Bian Que,@ Bian Qiao, @Qin YueRen was a famous physician in China during the warring states period. He excelled at using the pulse for diagnosis and the art of acupuncture.
One day, the good doctor was asked by the King of Wei : ” I heard you have two other brothers also practicing medicine, who among you is the best and why? ”
Bian Que replied, ” Among us, my eldest brother is the most talented. He focuses on detecting risk factors, he uses this approach to blunt a potential problem before it erupts…….unfortunately, this is not very well appreciated at all!
My second brother is also pretty skillful; he is well known for diagnosing a problem at the very early stages when a simple remedy can still be prescribed…the good thing with this is his patients can enjoy good recovery and a return to good health!
Me, I am established at recognizing illness at an advanced stage, I am good with herbs and acupuncture, often I get good results with controlling many of the late manifestations of disease.…..I am well known for these treatments, but, regretfully, my patients are mostly weakened by advanced disease and seldom can regain complete health and vigor……
……Story adapted from article in a medical bulletin
Food for thought : Who would you think is the most talented? The most obvious answer would be the eldest brother, I think, after all, “prevention is surely better than cure”, as the saying goes!…. However, as is, life is seldom ever so simple. For most people, they would seek to fix the problem only after the machine is broken….This is legitimate for most, after all, we exist in a world with finite resources and seemingly never enough time to look into all our competing needs. Thus, for most, the likes of the famed Doctor Bian Que would be the most appreciated, honored and held in awe. Then again, prevention is cheapest, sometimes free [ it’s the lifestyle changes that cost us the most difficulty! ], sometimes a bit spent on a test here and there…. Still, wouldn’t it be neat to be able to avoid having to regret suffering a disastrous event that takes away our dignity… the stroke that deprives us of speech and movement, the heart attack that prevents us from walking without shortness of breath, the cancer that eats away at our bodies……..
All things considered, in truth, all three talents are needed in our good doctors: Assess risk factors and promote preventive measures and healthy lifestyles, failing which, try to diagnose the problem at the earliest, but should the inevitable happen, I would really love a good Doctor who can bring me through the pain and suffering with as much of my human dignity intact!
