Reference; https://mbp-japan.com/tokyo/seino-1987/column/5105120/
Modified and translated by CFJA
During the period of Cheng Dan’an, it was difficult to transmit the tradition and culture from the predecessors to the next generation, only a few were able to read, and the day he arrived in Japan (around 1934) was the year that simplified Chinese Character was suggested. We feel that Cheng Dan’an must have dedicated so much of his life to reviving ancient/traditional Chinese medicine. The same thing can be said for Japan after the war. Due to the Great Tokyo Air Raid, all books collected by Sorei Yanagiya were burned to ashes. Dr. Seino’s seniors talked about how Japanese acupuncturists studied all of the valuable books by copying everything by hand. The seniors have valued the classic texts very much. After seeing the backs of the seniors, Dr. Seino attempted to study classical texts as well, however, later realized that it was too hard to study Chinese medical texts all by himself – it was impossible.Dr. Seino began his research after his 40s and met Dr. Makoto Mayanagi (DMSc), a professor at Ibaraki University, at the Japanese Society for Oriental Medicine. To study Chinese Classics, he studied at Ibaraki University, located in Mito City, Ibaraki prefecture, for two years. The commute was two hours by car and four hours during rush hour. It was challenging for him to maintain his health and take the classes without sleeping after a long drive. At that time, he realized that reading Chinese medical texts requires knowledge of sinology. Sinology is the study of Chinese philosophy, literature, history, language, art, and Japanese kanji. Nowadays, it also includes the culture in the world that was influenced by China. Looking for a university to study sinology, he found out about Dr. Katsu Hayashi, a professor at Daito Bunka University, the leading expert in Chinese medicine. Dr. Seino was introduced to Dr. Hayashi by Dr. Mayanagi. Dr. Hayashi told Dr. Seino to learn the basics of Sinology for a year at the Department of Literature at Daito Bunka University. The commute was about an hour and a half to Higashi Matsuyama city, Saitama prefecture. After a year of study, he was admitted to the graduate school of literature the following year. This was done through the general entrance examination, and not through the adult entrance examination. For foreign language, he chose Chinese for the examination. Later, he continued to take the class in Chinese literature in the Department of Literature to study the basics and obtained a master’s degree in 6 years. Not only in the Chinese language department of literature, but the interactions with students and professors in Chinese Language and calligraphy were also fruitful and worthwhile. Occasionally, he was taught by a professor in Japanese literature and interacted with the students. Later, he continued to attend graduate school for 3 years until Dr. Hayahi retired at the age of 70 and finally, Dr. Seino finished writing a thesis. The thesis was about “qi”.
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