Neijing Acupuncture: Part 1

The Academy of Source-Based Medicine is elated to present the beginning of a series on Classical Acupuncture, focusing on Han medical texts, particularly the Huangdi Neijing. The representative teacher, Ivan Zavala LAc, will disseminate clinically focused material based on his research, drawing heavily on the works of the foremost acupuncture researcher, Professor Huang Longxiang. Joining Ivan in the dissemination of this groundbreaking material will be Corey Dillow LAc, who will lecture on specialized clinical topics.

This course will begin to unravel many misunderstood theoretical themes and frameworks for the purpose of the clinical illumination of Classical acupuncture. It presents material that has never been introduced in the Western world. Though the material of the Neijing is vast, by beginning to understand its framework from historical, textual, and archaeological standpoints, we can structure the Neijing's contents into a tangible, clinically structured model rather than simply a philosophical canon for inspiration.

Though this is an introduction to Neijing acupuncture, make no mistake—it will cover many in-depth themes about the foundation of acupuncture's development and the theoretical models that form the basis of ancient clinical techniques still utilized in some way or another to this day.

Because of the depth of the material and to promote full integration, this 30-hour class will be taught over the course of six months, allowing for slow but steady assimilation of the themes. The material has the capacity to reframe one’s entire understanding of acupuncture. The goal is to truly showcase a revolutionary understanding of key themes that comprise Neijing medicine.

Additionally, this course will be followed by an in-person seminar on Lingshu acupuncture for those who have completed Neijing Acupuncture: Part 1.

Pricing options

Outline

Major learning outcomes and objectives

Thematic construction of Neijing

  • Outline of the thematic construction of the Neijing 
  • Including the Purpose of the Neiijing
  • Purpose of the writing based on the author of the Lingshu

 

Philosophical influences and concepts

  • Discussion of the Shen and Daoist influence
  • Point and Gate mechanism 

 

Somatic theories and Sinew channel discussion 

  • Segmentalization of the Body (Horizontal, Vertical, and Compound theories)
  • In-depth discussion of the Jing Jin (Sinew channels) and its clinical techniques
  • Jing Mai and Jing Jin connection

 

Clinical techniques

  • Sinew channel techniques
  • Abscess techniques 

 

Classical theory on San jiao and Wei qi

  • Triple burner and Membrane Source Theory
  • San jiao pulse theory
  • Wei qi doctrine and Expelling evil doctrine

 

Classical Anatomy and Techniques 

  • Fen ci and definition of key anatomical terms involved in acupuncture 
  • Tissue layer needling and relative depth of structures 
  • Sinew channels contrast to these structures

 

Empty spaces and its Physiology

  • Explanation of empty spaces and its classifications
  • Physiology of empty spaces and their circulatory surrounding tissue planes
  • Pathology of water and heat diseases, impediment, its pathomechanism and treatment principles

 

Advanced and relative needle techniques

  • Division needling, its characteristics and principles 
  • Techniques according to the 9 needles, discussion according to Lingshu 7, and expanded techniques by Japanese acupuncture master, Sugiyama Waichi

 

 

 

Class Information

This class will begin on Friday 25th April 2025.

The class will streamed live every Friday at 3pm (Central/Chicago Time), 

Each class will run for 2.5 hours.

This course will run for six months, with a class every two weeks.

Videos will be uploaded if you are unable to make the live class.

Instructor(s)

Ivan Zavala

Senior Instructor

former Department Head of Foundational Theory and Advanced Diagnostics. Ivan is also an internationally renown lecturer in Latin America and Europe, where he teaches Classical based forms of acupuncture. In addition, Ivan is one of the founding members of Academy of Source Based Medicine, running a clinical mentorship program and specialized courses. As a practitioner and professor of Chinese medicine, his interests lie in treating severe and complex disease with direct insight and guidance from the Chinese medical classics. Over the years, he has answered thousands of clinical and medical literature questions of practitioners from around the world, becoming a specialist in the illumination of the canonical corpus into practical application.

Corey Dillow

Guest Lecturer

Corey Dillow LAC, LMT, DCCM has a specialized focus on research pertaining to early acupuncture, its theoretical construction, development, clinical models, and what this means for modern clinical practice. Corey is one of the first people to begin translating the recent comprehensive and systematic research of such topics that has taken place in China over the last few decades. Coreys translation of the first volume of the Jingluo Section of Synopsis of the Historical Development of Chinese Acupuncture written by the prominent acupuncture scholar Huang Longxiang will soon be ready for publishing. Through his studies of such research, Corey has become highly focused on the “unification of the examination site and treatment site” or “诊疗一体” framework that is a pervasive theme of the early medical canons and aims to clarify and revive these treatments frameworks for modern clinicians .

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