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by Michael Max
Acupuncture and East Asian medicine was not developed in a laboratory. It does not advance through double-blind controlled studies, nor does it respond well to petri dish experimentation. Our medicine did not come from the statistical regression of randomized cohorts, but from the observation and treatment of individuals in their particular environment. It grows out of an embodied sense of understanding how life moves, unfolds, develops and declines.Medicine comes from continuous, thoughtful practice of what we do in clinic, and how we approach that work. The practice of medicine is more — much more — than simply treating illness. It is more than acquiring skills and techniques. And it is more than memorizing the experiences of others. It takes a certain kind of eye, an inquiring mind and relentlessly inquisitive heart.Qiological is an opportunity to deepen our practice with conversations that go deep into acupuncture, herbal medicine, cultivation practices, and the practice of havin
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- 3 days ago1h 30m
485 Learning From Our Patients • Chris McAlister, Bonnie Wright & Maya Suzuki
We say we learn from our patients. But what does that actually mean when you’re in the room, the treatment isn’t going the way you’d anticipated, and the theory leaves you more confused than connected?In this conversation we are joined by Chris McAlister, Bonnie Wright, and Maya Suzuki for a conversation about learning from the people—and animals—we treat. We’ve all heard the phrase about “learning from our patients.” I wanted to get underneath it a bit: what happens in the uncomfortable and disorienting moments when you realize you don’t know?We talk about putting your hands on, noticing what changes, and trying to make sense of the response without getting lost in your own ideas. We also discuss practice, teachers, theory, uncertainty, and the question of when to stop or try something else.There’s a difference between saying the patient is the teacher and actually letting the patient teach you. That difference can be uncomfortable, useful, and hard to put into words. It also makes for a potent conversation. Listen in!
- 1 weeks ago1h 43m
484 History Series - Translating Between Worlds • Nigel Wiseman
Translating Chinese medicine began, for Nigel Wiseman, with a love of language, and it has become a lifelong study of how meaning travels between worlds. His work asks that we stay faithful to what the Chinese actually says, even when it asks something of the reader.In this conversation, we visit with Nigel and trace the path from a young linguist in early 1980s Taiwan to some of the first English-language texts on Chinese medicine. We look at how terms like “disinhibit” and “deficiency heat” came from refusing to blur distinct concepts, and why a little Chinese goes a long way for any practitioner.We also explore the Confucian analogies at the heart of the medicine, from the liver as general to the spleen as granary official, and Nigel’s challenge to the idea that Chinese medicine is simply a Daoist art.Listen in for a discussion on language, metaphor, and translation, and what it means to meet a medicine on its own terms.
- 2 weeks ago1h 29m
483 Authenticity is Difficult to Achieve • Evan Pinto
Chinese medicine sits at an interesting crossroads, part clinical craft, part philosophical inheritance. Its practice of listening before concluding speaks meaningfully to how we meet the people who come through our doors.In this conversation with Evan Pinto, we explore the relationship between emptying the mind and seeing a patient clearly. We look at how a few quiet breaths before entering the treatment room door can change what we perceive on the other side.We also discuss the difference between fixing a patient and holding space for them, and what it means to wait until someone is ready. We also appreciate the humor and playfulness of Zhuangzi as a counterweight to our profession’s tendency towards seriousness.Listen in for a conversation on integration, trust, depth, and what it means to stay curious about what we don’t yet understand in the practice of this medicine.
- 3 weeks ago1h 28m
482 The Conundrum of Singularity & Diversity in the Practice of East Asian Medicine • James FLowers
Every tradition has an official story, and then it has the people who actually treat patients. In this conversation with James Flowers, a historian, anthropologist, and practitioner of East Asian medicine, we ask a simple question: where did the Saam organ pairs come from? The answer, it turns out, is surprising.That mystery opens onto what James calls the conundrum of singularity and diversity in East Asian medicine. We follow it from the Confucian kings of the Joseon dynasty, who declared prevention the best medicine, through the Japanese occupation and a century of rebellious Korean doctors, all the way to the treatment of Covid.Along the way, we weigh standards against clinical experience, consider who holds the authority to say what's right, and ask whether Saam medicine is Buddhist or Confucian at heart.Listen in for a conversation that moves between royal courts and modern clinics, canon and experience, and the lingering question of what medicine is and who gets to decide.
- Oct 6, 20261h 42m
481 Revisiting the Genius of Dr. Manaka • Oran Kivity and Co.
We often think good treatment begins with certainty: first identify the pattern, then decide what to do. But in the tradition of Dr. Yoshio Manaka, treatment itself can be the means of discovery. The practitioner learns by engaging the body directly and paying close attention to how it responds.In this conversation, Oran Kivity, Marian Fixler, Brenda Loew, Stephen Birch, and Paul Movsessian reflect on studying and practicing Manaka-style acupuncture. They describe an approach in which the body’s structure emerges through palpation, immediate feedback, and ongoing adjustment—not from a diagnosis fixed in advance.This is not acupuncture as the application of a preset protocol. It is a disciplined way of paying attention: using touch as both diagnosis and treatment, testing small interventions, observing what changes, and allowing the body’s response to continually reshape one’s understanding of what is needed.
- Sep 29, 20261h 41m
480 History Series - Searching for the Dao of Medicine • Volker Scheid
A tradition can feel like a single lineage, but some histories reveal a wider terrain — one that spans discernment, devotion, and the slow accumulation of who gets to call something new.In this conversation with Volker Scheid, we explore four competing visions of what good Chinese medicine practice actually is, from Zhu Danxi's cultivated discernment to Zhang Zhongjing's devotional authority, and how each answers the challenge of bridging limited tools to unlimited patients.We also touch on why every historical claim carries its own mythology, and how the arrival of Western medicine reshaped what these traditions were even allowed to become.Listen in for a conversation that brings historical rigor and clinical insight to a tradition modern practice still draws from.
- Sep 22, 20261h 38m
479 Consciousness, Ghosts, Magic & The Inexplicable • Neil Theise
Liver pathology draws curiosity as both a clinical discipline and a lens for encountering the unknown. Its practice of looking without preconception speaks meaningfully to how we meet the mysteries at the edges of a life.In this conversation, we visit with Neil Theise and explore the relationship between diagnostic training and beginner's mind. We look at how staying present with what's in front of us reveals more than what we already expect to find.We also discuss the difference between dying as decline versus dying as transformation, and the nature of end-of-life visions as glimpses of a wider consciousness. And we look at the deeper role of simple presence, an invitation our loved ones are so rarely given.Listen in for a discussion on consciousness, attention, and acceptance, and what it means to stay open to the extraordinary within the ordinary currents of caregiving and loss.
- Sep 15, 20261h 10m
478 Often Confused and Having Fun • Linda Kim
Confusion is often treated as a problem to solve on the way to a real answer. But in the clinic, it may be closer to the beginning of the process than an obstacle to it.In this conversation with Linda Kim, we explore what it means to practice acupuncture with curiosity rather than certainty. We discuss why diagnosis may be something revealed through treatment—through palpation, real-time feedback, and the willingness to be wrong and adjust—rather than something that must be figured out in advance.We also discuss constitutional nature versus compensated presentation, how playfulness loosens the rigid thinking that blocks perception, and why the most obvious thing in the room is often the most important.
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About Qiological Podcast
Acupuncture and East Asian medicine was not developed in a laboratory. It does not advance through double-blind controlled studies, nor does it respond well to petri dish experimentation. Our medicine did not come from the statistical regression of randomized cohorts, but from the observation and treatment of individuals in their particular environment. It grows out of an embodied sense of understanding how life moves, unfolds, develops and declines.Medicine comes from continuous, thoughtful practice of what we do in clinic, and how we approach that work. The practice of medicine is more — much more — than simply treating illness. It is more than acquiring skills and techniques. And it is more than memorizing the experiences of others. It takes a certain kind of eye, an inquiring mind and relentlessly inquisitive heart.Qiological is an opportunity to deepen our practice with conversations that go deep into acupuncture, herbal medicine, cultivation practices, and the practice of havin
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