The Story of Zhen Ding Shan
Zhen Ding Shan is a brand built around clinical Chinese medicine and Zhu’s Scalp Acupuncture, bringing together clinical practice, medical education and international exchange. The name 鍼鼎善 grew out of discussions between three generations of teacher and students — Professor Ming Qing Zhu, Dr. Ru Shan Shy and Dr. Sheng Chun Chang. It began as 鍼鼎 (Zhen Ding); Professor Zhu later added the character 善 (Shan) himself, giving the name a second layer of meaning beyond acupuncture and lineage — an expectation about a physician’s original intention and clinical responsibility.
When the clinic was founded, Professor Zhu specially invited Mr. Siyan Zhou of Shanghai — nine-time national calligraphy champion in mainland China — to inscribe the words 鍼鼎善, and personally wrote an opening invitation letter filled with expectation and blessing. Professor Zhu, together with his wife Dr. Zhi Yun Peng, his family and Dr. Moyee Siu, travelled specially from the United States to attend. For Zhen Ding Shan, this was not simply the opening of a clinic — it marked the beginning of a journey from discipleship, through clinical practice, to the handing over of a lineage’s responsibility.
Zhen represents needling. Following the classical maxim “first the needle, second moxibustion, third herbal medicine,” it is the method and foundational starting point through which a physician meets and treats the patient. From the moment the needle is placed, the practitioner’s attention, judgement and years of accumulated experience begin to connect with the patient’s body. The needle is where the whole course of treatment truly begins.
In antiquity, both a vessel for holding and an important ceremonial object. A ding stands on three legs, each supporting the other so it can bear weight steadily. For Zhen Ding Shan, it symbolises the bond between three generations — Professor Ming Qing Zhu, Dr. Ru Shan Shy and Dr. Sheng Chun Chang — and the lineage connecting discipleship, clinical practice and the ZSA education system.
A reminder that the ultimate purpose of medicine remains to do good and to help — returning to the physician’s original intention of helping patients, and building a strong teaching system so more people can benefit. It is also a reminder that in every moment of clinical practice and teaching, physicians should meet each patient and student with humility, patience and empathy — so that the spirit of Shan continues to be carried forward through treatment after treatment, and generation after generation.
Zhen Ding Shan was not built as a brand concept from the outset — it grew out of years of learning and clinical accumulation. From the inspiration of different senior teachers, to long years following Professor Ming Qing Zhu to learn Zhu’s Scalp Acupuncture and build a teaching system, and finally to their own clinic, teaching and international exchange — Dr. Shy and Dr. Chang have gradually woven these experiences into the clinical and educational work of today.
Only through repeated reflection, correction and accumulation in the clinic can new understanding and development emerge on the foundation of an existing lineage. This is also how Zhen Ding Shan approaches medical transmission: respecting its roots, while letting what has been learned truly enter the clinic — and continuing to think, and to grow.
