典藏书目

Heaven and Earth establish their positions, and Water resides in the midst; Heaven and Earth Qi communicate with each other, and Water Qi steams and reaches upwards; the Earth is moist and fertile, clouds rise and rain descends, thereby all things are generated and transformed.
Humans emulate Heaven and Earth, and also possess "Water"; when located superiorly, it manifests as Phlegm (Tan); latent beneath the skin, it manifests as Blood (Xue); located inferiorly on the left, it manifests as Essence (Jing); exiting through hair follicles, it becomes Sweat (Han); exiting from the abdomen and intestines, it becomes Diarrhea (Xie); exiting from wound openings, it becomes Fluids (Shui). If Phlegm is exhausted, death ensues; if Essence is depleted, death ensues; if Sweat is dried up, death ensues; if Diarrhea is extreme, death ensues. If fluids continue to flow from a wound without stopping, and then dry out, death ensues. As for Blood: when it fills the eyes, vision becomes clear; when it fills the ears, hearing becomes acute; when it fills the four limbs, movements become strong; when it fills the muscles and skin, the complexion becomes white. If immersed, it turns black; if lost, it turns yellow; if external heat exists, it turns red; if internal heat exists, it steams upward to the throat or downward to the large intestine, causing bleeding from small orifices. The throat has orifices; if Hemoptysis (coughing blood) occurs, it can be fatal. The intestines have orifices; if Rectal Bleeding (blood in stool) occurs, it can also be fatal. Rectal bleeding can still be stopped, but Hemoptysis is difficult to treat. This is because nothing remains stationary in the throat; even a single hair will induce coughing. When blood seeps into the throat, the more it seeps, the more one coughs; the more one coughs, the more it seeps. Drinking urine (Sou Niao) results in less than one in a hundred deaths, whereas administering Cold-Cooling herbs results in no survivors among a hundred. Although Blood belongs to Yin, what moves it must be Harmonious Yang (He Yang).

The ears, eyes, nose, mouth, anterior yin, and posterior anus are orifices; arms, fingers, toes, and limbs are appendages; the double breasts lie at the Gate of Kidney (Shen Guan); teeth, hair, and nails are remnants; fatty branches and accessory toes are excrescences. To nourish ear power, one should often be full; to nourish eye power, one should often close the eyes; to nourish arm and finger power, one should often flex and extend; to nourish thigh and toe power, one should often walk and step. Summer Zang organs should be cool, Winter Zang organs should be warm; although the extremities of Yin limbs should be warm even in summer, the Heart Fire enclosed in the chest is hard to overheat even in winter. If there is hot swelling and orifice blockage, Blood does not circulate and limbs become disabled. Other parts may have growth and shrinkage without disease; only excrescences, if diseased, cause pain but involve no life-and-death stakes, such as warts and tumors.

Residual food and the Five Flavors nourish Marrow, bones, flesh, Blood, skin, and hair. Men belong to Yang, and within Yang there must be Yin; the number for Yang is eight. Thus, at age eight (one-eight), Yang Essence rises; at age sixteen (two-eights), Yang Essence overflows. Women belong to Yin, and within Yin there must be Yang; the number for Yin is seven. Thus, at age seven (one-seven), Yin Blood rises; at age fourteen (two-sevens), Yin Blood overflows. Both Yang Essence and Yin Blood are the essence and beauty derived from the Five Flavors of diet. When they rise, intelligence and thought become clear, teeth renew, white hair turns black, and weak sinews become strong; this is referred to as "overflow." Whatever fills the body, limbs, hands, feet, ears, and eyes, even drops as tiny as needle points or mustard seeds do not fail to descend. The fact that children resemble their parents is because their Essence and Blood have experienced everything in their parents' bodies. Therefore, if a father has one disabled limb, the child will have one limb that does not resemble the parent; if a father has one deficient eye, the child will have one eye that does not resemble the mother. However, why do female birds and beasts conceive without Tian Gui (Menstruation/Essence)? It is because the Essence and Blood of birds and beasts circulate through the Tailbone Pass (Wei Jian). If one engages in sexual intercourse with women before Essence is connected, forcing the opening of Essence, the five bodies will have incomplete areas, leading to indescribable diseases later in life. If the Yin organ is already flaccid yet one desires color/lust to lower Essence, the Essence will not exit, causing internal decay, a涩 (astringent/stagnant) urinary pathway, resulting in Lin Syndrome (Dysuria) and Jing Zhuo (Spermatorrhea). If Essence is already consumed and then further depleted, the large and small bowel pathways will feel pulling pain; the more painful, the more one desires to defecate or urinate; the more one goes, the more painful it becomes. Once a woman's Tian Gui has arrived, if she has not cohabited with a man for over ten years, her menses will be irregular; if under ten years she desires cohabitation, it will also be irregular. Irregularity means old Blood does not exit, and new Blood flows erroneously, either soaking into bones or transforming into swelling, or even if cohabiting, conception is difficult. Frequent cohabitation leads to astringency, dryness, and deficiency; bearing many children and nursing heavily leads to Blood depletion and death. Observing the laws of Essence and Blood, half of the understanding is gained.