The Sinew Gate

Chen MengleiJul 2024

2.8

Word count: 24K words
Chapters: 19

Summary

Traditional Chinese cultural thought has a long history and is highly original, inventive, and literary. Early intellectual forms have distinctive characteristics: religious theology, classical Chinese medical texts, ancient military strategy, Confucian, Daoist, Buddhist, and Hundred Schools thought, feng shui and metaphysics, the Twenty-Four Histories, and customs and gazetteers—all are profound and comprehensive. This "Essence of Classical Chinese Studies: Original Cultural Texts" series preserves the appearance of the original books and focuses on conserving and transmitting traditional Chinese thought and culture. By reading the literary essence left by ancient sages, readers cultivate temperament and subtly come to appreciate the classics of Chinese studies.

Editor's review

Jin Men (The Gate of Sinew) is included in the "Essence of Classical Chinese Studies: Original Cultural Texts" series and presents traditional texts in a form that preserves their original appearance, making it suitable as an introductory reading for approaching ancient thought and classical works. The book's content is set within a broad cultural context—religious theology, classical Chinese medical texts, ancient military strategy, Confucian, Daoist, Buddhist, and Hundred Schools thought—allowing readers to glimpse, through one volume, the layers and connections of the traditional knowledge system. Its value lies not in providing modern scholarly annotation or popular rewriting, but in letting readers directly encounter the wording, format, and ideas of old texts and feel the texture of the originals. Readers need not aim to finish it in one sitting; they can consult the table of contents and choose passages of interest, using reference works to look up difficult characters and terms. For readers who want an overview of the classics of Chinese studies while avoiding over-interpretation, this book offers a relatively plain entry point; those seeking systematic explanation or detailed translation and annotation will need additional reference books.

Who it's for

A good fit for

General readers with a preliminary interest in the classics of Chinese studies who wish to engage directly with original texts
Middle school and non-specialist university students who need an overview of traditional thought and culture
Readers who prefer the original appearance of texts and dislike excessive vernacular rewriting
Practitioners engaged in popularizing traditional culture who need a basic reference text

Not a good fit for

Beginners seeking detailed annotations, vernacular translation, and scholarly introductions
Specialist researchers who need systematic study of a particular topic or school of thought
Readers who prefer light, popular works and lack patience for classical Chinese expression

Reading tips

Begin by browsing the table of contents and format, then select one or two passages of interest for close reading; there is no need to read straight through in order.
Keep a dictionary of common classical Chinese characters on hand and look up difficult characters and terms as you go to reduce reading friction.
After finishing each passage, summarize its main idea in your own words to help digest the original rather than passively scanning it.
Read alongside comparable anthologies of Chinese classics and note differences among editions in how they preserve the original appearance.

版权信息
图书集成医部全录卷二百十四筋门
黄帝素问
灵枢经
扁鹊难经
脉诀【晋王叔和】
千金方【唐孙思邈】
河间六书【金刘完素】
东垣十书【元李杲】
医学正传【明虞抟】
医学纲目【明楼英】
古今医鉴【明龚信】
医贯【明赵献可】
石室秘箓【清陈士铎】
图书集成医部全录卷二百十五筋门
方
单方
针灸
医案

FAQ

Does this book include vernacular translation and detailed annotations?

Judging from the series' positioning, the book focuses on preserving the original appearance of the text and transmitting traditional thought and culture, rather than on vernacular translation and detailed annotation. Readers who need sentence-by-sentence understanding are advised to have classical Chinese reference works on hand or to read alongside an annotated, translated edition for comparison.

Can readers without a foundation in classical Chinese read this book?

They can try, but there will be a certain threshold. It is advisable to start with shorter passages in simpler language, reading slowly with a dictionary and background materials; if it feels difficult, read an annotated introductory anthology first, then return to the original to appreciate its original phrasing.

Is this book suitable for reading straight through from beginning to end?

Reading straight through is not essential. Texts of this kind, which preserve the original appearance of Chinese classics, span a wide range of content and are better suited to reading by selected passages according to interest, or to browsing around a particular theme. Reading straight through can be a long-term plan completed in stages, in small amounts each time with notes.

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About the author

Chen Menglei Author · China · 1651–1741

Chen Menglei (1651–1741), courtesy names Zizhen and Shengzhai, later styled the Old Man of Songhe, was a Qing dynasty scholar from Houguan, Fujian. He passed the imperial examination in the ninth year of the Kangxi reign and was appointed to the Hanlin Academy as a compiler. After 1698, by imperial order, he tutored the third prince, Yinzhii, and took the opportunity to compile a vast classified encyclopedia, the Hui Bian, using the collection of the Xieyi Hall; the Kangxi Emperor later bestowed on it the title Gujin Tushu Jicheng. The library holds more than 410 of his works, mostly sections of the officialdom chapters of that encyclopedia, covering institutions such as the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, the Imperial Observatory, the Ministry of Personnel, the Ministry of Rites, prefectural governors, the Transmission Office, and the Imperial Medical Academy. These works address ancient bureaucratic systems, ritual norms, and administrative practice. His compilations are distinguished by systematic classification and extensive citation, preserving a wealth of source materials for later generations; they are commonly categorized under culture and Eastern philosophy. As public information on his life is limited, this note confines itself to his known scholarly contributions.