Viewpoints
Everybody has a viewpoint: we share ours and others through editorials, book reviews, interviews and miscellany.
Editorials
Welcome to the Lantern! - from the Editors
Our design is to reflect more of the tradition of Chinese medicine, in all of its multitudinous variety, to balance the tendency towards discarding aspects of Chinese medicine simply because they do not match the current dominant paradigm of Western biomedicine.
The tyranny of the microscope - from the Editors
Western bio-medical tests provide a sure basis for diagnosis and treatment, but without clear positive results, there is no certainty. For those reliant on certainty this would feel extremely precarious ... but there is another way.
I will study the classics - from the Editors
If memorising just locks things away we are better off just using our computers or reference books —at least they are accurate. On the other hand, memorisation may result in unseen recombinant activity in the depths, a subconscious processing ...
Gold prospecting in Chinese medicine - from the Editors
What is the motivation for and what are the results of trying to eliminate the so-called placebo effect? What are we afraid of in the face of the evidence that there is a tendency for patients to heal themselves? These questions are examined in this editorial.
Budding industry needs tender loving care - from the Editors
“Chinese herbal supplies are vulnerable to anything that disrupts the sea-lanes between China and Australia. A war between China and Taiwan ... could leave us high and dry without a supply.”
Optimism, trust and the power of communication - from the Editors
“...If [your clients] trust you, the effects will be better, because they will have the confidence that allows their own healing powers to act to the fullest. And that is an ally you want on your side.”
Of insight, wholeness and understanding - by Nick Dent
“Insight, the deep apprehension of how a system acts as a whole, the recognition of non–obvious linkages — these need not be the province of only a talented few, as techniques for training these skills exist and have been utilised for centuries.”
Play now, pay later - from the Editors
Why more people are doing two jobs for the pay of one... and who benefits.
Invasion of the Body Snatchers - by Dr Phillip Westmore (Guest Editorial)
We all know that jing, qi and feng (for example), like, say, Beauty, Love and Truth, cannot be demonstrated physically, even though, at least in regard to the latter three archetypes, we all know they exist and are just as true as the objects we see, hear, touch and taste around us ...
The Delphic boat and the Yellow Emperor - by Z'ev Rosenberg
French scientist Antoine Danchin writes of an old boat whose planks eventually rot and must be repaired and replaced. Eventually the original planks are long gone. Is it the same boat? Is the boat the material from which it is made, or is it something much more interesting?
The essence of the Nan Jing's teachings on health - by Z'ev Rosenberg
By studying the Nan Jing, we can reorient ourselves to a different clinical gaze and comprehensive view of medicine. Rather than just practise another form of biomedicine using natural substances, we can revolutionise the way we approach our patients.
Chinese medicine in Australia - by Glenys Savage
In Chinese culture the number eight (ba) is significant; it is associated with "expanding wealth". I reflected on the fact that it is eight years since the introduction of the Chinese Medicine Registration Act 2000 in the state of Victoria.
Mentoring in Chinese medicine - by Glenys Savage
The retirement of legendary Melbourne teacher-practitioner Professor Lun Wong highlights the issue of mentoring for graduates and new practitioners.
Transforming Gold into Lead - by James Souttar
A man stood in a metro station in Washington DC and started to play the violin; it was a cold January morning. He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes...
The Practitioner's Pledge -
This pledge has been distilled from the Code of Ethics published by the Chinese Medicine Registration Board of Victoria.
Don't be ashamed of our fuzzy grasp of reality - by Editors
We have an extremely flexible theory of physiology set out for us, in Chinese medicine: just detailed enough to be accurate, yet not so complicated that it cannot be held in the head, all at once.
Wheels of progress turning in Victoria - by Steven Clavey
The forward-thinking Victorian Health Minister, Daniel Andrews,has approved three herbs for inclusion in a Schedule of the Poisons List, a move that will soon make them available to registered Chinese herbalists.
Reviews
Looking for – and finding – the Dao - reviewed by Steven Clavey
Cleary is of the opinion that it may be more valuable to learn to access the living flow that gives rise to Daoism and equivalent streams, a flow that is present now, rather than simply trying to look like or act like a 12th century Daoist.
Interviews
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Miscellany
Preventing pasteurised qi - by Mattie Sempert
Since reading "The tyranny of the Microscope — the allure of certainty", I've been standing up straighter and with more confidence in my comfortable acupuncturist shoes. I had been quietly seething for years ...
