Afterglow: Ministerial Fire and Chinese Ecological Medicine

by Z'ev Rosenberg, Stephen Cowan (Foreword by)

Overview

Inspired by personal observations of the climate crisis, as well as health issues from patients involving ministerial fire, this text dives into the concepts of ming men and ministerial fire - core concepts of Chinese medical diagnosis and treatment. This book will assist practitioners in understanding the mechanisms of treating patients with autoimmune diseases, allergies, skin disorders and arthritic disorders.

With material from the classic texts, Z'ev Rosenberg explains the concepts ming men and ministerial fire and its relation to the clinical treatment of chronic disorders and its ecological and philosophical implications for life on this planet.

Including case histories, acupuncture strategies and herbal formulas, Afterglow is for practitioners that want to deepen their Chinese medicine knowledge in order to treat these complex yet common disorders.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781787754133
Publisher:	Jessica Kingsley Publishers
Publication date:	10/21/2022
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	144
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Z'ev Rosenberg LAc is Chair Emeritus of Pacific College of Oriental Medicine, San Diego. In private practice since 1983, he is recognised as one of the first generation of practitioners of TCM in the US.

Table of Contents

Foreword Stephen Cowan 7

Acknowledgements 15

Thoughts on Ministerial Fire 17

Introduction 19

1 The Elemental Nature of Chinese Medicine 23

I The Setting and the Stage 23

II Diagnosing the Ecological Crisis in America 27

III Ministerial Fire, Heaven and Earth: Fire and the Anthropocene Age 29

IV The Macrobiome and Microbiome: Medicine for Earth and Humanity 31

V The Changing of the Guard: Global Shifts, Climate Change, and Pandemics 34

2 Ministerial Fire in the Shanghán Lùn $$$ 39

I Tàiyáng $$$ and Ministerial Fire 42

II Yángmíng and Ministerial Fire 43

III Shàoyáng $$$ and Ministerial Fire 44

IV Tàiyin $$$ and Ministerial Fire: The Union of Earth and Water 46

V Shàoyin $$$ and Ministerial Fire 47

VI Juéyin $$$ Disease and Ministerial Fire: Loss of Rhythmic Interchange of Yin and Yang 50

3 Source Qi and Ministerial Fire 55

4 Defense Qi, Construction Qi, and Ministerial Fire 63

5 Thoughts on Supplementing Yang Qi 69

I Preserving Ministerial Fire 69

II Cooking and Ministerial Fire 71

III Traditional Cooking Methods and Ministerial Fire 72

6 Autoimmunity and Thermodynamics 75

I Management of Ministerial Fire to Maintain Equilibrium 75

II Essential Questions in Understanding Ministerial Fire and Autoimmunity 79

III Ministerial Fire and Autoimmunity in the Nán Jing $$$ 82

IV Qi Transformation and Ministerial Fire in Li Dongyuán's Spleen Stomach Theory 83

V Causative Factors of Autoimmune Disease 84

VI Ecological Medicine and Autoimmune Disorders 88

7 Ministerial Fire and Menopause 91

8 Biàn Zheng $$$ Steaming and Transformations in Neonates 95

9 Case Studies 103

I Case Study 1 103

II Case Study 2 106

III Case Study 3 108

10 Conclusion 111

Afterword 115

Appendix I Musings on the Pandemic 117

Appendix II Dìng Zhì Wán $$$ and Ministerial Fire 123

Appendix III Blueprints and Charts From Z'ev's Notebook 129

Index 137

Editorial Reviews

In Afterglow: Ministerial Fire in Chinese Medicine, Z'ev Rosenberg takes us on a wide-ranging journey that is about so much more than the title implies. When I attended acupuncture college in the 1970s, Ministerial Fire was never mentioned once! Thankfully I had a Korean preceptor who filled in this gap early in my career, but I have never lost my interest in what this term meant to the Chinese scholar physicians who coined it. As Z'ev notes, "Ministerial fire, as an essential principle and force in Chinese medicine and philosophy, has been approached from multiple and sometimes contradictory angles throughout its history." I learned a lot from the citations Z'ev shares, and he provides an impetus for others to expand on his presentation. However, in spite of the title, I think the major contribution of this book resides in its repeated warning that humanity cannot escape the consequences of ignoring the natural laws governing the relationships of Heaven and Earth with mankind. The ecological focus of this text is a clarion call for all of us to rectify our behavior towards our natural environment, lest we forfeit the possibility for future generations to experience truly healthy lives. In his own words, Z'ev tells us towards the end of Afterglow, "This little book is a plea for ecological and physiological sanity in an era of chaos."

Peter Eckman M.D.

I was truly honoured to receive Z'ev's request to review his latest book, a captivating and beautifully written account on ministerial fire, a subject so important yet rarely discussed or written about, even in Chinese. Finally, a source based manual on the history, importance, and clinical relevancy of Ministerial fire and its various permutations. It is a true gift to the field of Chinese medicine, to have a book like this, written by one of our greatest teachers and clinicians in the west. I am confident that this book will be a true gem among the growing sea of Chinese medicine literature in the West, and be of great service in the elevation of the field

Eran Even

Don't let the title of this book fool you. Yes, it is a brilliant explanation of key concepts in Chinese medicine. But it is much more than that. Like the ancient Chinese philosophy of Heaven (Tian), Earth (Di) and Human (Ren), Dr. Rosenberg explores the spiritual, ecological, and personal dimensions of healing. His style of prose, like his style of medicine, is "precise and gentle" with a "refined diagnosis" of the ills that face us. The past comes alive through his clear sourcing in classical texts and commentary. In an age when people are increasingly separated by specialties and narrow focus, how refreshing to read an author who delights in interconnections. Medicine, he shows us, cannot be separated from ethics; our own inner health and health of the planet depend on each other. Afterglow: Ministerial Fire in Chinese Medicine is, indeed, a luminous work. I highly recommend it.

Kenneth Cohen