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Traditional Chinese Medicine
Confucianism
defined the social status of prince and pauper within Chinese society and elected
the Emperor a god. It resulted in a basically feudal and totalitarian system
of government that still exists today, in an adapted form. Confucianism impinged
on medicine in that it was opposed to the development of anatomy and surgery,
one of its main tenets being that the whole body was sacred and should remain
complete throughout life and also in death. The Confucians believed that it
was important to present oneself to 'the ancestors' whole, and therefore one
of the most feared methods of execution in ancient China was decapitation. Acupuncture
and related methods were the logical answer to this constraint, as they were
able to cure internal disease with external means.
The Tao literally means the 'way' and the philosophy of Taoism is a method of
maintaining harmony between man and his world, and between this world and beyond.
The Tao, or the 'way', has been linked to a separate creed called Taoism but
its basic naturalistic philosophies permeate all Chinese thought and religion,
including Buddhism. Yin and Yang are very much part of the Tao, as the Book
of Changes states, 'one Yin, one Yang, being called the Tao'. The religion of
Taoism became formalized during the Warring States period and a book of poems
entitled the Tao attributed to Lao Tsu (c. 500 BC ), describes many of the basic
concepts within this philosophy.
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Acupuncture4Health 2008
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