Brief Discussion of Chinese Medicine

Pulse & Tongue

Diagnosis

Introduction
Lineage
Chow Gar Southern Praying Mantis Kung Fu

Lau Soei

Ip Shui

Paul Whitrod

His father &

grandfather
taught him Shaolin
herbal medicine &
DitDa and Lau
Soei was himself
highly educated
and great
calligrapher

Was taught both

by Lau Soei and
by his own
grandfather who
was a Shaolin
Buddhist monk
(not martial
artist) and
taught him WaFu

Studies in Hong
Kong under Ip Shui
& also learned Fuk
San family style
acu. Also studied
Thai medicine in
Thailand and
Ayurveda in India

Short Bibliography
Bob Flaws, The Secret of Chinese Pulse Diagnosis (Blue Poppy,
1995), ISBN 9780936185675
Ted Kaptchuk, The Web That Has No Weaver (2nd ed, 2000)
The Classic of Difficulties: A translation of the Nan Jing, trans. by
Bob Flaws (Blue Poppy, 1999) ISBN 9781891845079
Li Shi-Zhen, The Lakeside Master's Study of the Pulse (Blue Poppy,
1999) trans. by Bob Flaws. ISBN 9781891845017
www.SacredLotus.com page: 'The 29 Pulses in Chinese Medicine'

Approach to Diagnosis
Do not over-analyse
Keep it simple and Always Start with the Basics (YinYang)
Always look behind the Symptoms. Search for the Root
Cause!

Ignore Western Medicine pre-conceptions (e.g.

Diabetes is Fire, Chemotherapy causes Toxic Heat,
etc)

Tongue & Pulse

Tongue vs Pulse: Actually Complementary!
Overemphasising the Tongue is modern trend BECAUSE
PRACTITIONERS DO NOT KNOW HOW TO TAKE THE PULSE
Few references in Classical texts about the Tongue,
compared to analysis of Pulse
Cultural problems (esp. Language)
Perception problems (Western Deficiencies vs Chinese
Pathogens)
Importance of Tradition in transmission of knowledge

Sifu Whitrod said about

this photo:
I love this picture,
because grandmaster
used WaFu on this
gentleman, to
determine whether he
was plagued by a
Ghost. Grandmanster
said his was.

FORGET WESTERN MEDICINE

when doing your diagnosis

Tongue
Shen
Body Image
Size
Shape
Direction
Body Colour

Geography
Depressions
Swellings
Cracks
Teeth marks
Coat/Fur
Trembling

Bottom

TIPS!
Always take note
of how they stick
out their tongue
before giving
instructions
Ask them to open
their mouth wide!
Keep tongue
relaxed!
Do Not movie the
tongue around
Do Not keep the
tongue out for
long periods of
time

Pulse
Pulse used to be taken on various anatomical locations,
most commonly on the Neck and Ankle.
There are up to 13 positions used for taking the pulse

The Nan Jing was the text that established the 3-position
Arm pulse.
Generally acknowledged that there are 27 to 29 types of
pulse images

 The 3 positions:
Cun, Guan, Chi
(Inch, Bar, Cubit)
The placement of the
fingers: all 3 or 1-by-1

Taking the Pulse

TIPS!
Do Not Stand

Correctly Place & Support the Arm

Awaken the Qi

FOCUS Breath
Do not use the fingertips
NEVER use same side hand!!
Take Left pulse with Right hand
& vice versa

Taking the Pulse

Why both sides: Yin-Yang / Blood-Qi / The Wu Xing
connection
The Depths: 2, 3, 4, 5, 7

San Jiao - 6 Levels Zang Fu Organs - Only Yin Organs

What to expect - But expect the unexpected...

3 positions / Men vs Women / Elderly

Emotional Pulse

Unintelligible pulses: is it you? or is it the pulse?

Taking the Pulse

Always go according to Yin-Yang principle:
Cold-Heat / Repletion-Vacuity
Is the pulse FLOATING or DEEP?

Is the pulse FAST or SLOW?

Does the pulse have FORCE
Is the pulse (B.F.: Long or Short) / REPLETE or VACUOUS

BUT NOTE
Any Pulse Image could be:
Wei = Slightly
Shen = Very

The Normal Pulse

Ping Mai
You Shen: It has Spirit

...One can feel the beats of the pulse clearly. The pulse
is regular in rhythm and is not interrupted ... It has at least
some force.
You Wei: It has Stomach (Qi)

Supple, harmonious, slippery, uninhibited, not deep ...

One should be able to find some slip-periness in almost
everyones pulse.
You Gen: It has Root
The cubit position can be felt all the way down to the
bone. It is not floating.

The Normal Pulse Changes

According to Season
Spring = Wiry/Bowstring

Summer = Surging
Autumn = Floating

Winter = Deep
HOWEVER
Always corroborate with the rest of the signs & symptoms
before you conclude with a pulse has simply been
affected by the season

Quick Overview of Basic Pulse Images

Floating

Deep
Normal
4 beats / breathing cycle

Rapid

Slow

Hurried/Racing
Replete/Full
Soft/Soggy
Choppy/Hesitant

Vacuous/Empty*
Firm/Confined
Slippery

Large

Weak

Long

Short

Wiry

Tight

Fine/Thready Faint/Indistinct

Other Important Pulse Images

Drumskin

Scallion Stalk/Hollow
Throbbing/Stirring

Scattered
Hidden

The Three Interrupted Pulse Images

Knotted/Bound: Slow, Relaxed, Irregularly Interrupted

Regularly Interrupted: Relaxed, Weak, Reg. Int. but intervals

may be strikingly long

Rapid Irregularly Interrupted/Skipping

Thank you!!!