TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE
PHILOSOPHY
The theoretical foundation of traditional Chinese medicine was laid by The Inner Canon of the Yellow Emperor (Huangdi Neijing), made up of two parts: Su Wen – Basic Questions and Ling Shu – Miraculous Pivot. The book presents the relationship between humans and nature, human physiology, pathology, diagnosis, treatment and prevention of diseases, and health protection.
Shen Nong’s Classic of Herbalism (Shennong Bencao Jing) laid the foundation of Chinese pharmacy; the book deals with medicinal items (herbs, animals, minerals), their classification, pharmaceutical theories, properties and tastes of medicines; it describes the functions, indications and administration of medicinal items, and provides medication for various diseases.
In Traditional Chinese Medicine, the human body is viewed as both
- an organic whole, i.e. its organs and their functions are interrelated, hence they influence each other when affected by a disorder or disease, and
- part of the natural environment (climate, geographic location, etc.), thus the human body is directly or indirectly influenced by any change in the external environment.
Basic theories:
- the yin-yang theory
- the five elements theory