黄帝曰。余闻九针九篇。余亲授其词。颇得其意。夫九针者。始于一而终于九然未得其要道也。夫九针者。小之则
无内。大之则无外深。不可为下。高不可为盖。恍惚无穷。流溢无极。余知其合于天道人事四时之变也。然余愿杂之毫
毛。浑束为一。可乎。岐伯曰。明乎哉问也。非独针道焉。夫治国亦然。黄帝曰。余愿闻针道。非国事也。岐伯曰。夫
治国者。夫惟道焉。非道何可小大深浅。杂合为一乎。黄帝曰。愿卒闻之。岐伯曰。日与月焉。水与镜焉。鼓与响焉。
夫日月之明。不失其影。水镜之察。不失其形。鼓响之应。不后其声。动摇则应和。尽得其情。黄帝曰。窘乎哉。昭昭
之明不可蔽。其不可蔽。不失阴阳也。合而察之。切而验之。见而得之。若清水明镜之不失其形也。五音不彰。五色不
明。五脏波荡。若是。则外内相袭。若鼓之应桴。响之应声。影之似形。故远者司外揣内。近者司内揣外。是谓阴阳之
极。天地之盖。请藏之灵兰之室。弗敢使泄也。
笔机清利而理无发明。但极称针法之神妙耳。
黄帝问于少俞曰。余闻百疾之始起也。必生于风雨寒暑。循毫毛而入腠理。或复还。或留止。或为风肿汗出。或为
消瘅。或为寒热。或为留痹。或为积聚奇邪淫溢。不可胜数。愿闻其故。夫同时得病。或病此。或病彼。意者天之为人
生风乎。何其异也。少俞曰。夫天之风者。非以私百姓也。其行公平正直。犯者得之。避者得无。殆非求人。而人自犯
之。黄帝曰。一时遇风。同时得病。其病各异愿闻其故。少俞曰。善乎哉问。请论以比匠人。匠人磨斧斤砺刀。削斫材
木。木之阴阳。尚有坚脆。坚者不入。脆者皮弛。至其交节。而缺斤斧焉。夫一木之中。坚脆不同。坚者则刚。脆者易
伤。况其材木之不同。皮之浓薄。汁之多少。而各异邪。夫木之早花先生叶者。遇春霜烈风。则花落而叶萎。久曝大旱。
则脆木薄皮者。枝条汁少而叶萎。久阴淫雨。则薄皮多汁者。皮溃而漉。卒风暴起。则刚脆之木。枝折杌伤。（杌通 字）
秋霜疾风。则刚脆之木。根摇而叶落。凡此五者。各有所伤。况于人乎。黄帝曰。以人应木奈何。少俞答曰。木之所伤
也。皆伤其枝。枝之刚脆而坚。未成伤也。人之有常病也。亦因其骨节皮肤腠理之不坚固者。邪之所舍也。故常为病也。
黄帝曰。人之善病风厥漉汗者。何以候之。少俞答曰。肉不坚。腠理疏。则善病风。黄帝曰。何以候肉之不坚也。少俞
答曰。 肉不坚而无分理者粗理。粗理而皮不致者腠理疏。此言其浑然者。黄帝曰。人之善病消瘅者。何以候之。少俞
答曰。五脏皆柔弱者。善病消瘅。黄帝曰。何以知五脏之柔弱也。少俞答曰。夫柔弱者。必有刚强。刚强多怒。柔者易
伤也。（此言脏气之相凌也）黄帝曰。何以候柔弱之与刚强。少俞答曰。此人薄皮肤而目坚固以深者。长冲直扬。其心刚。
刚则多怒。怒则气上逆。胸中蓄积。血气逆留。 皮充肌。血脉不行。转而为热。热则消肌肤。故为消瘅。此言其人暴
刚而肌肉弱者也。黄帝曰。人之善病寒热者。何以候之。少俞答曰。小骨弱肉者。（据下文此句缺色字一层）善病寒热。
黄帝曰。何以候骨之小大。肉之坚脆。色之不一也。少俞答曰。颧骨者。骨之本也。颧大则骨大。颧小则骨小。皮肤薄
而其肉无 。其臂懦懦然。其地色殆然。不与其天同色。污然独异。此其候也。然后臂薄者。其髓不满故善病寒热也。（地
地阁也天天庭也然后犹而又也寒热壬水云疟也据此可知疟邪之源流与治法矣）黄帝曰。何以候人之善病痹者。少俞答曰。
粗理而肉不坚者。善病痹。黄帝曰。痹之高下有处乎。少俞答曰。欲知其高下者。各视其部。（详后五色篇中）黄帝曰。
人之善病肠中积聚者。何以候之。少俞答曰皮肤薄而不泽。肉不坚而淖泽。如此肠胃恶。恶则邪气留止。积聚乃伤。脾
胃之间。寒温不次邪气稍至 积留止大聚乃起。（积聚多在胃小肠之外络由内伤饮食外感寒湿表里相迫血气以凝也凡暑天
形劳大渴饮冷最易成积以内血沸腾得冷乍遏故也）黄帝曰。余闻病形。已知之矣。愿闻其时。少俞答曰。先立其年。以
知其时。时高则起。时下则殆。（高下面骨之满陷也此即风鉴家面部分年之事也）虽不陷下。当年有冲通。其病必起。（冲
通流年克犯生命也此即星命家干支生克之事也先立其年谓先立其人之生年也）是谓因形而生病。五变之纪也。
专以形之坚脆论人之病。反复详明气充词沛。结笔推出时字。仍归到形字。笔力尤见遒劲。
黄帝说：我听说过关于九针的九篇论述，亲自聆听了其中的词句，大致领会了它的意旨。那九针，小的方面看没有内部界限，大的方面看没有外部边界，深不可测如同地底，高不可攀如同天盖。它恍惚无形、无穷无尽，流溢变化没有极限。我知道它与天道、人事以及四季的变化是相合的。然而，我希望将这些纷繁复杂的原理像毫毛一样细微地归纳起来，浑融统束为一个整体，可以吗？
岐伯回答说：问得真明白啊！这不仅仅是针道的问题，治理国家也是如此。
黄帝说：我只愿听闻针道，不是谈论国事。
岐伯说：治理国家，唯有依靠“道”罢了。如果没有道，怎么能将小与大、深与浅混杂融合为一个整体呢？
黄帝说：我愿意详尽地听您讲解。
岐伯说：这就好比太阳与月亮，水与镜子，鼓与回声。日月光明，不会失去影子；水镜清澈，不会失真形体；击鼓发声，回声紧随其后不滞后。有动摇就有相应的和应，能够完全掌握事物的真情。
黄帝说：真是奥妙啊！这种昭昭的光明是不可遮蔽的，之所以不可遮蔽，是因为它不失阴阳之理。综合考察它，切近验证它，观察并领悟它，就像清水和明镜不失去物体形状一样。如果五音不显扬，五色不明亮，五脏就会动荡不安。像这种情况，就是外在与内在相互影响，如同鼓槌击打鼓面产生回声，声音引发回响，影子模拟形体。所以，从外部表现可以推测内部情况（司外揣内），从内部情况可以推测外部表现（司内揣外）。这被称为阴阳的极致，天地的法则。请让我把它藏在灵兰室中，不敢让它泄露出去。
这段文字笔锋清丽流畅，但道理上未有新的发明，只是极力称赞针法的神妙罢了。
黄帝问少俞说：我听说各种疾病开始发生时，必定源于风、雨、寒、暑等邪气，顺着毫毛进入腠理（皮肤纹理及汗孔）。有的邪气又返回体内，有的停留在体表，有的形成风肿并出汗，有的发展为消瘅（类似糖尿病或消耗性疾病），有的表现为寒热往来，有的成为留痹（久治不愈的痹症），有的则是奇邪淫溢，多得数不清。我希望了解其中的原因。为什么同时遭受邪气致病，有的人病在此处，有的人病在彼处？我想是不是上天为人专门制造的风呢？为何差异如此之大？
少俞回答说：天的风，并不是为了偏私百姓而吹拂的。它运行公平正直，触犯它的人就生病，躲避它的人就不生病。大概不是风特意去求人生病，而是人自己触犯了它。
黄帝说：在同一时间遇到风邪，同时生病，但病症各异，我希望了解其中的原因。
少俞回答说：问得好啊！请允许我用匠人来比喻说明。匠人磨快斧头利刀，砍削木材。木材有阴面和阳面之分，还有坚硬与脆嫩的区别。坚硬的部位斧斤难以切入，脆嫩的部位表皮松弛。到了节疤交接的地方，连斧斤都会缺损。同一棵树中，坚硬与脆嫩不同，坚硬的则刚强，脆嫩的容易受伤。更何况不同的木材，树皮厚薄不同，汁液多少不同，因而对邪气的反应也各不相同。
比如树木早开花先长叶的，遇到春霜烈风，花朵凋落叶子枯萎；长期暴晒大旱，脆木薄皮的树，枝条汁液少而叶子枯萎；长期阴雨连绵，薄皮多汁的树，树皮溃烂渗水；突然风暴兴起，刚硬与脆嫩的树木，树枝折断树干受损（“杌”通“兀”，指树木无枝的样子）；秋霜疾风，刚脆的树木，根部摇动叶子脱落。以上五种情况，各自受到不同的伤害，何况是人呢？
黄帝说：用人体来对应树木的道理是怎样的？
少俞回答说：树木所受的伤，都伤及其枝条。枝条的刚、脆、坚、弱，尚未造成根本损伤。人之所以常有常病，也是因其骨节、皮肤、腠理不坚固，邪气容易停留其中，所以常常生病。
黄帝说：人容易患风厥（因受风引起的厥逆证）、漉汗（大汗淋漓）的，如何诊察？
少俞回答说：肌肉不坚实，腠理疏松，就容易患风病。
黄帝说：如何诊察肌肉是否不坚实？
少俞回答说：肌肉不坚实且没有分理（肌肉纹理）的，称为粗理。纹理粗糙且皮肤不致密的，腠理就疏松。这是从大体外观而言的。
少俞回答说：凡是体质柔弱的，性格往往带有刚强的一面。性格刚强的人多易怒，而内心柔弱的人容易受伤。（这里说的是脏气之间的相互凌犯）
黄帝说：如何诊察一个人的柔弱与刚强？
少俞回答说：这种人皮肤薄，眼睛深邃且目光坚定，眉毛长而直竖，心性刚强。心刚强就容易发怒，发怒则气机上逆，胸中蓄积郁结，血气逆行滞留，导致皮肤充胀肌肉紧绷，血脉不通畅，转而化热。热盛则消耗肌肤，所以形成消瘅。这是说那种外表暴戾刚强而肌肉虚弱的人。
少俞回答说：骨骼细小、肌肉软弱的人，容易患寒热病。（根据下文，这一句缺少关于面色的一层论述）
黄帝说：如何诊察骨骼的大小、肌肉的坚脆以及面色的不一？
少俞回答说：颧骨是骨骼的根本。颧骨大则骨骼大，颧骨小则骨骼小。皮肤薄而肌肉无力，手臂软弱无力，地阁（下巴）的颜色黯淡，不与天庭（额头）同色，污浊独异。这就是其征候。然后手臂瘦薄的人，骨髓不满，所以容易患寒热病。（注：“地”指地阁，“天”指天庭。“然后”意为又、“而且”。“寒热”在此处可能涉及疟疾，据此可知疟邪的来源与治疗方法。）
少俞回答说：想知道其高下部位，要分别观察身体的各个部位。（详见后文《五色篇》）
少俞回答说：皮肤薄而无光泽，肌肉不坚实且湿润滑腻。像这样的人肠胃功能恶劣。肠胃恶则邪气停留，积聚从而损伤身体。脾胃之间，寒温失调，邪气稍至便积留停止，大聚于是形成。（积聚多在胃和小肠之外的络脉，由内伤饮食、外感寒湿，表里相迫，血气凝滞而成。凡是在夏天身体劳累、极度口渴时饮冷，最容易成积，因为体内血液沸腾，遇冷骤然遏制所致。）
黄帝说：我已经知道了疾病的形态，希望了解发病的时间规律。
少俞回答说：先确立年份，以知晓其时运。时运高亢则病起，时运低下则病危。（“高下”指面部骨骼的饱满与凹陷，这即是风水相士的面部分年之法。）即使没有凹陷低下，如果在当年有冲克通达的情况，病一定会发作。（“冲通”指流年克犯生命，这即是星命家干支生克之事。“先立其年”谓先确立人的出生年份。）这叫做因形体特征而生病，这是“五变”的纲领。
全文专门以形体的坚脆来论述人的疾病，反复详细阐明，气势充沛，文笔流畅。结尾推出“时”字，最终回归到“形”字，笔力尤为遒劲有力。
Huangdi said: I have heard of the nine chapters regarding the Nine Needles. I personally received their words and roughly grasped their meaning. The Nine Needles, in their smallest aspect, have no internal limit; in their largest aspect, they have no external boundary. They are deep, unfathomable as the earth; high, unattainable as the sky. They are elusive and infinite, overflowing without limit. I know they accord with the Heavenly Dao, human affairs, and the changes of the four seasons. However, I wish to gather these myriad principles as finely as hairs and bind them into a single unity. Is this possible?
Qibo replied: Your question is clear indeed! This applies not only to the Way of Needling but also to governing a state.
Huangdi said: I wish to hear about the Way of Needling, not state affairs.
Qibo said: To govern a state, one must rely on the Dao. Without the Dao, how can small and large, deep and shallow be mixed and united into one?
Huangdi said: I am willing to hear it fully.
Qibo said: It is like the sun and moon, water and mirrors, drums and echoes. The brightness of the sun and moon does not fail to cast shadows; the clarity of water and mirrors does not distort forms; the response of drum and echo does not lag behind the sound. Movement elicits corresponding resonance, allowing one to fully grasp the truth.
Huangdi said: How profound! This luminous clarity cannot be obscured because it does not lose the principle of Yin and Yang. By synthesizing and observing, closely verifying, seeing and comprehending, it is like clear water and bright mirrors that do not lose the shape of objects. If the five tones are not manifest and the five colors are not bright, the Zang organs will be agitated. In such cases, the exterior and interior influence each other, just as a drumstick strikes a drum to produce an echo, sound generates resonance, and a shadow mimics a form. Therefore, from the exterior manifestations, one deduces the interior condition (Si Wai Chuai Nei); from the interior condition, one deduces the exterior manifestation (Si Nei Chuai Wai). This is called the ultimate of Yin and Yang, the canopy of Heaven and Earth. Please let me store it in the Linglan Chamber and dare not let it leak out.
The writing style is clear and agile, but the theory offers no new enlightenment; it merely extols the miraculous nature of needle therapy.
Huangdi asked Shaoyu: I have heard that all diseases begin when wind, rain, cold, or summer heat invade, entering through the hair follicles and into the Couli (skin pores and interstices). Some pathogens return inward, some remain stationary, some cause wind swelling and sweating, some develop into Xiao Dan (wasting-thirst disease), some present as alternating chills and fever, some become chronic Bi syndrome (obstruction), and some involve strange pathogens overflowing beyond measure, too numerous to count. I wish to understand the reason. Why do people exposed to the same pathogen at the same time suffer from different diseases? I wonder if Heaven creates wind specifically for humans? Why is there such variation?
Shaoyu replied: The wind of Heaven does not blow to favor any individual. It moves fairly and uprightly. Those who encounter it get sick; those who avoid it do not. It likely does not seek out humans, but humans inadvertently encounter it.
Huangdi said: Encountering wind at the same time and getting sick simultaneously, yet suffering different diseases, I wish to understand the reason.
Shaoyu replied: Excellent question! Let me explain using the analogy of a carpenter. A carpenter sharpens axes and knives to chop wood. Wood has yin and yang sides, and hardness and brittleness. Hard parts resist cutting; brittle parts have loose skin. At the joints, even axes may chip. Within a single tree, hardness and brittleness differ; hard wood is tough, while brittle wood is easily damaged. How much more so with different types of wood, varying bark thickness, and differing sap content, leading to different reactions to pathogens?
For instance, trees that flower early and leaf first, when encountering spring frost and fierce winds, lose flowers and wither leaves. Under prolonged drought and heat, brittle wood with thin bark loses sap and withers. During long rainy seasons, thin-barked, juicy trees suffer rotting and oozing bark. When sudden storms arise, both hard and brittle trees suffer broken branches and damaged trunks. In autumn frost and gales, hard and brittle trees shake at the roots and drop leaves. These five scenarios each cause specific damage; how much more so for humans?
Huangdi said: How does the human body correspond to wood?
Shaoyu replied: Damage to wood affects its branches. The hardness, brittleness, firmness, or weakness of branches causes no fundamental injury. Similarly, humans often suffer from common illnesses because their bone joints, skin, and Couli are not robust, providing a dwelling place for pathogens, thus frequently causing disease.
Huangdi said: How can one diagnose those prone to Feng Jue (wind-induced reversal) and profuse sweating?
Shaoyu replied: Those with non-firm muscles and loose Couli are prone to wind diseases.
Huangdi said: How does one diagnose non-firm muscles?
Shaoyu replied: Muscles that are non-firm and lack distinct striations are considered coarse-textured. Coarse texture combined with non-tight skin indicates loose Couli. This refers to general appearance.
Huangdi said: How can one diagnose those prone to Xiao Dan?
Shaoyu replied: Those with weak Zang organs are prone to Xiao Dan.
Huangdi said: How does one know if the Zang organs are weak?
Shaoyu replied: Weak constitution often accompanies a strong-willed temperament. Strong-willed individuals tend to anger easily, while the internally weak are easily injured. (This refers to the mutual suppression of Zang Qi.)
Huangdi said: How does one diagnose weakness versus strength?
Shaoyu replied: Such individuals have thin skin, deep and firm eyes, long straight eyebrows, and a rigid heart. Rigidity leads to anger; anger causes Qi to rebel upward, accumulating in the chest. Blood and Qi stagnate and reverse, causing skin distension and muscle tension, blocking blood vessels, transforming into heat. Heat consumes flesh and skin, resulting in Xiao Dan. This describes someone outwardly violent and rigid but inwardly muscularly weak.
Huangdi said: How can one diagnose those prone to alternating chills and fever?
Shaoyu replied: Those with small bones and weak muscles are prone to chills and fever. (Based on subsequent text, this sentence lacks a layer regarding complexion.)
Huangdi said: How does one diagnose bone size, muscle firmness/brittleness, and complexion variations?
Shaoyu replied: The zygomatic bone is the root of the skeleton. Large zygoma implies large bones; small zygoma implies small bones. Thin skin with flaccid muscles, weak arms, and a dark chin color that differs from the forehead indicates pathology. This is the sign. Furthermore, thin arms suggest insufficient marrow, predisposing one to chills and fever. ("Di" refers to the chin, "Tian" to the forehead. "Ranhou" means "furthermore." Chills and fever here may relate to malaria, revealing the source and treatment of malaria pathogens.)
Huangdi said: How does one diagnose those prone to Bi syndrome?
Shaoyu replied: Those with coarse texture and non-firm muscles are prone to Bi syndrome.
Huangdi said: Does Bi syndrome have specific locations?
Shaoyu replied: To know its location, observe each part of the body separately. (See the "Five Colors Chapter" later for details.)
Huangdi said: How does one diagnose those prone to intestinal accumulation masses?
Shaoyu replied: Thin, lusterless skin and non-firm, greasy muscles indicate poor gastrointestinal function. Poor GI function allows pathogens to linger, leading to accumulation and injury. Between the spleen and stomach, irregular cold and warmth allow pathogens to settle and accumulate, forming major masses. (Accumulations often occur in the collaterals outside the stomach and small intestine, caused by internal dietary injury and external cold-dampness, forcing interior and exterior, congealing Qi and blood. Summer labor with extreme thirst followed by drinking cold liquids easily causes accumulation due to boiling blood suddenly congealed by cold.)
Huangdi said: I know the disease forms. I wish to know the timing.
Shaoyu replied: First establish the year to know the timing. High timing brings onset; low timing brings danger. (High and low refer to facial bone fullness or depression, akin to physiognomy age-prediction methods.) Even without depression, if there is a clash or passage in the current year, disease will surely arise. (Clash and passage refer to annual pillars clashing with life pillars, akin to astrological stem-branch interactions. "Establishing the year" means establishing the birth year.) This is called generating disease based on form, the principle of the Five Changes.
The text focuses entirely on discussing disease based on the firmness or brittleness of the form, explaining repeatedly and clearly with abundant energy and fluent rhetoric. The conclusion introduces the concept of "time," returning finally to "form," demonstrating particularly vigorous writing power.