中医的特色The Characteristics of Traditional Chinese Medicine

在西方，说起中医，人们不免问其特色是什么。一种数千年的传统医学，博大精深，如何概括？

In the West， when talking about Trad-itional Chinese Medicine （TCM）， people cannot help but ask what are its characteristics？ For a medicine of thousands of years’ tradition， how can its profundity be summarized？

最突出的，是其生命理念——“天人合一”，即认为整个自然是一个不可分割的整体，强调的是人与大自然的关系。在某种意义上，人体是一个“小宇宙”，整个宇宙也是一个“大的人”。人体内部自成一体，构成五脏、六腑、经络、气血等生理系统，在功能上相互协调、补充，在病理上则相互影响、印证1。

Most prominent is the “unity of man and nature”—the concept of life which lays much stress on the relations between man and nature. Considering the universe as an indivisible whole， the human body can be seen as a “microcosm” and the universe an “enlarged person”. Internally， the human body is also a perfect system， consisting of the sub-physiological systems of the five viscera， six hollow organs， meridians， qi and blood and so on. They complement and influence each other functionally and pathologically.

在认知方面，中医是一种“象思维2”，即不是从解剖实体认识病因，而是以人体内部所表现出的现象作为思维活动的信息依据，从宏观属性和器官相互关系层面把握人体的本质和规律，通过比较、分析、判断病因、病性、病位及邪正之间的影响3，最后得出具有属性意义的诊断。在这种理论指导下，中医并不拘泥于微观的物质实体变化，如对于癌症的治疗，即使不依据CT、活检等检查，也可通过症状认识病性，分清寒热虚实，进而辩证施治，收到不同程度的疗效。

Cognitively， TCM is interior image thinking. Its attributive diagnoses are not based on etiology but on information about mental activities， grasping the essence and regularity of the human body from their grand aspects and internal relations. Guided by this theory， TCM is not confined to microscopic physical changes. For example， in the treatment of cancer， without relying on CT （computerized tomography）， biopsy and other tests， TCM achieves its medical efficacy through exploring the nature of the illness， differentiating concrete symptoms and healing through dialectical oppositions.

就治疗主导而言，是以“人”为中心，而非以“病”为重点，强调人体自身的“扶正祛邪4”，恢复机体阴阳平衡的状态。中医主张充分利用自然资源——在人体外，施加物理的、非对抗性的自然力量，如针刺、推拿等；在人体内，则采用植物、动物、矿物等天然药食能源，取得综合疗效。同时，中医的治疗是高度个性化的，避免西医的千人一法。

The treatment of TCM is oriented not to diseases but to the person， focusing on “strengthening the body’s resistance to eliminate pathogenic factors” and restoring the body’s balance. In order to make full use of natural resources， TCM manipulates physical and non-confrontational natural forces， such as acupuncture and tuina  （Chinese massage）， on the body， and adopts plants， animals and minerals as edible  medicine to treat internal causes， so as to achieve comprehensive results. Therefore， TCM treatments are highly individualized rather than using the stand- ardized patterns of Western Medicine.

在预防、养生上，则更有特色，主要体现在“上医治未病，中医治已病，下医治大病”的理念。这对现代医学仍具有深远意义。

This individualization is even more characteristic when it comes to preventing sickness and preserving health. The idea that “the best medicine is set firstly to prevention， secondly to treatment and lastly to terminal illness” has profound implications for modern medicine.

现代社会，竞争激烈，很多人处于亚健康状态，极易发生不同程度的疲劳，进而转化为慢性疲劳综合征，从而引发心血管病、呼吸系统疾病、精神疾病、肌肉骨关节疾病、生殖疾病、癌症等多种现代疑难病，甚至会出现过劳死，而传统中医文化的药膳、经络按摩、太极拳、静养，甚至相关的养生音乐、养生书法等，都会极大促进人体身心健康、预防疾病的发生。

In modern society， confronted with fierce competition， many people are in a sub-healthy state， experiencing various degrees of fatigue， which causes chronic fatigue syndrome and leads to cardiovascular diseases， respiratory diseases， mental discomfort， musculoskeletal ailments， reproductive pathologies and cancers， and can even die of overwork. In this regard， medicine diet， meridian massage， Tai Chi， TCM culture， even health music and calligraphy can greatly improve people’s physical and mental health as well as prevent illness.