Chao Yuanfang

Chao Yuanfang(Chinese:Sào nguyên phương;pinyin:Cháo Yuánfāng) was a Chinese physician and medical author who was court physician at theSui dynasty(581–618 CE) between the years 605 and 616. Traditionally, he had been attributed the co-authorship or authorship of the Chinese medical classicZhubing yuanhou lun.This work sets out a classification of diseases and describes their causes and symptoms. It also discusses therapeutic methods.TheZhubing yuanhou lunhad an important influence on the development of Chinese medicine. Its influence also extended to Japan where it formed the inspiration for theIshinpō,the oldest surviving Japanese medical text completed in 984.

:Page from theZhubing Yuanhou Lunfrom aYuan dynastyedition

Life

Very few details have been preserved about the life of Chao Yuanfang. He is referred to in old texts as amedical erudite(Chinese:Thái y bác sĩ;pinyin:tàiyī bóshì).Historical records indicate that Chao Yuanfang lived during the final years of the Sui dynasty (581–618 CE) and the early years of theTang dynasty(618–906 CE). During theDaye 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.

Zhubing Yuanhou Lun

Scholarship does not agree on the authorship of theZhubing yuanhou lunChư bệnh nguyên hầu luận (General Treatise on Causes and Manifestations of All Diseases). TheSuishu jingji zhi(Chinese:Tùy thư kinh tịch chí;pinyin:Suíshū jīngjí zhì), a bibliography included in the official history of the Sui dynasty and compiled between 641 and 656, identifies Wu Jingxian (Chinese:Ngô cảnh hiền;pinyin:Wú Jǐngxián) as the author. In theJiutangshu jingji zhi(Chinese:Cựu đường thư · kinh tịch chí;pinyin:Jiùtángshū jīngjí zhì), the bibliography of the Old Book of the Tang dynasty compiled during the rule of theLater Jin dynastyHậu tấn (936-946), Wu Jing (Chinese:Ngô cảnh;pinyin:Wú Jǐng) is named the author of the work. The name Chao Yuanfang is first recorded as the author of the work in historical records from theSong dynasty(960–1279). Further reference to Chao Yuanfan's participation in the authoring of the book is found in an edition of theZhubing yuanhou lunpublished 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.

TheZhubing yuanhou lunhas 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 anddaoyin.Tao yin is sometimes referred to asTaoistyogaand consists of a series of exercises (mainly in lying and sitting positions, but also in standing positions) that are intended to cultivateqi,the internal energy of the body according toTraditional Chinese Medicine.The practice of Tao yin is a precursor ofqigong,TheZhubing yuanhou lunprescribes 213 Tao yin exercises for 110 different symptoms.TheZhubing yuanhou lunhad an important influence on the development of Chinese medicine. Its influence also extended to Japan where it formed the inspiration for theIshinpō,the oldest surviving Japanese medical text completed in 984.

Editions

• Chinese-language edition of theZhubing Yuanhou Lunat archive.org