Acupuncture to get heritage designation

Reference: Juan Shan. (2010,September 14) Acupuncture to get heritage designation. Xinhua.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/china/2010-09/14/c_13493956.htm

Summary:
This article “Acupuncture to get heritage designation” is telling about how China is applying acupuncture, the needle therapy of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), as a UNESCO world intangible cultural heritage. Wu Gang, who is deputy director of the State TCM administration says China started this program in 2003, and tried to figure out the standard. Now in China, there are 600,000 license for Traditional Chinese Medicine doctors; all of them can practiceacupuncture legally. Acupuncture is widely used outside of China in places such as Japan, the United States, Germany and the Republic of Korea. The notion was dismissed between China and the Republic of Korea. The WHO standard is trying to make another name for Chinese acupuncture. Of course, the Chinese should do more to improve themselves. He also mentioned that the Republic of Korea succeeded in adding the Ganjeung Danojie (Duanwu) Festival, which belongs to China, onto the World Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2005.

Reaction:
Acupuncture is a theory of Traditional Chinese Medicine which originated in China. This kind of theory is famous for being hard to understand and as a wellness treatments. But now in China, fewer and fewer people learn about acupuncture or believe in acupuncture. On the other hand, acupuncture is widely used outside of China. More and more people learn and use it. Maybe one day, no one will know it comes from China. Now China has tried to keep this as a part of its culture. According to TCM psychological theories, mental disorders can be cured through "coordination of yin and yang and treatment of both mind and body." But the definition of “yin” and “yang’ are abstract. Everything about quiet, decreasing, belongs to “yin”. Everything about activity, increasing, belongs to “yang”. People get ill because “yin” and “yang” are unstable in the body. So, the treatment is to adjust the stability. And the meridian is invisible. The treatment of each patient who has the same disease is different. For example, for a headache, we may choose the points on the head, but also can choose the points on the arm.