Essential Medicines and Their Dosages

沈金鳌Qunyan Publishing House · ChinaJun 2024

3.6

Word count: 86K words
Chapters: 12

Summary

Ten volumes. Written by Shen Jin'ao of the Qing dynasty. Published in 1773. This book is a component of Shen's Works on Preserving Life (Shen shi zun sheng shu). The author classifies drugs according to the ten categories of dispersing, unblocking, tonifying, purging, light, heavy, lubricating, astringent, drying, and dampening, selecting a total of 420 drugs, and discusses in detail each drug's nature and flavor, the seven relations, indications, channel entry, and contraindications. The book also records relevant discussions by earlier authorities, with the author's notes appended at intervals. Extant editions include the Qianlong printed edition; after 1949, a separate edition was issued.

Editor's review

Yaoyao Fenji (Classification of Essential Drugs) is a component of Shen Jin'ao's Shen shi zun sheng shu, published in 1773 in ten volumes. The book classifies 420 selected drugs according to the ten categories of dispersing, unblocking, tonifying, purging, light, heavy, lubricating, astringent, drying, and dampening, and discusses in detail each drug's nature and flavor, the seven relations, indications, channel entry, and contraindications, while recording relevant discussions by earlier authorities and appending the author's notes at intervals. Its value lies in taking the "ten categories" as the framework for organizing drugs, so that clinical drug selection follows recognizable classes and the general direction of each drug's action is easy to grasp; under each drug it gathers nature, flavor, channel entry, and contraindications, balancing theory and application; and the appended notes reflect the author's own insights. For those studying the classification of Chinese materia medica and its clinical application, this book offers a systematic framework of Qing dynasty pharmacy. In reading, one should first understand the meaning of the ten categories, then compare the specific drugs class by class, attend to the analytical approach reflected in the notes, and consult modern textbooks of Chinese materia medica to understand differences between past and present.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Students of Chinese medicine specializing in the classification of Chinese materia medica and its clinical application
Scholars engaged in the collation and study of Qing dynasty pharmaceutical literature
Clinical Chinese medicine practitioners who need to understand the ten-category classification framework
Readers interested in ancient materia medica works and drug contraindications

Not a good fit for

General readers with no foundation in Chinese medicine
Researchers seeking modern pharmacological experimental data
Readers seeking only single prescriptions and folk remedies who are unwilling to study drug-property theory systematically

Reading tips

First master the basic meanings of the ten categories—dispersing, unblocking, tonifying, purging, light, heavy, lubricating, astringent, drying, and dampening—then read drug by drug within each class.
When reading each drug, focus on recording the four items of nature and flavor, channel entry, indications, and contraindications, and build your own notes on drug classification.
When encountering discussions by earlier authorities and Shen Jin'ao's notes, distinguish quotations from the author's views and appreciate his analysis and supplements.
Read alongside modern textbooks of Chinese materia medica to understand similarities and differences in drug classification and efficacy descriptions between past and present.

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
卷二\宣剂下
卷三
卷四
卷五\补剂下
卷六
卷七\泻剂下
卷八
卷九
卷十

FAQ

What classification method does Yaoyao Fenji adopt?

The book classifies drugs according to the ten categories of dispersing, unblocking, tonifying, purging, light, heavy, lubricating, astringent, drying, and dampening, selecting 420 drugs in total; it is a classification that organizes drugs by efficacy category, making it convenient for clinical selection by class.

What does each drug entry mainly discuss?

It discusses each drug's nature and flavor, the seven relations, indications, channel entry, and contraindications, and records relevant discussions by earlier authorities with the author's notes appended at intervals, balancing drug-property theory with key points of clinical application.

What is the relationship between this book and Shen shi zun sheng shu?

Yaoyao Fenji is a component of Shen shi zun sheng shu, written by Shen Jin'ao of the Qing dynasty and published in 1773. Understanding this relationship helps place it within Shen's overall medical works.

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About the author

沈金鳌 Author

Shen Jin'ao was a physician of the Qing dynasty. Available public information is limited, and no reliable records of his birth and death years, native place, or scholarly lineage have been found. Judging from the seven works collected here, his writings span cold damage, miscellaneous diseases, gynecology, pediatrics, pulse studies, and materia medica, covering many branches of clinical practice and medical theory. The Gangmu of Treatise on Cold Damage organizes cold damage doctrine in outline form; Miscellaneous Diseases: Tracing Their Origins examines the sources and development of miscellaneous disorders; Jade Measure in Gynecology and Unraveling the Mysteries of Pediatrics discuss women's and children's conditions respectively; Poems on Pulse Conditions and Their Diseases summarize pulse patterns and associated disorders in verse; and Essential Medicines and Their Actions categorizes the functions of drugs. These works generally use outlines, classifications, and mnemonic verses, making them easy to recite and consult in practice. They reflect an approach that values tracing origins and practical popularization, and have had some influence on later Chinese medical study and textual organization.