Translated version

'The Yellow Emperor said: 'Yin-Yang is the Dao of heaven and earth, the fundamental principle of all things, the parents of transformation, the origin of life and death, and the abode of Spirit.'

'Treating disease must seek its root.'

Thus accumulated yang forms heaven, accumulated yin forms earth. Yin is tranquil, yang is active; yang generates, yin nourishes; yang kills, yin stores; yang transforms qi, yin gives form.

Extreme cold generates heat, extreme heat generates cold. Cold qi produces turbidity, heat qi produces clarity. When clear qi descends, it causes sunning diarrhea[1]; when turbid qi ascends, it causes distension[2]. This reversal of Yin-Yang creates adverse disease patterns.

Thus clear yang ascends to heaven, turbid yin descends to earth. Earth qi rises as clouds, heaven qi descends as rain. Rain emerges from earth qi, clouds emerge from heaven qi.

Thus clear yang exits the upper orifices, turbid yin exits the lower orifices; clear yang emanates from interstices, turbid yin enters the five viscera[3]; clear yang strengthens the limbs, turbid yin returns to the six fu-organs[4].

Water is yin, fire is yang; yang is qi, yin is flavor.

Flavor nourishes form, form transforms qi, qi nourishes Essence, Essence transforms vitality. Essence consumes qi, form consumes flavor; transformation generates Essence, qi generates form.

Excessive flavor harms form, excessive qi harms Essence; Essence transforms into qi, qi is harmed by flavor.

Yin flavors exit lower orifices; yang qi exits upper orifices.

Strong flavors are yin, mild are yang-within-yin. Strong qi is yang, mild is yin-within-yang.

Strong flavors cause purgation, mild promote flow. Mild qi causes dispersion, strong generates heat.

Intense fire depletes qi, gentle fire strengthens qi. Intense fire consumes qi, qi feeds on gentle fire. Intense fire scatters qi, gentle fire generates qi.

Flavors: acrid/sweet/dispersing are yang; sour/bitter/emetic-purging are yin.

Yin excess causes yang disease, yang excess causes yin disease. Yang excess produces heat, yin excess produces cold. Extreme cold generates heat, extreme heat generates cold.

Cold harms form, heat harms qi. Qi injury causes pain, form injury causes swelling. Pain then swelling: qi harming form; swelling then pain: form harming qi.

Wind excess causes movement, heat excess causes swelling, dryness excess causes desiccation, cold excess causes floating-edema, damp excess causes diarrhea.

Heaven has four seasons and five phases[5] for growth/harvest/storage, generating cold/heat/dryness/damp/wind. Humans have five viscera[3] transforming five qi[6], generating joy/anger/grief/worry/fear.

Thus excessive joy/anger harm qi; extreme cold/heat harm form.

Sudden anger harms yin, sudden joy harms yang.

Rebellious qi ascends, filling channels and deforming the body.

Unrestrained emotions and extreme climates weaken vitality.

Thus extreme yin transforms to yang, extreme yang transforms to yin.

Therefore: Winter cold injury causes spring warm disease; spring wind injury causes summer sunning diarrhea[1]; summer heat injury causes autumn malaria[7]; autumn damp injury causes winter cough.

The Emperor said: 'I hear ancient sages analyzed human form, differentiated viscera, charted channels, integrated six conformations[8], each following its pathway. Acupoints have specific names; muscles attach to bones with defined origins. Regions have orderly pathways; four seasons and Yin-Yang follow principles. Internal-external correspondences manifest clearly. Is this true?'

Qibo answered:East generates wind, wind generates wood, wood generates sour, sour generates liver, liver generates sinews, sinews generate heart. Liver governs eyes. In heaven: mystery; in humans: Dao; on earth: transformation. Transformation generates five flavors; Dao generates wisdom; mystery generates Spirit. Spirit in heaven is wind; on earth is wood; in body is sinews; in viscera is liver. Blue-green color, Jiao note, shouting sound, grasping movement, eye orifice, sour flavor, anger Will. Anger harms liver, grief overcomes anger; wind harms sinews, dryness overcomes wind; sour harms sinews, acrid overcomes sour.

South generates heat, heat generates fire, fire generates bitter, bitter generates heart, heart generates blood, blood generates spleen. Heart governs tongue. In heaven: heat; on earth: fire; in body: vessels; in viscera: heart. Red color, Zhi note, laughter sound, anxiety movement, tongue orifice, bitter flavor, joy Will. Joy harms heart, fear overcomes joy; heat harms qi, cold overcomes heat; bitter harms qi, salty overcomes bitter.

Center generates damp, damp generates earth, earth generates sweet, sweet generates spleen, spleen generates flesh, flesh generates lung. Spleen governs mouth. In heaven: damp; on earth: earth; in body: flesh; in viscera: spleen. Yellow color, Gong note, singing sound, hiccup movement, mouth orifice, sweet flavor, contemplation Will. Contemplation harms spleen, anger overcomes contemplation; damp harms flesh, wind overcomes damp; sweet harms flesh, sour overcomes sweet.

West generates dryness, dryness generates metal, metal generates acrid, acrid generates lung, lung generates skin-hair, skin-hair generate kidney. Lung governs nose. In heaven: dryness; on earth: metal; in body: skin-hair; in viscera: lung. White color, Shang note, crying sound, coughing movement, nose orifice, acrid flavor, grief Will. Grief harms lung, joy overcomes grief; heat harms skin-hair, cold overcomes heat; acrid harms skin-hair, bitter overcomes acrid.

North generates cold, cold generates water, water generates salty, salty generates kidney, kidney generates bone-marrow, marrow generates liver. Kidney governs ears. In heaven: cold; on earth: water; in body: bones; in viscera: kidney. Black color, Yu note, groaning sound, shivering movement, ear orifice, salty flavor, fear Will. Fear harms kidney, contemplation overcomes fear; cold harms blood, dryness overcomes cold; salty harms blood, sweet overcomes salty.

Thus: Heaven-earth are above-below for all things; Yin-Yang are male-female for blood-qi; left-right are pathways of Yin-Yang; water-fire are manifestations of Yin-Yang; Yin-Yang are the primal energy of all things.

Therefore: Yin within guards the interior; yang without acts as envoy.

The Emperor asked: 'How to model Yin-Yang?'

Qibo said: 'Yang excess causes body heat, closed interstices, labored breathing with bending, no sweating but fever, dry teeth. Fatal if with vexation and abdominal fullness: endurable in winter not summer.'

'Yin excess causes body cold, sweating with chilliness, frequent shivering. Fatal if with cold reversal and abdominal fullness: endurable in summer not winter. These Yin-Yang alternations manifest as disease forms.'

The Emperor asked: 'How to regulate these two?'

Qibo said: 'Understanding seven reductions and eight benefits[9] regulates both. Ignorance brings premature decline.'

At forty, yin qi halves, vitality declines. At fifty, body heavy, ears-eyes dim. At sixty, impotence, qi greatly declines, nine orifices[10] malfunction, lower deficiency with upper excess, tears flow constantly.

Thus: Knowing brings strength, ignorance brings aging—same origin different names. Wise observe unity, foolish observe division. Fools lack, sages abound. Abundance brings clear senses, strong body; elders rejuvenate, youth maintain vigor.

Thus sages practice non-action, delight in tranquility, follow desires in emptiness. Hence lifespan boundless, ending with heaven-earth—this is sage's self-cultivation.

Heaven lacks northwest, thus northwest yin—human right ear-eye less acute. Earth lacks southeast, thus southeast yang—human left limbs less strong.

The Emperor asked: 'Why?'

Qibo said: 'East is yang—yang Essence concentrates above, making upper body acute but lower weak. West is yin—yin Essence concentrates below, making lower strong but upper weak. When both sides suffer pathogens: upper right severe, lower left severe. Heaven-earth Yin-Yang incomplete, thus pathogens dwell there.'

Thus heaven has Essence, earth has form; heaven has eight principles[11], earth has five orders[12]—thus becoming parents of all things.

Clear yang ascends heaven, turbid yin returns earth. Heaven-earth's movement-rest, Spirit governs as principle—thus enabling growth/harvest/storage, cycling endlessly.

Only sages: above match heaven to nourish head, below emulate earth to nourish feet, center model human affairs to nourish five viscera[3].

Heaven qi connects through lungs, earth qi connects through throat[13], wind qi connects through liver, thunder qi connects through heart, valley qi connects through spleen, rain qi connects through kidney.

Six channels[14] are rivers, intestines-stomach are sea, nine orifices[10] are water-passages.

Model heaven-earth for Yin-Yang: yang sweat named as heaven's rain; yang qi named as heaven's swift wind. Rage resembles thunder, rebellion resembles yang.

Thus treatment ignoring heaven's principles or earth's orders invites disaster.

Pathogenic wind arrives swift as storm. Superior treat at skin-hair, next at flesh, next at sinews-vessels, next at six fu-organs[4], last at five viscera[3]. Treating viscera: half die half live.

Thus heaven's pathogens harm five viscera[3]; food/drink cold-heat harm six fu-organs[4]; earth's damp harms skin-flesh-sinews-vessels.

Thus skilled needlers: from yin draw yang, from yang draw yin; treat right via left, left via right; know others through self, interior through exterior; discern excess-deficiency; detect subtle signs to prevent danger.

Skilled diagnosticians: observe complexion, palpate pulses—first distinguish Yin-Yang; examine clear-turbid to locate regions; watch breathing, listen sounds to identify suffering; assess balance to determine disease origin; feel inch-foot pulses, observe floating-sunken-slippery-choppy to know disease cause. Thus treatment avoids error, diagnosis avoids mistake.

Thus: At disease onset, acupuncture suffices; at peak, wait for decline.

Thus for mild cases: disperse; for severe: reduce; for deficiency: tonify.

Form deficiency: warm with qi; Essence deficiency: supplement with flavor.

Upper disorders: expel upward; lower disorders: drain downward; middle fullness: purge internally.

With pathogens: steam to induce sweat; in skin: sweat to release; violent pathogens: suppress and restrain; excess syndromes: disperse and purge.

Determine Yin-Yang to distinguish soft-hard.

Yang disease treat yin, yin disease treat yang.

Stabilize blood-qi, each keeping its domain.

Blood excess: drain; qi deficiency: lift.