Dr. Young Wei-Chieh and Master Tung’s Acupuncture

The Legacy of Dr. Young Wei-Chieh

Dr. Young Wei-Chieh, who passed away on September 9, 2024, was a distinguished scholar, clinician, researcher, teacher, and author. He is perhaps most recognized for his seminal contributions to explicating and expanding upon Master Tung’s acupuncture. When Dr. Young questioned Master Tung regarding the theoretical origins of his method, Master Tung explained that the system was a family tradition rooted in the principles of the I Ching (Book of Changes) and the Nei Jing (Yellow Emperor’s Internal Classic).

While Master Tung was primarily a practitioner who did not dwell on theoretical abstractions, Dr. Young’s writings provided the necessary theoretical grounding for these methods based on classical texts. These insights are not limited to Tung’s acupuncture; they also apply to fourteen-channel acupuncture, enriching the understanding of point selection and encouraging creative clinical approaches.

Having had the opportunity to learn from Dr. Young in person, I continue to consult his books regularly. I remain dedicated to studying the ideas he so expertly distilled and summarized from the foundational classics of acupuncture.