The frustration, however, aroused Li's interest in TCM translation. He successively took a master's course at the English Department of Xi'an Medical University and then a PhD course at the acupuncture, moxibustion and tui na (massage) department of Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine.
As many of the TCM texts are written in classical Chinese, Li also took classical Chinese courses and read many classical Chinese philosophy books such as "Zhuang Zi," "Lao Zi" and "Meng Zi."
Through this study, Li found the TCM classic "Huang Di Nei Jing" ("The Medical Classic of Yellow Emperor") was not a simple medical instruction book, but also a book about how ancient Chinese people saw the world, based on Chinese philosophies at the time.
That explains why many Chinese people today cannot fully understand the theories, let alone translate them into English.
Li says a good TCM translator should have a strong knowledge of TCM and traditional Chinese culture as well as English.
Li, together with another four Chinese TCM translation experts, participated in a program organized by WHO in 2004 of standardizing TCM terminologies. Their successful work initially became the original version of standard TCM terminologies.
But due to some unexpected problems, their proposal was later dropped and curiously Japan, South Korea and Britain won control of the standardizing program with the final version released last year.
"It is not a standard TCM terminologies version any more," says Li. "It is called 'Traditional Medicine in the Western Pacific Region' as Korean and Japanese traditional medicines are also included."
Many standard terminologies in this version are not very accurate, according to Li who is still upset by the outcome.
But he has not given up further improving TCM translation himself and is looking forward to future TCM terminology-standardizing programs.
Li participated in the development of the International Standard Chinese-English Basic Nomenclature of Chinese Medicine organized by World Federation of Chinese Medicine Society and released and published earlier this year. More than 200 TCM translation experts from 68 countries and regions participated.
Li recently finished translation of all the six volumes of "Huang Di Nei Jing."
"I started studying 'Huang Di Nei Jing' in 1984 but when I finally finished the translation, I found myself lost for words when it came to the foreword," says Li.
He went to the Huangdi Ling (Yellow Emperor Tomb) in Shaanxi Province for inspiration.
"It was desolate there with yellow earth everywhere. But on the Jiaoshan Mountain where the tomb is located, there were bunches of ancient trees reaching to the sky," says Li. "It's just amazing."
