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External Influences

外来影响 〔外來影響 〕 wài lái yǐng xiǎng

Human knowledge in any field is conditioned by influences far beyond that field. Since, as we have seen, illness can be variously ascribed to natural, supernatural, and magical causes, the knowledge that determines how illness is treated varies greatly according to the prevailing beliefs of any given society beyond the purely medical. The influence of cosmological, religious, and sociopolitical thought invariably leaves an indelible imprint on healing practices.

The intellectual roots of Chinese culture are found most notably in the philosophies of Confucianism and Daoism. Their ideas and ideals have shaped not only philosophy but also religion, art, science, technology, society, politics, and every other aspect of Chinese history, down to the present. Medicine is no exception.

The foundations of Chinese medicine were laid in the classical age, during the Hàn Dynasty. As such, they were profoundly influenced by the philosophical developments of the preceding period, the late Zhōu and Warring States, known in Chinese history as a time when a hundred schools of thought contended. Ending with the unification of China in 221 BCE, it was a time of unprecedented exploration and growth in Chinese thought.

The arrival of Buddhism from India around the beginning of the Common Era resulted in the development of an organized indigenous Chinese religion, a tradition termed religious Daoism. This, in turn, stimulated a revival of Confucianism during the Sòng Dynasty (960–1260 CE), which ushered in another period of growth in Chinese medicine.

In the 20th century, Chinese medicine was severely challenged by Western medicine. In the latter half of the century, its development was again influenced by a new social and political doctrine, namely Communism. The following paragraphs discuss these intellectual influences in the context of their significance for the origin and growth of Chinese medicine.

Overview

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