留liú得dé一yī分fēn津jīn液yè,，便biàn有yǒu一yī分fēn生shēng機jī

What does 留得一分津液，便有一分生機 (liú dé yī fēn jīn yè, biàn yǒu yī fēn shēng jī) mean?

留得一分津液，便有一分生機 (liú dé yī fēn jīn yè, biàn yǒu yī fēn shēng jī) is a folk proverb (yànyǔ 諺語). Word for word it reads "Preserve one portion of body fluids, and there remains one portion of vitality." In use it means: In treating febrile disease, protecting the body's fluids is critical. Every bit of moisture preserved, whether saliva, sweat, or digestive juices, sustains the patient's chance of recovery. You reach for it when you want that idea in one breath, and the Water note it carries is why we hand it to those born in the Year of the Dog.

Literally: "Preserve one portion of body fluids, and there remains one portion of vitality."

The reading

In severe febrile illness, the body's fluids evaporate like water on a hot stone. Sweat, saliva, tears, and digestive moisture all drain away, and with them goes the body's ability to cool itself and nourish its tissues. Every drop of fluid preserved during a fever is a thread connecting the patient to recovery. The Qing dynasty warm-disease physicians built entire treatment strategies around this single insight.

What kind of proverb it is

• Typeyànyǔ 諺語
• FocusPresent-minded
• Element水 Water
• Zodiac tie狗 Year of the Dog

Source Wu Jutong, Wenbing Tiaobian (Systematic Differentiation of Warm Diseases), Qing dynasty

Sits beside

Keep reading

Return to the Proverb Pond to draw another of the eighty-seven, or hear one read aloud. Read the rest of its chapter in The Way of Water, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Dog, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Ox.