凡人有切于己者。无不珍恤。而独至精至要之所。反不之恤者。色是也。男
子二八精通。八八精绝。言其常也。以欲竭其精。以耗散其真。言其妄也。殊
不知此真阴。赋于先天。则有盈怯。资于后天。则有薄浓。矧且情欲交攻。劳
役并侵。益少损多。岂堪供无穷之耗哉。故无病者。嗜之而成病。有病者。犯
之而致死。东坡谓伤生之事非一。而好色者。必亡也。至逐声伎。干非分。败
德丧简。失业亡家。为神人所诛。隐曲难问者。尤不可言。即或禀赋过度。奉
养素丰。足以乐而忘倦。胡不将此精力。立德立功立言。以垂来兹。乃耗于
无用之地而为快哉。则亦不思之甚矣。
医之为道。所系非偶。人之寄也以死生。我之任也以阴 。天下之至重惟
命。一旦委付于我。则调剂之补泻。性味之寒温。草木之良毒。投之当则仆
者起。骨者肉。夭者坚。夺造化之权。而不是过。否则见不审。识不精。稍或舛
误。有所害于人者。即有所害于己。人之父母妻子。与我无异。非病之必不
可挽。而命数有尽。我忍听其哀号也哉。故医之临病。胜于临敌。运筹帏幄
之中。决胜千里之外。良将是也。存乎呼吸之间。而远退二竖之舍。良医是
也。察色不可不精。审声不可不详。持脉不可不静。辨症不可不细。既责其
有。又责其无。既求其始。又虑其后。既达其常。又通其变。必使有济无损。有
利无害。慊于己而无怨于人。庶阴德可积。冥谴可逃矣。噫。难言哉。
大凡人们遇到与自己切身相关的事情，没有不珍惜体恤的。唯独对于最为精微、最为关键的地方，反而不去体恤，那就是“色欲”。男子到了十六岁（二八），精气充盈；到了六十四岁（八八），精气枯竭。这是指正常的生理规律。如果因为纵欲而耗尽精气，因为贪欢而耗散真气，那就是违背常理的错误行为了。
殊不知这种真阴之气，禀受于先天，就有盈满与怯弱的区别；滋养于后天，就有丰厚与稀薄的不同。况且还要受到情欲交相攻击，劳累役使同时侵袭，损耗的多而补充的少，哪里能承受得住无穷无尽的消耗呢？所以，没有病的人，沉溺于色欲就会生病；已经有病的人，触犯色欲就会导致死亡。苏东坡曾说，伤害生命的事情不止一种，但喜好女色的人，必定会丧命。至于那些追逐声色伎乐，干出非分之事，败坏道德，丧失节操，荒废事业，导致家庭破产的人，被神灵和世人所唾弃，那些隐晦曲折难以启齿的痛苦，更是不必多说了。即使有的人天赋异禀，平时供养丰厚，足以享乐而不知疲倦，为什么不把这份精力用来立德、立功、立言，以流传后世呢？却把它耗费在无用的地方以求一时之快，这真是太不思量了。
医学这门道术，关系重大，非同小可。人们将生死寄托于医生，医生承担的责任关乎阴阳平衡。天下最重的莫过于性命。一旦将性命托付给我，那么调理时的补泻手法，药物性味的寒温属性，草木药材的良毒性质，如果投药得当，就能让倒下的人站起来，让枯骨长出肌肉，让夭折者变得坚固长寿，这夺得了造化的权柄，也不算过分。否则，如果诊断不仔细，见识不精专，稍有差错，对人造成伤害，也就对自己造成伤害。别人的父母妻子，与我并无不同，难道忍心看着他们哀号吗？并不是疾病一定无法挽回，而是人的寿命终有尽头。
所以医生面对病人，胜过面对敌人。在帷幄之中运筹帷幄，在千里之外决胜胜负，靠的是良将。在呼吸之间决定生死，远远退去病魔（二竖）的巢穴，靠的是良医。观察面色不可不精细，审察声音不可不详尽，切按脉搏不可不宁静，辨别症状不可不细致。既要检查已有的病症，又要排查潜在的隐患；既要探究发病的起因，又要顾虑后续的发展；既要通晓常规，又要灵活变通。必须做到有益无损，有利无害，让自己心安理得，而不被人怨恨，这样或许可以积累阴德，逃避冥界的谴责。唉，这话真是难说啊。
Whenever matters concern oneself, people invariably cherish and care for them. Yet, regarding the most subtle and crucial aspects, they fail to exercise such care; this refers to sexual desire. When a man reaches sixteen (two times eight), his essence becomes abundant; when he reaches sixty-four (eight times eight), his essence is exhausted. This describes the normal physiological course. To exhaust one's essence through lust and dissipate one's true qi through indulgence is to act against nature.
One fails to realize that this True Yin (Zhen Yin, the fundamental yin substance of the body) is endowed by congenital endowment (Xian Tian), varying in abundance or deficiency; it is nourished by acquired constitution (Hou Tian), varying in thickness or thinness. Moreover, it is subjected to the dual assault of emotional desires and physical labor, resulting in more loss than gain. How can it withstand endless depletion? Therefore, those without disease may fall ill due to indulgence, and those already ill may die from transgressing sexual restraint. Su Dongpo stated that many things harm life, but those who love beauty/sex will surely perish. As for those who chase after singers and dancers, engage in improper acts, ruin their virtue, lose their integrity, neglect their duties, and bring about the collapse of their families, they are condemned by both gods and men. The hidden, difficult-to-ask-about sufferings are even more indescribable. Even if one possesses exceptional innate constitution and enjoys abundant nourishment, sufficient to enjoy pleasure without fatigue, why not devote this energy to establishing virtue, merit, and words to benefit future generations? Instead, squandering it on useless pursuits for momentary pleasure shows extreme thoughtlessness.
The Way of Medicine is of great consequence, not trivial. People entrust their lives and deaths to physicians, and our responsibility lies in balancing Yin and Yang. Among all things under heaven, nothing is heavier than human life. Once entrusted to us, we must carefully manage supplementation and purgation, the cold and warm properties of flavors, and the benign and toxic nature of herbs. If administered correctly, we can raise the fallen, flesh the skeletal, and strengthen the frail, thereby usurping the power of creation, which is no exaggeration. Conversely, if observation is imprecise and understanding is not refined, any error may harm others, and thus harm ourselves. The parents and wives of patients are no different from our own. We cannot bear to listen to their wailing, nor should we assume that illness is always incurable or that fate is absolute.
Therefore, treating a patient is more critical than facing an enemy. Just as a good general wins battles from within the command tent, a good physician drives away the "Two Vermin" (Er Shu, a metaphor for disease) through decisions made in the blink of an eye. Observation of complexion must be precise; listening to voice must be detailed; palpating the pulse must be calm; differentiation of symptoms must be meticulous. One must assess what exists and what does not; consider the origin and anticipate the outcome; understand the routine and adapt to changes. The goal is to ensure benefit without harm, satisfying oneself while offending no one, thereby accumulating hidden virtue and avoiding heavenly retribution. Alas, these words are hard to speak.