Translating traditional Chinese medicine anchored in philosophy: towards a fuller account of the cultural richness of Su Wen

Many Traditional Chinese Medicine terms and theories used in today’s society are rooted in素问 (Su Wen), the first part of Huang Di Nei Jing. However, the increase in the number of English translations of Su Wen has led to problematic discrepancies and even textual misinterpretations of a number of TCM concepts, principles and norms.

Therefore, this study centres on the emerging importance of TCM and the significant problems of translation that this emergence poses, both in terms of translation practice and of cultural encounter. In brief, the principal problem is that, unlike modern medicine and health-care cultures which are based on experiments and data, TCM considers the human being as an organic whole in unison with nature, rather than as a damaged machine that needs to be repaired.