My name is Jesse Cohen and I am Licensed Acupuncturist in the State of Hawaii. I have recently opened up a clinic, Diamond Head Acupuncture, and undertaken the writing of this blog as a resource for my patients, a repository for my studies, an inspiration (I hope) for aspiring acupuncturists, and a resource for people interested in health, healing, and a broad perspective on leading a full and fulfilling life. I have often wondered at the paradox that although our experience of life is most intimately acquainted with that of our physical body, the detailed knowledge of its constituent parts and physiological functioning remain largely a mystery. If I were to be appointed as the head of curriculum (if such a position were to exist) for children’s education I would introduce the instruction in the basics of anatomy as soon as the kids were able to pronounce words such as acetabulum. It is little wonder to me that we have the crisis in public health that we do and speak of various epidemics in obesity, diabetes, etc etc when the average individual has little if any education on how they’re put together and what ‘makes them tick.’

I am fond of the phrase life journey as we are all sharing in an experience we call life that is a transforming of perspective, circumstance, and understanding all of which is mediated through our sole possession, the body. It is my belief that the better we understand the body, the better we are able to equip it for the hills and valleys we encounter, the better we understand and experience the principles of its operation and the reflection of these principles in the world external, the better off we are.

At the time of this writing, in 2018, there is much discussion surrounding issues of the body, consciousness, and identity; from debates about gender, to notions of disembodied consciousness, AI, and prospects for genetic engineering and longevity enhancement through techniques such as 3D-printed organs. There is also greater cross-cultural exchange, inter-disciplinary study and synthesis of global knowledge simultaneous to hyper-specialization, resistance to cultural appropriation, assimilation and attendant entrenchments. We live in a time of many question, many answers oscillations between over-confidence and insecurity, ambition and uncertainty, tradition and technological innovation.

My goal here is to present my perspective as a Jewish kid, Grandson to a Neurophysiologist on one side and Corned Beef Sandwich enthusiast on the other, from a diverse neighborhood on the North Side of Chicago who currently studies within one of the most traditional styles of Eastern (Korean) Taoist Acupuncture and Physical Discipline, residing on a huge volcano in the middle of the Pacific Ocean called Oahu. I hold the ideal in reverence, embrace the practical, and follow after the fascinating. It is my hope that in the writings to follow the reader will find engaging and useful information to assist them on their journey in their body, with their consciousness and towards their spirit.