Cheng Lin and his life

Abstract

Cheng Lin, a famous doctor in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties, had a great reputation with his medical achievements. According to the prefaces and postscripts in a variety of books and local records, he was born earlier than 1616 and died later than 1700 in Huaitang in She Xian. He learned medicine from his uncle Cheng Jingtong when he was young. After that, he learned from the famous doctor Yu Chang. He visited Kaifeng, Hangzhou, Suzhou and Yangzhou, and made friends with many then celebrities, such as Zhou Lianggong, Lin Sihuan and You Tong. He left many medical writings, such as Yi Xia Zhi Yan, Jin Gui Yao Lue Zhi Jie and Sheng Ji Zong Lu Zuan Yao. He was also good at painting and seal cutting. His family, the Cheng's, in Huaitang in Xin'an, had many off-springs who became famous doctors, such as Cheng Jin, Cheng Jie, Cheng Yandao, and Cheng Yingmao, with their medical history continuing up to the present day.