The Constitutional Ideas in the 『Huangdi Neijing』

『황제내경(黃帝內經)』의 체질론(體質論)

  • 최승훈 (경희대학교 한의과대학 병리학교실)
  • Published : 1998.12.31

Abstract

One's constitution is formed congenitally and is also acquired, and is relatively stable in its individually manifested function, structure and temperament. It has characteristics of universality, complexity, generality and continuity. It is also manifested in physiological responses and expresses pathologic tendencies including susceptibility. Attempts at understanding constitution has had a long history throughout the world. In Oriental Medicine, the constitution had been acknowledged from the "Huangdi Neijing", which has been a bible in Oriental Medicine for about two thousand years. In many aspects, the "Huangdi Neijing" provides the basis for both basic and practical fields. In order to derive the ideal structure from the "Huangdi Neijing" to Lee Je-ma's(Lee Jayma's) Sasang Constitutional ideas, which can strengthen the understanding of ideal core of Oriental Medicine's constitutional characteristics, the author launched his analysis of the constitutional understandings in the "Huangdi Neijing" as a first step and came to the following: 1. The constitutional understanding in the "Huangdi Neijing" was done both via the physiological responses to heat, pain and acupuncture treatment and the pathologic tendencies via body structure, strength, body heat, courage and obesity. 2. It was recognized that the constitution was formed congenitally and also acquired factors like living conditions including food customs, residents and geographical conditions were explained in detailed. 3. The constitutional typology was suggested both by the general and systematic criterion according to the Yin-yang and the Five phase theories and by single criterion such as obesity, courage and the response to acupuncture treatment. 4. As diagnosis is related to the constitution, courage was adopted for the disease caused by emotions, obesity was for its manifestations of qi and blood, the quantities of qi-blood and Yin-yang in the typology by the Yin-yang and Five phase theories were suggested. 5. In the case of obesity, Yin-yang and Five phase theory, treatment according to the constitutional ideas was mentioned, and their goals were concluded as "being the balancing between Yin and Yang" which means the Yin-yang theory is more practical than the Five phase theory in Oriental Constitutional Medical field. According to the above understandings, the author would like to suggest that the constitutional ideas in the "Huangdi Neijing" based on the Yin-yang theory blossomed via the practical spirit of Zhang Zhong-jing's "Shanghanlun" and at last from Lee Je-ma's(Lee Jayma's) Sasang Constitutional Medicine which realized "the balancing between Yin and yang" through the practical applications of herbal treatments.

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