The original text and translation of Ji Kang's Treatise on Health Preservation are as follows:
Original text:
There may be gods in this world who can learn to immortality and who can work hard, or so on. Live a hundred and twenty years. It is the same in ancient times and modern times. In the past, could it be that we were demons? Both of these are lost, and their emotions will be discussed roughly.
Although the gods cannot see it, (however) it is recorded in the records and passed down by the previous history, so it is necessary to compare it. It seems that the natural endowment of special Qi is not something that can be caused by accumulated learning. As for cultivating the Tao, if you are able to live your life with the principles, you can live for more than a thousand years at the best, and for hundreds of years at the lowest, and you can have ears. But the world is not refined, so it is impossible to obtain it, so why should we say it?
Those who are carefree do not seek results even if they are not effective. And those who seek are not just mourning. Those who rely too much on their karma will not take part in their original merits. Those who pursue magic will drown themselves in the byways. If this is the case, no one can achieve what they desire. This is not the case for those who are good at maintaining their health!
Quiet, quiet and peaceful, with few selfish desires and few desires. Well-known status will harm your virtue. Therefore, there is no camp for a while, and it is not a desire but a border ban. Recognizing the harmful nature of thick flavors, so discarding them without caring about them is not greedy and then suppressing them. The external things are so tiring that the mind is no longer spirited, and it is alone with mellowness, free from worries, and silent without thoughts. And keep it as one, nourish it as harmony. Harmony and rationality are the same.
After Dashun, steam with Ganoderma lucidum, moisten with sweet wine spring, hope for the morning sun, and wear five robes of silk, be content with nothing, enjoy the wonderful mind, forget pleasure and then be content, leave the rebirth and then survive in the body. If things go on like this, the common people will be able to live long lives and have five wives competing for years. How can it be nothing?
Analysis
Ji Kang first discussed the role of mental health on physical health. He compared the human body to the country and the spirit to the monarch of the country: "The role of the spirit in The body is like a country with a king. The spirit is restless in the middle, but the body is lost outside. It is like the king is faint at the top, and the country is in chaos below."
The influence of a person's mental health on the body is the same as the influence of the monarch on the country. Therefore, people's health care should nourish both body and soul, and the emphasis should be on nourishing the mind. It is necessary to "cultivate one's nature to protect the mind, and maintain peace of mind for the whole body." This fully affirms the importance of psychological health care.
Ji Kang advocated that people who are good at maintaining health should keep their hearts quiet and nihilistic, be focused and comfortable, reduce their personal desires, be indifferent to fame and fortune, and avoid greasy and heavy foods.
The specific method of health preservation proposed by Ji Kang is to eliminate the desire for worldly fame and wealth, delicious food, etc., so that one's heart can be simple and peaceful, full of energy, and away from sorrow and thinking (external things will not tire the heart). (Existence, the spirit is pure and pure, free from worries, silent and without thoughts), then take nourishing medicine, drink sweet spring water, bathe in the warm morning sun, and listen to elegant music.
In this way, you can achieve a state of detachment of mind, light and healthy body, joy and satisfaction (steaming with Ganoderma lucidum, moistening with sweet wine spring, drying with the morning sun, and Sui with the five strings, self-satisfied with doing nothing, and experiencing the mysterious mind, Forget about joy and then be happy). Such a state is very conducive to health and longevity.
Ji Kang emphasized that health preservation should be sustained and should start from little things. He pointed out that after a year and a half of self-cultivation, some people did not see any obvious results, so their willpower declined, leading to giving up halfway; some people thought that the effects of health care might not be seen until decades later, and were unwilling to give up on the present. Without the desire for fame, wealth, delicious food, etc., it is impossible to achieve true health preservation.
Ji Kang also emphasized that those who maintain health must consciously and voluntarily maintain their health, develop a good mentality or habits, and stay away from bad temptations in order to achieve good results. He pointed out that those who are good at maintaining their health know the harm to the spirit of pursuing fame and fortune, so they consciously and voluntarily remain indifferent to fame and fortune.