As the saying goes, "You can know a person's face but not their heart," meaning that what is hidden beneath the flesh cannot be directly seen by the naked eye. The generally accepted accuracy of modern lie detectors is 80-90%, and courts accept lie detector results at a rate of over 70%. Therefore, even lies hidden within the heart can be detected in a non-invasive way.
The Earth's radius is about 6400 km, and humans can currently only drill up to 20-30 km. In the absence of the ability to delve deep underground, how do geologists understand the Earth's crust? They analyze rock samples brought from volcanic vents, and widely deploy seismographs to collect seismic wave patterns and speeds from earthquakes around the world. There are many methods, all aimed at indirectly analyzing the internal structure of the Earth's crust from the surface.
What about the human body? Modern medicine has many powerful tools, such as X-rays, CT scans, MRI, and ultrasound, which can see through the human body. But in ancient times, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) could also "see through" the human body. How was this achieved?
Through long-term exploration, practice, and accumulated experience, ancient people discovered that there are close connections between internal organs and many tissues on the body's surface. For example, if kidney qi is insufficient, one is prone to tinnitus and lumbago; excessive heart fire can lead to tongue sores and forehead acne; and insufficient liver blood can cause vision deterioration and genital itching. Pathological changes in the internal zang-fu organs are also reflected in facial features, tongue appearance, and pulse. By collecting these surface signs and the patient's complaints, a TCM physician can determine which zang-fu organ is problematic. This is "seeing through."
Some readers might argue: lumbago could also be from a back injury, and tongue sores could be from biting the tongue, not necessarily indicating internal organ issues, right? Correct, a TCM physician does not make a judgment based on a single symptom but rather on a comprehensive analysis of a series of information gathered from the patient.
For example, when you come home, open the door, and see the desk drawer open, your OS is "Did I forget to close it?"
Then you turn around and see things scattered on the floor, the wardrobe rummaged through, your OS "It seems there really was a thief."
Next, you see the bedroom window glass broken... Without hesitation, you pick up your phone to call the police.
TCM is the same. One symptom might not mean much, but two related symptoms together greatly increase the accuracy of the judgment; when three related symptoms overlap, it becomes irrefutable evidence. The more information the physician gathers from the patient's surface, the more they can enhance the "resolution" of "seeing through" the patient's internal zang-fu organs. Subsequent treatments in TCM are steps to prove the previous inferences correct. Each time the patient returns for a follow-up, one or two symptoms disappear; after three follow-ups, all symptoms are basically gone, and the physician's performance is perfectly concluded, with successful treatment.
Here's an example: A patient complains of headache, which is a non-specific symptom that can be caused by many diseases. The patient also mentions that their eyes tend to be dry. A professionally trained TCM physician would immediately think of the symptom and sign of "liver blood deficiency pattern," but they can't be entirely sure yet. The doctor presses the patient's shoulders and finds that they are not tense, so they ask the patient in return, "Is your headache limited to the top of your head, and is it a dull, heavy pain?" "Yes!" The patient is a bit surprised. "Is your menstrual flow very light?" "Yes, it only lasts for two or three days." At this point, the doctor is about 90% certain. Finally, the doctor takes the patient's pulse and finds it to be thin and weak. This is the smoking gun! With so much related evidence piling up, it all points to the patient's body being in a state of "liver blood deficiency," so the doctor prescribes a formula to replenish liver blood. After 3 or 4 follow-up visits, not only have the headache and dry eyes improved, but the menstrual flow has also returned to normal. Even the "easily itchy private parts" that the patient was too embarrassed to mention to the doctor have been alleviated.
TCM diagnoses systemic and macroscopic pathological conditions, treating comprehensive macroscopic symptoms rather than isolated ones. Often, when seeking treatment for condition A with TCM, condition B also improves simultaneously. This illustrates the difference between treating symptom and treating root.
