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Acupuncture : A Religion Of Unity And Opposites

Decent Essays

The definition of acupuncture is “to puncture with a needle” in its most basic form. Originating from China, acupuncture has spread all over the world. Its symbol is 陳 or chen. Acupuncture can include traditional body needling, moxibustion, electric acupuncture, laser acupuncture, and acupressure. The main uses for this procedure are getting rid of pain, protecting against infections, and regulating bodily functions. It has been proven to help with chemotherapy, allergies, headaches, and strokes (World Health Organization 3). In this paper, traditional body needling along with its history, educational requirements, procedure clinical trials, and skepticism will be discussed.
Acupuncture first originated in China, but spread to Japan, Korea, and Asia. Europeans were introduced to it around the seventeenth century. Chinese medicine was not accepted immediately because of the sanitation problems, which will be discussed later. Acupuncture derived from Taoism, “a religion of unity and opposites” (British Broadcasting Company). Taoism teaches about two major concepts: Yin and Yang, and Qi. Many Chinese people also believe these concepts as truth.
Yin and Yang is a Taoist concept of opposites. Yin is dark, still and cold, while Yang is bright, lively, and warm. Yin is female and Yang is male. Both forces have to be balanced or else the body will suffer. For instance, to balance Yin and Yang, a person should eat healthy (Manojlovic). Qi is the “the foundation of a balanced mind and

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