The use of herbs as medicine is mentioned in China and Japan. The burial that dates back to 168 B.C. consists of corpus of 11 medical works.
The use of herbs as medicine is mentioned in China and
Japan. The burial that dates back to 168 B.C. consists of corpus of 11 medical
works. The development in the field of medicine had took a drastic change by
A.D. 25–220 but people were more confident than the earlier period to understand
the nature and they believed that the health and the disease depended on the
principles of natural order. The first herbal classic written in China was
published in the Qin Dynasty (221–206 B.C.) called the Agriculture Emperors Materia Medica. The first plants
discovered and used were usually for digestive system disorders (i.e. Da Huang),
and slowly as more herbs were discovered the herbs became more useful for an increasing number of ailments, and
eventually the herbal tonics were created.
Traditional Chinese medicine is based on the principle of Yin and Yang theory. Yang
represents the force of light and Yin
represents the forces of darkness. According to the yellow emperor, Yin and Yang is the foundation of the entire universe. It underlies
everything in creation. It brings about the development of parenthood; it is
the root and source of life and death; and it is found with the temples of the
gods. In order to treat and cure diseases, one must search for their origins.
Heaven was created by the concentration of Yang
and the Earth by the concentration of Yin. Yang
stands for peace and serenity; Yin
stands for confusion and turmoil. Yang
stands for destruction; Yin stands
for conservation. Yang brings about
disintegration; Yin gives shape to
things. Water is an embodiment of Yin
and fire is an embodiment of Yang. Yang creates the air, while Yin creates the senses, which belong to
the physical body when the physical body dies; the spirit is restored to the
air, its natural environment. The spirit receives its nourishment through the
air, and the body receives its nourishment through the senses.
Nature has four seasons and five elements. To grant long
life, these seasons and elements must store up the power of creation in cold,
heat, dryness, moisture and wind. Man has five viscera in which these five
climates are transformed into joy, anger, sympathy, grief and fear. The
emotions of joy and anger are injurious to the spirit just as cold and heat are
injurious to the body. Violent anger depletes Yin; violent joy depletes Yang.
When rebellious emotions rise to Heaven, the pulse expires and leaves the body
and when joy and anger are without moderation, then cold and heat exceed all
measure, and life is no longer secure. Yin
and Yang should be respected to an equal
extent.
When Yang is the
stronger, the body is hot, the pores are closed, and people begin to pant; they
become boisterous and coarse and do not perspire. They become feverish, their
mouths are dry and sore, their stomachs feel tight, and they die of constipation.
When Yang is the stronger, people can
endure winter but not summer. When Yin
is stronger, the body is cold and covered with perspiration. People realize
they are ill; they tremble and feel chilly. When they feel chilled, their
spirits become rebellious. Their stomachs can no longer digest food and they
die. When Yin is stronger, people can
endure summer but not winter. Thus, Yin
and Yang are alternate. Their ebbs
and surges vary, and so does the
character of the diseases. The treatment is to harmonize both. When one is
filled with vigour and strength, Yin
and Yang are in proper harmony.
Treatment
Every herb has its own properties which include its energy,
its flavour, its movement and its related meridians to which it is connected
to. The four types of energies are cold, cool, warm and hot. Usually cold or
cool herbs will treat fever, thirst, sore throat and general heat diseases. Hot
or warm herbs will treat cold sensation in the limbs, cold pain and general
cold diseases. The five flavours of herbs are pungent, sour, sweet, salty and
bitter. Pungent herbs are generally used to induce perspiration and promote
circulation of both blood and Qi.
Sour herbs exert three functions: constrict, obstruct and solidify. These herbs
are good to stop perspiration, diarrhoea, seminal emission and leucorrhoea.
Sweet herbs also exert three main functions: nourishing deficiency, harmonizing
other herbs or reduce toxicity, relieve pain and slow the progression of acute
diseases. Salty herbs soften hardness, lubricate intestines and drain downward.
These herbs are used to treat hard stool with constipation or hard swellings as
in diseases like goitre. Bitter herbs induce bowel movements; reduce fevers and
hot sensations, dry dampness and clear heat. They can also nourish the kidneys
and are used to treat damp diseases. After absorption, herbs can move in four
different directions: upward towards the head, downward towards the lower
extremities, inward towards the digestive organs or outward towards the
superficial regions of the body. Upward-moving herbs are used for falling
symp-toms like prolapsed organs. Downward-moving herbs are used to push down up
surging symptoms like coughing and vomiting. Outward-moving herbs are used to
induce perspiration and treat superficial symptoms that are moving towards the
interior of the body. Inward movements of herbs induce bowel movements and
promote digestion. Each herb will have a corresponding meridian or meridians to
which it will correspond to. For example, herbs that are active against
respiratory tract disorders move to the lungs and can be used for asthma or
cough.
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