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Nowadays, when people see fever lasting for several days without subsiding, they indiscriminately name it "Shanghan" (Cold Damage). They fail to distinguish whether it is caused by Wind (Feng), Cold (Han), Dampness (Shi), Heat (Re), or Warmth (Wen), and instead uniformly prescribe fermented soybean (Douchi), soaked soybean sprouts (Doujuan), burdock fruit (Niubang), Glehnia root (Shashen), Rehmannia root (Shengdi), American ginseng (Yangshen), and Dendrobium (Shihu) for treatment. This is a grave error. They do not realize that although these diseases fall under the category of Shanghan, they all result from the transmission and transformation of Shanghan. They cannot be indiscriminately called Shanghan, nor can they be treated with the methods used for true Shanghan occurring before the Winter Solstice. Moreover, the formulas they use are not those for treating Shanghan, and the symptoms they observe are not true Shanghan symptoms; they merely wish to confuse patients with the term "Shanghan." The *Suwen* states: "All heat diseases belong to the category of Shanghan." It also says: "When humans are injured by cold, they develop heat diseases." Why does injury by cold transform into heat? Because extreme cold generates heat. The *Suwen* further states: "For those who contract Shanghan and develop into Wen disease, if it occurs before the Summer Solstice, it is called 'Wen disease'; if it occurs after the Summer Solstice, it is called 'Shu disease' (Heat Disease)." The *Nanjing* (Classic of Difficult Issues), Chapter 58, states: "There are five types of Shanghan: Zhongfeng (Wind Strike), Shanghan (Cold Damage), Shiwen (Damp-Warmth), Rebing (Heat Disease), and Wenbing (Warm Disease). 'Shanghan' is the general name for these diseases. These five are specific syndromes within this category." Zhang Zhongjing begins his *Treatise on Cold Damage* (*Shanghan Lun*) by stating: "The characteristic of Taiyang disease (disease of the Taiyang channel) is floating pulse, stiffness and pain in the head and nape, and aversion to cold." Subsequently, he distinguishes and treats each one individually. What is called "Zhongfeng" refers to Taiyang disease, characterized by fever, sweating, aversion to wind, and a slow pulse. What is called "Shanghan" refers to Taiyang disease, where regardless of whether fever has already appeared or not, there is invariably aversion to cold, body pain, vomiting, and reversal, with tight pulses at both yin and yang positions. Since this illness originates from cold damage, Xin-wen (acrid-warm) herbs like Guizhi (Cinnamon Twig) and Mahuang (Ephedra) are used to dispel wind and scatter cold. What is called "Shibi" (Damp Bi) refers to Taiyang disease, characterized by painful and irritable joints, with deep and fine pulses. What is called "Yebing" (Heatstroke/Miasma) refers to Taiyang heat strike, where the patient sweats, feels aversion to cold, and has body heat. What is called "Wenbing" refers to Taiyang disease, characterized by fever and thirst, without aversion to cold. These illnesses also originate from Shanghan. Their treatments involve formulas such as Gegen (Kudzu Root) which is acrid-cool, Shigao (Gypsum) which is acrid-sweet-cold, and Huangqin (Scutellaria), Huanglian (Coptis), and Dahuang (Rhubarb) which are bitter-cold, all used to treat these conditions. Nowadays, people neither distinguish whether the Shanghan syndrome belongs to Wind, Cold, Dampness, Heat, or Warmth, nor do they inquire which formula serves as the main prescription in the *Shanghan Lun*.

Bing notes: Correcting the name of Shanghan merely involves copying the opening remarks of the *Shanghan Lun* and citing the phrase "Shanghan has five types" from the *Nanjing* to compose this text. In reality, it aims to criticize doctors who use Doujuan, Douchi, Niubang, Shashen, Shengdi, Yangshen, and Shihu. There is not a single word expressing the author's own medical theory; it resembles a defamatory pamphlet. In short, medicines have flavors of sour, sweet, salty, bitter, and acrid, and properties of cold, hot, warm, cool, tonifying, dispersing, reducing, and purging. For every disease, the corresponding medicine should be used. Ancient masters did not deviate from principles. If one favors or dislikes certain drugs, using cold-natured drugs too early to suppress pathogens is indeed misleading; yet favoring drying-tonic drugs, preventing pathogens from exiting outward, assisting heat to transform into fire and depleting fluids, is also unavoidable. Furthermore, such statements are inappropriate in medical texts. For instance, if mumps-rash (Shazhen) is not fully erupted, why not avoid Niubang? If there is no sweat due to warm-heat, why not avoid Douchi? If heat disease transforms into fire, why not use Shengdi and Shihu to rescue fluids? It seems contradictory to write prescriptions while holding these views. Yet, regarding Douchi, Doujuan, Yangshen, and Shihu as excellent remedies for Shanghan and miraculous cures for hundred diseases, is it not laughable? Confucius said: "If names are not correct, language is not in accordance with truth." I hope healers first correct the name of the disease, then determine the governing formula. Do not indiscriminately call it Shanghan and misuse drugs unrelated to Shanghan. Mr. Lu Jiuzhi has an essay "On the Five Types of Shanghan," which is detailed and precise. Here, I briefly outline its essence to debunk the ignorance surrounding Shanghan.

Bing notes: Who does not know the syndrome of Shanghan? Which doctor has not read the book *Shanghan Lun*? After the Han Dynasty, Wang Shuhe compiled it into a book. Since then, countless commentators have elaborated on Zhang’s work, some having only the name but not the actual text. Even if the book exists, studying it exclusively for a lifetime may not allow one to finish reading it. One book alone is hard to exhaust; taking forty volumes as a standard, please read it three times. Can you recite it from memory? In summary, as long as one is a physician, understanding Shanghan pathology is indispensable. True Shanghan is rare in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, so one need not rigidly adhere to "Shanghan" when diagnosing. Moreover, as times change, the Qi transformation of heaven and earth also shifts. Principles left unexplored by sages must be corrected by later generations. For example, Wang Andao, Liu Hejian, and Zhu Danxi, in treating febrile diseases of the four seasons, widely used acrid-cool and bitter-cold methods to remedy the deficiencies of previous acrid-warm and aromatic-dry approaches. In the Qing Dynasty, Ye Tianshi (Ye Xiangyan) from Gusu elucidated the treatment of Warm Diseases, establishing laws based on sweet-moistening to resolve pathogens. Indeed, the Hang-Jia-Hu region adopted this method. Wang Shizhong refuted Wu Jutong’s *Treatise on Warm Diseases*, arguing that the disease names were unclear. He stated: Injury by cold in winter, manifesting in spring, is called "Wenbing"; manifesting after the Summer Solstice is called "Rebing." Contracting wind-heat in winter or spring, affecting the lungs first, is named "Fengwen." Occurring in winter is "Dongwen"; occurring in spring is "Chunwen," which corresponds to what Ye discussed, also known as seasonal temperature diseases. Febrile diseases occurring after the Summer Solstice are called "Shu" in the *Neijing* because they occur during the heat season. Thus, Zhang Zhongjing named diseases contracted from summer heat as "Shubing." Both "Shu" and "Ye" belong to the category of heat. However, "Shiwen" was not mentioned. Shiwen is essentially damp-heat. It must be divided into two categories: First, individuals often injured by dampness who subsequently contract heat, resulting in Shiwen. Symptoms include delirium. Treatment focuses on the Foot-Taiyin Spleen channel; sweating is contraindicated. If sweated, the patient will lose speech ability and become deaf. Ancients advocated Cangzhu Shigao Tang, using Cangzhu (Atractylodes), Shigao (Gypsum), Zhimu (Anemarrhena), and Gancao (Licorice), but this disease is difficult to treat. Seasonal damp-heat is also called Shiwen. Ye Tianshi has discussions on this, and Xue Shengbai has *Shushi Lun* (Treatise on Summer-Dampness), which is clear and detailed, also referred to as the Thirty-Eight Articles on Damp-Heat Theory. I append this here. The *Nanjing* states Shanghan has five types: Zhongfeng, Shanghan, Shiwen, Rebing, Wenbing. But it does not know that internal Shanghan syndromes also have five types: 1. Fluid retention (Tingyin), 2. Food stagnation (Shangshi), 3. Beriberi (Xiangjiao), 4. Empty irritability (Xufan), 5. Internal abscess (Neiyong). Combined with the Twelve Shanghan Syndromes: 1. Dongwen, 2. Hanyi, 3. Wenyi, 4. Wenbing, 5. Rebing, 6. Fengwen, 7. Wenmie, 8. Shiwen, 9. Zhongye, 10. Wendu, 11. Fengshi, 12. Jingbing. See *Yizong Jinjian* (Golden Mirror of Medicine) *Essentials of Shanghan Heart Method*. To correct names, one must know these contents.