actualization). The redemption it takes in transforming anger is pure consciousness. It is the power of expression forcing out of the body by pure experience (epiphany for example).
Well then, how does acupuncture guide the immense process of consciousness? The answer, I think, is to have the Tai Chi Treatment. Here, I do not mean the whole body balancing of the Tai Chi treatment I mentioned in my past newsletters, but an ultimate treatment that works for every symptom for all people. An acupuncturist should have a set of Tai Chi Treatment protocol points.*
*Effectiveness of the points entirely depends on the skill level of a practitioner and not on selected points.
Mine is based on the transitional spaces between the Elements. I have chosen Du-9* (至陽 Zhi Yang: Reaching Yang) for the transitional space between the Wood (Liver) and the Fire (Heart). The word 至 (Zhi) means arriving, spread through, gathering, final, maximum or apex. Therefore, this is the point where Yang Qi (energy) is at its maximum. What happens when the Yang Qi becomes maximum? It flips to the Yin. This is the point where Yin and Yang consciousness meets. A minor note: since acupuncture is conceived of Yin and Yang, there is a point exactly opposite to this point, namely, UB-67 (至陰 Zhi Yin: Reaching Yin)*. Together, the three (there is UB-67 on each small toe) make a triangle covering the front of the body (Yin) and the back of the body (Yang).
* Du-9 (至陽 Zhi Yang: Reaching Yang = depression on the spinous process of the 7th* thoracic vertebra)
*Ub-67 (至陰): This is the famous point for a breech baby to turn to the right position, so we tend to forget that the Kidney Meridian actually starts from here.
*According to the Five Element, the Earth Number 7 belongs to the Fire (Heart) Element and the Number 9 belongs to the Metal (Lung) Element.
Du-9 is at the diaphragm. It opens up the diaphragm and activates the Zong Qi (宗気 = Qi of the Chest ). It is the source of Post-natal Qi (energy you get from eating and breathing).
* Zong Qi [宗気 = Qi of the Chest = comes from Jing Qi (精気) between the Heaven and the Earth = the source of Ying Qi (営 = Nutritive Qi) and Wei Qi (衛 = Defensive Qi)].
Du-9 connects with the Ming Men*(Du-4, 命門, The Gate of Life). The Ming Men is the source of Pre-natal Qi (energy you are born with.). Therefore, Du-9 is the center of the transformational Qi. Furthermore, the Ming Men Fire* is the source of the Heart Qi (Fire Element). It is part of the "I Am-ness."
* Ming Men (Du-4, 命門, The Gate of Life, depression on the spinous process of the 2nd lumbar vertebra). If you divide the vertebrae into one third, you count seven vertebrae in each segment. The upper segment lies on Du-9, and the lower segment is at Du-4.
*Ming Men is the Kidney Qi which belongs to the Water (Kidney) Element. Each Element has Yin and Yang. Without the warmth (Yang Qi) of the Kidney, the Heart does not function well and leads to death (Death is the extinguishment of the Ming Men Fire). I need to explain the function of the Ming Men and its Fire in detail in another chapter.
As you can see, Du-9 is the pivotal point where Yin and Yang transform themselves into each other. It is backed by two fundamental energy sources: the Pre- and the Post-natal Qi. The maximum Yang Qi can be attained here, and at the same time, it is the beginning of Yin Qi. The emotions, therefore, flip too. It is a doorway to redemption and leads you to the Heart Element of hope and love.
One caution in clinical practice: Du-9 and Du-8 (筋縮, on the depression of the spinous process of the 9th vertebra) must be treated gently and cautiously. Strong manipulation or dispersion will bring about exact opposite results, such as severe anger or depression. Be extremely careful!
Now, my questions are:
What do you do when you come to the edge of river?
Where does your redemption lie?
Can you find a doorway?
© 2008 Dr. Y. Frank Aoi/Japanese Acupuncture

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2008-09-03T00:26:00.010-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Arizona
Volume 2, No. 1: September, 2008

Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions
Chapter One
Liver: Anger, Love, and Redemption #7
知彼知己、百戦不殆
---孫子/謀攻篇
Arguably, the most famous military strategist in the history of China is Sun Zi（孫子: historians debate whether or not he was a real historical figure). One of his most famous sayings was: "Know Him (the enemy) and know Myself, then a hundred battles could be won (cannot be beaten)." Many of his teachings were for the art of war, but they could be applied in many situations, and this teaching is one of them.
To cure an illness (enemy), we need to know what it really is. We must make sure that we can defeat it. However, knowing what it is and what to do sometimes are not good enough. There is always a human element, a weakness. I have seen so many people fall into self-doubt and fear, and they become weak minded. The mind easily tricks us when it is not grounded. It conjures up a dire consequence and eliminates possibilities. We fall into thinking that there is nothing we can do and there is no hope.
When we face a difficulty (as thousands of military generals in history did), we must first take a deep breath and strengthen our minds by saying I am OK, and that there is a hope and a way out. We must first win over our mind. By knowing our weakness and strengthen, we can change the course of our history. If we cannot, then an enemy has already beaten us.
How do we avoid a certain defeat?
When we are ill, we must have courage to face the fact and deal with it properly. The word "courage" in Japanese is pronounced "Dai-Tan." Literal translation is "Big Gallbladder." In Oriental Medicine, the courage is attributed to the Gallbladder. It is the organ that governs decision-making. It deals with adversity and leads to action. Action, then, must be activated with its paired organ, the Liver. Unfortunately, when we are ill, the liver is also weakened, and our mind is off-balanced. With most of illnesses, the liver must be strengthened (of course, in a certain condition, liver detox is recommended*: i.e., cancer, acute hepatitis, etc). I highly recommend acupuncture to strengthen the liver and to take vitamin 6 and 12 (the foundation of DNA) supplements.
*Liver detox: here in Arizona, I find many people overdoing liver detox to the point it is no longer beneficial, and so doing, forgetting about strengthening the liver.
In my last newsletter, I talked about the autonomic nervous system and the adrenal system to restore the mind (the Spirit). The two systems need to be balanced to help the Liver attaining the final goal, which is the self-actualization, helping the Heart Element to reach the realm of "I Am."
To balance the autonomic nervous system, we can start with a stress reduction. Identify stress factors. Create an action plan for the stress. Change behaviors or routines if necessary. Keep the blood pressure in the normal range. Have a proper diet. Eat well with discerning knowledge. Take some minerals along with water. Do light exercise with abdominal breathing technique. Consult with a physician. To balance the adrenal system, do all just mentioned plus take some tyrosine (amino acid: 500 mg/day) and iodine if the thyroid is affected (one drop in a cup of water, twice a day: consult with your health care provider).
To balance the both systems by acupuncture, one example is as follow.
Autonomic Nervous System:
If rapid pulse, needle Ren-4 (関元: Gate of Origin, on the midline, about 3/5 below the navel on the line drawn between the navel and the pubic symphysis) or Ren-6 (気海: Sea of Qi, on the midline, about an inch inferior to the navel). ) Reduce the pulse rate.
Palpate Kid-2 (然谷: Blazing Valley, on the medial side of the foot, in the depression distal and inferior to the navicular tuberosity). If the point is tender, LU-10 (魚際: Fish Border, on the thenar eminence of the hand, in a depression between the midpoint of the first one metacarpal) could be tender, too. Needle the Metal and the Water points of each meridian line (only if the Fire point is tender).*
*Nagano-Matsumoto treatment according to Nan Jing (難経) Chapter 75.
Adrenal System:
If Kid-27 (喩府) in the depression on the lower border of the clavicle) is tender (possible thyroid/adrenal imbalance sign), then needle the point and Kid-6 (照会: slightly below the prominence of the medial malleollus). Add LU-5 (尺沢: Cubit Marsh, half the distance of the elbow cubital crease). If Kid-27 is really tender upon palpation, then needle HT-7 (神門: in the depression on the lower border of the clavicle) first. It will reduce the tenderness at Kid-27 immediately.*
*note from Sawada/Shirota style
If with respiratory problems, needle Kid-3 (太渓: in the depression between the medial malleollus and the Achilles tendon, level with the prominence of the medial malleollus) instead of Kid-6. For an elderly person or he has general weakness, needle Kid-9 (築賓: Guest House, on the medial aspect of the lower leg, draw a straight line from Kid-3 to where it meets the inferior end on the gastrocnemius muscle) instead.
According to the Sawada/Shirota style, Kid-6 is Kid-3. It is one of the most crucial points. Add Ren-12 (on the midline, half way between the xiphoid process and the navel) and Left SJ-4 (陽池: Yang Pool, on the dorsum of the wrist, in the depression). They are the essential points.
One last thing. Human touch is the most powerful healing tool we have. Acupuncture does not come close to the power of touch. The autonomic and adrenal systems will be helped by it, but more importantly, one's realization of "I Am" is enhanced. The connectedness of the touch awakens the Heart Element: the joy and the love. The enemy within will be defeated by the elements, for there is always hope.
© 2008 Dr. Y. Frank Aoi/Japanese Acupuncture

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2008-07-30T17:43:00.015-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Arizona
Volume 2, No. 1: August, 2008
Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions
Chapter One
Liver: Anger, Love, and Redemption #6
There is a famous Chinese poem created in the 7th century China. The famous part of the poem reads:
Years after years, age after age, flowers look alike.
Age after age, years after years, man is never the same.*
年年歳歳花相似
歳歳年年人不同
劉廷芝『代悲白頭翁』
*My own translation.
Flowers bloom the same way every year, but a person who looks at them is not. Man is transient and not everlasting. The poem has a tone of lovely sweetness and beauty contrasted with the uncertainty of human conditions. It has an undertone of the ominous.
Perhaps, people adore the poem because of its ambiance of sweetness. We cling to the hope rather than an uncertain doom.

Human mind is never certain. Along with happiness and joy, we carry the fear of uncertainty. Anger, fear, and love are, therefore, inseparable. We cannot define and understand the human mind, but we feel the emotions to empathize with a person. May it be your loved one, a partner, a friend, or a total stranger, we can certainly try and console.
As I mentioned in the past newsletters, ancient Chinese left nothing in understanding human ailments. They knew from the very start that a certain emotion created an illness. 2000 years ago, they knew what emotion would manifest as what illness and where in the body system. Above all, they knew how to treat it.
For example, there are acupuncture points named specifically for the sadness, the will, the anger and the soul, the worry (or over-thinking) and the intelligence, and the spirit (mental and emotional). Another is the Gate (門) point. All the Gate points named the Spirit (神) are important in psychological and psychosomatic healings. Additionally, there are quite a few points named the Devil* that take care of special and unusual situations and therefore are important even though they are not often used.
*Devil (鬼) point is either an unique name or an additional name to a certain point. The name is not commonly used today but is in the ancient texts.
Readers who read my past newsletters would know that the Will is the Kidney Element and is the base of the action when the Liver Element activates the excitement. Anger turns to the Soul, the Soul leads to the destiny. The Soul manifests as respect and confidence which are the Heart Element, and when the Intention in the Heart Element merges with the destiny, the purpose takes over, and one is on the way to self-actualization, knowing who he really is ("I Am").
What happens if one Element is weak or sick, and how does the imbalance affect the body and the psych? To explain, I need to talk briefly about the notion of the Five Element. For now, I want readers to understand that the Kidney Element is the mother of the Liver. The Liver Element is, therefore, the son. Liver Element is the mother of the Heart. The Heart Element is, therefore, the son.
I start from the Kidney Element. The kidneys have a very close relationship with the heart. Arrhythmia, for example, immediately affects the kidney function, or any kidney failure affects the heart conversely. There are many reasons for arrhythmia, and one of them is the stress. Excessive stress causes the blood acidic level to rise up, affecting the endocrine system and the autonomic nervous system. The adrenal system is particularly affected since it is responsible in regulating the stress related hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline.
When arrhythmia happens, its energetic immediately manifests on the left arm at PC-4 (Pericardium point named Xi-Men: = Xi-Cleft Gate: on the flexor aspect of the forearm, about three fingers width distal to the crease of the elbow, a Japanese point) and travels to PC-6 (Nei Guan = Inner Pass: guan also means the Gate: on the flexor aspect of he forearm, about an inch and a half proximal to the crease of the wrist), and immediately flips and transfers to SJ-5 (Wei Guan = Outer Pass: exactly opposite side of PC-6 on the forearm), then runs through the San Jiao channel as electric sensation. In this case, one must immediately open the first Gate, HT-7 (Shen Men = God or Spirit Gate: at the wrist joint, the proximal border of the pisiform bone), to restore the irregular Qi flow and to calm the Qi and the mind. For irregular pulse, HT-4 (Ling Dao = Spirit Pathway: at the radial side of the tendon, about one inch proximal to HT-7) is also a good
point. The difference between the two is that when acute, HT-7 is better, and for a regulation of the heart beat, HT-4 works well. In addition, a combination of PC and SJ points or a combination of PC and Sp points is highly recommended.
Once the energetic goes through the left arm, it enters the body and manifests at around Du-11 on the back (Shen Dao = God or Spirit Pathway: at the fifth thoracic vertebra). If one were to chase the energetic with acupuncture, he will end up at Ren-14 (Ju Que = Great Gateway: on the midline of the abdomen, slightly inferior to the apex of the xiphoid process)* Therefore, if one were to prevent arrhythmia and other heart ailments, Ren-14 becomes an important point.
*Of course, not all symptoms follow the course, but I think this is a very good example of how a certain energy runs through our body. Notice that all the names indicated here have either Gate, Pathway, or Gateway. Chasing it with acupuncture following the course is very interesting.
Arrhythmia is scary, and fear is the Kidney Element. Fear will directly attack the joy of Heart Element, and once the joy is displaced with fear, the mind is disturbed. Kidney is the mother of the Liver. When the Liver is weakened, its anger or depression element further aggravates the mind. If one is weak minded, manic may set in, throwing all emotions out of balance. In Oriental Medicine, this is called the Shen (Spirit) Disturbance. If the neurosis is due to the weak heart, it gives oily sweat on the palm of the hands (where Pericardium and Heart channels run).
When the autonomic nervous system is in imbalance, one becomes more fearful and frightened by a sudden sound or even a negative word. He may have weird, fiery, or scary dreams. Anxiety makes him act more agitatedly and nervously and starts to worry everything in the daily life.*
*Whether you agree or not, I am just giving one sample assessment.
To restore the mind (the Spirit), one must treat the autonomic nervous and adrenal systems. I write how to do so in the next newsletter.

© 2008 Dr. Y. Frank Aoi/Japanese Acupuncture

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2008-07-13T23:26:00.005-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Arizona
Volume 2, No. 1: July, 2008
Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions
Chapter One
Liver: Anger, Love, and Redemption #5
As I explained that if the Liver Element were to have a meaning, anger must turn to the exact opposite emotion such as excitement. Only then, one is ready to transform the element to the next stage, which is the Heart Element where love resides.* We know anger destroys love, and so does fear (the Kidney Element). Many relations get stuck in the negative emotions because they are easy to congeal and cloud our minds. We are not really trained to deal with them either. In many situations, we learn, rather forcefully, through a case-by-case situation. Learning and coping with anger and fear come from experience. It takes some imaginations to transform anger into excitement, a leap of faith, so to speak. If one is not capable of the transformation, he feels destitute, and depression takes over since he cannot reach out to love. I must remind you that depression is very much a component of the Liver Element, too. The difference between anger and
depression is that anger is a stronger emotion, going mostly outward, and depression is a heavier emotion, and mostly sinking and going inward (or, anger could be Liv Excess and depression could be Liv Deficient).
If we examine anger, fear, and love, the Three represents the trigram of emotions. They are inseparable. Fear is an anticipation of loss, especially of love, and the loss of love creates anger or despair. But, love does not come about unless there are hope and excitement. The reason why love is so hard to reach is that, for most of us, the heart is the chamber of the most inner feelings of our consciousness. It is the most private sanctuary of our emotions. If exposed, we feel vulnerable. We all are expert in shutting down the Gate to the heart, and it is never to be pried open. It is the realm that no one touches. Since it is the core center of self, it must be maintained by the stability and the continuity.
Unlike the Liver Element that is easy to be agitated (like the wind), the Heart Element must be stable. This is true in physiology of the heart. In order for the heart to function well, it must keep the beat steady. Although it is constantly moving (the Yang element), it must be always cool (the Yin element) to maintain not only the body temperature but emotions as well. The brain functions in the similar manner. If there is heat in the brain, for example, in a case of meningitis, high fever, severe headache, confusion, etc. may occur. If there is heat in the heart, it may cause stroke or mania.
I mentioned about the Small Heart within the Heart, which carries the Intention (Yi = 意).
This Intention is more private than the Intention that resides in the Spleen (the Earth Element*). It is the consciousness of most inner feelings as in the longing for love. When the Heart is in balance and is harmonious with the Yin and the Yang, it connects with the mind and asserts itself with self-confidence. The Intention becomes purpose, and the purpose becomes action. The consciousness (or the subconsciousness) of the Heart Element leads to the self-actualization and to one's destiny. This is the realm of "I am."
Hypnosis is nothing more than making a false statement into truthful. Whenever we say, "I am," the subconsciousness has no other choice but to make you "WHO YOU ARE." What is impossible becomes possible. The Intention becomes the manifestation. There is one trick in attaining the goal. You must ALWAYS address in the present tense, and not in the future tense. "I Will Be" never work: always "I AM."
Anger, fear, arrogance, and ignorance are the pass to the wrong side. They make you not to see the potential. Unfortunately, many of us listen to the brain (analytical/Yang) more than the heart (intuition/Yin). How often do we hear sentences like "I do not have time," "I don't have money," or "I'm not good enough," and refrain from our heart's desire? Caroline Myss thinks it is because the communication between the heart and the brain is blocked by the will that resides in the throat. The heart intention is blocked up at the throat and does not connect with the mind (therefore, words do not come out). I mentioned about the similarity of the brain and the heart above, but the brain's thought and the Intention of the Heart are often times polar opposite. Both must connect, and the only way to do so is to get into our subconscious mind.
How do we get into the subconscious mind by acupuncture. How do we place the Intention back to the Heart? How do we open the Gate for the Heart? These are the goals of my next newsletter.

*Love is a broad subject and is subjective, and I do not wish to discourse here. For now, let me place love in the Heart Element.
*Earth Element: belongs to the Spleen where the Intention and the Worry reside
© 2008 Dr. Y. Frank Aoi/Japanese Acupuncture

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2008-07-09T09:44:00.005-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter
Volume 1, No. 17: July, 2008
In The Beginning
When our ancestor did not have technical knowledge to observe and understand a human body, they relied on empirical observations of the external manifestation to infer the functions of organs within. They were apt to grasp the nature, or, the Intention* and the manifestation of diseases, and they perfected the observation of the exterior and the insight to the interior. They emphasized the human body as a whole to the relationship with the natural phenomena they experienced; such as day and night, light and dark, hot and cold, four seasons, etc. By regarding a human body as the small universe* (therefore, a part of the Universe), astronomy and Ba Gua were further refined to incorporate physics and mathematics. By applying and establishing laws, they strived to attain the fundamental truth that transcended time (The Tai Qi). To the day, the fundamentals of Oriental Medicine have not changed over millenniums.
*Intention: Yi (意)
*Small Universe: we are made of atoms that are constantly vibrating (the energy).

Most Commonly Asked Question
Everyone asks me if a particular symptom is treatable by acupuncture. To this, my answer is 99.9%, yes. I cannot think of a single symptom which acupuncture cannot treat. If we treat the body as a whole and bring everything in balance (homeostatic balance), then every possible symptom can be treated. It means by treating all major organs, namely, the Liver, the Heart, the Spleen, the Lungs, and the Kidneys, all diseases could be treated (or, one might say, all disease are the results of imbalance with the five organs). This is called the Tai Qi Treatment. Millions of diseases are deduced to the five elements, then to the Three*, then to Yin and Yang, and finally the Tai Qi (Oneness). This fundamental approach has not changed for millenniums.
Therefore, I do not like the idea of specialization in acupuncture. Specialization is a western idea, and it is against the spirit of ancient Chinese who established and perfected acupuncture 2000 years ago.
Consequently, I do not use fancy equipments. I believe in basic treatment with needles (Yin) and moxa (Yang). My mentor once told me that if there was pain, then it was not acupuncture. My treatment is very comfortable, and most of my patients fall asleep.
*The Three: could be interpreted as the Heaven, the Earth, and the Man, or the Liver, the Kidneys, and the Spleen, or the Upper (Jiao), the Middle, and the Lower, etc.
Western Medicine And Oriental Medicine
In western medicine, there are too many names for disease or symptoms that do not have cures. I will be very much ashamed of myself when I discover a new disease and name it Frank Aoi Disease, if I do not know the cure. For example, the restless leg syndrome or the fibromyalgia. The causes of the symptoms are unknown, yet doctors will prescribe you pain killer drugs (just because they have names). My MD used to say that fibromyalga is in the head. But the symptom is real. We need to address more on a treatment.
On the contrary, Ancient Chinese treated all diseases without fancy names. They had general terms and they paid more attention on treatment than discovery. They strived to treat no matter how weird and strange a disease may be. If you have a modern disease, most likely, ancient Chinese had already treated it 2000 years ago ("been there, done that"). Of course, western medicine excels in many areas of medicine. But it is time to reexamine the benefits of oriental medicine, and a good doctor should know the two disciplines well.

© 2008 Dr. Y. Frank Aoi/Japanese Acupuncture

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2008-05-31T09:36:00.011-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Arizona
Volume 2, No. 1: June, 2008
Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions
Chapter One
Liver: Anger, Love, and Redemption #4
In my past few newsletters, I have been mentioning about the transition of Liver elements. For example, I mentioned about a transition with the Five Element or one Chakra to the other. Each transition must happen to complete the cycle of being a human. I also mentioned about a Smaller Heart within the Heart which contains the Intention (Yi).
Explained simply, when anger, the Liver element, turns to excitement, the Soul manifests, and it becomes the destiny. For the Soul to take place, the excitement must be acted. The action is helped by the Will which is the Kidney element. Will is the mother of action. Once the action becomes the destiny, it radiates and creates respect and confidence which are the Heart element. Now the Intention(Yi) has the purpose. It transforms to the realm of "I think therefore I am." Self-actualization happens and one is on the right course of destiny.
How does acupuncture actually heal a person to help synchronize the transition? I am presenting one of the ways to harmonize emotions below. If it reads highly technical to some, I apologize. However, the process is highly intuitive and you do not need the knowledge to interfere with your experience (Remember? Do not think in the brain-last newsletter). Part of it, I already presented in the Simple Thing You Can Do For Your Health No. 16.
Psychosomatic Healing With Acupuncture Points
Goal:
There are three Dantiens. Wellknown one is at the about one inch below the navel. Any marshal artist would know that this is the center of the force, the Qi.
However, there are two more. One is the Brain and the other is Ren-17 (the Receiver of Emotion). In order to heal a person, the three Dantiens must be balanced and harmonized. Once this is done, the Ren energy flows downward. The Ren and Du energies flow in one complete circle. (Regular flow of the Ren energetic is upward to meet with Du).
Heart has a direct connection with the uterus. Ancient Chinese called it the Bao Mai (the pulse of Heart/Uterus connection). Heart has a Smaller Heart inside which carries the Intention (Yi). When the Intention (Yi) goes out from the Smaller Heart, the problem manifests as palpitation or other heart ailments and reflects at Ren-9. Ren-9 is the Water Point, but it is also called the Carrier of Sadness. Emotional problems show up here as tenderness upon palpation. It is the Bao Luo (the energy line of Heart/Uterus connection) connecting area. It is also connecting with the lumbar sacrum area.
Ren-17 is called the Receiver of Emotion. Any tenderness here at the fourth intercostals between the nipples indicates emotional distress. All emotions go to the point.
Yin Wei Mai (an extra meridian line) connects with Ren-22. It connects with Ren-17 and all the other Ren points. Importantly, it opens Du-20 at the apex of the head and dissipates fear.
Cong Mai (an another extra meridian line) runs through Ren-21. Ren-21 is called the Sextant, an instrument to measure the angles of stars for navigation. Its objective is to balance Ren-17 and Ren-6 in harmony.
Yin Tang, the Third Eyes, opens all the gates in the body (in acupuncture, there are 36 points named Gate where illness come and go). It is the upper Dantien. Since it is the upper, it balances the Middle (Ren-17) and the Lower (Ren-6).
Once the Ren energy starts to flow downward, fear is dissipated and the three Dantiens are harmonized, and a person is ready to heal (need a demonstration and a class session to understand. I occasionally offer such session for free. Check out my Meetup.com group for schedules). Sometime, the experience is profound. One thing to note is that since this is a highly intuitive process, any result is fine: there is no bad or failed attempt as long as a practitioner has a good intent. Do not over analyze the process or the result. Let go what you know, and just let it happen.
I have made a diagram below, but it is not what I really wanted (sorry I do not know how to fix it in the webpage).

Heart ⇒⇒⇒⇒ ⇒⇒ (Bao Mai) ⇒⇒⇒Uterus
(contains the Smaller Heart & Yi) ↑
Lumbar/Sacrum
↑
Yin Tang⇒⇒⇒ ⇒ Ren-17 (Receiver of Emotion)
(The Gate) (Middle Dantien)
↑ ↑
↑
Ren-22
(Yin Wei Mai, Opens Du-20, Dissipates fear) ↑

Ren-21 ⇒ Chong Mai ⇒⇒⇒⇒⇒Ren-17⇒⇒⇒⇒⇒⇒⇒Ren-6
(Lower Dantien)
↑
↑
Ren-9
(Carrier of Sadness: Yi Missing)
(Bao Luo)

© 2008 Dr. Y. Frank Aoi/Japanese Acupuncture

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2008-04-28T21:54:00.005-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter
Volume 2, No. 1: May, 2008
Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions
Chapter One
Liver: Anger, Love, and Redemption #3
The color green is interesting in a sense that it
represents polar opposites. For example, it is the
color of healing, but at the same time, it is the
color of anger. It is the color of resurrection and
fertility but also the color of toxicity and devilish.
We see the dichotomy in everyday life from the green
of Incredible Hulk to the Irish green.
In Oriental Medicine, the color green represents the
Liver (Wood Element). In my past two newsletters, I
described that anger is the Liver Element. However,
in the Five Humanities (五常) section of
the Five Element, the Liver is designated by the
benevolence (仁). It is the highest virtue
regarded by Confucius.
When a person is capable of emerging from the deepest
and the darkest place where anger takes and turns it
to excitement and joy, transforms himself as a true
healer. He who resurrects from the agony of anger
becomes the leader and the purveyor of peace and
happiness. He is guided without fear. Destiny leads
him. He will preach healthier and better life styles,
heal many, and change history.
Compassion drives him to the highest level of maturity
and fulfillment. In giving, he finds joy and his
place. His intention and purpose are clear and
strong.
In Oriental Medicine, it is said that the Heart has a
smaller Heart within itself. It is occupied by the
Intention (Yi = 意). When the Liver energy
flows smoothly and anger does not agitate it, the
Intention is well planted, and the Heart function is
steady. However, when anger or worry displaces the
Intention out of the small Heart, it creates a
disturbance in the physiology of the heart and in the
energy flow. The Intention is the source of Joy, and
when it is misplaced, anxiety sets in causing
palpitation of the heart. Joy maybe replaced by
depression, and the energy of the Liver gets wobbly
and weaker.
Like the Chakra model, the transition from the Third
Chakra (Manipura) to the Fourth (Anahata) is as
equally important as in the Five Element transition
from the Liver to the Heart. Without the transition,
it is not possible to connect the communication
between the Heart (Fourth Chakra) and the Brain
(Fifth, the Will, and Sixth Chakra). We find the
disconnection daily in our lives. We often yield to
the thought of the brain rather than trusting our true
heart's desire, only to wish the otherwise. When the
Liver and the Heart is well connected, the Intention
and the Joy of the Heart are nourished by the Will of
the Kidney*, and we act and accomplish what we truly
desire.
*Kidney: Will belongs to the Kidney, the Water
Element.
Anger creates tragedies, tragedies create healing, and
the healing brings about the balance. The circle
completes, yet before all this happens, one thing
needs to be experienced. It is the experience of
death and emerging, and the experience belongs to the
other Element that I shall talk about it in a
different chapter.

Simplest Thing You Can Do For Your Health No. 16
In the last newsletter, I described how to balance the
three Dantiens, and I mentioned Ren-17 as the Receiver
of Emotion. One other point which reflects emotion is
Ren-9, which is located about ¾ inch above the navel.
It is simply named as the Water Point by ancient
Chinese. There is only one other point named so
simply: Kid-13, the Qi Point. Since the name of
Ren-9 is simply, the point is for any water related
problem: ascites and fluid stagnation, poison, water
edema, etc. However, this is also a reflex point for
emotion. Press straight down the point gently with a
finger and if you feel pulsation, it could be due to
emotional stress. If this is the case, you want to
warm the navel and the surrounding area by placing
both hands together directly over the navel. Feel the
warm sensation of your hands permeating down through
the abdomen. As you feel the warmth, calm yourself
down by relaxing the muscles around your eyes and
taking deep breathes. With each exhalation, tell
yourself that your eyes are getting heavier and your
body relaxing.
With your right index or middle finger, press straight
down an area about 1 ½ inches lateral to the right of
Ren-9. Go deep if you feel like. It should be a
gentle push straight down to the abdomen. Then check
the Ren-9 pulsation again. The procedure should
reduce it.
Once the pulsation is reduced, bring the left hand to
the heart chest area. Feel the gentle heartbeat and
warmth of the chest. Mentally, connect the two hands.
As you are well connect, search out your emotions,
find out what your true heart's desire is and mentally
speak to the heart your desire (remember, do not think
in the brain).

© 2008 Dr. Y. Frank Aoi/Japanese Acupuncture

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2008-03-30T22:25:00.006-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter
Volume 2, No. 1: April, 2008

Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions

Chapter One
Liver: Anger, Love, and Redemption #2

"Every nerve ending in my body felt like it was exposed....I was dying from within." domestic violence victim

Anger is easy and quick to arise. But, we know little to extinguish it or how to come out from the state. Since anger is a very strong emotion, we hold on to it longer than our heart desires. In the back of our head, we wish we could end it, but as it lingers, the personal weakness is exposed, and the frustration builds up. The frustration pushes away the help and the love, and we feel more trapped as we find ourselves unable to dissipate anger. We then justify anger and search for the scapegoat. When anger turns to righteousness, it inflicts psychological damages to a person we love. It could turn into a daily verbal or physical abuse. Violent and irrational actions are stemming from trapped emotions, not knowing how to escape from the shell we think we cannot break.

When anger is stored internally. Angry words are trapped in the mind, and it is constantly fed and reinforced by negative thoughts. Past negative experiences are amplified, and we feel trapped by a current circumstance even though we may not know clearly what we are angry about. Our mind constantly spins, searching for an answer in vain. Insomnia sets in. The adrenal system goes out of balance. The blood pressure rises. The eyes get redder, facial expression becomes distressed, and indigestion becomes constant.

In a case of domestic violence, daily yelling, demeaning phrases, and physical threat become routine. Nothing is good enough for him since anger makes him forget why he gets angry in the first place. A victim on the other hand experiences fear, hopelessness, and numbness. She forces herself to close her most inner feeling, filtering her thoughts to the fear of retaliation. The sense of entrapment sets in. She becomes fearful and self-doubtful. When she speaks, her voice shudders. Outburst of crying becomes frequent. Her whole body aches and she feels that she is dying from within.

Both man and woman feel trapped, for anger attacks and displaces the intention and the will. The original intention moves out from the heart's desire, and the process displaces the will. The communication between the will of the heart and the brain is lost. We longer act on the heart's desire, instead, anger becomes abstract, and the brain tries meaninglessly to depicts and define what it is. Since we loose the intention and the will, we have nothing to hold on to and feel vulnerable. Now, only thing certain is the anger itself.

If we are unable to come out of anger, we fall into the chasm of dark and lonely place with remorse and regret. No one can help. Deed is done. Time heals us, and sometimes, friends help us. However, we know the only way to come out from the abyss is by ourselves.

It is unfortunate that we must fall hard to bounce back. Great healers have come out of the stage. Some become wiser and find the personal fortitude. Some learn to be excited without anger. Some find solace in newfound interest. It is the beginning of reconciliation and the awakening of true human potential. Once we find it, it is much easier to move to the next Element* which is the Heart. Heart rules the joy, and joy heals the Heart.
*Five Element Theory: Joy belongs to the Heart as anger belongs to the Liver.

Simplest Thing You Can Do For Your Health No. 15
Three Dantiens:
Anyone who does marshal art knows that the power source of his Qi comes from the lower abdomen area called Dantien. It is located about an inch directly below the navel.
This is the lower Dantien. There are two more: the upper and the middle. The upper is the brain and connected with the Third Eye (Yin Tang). The middle is on the mid-center of the sternum at the 4th intercostals (mid-center on the chest bone between the breasts), and it is connected with point called Ren-17. Ren-17 is also known as the Receiver of Emotion. In healing, the three must be balanced.

Yin Tang, being the Third Eye, opens all the gates* in the body, releases the anterior nape of the neck and then the mid-back. It then sets Ren-17, the Receiver of Emotion, in position. Ren-17 then sets all the lumbar vertebrae and the sacrum. It then sets the lower Dantien.

In healing, especially emotional, you bring your finger to each point and place it gently, starting from the Third Eye. Take a deep breath and try to be in alpha wave stage we talked about my last newsletter. When relaxed, bring another finger to the sternum.
Now, two fingers are connected, and you should feel the healing energy going down. Then bring the finger on the Third Eye, open the palm, and gently place on the lower Dantien. Feel the warmth of your hand spreading all around the lower abdomen. Disconnect the finger on the sternum, and gently place the palm on top of the other. Again, feel the warmth. Imagine that the warmth from the lower Dantien is spreading all over the body, down to the leg and up to the head and arms. Once the feeling is complete, disengage the hands, bring finger to the inferior boarder of the supra-sternum notch (the base of the triangle at the nape of the neck) or ½ inch below it. From here, you can listen to the Heart and connect with the Uterus. Now all the Dantiens are balanced. When this happens, you realize that this point looks on the North Star* which is represented by the Kidney meridian of the foot. North Star being the center of the universe, it is to reflect on the Center* of ourselves.
*gate: where sickness and emotional distress come and go
*North Star: astronomy is incorporated with acupuncture, Ren-21 is called the Sextant.
*Center: whatever you make up and feel connected
© 2008 Dr. Y. Frank Aoi/Japanese Acupuncture

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2008-03-02T20:58:00.009-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter
Volume 2, No. 1: March, 2008
Oriental Medicine & On Human Conditions
Chapter One
Liver: Anger, Love, and Redemption #1

I often say to my clients that men are very much
suicidal because they do not try to maintain good
health until too late, in a case of stroke for
example. Women are fundamentally attune to the body*
and I think because of childbearing, they are more
survival oriented. The difference makes the relation
between man and woman difficult. I have seen many
wives crying and worrying about her husband's health
but feeling impotent to convince him to do something.
[*the body: recent surge in heart problems and
diabetes are concerning, however]
Most men do not easily reveal his weakness. He could
be stubborn, difficult, and stuck-headed. He does not
easily admit his faults and mistakes either. His
emotions are congealed, and he surrounds himself with
a shielded and knows less about how to come out from
it than putting up. Such characters are depended on
up-bringing and social circumstances. However, I
believe, it is partly based on the man's spirit or
shall I say fortitude that he sworn sometimes in his
life. It is the conviction that his spirit should not
be easily broken when difficulties arise. It is his
part of making an effort, as a man, and to go out in
the world to supply sustenance for his family.
In Oriental Medicine, the fortitude comes from the
Liver. The Liver is considered to be the general of
an army. It has the greatest influence on others, and
it is the Qi (Energy) mover. If the Liver starts to
fail, all the other organ will, too.
Liver houses the Spirit of Hun, the Ethereal Soul,
which gives the purpose and the guidance to the soul.
It pairs with the Gallbladder, and both are the
decision makers and the sources of determination. As
a boy goes through the puberty age and becomes an
adult, the energetic of the Liver gets stronger and
influences his state of being much so than for girls.
Being an adult male is to have the healthy and strong
Liver and Gallbladder.
As the Liver* energy gets stronger, he is no longer
susceptible to crying. His muscles and tendons grow
stronger. He desires to be independent and to be
individual. The desire conflicts with the mother's
nurturing instinct, and he rebels against her. At the
same time, the strong Liver energy along with the
hormonal secretion desires to mate and to explore sex.
The conflict juxtaposes a secret longing for the
mother and the mother-ness in an opposite sex.
[*Liver: controls the muscle and tendons, stores the
Blood, opens into the eyes, manifests in the nails,
and influences the sexual functions.]

However, the openness of the heart does not belong to
the Liver. If the Liver energy gets imbalanced, he
shuts emotions down and conceals it in the Liver*.
When he does this, he could be irritable and quick to
anger since his emotion has nowhere else to go. He
feels trapped, unable to communicate. He thinks he
can alleviate situations but lacks actions to change.
As he goes through the stage, his congealed anger gets
stronger. He is not only angry at someone or
something, but mainly at himself.
[*Liver: if not controlled, he becomes neurotic and
manic]
Anger is the intrinsic nature of the Liver. It is
such a strong Qi mover. It gives a direction and it
balances with worrying*. It is usually under control
because anger hurts so much*. When anger is properly
handled, it turns to excitement, joy, and bliss. If
not, through anger comes regret and remorse, through
regret and remorse comes repentance and shame, and
through repentance and shame comes humility and
humbleness. If one masters how to control anger, he
is truly a master of life.
[*worrying: the Spleen element, sometimes the Ke
Cycle is needed to be reversed
(Ke Cycle: from the Five Element Theory, the
destructive direction of five organs).]
[*anger hurts: physiologically, it hurts in the
stomach, in the shoulder, the neck, and the temporal
area of the head. One common place to store anger for
men is in the lower back.]
The transition of anger to excitement, joy, and bliss
depends on what the Japanese call it "a paper thin"
trait. There is not much difference between a great
man and an ordinary. Flip a paper, and you are great,
and flip the paper again, and you are ordinary. What
separates us is whether we have a substance or not at
the time it is truly needed. A few have it, most of
us struggle with it. For some, deep fear* hold them
back. Success and failure depend only on a very small
personal trait we all have. It is a click in the
brain saying "I want to change," "I can do it," or
something simply saying "No" or "Yes." It creates a
cross road in our lives.
[*fear: the Kidney element, also the Mother element
of the Liver/anger = I discuss this in later chapter]
Most of us are successful in the clicking, but
sometimes his humility comes too late as in a marital
conflict. As he ages, the Liver energy gets weaker,
and he senses that he is easily swayed by emotions and
is susceptible to tears in the eyes. He becomes
little more sentimental but is more grounded. He
knows that he is no longer invincible and somewhat his
health is failing. Strong emotions are weakened and
he slowly accepts the need to open his heart. As he
looses the Yang (male) energy, he begins to understand
and feels the female side of the energy. However,
this coincides with the wife's Yin (female) energy
loosing out after the menopause. She no longer needs
to deal with the female cycle. As she looses
femaleness, her Yang energy rises, and a desire to be
independent becomes stronger. This is why the time
shortly after the menopause is a crucial period for a
married couple, especially, when all children are gone
from home. She who has given so much love through out
her life wants to be independent more than ever
before. For a husband, he faces with a choice of
keeping his regular appearance or to change his
attitude to open up more. Unfortunately,
most men do not know how to change or his ego blocks
it.
Anger, unhappiness, and regrets are abundant. But the
Liver belongs to the Spring, the beginning of the
season, and the life must go on. As spring turns to
summer, anger will subside, reconciliation will
happen, and our thoughts will turn.

Simplest Thing You Can Do For Your Health No. 14
Abdominal Breathing:
It is blissful if we can be at the alpha brain wave
length at all time. To be in the alpha stage, we must
begin to learn how to breathe. It takes some
practice, but try to breathe air into the lower
abdomen rather into the lungs. The abdomen should
rise before the chest. Concentrate. Breathe slowly
into the abdomen, feel that it is expanding, then as
you exhale, feel the stomach goes down, at the same
time, relax the abdominal muscles. Do this a few
times. Then, as you exhale, start concentrating on
relaxing not only the abdominal muscles, but the
shoulder,
the neck, and the muscles around the eyes.
In Oriental Medicine, the inhalation belongs to the
Kidney and the exhalation belongs to the Lungs and the
Heart. If you find a difficulty in the process, you
need to consider that an appropriate organ maybe weak.
Qi Gong, zen/monk, and marshal art masters all can
breathe air down to the foot*.
[*foot: Kid-3, the Yuan Source of the Kidney (Yuan
Source: origination of basic Energy of the organ0.]
© 2008 Dr. Y. Frank Aoi/Japanese Acupuncture

________________________________________________________________________________

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2008-01-29T23:02:00.007-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter
Volume 1, No. 16: February, 2008
Chinese Acupuncture and Japanese Acupuncture
Frequent question I am asked is the difference between
Chinese and Japanese acupuncture. Here are some
differences.
1) Japanese acupuncturists tend to diagnose an illness
with western science, follow by the Oriental Medicine
treatment protocol. For example, in case of
diabetes, Japanese would simply say symptoms due to
diabetes rather than the Yin Deficiency, and a
treatment protocol would be to nourish the Yin. A
different concept regarding a disease brings about the
difference in technique and point selection.
2) The most obvious difference is in the technique of
acupuncture. Japanese needle insertion is very
shallow and applies gentle and less manipulation. My
mentor told me once: "If there is pain, it is not
acupuncture." If I need to induce pain, it is a
dispersion technique (dispersion of excess energy).

3) Location of a point is different as well as the
purposeful usage of the point. Over the years,
Japanese develops slightly different locations on
certain points. Knowing the differences really helps
to choose the right location for a certain symptom.
4) Japanese acupuncturists prescribe Chinese herbs
less. This is because historically they were behind
Chinese in herbal remedies,* and they had to rely
more on acupuncture to be effective. In fact, an
herbalist in Japan would be looked down where as in
China the opposite is true.
*It took Japanese 400 years to catch up with Chinese
in herbal medicine.
Japanese intensely study Chinese classics, namely Su
Wen, Ling Shu, and Nan Jing*. Chinese revere herbal
classic, Shang Han Lun. For most American
practitioners, they are disadvantaged from the very
beginning of schooling because many important books by
Chinese and Japanese are not yet translated.
*In my opinion, Chinese perfected acupuncture 2000
years ago. Lessons are still
learned from the great books, and everything we do
today is simply an add-on to
the knowledge which already existed.
Lastly, the emphasis on a style and a technique of
acupuncture is not really important. You should
choose a practitioner who is effective and can reduce
symptoms the fastest in the most comfortable way.
How To Choose A Practitioner
The best way to find a right acupuncturist is to try
many different ones. As with anything, you need to
invest time and money: acquiring knowledge and
experience to discern a good from a bad. Second best
is by referral. Ask your friends and relatives if
they ever had an acupuncture treatment and how the
experience was. Third best is to call and talk to a
practitioner.

Words of Advise:
Do not make a decision on practitioner's credential
and fees alone. Inexperienced practitioner will
cost you more in a long run, and credentials sometime
do not mean much when the skill is concerned. Don't
make a decision on availability of insurance. When
you need help, you should have a plan and a budget.
Insurance coverage helps, but it is not an answer to
your cure or healing. Once you decide on a certain
practitioner, stick with him/her at least three to
five times. However, if there is no significant
change in ten sessions, choose an another*.
*Keep in mind that some conditions prevent from having a perceptible improvement: over medication, addiction to pain, mental blockage, extreme deficiency, chronic case, mentally ill, etc.

Free Lecture Coming Up in February
Please mark your calendar for my free lecture at New
Vision in Scottsdale on February 21, Thursday, 2008,
from 6 pm to 8 pm. Everyone attending receives a $10
off coupon from a treatment. This lecture is about
answering questions you have and performance of simple
demonstrations. There will be time for drinking
Chinese herb tea at the end. New Vision is at 9659 N.
Hayden Road. Please call 480-391-1126 for direction.

Simple Things You Can Do For Your Health No. 13
Tapping of the head. With your fingers, gently tap
the head from the front to the back. The front part
is good for the brain function, the top area for metal
clarity, back is for de-stress and for the eyes. All
area is good for de-stress and relaxation.
If you find a soft or a painful spot on the scalp, you
need to knead the area. As you shampoo every morning,
check to see if there are such spots. They are
usually indications of something deficient. If you
feel like your finger goes down ½ inch or more (of
course, this is physiological not possible), you need
to seek a treatment or a medical advice. The
extremely soft spot is precursor to either a
manifestation of an imminent stroke or a chronic
condition.

© 2008 Dr. Y. Frank Aoi/Japanese Acupuncture

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2008-01-26T09:49:00.005-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Free Lecture & Demonstration

Acupuncture:
Questions & Answers
February 21, Thursday, 2008
From 6 to 8 pm
At New Vision Spiritual Growth Center
9659 N. Hayden Road, Scottsdale, AZ
Call 480-391-1126 For Direction
Anyone Who Attends Will Receive $10 Off Ticket From A
Treatment By Japanese Acupuncture
Japanese Acupuncture
4333 N. Civic Center Plaza, Ste. 110, Scottsdale, AZ
85251, 480-246-0624
www.japanacupuncture.com & japanacupuncture@yahoo.com
____________________________________________________________________________________

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2007-12-30T22:17:00.006-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter

Volume 1, No. 15: January, 2008

A Happy New Year!

I wish health, happiness, and blessings to all. I wish the world will be more peaceful and the people would make a significant progress toward improving the global warming.

Some Successes Last Year

There were many memorable treatments I performed last year. I am particularly happy to see a Parkinson disease patient improved about 90%. I am glad one person completely stopped smoking. Some patients' knees improved significantly. Many came with lower back pain, and consistency and patience paid off. Above all, I am happy to see in many that facial expressions changed to soft and relaxed to happiness and contentment. I am happy to involve in the healing process.

Consistency Pays Off

Since I do not call patients for more appointments, I often feel sorry for a patient who quits suddenly. Perhaps, a perception of improvement is not immediately recognizable, but a certain improvement does take place. There are many reasons for the perceptive indifference. A person may have chronic disease or pre-conditions difficult to heal, drug interference, addiction to pain, mental blockage, physical and psychological trauma, etc.

Sticking to my treatment should pay off in a long run. Most cases, I recommend at least three to five sessions to see if you start to feel perceptively better. As you get better, a certain emotion will settle down and you feel more grounded.

Free Lecture Coming Up in February

Please mark your calendar for my free lecture at New Vision in Scottsdale on February 21, Thursday, 2008, from 6 pm to 8 pm. Everyone attends gets $10 off from a treatment. This lecture is about answering questions you have for acupuncture., and if necessary, I will demonstrate acupuncture. New Vision is at 9659 N. Hayden Road. Please call 480-391-1126 for direction.

Credit Card Accepted And Deal On Prepayment

I now accept VISA, Master, and American Express cards. It is a portable machine with cell phone, so I can go everywhere with it. If you want to prepay some sessions, let me know, I can give a certain discount, or perhaps an additional treatment. My number: 480-246-0624.

Simple Things You Can Do For Your Health No. 12

Against Cold and Flu:

If you do not want to get sick this winter, you need to increase a perception of your body to know when exactly a cold and flu is coming to your body system. If you find a sore throat today and think you might already had it yesterday, it is too late. Act immediately if you feel chills, start having runny nose, or a sore throat. Gargle with salt water. Take medicine. Do not take hot shower or especially hot bath when you feel like getting sick. Keep your body warm.

Usually a cold will come in either from the feet or from the upper back area. If you feel cold air passing over your feet, warm them up immediately and drink some hot tea with lemon. If you feel chills at the upper back (C-7 to T-3 area), immediately do the same. Or you can do the following treatment yourself.

During the cold season, bend the arm, knead and palpate the area of the elbow where the bone (the epicondyle) sticking up, push against the bone. If the area is tender, you need to push and knead more. Keep the upper back warm by placing a warm pad or heat (i.e., blow dryer the area). Stick-on-moxa treatment is the best: you can actually feel the coldness leaving your body. Drink lots of fluid as prevention and as a treatment. Consider water as a medicine. Must drink room temperature water and not iced.

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2007-12-07T11:30:00.005-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

At The Year's End
I thank all of you for supporting and understanding
acupuncture. 2007 has been a great year, and I am
looking forward to what 2008 would bring. The holiday
season is upon us and I wish you health, happiness,
and abundance (or blessing).
In this season of joy, I would like to reflect on
those who departed us and now rejoicing in heaven.
Gayle Toups was a wonderful mother and wife. Doreene
Clement had a strong spirit and was a dear friend.
Ferrell Secakuku was a former tribal chairman of the
Hopi Reservation, a snake priest, and a pacifist. I
miss them very much.
Good thing about my profession is that I make many
friends. I enjoy meeting people and derive my
happiness in their progress. I am truly blessed and
at the same time I am guided. I know I am in the
right course, and I look forward to the New Year.
Happy holidays!

Su Wen* Chapter 2: Winter
Chapter 2 is about how to live according to the four
seasons. "In winter, one should go to bed early and
get up late. Keep the body warm, and not to sweat
much (exhaustion of Yang Energy). If one is to
violate the principle, the Kidney is hurt."
I suggest keeping the lower back and the lower abdomen
warm. During the winter, the action is in storing.
Do not over exercise and sweat too much, for the
action is counter-productive to your health. If you
already have lower back pain, make sure your back is
warm as soon as you get up from bed and out of sheet.
This is the time our body is susceptible to cold and
flu. If you have a digestive issue, do not drink iced
water or tea. Making stomach cold not only reduces
the digestive capability, but also weakens the immune
system. Drink room temperature water or warmer.

Simple Things You Can Do For Your Health No. 11
Relax your fingers and open your hand. Bring the arch
made by the index finger and the thumb under the
earlobe. Where the tip of the thumb hits the back of
the head lays a famous point called "Wind Pool
(GB-20)." This is a very good point for headache,
prevention of cold/flu, sinusitis, empyema, vision,
cerebral anemia, shoulder and neck pain, just to name
a few. Knead the area. If your thumb gets tired,
rotate the head instead while the thumb is firmly
placed on the point.
*Su Wen: written c. the third and the first century
BC
© 2007 Dr. Y. Frank Aoi/Japanese Acupuncture
____________________________________________________________________________________
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Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2007-11-14T15:29:00.005-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter
Volume 1, No. 13: November, 2007

One Complete Year
It has been already a complete year since I started my
acupuncture business at the current address. It went
fast. I thank you for all your support and appreciate
in connecting with me. Study for acupuncture never
ends. It is very deep and complicated. However, I
have learned a lot over the year. I am constantly
improving my skills and acquiring knowledge. Thank
you to all, and I look forward to another year of
association.

On Death And Dying
This year has started out with my father's death on
December 31st, 2006. It was his way of saying to
start a new year afresh. Within this year, I have
lost two of my patients and two good friends all to
cancer (my mother died of lung cancer and I feel the
deepest condolence to the surviving family members).
Never know when death hits. In my past newsletter, I
briefly mentioned about the wisdom within to bring the
homeostatic balance even in death: resolving the pain
of dying into the higher consciousness and accepting
the inevitable.
Regarding death, I do not think we can explain it
simply by the Yin and Yang relationship. Among sick
people, we might witness a so called Jue Yin Illness
(the terminal illness) where Yin and Yang separate and
the sick may feel the sensation of hot and cold at the
same time. He may raise his one arm in the air as if
he is reaching out to something. When this happens,
death is very near. However, death is more
complicated. Something happens in the process of
dying: it is no longer the balance of homeostasis or
the Yin and Yang separation. The ultimate moment is
mystery. I think it is a moment of the true Tai Chi,
the Oneness, with self and soul, with the universe and
the consciousness, and the jubilation of affirmation
and happiness. Life exists for billions of years. It
has prepared itself with the ultimate. It knows how
to die.

Diet Page Section Is Coming To My Website: Take A
Look
In my webpage, I will be adding a diet section. It is
very much based on Japanese foods. There will be many
sections such as diabetes, heart diseases, weight
reduction, reducing blood pressure and cholesterol,
etc. Please look forward to it.

Simple Things You Can Do For Your Health No. 10
Knead the area of the foot, between the second and
third metatarsal bones, approximately one third of the
distance between the base of the second toe and the
heel. It is where the depression is. This point is
called Gushing Spring (Kid-1). Since this point is
the beginning of the Kidney meridian, it is good for
any kidney ailment, which in turn indicated for
fatigue, weak leg, and insomnia. It is also a good
point to reduce blood pressure or plantar pain. Since
it is at the base of the foot, it is a good point to
make yourself grounded.
© 2007 Dr. Y. Frank Aoi/Japanese Acupuncture
____________________________________________________________________________________
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Make Yahoo! your homepage.
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Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Phoenix, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2007-09-29T15:04:00.005-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture, LLC (480) 246-0624:

600 N. 4th Street, Unit 147, Phoenix, AZ 85004

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter
Volume 1, No. 12: October, 2007

How To Heal A Person (one example):
In my last newsletter*, I stressed on how important
the Ren Meridian is in healing a person. Ren Meridian
runs from the perineum to the chin (front of the body
= Yin). However, in healing process, the energy must
flow downward so that the Ren and the Du (another
extra meridian, back of the body = Yang) in the spine
would flow continuously in the circle; from the anus
to the back of the head, around the top of the head to
the front, down to the chest and to the public region.

When we hold a baby, we hold her with our arm,
pressing the baby's front of the body with ours (Ren
to Ren contact). This is nurturing and every child
needs this contact. In healing, we need to create the
connection. I advise to perform light massage,
craniosacral therapy, or Reiki before acupuncture.
There are a few areas in our body which induce
parasympathetic response (relaxation). Start with
light scalp or facial massage. Gently massage around
the eyes and the ears. Wait until a patient takes a
deep breath without your command (parasympathetic
induction). Once a patient is relaxed, begin with the
Ren meridian.
Three important points in healing along the Ren
meridian are Ren-22, Ren-21, and Ren-17. Ren-22 is at
the suprasternal notch (the depression at the base of
the throat). This point is a meeting point of the
Cong and Yin Wei Mais (two of the eight extra
meridians). This point has direct connection with the
heart and the uterus (the Bao Mai*). Only a light
touch with fingertip is necessary, and place the
middle finger of the other hand at Du-16 at the
external protuberance (a bony prominence at the base
of the skull on the midline). Pay attention to
listening to the heart. The two points induce a
parasympathetic nervous response. Wait until a
patient takes a deep breath without your command.
Once the parasympathetic kicks in, a patient is more
receptive to your touch and treatment. Move your
finger from Ren-22 to Ren-21 (just about one inch
inferior to Ren-22). Again only a light touch would
be sufficient. Attune to the patient's breathing.
Ren-21 is named Sextant (an instrument to measure
positions of stars, in this case, the North Star =
Kid-2/3/4/5/6/7*). You are sensing the Kidney energy
here. Once again, attune to the patient breathing,
try to sense the Ming Men Fire.*
When you feel that you are ready to leave the point,
move your finger to Ren-17 (at the 4th rib, between
the nipples, on the midline on the sternum). Common
name for Ren-17 is the Chest Center. It is also known
as the Recipient of Emotion. A tenderness to touch
here indicates an emotional problem of any kind.
Oriental Medicine excels in healing because from the
very beginning, ancient Chinese incorporated emotions
as a cause of disease. There are many points named
for each emotion such as sadness and worry. Ren1-17
is the Hui* meeting point of Qi, the Mu* point of
Pericardium, and the meeting point of the Ren with the
Spleen, Kidney, Small Intestine, and San Jiao
meridians. Again a light touch is all you need.
Patient may have an emotional outcry, and if this
happens, assure her that she is in safe place.
As I have mentioned in the last newsletter, there are
three Dantiens and they need to be balanced. You have
already dealt with the upper Dantien (the brain), and
are now dealing with the middle and the lower
Dantiens. I recommend a cranial work here. Gently
bring one of your hand under her body (L-2/3/4 area)
and place the other hand just below the navel on the
lower abdomen, sandwiching the body with both hands.
Make your hands warmer with your intention. Feel the
energy shift, and try to bring the energy down toward
the pubic area. If your intuition tells you to move
your hands lower, do so.
End the session with hand over the face or above the
eyes. Or, you may cover the ears with intentions of
Reiki. When your intuition tells you to lift hands
and end, do so. Ask a patient to take time getting up
from a treatment table, and offer a cup of water when
she is ready.
*newsletter: I do not mail out each newsletter.
Please enter my site, www. japanacupuncture.com to
read about each one.
*Bao Mai: conception channel
*The North Star = Kid-2/3/4/5/6/7: from Hara
Diagnosis by Kiiko Matumoto
*Ming Men Fire (Energy): the fundamental Life Force
(Fire) emanating from the Kidneys
*Hui meeting points = 8 influential points: Zang
Organs = Liv-13, Fu Organs = Ren-12, Qi = Ren-17,
Blood = UB-17, Sinew = GB-34, Bone Marrow = GB-39, and
Vessels = Lu-9
*Mu points = alarm points: Lu-1 for Lung, ST-25 for
Large Intestine, Ren-12, for Stomach, Liv-13 for
Spleen, Ren-14 for Heart, Ren-4 for Small Intestine,
Ren-3 for Bladder, GB-25 for Kidney, Ren-17 for
Pericardium, Ren-5 for San Jiao, GB-24 for
Gallbladder, and UB-18 for Liver.

Free Lecture
October 13, Saturday, from 10 am to 12 noon at the New
Vision Spiritual Center:
9659 N. Hayden Road, Scottsdale, AZ 85258. Anyone
attends the lecture will receive $5 off coupon from a
treatment. Call Japanese Acupuncture for more
information.

Sale Extended To The End Of October, 2007
Three products line offered by Japanese Acupuncture
Kaiso (Seaweed) Pills:
Finest quality seaweed from the protected natural sea
in Japan. No chemical or preservative added. Freeze
dried in pure form of micro-nutrients (easier to be
absorbed by the body).
Good for:
Cleanses and alkalizes the blood, boosts immune
system, combats allergies, helps to decrease blood
sugar and cholesterol levels, helps those who are
overweight by improves the function of
gastro-intestinal tract, helps to reduce lipids, helps
to decrease swelling, nodules, lumps, goiter, swollen
lymph glands, edema, chronic cough with phlegm,
improves the structure of hair and nails, helps them
to grow, helps to detoxify smokers from strontium and
cadmium, etc.
(not tested and approved by FDA)
Price: $30 (on introductory offer sale until the end
of October for $24)
Coral Calcium With 11 Major Minerals
"The first steps in maintaining health are to alkalize
the body. This is one of the most I important aspects
of homeostasis. Changes in pH alter virtually all
body functions" Textbook of Medical Physiology by
Arthur C. Guyton, M.D.
Most of us are acidic, and it is very difficult to
change the pH balance to alkaline by diet. Coral
Calcium With 11 Major Minerals retains minerals in
electron water, and they are fully soluble in water
and small enough to enter the cell. Take one once a
day. (not tested and approved by FDA)
Price: $39.95 (on introductory offer sale until the
end of October for $35 plus $5 off from the next
acupuncture treatment)
Tokuhon-A Medical Patch
Tokuhon medical patches are know in Japan for years
for temporary relief from minor aches and pain. Its
adhesive is gentler to the skin than other brands like
Salon Pass. External and topical use only.
Good for:
Muscular aches, back aches, arthritis and joint pain,
strains and sprains, poor circulation, fatigue, etc.
Price: $5.69/box of 40 patches (on introductory offer
sale until the end of October for $4.55)
No Delivery. Please come in and pick them up at my
clinic.

Simple Things You Can Do For Your Health No. 9
Scalp Massage:
Massage your scalp gently with your fingertips, making
circular motions. This invigorates hair follicles and
the lymphatic drainage. Do not underestimate the
importance of scalp massage (especially if you are a
massage therapist). Any tender spot or softer hollow
area is an indication of some ailments. For example,
a soft hollow area (feel like your finger dips ½ inch
into the scalp although it is physically impossible)
maybe an indication of eminent stroke. If you find
such a spot, knead the area well until the pain is
reduced or the area become taut. Symptoms appear in
the scalp are: pre-stroke syndrome, epilepsy,
aphasia, paralysis of limbs, shaky hands/feet, motor
coordination problem, etc. If you find many soft
spots (described above), I advise you to see a
physician.
© 2007 Dr. Y. Frank Aoi/Japanese Acupuncture
____________________________________________________________________________________
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Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Scottsdale, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2007-09-12T12:09:00.006-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture (480) 246-0624: two locations

Scottsdale: 4333 N. Civic Center Plaza, Ste. 110

Scottsdale, AZ 85251

Goodyear: 14130 W. McDowell Road, A-104

Goodyear, AZ 85395

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter
Volume 1, No. 11: September, 2007

Heart Disease And Dantien (Tanden in Japanese) And The
Importance Of The Ren Meridian
Any marshal artist or zenist would know that the
energy source of the Force lies at the area of abdomen
about an inch below the navel. This area is called
Dantien in Chinese, Tanden in Japanese. It is a vital
area for the entire body.
"The Kidney energy below the navel is the source of
Life and the root of 12 Meridians"* When the Kidney
energy pulsates, there is life, and the cessation of
the pulse is death. Atrophy of the muscle or
flabbiness around the area indicates weak
constitution. It is essential for an acupuncturist to
strengthen the energy pulse when deficiency is found.

Since the Dantien area is the energy source, the Soul
must be firmly grounded there. This is the area where
the mind and the body connect. In oriental medicine,
the Soul consists of the Kidney which contains the
Will or the Zhi in Chinese and the Heart which
contains the Spirit or Shen in Chinese. When the Will
and the Spirit are together and at the right place,
the heart functions well. Therefore, for any heart
disease, it is quite important to bring back the
energy to Dantien, the center.

Dantien (??)means the Field of Life. There are two
other Dantiens. Just above the pubic bone (the
inferior Dantien) and in the brain (the superior
Dantien). Since they all lie on the Ren line (extra
meridian different from regular 12), it is important
to balance the flow of the meridian. Ren runs from
the perineum to the chin. There are many good points
along the meridian, but one in particular, Ren-22, is
of importance. Ren-22 is named Heavenly Prominence.
It is at the suprasternal notch at the base of the
throat. This point is very spiritual and healing. It
has a direct connection with the heart, the tongue,
and the uterus. From here, one can listen to the
heart and so doing it heals the Will and the Spirit.
How to bring about the process is my topic in the next
month newsletter.

*from the quote by Ken Sawada-Bunshi Shirota

Simple Things You Can Do For Your Health No. 8
Thoracic outlet: difficulty breathing, tight neck,
numbness and tingling feeling in the arm and the
fingers, possible hypertension and heart ailment.

Set the index and the middle fingers together (using
the opposite fingers to the affected area), place them
at the triangular depression at the basis of the neck
of the affected side, and rotate the arm of the
affected side circularly from the inward to the
outward.

Three products line offered by Japanese Acupuncture
Kaiso (Seaweed) Pills:
Finest quality seaweed from the protected natural sea
in Japan. No chemical or preservative added. Freeze
dried in pure form of micro-nutrients (easier to be
absorbed by the body).

Good for:
Cleanses and alkalized the blood, boosts immune
system, combats allergies, helps to decrease blood
sugar and cholesterol levels, helps those who are
overweight by improves the function of
gastro-intestinal tract, helps to reduce lipids, helps
to decrease swelling, nodules, lumps, goiter, swollen
lymph glands, edema, chronic cough with phlegm,
improves the structure of hair and nails, helps them
to grow, helps to detoxify smokers from strontium and
cadmium, etc.

Price: $30 (on introductory offer sale until the end
of September for $24)

Coral Calcium With 11 Major Minerals
"The first steps in maintaining health are to alkalize
the body. This is one of the most I important aspects
of homeostasis. Chages in pH after virtually all body
functions" Textbook of Medical Physiology by Arthur
C. Guyton, M.D.

Most of us are acidic, and it is very difficult to
change the pH balance to alkaline by diet. Coral
Calcium With 11 Major Minerals retains minerals in
electron water, and they are fully soluble in wateer
and small enough to enter the cell. Take one once a
day.

Price: $39.95 (on introductory offer sale until the
for $35 plus $5 off from the next acupuncture
treatment)

Tokuhon-A Medical Patch
Tokuhon medical patches are know in Japan for years
for temporary relief from minor aches and pain. Its
adhesive is gentler to the skin than other brands like
Salon Pass. External and topical use only.

Good for:
Muscular aches, back aches, arthritis and joint pain,
strains and sprains, poor circulation, fatigue, etc.

Price: $5.69/box of 40 patches ((on introductory
offer sale until the end of September for $4.55)

No Delivery. Please come in and pick them up at my
clinic.

____________________________________________________________________________________
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Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Scottsdale, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2007-08-04T10:42:00.004-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture (480) 246-0624: two locations

Scottsdale: 4333 N. Civic Center Plaza, Ste. 110

Scottsdale, AZ 85251

Goodyear: 14130 W. McDowell Road, A-104

Goodyear, AZ 85395

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter
Volume 1, No. 10: August, 2007

Importance of Acupuncture Meridian Lines
There are energy flows in our body system, and in
acupuncture, they are called Meridian Lines or the
Channels. It is unfortunate that western medical
science has not included the Energy System along with
endocrine, autonomic, digestive systems. If only
surgeons know where NOT to cut, it is so much
beneficial to patients in long-term care. For
example, a bunion surgery, or any cut along the
meridian lines on the big toe, would eventually affect
the Liver and Spleen causing some GYN problems in
women. Appendectomy and gallbladder removal will
cause right sidedness symptoms; right side headache,
right shoulder pain, right lower back and knee pain,
etc. Hysterectomy, as I mentioned in the previous
newsletter may cause breast tissues to become
malignant. Heavy uterine discharge or endometriosis
along with some digestive problems may cause arthritis
in later years. All these because certain meridian
lines are affected and the normal energy flows are
blocked.

When the meridian line is cut or blocked, massaging
the affected area is very beneficial and should
followed by an acupuncture treatment to bring the
energy in balance. Do not underestimate the long term
effect by a trauma. Do something or seek out help as
soon as possible. Post-surgery recovery process is
much faster when you receive acupuncture treatments.
Recently, I met a patient who had an appendectomy 50
years ago when he was a boy. Upon palpation, I found
that the scar tissue caused by an operation has not
been healed yet. In my opinion, this untreated scar
tissue has caused his current severe knee pain.

Remember, Oriental Medicine is always for prevention.
A good acupuncturist would always treat the
underlining cause of illness and would prevent the
future ailment described above.

Our Current Mental State: From CNN on 7/9/2007
CNN reported that according to a government study,
antidepressants have become the most commonly
prescribed drugs in the United States. They are
prescribed more than drugs to treat high blood
pressure, high cholesterol, asthma, or headache. Dr.
Dworkin says that "Too many people take drugs when
they really need to be making changes in their lives."

Simple Things You Can Do For Your Health No. 7
Place three fingers together and place them on the
forearm side of elbow crease. Where the ring finger is
(distal to the epicondyle of the humerus bone), there
is a famous point called Hand-3-Li. This point is
good for immune system. Knead the area with the
thumb for a few minutes, a couple of times a day.

Melaleuca Items
If you are looking for everyday house hold items which
are natural and safe from chemicals, call John Burak
at 480-354-4804. Learn about the Melaleuca's product
lines. I particularly like their tea tree oil
(melaleuca), Sol-U-Guard Botanical cleaner and Mela
Power laundry detergent. John is a wonderful person.
You will like his soft speaking and professional
conversation. John is talented in many different
interests. Find out what he can do.

Immediate Release: August 3, 2007
Japanese Acupuncture is please to announce that we are
receiving patients at Arizona Enlightenment Center in
Goodyear (14130 W. McDowell Road, Ste. A104, Goodyear,
AZ 85338: 623-882-9454) every Tuesday. The first
appointment at the Center is available on August 14,
2007, from 1 pm to 6:30 pm. Please call Japanese
Acupuncture: 480-246-0624.

____________________________________________________________________________________
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Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Scottsdale, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2007-08-03T12:42:00.004-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture (480) 246-0624: two locations

Scottsdale: 4333 N. Civic Center Plaza, Ste. 110

Scottsdale, AZ 85251

Goodyear: 14130 W. McDowell Road, A-104

Goodyear, AZ 85395

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter

Volume 1, No. 9: July, 2007

Acupuncture and Diet

Ancient Chinese did not place acupuncture at the height of medical treatment. First was the diet and then exercise. "Ein Mann ist was er isst" (A man is what he eats). Just as our thoughts control, say, our facial expressions, what we eat will manifest in our body system and will influence our thoughts. Proper diet and being healthy is the fundamental core for the Right Thought and Right Action as Daoism puts together. So called SAD (Standard American Diet...of hamburgers and hotdogs) is indeed sad. As I have written in the past newsletter, our diet affects our psyche as a nation.

Acupuncture is great for improving the digestive system and is known to reduce weight for certain people. However, no matter what an acupuncturist can do, if it is not followed by a proper diet, it has its limitation.

Recommended Food by Dr. Y. Frank Aoi

Brown Rice or Hatuga-Mai (semi-brown rice):

Brown rice is extremely rich in nutrients. Along with minerals, it has over sev- enty antioxidant, therefore it is one of the most anti-carcinogenic foods. It im- proves blood circulation, autonomic imbalance, and menopausal syndrome. It reduces edema.

Natto:

Over centuries, Natto is known for its health benefits, weight loss and beautiful skin in Japan. However, most Americans dislike Natto because of its smell and slimy and stringy character. Natto is fermented soybeans which are full of en- zymes, vitamins (especially B-12: the source of DNA, promotes cell genesis), amino acids and other nutrients. Its benefits are: prevention of heart attack, strokes, cancer, osteoporosis, obesity and intestinal diseases. Eat with rice, make a sushi roll, or place on salad.

Seaweed and Kelp

Rich in iodine and other minerals (especially, calcium and iron), it prevents goiter formation or any swelling and is beneficial to the thyroid. It is known to nourish hair and makes it shiny. It alkalizes and cleanses the blood. It is useful in weight loss and lowering cholesterol.

New Product Offered by Japanese Acupuncture

Total Nutrition: Coral Calcium with 11 Major Minerals - $39.98

Very fast acting alkalizing oxygenated energized electron water for nutrient sup- port and immune system renewal.

Upcoming Products

Kaiso (seaweed) Pills:

Blood cleansing and nutrient support.

Tokuhon Medical Patches:

Muscular tension, reduction of pain, and faster blood circulation. Easier on the skin than other brands.

Simple Things You Can Do For Your Health No. 6

Sternum Rub:

Make a fist, rub the sternum (the chest bone). Can also use palm of your hand. Good for asthma, difficult breathing, chest pain, and emotional imbalance.

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Scottsdale, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2007-08-03T12:36:00.003-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture (480) 246-0624: two locations

Scottsdale: 4333 N. Civic Center Plaza, Ste. 110

Scottsdale, AZ 85251

Goodyear: 14130 W. McDowell Road, A-104

Goodyear, AZ 85395

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter

Volume 1, No. 8: June, 2007

Yellow Emperor's Canon of Internal Medicine

Yellow Emperor asked Qibo*, "I'm told that the ancient people could live up to one hundred years old and were still strong, but today, why do people become weak by the time they reach 50?" Qibo answered that those ancient Chinese knew how to nurture themselves according to the yearly cycle (four seasons and Yin & Yang**) and were living in harmony with na- ture. However, people today drink alcohol like fruit juice, are overworked repeatedly, seek sexual pleasure and exhaust the Life Essence (for longevity). They seek one-time pleasure and by doing so, reduce the true joy of living. Therefore, they become withered by the age of 50. Does this conversation somehow sound familiar to you? Yet, this was written 2000 years ago and was how the oldest medical writing*** in China began in Chapter One. The an- cient Chinese emphasized living with nature and its timetable, but were already lament- ing human weakness. If we can live in harmony and follow what nature is telling us to do, we might live longer and find true happiness in being alive. All the other chapters were written from this conviction (Su Wen****). *Yellow Emperor and Qibo (Daoist Master) are most likely fictional characters. **Four Seasons (four Qi or Energy) and Yin & Yang (四気陰陽): the Law of Nature ***Yellow Emperor's Canon of Internal Medicine (黄帝内経) *****Internal Medicine has two parts: Su Wen and Ling Shu (mostly on acupuncture) 7-Year Cycle For Women, 8-Year Cycle For Men Within Chapter One, there are explanations of the female and the male cycles, which most westerners are not familiar with; however, in Asia, the cycles are stressed in the culture.

Female:

Age 7: Kidney Energy is activated, permanent teeth grow, and hair gets longer

Age 14: Kidney Energy matures, menstruation begins, and she is ready to have a baby

Age 21: Kidney Energy flows throughout the body

Age 28: Hair is abundant, physical strength is strong

Age 35: Facial complexion starts to deteriorate

Age 42: Facial wrinkles and white hair appear

Age 49: Reduction of Blood in the Blood Channel (or Pulse), menses stop,

and the ability to bear a child is lost.

Male:

Age 8: Kidney Energy is activated, hair and permanent teeth grow

Age 16: Kidney Energy matures, is ready to reproduce

Age 24: Kidney Energy flows throughout the body

Age 32: The body and muscles are strong

Age 40: Kidney Energy starts to decline, hair starts to fall out, teeth become loose

Age 48: Decline of the Yang Energy, facial wrinkles and hair become white

Age 56: Kidney Energy declines, muscles weaken, and reproductive capability declines

Notice that Oriental Medicine emphasizes Kidney Energy for the life span and the re- productive process. The important thing to remember here is that any disturbance of the cycle affects our long-term prospect for health. For example, females at the sensitive age of 14 should be careful during the year, since an early or late menstruation would affect GYN problems in the future. Men should be careful during the age of 40 or 46, when the body is chang- ing and loosing more Yang Energy to avoid the possibility of heart and other health risk factors. In Asia, those who are in each age group are reminded to be careful during the year and watch their health. Simple Things You Can Do For Your Health No. 5 Abdomen Pressing: With four fingers flexed, starting from the lower left quadrant, press the fingers into the abdomen. Then on the center line, move to the lower right quadrant, up to the upper right quadrant on the center line, then to the upper left quadrant. Repeat the process three times. Digestion controls our energy level, and harmonizing the stomach and the intestines helps balance our body and well-being.

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Scottsdale, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2007-08-03T12:34:00.002-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter

Volume 1, No. 7: May, 2007

Dear Readers,

I thank all the members of Arizona Enlightenment Center in Goodyear who came to my presentation on April 21, 2007. It was really nice meet- ing you and I hope you enjoyed the information. Please read my other newsletters by entering my website written above.

My Shin-Do (鍼道 = The Way of My Acupuncture)

Nakama (仲間 = The Circle of Friends) is a Japanese word for a friend or friends, but it has a connotation of a group or a circle of friends. I write about it because of a recent incident compelled me to a rm how impor- tant my nakama is and it is time that I state my mode of practice. My patients are my nakama and the circle of friends. I will protect and help them no matter what my personal circumstance is. It is in the spirit of the circle, I function and heal people. No one will take away my heal- ing right, for there are so many people who need help. As long as I am healthy and capable, I will protect and heal my nakama. This is my Shin-Do, the way of acupuncture.

Acupuncture Is Good For

Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine have been existing for over 2000 years and has been dealing with many more ailments than western medi- cine has. Acupuncture is good for almost every ailment, yet as soon as I finish my talking, people ask me if acupuncture is good for this or that, or if I am specialized in this or that. I have decided to list an old index of some ailments a Japanese master treated.

From an index of Bunshi Shirota (below is an incomplete listing):

Ear problems: tinnitus, earache, discharge, tympanitus, etc.

Eye problems: decreased vision, eye pain, etc.

Digestive problems: colitis, dysentery, duodenum ulcer, diarrhea, morning diarrhea, etc.

Genital problems: hernia of testicles, testitis, etc.

GYN problems: endometriosis, uterine fibroid, irregular menstruation, leukorrhea, etc.

Heart problems: pericarditis, angina, myocardial infarction,

Kidney problems: nephritis, nephrosclerosis, spermatorrhea, bed wetting, etc.

Liver problems: hepatomegaly, cirrhosis, hepatitis, etc.

Sinus problems: sinusitis, sneezing, empyema, etc.

Spinal problems: herniated disk, lower back pain, etc.

Stomach problems stomach pain, ulcer, spasm, ascites, prolapse, inflammation, acid reflex, cancer, bloating, coldness, etc

Teeth problems: upper and lower toothache, gingivitis, jaw, etc.

Throat problems: laryngitis, nasopharyngitisx, laryngopharyngitis, etc.

Urination problems: UTI, etc.

Achilles tendinitis

Anemia

Appendicitis

Aphasia

Aphagia

Apnea

Ascites

Asthma

Basedow's disease (Graves' disease)

Beriberi

Bitter taste

Body order

Breathing problem

Chest pain, fullness

Cold and flu

Cough

Constipation

Convulsion

Detoxification

Diabetes

Di cult delivery

Di cult to produce milk

Diphteria

Dry mouth

Encepharitis, brain hemorrhage

Facial paralysis

Fatigue

Finger pain

Foot problems

Gallbladder stone, kidney stone, bladder stone

Headache, head pain

Hemoptysis

Hemorrhoid

Hernia

Hypertension, lower blood pressure

Hysteria, mania

Infertility

Insomnia

Irregular pulse

Jaundice

Joint pain

Knee pain and dysfunction

Lacrimatory

Malaria

Neuralgia

Neurosis

Oketsu (Stagnation Blood)

Over weight

Paralysis

Peritonitis

Periostitis

Pleuritis

Poisoning

Polio

Prostatitis

Raynaud's disease

Rheumatism

Skin disease

Shoulder pain

Spinal caries

Sprain

Stroke

Sweating

Syphilis, gonorrhea

Thumb pain

Thyroid

Tonsilitis

Trachoma

Tumor

Typhoid

Vomiting

etc.

Again, this is an incomplete list. Dr. Shirota treated many more ailments than what I could list here.

Acupuncture Is Not A Specialization

A few people asked me if I was specialized in something, i.e., infertility. My answer to the question is that I do not know of any master who was and is specialized in something for an acupuncture treatment. Speciali- zation belongs to western medicine and not to Oriental Medicine. Orien- tal Medicine deals with the balancing of the whole body, and so doing, it treats the Tai Chi. Acupuncturist should not be afraid of any ailment a patient may bring. In my humble opinion, specialization by an acupunc- turist only exposes weakness of his or her skill. Learn from ancient Chi- nese. They treated everything with courage, stubbornness, and audacity: this is why we benefit today.

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter, Scottsdale, Arizona, 日本鍼灸, アリゾナ

2007-08-03T12:30:00.002-07:00

Japanese Acupuncture Newsletter Volume 1, No. 6: 2007

Only God Knows Have you ever wondered why some people loose weight and you don't? Given the same weight loss program, why are you the one always loose out? This maybe due to a constitutional di erence. However, chasing af- ter reasons why a certain person looses weight and an another doesn't is an endless loop. Oriental Medicine refrains from analytical deduction and logical answers, instead it simply accepts di erences as a universal truth or a god's manifestation. From a perspective of the Tai Chi treatment, the di erence may be due to the way we balance ourselves; eliminating what we do not need and tak- ing in what we need. Each individual has a unique processing system. Therefore, Oriental Medicine treats a person (as a whole) and not a dis- ease arising from an incidental cause and e ect. Oriental Medicine diagnoses each person according to his body type and the pattern of symptoms and gives a unique treatment. Neither a single treatment nor a super drug is for the masses, and simply said, Oriental Medicine is not prescriptive. One Step Ahead, Always I have already mentioned that a good doctor heals and prevents a disease whereas an ordinary doctor cures a disease and this is the fork that sepa- rates the extraordinary from the ordinary. In the Tai Chi treatment, I have often mentioned that Oriental Medicine treats the root cause of a disease. Anyone can place a needle and make it stick up on the head when a pa- tient experiences a headache. However, such a peripheral treatment does not cure the symptom and it may even aggravate it further. By focusing on the root cause of a disease, I am always a step ahead of a patient's re- quest and concern. My e ort is aimed at lot more deeper and higher concern such as how to give a quality of life and to prolong a life span.

Many people are accustomed to receiving an immediate result by western medication (but disregarding what would happen to the body in years to come) and hope that acupuncture can do the same. However, having ex- isting for over 2000 years, acupuncture is at higher level than a fast relief treatment modality. Yes, acupuncture can sometimes work like wonder, but the result only scratches on the surface level of what acupuncture really can do. Acupuncture is about the relational energy, it is about the interaction of Yin and Yang, therefore, it is about a relationship between a patient and a practitioner, and so doing, acupuncture evolves spiritually for the both to be at the higher level of consciousness. Simplest Thing You Can Do For Your Health No. 4 Sit comfortably on a chair, flex your fingers (cup your fingers), and place them about inch below the rib cage. Slightly push in to the abdomen, then take a deep breath and as you exhale slowly bend your body forward (the chest to the knee). The movement causes fingers to sink in deep into the rib cage and release the diaphragm. As you inhale, release fin- gers and come up. Repeat the process a few times if necessary. Your fingers should sink to the rib cage to one inch. If the abdominal mus- cle is very tight, massage the area and try again. Diaphragm is an important organ in Oriental Medicine, for it separates the Heaven* above (the Heart and the Lungs) and the Earth below (intes- tines and the Kidneys). In between the Human stands (the digestion sys- tem). This trigram (the Three-ness) is the core philosophy of Oriental Medicine: Tai Chi (the One-ness) to Yin and Yang (the Two-ness) and to the Three-ness. The Three-ness creates the Five-ness (zang organs**) and the Five-ness creates milliards of things. Tai Chi treatment is to do a reverse engineering on the phenomenon: understand any disease under the Five-ness, locate it in the Three-ness, diagnose into the Two-ness then to treat the root cause to bring the body to the ultimate balance of the One-ness. *words are capitalized to denote Oriental Medicine's understanding of their meanings.

**zang organs: Heart, Spleen, Lungs, Kidneys, and Liver

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Spleen: Worry, Harmony, and Illumination #5　（日本鍼灸　アリゾナ）