Heavenly Years

Yellow Emperor asked Qi Bo: "I wish to understand that at the beginning of human life, what qi serves as the foundation, what serves as protection, the loss of what leads to death, and the attainment of what ensures survival?" Qi Bo replied: "The mother's essence-blood serves as the foundation, and the father's essence-blood serves as protection; losing the spirit leads to death, and attaining the spirit ensures survival." Yellow Emperor asked: "What is spirit?" Qi Bo said: "When blood and qi are harmonized, nutritive qi and defensive qi are free-flowing, the five viscera are formed, spirit qi is stored in the heart, and both the corporeal soul and ethereal soul are complete, only then is a person formed."

Yellow Emperor said: "Human life spans vary—some are long-lived, some short-lived, some die suddenly, and some suffer prolonged illness without recovery. I wish to understand the principles behind this." Qi Bo said: "When the five viscera are firm, blood and vessels are harmonious, muscles are smooth and supple, skin is dense, the movements of nutritive qi and defensive qi do not deviate from normal, breathing is steady and gentle, qi follows its regular course, the six bowels digest grains and fluids, and fluids are distributed throughout the body, with all functions maintained in normalcy, then one can live long."

Yellow Emperor said: "When a person lives to one hundred years before dying, how can such a lifespan be achieved?" Qi Bo said: "When the nostrils and the philtrum are deep and long, the facial bones are high, thick, and upright, nutritive and defensive qi flow smoothly and harmoniously, the three courts of the face are prominent, the bones are large, and the muscles are full, such a person can live to one hundred years and complete their natural lifespan."

Yellow Emperor said: "Can you explain to me the process of the rise and decline of the body's qi, up to the point of death?" Qi Bo said: "At ten years of age, the five viscera begin to stabilize, blood and qi are already free-flowing; at this time, qi is in the lower part of the body, so the person likes to run. At twenty years, blood and qi begin to flourish, muscles are growing, so the person likes to walk quickly. At thirty years, the five viscera are largely stable, muscles are firm, and blood vessels are full, so the person likes to walk slowly. At forty years, the five viscera, six bowels, and twelve meridians are all flourishing and tending toward stability; the interstices begin to loosen, the glory of the face begins to decline, hair begins to gray, the body is in its prime and stable without easily being shaken, so the person likes to sit. At fifty years, liver qi begins to decline, the liver lobes begin to thin, bile begins to decrease, and the eyes begin to see unclearly. At sixty years, heart qi begins to decline, the person easily becomes sorrowful and melancholy, blood and qi become sluggish, so the person likes to lie down. At seventy years, spleen qi becomes weak, and the skin becomes dry. At eighty years, lung qi declines, the corporeal soul disperses, so speech easily becomes erroneous. At ninety years, kidney qi is exhausted, and the liver, heart, spleen, and lungs—the four viscera—along with the meridians, all become vacuous. At one hundred years, the five viscera are all weak, spirit qi departs entirely from the body, leaving only the physical form to exist alone and complete its natural lifespan."

Yellow Emperor said: "Some people die before reaching their natural lifespan—why is this?" Qi Bo said: "Their five viscera are not firm, the nostrils and philtrum are not long, the nostrils flare outward, and breathing is rapid; in addition, the facial bones are low, the muscles are thin and weak, the vessels have little blood, the muscles are not solid, they are frequently affected by wind and cold pathogenic qi, blood and qi are weak, blood vessels are not free-flowing, and proper qi and pathogenic qi attack each other, disturbing blood and qi, instead drawing the pathogenic factors deeper, so they die in middle age."