Our day began with a lecture on the causes of disease. This was a basic explanation of the concepts of excess and deficiency; internal and external forces. The next lecture took place in the Medicinal Nursing Laboratory, which was a room with glass jars full of traditional herbs and various tools for cupping/ moxibustion/ acupuncture on display. Another lecture was on Chinese diagnostic skills including tongue and pulse assessment. I wanted to continue so we could really have a chance to take and describe each others’ pulses and tongues, but time was too short and we were not able to do more than quickly try each of the pulse machines. After lunch in the staff canteen, we learned about meridians. I love the way various theories are explained in naturalistic terms – rain cycles and seasonal cycles; it makes it really easy to understand.
Susan Wasseluk (TCM Journal March 10, 2009)
Photography by Rick Allen
