Conveying Traditional Chinese Medicine to Europe in the 17th–18th Centuries from the Tradition of Natural History

Abstract

Jesuit’s China Missions and Scientific Exchanges in the 16th–18th Century The late Ming and early Qing periods (16th–18th century) were marked by rapid colonial expansion into the New World by major European countries, thereby giving rise to cultural contact on a massive scale and ensuing Christian infiltration into the Asian countries. The period from the late Ming to early Qing dynasties, particularly from 1582 to 1793, was also a new era featuring the first close scientific exchanges between Europe and China. Spearheaded by the arrival of Italian Jesuit missionaries Michele Ruggieri (罗明坚1543–1607) in 1579 and Matteo Ricci (利玛窦1552–1610) in Macao in 1582 and with the death of Jean Joseph Marie Amiot (钱德明1718–1793) in Beijing in 1793, hundreds of European Jesuit missionaries came to China to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ and spread Catholicism to the Chinese soil. In 1685, the French King Louis XIV sent a mission team of five Jesuit mathematicians to China in an attempt to undermine the influence of the Portuguese patronage in the Far East. The first contingent of French Jesuits headed by Jean de Fontaney (洪若翰1643–1710) arrived in Ningbo, China, in July 1687, marking a watershed in the Jesuit missions in China that saw the beginning of cultural and scientific exchanges between China and Europe in the ensuing two-century period. The Jesuits translated the Western texts and disseminated Western science and technology knowledge in China, thus enabling China’s educated elites and well-known intellectuals to access the early discoveries of modern science. At the same time, the Jesuits in China were among the first Europeans in the modern era to study the Chinese language and to tell Europe things about China. As their goal was to disseminate a complex religious message into a sophisticated culture, the Jesuits subjected themselves to years of study the Chinese language and culture before attempting to evangelize the Chinese people. Both Ricci and Ruggieri were determined to adapt to the religious traditions of the Chinese. In particular, Ruggieri learned about the common people whose minds were dominated by Buddhist and Taoist thoughts while Ricci contacted the educated classes among whom Confucianism prevailed. Through their efforts of translation, publication, and correspondence with their targets of preaching, the Jesuits transmitted Chinese culture and science to Europe, thereby giving rise to the emergence of Chinoiserie and deepening the Europeans’ knowledge and understanding of China.