Zhang Zhongjing's ingenious teachings on health preservation

Zhang Ji, styled Zhongjing, was from Nieyang, Nanjun (now Nanyang, Henan Province). He lived to be 69 years old (150-219 AD) and was an outstanding medical scientist in the late Eastern Han Dynasty. He laid the foundation for syndrome differentiation and treatment in traditional Chinese medicine and was honored as the "Medical Sage". It is generally believed that Zhongjing was proficient in medical treatises and prescriptions and was skilled at treating diseases. In fact, Zhongjing once said about his purpose of delving deeply into medical skills: "To treat the diseases of the sovereign and his relatives above, to rescue the poor and the humble below, to ensure his own health and well-being in the middle, and to nourish the living." That is to say, his purpose in delving deeply into medical skills is to treat others and maintain his own life, keeping his body healthy forever. Therefore, Zhongjing was also well-versed in health preservation and disease prevention. Besides writing some treatises on health preservation, he paid great attention to his own health care in daily life. For instance, he would do guiding exercises and breathing exercises every morning after getting up and before going to bed at night. After each meal, I must rinse my mouth and massage my abdomen. Guiding and breathing exercises can ensure the smooth flow of qi and blood in the internal organs and meridians, and have the effect of health preservation and disease prevention. After meals, it is essential to rinse your mouth. Zhongjing said that this can "keep your teeth fresh and your mouth fragrant". This method has a certain effect on preventing bad breath and tooth decay, which is in line with the oral hygiene care in modern medicine. After a meal, massaging the abdomen (that is, rubbing your hands together to warm them up and placing them on the epigastric region, massaging in a clockwise direction in a circular motion from bottom to top, for about twenty to thirty times) can promote blood circulation in the abdominal cavity, enhance digestive function, and be beneficial to health. He criticized some scholars in society at that time for their sole pursuit of fame and fortune, their emphasis on minor external things, and their disregard and abandonment of the essence of health preservation. They only made their appearance luxurious while their bodies withered. Zhang Zhongjing believed that nature is endowed with the constant energy of the five elements (namely wood, fire, earth, metal and water), which transform and influence all things. The human body adheres to the normal laws of the five elements' transformation and operation, which is why it has the physiological functions of the five internal organs. Not only that, people must rely on the substances provided by nature to survive. Therefore, there is an inseparable connection between human beings and the natural environment. The relationship between nature and human beings is like the saying "Water can float a boat, but it can also capsize it", having both favorable and unfavorable aspects. For instance, abnormal climate can harm the human body. However, humans are not powerless against nature. Diseases can be prevented. As long as the five internal organs' essence (true qi) is abundant and the ying and wei (referring to the smooth flow of qi and blood throughout the body) are unobstructed, the body's resistance to diseases will be strong. Then, the body's vital energy will remain within, and pathogenic factors cannot invade, leading to peace and good health. Only when the body's vital energy is insufficient can pathogenic viruses take advantage of the situation to invade, endanger the human body, and even cause death. So, how can one keep the essence of the five internal organs unobstructed and achieve the goal of health and longevity? Zhongjing believed that first of all, one should be good at "nurturing caution". Only by understanding and mastering the method of "nurturing caution" can one resist all pathogenic factors and live a long and strong life. Zhongjing's concept of "nurturing caution" aims to "nourish the body's vital energy internally and be cautious of evil energy externally." The Inner Classic: The Simple Questions once stated: "When the body's vital energy is strong, evil cannot invade," and "When evil energy gathers, the vital energy is bound to be weak." Therefore, maintaining one's vital energy is the foundation of health preservation, and the ultimate goal of any health preservation and care method is to maintain one's vital energy. Maintaining one's vital energy means nurturing the essence, energy and spirit of the human body. When all the qi in the human body is preserved, the essence and spirit will naturally be nourished, and the functions of the qi and blood in the internal organs of the human body will also be guaranteed. That is to say, "When the essence of the five internal organs is unobstructed, a person will be at ease and harmonious." Zhang Zhongjing's method of cultivating the inner vital energy mainly involves regulating the spirit, combining the cultivation of the spirit and aspiration with the cultivation of virtue. This not only enables one's spirit to be calm, peaceful, optimistic and cheerful, but also fills one with confidence, hope and joy in life, promoting the internal protection of the spirit and the retention of true energy, thus preventing diseases and prolonging life. Zhang Zhongjing's "External Caution against Pathogenic Factors" (here, pathogenic factors generally refer to all external factors that can cause illness) method mainly involves regulating and maintaining health from aspects such as early treatment when ill and moderation in life. Zhang Zhongjing put this into practice seriously and advocated that when the pathogen invaded the human body in a moment of carelessness and only had some mild symptoms, acupuncture, massage, and external application of plasters should be used immediately to treat it. His serious approach even made the people around him feel that he was making a fuss over nothing. However, Zhongjing believed that when pathogenic factors first enter the exterior of the human body, they should be treated immediately to prevent the nine orifices from being blocked. In this way, the ying and Wei qi will be in harmony, and the pathogenic factors will not enter the interior from the exterior, and the disease will not worsen from mild to severe and damage the vital energy. This is a wonderful method for health preservation, disease prevention and longevity. Because he was able to adhere to this practice in his daily life, he never suffered from any critical illness throughout his life, nor did he ever become bedridden due to serious illness. In the era when Zhongjing lived, there was feudal separatism, frequent wars, and the people lived in misery. Epidemics were very prevalent. The vast majority of his relatives and friends died of infectious diseases, but he remained unharmed. This was closely related to his insistence on the early treatment of diseases for health preservation and disease prevention. Zhongjing paid great attention to moderation in his life and avoided the word "greed" : He had a regular daily routine, got up and went to bed at certain times, never oversleeping, and persisted in exercising every day, doing some physical labor within his ability. His dress and appearance should be comfortable. He adjusts his clothing according to the changes in the climate, but he never wears too warm clothes because he prefers warmth in cold weather or too little clothes because he prefers coolness in hot weather. His diet emphasizes a moderate amount of five flavors and a proper combination of grains. His diet is adjusted according to the changes of the four seasons, and he avoids overeating, binge eating and picky eating. He believes that sexual activity should be restrained and one must avoid lust, so as to prevent the depletion of vital energy and premature aging of the body. He demands of himself to be honest and law-abiding in dealing with people and matters, and not to do anything illegal or disorderly for the sake of small gains. Because his heart is not upright and he has done bad things, he will never escape punishment, living in constant fear and losing his mental balance, unable to live a peaceful life. This inevitably leads to physical illness. To sum up, it can be seen that Zhang Zhongjing did a very comprehensive job in disease prevention, longevity preservation and health preservation.