大医李时珍 Great doctor Li Shizhen

——如果事与愿违，定是上天另有安排

——When God Closes a Door, He Opens a Window

李时珍是我国明代著名的医学家、药物学家和博物学家。他历时27年，走遍全国各地，跋山涉水，尝遍了无数药材，查遍了当时所有的医书，最终完成了《本草纲目》这本中国历史上最为伟大的医学著作。自印刷发行以来，这本巨著被翻译成英、法、德、拉丁、日、韩等几十种文字，在世界范围内广为流传。

Li Shizhen was a famous medical scientist, pharmacologist and naturalist in the Ming Dynasty of China. He travelled around the country, traversed deep mountains and wading rivers, tasted numerous herbs, and read all medical books available. After working on the book for 27 years, he eventually completed “Compendium of Materia Medica”, the most significant achievement in Chinese history. Since its publication, this monumental work has been translated into dozens of languages, such as English, French, German, Latin, Japanese and Korean, and spread worldwide widely. 

明朝嘉靖年间，李时珍出生在湖北省一个美丽富饶的小镇上。他家世代行医，虽然当时的乡医一直处于社会的底层，但由于李家为人诚实厚道，在城镇和乡村任劳任怨为贫苦百姓治病，深得人们的尊敬。

During the Jiajing period of the Ming Dynasty, Li Shizhen came from a family lineage of physicians in a beautiful and rich town in Hubei Province. Although the village doctors had always been at the bottom of society, Li’s family won the respect of the people because of their kindness and compassion for the poor.

李时珍的父亲李言闻，是当地有名的乡医。他在乡镇为很多人看病，但病者大多数都是贫苦人，他只是尽自己最大的努力给他们看病，却从来不考虑病人能否支付起药费，时间久了，李言闻只收到很少的报酬，难以维系整个家庭的生活，他不得不去经常去湖边打鱼以贴补生活。

Li Shizhen's father, Li Yanwen, was a well-known local doctor. He treated many people in his hometown, but most of whom were poor. Each time, he just tried his best to treat them, regardless of whether they could afford it. Over time, what Li Yanwen earned is hard to maintain life. So he had to go fishing by the lake to supplement his living.

李时珍出生那天，李言闻为了给怀孕的妻子补充点营养，又到湖边打鱼。谁知，一连几网都没有任何收获，最后一网沉甸甸的，捞起来以后却是一块石头。李言闻无奈，只好回家，正好此时妻子生下一个男婴，李言闻便说，就叫这个孩子为石珍吧。他妻子说：“石珍？还是叫时珍吧！”据说，“李时珍”这个名字就是这样得来的。

Wishing to provide extra nutrition to his pregnant wife, Li Yanwen went fishing by the lake again on the day Li Shizhen was born. Unfortunately, he caught nothing after several nets. Surprisingly, the last one was extremely heavy. However, when pulled up, only a big stone was found. Li Yanwen went home disappointedly. It so happened that his wife gave birth to a baby boy when he arrived home. So Li Yanwen said, let's call this baby Shi Zhen（shi，which means stone in Chinese； Zhen， which means precious）. His wife said: "Shi Zhen? Let's call him Shi Zhen!"（shi, which means time; Zhen，which means precious）. It is said that this is how the name "Li Shizhen" came about.   

李时珍从小受到良好的家庭氛围熏陶，他常常跟随父亲给乡亲们看病，去山里采药，父亲宽厚待人的处事之风、治学严谨的求知态度、孜孜不倦的探索精神都深深地影响着李时珍。他在很小的时候就已经能够辨别出许多药草的名字了。他在学习药草知识的时候很细心，每次随父亲进山，他都会认真地记下父亲给他讲的关于药草方面的知识，包括怎么识别药草，怎么采集有价值的药草等。

Since he was a child, Li Shizhen often followed his father when he saw his patients or collected herbal medicines. He is profoundly nurtured by his father’s generosity to his patients, rigorous attitude towards learning, and tireless spirit of exploration. He could recognize the names of many herbs at a young age. He learned medicinal herbs absorbedly. Every time he went into the mountains with his father, he would carefully write down the knowledge about medicinal herbs that his father taught him, including how to identify and collect medicinal herbs, etc.

虽然李时珍一向热爱学习与医药有关的知识，但由于李言闻深知行医的清苦和劳累，所以希望儿子能够学习儒学，通过仕途科举之路平步青云，以改变李家世代乡医的社会地位。李时珍聪敏好学，14岁时就通过县、府试，一举考中秀才，取得进入儒学的生员资格。父亲李言闻自是喜不自胜，他心想儿子这么早就中了秀才，看来以后要发科甲也是大有希望的，他想着李家真的要改换门庭、光宗耀祖了，就鼓励李时珍继续努力，准备参加在武昌举行的三年一次的乡试，再接着争取参加廷试，金榜题名，成为一名进士。这样想着，李言闻仿佛看到了灿烂光辉的前途已经铺在了儿子的面前，那胜利的曙光也正在向着自己的儿子招手。

Although Li Shizhen was always eager to learn knowledge of medicine, Li Yanwen hoped his son could learn Confucianism because of his hardship and poorness as a doctor. Then Li Shizhen would have a chance to improve their living conditions and social status by passing the imperial examinations and starting his official career. Li Shenzhen was intelligent and thirsty for knowledge. At 14 years old, he passed the county and prefectural exams in one fell swoop and obtained scholar qualification, the minimum threshold to enter Confucianism. Joy leapt in his father’s heart. He thought that his son had become a scholar so early that he would have a great hope to pass the imperial examinations in the near future. In this way, the fortune of his family would be changed, which would honor his family. Therefore, he encouraged Li Shizhen to keep working hard, prepare to participate in the three-yearly provincial examination held in Wuchang, then strive to participate in the court examination, and finally pass the imperial examination. With this thought in mind, Li Yanwen could see a bright future laying out right before his son, and the dawn of victory was waving.

时光荏苒，三年的时间转瞬即逝。嘉靖十三年（1534年），17岁的李时珍，带着家族和父母殷切的希望，第一次踏上前往省城的路，去参加乡试。三场考试完毕，李时珍回想自己的考卷，觉着自己答得还可以。然而，考试结果却不尽如人意——李时珍落榜了。

Time flies, three years were fleeting. In the thirteenth year of Jiajing (1534), 17-year-old Li Shizhen, with the ardent hope of his family and parents, set foot on the road to the provincial capital for the first time to participate in the imperial examination. After the three exams, recalling his performance, LiShizhen was satisfied with his answers. However, the exam results were not satisfactory - Li Shizhen fell off the list of imperial examinations.

这次落榜归来，父亲对他的学习更加严格了。有一次学累了，看到父亲给人看病用的艾叶酒用完了，就到雨湖去帮父亲采摘蕲艾。李言闻知道了，不但没有表扬他，反而沉着脸罚他补做了半夜功课。父亲希望他一心一意把书读好，好好参加乡试，考个名次回来。

After this failure, his father became stricter with his study. Once, tired from studying, Li Shizhen went to Yuhu Lake to pick up Mugwort, when he noticed his father’s Mugwort wine for treating patients ran out. When found out, instead of praising him, Li Yanwen punished Li Shizhen sullenly, and asked him to catch up on his homework till the middle of the night. His father hoped he would devote himself to studying well, take part in the provincial examination, and return with a good grade.

嘉靖十六年（1537年），李时珍20岁，他第二次到武昌参加乡试，结果有一次名落孙山。回家后，李时珍发愤苦读，过分用功使他的身体处于亚健康状态，这期间又得了一场感冒，咳嗽一直不见好，结果竟转化成了可怕的“骨蒸病”。他病倒在床，高烧不退，骨头就像放在蒸笼里一样，每天都要吐很多痰，烦躁焦渴，寝食难安，病魔几乎要夺走他的生命了。这段时间，他一直服用柴胡、麦门冬等清热祛痰的药，但是都不见好转。

In the 16th year of Jiajing (1537), when Li Shizhen was 20 years old, he went to Wuchang for the second time to take the provincial examination. However, he failed again. After returning home, Li Shizhen studied harder. Continuous overwork put his body in a sub-healthy state. Even worse, he caught a cold during this period, coughing all the time. The disease eventually deteriorated to “Guzheng disease”(Tuberculosis). He fell ill in bed with a high fever, with bones like being in a steamer. He spat lots of phlegm, feeling dysphoric and thirsty, sleepless and inappetence. The illness almost took his life away. During this time, he had been taking Bupleurum, Ophiopogon and other medicines to clear away heat and phlegm, but there was no improvement.

全家人都以为李时珍无药可救了，一个个暗自伤心。这时，父亲李言闻想起一本医书中记载的“一味黄芩汤”。李言闻抱着试试看的态度，按药方下药，李时珍服下后，很快就全身退热，咳嗽也好了，几付药下去，病症居然痊愈了。这次事情，让李时珍感慨不已，他心领神会到中医药学的神奇力量和无尽的奥妙，深感这就是父亲所说的真才实学。

Thinking Li Shizhen was incurable, all family members were silently sad. At this time, Li Yanwen remembered the “Single Scutellaria Decoction” recorded in a medical book. To have a go, Li Yanwen prescribed the medicine according to the prescription. After Li Shizhen took it, the fever came down soon, and the cough was relieved too. After a few courses of medicine, he made a miraculous recovery. This experience deeply touched Li Shizhen. He understood the magical power and endless mysteries of Chinese medicine and felt that this was what his father said about genuine knowledge and learning.

这场病尽管让李时珍对医学怀了更多的向往，但是两次科举失败也使他很不甘心。他又开始夜以继日地埋头苦读，希望在下一次乡试上能榜上有名，以不辜负父亲对自己良苦用心。

Although this disease made Li Shizhen yearn more for medicine, the twice failures of the imperial examinations made him unreconciled. To live up to the expectations of his father, he began to study hard day and night again, hoping to be on the list in the next provincial examination.

嘉靖十九年（1540年），李时珍抱着极大的希望，在父亲的陪伴下参加了第三次乡试，结果却再一次名落孙山了。李时珍经历了三次乡试失败的打击，多年的进士梦破灭了。

In the nineteenth year of Jiajing (1540), with great hope, Li Shizhen participated the provincial examination for the third time accompanied by his father but failed again. After the third blow of examination failures, the dream of being a scholar was shattered.

考场失意，使李时珍陷入了深深的犹豫之中。他感觉自己有些压抑，便想用自己的实际行动来为人们多做一些有意义的事情，这种强烈的愿望在他心中蠢蠢欲动，不可抑制。于是，他一头钻进了父亲的藏书室，像是发现了新大陆一般，他完全沉醉在这片知识的海洋了，在这个广阔而丰富的世界里，他有些流连忘返了。

Repeated exam failures dragged Li Shizhen into deep hesitation. He felt a little depressed, so he was eager to take some action to do more meaningful things for people. This strong desire was stirring in his heart and could not be restrained. Thereupon, he plunged into his father’s library. Like discovering a new land, he was intoxicated in the ocean of knowledge and lingered in this vast and abundant world.

他开始思考很多关于人生的问题，思考自己的未来之路。由于他从小就看着父亲为贫苦百姓调理治病，排解疾苦，深受父亲治病行医、为人处世等种种善行的影响，对贫苦人民满怀同情，他深感行医治病的重要职责和使命。

He began to contemplate his life and future. Since he was a child, he watched his father treated the poor and relieved their suffering. Deeply influenced by his father’s good deeds, Li shizhen was full of sympathy for the poor people. He was keenly aware of the important responsibility and mission of a doctor.

他也不禁想起了自己。李时珍小时候体弱多病，童年几乎是在药炉子边上度过的，直到10岁左右，才在父亲的精心调治下慢慢好转起来。而二十岁参加乡试后那场大病，更是险些要了他的性命。虽然自己当时也懂一些医术，自己用了很多清热化痰的药，都不见好转。但父亲根据当时李时珍的症状，选用了名医李杲的“一味黄芩汤”，很快就病好了。想到这儿，李时珍不禁感慨，对症下药才会起到立竿见影的效果，他深感医生的医术对病人命运的深刻影响。

He couldn’t help thinking of himself. Li Shizhen was frail and sickly when he was a child, and he almost spent her childhood beside the stove decocting Chinese herbal medicine. It was not until he was about ten years old that his health gradually improved under the careful treatment of his father. And the severe illness after participating in the provincial examination at the age of 20 almost cost him his life. Although he knew some medical skills at that time, nothing improved after the heat-clearing and phlegm-dissipating medicine he prescribed himself. However, according to Li Shizhen's symptoms, his father chose “Single Scutellaria Decoction” from famous doctor Li Gao, and Li Shizhen recovered soon. Thinking of this, Li Shizhen couldn't help feeling that only the right medicine can have an immediate effect. He strongly perceived the profound influence of the doctor's medical skills on the patient's fate.

李时珍想起了药王孙思邈在《备急千金要方》中，曾说：“凡大医治病，必当安神定志，无欲无求，先发大慈恻隐之心，誓愿普救含灵之苦。若有疾厄来救者，不得问其贵贱贫富，长幼妍媸，怨亲善友，华夷智愚，普同一等，皆如至亲之想；亦不得瞻前顾后，自虑凶吉，护惜身命。”

Li Shizhen remembered what Sun Simiao, The King of Medicine, said in “Thousand-Golden-Prescriptions” (also known as Valuable Prescriptions for Emergency): “When a great doctor treats the sick, he must calm down and sedate the mind, aspire to nothing, show infinitely mercy and compassion, pledge to relieve sufferings of human beings. If severely-ill patients come to seek relief, he must treat them equally, regardless of whether they are rich or poor, noble or plebeian, old or young, beautiful or ugly, enemies or relatives, chummy or alienated, domestic or abroad, intelligent or witless, he will treat them all as loved ones; he can’t be overcautious and indecisive, concerned about his own safety, and preserve his own life.”

孙思邈的大医精诚论，点化了李时珍的精神境界，他如获偈语一般，顿然醒悟。李时珍想，儒家之学其出发点和立脚点始终离不开人；而从医者救人于水火的道理看，和儒学实则是相通的。博学多识的李时珍，又想起宋朝范仲淹曾在不得志的时候说过“不得为良相，愿为良医。”不能当朝廷大臣，就要争取成为一名名医，为百姓解除病痛。

Sun Simiao's view on a great doctor, enlightened Li Shizhen's spirituality, just like the supreme enlightenment of Buddha by the Buddhist chant. Li Shizhen thought that the starting point and foothold of Confucianism were all about people; the truth that doctors aim to save people from suffering is similar to Confucianism. Li Shizhen, who is erudite and knowledgeable, remembered that Fan Zhongyan of the Song Dynasty once said when he was frustrated, "Not allowed to be a good minister, I would like to be a good doctor." If I couldn’t be a government minister, I would like to be a good doctor, to relieve people’s pain.

于是，李时珍跑去向父亲表明了自己要弃儒从医的心志。父亲为了试探儿子的决心，对他说：“从医是非常苦、非常累的事，而且医生是一个被人看不起的职业，你不在意吗？”李时珍坚定地说：“身如逆流船，心比磐石坚。望父全儿志，至死不怕难。”父亲见他态度坚决，就同意了。李时珍就这样开始正式学医了，也因此才有了这位中国科学史上流芳百世的一代医药家。

Thereupon, Li Shizhen ran to his father and told him that he was determined to become a doctor rather than a Confucianism. To test his son’s resolve, the father said:” Doctor is a toilsome and tiring job, and many people look down upon this career. You don’t care about that?” Li Shizhen said adamantly:” Life is like a boat sailing against the stream; my determination is firmer than a rock. I hope my father can help me to fulfil my wish; I will not be afraid of any difficulties until death. ” Seeing his firm attitude, his father agreed. Then Li Shizhen began to learn medicine in earnest. Therefore, an immortal shining star in Chinese medical history was rising.

参考资料：Reference：

1、《明朝那些事儿》，当年明月，2017年5月；

2、《李时珍》，燕子，2013年1月；

3、Min Li, Yongxuan Liang, Li Shizhen and The Grand Compendium of Materia Medica. Journal of Traditional Chinese Medical Sciences (2015) 2,215-216.
4、https://stevemaraboli.tumblr.com/post/128270865775/every-time-i-thought-i-was-being-rejected-from

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