《本草綱目‧火部》考釋

Fire as Medicine: The ''Fire'' Section of Bencao gangmu

以火為藥並獨立成部，是李時珍（約1518-1593年）的《本草綱目》首創。李時珍的藥物分類法，以五行的宇宙論為架構，火部單獨為一卷（第6卷）。《本草綱目》火部之藥共11種，李時珍在分述各藥之前，別立〈陽火‧陰火〉一節，這個體例也是《本草綱目》各部之藥所無。李時珍將火區分為天火、地火、人火三大類，並在人火的部份以大篇幅引述金元醫學對「相火」的討論。「火」與「風」一樣，在中國古典醫學是指著人體外在的火熱之氣。金元以下，火有內在化的傾向，並逐漸成為病人描述自身感受的術語。李時珍首創火部藥，應該與金元醫學以下論「火」的時代風氣密不可分。

The words of the living are distorted echoes of the past. Some core notions of Chinese classical medicine had a long and profound influence, and although the common people had daily intimate experiences related to these ideas they had no way of explaining them. ''Fire'' is one of the clearest examples of this paradox. ''Fire'' first appears as an independent medicinal category in Li Shizhen's (c. 1518-1593) Bencao gangmu, which categorizes materia medica according to the doctrine of the five phases. The category of fire constitutes a distinct chapter, which includes eleven types of medicine. The description of these medicines is preceded by a section on ''yin-fire, yang-fire,'' a form unique to this chapter of Bencao gangmu. Li Shizhen further divides fire into ''celestial fire,'' ''terrestrial fire'' and ''human fire.'' The last section, includes a discussion of the notion of ''ministerial fire'' 相火 (xianghuo ), based on citations from sources of the Jin and Yuan periods. Do our verbal categories determine our feelings? In classical Chinese medicine, fire, just like ''wind,'' referred to pneumas surrounding the body. Beginning with the Jin and Yuan dynasties, doctors placed increasing emphasis on ''fire'' within the body. At the same time, fire became a term used by the sick themselves to describe their experiences of malaise. Li Shizhen's creation of a medicinal category for fire should be considered a part of this process of reconceptualization.