Supplement to the Compendium of Materia Medica, Volume 1

Supplement to the Compendium of Materia Medica

One of my father’s sons followed the path of the Confucian scholar, while the other followed the path of the physician. Thus, my younger brother Kai original: "Kai di" (楷弟); referring to Zhao Xuemin, whose courtesy name was Shukai, in addition to reading the Confucian classics from his early childhood, was also assigned lessons in the Divine Pivot and Basic Questions original: "Ling Su" (靈素); the two parts of the Yellow Emperor’s Inner Canon, the foundational text of Chinese medicine, the Classic of Difficulties original: "Nan Jing" (難經), and the Treatise on Cold Damage original: "Shanghan Lun" (傷寒論).

In his spare time, he was further instructed to draw the Anatomical Bronze Man original: "Tongren Tu" (銅人圖); a reference to the famous bronze statues used to teach acupuncture points from memory as a form of play. He stored the A-B Classic original: "Jia-Yi" (甲乙); likely referring to the Zhenjiu Jia Yi Jing, a fundamental acupuncture text in the "Garden for Nourishing Plainness." We set aside a single plot of land to serve as a medicinal herb garden. During the spring and autumn seasons, my brother and I would often eat and sleep within it.

I encouraged my brother to focus his will on the Arts of the Yellow Emperor 岐黃 (Qihuang): a traditional term for medicine, named after the legendary Yellow Emperor and his minister Qi Bo so that he might carry on our late father’s aspirations. Although he did not yet dare to practice medicine publicly, whenever relatives or friends requested a diagnosis, they invariably recovered immediately upon taking his medicine.

In his daily life, he has always delighted in writing. Among the works he has compiled are the Mirror of a Hundred Herbs original: "Baicao Jing" (百草鏡) in eight volumes and Saving Lives from the Bitter Sea original: "Jiusheng Kuhai" (救生苦海) in one hundred volumes. In all of them, his words strike the essential truth original: "kenqing" (肯綮); literally the point where the blade meets the joint in butchery, meaning the crux of a matter and explain the most profound mysteries. They truly provide no small benefit to this discipline.

As for myself, I am ashamed of my own meager talents—a mere puddle or a spoonful of water. How could I ever be worthy of the notice of the refined? Why should I wish to clatter like an earthenware pot? original: "wafu ming" (瓦釜鳴); a classical idiom for a common person making a loud, unrefined noise, often used as a trope of humility regarding one's own writing. Yet I remember that since my childhood, my nature has been to love broad reading. Whether it be astrology, the calendar, medicine, divination, or various technical arts, I have dabbled in them all. Whenever I gained some insight, I would joyfully forget my fatigue and transcribe my notes into volumes.