Shānghán jié jué 傷寒捷訣

Quick Mnemonic of Cold Damage by 嚴則庵 (Yán Zé’ān, 清) — compiler; 裘慶元 (Qiú Qìngyuán, 1873–1947, 民國) — modern editor

About the work

A one-juan mnemonic-handbook of Shānghán clinical practice, presented in verse for memorization. Compiled originally by the late-Qīng physician 嚴則庵 Yán Zé’ān, the text was later re-edited by 裘慶元 Qiú Qìngyuán (1873–1947) and included in his Republican-era medical anthology Sānsān yī shū 三三醫書. The work is representative of the rich Qīng / Republican vernacular tradition of versified medical mnemonics.

Abstract

Yán Zé’ān is a minor late-Qīng physician about whom little is preserved beyond authorship of this single work and a Yī xué qiǎn shuō 醫學淺說. Qiú Qìngyuán’s Sānsān yī shū — a 99-title anthology published in three series (1924, 1925, 1936) — is one of the principal Republican-era preservation vehicles for short and minor Qīng medical texts; the Jié jué is preserved primarily through it. The composition window (Qīng / Republican) reflects this two-stage production.

Translations and research

  • Croizier, Traditional Medicine in Modern China (Harvard, 1968) — for the Republican-era publishing scene.
  • No substantial Western-language secondary literature located.