Robert Keller, L.Ac.

Classical Chinese Medicine

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Causality in Chinese Medicine – The Issues of How and Why

The topic of causality is arguably most important issue in medicine. People ask more questions about it, spend more time stuck on it, and know the least about it, than any other issue I can think of. There are three concepts that need to be discussed – causality, mechanism, and interpretation.
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The Receptivity of Blood

The Spleen manufactures Qi from the transformed essence of food and drink. In the Heart, this mixes with the extracted Qi of air and is transformed into Blood through a process known as red transformation.
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Disposition

Disposition – A natural or acquired habit or characteristic tendency in a person or thing. The first thing I learned in school regarding herbal medicine had to do with the structure of the Shen Nong Ben Cao, the Divine Farmer’s Materia Medica. Written sometime around 150 AD, it is one of the oldest herbal medicine […]
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About Earth

It is unclear historically when the Five Element theory arose, but it does appear in the literature by about 500 BC. Initially, the Five Element theory (the term Five Agent theory is technically more correct, but Five Element has become more popular and familiar and so I use it here) was simply a grouping. Phenomena […]
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Authorship in Chinese Literature

The practice of ascribing writings or teachings to mythological figures is a common Asian practice, and one worth saying something about. In my own studies of Chinese literature, I have noticed three patterns. One is the crediting of a body of knowledge to a mythological figure, which lived in some time before recorded or even […]
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Nothing to Study – The Concept of an Organ in Chinese Medicine

The concept of organs in Chinese medicine can sometimes be a confusing topic for patients. In a Western culture, it can be very difficult to understand that Liver depression (this is the technical term for Liver Qi stagnation) is not going to show up on a blood test. This brings up the very important topic […]
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