Outstanding Doctor or Prominent Politician:On the Source of Medical Officials in the Tang Dynasty from The Epitaph of LIANG Shiliang
The Epitaph of LIANG Shiliang is of great significance to the study of the identity and the source of medical officials in the Tang Dynasty,and the specific route of their transferring into officialdom.Through the mutual evidence found in The Epitaph of LIANG Shiliang and The Epitaph of LIANG Shijian,one can clearly restore the lineage of the Liang's family.Liang Shiliang,the subject of the first epitaph,was first recruited as the"bie-jiao medico"(or quasi medico)in Zuochunfang,a medical insti-tution,of the East Palace—or the crown prince's palace,and eventually passed the imperial selection examination administered by the Official Division of Shangshusheng,or the Ministry of General Administration.From a quasi-medico to a prominent politi-cian,he,who was supposed to be an excellent royal medical officer,eventually gave up the post and embarked on his political journey of being an official,which reflects the restrictions put on medical practitioners'entering the officialdom during the Tang Dynasty.In addition,according to the epitaph and other materials,the sources of royal medical officers in the Tang Dynasty mainly included students who have passed medical examinations,medical practitioners drafted during the imperial selection exam-inations,folk medical practitioners among the civilians,retainers recommended by their powerful masters,and those who poured in and offered immortal herbs,etc..
The Epitaph of LIANG ShiliangThe Epitaph of LIANG Shijianmedical officersource
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