GINGER MOXA INSTRUCTIONS

By Scott Miller L.Ac.

This form of Ginger Moxa was developed by the family of Dr. Lam Kong, his family has been doing it now for 10 generations. As far as I know it is unique to his family’s teachings, and I have not seen it described in any book.

This treatment is wonderful on any trauma (old or new), sprain, bruise, broken bone, back pain, carpal tunnel, arthritis, menstrual pain, abdominal pain, etc. In Chinese medicine all pain is from a blockage of Qi, and this treatment moves blocked Qi, it also reduces inflammation and swelling, stops bleeding, and invigorates the flow of blood and oxygen to the area to promote healing.

The first thing you want to do is choose a nice big fat piece of ginger. The bigger the better, twice as thick as your thumb is nice. Cut a 1/8" to 3/16" slice length wise down the middle of the piece of ginger, giving you the widest piece possible that is 1½+" x 2+" by 1/8" to 3/16" thick. It should have a freshly cut edge on both of the flat sides.

Next, you want to take a "Jumbo" or "Triple" sized cotton ball and tease it to find the loose edge, and unroll it. Now, take the ginger moxa oil and smear a THIN coat of it on the cotton ball. (If it is too thick, hot oil can ooze out during the treatment, and hurt the patient). Then loosely re-roll the cotton ball, with the oil inside, and then smear a little extra of the oil on the sides of the cotton ball, but not on the top or bottom. I usuallyprepare several cotton balls before starting the treatment.

Now toast one side of the ginger, to pre-heat the slice. Putting it directly on the burner of a hot plate turned up to high works great, directly on a gas stove also works if you have the flame just under the bottom of the ginger, a frying pan or a candle also can be used. Toast the ginger slice until it feels warm through the top side.

Take the oil wrapped cotton ball, and attach it to the burned or charred side of the warmed ginger slice with a sponge clamp type of hemostat. Clip the cotton ball firmly at the base along the side of the cotton ball, making sure there is no  way for it to accidentally come loose during the treatment.

Now turn the ginger slice with the cotton ball on it, upside down, and light the cotton ball on fire. Keep it upside down and rotate it until the cotton ball is engulfed in flame and burning evenly. Do not hold it over the patient at this point, as hot drips can sometimes occur. Sometimes it helps to tease the cotton ball apart a little to get it burning better. It is very important to have it burning well before you start the treatment.

Next situate the patient so that the area to be worked on is horizontal. If you work on a vertical area the flame can lick up and burn the person. If you are working on the neck, it is best to have the patient sitting, and bending over a table with their forehead resting on their hands.

When working around the hair, either place your free hand between the hair and the flame or wrap the head in a cloth.

Now check the temperature of the bottom of the piece of ginger and the metal clamp, on the palm of your hand to make sure it is not too hot.

Take a dab of the Ginger Moxa Oil and put it on the area to be worked on.
Then take the warm ginger, with the cotton ball facing up and still burning, and rub the oily paste into the affected area with it.
Use firm pressure, and use a figure 8 or circular motions to work it in.
Add more of the ginger moxa oil as needed. The cotton ball should burn for 10 minutes or so.
You can use more than one cotton ball per piece of ginger if you are doing a larger area.

I find the most effective grip is with the ring finger through the bottom handle hole on the clamp, and the index finger extended over the top of the clamp. This seems to give me the most control over the downward pressure that I exert on the piece of ginger.

Remember you are working with hot flaming oil. Be careful!!! If done right this treatment feels wonderful,
if you mess up there is the potential for a severe burn.
I have purposely tried to scare you a little with the dangers involved with doing this treatment, but don’t be too intimidated.

If you pay attention it is perfectly safe. After you have done it a dozen times or so, you'll be an "old pro",
have lots of confidence in yourself, and you'll see the wonderful relief your patients receive from this treatment.

The recipe for the ginger moxa oil is a secret formula from Dr. Kong's family, and I have added my own additions to his basic formula to make it even better.

You can buy the Ginger Moxa Oil and the sponge clamp through…