Moxibustion (Chinese
: 灸; pinyin
: jiǔ) is a traditional Chinese medicine
therapy using moxa, or mugwort
herb
. It plays an important role in the traditional medical
systems of China
, Japan
, Korea
, Vietnam
, Tibet
, and Mongolia
. Suppliers usually age the mugwort and grind it up to a fluff; practitioners burn the fluff or process it further into a stick that resembles a (non-smokable) cigar
. They can use it indirectly, with acupuncture
needles, or burn it on the patient's skin.