國際朋友說WORLD SPEAKING

中醫(yī)：中國送給世界最好的禮物

Traditional Chinese Medicine: The Best Gift China Sends to the World

近年來，中國女科學家屠呦呦獲諾貝爾獎、美國游泳名將菲爾普斯熱衷拔罐等事情，讓中醫(yī)又一次次展現(xiàn)在世界面前。如今，如果看到外國留學生來中國學習中醫(yī)，或者在異國他鄉(xiāng)看到中醫(yī)受人歡迎，這些已不會讓人感到奇怪。那么，中醫(yī)的魅力究竟在哪里？國際朋友們對中醫(yī)有哪些體會？本期“國際朋友說”走進北京貴賓樓飯店的玉蘭廳，與中醫(yī)學博士王春勇對話中醫(yī)與世界的緣分。

In recent years, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has constantly shown its value to the world. For instance, both Tu Youyou, the Chinese female scientist who won the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, and the renowned American former competitive swimmer, Michael Phelps, have showed interest in Cupping Therapy. Nowadays, Its glamour has long been spread into distant lands, and an increasing number of foreign students are coming to China to learn traditional Chinese medicine. Why indeed does traditional Chinese medicine attract the world, and how do most foreigners partake in it? Today at Yulan Suite in Grand Hotel Beijing, Dr. Wang Chunyong, an expert in traditional Chinese medicine, talked with our foreign guests about how TCM relates to the world.

主持人(Host)：吳星鐸，中國（Wu Xingduo，China）

嘉賓(Guests)：蘇莉，俄羅斯（Anastasia Sukhoretskaya,Russia）；吳求，孟加拉國（Shayer S. Utsho, Bangladesh）

特邀嘉賓(Special Guest)：王春勇（Wang Chunyong）(中醫(yī)學博士，北醫(yī)三院中醫(yī)內(nèi)科副主任醫(yī)師，中華中醫(yī)藥學分會健康管理分會委員，世界中聯(lián)痧療罐療專業(yè)常務(wù)理事。）(Doctor in traditional Chinese medicine, associate chief physician of the Traditional Chinese Medicine Department at Peking University Third Hospital, member of China Association of Chinese Medicine, and executive member of World Federation of Chinese Medicine Societies.)

最能代表中國的文化元素

蘇莉：說起中醫(yī)，我腦海中第一印象是按摩，我經(jīng)常做中醫(yī)按摩，我覺得這會讓我特別放松，給我疲憊的身體充電。除此之外拔罐也很神奇。

吳求：談到中醫(yī)，浮現(xiàn)在我腦海中的首先是針灸，然后是推拿。我兩三年前和一個中國的推拿師學過將近一個月，慢慢地體會到穴位、經(jīng)脈的存在，這是我感到最神奇的地方。

王春勇：中醫(yī)是最能代表中國的一個文化符號。根據(jù)中國外文局對外傳播研究中心的一份中國國家形象全球調(diào)查報告，最能代表中國的文化元素排名前三的分別是：中醫(yī)、武術(shù)、中餐，中醫(yī)居首。

The Best Cultural Embodiment for China

Anastasia: The traditional Chinese massage first came to my mind when speaking of TCM. I go for a traditional Chinese massage frequently to refresh myself. Cupping therapy is another magical way to get relaxed.

Shayer: Acupuncture and traditional Chinese massage are the fi rst two things coming to my mind. I learned traditional massage from a Chinese massagist two or three years ago and have been deepening my comprehension towards the very existence of different acupoints and meridians of the body, which is truly a magical process for me.

Wang: Traditional Chinese medicine is the best cultural embodiment for China. According to a global report of China’s national image by Center for International Communication Studies, the top three cultural elements representing China are Traditional Chinese Medicine, martial arts, and Chinese food, in which traditional medicine ranks at the top.

神奇的中醫(yī)

主持人：剛剛蘇莉、吳求都談到了針灸、按摩、拔罐，這些中醫(yī)技法是建立在什么基礎(chǔ)上的？

王春勇：針灸、按摩、拔罐都是建立在中國的經(jīng)絡(luò)理論上。現(xiàn)代醫(yī)學對血管、淋巴、神經(jīng)、肌肉、骨骼等在解剖學意義上的研究都非常透徹。但是對于經(jīng)絡(luò)理論，現(xiàn)代醫(yī)學還是沒有很好的證明。例如中醫(yī)說的“氣”，目前沒有任何科學儀器能夠探測到?？墒俏覀兠總€人都生過氣，勞累的時候就覺得少氣無力，憤怒的時候可以怒氣滔天。我們悲傷，垂頭喪氣，困倦的時候沒有精氣神，這些就是氣的體驗。在臨床上，患者自己可以感覺到氣的存在、瘀積，但儀器測不出來。所以，人的神經(jīng)系統(tǒng)比機器設(shè)備還要靈敏。

主持人：針灸、按摩尤其跟穴位有關(guān)系。中國的武俠小說、影視劇當中，也有很多關(guān)于穴位的描寫，比如點到啞穴就不能說話，點到笑穴人就一直笑，那么關(guān)于穴位，在中醫(yī)里確實存在嗎？

王春勇：確實存在。點穴相當于調(diào)動氣的方式。簡單來講，比如我們用言語就可以調(diào)動你的情緒，比如一部情節(jié)跌宕起伏的電影，它感染了你，你就哭了，笑了。專業(yè)人士可以調(diào)動你的狀態(tài)，調(diào)動你的氣的運行。穴位就是這個原理，氣會積于一個點，我扎或者點在這一個點上，就能改變氣的運行。

主持人：針灸是怎么傳播到世界上的？

王春勇：針灸的傳播可以上溯到20世紀70年代，當時中美關(guān)系破冰，除了著名的“乒乓外交”之外，中國當時還給遠道而來的美國客人展示了針灸麻醉技術(shù)。1971年5月，耶魯大學、麻省理工學院兩位科學家訪華，見證了中國醫(yī)生為經(jīng)過針灸麻醉的病人做手術(shù)。后來當時《紐約時報》的專欄記者賴斯頓（Reston）為了解決闌尾手術(shù)后的疼痛和脹氣問題，在中國嘗試了針灸和艾灸，治好后他專門寫了一篇報道，這讓針灸一下子就火了。經(jīng)過媒體的大肆宣傳，針灸一度變得神秘化了，傳說那時在美國干一個月針灸，就能買一套房子。后來熱勁過了，才開始規(guī)范化，制定法規(guī)，創(chuàng)辦學校。美國第一所針灸學校成立于1975年，全美針灸考試實施于1982年。

Magical Chinese Medicine

Host: Several traditional Chinese medical techniques were mentioned like acupuncture, Chinese massage, and cupping therapy, what are they based on?

Wang: Acupuncture, Chinese massage, and cupping therapy are all based on the Chinese theory of body meridians. Thorough anatomical researches concerning the vascellum, lymph, nerve, muscle, and bone have been done in modern medicine. However, theories of meridians and collaterals haven’t been convincingly proved yet. For instance, the conception of qi in traditional Chinese medicine remains undetectable by scientif i c instruments, yet the feeling of it is sensible－when we are tired, it is a state which can be described as being the lack of qi in Chinese. We feel sorrow, upset (chui tou sang qi), and become lacking in spirit and energy (jing qi shen). These are all of which are demonstrations of various states of qi in the human body. A patient in his clinical session is able to sense the very existence and deposition of qi. The fact is that the neural system in the human body can operate in a more keen way than any mechanical equipment.

Host: Acupuncture and Chinese massage both have a lot to do with acupoints of the body. There are many related descriptions about acupoints in Chinese martial arts, fi ction works, movies, or TV plays. For example, a character cannot speak after being hit on his acupoint for muteness, or will have a nonstop laugh when hit on his acupoint for laughing. Well, do these acupoints truly exist in traditional Chinese medicine?

Wang: They do. To hit an acupoint is to deploy qi in the human body. To put it simply, you can be motivated by a movie full of dramatic plots; you cry and laugh as the story goes. Well, medical experts could also motivate you as a movie does by deploying qi in your body. Acupoints run with the deployment and are built up upon a critical point in human body; by inserting this particular point the qi in your body can be regulated.

主持人：去年的里約奧運會，大家都看過菲爾普斯背后有拔罐印記的報道，請您為大家分享一下拔罐方面的知識。

王春勇：事實上，除了菲爾普斯之外，加拿大歌手賈斯汀·比伯（Justin Bieber）、奧斯卡獎的獲獎演員格溫妮斯·帕特洛（Gwyneth Paltrow）、克里斯·布魯克斯（Chris Brooks）等等，都有中醫(yī)拔罐的經(jīng)歷，大家可以在網(wǎng)上找到他們帶有拔罐印記的照片。其實說起來，起源于中國的拔火罐已經(jīng)有大約3000年的歷史，在埃及、中東等地也被廣泛應(yīng)用。拔罐在古代典籍中也被稱為“角法”。是用挖空的獸角來吸拔膿瘡的外治方法。晉代葛洪《肘后備急方》就有角法的記載。拔罐的時候，以罐為工具，用燃火、抽氣等方法產(chǎn)生負壓，吸附于體表，造成局部瘀血，達到通經(jīng)活絡(luò)、行氣活血、消腫止痛、祛風散寒等效果。特別是夏天，人體的毛竅腠理都是打開的，但夏天的時候空調(diào)開得多，冷氣反而多，就更容易感受風邪。這時候身體如果不舒服，“空調(diào)病”也好中暑也好，拔罐是一個非常好的方法。冬天有暖氣，有汽車，有羽絨服，人們會有意識地防寒，所以受到的寒氣反而不如夏天。

主持人：中國女科學家屠呦呦獲諾貝爾獎對于中醫(yī)走向世界意味著什么？

王春勇：屠呦呦在2015年獲得了諾貝爾獎，世人都知道了中國還有這樣一個大寶庫就是中藥，這對中醫(yī)來說是一個大事件。屠呦呦先驅(qū)性地發(fā)現(xiàn)青蒿素，開創(chuàng)瘧疾治療新方法，并成為瘧疾標準治療方案，世界上數(shù)億人受益。她的靈感就來自于晉朝葛洪的《肘后備急方》，原文有“青蒿一握，以水二升漬，絞取汁，盡服之”，意思是說青蒿一把，絞了，不用煮，取汁就可以提取這個東西。葛洪，自號抱樸子，是東晉時代著名道教哲學家、著名醫(yī)藥學家。

Host: How was acupuncture spread into other countries?

Wang: The history of acupuncture dates back to the early 1970s, when the ice between the US-China relationship just got broken. Apart from the renowned Ping-Pong Diplomacy, China also showed its American guests the acupuncture narcotherapy. In May of 1971, two scientists from Yale and MIT visited China and observed the whole acupuncture operation done by a Chinese doctor. Later, a columnist for New York Times, called Reston, tried acupuncture and moxibustion to ease the pain and flatulence caused by an appendix operation, and his report making acupuncture a hit at that time. However, the technique was so exaggerated in his report and mystified by local media that it was said that an acupuncture doctor’s salary for one month can afford a grand mansion in America. Afterward, people’s passion on acupuncture became toned down and this technique started to be regulated by law and related technical schools appeared. The fi rst Academy for acupuncture in the U.S. was founded in 1975, while exam in medical acupuncture was put into effect later in 1982.

Host: Michael Phelps’ passion for cupping therapy became news in Rio Olympic Games last year, please share with us some information on this therapy.

Wang: In fact, Phelps isn’t the only celebrity who is passionate about cupping therapy－Canadian singer Justin Bieber, Oscar winner Gwyneth Paltrow, and Chris Brooks are all member of the group. Pictures of their therapy processes can be searched out online. Cupping therapy has enjoyed a developmental history in China for around 3000 years, and was widely put into practice in foreign countries, including in Egypt and the Middle East. It was also named Jiao Fa in ancient Chinese records, referring to the specif i c external treatment of using hollow animal horns to cure abscesses. Such treatment can be found in a book named Handbook of Prescription for Emergency written by Ge Hong during the Eastern Jin dynasty. Through suction, the skin is drawn into the cup by creating a vacuum in the cup placed on the skin over the targeted area. The vacuum can be created either by the heating and subsequent cooling of the air in the cup, or via a mechanical pump to cause local congestion so as to activate the meridians and blood, relieve swelling, and expel body coldness. In summer it’s much more effective as all the pores and interstitial spaces among muscles will be relaxed. In this season, people tend to overuse the air conditioner and are susceptible to sunstroke, for which cupping therapy can be a great treatment. However, people consciously prevent being cold in the winter, thus tend to be less cold than in the summer.

王春勇老師現(xiàn)場分享

蘇莉現(xiàn)場發(fā)言

吳求現(xiàn)場發(fā)言

中藥名字聽起來很美

主持人：中藥名字都特別美，我記得《倚天屠龍記》中張無忌跟蝶谷醫(yī)仙胡青牛學醫(yī)，有張藥方是當歸、遠志、生地、獨活、防風五味藥，這些名字非常藝術(shù)，中藥的名字有什么講究嗎？

王春勇：中藥名字本身就和藥性、藥的功用合在一起的，像當歸，是調(diào)理月經(jīng)的，該來的時候沒有來，所以要用藥給它引回來。遠志可以安定神志，可以把神安定住。獨活沒有太多的說法，但它本身是一個祛風濕的藥，肩背的酸痛，可以用發(fā)散的藥把疼痛緩解。中藥中還有一味藥叫五靈脂，聽名字是不是特別好聽？其實是什么呢？是復齒鼯鼠（寒號鳥）、飛鼠或其他近緣動物的糞便，你看中藥起的名就非常藝術(shù)，患者一看名字很美，包裹住吃也就不覺得難吃了。這和《西游記》里孫悟空將馬尿稱為“馬兜靈”一樣。

Host: Chinese female scientist Tu Youyou won the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, what does that mean to the world?

Wang: It has brought Chinese herbology to the world, which is truly big news for traditional Chinese medicine. She is the fi rst person to ever discover artemisinin (also known as qinghaosu) and invent its treatment of malaria, which is regarded as a standard treatment which benefits hundreds of millions of people. She actually got her inspiration from Handbook of Prescription for Emergency by Ge Hong (also named Bao Puzi), a well-known philosopher in Daoism and a medical expert during the Eastern Jin Dynasty of China. A detailed extraction method of artemisinin was recorded in the book, which is to tightly grasp a bundle of artemisia, twist it for its sap, and extract artemisinin from it.

中醫(yī)是一種更高級的語言

吳求：推拿——從體驗到精通

說起我本人，尤其喜歡推拿。我1997年到2006年期間在北京，2006年回到孟加拉國，因為那時候年紀也小，水土不服。那時候有一個中國推拿師住在達卡，曾經(jīng)給當時孟加拉國的總理做過推拿，家人就請他給我做了一個月的推拿，我適應(yīng)力就強了很多。就算到現(xiàn)在，我到了一個新環(huán)境也能很快適應(yīng)。那段時間我也覺得很神奇，于是就跟著他模仿、學習。

Artistic Names for Chinese Medicine

Host: Most of the traditional Chinese medicines enjoy beautiful names. In the classic Chinese novel, The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber, Zhang Wuji learned medicine from master Hu Qingniu.Several prescriptions were mentioned in the story, like Dang Gui, Yuan Zhi, Sheng Di, Du Huo, and Fang Feng, all of which are pretty artistic. Are there any rules for TCM naming?

Wang: The names of traditional Chinese medicine themselves imply the properties and effects of different kinds of medicines. For example, Dang Gui literally means “should come back” in Chinese, the medicine is normally used to regulate menstruation, especially to call back normal menstrual cycle. Yuan Zhi is used to calm the heart and induce tranquilization. Du Huo is used to dispel wind-dampness, alleviate pain, and release exterior ailments. Another type of traditional medicine is called Wu Ling Zhi (Faeces Trogopterori), a very beautiful name, right? Well, it is originally the excrement of bats. Therefore, the artistic names actually make the medicines more acceptable to patients. A similar case was in the classic Chinese novel, Journey to the West, where the monkey king called the horse urine Ma Dou Ling, another artistic name, to cover for its original essence.

本期“國際朋友說”討論現(xiàn)場

后來，我開始給我父母和弟弟做按摩，他們覺得非常有效。有親戚朋友來到家里，稍微有個頭疼什么的，都會找我給他們按摩推拿。我就越來越有經(jīng)驗了，因為按著按著其實是能感覺到哪里瘀積、哪里松弛的?，F(xiàn)在我主要對頭部、肩部和背部的穴位比較了解。

我更好奇的就是中醫(yī)的“氣”，雖然氣是一個虛的概念，沒有儀器測量出來，沒有數(shù)值，但我們能直接感受到它，也能直接用這個概念施加各種治療，所以特別神奇。我本人是計算機專業(yè)，我習慣用0和1的概念去理解一個東西，雖然中醫(yī)最細節(jié)的部分可能沒解釋出來，但是我認為，中醫(yī)是一種更高級的語言，就像C++或者Java語言，我們雖然說不清原理，但是能直接運用。

A More Advanced Language

Shayer: Chinese Massage—from an amateur to an expert

I am a huge fan of the Chinese massage. I stayed in Beijing from 1997 to 2006 and went back to Bangladesh in 2006. At that time I was endemic due to young age. Luckily, my family invited a Chinese masseur who served for the Prime minister of Bangladesh then. He gave massages for me for only one month and I quickly became more accustomed to the new environment. Thus, traditional Chinese massage became so magical to me and I began my imitation and learning.

蘇莉：最愛中醫(yī)按摩

我自己每周都會去做按摩。每次在辦公室坐的時間太長，腿就感覺很累，所以一般每周都去做按摩。對于中藥，我沒有特別的經(jīng)歷，試著吃過，沒有發(fā)現(xiàn)見效——可能中藥需要長期的調(diào)理吧，我畢竟習慣了西藥，想迅速把病治好。

針灸的話我小時候在俄羅斯做過，那時候我還在上小學，因為視力不好，小孩嘛，吃不了藥，父母就帶我去醫(yī)院。我每年都會去醫(yī)院，就是扎針，扎在頭上，當時倒是沒感覺太疼，包括拔罐也嘗試過。

結(jié)語

王春勇：現(xiàn)在有一種現(xiàn)象，一些外國朋友只在中國學了很短時間中醫(yī)，就回到自己國家開設(shè)診所。如果學得不到位，會有損中醫(yī)的名譽，我們還是要慢慢加強醫(yī)師的認證，給大家提供更好的服務(wù)。畢竟中醫(yī)就是通過健康搭起一座橋，用文化的交融讓大家活得更好更健康。畢竟，中醫(yī)是中國送給世界人民的禮物。

（中文整理：吳星鐸、王兆峰；英文整理：閆彩萍。鳴謝北京貴賓樓飯店提供場地支持。特別鳴謝：崔岱遠。）

本期“國際朋友說”參與者合影

Afterward, I started to give massages for my parents and brother, which were very productive. I gradually became more skilled as I gave massages for my relatives even for a slight fever. Actually, one can sense the locations of pain during the treatment, whether for deposition or relaxation. Currently, I’m specializing in the acupoints of the head, shoulder, and back.

What made me curious is the very idea of qi in traditional Chinese medicine. Although it is a virtual concept which is undetectable, we are able to directly sense it and apply it to various treatments. I majored in computer science, thus I am used to approaching and understanding a concept in a quantitative way. However, Traditional Chinese Medicine can’t be explained with data in detail. From my point of view, TCM has a more advanced language, whose principle can’t be clarif i ed yet it can be put into practice like C++ or Java.

Anastasia: Traditional Chinese Massage is My Favorite

I go for a Chinese massage every week. I tend to feel exhausted after a long-day work at my office, and my legs have become numb. I don’t have specif i c experience with Traditional Chinese Medicine, but I did attempt to try it, only to fi nd it not effective enough. Perhaps a longer process is needed for the medicine to take effect, but I regard myself a more western-medicine person and would like a more rapid treatment.

I tried acupuncture once when I was little in Russia. I was in primary school and had a poor eyesight, so I was basically a regular customer of Russian doctors. I went to the hospital once a year to get acupuncture therapy on my head and tried cupping therapy as well, and both therapies were not that painful according to my memory

Conclusion

Wang: Nowadays, some foreign doctors learn Traditional Chinese Medicine for only a short period of time and go back to their own country to run a clinic. If they are not capable of fully practicing TCM, the reputation of it will be somewhat damaged. Therefore, the accreditation system for qualif i ed TCM doctors shall be perfected to provide better medical service. After all, the traditional Chinese medicine is a bridge connecting Chinese culture with human health, and it’s the best gift China sends to the world.

(Chinese text editor: Wu Xingduo, Wang Zhaofeng.English text editor: Yan Caiping. The meeting place was provided by Grand Hotel Beijing. Special thanks: Cui Daiyuan.)