Ancient medicine

For the ancient Chinese, much of the knowledge of early Chinese medicine was obtained from the Yellow Emperor's "Nei Ching" (Classic of Internal Medicine), which was previously believed to date from before the year 2000 BC, but is now believed to be from the 2nd century BC. They were known to use religious, magical, and herbal cures. In addition, acupuncture, ginseng, meditation, and introspective therapy were used in Chinese medicine. Even today, Chinese medicine is still widely used in countries such as China and even in Singapore. Even better still, Chinese medicine is sometimes combined with western medicine and used as one.

But all these requisites belong of old to Medicine, and an origin and way have been found out, by which many and elegant discoveries have been made, during a length of time, and others will yet be found out, if a person possessed of the proper ability, and knowing those discoveries which have been made, should proceed from them to prosecute his investigations. But whoever, rejecting and despising all these, attempts to pursue another course and form of inquiry, and says he has discovered anything, is deceived himself and deceives others, for the thing is impossible. And for what reason it is impossible, I will now endeavor to explain, by stating and showing what the art really is. From this it will be manifest that discoveries cannot possibly be made in any other way. And most especially, it appears to me, that whoever treats of this art should treat of things which are familiar to the common people. For of nothing else will such a one have to inquire or treat, but of the diseases under which the common people have labored, which diseases and the causes of their origin and departure, their increase and decline, illiterate persons cannot easily find out themselves, but still it is easy for them to understand these things when discovered and expounded by others.

During period of recovery from diseases, and also in protracted ill conditions, many disorders occur. Some of them spontaneously, and some from certain things accidentally administered. I know that the common herd of physicians, like the vulgar, if there happen to have been any innovation made about that day, such as the bath being used, a walk taken, or any unusual food eaten, all which were better done than otherwise. Attribute notwithstanding the source of these disorders, to several of these things, being ignorant of the true cause but proscribing what may have been very proper. Now this should not to be so, but one ought to know the effects of a bath or a walk unseasonably applied. For thus there will never be any mischief from these things, nor from any other thing, nor from repletion, nor from such and such an article of food. Whoever does not know what effect these things produce upon a man, cannot know the consequences which result from them, or how to apply them.

Link