“On the surface of the skin of the “man from the ice”, discovered in Tyrol in 1991, a total of 15 tattoo sites were found. A high proportion of these tattoos lie precisely on acupuncture points. From an acupuncture perspective, they also correspond to a form of therapy against rheumatism that is still common today.

The oldest evidence of acupuncture in China dates from the 2nd century BCE, yet the man from the ice lived around 5,200 years ago. This discovery could therefore push the origins of acupuncture back by three millennia. Nor can China be seen as the isolated birthplace of acupuncture. It appears instead to have been a shared development within the wider Eurasian cultural sphere.

Some researchers and supporters of the ancient-astronaut theory go a step further. Across medical history and among different peoples on various continents, there are reports—within a similar span of human history—of operations that were remarkably difficult for the time (as depicted in paintings). Cleanly opened skulls (sometimes partially), set bone fractures, and much more have been found. The paintings consistently show a bird-like human performing the operation—among the Incas, as well as in India and in China. The assumption is that people back then were “taught” by someone… or something. The same is said to apply to technology, architecture, and so on. There is a documentary series on this with striking investigations and findings.

This raises the question of why—and through what—such enormous knowledge was lost, only to be rebuilt slowly by humans themselves.

One plausible theory after the find of Ötzi was that the Catholic Church, through centuries of Inquisition, destroyed any knowledge deemed dangerous to Christianity—knowledge that could have shaken the Church’s worldview and power. The Inquisition did not extend to Asia, however, so this knowledge was preserved there. Something similar applies to Indian Ayurveda, which has survived to this day and is once again being taught.

Another theory is that acupuncture emerged through chance. Old pains sometimes vanished and did not return after accidental bruises or abrasions, injuries, or even arrow wounds. And the stroking, massaging, and rubbing we often do instinctively after an injury can ease pain—or the discomfort disappears altogether. Certain points proved particularly effective under such stimulation, and so the theory developed of a constantly flowing energy within a body-own meridian system. The Chinese call this freely flowing energy “Chi”. Other cultures also have names for this phenomenon: Prana, Ki, élan vital, physis, odem—or simply life energy!

Doctors trained primarily in drug-based conventional medicine should not close themselves off to energetic medicine. Our technology is maturing, offering evidence that meridians exist—or explaining why information transmitted via photons alone can be enough to influence cells. (Quantum physics)”