Classical Chinese medicine relates yearly and circadian rhythms to physiology, pathology and formula architecture
Have you ever read the Jin Gui Yao Lue and seen several clauses where various, very different formulae are intended for the same disease, without much indication as to differential diagnosis and how to determine which formula to use for a patient?
For example, for heart pain and chest obstruction, do we use Gua Lou Xie Bai Ban Xia Tang, Fu Ling Xing Ren Gan Cao Tang, Wu Tou Chi Shi Zhi Wan, or any of the other formulae in Chapter 9 of the Jin Gui Yao Lue?
You are not alone. The Jin Gui Yao Lue clauses can be extraordinarily obscure without the right background in classical physiology and formula architecture. The key to knowing how to prescribe Jin Gui Yao Lue formulae and produce great results is, beyond the few symptoms given in a clause, to decipher a formula's composition in terms of the 6 conformations and 5 flavors. It is then immediately clear which herbs to use!
For those of you who do not know the formula names I mentioned above, do not worry. As we study each disease category of the Jin Gui Yao Lue in detail, you will learn many formulae and how to apply them correctly. Moreover, you will learn the principles upon which these formulae were built, so that you can modify, combine, and even re-create and create them. Having a deep understanding of physiology, pathology, and how formula composition mirrors the latter, is how a clinician achieves superior results.
This treasure, truly worthy of a golden cabinet, betters the lives of countless patients, and (in my opinion) provides the practitioner with an endlessly rewarding study and a deep appreciation and love for natural processes, both in the microcosmos of the body and macrocosmos which surrounds it.
For example, for heart pain and chest obstruction, do we use Gua Lou Xie Bai Ban Xia Tang, Fu Ling Xing Ren Gan Cao Tang, Wu Tou Chi Shi Zhi Wan, or any of the other formulae in Chapter 9 of the Jin Gui Yao Lue?
You are not alone. The Jin Gui Yao Lue clauses can be extraordinarily obscure without the right background in classical physiology and formula architecture. The key to knowing how to prescribe Jin Gui Yao Lue formulae and produce great results is, beyond the few symptoms given in a clause, to decipher a formula's composition in terms of the 6 conformations and 5 flavors. It is then immediately clear which herbs to use!
For those of you who do not know the formula names I mentioned above, do not worry. As we study each disease category of the Jin Gui Yao Lue in detail, you will learn many formulae and how to apply them correctly. Moreover, you will learn the principles upon which these formulae were built, so that you can modify, combine, and even re-create and create them. Having a deep understanding of physiology, pathology, and how formula composition mirrors the latter, is how a clinician achieves superior results.
This treasure, truly worthy of a golden cabinet, betters the lives of countless patients, and (in my opinion) provides the practitioner with an endlessly rewarding study and a deep appreciation and love for natural processes, both in the microcosmos of the body and macrocosmos which surrounds it.
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Gua Lou Xie Bai Ban Xia Tang, Gua Lou Xie Bai Bai Jiu Tang and Ren Shen Tang in a 1601 AD edition of the Jin Gui Yao Lue, written in the Han dynasty by Zhang Hong Jing (150-219 AD)
The Jin Gui Yao Lue 金匱要略 , or Essential Remedies from the Golden Cabinet, presents the final attainment of Zhang Zhong Jing’s theories on Cold Damage and 6 conformations.
Originally written as a companion to the Shang Han Lun 傷寒論 , and including much discussion of theory and pulses, something mostly absent from the latter work, this masterpiece takes a cross-sectional look at disease, dissecting each in terms of disease category, etiology, progression and treatment. While the Shang Han Lun teaches simple transmutations from one conformation to others, the Jin Gui Yao Lue offers a study of complex diseases, which involve several conformations and transmutations over time. As such, it is a treasure of solutions for the complicated or chronic clinical pictures we commonly see in the clinic. It also represents the perfect application and achievement of 6 conformation theory.
This online course, in the wake of Secret Passages: the Language of the Shang Han Lun, proposes to undertake the exegesis of the Jin Gui Yao Lue, chapter by chapter, clause by clause. The clauses and formulae will be illustrated by many case studies.
As a primer, in the first 3 sessions will study the theory of classical physiology and formula architecture as transmitted by the Nei Jing, Zhang Zhong Jing, Wang Shuhe, Tao Hong Jing, and later Fire Spirit School physician Zheng Qinan. This will include a study of the entire Tang Ye Jing Fa, as transmitted by Tao Hong Jing in the Fu Xing Jue 辅行诀 . As the seminal text which inspired Zhang Zhong Jing’s formulae, understanding its structure offers many insights into formula architecture, Zhang Zhong Jing’s use of flavors as agents of change and repair, externally versus internally contracted disease, the use of a system based on 5 versus a system based on 6, and a general understanding of medicine as a cosmologically based practice.
After these sessions, we will continue with the Jin Gui Yao Lue, exploring each clause in detail with analysis and supporting case studies. Discussing the causes, etiology, symptoms and treatments of all the patterns in each disease category will constitute the bulk of our study. For a detail of each chapter, please see here.
Originally written as a companion to the Shang Han Lun 傷寒論 , and including much discussion of theory and pulses, something mostly absent from the latter work, this masterpiece takes a cross-sectional look at disease, dissecting each in terms of disease category, etiology, progression and treatment. While the Shang Han Lun teaches simple transmutations from one conformation to others, the Jin Gui Yao Lue offers a study of complex diseases, which involve several conformations and transmutations over time. As such, it is a treasure of solutions for the complicated or chronic clinical pictures we commonly see in the clinic. It also represents the perfect application and achievement of 6 conformation theory.
This online course, in the wake of Secret Passages: the Language of the Shang Han Lun, proposes to undertake the exegesis of the Jin Gui Yao Lue, chapter by chapter, clause by clause. The clauses and formulae will be illustrated by many case studies.
As a primer, in the first 3 sessions will study the theory of classical physiology and formula architecture as transmitted by the Nei Jing, Zhang Zhong Jing, Wang Shuhe, Tao Hong Jing, and later Fire Spirit School physician Zheng Qinan. This will include a study of the entire Tang Ye Jing Fa, as transmitted by Tao Hong Jing in the Fu Xing Jue 辅行诀 . As the seminal text which inspired Zhang Zhong Jing’s formulae, understanding its structure offers many insights into formula architecture, Zhang Zhong Jing’s use of flavors as agents of change and repair, externally versus internally contracted disease, the use of a system based on 5 versus a system based on 6, and a general understanding of medicine as a cosmologically based practice.
After these sessions, we will continue with the Jin Gui Yao Lue, exploring each clause in detail with analysis and supporting case studies. Discussing the causes, etiology, symptoms and treatments of all the patterns in each disease category will constitute the bulk of our study. For a detail of each chapter, please see here.
The aim of this course is to cultivate clinical acumen rooted in lineage old efficacy, while fostering an appreciation of the more arcane aspects of Chinese medicine theory. We propose:
• impeccable knowledge of Jin Gui Yao Lue formulae
• the ability to inscribe this knowledge into precise and accurate differential diagnosis
• treatment strategies for a great many diseases, from mundane to complex
• to let natural philosophies of the pre-Han eras, ancient astronomy and history inform our understanding of physiology, so as to obtain a clearer understanding of 6 conformation and 5 flavor theory
Zhang Zhong Jing's work aims to reverse damage to life. His contributions, more than 2000 years later, continue to tremendously improve the lives of patients. Please join Genevieve Le Goff, Shang Han Za Bing Lun and Fire Spirit School practitioner, in this wonderful study. It is her sincere hope you will love it as much as she does!
(Please note, although previous exposure to the Shang Han Lun is encouraged, it is not required as we will cover theory at length!)
(Please note, although previous exposure to the Shang Han Lun is encouraged, it is not required as we will cover theory at length!)