#469
July 14, 2026

You Don’t Know Before You Know
Shaun Goodman

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Not every point sits in the textbook. Others only appear when the body decides to show them.

In this episode we visit with Shaun Goodman, longtime practitioner of Dr. Tung’s acupuncture, a Taiwanese system built on its own map of the body. What begins as a question of pronunciation quickly opens into a wider conversation about channels, diagnosis, and the discipline of looking closely.

We explore the palm as a diagnostic tool, the logic of treating through the thigh and shin rather than the familiar fourteen channels, and why some of the most effective points have no fixed name or location. Why not-knowing deserves patience rather than anxiety. And how a chance discovery from French auricular medicine gave Shaun a way to find points no teacher was there to point out.

Beneath the technique is a simpler idea: that what looks like magic is really just a system, once you learn how to see it.

In this episode, we discuss:

  • Pronunciation and lineage — why the characters still read “Tung” out of respect, though the name is spoken “Dong.”
  • Entering through the balance method — how Richard Tan’s teachings became the doorway into Dr. Tung’s points.
  • Frustration as the beginning of understanding — wrestling with strange numbers and no clear logic before the system opened up.
  • Two schools of thought — whether Tung’s points are extensions of the fourteen channels or an entirely separate system.
  • The five zang and the hand — using the fingers as a direct map to the organs.
  • Needling difficult territory — techniques for working the sensitive points on the hands and fingers.
  • Diagnosis through the palm — reading blood vessels, discoloration, and tissue change before ever touching a needle.
  • Dauma groups and reaction areas — points that live in clusters and zones rather than single fixed spots.
  • The undefined acupuncture point — trusting observation over the textbook when something unnamed shows up on the body.
  • Treating root, branch, and symptom — layering diagnosis, organ treatment, and symptom relief in one session.
  • Channels as reaction, not structure — the idea that pathways appear only in response to imbalance.
  • Secrecy, war, and preservation — how displacement to Taiwan led one family to release a guarded tradition to the wider world.
  • The vascular autonomic signal — borrowing a discovery from French auricular medicine to “hear” whether a point is active.
  • Needle depth as its own diagnosis — using the pulse itself to find the exact depth where treatment takes hold.

Clear your mind and open your heart to quiet listening; avoid familiar patterns, focus on the root, and seek the undefined point where the medicine reveals itself.

Shaun Goodman

My journey into Traditional Chinese Medicine began in 1991. As my practice matured, I found myself drawn into an extensive exploration of Channel Theory, driven by a desire to decode the medicine’s underlying mysteries and find more effective ways to help my patients. Eventually, my clinical practice took a significant turn when I encountered Master Tung’s Acupuncture system. This discovery transformed my understanding of acupuncture and led to significant improvements in my clinical outcomes.

I came to realize that Master Tung’s lineage of acupuncture has a unique channel system that stands apart from the classical 14 primary channels. It offers a distinct approach, with its own internal logic and clinical applications. Today, my practice is dedicated to this method, which I have further refined by integrating the Vascular Autonomic Signal (VAS). This tool assists me in the diagnostic process and in selecting the most effective points for treatment.

After 18 years of teaching within foundational four-year TCM programs, I now focus on empowering clinicians through postgraduate education. I am the creator of the Master Tung’s Acupuncture Points app, a specialized digital tool designed for clinical accuracy, and I offer a comprehensive series of online courses. In 2024, I published Clinical Guide: MASTER TUNG’S ACUPUNCTURE—A Journey to an Undefined Point, the External Manifestation of the Disease and the Five Channels (currently being translated into English).

Links and Resources

Visit Shaun on his website.

Shuan has developed a comprehensive and user-friendly app for Master Tung’s points. It provides detailed information on the locations of Master Tung’s points, their associated meddling techniques, and the various conditions they can address.

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