Han Zhihe: Biographical introduction and legendary stories, major works and academic contributions

TCM Knowledge:Prominent Ancient Herbalists ✵Han Zhihe: a famous herbalist who lived during the Northern Song dynasty. He studied the theory of Shang Han (the theory of exogenous febrile disease) in great detail and conducted careful research. His applications are flexible, can adapt to it or accommodate to circumstances, and he carried forward the theory of Zhang Zhongjing with his own innovations. He is the author of the book Shang Han Wei Zhi Lun (the Subtle Treatises on Exogenous Febrile Disease).

韓祗和 (Hán Zhīhé).

  
Brief Introduction
Chinese Name: 韓祗和 (Hán Zhīhé)Alias: Unknown
Popular name: 韓祗和 (Hán Zhīhé)English Name: Han Zhihe, or Zhihe Han (Given/Family)
Hometown: Xing Jun or Ci JunDates: not quite clear, about year 1030–1100 AD.
Main works: 《傷寒微旨論》(Shang Han Wei Zhi Lun, or the Subtle Treatises on Exogenous Febrile Disease),year 1086 AD.
Representative works: Shang Han Wei Zhi Lun (the Subtle Treatises on Exogenous Febrile Disease).

Biographical introduction and legendary stories


 韓祗和Hán Zhīhé statue on a lithoglyph Han Zhihe, whose years of birth and death are unknown, was a famous herbalist who ever lived during the Northern Song dynasty, approximately between the years 1030 and 1100 AD. He studied the Shang Han theory (the theory of exogenous febrile disease) in great detail and with great care. He praised the essential and key points of Zhang Zhongjing's theory, and his applications were flexible. He could adapt to circumstances and had an innovative theory on pulse identification and treatment methods for Shang Han (exogenous febrile disease), including diaphoresis, purgation, and warming. Furthermore, he compiled the two-volume work Shang Han Wei Zhi Lun (Subtle Treatises on Exogenous Febrile Disease). Completed in 1086 A.D., the book analyzed the theory of syndrome differentiation and medication in Shang Han Lun (Treatise on Cold-induced Diseases). The original book has been lost, but a compiled version exists, compiled from the ancient book, the Yongle Canon (Yongle Encyclopedia). Most herbalists of later generations have praised it. According to the medical records of Shang Han Wei Zhi Lun (The Subtle Treatises on Exogenous Febrile Disease), Han Zhihe worked in "two counties, Xing Jun and Ci Jun", and "two counties, Huai Jun and Wei Jun," and "Fuyang Jun." It can be inferred that the Han family was originally from the border area of present-day Hebei and Henan.

Major works and academic contributions


 Han Zhihe's study of exogenous febrile diseases (cold-induced diseases) is in-depth. He has studied Zhang Zhongjing's Shang Han Lun (The Treatise on Cold-Induced Diseases) for over 30 years. He has thoroughly studied the Shang Han theory (the theory of exogenous febrile diseases) and respects the essential and key points of Zhang Zhongjing's theory. He applies his knowledge flexibly and has an innovative theory on pulse identification and the treatment methods of diaphoresis, purgation, and warming in Shang Han. He advanced Zhang Zhongjing's theory with his own innovations. In 1086 CE, he completed the two-volume book Shang Han Wei Zhi Lun (The Subtle Treatises on Exogenous Febrile Disease), with over 20,000 characters, to differentiate and analyze the theory of syndrome differentiation and medication in Shang Han Lun (The Treatise on Cold-Induced Diseases). Han advocated for cold-pungent diaphoresis, which involves relieving exterior syndromes with herbs that are pungent in flavor and cool in property. The prescriptions mostly used such herbs. This helped correct the common mistakes of using warm herbs for exogenous diseases and played an important role in laying the foundation for the science of epidemic febrile disease in traditional Chinese medicine.

 The two-volume book Shang Han Wei Zhi Lun (The Subtle Treatises on Exogenous Febrile Disease) is a text on the Shang Han (theory on exogenous febrile disease). It was compiled in 1086 CE by Song Dynasty herbalist Han Zhihe. The original manuscript has not survived to this day, and later printed editions are compiled versions of the book The Yongle Canon (Yongle Encyclopedia). The book has 15 chapters, covering topics from the origin of Shang Han to Lao Fu (recurrence caused by overexertion). The book discusses pulse differentiation and treatment methods such as diaphoresis, purgation, and warming. It also covers medication, the treatment of certain diseases and syndromes, and includes prescriptions and treatment cases. The prescriptions are not limited to those in Shang Han Lun (The Treatise on Cold-Induced Diseases), but mostly self-established. The various methods of diaphoresis, purgation, and warming are determined by the three stages of the solar terms, after Lichun (Beginning of Spring) and before Qingming (Pure Brightness), after Qingming and before Mangzhong (Grain in Ear), and after Mangzhong and before Liqiu (Beginning of Autumn). Han innovates in his interpretation of Shang Han Lun (the Treatise on Cold-induced Diseases), reflecting a certain degree of change and development. His work was important for later generations. However, the later herbalist Wang Lu (王履Wáng Lǚ) criticized Han for "using Wenshu syndrome as a treatise on the Cold-induced Diseases" in his book Yi Jing Su Hui Ji (Trace Back Collection of Medical Classics), to which attention should be paid. The existing version of Shang Han Wei Zhi Lun (The Subtle Treatises of Shang Han) is an engraved and lithographed edition from the late Qing dynasty, and a copy was collected in Si Ku Quan Shu (The Imperial Collection of Books), etc.

References:
  • 1.Han Zhihe: Biographical introduction and legendary stories, major works and academic contributions

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