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The Code of Nature in Chinese Medicine

I am honored to share my thoughts on Chinese medicine and life.

Here, I aim to share the subtleties of Chinese medicine as they are revealed in the classical texts—the Nanjing (Classic of Difficulties), Nei Jing Su Wen (Simple Questions), and Shang Han Lun (Treatise on Cold Damage). These Han dynasty writings form the foundation on which all Chinese medical thought rests. They are not just historical documents, but living texts that continue to inform the practice of medicine today.

Chinese medicine is a dynamic and evolving system, rooted in an understanding of the cycles of nature—solar, lunar, and seasonal. It is a medicine of time and space. Its power lies not in static diagnosis or fixed categories, but in its ability to move with the rhythm of life itself. The goal is not simply to treat symptoms, but to restore vitality—to support a strong, flexible state of internal balance, what we call a homeodynamic state.

This practice is about more than physiology. At its heart is an attunement to the world around us—the rise and fall of the sun and moon, the changing seasons, the tides of the ocean, the flowing of rivers and streams, the slow breath of glaciers. Chinese thinkers observed these patterns closely, and from them built the philosophical and practical framework that guides this medicine.

This is the code on which Chinese medicine is built. We experience it through resonance—ying 應—as well as through the principles of yin and yang, the five phases, the twelve primary channels of acupuncture and moxibustion, the five yin organs and six yang bowels, and countless other frameworks. But these are not simply things to memorize. They are alive. And to truly understand them, one must live with them.

It takes time. It takes observation. It takes patience. To embody this virtual world—the living architecture of Chinese medicine—requires more than study. It requires a willingness to align oneself with the rhythms of nature. To live by the code, not just understand it. Only then can the medicine reveal itself in its full depth and clarity.

All input to the human organism is ‘information’

and must be managed economically and effectively in order to create order, not chaos inside what Claude Bernard called the ‘internal milieu’. This can be in the form of acupuncture and moxabustion, herbal medicine, massage, diet, music, mental and emotional impressions, and exercise.

PUBLICATIONS

Announcements

Introducing “Ring Press”

Introducing “Ring Press”, and concurrent formation of “The Ring Collective “, including Stephen Cowan, Z’ev Rosenberg, editor Daniel Schrier, Brian Kirbis of Theosophie, Anne Shelton of Ritual Health, and Christophe Wiesendanger

New Volume!

The long awaited publication of A Ring Without End: Reflections on Classical Chinese Medicine Mind/Body Mapping on our new publication imprint, “Ring Press”.

Available in March 2025 from Redwing Books and Amazon. Authored by Z’ev Rosenberg with Stephen Cowan, M.D. with contributions by Brian Kirbis and Anne Shelton Crute, edited and contributions by Daniel Schrier.

Upcoming Author Appearances

Additional book signing and seminar events are planned tentatively later in the year in San Diego, Berkeley, Los Angeles and Santa Fe/Taos. Stay tuned!

Featured Content

Articles, Videos, Podcasts

Articles

Congee in Chinese Medicine

Z'ev RosenbergNovember 22, 2023 粥 Zhou / Congee and Chinese MedicineA foundational principle of health… to nourish life and seek peace and joy is not a matter lying deeply buried or far away and therefore [...]

Uncoming seminar in Berkeley

Announcing Berkeley workshop in Nan Jing Vessel Diagnosis, based on my latest book, "Ripples in the Flow". CEU's pending, and it will be held in a beautiful yoga studio (location to be announced shortly). Sponsored [...]

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