医本仁术也。见人疾苦。则起悲悯。伊芳之属望既殷。非我救之而谁哉。臣
董先生。恒谓余曰。凡疗疾。药救固迟。丹救亦缓。惟心救最灵。要非药与丹
之缓也。苟中心不切。则视之易忽。而审之不精。安能得病之本末。握而擒
之。使必从我算而无遁情。惟心之既挚。则危亡之际。痛痒攸关。彼父母妻
子所不及忧者。而我代忧之。彼患人所不及计者。而我代计之。甚至睡思
梦觉。莫非设身伊芳地。或垂亡而拯之。或虑变而防之。谋深思远。视一病而
又虞一病之起。奏一效而更觉效之难凭。攻之时即为守地。守之时复为
攻谋。一片婆心。无少宁息。天地可鉴。鬼神可通。而灵明生焉。每见时流。择
术不精。自恃炫耀。乘人之危。取人之财。罔顾人命。惟思利己。为身计则得
矣。其如冥报后报何。返而思之。有不通身汗下者非夫也。
夫医必自爱自重。而后可临大病而足托。盖我之学术优。而审病确。则彼
之托于我者何事。而我之受于彼者何为。而敢易易出之。故凡希媚谄容。
不邀而赴。以求悦于人者。其术固止于此也。或可治小疾。而不可治大疾。
或可疗常病。而不能疗变病。其以轻为重。以重致危者多矣。噫。天下之人。
以性命相委。而徒博此便习为哉。虽然。医亦非以是骄人也。盖我所见者。
惟此病之若而已。我所忧者。唯去此病之苦而已。将救病之未遑。奚暇为
苟容之计。希幸之图哉。且医之为道。无论富贵贫贱。闺阃有疾。必借手焉。
端方者视之。纵有隐曲。必求详而始已。而患者亦直告之无惮。庶几病得
其真。投治获济。故品行不可不严也。
医学本是仁爱的技艺。看到人们的疾苦，便会兴起悲悯之心。他们对医生的期望既然如此殷切，如果不是我来救治，又能是谁呢？
董先生常常对我说：“凡是治疗疾病，药物救助固然缓慢，丹药救助也迟缓，只有用心救治最为灵验。这并不是说药物和丹药真的慢，如果内心不够迫切，那么看待病情就容易疏忽，诊断就不精确，怎么能掌握疾病的根本和末节，牢牢抓住它，使病情完全听从我的谋划而没有隐瞒的情况呢？只有心意真诚，那么在生死攸关之际，痛痒与我相关。那些父母妻子所来不及担忧的，我替他们担忧；那些患者所来不及考虑的，我替他们考虑。甚至睡觉思考、梦中觉醒，无不设身处地为他们着想。或者在垂危时拯救他们，或者忧虑变化而预防它。谋略深远，看待一种病又担心另一种病的发作，取得一次疗效又觉得疗效难以凭信。进攻的时候就是防守的时候，防守的时候又在谋划进攻。一片慈悲之心，没有片刻安宁。天地可以见证，鬼神可以沟通，于是灵明之心就产生了。”
我常常看见当时的医生，选择医术不精，自恃炫耀，趁人之危，夺取他人的钱财，不顾人命，只想着利己。为自己打算倒是得到了，那冥界的报应和后世的报应怎么办呢？反过来想想，如果不让自己全身冷汗淋漓（感到羞愧恐惧），就不是大丈夫了。
医生必须自爱自重，然后才能在面对大病时足以托付。大概是我的学术优良，诊断疾病准确，那么他们托付给我的是什么事情？而我接受他们的托付又是为了什么？怎么敢轻易对待呢？所以凡是希望讨好谄媚，不邀请就去，以求取悦于人的，他的医术本来也就止于此罢了。或许可以治疗小病，但不能治疗大病；或许可以治疗常病，而不能治疗变病。把轻症看成重症，把重症导致危险的情况很多了。唉，天下的人，把性命委托给你，难道只是为了博得这种便利习惯吗？
虽然如此，医生也不是用这个来傲视别人的。大概我所看到的，只是这个病本身而已。我所担忧的，只是去除这个病的痛苦而已。救病还来不及，哪里有空闲去为苟且容身之计，谋取侥幸之图呢？况且医学之道，无论富贵贫贱，闺阁中有疾病，必然要借助医生的手。品行端正的人看待此事，纵然有隐秘曲折之处，也必须询问详细才罢休。而患者也直率告知而不害怕。这样差不多能得到病的真相，投药治疗获得救济。所以品行不可不严格啊。
Medicine is fundamentally a benevolent art. Upon witnessing the suffering of others, one naturally feels compassion. Given their profound expectations, if not I who shall save them?
Mr. Dong often said to me: "In treating diseases, herbal medicine (Yao) is indeed slow, and elixirs (Dan) are also sluggish; only mind-saving (Xin Jiu) is most effective. This is not because herbs and elixirs are inherently slow. If one's heart is not earnest, one will easily overlook the condition and fail to examine it precisely. How can one grasp the root and branch of the disease, hold it firmly, and ensure that no hidden truth escapes one's calculation? Only when the heart is sincere does one feel the pain and itch as one's own in critical moments. One worries about what parents and spouses cannot worry about, and plans for what the patient cannot plan. Even in sleep or dreams, one places oneself in their position. One saves them from impending death or prevents potential changes. With deep foresight, while addressing one illness, one anticipates another; after achieving an effect, one doubts its reliability. Attack becomes defense, and defense becomes preparation for attack. A compassionate heart finds no rest. Heaven and Earth bear witness, spirits communicate, and spiritual clarity arises."
I often see contemporary practitioners who lack precision in their skills, relying on showiness, taking advantage of people's crises to seize wealth, disregarding human life, and thinking only of self-interest. While this may benefit their personal plans, what of karmic retribution in the netherworld and future lives? Reflecting on this, one who does not break out in a cold sweat of shame is not a true gentleman.
A physician must love and respect themselves before they can be entrusted with serious illnesses. Because my academic foundation is sound and my diagnosis accurate, I ask: What has been entrusted to me? And for what purpose do I accept this trust? How dare I treat it lightly? Therefore, those who seek flattery, attend without invitation, and strive to please others, possess skills limited to such superficiality. They might treat minor ailments but cannot handle major ones; they might cure common diseases but fail at complex variations. Many have turned mild conditions into severe ones, leading to danger. Alas, people entrust their lives to physicians merely for the sake of convenience?
Nevertheless, medicine is not used to arrogate superiority over others. What I see is solely the disease itself. What I worry about is solely the removal of the disease's suffering. With so much urgency in saving lives, where is there time for compromising integrity or seeking lucky breaks? Moreover, the Way of Medicine applies regardless of wealth or status. For illnesses within the inner quarters, assistance is inevitably sought. Those of upright character view this matter with propriety; even if there are hidden details, they must inquire thoroughly before stopping. The patient, in turn, speaks openly without fear. Thus, the true nature of the disease is revealed, and treatment yields relief. Therefore, moral conduct must be strictly maintained.