Posted on 04/10/2008 8:58:41 PM PDT by KungFuBrad
In our last installment of Ducks Cant Fly we talked about a few things that Chinese people think they know but are absolutely ridiculous. Like the fact that ducks cant fly. In this installment we I will talk about some study habits and thinks Chinese students think they know.
1. You can not study or read while you are eating. One day during class at a major university in Xi'an my students ask me how they can get better at English. I suggested reading their English books and only speaking English with each other at lunch. This met with unanimous disapproval. They told me with straight faces that they could not study or practice English at lunch because it was "bad for their health" and would cause them to have bad stomaches.
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Peking Duck CANNOT FLY, must be slow glazed loasting in oven. FLYING makes bird too clispy and gleasey.
They might have a point there. I believe when I'm eating - eat, when it's time to sleep - sleep and so forth. Being present in the moment with what you are doing rather than thinking of the past or future or other imaginings is a very Buddhist way of doing things. It's good for the mind and the body. TCM is a very sophisticated health system which is about more than just healing illness and injury. It is about healthy lifestyles and habits too. I think the Cultural Revolution has wiped out a personal connection with a lot of the wisdom developed over centuries in China. Apparently some of those cultural habits still exist.
I would agree with you to some extent except for the fact they will say other things are ok. They use this for advantage instead of actually believing it. If they don’t want to do something they will say this is Chinese culture. If the want to do something they will say “times are changing” they really use this kind of stuff as an excuse.
I don’t doubt that. But don’t dismiss TCM to lightly. I know a doctor who is a research scientist at John’s Hopkins for some big pharma company who was trained in TCM before he was a doctor and he still relies on it and believes very strongly in its efficacy.
Eat a walnut it is good for your brain because it looks like a brain. There is a big problem right now in China. many doctors make financial agreements with the TMC pharmacist. They then tell their patients to but a bunch of useless things. I am not saying that some of TMC doesn’t work. I am saying most of it doesn’t and most of it hasn’t been tested in any scientific manner. Examples are. Eating only eggs when you have had a baby. come one we know thats not good for you but it was written in a book 4000 years ago so it must be true. Don’t wash your hair for 30 days after having a baby. Some things have merit but most things either don’t work or are actually dangerous for you to do.
Those recommendations sound more like superstitions than TCM. I have found it to be very effective for a lot of things. There actually have been a lot of studies done that verify the effectiveness of acupuncture, tui na and herbal remedies. I know I can kill a cold or flu before it even starts with a Chinese Patent formula. But I know of a single herb I can collect here in the mountains of CO that will also do that. some of the CPFs are just amazing. Kill kidney stone pain in an hour and then pass them painlessly. Gallstones with another one. My teacher (who is also trained in TCM) has cured several people of diabetes with a CPF and diet. And I do mean cured. Their doctors retested them and found no sign of it left. The formulas developed for injuries for the martial arts are very good too for both bruising and internal injuries.
To each his own. Most of the stuff I see them selling in China is crap. Perhaps you get better stuff in the states. I had a girlfriend who almost died because of the Chinese meds. most of them are given by guys on the corner with no government over-site. Maybe your getting an herb maybe your getting dried grass. Perhaps our problem is in definition. I am using the definition given to me by my Chinese students. Everything I mention they consider TCM. I do not doubt at all some of the benefits of this kind of medicine. Most of our medicine comes from the same place. But if you heard some of the things these quasi-doctors say. It is also important to know that in China you do not have to have a PHD to be a doctor. Just a Masters degree. I have two Chinese students who are Doctors and they left the Medical field because all of the fraud with the TMC. So I bet the stuff is much better in the states.
I intend to only buy American made TCM formulas from now on but only because I don't want my money going to China. The best herbal pharmacies in China mix their formulas on the spot when a patient comes in with a scrip.
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