Chao Yuanfang

Chao Yuanfang () was a Chinese physician and medical author who was court physician at the Sui Dynasty (581–618 CE) between the years 605 and 616. Traditionally, he had been attributed the co-authorship or authorship of the Chinese medical classic '' Zhubing yuanhou lun''. This work sets out a classification of diseases and describes their causes and symptoms. It also discusses therapeutic methods.SHI Heng, QIN Wan-ling, SHI Kai, ''General Treatise on the Causes and Symptoms Exploration of Guidance Method on Respiratory Characteristics''
in: 'Journal of Jiangxi University of Traditional Chinese Medicine', 2011-06 The ''Zhubing yuanhou lun'' had an important influence on the development of Chinese medicine. Its influence also extended to Japan where it formed the inspiration for the ''Ishinpō'', the oldest surviving Japanese medical text completed in 984.

Life

Very few details have been preserved about the life of Chao Yuanfang. He is referred to in old texts as a ''medical erudite'' ().Fabrizio Pregadio, ''Chao Yuanfang'', in: Helaine Selin, 'Encyclopaedia of the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine in Non-Wester.n Cultures', Springer Science & Business Media, 31 July 1997, p. 185 Historical records indicate that Chao Yuanfang lived during the final years of the Sui Dynasty (581–618 CE) and the early years of the Tang Dynasty (618–906 CE). During the Daye reign (605–618 CE) of the Sui Dynasty he was appointed as the Academician of the Imperial Medical Academy and later promoted to the post of Court Physician.Yan Liang Abdulbaset M. Salim Wendy Wu Paul E. Kilgore, ''Chao Yuanfang: Imperial Physician of the Sui Dynasty and an Early Pertussis Observer?''
Open Forum Infectious Diseases, Volume 3, Issue 1, Winter 2016

''Zhubing Yuanhou Lun''

Scholarship does not agree on the authorship of the ''Zhubing yuanhou lun'' 諸病源候論 (''General Treatise on Causes and Manifestations of All Diseases''). The ''Suishu jingji zhi'' (), a bibliography included in the official history of the Sui Dynasty and compiled between 641 and 656, identifies Wu Jingxian () as the author. In the ''Jiutangshu jingji zhi'' (), the bibliography of the Old Book of the Tang Dynasty compiled during the rule of the Later Jin Dynasty 後晉 (936-946), Wu Jing () is named the author of the work. The name Chao Yuanfang is first recorded as the author of the work in historical records from the Song Dynasty (960–1279). Further reference to Chao Yuanfan's participation in the authoring of the book is found in an edition of the ''Zhubing yuanhou lun'' published during the Northern Song Dynasty. The preface to that edition states that the work was written during the Daiye period of the Sui Dynasty by the imperial physician Chao Yuanfang and others pursuant to an imperial decree. The preface further describes that the authors compiled the work by gathering the most authoritative writings from various schools of thought and studying these thoroughly. The work was then submitted to the throne in 610.

The ''Zhubing yuanhou lun'' has been integrally preserved and is divided into 50 chapters (scrolls). It discusses more than 1,700 syndromes, which are classified into 67 symptom categories of internal and external diseases. The final chapters deal with gynaecology, obstetrics and pediatrics. It is the first Chinese text that deals with etiology and symptomatology. It also discusses therapeutic methods. The therapeutic methods proposed are not the traditional medicines or acupuncture of Chinese medicine, but therapies based on such practices as diet and Tao yin. Tao yin is sometimes referred to as Taoist yoga and consists of a series of exercises (mainly in lying and sitting positions, but also in standing positions) that are intended to cultivate ch'i, the internal energy of the body according to Traditional Chinese Medicine.Taoist Ways of Healing by Chee Soo chapter 11 Tao Yin - Taoist Respiration Therapy, p 113 (Aquarian Press/Thorsons - HarperCollins 1986 The practice of tao yin is a precursor of qigong, The ''Zhubing yuanhou lun'' prescribes 213 tao yin exercises for 110 different symptoms.Kevin Chen, ''Book Review of 'Chinese Medical Qigong English Edition Introduction to the English Edition of Chinese Medical Qigong Textbook' by Kevin W Chen, Ph.D. MPH''
16 August 2011 The ''Zhubing yuanhou lun'' had an important influence on the development of Chinese medicine. Its influence also extended to Japan where it formed the inspiration for the ''Ishinpō'', the oldest surviving Japanese medical text completed in 984.

Editions

Chinese-language edition of the ''Zhubing Yuanhou Lun'' at archive.org

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chao Yuanfang
7th-century Chinese physicians
Year of birth unknown
Song dynasty people