[The versions of Song Xin Notes and their content].

Abstract

Song Xin Notes (Song Xin Bi Ji) was written by Miao Zunyi, one of the three well-known physicians of Wu Zhong (Wu Zhong San Jia) in the History of the Qing Dynasty in the Suzhou area. The existing versions of Song Xin Notes are the following - the Xu Ziyu copy from the Qing Dynasty kept in the Nanjing Library, the Anonymous copy from the Qing Dynasty also in the Nanjing Library, the lead print copy in the Republic of China and the Zhang Cun Cun Zhai stone print in the Republic of China. Among them, the anonymous copy is not found in the catalogue books of modern Chinese medicine. It was found that the Xu Ziyu copy from the Qing Dynasty was the earliest copy of the Songxin Notes, which appeared between 1835 and 1840. The lead print copy in the Republic of China was the earliest print of the Songxin Notes, published in 1913 or 1914. The book involved a total of 38 medical cases and 19 disease syndromes, and mainly focused on the complicated diseases. The time span of this book covered more than 50 years, highlighting the clinical characteristics of Miao in terms of following classic patterns, absorbing the skills of others and creative in his clinical treatment.