2.1 Traditional Chinese Medicine 1 中医 1

Summary

In this China Overview video, John Fenway explores traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), highlighting its holistic approach to health and its roots in Chinese culture. The video delves into TCM's philosophical underpinnings, including Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism, which stress moral virtues, harmony with nature, and mental peace, respectively. It also previews upcoming segments on famous ancient Chinese doctors and TCM's development, promising an enriching journey into TCM's history and practice.

Takeaways

• 🌿 Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is a valuable knowledge system developed by Chinese people to cure diseases and alleviate suffering.
• 📚 The concept of TCM is divided into four subtopics: philosophy, basic theories, diagnosis and treatments, and development.
• 🧘‍♂️ Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism are the three main philosophies influencing TCM, emphasizing morality, harmony with nature, and mental peace respectively.
• 👨‍🏫 Confucius, born in 557 BC, is a significant figure in Chinese history whose teachings on benevolence and morality have deeply influenced TCM.
• 💊 The term 'benevolent science' was used in ancient China to describe medicine, reflecting the cultural value placed on healing and helping others.
• 🏥 A famous 300-year-old TCM store named 'Hong's Benevolence' exemplifies the cultural influence of Confucianism in TCM.
• 🌱 Taoism's principles of living in harmony with nature are mirrored in TCM's recommendations for seasonal eating and practices.
• 🙏 Buddhism's introduction to China during the Han Dynasty and its peak during the Qing and Tang dynasties played a role in shaping TCM's approach to mental health and disease.
• 🏥 Buddhists' establishment of hospitals during the Sui and Tang dynasties helped promote both Buddhism and TCM, fostering a closer relationship between the two.
• 📈 The upcoming discussion in the next hour will focus on famous ancient Chinese doctors and their contributions to TCM.

Q & A

What is the main focus of traditional Chinese medicine?

The main focus of traditional Chinese medicine is to cure diseases and alleviate suffering, emphasizing the harmony between nature and mankind.

What are the four subtopics discussed in the script about traditional Chinese medicine?

The four subtopics discussed are the philosophy, basic theories, diagnosis and treatments, and the development of traditional Chinese medicine.

How does Confucianism impact traditional Chinese medicine?

Confucianism impacts traditional Chinese medicine by emphasizing personal and governmental morality, correctness of social relationships, justice, and benevolence, which is considered the supreme principle.

What is the significance of the term 'benevolence' in the context of Confucianism and traditional Chinese medicine?

Benevolence in Confucianism refers to the friendship between people and the requirement to do things benefiting society and others. In ancient China, medicine was called a benevolent science, and many people aspired to become good physicians to cure and save lives.

What is the relationship between Taoism and traditional Chinese medicine?

Taoism influences traditional Chinese medicine by emphasizing respect for nature and living in harmony with it. This is reflected in TCM principles such as eating the right food in the right season and doing the right practices at the right time.

How does Buddhism contribute to traditional Chinese medicine?

Buddhism contributes to traditional Chinese medicine by emphasizing the importance of a peaceful mind and by building hospitals to promote the joint development of Buddhism and medicine, thus helping to spread TCM.

What is the historical significance of Confucius in relation to traditional Chinese medicine?

Confucius, born in 557 BC, was a Chinese teacher, editor, politician, and philosopher whose philosophy emphasized benevolence, which played a significant role in the lives of ancient people and influenced the practice of medicine.

Can you provide an example of how the philosophy of 'benevolence' is reflected in a traditional Chinese medicine store?

The script mentions a famous traditional Chinese medicine store called 'Hong's Benevolence' with a history of 300 years. The name reflects the Confucian principle of 'benevolence' by implying a commitment to helping and being friendly to people.

What is the role of Taoism in suggesting lifestyle practices in traditional Chinese medicine?

Taoism plays a role in traditional Chinese medicine by suggesting practices that align with natural laws, such as eating seasonally appropriate foods and performing certain movements or practices at the right times.

How did the introduction of Buddhism to China affect the development of traditional Chinese medicine?

The introduction of Buddhism to China during the Han Dynasty and its peak during the Qing and Tang dynasties influenced TCM by promoting the idea that some diseases are caused by extreme emotions, and by building hospitals to treat people and foster a better understanding of both Buddhism and medicine.

What can we expect to learn in the next part of the series on traditional Chinese medicine?

In the next part of the series, we can expect to learn about famous ancient Chinese doctors and their contributions to the field of traditional Chinese medicine.

Outlines

00:00

🌿 Introduction to Traditional Chinese Medicine

John Fenway introduces the topic of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), expressing its interest to foreigners and students. He shows pictures to engage the audience and confirms their familiarity with TCM practices. John shares his personal experience with moxibustion, a TCM technique, and found it effective. The script outlines the structure of the talk, which includes the philosophy, basic theories, diagnosis and treatments, and the development of TCM. The first subtopic focuses on the philosophy behind TCM, which is influenced by Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. These philosophies have shaped TCM practitioners' approach to health and treatment. John explains the concept of 'benevolence' from Confucianism, highlighting its historical significance in Chinese culture and its connection to the medical profession, where the ideal was to be a good official or a good physician.

05:03

📚 Philosophical Foundations of TCM

The script continues with a discussion on the influence of Confucianism on TCM, exemplified by the story of 'Hong's Benevolence', a 300-year-old TCM store named to reflect the Confucian value of benevolence. It then moves to Taoism, emphasizing its principles of living in harmony with nature, which aligns with TCM's recommendations on diet, exercise, and lifestyle according to the seasons. The script also touches on Buddhism's contribution to TCM, noting its introduction to China during the Han Dynasty and its peak during the Qing and Tang dynasties. Buddhism's teachings on mental peace and the establishment of hospitals by Buddhists are highlighted as ways it has influenced TCM. The paragraph concludes with a预告of the next segment, which will discuss famous ancient Chinese doctors and their impact on TCM.

Keywords

💡Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)

Traditional Chinese Medicine refers to a system of medicine that has been developed in China and is based on a combination of theories and practices. It includes various forms of herbal medicine, acupuncture, massage (Tui na), exercise (Qigong), and dietary therapy. In the video, TCM is the central theme, with the host discussing its philosophy, basic theories, diagnosis, treatment, and development.

💡Harmony

Harmony in TCM refers to the balance and coordination between different elements of the body and between the body and the environment. It is a fundamental concept in TCM, aiming to cure diseases and alleviate suffering by maintaining this balance. The video mentions that TCM focuses on the harmony between nature and mankind.

💡Philosophy

Philosophy, in the context of the video, refers to the underlying principles and beliefs that guide the practice of TCM. It includes the influence of Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism on the development and practice of TCM. The video discusses how these philosophies have shaped the approach to health and treatment in TCM.

💡Confucianism

Confucianism is one of the philosophies that influence TCM. It is a system of thought that emphasizes personal and governmental morality, correctness of social relationships, justice, and benevolence. The video explains that benevolence, or 'Ren', is a key principle, with medicine historically being viewed as a benevolent science in ancient China.

💡Benevolence

Benevolence, or 'Ren', is a Confucian concept that refers to the virtue of humaneness or the quality of being kind and good. In the video, it is highlighted as a supreme principle of Confucianism and is deeply ingrained in the practice of TCM, with the idea that if one cannot be a good official, they should strive to be a good physician.

💡Taoism

Taoism is another philosophy that has influenced TCM. It emphasizes living in harmony with the Tao, or the natural order of the universe. The video mentions that Taoism's principles have influenced TCM practices such as eating the right food in the right season and performing the right movements at the right time.

💡Buddhism

Buddhism is a religion that reached its peak in China during the Qing and Tang dynasties. It has influenced TCM by emphasizing the importance of a peaceful mind and by Buddhists' contributions to medicine and treatment. The video notes that Buddhists built hospitals to promote the joint development of Buddhism and medicine.

💡Diagnosis

Diagnosis in TCM involves identifying the underlying causes of illness rather than just the symptoms. It is one of the subtopics discussed in the video and is a crucial part of TCM's approach to treatment. The video suggests that understanding the philosophy behind TCM can provide insights into its diagnostic methods.

💡Treatment

Treatment in TCM encompasses a variety of methods aimed at restoring balance and harmony to the body. The video mentions that treatment methods can include herbal medicine, acupuncture, and other practices influenced by TCM's philosophical underpinnings.

💡Moxibustion

Moxibustion is a traditional Chinese medical treatment that involves burning mugwort on certain points on the body to stimulate the flow of Qi (vital energy). The host of the video mentions having tried moxibustion personally and found it effective, illustrating its use in TCM practice.

💡Qigong

Qigong is a system of coordinated body-posture and movement, breathing, and meditation used for health, spirituality, and martial-arts training. The video does not explicitly mention Qigong, but it is a practice that falls under the umbrella of TCM and is related to the Taoist principles of living in harmony with nature.

Highlights

Introduction to traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) as a topic of interest for foreign students and people.

TCM's aim to cure diseases and alleviate suffering through harmony between nature and mankind.

Division of the topic into four subtopics: philosophy, basic theories, diagnosis and treatments, and development of TCM.

Emphasis on the philosophy behind TCM and its connection to traditional Chinese culture.

Influence of Confucianism on TCM, with an emphasis on benevolence and its role in ancient society.

Confucius's teachings on personal and governmental morality, social relationships, justice, and sincerity.

The importance of benevolence in ancient China, with medicine being considered a benevolent science.

Example of 'Ren' in action: the story of a 300-year-old TCM store named 'Hong's Benevolence'.

Taoism's influence on TCM, with a focus on respecting and living in harmony with nature.

Taoist principles suggesting people eat the right food in the right season and practice movements at the right time.

Buddhism's introduction to China during the Han Dynasty and its peak in the Qing and Tang dynasties.

Buddhism's view on diseases caused by extreme emotions and its role in promoting a peaceful mind.

Buddhists' contribution to TCM by building hospitals and promoting joint development with medicine.

The dual impact of Buddhism on TCM: promoting peaceful minds and widespread understanding of TCM.

Upcoming discussion on famous ancient Chinese doctors and their influence on modern TCM practice.

Anticipation for the next part of the series focusing on the development of TCM.

Transcripts

hello everyone welcome to China overview

I'm John Fenway today we are going to

talk about a topic I think most of the

foreign students or foreign people are

very interested in that is the

traditional Chinese medicine so speaking

of traditional Chinese medicine I first

would like to ask you to see some

pictures to see whether you have seen

this picture or have heard of such a

thing before now let's see the first one

this is the one the lady is using water

to do what have you seen that before and

what about this one and

this one

end of this picture actually all these

pictures are part of the traditional

Chinese medicine and I think some of you

might have already tried that and for me

personally I have tried some of this

like the moxibustion and it works for me

um so now we'll move on to today's topic

what is traditional Chinese medicine

let's see

so traditional Chinese medicine is a

versatile of Priceless knowledge that

has been built up by Chinese people and

its aim is to cure diseases and

alleviate suffering it focuses on the

harmony between nature and Mankind and

actually for the traditional Chinese

medicine we will divide this topic into

full subtopics so let's first see what

are the four subtopics

the first subtopic is the philosophy

that is we're going to talk about the

philosophy behind the traditional

Chinese medicine and the second

sub-topic is the basic theories of the

traditional Chinese medicine and the

third subtopic is the diagnosis and the

treatments of traditional Chinese

medicine and finally we will see the

development of traditional Chinese

medicine so for today's part we'll first

talk about the first sub-topic that is

the philosophy behind the traditional

Chinese medicine and actually speaking

of the philosophy by learning this part

you can also have a slight or basic

understanding of a traditional Chinese

culture and the traditional Chinese

people now let's see the philosophy part

so in the philosophy part let's see what

we are going to learn we are going to

learn the Confucianism taoism Buddhism

and all these three philosophies or

ideas they are

um impacting the TCM and the TCM

practitioners that is the doctors the

ancient doctors so in the last part

we'll learn some famous doctors in

ancient China and their ideas their

prescriptions are actually using

nowadays by the present TCM

practitioners so let's see the first

report is the Confucianism

who's Confucius Confucius let's see this

is a State statue of Confucius who is

born in the year 557 BC and he actually

is a Chinese teacher editor politician

and a philosopher of the spring and

Autumn period of Chinese history the

philosophy of Confucius emphasized

personal and governmental molarity

correctness of social relationships

Justice and the sincerity and I would

like to emphasize this word benevolence

benevolence is the Supreme principle of

Confucianism

so let's see the meaning of benevolence

so originally benevolence referred to

the friendship between people it

requires people to do things benefiting

society and others so medicine was

called benevolent science in ancient

China and this is saying in the ancient

times it says that if I cannot be a good

official I will be a good physician

that's why in the ancient times you will

see a lot of people they are working

very hard to to become a good doctor to

cure people to save people's lives and

to cure people's diseases

so we can see that gen actually plays a

very important part in ancient people's

life so this is saying if I cannot be a

good official I will be a good physician

and speaking of Ren I have another

example to show the importance of friend

I don't know whether you have seen this

story in China this story is a very

famous traditional Chinese medicine

store it has the history of 300 years

old and its name is called

is the word I mentioned just now

ramming's benevolence right Hong means

to to be together so means to to help

people to be friendly to people you know

things like that so its name actually

shows the profound influence of Ren from

confusion culture So after talking about

Confucianism

then let's move on to the other impact

or other influence on the TCM that is

the taoism there's a saying that the

medicine and the taoism share the same

origin and the towers are often

Physicians and now we move on to some

important principles in the taoism let's

first see the Chinese

maybe you are not familiar or maybe you

don't understand what I'm talking about

now let's see the English part man takes

his law from the earth the earth takes

its law from heaven heaven takes its law

from the Tau and the law of the Tao is

its solution that is the natural laws so

from this part we can see that the

taoism emphasized a lot on respecting

nature on leaf in harmony with nature

and this also can be seen from some

important principles in TCM for example

we suggested people eat the right food

in the right season do the writer

movements the writer practices in the

right time so all this actually

influenced by the principles from Taoism

and now let's see the impact of Buddhism

in traditional Chinese medicine Buddhism

was introduced to China during the Han

Dynasty so the religion reaches its peak

in China in the Qing and the Tang

dynasties and we all know that and

especially in the TCM it thinks that

some of the diseases were actually

caused because of your uh too sad or you

are you know very extreme emotions and

in Buddhism people can fight the comfort

in its mind and also besides that most

of the Buddhists in sui and Tang

dynasties had a good knowledge of

medicine and the treatments they built

hospitals to promote the joint

development of Buddhism and Atheism and

to development closer links between the

two disciplines so the people who

believe in Buddhism they actually helped

to promote the the widespread of TCM so

we can say that the functions of the

Buddhism on the traditional Chinese

medicine come from two parts the one

part is that the Buddhism emphasized

only importance of a very peaceful mind

and the second is that the Buddhism they

built a lot of hospitals to cure

people's lives yeah on the one hand they

have people to have a better

understanding of Buddhism and on the

other hand it also

promotes the the understanding of the

popularity of TCM so so that's all we

have

discussing the philosophies that

influenced the traditional Chinese

medicine in the next hour we will get to

know some famous ancient doctors so

looking forward to see you again goodbye