Laws of the Medical Profession

Yu ChangQunyan Publishing House · ChinaJun 2024

4.5

Word count: 222K words
Chapters: 8

Summary

Yi Men Fa Lü (Medical Gate: Methods and Statutes) was written by the renowned early Qing physician Yu Chang. The book has six volumes in total. Volume one expounds the four diagnostic methods and the methods and statutes of the Inner Canon and Zhang Zhongjing's teachings; volumes two through six discuss in separate sections cold of the middle, wind-stroke, the three qi of heat, dampness, and summerheat, damage by dryness, malaria, dysentery, phlegm-fluid retention, cough, retention and rejection, wasting-thirst, consumptive labor, edema, jaundice, and pulmonary abscess and atrophy. Under each section, the etiology, pathogenesis, and pattern-treatment are discussed first, then the 'methods' are set out, and finally formulas are appended. The 'methods' discuss the principles and flexibility of pattern differentiation and treatment; the 'statutes' point out the causes of medical errors and the culpability borne by physicians.

Editor's review

Yi Men Fa Lü is a clinical medical treatise by the early Qing physician Yu Chang, marked by a distinct critical and normative awareness. In six volumes, volume one gives a general discussion of the four diagnostic methods and the doctrines of the Inner Canon and Zhang Zhongjing, with a clear orientation of 'taking the classics as the method'; volumes two through six discuss in separate sections cold of the middle, wind-stroke, heat, dampness, and summerheat, damage by dryness, malaria, dysentery, phlegm-fluid retention, cough, retention and rejection, wasting-thirst, consumptive labor, edema, jaundice, and pulmonary abscess and atrophy. Its format is distinctive: each section first discusses etiology, pathogenesis, and pattern-treatment, then sets out the 'methods' to discuss the principles and flexibility of pattern differentiation and treatment, and finally appends formulas; the 'statutes' specifically refer to the causes of medical errors and the responsibility physicians should bear. This parallel writing of 'methods' and 'statutes' makes the book not only a reference for clinical pattern differentiation and treatment but also a work with a sense of medical ethics and medical norms. For today's TCM readers, the book's value lies in discussing theory, clinical practice, and responsibility within a single framework; reading it reveals both Yu Chang's integration of the classics with clinical practice and his serious attitude toward physicians' conduct. It is suitable as an advanced reader for the study of TCM clinical practice and medical history and literature, and should be read alongside classics such as the Inner Canon and the Treatise on Cold Damage.

Who it's for

A good fit for

TCM clinicians wishing to draw pattern-differentiation thinking and normative awareness from early Qing medical treatises
Teachers and students at TCM colleges for studying the history of TCM scholarship and clinical medical treatises
Researchers of TCM literature concerned with the 'methods' and 'statutes' format and the writing of medical ethics norms
Formula enthusiasts with some foundation in the classics who wish to understand Yu Chang's clinical views in depth

Not a good fit for

TCM enthusiasts with no foundation, for whom the many classical terms and disease discussions pose a high threshold
Readers who merely want to look up formulas corresponding to modern disease names, as the book is not organized by modern disease classification
Ordinary readers expecting light popular-science reading, as the original argumentative style is rather serious and archaic

Reading tips

First read volume one's discussion of the four diagnostic methods and the classics to establish the book's 'methods as the standard' reading framework
For each section, first read the etiology, pathogenesis, and pattern-treatment, then compare the 'methods' and 'statutes' sections to understand their normative intent
Read alongside the relevant passages of the Inner Canon and the Treatise on Cold Damage to avoid memorizing formulas in isolation
When reading the appended formulas, note their correspondence to current clinical disease patterns for later retrieval

About the publisher

Qunyan Publishing House China · Founded in 1989

Founded in 1989, Qunyan Publishing House has long been committed to publishing academic and educational books for mid- and high-level readers, and has built up a certain presence in Eastern philosophy, classical literature, and classic works. Representative titles available in the database include Records of the Grand Historian, Dream of the Red Chamber, Selections of Refined Literature, Complete Song Ci, Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio, Record of Daily Knowledge, Taiping Huimin Hejiju Fang, and The Collected Works of Wang Yangming, covering common categories such as ancient poetry, medicine, and examinations. Its author resources include Sima Qian, Cao Xueqin, Xiao Tong, Li Shan, Pu Songling, and Gu Yanwu. The press also offers distinctive series such as the Biographical Series of the China Democratic League and the Historical Documents Series of the China Democratic League, and publishes research on historical documents, biographies, memoirs, and textbooks and academic works by League members. Public information is limited, and its overall publishing scale and complete catalogue require further verification.

版权信息
序
卷一\一明望色之法
卷二
卷三
卷四
卷五
卷六

FAQ

What do 'methods' and 'statutes' refer to in Yi Men Fa Lü?

According to the book's format, the 'methods' mainly discuss the principles and flexibility of pattern differentiation and treatment, with the sense of establishing clinical standards; the 'statutes' point out the causes of medical errors and the responsibility physicians should bear, having a cautionary and normative character. Together they extend the clinical discussion beyond formulas and patterns to the physician's judgment and conduct.

Can one read this book directly without a foundation in the TCM classics?

Direct reading through is not really recommended. Volume one involves the four diagnostic methods and the doctrines of the Inner Canon and Zhang Zhongjing, and the latter six volumes discuss diseases by section, with fairly specialized terminology and disease systems. Without a classical foundation, one easily stops at memorizing formulas. It is advisable first to acquire basic concepts from the Inner Canon and the Treatise on Cold Damage before entering this book.

Is this book suitable for looking up formulas for specific diseases?

It can be used in part, but it is not suitable as a formula dictionary. Each section first discusses etiology, pathogenesis, and pattern-treatment, then sets out the 'methods,' and finally appends formulas; formulas are embedded in the pattern-differentiation framework. Looking up only formulas easily neglects the intent of the 'methods' and 'statutes' discussions, so it is best to read them together with the preceding pattern-treatment discussion in each section.

In what order should one read Yi Men Fa Lü?

One may first read volume one to grasp the four diagnostic methods and the classical basis, then read volumes two through six section by section. For each section, first read the etiology, pathogenesis, and pattern-treatment, then the 'methods' and 'statutes,' and finally browse the appended formulas. This establishes the pattern-differentiation framework first and then clarifies the normative intent, avoiding plunging into formula details from the start.

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About the author

Yu Chang Author · Chinese · 1585–1664

Yu Chang, courtesy name Jiayan and art name Xichang Laoren, was a native of Xinjian County in Nanchang Prefecture, Jiangxi (present-day Nanchang). A renowned physician of the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, he is known together with Zhang Lu and Wu Qian as one of the "Three Great Physicians of the Early Qing." He became a secondary tribute student during the Chongzhen era; after the fall of the Ming he once shaved his head and became a monk, later regrowing his hair to practice medicine. In the early Qing he settled in Changshu, Jiangsu, where his medical skill was pure and his treatments often produced remarkable results. His works include Yuyi Cao, Shanglun Pian, Shanglun Houpian, and Yimen Falü. He advocated the "three principles" theory of cold damage and the "autumn dryness" theory, and created the Qingzao Jiufei Tang, exerting a profound influence on later generations. His writings combine medical case records with medical theory, distinguished by careful analysis, and he made contributions in both clinical practice and theory, occupying an important place in the history of Chinese medicine.