灵枢·病传 Miraculous Pivot·Transmission of Diseases
黄帝曰：余受九针于夫子，而私览于诸方，或有导引行气、乔摩、灸、熨、刺、爇、饮药之一者，可独守耶，将尽行之乎？The Yellow Emperor said: I have received the teachings of the Nine Needles from you, sir, and privately studied various medical methods. Among them, there are such practices as daoyin (guiding and pulling), qigong (circulating qi), massage, moxibustion, ironing, acupuncture, cauterization, and taking medicine. Can one rely solely on one of these methods, or should one practice all of them?
岐伯曰：诸方者，众人之方也，非一人之所尽行也。Qi Bo said: These various methods are for the general public and not for one person to practice all of them.
黄帝曰：此乃所谓：“守一勿失，万物毕者也”。今余已闻阴阳之要，虚实之理，倾移之过，可治之属，愿闻病之变化，淫传绝败而不可治者，可得闻乎？The Yellow Emperor said: This is what is meant by "adhering to one principle without losing it, and all things will be accomplished." Now I have already heard about the essentials of yin and yang, the principles of deficiency and excess, the faults of imbalance, and the treatable conditions. I would like to hear about the changes of diseases, those that spread rampantly and lead to irreversible failure and become incurable. Can you tell me about these?
岐伯曰：要乎哉问也。道，昭乎其如日（别本作旦，下同）醒，窘乎其如夜瞑。能被而服之，神与俱成；毕将服之，神自得之。生神之理，可著于竹帛，不可传于子孙。Qi Bo said: What an important question! The Way is as clear as being awake in the daytime (in some versions, it is written as "dan", the same below), and as obscure as being asleep at night. If one can embrace and practice it, one's spirit will grow along with it; if one practices it thoroughly, one will attain the spirit by oneself. The principle of generating the spirit can be written on bamboo slips and silk, but cannot be passed on to descendants.
岐伯回答说：您所问的问题很重要啊！对于医学道理，如果明白了，就好像白天醒着一样清楚，如果不明白，就好像夜间睡觉一样昏昧。如果能按医道去做，就会得到神助、成就大业；如果始终运用它，就会得到它的神妙。达到极高水平的医学道理，应该写在竹简、帛书上广泛流传，不应该只传给自己的后代据为己有。
黄帝曰：何谓日醒？The Yellow Emperor said: What is meant by being awake in the daytime?
岐伯曰：明于阴阳，如惑之解，如醉之醒。Qi Bo said: Being clear about yin and yang, just like the resolution of doubts, and like waking up from drunkenness.
黄帝曰：何谓夜瞑？The Yellow Emperor said: What is meant by being asleep at night?
岐伯曰：瘖乎其无声，漠乎其无形，折毛发理，正气横倾，淫邪泮衍，血脉传溜（别本作留），大气入脏，腹痛下淫，可以致死，不可以致生。Qi Bo said: It is silent without a sound, formless and intangible, with the hair and skin pores damaged, the healthy qi collapsing sideways, the pathogenic qi spreading diffusely, the blood vessels transmitting the pathogen (in some versions, it is written as "liu" instead of "liu"), the large qi entering the internal organs, abdominal pain and downward discharge of pathogenic factors, which can lead to death and not to survival.
岐伯回答说：外邪侵入人体，悄无声息，寂无形迹，引起毫毛皮肤发寒，腠理发泄，正气耗散，淫邪蔓延，传入并滞留血脉之中，随之亢盛的邪气侵入五脏，造成腹部疼痛，精气大量下泄，这样可以致人死命，却不可以使人生命延续下去。
黄帝曰：大气入脏，奈何？The Yellow Emperor said: What happens when the large qi enters the internal organs?
岐伯曰：病先发于心，一日而之肺，三日而之肝，五日而之脾，三日不已，死。冬夜半，夏日中。Qi Bo said: If the disease starts from the heart first, it will spread to the lungs in one day, to the liver in three days, to the spleen in five days. If it does not subside in three days, the patient will die. In winter, it will be at midnight; in summer, it will be at noon.
岐伯答道：邪气首先侵入心而发病的，经过一天就会传到肺，再经过三天传到肝，再经过五天传到脾，如果再经过三天还不能治愈，就会死亡。发生在冬季的，半夜死亡；发生在夏季的，中午死亡。
病先发于肺，三日而之肝，一日而之脾，五日而之胃，十日不已，死。冬日入，夏日出。If the disease starts from the lungs first, it will spread to the liver in three days, to the spleen in one day, to the stomach in five days. If it does not subside in ten days, the patient will die. In winter, it will be at sunset; in summer, it will be at sunrise.
病先发于肝，三日而之脾，五日而之胃，三日而之肾，三日不已，死。冬日入，夏蚤（别本作早）食。If the disease starts from the liver first, it will spread to the spleen in three days, to the stomach in five days, to the kidneys in three days. If it does not subside in three days, the patient will die. In winter, it will be at sunset; in summer, it will be at breakfast time.
病先发于脾，一日而之胃，二日而之肾，三日而之膂膀胱，十日不已，死。冬人定，夏晏食。If the disease starts from the spleen first, it will spread to the stomach in one day, to the kidneys in two days, to the lumbar region and bladder in three days. If it does not subside in ten days, the patient will die. In winter, it will be at the time when people are settled for the night; in summer, it will be at the time of the late meal.
病先发于胃，五日而之肾，三日而之膂膀胱，五日而上之心，二日不已，死。冬夜半，夏日昳。If the disease starts from the stomach first, it will spread to the kidneys in five days, to the lumbar region and bladder in three days, to the heart in five days. If it does not subside in two days, the patient will die. In winter, it will be at midnight; in summer, it will be at the time after noon.
病先发于肾，三日而之膂膀胱，三日而上之心，三日而之小肠，三日不已，死。冬大晨，夏晏晡。If the disease starts from the kidneys first, it will spread to the lumbar region and bladder in three days, to the heart in three days, to the small intestine in three days. If it does not subside in three days, the patient will die. In winter, it will be at the early morning; in summer, it will be at the time of the late afternoon.
病先发于膀胱，五日而之肾，一日而之小肠，一日而之心，二日不已，死。冬鸡鸣，夏下晡。If the disease starts from the bladder first, it will spread to the kidneys in five days, to the small intestine in one day, to the heart in one day. If it does not subside in two days, the patient will die. In winter, it will be at the time of the cock crowing; in summer, it will be at the time of the late afternoon.
诸病以次相传，如是者，皆有死期，不可刺也；间一脏及二、三、四脏者，乃可刺也。All these diseases are transmitted in sequence like this, and all have a time of death, and acupuncture should not be performed; if there is a gap of one, two, three, or four organs in the transmission, then acupuncture can be performed.
