Acupuncture works because the modern world has only recently recognized the need to manage the insane speed and demands of capitalist society with the all-encompassing umbrella of self-care. Acupuncture works because it is the final word in self-care. It is self-care because it is your own body doing the caring, your body knows how best to care for itself, your body mobilizes its own resources to correct imbalances. Acupuncture works because it has been utilized, developed and expanded upon since before the Romans built their Coliseum.
Picture a naked silver birch tree in winter, its branches extend ever higher, separating into increasingly smaller branches until they reach the heavens with the smallest of their appendages. Now picture an anatomical drawing of the vascular system of the human body. Notice the similarities between these two pictures, the way that the arteries continuously divide in order to reach into the smallest of spaces in order to supply blood to every part of the body. The ancient scholars who pieced together our foundational understanding of acupuncture were natural scientists, they lived and studied the natural world around them, as well as the natural world within themselves! They did not have microscopes or endoscopes to look within their own bodies, but they could still apply the modern scientific method:
- Make an observation.
- Ask a question.
- Form a hypothesis.
- Make a prediction based on the hypothesis.
- Test the prediction.
- Make a conclusion: use the results to make new hypotheses or predictions.
The pioneers of acupuncture observed the natural-external world and formed questions about how the dynamics of the natural-external world can also be found in the functioning of the natural-internal world. From these questions have stemmed thousands if not millions of hypotheses, predictions, and testing of the predictions. This has resulted in the multitude of different acupuncture styles and systems that all utilize the same foundation of Qi and its movement within the human body.
The Chinese character for Qi shows steam rising off of cooking rice, its an ephemeral and mutable substance that is best experienced rather than observed. Qi is the fuel we create by breaking down our food. It is the enlivening experience of a deep breathe of fresh air on a cool mountain day. Qi is that which motivates our blood to make the journey from the center of our chest all the way down to the tip of our smallest toe. Qi makes those key connections while we are studying for a big exam and it takes us on wild adventures while we dream. The movement of Qi is the natural course of a healthy human experience. Acupuncture helps to remind the body where its Qi needs to go, without causing adverse effects often seen in Western medical procedures. Acupuncture can be used to reset an overly tight muscle by convincing that muscle to return to a relaxed state. Acupuncture can reopen pathways that have been blocked from the buildup of scar tissue. Acupuncture can settle the nervous system in order to take a break from the detrimental rush of a high-stress life. Acupuncture works because it has been meticulously studied and refined for thousands of years to work.
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