品方用药,岂非医之长技哉!某药合某方,某方治某病,辄取而用之,父传师授,皆是术也。夫立方如举
子作文,随题意而阐发无遗;用药如军师遣将,知敌情而因材器使。经云∶视精明,察五色,观五脏有余不
足,六腑强弱,形之盛衰,以此参伍,决死生之分。必如是而后可言医,若执方治病,而不明五运六气之本,经
脉生死之原,概以为头痛则散之发之,而阳虚头痛受其害矣;胀满则消之泄之,而气虚中满受其害矣;身热则
凉之,而阳虚发热受其害矣;燥渴则寒之,而津液内竭受其害矣。仲师序云∶不念思求经旨,以演其所知,乃
各乘家技,终始顺旧,欲视死别生,实为难矣。由此观之,则成方不足重,用药实为难。方技之医,盍改弦
易辙,而加之意乎?
人禀天地阴阳之气以生,父母精血之形以成,甫离胞胎,腑脏之形未充,阴阳之气已立。此形此气,赖乳
为先,间有小疾,多属本气不和,不宜妄投以药,即药亦当调其本气;若概以发散、消痰、清热之药投之,非
惟无益,反害之矣。轩、岐论医,言人身经脉循行之道,血气交会之理,上下内外,升降出入,原无分于长幼。
数千年来,正道无传,方技蜂起,不知经脉血气,如何升降?如何出入?原本未明,遂谓大人、小儿当分科
异治;治既分,则方科寻究方书,儿科秘传歌括,昧昧昏昏,毒流天下。遇病,辄曰点乳勿与。讵知婴儿之病,
轻者什九,重者什一,惟藉名医,知脏腑之原,识阴阳之本,按经投治,以法救之耳!今既绝其乳,复以消散
之剂投之,病至轻者,间亦自愈;若气血有乖而身热,脾胃内虚而生痰者,遇此断不能愈矣。甚至痰益生,则消
益峻,热愈炽,则凉愈投,至死不变,犹谓如是以治而病不愈,无如何矣。是则可叹也已!夫婴儿者,犹物之
初生萌芽也,肠细胃小,藉有形之乳食,养无形之气机,毋容绝也。即曰乳食太过,乍有壅滞,须知一周不食,
胃亦空矣,一剂消食,滞已行矣。平人饮食入胃,传化无停,一日数餐,次日皆传道而出。至饲乳小儿,则随食
随消,传
化尤速∶若绝养胃之乳,复投以戕胃之药,施于无病之儿亦病,况已病乎!即更辩曰∶小儿外感风寒,内停乳
食,身发寒热,胸膈气满,发散消磨且不愈,奚可食哉?而孰知其不然也。风寒原非外感,饮食本不内停,但
古先圣贤,未经明言,世何以知?盖人之一身,有三阴五脏之气,三阳六腑之气,合十二经脉,气血流行,外
则从肌达表,遍行周身以御外侮,内则由脏至腑,气归于胃,以消饮食。如曰外感,则富贵之儿,襁之褓之,
不出户庭,何以多感?贫贱之儿,受风受寒,不避外邪,何以少感?受而不病,则无外感,不受而病,实从内
生矣。如曰内停,则无病之时,频频食乳,何不停食?既病之后,日日不乳,何以停食?若云初因停食而病,
至今未消,试问人之胃腑,何如者也?食停于胃,如此不消,则胃之真气已绝,尚何容医?盖在上脘者,名曰
宿食,入于胃中,即便腐化。若上脘不清,则点水必恶,见食如仇。何以抱病之儿,渴欲求饮,见食朵颐?
由此观之,则外感风寒,内停乳食之说,可废矣。方书诈无为有,儿医日杀生灵,罪将奚归?天欤!其不欲苍
生之环聚欤,乃假其手于儿医欤!
Compounding prescriptions and administering medicines, is this not the physician's specialty? Matching a specific herb to a specific formula, and using a specific formula for a specific disease, merely taking them and applying them—passed down from father to son, teacher to student—is but a craft. Establishing a prescription is like a scholar writing an essay, expounding upon the theme without omission; administering medicine is like a military strategist dispatching generals, knowing the enemy's situation and utilizing talent according to capacity. The *Classic* states: Observe the clarity of the eyes (*Shi Jing Ming*), inspect the five colors, observe whether the Zang organs are in excess or deficiency, assess the strength or weakness of the Fu organs, and note the flourishing or declining state of the physique. By cross-referencing these factors, one determines the division between life and death. Only by doing so can one speak of medicine. If one rigidly adheres to established formulas to treat diseases, without understanding the fundamentals of the Five Movements and Six Qi (*Wu Yun Liu Qi*) and the origins of life and death in the meridians, one might indiscriminately apply dispersing and releasing methods for headache, thereby harming those with Yang deficiency headache; apply reducing and purging methods for distension and fullness, thereby harming those with Qi deficiency central fullness; apply cooling methods for body heat, thereby harming those with Yang deficiency fever; apply cold-natured herbs for dryness and thirst, thereby harming those whose internal fluids are exhausted. Zhang Zhongjing stated in his preface: "If one does not ponder and seek the principles of the classics to expand upon what one knows, but instead relies solely on family techniques and perpetuates old customs, it will be truly difficult to distinguish life from death." From this, we see that established formulas are not to be overly relied upon; the administration of medicine is indeed difficult. Physicians who rely merely on technical skills should change their approach and pay closer attention!
Humans are born endowing themselves with the Yin and Yang Qi of Heaven and Earth, and formed through the essence and blood of parents. Upon leaving the womb, the physical form of the Zang and Fu organs is not yet fully developed, yet the Qi of Yin and Yang is already established. This form and this Qi rely primarily on breast milk. Minor ailments often stem from disharmony of the fundamental Qi; thus, one should not recklessly administer drugs. Even if medication is necessary, it should aim to harmonize the fundamental Qi. If one indiscriminately administers herbs for dispersing, resolving phlegm, or clearing heat, it will not only be of no benefit but will cause harm. Xuanyuan (Yellow Emperor) and Qibo discussed medicine, describing the pathways of meridian circulation and the principles of blood and Qi intersection. These mechanisms of ascending, descending, entering, and exiting within the upper, lower, interior, and exterior were originally not differentiated by age. For thousands of years, the orthodox path has been lost, and empirical techniques have proliferated. They do not understand how meridian blood and Qi ascend and descend, or enter and exit. Lacking clarity on the fundamentals, they concluded that adults and children require separate departments and distinct treatments. Once treatment was divided, each department sought out medical texts, while pediatrics relied on secret rhyming formulas. Ignorant and confused, they spread toxicity throughout the world. When encountering illness, they would say, "Do not give breast milk." Little do they know that nine-tenths of infant illnesses are mild, and only one-tenth are severe. Only renowned physicians, who understand the roots of the Zang organs and recognize the basis of Yin and Yang, can treat according to the meridians and save patients using proper methods! Now, having cut off breast milk and further administering resolving agents, even mild cases might occasionally recover spontaneously. However, if there is a deviation in blood and Qi causing fever, or if internal Spleen and Stomach deficiency generates phlegm, such cases absolutely cannot be cured. Worse still, as phlegm increases, the resolving agents become harsher; as heat intensifies, cooling agents are more heavily administered. They persist until death without changing course, claiming that despite such treatment, the disease remains uncured, leaving them helpless. This is truly lamentable! Infants are like the initial sprouts of living things; their intestines are narrow and stomachs small. They rely on tangible food (breast milk) to nourish intangible Qi mechanisms; cutting this off is inadvisable. Even if one argues that excessive milk intake causes sudden stagnation, one must realize that after a week without food, the stomach is empty, and a single dose of digestion-promoting herbs will resolve the stagnation. In healthy individuals, food enters the stomach and is transformed and transported continuously; multiple meals a day result in excretion the next day. For infants fed milk, digestion occurs immediately upon ingestion, and transformation/transportation is particularly rapid. If one cuts off the milk that nourishes the Stomach and instead administers drugs that damage the Stomach, even a healthy infant may fall ill, let alone one who is already sick! One might argue: "The child suffers from external Wind-Cold and internal retention of milk/food, presenting with chills, fever, and chest/diaphragmatic fullness. If dispersing and resolving methods fail, how can food be tolerated?" Yet, who knows this is incorrect? Wind-Cold is not truly external invasion, and food retention is not truly internal obstruction. It is simply that ancient sages did not explicitly state this, so how could the world know? The human body possesses the Qi of the Three Yin and Five Zang organs, and the Qi of the Three Yang and Six Fu organs, integrating into the Twelve Meridians where blood and Qi circulate. Externally, Qi moves from muscles to the surface, traversing the whole body to resist external aggression; internally, Qi moves from Zang to Fu, returning to the Stomach to digest food. If one claims external invasion, why do wealthy children, swaddled tightly and rarely leaving home, suffer frequent invasions? Why do poor children, exposed to wind and cold without avoiding external pathogens, suffer fewer invasions? Those who are exposed but do not get sick have no external invasion; those who are not exposed but get sick actually originate from internal generation. If one claims internal retention, why is there no food retention during periods of health when milk is frequently consumed? Why is there food retention after illness begins when milk is withheld daily? If one says the illness initially stemmed from food retention which persists to this day, ask yourself: What is the nature of the human Stomach organ? If food remains in the Stomach undigested for so long, the True Qi of the Stomach must be exhausted, leaving no room for medical intervention. Food located in the Upper Jiao is called "retained food" (*Su Shi*); once it enters the Stomach, it decomposes and transforms. If the Upper Jiao is unclear, the patient will reject even water and view food as an enemy. Why does a sick infant crave drink and salivate at the sight of food? From this, we see that the theory of "external Wind-Cold and internal milk/food retention" should be discarded. Medical texts fabricate falsehoods, and pediatricians kill lives daily. To whom shall the blame be attributed? Heaven! Does Heaven not wish for the people to survive, hence using pediatricians as its instruments?