Classic Texts
Guided readings of foundational TCM classics.
52 articles · Page 1 of 6
Pinned Bencao Gangmu: Li Shizhen's Compendium of Materia Medica
Discover the Bencao Gangmu (本草纲目), Li Shizhen's monumental 16th-century encyclopedia of Chinese herbal medicine. Learn about its structure, historical significance, and lasting influence on global medicine.
Pinned Shanghan Lun: Zhang Zhongjing's Treatise on Cold Damage
Explore the Shanghan Lun (伤寒论), one of the most influential medical texts in history. Learn about its six-channel diagnostic system, legendary formulas, and enduring clinical relevance today.
Pinned Huangdi Neijing: The Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon — Foundation of Chinese Medicine
Explore the Huangdi Neijing (黄帝内经), the oldest and most influential medical text in Chinese history. Understand its structure, core philosophies, and enduring impact on Traditional Chinese Medicine.
Pu Ji Fang (普济方): The Largest Formulary Ever Compiled
Compiled in the early 1400s under Zhu Su, the Prince of Zhou, the Pu Ji Fang collected more than 61,000 prescriptions — the biggest formula book in Chinese history, and a library of a thousand years of clinical practice compressed into one Ming dynasty project.
Zun Sheng Ba Jian (遵生八笺, 1591): The Ming Dynasty Manual for the Art of Living
Gao Lian's Zun Sheng Ba Jian — 'Eight Treatises on Following the Principles of Life' — is the largest lifestyle-medicine book of the Ming dynasty: seasonal regimens, diet, tea, sleep, exercise, incense, and the philosophy of living well. It reads like a 1591 manual for everything this website covers.
Wai Ke Zheng Zong (外科正宗): Chen Shigong's 1617 Masterwork That Made Chinese Surgery Respectable
Chen Shigong spent a lifetime treating tumors, ulcers, and wounds — then wrote it all down. His Orthodox Manual of External Diseases standardized Chinese surgery, described cancer progression, and insisted surgeons use their hands.
Ru Men Shi Qin (儒门事亲): Zhang Congzheng's Fearless Classic on Attacking Pathogens
Zhang Congzheng argued that most chronic illness was lingering pathogen wrongly nourished by tonics. His 13th-century masterwork attacks with sweating, vomiting, and purging — and scolds doctors who over-supplement.
Yi Lin Gai Cuo (医林改错): Wang Qingren's Corrective Anatomy — The Heresy That Created TCM's Greatest Blood-Stasis Formulas
Learn about Yi Lin Gai Cuo (医林改错), Wang Qingren's 1830 classic of anatomical correction. Discover how a Qing dynasty physician's cemetery dissections led him to locate memory in the brain and create five blood-stasis formulas still used today, including Bu Yang Huan Wu Tang for stroke recovery.
Zhou Hou Bei Ji Fang (肘后备急方): Ge Hong's Emergency Handbook — The Pocket Classic Behind Artemisinin
Learn about Zhou Hou Bei Ji Fang (肘后备急方), Ge Hong's 4th-century Handbook of Prescriptions for Emergencies — the pocket-sized TCM classic that recorded smallpox, scrub typhus, and the cold-water hemp extract of qing hao that inspired the Nobel-winning malaria drug artemisinin.
Jingui Yaolue (金匮要略): The Classic That Founded TCM's Treatment of Internal Diseases
The Jingui Yaolue (金匮要略, Essentials from the Golden Cabinet) is Zhang Zhongjing's companion to the Shanghan Lun, dedicated to internal and miscellaneous diseases. Learn its structure, its enduring formulas, and its role in establishing pattern-based herbal medicine.