Motivated by a sincere interest to assist other martial artists in making wise choices about how and when to use or not to use herbal treatments to augment their martial arts practices, the author has utilized her considerable expertise in research and her natural flair for writing to create a book destined to become an instant classic both for herbalists and martial artists. In fact, you need not fall into either category in order to enjoy and value this informative book. I have no doubt that you are holding in your hands a text that will quickly become a favorite for anyone fascinated by medicinal herbs, representing a step forward toward better understanding of the power, both for serious harm and for profound health and well-being, of our planet’s immense and rich apothecary.
David Price, B.A., M.O.M., L. Ac. is a graduate of Pomona College with a concentration in Asian Studies. He received a Master’s degree from the International Institute of Chinese Medicine and trained at the Chengdu University of TCM. He is currently Clinical Dean at the Asian Institute of Medical Studies in Tucson, Arizona, and operates White Pine Clinic of Classical Chinese Therapeutics (www.whitepineclinic.com).
Acknowledgements
Writing involves spending a surprisingly large amount of time alone in a room with stacks of books and a computer monitor. These acknowledgements are mostly of those people who were always there when I poked my nose out from my cave.
First—always first—is Gary, my husband. Without his steady support for the last twenty-nine years, I could not do what I do and probably would not be who I am.
Thanks also to: Laura Westbrooks, friend, helping hand, and moral support; the brains behind the dojo, and a good part of its heart as well. I’m glad our paths have crossed. My life is much richer because they have. Shawn Koons, friend and fix-it guy, always generous with time and resources. My mom and dad, Don and Shirley Johnson, for growing a few of the herbs for me to photograph (and for everything else as well). The folks at KoSho Karate Pantano—students and parents. You’ve been great company along the way. David Price, who opened my eyes to the possibilities of Chinese herbalism, and who helped patch me together after too many hours of sitting in one place looking at a computer screen. Don Brandenburgh, whose career advice and guidance have always gone above and beyond the call of duty. Krista Goering, my literary agent, for heart and head both offered in service of the project. The generous folks of Wikimedia Commons and Flickr, especially Renate Eder. Many of the illustrations in this book are available thanks to these good citizens of cyberspace.
Acknowledgements for Herbal Illustrations. Thanks to those who let me use the following illustrations in Chapter 2. I have also included the illustrations I provided.
Alan Cressler (Goldenseal, Hydrastis candensis); Anne-Miek Bibbe (Fenugreek, Trigonella foenum-graecum): Badagnani (Turmeric root, Curcuma longa); Barbara Studer (Arnica, Arnica montana); Björgvin Steindórsson (Rhodiola rosea); FloraFarm GmbH Katharina Lohrie (Ginseng, Panax ginseng); Foodista (Fennel, Foeniculum vulgare); Forest and Kim Starr (Gotu Kola, Centella asiatica), (Shepherd’s Purse, Capsella bursa pastoris); Hans-Joachim Fitting (Flax, Linum usitatissimum); Henri Pidoux (Devil’s Claw, Harpagophyum procumbens); Jappe Cost Budde (Tea tree, Meleuca genus); Joan Simon (Agrimony, Agrimonia eupatoria); Johannes Keplinger (Cat’s Claw, Uncaria tomentosa); Karduelis (Coltsfoot, Tussilago farfara); Karel Jakubec (Evening Primrose, Oenothera biennis); Laura Westbrooks (Echinacea purpurea), (Horsetail, Equisetum arvense), (Valerian, Valeriana officinalis), (Yarrow, Achillea millefolium); Love Krittaya (Ginkgo biloba); LuckyStarr (A hops cone, Humulus lupulus); Marcia Martínez Carvajal (Rosa Mosqueta, Rosa affinis rubiginosa); Michael Thompson (Peppermint, Mentha piperita); Ohio Department of Natural Resources (Slippery elm bark, Ulmus rubra); PDPhoto.org (Catnip blossom, Nepeta catarica); Piouswatson (Ashwagandha, Withania somnifera); Renate Eder (European Elder, Sambucus nigra), (Feverfew, Tanacetum parthenium); (Goldenrod, Solidago virgaurea) (The leaves and nut of a horse chestnut, Aesculus hippocastanum), (Marshmallow, Althaea officinalis); (Witch Hazel, Hamamelis virginiana); Rob Hille (German Chamomile, Matricaria recutita); Stanislav Doronenko (Astragalus, Astragalus membranaceus); Stanislav Doronenko (Leaves of the Eleuthero plant, Eleutherococcus senticosus), (St. John’s wort, Hypericum perforatum); Steve Hammonds (Bilberry, Vaccinium myrtillus); the author Susan Lynn Peterson (Aloe Vera), (Anise, Pimpinella anisum); (Commercially prepared bromelain tablets); (An assortment of peppers of the Capsicum genus); (Caraway “seeds,” Carum carvi); (True Cinnamon, Cinnamomum zeylanicum (left) and Cassia Cinnmon, C. aromaticum), (Cloves, Syzygium aromaticum), (Comfrey, Symphytum officinales), (Leaves and bark from on the 733 species of Eucalyptus), (Commercially encapsulated fish oil), (Whole flax seeds), (Garlic, Allium sativum), (Ginger rhizome, Zingiber officinalis), (Horseradish root, Armoracia rusticana), (Lavender, Lavandula augustifolia), (Dried licorice root, Glycyrrhiza glabra), (Myrrh, Commiphora molmol), (Nettles, Urtica dioica), (Rosemary, Rosmarinus officinalis), (Sage, Salvia officinalis), (Thyme, Thymus vulgaris); Teo Siyang (Andrographis, Andrographis paniculata); U.S. Department of Agriculture (Willow bark, Salix alba).
Introduction
Healing with herbs has long been a tradition in the martial arts. Liniments for bruises, tonics for energy, herbal infusions to strengthen connective tissue, warm muscles, even to heal broken bones—all are part of the martial arts legacy. Most martial artists are aware of that legacy. Not all have access to it first-hand.
It bears saying right here at the beginning of the book that if you do have access to a capable professional martial herbalist, you are most fortunate. Nothing this or any other book can teach you can compare with the hands-on expertise of a medical professional trained in traditional Chinese herbal medicine. Chinese herbal medicine is both more systematic and more comprehensive than Western herbal medicine, and a good Chinese doctor can be a martial artist’s greatest boon. If that medical professional is also your martial arts teacher and can teach you as well as treat you, you are twice blessed. Yet few of us are fortunate to study with teachers who understand and can teach the traditional Chinese formulas. The rest of us pick up what we can, wherever we can. This book is for the rest of us.
The Quandary
In the last fifteen years, books about healing with Eastern herbs and traditional Chinese medicines have begun to be published in English. Though tested by time, these remedies often prove impractical for Western martial artists engaged in self-teaching. Traditional Chinese remedies fit into a larger system of medicine that is very different from the Western tradition of seeing complaints as “one-problem, one-treatment.” Chinese remedies tend to be systemic, treating the entire person to foster health rather than treating a symptom to fix pathology. The ingredients tend to be native to China, some being very difficult to obtain in Europe and North America. Those ingredients that do find their way across the ocean are sometimes of questionable purity.1 Some ingredients mentioned in the traditional books—those made from animal parts (such as bear gallbladder and wingless cockroach), molds and fungi, and various other “exotic” materials—are off-putting to Westerners. Moreover, Western-style medical documentation about the safety of Eastern herbs and medicines is often sketchy. Without a teacher or other formal training in traditional Chinese medicine, many Western martial artists are left with little more than blind trust that the book in front of them is a faithful transmission of a legitimate tradition, and that the herbs they ordered online are, if not what the label says, at least not too toxic.
Western Herbs and this Book
Yet even if you are reluctant to log on to eBay and purchase and brew