Dongui Bogam_05_Differences in Lifespan

[壽夭之異]
[Differences in Lifespan]

素問曰, 黃帝曰, 余聞上古之人, 春秋皆度百歲, 而動作不衰. 今時之人, 年半白而動作皆衰者, 時世異耶, 人將失之耶. 
In the Basic Questions (素問), "Huangdi asked, "The people of ancient times are said to not get old even at the age of 100. The people nowadays, however, get old in their movement even at the age of 50. Is this because time has changed or because the people have lost the way of Dao?" 

岐伯對曰, 上古之人, 其知道者, 法於陰陽, 和於術數, 飮食有節, 起居有常, 不妄作勞. 故能形與神俱, 而盡終其天年, 度百歲乃去. 今時之人則不然. 以酒爲漿, 以妄爲常, 醉以入房, 以慾竭其精, 以耗散其眞, 不知持滿, 不時御神, 務快其心, 逆於生樂, 起居無節, 故半百而衰也. 
Qibo answered, 'The people at that time knew the way of Dao. They practiced the way of yin-yang, adapted to changes well, had discipline to moderate diet, had rules in their daily lives, and did not use up their energy thoughtlessly. Therefore, they could preserve their shape and spirit in whole and live one's allotted life, and eventually died at the age of 100. People these days, however, are of the opposite: they drink alcohol as if it is water, behave spontaneously,  have sexual intercourse in a drunken state, which wastes essential qi, and do not care for storing essence and use their spirit carelessly. In short, they put effort only in emotional pleasure. This extravagant attitude is the opposite to the demands of the joy of preserving life; therefore, one gets old even at the age of 50." 

虞摶曰, 人之壽夭, 各有天命存焉. 夫所謂天命者, 天地父母之元氣也. 父爲天, 母爲地, 父精母血, 盛衰不同. 故人之壽夭亦異. 
Yutuan (虞摶) once said: "The lifespan of each man is allotted by the mandate of heaven[天命]. 
The will of heaven refers to the original qi(元氣) given by parents and heaven and earth before birth. 
Father is heaven and mother is earth, and life expectancy depends on the longevity of the essence(精) from the father and the blood(血) received from the mother, which may vary. 

其有生之初, 受氣之兩盛者, 當得上中之壽, 受氣之偏盛者, 當得中下之壽, 受氣之兩衰者, 能保養, 僅得下壽, 不然, 多夭折. 雖然, 或風寒暑濕之感於外, 飢飽勞役之傷乎內, 豈能一一盡乎所稟之元氣也. 故上古聖人, 嘗百草, 製醫藥, 乃欲扶植乎生民, 各得盡其天年也. 
The man who received healthy qi from both parents is allotted to the highest level or middle level of lifespan; a man who received healthy qi from one parent is allotted to the middle or lower level of lifespan; a man who received weak gi from both parents has the lower level of lifespan only when one is raised well, and if not, the person will die young. However, if pathogenic qi such as wind, cold, heat, and dampness invade the body to cause external injury or any kind of internal damage has occurred due to starvation, overeating, or overworking, it is obvious that one cannot fully live out the original qi given by his or her parents. This is why the wise man in the ancient times tasted all kinds of herbs, made all kinds of medicines, and took care of people to let them live the allotted life fully. 

傳曰, 修身以竢命而已. 必須盡人事以副天意, 則凶者化吉, 亡者得存, 未嘗令人委之於天命也. 是故醫者, 可以通神明而權造化, 能使夭者壽, 而壽者仙, 醫道其可廢乎.
There is a saying in Chuan (傳), 'One only trains oneself and waits for the universal order.' It implies that a person must do all one must do and follow the will of heaven, and all will come to a good end and the people who should die will become healthy again. In conclusion, a person's lifespan does not only depend on the universal order. It is the role of a doctor to understand such order of the universe and work with this knowledge as the base to lead people who should die young to die old, and who should die old to be an immortal. Who could possibly do away with the doctrine of medicine, knowing such things?"