The Academic Status of the Neijing
Generally, an encyclopedic masterpiece encapsulates the essence of human culture! The Huangdi Neijing (Yellow Emperor’s Inner Canon) is a monumental text in the development of Chinese culture, primarily focused on life sciences. It is the earliest existing medical literature in China, comprehensively elucidating the theoretical system and academic thoughts of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), laying the foundation for its development. Many renowned physicians and medical schools that emerged throughout the history of TCM have developed from the theoretical framework of the Neijing.
For thousands of years, TCM’s significant contributions to safeguarding human health and the propagation of the Chinese nation are inseparable from the theoretical system of the Neijing. Therefore, it has been revered by generations of physicians as the “ancestor of medicine,” making it an essential classical text for studying TCM.
Although the Neijing is a medical classic centered on life sciences, its role in inheriting Chinese culture is irreplaceable by any other ancient work! It is well-known that modern science, guided by reductionist thinking, has dominated for 400 years, creating wealth for society and improving people’s lives, but it has also revealed serious disasters (resource depletion, ecological imbalance, climate warming, frequent disasters). Western medicine, based on reductionism, has rapidly developed with modern scientific technology, showing superior efficacy in treating diseases once deemed incurable by TCM, such as tuberculosis, certain violent infectious diseases, and surgical indications. However, as times change, many limitations and drawbacks of Western medicine become apparent in the face of complex and variable conditions. Dr. Philip Campbell, editor of the journal Nature, stated: “Current research on life sciences is still limited to local details and has not yet studied from the perspective of the entire life system. Future research should elevate to a holistic system level because life is a whole.” He believes that future research methods in life sciences should combine Western scientific methods with ancient Chinese scientific methods. The ancient Chinese approach emphasizes studying problems from a macro, holistic, and systemic perspective, represented by the research methods of the Neijing. TCM methods may significantly contribute to the development of global science and technology.
As we enter the 21st century, human society and technology have made unprecedented progress, yet many unknowns remain, especially concerning individual human life, which involves the realms of nature, society, and thought, possessing both biological and social attributes. It is the most complex science between the universe and nature, and Western medicine cannot represent the standard and ultimate understanding of humanity, nor will it reject the crystallization of national wisdom embodied in various traditional medicines worldwide. Therefore, we should examine TCM from the heights of great culture, great science, and great medicine, considering the historical trends of human society and scientific and technological development, as well as the laws of human thought development, to scientifically position TCM, evaluate its strengths and weaknesses, and predict its development trajectory. To understand all this, we need not only to grasp the overall academic landscape but also to delve into its academic connotations. We believe the most straightforward approach is to study the academic system of TCM.
The Academic Thoughts of the Neijing
The Neijing marks the basic formation of the TCM academic system, which has been continuously improved and matured through the ages. Like other traditional Chinese cultures, it follows a “classical extension” development model. This is a mode of academic continuity where classical works serve as the source, and later developments flow from it, maintaining the essence of the source. The framework of the TCM academic system constructed by the Neijing, its established basic concepts, theoretical norms, thinking methods, clinical principles, and diagnostic principles have played a role throughout the development of TCM and have not fundamentally changed to this day. One cannot seek fish by climbing a tree; clarifying the source leads to a clear flow. Studying the academic thoughts of the Neijing is representative of grasping the essence of TCM. Its academic thoughts include the following two aspects:
(1) Unique Medical Theory
1. View of the Human Body
Regarding the origin of life and its dominion, it was initially attributed to the creation of “immortals” or “heavenly emperors.” Therefore, many natural phenomena, such as the sun and moon, mountains and rivers, thunder and lightning, rain and snow, drought, disease, and death, were often explained as the dominion of immortals or heavenly emperors, reflecting an early religious superstition known as the “age of divine authority.” During this time, people’s thoughts were dominated by the supernatural, leading to the emergence of shamans who prayed and performed sacrifices. They personified the imagined “gods” and absorbed certain medical knowledge to treat people through superstitious methods, attributing life, illness, and death to the dominion of supernatural beings. With the emergence of the “Qi Theory” and the dialectical materialist theory of Yin-Yang and the Five Elements during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, people began to doubt the religious superstitions and no longer believed in supernatural dominion. They started to understand and explain natural phenomena based on the true nature of the natural world, leading life sciences toward materialism. The materialist “Qi” theory, proposed by the Daoists of the Jixia Academy in the late Warring States period, posits that the origin of the universe is “Qi,” and all things are produced from Qi, which is a subtle material element constituting everything. Humans are composed of the refined parts of the original Qi, also known as “Yuan Qi” (元气). Due to the infiltration of Qi theory into the medical field, the view that all things are composed of Qi is inevitably reflected in the Neijing. The theory of the Neijing not only considers “Qi” to be material but also believes that “Qi” possesses infinite vitality.
Guided by the idea of “the human and nature being interrelated,” the Neijing examines humans within the universe and nature, asserting that while humans are the most precious among all things, they are also products and organic components of nature. Thus, it proposes the saying “the vital energy connects to heaven,” forming a holistic view of life where heaven and humanity are interconnected and mutually restrictive, which is more in line with the objective processes of life activities than the medical concepts that sever the organic connection between humans and nature. Influenced by the ancient philosophical Qi theory and the “Dao as a vessel” view, the Neijing regards humans as vessels of Qi aggregation and dispersion, where life phenomena are processes and results of the movement of Qi. Therefore, the focus is not on the structural anatomy but on the functional activities, methods, and interconnections of life processes, proposing the theory of life function structure that “is formed by the laws of the four seasons,” the theory of life function homeostasis of “Yin and Yang balance” and the Five Elements’ generation and control, and the dynamic life process theory of “Qi and transformation.” Compared to the anatomical exploration of life activities and their medical applications, these methodologies differ significantly in theoretical connotation and scientific value.
2. View of Disease
Regarding the concept of disease, the Suwen (素问) states: “The ultimate numbers in the world, the changes of the five colors and pulses, are measured by the extraordinary. The spirit does not turn back; if it turns back, it does not turn, thus losing its mechanism. ‘One’ signifies order, harmony, and unity, with the key being the normal operation of spirit and Qi. The disruption of this order and harmony, namely the loss of the spirit’s mechanism, is disease. Later physicians summarized this from the perspective of Yin and Yang as ‘one Yin and one Yang is the Dao, while偏阴偏阳 (偏阴偏阳) is disease.’ Therefore, all activities of body and mind, including diet, daily living, emotions, and thoughts, that deviate from physiological norms can lead to disease due to Yin-Yang imbalance. It does not use structural and material changes as the sole standard for measuring disease and health but emphasizes the disorder and dysfunction of overall physiological functions.
Regarding the occurrence of disease, the Neijing elucidates its mechanism through the concept of “the struggle between evil and righteousness,” proposing that the invasion of the six evils, dietary harm, and emotional disturbances summarize the modes of disease causation. It seeks the pathological significance of etiology and pathogenesis from the interaction between pathogenic factors and the body’s resistance, namely “examining the evidence to seek the cause.” It emphasizes the pathogenic role of abnormal factors but places greater emphasis on the body’s response to these factors, using the types of human responses as the basis for treatment, which fundamentally differs from the Western medical view that focuses solely on material pathogenic factors.
Regarding the mechanisms of disease changes, the Neijing analyzes the overall functional disorders in a macro and dynamic manner, proposing theories based on the changes in organs, meridians, Qi, blood, and body fluids, such as the theories of exterior and interior, cold and heat, the struggle between evil and righteousness, and the disorder of Qi and blood circulation, which form the basis for clinical diagnosis and treatment. The pathological view of the Neijing centers on the understanding of functional disorders as the core of its ontological and value judgments, which is the fundamental reason for its effectiveness in treating functional disorders while being less adept at addressing organic diseases.
3. View of Disease Prevention and Treatment
Based on the view of disease, the Neijing proposes the principle of examining the mechanism for diagnosis and treatment, which is the source and prototype of the academic concept of syndrome differentiation and treatment. Examining the mechanism involves investigating, organizing, analyzing, and synthesizing clinical symptoms to determine the essence of the disease, which is a summary of the overall functional disorder caused by the interaction of pathogenic factors and the body. It varies with time and individual, evolving into the concept of “syndrome” in later generations, thus making “syndrome” the diagnostic concept and treatment target. Therefore, the fundamental characteristic of TCM treatment is the dynamic, comprehensive coordination of overall functions.
TCM treatment emphasizes individualization, focusing on treating the person with the disease; it advocates the combined application of various methods, emphasizing comprehensive therapy. Its principles of seeking the root cause, addressing symptoms, differentiating between excess and deficiency, and adapting treatment according to circumstances resemble systematic regulatory methods. This treatment concept and approach place greater emphasis on the individual in relation to the disease; in the overall and local aspects of the body, as well as in function and structure, it emphasizes the overall and functional aspects; in the commonalities and individualities of disease changes, it emphasizes the commonalities.
For disease prevention, the Neijing proposes a health-preserving philosophy centered on enhancing physical fitness, integrating it with the pursuit of health and longevity. It establishes principles for health preservation that adapt to natural changes externally and promote the body’s resistance and coordination internally, effectively guiding various self-health practices, making it unique in global health medicine.
(2) Methodological Characteristics
The 20th century was a tumultuous period for TCM. The arrival of the spring of technological development in the late 1970s brought significant advancements in TCM, yet many phenomena within the TCM community are perplexing: for instance, the national standardized and planned “TCM” textbooks in 1978 and 1995 replaced “Zangfu” with “Cangxiang,” aligning with Western medical concepts; TCM research topics, methodological designs, and results evaluations all adopted Western medical standards, engaging in “identity research”; major disease studies required “one mechanism (pathology) to explain” and “one prescription to treat”; the development of new TCM drugs based on Western pharmacology’s “component theory” demanded “rapid effects” and “specific effects”; and the unique characteristics and advantages of TCM were overlooked, with TCM hospitals competing comprehensively with Western hospitals, leading to misguided decisions. We believe that, aside from other complex factors, a significant common reason for these issues is our lack of understanding of our traditional medicine. If we cannot deeply understand and grasp the academic characteristics of our own theories, we will misjudge both leniency and strictness.
The so-called characteristics are comparative; discussing the characteristics of TCM should be in relation to Western medicine. In ancient times, without a comparative object, it was challenging to clarify one’s academic characteristics. After the introduction of Western medicine to China, the TCM and Western medicine integration school began to explore this, and some scholars have touched upon the differences and essence of TCM and Western medicine. For example, Zhu Peiwen stated that TCM and Western medicine “each have their merits and cannot be biased,” while Yun Shujuo said, “Western medicine’s physiology is based on anatomy, while the Neijing‘s physiology is based on Qi transformation,” indicating that they lead to the same goal through different paths. Their insights during a time of underdeveloped science are commendable. We believe that the fundamental difference between the academic systems of TCM and Western medicine lies in their research methods. Compared to Western medicine, the TCM academic system has the following basic methodological characteristics.
1. Functionalization of Basic Concepts—Understanding Life Laws from a Functional Perspective
Concepts are the basic elements of logical reasoning and the fundamental units of analysis in an academic system. TCM and Western medicine each have their basic concepts, some of which share identical names but have significant differences in connotation. This difference is closely related to the cultural background, philosophical foundations, and conditions and environments of medical practice in which TCM and Western medicine were formed.
People’s understanding of the mysteries of life begins with life phenomena. In the early formation of medical theory, both East and West used dissection as a research method, as recorded in the Huangdi Neijing: “Its death can be dissected and observed.” However, how to connect life phenomena with the dissection of internal organs was impossible without advanced instruments and precise measurement methods; the results of observation could not effectively guide clinical practice. In other words, dissection at that time could not directly lead to the generation of medical theory. Due to this reason, the development of ancient Western medicine was slow until modern times, when philosophical changes and improvements in observational methods, such as the use of microscopes, revolutionized medical research ideas and methods, directly linking anatomical structures with life phenomena, forming the foundational theories of Western medicine. However, this was not the case in ancient China.
When it became clear that dissection could not directly explain life phenomena and guide medical activities, the prevailing natural philosophical methods were adopted. First, observations were made of life phenomena and their related aspects, then the “commonalities” in the observed content were extracted, classified according to their forms, functions, patterns, and evolutionary methods, and representative “categories” were expressed using symbolic signs, images, or representative concrete objects. This process of reasoning by analogy is referred to by the philosopher Wang Fuzhi during the Ming and Qing dynasties as “observing phenomena to clarify principles” and “observing phenomena to understand the essence.” Using this method of thinking, only functional concepts could be derived, rather than anatomical entities. For example, the Suwen states: “The phenomena of the five organs can be analogized,” and Wang Bing explains: “Phenomena refer to Qi phenomena; although the five organs are hidden and unseen, their functional characteristics can still be inferred from objects. For instance, the liver symbolizes wood and is flexible, the heart symbolizes fire and rises, the spleen symbolizes earth and is stable, the lungs symbolize metal and are firm, and the kidneys symbolize water and are moist.” Here, wood, fire, earth, metal, and water are merely symbolic signs representing the functional characteristics of the five organs, derived through analogy, and their essence is based on the physiological functions existing within the body, not necessarily corresponding to the anatomical organs. Some argue that the heart governs blood vessels and the lungs govern respiration, indicating that the TCM concept of organs is based on anatomical entities, which is a partial view. Indeed, there is a direct connection between the heart and blood vessels, and the lungs and respiration, but this is merely an early acceptance of such obvious direct connections in the formation of TCM theory. The functions of the heart governing the spirit and the lungs governing Qi cannot be understood without the “observing phenomena to clarify principles” approach. Others criticize that TCM concepts do not align with anatomical entities, violating the principle of the unity of structure and function, lacking a material basis. This is a narrow materialistic view. Wang Fuzhi stated: “All uses in the world are based on what exists. I know its essence from its use; how can there be doubt? The use exists to produce effects, and the essence exists to determine its nature; essence and use mutually require each other to be real, thus filling the world and following the Dao.” The mechanisms of life activities are complex, and the laws of life activities should be explored from multiple angles. The mechanisms and laws of life activities reflected in TCM theory have been validated through over a thousand years of medical practice, and there must be corresponding material structures. Therefore, a different approach should be taken to study them from multiple systems, multiple levels, and multiple dimensions, rather than simply seeking “identity” with Western medicine.
The functionalization of concepts is a fundamental characteristic of TCM, and other characteristics must be established on this premise. For instance, discussing the holistic view must involve functional interconnections and regulation, as Huang Yuanyu stated in the Four Saints Heart Source: “The generation and control of the Five Elements are based on Qi and not on quality; if quality is established, it cannot generate control.” The connection on a structural level is difficult to establish. This creates a bridge for communication between TCM and other ancient Chinese disciplines, including natural sciences and humanities, such as comparing treating diseases with governing a country or waging war. More importantly, it endows TCM diagnostic and treatment theories and methods with functional connotations. The so-called syndrome differentiation is to discern the pathological functional state of the human body, and treatment is also a comprehensive adjustment of the pathological functional state. Therefore, one cannot expect TCM to diagnose pathogens or solely use abnormalities in modern anatomical structures as the standard for determining TCM efficacy. While this implies a shortcoming in TCM as an applied science and technology, it also has its advantages. Its approach of conducting adjustments from a functional, macro, and comprehensive perspective shows remarkable efficacy for complex diseases involving multiple systems, organs, and tissues, as well as for mental, endocrine, immune, and unexplained functional disorders, demonstrating not only practical value but also profound academic significance in today’s transformation of medical models.
2. Holistic Integration of Theoretical Models—Understanding Life Laws from the Perspective of Holistic Connections
The holistic view refers to the organic whole perspective that sees all things as universally interconnected, acknowledging the interrelations and influences between things and their internal parts and levels. Many believe that the holistic view is unique to TCM; however, Western medicine also discusses holism, especially in recent years, as scientific and technological advancements have accelerated towards a holistic and integrated direction, significantly impacting the self-improvement of Western medical theories and methods. However, analyzing the formation of theories and academic connotations, there are significant differences between the holistic views of TCM and Western medicine.
Unlike Western medicine, which conducts experimental observations in a fragmented manner under intellectual analysis and then restores the connections, the holistic concept of TCM originates from direct, overall observations of nature and society, including life phenomena, guided by ancient Chinese natural philosophy, leading this observation to a rational understanding level. First, ancient people observed that human life activities are closely related to their living environment, thus establishing the organic connection between humans and nature, forming the concept of “heaven and humanity as one”; they observed that there is a close relationship between life abilities and physical form, as well as between mental and physical states, thus establishing the organic connection among physiology, psychology, and physicality, forming the concepts of “body and spirit as one” and “mind and body as one.” Secondly, to meet the needs of medical research and application, ancient people integrated these three connections into the basic concepts and theoretical models of TCM, becoming the fundamental academic connotation of TCM theory and the guiding principles and value orientations for clinical diagnosis and treatment. This is reflected in the organic connection between humans and nature, as the Neijing has the famous assertion that “the vital energy connects to heaven,” thus the five organs not only maintain the coordination of the internal physiological environment but also have temporal and spatial connotations, governing the body’s adaptation to seasonal and environmental changes. Therefore, the Suwen states, “Humans are formed by the laws of the four seasons,” and “the liver is located on the left, while the lungs are stored on the right”; reflecting the organic connection among human physiology, psychology, and physicality, the Neijing posits that the five organs govern the five bodies, store essence, and house the spirit, thus the five organs are also referred to as the “five hidden organs” or “five spiritual organs.” Consequently, the five organs become the central hub of life activities that connect the internal and external, coordinating the mind and body, which is a concentrated embodiment of TCM’s holistic view in its basic concepts.
Beyond the five organs, other basic concepts in TCM, such as meridians and Qi and blood, share similar connotations. This has led TCM to study human life activities and their medical applications from the perspectives of natural and social environments, biological attributes, and psychological effects, guiding clinical applications. The holistic view’s guiding role in clinical practice encompasses the environmental changes of climate and soil, economic and cultural factors, dietary and psychological imbalances as causes and pathogenesis, treatment methods that vary with time, place, and individual, and specific therapeutic measures that reflect comprehensive adjustments, which will not be elaborated here.
The above discussion emphasizes that TCM focuses on studying the universal connections within and outside the living body, forming concepts and constructing theoretical models. It also deeply recognizes that the natural order of these connections is holistic harmony, using theories such as Qi, Yin-Yang, and the Five Elements as a framework for rational deduction and interpretation of the mechanisms and processes of life activities. The Qi theory summarizes the generation, evolution, and extinction processes of life energy, while the Yin-Yang and Five Elements theories specifically elaborate on the mechanisms of organic connections within the living body, including opposing and complementary activities. These serve as specific forms for analyzing the overall connections in life activities, possessing the role of theoretical paradigms. For instance, the Lingshu states, “The rise and fall of Qi leads to life and death,” discussing the ten stages of life processes based on the rise and fall of Qi, using “good walking,” “good seeking,” “good stepping,” “good sitting,” and “good lying” as symbols of Qi’s rise and fall. Qi, which is also referred to as vital energy, encompasses the overall concept of physical state, physiological function, and mental state. Similarly, the concepts of storing and draining in relation to the organs indicate that storage refers to the functions of life materialization, storage, and exertion, while draining refers to the functions of material excretion and metabolic waste elimination; the two are interdependent and mutually restrictive, encompassing the opposing and complementary functions of life activities and their interconnections. Furthermore, the Suwen discusses the five organs as the center, corresponding to the five directions, five times, and five tastes, internally linked to the five bowels, five senses, five bodies, and five emotions, constructing a five-function activity system that integrates the connections between heaven and humanity, physical form, physiology, and psychology, thus embodying the holistic concept in TCM theory.
In studying the academic characteristics of TCM theory, it is essential to clarify that all the connections discussed above are predicated on functionalized concepts. Additionally, several issues must be understood. First, the essence of the holistic concept is to study things from the perspective of organic connections, and the medical concepts and theoretical norms formed by TCM using this way of thinking and research methods must summarize the interconnections, mechanisms, and processes of various functions in life activities. Therefore, research on TCM theory should abandon the Western medical approach of seeking specific substances to explore the essence of TCM concepts and instead focus on the functional activities, interconnection mechanisms, and evolutionary laws suggested by TCM theory. For example, the concepts of Qi and blood in TCM exist in mutual connection; their essence should be explored from the relationship between Qi and blood. Severing Qi and blood and studying them separately is meaningless and unlikely to succeed. Similarly, the functional activities of the five organs exist within the context of holistic connections; although discussing a specific organ may seem to involve other organs, this is merely for convenience. In reality, no organ in TCM can exist in isolation, and its concept should be explored from the interconnectedness of the five organs, rather than through a purely fragmented approach. Second, the concepts of TCM formed under the guidance of the holistic view have overly broad inclusivity and wide extensions. For instance, the concept of spirit encompasses natural laws, life abilities, and emotional consciousness; the concept of Qi is even broader, seemingly without definition. TCM foundational theories include concepts such as Zong Qi (宗气), Zhen Qi (真气), Ying Qi (营气), and Wei Qi (卫气), as well as Qi associated with organs and meridians. The Lingshu even refers to essence, blood, body fluids, and pulses as Qi. This is due to TCM’s emphasis on holistic connections and the desire to reflect this in its concepts, while the objects, scope, and temporal-spatial conditions of these connections are variable. This necessitates discernment in learning and research. The method of discernment is to organize the basic concepts from TCM classical texts, distinguishing the levels of concepts, clarifying their core connotations, and identifying their generalizations and conditional limitations. For example, when discussing the concept of the five organs, if referring to the Qi transformation mechanism of life activities, it involves the Qi of the five organs; if discussing life in accordance with the four seasons, it involves the five organs of the four seasons; if discussing the activities of consciousness, it involves the five organs of consciousness. Thus, there are three types of “organs”—Qi transformation, seasonal adaptation, and consciousness—that should be defined.
3. Dynamic Expression of Theoretical Models—Understanding Life Laws from the Perspective of Movement and Change
Movement and change are the essential properties of existence, as well as inherent characteristics of life. Ancient people had long observed the fact that life changes continuously with the passage of time. However, due to the complexity of life parameters, the variables produced by movement are even more challenging to grasp. In this regard, TCM and Western medicine have adopted different attitudes, reflected in their cognitive approaches and research methods within their academic systems.
Western medicine, based on modern scientific foundations, adopts a “fixed” intellectual analysis method, segmenting continuous time for static research. The results are precise and accurate but also detached from the living, real nature of life. In contrast, TCM, in its early formation, lacked precise instruments and could not measure the multiple variables in human life activities separately, relying instead on overall observation and comprehensive research. The observed subjects were the ever-changing physiological and pathological phenomena, leading to the academic characteristic of TCM that grasps life laws from the perspective of movement and change, resulting in dynamic theoretical expressions. Although its conclusions may be coarse, they reflect the natural and authentic essence of life.
This is primarily manifested in three aspects:
First, medical concepts possess temporal connotations. Time is the measure of the movement and state changes of things; any concept that indicates a temporal meaning signifies that it has a dynamic connotation. Taking the five organs as an example, the Suwen states, “The five organs correspond to the four seasons,” indicating that the five organs thrive with the seasons, reflecting the integration of the body’s vital energy during the seasonal transitions. Thus, when mentioning the liver, one should not only recognize it as the organ that stores blood and governs the flow but also relate it to the spring’s growth and spring-related diseases. In other words, spring’s growth and spring-related diseases are sought in the liver.
Second, medical theories explicitly express the principles of life movement and change. The Suwen states: “The ultimate numbers of the Dao… the spirit does not turn back; if it turns back, it does not turn, thus losing its mechanism.” TCM conceptually views orderly movement and change as the fundamental form of life existence, and although the traditional language and terminology it uses require interpretation, the meanings expressed regarding the growth, aging, and life processes, as well as the mechanisms and laws of Qi and blood movement, are evident.
Third, syndrome differentiation and treatment reflect the dynamic view of TCM diagnosis and treatment. Syndrome refers to the stage-specific patterns of disease mechanisms during the disease process; although it possesses a certain stability, it changes with the disease. Moreover, the formation of syndromes is closely related to the temporal flow of internal and external environmental factors, such as the characteristics of pathogenic factors and the types of symptoms, which are highly time-sensitive; internal injuries and symptoms are related to the patient’s age and the rhythms of Qi, blood, and meridian movements, all of which are significant for TCM diagnosis and treatment. The principles of “not going against the natural order” and “not losing the appropriate timing” are based on this. The fact that the syndrome changes before and after a disease, and that medication and treatment vary with time, is a clear manifestation of the dynamic characteristics of TCM theory.
The dynamic characteristics endow TCM theory with two inherent qualities: first, it neglects the specificity and measurability of the material aspects of life, providing a vague overall expression of the dynamic trajectory of life from the perspective of functional phenomena. In the early stages of TCM theory, precise measurements of structural anatomy were neither possible nor effective, especially when expressing the dynamic characteristics of life; thus, ancient people could only seek to describe the movement trajectory from the perspective of life phenomena and their internal functional changes, leading to a vague treatment of the structural aspects of life. For instance, the measurement of excessive or insufficient pulse conditions, the judgment of color and luster, and the expression of the Yin-Yang and Eight Principles are all characterized by vagueness. This method of expression uses macro, holistic, and boundary-unclear language, rather than mathematical symbols, thus being closer to the natural dynamic evolution mechanisms and processes of life. For example, the Suwen states, “Heaven and earth’s Yin and Yang are not measured by numbers but are described by phenomena.” Correspondingly, in exploring disease treatment, TCM has also discovered clinical handling methods using natural medicines for vague regulation, which still hold scientific significance and practical value today. We believe that grasping this point is crucial for the study of TCM theory. First, the research ideas of modern scientific experimental methods, which are “fixed,” differ significantly from the traditional Chinese scientific culture that reflects the movement and change of things through vague expressions. Therefore, when using experimental methods to study TCM theory, high technology should be employed to continuously describe or connect multiple “fixed” states, approaching the objective process for comprehensive examination and research. Second, while the vagueness of theoretical expression is unavoidable, it serves as a means to study and grasp the dynamic nature of life activities. The diagnoses and treatments formed through this should actively utilize modern fuzzy theory for research and application development. Second, unlike the Western view that time is a uniformly flowing process, ancient Chinese people always combined the flow of time with spatial changes, believing that the flow of time has periodicity, meaning that spatial states undergo periodic changes with the passage of time. In TCM, this has led to the theory of life rhythms. Although its significance for the existence and development of life is not yet fully understood, TCM has long observed this phenomenon and applied it to guide disease diagnosis and treatment. We should not only develop the practical value of TCM’s life rhythm theory but also delve into its scientific significance, contributing to life sciences.
By grasping life laws from functional, holistic, and dynamic perspectives, TCM theory has developed three major academic characteristics: functionalization, holistic integration, and dynamic expression. These characteristics are historically formed, rooted in the cultural background and philosophical foundations of the Chinese nation, reflecting the unique ideas, methods, and values of traditional Chinese life sciences and medicine. The life laws they reflect should become important content in modern life sciences and medical research. Currently, understanding and grasping these three academic characteristics are meaningful for correcting TCM research ideas, exploring research methods, clarifying the development laws of TCM, promoting the pace of discipline development, and making correct decisions in TCM education, textbook reform, and the TCM industry.
Author’s Biography | Jia Yuejin, Chief Physician, Master’s Supervisor, Director of the Preventive Medicine Center at the Affiliated Hospital of Shanxi University of Traditional Chinese Medicine; Leader in Neurology; Executive Member of the Internal Medicine Branch of the Chinese Association of Traditional Chinese Medicine; Executive Member of the Brain Disease Branch of the Chinese Association of Traditional Chinese Medicine; Executive Director of the Second Council of the Sub-health Professional Committee of the World Federation of Chinese Medicine Societies; Executive Director of the Shanxi Province Association of Traditional Chinese Medicine; Vice Chairman of the Cardiovascular Disease Professional Committee of the Shanxi Province Geriatric Society; Member of the Neurology Physician Branch of the Shanxi Province Physician Association. He has published over ten monographs and more than ten papers. With over 30 years of clinical practice, he specializes in TCM and non-drug therapies for various diseases and the regulation of sub-health states, particularly with rich clinical experience in treating headaches, dizziness, insomnia, depression, as well as stroke, facial paralysis, and neck, shoulder, waist, and leg pain. He has conducted in-depth research on the use of medicinal pastes for sub-health and chronic diseases. Consultation hours: Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday mornings, and Tuesday afternoons.
