典藏书目

There are cases in the world where the same disease is treated effectively in one patient but fails in another, and not only fails but causes significant harm. Why is this? It is because although the disease is the same, the individuals differ.

The pathogenic factors of the Seven Emotions (Joy, Anger, Worry, Pensiveness, Sorrow, Fear, Fright) and Six Excesses (Wind, Cold, Summer-heat, Dampness, Dryness, Fire) do not differ when they invade, yet the individuals who contract them vary greatly. Some have strong or weak constitutions; some possess Yin or Yang natures; some grow up in the North or South; some have rigid or gentle temperaments; some have firm or fragile sinews and bones; some lead lives of labor while others lead lives of ease; some are young and vigorous while others are old and frail; some enjoy rich and fatty diets (Gao Liang) while others subsist on coarse grains and vegetables (Li Huo); some have minds burdened with worry and toil while others are joyful and at peace. Furthermore, the heavenly times (seasonal climates) differ in cold and warmth, and the depth of the contracted disease varies. If treatment is applied uniformly, even if the diagnosis of the disease condition is accurate, it may be diametrically opposed to the individual's constitution, resulting in opposite outcomes regarding benefit and harm! Therefore, physicians must carefully examine the various differences among individuals, thereby determining the methods for addressing severity, urgency, magnitude, and sequence. The *Neijing* (Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon) discusses this in great detail, and the same applies to acupuncture and surgical treatments. Thus, for all patients, such examination should be conducted.

The general term for all diseases is "Disease" (Bing). However, a single disease necessarily involves several symptoms (Zheng). For example, Taiyang Wind Injury (Taiyang syndrome caused by wind pathogen) is a disease; its aversion to wind, body heat, spontaneous sweating, and headache are symptoms. Together, they constitute Taiyang Disease, which represents the principal symptoms (Ben Zheng) of Taiyang Disease. If Taiyang Disease is accompanied by diarrhea, insomnia, mental restlessness, and chest/epigastric fullness/stuffiness, these are then considered accompanying symptoms (Jian Zheng) of Taiyang Disease.

For instance, Malaria (Nue) is a disease; alternating chills and fever, vomiting, aversion to wind, and bitter taste in the mouth are symptoms. Together, they constitute Malaria, representing the principal symptoms of Malaria. If Malaria is accompanied by headache, distension/fullness, cough with reverse qi flow, and constipation, these are accompanying symptoms of Malaria. However, if Malaria is accompanied by dysentery occurring dozens of times, this cannot be called an accompanying symptom but rather a concurrent disease (Jian Bing). This is because Malaria is one disease, and Dysentery (Li Ji) is another. Both diseases have their own principal symptoms and numerous accompanying symptoms that cannot be exhaustively listed. By analogy, the distinction between Disease and Symptom amounts to tens of thousands of variations; one must seek the origin and differentiate the threads.

Regarding treatment methods, some conditions require combined treatment, some require separate treatment, some should be treated first, some later, some specifically, and some not at all. This particularly depends on assessing severity and urgency to achieve results in a sequential manner. If the order is reversed and actions are chaotic and unregulated, myriad pathological changes will emerge, and even skilled practitioners will be unable to rescue the situation.