帝曰：五运之[“之”应作“终”] 始，如环无端，其太过不及何如?岐伯曰:五气更立，各有所胜，盛虚之变，此其常也。帝曰:平气何如?岐伯曰:无过者也。帝曰:太过不及奈何?岐伯曰:在经有也。帝曰:何谓所胜?岐伯曰:春胜长夏，长夏胜冬，冬胜夏，夏胜秋，秋胜春，所谓得五行时之胜，各以气命其藏。帝曰:何以知其胜?岐伯曰:求其至也，皆归始春，未至而至，此谓太过，则薄所不胜，而乘所胜也，命曰气淫;不分邪僻内生工不能禁。(王注:此十字文义不伦，应古人错简。)至而不至，此谓不及，则所胜妄行，而所生受病，所不胜簿之也，命曰气迫。所谓求其至者，气至之时也，谨候其时，气可与期。失时反候。五治不分，邪僻内生，工不能禁也。

Yellow Emperor said: "Now I understand the condition of the energies of the five elements dominating the year, and they are going round and begin again like a ring without terminal. But when the element-energy is dominating the year, what will be the condition when they are going beyond or falling short?" Qibo said: "The dominating year of the five elements is in succession and alters once a year. In the period of dominating, there often occurs the case of going beyond or falling short, so in the operation of energy in a year, it often has victory or defeat. When being victorious, it is over-abundant or going beyond, when being defeated, it is in debility of falling short. In this case, their energies will be out of balance which will affect the health of human being, and the pathological change of man will be an in evitable phenomenon when the operation of heaven is abnormal."

Yellow Emperor said: "What is the case of energy in common condition?" Qibo said: " When the energy appears on due time without going beyond and falling short, it is the common condition."

Yellow Emperor said: "What is the case when the energy is going beyond or falling short?" Qibo said: "It was recorded in the classics."

Yellow asked: "What do you mean by overcoming?" Qibo said: "The fact of victory or defeat of the four seasons is based on the principle of the overcome and restrict of the five elements, and the victorious energy will restrict the defeated declining energy, such as spring overcomes the long summer, that is, the wood restricts earth: the long summer overcomes winter, that is, the earth restricts water; the winter overcomes summer that is water restricts fire: the summer overcomes autumn, that is, fire restricts metal; the autumn overcomes spring, that is, metal restricts wood. The viscera are nominated respectively according to the energy of the four seasons and the five-element energy of which the viscera stored. This is the condition of the overcoming of the five-element energy of spring, summer, long summer, autumn and winter. Besides, when the energies are dominating the seasons, the dominating element-energy stores in the correspondant viscera of man, such as, the spring wood energy stores in liver, the summer fire energy stores in heart, the long summer earth energy stores in spleen, the autumn metal energy stores in lung, and winter water energy stores in kidney."

Yellow Emperor asked: "How can we know when the energy is overcoming?" Qibo said: "One can discover it by comparing the solar term with the arriving time of the stored energy of the viscera. The Beginning of spring is the first solar term of the year, and it is also the time for the stored energy of viscera begin to arrive. If the stored element energy arrives prior to the solar term of Beginning of spring, it is the case of the stored element-energy being over-abundant which is going beyond. When the stored energy is over-abundant, it will invade the element energy which overcomes itself and restricts the element-energy further which it overcomes (such as, if the wood energy is abundant and the metal energy is in debility, then the wood, on the contrary, will bully the metal, and at the same time, restrics earth even more). In this case, it is calld the ming f the solar tem's erg with the going beyond stored energy'. When the normal physiology of man is interrupted by the confussion of the weather, internal disease will occur, and the affection seduced by the abnormal weather can by no means be prevented by a physician.

"If the stored element-energy of the viscera does not come in the due solar term, it is called the falling short, the element-energy which is then in debility will be unable to control the element-energy which it used to overcome and cause it to run rashly. Besides, the energy which is then in debility can no more support its generation energy and cause the decline of it, and the energy which is in debility itself will be persecuted by the energy that restricts it, such as, when wood energy is in debility, earth energy will run rashly, as water is restricted by earth, even more water will be unable to support the wood.  (wood is the son of water) the wood energy will be restricted by metal with intensification. In this case, it is called the

'pressing between energies'.

"The condition above shows the going beyond and falling short of energy are determinded by the time of arrival of element-energy of the viscera, one should examine carefully whether it is in conform with the time of the solar term then. If the stored element-energy is not conform with the arriving time, and its correspondant relation with the five elements can

hardly be sorted out for treating, it shows the evil energy inside has been formed and a physician can do nothing with it."

帝曰：有不袭乎?岐伯曰：苍天之气，不得无常也。气之不袭，是谓非常，非常则变矣。帝曰：非常而变奈何?岐伯曰：变至则病，所胜则微，所不胜则甚，因而重感于邪则死矣，故非其时则微，当其时则甚也。

Yellow Emperor asked: "Is there any case of the five elements energies not dominating according to the regular pattern of succession?" Qibo answewed:"The energies of heaven become prosperous alternately in various seasons and they are dominating in sequence in a regular pattern. When it is out of order, it should be considered to be abnormal. When the

seasonal energy becomes abnormal, the weather will change and calamities will happen."

Yellow Emperor asked:"What will be the condition if the abnormal change happens?" Qibo answered:"Man will contract disease on account of it. If there is change in the energy which can be overcome by the dominating energy, the disease will be slight, but if there is change in the energy which can not be overcome by the dominating energy, the disease will be serious (such as when the spring wood dominating the season, and the earth energy is changing, as the wood can restrict the earth, so the disease is slight; but if the metal energy is changing, as wood is restricted by metal, so the disease will be serious). If the patient is invaded by evil energy during this period, he will die. Therefore, when the energy undergoes

change, when the dominating energy is able to restrict the changing energy, the disease will be slight, but if the dominating energy is unable to restrict the changing energy, the disease will be serious."

帝曰:善!余闻气合而有形，因变以正名，天地之运，阴阳之化，其于万物，孰少孰多,可得闻乎?岐伯曰:悉哉问也!天至广不可度，地至大不可量，大神灵问，请陈其方。草生五色，五色之变，不可胜视，草生五味，五味之美，不可胜极，嗜欲不同，各有所通。天食人以五气，地食人以五味，五气入鼻，藏于心肺，上使五色修明，音声能彰;五味入口，藏于肠[“肠”字衍]胃，味有所藏，以养五气，气和而生，津液相成，神乃自生。

Yellow Emperor said: "Good! I am told that when the energies of heaven and earth combine, it generates all things, All things are being shaped up through change and birth, and their names were ascertained according to its form. In the course of transforming and generating all things by Yin and Yang of heaven and earth, which one of them is more func-

tional and which one is less?"

Qibo answered: "What an exhaustive question you have asked! The heaven and earth are so spacious that they are hard to measure, so I can not answer your profound question in detail, but I can tell you in a concise way. There are five colours in herbs, but the variations of the five colours are too numerous to sees there are five tastes in herbs, but the various combinations, from the five tastes are too many for one to taste all over. The desire and addiction for every one are different, and the preferences for different people are not the same. The heaven provides the human being with five energies (such as the wind-energy which enters into the liver, the heat-energy which enters into the heart, the wet-energy which enters into the spleen, the dry-energy which enters into the lung, and the cold-energy which enters into the kidney), and the earth provides the human being with five tastes (such as the sour taste which enters into the liver, the bitter taste which enters into the heart, the sweet taste which enters into the spleen, the acrid taste which enters into the lung, and the salty taste which enters into the kidney).  The five energies from heaven enter into the body through the nose and being stored in the heart and lung, as the heart associates with the blood and vessels, the energies will nourish one's complexion and cause it bright and moist in a fine colour, and as the lung associates with the voice, the energies will cause the voice loud and clear. The five tastes of foods from the earth enter into the body through the mouth and being stored in the stomach, when being digested, their essence will be transported and spread to nourish the energies of the five viscera, when the energies are being transformed and converted, it will give vitality, with the function of the saliva in addition, the spirit and energy of man will become prosperous naturely."