Three-finger juggling

Author: Zhou Xuelin
Editor-in-Chief: Li Yongzhan
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2003-06-01
Features: Synopsis
"The Three-Finger Pulse Diagnosis" is a specialized work on pulse diagnosis written by the Qing Dynasty medical master Zhou Xuelin. It is divided into three volumes, with the (slow pulse) as the standard for pulse diagnosis. It organizes the discussion into four major categories: floating, deep, slow, and rapid, and lists a total of 27 pulse types. It analyzes the differences among various pulse patterns using a comparative method. The book discusses various diseases by combining pulse diagnosis with etiology, pathology, and symptoms to determine treatment methods and prescriptions, making it highly practical for clinical use. Based on the original edition published in the seventh year of the Daoguang reign (1827), and using the editions published by Danya Bookstore in the twenty-first year of the Guangxu reign (1895) and the reprinted edition by Hunan Bookstore as reference texts, this annotated edition is available for clinical use in traditional Chinese medicine, integrated Chinese and Western medicine practitioners, and.
Excerpt:
Pulse Location
Hui'an Zhu Zi [2] in his postscript to Guo Changyang's medical book wrote: "I have always believed that ancient people's methods of observing the pulse were not limited to one approach. However, the widely accepted method today is the cun, guan, and chi technique, which is crucial and is detailed in the first chapter of the 'Nanjing Classic.' It is not something that was arbitrarily created. Therefore, Guo Gong's book includes these teachings and also incorporates Ding Deyou's three-finger method for explanation. The 'Nanjing Classic' is already extensive, but as for Ding Deyou's method, I personally feel that the practitioner's fingers vary in thickness, and the patient's arms differ in length. Based on this, it may not be a definitive conclusion. I have studied the reasons for dividing the cun, guan, and chi in the classics, and it is clear that the division is based on the guan. Thus, the guan must be at a specific location, much like the fish (fish) and (), which can be externally observed and identified first. However, when reviewing the books, there is no definitive explanation. Only the 'Thousand Gold Prescriptions' suggests that the cun (cun) area has higher bones, and the guan and chi are selected accordingly. The sequence of their description and the progression of their positions align with the classic texts. The folk 'Pulse Decree,' consisting of five or seven lines of simplistic verse, lacks depth and clarity, unlike the clear and direct teachings of the 'Shu He Book.' It directly points to the high bones as the guan and divides them into front and back to determine the positions of the cun, guan, and chi for the (yin and yang) pulse. This seems to align with the original intent of the 'Nanjing Classic.' I am not an expert in this field, so I cannot correct this myself. I will leave it here for the knowledgeable to judge and reach a consensus."
Note: The eighteen volumes of the 'Inner Canon' are considered ancient books like the Three Classics, neither edited by Confucius nor annotated by Zhu Zi. Medical scholars have debated and criticized each other, dividing into factions, leaving people confused. It was only by identifying the high bones as the guan to determine the cun, guan, and chi that the pulse location was standardized with Zhu Zi's postscript.