Popularization of Traditional Chinese Medicine

Traditional Chinese medicine is the quintessence of fine traditional Chinese culture and scientific and technological progress in ancient China. Refined over thousands of years of medical practice, it is the perfect representative of Chinese wisdom. During the Tang and Song dynasties, knowledge of Chinese medicine spread to Europe via the Arab world and heavily influenced European medicine. The spread of the Chinese medicine was particularly active in the Tang Dynasty when the hugely vibrant and influential culture attracted many envoys, merchants, and scholars from other countries. When they returned home, they brought not only systems, culture, language, and written characters, but also various creations and inventions of the Chinese people including medical theories and practices. Japanese Kampo and the Korean Sasang Constitutional Medicine are typical examples of foreign medicines with roots in traditional Chinese medicine.

From the late Ming Dynasty to early Qing Dynasty, European missionaries came to China to preach and brought Chinese medicine and knowledge about it back to Europe. Michel Boym, a Polish Jesuit missionary, was a pioneer in introducing Chinese medicine to the West. He wrote about Yellow Emperor's Internal Canon of Medicine (Huangdi Neijing) and Canon of Pulse (Maijing) and authored a treatise on the Chinese medicine. He also launched the study of the Chinese medicine in the West and propelled the Westward spread of Chinese herbal medicines, extending their benefits to people in more countries.

中醫(yī)藥傳播

中醫(yī)藥是中華優(yōu)秀傳統(tǒng)文化和中國(guó)古代科技的杰出代表，其在幾千年的醫(yī)學(xué)實(shí)踐中不斷發(fā)展、壯大，是中國(guó)人民的智慧結(jié)晶。唐宋時(shí)期，有關(guān)中醫(yī)的信息通過(guò)阿拉伯世界傳入歐洲，為歐洲醫(yī)藥的發(fā)展注入東方元素。特別是在唐代，由于中國(guó)文化的高度繁榮和巨大影響，吸引各國(guó)使節(jié)、商人、學(xué)者來(lái)華學(xué)習(xí)。他們不但將中國(guó)制度、文化、語(yǔ)言和文字引入本國(guó)，而且將中華民族的各種發(fā)明創(chuàng)造，包括醫(yī)藥學(xué)說(shuō)都帶回了本國(guó)。今天日本的“漢方”和韓國(guó)的“四象醫(yī)學(xué)”，就是在中醫(yī)基礎(chǔ)上發(fā)展而來(lái)的典型代表。

明末清初之際，歐洲傳教士來(lái)華傳教，同時(shí)也將中醫(yī)和中藥知識(shí)帶回歐洲。波蘭傳教士卜彌格是中醫(yī)西傳的開(kāi)拓者，他率先向西方介紹《黃帝內(nèi)經(jīng)》《脈經(jīng)》，撰寫(xiě)中醫(yī)學(xué)術(shù)著作，開(kāi)啟了西方對(duì)中醫(yī)的研究，推動(dòng)了中草藥的西傳，有利于中醫(yī)藥傳播并造福各國(guó)人民。