Insights and Updates

On a Saturday afternoon while strolling in Zizhuyuan (Purple Bamboo) Park, I came upon a young couple. The girl was utterly obedient to the boy, gentle, delicate, and considerate; every glance and gesture showed how she cared for her boyfriend. But the boy was shy;…

Possession, grasping, and aversion to work bring not joy but emptiness. This emptiness cannot be filled by seeking pleasure in the moment; immediate gratification only makes the empty person emptier, and the pursuit of instant satisfaction breeds nihilism. Conversely, sincerity, kindness, dedication, diligence, frugality, tolerance,…

I ask almost nothing of material life. I have never quite understood those in this world who need material possessions to gain dignity and security, just as they do not understand me. We cannot live in this world without a material basis, but apart from…

The formula "Qianjin Xiaodu San" (Thousand-Golden Detoxifying Powder) comes from Wan Bing Hui Chun (Recovery of All Diseases) by the Ming-dynasty physician Gong Tingxian. It is composed of 3 g (1 qian) each of Lianqiao (Forsythia Fruit), Huanglian (Coptis Rhizoma), and Chishao (Red Peony Root);…

"Neituo Shengji San" (Interior-Supporting Granulation-Promoting Powder) comes from Yi Xue Zhong Zhong Can Xi Lu (Records of Integrating Chinese and Western Medicine) by the famous late-Qing/early-Republic physician Zhang Xichun. It is composed of 120 g (4 liang) of raw Huangqi (Astragalus Root), 60 g (2…

Huaihuang Wan (Huaihuang Pills) is recorded in Gu Jin Yi Jian (Ancient and Modern Medical Mirror). It is composed of 120 g (4 liang) of Huanglian (Coptis Rhizoma, wine-fried) and 120 g (4 liang) of Huaihua (Sophora Flower, fried). Preparation: take the two herbs, place…

When I was in college, I lived in dire straits: I could not get three square meals a day and dressed shabbily. At my hardest, I had to borrow money just to get by. Back then I was determined to earn some money to improve…

These past couple of days I have been in Foshan, Guangdong, looking into the jade market here on behalf of my family, visiting a few old friends and former classmates I have known for more than twenty years, and meeting with some patients and their…

Dingyu Lizhong Tang (Clove-Evodia Center-Regulating Decoction) comes from the Yizong Jinjian (Golden Mirror of the Medical Tradition). It consists of clove (Dingxiang) 2 qian (6 g), evodia (Wuzhuyu) 1 qian (3 g), Codonopsis (Dangshen) 5 qian (15 g), fried Atractylodes (Chao Baizhu) 3 qian (10…

Chaihu Qinggan Tang (Bupleurum Liver-Clearing Decoction) comes from the Ming-dynasty physician Chen Shigong's work Waike Zhengzong (Orthodox Manual of External Diseases). Its ingredients are Sichuan lovage (Chuanxiong), dong quai (Danggui), white peony (Baishao), raw rehmannia (Shengdihuang), bupleurum (Chaihu), scutellaria (Huangqin), gardenia (Zhizi), trichosanthes root (Tianhuafen),…