Jing Tianlin

 

Jing Tianlin was graduated from the Department of Philosophy at Peking University and has served the member of Party Committee，minister of Publicity Department of Tibet Autonomous Region and the editor-in-chief of Guangming Daily. Currently, he is a visiting scholar and honorary professor of the School of Chinese Classics at the Beijing University of Chinese Medicine.

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Traditional Chinese medicine has significant historical and contem­porary value. Recently, CSST inter­viewed Jing Tianlin, a visiting scholar and honorary professor of the School of Chinese Classics at the Beijing Uni­versity of Chinese Medicine, on the history and significance of Chinese medicine.

 

CSST: Chinese medicine has a history as ancient as Chinese civili­zation itself. Could you please first introduce briefly its evolution and current situation?

 

Jing: Research on Chinese medi­cine shows the earliest records of it were found on the oracle bones. Based on in-depth research on the oracle bones by renowned philolo­gists, including Wang Yirong, Guo Moruo and Hu Houxuan, we have access to significant articles on early Chinese medicine, including primitive medical cases and clinical knowledge as well as the earliest re­cords of infectious diseases, medical isolation, surgery, massage, moxibus­tion, dental care and deliveries.

 

The later bronze scripts recorded a wide range of areas in Chinese medicine, including diseases, medi­cine, physical knowledge, healthcare and food. We can find even more re­cords in Confucian texts, such as the Thirteen Classics.

 

A systematic record of Chinese medicine was first laid out in the Huai-nan Tzu and the Shih Chi from the Han Dynasty. The first biography of renowned Chinese doctors was Gan Boxiong’s Biography of Famous Doctors in Previous Dynasties from the Tang Dynasty. The concept of a medical history was first put forth in Li Lian’s Medical History in the Ming Dynasty, but it was not until the Qing Dynasty that a historical review of Chinese medicine came into being, and Xu Lingtai’s On the Origin of Medicine was one such work. Chen Bangxian’s A History of Chinese Medicine, written in the 1920s, was the first systematic attempt to compile a general history of Chinese medicine.

 

In modern Chinese society, at­titudes about traditional Chinese medicine have vacillated between abolishment and preservation. As an important part of Chinese civiliza­tion and a great contribution from the Chinese people to the world, Chinese medicine has always been connected to the destiny of our na­tion and civilization. The history of Chinese medicine has recorded it faithfully.

 

Today, historical research on Chinese medicine has entered the best stage ever. A variety of histori­cal works and textbooks on Chinese medicine are published and used in classes. New findings on Chinese medicine are being published in various journals, such as the Chinese Journal of Medical History, covering the origin of medicine, division of medical history, medical systems, history of diseases, history of medi­cal exchanges, medical education and medicine of different ethnic groups, medical figures, classics of traditional Chinese medicine and historical works on medicine.

 

I would especially like to mention the Intellectual History of Chinese Medicine, edited by Li Jingwei and Zhang Zhibin; the History of Chinese Medical Culture, written by Ma Boying, and Qian Chaochen’s re­examination of the Inner Canon of Huangdi, Treatise on Cold Damage Disorders and research on eminent ancient doctors as well as Chen Yajun’s History of the Philosophy of Chinese Medicine, all of which achieved new heights with their elaborate examinations and pro­found argumentation.

 

CSST: The Chinese civilization is the only one among the four great­est ancient civilizations that has sur­vived to this day, transcending time and space. As a treasure of Chinese civilization and ancient Chinese sci­ence, Chinese medicine is regarded as the Fifth Greatest Invention of Ancient China in addition to the four greatest inventions, including the compass, gun-powder, paper-making and printing. What are some universal features that Chinese medicine possesses that enable it to transcend time and space?

 

Jing: The History of Chinese Civili­zation, edited by Yuan Xingpei, noted that more than 2,000 years of prac­tice has demonstrated the vitality and lasting value of Chinese medi­cine as a disciplinary system, and so much of the Chinese tradition is alive today. Suffice it to say, Chinese medi­cine is a miracle of ancient Chinese technology and civilization. I think this is exactly the transcendental fea­ture of Chinese medicine.

 

The history of Chinese medicine also transcends time and space. According to the Dictionary of Chi­nese Herbal Medicine, edited by Li Jingwei, “The mission of historical research on Chinese medicine is to explain the dialectical relations be­tween medical practice and theory, to demonstrate medical achieve­ments in different historical periods and reveal the relations between medical situations and develop­ment as well as the impact of social ideology on medical development by using a dialectical approach and viewpoints of historical materialism.” This indicates its transcendentality is determined by its disciplinary fea­ture and mission.

 

CSST: The exchange between dif­ferent civilizations has always been a motive for mankind’s progress, so how do we see Chinese medicine in terms of cultural exchange?

 

Jing: Experts have shown us a lot of such examples in works on the his­tory of Chinese medicine, especially the history of exchanges between Chinese and international medicine. The Silk Road witnessed many of these exchanges. The exchange was out of people’s respect for life. People exchanged food, medicine, as well as medical knowledge and culture.

 

Li Xun’s Pharmacopoeia of For­eign Drugs from the Tang Dynasty recorded 124 medicines introduced to China from abroad. Avicenna recorded 48 pulse diagnoses in The Cannon of Medicine, 35 of which were similar to that of the Maijing by Wu Shuhu in Western Jin Dynasty. Some research has shown that Avi­cenna indeed drew on Wang’s book and many Chinese therapies. Indian medicine and Arabic astronomy also had an impact on Chinese medicine.In addition, as China had closer exchanges with Japan, Mongolia, Korea and Vietnam, scholars began doing even more research on this.

 

CSST: What achievements has the scholarship made in terms of the research on exchanges be­tween Chinese medicine and the world?

 

Jing: First of all, works and text­books on the general history of Chinese medicine have provided comprehensive and systematic elaboration on exchanges between Chinese medicine and the world. Next we have A History of Exchange Between China and the World, with its rich content and deep thought, as well as emerging volumes and works speciallizing in this topic.

 

Third, various medical journals have set up regular columns for works on this topic to be published. In addition, writers and translators have been committed to research on the medical development in China’s neighboring nations and the rest of the world as well as how Chinese medicine exchanged with the world. Suffice it to say that such exchanges concur with exchanges between human beings and dif­ferent civilizations.The spirit of Chinese medicine to go beyond na­tional borders is driven by its inner quality and the actual practice of exchange, making great contribu­tion to medical development and humankind’s civilization.

 

CSST: What still needs to be done in the field of Chinese medicine and historical research on the subject?

 

Jing: There is still some funda­mental and epoch-making work to do. First we need to clarify the place and role of Chinese medicine in realizing the Chinese Dream of the rejuvenation of the Chinese people. Second, we need to carry out in-depth research on relations between Chinese medicine and Chinese civilization. Third, we need to know the relations between Chinese medicine and socialist core values. Fourth is the progressive­ness of Chinese medicine. Fifth is the inheritance and innovation of basic theories of Chinese medicine. Sixth, we need to attach impor­tance to the new problems posed to Chinese medicine by the new situations and changes. Seventh, modernization of Chinese medicine. Eighth, institutional innovation of Chinese medicine and its intellectual property in history and now. Ninth, contemporary exchange of Chinese medicine. Tenth, how to protect great masters in Chinese medicine and how to nurture future talent in this field.

 

The Chinese version appeared in Chinese Social Sciences Today, No. 632, August 11, 2014

 Translated by Jiang Hong

The Chinese link:

http://sscp.cssn.cn/xkpd/dh/201408/t20140811_1286014.html