病传/Bing Chuan

(The Transmission of Diseases)

黄帝日:余受九针于夫子，而私览于诸方，或有导引行气，乔[乔:《甲乙》卷六第十作“按”]摩、灸、熨、刺、炳、饮药，之一者可独守耶，将尽行之乎?岐伯日:诸方者，众人之方也，非一人之所尽行也。

Yellow Emperor said:"I have learned the knowledge of the nine kinds of needle from you, and I have read many medical books recording to the methods of treatment privately. In treating, there are also the extremities and breathing exercices, massage, moxibustion, topical application of heated drugs, acupuncture, burning therapy and the administration of prepared medical herb. When treating, should the pricking therapy be applied alone, or cooperate it with other therapies synthetically?" Qibo said: "The multiple treatments can be applied to the multitude, it may not fit in with a specific person."

黄帝曰:此乃所谓守一勿失万物毕者也。今余已闻阴阳之要，虚实之理，倾移之过，可治之属，愿闻病之变化，淫传绝败而不可治者，可得闻乎?岐伯曰:要乎哉问。道，昭乎其如日醒，窘乎其如夜瞑，能被而服之，神与俱成，毕将服之，神自得之，生神之理，可著于竹帛，不可传于子孙。

Yellow Emperor said: "This is the so called sticking to a single therapy without discarding it lightly, and the treating of various complicated disease can be comprehended by analogy. Now I have heard the essentials of Yin and Yang, the reasons of asthenia and sthenia, the affections due to unstable striae and insufficient healthy energy and the diseases which still have the chance to be cured. Besides all of them, I hope to hear about the interior change of the disease of which the evil is transmitted from one viscus to another viscus, the disease of which the healthy energy is deteriorating and severing, and the disease which can by no means to be cured. Can I hear about them?" Qibo said: "What you ask is very important. The medical principle is prominent as one sees things clearly when he is sober in daytime yet one can hardly perceive its profoundness like having a hazy view in night time. If one can abide to the medical principle, keep it close like wearing clothes and appreciate it thoroughly, one will be immerged into it, when applying it all along, one will see its marvellous effect. The medical principle should be carved on the bamboo slips so that it can be handed down to the later generations. It must not be imparted to the descendents privately."

黄帝日:何谓旦醒?岐伯日:明于阴阳，如惑之解，如醉之醒。黄帝日:何谓夜瞑?岐伯日:瘩乎其无声，漠乎其无形，折毛发理，正气横倾，淫邪泮衔，血脉传溜[溜:《甲乙》卷六第十作“留”]，大[大:《素问・标本病传论》新校正引《灵枢经》作“夫”]气入藏，腹痛下淫，可以致死，不可以致生。

Yellow Emperor asked:"What is the meaning of 'seeing things clearly when one being sober in daytime'?" Qibo said: "When one understands the law of Yin and Yang, the original perplexity seems to have been removed and one becomes sober from drunkenness." Yellow Emperor asked:"What is the meaning of 'having a hazy view in night time'?" Qibo said: "When the outside evil invades the body, it is silent without a sound, and it is quiet without a trace, but the fine hair of the patient is chilled, his striae are open and his health energy dissipated, the evil energy disperses and overflows all over his body and the four extremities, it retains in the channel, flows into the viscera and causing the abdominal pain and the infiltration to the lower warmer. In this case, the patient can by no means to be cured and die."

黄帝日:大气入藏奈何?岐伯日:病先发于心[于心:《千金》卷十三第一“心”下有“者”字]，一日而之肺[之肺:《千金》卷十三第一“之肺”下并有“喘咳”二字]，三[三:《素问・标本病传论》新校正引《甲乙》作“五”]日而之肝[之肝:《千金》卷十三第一“之肝”下并有“胁痛支满”]，五日而之脾[之脾:《千金》卷十三第一“之脾”下并有“闭塞不通，身痛体重”八字]，三日不已，死，冬夜半，夏日中。

Yellow Emperor asked:"How does the evil energy transmit after entering into the viscera?" Qibo said:"When the disease begins from the heart, the disease will be transmitted to the lung after one day, and the patient will have cough and rapid breathing; after another five days, the disease will be transmitted to the liver, the patient will have proping pain in the hypochondria; after another five days, the disease will be transmitted to the spleen, the energy of the patient will be obstructed and he feels heavy in the body; after another three days, if the disease is not recovered, the patient will die; in winter, he will die at midnight, and in summer, he will die at noon.

病先发于肺[于肺:《脉经》卷六第七“于肺”下并有“喘咳”二字]，三日而之肝[之肝:《脉经》.卷六第七“之肝”下并有“胁痛支满”四字]，一日而之脾[之脾:《脉经》卷六第七“之脾”下并有“闭塞不通，身痛体重”八字]，五日而之胃，十日不已，死，冬日入，夏日出。

"When the disease begins in the lung, the patient will cough and has rapid breathing; the disease will be transmitted to the liver in three days, and the patient will have proping pain in the hypochondria; after another one day, the disease will be transmitted to the spleen, and the energy of the patient will be obstructed and he feels heavy in the body; after another five days, the disease will be transmitted to the stomach, and the patient will have abdominal pain; after another ten days, if the disease is not removed, the patient will die; in winter, he will die when the sun sets, and in summer, he will die when the sun rises.