Acupuncture Books

I'm a certified massage therapist and this is a good book to add a little shiatsu to your table work.

Author of "Hobo Finds A Home" editor "Of A Predatory Heart"

I met Pamela Hannay in one of her adult education classes on Shiatsu for horses. Pamela was so in tune with the horses and a beautiful person. Even my untrained eye could see the difference in a horse's gait after the session - how improved it was. The horses (I took her course twice) really seemed to enjoy the touch, and the connection with, and touching horses made me feel great. This small book is a great primer on shiatsu for horses, and the photos will show you how to perform the shiatsu techniques.

I found this information on another website:

"As a monograph of acupuncture-moxibustion techniques, it has gathered and collected the acupuncture-moxibustion manipulation skills and techniques of diverse academic schools and doctors in modern and ancient times, and introduces and explains them with words and figures. So, it can give guidance and directions to acupuncture and moxibustion manipulation. Moreover, with some new ideas by dividing acupuncture-moxibustion techniques into skills relating to acupoints, abstract or basic skills, and clinical skills, it makes valuable exploration to the establishment of an applied science - acupuncture-moxibustion technique."
Prof. Wang Xuetai, Chairman of the World Federation of Acupuncture and Moxibustion Societies

The book is divided into two parts: Part One and Part Two. The Part One, also titled with Preparatory Knowledge, mainly introduces the basic knowledge about the meridians, acupoints and equipments of acupuncture & moxibustion.

The Part Two, also titled with Skill of Acupuncture & Moxibustion, includes two chapters: (I) A General Discussion on Techniques of Acupuncture and Moxibustion; and (II) Clinical Application of Techniques of Acupuncture and Moxibustion. The first chapter mainly introduces the filiform needling, three-edged needling, intradermal needling, cutaneous needling, dull needling, hot needling, electric needling, hydre-puncture, ear needling, scalp needling, wrist-ankle needling, moxibustion and cupping. Among them, skills of filiform needling are discussed in most detail, 30 odd methods being listed. The second chapter mainly introduces clinical application of the skills of acupuncture and moxibustion on treatment of 60 kinds or more diseases with acupuncture and moxibustion, which is based on referring to clinical reports in last 40 years.

This book is written in Chinese with English translation and lays emphasis on clinical practice. It is easy to be understood as it is filled with illustrative pictures. So it is suitable to the overseas amateurs of acupuncture and moxibustion and medical workers who engage in acupuncture and moxibustion and will help them master the basic skills of Chinese acupuncture and moxibustion quickly and accurately, and it can also be an important referring book for middle or advanced-degree acupuncturists in China to study the skills of acupuncture and moxibustion and learn acupuncture English.

This book introduces an exciting new model of health based on integrated medicine, holistic health (diet, exercise, and nutritional supplements), select hormones and controlling inflammation to gain an edge on the process of aging. I found the information on detoxification, nutrition, exercise, and mind-body health especially interesting, as well an alphabetical guide to what vitamins are found in certain foods.

Overall, a very engaging study of a wide range of healthy aging practices as well as a healthy lifestyle guide in general.

I study sports massage at the moment. This book has/is helping me a lot in my study. It describes different techniques, and shows you with foto's how to aplly them. It also refers to important anatomy, and gives you infomation about different types of injury. It's a must for every sports massage therapist!!

If you are looking for a detailed description of acu points and are trained in the US perhaps this is not for you. These are the most affordable posters that one can buy. For others one expects to pay >$60. It illustrates all 14 meridians, and extra points(EX). It nicely lists the names in PinYin with tones so the LACs can pronounce them properly. It also has the Traditional Chinese names. The Int'l Standard Org(ISO) designations (LU,ST,GB etc.) are not printed on the charts. Rather, they are included in the 44 page phamphlet. All in all, this is an excellent pictorial representations of Acupuncture Meridian points available. They can be used as posters or framed in the office as conversational center piece. This is highly recommended for those interested in pain control, acupressure, and acupuncture.

This is a mature work that remains true to the authentic model of traditional Chinese medicine, yet is written in a way Western practitioners can easily understand. It is based on sound methodology, clarifies many of the universal misunderstandings that Western practitioners have of TCM, and resounds with years of clinical experience. No doubt it will become a welcome text for students and a refreshing resource for practitioners.

This translation is actually in its 2nd edition now. The first edition came out in a hard-cover, which can often be found in used book stores, under books that are too esoteric for the general population, and too expensive for the novice student. Almost 10 years after the first edition arrived, this paperback version does not fail to inspire the one who has discovered it. It's like a gem among common stones.
If you've tried reading the Nei-Jing: Su wen and Ling Shu, you may have already figured out that it's a conglomeration of 162 treatises, loosely organized and difficult to assimilate. The Jia Yi Jing, first published in 282 CE., derives most of its information directly from the Nei-Jing (2nd-3rd century B.C.E). So why spend more money on another version of the Nei-Jing? The difference may be best understood with these words taken straight from the Translator's Preface: "While the expositions on pathogenesis, diagnosis, and the pathophysiology of disease in the Ling Shu and Su Wen are indeed instructive these books are not oriented toward clinical practice and most often do not contain therapies for specific, clinically encountered problems. The Jia Yi Jing, on the other hand, is a clinically oriented manual arranged in a manner that a student or practitioner can easily access. It presents the reader with the signs and symptoms of a given disease, and then provides us with acupuncture moxibustion treatment choices. Having made these choices, the Jia Yi Jing then provides us with a clear description of what to expect from its formulas and their relevant points, the depths of needle insertions, the number of cones allowed in moxibustion, and the manipulation of the needles, etc."
Furthermore, while the Su Wen records only one hundred sixty acupoints... the Jia Yi Jing adds one hundred eighty-nine points to this list, increasing the total number to three hundred forty-nine points... Texts on classical Chinese acupuncture and moxibustion published in the fifteen hundred years since Huang-fu Mi's death have added only twelve channel points to the number contained in the Jia Yi Jing." (iv translator's preface). This elucidates the importance of this text, not only in light of the fact that it was the first textbook on classical acupuncture, but also given its position as a milestone in the systemic classification and application of acupuncture in general.
Organized into 12 sections, the following are my personal labels for each one: 1. Theory 2. Channels 3. Points 4. Pulses 5. Needling technique 6. Diagnosis 7,8,9. Contraction of disease in the 6 channels and Zang/Fu 10. Bi-Pain disorders 11. Severe disorders 12. EENT and miscellaneous disorders.
Finally, the other source of the Jia Yi Jing material is the now lost Ming Tang Zhen Liu Zhi Yao (The Acupuncture and Moxibustion Treatment Essentials of the Enlightening Hall), which was given much reverence in its day and is best preserved through the Jia Yi Jing.
If I could give this 6 stars, I would. My recommendation is that only serious acupuncture students/ practitioners should consider making this purchase. The paperback value is not great enough for collectors and the material is too dependant on having a TCM background for non-practitioners to make this investment. A better read for non-acupuncturists is "The Yellow Emperor's Classic of Medicine: A New Translation of the Nei-Jing Suwen with Commentary" by Maoshing Ni. It reads more like a Taoist narrative. My personal recommendation for serious Nei-Jingers is Henry Lu's Nei-Jing and Nan-Jing in one volume, available from www.tcmcollege.com. Also, the Nguyen Van-Nghi group is making English translations of the Ling Shu available through www.jungtao.edu.

This book was originally printed in French and published in English in 1986. It has not been reprinted since then, making it thus out of print and difficult to find. This book is valuable because it presents extensive information not found in other texts. The concepts of terrain, constitution, and temperament found in traditional accupuncture are expanded upon by blending into these concepts the western concepts of pathophysiology and psychology. Here the author organizes the symptoms of accupuncture diagnostics (the 6 energy levels and the 5 elements)with a series of psychological evaluative tests, and formulates a system of "Diathetic Medicine"which in turn, is correlated specifically to each of the 5 elements, the organ systems of each element, and the common pathologies to each organ system. All these concepts form a unique body of knowlege which can be used by the practitioner to not only diagnose the patient in a new and comprehensive way, but can assist him/her in formulating and/or evaluate a treatment plan. In other words, it is an extremely useful tool for the formulation of the diagnosis. The concept of Diathetic Medicine is certainly new in its application to accupuncture, but it adds a new dimension by the use of trace elements in the treatment of imbalances in the energy of the meridians. Even though the book appears on first glance to be difficult to understand, it is extremely well organized, and gives a wonderful, concise review of the accupuncture laws and processes. The language is technical and to the point, and never uses obscure terms or obtuse language. Masterfully written, it is a tresure-trove of useful information that can revolutionize the way accupuncture is practiced.

This book is probably the best book ever written by a skeptic for a skeptic!
Detailed discussion on what is Yin/Yang, five elements,
The first book which provides a rational argument to "why really skin is said to be under the jurisdiction of the Lung meridian?" and the sorts.

The only con of this book are it's diagrams of meridians and the location of points. The diagrams are generated using some computerized software and well.. not too precise. But then for precise meridians and point locations you would rather use Royston Low's Atlas of Acupuncture.

Also discussion on how the meridians navigate not only at the superficial level (which is shown in most books) but also internally.

Complete section on the eight extra-ordinary vessels.
And a section discussing the TCM and orthodox descriptions of common maladies and their treatment with acupuncture.