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Since Xuanyuan (Yellow Emperor) and Qibo discussed medicine to alleviate the people's ailments, those who speak of medicine in subsequent generations have regarded their teachings as golden rules that must not be violated. However, the text is concise in wording and profound in meaning; readers often fail to grasp its interpretation immediately, leading many to sigh helplessly before its vastness. Since the intentions of the ancients are no longer visible, some steal fragments from secular books to obtain residual knowledge, focusing merely on measuring doses with an inch-sized scoop or debating prescriptions over a dot of ink. Is it not difficult for such people to hope to resolve doubts and determine life and death through these means?

In the past, Qin Yueren (Bian Que) said, "Hearing the Yin manifestations of a disease allows one to deduce its Yang mechanisms; hearing the Yang manifestations allows one to deduce its Yin mechanisms." When he treated the Crown Prince of Guo, he utilized the San Yang Wu Hui (Three Yang Five Convergences) acupoints to restore balance between Yin and Yang, resulting in the prince's revival. Similarly, when Duke Huan of Qi's illness progressed, moving gradually from the Cou Li (interstices of skin and muscle) to the stomach, intestines, and bone marrow, his death eventually occurred exactly as predicted. Cang Tai Gong (Chunyu Yi) received the techniques of Five-Color Diagnosis and Qi Ke (Strange Cough) from Gong Cheng Yang Qing, studied them meticulously, and could predict life and death with clarity as if pointing at his palm. These figures lived close to the era of Xuanyuan and Qibo, inheriting the profound insights of previous sages. They thoroughly understood the reasons behind the correspondences between Zang-Fu organs (viscera and bowels) described in the Nei Jing (Inner Canon), as well as the transmission changes of the Twelve Meridians (Twelve Channels) and Fifteen Collaterals. Hence, they have been called divine physicians since ancient times.

The so-called Nei Jing refers to the Su Wen (Basic Questions) and Ling Shu (Spiritual Pivot) recorded in the Book of Han: Treatise on Literature. Quan Yuanqi of the Sui Dynasty provided annotations earlier, while Wang Bing (Wang Taipu) of the Tang Dynasty annotated later. Lin Yi and Sun Zhao of the Song Dynasty further corrected them, making the work quite detailed. Yet, readers still struggled to fully comprehend its purport. My student, Qin Yishao (a Hanlin Academician), told me that his brother-in-law, Yao Zhinan, was a veteran scholar of Confucian classics. During the Jiashen and Yihai years, he abandoned Confucianism for medicine. He thoroughly discussed all medical texts but devoted particular energy to the Nei Jing, believing it to contain the essential wisdom of ancient sages, crucial for regulating Qi transformation (Qi Hua) and saving the people. He delved deep into its mysteries, dissecting and understanding its principles, illuminating them spiritually, and observing their integration. Although the Su Wen had annotations, they were incomplete, and the Ling Shu lacked annotations entirely. Thus, he resolved to annotate it, taking fourteen years to complete the work, titled Jie Jie (Sectional Explanation). This effort uncovered almost all the secret transmissions within the classic, allowing readers to understand it clearly, like ice melting or a veil being lifted. It is now being printed, and I am asked to write a preface.

I have not deeply studied the theories of Xuanyuan and Qibo. However, observing the physician He of Qin discuss diseases, he elucidated the Six Qi (Six Energies), Five Flavors, Five Colors, Five Sounds, and Six Diseases. His discussion on the subtleties of life nature and the correspondence between Heaven and humanity was profound. Regarding the disease caused by bewitchment, he cited the I Ching (Book of Changes) with phrases like "Woman bewitches man" and "Wind blows down the mountain," using their precise meanings for verification. Even scholars from Qi and Lu might not surpass him. I came to believe that discussing this matter requires rooting out ultimate principles and mastering Confucian arts; it is not easy for others to do so. Now, Yao Zhinan, a scholar of classics, immerses himself in medical theory. I know his achievements can trace back to the ancients, and the lineage of Xuanyuan and Qibo will achieve great synthesis through this collection. The publication of this book will greatly contribute to saving the world and preserving oneself. This is the preface.

Written in the tenth month of the Jiwei year of the Kangxi reign by Shen Quan, who was granted the Jinshi degree, held the rank of Tongfeng Daifu, specially added Vice Minister of Rites, Director of the Palace Library, and Scholar-in-waiting of the Hanlin Academy, with an additional grade.