Ren Xigeng And Tai Yi Yuan Zhi

In Late Qing Dynasty,its regime gradually declined.Tai Yi Yuan,as a medical institution serving the Qing royalty,also went downhill inevitably.At the same time,the influx of Western medicine produced an unprecedented shock to traditional Chinese medicine.Ren Xigeng was an imperial physician working at the Imperial Academy of Medicine in this period.He was very distressed about the circumstances of Tai Yi Yuan and Chinese medicine.Therefore,he wrote a book called Tai Yi Yuan Zhi,which is the most detailed and comprehensive monograph on the records of Tai Yi Yuan's medical work regulation.As the last generation of imperial physicians,Ren Xigeng keenly deplored the vicissitude of Tai Yi Yuan's status and the fact that traditional Chinese medicine was much challenged by Western medicine.He actively strived to maintain the status of Chinese medicine,and the book was a concrete manifestation of his struggle.The narration of this book epitomised his defense of traditional Chinese medicine and his priority view of TCM.In the first chapter,under the background of the decay of Tai Yi Yuan and the prosperity of Western medicine,we discuss the identity,background,experience and medical achievements of Ren Xigeng.In the second chapter,we analyze the literature sources,editions and contents of Tai Yi Yuan Zhi.On account of the analyze,we point out the advantages and disadvantages of this book,as well as the purpose of the author.In the third chapter,we compare the book with the practical operation of Tai Yi Yuan.We also compare the book with Tai Yi Yuan Zhi written by Zhu Ru in Ming Dynasty.This reflects that TCM practitioners represented by Ren who apposed to Western medicine in Late Qing Dynasty,held the priority view of TCM.