The Barefoot Doctor

Stephen Russell, also known as the Barefoot Doctor, is a practitioner and teacher of Taoism, its medicine, philosophy, meditation practices and martial arts and "magic" system, or wu wei. His work seeks to make this ancient Chinese system accessible to millions and relevant to urban life in the 21st century.

His pseudonym is taken from the barefoot doctor system set up by Mao Zedong in 1960's China, which gave farmers basic medical training to bring health care into rural areas. [ [http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4990242 NPR: Health for the Masses: China's 'Barefoot Doctors' ] ]

Work

Russell ran his own private healing practice until 2001. He has written twelve books, including "Barefoot Doctor's Handbook for the Urban Warrior, A Spiritual Survival Guide" and "Pure: A Path to Peace, Power and Prosperity", as well as numerous spoken word CDs and DVDs including Meditate and Tai Chi Short Form. Russell was a weekly columnist for The Observer [ [http://observer.guardian.co.uk/magazine/story/0,,1370138,00.html Inner Child Care' ] ] for five years, and now runs a large Taoist-based training website, Barefootdoctorworld.com. In addition to giving talks, leading workshops [ [http://www.exclusivebooks.com/interviews/ftf/barefootdoc.php Exclusive Books South Africa: Workshop Interview' ] ] and commenting on holistic and spiritual matters [ [http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,,2158067,00.html The Guardian: Riposte to Richard Dawkins' ] ] , he is primarily also a composer and producer of mood-altering music and plays in clubs and at festivals.

Russell has been a regular guest on London Live radio, as well as Channel 4's The Big Breakfast. He made a series for BBC UK Style named "Barefoot Doctor" which aired in 2003.

Controversy

Russell's interpretation of Traditional Chinese Medicine has attracted criticism from some members of the mainstream medical profession, who consider his application of it to Western ailments to be unscientific. [ [http://www.healthwatch-uk.org/newsletterarchive/nlett45.html HealthWatch newsletter 45, April 2002 ] ] [ [http://www.healthwatch-uk.org/newsletterarchive/nlett43.html#barefoot HealthWatch Newsletter no 43 ] ]

In January 2007, Russell admitted to having sex with a number of his ex-patients. He also became involved in "salacious" email exchanges with fans who had met him through his healing website, emails which he later described as being "really stupid". A number of female users of his site have accused him of sexually predatory behaviour. [ [http://www.guardian.co.uk/medicine/story/0,,2000639,00.html Crackdown on therapists who abuse vulnerable | Special reports | Guardian Unlimited ] ]

elected bibliography

* Russell, S. (1998) "Barefoot Doctor's Handbook for the Urban Warrior" London: Piatkus
* Russell, S. (2005) "Manifesto" London: Element Books
* Russell, S. (1999) "Barefoot Doctor's Guide to the Tao: A Spiritual Handbook for the Urban Warrior" London: Three Rivers Press
* Russell, S. ( ) "Dear Barefoot: The Wisdom of the Barefoot Doctor" Atlantic Books: London
* Russell, S. (2004) "Instant Enlightenment" Element Books: London
* Russell, S. ( ) "Handbook for Heroes: A Spiritual Guide to Fame & Fortune" London: Londonbridge
* Russell, S. (2001) "Barefoot Doctor's Handbook for Modern Lovers: A Spiritual Guide to Truly Amazing Love and Sex" London: Broadway

References

External links

* [http://www.barefootdoctorglobal.com Barefoot Doctor] The Barefoot Doctor's Website
* [http://www.thegoodwebguide.co.uk/index.php?art_id=307] The Good Web Guide: Barefoot Doctor
* [http://www.predictionmagazine.com/content/archive/rep_7.htm] Prediction Magazine Interview
* [http://www.cyberspacehealthclinic.co.uk/barefoot_doctor/index.html] Cyberspace Health Clinic