Guest guest Posted March 7, 2003 Report Share Posted March 7, 2003 they were not required in my training ( I don't think tey were even published then) but I used a clinical guide as one of my textbooks. i love the comparisons I also think of herb couplets/triplets when writng formulas. I write some formaulas based only on these foundational principles and not on a " regualr " formula. you know- like written from scratch. Cara With all this talk about herbal education, I was wondering if either " Chinese Herbal Medicines: Comparisons and Characteristics " by Yifan Yang, or " A Clinical Guide to Chinese Herbs and Formulae " by Chen Song Yu and Li Fei were part of the required reading in your herbal courses? My teacher gave us herbal combinations to look at before studying standard formulas. I still find that a valuable way to look at things when making or adding to formulas. And what about preparing individual herbs before adding them to a formula? Jim Ramholz Chinese Herbal Medicine, a voluntary organization of licensed healthcare practitioners, matriculated students and postgraduate academics specializing in Chinese Herbal Medicine, provides a variety of professional services, including board approved online continuing education. <a target=_blank href= " http://www..org " >http://www..org</a> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 7, 2003 Report Share Posted March 7, 2003 All: With all this talk about herbal education, I was wondering if either " Chinese Herbal Medicines: Comparisons and Characteristics " by Yifan Yang, or " A Clinical Guide to Chinese Herbs and Formulae " by Chen Song Yu and Li Fei were part of the required reading in your herbal courses? My teacher gave us herbal combinations to look at before studying standard formulas. I still find that a valuable way to look at things when making or adding to formulas. And what about preparing individual herbs before adding them to a formula? Jim Ramholz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 7, 2003 Report Share Posted March 7, 2003 Jim Wrote: > With all this talk about herbal education, I was wondering if either > " Chinese Herbal Medicines: Comparisons and Characteristics " by Yifan > Yang, I recommend it, but don't require it. However I teach from this book. -- Al Stone L.Ac. <AlStone http://www.BeyondWellBeing.com Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 8, 2003 Report Share Posted March 8, 2003 , herbbabe <herbbabe@e...> wrote: > > I also think of herb couplets/triplets when writng formulas. I write some formaulas based only on these foundational principles and not on a " regualr " formula. you know- like written from scratch. I also do this, but I think it is important to use classical formulas as guides for how to come up with combinations and combinations of combinations. As for the study of dui yao and where it belongs in the program of study, if at all, some discussion is warranted. I have often heard, as Jim suggested, that dui yao study should be like a bridge between the study of formulas and single herbs. It seems like a logical progression. 1 becomes 2 becomes many. Almost daoist. or something :-) When studying categories of herbs, it is easy to mention when herbs in the same category are typically combined. And when studying herbs that are combined with other herbs that have already been studied, I think it it helpful to mention those as well. However I do not think it is helpful to expect extensive memorization of dui yao combination of herbs that have not yet been studied. Without that context, it is doubtful that retention will be very high. Its OK to do a little of this, but just to minimize the delivery of uncontextualized information. In herbs 1-3 at PCOM, small representative formulas are covered for most categories and this also allows a discussion of some dui yao. which brings me to my next point. dui yao should be the main focus of formulas study. that is where it is really contextualized. the most important part of formula studies is the dynamics of the herb combinations to address the treatment principles. inherent in every discussion of formulas is dui yao. It is through the study of formulas that one traditionally learned dui yao. reference books of dui yao are wonderfully useful resources, but I see no reason to merely learn the combinations out of the context of formulas. After the study of formulas, the third stage of training at PCOM involves learning to construct formulas for specific conditions (chinese bing) using a case oriented, problem solving approach. In this context, we take dui yao to the next level in terms of using it to modify base formulas and as building blocks to creat novel formulas. the study of formulas prior to the study of formula construction for specific conditions lays that important foundation I mentioned above. It gives one historical precedent for the creation of novel formula and an understanding of how combinations were used to create the classical formulas. The final piece of the contextualization puzzle will be the study of the herbal classics, now highly recommended for serious herbalists and soon to be required for all at PCOM. I think dui yao is thus ideally interwoven into the study of herbs at each level, materia medica, formulas and formulation for conditions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 8, 2003 Report Share Posted March 8, 2003 This book was reviewed for use at PCOM by the Herbology department, and we liked the charts, but decided not to require it. I personally find the terminology a bit archaic, i.e. 'sedate the Spirit', 'school of tonifying the Spleen', 'direct tonifying vs. indirect tonifying'. There is no pinyin or characters listed with these English terms, and no glossary. While trying to explain concepts or compare medicinals, it is confusing to students to use such terminology to understand this material. Compare such an approach to the new " Ten Lectures on Medicinals " (Jiao Shu-de), which explains every technical term with footnotes and glossary references, Chinese character and pinyin. On Friday, March 7, 2003, at 06:29 PM, Al Stone wrote: > Jim Wrote: > >> With all this talk about herbal education, I was wondering if either >> " Chinese Herbal Medicines: Comparisons and Characteristics " by Yifan >> Yang, > > I recommend it, but don't require it. However I teach from this book. > > -- > Al Stone L.Ac. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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