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Huangdi Neijing · The Yellow Emperor’s Inner Canon
Lingshu 54 · Natural Lifespan
Read in English. Switch to Original for word notes, or select text to ask a question.
The Yellow Emperor asked Qi Bo: “At the beginning of human life, what qi builds the foundation and what stands as its shield? What is lost in death and obtained in life?”
Qi Bo said: “The mother is the foundation and the father the shield. Loss of spirit brings death; obtaining spirit brings life.”
The Yellow Emperor said: “What is called spirit?”
Qi Bo said: “When blood and qi have harmonized, nutritive and defensive circulation opened, the five zang formed, spirit qi settled in the Heart and hun and po become complete, the person is formed.”
The Yellow Emperor said: “People differ in long and short lifespan: some die young or live long, some die suddenly and some remain ill a long time. I wish to hear their course.”
Qi Bo said: “With firm, secure zang, harmonious blood and vessels, free flesh, dense skin, nutritive and defensive circulation keeping its ordinary course, subtle and unhurried breathing, qi traveling by its measure, the six fu transforming grain and jin and ye fluids spreading, each according to its ordinary condition, life can endure.”
The Yellow Emperor said: “What brings a person to die only after living a hundred years?”
Qi Bo said: “Long, deep passages, high and square foundation walls, freely regulated nutritive and defensive qi, rising forms in the three divisions and three li regions, high bones and full flesh allow a hundred years to be completed.”
The three-division and three-li wording is compressed. Its named regions are retained without inventing a numerical facial measurement or treating the lifespan as guaranteed.
The Yellow Emperor said: “May I hear how qi flourishes and declines until death?”
Qi Bo said: “At ten, the five zang begin to settle and blood and qi have opened; qi lies below, so the child likes running. At twenty, blood and qi begin to flourish and flesh is growing, so one likes hurrying. At thirty, the five zang are fully settled, flesh firm and blood vessels full, so one likes walking.
“At forty, the five zang, six fu and twelve channel vessels are all fully abundant and balanced. The interstices begin to loosen, outward bloom declines and some hair becomes white. Abundant balance is no longer much stirred, so one likes sitting. At fifty, Liver qi begins to decline, its leaves thin, Gallbladder juice diminishes and vision becomes less clear. At sixty, Heart qi begins to decline, worry and sorrow are frequent and blood and qi slacken, so one likes lying down.
“At seventy, Spleen qi is empty and skin withers. At eighty, Lung qi declines and po departs, so speech often errs. At ninety, Kidney qi is scorched and the channels of the other four zang are empty. At a hundred, all five zang are empty and spirit qi has departed; bodily form alone remains and comes to its end.”
These ages and organ changes remain the source’s historical decade scheme, not fixed modern milestones for an individual.
The Yellow Emperor said: “What of those who die without completing their lifespan?”
Qi Bo said: “Their five zang are not firm, passages not long, outer openings spread, and panting rapid and sudden. Their foundation walls are low, vessels thin, blood scant and flesh unfirm. They are repeatedly struck by wind and cold; blood and qi are empty and vessels blocked. True and harmful qi attack, disorder and draw against each other, so life ends at a middle span.”
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