雙語科技百科(醫學) 第60期:釷灸
Acupuncture and Moxibustion
Acupuncture and moxibustion, with a history of thousands of years in China, is at the core of Chinese medicine; it includes two old therapeutic methods, i. e. acupuncture therapy and moxibustion therapy. Acupuncture therapy involves jabbing specially made metal needles of different lengths into the patient’s body at certain acupuncture points, treating the patient by twirling or lifting the needles. Moxibustion therapy requires the placement of burning crushed dry moxa near or on the skin at certain acupuncture points, treating the diseases by the irritation of heat. In ancient China, there were many well-known doctors using acupuncture and moxibustion therapy to treat the patients, such as Bian Que of the Spring and Autumn Period and Hua Tuo of the Eastern Han Dynasty, who had cured some difficult and complicated diseases, and thus were acclaimed as miracle-working doctors. In 1027, a medical official of acupuncture and moxibustion of the Song Dynasty Wang Weiyi designed and made two bronze human figures marked with acupuncture points, and carefully carved 12 channels and vessels and 354 acupuncture points on the figures for people to use when learning the was the earliest bronze human figure for medical use in China. Nowadays,acupuncture and moxibustion therapy is not only widely used in China to relieve people of their diseases, but it has also spread around the world.
釷灸在中國已有幾千年的歷史，是中國醫學寶庫中一顆璀璨的明珠。鍼灸術包括中國兩種古老的治病方法：針法和灸法。針法是用特製的不同長度的金屬針，按一定穴位，刺入病人體內，用捻、提等手法治療疾病。灸法是把燒着的艾絨按一定的穴位，靠近皮膚或放在皮膚上，利用熱的刺激來治療疾病。中國古代有很多用鍼灸術爲人治病的名醫，像春秋時的扁鵲、東漢時的華佗等，他們治過不少疑難雜症，被譽爲能使人起死回生的“神醫”。公元1027年，宋代鍼灸醫官王惟一，創造了鍼灸史上一大奇蹟。他設計鑄造了兩具鍼灸銅人模型，在銅人體上精細地刻了十二經脈和354個穴位，供人學習鍼灸時使用。這是中國最早的醫用銅人模型，也是中國鍼灸教育事業上的一個創舉。今天，古老的鍼灸術不但在中國廣泛使用，爲人們解除病痛，而且還漂洋過海，傳到了全世界各個地方。
