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*Jingfang Duanju* (Short Treatise on Classic Prescriptions), one volume, combined with Materia Medica properties and Moxibustion methods, totals twelve volumes. The ancient old prescriptions were not fabricated by practitioners in advance to treat diseases that had not yet occurred. They were all formulated when the disease was present: tracing its origin and cause, diagnosing the symptoms, and then prescribing based on the nature of the herbs. After the patient recovered, the effective prescription was recorded, organized into a commentary on the formula, and submitted to the government, thus becoming an old classic.

Scholars today often question the use of old prescriptions for treating diseases. Even when the condition matches the description in the formula commentary and the herbs are used as prescribed, the efficacy is not always verified. They collectively argue that this is because diseases differ between ancient and modern times, failing to account for differences in region, climate, and individual constitution. Although patients suffer from similar pains and symptoms, their actual origins are distinct. Moreover, individuals vary in strength and tolerance; different dosages may yield similar results. Once cured, each person records the miraculous efficacy of their specific prescription. While the commentaries on the formulas may be similar, the cold, warm, tonifying, or purging properties of the herbs can be contradictory. A prescription beneficial in Lingnan might be harmful if transmitted to Huaibei. Those who rely on old prescriptions trust only the commentary, neglecting to investigate the nature of the herbs. They fail to understand the differences in tolerance among men, women, the elderly, and the young; the variations in climate早晚 (morning and evening) across different lands; nor do they comprehend how Qi and Blood floating or sinking, deep or shallow, should adapt to the four seasons, or how the five flavors of food and drink alter temperament. Seeing only that the commentary matches the condition, but ignoring the need for herbal adjustment according to circumstances, they administer the same prescription universally. This success is merely coincidental, not the result of careful deliberation. Thus, the *Huangdi Neijing* (Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon) teaches that people in the four seas should be treated with different items, which is what this refers to.

If one wishes to study prescription arts as a scholarly discipline, one should meticulously study the fundamental classics of the "Great Work" (*Da Pin*, referring to *Xiaopin Fang*), formulate prescriptions and manage acupuncture/moxibustion according to circumstances. For patients whose lifespan has not ended, whose vital energy has not been damaged by toxins, and whose Five Exhaustions and Seven Injuries have not depleted Qi and Blood, no disease will remain untreatable. If one does not wish to study prescription arts as a scholarship, but merely to prepare for personal emergencies, one should rely on formula principles and prioritize reading this *Jingfang Duanju*.

Herein, I first record old prescriptions since antiquity, selecting those volumes suitable for reference to form the *Duanju* as a standard method.
*Hua Tuo's Prescriptions*: 10 volumes.
*Zhang Zhongjing's Differentiation of Cold Damage and Prescriptions*: 9 volumes. The world circulates more than 9 volumes; the exact number is undetermined. Currently, we take the catalog as authoritative.
*Zhang Zhongjing's Miscellaneous Prescriptions*: 8 volumes.
*Huang Su's Prescriptions*: 25 volumes.
*Ge Shi's Compiled Prescriptions*: 4 volumes.
*Ruan Henan's Compiled Prescriptions*: 15 volumes.
*Liaodong Commandant Guang's Emergency Prescriptions* and *Middle Antiquity Emergency Prescriptions*: Combined into 2 volumes.
*Yang Shi's Compiled Prescriptions*: 9 volumes.
*Miscellaneous Compiled Prescriptions*: 7 volumes.
*Prescriptions for Lower Body Decoctions, Pills, Powders, and Scattered Medicines*: 10 volumes.
*Prescriptions for Women*: 13 volumes.
*Miscellaneous Compiled Prescriptions for Children*: 30 volumes.
*Prescriptions for Eyes*: 5 volumes.
*Miscellaneous Ointments*: 10 volumes.
*Fan Dongyang's Compiled Prescriptions*: 109 volumes. This was compiled by Fan Anbei after crossing the river south.
The above sixteen items are all recorded in the *Secret Cabinet Four Categories Book Catalog*.
*Yang Zhongsan's Compiled Prescriptions*: 30 volumes. These were collected in Xin'an Commandery during the Yuanjia era, consisting of effective prescriptions from Jiangdong, directly usable in society at that time.
*Qin Chengzu's Essential Prescriptions*: 20 volumes. These are mostly abbreviated versions from Fan Dongyang's collection. The number of chapters is small, and the treatment sequence is not comprehensive enough, making them insufficient for transmission.
The above two items were both compiled during the Yuanjia era. All noble families compiled their own medication prescriptions, ultimately deriving from major collections and modifications by practitioners. These cannot be fully recorded.

Respectfully examining the classics and transmissions regarding ancient and modern classic prescriptions and old medical texts, observing the succession through dynasties, although the Sages had different paths and deeds, their therapeutic教化 (education/transformation) shares the same source. The principle of curing diseases and their teachings are also the same. Thus, Shennong tasted herbs and minerals, and Huangdi applied needles and stones to cure diseases; though the methods differed, the goal of healing was the same. This is what is meant by "different tracks, same source." Through the ages, compilations preserved textual traces, but the art contained spiritual energy of sages, medicines included those eaten by wandering immortals, formulas aimed at longevity, and methods for folk emergencies. From ancient times to now, far removed from the Sages, elegant texts exist, but there are no transmitters. At the end of the Han Dynasty, Zhang Zhongjing appeared. His thoughts were precise, skilled in detailing past efficacies, and knowledgeable of antiquity. Since then, none have surpassed him. The verification of academic learning relies on intelligence and enlightenment, a calm and prudent mind, seeking and detailing canonical laws, and grasping their variations. It is not that curing diseases requires so many diverse methods; rather, it records the accumulation of prescriptions from the beginning of creation, following different tracks but sharing the same source, collected through generations.

Studying the ultimate return of curing diseases leads back to using medicine as the formula. The *Bencao* (Materia Medica) transmits the use of dozens of substances. Yet formula collections number hundreds of volumes, with over a hundred formulas per volume. These were all carefully observed by ancient masters of the art, analyzing canonical laws and diseases, prescribing according to circumstances. Sometimes the number of herbs is the same, but the weighing and division differ; sometimes the boiling and measuring in sheng and he units vary. As diseases are cured, formulas accumulate; this has been the case through the ages, naturally resulting in abundance. Later scholars, generally not consulting the classics, seek formula commentaries and make arbitrary additions and deletions. With numerous formulas and minute differences in herbs, sometimes the commentary is the same but the formula differs, or the formula is the same but the commentary contradicts. Perhaps an old man benefited from a prescription previously, while a youth now suffers a similar illness; or a woman benefited before, while a postpartum woman now suffers similarly. The commentary says the disease can be treated, but due to age and vitality differences, herbs are added through tradition. Although the herbs are suitable, they may conflict within the original formula. Attempting to remove heaviness may create inconvenience in the original formula. One formula, accumulated and modified over time, gradually becomes distorted. Although the commentary may match the disease, the herbs have long deviated from the initial formulation. Therefore, in Middle Antiquity prescriptions, herb usage often involved mutual aversion or conflict, leading to counter-toxicity, precisely for this reason.

Now, re-examining ancient prescriptions, I select ten volumes suitable for reference. I also compile a volume on Materia Medica properties and main indications of essential herbs. When facing a disease, one consults these, adds or subtracts as appropriate, and carefully considers the cold/warm nature of herbs to prescribe. Combined with a volume on essential moxibustion points, totaling twelve volumes, this forms *Jingfang Duanju*, intended for home use or in remote areas without teachers, allowing immediate application in emergencies. Children starting to learn medicine should first study this *Duanju*, allowing gradual enlightenment, before proceeding to the "Great Work."