Qiological podcast: Perspectives on the Mingmen
With Anne Shelton Crute, Thomas Sørensen and Z'ev Rosenberg, Interview by Michael Max
Three seasoned practitioners of Chinese medicine gather to explore the Ming Men (Gate of Destiny) from textual, palpatory, and alchemical angles, treating it not as a fixed definition but as a living question worth circling. The conversation moves from classical sources like Nanjing 36 to hands-on clinical markers, examining how ministerial fire functions as activation and presence rather than simple heat. Topics range from palpating cold below the navel to the risks of suppressing fire with cold bitter herbs, and zoom out to consider yin-fire civilization as an ecological mirror. Equal parts rigorous and open-ended, the episode guides practitioners toward better questions rather than settled answers.