A brief look at the term irritability / vexation(烦 fan) through the lens of the Discussion of Cold Damage (Shang Han Lun) by: Jason Blalack In Chinese medicine, our understanding of technical terms shapes our clinical picture and ultimately how we treat. One such term that recently peaked my interest was the term 烦 (fan), translated as vexation (Wiseman) or irritability (Eastland Press). These translations seem reasonable since modern dictionaries define it as: 1. vexed, irritated; annoyed, terribly upset, worried…

Update: As a few people informed me, there was some problems with the twitter & RSS feed notification system, however I think it has been resolved. Furthermore, while finishing up the final stages of my book I have had little time to post, so for those that  actually may have checked the website recently, I apologize for the lack of activity. However, at the moment I have more time and will resume posting. Please let me know if there is…

The relationship between warm disease (温病, wen bing) and cold damage (伤寒, shang han) By Qin Bo-Wei (秦伯未) This small essay in taken from Qin Bo-Wei’s larger Warm Disease thesis that was written in 1963. This essay was published in The Lantern Volume 8 No.2, May 2011, as part of a larger three-part essay entitled Some Issues in Warm Disease by Qin Bo-Wei. Warm disease (温病 wen bing) is a type of illness¹. Warm disease theory, though, is also a…

Translated by: Sharon Weizenbaum (thanks Sharon for the translation of this piece plus that following cases) Gui Zhi Ma Huang Ge Ban Tang Gui Zhi (1 liang + 16 zhu) 4 grams Sheng Jiang (1 liang) 3 grams Bai Shao (1 liang) 3 grams Zhi Gan Cao (1 liang) 3 grams Ma Huang (1 liang) 3 grams Da Zao 4 dates Xing Ren (24 pieces) 3 grams Gui Zhi Er Ma Huang Yi Tang Gui Zhi (2 liang + 17…

Xu Shu-Wei : Discourses on the Shang Han Lun By Steven Clavey (Thanks Steve for this introduction and the case studies that follow. Please visit his Chinese medicine journal, The Lantern.) Xu Shu-Wei (许叔微) was a well-known physician who lived during the Southern Song Dynasty (1075 – c. 1156). Having attained a certain level in the imperial examinations, he was known as Xu Xue-Shi — `Xu the Scholar’. He was the author of numerous works in the Shang Han Lun…