Library

The prescriptions for treating Leprosy (Lai, leprosy) differ slightly from those for general Wind diseases. Pills, powders, and topical applications each have secret transmissions. One must strictly avoid fumigation and Calomel (Qingfen, mercurous chloride).

Those suffering from Feng Lai (Wind-Leprosy, a form of leprosy with wind-pathogen characteristics) certainly do not present as only one type; some manifest as two or three types, and even four or five types exist. If one Zang organ is initially injured, the pathogenic factors will then transmit to the various meridians. Therefore, in long-standing cases, the complexion becomes mottled, and the disease condition worsens. Furthermore, some Wind diseases first present with coldness and numbness, transforming into purple cloud-like patches or black coloration; some first present as Wind-Pain (Tongfeng, gouty pain), resulting in hemiplegia or soft paralysis of half the body; some first present as Fire-Leprosy (Huo Lai), characterized by swelling, ulceration, flaccidity of hands and feet, and painful atrophy of sinews and bones. Thus, treatment cannot rely on a fixed prescription, nor should it attack aggressively too quickly. If one symptom is cured while others become complex and varied, the prognosis may appear ominous. Additionally, there are cases where Wind disease and Leprosy coexist in one person. If Wind disease is contracted first, followed by Leprosy, it is called "Feng Lai"; if Leprosy is contracted first, leading to Wind disease, it is called "Lai Feng." These two patterns are the most common. In treatment, for Feng Lai, one should first treat the Leprosy; once the Leprosy is resolved, then treat the Wind disease. For Lai Feng, one should use Wind-dispelling medicines first, followed by adding Leprosy-treating agents. This is the general principle. When the treatment reaches half-cure, one should administer decoctions that detoxify and greatly tonify Qi, Blood, and Yuan Yang (Primordial Yang). Vigorous administration over three years is required.

The Classics state: "Expel the evil from the Five Zang organs; open the Ghost Gates (Guimen, sweat pores); death ensues." "Drain the turbid filth from the Bladder; cleanse the Fu organs to achieve purity." Forcibly suppressing Yang and abstaining from sexual desire constitutes forced artificiality. Internal cultivation through quiet meditation utilizes the wondrous mechanisms of immortality.

The apertures through which Hun (Ethereal Soul), Po (Corporeal Soul), and Corporeal Spirit enter and exit are called Ghost Gates. Sweeping away the filth and evil within the Zang and Fu organs allows Clear Qi to ascend and descend naturally, fostering natural nurturing, resulting in a lustrous appearance. If turbid dregs stagnate in the Lower Yuan (Lower Primordial Source), the Nine Orifices will not be clear, and the Fourteen Meridians will become obscure and blocked. Removing and cleansing this filth clears the source and restores the flow, allowing Yang Qi to circulate freely, making the spirit refreshed and joyful, and ensuring clarity above and below. Therefore, the formula Wulong Wan (Black Dragon Pill) is prepared; its initial administration pacifies the internal turbid filth. Patients with Feng Lai have excessive Fire in all Five Viscera, and their sexual function is easily aroused. If they do not cherish their lives and engage in sexual activity, medication will be ineffective. To prevent erection, one might reluctantly use medicine to suppress it. Although the disease may heal, this risks severing the root of human reproduction. Yin and Yang are interrelated. For those who already have children, preserving current life and cutting off the cause of death is acceptable. However, for those without heirs, ancestral sacrifices are paramount, and this method must absolutely not be practiced. The secret of suppressing Yang involves either medicinal methods or Qigong practices, with subtleties passed down through heart-to-heart transmission; this principle is not known to mediocre people. If the patient is intelligent and perceptive, teaching them the quiet cultivation and Daoyin (guiding and pulling) techniques of the Xuanmen (Mysterious Gate/internal alchemy) can solidify the internal Dantian foundation externally calm the spiritual functions. Combined with medicinal force, this can extend life indefinitely. This approach can only be implemented with brilliant and agile individuals; foolish and greedy practitioners cannot fully master the technique and may instead profane the sages. Regarding acupuncture and moxibustion, there are no taboos before or after. Heat-inducing drugs are only applicable for eliminating the root after recovery. Point-pricking methods should never be used throughout. If blades or lancets are used improperly, wind pathogens will enter through the wound, causing disability, withering, and decay. Beware! Beware!

Alas! Physicians hold the lives of the people in their hands; medicines have both beneficial and toxic properties. Without studying medical texts, one acts blindly without basis. Life and death are at stake; Yin and Yang transformations are serious matters. Patients with Feng Lai should preserve their endowment and not follow words of love/hate or praise/blame; they should wisely select competent physicians. Physicians treating Feng Lai should revere heavenly condemnation and not greedily seek deceitful or opportunistic wealth at the cost of human life.

When a person suffers from Feng Lai, life hangs in the balance. Seeking medical treatment determines survival or death. One must obtain a highly skilled and benevolent physician to entrust their health. Often, people fail to distinguish between skilled and unskilled doctors. They accept anyone who boasts of contemporary fame, does not study medical texts, steals obsolete prescriptions, deceives with arrogance, claims ease of treatment, or relies on false recommendations and flattering praise from intermediaries, and then submits to treatment. Is this not murder? In the specialty of Feng Lai, each symptom has its specific prescription. If a practitioner learns only one or two prescriptions, how can they treat all symptoms? For instance, medicine for Purple Cloud Wind cannot treat Rotting Wind; medicine for Wind-Pain cannot treat Itching/Numbness; the prescription for Leaky Hoof would cause harm if used for Paralysis/Spasm. How can vulgar people understand this? Since the patient seeks life by consulting a doctor, failing to select carefully is essentially neglecting one's own life. Painful! Regrettable! Leprosy is the head of the Thirteen Departments of Medicine. This discussion is also a subtle key within these departments. Careful and repeated study makes it comprehensive. Future scholars who obtain this will understand it clearly without obstruction.

Just as a city is besieged by bandits, so is the human body infested by Wind-Leprosy; the physical nature is the same. Using troops to attack thieves is like using medicine to attack disease; the strategy is the same. If bandits do not retreat, the city falls; if Wind does not dissipate, the vital life is damaged; the disaster is the same. To save a city, one must employ divine mechanisms; to save human life, one must practice wondrous arts; the application of wonder is the same. The principles of Wind-Leprosy discussed here are clear, and the treatments in this book are complete, leaving no gaps. However, using medicine is like using soldiers; protecting the populace is like saving lives. Treating illness to restore primordial life, and relieving a siege to save the common people—though the gravity differs—is truly a miraculous method for saving the masses, a great abyss-like reservoir. Hence, it is said that *Jie Wei Yuan Sou* (Reservoir of the Primary Solution to the Siege) derives its name from this.