Li Dongyuan on Intemperance: Excerpts from the Lan Shi Mi Cang (Secret Treasures of the Orchid Palace)

The Lan Shi Mi Cang 蘭室秘藏 (Secret Treasures of the Orchid Palace) is an understudied yet highly significant work in the development of East Asian medical thought. Written within the intellectual lineage of Li Dongyuan 李 東垣 between 1249 and 1251, the text presents a sophisticated clinical perspective that bridges the foundational theories of the Huangdi Neijing 黃帝內經 (Yellow Emperor’s Inner Classic) and Nan Jing 難經 (Classic of Difficulties) with the evolving medical practices of the time. This text is currently being translated in its entirety for the first time, making this important book accessible to clinicians and scholars of East Asian medicine.