| Based on previous studies, this thesis aims to reexamine traditional Chinese and Western medicine from the perspective of philosophy of science. Life is a natural phenomenon in the form of an advanced material. Western science, built upon on the basis of Western science, is considered as the criterion for the current understanding of life. Western medicine has a history of only three or four hundred years. And knowledge of human life has been accumulated a wealth of experience for thousands of years. Some nations, having deeper understanding in this regard, has also established its own mature nation theory. Human and diseases coexist, simultaneously producing the understanding and treatment of diseases, such as the Han Chinese ethnic medicine, Indian medicine, medicine in Cuba and so on. The medicine has proved a lot to be effective, only because these medical understanding of life and the way of thinking of the disease and treatment do not go the same path only with Western medicine based on restoring the anatomy laboratory analysis. Rather Western medicine understanding life and the way of disease is in line with modern science development, while other nations have their own unique insights and methods. Therefore, traditional medicine and Western medicine occurred in the collision and friction, resulting in the question whether Western medicine is scientific, or using Western medicine method (or the scientific method)to explain the truth of other medical treatment. This goes to two fundamental questions of Philosophy of Science. First, Western science is not the only way to know the truth since the Renaissance. Second, if the answer is no, then how to treat other medical science besides Western medicine.The thesis analyses the history, knowledge of life and treatment of traditional Chinese and Western medicine, reviewing the process of integration and conflict. Conclusions have been drawn from the perspective of Philosophy of Science:(1) The Western science is not the only way to know the truth from the course and the basic mechanisms of the development of Western science. Natural phenomena are complex, especially the phenomenon of life. TCM is not necessarily scientific, but from the thousands of years of medical practice, traditional Chinese medicine is effective, from the point of practical science, it should be recognized in terms of rationality, and obtain a bigger development space.(2) Western science (mainly referring to Western medicine) is not the only road to reach the peak of the truth. The roads are separate at the foot of the mountain but integrate at the summit. They can support and help each other on the way of reaching the summit. They are the friends on the road to truth, not enemies.(3) Human knowledge in modern times are higher than the one in the ancient, for details of the nature, whereas it is lower in the understanding of nature as a whole. Other medical science besides Western medicine is crystallization of human knowledge of life as a whole. Natural science paradigm is in the era of transition. With the development of non-linear, blur, chaos, fractal and other new scientific paradigms, Chinese medicine can be a form of new scientific paradigm. Whether this prediction is realized or not, we should respect human knowledge of the world and constantly improve the value of serving the human beings from theoretical understanding and practical application. |
