Pearls and Jade from the Sea of Medicine
Xiao Yonglin / Xiao JipingPeople's Medical Publishing House1998
No rating yet- Word count
- 242 words
- ISBN
- 9787117030014
Tags
Health and Medicine Health Clinical PracticeTCM LearningTCM ClassicsMedical DiscourseTreatment PrinciplesZang-Fu and QiZang-Fu Yin-YangAcademic StudyTCM LearnersSummary
Compiled by Xiao Yonglin and Xiao Jiping, Pearls and Jade from the Sea of Medicine is a thematic anthology of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) writings, published by the People's Medical Publishing House in October 1998 and running to about 242,000 Chinese characters. Its title, drawn from the saying "pearls grow within shells, jade lies hidden in stone," signals that the contents are essences gathered from the vast ocean of medical texts. Since medical writings are so numerous that clinicians and teachers can scarcely read them all, the authors excerpted passages from their day-to-day reading that combine literary grace with sound doctrine, arranged them by theme, and appended notes and commentaries to each entry to bring out its subtler points, thus forming a volume for TCM clinicians, teachers, students, and enthusiasts. The book broadly covers health preservation and care, yin-yang and water-fire, the zang-fu organs and qi-blood, the six climatic pathogens, deficiency and excess with tonification and draining, diagnostic methods and pulse signs, and therapeutic principles and methods; most selections are discussions by later physicians, and the editors deliberately excluded the original text of the Inner Canon, deeming every line of it a pearl beyond any selection. A formulary index at the end aids lookup. In form, the book resembles a reading notebook—classified excerpts with notes and commentaries—rather than a systematic textbook. Its strength lies in clear, decisive selection and orderly arrangement, allowing readers to dip in at random and meet the essential words of the ancients; its limitation is that both excerpts and notes reflect the editors' personal judgment, so readers should consult the original sources and clinical practice alongside it. With a small first printing of 3,000 copies, it has become a sought-after old title among collectors of TCM literature.Editor's review
中医古籍汗牛充栋，一本读不完，也记不住。这本书解决的正是“读不过来”的难题：编者把散见于后世医书中的精彩段落分类摘出，一句一段都加了注释和按语，读者不必翻检原书，就能读到历代医家关于养生、阴阳、脏腑、气血、诊法、治则的核心论述。它的价值不在于创新，而在于“选”和“注”——选得精，注得透，按语里往往有编者自己的临证体会。全书仅二十四万余字，篇幅克制，却横跨中医理论的几个主干，适合作为案头随手翻检的“要言集”。1998年初印仅三千册，市面上多为旧书，品相参差，但内容并未过时——中医的经典论述本就不随时间失效。需要提醒的是，它的体例是摘录汇编而非系统教材，读时最好与原书对照，把它当作“引路人”而不是“替代品”。Who it's for
A good fit for
- 有一定中医基础、想快速接触历代医论精华的临床医师
- 中医院校学生，用作课外泛读与理论串讲的辅助材料
- 中医文献与旧版医书的收藏、整理爱好者
- 喜欢逐条细读、随手批注式阅读的中医自学者
Not a good fit for
- 零基础、希望从零系统学习中医的入门读者，本书体例偏摘录，缺少循序渐进的讲解
- 想找具体病案处方、按病查方的读者，本书重点在医论而非方证
- 习惯现代教材式编排、需要明确学习路径的备考学生
Reading tips
- 先通读目录框架，按养生、阴阳、脏腑、气血的顺序推进，先建立整体印象再回头精读。
- 每读一条原文，先自行理解，再看编者注释与按语，比较差异，效果最好。
- 遇到引文出处可追溯的，翻原书对照上下文，避免断章取义。
- 备一册笔记本，把按语中涉及临证思路的句子单独摘出，日后与自己的医案互参。
About the publisher
People's Medical Publishing House China · Founded in 1953Founded in 1953, the People's Medical Publishing House is an important institution in China's medical publishing field, with publishing directions covering medical textbooks, academic monographs, medical journals, and popular science books. Its collection contains 2,503 titles, mainly classified under medicine. Representative works include the Complete Book of Chinese Nutrition Science (2nd Edition, 2 volumes), Guide to Clinical Practice with Medical Records, the Golden Mirror of Medicine (Volume 1), Chinese Medical Imaging: Head and Neck Volume (3rd Edition), and the Essentials of the Golden Cabinet from the Collected Clinical Chinese Medicine Must-Read Series (Collector's Edition), spanning both modern medicine and classical Chinese medical texts. Representative authors include Yang Yuexin, Ge Keyou, Ye Tianshi, Su Li, Wu Qian, Zheng Jinsheng, Wang Zhenchang, and Xian Junfang, covering fields such as nutrition, Chinese medicine, and medical imaging. With a publishing approach that balances textbooks and academic monographs, the press has established the "Renwei" brand.
FAQ
这本书是古籍还是现代人的著作？
它是现代人的编著，不是古籍。肖永林、肖寄平从历代医籍中摘录医论段落，分类编排并加注释、按语，1998年由人民卫生出版社出版，属于中医文献辑录类著作。书里为什么没有《内经》的内容？
编者在自序中说明，本书未收载《内经》之文，理由是《内经》句句珠玑、收不胜收，无法再做摘选。因此全书取材于《内经》之外的历代医书。全书多少字、多少页？
据版权页，全书242千字，1998年10月第1版第1次印刷，印数1至3000册，定价15元；旧书交易信息显示为287页左右。现在还能买到新书吗？
该书初印仅3000册，早已绝版，目前主要见于二手书平台与电子扫描本流传，纸质旧书品相与价格差异较大，购买时需留意版本与完整性。This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.
About the author
Xiao Yonglin AuthorXiao Yonglin's biographical details remain unknown, and publicly available information is limited. At present, only one work by this author is known, Yihai Zhuyu (Pearls and Gems from the Sea of Medicine). Classified under medicine and health, the book appears, judging by its title, to deal with medical knowledge, clinical observations, or historical anecdotes of medicine, and it carries the elegant flavor of traditional medical writing. Since the author's career, professional background, and academic lineage cannot be verified, it is difficult to assess the standpoint or scope of the material. Readers may treat Yihai Zhuyu as a medical work that combines informative content with readability. On the available evidence, Xiao Yonglin writes for general readers and medical enthusiasts, seeking to preserve readability alongside professional content, and the work's influence lies mainly in its actual circulation as a single title.
Xiao Jiping AuthorXiao Jiping: publicly available information is limited, and only one representative work, *Pearls from the Sea of Medicine*, is currently known. Judging from the title and its common classification, the book falls under medicine and health and is likely concerned with medical knowledge, clinical experience, or health preservation, making it a popular medical work intended for general readers. As the author's life, educational background, and professional qualifications are not clearly recorded, it is difficult to determine whether Xiao Jiping has a clinical or research identity, nor is it possible to confirm the work's academic depth or the sources of its material. On the available evidence, Xiao Jiping's writing appears to gather and present selected essentials from the broad field of medicine, using "pearls" as a metaphor; the style may favor concise, practical knowledge entries that are easy to consult and use for everyday reference. Works of this kind in the health category often serve to spread knowledge and summarize experience, and their influence depends mainly on whether the content is accurate, reliable, and close to readers' actual needs. With only one work in the database, it is not yet possible to trace the author's overall writing trajectory or stylistic development; the above assessment rests only on the title, classification, and structural clues, and a fuller evaluation of Xiao Jiping's contribution must await further materials.