Principles in the Translation of TCM and HDNJ·SW

Abstract

As a theoretical foundation and source of Chinese Medicine， HDNJ・SW （Huang Di Nei Jing・ Su Wen） which studies the human physiology， pathology， and diagnosis and prevention of diseases covers the fields of “Yin Yang” and “Wuxing” philosophy， astrophysics， human physiology， geography， literature and so on. Present studies on the translation of HDNJ・SW are usually recognized as an unsystematic work because most researchers are confined to study the scattered terminology. With the guidance of deconstruction translation theory， this thesis studies the translation methods of HDNJ・SW from perspectives of language， figures of speech and medicine by taking the text and terminology.

This paper analyzes the characteristics of the text of HDNJ・SW and related problems in translation， three principles are summarized： information conveyance， culture conveyance and form conveyance. The research reveals that with the great differences on materials， languages， cultures and forms between Chinese and English， in order to achieve the three translation principles， different translation methods should be adopted in different situations for the purpose of conveying the values of medicine， culture and rhetoric.

Key words： TCM； HDNJ・SW； Information conveyance； Culture conveyance； Form conveyance

INTRODUCTION

HDNJ （Huang Di Nei Jing）， the oldest medical classics including two parts SW （Su Wen） and LS （Ling Shu） which was composed during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period reflects the ancient TCM （Traditional Chinese Medicine） achievement. （Chang， 2009， p.298-299） It is one of the oldest TCM theoretical works which was once said to be created by Huang Di， an ancestor and leader of Chinese nation， （Zhou， Wang & Xu， 1958：1） but now it is estimated to be created by a great number of ancient medical scholars， physicians and doctors as a matter of fact. As an integrated system of primary health care， HDNJ studies the fields of physiology， pathology， diagnostics and treating principles， pharmacology， the principle of preserving one’s health and so on. The content covers doctrine of viscera-state， Jingluo （Channel）， pathogenesis， diagnostic methods， and four methods of physical examination， decoction， acupuncture， and principles of treatment. Besides the medical thought and theories which are illustrated， philosophical topics such as YinYang， Wuxing， Qi， the relationship between human body and environment， and the relation between physique and spirit are also discussed profoundly in HDNJ. The content of this classic is advanced even nowadays. For instance， in the aspect of structure， the record of human body’s bones， length of channels and the volume of internal organs are all proved scientifically to be true. What human beings have testified was already understood by the ancients thousands of years ago. The observations in HDNJ were stunningly scientific. HDNJ has been undoubtedly the most important works representing the crowning achievement of the Chinese medicine from the Qin and Han Dynasties. It is also one of the most important classics of Taoism. In HDNJ， there are altogether 162 articles. SW， which contains 9 volumes about 81 articles， records the dialogue between Huang Di and Qi Bo and reflects the questions and answers of organic and fundamental nature. Huang Di is the emperor who reigned during the middle of the third millennium BCE. （Wu & Liu & Li， 1995， p.1） The Chinese refer to themselves as the descendants of Huang Di， who is the symbol of the vital spirit of Chinese civilization. Qi Bo is one of his ministers. In this classic， Qi Bo， the embodiment of many physicians and doctors， plays a role of answering Huang Di’s questions. LS， once called Zhen Jing， or “Classic of Acupuncture”， is a technical classic on acupuncture and moxibustion. Historically， HDNJ refers to SW alone. （Ni， 1995， p.xii）

HDNJ has a long history which can be traced back at least five thousand years ago. But its translation still remains a worldwide new course to everyone. Till now， there are no systematic standards and rules to guide the translation of HDNJ・SW， though it plays a vital role in Chinese people’s life， makes sense in foreign countries and a few researchers did some research on it.

In Sun Yan’s Translation Principles of Traditional Chinese Medicine Nomenclature From Skopostheorie Perspective， the principles she sums are firstly， replacing the absolute westernization by using common words for the sake of keeping traditional concept； secondly， emphasizing medical information in order to avoid over-literal translation while dealing with culture elements； the third one is facilitating the standardization of TCM nomenclature. The translation methods she uses are transliteration， free translation， literal translation， and morpheme translation. （Sun， 2007， p.42， 46， 50） In Zhang Ling’s Nida’s Dynamic Equivalence and Translation of Traditional Chinese Medicine， the translation methods which are used contains borrowing ancient Latin on TCM terms， loan-translation， simplification of TCM ideas and technical terms， westernization of TCM technical terms. （Zhang， 2004， p.ii）

In Chen Yingti’s Cultural Default and Its Compensation in TCM Translation from the Perspective of Reception Theory， the principles which the author puts forward contains two aspects： making the TL readers acquire the pleasure of aesthetic value of the SL and allowing the TL readers gain the pleasure of cultural exploration of the SL. Translation methods adopted in this thesis are literal translation with a footnote or an endnote， contextual amplification， literal translation， transliteration with annotation， and free translation. （Chen， 2008， p.） In Liu Guowei’s A Research on the Standardization of the English Translation of Traditional Chinese Medicine， he puts forward four translating principles for translation of TCM： scientific principle， concise principle， national principle and restrictive principle. The translation methods include literal translation， free translation， simplifying translation and loan-word translation. （Liu， 2008， p.25-29） In Yuan Huan’s Translation of Traditional Chinese Medicine - from the Cultural Perspective， principles， strategies and methods on TCM translation are analyzed from the perspective of culture. Considering special cultural connotation and communicative intention， translators should adopt different translation strategies according to concrete context， i.e. domestication or foreignization， or both. （Yuan， 2008： i）， In Yuan’s paper， first the relationship between language， culture and translation is explored. “Language is part of culture and is the carrier of culture， and culture without language is unthinkable. Translation is the tie and bridge between different cultures”. Translation methods in this paper include transliteration， free translation， literal translation， borrowed words and integrated translation which are all guided by following principles： first， “information transfer is the ultimate aim of translation”； second， “nationality is the uniqueness of TCM should be preserved if possible”； third， “simplicity plays a vital role in popular medical readings” and the last one， “readers’ acceptance should be paid more emphasis.” （ibid.） The conclusion is that both domestication and foreignization share their peculiar features and practical value in TCM translation， also owing to factors as readers’ acceptance， source text， or the purpose of translation should be taken into consideration， both of the two strategies should be taken and used flexibly. The Chinese culture and language should melt into the blood and thought of the whole world’s concept.

In a word， approaches and methods used in the translation of TCM and HDNJ・SW can be summed as transliteration， free translation， literal translation， morpheme translation， borrowing ancient Latin on translation of TCM terms， loan-translation， simplification of TCM ideas and technical terms， westernization of TCM technical term， contextual amplification， transliteration with footnote and endnote， simplifying translation， westernization and creation with new words.

The contribution on translation of HDNJ・SW will evidently give TCM a lot of help， so it is necessary to study the characteristics of HDNJ・SW， functions of the translation of HDNJ・SW and the principles in the translation of HDNJ・SW. The characteristics contain three aspects： laconism， elegancy and obscurity while the functions contain function of language and aesthetics and function of medicine. The second one is the principles in the translation of HDNJ・SW which is summarized as follows： information conveyance， culture conveyance， and form conveyance.

1. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE TEXT OF HDNJ・SW AND FUNCITONS OF THE TRANSLATION OF HDNJ・SW

As one of the classics of Chinese medicine， the characteristics of the text of HDNJ・SW is unique and worth probing. As far as the author concerned， it includes three points： laconism， elegancy， and obscurity. Functions of the translation of HDNJ・SW includes two aspects： the function of language and aesthetics and function of medicine.

1.1 Laconism

The first characteristic of the text of HDNJ・SW is laconism. Technical language seems concise due to its medical feature of HDNJ・SW. Curing the sickness to save the patient is doctor’s bounden duty. Therefore， one of the features of HDNJ・SW is short but clear.

Example 1

ST： 帝曰：“人身非衣寒也，中非有寒气也，寒从中生者何？”

Colloquial Chinese translation ： 黄帝问道：“有的人穿的衣服并不单薄，身体中也没有寒气，却觉得寒从内生，这是什么原因呢？”（Li & LiuⅡ， 2005：424）

From comparison between the SL of HDNJ・SW and colloquial Chinese translation above， a fact is discovered that the former is more concise than the latter because the former has 20 Chinese characters and the latter， 37 ones.

1.2 Elegancy

The second characteristic of HDNJ・SW is elegancy. Classical Chinese are featured delicate diction and elegant language. Rhetoric devices such as antithesis， chiasmus， parallelism， and dingzhen can be found frequently in HDNJ・SW. For instance：

Example 2

ST：阴中有阴，阳中有阳。平旦至日中，天之阳，阳中之阳也；日中至黄昏，天之阳，阳中之阴也；合夜至鸡鸣，天之阴，阴中之阴也；鸡鸣至平旦，天之阴，阴中之阳也。（Li & LiuⅠ， 2005：42，44）

The paragraph above is the example of antithesis and parallelism. These kinds of expression can be found in most part of HDNJ・SW.

Example 3

ST：西方生燥，燥生金，金生辛，辛生肺，肺生皮毛，皮毛生肾，肺主鼻。（ibid.：66）

Example 3 is a dingzhen in figure of speech， this rhetoric device is also used constantly in HDNJ・SW.

From above instances， the rhetoric device is a major method which is chosen for decorating in literature and it makes the text beautiful in reading and elegant in appreciating. Therefore， elegancy is another feature of HDNJ・SW because beauty and symmetry of structure are emphasized.

1.3 Obscurity

Obscurity is the third characteristic of HDNJ・SW. As a phenomenon which happens frequently when readers are reading， obscurity is familiar to everyone. Most of the medical dictions seem as a block to both Chinese and foreign learners. Two examples are listed as below：

Example 4

ST： 甲子 甲午岁 上少阴火，中太宫土运，下阳明金。热化二，雨化五，燥化四，所谓正化日也。其化上咸寒，中苦热，下酸热，所谓药食宜也。（Li & Liu Ⅲ， 2005：970）

Colloquial Chinese translation： 甲子甲午年，为少阴司天，阳明在泉，故上运为少阴君火，下运为阳明燥金，中运为太宫土运。热化二者，以火之生数是二；燥化四者，以金之生数为四；雨化五者，以土之生数为五。盖热化指的是少阴火，雨化指的是太宫土，燥化指的是阳明金，这都是气化的正常情形，而没有胜复变化的。其化上为少阴火，故应用咸寒之品以泻火，中为太宫土，故应用苦热之品以燥湿，下为阳明燥金，故应用酸热之品以温其清。这都是根据岁气所采取的药物和饮食的调配情形。（Zhou & Wang & Xu， 1958：441）

Example 4 is a short paragraph abstracted from HDNJ・SW・Liuyuan Zhengji Dalunpian： Major Discussion on the Progress of the Six Climatic Changes. Copious obscure words such as “少阴火”， “太宫土运”， “阳明金”， “热化二”， “雨化五”， and “燥化四” are used in this part. All above concepts are related to ancient medical knowledge， metaphysics and philosophy that are too abstruse to explain. Even some scholars and masters whose major is TCM or classical Chinese language and literature cannot understand the meaning of these concepts. Besides the SL， even the colloquial Chinese translation is also too difficult to get clear because words like “少阴司天”， “阳明在泉”， and “少阴君火” are also seldom to see in usual life. Scholars and doctors have to guess the approachable meaning of these characters from their medical experience and common knowledge on classical Chinese and literature which ancestors handed down. Above paragraph is one of the requirements of diet and medication which should be taken adapted to the different seasons of years. It also illustrates a complex relation between human viscus， five flavors， Wuxing and all directions of the compass. Another example：

Example 5

ST： 今子所言皆失，八风菀熟，五脏销铄，传邪相受。（ibid.：1246）

Colloquial Chinese translation： 现在你所谈的与这三条都不相符。八风郁而化热，销铄五脏，这是外邪内传而发之病。

Phrases as “八风菀熟”， “五脏销铄” and “传邪相受” are difficult for westerners to understand， and these examples can be discovered everywhere in HDNJ・SW， it is the reason why obscurity is taken as one of the characteristics of the text of HDNJ・SW.

1.4 Function of Diction

Functions of the translation of HDNJ・SW includes two aspects： the function of language and aesthetics and function of medicine.

Diction in HDNJ・SW impresses readers with a beautiful and graceful feeling. Language in this book is four-word correspondence which sounds elegant and reads well. From this angle， the function of aesthetics and language is evident.

The ST HDNJ・SW is delicate in diction. Most of the language is well structured and interwoven with paralleling words and phrases. Antithesis， dingzhen， chiasmus， simile， four-character Chinese idioms and paralleled words are frequently seen. For example：

Example 6

ST： 生而神灵，弱而能言，幼而徇齐，长而敦敏，成而登天。（Li & LiuⅠ， 2005：2）

TT： [Huangdi] was born intelligent. He was eloquent from childhood. He behaved righteously when he was young. In his youth， he was honest， sincere and wise. When growing up， he became the Emperor. （ibid.：3）

Example 7

ST： 东风生于春，病在肝，俞在颈项；南风生于夏，病在心，俞在胸胁；西风生于秋，病在肺，俞在肩背；北风生于冬，病在肾，俞在腰股；中央为土，病在脾，俞在脊。故春气者，病在头；夏气者，病在脏；秋气者，病在肩背；冬气者，病在四支。（ibid.：40）

TT： The east wind appears in spring. The diseases [occurring in spring tend to] involve the liver and the Acupoints are on the neck and nape. The south wind appears in summer. The diseases [occurring in summer tend to] involve the heart and the Acupoints are on the chest and rib-side. The west wind appears in autumn. The diseases [occurring in autumn tend to] involve the lung and the Acupoints are on the shoulders and back. The north wind appears in winter. The diseases [occurring in winter tend to] involve the kidney and the Acupoints is on the waist and thigh. The center pertains to Earth [in the Wuxing （Five-Elenments）] and the disorders usually involve the spleen and the Shu （Acupoint） are on the spine. [The above analyses explain why] diseases caused by Chunqi （Spring-Qi） often involve the head， diseases caused by Summer-Qi usually involve the Zang-organs， diseases caused by Qiuqi （Autumin-Qi） frequently involve the shoulders and back， and diseases caused by Dongqi （Winter-Qi） always involve the four limbs.（ibid.：41，43）

Examples 6 and 7 are classical representatives of parallelism. In the ST of example 6， Chinese character “而” appears four times while in the ST of example 7， Chinese phrases “在于” appears four times and “在” appears fourteen times. The parallel structure of the TT of example 6 is “…was…” while the parallel structures of the TT of example 7 are “The…wind appears…The disease involves…and the Acupoints are…” and “…diseases caused by…involve…” The ST of examples 6 and 7 are parallel structures and the TT of them are also translated in a parallel way so that the effect and function of language and aesthetics are achieved. This rhetoric is a basic language device which is used regularly in Chinese literature so that if the translator can translate it into TT successfully， the readers in TT countries can share the feeling with the readers in ST country after reading. The author of this thesis suggests that if the example 6 is translated as “born in intelligence， eloquent in childhood， righteous when young， honest in youth， emperor when grown”， the translation will be better because this translation seems neater in structure although it is not logical enough in grammar. On the premise of a total comprehension of the translation， both form equivalence and content equivalence should be considered. Hence English is suggested to be replaced by the Chinese language style： matching of two lines in both tonal patterns and the arrangement of functional and notional words.

Example 8

ST： 天地俱生，万物以荣。（ibid.：16）

TT： The nature world is resuscitating and all things are flourishing. （ibid.：17）

Example 9：

ST： 水为阴，火为阳。（ibid.：58）

TT： Water pertains to Yin and fire to Yang. （ibid.：59）

Taking example 8 into consideration， it is not hard to see that the Chinese characters are laid in the figure of speech， which is called “antithesis”. This device puts the Chinese phrases or words which belong to the same category or opposite to each other in the correspondent position， for the purpose of comparing， contrasting， decorating and modifying. “天地俱生，万物以荣” is a kind of Kuandui （宽对）. Kuandui refers to a kind of antithesis which does not require a strict and neat form， as long as the word class and word meaning are paralleled. “天” （heaven） echoes to “地” （earth）， “天地” echoes to “万物” （all things） and “生” （resuscitate） echoes to “荣”（flourish）. This rhetoric makes the text become vivid and flourishing. So from the above content， the language of HDNJ・SW is excellent in function of aesthetics and language. The TT also uses this rhetoric device to reflect the effect of “antithesis”. Apparently “is resuscitating” echoes to “are flourishing” in structure， but to be strict， it cannot be called “antithesis”. Hence， it is not an easy task for a translator to achieve the same rhetoric effect of the ST in TT. In example 9， “水” echoes to “火” and “阴” echoes to “阳”. The TT realizes the rhetoric effect successful in the version： “water” echoes to “fire” and “Yin” echoes to “Yang”. If this rhetoric effect and function are achieved， it will help readers of western countries understand the classical Chinese culture better.

Example 10

ST： 味归形，形归气，气归精，精归化。（ibid.：58）

TT： The flavor nourishes the body， the Qi nourishes Jing （Essence） and Jing （Essence） transforms [into Yuanqi （Primordial-Qi）]. （ibid.：59）

Example 11

ST：东方生风，风生木，木生酸，酸生肝，肝生筋，筋生心，肝主目。（ibid.：62）

TT： The east produces wind， the wind promotes [the growth] of trees， the trees produce sour [taste]， the sour [taste] nourishes the liver， [the blood stored in] the liver nourishes the sinews， the sinews nourish the heart and the liver controls the eyes. （ibid.：63-64）

Example 12

ST： 北方生寒，寒生水，水生咸，咸生肾，肾生骨髓，髓生肝，肾主耳。（ibid.：66）

TT： The north produces cold， the cold produces water， the water produces saltiness， the saltiness nourishes the kidney， the kidney produces bone marrow， the marrow nourishes the liver and the kidney governs the ears.（ibid.：67）

Examples 10 to 12 are representatives of dingzhen （顶真）. Dingzhen is a kind of rhetorical device which requires a sentence to begin with the word or phrase at the end of the previous sentence. （Hui， 2004：382） Here readers can observe the vivid examples of dingzhen： “形-气-精”， “风-木-酸-肝-筋”， and “寒-水-咸-肾-髓”. Translator also handles the version in a successful way： “wind trees sour liver sinews” and “cold water saltiness kidney marrow”. According to Venuti’s foreignization， this version which belongs to foreignization reflects equivalence in both form and content. The form and structure of dingzhen is greatly reflected in his version. Dingzhen makes the language read in rhyme and sounds sweet and pleasing to ears. Pingze “平仄” （tonal patterns in classical Chinese poetry） （ibid.：1232） can also be found in dingzhen.

Example 13

ST： 阳病治阴，阴病治阳。（ibid.：80）

TT： Yang diseases can be cured by treating Yin and Yin diseases can be cured by treating Yang. （ibid.：81）

Example 13 is a kind of chiasmus （Huiwen）. It refers to a rhetorical construction in which the order of the words in the second of two paired phrases is the reverse of the order in the first. Sometimes the forward and backward which are read in a slight different are also called chiasmus. This figure of speech makes the text vivid and exquisite.

Example 14

ST： 真肝脉至，中外急，如循刀刃，责责然，如按琴瑟弦，色青白不泽，毛折，乃死。（Li & LiuⅠ， 2005：256）

TT： The appearance of Genuine-Liver-Pulse， marked by rapid and forceful beating both under light and heavy pressure， just as feeling the sharp edge of a knife or pressing a taut string on a musical instrument， with non-lustrous bluish and whitish countenance as well as dry and brittle hair， indicates impending death.（ibid.：257）

Example 15

ST： 真肺脉至，大而虚，如以毛羽中人肤，色白赤不泽，毛折，乃死。（ibid.：256）

TT： The appearance of Genuine-Lung-Pulse， marked by large-size and weak beating， just as stroking the skin with a feather， with non-lustrous whitish and reddish countenance and brittle hair， indicates impending death.（ibid.：257）

Examples 14 and 15 contain a figure of speech called simile. In the translation of example 14， “the appearance of rapid and forceful Genuine-Liver-Pulse” is assimilated with “the feeling of the sharp edge of a knife and a taut string on a musical instrument”. The simile word is “just as”. In the translation of example 15， “the appearance of the large-size and weak beating of the Genuine-Lung-Pulse” is likened to “the feeling of stroking the skin with a feather”. The simile word is also “just as”. Simile can make the literature become vivid， besides it， it also helps readers feel the patients’ condition exactly.

In HDNJ・SW， figures of speech are used in a large field， function of aesthetics and language are shown mostly in this work. No matter to translators or to readers， it is undoubtedly a significant masterpiece.

1.5 Function of Medicine

HDNJ・SW provides readers with a numerous medical knowledge which seems useful to doctors and patients. It reveals a law between human beings and nature and it tells people how to keep fit. From this angle， the function of medicine is demonstrated. For example：

Example 16

ST： 乃问于天师曰：“余闻上古之人， 春秋皆度百岁，而动作不衰；今时之人，年半百而动作皆衰者，时世异耶？人将失之耶？”

岐伯对曰：“上古之人，其知道者，法于阴阳，和于术数，食饮有节，起居有常，不妄作劳，故能形与神俱，而尽终其天年， 度百岁乃去。今时之人不然也，以酒为浆，以妄为常，醉以入房，以欲竭其精，以耗散其真，不知持满，不时御神，务快其心，逆于生乐，起居无节，故半百而衰也。（ibid.：2，4）

TT： He asked Master Qi Bo， “I am told that people in ancient times all could live for one hundred years without any signs of senility. But people nowadays begin to become old at the age of fifty. Is it due to the changes of environment or the violation of the way [to preserve health]？”

Qi Bo answered， “The sages in ancient times who knew the Dao （the tenets for cultivating health） followed [the rules of] Yin and Yang and adjusted Shushu （the ways to cultivate health）. [They were] moderate in eating and drinking， regular in working and resting， avoiding any overstrain. That is why [they could maintain a desirable] harmony between the Shen （mind or spirit） and the body， enjoying good health and a long life. People nowadays， on the contrary， just behave oppositely. [They] drink wine as thin rice gruel， regard wrong as right， and seek sexual pleasure after drinking. [As a result，] their Jingqi （Essence-Qi） is exhausted and Zhenqi （Genuine-Qi） is wasted. [They seldom] [take measures to] keep an exuberance [of Jingqi] and do not know how to regulate the Shen （mind or spirit）， often giving themselves to sensual pleasure. Being irregular in daily life， [they begin to] become old even at the age of fifty. （ibid.：3，5）

In this pair of dialogue， readers can get to know something about how the sages in ancient times lived a longer life and the reasons of “old body condition in a young age” of people “nowadays”. From this dialogue people acquaint themselves with the knowledge of keeping a good health. In HDNJ・SW， besides the medical common sense， there is much portion of content of prescription. Therefore we make assertion that HDNJ・SW is valuable for its medical function. From medical level， the deconstruction translation theory is discovered to be applied in the translation of HDNJ・SW. Venuti’s translation theory contains at least seven connotations. One of it is the SL must be novel， fresh and “différance” to the readers of TT. Making a comprehensive survey on the translation market nowadays， materials and texts the companies or translators choose are often well sold. But these materials do not contain too much long-run value to the development of the life of human beings. When translators decide to choose what kind of material can be taken as the ST， they should not only consider the economic function but also the long-term value， like the medical function. Today， more and more people in western countries become deeper and deeper interested in HDNJ， for the way of life， for the method of curing diseases and for the life attitude and living experience which are connoted in it. Moreover， medicine translation belongs to “minoritizing translation”. Foreignization does not belong to the mass， foreignized handling of HDNJ・SW is not welcomed by the readers of TL. （Venuti 1998：19） But the “minoritizing translation” can influence the mainstream value of the whole society according to Venuti’s “elitism”. （Robinson， 1997：99-101） The mass prefer the works that does not read like a translation， but like a novel or a story which is interesting， simple and funny.

The author of this thesis believes that medical function is the most important factor in the translation of HDNJ・SW. Because in any case it is a medical book which takes the aim of curing sickness and saving patient as the key aim.

2. PRINCIPLES OF THE TRANSLATION OF HDNJ・SW

Owing to the characteristics which are listed above， HDNJ・SW seems a hard nut to translators to crack. The present problems are listed as follows：

Inaccurateness is the major problem which happens during any version of HDNJ・SW. Two factors influence accuracy of translation： translators and text. The first possibility is if translators do not know TCM knowledge and they just translate the HDNJ・SW from view of literature， the version is excellent in wording but poor in medical use. This result deviates from the functional principle of translation and if westerners cannot obtain the medical function of HDNJ・SW， the value is lost. It is the first inaccurateness which is caused by translators. The second possibility for inaccurateness is if translators are familiar to TCM knowledge but weak in classical Chinese comprehension and expression， the poor translation will also reduce the interest of western readers. This result deviates from the aesthetic function of HDNJ・SW， the value is also lost. The third inaccurateness lies in the text. This factor includes two points： redundancy and deficiency. The former one refers to too much superfluous words in the translation of HDNJ・SW while the later refers to the lost of implied informative and literary meaning in the translation of HDNJ・SW. In essence， text factor is also caused by translators. The reason for this factor is although human beings live on the same planet， they do not share the same life experience， so cultures are various. Facing to the same phenomenon， translators of SL countries think it is necessary to translate it into TT and translators of TT countries perhaps treat it as nonsense， so that is the reason for why some works are welcomed by Chinese but disliked by foreigners and why some works they thought wonderful， but to us， boring and meaningless. The redundancy and insufficiency are made. Therefore inaccurateness is the first major problem in the translation of HDNJ・SW.

Another problem is the insufficiency of the standard. Till now， there is no a systematic and unitized translation standard on HDNJ・SW published. That is the reason for different kinds of versions are sold in the market.

Based on the characteristics of the text of HDNJ・SW and problems of the translation of HDNJ・SW， if translators want to translate the HDNJ・SW in a concise， elegant， correct and effective way， just as the features which SL owns， translators are suggested to follow principles which are listed as below.

2.1 Information Conveyance

Information conveyance is regarded as the first principle. As a work of medicine， obviously the aim of translation is conveying medical information rather than conveying literary， philosophical or religious information. This principle is also based on Venuti’s foreignization： the loyalty principle. Ethnic linguistics believes that the majority of words in the vocabulary of any one language can certainly find their equivalence in any other language in the world. For the equivalence in two languages， people can use equivalent words to translate. People in different countries share discrepant customs， cultures， and medicine， so it is a responsibility of translators to convey information of ST to the readers of TT in an utmost way， no matter the equivalent ones or different ones. Under the guidance of this principle， translation methods such as literal translation， free translation， literal translation + annotation， and transliteration + annotation step onto the platform.

2.2 Culture Conveyance

Culture conveyance is taken as the second principle. Every culture has its own unique feature that has no equivalence in others， so does the language. Burdening with the cultural factors， copious words cannot be translated loyally and unreservedly. For example， YinYang， and Qi. （Li， 2005：57） These words are limited in quantity， but important in content. Based on the core translation theory which is mentioned above， we realize that the aim of translation is not seeking similarities but reserving differences. The purpose of foreignization is pursuing the diversity of culture. If the readers were confused by them， the translation is not effective in conveying culture. Like translators should not translate the Holy Bible as a story happened in the neighborhood about hundred years ago， they should not translate HDNJ・SW as a story happened in the countryside of a western country several thousand years ago. With the help of this principle， readers of TT can understand the basic fact of ST better， readers of a foreignized version can gain vivid pictures of exotic expressions and a better comprehending about how people with the ST think. Transliteration， transliteration + annotation + graphics， transliteration + annotation and literal translation can achieve this goal.

2.3 Form Conveyance

Form conveyance is recognized as the third principle. If previous two principles are considered because of content， this principle is put forward in consideration of form. On the basis of the core thought of deconstruction translation theory， we discover that “The variation of form constrains the variation of content， so the form is the content.” （Wu， 2008：76） Form is as important as content in translation of HDNJ・SW. Such as the classical diction， antithesis， chiasmus， and parallelism are beautiful in text. It is not an easy task if translators want to translate the original flavor of the form of ST into TT completely. But if translators can， it is worthy of celebrating. Translation methods such as transliteration + annotation + graphics， and literal translation are chosen to achieve this aim.

CONCLUSION

The translation of HDNJ・SW seems a hard nut to both translators and scholars due to its mysterious philosophical thought and obscure classical Chinese diction. Most researchers study it from the angles of medicine or translation with the limited terminology as the subject， and finally lead to a unsystematical result which lacks persuasion. Therefore， with the deconstruction translation theory as the guidance， the author of this thesis analyzes translation methods of HDNJ・SW by taking the text and terminology as the subject.

Deconstruction， which originated in western countries in 1960s， advocates a thought of anti-logocentrism. The main representatives and their distinctive but extraordinary thoughts bring a surprising fame for deconstruction translation theory. Derrida’s conceptions of “difference” and “there is nothing outside context”， Benjamin’s conceptions of “pure language” and “vase”， Venuti’s conceptions of foreignization inspire the author in the translation of HDNJ・SW. The core thought adopted in the translation of HDNJ・SW which is abstracted from the deconstruction translation theory is “the task of translation is not reserving similarities but differences”. Under the guidance of this thought， the paper concludes three principles and several translation methods for the translation of HDNJ・SW after analyzing the characteristics of HDNJ・SW and related problems in translation.

Based on the core thought of “reserving differences”， the creation of three translation principles which include information conveyance， culture conveyance and form conveyance point out a clear way for translators to choose different translation methods in translation of HDNJ・SW. Information， culture and form are undoubtedly the embodiment of content and form. By obeying these principles， translators can achieve a relatively accurate translation because medical information is important in translation of HDNJ・SW， cultural factor can also highlight the classical Chinese of HDNJ・SW， and form conveyance can realize the features of Chinese language in translation of HDNJ・SW.

The translation principles help realizing the functions of language， culture， medicine of HDNJ・SW. It is also make HDNJ・SW easier to be understood by readers in foreign countries and the translation of HDNJ・SW achieves its utmost value.

The translation of HDNJ・SW still confronts difficulties in comprehension of the Chinese text. To most translators， the classical Chinese text of HDNJ・SW is too difficult to read because of the classical Chinese and recondite philosophy and medical knowledge. Hence， as a translator， keeping learning is the only way to go. To the further research， there are also much to do in translation methods of HDNJ・SW and the translation of the names of acupoints.

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