圣王御世,春无愆阳,夏无伏阴,秋无凄风,冬无苦雨。乃至民无夭札,物无疵疠,太
和之
气,弥满宇宙,安有所谓温疫哉?然而周礼傩以逐疫,方相氏掌之,则温疫之由来久矣。古
人元旦汲清泉以饮芳香之药,上已采兰草以袭芳香之气,重涤秽也。后汉张仲景着《伤寒论
》,欲明冬寒春温夏秋暑热之证,自不能并入疫病以混常法。然至理已毕具于脉法中,叔和
不为细绎,乃谓更遇温气变成温疫,又谓春应温而反大寒,夏应热而反大凉,秋应凉而反大
热,冬应寒而反大温,非其时而有其气,是以一岁之中,长幼多病相似者,此时行之疫气也
。又谓从春分节以后至秋分节以前,天有暴寒,皆为时行寒疫,是皆使人不能无疑者耳。盖
四时不正之气,感之者,因而致病,初不名疫也,因病致死,病气尸气,混合不正之气,斯
为疫矣。以故鸡温死鸡,猪温死猪,牛马温死牛马。推之于人,何独不然。凡饥馑兵凶之际
,人体虚乏,所以温疫病盛行,大率春夏之交为尤甚,因温暑温热之气交结互蒸,人在其中
,无隙可避,故沿门合境,受之者,无不浑身壮热,眩晕呕逆,病如一类。况乎共室连床,
邪秽尤易相亲,尸虫载道,呼吸即能相染哉。是以盛夏温热之病,即藏湿热在内。一人受之
,即为湿温,一方遍传,温为疫也。然世俗所称大头瘟者,头面腮颊肿如瓜瓠是也;虾蟆
瘟者,喉痹失音,颈节胀大是也;瓜瓠瘟者,胸胁高起,呕汁如血是也;疙瘩瘟者,遍身红
肿,发块如瘤者是也;绞肠瘟者,腹鸣干呕,水泄不通是也;软脚瘟者,便清泄白,足重难
移是也。小儿痘疹尤多,以上疫证,倘不明治法,咸委之劫运,谓非医者之罪耶?观仲景于
平脉篇中云∶寸口脉阴阳俱紧者,法当清邪中于上焦,浊邪中下焦,清邪中上,故名洁也。
浊
邪中下,故名浑也。阴中于邪,内必栗也。凡二百六十九字,阐发奥理,全非伤寒所有之事
,乃邪疫从入之门,受病之总,人自不识耳。篇中大意,谓人之鼻气通于天,故阳中雾露之
邪为清邪,从鼻息而上入于阳,入则发热头痛项强颈挛,正与俗称大头瘟,虾蟆瘟之说符也
。人之口气通于地,故水土之邪,为饮食浊味,从口舌而下入于阴,入则人必先内栗,足膝
逆冷,便溺妄出,清便下重,脐筑揪痛,正与俗称绞肠瘟、软脚瘟之说符也。然从鼻口所入
之邪,必先注于中焦,以次传布上下。故中焦受邪,因而不即治。则胃中为浊,营卫不通,
血凝不流,其病变即在中焦,俗称瓜瓠瘟、疙瘩瘟等证,则又阳毒痈脓,阴毒遍身青紫之类
是也。凡伤寒之邪先行身之背,次行身之前。由外廓而入,故邪在表者,汗之即散。邪在里
者,下之即解。温疫之邪。则直行中道,散漫三焦,故虽表之不散,攻之复合,此疫证与伤
寒表里诸法,所以略无干涉也。治者于未病前,先饮芳香正气药,使邪不能入。邪即入,则
以逐秽为第一义,斯又得焉。上焦如雾,升而逐之。中焦如沤,疏而逐之;下焦如渎,决而
逐之;各兼以解毒,使营卫既通,乘势逐拔,病安从奈我哉。
When a sage king governs the world, spring has no excessive Yang Qi (Yang Energy), summer has no latent Yin Qi (Yin Energy), autumn has no desolate winds, and winter has no bitter rains. Consequently, people do not suffer premature death or sudden illness, and plants and animals are free from pests and diseases. The Taihe Qi (Harmonious Vital Energy) fills the universe; how could there be such a thing as Warm Epidemic (Wen Yi)? However, the *Rites of Zhou* records the use of Nuo dance to drive away epidemic spirits, managed by the Fangxiang Shi (Officer of Exorcism), indicating that warm epidemics have existed for a long time. In ancient times, on New Year's Day, people drew clear spring water to drink aromatic medicines, and during the Shangsi Festival, they gathered orchids to熏染 their bodies with aromatic scents, aiming to cleanse filth. Zhang Zhongjing of the Later Han Dynasty wrote the *Treatise on Cold Damage* (*Shanghan Lun*), intending to clarify syndromes caused by winter cold, spring warmth, and summer/autumn heat. Naturally, he could not merge epidemics into these conventional methods. Yet, the underlying principles were already fully contained within the pulse diagnosis methods. Wang Shuhe failed to analyze them carefully, instead claiming that encountering warm Qi again transforms it into a warm epidemic. He also stated that spring should be warm but is unexpectedly very cold, summer should be hot but is unexpectedly very cool, autumn should be cool but is unexpectedly very hot, and winter should be cold but is unexpectedly warm. When the climate does not match the season, leading to similar illnesses among people of all ages throughout the year, this is referred to as the epidemic Qi of the time. Furthermore, he claimed that between the Spring Equinox and the Autumn Equinox, sudden cold weather constitutes a "time-run cold epidemic," which raises doubts. Generally, the abnormal Qi of the four seasons causes disease upon infection, initially not called an epidemic. It becomes an epidemic only when death occurs, and the Qi of the disease and corpse mix with the abnormal Qi. Thus, chickens die of chicken plague, pigs of pig plague, and cattle/horses of cattle/horse plague. By analogy, why would humans be different? During famines and wars, human bodies are weak and deficient, so warm epidemics prevail, especially during the transition from spring to summer. The intermingling and steaming of warm, summer-heat, and warm-dry Qi leave no escape for people within it. Consequently, along every door and across every neighborhood, those infected suffer uniformly from high fever, dizziness, vertigo, vomiting, and nausea, presenting similar symptoms. Moreover, living in shared rooms with adjacent beds facilitates the proximity of pathogenic filth, and pathogens carried on corpses can transmit through respiration. Therefore, warm diseases in midsummer imply internal damp-heat accumulation. If one person contracts it, it becomes Damp-Warmth (Shi Wen); if it spreads widely in a region, warmth becomes an epidemic. Secularly known as "Big Head Plague" (Da Tou Wen), characterized by swelling of the head, face, cheeks, and jaw like a gourd; "Toad Plague" (Xia Ma Wen), characterized by throat obstruction, loss of voice, and neck swelling; "Gourd Plague" (Gua Hu Wen), characterized by chest and hypochondriac distension and vomiting blood-like fluid; "Lump Plague" (Ge Da Wen), characterized by generalized redness and swelling with tumor-like nodules; "Intestine-Twisting Plague" (Jiao Chang Wen), characterized by abdominal borborygmus, dry retching, and watery diarrhea without relief; and "Soft Leg Plague" (Ruan Jiao Wen), characterized by clear white loose stools and heavy, immobile legs. Pediatric smallpox/rubella cases are particularly numerous. Regarding these epidemic syndromes, if treatment methods are unknown and cases are dismissed as fate, is this not the fault of physicians? Observing Zhang Zhongjing in the *Ping Mai Pian* (Chapter on Equal Pulse): "If the Cun Kou pulse is tight in both Yin and Yang positions, according to the method, Clear Pathogens attack the Upper Jiao, and Turbid Pathogens attack the Lower Jiao. Clear pathogens attacking above are named 'Clean'; Turbid pathogens attacking below are named 'Muddy.' If Yin meridians are attacked by pathogens, internal chills must occur." These 269 characters elucidate profound principles entirely absent from *Cold Damage*, representing the entry points of epidemic pathogens and the general overview of disease, which people fail to recognize. The main idea of the chapter states that nasal Qi connects with Heaven; thus, fog and dew pathogens attacking Yang meridians are "Clear Pathogens," entering via the nose upwards into Yang, causing fever, headache, stiff neck, and cervical spasms, matching the secular descriptions of Big Head Plague and Toad Plague. Oral Qi connects with Earth; thus, soil and water pathogens, being turbid flavors from diet, enter downwards via the mouth and tongue into Yin, causing internal chills, cold feet and knees, involuntary urination and defecation, tenesmus, and umbilical pain, matching the secular descriptions of Intestine-Twisting Plague and Soft Leg Plague. However, pathogens entering via nose and mouth first inject into the Middle Jiao, then spread up and down. If the Middle Jiao is attacked and not treated immediately, stomach turbidity arises, Ying and Wei (Nutritive and Defensive Qi) become obstructed, and blood coagulates and stagnates. The pathology lies in the Middle Jiao, corresponding to secular Gourd Plague and Lump Plague, which are akin to Yang Toxicity with abscess/pus and Yin Toxicity with generalized cyanosis. Cold Damage pathogens typically travel along the back first, then the front, entering from the exterior. Thus, pathogens in the Exterior are resolved by sweating; pathogens in the Interior are resolved by purgation. In contrast, Warm Epidemic pathogens move directly along the central pathway and diffuse through the Three Jiao. Therefore, sweating fails to disperse them, and purgation may cause them to aggregate. This explains why epidemic treatments differ fundamentally from the exterior-interior methods of Cold Damage. Physicians should administer aromatic Qi-regulating medicines before onset to prevent pathogen entry. If pathogens enter, expelling filth is the primary principle. The Upper Jiao is like mist; elevate and expel it. The Middle Jiao is like fermentation vats; unblock and expel it. The Lower Jiao is like drainage ditches; drain and expel it. Each method should incorporate detoxification. Once Ying and Wei circulate freely, seizing the momentum to expel the pathogen renders the disease powerless against us.