灵枢经·论勇 Discourse on Courage

Huangdi asked Shaoyu, saying: 'Suppose there are people here walking together and standing together, equal in age, and equally dressed in clothing of the same thickness. If they suddenly encounter a fierce wind and violent rain, some fall ill and some do not; some fall ill altogether, and some remain entirely well. What is the reason for this?' Shaoyu said: 'Which aspect of this does Your Majesty wish to ask about most urgently?' Huangdi said: 'I wish to hear it in full.' Shaoyu said: 'In spring there is the green-blue wind; in summer, the yang wind; in autumn, the cool wind; in winter, the cold wind. In each of these four seasons, the winds cause disease that takes a different form.'

Huangdi said: 'How do the winds of the four seasons cause people to fall ill?' Shaoyu said: 'A person with a yellow complexion, thin skin, and weak flesh cannot withstand the vacuous wind of spring; a person with a white complexion, thin skin, and weak flesh cannot withstand the vacuous wind of summer; a person with a green-blue complexion, thin skin, and weak flesh cannot withstand the vacuous wind of autumn; a person with a red complexion, thin skin, and weak flesh cannot withstand the vacuous wind of winter.' Huangdi said: 'Does a person with a black complexion never fall ill?' Shaoyu said: 'A person with a black complexion, thick skin, and firm flesh is indeed not injured by the winds of the four seasons. But if such a person's skin is thin and flesh is not firm, and the complexion is not uniform, then when the vacuous wind arrives at the height of late summer, illness results. If the person's skin is thick and muscles firm, then when the vacuous wind arrives at the height of late summer, no illness results. Yet even a person with thick skin and firm muscles, if doubly affected by cold — both from without and within — will then fall ill.' Huangdi said: 'Excellent.'

Huangdi said: 'Now, whether a person can endure pain or cannot endure pain is not simply a matter of courage or timidity. There are brave men who cannot endure pain: when they encounter danger they advance, but when they encounter pain they stop short. There are timid men who can endure pain: when they hear of danger they become afraid, yet when they meet with pain they do not flinch. There are brave men who can endure pain: when they encounter danger they show no fear, and when they meet with pain they do not flinch. And there are timid men who cannot endure pain: when they encounter danger and pain, their eyes dart about and their faces show distress, they are so frightened they cannot speak, they lose control of their qi, they are startled, their complexion changes, and they seem to hover between life and death. I have observed that this is so, but I do not know the reason for it — I wish to hear the explanation.' Shaoyu said: 'Whether a person can endure pain or cannot endure pain is determined by the thickness or thinness of the skin, the firmness or fragility of the flesh, and the slackness or tension of the tissues — it is not a matter of courage or timidity.'

Huangdi said: 'I wish to hear how courage and timidity come about.' Shaoyu said: 'In the brave man, the eyes are deep-set and firm, with long, straight, upward-sweeping brows; the texture of the Triple Burner runs crosswise; his heart is upright and straight; his liver is large and firm; his gallbladder is full and set to the side. When angered, his qi becomes exuberant and his chest expands; the liver rises and the gallbladder turns crosswise; the canthi of his eyes split open and his gaze becomes fierce; his body hair stands on end and his face turns a greenish hue. This is how courage comes about in the brave man.'

Huangdi said: 'I wish to hear how timidity comes about.' Shaoyu said: 'In the timid man, the eyes are large but lack the ability to hold their gaze steady; yin and yang lose their proper balance with each other; the texture of the Triple Burner runs lengthwise; the sternum is short and small; the ligament attaching the liver is slack; his gallbladder is not full and hangs loose; his intestines and stomach are elongated and straight; and there is emptiness beneath the rib-sides. Even when he is in the midst of great rage, his qi cannot fill his chest; though the liver and lung may rise, the qi soon weakens and sinks back down again — hence he cannot sustain his anger for long. This is how timidity comes about in the timid man.'

Huangdi said: 'When a timid man has drunk wine, his anger no longer defers even to a brave man — which viscus causes this?' Shaoyu said: 'Wine is the essence of water and grain, the fluid distilled from cooked grain; its qi is swift and fierce. When it enters the stomach, the stomach becomes distended, the qi rebels upward and fills the chest, the liver floats upward and the gallbladder turns crosswise. At such a moment, the timid man is indeed comparable to a brave man — but once the qi wanes, he regrets it. Though for the moment he resembles the brave man, he does not know how to restrain himself; this is called wine-derangement.'