Synopses & Reviews
Chinese scholars have been writing medical treatises for nearly 5,000 years, the grandest and most comprehensive of which is the herbal
Pên T'sao, published by Li Shih-chên in 1578, after three decades of research. When Western physicians arrived in China in the mid-nineteenth century, they gained valuable insights into traditional Chinese medical practices. In the course of their daily work, they discovered that individuals often acted as their own doctors, employing natural remedies that were sufficiently effective to be worthy of research. Two doctors, C. A. Stuart and F. Porter Smith, used Li Shih-chên's
Pên T'sao as their working base, translating the massive 16th-century document and annotating their translation with observations from their own experience.
Chinese Medicinal Herbs has served as a basis for modern-day organic medicine and will prove of enormous interest to people in the field of alternative healing methods. A reference volume rather than a how-to manual, it comprises 1,892 varieties of drugs, derived from animals, vegetables, and minerals, and it includes 8,160 prescriptions. Students, professionals, and health-care practitioners of every specialty will want to have a copy of this landmark treatise, a treasury of tried-and-true wisdom from centuries of practical experience. Unabridged republication of the edition published by Georgetown Press, San Francisco, 1973. Botanical Terms and Common Terms.
Synopsis
Chinese scholars have been writing medical treatises for nearly 5,000 years, the grandest and most comprehensive of them the Materia Medica (Pen Ts'ao), a natural pharmacopoeia drawn from the animal, vegetable, and mineral kingdom. Published by Li Shih-chen in 1578, after three decades of research, it remained largely unknown beyond China until Western physicians (such as the editors of this volume) began working in the region in the mid-nineteenth century.
Like other Westerners in China, F. Porter Smith and G. A. Stuart encountered people who often acted as their own doctors, employing natural remedies that were sufficiently effective to be worthy of research. The physicians used Li Shih-chen's Herbal Pen Ts'ao as the foundation for this modern edition of that portion of the massive sixteenth-century document, annotating their translation with observations from their own experience.
As a basis for modern-day holistic medicine, Chinese Medicinal Herbs provides a valuable compendium for practitioners of alternative healing methods. Students, professionals, and health-care specialists will want to own this landmark treatise, a treasury of tried-and-true wisdom from centuries of practical experience.
Synopsis
"A truly fascinating read." -- Texas Kitchen and Garden and More
Chinese scholars have been writing medical treatises for nearly 5,000 years, the grandest and most comprehensive of them the Materia Medica (Pen Ts'ao), a natural pharmacopoeia drawn from the animal, vegetable, and mineral kingdom. Published by Li Shih-chen in 1578, after three decades of research, it remained largely unknown beyond China until Western physicians (such as the editors of this volume) began working in the region in the mid-nineteenth century.
Like other Westerners in China, F. Porter Smith and G. A. Stuart encountered people who often acted as their own doctors, employing natural remedies that were sufficiently effective to be worthy of research. The physicians used Li Shih-chen's Herbal Pen Ts'ao as the foundation for this modern edition of that portion of the massive sixteenth-century document, annotating their translation with observations from their own experience.
As a basis for modern-day holistic medicine, Chinese Medicinal Herbs provides a valuable compendium for practitioners of alternative healing methods. Students, professionals, and health-care specialists will want to own this landmark treatise, a treasury of tried-and-true wisdom from centuries of practical experience.
Synopsis
Two Western doctors assembled this updated edition of a massive sixteenth-century document, annotating their translation with their own observations. A treasury of tried-and-true wisdom from centuries of practical experience, it has served as a basis for modern-day organic medicine and has enormous value for practitioners of alternative healing methods.
Synopsis
Two Western doctors assembled this updated edition of a massive sixteenth-century document, annotating their translation with their own observations. A treasury of tried-and-true wisdom from centuries of practical experience, it has served as a basis for modern-day organic medicine and has enormous value for practitioners of alternative healing methods.
Table of Contents
CONTENTS PREFACE PART ONE
THE SETTING AND THE INHABITANTS
The Country The Rule of Nature
The Times. The Ascendancy of the Past
Society. The Dualist Principle
Indian Psychology
PART TWO
THE LIFE OF THE RULERS
The Life of the Supreme Inca
The Life of the Inca Nobility
Administration
A Soldier's Life Spiritual Life Intellectual and Artistic Life PART THREE
THE LIFE OF THE COMMON PEOPLE
Religious LifeFamily Life Economic Life: Agriculture and Fishing Economic Life: The Craftsmen and the Provision of Services Economic Life: Barter CONCLUSION
INDEX