Zhen Quan: introduction about his biography and legend,main books and academic thoughts.
✵a physician during the Tang Dynasty who was a leading expert in acupuncture. He was also the author of the Zhen Fang (the Needling Prescriptions), and the Ming Tang Ren Xing Tu (the Figures of the Human Body).
甄權 (Zhēn Quán).
Brief Introduction
Chinese Name:
甄權 (Zhēn Quán)
Alias:
unknown
Popular name:
unknown
English Name:
Zhen Quan, or Quan Zhen (Given/Sur Name)
Hometown:
Xuzhou Fugou
Dates:
about 540-643 A.D.
Main works:
《明堂人形圖》(Ming Tang Ren Xing Tu) 1 volume, 《針經鈔》(Zhen Jing Chao) 3 volumes, 《脈經》(Mai Jing) 1 volume, 《針方》(Zhen Fang) 1 volume, 《脈訣賦》(Mai Jue Fu, or Pulse Rhymed Formula Poem) 1 volume, 《本草音義》(Ben Cao Yin Yi, or Herbal Phonosemantics) 7 volumes, 《藥性論》(Yao Xing Lun, or Thesis of Herb Characters) 4 volumes.
Representative works:
Ming Tang Ren Xing Tu 1 volume,Yao Xing Lun (Thesis of Herb Characters) 4 volumes.
Biography and legends:
Zhen Quan (540-643 A.D.): A physician during the Tang Dynasty who was a leading expert on acupuncture. He is the author of Zhen Fang (the Needling Prescriptions), and Ming Tang Ren Xing Tu (the Figures of the Human Body).
Zhen Quan was born in Datong six years (540 A.D.) during the Western Wei Dynasty (535-556 A.D.), one of the Northern Dynasties, or in Datong seven years (541 A.D.) during the Liang Dynasty (502-557A.D.), one of the Southern Dynasties. He passed away in Zhenguan seventeen years (643 A.D.) during the Tang Dynasty. He was from Xu Zhou Fugou (an ancient toponym, present-day Fugou, Henan). When he was young, his mother was sick, so he carefully studied medicine with his younger brother, Zhen Liyan (甄立言 Zhēn Lìyán). He studied remedy books and gradually became a famous herbalist. Zhen Quan was very good at acupuncture and moxibustion and knew a lot about herbal treatments.
Books and Writings: Zhen Quan had many writings and works in his lifetime. His known works are: Ming Tang Ren Xing Tu, 1 volume, Zhen Jing Chao, 3 volumes, Mai Jing, 1 volume, Zhen Fang, 1 volume, Mai Jue Fu (Pulse Rhymed Formula Poem, 1 volume), Ben Cao Yin Yi (Herbal Phonosemantics, 7 volumes), Yao Xing Lun (Thesis of Herb Characters, 4 volumes). These works and writings were lost in ancient times, but part of their content is available in later classics such as Bei Ji Qian Jin Yao Fang, Qian Jin Yi Fang, and Wai Tai Mi Yao. These works influenced later generations. The graphs collected in Ming Tang Ren Xing Tu were very popular and fashionable during the Tang dynasty. The famous herbalist Sun Simiao redrew a colored photo gallery according to it, Ren Ti Jing Luo Yu Xue Cai Tu, but this classic gallery was lost.
The book Ming Tang Ren Xing Tu was recorded in the history classic Xin Tang Zhi (The New Tang Annals), but two volumes were recorded in the classics Tong Zhi·Yi Wen Lue, Mai Liao Fu, and Mai Jue Fu (The Pulse Rhymed Formula Poem) were recorded in Tong Zhi·Yi Wen Lue, Ben Cao Yin Yi (the Herbal Phonosemantics, 7 volumes) was recorded in Tong Zhi·Yi Wen Lue.
When Zhen Quan was young, his mother was sick for many years. He and his younger brother, Zhen Liyan, studied medicine and treatments with great concentration. They read recipe books and learned many techniques. They started practicing medicine and saving people. They treated many patients. Zhen Quan achieved great success in acupuncture and moxibustion. One cold winter, the Zhen brothers looked for bush meat in the fields to supply their mother with nutrition. They caught a thin brown hare. The younger brother examined the hare carefully and determined that it was not hungry but had parasites in its belly. He gave the hare an irrigation treatment with realgar. The hare struggled, and Zhen Quan administered acupuncture. The hare discharged the parasites and recovered in a few days. News that the Zhen brothers had cured the hare spread through the village, and many villagers came to their houses and sought treatment. At the beginning of the Kai Huang Year (Kai Huang is the reign title of the Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty, 581 A.D.), Zhen Quan was appointed Secretary of the Imperial Library. He resigned it with cause of alleged illness and continued to study medicine and treatment until his final days. There are events of his miraculous medical skills recorded in ancient books.
The ancient book Jiu Tang Shu·Lie Zhuan (The Old Tang Book·Biography) recorded that, "Lu Zhou Prefectural governor Ku Diqin suffered from apoplexia (a wind-stroke syndrome). Doctors could not treat it. When he consulted herbalist Zhen Quan, Quan carefully examined him and said, 'You simply hold the bow and arrow, aim at the target, and shoot with one needle. I guarantee you can do it.' He needled the shoulder corner point, and the symptoms were relieved and cured. Ku Diqin tried to shoot and hit the target. The folks around cheered."
In the volume 26 of the ancient book Qian Jin Yi Fang by Sun Simiao, a case of Zhen Quan is recorded. During the Wu De Years (618-626 A.D.), Zhen Quan followed AnKang Duke Li Xiyu (李襲譽 Lǐ Xíyù) to guard Lu Zhou (ancient toponymy, present-day Chang Zhi city in Shanxi Province). The Shenzhou prefectural governor, Chend Junchu (成君綽 Chéng Jūnchuò), had a problem of swelling nape, as large as the size of one sheng (ancient unit of dry measure for grain) and an obstruction in the throat. He could not eat or drink anything for three days. Zhen Quan needled the forefinger of his right hand, and shortly thereafter, the patient's breathing became regular. On the second day, the patient recovered and could eat and drink normally. This case was also recorded in the later book Xu Ming Yi Lei An·Yan Hou Men.
Zhen Quan knows a lot about herbs. He often combines herbs and acupuncture for treatment. Ancient books recorded related cases. For example, Anping Gong Li Delin (李德林 Lǐ Délín) suffered from hemilateral wind. Zhen Quan treated him with Fangfeng Tang and acupuncture at seven points: Fengchi (Wind Pool), Jiānyú, Quchi, Zhigou, Yanglingquan, Wushu, and Lower Ridge of Great Hollow. After taking nine doses of Fangfeng Tang and undergoing nine acupuncture sessions, the patient gradually recovered within ten days. Ankang Gong suffered from edema and difficulty urinating. Zhen Quan treated him with a pill composed of Poria cocos. The swelling disappeared before the pills were finished. These cases are recorded in the ancient book Qian Jin Yao Fang·Shui Zhong Men.
In the 17th year of the ZhenGuan era (643 A.D.), Zhen Quan was 102 years old. The emperor visited him, greeting him and inquiring about his well-being. They discussed the theory of herb character and health maintenance. Zhen Quan wrote a four-volume book named Yao Xing Lun (Thesis of Herb Characters) and gifted it to the emperor. Zhen Quan passed away that same year.
Main books and academic thoughts:
Zhen Quan was well-known in the court and among folks. He was good at acupuncture and herbal medicine, health maintenance, and knew that stale food and fresh food were the most effective methods for extending lifespan. He also held the viewpoint that diets and drinks should not be all fat and tasty. Vegetarian meals and mild flavors could increase physical strength, reduce foul turbidity and dirt, and adjust stomach Qi. No disease could be caught. In 621 A.D., Zhen Quan used the acupuncture graph by Qin Chengzu as a chief source (秦承祖 Qín Chéngzǔ, a herbalist who lived during the Northern and Southern Dynasties and was the author of the ancient work Ming Tang Tu, in three volumes, which is now lost.) He checked and revised it according to the ancient acupuncture book Zhenjiu Jiayi Jing (The A-B Classic of Acupuncture and Moxibustion) and other books. He found many mistakes and based his corrections and supplements on the acupuncture graph by Qin Chengzu. Later, he finished compiling and charting the Ming Tang Ren Xing Jing Luo Tu, shortened to Ming Tang Ren Xing Tu.
During the ZhenGuan era (627-649 A.D.), the Tang government ordered officials ShaoFu (ancient official title) Zhen Quan, Chengwu Lang (ancient official title) Sima Deyi (司馬德逸Sīmǎ Déyì), Court Physician Xie Jiqing (謝季卿Xiè Jìqīng), Taichang cheng (ancient official title) Zhen Liyan (甄立言Zhēn Lìyán) to compile and edit a graph of the meridians and acupoint in order to identify and correct their names and positions due to the chaotic conditions surrounding them.
In 627 A.D., Zhen Quan accepted the imperial order to compile and edit Ming Tang Ren Xing Tu, also known as Ming Tang, and to edit and calibrate Tu Jing together with Zhen Liyan and Sima Deyi. The colorful meridian graphs in Ming Tang Ren Xing Tu they painted, with detailed notes, are one definitive book of guidance for acupuncture practitioners of the Tang dynasty and later generations. They had a deep and far-reaching influence.
The compilation and editing works led by Zhen Quan are the first large-scale government-sponsored compilation and identification system of acupoint in history with clear historical records. It is also a historical summary of acupuncture points since the publication of the classic Zhen Jiu Jia Yi Jing (The ABC Classic of Acupuncture and Moxibustion), a significant event that connected the past and future of acupuncture and greatly impacted its development. It put an end to the chaotic conditions of acupoint identification and the various names that had appeared since the Jin, Southern and Northern, Sui, and early Tang Dynasties. It further developed and enriched the theory of acupoints and made great contributions to enlightening later generations, acupuncture education, and the popularization of acupuncture and moxibustion.
Zhen Quan passed away at the age of 103 without ever having been ill. He was buried in his hometown at the north end of Haogang Village in Baotun Town, Fugou County. His tomb is listed as an important historical and cultural site under government protection. The famous ancient herbalist Zhen Quan lies in the grave under the two Chinese scholar trees. One hundred and fifty meters northeast is the cemetery of Zhen Liyan, his younger brother.
References:
1.Zhen Quan: introduction about his biography and legend,main books and academic thoughts.
✵a physician during the Tang Dynasty who was a leading expert in acupuncture. He was also the author of the Zhen Fang (the Needling Prescriptions), and the Ming Tang Ren Xing Tu (the Figures of the Human Body).
Zhen Quan (540-643 A.D.): A physician during the Tang Dynasty who was a leading expert on acupuncture. He is the author of Zhen Fang (the Needling Prescriptions), and Ming Tang Ren Xing Tu (the Figures of the Human Body).
The book Ming Tang Ren Xing Tu was recorded in the history classic Xin Tang Zhi (The New Tang Annals), but two volumes were recorded in the classics Tong Zhi·Yi Wen Lue, Mai Liao Fu, and Mai Jue Fu (The Pulse Rhymed Formula Poem) were recorded in Tong Zhi·Yi Wen Lue, Ben Cao Yin Yi (the Herbal Phonosemantics, 7 volumes) was recorded in Tong Zhi·Yi Wen Lue.
The ancient book Jiu Tang Shu·Lie Zhuan (The Old Tang Book·Biography) recorded that, "Lu Zhou Prefectural governor Ku Diqin suffered from apoplexia (a wind-stroke syndrome). Doctors could not treat it. When he consulted herbalist Zhen Quan, Quan carefully examined him and said, 'You simply hold the bow and arrow, aim at the target, and shoot with one needle. I guarantee you can do it.' He needled the shoulder corner point, and the symptoms were relieved and cured. Ku Diqin tried to shoot and hit the target. The folks around cheered."
Zhen Quan was well-known in the court and among folks. He was good at acupuncture and herbal medicine, health maintenance, and knew that stale food and fresh food were the most effective methods for extending lifespan. He also held the viewpoint that diets and drinks should not be all fat and tasty. Vegetarian meals and mild flavors could increase physical strength, reduce foul turbidity and dirt, and adjust stomach Qi. No disease could be caught. In 621 A.D., Zhen Quan used the acupuncture graph by Qin Chengzu as a chief source (秦承祖 Qín Chéngzǔ, a herbalist who lived during the Northern and Southern Dynasties and was the author of the ancient work Ming Tang Tu, in three volumes, which is now lost.) He checked and revised it according to the ancient acupuncture book Zhenjiu Jiayi Jing (The A-B Classic of Acupuncture and Moxibustion) and other books. He found many mistakes and based his corrections and supplements on the acupuncture graph by Qin Chengzu. Later, he finished compiling and charting the Ming Tang Ren Xing Jing Luo Tu, shortened to Ming Tang Ren Xing Tu.
The compilation and editing works led by Zhen Quan are the first large-scale government-sponsored compilation and identification system of acupoint in history with clear historical records. It is also a historical summary of acupuncture points since the publication of the classic Zhen Jiu Jia Yi Jing (The ABC Classic of Acupuncture and Moxibustion), a significant event that connected the past and future of acupuncture and greatly impacted its development. It put an end to the chaotic conditions of acupoint identification and the various names that had appeared since the Jin, Southern and Northern, Sui, and early Tang Dynasties. It further developed and enriched the theory of acupoints and made great contributions to enlightening later generations, acupuncture education, and the popularization of acupuncture and moxibustion.
Zhen Quan passed away at the age of 103 without ever having been ill. He was buried in his hometown at the north end of Haogang Village in Baotun Town, Fugou County. His tomb is listed as an important historical and cultural site under government protection. The famous ancient herbalist Zhen Quan lies in the grave under the two Chinese scholar trees. One hundred and fifty meters northeast is the cemetery of Zhen Liyan, his younger brother.
