Ben Cao Gang Mu, Volume II: Waters, Fires, Soils, Metals, Jades, Stones, Minerals, Salts 9780520976979

Volume II in the Ben cao gang mu series offers a complete translation of chapters 5 through 11, devoted to waters, fires

231 74 21MB

English Pages 906 Year 2021

Report DMCA / Copyright

DOWNLOAD FILE

Polecaj historie

Ben Cao Gang Mu, Volume II: Waters, Fires, Soils, Metals, Jades, Stones, Minerals, Salts
 9780520976979

Citation preview

Ben Cao Gang Mu, Volume II: Waters, Fires, Soils, Metals, Jades, Stones, Minerals, Salts by Li Shizhen

The Ben Cao Gang Mu Series The complete Chinese text translated and annotated by Paul U. Unschuld Vol. I.

Ch. 1 – 4. Introduction, History, Pharmacology, Diseases and Suitable Pharmaceutical Drugs

Vol. II.

Ch. 5 – 11. Waters, Fires, Soils, Metals, Jades, Stones, Minerals, Salts

Vol. III.

Ch. 12 – 14. Mountain Herbs, Fragrant Herbs

Vol. IV.

Ch. 15 – 17. Marshland Herbs, Poisonous Herbs

Vol. V.

Ch. 18 – 25. Creeping Herbs, Water Herbs, Herbs Growing on Stones, Mosses, Cereals

Vol. VI.

Ch. 26 – 33. Vegetables, Fruits

Vol. VII.

Ch. 34 – 37. Woods

Vol. VIII.

Ch. 38 – 46. Clothes, Utensils, Worms, Insects, Amphibians, Animals with Scales, Animals with Shells

Vol. IX.

Ch. 47 – 52. Fowls, Domestic & Wild Animals, Human Substances

Tools The Dictionary of the Ben Cao Gang Mu Vol. I.

Chinese Historical Illness Terminology

Vol. II.

Geographical and Administrative Designations

Vol. III.

Persons and Literary Sources

Vol. IV.

Substance Identification

Ben Cao Gang Mu, Volume II: Waters, Fires, Soils, Metals, Jades, Stones, Minerals, Salts by Li Shizhen

16th Century Chinese Encyclopedia of Materia Medica and Natural History

The complete Chinese text translated and annotated by Paul U. Unschuld

university of california press

The generous financial support of the Ben cao gang mu translation project and of the publication of the resulting volumes by Mr. Rong Yumin 荣裕民 is gratefully acknowledged.

University of California Press Oakland, California

© 2021 by The Regents of the University of California

Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress. Library of Congress Control Number: 2020946743 ISBN 978-0-520-37989-3 (cloth : alk. paper) ISBN 978-0-520-97697-9 (ebook)

Manufactured in the United States of America

29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 10

9

8

7

6

5

4

3

2

1

21 20

CONTENTS 1.

Prolegomena. /

19

1.1

History of Chinese materia medica literature. /

1.2 Structure and contents of the Ben cao gang mu.

19 / 23

1.3

Biographical sketch of Li Shizhen (1518 – 1593). /

33

2.

Notes on the Translation. /

3.

Wang Shizhen’s preface of 1590. /

4.

Translation of the Ben cao gang mu 本草綱目. Chapters 5 - 11. /

36 40 43

Section Waters. Chapter 5 Group I: Waters of Heaven / 49 05-01 Yu shui 雨水, rain water. / 49 05-01-01 Li chun yu shui 立春雨水, rain water at the solar term Spring Begins. / 49 05-01-02 Mei yu shui 梅雨水, water of plum rain. / 50 05-01-03 Ye yu shui 液雨水, water that has rained down during [the period of ] fluid [qi]. / 51 05-02 Liao shui 潦水, puddle water. / 52 05-03 Lu shui 露水, dew water. / 52 05-03-01 Bai cao tou shang qiu lu 百草頭上秋露, autumn dew from the tips of the hundreds of herbs. / 53 05-03-02 Bai hua shang lu 百花上露, dew from the hundreds of flowers. / 53 05-03-03 Bo ye shang lu 柏葉上露, dew from platycladus leaves. / 54 05-03-04 Chang pu shang lu 菖蒲上露, dew from acorus [leaves]. / 54 05-03-05 Jiu ye shang lu 韭葉上露, dew from leek leaves. / 54 05-03-06 Ling xiao hua shang lu 凌霄花上露, dew from the Chinese trumpet creeper. / 54

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

6

Gan lu 甘露, sweet dew. / 55 Gan lu mi 甘露蜜, sweet dew honey. / 57 Ming shui 明水, luminous water. / 57 Dong shuang 冬霜, winter frost. / 59 La xue 臘雪, snow of the twelfth month. / 60 Bao 雹, hail. / 61 Xia bing 夏冰, summer ice. / 62 Shen shui 神水, divine water. / 64 Ban tian he 半天河, river [water] halfway toward heaven. / 64 05-13 Wu lou shui 屋漏水, water leaking in a house/room. / 66 05-04 05-05 05-06 05-07 05-08 05-09 05-10 05-11 05-12

Group II: Waters of the Earth

/

67

05-14 Liu shui 流水, flowing water. / 67 05-14-01 Qian li shui 千里水, water that has flowed a thousand li. / 67 05-14-02 Dong liu shui 東流水, water flowing eastward. / 67 05-14-03 Gan lan shui 甘爛水, sweet, worn-out water, alternative name: Lao shui 勞水, exhausted water. / 67 05-14-04 Ni liu shui 逆流水, water flowing against [a sloping terrain]. / 68 05-15 Jing quan shui 井泉水, water from wells and springs. / 71 05-15-01 Jing hua shui 井華水, well splendor water. / 73 05-15-02 Xin ji shui 新汲水, newly drawn water. / 74 05-16 Jie qi shui 節氣水, water endowed with seasonal qi. / 82 05-16-01 立春、清明二節貯水,謂之神水, water kept from the two [solar] terms Spring Begins and Pure Brightness. It is called “divine water”. / 83 05-16-02 寒露、冬至、小寒、大寒四節及臘日水, water collected during the four [solar] terms Cold Dew Winter Begins Slight Cold and Great Cold, as well as water from days during the 12th month. / 83 05-16-03 立秋日五更井華水, the first water drawn from a well in the early morning on the day of Autumn Begins. / 84 05-16-04 重午日午時水, water collected on the fifth day of the fifth month during wu hours (11:00 – 12:59). / 84

Contents

7

05-16-05 小滿、芒種、白露三節内水, water from any of the three [solar] terms Grain Budding Grain in Ear and White Dew. / 84 05-17 Li quan 醴泉, sweet-wine spring. / 84 05-18 Yu jing shui 玉井水, water from jade wells. / 85 05-19 Ru xue shui 乳穴水, water from a stalactite cave. / 86 05-20 Wen tang 温湯, warm and hot water. / 86 05-21 Bi hai shui 碧海水, bluish-green sea water. / 88 05-22 Yan dan shui 鹽膽水, bittern. / 88 05-23 E jing shui 阿井水, water from the E well. / 89 05-24 Shan yan quan shui 山岩泉水, water of mountain cliff springs. / 90 05-25 Gu zhong zhong shui 古塚中水, water in an ancient tomb. / 91 05-26 Liang ying zhong shui 糧罌中水, water in a food jar. / 92 05-27 Chi long xi shui 赤龍浴水, water in which a red dragon has bathed. / 93 05-28 Che zhe zhong shui 車轍中水, water from a cart rut. / 93 05-29 Di jiang 地漿, earth broth. / 93 05-30 Re tang 熱湯, hot, boiling water. / 95 05-31 Sheng shu tang 生熟湯, fresh and processed hot water. / 99 05-32 Ji shui 虀水, water used to prepare preserved vegetables. / 100 05-33 Jiang shui 漿水, fermented water of foxtail millet. / 101 05-34 Zeng qi shui 甑氣水, water [condensed] from qi rising from a steamer. / 103 05-35 Tong hu di lou shui 銅壺滴漏水, water from a copper clepsydra. / 104 05-36 San jia xi wan shui 三家洗盌水, water used to rinse the dishes of three households. / 104 05-37 Mo dao shui 磨刀水, water used to sharpen knives. / 104 05-38 Jin lan shui 浸藍水, water in which [fabrics] have been immersed [to be dyed with] Chinese indigo plant [water]. / 105 05-39 Zhu cao zhong shui 猪槽中水, water in a pig trough. / 106 05-40 Shi men niao kang shui 市門溺坑水, water from public urinary pits. / 106 05-41 Xi shou zu shui 洗手足水, water used to wash hands and feet. / 107 05-42 Xi er tang 洗兒湯, hot water in which a child was bathed. / 107 05-43 Zhu shui you du 諸水有毒, all types of water that are poisonous. / 107 Section Fires. Chapter 6 /

111

06-01 Yang huo yin huo 陽火陰火, yang fire and yin fire. / 06-02 Sui huo 燧火, tinder fire. / 119

113

8

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 06-03 Sang chai huo 桑柴火, mulberry twig fire. / 120 06-04 Tan huo 炭火, charcoal fire. / 122 06-04-01 Li tan huo 櫟炭火, a fire lit with oak wood charcoal. / 122 06-04-02 Fu tan huo 烰炭火, a fire lit with steaming charcoal. / 122 06-04-03 Bai tan 白炭, white charcoal. / 122 06-05 Lu huo zhu huo 蘆火竹火, fire lit with reeds, fire lit with bamboo. / 124 06-06 Ai huo 艾火, fire lit with common mugort leaves. / 125 06-06-A01 Yang sui 陽燧, yang tinder. / 126 06-06-A02 Huo zhu 火珠, fire pearl. / 127 06-07 Shen zhen huo 神鍼火, divine needle fire. / 127 06-08 Huo zhen 火鍼, fire needle. / 128 06-09 Deng huo 燈火, lamp fire. / 131 06-10 Deng hua 燈花, the snuff of a lamp wick. / 134 06-11 Zhu jin 燭燼, candle remains. / 135 Section Soils. Chapter 7

/

137

07-01 Bai e 白堊, chalk. / 142 07-02 Gan tu 甘土, bentonite. / 146 07-03 Chi tu 赤土, red soil. / 146 07-04 Huang tu 黄土, yellow soil. / 147 07-04-01 Zhu zhong huang tu 鑄鍾黄土, loess used to cast a bell. / 152 07-04-02 Zhu hua zu kong zhong huang tu 鑄鏵鉏孔中黄土, loess left in the holes of ploughshares and hoes after casting. / 152 07-05 Dong bi tu 東壁土, soil of a wall facing East. / 152 07-06 Tai yang tu 太陽土, soil removed from the ground in relation to the position of the major yang constellation in the nine mansions diagram. / 156 07-06-A01 Zhi ri tian xing shang tu 執日天星上土, soil collected on a zhi day from a location defined by the associated celestial stem and earth branch. / 156 07-06-A02 Zhi ri liu gui shang tu 執日六癸上土, soil from a location in the North collected on a zhi day at any of the six gui hours. / 157 07-06-A03 Er yue shang ren ri tu 二月上壬日土, soil taken from a location in the North at any of the ren hours in the second month. / 157 07-06-A04 Qing ming ri wu shang tu 清明日戌上土, soil taken from a location in the North-West on a clear day. / 157 07-06-A05 Shen hou tu 神后土, soil of the Spirit Sovereign. / 158

Contents

9

07-07 Tian zi ji tian san tui li xia tu 天子耤田三推犁下土, soil from below the plow pushed three times by the Emperor to till the fields. / 158 07-07-A01 She ji tan tu 社稷壇土, soil from a platform erected to worship the god of the land and the god of the grains. / 159 07-07-A02 Chun niu tu 春牛土, soil from the oxen in spring. / 159 07-07-A03 Fu jia tu 富家土, soil from the home of a wealthy family. / 159 07-07-A04 Ting bu zhong tu 亭部中土, soil from the location of a pavilion. / 160 07-08 Dao zhong re tu 道中熱土, heated soil from a road. / 160 07-08-01 Shi zi dao shang tu 十字道上土, soil from a crossroad. / 160 07-09 Che nian tu 車輦土, soil from chariots and carriages. / 161 07-10 Shi men tu 市門土, soil from the gate to the market. / 161 07-11 Hu xian xia tu 户限下土, soil from below the threshold of a door. / 161 07-12 Qian bu feng 千步峰, heaps [of soil accumulated by] one thousand steps. / 162 07-13 Xie di xia tu 鞋底下土, soil from below the soles of straw sandals. / 162 07-14 Zhu xia tu 柱下土, soil from the bottom of pillars. / 163 07-15 Chuang jiao xia tu 牀脚下土, soil from the bottom of the legs of a bed. / 163 07-16 Shao shi chang shang tu 燒尸塲上土, soil from a place where corpses are cremated. / 163 07-17 Zhong shang tu 塚上土, soil on a tomb. / 164 07-18 Sang gen xia tu 桑根下土, soil from below the root of mulberry trees. / 165 07-19 Hu yan ke tu, soil from the nests of swallows. / 165 07-20 Bai she ke zhong tu 百舌窠中土, soil from the nests of a “one hundred tongues” [bird]. / 168 07-21 Tu feng ke 土蜂窠, soil from the nests of wasps. / 168 07-22 Qiang lang zhuan wan 蜣蜋轉丸, the pellet rolled by dung beetles. / 170 07-23 Gui shi 鬼屎, demons’ feces. / 171 07-24 Shu rang tu 鼠壤土, light soil [excavated] by mice/rats. / 171 07-25 Fen shu rang tu 鼢鼠壤土, light soil [excavated by] moles. / 172 07-26 Wu nei ruan xia chong chen tu 屋内壖下蟲塵土, dust and soil left by worms/bugs at the bottom of the walls in one’s home. / 172 07-27 Yi die tu 蟻垤土, soil from an anthill. / 173 07-28 Bai yi ni 白蟻泥, termit mud. / 173 07-29 Qiu yin ni 蚯蚓泥, earthworm mud. / 173

10 07-30 07-31 07-32 07-33 07-34 07-35 07-36 07-37 07-38 07-39 07-40 07-41 07-42 07-43 07-44 07-45 07-46 07-47 07-48 07-49 07-50 07-51 07-52 07-53 07-54 07-55 07-56 07-57 07-58 07-59 07-60 07-61

The Ben Cao Gang Mu Luo shi ni 螺螄泥, spiral shell mud/excrements. / 178 Bai shan ni 白鱓泥, mud on [the body of ] white eels. / 178 Zhu cao shang gou tu 豬槽上垢土, dirt and soil from a pig trough. / 178 Quan niao ni 犬尿泥, mud from where dogs have urinated. / 179 Lü niao ni 驢尿泥, mud from where donkeys have urinated. / 179 Niao keng ni 尿坑泥, mud from a urine pit. / 179 Fen keng di ni 糞坑底泥, mud from the bottom of an excrement pit. / 179 Yan liu xia ni 簷溜下泥, mud from where rain water has dropped down from the eaves. / 180 Tian zhong ni 田中泥, mud from the fields. / 181 Jing di ni 井底泥, mud from the bottom of a well. / 181 Wu die ni 烏爹泥, catechu. / 182 Dan wan tu 彈丸土, soil [used to produce] bullets. / 184 Zi ran hui 自然灰, natural ashes. / 184 Fu long gan 伏龍肝, hidden dragon’s liver. / 185 Tu ji 土墼, calc-sinter [in a lime-kiln]. / 192 Gan guo 甘鍋, pleasant cauldron. / 193 Sha guo 砂鍋, cauldron prepared from sand. / 194 Bai ci qi 白瓷器, white porcelain utensil. / 194 Wu gu wa 烏古瓦, old black roof tile. / 197 Gu zhuan 古磚, ancient brick. / 199 Yan jiao 煙膠, smoked glue. / 200 Mo 墨, ink stick. / 201 Fu qi mo 釜臍墨, ink/soot from the navel/center of a cauldron’s [bottom]. / 206 Bai cao shuang 百草霜, frost of the hundreds of herbs. / 208 Liang shang chen 梁上塵, dust from a beam. / 214 Men jiu chen 門臼塵, dust from the mortar base of a door pivot. / 218 Gua fu chuang tou chen tu 寡婦牀頭塵土, dust from the end of a widow’s bed. / 218 Ci ou zhong bai hui 瓷甌中白灰, white dust/lime found in a porcelain bowl. / 218 Xiang lu hui 香爐灰, ashes in an incense burner. / 219 Duan zao hui 鍛竈灰, ashes from the furnace of a forge. / 219 Dong hui 冬灰, winter ashes. / 220 Shi jian 石鹼, stone bittern. / 222

Contents

11

Section Metals and Stones. Chapter 8 Group I: Metals

/

/

225

230

08-01 Jin 金, native gold. / 230 08-01-01 Jin xie 金屑, gold fragments. / 234 08-01-02 Jin jiang 金漿, gold broth. / 236 08-02 Yin 銀, silver. / 238 08-02-01 Yin xie 銀屑, silver fragments. / 241 08-02-01 Sheng yin 生銀, native silver. / 242 08-02-A01 Huang yin 黄銀, yellow silver. / 246 08-02-A02 Wu yin 烏銀, black silver. / 246 08-03 Xi lin zhi 錫恡脂, silver ore from Persia. / 247 08-04 Yin gao 銀膏, silver paste. / 248 08-05 Zhu sha yin 朱砂銀, cinnabar silver mercury produced from cinnabar. / 248 08-06 Chi tong 赤銅, red copper. / 249 08-06-01 Chi tong xie 赤銅屑, red copper fragments. / 251 08-07 Zi ran tong 自然銅, natural copper. / 253 08-08 Tong kuang shi 銅礦石, copper ore. / 258 08-09 Tong qing 銅青, verdigris. / 258 08-10 Qian 鈆, lead. / 262 08-10-01 Hei xi hui 黑錫灰, black tin ashes (made of lead and sulphur). / 265 08-11 Qian shuang 鈆霜, lead frost. / 271 08-12 Fen xi 粉錫, tin powder. / 274 08-13 Qian dan 鈆丹, lead oxide. / 285 08-14 Mi tuo seng 密陀僧, litharge. / 295 08-15 Xi 錫, tin. / 300 08-16 Gu jing 古鏡, ancient mirror. / 303 08-16-01 Xi tong jing bi 錫銅鏡鼻, handle of a tin-copper mirror. / 306 08-16-02 Jing xiu 鏡鏽, rust on a mirror. / 307 08-17 Gu wen qian 古文錢, old coin with a script. / 308 08-18 Tong nu ya 銅弩牙, copper notch in crossbows. / 314 08-19 Zhu tong qi 諸銅器, all types of copper utensils. / 316 08-19-01 Tong gu mu 銅鈷鉧, copper flat iron. / 317 08-19-02 Tong cheng chui 銅秤錘, copper weight. / 317 08-19-03 Tong chi bing 銅匙柄, handle of a copper spoon. / 317

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

12

08-20 Tie 鐵, iron. / 317 08-20-01 Tie 鐵, iron. / 319 08-20-02 Sheng tie 生鐵, pig iron. / 320 08-21 Gang tie 鋼鐵, steel. / 322 08-21-01 Tie fen 鐵粉, iron powder. / 323 08-21-02 Zhen sha 鍼砂, needle sand. / 325 08-22 Tie luo 鐵落, iron fragments. / 328 08-23 Tie jing 鐵精, iron essence. / 331 08-24 Tie hua fen 鐵華粉, iron splendor powder. / 333 08-25 Tie xiu 鐵鏽, iron rust. / 334 08-26 Tie re 鐵爇, iron fumigatory. / 336 08-27 Tie jiang 鐵漿, iron broth. / 337 08-28 Zhu tie qi 諸鐵器, all types of iron utensils. / 339 08-28-01 Tie chu 鐵杵, iron pestle. / 339 08-28-02 Tie cheng chui 鐵秤錘, iron weight. / 339 08-28-03 Tie chong 鐵銃, iron muzzle-loading firearm. / 340 08-28-04 Tie fu 鐵斧, iron axe. / 341 08-28-05 Tie dao 鐵刀, iron sword/knife. / 342 08-28-06 Da dao huan 大刀環, [iron] hilt of a sword. / 342 08-28-07 Jian dao gu 剪刀股, handle of a shear. / 343 08-28-08 Tie ju 鐵鋸, iron saw. / 343 08-28-09 Bu zhen 布鍼, needle for sewing cloth. / 343 08-28-10 Tie zu 鐵鏃, iron arrowhead. / 344 08-28-11 Tie jia 鐵甲, iron armor. / 344 08-28-12 Tie suo 鐵鎖, iron lock. / 344 08-28-13 Yao shi 鑰匙, [iron] key. / 344 08-28-14 Tie ding 鐵釘, iron nail. / 345 08-28-15 Tie hua 鐵鏵, iron spade, i e, a spade. / 345 08-28-16 Tie li chan jian 鐵犁鑱尖, the tip of an iron coulter of a plough share. / 346 08-28-17 Che xia 車轄, ring on the nave of a wheel. / 346 08-28-18 Ma xian 馬銜, mouthpiece of a horse bridle. / 347 08-28-19 Ma deng 馬鐙, horse stirrup. / 347 Group II: Jades / 08-29 Yu 玉, jade.

/

348

348

Contents

13

08-29-01 Yu xie 玉屑, jade fragments. / 352 08-29-02 Yu quan 玉泉, jade spring. / 353 08-30 Bai yu sui 白玉髓, white jade marrow. / 358 08-31 Qing yu 青玉, blue jade. / 359 08-31-A01 Bi yu 璧玉, jade for flat, round disks with a hole in their center. / 360 08-31-A02 Yu ying 玉英, mirror jade. / 361 08-31-A03 He yu shi 合玉石, sand used to cut and polish jade. / 361 08-32 Qing lang gan 青琅玕, greenish clacking. / 361 08-33 Shan hu 珊瑚, coral. / 364 08-34 Ma nao 馬腦, horse brain. / 367 08-35 Bao shi 寶石, precious stone. / 369 08-36 Bo li 玻瓈, glass. / 370 08-37 Shui jing 水精, [hardened] essence of water. / 371 08-37-A01 Huo zhu 火珠, fire pearl. / 372 08-37-A02 Ruan shi 碝石, jade-like stone. / 373 08-38 Liu li 琉璃, opaque glass of any color. / 373 08-39 Yun mu 雲母, muscovite. / 374 08-40 Bai shi ying 白石英, white stone/mineral bloom quartz. / 384 08-40-01 Wu se shi ying 五色石英, stone/mineral bloom of five colors. / 386 08-41 Zi shi ying 紫石英, purple stone/mineral bloom. / 391 08-42 Pu sa shi 菩薩石, buddha’s stone. / 395 Section Stones. Chapter 9 Group III: Stones

/

/

397

399

09-01 Dan sha 丹砂, cinnabar. / 399 09-02 Shui yin 水銀, mercury. / 420 09-03 Shui yin fen 水銀粉, mercury powder. / 434 09-04 Fen shuang 粉霜, powder frost. / 444 09-05 Yin zhu 銀朱, vermilion. / 447 09-06 Ling sha 靈砂, miraculous sand. / 453 09-07 Xiong huang 本經, realgar. / 457 09-07-01 Xun huang 熏黄, fumes yellow. / 476 09-08 Ci huang 雌黄, orpiment. / 477 09-09 Shi gao 石膏, gypsum. / 484 09-09-A01 Yu huo shi 玉火石, jade fire stone. / 498

14

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

09-09-A02 Long shi gao 龍石膏, dragon stone paste. / 499 09-10 Li shi 理石, structured stone. / 499 09-10-A01 Bai ji shi 白肌石, white muscles stone. / 501 09-11 Chang shi 長石, lengthy stone. / 501 09-12 Fang jie shi 方解石, calcspar. / 504 09-13 Hua shi 滑石, talc. / 506 09-14 Bu hui mu 不灰木, asbestos. / 516 09-14-A01 Song shi 松石, pine stone. / 518 09-15 Wu se shi zhi 五色石脂, stone fat of five colors. / 520 09-15-01 Qing shi zhi 青石脂, greenish stone fat. / 523 09-15-02 Huang shi zhi 黄石脂, yellow stone fat. / 523 09-15-03 Hei shi zhi 黑石脂, black stone fat. / 524 09-15-04 Bai shi zhi 白石脂, white stone fat. / 525 09-15-05 Chi shi zhi 赤石脂, red stone fat. / 527 09-16 Tao hua shi 桃花石, peach blossom stone/mineral. / 532 09-17 Lu gan shi 爐甘石, sweet stone from a furnace. / 533 09-18 Jing quan shi 井泉石, stones from wells and springs. / 538 09-19 Wu ming yi 無名異, pyrolusite. / 541 09-20 Mi li zi 蜜栗子, a kind of limestone. / 544 09-21 Shi zhong ru 石鍾乳, stalactite. / 545 09-22 Kong gong nie 孔公孽, seedling hollow throughout. / 558 09-23 Yin nie 殷孽, hidden seedlings. / 561 09-23-A01 Shi chuang 石牀, stone base. / 562 09-23-A02 Shi hua 石花, stone flower. / 562 09-23-A03 Shi gu 石骨, stone bone. / 563 09-24 Tu yin nie 土殷孽, soil [cave] stalactite. / 564 09-25 Shi nao 石腦, stone brain. / 565 09-26 Shi sui 石髓, stone marrow. / 566 09-27 Shi nao you 石腦油, petroleum. / 568 09-27-A01 Di sou 地溲, earth urine. / 570 09-28 Shi tan 石炭, coal. / 571 09-28-A01 Ran shi 然石, burning stone/mineral. / 572 09-29 Shi hui 石灰, limestone. / 574 09-29-01 Gu mu zhong shi hui 古墓中石灰, lime from an old tomb. / 584 09-29-02 Nian chuan you shi hui 艌船油石灰, oil-lime putty used for caulking boats. / 585 09-30 Shi mian 石麪, stone flour. / 586

Contents

15

09-31 Fu shi 浮石, floating stone/mineral. / 587 09-31-A01 Yun shi 暈石, stone/mineral with a halo. / 591 09-32 Shi zhi 石芝, stone/mineral zhi. / 591 石部第十卷 Chapter 10: Section of Stones Group IV: Stones

/

/

594

596

10-01 Yang qi shi 陽起石, the stone/mineral that lets the yang rise. / 596 10-02 Ci shi 慈石, magnetite iron oxide. / 601 10-02-A01 Ci shi mao 磁石毛, magnetite fur. / 609 10-03 Xuan shi 玄石, dark stone/mineral. / 609 10-04 Dai zhe shi 代赭石, reddish-brown stone/mineral from Dai. / 611 Xuan huang shi 玄黄石, dark-yellow stone/mineral. / 618 10-05 Yu yu liang 禹餘粮, leftover provisions of Yu. / 618 10-06 Tai yi yu liang 太一餘粮, leftover provisions of Great Unity. / 624 10-07 Shi zhong huang zi 石中黄子, yellow seeds in stones/minerals. / 628 10-08 Kong qing 空青, hollow malachite. / 630 10-09 Ceng qing 曾青, lamellar malachite. / 635 10-10 Lü qing 緑青, malachite. / 638 10-11 Bian qing 扁青, flat malachite. / 641 10-12 Bai qing 白青, white malachite. / 643 10-12-A01 Lü fu qing 緑膚青, green skin malachite. / 644 10-12-A02 Bi shi qing 碧石青, bluish-green stone/mineral malachite. / 645 10-13 Shi dan 石膽, stone bile. / 645 10-14 Yu shi 礜石, arsenolite. / 653 10-15 Te sheng yu shi 特生礜石, independently growing arsenolite. / 657 10-16 Wo xue yu shi 握雪礜石, arsenolite that holds the snow. / 660 10-17 Pi shi 砒石, arsenic. / 662 10-18 Tu huang 土黄, soil yellow. / 671 10-19 Jin xing shi 金星石, biotite. / 672 10-19-A01 Jin shi 金石, gold/metal stone/mineral. / 674 10-20 Po suo shi 婆娑石, green pebbles of foreign origin. / 675 10-21 Meng shi 礞石, micacious schist. / 676 10-22 Hua ru shi 花乳石, dolomite. / 680 10-23 Bai yang shi 白羊石, stone/mineral from [Mount] Bai yang. / 684 10-24 Jin ya shi 金牙石别録下品, stone/mineral from the Jin ya [rapids]. / 685 10-25 Jin gang shi 金剛石, diamond. / 688

16

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

10-26 Bian shi 砭石, stone probe. / 689 10-20-A01 Shi nu 石砮, stone arrowtip. / 690 10-27 Yue di 越砥, whetstone from Yue. / 691 10-27-01 Li shi 礪石, coarse grindstone. / 691 10-27-02 Mo dao yin 磨刀垽, sediment obtained when sharpening knives. / 692 10-28 Jiang shi 薑石, ginger stone. / 692 10-29 Mai fan shi 麥飯石, wheat meal stone. / 694 10-30 Shui zhong bai shi 水中白石, white stone in water. / 697 10-31 He sha 河砂, riverbed sand. / 698 10-32 Shao shang sha 杓上砂, sand on a [rice] ladle/spoon. / 699 10-33 Shi yan 石燕, stone swallow. / 699 10-34 Shi xie 石蟹, stone crabs. / 703 10-35 Shi she 石蛇, stone snake. / 705 10-36 Shi can 石蠶, stone silk worm. / 706 10-37 Shi bie 石鼈, stone turtle. / 706 10-38 She huang 蛇黄, snake yellow/bezoar. / 707 10-39 Pi li zhen 霹靂碪, thunderbolt anvil. / 710 10-40 Lei mo 雷墨, thunderclap ink. / 712 Section Stones. Chapter 11 Group V: Salt Stones/Minerals

/

714 /

716

11-01 Shi yan 食鹽别録中品, edible salt. / 716 11-01-01 Da yan 大鹽, crude salt. / 720 11-02 Rong yan 戎鹽本, salt from the Rong. / 736 11-03 Guang ming yan 光明鹽, lustrous salt. / 742 11-04 Lu jian 鹵鹹, native lake salt. / 744 11-05 Ning shui shi 凝水石, the stone that congeals water. / 746 11-06 Xuan jing shi 玄精石, selenite. / 752 11-07 Lü yan 緑鹽, green salt. / 756 11-08 Yan yao 鹽藥, salt medication. / 758 11-08-A01 Xuan shi 懸石, hanging stone/mineral. / 759 11-09 Po xiao 朴消, crude solver. / 759 11-09-01 Po xiao 朴消, crude solver. / 762 11-09-02 Mang xiao 芒消, awn solver. / 763 11-09-03 Ma ya xiao 馬牙消, horse teeth solver. / 764

Contents 11-09-04 Feng hua xiao 風化消, wind transformed solver. / 774 11-10 Xuan ming fen 玄明粉, lustrous powder. / 775 11-11 Xiao shi 消石, nitrokalite. / 780 11-11-01 Xiao shi 消石, nitrokalite. / 789 11-11-02 Sheng xiao 生消, native nitrokalite. / 790 11-12 Nao sha 硇砂, sal ammoniac. / 796 11-13 Peng sha 蓬砂, borax. / 808 11-14 Shi liu huang 石硫黄, natural yellow sulphur. / 814 11-15 Shi liu chi 石流赤, amorphous red sulphur. / 835 11-16 Shi liu qing 石流青, amorphous greenish sulphur. / 837 11-16-A01 Liu huang xiang 流黄香, flowing yellow aroma. / 837 11-17 Fan shi 礬石, alum. / 838 11-17-01 Po si bai fan 波斯白礬, white alum from Po si. / 843 11-17-02 Liu xu fan 柳絮礬, willow catkin alum. / 844 11-18 Lü fan 緑礬, green vitriol. / 862 11-19 Huang fan 黄礬, yellow [iron] alum. / 874 11-20 Tang bing nei yan 湯瓶内鹼, a substance formed on the inside wall of containers used for boiling water. / 876 Appendix 附錄 11-A01 11-A02 11-A03 11-A04 11-A05 11-A06 11-A07 11-A08 11-A09 11-A10 11-A11 11-A12 11-A13 11-A14 11-A15

Shi pi 石脾, stone/mineral spleen. / 877 Shi fei 石肺, stone/mineral lung. / 878 Shi gan 石肝, stone/mineral liver. / 879 Shi shen 石腎, stone/mineral kidneys. / 879 Zi shi hua 紫石華, purple stone/mineral splendor. / 879 Bai shi hua 白石華, white stone/mineral splendor. / 879 Huang shi hua 黄石華, yellow stone/mineral splendor. / 880 Hei shi hua, black stone/mineral splendor. / 880 Ling shi 陵石, hill stone/mineral. / 880 Zhong shi 終石, end stone/mineral. / 881 Feng shi 封石, mound stone/mineral. / 881 Sui shi, 遂石, trough stone. / 881 Wu yu shi 五羽石, five feathers stone/mineral. / 882 Zi jia shi 紫佳石, purple beauty stone/mineral. / 882 Huo yao 火藥, pharmaceutical substance to generate fire Gunpowder. / 882

17

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

18 11-A16 11-A17 11-A18 11-A19 11-A20 11-A21 11-A22 11-A23 11-A24 11-A25 11-A26 11-A27

Shi qi 石耆, / 883 Ma gan shi 馬肝石, horse liver stone/mineral. / 883 Zhu ya shi 猪牙石, pig tooth stone/mineral. / 883 Bi xia shi 碧霞石, bluish cloud glow stone/mineral. / 883 Long xian shi 龍涎石, dragon saliva stone/mineral. / 884 Qian guang shi 鈆光石, lead luster stone/mineral. / 884 Tai yang shi 太陽石, major yang stone/mineral. / 884 Duo ti ya 朶梯牙, / 884 Bai shi zi shi 白獅子石, white lion stone/mineral. / 884 Zhen zhai da shi 鎮宅大石, big stone guarding the house. / 886 Shen dan 神丹, divine elixir. / 886 Yan yao 烟藥, pharmaceutical substance generating fumes. / 887

Appendix 5.

Weights and measures. /

5.1

Measures of capacity. /

888

888 888

5.2 Measures of weight. /

888

5.3 Measures of length. /

889

5.4 Measures of the size of pills. / 6.

/

889

Appendix Pharmaceutical Substances of Plant Origin mentioned in BCGM ch 5 – 11 in passing. By Ulrike Unschuld. /

890

1. Prolegomena This book offers, together with the original Chinese text, the first complete philological and annotated English translation of chapters 5 through 11 of the Ben cao gang mu 本草綱目, the 16th century Chinese Encyclopedia of Materia Medica and Natural History by Li Shizhen 李時珍 (1518 – 1593), devoted to fires, waters, soils, metals and minerals. It opens up an almost two-millennia-long panorama of wide-ranging observations and sophisticated interpretations, ingenious manipulations and practical applications of natural substances for the benefit of human health. As Prof. Zheng Jinsheng 郑金生, the pre-eminent Ben cao gang mu expert of present day China, has characterized it: “Some of the pharmaceutical substances gathered in this book have already left the platform of their clinical application. However, the data associated with them offer abundant material to study the customs of the people and the culture of the past. While he gathered data related to pharmaceutical substances, Li Shizhen never hesitated to extend his investigations and collection to all possible realms. That is, while [the Ben cao gang mu] appears to be a book on materia medica, it is in fact an encyclopedia of natural science and has become a treasure house for today’s researchers of many fields of science.” 1

1.1 History of Chinese materia medica literature The Ben cao gang mu is the culmination of a 1600-year history of Chinese materia medica literature. This history began at some time during the Han dynasties when, between the 2nd century BCE and the 2nd century CE, two hitherto in China undocumented genres of medical-therapeutic works appeared. Stimulated by impulses whose origin and nature remain enigmatic today, the new therapeutic approach of 1

Zheng Jinsheng 郑金生 and Zhang Zhibin 张志斌, Ben cao gang mu dao du 本草綱目 导读, “Guide to Reading the Ben cao gang mu,” Beijing, Ke xue chu ban she 科學出版 社, 2016, 35.

20

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

needling 365 “holes” spread over the human body, on the one hand, and a first detailed description of 365 individual pharmaceutical substances on the other, marked the onset of two traditions of health care. They conceptually remained separate for one thousand years. Why the number of days in a solar year, 365 – rather unusual in the history of Chinese categorization of natural phenomena – was chosen as a starting point of both traditions is unclear. Needling therapy, or so-called acupuncture, remained an isolated facet of Chinese medical culture until the 11th/12th century. Its seminal texts, the Yellow Thearch classics, 2 were either lost during the first millennium or survived only through a rather tenuous tradition, supported by a few members of the social elite.3 Apparently, the Yinyang and Five Phases doctrines of systematic correspondences, which legitimated and guided needle therapy from its beginning, failed to achieve the status of a world view widely acknowledged by broad segments of the population. In contrast, pharmaceutical therapy, as evidenced by published recipe collections and works focusing on the description of individual substances, constituted the mainstay of medical practice from the first millennium to the present day. Since the early 1970s, recipe manuscripts with data on the therapeutic properties of combinations of herbal, mineral and animal substances have been recovered from late Zhou and early Han era tombs.4 The list of therapeutic indications and a highly developed pharmaceutical technology outlined in these texts evidence a long development of pharmaceutical therapy prior to the compilation of works with descriptions of the properties of individual substances. The earliest of these works known is the Shen nong ben cao 神農本草, “Shen nong’s materia medica.” Historians agree that it was written at some time between the 1st century BCE and the 1st century CE. Even though at that time Chinese civilization recognized and documented in bibliographies and catalogues individual authorship of literary works, the authors of the seminal texts of both the needling and the pharmaceutical traditions remained anonymous. Their origins were traced to legendary culture heroes, that is, Huang Di 黃帝, the Yellow Thearch, and Shen Nong 神農, the divine husbandman. Shen 2

Including the Huang Di nei jing su wen 帝內經素問, Huang di nei ling shu 帝內經靈 樞, and a late sequel, the Nan jing 難經. For philological translations of these classics, see Paul U. Unschuld and Hermann Tessenow, Huang Di Nei Jing Su Wen. An Annotated Translation of Huang Di’s Inner Classic, 2 vols. University of California Press, Berkeley and Los Angeles, 2011. Paul U. Unschuld, Huang Di Nei Jing Ling Shu. The Ancient Classic on Needle Therapy. University of California Press, Oakland, 2016. Paul U. Unschuld, Nan jing. The Classic of Difficult Issues. Oakland 2016.

3

Paul U. Unschuld, 2016, 1 – 4.

4

Donald Harper, Early Chinese Medical Literature. The Mawangdui Medical Manuscripts. Kegan Paul International, London and New York, 1997.

Prolegomena

21

Nong, also known as Yan Di 炎帝, the Fiery Thearch, was said in the Huai nan zi 淮南子 to have pitied the suffering of mankind. Hence he tasted all kinds of herbs and “discovered 100 with poison per day.” From the very beginning, for a natural substance “to have poison” (you du 有毒) or “to be nonpoisonous” (wu du 無毒) was seen as an important criterion for assessing its acute or long-term therapeutic potential. The Shen nong ben cao, closely associated with the tripartite world view of Dong Zhongshu 董仲舒 (179 – 104) and a political structure antagonistic to the hierarchy of the young empire, distinguished among three “ranks” (pin 品) of pharmaceutical substances. The upper rank, associated with heaven, included substances identified as jun 君, “rulers.” These were considered nonpoisonous and capable of helping extend life. A lower rank, associated with the earth, was assigned to substances “with poison.” These were given the status of zuo 佐and shi 使, that is, “helpers” and “messengers,” and they helped eliminate the disease. A middle rank of chen 臣, “officials,” associated with mankind, was positioned between the upper and lower ranks. Some of these “officials” were considered “nonpoisonous,” while others were known to “have poison.” They acted as intermediaries between the rulers above and their helpers and messengers below. The substances described, arranged according to a preface into groups of 120, 120 and 125 respectively,5 were mostly herbal. This may be the reason behind the naming of the first materia medica work and henceforth the entire literature genre ben cao 本草, which possibly meant “based on herbs.”6 Tao Hongjing 陶弘景 (452-536), a Daoist naturalist, was the first author to revise and expand the “original classic,” Ben jing 本經, as he called the Shen nong ben cao. In a first work, titled Shen nong ben cao jing 神農本草經, “Shen nong’s classic on materia medica,” he retained the original division into three chapters, but added 365 “additional records [on pharmaceutical substances recorded earlier] by renowned physicians,” ming yi bie lu 明醫別錄. In a second work shortly thereafter, the Shen nong ben cao jing ji zhu 神農本草經集注, “Various annotations to Shen nong’s classic on materia medica,” Tao Hongjing significantly expanded his annotations to the 730 substances listed and divided the text into seven chapters. Tao Hongjing initiated a “main tradition” of ben cao works, which would be continued by subsequent authors until the early 13th century. This tradition was 5

The Shen nong ben cao versions accessible today are based on reconstructions by Chinese and Japanese researchers since the 17th century. They have identified 141 substances as “upper rank,” 111 substances as “middle rank,” and 103 substances as “lower rank,” totaling 365.

6

For details on the Shen nong ben cao and the subsequent history of Chinese materia medica literature, see Paul U. Unschuld, Medicine in China. A History of Pharmaceutics. Berkeley and Los Angeles, 1986.

22

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

characterized by an expansion of the “original classic” with ever more data on the nature, origin, therapeutic effects and pharmaceutical processing of natural and man-made substances. This data was often adopted from an increasing number of materia medica works published outside of the main tradition whose authors did not feel committed to the structure and contents of the Ben jing. They focused on regional knowledge, their own experience, substances used as both medication and food, substances enabling survival in times of famine, pharmaceutical processing and other such special aspects of pharmaceutical lore. In the middle of the seventh century, an official named Su Jing 蘇敬 (fl. 657) suggested that the emperor support a new edition of the “original classic” to correct older data regarded since as erroneous, and include more recent knowledge of the therapeutic potential of natural substances. The result, the Xin xiu ben cao 新修本草 “Newly revised materia medica,” of 659, combining 850 substance entries in 54 chapters, was the first government-sponsored and illustrated ben cao work in China. The main tradition came to a halt in the 13th century for at least two reasons. The lengthy title of one of the final works of this tradition, published in 1249 and describing 1746 substances in 30 chapters, offers a clear indication of one of these reasons: Chong xiu zheng he jing shi zheng lei bei yong ben cao 重修正和經史證類 備用本草, “Newly revised materia medica of the zheng he reign period, based on data from the classics and historical annals, based on evidence and ordered on the basis of groups, prepared for clinical application.” The main tradition was stifled by the abundance of its data and the perpetuation of its claim to be merely extending the original classic. The last works were extremely unwieldy. More recent data was added to previous statements, without comments on contradictions or earlier errors. Readers were left abandoned with ever longer sequences of quotes from a wide range of sources of varying quality. We see a second reason for the end of the main tradition in a completely new genre of materia medica texts initiated by Kou Zongshi’s 寇宗奭 Ben cao yan yi 本草衍意, “Extended ideas on materia medica,” in 1119 and exemplified by Wang Haogu’s 王好古 Tang ye ben cao 湯液本草, “Materia medica of decoctions” in the mid 13th century. With the rise of Song Neo-Confucianism, the more than one-millennium-old schism was bridged between the therapeutic approaches of needling and pharmaceutical therapy. Needling, i.e. acupuncture, was based on the Yinyang and Five Phases doctrines of systematic correspondences. Ben cao literature and recipe collections were based on empirical knowledge and magic correspondences. The convergence of these two separate approaches resulted in a first pharmacology of systematic correspondences. Authors committed to this new perspective categorized each pharmaceutical substance according to its pre-

Prolegomena

23

sumed association with certain types of flavor and qi. As these types of flavor and qi were associated, in turn, with certain yin and yang qualities, as well as with the Five Phases, a link appeared possible to pathologies also defined in terms of yin and yang and the Five Phases. The main tradition was unable to integrate the ideas published by the various authors of the so-called Song-Jin-Yuan epoch of ben cao literature. As a result, the publication of comprehensive materia medica texts ended. Each of these works claimed to offer all available pharmaceutical knowledge, old and new. It was only three centuries later, in the 16th century, that two authors introduced a new structure to the contents of comprehensive materia medica works, leading to a brief revival of the tradition. The first result was the Yu zhi ben cao pin hui jing yao 御 製本草品彙精要, “Materia medica, written on imperial order, containing essential data arranged in systematic order,” in 1505. The second and more successful of these newer ben cao works was the Ben cao gang mu 本草綱目 of 1593 compiled by Li Shizhen 李時珍 (1518-1593).

1.2 Structure and contents of the Ben cao gang mu It is not known whether Li Shizhen saw the Yu zhi ben cao pin hui jing yao before he set out to compile the Ben cao gang mu. In his own personal interest, Qiu Jun 邱濬 (1420 – 1495), a scholar official, had devised a scheme to overcome the unwieldy nature of the final texts of the main tradition of ben cao literature. By restructuring the individual substance monographs, he removed the decisive obstacle to practical use of the ben cao texts. He dismissed the idea that newer ben cao works were mere emendations of the “original classic,” with whatever new knowledge had become available being added to the substance of earlier works. Qiu Jun divided each monograph in accordance with 13 characteristics of individual substances that he extracted from former texts.7 As a result, a reader interested in the origin, the pharmaceutical processing or the therapeutic indications of a particular substance found relevant data collected under a respective heading. To find the information they sought, users of the new text were no longer required to read through all the historical layers that had accrued among the texts of the main tradition of ben cao works. Qiu Jun died when he had finished writing only one chapter. After hectic intrigue and conflicts of interest, Liu Wentai 劉文泰 (fl. 1503), an official in the Imperial Medical Office and a team of collaborators were ordered by Emperor Xiao zong 孝宗 (1470 – 1505) in 7

Paul U. Unschuld, 1986, 140-141.

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

24

1503 “to prepare a new ben cao edition, to simplify the consultation of these works.” They took over the structural proposals of Qiu Jun but expanded the number of subheadings of each substance monograph from 13 to 24. The new work was completed only two years later. Pleased, the emperor personally gave it the title “The Essentials of Materia medica with the Data on Items Arranged According to their Similar Nature, compiled on Imperial Order.” Soon afterward, the emperor died. The manuscript was never published, possibly because of the exquisite color illustrations added to each entry. No technology was available in the 16th century to print such a work. Several manuscript copies were prepared and a few have ended up in libraries in Japan, Rome and Berlin. In 1701 a revised and amended version without the illustrations was prepared, by order of Emperor Kang xi 康熙. It was published by Shanghai Commercial Press in 1937.8 Li Shizhen chose a structure for his Ben cao gang mu entries similar to that of the Yu zhi ben cao pin hui jing yao substance monographs. However, rather than separating the data of each entry into 24 categories, he decided to limit their subheadings, where required, to the following ten: xiao zheng 校正:

Editorial Correction

shi ming 釋名:

Explanation of Names

ji jie 集解:

Collected Explanations

xiu zhi 脩治:

Pharmaceutical Preparation

bian yi 辯疑:

Discussion of Uncertain Issues

zheng wu 正誤:

Correction of Errors

qi wei 氣味:

Qi and Flavor

zhu zhi 主治:

Therapeutic Control

fa ming 發明:

Explication

fu fang 附方:

Added Recipes

Li Shizhen also conceptualized a new order of the entries. The “original classic,” within the three groups of “upper,” “middle,” and “lower rank,” had listed substances following their identification as mineral, herbal, and animal-human – i.e. proceeding from dead and immobile to living and immobile, and on to living and mobile substances. A fourth and final group consisted of victuals. Later works of 8

Ibid., 142-143.

Prolegomena

25

the main tradition omitted the “upper,” “middle,” and “lower rank” divisions, but retained the mineral, herbal, and animal-human classifications. Li Shizhen introduced a different order. Based on the sequence of the Five Phases, he began, after four introductory chapters, the subsequent 48 chapters with a list of waters. This was followed by fires, soils, metals (including salts and minerals; chapters 5 through 11) and herbal substances (chapters 12 through 37). Separated by chapter 38, listing “fabrics and utensils,” he then devoted chapters 39 through 50 to animals, ranging from “tiny” to “large,” that is, from insects through fowl to four-legged creatures. Again separated by a chapter on “strange items,” he eventually reached the pinnacle of his scale, human substances suitable for a medicinal application. In all, Li Shizhen wrote down ca. 1.9 million characters to describe 1892 pharmaceutical substances. The entries in the final 48 chapters were divided into 16 sections, for 13 of which Li Shizhen identified subsections. These serve to point out related items within broader groups such as waters, herbs and worms/bugs. For example, the section on worms/bugs is subdivided into those born from eggs, those generated through transformation, and those originating from moisture. Each section is introduced by a general statement explicating the special nature of the substances grouped in it. Each individual substance is given a heading stating its earliest name documented in pharmaceutical literature and, if this was the “original classic,” the upper, middle or lower rank it had been assigned to. Where required, Li Shizhen began an entry by pointing out a formerly erroneous listing of the substance in question. Whenever he found identical substances listed in previous ben cao works twice under different names, he justified the combination of these names in one entry. The length of documented Chinese pharmaceutical history, the sheer size of the country with its many regional cultures and languages, and the different types of sources quoted by Li Shizhen led him to list and discuss the names of the substances he described. Not infrequently, Li Shizhen saw a need to explain different names in the North and South of China assigned to an identical substance. For example, in chapter 09, he went into an extensive discussion to end an apparently millennia-old confusion concerning the substance gypsum. It was known as shi gao 石膏, “stone fat,” xi li shi 細理石, “finely structured stone/mineral,” and han shui shi 寒水石, “cold water stone/mineral.” Some authors identified it as fang jie shi 方解石, “stone/mineral that splits into rectangular pieces,” and as chang shi 長石, “lengthy stone/mineral.” But these names had also been applied to other

26

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

minerals. Li Shizhen brought all relevant quotes together and eventually offered his conclusion.9 Li Shizhen titled the relevant subheading shi ming 釋名, “Explanation of Names,” because he went beyond simply enumerating alternative names. Wherever possible he added philological explanations taking into account, for example, local dialects and the composition of characters. Substances imported from foreign countries often were given names in China transcribing the pronunciation of their original foreign pronunciation. Wherever feasible, Li Shizhen included information on the origin of such names, for example, reflecting a Sanskrit term. Furthermore, many names were written with characters possibly unfamiliar to the Ben cao gang mu’s readers. Hence Li Shizhen explained their pronunciation by either adducing homophones or resorting to the split-reading approach. And when he felt at his wits’ end, he freely acknowledged his inability to explain a certain name. While this explanation of names suggests an awareness of certain limits of understanding among future readers and users of the Ben cao gang mu, Li Shizhen rarely explained a central feature of each substance described: its therapeutic indications. The quotes on the ability of substances to “control” disease are taken from sources spanning more than 1500 years. The Ben cao gang mu lists more than 4500 key disease terms; by the time of Li Shizhen, perhaps most of them were still self-explanatory or could be understood by experts from their context. In today’s China, many of the disease names referred to in these quotes are no longer easily understood. Similarly, for readers of the Ben cao gang mu outside China, the therapeutic indications are often given with rather enigmatic disease names written in single, unfamiliar characters or using metaphors that are no longer easily grasped. The first volume of the Dictionary of the Ben cao gang mu traces each of the 4500 disease terms to its earliest appearance. It identifies its meaning in that early context and, where applicable, at the time of Li Shizhen. 10 Another central feature of descriptions of pharmaceutical substances is their place of origin. From early on it was known among Chinese experts that one and the same herb was endowed with different therapeutic powers depending on where it grew in the country. The climate and the nature of the soil varied from North to South and from East to West, and so did the “qi” a plant was exposed to. Hence where considered necessary, substance entries of the Ben cao gang mu include related information. This is mostly comparative, that is, Li Shizhen pro9

See 09-09, Explanation of Names. BCGM

10 See Zhang Zhibin and Paul U. Unschuld, Dictionary of the Ben cao gang mu.Vol. I: Chinese Historical Illness Terminology. University of California Press,Oakland, 2015.

Prolegomena

27

vided a ranking of the substances from different regions in accordance with the presumed strength of their therapeutic effects. All the dynasties that followed each other during the imperial age regularly rearranged administrative structures. As a consequence, place names and the names of administrative structures were assigned new names. Hardly any location kept one and the same name throughout history. Li Shizhen regularly explained the location in his time of places mentioned in an ancient quote under a name no longer in use. Today, the current location of even more places can no longer be easily identified by their ancient names. The second volume of the Dictionary of the Ben cao gang mu traces each of the place names and those of administrative structures mentioned in the Ben cao gang mu to their current location. More importantly, the Dictionary offers the history of each name and each administrative structure so that a quote from a specific time period may be compared to the existence of a name and administrative structure at that time. This is of particular relevance if one identical name was given to different locations in the course of history, or if the borders of an administrative structure were moved to a degree that may have had a significant impact on the climate or nature of soil suggested by its name.11 No materia medica text prior to the Ben cao gang mu was based on a comparable range of literary and non-literary material. It should come as no surprise that Li Shizhen exploited the Zheng he ben cao 正和本草of 1249, the final work of the former main tradition of ben cao works, as his major source. Apparently, Li Shizhen intended to continue this tradition, but he went far beyond it. In a bibliography at the very beginning of the Ben cao gang mu, he listed more than 868 titles he had consulted. The number of titles quoted or mentioned in passing in the main text by far exceeds these 868 texts. Li Shizhen may not have held all of them in original editions in his hands. Many texts were quoted second- or third-hand from quotes in later encyclopedias. In addition to drawing his data from all types of literary genres, Li Shizhen personally travelled to places all over the country where he expected to access data available nowhere else. This way, he also was able to record valuable data on substances not mentioned in ben cao literature or publicly documented elsewhere before. For example, san qi 三七, identified today as Gynura segetum (Lour.) Merr., is one of the most common herbs in Chinese medicine. Li Shizhen was the first to learn of its therapeutic potential from “locals,” and introduced it with the following lines: “This medication was discovered for the first time only recently. The people in the South use it in their military as an important medication for wounds 11 See Hua Linfu, Paul D. Buell and Paul U. Unschuld, Dictionary of the Ben cao gang mu. Vol. II: Geographical and Administrative Designations. University of California Press Oakland, 2017.

28

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

caused by metal objects/weapons. It is said to have an extraordinary [therapeutic] potential. It is also said: For all injuries resulting from flogging and blows, when stagnating blood is set free, it should be chewed until it is pappy. Once this is applied [to the affected region, the bleeding] ends. Greenish swelling is dissolved. If one is to be flogged, let him ingest beforehand one or two qian and his blood will not rush to his heart. After a flogging it is even more advisable to ingest it. To ingest it after a birth is good, too. Generally speaking, this medication has warm qi and a sweet and slightly bitter flavor. Hence it is a medication for the blood section of the yang brilliance and ceasing yin [conduits] and can serve to cure all types of blood diseases, similar to qi lin jie (Daemonorops draco Bl.) and shellac.”12 In this manner the Ben cao gang mu refers to hundreds of texts and their authors, in addition to individuals (including Li Shizhen’s own extended family) unassociated with any literary genre. Many of the persons quoted or referred to as authors, patients, healers or actors in some anecdote have remained nameless to posterity. In bibliographical and biographical reference works today’s readers of the Ben cao gang mu may easily find the more prominent book titles, authors and historical personalities encountered in the Ben cao gang mu. But an identification of numerous titles and many more persons requires extensive research. It is here that one wonders how many collaborators Li Shizhen may have had. Wang Shizhen, the author of a preface to the first edition of the Ben cao gang mu, quotes Li Shizhen verbatim with a statement that he had rewritten the entire manuscript three times.13 A question arises here whether he had failed to notice numerous inconsistencies in the references to book titles and authors quoted. Not infrequently, one book is quoted with either its complete title or several different abbreviations. Similarly, one identical author is quoted by his full name, by his first or last name, by his style, or other possible designations. Such diversity appears plausible if one imagines a larger team around Li Shizhen supplying him with data without prior agreement on how to quote a text or refer to a person. If this diversity makes it difficult enough for readers to immediately identify a text or author quoted, the hardship is further aggravated by numerous quotes misleadingly ascribed to source texts they were never part of. Not much later, Zhao Xuemin 趙學敏 (ca. 1730 – 1805), author of the Ben cao gang mu shi yi 本草綱目拾遺, suggested with the title of his book “to make up for 12 Ben cao gang mu, 09-09. See also, Zheng Jinsheng 郑金生 and Zhang Zhibin 张志斌, Ben cao gang mu dao du 本草綱目导读, 2016, 175 - 177. 13 See below p. 42

Prolegomena

29

omissions in the Ben cao gang mu” not only his intention to list pharmaceutically useful substances Li Shizhen had failed to include. He was also the first to point out 30 substantial errors in the description of substances recorded. In recent years, with a steep rise in Ben cao gang mu research, many more such errors and misleading data have been identified, as for instance in Mei Quanxi’s (1962-) 梅全喜 Ben cao gang mu bu zheng 本草綱目補正, “Supplementing omissions and correcting errors of the Ben cao gang mu.”14 A comparison of numerous quotes in the Ben cao gang mu with their original sources often enough shows significant divergence. It is not always clear whether these are intentional modifications, perhaps adapting an ancient wording to usages preferred at the time of Li Shizhen, or errors due to careless copying. The third volume of the Dictionary of the Ben cao gang mu, devoted to “Persons and Literary Sources,” offers biographical and bibliographical data on all the texts and persons encountered in Li Shizhen’s encyclopedia, with a few exceptions for sources and people that appear undocumented elsewhere. This volume of the Dictionary includes the different versions of titles and names assigned by Li Shizhen or his collaborators to quotes and anecdotes. It also points out where quotes ascribed in the Ben cao gang mu to a specific text or author originated, in fact, elsewhere. 15 Ever since Tao Hongjing’s Shen nong ben cao jing ji zhu of 500 CE and throughout the history of the main tradition, authors introduced their materia medica works not only with at least one preface to inform readers of their motives, aims and (where relevant) the history of their texts. They also offered more general information associated with the origin, gathering, pharmaceutical processing, contra-indications, synergies and applications of pharmaceutical substances. Here, too, Li Shizhen extended the introductory sections to four voluminous chapters occupying one eighth of the entire text. In chapter one he enumerated 40 earlier ben cao works with brief commentaries by other authors and himself. This list is followed by another, already mentioned above, of all the literary sources he had taken into account, divided into two groups: 277 older and more recently published medical and pharmaceutical works, and 591 classics, historical annals and others. Next, Li Shizhen went into more detail informing readers of all earlier ben cao works he had taken drug descriptions from. Li Shizhen paid homage to the beginning of the main tradition by quoting the preliminary sections of the “original classic, ” including commentaries by Tao Hongjing and others. 14 Zheng Jinsheng and Zhang Zhibin, 2016, 70. 15 Zheng Jinsheng, Nalini Kirk, Paul D. Buell and Paul U. Unschuld, Dictionary of the Ben cao gang mu, Vol. III: Persons and Literary Sources, Oakland, 2018.

30

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

He eventually switched to the Song-Jin-Yuan understanding of health and pharmaceutical therapy by first quoting a passage from the Huang Di nei jing su wen 黃帝內經素問concerning the influence of climatic factors on drugs. This is followed by a section on “The seven ways of compiling a recipe,” with commentaries by the legendary Qi Bo 岐伯, the 8th century commentator of the Su wen Wang Bing 王冰, and various Song-Jin-Yuan authors. Next is a section on “The effects of the ten kinds of recipes, ” with commentaries by Xu Zhicai 徐之才 (ca. 510 – 590), several Song-Jin-Yuan authors again and Li Shizhen himself. The first chapter ends with ten treatises on the medical-theoretical teachings of the SongJin-Yuan period. Chapter 2 begins with an enumeration of pharmaceutical substances known by up to five alternative names. It continues with an enumeration of pharmaceutical substances according to their reciprocal, synergistic effects when ingested together, an enumeration of foods whose consumption is forbidden during an ingestion of specific pharmaceutical substances, an enumeration of substances that must not be taken by pregnant women, and an enumeration of beverages and foods that must not be consumed together. Also in chapter 2, Li Shizhen quoted from Li Gao 李杲 (1180 – 1251), one of the main authors and theoreticians of the SongJin-Yuan era, whose treatise acknowledged that the treatment of certain illnesses escaped theorization. Hence he simply listed certain pathological signs and the pharmaceutical substances suitable for their treatment – without reference to the Yin-Yang and Five Phases doctrines of systematic correspondences. Similarly, the next treatise is an “enumeration of all pharmaceutical substances that, according to Chen Cangqi 陳藏器 (8th century), are used in the treatment of depletions.” From another core theoretician of the Song-Jin-Yuan era, Zhang Zihe 張子和 (1156-1228), Li Shizhen took over the treatise “The three processes of sweating, vomiting and purging.” Chapter 2 ends with a section from a Yao dui 藥 對, a work allegedly predating the “original classic,” and the tables of contents of the Ben jing and the Jing shi zheng lei bei ji ben cao 經史證類備急本草 by Tang Shenwei 唐慎微 (fl.1082), one of the final works of the main tradition, written between 1080 and 1107. Chapters 3 and 4 of the Ben cao gang mu include lists of all diseases, and where necessary a detailed description of their pathological conditions, with the appropriate pharmaceutical substances and information concerning their pharmacological function, preparation and administration. Despite their prominence in chapter 2, the references to the Song-Jin-Yuan doctrines of pharmacology appear isolated. Further hints at their relevance for pharmaceutical therapy are rarely encountered in the Ben cao gang mu. Li Shizhen

Prolegomena

31

may have felt it suitable to pay lip service to a development that had lost its creative momentum prior to his lifetime. By the end of the Song-Jin-Yuan era, several authors had suggested combinations of empirical pharmaceutical knowledge with the Yinyang doctrines of systematic correspondences without reaching an agreement on one pharmacology accepted by all. Too many contradictions remained between the assessment of the properties in terms of yin and yang qualities on the one hand and their assumed and observed effects on the human body on the other. Eventually, this development found no further creative naturalists. By the time of Li Shizhen carrying through to the very present, a status quo had emerged within which any author interested in a theoretical foundation of pharmaceutical treatment was free to pick from any of the Song-Jin-Yuan authors, whomever he felt or feels appropriate. Li Shizhen’s attitude toward a theoretical legitimation of pharmaceutical therapies may be called fragmented. Only in very few instances did he feel compelled to refer to the preference of a specific substance to enter one or more of the yin and yang conduits. Li Shizhen did not neglect magic argumentation, and he seems to have had a special inclination toward the number seven. It dominates suggestions for the length of periods and number of frequencies of ingestions as well as quantities in which pharmaceutical substances are to be taken. Categorizations of items according to their yin or yang status, or their affiliation with one of the Five Phases, are rarely seen in the Ben cao gang mu. Occasionally Li Shizhen resorts to a concept of cong qi lei 從其類, “group correspondence” to explain correspondences between items and their properties that appear to exist outside the realm of Yinyang and Five Phases correspondences. For example, in chapter 41, entry 16, “cicadas,” he writes: Generally speaking, to cure [diseases affecting] the long-term depots and short-term repositories, the bodies of cicadas are to be used. To cure dermal sores and ulcers, wind and heat, the nymph shells of cicadas are to be used. This is always based on their group correspondences. Similarly, in chapter 43, entry 19-02, “breficaude pit viper”: When poisonous items are used to attack poison diseases, then this is always based on their group correspondences. Perhaps Li Shizhen’s reluctance to support his therapeutic advice with theoretical reasoning may be traced back to a perception of himself as primarily being a practitioner not interested in burdening other practitioners with a request to indulge in the complicated doctrines of systematic correspondences as a precondition of

32

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

pharmaceutical therapy. If we are right to assume that a central motivation underlying Li Shizhen’s compilation of the Ben cao gang mu was to offer a handy work to a wide public of healers, we then also grasp two more of his encyclopedia’s great innovations. Li Shizhen’s Ben cao gang mu is the first truly inclusive encyclopedia of natural history and pharmacotherapy in China. Nothing comparable existed in the medical literature elsewhere. Ben cao literature had hitherto been dedicated to the description of individual substances. Li Shizhen integrated medical case histories. These are meant to illustrate, more vividly than would have been possible with theoretical statements, the therapeutic potential of certain substances. Medical case histories have been published in China ever since Sima Qian included examples of treatments performed by Chunyu Yi 淳於意 (205 – 150 BCE) in the biography of this physician in his Shi ji 史記 of 90 BCE. Beginning with the Yuan dynasty, an increasing number of physicians chose to publish characteristic (and successful) examples of their treatments to propagate their own understanding of medicine and health care.16 Li Shizhen included case histories from his own medical practice and others quoted from earlier collections. In this way, he certainly prevented any suspicion of promoting only his personal interpretation of generally accepted theoretical premises. A common feature of his case histories is the emphasis on flexibility. That is, the flexibility required to sometimes abandon seemingly irrefutable principles and adapt a substance’s application to the specific challenge confronting the healer. An example is his own treatment, recorded in chapter 35, of “an old woman over 60 years old” who had suffered from viscous outflow, i. e., some form of diarrhea, for an extended period of time. No established therapy had been able to end her suffering. Li Shizhen followed a recommendation by the Tang physician Wang Bing 王冰 who had traced viscous outflow to an excessive accumulation of cold. He resorted to croton seeds, known in China as ba dou 巴豆, to counteract the cold responsible for that particular patient’s illness. Since antiquity, though, ba dou had been described in Chinese ben cao literature not only as an extremely “hot” substance but also as one of the most violent purgatives. Li Shizhen had also read the Yuan era author Wang Haogu 王好古, who had pointed out, for the first time, that given an appropriate pharmaceutical processing croton seeds can also be applied to stop diarrhea. Hence Li Shizhen counted on the extreme heat of croton seeds to attack the accumulated cold in the old woman. He treated her with pills prepared with croton seeds and coated with 16 Christopher Cullen, “Yi’an (case statements): the origins of a genre of Chinese medical literature,” in Elisabeth Hsü (ed.), Innovation in Chinese Medicine. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2001, 297-323.

Prolegomena

33

beeswax, and achieved a cure.17 Li Shizhen not only offered examples of his own reading of a patient’s specific needs but also provided details of earlier physicians’ creative approaches to difficult therapeutic situations. The implicit message underlying most such case histories was to promote flexibility rather than stubborn adherence to superficial principles. Hence he praised previous healers for their ingeniously individualized therapies. Li Shizhen was also the first author in the tradition of comprehensive works to combine the genres of ben cao and recipe literature. With very few exceptions, he added to every substance a list of recipes with the information he may have considered essential for its application in actual clinical practice. One or more therapeutic indications, mostly down-to-earth without theoretical embellishment or legitimation, are followed by the recipe’s ingredients with brief data on their raw or processed states. The recipes further include concise data on their preparation, on the external or internal mode of their application and on the number and required time span of their applications. A source is given for each recipe. For each list of recipes added to the entry of a specific substance, Li Shizhen also specifies how many of them were recorded in previous recipe collections and how many he recorded for the first time. The perhaps most notable innovation introduced by Li Shizhen was a transition from earlier ben cao works that had merely propagated alleged facts as statements to an encyclopedia based on argumentation. Li Shizhen was the first to collect in a materia medica work the statements of earlier authors and systematically discuss them in search of what he considered as facts and truth. Earlier writers had contradicted views they failed to agree with. But Li Shizhen made this approach his basic principle. Also, simply contradicting earlier views and statements is not identical with Li Shizhen’s approach of presenting several points of view. He discussed their origins and shortcomings, and eventually decided who is right and who is wrong, or presented his own dissenting perception. This is a ubiquitous principle followed throughout the Ben cao gang mu. It is not the least because of this feature of the Ben cao gang mu that Li Shizhen deserves a most prominent place in the history of Chinese natural science

1.3 Biographical sketch of Li Shizhen (1518 – 1593) Li Shizhen, style Dongbi 東璧, assumed name Binhu 濒湖, was born in Qi zhou 湖北蕲州, today’s Qi chun county 蘄春縣, province Hu bei 湖北, to a family 17 Zheng Jinsheng and Zhang Zhibin, 2016, 202 – 206.

34

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

of physicians. His grandfather is known to have practiced as an itinerant healer. His father, Li Yanwen 李言聞, rose to a more respected class of physicians and was engaged for a while as medical secretary, li mu 吏目, in the Imperial Medical Office. For his therapeutic skills he was praised as Li xian 李仙, “immortal Li.” He is remembered as author of monographs on ginseng [root] and mugwort, a plant used for moxibustion. He also wrote texts on smallpox and pulse diagnosis. Li Shizhen was supposed to rise even higher on the social scale. He was trained to be an official and entered the sequence of government exams. At the age of 14, having studied the Confucian and other classical texts, he passed the county level exams and was granted the degree of xiu cai 秀才, “outstanding talent.” However, even though he continued his studies for the next ten years, he failed to pass exams on the next higher level and eventually turned to the occupation of his father and grandfather. Over time, based on experience and knowledge learned from his father and his own literate knowledge and dedication to understand the principles underlying natural processes, Li Shizhen became widely known as a competent practitioner. He was invited to noble and other high ranking families and his successful cures in 1543 eventually led to an invitation by the King of Chu 楚, Zhu Xianrong 朱顯 榕,1506 – 1545, a regional prince, to manage his palace medical office. Details of the following years are unclear. We know that Li Shizhen was offered a position in the Imperial Medical Office but returned to his hometown after only a year. The date of this journey to Beijing and the reasons why he left so soon are not known. From the contents of the Ben cao gang mu, though, it is obvious that he returned from the North having accumulated much new knowledge. In Beijing he also encountered practices he considered highly objectionable. Among the elite, a practice was widespread to “cure human ills with human substances,” yi ren bu ren 以人補人. Based on a notion that a reverse flow of menstrual blood left the body as breast milk, practitioners advocated to knead the breasts of child girls until they released some liquid. This liquid was termed pan tao jiu 蟠桃酒, “flat peach wine,” allegedly an elixir granting immortality. Li Shizhen recorded this practice in chapter 52, entry 15, on “human milk,” clearly condemning it as “deceitful rhetoric to make a profit, aimed at those who are ignorant. It is voiced by fraudulent persons, and punished by royal law. The gentleman is to denounce it.” In Beijing he also learned of the use of opium as an aphrodisiac and considered this as a therapy not to be applied by a proper healer. Back home, in 1552, at the age of 34, Li Shizhen began to compile the Ben cao gang mu. 27 years later, in 1578, he concluded his manuscript. To compile a work of 1.9 million characters, based not only on extensive reading of earlier literature but

Prolegomena

35

also on the results of repeated short and long distance travelling, is an enormous achievement. Li Shizhen mentions family members and disciples as assistants, but the size of his team is not known. His achievement is even more astonishing given that during these 27 years he wrote and published several books. Two of these, the Binhu mai xue 濒湖脉學, “[Li] Binhu’s study of vessel movements,” a book on pulse diagnosis, and the Qi jing ba mai kao 奇經八脉考, “Research of the eight extraordinary conduit vessels,” survive to this day. Others, like a collection of his medical cases, Binhu yi an 濒湖醫案, a ”collection of [Li] Binhu’s simple to use recipes,” Binhu jian fang 濒湖集簡方, and an “illustrated study of the five long-term depots,” Wu zang tu lun 五藏圖論, have been lost as individual texts. None of these books became as influential as the Ben cao gang mu. Initially, the completed manuscript of the Ben cao gang mu did not meet enthusiasm either. It took Li Shizhen ten years, knocking at doors here and there, until eventually Hu Chenglong 胡承龍 in Jinling 金陵, today’s Nanjing 南京, Jiangsu province, agreed to print the text. It was published in 1593 with a preface by the famous scholar Wang Shizhen 王世貞 (1526-1590) and supplemented by two chapters of 1109 illustrations rather hastily made by his sons Li Jianyuan 李建元 and Li Jianmu 李建木. Whether Li Shizhen ever saw this “Jinling edition” is not known. He died that same year.18 Today eight complete copies of the first edition and four fragments are known to exist in China, in Japan and in the USA. A second edition, supported by a local government office, was published by Xia Liangxian 夏良心 and Zhang Dingsi 张鼎思 in neighboring Jiangxi 江西 province in 1603. Even though some errors crept into the text, the print and the illustrations were executed excellently. The widespread dissemination and the fame of the Ben cao gang mu began with this “Jiangxi edition.”19 In 2011, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) certified the inscription of the Ben cao gang mu on the Memory of the World International Register.

18 Ibid., 3 – 7. 19 Ibid. 230. For a most detailed scholarly account of Li Shizhen’s life and the further history of the Ben cao gang mu, see Wang Jian 王剑梅全喜and Mei Quanxi 梅全喜, Li Shizhen’s Ben cao gang mu, 500 nian da shi nian pu 李时珍本草纲目500年大事年谱, “Li Shizhen’s Ben cao gang mu – a chronicle of related major events of the past 500 years,” Ren min wei sheng chu ban she 人民衛生出版社 Beijing, 2018.

36

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

2. Notes on the Translation This translation of chapters 5 – 11 of the Ben cao gang mu is based on a most remarkable critical edition of the text prepared and published by Zheng Jinsheng 郑 金生and Zhang Zhibin 张志斌. Zheng Jinsheng and Zhang Zhibin have traced all quotes to their original source text. Wherever the first 1593 Jinling print of the Ben cao gang mu differed from the original texts because of intentional abbreviations, they have added a note with the original wording. Divergences interpreted as unintended errors, such as omissions or mistakenly written single characters, as well as erroneous ascriptions of quotes to original texts and authors, were corrected in the main text with a note added to explain such modifications. The complete text of chapters 5 – 11 presented here together with its translation includes these corrections. Readers interested in all the details, both of the errors corrected and the original wordings that were abbreviated or otherwise modified by Li Shizhen and his collaborators, are advised to consult the text critical edition by Zheng Jinsheng and Zhang Zhibin.20 I am most grateful to both of them for supplying me with a pre-publication version of their work. I wish to especially express my thanks to Prof. Zheng Jinsheng for helping me to understand passages and single characters my own research had been unable to clarify. Almost all philological notes accompanying my translation are based on the text edition prepared by Zhang Jinsheng and Zhang Zhibin. I have also greatly benefited from consulting the Japanese translation of the Ben cao gang mu published in 1965.21 In particular, secondary quotes within primary quotes have been marked based on the Japanese edition. In 2003, Foreign Language Press in Beijing published a first complete English version of the Ben cao gang mu. The approach chosen differed significantly from the one adopted here. This is most obvious in the translation of historical Chinese illness terms. Luo Xiwen 罗希文 and his collaborators have attempted to

20 Zheng Jinsheng 郑金生 and Zhang Zhibin 张志斌, Ben cao gang mu yin wen ni yuan, yi, Tu li bai bing zhu zhi shui huo tu jin shi bu 本草綱目引文溯源 一 圖例百病主治水火土 金石部. “Tracing the quotations in the Ben cao gang mu to their sources. Vol. 1: Legends to the sections ‘Therapies for all the hundreds of diseases’ and waters, fires, soils, metals and stones/minerals.” A volume of the Ben cao gang mu yan jiu ji cheng 本草綱目研究集 成 “Collection of research on the Ben cao gang mu,” edited by Zhang Zhibin and Zheng Jinsheng, Ke xue chu ban she 科学出版社 Beijing, 2019. 21 Kimura Kouichi 木村康 (ed.), Suzuki Shinkai 鈴木真海 (transl.), Shinchu Koutei Kokuyaku Honzou Koumoku 新註校定國本草綱目譯, “A translation of the Ben cao gang mu. Newly annotated and checked against the original text.” Shunyoudou Shoten 春陽 堂書店, Tokyo 1965.

Prolegomena

37

identify as many diseases, ailments and signs of illness as possible encountered in the Ben cao gang mu in terms of modern Western medical concepts.22 The Ben cao gang mu is an encyclopedia compiled in the 16th century based on literary and non-literary data of the preceding 1800 years. It quotes authors of varying expertise and offers today’s readers an incomparable view of almost two millennia of the development of pharmaceutical science and related realms of knowledge and more general aspects of culture. The translation of chapters 5 through 11 of the Chinese text honors the authors of bygone days not by telling them what they should have said if they had had the knowledge of the 20th and 21st century, but rather by illuminating as clearly as possible their thoughts and their wisdom as formed by the conceptual, social, economic and natural environment of their time. The translation offered here has resisted a temptation to make ancient views appear modern and agreeable with today’s biomedical reality. Such an approach, not infrequently met in recent renderings of ancient Chinese medical texts in Western languages, is not only a sign of disrespect for the intellectual integrity of ancient experts. It is also an obstacle blocking a recognition and appreciation of the never ending historical process of understanding nature and the management of human life as part of nature in China, since antiquity. Hence I have pursued here the same approach that has guided my translations of the ancient Chinese medical classics Huang Di nei jing su wen, Huang Di nei jing ling shu and Nan jing. Authors from previous centuries and millenia relied on metaphors and allegories to elucidate their understandings of human physiology and pathology. Modern pathology and physiology are no different. Such fields of science need to draw on metaphors and allegories to illustrate their findings.23 Disease names are a case in point. The Ben cao gang mu includes quotes with about 4500 core terms to specify all types of pathological conditions. Prior to the translation presented here, Prof. Zhang Zhibin and I traced them to their first appearance. Vol. I of the Dictionary of the Ben cao gang mu lists all of them with an explanation of their original meaning. The translation of chapters 5 through 11 provides, where appropriate, the literal meaning of disease terms. Occasionally, ancient single characters keep their meaning secret; in such cases, they are given in pinyin transcription. Notes are added to all occurrences of historical disease terms that are not self-explanatory, and readers are led to the relevant pages of Vol. I of the Dictionary. 22 Compendium of Materia Medica. (Bencao Gangmu). Compiled by Li Shizhen. Translated and Annotated by Luo Xiwen 罗希文.Foreign Language Press, Beijing, 2003. This edition does not include the original Chinese text. 23 Cynthia Taylor and Bryan M. Dewsbury, On the Problem and Promise of Metaphor Use in Science and Science Communication. J Microbiol Biol Educ. 2018; 19(1): 19.1.46.

38

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

The heading of each entry repeats the numbers assigned to it in the table of contents, followed by the name, in Chinese characters and pinyin, of the substance discussed and the title of the earliest work on materia medica identified as its FE, i. e., “first evidence.” The translation of the names offers English colloquial names wherever available, a literal translation where meaningful, and scientific identifications where possible. Place names, designations of administrative structures, names of persons and book titles appear in the translation without additional notes. Readers interested in further details should consult volumes II and III of the Dictionary of the Ben cao gang mu, which respectively provide information on the geographic and administrative designations and on the persons and literary sources mentioned. A challenging feature of translating an ancient text on materia medica is the identification of natural substances recommended for medicinal use. In chapters 5 through 11 of the Ben cao gang mu, this applies to substances named metals, minerals, salts and stones - which are discussed in entries of their own - as well as to numerous herbal substances mentioned in recipes or in passing elsewhere. European scientists have been eager to identify herbal and mineral substances they have encountered in China since the 17th century. From the beginning, this has proved to be a difficult endeavor. Different names were used for identical substances in different parts of the country; different pronunciations of an identical name in the dialects of different regions led to different writings. One and the same substance has been recorded with varying names in the course of history. An herb listed in an eighth century materia medica text might not have been available at a later time and was substituted by another herb sold under the same name. The marketing of fakes as substitutes was sufficiently widespread at any time for Li Shizhen to caution his readers in the first chapter of the Ben cao gang mu. In his descriptions of individual substances he devoted much space to such issues. The fact is, despite all the many attempts published over the past three centuries, an uncertainty remains as to the true identity of quite a few of the herbs and minerals recorded in historical Chinese materia medica works. This translation offers – with a caveat – identifications of the substances recorded in chapters 5 through 11 of the Ben cao gang mu based on the most reliable reference works available today. They include: First, for plants and ferments: Editing commission for Materia Medica of China, bian wei hui 中华本草编委会, National Chinese Medicine and Pharmacy Administration, Guo jia zhong yi yao guan li ju 国家医药管理中局, Materia Medica of China, Zhong hua ben cao 中华本草, 10 vols. Shanghai 1999.

Prolegomena

39

Francine Fèvre and Georges Métailié, Dictionnaire RICCI des plantes de Chine. Association Ricci – Les Éditions du Cerf, Paris 2005. Hu Shui-ying, An Enumeration of Chinese Materia Medica, The Chinese University Press, Hongkong 1980.  Read, Bernard E., Chinese Medicinal Plants from the Pen Ts’ao Kang Mu, 3rd edition. Peking Natural History Bulletin 1936, repr. Taipei 1977. Smith, F. Porter, Chinese Materia Medica - Vegetable Kingdom, rev. by G. A. Stuart, Shanghai 1911. 2nd revised edition Ku T’ing Book House, Taipei 1969. Second, for metals and minerals: Hollemann, A. F. and Egon Wiberg, Lehrbuch der Anorganischen Chemie, Walter De Gruyter & Co., Berlin, 1964. Needham, Joseph and Lu Gwei-Djen, Science and Civilisation in China, Vol 5, part 2. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 1972.  Read, Bernard E. and C. Pak, Chinese Materia Medica, Minerals and Stones. 2nd edition. Peking Natural History Bulletin 1936, repr. Ku T’ing Book House, Taipei 1977.  Wang Jiayin 王嘉荫, “Historical data on minerals in the Ben cao gang mu,” Ben cao gang mu de kuang wu shi liao 本草纲目的矿物史料, Shanghai 1957. Note: Chinese names of worms/bugs/insects, animals and plants may refer to different species and substances in different geographical regions of China. Also, a species or substance indicated by a name centuries ago may no longer be the species or substance identified today. The translation offered here provides only the most likely equations. Readers interested in more detailed information are advised to consult the literature listed above. Wherever a commonly known English name was available, such as “ginger” and “ginseng [root],” it was used in the translation. All other translations refer to the Latin name of a substance. For a tentative botanical identification of herbs mentioned in recipes and elsewhere in passing, see the list at the end of this volume.

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

40

3. Wang Shizhen’s preface of 1590 《本草綱目》原序 紀稱望龍光知古劍,覘寳氣辨明珠。故萍實商羊,非天明莫洞。厥後博 物稱華,辯字稱康,析寳玉稱倚頓,亦僅僅晨星耳。楚蘄陽李君東璧,一 日過予弇山園謁予,留飲數日。予窺其人,晬然貌也,癯然身也,津津然 譚議也,真北斗以南一人。解其装無長物,有《本草綱目》數十卷。謂予 曰:時珍,荊楚鄙人也。幼多羸疾,質成鈍椎。長耽典籍,若啖蔗飴。遂 漁獵羣書,摉羅百氏。凡子史經傳,聲韻農圃,醫卜星相,樂府諸家,稍 有得處,輒著數言。古有《本草》一書,自炎、皇及漢、梁、唐、宋,下 迨國朝,註解羣氏舊矣。第其中舛繆差譌遺漏,不可枚數,廼敢奮編摩之 志,僭纂述之權。歲歷三十稔,書考八百餘家,稿凡三易。複者芟之,闕 者緝之,譌者繩之。舊本一千五百一十八種,今增藥三百七十四種,分爲 一十六部,著成五十二卷。雖非集成,亦麤大備,僭名曰《本草綱目》, 願乞一言,以託不朽。予開卷細玩,毎藥標正名爲綱,附釋名爲目,正始 也。次以集解、辯疑、正誤,詳其土産形状也。次以氣味、主治、附方, 著其體用也。上自墳典,下及傳奇,凡有相關,靡不備採。如入金谷之 園,種色奪目 ; 如登龍君之宫,寳藏悉陳 ; 如對冰壺玉鑑,毛髮可指數 也。博而不繁,詳而有要,綜核究竟,直窺淵海。茲豈僅以醫書覯哉,實 性理之精微,格物之通典,帝王之秘籙,臣民之重寳也。李君用心加惠何 勤哉。噫!碔玉莫剖,朱紫相傾,弊也久矣。故辯專車之骨,必竢魯儒; 博支機之石,必訪賣卜。予方著《弇州巵言》,恚博古如《丹鉛》、《巵 言》後乏人也,何幸覩茲集哉。茲集也,藏之深山石室無當,盍鍥之以共 天下後世味《太玄》如子雲者。 時萬曆歲庚寅春上元日,弇州山人鳳洲王世貞拜撰。 Preface by Wang Shizhen of 1590 Historical annals speak of an ancient double-edged sword that was identified for its “dragon luster,” and of a shiny pearl that was discovered for its precious radiance. That is, [the delicious and auspicious nature of ] the fruit ping [seen growing on a river by the ruler of Chu] and [the significance of the appearance in the court of the Duke of Qi of ] the [one-legged bird] shang yang [as an omen of imminent rain] could not have been recognized [by Confucius] without an enlightenment bestowed on him by heaven. In later times, [Zhang] Hua (232-300), who was known for [compiling the encyclopedia] Bo wu [zhi], [ Ji] Kang (223-262), [the poet] who is recorded to have carefully chosen the characters he wrote down, and Yi Dun (of the Warring States period), who [was wealthier than his king and]

Prolegomena

41

knew how to distinguish [genuine and fake] precious stones, they were as rare as stars in the morning sky. One day, Mr. Li Dongbi from Qi [zhou] in Chu came to see me in my seclusion in Shan yuan, and he stayed with me as a guest for several days. I saw a man of gentle disposition with an excessively thin body. What he said was interesting and meaningful. He truly was a unique person south of the dipper! When he opened his bag, it contained nothing valuable, but tens of volumes of the Ben cao gang mu. He said to me: “[I am Li] Shizhen, a man from Jing chu. In my youth I often suffered from a wasting disease. Despite a modest intelligence, I was fascinated by reading the ancient canons and various kinds of literature, as if I were eating the sweetness of sugarcane. Hence I went fishing and hunting for all kinds of books, and I collected the works of hundreds of authors. Wherever among all the experts for philosophy and history, the classics and biographies, in music and poetry, agriculture and gardening, medicine, divination, astronomy and physiognomy, and collections of tunes I found something even of only slight value, I wrote it down in many words. In ancient times there was a ben cao work [on materia medica]. From the times of Yan [di, i.e., Shen nong] and Huang [di] through the Han, the Liang, the Tang, and the Song [dynasty] down to our present dynasty, it has long been commented upon and provided with explanations. However, it was stained by innumerable errors, inconsistencies, contradictions and omissions. I felt encouraged to take the will to study [this field] and edit [this work], and I exceeded my legitimate limits when I engaged in a compilation based on a new narrative. For more than 30 years I have examined the books of more than 800 authors. I have rewritten the manuscript three times. Where there were repetitions, I eradicated them. Where there were omissions, I filled them up. Where there were mistakes, I corrected them. The old editions included 1518 kinds [of pharmaceutical substances]; here now 374 kinds are added. [The entries] are divided into 16 sections, written up in 52 volumes. Even though [my work] may not be complete, it is quite comprehensive and hence I dared to give it the title Ben cao gang mu.24 It is my deepest desire to entrust it to you so that it will not be lost.” When I opened the volumes I was pleased to see that they were written in a meticulous manner. Each pharmaceutical substance is given a name as its label, that is, as its gang, to which are added explanations of [this and additional] names as mu. This is a proper beginning. Next follow “collected explanations,” “discussions of ambiguities,” “corrections of errors,” and detailed accounts of the places of origin and physical appearances. This is followed by [data on] “qi and flavors,” “control and therapy,” and “added recipes,” indicating 24 Li Shizhen may have considered this title daring because he seemed to put his encyclopedia on a par with the, Tong jian gang mu 通鑑綱目, which was compiled by the wellknown song philosopher Zhu Xi 朱熹 (1130 – 1200)

42

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

the concrete usage [of the substances named]. Whether [these data] had been gathered from ancient landmark and later canonical texts above, and from legends and unusual sources below, all were relevant and nothing was chosen without thinking. [Reading these volumes] was like entering the Golden Valley Garden where all kinds of colors dazzle one’s eyes. It was like entering the palace of the Dragon Sovereign where all types of treasures are displayed. It was like standing in front of a crystal flask and a jade mirror clearly showing each [detail like an individual] hair. [The contents] are broadly arranged but not overabundant. They are detailed with a focus on what is important. They have summed up the results of careful studies. They allow a view into the depth of the sea. How could anyone consider this as a work dedicated exclusively to medicine! In fact, it offers the essential subtleties of natural principles. It is a comprehensive work on the investigation of things. It is a work kept secret by emperors and kings. It is a treasure highly valued by officials and the people. The diligence and the passion devoted to it by Mr. Li are extraordinary! The failure to distinguish common stones and jade, and the confusion of red and purple colors, such malpractice has lasted for long. Hence to debate the reason for the carts loaded with one bone, one had to wait for the scholar [Confucius] from Lu.25 To recognize the stone from below the loom,26 it was essential to enquire with a fortune teller. I myself have written the Yan zhou zhi yan. What a pity that in future only a few people will be as acquainted with antiquity as are the authors of Dan qian and Zhi yan. So, I am all the more happy to see this collection! This collection must not be stored deep in the mountains in a stone chamber! It must be carved/printed to make it available for later generations all over the world like the work Tai xuan [jing] by Ziyun [(i. e., Yang Xiong) on the Yi jing]. Date: Wan li reign period. Year: Geng yin. On New Year’s Day. Respectfully written by Yan zhou shan ren Wang Shizhen in Feng zhou.

25 During the Warring States period, when Wu invaded Yue, they took home from the city of Kuai ji a collection of huge bones, with one of them filling one cart. Back home they enquired with Confucius about the origin of these bones and the “scholar from Lu” explained their origin. 26 A traveller once brought back a stone he had been given by a woman he had met when he tried to reach the source of a certain river. He approached the famous fortune-teller Yan Junping who told him that this was the stone forming the foundation of the loom of a celestial fairy.

4.本草綱目

Ben Cao Gang Mu Chapters 5 - 11 Translation

本草綱目 Ben cao gang mu 水部目録 Section Waters, Contents, 第五卷 Chapter 5 ☵

李時珍曰:水者,坎之象也。其文横則爲☵,縱則爲 。 其體純陰,其用 純陽。上則爲雨露霜雪,下則爲海河泉井。流止寒温、氣之所鍾既異;甘 淡鹹苦、味之所入不同。是以昔人分别九州水土,以辨人之美惡壽夭。蓋 水爲萬化之源,土爲萬物之母。飲資于水,食資于土。飲食者,人之命脉 也,而營衛賴之。故曰:水去則營竭,穀去則衛亡。然則水之性味,尤慎 疾衛生者之所當潜心也。今集水之關于藥食者,凡四十三種,分爲二類: 曰天,曰地。舊本水類共三十二種,散見玉石部。 ☵

Li Shizhen: Water is the reflection of [the trigram] kan. In a horizontal display, its line design is ☵ . Its vertical display is . Its body is pure yin; its function is pure yang. Above it constitutes rain, dew, frost and snow. Below it constitutes the sea, rivers, fountains and wells. [Water] may flow or be stagnant, it may be cold or warm, and these [conditions] are [the results of ] different concentrations of [its] qi. [Water] may be sweet, bland, salty or bitter, and hence the flavor that have entered it are not the same. This is why the ancients distinguished between the [characteristics of local] waters and soils in the nine regions [of China] to discriminate between the good and malign [character of ] the people and whether they may enjoy a long life or die early. The fact is, water is the origin of a myriad transformations; soil is

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

44

the mother of the myriad items. The natural endowment acquired through drinking is that of water; the natural endowment acquired through eating is that of soil. Eating and drinking are the life vessels of man; the camp and guardian [qi] depend on them. Hence it is said: Once the water is gone, the camp [qi] will be exhausted. Once the grain is gone, the guardian [qi] will be lost. As it is, in the prevention of illness and the protection of life the nature and the flavor of water are to be taken into consideration. Here now, the waters that are brought together as relevant for [the preparation of ] medications and food comprise 43 kinds, separated in two groups, namely [waters of ] heaven and [waters of the] soil. In older versions [of ben cao works] the group of waters included altogether 32 kinds, and they appeared scattered in the section on jade and stones/minerals. [The items recorded below are adopted from the following sources:] Ming yi bie lu 名醫别録: 1 item, during Liang 梁. Ben cao shi yi 本草拾遺: 26 items, during Tang 唐, by Chen Cangqi 陳藏器. Jia you ben cao 嘉祐本草: 4 items, during Song 宋, by Zhang Yuxi 掌禹錫. Ben cao gang mu 本草綱目: 11 items, during Ming 明, by Li Shizhen 李時珍. 【附註】: Additional comments [are based on the following sources]: Wei 魏 [dynasty]: Li Dangzhi 李當之, Yao lu 藥録 Wu Pu 吴普, 本草 Ben cao Song 宋 [dynasty]: Lei Xiao 雷斅, Pao zhi 炮炙 Qi 齊 [dynasty]: Xu Zhicai 徐之才, Yao dui 藥對 Tang 唐 [dynasty]: Su Gong 蘇恭, Ben cao 本草 Sun Simiao 孫思邈, Qian jin 千金 Tang 唐 [dynasty]: Li Xun 李珣, Hai yao 海藥 Zhen Quan 甄權, Yao xing 藥性 Yang Sunzhi 楊損之, Shan fan 删繁

Chapter 5

45

Song 宋 [dynasty] Ma Zhi 馬志, Kai bao 開寶 Su Song 蘇頌, Tu jing 圖經 Tang Shenwei 唐慎微, Zheng lei 證類 Kou Zongshi 寇宗奭, Yan yi 衍義 Da Ming, Rihua 大明日華 Jin 金 [dynasty] Zhang Yuansu 張元素, Zhen zhu nang 珍珠囊 Yuan 元 [dynasty]: Li Gao 李杲, Fa xiang 法象 Wang Haogu 王好古, Tang ye 湯液 Zhu Zhenheng 朱震亨, Bu yi 補遺 Ming 明 [dynasty]: Wang Ying 汪穎, Shi wu 食物 Wang Ji 汪機, Hui bian 會編 Wang Lun 王綸, Ji yao 集要

水之一 Waters I 天水類一十三種 Waters of Heaven Group, 13 kinds 05-01 05-02 05-03 05-04 05-05 05-06 05-07 05-08 05-09 05-10 05-11 05-12

Yu shui 雨水, rain water, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Liao shui 潦水, puddle water, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Lu shui 露水, dew water, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Gan lu 甘露, sweet dew, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Gan lu mi 甘露蜜, sweet dew honey, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Ming shui 明水, luminous water, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Dong shuang 冬霜, winter frost, FE Shi yi 拾遺 La xue 臘雪, snow of the 12th month, FE Jia you 嘉祐 Pao 雹, hail, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Xia bing 夏冰, summer ice, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Shen shui 神水, divine water, FE Gang mu 綱目 Ban tian he 半天河, river [water] halfway toward heaven, FE Bie lu 别録

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

46

05-13 Wu lou shui 屋漏水, water leaking in a house/room, FE Shi yi 拾遺 右附方舊一,新三。 Recipes added to the entries above: One of old. Three newly [recorded]

水之二 Waters II 地水類三十種 Waters of the Earth Group, 30 kinds. 05-14 05-15 05-16 05-17 05-18 05-19 05-20 05-21 05-22 05-23 05-24 05-25 05-26 05-27 05-28 05-29 05-30 05-31 05-32 05-33

Liu shui 流水, flowing water, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Jing quan shui 井泉水, water from wells and springs, FE Jia you 嘉祐 Jie qi shui 節氣水, water endowed with seasonal qi, FE Gang mu 綱目 Li quan 醴泉, sweet-wine spring, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Yu jing shui 玉井水, water from jade wells, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Ru xue shui 乳穴水, water from a stalactite cave, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Wen tang 温湯, warm and hot water, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Bi hai shui 碧海水, bluish-green sea water, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Yan dan shui 鹽膽水, bittern, FE Shi yi 拾遺 E jing shui 阿井水, water from the E well, FE Gang mu 綱目 Shan yan quan shui 山岩泉水, water of mountain cliff springs, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Gu zhong zhong shui 古冢中水, water in an ancient tomb, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Liang ying zhong shui 糧罌中水, water in a food jar, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Chi long xi shui 赤龍浴水, bathwater of a red dragon, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Che zhe zhong shui 車轍水, water from a cart rut, FE Gang mu 綱目 Di jiang 地漿, earth broth, FE Bie lu 别録 Re tang 熱湯, hot, boiling water, FE Jia you嘉祐 Sheng re tang 生熟湯, fresh and processed hot water, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Ji shui 虀水, water used to prepare preserved vegetables, FE Gang mu 綱 目 Jiang shui 漿水, fermented water of foxtail millet, FE Shi yi 拾遺

Chapter 5

47

05-34 Zeng qi shui 甑氣水, water [condensed] from qi rising from a steamer, FE Shi yi 拾遺 05-35 Tong hu di lou shui 銅壺滴漏水, water from a copper clepsydra, FE Gang mu 綱目 05-36 San jia xi wan shui 三家洗盌水, water used to rinse the dishes of three households, FE Shi yi 拾遺 05-37 Mo dao shui 磨刀水, water used to sharpen knives, FE Gang mu 綱目 05-38 Jin lan shui 浸藍水, water in which fabrics have been immersed [to be dyed with] Chinese indigo plant [water], FE Gang mu 綱目 05-39 Zhu cao zhong shui 猪槽中水, water in a pig trough, FE Shi yi 拾遺 05-40 Shi men niao kang shui 市門溺坑水, water from public urinary pits, FE Shi yi 拾遺 05-41 Xi shou zu shui 洗手足水, water used to wash hands and feet, FE Gang mu 綱目 05-42 Xi er tang 洗兒湯, hot water in which a child was bathed, FE Gang mu 綱目 05-43 Zhu shui you du 諸水有毒, all types of water that are poisonous, FE Shi yi 拾遺 右附方舊一十八,新四十七。 Recipes added to the entries above: 18 of old. 47 newly [recorded]

【互攷】 [Substances] referred to [elsewhere in detail] tie jiang 鐵漿, iron broth. cui tie shui 淬鐵水, water used to temper iron. yu quan 玉泉, jade spring. shi nao you 石腦油, naphta. ju tan shui 菊潭水, water in which a chrysanthemum was soaked. shi zhong huang shui 石中黄水, yellow water in stones/minerals. ou ma tang 漚麻湯, water in which sesame was soaked. mi gan shui 米泔水, water that was used to wash rice. jiu 酒, wine. cu 醋, vinegar. xing tang 餳餹, malt-sugar.

48

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

sha tang 沙餹, sugar. cha 茶, tea. mi 蜜, honey. qiu yin shui 蚯蚓水, earthworm water. wo niu shui 蝸牛水, snail water. sao si tang 繅絲湯, silk reeling decoction. luo shi shui 螺螄水, spiral shell water. xian zi shui 蜆子水, cyclina seashell water. xie hua ni shui 蟹化漆水, crabs transformed to lacquer water. xun ji tang 燖雞湯, decoction obtained by reheating chicken. xun zhu tang 燖猪湯, decoction obtained by reheating pork. xi kun shui 洗褌水, water obtained by washing underpants. bao yi shui 胞衣水, placenta water.

Chapter 5

49

本草綱目 Ben cao gang mu 水部 Section Waters 第五卷 Chapter 5 水之一天水類一十三種 Waters I, Waters of Heaven Group, 13 kinds 05-01 雨水拾遺 Yu shui, FE Shi yi. Rain water. 【釋名】【時珍曰】地氣升爲雲,天氣降爲雨,故人之汗,以天地之雨名 之。 Explanation of Names. [Li] Shizhen: When the qi of the earth rise, they become clouds. When the qi of heaven descend, they become rain. Hence the sweat of man is named after the rain of heaven and earth. 【氣味】鹹,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, balanced, nonpoisonous. 05-01-01 立春雨水。Li chun yu shui. Rain water at the solar term Spring Begins. 【主治】夫妻各飲一盃,還房,當獲時有子,神效。藏器。宜煎發散及補 中益氣藥。時珍。 Control. Husband and wife drink one cup each and then withdraw to the chamber. In due time they will have a child. Divinely effective. [Chen] Cangqi. [This type

50

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

of water] is suitable for boiling medications meant to have a dispersing effect, to supplement the center and to boost the qi. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】虞摶醫學正傳云:立春節雨水,其性始是春升發之 氣,故可以煮中氣不足、清氣不升之藥。古方婦人無子,是日夫婦各飲一 盃,還房有孕,亦取其資始發育萬物之義也。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: Yu Tuan in his Yi xue zheng chuan states: “The nature of rain water of the solar term Spring Begins is endowed with the qi rising and dispersing at the onset of spring. Hence it can be used for boiling medications [suitable for supplementing] insufficient central qi and [for curing] failure of cool qi to rise. Ancient recipes for women who had no children [recommeded to proceed as follows]. Husband and wife were to drink one cup [of rain water] on this very day [of the solar term Spring Begins], and withdraw to the chamber to conceive. This is based on the idea that its natural endowment is the first [in the course of a year] causing the myriad items to develop and be brought up.” 05-01-02 梅雨水。Mei yu shui. Water of plum rain. 【主治】洗瘡疥,滅瘢痕,入醬易熟。藏器。 Control. It serves to wash sores/wounds and [body parts affected by] jie-illness.26 It eliminates scars.Added to a meat sauce,the cooking is done more easily.[Chen] Cangqi. 【發明】【藏器曰】江淮以南,地氣卑濕,五月上旬連下旬尤甚。月令土 潤溽暑,是五月中氣。過此節以後,皆須曝書畫。梅雨沾衣,便腐黑。澣 垢如灰汁,有異他水。但以梅葉湯洗之乃脱,餘並不脱。【時珍曰】梅雨 或作黴雨,言其沾衣及物,皆生黑黴也。芒種後逢壬爲入梅,小暑後逢壬 爲出梅。又以三月爲迎梅雨,五月爲送梅雨。此皆濕熱之氣,鬱遏熏蒸, 釀爲霏雨。人受其氣則生病,物受其氣則生黴,故此水不可造酒醋。其土 潤溽暑,乃六月中氣,陳氏之説誤矣。 South of the rivers Jiang and Huai, the qi of the earth are poor and moist. This is especially so from the first ten days through the last ten days of the fifth month. The normal condition is one of humid soil and sweltering heat, as caused by the qi prevalent during the fifth month. After this seasonal term, all the people dry their books and paintings in the sun. Garments moistened by plum rain easily rot and turn black. [The water] obtained by washing such dirty [garments] resembles a liquid dispersion of lime. It differs from other types of water. However, with a decoction of plum leaves, [the dirt] is washed away entirely. This is not achieved with any other 25 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely identifiable skin ailment. BCGM Dict Vol. I, 249.

Chapter 5

51

[liquid]. [Li] Shizhen: Mei yu 梅雨, “plum rain,” is also written mei yu 黴雨, “mold rain.” That is to say, garments and other items moistened by it will develop a black mold. After the solar term Grain in Ear, the next day associated with ren 壬, which is the ninth of the Heavenly Stems, is the “entrance to the plum [rain season].” The next day associated with ren 壬, the ninth of the Heavenly Stems, following the solar term Slight Heat, is the “exit from the plum [rain season].” It is also held that the third month greets the plum rain, while the fifth month sees off the plum rain. All these are [times of ] moist and hot qi. [The heat qi] exert pressure from above; [the moist qi] rise steaming from below. Their interaction generates a permanent rain. Humans affected by these qi will develop diseases; items affected by these qi will develop mold. Hence this water must not be used for brewing wine or preparing vinegar. That the soil is moist while at the same time there is sweltering heat, this is associated with the qi prevalent during the sixth month. Mr. Chen [Cangqi’s] statement is wrong. 05-01-03 液雨水。Ye yu shui. Water that has rained down during [the period of ] fluid [qi]. 【主治】殺百蟲,宜煎殺蟲消積之藥。時珍。 Control. It kills the hundreds of bugs/worms. It is suitable for boiling medications aimed at killing worms/bugs and dissolving accumulations. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】立冬後十日爲入液,至小雪爲出液,得雨謂之液雨, 亦曰藥雨。百蟲飲此皆伏蟄,至來春雷鳴起蟄乃出也。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: The tenth day following [the solar term] Winter Begins is the [day of ] “entering [the period of ] fluid [qi].” When the solar term Slight Snow is reached, this is the “exit from [the period of ] fluid [qi].” The rain obtained [during this time] is called “fluid [qi] rain.” It is also called “rain for medications.” When the hundreds of worms/bugs drink this, they hide and go into hibernation. By the time of spring, when they hear the sounds of thunderclaps, they will rise from hibernation and come out again.

52

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 05-02 潦水綱目 Liao shui, FE Gang mu.

Puddle water. 【釋名】【時珍曰】降注雨水謂之潦,又淫雨爲潦。韓退之詩云潢潦無根 源,朝灌夕已除是矣。 Explanation of Names. [Li] Shizhen: The water of the puddles caused by heavy rainfalls is called liao 潦. Also, long-lasting downpours of rain result in puddles, liao 潦. When Han Tuizhi in a poem states: “Floods and puddles have no root. Inundations start in the morning and end at night,” then this is [a reference to the water discussed] here. 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】煎調脾胃,去濕熱之藥。時珍。 Control. It serves to boil medications harmonizing spleen and stomach and removing moisture and heat. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【成無己曰】仲景治傷寒瘀熱在裏,身發黄,麻黄連軺赤小豆 湯,煎用潦水者,取其味薄而不助濕氣,利熱也。 Explication. Cheng Wuyi: [Zhang] Zhongjing [recommends] to cure harm caused by cold and stagnant heat inside [the body], and an effusion of yellow on the body, with the “decoction with ephedra [herb], forsythia [root] and red mung beans.” [This decoction is] boiled with puddle water of inunadations caused by heavy rainfalls to make use of its weak flavor and [its nature that does] not support the qi of moisture. It lets the heat flow away. 05-03 露水拾遺 Lu shui, FE Shi yi. Dew water. 【釋名】【時珍曰】露者,陰氣之液也,夜氣着物而潤澤於道傍也。 Explanation of Names. [Li] Shizhen: Dew is a liquid of yin qi. During the night, these qi attach themselves to items and generate moisture on the roadside. 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous.

Chapter 5

53

【主治】秋露繁時,以槃收取,煎如飴,令人延年不饑。藏器。禀肅殺之 氣,宜煎潤肺殺祟之藥及調疥癬蟲癩諸散。虞摶。 Control. Autum is the season of abounding dew. It is collected on trays. When it is boiled it resembles malt sugar. It extends the years [of life] and relieves hunger. [Chen] Cangqi. It is endowed with the qi of sternness and killing. It is suitable for boiling medications that moisturize the lung and kill ghosts, as well as for mixing all types of powders intended for jie-illness27 and xuan-illness28, worms/bugs and repudiation-illness.29 Yu Tuan. 05-03-01 百草頭上秋露。Bai cao tou shang qiu lu. Autumn dew from the tips of the hundreds of herbs. 末晞時收取,愈百疾,止消渴,令人身輕不饑悦澤。别有化雲母作粉服 法。藏器。八月朔日收取,摩墨點太陽穴,止頭痛,點膏肓穴,治勞瘵, 謂之天灸。時珍。 Collected toward the end of dawn, it serves to cure the hundreds of illnesses, ends melting with thirst,30 relieves the body of its weight without hunger and provides a happy and lustrous complexion. There is also a method to [use it for] transforming mica and ingest it as a powder. [Chen] Cangqi. It is collected on the first day of the eighth month. [The liquid obtained by] rubbing an ink stick [with autumn dew from the tips of the hundreds of herbs] and dripped on the tai yang [acupuncture needle insertion] hole, ends headache. Dripped on the gao huang [acupuncture needle insertion] hole, it serves to cure exhaustion fatigue. This is called “heavenly cauterization.” [Li] Shizhen. 05-03-02 百花上露。Bai hua shang lu. Dew from the hundreds of flowers. 令人好顔色。藏器。 It lets one have a good complexion. [Chen] Cangqi.

27 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely defined skin ailment. BCGM Dict I, 249. 28 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591. 29 Lai 癩, “repudiation-illness,” most likely including cases of leprosy. BCGM Dict I, 293. 30 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567.

54

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

05-03-03 柏葉上露。Bo ye shang lu. Dew from platycladus leaves. 05-03-04 菖蒲上露。Chang pu shang lu. Dew from acorus [leaves]. 並能明目,旦旦洗之。時珍。 Both [kinds of dew] can clear the eyes. Wash the [eyes with such dew] every morning. [Li] Shizhen. 05-03-05 韭葉上露。Jiu ye shang lu. Dew from leek leaves. 去白癜風,旦旦塗之。時珍。 It serves to eliminate white patches wind.31 Apply this [dew to the affected region] every morning. [Li] Shizhen. 05-03-06 凌霄花上露。Ling xiao hua shang lu. Dew from the Chinese trumpet creeper. 入目損目。 When it enters the eyes, the eyes will be injured. 【發明】【藏器曰】薛用弱續齊諧記云:司農鄧紹,八月朝入華山,見一 童子,以五采囊盛取柏葉下露珠滿囊。紹問之。答云:赤松先生取以明目 也。今人八月朝作露華囊,象此也。又郭憲洞冥記云:漢武帝時,有吉雲 國,出吉雲草,食之不死。日照之,露皆五色。東方朔得玄、青、黄三 露,各盛五合,以獻於帝。賜群臣服之,病皆愈。朔曰:日初出處,露皆 如飴。今人煎露如飴,久服不饑。吕氏春秋云:水之美者,有三危之露, 爲水即重於水也。【時珍曰】秋露造酒最清冽。姑射神人吸風飲露。漢武 帝作金盤承露,和玉屑服食。楊貴妃每晨吸花上露,以止渴解酲。番國有 薔薇露,甚芬香,云是花上露水,未知是否。【藏器曰】凡秋露春雨着 草,人素有瘡及破傷者觸犯之,瘡頓不痒痛。乃中風及毒水,身必反張似 角弓之狀。急以鹽豉和麪作盌子,於瘡上灸一百壯,出惡水數升,乃知痛 痒而瘥也。 Explication. [Chen] Cangqi: Xue Yongruo in his Xu Qi xie ji states: “Deng Shao, supervisor of farming, went on Mount Hua shan one morning in the eighth month. 31 Bai dian feng 白癜風, “white patches wind.” Vaguely defined skin ailment. BCGM Dict I, 46.

Chapter 5

55

There he saw a boy who filled a multi-colored bag with dew pearls that he collected from platycladus leaves. [Deng] Shao asked him [why he did this], and [the boy] responded: ‘Chi song xian sheng resorts to them to clear [his] eyes’.” When today early in the morning in the eighth month the people prepare a “colorful dew bag,” then this is a reflection of this [anecdote]. Also, Guo Xian in his Dong ming ji states: “At the time of Han Wu di, a country named Ji yun guo produced a ji yun 吉雲 herb. Those who ate it did not die. When it was exposed to sunlight, the dew on it appeared in five colors.” Also, “Dongfang Ni obtained five ge each of dark, greenish and yellow dew, and presented them to the emperor. [The emperor] gave them to his officials. They ingested them and all were cured of their diseases. [Dongfang] Ni said: ‘Where the sun appears first, all dew is as [sweet] as malt sugar. Nowadays the people boil dew until it resembles malt sugar. They ingest it for long and do not feel hungry’.” The Lü shi chun qiu states: “Among the most delicious waters is the dew from San wei.” It is water, and yet it is heavier than water. [Li] Shizhen: Wine produced with autumn dew is thoroughly cold. Gu she shen ren inhaled wind and drank dew. Han Wu di had a golden dish prepared to collect dew, and he ingested and consumed it [as a longevity substance] together with jade fragments. Yang gui fei every morning sucked up the dew from flowers to quench thirst and resolve her hangover. In foreign lands a rose dew exists that is extremely fragrant. It is said to be dew water found on [rose] flowers. But [I] do not know whether this is true or not. [Chen] Cangqi: When persons with sores or open wounds apply autumn dew or spring rain attached to herbs to them, the sores/wounds will close and they suffer neither from itch nor from pain. If someone was struck by wind or poisonous water with his body bent backward shaped like a bow, [to cure this] quickly fill a bowl with a dough prepared from [this dew and] fermented soy. Place [the bowl/dough] on the sores and perform 100 cauterizations. [The patient] will release several sheng of malign water, associated with a sensation of itch and pain. This then will be the cure. 05-04 甘露拾遺 Gan lu, FE Shi yi. Sweet dew. 【釋名】膏露綱目、瑞露綱目、天酒綱目、神漿。【時珍曰】按瑞應圖 云:甘露,美露也。神靈之精,仁瑞之澤,其凝如脂,其甘如飴,故有甘 膏酒漿之名。晉中興書云:王者敬養耆老,則降於松柏;尊賢容衆,則降 於竹葦。列星圖云:天乳一星明潤,則甘露降。已上諸説,皆瑞氣所感者 也。吕氏春秋云:水之美者,三危之露。和之美者,揭雩之露,其色紫。 拾遺記云:崑崙之山有甘露,望之如丹,着草木則皎瑩如雪。山海經云:

56

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

諸沃之野,摇山之民,甘露是飲,不壽者八百歲。一統志云:雅州 蒙山 常有甘露。已上諸説,皆方域常産者也。杜鎬言:甘露非瑞也,乃草木將 枯,精華頓發於外,謂之雀餳,於理甚通。 Explanation of Names. Gao lu 膏露, “greasy dew,” Gang mu. Rui lu 瑞露, “auspicious dew,” Gang mu. Tian jiu 天酒, “celestial wine,” Gang mu. Shen jiang 神漿, “divine broth.” [Li] Shizhen: According to the Rui ying tu, “gan lu 甘露, ‘sweet dew’, is mei lu 美露, ‘delicious dew’. It is the essence of divine spirituality; it is the luster of humankindness and felicitous omina. When it coagulates it resemble fat; its sweetness is that of malt sugar. Hence it is given names such as ‘sweet’, ‘greasy’, ‘wine’, and ‘broth’.” The Jin zhong xing shu states: “When a king venerates and nourishes the aged [members of his people, sweet dew] descends on pines and platycladus [trees]; when he honors the virtuous ones and listens to the masses, [sweet dew] descends on bamboo and reeds.” The Lie xing tu states: “When the star tian ru is clear and lustrous, sweet dew descends.” All these statements show the effects of propitious qi. The Lü shi chun qiu states: “Among the most delicious waters is the dew of San wei. Among the most delicious harmonies is the dew found on [Mount] Jie yu. Its color is purple.” The Shi yi ji states: “On the Kun lun mountains a sweet dew occurs which appears to be cinnabar red. When it is attached to herbs and trees, it is clear and transparent like snow.” The Shan hai jing states: “The people of Yao shan, where the wilderness is fertile, drink sweet dew. Those who do not reach longevity nevertheless survive 800 years.” The Yi tong zhi states: “In Ya zhou on Mount Meng shen sweet dew is a common phenomenon.” All the statements quoted above suggest that [sweet dew] is a common product of many places. Du Gao says: “Sweet dew has no auspicious quality. Rather, when herbs and trees wither, they immediately effuse their essence to the outside, and this is called ‘sparrow sugar’.” This is quite reasonable. 【氣味】甘,大寒,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, very cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】食之潤五臟,長年不饑,神仙。藏器。 Control. Consuming it serves to moisten the five long-term depots, and lets one not feel hungry for a year, [turning him into a] divine immortal. [Chen] Cangqi.

Chapter 5

57

05-05 甘露蜜拾遺 Gan lu mi, FE Shi yi. Sweet dew honey. 【集解】【藏器曰】生巴西絶域中,狀如餳也。【時珍曰】按方國志云: 大食國秋時收露,朝陽曝之,即成糖霜,蓋此物也。又一統志云:撒馬兒 罕地在西番,有小草叢生,葉細如藍,秋露凝其上,味如蜜,可熬爲餳, 夷人呼爲達即古賓,蓋甘露也。此與刺蜜相近,又見果部。 Collected Explanations. [Chen] Cangqi: [Sweet dew honey] originates in Jue yu in Ba xi; it is shaped like malt-sugar. [Li] Shizhen: According to the Fang guo zhi, “in the country of Da shi dew is collected in autumn and dried in the early morning sun to generate sugar-frost.” This is the item [discussed] here. Also, the Yi tong zhi states: “Sa ma er han/Samarkand is a place in the Western foreign regions. There are thickets of small herbs with tender leaves resembling [the leaves of ] the Chinese indigo plant. In autumn, dew coagulates on them, with a flavor reminiscent of honey. When boiled it turns into malt-sugar. The Yi people call it dajigubin; it is, in fact, sweet due.” It is closely related to alhagi-honey.32 See also the section on fruit. 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】胸膈諸熱,明目止渴。藏器。 Control. Heat in chest and diaphragm. It clears the eyes and quenches thirst. [Chen] Cangqi. 05-06 明水拾遺 Ming shui, FE Shi yi. Luminous water. 【釋名】方諸水。【藏器曰】方諸,大蚌也。熟摩令熱,向月取之,得水 三二合,亦如朝露。陽燧向日,方諸向月,皆能致水火也。周禮明諸承水 於月,陳饌爲玄酒是也。【時珍曰】明水者,取其清明純潔,敬之至也。 周禮 司烜氏:以夫燧取明火於日,鑑取明水於月,以恭祭祀。魏伯陽參同 契云:陽燧以取火,非日不生光;方諸非星月,安能得水漿。淮南子云: 方諸見月,則津而爲水。注者或以方諸爲石,或以爲大蚌,或以爲五石鍊 成,皆非也。按考工記云:銅錫相半,謂之鑑燧之劑,是火爲燧、水爲鑑 也。高堂隆云:陽燧一名陽符,取火於日。陰燧一名陰符,取水於月。並 32 Ci mi 刺蜜, alhagi-honey, BCGM, section “fruit,” ch. 33-09.

58

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

以銅作之,謂之水火之鏡。此説是矣。干寶搜神記云:金錫之性,一也。 五月丙午日午時鑄,爲陽燧;十一月壬子日子時鑄,爲陰燧。 Explanation of Names. Fang zhu shui 方諸水, “fang zhu water.” [Chen] Cangqi: Fang zhu are big sweet-water mussels/clams. When they are rubbed intensely until they are hot and when then they are exposed to moonlight, one may gather from them two to three ge [of fang zhu water] that is similar to morning dew. To align a [concave] yang tinder [mirror] to the sun, and to align fang zhu to the moon, all these are ways to generate water and fire. This is meant by the statement in the Zhou li: “By means of ming zhu 明諸, water is obtained from the moon; long kept food turns into dark wine.” [Li] Shizhen: “Luminous water” is resorted to for its clarity and purity; it deserves utmost respect. The Zhou li lists a “‘Mr. Sunlight Manager’. He applies a [concave] yang tinder [mirror] to obtain luminous fire from the sun, and he uses a [concave tinder] mirror to obtain ‘luminous water’ from the moon to be made use of in the sacrifices to the gods.” Wei Boyang in his Can tong qi states: “The [concave] yang tinder [mirror] serves to obtain fire; without the sun, no rays of light are generated. If fang zhu were not [exposed to] the stars and the moon, how could one obtain water thick as broth?” The Huai nan zi states: “When fang zhu are exposed to moonlight, its liquid [qi] turn into water.” Some commentators have identified fang zhu as minerals. Others have identified them as [the concave shells of ] large freshwater mussels/clams, and still others have assumed them to be the outcome of a chemical processing of five types of minerals. They were all wrong. According to the Kao gong ji, “a preparation of half copper and half tin is called either ‘mirror’ or ‘tinder’. That is, for [obtaining] fire it is [called] ‘tinder’; for [obtaining] water it is [called] ‘mirror’.” The Gao tang long states: “Yang tinder [mirrors] are also called yang tallies/talismans. They serve to obtain fire from the sun. Yin tinder [mirrors] are also called yin tallies/talismans. They serve to obtain water from the moon. Both are made from copper; they are called ‘[tinder] mirrors of water and fire’.” This statement is correct. Gan Bao in his Sou shen ji states: “The nature of gold is identical to that of tin. Yang tinder [mirrors] are cast in the fifth month on a bing wu 丙午 day during the double hour perid wu 午 (11:00 - 12:59). Yin tinder [mirrors] are cast in the eleventh month on a ren zi 壬子 day during the double hour period zi 子 (23:00 – 01:59).” 【氣味】甘,寒,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】明目定心,去小兒煩熱,止渴。藏器。 Control. It clears the eyes and stabilizes the heart. It removes unrest with heat of children. It quenches thirst. [Chen] Cangqi.

Chapter 5

59

05-07 冬霜拾遺 Dong shuang, FE Shi yi. Winter frost. 【釋名】【時珍曰】陰盛則露凝爲霜,霜能殺物而露能滋物,性隨時異 也。乾象占云:天氣下降而爲露,清風薄之而成霜。霜所以殺萬物,消祲 沴。當降而不降,當殺物而不殺物,皆政弛而慢也。不當降而降,不當殺 物而殺物,皆政急而殘也。許慎説文云:早霜曰𩅀,白霜曰皚。又有玄 霜。【承曰】凡收霜,以鷄羽掃之,瓶中密封陰處,久亦不壞。 Explanation of Names. [Li] Shizhen: When yin [qi] abound, dew coagulates and becomes frost. Frost is able to kill things, while dew is able to nourish things. The nature [of yin qi] changes in response to the seasons. The Qian xiang zhan states: “When the qi of heaven descend, they become dew. When [dew] is touched by cool winds, it becomes frost. Frost serves to kill the myriad items, and to dissolve what is sinister and poisonous. When [the qi of heaven] should descend but fail to descend, and when [the frost] should kill the items but fails to kill the items, then this is always a case of relaxed and slow policies.33 When [the qi of heaven] should not descend but do descend, and when [the frost] should not kill the items but does kill the items, then this is always a case of hectic and destructive policies.” Xu Shen in his Shuo wen states: “Early frost is called zhi 𩅀. White frost is called ai 皚.” There is also a “dark frost.” [Chen] Cheng: When frost is collected, it is always to be swept with chicken feathers. Then it is to be stored in a firmly closed bottle at a shady place. This way it will not decay for a long time. 【氣味】甘,寒,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】食之解酒熱,傷寒鼻塞,酒後諸熱面赤者。藏器。和蚌粉,傅暑 月疿瘡及腋下赤腫,立瘥。陳承。 Control. Eating it resolves the heat of wine. Harm caused by cold with a stuffed nose. All types of heat and red faces following [the drinking of ] wine. [Chen] Cangqi. When it is applied mixed with freshwater mussel powder to rashes and sores during the months of summerheat and to red swelling below the armpits, an immediate cure will result. Chen Cheng.

33 A reference to the doctrine of wu yun liu qi 五運六氣, “five periods and six qi,” expounded in Su wen ch. 67 and 68.

60

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 【附方】新一。 Added Recipes. One newly [recorded].

寒熱瘧疾。秋後霜一錢半,熱酒服之。集玄方。 Alternating cold and heat sensations, malaria illness. Ingest with hot wine one and a half qian of frost [collected] in the wake of autumn. Ji xuan fang. 05-08 臘雪宋嘉祐 La xue, FE Song, Jia you. Snow of the twelfth month. 【釋名】【時珍曰】按劉熙釋名云:雪,洗也。洗除瘴癘蟲蝗也。凡花五 出,雪花六出,陰之成數也。冬至後第三戊爲臘,臘前三雪,大宜菜麥, 又殺蟲蝗。臘雪密封陰處,數十年亦不壞。用水浸五穀種,則耐旱不生 蟲。洒几席間,則蠅自去。淹藏一切果食,不蛀蠹。豈非除蟲蝗之驗乎。 【藏器曰】春雪有蟲,水亦易敗,所以不收。 Explanation of Names. [Li] Shizhen: According to Liu Xi’s Shi ming, “xue 雪, ‘snow’, is xi 洗, ‘to wash’.” [Snow] serves to wash away miasmatic epidemics associated with worms/bugs and locusts. Snow of the 12th month firmly sealed and kept at a shady place will not decay for decades. Ordinary flowers have five [petals as] extensions; snow flowers/snow fragments have six [corners as] extensions. [Six] is a yin number. The third wu 戊 [day] following the solar term Winter Begins is the onset of the la period/twelfth month. The three snowfalls prior to the la period are most suitable for vegetables and wheat. In addition, they kill worms/bugs and locusts. La snow firmly sealed and kept at a shady location will not decay for several decades. When its water is used to irrigate the five types of grain, they will withstand a drought and do not generate worms/bugs. A small amount sprinkled on mats will let flies stay away. All types of fruits and food treated with it and stored will remain free of moths and other insects. So, why should it not effectively remove worms/bugs? [Chen] Cangqi: Spring snow is infested with worms/bugs, and its water easily decays. Hence it is not to be stored. 【氣味】甘,冷,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】解一切毒,治天行時氣温疫,小兒熱癎狂啼,大人丹石發動,酒 後暴熱,黄疸,仍小温服之。藏器。洗目退赤。張從正。煎茶煮粥,解熱 止渴。吴瑞。宜煎傷寒火暍之藥,抹疿亦良。時珍。

Chapter 5

61

Control. It resolves all types of poison. It serves to cure seasonal epidemic qi and warmth epidemics, heat epilepsy and mad crying of children, outbreaks of cinnabar [and other] mineral [poisoning] of adults, and violent heat following [the drinking of ] wine. Yellow dan-illness.34 Ingest it warmed. [Chen] Cangqi. It serves to rinse the eyes to eliminate heat. Zhang Congzheng. Used to boil tea or to cook a congee, it resolves heat and quenches thirst. Wu Rui. It is suituable for boiling medications for harm caused by cold and sunstroke. An application to seething rashes is good, too. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【宗奭曰】臘雪水,大寒之水也,故治已上諸病。 Explication. [Kou] Zongshi. The water of snow of the twelfth month is a water of massive cold. Hence it serves to cure all the diseases listed above. 05-09 雹音駁拾遺 Bao, read bo, FE Shi yi. Hail. 【釋名】【時珍曰】程子云:雹者,陰陽相摶之氣,蓋沴氣也。或云:雹 者,砲也,中物如砲也。曾子云:陽之專氣爲雹,陰之專氣爲霰。陸農師 云:陰包陽爲雹,陽包陰爲霰。雪六出而成花,雹三出而成實。陰陽之辨 也。五雷經云:雹乃陰陽不順之氣結成。亦有懶龍鱗甲之内,寒凍生冰, 爲雷所發,飛走墮落,大生者如斗升,小者如彈丸。又蜥蜴含水,亦能作 雹。未審果否。 Explanation of Names. [Li] Shizhen: The [brothers] Cheng zi state: “Hail are balls formed of yin and yang qi.” The fact is, they are a mixture of [yin and yang] qi. Some say: Boa 雹, “hail,” is bao 砲, “[bullets of a] gun.” [Hail] strikes items like [the bullets of ] a gun. Zeng zi states: “Concentrations of yang qi form hail. Concentrations of yin qi form graupel.” Lu Nongshi states: “When yin [qi] enclose yang [qi], this is hail. When yang [qi] enclose yin [qi], this is graupel. Snow has six [corners as] extensions and forms flowers/fragments. Hail has three extensions and forms a solid mass.” This is how yin and yang are distinguished. The Wu lei jing states: “Hail are nodular accumulations formed of yin and yang qi appearing out of their appropriate time. It also happens that inside the scales of lazy dragons freezing cold generates ice. Thunderclaps let [the ice] effuse and when [the dragons] fly off [the hail] falls down. Large [balls] reach the size of dou and sheng measures. Small [balls] resemble bullets and pills.” Also, when lizards hold water in their mouth this may become hail. It has not been examined whether this is true. 34 Huang dan 黄疸, most likely including cases of jaundice. BCGM Dict I, 225.

62

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【氣味】鹹,冷,有毒。【時珍曰】按五雷經云:人食雹,患疫疾大風顛 邪之證。【藏器曰】醬味不正者,當時取一二升納甕中,即還本味也。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, cold, poisonous. [Li] Shizhen: According to the Wu lei jing, “humans who eat hail will suffer from pathological conditions such as epidemics, massive wind35 and peak [illness]36 evil.” [Chen] Cangqi: When a meat sauce has lost its proper flavor, give it with one or two sheng [of hail] into a flask and the original flavor will return. 05-10 夏冰拾遺 Xia bing, FE Shi yi. Summer ice. 【釋名】凌去聲。【時珍曰】冰者,太陰之精,水極似土,變柔爲剛,所 謂物極反兼化也。故字從水,從仌。周禮:凌人掌冰,以供祭祀賓客。左 傳:古者日在北陸而藏冰,西陸朝覿而出之。其藏之也,深山窮谷,涸陰 沍寒。其用之也,禄位賓客喪祭。郎顗曰:藏冰以時,則雷出不震;棄冰 不用,則雷不發而震。今人冬月藏冰於窖,登之以鹽,是也。淮南萬畢術 有凝水石作冰法,非真也。 Explanation of Names. Ling 凌, read with falling tone. [Li] Shizhen: Ice is the essence of major yin. When water has reached an extreme, it resembles [solid] soil. This is a change from being soft to being hard. This is the so-called “when an item reaches its extreme, it at the same time transforms to its opposite.” Hence, the character [bing 冰, “ice,”] is composed of shui 水, “water,” and bing 仌, “coagulated water.” Zhou li: “The ice-block man handles the ice to supply it for sacrifices and guests.” Zuo zhuan: “In ancient times, when the sun appeared in the northern lands, the people stored ice. When [the sun] appeared in the western land, they took it out. [The ice] was stored deep in the mountains at the far end of valleys, at dry and shady locations of [lasting] cold. It was used to pay officials, to entertain guests, and to perform mourning sacrifices.” Lang Yi: “If ice is stored in time, there may be thunderclaps but there will be no tremor. If ice is discarded rather than used, there will be no thunderclaps, but a tremor occurs nevertheless.” Nowadays, in winter the people store ice in cellars, and they cover it with salt. This is correct. The Huai nan wan bi shu has a report on “how to use the ‘mineral that lets water coagulate’ (calcite), to prepare ice.” This is not true. 35 Da feng 大風, “massive wind,” may refer to sores caused by a massive intrusion of wind evil and also to conditions of leprosy. BCGM Dict I, 111. 36 Dian 顛, “peak[-illness],” also 癲, vaguely defined mental derangement. BCGM Dict I, 124.

Chapter 5

63

【氣味】甘,冷,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】去熱煩,熨人乳石發熱腫。藏器。解煩渴,消暑毒。吴瑞。傷寒 陽毒,熱盛昏迷者,以冰一塊置於膻中,良。亦解燒酒毒。時珍。 Control. It removes unrest with heat. It is pressed on a hot swelling associated with an outbreak of stalactite poisoning. [Chen] Cangqi. It resolves unrest with thirst; it dissolves the poison of summerheat. Wu Rui. In the case of harm caused by cold and yang poison,37 and if heat abounds and [the patient] is confused, to place one piece of ice on his chest center is good. It also serves to resolve the poison of brandy. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【藏器曰】夏暑盛熱食冰,應與氣候相反,便非宜人,誠恐入腹 冷熱相激,却致諸疾也。食譜云:凡夏用冰,止可隱映飲食,令氣凉爾, 不可食之。雖當時暫快,久皆成疾也。【時珍曰】宋徽宗食冰太過,病脾 疾,國醫不效,召楊介診之。介用大理中丸。上曰:服之屢矣。介曰:疾 因食冰,臣因以冰煎此藥,是治受病之原也。服之果愈。若此,可謂活機 之士矣。 Explication. [Chen] Cangqi]: To consume ice during the hottest period in summer is [a behavior] in opposition to the climate, and this is why it is not suitable for man. [The ice] will enter the abdomen where the cold clashes with the heat, and this will give rise to all types of illness. The Shi pu states: “The use of ice in summer should be restricted to keeping beverages and food at a secluded place where [the ice] serves to cool the qi [of beverages and food. The ice itself ] must not be eaten. It may let one feel comfortable for a short while but after a long time it will always cause an illness.” [Li] Shizhen: [Emperor] Hui zong of the Song ate too much ice and suffered from a spleen disease. The state physicians failed to cure him. He then ordered Yang Jie to examine him, and [Yang] Jie resorted to the “pills to massively bring back to order the center.” The Emperor said: “[I] have ingested this several times already”. [Yang] Jie replied: “[The Emperor] suffers from this disease because he consumed ice. I, your official, will therefore boil this medication with ice [water] to cure the origin of the disease.” [The Emperor] ingested the [medication prepared with ice water] and was cured. That is, [Yang Jie] can be said to have been a scholar who flexibly adapted [his treatment to the special circumstances of an illness].

37 Yang du 陽毒, “yang poison,” is harm caused by cold resulting in a flourishing of yang qi and a diminution of yin qi. BCGM Dict I, 616.

64

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 【附方】新一。 Added Recipes. One newly [recorded].

滅瘢痕。以凍凌頻熨之,良。千金方。 It eliminates scars. Repeatedly press ice blocks on them. Good. Qian jin fang. 05-11 神水綱目 Shen shui, FE Gang mu. Divine water. 【集解】【時珍曰】金門記云:五月五日午時有雨,急伐竹竿,中必有神 水,瀝取爲藥。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: The Jin men ji states: “When rain falls at noon on the fifth day of the fifth month, quickly fell a bamboo pole. There must be ‘divine water’ in it. Let it trickle out to serve as medication.” 【氣味】甘,寒,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】心腹積聚及蟲病,和獺肝爲丸服。又飲之,清熱化痰,定驚安 神。時珍。 Control. Accumulations in the central and abdominal region, and diseases associated with worms/bugs. Mix it with otter liver and prepare pills to be ingested. Also, drinking it serves to cool heat and to transform phlegm. It stabilizes fright and pacifies the spirit. [Li] Shizhen. 05-12 半天河别録下品 Ban tian he, FE Bie lu, lower rank. River [water] halfway toward heaven. 【釋名】上池水。【弘景曰】此竹籬頭水及空樹穴中水也。【時珍曰】戰 國策云:長桑君飲扁鵲以上池之水,能洞見臟腑。注云:上池水,半天河 也。然别有法。 Explanation of Names. Shang chi shui 上池水, “water from elevated ponds.” [Tao] Hongjing: This is water found in the upper ends of bamboo fences, and also in the holes of hollow trees. [Li] Shizhen: the Zhan guo ce states: “Chang Sangjun let Bian Que drink the ‘water from elevated ponds’ enabling him to clearly see the long-term

Chapter 5

65

depots and short-term repositories.” A comment states: “The ‘water from elevated ponds’ is the ‘river halfway toward heaven’.” However, it is won by another method. 【氣味】甘,微寒,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, slightly cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】鬼疰,狂邪氣,惡毒。别録。洗諸瘡。弘景。主蠱毒,殺鬼精, 恍惚妄語,與飲之,勿令知之。甄權。槐樹間者,主諸風及惡瘡風瘙疥 痒。藏器。 Control. Demon attachment illness.38 Evil qi of madness. Malign poison. Bie lu. It serves to wash all types of sores. [Tao] Hongjing. It controls gu poison.39 It kills demon essence, craziness and absurd speech. If one wants [a patient] to drink it, he must not be let known it. Zhen Quan. That collected from sophora japonica trees controls all types of wind, as well as malign sores, wind itch and jie-illness40 itch. 【發明】【宗奭曰】半天河水,在上天澤之水也,故治心病鬼疰,狂邪惡 毒。 Explication. [Kou] Zongshi: The water of a “river halfway toward heaven” is water from the marshlands of heaven above. Hence it serves to cure heart disease and demon attachment illness, madness evil and malign poison.

【附方】舊一,新一。 Added Recipes. One of old. One newly [recorded]. 辟禳時疫。半天河水,飲之。醫林集要。 To avert seasonal epidemics. Drink water from a “river halfway toward heaven.” Yi lin ji yao. 身體白駁。取樹木孔中水洗之,搗桂末,唾和傅之,日再上。張文仲備急 方。

38 Zhu 疰, also zhu 注, “attachment-illness,” “influx-illnesss,” reflects a notion of a foreign pathogenic agent, originally of demonic nature, having attached itself to the human organism. BCGM Dict I, 688-695. 39 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191. 40 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely identifiable skin ailment. BCGM Dict Vol. I, 249.

66

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

The body has white spots. Collect water from holes in a tree and wash [the affected region] with it. Pound cinnamomum cassia bark to a powder, mix it with saliva and apply this [to the affected region]. To be applied several times a day. Zhang Wenzhong, Bei ji fang. 05-13 屋漏水拾遺 Wu lou shui, FE Shi yi. Water leaking in a house/room. 【氣味】辛、苦,有毒。【李廷飛曰】水滴脯肉,食之,成癥瘕,生惡 瘡。又簷下雨滴菜,亦有毒,不可食之。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, bitter, poisonous. Li Tingfei: Eating preserved meat on which water [leaking through the roof in a house/room] has dripped causes concretion-illness and conglomeration-illness, and generates malign sores. Also, if rain drips from below the eaves on vegetables, they, too, will be poisonous and must not be eaten. 【主治】洗犬咬瘡,更以水澆屋簷,取滴下土傅之,效。藏器。塗肬目, 傅丹毒。時珍。 Control. It serves to wash sores/wounds resulting from dog bites. Also, pour [water] on the eaves of the house and collect the soil below where [the water] dripped down and apply it [to the affected region]. Effective. [Chen] Cangqi. To be applied to wart eyes and cinnabar poison.41

41 Dan du 丹毒, “cinnabar poison,” a skin ailment with red rashes. BCGM Dict I, 118.

Chapter 5

67

水部 Section Waters 水之二地水類三十種 Waters II, Waters of the Earth Group, 30 kinds. 05-14 流水拾遺 Liu shui, FE Shi yi. Flowing water. 【集解】【時珍曰】流水者,大而江河,小而溪澗,皆流水也。其外動而 性静,其質柔而氣剛,與湖澤陂塘之止水不同。然江河之水濁,而溪澗之 水清,復有不同焉。觀濁水流水之魚,與清水止水之魚,性色迥别,淬劍 染帛,色各不同,煮粥烹茶,味亦有異,則其入藥,豈可無辨乎。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: As for flowing water, big rivers and small streams, they all have flowing water. Externally it appears to move, but its nature is calm. Its matter is soft, but its qi are hard. It is not the same as stagnant water in lakes, marshlands and pools. Still, the water in rivers is turbid while the water in mountain streams is clear. These, too, are different [types of water]. Look at fishes in turbid water and flowing water and compare them with fishes from clear water and stagnant water. Their natures and colors are widely different. The colors of swords tempered by dipping them in [one type of water] and of cotton dyed in [another type of ] water differ. When [water is used to] boil a congee or to brew a tea, their flavors will differ, too. That is, when [different types of water] are added to a medication, how could one fail to distinguish among them? 05-14-01 千里水。Qian li shui. Water that has flowed a thousand li. 05-14-02 東流水。Dong liu shui. Water flowing eastward. 05-14-03 甘爛水。Gan lan shui. Sweet, worn-out water. Alternative name: 勞水 Lao shui, exhausted water. 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous.

68

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【主治】病後虚弱,揚之萬遍,煮藥禁神最驗。藏器。主五勞七傷,腎虚 脾弱,陽盛陰虚,目不能瞑,及霍亂吐利,傷寒後欲作奔豚。時珍。 Control. Depletion and weakness following a disease. Ladled a myriad times and used to boil a medication, it is most effective in banning spirits. [Chen] Cangqi. It controls the five types of exhaustion and the seven types of harm, kidney depletion and spleen weakness, yang abundance and yin depletion, an inability to close the eyes, as well as cholera with vomiting and free-flux illness,42 and a tendency to have running piglets43 following harm caused by cold. [Li] Shizhen. 05-14-04 逆流水。Ni liu shui. Water flowing against [a sloping terrain]. 【主治】中風卒厥,頭風,瘧疾,咽喉諸病,宣吐痰飲。時珍。 Control. Being struck by wind with sudden loss of consciousness, head wind,44 malaria illness, and all types of diseases affecting the throat. It serves to drain by [stimulating the patient to] spit out phlegm rheum.45 [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【藏器曰】千里水、東流水,二水皆堪蕩滌邪穢,煎煮湯藥,禁 呪神鬼。潢汙行潦,尚可薦之王公,况其靈長者哉。本經云:东流水为云 母石所畏。鍊雲母用之,與諸水不同,即其效也。【思邈曰】江水,流泉 遠涉,順勢歸海,不逆上流,用以治頭,必歸於下,故治五勞七傷羸弱之 病。煎藥宜以陳蘆、勞水,取其水不强、火不盛也。無江水,則以千里東 流水代之,如涇 渭之類。【時珍曰】勞水即揚泛水,張仲景謂之甘爛水。 用流水二斗,置大盆中,以杓高揚之千萬遍,有沸珠相逐,乃取煎藥。蓋 水性本鹹而體重,勞之則甘而輕,取其不助腎氣而益脾胃也。虞摶醫學正 傳云:甘爛水,甘温而性柔,故烹傷寒陰證等藥用之。順流水,性順而下 流,故治下焦腰膝之證及通利大小便之藥用之。急流水,湍上峻急之水, 其性急速而下達,故通二便風痺之藥用之。逆流水,洄瀾之水,其性逆而 倒上,故發吐痰飲之藥用之也。【宗奭曰】東流水取其性順疾速,通膈下 關也。倒流水取其回旋流止,上而不下也。【張從正曰】昔有患小便閟 者,衆工不能治。令取長川急流之水煎前藥,一飲立溲,則水可不擇乎? 42 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 43 Ben tun 奔豚, “running piglet,” is an accumulation of qi associated with the kidneys and moving upward and downward at irregular intervals. BCGM Dict I, 57. 44 Tou feng 頭風, “head wind,” is wind evil attacking the head followed by pain, or dizziness, or itching. BCGM Dict I, 509. 45 Tan yin 痰飲, “phlegm rheum,” refers to pathological products that have accumulated in the body and that are excreted in the process of changes affecting the depots and palaces. They may block the passage of qi and blood and thereby become pathogenic factors. BCGM Dict I, 498.

Chapter 5

69

Explication. [Chen] Cangqi: Both water that has flowed a thousand li and water flowing eastward are suitable for washing away evil and dirt. When used to boil a medication, they will ban and exorcise spirits and demons. Turbid water flowing into puddles can still be offered as provision to kings and dukes. How much more does this apply to [water] that is quick in its movements and has come a long way? The Ben jing states: “Mica mineral fears eastward flowing water,” but it is used to refine mica. In this, it differs from all other types of water, and this is why it is effective. [Sun] Simiao: The water of rivers flows over a long distance. It complies with [the sloping terrain] and moves toward the sea. It does not go against [a sloping terrain] to flow upward. When it is used to cure [a disease affecting] the head, it must lead [the evil] downward. Hence it serves to cure the five types of exhaustion and seven types of harm and diseases associated with emaciation and weakness. When boiling a medication, one resorts to old reed and “exhausted water,” to use water that is not strong and fire that is not vigorous. If no water from the Yang zi is available, water that has flowed toward the East for a thousand li, such as from the rivers Jing or Wei, may serve as a substitute. [Li] Shizhen: “Exhausted water” is water scooped up and overturned. Zhang Zhongjing calls it “sweet and worn-out water.” [To prepare it,] fill two dou of flowing water into a large pot and use a ladle to scoop it out and let it drop again a thousand and ten thousand times until eventually only bubbles like pearls follow each other. Then it can be used to boil medication. The fact is, the basic nature of water is salty, and its body weighs heavily. Once it is worn-out [by this process], it assumes a sweet flavor and is of light weight only. This way it serves not to assist the qi of the kidneys, but to boost [the qi of ] spleen and stomach. Yu Tuan in his Yi xue zheng chuan states: “Sweet and worn-out water is sweet, warm and of soft nature. Hence it is resorted to to boil medication for yin conditions such as harm caused by cold. Water flowing complying [with a sloping terrain] has a complying nature and flows downward. Hence it is used to prepare medication to cure conditions affecting the Lower Burner, the lower back and the knees, and to free the passage of defecation and urination. Fast flowing water and rapidly rising, violent water has a rapid and fast nature and aims at reaching downward. Hence it is used to prepare medication to free the passage of the two reliefs (urination and defecation) and for wind blockage.46 Water flowing against [a sloping terrain] and whirling and billowing water, their nature is to go against and to reversely move upward. Hence they are used for medication to stimulate spitting out of phlegm rheum47.” [Kou] Zongshi: Water flowing eastward [is resorted to] to avail oneself of 46 Feng bi 風痺, “wind blockage,” diseases resulting mostly from an intrusion of wind evil. BCGM Dict I, 158. 47 Tan yin 痰飲, “phlegm rheum,” refers to pathological products that have accumulated in the body and that are excreted in the process of changes affecting the depots and palaces.

70

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

its complying and fast nature. It serves to free the passage through passes below the diaphragm. Water reversely flowing [is resorted to] to avail oneself of its flowing backward and coming to a standstill. It ascends and fails to descend. Zhang Congzheng: Once there was someone suffering from blocked urination, and no [medical] practitioner was able to cure [his disease. I] asked to bring fast flowing water from a long river to boil the same medication as before. He drank one dose and urinated immediately. That is, how could one not be careful in choosing the [right] water?

【附方】新三。 Added Recipes. Three newly [recorded]. 目不得瞑。乃陽氣盛,不得入於陰,陰氣虚,故目不得眠。治法飲以半夏 湯,用流水千里外者八升,揚之萬遍,取其清五升煮之,炊葦薪火,置秫 米一升,半夏五合,徐炊令竭爲一升,去滓,飲汁一小盃,日三飲,以知 爲度。詳半夏下。靈樞經。 Inability to close the eyes. When yang qi abound and are unable to enter the yin [section], this leads to a depletion of qi in the yin [section] and, hence, the eyes are unable to [close to let one] sleep. To cure this, drink the “decoction with pinellia [root].” Take eight sheng of flowing water that has come from a distance of more than 1000 li. Ladle and drop it 10 000 times. Use five sheng of it, once it has cleared, and, on a fire lit with reed, boil one sheng of foxtail millet and five ge of pinellia [root] until one sheng [of the liquid] is left. Remove the dregs and drink a small cup of the liquid, three times a day, until a healing is achieved. For details see the entry on pinellia [root]. Ling shu jing. 汗後奔豚。茯苓桂枝湯。治發汗後,臍下悸,欲作奔豚者。茯苓一兩,炙 甘草二錢半,桂枝三錢,大棗二枚,以甘爛水二升,煮茯苓,减半,服 之,日再。張仲景金匱要略。 Running piglet48 following perspiration. The “decoction with poria and cinnamomum cassia twigs serves to cure palpitations below the navel, with a tendency to develop into running piglets, following induced perspiration. [The recipe comprises the following substances]. One liang of poria, two and a half qian of roasted glycyrrhiza [root], three qian of cinnamomum cassia twigs” and two large dates. First boil the poria in two sheng of sweet and worn-out water. [Then add the remaining They may block the passage of qi and blood and thereby become pathogenic factors. BCGM Dict I, 498. 48 Ben tun 奔豚, “running piglet,” is an accumulation of qi associated with the kidneys and moving upward and downward at irregular intervals. BCGM Dict I, 57.

Chapter 5

71

substances and boil the liquid] down to one half, to be ingested twice a day. Zhang Zhongjing, Jin kui yao lüe. 服藥過劑,煩悶。東流水飲一二升。肘後方。 Having ingested an overdose of medication, with unrest and heart-pressure. Drink one or two sheng of water flowing toward the East. Zhou hou fang. 05-15 井泉水宋嘉祐 Jing quan shui, FE Song, Jia you. Water from wells and springs. 【釋名】【時珍曰】井字象井形,泉字象水流穴中之形。 Explanation of Names. [Li] Shizhen: The character jing 井, “well,” reflects the physical appearance of an [artificially constructed] well. The character quan 泉, “spring,” reflects the physical appearance of a hole/cave from which water flows. 【集解】【頴曰】井水新汲,療病利人。平旦第一汲,爲井華水,其功極 廣,又與諸水不同。凡井水有遠從地脉來者爲上,有從近處江湖滲來者次 之。其城市近溝渠污水雜入者成鹼,用須煎滚,停一時,候鹼澄乃用之。否 則氣味俱惡,不堪入藥食茶酒也。雨後水渾,須擂入桃、杏仁澄之。【時珍 曰】凡井,以黑鈆爲底,能清水散結,人飲之無疾。入丹砂鎮之,令人多 壽。按麻知幾水解云:九疇昔訪靈臺太史,見銅壺之漏水焉。太史召司水者 曰:此水已三周環,水滑則漏迅,漏迅則刻差,當易新水。予因悟曰:天下 之水,用之滅火則同,濡槁則同,至於性從地變,質與物遷,未嘗同也。故 蜀江濯錦則鮮,濟源烹楮則皛。南陽之潭漸於菊,其人多壽;遼東之澗通於 葠,其人多髮。晉之山産礬石,泉可愈疽;戎之麓伏硫黄,湯可浴癘。揚子 宜荈,淮菜49宜醪;滄鹵能鹽,阿井能膠。澡垢以污,茂田以苦。癭消於藻 帶之波,痰破於半夏之洳。冰水嚥而霍亂息,流水飲而癃閟通。雪水洗目 而赤退,鹹水濯𦠄而瘡乾。菜之爲虀,鐵之爲漿,麴之爲酒,糵之爲醋, 千派萬種,言不可盡。至於井之水一也,尚數名焉,况其他者乎?反酌而 傾曰倒流,出甃未放曰無根,無時初出曰新汲,將旦首汲曰井華。夫一井 之水,而功用不同,豈可烹煮之間,將行藥勢,獨不擇夫水哉?昔有患小 溲閟者,衆不能瘥,張子和易之以長川之急流煎前藥,一飲立溲。此正與 靈樞經治不瞑半夏湯,用千里流水同意味。後之用水者,當以子和之法爲 制。予於是作水解。

49 The character cai 菜 may be an erroneous writing of cai 蔡. Huai Cai 淮蔡 refers to the rivers Huai he 淮河 and Cai he 蔡河.

72

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Collected Explanations. [Wang] Ying: Well water just drawn serves to heal diseases and benefits humans. The first [water] drawn [from a well] in the morning is well splendor water. Its [therapeutic] effects cover a very wide [range of indications], and it differs from all other types of water. All well water that has come a long way from the vessels deep in the earth is best. [Water] that has seeped [into a well] from a river or lake nearby is of secondary quality. Polluted water that has entered [a well] from the ditches of a nearby city or market must be boiled first to eliminate [its pollution]. Then let it stand for a while until the saline has cleared before it can be made use of. If one fails to proceed this way, both its qi and its flavor will be malign, and are not suitable for preparing medication, food, tea and wine. After a rainfall, the water [in wells] is turbid. To clear it again, pound peach and apricot kernels, add this [to the water] and [the turbidity] will settle on the ground. [Li] Shizhen: To all wells [the following] applies. Lead placed at the bottom clears the water and [provides it with the ability to] disperse nodes. When humans drink it, they will remain free of illness. If cinnabar is entered into [a well,] it will suppress [the bad aspects of well water] and lets one enjoy a long life. According to Ma Zhiji’s Shui jie, “when [I, Ma] Jiuchou, once visited with the Grand Scribe of Ling tai, he saw water dripping from a copper pot [of a clepsydra]. The Grand Scribe called the person responsible for the water and said to him. ‘This water has revolved three times already. When water is slippery, its dripping slows down. Slowed down dripping results in faulty evidence of time elapsed. It must be replaced with fresh water.’ Now I understood: When the waters under heaven are used to extinguish fire, they are all the same. When they are used to moisten what has dried up, they are all the same. But given that the nature of items differs in accordance with the region [where they originate from,] their natural endowment is never identical, too. Hence, brocade washed with water drawn from the rivers in Shu has a bright color, and if [water from] Ji yuan is used to boil paper mulberry, [the resulting paper will] have a lustrous color. The ponds of Nan yang are soaked with [the effects of nearby] chrysanthemums; many people there live a long life. The ravines of Liao dong pass through [areas with] ginseng [root], and the people there are very hairy. The mountains of Jin produce alum, and the springs [there] can cure impediment-illness.50 Sulfur lies hidden in the slopes of Rong; its hot baths serve to wash [patients affected by] li[-wind]. [Water from the river] Yang zi is suitable for [preparing] tea. [Water from the rivers] Huai and Cai is suitable for [preparing] wine. The brine from Cang can be used to produce salt. The [water] from the E well can be used to prepare glue. [Water used to] wash away dirt becomes filthy; [water from] fields with luxuriant growth is bitter. 50 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277.

Chapter 5

73

Waves of [water with] algae and eelgrass serve to dissolve goiter; [water in which] pinellia [root] has been soaked breaks open phlegm. Ice water beverages let cholera pause; flowing water beverages open closures associated with protuberance-illness.51 When eyes are rinsed with the water of snow, redness recedes; when the skin is washed with brine, sores will dry. [The water used to] prepare vegetables to minced pickles, to prepare iron to [iron] syrup, to make wine with yeast and to make vinegar with fermented grain, there are a thousand currents and a myriad kinds – more than can be named. Even the one identical water of wells has so many different names. How much more does this apply to other [waters? Water] ladled up and poured out again is called ‘[water] flowing reversely’. Water emerging from the brick wall of a well that has not been let free yet [into the bottom of the well], is called ‘[water] without roots’. [Water] first fetched [on a day] at anytime [of the day] is called ‘newly drawn [water]’. The first [water] drawn in the morning is called ‘well splendor’. That is, the water from one well has different [therapeutic] effects and usages [in accordance with being identified as ‘water without roots’,52 ‘newly drawn water’, or ‘well splendor’.] How could one boil medication aimed at directing the strength of drugs [toward the disease in the body] without carefully selecting the [appropriate] water? In ancient times, a patient suffered from blocked urination. No one was able to cure him. Zhang Zihe had [the water] exchanged and boiled the drugs used previously with the fast flowing water of a river covering a long distance. [The patient] drank this and immediately urinated. This is based on the same principle as the cure, recorded in the Ling shu jing, of an inability to close the eyes [to sleep] with a decoction with pinellia [root] using fast flowing [water]. Those who use water in future times, they should follow the method of [Zhang] Zihe when making their preparations. [Hence] I have added an explanation of water here.” 05-15-01 井華水。Jing hua shui. Well splendor water53. 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】酒後熱痢,洗目中膚翳,治人大驚,九竅四肢指岐皆出血,以水 噀面。和硃砂服,令人好顔色,鎮心安神。治口臭,堪鍊諸藥石。投酒 醋,令不腐。嘉祐。宜煎補陰之藥。虞摶。宜煎一切痰火氣血藥。時珍。 51 Qi long 氣癃, “qi protuberance-illness,” with an inability to pass urine and a feeling of distension and fullness in the lower abdomen and urinary bladder. BCGM Dict I, 385. 52 Water emerging from the brick wall of a well that has not yet flown [into the bottom of the well] is called “[water] without root.” See also 05-15. 53 The first [water] drawn in the morning is called “well splendor.”

74

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Control. Free-flux illness54 associated with heat following wine [consumption]. It is used to rinse dermal shades in the eyes. To cure major fright of adults and bleeding from the nine orifices and the junctions of the fingers/toes of the four extremities, spurt water on the [patient’s] face. Ingested mixed with cinnabar it improves the complexion, presses down [the qi of ] the heart and pacifies the spirit. It serves to cure bad mouth odor, and is suitable for heat refinement of all types of medical minerals. Tossed into wine and vinegar, it prevents them from rotting. Jia you. It is suitable for boiling medication supplementing the yin [qi]. Yu Tuan. It is suitable for boiling all types of medication for [curing diseases associated with] phlegm, fire, qi and blood. [Li] Shizhen. 05-15-02 新汲水。Xin ji shui. Newly drawn water. 【主治】消渴反胃,熱痢熱淋,小便赤澀,却邪調中,下熱氣,並宜飲 之。射癰腫令散,洗漆瘡。治墜損腸出,冷噴其身面,則腸自入也。又解 閉口椒毒,下魚骨哽。嘉祐。解馬刀毒。之才。解砒石、烏喙、燒酒、煤 炭毒,治熱悶昏瞀煩渴。時珍。 Control. Melting with thirst55 and turned over stomach. Free-flux illness56 associated with heat and [urine] dripping associated with heat. Rough passage of red urine. It keeps evil away and regulates the center. It serves to discharge heat qi. For all these it is suitable to drink this [type of water]. Spouted on a swelling associated with an obstruction-illness,57 [the swelling] will disperse. It is used to wash sores resulting from [contact with] lacquer. It serves to cure protrusion of intestines following a fall or injury. Spurt cold [water] on [the patient’s] body and face, and the intestines will enter [the abdomen] again. Also, it resolves the poison of Sichuan pepper husks, and it sends down fish bones stuck in the throat. Jia you. It resolves the poison of razor shell clams. [Xu] Zhicai. It resolves the poison of arsenic, aconite, brandy and coal [qi]. It serves to cure heat with heart-pressure, clouding with dim vision, and unrest with thirst. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【禹錫曰】凡飲水療疾,皆取新汲清泉,不用停污濁暖,非直 無效,亦且損人。【虞摶曰】新汲井華水,取天一真氣,浮於水面, 54 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 55 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567. 56 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 57 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641.

Chapter 5

75

用以煎補陰之劑及鍊丹煮茗,性味同於雪水也。【時珍曰】井泉,地脉 也,人之經血象之,須取其土厚水深源遠而質潔者,食用可也。易曰 井泥不食,井列寒泉食是矣。人乃地産,資禀與山川之氣相爲流通, 而美惡壽夭亦相關涉。金石草木,尚隨水土之性,而况萬物之靈者乎。 貪淫有泉,仙壽有井,載在往牒,必不我欺。淮南子云:土地各以類生 人。是故山氣多男,澤氣多女,水氣多瘖,風氣多聾,林氣多癃,木氣 多傴,下氣多尰,石氣多力,險氣多癭,暑氣多夭,寒氣多壽,谷氣 多痺,丘氣多狂,廣氣多仁,陵氣多貪。堅土人剛,弱土人脆,壚土 人大,沙土人細,息土人美,耗土人醜,輕土多利,重土多遲。清水音 小,濁水音大,湍水人輕,遲水人重。皆應其類也。又河圖括地象云: 九州殊題,水泉剛柔各異。青州角徵會,其氣慓輕,人聲急,其泉酸以 苦。梁州商徵接,其氣剛勇,人聲塞,其泉苦以辛。兖豫宫徵會,其氣 平静,人聲端,其泉甘以苦。雍冀商羽合,其氣駃烈,人聲捷,其泉鹹 以辛。觀此二説,則人賴水土以養生,可不慎所擇乎。【時珍曰】按後 漢書云:有婦人病經年,世謂寒熱注病。十一月,華佗令坐石槽中,平 旦用冷水灌,云當至百。始灌七十,冷顫欲死,灌者懼欲止,佗不許。 灌至八十,熱氣乃蒸出,囂囂然高二三尺。滿百灌,乃使然火温牀, 厚覆而卧。良久,冷汗出,以粉撲之而愈。又南史云:將軍房伯玉,服 五石散十許劑,更患冷疾,夏月常復衣。徐嗣伯診之曰:乃伏熱也。須 以水發之,非冬月不可。十一月冰雪大盛時,令伯玉解衣坐石上,取新 汲冷水,從頭澆之。盡二十斛,口噤氣絶,家人啼哭請止,嗣伯執撾諫 者。又盡水百斛,伯玉始能動,背上彭彭有氣。俄而起坐,云熱不可 忍,乞冷飲。嗣伯以水一升飲之,疾遂愈。自爾常發熱,冬月猶單衫, 體更肥壯。時珍竊謂二人所病,皆伏火之證,素問所謂諸禁鼓慄,皆屬 於火也。治法火鬱則發之,而二子乃於冬月平旦澆以冷水者,冬至後陽 氣在内也,平旦亦陽氣方盛時也,折之以寒,使熱氣鬱遏至極,激發而 汗解,乃物不極不反,是亦發之之意。素問所謂逆者正治,從者反治, 逆而從之,從而逆之。疏通道路,令氣調和者也。春月則陽氣已洩,夏 秋則陰氣在内,故必於十一月至後,乃可行之。二子之醫,可謂神矣。 Explication. [Zhang] Yuxi: Whenever one intends to drink water to heal an illness, it should always be newly drawn from a clear spring. One must not use standing, dirty or warm [water]. It would not only show no effect; it would certainly harm one. Yu Tuan: With newly drawn and well splendor water one acquires the genuine qi of the Primordial Heaven, floating on the surface of water. It is used to boil [pharmaceutical] preparations serving to supplement yin [qi] and also to refine elixirs and to brew tea. Its nature and flavor are identical to those of snow water. [Li] Shizhen: Wells and springs are vessels of the earth. They are reflected in the conduits and blood of humans. It is essential to acquire clean water from far in the

76

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

depth in thick soil if it shall be suitable for consumption. As the Yi correctly states: “Muddy well [water] must not be consumed. [Water from] a well connected to a cold spring may be consumed.” Humans are products of the earth. By their natural endowment they are part of the free flow of the qi of mountains and rivers, and this is closely related to a beautiful or malign appearance, and to longevity and early death. Minerals and stones, herbs and trees are closely affected by the nature of the waters and soil [of their natural habitat]. How much more does this apply to spiritual assets of the myriad items. “Greed and licentiousness have their origin in [the water of certain] springs. To become an immortal and to enjoy longevity depends on [the water of certain wells].” This is documented in ancient records, and we may certainly trust them. The Huai nan zi states: “Humans are closely related to the soil and ground where they are born. Hence the qi of mountains generate more males; the qi of marshlands generate more females. The qi of waters generated more mute [people]; the qi of wind generate more deaf [people]. The qi of forests generate more protuberance-illness;58 the qi of trees generate more hunchbacks. Qi descending from river banks generate more swelling; the qi of rocks generate more strength. People born with the qi of a dangerous terrain often develop goiter; those affected by the qi of summerheat often die young, while those affected by cold qi often enjoy longevity. The qi of mountain valleys often cause blockage; the qi of graves often cause madness. The qi of wide, open spaces often generate humankindness; the qi of hills often generated greed. The people living on firm soil are tough; the people living on weak soil are fragile. People living on clay are tall; people living on sand are short. People living on fertile soil are beautiful; people living in wastelands are ugly. [People living on] light soil are mostly swift in their movements. [Those living on] heavy soil are mostly slow in their movements. Clear water results in a low voice. Turbid water results in a loud voice. Rapid water gives one a light [body]; water flowing slowly gives one a heavy [body]. In all cases such relationships are evident.” Also, the He tu kuo di xiang states: “The nine zhou all have different characteristics; waters and springs do not equal each other as far as the hard and soft [nature of their waters] is concerned. In Qing zhou, the musical tones jue 角 and zhi 徵 are connected. The qi there are rapid and light. The voice of the people is hectic and [the water of ] their springs is sour and bitter. In Liang zhou, the musical tones shang 商 and zhi 徵 are connected. The qi there are hard and bold. The voice of the people is stopped up and [the water of ] their springs is bitter and acrid. In Yan [zhou] and Yu [zhou], the musical tones gong 宫 and zhi 徵 are concentrated. The qi are balanced and calm. The voice of the people is proper and [the water of ] their springs 58 Qi long 氣癃, “qi protuberance-illness,” with an inability to pass urine and a feeling of distension and fullness in the lower abdomen and urinary bladder. BCGM Dict I, 385.

Chapter 5

77

is sweet and bitter. In Yong [zhou] and Ji [zhou], the musical tones shang 商 and yu 羽 are linked together. The qi are galloping and violent. The voice of the people is triumphant and [the water of ] their springs is salty and acrid.” In view of these two statements, one cannot be careful enough to make the right choice given the extent to which the maintenance of human life depends on water and soil. [Li] Shizhen: According to the Hou Han shu, “there once was a woman who had suffered from a disease for years. It was said to be a disease caused by an influx of cold and heat. It was in the eleventh month when Hua Tuo let her sit down in a stone trough and in the morning asked someone to pour 100 [buckets of ] cold water over her. [That person] began to pour [the cold water over her] but after 70 [buckets the woman] felt cold to an extent that she wished to die. The person pouring [the water over her] was shocked and wanted to stop [the treatment] but [Hua] Tuo did not agree. When 80 [buckets] had been poured over her, she emitted steaming hot qi, rising in turmoil two to three feet. After all the 100 [buckets] had been poured over her, he put her, hot as fire, to bed, warmly covered with a thick quilt and let her sleep. After quite a long time, she emitted cold sweat. He applied a powder to her, and she was cured.” The Nan shi states: “When general Fang Boyu had ingested more than ten doses of the ‘powder with the five minerals’,59 he suffered from a cold illness. Even during the summer months he wore doubled clothing. Xu Sibo examined him and said: ‘This is hidden heat. It must be effused with water, but this can be done only during the winter months’. During the eleventh month, at a time when there was much ice and snow, he asked [Fang] Boyu to take off his clothes and sit naked on a stone. Then he took newly drawn cold water and poured it over him; altogether 20 buckets. [The patient] experienced clenched jaw and his qi [flow] was interrupted. His family members cried loudly and begged [the physician] to stop [the treatment. Xu] Sibo grasped them to push them back and eventually 100 buckets had been poured over [the general]. Now, [Fang] Boyu was able to move, and on his back he had [a sensation of ] vigorous movements of qi. Suddenly he sat up. He said that he felt an unbearable heat and asked for something cold to drink. [Xu] Sibo let him drink one sheng of water, and then the illness was cured. From then on, [the general] often effused heat. Even during winter months he wore only a thin, unlined outer garment and his body became fat and strong.” I, [Li] Shizhen say: The illnesses of these two persons were both conditions of hidden heat, as are referred to in the Su wen as “all cases of clenched [teeth], chattering [teeth], and shivering are associated with fire.” The method to cure this is to effuse the clustered fire. The two persons were poured over with cold water in the morning of a day during the winter months because, following the solar term Winter Begins, the yang qi are present in the 59 Ingredients include stalactite, sulphur, quartz, fluor spar and red halloysite.

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

78

interior, and in the morning is the time when the yang qi abound. By inundating them with cold [qi], the clustering and obstruction of heat qi reaches an extreme, causing them to break out and be resolved through sweating. This is based on the idea that items will not reverse toward their opposite if they have not reached their extreme, and hence [such a therapy stimulates] the effusion of the [patients’ heat qi]. This is [based on] the statement in the Su wen: “To oppose [a disease] is a normal treatment; to conform [to it] is a treatment contrary [to normal]. While opposing it, conform to it. While conforming to it, oppose it.” Once the passage ways are freed, the qi are led back to harmony. During the months of spring, the yang qi are released [from the interior]; during summer and autumn, the yin qi are present in the interior. Hence such a [treatment] must be performed after the beginning of the eleventh month. The physicians of these two persons may be said to have been of divine [competence].

【附方】舊八,新二十一。 Added Recipes. Eight of old. 21 newly [recorded]. 九竅出血。方見主治下。 Bleeding from the nine orifices. For the recipe, see under “Control.” 衄血不止。葉氏用新汲水,隨左右洗足即止,累用有效。 Unending nosebleed. Mr. Ye [recommends to] use newly drawn water to wash [the patient’s left or right] foot depending on whether [the nosebleed] is from the left or right [nostril]. This will end [the nosebleed]. Repeated use [of this recipe] has shown effects. 一方:用冷水噀面。 Another recipe. Spout cold water [out of your mouth] on [the patient’s] face. 一方:冷水浸紙貼顖上,以熨斗熨之,立止。 Another recipe. Soak paper in cold water, apply it to [the patient’s] skull, and press it down with a flat iron. [The nosebleed] will end immediately. 一方:用冷水一瓶,淋射頂上及啞門上。或以濕紙貼之。 Another recipe. Sprinkle cold water from a bottle on [the patient’s] head and the ya men [acupuncture needle insertion hole]. Or cover [these regions] with wet paper.

Chapter 5

79

金瘡血出不止。冷水浸之即止。延壽方。 Unending bleeding from a wound caused by a metal object/weapon. Soak it in cold water and it will end. Yan shou fang. 犬咬血出。以水洗至血止,綿裹之。千金方。 Bleeding from a dog bite. Wash [the wound] with water until the bleeding ends, and wrap it with silk floss. Qian jin fang. 蠍蠆螫傷。以水浸故布搨之,暖即易。千金方。 Harm caused by the sting of a scorpion. Soak an old piece of cloth in water and apply it [to the affected region]. When it has become warm, exchange it. Qian jin fang. 馬汗入瘡,或馬毛入瘡,腫入腹殺人。以冷水浸之,頻易水,仍飲好酒, 立瘥。千金方。 Horse sweat has entered a sore/wound, or the hair of a horse has entered a sore/ wound. If a swelling results and [the foreign object] enters the abdomen, that person will be killed. Soak [the affected region] with cold water, and repeatedly change the water. Also, [let the patient] drink good wine. This will result in an immediate cure. Qian jin fang. 魚骨哽咽。取水一盃,合口向水,張口取水氣,哽當自下。肘後方。 Choking on a fish bone. Take a cup of water and [let the patient] face the water with his mouth closed. Then let him open his mouth and inhale the water qi. The [fish bone responsible for the] choking will move down as a result. Zhou hou fang. 中砒石毒。多飲新汲井水,得吐利佳。集簡方。 Struck by the poison of arsenic. [Let the patient] drink large quantities of newly drawn well water. Once he vomits and [urination] flows freely, this is good. Ji jian fang. 中烏喙毒。方同上。 Struck by aconite poison. Recipe identical to the one above. 中蒙汗毒。飲冷水即安。濟急方。 Struck by the poison of knock-out drops. [Let the patient] drink cold water, and this will save him. Ji ji fang.

80

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

中煤炭毒。一時運倒,不救殺人,急以清水灌之。唐瑶經驗方。 Struck by poisonous coal [qi]. The patient feels vertigo and falls to the ground. If he is not given help, this will kill him. Quickly forcefeed him with cool water. Tang Yao, Jing yan fang. 服藥過劑。卒嘔不已,飲新汲水一升。肘後方。 Having ingested an overdose of medication, with a sudden and unending vomiting. Drink one sheng of newly drawn water. Zhou hou fang. 燒酒醉死。急以新汲水浸其髮,外以故帛浸濕,貼其胸膈,仍細細灌之, 至甦乃已。瀕湖集簡方。 Death resulting from being intoxicated with brandy. Quickly soak the hair on the [patient’s] head with newly drawn water. Externally, soak an old piece of cloth in water and lay it on his chest and diaphragm region. In addition, forcefeed him tiny amounts [of water] until he has regained consciousness. Bin hu ji jian fang. 飲酒齒痛。井水頻含漱之。直指方。 Toothache following the drinking of wine. Repeatedly hold well water in your mouth to rinse [the affected teeth]. Zhi zhi fang. 破傷風病。用火命婦人取無根水一盞,入百草霜調,捏作餅,放患處,三 五换,如神,此蔣亞香方也。談野翁試驗方。 Open wounds struck by wind disease. Have a woman of a fire-[life-]mandate fetch one bowl of “water without roots.”60 Add sooth from the bottom of a pot and knead this with your fingers to form a flat pie. Place this on the suffering region, and exchange it three to five times. Divinely [effective]. This is a recipe of Jiang Yaxiang. Tan Yeweng shi yan fang. 墜損腸出。方見主治下。 Protrusion of the intestines following an injury received because of a fall. For the recipe, see under “Control.” 眼睛突出一二寸者。以新汲水灌漬睛中,數易之,自入。梅師方。 Eyeballs protruding one to two cun. Rinse the eyes with and soak them in newly drawn [well] water, and exchange [the water] several times. [The eyes] will re-enter [the sockets] as a result. Mei shi fang.

60 Water emerging from the brick wall of a well that has not yet descended [into the bottom of the well], is called “[water] without root.” See also 05-15.

Chapter 5

81

時行火眼。患人每日於井上,視井旋匝三遍,能洩火氣。集玄方 Epidemic fire eye. Each day let the patient assume a position above a well and glance three times in a circle around the well. This serves to release the fire qi. Xuan ji fang. 心悶汗出,不識人。新汲水和蜜飲之,甚效。千金方。 Heart-pressure with sweating, and an inability to recognize people. [Let the patient] drink newly drawn water mixed with honey. Very effective. Qian jin fang. 嘔吐陽厥卒死者。飲新汲水三升,佳。千金方。 Yang [qi] cut-off with vomiting and sudden death. [Let the patient be forcefed to] drink three sheng of newly drawn water. Good. Qian jin fang. 霍亂吐瀉。勿食熱物,飲冷水一盌,仍以水一盆浸兩足,立止。救急良方。 Cholera with vomiting and ouflow. Do not eat hot items. Drink one cup of cold water. Also, soak both feet in a basin with water. [Vomiting and outflow] will end immediately. Jiu ji liang fang. 厭禳瘟疫。臘日除夜,以小豆、川椒各七七粒,投井中,勿令人知,能却 瘟疫。 To ward off warmth epidemics. During the night following the 12th month, drop seven times seven small beans and Sichuan pepper grains into a well, but do not let anyone be aware of this. This can keep away warmth epidemics. 又法:元旦以大麻子三七粒,投井中。 Another method. On New Year’s day drop three times seven hemp seeds into the well. 口氣臭惡。正旦含井華水吐棄厠下,數度即瘥也。肘後方。 Malodorous and malign qi emitted from one’s mouth. On New Year’s day hold the first water drawn from a well in the morning in your mouth and spit it into a latrine. After several such [spittings] a cure will be achieved. Zhou hou fang. 心腹冷痛。男子病,令女人取水一盃飲之;女人病,令男子取水一盃飲 之。肘後方。 Cold pain in the central and abdominal region. If a male has this disease, let a woman get a cup of water and let him drink it. If a female has this disease, let a male get a cup of water and have her drink it. Zhou hou fang.

82

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

寒熱注病。方見發明下。 Attachment illness61 associated with alternating cold and heat sensations. For the recipe, see under “Explication.” 火病惡寒。方見發明下。 Fire disease with an aversion to cold. For the recipe see under “Explication.” 丁毒疽瘡。凡手指及諸處有瘡起,發痒,身熱惡寒,或麻木,此極毒之瘡 也。急用針刺破,擠去惡血,候血盡,口噙凉水吮之,水温再换,吮至痛 痒皆住即愈,此妙法也。保壽堂方。 Sores associated with pin[-illness] poison and impediment-illness.62 When sores emerge at a finger or any other place, with itch, a hot body and an aversion to cold, or [numbness like] hemp and wood, then these are sores of extreme poison. Quickly pierce them open with a needle and squeeze out the malign blood until all the blood has left. Then hold cold water in your mouth and suck [the sores]. When the water has become warm, exchange it. Continue with the sucking until itch and pain have ended. This is the cure. A wondrous method. Bao shou tang fang. 婦人將産。井華水服半升,不作運。千金方。 A woman about to give birth. Have her ingest half a sheng of the first water drawn from a well in the morning, and she will not suffer from vertigo. Qian jin fang. 初生不啼。取冷水灌之,外以葱白莖細鞭之,即啼。全幼心鑑。 A newborn fails to cry. Forcefeed it with cold water, and externally slightly whip it with onion stalks. This will let it cry. Quan you xin jian. 05-16 節氣水綱目 Jie qi shui, FE Gang mu. Water endowed with seasonal qi 【集解】【時珍曰】一年二十四節氣,一節主半月,水之氣味,隨之變 遷,此乃天地之氣候相感,又非疆域之限也。月令通纂云:正月初一至 十二日止,一日主一月。每旦以瓦瓶秤水,視其輕重,重則雨多,輕則雨 少。觀此,雖一日之内,尚且不同,凡一月乎。 61 Zhu 疰, also zhu 注, “attachment-illness,” “influx-illnesss,” reflects a notion of a foreign pathogenic agent, originally of demonic nature, having attached itself to the human organism. BCGM Dict I, 688-695. 62 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277.

Chapter 5

83

Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: One year comprises the qi of 24 seasonal periods. One such period lasts half a month. The qi and flavors of water change in accordance [with the seasonal qi]. These [changes] occur in correspondence with the climate of heaven and earth; they are not defined by regional boundaries. The [Yue ling tong] zuan states: Each of the first 12 days of the first month stands for one [of the altogether 12] months [of a year]. Fill a bottle with water every morning [of these 12 days] and weigh it. Eventually compare their weights. If [a bottle filled with water of a specific day, respresenting a specific month,] is heavy, there will be much rain [in that month]. If it is light, there will be little rain. This shows that even among days [the qi of water] are not identical. How much more does this apply to [the qi of water] from month to month! 05-16-01 立春、清明二節貯水,謂之神水。 Water kept from the two [solar] terms Spring Begins and Pure Brightness. It is called “divine water.” 【主治】宜浸造諸風、脾胃虚損諸丹丸散及藥酒,久留不壞。 Suitable for soaking and preparing elixirs, pills and powders, as well as medical wines, for all types of wind [diseases] and depletion injury affecting spleen and stomach. It can be stored for a long time without decay. 05-16-02 寒露、冬至、小寒、大寒四節及臘日水。 Water collected during the four [solar] terms Cold Dew. Winter Begins. Slight Cold and Great Cold, as well as water from days during the 12th month. 【主治】宜浸造滋補五臟及痰火積聚、蟲毒諸丹丸,并煮釀藥酒,與雪水 同功。 Control. Suitable for soaking and preparing all types of elixirs and pills to supplement the five long-term depots and for [curing] phlegm fire, collections and aggregations, and gu poison.63 Also, it is boiled to brew medicinal wine. Its [therapeutic] potential is identical to those of snow water.

63 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191.

84

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

05-16-03 立秋日五更井華水。 The first water drawn from a well in the early morning on the day of Autumn Begins. 【主治】長幼各飲一盃,能却瘧痢百病。 Control. When adults and young persons all drink one cup, this serves to prevent malaria, free-flux illness64 and the hundreds of diseases. 05-16-04 重午日午時水。 Water collected on the fifth day of the fifth month during wu hours (11:00 – 12:59). 【主治】宜造瘧痢、瘡瘍金瘡、百蟲蠱毒諸丹丸。 Control. Suitable for preparing all types of elixirs and pills for malaria and free-flux illness, sores, ulcers and wounds resulting from metal objects/weapons, as well as poison of the hundreds of worms/bugs and gu. 05-16-05 小滿、芒種、白露三節内水。 Water from any of the three [solar] terms Grain Budding. Grain in Ear and White Dew. 【主治】並有毒。造藥,釀酒醋一應食物,皆易敗壞。人飲之,亦生脾胃 疾。並時珍。 Control. They are all poisonous. When used to prepare medication, to brew wine and vinegar and also to make food, they all will decay easily. When humans drink these [kinds of water] they will develop illnesses of spleen and stomach. All [data added by Li] Shizhen. 05-17 醴泉拾遺 Li quan, FE Shi yi. Sweet-wine spring. 【釋名】甘泉。【時珍曰】醴,薄酒也,泉味如之,故名。出無常處,王 者德至淵泉,時代昇平,則醴泉出,可以養老。瑞應圖云:醴泉,水之精 也,味甘如醴,流之所及,草木皆茂,飲之令人多壽。東觀記云:光武 中 元元年,醴泉出京師,人飲之者,痼疾皆除。

64 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

Chapter 5

85

Explanation of Names. Gan quan 甘泉, “sweet spring.” [Li] Shizhen: Li 醴 is thin wine, and the flavor of [ordinary] spring [water] is similar. Hence the name. There is no definite place where [such a sweet-wine spring] may appear. If the king’s virtue reaches into the deepest springs, and if his time is characterized by peace, then sweet-wine springs may appear and serve to nourish the old. The Rui ying tu states: “A sweet-wine spring provides the essence of water. Its flavor is sweet like that of sweet wine. Where [its water] flows, the growth of herbs and trees is luxurious, and the people who drink it will often enjoy longevity.” The Dong guan ji states: “In the first year of the zhong yuan reign period (56 – 57) of [Emperor] Guang wu, a sweetwine spring appeared in the capital city. When the people drank [its water], all their obstinacy-illnesses65 were cured.” 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】心腹痛,疰忤鬼氣邪穢之屬,並就泉空腹飲之。又止熱消渴及反 胃霍亂爲上,亦以新汲者爲佳。藏器。 Control. Heart and abdominal pain. When it is associated with an attachment illness66 of the hostile, with demon qi or evil dirt, for all these drink [sweet-wine] spring [water] on an empty stomach. Also, it is best to end melting with thirst67 associated with heat and turned over stomach with cholera. [To resort to] newly drawn water is good, too. [Chen] Cangqi. 05-18 玉井水拾遺 Yu jing shui, FE Shi yi. Water from jade wells. 【集解】【藏器曰】諸有玉處山谷水泉皆是也。山有玉而草木潤,身有玉 而毛髮黑。玉既重寶,水又靈長,故有延生之望。今人多壽者,豈非玉石 津液之功乎。太華山有玉水溜下,土人得服之,多長生。 Collected Explanations. [Chen] Cangqi. These are all the water springs in mountain valleys of jade regions. Where mountains have jade, herbs and trees benefit from it. People with jade in the body have black hair on the head and body. How 65 For various kinds of gu 痼, “obstinacy-illness,” see BCGM Dict I, 194. 66 Zhu 疰, also zhu 注, “attachment-illness,” “influx-illnesss,” reflects a notion of a foreign pathogenic agent, originally of demonic nature, having attached itself to the human organism. BCGM Dict I, 688-695. 67 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567.

86

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

could it be that this is not an effect of the liquids of jade? Jade water flows down from Mount Tai hua. The local people there collect and drink it, and many of them live a long life. 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】久服神仙,令人體潤,毛髮不白。藏器。 Control. Ingested over a long time it turns one into a divine immortal. It benefits the human body, and prevents hair on head and body from turning white. [Chen] Cangqi. 05-19 乳穴水拾遺 Ru xue shui, FE Shi yi. Water from a stalactite cave. 【集解】【藏器曰】近乳穴處流出之泉也。人多取水作飲釀酒,大有益。 其水濃者,秤之重於他水,煎之上有鹽花,此真乳液也。 Collected Explanations. [Chen] Cangqi: These are springs flowing out of locations near stalactite caves. Many people take their water to prepare beverages and to make wine. It massively boosts [the qi]. Since their water is so viscous, it weighs heavier than other types of water. If, when it is boiled, small amounts of salt appear on its [surface], then this is a genuine stalactite liquid. 【氣味】甘,温,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, warm, nonpoisonous. 【主治】久服肥健人,能食,體潤不老,與鍾乳同功。藏器。 Control. Ingested over a long time it lets one be fat and strong. It is edible and benefits the body so that it does not age. Its [therapeutic] potential is identical to that of [water dripping from] stalatites. [Chen] Cangqi. 05-20 温湯拾遺 Wen tang, FE Shi yi. Warm and hot water. 【釋名】温泉綱目、沸泉。【藏器曰】下有流黄,即令水熱,猶有流黄 臭。流黄主諸瘡,故水亦宜然。當其熱處,可燖豬羊、熟鷄子也。【時珍 曰】温泉有處甚多。按胡仔漁隱叢話云:湯泉多作流黄氣,浴之則襲人肌

Chapter 5

87

膚。惟新安 黄山是朱砂泉,春時水即微紅色,可煮茗。長安 驪山是礜石 泉,不甚作氣也。朱砂泉雖紅而不熱,當是雄黄爾。有砒石處亦有湯泉, 浴之有毒。 Explanation of Names. Wen quan 温泉, “warm springs,” Gang mu. Fei quan 沸泉, “boiling springs.” [Chen] Cangqi: Underneath it is sulfur, and this makes the water hot. It also has the smell of sulfur. Sulphur controls all types of sores. Hence this water is also suitable for such [indications]. These places are hot enough to reheat pork and mutton, and to boil chicken eggs. [Li] Shizhen: There are very many places with warm springs. According to Hu Zi’s Yu yin cong hua, “hot springs often produce sulfur qi. A bath [in their water] has an aggressive effect on the skin. Only in Xin an, in Huang shan, is a cinnabar spring with water that assumes a slightly red color in spring. It can serve to brew tea. In the Li shan mountain of Chang an, is an arsenolite spring which does not produce many [odorous] qi. The [water of the] cinnabar spring is red, but it is not hot. Presumably [the color is caused by] realgar. There are also warm springs at places with arsenic. Bathing in them is poisonous.” 【氣味】辛,熱,微毒。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, hot, slightly poisonous. 【主治】諸風筋骨攣縮及𦠄皮頑痺,手足不遂,無眉髮,疥癬諸疾,在皮 膚骨節者,入浴。浴訖,當大虚憊,可隨病與藥,及飲食補養。非有病 人,不宜輕入。藏器。 Control. All types of illnesses such as sinew and bone contraction associated with wind, and stubborn skin blockage, failure of hands and feet to follow [one’s will], and loss of eyebrows, as well jie-illness68 and xuan-illness69. In the case of [illnesses affecting] the skin, the bones and the sinews, [patients] enter a bath [of warm or hot water]. When the bath is finished, [the patients] will experience massive depletion and fatigue, and they must be given medication in accordance with their disease, as well as supplementing and nourishing beverages and food. People that do not suffer from a disease must not lightheartedly enter [such a bath]. [Chen] Cangqi. 【發明】【頴曰】廬山有温泉,方士往往教患疥癬、風癩、楊梅瘡者,飽 食入池久浴,得汗出乃止,旬日自愈也。 Explication. [Wang] Ying: On Mount Lu shan are warm springs, and the recipe experts often instruct patients suffering from jie-illness and xuan-illness, wind re-

68 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely defined skin ailment. BCGM Dict I, 249. 69 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591.

88

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

pudiation-illness70 and red bayberry sores71 to first eat to repletion, then enter a pool and bathe in it for a long time. Once they sweat, they are to end [the bath]. A cure will result within ten days. 05-21 碧海水拾遺 Bi hai shui, FE Shi yi. Bluish-green sea water. 【集解】【藏器曰】東方朔十洲記云:夜行海中,撥之有火星者,鹹水 也。色既碧,故曰碧海。【時珍曰】海乃百川之會。天地四方,皆海水相 通,而地在其中。其味鹹,其色黑,水行之正也。 Collected Explanations. [Chen] Cangqi: Dongfang Shuo in his Shi zhou ji states: “When travelling on the sea at night one stirs the [water] with a stick and there appear sparks, this is salt water. If the color is bluish-green one calls it ‘bluish-green sea’.” [Li] Shizhen: The sea is where the hundreds of rivers come together. The four cardinal directions of heaven and earth are all connected by the water of the sea, and the earth lies in its center. If its flavor is salty, and its color is black, this is the normal condition of the phase of water. 【氣味】鹹,小温,有小毒。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, slightly warm, slightly poisonous. 【主治】煮浴,去風瘙疥癬。飲一合,吐下宿食臚脹。藏器。 Control. Hot baths eliminate itch, jie-illness72 and xuan-illness73 associated with wind. Drink one ge to vomit and discharge food that has stayed in the body for long, leading to distension. [Chen] Cangqi. 05-22 鹽膽水拾遺 Yan dan shui, FE Shi yi. Bittern. 【釋名】鹵水。【藏器曰】此乃鹽初熟,槽中瀝下黑汁也。【時珍曰】鹽 下瀝水,則味苦不堪食。今人用此水,收豆腐。獨孤滔云:鹽膽煮四黄, 銲物。 70 Lai 癩, “repudiation-illness,” most likely including cases of leprosy. BCGM Dict I, 293. 71 Yang mei chuang 楊梅瘡, “red bayberry [poison] sores,” most likely including cases of syphilis. BCGM Dict I, 293, 294. 72 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely defined skin ailments. BCGM Dict I, 249. 73 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591.

Chapter 5

89

Explanation of Names. Yan shui 鹵水, “brine water.” [Chen] Cangqi: This is the black juice that trickles down in the trough at the beginning of the refinement of salt with heat. [Li] Shizhen: The water that trickles down from salt has a bitter flavor and cannot be consumed. Nowadays the people use this water to preserve bean curd. Dugu Tao states: “Bittern boiled with the four [minerals with the character] huang [in their name, i.e., xiong huang (realgar), ci huang (orpiment), pi huang (arsenic) and liu huang (sulphur)] is used to firmly connect/solder items.” 【氣味】鹹,苦,有大毒。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, bitter, very poisonous. 【主治】蝕䘌疥癬,瘻疾蟲咬,及馬牛爲蟲蝕,毒蟲入肉生子。六畜飲一 合,當時死,人亦然。凡瘡有血者,不可塗之。藏器。痰厥不省,灌之取 吐,良。時珍。 Control. Erosion caused by hidden worms infestation, jie-illness74 and xuan-illness,75 fistula illness and worm/bug bites, as well as horses and oxen affected by erosion caused by worms/bugs, and poisonous worms/bugs entering the meat and generating ova there. Any of the six domestic animals that drinks one ge [of bittern] will die in due time, and the same goes for humans. It must not be applied to any bleeding sore/wound. [Chen] Cangqi. Forcefeed an unconscious [patient] with phlegm recession76 to make him vomit. Good. [Li] Shizhen. 05-23 阿井水綱目 E jing shui, FE Gang mu. Water from the E well. 【氣味】甘、鹹,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, salty, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】下膈,疏痰,止吐。時珍。 Control. It discharges occlusions, drains phlegm and ends vomiting. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】阿井在今兖州 陽彀縣,即古東阿縣也。沈括筆談云: 古説濟水伏流地中,今歷下凡發地下皆是流水。東阿亦濟水所經,取井水 煮膠謂之阿膠。其性趣下,清而且重,用攪濁水則清,故以治淤濁及逆上 74 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely defined skin ailment. BCGM Dict I, 249. 75 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591. 76 Tan jue 痰厥, “phlegm recession.” Various ailments thought to be associated with blocked or abounding phlegm. BCGM Dict I, 493.

90

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

之痰也。又青州 范公泉,亦濟水所注,其水用造白丸子,利膈化痰。管子 云:齊之水,其泉青白,其人堅勁,寡有疥瘙,終無痟酲。水性之不同如 此。陸羽烹茶,辨天下之水性美惡,烹藥者反不知辨此,豈不戾哉。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: The E well is located in Yang gu xian county in Yan zhou. In ancient times this was Dong e xian county. Shen Gua in his Bi tan states: “Ancient sayings had it that the river Ji shui flows hidden underground. Nowadays in Li xia, whenever the ground is broken there is flowing water. Dong e is one of the regions passed by the river Ji shui. The glue boiled with water from the [E] well is called ‘E glue’. Its nature is to descend quickly. It is clear and at the same time it is heavy. When it is given into turbid water, [the water] will become clear. Hence it serves to cure phlegm that is stagnant and thick, and [phlegm] rising contrary to its proper directions. The Fan gong spring in Qing zhou is also fed by the river Ji shui. Its water is used to prepare the ‘white pills’77 that free the passage through obstructions and transform phlegm.” The Guan zi states: “The water in Qi appears in springs that are greenish-white. The people there are strong and sturdy; they rarely have a jie-illness78 and itch, and they never are affected by a hangover associated with headache.” There is no other water with such nature. Lu Yu when brewing tea distinguished between a good and a bad nature of the waters in the world. In contrast to him, those who brew medication do not know how to make such a distinction. How could this not be considered a crime! 05-24 山岩泉水拾遺 Shan yan quan shui, FE Shi yi. Water of mountain cliff springs. 【釋名】【時珍曰】此山岩土石間所出泉,流爲溪澗者也。爾雅云:水正 出曰檻泉,懸出曰沃泉,反出曰汍泉。其泉源遠清冷,或山有玉石美草木 者爲良。其山有黑土毒石惡草者不可用。陸羽云:凡瀑涌漱湍之水,飲之 令人有頸疾。【頴曰】昔在潯陽,忽一日城中馬死數百。詢之,云:數日 前雨,洗出山谷中蛇蟲之毒,馬飲其水然也。 Explanation of Names. [Li] Shizhen: This is [water of ] springs emerging from in between the soil and rocks of mountain cliffs and flowing into mountain streams. The Er ya states: “[Springs with] water emerging straight [from the cliffs] are called ‘threshold springs’. [Springs with water] emerging as a curtain are called ‘inundating springs’. [Springs with] water emerging from a narrow opening are called 77 Bai wan zi 白丸子, “white pills,” are prepared from pinellia [root], arisaema root, sichuan aconitum main tuber and fresh ginger. 78 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely defined skin ailment. BCGM Dict I, 249.

Chapter 5

91

‘weeping springs’.” Spring water is good that comes from a distant origin and that is clear and cold, and also that [water is good that originates] from mountains with jade minerals and beautiful herbs and trees. [The water of springs originating in regions with] black soil, poisonous minerals and bad herbs must not be used. Lu Yu states: “All waters that are gushing and rapid, as in waterfalls, let those who drink them develop illnesses of the neck.” [Wang] Ying: Once in Xun yang city, all of a sudden within one day several hundred horses died. [My] investigation revealed, there had been rain a few days ago and it had washed down the poison of snakes and worms/bugs from the mountain valleys. The horses had drunk this water. 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】霍亂,煩悶嘔吐,腹空轉筋,恐入腹,宜多服之,名曰洗腸。勿 令腹空,空則更服。人皆懼此,然嘗試有效。但身冷力弱者,防致臟寒, 當以意消息之。藏器。 Control. For cholera, unrest, heart-pressure and vomiting, resulting in an empty abdomen with contorted sinews. When [such a disease] threatens to enter the abdomen, it is advisable to ingest large quantities of this [water]. This is called “cleansing the intestines.” It is essential to not let the abdomen become empty. If it is empty, ingest [the water] again. Everybody fears this [treatment]. But it has been tested and has shown to be effective. However, those with a cold body and those who are weak must see to it that their long-term depots do not become cold. This is to be avoided with a reasonable behavior. [Chen] Cangqi. 05-25 古塚中水拾遺 Gu zhong zhong shui, FE Shi yi. Water in an ancient tomb. 【主治】有毒,殺人。洗諸瘡皆瘥。藏器。 Control. Poisonous. Kills humans. All sores washed [with this water] will be cured. [Chen] Cangqi.

92

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 05-26 糧罌中水拾遺 Liang ying zhong shui, FE Shi yi.

Water in a food jar. 【集解】【藏器曰】乃古塚中食罌中水也,取清澄久遠者佳。古文曰:蔗 留餘節,瓜毒潰尸。言二物不爛,餘皆成水也。 Collected Explanations. [Chen] Cangqi: This is the water in food jars in ancient tombs. It is best to take [water] that is clear with the dregs having settled over an extended period of time. An ancient text79 states: “Sugarcane has retained its nodes. The poison of melons has ulcerated the corpse.” That is to say, these two items have not rotted. All others have turned to water. 【氣味】辛,平,有小毒。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, balanced, slightly poisonous. 【主治】鬼氣中惡疰忤,心腹痛,惡夢鬼神,殺蚘蟲。進一合,不可多 飲,令人心悶。又云:洗眼見鬼,未試。藏器。 Control. Demon qi, being struck by the malign, attachment-illness80 of the hostile. Painful central and abdominal region. Bad dreams with demons and spirits. It kills roundworms. Ingest one ge. One must not drink much of it, lest it let one experience heart-pressure. It is also said: To wash the eyes [with this water] lets one see demons. This has not been tested. [Chen] Cangqi.

【附方】新一。 Added Recipes. One newly [recorded]. 噎疾。古塚内罐罌中水,但得飲之即愈,極有神效。壽域方。 Choking illness. Simply [let the patient] drink water from a [food] jar in an ancient tomb and he will be cured. This is extremely divinely effective. Shou yu fang.

79 Gu wen 古文:Yi wen lei ju 藝文類聚 ch.4, quoting Xie Huilians's 謝惠連 Ji gu zhong wen 祭古塚文 has zhe chua yu jie gua biao yi xi 蔗傳餘節,瓜表遺犀. Hence gu wen 古 文 might be a misleading abbreviation of Ji gu zhong wen 祭古塚文. 80 Zhu 疰, also zhu 注, “attachment-illness,” “influx-illnesss,” reflects a notion of a foreign pathogenic agent, originally of demonic nature, having attached itself to the human organism. BCGM Dict I, 688-695.

Chapter 5

93

05-27 赤龍浴水拾遺 Chi long xi shui, FE Shi yi. Water in which a red dragon has bathed. 【集解】【藏器曰】此澤間小泉有赤蛇在中者,人或遇之,經雨取水服。 Collected Explanations. [Chen] Cangqi: This is the water of small springs in the marshlands in which red snakes are present. Humans sometimes encounter them. Collect the water following a rainfall and ingest it. 【主治】有小毒。主瘕結氣,諸瘕惡蟲入腹及咬人生瘡者。藏器。 Control. Slightly poisonous. It controls conglomeration-illness with qi forming nodes, and all types of conglomeration-illness with malign worms/bugs entering the abdomen, as well as sores/wounds caused to humans by their bites. [Chen] Cangqi. 05-28 車轍中水綱目 Che zhe zhong shui, FE Gang mu. Water from a cart rut. 【釋名】【時珍曰】轍,乃車行跡也。 Explanation of Names. [Li] Shizhen: [The meaning of ] zhe 轍 is: Traces left by a moving cart. 【主治】癧瘍風,五月五日取洗之,甚良。牛蹄中水亦可。時珍。 Control. Pervasion-illness with ulcer wind. Collect [this water] on the fifth day of the fifth month and wash [the affected regions with it]. Very good. The water collected in the [traces left by the] hoofs of oxen can be [used] too. [Li] Shizhen. 05-29 地漿别録下品 Di jiang, FE Bie lu, lower rank. Earth broth. 【釋名】土漿。【弘景曰】此掘黄土地作坎,深三尺,以新汲水沃入攪 濁,少頃取清用之,故曰地漿,亦曰土漿。 Explanation of Names. Tu jiang 土漿, “soil broth.” [Tao] Hongjing: This [water is obtained as follows]. Dig a pit, three chi deep, into a ground of yellow soil, pour newly drawn water into it and and stir [the water] until it is muddy. Then wait for

94

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

a short while until it has cleared again, and use it [for therapeutic purposes]. Hence it is called “earth broth.” It is also called “soil broth.” 【氣味】甘,寒,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】解中毒煩悶。别録。解一切魚肉果菜、藥物諸菌毒,療霍亂及中 暍卒死者,飲一升妙。時珍。 Control. It resolves poisoning accompanied by unrest and heart-pressure. Bie lu. To resolve all types of fish, meat, fruit, vegetable, medication and mushroom poison, and to heal cholera and sudden death following a sunstroke, to drink one sheng will have wondrous effects. 【發明】【弘景曰】楓上菌食之令人笑不休,飲此即解。【時珍曰】按羅 天益衛生寶鑑云:中暑霍亂,乃暑熱内傷,七神迷亂所致。陰氣静則神 藏,躁則消亡,非至陰之氣不愈。坤爲地,地屬陰,土曰静順。地漿作於 墻陰坎中,爲陰中之陰,能瀉陽中之陽也。 Explication. [Tao] Hongjing: A mushroom growing on maple trees, when eaten, will cause one to laugh without end. This will be resolved by drinking this [water]. [Li] Shizhen: According to Luo Tianyi’s Wei sheng bao jian, “sunstroke and cholera are caused by harm caused internally by summer heat resulting in a confusion of the seven spirits. As long as the yin qi are calm, the spirits remain stored. Once [the yin qi] become restless, [the spirits] are lost. This can be cured only with the qi of extreme yin. [The trigram] kun is the earth, and the earth is associated with yin. Soil is to say ‘quietude’ and ‘conformity’. Earth broth forming in holes on the yin side of a wall is yin in yin, and it can serve to drain the yang in yang.”

【附方】舊一,新六。 Added Recipes. One of old. Six newly [recorded]. 熱渴煩悶。地漿一盞,飲之。聖惠方。 Heat with thirst, unrest and heart-pressure. Drink one cup of earth broth. Sheng hui fang. 乾霍亂病,不吐不利,脹痛欲死。地漿三五盞服即愈。大忌米湯。千金方。 Dry cholera disease accompanied by neither vomiting nor free-flux, but with [an abdominal] distension bringing one close to death. [Let the patient] ingest three to five cups of earth broth, and this will be cured. [During such a therapy, consuming a] rice soup is strictly prohibited. Qian jin fang.

Chapter 5

95

服藥過劑悶亂者。地漿飲之。肘後方。 In the case of heart-pressure and confusion following an ingestion of an overdose of medication, drink earth broth. Zhou hou fang. 閉口椒毒,吐白沫,身冷欲死者。地漿飲之。張仲景金匱方。 Poisoning by mouth closing pepper, with vomiting of white foam and the body being cold as if [the patient] were about to die. Let him drink earth broth. Zhang Zhongjing, Jin kui fang. 中野芋毒。土漿飲之。集簡方。 Taro poisoning. [Let the patient] drink earth broth. Ji jian fang. 黄鱨魚毒。食此魚,犯荆芥,能害人。服地漿解之。集簡方。 Yellow-head catfish poison. When this fish is eaten, [consumption of ] schizonepeta [spike] is to be avoided. It can harm one. [Let the patient] ingest earth broth to resolve the [poison]. Ji jian fang. 中砒霜毒。地漿調鈆粉服之,立解。集玄方。 Arsenic poisoning. Mix earth broth with lead carbonate and [let the patient] ingest this. [The poison] will be resolved immediately. Ji xuan fang. 05-30 熱湯宋嘉祐 Re tang, FE Song, Jia you. Hot, boiling water. 【釋名】百沸湯綱目、麻沸湯仲景、太和湯。 Explanation of Names. Bai fei tang 百沸湯, “hot water boiled to bubbling a hundred times,” Gang mu. Ma fei tang 麻沸湯, “hot water heated to boiling.” [Zhang] Zhongjing. Tai he tang 太和湯, “hot water of supreme harmony.” 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。【時珍曰】按:汪頴云:熱湯須百沸者佳。若半 沸者,飲之反傷元氣,作脹。或云熱湯漱口損齒。病目人勿以熱湯洗浴。 凍僵人勿以熱湯濯之,能脱指甲。銅瓶煎湯服,損人之聲。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. [Li] Shizhen: According to Wang Ying, hot water is good when it has been boiled to bubbling one hundred times. If it was boiled for only half that time, contrary [to one’s intentions] it harms the original qi and causes distension. Elsewhere it is said that rinsing the mouth with hot water will harm the teeth. People with an eye disease must not wash themselves with hot water. People frozen to stiffness must not be washed with hot water lest

96

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

they lose their finger/toe nails. If hot water boiled in a copper jar is ingested, it will harm the voice. 【主治】助陽氣,行經絡。宗奭。熨霍亂轉筋入腹及客忤死。嘉祐。 Control. It supports the yang qi. It moves through the conduits and network [vessels]. [Kou] Zongshi. It is used to exert hot pressure on [patients] suffering from cholera and twisted sinews permeating the abdomen and on those who have died from being visited by the hostile. Jia you. 【發明】【宗奭曰】熱湯能通經絡,患風冷氣痺人,以湯淋脚至膝上,厚 覆取汗周身。然别有藥,亦假陽氣而行爾。四時暴泄痢,四肢冷,臍腹 疼,深湯中坐,浸至腹上,頻頻作之。生陽諸藥,無速於此。虚寒人始坐 湯中必顫,仍常令人伺守之。【張從正曰】凡傷寒、傷風、傷食、傷酒, 初起無藥,便飲太和湯盌許,或酸虀汁亦可,以手揉肚,覺恍惚,再飲再 揉,至無所容,探吐,汗出則已。【時珍曰】張仲景治心下痞,按之濡, 關上脉浮,大黄黄連瀉心湯,用麻沸湯煎之,取其氣薄而洩虚熱也。朱 真人靈驗篇云:有人患風疾數年,掘坑令坐坑内,解衣,以熱湯淋之,良 久,以簟蓋之,汗出而愈。此亦通經絡之法也。時珍常推此意,治寒濕加 艾煎湯,治風虚加五枝或五加煎湯淋洗,覺效更速也。 Explication. [Kou] Zongshi. Hot water is able to penetrate conduits and network [vessels]. People suffering from numbness caused by cold qi have their legs steeped with hot water up to their knees, and they are then warmly covered to have their entire body sweat. It is also possible to achieve these effects with the yang qi of certain medications. [Patients suffering from] violent outflow and free-flux illness81 associated with any of the four seasons, coldness of the four limbs, and pain in the navel and abdominal region are to be seated deeply in hot water to be soaked up to their abdomen, and such a therapy is to be conducted repeatedly. There are no drugs generating yang [qi] that act as fast as such [a therapy]. Persons with a depletion [of yang qi] and cold will shudder when they first sit down in hot water. They must be permanently watched by someone else. Zhang Congzheng: For all instances of harm caused by cold, harm caused by wind, harm caused by food, and harm caused by wine in their very beginning, if no medication is at hand, simply [let the patient] drink a bowl or more of hot water, sour juice of minced pickles will do, too, and massage his belly with your hands until he is about to faint. Then let him drink [hot water] again, and massage [his belly] again until he can no longer tolerate this. Then probe [into his throat] to let him vomit. He will sweat and is then cured. [Li]

81 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

Chapter 5

97

Shizhen: Zhang Zhongjing cures an obstacle-illness82 below the heart that turns soft when pressed, accompanied by a floating [movement in the] vessels, with the “decoction with rhubarb root and coptis [rhizome] to drain the heart” that is to be boiled with “hot water which was heated to boiling,” thereby making use of its light qi and its ability to drain depletion heat. Zhu zhenren in his Ling yan pian states: “There was a man who had suffered from a wind illness for several years. A pit was dug and [the patient] was asked to sit down in the pit, with his clothes taken off. He was then poured over with hot, boiling water for quite a long time while he was covered with a straw mat. When he effused sweat, he was cured. This, too, is a method to penetrate the conduit and network [vessels].” [Li] Shizhen regularly suggests to act in accordance with this concept. To cure cold with dampness, he adds a decoction of common mugwort [leaves]. To cure wind depletion, he adds the “decoction of five twigs,”83 or a decoction of acanthopanax [root bark] to be poured over [the patient] or to wash him. This way, effects will be sensed even faster.

【附方】舊四,新九。 Added Recipes. Four of old. Nine newly [recorded]. 傷寒初起。取熱湯飲之,候吐則止。陳藏器本草。 Harm caused by cold in its initial stage. Obtain hot water and [let the patient] drink it. Once he vomits, [the illness] will end. Chen Cangqi ben cao. 初感風寒,頭痛憎寒者。用水七盌,燒鍋令赤,投水於内,取起再燒再 投,如此七次,名七沸湯,乘熱飲一盌,以衣被覆頭取汗,神效。傷寒藴 要。 A beginning sensation of wind cold, with headache and an aversion to cold. Take seven cups of water. Then heat a pot over fire until it turns red and give the water into it. Then remove it, heat [the pot again] and give [the water] into it again. Continue like this altogether seven times. This is called the “decoction of seven boilings.” Drink one bowl as long as it is still hot, with the clothes on and the head covered to cause sweating. Divinely effective. Shang han yun yao. 忤惡卒死。銅器或瓦器盛熱湯,隔衣熨其腹上,冷即易,立愈。陳藏器本 草。

82 Pi 痞, “obstacle-illness,” a feeling of uncomfortable fullness and distension. BCGM Dict I, 371. 83 The five twigs are peach tree twigs, willow tree twigs, Japanese pagodatree twigs, jujube twigs, and mulberry tree twigs.

98

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Sudden death resulting from [being visited by the] hostile and the malign. Fill a copper container or a pottery container with hot water and press it, separated by a garment, on the [patient’s] abdomen. Change [the water] when it has cooled down. This results in an immediate cure. Chen Cangqi ben cao. 霍亂轉筋。以器盛湯熨之,仍令蹋器,使足底熱徹,冷則易。嘉祐本草。 Cholera with contorted sinews. Fill a container with hot water and press it on [the patient’s abdomen]. Also, let [the patient] step on this container until the soles of his feet have become thoroughly hot. Change [the water] when it has cooled down. Jia you ben cao. 暑月暍死。以熱湯徐徐灌之,小舉其頭,令湯入腹,即甦。千金方。 Death following sunstroke during the summerheat months. Slowly forcefeed hot water [to the patient] and slightly lift his head to let the hot water enter his abdomen. This will bring him back to life. Qian jin fang. 火眼赤爛。緊閉目,以熱湯沃之,湯冷即止,頻沃取安,妙在閉目。或加 薄荷、防風、荆芥,煎湯沃之,亦妙。趙原陽濟急方。 Red and festering fire eyes. When the eyes are tightly closed, rinse them with hot water until the hot water has cooled down. Repeat this rinsing until the problem is settled. The effect on closed eyes is wondrous. One may also add mint, saposhnikovia root, schizonepeta [spike] and prepare a decoction to rinse the [affected eyes]. This, too, is wondrous. Zhao Yuanyang, Ji ji fang. 金瘡血出不止。以故布蘸熱湯盦之。延壽書。 Incessantly bleeding wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. Soak a piece of old fabric in hot water and press it on [the affected region]. Yan shou shu. 代指腫痛。麻沸湯漬之,即安。千金方。 Painful swelling associated with finger replacement. Soak [the finger] in hot water heated to boiling, and this will settle the problem. Qian jin fang. 癰腫初起。以熱湯頻沃之,即散也。集簡方。 When a swelling associated with an obstruction-illness,84 is just beginning to rise. Wash the [affected region] repeatedly with hot water, and it will disperse. Ji jian fang.

84 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641.

Chapter 5

99

凍瘡不瘥。熱湯洗之。陳藏器。 Frostbite sores that fail to heal. Wash them with hot water. Chen Cangqi. 馬汗入瘡,腫痛欲死。沸湯温洗即瘥。千金方。 When sweat of a horse has entered a wound, resulting in swelling and pain bringing one close to dying. Wash [the affected region] with hot water boiled to bubbling and this will result in a cure. Qian jin fang. 蠍蠆螫傷。温湯漬之,數易,至旦愈。華陀治彭城夫人方。 Harm caused by the stings of scorpions. Soak the [affected region] in warm or hot water, and frequently exchange [the water]. By dawn of the next day, a cure will have been achieved. Recipe applied by Hua Tuo when he cured the lady from Peng cheng. 蛇繞不解。熱湯淋之,即脱。千金方。 A snake winds around [one person] and cannot be released. Pour hot water on it, and it will fall off. Qian jin fang. 05-31 生熟湯拾遺 Sheng shu tang, FE Shi yi. Fresh and processed hot water. 【釋名】陰陽水。【時珍曰】以新汲水、百沸湯合一盏和匀,故曰生熟, 今人謂之陰陽水。 Explanation of Names. Yin yang shui 陰陽水, “yin and yang water.” [Li] Shizhen: Because this is an even mixture of newly drawn water and hot water boiled to bubbling a hundred times, it is called “fresh and processed.” Nowadays, the people call it “yin and yang water.” 【氣味】甘,鹹,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, salty, nonpoisonous. 【主治】調中消食。凡痰瘧及宿食毒惡之物,臚脹欲作霍亂者,即以鹽投 中,進一二升,令吐盡痰食,便愈。藏器。凡霍亂及嘔吐,不能納食及 藥,危甚者,先飲數口即定。時珍。 Control. It adjusts the center and dissolves food. [It serves to cure] all types of phlegm, malaria and [illnesses caused by] food remaining in the body overnight as well as poisonous and malign items, evident in distension and a tendency to develop into cholera. Toss salt into [the hot, boiling water] and [let the patient] ingest one

100

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

to two sheng. This will let him throw up all the phlegm and the food, and he will be cured. [Chen] Cangqi. For all cases of cholera and vomiting, with an inability to consume food or to ingest medication, when the situation is extremely dangerous, [let the patient] first drink several mouthfuls and his condition will be stabilized. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】上焦主納,中焦腐化,下焦主出。三焦通利,陰陽調 和,升降周流,則臟腑暢達。一失其道,二氣淆亂,濁陰不降,清陽不 升,故發爲霍亂嘔吐之病。飲此湯輒定者,分其陰陽,使得其平也。【藏 器曰】凡人大醉及食瓜果過度者,以生熟湯浸身,則湯皆爲酒及瓜味。博 物志云:浸至腰,食瓜可五十枚,至頸則無限也。未試。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: The Upper Burner controls intake. The Central Burner [controls] digestion and transformation. The Lower Burner controls emission. When the Three Burners are passable, when yin and yang [qi] are adjusted and in harmony, when a circulation of rising and descending [qi] flows freely, the longterm depots and the short-term repositories will be working smoothly. If the WAY is missed in one respect, the two qi [of yin and yang] will be confused. The turbid yin [qi] fails to descend, and the clear yang [qi] fails to rise. Hence diseases such as cholera and vomiting result. If this decoction of fresh and processed water is drunk, [the situation] will be stabilized immediately. The yin and yang [qi] will be separated and this leads to their balance. [Chen] Cangqi: Whenever an adult has drunk to intoxication or has consumed too many melons and other fruits, soak his body in fresh and processed hot water. This water will then assume the flavor of the wine and of the melons. The Bo wu zhi states: “If one’s body is soaked up to the lower back, he can eat 50 melons. If it is soaked up to his neck, there is no limit.” This has not been tested yet. 05-32 虀水綱目 Ji shui, FE Gang mu. Water used to prepare preserved vegetables. 【集解】【時珍曰】此乃作黄虀菜水也。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: This is the water left after preparing yellow preserved vegetables. 【氣味】酸,鹹,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sour, salty, nonpoisonous.

Chapter 5

101

【主治】吐諸痰飲宿食,酸苦涌泄爲陰也。時珍。 Control. Vomiting of all types of phlegm rheum85 and food that has remained in the body overnight. Sour and bitter [flavors cause] flushing outflow; they are yin [flavors]. [Li] Shizhen. 05-33 漿水宋嘉祐 Jiang shui, FE Song, Jia you. Fermented water of foxtail millet. 【釋名】酸漿。【嘉謨曰】漿,酢也。炊粟米,熱投冷水中,浸五六日, 味酢,生白花,色類漿,故名。若浸至敗者,害人。 Explanation of Names. Suan jiang 酸漿. [Chen] Jiamo: Jiang 漿 is cu 酢, “vinegar.” Cook millet and drop the hot item into cold water to let it soak there for five to six days. Then it will have assumed the flavor of vinegar and white flowers will form [on its surface]. Its color now resembles that of starch, hence its name. If it is left to soak until it has decayed, it will harm one. 【氣味】甘、酸,微温,無毒。【宗奭曰】不可同李食,令人霍亂吐利。 妊婦勿食,令兒骨瘦。冰漿尤不可飲,令絶産。醉後飲之,失音。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, sour, slightly warm, nonpoisonous. [Kou] Zongshi: It must not be eaten together with plums, lest it cause cholera with vomiting and free-flux. Pregnant women must not eat it, lest their children develop bone emaciation. Icecold fermented water of foxtail millet in particular must not be drunk lest it cause premature termination of pregnancy. Those who drink it following an intoxification [with wine] will lose their voice. 【主治】調中引氣,宣和强力,通關開胃止渴,霍亂洩利,消宿食。宜作 粥,薄暮啜之,解煩去睡,調理腑臟。煎令酸,止嘔噦,白人膚,體如繒 帛。嘉祐。利小便。時珍。 Control. It adjusts the center and stimulates the [flow of the] qi. It supports harmony and adds to one’s strength. It penetrates joints, opens the stomach and ends thirst. [It serves to cure] cholera with free-flow, and to dissolve food that has remained [in the body] overnight. It is suitable for preparing congees that are to be eaten at dusk, as it resolves unrest and eliminates [one’s desire to] sleep. It adjusts and brings back to order the [functioning of the] five long-term depots and six 85 Tan yin 痰飲, “phlegm rheum,” refers to pathological products that have accumulated in the body and that are excreted in the process of changes affecting the depots and palaces. They may block the passage of qi and blood and thereby become pathogenic factors. BCGM Dict I, 498.

102

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

short-term repositories. Boiled until it has assumed a sour flavor, it will end vomiting and belching. It whitens the skin, and provides the body with an appearance like silk. Jia you. It frees the flow of urine. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【震亨曰】漿水性凉善走,故解煩渴而化滯物。 Explication. [Zhu] Zhenheng: The nature of fermented water of foxtail millet is cool, and it moves easily. Hence it resolves unrest with thirst and transforms stagnant items.

【附方】舊五,新一。 Added Recipes. Five of old. One newly [recorded]. 霍亂吐下。酸漿水煎乾薑屑,呷之。兵部手集。 Cholera with vomiting and discharge. Boil dried ginger in fermented water of foxtail millet and [let the patient] sip the [liquid]. Bing bu shou ji. 過食脯腊,筋痛悶絶。漿水煮粥,入少鷹屎,和食。孫真人方。 Overeating of preserved meat, with painful sinews, heart-pressure and a [possible] interruption of [the movement of ] qi. Use fermented water of foxtail millet to boil a congee, add a small amount of eagle droppings, and consume all this together. Sun zhenren fang. 滑胎易産。酸漿水和水少許,頓服。産寶。 To smoothen the passage of a fetus and make delivery easy. Mix sour fermented water of foxtail millet with [ordinary] water and have [the pregnant woman] ingest this all at once. Chan bao. 手指腫痛。漿水入少鹽,熱漬之,冷即易之。孫真人方。 Painful swelling of fingers. Add a little salt to fermented water of foxtail millet, heat it and soak the [affected finger] in it. Once [the liquid has] become cold, replace it [with hot liquid]. Sun zhenren fang. 面上黑子。每夜以煖漿水洗面,以布揩赤,用白檀香磨汁塗之。外臺秘要。 Black dots on the face. Each night wash it with warm fermented water of foxtail millet and rub it with a cloth until it turns red. Then apply to it the juice obtained by rubbing sandalwood [in water]. Wai tai mi yao. 骨哽在咽。磁石火煅醋淬,陳橘紅焙,多年漿水脚炒,等分爲末,别以漿 水脚和丸芡子大,每含嚥一丸。聖濟録。

Chapter 5

103

Choking on a bone in the throat. [Grind to] a powder equal amounts of calcined magnetite dipped into vinegar, old tangerines baked over a fire, and roasted dregs of fermented water of foxtail millet that has been kept for years. Again use the dregs of fermented water of foxtail millet to prepare [this powder to] pills the size of qian seeds. For each treatment, [let the patient] keep one pill in his mouth and swallow [the resulting liquid]. Sheng ji lu. 05-34 甑氣水拾遺 Zeng qi shui, FE Shi yi. Water [condensed] from qi rising from a steamer. 【主治】以器承取,沐頭,長毛髮,令黑潤。朝朝用梳摩小兒頭,久覺有 益也。藏器。 Control. To be collected with a container. When used to wash the head, it supports the growth of hair and lets it become black and moist. When rubbed on a child’s head every morning, after an extended period of time an improvement will be noticable. [Chen] Cangqi.

【附方】新一。 Added Recipes. One newly [recorded]. 小兒諸疳。遍身或面上生瘡,爛成孔臼,如大人楊梅瘡。用蒸糯米時甑蓬 四邊滴下氣水,以盤承取,掃瘡上,不數日即效。百藥不效者,用之神 妙。集簡方。 All types of gan-illnesses86 of children, with sores developing all over the body or on the face, and festering resulting in holes, similar to red bayberry sores87 of adults. Collect the condensed water dripping from the four sides of a glutinous rice steamer and apply it to the sores. A cure will be achieved after only a few days. Where the hundreds of medications fail to show an effect, an application of this [water] is divinely wondrous. Ji jian fang.

86 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188. 87

Yang mei chuang 楊梅瘡, “red bayberry [poison] sores,” most likely including cases of syphilis. BCGM Dict I, 293, 294.

104

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

05-35 銅壺滴漏水綱目 Tong hu di lou shui, FE Gang mu. Water from a copper clepsydra. 【主治】性滑,上可至顛,下可至泉,宜煎四末之藥。虞摶。 Control. Its nature is slippery. Above it can reach the peak; below it can reach the spring. It is suitable for boiling medication for the four limbs. Yu Tuan. 05-36 三家洗盌水拾遺 San jia xi wan shui, FE Shi yi. Water used to rinse the dishes of three households. 【主治】惡瘡久不瘥,煎沸入鹽洗之,不過三五度。藏器。 Control. Bad sores/wounds that have not been cured for a long time. Boil it to bubbling, add salt and use it to wash [the affected region]. No more than three to five [applications required]. [Chen] Cangqi. 05-37 磨刀水綱目 Mo dao shui, FE Gang mu. Water used to sharpen knives. 【氣味】鹹,寒,無毒。【時珍曰】洗手則生癬。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, cold, nonpoisonous. [Li] Shizhen: If it is used to wash the hands, they will develop xuan-illness.88 【主治】利小便,消熱腫。時珍。 Control. It frees the flow of urine. It dissolves swelling associated with heat. [Li] Shizhen.

【附方】新五。 Added Recipes. Five newly [recorded]. 小便不通。磨刀交股水一盞,服之效。集簡方。 Blocked urination. Ingest one cup of water used to sharpen knives and scissors. Effective. Ji jian fang. 88 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591.

Chapter 5

105

肛門腫痛,欲作痔瘡。急取屠刀磨水服,甚效。集簡方。 Painful swelling in the anus, leading to a formation of piles sores. Quickly obtain the water used to sharpen a butcher’s knife and ingest it. Very effective. Ji jian fang. 盤腸生産,腸乾不上者。以磨刀水少潤腸。煎好磁石一盃,温服,自然收 上。乃扁鵲方也。 Birth with a [protruding] twisted intestine, with the intestine having dried and failing to ascend again. Moisten the intestine with water used to sharpen a knife and boil with it magnetite of good quality. [Let the patient] ingest one cup warm. This is a recipe of Bian Que. 蛇咬毒攻入腹。以兩刀於水中相摩,飲其汁。救急方。 The poison of a snake bite has aggressively entered the abdomen. Rub two knives against each other in water and drink the resulting liquid. Jiu ji fang. 耳中卒痛。磨刀鐵漿,滴入即愈。活人心統。 Sudden pain in the ears. Drip the iron broth left after sharpening a knife into [the aching ear and the pain] will be cured. Huo ren xin tong. 05-38 浸藍水綱目 Jin lan shui, FE Gang mu. Water in which [fabrics] have been immersed [to be dyed with] Chinese indigo plant [water]. 【氣味】辛、苦,寒,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, bitter, cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】除熱,解毒,殺蟲。治誤吞水蛭成積,脹痛黄瘦,飲之取下則 愈。時珍。染布水,療咽喉病及噎疾,温服一鍾良。時珍。 Control. It removes heat, resolves poison and kills worms/bugs. It serves to cure accumulations resulting from having inadvertently swallowed leeches, with swelling, pain, yellow [complexion] and emaciation. Drink this until a discharge is caused, and a cure will be achieved. [Li] Shizhen. Water used to dye clothes serves to heal throat diseases and choking illnesses. To ingest one zhong warm is good. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】藍水、染布水,皆取藍及石灰能殺蟲解毒之義。昔有 人因醉飲田中水,誤吞水蛭,胸腹脹痛,面黄,遍醫不效。因宿店中渴 甚,誤飲此水,大瀉數行,平明視之,水蛭無數,其病頓愈也。

106

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Explication. [Li] Shizhen: [To apply] Chinese indigo plant water and water used to dye clothes [for therapeutic purposes] is always based on the idea that indigo and lime are able to kill worms/bugs and to resolve poison. Formerly someone was intoxicated [by wine] and when he drank water from a field he inadvertently swallowed leeches causing a painful distension of his chest and abdomen, with his face assuming a yellow complexion. No physician was able to effectively cure this. Subsequently when he stayed overnight in a shop [engaged in dying clothes], he was very thirsty and inadvertently drank this water. This resulted in numerous massive outflows, which, upon inspection, revealed countless leeches. His disease was immediately cured. 05-39 猪槽中水拾遺 Zhu cao zhong shui, FE Shi yi. Water in a pig trough. 【主治】蠱毒,服一盞。又療蛇咬瘡,浸之效。藏器。 Control. For gu poison,89 ingest one cup. Also, to heal wounds resulting from snake bites, immerse the [affected region in this water]. Effective. [Chen] Cangqi. 05-40 市門溺坑水拾遺 Shi men niao kang shui, FE Shi yi. Water from public urinary pits . 【主治】無毒。止消渴,重者服一小盞,勿令知之,三度瘥。藏器。 Control. Nonpoisonous. It ends melting with thirst.90 For severe cases, [let the patient] ingest one small cup, but do not let him know what it is. A cure will be achieved after three applications. [Chen] Cangqi.

89 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191. 90 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567.

Chapter 5

107

05-41 洗手足水綱目 Xi shou zu shui, FE Gang mu. Water used to wash hands and feet. 【主治】病後勞復,或因梳頭,或食物復發,取一合飲之,效。聖惠。 Control. Relapse of a disease because of exhaustion, either because of combing the hair, or it is a renewed outbreak triggered by food. Take one ge [of this water] and drink it. Effective. Sheng hui. 05-42 洗兒湯綱目 Xi er tang, FE Gang mu. Hot water in which a child was bathed. 【主治】胎衣不下,服一盞,勿令知之。延年秘録。 Control. For failure of the placenta to descend, [have the woman] ingest one cup, but do not let her know what it is. Yan nian mi lu. 05-43 諸水有毒拾遺 Zhu shui you du, FE Shi yi. All types of water that are poisonous. 水府龍宫,不可觸犯。【藏器曰】水之怪魍魎,温嶠然犀照水,爲神所怒 是也。 The dragon palace is a water mansion; it must not be offended. [Chen] Cangqi: [The activities of ] goblins and monsters in waters are the results of the anger caused to the spirits by Wen Qiao who burned a rhinoceros [horn] to light up the water [and observe them]. 水中有赤脉,不可斷之。 When there are red vessels in the water; they must not be cut. 井水沸溢,不可飲。【時珍曰】但於三十步内,取青石一塊投之,即止。 When the water of a well boils to the extend that it overflows, one must not drink it. [Li] Shizhen: The only [way to resolve this] is to gather a greenish stone/mineral from within a radius of 30 steps and drop it into [the well]. This will end [the boiling].

108

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

古井眢井不可入,有毒殺人。【時珍曰】夏月陰氣在下,尤忌之。但以鷄 毛投之,盤旋而舞不下者,必有毒也。以熱醋數斗投之,則可入矣。古塚 亦然。 Ancient wells and dry wells must not be entered. They have a poison that kills humans. [Li] Shizhen: In particular during the summer months, when yin qi are present below, they are to be avoided. [To find out whether there is poison], simply throw a chicken feather into [the well]. If it circles around and fails to descend, there must be poison. Pour several dou of hot vinegar into [the well], and it may be entered. The same applies to ancient tombs. 古井不可塞,令人盲聾。 Ancient wells must not be filled lest the person [who does this] turn blind and deaf. 陰地流泉有毒,二八月行人飲之成瘴瘧,損脚力。 A spring with running water in a shady location has poison. Passers-by who drink from it during the second and the eighth month will develop miasmatic malaria, and the strength of their legs will be harmed. 澤中停水,五六月有魚鼈精,人飲之成瘕病。 Stagnant water in the marshlands during the fifth and sixth month contains the essence/sperm of fishes and fresh-water turtles. Persons who drink it will develop conglomeration diseases. 沙河中水,飲之令人瘖。 People who drink water from a river running above sand will lose their voice. 兩山夾水,其人多癭。 The people [who drink] water from [a lake or river] situated between two mountains often suffer from goiter. 流水有聲,其人多癭。 People [drinking] water that emits noises often suffer from goiter. 花瓶水,飲之殺人,臘梅尤甚。 To drink water from a flower vase will kill one. This is especially so when [the water comes from a flower vase holding] wintersweet.

Chapter 5

109

炊湯洗面,令人無顔色;洗體,令人成癬;洗脚,令人疼痛生瘡。 To wash the face with hot water prepared to cook food lets the face lose its complexion. If used to wash the body it lets one develop xuan-illness.91 If used to wash the legs, it lets one be in pain and develop sores. 銅器上汗入食中,令人生疽,發惡瘡。 If a secretion from the surface of a copper container enters food, this lets one develop an impediment-illness,92 eventually effusing as malign sores. 冷水沐頭,熱泔沐頭,並成頭風,女人尤忌之。 To wash the head with cold water, and to wash the head with hot water in which rice was washed, will equally cause head wind.93 Women in particular are to avoid this. 水經宿面上有五色者,有毒,不可洗手。 Water is poisonous that has been left [in a basin] overnight and now on its surface shows the five colors. It must not be used to wash the hands. 時病後浴冷水,損心胞。 To bathe in cold water after [a recovery from a] seasonal disease will harm the heart enclosure. 盛暑浴冷水,成傷寒。 To bathe in cold water during sweltering summer heat generates harm caused by cold. 汗後入冷水,成骨痺。【時珍曰】顧閔遠行,汗後渡水,遂成骨痺痿蹷, 數年而死也。 To enter cold water after sweating will cause bone blockage-illness. [Li] Shizhen: Gu Min travelled a long way. Having sweated he passed through a river. Subsequently he developed bone blockage-illness and dysfunction with loss of mobility, and he died a few years later. 産後洗浴,成痙風,多死。 [Women] taking a bath after birth develop spasm wind and often die. 91 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591. 92 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277. 93 Tou feng 頭風, “head wind,” is wind evil attacking the head followed by pain, or dizziness, or itching. BCGM Dict I, 509.

110

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

酒中飲冷水,成手顫。 Drinking cold water while consuming wine will cause the hands to shake. 酒後飲茶水,成酒癖。 Drinking tea after one has drunk wine will cause wine aggregation-illness. 飲水便睡,成水癖。 Drinking water just before going to sleep will cause water aggregation-illness. 小兒就瓢及瓶飲水,令語訥。 When children drink water from a gourd or bottle, their speech will be slowed down. 夏月遠行,勿以冷水濯足。 After moving a long distance during summer months, do not wash the feet with cold water. 冬月遠行,勿以熱湯濯足。 After moving a long distance during winter months, do not wash the feet with hot water.

本草綱目 Ben cao gang mu 火部目録 Section Fires, Contents 第六卷 Chapter 6 李時珍曰:水火所以養民,而民賴以生者也。本草醫方,皆知辨水而不知 辨火,誠缺文哉。火者南方之行,其文横則爲☲卦,直則爲火字,炎上之象 也。其氣行于天,藏于地,而用于人。太古燧人氏上觀下察,鑽木取火, 教民熟食,使無腹疾。周官司烜氏以燧取明火于日,鑑取明水于月,以供 祭祀。司爟氏掌火之政令,四時變國火以救時疾。曲禮云:聖王用水火金 木,飲食必時。則古先聖王之于火政天人之間,用心亦切矣,而後世慢之 何哉?今撰火之切于日用灸焫者凡一十一種,爲火部云。 [Li] Shizhen: The people are nourished by water and fire, and the people’s life depends on them. Still, all the medical recipes recorded in ben cao works distinguish between [different types of ] water, but fail to distinguish between [different types of ] fire. This is truly a significant omission! Fires rage in the South. The character [huo 火, “fire”] when written horizontally is the trigram ☲; when written vertically is 火 to reflect rising flames. The qi [of fire] move toward heaven; they are deposited in the earth; they are made use of by humans. In High Antiquity, a Mr. Tinder [Mirror] Man observed [heaven] above and [the earth] below. He drilled wood to obtain fire and he taught the people to cook food, so as to avoid abdominal illness. Among the officials of the Zhou, a Mr. Sunlight resorted to a tinder [mirror] to obtain brilliance fire from the son, and by means of a [tinder] mirror he obtained brilliance water from the moon for sacrificial usages. A Mr. Sacrificial Fire Manager handled the administration of [the various types of ] fire. The fires in the country in accordance with their changing nature in the course of the four seasons were used to protect [the people] from seasonal illness. The Qu li states: The Sage Kings [of the past] used waters, fires, metals and wood, and they saw to it that [the preparation of beverages and food] corresponded to the seasons. That is, the ancient Sage

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

112

Kings were very careful to handle [the various types of ] fire in accordance with the [changing] relationship between heaven and man. Why did later generations fail to pay such respect? Here now altogether eleven kinds of fire as resorted to in daily life and for cauterization have been selected to form a “section of fires.” [The items recorded below are adopted from the following sources:] Ben cao shi yi 本草拾遺, 1 item, during Tang 唐, by Chen Cangqi 陳藏器 Ben cao gang mu 本草綱目, 10 items, during Ming 明, by [Li] Shizhen 李時珍 【附註】: Additional comments [are based on the following source]: Yuan 元 [dynasty] Zhu Zhenheng 朱震亨

火之一凡一十一種 Fires I, altogether 11 kinds Yang huo yin huo 陽火陰火, yang fire and yin fire, FE Gang mu 綱目 Sui huo 燧火, tinder fire, FE Gang mu 綱目 Sang chai huo 桑柴火, mulberry twig fire, FE Gang mu 綱目 Tan huo 炭火, charcoal fire, FE Gang mu 綱目 Lu huo zhu huo 蘆火竹火, fire lit with reeds, fire lit with bamboo, FE Gang mu 綱目 06-06 Ai huo 艾火, fire lit with common mugwort leaves, FE Gang mu 綱目 06-06-A01 Yang sui 陽燧。Yang tinder. 06-06-A02 Huo zhu 火珠。Fire pearl. Crystal burning glass. 06-07 Shen zhen huo 神鍼火, divine needle fire, FE Gang mu 綱目 06-08 Huo zhen 火鍼, fire needle, FE Gang mu 綱目 06-09 Deng huo 燈火, lamp fire, FE Gang mu 綱目 06-10 Deng hua 燈花, the snuff of a lamp wick, FE Shi yi 拾遺 06-11 Zhu jin 燭燼, candle remains, FE Gang mu 綱目 06-01 06-02 06-03 06-04 06-05

右附方新一十三。 Recipes added to the entries above: 13 newly [recorded]

Chapter 6

113

本草綱目 Ben cao gang mu 火部 Section Fires 第六卷 Chapter 6 火之一凡一十一種 Fires I, altogether 11 kinds. 06-01 陽火陰火綱目 Yang huo yin huo, FE Gang mu. Yang fire and yin fire. 【集解】【李時珍曰】火者,五行之一,有氣而無質,造化兩間,生殺萬 物,顯仁藏用,神妙無窮,火之用其至矣哉。愚嘗繹而思之,五行皆一, 惟火有二。二者,陰火、陽火也。其綱凡三,其目凡十有二。所謂三者, 天火也,地火也,人火也。所謂十有二者,天之火四,地之火五,人之火 三也。試申言之,天之陽火二:太陽,真火也;星精,飛火也。赤物暾 暾,降則有灾,俗呼火殃。天之陰火二:龍火也,雷火也。龍口有火光, 霹靂之火,神火也。地之陽火三:鑽木之火也,擊石之火也,戛金之火 也。地之陰火二:石油之火也,見石部石腦油。水中之火也。江湖河海, 夜動有火。或云:水神夜出,則有火光。人之陽火一,丙丁君火也。心、 小腸,離火也。人之陰火二:命門相火也,起於北海,坎火也,遊行三 焦,寄位肝膽。三昧之火也。純陽,乾火也。合而言之,陽火六,陰火亦 六,共十二焉。諸陽火遇草而焫,得木而燔,可以濕伏,可以水滅。諸陰 火不焚草木而流金石,得濕愈焰,遇水益熾。以水折之,則光焰詣天,物 窮方止;以火逐之,以灰撲之,則灼性自消,光焰自滅。故人之善反於身 者,上體於天而下驗於物,則君火相火、正治從治之理,思過半矣。此 外又有蕭丘之寒火,蕭丘在南海中,上有自然之火,春生秋滅。生一種 木,但小焦黑。出抱朴子 外篇。又陸游云:火山軍,其地鋤耘深入,則

114

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

有烈焰,不妨種植。亦寒火也。澤中之陽焰,狀如火焰,起於水面。出素 問王冰註。野外之鬼燐,其火色青,其狀如炬,或聚或散,俗呼鬼火。或 云:諸血之燐光也。金銀之精氣,凡金銀玉寶,皆夜有火光。此皆似火而 不能焚物者也。至於樟腦、猾髓,皆能水中發火;樟腦見木部,猾髓見獸 部。濃酒、積油,得熱氣則火自生。燒酒、醇酒,得火氣則自焚。油滿百 石,則火自生。油紙、油衣、油鐵,得熱蒸激,皆自生火也。南荒有厭火 之民、國近黑崑崙,人能食火炭。食火之獸。原化記云:禍斗獸,狀如犬 而食火,糞復爲火,能燒人屋。西戎有食火之鳥。駝鳥,見禽部。火鴉蝙 蝠,能食焰煙;火龜火鼠,生於火地。火龜見介部 龜下,火鼠見獸部 鼠 下。此皆五行物理之常,而乍聞者目爲怪異,蓋未深詣乎此理故爾。復有 至人,入水不溺,入火不焚,入金石無礙,步日月無影。斯人也,與道合 真,不知其名,謂之至人。蔡九峰止言木火、石火、雷火、水火、蟲火、 燐火,似未盡該也。【震亨曰】太極動而生陽,静而生陰,陽動而變,陰 静而合,而生水火木金土,各一其性。惟火有二:曰君火,人火也;曰相 火,天火也。火内陰而外陽,主乎動者也,故凡動皆屬火。以名而言,形 氣相生,配於五行,故謂之君。以位而言,生於虚無,守位禀命,因其動 而可見,故謂之相。天主生物,故恒於動。人有此生,亦恒於動。動者, 皆相火之爲也。見於天者,出於龍雷則木之氣,出於海則水之氣也。具於 人者,寄於肝腎二部,肝木而腎水也。膽者肝之腑,膀胱者腎之腑,心包 絡者腎之配,三焦以焦言,而下焦司肝腎之分,皆陰而下者也。天非此 火不能生物,人非此火不能自生。天之火雖出於木,而皆本乎地。故雷 非伏,龍非蟄,海非附於地,則不能鳴,不能飛,不能波也。鳴也,飛 也,波也,動而爲火者也。肝腎之陰,悉具相火,人而同乎天也。然而 東垣以火爲元氣之賊,與元氣不兩立,一勝則一負者,何哉?周子曰: 神發知矣。五性感物而萬事出。有知之後,五者之性,爲物所感而動,即 内經五火也。五性厥陽之火,與相火相扇,則妄動矣。火起於妄,變化莫 測,煎熬真陰,陰虚則病,陰絶則死。君火之氣,經以暑與濕言之。相火 之氣,經以火言之。蓋表其暴悍酷烈甚於君火也。故曰相火元氣之賊。周 子又曰:聖人定之以中正仁義而主靜。朱子曰:必使道心常爲一身之主, 而人心每聽命焉。夫人心聽命而又主之以靜,則彼五火之動皆中節,相火 惟有裨補造化,以爲生生不息之運用爾,何賊之有。或曰:内經止于六氣 言火,未言及臟腑也。曰:岐伯歷舉病機一十九條,而屬火者五。諸熱瞀 瘛,皆屬於火;諸逆衝上,皆屬於火;諸躁狂越,皆屬於火;諸禁鼓慄, 如喪神守,皆屬於火;諸病胕腫,疼酸驚駭,皆屬於火,是也。劉河間 云:諸風掉眩屬於肝,風火也;諸氣膹鬱屬於肺,燥火也;諸濕腫滿屬於 脾,濕火也;諸痛痒瘡屬於心,鬱火也。是皆火之爲病,出於臟腑者然 也。以陳無擇之通敏,猶以暖温爲君火++,日用之火爲相火,無怪乎後人 之聾瞽也。

Chapter 6

115

Collected Explanations. Li Shizhen: Fire is one of the Five Phases. It consists of qi but does not have substance. It is situated in the context of creation and transformation, it engenders and it kills the myriad items. Its humaneness may be obvious, its usefulness may be hidden. Its divine and wondrous [effects] are inexhaustible. The applications of fire reach everywhere. I have given much thought to the following. All the Five Phase are singular; only the fire has two [kinds]. These two are the yin fire and the yang fire. They are further divided into three classes, and altogether 12 sub-classes. The so-called three [classes] are heaven’s fire, the earth’s fire, and man’s fire. The so-called 12 [sub-classes] include four fires of heaven, five fires of the earth and three fires of man. They may be described as follows. Two yang fires of heaven are [first] the major yang/the sun. This is a genuine fire. [Second,] the essence of the stars. This is a flying fire. When it shows as a red item that falls down [on the earth], a catastrophe will happen. This is commonly called “fire disaster.” The two yin fires of heaven are the dragon fire and the thunderclap fire. Rays of fire are seen in the dragon’s mouth; the fire associated with thunderbolts is a divine fire. The three yang fires of the earth include the fire generated by drilling wood, the fire generated by striking stones, and the fire generating by tapping metal. The two yin fires of the earth are [first] fire generated by mineral oil. For details see the entry on petroleum (09-27) in the section on minerals/stones. [Second], fire in the waters. When rivers, lakes, streams and the sea are moved during the night, a fire appears. Some say: The spirits of water appear at night and hence there are rays of fire. The one yang fire of humans: It is bing ding 丙丁, the ruler fire. It is the fire of the heart and small intestine. It is the fire associated with [the trigram] li 離. The two yin fires of man. They include [first] the minister fire associated with the Gate of Life. It emerges from the Bei hai; it is the fire associated with [the trigram] kan 坎. It moves through the Triple Burner, and it settles in the liver and the gall bladder. [Second,] the fire of Samadhi. It is pure yang; it is the fire associated with [the trigram] qian 乾. To sum this up. There are six yang fires, and there are also six yin fires. Altogether 12. Herbs struck by yang fires will burn; wood affected [by yang fires] will burn, too. [Yang fires] may be brought down with moisture, and they may extinguished with water. All the yin fires do not burn down herbs and wood, but they make metals and minerals flow. When [yin fires] are exposed to moisture, they will flare up; when they are exposed to water, they will be ablaze. If one attempts to break their strength with water, their rays will flame to lighten the sky, and they will end only once the item [burning] has vanished entirely. [Yin fires] are to be pursued with fire, and they are to be attacked with ashes. This way their burning nature will be used up, and their flaming rays will be extinguished. Those in ancient times who understood how to counteract [yin fires in] the body, they comprehended heaven above and sought an

116

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

understanding of the items below. This way they grasped a large part of the principles underlying ruler fire and minister fire, regular treatments and treatments in line with [the nature of a disease]. In addition, there is the cold fire of Xiao qiu. Xiao qiu is [an island] in the Nan hai. A natural fire burns on it. It emerges in spring and is extinguished in autumn. According to the Baopu zi, Nei pian, a certain tree grew there that was small and scorched black, though. Also, Lu You states: in Huo shan jun, when the ground is worked on deeply with a hoe to remove the weeds, [the people uncover] raging flames. But this does not prevent them from planting. This, too, is a cold fire. Yang flames in the marshlands have the appearance of flames of fire that emerge from the surface of the water, as is quoted from Wang Bing’s comments on the Su wen. There are flickering demon fires in the wildernis. Such fires are of greenish color, and they are shaped like a torch. They may assemble and then they may disperse again. They are commonly called “demon fires.” Some say that these are flickering rays emitted by blood. The essence qi of gold and silver. All gold, silver and jade gems emit fire rays during the night. They look like fire, but they are unable to burn an item. Camphora and the marrow of the hua93 are able to burn in water. For details on camphora, see the section “woods;” for details on the marrow of the hua, see the section “animals.” Concentrated wine and viscous oil will burn spontaneously when they are exposed to heat. Brandy and pure wine/alcohol will burn spontaneously when they are exposed to the qi of fire. When one hundred dan of oil are filled [into a container], a fire will break out spontaneously. When oil paper, oiled clothes and oiled iron are exposed to hot steaming, they will catch fire spontaneously. In Nan huang are people who hate fire. Their country lies close to Hei Kun lun. The people there can eat burning charcoal, and there are animals that consume fire. The Yuan hua ji states: The huo dou 禍斗94 are animals are shaped like dogs and they consume fires. Their excrements in turn cause fire that can burn down a house. In Xi rong are birds that consume fire. These are the ostrichs; for details see the section on fowl. Fire crows and bats can eat flames and smoke. Fire tortoises and fire mice/rats live in places under fire. For fire tortoises, see the entry on tortoises in the section “shells.” For fire mice/rats, see the entry on mice/rats in the section “animals.” All these are regularities based on the principles underlying the items controlled by the Five Phases. If one learns of them unexpectedly, he must not view 93 BCGM 51-38: Collected Explanations. [Lei] Xiao: There are animals in the seas that are called hua. When their marrow is given into oil, the oil can be dissolved in water. When a fire burns in water [prepared this way] it cannot be put out. It can only be extinguished by spraying wine onto it. It must not be stored under a roof. Hence, when it is said that fire burns in water, this is not a lie that seems impossible. [Li] Shizhen: This animal fat makes a fire burn in water. This is identical with camphor. Its [medicinal] effects are similar to those of camphor, too. This is something that is no longer known today. 94 Legendary creatures first mentioned in the Shan hai jing.

Chapter 6

117

them as oddities. The fact is, such a view would be evidence of that person having failed to thoroughly comprehend these principles. Also, there are perfect men who may enter water without the risk of drowning, who may enter fire without the risk of being burned and who may enter metals and minerals without encountering any obstacles. When they walk under the sun or under the moon, they have no shadow. Such persons have truly become one with the DAO. Their names are unknown, and they are called “perfect men.” Cai Jiufeng only spoke of wood fire, stone fire, thunderbolt fire, water fire, worms/bugs fire, and flickering fire. Apparently, this list was incomplete. [Zhu] Zhenheng: “As long as the Supreme Ultimate moves, it engenders yang; when it is quiet, it engenders yin. The movement of yang results in change; the quietude of yin results in agreement [with the situation as is]. The successive emergence of [the Five Phases] water, fire, wood, metal and soil brings always forth just one singular [phase]. Only the fire consists of two, namely ruler fire, which is the fire of man, and minister fire, which is the fire of heaven. Fire is yin inside and yang outside, and this way it controls all movements, because all movements are associated with fire. To explain this based on the names, physical appearance and qi engender each other, in conformity with [the succession of ] the Five Phases. Hence one speaks of a ‘ruler fire’. To explain this on the basis of its position, it is engendered out of absolute nothingness. It is endowed with life while it guards its position, and therefore its movements are visible. Hence one speaks of a ‘minister fire’. Heaven controls the engendering of items; hence there is eternal movement. Humans are born out of this, hence they, too, are engaged in eternal movement. All movements are caused by minister fire. As is apparent [under] heaven, the qi of wood are released by the thunderbolts of dragons, while the qi of water are released by the sea. As is apparent [in man, these movements] depend on the two sections of liver and kidneys. The liver is [associated with the phase of ] wood, and the kidneys are [associated with the phase of ] water. The gall bladder is the short-term repository attached to the liver. The urinary bladder is the short-term repository attached to the kidneys. The heart enclosure is a partner of the kidneys. Speaking of the burning of the Lower Burner, the Lower Burner serves to manage the section of liver and kidneys. Both are yin [repositories] located in the lower [section of man’s body]. Without this fire, heaven would be unable to engender the items. Without this fire, man himself would not come to life. The fire of heaven may originate in wood, but it is always based in the earth. Hence, the thunderbolt must be hidden, dragons must hibernate, and the sea must cling to the earth, otherwise they are unable to roar, to fly and to create waves. To roar, to fly and to create waves are movements associated with fire. The yin [nature of ] liver and kidneys is entirely based in minister fire. This way, man is identical to heaven.” Still, [Li] Dongyuan

118

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

held that [minister] fire is a robber of the original qi. Both [minister] fire and original qi cannot exist side by side. One will be superior and the other will be defeated. How can this be? Zhou zi: “The spirit effuses knowledge. Once the items are endowed with the five types of disposition, the myriad affairs will appear. Once knowledge exists, the items are affected by the five types of disposition and they will move. These are the five types of fire mentioned in the Nei jing. When the five types of disposition lack the fire of yang, they will be affected by the minister fire, and this is the end of movement. Once a fire flares up without reason, change and transformation occur without measure and the true qi will suffer. The yin will be depleted and disease will result. Once the [flow of ] yin [qi] is cut off, death results. The qi of the ruler fire are explained in the classics on the basis of summerheat and moisture. The qi of the minister fire are explained in the classics on the basis of fire. This is to say that [minister fire] is much more violent than ruler fire. Hence it is said that minister fire is the robber of original qi.” Zhou zi says further: “Sages are characterized by being fair and honest, benevolent and righteous, as well emphasizing calmness.” Zhu zi says: “It is essential to live in accordance with the DAO as guiding principle of one’s entire life, and in one’s intentions to always follow its orders.” Now, when one’s intentions follow the orders [of the DAO] and in addition emphasize calmness, the movements of the five fires [in the organism] will always remain constrained, and the minister fire will have no other function than to benefit creation and transformation, thereby unendingly securing the engendering of life. How could it be a robber [of the original qi]? It is also said that “the Nei jing speaks of fire only in view of the six qi, but not in view of the long-term depots and shortterm repositories.” It is said: Qi Bo listed 19 pathological processes, with five of them being related to fire. All [diseases with] heat causing pressure and spasm, without exception they are associated with fire. All [cases of qi] countermovement rushing upward, without exception they are associated with fire. All [cases of ] overexcitement and jumping in madness, without exception they are associated with fire. All [cases of ] clenched [teeth], chattering [teeth] and shivering, as if [the patient] had lost his spirit guard, without exception they are associated with fire. All diseases such as fu-swelling,95 pain, soreness and shock, without exception they are associated with fire. This is correct. Liu Hejian states: “All [cases of ] swaying and dizziness caused by wind are associated with the liver. This is a wind fire. All cases of rushing and pent-up qi are associated with the lung. This is a dryness fire. All [cases] of swelling and fullness caused by moisture are associated with the spleen. This is a moisture fire. All [cases of ] painful and itching sores are associated with 95 Fu zhong 胕腫, “Fu-swelling,” most likely referring to edematose swelling. BCGM Dict I, 179.

Chapter 6

119

the heart. This is a pent-up fire.” That is, all diseases caused by fire originate in the long-term depots and short-term repositories. Chen Wuze was an intelligent [physician] and yet he identified the warmth [of the human body] as caused by the ruler fire, and he identified the minister fire as the fire active in daily affairs. No wonder that the people of later times were deaf and blind [when it came to the differentiation of ruler fire and minister fire]. 06-02 燧火綱目 Sui huo, FE Gang mu. Tinder fire. 【集解】【時珍曰】周官司爟氏四時變國火以救時疾,季春出火,季秋納 火,民咸從之。蓋人之資于火食者,疾病壽夭生焉。四時鑽燧,取新火以 爲飲食之用,依歲氣而使無亢不及,所以救民之時疾也。榆柳先百木而 青,故春取之,其火色青。杏棗之木心赤,故夏取之,其火色赤。柞楢之 木理白,故秋取之,其火色白。槐檀之木心黑,故冬取之,其火色黑。桑 柘之木肌黄,故季夏取之,其火色黄。天文大火之次,于星爲心。季春龍 見于辰而出火,于時爲暑。季秋龍伏于戌而納火,于時爲寒。順天道而百 工之作息皆因之,以免水旱灾祥之流行也。後世寒食禁火,乃季春改火遺 意,而俗作介推事,謬矣。道書云:竈下灰火謂之伏龍屎,不可爇香事神。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: A Mr. Sacrificial Fire Manager handled the fires in the country in accordance with their changing nature in the course of the four seasons to protect [the people] from seasonal illness. In the final month of spring, he came forward with fire; in the final month of autumn, he took the fire in again. All the people followed him. The fact is, the extent to which the preparation of food is based on fire is related to the [people’s] illnesses and diseases and longevity, to their dying young and surviving [until a late death]. As long as, in the course of the four seasons, tinder wood is drilled to obtain a fresh fire which then is used to prepare beverages and food, and as long as excesses and shortages are avoided by acting in accordance with the [changing nature of ] qi in the course of the four seasons, the people are protected against those illnesses that are associated with [the qi of ] the seasons. Elms and willows turn greenish prior to the hundred [other] trees. Hence they are resorted to [as firewood] in spring, and the fire [lit with them] is of a greenish color. The heart of apricot and date trees is red. Hence they are resorted to [as firewood] in summer, and the fire [lit with them] is of a red color. Xylosma and you96 楢 wood are white inside. Hence they are resorted to [as firewood] in 103 The botanical identification of you 楢 wood remains unclear. It is described in Chinese literature as a “tree with soft wood.”

120

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

autum, and the fire [lit with them] is of a white color. Sophora japonica [wood] and sandalwood have a black heart. Hence they are resorted to [as firewood] in winter, and the fire [lit with them] is of a black color. Mulberry trees and maclura trees have yellow wood. Hence they are resorted to [as firewood] in the last month of summer, and the fire [lit with them] is of a yellow color. The sequence of the great fires seen in heaven is based on the [movement of the] stars. In the third month of spring, when the dragon was seen at chen 辰,97 [the Sacrificial Fire Manager] came forward with the fire, and this was the beginning of the season with summerheat. In the third month of autumn, the dragon hid in xu 戌,98 and [the Sacrificial Fire Manager] took in the fire. This was the beginning of the season with cold. In their being active and resting, all the workers followed the DAO of heaven and thereby they prevented widespread occurrences of flooding and drought disasters. In later times, on [the day of ] Cold Food all fires were forbidden. This was to mark the change of fire [from being taken in to being brought forth], but it is commonly assumed that [this day is to mark] the Jie Tui affair.99 That is wrong. The Daoist books state: “The ashes left from a fire below a furnace are called ‘excrements of a dragon lying in hiding’. They must not be used to burn incense to serve the gods.” 06-03 桑柴火綱目 Sang chai huo, FE Gang mu. Mulberry twig fire. 【主治】癰疽發背不起,瘀肉不腐,及陰瘡瘰癧流注, 臁瘡頑瘡。然火吹 滅,日炙二次,未潰拔毒止痛,已潰補接陽氣,去腐生肌。凡一切補藥諸 膏,宜此火煎之。但不可點艾,傷肌。時珍。 Control. For effusion on the back of an obstruction-illness and an impediment-illness100 that has not risen yet, stagnant flesh that fails to rot, also, sores in the yin 97 Chen 辰 is one of the “earth branches.” It is associated with the 3rd month in the lunar calendar, with the hours 07:00 to 08:59, the cardinal direction ESE and the phase soil. 98 Xu 戌 is one of the “earth branches.” It is associated with the 9th month in the lunar calendar, with the hours 19:00 to 20:59, the cardinal direction WWN and the phase soil. 99 Jie [Zi]tui 介子推 served King Wen of the State of Jin, 5th c. BCE. Eventually he withdrew with his mother to the forests. King Wen summoned him to his court to show his gratitude. When Jie Zitui refused to appear, the king had the forest set on fire to force him to leave his abode. Jie and his mother died in the fire in 476 BCE. The king ordered that no fires were allowed on that day in future, and food was to be consumed cold. Hence the name of that day, han shi 寒食, “cold food.” BCGM Dict III, 224-225. 100 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against

Chapter 6

121

[(i.e. genital) region], scrofula, and influx,101 shank sores and stubborn sores, [burn mulberry twigs] and blow out the fire. Then cauterize [the affected region with the hot ends of the twigs] twice. As long as [the effusion] has not begun to fester, this will serve to draw out the poison and to end the pain. If it has begun to fester, it serves to supplement the yang qi. It removes rotten [flesh] and serves to engender [new] muscles. All medications that are meant to supplement, and all types of ointments are to be boiled with this particular fire. But [during such therapies] no moxibustion with common mugwort [leaves] must be performed, lest one harm the [patient’s] muscles. 【發明】【震亨曰】火以暢達,拔引鬱毒,此從治之法也。【時珍曰】桑 木能利關節,養津液。得火則拔引毒氣,而祛逐風寒,所以能去腐生新。 抱朴子云:一切仙藥,不得桑煎不服。桑乃箕星之精,能助藥力,除風寒 痺諸痛,久服終身不患風疾故也。【藏器曰】桑柴火炙蛇,則足見。 Explication. [Zhu] Zhenheng: Because [the nature of ] fire is smooth, it serves to pull out pent-up poison. This is a treatment method in line with [the nature of the disease]. [Li] Shizhen: [Medication prepared with] mulberrywood fire eases the movement of the joints. It nourishes the body fluids. [Medication prepared] with such fire will draw out poison qi and eliminate wind and cold. Hence [such medications] can remove rotten flesh and engender the growth of new [flesh]. The Baopu zi states: “All medications of hermits/immortals that have not been boiled with mulberry [wood fire] must not be ingested.” Mulberry [wood] is the essence of the star Winnowing Basket, ji 箕. Its [fire] is able to support the strength of medications and to eliminate all types of pain associated with wind, cold and blockage. This is why after having ingested [medication prepared with mulberry wood fire] for an extended period of time, one will not suffer from wind illness for his entire life. [Chen] Cangqi: If a snake is roasted with fire lit with mulberry wood, its feet will appear.

the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642. 101 Liu zhu 流注, “influx,” appears to refer here to sores with pus in deep-lying regions of the organism. BCGM Dict I, 323.

122

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 06-04 炭火綱目 Tan huo, FE Gang mu.

Charcoal fire. 【集解】【時珍曰】燒木爲炭。木久則腐,而炭入土不腐者,木有生性, 炭無生性也。塟家用炭,能使蟲蟻不入,竹木之根自回,亦緣其無生性 耳。古者冬至、夏至前二日,垂土炭于衡兩端,輕重令匀,陰氣至則土 重,陽氣至則炭重也。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: Charcoal is obtained by burning wood. When wood is left for a long time it will rot, but charcoal even if buried in the soil will not rot. This is because wood is still alive. Charcoal is not alive. Undertaker use charcoal to prevent bugs/worms and ants from entering [a coffin/corpse] and to turn back the roots of bamboo and trees. This, too, is based on the fact that [charcoal] is dead. Prior to the two days of Winter Solstice and Summer Solstice, the ancients placed equal weights of soil and charcoal on the two ends of a scale. With the arrival of yin qi, the soil gained weight. With the arrival of yang qi, the charcoal gained weight. 【主治】 Control. 06-04-01 櫟炭火。Li tan huo. A fire lit with oak wood charcoal. 宜煅鍊一切金石藥。 It is suitable for calcining and refining all medications based on metals and minerals. 06-04-02 烰炭火。Fu tan huo. A fire lit with steaming charcoal. 宜烹煎焙炙百藥丸散。時珍。 It is suitable for cooking, simmering, and roasting of the hundreds of medications, of pills and of powders. [Li] Shizhen. 06-04-03 白炭。Bai tan. White charcoal. 【主治】誤吞金銀銅鐵在腹,燒紅,急爲末,煎湯呷之。甚者,刮末三 錢,井水調服,未效再服。又解水銀、輕粉毒。帶火炭納水底,能取水銀 出也。上立炭帶之,辟邪惡鬼氣。除夜立之户内,亦辟邪惡。時珍。

Chapter 6

123

Control. For inadvertently swallowed gold, silver, copper and iron that are now in the abdomen, burn [charcoal] until it is hot and immediately [grind it to a] powder. Simmer [the powder] to prepare a decoction and [let the patient] sip it. In severe cases, grind three qian [of the charcoal] to a powder and [let the patient] ingest it mixed with well water. If this fails to show an effect, let him ingest it again. Also, it serves to resolve the poison of mercury and calomel. Place hot charcoal on the bottom of [a container with] water [contaminated with mercury poison] and it will absorb the mercury. Charcoal worn on clothes will ward off evil and malign demon qi. On New Year’s Eve placed in a home, it will keep away the evil and the malign. [Li] Shizhen.

【附方】新六。 Added Recipes. Six newly [recorded]. 卒然咽噎。炭末蜜丸,含嚥。千金方。 Sudden choking. [Let the patient] hold in his mouth charcoal pills prepared with honey and swallow [the resulting liquid]. Qian jin fang. 白虎風痛,日夜走注,百節如齧。炭灰五升,蚯蚓屎一升,紅花七捻,和 熬,以醋拌之,用故布包二包,更互熨痛處,取效。聖惠方。 Painful white tiger wind,102 with running influx103 by day and by night, and a sensation in all the hundred joints as if they were bitten. Cook in water five sheng of charcoal with one sheng of earthworm excrements and seven pinches of safflower and mix [the resulting paste] with vinegar. Then prepare with used pieces of cloth two bags and press them alternately on the painful region until an effect is achieved. Sheng hui fang. 久近腸風下血。用緊炭三錢,枳殻燒存性五錢,爲末。每服三錢,五更米 飲下一服,天明再服,當日見效。忌油膩毒物。普濟方。 Intestinal wind with blood discharge that has lasted for an extended period of time or began only recently. [Grind] three qian of solid charcoal and five qian of bitter orange, burned with their nature retained, to a powder. Each time ingest three qian, to be sent down with a rice beverage in the early morning in one dose. Once the sky has lightened up, ingest this a second time. An effect will be reached the same day. 102 Bai hu feng 白虎風: A pain in the joints that increases during the night. BCGM Dict I, 47. 103 Zou zhu 走注, “running influx,” indicates pain moving in the limbs and body so that the exact location of the pain cannot be determined. BCGM Dict I, 704.

124

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

[During such a therapy] abstain from oily and greasy food, as well as from poisonous items. Pu ji fang. 湯火灼瘡。炭末,香油調塗。濟急方。 Sores/wounds because of scalding and burns by hot water and fire. Apply charcoal powder mixed with sesame oil [to the affected region]. Ji ji fang. 白癩頭瘡。白炭燒紅,投沸湯中,温洗之,取效。百一方。 Head sores associated with white repudiation-illness.104 Burn white charcoal until it has turned red and drop it into boiling water. When it has cooled down to a warm liquid, wash [the affected region] until an effect is achieved. Bai yi fang. 陰囊濕痒。麩炭、紫蘇葉,末,撲之。經驗方。 Moist itch affecting the scrotum. [Grind] charred wheat bran and perilla leaves to a powder and cover the [affected region] with it. 06-05 蘆火竹火綱目 Lu huo, zhu huo, FE Gang mu. Fire lit with reeds, fire lit with bamboo. 【主治】宜煎一切滋補藥。時珍。 Control. It is suitable for boiling all types of nourishing and supplementing medication. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】凡服湯藥,雖品物專精,修治如法,而煎藥者鹵莽造 次,水火不良,火候失度,則藥亦無功。觀夫茶味之美惡,飯味之甘餲, 皆係于水火烹飪之得失,即可推矣。是以煎藥須用小心老成人,以深罐密 封,新水活火,先武後文。如法服之,未有不效者。火用陳蘆、枯竹,取 其不强,不損藥力也。桑柴火取其能助藥力,烰炭取其力慢,櫟炭取其力 緊。温養用糠及馬屎、牛屎者,取其暖而能使藥力匀徧也。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: Whenever one ingests a decoction medication, even if the quality [of the pharmaceutical substances] is exquisite, and even if the processing complies with the rules, if when boiling the medication one was careless and hurried, using both unsuitable water and fire, and observing an inadequate duration of the firing, then the medication will remain without strength. Look at the delicious or bad flavor of tea, or the sweet or sour flavor of food, they all depend on the correct or incorrect application of cooking skills; and the same applies [to the 104 Lai 癩, “repudiation-illness,” most likely including cases of syphilis. BCGM Dict I, 293, 294.

Chapter 6

125

preparation of medication]. Hence one selects a careful adult of advanced age to boil medication, and he should use a deep pot that is closely sealed, newly drawn water and a lively fire that is fierce at first and mild later on. When [a medication] is ingested that has been prepared according to the rules, it will always be effective. If to fuel a fire one is to use old reed and withered bamboo, this is to exploit the weakness of [such a fire]; it does not compromise the strength of the medication. If a fire is fired with mulberry firewood, one exploits its ability to support the strength of the medication. [If a fire is fired with ordinary] charcoal, one exploits its releasing its strength only slowly. [If a fire is fired with] charcoal obtained from burning oak wood, one exploits its concentrated strength. To prepare warm and nourishing [medication] one resorts to rice chaff, horse dung and ox dung, and thereby exploits their warmth and ability to evenly send the strength of the medication everywhere. 06-06 艾火綱目 Ai huo, FE Gang mu. Fire lit with common mugort leaves. 【主治】灸百病。若灸諸風冷疾,入硫黄末少許,尤良。時珍。 Control. It serves to cauterize the one hundred diseases.To cauterize all types of wind cold illness, add a small amount of sulphur powder and it will be especially good. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】凡灸艾火者,宜用陽燧火珠承日,取太陽真火。其次 則鑽槐取火,爲良。若急卒難備,即用真麻油燈,或蠟燭火,以艾莖燒點 於炷,滋潤灸瘡,至愈不痛也。其戛金擊石、鑽燧八木之火,皆不可用。 邵子云:火無體,因物以爲體。金石之火,烈於草木之火是矣。八木者, 松火難瘥,柏火傷神多汗,桑火傷肌肉,柘火傷氣脉,棗火傷内吐血,橘 火傷營衛經絡,榆火傷骨失志,竹火傷筋損目也。南齊書載:武帝時,有 沙門從北齊賫赤火來,其火赤於常火而小,云以療疾,貴賤争取之,灸至 七炷,多得其驗。吴興 楊道慶虚疾二十年,灸之即瘥。咸稱爲聖火,詔禁 之不止。不知此火,何物之火也。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: For all fires fired by common mugwort [leaves] it is advisable to use a yang tinder fire pearl to catch the sunlight, thereby availing oneself of the true fire of major yang/the sun. Secondary to this, fire obtained by drilling sophora japonica wood is good. In an emergency, when such [fires] are difficult to obtain, the fire of a lamp lit by sesame oil or of a wax candle my be used to light the stalk of the common mugwort and to apply a mild cauterization resulting in an improvement [of the patient’s situation] without pain. Fire obtained by hitting

126

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

metal, striking a stone or drilling a tinder prepared from any of the eight types of wood, must not be used. Shao zi states: “Fire itself has no physical body; it relies on the items [burned] to obtain a physical body. This is why fire made with metals and minerals/stones is fiercer than fire made with herbs and trees/wood.” As for the eight types of wood, [the use of ] fire fired with pine wood makes it difficult to heal [diseases. The use of ] fire fired with platycladus wood harms [the patient’s] spirit and causes much sweating. [The use of ] fire fired with mulberry wood harms muscles and flesh. [The use of ] maclura [wood] fire harms the qi vessels. [The use of ] fire fired with Chinese date wood harms the interior and causes blood spitting. [The use of ] fire fired with bitter orange wood harms the camp and the guard qi, the conduits and the network [vessels. The use of ] fire fired with elm wood harms the bones and causes a loss of mind. [The use of ] fire fired with bamboo harms the sinews and damages the eyes. The Nan Qi shu records [the following incident]. “During the time of [Emperor] Wu di, a Buddhist monk from North Qi came with a red fire. The red color of this fire was more intense than that of ordinary fire, and it was smaller. He claimed that it served to heal illness. [Patients] of noble rank and commoners, they all strove to make use of it. [The monk] cauterized using seven sticks and this often proved effective. In Wu xing, Yang Daoching had suffered from a depletion illness for 20 years. When he was cauterized [by the monk], he was cured. Everybody said that it was a ‘Fire of the Sages’. An [imperial] order prohibited [its further application], but it could not be stopped.” It remains unknown what kind of an item was burned to produce such a fire.

【附録】 Appendix. 06-06-A01 陽燧。Yang sui. Yang tinder. 【時珍曰】火鏡也。以銅鑄成,其面凹,摩熱向日,以艾承之,則得火。 周禮司烜氏以火燧取明火于日是矣。 [Li] Shizhen: These are “fire mirrors.” They are made of copper casted in a mold. Their concave surface is rubbed until it is hot. Then it is directed toward the sun. The [reflected sunlight] is focused on the common mugwort [herb], which is thereby set on fire. This is what is meant by the [statement in the] Zhou li: “A Mr. Sunlight Manager applies a fire tinder to obtain luminous fire from the sun.”

Chapter 6

127

06-06-A02 火珠。Huo zhu. Fire pearl. Crystal burning glass. 見石部 水精下。 For details, see the entry “crystals” (08-37) in the section “minerals/stones.” 06-07 神鍼火綱目 Shen zhen huo, FE Gang mu. Divine needle fire. 【主治】心腹冷痛,風寒濕痺,附骨陰疽,凡在筋骨隱痛者,鍼之,火氣 直達病所,甚效。時珍。 Control. Painful cold in the heart and abdomen. Blockage resulting from [an intrusion of ] wind, cold and moisture. Yin impediment-illness105 attached to the bones. All sinews and bones with a pain hidden in the depth are to be pierced with a needle [set on fire]. The qi of the fire will directly proceed toward the location of the disease. Very effective. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】神鍼火者,五月五日取東引桃枝,削爲木針,如鷄子 大,長五六寸,乾之。用時以綿紙三五層襯于患處,將鍼蘸麻油點着,吹 滅,乘熱針之。用時以綿紙三五層襯于患處,將鍼蘸麻油點着,吹滅,乘 熱針之。又有雷火神針法,用熟蘄艾末一兩,乳香、没藥、穿山甲、硫 黄、雄黄、草烏頭、川烏頭、桃樹皮末各一錢,麝香五分,爲末,拌艾, 以厚紙裁成條,鋪藥艾於内,緊卷如指大,長三四寸,收貯瓶内,埋地中 七七日,取出。用時,于燈上點着,吹滅,隔紙十層,乘熱鍼于患處,熱 氣直入病處,其效更速。並忌冷水。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: [To prepare a] “divine needle fire,” on the fifth day of the fifth month remove from a peach tree a twig stretching toward the East and carve a wooden needle from it, [with its two ends] as wide as a chicken egg and with a length of five to six cun. It is then to be dried. When it is to be used [for a medical therapy,] place three to five layers of tissue or paper on the ailing area, dip the [wooden] needle into sesame oil, ignite it, and blow out the fire. Then pierce the [ailing area, covered with tissue or paper,] with the hot needle. There is also a method [to treat illness] by means of a divine needle with a “thunderbolt fire.” [For its preparation] use one liang of prepared common mugwort [leaves] from Qin, 105 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277.

128

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

one qian each of frankincense, myrrh, pangolin scales, sulphur, realgar, wild aconite tuber, aconite main tuber and peach tree bark, as well as five fen of musk. [Grind all these latter ingredients to a] powder and mix it with the common mugwort [leaves]. Then cut a piece of thick paper into a narrow strip, and place the common mugwort [leaf ] medication into its center. Then form a roll as thick as a finger, with a length of three to four cun, give it into a bottle and bury [this bottle] underground for seven times seven days. Then dig it up again. When it is time to use it [for a medical therapy,] ignite it above a lamp and blow out the fire. Place ten layers of paper [on the ailing area] and apply the hot needle to the ailing area. The heat qi will enter straight into the location of the disease. The effects are even faster [than those achieved with the “divine needle fire”]. For both these methods applies: abstain from cold water. 06-08 火鍼綱目 Huo zhen, FE Gang mu. Fire needle. 【釋名】燔鍼素問、焠鍼素問、燒鍼傷寒論、煨鍼。【時珍曰】火鍼者, 素問所謂燔鍼、焠鍼也,張仲景謂之燒鍼,川蜀人謂之煨鍼。其法:麻油 滿盞,以燈草二七莖點燈,將鍼頻塗麻油,燈上燒令通赤用之。不赤或 冷,則反損人,且不能去病也。其鍼須用火筯鐵造之爲佳。點穴墨記要明 白,差則無功。 Explanation of Names. Fan zhen 燔鍼, “heated needle,” Su wen. Cui zhen 焠鍼, “fire needle,” Su wen. Shao zhen 燒鍼, “heated needle,” Shang han lun. Wei zhen 煨 鍼, “heated needle.” [Li] Shizhen: The “fire needle,” huo zhen 火鍼, is identical to the “heated needle,” fan zhen 燔鍼, and the “fire needle,” cui zhen 焠鍼, mentioned in the Su wen. Zhang Zhongjing names them “burned needle,” shao zhen 燒鍼. The people in Chuan and Shu name them “heated needle,” wei zhen 煨鍼. The method [of applying them in a medical therapy is as follows]. Fill a cup with sesame oil. Then place two times seven juncus stalks [as lamp wicks into the oil] and light them as a lamp. Dip the needle several times into the sesame oil, heat it over the lamp until it has become red, and then use it [for its therapeutic purpose]. If it is not red, or if it is even cold, then, contrary to one’s intentions, it will cause injury and the disease will not be removed. To be of excellent quality, the needle is to be prepared from iron tempered by fire. The [needle] insertion hole is to be marked with ink to clearly show its position. If this is missed, [the treatment] will have no effect. 【主治】風寒筋急攣引痺痛,或癱緩不仁者,鍼下疾出,急按孔穴則疼 止,不按則疼甚。癥塊結積冷病者,鍼下慢出,仍轉動,以發出污濁。癰

Chapter 6

129

疽發背有膿無頭者,鍼令膿潰,勿按孔穴。凡用火鍼,太深則傷經絡,太 淺則不能去病,要在消息得中。鍼後發熱惡寒,此爲中病。凡面上及夏月 濕熱在兩脚時,皆不可用此。時珍。 Control. For all cases of painful blockage associated with sinew tension and contraction caused by wind and cold, and for paralysis with numbness, needle the [affected area] and withdraw [the needle] quickly. Immediately afterwards, press the insertion hole and the pain will end. If no pressure is exerted [on the insertion hole], severe pain will occur. For diseases caused by cold associated with concretion lumps and nodular accumulations, needle [the affected area] and withdraw [the needle] slowly. Also, the needle is to be turned for the foul [qi] to come out. For cases of obstruction-illness and impediment-illness106 with an effusion on the back that is filled with pus, with [the pus] not yet being visible, needle [the affected area] to let the pus flow out. Do not press the insertion hole. To all applications of a fire needle the following applies. Too deep an insertion harms the conduits and network [vessels]. A too shallow insertion cannot remove the disease. It is essential to think about the middle [between too deep and too shallow]. If following the insertion of a needle [the patient] effuses heat and has an aversion to cold, this is evidence that the disease was struck. This therapy must never be applied to the [patient’s] face and, during the humid and hot summer months, to his two legs. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】素問云:病在筋,調之筋,燔鍼劫刺其下及筋急者。 病在骨,調之骨,焠鍼藥熨之。又靈樞經叙十二經筋所發諸痺痛,皆云治 在燔鍼劫刺,以知爲度,以痛爲輸。又云:經筋之病,寒則反折筋急,熱 則縱弛不收,陰痿不用。焠刺者,焠寒急也。縱緩不收者,無用燔鍼。觀 此,則燔鍼乃爲筋寒而急者設,以熱治寒,正治之法也。而後世以鍼積 塊,亦假火氣以散寒涸,而發出污濁也。或又以治癰疽者,則是以從治之 法,潰泄其毒氣也。而昧者以治傷寒熱病,則非矣。張仲景云:太陽傷 寒,加温鍼必發驚。營氣微者,加燒鍼則血流不行,更發熱而煩躁。太陽 病,下之,心下痞。表裏俱虚,陰陽俱竭,復加燒鍼,胸煩,面色青黄, 膚潤者,難治。此皆用鍼者不知往哲設鍼之理而謬用,以致害人也。又凡 肝虚目昏多淚,或風赤及生翳膜頑厚,成病後生白膜失明,或五臟虚勞風 熱上衝于目生翳,並宜熨烙之法。蓋氣血得温則宣流,得寒則凝澀故也。 其法用平頭鍼如翳大小,燒赤,輕輕當翳中烙之。烙後翳破,即用除翳藥 傅點。

106 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642.

130

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Explication. [Li] Shizhen: The Su wen states: “When the disease is in the sinews, regulate it through the sinews. With a heated needle apply a robbing piercing below them and also where the sinews are tense. When the disease is in the bones, regulate it through the bones. Apply a fire needle and medication poultices.” Also, the Ling shu jing in its discussion of all types of blockage pain affecting the 12 conduit sinews always states: “To achieve a cure, an aggressive piercing with a hot needle is to be repeated until an effect is seen. The transport [openings to be pierced are at] the location of the pain.” It also states: “When the disease of the conduit sinews was caused by cold, then [the spine] will be arched backward as if broken and the sinews are tense. If [the disease is caused by] heat, then the sinews will relax and can no longer be controlled. The yin [(i. e., genital) organ] is lame and useless. The application of the fire needle serves to pierce cold [induced] tensions. If [the sinews relax and cannot be controlled], this must not be treated with the fire needle.” In view of these [statements], the heated needle is applied to sinews that are tense because of cold. This is to cure cold by means of heat. This is the method of “normal therapy.” In later times, [heated] needles served to pierce accumulations forming lumps, and their fire qi was used to disperse the cold and to dry [moisture]. This way, the filthy [qi] were made to leave. Furthermore, when [a heated needle] is used to cure obstruction-illness and impediment-illness107 then this is a method of a “therapy conforming” [with the nature of the disease]. It serves to let the poison qi flow off. Ignorant [practitioners] resort to [the heated needle] to cure harm caused by cold associated with a heat disease. This is wrong. Zhang Zhongjing states: “In the case of harm caused by cold affecting the major yang [region], to apply a warmed needle will cause [the patient to suffer from] fright. In the case of weak camp qi, to apply a heated needle will obstruct the flow of blood. [Patients] will effuse heat and experience unrest and restlessness. If in the case of a major yang disease, [a treatment is applied] to cause a discharge, then this will result in an obstacle-illness108 below the heart. When in the case of both inner and outer depletion, and yin and yang [qi] exhaustion, a burned needle is applied on top of this, and if then the [patient’s] chest experiences unrest, with his facial complexion being greenish-yellow and his skin being moist, then this is difficult to cure.” In all these cases those who apply the [heated] needle are not aware of the principles underlying the insertion of the needle in conformity with the required knowledge, and hence they use them faultily, 107 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642. 108 Pi 痞, “obstacle-illness,” a feeling of uncomfortable fullness and distension. BCGM Dict I, 371.

Chapter 6

131

causing harm to the persons [treated]. Also, for all liver depletions associated with dimmed vision and profuse tearflow, or redness [of the eyes] because of wind with the formation of thick shade membranes [in the eyes], or depletion exhaustion of the five long-term depots with wind and fire ascending to rush to the eyes and causing the formation of a shade, or109 if following a disease a white membrane develops with loss of vision, for all these [conditions] it is appropriate to apply the method of “ironing.” The fact is, when the qi and the blood are warmed, they will flow freely. When they are exposed to cold, they will coagulate and [their passage] will be rough. The method [is as follows]. Take a needle with a flat head the size of the shade [to be treated]. Heat it until it has become red, and carefully lower it on the shade to brand it. This will let the shade break open. Then apply medication topically to remove the [remains of the] shade. 06-09 燈火綱目 Deng huo, FE Gang mu. Lamp fire. 【主治】小兒驚風昏迷,搐搦竄視諸病。又治頭風脹痛,視頭額太陽絡脉 盛處,以燈心蘸麻油點燈焠之,良。外痔腫痛者,亦焠之。油能去風解 毒,火能通經也。小兒初生,因冒寒氣欲絶者,勿斷臍,急烘絮包之,將 胎衣烘熱,用燈炷於臍下往來燎之,煖氣入腹内,氣回自甦。又燒銅匙 柄,熨烙眼弦内,去風退赤,甚妙。時珍。 Control. Fright wind110 of children with clouding and confusion. All types of convulsion and scurrying vision disease. Also, to cure head wind111 with swelling and pain, inspect the major yang network [vessel] on the head and forehead to locate where it is filled, and apply a cauterization there with rushes dipped in sesame oil and lighted with a lamp. This is good. Also, cauterize external piles associated with a painful swelling. The oil is capable of removing wind and resolving poison. The fire is capable of penetrating the conduits. When a newborn child because of an attack by cold qi is close to having [the flow of qi and blood] cut off, do not sever the umbilical cord, but quickly wrap it with a warm wadding to warm the [expelled] placenta. In addition repeatedly move and remove again a lamp wick to and from 109 Given the structure of this sentence, the character cheng 成 appears to be an erroneous writing of huo 或, “or.” 110 Jing feng 驚風, “fright wind,” a condition of children characterised by jerking and arched back rigidity, eyeballs turned upward, and twitching hands and legs.BCGM Dict I, 261, also 238, 240. 111 Tou feng 頭風, “head wind,” is wind evil attacking the head followed by pain, or dizziness, or itching. BCGM Dict I, 509.

132

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

below the [child’s] navel to apply heat there. The warmth qi will enter the abdomen. Once the qi have returned [to the child] it will come to life again. Also, heat the handle of a copper spoon and exert hot pressure to the inside of the margins of the eyes to remove wind and cause the redness to retreat. Very wondrous. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】凡燈,惟胡麻油、蘇子油然者,能明目治病。其諸魚 油、諸禽獸油、諸菜子油、棉花子油、桐油、豆油、石腦油諸燈煙,皆能 損目,亦不治病也。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: For all [applications of ] lamp [fire], only those fired by sesame oil and perilla fruit oil will be capable of clearing the eyes and curing disease. All the fumes emitted by lamps fired with any type of fish oil, any type of bird or animal oil, any type of vegetable oil, cotton seed oil, vermicia oil, soybean oil and naphta will cause injuries to the eyes, and they will not serve to cure a disease.

【附方】新七。 Added Recipes. Seven newly [recorded]. 攪腸沙痛。陰陽腹痛,手足冷,但身上有紅點,以燈草蘸油點火,焠於點 上。濟急方。 Painful twisting intestines sand.112 Presence of both yin and yang [types of cramps] associated with abdominal pain. Cold hands and feet. Red dots covering the body. Dip juncus rushes into [sesame] oil and light them over a [lamp] fire. Then cauterize the [red] dots with them. Ji ji fang. 小兒諸驚。仰向後者,燈火焠其顖門、兩眉齊之上下;眼翻不下者,焠其 臍之上下;不省人事者,焠其手足心、心之上下;手拳不開,口往上者, 焠其頂心、兩手心;撮口出白沫者,焠其口上下、手足心。小兒驚風秘訣。 All types of fright of children. When [their body] is arched backward, use lamp fire to cauterize their fontanel and the region above and below the middle between the two eyebrows. When their eyes are turned upward and fail to come down again, cauterize the region above and below their navel. When they have lost consciousness and fail to recognize one, cauterize the palms of their hands and feet, and the region above and below the heart. When the hands are cramped to fists and do not open, and [the head is bent backward so that the] mouth shows upward, cauterize the center of the top of the head, and the palms of the hands. In the case of a pursed 112 Jiao chang sha 攪腸沙, “twisting intestines sand:” A pain in the heart and abdomen, associated with cold sweat and further extremely uncomfortable conditions. BCGM Dict I, 247.

Chapter 6

133

mouth releasing white foam, cauterize the region above and below the mouth, and the palms of the hands and the feet. Xiao er jing feng mi jue. 百蟲咬傷。以燈火熏之,出水妙。濟急方。 Harm caused by the bites of any of the hundreds of worms/bugs. Steam [the affected region] with the fumes of a lamp fire to cause water to leave. Wondrous. Ji ji fang. 楊梅毒瘡。方廣心法附餘用鈆汞結砂、銀硃各二錢,白花蛇一錢,爲末, 作紙撚七條。初日用三條,自後日用一條,香油點燈于烘爐中,放被内蓋 卧,勿透風。須食飽,口含椒茶,熱則吐去再含。 Red bayberry poison sores.113 Fang Guang in his Xin fa fu yu [recommends to grind] two qian each of a sand generated by a reaction of lead with mercury and vermilion, and one qian of silverbanded krait to a powder and to form seven rolls of paper [to enclose the powder]. On the first day use three such rolls, and thereafter one roll per day. Light the rolls as lamp wicks fired by sesame oil, place them into an oven [to develop fumes without an open flame], and cover [the oven and the patient] with a quilt while he lies down. He must not be exposed to wind. [The patient] is to have eaten to repletion, and to hold in his mouth pepper and tea. Once [the tea leaves] have got hot, he is to spit them out and to take [fresh cold leaves] into his mouth again. 神燈熏法:用銀朱二錢,孩兒茶、龍掛香、皂角子各一錢,爲末,以紙卷 作燈心大,長三寸,每用一條,安燈盞内,香油浸點,置水桶中,以被圍 坐,用鼻吸煙嚥之。口含冷茶,熱則吐去。日熏二次。三日後口中破皮, 以陳醬水漱之。 Fumigation method with the “divine lamp.” [Grind] two qian of vermilion and one qian each of catechu, incense sticks hung by iron or copper strings, and gleditsia seeds to a powder, and wrap this with paper to form rolls as big as a lamp wick, with a length of three cun. For each application use one such roll. Give it into the bowl of an oil lamp to soak in sesame oil and ignite it. Then place [the lamp with the burning wick] into a water bucket and let the patient, tightly covered with a quilt, sit on it. With his nose he is to inhale the fumes and then swallow them. In his mouth he is to hold cold tea. Once [the tea] has got hot, he is to spit it out. Such fumigation is to be performed twice a day. After three days, the skin in the [patient’s] mouth will break open. It is to be rinsed with long kept fermented water of foxtail millet.

113 Yang mei chuang 楊梅瘡, “red bayberry [poison] sores,” most likely including cases of syphilis. BCGM Dict I, 293, 294.

134

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

神燈照法:治楊梅瘡年久破爛坑陷者。用銀朱、水粉、線香各三錢,乳 香、没藥各五分,片腦二分,爲末,以紙卷作撚,浸油點燈照瘡,日三 次,七日見效。須先服通聖散數貼,臨時口含椒茶,以防毒氣入齒也。 The method to “illuminate with the divine lamp.” To cure red bayberry sores, sores that have lasted for years, causing [the skin] to break open and decay, with holes and indentations. [Grind] three qian each of vermilion, lead carbonate and slender incense sticks, five fen each of frankincense and myrrh, and two fen of borneol to a powder. This is to be wrapped with one’s fingers in paper rolls that are soaked in sesame oil and ignited as a lamp to illuminate the sores. This is performed three times a day, and after seven days an effect will be visible. Prior to [this therapy, the patient] is to ingest several doses of the “powder to communicate with the sages.”114 When the time [for the treatment] has come, he is to hold pepper and tea in his mouth lest poison qi enter his teeth. 年深疥癬,遍身延蔓者,硫黄、艾葉研匀作撚,浸油點燈,于被中熏之。 以油塗口鼻耳目,露之。集玄方。 Jie-illness115 and xuan-illness116 that have lasted for years, and have spread to cover the entire body. Grind sulphur and common mugwort leaves evenly mixed [to a powder] and form, with your fingers, rolls to be soaked in sesame oil and to be lit as a lamp. [Cover the lamp and the patient] with a quilt to let him be fumigated. Also, apply oil to [the patient’s] mouth, nose, ears and eyes, and leave them uncovered [so that they are not exposed to the fumes]. 06-10 燈花拾遺 Deng hua, FE Shi yi. The snuff of a lamp wick. 【氣味】缺。 Qi and Flavor. Missing. 【主治】傅金瘡,止血生肉。藏器。小兒邪熱在心,夜啼不止,以二三 顆,燈心湯調,抹乳吮之。時珍。 114 Ingredients include: Saposhnikovia root, ligusticum [root], angelica root, paeonia [root], rhubarb root, mentha stem/leaf, ephedra [herb], forsythia [root], mirabilite, gypsum, scutellaria root, platycodon [root], talc, glycyrrhiza [root], schizonepeta [spike], atractylodes [rhizome], gardenia [fruit], fresh ginger. 115 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely defined skin ailment. BCGM Dict I, 249. 116 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591.

Chapter 6

135

Control. Applied to wounds caused by metal objects/weapons, it ends bleeding and stimulates the growth of flesh. [Chen] Cangqi. When children incessantly cry at night because of evil heat in their heart, give two or three pieces of snuff into a decoction of common rushes and smear this on the teats [of its nursing mother] for the child to suck. 【發明】【時珍曰】昔陸賈言燈花爆而百事喜,漢書 藝文志有占燈花術, 則燈花固靈物也。錢乙用治夜啼,其亦取此義乎。我明宗室富順王一孫, 嗜燈花,但聞其氣,即哭索不已。時珍胗之,曰:此癖也。以殺蟲治癖之 藥丸服,一料而愈。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: In ancient times, Lu Jia said that when the snuff of a lamp wick suddenly bursts out in fire, this means happiness in all respects, and the section Yi wen zhi of the Han shu advises on the techniques of using snuff for divination. That is, snuff is definitely an item with numinous potential. When Qian Yi resorted to it to cure crying [of children] during the night, this was based on this understanding. My own [experience is as follows]. A grandson of the Prince of Fu shun, a member of the imperial clan, was addicted to snuff. He only needed to smell its qi and he began to cry and demand for it without end. [I, Li] Shizhen examined him, and [I] said: This is an aggregation-illness. He was given pills as a medication to kill worms/bugs and to cure aggregation-illness. After taking one dose he was cured. 06-11 燭燼綱目 Zhu jin, FE Gang mu. Candle remains. 【集解】【時珍曰】燭有蜜蠟燭、蟲蠟燭、桕油燭、牛脂燭,惟蜜蠟、桕 油者,燼可入藥。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: Among candles are candles made of beeswax, candles made of the wax of bugs/worms, candles made of the oil of the tallow tree and candles made of the fat of oxen. Only the remains of those made of beeswax and the oil of the tallow tree are to be added to medication. 【氣味】缺。 Qi and Flavor. Missing. 【主治】丁腫,同胡麻、鍼砂等分,爲末,和醋傅之。治九漏,同陰乾馬 齒莧等分,爲末,以泔水洗净,和臘豬脂傅之,日三上。時珍。

136

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Control. For pin[-illness]117 swelling, [grind candle remains] with sesame seeds and [iron] needle fragments to a powder, mix it with vinegar and apply this [to the affected region]. To cure the nine types of leakage [grind it] together with an equal amount of purslane, dried in a shady location, to a powder. Cleanse [the powder] with water in which rice was washed, and mix it with lard collected in the 12th month. Apply [the resulting ointment] to [the affected region], three times a day. [Li] Shizhen.

117 Ding 丁, “pin[-illness],” also ding 疔, “pin-illness,” refers to a deep-reaching and festering hardness in a tissue, eventually rising above the skin like a pinhead. BCGM Dict I, 127129.

本草綱目 Ben cao gang mu 土部目録 Section Soils, Contents 第七卷 Chapter 7 李時珍曰:土者五行之主,坤之體也。具五色而以黄爲正色,具五味而以 甘爲正味。是以禹貢辨九州之土色,周官辨十有二壤之土性。蓋其爲德, 至柔而剛,至静有常,兼五行生萬物而不與其能,坤之德其至矣哉。在人 則脾胃應之,故諸土入藥,皆取其裨助戊己之功。今集土屬六十一種爲土 部。舊本三十九種,散見玉石部。 Li Shizhen: Soil is the chief of the Five Phases; it is the physical embodiment of [the trigram] kun. It appears in all the five colors, but yellow is the proper color [of soil]. It appears with all the five flavors, but sweet is the proper flavor [of soil]. Hence in the Yu gong the colors of the soil of the nine divisions [of our country] are distinguished, and the Zhou guan distinguishes among the natural dispositions of the soil of the 12 regions. The fact is, [soil] is endowed with utmost softness and hardness, as well as utmost calmness as its regular feature. It is linked to the Five Phases’ engendering of the myriad items, but this does not exhaust its potential. It exemplifies the utmost endowment of [feminity as reflected by the trigram] kun 坤. In man, the spleen and the stomach correspond to it. Hence, whenever soil is added to medication, this serves always to assist the activities of [the long-term depot and short-term repository associated with] the 5th and the 6th of the [ten] celestial stems. Here now 61 kinds of soil are brought together to form the section on soils. In older [versions of ben cao works] 39 kinds had been listed scattered in the section on jades and minerals/stones. [The items recorded below are adopted from the following sources:] Shen non ben jing 神農本經, 2 items, during Liang 梁, by Tao Hongjing 陶弘景註 Ming yi bie lu 名醫别録: 3 items, during Liang 梁.

138

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Tang ben cao 唐本草: 3 items, during Tang 唐, by Su Gong 蘇恭 Ben cao shi yi 本草拾遺: 21 items, during Tang 唐, by Chen Cangqi 陳藏器. Si sheng ben cao 四聲本草: 1 item, during Tang 唐, by Xiao Bing 蕭炳 Kai bao ben cao 開寶本草: 1 item, during Song 宋, by Ma Zhi 馬志 Zheng lei ben cao 證類本草: 1 item, during Song, by Tang Shenwei 唐慎微 Yan yi bu yi 衍義補遺: 1 item, during Yuan 元, by Zhu Zhenheng 朱震亨 Ben cao gang mu 本草綱目: 21 items, during Ming 明, by Li Shizhen 李時珍. 【附註】: Additional comments [are based on the following sources]: Wei 魏 [dynasty]: Li Dangzhi 李 當之, Yao lu 藥録 Wu Pu 吴普, 本草 Ben cao Song 宋 [dynasty]: Lei Xiao 雷斅, Pao zhi 炮炙 Qi 齊 [dynasty]: Xu Zhicai 徐之才, Yao dui 藥對 Tang 唐 [dynasty]: Zhen Quan 甄權, Yao xing 藥性 Sun Simiao 孫思邈, Qian jin 千金 Tang 唐 [dynasty]: Yang Sunzhi 楊損之, Shan fan 删繁 Shu 蜀 [dynasty]: Han Baosheng 韓保昇, Chong zhu 重註 Song 宋 [dynasty] Su Song 蘇頌, Tu jing 圖經 Da Ming, Rihua 大明日華 Song 宋 [dynasty] Kou Zongshi 寇宗奭, Yan yi 衍義

Chapter 7

139

Jin 金 Zhang Yuansu 張元素, Zhen zhu nang 珍珠囊 Yuan 元 [dynasty]: Li Gao 李杲, Fa xiang 法象 Yuan 元 [dynasty]: Wang Haogu 王好古, Tang ye 湯液 Ming 明 [dynasty]: Wang Ji 汪機, Hui bian 會編 Chen Jiamo 陳嘉謨, Meng quan 蒙筌

土之一凡六十一種 Soils I, altogether 61 kinds. Bai e 白堊, chalk, FE Ben jing 本經 Gan tu 甘土, bentonite, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Chi tu 赤土, red soil, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Huang tu 黄土, yellow soil, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Dong bi tu 東壁土, soil of a wall facing East, FE Bie lu 别録 Tai yang tu 太陽土, soil removed from the ground in relation to the position of the major yang constellation in the nine mansions diagram, FE Gang mu 綱目 07-06-A01 [zhi ri] tin xing tu [執日]天星土, soil [collected on a zhi day] from a location defined by the associated celestial stem and earth branch. 07-06-A02 Liu gui shang tu 六癸上土, soil from a location in the North collected on a zhi day at any of the six gui hours. 07-06-A03 Shang ren ri tu 上壬日土, soil taken from a location in the North at any of the ren hours [in the second month]. 07-06-A4 Qing ming xu shang tu 清明戌上土, soil taken from a 0location in the North-West on a clear day. 07-06-A5 Shen hou tu 神后土, soil taken on the second day of a year. 07-07 Tian zi ji tian san tui li xia tu 天子耤田三推犁下土, soil from below the plow pushed three times by the Emperor to till the fields. SE Shi yi 拾遺 07-01 07-02 07-03 07-04 07-05 07-06

140

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

07-07-A01 She ji tan tu 社稷壇土, soil from a platform erected to worship the god of the land and the god of the grains. 07-07-A02 Chun niu tu 春牛土, soil from the oxen in spring. 07-07-A03 Fu jia tu 富家土, soil from the home of a wealthy family. 07-07-A04 Ting bu zhong tu 亭部中土, soil from the location of a pavillion. 07-08 Dao zhong re tu 道中熱土, soil from a heated road, FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-09 Che nian tu 車輦土, soil from chariots and carriages, FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-10 Shi men tu 市門土, soil from the gate to the market, FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-11 Hu xian xia tu 户限下土, soil from below the threshold of a door, FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-12 Qian bu feng 千步峰, heaps [of soil accumulated by] one thousand steps, FE Gang mu 綱目 07-13 Xie di xia tu 鞋底下土, soil from below the soles of straw sandals, FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-14 Zhu xia tu 柱下土, soil from the bottom of pillars, FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-15 Chuang jiao xia tu 牀脚下土, soil from the bottom of the legs of a bed, FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-16 Shao shi chang shang tu 燒尸塲上土, soil from a place where corpses are cremated, FE Gang mu 綱目 07-17 Zhong shang tu 塚上土, soil from a tomb, FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-18 Sang gen xia tu 桑根下土, soil from below the root of mulberry trees, FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-19 Hu yan ke tu 胡燕窠土, soil from the nests of swallows, FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-20 Bai she ke zhong tu 百舌窠中土, soil from the nests of a “one hundred tongues” [bird], FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-21 Tu feng ke 土蜂窠, soil from the nests of wasps, FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-22 Qiang lang zhuan wan 蜣螂轉丸, pellets rolled by dung beetles, FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-23 Gui shi 鬼屎, demons’ feces, FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-24 Shu rang tu 鼠壤土, light soil [excavated] by mice/rats, FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-25 Fen shu rang tu 鼢鼠壤土, light soil [excavated] by moles, FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-26 Wu nei ruan xia chong chen tu 屋内壖下蟲塵土, dust and soil left by worms/bugs at the bottom of the walls in one’s home, FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-27 Yi die tu 蟻垤土, soil from an anthill, FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-28 Bai yi ni 白蟻泥, termite excrements, FE Gang mu 綱目 07-29 Qiu yin ni 蚯蚓泥, earthworm mud/excrements, FE Gang mu 綱目 07-30 Luo shi ni 螺螄泥, spiral shell mud/excrements, FE Gang mu 綱目

Chapter 7

141

07-31 Bai shan ni 白鱓泥, mud on [the body of ] white eels, FE Gang mu 綱目 07-32 Zhu cao shang gou tu 猪槽上垢土, dirt and soil from a pig trough, FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-33 Quan niao ni 犬尿泥, mud from where dogs have urinated, FE Gang mu 綱目 07-34 Lü niao ni 驢尿泥, mud from where donkeys have urinated, FE Shi yi 拾 遺 07-35 Niao keng ni 尿坑泥, mud from a urine pit, FE Gang mu 綱目 07-36 Fen keng di ni 糞坑底泥, mud from the bottom of an excrement pit, FE Gang mu 綱目 07-37 Yan liu xia ni 簷溜下泥, mud from where rain water has dropped down from the eaves, FE Gang mu 綱目 07-38 Tian zhong ni 田中泥, mud from the fields, FE Gang mu 綱目 07-39 Jing di ni 井底泥, mud from the bottom of a well, FE Gang mu 綱目 07-40 Wu die ni 烏爹泥, catechu, FE Gang mu 綱目 07-41 Dan wan tu 彈丸土, soil [used to produce] bullets, FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-42 Zi ran hui 自然灰, meerschaum, FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-43 Fu long gan 伏龍肝, soil from a hearth, FE Bie lu 别録 07-44 Tu ji 土墼, calc-sinter [in a lime-kiln], FE Gang mu 綱目 07-45 Gan guo 甘鍋, crucible, FE Gang mu 綱目 07-46 Sha guo 砂鍋, unglazed pottery, FE Gang mu 綱目 07-47 Bai ci qi 白瓷器, white porcelain utensil, FE Tang ben 唐本 07-48 Wu gu wa 烏古瓦, old black roof tile, FE Tang ben 唐本 07-49 Gu zhuan 古磚, ancient brick, FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-50 Yan jiao 煙膠, soil inside a chimney of a furnace used to burn tiles, FE Gang mu 綱目 07-51 Mo 墨, ink stick, FE Kai bao 開寶 07-52 Fu qi mo 釜臍墨, ink/soot from the navel/center of a cauldron’s [bottom], FE Si sheng 四聲 07-53 Bai cao shuang 百草霜, soot scratched from within a chimney of a furnace where all types of herbs had been burned, FE Gang mu 綱目 07-54 Liang shang chen 梁上塵, dust from a beam, FE Tang ben 唐本 07-55 Men jiu chen 門臼塵, dust from the mortar base of a door pivot, FE Gang mu 綱目 07-56 Gua fu chuang tou chen tu 寡婦牀頭塵土, dust from the end of a widow’s bed, FE Shi yi 拾遺 07-57 Ci ou zhong bai hui 瓷甌中白灰, white dust/lime found in a porcelain bowl, FE Shi yi 拾遺

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

142 07-58 07-59 07-60 07-61

Xiang lu hui 香爐灰, ashes in an incense burner, FE Gang mu 綱目 Duan zao hui 鍛竈灰, ashes from the furnace of a forge, FE Bie lu 别録 Dong hui 冬灰, winter ashes, FE Ben jing 本經 Shi jian 石鹼, stone bittern, FE Bu yi 補遺.

右附方舊五十六,新一百七十五。 Recipes added to the entries above: 56 of old. 175 newly [recorded].

本草綱目 Ben cao gang mu 土部 Section Soils 第七卷 Chapter 7 土之一凡六十一種 Soils I, altogether 61 kinds. 07-01 白堊音惡。本經下品 Bai e, read e, FE Ben jing, lower rank. Chalk. Kaolin. 【釋名】白善土别録、白土粉衍義、畫粉。【時珍曰】土以黄爲正色,則 白者爲惡色,故名堊。後人諱之,呼爲白善。 Explanation of Names. Bai shan tu 白善土, “white, good soil,” Bie lu. Bai tu fen 白土 粉, “white soil powder,” Yan yi. Hua fen 畫粉, “powder for drawings.” [Li] Shizhen: Since the proper color of soil is yellow, white, bai 白, [soil] is a bad, e 惡, [soil]. Hence the name [bai] e 堊, [white] bad soil.” In later times, the people placed a taboo on this [negative designation] and they named it “white good [soil],” bai shan [tu] 白善[土], instead.

Chapter 7

143

【集解】【别録曰】白堊生邯鄲山谷,采無時。【弘景曰】即今畫家用 者,甚多而賤,俗方稀用。【頌曰】胡居士云:始興 小桂縣 晉陽鄉有白 善。而今處處皆有之,人家往往用以浣衣。西山經云:大次之山,其陽多 堊。中山經云:葱聾之山,其中有大谷,多白黑青黄堊。有五色,入藥惟 白者耳。【宗奭曰】白善土,京師謂之白土粉,切成方塊,賣于人浣衣。 【時珍曰】白土處處有之,用燒白瓷器坯者。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Chalk grows in the mountain valleys of Han dan. It is collected anytime. [Tao] Hongjing: Nowadays painters use it. It is available in large quantities, and it is cheap. It is made use of in ordinary recipes only rarely. Su Song: Hu Jushi states: “Early on, chalk was found in Jin yang xiang in Xiao gui xian.” Nowadays it can be found everywhere. The people frequently use it to wash their clothes. The Xi shan jing states: “Much chalk occurs on the yang/sunny side of Mount Da ci.” The Zhong shan jing states: “In the Cong long mountains are large valleys and there is much chalk of white, black, greenish and yellow color.” It may appear in all five colors, but only white [chalk] is added to medication. [Kou] Zongshi: Chalk, “white, good soil,” is called “white soil powder” in the capital. When cut it forms rectangular pieces that are sold to the people to wash clothes. [Li] Shizhen: White soil grows everywhere. It is used for the molds that are burned to produce white porcelain vessels. 【修治】【斅曰】凡使,勿用色青。并底白者,搗篩末,以鹽湯飛過,曝 乾用,則免結澁人腸也。每堊二兩,用鹽一分。【大明曰】入藥燒用,不 入湯飲。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Lei] Xiao: For all [medicinal] applications, do not use [chalk] with a greenish color. Pound white [chalk] from the bottom of a well to a powder and give it through a sieve. Then process it by sublimation with a salt decoction, dry it in the sun and make use of it. This way one can avoid the formation of nodes causing a rough passage in the intestines. For each application use two liang of chalk with one fen of salt. Da Ming: It is burned to be added to medication. It cannot be drunk in a decoction. 【氣味】苦,温,無毒。【别録曰】辛,無毒。不可久服,傷五臟,令人 羸瘦。【權曰】甘,温煖。 Qi and Flavor. Bitter, warm, nonpoisonous. Bie lu: Acrid, nonpoisonous. It must not be ingested for an extended period of time, lest it harm the five long-term depots and cause one to suffer from emaciation. [Zhen] Quan: Sweet, warm. 【主治】女子寒熱癥瘕,月閉積聚。本經。陰腫痛,漏下無子,洩痢。别 録。療女子血結,澀腸止痢。甄權。治鼻洪吐血,痔瘻洩精,男子水臟 冷,女子子宫冷。大明。合王瓜等分,爲末,湯點二錢服,治頭痛。宗奭。

144

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Control. Alternating cold and heat sensations, and concretion-illness and conglomeration-illness of women, with blocked menstruation associated with accumulations. Ben jing. Painful swelling in the yin [(i.e. genital) region]. Leaking discharge [from the vagina] and childlessness. Outflow and free-flux illness.118 Bie lu. It heals blood nodes of women, roughens the passage through the intestines and ends freeflux illness. Zhen Quan. It serves to cure massive nosebleed and blood spitting, piles fistula, and uncontrolled outflow of essence/sperm, associated in males with cold in the water long-term depot, and in females with cold in the uterus. Da Ming. [Ground to] a powder together with an equal amount of cucumber gourd, and two qian [of this powder] ingested with hot water, it serves to cure headache. [Kou] Zongshi. 【發明】【時珍曰】諸土皆能勝濕補脾,而白堊土則兼入氣分也。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: While all types of soil are capable of overcoming moisture and supplementing the spleen, chalk, in addition, enters the qi section.

【附方】新九。 Added Recipes. Nine recently [recorded]. 衄血不止。白土末五錢,井華水調服,二服除根。瑞竹堂方。 Unending nosebleed. Mix five qian of chalk with the first water drawn from a well in the morning and ingest this. Ingested twice it will eliminate the root [of the bleeding]. Rui zhu tang fang. 水泄不化,日夜不止。白堊煅、乾薑炮各一兩,楮葉生研二兩,爲末,糊 丸緑豆大,每米飲下二十丸。普濟方。 Watery outflow of undigested [food], not ending during day and night. [Grind] one liang each of calcined chalk and dried ginger, roasted in a pan, and two liang of fresh paper mulberry leaves to a powder, to be prepared, with dough, to pills the size of mung beans. Each time send down, with a rice beverage, 20 pills. Pu ji fang. 翻胃吐食。男婦皆治。白善土煅赤,以米醋一升淬之,再煅再淬,醋乾爲 度,取一兩研,乾薑二錢半炮,爲末。每服一錢調下,服至一斤以上爲 妙。千金翼。 Turned over stomach causing vomiting of food. Males and females are all cured alike. Quench chalk calcined until it has turned red with one sheng of rice vinegar. Calcine it again and quench it again until the vinegar is used up. Then grind one liang [of the chalk] together with two and a half qian of roasted dry ginger to a 118 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

Chapter 7

145

powder, and each time ingest one qian sent down mixed [with water]. Once more than one jin is ingested, [the effects will be] wondrous. Qian jin yi. 卒暴欬嗽。白墡土粉一兩、白礬一兩,爲末,薑汁糊丸梧子大,臨卧薑湯 服二十丸。普濟方。 Sudden violent cough. [Grind] one liang of chalk powder and one liang of white alum to a powder to be prepared, with ginger juice, to pills the size of wu seeds. Ingest, at the time you go to bed, with ginger decoction 20 pills. Pu ji fang. 風赤爛眼,倒睫拳毛。華陀方用白土一兩,銅青一錢,爲末。每以半錢泡 湯洗。乾坤生意加焰消半兩,爲末,湯泡杏仁杵,和丸皂子大。每用凉水 浸一丸,洗眼。乾坤秘韞。 Red and festering eyes caused by wind. Inverted eyelashes, with the hair contracted like a fist. A recipe of Hua Tuo [recommends to grind] one liang of chalk and one qian of verdigris to a powder. Each time rinse [the affected eyes] with a decoction of half a qian [of this powder]. The Qian kun sheng yi adds half a liang of nitrokalite to the powder. Boil bitter apricot seeds in water and pound them [to a pulp]. Mix [the pulp with the powder] and prepare pills the size of gleditsia seeds. For each application soak one pill in cold water and [use the water] to rinse the eyes. Qian kun mi yun. 小兒熱丹。白土一分,寒水石半兩,爲末,新水調塗,錢乙小兒方。 Heat cinnabar[-illness]119 of children. [Grind] one fen of chalk and half a liang of calcite to a powder, mix it with newly drawn water and apply [this to the affected region] Qian Yi, Xiao er fang. 疿子瘙痒。舊屋梁上刮赤白堊,末,傅之。普濟方。 Seething-rash seeds. Scratch red and white chalk from on top of the beams of an old house [and grind it to a] powder to be applied [to the affected region]. Pu ji fang. 代指腫痛。猪膏和白善土傅之。肘後方。 Finger replacement120 associated with a painful swelling. Apply lard mixed with chalk to [the affected region]. Zhou hou fang.

119 Re dan [du] 熱丹[毒] “heat cinnabar [poison],” an undefined skil illness affecting children. 120 Dai zhi 代指, "painful finger replacement.” A condition of sores developing at the margins of one’s fingernails with the edges being inflamed, swollen and painful. BCGM Dict I, 117.

146

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

臁瘡不乾。白善土煅,研末,生油調搽。集玄方。 Shank sores that do not to dry. Calcine chalk, grind it to a powder, mix it with unprocessed oil and apply [this to the affected region]. Ji xuan fang. 07-02 甘土拾遺 Gan tu, FE Shi yi. Bentonite. 【集解】【藏器曰】甘土出安西及東京 龍門,土底澄取之。洗膩服如灰, 水和塗衣,去油垢。 Collected Explanations. [Chen] Cangqi: Bentonite originates in An xi and in Long men in Dong jing. Bentonite from a greater depth [is stirred in water]. One [removes the dirt floating on the surface and] makes use of the clean dregs [that have settled on the bottom. Bentonite] serves to clean clothes stained with grease as if covered with ashes. Mix it with water and apply it to the garments. This will remove oil and dirt. 【主治】草藥及諸菌毒,熱湯調末服之。藏器。 Control. [To resolve] the poison of herbal medication and all types of fungi, ingest [bentonite] powder mixed with hot boiled water. [Chen] Cangqi. 07-03 赤土綱目 Chi tu, FE Gang mu. Red soil. 【氣味】甘,温,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, warm, nonpoisonous. 【主治】主湯火傷,研末塗之。時珍。 Control. To control harm caused by scalding and fire, grind it to a powder and apply this [to the affected region]. [Li] Shizhen.

Chapter 7

147

【附方】新三。 Added Recipes. Three newly [recorded]. 牙宣疳𧏾。赤土、荆芥葉同研,揩之,日三次。普濟方。 Tooth exposure and sweets-illness with hidden worms/bugs. Grind red soil and schizonepeta [spike] leaves [to a powder] and wipe [the affected teeth] with it. Three times a day. Pu ji fang. 風疹瘙痒甚不能忍者。赤土研末,空心温酒服一錢。御藥院方。 Wind papules with an unbearable itch. Grind red soil to a powder and ingest, on an empty stomach, with warm wine one qian. Yu yao yuan fang. 身面印文。刺破,以醋調赤土傅之,乾又易,以黑滅爲度。千金方。 Tattoos on the body and the face. Pierce [the skin] to let it break open. Then mix red soil with vinegar and apply it [to the tattoos]. When it has dried, replace it [with a new mixture of red soil and vinegar and continue this treatment] until the black [color of the tattoos] has vanished. Qian jin fang. 07-04 黄土拾遺 Huang tu, FE Shi yi. Yellow soil, loess. 【釋名】【藏器曰】張司空言:三尺以上曰糞,三尺以下曰土。凡用當去 上惡物,勿令入客水。 Explanation of Names. [Chen] Cangqi: Zhang Sikong says: “[Earth] above a depth of three chi is dung. [Earth] below a depth of three chi is soil. For all applications, it is essential to remove the malign items above [the soil], and one must not allow water from outside to enter [the pit dug to unearth the soil].” 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。【藏器曰】土氣久觸,令人面黄。掘土犯地脉, 令人上氣身腫。掘土犯神殺,令人生腫毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. [Chen] Cangqi: An exposure to the qi of [this] soil lets one acquire a yellow face. If one when digging soil violates the veins of the earth, this causes that person’s qi to rise and results in bodily swelling. If when digging soil a spirit terminator121 is offended, this will cause that person to develop a swelling with poison. 121 Shen sha 神殺, “spirit terminator,” is a mystical entity conceptualized in the ba zi suan ming 八字算命 doctrine of fate forecast as possibly affecting human fate.

148

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【主治】洩痢冷熱赤白,腹内熱毒絞結痛,下血,取乾土,水煮三五沸, 絞去滓,暖服一二升。又解諸藥毒,中肉毒,合口椒毒,野菌毒。藏器。 Control.Red and white outflow and free-flux illness122 with alternating cold and heat sensations, associated with a heat poison in the abdomen causing a twisting pain, and a discharge of blood. Boil dry [yellow] soil in water three to five times to bubbling. Wring it [wrapped in a fabric] to separate it from the dregs and ingest one to two sheng of the warm [liquid]. It also serves to resolve all types of medication poison, food poison, the poison of “mouth closing” pepper, and the poison of wild mushrooms. [Chen] Cangqi. 【發明】【時珍曰】按劉跂錢乙傳云:元豐中,皇子儀國公病瘛瘲,國醫 未能治,長公主舉乙入,進黄土湯而愈。神宗召見,問黄土愈疾之狀。乙 對曰:以土勝水,木得其平,則風自退爾。上悦,擢太醫丞。又夷堅志 云:吴少師得疾,數月消瘦,每日飲食入咽,如萬蟲攢攻,且痒且痛,皆 以爲勞瘵,迎明醫張鋭診之。鋭令明旦勿食,遣卒詣十里外,取行路黄土 至,以温酒二升攪之,投藥百粒。飲之,覺痛幾不堪。及登溷,下馬蝗千 餘宛轉,其半已困死。吴亦憊甚,調理三日乃安。因言夏月出師,燥渴, 飲澗水一盃,似有物入咽,遂得此病。鋭曰:蟲入人臟,勢必孳生,饑則 聚咂精血,飽則散處臟腑。苟知殺之而不能掃取,終無益也。是以請公枵 腹以誘之,蟲久不得土味,又喜酒,故乘飢畢集,一洗而空之。公大喜, 厚賂謝之,以禮送歸。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: According to Liu Qi’s Qian yi zhuan, “during the reign period yuan feng, (1078 – 1085) the Duke of the State Yi, son of the Emperor, suffered from clonic convulsions. The state physicians were unable to cure him. The Eldest Sister [of the Emperor] recommended to invite [Qian] Yi. He applied a “loess decoction” and [the patient] was cured. [Emperor] Shen zhong called him to an audience and asked him about the potential of loess to cure an illness. [Qian] Yi responded: ‘Since soil overcomes water, [abounding] wood [engendered by water] is balanced as a result. Hence, wind retreats’. The Emperor was pleased and he promoted [Qian Yi] to the rank of Imperial Physician, Assistant Officer.” Also, the Yi jian zhi states: “Wu Shaoshi once fell ill and suffered from increasing emaciation for several months. Every day, when beverages and food entered his throat, it was as if a myriad worms/bugs had assembled there to attack. He felt an itch and he felt pain, and everybody thought that this was an exhaustion consumption. Eventually, he met the famous physician Zhang Rui who diagnosed [his disease. Zhang] Rui asked him not to eat anything the next morning. He ordered a servant to walk a road for more than ten li, to remove red soil [from the road] and to bring it back. 122 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

Chapter 7

149

[The red soil] was then mixed with two sheng of warm wine. A hundred medication pellets were given into [the liquid] and [the patient was asked] to drink it. He felt an almost unbearable pain and went to the latrine where he defecated more than a thousand leeches, [half of them] wriggling; the other half dead. Wu [Shaoshi] felt extremely tired, but felt fine again after having received good care for three days. [Asked for a possible] cause [of his illness], he said that ‘during the summer months, when he was out on a military mission, he was thirsty and drank a cup of water from a mountain stream. He immediately sensed that some item had entered his throat and subsequently acquired this disease’. [Zhang] Rui said: ‘When worms/ bugs enter one’s long-term depots, they inevitably will breed offspring there. When they are hungry, they will gather and suck [their host’s] essence and blood. When they are filled, they scatter and settle in [all the] long-term depots and short-term repositories. If one only kills them but fails to completely remove them, [a therapy] will be of no use. This is why I asked you, Sir, to attract them with an empty abdomen. The worms/bugs had not eaten soil for a long time, and they also love wine. Hence they all gathered where [you felt] hungry, and with one dose [of a liquid medication] they were all wiped out’. The general was very pleased. He expressed his gratitude with a rich present and had [the physician] escorted home with all due honors.” 【附方】舊二,新十。 Added Recipes. Two of old. Ten newly [recorded]. 小兒喫土。用乾黄土一塊,研末,濃煎黄連湯調下。救急方。 When children eat soil. Grind one lump of dry loess to a powder, and [have the child] send it down mixed with a viscous decoction of coptis [rhizome]. 烏沙驚。小兒驚風,遍身都烏者。急推向下,將黄土一盌,搗末,入久醋 一鍾,炒熱包定熨之,引下至足,刺破爲妙。小兒秘訣。 Black sand fright. This is when children are affected by fright wind,123 with black [marks] covering the entire body. To quickly push this down, pound one bowl of loess to a powder, give this into one cup of long kept vinegar, roast it until it is hot, wrap it and firmly press it [to the affected region] to guide [the disease] down to the feet. Then pierce [the black marks] to let them break open. Wondrous. Xiao er mi jue.

123 Jing feng 驚風, “fright wind,” a condition of children characterised by jerking and arched back rigidity, eyeballs turned upward, and twitching hands and legs.BCGM Dict I, 261, also 238, 240.

150

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

卒患心痛。畫地作五字,撮取中央土,水和一升服,良。陳藏器本草。 Sudden suffering from heart pain. Draw the character wu 五 on the ground and remove the soil from its center. Mix it with one sheng of water and ingest this. Good. Chen Cangqi ben cao. 目卒無見。黄土攪水中,澄清洗之。肘後方。 Sudden loss of eyesight. Stir a mixture of loess and water, wait until [the dregs] have settled and rinse the [affected eyes with the liquid]. Zhou hou fang. 牛馬肉毒及肝毒。取好土三升,水煮清一升服,即愈。一方:入頭髮寸截 和之,髮皆貫肝而出也。肘後方。 Poisoning by the meat and the liver of oxen and horses. Boil three sheng of good [yellow] soil in water, wait until it has cleared and ingest one sheng. This will bring the cure. Another recipe: Mix [the liquid] with human hair cut to pieces of one cun length. The hair will pass through the liver and [cause the poison to] leave [the body]. Zhou hou fang. 内痔痛腫。朝陽黄土、黄連末、皮消各一兩,用猪膽汁同研如泥,每日旋 丸棗大,納入肛内,過一夜,隨大便去之。内服烏梅、黄連二味丸藥。孫 氏集效方。 Internal piles with painful swelling. Grind one liang each of loess facing the sun, coptis [rhizome] powder and mirabilite together with the bile of a pig to a pulp. Each day form a pill as big as a Chinese date and insert it into [the patient’s] anus. After one night, it will be discharged again through defecation. [The patient should also] ingest medication in the form of pills prepared from the two substances smoked plums and coptis [rhizome]. Song shi ji xiao fang. 攧撲欲死。一切傷損,從高墜下及木石所迮,落馬撲車,淤血凝滯,氣絶 欲死者,亦活。用净土五升蒸熱,以故布重裹作二包,更互熨之。勿大 熱,恐破肉,取痛止則已,神效之方。孫真人千金方。 Severe physical injury bringing one close to death. These are all types of injuries, including a fall from somewhere high, or being squeezed by a tree or a stone, or a fall from a horse, or being hit by a cart, with stagnant blood coagulating and the flow of qi being cut off, bringing one close to death. [This treatment will guarantee] survival. Steam five sheng of clean [yellow] soil until it is hot, and wrap it in old pieces of fabric to form two packages. Press them alternately on [the affected region, replacing one that has cooled down with one that is hot]. They must not be overly hot, lest they break open the flesh. Once the pain has ended, [the treatment is] stopped. This is a recipe of divine effects. Sun zhenren, Qian jin fang.

Chapter 7

151

杖瘡末破。乾黄土末,童尿入鷄子清調,塗刷上,乾即上,隨以熱水洗 去,復刷復洗,數十次,以紫轉紅爲度。仍刷兩胯,以防血攻陰也。攝生 方。 Wounds resulting from caning, with [the skin] not broken open yet. Mix dry loess powder with boys’ urine to which egg white was added, and apply it to [the affected region]. Then wash it off again with hot water, and apply it again and wash it off again – several tens of times, until the purple color has changed to red. Also, apply the [the paste] to the [patient’s] two groins to prevent the blood from attacking his yin [(i.e., genital) region]. 湯火傷灼。醋調黄土,塗之。談野翁方。 Harm caused by scalding and fire. Mix vinegar with loess and apply this [to the affected region]. Tan Yeweng fang. 蜈蚣螫傷。畫地作王字,内取土摻之,即愈。集簡方。 Harm caused by centipede stings. Draw the character “wang 王” on the ground. Remove soil from inside of it and apply it [to the affected region]. This will result in a cure. Ji jian fang. 蜂蟻叮螫。反手取地上土傅之。或入醋調。千金方。 Bee/wasp and ant sting. Remove soil from the ground with the hand turned upside down and apply [the soil to the affected region]. Or mix it with vinegar. Qian jin fang. 蠼螋尿瘡。畫地作蠼螋形,以刀細取腹中土,唾和塗之,再塗即愈。孫真 人云:予得此疾,經五六日不愈,或教此法,遂瘳。乃知萬物相感,莫曉 其由也。千金方。 Sores caused by the urine of earwigs. Draw a picture of an earwig on the ground. With a knife finely cut out and remove the soil from its abdomen, mix it with saliva and apply it [to the affected region]. Then apply it again, and a cure will be achieved. Sun zhenren states: I once acquired this illness, and it could not be cured for five or six days. Someone taught me this method, and eventually I was healed. That tells us that nobody knows the underlying causes of the interactions among the myriad items. Qian jin fang.

152

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

07-04-01 鑄鍾黄土。Zhu zhong huang tu, FE Shi yi 拾遺。 Loess used to cast a bell. 【主治】卒心痛,疰忤惡氣,温酒服一錢。藏器。 Control. Sudden heart pain. Attachment illness124 of the hostile and malign qi. Ingest one qian with warm wine. Shi yi. 07-04-02 鑄鏵鉏孔中黄土。拾遺。Zhu hua zu kong zhong huang tu, FE Shi yi. Loess left in the holes of ploughshares and hoes after casting. 【主治】丈夫陰囊濕痒及陰汗,細末撲之。藏器。 Control. Moist itch affecting the scrotum of males, and sweating in the yin [(i.e., genital) region]. [Grind loess to] a fine powder and apply it [to the affected region]. [Chen] Cangqi. 07-05 東壁土别録下品 Dong bi tu, FE Bie lu, lower rank. Soil of a wall facing East. 【氣味】甘,温,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, warm, nonpoisonous. 【主治】下部瘡,脱肛。别録。止洩痢,霍亂煩悶。藏器。温瘧,點目去 瞖。同蜆殻爲末,傅豌豆瘡。甄權。療小兒風臍。弘景。摩乾、濕二癬, 極效。蘇恭。 Control. Sores in the lower body section. Prolapsed anus. Bie lu. It ends outflow and free-flux illness125, and cholera with unrest and heart-pressure. [Chen] Cangqi. Warmth malaria. Dripped into the eyes it removes shades. [Ground to] a powder with corbicula it is applied to pea[-size macula] sores. Zhen Quan. It serves to heal navel wind126 of children. [Tao] Hongjing. When rubbed on dry as well as moist [regions affected by] xuan-illness,127 it is most effective. Su Gong. 124 Zhu 疰, also zhu 注, “attachment-illness,” “influx-illnesss,” reflects a notion of a foreign pathogenic agent, originally of demonic nature, having attached itself to the human organism. BCGM Dict I, 688-695. 125 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 126 Feng qi 風臍, “navel wind,” liquid excretion from the navel of newborns. BCGM Dict I, 166. 127 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591.

Chapter 7

153

【發明】【弘景曰】此屋之東壁上土也,常先見日故爾。又可除油垢衣, 勝石灰、滑石。【藏器曰】取其向陽久乾也。【宗奭曰】久乾之説不然。 蓋東壁先得太陽真火烘炙,故治瘟疫。初出少火之氣壯,及當午則壯火之 氣衰,故不用南壁而用東壁。【時珍曰】昔一女,忽嗜河中污泥,日食數 盌。玉田隱者以壁間敗土調水飲之,遂愈。又凡脾胃濕多,吐瀉霍亂者, 以東壁土,新汲水攪化,澄清服之,即止。蓋脾主土,喜燥而惡濕,故取 太陽真火所照之土,引真火生發之氣,補土而勝濕,則吐瀉自止也。嶺南 方治瘴瘧香椿散内用南壁土,近方治反胃嘔吐用西壁土者,或取太陽離火 所照之氣,或取西方收歛之氣,然皆不過借氣補脾胃也。 Explication. [Tao] Hongjing: This is the soil on the wall of a house facing the East. It has acquired its nature because it is continuously exposed to the sun. It is also suitable for removing oil stains from clothing, and it is superior to lime and to talc. [Chen] Cangqi: One makes use of its having dried for a long time because of its exposure to the yang/sun. [Kou] Zongshi: To say that “it has dried over a long time” is not correct. The fact is, a wall facing the East is first burned by the true fire of the major yang/sun. Hence it serves to cure warm-illness epidemics. At first it strongly emits the qi of a small fire. By noon the qi of a strong fire weaken. Hence one does not use [soil] from a wall facing the South, but makes use of [soil] from a wall facing the East. [Li] Shizhen: In ancient times there was a girl who suddenly loved to eat mud from a river. Within the course of one day, she consumed several bowls. A “recluse of the jade field” mixed decayed soil from a wall with water. He had her drink this and she was cured. Also, those with much moisture affecting spleen and stomach, and who vomit and suffer from outflow associated with cholera, if they mix the soil from a wall facing the East with newly drawn water, wait until [the dregs] have settled and ingest the clear [liquid, the vomiting and the outflow] will end. The fact is, the spleen is controlled by [the phase of ] soil. It prefers dryness and it hates moisture. Hence, when one takes soil that has been lighted up by the true fire of the major yang/sun, and guides the qi engendered and effused by the true fire to supplement the soil (i. e., the spleen) and to overcome moisture, then the vomiting and the outflow will end. The Ling nan fang [recommends to use] soil from a wall facing the South as an ingredient of the “powder with fragrant cedar”128 to cure malaria. More recently, recipes have used soil from a wall facing the West to cure turned over stomach with vomiting, either making use of the qi emitted by the fire sent out by the major yang/sun or making use of the qi gathered in the West, but all these [therapies] are simply meant to resort to [these] qi to supplement spleen and stomach. 128 The “fragrant cedar,” [xiang] chun [香]椿, is a legendary tree mentioned in the Zhuang zi. Its springtime is said to have lasted 8000 years. Nowadays, chun 椿 trees are identified as Toona sinensis (A. Juss.) Roem.

154

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 【附方】舊三,新九。 Added Recipes. Three of old. Nine newly [recorded].

急心痛。五十年陳壁土、枯礬二錢,爲末,蜜丸,艾湯服。集玄方。 Acute heart pain. [Grind] 50 years old soil from a wall and two qian of processed alum to a powder, prepare pills with honey, and ingest them with a common mugwort [leaves] decoction. Ji xuan fang. 霍亂煩悶。向陽壁土,煮汁服。聖濟録。 Cholera with unrest and heart-pressure. Boil soil from a wall facing the East [with water] and ingest [the liquid]. Sheng ji lu. 藥毒煩悶欲死者。東壁土調水三升,頓飲之。肘後方。 If poisoning by a medication is associated with unrest and heart-pressure, bringing one close to death. Mix the soil from a wall facing the East with three sheng of water and [let the patient] drink this all at once. Zhou hou fang. 解烏頭毒。不拘川烏、草烏毒,用多年陳壁土泡湯服之。冷水亦可。通變 要法。 To resolve the poison of aconite root, regardless of whether this is [the poison of ] Sichuan aconitum [main tuber] or wild aconite tuber. Boil in water soil that for many years has been on a wall and ingest this. [To ingest it mixed] with cold water is possible, too. Tong bian yao fa. 六畜肉毒。東壁土末,水服一錢,即安。集玄方。 Poisoning by the meat of any of the six types of domestic animals. [Let the patient] ingest one qian of a powder of soil from a wall facing the East with water and he will be safe. Ji xuan fang. 目中翳膜。東壁土細末,日點之,淚出佳,肘後方。 Shade membranes in the eyes. Each day drip a fine powder of soil from a wall facing the East into [the eyes]. Tears will flow out, and this is good. Zhou hou fang. 肛門凸出。故屋東壁上土一升,研末,以長皂莢挹末,粉之,仍炙皂莢, 更互熨之。外臺秘要。 Anal prolapse. Grind one sheng of soil from the wall of an old house facing the East to a powder, scoop the powder with a long piece of gleditsia [bark] and apply it [to the prolapse]. In addition, roast gleditsia [bark] and alternately press them hot [on the prolapse]. Wai tai mi yao.

Chapter 7

155

疿子瘙痒。乾壁土末傅之,隨手愈。普濟方。 Seething rash with itch. Apply dry soil from a wall to [the affected region] and a cure will be achieved immediately. Pu ji fang. 耳瘡唇瘡。東壁土和胡粉傅之。救急方。 Sores on the ears, sores on the lips. Mix soil from a wall facing the East and lead carbonate, and apply this [to the affected region]. Jiu ji fang. 癧破經年,膿水不絶。用百年茅屋厨中壁土爲末,入輕粉調傅,半月即乾 愈。永類方。 Scrofula broken open for years, with an incessant flow of pus and water. [Grind] soil from a wall in the kitchen of a one hundred years old thatched hut, mix it with calomel and apply [this to the affected region]. Within half a month [the affected region] will have dried and a healing is achieved. Yong lei fang. 諸般惡瘡。拔毒散:東墻上土、大黄等分,爲末,用無根井華水調搽,乾 再上。瑞竹堂方。 All types of malign sores. The “powder to pull out poison”: [Grind] equal amounts of soil from a wall facing the East and rhubarb root to a powder. Mix it with “[water] without a root,” the first water drawn from a well in the morning, and apply [this to the affected region]. Once it has dried, repeat the application. Rui zhu tang fang. 發背癰癤。多年烟熏壁土、黄蘗等分,爲末,薑汁拌調,攤貼之,更以茅 香湯調服一錢匕。經驗方。 Effusion on the back of an obstruction-illness129 with pimples. [Grind] equal amounts of soil from a wall that has been exposed to fumes for many years and phellodendron bark to a powder, mix it with ginger juice, and apply this [to the affected region]. In addition, [let the patient] ingest the amount held by a one qian spoon mixed with cymbopogon [herb] decoction. Jing yan fang.

129 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641.

156

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

07-06 太陽土綱目 Tai yang tu, FE Gang mu. Soil removed from the ground in relation to the position of the major yang constellation in the nine mansions diagram. 【主治】人家動土犯禁,主小兒病氣喘,但按九宫,看太陽在何宫,取其 土煎湯飲之,喘即定。時珍。出正傳。 Control. If a taboo is violated when people move soil, this will cause their children to suffer from panting. According to the “nine mansions [diagram],”130 examine in which mansion the sun happened to be [during the taboo violation], remove soil from this [mansion], boil it in water and drink this. This will settle the panting. [Li] Shizhen, quoted from the Zheng zhuan.

【附録】 Appendix. 07-06-A01 執日天星上土。Zhi ri tian xing shang tu. Soil collected on a zhi day from a location defined by the associated celestial stem and earth branch.131 【藏器曰】取和薰草、柏葉,以塗門户,方一尺,令盗賊不來。 Take [this soil], mix it with fragrant loosestrife herb and platycladus leaves, and apply this to the main gate [of your house], in a square of one chi. This will prevent robbers from coming.

130 The “nine mansions diagram” is an ancient astronomical projection of a square divided into nine subsquares, so called “mansions,” onto the sky to identify the position of celestial bodies and their movement in the course of a year. 131 Each day of the twelve day weeks of the ancient Chinese calendar was associated with a special spirit. A zhi day, zhi ri 執日, is the sixth day in a twelve day week of the ancient Chinese calendar; it was associated with a spirit named zhi 執. This association suggests that on this day it is easier than on other days to “grasp,” zhi 執, criminals and demons.

Chapter 7

157

07-06-A02 執日六癸上土。Zhi ri liu gui shang tu. Soil from a location in the North collected on a zhi day at any of the six gui hours.132 【時珍曰】抱朴子云:常以執日取六癸上土、市南門土、歲破土、月建 土,合作人,着朱鳥地上,辟盗。 [Li] Shizhen: The Baopu zi states: Always on the zhi day take soil from a location in the North at any of the six gui hours, soil from the south gate, sui po soil and yue jian soil, mix them, form a human person and attach this to a zhu niao ground. This will ward off robbers. 07-06-A03 二月上壬日土。Er yue shang ren ri tu. Soil taken from a location in the North at any of the ren hours133 in the second month. 【藏器曰】泥屋之四角,宜蠶。 [Chen] Cangqi: To plaster the four corners of a house with [this earth] will be suitable for [raising] silkworms. 07-06-A04 清明日戌上土。Qing ming ri wu shang tu. Soil taken from a location in the North-West on a clear day.134 【時珍曰】同狗毛作泥,塗房户内孔穴,蛇鼠諸蟲永不入。 [Li] Shizhen: A plaster prepared [from this soil] and dog hair, and smeared into the holes of one’s home will bar snakes, mice/rats and all types of worms/bug from entering forever.

132 “Six gui,” 六癸, refers to six of the 60 two hour periods constituting a five day week of the ancient Chinese calender where a gui 癸 earth branch, di zhi 地支, is combined with one of the celestial stems, tian gan 天干. The earth branch gui 癸 is associated with the North. 133 Ren 壬 is one of the two earth branches, di zhi 地支, associated with the North. 134 Qing ming ri 清明日 could refer to the qing ming festival, 清明節, celebrated on the 15th day after spring equinox, or to any bright and clear day. As the first of these alternatives would limit the gathering of soil to only one day in a year, the second alternative may be more practical.

158

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

07-06-A05 神后土。Shen hou tu. Soil of the Spirit Sovereign. Soil taken on the second day of a year. 【時珍曰】逐月旦日取泥屋之四角及塞鼠穴,一年鼠皆絶迹,此李處士禁 鼠法也。神后,正月起申順行十二辰。 [Li] Shizhen: Every month on the first day take [this soil], plaster with it the four corners of your home and stuff the holes opened by mice/rats. Within one year all traces of mice/rats will have been eliminated. This is a method to get rid of mice/rats devised by Li chushi. The Shen hou [time is the time] twelve double hours after the beginning of counting hours on the first day of the first month of a year. 07-07 天子耤田三推犁下土拾遺 Tian zi ji tian san tui li xia tu, FE Shi yi. Soil from below the plow pushed three times by the Emperor to till the fields. 【釋名】【時珍曰】月令:天下以元日祈穀于上帝,親載耒耜,率三公、 九卿、諸侯、大夫躬耕。天子三推,三公五推,卿、諸侯九推。反執爵于 太寢,命曰勞酒。 Explanation of Names. [Li] Shizhen: According to the Yue ling, the world on the first day of the year entreats the Thearch on High to provide grain, and [the Emperor] personally plows the field, leading three dukes, nine ministers, the feudal lords, and senior officials to engage in tilling. The Emperor pushes [the plow] three times. The three dukes push it five times. The ministers and the feudal lords push it nine times. After their return to the Grand Chamber, [the Emperor gives a banquet for his entourage and] a tripod is raised [as a toast]. This is named “exhaustion [followed by a banquet with] wine.” 【主治】水服,主驚悸癲邪,安神定魄强志。藏之,入宫不懼,利見大 官,宜婚市。王者封禪,五色土次之。藏器。 Control. Ingested with water, it controls fright with palpitation and peak-illness135 evil. It pacifies the spirit, settles the po-soul and strengthens the mind. If stored, one will not fear to enter the palace. It eases meetings with senior officials, and it is suitable for [good] marriages and [successful] business. When the kings offer sacrifices to heaven and to the earth, the “soil of the five colors” is second to [the soil from below the Emperor’s plow]. [Chen] Cangqi. 135 Dian 顛, “peak[-illness],” also 癲, vaguely defined mental derangement. BCGM Dict I, 124.

Chapter 7

159

【附録】 Appendix. 07-07-A01 社稷壇土。She ji tan tu. Soil from a platform erected to worship the god of the land and the god of the grains. 【藏器曰】牧宰臨官,自取塗門户,令盗賊不入境也。 [Chen] Cangqi: When officials responsible for the zhou and prefectures take [soil] from such [a platform] to apply it to the front gates, no robbers will intrude into their territory. 07-07-A02 春牛土。Chun niu tu. Soil from the oxen in spring. 【藏器曰】收角上土置户上,令人宜田。【時珍曰】宋時,立春日進春 牛,御藥院取牛睛以充眼藥。今人鞭春時,庶民争取牛土,云宜蠶。取土 撒簷下,云辟蚰蜒。 [Chen] Cangqi: Collect soil from the horns [of oxen] and deposit it on your home. This will let everyone get the best from their fields. [Li] Shizhen: During the time of the Song, on the day of Spring Begins, a “spring ox” was submitted [to the court]. The Imperial Medication Office used the eyes of these oxen to fill [recipes for] eye medication. Nowadays, when the people [symbolically] whip [an ox sculpture made from soil] in spring [to mark the begin of the season when oxen work in the fields], the masses compete for the soil from such oxen, claiming that it is suitable for [raising] silkworms. They take this soil and scatter it below the eaves [of their home], claiming that it keeps common house centipedes away. 07-07-A03 富家土。Fu jia tu. Soil from the home of a wealthy family. 【藏器曰】七月丑日,取中庭土泥竈,令人富。勿令人知。【時珍曰】除 日取富家田中土泥竈,招吉。 [Chen] Cangqi: To remove, on a chou day in the seventh month, soil from the courtyard and to use it to plaster the furnace, will make a household rich. But this must be kept secret from others. [Li] Shizhen: On New Year’s eve remove soil from the fields of a wealthy family and use it to plaster your furnace. This serves to summon good luck.

160

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

07-07-A04 亭部中土。Ting bu zhong tu. Soil from the location of a pavilion. 【時珍曰】取作泥塗竈,水火盗賊不經。塗屋四角,鼠不食蠶。塗倉囷, 鼠不食稻。塞穴百日,鼠皆絶去。出陰陽雜書云。 [Li] Shizhen: [Soil] removed [from the location of a pavilion], prepared to a plaster and smeared on the furnace, will keep away water, fire and robbers. Smeared on the four corners of a home, the mice/rats will not eat the silkworms. Smeared on granaries, the mice/rats will not eat the rice. If used to fill their holes for one hundred days, all mice/rats will have left. This is a quote from the Yin yang za shu. 07-08 道中熱土拾遺 Dao zhong re tu, FE Shi yi. Heated soil from a road. 【主治】夏月暍死,以土積心口,少冷即易,氣通則甦。藏器。亦可以熱 土圍臍旁,令人尿臍中。仍用熱土、大蒜等分,搗水,去滓灌之,即活。 時珍。 Control. When in summer someone has died because of sunstroke, pile this soil on his stomach pit. When it has cooled down a bit, replace it [with hot soil]. Once the passage of his qi is opened again, he will be revived. It is also possible to place hot soil around the [patient’s] navel and have someone urinate on his navel. Also, pound equal amounts of hot soil and garlic with water, remove the dregs, and forcefeed [the liquid to the patient]. This will bring him back to life. [Li] Shizhen. 07-08-01 十字道上土。Shi zi dao shang tu. Soil from a crossroad. 【主治】主頭面黄爛瘡,同竈下土等分,傅之。時珍。 Control. To control yellow, festering sores on the head and face, apply [soil from a crossroad] mixed with an equal amount of soil from below a furnace [to the affected region]. [Li] Shizhen.

Chapter 7

161

07-09 車輦土拾遺 Che nian tu, FE Shi yi. Soil from chariots and carriages. 【主治】惡瘡出黄汁,取鹽車邊脂角上土塗之。藏器。行人暍死,取車輪 土五錢,水調,澄清服,一盌即甦。又小兒初生無膚,色赤,因受胎未得 土氣也。取車輦土碾傅之,三日後生膚。時珍。 Control. For malign sores emitting a yellow juice, remove the soil from the greasy [axle] bulging out of the side of a salt cart and apply it [to the affected region]. [Chen] Cangqi. When a traveler has died of a sunstroke, take five qian of soil from the wheels of a cart, mix it with water, let the sediment settle and [let the patient] ingest the clear [liquid]. He will come back to life after [being forcefed] one bowl. Also, when newborn children have no skin and are of a red color, this is because they have not been endowed with soil qi in the uterus. Remove soil from a cart, crush it [to a powder] and apply this [on the child]. After three days, it will generate skin. [Li] Shizhen. 07-10 市門土拾遺 Shi men tu, FE Shi yi. Soil from the gate to the market. 【釋名】【時珍曰】日中爲市之處門栅也。 Explanation of Names. This is soil removed at midday from the fence at the entrance of a market. 【主治】婦人易産,入月帶之。産時,酒服一錢。藏器。 Control. For women to ease delivery, they wear it on their body when the month of their due date has come. Shortly prior to delivery, they are to ingest with wine one qian. [Chen] Cangqi. 07-11 户限下土拾遺 Hu xian xia tu, FE Shi yi. Soil from below the threshold of a door. 【釋名】【時珍曰】限,即門閾也。 Explanation of Names. [Li] Shizhen: Xian 限, “limit,” is the doorsill

162

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【主治】産後腹痛,熱酒服一錢。又治吹奶,和雄雀糞,暖酒服方寸匕。 藏器。 Control. For abdominal pain following delivery, [have the woman] ingest with hot wine one qian. Also, to cure an inflated breast,136 mix it with the droppings of a male sparrow and have [the woman] ingest with warm wine the amount held by a square cun spoon. [Chen] Cangqi. 07-12 千步峰綱目 Qian bu feng, FE Gang mu. Heaps [of soil accumulated by] one thousand steps. 【集解】【時珍曰】此人家行步地上高起土也,乃人往來鞋履沾積而成 者。技家言人宅有此,主興旺。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen. This is soil that has piled up at one’s home where people have walked on the ground. These are accumulated [droppings] from the visitors’ shoes stained [with soil]. Experts claim that a house with such [piles of soil in front of it] will flourish. 【主治】便毒初發,用生薑蘸醋磨泥塗之。時珍。 Control. For poison in the region of [urination and defecation] relief that has just begun to break out, grind it with fresh ginger dipped in vinegar to a paste and apply this [to the affected region]. [Li] Shizhen. 07-13 鞋底下土拾遺 Xie di xia tu, FE Shi yi. Soil from below the soles of straw sandals. 【主治】適他方不伏水土,刮下,和水服,即止。藏器。 Control. When someone travels to a distant place where he is not used to [the local] water and soil, scrape [the soil from below the soles of his straw sandals], mix it with water and let him ingest this. This will end [his problems]. [Chen] Cangqi.

136 Chui nai 吹奶, also chui ru 吹乳, “inflated breast.” A condition of blocked milk after birth, with the breasts turning red and swelling. BCGM Dict I, 101.

Chapter 7

163

07-14 柱下土拾遺 Zhu xia tu, FE Shi yi. Soil from the bottom of pillars. 【主治】腹痛暴卒,水服方寸匕。藏器。胎衣不下,取宅中柱下土,研 末,鷄子清和服之。思邈。 Control. For sudden violent abdominal pain, ingest with water the amount held by a square cun spoon. [Chen] Cangqi. When the placenta fails to be discharged, remove soil from the bottom of the pillars of [the woman’s] home, grind it to a powder and have her ingest it mixed with egg white. [Sun] Simiao. 07-15 牀脚下土拾遺 Chuang jiao xia tu, FE Shi yi. Soil from the bottom of the legs of a bed. 【主治】猘犬咬,和水傅之,灸七壯。藏器。 Control. For bites of fierce dogs, mix it with water and apply it [to the affected region. Also,] cauterize it with seven moxa cones. [Chen] Cangqi. 07-16 燒尸塲上土綱目 Shao shi chang shang tu, FE Gang mu. Soil from a place where corpses are cremated. 【主治】邪瘧,取帶黑土同葱搗作丸塞耳,或繫膊上,即止。男左女右。 時珍。 Control. For evil malaria, acquire such soil that is black, pound it with onions to prepare pills and stuff them into [the patient’s] ears, or [let the patient] wear them tied to his arm, and [the disease] will end. For males [tie the pills to] the left and for females to the right [arm]. [Li] Shizhen.

【附方】新四。 Added Recipes. Four newly [recorded]. 好魘多夢。燒人灰,置枕中、履中,自止。本草拾遺。 A tendency to have nightmares and many dreams. Place the ashes remaining after a person was cremated into [the patient’s] pillow or into his shoes, and this will end [his nightmares and dreams]. Ben cao shi yi.

164

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

尸厥卒死。不知人者,燒尸塲土二三錢,擂細,湯泡灌之,即活。如無, 以竈心土代之。何氏方。 Corpse[-like condition because of qi] recession, with sudden death. When [the patient] fails to recognize other persons, pound two to three qian of soil from a place where corpses are cremated to a fine [powder], boil it in water and forcefeed this [to the patient]. This will bring him back to life. If no [such effect is achieved], replace [the soil from a cremation ground] with soil from a furnace. He shi fang. 小兒夜啼。燒尸塲土,置枕邊。集簡方。 Crying of children during the night. Place soil from a place where corpses are cremated to the side of its pillow. Ji jian fang. 脚底多汗。燒人塲上土,鋪于鞋底内蹉之。灰亦可。集玄方。 Profuse sweating below one’s legs. Give soil from a place where corpses are cremated into [the patien’s] shoes on the sole and let him rub it with his feet. The ashes [of corpses] can be [used for this purpose], too. Ji xuan fang. 07-17 塚上土拾遺 Zhong shang tu, FE Shi yi. Soil on a tomb. 【主治】瘟疫。五月一日,取土或磚石,入瓦器中,埋着門外階下,合家 不患時氣。又正旦取古塚磚,呪懸大門上,一年無疫疾。藏器。 Control. Warmth epidemics. On the first day of the fifth month acquire soil or bricks and stones [from a tomb] and give them into an earthenware container. Bury this below the stairs outside the front door, and this will prevent the entire household from suffering from [diseases caused by] seasonal qi. Also, on New Year’s day, remove a brick from an old tomb and hang it, with a prayer, above the main gate. For an entire year [the household] will be spared of epidemic illness. [Chen] Cangqi.

【附方】新一。 Added Recipes. One newly [recorded]. 腸癰。死人塚上土,作泥塗之,良。千金方。 Intestinal obstruction-illness.137 Prepare soil from a dead person’s tomb to a paste and apply it [to the affected region]. Good. Qian jin fang. 137 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break

Chapter 7

165

07-18 桑根下土拾遺 Sang gen xia tu, FE Shi yi. Soil from below the root of mulberry trees. 【主治】中惡風惡水而肉腫者,水和傅上,灸二三十壯,熱氣透入,即 平。藏器。 Control. For being struck by malign wind and malign water associated with swollen flesh, mix it with water and apply this [to the affected region. In addition,] cauterize it with 20 to 30 moxa cones. Once the heat qi have entered, health will be restored. [Chen] Cangqi. 07-19 胡燕窠土拾遺 Hu yan ke tu, FE Shi yi. Soil from the nests of swallows. 【主治】無毒。同屎作湯,浴小兒,去驚邪。弘景。主風瘙癮疹及惡刺 瘡,浸淫瘑瘡遍身,至心者死,並水和傅之,三兩日瘥。藏器。治口吻、 白秃諸瘡。時珍。 Control. Nonpoisonous. Prepared with droppings [of swallows] to a decoction used to wash children, it removes fright evil. [Tao] Hongjing. To control wind itch, dormant papules and sores resulting from malign piercing, as well as lair-illness sores138 soaked [with pus and/or liquid] spread all over the body that will be fatal once they have reached the heart, mix [the soil] with water and apply it [to the affected region]. Within two or three days, a cure will be achieved. [Chen] Cangqi. It serves to cure all types of sores affecting mouth and lips, and white baldness. [Li] Shizhen.

through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641. 138 Guo chuang 瘑瘡, “lair-illness sores,” a vaguely defined skin ailment associated with pain, itch and a gradual extension. BCGM Dict I, 203-204.

166

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 【附方】舊三,新八。 Added Recipes. Three of old. Eight newly [recorded].

濕瘑疥瘡。胡燕窠大者,用抱子處土,爲末,以淡鹽湯洗拭,乾傅之,日 一上。小品方。 Moist lair-illness [sores]139 and jie-illness140 sores. [Grind] soil from the place where young [swallows] are hatched in a large swallow nest to a powder. [First] wash [the affected region] with hot water containing a little salt. Dry [the region] and then apply [the powder] there. To be applied once a day. Xiao pin fang. 黄水肥瘡。燕窠土一分,麝香半分,研傅之。普濟方。 Yellow water fat sores. Grind one fen of soil from a swallow nest with half a fen of musk [to a powder] and apply this [to the affected region]. Pu ji fang. 浸淫濕瘡,發於心下者,不早治殺人。用胡燕窠中土,研末,水和傅。葛 氏。 Moist sores soaked [with blood and/or liquid]. When they effuse below the heart, they will kill a person if they are not cured early in time. Grind soil from a swallow nest to a powder, mix it with water and apply this [to the affected region]. Ge shi. 口角爛瘡。燕窠泥傅之,良。救急方。 Festering sores affecting the angles of the mouth. Apply mud from a swallow nest [to the affected region]. Good. Jiu ji fang. 白秃頭瘡。百年屋下燕窠泥、蠮螉窠,研末,剃後麻油調搽。聖濟録。 Sores on the head associated with white baldness. Grind mud from a swallow nest under [the roof of a] house that is one hundred years old with the nest of a mud wasp to a powder. After shaving [the patient’s head] mix [the soil] with sesame oil and apply it [to the affected region]. Sheng ji lu. 蠼螋尿瘡,遶身汁出。以燕窠中土和猪脂、苦酒,傅之。外臺秘要。 Sores resulting from the urine of an earwig, with a juice emitted from all around the body. Mix soil from a swallow nest with lard and bitter wine and apply this [to the affected region]. Wai tai mi yao. 瘭疽惡瘡,着手足肩背,累累如赤豆,出汁。剥痂,以温醋、米泔洗净, 用胡燕窠土和百日男兒屎,傅之。千金方。 139 Guo chuang 瘑瘡, “lair-illness sores,” a vaguely defined skin ailment associated with pain, itch and a gradual extension. BCGM Dict I, 203-204. 140 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely identifiable skin ailment. BCGM Dict Vol. I, 249.

Chapter 7

167

Flaming-heat-illness with impediment-illness141 affecting the hands, the feet, the shoulders and the back, with pearls in a row that are red like beans, and emitting a juice. Remove the crust and wash [the affected region] clean with warm vinegar and water in which rice was washed. Then mix the soil from a swallow nest with a male child’s excrements that have withered for one hundred days. Qian jin fang. 皮膚中痛,名癥疰。用醋和燕窠土傅之。千金方。 Pain in the skin. This is called “concretion-illness with attachment illness.142” Mix vinegar with soil from a swallow nest and apply this [to the affected region]. Qian jin fang. 風瘙癮疹。胡燕窠土,水和傅之。千金方。 Wind itch and dormant papules. Mix soil from a swallow nest with water and apply this [to the affected region]. Qian jin fang. 小兒丹毒。向陽燕窠土,爲末,鷄子白和傅。衛生易簡方。 Cinnabar poison143 of children. [Grind] soil from a swallow nest facing the yang/ sun to a powder, mix it with egg white and apply this [to the affected region]. Wei sheng yi jian fang. 一切惡瘡。燕窠内外泥糞研細,油調搽。一加黄蘗末。瑞竹堂方。 All types of malign sores. Grind mud and excrements from within and from the outside of a swallow nest to a fine [powder], mix it with oil and apply this [to the affected region]. Another [recipe] adds phellodendron [bark] powder. Rui zhu tang fang.

141 Biao ju 瘭疽, “flaming heat impediment-illness,” initially emerges like a bean kernel from which a root reaches into the depth of the tissue. This is associated with extreme pain. It slowly increases in size and generates several tips filled with pus that look like clusters of rice grains. BCGM Dict I, 67. 142 Zhu 疰, also zhu 注, “attachment-illness,” “influx-illnesss,” reflects a notion of a foreign pathogenic agent, originally of demonic nature, having attached itself to the human organism. BCGM Dict I, 688-695. 143 Dan du 丹毒, “cinnabar poison,” a skin ailment with red rashes. BCGM Dict I, 118

168

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

07-20 百舌窠中土拾遺 Bai she ke zhong tu, FE Shi yi. Soil from the nests of a “one hundred tongues” [bird]. 【主治】蚯蚓及諸惡蟲咬瘡,醋調傅之。藏器。 Control. For sores resulting from the bites of earthworms and all types of malign worms/bugs, mix it with vinegar and apply this [to the affected region]. [Chen] Cangqi. 07-21 土蜂窠拾遺 Tu feng ke, FE Shi yi. Soil from the nests of wasps. 【釋名】蠮螉窠。【時珍曰】即細腰蜂也。 Explanation of Names. Ye weng ke 蠮螉窠, wasp nests. [Li] Shizhen: These are wasps/bees with a slender waist. 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】癰腫風頭。别録。小兒霍亂吐瀉,炙研,乳汁服一錢。聖惠。醋 調塗腫毒及蜘蛛咬。藏器。醋調塗蜂蠆毒。宗奭。治丁腫乳蛾,婦人難 産。時珍。 Control. Swelling associated with an obstruction-illness.144 Wind head. Bie lu. For cholera of children with vomiting and outflow, roast it, grind it [to a powder], and have [the child] ingest one qian with a nursing mother’s milk. Sheng hui. Mixed with vinegar it is applied to swelling with poison and spider bites. [Chen] Cangqi. Mixed with vinegar it is applied to the poison [left in bites] by wasps/bees and scorpions. [Kou] Zongshi. It serves to cure pin[-illness]145 swelling and nipple moth,146 and women with difficult births. [Li] Shizhen.

144 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641. 145 Ding 丁, “pin[-illness],” also ding 疔, “pin-illness,” refers to a deep-reaching and festering hardness in a tissue, eventually rising above the skin like a pinhead. BCGM Dict I, 127129. 146 Ju e 乳蛾, “nipple moth,” most likely including cases of acute tonsillitis. BCGM Dict I, 410.

Chapter 7

169

【附方】新六。 Added Recipes. Six newly [recorded]. 女人難産。土蜂兒窠,水泡湯飲之。取時逢單是男,雙是女,最驗。婦人 良方。 Women with difficult births. Boil a nest with young soil wasps in water to bubbling and [have the woman] ingest this. If at the time [the nest is gathered] there is only one [young mud wasp in it, the child to be born] will be a boy. If two [young mud wasps are in it], it will be a girl. Very effective. Fu ren liang fang. 腫毒焮痛。陳藏器本草用醋和泥蜂窠塗之。 Swelling with poison and a radiating heat pain. Chen Cangqi in his Ben cao [recommends] to mix the nests of mud wasps with vinegar and apply this [to the affected region]. 直指加川烏頭等分,云未結則散,已結則破也。 The Zhi zhi adds an equal amount of Sichuan aconitum [main tuber]. As long as [the swelling] has not formed nodes, [the swelling] will be dispersed. Once nodes have formed, [this medication] will break them open. 丁瘡腫痛。土蜂窠煅,蛇皮燒,等分,酒服一錢。直指方。 Pin[-illness]147 sores with painful swelling. Calcine equal amounts of mud wasp nests and burned snake skin and ingest, with wine, one qian. Zhi zhi fang. 咽喉乳蛾。土蜂窠一箇,爲末。先用楮葉擦破病人舌,令血出,以醋和 末,用翎點之,令痰涎出爲效。後用扁竹根擂水服數口,取利。瑞竹堂方。 Nipple moth148 in the throat. [Grind] one mud wasp nest to a powder. First rub the patient’s tongue with paper mulberry leaves until it breaks open and allow blood to leave. [Then] mix the powder with vinegar and apply this with a feather [to the bleeding tongue]. Once it produces saliva, [the treatment will have been] effective. Then pound “flat bamboo” root with water [to obtain a paste and let the patient] ingest several mouthfuls until he experiences a free flow [of defecation]. Rui zhu tang fang.

147 Ding 丁, “pin[-illness],” also ding 疔, “pin-illness,” refers to a deep-reaching and festering hardness in a tissue, eventually rising above the skin like a pinhead. BCGM Dict I, 127129. 148 Ju e 乳蛾, “nipple moth,” most likely including cases of acute tonsillitis. BCGM Dict I, 410.

170

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

手足發指,毒痛不可忍。用壁間泥蜂窠爲末,入乳香少許,研匀,以醋調 塗,乾即以醋潤之。奇效方。 [Poison sores affecting] hands and feet, [commonly called] “finger effusion,” with unbearable poison pain. [Grind] mud wasp nests from within a wall to powder, add a small amount of frankincense and grind this to an even [mixture]. Mix it with vinegar and apply [this to the affected region]. Once it has dried, moisten it with vinegar. Qi xiao fang. 蠼螋尿瘡。螟蛉窠,水調傅之。集玄方。 Sores caused by earwig urine. Mix a corn earworm nest with water and apply this [to the affected region]. Ji xuan fang. 07-22 蜣蜋轉丸拾遺 Qiang lang zhuan wan, FE Shi yi. The pellet rolled by dung beetles. 【釋名】土消。【藏器曰】此蜣蜋所推丸也。藏在土中,掘地得之,正圓 如人捻作,彌久者佳。 Explanation of Names. Tu xiao 土消. [Chen] Cangqi: These are the pellets pushed by dung beetles. They lie hidden in the soil. They are obtained by digging up earth. They are perfectly round as if formed by humans. The older they are, the better. 【氣味】鹹,苦,大寒,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, bitter, very cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】湯淋絞汁服,療傷寒時氣,黄疸煩熱及霍亂吐瀉。燒存性酒服, 治項癭。塗一切瘻瘡。藏器。 Control. [Soak it] in a hot liquid, strain and wring it to obtain a juice, and ingest this to heal harm caused by cold associated with seasonal qi, yellow dan-illness149 with unrest and heat, and cholera with vomiting and outflow. Ingested burned with its nature retained, it serves to cure neck goiter. It is applied on all types of fistula sores. [Chen] Cangqi.

149 Huang dan 黄疸, most likely including cases of jaundice. BCGM Dict I, 225.

Chapter 7

171

07-23 鬼屎拾遺 Gui shi, FE Shi yi. Demons’ feces. Fuligo septica (L.) F. H. Wigg. 【集解】【藏器曰】生陰濕地,如屎,亦如地錢,黄白色。 Collected Explanations. [Chen] Cangqi: It grows at shady, moist locations and resembles feces. It also resembles Asiatic pennywort, and is of yellow-white color. 【主治】人、馬反花瘡,刮取,和油塗之。藏器。 Control. For reversed-blossom sores150 of humans and horses, gather it by scraping it [from the ground], mix it with oil and apply this [to the affected region]. 07-24 鼠壤土拾遺 Shu rang tu, FE Shi yi. Light soil [excavated] by mice/rats. 【釋名】【時珍曰】柔而無塊曰壤。 Explanation of Names. [Li] Shizhen: Soft [soil] without lumps is called rang 壤. 【主治】中風筋骨不隨,冷痺骨節疼,手足拘急,風掣痛,偏枯死肌,多 收曝乾,蒸熱袋盛,更互熨之。藏器。小兒尿和,塗丁腫。思邈。 Control. For being struck by wind, with sinews and bones not following one’s intentions, painful bone joints associated with cold blockage, hands and feet with cramps and tension, clonic pain caused by wind, hemilateral withering and dead muscles, collect large quantities [of rat/mouse loam], dry it in the sun, steam it until it is hot and fill it into a bag. This is to be applied with pressure [to the affected region]. Replace it [with a hot compress when it has cooled]. [Chen] Cangqi. Mixed with the urine of a child it is to be applied to pin[-illness]151 swelling. [Sun] Simiao.

150 Fan hua chuang 反花瘡, “reversed-blossom-sores.” Festering ulcer with a flesh-growth resembling a flower. BCGM Dict I, 149. 151 Ding 丁, “pin[-illness],” also ding 疔, “pin[-illness],” refers to a deep-reaching and festering hardness in a tissue, eventually rising above the skin like a pinhead. BCGM Dict I, 127-129.

172

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

07-25 鼢鼠壤土拾遺 Fen shu rang tu, FE Shi yi. Light soil [excavated by] moles. 【集解】【藏器曰】此是田中尖嘴小鼠也。陰穿地中,不能見日。 Collected Explanations. [Chen] Cangqi: These are small rats/mice with a pointed snout living in the fields. They are hidden from light and bore holes in the earth. They cannot stand sunlight. 【主治】鬼疰氣痛,秫米泔汁和作餅,燒熱綿裹熨之。又主腫毒,和醋傅 之,極效。藏器。孕婦腹内鍾鳴,研末二錢,麝香湯下,立愈。時珍。 Control. For demon attachment illness152 with qi pain, mix it with water that was used to wash glutinous millet and form flat cakes. Heat them over fire and wrap them in silk floss. This is then applied hot with pressure [to the affected region]. Also, to control swelling with poison, mix it with vinegar and apply this [to the affected region]. Very effective. [Chen] Cangqi. For pregnant women with bell-like sounds in their abdomen, grind two qian to a powder and have them send this down with a decoction of musk. Immediately effective. [Li] Shizhen. 07-26 屋内壖下蟲塵土拾遺 Wu nei ruan xia chong chen tu, FE Shi yi. Dust and soil left by worms/bugs at the bottom of the walls in one’s home. 【釋名】【時珍曰】壖音軟,平聲。河邊地及垣下地,皆謂之壖。 Explanation of Names. [Li] Shizhen: Ruan 壖, read ruan 軟, level tone. Both the earth of river banks and the earth at the bottom of walls are called ruan 壖. 【主治】惡瘡久不乾,油調傅之。藏器。 Control. For malign sores that fail to dry for a long time, mix it with oil and apply this [to the affected region]. [Chen] Cangqi.

152 Zhu 疰, also zhu 注, “attachment-illness,” “influx-illnesss,” reflects a notion of a foreign pathogenic agent, originally of demonic nature, having attached itself to the human organism. BCGM Dict I, 688-695.

Chapter 7

173

07-27 蟻垤土拾遺 Yi die tu, FE Shi yi. Soil from an anthill. 【釋名】蟻封。【時珍曰】垤音迭,高起也。封,聚土也。 Explanation of Names. Yi feng 蟻封, “ant heap of soil.” [Li] Shizhen: Die 垤, read die 迭, is an elevation. Feng 封 is a heap of soil. 【主治】狐刺瘡,取七粒和醋搽。又死胎在腹及胞衣不下,炒三升,囊 盛,搨心下,自出也。藏器。 Control. For sores resulting from fox [urine] piercing, mix seven pellets with vinegar and apply [them to the affected region]. Also, for a dead fetus and for a placenta failing to be discharged, roast three sheng, fill them into a bag, and use this to rub the region below the heart. [The dead fetus/the placenta] will be emitted as a result. [Chen] Cangqi. 07-28 白蟻泥綱目 Bai yi ni, FE Gang mu. Termite mud. Termite excrements. 【主治】惡瘡腫毒,用松木上者,同黄丹各炒黑,研,和香油塗之,取愈 乃止。時珍。 Control. For malign sores and swelling with poison, Roast [termite excrements] found on pine trees and minium separately until they have turned black and grind [them to a powder]. Mix it with sesame oil and apply this [to the affected region]. End [the treatment] when a cure is achieved. [Li] Shizhen. 07-29 蚯蚓泥綱目 Qiu yin ni, FE Gang mu. Earthworm mud. Earthworm excrements. 【釋名】蚓螻、音婁。六一泥。 Explanation of Names. Yin lou 蚓螻, read lou 婁. Liu yi ni 六一泥. 【氣味】甘、酸,寒,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, sour, cold, nonpoisonous.

174

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【主治】赤白久熱痢,取一升,炒煙盡,沃汁半升,濾净飲之。藏器。小 兒陰囊忽虚熱腫痛,以生甘草汁入輕粉末調塗之。以鹽研傅瘡,去熱毒及 蛇犬傷。日華。傅狂犬傷,出犬毛,神效。蘇恭。 Control. For long-lasting heat with red and white free-flux illness,153 roast one sheng until no more fumes are emitted. Give it into water to obtain half a sheng of juice. Strain this to obtain a clear liquid and [let the patient] drink this. [Chen] Cangqi. For children with a painful scrotum caused by sudden depletion heat, mix it with fresh glycyrrhiza [root] juice to which was added calomel powder and apply this [to the affected region]. Ground with salt and applied to sores, it removes heat poison and harm caused by snake and dog [bites]. Rihua. Applied to harm caused by mad dog [bites], it serves to emit the dog’s hairs. Divinely effective. Su Gong.

【附方】舊五,新十七。 Added Recipes. Five of old. 17 newly [recorded]. 斷截熱瘧。邵氏青囊方用五月五日午時取蚯蚓糞,以麪和丸梧子大,朱砂 爲衣。每服三丸,無根水下,忌生冷,即止,皆效。或加菖蒲末、獨頭蒜 同丸。 To end heat malaria. The Shao shi qing nang fang [recommends to] mix earthworm excrements collected at noon on the fifth day of the fifth month with wheat flour to form pills the size of wu seeds, coated with cinnabar. Each time [let the patient] ingest three pills, to be sent down with “water without roots”. 154 [During the treatment] raw and cold [beverages/food] are to be avoided. This will end [the disease]. It is always effective.155 Others [recommend to] add acorus [root] powder and single-clove garlic to form pills. 傷寒譫語。蚯蚓屎凉水調服。簡便方。 Harm caused by cold with uncontrolled speech. [Let the patient] ingest earthworm excrements mixed with cold water. Jian bian fang. 小便不通。蚯蚓糞、朴硝等分,水和傅臍下,即通。皆效方。 Blocked urination. Mix equal amounts of earthworm excrements and mirabilite with water and apply this to the region below the navel. This will free the passage [of urine]. Jie xiao fang. 153 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 154 Water emerging from the brick wall of a well that has not been let free yet [into the bottom of the well], is called “[water] without root.” See also 05-15. 155 These two characters may have been misplaced here from the end of this recipe, where they may have referred to its source, the Jie xiao [fang].

Chapter 7

175

小兒吐乳。取田中地龍糞一兩,研末,空心以米湯服半錢,不過二三服 效。聖惠方。 Children throwing up their nursing mother’s milk. Grind one liang of field earthworm excrements to a powder and [have the child] ingest with a rice decoction half a qian. An effect will be achieved after no more than two to three ingestions. Sheng hui fang. 小兒卵腫。地龍糞,以薄荷汁和塗之。危氏得效方。 Swollen testes of children. Mix earthworm excrements with mint juice and apply this [to the affected region]. Wei shi de xiao fang. 婦人吹乳。用韭地中蚯蚓屎,研細篩過,米醋調,厚傅,乾則换,三次即 愈。凉水調亦可。藺氏經驗方。 Inflated breast of women.156 Grind the excrements of earthworms from a leek field to a fine [powder], give this through a sieve, mix it with rice vinegar and apply a thick layer [to the affected region]. Once it has dried, replace it [with a moist application]. A cure will be achieved after three [such treatments]. To mix [the excrements] with cold water is possible, too. Lin shi jing yan fang. 時行腮腫。柏葉汁調蚯蚓泥塗之。丹溪方。 Seasonally active swelling of cheeks. Mix earthworm excrements with platycladus leaf juice and apply this [to the affected region]. Dan xi fang. 一切丹毒。水和蛐蟮泥傅之。外臺。 All types of cinnabar poison.157 Mix earthworm excrements with water and apply this [to the affected region]. Wai tai. 脚心腫痛因久行久立致者。以水和蚯蚓糞厚傅,一夕即愈。永類鈐方。 Painful swollen soles of the feet resulting from walking a long distance or standing for a long time. Apply a thick layer of earthworm excrements mixed with water [to the affected region] and a cure will be achieved after one night. Yong lei qian fang. 耳後月蝕。燒蚯蚓糞,豬脂和傅。子母秘録。 Lunar eclipse158 behind the ears. Burn earthworm excrements, mix them with lard and apply [this to the affected region]. Zi mu mi lu.

156 Chui nai 吹奶, also chui ru 吹乳, “inflated breast.” A condition of blocked milk after birth, with the breasts turning red and swelling. BCGM Dict I, 101. 157 Dan du 丹毒, “cinnabar poison,” a skin ailment with red rashes. BCGM Dict I, 118. 158 Yue ge 月蝕, “lunar eclipse,” refers to sores developing at the ear. BCGM Dict I, 654.

176

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

聤耳出水成瘡。蚯蚓糞爲末傅之,并吹入。千金方。 Shedding ears emitting water, associated with the formation of sores. [Grind] earthworm excrements to a powder and apply this [to the affected region]. Also, blow [the powder] into [the affected ears]. Qian jin fang. 齒齗宣露。蚯蚓泥水和成團,煅赤,研末,臘豬脂調傅之,日三。千金方。 Teeth and gum exposure. Mix earthworm excrements with water and form a ball. Calcine it until it has turned red and grind it to a powder. Mix it with lard of the 12th month and apply this [to the affected region], three times a day. Qian jin fang. 咽喉骨哽。五月五日午時韭畦中,面東勿語,取蚯蚓泥藏之,每用少許, 搽喉外,其骨自消,名六一泥。 Choking on a bone stuck in the throat. At noon of the fifth day of the fifth month in a leek field, facing the East and without saying a word, collect earthworm excrements and store them [for later use]. For each application apply a small amount to the outside of the [patient’s] throat, and the bone will dissolve as a result. [The excrements applied here] are called liu yi ni 六一泥. 蜈蚣螫傷。蚯蚓泥傅之,效。集效方。 Harm caused by centipede stings. Apply earthworm excrements to [the affected region]. Effective. Ji xiao fang. 金瘡困頓。蚯蚓屎末,水服方寸匕,日三服。千金方。 Wounds caused by metal objects/weapons leaving one fatigued. Ingest with water the amount of earthworm excrements held by a square cun spoon. To be ingested three times a day. Qian jin fang. 解射罔毒。蚯蚓屎末,井水服二方寸匕。千金方。 To resolve the archer’s poison.159 [Mix] earthworm excrements with well water and ingest the amount held by two square cun spoons. Qian jin fang. 吐血不止。石榴根下地龍糞,研末,新汲水服三錢。聖惠。 Incessant blood spitting. Grind the excrements of earthworms from below the roots of pomegranate trees to a powder, and ingest with newly drawn water three qian. Sheng hui. 反胃轉食。地龍糞一兩,木香三錢,大黄七錢,爲末,每服五錢,無根水調 服,忌煎煿、酒、醋、椒、薑、熱物,一二服,其效如神。邵真人經驗方。 159 She gong du 射工毒, here: she wang du 射罔毒, reflects an ancient notion of bugs that live in waters and shoot their poison at humans, causing disease. BCGM Dict I, 432.

Chapter 7

177

Turned over stomach and throwing up of food. [Grind] one liang of earthworm excrements, three qian of aucklandia [root] and seven qian of rhubarb root to a powder and [let the patient] each time ingest five qian, to be ingested mixed with “water without roots”. 160 [During the treatment] boiled and roasted [food] as well as wine, vinegar, pepper, ginger and any hot item are to be avoided. After one or two ingestions a divine effect will be achieved. Shao zhenren jing yan fang. 燕窩生瘡。韭地曲蟮屎,米泔水和,煅過,入百草霜等分,研末,香油調 塗之。摘玄方。 Swallow nest sores. Mix excrements of earthworms from a leek field with water that was used to wash rice, calcine it, add an equal amount of soot scratched from within a chimney of a furnace where all types of herbs had been burned, grind it to a powder and apply this, mixed with sesame oil, [to the affected region]. Zhai xuan fang. 小兒頭熱,鼻塞不通。濕地龍糞捻餅,貼顖上,日數易之。聖惠方。 A child’s head with heat, associated with a stuffed nose. Form excrements of earthworms collected from a moist ground to flat cakes and attach them to the [patient’s] fontanel, to be replaced [with fresh applications] several times a day. Sheng hui fang. 足臁爛瘡。韭地蚯蚓泥,乾研,入輕粉,清油調傅。便民圖纂。 Festering sores affecting the shanks. Dry the excrements of earthworms collected from a leek ground and grind [them to a powder]. Add calomel, mix it with clear oil and apply [this to the affected region]. Bian min tu zuan. 外腎生瘡。蚯蚓屎二分,緑豆粉一分,水研塗之,乾又上之。便民圖纂。 Sores growing on the scrotum. Grind two fen of earthworm excrements and one fen of mung bean powder [to a pulp] and apply this [to the affected region]. Once [the application] has dried, apply [a moist one in exchange]. Bian min tu zuan. 07-30 螺螄泥綱目 Luo shi ni, FE Gang mu. Spiral shell mud/excrements. 【主治】性凉。主反胃吐食,取螺螄一斗,水浸,取泥晒乾,每服一錢, 火酒調下。時珍。 Control. Nature: cool. To control turned over stomach with vomiting of food, soak one dou of spiral shells in water, collect the [secreted] mud/excrements and dry 160 Water emerging from the brick wall of a well that has not been let free yet [into the bottom of the well], is called “[water] without root.” See also 05-15.

178

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

them in the sun. Each time [let the patient] ingest one qian, to be sent down mixed with brandy. [Li] Shizhen. 07-31 白鱓泥綱目 Bai shan ni, FE Gang mu. Mud on [the body of ] white eels. 【主治】火帶瘡,水洗取泥炒研,香油調傅。時珍。 Control. For fire girdle sores,161 wash [the eels] with water, collect the mud, roast it, and grind it [to a powder]. Apply this, mixed with sesame oil, [to the affected region]. [Li] Shizhen. 07-32 豬槽上垢土拾遺 Zhu cao shang gou tu, FE Shi yi. Dirt and soil from a pig trough. 【主治】難産,取一合和麪半升,烏豆二十顆,煮汁服。藏器。火焰丹毒 赤黑色,取槽下泥傅之,乾又上。時珍。 Control. For difficult births, boil one ge mixed with half a sheng of wheat flour and 20 grains of black soybeans, and [have the woman] ingest this. [Chen] Cangqi. For flaming cinnabar poison162 of red and black color, apply mud from below a [pig] trough [to the affected region]. Once it has dried, apply [moist mud] again. [Li] Shizhen. 07-33 犬尿泥綱目 Quan niao ni, FE Gang mu. Mud from where dogs have urinated. 【主治】妊娠傷寒,令子不落,塗腹上,乾即易。時珍。 Control. For women with harm caused by cold preventing a child to be born, apply [such mud] to their abdomen. Once it has dried, replace [it with moist mud]. [Li] Shizhen.

161 Huo dai chuang 火帶瘡, “fire girdle sores,” is one of several alternative names of re chuang 熱瘡, “heat sores.” BCGM Dict I, 397. 162 Huo yan dan du 火焰丹毒, “flaming cinnabar poison,” a skin ailment. BCGM Dict I, 235.

Chapter 7

179

07-34 驢尿泥拾遺 Lü niao ni, FE Shi yi. Mud from where donkeys have urinated. 【主治】蜘蛛咬,傅之。藏器。 Control. For spider bites, apply it [to the affected region]. [Chen] Cangqi. 07-35 尿坑泥綱目 Niao keng ni, FE Gang mu. Mud from a urine pit. 【主治】主蜂蠍諸蟲咬,取塗之。時珍。 Control. To control [harm caused by] the stings/bites of wasps/bees, scorpions and all types of worms/bugs, gather [such mud] and apply it [to the affected region]. [Li] Shizhen. 07-36 糞坑底泥綱目 Fen keng di ni, FE Gang mu. Mud from the bottom of an excrement pit. 【主治】發背諸惡瘡,陰乾爲末,新水調傅,其痛立止。時珍。 Control. For all types of malign sores effusing on the back, dry [the mud] at a shady place and [grind it to] a powder, to be applied, mixed with newly drawn water, [to the affected region]. The pain will end immediately. [Li] Shizhen.

【附方】新一。 Added Recipes. One newly [recorded]. 丁腫。糞下土、蟬蜕、全蠍等分,搗作錢大餅,香油煎滚,温服。以滓傅 瘡四圍,丁自出也。聖濟總録。 Pin[-illness]163 swelling. Pound equal amounts of soil from underneath excrements, cicada slough and complete scorpions [to a pulp] and prepare flat cakes the size of a coin. Boil them in sesame oil, and ingest them warm. Take the sediment and apply it on all four sides of the sores, and the pin will come out as a result. Sheng ji zong lu. 163 Ding 丁, “pin[-illness],” also ding 疔, “pin-illness,” refers to a deep-reaching and festering hardness in a tissue, eventually rising above the skin like a pinhead. BCGM Dict I, 127129.

180

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

07-37 簷溜下泥綱目 Yan liu xia ni, FE Gang mu. Mud from where rain water has dropped down from the eaves. 【主治】豬咬、蜂螫、蟻叮、蛇傷毒,並取塗之。又和羊脂,塗腫毒、丹 毒。時珍。 Control. Pig bites, wasp/bee stings, ant bites, harm caused by poisonous snakes – for all these collect [such mud] and apply it [to the affected region]. Also, mixed with lamb fat it is to be applied to swelling with poison and [regions affected by] cinnabar poison.164 [Li] Shizhen.

【附方】新一。 Added Recipes. One newly [recorded]. 蠍蠆螫叮。蠍有雌雄,雄者痛在一處,以井底泥封之,乾則易。雌者痛牽 諸處,以瓦溝下泥封之。若無雨,以新汲水,從屋上淋下取泥。肘後方。 Scorpion stings. There are female and male scorpions. [Bites by] male [scorpions] result in pain at one specific location. Cover it with mud from the bottom of a well, and replace it [with moist mud] once it has dried. [Bites by] female [scorpions] result in pain involving a wider region. Cover it with mud from below the eaves [where rain water has dropped down]. If there has been no rain, let newly drawn water pour down from the roof and collect the resulting mud. Zhou hou fang. 07-38 田中泥綱目 Tian zhong ni, FE Gang mu. Mud from the fields. 【主治】馬蝗入人耳,取一盆枕耳邊,聞氣自出。人誤吞馬蝗入腹者,酒 和一二升服,當利出。時珍。 Control. When a leech has entered an ear, collect one pot [of mud from the fields] and place it next to the [patient’s] ear. Once [the leech] smells the [mud’s] qi, it will come out. If someone inadvertently has swallowed a leech and it has entered his abdomen, mix one or two sheng [of such mud] with wine and [let the patient] ingest it. [The leech] will be discharged with free-flow [defecation]. [Li] Shizhen.

164 Dan du 丹毒, “cinnabar poison,” a skin ailment with red rashes. BCGM Dict I, 118

Chapter 7

181

07-39 井底泥證類 Jing di ni, FE Zheng lei. Mud from the bottom of a well. 【主治】塗湯火瘡。證類。療妊娠熱病,取傅心下及丹田,可護胎氣。時 珍。 Control. To be applied to sores caused by hot water and fire. Zheng lei. To heal heat diseases of pregnant women, apply it to the region below the heart and to the cinnabar field. This way, the fetal qi can be protected. [Li] Shizhen.

【附方】新五。 Added Recipes. Five newly [recorded]. 頭風熱痛。井底泥和大黄、芒消,末,傅之。千金方。 Head wind165 with heat and pain. [Grind] mud from the bottom of a well together with rhubarb root and mirabilite to a powder and apply this [to the affected region]. Qian jin fang. 胎衣不下。井底泥一鷄子大,井華水服即下。集玄方。 Failure to discharge the placenta. [Let the patient] ingest mud from the bottom of a well, the size of a chicken egg, with the first water drawn from a well in the morning and [the placenta] will be discharged. Ji xuan fang. 卧忽不寤。勿以火照,但痛嚙其踵及足拇趾甲際,而多唾其面,以井底泥 塗其目,令人垂頭入井中,呼其姓名便甦也。肘後方。 When someone who is asleep suddenly fails to wake up again. Do not illuminate him with a fire. Simply bite him into his heels and at the margin of the nails of his big toes to cause pain, and spit much saliva into his face. In addition, apply mud from the bottom of a well to his eyes, and suspend him in such a way that his head hangs down into a well. Then shout his name and he will wake up again. Zhou hou fang. 小兒熱癤。井底泥傅其四圍。談野翁方。 Heat pimples of children. Apply mud from the bottom of a well to all four sides [of the affected region]. Tan Yeweng fang.

165 Tou feng 頭風, “head wind,” is wind evil attacking the head followed by pain, or dizziness, or itching. BCGM Dict I, 509.

182

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

蜈蚣螫人。井底泥頻傅之。千金方。 When a centipede stings a human. Repeatedly apply mud from the bottom of a well [to the affected region]. Qian jin fang. 07-40 烏爹泥綱目 Wu die ni, FE Gang mu. Catechu. 【釋名】烏疊泥綱目、孩兒茶。【時珍曰】烏爹或作烏丁,皆番語,無正 字。 Explanation of Names. Wu die ni 烏疊泥, Gang mu. Hai er cha 孩兒茶, “children’s tea.” [Li] Shizhen: Wu die 烏爹 is sometimes written wu ding 烏丁. All these are terms of a foreign language. There is no standard writing. 【集解】【時珍曰】烏爹泥出南番 爪哇、暹羅諸國,今雲南、老撾 暮雲塲 地方造之。云是細茶末入竹筒中,緊塞兩頭,埋污泥溝中,日久取出,搗 汁熬制而成。其塊小而潤澤者爲上,塊大而焦枯者次之。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: Catechu originates in such countries as Java and Siam in the Nan fan region. Nowadays, it it produced in Yun nan and in Mu yun chang of Laos. Allegedly, fine tea [leaves] are inserted into a bamboo tube. Both its ends are firmly sealed and then it is buried in a mud ditch. After a long time it is taken out again. Then [the contents] are pounded to obtain a juice which is boiled to obtain the final product. That which consists of small lumps with a moist appearance, it is superior. That which consists of large lumps and has been burned to look withered is of secondary quality. 【氣味】苦、濇,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Bitter, astringent, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】清上膈熱,化痰生津,塗金瘡、一切諸瘡,生𦠄定痛,止血收 濕。時珍。 Control. It serves to cool heat rising to the diaphragm. It transforms phlegm and generates body fluid. It is applied to wounds caused by metal objects/weapons, and all types of sores. It engenders the growth of muscles and ends pain. It stops bleeding and withdraws moisture. [Li] Shizhen.

Chapter 7

183

【附方】新八。 Added Recipes. Eight newly [recorded]. 鼻淵流水。孩兒茶末吹之,良。本草權度。 Nasal deep-source outflow of water. Blow catechu / “children’s tea” powder [into the nostrils]. Good. Ben cao quan du. 牙疳口瘡。孩兒茶、朋砂等分,爲末搽之。 Dental gan-illness166 with oral sores. [Grind] equal amounts of catechu and borax to a powder and rub this on the [affected region]. 積德堂方治走馬牙疳,用孩兒茶、雄黄、貝母等分,爲末,米泔漱净,搽 之。 The Ji de tang fang [recommends to] cure running horse dental gan-illness167 [as follows. Grind] equal amounts of catechu, realgar and fritillaria [root] to a powder. Rinse [the patient’s mouth] clean with water that was used to wash rice, and rub [the powder to the affected region]. 下疳陰瘡。外科用孩兒茶末,米泔洗净,傅之神效。或加胡黄連等分。 Lower region gan-illness with sores in the yin [(i.e., genital) region]. [Experts of ] the discipline of external [therapies recommend to first] rinse [the affected region] clean with water that was used to wash rice, and then apply a powder of “children’s tea.” This is divinely effective. Or they add an equal amount of picrorhiza [rhizome to the powder]. 纂奇方:孩兒茶一錢,真珠一分,片腦半分,爲末傅之。 Zuan qi fang: [Grind] one qian of “children’s tea,” one fen of genuine pearls and half a fen of borneol to a powder and apply this [to the affected region]. 唐氏用孩兒茶一錢,輕粉一分,片腦一字,爲末搽之。 Mr. Tang uses one qian of “children’s tea,” one fen of calomel, and one zi of borneol ground to a powder, to be applied [to the affected region]. 痔瘡腫痛。孩兒茶、麝香爲末,唾津調傅。孫氏集效方。 Piles sores with painful swelling. [Grind] “children’s tea” and musk to a powder, mix it with human saliva, and apply [this to the affected region]. Sun shi ji xiao fang. 166 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188. 167 Zou ma ya gan 走馬牙疳, “running horse dental gan-illness,” a dental illness that develops abruptly and turns into a serious condition. BCGM Dict I, 704.

184

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

脱肛氣熱。孩兒茶二分,熊膽五分,片腦一分,爲末,人乳搽肛上,熱汁 自下而肛收也。亦治痔瘡。董炳方。 Anal prolapse with [a sensation of ] heat qi. [Grind] two fen of “children’s tea,” five fen of [bile from a] bear gallbladder and one fen of borneol to a powder. [Mix the powder with] human milk and apply this to the anus. This will cause a discharge of hot liquid and the anus will be drawn in again. This also serves to cure piles sores. Dong Bing fang. 07-41 彈丸土拾遺 Dan wan tu, FE Shi yi. Soil [used to produce] bullets. 【主治】婦人難産,熱酒服一錢。藏器。 Control. Women with difficult birth ingest, with hot wine, one qian. [Chen] Cangqi. 07-42 自然灰拾遺 Zi ran hui, FE Shi yi. Natural ashes. Meerschaum. Sepiolite 【集解】【藏器曰】生南海畔,狀如黄土,灰可澣衣。琉璃、瑪瑙、玉石 以此灰埋之,即爛如泥,至易雕刻。 Collected Explanations. [Chen] Cangqi: They emerge on the shores of the Nan hai, and their appearance resembles that of yellow soil/loess. These ashes are used to wash garments. If glass, agate and jade are buried in these ashes, they become pappy like mud and can be carved easily. 【主治】白癜風、癧瘍風,重淋取汁,和醋傅之,以布揩破乃傅之,爲瘡 勿怪。藏器。 Control. For white patches wind168 and pervasion-illness169 with ulcers wind, [soak the ashes in water], strain them repeatedly and gather the liquid. Mix it with vinegar and apply this [to the affected region]. Then wipe [the affected region] with a piece of cloth until it breaks open and apply [the liquid] there. When sores develop, this is nothing to be concerned about. [Chen] Cangqi. 168 Bai dian feng 白癜風, “white patches wind.” Vaguely defined skin ailment. BCGM Dict I, 46. 169 Li, 癧 “pervasion illness,” often referred to together with lou 瘰, as lou li 瘰癧, “scrofula with pervasion-illness.” BCGM Dict I, 313.

Chapter 7

185

07-43 伏龍肝别録下品 Fu long gan, FE Bie lu, lower rank. Hidden dragon’s liver. Soil from a hearth. 【釋名】竈心土。【弘景曰】此竈中對釜月下黄土也。以竈有神,故號爲 伏龍肝,并以迂隱其名爾。今人又用廣州鹽城屑以療漏血瘀血,亦是近月 之土,蓋得火燒之義也。【斅曰】凡使勿誤用竈下土。其伏龍肝是十年以 來,竈額内火氣積久自結,如赤色石,中黄,其形貌八稜,取得研細,以 水飛過用。【時珍曰】按廣濟曆作竈忌日云:伏龍在不可移作。則伏龍 者,乃竈神也。後漢書言:陰子方臘日晨炊而竈神見形。註云:宜市買豬 肝泥竈,令婦孝。則伏龍肝之名義,又取此也。臨安 陳輿言:砌竈時,納 豬肝一具于土,俟其日久,與土爲一,乃用之,始與名符。蓋本于此。獨 孤滔丹書言:伏龍肝取經十年竈下,掘深一尺,有色如紫瓷者是真,可縮 賀,伏丹砂。蓋亦不知豬肝之義,而用竈下土以爲之者也。 Explanation of Names. Zao xin tu 竈心土, “soil from the hearth/center of a furnace.” [Tao] Hongjing: This is the yellow soil found directly below the cauldron in a furnace. Since there is a spirit in the furnace, it is called “a hidden dragon’s liver” to hide the [spirit’s real] name. Nowadays, the people also use “Yan cheng fragments” from Guang zhou to cure leaking blood and stagnant blood since this, too, is soil close to the cauldron. [The usage of this soil] is based on the idea that it is endowed with [the virtues of ] a burning fire. [Lei] Xiao: Whenever this is to be applied, do not mistakenly use soil from below a furnace. Fu long gan are nodes that have formed over the recent ten years in the front of a furnace through a longterm accumulation of fire qi. It looks like a red stone [cube] with eight edges, with yellow [color] in its center. Once collected, it is ground to a fine powder. This then is processed through sublimation with water, before it is made use of. [Li] Shizhen: According to the Guang ji li’s list of days when it is forbidden to build a furnace, “nothing is to be altered as long as the ‘hidden dragon’ is present [in a furnace].” The “hidden dragon” is the spirit of the furnace. The Hou han shu says: “One morning in the twelfth month when Yin Zifang prepared food, the furnace spirit appeared to him with his physical image.” A commentary states: “It is advisable to purchase a pig liver on the market and to [use it to] plaster the furnace. This will let one’s wife show filial respect.” That is the origin of the name “hidden dragon’s liver.” Chen Yu from Lin an says: “When building a brick furnace, place one pig liver into the soil [used to prepare the bricks] and wait for some time until [the liver] has merged with the soil. Then use [the soil to build the furnace]. This is where the name originates.” Hence this is its origin. The Dugu Tao dan shu says: “‘Hidden dragon’s liver’ is removed from as deep as one chi below a furnace of more than ten years in operation.

186

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

When it has a purple color and [the quality of ] porcelain, it is genuine. It can be used to purify tin and to control [the nature of ] cinnabar.” The fact is, he does not know the meaning of why a pig liver is used; he simply advises on how the soil from below a furnace is recovered. 【氣味】辛,微温,無毒。【權曰】鹹。【大明曰】熱,微毒。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, slightly warm, nonpoisonous. [Zhen] Quan: Salty. Da Ming: Hot, slightly poisonous. 【主治】婦人崩中吐血,止欬逆血。醋調,塗癰腫毒氣。别録。止鼻洪, 腸風帶下,尿血洩精,催生下胞,及小兒夜啼。大明。治心痛狂顛,風邪 蠱毒,妊娠護胎,小兒臍瘡重舌,風噤反胃,中惡卒魘,諸瘡。時珍。 Control. Woman with collapsing center170 and spitting of blood. It ends cough with blood moving contrary to its proper course. Mixed with vinegar, it is applied to swelling and poison qi associated with obstruction-illness.171 Bie lu. It ends profuse nosebleed, intestinal wind and [diseases] below the belt, urine with blood and outflow of essence/sperm. It speeds up births and serves to discharge the placenta. It also [ends] crying of children during the night. Da Ming. It serves to cure heart pain, madness and peak[-illness], 172 wind evil and gu poisoning.173 It protects the fetus of pregnant women. [It serves to cure] umbilical sores and doubled tongue of children, lockjaw caused by wind and turned over stomach, being struck by the malign and nightmares, as well as all types of sores. [Li] Shizhen.

170 Beng zhong 崩中, “collapsing center,” excessive vaginal bleeding outside of a menstruation period. BCGM Dict I, 58. 171 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641. 172 Dian 顛, “peak[-illness],” also 癲, vaguely defined mental derangement. BCGM Dict I, 124. 173 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191.

Chapter 7

187

【附方】舊十六,新十七。 Added Recipes. 16 of old. 17 newly [recorded]. 卒中惡氣。伏龍肝末一鷄子大,水服取吐。千金方。 Suddenly being struck by malign qi. [Let the patient] ingest with water [a piece of ] “hidden dragon’s liver” the size of a chicken egg, until he vomits. Qian jin fang. 魘寐暴絶。竈心對鍋底土,研末,水服二錢,更吹入鼻。千金方。 Sudden [qi] cut-off during a nightmare. Grind soil from the bottom of a pot placed in the center of a furnace to a powder, and [let the patient] ingest with water two qian. Also, blow [the powder] into his nostrils. Qian jin fang. 中風口噤不語,心煩恍惚,手足不隨,或腹中痛滿,或時絶而復甦。伏龍 肝末五升,水八升攪,澄清灌之。千金方。 Being struck by wind, with lockjaw and an inability to speak, with heart unrest and absent-mindedeness, and hands and feet failing to act in accordance with one’s intensions. Sometimes with a sensation of painful abdominal fullness. Sometimes with a temporary [qi] cut-off followed by renewed awakening. Stir five sheng of “hidden dragon’s liver” in eight sheng of water, wait until [the sediment has settled and the liquid] is clear and pour it [on the patient]. Qian jin fang. 狂顛謬亂不識人。伏龍肝末,水服方寸匕,日三服。千金方。 Madness, peak[-illness],174 mental confusion and an inability to recognize other persons. [Let the patient] ingest with water the amount held by a square cun spoon of “hidden dragon’s liver” powder. To be ingested three times a day. Qian jin fang. 小兒夜啼。伏龍肝末二錢,朱砂一錢,麝香少許,爲末,蜜丸緑豆大,每 服五丸,桃符湯下。普濟方。 Crying of children during the night. [Grind] two qian of “hidden dragon’s liver” powder, one qian of cinnabar and a small amount of musk to a powder, form with honey pills the size of mung beans, and [have the child] each time ingest five pills, to be sent down with a peach-wood charm (38-32) decoction. Pu ji fang. 小兒重舌。釜下土和苦酒塗之。千金方。 Doubled tongue175 of children. Mix soil from below a cauldron with bitter wine and apply this [to the affected region]. Qian jin fang. 174 Dian 顛, “peak[-illness],” also 癲, vaguely defined mental derangement. BCGM Dict I, 124. 175 Chong she 重舌, “doubled tongue.” A growth under the tongue, mostly in children, similar to a second tongue. BCGM Dict I, 92.

188

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

重舌腫木。伏龍肝末,牛蒡汁調塗之。聖惠方。 Doubled tongue with a swelling and numbness. Mix “hidden dragon’s liver” powder with arctium juice and apply this [to the affected region]. Sheng hui fang. 冷熱心痛。伏龍肝末方寸匕,熱以水温,冷以酒服。外臺秘要。 Heart pain associated with alternating cold and heat sensations. Ingest the amount held by a square cun spoon of “hidden dragon’s liver” powder, with warm water if the sensation is one of heat, and with wine if the sensation is one of cold. Wai tai mi yao. 反胃吐食。竈中土年久者,爲末,米飲服三錢,經驗。百一選方。 Turned over stomach and vomiting of food. [Grind] soil that has accumulated for years in a furnace to a powder and ingest with a rice beverage three qian. Proved effective. Bai yi xuan fang. 卒然欬嗽。釜月土一分,豉七分,搗丸梧桐子大。每飲下四十丸。肘後方。 Sudden cough. Pound one fen of soil from [below] a cauldron and seven fen of fermented beans [to a pulp and form] pills the size of firmiana seeds. Each time send down with a beverage 40 pills. Zhou hou fang. 吐血衄血。伏龍肝末半升,新汲水一升,淘汁和蜜服。廣利方。 Blood spitting and nosebleed. [Mix] half a sheng of “hidden dragon’s liver” powder with newly drawn water, strain [this to obtain the] liquid and [let the patient] ingest it with honey. Guang li fang. 吐血瀉血,心腹痛。伏龍肝、地爐土、多年烟壁土等分,每服五錢,水二 盌,煎一盌,澄清,空心服。白粥補之。普濟方。 Blood spitting, outflow of blood. Heart and abdominal pain. Take equal amounts of “hidden dragon’s liver”, soil from a fire pit, and soil from a chimney wall that has accumulated over many years. Each time [let the patient] ingest five qian, to be boiled in two bowls of water down to one bowl. Wait until the sediments have settled and the liquid is clear. To be ingested on an empty stomach. Supplement this with a white congee. Pu ji fang. 婦人血漏。伏龍肝半兩,阿膠、蠶沙炒各一兩,爲末。每空肚酒服二三 錢,以知爲度。寇氏衍義。 Women with leaking blood. [Grind] half a liang of “hidden dragon’s liver” and one liang each of ass hide glue and roasted silkworm feces to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest with wine on an empty stomach two to three qian for as long as it takes until a healing is achieved. Kou shi yan yi.

Chapter 7

189

赤白帶下,日久黄瘁,六脉微濇。伏龍肝炒令烟盡,棕櫚灰、屋梁上塵炒 烟盡,等分爲末,入龍腦、麝香各少許,每服三錢,温酒或淡醋湯下。一 年者,半月可安。大全方。 Red and white [outflow of women from] below the belt, with [the patients] appearing yellow and exhausted within a day, and [the movement in] the vessels being slightly uneven. [Grind] equal amounts of “hidden dragon’s liver, ” roasted until no more fumes are emitted, palm tree ashes, and dust from the surface of a house’s beams, roasted until no more fumes are emitted, to a powder, add small amounts each of borneol and musk, and [let the patient] each time ingest three qian, to be sent down with warm wine or bland vinegar. If [the ailment] has lasted for one year, it can be brought to an end within half a month. Da quan fang. 産後血氣攻心痛,惡物不下。用竈中心土研末,酒服二錢,瀉出惡物,立 效。救急方。 Blood qi painfully attacking the heart following birth, with malign items failing to be discharged. Grind soil from the heart/center of a furnace to a powder and [let the patient] ingest with wine two qian. The malign items will be discharged with an outflow. Immediately effective. Jiu ji fang. 妊娠熱病。伏龍肝末一鷄子許,水調服之。仍以水和塗臍方寸,乾又上。 傷寒類要。 Heat disease of pregnant women. Mix a piece of “hidden dragon’s liver” the size of a chicken egg with water and [let the patient] ingest this. Also, mix it with water and apply it to a square cun region around the [patient’s] navel. Once it has dried, replace [it with a moist application]. Shang han lei yao. 子死腹中,母氣欲絶。伏龍肝末三錢,水調下。十全博救方。 When a child has died in the abdomen and the qi of the mother threaten to be cut off. Have her send down mixed with water three qian of “hidden dragon’s liver” powder. 横生逆産。竈中心對鍋底土,細研。每服一錢,酒調下,仍搽母臍中。救 急方。 Birth of a child in a transverse position and with a [footling] presentation contrary to normal. Grind soil from the bottom of a cauldron facing the heart/center of a furnace to a fine [powder]. Each time [let the patient] ingest one qian, to be sent down mixed with wine. Also, apply [the powder] to the mother’s navel. Jiu ji fang.

190

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

胞衣不下。竈下土一寸,醋調,納臍中。續服甘草湯三四合。産寶。 Failure of the placenta to be discharged. Mix soil from one cun below the furnace with vinegar and apply this to the [mother’s] navel. Then have her ingest three to four ge of glycyrrhiza [root] decoction. Chan bao. 中諸蠱毒。伏龍肝末一鷄子大,水服取吐。千金方。 Being struck by all types of gu poison.176 [Let the patient] ingest with water a piece of “hidden dragon’s liver,” the size of a chicken egg, until he vomits. Qian jin fang. 六畜肉毒。方同上。 Poisoning by the meat of any of the six types of livestock. Recipe identical to the one above. 陰冷發悶,冷氣入腹,腫滿殺人。釜月下土,和鷄子白傅之。千金方。 A sensation of cold in the yin [(i.e., genital) region]. When the cold qi enter the abdomen, followed by a swelling and a feeling of fullness, that person will be killed. Mix soil from below a cauldron with egg white and apply this [to the affected region]. Qian jin fang. 男陰卒腫。方同上。 Sudden swelling in the yin [(i.e., genital) region] of males. Recipe identical to the one above. 諸腋狐臭。伏龍肝末頻傅之。千金方。 All types of fox odor emitted from the armpits. Repeatedly apply “hidden dragon’s liver” to [the armpits]. Qian jin fang. 聤耳出汁。綿裹伏龍肝末塞之,日三易。聖濟録。 Shedding ears releasing a liquid. Stuff them with a silk floss bag filled with “hidden dragon’s liver” powder. Replace it three times a day. Sheng ji lu. 小兒臍瘡。伏龍肝末傅之。聖惠方。 Sores at the navel of children. Apply “hidden dragon’s liver” powder there. Sheng hui fang. 小兒丹毒。多年竈下黄土末,和屋漏水傅之,新汲水亦可,鷄子白或油亦 可,乾即易。肘後方。 176 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191.

Chapter 7

191

Cinnabar poison177 of children. Mix yellow soil powder that has collected below a furnace for many years with water leaking from the roof of a house and apply this [to the affected region]. Newly drawn water will do, too. Egg white and oil are possible, too. Once [the application] has dried, replace it. Zhou hou fang. 小兒熱癤。釜下土、生椒末等分,醋和塗之。千金翼。 Pimples with heat of children. Mix equal amounts of soil from below a cauldron and fresh pepper powder with vinegar and apply this [to the affected region]. Qian jin yi. 臁瘡久爛。竈内黄土年久者,研細,入黄蘗、黄丹、赤石脂、輕粉,末, 等分,清油調,入油絹中貼之,勿動,數日愈。縱痒,忍之良。濟急方。 Shank sores that have festered for a long time. Grind yellow soil that has been in a furnace for years to a fine [powder], add equal amounts of phellodendron [bark], minium, red halloysite and calomel, [all ground to a] powder, mix it with clear oil, wrap it in oil silk and apply this [to the affected region]. Do not move/change it until a cure is achieved after several days. Even if an itch is felt, this is to be tolerated. Good. Ji ji fang. 發背欲死。伏龍肝末酒調,厚傅之,乾即易,平乃止。千金。 Effusion on the back bringing one close to dying. Mix “hidden dragon’s liver” powder with wine and apply a thick layer [to the affected region]. Once it has dried, replace it. End [the treatment] when [the swelling] is levelled. 一切癰腫。伏龍肝以蒜和作泥,貼之,乾再易,或鷄子黄和亦可。外臺秘 要。 All types of obstruction-illness178 associated with a swelling. Mix “hidden dragon’s liver” with garlic to a pulp and apply this [to the affected region]. Once it has dried, replace it [with a moist application]. It is also possible to mix [“hidden dragon’s liver”] with egg yoke. Wai tai mi yao. 杖瘡腫痛。釜月下土爲末,油和塗之,卧羊皮上,頻塗。千金方。 Sores/wounds and painful swelling caused by flogging. [Grind] the soil from below a cauldron to a powder, mix it with oil and apply this [to the affected region]. [Let the patient] lie on a sheepskin, and repeat the application several times. Qian jin fang. 177 Dan du 丹毒, “cinnabar poison,” a skin ailment with red rashes. BCGM Dict I, 118 178 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641.

192

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

灸瘡腫痛。竈中黄土末,煮汁淋之。千金方。 Sores and painful swelling resulting from cauterization therapy. Boil yellow soil powder from within a furnace in water, and pour [the liquid on the affected region]. Qian jin fang. 07-44 土墼音急。綱目 Tu ji, read ji, FE Gang mu. Calc-sinter [in a lime-kiln]. 【釋名】煤赭。【時珍曰】此是燒石灰窑中流結土渣也,輕虚而色赭。 Explanation of Names. Mei zhe 煤赭, “reddish-brown coal dye.” [Li] Shizhen: These are the sediments of congealed soil left in a lime-kiln. They are of light weight, hollow and of reddish-brown color. 【主治】婦人鼈瘕及頭上諸瘡。凡人生痰核如指大,紅腫者,爲末,以菜 子油調搽,其腫即消。或出膿,以膏藥貼之。時珍。 Control. Turtle[-shaped] conglomeration-illness of women and all types of sores on the head. Whenever someone develops phlegm kernels the size of a finger, associated with a red swelling, [grind calc-sinter to] a powder, mix it with vegetable oil and apply [this to the affected region]. This will dissolve the swelling. [Li] Shizhen.

【附方】新。 Added Recipes. [One] newly [recorded]. 白秃臘梨。灰窯内燒過紅土墼四兩,百草霜一兩,雄黄一兩,膽礬六錢, 榆皮三錢,輕粉一錢,爲末,豬膽汁調,剃頭後搽之,百發百中,神方 也。陸氏積德堂方。 White baldness with [the head resembling] a polished pear. [Grind] four liang of burned, red calc-sinter found in a limekiln, one liang of soot scratched from within a chimney of a furnace where all types of herbs had been burned, one liang of realgar, six qian of chalcanthite, three qian of Siberian elm bark, and one qian of calomel to a powder, mix it with the bile from a pig’s gallbladder, and – after shaving the [patient’s] head – apply this [to the affected region]. This is a divine recipe; it has been applied 100 times, and it was effective 100 times. Lu shi, Ji de tang fang.

Chapter 7

193

07-45 甘鍋綱目 Gan guo, FE Gang mu. Pleasant cauldron. Crucible. 【釋名】銷金銀鍋。吴人收瓷器屑,碓舂爲末,篩澄取粉,呼爲滓粉,用 膠水和劑作鍋,以銷金銀者。 Explanation of Names. Xiao jin yin guo 銷金銀鍋, “cauldron to melt gold and silver.” The people of Wu collect fragments of porcelain, pound them in a mortar to a powder and give this through a sieve to obtain a fine powder, called “sediment powder.” They mix [this fine powder] with glue to prepare a matter which is then used to make a cauldron, serving to melt gold and silver. 【主治】偏墜疝氣,研末,熱酒調服二錢。又主煉眉瘡、湯火瘡,研末, 入輕粉少許,傅之。鍋上黝,爛肉。時珍。 Control. For hemilateral drop of elevation-illness179 qi grind [a crucible] to a powder, mix it with hot wine and ingest two qian. Also, to control tempered eyebrow sores and sores caused by scalding and fire, grind it to a powder, add a small amount of calomel and apply this [to the affected region]. The black [soot] on the outside of such a cauldron helps to let meat turn soft [during cooking]. 07-46 砂鍋綱目 Sha guo, FE Gang mu. Cauldron prepared from sand. Unglazed pottery. 【集解】【時珍曰】沙土埏埴燒成者。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: Such [cauldrons] are produced by burning sandy soil with a mixture of clay and water. 【主治】消積塊黄腫,用年久者,研末,水飛過,作丸,每酒服五錢。時 珍。 Control. It serves to dissolve accumulation lumps with yellow swelling. Grind those that have been in use for years to a powder, process [the powder] with aqueous sublimation, and form pills. Each time ingest with wine five qian. [Li] Shizhen.

179 Shan 疝, “elevation-illness,” and shan qi 疝氣, “elevation illness-qi.” A notion of a foreign item that has entered the scrotum, causes pain and may ascend and descend. BCGM Dict I, 419.

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

194

07-47 白瓷器唐本草 Bai ci qi, FE Tang ben cao. White porcelain utensil. 【集解】【恭曰】定州者良,餘皆不如。【時珍曰】此以白土爲坏180,坏燒 成者。古人以代白堊用。今饒州者亦良。 Collected Explanations. [Su] Gong: Those from Ding zhou are good. All others cannot match it. [Li] Shizhen: This is produced by forming white soil to semifinished molds, and these molds are then burned. The ancients used [white porcelain] as a substitute for chalk. Nowadays [white porcelain] from Rao zhou is good, too. 【氣味】平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】婦人帶下白崩,止嘔吐,破血止血。水摩,塗瘡滅瘢。唐本。研 末,傅癰腫,可代鍼。又點目,去翳。時珍。 Control. For women with a white collapse from below the belt. It ends vomiting. It breaks open blood [accumulations] and ends bleeding. Ground with water it is applied to sores to eliminate scars. Tang ben. Ground to a powder and applied to swelling associated with obstruction-illness,181 it can substitute a needle [therapy]. Also, applied to the eyes, it removes shades. [Li] Shizhen.

【附方】舊二,新七。 Added Recipes. Two of old. Seven newly [recorded]. 鼻衄不止。定州白瓷細末,吹少許,立止。經驗方。 Unending nosebleed. [Grind] white porcelain from Ding zhou to a powder and blow a small amount [into the patient’s nostrils. The bleeding] will end immediately. Jing yan fang. 吐血不止。上色白瓷器末二錢,皂莢子仁煎湯下,連服三服,即愈。聖濟 方。

180 Huai 坏 is defined by the Shuo wen as “tiles not yet burned,” wa wei shao 瓦未燒. Later this was commonly written pi 坯. Hence the Jiang xi edition has changed the writing to pi 坯. Nowadys, the original version is generally retained. 181 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641.

Chapter 7

195

Unending spitting of blood. Two qian of white porcelain of superior color quality, sent down with a decoction of gleditsia seed kernels, are to be ingested three times in succession. This will result in a cure. Sheng ji fang. 小便淋痛。真定瓷器煅研二兩,生熟地黄末各一兩。每用二錢,木通煎湯 服。傳信適用方。 Dripping of urine with pain. Calcine and grind [to a powder] two qian of porcelain from Zhen ding. [Mix the powder] with one liang each of fresh Chinese foxglove [rhizome] and of processed Chinese foxglove [rhizome]. For each application use two qian [of this mixture], to be ingested with an akebia [herb] decoction. Chuan xin shi yong fang. 一切𪖲𪖙。處州瓷器爲末。發時用二錢,以手指點津液蘸藥,點舌下,嚥 之即效。普濟方。 For all types of roaring panting. [Grind] porcelain from Chu zhou to a powder. At the time of an acute incidence, wet a finger with [saliva] body fluid, dip it into the [porcelain powder] medication and apply it to below the tongue. Once it is swallowed, it will show an effect. Pu ji fang. 目生翳膜。用細料白瓷鍾一箇,大火煅過,研末,紙篩,加雄黄二分,爲 末。早晚各點少許,不可多用。牛角簪撥出翳膜爲妙。若紅,用人退末點 四角,即愈。孫天仁集效方。 Shade membranes growing on the eyes. Calcine with a strong fire a bell prepared from finest matter white porcelain and grind it to a powder to be filtered through a paper sieve. Add two fen of realgar and [grind this to a] powder to be dipped, in small amounts, [into the affected eyes] early in the morning and late in the evening. It must not be used much. Then remove the shade membrane with a hairpin made of ox horn. If [the eyes] turn red, dip powdered human hair on their four corners, and this will result in a cure. 身面白丹。白瓷瓦末和猪脂塗之。梅師方。 White cinnabar [poison] affecting body and face. Mix white porcelain powder with lard and apply this [to the affected region]. Mei shi fang. 赤黑丹疥,或痒或燥,不急治,遍身即死。白瓷末、猪脂和塗之。聖濟録。 Red and white cinnabar [poison] and jie-illness,182 sometimes with an itch, sometimes with restlessness. If this is not cured promptly, it will spread over the entire body and [the patient] will die. Mix white porcelain powder with lard and apply this [to the affected region]. Sheng ji lu. 182 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely identifiable skin ailment. BCGM Dict Vol. I, 249.

196

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

湯火傷灼。多能鄙事用青瓷盌片爲末,水飛過,和桐油傅,數次瘥。 Harm caused by burns resulting from scalding and fire. The Duo neng bi shi [recommends to grind] fragments of greenish porcelain bowls to a powder, process it with aqueous sublimation, mix it with vermicia oil, and apply this [to the affected region]. After several applications, a cure will result. 活幼口議用景德鎮瓷器打碎,埋竈内,炭火鋪上,一夜取出,去火毒,爲 末,入黄丹少許傅之,立愈。 The Huo you kou yi [recommends to] break porcelain from Jing de zhen to pieces, bury them in a furnace covered with a charcoal fire, and take them out again after one night. [Wait until] the fire poison has left. Then [grind them] to a powder, add a small amount of minium and apply this [to the affected region]. A cure will be achieved immediately. 07-48 烏古瓦唐本草 Wu gu wa, FE Tang ben cao. Old black roof tile. 【集解】【時珍曰】夏桀始以泥坯燒作瓦。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: [King] Jie of the Xia [dynasty] was the first to prepare molds from mud and use them to burn roof tiles. 【氣味】甘,寒,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】以水煮及漬汁飲,止消渴,取屋上年深者良。唐本。煎湯服,解 人心中大熱。甄權。止小便,煎汁服。大明。研末,塗湯火傷。藏器。治 折傷,接骨。時珍。 Control. Boil them with water and drink the resulting juice to end melting with thirst.183 Those that have been on a roof for years are good. Tang ben. Boiled and ingested as a decoction, they resolve massive heat in one’s heart. Zhen Quan. To end [uncontrolled] urination, ingest the juice obtained by boiling them. Da Ming. Ground to a powder they are applied to harm caused by scalding and fire. [Chen] Cangqi. They serve to cure fracture harm, and to reconnect bones. [Li] Shizhen.

183 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567.

Chapter 7

197

【附方】舊一,新六。 Added Recipes. One of old. Six newly [recorded]. 暑月暍死。屋上兩畔瓦,熱熨心頭,冷即易之。千金方。 Death because of sunstroke during the hot summer months. Press two hot roof tiles from a roof on the region of the heart/stomach. Once they have turned cold, replace them [with hot tiles]. 折傷筋骨。秘傅神效散:治跌撲傷損,骨折骨碎,筋斷,痛不可忍。此藥 極能理傷續斷,累用累驗。用路上墻脚下,往來人便溺處久碎瓦片一塊, 洗净火煅,米醋淬五次,黄色爲度,刀刮細末。每服三錢,好酒調下,在 上食前,在下食後。不可以輕易而賤之,誠神方也。邵以正真人經驗方。 Harmed sinews, fractured bones. The “secretly transmitted, divinely effective powder.” It serves to cure harm and injuries caused by falls, bone fractures, bones broken to pieces and severed sinews, accompanied by unbearable pain. This medication is superbly able to mend harm and to reconnect what is severed. Often used it has often proved effective. Wash clean a piece of a roof tile from the foot of a wall where passers-by have urinated for a long time, calcine it with fire and temper it with rice vinegar five times until it has assumed a yellow color. Then scrub it with a knife to obtain a fine powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest three qian, to be sent down mixed with good wine. If [the fracture] is in the upper part [of the body, ingest the powder] prior to a meal. If it is in the lower [part] ingest it after a meal. Do not despise of this [medication] because it [ingredients] are so easily available. It is truly a divine recipe. Shao Yizheng, Jing yan fang. 湯火傷灼。取多年屋上吻獸爲末,油和塗之,立效。儒門事親方。 Harm caused by burns resulting from scalding and fire. Remove [a roof tile shaped like] an animal’s mouth that has been on a roof for many years, [grind it] to a powder, mix it with oil and apply this [to the affected region]. Immediately effective. Ru men shi qin. 灸牙痛法。取土底年深既古且潤三角瓦一塊,令三姓童子候星初出時,指 第一星,下火于瓦上灸之。本草拾遺。 A method to cauterize teeth [to cure tooth]ache. Take a triangular piece of a tile that is both old and moist and has been under the soil for years. Then let three boys of three different families at the time when the stars begin to appear point at the very first star [visible], light a fire on the tile below [that star] and apply the cauterization. Ben cao shi yi.

198

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

唇吻生瘡。新瓦爲末,生油調塗。集玄方。 Sores growing on the lips. [Grind] a new tile to a powder, mix it with fresh oil and apply this [to the affected region]. Ji xuan fang. 瘢痕凸起。熱瓦頻熨之。千金方。 Protruding scars. Repeatedly press a hot tile on them. Qian jin fang. 蜂蠆螫傷。瓦摩其上,唾二七遍,置瓦於故處,千金。 Harm caused by the stings of bees/wasps and scorpions. Rub the surface with a tile, spit on it two times seven times, and replace the tile to where it had been. Qian jin. 07-49 古磚拾遺 Gu zhuan, FE Shi yi. Ancient brick. 【主治】噦氣,水煮汁服之。久下白痢虚寒者,秋月小腹多冷者,並燒 熱,布裹坐之,令熱氣入腹,良。又治婦人五色帶下,以麪作煎餅七箇, 安于燒赤黄磚上,以黄瓜樓傅麪上,安布兩重,令患者坐之,令藥氣入腹 熏之,當有蟲出如蠶子,不過三五度瘥。藏器。 Control. For retching qi, boil [an ancient brick] in water and ingest the resulting juice. For long-lasting white free-flux illness184 with depletion cold, and also for much cold in the lower abdomen during autumn months, burn [an ancient brick] until it is hot, wrap it with a piece of cloth and [let the patient] sit on it to let the heat qi enter his abdomen. Good. Also, to cure discharge in five colors from below the belt of women, prepare seven pies boiled with wheat flour and place them on a yellow brick that has been heated until it has turned red. Then lay a [ripe] yellow trichosanthes [fruit] on the wheat flour [pies], and place two layers of cloth on top of this. Ask the patient to sit on this so that the medication qi will enter his abdomen for fumigation. This will cause worms/bugs resembling silkworm eggs to leave him. A cure will be achieved after no more than three to five such applications. [Chen] Cangqi.

184 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

Chapter 7

199

【附方】新三。 Added Recipes. Three newly [recorded]. 寒濕脚氣。磚燒紅,以陳臭米泔水淬之,乘熱布包三塊,用膝夾住,綿被 覆之,三五次愈。扶壽方。 Leg qi185 associated with cold and moisture. Burn a brick until it has turned red and dip it into old and malodorous water that was used to wash rice. Wrap three pieces while they are still hot in pieces of cloth, [let the patient] hold them between his knees and cover him with a silk floss quilt. Three to five such [applications will] result in a cure. Fu shou fang. 赤眼腫痛。新磚浸糞池中,年久取放陰處,生花刷下,入腦子和點之。普 濟方。 Red eyes with painful swelling. Soak a new brick in a manure pool for at least one year. Then remove it and store it in a shady location. Eventually brush it to obtain the [crystal] flowers that have developed on it, add camphora to them and apply this [to the affected eyes]. Pu ji fang. 臀生濕瘡。日以新磚坐之,能去濕氣。集玄方。 Moist sores developing on the buttocks. Sit on a new brick for one day. This will remove the moist qi. Ji xuan fang. 07-50 煙膠綱目 Yan jiao, FE Gang mu. Smoked glue. Soil on the inside of the chimney of a furnace used to burn tiles. 【集解】【時珍曰】此乃熏消牛皮竈上及燒瓦窯上黑土也。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: This is the black soil left on a furnace used to smoke and tan ox hide and on a kiln used to burn tiles. 【主治】頭瘡白秃,疥瘡風癬,癢痛流水,取牛皮竈岸爲末,麻油調塗。 或和輕粉少許。時珍。 Control. For head sores and white baldness, jie-illness186 sores and xuan-illness187 caused by wind, with painful itch and outflow of water, [grind “smoked glue”] found on the upper edges of a furnace [used to smoke and tan] ox hide to a powder, mix 185 Jiao qi 脚氣, “leg qi.” Painful, weak, swollen legs. BCGM Dict I, 248. 186 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely defined skin ailment. BCGM Dict I, 249. 187 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591.

200

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

it with sesame oil and apply this [to the affected region]. Or mix it with a small amount of calomel. [Li] Shizhen. 【附方】新三。 Added Recipes. Three newly [recorded]. 牛皮血癬。烟膠三錢,寒水石三錢,白礬二錢,花椒一錢半,爲末,臘猪 脂調搽。積德堂方。 Ox-hide xuan-illness. [Grind] three qian of smoked glue, two qian of alum and one and a half qian of Chinese pepper to a powder, mix it with lard collected in the 12th month, and apply this [to the affected region]. 消渴引飲。瓦窯突上黑煤,乾似鐵屎者半斤,爲末,入生薑四兩,同搗, 絹袋盛,水五升浸汁,每飲五合。聖濟録。 Melting with thirst188 and an urge to drink [water]. [Grind] half a jin of black soot from the chimney of a furnace [used to burn] tiles, resembling iron droppings [left after forging iron] once it has dried, to a powder, add four liang of fresh ginger and pound this together [to a pulp]. Fill [the pulp] into a silk pouch and soak it in five sheng of water to obtain a juice. Each time drink five ge. Sheng ji lu. 胞衣不下。竈突後黑土三指撮,五更酒下。陳藏器。 Failure of the placenta to move down. Pick with three fingers black soil from behind the [wall of a] chimney of a furnace and [have the woman] send it down with wine at the fifth night watch. [Chen] Cangqi. 07-51 墨宋開寶 Mo, FE Song, Kai bao. Ink stick. 【釋名】烏金綱目、陳玄綱目、玄香綱目、烏玉玦。【時珍曰】古者以黑 土爲墨,故字從黑土。許慎説文云:墨,烟煤所成,土之類也,故從黑 土。劉熙釋名云:墨者,晦也。 Explanation of Names. Wu jin 烏金, “black gold,” Gang mu. Chen xuan 陳玄, “displayed darkness,” Gang mu. Xuan xiang 玄香, “black aroma,” Gang mu. Wu yu jue 烏 玉玦, “black piece of jade.” [Li] Shizhen: The ancients used black soil as ink. Hence, the character [mo 墨, “ink”] is based on [the characters] hei 黑, “black,” and tu 土, “soil.” Xu Shen in his Shuo wen states: “Ink is produced from soot left by smoke. It 188 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567.

Chapter 7

201

is a type of soil. Hence [the character [mo 墨, ‘ink’] is based on [the characters] hei 黑, ‘black’, and tu 土, ‘soil’.” Liu Xi in his Shi ming states: “Mo 墨 is hui 晦, ‘dark’.” 【集解】【宗奭曰】墨,松之煙也。世有以粟草灰僞爲者,不可用,須松 烟墨方可入藥。惟遠烟細者爲佳,粗者不可用。今高麗國每貢墨於中國, 不知何物合,不宜入藥。鄜延有石油,其煙甚濃,其煤可爲墨,黑光如 漆,不可入藥。【時珍曰】上墨以松煙用梣皮汁解膠和造,或加香藥等 物。今人多以窑突中墨烟,再三以麻油入内,用火燒過造墨,謂之墨烟。 墨光雖黑,而非松煙矣,用者詳之。石墨見石炭下。烏賊魚腹中有墨,馬 之寶墨,各見本條。 Collected Explanations. [Kou] Zongshi: Ink is [made of ] piled ashes of pines. There are fake [ink stones] prepared from the ashes of millet herbs; they cannot be used [for therapeutic purposes]. Only ink made of [the soot left by] the smoke of pines is suitable for medication. Only fine [soot] left by smoke from far away is good. Coarse [soot] must not be used. Nowadays, all ink submitted as tribute to China by the country of Gao li is made of unknown items; it is not suitable for medication. In Fu yan petroleum occurs. [When burned] its smoke is very dense, and its soot can be made to ink. It has a black luster like lacquer. It must not be added to medication. [Li] Shizhen: Ink of superior quality is made of pine soot dissolved in ash tree bark juice and mixed with glue. Some add items such as fragrant medication to it. Nowadays, the people often take the ink smoke left in the chimneys of kilns, add twice or three times sesame oil and heat this over a fire to prepare ink. It is called “ink smoke.” The luster of this ink may be black, but it is not made of pine soot. Those who use [ink for therapeutic purposes] must have a detailed knowledge of this. For “stone ink”/graphite see the entry “anthracites” (09-28). For the ink that cuttlefish have in their abdomen (44-50) and for the “precious ink” of horses (50-06), see the respective entries. 【氣味】辛,温,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, warm, nonpoisonous. 【主治】止血,生𦠄膚,合金瘡,治産後血運,崩中卒下血,醋磨服之。 又止血痢及小兒客忤,搗篩温服之。又眯目物芒入目,點摩瞳子上。開 寶。利小便,通月經,治癰腫。時珍。 Control. It ends bleeding. It generates muscles and flesh. It closes wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. To cure blood[-induced brain] movements following delivery, and collapsing center189 with a sudden discharge of blood, rub it with vinegar and ingest the [resulting liquid]. Also, to end bleeding free-flux illness190 and chil189 Beng zhong 崩中, “collapsing center,” excessive vaginal bleeding outside of a menstruation period. BCGM Dict I, 58. 190 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

202

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

dren affected by a visitor’s hostility,191 pound it, give it through a sieve, and [let the patient] ingest it warm. Also, for foreign objects having entered the eyes, rub it on the pupils. Kai bao. It frees the flow of urine, opens the passage of menstruation, and serves to cure obstruction-illness192 swelling. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【震亨曰】墨屬金而有火,入藥甚健,性又能止血。 Explication. [Zhu] Zhenheng: Ink belongs to [the phase of ] metal and includes fire. Added to a medication it greatly supports its potential. By its nature, it is able to end bleeding.

【附方】舊十,新六。 Added Recipes. Ten of old. Six newly [recorded]. 吐血不止。金墨磨汁,同萊菔汁飲,或生地黄汁亦可。集簡方。 Unending spitting of blood. Grind a gold [standard] ink stone [in water to obtain a] juice and [let the patient] drink this with raphanus juice. Fresh Chinese foxglove [rhizome] juice will do, too. Ji jian fang. 衄血不止,眩冒欲死。濃墨汁滴入鼻中。梅師方。 Unending nosebleed, with veiled eyes dizziness bringing one close to dying. Drip a viscous ink juice into the nose. Mei shi fang. 熱病衄血出數升者。取好墨爲末,鷄子白丸梧子大,用生地黄汁下一二十 丸,少頃再服。仍以葱汁磨墨,滴入鼻内,即止。外臺秘要。 Nosebleed, associated with a heat disease, emitting several sheng [of blood]. [Grind] a good quality ink stone to a powder and with egg white form pills the size of wu seeds. [Let the patient] ingest with fresh Chinese foxglove [rhizome] juice ten to 20 pills. After a short while he is to ingest [ten to 20 pills] again. Also, rub the ink stone with onion juice and drip [the ink liquid] into the nose. This will end [the nosebleed]. Wai tai mi yao.

191 Ke wu 客忤 “visitor’s hostility.” A sudden twisting pain, encountered outside one’s home, in the heart and abdomen thought to result from the hostile acts of demons “visiting” the human body. BCGM Dict I, 282. 192 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641.

Chapter 7

203

大小便血。好墨細末二錢,阿膠化湯調服,熱多者尤相宜。寇氏本草衍義。 Defecation and urination with blood. Ingest two qian of a good ink stone ground to a fine powder mixed with a decoction of dissolved ass-hide glue. This [recipe] is especially suitable for cases with much heat. Kou shi, Ben cao yan yi. 卒淋不通。好墨燒一兩,爲末,每服一字,温水服之。普濟方。 Sudden blockage of urination. Burn one liang of good quality ink stones and [grind them to] a powder. Each time ingest one zi. To be ingested with warm water. Pu ji fang. 赤白下痢。薑墨丸:用乾薑、好墨各五兩,爲末,醋漿和丸梧子大。每服 三四十丸,米飲下,日夜六七服,愈。肘後方。 Free-flux illness193 with red and white discharge. The “pills with ginger and ink stone.” [Grind] five liang each of dried ginger and good quality ink stone to a powder, mix it with vinegar and fermented water of foxtail millet and prepare pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest 30 to 40 pills, to be sent down with a rice beverage. To be ingested six to seven times during daytime and during the night. This will result in a cure. Zhou hou fang. 崩中漏下,青黄赤白,使人無子。好墨一錢,水服,日二服。肘後方。 Collapsing center194 with leaking discharge of greenish, yellow, red and white color, causing [a woman] to remain without children. [Have her] ingest one qian of good quality ink stone with water. To be ingested twice a day. Zhou hou fang. 墮胎血溢不止。墨三兩,火燒醋淬三次,出火毒,没藥一兩,爲末,每服 二錢,醋湯下。普濟方。 Unending bleeding after an artificial abortion. Temper an ink stone of three liang by dipping it three times into vinegar heated over a fire. Wait for the fire poison to have left [the ink stone and grind it] with one liang of myrrh to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest two qian, to be sent down with a vinegar decoction. Pu ji fang. 婦人難産。墨一寸,末之,水服立瘥。肘後方。 Women with difficult birth. Grind a one cun long piece of ink stone to a powder and [have the women] ingest it with water. This results in an immediate cure. Zhou hou fang.

193 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311 194 Beng zhong 崩中, “collapsing center,” excessive vaginal bleeding outside of a menstruation period. BCGM Dict I, 58.

204

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

胎死腹中。新汲水磨金墨服之。普濟方。 A fetus has died in the abdomen. Rub a gold [standard] ink stone in newly drawn water and [have the woman] ingest [the resulting ink liquid]. Pu ji fang. 胞衣不出,痛引腰脊。好墨,温酒服二錢。肘後方。 Failure of a placenta to be emitted, with pain pulling on the lower back and spine. [Have the woman] ingest two qian of good quality ink with warm wine. Zhou hou fang. 癕腫發背。醋磨濃墨塗四圍,中以猪膽汁塗之,乾又上,一夜即消。趙氏 方。 Swelling associated with an obstruction-illness195 effusing on the back. Apply viscous ink obtained by rubbing [an ink stone] with vinegar on the four sides [of the affected region] and apply pig bile into its center. Once [the application] has dried, replace it [with liquid ink] again. [The swelling] will have dissolved within one night. Zhao shi fang. 客忤中惡。多於道間、門外得之,令人心腹絞痛脹滿,氣冲心胸,不即治 殺人。搗墨,水和服二錢。肘後方。 Being visited by the hostile,196 and being struck by the malign. This is mostly acquired while one is on the road, outside of one’s home. It causes a twisting pain in the heart and abdominal region, with distention and a feeling of fullness, and qi rushing against the heart and the chest. If this is not cured right away, it will kill that person. Pound an ink stone and [let the patient] ingest, mixed with water, two qian. Zhou hou fang. 飛絲入目。磨濃墨點之即出。千金方。 Fibers flying in the air have entered the eyes. Rub [an ink stone with water to obtain] a viscous ink and drip this [into the affected eyes]. This will cause [the fibers] to be emitted. Qian jin fang. 塵物入目。方同上。 Dust has entered the eyes. Recipe identical to the one above.

195 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641. 196 Ke wu 客忤 “visitor’s hostility.” A sudden twisting pain, encountered outside one’s home, in the heart and abdomen thought to result from the hostile acts of demons “visiting” the human body. BCGM Dict I, 282.

Chapter 7

205

産後血運。心悶氣絶,以丈夫小便研濃墨一升服。子母秘録。 Blood [induced brain] movements following birth, with heart-pressure and the [flow of ] qi cut off. Rub [an ink stone] with the woman’s husband’s urine to obtain a viscous ink liquid and have her ingest one sheng. Zi mu mi lu. 07-52 釜臍墨四聲 Fu qi mo, FE Si sheng. Ink/soot from the navel/center of a cauldron’s [bottom]. 【釋名】釜月中墨四聲、鐺墨開寶、釜煤綱目、釜炲綱目、鍋底墨。【時 珍曰】大者曰釜、曰鍋,小者曰鐺。 Explanation of Names. Fu yue zhong mo 釜月中墨, “ink/soot from the center of a cauldron,” Si sheng. Dang mo 鐺墨, “ink/soot from a small cauldron,” Kai bao. Fu mei 釜煤, “soot from a cauldron,” Gang mu. Fu tai 釜炲, “soot from a cauldron,” Gang mu. Guo di mo 鍋底墨, “ink/soot from the bottom of a cauldron.” [Li] Shizhen: Large [cauldrons] are called fu 釜 and guo 鍋; small [cauldrons] are called dang 鐺. 【氣味】辛,温,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, warm, nonpoisonous. 【主治】中惡蠱毒,吐血血運,以酒或水温服二錢。亦塗金瘡,止血生 𦠄。開寶。消食積,舌腫,喉痺,口瘡,陽毒發狂。時珍。 Control. For being struck by the malign and gu poison,197 with blood spitting and blood [induced brain] movement, ingest two qian warm with wine or water. It may also be applied to wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. It ends bleeding and serves to generate muscles. Kai bao. It dissolves food accumulations, tongue swelling, throat blockage, oral sores, and yang poison198 effusing as madness. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【頌曰】古方治傷寒黑奴丸,用釜底墨、竈突墨、梁上塵三物同 合諸藥,爲其功用相近耳。 Explication. [Su] Song: Ancient recipes [recommended to] cure harm caused by cold with the “black slaves pills.” [For their preparation, prepare] ink/soot from the bottom of a cauldron, ink/soot from the chimney of a furnace, and dust from the 197 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191. 198 Yang du 陽毒, “yang poison,” is harm caused by cold resulting in a flourishing of yang qi and a diminution of yin qi. BCGM Dict I, 616.

206

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

surface of beams. These three items all alike are mixed with all types of medication because their [therapeutic] functions are quite similar.

【附方】舊七,新六。 Added Recipes. Seven of old. Six newly [recorded]. 卒心氣痛。鐺墨二錢,熱小便調下。千金方。 Sudden pain caused by heart qi. Send two qian of ink/soot from [the bottom of ] a small cauldron down mixed with hot urine. Qian jin fang. 中惡心痛。鐺墨五錢,鹽一錢,研匀,熱水一錢調下。千金方。 Being struck by the malign with heart pain. Grind five qian of ink/soot from [the bottom of ] a small cauldron with one qian of salt to an evenly mixed [powder] and [let the patient] send this down mixed with one qian of hot water. Qian jin fang. 轉筋入腹。釜底墨末,和酒服一錢。肘後方。 Contorted sinews entering the abdomen. Mix ink/soot powder from the bottom of a cauldron with wine and ingest one qian. Zhou hou fang. 霍亂吐下。鍋底墨煤半錢,竈額上墨半錢,百沸湯一盞,急攪數千下,以 盌覆之,通口服一二口,立止。經驗方。 Cholera with vomiting and discharge. Boil half a qian of ink-soot from the bottom of a cauldron and half a qian of ink/soot from the chimney of a furnace in a small cup of water one hundred times to a bubbling, and stir this several thousand times. Then cover [the liquid] with a bowl and ingest through an opening one or two mouthfuls. The [disease] will end immediately. Jing yan fang. 吐血咯血。鍋底墨炒過,研細,井華水服二錢,連進三服。濟急方。 Blood spitting and coughing up of blood. Roast ink/soot from the bottom of a cauldron and grind [the residue] to a fine [powder]. [Let the patient] ingest two qian with the first water drawn from a well in the morning. To be inserted three times, one after another. Ji ji fang. 婦人逆産。以手中指取釜下墨,交畫兒足下,即順。千金方。 Women giving birth to a child with a [footling] presentation contrary to normal. Remove ink/soot with your middle finger from the bottom of a cauldron and draw the character “cross” on the sole of the child’s feet. This will bring it into a normal position. Qian jin fang.

Chapter 7

207

産血不下。鍋底墨煙,熱酒服二錢。生生編。 Delivery with a failure to discharge blood. [Have the woman] ingest with hot wine ink-soot from the bottom of a cauldron. Sheng sheng bian. 舌卒腫大,如豬脬狀,滿口,不治殺人。釜墨和酒塗之。千金方。 Sudden swelling of the tongue with its size increased to that of a pig bladder. It fills the mouth and will kill one if it is not cured. Apply ink/soot from [the bottom of ] a cauldron [to the tongue]. Qian jin fang. 鼻氣壅塞。水服釜墨一錢。千金方。 Blockage of qi flow through the nose. Ingest with water one qian of ink/soot from [the bottom of ] a cauldron. Qian jin fang. 鼻中息肉。方同上,三五日愈。普濟方。 Tumorous flesh-growth in the nose. Recipe identical to the one above. A cure will be achieved after three to five days. Pu ji fang. 聤耳膿血。月下灰吹滿耳,深入無苦,即自出。肘後方。 Ears shedding pus and blood. Blow the ashes from below a cauldron into the [affected ears]. They should enter deeply [into the ears] and this will not cause [additional] discomfort. [The blood and the pus] will leave [the ears] as a result. Zhou hou fang. 小兒口瘡。釜底墨,時時搽之。普濟方。 Oral sores of children. Repeatedly apply ink/soot from the bottom of a cauldron [to the affected region]. Pu ji fang. 手搔瘡腫作膿。用鍋臍墨研細,清油調搽。簡便方。 Sores resulting from scratching with one’s hand, with a swelling and the formation of pus. Grind ink/soot from the navel/center of [the bottom of ] a cauldron to a fine [powder], mix it with clear oil and apply this [to the affected region]. Jian bian fang.

208

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

07-53 百草霜綱目 Bai cao shuang, FE Gang mu. Frost of the hundreds of herbs. Soot scratched from within a chimney of a furnace where all types of herbs had been burned. 【釋名】竈突墨綱目、竈額墨。【時珍曰】此乃竈額及煙爐中墨烟也。其 質輕絪,故謂之霜。 Explanation of Names. Zao tu mo 竈突墨, “ink/soot from the chimney of a furnace,” Gang mu. Zao e mo 竈額墨, “ink/soot from the chimney of a furnace.” [Li] Shizhen: This is the black soot from the chimney of a furnace and from within a stove. Its material consistency is light and cloudy. Hence it is called “frost.” 【氣味】辛,温,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, warm, nonpoisonous. 【主治】消化積滯,入下食藥中用。蘇頌。止上下諸血,婦人崩中帶下、 胎前産後諸病,傷寒陽毒發狂,黄疸,瘧痢,噎膈,咽喉口舌一切諸瘡。 時珍。 Control. It serves to dissolve accumulations and transform sluggishness. It is used as an additive to medication serving as a purgative. Su Song. It ends all types of bleeding, above and below, collapsing center199 from below the belt of women, and all types of disease prior to and after delivery, harm caused by cold, yang poison200 and fits of madness. Yellow dan-illness,201 malaria and free-flux illness,202 gullet occlusion, and all types of diseases affecting the throat, the mouth and the tongue. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】百草霜、釜底墨、梁上倒掛塵,皆是煙氣結成,但其 體質有輕虚結實之異。重者歸中下二焦,輕者入心肺之分。古方治陽毒發 狂黑奴丸,三者並用,而内有麻黄、大黄,亦是攻解三焦結熱,兼取火化 從治之義。其消積滯,亦是取其從化,故疸膈瘧痢諸病多用之。其治失血 胎産諸病,雖是血見黑則止,亦不離從化之理。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: “Frost of the hundreds of herbs,” ink/soot from the bottom of a cauldron and dust hanging down from the surface of beams [in a house], 199 Beng zhong 崩中, “collapsing center,” excessive vaginal bleeding outside of a menstruation period. BCGM Dict I, 58. 200 Yang du 陽毒, “yang poison,” is harm caused by cold resulting in a flourishing of yang qi and a diminution of yin qi. BCGM Dict I, 616. 201 Huang dan 黄疸, most likely including cases of jaundice. BCGM Dict I, 225. 202 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

Chapter 7

209

they all are generated by soot qi. Still, their physical, material consistency may be light and hollow or bound and solid. Those of heavy weight will turn to the two Burners in the center and below. Those of light weight will enter the section of heart and lung. The ancient recipe of “black slaves pills” to cure yang poison and fits of madness resorted to all three of them, and [the pills] also included ephedra [herb] and rhubarb root as they, too, serve to attack and resolve bound heat203 in the Three Burners. All [these therapies] are based on the idea of a “therapy conforming” [with the nature of the disease] to transform fire. When they are used to dissolve accumulations and sluggishness, this, too, is [to resort to a “therapy] conforming” [with the nature of the disease] and transforming [fire]. Hence they are often used for all types of diseases such as jaundice, occlusion, malaria and free-flux illness.204 When they serve to cure all types of diseases associated with bleeding and birth, even though they are to end once the blood that appears has assumed a black color, this, too, does not leave the principles of [a “therapy] conforming” [with the nature of the disease] and transforming [fire].

【附方】新二十。 Added Recipes. 20 newly [recorded]. 衄血不止。百草霜末吹之,立止也。 Unending nosebleed. Blow “frost of the hundreds of herbs” into [the nostrils. The nosebleed] will end immediately. 衄血吐血。劉長春經驗方治吐血及傷酒食醉飽,低頭掬損肺臟,吐血汗 血,口鼻妄行,但聲未失者。用鄉外人家百草霜末,糯米湯服二錢。一 方:百草霜五錢,槐花末二兩,每服二錢,茅茛湯下。 Nosebleed and blood spitting. Liu Changchun in his Jing yan fang [recommends to] cure blood spitting and harm caused by intoxification with wine and overeating of food, when [the patient] has lowered his head [for too long], causing injury to his lung, with blood spitting and blood sweating, and uncontrolled flow [of blood] from his mouth and nose, but no loss of his voice [as follows. He lets the patient] ingest with a decoction of glutinous rice two qian of “frost of the hundreds of herbs” from a home outside his own home town. Another recipe: [Let the patient] each time ingest two qian of [a mixture of ] five qian of “frost of the hundreds of herbs” 203 Jie re 結熱, “bound heat,” refers to repletion evil brought about by heat that has intruded into the body where it blocks the qi mechanism or coagulates with other types of evil qi. BCGM Dict I, 252. 204 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

210

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

and two liang of sophora japonica flower powder, to be sent down with ranunculus japonicus [seed] decoction. 齒縫出血。百草霜末摻之,立止。集簡方。 Bleeding from the seams of the teeth. Rub “frost of the hundreds of herbs” on them. [The bleeding] will end immediately. Ji jian fang. 婦人崩中。百草霜二錢,狗膽汁拌匀,分作二服,當歸酒下。經驗方。 Women with collapsing center.205 Mix two qian of “frost of the hundreds of herbs” evenly with dog bile and [let the patient] ingest this divided in two portions, to be sent down with angelica sinensis root wine. Jing yan fang. 胎動下血,或胎已死。百草霜二錢,椶灰一錢,伏龍肝五錢,爲末,每服 一二錢,白湯入酒及童尿調下。筆峰雜興方。 Fetal movement [in the abdomen] with blood discharge, or the fetus may already be dead. [Grind] two qian of “frost of the hundreds of herbs,” one qian of charred trachycarpus [stipule fiber], and five qian of “hidden dragon’s liver”206 to a powder and each time [have the woman] ingest one or two qian. To be sent down mixed with wine to which clear hot water was added and boys’ urine. Bifeng, Za xing fang. 胎前産後,逆生横生,瘦胎,産前産後虚損,月候不調,崩中。百草霜、 白芷等分,爲末,每服二錢,童子小便、醋各少許調匀,熱湯化服,不過 二服。杜壬方。 [Diseases] prior to and after delivery, women giving birth to the child in a transverse position or with a [footling] presentation contrary to normal, emaciated fetus, depletion injury prior to and after delivery, menstrual irregularity, collapsing center. [Grind] equal amounts of “frost of the hundreds of herbs” and angelica [root] to a powder. Each time [have the woman] ingest two qian, to be evenly mixed with small amounts of boys’ urine and vinegar. This is to be ingested dissolved in hot water. It is not to be ingested more than twice. Du Ren fang. 婦人白帶。百草霜一兩,香金墨半兩,研末,每服三錢,猪肝一葉,批 開,入藥在内,紙裹煨熟,細嚼,温酒送之。永類方。 Women with white [discharge from below the] belt. Grind one liang of “frost of the hundreds of herbs” and half a liang of gold [standard] ink stone to a powder. Each time [have the woman] ingest three qian. Open one lobe of a pig liver, insert the medication, wrap it with paper and cook this over a slow fire until done. Then 205 Beng zhong 崩中, “collapsing center,” excessive vaginal bleeding outside of a menstruation period. BCGM Dict I, 58. 206 Soil from a hearth, see 07-43

Chapter 7

211

[have the woman] chew this to a fine [pulp], to be sent down with warm wine. Yong lei fang. 臟毒下血。百草霜五錢,以米湯調,露一夜,次早空心服。邵真人經驗方。 Poison affecting the long-term depots with blood discharge. Mix five qian of “frost of the hundreds of herbs” and rice decoction, let it rest in the open for one night, and ingest this the next morning on an empty stomach. Shao zhenren jing yan fang. 暴作瀉痢。百草霜末,米飲調下二錢。續十全方。 Sudden onset of outflow and free-flux illness.207 Send two qian of “frost of the hundreds of herbs” powder down mixed with a rice beverage. Xu shi quan fang. 一切痢下初起。一服如神,名鐵刷丸。百草霜三錢,金墨一錢,半夏七 分,巴豆煮十四粒,研匀,黄蠟三錢,同香油化開,和成劑。量大小,每 服三五丸,或四五十丸,薑湯下。灊江方。 All types of free-flux illness discharges in their very beginning. One ingestion is divinely [effective. The medication] is called “iron brush pills.” Grind three qian of “frost of the hundreds of herbs,” one qian of gold [standard] ink stone, seven fen of pinellia [root], and 14 croton [seeds], boiled in water, to an even [mixture]. Also, dissolve three qian of yellow beeswax in sesame oil. Mix all of this to form a preparation [of pills]. Depending on their size, each time ingest three to five pills, or 40 to 50 pills, to be sent down with a ginger decoction. Qian jiang fang. 小兒積痢。駐車丸:用百草霜二錢,巴豆煨去油一錢,研匀,以飛羅麪糊 和丸緑豆大。每服三五丸。赤痢甘草湯下,白痢米飲下,紅白薑湯下。全 幼心鑑。 Accumulation free-flux illness of children. The “pills that bring a cart to a halt.” Grind two qian of “frost of the hundreds of herbs” and one qian of croton [seeds], slowly cooked with the oil removed, to an even [mixture], and form with a fine flour-water paste pills the size of mung beans. Each time [let the patient] ingest three to five pills. For red free-flux illness to be sent down with glycyrrhiza [root] decoction. For white free-flux illness to be sent down with a rice beverage. For red and white [free-flux illness] to be sent down with a ginger decoction. Quan you xin jian. 挾熱下痢膿血。竈突中墨、黄連各一兩,爲末,每酒下二錢,日二服。聖 惠方。 Discharge with free-flux illness with pus and blood, associated with heat. [Grind] one liang each of ink/soot from the chimney of a furnace and coptis [rhizome] to a 207 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

212

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

powder. Each time send down with wine two qian. To be ingested twice a day. Sheng hui fang. 寒熱瘧疾。方見鉛丹下。 Malaria illness with sensations of cold and heat. For the recipe, see the entry “minium” (08-13). 魘寐卒死。鍋底墨,水灌二錢,并吹鼻。醫説。 Sudden death during a nightmare. Forcefeed ink/soot from the bottom of a cauldron, soaked in two qian of water, [to the patient] and also blow into his nostrils. Yi shuo. 尸厥不醒,脉動如故。竈突墨彈丸,漿水和飲。仍針百會、足大趾中趾甲 側。千金方。 Corpse[-like condition because of qi] recession, with a failure to wake up, and a normal movement in the vessels. Mix bullet size pills of ink/soot from the chimney of a furnace with ferment of water of foxtail millet and [let the patient] drink this. Also, pierce a needle into the bai hui [insertion hole]208 and to the side of the large toes and the middle toes of [the patient’s] feet. Qian jin fang. 咽中結塊,不通水食,危困欲死。百草霜,蜜和丸芡子大,每新汲水化一 丸灌下,甚者不過二丸,名百靈丸。普濟方。 Lumps formed in the throat, blocking the passage of water and food, and leading to a critical situation that may result in death. Form “frost of the hundreds of herbs” with honey to pills the size of qian seeds. Each time dissolve one pill in newly drawn water and forcefeed it [to the patient]. Even severe cases do not require more than two pills. They are called “pills with a hundredfold numinous strength.” Pu ji fang. 鼻瘡膿臭。百草霜末,冷水服二錢。三因方。 Nasal sores with pus and stench. Ingest two qian of “frost of the hundreds of herbs” powder with cold water. San yin fang. 白秃頭瘡。百草霜和豬脂塗之。簡便方。 White baldness with head sores. Apply “frost of the hundreds of herbs” mixed with lard [to the affected region]. Jian bian fang. 頭瘡諸瘡。以醋湯洗净,百草霜入膩粉少許,生油調塗,立愈。證類本草。 Head sores, and all [other] types of sores. Wash them clean with a vinegar decoction. Add a small amount of calomel to “frost of the hundreds of herbs” and apply 208 GV-20 WHO

Chapter 7

213

this, mixed with fresh oil, [to the affected region]. A cure will be achieved immediately. Zheng lei ben cao. 瘭疽出汁,着手足肩背,累累如米。用竈突墨、竈屋塵、釜下土研匀,水 一斗,煮三沸,取汁洗,日三四度。外臺秘要。 Flaming heat impediment-illness209 affecting hands and feet, shoulders and back, with lines of pearls like rice. Grind ink/soot from the chimney of a furnace, dust from the kitchen, and soil from below a cauldron to an even [mixture], and boil this with one dou of water three times to bubbling. Use the juice to wash [the affected region], three to four times a day. Wai tai mi yao.

07-54 梁上塵唐本草 Liang shang chen, FE Tang ben cao. Dust from a beam. 【釋名】倒掛塵名烏龍尾綱目、煙珠。 Explanation of Names. Dust hanging down [from a beam] is called “black dragon’s tail,” Gang mu. Yan zhu 煙珠, “pearls/jewelry of piled ashes.” 【修治】【斅曰】凡梁上塵,須去煙火大遠,高堂殿上者,拂下,篩净末 用。【時珍曰】凡用倒掛塵,燒令煙盡,篩取末入藥。雷氏所説,似是梁 上灰塵,今人不見用。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Lei] Xiao: For all [preparations of ] dust from a beam, it is essential to collect that which has accumulated on [the beams of ] a main hall far away from a smoking fire. Brush it down and pass it through a sieve to obtain a clear powder that is then ready to be used. [Li] Shizhen: For all applications use dust hanging down [from a beam in one’s home], burn it until it emits no more smoke, pass it through a sieve to obtain a powder that may then be added to medication. Mr. Lei [Xiao] appears to have referred to dust accumulating on beams. This is no longer resorted to by the people today. 【氣味】辛、苦,微寒,無毒。【大明曰】平。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, bitter, slightly cold, nonpoisonous. Da Ming: Balanced.

209 Biao ju 瘭疽, “flaming heat impediment-illness,” initially emerges like a bean kernel from which a root reaches into the depth of the tissue. This is associated with extreme pain. It slowly increases in size and generates several tips filled with pus that look like clusters of rice grains. hands and feet. BCGM Dict I, 67.

214

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【主治】腹痛,噎膈,中惡,鼻衄,小兒軟瘡。唐本。食積,止金瘡血 出,齒齗出血。時珍。 Control. Abdominal pain. Gullet occlusion. Being struck by the malign. Nosebleed. Soft sores of children. Tang ben. Food accumulation. It ends bleeding from wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. Bleeding gums. [Li] Shizhen.

【附方】舊七,新十二。 Added Recipes. Seven of old. 12 newly recorded. 翻胃吐食。梁上塵,黑驢尿調服之。集簡方。 Turned over stomach and vomiting of food. Mix dust from a beam with the urine of black donkeys and ingest this. Ji jian fang. 霍亂吐利。屋下倒掛塵,滚湯泡,澄清服,即止。衛生易簡方。 Cholera with vomiting and free-flux [illness]. Soak dusk hanging from [the beams at] home in boiling water, wait for the dregs to have settled and ingest the clear liquid. This will end [the disease]. Wei sheng yi jian fang. 小便不通。梁上塵二指撮,水服之。外臺秘要。 Blocked urination. Take a pinch of dust from a beam between two fingers and ingest this with water. Wai tai mi yao. 大腸脱肛。烏龍尾,即梁上塵,同鼠屎燒烟于桶内,坐上熏之,數次即不 脱也。濟急。 Anal prolapse from the large intestine. Burn “black dragon’s tail,” i. e., dust from a beam, together with the excrements of rats/mice in a bucket to develop smoke and [let the patient] sit on it to have [his anal region] fumigated. After several such [sessions] there will be no more prolapse. Ji ji. 喉痺乳蛾。烏龍尾、枯礬、豬牙皂莢以鹽炒黄,等分,爲末,或吹或點皆 妙。孫氏集效方。 Throat blockage with nipple moth.210 [Grind] equal amounts of “black dragon’s tail,” prepared alum, and small gleditsia [seed], roasted with salt until they have turned yellow, to a powder and either blow [this into the throat] or apply this [to the affected region. The effects are] always wondrous. Sun shi ji xiao fang.

210 Ru e 乳蛾, “nipple moth,” most likely including cases of acute tonsillitis. BCGM Dict I, 410.

Chapter 7

215

牙疼㗜鼻。壁上掃土,用鹽炒過,爲末,隨左右㗜鼻。普濟方。 For toothache it is to be blown into the nose. Sweep soil from a wall, roast it with salt, [grind it] to a powder. inhale this through the [left or right] nostril depending on whether [the toothache] is on the left or on the right side. Pu ji fang. 鼻中息肉。梁塵吹之。普濟方。 Tumorous flesh growth in the nose. Blow dust from a beam into [the nose]. Pu ji fang. 夜卧魘死。勿用火照,急取梁塵納鼻中,即活。瑣碎録。 Death following a nightmare during sleep at night. Do not use fire to illuminate [the patient]. Quickly obtain dust from a beam and insert it into his nose. This will bring him back to life. Suo sui lu. 卒自縊死。梁上塵如豆大,各納一筒中,四人同時極力吹兩耳及鼻中,即 活。外臺秘要。 Sudden death [of a person] who has hanged himself. Form dust from a beam to [pills] the size of beans and insert one each into [four] bamboo tubes. Then have four persons simultaneously blow [these pills through the bamboo tubes] with utmost strength into [that person’s] two ears and [two] nostrils. This will bring him back to life. Wai tai mi yao. 經血不止。烏龍尾炒煙盡、荆芥穗各半兩,爲末,每服二錢,茶下。聖濟 録。 Unending menstruation. [Grind] half a liang each of “black dragon’s tail,” roasted until no more smoke is emitted, and schizonepeta [spikes] to a powder, and [have the woman] each time ingest two qian, to be sent down with tea. Sheng ji lu. 婦人胎動,日月未足欲産。梁上塵、竈突墨等分,酒服方寸匕。千金方。 Movement of a fetus in a woman, threatening to be born prior to the due date. [Have the woman] ingest with wine on a square cun spoon equal amounts of dust from a beam and ink/soot from the chimney of a furnace. Qian jin fang. 横生逆産。梁上塵,酒服方寸匕。子母秘録。 Birth in a transverse position and with a [footling] presentation contrary to normal. [Have the woman] ingest with wine dust from a beam in the amount held by a square cun spoon. Zi mu mi lu.

216

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

婦人妬乳。醋和梁上塵塗之。千金方。 Jealousy breast of women.211 Mix vinegar with dust from a beam and apply this [to the affected region]. Qian jin fang. 石癰不膿。梁上塵灰、葵根莖灰等分,用醋和傅之。千金方。 Stone hard obstruction-illness212 without pus. Mix equal amounts of dust from a beam and ashes of malva root with vinegar and apply this [to the affected region]. Qian jin fang. 發背腫痛。厨内倒弔塵,爲末,以生葱極嫩心同搗膏,傅之留頂,一日一 换,乾則以水潤之。濒湖集簡方。 Effusion on the back with a painful swelling. [Grind] strings of dust hanging down in the kitchen to a powder, pound them together with the softest hearts of fresh onions to a paste and apply this [to the affected region] leaving the top [of the effusion/swelling] uncovered. Replace [the application] once a day [with fresh paste]. When [the paste] has dried, moisten it with water. Binhu ji jian fang. 無名惡瘡。梁上倒掛塵二條,韭地蚯蚓泥少許,生蜜和,捻作餅如錢大, 陰乾,用蜜水調,頻傅之。楊起簡便方。 Unidentified malign sores. Mix two strings of dust hanging down from beams, a small amount of the excrements of earthworms from a leek field and fresh honey and form [this paste] to flat pies the size of a coin. Dry them at a shady place, mix them with honey and water and repeatedly apply them [to the affected region]. Yang Qi, Jian bian fang. 小兒頭瘡,浸淫成片。梁上塵和油瓶下滓,以皂莢湯洗後塗之。子母秘録。 Head sores of children, soaked [with blood and pus] and generating fragments. Mix dust from a beam and the dregs from an oil bottle. Wash [the affected region] with a gleditsia [seed] decoction and apply [the mixture to it]. Zi mu mi lu. 小兒赤丹。屋塵和臘猪脂傅之。千金方。 Red cinnabar [poison]213 of children. Mix dust from within a home and lard collected in the 12th month and apply this [to the affected region]. Qian jin fang. 211 Du ru 妬乳, “jealousy breast,” when milk is blocked following delivery with a painful swelling. BCGM Dict I, 135. 212 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641. 213 Chi dan 赤丹, “red cinnabar,” is the name for red rashes accompanied by heat. BCGM Dict. I, 85.

Chapter 7

217

老嗽不止。故茅屋上塵年久着煙火者,和石黄、款冬花、婦人月經衣帶, 爲末,水和塗茅上,待乾,入竹筒中燒煙吸嚥,無不瘥也。陳藏器本草。 Unending, chronic cough. [Grind] dust from a thatched home that has been exposed to the smoke of a fire for years with realgar, tussilago [flower] and a garment or belt stained by a woman’s menstrual liquid to a powder, mix it with water and apply this to the reed of the thatched roof. Wait until it has dried, insert it into a bamboo tube, burn it and [let the patient] inhale the smoke. There is not a single case that will not be cured. Chen Cangqi ben cao. 07-55 門臼塵綱目 Men jiu chen, FE Gang mu. Dust from the mortar base of a door pivot. 【主治】止金瘡出血。又諸般毒瘡,切蒜蘸擦,至出汗即消。時珍。 Control. It ends bleeding from wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. Also, for all types of sores with poison, cut garlic into slices and dip them into [dust from the mortar base of a door pivot]. Rub [the affected region] with them until sweat appears, and [the poison] will be dissolved. [Li] Shizhen. 07-56 寡婦牀頭塵土拾遺 Gua fu chuang tou chen tu, FE Shi yi. Dust from the end of a widow’s bed. 【主治】耳上月割瘡,和油塗之。藏器。 Control. Moon eclipse sores at the ears.214 Mix [the dust] with oil and apply this [to the affected region]. [Chen] Cangqi. 07-57 瓷甌中白灰拾遺 Ci ou zhong bai hui, FE Shi yi. White dust/lime found in a porcelain bowl. 【集解】【藏器曰】瓷器物初燒時,相隔皆以灰爲泥,然後燒之。但看瓷 裏有灰,即收之備用。 Collected Explanations. [Chen] Cangqi. When porcelain items are prepared to be fired, they are separated by a mud prepared from dust/lime, and it is only then that 214 Yue ge chuang 月割瘡, “moon eclipse” sores. BCGM Dict I, 654.

218

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

they are fired. Hence one just looks for such dust/lime in porcelain [ware], collects it and stores it for later use. 【主治】遊腫,醋摩傅之。藏器。 Control. For roaming swelling, grind it with vinegar and apply this [to the affected region]. [Chen] Cangqi. 07-58 香爐灰綱目 Xiang lu hui, FE Gang mu. Ashes in an incense burner. 【主治】跌撲金刃傷損,罨之,止血生𦠄。香爐岸,主疥瘡。時珍。 Control. For harm following injuries caused by falls, blows, metal objects and knives, cover [the affected region with such ashes] to end the bleeding and to generate muscles. [Ashes that have collected inside] the top edges of an incense burner serve to control jie-illness sores.215 [Li] Shizhen. 07-59 鍛竈灰别録下品 Duan zao hui, FE Bie lu, lower rank. Ashes from the furnace of a forge. 【集解】【弘景曰】此鍛鐵竈中灰爾,兼得鐵力故也。 Collected Explanations. [Tao] Hongjing: These are ashes from within a furnace for forging iron. [They are used for therapeutic purposes] because they have acquired the strength of iron. 【主治】癥瘕堅積,去邪惡氣。别録。【恭曰】療暴癥有效。古方貳車丸 中用之。 Control. For concretion-illness and conglomeration-illness with hardened accumulations, they serve to remove evil and malign qi. Bie lu. [Su] Gong: They serve to effectively heal sudden concretion-illness. Ancient recipes have made use of them in the “pills for two carts.”216

215 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely identifiable skin ailment. BCGM Dict Vol. I, 249. 216 Er che wan 貳車丸, a recipe allegedly introduced by Hua Tuo. Ingredients include Chinese pepper from Sichuan, dried ginger, nonglutinous rice, aconitum [root tuber] and ashes from a furnace of a forge.

Chapter 7

219

【附方】新一。 Added Recipes. One newly [recorded]. 産後陰脱。鐵爐中紫塵、羊脂,二味和匀,布裹炙熱,熨推納上。徐氏胎 産方。 Uterus prolapse following delivery. Evenly mix purple dust/ashes from a furnace of an iron [forge] with sheep fat, wrap this in a piece of fabric, roast it until it is hot and press it [on the prolapsed uterus] to push it back upward. Xu shi tai chan fang. 07-60 冬灰本經下品 Dong hui, FE Ben jing, lower rank. Winter ashes. 【釋名】【宗奭曰】諸灰一爇而成,其體輕力劣,惟冬灰則經三四月方撤 爐,其灰既曉夕燒灼,其力全燥烈而體益重故也。 Explanation of Names. [Kou] Zongshi: All ashes are the products of burning. Their body is of light weight, and their strength is weak. Only winter ashes [are different]. They are removed from a furnace only after three to four months. These ashes result from fires that have burned from dawn to dusk. Hence they [are different] because their strength is one of complete dryness and fierceness and their physical body is heavier [than that of other types of ashes]. 【集解】【别録曰】冬灰,生方谷川澤。【弘景曰】此即今浣衣黄灰爾, 燒諸蒿藜積聚鍊作之,性亦烈,荻灰尤烈。【恭曰】冬灰本是藜灰,餘草 不真。又有青蒿灰、柃灰,一作苓字,乃燒木葉作。並入染家用,亦蝕惡 肉。【時珍曰】冬灰乃冬月竈中所燒薪柴之灰也。專指作蒿藜之灰,亦未 必然。原本一名藜灰,生方谷川澤,殊爲不通。此灰既不當言川澤,又豈 獨方谷乃有耶? 今人以灰淋汁,取鹻浣衣,發麪令皙,治瘡蝕惡肉,浸藍 澱染青色。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Winter ashes are produced in the rivers and marshlands of Fang gu.217 [Tao] Hongjing: These are the yellow ashes nowadays used to wash clothes. They are produced by burning all types of heaps of herbs of various kind.218 Its nature is similarly fierce, and the ashes of certain reeds are of an especially fierce [nature]. [Su] Gong: “Winter ashes” originally are the ashes obtained by [burning] lamb’s quarters; [winter ashes from the burning of ] other types of 217 A geographic region named Fang gu remains unidentifiable. 218 Hao li 蒿藜 does not refer to two specific herbs (hao 蒿, wormwood, and li 藜, lamb’s quarters) but to herbs of various kinds.

220

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

herbs are not genuine. There are also artemisia herb ashes and ling 柃 ashes, also written with the character ling 苓, i. e. [ashes] obtained from burning the leaves of wood. They are both used by experts for dying, and they serve to remove malign flesh. [Li] Shizhen: “Winter ashes” are ashes resulting from burning [all types of ] firewood in a furnace during the winter months. To specifically refer to the ashes of “herbs of various kinds” is wrong. The original source refers to “ashes of lamb’s quarters, produced in the rivers and marshlands of Fang gu.” This is most likely a misunderstanding. Ashes cannot be said to [originate in] “rivers and marshlands.” Also, why should they [originate] from Fang gu only, and nowhere else? Today, the people pour liquid over the ashes to obtain soda that is used to wash garments, to let dough rise and give it a light color, and to cure sores with erosion and malign flesh. It is given to fabrics soaked in Chinese indigo plant [water] to dye them with a greenish/bluish color. 【氣味】辛,微温,有毒。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, slightly warm, poisonous. 【主治】去黑子、肬、瘜肉、疽蝕疥瘙。本經。煮豆食,大下水腫。蘇 恭。醋和熱灰,熨心腹冷氣痛及血氣絞痛,冷即易。藏器。治犬咬,熱灰 傅之。又治溺死、凍死,蝕諸癰疽惡肉。時珍。 Control. They remove black spots, warts, tumorous flesh growths, impediment-illness219 erosion and jie-illness220 with itch. Ben jing. Consumed boiled with beans they serve to massively discharge water from a swelling. Su Gong. For pain caused in the central and abdominal region by cold qi and for twisting pain caused by blood and qi, press them hot [on the affected region]. [Chen] Cangqi. To cure dog bites, apply hot [winter ashes] to them. They also serve to cure death by drowning, death by freezing, and erosions associated with all types of obstruction-illness,221 impediment-illness and malign flesh. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】古方治人溺水死,用竈中灰一石埋之,從頭至足,惟 露七孔,良久即甦。凡蠅溺水死,試以灰埋之,少傾即便活,甚驗。蓋灰 性暖而能拔水也。

219 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277. 220 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely identifiable skin ailment. BCGM Dict Vol. I, 249. 221 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641.

Chapter 7

221

Explication. [Li] Shizhen: Ancient recipes for curing people who died by drowning in water [recommend to] bury them, from head to feet, in one dan of the ashes from a furnace, only leaving the seven orifices uncovered. After an extended period of time they will come back to life. Test [this method] by burying in ashes a fly that has died by drowning. After a short while it will come back to life. Proved to be very [effective]. The fact is, ashes by their nature are warm and they are able to extract the water [from a person that died by drowning].

【附方】新七。 Added Recipes. Seven newly [recorded]. 人溺水死。方見上。 A person died by drowning in water. For the recipe see [the text] above. 墮水凍死只有微氣者。勿以火炙,用布袋盛熱灰,放在心頭,冷即换,待 眼開,以温酒與之。普濟方。 For those who have died by freezing after falling into water, with only a weak [flow of ] qi left. Do not heat them with fire. Fill a cloth bag with hot ashes and place it on the region of his heart/stomach. Once it has become cold, replace it [with a hot application] for as long as it takes for [that person] to open his eyes. Then offer him warm wine. Pu ji fang. 陰冷疼悶,冷氣入腹,腫滿殺人。醋和熱灰,頻熨之。千金方。 Pain and heart-pressure caused by cold in the yin [(i. e., genital) region]. When the cold qi enter the abdomen and cause swelling and a feeling of fullness, this will kill one. Mix vinegar with hot ashes and repeatedly press this hot [on the affected region]. Qian jin fang. 湯火傷灼。餅爐中灰,麻油調傅,不得着水,仍避風。寇氏衍義。 Harm caused by burns resulting from scalding and fire. Mix ashes from a furnace used to prepare flat pies and sesame oil, and apply this [to the affected region]. It must not be exposed to water, and [the patient] is to be kept away from wind. Kou shi yan yi. 犬咬傷人。苦酒和灰傅之,或熱湯和之。千金方。 When dog bites have harmed a person. Mix bitter wine and ashes, and apply this [to the affected region]. Or mix it with hot, boiling water. Qian jin fang.

222

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 07-61 石鹼補遺 Shi jian, FE Bu yi.

Stone bittern. Soda ash. 【釋名】灰鹼、花鹼。【時珍曰】狀如石,類鹼,故亦得鹼名。 Explanation of Names. Hui jian 灰鹼, “ash bittern.” Hua jian 花鹼, “flower bittern.” [Li] Shizhen: It is shaped like a stone, shi 石, and belongs to the group of bitterns, jian 鹼. Hence it, too, is named jian 鹼, “bittern.” 【集解】【時珍曰】石鹼,出山東 濟寧諸處。彼人采蒿蓼之屬,開窖浸 水,漉起晒乾燒灰,以原水淋汁,每石引入粉麪二三斤,久則凝淀如石, 連汁貨之四方,澣衣發麪,甚獲利也。他處以竈灰淋濃汁,亦去垢發麪。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: Stone bittern originates everywhere in Shan dong and Ji ning. The people there gather wormwood and knotweed. They open a pit and soak [the herbs] in water there. Then they remove them with a sieve, dry them in the sun and burn them to ashes that are then soaked again in the original water [from the pit]. For each dan, they add two to three jin of powdered wheat flour, and after a long time [the liquid] congeals and turns as hard as a stone. It is then sold, together with the liquid, in all four cardinal directions to wash clothes and to let dough rise. They reap a large profit from this. Elsewhere viscous liquids are obtained by soaking furnace ashes. They too serve to remove stains and to let dough rise. 【氣味】辛、苦,温,微毒。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, bitter, warm, slightly poisonous. 【主治】去濕熱,止心痛,消痰,磨積塊,去食滯,洗滌垢膩,量虚實 用,過服損人。震亨。殺齒蟲,去目瞖,治噎膈反胃。同石灰爛𦠄 肉,潰 癰疽瘰癧,去瘀肉,點痣黶疣贅痔核,神效。時珍。 Control. It removes moisture and heat. It ends heart pain, dissolves phlegm and accumulation lumps, removes sluggish food, and serves to wash dirty and greasy [clothes]. The dosage is to be calculated according to the [degree of ] depletion and repletion [associated with the disease]. An overdose ingested harms one. [Zhu] Zhenheng. It kills tooth bugs/worms. It removes eye shades. It serves to cure gullet occlusion and turned over stomach. Together with lime it lets muscles and flesh decay, opens obstruction-illness and impediment-illness,222 as well as scrofula, and 222 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against

Chapter 7

223

removes excessive flesh. Dripped on moles, warts and piles kernels it is a divinely effective [medication]. [Li] Shizhen.

【附方】新六。 Added Recipes. Six newly [recorded]. 多年反胃。方見鉛下。 Turned over stomach of many years. For recipes, see under the entry “lead” (08-10). 消積破氣。石鹼三錢,山查三兩,阿魏五錢,半夏皂莢水制過一兩,爲 末,以阿魏化醋煮糊丸服。摘玄方。 It dissolves accumulations and breaks open [stagnant] qi. [Grind] three qian of stone bittern, three liang of crataegus [fruit], five qian of asafetida, one liang of pinellia [root], processed with gleditsia water, to a powder, boil asafetida in vinegar to produce a paste, and [use this together with the powder to] form pills to be ingested. Zhai xuan fang. 一切目疾。白鹼揀去黑碎者,厚紙七層,包掛風處,四十九日取,研極 細,日日點之。普濟方。 All types of ailments of the eyes. Wrap white soda, with the black bits removed, in seven layers of thick paper and suspend the package at a windy location. Remove it after 49 days, grind it to a very fine [powder] and drip it [to the affected eyes] day after day. Pu ji fang. 拳毛倒睫。用刀微劃動,以藥泥眼胞上,睫自起也。石鹼一錢,石灰一 錢,醋調塗之。摘玄方。 Inverted eyelashes contracted like a fist. Gently stroke them with a knife, and apply a medical paste to the eyelids. As a result, the eyelashes will rise. Then mix one qian of stone bittern and one qian of lime with vinegar and apply this [to the affected region]. Zhai xuan fang. 蟲牙疼痛。花鹻填孔内,立止。儒門事親。 Painful worm/bug teeth. Fill flower soda into the cavities, and [the pain] will end immediately. Ru men shi qin.

the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642.

224

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

痣黶疣贅。花鹻、礦灰,以小麥稈灰汁煎二味令乾,等分爲末,以針刺 破,水調點之,三日三上,即去,須新合乃效。聖濟録。 Moles and warts. Boil equal amounts of the two substances flower soda and lime in a decoction of wheat stalks until [the liquid has dried] and [grind the residue to a] powder. Mix it with water and drip this [on the moles and warts]. The mixture [of soda and lime] must be prepared in time for [the medication] to be effective. Sheng ji lu.

本草綱目 Ben cao gang mu 金石部目録 Section Metals and Stones/Minerals, Contents 第八卷 Chapter 8 李時珍曰:石者,氣之核,土之骨也。大則爲岩巖,細則爲砂塵。其精爲 金爲玉,其毒爲礜爲磇。氣之凝也,則結而爲丹青 ; 氣之化也,則液而 爲礬汞。其變也:或自柔而剛,乳鹵成石是也 ; 或自動而静,草木成石 是也。飛走含靈之爲石,自有情而之無情也 ; 雷震星隕之爲石,自無形 而成有形也。大塊資生,鴻鈞爐韛,金石雖若頑物,而造化無窮焉。身家 攸賴,財劑衞養。金石雖曰死瑶,而利用無窮焉。是以禹貢、周官列其土 産,農經、軒典詳其性功,亦良相、良醫之所當注意者也。迺集其可以濟 國却病者一百六十種,爲金石部。分爲四類:曰金,曰玉,曰石,曰鹵。 舊本玉石部三品,共二百五十三種。今併入二十八種,移三十二種入水 部,三十九種入土部,三種入服器部,一種入介部,一種入人部。 Li Shizhen: Stones/minerals are qi turned to kernels; they are soil turned to bones. Large ones form cliffs and rocks; fine ones form sand and dust. Their essence manifests itself in gold and jade. Their poison manifests itself in yu223 and arsenic. When qi coagulate, they conglomerate and appear as red and greenish coloring. When qi transform, they turn into liquids and appear as alum and mercury. As a result of changes, what was soft becomes hard, such as when stalactites and brine turn into stones/minerals. What has moved becomes sedentary, such as when herbs and trees turn into stones/minerals. When what once has flown and what once has run with a numinous nature turns into stones/minerals, this is a change from what has feelings to something that has no feelings. When thunderbolts and meteorites turn into stones/minerals, this is a change from something without physical appearance into something with physical appearance. Nature has provided us with metals and minerals. They may be dull items but by means of the pans and bellows [of 223 Yu stone, yu shi 礜石, is a mineral mentioned in ancient Chinese texts since the Shan hai jing. An identification in modern chemical terms has not been possible.

226

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

the pharmaceutical experts] they can be transformed [to be useful] in innumerable ways. Individuals and their households rely on them for protecting and maintaining their existence.This is why the Yu gong and the Zhou guan listed their places of origin, and why the Nong jing and the Xuan dian specified in detail their nature and functions, as these are data to be taken into account by good statesmen and by good physicians. In the following [sections] are gathered 160 kinds that are of benefit to the country and that serve to eliminate disease; they form the “section on metals and stones/minerals,” divided into four groups, namely metals, jade, stones/minerals and salty items. Old versions [of ben cao literature] distinguished in the section of jade and stones/minerals among three ranks, including altogether 253 kinds. Here now 28 kinds are newly included. 32 kinds are removed to the section of waters. 39 kinds are removed to the section of soils. Three kinds are integrated into the section of garments and utensils. One variation is integrated into the section of shells. One variation is integrated into the secion of man. Shen non ben jing 神農本經, 41 items, during Liang 梁, by Tao Hongjing 陶弘景註 Ming yi bie lu 名醫别録: 32 items, during Liang 梁. Tang ben cao 唐本草: 14 items, during Tang 唐, by Su Gong 蘇恭 Ben cao shi yi 本草拾遺: 17 items, during Tang 唐, by Chen Cangqi 陳藏器. Yao xing ben cao 藥性本草: 1 item, during Tang 唐, by Zhen Quan 甄權. Kai bao ben cao 開寶本草: 9 items, during Song 宋, by Ma Zhi 馬志. Jia you ben cao 嘉祐本草: 8 items; during Song 宋, by Zhang Yuxi 掌禹錫. Tu jing ben cao 圖經本草: 3 items, during Song 宋, by Su Song 蘇頌. Ri hua ben cao 日華本草: 8 items, by a Song person Da Ming 大明. Zheng lei ben cao 證類本草: 1 item, during Song, by Tang Shenwei 唐慎微 Yan yi bu yi 衍義補遺: 1 item, during Yuan 元, by Zhu Zhenheng 朱震亨 Ben cao gang mu 本草綱目: 26 items, during Ming 明, by Li Shizhen 李時珍. 【附註】:Additional comments [are based on the following sources]: Wei 魏 [dynasty]: Li Dangzhi 李當之, Yao lu 藥録 Wu Pu 吴普, 本草 Ben cao Song 宋 [dynasty]: Lei Xiao 雷斅, Pao zhi 炮炙 Qi 齊 [dynasty]: Xu Zhicai 徐之才, Yao dui 藥對

Chapter 8

Tang 唐 [dynasty]: Sun Simiao 孫思邈, Qian jin 千金 Li Xun 李珣, Hai yao 海藥 Tang 唐 [dynasty]: Yang Sunzhi 楊損之, Shan fan 删繁 Xiao Bing 蕭炳, Si sheng 四聲 Shu 蜀 [dynasty]: Han Baosheng 韓保昇, Chong zhu 重註 Song 宋 [dynasty] Kou Zongshi 寇宗奭, Yan yi 衍義 Chen Cheng 陳承, Bie shuo 别説 Jin 金 [dynasty] Zhang Yuansu 張元素, Zhen zhu nang 珍珠囊 Yuan 元 [dynasty]: Li Gao 李杲, Fa xiang 法象 Wang Haogu 王好古, Tang ye 湯液 Zhu Zhenheng 朱震亨, Bu yi 補遺 Ming 明 [dynasty]: Wang Ji 汪機, Hui bian 會編 Xu Yongcheng 徐用誠, Fa hui 發揮 Wang Lun 王綸, Ji yao 集要

金石之一金類二十八種 Metals, Stones/Minerals I, Group of Metals, 28 kinds. 08-01 08-02 08-03 08-04

Jin 金, native gold, FE Bie lu 别録 Yin 銀, silver, FE Bie lu 别録 Xi lin zhi 錫恡脂, stibnite, FE Gang mu 綱目 Yin gao 銀膏, silver amalgamum, FE Tang ben 唐本

227

228

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

08-05 Zhu sha yin 朱砂銀, mercury produced from cinnabar, FE Rihua 日華 08-06 Chi tong 赤銅, copper, FE Tang ben 唐本 08-07 Zi ran tong 自然銅, copper pyrites, copper iron sulphides, FE Kai bao 開 寶 08-08 Tong kuang shi 銅礦石, copper ore, FE Tang ben 唐本 08-09 Tong qing 銅青, basic copper acetate (verdigris), FE Jia you 嘉祐 08-10 Qian 鈆, lead, FE Rihua 日華 08-11 Qian shuang 鈆霜, lead acetate, FE Rihua 日華 08-12 Fen xi 粉錫(Hu fen 胡粉)basic lead carbonate, FE Ben jing 本經 08-13 Qian dan 鈆丹(Huang dan 黄丹)red oxide of lead (minium). 08-14 Mi tuo seng 密陀僧, lead monoxide (litharge), FE Ben jing 本經 08-15 Xi 錫, tin, FE Shi yi 拾遺 08-16 Gu jing 古鏡, old copper mirror, FE Shi yi 拾遺 08-17 Gu wen qian 古文錢, old copper coin, FE Rihua 日華 08-18 Tong nu ya 銅弩牙, copper notch in crossbows, FE Bie lu 别録 08-19 Zhu tong qi 諸銅器, copper ware, FE Gang mu 綱目 Tong pen 銅盆, copper pot. (without entry) Tong zeng 銅甑, copper steamer. (without entry) Tong qi han 銅器汗, secretion on copper ware. (without entry) 08-20 Tie 鐵, iron, FE Ben jing 本經 08-21 Gang tie 鋼鐵, steel, FE Bie lu 别録 08-22 Tie luo 鐵落, black oxide of iron; ferrosoferric oxide, FE Ben jing 本經 08-23 Tie jing 鐵精, black oxide of iron; ferrous oxide, FE Ben jing 本經 08-24 Tie hua fen 鐵華粉, ferrous acetate, FE Kai bao 開寶 08-25 Tie xiu 鐵鏽, ferric oxide (rust), FE Shi yi 拾遺 08-26 Tie re 鐵爇, iron fumigatory. Residue produced by burning bamboo or peach stones on an ax blade, FE Shi yi 拾遺 08-27 Tie jiang 鐵漿, “iron broth.” FE Shi yi 拾遺 08-28 Zhu tie qi 諸鐵器, various iron utensils, FE Gang mu 綱目 右附方舊五十二,新一百八十三。 Recipes added to the entries above: 52 of old. 183 newly [recorded].

Chapter 8

石之二 玉類一十四種 Metals, Stones/Minerals II, Group of Jades, 14 kinds. 08-29 Yu玉, nephrite/jade. E Bie lu 别録 08-30 Bai yu sui 白玉髓, chalcedony, FE Bie lu 别録 08-31 Qing yu 青玉, blue jade/sapphire, FE Bie lu 别録 08-31-A01 Bi yu 璧玉, ancient jade badge of office. 08-31-A02 Yu ying 玉英, mirror jade. 08-31-A03 He yu shi 合玉石, sand used to cut and polish jade 08-32 Qing lang gan 青琅玕, malachite/coral, FE Ben jing 本經 08-33 Shan hu 珊瑚, coral, FE Tang ben 唐本 08-34 Ma nao 馬腦, agate, FE Jia you 嘉祐 08-35 Bao shi 寶石, differently colored precious stones, FE Gang mu 綱目 08-36 Bo li 玻瓈, glass, FE Shi yi 拾遺 08-37 Shui jing 水精, rock crystal, FE Shi yi 拾遺 08-37-A01 Huo zhu 火珠, crystal burning glass. 08-37-A02 Ruan shi 碝石, jade-like stone. 08-38 Liu li 琉璃, opaque glass of any color, FE Shi yi 拾遺 08-39 Yun mu 雲母, muscovite, FE Ben jing 本經 08-40 Bai shi ying 白石英, milky quartz, FE Ben jing 本經 08-41 Zi shi ying 紫石英, amethyst, FE Ben jing 本經 08-42 Pu sa shi 菩薩石, quartz, FE Rihua 日華 右附方舊一十二,新一十八。 Recipes added to the entries above: 12 of old. 18 newly [recorded].

229

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

230

本草綱目 Ben cao gang mu 金石部 Section Metals, Stones/Minerals 第八卷 Chapter 8 金石之一金類二十八種 Metals, Stones/Minerals I, Group of Metals, 28 kinds. 08-01 金别録中品 Jin, FE Bie lu, middle rank. Native gold. 【校正】併入拾遺 金漿。 Editorial Correction. Jin jiang 金漿, “gold broth,” listed separately in the Shi yi, is included in the present entry. 【釋名】黄牙鏡源、太真。【時珍曰】按許慎説文云:五金黄爲之長,久 埋不生衣,百鍊不輕,從革不違,生於土,故字左右注,象金在土中之 形。爾雅云:黄金謂之璗,美者謂之鏐,餅金謂之鈑,絶澤謂之銑。獨孤 滔云:天生牙謂之黄牙。梵書謂之蘇伐羅。【弘景曰】仙方名金爲太真。 Explanation of Names. Huang ya 黄牙, “yellow tooth/ivory,” Jing yuan. Tai zhen 太 真, “superb authenticity.” [Li] Shizhen: According to Xu Shen’s Shuo wen, among the five metals, the yellow [metal, i.e., gold,] is the chief. Even when buried for a long time it will not take on a layer [of corrosion]. Even when smelted in a fire a hundred times it will not become lighter. It is obedient to any processing. It grows in the soil, hence its written character [jin 金] has marks on its left and right to reflect the physical appearance of gold in the soil. The Er ya states: Yellow metal/ gold is called dang 璗. Beautiful specimens are called liu 鏐. Gold shaped like a flat pie is called ban 鈑. Gold with a superb luster is called xi 銑. Dugu Tao states:

Chapter 8

231

Natural ivory is called “yellow ivory.” In Sanskrit texts it is called sufaluo 蘇伐羅. [Tao] Hongjing: In the recipes of the hermits/immortals, gold is called tai zhen 太 真, “superb authenticity.” 【集解】【别録曰】金屑生益州,采無時。【弘景曰】金之所生,處處皆 有。梁、益、寧三州多有,出水沙中,作屑,謂之生金。建平、晉安亦有 金沙,出石中,燒鎔鼓鑄爲碢,雖被火亦未熟,猶須更鍊。高麗、扶南及 西域外國成器,皆鍊熟可服。【藏器曰】生金生嶺南夷獠峒穴山中,如赤 黑碎石、金鐵屎之類。南人云:毒蛇齒落在石中。又云:蛇屎着石上, 及鴆鳥屎着石上皆碎,取毒處爲生金,有大毒,殺人。本草言黄金有毒, 誤矣。生金與黄金全别也。常見人取金,掘地深丈餘,至紛子石,石皆一 頭黑焦,石下有金,大者如指,小者猶麻豆,色如桑黄,咬時極軟,即是 真金。夫匠竊而吞者,不見有毒。其麩金出水沙中,氊上淘取,或鵝鴨腹 中得之。即便打成器物,亦不重鍊。煎取金汁,便堪鎮心。【志曰】今醫 家所用,皆鍊熟金薄及以水煮金器取汁用之,則無毒矣。皇朝收復嶺表, 詢訪彼人,並無蛇屎之説,藏器傳聞之言,非矣。【頌曰】今饒、信、南 劍、登州所出,采亦多端,或有若山石狀者,若米豆粒者,此類皆未經 火,並爲生金。【珣曰】山海經所説諸山出金極多,不能備録。廣州記 云:大食國出金最多,貨易並用金錢。異物志云:金生麗水。又蔡州瓜子 金,雲南出顆塊金,在山石間采之。黔南、遂府、吉州水中,並産麩金。 嶺表録云:五嶺内富州、賓州、澄州、涪縣江溪河皆産金。居人多養鵝鴨 取屎,以淘金片,日得一兩或半兩,有終日不獲一星者。其金夜明。【宗 奭曰】顆塊金,即穴山至百十尺,見伴金石,定見金也。其石褐色,一頭 如火燒黑之狀,其金色深赤黄。麩金,即在江沙水中淘汰而得,其色淺 黄。皆是生金,得之皆當鑄鍊。麩金耗多。入藥當用塊金,色既深,則金 氣足餘。須防藥制成及點化者,此等焉得有造化之氣。如紫雪之類,用金 煮汁,蓋假其自然之氣爾。又東南金色深,西南金色淡,亦土地所宜也。 【時珍曰】金有山金、沙金二種。其色七青、八黄、九紫、十赤,以赤爲 足色。和銀者性柔,試石則有色青。和銅者性硬,試石則有聲。寶貨辨疑 云:馬蹄金象馬蹄,難得。橄欖金出荆、湖、嶺南。胯子金象帶胯,出湖 南北。瓜子金大如瓜子,麩金如麩片,出湖南、高麗。沙金細如沙屑,出 蜀中。葉子金出雲南。地鏡圖云:黄金之氣赤,夜有火光及白鼠。或云: 山有薤,下有金。凡金曾在塚墓間及爲釵釧溲器者,陶隱居謂之辱金,不 可合煉。寶藏論云:金有二十種,又外國五種。還丹金,出丹穴中,體含 丹砂,色尤赤,合丹服之,希世之寶也。麩金出五溪、漢江,大者如瓜 子,小者如麥,性平無毒。山金出交廣 南韶諸山,銜石而生。馬蹄金乃 最精者,二蹄一斤。毒金即生金,出交廣山石内,赤而有大毒,殺人,鍊 十餘次,毒乃已。此五種皆真金也。水銀金、丹砂金、雄黄金、雌黄金、 硫黄金、曾青金、石緑金、石膽金、母砂金、白錫金、黑鈆金,並藥制成

232

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

者。銅金、生鐵金、熟鐵金、鍮石金,並藥點成者。已上十五種,皆假金 也,性頑滯有毒。外國五種,乃波斯紫磨金、東夷青金、林邑赤金、西戎 金、占城金也。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Gold fragments grow in Yi zhou. They can be collected anytime. [Tao] Hongjing: As for the appearance of native gold, it can be found everywhere. Much of it is present in the three zhou of Liang, Yi and Ning. It originates in sand in the water, and appears as fragments. They are called “native gold.” In Jian ping and Jin an, too, native gold sand occurs. It originates in stones/ minerals. It is heated, with the fire strengthened by bellows, and cast to ingots. Even though it was exposed to fire, it is still not processed finally. It needs to be refined with heat again. In Gao li, Fu nan and western territories abroad, they [use gold to] prepare utensils. The [gold] is refined and processed to such a degree that it can be ingested. [Chen] Cangqi: Native gold originates in the mountain caves of the Yi and Liao [tribes] in Ling nan. It looks like red and black crushed stones, similar to metal and iron droppings [left after forging iron]. The people in the South state: These are the teeth of poisonous snakes that have fallen into the stones. It is also stated: When the excrements of snakes attach themselves to the surface of stones/ minerals, and when the droppings of zhen 鴆 birds attach themselves to the surface of stones/minerals, if these happen to be poisonous locations, native gold is generated. It is very poisonous and kills humans. The Ben cao says: “Yellow metal/gold is poisonous.” That is wrong. Native gold and yellow metal/gold are entirely different. One often sees persons obtaining native gold. They dig up earth more than a zhang deep, until they reach [a layer of ] sand-like stones. All these stones have one end that is scorched black. Below these stones is native gold. Large specimens have the size of a finger; small ones are like sesame seeds or beans. Their color is mulberry yellow. When one bites it and it is very soft, then this is genuine gold. Now, there are craftsmen who secretly swallow [gold to steal it], but there have never been any signs of their being poisoned. Bran gold originates in sand in the waters. It is given on a piece of felt to be washed, and then [the gold] is removed. It is also possible to obtain it from the abdomen of geese and ducks. [Such gold] can be struck to form utensils and other items; there is no need to further refine it with heat. Juice obtained from boiling native gold is good for calming the heart. [Ma] Zhi: Nowadays, when physicians resort to it, they always process it by heat refinement and they boil gold utensils to obtain a juice that is then made use of. This way it is nonpoisonous. When our present dynasty recaptured Ling nan, researchers were sent out to question the local population, but they found no reports on the excrements of snakes [turning into gold]. The information [Chen] Cangqi had received was wrong. [Su] Song: The gold nowadays originating in Rao, Xin, Nan jian and Deng zhou comes

Chapter 8

233

in many kinds. Some are shaped like mountain rocks. Some resemble grains of rice or beans. All these varieties have not been processed with fire yet, and they are native gold all alike. [Li] Xun: When the Shan hai jing says that gold in large amounts originates in all the mountains, then this cannot be verified. The Guang zhou ji states: “The country of Da shi produces very much gold, and gold coins are used there in trade exchanges.” The Yi wu zhi states: “Gold is generated in the river Li shui. Also, Cai zhou [produces] ‘melon seed gold’. Gold nuggets originate in Yun nan; they are found among the rocks in the mountains. Bran gold is brought forth by all the waters in Qian nan, Sui fu and Ji zhou.” The Ling biao lu states: “All the streams, rivulets and rivers of Fu zhou, Bin zhou, Deng zhou and Fu xian in Wu ling bring forth native gold. The locals there often raise geese and ducks to obtain their excrements which they use to wash out bran gold. On a single day, they obtain one liang or half a liang. But it may also be that at the end of the day they are left without a single bit of gold. This gold shines at night.” [Kou] Zongshi: As for gold nuggets, caves [are dug into the] mountains reaching more than a hundred and tens of chi [deep]. Once the “stones accompanying gold” appear, it is for sure that gold will be found. These stones are of brown color; with one of their ends shaped black as if it had been burned by fire. The color of the gold is dark red and yellow. Bran gold is washed out in water from the sands of big streams. Its color is light yellow. All this is native gold. Once obtained it is to be refined by heat for eventual casting. Large amounts of bran gold are required [to produce meaningful amounts of refined gold]. For being added to medication gold nuggets of a dark color are required. This shows that they are endowed with more than enough gold qi. When resorting to [gold for a] medication, it is essential to avoid products that are really pharmaceutical preparations and those processed for transformations [to the state of hermits/immortals]; how could they contain the natural qi [of gold]? For example, for [medications] like “purple snow” gold is boiled to obtain a juice that contains the natural qi [of gold]. Also, the color of gold from the South-East is dark, while the color of gold from the South-West is light. This is because of [differences in the local] soils and grounds. [Li] Shizhen: Gold exists in two kinds, mountain gold and sand gold. Its color appears in seven greenish kinds, eight yellow kinds, nine purple kinds and ten red kinds, with red [gold] being that of standard quality. When it is mixed with silver it becomes softer. It can be examined by [striking with it] a stone where it will leave a greenish [mark]. Mixed with copper, [gold] becomes harder. It can be examined by [striking with it] a stone; it will release a [characteristic] sound. The Bao huo bian yi states: “Horse hoof gold” reflects [the shape of ] a horse hoof; it is difficult to obtain. “Olive gold” originates in Jing, Hu and Ling nan. “Hip gold” reflects [the shape of ] a belt worn around the hips; it originates in the

234

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

South and North of Hu. “Melon seed gold” has the size of melon seeds. “Bran gold” resembles bran fragments. It originates in Hu nan and Gao li. Sand gold is as fine as sand crumbs; it originates in Shu. “Leaf gold” originates in Yun nan. The Di jing tu states: The qi of yellow metal/gold are red. During the night, it emits a light of fire and lets mice/rats appear white. It is also stated: Where shallots are found on a mountain, there will be gold underneath. All gold that has once been in a tomb or that has been made to hairpins and bracelets, or to urinary containers, is called by Tao Yinju “disgraced gold.” It must not be mixed [with other gold/metals] for a refinement with heat. The Bao zang lun states: “There are 20 kinds of gold. In addition, there are five kinds from abroad. ‘Gold containing cinnabar’ originates in cinnabar caves. It physically includes cinnabar sand and its color is particularly red. Mixed with cinnabar to be ingested, it is a precious item very much sought after. Bran gold originates in Wu xi and the Han jiang river. Large specimens are as big as melon seeds; small ones resemble wheat. Their nature is balanced and nonpoisonous. Mountain gold originates in between the rocks of all the Nan shao mountains of Jiao guang. ‘Horse hoof gold’ is the most exquisite gold. Two [gold] hoofs weigh one jin. ‘Poison gold’ is native gold. It originates in the mountain rocks of Jiao guang. It is red and very poisonous. It kills one. It must be refined with heat at least ten times before its poison is eliminated. These five kinds are all genuine gold. Mercury gold, cinnabar gold, realgar gold, orpiment gold, sulphur gold, malachite gold, malachite gold, chalcanthite gold, mu sha 母砂 gold, white tin gold, and black lead gold are all produced as pharmaceutical preparations. Copper gold, crude iron gold, processed iron gold, and brass gold, they [too] are produced as pharmaceutical preparations. All these 15 kinds listed above are fake gold. Their nature is that of an insensate sluggishness, and they are poisonous. The five kinds [of gold] from abroad include purple rubbed gold from Po si/Persia, greenish gold from Dong yi, red gold from Lin yi, gold from Xi rong, and gold from Zhan cheng.” 08-01-01 金屑。Jin xie. Gold fragments. 【氣味】辛,平,有毒。【大明曰】無毒。【珣曰】生者有毒,熟者無 毒。【宗奭曰】不曰金而更加屑字者,是已經磨屑可用之義,必須烹鍊 鍛屑爲薄,方可入藥。金薄亦同生金,有毒,能殺人,且難解。有中其毒 者,惟鷓鴣肉可解之。若不經鍛,屑即不可用。金性惡錫,畏水銀,得餘 甘子則體柔,亦相感耳。【時珍曰】洗金以鹽。駱駝、驢、馬脂,皆能柔 金。金遇鈆則碎,翡翠石能屑金,亦物性相制也。金蛇能解生金毒。晉 賈 后飲金屑酒而死,則生金有毒可知矣。凡用金薄,須辨出銅薄。

Chapter 8

235

Qi and Flavor. Acrid, balanced, poisonous. Da Ming: Nonpoisonous. [Li] Xun: Native [gold] specimens are poisonous. Processed ones are nonpoisonous. [Kou] Zongshi: When [certain kinds] are not simply called “gold” but have the character xie 屑, “fragments,” added [to “gold”], that is to say, they have been rubbed to fragments and can be used [for further processing]. They must be refined with heat and forged, and prepared to thin foils, and can then be added to medication. Thin gold foils, similar to native gold, are poisonous and can kill one. Also, [their poison] is difficult to resolve. The poison they contain can only be resolved with the meat of Chinese francolins. [Gold] fragments that have not undergone a forging, must not be used. Gold by its nature abhors tin, and it fears mercury. If it is brought into contact with phyllanthus fruit, its physical body will become softer. They positively affect each other. [Li] Shizhen: Wash gold with salt. The fat of camels, donkeys and horses, they all serve to soften gold. When gold is affected by lead, it will break to pieces. With jadeite one can break gold to fragments. This, too, is an example of how the natures of items control each other. Golden snakes can resolve the poison of native gold. Empress Jia of the Jin dynasty drank wine with gold fragments and died. This lets one know that native gold is poisonous. Whenever one uses gold foils, it is essential to exclude copper foils. 【主治】鎮精神,堅骨髓,通利五臟邪氣,服之神仙。别録。療小兒驚傷 五臟,風癇失志,鎮心安魂魄。甄權。癲癇風熱,上氣欬嗽,傷寒肺損吐 血,骨蒸勞極作渴,並以薄入丸散服。李珣。破冷氣,除風。青霞子。 Control. It presses down the essence spirit. It strengthens bones and marrow. It frees the passage of the evil qi to leave the five long-term depots. To ingest it lets one become a spirit hermit/immortal. Bie lu. It heals harm caused by fright to the five long-term depots of children, and wind epilepsy with loss of mind. It presses down [the qi of ] the heart and pacifies the hun-soul and the po-soul. Zhen Quan. For peak-illness224 and epilepsy with wind and heat, for rising qi causing cough, for harm caused by cold with lung damage and blood spitting, and for bone steaming with extreme exhaustion causing thirst, add thin [gold] foils to pills and powders to be ingested [by the patients]. Li Xun. It breaks open cold qi [accumulations] and removes wind. Qingxia zi.

224 Dian 顛, “peak[-illness],” also 癲, vaguely defined mental derangement. BCGM Dict I, 124.

236

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

08-01-02 金漿拾遺。Jin jiang, FE Shi yi. Gold broth . 【氣味】同金。 Qi and Flavor. Identical to gold. 【主治】長生神仙。久服,腸中盡爲金色。藏器。 Control. Longevity of spirit immortals. Ingested over an extended period of time, the interior of all the intestines will assume the color of gold. [Chen] Cangqi. 【發明】【弘景曰】生金辟惡而有毒,不鍊服之殺人。仙經以醯、蜜及猪 肪、牡荆酒輩鍊至柔軟,服之成仙,亦以合水銀作丹砂。醫方都無用者, 當是慮其有毒爾。【損之曰】生者殺人,百鍊者乃堪服,水銀合膏飲即不 鍊。【頌曰】金屑古方不見用者,惟作金薄入藥甚便。又古方金石凌、紅 雪、紫雪輩,皆取金銀煮汁,此通用經鍊者,假其氣爾。【時珍曰】金乃 西方之行,性能制木,故療驚癇風熱,肝膽之病。而古方罕用,惟服食家 言之。淮南三十六水法亦化爲漿服餌。葛洪抱朴子言:餌黄金不亞于金 液。其法用豕負革肪、苦酒鍊之百遍即柔,或以樗皮治之,或以牡荆酒、 慈石消之爲水,或以雄黄、雌黄合餌,皆能地仙。又言:丹砂化爲聖金, 服之昇仙。别録、陳藏器亦言久服神仙。其説蓋自秦皇、漢武時方士傳流 而來,豈知血肉之軀,水穀爲賴,可能堪此金石重墜之物久在腸胃乎?求 生而喪生,可謂愚也矣。故太清法云:金禀中宫陰己之氣,性本剛,服之 傷損𦠄肉。又東觀秘記云:亡人以黄金塞九竅,則尸不朽。此雖近於理, 然亦誨盗矣,曷若速化歸虚之爲愈也哉。 Explication. [Tao] Hongjing: Crude gold wards off the malign and is poisonous. If ingested without prior refinement by heat, it will kill one. The classics of the hermits/immortals [recommend to] refine [crude gold] by means of substances such as vinegar, honey and lard, and also with vitex negundo wine to soften it. If it is ingested after such [a refinement] it will turn one into an immortal. This can also be achieved by mixing [crude gold] with mercury to produce cinnabar. Medical recipes never use this [substance] as it is considered poisonous. [Yang] Sunzhi: Crude [gold] kills one. [Gold] that has passed through one hundred refinements by heat is suitable to be ingested. If mixed with mercury to prepare a soft paste, it does not have to be refined with heat. [Su] Song: Gold fragments are not seen in ancient recipes as being resorted to [for therapeutic purposes]. Only gold foils were prepared for convenient use. Also, all ancient recipes of jin shi ling, “red snow,” and “purple snow”225 [recommend to] boil gold and silver to produce a [gold] broth. This was always meant to 225 Jin shi ling 金石凌, hong xue 紅雪, zi xue 紫雪: substances of unknown identification.

Chapter 8

237

make use of their qi [for medication] once they had passed through a refinement by heat. [Li] Shizhen: Gold is associated with the phase [metal] pertaining to the West; by its nature it is able to control [the phase] wood. Hence it serves to heal fright epilepsy associated with wind and heat, as well as diseases of the liver and the gall bladder. Still, in ancient recipes it was rarely used. Only the specialists in ingesting and consuming [specific longevity substances] have referred to it. Among the 36 aqueous methods listed in the Huai nan there is also one “to transform [gold] into a broth for ingestion as food.” Ge Hong in his Baopu zi says: “To consume yellow metal/gold as food is not inferior to [ingesting] gold liquid”. He [recommended the following] method [to prepare it]. “Fat from the skin of a pig’s back and bitter wine are used to refine with heat [the gold] one hundred times, and it will become soft as a result. Or process it with ailanthus bark. Or dissolve it to a watery liquid with vitex negundo wine and magnetite. Or ingest it mixed with realgar and orpiment. All these methods enable one to become an hermit/immortal on earth.” It is also said: “Cinnabar is transformed to ‘sage gold’. Ingesting it lets one rise to the immortals.” The Bie lu and [Chen] Canqing, they, too, say: “An ingestion over an extended period of time lets one become a spirit immortal.” All these statements have come down to us from the recipe masters of the times of Qin [shi] huang and Han Wu [di]. How does one know whether the human body, depending on water and grain, can tolerate for an extended period of time in its intestines and stomach an item such as a gold mineral that weighs down heavily? To seek survival and to lose life, that can be said to be foolish! Hence the Tai qing [fu shi] fa states: “Gold is endowed with the yin of the polestar. Its nature is basically hard; to ingest it harms muscles and flesh.” Also, the Dong guan mi ji states: “If yellow metal is stuffed into the nine orifices of a deceased person, the corpse will not decay.” This may appear close to reason, but it, too, is a misleading teaching. How [unfavorably] does this compare to a quick transformation [of a corpse] and its return into the void!

【附方】新五。 Added Recipes. Five newly [recorded]. 風眼爛弦。金環燒紅,掠上下瞼肉,日數次,甚妙。集簡方。 Wind eye226 with festering [eyelid] rim. Heat a gold ring until it has turned red and move it up and down in front of the flesh of the [affected] eyelid, several times a day. Very wondrous. Ji jian fang.

226 Feng yan 風眼, “wind eyes,” are red and festering canthi and eyelids brought about by harm caused to the eyes by heat. BCGM Dict I, 171.

238

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

牙齒風痛。火燒金釵針之,立止。集簡方。 Toothache associated with wind. Heat a golden hairpin in a fire and pierce [the gum] with it. [The pain] will stop immediately. Ji jian fang. 輕粉破口。凡水腫及瘡病,服輕粉後口瘡齦爛。金器煮汁,頻頻含漱,能 殺粉毒,以愈爲度。外臺秘要。 When calomel has broken open one’s mouth. Whenever after one has ingested calomel to treat water swelling and sores diseases, sores develop in the mouth and the gums fester, boil a golden utensil to obtain a juice, hold [this juice] in the mouth and repeatedly rinse [the affected region] with it. This can kill the poison of the calomel. Continue until a healing is achieved. Wai tai mi yao. 水銀入耳,能蝕人腦。以金枕耳邊,自出也。張仲景方。 When mercury has entered the ears, it can cause an erosion of the brain. Place a golden pillow next to the ear and [the mercury] will come out as a result. Recipe of Zhang Zhongjing. 水銀入肉,令人筋攣。惟以金物熨之,水銀當出蝕金,候金白色是也,頻 用取效,此北齊 徐王方也。本草拾遺。 When mercury has entered the flesh and causes sinew cramps. The only way [to treat this effectively] is to press some hot golden item on [the affected region], and the mercury will come out and erode the gold. Wait until the gold has turned white. A repeated application will have an effect. This is a recipe of Prince Xu of Northern Qi. Ben cao shi yi. 08-02 銀别録中品 Yin, FE Bie lu, middle rank. Silver. 【校正】併入開寶 生銀。 Editorial Correction. Sheng yin 生銀, “native silver,” listed separately in the Kai bao, is included in the present entry. 【釋名】白金綱目、鋈。【時珍曰】爾雅:白金謂之銀,其美者曰鐐。説 文云:鋈,白金也。梵書謂之阿路巴。 Explanation of Names. Bai jin 白金, “white gold/metal,” Gang mu. Wu 鋈. [Li] Shizhen: Er ya: White gold/metal is called yin 銀, “silver.” Beautiful specimens are called liao 鐐. The Shuo wen states: Wu 鋈 is bai jin 白金, “white gold/metal.” In Sanskrit texts it is called aluba 阿路巴.

Chapter 8

239

【集解】【别録曰】銀屑生永昌,采無時。【弘景曰】銀之所出處,亦與 金同,但是生土中也。鍊餌法亦似金。永昌屬益州,今屬寧州。【恭曰】 銀與金,生不同處,所在皆有,而以虢州者爲勝,此外多鈆穢爲劣。高麗 作貼者,云非銀𨥥所出,然色青不如虢州者。【志曰】生銀出饒州樂平諸 坑銀𨥥中,狀如硬錫,文理粗錯自然者真。【頌曰】銀在𨥥中與銅相雜, 土人采得,以鈆再三煎鍊方成,故爲熟銀。生銀則生銀𨥥中,狀如硬錫。 其金坑中所得,乃在土石中滲漏成條,若絲髮狀,土人謂之老翁鬚,極難 得。方書用生銀,必得此乃真。【珣曰】按南越志:波斯國有天生藥銀, 用爲試藥指環。又燒朱粉甕下,多年沉積有銀,號盃鉛銀,光軟甚好,與 波斯銀功力相似,秖是難得。今時燒鍊家,每一斤生鉛,只得一二銖。山 海經云,東北 樂平郡 堂少山出銀甚多。黔中生銀體硬,不堪入藥。【宗奭 曰】銀出於𨥥,須煎鍊成,故名熟銀。其生銀即不自𨥥中出而特然生者, 又謂之老翁鬚,其入用大同。世之術士。以朱砂而成,以鉛汞而成,以焦 銅而成者,既無造化之氣,豈可入藥,不可不别。【時珍曰】閩、浙、 荆、湖、饒、信、廣、滇、貴州、交趾諸處,山中皆産銀,有𨥥中鍊出 者,有沙土中鍊出者。其生銀,俗稱銀笋、銀牙者也,亦曰出山銀。獨孤 滔丹房鏡源所謂鉛坑中出褐色石,形如笋,打破即白,名曰自然牙,曰自 然鉛,亦曰生鉛。此有變化之道,不堪服食者是也。管子云:上有鉛,下 有銀。地鏡圖云:山有葱,下有銀。銀之氣,入夜正白,流散在地,其精 變爲白雄鷄。寶藏論云:銀有十七種,又外國四種。天生牙,生銀坑内石 縫中,狀如亂絲,色紅者上,入火紫白如草根者次之。銜黑石者最奇,生 樂平、鄱陽産鉛之山,一名龍牙,一名龍鬚,是正生銀,無毒,爲至藥根 本也。生銀,生石𨥥中,成片塊,大小不定,狀如硬錫。母砂銀,生五溪 丹砂穴中,色理紅光。黑鉛銀,得子母之氣。此四種爲真銀。有水銀銀、 草砂銀、曾青銀、石緑銀、雄黄銀、雌黄銀、硫黄銀、膽礬銀、靈草銀, 皆是以藥制成者。丹陽銀、銅銀、鐵銀、白錫銀,皆以藥點化者。十三種 皆假銀也。外國四種:新羅銀、波斯銀、林邑銀、雲南銀,並精好。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Silver fragments grow in Yong chang. They are collected anytime. [Tao] Hongjing: The places of origin of silver are identical to those of gold. However, [silver] grows in the soil. The methods of refinement [of silver] for ingestion, too, are similar to those of gold. Yong chang once belonged to Yi zhou; nowadays it belongs to Ning zhou. [Su] Gong: Silver and gold are not present at identical locations. [Silver] may be found everywhere, but that from Guo zhou is of superior quality. [Silver] from other localities is often polluted with lead and is of inferior quality. The [silver] prepared in Gao li to small plates to be applied [to the skin] is said not to originate in silver mines. Its color is greenish, and it is not as good as that from Guo zhou. [Ma] Zhi: Native silver originates in the silver mines of Le ping in Rao zhou. It looks like hard tin. If it has a rough natural line

240

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

structure, it is genuine. [Su] Song: Silver occurs mixed with copper in mines. The locals collect it and use lead to refine it with heat two to three times, and this way they prepare “processed silver.” Native silver grows in silver mines. It is shaped like hard tin. That which is obtained from gold/metal pits has leaked into the soil and the rocks as threads and is shaped like the hair of a beard. The locals call it “old man’s beard.” It is very difficult to obtain. When the recipe books [recommend to] use native silver, then it is essential to obtain this [“old man’s beard”], and this then is genuine. [Li] Xun: According to the Nan Yue zhi, “in the country of Po si/ Persia a natural ‘medicinal silver’ exists that is used to test medications by means of a [silver] finger ring.” Also, below earthen jars used to burn red lead oxide, a dense accumulation of silver collects. It is called “cup lead silver.” It is shiny, soft and very good [for therapeutic applications]. Its [therapeutic functions] are similar to those of silver from Po si/Persia. But it is difficult to obtain. Nowadays, those experts who refine [minerals] by heat get only one or two zhu from one jin of crude lead. The Shan hai jing states: In Le ping prefecture in Dong bei, Mount Tang shan brings forth very much silver. The native silver from Qian zhong is hard; it is not suitable for being added to medication. [Kou] Zongshi: Silver originating in mines must be refined by heat. Hence it is called “processed silver.” Native silver that does not originate in mines and is present as such is also called “old man’s beard.” Its being added [to medication] and [its therapeutic usages] are largely identical [to those of silver obtained from mines]. Those kinds produced by experts of the [chemical] arts from cinnabar, from mercury and from burning copper, they do not possess the qi of natural creation. How could they be added to medication?! They must be distinguished. [Li] Shizhen: Everywhere in Min, Zhe, Jing, Hu, Rao, Xin, Guang, Dian, Gui zhou and Jiao zhi, the mountains bring forth silver. Some of it originates in mines where it is refined by heat. Some of it originates out of sand refined by heat. Native silver is commonly called “silver shoots” and “silver sprouts.” It is also called “silver originating in the mountains.” Dugu Tao in his Dan fang jing yuan speaks of “stones with a brown color originating in lead mines. Their physical appearance resembles bamboo shoots, and they are white [inside] when broken open. They are called ‘natural lead’, and this is ‘crude lead’. They result from the natural course of changes and transformations.” They are not suited to be ingested as food. The Guan zi states: “If lead is above, silver is below.” The Di jing tu states: “If there are onions on a mountain, there will be silver underneath. The qi of silver are purely white at nightfall, and they flow into the ground where they disperse. There its essence changes to white roosters.” The Bao zang lun states: “There are 17 kinds of silver. In addition, there are four kinds from abroad. ‘Natural bud [silver]’ grows in the cracks of rocks in native silver pits. It is shaped like disorderly structured silk threads. That

Chapter 8

241

of red color is best. The [silver] turning purple-white, like the roots of herbs, when given into a fire is of secondary quality. [Silver known as] ‘stones including black’ is most peculiar. It grows in Le ping and Po yang in the mountains that bring forth lead. Other names are ‘dragon’s teeth’ and ‘dragon’s beard’. This is pure, native silver. It is nonpoisonous and it serves as the basis of medication. Native silver from a mine comes in thin pieces and lumps of various sizes, resembling hard tin. ‘Mother’s sand silver’ from the cinnabar caves of Wu xi is of red color and has a shiny structure. ‘Black lead silver’ is obtained with the qi of child and mother. These four kinds are genuine silver. There are also mercury silver, ‘herb sand’ silver, malachite silver, realgar silver, orpiment silver, sulphur silver, chalcanthite silver, and ‘magic herb’ silver. All these kinds constitute pharmaceutically produced silver. Dan yang silver, copper silver, iron silver and white tin silver, they are all transformation products resulting from chemical exposure. All these 13 kinds are fake silver. The four kinds from abroad include Xin luo silver, Po si/Persian silver, Lin yi silver and Yun nan silver. They are all of exquisitely good quality.” 08-02-01 銀屑。Yin xie. Silver fragments. 【修治】【弘景曰】醫方鎮心丸用之,不可正服。爲屑,當以水銀研令消 也。【恭曰】方家用銀屑,取見成銀薄,以水銀消之爲泥,合消石及鹽研 爲粉,燒出水銀,淘去鹽石,爲粉極細,用之乃佳,不得只磨取屑耳。 【時珍曰】入藥只用銀薄,易細。若用水銀鹽消制者,反有毒矣。龍木論 謂之銀液。又有錫薄可僞,宜辨之。 Pharmaceutical Processing. [Tao] Hongjing: [Silver] is used in the “medical recipe for pills to calm the heart.”227 It cannot be ingested as pure [silver]. To prepare [silver] fragments, it is ground and dissolved with mercury. [Su] Gong: When the recipe experts resort to silver fragments, they take thin silver foils and dissolve them in mercury to a mud. This is then ground with nitrokalite and salt to prepare a powder. [The powder] is burned to remove the mercury and it is rinsed with water to remove the salt. Then it is ground to a very fine powder, which is best suited for [medicinal] application. It is not feasible to simply grind [thin silver foils] to obtain [silver] fragments. [Li] Shizhen: Only thin silver foils are added to medication; they are easily [ground to] a fine [powder]. If [for medicinal preparation] they are dissolved with mercury, contrary to [one’s therapeutic intentions] they will be poisonous. The Long mu lun speaks of a “silver liquid.” There are also fake [silver preparations of ] thin tin foils. They should be distinguished. 227 Ingredients include: Mirabilite, ginseng [root], glycyrrhiza [root], calcite, poria, cinnabar, borneol and musk.

242

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【氣味】辛、平,有毒。【珣曰】大寒,無毒。詳生銀下。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, balanced, poisonous. [Li] Xun: Very cold, nonpoisonous. For details, see under “native silver.” 【主治】安五臟,定心神,止驚悸。除邪氣,久服輕身長年。别録。定 志,去驚癇,小兒癲疾狂走。甄權。破冷除風。青霞子。銀薄堅骨,鎮心 明目,去風熱癲癇,入丸散用。李珣。 Control. They pacify the five long-term depots. They stabilize the heart and its spirit. They end fright palpitation. They remove evil qi. Ingested for long, they relieve the body of its weight and extend the years [of life]. Bie lu. They stabilize the mind. They eliminate fright epilepsy, and peak-illness228 and mad running of children. Zhen Quan. They break open cold [accumulations] and remove wind. Qingxia zi. Thin silver foils strengthen the bones, they calm the heart and they clear the eyes. They remove peak-illness with epilepsy associated with wind and heat. To be applied as pills and powder. Li Xun. 08-02-01 生銀。Sheng yin. Native silver. 【氣味】辛,寒,無毒。【獨孤滔云】鉛内銀有毒。【保昇曰】畏黄連、 甘草、飛廉、石亭脂、砒石,惡羊血、馬目毒公。【大明曰】冷,微毒。 畏慈石,惡錫,忌生血。【時珍曰】荷葉、蕈灰能粉銀。羚羊角、烏賊魚 骨、鼠尾、龜殻、生薑、地黄、慈石,俱能瘦銀。羊脂、紫蘇子油,皆能 柔銀。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, cold, nonpoisonous. Dugu Tao states: Silver from within lead is poisonous. [Han] Baosheng: [Ingested together,] it fears coptis [rhizome], glycyrrhiza [root], carduus [root], red sulphur, and arsenic, and it abhors sheep blood and dysosma [root]. Da Ming: Cold, slightly poisonous. [Ingested together,] it fears magnetite and it abhors tin. [During a treatment with native silver] fresh blood is to be avoided. [Li] Shizhen: With lotus leaves and the ashes of gill fungi it is possible to powder silver. Antilope horns, cuttlefish bones, mouse/rat tails, tortoise plastrons, fresh ginger, Chinese foxglove [rhizome] and magnetite can all erode silver. Sheep fat and the oil of perilla fruit oil can all serve to soften silver. 【主治】熱狂驚悸,發癇恍惚,夜卧不安,讝語,邪氣鬼祟。服之明目鎮 心,安神定志。小兒諸熱丹毒,並以水磨服之,功勝紫雪。開寶。小兒中

228 Dian 顛, “peak[-illness],” also 癲, vaguely defined mental derangement. BCGM Dict I, 124.

Chapter 8

243

惡,熱毒煩悶,水磨服之。大明。煮水,入葱白、粳米作粥食,治胎動不 安,漏血。時珍。 Control. Madness and fright palpitation associated with heat. Fits of epilepsy with absent-mindedness. Inability to lie down at night and sleep calmly. Meaningless speaking. Evil qi and being cursed by a demon. To ingest it clears the eyes and presses down [the qi of ] the heart. It pacifies the spirit and stabilizes the mind. All types of heat cinnabar poison229 of children. For all these [ailments] ingest it ground with water. Its effects are superior to those of “purple snow.”230 Kai bao. For children being struck by the malign, and for unrest and heart-pressure associated with heat poison, [let the patients] ingest it ground with water. Da Ming. Boil it in water, add onion stalks and non-glutinous rice to prepare a congee, and [let the patient] eat this to cure a fetus that moves restlessly, associated with blood leakage. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【好古曰】白銀屬肺。【頌曰】銀屑,葛洪肘後方治癰腫五石湯 中用之。【宗奭曰】本草言銀屑有毒,生銀無毒,釋者略漏不言。蓋生銀 已發於外,無藴鬱之氣,故無毒。𨥥銀藴於石中,鬱結之氣全未敷暢,故 有毒也。【時珍曰】此説非矣。生銀初煎出如縵理,乃其天真,故無毒。 鎔者投以少銅,則成絲文金花。銅多則反敗銀,去銅則復還銀,而初入少 銅終不能出。作僞者又制以藥石鉛錫。且古法用水銀煎消制銀薄成泥入 藥,所以銀屑有毒。銀本無毒,其毒則諸物之毒也。今人用銀器飲食,遇 毒則變黑。中毒死者,亦以銀物探試之,則銀之無毒可徵矣。其入藥,亦 是平肝鎮怯之義。故太清服鍊書言,銀禀西方辛陰之神,結精爲質,性 剛戾,服之能傷肝,是也。抱朴子言銀化水服,可成地仙者,亦方士謬 言也,不足信。【斅曰】凡使金銀銅鐵,只可渾安在藥中,借氣生藥力而 已。勿入藥服,能消人脂。 Explication. [Wang] Haogu: White silver is associated with the lung. [Su] Song: Ge Hong “uses silver fragments in the ‘decoction with five minerals to cure obstruction-illness231 with swelling’” listed in his Zhou hou fang. [Kou] Zongshi: The Ben cao says: “Silver fragments are poisonous, while native silver is nonpoisonous.” [Later] commentators have neglected [this contradiction] and have said nothing on it. The fact is, native silver has already been exposed to the exterior and is free of qi densely crushed together. Hence it is nonpoisonous. Silver in mines is densely caught in the 229 Re dan [du] 熱丹[毒] “heat cinnabar [poison],” an undefined skil illness affecting children. 230 A medication with the following ingredients: gypsum, calcite, magnetite, talc, rhinoceros horn, antelope’s horn, inula [root], aquilaria [wood], scrophularia [root], cimicifuga [rhizome], glycyrrhiza root, clove, mirabilite, nitrokalite, musk, cinnabar, gold. 231 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641.

244

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

rocks. Its densely conglomerated qi have not yet spread unhindered. Hence [such silver] is poisonous. [Li] Shizhen: Such sayings are wrong. In the beginning, when native silver is boiled, [qi] are emitted and [the silver moves in waves] resembling the structure of thin silk. This is its natural purity, and hence [at this stage] it is nonpoisonous. Those who melt it drop some copper into it, and this [when heated] generates thread-like lines and gold flowers. If much copper is added, contrary [to their intentions] the silver will be spoiled. Once the copper is removed, the substance returns to be silver again. However, the small amount of copper added at the beginning can never again be made to leave. Those who prepare fake [products], they use pharmaceutical minerals to produce lead and tin. Also, in antiquity there was a method to boil and dissolve thin silver foils in mercury to prepare a mud that was then added to medication. Because of this, silver fragments are poisonous. Silver basically is nonpoisonous. When it is poisonous, then this is because all the items [added to it] are poisonous. Nowadays, the people use silver utensils to drink and to eat. When [these utensil] come into contact with poison, they turn black. Victims who have died of poisoning are tested with a silver item. This is proof that silver itself is nonpoisonous. When it is added to medication, this is based on the idea that it balances the liver [qi] and calms down timidity. Hence the Tai qing fu lian shu states: Silver is endowd with the spirit of acrid [flavor] and yin of the West. Its substance matter is conglomerated essence; its nature is tough and rebellious. Ingesting it can indeed harm the liver. When the Baopu zi states that silver transformed to quicksilver can make one an immortal on the earth, than this is an erroneous teaching of the recipe masters. There is no reason to believe it. [Lei] Xiao: Whenever gold, silver, copper and iron are applied [for therapeutic purposes], the only way is to mix them with other medication to use their qi to strengthen the medication. One must not ingest them without having added them to a medication; they can dissolve fat.

【附方】舊二,新四。 Added Recipes. Two of old. Four newly [recorded] 妊娠腰痛如折者。銀一兩,水三升,煎二升,服之。子母秘録。 Painful lower back during pregnancy as if fractured. Boil one liang of silver in three sheng of water down to two sheng and [have the women] ingest this. Zi mu mi lu. 胎動欲墮,痛不可忍。銀五兩,苧根二兩,清酒一盞,水一大盞,煎一 盞,温服。婦人良方。 Movement of a fetus, threatening a premature birth, with unbearable pain. Five liang of silver and two liang of atractylodes [rhizome] are boiled in one cup of clear

Chapter 8

245

wine and one large cup of water down to one cup, to be ingested warm. Fu ren liang fang. 胎熱横悶。生銀五兩,葱白三寸,阿膠炒半兩,水一盞,煎服。亦可入糯 米作粥食。聖惠方。 Fetal heat with fierce heart-pressure. Boil five liang of native silver, a three cun long onion stalk and half a liang of roasted ass hide glue in one cup of water and [let the patient] ingest this. Sheng hui fang. 風牙疼痛。文銀一兩,燒紅淬燒酒一盞,熱漱,飲之立止。集簡方。 Toothache caused by wind. Heat one liang of high quality silver until it has turned red and dip it into a cup of brandy. Rinse [the teeth] with the hot [liquid] and then drink it. [The pain] will end immediately. Ji jian fang. 口鼻疳蝕,穿唇透頰。銀屑一兩,水三升,銅器煎一升,日洗三四次。聖 濟録。 Gan-illness232 erosion affecting mouth and nose, and piercing through the lips and penetrating the cheeks. One liang of silver fragments are boiled in three sheng of water in a copper vessel down to one sheng to wash [the affected region] three to five times a day. Sheng ji lu. 身面赤疵。常以銀揩,令熱,久久自消。千金翼。 Red blemish-illness affecting body and face. Continuously rub [the affected region] with silver until it has turned hot, and after a long time [the red blemish-illness] will disappear as a result. Qian jin yi.

232 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188.

246

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 【附録】 Appendix

08-02-A01 黄銀拾遺。Huang yin, FE Shi yi. Yellow silver. 【恭曰】黄銀,本草不載,俗云爲器既堪爲器,明非瑞物。【時珍曰】按 方勺泊宅編云:黄銀出蜀中,色與金無異,但上石則白色。熊太古冀越集 云:黄銀絶少,道家言鬼神畏之。六帖載唐太宗賜房玄齡帶云:世傳黄銀 鬼神畏之。春秋運斗樞云:人君秉金德而生,則黄銀見。世人以鍮石爲黄 銀,非也。鍮石,即藥成黄銅也。 [Su] Gong: Yellow silver is not listed in ben cao literature. A common saying is: “A utensil is just good to serve as a utensil.” Obviously, it is not an auspicious item. [Li] Shizhen: According to Fang Shao’s Bo zhai bian, “yellow silver originates in Shu zhong. Its color is identical to that of gold. However, when placed on stones/ rocks, it assumes a white color.” Xiong Taigu in his Ji Yue ji states: “Yellow silver is extremely rare. The Daoists say that demon spirits fear it.” According to a record in the Liu tie, “[Emperor] Tai zong of the Tang once rewarded Fang Xuanling with a belt [made of yellow silver], stating: ‘It is transmitted through the ages that demon spirits fear yellow silver’.” The Chun qiu yun dou shu states: “When a ruler emerges with the virtues of gold, yellow silver appears.” There are people who identify brass, tou shi 鍮石, as yellow silver. That is wrong. Tou shi 鍮石, is pharmaceutically prepared brass (lit.: “yellow copper”). 08-02-A02 烏銀。Wu yin. Black silver. 【藏器曰】今人用硫黄熏銀,再宿瀉之,則色黑矣。工人用爲器。養生者 以器煮藥,兼於庭中高一二丈處,夜承露醴飲之,長年辟惡。 [Chen] Cangqi: Nowadays, the people fumigate silver with sulphur and they rinse it with water after having left it for one night. Then its color has turned black. Craftsmen resort to it to produce utensils. Those striving to nourish their life boil their medication with utensils [made of black silver]. Also, they place [these utensils] at an elevated location in the courtyard, one to two zhang high, to prepare sweet wine affected by dew during the night, and they drink this. It extends the years [of life] and wards off the malign.

Chapter 8

247

08-03 錫恡脂綱目 Xi lin zhi, FE Gang mu. Silver ore from Persia. 【集解】【時珍曰】此乃波斯國銀𨥥也。一作悉藺脂。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: This is silver ore from the country of Po si/ Persia. It is also written xi lin zhi 悉藺脂. 【主治】目生翳膜,用火燒銅鍼輕點,乃傅之,不痛。又主一切風氣,及 三焦消渴飲水,並入丸藥用。時珍。 Control. For shade membranes developing on the eyes, heat a copper needle with fire and gently prick [the affected eyes]. Then apply the silver ore from Persia. It also serves to control all types of wind qi, as well as melting with thirst233 affecting the Triple Burner with [an urge] to drink water. It is also added to pills for medicinal use. [Li] Shizhen.

【附方】新一。 Added Recipes. One newly [recorded] 小兒天弔,多涎,搐搦不定。錫恡脂一兩,水淘黑汁令盡,水銀一分,以 少棗肉研不見星,牛黄半分,射香半分,研匀,粳米飯丸黍米大。每服三 十二丸,新汲水下,名保命丹。普濟方。 Children hauled by heaven,234 with much salivation and occasional convulsions. One liang of silver ore from Persia, washed with water until no longer a black juice develops, and one fen of mercury are ground with a small amount of date pulp until individual particles are no longer visible. This is then evenly ground with half a fen of cow bezoar and half a fen of musk, and prepared with nonglutinous rice to pills the size of millet grains. Each time [let the patient] ingest 32 pills, to be sent down with newly drawn water. [This medication] is called “Elixir to protect life.” Pu ji fang.

233 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567. 234 Xiao er tian diao 小兒天弔, “children hauled by heaven,” refers to a condition of children whose eyes are turned upward and who experience hand and foot spasms. BCGM Dict I 566.

248

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

08-04 銀膏唐本草 Yin gao, SE Tang ben cao. 235 Silver paste. Silver amalgamum. 【集解】【恭曰】其法用白錫和銀薄及水銀合成之,凝硬如銀,合鍊有 法。【時珍曰】今方士家有銀脆,恐即此物也。 Collected Explanations. [Su] Gong: The method to prepare this is to process thin foils of white tin and silver with mercury. Eventually, a hard mass coagulates resembling silver. The mixture and the refinement with heat follow a definite method. [Li] Shizhen: Nowadays, the recipe experts deal with a “crisp silver.” Perhaps this is the item [referred to by Su Gong]. 【氣味】辛,大寒,有毒。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, very cold, poisonous. 【主治】熱風,心虚驚悸,恍惚狂走,膈上熱,頭面熱風,衝心上下,安 神定志,鎮心明目,利水道,治人心風健忘,亦補牙齒缺落。蘇恭。 Control. Heat wind, with heart depletion and fright palpitation, absent-mindedness and mad running. Heat above the diaphragm. Heat and wind affecting head and face, moving against the heart from above and below. It pacifies the spirit and stabilizes the mind. It presses down [the qi of ] the heart and clears the eyes. It opens the passage through the water paths. It serves to cure heart wind causing forgetfulness. Also, it serves to fill [the locations where] teeth have fallen out. Su Gong. 08-05 朱砂銀日華 Zhu sha yin, FE Ri hua. Cinnabar silver. Mercury produced from cinnabar. 【集解】【時珍曰】此乃方士用藥合朱砂鍊制而成者。鶴頂新書云:丹砂 受青陽之氣始生𨥥石,二百年成丹砂而青女孕,三百年而成鉛,又二百年 而成銀,又二百年復得太和之氣,化而爲金。又曰:金公以丹砂爲子,是 陰中之陽,陽死陰凝,乃成至寶。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: This is something recipe experts produce by refining, with heat, various pharmaceutical substances together with cinnabar. The He ding xin shu states: “When cinnabar is exposed to the qi of spring (lit: “greenish yang”) it first develops to an ore. 200 years later, it has become mature cinnabar and 235 Acccording to Zheng lei ch. 4, yin gao 銀膏 was mentioned first in a Tang ben yu 唐本 餘. Li Shizhen erroneously assumed this text to be identical with the Tang ben cao.

Chapter 8

249

the Greenish Maiden236 is pregnant. 300 years later it turns into lead. Another 200 years later it turns into silver. Still another 200 years later, when it is exposed to the qi of the Great Harmony, it will transform and turns into gold.” It is also said: “The Golden Duke has cinnabar as its child. This is yin in yang. Once the yang dies, the yin coagulates, and a most precious gem is created.” 【氣味】冷,無毒。【大明曰】畏石亭脂、慈石、鐵,忌一切血。 Qi and Flavor. Cold, nonpoisonous. Da Ming: [Ingested together,] it fears red sulphur, magnetite and iron. [When used in a treatment] avoid all types of blood. 【主治】延年益色,鎮心安神,止驚悸,辟邪,治中惡蠱毒,心熱煎煩, 憂忘虚劣。大明。 Control. It extends the years [of life] and boosts the complexion; it presses down [the qi of ] the heart and pacifies the spirit. It ends fright palpitation, wards off evil and serves to cure being struck by the malign und gu poison,237 heart heat and unrest, grief and forgetfulness, depletion with degradation. Da Ming. 08-06 赤銅唐本草。 Chi tong, FE Tang ben cao. Red copper. Copper. 【釋名】紅銅綱目、赤金弘景。屑名:銅落、銅末、銅花、銅粉、銅砂。 【時珍曰】銅與金同,故字從金、同也。 Explanation of Names. Hong tong 紅銅, “red copper,” Gang mu. Chi jin 赤金, “red gold/metal,” [Tao] Hongjing. Names of [copper] fragments: Tong luo 銅落, “copper chips;” tong mo 銅末, “copper powder;” tong hua 銅花, “copper blossoms;” tong fen 銅 粉, “copper powder;” tong sha 銅砂, “copper sand.” [Li] Shizhen: Copper and gold are identical. Hence the character [tong 銅, “copper,”] is derived from [the characters] jin 金, “gold,” and tong 同, “identical.” 【集解】【弘景曰】銅爲赤金,生熟皆赤,而本草無用。今銅青及大錢 皆入方用,並是生銅,應在下品之例也。【時珍曰】銅有赤銅、白銅、 青銅。赤銅出川、廣、雲、貴諸處山中,土人穴山采礦鍊取之。白銅出 236 The Green(ish) Maiden is the goddess of frost. She sends frost on the third day of the ninth month. See also the Huainan zi. 237 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191.

250

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

雲南,青銅出南番。惟赤銅爲用最多,且可入藥。人以爐甘石鍊爲黄銅, 其色如金。砒石鍊爲白銅,雜錫鍊爲響銅。山海經言,出銅之山四百六十 七,今則不知其幾也。寶藏論云:赤金一十種。丹陽銅、武昌白慢銅、一 生銅,生銀銅,皆不由陶冶而生者,無毒,宜作鼎器。波斯青銅,可爲 鏡。新羅銅,可作鍾。石緑、石青、白青等銅,並是藥制成。鐵銅以苦膽 水浸至生赤煤,熬鍊成而黑堅。錫坑銅大軟,可點化。自然銅見本條。鶴 頂新書云:銅與金銀同一根源也,得紫陽之氣而生緑,緑二百年而生石, 銅始生于中,其氣禀陽,故質剛戾。管子云:上有陵石,下有赤銅。地鏡 圖云:山有慈石,下有金若銅。草莖黄秀,下有銅器。銅器之精,爲馬爲 僮。抱朴子云:銅有牝牡。在火中尚赤時,令童男、童女以水灌之,銅自 分爲兩段,凸起者牡也,凹下者牝也。以牝爲雌劍,牡爲雄劍,帶之入江 湖,則蛟龍水神皆畏避也。 Collected Explanations. [Tao] Hongjing: Copper is a red metal. Both crude and processed it is red. In ben cao literature it is not made use of. Verdigris (08-09) and large [copper] coins are added to recipes for [therapeutic] use. Both are crude copper and should be listed among substances of lower rank. [Li] Shizhen: Copper includes red copper, white copper and greenish copper. Red copper originates in the mountains of many regions in Chuan, Guang, Yun and Gui. The local inhabitants gather [copper] ore in mountain caves and obtain [copper] by processing/refining [the ore] with heat. White copper originates in Yun nan; greenish copper originates in foreign regions in the South. Only red copper is very often used [for various purposes] and can be added to medications. The people process it with calamine to produce yellow copper/brass, which has a color identical to that of gold. Processed with arsenic it turns into white copper. Processed mixed with tin it turns into copper used to make sounds (as for instance with musical instruments). The Shan hai jing says: “There are 467 mountains where copper is mined.” Today, their number is unknown. The Bao zang lun states: “There are ten kinds of red gold/copper: Copper of Dan yang, “white man”238 copper of Wu chang, all native239 copper, native silver copper. None of these kinds is produced in a pottery jar. They are nonpoisonous, and they are suitable for making sacrificial vessels and utensils. Greenish copper/ bronze from Po si/Persia can be made to mirrors. Copper from Xin luo can be made to bells/measures. Shi lü 石緑, shi qing 石青and bai qing 白青 kinds of copper are all pharmaceutically produced. When iron and copper are soaked in bitter bile until red soot/rust develops, they are further processed and refined with heat to generate something black and hard. The copper from a tin pit is very soft and can be transformed [to longevity elixirs] by means of heat.” For “natural copper” see the respec238 The meaning of bai man 白慢 is unclear. 239 The meaning of yi sheng 一生 is unclear.

Chapter 8

251

tive entry (08-07). The He ding xin shu states: “Copper and gold and silver have one identical origin. When [gold and silver] are exposed to the qi of purple yang, a green [substance] forms. This green [substance], 200 years later, brings forth a rock and copper begins to develop inside of it. Its qi is endowed with yang and hence its matter is hard and fierce.” The Guan zi states: “Where ‘hill stone/minerals’ are found above, red copper occurs below.” The Di jing tu states: “When mountains have magnetite, there is metal below it resembling copper. When herbs with beautiful yellow stalks [are above], there will be copper utensils below. Hence the beautiful, yellow essence of copper utensils, is reflected in [copper] horses or [copper figurines shaped like a] boy.” The Baopu zi states: “Copper may be male and female. When copper is subjected to fire and has turned red, let a young boy or a young girl pour water over it. The copper will split into two pieces. Those with a convex surface are male; those with a concave surface are female. Female [copper] is made to female swords. Male [copper] is made to male swords. If wearing them one enters a river or a lake, rain and flood dragons and water spirits will all be afraid and are repelled.” 08-06-01 赤銅屑。Chi tong xie. Red copper fragments. 【修治】【時珍曰】即打銅落下屑也。或以紅銅火鍛水淬,亦自落下。以 水淘净,用好酒入沙鍋内炒見火星,取研末用。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Li] Shizhen: These are fragments falling down when copper is forged. Or red copper is calcined with fire and then dipped into water. This, too, will let them fall down. They are washed clean in a pan with water, and then given, with good wine, into an earthenware vessel to be roasted until sparkles appear. Then they are removed [from the earthenware vessel] and ground to a powder for [therapeutic] usage. 【氣味】苦,平,微毒。【時珍曰】蒼术粉銅,巴豆、牛脂軟銅,慈姑、 乳香啞銅,物性然也。 Qi and Flavor. Bitter, balanced, slightly poisonous. [Li] Shizhen: Atractylodes [rhizome] serves to powder copper. Croton [seeds] and ox fat serve to soften copper. Duckweed and frankincense serve to mute copper. This is because of the nature of these items. 【主治】賊風反折,熬使極熱,投酒中,服五合,日三。或以五斤燒赤, 納二斗酒中百遍,如上服之。又治腋臭,以醋和如麥飯,袋盛,先刺腋下 脉去血,封之,神效。唐本。明目,治風眼,接骨銲齒,療女人血氣及心 痛。大明。同五倍子,能染鬚髮。時珍。

252

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Control. For robber wind240 and arched back [spine], boil [red copper fragments] in water until they are very hot, drop them into wine and ingest five ge [of this wine], three times a day. Or heat five jin [of red copper fragments] until they have turned red, dip them one hundred times into two dou of wine and ingest [the wine] as recommended above. Also, to cure malodorous stench from the armpits, mix [red copper fragments] with vinegar and process them in the same way as porphyry (10-29), fill them into a bag, pierce the armpits to let blood and cover them [with the bag]. Divinely effective. Tang ben. They clear the eyes, serve to cure wind [fire] eyes,241 reconnect bones, stabilize teeth, and heal heart pain of women associated with blood and qi [disorders]. Da Ming. Mixed with Chinese sumac gallnuts they are able to dye beard and hair on the head. 【發明】【時珍曰】太清服鍊法云:銅秉東方乙陰之氣結成,性利,服之 傷腎。既云傷腎,而又能接骨,何哉?【藏器曰】赤銅屑主折傷,能銲人 骨及六畜有損者,細研酒服,直入骨損處,六畜死後,取骨視之,猶有銲 痕,可驗。打熟銅不堪用。【慎微曰】朝野僉載云:定州崔務墜馬折足, 醫者取銅末和酒服之,遂瘥。及亡後十年改葬,視其脛骨折處,猶有銅束 之也。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: The Tai qing fu lian fa states: “Copper is formed of the yin qi of the second Heavenly Stem section of the East. By its nature it opens passages. Ingested it harms the kidneys.” When it is said “it harms the kidneys” and also “it can reconnect bones [that are associated with the kidneys],” how can this be? [Chen] Cangqi: Red copper fragments control harm caused by fractures, and they are able to mend human bones and injuries of the six types of lifestock. Ground to a fine [powder] and ingested with wine, they directly enter the bones and the location of an injury. When the bones of lifestock [that has undergone such treatment] are removed to be examined after [such animals] have died, the scars of such a mending will prove [the effects of this treatment]. Forged, processed copper is not suitable for such a use. [Tang] Shenwei: The Chao ye jian zai states: “Cui Wu of Ding zhou fell from his horse and broke a leg. His physician resorted to a mixture of copper powder and wine and had him ingest it. This resulted in a cure. When ten years after he had died his tomb was moved, the location where his shin bone had been broken and was reconnected by the copper was still visible.”

240 Zei feng 賊風, “robber wind.” Various pathological conditions caused by qi that has invaded the human organism from outside. BCGM Dict I 667. 241 Feng yan 風眼, “wind eye,” refers to red and festering eyes caused by wind and heat. BCGM Dict I, 171.

Chapter 8

253

【附方】舊一。 Added Recipes. One of old. 腋下狐臭。崔氏方:用清水洗净,又用清酢漿洗净,微揩破,取銅屑和酢 熱揩之,甚驗。外臺。 Fox odor under the armpits. Cui shi fang: [First] wash [the armpits] clean with clear water. Then wash them clean with clear fermented water of foxtail millet. Gently rub [the armpits] to open [the skin] and then rub them with a mixture of copper fragments and hot vinegar. Very proved [to be effective]. Wai tai. 08-07 自然銅宋開寶 Zi ran tong, FE Song, Kai bao. Natural copper. Pyrite. 【釋名】石髓鉛。【志曰】其色青黄如銅,不從礦鍊,故號自然銅。 Explanation of Names. Shi sui qian 石髓鉛, “rock marrow lead.” [Ma] Zhi: Its color is greenish-yellow, like that of copper. It is not obtained through refinement with heat of an ore. Hence it is called “natural copper.” 【集解】【志曰】自然銅生邕州山巖間出銅處,于坑中及石間采得,方圓 不定,其色青黄如銅。【頌曰】今信州、火山軍銅坑中及石間皆有之。信 州出一種如亂銅絲狀,云在銅礦中,山氣熏蒸,自然流出,亦若生銀老翁 鬚之類,入藥最好。火山軍出者,顆塊如銅而堅重如石,醫家謂之銗石, 用之力薄。采無時。今南方醫者説,自然銅有兩三體:一體大如麻黍,或 多方解,纍纍相綴,至如斗大者,色煌煌明爛如黄金、鍮石,入藥最上。 一體成塊,大小不定,亦光明而赤。一體如薑、鐵屎之類。又有如不治而 成者,形大小不定,皆出銅坑中,擊之易碎,有黄赤,有青黑,鍊之乃成 銅也。其説分析頗精,而未常見似亂絲者。又云:今市人多以銗石爲自然 銅,燒之成青焰如硫黄者是也。此亦有二三種:一種有殻如禹餘粮,擊 破,其中光明如鑑,色黄類鍮石也。一種青黄而有墻壁,成文如束針。一 種碎理如團砂者。皆光明如銅,色多青白而赤少者,燒之皆成烟焰,頃刻 都盡。今醫家多誤以此爲自然銅,市中所貨往往是此,而自然銅用須火 煅,此乃畏火,不必形色,只此可辨也。【獨孤滔曰】自然銅出信州 鉛 山縣銀塲銅坑中,深處有銅鑛,多年鑛氣結成,似馬尸 氣 勃也。色紫重,食之 苦濇者是真。今人以大𥔒石爲自然銅,誤矣。【承曰】今辰州川澤中,出 一種自然銅,形圓似蛇含,大者如胡桃,小者如栗,外有皮,黑色光潤, 破之與銗石無别,但比銗石不作臭氣耳,入藥用之殊驗。【斅曰】石髓鉛 即自然銅。勿用方金牙,真相似,若誤餌之,吐殺人。石髓鉛似乾銀泥,

254

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

銀泥,味微甘也。【時珍曰】按寶藏論云:自然銅生曾青、石緑穴中,狀 如寒林草根,色紅膩,亦有墻壁。又一類似丹砂,光明堅硬有稜,中含銅 脉,尤佳。又一種似木根,不紅膩,隨手碎爲粉,至爲精明,近銅之山則 有之。今俗中所用自然銅,皆非也。 Collected Explanations. [Ma] Zhi: Natural copper grows at locations where copper originates in the mountain caves of Yong zhou. It is collected in pits or from in between rocks, and its shape may be square or round. Its color is greenish-yellow like copper. [Su] Song: Nowadays it can be found everywhere in copper pits and in between rocks. A variation originating in Xin zhou is shaped like disorderly copper threads. It is said that when copper ore is exposed to the hot fumes of mountain qi, natural [copper] will flow out. In this, it resembles the “old man’s beard” of native silver. It is the best to be added to medication. Variations originating in Huo shan jun are formed like copper lumps. They are hard and heavy like rocks. The physicians call them “money box rocks.” In [therapeutic] applications, their strength is weak. They are collected anytime. Today’s physicians in the South say: Natural copper may appear in two or three physical bodies. One body has the size of hemp or millet seeds. They may be cracked open many times, and they cling together like strings of pearls. Some of them are as big as a dou measure. They are of a very bright color like yellow metal/gold and brass. They are the best for adding [natural copper] to a medication. Another body [of natural copper] is formed as lumps of unequal size. They, too, are shiny and red. Still another body resembles “ginger [stone]” (10-28) and iron droppings [left after forging iron]. In addition, there is [natural copper] that has formed without artificial processing. It, too, is of unequal size and always originates in copper pits. When struck it easily breaks. It comes with yellow-red and greenish-black color, and when refined with heat it becomes copper. Such statements are quite detailed analyses, but I have not yet seen [natural copper] resembling disorderly threads. It is also said that today’s merchants often consider money box rocks to be natural copper. If when burned they develop greenish fumes like those of sulphur, then these are [money box rocks]. They, too, are present in two or three kinds. One variation has a shell like limonite. When it is broken open, it shines like a mirror. It is of yellow color, like that of brass. Another variation is greenish-yellow and has a [surface of ] flat walls with a line design like a bundle of needles. Still another variation has a fractured structure, as if made of pebbles. They all are shiny like copper. Their color is mostly greenish-white. Red specimens are rare. When burned, they all develop fumes that are exhausted after a short time. Today’s physicians often wrongly assume [money box rocks] to be natural copper. Those sold on the markets frequently are such [falsely declared money box rocks]. Still, there is no need to rely on their physical appearance and color [to distinguish

Chapter 8

255

genuine natural copper from money box rocks]. For an application of natural copper a calcination with fire is required. [Money box rocks] fear fire. This is all that is required to distinguish the two. Dugu Tao: Natural copper originates in silver fields and copper pits of Qian shan county in Xin zhou. Copper ore grows in the depth; [natural copper] has formed over many years from the qi of [such copper] ore. It resembles puffball (lit.: “horse fart”) mushrooms. Those of deeply purple color and tasting bitter and astringend when eaten are genuine. The people of today consider 大𥔒石242 to be natural copper, but that is wrong. [Chen] Cheng: Nowadays, a variation of natural copper originates in the streams and marshlands of Chen zhou. It is round like Klein cinquefoil. Large pieces are as big as walnuts; small ones are of the size of chestnuts. On their outside their skin is black and shiny. When broken open they are not any different from the money box rocks. However, the money box rocks do not emit malodorous qi. When they are added to a medication, their usages differ. [Lei] Xiao: Rock marrow lead is natural copper. Do not use pyrite instead. Both are truly similar. If [the latter] is ingested mistakenly, it will cause vomiting and eventually kills one. Rock marrow lead resembles dry silver mud. Its flavor is slightly sweet. [Li] Shizhen: According to the Bao zang lun, “natural copper grows in malachite and malachite caves. It is shaped like the roots of herbs in a cold forest. Its color is red and it is greasy. It may also have a surface like flat walls. There is another type that is reminiscent of cinnabar. It is shiny, hard and has edges. Internally it has copper veins. It is the best. Another variation resembles the roots of a tree. It is neither red nor greasy. It can be broken with one’s fingers to a powder. It is extremely fine and lucid.” [Natural copper] occurs in mountains close to copper [caves]. The natural copper commonly in use today is always faked. 【修治】【斅曰】采得石髓鉛槌碎,同甘草湯煮二伏時,至明漉出,攤令 乾,入臼中搗了,重篩過。以醋浸一宿,至明,用六一泥泥瓷盒子,盛二 升,文武火中養三日夜,才乾,用蓋蓋了,火煅兩伏時,去土研如粉用。 凡修事五兩,以醋兩鎰爲度。【時珍曰】今人只以火煅醋淬七次,研細水 飛過用。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. Collect rock marrow lead and pound it to pieces. Then boil it with a glycyrrhiza [root] decoction for two full days and nights. At dawn, pass [the liquid] through a sieve, remove [the rock marrow lead], spread it out and let it dry. Then give it into a mortar and pound it. Again pass it through a sieve and soak it in vinegar overnight. The next morning at dawn, fill two sheng into a pottery bowl sealed with earthworm excrements and heat it with a fire that is mild first and fierce later for three days and nights. When [the liquid] is just about to have dried up, 242 A mineral of unknown identity.

256

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

close [the bowl] with a cover and calcine it over a fire for two full days and nights. Then remove the soil [from within the bowl], grind it to a fine powder and use [it for therapeutic purposes]. For all five liang [of rock marrow lead] to be prepared, add no more than two liang of vinegar. [Li] Shizhen: The people of today simply calcine it with fire and dip it into vinegar seven times. Then they grind it to a fine [powder] and after an aqueous sublimation they use [it for therapeutic purposes]. 【氣味】辛,平,無毒。【大明曰】凉 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, balanced, nonpoisonous. Da Ming: Cool. 【主治】折傷,散血止痛,破積聚。開寶。消瘀血,排膿,續筋骨。治産 後血邪,安心,止驚悸,以酒摩服。大明。 Control. Harm caused by a fracture. It disperses blood, ends pain and breaks through accumulations. Kai bao. It dissolves stagnant blood, removes pus, and serves to reconnect sinews and bones. To cure blood evil following delivery, to pacify the heart and to end fright palpitation, rub it with wine and ingest [the resulting liquid]. Da Ming. 【發明】【宗奭曰】有人以自然銅飼折翅胡雁,後遂飛去。今人打撲損, 研細水飛過,同當歸、没藥各半錢,以酒調服,仍手摩病處。【震亨曰】 自然銅,世以爲接骨之藥,然此等方儘多,大扺宜補氣、補血、補胃。俗 工惟在速效,迎合病人之意,而銅非煅不可用。若新出火者,其火毒、金 毒相扇,挾香藥熱毒,雖有接骨之功,燥散之禍,甚於刀劍,戒之。【時 珍曰】自然銅接骨之功,與銅屑同,不可誣也。但接骨之後,不可常服, 即便理氣活血可爾。 Explication. [Kou] Zongshi: There once was a man who used natural copper to raise a wild duck with a broken wing. Later [the duck] recovered and flew away. Nowadays, when someone was injured by a blow, they grind [natural copper] to a fine [powder], process it with aqueous sublimation, add half a qian each of angelica root and myrrh, and [let the patient] ingest this mixed with wine. In addition, the region affected by the disease is massaged by hand. [Zhu] Zhenheng: Everybody believes natural copper to be a drug serving to reconnect bones. And there are very many recipes designed to this effect. In general, they are suitable for supplementing qi, for supplementing blood, and for supplementing the stomach. Common practitioners emphasize quick effects to conform with the sentiments of their patients. But when copper is not calcined, it is of no use. When it has just been taken out of a fire, its fire poison and its metal poison incite each other. If then the heat poison of an aromatic drug is added, even though it may still have its effect of reconnecting bones, a disaster of dryness and dispersion is initiated that is even more serious [than an

Chapter 8

257

injury caused by a knife or sword]. This is to be avoided. [Li] Shizhen: The effects of natural copper to reconnect bones are identical to those of copper fragments. One must not falsely criticize it. However, once the bones are reconnected, it must not be ingested regularly. [Medication to] order the qi and to enliven the blood is required.

【附方】新三。 Added Recipes. Three newly [recorded] 心氣刺痛。自然銅,火煅醋淬九次,研末,醋調一字服,即止。衞生易簡 方。 Piercing pain caused by heart qi. Calcine natural copper in a fire and dip it into vinegar nine times. Then grind it to a powder, and ingest, mixed with vinegar, one zi. This will end [the pain]. Wei sheng yi jian fang. 項下氣癭。自然銅貯水甕中,逐日飲食,皆用此水,其癭自消。或火燒烟 氣,久久吸之,亦可。楊仁齋直指方。 Qi goiter below the neck. Fill natural copper into an earthen jar with water and for all drinking and eating, day after day, always use this water. As a result, the goiter will vanish. Or burn [natural copper] in a fire to generate fume qi. To inhale them for a long time will do, too. Yan Renzhai, Zhi zhi fang. 暑濕癱痪,四肢不能動。自然銅燒紅,酒浸一夜,川烏頭炮、五靈脂、蒼 术酒浸,各一兩,當歸二錢酒浸,爲末,酒糊丸梧子大。每服七丸,酒 下,覺四肢麻木即止。陸氏積德堂方。 Paralysis and slackening associated with summerheat and moisture. The four extremities are unable to move. Grind one liang each of natural copper heated until it has turned red and soaked in wine for one night, Sichuan aconitum [main tuber] roasted in a pan, flying squirrel droppings and atractylodes [rhizome] soaked in water, as well as two qian of angelica root soaked in wine, to a powder and form, with wine and dough, pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest seven pills, to be sent down with wine. End [the treatment] once the four limbs [feel numb like] hemp and logs. Lu shi, Ji de tang fang.

258

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

08-08 銅礦石鑛,音古猛切,亦作鉚。唐本草 Tong kuang shi, [read] kuang, split reading ku and meng. Also written 鉚, FE Tang ben cao. Copper ore. 【釋名】【時珍曰】礦,粗惡也。五金皆有粗石銜之,故名。麥之粗者曰 𪍿,犬之惡者亦曰獷。 Explanation of Names. [Li] Shizhen: Kuang 礦 is “coarse and malign.” All the five metals are enclosed in coarse rock. Hence this name. Coarse wheat is called guang 𪍿. Malign dogs are called guang 獷。 【集解】【恭曰】銅礦石,狀如薑石而有銅星,鎔之取銅也,出銅山中。 許慎説文云:礦,銅鐵樸石也。 Collected Explanations. [Su] Gong: Copper ore is shaped like jiang shi (, “ginger stone,” 10-28) and includes copper particles. Copper is won by melting it. It originates in copper mountains. Xu Shen in his Shuo wen states: Ore is the raw material of copper and iron. 【氣味】酸,寒,有小毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sour, cold, slightly poisonous. 【主治】丁腫惡瘡,爲末傅之。驢馬脊瘡,臭腋,磨汁塗之。唐本。 Control. For pin[-illness]243 swelling and malign sores [grind it to a] powder and apply this [to the affected region]. For sores on the back of donkeys and horses, and malodorous armpits, rub it [in water] to obtain a juice and apply this [to the affected region]. Tang ben. 08-09 銅青宋嘉祐 Tong qing, FE Song, Jia you. Verdigris. 【釋名】銅緑。 Explanation of Names. Tong lü 銅緑, “copper green.”

243 Ding 丁, “pin[-illness],” also ding 疔, “pin-illness,” refers to a deep-reaching and festering hardness in a tissue, eventually rising above the skin like a pinhead. BCGM Dict I, 127129.

Chapter 8

259

【集解】【藏器曰】生熟銅皆有青,即是銅之精華,大者即空緑,以次空 青也。銅青則是銅器上緑色者,淘洗用之。【時珍曰】近時人以醋制銅生 緑,取收晒乾貨之。 Collected Explanations. [Chen] Cangqi: Crude and processed copper may both have a greenish [coating]. This is the essence splendor of copper. Large pieces are called malachite, kong lü 空緑; malachite, kong qing 空青, is second [in size]. Verdigris is the [coating of ] green color forming on the outside of copper utensils. It is washed off for [medicinal] usage. Nowadays, the people treat copper with vinegar to generate verdigris. Once they have collected it, they dry it in the sun and then sell it. 【氣味】酸,平,微毒 Qi and Flavor. Sour, balanced, slightly poisonous. 【主治】婦人血氣心痛,合金瘡止血,明目,去膚赤息肉。藏器。主風爛 眼淚出。之才。治惡瘡、疳瘡,吐風痰,殺蟲。時珍。 Control. Heart pain of women caused by blood and qi. It serves to close wounds caused by metal objects/weapons, to clear the eyes and to remove redness of the skin and tumorous flesh growths. [Chen] Cangqi. It masters festering eyes, caused by wind, with tearflow. [Xu] Zhicai. It serves to cure malign sores, gan-illness244 sores, and vomiting of wind phlegm. It kills worms/bugs. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】銅青乃銅之液氣所結,酸而有小毒,能入肝膽,故吐 利風痰,明目殺疳,皆肝膽之病也。抱朴子云:銅青塗脚,入水不腐。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: Verdigris is a conglomeration of liquid qi effused by copper. It is sour and slightly poisonous. It is able to enter the liver and the gall bladder. Hence, when it causes vomiting and free-flow [discharge] of wind and phlegm, clears the eyes and kills gan-illnes [worms/bugs], then these are all diseases of the liver and the gall bladder. The Baopu zi states: “When verdigris is applied to the one’s feet, they will not erode in water.”

244 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188.

260

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 【附方】舊二,新十一。 Added Recipes. Two of old. Eleven newly [recorded]

風痰卒中。碧琳丹:治痰涎潮盛,卒中不語及一切風癱。用生緑二兩,乳 細,水化去石,慢火熬乾,取辰日辰時辰位上修合,再研入麝香一分,糯 米粉糊和丸彈子大,陰乾。卒中者,每丸作二服,薄荷酒研下。餘風,朱 砂酒化下。吐出青碧涎,瀉下惡物,大效。 Suddenly being struck by wind and phlegm. The “bluish jade elixir.” serves to treat a profuse emergence of phlegm and saliva, sudden stroke and an inability to speak with all types of paralysis caused by wind. [Grind] two liang of verdigris to a fine powder. Dissolve it in water and remove any stones [that remain undissolved]. Heat [the liquid] over a mild fire until it is dry. The processing and mixing is to be conducted on a chen day, at chen hours (07:00 – 08:59) at a chen location. Add one fen of musk, and form, with glutinous rice powder, pills the size of bullets. Dry them in a shady place. When someone is suddenly struck, each time let him ingest two such pills, to be sent down ground in mint wine. For wind that remains, send [the pills] down dissolved in cinnabar wine. [This leads to] a vomiting of greenish-bluish saliva, and an outflow discharge of malign items. Very effective. 治小兒,用緑雲丹:銅緑不計多少,研粉,醋麪糊丸芡子大。每薄荷酒化 服一丸,須臾吐涎如膠,神效。經驗方。 To cure children, resort to the “green cloud elixir.” Grind any amount of verdigris to a powder and form with vinegar and a flour-water paste pills the size of qian seeds. For each application [let the child] ingest one pill dissolved in mint wine. After a short while, it will vomit saliva that is as viscous as phlegm. Divinely effective. Jing yan fang. 爛弦風眼。銅青,水調塗盌底,以艾熏乾,刮下,塗爛處。衞生易簡方。 Wind eyes245 with festering [eyelid] rims. Mix verdigris with water and apply this to the bottom of a bowl. Then expose this to the hot fumes of common mugwort [leaves] until it has dried. Scratch it off and apply it to the festering location. Wei sheng yi jian fang. 赤髮秃落。油磨銅錢衣,塗之即生。普濟方。 Red hair and baldness. Grind the [verdigris] coating of a copper coin in oil, and apply [the liquid to the affected region]. This will let [the hair] grow. Pu ji fang.

245 Feng yan 風眼, “wind eyes,” are red and festering canthi and eyelids brought about by harm caused to the eyes by heat. BCGM Dict I, 171.

Chapter 8

261

面黶黑痣。以草劃破,銅緑末傅之,三日勿洗水,自落。厚者,再上之。 聖濟録。 Facial black moles. Lacerate [the moles] with some herb and apply verdigris powder to them. Do not wash them with water for three days, and they will fall off as a result. For those that are thick, add a second application. Sheng ji lu. 走馬牙疳。銅青、滑石、杏仁等分,爲末,擦之立愈。邵真人經驗方。 Running horse dental gan-illness.246 [Grind] equal amounts of verdigris, talc and bitter apricot seeds to a powder and rub this [on the affected region] to achieve an immediate cure. Shao zhenren jing yan fang. 口鼻疳瘡。銅青、枯礬等分,研,傅之。 Gan-illness sores affecting mouth and nose. Grind equal amounts of verdigris and prepared alum [to a powder] and apply this [to the affected region]. 又方:人中白一錢,銅緑三分,研,傅之。 An alternative recipe: Grind one qian of white sediments of human urine and three fen of verdigris [to a powder] and apply this [to the affected region]. 楊梅毒瘡。銅緑醋煮研末,燒酒調搽,極痛出水,次日即乾。或加白礬等 分,研摻。簡便方。 Red bayberry poison sores.247 Boil verdigris in vinegar and grind it to a powder. Mix it with brandy and apply it [to the affected region]. This will cause an extreme pain and a release of water. The next day it will be dry. Or, add an equal amount of alum, grind it [to a powder] and apply this [to the affected region]. Jian bian fang. 臁瘡頑癬。銅緑七分研,黄蠟一兩化熬,以厚紙拖過,表裏别以紙隔貼 之,出水妙。亦治楊梅瘡及蟲咬。筆峰雜興。 Shank sores and stubborn xuan-illness.248 Grind seven fen of verdigris [to a powder] and dissolve this, with heat, in one liang of yellow beeswax. Then soak thick paper in it and place this – separated by an additional layer of paper – on [the affected region]. Once water is released, [the effects are] wondrous. This also serves to cure red bayberry sores249 and bites by worms/bugs. Bifeng, Za xing. 246 Zou ma ya gan 走馬牙疳, “running horse dental gan-illness,” a dental illness that develops abruptly and turns into a serious condition. BCGM Dict I, 704. 247 Yang mei chuang 楊梅毒瘡, “red bayberry [poison] sores,” most likely including cases of syphilis. BCGM Dict I, 293, 294. 248 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591. 249 Yang mei chuang 楊梅毒瘡, “red bayberry [poison] sores,” most likely including cases of syphilis. BCGM Dict I, 293, 294.

262

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

腸風痔瘻。方見密陀僧下。 Intestinal wind and piles fistula. For the recipe, see the entry on litharge (08-14). 諸蛇螫毒。銅青傅之。千金方。 All types of snake and scorpion poison. Apply verdigris [to the affected region]. Qian jin fang. 百蟲入耳。生油調銅緑滴入。衞生家寶方。 When any of the hundreds of bugs/worms have entered an ear. Mix verdigris with fresh oil and drip this into [the affected ear]. Wei sheng jia bao fang. 頭上生虱。銅青、明礬末摻之。摘玄方。 Lice present on the head. Apply verdigris and alum [to the affected region]. Zhai xuan fang. 08-10 鈆日華 Qian, FE Ri hua. Lead. 【釋名】青金説文、黑錫、金公綱目、水中金。【時珍曰】鈆易㳂流,故 謂之鈆。錫爲白錫,故此爲黑錫。而神仙家拆其字爲金公,隱其名爲水中 金。 Explanation of Names. Qing jin 青金, “greenish metal,” Shuo wen. Hei xi 黑錫, “black tin;” jin gong 金公, “Golden Duke,” 綱目, shui zhong jin 水中金, “gold/metal in water.” [Li] Shizhen: Lead, qian 鈆, easily flows when melted, yan 㳂. Hence it is named qian 鈆. Xi 錫 is “white tin,” bai xi 白錫. Hence this is “black tin,” hei xi 黑錫. The experts in how to achieve a state of divine immortality have broken up the character [qian 鈆] into [the two characters] jin 金, “gold/metal,” and gong 公,”duke.” They have disguised this name by calling [lead] shui zhong jin 水中金, “gold/metal in water.” 【集解】【頌曰】鉛生蜀郡平澤,今有銀坑處皆有之,燒礦而取。【時珍 曰】鉛生山穴石間,人挾油燈,入至數里,隨礦脉上下曲折斫取之。其氣 毒人,若連月不出,則皮膚痿黄,腹脹不能食,多致疾而死。地鏡圖云: 草青莖赤,其下多鉛。鉛錫之精爲老婦。獨孤滔云:嘉州、利州出草節 鉛,生鉛未鍛者也。打破脆,燒之氣如硫黄。紫背鉛,即熟鉛,鉛之精華 也,有變化,能碎金剛鑽。雅州出鈎脚鉛,形如皂子大,又如蝌斗子,黑 色,生山澗沙中,可乾汞。盧氏鉛粗惡力劣,信州鉛雜銅氣,陰平鉛出劍 州,是銅鐵之苗,並不可用。寶藏論云:鉛有數種。波斯鉛堅白,爲天下

Chapter 8

263

第一。草節鉛出犍爲,銀之精也。銜銀鉛,銀坑中之鉛也,内含五色。並 妙。上饒 樂平鉛,次于波斯、草節。負版鉛,鐵苗也,不可用。倭鉛,可 勾金。土宿真君本草云:鉛乃五金之祖,故有五金狴犴、追魂使者之稱, 言其能伏五金而死八石也。雌黄乃金之苗而中有鉛氣,是黄金之祖矣。銀 坑有鉛,是白金之祖矣。信鉛雜銅,是赤金之祖矣。與錫同氣,是青金之 祖矣。朱砂伏于鉛而死于硫,硫戀于鉛而伏于硇,鐵戀于磁而死于鉛,雄 戀于鉛而死于五加。故金公變化最多,一變而成胡粉,再變而成黄丹,三 變而成密陀僧,四變而爲白霜。雷氏炮炙論云:令鉛住火,須仗修天;如 要形堅,豈忘紫背。註云:修天,補天石也。紫背,天葵也。 Collected Explanations. [Su] Song: Lead grows in the plains and marshlands of Shu jun. It occurs in all silver pits that exist today. It is won by heating the ore. [Li] Shizhen: Lead grows between the rocks in mountain caves. The people hold oil lamps and enter [these caves] several li deep. They follow the course of the [lead] ore veins as they move winding up and down, and use axes to break them out [of the rocks]. Their qi are poisonous for humans. If [the miners] fail to leave [the caves] for several months, their skin slackens and turns yellow; their abdomen is bloated and they cannot eat. This is often accompanied by illness and eventual death. The Di jing tu states: “Where greenish herbs with red stalks grow, much lead will be underneath. The essence of lead and tin brings forth old women.” Dugu Tao states: In Jia zhou and Li zhou, a “herb node lead” is produced. It is a calcined powder of crude lead. When struck, it breaks into pieces. When heated, it develops qi like sulphur. “Purple back lead” is processed lead; it is the essence splendor of lead. It can be transformed [to a hardness] enabling one to cut to pieces diamonds. In Ya zhou a “hook base lead” is produced. Its physical appearance is of the size of gleditsia seeds; it may also resemble tadpoles. It is of black color and grows in the sand of mountain streams. It can be [transformed to] mercury. Lead from Lu shi is coarse and malign and of lower quality and strength. Lead from Xin zhou comes mixed with copper qi. Lead from Yin ping originates in Jian zhou. It is a product [resulting from a merger of ] copper and iron. All [these kinds] have no use. The Bao zang lun states: “Lead appears in several kinds. Po si/Persian lead is hard and white. It is the number one in the world. ‘Herb node lead’ originates in Jian zhou. It is the essence of silver. ‘Lead enclosing silver’ is lead from silver pits; inside of it all five colors may appear. All [these kinds] are wondrous. Le ping lead from Shang rao is secondary to [lead from] Po si/Persia and ‘herb node [lead]’. ‘Lead carrying a plate’ is an offspring of iron. It is of no use. Lead from Wo/Japan can be used to work on gold.” The Tu su zhen jun ben cao states: “Lead is the ancestor of the five metals. Hence it is called ‘supervisor of the five metals’ and ‘envoy to pursue the hun-soul’. That is to say, it is capable of subduing the five metals and of killing the eight minerals. Orpiment is

264

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

an offspring of gold. Inside it contains lead qi. It is the ancestor of yellow metal/ gold. The lead found in silver pits is the ancestor of white metal/silver. Lead from Xin zhou mixed with [the qi of ] copper is the ancestor of red metal/lead. That which has identical qi with tin, it is the ancestor of greenish metal/tin. Cinnabar is subdued by lead and it is killed by sulphur. Sulphur loves to be combined with lead, and it is subdued by sal ammoniac. Iron loves to be combined with magnetite, and it is killed by lead. Realgar loves to be combined with lead, and it is killed by acanthopanax [root bark]. Hence, the changes and transformations undergone by lead are very many. One change of it results in lead carbonate. A second change of it results in minium. A third change of it results in litharge. A fourth change of it results in lead acetate.” The Lei shi pao zhi lun states: “If lead is to be made immune to fire, it is mandatory to avail oneself of the ‘mender of heaven.’ If one wishes to harden its physical appearance, how could he neglegt the ‘purple back’? The “mender of heaven” is the “stone to supplement heaven.” Zi bei 紫背, “purple back,” is malva [herb], tian gui 天葵. 【修治】【時珍曰】凡用以鐵銚溶化寫瓦上,濾去渣脚,如此數次收用。 其黑錫灰,則以鉛沙取黑灰。白錫灰,不入藥。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Li] Shizhen: For all usages, melt it in an iron kettle and let it flow on a tile. Pass it through a sieve to remove the dregs. Repeat this several times and store [the lead for later] use. Black tin/lead ashes are black ashes obtained from lead sand. White tin ashes are not added to medication. 【氣味】甘,寒,無毒。【藏器曰】小毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, cold, nonpoisonous. [Chen] Cangqi: Slightly poisonous. 【主治】鎮心安神,治傷寒毒氣,反胃嘔噦,蛇蜴所咬,炙熨之。大明。 療癭瘤,鬼氣疰忤。錯爲末,和青木香,傅瘡腫惡毒。藏器。消瘰癧癰 腫,明目固牙,烏鬚髮,治實女,殺蟲墜痰,治噎膈消渴風癇,解金石藥 毒。時珍。 Control. It presses down [the qi of ] the heart and pacifies the spirit. It serves to cure poison qi associated with harm caused by cold, and turned over stomach with vomiting and belching. Cauterize locations where a snake or a lizard has bitten and press hot [lead] on it. It serves to cure goiter and tumors, demon qi and attachment illness250 associated with the hostile. Ground to a powder and mixed with aucklandia [root] it is to be applied to sores and swelling associated with malign poison. [Chen] Cangqi. It serves to dissolve scrofula and swelling associated with 250 Zhu 疰, also zhu 注, “attachment-illness,” “influx-illnesss,” reflects a notion of a foreign pathogenic agent, originally of demonic nature, having attached itself to the human organism. BCGM Dict I, 688-695.

Chapter 8

265

obstruction-illness.251 It clears the eyes, stabilizes the teeth, and blackens beard and hair on the head. It serves to cure girls with vaginal malformation, kills worms/bugs, sends down phlegm, cures gullet occlusion, melting with thirst252 and wind epilepsy. It serves to dissolve the poison of metals, minerals and medication. [Li] Shizhen. 08-10-01 黑錫灰。Hei xi hui. Black tin ashes (made of lead and sulphur). 【主治】積聚,殺蟲,同檳榔末等分,五更米飲服。震亨。 Control. For accumulations and collections, and to kill worms/bugs, mix them with an equal amount of areca [nut] powder and ingest this with a rice beverage at the fifth night watch. [Zhu] Zhenheng. 【發明】【好古曰】黑錫屬腎。【時珍曰】鉛秉北方癸水之氣,陰極之 精,其體重實,其性濡滑,其色黑,内通于腎,故局方黑錫丹、宣明補真 丹皆用之。得汞交感,即能治一切陰陽混淆,上盛下虚,氣升不降,發爲 嘔吐眩運,噎膈反胃,危篤諸疾,所謂鎮墜之劑,有反正之功。但性帶陰 毒,不可多服,恐傷人心胃耳。鉛性又能入肉,故女子以鉛珠紝耳,即自 穿孔。實女無竅者,以鉛作鋌,逐日紝之,久久自開。此皆昔人所未知者 也。鉛變化爲胡粉、黄丹、密陀僧、鉛白霜,其功皆與鉛同。但胡粉入氣 分,黄丹入血分,密陀僧鎮墜下行,鉛白霜專治上焦胸膈,此爲異耳。方 士又鑄爲梳,梳鬚髮令光黑。或用藥煮之,尤佳。 Explication. [Wang] Haogu: Black tin/lead is associated with the kidneys. [Li] Shizhen: Lead has the qi of the North, of gui 癸253, and of water. It is the essence of extreme yin. Its body is heavy and solid. Its nature is moistening and smooth. Its color is black. Internally it penetrates the kidneys. Hence such official recipes as the “black tin/lead elixir” and the “elixir to spread clarity and to supplement the genuine,” they both make use of it. When it interacts with mercury, it can serve to cure all types of yin and yang [qi] confusion, when they are plenty above but depleted below, when the qi rise but fail to descend, resulting in vomiting, dizziness and [brain] movement, in gullet occlusion with turned over stomach and all types of critical illnesses. It is a so called “[pharmaceutical] preparation to press and weigh 251 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641. 252 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567. 253 Gui 癸 is the 10th of the Heavenly Stems. It is associated with the North, similarly to “water”.

266

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

down” and has the function of reversing [what is wrong] to what is right. However, its nature includes yin poison, and it must not be ingested in large quantities, lest it harm heart and stomach. The nature of lead, in addition, is capable of entering the flesh. Hence, when girls pierce their ears with lead pearls, eventually they will bore holes. When a barren girl has her vagina closed, a barb made of lead is used to pull on it day after day. Eventually, after a long time, it will open. All these are methods unknown to the people in ancient times. When lead is changed and transformed to lead carbonate, to minium, to litharge, and to lead acetate, the [therapeutic] functions of all [these products] are identical to those of lead. However, lead carbonate enters the qi section. Minium enters the blood section. Litharge serves to press and weigh down and moves downward. Lead acetate is especially suitable for curing [illnesses affecting] the Upper Burner, chest and diaphragm. This is where they all differ. The recipe masters cast [lead] to produce combs, and with these combs they comb beard and hair on the head to give it a black luster. Or it is boiled with pharmaceutical substances to [prepare medication that is] especially good.

【附方】舊四,新十七。 Added Recipes. Four of old. 17 newly [recorded] 烏鬚明目。黑鉛半斤,鍋内鎔汁,旋入桑條灰,柳木攪成沙,篩末。每早 揩牙,以水漱口洗目,能固牙明目,黑鬚髮。勝金方。 To blacken the beard and clear the eyes. Melt half a jin of black lead in a pot to obtain a liquid, add mulberry twig ashes, and stir this with a piece of willow wood until a sand has formed. Pass it through a sieve to obtain a powder. Use this to rub your teeth every morning. Also, rinse the mouth with water and wash the eyes. This can stabilize the teeth and clear the eyes. It blackens the beard and the hair on the head. Sheng jin fang. 揩牙烏髭。黑鉛消化,以不蛀皂莢寸切投入,炒成炭,入鹽少許,研匀, 日用揩牙。摘去白髭,黑者更不白也。 To rub the teeth to blacken the moustache. Melt black lead [to obtain a liquid] to which are added gleditsia [seeds], uninfested by worms/bugs and cut into pieces of one cun length. This is fried until a charcoal has formed. Add a small amount of salt and grind this evenly [to a powder] and use this to rub the teeth every day. Pluck out white moustache [hair], and the black [hair] will not turn white. 又方:黑錫一斤,炒灰,埋地中五日,入升麻、細辛、訶子同炒黑。日用 揩牙,百日效。普濟。

Chapter 8

267

Another recipe. Fry one jin of black tin/lead to ashes and bury them underground for five days. Then add cimicifuga [rhizome], asarum heteropoides root and terminalia fruit, and fry this until they have turned black. Use this to rub the teeth every day. An effect will be achieved within 100 days. Pu ji. 牙齒動摇。方同上。 For lose teeth, recipe identical to the one above. 烏鬚鉛梳。鉛十兩,錫三兩,婆羅得三個,針砂、熟地黄半兩,茜根、胡 桃皮一兩,没石子、訶黎勒皮、流黄、石榴皮、慈石、皂礬、烏麻油各二 錢半,爲末,先化鉛、錫,入末一半,柳木攪匀,傾入梳模子,印成修 齒。餘末同水煮梳,三日三夜,水耗加之。取出,故帛重包五日。每以熟 皮襯手梳一百下,須先以皂莢水洗淨拭乾。普濟。 To blacken the beard with a lead comb. [Required are] ten liang of lead. Three liang of tin. Three pieces poluode.254 Half a liang each of iron fragments and processed Chinese foxglove [rhizome], one liang of madder root and walnut peel, two and a half qian each of nutgalls, terminalia fruit, sulphur, pomegranate rind, magnetite, melanterite, and black sesame oil, ground to a powder. First melt the lead and the tin and then add [to the liquid metals] one half of the powder. Stir this with a piece of willow wood, pour [the liquid] into a comb mold and eventually finely work out the teeth [of the comb]. The comb is then boiled together with the remaining [half of the] powder in water for three days and three nights, permanently refilling the water. Then take [the comb out of the water] and tightly wrap it with an old piece of silk for five days. For each application, wipe the comb with processed leather 100 times. [Before using it to comb the beard] it is essential to first wash it clean with gleditsia water, and then to wipe it dry. Pu ji. 腎臟氣發攻心,面黑欲死,及諸氣奔豚喘急。鉛二兩,石亭脂二兩,木香 一兩,射香一錢。先化鉛炒乾,入亭脂急炒,焰起以醋噴之,傾入地坑 内,覆住,待冷取研,粟飯丸芡子大。每用二丸,熱酒化服取汗,或下, 或通氣即愈。如大便不通,再用一丸,入玄明粉五分。聖濟録。 Qi from the long-term depot kidneys effuses to attack the heart, with the face turning black and [the patient being] close to dying. Also, all sorts of running piglet255 qi associated with hectic panting. [Required are] two liang of lead, two liang of red sulphur, one liang of aucklandia [root], and one qian of musk. First melt the lead and 254 According to Li Shizhen’s comment in BCGM 35-27, poluode 婆羅得 is a Sanskrit name meaning “reincarnation fruit” of a tree growing in Persia. A botanical identification appears impossible. 255 Ben tun 奔豚, “running piglet,” is an accumulation of qi associated with the kidneys and moving upward and downward at irregular intervals.” BCGM Dict I, 57.

268

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

fry it until it has dried. Then add the red sulphur and quickly fry this again. Once flames rise, spray vinegar on them, pour [the mass] into an earth pit and cover it. Wait for it to have cooled down, grind it [to a powder] and prepare, with cooked millet, pills the size of qian seeds. For each application use two pills, and [let the patient] ingest them dissolved in hot wine until he sweats, or has a discharge, or releases [intestinal] wind. This is evidence that a cure is achieved. If defecation remains blocked, apply one more pill with five fen of exsiccated sodium sulfate. Sheng ji zong lu. 婦人血氣,冷痛攻心。方同上。 [Stagnant] blood and qi of women, with cold [qi] causing pain and attacking the heart. Recipe identical to the one above. 風癇吐沫,反目抽掣,久患者。黑鉛、水銀結砂,南星炮,各一兩,爲 末,糯飯丸菉豆大。一歲一丸,乳汁下。普濟方。 For those who have suffered for a long time from wind epilepsy with vomiting foam, reversed eyes and convulsions [of hands and feet]. Grind one liang each of black lead conglomerated with mercury to a sand, and arisaema root, roasted in a pan, to a powder. This is to be prepared, with glutinous rice, to pills the size of mung beans. One pill per year [of life of the patient] is to be sent down with a nursing mother’s milk sap. Pu ji fang. 反胃噦逆。黑鉛化汁,以柳木槌研成粉,一兩,入米醋一升,砂鍋熬膏, 入蒸餅末少許,擣丸小豆大。每服一丸,薑湯下。聖濟。 Turned over stomach with belching and countermovement [of food/qi]. Melt black lead to a liquid and grind it with a willow wood mallet until a powder has formed. Take one liang, add one sheng of rice vinegar and simmer this in an earthenware pot to a paste. Add a small amount of steamed cake powder, pound this and prepare pills the size of small beans. Each time ingest one pill, to be sent down with ginger decoction. Sheng ji. 多年反胃不止。紫背鉛二兩,石亭脂二兩,鹽鹵汁五兩,燒鉛,以鹵汁淬 盡,與亭脂同炒焰起,挑于水上,焰止,研匀,蒸餅和丸梧子大。每服二 十丸,煎石蓮、乾柿湯下。聖濟録。 Turned over stomach for many years without end. [Required are] two liang of “purple back lead,” two liang of red sulphur and five liang of brine. Heat the lead and dip it into the brine until the latter is all used up. Then fry [the lead] with the red sulphur until smoke rises and cover it with water to suffocate the smoke. Grind [the mass] to an evenly mixed [powder], and form this, with steamed cakes, to pills the

Chapter 8

269

size of wu seeds. Each time ingest 20 pills, to be sent down with a decoction of lotus [seeds] and dried persimmon [fruit]. Sheng ji lu. 消渴煩悶。黑鉛、水銀等分,結如泥。常含豆許,吞津。聖惠方。 Melting with thirst,256 unrest and heart-pressure. Bring equal amounts of black lead and mercury together to congeal to something like mud. Regularly hold in your mouth a piece roughly the size of a soybean and swallow the resulting fluid. Sheng hui fang. 寸白蟲病。先食豬肉一片,乃以沙餹水調黑鉛灰四錢,五更服之。蟲盡 下,食白粥一日。許學士病嘈雜,服此下二蟲,一寸斷,一長二尺五寸, 節節有斑文也。本事方。 Tapeworm disease. First eat one piece of pork. Then, at the fifth night watch, ingest four qian of black lead ashes mixed with sugar water and all the worms will be discharged. Eat white congee all day long. Scholar Xu suffered from a clamoring [stomach]. He ingested this [medication] and discharged two worms. One was only one cun long. The other one was two chi and five cun long. It had nodes and a multicolored line design. Ben shi fang. 水腫浮滿。烏錫五兩,皂莢一挺炙,酒二斗,煮六沸。頻服。至小便出二 三升,即消。千金翼。 Water swelling with floating fullness. Five liang of black lead and one stick of gleditsia [bark], roasted, are boiled in two dou of wine six times to bubbling to be ingested repeatedly. Once two to three sheng of urine are released, [the water swelling] will have dissolved. Qian jin yi. 小便不通。黑鉛錯末一兩,生薑半兩,燈心一握,井水煎服。先以炒葱貼 臍。聖惠方。 Blocked urination. One liang of black lead ground to a powder, half a liang of fresh ginger and one handful of rushes are boiled in well water to be ingested. Before [having the patient ingest this] apply roasted onions to his navel. Sheng hui fang. 卒然欬嗽。爐中鉛屑、桂心、皂莢等分,爲末,蜜丸如梧子大。每飲下十 五丸,忌葱。備急方。 Sudden cough. [Grind] equal amounts of lead fragments from within a furnace, cassia bark and gleditsia [bark] to a powder to be formed, with honey, to pills the size of wu seeds. Each time send down with a beverage 15 pills. [During the treatment] avoid onions. Bei ji fang. 256 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567.

270

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

瘰癧結核。鉛三兩,鐵器炒取黑灰,醋和塗上,故帛貼之,頻换,去惡 汁。如此半月,不痛不破,内消爲水而愈。劉禹錫傳信方。 Scrofula with nodes. Fry three liang of lead in an iron vessel to obtain black [lead] ashes. Mix them with vinegar, apply this to [the affected region] and cover it with an old piece of silk. Replace it frequently and discard the malign liquid. If this is continued for half a month, there will be no more pain and no open wound. [The nodes] will have internally dissolved to water, and this is the cure. Liu Yuxi, Chuan xin fang. 癰疽發背。黑鉛一斤,甘草三兩微炙,瓶盛酒一斗浸甘草,乃鎔鉛投酒 中,如此九度,去滓飲酒。醉卧即愈。經驗方。 Obstruction-illness and impediment-illness257 with effusion on the back. [Required are] one jin of black lead and three liang of slightly roasted glycyrrhiza [root]. Soak the glycyrrhiza [root] in a bottle filled with one dou of wine, then melt the lead and pour it into the wine. Continue like this nine times. Then discard the dregs and [let the patient] drink the wine. Once he is drunk, he is to lie down and will be cured. Jing yan fang. 金石藥毒。黑鉛一斤,鎔化,投酒一升,如此十餘次,待酒至半升,頓 飲。勝金方。 Metal, mineral, medication poison. Melt one jin of black lead and pour it into one sheng of wine. Continue like this more than ten times. Once the wine has decreased to half a sheng, [let the patient] ingest it all at once. Sheng jin fang. 取輕粉毒。出山黑鉛五斤,打壷一把,盛燒酒十五斤,納土伏苓半斤,乳 香三錢,封固,重湯煮一日夜,埋土中,出火毒。每日早晚任性飲數盃。 後用瓦盆接小便,自有粉出爲騐。服至筋骨不痛,乃止。醫方摘要。 To eliminate calomel poison. Forge a kettle out of five jin of mountain black lead and fill it with 15 jin of brandy. Add half a jin of glabrous greenbrier rhizome and three qian of frankincense, close [the kettle] tightly and boil it in a hot water bath for one day and one night. Bury it in soil to have the fire qi leave. Each morning and each evening force yourself to drink several cups. Later collect the resulting urine in a clay tub and once calomel is released [and is visible there], this is proof [of an effective therapy]. Ingest [the medication] until sinews and bones do no longer ache. Then stop. Yi fang zhai yao. 257 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642.

Chapter 8

271

解砒霜毒。煩躁如狂,心腹㽲痛,四肢厥冷,命在須臾。黑鉛四兩,磨水 一盌灌之。華佗危病方。 To resolve arsenic poison, accompanied by restlessness as if it were madness, flatulent pain in the central and abdominal region and recession cold in the four limbs, with life in a critical stage. Rub four liang of black lead in one bowl of water and forcefeed this [to the patient]. Hua Tuo wei bing fang. 解硫黄毒。黑錫煎湯服,即解。集簡方。 To resolve sulphur poison. Boil black tin/lead in water and ingest this. This will resolve [the poison]. Ji jian fang. 08-11 鈆霜日華 Qian shuang, FE Ri hua. Lead frost. Lead acetate. 【釋名】鈆白霜。 Explanation of Names. Qian bai shuang 鈆白霜, “White lead frost.” 【修治】【頌曰】鈆霜,用鈆雜水銀十五分之一合鍊作片,置醋甕中密 封,經久成霜。【時珍曰】以鈆打成錢,穿成串,瓦盆盛生醋,以串横盆 中,離醋三寸,仍以瓦盆覆之,置陰處,候生霜刷下,仍合住。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Su] Song: [To produce] lead acetate, mix lead and mercury in a proportion of 15 to 1, refine [the mixture] with heat, give it into a vinegar bottle and close it tightly. The frost will form after some extended time. [Li] Shizhen: Make lead to coins, pierce them to generate a string, fill an earthenware bowl with vinegar and suspend the string in the bowl, three cun above the vinegar. Then cover the bowl with a lid and place it at a shady location. Wait until frost develops, scrape it off [for later use] and cover [the bowl again]. 【氣味】甘、酸,冷,無毒。【宗奭曰】鈆霜塗木瓜,即失酸味,金克木 也。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, sour, cold, nonpoisonous. [Kou] Zongshi: Apply lead acetate to chaenomeles fruit, and it will lose its sour flavor. This is [an example of ] metal subduing wood. 【主治】消痰,止驚悸,解酒毒,去胸膈煩悶,中風痰實,止渴。大明。 去膈熱涎塞。宗奭。治吐逆,鎮驚去怯,黑鬚髮。時珍。 Control. It dissolves phlegm, ends fright palpitation, resolves the poison of wine, removes unrest and heart-pressure from chest and diaphragm, [serves to] cure being

272

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

struck by wind and phlegm repletion, presses down fright and eliminates timidity. It blackens beard and hair on the head. 【發明】【頌曰】鈆霜性極冷,治風痰及嬰孺驚滯藥,今醫家用之尤多。 【時珍曰】鈆霜乃鈆汞之氣交感英華所結,道家謂之神符白雪,其墜痰去 熱,定驚止瀉,蓋有奇效,但非久服常用之物爾。病在上焦者,宜此清鎮。 Explication. [Su] Song: Lead frost/acetate is of extremely cold nature. It is a pharmaceutical drug serving to cure wind phlegm and sluggish [qi] of children caused by fright. Today, physicians resort to it very often. [Li] Shizhen: Lead frost/acetate is the congealed splendor resulting from an interaction of the qi of lead and mercury. The Daoists call it “white frost of a divine tally.” Since it brings down phlegm and removes heat, settles fright and ends outflow, it has extraordinary effects, but it is nothing that can be ingested regularly over a long time. When a disease is located in the Upper Burner, lead frost/acetate is suitable for clearing and cooling.

【附方】舊二,新九。 Added Recipes. Two of old. Nine newly [recorded] 小兒驚熱。心肺積熱,夜卧多驚。鈆霜、牛黄各半分,鐵粉一分,研匀。 每服一字,竹瀝調下。聖濟録。 Fright associated with heat of children. When heat has accumulated in heart and lung and [the children] are affected by much fright when they lie down to sleep at night. Grind half a fen each of lead frost/acetate and bezoar with one fen of iron powder to an even [mixture] and each time [let the patient] ingest one zi, to be sent down with bamboo stem juice. Sheng ji lu. 驚風癇疾,喉閉牙緊。鈆白霜一字,蟾酥少許,爲末,烏梅肉蘸藥於齦上 揩之,仍吹通關藥,良久便開。普濟方。 Fright wind258 with epilepsy illness, throat closure and lockjaw. [Grind] one zi of white lead frost with a small amount of toad venom to a powder. Dip smoked plum meat into this medication and rub it on the [patient’s] gums. Also, blow a “medication to penetrate closures” [into the patient’s nostrils]. After an extended period of time, [the throat] will open. Pu ji fang.

258 Jing feng 驚風, “fright wind,” a condition of children characterised by jerking and arched back rigidity, eyeballs turned upward, and twitching hands and legs.BCGM Dict I, 261, also 238, 240.

Chapter 8

273

消渴煩熱。鈆白霜、枯白礬等分,爲末,蜜丸芡子大。綿裹,含化嚥汁。 Melting with thirst,259 accompanied by unrest and heat. [Grind] equal amounts of white lead frost and prepared alum to a powder and form, with honey, pills the size of qian seeds. Wrap them into a piece of silk, hold this in the mouth and swallow the resulting juice. 又方:鈆白霜一兩,根黄、消石各一兩,爲末。每冷水服一錢。聖濟録。 Another recipe. [Grind] one liang of white lead frost and one liang each of madder and nitrokalite to a powder, and each time [let the patient] ingest with cold water one qian. Sheng ji lu. 喉痺腫痛。鈆白霜、甘草半兩,青黛一兩,爲末,醋糊丸芡子大。每含嚥 一丸,立效。聖濟録。 Throat closure with a painful swelling. [Grind] half a liang of white lead frost and glycyrrhiza [root] with one liang of natural indigo to a powder and prepare, with vinegar and wheat flour, pills the size of qian seeds. For each application hold one pill in the mouth and swallow [the resulting juice]. Sheng ji lu. 懸癰腫痛。鈆白霜一分,甘草半生半炙一分,爲末,綿裹含嚥。聖惠方。 Hanging obstruction-illness260 with painful swelling. [Grind] one fen of white lead frost and one fen of glycyrrhiza [root], half raw, half roasted, to a powder, wrap it in a piece of silk, hold it in the mouth and swallow [the resulting juice]. Sheng hui fang. 口疳齦爛,氣臭血出。不拘大人小兒。鈆白霜、銅緑各二錢,白礬豆許, 爲末掃之。宣明方。 Oral gan-illness261 with festering gums, malodorous qi and release of blood. Regardless of whether [patients are] adults or children. [Grind] two qian each of white lead frost and verdigris with a bean-size piece of unprocessed alum to a powder and apply this [to the affected region]. Xuan ming fang.

259 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567. 260 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642. 261 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188.

274

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

鼻衄不止。鈆白霜末,新汲水服一字。十全博救方。 Unending nosebleed. Ingest with newly drawn water one zi of white lead frost. Shi quan bo jiu fang. 痔瘡腫痛。鈆白霜、白片腦各半字,酒調塗之,隨手見效。嬰童百問。 Piles sores with painful swelling. Mix half a zi each of white lead frost and borneol and apply this [to the affected region]. An effect will be apparent right away. Ying tong bai wen. 室女經閉,恍惚煩熱。鈆霜半兩,生地黄汁一合,調下,日三服。聖惠方。 Blocked menstruation of an unmarried woman, with absent-mindedness, unrest and heat. Have her send down with one ge of fresh Chinese foxglove [rhizome] juice half a liang of lead frost/acetate. To be ingested three times a day. Sheng hui fang. 梳髮令黑。鈆霜包梳,日日梳之,勝於染者。普濟方。 To blacken hair on the head by combing it. Wrap a comb with lead frost/acetate and comb the [hair] every day. This is better than dying it. Pu ji fang. 08-12 粉錫本經下品 Fen xi, FE Ben jing, lower rank. Tin powder. Lead carbonate. 【釋名】解錫本經、鈆粉綱目、鈆華綱目、胡粉弘景、定粉藥性、瓦粉湯 液、光粉日華、白粉湯液、水粉綱目、官粉。【弘景曰】即今化鈆所作胡 粉也,而謂之粉錫,事與今乖。【時珍曰】鈆、錫一類也,古人名鈆爲黑 錫,故名鈆錫。釋名曰:胡者餬也,和脂以餬面也。定、瓦言其形,光、 白言其色。俗呼吴越者爲官粉,韶州者爲韶粉,辰州者爲辰粉。 Explanation of Names. Jie xi 解錫, “resolved tin,” Ben jing. Qian fen 鈆粉, “lead powder,” Gang mu. Qian hua 鈆華, “lead splendor,” Gang mu. Hu fen 胡粉, “sticky powder,” [Tao] Hongjing. Ding fen 定粉, “fixed powder,” Yao xing. Wa fen 瓦粉, “tile powder,” Tang ye. Guang fen 光粉, “shiny powder,” Ri hua. Bai fen 白粉, “white powder,” Tang ye. Shui fen 水粉, “watery powder.” Guan fen 官粉, “official powder.” [Tao] Hongjing: This is the today’s “sticky powder,” hu fen 胡粉, prepared from lead. It was called fen xi 粉錫, “powdered tin,” [in the Ben cao], but this is something entirely different from [what is meant by this term] today. [Li] Shizhen: Lead and tin belong to the same group. The ancients named lead “black tin,” hei xi 黑錫. Hence the name tin for lead. The Shi ming says: “Hu 胡 is hu 餬, ‘paste’,” because mixed

Chapter 8

275

with fat it becomes a sticky powder. Ding 定, “fixed,” and wa 瓦, “tile,” are to express the shapes [of lead]. Guang 光, “shiny,” and bai 白, “white,” are to describe its color. In Wu and Yue it is commonly [termed] guan fen 官粉, “official powder.” In Shao zhou it is Shao fen 韶粉, “powder from Shao,” and in Chen zhou it is called “powder from Chen.” 【正誤】【恭曰】鈆丹、胡粉,實用炒錫造,陶言化鈆誤矣。【震亨曰】 胡粉是錫粉,非鈆粉也。古人以錫爲粉,婦人用以附面者,其色類𦠄肉, 不可入藥。【志曰】粉錫、黄丹二物,俱是化鈆爲之。英公 李勣序云鈆錫 莫辨者,謂此也。按李含光音義云:黄丹、胡粉皆是化鈆,未聞用錫者。 參同契云:胡粉投炭中,色壞還爲鈆。抱朴子内篇云:愚人不信黄丹、胡 粉是化鈆所作。蘇恭以二物俱炒錫作,大誤矣。【時珍曰】錫炒則成黑 灰,豈有白粉?蘇恭已誤,而朱震亨復踵其誤,何哉? Correction of Errors. [Su] Gong: Qian dan 鈆丹 and hu fen 胡粉 are practically produced by frying tin. When Tao [Hongjing] states that it is transformed lead, he is wrong. [Zhu] Zhenheng: Hu fen 胡粉 is xi fen 錫粉, “tin powder;” it is not qian fen 鈆粉, “lead powder.” The ancients prepared a tin powder and the women used it to apply it to their face. Its color is that of muscle flesh; it must not be added to medication. [Ma] Zhi: Fen xi 粉錫 and huang dan 黄丹 are two different items, but both are transformation products of lead. When Li Ji, the Duke of Ying, in a preface states: “Lead and tin are not to be distinguished,” then this is meant. According to Li Hanguang in his Yin yi, “both huang dan and hu fen are transformed lead; I have not heard of tin being made use of.” The Can tong qi states: “When hu fen is dropped into charcoal, its color decays and is reverted to that of lead.” The Baopu zi Nei pian states: “Ignorant people do not believe that huang dan and hu fen are transformation products of lead.” When Su Gong assumes that both are produced by frying tin, that is a great mistake. [Li] Shizhen: When tin is fried, this results in black ashes; how could this be a white powder? Su Gong already was wrong, and Zhu Zhenheng repeated this mistake. But why? 【集解】【時珍曰】按墨子云:禹造粉。張華博物志云:紂燒鈆錫作粉。 則粉之來亦遠矣。今金陵、杭州、韶州、辰州皆造之,而辰粉尤真,其色 帶青。彼人言造法:每鈆百斤,鎔化,削成薄片,卷作筒,安木甑内,甑 下、甑中各安醋一瓶,外以鹽泥固濟,紙封甑縫。風爐安火四兩,養一 七,便掃入水缸内,依舊封養。次次如此,鈆盡爲度。不盡者,留炒作黄 丹。每粉一斤,入豆粉二兩,蛤粉四兩,水内攪匀,澄去清水。用細灰按 成溝,紙隔數層,置粉于上,將乾,截成瓦定形,待乾收起。而范成大虞 衡志言:桂林所作鈆粉最有名,謂之桂粉,以黑鈆着糟甕中罨化之。何孟 春餘冬録云:嵩陽産鈆,居民多造胡粉。其法:鈆塊懸酒缸内,封閉四十

276

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

九日,開之則化爲粉矣。化不白者,炒爲黄丹。黄丹滓爲密陀僧。三物收 利甚博。其鈆氣有毒,工人必食肥猪犬肉,飲酒及鐵漿以厭之。枵腹中其 毒,輒病至死。長幼爲毒薰蒸,多痿黄癱攣而斃。其法略皆不同,蓋巧者 時出新意,以速化爲利故爾。又可見昔人炒錫之謬。相感志云:韶粉蒸之 不白,以蘿蔔瓮子蒸之則白。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: According to Mo zi, “Yu [the founder of the Xia dynasty] produced the powder.” Zhang Hua in his Bo wu zhi states: “Zhou [the last ruler of the Shang dynasty] burned lead and tin to produce the powder.” That is, the origin of the [lead carbonate] powder lies far [back in the past]. Nowadays, it is produced in Jin ling, Hang zhou, Shao zhou and Chen zhou. That from Chen zhou is particularly genuine; it is a bit greenish. The locals inform of the production method as follows. For each preparation melt 100 jin of lead, cut it into fine slices, roll them to form tubes and place them into a wooden jar. Place a flask with vinegar both below and inside the jar, seal it tightly from the outside with salt mud, and close the jar’s seams with paper. Then give four liang of fuel into a “wind furnace,” [place the wooden jar on top of it] and mildly heat it for seven [days]. Sweep [the dried powder] into a water basin and seal and mildly heat [the wooden jar] again. Repeat this until no more lead is left. If there is [lead] that has not been transformed entirely, retain it and fry it to prepare minium. To each jin of the powder add two liang of soybean powder and four liang of clamshell powder, give this into water and stir it to generate an even mixture. Eventually [filter it to] obtain the dregs and to discard the clear water. Now prepare [a layer of ] fine ashes and press a groove into it. Cover it with several layers of paper and place the powder on it. Let [the dregs] dry there and then cut them into pieces shaped like tiles. Once they have dried, they can be taken up. Fan Chengda in his Yu heng zhi states: “Lead powder produced in Gui lin is most famous; it is called Gui powder, gui fen 桂粉. It is a product resulting from a transformation of black lead fomented in a jar with distillers’ grains.” He Mengchun in his Yu dong lu states: “In Song yang they produce lead. The locals often use it to produce lead carbonate. Their method is as follows: They suspend pieces of lead in a jar filled with wine. Then they seal it and keep it closed for 49 days. When they open it, [the lead] has transformed to the powder [of lead carbonate]. Those parts [of the lead] that have not turned white are fried to make huang dan. The dregs of huang dan are mi tuo seng 密陀僧, litharge. These three items serve to reap extreme profits. The lead qi are poisonous. The workers must eat fat pork and dog meat, and they drink wine and iron broth/suspension to suppress [the poisonous qi]. If they are struck by this poison with an empty stomach, they often fall ill and eventually die. Older and young workers that are exposed to the poisonous fumes often suffer from dysfunction with jaundice, paralysis and cramps,

Chapter 8

277

and then they die.” The methods applied [to produce lead carbonate] vary. The fact is, skilled experts come up with fresh ideas all the time, because the faster the transformation the better the profit. Also, it is obviously wrong [to say] that the ancients [produced lead carbonate by] frying tin. The Xiang gan zhi states: “If lead acetate from Shao after being steamed fails to become all white, steam it in an earthenware jar with radish added, and it will turn white.” 【氣味】辛,寒,無毒。【權曰】甘、辛,凉。【時珍曰】胡粉能制硫 黄。又雌黄得胡粉而失色,胡粉得雌黄而色黑,蓋相惡也。又入酒中去酸 味,收蟹不沙。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, cold, nonpoisonous. [Zhen] Quan: Sweet, acrid, cool. [Li] Shizhen: Lead carbonate is able to check sulphur. Also, when orpiment is brought together with lead carbonate, it will lose its color. If lead carbonate is brought together with orpiment, its color will turn black. The fact is, they abhor each other. Also, if [lead carbonate] is given into wine, [the latter] will lose its sour flavor. [If lead carbonate is used] to preserve crabs, [their meat] will not turn sand-like. 【主治】伏尸毒螫,殺三蟲。本經。去鼈瘕,療惡瘡,止小便利,墮胎。 别録。治積聚不消。炒焦,止小兒疳痢。甄權。治癰腫瘻爛,嘔逆,療癥 瘕,小兒疳氣。大明。止泄痢、久積痢。宗奭。治食復勞復,墜痰消脹, 治疥癬狐臭,黑鬚髮。時珍。 Control. Hidden corpse [qi]262 associated with poison bites. It kills the three worms/ bugs. It removes turtle[-shaped] conglomeration illness. It heals malign sores. It ends free flow of urine. It induces abortion. Bie lu. It serves to cure accumulations and collections that fail to dissolve. Roasted until scorched, it ends gan-illness263 associated with free-flux illness264 of children. Zhen Quan. It serves to cure swelling associated with obstruction-illness265 and festering fistula, as well as vomiting with [qi] counterflow. It heals concretion-illness and conglomeration-illness, and gan-illness qi of children. Da Ming. It ends outflow and free-flux illness, and longterm accumulation with free-flux illness. [Kou] Zongshi. It serves to cure recurrence [of a disease] because of food, and recurrence [of a disease] because of exhaustion. 262 Fu shi [qi] 伏尸[氣], “hidden corpse [qi],” refers to a chronic condition of heart pain and hectic panting. BCGM Dict I, 177. 263 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188. 264 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 265 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641.

278

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

It brings down phlegm and dissolves distension. It serves to cure jie-illness266 and xuan-illness,267 as well as fox odor.268 It serves to blacken beard and hair on the head. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【弘景曰】胡粉金色者,療尸蟲彌良。【藏器曰】久痢成疳者, 胡粉和水及鷄子白服,以糞黑爲度,爲其殺蟲而止痢也。【時珍曰】胡 粉,即鈆之變黑爲白者也。其體用雖與鈆及黄丹同,而無消鹽火燒之性, 内有豆粉、蛤粉雜之,止能入氣分,不能入血分,此爲稍異。人服食之, 則大便色黑者,此乃還其本質,所謂色壞還爲鈆也。亦可入膏藥代黄丹用。 Explication. [Tao] Hongjing: Lead carbonate with the color of gold is especially good at healing corpse worms. [Chen] Cangqi: For chronic free-flux illness269 that eventually has turned into gan-illness270 [let the patient] ingest lead carbonate mixed with water and egg white until his feces has turned black. This is because [lead carbonate] kills worms/bugs and ends free-flux illness. [Li] Shizhen: Lead carbonate is black lead changed to become a white [item]. Its body and application are identical to those of lead and minium, but it does not have a nature affected by dissolved salt and burning fire. It is mixed with soybean powder and clamshell powder, and it is capable only of entering the qi section; it is unable to enter the blood section. In this it is slightly different [from lead and minium]. When humans ingest and consume [lead carbonate as an hermit/immortal’s powder] their feces assumes a black color. That is, it returns to its original matter. That is meant by the statement “its color decays and it returns to lead.” Also, it can be added to medical ointments instead of minium.

266 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely defined skin ailment. BCGM Dict I, 249. 267 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591. 268 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641. 269 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 270 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188.

Chapter 8

279

【附方】舊十四,新三十。 Added Recipes. 14 of old. 30 newly [recorded] 勞復食復欲死者。水服胡粉少許。肘後方。 Recurrence [of an illness] because of exhaustion, and recurrence [of an illness] because of food, with [the patient] being close to dying. Let him ingest a small amount of lead carbonate with water. Zhou hou fang. 小兒脾泄不止。紅棗二十箇去核,將官粉入内,以陰陽瓦焙乾,去棗研 粉。每服三分,米湯下。孫真人271集效方。 Unending spleen outflow of children. Remove the pits from 20 red dates, and fill them with lead carbonate. Then bake them between two tiles over a slow fire until they have dried, remove the date [meat] and grind it to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest three fen, to be sent down with a rice decoction. Sun zhenren, Ji xiao fang. 赤白痢下頻數,腸痛。定粉一兩,鷄子清和,炙焦爲末,冷水服一錢。肘 後方。 Frequently repeated red and white free-flux illness272 with intestinal pain. Mix one liang of lead carbonate with egg white, roast it until scorched and [grind it to] a powder. Ingest one qian with cold water. Zhou hou fang. 小兒無辜疳,下痢赤白。胡粉熟蒸,熬令色變,以飲服半錢。子母秘録。 Innocent gan-illness273 of children, with red and white discharge and free-flux illness. [Let the patient] ingest with a beverage half a qian of lead carbonate exposed to hot steam first and then boiled until it has changed its color. Zi mu mi lu. 小兒腹脹。胡粉鹽熬色變,以摩腹上。子母秘録。 Abdominal distension of children. Boil lead carbonate with salt until it has changed its color, and use it then to massage the surface of the abdomen. Zi mu mi lu. 腹皮青色,不速治,須臾死。方同上。 When the abdomen has assumed a greenish color. If this is not quickly cured, [the patient] will die soon afterwards. Recipe identical to the one above. 271 This recipe was recorded by Sun Tianren 孫真人 in his Wan ying fang 萬應方, ch. 4, as quoted from his Sun shi ji xiao fang 孫氏集效方. Hence, Sun zhen ren 孫真人 should be Sun shi 孫氏. 272 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 273 Wu gu gan 無辜疳, “innocent gan-illness,” is a gan-illness accompanied by scrofula affecting the head and the neck. BCGM Dict I, 537.

280

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

小兒夜啼。水服胡粉三豆大,日三服。子母秘録。 Crying of children during the night. Have them ingest with water lead carbonate of the size of three soybeans. To be ingested three times a day. Zi mu mi lu. 身熱多汗。胡粉半斤,雷丸四兩,爲末粉身。千金方。 A hot body and profuse sweating. [Grind] half a jin of lead carbonate and four liang of omphalia to a powder and apply this to the [patient’s] body. Qian jin fang. 婦人心痛急者。好官粉爲末,葱汁和丸小豆大,每服七丸,黄酒送下即 止。粉能殺蟲,葱能透氣故也。邵真人方。 Women with intense heart pain. [Grind] good quality lead carbonate to a powder, mix it with onion juice and prepare pills the size of small beans. Each time [let the patient] ingest seven pills, to be sent down with yellow wine. This will end [the pain], because lead carbonate can kill worms/bugs, and onions can free the flow of qi. Shao zhenren fang. 寸白蚘蟲。胡粉炒燥方寸匕,入肉臛中,空心服,大效。張文仲備急方。 Tapeworms. Fry as much lead carbonate until it has dried as is held by a square cun spoon, give it into a meat broth and ingest this on an empty stomach. Very effective. Zhang Wenzhong, Bei ji fang. 服藥過劑悶亂者。水和胡粉服之。千金方。 Heart-pressure and a feeling of disorder caused by an overdose of medication. Ingest lead carbonate mixed with water. Qian jin fang. 鼻衄不止。胡粉炒黑,醋服一錢,即止。聖惠方。 Unending nosebleed. Fry lead carbonate until it has turned black and ingest, with vinegar, one qian. This will end [the nosebleed]. Sheng hui fang. 齒縫出血。胡粉半兩,麝香半錢,爲末,卧時揩牙。聖濟録。 Bleeding from the seams of the teeth. [Grind] half a liang of lead carbonate and half a qian of musk to a powder and apply this to the teeth at the time you lie down to sleep. Sheng ji lu. 墜撲瘀血。從高落下,瘀血搶心,面青氣短欲死。胡粉一錢,和水服即 安。肘後方。 Stagnant blood resulting from falls and blows. When after a fall from an elevated position stagnant blood attacks the heart. The face is greenish, the [breath] qi are short, and [the patient] is close to dying. Let him ingest one qian of lead carbonate mixed with water, and he will be safe. Zhou hou fang.

Chapter 8

281

折傷接骨。官粉、硼砂等分,爲末,每服一錢,蘇木湯調下,仍頻飲蘇木 湯,大效。接骨方。 To reconnect bones after a fracture. [Grind] equal amounts of lead carbonate and borax to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest one qian to be sent down mixed with a sappan wood decoction, and also have [the patient] repeatedly drink a sappan wood decoction. Very effective. Jie gu fang. 杖瘡腫痛。水粉一兩,赤石脂生一錢,水銀一分,以麻油杵成膏,攤油紙 貼之。肉消者,填滿緊縛。救急方。 Sores and painful swelling caused by flogging. Prepare a paste from one liang of lead carbonate, one qian of unprocessed red halloysite, one fen of mercury and a small amount of sesame, spread it on oil paper and apply this [to the affected region]. Where the flesh has dissolved, fill it [with the paste] and tightly bandage it. Jiu ji fang. 抓傷面皮。香油調鈆粉搽之,一夕愈。集簡方。 Facial skin injured by scratching. Apply lead carbonate mixed with sesame oil to it. A cure will be achieved after one night. Ji jian fang. 食梅牙齼。韶粉揩之。相感志。 Toothache caused by a consumption of plums. Apply lead carbonate from Shao to [the affected teeth]. Xiang gan zhi. 染白鬚髮。胡粉、石灰等分,水和塗之,以油紙包,烘令温煖,候未燥間 洗去,以油潤之,黑如漆也。博物志。 To dye a white beard and hair on the head. Mix equal amounts of lead carbonate and lime with water and apply this [to the beard and the hair]. Then wrap them with oil paper and keep them warm by staying at a warm place. Before [the hair] has dried, wash [the mixture] off and moisten [beard and hair] with oil. They will be black like lacquer. Bo wu zhi. 腋下胡臭。胡粉常粉之。或以胡粉三合,和牛脂煎稠塗之。千金方。 Barbarian malodorous stench from below the armpits. Regularly powder them with lead carbonate, or boil a mixture of three ge of lead carbonate and ox fat to a viscous mass and apply this [to the armpits]. Qian jin fang. 陰股常濕。胡粉粉之。備急方。 Permanent moisture in the private parts. Powder them with lead carbonate. Bei ji fang.

282

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

乾濕癬瘡。方同上。 Dry and moist xuan-illness274 sores. Recipe identical to the one above. 黄水膿瘡。官粉煅黄、松香各三錢,黄丹一錢,飛礬二錢,爲末,香油二 兩,熬膏傅之。邵真人方。 Sores with yellow water and pus. [Grind] three qian each of lead carbonate, calcined until it has assumed a yellow color, and colophony, one qian of minium and two fen of alum processed with water to a powder, boil it with two liang of sesame oil to a paste and apply this [to the affected region]. Shao zhenren fang. 小兒耳瘡月蝕。胡粉和土,塗之。子母秘録。 Ear sores and moon eclipse275 of children. Apply lead carbonate mixed with soil [to the affected region]. Zi mu mi lu. 小兒疳瘡。熬胡粉、豬脂,和塗。張文仲方。 Gan-illness276 sores of children. Boil a mixture of lead carbonate and lard and apply [this to the affected region]. Zhang Wenzhong fang. 小兒舌瘡。胡粉和豬𩩅骨中髓,日三傅之。食醫心鑑。 Tongue sores of children. Mix lead carbonate with pig bone marrow and apply this [to the affected region] three times a day. Shi yi xin jian. 燕口吻瘡。胡粉炒一分,黄連半兩,爲末,傅之。普濟方。 Swallow mouth lip sores.277 [Grind] one fen of roasted lead carbonate with half a liang of coptis [rhizome] to a powder and apply this [to the affected region]. Pu ji fang. 痘瘡瘢痕,或凸或凹。韶粉一兩,輕粉一定,和研,諸脂調傅。陳文中小 兒方。 Scars left by smallpox sores, either protruding or sunken. Grind a mixture of one liang of lead carbonate from Shao and one ding of calomel [to a powder], mix it with any type of fat and apply [this to the scars]. Chen Wenzhong, Xiao er fang.

274 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591. 275 Yue ge [chuang] 月割[瘡], “moon eclipse” [sores]. BCGM Dict I, 654. 276 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188. 277 Yan kou chuang 燕口瘡,”swallow mouth sores”, when sores develop on both sies. BCGM Dict I, 612.

Chapter 8

283

妬精陰瘡。鈆粉二錢,銀杏仁七箇,銅銚内炒至杏黄,去杏取粉,出火 毒,研搽效。集簡方。 Jealousy spirit sores in the yin [(i.e., genital) region]. Fry two qian of lead carbonate and seven gingko kernels in a copper kettle until the gingko [kernels] have turned yellow. Remove the gingko [kernels] and collect the lead carbonate. [Wait until] the fire qi are released, grind [the lead carbonate to a powder] and apply [this to the affected region]. Effective. Ji jian fang. 反花惡瘡。胡粉一兩,臙脂一兩,爲末。鹽湯洗净傅之,日五次。聖惠方。 Malign reversed blossom sores. [Grind] one liang of lead carbonate and one liang of rouge to a powder. Wash [the affected region] with a salt decoction and apply the [powder to it]. Five times a day. Sheng hui fang. 瘡似蜂窠,愈而復發。胡粉、朱砂等分,爲末,蜜和塗之。聖濟録。 Sores resembling wasp nests that when cured will effuse anew. [Grind] equal amounts of lead carbonate and cinnabar to a powder, mix it with honey and apply this [to the affected region]. Sheng ji lu. 血風臁瘡。孫氏集效方用官粉四兩,水調入盌内,以蘄州艾葉燒烟熏乾, 入乳香少許同研,香油調作隔紙膏,反覆貼之。 Blood wind278 associated with shank sores. The Sun shi ji xiao fang [recommends to] mix four liang of lead carbonate with water and give this into a bowl. This is to be exposed to hot fumes generated by burning common mugwort [leaves] from Qi zhou until [the liquid] has dried. Then add a small amount of frankincense and grind [this to a powder]. Mix it with sesame oil and prepare an ointment to be applied [to the affected region] separated by a piece of paper. Repeat the application several times. 楊氏簡便方用官粉炒過,桐油調作隔紙貼之。 The Yang shi jian bian fang [recommends to] mix fried lead carbonate with vermicia oil and apply this [to the affected region] separated by a piece of paper. 小兒丹毒。唾和胡粉,從外至内傅之良。千金方。 Cinnabar poison279 of children. Mix human saliva with lead carbonate and apply this [to the affected region] starting from outside of it and proceding toward its interior. Good. Qian jin fang. 278 Xue feng 血風, “blood wind,” results from an intrusion of wind evil qi into an unbalanced state of qi and blood, mostly in women, BCGM Dict I, 594. 279 Dan du 丹毒, “cinnabar poison,” a skin ailment with red rashes. BCGM Dict I, 118.

284

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

湯火燒瘡。胡粉,羊髓和,塗之。孫真人方。 Sores resulting from scalding with hot water and from burns by fire. Apply a mixture of lead carbonate and sheep bone marrow [to the affected region]. Sun zhenren fang. 瘡傷水濕。胡粉、炭灰等分,脂和塗孔上,水即出也。千金方。 Sores associated with harm caused by water and moisture. Apply a mixture of equal amounts of lead carbonate and charcoal ashes with fat to the holes and the water will be released. Qian jin fang. 蠼螋尿瘡。酢和胡粉塗之。千金方。 Sores caused by the urine of earwigs. Apply a mixture of vinegar and lead carbonate [to the affected region]. Qian jin fang. 諸蛇螫傷。胡粉和大蒜搗塗。千金方。 Harm caused by the sting of any snake. Pound lead carbonate with garlic [to a pulp] and apply this to [the affected region]. Qian jin fang. 誤吞金銀及錢。胡粉一兩,豬脂調,分再服,令消烊出也。外臺秘要。 Having inadvertently swallowed gold, silver and coins. Mix one liang of lead carbonate with lard and ingest this divided into two portions. This will cause [the metal objects] to melt and be discharged. Wai tai mi yao. 三年目瞖。胡粉塗之。聖惠方。 An eye shade that has lasted for three years. Apply lead carbonate to it. Sheng hui fang. 口中乾燥,煩渴無津。雄豬膽五枚,酒煮皮爛,入定粉一兩研匀,丸芡子 大,每含化一丸嚥汁。太平聖惠方。 Dryness in the mouth, with unrest and thirst and the absence of body fluid [in the mouth]. Boil five gallbladders of a boar and boil them until their skin has decayed. Then add one liang of lead carbonate and grind this to an even [mixture]. Prepare this to pills the size of qian seeds. Each time hold one pill in the mouth and swallow the resulting juice. Tai ping sheng hui fang. 腹中鼈癥。胡粉、黍米淋汁温服,大效。衞生易簡方。 Turtle-shaped conglomeration-illness in the abdomen. Ingest a juice obtained by soaking lead carbonate and millet in water. Very effective.Wei sheng yi jian fang. 接骨續筋,止痛活血。定粉、當歸各一錢,朋砂一錢半,爲末。每服一 錢,蘇木煎湯調下,仍頻飲湯。同上。

Chapter 8

285

To reconnect bones and to combine sinews, to end the pain and to enliven the blood. [Grind] one qian each of lead carbonate and angelica root with one and a half qian of borax to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest one qian to be sent down mixed with a decoction of sappan wood. In addition, repeatedly let him drink the decoction. [Source] identical to the one above. 發背惡瘡諸癰疽。好光粉二兩,真麻油三兩,慢火熬,以柳枝急攪,至滴 水成珠,入白膠末少許入器,水浸兩日,油紙攤貼,名神應膏。直指方。 Effusion on the back of malign sores and all types of obstruction-illness and impediment-illness.280 Boil two liang of good quality lead carbonate and three liang of genuine sesame oil over a mild fire and stir this vigorously with a willow twig until the water [scooped up] forms pearls when dropped. Add a small amount of white [deer horn] glue into the vessel and let it soak in water for two days. Eventually spread it on oil paper and apply this [to the affected region]. This is called “ointment with a divine response.” Zhi zhi fang. 08-13 鈆丹本經下品 Qian dan, FE Ben jing, lower rank. Lead oxide. Minium. 【釋名】黄丹弘景、丹粉唐本、朱粉綱目、鈆華。 Explanation of Names. Huang dan 黄丹, “yellow cinnabar,” [Tao] Hongjing. Dan fen 丹粉, “cinnabar powder,” Tang ben. Zhu fen 朱粉, “bright red powder,” Gang mu. Qian hua 鈆華, “lead splendor.” 【正誤】見粉錫下。 Correction of Errors. See under “fen xi.” (08-12) 【集解】【别録曰】鈆丹生於鈆,出蜀郡平澤。【弘景曰】即今熬鈆所作 黄丹也。俗方稀用,惟仙經塗丹釜所須,云化成九光者,當謂九光丹以爲 釜爾,無别法也。【宗奭曰】鈆丹化鈆而成,别録言生於鈆,則蘇恭炒錫 作成之説誤矣。不爲難辨,錫則色黯,鈆則明白,以此爲異。【時珍曰】 按獨孤滔丹房鑑源云,炒鈆丹法:用鈆一斤,土流黄十兩,消石一兩。鎔 鈆成汁,下醋點之,滚沸時下硫一塊,少頃下消少許,沸定再點醋,依前 下少許消、黄,待爲末,則成丹矣。今人以作鈆粉不盡者,用消石、礬石 280 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642.

286

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

炒成丹。若轉丹爲鉛,只用連鬚葱白汁拌丹慢煎,煅成金汁傾出,即還鉛 矣。貨者多以鹽消、砂石雜之。凡用,以水漂去消鹽,飛去砂石,澄乾, 微火炒紫色,地上去火毒入藥。會典云:黑鈆一斤,燒丹一斤五錢三分也。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Minium is made out of lead; it originates in the plains and marshlands of Shu jun. [Tao] Hongjing: This is huang dan 黄丹, which nowadays is produced by boiling lead. In recipes of the general public it is rarely resorted to. Only the classics of the hermits/immortals require that “it is applied to the cauldrons used to prepare their elixirs.” When they claim that through transformation it becomes the “ninefold radiance” [elixir], that is to say, to prepare the “ninefold radiance” elixir such a cauldron is required. There is no other way to prepare it. [Kou] Zongshi: Minium is produced through a transformation of lead. The Bie lu states that it is a lead product. Hence when Su Gong states that it is produced by frying tin, he is wrong. The two are not difficult to distinguish. Tin is of a dark color; lead is brilliant-white. That is the difference. [Li] Shizhen: According to Dugu Tao’s Dan fang jing yuan, “the method to fry [lead to prepare] minium is as follows. Required are one jin of lead, ten liang of sulphur, one liang of nitrokalite. Melt the lead to a liquid. Drop vinegar on it. While it violently bubbles give a piece of sulphur into it. After a short while add a small amount of the nitrokalite to it. Once the bubbling has ended, again drop vinegar on it, and in the same way as before small amounts of nitrokalite and sulphur. Eventually a powder has formed and this is minium.” Today, the people use the substances remaining after the production of lead carbonate. They fry them with nitrokalite and alum to generate minium. If minium is to be reversed to become lead again, simply mix minium with the juice of onions, still with their hair, and fry this over a mild fire. Once it is calcined, a metal juice is generated. This is poured out and the reversal to lead is complete. Merchants often adulterate [minium] with nitrokalite and sand. For all applications, give it into water to let the nitrokalite flow away, and [drop it while blowing at it to] let the sand flow away. The dregs are dried and then fried over a mild fire until they have assumed a purple color. Keep them sprayed on the ground to allow the fire poison to leave and then add them to medication. The Hui dian states: “By processing one jin of black lead, [one obtains] one jin, five qian and three fen of minium.” 【氣味】辛,微寒,無毒。【大明曰】微鹹,凉,無毒。伏砒,制硇、 硫。【震亨曰】一婦因多子,月内服鉛丹二兩,四肢冰冷,食不入口。時 正仲冬,急服理中湯加附子數十貼乃安。謂之凉無毒,可乎?【時珍曰】 鈆丹本無甚毒,此婦産後冬月服之過劑,其病宜矣。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, slightly cold, nonpoisonous. Da Ming: Slightly salty, cool, nonpoisonous. It brings down arsenic. It checks ammoniac and sulphur. [Zhu]

Chapter 8

287

Zhenheng: There was a woman who had many children and [to avoid further pregnancies] during her monthly period she ingested one liang of minium. As a result, her four limbs froze to ice, and she was unable to take food into her mouth. This happened exactly in the middle month of winter. She immediately ingested several tens of dosages of the “decoction to order the center, amended with aconitum [accessory tuber]” and was cured. When it is said “cool is not poisonous,” how can this be? [Li] Shizhen: Lead oxide itself is not very poisonous. But this woman took an overdose following delivery during a winter month. Hence her disease was a natural consequence. 【主治】吐逆胃反,驚癇癲疾,除熱下氣,鍊化還成九光,久服通神明。 本經。止小便,除毒熱臍攣,金瘡血溢。别録。驚悸狂走,消渴。煎膏 用,止痛生𦠄。甄權。鎮心安神,止吐血及嗽,傅瘡長肉,及湯火瘡。染 鬚。大明。治瘧及久積。宗奭。墜痰殺蟲,去怯除忤惡,止痢明目。時珍。 Control. It controls vomiting with [qi] counterflow and stomach turnover; fright epilepsy and peak ailment. It eliminates heat and discharges qi. When it is refined with heat, it returns to a state of brilliant radiance. Ingested over a long time it enables one’s mind to communicate with the spirits. It ends urination. It removes poison heat causing cramps in the [abdominal region of the] navel, and blood overflow from wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. Bie lu. It ends fright palpitation and mad running, and melting with thirst.281 Applied boiled to a paste, it ends pain and generates muscles. Zhen Quan. It calms the heart and pacifies the spirit. It ends spitting blood and cough. Applied to wounds it generates flesh. And [it serves to cure] sores caused by scalding and fire, and to dye beards. Da Ming. It serves to cure malaria and chronic accumulations. [Kou] Zongshi. It brings down phlegm and kills worms/bugs. It removes timidity and eliminates the hostile and the malign. It ends free-flux illness282 and clears the eyes. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【成無己曰】仲景龍骨牡蠣湯中用鈆丹,乃收歛神氣以鎮驚也。 【好古曰】澀可去脱而固氣。【時珍曰】鈆丹體重而性沉,味兼鹽、礬, 走血分,能墜痰去怯,故治驚癇癲狂、吐逆反胃有奇功。能消積殺蟲,故 治疳疾、下痢、瘧疾有實績。能解熱拔毒,長肉去瘀,故治惡瘡腫毒及入 膏藥,爲外科必用之物也。 Explication. Cheng Wuyi: [Zhang] Zhongjing in his “decoction with dragon bones and oyster shells” [recommends to] use minium, and this is meant to gather divine qi to suppress fright. [Wang] Haogu: It is astringent and hence can remove [anal/ 281 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567. 282 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

288

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

vaginal] prolapse and stabilize the qi. [Li] Shizhen: Minium has a heavy physical body, and by its nature it sinks into the depth. Its flavor combines that of salt and alum, and it runs into the blood section. It is able to bring down phlegm and to remove timidity. Hence it serves to cure, with extraordinary success, fright epilepsy and peak-illness283 with madness, vomiting with countermovement [of qi] and a turned over stomach. It is able to dissolve accumulations and to kill worms/bugs. Hence it serves to cure, with solid achievements, gan-illness284 ailments, discharge with free-flux illness,285 and malaria illness. It can resolve heat and extract poison, it causes flesh to grow and removes stagnant [blood]. Hence it serves to cure malign sores with swelling and poison, and is added to ointment medication. It is an indispensable item of the [medical] discipline concerned with treatments from outside.

【附方】舊八,新二十五。 Added Recipes. Eight of old. 25 newly [recorded] 消渴煩亂。黄丹,新汲水服一錢,以蕎麥粥壓之。聖惠方。 Melting with thirst,286 unrest and disorder. Ingest one qian of minium with newly drawn water, and then [consume] a buckwheat congee to force it down. Sheng hui fang. 吐逆不止。碧霞丹:用北黄丹四兩,米醋半升,煎乾,炭火三秤,就銚内 煅紅,冷定爲末,粟米飯丸梧子大。每服七丸,醋湯下。集驗方。 Unending vomiting with [qi] counterflow. The “rosy clouds elixir”: Boil four liang of northern minium in half a sheng of rice vinegar until the liquid has dried. Then calcine it in a kettle above three cheng of charcoal fire until it has turned red. After it has cooled down and formed a stable mass, grind it to a powder and form, with millet, pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest seven pills, to be sent down with a vinegar decoction. Ji yan fang.

283 Dian 顛, “peak[-illness],” also 癲, vaguely defined mental derangement. BCGM Dict I, 124. 284 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188. 285 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 286 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567.

Chapter 8

289

伏暑霍亂。水浸丹,見木部巴豆下。 Hidden summerheat with cholera. Soak minium in water. [For details,] see under the entry ba dou in the section on “woods” (35-47). 小兒吐逆不止。宜此清鎮,燒針丸:用黄丹研末,小棗肉和丸芡子大,每 以一丸,針簽於燈上燒過,研細,乳汁調下。一加朱砂、枯礬等分。謝氏 小兒方。 Unending vomiting of children with [qi] counterflow. The [following recipe] of the “heated needle pills” is suitable for clearing and calming down [qi counterflow]. Grind minium to a powder, mix it with the pulp of small dates and form pills the size of qian seeds. For each application pierce one pill with a needle and heat it above a fire. Then grind it to a fine [powder], and [have the child] send it down with its nursing mother’s milk. Another version [of this recipe] adds equal amounts of cinnabar and prepared alum. Xie shi xiao er fang. 反胃氣逆,胃虚。鉛丹二兩,白礬二兩,生石亭脂半兩。以丹、礬研匀, 入坩鍋内,以炭半秤煅赤,更養一夜,出毒兩日,入亭脂同研,粟米飯和 丸緑豆大,每日米飲下十五丸。聖濟録。 Turned over stomach with qi counterflow, associated with stomach depletion. [Required are] three liang of minium, two liang of alum and half a liang of unprepared red sulphur. Grind the minium and the alum to an evenly mixed powder and give this into a crucible. Calcine it above [a fire lit with] half a cheng of charcoal until it has turned red and maintain [the fire] for one night. Wait for the [fire] poison to leave within two days, add the red sulphur and grind [all this]. Mix [the powder] with cooked millet and form pills the size of mung beans. Every day send 15 pills down with water in which rice was cooked. Sheng ji lu. 泄瀉下痢赤白。用棗肉搗爛,入黄丹、白礬各皂子大,粳米飯一團,和丸 彈子大,鐵線穿於燈上燒過,爲末。米飲服之。摘玄方。 Red and white outflow discharge and free-flux illness.287 Pound date pulp to a paste, add minium and alum, both in amounts equalling the size of gleditsia seeds, and one roll of cooked nonglutinous rice, and form pills the size of bullets. Pierce them with an iron thread, heat them above a burning lamp [until they have dried] and [grind them to a] powder, to be ingested with a rice beverage. Zhai xuan fang. 赤白痢下。黄丹炒紫,黄連炒,等分爲末,以糊丸麻子大。每服五十丸, 生薑甘草湯下。普濟方。

287 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

290

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Red and white free-flux illness discharge. Grind equal amounts of minium, fried until it has assumed a purple color, and fried coptis [rhizome] to a powder and with wheat flour form pills the size of hemp seeds. Each time ingest 50 pills, to be sent down with a decoction of fresh ginger and glycyrrhiza [root]. Pu ji fang. 妊娠下痢㽲痛。用烏鷄卵一個,開孔去白留黄,入鈆丹五錢攪匀,泥裹煨 乾,研末,每服二錢,米飲下。一服愈,是男;二服愈,是女。三因方。 Discharge with free-flux illness288 and flatulent pain during pregnancy. Take one egg of a black chicken, open a hole to remove the egg white while leaving the yoke, and insert five qian of minium. Stir this to generate an even mixture, wrap [the egg] in mud and cook it over a slow fire until it has dried. Then grind it to a powder. Each time [have the woman] ingest two qian, to be sent down with a rice beverage. If a healing is achieved with one ingestion, [the child] will be male. If a healing is achieved with two ingestions, it will be female. San yin fang. 吐血咯血欬血。黄丹,新汲水服一錢。經驗方。 Blood vomiting, blood spitting, blood cough. Ingest one qian of minium with newly drawn water. Jing yan fang. 寒熱瘧疾體虚汗多者。黄丹、百草霜等分,爲末。發日,空心米飲服三 錢,不過二服愈。或糊丸,或蒜丸,皆效。 Malaria illness with alternating cold and heat sensations, associated with bodily depletion and much sweating. [Grind] equal amounts of minium and soot scratched from within a chimney of a furnace where all types of herbs had been burned to a powder. On the day of an outbreak, [let the patient] ingest three qian to be sent down, on an empty stomach, with a rice beverage. A cure will be achieved after no more than two ingestions. It is also possible to prepare pills with wheat flour and with garlic. They are all equally effective. 肘後方用飛炒黄丹一兩,恒山末三兩,蜜丸梧子大,每服五十丸,温酒 下。平旦及未發、將發時,各一服,無不效。 The Zhou hou fang [recommends to] use one liang of minium, sublimated and fried, and three liang of dichroa [root] powder, to be formed, with honey, to pills the size of wu seeds. Each time [let the patient] ingest 50 pills, to be sent down with warm wine. To be ingested in the early morning and prior to an outbreak, or when an outbreak is imminent. Always effective.

288 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

Chapter 8

291

普濟方:端午日用黄丹炒二兩,獨蒜一百箇,搗丸梧子大。每服九丸,空 心長流水面東下。二三發後乃用,神效。亦治痢疾。 The Pu ji fang: On the fifth day of the fifth month pound two liang of minium and 100 pieces of single clove garlic [to a pulp] and form pills the size of wu seeds. For each application [let the patient] face the East and ingest nine pills, to be sent down, on an empty stomach, with water that has flown a long distance. The application is to begin after two or three outbreaks; it is divinely effective. It also serves to cure free-flux illness.289 三因方用黄丹炒、建茶等分,爲末,温酒服二錢。又黄丹飛焙,麪糊丸芡 子大,每棗子一枚,去核,包一丸,紙裹煨熟食之。 The San yin fang [recommends to grind] equal amounts of fried minium and tea [leaves] from [Fu] jian to a powder and to [let the patient] ingest with warm wine two qian. Also, to form minium, sublimated and baked over a small fire, with a flour-water paste to pills the size of qian seeds, and for each application to insert [a pill] into a date the kernels of which are removed. Then wrap this in paper, bake it until it is done, and [let the patient] eat this. 温瘧不止。黄丹炒半兩,青蒿童尿浸二兩,爲末,每服二錢,寒多酒服, 熱多茶服。仁存堂方。 Unending warmth malaria. [Grind] half a liang of fried minium and two liang of artemisia herb, soaked in boys’ urine, to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest two qian, to be ingested with wine if [the disease] is associated mostly with sensations of cold, and with tea if it is mostly associated with sensations of heat. Ren cun tang fang. 小兒癉瘧,壯熱不寒。黄丹二錢,蜜水和服,冷者酒服,名鬼哭丹。劉涓 子鬼遺方。 Solitary [heat] illness290 malaria of children, with strong heat [sensations] and no [sensation of ] cold. [Let the patient] ingest a mixture of two qian of minium with honey and water. In the case of chills, they are to be ingested with water. This [recipe] is called “elixir that makes demons cry.” Liu Juanzi gui yi fang. 風癇發止。驅風散:用鈆丹二兩,白礬二兩,爲末,用三角磚相鬬,以七 層紙鋪磚上,鋪丹於紙上,礬鋪丹上,以十斤柳木柴燒過爲度,取研。每 服二錢,温酒下。王氏博濟方。

289 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 290 Dan 癉, “solitary [heat] illness,” identical with re 熱, “heat.” BCGM Dict I, 118.

292

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Wind epilepsy, [alternately] breaking out and ending again. The “powder to eliminate wind”: [Grind] two liang of minium and two liang of alum to a powder. Then form triangular bricks to a structure and cover it with seven layers of paper. Place the minium on the paper, and the alum on the minium. Then burn this with a fire lit with ten jin of willow wood. [Once the firewood is used up], remove [the residues] and grind [them to a powder]. Each time [let the patient] ingest two qian, to be sent down with warm wine. Wang shi bo ji fang. 客忤中惡,道間門外得之,令人心腹刺痛,氣衝心胸脹滿,不治害人。真 丹方寸匕,蜜三合,和灌之。肘後方。 Being visited by the hostile; being struck by the malign. This is contracted while being on the road, outside of one’s home. It lets one have a piercing pain in the central and abdominal region, with qi rushing against heart and chest, bloating and a feeling of fullness. If this is not cured, it will harm one. Mix genuine cinnabar, the amount held by a square cun spoon, with three ge of honey and forcefeed this [to the patient]. Zhou hou fang. 一切目疾。昏障治,只障不治。蜂蜜半斤,銅鍋熬起紫色塊,入飛過真黄 丹二兩,水一盌,再煉至水盡,以細生絹鋪薄紙一層,濾净,瓶封埋地内 三七。每日點眼七次,藥粘則洗之。一方,入訶子肉四箇。保壽堂方。 All types of eye afflictions. To cure a shade with dim vision; not to [be used to] cure if only a shade has formed [without dim vision]. Stew half a jin of bees honey in a copper pot until it has turned into pieces of purple color. Add two liang of genuine sublimated minium and one bowl of water, and repeatedly refine this with heat until all the water qi are consumed. Pass [the liquid] through a filter of fine silk with one layer of paper on top of it, fill it into a bottle, seal it tightly and bury it in the ground for three times seven days. Every day seven times drop [the contents of the bottle] into the [affected eyes]. If the medication remains sticky [in the eyes], wash it off. Another recipe [recommends to] add four pieces of terminalia fruit meat [to the medication]. Bao shou tang fang. 赤眼痛。黄丹、蜂蜜調貼太陽穴,立效。明目經驗方。 Painful red eyes. Mix minium with bees honey and apply this to the major yang [needle insertion] hole. Immediately effective. Ming mu jing yan fang. 赤目及瞖。鈆丹、白礬等分,爲末點之。又方:鈆丹、烏賊骨等分,合 研,白蜜蒸,點之。千金方。 Red eyes with a screen. [Grind] equal amounts of minium and alum to a powder and apply this [to the affected eyes]. Another recipe: Mix equal amounts of minium

Chapter 8

293

and cuttlefish bones and grind [this to a powder]. Then steam [this powder] with white honey and apply it [to the affected eyes]. Qian jin fang. 眼生珠管。鈆丹半兩,鯉魚膽汁和如膏。日點三五次。聖惠方。 Pearls in a tube291 growing on the eyes. Mix half a liang of minium with carp bile to a paste and apply this three to five times a day [to the affected eyes]. Sheng hui fang. 痘疹生瞖。黄丹、輕粉等分,爲末。吹少許入耳内,左患吹右,右患吹 左。痘疹方。 A shade [in the eyes] caused by smallpox. [Grind] equal amounts of minium and calomel to a powder and blow a small amount into [the patient’s] ear. If the ailment affects his left [eye] blow it into his right [ear]; if it is on the right side, blow it into his left [ear]. Dou zhen fang. 小兒重舌。黄丹一豆大,安舌下。子母秘録。 Doubled tongue292 of children. Place a piece of minium, the size of a soybean, underneath the tongue. Zi mu mi lu. 小兒口瘡糜爛。黄丹一錢,生蜜一兩,相和蒸黑。每以鷄毛蘸搽,甚效。 普濟方。 Festering gruel-type sores affecting the mouth of a child. Steam a mixture of one qian of minium and one liang of fresh honey until it has turned black. Each time apply it with a chicken feather [to the affected region]. Very effective. Pu ji fang. 腋下胡臭。黄丹入輕粉,唾調,頻摻之。普濟方。 Barbarian stench under the armpits. Add calomel to minium and mix this with human saliva. To be repeatedly applied [to the armpits]. Pu ji fang. 婦人逆産。真丹塗兒足下。集驗方。 Women giving birth with [the child] in [footling presentation] contrary to normal. Apply genuine cinnabar to the lower side of its feet. Ji yan fang. 蚰蜒入耳。黄丹、酥、蜜、杏仁等分,熬膏,綿裹包塞之,聞香即出,抽 取。聖惠方。 A common house centipede has entered the ears. Boil equal amounts of minium, butter, honey and apricot seeds to a paste, wrap it in silk fabric and insert it [into 291 Zhu guan 珠管, “pearls in a tube,” a tumor-illness on the eye, with a crystal clear color reminiscent of pearls in a tube. BCGM Dict I, 691. 292 Chong she 重舌, “doubled tongue.” A growth under the tongue, mostly in children, similar to a second tongue. BCGM Dict I, 92.

294

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

the affected ears]. Once [the centipede] smells the aroma it will appear and can be pulled out. Sheng hui fang. 蠍蠆螫人。醋調黄丹塗之。肘後方。 When a person was stung by a scorpion. Mix minium with vinegar and apply this [to the affected region]. Zhou hou fang. 金瘡出血。不可以藥速合,則内潰傷肉。只以黄丹、滑石等分,爲末傅 之。集玄方。 Bleeding wound caused by metal objects/weapons. It is not suitable to quickly apply a medication to close [the wound], as it would cause internal ulceration and harm the flesh. The only [therapy possible] is to [grind] equal amounts of minium and talc to a powder and to apply this [to the affected region]. Ji xuan fang. 外痔腫痛。黄丹、滑石等分,爲末,新汲水調,日五上之。嬰童百問。 External piles with painful swelling. [Grind] equal amounts of minium and talc to a powder, mix it with newly drawn water and apply this five times a day [to the affected region]. Ying tong bai wen. 血風臁瘡。黄丹一兩,黄蠟一兩,香油五錢,熬膏。先以葱、椒湯洗,貼 之。陸氏積德堂方。 Blood wind293 associated with shank sores. Boil one liang of minium, one liang of yellow beeswax and five qian of sesame oil to a paste. First wash [the affected region] with a decoction of onions and Chinese prickly ash and then apply the [paste]. Lu shi, Ji de tang fang. 遠近臁瘡。黄丹飛炒,黄蘗酒浸七日焙,各一兩,輕粉半兩,研細。以苦 茶洗净,輕粉填滿,次用黄丹護之,外以蘗末攤膏貼之,勿揭動,一七見 效。孫氏集效方。 Shank sores that have existed for a long time, or only recently. Grind [separately] to a fine powder: one liang each of sublimated and fried minium and phellodendron [bark], soaked in wine for seven days and baked over a slow fire, and half a liang of calomel. Wash [the affected region] with bitter tea, fill [the cavities of the sores] with the calomel [powder] and cover this with the minium [powder]. Then apply a paste with the phellodendron [bark] powder on top of this. Do not remove or touch it. An effect will be apparent within seven [days]. Sun shi ji xiao fang.

293 Xue feng 血風, “blood wind,” results from an intrusion of wind evil qi into an unbalanced state of qi and blood, mostly in women, BCGM Dict I, 594.

Chapter 8

295

08-14 密陀僧唐本草 Mi tuo seng, FE Tang ben cao. Litharge. Lead oxide. 【釋名】没多僧唐本、爐底。【恭曰】密陀、没多,並胡言也。 Explanation of Names. Mo duo seng 没多僧, Tang ben. Lu di 爐底. [Su] Gong: Mi tuo 密陀 and Mo duo 没多 are both foreign terms. 【集解】【恭曰】出波斯國,形似黄龍齒而堅重,亦有白色者、作理石 文。【頌曰】今嶺南、閩中銀銅冶處亦有之,是銀鉛脚。其初采礦時,銀 銅相雜,先以鉛同煎鍊,銀隨鈆出。又采山木葉燒灰,開地作爐,填灰其 中,謂之灰池。置銀鈆於灰上,更加火鍛,鈆滲灰下,銀住灰上,罷火候 冷,出銀。其灰池感鈆銀氣,積久成此物,未必自胡中來也。【承曰】今 市中所貨是小瓶,實鈆丹鍛成者,大塊尚有瓶形。銀冶所出最良而罕有貨 者。外國者未嘗見之。【時珍曰】密陀僧原取銀冶者,今既難得,乃取煎 銷銀鋪爐底用之。造黄丹者,以脚滓鍊成密陀僧,其似瓶形者是也。 Collected Explanations. [Su] Gong: It originates in the country Po si/Persia. Its physical appearance resembles that of yellow dragon teeth, but it is harder and heavier. There is also a [variation of ] white color, with the line design of gypsum. [Su] Song: Nowadays it is also found at those places in Ling nan and Min zhong where silver and copper are processed. It is a sediment of silver and lead. In the beginning, when the ore is collected, silver and copper are mixed. First, [the ore] is heated together with lead and the silver will come out with the lead. Then the leaves of mountain trees are collected and burned to ashes. A pit is dug in the ground to be used as a furnace. [The pit] is filled with the ashes; this is called “pond of ashes.” Place the silver and the lead on top of the ashes, and light a fire to calcine this. The lead will seep into the ashes; the silver remains above the ashes. Extinguish the fire, wait for it to cool and remove the silver. When the “pool of ashes” is exposed to the qi of lead and silver, they accumulate there and eventually, after a long time, this item [litharge] is generated. It is not necessary to import it from Hu zhong. [Chen] Cheng. The commercial ware sold on the markets today is generated by forging minium filled in small bottles. Large pieces still have the physical appearance of bottles. Those originating in the forging of silver are the best, but they are only rarely offered in the trade. I have not seen any imported from foreign countries. [Li] Shizhen: Mi tuo seng is a product resulting from the forging of silver. It is very difficult to obtain today. Hence it is collected from the bottom of furnaces where silver has been melted. When minium is produced, the sediments are further refined with

296

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

heat to generate mi tuo seng. When they resemble the physical appearance of bottles, then they are the [item discussed here]. 【修治】【斅曰】凡使搗細,安瓷鍋中,重紙袋盛柳蛀末焙之,次下東流 水浸滿,火煮一伏時,去柳末、紙袋,取用。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Lei] Xiao: For all [therapeutic] applications [of litharge], pound it to a fine [powder] and fill it into a porcelain pot. Fill a bag made of thick paper with willow tree wood that is infested with worms/bugs, [give this, too, into the porcelain pot] and heat it over a small fire. Next fill [the pot] with water that has flown toward the East, and boil it with a fire for an entire day and a night. Discard the willow tree wood and the paper bag, and remove [the litharge] for later use. 【氣味】鹹、辛,平,有小毒。【大明曰】甘,平,無毒。【時珍曰】制 狼毒。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, acrid, balanced, slightly poisonous. Da Ming: Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. [Li] Shizhen: It serves to check [the effects of ] wolfsbane [root]. 【主治】久痢,五痔,金瘡,面上瘢䵟,面膏藥用之。唐本。【保昇曰】 五痔,謂牡、酒、腸、血、氣也。鎮心,補五臟,治驚癇欬嗽,嘔逆吐 痰。大明。療反胃,消渴,瘧疾,下痢。止血,殺蟲,消積。治諸瘡,消 腫毒,除胡臭,染髭髮。時珍。 Control. Long-lasting free-flux illness.294 The five types of piles. Wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. Facial scars and gloom. It is used in facial ointment medication. Tang ben. [Han] Baosheng: The five types of piles are called “male [piles],” “wine [piles],” “intestinal [piles],” “blood [piles],” and “qi [piles].” [Litharge] serves to calm the heart, to supplement the five long-term depots, and to cure fright epilepsy and cough, vomiting with a [qi] counterflow and spitting of phlegm. Da Ming. It heals turned over stomach, melting with thirst,295 malaria illness and discharge with free-flux illness. It ends bleeding, kills worms/bugs and dissolves accumulations. It serves to cure all types of sores, dissolves swelling with poison, eliminates barbarian stench [under the armpits] and serves to dye beard and hair on the head. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】密陀僧感鈆銀之氣,其性重墜下沉,直走下焦,故能 墜痰、止吐、消積,定驚癇,治瘧痢,止消渴,療瘡腫。洪邁夷堅志云: 驚氣入心絡,瘖不能言語者,用密陀僧末一匕,茶調服,即愈。昔有人伐 294 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 295 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567.

Chapter 8

297

薪,爲狼所逐而得是疾,或授此方而愈。又一軍校采藤逢惡蛇病此,亦用 之而愈。此乃驚則氣亂,密陀僧之重以去怯而平肝也。其功力與鈆丹同, 故膏藥中用代鈆丹云。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: Litharge has been exposed to the qi of lead and silver; by its nature it is heavy and sinks down into the depth. It directly runs toward the Lower Burner. Hence it is able of bringing down phlegm, ending vomiting, dissolving accumulations, stabilizing fright epilepsy, curing malaria illness, ending melting with thirst,296 and healing sores/wounds with swelling. Hong Mai in his Yi jian zhi states: “When fright qi have entered the heart network vessels, with [the patient] losing his voice and being unable to speak, [let him] ingest a spoonful of litharge powder mixed with tea, and he will be cured. Once there was a man who cut firewood. He was pursued by a wolf and was affected by this illness. Someone gave him this recipe and he was cured. Also, a soldier who collected vines encountered a malign snake and was affected by this illness. He, too, resorted to it and was cured.” That is, fright causes a qi confusion. The heavy weight of litharge removes timidity and levels the [qi of the] liver. Its [therapeutic] function and strength are identical to those of minium. Hence in ointments it is used as a substitute for minium.

【附方】舊三,新一十五。 Added Recipes. Three of old. 15 newly [recorded] 痰結胸中不散。密陀僧一兩,醋、水各一盞,煎乾,爲末。每服二錢,以 酒、水各一小琖,煎一琖,温服,少頃當吐出痰涎爲妙。聖惠方。 Conglomeration of phlegm in the chest that fails to disperse. Fry one liang of litharge in as much as one bowl each of vinegar and water until the liquid has dried, and [grind the residue] to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest two qian. To be ingested warm after being fried in as much as one small cup each of wine and water down to as much as fills one small cup. After a short time he will vomit phlegm and saliva, and this is the wondrous [effect]. Sheng hui fang. 消渴飲水。神效丸:用密陀僧二兩,研末,湯浸蒸餅丸梧子大。濃煎蠶 繭、鹽湯,或茄根湯,或酒下,一日五丸,日增五丸,至三十丸止,不可 多服。五六服後,以見水惡心爲度。惡心時,以乾物壓之,日後自定,甚 奇。選奇方。 Melting with thirst and [an urge to] drink water. The “pills with divine effects”: Grind two liang of litharge to a powder. Soak it in water and, with steamed cakes, 296 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567.

298

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

form pills the size of wu seeds, to be sent down either with a viscous decoction of silk cocoons and a salt decoction, or with a decoction of eggplant root, or with wine. On the first day [let the patient ingest] five pills. Then increase this amount by five pills each following day. Stop when an amount of 30 pills is reached. He must not ingest more. After five to six ingestions he will feel nauseous when he sees water, and this should be the end of the treatment. While he feels nauseous, suppress it with [letting the patient consume] some dry items. After a day or so the condition will be stabilized as a result. Very extraordinary. Xuan qi fang. 赤白下痢。密陀僧三兩,燒黄色,研粉。每服一錢,醋、茶下,日三服。 聖惠方。 Red and white discharge with free-flux illness.297 Heat three liang of litharge until it has assumed a yellow color, and grind it to a powder. Each time ingest one qian, to be sent down with vinegar and tea. To be ingested three times a day. Sheng hui fang. 腸風痔瘻。銅青、蜜陀僧各一錢,麝香少許,爲末,津和塗之。濟急方。 Intestinal wind and piles fistula. [Grind] one qian each of verdigris and litharge and a small amount of musk to a powder. Mix it with [saliva] body fluid and apply this [to the affected region]. Ji ji fang. 小兒初生,遍身如魚脬,又如水晶,破則成水,流滲又生者。密陀僧生 研,擫之,仍服蘇合香丸。救急方。 Newborn children with their entire body [covered by sores] appearing like fish bladders or rock crystals. When they are broken open, water forms. It flows off and [new such sores] emerge. Grind unprocessed litharge [to a powder] and apply it [to the affected region]. Also, [have the children] ingest the “pills with liquid storax.” Jiu ji fang. 驚氣失音。方見發明。 Fright qi causing a loss of voice. For a recipe, see under “Explication.” 腋下胡臭。漿水洗净,油調密陀僧塗。以一錢,用熱蒸餅一箇,切開摻末 夾之。集簡方。 Barbarian stench under the armpits. Wash them clean with fermented water of foxtail millet, and apply a mixture of litharge with oil [to the armpits]. Also, fill one qian [of litharge] into one hot steamed cake and hold this [under the armpits]. Ji jian fang.

297 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

Chapter 8

299

香口去臭。密陀僧一錢,醋調漱口。普濟方。 To provide the mouth with a pleasant aroma and to remove malodorous stench. Rinse the mouth with a mixture of one qian of litharge and vinegar. Pu ji fang. 大人口瘡。密陀僧鍛研摻之。聖濟録。 Oral sores of adults. Calcine litharge, grind it [to a powder] and apply this [to the affected region]. Sheng ji lu. 小兒口瘡,不能吮乳。密陀僧末,醋調塗足心,瘡愈洗去。蔡醫博方也。 黎居士簡易方。 Oral sores of children, making it impossible for them to suck their nursing mother’s milk. Mix litharge powder with vinegar and apply this to [the child’s] foot soles. Once the sores are cured, wash it off. This is a recipe of the medical erudite Cai. Li Jushi, Jian yi fang. 鼻内生瘡。密陀僧、香白芷等分,爲末,蠟燭油調搽之。簡便方。 Sores developing in the nostrils. [Grind] equal amounts of litharge and fragrant angelica [root] to a powder, mix it with wax candle oil and apply this [to the affected region]. Jian bian fang. 鼻皶赤皰。密陀僧二兩,細研,人乳調,夜塗旦洗。聖惠方。 Nose sediments,298 red blisters. Grind two liang of litharge to a fine [powder], mix it with human milk, apply this [to the affected region] at night, and wash it off the next morning. Sheng hui fang. 痘瘡瘢黶。方同上。譚氏。 Scars left by pox sores. Recipe identical to the one above. Tan shi. 䵟𪒟斑點。方同上。外臺。 Dermal dark spots and speckles. Recipe identical to the one above. Wai tai. 夏月汗斑如疹。用密陀僧八錢,雄黄四錢,先以薑片擦熱,仍以薑片蘸末 擦之,次日即焦。活人心統。 Speckles resembling macula caused by sweat during the summer months. [Required are] eight qian of litharge and four qian of realgar [ground to a powder]. First rub [the affected region] with ginger slices until it is hot. Then dip the ginger slices into the powder and rub [the affected region again]. The next day [the speckles] will be parched. Huo ren xin tong. 298 Bi zha 鼻皶, “nose sediments”, with major signs of a swollen, red nose with papules that may, when squeezed, release white sediments. BCGM Dict I, 64.

300

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

骨疽出骨,一名多骨瘡。不時出細骨,乃母受胎末及一月,與六親骨肉交 合,感其精氣,故有多骨之名。以密陀僧末,桐油調匀,攤貼之即愈。壽 域方。 Bone impediment-illness,299 with the bones protruding. Another name is “multiple kindred sores.” When every now and then a fine bone appears, this is because a mother after having conceived, in her first month of pregnancy, has had intercourse with any of her six relations, affecting her essence qi. Hence this is called “multiple kindred [sores].” Prepare an equal mixture of litharge powder and vermicia oil and apply this [to the affected region]. Shou yu fang. 血風臁瘡。密陀僧、香油入粗盌内磨化,油紙攤膏,反覆貼之。孫氏集效 方。 Blood wind300 associated with shank sores. Give litharge and sesame oil into a wide bowl and grind them until [the litharge] has dissolved [in the oil]. Spread the paste on a piece of oil paper and repeatedly apply this [to the affected region]. Sun shi ji xiao fang. 陰汗濕痒。密陀僧末傅之。戴氏加蛇牀子末。 Sweat and moisture in the yin [(i.e., genital) region], with itch. Apply litharge powder [to the affected region]. Dai shi adds cnidium seeds powder. 08-15 錫拾遺 Xi, FE Shi yi. Tin. 【釋名】白鑞音臘、鈏音引賀。【時珍曰】爾雅:錫謂之鈏。郭璞注云: 白鑞也。方術家謂之賀,蓋錫以臨賀出者爲美也。 Explanation of Names. Bai la 白鑞, read la 臘. Yin 鈏, read yin 引. He 賀. [Li] Shizhen: Er ya: “Xi 錫, tin, is called yin 鈏.” Guo Pu in has comment states: “This is bai la 白鑞.” The experts in the recipe arts/techniques call it he 賀. The fact is, the tin that originates in Lin he 臨賀 is very good. 【集解】【别録曰】錫生桂陽山谷。【弘景曰】今出臨賀,猶是桂陽地 界。鉛與錫相似,而入用大異。【時珍曰】錫出雲南、衡州。許慎説文 299 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277. 300 Xue feng 血風, “blood wind,” results from an intrusion of wind evil qi into an unbalanced state of qi and blood, mostly in women, BCGM Dict I, 594.

Chapter 8

301

云:錫者,銀鉛之間也。土宿本草云:錫受太陰之氣而生,二百年不動成 砒,砒二百年而錫始生。錫禀陰氣,故其質柔。二百年不動,遇太陽之氣 乃成銀。今人置酒於新錫器内,浸漬日久或殺人者,以砒能化錫,歲月尚 近,便被采取,其中藴毒故也。又曰:砒乃錫根。銀色而鈆質,五金之中 獨錫易制,失其藥則爲五金之賊,得其藥則爲五金之媒。星槎勝覽言:滿 剌加國於山溪中淘沙取錫,不假煎鍊成塊,名曰斗錫也。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Tin grows in the mountain valleys of Gui yang. [Tao] Hongjing: Nowadays, it originates in Lin he, a border region of Gui yang. Lead and tin are similar, but their [therapeutic] usages differ greatly. [Li] Shizhen: Tin originates in Yun nan and Heng zhou. Xu Shen in his Shuo wen states: “Tin is situated between silver and lead.” The Tu su ben cao states: “Tin grows endowed with major yin qi. It does not move for 200 years and then forms arsenic. Arsenic exists for 200 years and then tin begins to grow. Tin is endowed with yin qi. Hence its substance is soft. If it has not moved for 200 years and is then affected by major yang qi, it becomes silver. Today there are people who put wine into a new tin vessel. After [the tin vessel] is soaked [in the wine] for a long time, [the wine] may kill one. This is so because aresenic can transform to tin. If this happened only shortly before the [tin vessel] was obtained, [persons drinking from it] will be struck by the poison accumulated in it.” It is also said: “Arsenic is the root of tin. It has the color of silver and the material texture of lead. Among the five metals, only tin is easily reshaped. If it is wrongly used medicinally, it is the robber among the five metals. If it is correctly used medicinally, it is the matchmaker among the five metals.” The Xing cuo sheng lan says: “In the country of Man la jia, tin is obtained from mountain rivulets by washing sand in a pan. Lumps have formed there without being refined with heat and smelting. It is called dou 斗 tin.” 【正誤】【恭曰】臨賀采者名鈆,一名白鑞,唯此一處資天下用。其錫出 銀處皆有之。體相似,而入用大異。【時珍曰】蘇恭不識鉛錫,以錫爲 鉛,以鉛爲錫。其謂黄丹、胡粉爲炒錫,皆由其不識故也。今正之。 Correction of Errors. [Su] Gong: The [tin] collected in Lin he is called qian 鈆 (“lead”). It is also called bai la 白鑞. This is the only place from where it is supplied to the entire country for further use. Tin grows wherever silver is produced. [Tin and silver] are similar in terms of their physical body, but their usages are very different. [Li] Shizhen: Su Gong is not familiar with lead and tin. When he identifies tin as lead, and lead as tin, and when he says that both minium and lead carbonate are produced by frying tin, then this is because he does not know better. This is corrected here now.

302

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【氣味】甘,寒,微毒。【獨孤滔曰】羖羊角、五靈脂、伏龍肝、馬鞭草 皆能縮賀。硇、砒能硬錫。巴豆、蓖麻、薑汁、地黄能制錫。松脂銲錫。 錫礦縮銀。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, cold, slightly poisonous. Dugu Tao: Antelope horn, flying squirrel droppings, “hidden dragon’s liver” (soil from a hearth), and verbena herb can purify tin. Sal ammoniac and arsenic can harden tin. Croton [seeds], castor beans, ginger juice and Chinese foxglove [rhizome] are able to check [the poisonous effects of ] tin. Colophony can firmly connect/solder tin. Tin ore astringes silver. 【主治】惡毒風瘡。大明。 Control. Malign poison wind sores.301 Da Ming. 【發明】【時珍曰】洪邁夷堅志云:汝人多病癭。地饒風沙,沙入井中, 飲其水則生癭。故金、房間人家,以錫爲井闌,皆夾錫錢鎮之,或沉錫井 中,乃免此患。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: Hong Mai in his Yi jian zhi states: “The Ru people often suffer from goiter. The region where they live is plagued by wind and sand. The sand enters the wells. When they drink the water from these [wells] they develop goiter. This is why the people in Jin and Fang use tin to construct fences around their wells. They are all equipped with tin coins to suppress [the sand and its poison]. Some sink tin into the wells to avoid such suffering.”

【附方】新二。 Added Recipes. Two newly [recorded] 解砒霜毒。錫器,於粗石上磨水服之。濟急方。 To resolve the poison of arsenic. Rub a tin utensil on a rough stone with water and ingest [the resulting liquid]. Ji ji fang. 楊梅毒瘡。黑鉛、廣錫各二錢半,結砂,蜈蚣二條,爲末,紙卷作小撚, 油浸一夜,點燈,日照瘡二次,七日見效。集玄方。 Red bayberry poison sores.302 [Grind] two and a half qian of black lead and tin, [both] conglomerated to sand, and two centipedes to a powder, give this on paper and twirl this with your fingers to small rolls. Soak them in oil for one night and

301 Feng chuang 風瘡, “wind sores,” are festering and aching or itching papules brought forth by wind evil, moisture and heat. BCGM Dict I, 160. 302 Yang mei [du] chuang 楊梅毒瘡, “red bayberry [poison] sores,” most likely including cases of syphilis. BCGM Dict I, 293, 294.

Chapter 8

303

light them with a candle to expose the sores to its shine, twice a day. An effect will be apparent after seven days. Ji xuan fang. 08-16 古鏡拾遺 Gu jing, FE Shi yi. Ancient mirror. Up to the Tang era: a copper, tin and zinc alloy. During Ming times: a copper and zinc alloy. 【校正】併入本經 錫銅鏡鼻。 Editorial Correction. Xi tong jing bi, “handle of a tin-copper mirror,” listed separately in the Ben jing, is included in the present entry. 【釋名】鑑、照子。【時珍曰】鏡者,景也,有光景也。鑑者,監也,監 於前也。軒轅内傳言:帝會王母,鑄鏡十二,隨日用之。此鏡之始也。或 云始於堯臣尹壽。 Explanation of Names. Jian 鑑, “mirror.” Zhao zi 照子, “reflector.” [Li] Shizhen: Jing 鏡, “mirror,” is jing 景, “view.” It mirrors a scenery, guang jing 光景. Jian 鑑, “mirror,” is jian 監, “to inspect.” It serves to inspect what lies in front of it. The Xuanyuan nei zhuan says: “When the Thearch met Wang mu, he had 12 mirrors cast to be used following the course of the sun.” This was the beginning of mirrors. It is also said that they date back to Yin Shou, a minister of Yao. 【氣味】辛,無毒。【大明曰】平,微毒。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, nonpoisonous. Da Ming: Balanced, slightly poisonous. 【主治】驚癇邪氣,小兒諸惡,煮汁和諸藥煮服,文字彌古者佳。藏器。 辟一切邪魅,女人鬼交,飛尸蠱毒,催生,及治暴心痛,並火燒淬酒服。 百蟲入耳鼻中,將鏡就敲之,即出。大明。小兒疝氣腫硬,煮汁服。時珍。 Control. For fright epilepsy and evil qi, and for all types of malign [visitors affecting] children, boil [an ancient mirror] to obtain a juice, boil it mixed with all types of medication and [let the patient] ingest this. Those with characters inscribed on them and dating from ancient times are good. [Chen] Cangqi. It wards off all types of evil goblins, intercourse of women with demons, and flying corpse [qi]303 and gu poison.304 It speeds up births and serves to cure sudden heart pain. For all these 303 Fei shi 飛尸, “flying corpse [qi]. A condition with sudden outbreaks and changing appearance. BCGM Dict I, 155. 304 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed

304

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

[ailments] heat [an ancient mirror] over a fire, dip it in wine and [let the patient] ingest [the wine]. When any of the hundreds of worms/bugs enter one’s ears and nose, hold a mirror close [to the affected ear and nose], knock at it, and [the intruder] will come out. Da Ming. For a swelling and hardening of elevation-illness305 qi of children, boil [an ancient mirror in water] and [let the patient] ingest the juice. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】鏡乃金水之精,内明外暗。古鏡如古劍,若有神明, 故能辟邪魅忤惡。凡人家宜懸大鏡,可辟邪魅。劉根傳云:人思形狀,可 以長生。用九寸明鏡照面,熟視令自識己身形,久則身神不散,疾患不 入。葛洪抱朴子云:萬物之老者,其精悉能託人形惑人,唯不能易鏡中真 形。故道士入山,以明鏡徑九寸以上者背之,則邪魅不敢近,自見其形, 必反却走。轉鏡對之,視有踵者山神,無踵者老魅也。群書所載,古鏡靈 異,往往可證,謾撮於左方。龍江録云:漢宣帝有寶鏡,如八銖錢,能見 妖魅,帝常佩之。異聞記云:隋時王度有一鏡,歲疫,令持鏡詣里中,有 疾者照之即愈。樵牧閑談云:孟昶時張敵得一古鏡,徑尺餘,光照寢室如 燭,舉家無疾,號無疾鏡。西京雜記云:漢高祖得始皇方鏡,廣四尺,高 五尺,表裏有明,照之則影倒見。以手捧心,可見腸胃五臟。人疾病照 之,則知病之所在。女子有邪心,則膽張心動。酉陽雜俎云:無勞縣 舞 溪石窟有方鏡,徑丈,照人五臟,云是始皇骨鏡。松窗録云:葉法善有一 鐵鏡,照物如水。人有疾病,照見藏腑。宋史云:秦寧縣耕夫得鏡,厚三 寸,徑尺二,照見水底,與日争輝。 病熱者照之,心骨生寒。雲仙録云: 京師王氏有鏡六鼻,常有雲烟,照之則左右前三方事皆見。黄巢將至,照 之,兵甲如在目前。筆談云:吴僧一鏡,照之知未來吉凶出處。又有火鏡 取火,水鏡取水,皆鏡之異者也。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: A mirror is the essence of metal and water. It is shiny on its inner side and it is dark on its outside. Ancient mirrors are comparable to ancient swords. Both possess divine/spirit brilliance. Hence they are able to ward off malign goblins and visitations by the malign. All households should hang a large mirror as it is able to ward off evil goblins. The Liu Gen zhuan states: When humans are concerned with their physical appearance, they can extend their life. When they illuminate their face with a nine cun wide brilliant mirror, this will enable them to thoroughly recognize their own body’s physical appearance. After an extended period of time, [the result is that] the spirit will not depart from the body, and illness to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191. 305 Shan 疝, “elevation-illness,” and shan qi 疝氣, “elevation illness-qi.” A notion of a foreign item that has entered the scrotum, causes pain and may ascend and descend. BCGM Dict I, 419.

Chapter 8

305

and suffering will not enter it. Ge Hong in his Baopu zi states: “When the myriad human beings have become old, they may use their essence to manipulate their physical appearance so as to mislead others. But they are unable to alter their true physical appearance as it is reflected in a mirror. Hence, when a Master of the Dao enters the mountains, he carries with him on his back a shiny mirror with a diameter of at least nine cun. This lets evil goblins not dare to approach him. When they see their own physical appearance, they will inevitably turn around and run away. When [the Master of the Dao] turns around with his mirror to face them, if he sees that they have feet with heels, then these are mountain spirits. If they have no feet with heels, they are old goblins.” As is documented in so many books, ancient mirrors have supranatural, astonishing [effects]. This has been proved again and again. Some are quoted here as follows. The Long jiang lu states: Han [Emperor] Xuan di possessed a precious mirror, as big as a coin weighing eight zhu, and it enabled him to observe evil goblins. The Emperor always wore it on his garment. The Yi wen ji states: During the Sui dynasty, a Mr. Wang Du possessed a mirror. In years with an epidemic, he held the mirror and visited the lanes. When he came across a patient, he illuminated him with the shine [of the mirror] and [that person] was cured. The Qiao mu xian tan states: At the time of Meng Chang, Zhang Di got hold of an ancient mirror, with a diameter of more than a chi. It illuminated his bedroom like a lamp. Henceforth, his entire family remained free from illness. They named [the mirror] “freeing of illness mirror.” The Xi jing za ji states: Han [emperor] Gao zu obtained a square mirror from [Qin] Shi Huang. It was four chi wide and five chi high. It was shiny both outside and inside. Anything reflected on it would appear upsize down. When [a person thus reflected] held his hand on his heart, his intestines, his stomach and his five long-term depots became visible. With his illnesses and diseases illuminated and reflected, he could know the location of the disease. When a woman has an evil heart/intention, [her mirror image reveals that] her gallbladder is enlarged and her heart is in motion. The You yang za ju states: In Wu lao county, in a cave in Wu xi, there was a square mirror, with a diameter of one zhang. It illuminated and reflected one’s five long-term depots, and it was claimed to be [Qin] Shi huang’s “bone [reflecting] mirror.” The Song chuang lu states: Ye Fashan possessed an iron mirror that was able to illuminate and reflect items as clearly as water. When someone had an illness or a disease, it visibly illuminated and reflected his long-term depots and short-term repositories. The Song shi states: A peasant tilling his land in Qin ning county obtained a mirror that was three cun thick and two chi in diameter. It illuminated and reflected the bottom of waters, and its brilliance competed with that of the sun. If someone with a heat disease had himself illuminated and reflected, [it became apparent that] there was cold in his heart and

306

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

bones. The Yun xian lu states: Mr. Wang in the capital city had a mirror with six handles. It was always surrounded by clouds and fumes. When he illuminated them [with his mirror], everything in the three directions to the left, to the right and in front of him became apparent. When the army of Huang Chao approached [the capital], he illuminated them [with his mirror and the mirror] reflected the soldiers and their armor as if they were right in front of him. The Bi tan states: A Buddhist monk Wu had a mirror illuminating and reflecting locations from where auspicious and inauspicious events were to originate in future. Also, there are “fire mirrors” to obtain fire, and “water mirrors” to obtain water. All these are examples of the astonishing [potentials] of mirrors.

【附方】新一。 Added Recipes. One newly [recorded] 小兒夜啼。明鑑掛牀脚上。聖惠方。 Crying of children during the night. Hang a shiny mirror at the foot of the [child’s] bed. Sheng hui fang. 08-16-01 錫銅鏡鼻本經下品。Xi tong jing bi FE Ben jing, lower rank. Handle of a tin-copper mirror. 【釋名】【弘景曰】此物與胡粉異類而共條者,古無純銅作鏡,皆用錫雜 之,即今破古銅鏡鼻爾。用之當燒赤納酒中。若醯中出入百遍,乃可搗 也。【志曰】凡鑄鏡皆用錫,不爾即不明白,故言錫銅鏡鼻,今廣陵者爲 勝。【時珍曰】錫銅相和,得水澆之極硬,故鑄鏡用之。考工記云金錫相 半,謂之鑑燧之劑是也。 Explanation of Names. [Tao] Hongjing. This item is of a different kind than lead carbonate, but both are listed in the same entry. In ancient times, mirrors were not produced of pure copper; [the copper] was always mixed with tin. These here are handles of broken ancient copper mirrors available today. For [therapeutic] use they are to be heated until they have turned red and are then to be given into wine. After they are dipped into [the wine] and taken out again one hundred times, they can be pounded [to generate a powder for therapeutic applications]. [Ma] Zhi: All mirrors are cast with [a mixture of copper and] tin. If no [tin is added, a mirror] will not be shiny. Hence one speaks of “handles of tin-copper mirrors.” Nowadays, those from Guang ling are superior. [Li] Shizhen: A combination of tin and copper that is then sprinkled with water results in an extremely hard substance. Hence this is resorted

Chapter 8

307

to when mirrors are cast. When the Kao gong ji states: “Half and half of gold and tin are called a preparation of a mirror flint,” then this is what is meant here. 【氣味】酸,平,無毒。【權曰】微寒。【藥訣曰】冷,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sour, balanced, nonpoisonous. [Zhen] Quan. Slightly cold. Yao jue: Cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】女子血閉癥瘕,伏腸絶孕。本經。伏尸邪氣。别録。産後餘疹刺 痛,三十六候,取七枚投醋中熬,呷之。亦可入當歸、芍藥煎服。甄權。 Control. Blocked [menstruation] bleeding. Concretion-illness and conglomeration-illness of women. [Heat] hidden in the intestines and infertility. Ben jing. Hidden corpse [qi];306 evil qi. Bie lu. For macule-illness with a piercing pain remaining after delivery, and for the 36 [associated illness] signs, simmer seven handles in vinegar and [let the patient] sip the liquid. It is also possible to boil them together with angelica root and paeonia [root] and [let the patient] ingest [this decoction]. Zhen Quan.

【附方】新一。 Added Recipes. One newly [recorded] 小兒客忤,面青驚痛。銅照子鼻燒赤,少酒淬過,與兒飲。聖惠方。 Children visited by the hostile, with a greenish face, fright and pain. Heat a copper reflector’s handle until it has turned red, dip it into a small amount of wine and have the child drink this. Sheng hui fang. 08-16-02 鏡鏽 Jing xiu. Rust on a mirror. 即鏡上緑也,俗名楊妃垢。 This is the green [rust] on a mirror. A common name is “Yang [gui] fei’s filth.” 【主治】腋臭。又療下疳瘡,同五倍子末等分,米泔洗後傅之。時珍。 Control. Malodorous stench from the armpits. Also, to heal gan-illness307 sores in the lower body parts, wash [the affected parts] with water in which rice was washed 306 Fu shi [qi] 伏尸[氣], “hidden corpse [qi],” refers to a chronic condition of heart pain and hectic panting. BCGM Dict I, 177. 307 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188.

308

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

and then apply [a powder mixture of ] equal amounts of [this drug and] Chinese sumac gallnuts. [Li] Shizhen. 08-17 古文錢日華 Gu wen qian, FE Ri hua. Old coin with a script. Copper, lead and tin alloy. Later: copper and zinc alloy. 【釋名】泉、孔方兄、上清童子綱目、青蚨。【時珍曰】管子言:禹以歷 山之金鑄幣,以救人困,此錢之始也。至周太公立九府泉法,泉體圓含 方,輕重以銖,周流四方,有泉之象,故曰泉。後轉爲錢。魯褒錢神論 云:爲世神寶,親愛如兄,字曰孔方。又昔有錢精,自稱上清童子。青蚨 血塗子母錢,見蟲部。 Explanation of Names. Quan 泉, “spring.” Kong fang xiong 孔方兄, “elder brother with a square hole.” Shang qing tong zi 上清童子, “boy of supreme clarity,” Gang mu. Qing fu 青蚨, “greenish water-beetle.” [Li] Shizhen: The Guan zi says: “Yu cast money with gold from Mount Li shan to help his people in difficulties. This was the beginning of money. By the time of the Zhou, Duke Tai introduced the law of “springs, quan 泉, in the nine prefectures.” The ‘springs’/coins were to have a round body with a square [hole] left in its center. Their different weights were measured as zhu 銖. [These coins] were distributed in all four cardinal directions. They were shaped like a ‘spring’. Hence they were called quan 泉, ‘spring’. This [name] was later changed to qian 錢.” Lu Bao in his Qian shen lun states: “[Coins] are worldwide divine treasures. They are as close to one and loved as an elder brother. [Their name] is written kong fang 孔方, ‘square hole’.” Also, in former times there was a “coin spirit,” qian jing 錢 精. It called itself shang qing tong zi 上清童子, “boy of supreme clarity.” The blood of water-beetles, qing zhu 青蚨, is smeared on coins [and they will return like] a child to its mother. [For details] see the section on “worms/bugs.” (40-01). 【集解】【頌曰】凡鑄銅之物,多和以錫。考工記云攻金之工,金有六劑 是也。藥用古文錢、銅弩牙之類,皆有錫,故其用近之。【宗奭曰】古錢 其銅焦赤有毒,能腐蝕壞肉,非特爲有錫也。此説非是。但取周景王時大 泉五十及寶貨,秦半兩,漢莢錢、大小五銖,吴大泉五百、大錢當千,宋 四銖、二銖,及梁四柱、北齊常平五銖之類,方可用。【時珍曰】古文錢 但得五百年之外者即可用,而唐高祖所鑄開元通寶,得輕重大小之中,尤 爲古今所重。綦母氏錢神論云:黄金爲父,白銀爲母。鈆爲長男,錫爲適 婦。其性堅剛,須水終始。體圓應天,孔方效地。此乃鑄錢之法也。三伏 鑄錢,其汁不清,俗名爐凍。蓋火剋金也。唐人端午於江心鑄鏡,亦此意 也。

Chapter 8

309

Collected Explanations. [Su] Song: Whenever items are cast from copper, tin is added most often. This is meant by the Kao gong ji when it states: “Craftsmen working with metal, they produce six preparations of metal.” Items like medicinally used ancient coins with a script and triggers of copper crossbows, they all include tin. Hence their [therapeutic] usages are similar. [Kou] Zongshi: When the copper of ancient coins is scorched until it has turned red, it is poisonous and can cause rotting and decay of flesh. This is not because [the coins] contain tin. To say so is wrong. Only the large 50 [units] coins of King Jing of the Zhou, and the “treasure wares” [also of the Zhou], the half a liang [coins] of the Qin, the “pod” coins and the five zhu [coins] of various sizes of the Han, the large 500 [units] coins and the “large coins” equivalent to 1000 [units] of Wu, the four and the two zhu [coins] of the Song, as well as the “four column [shaped coins]” of the Liang, and the five zhu [coins of ] “permanent peace” of Northern Qi, they all may be used [for therapeutic purposes]. [Li] Shizhen: Only those old coins with a script that are older then 500 years may be used [for therapeutic purposes]. The money cast during the kai yuan reign period (713 – 741) of [emperor] Gao zu of the Tang had the right weight and size, and has been especially highly valued from ancient times to today. Mr. Qimu’s Qian shen lun states: “Yellow gold is the father. White silver is the mother. Lead is the elder son. Tin is the daughter-in-law. The nature [of ancient coins] is very hard and [when they are processed for medical use] water is required from the beginning to the end. Their body is round to reflect heaven. Their hole is square to reflect the earth. This is the law on which the casting of coins is based. Coins cast during the three ten-day periods of the hottest season of a year produce a juice [when processed] that is not clear. It is commonly called ‘furnace jelly’. The fact is, fire overcomes metal.” During the Tang dynasty, the people on the fifth day of the fifth month cast mirrors in the middle of a river. This was based on the same idea. 【氣味】辛,平,有毒。【時珍曰】同胡桃嚼即碎,相制也。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, balanced, poisonous. [Li] Shizhen: When [ancient coins] are chewed together with walnuts, they burst to pieces. This is because the latter check the former. 【主治】瞖障,明目,療風赤眼,鹽鹵浸用。婦人生産横逆,心腹痛,月 膈五淋,燒以醋淬用。大明。大青錢煮汁服,通五淋。磨入目,主盲障膚 赤。和薏苡根煮服,止心腹痛。藏器。 Control. [Eye] shades and screens. [Ancient coins] clear the eyes. To heal red eyes caused by wind, use them soaked in brine. For women giving birth to a child in a transverse or footling presentation, with painful central and abdominal region,

310

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

blocked menstruation and the five types of dripping [urine] 308, heat [the coins], dip them into vinegar, and then use them [for therapeutic purposes]. Da Ming. To ingest the juice obtained by boiling large, greenish coins frees the passage of the five types of dripping [urine]. Rubbed into the eyes, it controls blinding membranes and red skin. To ingest [the juice] obtained by boiling [the coins] with coix roots ends heart and abdominal pain. [Chen] Cangqi. 【發明】【宗奭曰】古錢有毒,治目中障瘀,腐蝕壞肉,婦人横逆産,五 淋,多用之。予少時常患赤目腫痛,數日不能開。客有教以生薑一塊,洗 净去皮,以古青銅錢刮汁點之,初甚苦,熱淚蔑面,然終無損。後有患 者,教之,往往疑惑。信士點之,無不一點遂愈,更不須再。但作瘡者, 不可用也。【時珍曰】以胡桃同嚼食二三枚,能消便毒。便毒屬肝,金伐 木也。 Explication. [Kou] Zongshi: Ancient coins are poisonous. They are often used to cure screens and stagnant blood in the eyes, decaying and rotting flesh, women giving birth to a child in a transverse and footling presentation, and the five types of dripping [urine]. In my youth, I often suffered from red eyes accompanied by a painful swelling. I was unable to open [the eyes] for several days. A visitor instructed me to use a piece of fresh ginger, wash it clean and discard its skin, scrape it with an ancient greenish coin to obtain a juice and drip this [into the affected eyes]. In the beginning, this was very painful and hot tears covered my face. But in the end, there was no harm left. In later times when there were patients suffering [from this ailment, I] instructed them [to use this treatment], but often they doubted [and refused it]. Those who believed in it dropped [the juice into their eyes], and there was not a single case where after just one application a cure was not achieved. It never needed to be repeated. However, once sores have formed, it must not be used. [Li] Shizhen: When two or three [coins] are chewed together with walnuts, they are able to dissolve poison affecting the [region of urination and defecation] relief. Such poison affecting the [region of urination and defecation] relief is associated with the liver. Metal fells wood.

308 Wu lin 五淋, the “five types of dripping urine,” include: qi lin 氣淋 (“qi dripping”), xue lin 血淋 (“blood dripping”), shi lin 石淋, (“stone dripping”), gao lin 膏淋(“pasty dripping”), and lao lin 勞淋 (“exhaustion dripping”). BCGM Dict I, 541.

Chapter 8

311

【附方】舊一,新二十一。 Added Recipes. One of old. 21 newly [recorded] 時氣欲死。大錢百文,水一斗煮八升,入麝香末三分,稍飲至盡,或吐或 下,愈。肘後方。 [Affection by] seasonal qi, bringing one close to dying. Boil 100 large coins in one dou of water down to eight sheng, add three fen of musk powder and [let the patient] drink this little by little until nothing is left. He may vomit or he may have a discharge, and this is the cure. Zhou hou fang. 時氣温病。頭痛壯熱脉大,始得一日者。比輪錢一百五十七文,水一斗, 煮取七升,服汁。須臾復以水五升,更煮一升,以水二升投中,合得三 升,出錢飲汁,當吐毒出也。肘後方。 Warmth disease caused by seasonal qi. When on the first day of being affected [patients suffer from] headache, strong heat and a massive [movement in the] vessels. Boil 157 “wheel-size coins”309 in one dou of water down to seven sheng and let them ingest the juice. A little later boil [the coins] again in five sheng of water down to one sheng. Add two sheng of water to have altogether three sheng. Remove the coins and [let the patients] drink the juice. They will vomit and this serves to release the poison. Zhou hou fang. 心腹煩滿及胸脇痛欲死者。比輪錢二十枚,水五升,煮三升,分三服。肘 後方。 Unrest and a sensation of fullness in the central and abdominal region, and a pain in chest and flanks bringing one close to dying. Boil 27 “wheel-size coins” in five sheng of water down to three sheng, and [let the patient] ingest them divided into three portions. Zhou hou fang. 急心氣痛。古文錢一個,打碎,大核桃三個,同炒熱,入醋一盌冲服。楊 誠經驗方。 Acute pain caused by heart qi. Fry one ancient coin with a script, struck to pieces, and three big walnuts, give them hot into a bowl of vinegar and ingest [the liquid]. Yang Cheng, Jing yan fang. 霍亂轉筋。青銅錢四十九枚,木瓜一兩,烏梅炒五枚,水二盞,煎分温 服。聖濟録。

309 Bi lun qian 比輪錢, “wheel-size coins,” refers to rather large and heavy coins in use under Emperor Yuan di 元帝 (317 – 322) during the Jin 晉 dynasty.

312

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Cholera with contorted sinews. Fry 49 greenish copper coins, one liang of chaenomeles fruit and five fried smoked plums in two bowls of water and [let the patient] ingest this warm, divided into several portions. Sheng ji fang. 慢脾驚風。利痰奇效,用開元通寶錢背後上下有兩月痕者,其色淡黑,頗 小,以一個放鐵匙上,炭火燒四圍上下,各出珠子,取出候冷,傾入盞 中,作一服,以南木香湯送下,或人參湯亦可。錢雖利痰,非胃家所好, 須以木香佐之。楊仁齋直指方。 Slow spleen fright wind.310 To open the passage for phlegm most effectively, resort to a coin from the kai yuan reign period (713 – 741) that has both on its front and back side, above and below, moon-shape scars. Its color ought to be a pale black, and it should be relatively small. Place it on an iron spoon and heat it over a charcoal fire from above and below and on all for sides. Pearls will appear everywhere. Remove them, wait until they have cooled down, pour them into a small cup and [let the patient] ingest them in one draft, to be sent down with an aucklandia [root] decoction. A ginseng [root] decoction will do, too. Even though coins free the passage of phlegm, they are not good for the stomach. Hence they must be accompanied by aucklandia [root]. Yang Renzai, Zhi zhi fang. 下血不止。大古錢四百文,酒三升,煮二升,分三服。普濟方。 Unending discharge with blood. Boil 400 big ancient coins in three sheng of wine down to two sheng and ingest this divided into three portions. Pu ji fang. 赤白帶下。銅錢四十文,酒四升,煮取二升,分三服。千金方。 Red and white discharge from below the belt. Boil 40 copper coins in four sheng of wine down to two sheng, and ingest this divided into three portions. Qian jin fang. 小便氣淋。比輪錢三百文,水一斗,煮取三升,温服。千金方。 Urine and qi dripping. Boil 300 “wheel-size coins” in one dou of water down to three sheng and ingest this warm. Qian jin fang. 沙石淋痛。古文錢煮汁服。普濟方。 Painful dripping [of urine] with sand and stones. Boil ancient coins with a script and ingest the juice. Pu ji fang.

310 Jing feng 驚風, “fright wind,” a condition of children characterised by jerking and arched back rigidity, eyeballs turned upward, and twitching hands and legs.BCGM Dict I, 261, also 238, 240.

Chapter 8

313

傷水喘急,因年少飲冷水驚恐所致者。古文錢七枚洗净,白梅七個,水一 鍾,同浸三宿,空心一呷,良久得吐,效。仁存方。 Harm caused by water associated with panting and hectic [breathing], if this was caused in one’s youth by drinking cold water and being frightened. Wash seven old coins with a script clean, and soak them together with seven pickled plums in one handleless cup of water for three nights. Sip [the liquid] on an empty stomach. This will result, after quite a long time, in vomiting. Effective. Rencun fang. 唇腫黑痛,痒不可忍。四文大錢于石上磨猪脂汁塗之,不過數遍愈。幼幼 新書。 Lips that are swollen and black, with a pain and unbearable itch. Grind four big coins with lard on a stone and apply the [resulting paste to the affected region]. A cure will be achieved after only a few applications. You you xin shu. 口内熱瘡。青錢二十文,燒赤投酒中服之,立瘥。陳藏器本草。 Heat sores in the mouth. Heat 20 greenish coins until they are red, drop them into wine and ingest the [liquid]. Immediately effective. Chen Cangqi ben cao. 眼赤生瘡,連年不愈。古錢一文,生薑石一個,洗净,以錢于石上磨蜜, 取濃汁三四滴在盞,覆瓦上,以艾灸瓦内七壯,熏蜜,取點之,效。普濟 方。 Sores developing on red eyes that have not been cured for several years. One ancient coin and one piece of unprocessed gravel, washed clean. Apply honey to the piece of gravel and rub it with the coin to collect three to four drops of a viscous juice in a cup. Turn the cup upside down on a tile. Fumigate the honey [juice drops in the cup] on the tile with seven cones of common mugwort [leaves], remove [the juice] and drop it [into the affected region]. Effective. Pu ji fang. 赤目浮瞖。古錢一文,鹽方寸匕,治篩點之。千金方。 Red eyes with a floating shade. [Grind] one ancient coin and the amount of salt held by a square cun spoon [to a powder], give this through a sieve and drop [the resulting fine powder on the affected region]. Qian jin fang. 目卒不見。錢于石上磨汁,注眦中。普濟方。 When the eyes suddenly are unable to see. Grind coins on a stone [with water] to obtain a juice and pour this into the canthi. Pu ji fang. 目生珠管及膚瞖。銅錢青一兩,細墨半兩,爲末,醋丸白豆大。每以一 丸,乳汁、新汲水各少許,浸化點之。聖惠方。

314

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

When the eyes develop a tube of pearls311 and skin shades. [Grind] one liang of verdigris from a copper coin and half a liang of fine ink to a powder and form pills, with vinegar, the size of white beans. Each time soak one pill in small amounts each of a nursing mother’s milk sap and newly drawn water until it has dissolved and drop [the resulting liquid on the affected region]. Sheng hui fang. 腋下胡臭。古文錢十文,鐵線串燒,醋淬十次,入麝香研末調塗。應急良 方。 Barbarian stench under the armpits. Use an iron thread to form a string of ten ancient coins with a script, heat this and dip it into vinegar ten times. Add musk ground to a powder, and apply this mixture [of musk and vinegar to the armpits]. Ying ji liang fang. 跌撲傷損。半兩錢五個,火煅醋淬四十九次,甜瓜子五錢,真珠二錢,研 末。每服一字,好酒調。隨上下食前後。青囊。 Harm and injuries resulting from tumbling and falls. Calcine five coins weighing half a liang over a fire and dip them into vinegar 49 times. Then add [to the liquid] five qian of musk-melon seeds and two qian of genuine pearls ground to a powder. Each time ingest one zi, mixed with good wine, before or after meals depending on whether [the injury] affects the upper or the lower body parts. Qing nan. 誤吞鐵錢。古文銅錢十個,白梅肉十個,淹過即爛搗丸緑豆大,每服一 丸,流水吞下,即吐出。聖濟録。 When someone has inadvertently swallowed an iron coin. Submerge ten ancient copper coins with a script and the meat of ten pickled plums in water until a pulp has formed, pound this to a paste and form pills the size of mung beans. Each time [have] the patient] ingest one pill, to be swallowed with flowing water. He will vomit and throw up [the coin]. Sheng ji lu. 百蟲入耳。青錢十四文,煎猪膏二合,少少滴之。聖濟録。 When any of the hundreds of worms/bugs have entered the ears. Fry 14 greenish coins in two ge of lard and drop the [lard] in small amounts into [the affected ears]. Sheng ji lu. 便毒初起。方見發明下。 Poison affecting the [region of urination and defecation] relief. For the recipe, see under “Explication.” 311 Zhu guan 珠管, “pearls in a tube,” a tumor-illness on the eye, with a crystal clear color reminiscent of pearls in a tube. BCGM Dict I, 691.

Chapter 8

315

08-18 銅弩牙别録下品 Tong nu ya, FE Bie lu, lower rank. Copper notch in crossbows. 【釋名】【時珍曰】黄帝始作弩。劉熙釋名云:弩,怒也,有怒勢也。其 柄曰臂,似人臂也。鉤絃者曰牙,似人牙也。牙外曰郭。下曰懸刀。合名 之曰機。【頌曰】藥用銅弩牙,以其有錫也。 Explanation of Names. [Li] Shizhen: Huang Di was the first to construe crossbows. Liu Xi in his Shi ming states: “Nu 弩, ‘crossbow’, is nu 怒, ‘anger’. [Crossbows] have the strength of anger. The haft [of a crossbow] is called bi 臂; it resembles a human arm, bi 臂. The hook holding the string is called ya 牙; it resembles a human tooth, ya 牙. The surrounding of the ‘tooth’ is called guo 郭, ‘outer wall’. The part below [the ‘tooth’] is called xuan dao 懸刀, ‘hanging knife’. All this together is called ji 機, ‘key mechanism/trigger’.” [Su] Song: For pharmaceutical application the “teeth” of copper crossbows are resorted to because they include tin. 【氣味】平,微毒。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, slightly poisonous. 【主治】婦人難産,血閉,月水不通,陰陽隔塞。别録。 Control. Women with difficult birth, blood blockage, and with an obstruction of the passage of the monthly water. Blocked up movement of yin and yang [qi]. Bie lu. 【發明】【弘景曰】銅弩牙治諸病,燒赤納酒中飲汁,古者彌勝。【劉完 素曰】弩牙速産,以機發而不括,因其用而爲使也。 Explication. [Tao] Hongjing: The “teeth” of copper crossbows serve to cure all types of diseases. Heat them until they have turned red, give them into wine and drink the juice. The older they are the better. Liu Wansu: Crossbow “teeth” speed up delivery. One makes use of the trigger’s function to release, rather then to contract. This is an application based on the actual usage [of an item].

【附方】舊一。 Added Recipes. One of old. 誤吞珠錢,哽在咽者。銅弩牙燒赤,納水中,冷飲汁,立愈。聖惠方。 When someone has inadvertently swallowed a pearl or a coin resulting in a throat obstruction. Heat the “tooth” of a copper crossbow until it has turned red and give

316

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

it into water. When it has cooled down, [let the patient] drink the juice. This will result in an immediate cure. Sheng hui fang. 08-19 諸銅器綱目 Zhu tong qi, FE Gang mu. All types of copper utensils. 【氣味】有毒。【時珍曰】銅器盛飲食茶酒,經夜有毒。煎湯飲,損人 聲。【藏器曰】銅器上汗有毒,令人發惡瘡内疽。 Qi and Flavor. Poisonous. [Li] Shizhen: When beverages, food, tea and wine are left in copper utensils overnight, they are poisonous. When [copper utensils] are used to fry something and to prepare a decoction, this will harm the voice of the people [who eat or drink this]. [Chen] Cangqi: The sweat formed on the surface of copper utensils is poisonous. It lets one effuse malign sores and internal impediment-illness.312 【主治】霍亂轉筋,腎堂及臍下疰痛,並炙器隔衣熨其臍腹腎堂。大明。 古銅器畜之,闢邪祟。時珍。 Control. For cholera with contorted sinews, and for painful attachment illness313 affecting the kidney region and the region below the navel, roast such utensils and press them hot, separated by [the patient’s] clothes, on the region of the navel, the abdomen and the kidneys. Da Ming. When [domestic animals are] raised with [food from] ancient copper utensils, this will keep evil influences away. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】趙希鵠洞天録云:山精水魅多歷年代,故能爲邪祟。 三代鍾鼎彝器,歷年又過之,所以能辟祟也。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: Zhao Xihu in his Dong tian lu states: Mountain spirits and water goblins have existed for many years. Hence they can exert evil influences. Vessels and sacrificial utensils [handed down by at least] three generations are older [than mountain spirits and water goblins]. Hence they are able to repudiate such influences.

312 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277. 313 Zhu 疰, also zhu 注, “attachment-illness,” “influx-illnesss,” reflects a notion of a foreign pathogenic agent, originally of demonic nature, having attached itself to the human organism. BCGM Dict I, 688-695.

Chapter 8

317

08-19-01 銅鈷鉧。Tong gu mu 一作鈷䥈,熨斗也。 Copper flat iron. Also written gu mu 鈷䥈, yun dou 熨斗. 【主治】折傷接骨,搗末研飛,和少酒服,不過二方寸匕。又盛灰火,熨 臍腹冷痛。時珍。 Control. It serves to reconnect fractured bones. Pound it to a powder, refine it with sublimation and [let the patient] ingest it mixed with a little wine. No more than is held by two square cun spoons. Also, fill it with hot ashes and press it on [the patient’s] navel and abdomen where he feels cold and pain. [Li] Shizhen. 08-19-02 銅秤錘。Tong cheng chui. Copper weight. 【主治】産難横生,燒赤淬酒服。大明。 Control. Difficult delivery and transverse presentation. Heat it until it has turned red, dip it in wine and [have the woman] ingest [the liquid]. Da Ming. 08-19-03 銅匙柄。Tong chi bing. Handle of a copper spoon. 【主治】風眼赤爛及風熱赤眼瞖膜,燒熱烙之,頻用妙。時珍。 Control. For red and festering wind eyes314 and red eyes caused by wind and heat with a shade membrane, heat [the handle] until it is hot and press it [on the affected region]. Repeated application will result in a wondrous [effect]. [Li] Shizhen. 08-20 鐵本經下品 Tie, FE Ben jing, lower rank. Iron. 【校正】併入别録 生鐵、拾遺 勞鐵。 Editorial Correction. Pig iron listed separately in the Bie lu and worn out iron listed separately in the Shi yi are included in the present entry. 【釋名】黑金説文、烏金。【時珍曰】鐵,截也,剛可截物也。於五金屬 水,故曰黑金。

314 Feng yan 風眼, “wind eyes,” are red and festering canthi and eyelids brought about by harm caused to the eyes by heat. BCGM Dict I, 171.

318

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Explanation of Names. Hei jin 黑金, “black metal,” Shuo wen. Wu jin 烏金, “black metal.” [Li] Shizhen: Tie 鐵 is jie 截, “to cut.” It is unyielding and enables one to cut items. Among the five metals, it is the one associated with water. Hence it is called “black metal.” 【集解】【别録曰】鐵出牧羊平澤及祊城,或析城,采無時。【弘景曰】 生鐵是不破鑐、鎗、釜之類。鋼鐵是雜鍊生鑐,作刀、鐮者。鑐,音柔。 【頌曰】鐵今江南、西蜀有爐冶處皆有之。初鍊去礦,用以鑄瀉器物者, 爲生鐵。再三銷拍,可以作鐷者爲鑐鐵,亦謂之熟鐵。以生柔相雜和,用 以作刀劍鋒刃者爲鋼鐵。鍛家燒鐵赤沸,砧上打下細皮屑者,爲鐵落。 鍛竈中飛出如塵,紫色而輕虚,可以瑩磨銅器者爲鐵精。作鍼家磨鑢細末 者,謂之鍼砂。取諸鐵于器中水浸之,經久色青沫出可以染皂者爲鐵漿。 以鐵拍作片段,置醋糟中積久衣生刮取者爲鐵華粉。入火飛鍊者爲鐵粉。 又馬銜、秤錘、車轄及鋸、杵、刀、斧,並俗用有效。。【時珍曰】鐵皆 取礦土炒成。秦、晉、淮、楚、湖南、閩、廣諸山中皆産鐵,以廣鐵爲 良。甘肅土錠鐵色黑性堅,宜作刀劍。西番出賓鐵尤勝。寶藏論云:鐵有 五種:荆鐵出當陽,色紫而堅利,上饒鐵次之。賓鐵出波斯,堅利可切金 玉。太原、蜀山之鐵頑滯。剛鐵生西南瘴海中山石上,狀如紫石英,水火 不能壞,穿珠切玉如土也。土宿本草云:鐵受太陽之氣。始生之初,鹵石 産焉。一百五十年而成慈石,二百年孕而成鐵,又二百年不經采鍊而成 銅,銅復化爲白金,白金化爲黄金,是鐵與金銀同一根源也。今取慈石碎 之,内有鐵片,可驗矣。鐵禀太陽之氣而陰氣不交,故燥而不潔。性與錫 相得。管子云:上有赭,下有鐵。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Iron originates in the plains and marshlands of Mu yang and Fang cheng, or Xi cheng. It is collected anytime. [Tao] Hongjing: Pig iron is unforged iron, rou 鑐, [as is used to prepare objects] such as tripods and cauldrons. Steel is refined and forged rou 鑐 iron; it is used to produce knives and sickles. 鑐 is read rou 柔. [Su] Song: Nowadays, iron originates in all the places in Jiang nan and Xu shu where furnaces exist that smelt [iron ore]. In a first step of refinement, the ore is removed and [the liquid iron] is cast and poured to produce utensils and other items. This is the pig iron. With two or three further meltings and hammerings metal sheets are produced that are wrought iron. It is also called “processed iron.” When pig iron and wrought iron are mixed, they can be used to produce blades of knives and swords, and this is steel. When smiths in a forge heat iron until it is read and boils, and hammer it on an anvil, fine pieces and fragments fall down. These are the iron fragments. That which flies like dust from the furnace in a forge, is of purple color and fine without solid matter, and can be used to rub and polish copper utensils, this is “iron essence.” The fine powder resulting from

Chapter 8

319

the rubbing and filing performed by those who prepare needles, it is called “needle sand.” When any type of iron is soaked in a vessel in water and assumes, after a long time, a greenish color and turns into a foam, and can be used for dying, then this is “iron broth/suspension.” When iron is hammered to pieces that are given into vinegar with distillers’ grains, after a long time a coating will develop that can be scraped off and constitutes “iron splendor powder,” (ferrous acetate). When it is exposed to fire and refined through sublimation, it becomes “iron powder.” Also, mouthpieces of the bridles of horses, weights, rings on the naves of wheels, as well as saws, pestles, swords and axes – all these are common items in widespread use. [Li] Shizhen: Iron is always generated by frying iron ore. Iron is produced everywhere in the mountains of Qin, Jin, Huai, Chu, Hu nan, Min and Guang. Iron from Guang is good. “Soil-ingot iron” from Gan su is of black color and has a hard nature; it is suitable for producing knives and swords. “Guest iron” from Western countries is superior to all. The Bao zang lun states: There are five kinds of iron. “Vitex iron” originates in Dang yang. Its color is purple, and it is hard and sharp. Iron from Shang rao is second to it. “Guest iron” originates in Po si/Persia. It is hard and sharp, and with it one can cut through gold and jade. Iron from Tai yuan and Shu shan is blunt and dull. “Unyielding iron” grows on the mountain rocks in Zhang hai in Xi nan. It is shaped like fluor spar, and neither water nor fire can harm it. It can pierce through pearls and cut jade as if they were soil. The Tu su ben cao states: “Iron is endowed with the qi of the major yang/sun. When it develops in its very first stage, it brings forth a salt mineral. After 150 years it evolves to magnetite. After 200 years it brings forth iron. If it is not collected and refined for another 200 years, it evolves to copper. Copper in turn transforms to white metal, and white metal transforms to yellow metal/gold. That is, iron and gold and silver have one identical source. When nowadays magnetite rocks are broken to fragments, inside of it are iron pieces. That is the evidence. Iron is endowed with the qi of major yang, but it has not been affected by yin qi. Hence it is dry and lacks the spotless purity [of gold and silver]. By its nature it gets along with tin.” The Guan zi states: “If hematite grows above, iron will be present below.” 08-20-01 鐵本經。Tie, FE Ben jing. Iron. 【恭曰】此柔鐵也,即熟鐵。【藏器曰】經用辛苦者,曰勞鐵。 [Su] Gong: This is wrought iron, i. e., processed iron. [Chen] Cangqi: The Classic [recommends to] use that which is acrid and bitter. It is called “worn out iron.”

320

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【氣味】辛,平,有毒。【大明曰】畏慈石、火炭,能制石亭脂毒。【斅 曰】鐵遇神砂,如泥似粉。【時珍曰】鐵畏皂莢、猪犬脂、乳香、朴硝、 硇砂、鹽鹵、荔枝。貘食鐵而蛟龍畏鐵。凡諸草木藥皆忌鐵器,而補腎藥 尤忌之,否則反消肝腎,上肝傷氣,母氣愈虚矣。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, balanced, poisonous. Da Ming: [If ingested together,] it fears magnetite and burning charcoal. It is able to check the poison of red sulphur. [Lei] Xiao: When iron meets cinnabar, it becomes a mud-like powder. [Li] Shizhen. Iron fears gleditsia [seeds], the fat of pigs and dogs, frankincense, mirabilite, sal ammoniac, brine and lychee. Tapirs eat iron; flood dragons fear iron. In [the preparation of ] all types of medication produced from herbs and trees, iron utensils are to be avoided. And this is especially so in view of medication aimed at supplementing the kidneys, lest it dissolve liver and kidneys. If the liver qi are harmed above, their mother qi (i. e., the kidney qi) will be increasingly depleted. 【主治】堅𦠄耐痛。本經。勞鐵:療賊風,燒赤投酒中飲。藏器。 Control. It hardens the muscles so that they can stand pain. Ben jing. Worn out iron serves to heal robber wind.315 Heat it until it has turned red, drop it into wine and drink this. [Chen] Cangqi. 08-20-02 生鐵别録中品。Sheng tie, FE Bie lu, middle rank. Pig iron. 【氣味】辛,微寒,微毒。見鐵下。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, slightly cold, slightly poisonous. See under “iron.” 【主治】下部及脱肛。别録。鎮心安五臟,治癇疾,黑鬢髮。治癬及惡瘡 疥,蜘蛛咬,蒜磨,生油調傅。大明。散瘀血,消丹毒。時珍。 Control. [Diseases affecting] the lower body parts and anal prolapse. Bie lu. It presses down [the qi of ] the heart and pacifies the five long-term depots. To cure epilepsy illness, to blacken beard and hair on the head, to cure xuan-illness316 and malign sores with jie-illness,317 as well as spider bites, grind [pig iron] with garlic, mix [the resulting paste] with fresh oil and apply [this to the affected region]. Da Ming. It serves to disperse stagnant blood and to dissolve cinnabar poison.318 [Li] Shizhen. 315 Zei feng 賊風, “robber wind.” Various pathological conditions caused by qi that has invaded the human organism from outside. BCGM Dict I 667. 316 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591. 317 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely identifiable skin ailment. BCGM Dict Vol. I, 249. 318 Dan du 丹毒, “cinnabar poison,” a skin ailment with red rashes. BCGM Dict I, 118

Chapter 8

321

【發明】【恭曰】諸鐵療病,並不入丸散,皆煮取汁用之。【藏器曰】鐵 砂、鐵精,並入丸散。【時珍曰】鐵於五金,色黑配水,而其性則制木, 故癇疾宜之。素問治陽氣太盛,病狂善怒者,用生鐵落,正取伐木之義。 日華子言其鎮心安五臟,豈其然哉。本草載太清服食法,言服鐵傷肺者, 乃肝字之誤。 Explication. [Su] Gong: Whenever iron [is resorted to to] heal a disease, it cannot be added to pills and powders. It is always to be boiled, and the resulting juice is then used [for therapeutic purposes]. [Chen] Cangqi: Iron sand and iron essence are both added to pills and powder. [Li] Shizhen: Among the five metals, iron is of black color and it is associated with water. By its nature it checks wood. Hence it is suitable for [curing] epilepsy illness. For a cure of excessive abundance of yang qi, with [the patient] suffering from madness and a tendency to be angry, the Su wen [recommends to] use iron fragments. This is correctly the meaning [of “metal] fells wood.” When Rihua zi says: “It presses down [the qi of ] the heart and pacifies the five long-term depots,” how could this be in fact so? The Ben cao has a record of “the method of Great Purity to ingest and consume [an hermit/immortal’s powder].” When it states that “ingesting iron harms the lung,” then this is an error in writing and should be: “[harms the] liver.”

【附方】舊五,新一。 Added Recipes. Five of old. One newly [recorded] 脱肛歷年不入者。生鐵二斤,水一斗,煮汁五升洗之,日再。集驗方。 Anal prolapse with [the intestine] not having entered [the abdomen again] for several years. Boil two jin of pig iron in one dou of water and use five sheng of the resulting juice to wash the [affected region]. Twice a day. Ji yan fang. 熱甚耳聾。燒鐵投酒中飲之,仍以慈石塞耳,日易,夜去之。千金方。 Extreme heat causing deafness. Heat iron, drop it into wine and drink it. In addition, stuff the ears with magnetite, to be exchanged daily and to be removed by night. Qian jin fang. 小兒丹毒。燒鐵淬水,飲一合。陳氏本草。 Children with cinnabar poison.319 Heat iron and dip it into water, and [have the child] drink one ge [of the liquid]. Chen shi ben cao. 小兒燥瘡。一名爛瘡。燒鐵淬水中二七遍,浴之二三遍,起作漿。子母秘 録。 319 Dan du 丹毒, “cinnabar poison,” a skin ailment with red rashes. BCGM Dict I, 118

322

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Dry sores of children, also called “festering sores.” Heat iron and dip it into water two times seven times. Bathe [the child in the water] two or three times. When it rises [from the water, the dry sores] will develop thick fluid. Chen shi ben cao. 打撲瘀血。在骨節及脇外不去,以生鐵一斤,酒三升,煮一升服。肘後方。 Stagnant blood caused by a blow. When it is in the joints and outside the ribs and fails to go away, boil one jin of pig iron in three sheng of wine down to one sheng and ingest this. Zhou hou fang. 熊虎傷毒。生鐵煮令有味,洗之。肘後方。 Harm with poison caused by bears and tigers. Boil pig iron until it emits an odor and wash the [affected region with the resulting liquid]. Zhou hou fang. 08-21 鋼鐵别録中品 Gang tie, FE Bie lu, middle rank. Steel. 【校正】併入開寶 鐵粉、拾遺 鍼砂。 Editorial Correction. [Steel] iron powder listed separately in the Kai bao and iron sand listed separately in the Shi yi are included in the present entry. 【釋名】跳鐵音條。 Explanation of Names. Tiao tie 跳鐵, “beaten iron,” read tiao 條。 【集解】【時珍曰】鋼鐵有三種:有生鐵夾熟鐵鍊成者,有精鐵百鍊出鋼 者,有西南海山中生成狀如紫石英者。凡刀劍斧鑿諸刃,皆是鋼鐵。其鍼 砂、鐵粉、鐵精,亦皆用鋼鐵者。按沈括筆談云:世用鋼鐵,以柔鐵包生 鐵,泥封,鍊令相入,謂之團鋼,亦曰灌鋼,此乃僞鋼也。真鋼是精鐵百 煉,至斤兩不耗者,純鋼也。此乃鐵之精純,其色明瑩,磨之黯然青且 黑,與常鐵異。亦有鍊盡無鋼者,地産不同也。又有地溲,淬柔鐵二三 次,即鋼,可切玉,見石腦油下。凡鐵内有硬處不可打者,名鐵核。以香 油塗,燒之即散。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: There are three kinds of steel. There is [steel] produced by refining with heat pig iron enclosed by processed iron. There is steel produced by refining with heat iron essence one hundred times. And there is [steel] shaped like fluor spar that grows in the mountains of Xi nan hai. All knives, swords, axes and chisels have blades made of steel. Iron sand, iron powder and iron essence, too, are all made of steel. According to Shen Kua’s Bi tan, “wherever steel is used, wrought iron is enclosed with pig iron and sealed with mud. This is refined with

Chapter 8

323

heat to have the [two types of iron] enter each other. The [resulting product] is called ‘rolled iron’ and also ‘poured iron’. It is false steel. Genuine steel is produced from iron essence. It is refined with heat 100 times until no [substance that could be weighed in] jin and liang is left. This then is pure steel. This is the pure essence of steel. Its color is clear and lustrous. When polished, it assumes a gloomy greenish, even black, color. This is different from ordinary iron. It happens that all [substance] is consumed during its refinement, with no steel resulting. This is different according to the ground where it has developed.” It is also possible to temper wrought iron by dipping it into “earth urine” (naphtha) two or three times and thereby to generate steel. It enables one to cut jade. It occurs below deposits of naphtha. Whenever inside of iron one encounters hard loci that cannot be crushed, one speaks of “iron kernels.” They are dispersed by applying sesame oil to them and then heating them. 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】金瘡,煩滿熱中,胸膈氣塞,食不化。别録。 Control. Wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. Unrest with a sensation of fullness and heat in the center, and blocked qi in chest and diaphragm, with a failure to transform/digest food. Bie lu. 08-21-01 鐵粉宋開寶。Tie fen, FE Song, Kai bao. Iron powder. 【恭曰】乃鋼鐵飛鍊而成者。人多取雜鐵作屑飛之,其體重,真鋼者不爾 也。 [Su] Gong: This is produced from steel by means of heat refinement with sublimation. The people often mix it with iron to produce, with sublimation, fragments with a heavy body weight. [Those made of ] genuine steel are not that [heavy]. 【氣味】鹹,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】安心神,堅骨髓,除百病。變黑,潤𦠄膚,令人不老,體健能 食,久服令人身重肥黑。合和諸藥,各有所主。開寶。化痰鎮心,抑肝 邪,特異。許叔微。 Control. It pacifies the spirit in the heart. It strengthens bones and marrow. It eliminates the hundreds of diseases. It darkens [the complexion] and moistens muscles and skin. It keeps one from aging and lets the body remain healthy and able to eat.

324

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Ingested over a long time, it makes the body heavy, fat and dark. If mixed with all types of medication, it [supports] the special potential of each of them. Kai bao. It transforms phlegm and presses down [the qi of ] the heart. It curbs evil [qi] in the liver. It is exceptionally good. Xu Shuwei. 【發明】見鐵落下。 Explication. See under “iron fragments.”

【附方】新六。 Added Recipes. Six newly [recorded] 驚癇發熱。鐵粉,水調少許服之。聖惠方。 Fright epilepsy with heat effusion. [Let the patient] ingest a small amount of iron powder mixed with water. Sheng hui fang. 急驚涎潮,壯熱悶亂。鐵粉二錢,朱砂一錢,爲末,每服一字,薄荷湯調 下。楊氏家藏方。 Acute fright with billowing saliva, strong heat, heart pressure and confusion. [Grind] two qian of iron powder and one qian of cinnabar to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest one zi, to be sent down with a mint decoction. Yang shi jia cang fang. 傷寒陽毒,狂言妄語亂走,毒氣在臟也。鐵粉二兩,一兩,爲末。磨刀水 調服一錢,小兒五分。全幼心鑑。 When harm caused by cold with yang poison320 is associated with mad talking, absurd language and confused running, the poison qi are in the long-term depots. [Grind] two liang of iron powder and one liang of gentiana [root] to a powder, mix it with water used to grind knives and [let the patient] ingest one qian. Children [are to ingest] five fen. Quan you xin jian. 頭痛鼻塞。鐵粉二兩,龍腦半分,研匀,每新汲水服一錢。聖惠方。 Headache and stuffed nose. [Grind] two liang of iron powder and half a fen of borneol to an evenly mixed powder. Each time ingest with newly drawn water one qian. Sheng hui fang.

320 Yang du 陽毒, “yang poison,” is harm caused by cold resulting in a flourishing of yang qi and a diminution of yin qi. BCGM Dict I, 616.

Chapter 8

325

雌雄疔瘡。鐵粉一兩,蔓菁根三兩,搗如泥封之,日二换。集玄方。 Female and male pin-illness321 sores. Grind one liang of iron powder with three liang of turnip roots to a pulp and seal [the sores] with it. To be replaced twice a day. Ji xuan fang. 風熱脱肛。鐵粉研,同白歛末傅上,按入。直指方。 Wind heat and anal prolapse. Grind iron powder and mix it with ampelopsis [root] powder to be applied [to the affected region]. Then push [the prolapse back] into [the abdomen]. Zhi zhi fang. 08-21-02 鍼砂拾遺。Zhen sha, FE Shi yi. Needle sand. 【藏器曰】此是作鍼家磨鑢細末也。須真鋼砂乃堪用,人多以柔鐵砂雜和 之,飛爲粉,人莫能辨也。亦堪染皂。 [Chen] Cangqi: This is the fine powder generated by experts who grind and file iron needles. If it is genuine steel sand it can be used [for therapeutic purposes]. The people often mix it with wrought iron sand, and produce, with sublimation, a powder. Nobody is able to distinguish the one from the other. It is also suitable for dying. 【主治】功同鐵粉。和没食子染鬚至黑。藏器。消積聚腫滿黄疸,平肝 氣,散癭。時珍。 Control. Its [therapeutic] functions are identical to those of iron powder. Mixed with nutgalls it is used to dye beards black. [Chen] Cangqi. It dissolves accumulations and collections associated with swelling and a feeling of fullness, as well as yellow dan-illness.322 It levels the liver qi and disperses goiters. [Li] Shizhen.

【附方】新十。 Added Recipes. Ten newly [recorded] 風濕脚痛。鍼砂、川烏頭爲末,和匀炒熱,綿包熨之。摘玄方。 Painful legs caused by wind and moisture. [Grind] needle sand and Sichuan aconitum [main tuber] to an evenly mixed powder, fry it until it is hot, wrap it in silk floss and press this hot [on the affected region]. Zhai xuan fang. 321 Ding 丁, “pin[-illness],” also ding 疔, “pin-illness,” refers to a deep-reaching and festering hardness in a tissue, eventually rising above the skin like a pinhead. BCGM Dict I, 127129. 322 Huang dan 黄疸, most likely including cases of jaundice. BCGM Dict I, 225.

326

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

風痺暖手。鐵砂四兩,硇砂三錢,黑脚白礬六錢,研末,以熱醋或水拌 濕,油紙裹置袋内,任意執之,冷再拌。聖濟録。 Warm hands caused by wind blockage.323 Grind four liang of needle sand, three qian of sal ammoniac and six qian of alum with black sediment to a powder. Moisten [the powder] with hot vinegar or water, wrap it in oil paper, place this into a bag and hold it [in the affected hand] as required. When it has cooled down, prepare a [hot] mixture again. Sheng ji lu. 脾勞黄病。鍼砂四兩,醋炒七次,乾漆燒存性二錢,香附三錢,平胃散五 錢,爲末,蒸餅丸梧子大,任湯使下。摘玄方。 Spleen exhaustion resulting in jaundice. [Grind] four liang of needle sand fried in vinegar seven times, two qian of dried lacquer burned with its nature retained, three qian of cyperus [root] and five qian of the “powder to level the stomach”324 to a powder and form, with steamed cakes, pills the size of wu seeds to be sent down, when required, with hot water. Zhai xuan fang. 濕熱黄瘡。助脾去濕。鍼砂丸:用鍼砂不拘多少,擂盡鏽,淘洗白色,以 米醋於鐵銚内浸過一指,炒乾,再炒三五次,候通紅取出。用陳粳米半 升,水浸一夜,搗粉作塊,煮半熟,杵爛,入鍼砂二兩半,百草霜炒一兩 半,搗千下,丸梧子大。每服五十丸,用五加皮、牛膝根、木瓜浸酒下。 初服若泄瀉,其病源去也。乾坤生意。 Yellow sores caused by moisture and heat. To support the spleen and remove the moisture. The “pills with needle sand”: Take any amount of needle sand, rub it to remove all rust and wash it until it has assumed a white color. Then give it into an iron kettle and let it soak in as much rice vinegar as is required to fill [the kettle] up to one finger above [the needle sand]. Fry this until all the liquid has dried. Fry this again three to five times until [the needle] sand is thoroughly red and remove it. Then soak half a sheng of long kept nonglutinous rice in water for one night, pound the powder until it forms lumps and boil them until half done. Now pestle them to a pulp and add to it two and a half qian of the needle sand and one and a half liang of soot scratched from within a chimney of a furnace where all types of herbs had been burned. Pound this one thousand times and form pills the size of wu seeds. Each time [let the patient] ingest 50 pills, to be sent down with acanthopanax [root bark], achyranthes [root] and chaenomeles fruit soaked in wine. If after a first inges-

323 Feng bi 風痺, “wind blockage,” diseases resulting mostly from an intrusion of wind evil. BCGM Dict I, 158. 324 The ingredients include: Magnolia bark, ginger juice, tangerine peels, glycyrrhiza [root], atractylodes [rhizome], fresh ginger, and Chinese dates.

Chapter 8

327

tion he experiences an outflow, then this serves to remove the source of the disease. Qian kun sheng yi. 水腫尿少。鍼砂醋煮炒乾、猪苓、生地龍各三錢,爲末,葱涎研和,傅臍 中約一寸厚,縛之,待小便多爲度,日二易之。入甘遂更妙。德生堂方。 Water swelling and diminished urination. [Grind] three qian each of needle sand boiled in vinegar and fried until the liquid has dried, polyporus sclerotium and unprocessed Chinese foxglove [rhizome] to a powder. Mix it with onions ground with saliva and apply it to [the patient’s] navel forming a layer approximately one cun thick. Bandage this until urination is copious again. Exchange the [bandage] twice a day. If kansui [root] is added, it is even more wondrous. De sheng tang fang. 泄瀉無度。諸藥不效,方同上,不用甘遂。醫學正傳。 Unending outflow, with all types of medication remaining without effect. The recipe is identical to the one above, but do not use kansui [root]. Yi xue zheng chuan. 虚寒下痢,腸滑不禁。鍼砂七錢半,官桂一錢,枯礬一錢,爲末,以凉水 調攤臍上下,縛之。當覺大熱,以水潤之。可用三四次,名玉胞肚。仁存 方。 Discharge with free-flux illness325 caused by depletion cold, with a smooth intestinal passage that cannot be stopped. [Grind] seven and a half qian of needle sand, one qian of processed cinnamomum cassia bark and one qian of prepared alum to a powder, mix it with cold water, apply it above and below the navel and bandage this. [The patient] will have a sensation of extreme heat, and [the affected region] is to be moistened with water. This can be applied three to four times. It is called “jade womb belly.” Ren cun fang. 項下氣癭。鍼砂入水缸中浸之,飲食皆用此水,十日一换砂,半年自消 散。楊仁齋直指方。 Qi goiter below the nape. Soak needle sand in a jar with water and use this water for all drinking and eating. Exchange the [needle] sand once a day. After half a year the goiter will have dissolved and dispersed as a result. Yang Renzhai, Zhi zhi fang. 染白鬚髮。鍼砂醋炒七次一兩,訶子、白及各四錢,百藥煎六錢,緑礬二 錢,爲末,用熱醋調刷鬚髮,菜葉包住,次早酸漿洗去。此不壞鬚,亦不 作紅。 To dye a white beard and hair on the head. [Grind] one liang of needle sand fried in vinegar seven times, four liang each of terminalia fruit and common bletilla [root], six qian of ferment prepared from Chinese nutgalls and tea leaves, and two qian of 325 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

328

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

melanterite to a powder. Mix it with hot vinegar and brush it into the beard and the hair. Wrap [the beard and the hair] with cabbage leaves. The next morning wash all this off with fermented water of foxtail millet. This [procedure] does not harm the beard, and it prevents it from turning red. 又方:鍼砂、蕎麪各一兩,百藥煎爲末,茶調,夜塗旦洗。再以訶子五 錢,没石子醋炒一個,百藥煎少許,水和塗一夜,温漿洗去,黑而且光。 Another recipe: Mix a powder of one liang each of needle sand and buckwheat, and leaven of Chinese nutgalls and tea leaves, with tea, apply this [to the beard and the hair] at night and wash it off the following morning. Then again mix five qian of terminalia fruit, one nutgall fried in vinegar and a small amount of leaven of Chinese nutgalls and tea leaves with water and apply this for none night, to be washed off with warm fermented water of foxtail millet [the next morning]. [Beard and hair] will be black and lustrous. 08-22 鐵落本經中品 Tie luo, FE Ben jing, middle rank. Iron fragments. 【釋名】鐵液别録、鐵屑拾遺、鐵蛾。【弘景曰】鐵落,是染皂鐵漿也。 【恭曰】是鍛家燒鐵赤沸,砧上鍛之,皮甲落者。若以漿爲鐵落,則鋼浸 之汁,復謂何等?落是鐵皮,滋液黑於餘鐵,故又名鐵液。【時珍曰】生 鐵打鑄,皆有花出,如蘭如蛾,故俗謂之鐵蛾,今煙火家用之。鐵末浸醋 書字於紙,背後塗墨,如碑字也。 Explanation of Names. Tie ye 鐵液, “iron liquid,” Bie lu. Tie xie 鐵屑, “iron fragments,” Shi yi. Tie e 鐵蛾, “iron moths.” [Tao] Hongjing: Iron fragments are an iron broth/suspension used to dye [beard and hair on the head] black. [Su] Gong: These are [the fragments] that fall down on a leather plate when iron smiths forge iron, heated until it is red and bubbling, on an anvil. If, [as stated by Tao Hongjing], iron fragments were identical to an [iron] broth/suspension, then how should one call the juice resulting from soaking steel? [Iron] fragments are the skin of iron. The liquid [obtained by soaking them in water] is deeper black than any other iron [liquid]. Hence it is also named “iron liquid.” [Li] Shizhen: Whenever pig iron is hammered for casting, [fragments shaped like] flowers will be released. They may resemble orchids or moths. Hence [iron fragments] are commonly called “iron moths.” Today they are used by firms producing fireworks. When iron powder is soaked in vinegar and [the liquid is then] used to write characters on paper, and if

Chapter 8

329

then ink is applied to the back [of the paper, the writing] will resemble characters written on a stone tablet. 【氣味】辛,平,無毒。【别録曰】甘。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, balanced, nonpoisonous. Bie lu: Sweet. 【主治】風熱惡瘡,瘍疽瘡痂,疥氣在皮膚中。本經。除胸膈中熱氣,食 不下,止煩,去黑子,可以染皂。别録。風熱惡瘡,瘍疽瘡痂,疥氣在皮 膚中。《本經》。除胸膈中熱氣,食不下,止煩,去黑子,可以染皂。《 别録》。治驚邪癲癇,小兒客忤,消食及冷氣,並煎服之。大明。主鬼打 鬼疰邪氣,水漬沫出,澄清,暖飲一二盃。藏器。炒熱投酒中飲,療賊風 痙。又裹以熨腋下,療胡臭有驗。蘇恭。平肝去怯,治善怒發狂。時珍。 Control. Wind heat associated with malign sores. Ulcers, impediment-illness326 and sores with crust. When the qi of a jie-illness327 are in the skin. Ben jing. They remove heat qi from within the chest and diaphragm region, when food fails to move down. They end unrest, remove black moles and can be used for dying. Bie lu. To cure fright evil and peak-illness328 with epilepsy, and children visited by the hostile, and to dissolve food and cold qi, ingest them fried. Da Ming. To control demon blows, demon attachment illness329 and evil qi, soak them in water until they emit a foam, let the dregs settle to obtain a clear liquid and [let the patient] ingest warm one or two cups. [Chen] Cangqi. When they are fried until they are hot and are then dropped into wine and [the wine is] drunk, this serves to heal robber wind330 spasms. Also, wrapped [in a piece of fabric] and pressed hot on the armpits, they effectively heal barbarian stench. Su Gong. They level the liver [qi] and remove timidity. They serve to cure a tendency to be angry and outbreaks of madness. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】按素問 病態論云:帝曰:有病怒狂者,此病安生? 岐伯曰:生於陽也。陽氣者,暴折而不决,故善怒,病名陽厥。曰:何以 知之?曰:陽明者常動,巨陽、少陽不動而動大疾,此其候也。治之當奪 其食則已。夫食入於陰,長氣於陽,故奪其食即已。以生鐵落爲飲。夫生 326 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277. 327 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely identifiable skin ailment. BCGM Dict Vol. I, 249. 328 Dian 顛, “peak[-illness],” also 癲, vaguely defined mental derangement. BCGM Dict I, 124. 329 Zhu 疰, also zhu 注, “attachment-illness,” “influx-illnesss,” reflects a notion of a foreign pathogenic agent, originally of demonic nature, having attached itself to the human organism. BCGM Dict I, 688-695. 330 Zei feng 賊風, “robber wind.” Various pathological conditions caused by qi that has invaded the human organism from outside. BCGM Dict I 667.

330

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

鐵落者,下氣疾也。此素問本文也。愚嘗釋之云:陽氣怫鬱而不得疏越, 少陽膽木挾三焦少陽相火、巨陽陰火上行,故使人易怒如狂,其巨陽、少 陽之動脉,可診之也。奪其食,不使胃火復助其邪也。飲以生鐵落,金以 制木也。木平則火降,故曰下氣疾速,氣即火也。又李仲南永類方云:腫 藥用鐵蛾及鍼砂入丸子者,一生須斷鹽。蓋鹽性濡潤,腫若再作,不可爲 矣。制法:用上等醋煮半日,去鐵蛾,取醋和,蒸餅爲丸。每薑湯服三四 十丸,以效爲度。亦只借鐵氣爾,故日華子云煎汁服之。不留滯於臟腑, 借鐵虎之氣以制肝木,使不能尅脾土,土不受邪則水自消矣。鐵精、鐵 粉、鐵華粉、鍼砂、鐵漿,入藥皆同此意。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: According to the Su wen, (treatise 46) “On Disease Manifestation,” “[Huang] Di asks: Someone suffers from anger and craziness, how does this disease emerge? Qi Bo replies: It emerges from the yang. As for the yang qi, because [their flow] was suddenly cut off and because [this blockage] is difficult to open, one tends to be angry The disease is called ‘yang recession.’ [Huang Di] asks: How does one know this? [Qi Bo] replies: The yang brilliance [qi] are in permanent movement. The great yang [qi] and the minor yang [qi] do not move. While [usually] they do not move, [in the present case] they move with great speed. This is the manifestation of that [disease. To treat it,] deprive the [patient] of his food and [the disease] will end. Now, food enters the yin, and supports the growth of qi in the yang. Hence, if one deprives the [patient] of his food, [the disease] will end. Let the [patient] consume a drink of fresh iron fragments. Now, fresh iron fragments cause qi to move down quickly.” This is the original text of the Su wen. I myself have interpreted this [text] as follows. When the yang qi, because of anger, are pent-up and cannot flow freely, the minor yang, i. e., the wood of the gall bladder, together with the minor yang, i.e., the minister fire of the Triple Burner, and the yin fire of great yang move upward and cause one to easily become angry, as if it were madness. This can be diagnosed through the movements in the vessels of great yang and minor yang. To deprive [a patient] of food is meant to prevent the fire of his stomach to further support the evil [qi]. He is to drink pig iron fragments because metal controls wood. Once the wood [qi] are balanced, the fire will decrease. Hence [the Su wen] states: “They cause the qi to move down quickly.” With “qi” the fire is meant here. Also, Li Zhongnan in his Yong lei fang states: “When [patients ingest] pills with iron moths and needle sand as medication for [water] swelling, they must abstain from salt for their entire life. The fact is, salt is by nature moistening. If the [water] swelling breaks out again, nothing can be done about it. The method to prepare [iron fragments for a medicinal treatment]: Boil them in best quality vinegar for half a day, remove the iron moths and mix the vinegar with steamed cakes to prepare pills. Each time ingest, with a ginger decoction, 30 to 40 pills until an effect

Chapter 8

331

is evident.” This is to only avail oneself of the qi of iron [fragments]. Hence Rihua zi states: “Boil [them to obtain] a juice and ingest it. To prevent something from being retained in the long-term depots and short-term repositories, resort to the tiger-like qi of iron to control the liver, i. e., the wood, lest it can conquer the spleen, i. e., the soil. Once the soil no longer receives evil [qi], the water will disperse by itself.” To add iron essence, iron powder, powder of iron splendor, needle sand and iron broth/ suspension to medication is always based on this idea.

【附方】新一。 Added Recipes. One newly [recorded] 小兒丹毒。鍛鐵屎研末,猪脂和傅之。千金方。 Cinnabar poison of children.331 Grind “iron droppings” left after forging iron, mix them with lard and apply this [to the affected region]. Qian jin fang. 08-23 鐵精本經中品 Tie jing, FE Ben jing, middle rank. Iron essence. 【釋名】鐵花。【弘景曰】鐵精,鐵之精華也。出鍛竈中,如塵紫色,輕 者爲佳。亦以摩瑩銅器用之。 Explanation of Names. Tie hua 鐵花, “iron fragments.” [Tao] Hongjing: “Iron essence” is the essence splendor of iron. It originates in the furnace of a forge. It resembles purple dust. When it is of light weight it is best. It is also used for polishing copper utensils and gives them a lustrous appearance. 【氣味】平,微温。 Qi and Flavor. Balanced, slightly warm. 【主治】明目,化銅。本經。療驚悸,定心氣,小兒風癇,陰㿉脱肛。别 録。 Control. It clears the eyes. It transforms copper. Ben jing. It cures fright palpitation, stabilizes the heart qi and children with wind epilepsy, yin (i.e. scrotal) prominence-illness and anal prolapse. Bie lu. 【發明】見鐵落。 Explication. See under “iron fragments.” (08-22) 331 Dan du 丹毒, “cinnabar poison,” a skin ailment with red rashes. BCGM Dict I, 118

332

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 【附方】舊五,新二。 Added Recipes. Five of old. Two newly [recorded].

下痢脱肛。鐵精粉之。至寶方。 Discharge with free-flux illness332 and anal prolapse. Powder the [affected region] with iron essence. Zhi bao fang. 女人陰脱。鐵精、羊脂,布裹炙熱,熨推之。聖惠方。 Yin (i. e., uterus) prolapse of women. Wrap iron essence and sheep fat in a piece of cloth, fry it until it is hot and press this hot on the [affected region]. Sheng hui fang. 男子陰腫。鐵精粉傅之。子母秘録。 Swelling of the yin [(i.e., genital) region] of males. Apply iron essence powder [to the affected region]. Zi mu mi lu. 疔腫拔根。鐵渣一兩,輕粉一錢,麝香少許,爲末。針畫十字口,點藥入 内,醋調麪糊傅之,神效。普濟方。 To extract the root of a pin-illness333 with a swelling. [Grind] one liang of iron sediments, one qian of calomel and a small amount of musk to a powder. With a needle write the character 十 on the opening [of the pin-illness] and apply the medication into it. Then mix vinegar with a flour-water paste and apply this [to the affected region]. Divinely effective. Pu ji fang. 食中有蠱。腹内堅痛,面目青黄,淋露骨立,病變無常。用爐中鐵精研 末,鷄肝和丸梧子大,食前酒下五丸,不過十日愈。肘後。 When there were worms/bugs in one’s food, causing a hardening and pain felt in the abdomen. The face and the eyes being greenish and yellow, with sweat dripping like dew drops. The bones are visible under the skin and the disease takes irregular turns. Grind iron essence from a furnace to a powder, mix it with chicken liver and form pills the size of wu seeds. Prior to meals send five pills down with wine. A cure will be achieved after no more than ten days. Zhou hou. 蛇骨刺人毒痛。鐵精粉豆許,吹入瘡内。肘後方。 Painful poison after a snake bone has pierced a person. Blow iron essence powder, approximately the amount of a soybean, into the sore/wound. Zhou hou fang.

332 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 333 Ding 丁, “pin[-illness],” also ding 疔, “pin-illness,” refers to a deep-reaching and festering hardness in a tissue, eventually rising above the skin like a pinhead. BCGM Dict I, 127129.

Chapter 8

333

08-24 鐵華粉宋開寶 Tie hua fen, FE Song, Kai bao. Iron splendor powder. 【釋名】鐵胤粉日華、鐵艷粉、鐵霜。 Explanation of Names. Tie yin fen 鐵胤粉, “iron descendant powder,” Rihua. Tie yan fen 鐵艷粉, “iron gorgeous powder.” Tie shuang 鐵霜, “iron frost.” 【修治】【志曰】作鐵華粉法:取鋼鍛作葉,如笏或團,平面磨錯令光 净,以鹽水洒之,於醋甕中,陰處埋之一百日,鐵上衣生,即成粉矣。刮 取細搗篩,入乳鉢研如麪,和合諸藥爲丸散,此鐵之精華,功用强於鐵粉 也。【大明曰】懸於醬瓿上生霜者,名鐵胤粉。淘去粗滓鹹味,烘乾用。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Ma] Zhi: The method to produce iron splendor powder. Forge steel to prepare leaves or balls and rub the surface with vinegar to let it applear lustrous and clean. Then spray brine on it, give it into a jar with vinegar and bury it at a shady place for one hundred days. A coating that has developed on the surface of the iron is to be scraped off and pounded through a fine sieve into a mortar wher it is ground [to obtain a powder] like flour. This is to be mixed with any medication to form pills and powders. This then is the essence splendor of iron, and its [therapeutic] effects are stronger than those of iron powder. Da Ming: When it is hung above a jar with meat sauce and develops a frost [on its surface], this is called “iron gorgeous powder.” Remove its coarse dregs with their salt flavor, and dry the [powder] over heat to prepare it for [medicinal] usage. 【氣味】鹹,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】安心神,堅骨髓,强志力,除風邪,養血氣,延年變白,去百 病,隨所冷熱,和諸藥用棗膏爲丸。開寶。止驚悸虚癇,鎮五臟,去邪 氣,治健忘,冷氣心痛,痃癖癥結,脱肛痔瘻,宿食等,及傅竹木刺入 肉。大明。 Control. It pacifies the heart spirit, solidifies the bones and the marrow, strengthens the mind, removes wind evil, nourishes blood and qi, extends the years [of life], prevents [beard and hair] from turning white and removes the hundreds of diseases. According to whether [the patient] is affected by cold or heat, mix it with any type of medication, and with date pulp to form pills. Kai bao. It ends fright palpitation, and depletion epilepsy. It presses down [the qi of ] the five long-term depots, removes evil qi, and serves to treat forgetfulness, heart pain caused by cold

334

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

qi, string-illness334 with aggregation-illness and concretion-illness nodes, anal prolapse and piles fistula, as well as food that has remained [in the body] overnight. It is applied where bamboo or wood splinters have pierced into one’s flesh. Da Ming. 【發明】見鐵落。 Explication. See “Iron fragments.” (08-22)

【附方】新一。 Added Recipes. One newly [recorded] 婦人陰挺。鐵孕粉一錢,龍腦半錢,研,水調刷産門。危氏得效方。 Yin (i.e., vaginal) prolapse of women. Grind one qian of first grade iron powder and half a qian of borneol [to a powder], mix it with water and brush this on the birth gate. Wei shi de xiao fang. 08-25 鐵鏽拾遺 Tie xiu, FE Shi yi. Iron rust. 【釋名】鐵衣。【藏器曰】此鐵上赤衣也。刮下用。 Explanation of Names. Tie yi 鐵衣, “iron coating.” [Chen] Cangqi: This is a red coating developing on iron. It is scraped off for [pharmaceutical] usage. 【主治】惡瘡疥癬,和油塗之。蜘蛛蟲咬,蒜磨塗之。藏器。平肝墜熱, 消瘡腫、口舌瘡。醋磨,塗蜈蚣咬。時珍。 Control. For malign sores, jie-illness335 and xuan-illness,336 mix it with oil and apply it [to the affected region]. For the bites of spiders and worms/bugs, grind it with garlic and rub it [to the affected region]. [Chen] Cangqi: [It serves to] balance liver [qi] and to bring down heat, to dissolve sores with swelling and sores affecting mouth and tongue. Grind it with vinegar and apply it to the bites of centipedes. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】按陶華云:鐵鏽水和藥服,性沉重,最能墜熱開結, 有神也。 334 Xuan 痃, “string-illness,” a condition of acute pain located in the abdomen to the left and right of the umbilicus. BCGM Dict I, 591. 335 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely defined skin ailment. BCGM Dict I, 249. 336 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591.

Chapter 8

335

Explication. [Li] Shizhen: According to Tao Hua, “iron rust ingested mixed with water and medication is by its nature heavy and sinks down. It is very much able to bring down heat and to open nodes. It has divine [effects].”

【附方】新八。 Added Recipes. Eight newly [recorded] 風瘙癮疹。鏽鐵磨水塗之。集簡方。 Wind with itching and dormant papules. Rub iron rust in water and apply this [to the affected region]. Ji jian fang. 湯火傷瘡。青竹燒油,同鐵鏽搽之。積德堂方。 Harm with sores caused by hot water and fire. Heat greenish bamboo until it emits oil. Mix it with iron rust and apply this [to the affected region]. Ji de tang fang. 丁腫初起。多年土内鏽釘,火鍛醋淬,刮下鏽末,不論遍次,煅取收之。 每用少許,人乳和,挑破傅之。仍炒研二錢,以虀水煎滚,待冷調服。普 濟方。 A pin[-illness]337 swelling when it just begins to rise. Forge/calcine on fire a nail that has corroded for many years and dip it into vinegar. Scrape off the rust, regardless off how much, calcine it and then collect it. For each application mix a small amount with nursing mother’s milk, open [the affected region with a needle] and apply [the mixture there]. In addition, fry and grind two qian [of the rust], boil it in the water left after preparing preserved vegetables, wait until it has cooled down and ingest it. Pu ji fang. 脚腿紅腫,熱如火炙,俗名赤遊風。用鐵鏽水塗,解之。惠濟方。 When legs and calves are red and swollen, with heat as intensive as if roasted in fire, this is commonly called “red roaming wind”.338 Apply rust water to it to have it resolved. Hui ji fang.

337 Ding 丁, “pin[-illness],” also ding 疔, “pin-illness,” refers to a deep-reaching and festering hardness in a tissue, eventually rising above the skin like a pinhead. BCGM Dict I, 127129. 338 You feng 遊風, “roaming wind,” Roaming and sudden pain and itching brought about by wind evil. BCGM Dict I, 645.

336

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

重舌腫脹。鐵鏽鎖燒紅,打下鏽,研末,水調一錢,噙嚥。生生編。 A doubled tongue339 with swelling and distension. Heat a corroded iron lock until it is red, knock the rust off, and grind it to a powder. Mix one qian with water, [let the patient] hold [the liquid] in the mouth and then swallow it. Sheng sheng bian. 小兒口瘡。鐵鏽末,水調傅之。集簡方。 Oral sores of children. Apply iron rust mixed with water [to the affected region]. Ji jian fang. 内熱遺精。鐵鏽末,冷水服一錢,三服止。活人心統。 Internal heat and involuntary emission of essence/sperm. Ingest one qian of iron rust powder with cold water. Three ingestions will end [the problem]. Huo ren xin tong. 婦人難産。雜草燒鑊鏽、白芷等分,爲末,每服二錢,童尿、米醋各半和 服,見效。救急方。 Women with a difficult birth. [Grind] equal amounts of rust from a cauldron that was used to heat any type of herbs and of angelica [root] to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest two qian. To be ingested together with a half-and-half mixture of boys’ urine and rice vinegar. This will be effective. Jiu ji fang. 08-26 鐵爇拾遺 Tie re, FE Shi yi. Iron fumigatory. Residue produced by burning bamboo or peach stones on an ax blade. 【釋名】刀煙綱目340、刀油。【時珍曰】以竹木爇火於刀斧刃上燒之,津出 如漆者是也。江東人多用之。 Explanation of Names. Dao yan 刀煙, “knife fumes,” Gang mu. Dao you 刀油, “knife oil.” [Li] Shizhen: This is a liquid emitted, like lacquer, by blades of knives and axes on which bamboo and wood are burned over a fire. The people in Jiang dong often use it. 【主治】惡瘡蝕𧏾,金瘡、毒物傷皮肉,止風水不入,入水不爛,手足皸 拆,瘡根結筋,瘰癧毒腫,染髭髮,令永黑。及熱未凝時塗之,少頃當乾 硬。用之須防水。又殺蟲立效。藏器。 339 Chong she 重舌, “doubled tongue.” A growth under the tongue, mostly in children, similar to a second tongue. BCGM Dict I, 92. 340 The entire following passage is quoted from Zheng lei, ch. 4, tie jing 鐵精, where it is introduced as “Chen Cangqi states:”Hence the references here to the BCGM and subsequently to Li Shizhen are erroneous.

Chapter 8

337

Control. Malign sores and [vaginal] erosion with hidden worms/bugs infestation. Wounds caused by metal objects/weapons, with poisonous items harming skin and flesh. It ends the intrusion of wind and water, and if water has intruded it prevents rotting. [It ends] chapping and breaking open of hands and feet, bound sinews at the base of a sore, and scrofula with a poison swelling. It serves to dye beard and hair on the head, and lets them remain black forever. It is to be applied while it is still hot and before it has congealed, as after a short while, it dries and hardens. During an application, contact with water is to be avoided. Also, it kills worms/bugs with an immediate effect. [Chen] Cangqi.

【附方】新一。 Added Recipes. One newly [recorded] 項邊癧子。以桃核于刀上燒烟熏之。陳氏本草。 Pervasion-illness seeds to the side of the nape. Burn a peach kernel on a knife and steam [the affected region] with the resulting fumes. Chen shi ben cao. 08-27 鐵漿拾遺 Tie jiang, FE Shi yi. Iron broth. 【集解】【藏器曰】陶氏謂鐵落爲鐵漿,非也。此乃取諸鐵於器中,以水 浸之,經久色青沫出,即堪染皂者。【承曰】鐵漿是以生鐵漬水服餌者。 旋入新水,日久鐵上生黄膏,則力愈勝。唐太妃所服者乃此也。若以染皂 者爲漿,其酸苦臭澀不可近,矧服食乎? Collected Explanations. [Chen] Cangqi: Mr. Tao [Hongjing] says: Iron fragments are iron broth. That is wrong. [To produce iron broth] one soaks any type of iron in a vessel. After a long time, a greenish foam is emitted. This is suitable for use as a dye. [Chen] Cheng: Iron broth is [produced by] soaking pig iron in water; it is ingested with rice cakes. When [pig iron] is given into fresh water, after a day or longer a yellow paste develops with a superior therapeutic strength. This is the substance that was ingested by the top concubine of the Tang dynasty. However, if this broth is used for dying, it is sour, bitter, stinking and astringent to a degree that one does not wish to come close to it. How could it be something that is ingested or consumed [as a longevity substance]?

338

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【氣味】鹹,寒,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】鎮心明目。主癲癇發熱,急黄狂走,六畜顛狂,人爲蛇、犬、 虎、狼、毒刺、惡蟲等囓,服之毒不入内,兼解諸毒入腹。藏器。 Control. It presses down [the qi of ] the heart and clears the eyes. It controls peak-illness341 with epilepsy and the effusion of heat, acute jaundice and mad running, and peak[-illness] and madness of the six domestic animals. If one was bitten by a snake, a dog, a tiger, a wolf, or stung by some poisonous thorn or malign worm/ bug, to ingest this prevents the poison from entering the interior. At the same time it resolves all types of poison and [prevents them from] entering the abdomen. [Chen] Cangqi.

【附方】舊二,新三。 Added Recipes. Two of old. Three newly [recorded] 時氣生瘡,胸中熱。鐵漿飲之。梅師方。 Sores caused by seasonal qi, with heat in the chest. Drink iron broth. Mei shi fang. 一切丁腫。鐵漿日飲一升。千金方。 All types of pin[-illness]342 swelling. Drink one sheng of iron broth per day. Qian jin fang. 發背初起。鐵漿飲二升,取利。外臺秘要。 Effusion on the back that has just arisen. Drink two sheng of iron broth until a freeflux [defecation] sets in. Wai tai mi yao. 蛇皮惡瘡。鐵漿頻塗之。談野翁方。 Malign sores resembling a snake skin. Repeatedly apply iron broth [to the affected region]. Tan Yeweng fang. 漆瘡作痒。鐵漿頻洗,愈。外臺。 Itching sores caused by lacquer. Repeatedly wash them with iron broth. This will bring a cure. Wai tai. 341 Dian 顛, “peak[-illness],” also 癲, vaguely defined mental derangement. BCGM Dict I, 124. 342 Ding 丁, “pin[-illness],” also ding 疔, “pin-illness,” refers to a deep-reaching and festering hardness in a tissue, eventually rising above the skin like a pinhead. BCGM Dict I, 127129.

Chapter 8

339

08-28 諸鐵器綱目 Zhu tie qi, FE Gang mu. All types of iron utensils. 【集解】【時珍曰】舊本鐵器條繁,今撮爲一。大扺皆是借其氣,平木解 毒重墜,無他義也。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: In old editions [of ben cao texts] numerous entries listed iron utensils. They are combined here in one single [entry]. In general, they always serve to avail oneself of their qi, as they balance [the qi of ] the liver, resolve poison and bring down with their weight [all types of evil qi]. They have no other meaning. 08-28-01 鐵杵拾遺。Tie chu, FE Shi yi. Iron pestle. 即藥杵也。 This is the pestle used to pound medication. 【主治】婦人横産,胞衣不下,燒赤淬酒飲,自順。藏器。 Control. For women giving birth to a child with transverse presentation and failure of the placenta to be discharged, heat it until it is red, dip it into wine, and [let the patient] drink [the liquid. The child will] assume an adequate position as a result. [Chen] Cangqi. 08-28-02 鐵秤錘宋開寶。Tie cheng chui, FE Song, Kai bao. Iron weight. 【氣味】辛,温,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, warm, nonpoisonous. 【主治】賊風。止産血瘕腹痛,及喉痺熱塞,燒赤淬酒,熱飲。開寶。治 男子疝痛,女子心腹妊娠脹滿,漏胎,卒下血。時珍。 Control. Robber wind.343 To end painful abdominal blood conglomeration-illness following delivery, and throat blockage, [i. e.] heat with obstruction, heat it until it is red and dip it into wine. [Let the patient] drink the hot [liquid]. Kai bao. It

343 Zei feng 賊風, “robber wind.” Various pathological conditions caused by qi that has invaded the human organism from outside. BCGM Dict I 667.

340

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

serves to cure painful elevation-illness344 affecting males, distension and a feeling of fullness in the central and abdominal region of women during pregnancy, leaking fetus/uterus, and sudden discharge of blood. [Li] Shizhen.

【附方】新四。 Added Recipes. Four newly [recorded] 喉痺腫痛。菖蒲根嚼汁,燒秤錘淬一盃,飲之。普濟方。 Throat blockage with a painful swelling. Chew acorus [root] to obtain a juice and drink this together with a cup [of water] into which a heated [iron] weight had been dipped. Pu ji fang. 舌腫咽痛,咽生息肉,舌腫。秤錘燒赤,淬醋一盞,嚥之。聖惠方。 Tongue swelling and painful throat; tumorous flesh growth in the throat and a swollen tongue. Heat an [iron] weight until it is red, dip it into a bowl of vinegar, and swallow the [liquid]. Sheng hui fang. 誤吞竹木。秤錘燒紅,淬酒飲之。集玄方。 Inadvertently having swallowed bamboo or wood. Heat an [iron] weight until it is red, dip it into wine and drink the [liquid]. Ji xuan fang. 便毒初起。極力提起,令有聲,以鐵秤錘摩壓一夜,即散。集簡方。 Poison in [the region of urination and defecation] relief in its beginning. Lift a hot iron weight, [strike it] to cause a loud sound and then rub and press [the affected region] with it for one night, and [the poison] will disperse. Ji jian fang. 08-28-03 鐵銃綱目。Tie chong, FE Gang mu. Iron muzzle-loading firearm. 【主治】催生,燒赤淋酒,入内孔中流出,乘熱飲之,即産。舊銃尤良。 Control. To hasten birth, heat it until it is red, pour wine into the muzzle and let it flow out again through the hole [further down] in [the barrel]. [Have the woman] drink the [wine] while it is still hot, and this prompts the birth of the child. An old muzzle-loader is especially good.

344 Shan 疝, “elevation-illness,” and shan qi 疝氣, “elevation illness-qi.” A notion of a foreign item that has entered the scrotum, causes pain and may ascend and descend. BCGM Dict I, 419.

Chapter 8

341

08-28-04 鐵斧綱目。Tie fu, FE Gang mu. Iron axe. 【主治】婦人産難横逆,胞衣不出,燒赤淬酒服。亦治産後血瘕,腰腹 痛。時珍。 Control. Women with a difficult birth [of a child] with transverse presentation, and when the placenta fails to come out. Heat [an axe] until it is red, dip it into wine and [have the women] ingest [the liquid]. This also serves to cure blood conglomeration-illness following delivery, with pain in the lower back and abdomen. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】古人轉女爲男法:懷妊三月,名曰始胎,血脉未流, 象形而變。是時宜服藥,用斧置牀底,繫刃向下,勿令本婦知。恐不信, 以鷄試之,則一窠皆雄也。蓋胎化之法,亦理之自然。故食牡鷄,取陽精 之全於天産者;佩雄黄,取陽精之全於地産者;操弓矢,藉斧斤,取剛物 之見於人事者。氣類潜感,造化密移,物理所必有。故妊婦見神像異物, 多生鬼怪,即其徵矣。象牙、犀角,紋逐象生;山藥、鷄冠,形隨人變。 以鷄卵告竈而抱雛,以苕箒掃猫而成孕。物且有感,况於人乎?【藏器 曰】凡人身有弩肉,可聽人家釘棺下斧聲之時,便下手速擦二七遍,以後 自得消平。産婦勿用。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: A method practiced by the ancients to change a female into a male [is as follows]. “The third month of a pregnancy is called ‘beginning of the fetus’. Its blood does not yet flow through the vessels, and the physical appearance undergoes a change. At this time it is suitable to ingest medication and to place an axe at the bottom of her bed, fastened in a way that the blade is directed downward. The woman must not be informed of this.” There were those who doubted [the effects of this method] and failed to believe in it. They tested it on chicken and, as a result, the chicks in the nest were all males. The method of fetus transformation is based on natural principles. Hence, to eat roosters is to obtain yang essence as perfect as it is produced by heaven. To wear realgar on one’s garments is to obtain yang essence as perfect as it is produced by the earth. To hold a bow and arrows, and to handle axes and weights, is to acquire hard items evidently used by [male] humans. Corresponding qi invisibly affect each other, resulting in the creation’s secret alterations – and these are unavoidable consequences of the principles underlying all items. Hence, when pregnant women see spirit images or strange items, they will often give birth to ghosts and monsters. This is the proof. The line design of ivory and rhinoceros horns follows that of elephants. The physical appearance of dioscorea [root] and celosia [flower] changes in accordance with [the physical appearance] of

342

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

the humans [raising them]. To inform the [spirit of the] kitchen stove with chicken eggs results in the hatching of nestlings. To brush cats with a broom made of rushes lets them become pregnant. If items are responsive to such affects, how much more does this apply to humans! [Chen] Cangqi: When one has tumorous flesh growths on his body, as soon as he hears the sound of a nail struck into someone’s coffin with an axe, he should immediately stroke [these flesh growths] with his hands two times seven times. As a result, some time later, they will dissolve and [the surface] will be flat again. Women giving birth must not apply [this treatment]. 08-28-05 鐵刀拾遺。Tie dao, FE Shi yi. Iron sword/knife. 【主治】蛇咬毒入腹,取兩刃於水中相摩,飲其汁。百蟲入耳,以兩刀於 耳門上摩敲作聲,自出。藏器。磨刀水服,利小便,塗脱肛痔核,産腸不 上,耳中卒痛。時珍。 Control. For poison of a snake bite that has entered the abdomen, rub two blades in water against each other and drink the juice. When any of the hundreds of worms/ bugs have entered the ears, rub and strike two swords/knives in front of the ear to produce a sound, and they will come out. [Chen] Cangqi. Swords/knives ground in water and [the resulting liquid] ingested will free the flow of urine. It is applied to anal prolapse and piles kernels, to a [prolapsed] birth canal that fails to ascend again, and to sudden pain in the ears. [Li] Shizhen. 08-28-06 大刀環綱目。Da dao huan, FE Gang mu. [Iron] hilt of a sword. 【主治】産難數日不出,燒赤淬酒一盃,頓服。時珍。 Control. A difficult delivery, with [the child] failing to come out for several days. Heat [the hilt of a big knife] until it is red, dip it into a cup of wine and [have the woman] ingest [the liquid] all at once. [Li] Shizhen.

Chapter 8

343

08-28-07 剪刀股綱目。Jian dao gu, FE Gang mu. Handle of a shear. 【主治】小兒驚風。錢氏有剪刀股丸,用剪刀環頭研破,煎湯服藥。時珍。 Control. Fright wind345 of children. Mr. Qian lists the “pills with shear handles.” Break and grind [to a powder] the ends of the hilts of the [scissor] knives, boil them in hot water and ingest it with further medication. [Li] Shizhen. 08-28-08 鐵鋸拾遺。Tie ju, FE Shiyi. Iron saw. 【主治】誤吞竹木入咽,燒故鋸令赤,漬酒熱飲。藏器。 Control. If someone has inadvertently swallowed bamboo or wood, that have entered his throat. Heat an old saw until it is hot, steep it in wine and [let the patient] drink the hot [liquid]. [Chen] Cangqi. 08-28-09 布鍼綱目。Bu zhen, FE Gang mu. Needle for sewing cloth. 【主治】婦人横産,取二七枚燒赤淬酒七遍,服。時珍。 Control. For women giving birth to a child with transverse presentation, heat two times seven [needles] until they are red, dip them into wine seven times, and [have the woman] ingest [the liquid]. [Li] Shizhen.

【附方】新一。 Added Recipes. One newly [recorded] 眼生偷鍼。布鍼一個,對井睨視,已而折爲兩段,投井中,勿令人見。張 杲醫説。 The eyes grow a hordeolum. [The patient] is to look through a needle for sewing cloth from a distance toward a well. Then break it into two ends and drop them into the well. Let no one see this. Zhang Gao, Yi shuo.

345 Jing feng 驚風, “fright wind,” a condition of children characterised by jerking and arched back rigidity, eyeballs turned upward, and twitching hands and legs.BCGM Dict I, 261, also 238, 240.

344

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

08-28-10 鐵鏃綱目。Tie zu, FE Gang mu. Iron arrowhead. 【主治】胃熱呃逆,用七十二個,煎湯啜之。時珍。 Control. Stomach heat associated with hiccough and [qi] counterflow. Boil 72 [iron arrowheads] and sip the hot water. [Li] Shizhen. 08-28-11 鐵甲綱目。Tie jia, FE Gang mu. Iron armor. 【主治】憂鬱結滯,善怒狂易,入藥煎服。時珍。 Control. Grief with pent-up [qi], nodular and sluggish [qi], with a tendency to be angry and to easily behave like mad. Add medication [to an iron armor], boil it [in water] and ingest [the liquid]. [Li] Shizhen. 08-28-12 鐵鎖綱目。Tie suo, FE Gang mu. Iron lock. 【主治】齆鼻不聞香臭,磨石上取末,和豬脂綿裹塞之,經日肉出,瘥。 普濟。 Control. Nasal congestion with an inability to smell aroma and stench. Grind it on a rock to obtain a powder. Mix it with lard, wrap it in silk floss and insert this into [the nostrils]. After one day, [tumorous] flesh will come out, and this is the cure. Pu ji. 08-28-13 鑰匙日華。Yao shi, FE Rihua. [Iron] key. 【主治】婦人血噤失音衝惡,以生薑、醋、小便同煎服。弱房人亦可煎 服。大明。 Control. For women with blood lockjaw,346 loss of voice and surging malign [qi], boil [an iron key] with fresh ginger, vinegar and urine and [have them] ingest this. Men with weak bedroom performance can also ingest such a decoction. Da Ming.

346 Xue jin 血噤,“blood lockjaw”, a condition of women having lost their voice with a clenched mouth following delivery. BCGM dict I, 596.

Chapter 8

345

08-28-14 鐵釘拾遺。Tie ding, FE Shi yi. Iron nail. 【主治】酒醉齒漏,出血不止,燒赤注孔中即止。時珍。【藏器曰】有犯 罪者,遇恩赦免,取枷上鐵及釘等收之。後入官帶之,得除免。 Control. [Blood] leaking from the teeth following intoxification with wine, with the bleeding failing to end. Heat [a nail] until it is red and insert it into the holes [between the teeth], and [the bleeding] will end. [Li] Shizhen. [Chen] Cangqi: If a criminal is pardoned, he should remove iron items and nails from his cangue and keep them with him. Later if he is once again brought to in front of a magistrate and shows them, he will be spared [a new imprisonment in a cangue]. 08-28-15 鐵鏵即鍤也。綱目。Tie hua, FE Gang mu. Iron spade, i. e., a spade. 【主治】心虚風邪,精神恍惚健忘,以久使者四斤,燒赤投醋中七次,打 成塊,水二斗,浸二七日,每食後服一小盞。時珍。 Control. For heart depletion and wind evil, absent-mindedness and forgetfulness, heat four jin [of a spade] that has been in use for a long time until it is red and drop it into vinegar seven times. Then hammer it to pieces and soak it in two dou of water for two times seven days. Each time ingest, after meals, a small cup. [Li] Shizhen.

【附方】新三。 Added Recipes. Three newly [recorded] 小兒傷寒,百日内患壯熱。用鐵鏵一斤,燒赤,水二斗,淬三七次,煎一 半,入柳葉七片,浴之。聖濟録。 Harm caused by cold of children, if within 100 days they suffer from strong heat. Heat one jin of an iron spade until it is red, dip it into two dou of water three times seven times, boil [the water] down to one half, add seven pieces of willow leaves, and bathe the [child with the liquid]. Sheng ji lu. 積年齒𧏾。舊鐵鏵頭一枚,炭火燒赤,捻硫黄一分,豬脂一分,于上熬 沸。以綿包柳杖揾藥,熱烙齒縫,數次愈。普濟方。 Teeth infested with hidden worms for years. Heat the tip of an old iron spade over a charcoal fire until it is red, give one fen of sulphur and one fen of lard on it and let them boil until they bubble. Wrap a piece of willow wood in silk floss, dip it into

346

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

the [sulphur and lard] medication and apply it hot to the seams of the teeth. After several such applications a cure will be achieved. Pu ji fang. 灌頂油法。治腦中熱毒風,除目中瞖障,鎮心明目。生油二斤,故鐵鏵五 兩,打碎,硝石半兩,寒水石一兩,馬牙消半兩,曾青一兩,綿裹入油中 浸七日。每以一錢頂上摩之,及滴少許入鼻内,甚妙。此大食國胡商方。 聖惠方。 Method to irrigate the head with oil. This serves to cure heat poison and wind in the brain. It eliminates screens and shades from the eyes. It presses down [the qi of ] the heart and clears the eyes. Take two jin of fresh oil and wrap in silk floss five liang of an old iron spade hammered to pieces, half a liang of nitrokalite, one liang of calcite, half a liang mirabilite and one liang of malachite and let it soak in the oil for seven days. For each application rub one qian [of the oil] on the top of the [patient’s] head and drip a small amount into his nostrils. Very wondrous. A recipe of Hu Shang of the Da shi country. Sheng hui fang. 08-28-16 鐵犁鑱尖日華。Tie li chan jian, FE Rihua. The tip of an iron coulter of a plough share. 【主治】得水,制朱砂、水銀、石亭脂毒。大明。 Control. Together with water it serves to check the poison of cinnabar, mercury and red sulphur. Da Ming. 08-28-17 車轄即車軸鐵鎋頭,一名車缸。宋開寶。Che xia, FE Song, Kai bao. Ring on the nave of a wheel. This is the tip of the iron linchpin of a cart. Another name is “cart vat.” 【主治】喉痺及喉中熱塞,燒赤,投酒中熱飲。開寶。主小兒大便下血, 燒赤,淬水服。時珍。 Control. For throat blockage, and heat closure in the throat, heat it until it is red, drop it into wine and [let the patient] drink the hot [liquid]. Kai bao. To control bloody defecation of children heat it until it is hot, dip it into water and [have the children] ingest [the liquid]. [Li] Shizhen.

Chapter 8

347

【附方】舊一,新一。 Added Recipes. One of old. One newly [recorded] 小兒下血。方見上。 Blood discharge of children. For the recipe, see above. 妊娠欬嗽。車缸一枚,燒赤投酒中,冷飲。聖惠方。 Cough during pregnancy. Heat one linchpin until it is red, drop it into wine and [let the patient] drink the cold [liquid]. Sheng hui fang. 走注氣痛。車缸燒赤,濕布裹熨病上。千金方。 Painful running influx347 qi. Heat a linchpin until it is red, wrap it into a moist piece of cloth and press it hot on the [location of the] disease. Qian jin fang. 08-28-18 馬銜即馬勒口鐵也。Ma xian. Mouthpiece of a horse bridle. This is the piece of iron stuck through a horse’s mouth. 【大明曰】古舊者好,亦可作醫工鍼也。宋開寶。 Da Ming. Ancient and old ones are good. They can also be used for preparing needles for medical usage. Song, Kai bao. 【主治】小兒癇,婦人難産,臨時持之,并煮汁,服一盞。開寶。治馬喉 痺,腫連頰,吐血氣數,煎水服之。聖惠。 Control. Epilepsy of children. Women with difficult birth are to hold it when the due date has come. Also, boil it to obtain a juice and have them ingest one bowl. Kai bao. To cure throat blockage of horses with a swelling encompassing the cheeks, vomiting of blood and frequent qi [breathing], boil it in water and [have the animal] ingest the [liquid]. Sheng hui. 08-28-19 馬鐙綱目。Ma deng, FE Gang mu. Horse stirrup. 【主治】田野燐火,人血所化,或出或没,來逼奪人精氣,但以馬鐙相戛 作聲即滅。故張華云:金乘一振,遊光歛色。時珍。 Control. Flickering fire on fields and in the wilderness is transformed human blood. Sometimes it appears, sometimes it does not. It approaches humans to steal their essence qi. However, if one gently taps a horse stirrup, it will go out. Hence Zhang 347 Zou zhu 走注, “running influx,” indicates pain moving around in the limbs and body so that the exact location of the pain cannot be determined. BCGM Dict I, 704.

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

348

Hua states: “As soon as gold [leaves] are shaken, a roaming light withdraws its color.” [Li] Shizhen.

石之二玉類一十四種 Stones/Minerals II, Group of Jades, 14 kinds 08-29 玉别録上品 Yu, FE Bie lu, upper rank. Jade. Nephrite. 【校正】併入别録 玉屑。 Editorial Correction. Jade fragments listed separately in the Bie lu are included in the present entry. 【釋名】玄真。【時珍曰】按許慎説文云:玉乃石之美者。有五德:潤澤 以温,仁也;䚡理自外可以知中,義也;其聲舒揚遠聞,智也;不撓而 折,勇也;鋭廉而不技,潔也。其字象三玉連貫之形。葛洪抱朴子云:玄 真者,玉之别名也,服之令人身飛輕舉。故曰服玄真者,其命不極。 Explanation of Names. Xuan zhen 玄真, “translucent perfection.” [Li] Shizhen: According to Xu Shen’s Shuo wen, “jades are the most beautiful stones. They have five virtues. They moisten and thereby give warmth, that is their benevolence. From the outside it is possible to recognize their inner structure, that is their righteousness. Their sounds spread softly and can be heard far away, that is their wisdom. They do not yield, even when they are broken. That is their bravery. They are sharp and honest and include no tricks, that is their purity. The character [ yu 玉,] is to reflect a string of three pieces of jade.” Ge Hong in his Baopu zi states: “‘translucent perfection’ is an alternative name of jade. When humans ingest it, their body loses its weight and rises to fly off. Hence it is said: ‘Those who ingest translucent perfection, their life is endless’.” 【集解】【别録曰】玉泉、玉屑,生藍田山谷,采無時。【弘景曰】好玉 出藍田及南陽 徐善亭部界中,日南、盧容水中,外國于闐、踈勒諸處皆 善。潔白如豬膏,叩之鳴者是真也。其比類者,甚多相似,宜精别之。所 以燕石入笥,卞氏長號也。【珣曰】異物志云:玉出崑崙。别寶經云: 凡石韞玉,但將石映燈看之,内有紅光,明如初出日,便知有玉也。【 頌曰】今藍田、南陽、日南不聞有玉,惟于闐國出之。晉鴻臚卿張匡鄴使

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

348

Hua states: “As soon as gold [leaves] are shaken, a roaming light withdraws its color.” [Li] Shizhen.

石之二玉類一十四種 Stones/Minerals II, Group of Jades, 14 kinds 08-29 玉别録上品 Yu, FE Bie lu, upper rank. Jade. Nephrite. 【校正】併入别録 玉屑。 Editorial Correction. Jade fragments listed separately in the Bie lu are included in the present entry. 【釋名】玄真。【時珍曰】按許慎説文云:玉乃石之美者。有五德:潤澤 以温,仁也;䚡理自外可以知中,義也;其聲舒揚遠聞,智也;不撓而 折,勇也;鋭廉而不技,潔也。其字象三玉連貫之形。葛洪抱朴子云:玄 真者,玉之别名也,服之令人身飛輕舉。故曰服玄真者,其命不極。 Explanation of Names. Xuan zhen 玄真, “translucent perfection.” [Li] Shizhen: According to Xu Shen’s Shuo wen, “jades are the most beautiful stones. They have five virtues. They moisten and thereby give warmth, that is their benevolence. From the outside it is possible to recognize their inner structure, that is their righteousness. Their sounds spread softly and can be heard far away, that is their wisdom. They do not yield, even when they are broken. That is their bravery. They are sharp and honest and include no tricks, that is their purity. The character [ yu 玉,] is to reflect a string of three pieces of jade.” Ge Hong in his Baopu zi states: “‘translucent perfection’ is an alternative name of jade. When humans ingest it, their body loses its weight and rises to fly off. Hence it is said: ‘Those who ingest translucent perfection, their life is endless’.” 【集解】【别録曰】玉泉、玉屑,生藍田山谷,采無時。【弘景曰】好玉 出藍田及南陽 徐善亭部界中,日南、盧容水中,外國于闐、踈勒諸處皆 善。潔白如豬膏,叩之鳴者是真也。其比類者,甚多相似,宜精别之。所 以燕石入笥,卞氏長號也。【珣曰】異物志云:玉出崑崙。别寶經云: 凡石韞玉,但將石映燈看之,内有紅光,明如初出日,便知有玉也。【 頌曰】今藍田、南陽、日南不聞有玉,惟于闐國出之。晉鴻臚卿張匡鄴使

Chapter 8

349

于闐,作行程記,載其國采玉之地云玉河,在于闐城外。其源出崑山,西 流一千三百里,至于闐界牛頭山。乃疏爲三河:一曰白玉河,在城東三十 里;二曰緑玉河,在城西二十里;三曰烏玉河,在緑玉河西七里。其源 雖一,而其玉隨地而變,故其色不同。每歲五六月大水暴漲,則玉隨流 而至。玉之多寡,由水之大小。七八月水退乃可取,彼人謂之撈玉。其國 中有禁,器用服食,往往用玉。中國所有,亦自彼來。王逸玉論載玉之色 曰:赤如鷄冠,黄如蒸栗,白如截肪,黑如純漆,謂之玉符。而青玉獨無 説焉。今青白者常有,黑者時有,黄赤者絶無。雖禮之六器,亦不能得其 真者。今儀州出一種石,如蒸栗色,彼人謂之栗玉,或云亦黄玉之類,但 少潤澤,聲不清越,爲不及也。然服食者惟貴純白,他色亦不取焉。【承 曰】儀州栗玉,乃黄石之光瑩者,非玉也。玉堅而有理,火刃不可傷。此 石小刀便可雕刻,與階州白石同體而異色爾。【時珍曰】按太平御覽云: 交州出白玉,夫餘出赤玉,挹婁出青玉,大秦出菜玉,西蜀出黑玉。藍田 出美玉,色如藍,故曰藍田。淮南子云:鍾山之玉,炊以爐炭,三日三夜 而色澤不變,得天地之精也。觀此諸説,則産玉之處亦多矣。而今不出 者,地方恐爲害也。故獨以于闐玉爲貴焉。古禮玄珪蒼璧,黄琮赤璋,白 琥玄璜,以象天地四時而立名爾。禮記云:石藴玉則氣如白虹,精神見於 山川也。博物志云:山有穀者生玉。尸子云:水圓折者有珠,方折者有 玉。地鏡圖云:二月山中草木生光下垂者有玉,玉之精如美女。玉書云: 玉有山玄文、水蒼文,生于山而木潤,産於水而流芳,藏于璞而文采露於 外。觀此諸説,則玉有山産、水産二種。中國之玉多在山,於闐之玉則在 河也。其石似玉者,珷、玞、琨、珉、璁、瓔也。北方有罐子玉,雪白有 氣眼,乃藥燒成者,不可不辨,然皆無温潤。稗官載火玉色赤可烹鼎,暖 玉可辟寒,寒玉可辟暑,香玉有香,軟玉質柔,觀日玉洞見日中宫闕,此 皆希世之寶也。【宗奭曰】燕玉出燕北,體柔脆,如油和粉色,不入藥用。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu. Jade springs and jade fragments are present in the mountain valleys of Lan tian. They are collected anytime. [Tao] Hongjing: Good jade originates in Lan tian, from the border region of Nan yang and Xu shan ting. [ Jade] from all places such as the waters in Ri nan and Lu rong, as well as Yu tian and Shu le in foreign countries, is good [too]. [ Jade] that is clean and white like lard, and that gives off a sound like the cry of a bird when knocked, is genuine. [ Jade] exists in many kinds that seem to be quite similar. Hence it is advisable to carefully distinguish among them. This is why Mr. Bian wept extensively when stones from Yan were placed into a basket [together with other kinds of jade]. [Li] Xun: The Yi wu zhi states: “Jade originates in the Kun lun mountains.” The Bie bao jing states: “When a stone includes jade, one only needs to hold the stone against a lamp to observe the reflection. If there is a red light as clear as the sun that has just arisen in the morning, then one knows that it is jade.” [Su] Song. Nowadays it

350

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

is unheard of that jade grows in Lan tian, Nan yang and Ri nan. It originates only in the country of Tian. During the Jin dynasty, Zhang Kuangye, Chief Director of Dependencies, was sent to [the country of ] Tian, and wrote a “Record of a Journey,” listing the localities of that country where jade was collected. He says: “The Yu he/ Jade River is located outside of Yu tian city. It springs in the Kun [lun] mountains and flows westward for 1300 li until it arrives at Niu tou shan/ox head mountain that borders on Yu tian. There it branches into three rivers. One is named ‘white jade river’; 30 li east of the city. The second is named ‘green jade river’; 20 li west of the city. The third is named ‘black jade river’; seven li from the ‘green jade river’ toward the West. Even though they have one identical origin, their jade changes in response to the ground [over which the three rivers flow]. Hence their colors differ. Each year in the fifth and sixth month the water rises strongly and it brings the jade with it. The quantity of the jade depends on the level of the water. When it retreats in the seventh and eighth month, [the jade] can be collected. The local people call it ‘scooping up jade from the water’. [The further processing of the jade] in that country is subject to certain prohibitions. Utensils for ingesting and consuming [longevity substances] are often made of jade. All the [jade] present in China is brought here from there.” Wang Yi in his Yu lun records the colors of jade as follows: “Red like a cock’s comb. Yellow like steamed millet. White like animal fat just severed. Black like pure lacquer. And he speaks of ‘auspicious jade tokens’.” Still, the only one he fails to mention is blue jade. Nowadays, blue and white [jades] are at hand all the time. Black [jade] occurs every now and then. Yellow and red [jades] are not available at all. Even if six containers filled with precious gifts [are presented] it is difficult to obtain real items [in return]. Nowadays, from Yi zhou a variation of stones originates with a color like steamed millet. The locals call it “millet jade.” Some say that it is a kind of yellow jade. However, it is of only a slightly moist and lustrous appearance and the sound [it emits when tapped] is neither clear nor of a high pitch. That is, it does not reach [the quality of true jade]. The fact is, those who ingest and consume [longevity substances], they value only purely white [jade]; they do not resort to other kinds. [Chen] Cheng: The “millet jade” of Yi zhou is a shiny, jade-like yellow stone. It is not a jade. Jade is hard and has [line] structures; neither fire nor a blade can do it any harm. These stones, though, can easily be carved with a small knife. They have the same physical body as white stones from Xie zhou, but their colors differ. [Li] Shizhen: According to the Tai ping yu lan, “a white jade originates in Jiao zhou; a red jade originates in Fu yu; a blue jade originates in Yi lou; a ‘jade green like vegetables’ originates in Da qin; a black jade originates in Xi shu. A beautiful jade originates in Lan tian. Its color resembles that of Chinese indigo plant, lan 藍, [water]. Hence [the region] is called Lan tian 藍田, ‘fields of indigo’.”

Chapter 8

351

The Huai nan zi states: “When the jade from Mount Zhong shan is cooked in a furnace over a charcoal fire for three days and three nights, neither its color nor its luster will change. It is endowed with the essence of heaven and earth”. In view of all these statements, the places where jade was produced are numerous. Those places where no jade originates today may have been subjected to some calamity. Hence it is only the jade from Yu tian that is considered valuable now. In ancient ritual ceremonies, names such as xuan gui 玄珪, “translucent jade tablets (conferred upon officials as a sign of dignity),” cang bi 蒼璧, “greenish-bluish round, flat pieces of jade (with a hole in the middle used for ceremonial purposes),” huang cong 黄琮, “yellow, long and hollow pieces of jade with rectangular sides,” chi zhang 赤璋, “red jade tablets,” bai hu 白琥, “white amber,” and xuan huang 玄璜, “translucent semi-anular jade-pendant,” were introduced to reflect heaven and earth and the four seasons. The Li ji states: “When stones include jade, their qi is that of a white rainbow; their essence spirit appears in mountain rivers.” The Bo wu zhi states: “Mountains with grain produce jade.” The Shi zi states: “Pearls are found in waters that roll over in a circular manner; jade occurs [in waters that] roll over in a directional manner.” The Di jing tu states: “Mountains where in the second month herbs and trees become shiny and bow [their head], they have jade. The essence of jade is like a beautiful woman.” The Yu shu states: “Jade has a dark line [design] in mountains, and a greenish-bluish line [design] in water. When it grows in a mountain, the trees there are lustrous. When it is brought forth by water, its flow will be fragrant. When it is hidden in uncut rocks, its line design will be visible on their outside.” In view of all these statements, there are two kinds: Jade produced by mountains and that produced by waters. Most of China’s jade occurs in mountains; the jade of Yu tian occurs in rivers. Stones similar to jade are wu 珷, fu 玞, kun琨, min 珉, cong 璁 and ying 瓔. In the North there is a “jug jade,” guan zi yu 罐子玉. It is as white as snow and has qi [enclosures like] eyes. It is a product of pharmaceutical processing and must be distinguished from [true jade]. Still, none of these [stones and products similar to jade] has the latter’s warm and lustrous appearance. Inofficial and official records refer to a “fire jade” of red color that can be used to heat ancient cooking vessels, a “warm jade” that is able to ward off cold, a “cold jade” that is able to ward off summer heat, a “fragrant jade” that is fragrant, and a “soft jade” of pliable substance. When the sun is observerd through a “tube of jade,” palaces and watchtowers are visible. All these are rare treasures in the world. [Kou] Zongshi: “Yan jade originates in the North of Yan. Its physical body is soft and brittle, and its color is reminiscent of pink oil. It is not used for medicinal purposes.”

352

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

08-29-01 玉屑别録。Yu xie, FE Bie lu. Jade fragments. 【修治】【弘景曰】玉屑是以玉爲屑,非别一物也。仙經服瑴玉,有搗如 米粒,乃以苦酒輩消令如泥,亦有合爲漿者。凡服玉,皆不得用已成器物 及塚中玉璞。【恭曰】餌玉當以消作水者爲佳。屑如麻豆,服者取其精潤 臟腑,滓穢當完出也。又爲粉服者,即使人淋壅。屑如麻豆,其義殊深。 化水法,在淮南 三十六水法中。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Tao] Hongjing: Jade fragments are jade made to fragments. They do not constitute a separate item. The classics of the hermits/immortals [recommending to] ingest jade for grain, have [jade] pounded to grains like rice and dissolved in bitter wine or other such liquids to form a mud-like substance. It may also be combined with starch. Whenever jade is to be ingested, that which has been processed to vessels and jade tablets recovered from within a tomb must not be used. [Su] Gong: When one intends to consume jade, it is best to dissolve it to prepare a watery liquid. When [jade] fragments similar to hemp [seeds] and soybeans are ingested, this serves to avail oneself of their essence to moisten the long-term depots and short-term repositories. Their dregs will be entirely discharged [from the body through defecation]. Also, when consumed as a powder, it will cause one to suffer from dripping [urine] and obstruction[-illness]. The meaning of [processing jade to] fragments like hemp [seeds] and soybeans is remarkably profound. The method to transform [jade] to a watery liquid occurs in the Huai nan, as one of the 36 methods to produce watery liquids. 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。【珣曰】鹹,寒,無毒。【時珍曰】惡鹿角,養 丹砂。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. [Li] Xun: Salty, cold, nonpoisonous. [Li] Shizhen: [If ingested together, jade fragments] abhor deer horn and nourish cinnabar. 【主治】除胃中熱,喘息煩滿,止渴,屑如麻豆服之,久服輕身長年。别 録。潤心肺,助聲喉,滋毛髮。大明。滋養五臟,止煩躁,宜共金、銀、 麥門冬等同煎服,有益。李珣。 Control. [ Jade fragments] remove heat from within the stomach, pant-breathing with unrest and a feeling of fullness. They end thirst. When [jade] fragments reminiscent of sesame [seeds] and soybeans are ingested, if they are ingested for a long time, they relieve the body of its weight and extend the years [of life]. Bie lu. They moisten heart and lung, they support voice and throat, and they nourish hair on the

Chapter 8

353

body and on the head. Da Ming. They nourish the five long-term depots, they end unrest and restlessness, and they are suitable for being fried and ingested together with gold, silver and ophiopogon root. This is beneficial. Li Xun. 【附方】新三。 Added Recipes. Three newly [recorded] 小兒驚啼。白玉二錢半,寒水石半兩,爲末,水調塗心下。聖惠方。 For children crying because of fright, [grind] two and a half qian of white jade and half a liang of calcite to a powder, mix it with water and apply this to the region below the heart. Sheng hui fang. 痃癖鬼氣,往來疼痛及心下不可忍者。不拘大人小兒,白玉、赤玉等分, 爲末,糊丸梧子大,每服三十丸,薑湯下。聖惠方。 String-illness348 and aggregation-illness associated with demon qi and unbearably painful temporary attacks below the heart. For [patients] regardless of whether they are adults or children, [grind] equal amounts of white jade and red jade to a powder, form pills, with wheat flour, the size of wu seeds, and [let the patient] each time ingest 30 pills, to be sent down with ginger decoction. Sheng hui fang. 面身瘢痕。真玉日日磨之,久則自滅。聖濟録。 Wound scars on the face and on the body. Rub them with real jade every day. After a long time they will vanish as a result. Sheng ji lu. 08-29-02 玉泉本經。Yu quan, FE Ben jing. Jade spring. 【釋名】玉札本經、玉漿開寶、璚漿。【普曰】玉泉,一名玉屑。【弘景 曰】此當是玉之精華,白者質色明澈,可消之爲水,故名玉泉。今人無復 的識者,通一爲玉爾。【志曰】按别本注云:玉泉者,玉之泉液也。以仙 室玉池中者爲上,故一名玉液。今仙經三十六水法中,化玉爲玉漿,稱爲 玉泉,服之長年不老,然功劣於自然泉液也。【宗奭曰】本經言:玉泉生 藍田山谷,采無時。今藍田無玉,而泉水古今不言采。陶氏言玉爲水,故 名玉泉。如此則當言玉水,不當言玉泉,泉乃流布之義。今詳泉字乃漿之 誤,去古既遠,文字脱誤也。道藏經有金飯玉漿之文,唐 李商隱有璚漿未 飲結成冰之詩,是采玉爲漿,斷無疑矣。别本所注不可取也。若如所言, 則舉世不能得,亦漫立此名耳。【時珍曰】玉泉作玉漿甚是。别本所注乃 玉髓也,别録自有條,諸家未深攷爾。 348 Xuan 痃, “string-illness,” is a condition of acute pain located in the abdomen to the left and right of the umbilicus. BCGM Dict I, 581.

354

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Explanation of Names. Yu zha 玉札, “jade plates,” Ben jing. Yu jiang 玉漿, “jade broth/suspension,” Kai bao. Qiong jiang 璚漿, “splendid broth/suspension.” [Wu] Pu: Another name of yu quan 玉泉, “jade spring,” is yu xie 玉屑, “jade fragments.” [Tao] Hongjing: This must be the essence splendor of jade. If it is white, with its substance and color being bright and clear, it can be dissolved to a watery liquid. Hence the name “jade spring.” Today, the people no longer know of this; they consider everything to be “jade.” [Ma] Zhi: According to comments added to other editions [of the Ben cao], “‘jade spring’ is the liquid brought forth by a jade spring. Since [‘jade spring’] obtained from a jade pool of an hermit/immortal’s home is best, hence an alternative name is ‘jade liquid’.” Today, among the 36 methods of preparing watery liquids listed in the classics of hermits/immortals, the transformation of jade to jade broth/suspension [is described and the transformation product] is named “jade spring.” When it is ingested, it extends the years [of life] and prevents aging. However, the [therapeutic] effects are weaker than those of natural [jade] spring liquid. [Kou] Zongshi: The Ben jing says: “Jade spring [water] occurs in the mountain valleys of Lan tian. It is collected anytime.” Today, there is no more jade in Lan tian, and neither ancient nor modern records speak of collecting [jade] spring water there. Mr. Tao [Hongjing] says that jade is prepared to a watery liquid, and hence the name “jade spring.” However, this should be a reference to a jade watery liquid, not to jade spring. “Spring” has a connotation of flowing and dissemination. Nowadays, wherever the character quan 泉, “spring,” is written, it is an erroneous writing of jiang 漿 “broth/suspension.” Since the ancient times [when the name was introduced] are so distant, the [correct] characters are lost, and an erroneous [character has replaced them]. The Dao zang jing has a text on “gold meal and jade broth/suspension.” Li Shangyin of the Tang has a poem on “a splendid broth/suspension that is not drunk will congeal to ice.” Hence it is without doubt that jade was collected to prepare a [liquid] broth/suspension. The comments on other editions [of the Ben cao] cannot be trusted. If [jade spring] were something as these sayings proclaim, it would be something available nowhere in the world. This is just a name that has spread everywhere. [Li] Shizhen: That “jade spring” refers to “jade broth/suspension” is absolutely correct. The comments on other editions [of the Ben cao] refer, in fact, to “jade marrow.” The Bie lu has a separate entry [on “jade marrow”] but none of the specialists has ever studied this in detail. 【修治】【青霞子曰】作玉漿法:玉屑一升,地榆草一升,稻米一升,取 白露二升,銅器中煮,米熟絞汁。玉屑化爲水,以藥納入,所謂神仙玉漿 也。【藏器曰】以玉投朱草汁,化成醴。朱草,瑞草也。術家取蟾蜍膏軟 玉如泥,以苦酒消之成水。

Chapter 8

355

Pharmaceutical Preparation. Qingxia zi: The method to prepare jade broth/suspension: Boil in a copper vessel one sheng of jade fragments, one sheng of sanguisorba herb, one sheng of rice and two sheng of white dew. When the rice is cooked, wring out [the entire mass to obtain a] juice. The jade fragments will have transformed to a watery liquid, and medication is added to it. This is the so-called jade broth/suspension of spirit-hermits/immortals. [Chen] Cangqi: When jade is dropped into zhu cao juice, it transforms to a sweet wine. Zhu cao is an auspicious herb.349 The experts in the arts [of longevity] resort to toad paste to soften jade to something like mud. This is then dissolved with bitter wine to generate a watery liquid. 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。【普曰】神農、岐伯、雷公:甘。李當之:平。 畏款冬花、青竹。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. [Wu] Pu: According to Shen nong, Qi Bo and Lei gong: Sweet. Li Dangzhi: Balanced. [Ingested together,] it fears tussilago [flower] and greenish bamboo. 【主治】五臟百病,柔筋强骨,安魂魄,長𦠄肉,益氣,利血脉,久服耐 寒暑,不饑渴,不老神仙。人臨死服五斤,三年色不變。本經。療婦人帶 下十二病,除氣癃,明耳目,久服輕身長年。别録。治血塊。大明。 Control. The hundreds of diseases affecting the five long-term depots. It softens the sinews and strengthens the bones. It pacifies the hun-soul and the po-soul. It stimulates the growth of muscles and flesh, boosts the qi and frees the flow of blood through the vessels. Ingested over a long time it enables one to endure cold and summer heat, lets one not become hungry and thirsty, prevents aging and lets one turn into a spirit hermit/immortal. If someone close to dying ingests five jin [of jade spring], his color will not change for three years to come. Ben jing. It serves to heal the 12 diseases affecting women below the belt, removes qi protuberance-illness350 and clears ears and eyes. Ingested over a long time it takes the weight of the body and extends the years [of life]. Bie lu. It serves to cure blood clots. Da Ming. 【發明】【慎微曰】天寶遺事:楊貴妃含玉嚥津,以解肺渴。王莽遺孔休 玉曰:君面有疵,美玉可以滅瘢。後魏 李預得餐玉之法,乃采訪藍田, 掘得若環璧雜器形者,大小百餘枚,槌作屑,日食之,經年云有效驗,而 好酒損志。及疾篤,謂妻子曰:服玉當屏居山林,排棄嗜欲,而吾酒色不 絶,自致於死,非藥之過也。尸體必當有異於人,勿使速殯,令後人知餐 服之功。時七月中旬,長安毒熱,停尸四日,而體色不變,口無穢氣。 349 Zhu cao 朱草, lit: “cinnabar red herb.” Botanical identification uncertain. 350 Qi long 氣癃, “qi protuberance-illness,” with an inability to pass urine and a feeling of distension and fullness in the lower abdomen and urinary bladder. BCGM Dict I, 385.

356

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【弘景曰】張華云:服玉用藍田穀玉白色者,平常服之,則應神仙。有人 臨死服五斤,死經三年,其色不變。古來發塚見尸如生者,其身腹内外, 無不大有金玉。漢制,王公皆用珠襦玉匣,是使不朽故也。鍊服之法, 水、屑隨宜。雖曰性平,而服玉者亦多發熱,如寒食散狀。金玉既天地重 寶,不比餘石。若未深解節度,勿輕用之。【志曰】抱朴子云:服金者, 壽如金;服玉者,壽如玉。但其道遲成,須服一二百斤,乃可知也。玉可 以烏米酒及地榆酒化之爲水,亦可以葱漿消之爲𥹋,亦可餌以爲丸,亦可 以燒爲粉。服之一年以上,入水不沾,入火不灼,刃之不傷,百毒不死。 不可用已成之器,傷人無益,得璞玉乃可用也。赤松子以玄蟲血漬玉爲 水服之,故能乘烟霞上下。玉屑與水服之,俱令人不死。所以不及金者, 令人數數發熱,似寒食散狀也。若服玉屑,宜十日一服雄黄、丹砂各一刀 圭,散髮洗沐冷水,迎風而行,則不發熱也。董君異常以玉醴與盲人服, 旬日而目愈也。【時珍曰】漢武帝取金莖露和玉屑服,云可長生,即此物 也。但玉亦未必能使生者不死,惟使死者不朽爾。養尸招盗,反成暴棄。 曷若速朽歸虚之爲見理哉。 Explication. [Tang] Shenwei: Tian bao yi shi: Yang gui fei held a piece of jade in her mouth and swallowed the resulting liquid to resolve thirst caused by her lung. Wang Mang offered a piece of jade to Kong Xiu saying: “Sir, your face is affected by a blemish-illness. Beautiful jade can be used to dissolve scars.” During the Later Wei dynasty, Li Yu obtained a method of consuming jade for food. He went to Lan tian and dug out more than one hundred objects of different sizes shaped like rings or flat tablets or other utensils. He ground them to fragments and ate them every day. After several years they seemed to have an effect, but because he was addicted to wine his mind was ruined. When eventually he was critically ill, he told his wife: “When ingesting jade, it is essential to live a solitary life in the mountain forests and to abandon all lust. I did not end my alcoholism and this is why I have come to die. The medication is not to blame. My corpse will be different from that of other people. Do not have it laid in a coffin immediately and let others see the effects of consuming [jade] for food.” [He died] in the middle of the seventh month, at a time when Chang an was plagued by a poisonous heat. The corpse was left as is for four days. The color of his body did not change and no foul qi left his mouth. [Tao] Hongjing: Zhang Hua states: “When jade is ingested, if grain jade of white color from Lian tian is ingested regularly, it will let one become a spirit hermit/immortal. When people shortly before their death ingest five jin, for three years after their death their color will not change. Since ancient times, when tombs were opened and the corpses appeared as if they were alive, without exception they were found with large pieces of gold and jade inside and outside their body and abdomen.” Han dynasty regulations required that all kings and dukes [upon their death] were to

Chapter 8

357

wear coats of pearls and to be equipped with small chests of jade so as to prevent the rotting [of their corpse]. The methods of refining [jade] with heat to ingest it may be used to prepare a watery liquid or fragments; just as is suitable. Even though its nature is balanced, those who ingest jade often effuse heat, just as is the case with [ingesting] the cold food powder.351 Gold and jade are highly appreciated treasures of heaven and earth; they are not like other stones. If one has not yet thoroughly grasped the appropriate dosage of their use, he should not lightly resort to them. [Ma] Zhi: The Baopu zi states: “Those who ingest gold, they will have a long life like gold. Those who ingest jade, they will have a long life like jade. But the WAY underlying this manifests itself only slowly. It is essential to ingest one to two hundred jin, and only then the effects will be obvious. Jade can be transformed to a watery liquid with black rice wine and with sanguisorba root wine. It is also possible to dissolve it with an onion suspension to a kind of grease. It can be consumed prepared as pills, and also prepared with heat as a powder. If one has ingested it for longer than one year, he will not become moist when he enters water, and he will not be burned when he enters a fire. A blade will not harm him; the hundreds of poisons will not cause his death. However, jade that had been used to produce a utensil must not be used lest it harm one; it is of no benefit. Jade from uncut stones can be used. Chisong zi soaked jade in the blood of ‘black worms/bugs’ to generate a watery liquid [of jade] which he then ingested. Hence he was able to ascend and descend, riding on fumes and clouds. When jade fragments are ingested together with water, they let one not die. However, it is not equal to gold in that it frequently lets one effuse heat. This is similar to [consuming] cold food powder. If one ingests jade fragments, he should once every ten days ingest as much realgar and cinnabar as is held on a knife-shaped tablet of jade, losen his hair, bathe in cold water and walk against the wind. This will prevent him from effusing heat.” Dong Junyi regularly let blind people ingest a sweet wine prepared from jade. Ten days later their eyes were cured. [Li] Shizhen: Han Emperor Wu di ingested jade fragments mixed with dew from golden stalks. It was said that this could extend the years of one’s life, and this was the item discussed here. However, it is not for sure that jade will protect those who resort to it from dying. Its only effect is that it protects those who are dead from decaying. To nourish a corpse serves to attact robbers, and contrary [to one’s intentions], they contribute to a violent destruction. Would it not be more meaningful to quickly have [a corpse] decompose and return to the void?

351 Cold-Food-Powder is a stimulans in fashion among the elite during the Tang dynasty. Its major ingredients included atinolite, stalactite, magnetite, azurite and diamonds.

358

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 08-30 白玉髓别録 Bai yu sui, FE Bie lu.

White jade marrow. 有名未用 [Section] “Known by name; out of use.” 【校正】併入拾遺 玉膏。 Editorial Correction. Jade paste listed separately in the Shi yi is included in the present entry. 【釋名】玉脂綱目、玉膏拾遺、玉液。 Explanation of Names. Yu zhi 玉脂, “jade fat,” Gang mu. Yu gao 玉膏, “jade paste,” Shi yi. Yu ye 玉液, “jade liquid.” 【集解】【别録曰】生藍田玉石間。【時珍曰】此即玉膏也,别本以爲玉 泉者是矣。山海經云:密山上多丹木,丹水出焉,西流注於稷澤。其中多 白玉,是有玉膏。其源沸沸湯湯,黄帝是食是嚮。是生玄玉,玉膏所出, 以灌丹木。黄帝乃取密山之玉禜,而投之鍾山之陽。瑾瑜之玉爲良,堅栗 精密,澤而有光。五色發作,以和柔剛。天地鬼神,是食是嚮。君子服 之,以禦不祥。謹按:密山亦近于闐之間。是食者,服食也。是嚮者,祭 祀也。服之者,佩服也。玉膏,即玉髓也。河圖玉版云:少室之山,有白 玉膏,服之成仙。十洲記云:瀛洲有玉膏如酒,名曰玉醴,飲數升輒醉, 令人長生。抱朴子云:生玉之山,有玉膏流出,鮮明如水精。以無心草末 和之,須臾成水,服之一升長生。皆指此也。【藏器曰】今玉石間水飲 之,亦長生潤澤。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: It grows between the jade stones of Lan tian. [Li] Shizhen: This is jade paste. When other editions [of the Ben cao] equate it with “jade spring,” this is correct. The Shan hai jing states: “On Mount Mi shan are many cinnabar-red trees, and River Dan shui, the ‘cinnabar-red water’, springs there. It flows toward the West and into the Ji ze marshlands. It carries with it much white jade, and this goes along with jade paste. At its source, the water boils and is very hot. Huang Di ingested it as food and used it for sacrificial purposes. Dark jade grows there; it originates in jade paste. It is used to irrigate the cinnabar-red trees. Huang di availed himself of the jade from Mount Mi shan used for sacrificial purposes and dropped it on the yang/sunny side of Mount Zhong shan. Brilliant and lustrous jade is good. It is hard and has no pores. It is moist and has a luster. Among the five colors it sends out, soft and hard ones are combined. Demons and spirits in heaven and on earth ingest it as food, and it is used for sacrificial purposes. The gentle-

Chapter 8

359

man wears it on his body to protect himself from misfortune.” Thorough comment: Mount Mi shan, too, lies close to Yu tian. The [term] shi 食 used above is “to ingest as food.” The [term] xiang 嚮 used above is “to use for sacrificial purposes.” The term fu zhi 服之 means “to wear it on the body.” Jade paste is identical to jade marrow. The He tu yu ban states: “In the mountains of Shao shi a white jade paste occurs. To ingest it lets one become an hermit/immortal.” The Shi zhou ji states: “In Yin zhou is a jade paste resembling wine. It is called ‘jade sweet wine’. Those who drink several sheng of it will often be drunk; it helps them to extend the years of their life.” The Baopu zi states: “Mountains that bring forth jade have jade paste flowing out of them. It is as clear as a crystal. Mixed with gnaphalium herb powder it is soon transformed to a watery liquid that when one sheng is ingested will extend the years [of life].” All these [records refer to the item discussed] here. [Chen] Cangqi: If one drinks the water flowing from between jade stones, this, too, will extend the years [of life] and supplement moisture. 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】婦人無子,不老延年。别録 Control. Childlessness of women. It prevents aging and extends the years [of life]. Bie lu. 08-31 青玉别録 Qing yu, FE Bie lu. Blue jade. Sapphire. 有名未用 [Section] “Known by name; out of use.” 【釋名】穀玉。【時珍曰】穀,一作瑴,又作珏,谷、角二音。二玉相合 曰瑴,此玉常合生故也。 Explanation of Names. Gu yu 穀玉, “grain jade.” [Li] Shizhen: Gu 穀 is also written jue 瑴, “twin gems,” and jue 珏, “paired jades,” and it is read both gu 谷 and jue 角. Two pieces of jade combined are called jue 瑴. This type of jade often grows in combinations of two. Hence [the name]. 【集解】【别録曰】生藍田。【弘景曰】張華言:合玉漿用瑴玉,正縹白 色,不夾石。大者如升,小者如鷄子,取於穴中者,非今作器物玉也。出 襄鄉縣舊穴中。黄初時,詔征南將軍夏侯尚求之。【時珍曰】按格古論

360

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

云:古玉以青玉爲上,其色淡青而帶黄色。緑玉深緑者佳,淡者次之。菜 玉非青非緑,如菜色,此玉之最低者。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: It grows in Lan tian. [Tao] Hongjing: Zhang Hua says: “Grain jade is used in the preparation of jade broth/suspension. It is of an indistinct white color, and is not enclosed in stones. A large piece may be as big as a sheng measure; small ones are of the size of a chicken egg. [Grain jade] is removed from whithin mountain caves; nowadays it is not used for making utensils. It originates in old caves in Xiang xiang county. During the huang chu reign period (220226), an imperial order sent general Xiahou Shang on an expedition to the South to search for it.” [Li] Shizhen: According to the Ge gu lun, “among the jades of ancient times, blue jade was the best. Its color was pale greenish with some yellow. Among green jades, the deeper the green the better. Pale [green] comes second. ‘Green vegetable jade’ is neither greenish nor green; it resembles the color of green vegetables. This is the most inferior among jades.” 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】婦人無子,輕身不老長年。别録。 Control. Childlessness of women. It takes the weight of the body, lets one not age and extends the years [of life]. Bie lu.

【附録】 Appendix 08-31-A01 璧玉。Bi yu. Jade for flat, round disks with a hole in their center. 【别録曰】味甘,無毒。主明目益氣,使人多精生子。【時珍曰】璧,瑞 玉圜也。此玉可爲璧,故曰璧玉。璧外圓象天,内方象地。爾雅云:璧大 六寸謂之瑄,肉倍好謂之璧,好倍肉謂之瑗。 Bie lu: Flavor sweet, nonpoisonous. Control: It clears the eyes and boosts the qi. It lets one have much essence/sperm to generate children. [Li] Shizhen: Bi 璧 is an auspicious jade with a round shape. This jade can be used to make bi 璧. The round exterior of such jade disks reflects heaven; the square [hole] in its interior reflects the earth. The Er ya states: “Round jade disks measuring six cun [in diameter] are called xuan 瑄. If the ‘flesh’ [(i. e., the substance) of the disk] is larger than the hole

Chapter 8

361

in its center, they are called bi 璧; if the hole is larger than the ‘flesh’ around it, they are called yuan 瑗 (i. e., a large jade ring).” 08-31-A02 玉英。Yu ying. Mirror jade. 【别録曰】味甘,主風瘙皮膚痒。生山竅中,明白可作鏡,一名石鏡,十 二月采。 Bie lu: Flavor: Sweet. Control: Wind itching; itching skin. It grows in holes in mountains. It is of a brilliant white [color] and can be made to mirrors. Another name is “stone mirror.” It is collected in the 12th month. 08-31-A03 合玉石。He yu shi. Sand used to cut and polish jade. 【别録曰】味甘,無毒。主益氣,療消渴,輕身辟穀。生常山中丘,如彘 肪。【時珍曰】此即碾玉砂也,玉須此石碾之乃光。 Bie lu: Flavor: Sweet, nonpoisonous. Control: It boosts the qi, heals melting with thirst,352 takes the weight of the body and allows one to avoid grain [as food]. It grows in the Chang shan mountains. It resembles lard. [Li] Shizhen: This is sand used to grind and flatten jade. Jade must be polished with these stones to become shiny. 08-32 青琅玕本經下品 Qing lang gan, FE Ben jing, lower rank. Greenish clacking. Malachite (when obtained in the mountains). Coral (when obtained from the bottom of the ocean). 【校正】併入拾遺 石闌干。 Editorial Correction. Shi lan gan listed separately in the Shi yi is included in the present entry. 【釋名】石闌干拾遺、石珠别録、青珠。【時珍曰】琅玕,象其聲也。可 碾爲珠,故得珠名。 Explanation of Names. Shi lan gan 石闌干, “clacking stone,” Shi yi. Shi zhu 石珠, “stone pearl,” Bie lu. Qing zhu 青珠, “greenish pearl.” [Li] Shizhen: Lang gan 琅玕 352 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567.

362

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

is to reflect the [clacking] sound it emits [when tapped]. It can be polished to look like a pearl, zhu 珠. Hence it was named zhu 珠, “pearl.” 【集解】【别録曰】青琅玕生蜀郡平澤,采無時。【弘景曰】此蜀都賦所 稱青珠黄環者也。琅玕亦是崑崙山上樹名,又九真經中大丹名。【恭曰】 琅玕有數種色,以青者入藥爲勝,是琉璃之類,火齊寶也。今出嶲州以 西烏白蠻中及於闐國。【藏器曰】石闌干生大海底,高尺餘,如樹,有 根莖,莖上有孔,如物點之。漁人以網罾得之,初從水出微紅,後漸青。 【頌曰】今秘書中有異魚圖,載琅玕青色,生海中。云海人以網於海底取 之,初出水紅色,久而青黑,枝柯似珊瑚,而上有孔竅,如蟲蛀,擊之有 金石之聲,乃與珊瑚相類。其説與别録生蜀郡平澤及蘇恭所云不同,人莫 能的識。謹按尚書:雍州厥貢,球琳琅玕。爾雅云:西北之美者,有崑崙 墟之璆、琳、琅玕。孔安國、郭璞注,皆以爲石之似珠者。而山海經云, 崑崙山有琅玕。若然,是石之美者,明瑩若珠之色而狀森植爾。大扺古人 謂石之美者,多謂之珠,廣雅謂琉璃、珊瑚皆爲珠是也。已上所説,皆出 西北山中,而今圖乃云海底得之。蓋珍貴之物,山海或俱産焉。今醫家亦 以難得而稀用也。【宗奭曰】書云:雍州厥貢,球琳琅玕。西域記云,天 竺國正出此物。蘇恭云,是琉璃之類。琉璃乃火成之物,琅玕非火成者, 安得同類。【時珍曰】按許慎説文云:琅玕,石之似玉者。孔安國云:石 之似珠者。總龜云:生南海石厓間,狀如筍,質似玉。玉册云:生南海崖 石内,自然感陰陽之氣而成,似珠而赤。列子云:蓬萊之山,珠玕之樹叢 生。據諸説,則琅玕生於西北山中及海山厓間。其云生於海底網取者, 是珊瑚,非琅玕也。在山爲琅玕,在水爲珊瑚,珊瑚亦有碧色者。今回回 地方出一種青珠,與碧靛相似,恐是琅玕所作者也。山海經云:開明山北 有珠樹。淮南子云:曾城九重,有珠樹在其西。珠樹即琅玕也。餘見珊瑚 下。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Qing lang gan grows in the plains and marshland of Shu jun. It is collected anytime. [Tao] Hongjing: This is [the item] called “greenish pearl” and “yellow ring” in the Shu du fu. Lang gan is also the name of a tree on Mount Kun lun, and it is the name of a major cinnabar elixir listed in the Jiu zhen jing. [Su] Gong: Lang gan appears with many different colors. Greenish [lang gan] is the best for use as medication. It is a type of glazed glass; a gem prepared with fire. Nowadays it originates in the region of the Wu bai man tribes west of Xi zhou up to Yu tian guo. [Chen] Cangqi: “Shi lan gan grows on the bottom of the ocean. It is more than a chi tall, and like a tree it has a root and a stem, with holes on the stem, as if punctured by some item. The fishermen harvest them with their nets. When they have just come out of the water they are slightly red. Later they gradually turn greenish.” [Su] Song: Nowadays there is a secret book Yi yu tu. It has

Chapter 8

363

a record of lang gan of greenish color, growing in the sea. It states: “The people of the sea remove it with their nets from the bottom of the sea. When it has just come out of the water it is of red color. After a long time it turns to greenish-black. With its branches and the stalk it resembles corals, but it has holes on it, as if infested with worms/bugs. When struck it emits a sound like metal or stones.” [This item] belongs to the group of corals, and this statement differs from the [statement in] the Bie lu “[Qing lang gan] grows in the plains and marshland of Shu jun” and also from Su Gong’s statement. No one can know what [lang gan] really is. According to the Shang shu, “tributes excavated in Yong zhou [to be sent to the authorities] include qiu 球 and lin 琳 [jade/precious stones] as well as lang gan 琅玕.” The Er ya states: “Beautiful [jades/precious stones] from the North-West include qiu 璆, lin 琳 and lang gan 琅玕 from the Kun lun [mountains].” Kong Anguo and Guo Pu in their comments both express their belief that these are stones resembling pearls. But the Shan hai jing states: “Mount Kun lun has lang gan.” If this is so, these are beautiful stones with a brilliant luster resembling the color of pearls and shaped like plants growing in a forest. In general, when the people in antiquity spoke of beautiful stones, they often named them “pearls.” The Guang ya speaks of opaque glass and corals as “pearls.” Based on the sayings quoted above, [lang gan] always originates in the mountains in the North-West, but in the [secret book Yi yu] tu it is said to be harvested from the bottom of the sea. The fact is, precious objects may be brought forth by mountains and by the sea. For today’s physicians [qing lang gan] is difficult to obtain, and they rarely use it [for therapeutic purposes]. [Kou] Zongshi: The Shu states: “Tributes excavated in Yong zhou [to be sent to the authorities] include qiu 球 and lin 琳 [jade/precious stones] as well as lang gan 琅玕.” The Xi yu ji states: “These items originate in Tian zhu guo/India.” Su Gong states: “It is a type of opaque glass.” Opaque glass is an item produced with fire. Lang gan is not produced with fire. How can they be of the same type? [Li] Shizhen: According to Xu Shen’s Shuo wen, “lang gan are stones resembling jade.” Kong Anguo states: “These are stones resembling pearls.” The Zong gui states: “They grow on the precipice rocks of the Nan hai. They are shaped like bamboo shoots, and their substance resembles jade.” The Yu ce states: “They grow in the cliff rocks of the Nan hai. They are generated by being affected by the yin and yang qi of nature. They resemble pearls, but are red.” The Lie zi states: “In the mountains of Peng lai, thickets of zhu gan 珠玕 trees grow.” Given all these statements, lang gan grows both in the mountains of the North-West and on the mountain cliffs of the sea. When it is said that they are harvested with nets from the bottom of the sea, then these are corals, not lang gan. In the mountains, these are lang gan. In the water, these are corals. Corals, too, may be of green color. Nowadays a “greenish pearl” variation originates in the Islamic

364

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

region. It is similar to green-bluish [pearls]. Maybe it is made out of lang gan. The Shan hai jing states: “North of Mount Kai ming shan are pearl trees.” The Huai nan zi states: “Pearl trees are present in the West of the city of Zeng cheng built on nine layers.” Pearl trees are lang gan. See under the entry “corals.” (08-33) 【氣味】辛,平,無毒。【之才曰】殺錫毒,得水銀良,畏鷄骨。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, balanced, nonpoisonous. [Xu] Zhicai: It kills the poison of tin. To be brought together with mercury is good for it. [If ingested together,] it fears chicken bones. 【主治】身痒,火瘡癰瘍,疥瘙死𦠄。本經。白秃,浸淫在皮膚中,煮鍊 服之,起陰氣,可化爲丹。别録。療手足逆臚。弘景。石闌干:主石淋, 破血,産後惡血,磨服,或煮服,亦火燒投酒中服。藏器。 Control. Body itch. Fire sores/wounds, obstruction-illness353 and ulcers. Jie-illness354 with itching and dead muscles. Ben jing. For white baldness and a skin soaked [with pus and blood], boil and refine it with heat and ingest this. It will make yin qi ascend and can be transformed to a cinnabar elixir. Bie lu. It serves to heal inverted skin of hands and feet. [Tao] Hongjing. Shi lan gan: It controls stone dripping [of urine], breaks open blood [accumulations] and malign blood [stagnating in a woman’s body] after delivery. [Let the patient] ingest it rubbed [to a powder] or boiled [in water]. It is also possible to heat it over a fire, drop it into wine and [let the patient] ingest [the wine]. [Chen] Cangqi. 08-33 珊瑚唐本草 Shan hu, FE Tang ben cao. Coral. 【釋名】鉢擺娑福羅梵書。 Explanation of Names. Bobaipofulou 鉢擺娑福羅, Sanskrit text. 【集解】【恭曰】珊瑚生南海,又從波斯國及師子國來。【頌曰】今廣州 亦有,云生海底作枝柯狀,明潤如紅玉,中多有孔,亦有無孔者,枝柯多 者更難得,采無時。謹按海中經云:取珊瑚,先作鐵網沉水底,珊瑚貫中 而生,歲高三二尺,有枝無葉,因絞網出之,皆摧折在網中,故難得完好 者。不知今之取者果爾否?漢 積翠池中,有珊瑚高一丈二尺,一本三柯, 上有四百六十條,云是南越王 趙佗所獻,夜有光景。晉 石崇家有珊瑚高六 353 Qi long 氣癃, “qi protuberance-illness,” with an inability to pass urine and a feeling of distension and fullness in the lower abdomen and urinary bladder. BCGM Dict I, 385. 354 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely identifiable skin ailment. BCGM Dict Vol. I, 249.

Chapter 8

365

七尺。今並不聞有此高大者。【宗奭曰】珊瑚有紅油色者,細縱文可愛。 有如鈆丹色者,無縱文,爲下品。入藥用紅油色者。波斯國海中有珊瑚 洲,海人乘大舶墮鐵網水底取之。珊瑚初生磐石上,白如菌,一歲而黄, 二歲變赤,枝幹交錯,高三四尺。人没水以鐵發其根,繫網舶上,絞而出 之,失時不取則腐蠹。【時珍曰】珊瑚生海底,五七株成林,謂之珊瑚 林。居水中直而軟,見風日則曲而硬,變紅色者爲上,漢 趙佗謂之火樹是 也。亦有黑色者,不佳,碧色者亦良。昔人謂碧者爲青琅玕,俱可作珠。 許慎説文云:珊瑚色赤,亦生於海,或生於山。據此説,則生於海者爲珊 瑚,生於山者爲琅玕,尤可徵矣。互見琅玕下。 Collected Explanations. [Su] Gong: Corals grow in the Nan hai. They are also brought here from Po si guo/Persia and Shi zi guo/Srilanka. [Su] Song: Nowadays they are also available in Guang zhou. It is said that they grow on the bottom of the sea with a stalk and branches, and with a brilliant luster resembling red jade. Many of them have holes, but there are also those without holes. Those with many stalks and branches are particularly difficult to obtain. They are collected anytime. According to the Hai zhong jing, “when corals are to be gathered, an iron net is to be lowered onto the bottom of the sea first. Corals will penetrate it and grow in [the net]. Within one year they reach a height of two to three chi. They have branches, but they have no leaves. Because they are entangled in the net they can be removed with it. They all are broken to pieces in the net, and hence it is difficult to obtain complete specimens.” I do not know whether today they are still collected in the same manner. During the Han dynasty, in the Ji cui lake there was a coral one zhang, two chi tall, with one stem and three stalks and 460 branches. It is said to be a gift presented by King Zhao Tuo of Nan Yue. During the night it emitted light. During the Jin dynasty, Shi Chong in his house had a coral six to seven chi tall. Nowadays such tall and big [corals] are no longer heard of. [Kou] Zongshi: “Among corals are those with a red, oily color and a fine, amiable lengthwise line design. There are others with a color reminiscent of minium and without lengthwise line design. They are of low rank. For medication, those of a red, oily color are resorted to. In the Po si/Persian sea is a coral bank. The people on the sea use large oceangoing ships and lower iron nets to the bottom of the sea to gather [the corals]. When corals first grow on big rocks, their color is white like that of mushrooms. Within one year they become yellow. Within two years [their color] changes to red, and their branches and trunks intertwine. They are three to four chi tall. The people dive into the water and with some iron [utensil] they lay free the roots [of the corals]. They attach a net to the ship and pull the entangled [corals] with it out [of the water]. If [the severed corals] are not collected right away, they will rot, as they are infested by some wood-borer bug.” [Li] Shizhen: Corals grow on the bottom of

366

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

the sea. Five to seven stems form a forest, called “coral forest.” As long as they are situated in a water, they are straight and soft. Once they are exposed to wind and the light of the sun, they bend and harden. Those changing to a red color are best. They are the ones called during the Han dynasty by Zhao Tuo “fire trees.” There are also black specimens, they are not good. Those with a color like bluish jade are good, too. In ancient times those with a color like bluish jade were called by the people qing lang gan. They are suitable for the production of jewelry. Xu Shen in his Shuo wen states: “Corals of a red color may grow in the sea and they may also grow in the mountains.” Based on these statements, those that grow in the sea are the corals. Those that grow in the mountains, they are the lang gan. That is evident. See also under the entry lang gan (08-32). 【氣味】甘。平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】去目中瞖,消宿血。爲末吹鼻,止鼻衄。唐本。明目鎮心,止驚 癇。大明。點眼,去飛絲。時珍。 Control. They remove shades from within the eyes, and they dissolve residual blood. [Ground to] a powder and blown into the nostrils, they end nosebleed. Tang ben. They clear the eyes and calm the heart. They end fright epilepsy. Da Ming. Dripped into the eyes they remove flying silk threads. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【珣曰】珊瑚主治與金相似。【宗奭曰】今人用爲點眼筯,治目 瞖。【藏器曰】珊瑚刺之,汁流如血。以金投之爲丸名金漿,以玉投之爲 玉髓,久服長生。 Explication. [Li] Xun: The [diseases] controlled and cured are similar to those [controlled and cured] by gold. [Kou] Zongshi: Nowadays the people use them as tools to apply eye drops and to cure eye shades. [Chen] Cangqi: When corals are pierced, a juice like blood flows out of them. Pills formed by dropping gold into [the bloodlike juice flowing out of corals] are called “gold broth/suspension.” When jade is dropped into [this liquid], “jade marrow” results. Ingested over a long time, it extends the years [of life].

Chapter 8

367

【附方】舊一。 Added Recipes. One of old. 小兒麩瞖未堅。不可亂藥,宜以珊瑚研如粉,日少少點之,三日愈。錢相 公篋中方。 Bran shades in the eyes of a child that have not hardened yet. Do not give medication easily. It is advisable to grind corals to a powder and to drip a small amount of it [into they eyes] every day. A cure will be achieved after three days. Qian xiang gong, Qie zhong fang. 08-34 馬腦宋嘉祐 Ma nao, FE Song, Jia you. Horse brain. Agate. 【釋名】瑪瑙、文石、摩羅迦隸佛書。【藏器曰】赤爛紅色,似馬之腦, 故名。亦云馬腦珠。胡人云是馬口吐出者,謬言也。【時珍曰】按增韻 云:玉屬也。文理交錯,有似馬腦,因以名之。拾遺記云是鬼血所化,更 謬。 Explanation of Names. Ma nao 瑪瑙, wen shi 文石, “line stone,” moluojiali 摩羅迦 隸, Buddhist texts. [Chen] Cangqi: It is of dark red, and glittering light red color, similar to the brain of horses. Hence its name. It is also called ma nao zhu 馬腦 珠, “horse brain pearl/jewelry.” The Hu-people say it is vomited out of the horse’s mouth. Such a saying is wrong. [Li] Shizhen: According to the Zeng yun, [agate] belongs to the group of jades. With its crisscross line design [agate] resembles a horse’s brain. Hence its name. The Shi yi ji states: “[Agate] is a transformation product of demon blood.” That is especially wrong. 【集解】【藏器曰】馬腦生西國玉石間,亦美石之類,重寶也。來中國 者,皆以爲器。又出日本國。用砑木不熱者爲上,熱者非真也。【宗奭 曰】馬腦非玉非石,自是一類。有紅、白、黑三種,亦有文如纏絲者。西 人以小者爲玩好之物,大者碾爲器。【時珍曰】馬腦出西南諸國,云得自 然灰即軟,可刻也。曹昭格古論云:多出北地、南番、西番,非石非玉, 堅而且脆,刀刮不動,其中有人物鳥獸形者最貴。顧文薦負暄録云:馬腦 品類甚多,出産有南北。大者如斗,其質堅硬,碾造費工。南馬腦産大食 等國,色正紅無瑕,可作杯斝。西北者色青黑,寧夏、瓜、沙、羌地砂磧 中得者尤奇。有柏枝馬腦,花如柏枝。有夾胎馬腦,正視瑩白,側視則若 凝血,一物二色也。截子馬腦,黑白相間。合子馬腦,漆黑中有一白線間 之。錦紅馬腦,其色如錦。纏絲馬腦,紅白如絲。此皆貴品。漿水馬腦,

368

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

有淡水花。醬斑馬腦,有紫紅花。曲蟮馬腦,粉紅花。皆價低。又紫雲馬 腦出和州,土馬腦出山東 沂州,亦有紅色雲頭、纏絲、胡桃花者。又竹葉 馬腦,出淮右,花如竹葉。並可作卓面、屏風。金陵 雨花臺小馬腦止可充 玩耳。試馬腦法,以砑木,不熱爲真。 Collected Explanations. [Chen] Cangqi: Agate grows in the jade rocks of Western countries. It belongs to the group of beautiful stones and is valued as a treasure. That brought to China is always processed to utensils. [Agate] also originates in Ri ben/Japan. [Agate] that does not get hot when rubbed with wood is best; that which gets hot is not genuine. [Kou] Zongshi: Agate is neither jade nor a stone; it forms a group of its own, including three kinds: red, white and black. There are also specimens with a line design of intertwined silk threads. The people in the West use small pieces as toys, and they process large pieces to utensils. [Li] Shizhen: Agate originates in various countries in the South-West. It is said that exposed to Meerschaum it softens and can be carved. Cao Zhao in his Ge gu lun states: “[Agate] mostly originates in regions in the North, from southern foreign lands and from western foreign lands. It is neither a stone nor jade. It is hard and at the same time bristle. When scratched with a knife, no mark will be left. Those are most precious that seem to include the physical appearance of humans, birds or animals.” Gu Wenjian in his Fu xuan lu states: “There are very many different agate items, produced in the South and in the North. Some are as big as a dou measure; their substance is hard and solid, and to process them requires hard work. Southern agate is produced in countries like Da shi. It is of a pure red color without any flaws, and can be processed to cups of various sizes. [Agate] from the North-West is of greenish-black color. That which comes from the sand deserts in the regions of Ning xia, Gua, Sha and Qiang is especially noteworthy. There is a ‘platycladus twig agate’. Its design is reminiscent of platycladus twigs. There is a ‘fetus enclosing agate’. If looked at from in front, it is transparent white. If looked at from the side, it resembles congealed blood. That is, one item, two colors. ‘Cut up agate’ has alternating black and white sections. ‘Combined agate’ has one single white line within a lacquer black environment. The color of ‘brocade red agate’ is that of brocade. ‘Tangled silk thread agate’ is red and white like [tangled] silk threads. All these are precious items. ‘Fermented water of foxtail millet agate’ has a pale water pattern. ‘Meat sauce speckled agate’ has a purple-red pattern. ‘Bent earthworm agate’ has a pink pattern. They all are of low value. Also, a ‘purple cloud agate’ originates in He zhou. A ‘soil agate’ originates in Yi zhou in Shan dong. And there is a ‘red cloud [agate]’, a ‘tangled silk thread [agate]’, and a ‘walnut pattern [agate]’, Furthermore, a ‘bamboo leaf agate’ originates in Huai you with marks like bamboo leaves. It can be processed to tabletops and screens. The small agate pieces from Yu hua tai in Jin ling can be used for

Chapter 8

369

toys only. The method to verify the authenticity of agate: If when rubbed with wood it does not get hot, it is genuine.” 【氣味】辛,寒,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】辟惡,熨目赤爛。藏器。主目生障瞖,爲末日點。時珍。 Control. It wards off the malign. It is pressed hot on red, festering eyes. [Chen] Cangqi. To control screens and shades developing in the eyes, grind it to a powder and drip [this into the affected eyes] every day. [Li] Shizhen. 08-35 寶石綱目 Bao shi, FE Gang mu. Precious stone. 【集解】【時珍曰】寶石出西番、回鶻地方諸坑井内,雲南、遼東亦有 之。有紅、緑、碧、紫數色:紅者名剌子,碧者名靛子,翠者名馬價珠, 黄者名木難珠,紫者名蠟子。又有鴉鶻石、猫精石、石榴子、紅扁豆等名 色,皆其類也。山海經言:騩山多玉,凄水出焉,西注於海,中多采石。 采石即寶石也。碧者,唐人謂之瑟瑟。紅者,宋人謂之靺鞨。今通呼爲寶 石。以鑲首飾器物,大者如指頭,小者如豆粒,皆碾成珠狀。張勃吴録 云:越雋、雲南河中出碧珠,須祭而取之,有縹碧、緑碧。此即碧色寶石 也。 Collected Explanation. [Li] Shizhen: Precious stones originate in various pits and wells in foreign lands in the West and in Hui he. They are also present in Yun nan and Liao dong. They appear in various colors: red, green, bluish green and purple. A red [precious stone] is called “the unruly.” A bluish one is called “the indigo.” Emerald green ones are called “pearls/jewelry worth a horse.” A yellow one is called “a pearl/jewelry hard like wood.” Purple ones are called “the waxen ones.” Also, there are names and colors such as “crow and falcon stones,” “cat essence/sperm stones,” “pomegranates,” and “flat red beans,” all these types. The Shan hai jing states: “Mount Kui shan has much jade. It is carried away by the Qi shui river. It flows into the sea in the West. Many stones are gathered from it.” The stones gathered from it are precious stones. Those of bluish color were called “the rustling ones” by the people during the Tang dynasty. Red ones were called “Tunguses” by the people during the Song dynasty. Nowadays, they all alike are called “precious stones.” When they are used as inlays for ornaments/jewelry and other objects, large ones are of the size of a finger tip; small ones are like beans. They all are processed to a pearl shape.

370

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Zhang Bo in his Wu lu states: “To remove the bluish pearls brought forth by the rivers of Yue sui and Yun nan, a sacrificial ritual must be performed. There are ‘indistinct bluish’ and ‘green bluish’ ones. All these are precious stones of bluish color.” 【主治】去翳明目,入點藥用之。灰塵入目,以珠拭拂即去。時珍。 Control. To remove shades and clear the eyes, add them to medication to be dripped [into the affected eyes]. For ashes or dust that has entered the eyes, wipe [the affected eyes] with an [agate] pearl, and [the foreign objects] will be removed. [Li] Shizhen. 08-36 玻瓈拾遺 Bo li, FE Shi yi. Glass. 【釋名】頗黎綱目、水玉拾遺。【時珍曰】本作頗黎。頗黎,國名也。其 瑩如水,其堅如玉,故名水玉,與水精同名。 Explanation of Names. Po li 頗黎, Gang mu. Shui yu 水玉, “water and jade,” or: “watery jade.” Shi yi. [Li] Shizhen: Originally it was written po li 頗黎. Po li 頗黎 is the name of a country. It is as transparent as water, shui 水, and it is as hard as jade, yu 玉. Hence it is called shui yu 水玉, “water and jade.” This is also the name of crystals. 【集解】【藏器曰】玻瓈,西國之寶也。玉石之類,生土中。或云千歲冰 所化,亦未必然。【時珍曰】出南番。有酒色、紫色、白色,瑩澈與水精 相似,碾開有雨點花者爲真。外丹家亦用之。藥燒者有氣眼而輕。玄中記 云:大秦國有五色頗黎,以紅色爲貴。梁四公記云:扶南人來賣碧頗黎 鏡,廣一尺半,重四十斤,内外皎潔,向明視之,不見其質。蔡絛云:御 庫有玻璃母,乃大食所貢,狀如鐵滓,煅之但作珂子狀,青、紅、黄、白 數色。 Collected Explanations. [Chen] Cangqi: Glass is a precious item of Western countries. It belongs to the group of jade stones, and grows in the soil. Some say that it is a transformation product of ice that is a thousand years old. But this is not necessarily so. [Li] Shizhen: It originates in Nan fan. It may be of the color of wine, of purple color and of white color. It is as transparent and lucid as crystal. It is genuine [glass] if when it is broken it forms fragments like rain drops. The experts of external [life prolonging] elixirs resort to it, too. [Glas] produced with heat by means of a pharmaceutical process has qi eyes/bubbles in it and is of light weight. The Xuan zhong ji states: “The country Da qin has glass in all five colors, with that of red color being considered valuable.” The Liang si gong ji states: “People from Fu nan come

Chapter 8

371

here to sell bluish glass mirrors. They are one and a half chi wide, and they weigh 40 jin. Their inside and their outside are bright and clear. If one looks at their bright side, one does not see their substance.” Cai Tao states: “The Imperial Treasury holds a ‘mother of glass’. It is a present submitted by [the country] Da shi. [‘Mother of glass’] consists of [kernels] shaped like iron sediment. However, by means of calcination they are processed to something like a horse’s bridle ornament usually made of agate, in greenish, red, yellow and white colors.” 【氣味】辛,寒,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】驚悸心熱,能安心明目,去赤眼,熨熱腫。藏器。摩翳障。大明。 Control. Fright palpitation and heat in the heart. It is able to pacify the heart and to clear the eyes. It removes redness from the eyes. It is pressed hot on a swelling. [Chen] Cangqi. It serves to rub [eyes with] a shade or screen. Da Ming. 08-37 水精拾遺 Shui jing, FE Shi yi. [Hardened] essence of water. Crystal. 【釋名】水晶綱目、水玉綱目、石英。【時珍曰】瑩澈晶光,如水之精 英,會意也。山海經謂之水玉,廣雅謂之石英。 Explanation of Names. Shui jing 水晶, “watery glitter,” Gang mu. Shui yu 水玉, “watery jade,” Gang mu. Shi ying 石英, “stone bloom.” [Li] Shizhen: It is transparent and lucid, with a brilliant shine, as if it were the [hardened] essence of water. [The name shui jing 水精] combines these meanings. The Shan hai jing calls it shui yu 水 玉, “watery jade.” The Guang ya calls it shi ying 石英, “stone bloom.” 【集解】【時珍曰】水精亦頗黎之屬,有黑、白二色。倭國多水精第一。 南水精白,北水精黑,信州、武昌水精濁。性堅而脆,刀刮不動,色澈如 泉,清明而瑩,置水中無耳殳355、不見珠者佳。古語云水化,謬言也。藥燒 成者有氣眼,謂之硝子,一名海水精。抱朴子言,交 廣人作假水精盌,是 此。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: Crystal, too, belongs to the group of glasses. It may be of black and of white color. The majority of crystal comes from Japan. Crystal from the South is white. Crystal from the North is black. Crystal from Xin zhou and Wu chang is turbid. By its nature it is hard and brittle. When scratched 355 The meaning of 耳殳 is not clear. It has been read as xia 瑕, “flaws in a piece of jade.” While this makes sense, the justification of such a reading is not known.

372

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

with a knife, no mark is left. Its color is as clear as spring [water]. It is brilliant and transparent. When it is placed into water and neither cracks nor pearls appear, this is good [quality crystal]. An ancient saying is that [crystal] is a transformation product of water. That is wrong. [Crystal] produced with heat through pharmaceutical processing has qi eyes/bubbles. It is called xiao zi 硝子; another name is “sea water essence.” The Baopu zi says: “The people of Jiao and Guang produce fake crystal bowls.” This is meant [by crystal produced with heat through pharmaceutical processing] alluded to above. 【氣味】辛,寒,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】熨目,除熱淚。藏器。亦入點目藥。穿串吞咽中,推引諸哽物。 時珍。 Control. Pressed hot on [affected] eyes it serves to remove heat with tearflow. [Chen] Cangqi. It, too, is added to eye drop medication. When tied to a string and gulped down into the throat, it serves to push down any type of items stuck there. [Li] Shizhen.

【附録】 Appendix 08-37-A01 火珠。Huo zhu. Fire pearl. Crystal burning glass. 【時珍曰】説文謂之火齊珠。漢書謂之玫瑰,音枚回。唐書云:東南海中 有羅刹國,出火齊珠,大者如鷄卵,狀類水精,圓白,照數尺。日中以艾 承之則得火,用灸艾炷不傷人。今占城國有之,名朝霞大火珠。又續漢書 云:哀牢夷出火精、琉璃,則火齊乃火精之訛,正與水精對。 [Li] Shizhen: The Shuo wen calls it “pearl equivalent with fire.” The Han shu calls it mei hui 玫瑰, read mei hui 枚回. The Tang shu states: In Dong nan hai is the country Luo cha. Pearls equivalent with fire originate in there. Large ones are as big as chicken eggs. Their shape is reminiscent of crystal. They are round and white, and their shine extends over several chi. When at noon/in sunlight they are held above common mugwort [leaves], [the common mugwort leaves] will catch fire. If this is then used for cauterization, persons [so treated] will not be harmed. Nowadays they are found in the country Zhan cheng, and they are called “big fire pearls of the rosy dawn.” Also, the Xu Han shu states: “[The country] Ai lao yi exports ‘fire essence’

Chapter 8

373

and colored opaque glass.” That is, huo qi 火齊, “[pearls] equivalent with fire” is an erroneous writing of huo jing 火精, “[hardened] essence of fire,” the counterpart of shui jing 水精, “[hardened] essence of water.” 08-37-A02 碝石。Ruan shi, read ruan 耎。 Jade-like stone. 【時珍曰】出雁門。石次於玉,白色如冰,亦有赤者。山海經云北山多碝 石,禮云士佩碝玫是也。 [Li] Shizhen: It originates in Yan men. It is a stone secondary to jade. It is of white color, like ice. There are also red ones. The Shang hai jing states: “On Mount Bei shan there are many ruan shi.” The Li states “Males wear on their garments ruan mei 碝玫.” These are the [ruan shi 碝石] listed here. 08-38 琉璃拾遺 Liu li, FE Shi yi. Opaque glass of any color. 【釋名】火齊。【時珍曰】漢書作流離,言其流光陸離也。火齊,與火珠 同名。 Explanation of Names. Huo qi 火齊, “fire equivalent.” [Li] Shizhen: The Han shu writes liu li 流離, stating that “the flow (liu 流) of its shine leaves (li 離) the land.” Huo qi 火齊, “fire equivalent,” is identical to huo zhu 火珠, “fire pearl.” 【集解】【藏器曰】韻集云:琉璃,火齊珠也。南州異物志云:琉璃本 質是石,以自然灰治之可爲器,石不得此則不可釋。佛經所謂七寶者, 琉璃、車渠、馬腦、玻璃、真珠是也。【時珍曰】按魏略云:大秦國出金 銀琉璃,有赤、白、黄、黑、青、緑、縹、紺、紅、紫十種。此乃自然 之物,澤潤光采,踰於衆玉。今俗所用,皆銷冶石汁,以衆藥灌而爲之, 虚脆不貞。格古論云:石琉璃出高麗,刀刮不動,色白,厚半寸許,可點 燈,明於牛角者。異物志云:南天竺諸國出火齊,狀如雲母,色如紫金, 重沓可開,拆之則薄如蟬翼,積之乃如紗縠。亦琉璃、雲母之類也。按: 此石今人以作燈球,明瑩而堅,耐久。蘇頌言亦可入藥,未見用者。 Collected Explanations. [Chen] Cangqi: “The Yun ji (i. e., Ji yun) states: “Opaque glass is the ‘pearl equivalent with fire’.” The Nan zhou yi wu zhi states: “The original substance of opaque glass is stone. When processed with meerschaum it can be made to utensils. If the stone is not exposed to [meerschaum] it cannot be dissolved.” The seven precious items referred to in Buddhist classics include opaque

374

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

glass, wheel ruts, agate, glass and genuine pearls. [Li] Shizhen: According to the Wei lue, “the country Da qin exports gold, silver and opaque glass. [The latter appears] in ten kinds: red, white, yellow, black, greenish, green, indistinct, dark purple, light red and purple.” These are natural products. Their gloss and shine exceeds all types of jade. [Opaque glass] commonly used today is always a product of melting stones to prepare a liquid to which are then added all types of medicinal substances. It is brittle and not solid. The Ge gu lun states: “Stone/ceramic opaque glass originates in Gao li (Korea). When scratched with a knife, no marks will remain. It is of white color and more than half a cun thick. It can be lighted [like a candle and its fire is] more brilliant than that of [burned] ox horns.” The Yi wu zhi states: “All the countries of Nan tian zhu (India) export ‘fire equivalent’ shaped like muscovite, with a color resembling purple gold. When [opaque glass] is piled up in multiple layers, it may break. It can be torn apart to generate slices as thin as cicada wings. When put together it looks like tulle or crepe.” Opaque glass and muscovite form one group. Comment: Today, the people use this stone to produce lamp globes. They are brilliant, transparent and hard, and they are very durable. Su Song says, they can also be added to medication, but this [I] have not seen yet. 【主治】身熱目赤,以水浸冷熨之。藏器。 Control. For body heat and red eyes, soak it in water, let it cool and then press it [to the affected region]. [Chen] Cangqi. 08-39 雲母本經上品 Yun mu, FE Ben jing, upper rank. Muscovite. 【釋名】雲華、雲珠、雲英、雲液、雲砂本經、磷石。【時珍曰】雲母以 五色立名,詳見下文。按荆南志云:華容 方臺山出雲母,土人候雲所出之 處,于下掘取,無不大獲,有長五六尺可爲屏風者,但掘時忌作聲也。據 此,則此石乃雲之根,故得雲母之名。而雲母之根,則陽起石也。抱朴子 云:服雲母十年,雲氣常覆其上。服其母以致其子,理自然也。 Explanation of Names. Yun hua 雲華, “cloud splendor.” Yun zhu 雲珠, “cloud pearl/ jewelry.” Yun ying 雲英, “cloud bloom.” Yun ye 雲液, “cloud liquid.” Yun sha 雲 砂, “cloud sand,” Ben jing. Lin shi 磷石, “stone with phosphorescent shine.” [Li] Shizhen: The names of muscovite are based on its appearance in all five colors. For details see the text further down. According to the Jing nan zhi, “Mount Fang tai in Hua rong produces muscovite. The locals examine wherefrom clouds emerge, and below [that region in the sky] they dig into the earth to remove [the muscovite].

Chapter 8

375

It never happens that they do not have a rich yield. There are large pieces of five to six chi that are then made to screens, but it is essential, when digging for them, not to make any sound.” This is evidence that these stones are the root of the clouds. Hence they are named “mother of clouds.” The root of the “mother of clouds” in turn is “the stone from which yang [qi] rise,” (i. e., actinolite). The Baopu zi states: “When someone has ingested ‘mother of clouds’ for ten years, cloud qi will regularly accumulate above him. To ingest the ‘mother’ to have her ‘child’ come by, that is a natural principle.” 【集解】【别録曰】雲母生太山山谷、齊山、廬山及琅琊 北定山石間,二 月采之。雲華五色具,雲英色多青,雲珠色多赤,雲液色多白,雲砂色青 黄,磷石色正白。【弘景曰】按仙經,雲母有八種。向日視之,色青白多 黑者名雲母,色黄白多青者名雲英,色青白多赤者名雲珠,如冰露乍黄乍 白者名雲砂,黄白皛皛者名雲液,皎然純白明澈者名磷石。此六種並好, 服各有時月。其黯黯純黑、有文斑斑如鐵者名雲膽,色雜黑而强肥者名地 涿,此二種並不可服。鍊之有法,宜精細。不爾,入腹大害人。今江東惟 用廬山者爲勝,青州者亦好,以沙土養之,歲月生長。【頌曰】今兖州 雲 夢山及江州、淳州、杭越間亦有之,生土石間。作片成層可析,明滑光白 者爲上。其片有絶大而瑩潔者,今人以飾燈籠,亦古扇屏之遺意也。江南 生者多青黑,不堪入藥。謹按:方書用雲母,皆以白澤者爲貴。惟中山 衞 叔卿單服法,用雲母五色具者。葛洪抱朴子云:雲母有五種,而人不能 别,當舉以向日看之,陰地不見雜色也。五色並具而多青者名雲英,宜春 服之。五色並具而多赤名雲珠,宜夏服之。五色並具而多白者名雲液,宜 秋服之。五色並具而多黑者名雲母,宜冬服之。但有青黄二色者名雲砂, 宜季夏服之。皛皛純白者名磷石,四時可服也。古方服五雲甚多,然修鍊 節度,恐非文字可詳,不可輕餌也。【損之曰】青、赤、黄、紫、白者並 堪服,白色輕薄通透者爲上。黑者不任用,令人淋瀝發瘡。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Muscovite grows in the valleys of Mount Tai shan, Mount Qi shan, and Mount Lu shan and among the rocks of Mount Bei ding shan in Lang ye. It is collected in the second month. “Cloud splendor” appears in all the five colors. “Cloud bloom” is mostly of greenish color. “Cloud pearl/jewelry” is mostly of red color. “Cloud liquid” is mostly of white color. “Cloud sand” is of greenish-yellow color. Phosphoresent light stones are pure white. [Tao] Hongjing: According to the classics of the hermits/immortals, “muscovite appears in eight kinds. When observed held against the sun, those of a greenish-white color with much black [color interspersed] are called ‘mother of clouds’. Those of yellow-white color with much greenish [color interspersed] are called ‘cloud bloom’. Those of greenish-white color with much red [color interspersed] are called ‘cloud pearl/

376

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

jewelry’. Those resembling ice or dew, with some being yellow, others being white, they are called ‘cloud sand’. These six kinds are all suitable [for therapeutic use]. To ingest them, a specific time is to be observed for each of them. Those of a gloomy, pure black color, with a line design full of spots like iron, are called ‘cloud gallbladder’. Those that are black and mixed [with other colors], and that are unyielding and large, they are called ‘ground drip’. These two kinds must not be ingested.” But there are methods to process them with heat, to be performed with great care lest they enter one’s abdomen and cause massive harm. Nowadays, only [muscovite] from Mount Lu shan is used as the best. That from Qing zhou is good, too. It is nourished by sandy soil and grows over the months and years. [Su] Song: Nowadays, [muscovite] is also found on Mount Yun meng shan in Yan zhou, as well as in Jiang zhou, Chun zhou, and the region of Hang and Yue. It grows between soil and rocks. Layers of slices can be separated. Those that are brilliant, smooth and shining white are best. Those of huge slices and being transparent and lucid are used by today’s people to decorate lanterns. This ties in with the ancient idea of [using muscovite to decorate] fans and screens. [Muscovite] from Jiang nan is mostly greenish-black and is not suitable for being added to medication. My careful comment: When the recipe books [recommend to] use muscovite, they always advise one to resort to white and shiny ones as the most valuable. Only Wei Shuqing of Zhong shan with his method of ingesting single [substances recommended to] use muscovite of all the five colors. Ge Hong in his Baopu zi states: “Muscovite appears in five kinds, and the people are unable to distinguish them. One must lift them and observe them holding them against the sun. The different colors will not be discernable on a shady ground. Those appearing in all the five colors, but mostly being greenish, they are called ‘cloud bloom’. It is advisable to ingest them in spring. Those appearing in all the five colors, but mostly being red, they are called ‘cloud pearl/jewelry’. It is advisable to ingest them in summer. Those appearing in all the five colors, but mostly being white, they are called ‘cloud liquid’. It is advisable to ingest them in autumn. Those appearing in all the five colors, but mostly being black, they are called ‘cloud mother’. It is advisable to ingest them in winter. Those appearing in only the two colors of greenish and yellow, they are called ‘cloud sand’. It is advisable to ingest them in the final month of summer. Those of a lustrous white are called ‘phosphorescent light stones’. They may be ingested during all four seasons. Ancient recipes very often [recommended to] ingest all five of these ‘cloud’ variants. But processing by refinement with heat requires one to follow strict rules, and it is to be feared that the [ancient] texts are not detailed enough on this. Hence they must not be consumed lightly.” [Yang] Sunzhi: Greenish, red, yellow, purple and white [kinds] are all equally suitable for ingestion. White ones are best because they are light and thin

Chapter 8

377

and reach everywhere. Black ones ought not to be used. They cause urinary dripping and the outbreak of sores. 【修治】【斅曰】凡使,黄黑者、厚而頑赤色者、經婦人手把者,並不中 用。須要光瑩如冰色者爲上。每一斤,用小地膽草、紫背天葵、生甘草、 地黄汁各一鎰,乾者細剉,濕者取汁了,于瓷堝中安置,下天池水三鎰, 着火煮七日夜,水火勿令失度,雲母自然成碧玉漿在堝底。却以天池水猛 投其中,攪之,浮如蝸涎者即去之。如此三度,淘净。取沉香一兩搗作 末,以天池水煎沉香湯二升以來,分爲三度,再淘雲母漿了,日晒任用。 【抱朴子曰】服五雲之法:或以桂葱水玉化之爲水,或以露于鐵器中以原 水熬之爲水,或以消石合於筒中埋之爲水,或以蜜溲爲酪,或以秋露漬之 百日,韋囊挻以爲粉,或以無顛草、樗血合餌之。服至一年百病除,三年 反老成童,五年役使鬼神。【胡演曰】鍊粉法:八九月間取雲母,以礬石 拌匀,入瓦罐内,封口,三伏時則自柔軟,去礬。次日,取百草頭上露水 漬之。百日,韋囊挻以爲粉。【時珍曰】道書言:鹽湯煮雲母,可爲粉。 又云:雲母一斤,鹽一斗漬之,銅器中蒸一日,臼中搗成粉。又云:雲母 一斤,白鹽一升,同搗細,入重布袋挼之,沃令鹽味盡,懸高處風吹,自 然成粉。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Lei] Xiao: For all [medicinal] applications of yellow-black [muscovite], those that are thick and of a dull red color, and have been held in her hand by a woman, must not be used. Those that are shiny and transparent, with a color like ice, they are the best. For each jin [of muscovite] use one yi each of small elephantopus herb, purple back malva [herb], fresh glycyrrhiza [root] and Chinese foxglove [rhizome] juice, cut those [of these substances] that are dry to fine pieces, and take the juice of those that are moist, and place everything into a porcelain pot. Pour three yi of “heavenly pond water”356 [into the pot] and boil it for seven days and nights. Neither the water must be exhausted nor the fire must be extinguished during that time. The muscovite will by itself form as a jasper suspension on the bottom of the pot. Then forcefully pour additional “heavenly pond water” into [the pot], stir [the liquid] and something like snail saliva will collect on its surface. Remove it and repeat the process three times until the liquid is clear. Now pound one liang of aquilaria [wood] to a powder and boil this in “heavenly pond water” until two sheng of an aquilaria [wood] decoction have become available. Divide [the decoction] into three portions and use them to again [three times] wash clean the muscovite suspension. Eventually dry it in the sun and it is then ready to be used [for medicinal purposes]. Baopu zi: Methods to ingest muscovite. 356 The meaning of “heavenly pond water,” tian chi shui 天池水, is not clear. It has been identified as water from high mountains, as water from the oceans (since these are “ponds” not created by humans but by “heaven”), and as ponds in the heavenly realm of immortals.

378

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

One is to dissolve [muscovite] with cinnamomum cassia bark, onions and glass or crystal to a watery liquid. Or give it together with dew into an iron vessel and boil it with the original [decoction] water until it is dissolved to a watery liquid. Or fill it with nitrokalite into a bamboo tube and bury it until it has turned into a watery liquid. Or soak it in honey until it forms a junket. Or soak it in autumn dew for one hundred days, give it into a leather pouch and squeeze it [to crush its contents] to a powder. Or eat it mixed it with senecio herb and ailanthus blood.357 If [any of these preparations] is ingested for one year, all the hundreds of diseases will be kept away. If ingested for three years, aging will be reverted to boyhood. After five years one will be able to take demons and spirits into his service. Hu Yan: Method to refine a powder. Collect muscovite in the eighth or ninth month and mix it evenly with alum. Then give this into an earthenware pot, seal the opening and wait for three days and nights until [the muscovite] has softened. Remove the alum and the next day soak [the muscovite] in dew gathered from the tips of 100 herbs. After 100 days, give it into a leather pouch and squeeze it to [form its contents to] a powder. [Li] Shizhen: The Daoist books say: “Muscovite boiled in brine can be made to a powder.” It is also said: “Soak one jin of muscovite in one dou of brine and steam this in a copper vessel for one day. Then pound it in a mortar to generate a powder”. It is also said: “Pound one jin of muscovite together with one sheng of white salt to a fine [powder], give this into a bag made of heavy cloth, beat this and rinse it in water until all the salt flavor has gone. Then hang it up high so that the wind can blow at it, and a [muscovite] powder will form as a result.” 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。【權曰】有小毒,惡徐長卿,忌羊血。【之才 曰】澤瀉爲之使,畏鮀甲及流水。【弘景曰】鍊之用礬則柔爛,亦是相畏 也。百草上露乃勝東流水。亦有用五月茅屋溜水者。【獨孤滔曰】制汞, 伏丹砂。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. [Zhen] Quan: Slightly poisonous. [Ingested together,] it abhors cynanchum [herb]. [During a therapy with muscovite] sheep blood is to be avoided. [Xu] Zhicao: Alisma [tuber] serves as its guiding substance. [Ingested together,] it fears alligator scales and flowing water. [Tao] Hongjing: For refining it with heat use alum and it will become soft. This, too, is [evidence of two substances] fearing each other. Dew on the hundreds of herbs is better than water flowing eastward. It also happens that water is used which has dripped from a thatched roof during the fifth month. Dugu Tao: It checks [the effects of ] mercury and disciplines cinnabar.

357 Chu xue 樗血, “ailanthus blood,” a Daoist designation of a substance unidentifiable today.

Chapter 8

379

【主治】身皮死𦠄,中風寒熱,如在車船上,除邪氣,安五臟,益子精, 明目。久服輕身延年。本經。下氣堅𦠄,續絶補中,療五勞七傷,虚損少 氣,止痢。久服悦澤不老,耐寒暑,志高神仙。别録。主下痢腸澼,補腎 冷。甄權。 Control. Dead muscles in the body’s skin. Being struck by wind, and alternating cold and heat sensations, as if [the patient] had travelled on a cart or on a boat. It guards against evil qi, pacifies the five long-term depots, boosts the essence/sperm for [fathering] children, and clears the eyes. Ingested over a long time, it relieves the body of its weight and extends the years [of life]. Ben jing. It sends down qi and hardens muscles. It reconnects what was cut off, and supplements the center. It serves to heal the five types of exhaustion and the seven types of harm, depletion injury and shortness of qi. It ends free-flux illness.358 Ingested over a long time, it gives one a happy and glossy complexion and prevents aging. It lets one endure cold and summerheat. His mental potential will be raised and he turns into a spirit hermit/ immortal. Bie lu. It controls discharge with free-flux illness, and intestinal flush. It supplements the kidneys [and warms them when they are] cold. Zhen Quan. 【發明】【保昇曰】雲母屬金,故色白而主肺。【宗奭曰】古雖有服鍊 法,今人服者至少,謹之至也。惟合雲母膏,治一切癰毒瘡等,方見和劑 局方。【慎微曰】明皇雜錄云:開元中,名醫紀朋,觀人顔色談笑,知病 淺深,不待胗脉。帝召入掖庭,看一宫人,每日昃則笑歌啼號若狂疾,而 足不能履地。朋視之曰:此必因食飽而大促力,頓仆於地而然。乃飲雲母 湯,熟寐而失所苦。問之,乃言太華公主載誕,某當主謳,懼聲不能清 長,因喫㹠蹄羹,飽而歌大曲。唱罷,覺胸中甚熱,戲於砌臺,因墜下, 久而方甦,遂病此也。又經效方云:青城山 丈人觀主康道豐,治百病雲 母粉方:用雲母一斤,拆開,揉入大瓶内,築實,上澆水銀一兩封固,以 十斤頂火煅赤。取出,却拌香葱、紫連翹草二件,合搗如泥。後以夾絹 袋盛,于大水盆内摇取粉,餘滓未盡,再添草藥重搗取粉。以木盤一面, 于灰上印一淺坑,鋪紙,傾粉在内,候乾焙之,以麪糊丸梧子大。遇有 病者,服之無不效。知成都府辛諫議曾患大風,衆醫不愈,道豐進此,服 之神驗。【抱朴子曰】他物埋之即朽,着火即焦,而五雲入猛火中經時不 焦,埋之不腐。故服之者長生,入水不濡,入火不燒,踐棘不傷。【時珍 曰】昔人言雲母壅尸,亡人不朽。盗發馮貴人冢,形貌如生,因共姦之。 發晉幽公冢,百尸縱横,及衣服皆如生人。中並有雲母壅之故也。 Explication. [Han] Baosheng: Muscovite belongs to [the phase] metal. Hence its color is white and it controls the lung. [Kou] Zongshi: Even though in ancient times there were methods to ingest [muscovite] refined with heat, nowadays only 358 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

380

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

very few people ingest it. They are very cautious. Only a muscovite ointment is prepared to cure all types of obstruction-illness359 and poison sores. For the recipe see the He ji ju fang. [Tang] Shenwei: The Ming huang za lu states: “During the kai yuan reign period (713 – 741), the famous physician Ji Peng observed a patient’s complexion and how he talked and laughed and knew whether his disease was light or serious. He did not need to examine [the patient’s movement in] the vessels. The Emperor ordered him to come into the palace and examine one of his concubines. Every afternoon, [this girl] laughed and sang, and shouted like mad, and she was unable to tread the ground with her feet. [ Ji] Peng observed her and said: ‘The cause of her present condition is that once she ate to repletion and this diminished her physical strength with the result that she fell to the ground’. Then he had her drink a muscovite decoction. She fell into a deep sleep and all her problems were gone. [The physician then] asked her [what had happened before she fell ill] and she told him that ‘when Princess Tai hua had celebrated her birthday, she had been ordered to be the main singer. As she was afraid her voice might not be clear and loud enough, she drank a thick soup made of a pig’s trotters. She had eaten to her fill and sang a long tune. When she had finished singing, she felt an extreme heat in her chest. She had performed on an elevated platform and now she fell down from it, regaining her consciousness after only a long time, and remained as ill as he had observed’.” Also, the Jing xiao fang states: “Kang Daofeng, abbot of the Zhang ren guan monastery on Mount Qing cheng shan, cured the hundreds of diseases with a muscovite powder. The recipe is as follows. He broke one jin of muscovite to pieces and filled them, with pressure, into an earthenware pot which he placed on a solid structure. Then he poured one liang of mercury on [the muscovite] and tightly sealed [the pot]. He calcined [the pot] with a fire lit with ten jin [of firewood] until it had turned red and then removed the [muscovite from the pot]. He mixed it with aromatic onions and purple forsythia herb and pounded this to a pulp which he filled into a double-layered tough silk bag. This he gave into a large water basin, shook it to and fro and removed the powder. As long as there continued to be such sediments, he added more of the herbal medication, pounded [the mixture] again, and removed the powder [from the water basin]. Then he took a flat wooden board, formed with [hot] ashes a shallow depression which he layed out with paper, and gave the powder into [the depression]. He waited until it had dried, baked it over a slow fire and with a flour-water paste formed pills the size of wu seeds. Whenever he encountered a patient with a disease, he had him ingest [these pills] and there was not a single failure. A Remonstrator Xin, administrator of Cheng du, once suf359 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641.

Chapter 8

381

fered from massive wind,360 and no physician was able to cure him. [Kang] Daofeng gave him these [pills], and when he ingested them they were divinely effective.” Baopu zi: Other items when buried will rot, when set afire they will be scorched. But muscovite in all five [colors] may be given into a fierce fire for quite some time and it will not be scorched, and when buried it will not rot. Hence those who ingest it will enjoy a long life. When they enter a water, they will not be affected by moisture, and when they enter a fire they will not burn. Treading on thorns they will not be harmed. [Li] Shizhen: In former times the people said that corpses covered with muscovite will not rot. Once robbers opened the tomb of a noble woman named Feng. Her physical appearance was that of a living person. Hence they all raped her. When the tomb of Duke You of Jin was opened, 100 corpses lay there in all directions, with their clothes they looked as if they were still alive. The reason was that all of them had been covered with muscovite.

【附方】舊七,新七。 Added Recipes. Seven of old. Seven newly [recorded] 服食雲母。上白雲母二十斤薄擘,以露水八斗作湯,分半淘洗二次。又取 二斗作湯,納芒消十斤,木器中漬二十日,取出,絹袋盛,懸屋上,勿見 風日,令燥。以鹿皮爲囊揉之,從旦至午,篩滓復揉,得好粉五斗,餘者 棄之。以粉一斗納崖蜜二斤,攪糊,入竹筒中,薄削封口漆固,埋北垣南 厓下,入地六尺,覆土。春夏四十日、秋冬三十日出之,當成水。若洞洞 不消,更埋三十日。此水能治萬病及勞氣風疼。每以温水一合和服之,日 三服。十日小便當變黄,二十日腹中寒澼消,三十日齲齒更生,四十日不 畏風寒,五十日諸病皆愈,顔色日少,長生神仙。千金方。 To ingest muscovite as food. Break 20 jin of best quality white muscovite to thin pieces and prepare a decoction of eight dou of dew water. Divide [this decoction] into two halves and rinse [the muscovite plates] with them twice. Then take two dou [of dew water] again to prepare another decoction. Add ten jin of mirabilite and [the muscovite] and let them soak in a wooden vessel for 20 days. Then remove [the muscovite], fill it into a silk pouch and suspend [the pouch] from the top of a room. It must not be exposed to wind and the sun. When [the muscovite] has dried, fill it into a pouch made of deer hide and rub it from dawn to noon [to eventually obtain a powder] that is to be given through a sieve, only to be rubbed [in the deer hide pouch] again until five dou of a good powder are obtained. Remainders are to be discarded. To one dou of [muscovite] powder add two jin of cliff honey, stir this 360 Da feng 大風, “massive wind,” may refer to sores caused by a massive intrusion of wind evil and also to conditions of leprosy. BCGM Dict I, 111.

382

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

to a paste and fill it into a bamboo tube. Cut this tube into small sections, seal the openings with lacquer and bury [the tubes] six chi deep in the ground and covered with soil at the bottom of a wall facing north, or of a cliff facing south. In spring and summer after 40 days, in autumn and winter after 30 days, dig them out again. [The contents of the tube] will have become a watery liquid. If not all the contents of the various tubes have dissolved, bury them again for 30 days. This watery liquid can cure a myriad diseases, as well as qi exhaustion and wind pain. For each application ingest one ge mixed with warm water. To be ingested three times a day. After ten days, the urine should assume a yellow color. After 20 days, cold will be washed out of the abdomen. After 30 days, decayed teeth will be replaced by new [teeth]. After 40 days, one will fear neither wind nor cold. After 50 days, all diseases will be cured. One’s complexion and facial appearance will look younger every day, and a long life of a spirit hermit/immortal results. Qian jin fang. 痰飲頭痛,往來寒熱。雲母粉二兩鍊過,恒山一兩,爲末。每服方寸匕, 湯服取吐。忌生葱、生菜。深師方。 Phlegm rheum361 and headache, with recurring sensations of cold and heat. [Grind] two liang of heat refined muscovite with one liang of dichroa [root] to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest the amount held by a square cun spoon. To be ingested with hot water to stimulate vomiting. [During such a therapy] fresh onions and fresh vegetables are to be avoided. Shen shi fang. 牝瘧多寒。雲母燒二日夜,龍骨、蜀漆燒去腥,等分爲散。未發前,漿水 服半錢。仲景金匱方。 Female type malaria with [sensations of ] mostly cold. [Grind] equal amounts of muscovite, heated for two days and nights, and dragon bones and dichroa leaves, heated until it has lost its smell, to a powder. Prior to an outbreak [let the patient] ingest with fermented water of foxtail millet half a qian. [Zhang] Zhongjing, Jin kui fang. 小兒下痢赤白及水痢。雲母粉半兩,煮白粥調食之。食醫心鑑。 Discharge with red and white free-flux illness362 and watery free-flux illness of children. [Let the patient] eat half a liang of muscovite powder boiled with white [rice] congee. Shi yi xin jian. 361 Tan yin 痰飲, “phlegm rheum,” refers to pathological products that have accumulated in the body and that are excreted in the process of changes affecting the depots and palaces. They may block the passage of qi and blood and thereby become pathogenic factors. BCGM Dict I, 498. 362 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

Chapter 8

383

赤白久痢,積年不愈。飲調雲母粉方寸匕服,二服立見神效。千金翼。 Long-lasting red and white free-flux illness that has not been cured for several years. [Have] the patient ingest mixed with a beverage muscovite powder of the amount held by a square cun spoon. After two ingestions an immediate divine effect will be obvious. Qian jin yi. 婦人帶下。水和雲母粉方寸匕服,立見神效。千金方。 Women’s [diseases] below the belt. [Let the patient] ingest, mixed with water, muscovite powder of the amount held by a square cun spoon. A divine effect will be obvious immediately. Qian jin fang. 小便淋疾。温水和雲母粉,服三錢。千金方。 Dripping urine illness. Ingest three qian of muscovite mixed with warm water. Qian jin fang. 婦人難産,經日不生。雲母粉半兩,温酒調服,入口即産,不順者即順, 萬不失一。陸氏云:此是何德揚方也,已救三五十人。積德堂方。 Women with difficult birth, with [a child] remaining unborn for several days. [Have the woman] ingest half a liang of muscovite powder mixed with warm wine. Once this has entered her mouth, she will give birth [to the child]. Those [children] that have not been in a correct position, they will assume a correct position, and there will be not a single failure in a myriad cases. Mr. Lu states: This is a recipe of He Deyang. It has saved 35 persons. Ji de tang fang. 粉滓面䵟。雲母粉、杏仁等分爲末,黄牛乳拌,略蒸,夜塗旦洗。聖濟録。 Dregs and facial gloom. [Grind] equal amounts of muscovite powder and apricot seeds to a powder, mix it with milk of a yellow cow, and steam this for a short while. To be applied [to the affected region] at night and to be washed off at dawn. Sheng ji lu. 風𤺋遍身,百計不愈。煅雲母粉,清水調服二錢,良。千金方。 Wind rash affecting the entire body, remaining without cure despite a hundred different [therapy] plans. [Let the patient] ingest two qian of calcined muscovite mixed with clear water. Good. Qian jin fang. 一切惡瘡。雲母粉傅之。千金方。 All types of malign sores. Apply muscovite powder to them. Qian jin fang.

384

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

火瘡敗壞。雲母粉和生羊髓塗之。聖惠方。 Rotting sores caused by fire. Mix muscovite powder with fresh sheep marrow and apply this [to the affected region]. Sheng hui fang. 金瘡出血。雲母粉傅之,絶妙。事林廣記。 Bleeding wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. Apply muscovite powder to them. Shi lin guang ji. 風熱汗出。水和雲母粉服三錢,不過再服,立愈。千金翼。 Wind heat [affection] with sweating. Ingest three qian of muscovite mixed with water. There will be no need to ingest this twice. A cure is reached immediately. Qian jin yi. 08-40 白石英本經上品 Bai shi ying, FE Ben jing, upper rank. White stone/mineral bloom. Quartz. 【釋名】【時珍曰】徐鍇云:英,亦作瑛,玉光也。今五種石英,皆石之 似玉而有光壁者。 Explanation of Names. [Li] Shizhen: Xu Kai states: Ying 英, also written ying 瑛,is the bloom of jade. Nowadays there are five kinds of quartz. All of them are stones/minerals that resemble jade and are lustrous. 【集解】【别録曰】白石英生華陰山谷及太山,大如指,長二三寸,六面 如削,白澈有光,長五六寸者彌佳。其黄端白稜,名黄石英;赤端白稜, 名赤石英;青端赤稜,名青石英;黑澤有光,名黑石英。二月采,亦無 時。【弘景曰】今醫家用新安所出,極細長白澈者。壽陽 八公山多大者, 不正用之。仙經大小並有用,惟須精白無瑕雜者。如此説,則大者爲佳。 其四色英今不復用。【恭曰】白石英,所在皆有,今澤州、虢州、洛州 山中俱出。虢州者大,徑三四寸,長五六寸。今通以澤州者爲勝。【宗奭 曰】白石英狀如紫石英,但差大而六稜,白色若水精。【時珍曰】澤州有 英鷄,食石英,性最補。見禽部。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Quartz grows in the mountain valleys of Hua yin and also on Mount Tai shan. Large pieces are of the size of a finger; they reach a length of two to three cun. They have six flat surfaces as if artificially cut. They are white, limpid and shiny. [Quartz pieces] of a length of five to six cun are best. Those with yellow ends and white edges are called “yellow quartz.” Those with red ends and white edges are called “red quartz.” Those with greenish ends and red edges

Chapter 8

385

are called “greenish quartz.” Those with a glossy shine are called “black quartz.” [Quartz] is collected in the second month, or at anytime. [Tao] Hongjing: Nowadays, physicians use [quartz] originating in Xin an that is extremely fine, long and limpid. [Quartz pieces] found on Mount Ba gong shan in Shou yang are often big, but they are not suitable for [medicinal] use. According to the classics of the hermits/immortals, large and small pieces are all of use. The only requirement is that they are fine white and without flaws. Based on this statement, large [pieces] are better. Those with a shine of four colors are no longer resorted to nowadays. [Su] Gong: Quartz can be found everywhere. Nowadays, [quartz] originates in all the mountains of Ze zhou, Guo zhou and Luo zhou. [Quartz pieces] from Guo zhou are big. They measure three to four cun in diameter, and they reach a length of five to six cun. Today, all [the people] consider [quartz] from Ze zhou to be superior. [Kou] Zongshi: Quartz is shaped like fluor spar, but [quartz] is bigger and [consists of cubes] with six edges. It is as white as crystal. [Li] Shizhen: In Ze zhou are quartz chicken. They feed on quartz. By their nature they have an extreme supplementing potential. See the section on “fowl.” 【氣味】甘,微温,無毒。【别録曰】辛。【普曰】神農:甘。岐伯、黄 帝、雷公、扁鵲:無毒。【之才曰】惡馬目毒公。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, slightly warm, nonpoisonous. Bie lu: Acrid. [Wu] Pu: Shen nong: Sweet. Qi Bo, Huang di, Lei gong and Bien Que: nonpoisonous. [Xu] Zhicai: [Ingested together,] it abhors dysosma [root]. 【主治】消渴,陰痿不足,欬逆,胸膈間久寒,益氣,除風濕痺。久服輕 身長年。本經。療肺痿,下氣,利小便,補五臟,通日月光,耐寒熱。别 録。治肺癰吐膿,欬逆上氣,疸黄。甄權。實大腸。好古。 Control. Melting with thirst.363 Dysfunction and insufficiency of the yin [(i.e. genital) organ]. Cough with countermovement [of qi]. Long-lasting cold in the region of chest and diaphragm. It boosts the qi and removes blockage caused by wind and moisture. Ingested over a long time it takes the weight of the body and extends the years [of life]. It serves to heal lung dysfunction, brings down qi, frees the flow of urine, supplements the five long-term depots, lets [the body appear] permeated by the light of sun and moon, and makes one tolerate cold and heat. Bie lu. It serves to cure lung obstruction-illness364 with vomiting of phlegm, cough and counterflow of rising qi. Jaundice. Zhen Quan. It solidifies the large intestine. [Wang] Haogu. 363 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567. 364 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break

386

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

08-40-01 五色石英。Wu se shi ying. Stone/mineral bloom of five colors. Quartz of all five colors. 【主治】心腹邪氣,女人心腹痛,鎮心,胃中冷氣,益毛髮,悦顔色,治 驚悸,安魂定魄,壯陽道,下乳。隨臟而治:青治肝,赤治心,黄治脾, 白治肺,黑治腎。大明。 Control. Evil qi affecting the central and abdominal region. Painful central and abdominal region of women. It presses down [the qi of ] the heart and cold qi in the stomach. It boosts hair on the body and on the head, and improves facial appearance and complexion. It serves to cure fright palpitation, pacifies the hun-soul, stabilizes the po-soul, boosts the yang path (i. e., male sexual strength) and lets down a nursing mother’s milk. Cures adapted to an affected long-term depot are as follows. Greenish [quartz] serves to cure [diseases affecting] the liver. Red [quartz] serves to cure [diseases affecting] the heart. Yellow [quartz] serves to cure [diseases affecting] the spleen. White [quartz] serves to cure [diseases affecting] the lung. Black [quartz] serves to cure [diseases affecting] the kidneys. Da Ming. 【發明】【藏器曰】濕可去枯,白石英、紫石英之屬是也。【時珍曰】白 石英,手太陰、陽明氣分藥也,治痿痺肺癰枯燥之病。但係石類,止可暫 用,不宜久服。【頌曰】古人服食,惟白石英爲重。紫石英但入五石飲。 其黄、赤、青、黑四種,本草雖有名而方家都不見用者。乳石論以鍾乳爲 乳,以白石英爲石,是六英之貴,惟白石也。又曰:乳者陽中之陰,石 者陰中之陽。故陽生十一月後甲子服乳,陰生五月後甲子服石。然而相反 畏惡,動則爲害不淺。故乳石之發,方治雖多,而罕有濟者,誠不可輕餌 也。【宗奭曰】紫、白二石英,攻疾可暫煮汁用,未聞久服之益。張仲景 只令㕮咀,不爲細末,豈無意焉?若久服,宜詳審之。 Explication. [Chen] Cangqi: Moisture is able to eliminate withering. Quartz and fluoride are such substances. [Li] Shizhen: Quartz is a pharmaceutical substance focusing on the qi section of the hand major yin and yang brilliance [conduits]. It serves to cure diseases including dysfunction and blockage, lung obstruction-illness365 and withering and dryness. However, since it belongs to the group of stones/ minerals, it can be used for only a short duration, and is not suitable for long-term ingestion. [Su] Song: When the people in ancient times ingested [minerals] for food, they only considered quartz, “white stone/mineral bloom,” worth [to be ingested]. Fluor spar, “purple stone bloom,” was added only to the “beverage with five through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641. 365 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641.

Chapter 8

387

stones/minerals.” The four kinds of yellow, red, greenish and black [quartz] were named in ben cao literature, but the recipe experts did not take notice of them. The Ru shi lun regards stalatites, “concentrated milk,” as milk and quartz, “white stone/ mineral bloom,” as a stone/mineral. That is, only the “white stone/mineral [bloom]” is valued among the “six [stone/mineral] splendors.” It is also said: “Stalactities are the yin in yang; quartz is the yang in yin. Hence stalactites are ingested on the jia zi 甲子 day following the eleventh month when yang [qi] reemerge. Quartz is ingested on the jia zi 甲子 day following the fifth month when yin [qi] reemerge.” Still, as there exist mutual opposition, fear and abhorrence [among substances], if [such aversions] are stimulated, the harm they cause will not be minor. Hence there may be many recipes to cure outbreaks of [diseases caused by] stalactites and quartz, but there are only very few that are of real help. Hence they must not be consumed lightly. [Kou] Zongshi: Fluor spar and quartz, these two “stone blooms,” are boiled to obtain a juice that may be used for a short while to attack illnesses. But I have not heard of any benefit derived from a long-term ingestion. When Zhang Zhongjing recommended “only to chew [these substances] rather than [to ingest] a fine powder,” how could this not have been meaningful? If they are to be ingested for a long time, it is advisable to carefully examine [the individual circumstances].

【附方】舊二,新七。 Added Recipes. Two of old. Seven newly [recorded]. 服石英法。白石英一斤,打成豆大,于砂盆中和粗砂,着水挼二三千下, 洗净又挼,仍安柳箕中,入蒿葉少許,同水熟挼至光净,即以綿袋盛,懸 門上。每日未梳前,以水或酒吞七粒,用飯二匙壓下小腹。一切穢惡、白 酒、牛肉,石家所忌者,皆不忌。久則新石推出陳石,石常在小腹内温 暖,則氣息調和,經脉通達,腰腎堅强,百病自除。石若得力,一斤即 止。若不得力,十斤亦須服。此物光滑,既無浮碎着人腸胃作瘡,又無石 氣發作諸病也。 The method of ingesting quartz. Pound one jin of quartz to bean-size pieces and mix them with coarse sand in a ceramic basin. Add water and rub [the quartz with the sand] two to three thousand times. Then rinse [the quartz] and rub it once again. Now place it into a winnow basked made of willow [twigs], add a small amount of common mugwort leaves, pour boiled water on it and rub [the quartz] until it is shiny and clean. Then fill it into a silk pouch and hang it above the gate. Each day, before combing the hair swallow, with water or wine, seven kernels and press them down into the lower abdomen by eating two spoonfuls of rice. Any foul and malign items, white wine and beef that are tabooed by those who are experts in

388

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

[ingesting quartz] minerals, are not prohibited here. After a long time, new [quartz] mineral will push out old [quartz] mineral. When the [quartz] mineral stays in the lower abdomen for a long time and generates warmth there, the qi will reach a harmonious balance. The conduit-vessels will be open for passage, the lower back and the kidneys will be strengthened, and all the hundreds of diseases will be eliminated as a result. If the [quartz] mineral has gained strength, one may end [the treatment after having ingested] one jin. If it has not gained such strength, it is advisable to ingest ten jin. This item is shiny and smooth, its pieces will not stick to the surface of one’s intestines and stomach and cause sores, and there are no [quartz] mineral qi that could effuse and cause all types of diseases. 又法:澤州白石英,光净無點瞖者,打小豆大,去細者,水淘净,袋盛, 懸鐺内,清水五大升,煮汁一升,澄清,平早服。以汁煮粥更佳。服後飲 酒三二盃,可行百步。一袋可煮二十度。如無力,以布裹埋南墻下三尺土 内,百日又堪用也。 Another method: Pound quartz from Ze zhou that is shiny, clean and flawless to pieces of the size of small beans. Remove the finest particles and rinse them clean with water. Fill them into a pouch and hang this into a tripod used for warming food. Add five large sheng of water and let [the pouch] soak in it. Then boil the juice down to one sheng, let the dregs settle to obtain a clear liquid and ingest this every morning. If the juice is used to boil a congee, this will be even better. If after ingesting this [a patient] drinks three or just two cups of wine, he will be able to walk one hundred steps. One pouch can be boiled 20 times. Once it has lost its strength, wrap it in a piece of cloth and bury it three chi deep in the soil at the foot of a wall facing South. After 100 days it can be used again. 石煮豬肉法:白石英一兩,袋盛,水三斗,煮四升,猪肉一斤,同葱、 椒、鹽、豉煮,以汁作羹食。 The method to boil [quartz] mineral with pork. Fill one liang of quartz into a pouch and boil it in three dou of water down to four sheng. Boil these with one jin of pork together with onions, pepper, salt and fermented beans to prepare a thick soup and eat it. 石蒸羊肉法:白石英三兩,打作小塊,精羊肉一斤包之,荷葉裹之,于一 石米飯中蒸熟,取出去石,切肉和葱椒作小餛飩,煮熟。每旦空腹冷漿水 吞一百個,後以冷飯壓之。百無所忌,永不發動。 The method to steam [quartz] mineral with mutton. Pound three liang of quartz to small pieces and wrap them with fine mutton, which in turn is wrapped with lotus leaves. This is to be steamed in one dan of cooked rice until it is well done.

Chapter 8

389

Then remove the [quartz] mineral, cut the mutton into pieces and form them with onions and pepper to small dumplings. Boil them until they are well done. Every morning swallow on an empty stomach with cold fermented water of foxtail millet one hundred dumplings. Then press them down with cold cooked rice. Not a single of the hundreds of taboos is to be observed, and there will never again be a stimulus for an outbreak [of a disease]. 石煮牛乳法:白石英五兩,搗碎,密絹盛,以牛乳三升,酒三升,同煎至 四升,去石,以瓶收之。每食前暖服三合。治虚損勞瘦,皮燥陰痿,脚弱 煩疼。 The method to boil [quartz] mineral with cow milk. Pound five liang of quartz to small pieces, fill them into a tightly woven silk pouch and boil this together with three sheng of cow milk and three sheng of wine down to four sheng. Remove the [quartz] mineral and keep [the liquid] in a bottle. Prior to each meal ingest three ge warm. This serves to cure depletion injury and exhaustion-emaciation, dryness of the skin and dysfunction of the yin [(i. e., genital) member], weakness of legs and unrest with pain. 石飼牸牛法:白石英三斤,搗篩。取十歲以上生犢牸牛一隻,每日和豆與 食,經七日,即可收乳。每旦熱服一升,餘者作粥食。百無所忌。潤養臟 腑,悦澤𦠄肉,令人體健。 The method to raise cows with [quartz] mineral. Pound three jin of quartz and [give the pieces] through a sieve. Then select a cow of ten years or older that has given birth to a calf and feed it [with the quartz] mixed with soybeans every day. After seven days one may take its milk and every morning ingest hot one sheng. Of the rest prepare a congee to be eaten. None of the hundreds of taboos is to be observed. This serves to moisten and nourish the long-term depots and the short-term repositories. It gives one a happy and glossy appearance and [strengthens] muscles and flesh. It lets the body become strong. 凡服石並忌芥菜、蔓菁、蕪荑、葵菜、薺苨,宜食冬瓜、龍葵,壓石氣。 孫真人千金翼。 Whenever [quartz] mineral is ingested, mustard stem/leaf, turnip, elm seed, malva herb and adenophora [root] are forbidden, while it is advisable to eat winter melons and solanum [herb] to press down the [quartz] mineral qi. Sun zhenren, Qian jin yi.

390

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

風虚冷痺,諸陽不足及腎虚耳聾。益精保神。白石英三兩,坩鍋内火煅酒 淬三次,入瓶中密封,勿洩氣。每早温服一鍾,以少飯壓之。 Blockage caused by wind that has entered a state of depletion and cold [qi accumulation], with all the yang [qi] being insufficient, kidney depletion and deaf ears. It boosts the essence/sperm and protects the spirit. Calcine three liang of quartz in a crucible and dip it into wine three times. Then give it into a bottle and tightly seal it lest its qi are released. Every morning ingest warm one small cup, and press it down with a little cooked rice. 一法:磁石火煅醋淬五次,白石英各五兩,絹袋盛,浸一升酒中五六日, 温服。將盡,更添酒。千金翼。 Another method. Fill five liang each of magnetite, calcined in a fire and dipped into vinegar five times, and quartz into a silk pouch and have this soak in one sheng of wine for five to six days. Ingest this warm. When it is about to be used up, add more wine to it. Qian jin yi. 驚悸善忘,心臟不安,上膈風熱。化痰安神。白石英一兩,朱砂一兩,爲 散。每服半錢,食後煎金銀湯下。簡要濟衆方。 Fright palpitations and forgetfulness, with the heart long-term depot not at peace, and wind and heat being present above the diaphragm. It transforms phlegm and pacifies the spirit. [Grind] one liang of quartz and one liang of cinnabar to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest half a qian, to be sent down, after meals, boiled in a gold and silver decoction. Jian yao ji zhong fang. 石水腹堅脹滿。用白石英十兩,槌豆大,瓷瓶盛好酒二斗浸之,以泥重 封,將馬糞及糠火燒之,常令小沸,從卯至午住火。次日暖一中盞飲之, 日三度。酒盡可再燒一度。聖惠方。 Stone water with a hardened and bloated abdomen and a feeling of fullness. Pound ten liang of quartz to pieces the size of soybeans and soak them in a porcelain bottle filled with two dou of wine, and closely sealed with mud. This is then heated above a fire lit with horse manure and rice chaff, with the liquid bubbling a little all the time. The fire is to last from morning to noon. The next day warm as much as fills a medium size cup and drink this. Three times a day. When all the wine is used up, [add more wine and] heat [the bottle] once again. Sheng hui fang.

Chapter 8

391

08-41 紫石英本經上品 Zi shi ying, FE Ben jing, upper rank. Purple stone/mineral bloom. Amethyst. Fluor spar 【集解】【别録曰】紫石英生太山山谷,采無時。【普曰】生太山或會 稽,欲令如削,紫色達頭如樗蒲者。【弘景曰】今第一用太山石,色重 澈下有根。次出雹零山,亦好。又有南城石,無根。又有青綿石,色亦重 黑、不明澈。又有林邑石,腹裏必有一物如眼。吴興石,四面纔有紫色, 無光澤。會稽諸暨石,形色如石榴子。先時並雜用,今惟采太山最勝。仙 經不正用,而俗方重之。【禹錫曰】按嶺表録云:瀧州山中多紫石英,其 色淡紫,其質瑩澈,隨其大小皆五稜,兩頭如箭鏃。煮水飲之,暖而無 毒,比之北中白石英,其力倍矣。【宗奭曰】紫石英明澈如水精,但色紫 而不匀。【時珍曰】按太平御覽云:自大峴至太山,皆有紫石英。太山所 出,甚瓌瑋。平氏 陽山縣所出,色深特好。烏程縣北壟山所出,甚光明, 但小黑。東莞縣 爆山所出,舊以貢獻。江夏 礬山亦出之。永嘉 固陶村小 山所出,芒角甚好,但小薄爾。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Fluor spar grows in the mountain valleys of Mount Tai shan. It is collected anytime. [Wu] Pu: It grows on Mount Tai shan and in Kuai ji. Those appearing as if artificially cut, with their purple color reaching to their tips and resembling dice used in gambling,366 are most sought after. [Tao] Hongjing: Nowadays, the number one [fluor spar] mineral used is that from Mount Tai shan. Below its dense, clear color it has a root. The next best originates in Mount Bao ling. It, too, is good. There is also a [fluor spar] mineral in Nan cheng. It has no root. There is also a “greenish silk floss” [fluor spar] mineral. Its color, too, is dense and black, but it is not clear. Then there is a Lin yi [fluor spar] mineral. It inevitably includes a foreign item reminiscent of an eye. Wu xing [fluor spar] mineral is of purely purple color on all four sides, but it is neither shiny nor glossy. With its physical appearance and color, all the [fluor spar] quartz from Kuai ji resembles pomegranade seeds. In former times all of [these quartz kinds] were used indiscriminately. Nowadays only that from Mount Tai shan is resorted to as superior. The classics of the hermits/immortals do not consider its use to be correct. But commonly used recipes highly value it. [Zhang] Yuxi: According to the Ling biao lu, “there is much fluor spar in Long zhou, with a pale, purple color and of a transparent substance matter. Regardless of whether these are big or small pieces, they all have five edges, and their two tips resemble arrowheads. When that is boiled in water and [the water] is drunk, it is warming and nonpoisonous. Compared with quartz from the North, its [therapeutic potential] is several times stronger.” [Kou] Zongshi: Fluor spar is 366 Chu pu 樗蒲 wooden dice were rounded at their two ends.

392

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

clear and transparent like crystal. But its color is purple and not evenly distributed. [Li] Shizhen: According to the Tai ping yu lan, “fluor spar grows everywhere from Da xian to Mount Tai shan. [Fluor spar] originating in Mount Tai shan is the most precious. That originating in Ping shi and Yang shan xian is of deep color and especially good. That originating in Mount Long shan north of Wu cheng xian is very lustrous, but it is smaller and black. That originating in Mount Bao shan in Dong guan xian was submitted as tribute [to the throne] in former times. [Fluor spar] also originates in Mount Fan shan in Jiang xia. That originating in Gu tao cun in Yong jia is very good in terms of luster and shape, but pieces are small and thin.” 【修治】【時珍曰】凡入丸散,用火煅醋淬七次,研末,水飛過,晒乾入 藥。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Li] Shizhen: For all applications as pills and powders, calcine it with fire, dip it into vinegar seven times, and then grind it to a powder. Following an aqueous sublimation processing dry it in the sun and then add it to medication. 【氣味】甘,温,無毒。【别録曰】辛。【普曰】神農、扁鵲:味甘, 平。李當之:大寒。雷公:大温。岐伯:甘,無毒。【之才曰】長石爲之 使。畏扁青、附子。惡鮀甲、黄連、麥句薑。得伏苓、人參,療心中結 氣。得天雄、菖蒲,療霍亂。【時珍曰】服食紫石英,乍寒乍熱者,飲酒 良。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, warm, nonpoisonous. Bie lu: Acrid. [Wu] Pu: Shen nong, Bian Que: Flavor sweet, balanced. Li Dangzhi: Very cold. Lei gong: Very warm. Qi Bo: Sweet, nonpoisonous. [Xu] Zhicai: Anhydrite serves as its guiding substance. [Ingested together,] it fears flat malachite and aconitum [accessory tuber], and it abhors alligator scales, coptis [rhizome] and carpesium [herb]. Together with poria and ginseng [root], it heals qi nodes in the heart. Together with aconitum [accessory tuber] and acorus [root] it serves to heal cholera. [Li] Shizhen: When those who ingest fluor spar for food alternately feel sensations of cold and heat, to drink wine is good. 【主治】心腹欬逆邪氣,補不足,女子風寒在子宫,絶孕十年無子。久服 温中,輕身延年。本經。療上氣心腹痛,寒熱邪氣結氣,補心氣不足,定 驚悸,安魂魄,填下膲,止消渴,除胃中久寒,散癰腫,令人悦澤。别 録。養肺氣,治驚癇,蝕膿。甄權。 Control. Cough and countermovement of evil qi affecting the central and abdominal region. It supplements insufficiency. Wind and cold in the womb of women ending pregnancies and letting them have no children for ten years already. Ingested for long it warms the center, relieves the body of its weight and extends the years

Chapter 8

393

[of life]. Ben jing. It serves to heal heart and abdominal pain caused by rising qi, alternating cold and heat sensations, evil qi and bound qi nodes. It supplements insufficient heart qi, stabilizes fright palpitation, pacifies the hun-soul and the posoul, fills in the lower [of the Three] Burners, ends melting with thirst,367 eliminates long-lasting cold from within the stomach, disperses swelling associated with an obstruction-illness,368 and lets one have a happy and lustrous appearance. Bie lu. It nourishes the lung qi, and serves to cure fright epilepsy, and festering erosions. Zhen Quan. 【發明】【好古曰】紫石英,入手少陰、足厥陰經。【權曰】虚而驚悸不 安者,宜加用之。女子服之有子。【頌曰】乳石論無單服紫石者,惟五石 散中用之。張文仲備急方有鎮心單服紫石煮水法。胡洽及千金方則多雜諸 藥同用。今方治婦人及心病,時有使者。【時珍曰】紫石英,手少陰、足 厥陰血分藥也。上能鎮心,重以去怯也。下能益肝,濕以去枯也。心生 血,肝藏血,其性煖而補,故心神不安,肝血不足及女子血海虚寒不孕者 宜之。别録言其補心氣、甄權言其養肺者,殊昧氣陽血陰營衞之别。惟本 經所言諸證,甚得此理。 Explication. [Wang] Haogu: Fluor spar enters the hand minor yin and foot ceasing yin conduits. [Zhen] Quan: [Patients] suffering from depletion, with fright palpitation and restlessness, should resort to it in addition [to their other medication]. When women ingest it they will have children. [Su] Song: The Ru shi lun has no [advice at] ingesting fluor spar as a single substance; it is used there only in the “powder with the five stones/minerals.” Zhang Wenzhong in his Bei ji fang has a method to boil fluoride in water and ingest it as a single substance to calm the heart. Hu Qia and the Qian jin fang frequently [recommend] its use together with all types of further medication. Nowadays, recipes occasionally apply it for curing women and heart disease. [Li] Shizhen: Fluor spar is a medication for the hand minor yin and foot ceasing yin blood section. Above it is capable of calming down the heart. With its heavy weight it removes timidity. Below it can boost the liver [qi]. With its moisture it removes withering. The heart generates the blood; the liver stores the blood. As [fluor spar] by its nature is warming and supplementing, it is suitable for [curing] restlessness of the heart spirit, insufficient liver blood, and depletion cold in a woman’s sea of blood preventing her from becoming pregnant. When the Bie lu speaks of its [potential of ] supplementing heart qi, and when 367 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567. 368 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641.

394

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Zhen Quan speaks of its [potential of ] nourishing the lung, they know very little of the differences between the yang nature of qi, the yin nature of blood, and the camp and guardian [qi]. Only all the pathological conditions listed [with fluor spar] in the Ben jing are most reasonable.

【附方】舊二新一。 Added Recipes. Two of old. One newly [recorded] 虚勞驚悸。補虚止驚,令人能食。紫石英五兩,打如豆大,水淘一遍,以 水一斗,煮取三升,細細服。或煮粥食,水盡可再煎之。張文仲方。 Depletion-exhaustion with fright palpitation. It supplements depletion and ends fright. It enables one to eat. Pound five liang of fluor spar to pieces the size of soybeans, wash them once and boil them in one dou of water down to three sheng to be ingested in small portions. Or boil [the fluor spar] to a congee and eat it. When the water is used up, [refill it] and boil [the fluor spar] again. Zhang Wenzhong fang. 風熱瘛瘲。風引湯:治風熱瘛瘲及驚癇瘛瘲。紫石英、白石英、寒水石、 石膏、乾薑、大黄、龍齒、牡蠣、甘草、滑石等分,㕮咀,水一升,煎去 三分,食後温呷,無不效者。仲景金匱方。 Clonic spasms caused by wind and heat. The “decoction to guide wind.” It serves to cure clonic spasms caused by wind and heat, and fright epilepsy associated with clonic spasms. Chew equal amounts of fluor spar, quartz, calcite, gypsum, dried ginger, rhubarb root, dragon teeth, oyster shells, glycyrrhiza [root] and talc and boil them in one sheng of water until three parts [out of ten] have vanished. [Let the patient] sip [the remaining liquid] warm after meals. Always effective. [Zhang] Zhongjing, Jin kui fang. 癰腫毒氣。紫石英火燒醋淬,爲末,生薑、米醋煎,傅之,摩亦得。日華 本草。 Swelling with poison qi associated with an obstruction-illness.369 Heat fluor spar in a fire and dip it into vinegar. [Grind] it to a powder, boil it with fresh ginger and rice vinegar, and apply this [to the affected region]. Rihua ben cao.

369 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641.

Chapter 8

395

08-42 菩薩石日華 Pu sa shi, FE Rihua. Buddha’s stone. 【釋名】放光石、陰精石綱目。義見下。 Explanation of Names. Fang guang shi 放光石, “stone emitting light.” Yin jing shi 陰 精石, “Yin essence stone,” Gang mu. For a meaning see below. 【集解】【宗奭曰】嘉州 峨眉山出菩薩石,色瑩白明澈,若太山狼牙石、 上饒水精之類,日中照之有五色,如佛頂圓光,因以名之。【時珍曰】出 峨眉、五臺、匡廬岩竇間。其質六稜,或大如棗栗,其色瑩潔,映日則光 采微芒,有小如櫻珠,則五色粲然可喜,亦石英之類也。丹爐家煅制,作 五金三黄匱。 Collected Explanations. [Kou] Zongshi: Mount E mei shan in Jia zhou produces “Buddha’s stone.” Its color is lucid white and transparent, similar to “wolf teeth stone/mineral” of Mount Tai shan and crystal from Shang rao. When it is exposed to sunlight it shines with five colors, like the halo around the head of Buddha. Hence its name. [Li] Shizhen: It originates in rock caves of [Mount] E mei, [Mount] Wu tai, and [Mount] Kuang lu. Its substance matter has six edges. Some [pieces] are as big as dates and chestnuts, with a jade-like clean color. Exposed to sunlight they are somewhat lustrous. Then there are small [pieces] of the size of cherries and beads, and they shine nicely in all five colors. They, too, belong to the group of “stone blooms” (such as “white stone bloom”/quartz and “purple stone bloom”/ fluor spar). Experts operating elixir furnaces calcine and process [Buddha’s stone] as one of the five types of metals and three [substances with the character] “yellow” [in their names] used for preparing the encasements [required for the preparating of longevity elixirs].370 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. 370 The “five types of metals”, wu jin 五金, may refer to the entirety of metals and minerals, or to the five core metals/minerals as include gold, silver, copper, iron and tin. In the present passage, pu sa shi is referred to as one of “the five types of metals” in the sense of as one of “all the metals/minerals.” The three substances with the character “yellow” in their names, san huang 三黃, include sulphur, liu huang 硫黃, realgar, xiong huang 雄黃, and orpiment, ci huang 雌黃. Kui 匱, “encasement,” is a method used by ancient Chinese alchemists whereby certain substances (i.e., the “five tpyes of metals/minerals” and the “three substances with the character yellow in their names”) are used to prepare a sheath or coffer, gui 櫃, surrounding one or more substances that are to be modified to eventually become a longevity elixir.

396

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【主治】解藥毒、蠱毒及金石藥發動作癰疽渴疾,消撲損瘀血,止熱狂驚 癇,通月經,解風腫,除淋,並水磨服。蛇、蟲、蜂、蠍、狼、犬、毒箭 等傷,並末傅之。大明。明目去翳。時珍。 Control. It resolves the poison of medication, gu poison371 and obstruction-illness, impediment-illness372 and thirst illness caused by metal- and mineral-based medication. It dissolves stagnant blood resulting from injuries caused by attacks, ends madness with heat and fright epilepsy, frees the flow of menstruation, resolves wind swelling, and eliminates dripping [of urine]. For all these rub it with water and [let the patient] ingest [the liquid]. For [bites of ] snakes, bugs/worms, bees/wasps, scorpions, wolves and dogs and for [wounds caused by] poisonous arrows [grind it to a] powder and apply this [to the affected region]. Da Ming. It clears the eyes and removes [eye] shades. [Li] Shizhen

371 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191. 372 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641.

本草綱目 Ben cao gang mu 石部目録 Section Stones/Minerals, Contents 第九卷 Chapter 9 石之三石類上三十二種 Stones/Minerals III, Group of Stones/Minerals, 1st, 32 kinds. 09-01 Dan sha 丹砂, cinnabar, FE Ben jing 本經 09-02 Shui yin 水銀, mercury, FE Ben jing 本經 09-03 Shui yin fen 水銀粉, FE Jia you 嘉祐 i.e., qing fen 輕粉 09-04 Fen shuang 粉霜, sublimed calomel, FE Gang mu 綱目 09-05 Yin zhu 銀朱, vermilion, FE Gang mu 綱目 09-06 Ling sha 靈砂, sulfide of mercury, FE Zheng lei 證類 09-07 Xiong huang 雄黄, realgar, FE Ben jing 本經 09-08 Ci huang 雌黄, orpiment, FE Ben jing 本經 09-09 Shi gao 石膏, gypsum, FE Ben jing 本經 i.e., han shui shi 寒水石 Appendix 附錄 09-09-A01 Yu huo shi 玉火石 09-09-A02 Long shi gao 龍石膏 09-10 Li shi 理石, fibrous gypsum, FE Ben jing 本經 Appendix 附錄 09-10-A01 Bai ji shi 白肌石 09-11 Chang shi 長石, feldspar; anhydrite, FE Ben jing 本經 09-12 Fang jie shi 方解石, calcspar, FE Bie lu 别録 09-13 Hua shi 滑石, talc, FE Ben jing 本經 09-14 Bu hui mu 不灰木, asbestos, FE Kai bao 開寶

398

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Appendix 附錄 09-14-A01 Song shi 松石 09-15 Wu se shi zhi 五色石脂, silicious clays, FE Ben jing 本經 09-16 Tao hua shi 桃花石, marmor (red and white), FE Tang ben 唐本 09-17 Lu gang shi 爐甘石, calamine, FE Gang mu 綱目 09-18 Jing quan shi 井泉石, stones from wells and springs, FE Jia you 嘉祐 09-19 Wu ming yi 無名異, pyrolysite, FE Kai bao 開寶 09-20 Mi li zi 蜜栗子, a kind of limestone, FE Gang mu 綱目 09-21 Shi zhong ru 石鍾乳, stalactite, FE Ben jing 本經 09-22 Kong gong nie 孔公孽, hollow tube stalactite, FE Ben jing 本經 09-23 Yin nie 殷孽, stalagmite; root part of stalactites, FE Ben jing 本經 Appendix 附錄 09-23-A01 Shi zhuang 石牀, stalacmite. 09-23-A02Shi hua 石花, stalacmite. 09-23-A03 Shi gu 石骨, “stone bone. 09-24 Tu yin nie 土殷孽, soil [cave] stalactite, FE Bie lu 别録 09-25 Shi nao 石腦, globular masses of haematite, FE Bie lu 别録 09-26 Shi sui 石髓, calcarious mud deposit, FE Shi yi 拾遺 09-27 Shi nao you 石腦油, petroleum, FE Jia you 嘉祐 Appendix 附録 09-27-A01 Di sou 地溲, chalybeate deposit. 09-28 Shi tan 石炭, coal, FE Gang mu 綱目 Appendix 附錄 09-28-A01 Ran shi 然石, flint. 09-29 Shi hui 石灰, limestone; lime, FE Ben jing 本經 09-30 Shi mian 石麪, dolomite powder, FE Gang mu 綱目 09-31 Fu shi 浮石, pumice, FE Rihua 日華 Appendix 附錄 09-31-A01 暈石, special type of pumice 09-32 Shi zhi 石芝, coral fossil, FE Gang mu 綱目 右附方舊六十九,新三百一十七。 Recipes added to the entries above: 69 of old. 317 newly [recorded].

Chapter 9

399

本草綱目 Ben cao gang mu 石部 Section Metals and Stones/Minerals, 第九卷 Chapter 9 石之三石類上三十二種 Stones/Minerals III, Group of Stones/Minerals, 1st, 32 kinds. 09-01 丹砂本經上品 Dan sha, FE Ben jing, upper rank. Cinnabar. 【釋名】朱砂。【時珍曰】丹乃石名,其字從井中一點,象丹在井中之 形,義出許慎説文。後人以丹爲朱色之名,故呼朱砂。 Explanation of Names. Zhu sha 朱砂, “bright red sand.” [Li] Shizhen: Dan 丹 is the name of a stone/mineral. The character dan 丹 is based on a stroke in a well, jing 井, to reflect the presence of dan 丹 [stones/minerals] in a well. This is the meaning offered by Xu Shen in his Shuo wen. Later people have adopted [the character] dan 丹 to signify the color zhu 朱, “bright red.” Hence [cinnabar] is called zhu sha 朱 砂, “bright red sand.” 【集解】【别録曰】丹砂生符陵山谷,采無時。光色如雲母,可拆者良, 作末名真朱。【弘景曰】即今朱砂也。俗醫别取武都 仇池雄黄夾雌黄者, 名爲丹砂,用之謬矣。符陵是涪州接巴郡南,今無復采者。乃出武陵、西 川諸蠻夷中,皆通屬巴地,故謂之巴砂。仙經亦用越砂,即出廣州 臨漳 者。此二處並好,惟須光明瑩澈爲佳。如雲母片者,謂之雲母砂。如樗蒲 子、紫石英形者,謂之馬齒砂,亦好。如大小豆及大塊圓滑者,謂之豆 砂。細末碎者,謂之末砂。此二種粗,不入藥用,但可畫用爾。采砂皆 鑿坎入數丈許。雖同出一郡縣,亦有好惡。地有水井,勝火井也。仙方鍊 餌,最爲長生之寶。【恭曰】丹砂大略二種,有土砂、石砂。其土砂,復 有塊砂、末砂,體並重而色黄黑,不任畫,用療瘡疥亦好,但不入心腹之 藥。然可燒之,出水銀乃多也。其石砂有十數品,最上者爲光明砂。云

400

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

砂。云一顆别生一石龕内,大者如鷄卵,小者如棗栗,形似芙蓉,破之如 雲母,光明照徹,在龕中石臺上生。得此者帶之辟惡,爲上。其次或出石 中,或出水内,形塊大者如拇指,小者如杏仁,光明無雜,名馬牙砂,一 名無重砂,入藥及畫俱善,俗間亦少有之。其磨𥰭、新井、别井、水井、 火井、芙蓉、石末、石堆、豆末等砂,形類頗相似。入藥及畫,當擇去其 雜土石,便可用矣。别有越砂,大者如拳,小者如鷄鴨卵,形雖大,其雜 土石,不如細而明净者。經言末之名真朱者,謬矣,豈有一物以全末殊名 乎。【斅曰】砂凡百等,不可一一論。有妙硫砂,如拳許大,或重一鎰, 有十四面,面如鏡,若遇陰沉天雨,即鏡面上有紅漿汁出。有梅柏砂,如 梅子許大,夜有光生,照見一室。有白庭砂,如帝珠子許大,面上有小星 現。有神座砂、金座砂、玉座砂,不經丹竈服之而自延壽命。次有白金 砂、澄水砂、陰成砂、辰錦砂、芙蓉砂、鏡面砂、箭鏃砂、曹末砂、土 砂、金星砂、平面砂、神末砂等,不可一一細述也。【頌曰】今出辰州、 宜州、階州,而辰砂爲最。生深山石厓間,土人采之,穴地數十尺始見其 苗,乃白石,謂之朱砂牀。砂生石上,其大塊者如鷄子,小者如石榴子, 狀若芙蓉頭、箭鏃。連牀者紫黯若鐵色而光明瑩澈,碎之嶄岩作墻壁,又 似雲母片可拆者,真辰砂也,無石者彌佳。過此,皆淘土石中得之,非生 於石牀者。宜砂絶有大塊者,碎之亦作墻壁,但罕有類物狀,而色亦深 赤,爲用不及辰砂。蓋出土石間,非白石牀所生也。然近宜州鄰地春州、 融州皆有砂,故其水盡赤。每煙霧鬱蒸之氣,亦赤黄色,土人謂之朱砂 氣,尤能作瘴癘,爲人患也。階砂又次之,都不堪入藥,惟可畫色爾。凡 砂之絶好者,爲光明砂,其次謂之顆塊,其次謂之鹿簌,其下謂之末砂。 惟光明砂入藥,餘並不用。【宗奭曰】丹砂今人謂之朱砂。辰州砂多出蠻 峒,錦州界狤獠峒 老鴉井,其井深廣數十丈,先聚薪于井焚之。其青石壁 迸裂處,即有小龕。龕中自有白石牀,其石如玉。牀上乃生砂,小者如箭 鏃,大者如芙蓉,光明可鑑,研之鮮紅。砂洎牀大者,重七八兩至十兩。 晃州所出形如箭鏃帶石者,得自土中,非此比也。【承曰】金州、商州亦 出一種砂,色微黄,作土氣,陝西、河東、河北、汴東、汴西並以入藥, 長安、蜀州研以代銀朱作漆器。又信州近年出一種砂,極有大者,光芒 墻壁,略類宜州所産,然有砒氣,破之多作生砒色。若入藥用,見火恐殺 人。今浙中市肆往往貨之,不可不審。【時珍曰】丹砂以辰、錦者爲最。 麻陽即古錦州地。佳者爲箭鏃砂,結不實者爲肺砂,細者爲末砂。色紫不 染紙者爲舊坑砂,爲上品;色鮮染紙者爲新坑砂,次之。蘇頌、陳承所謂 階州、金、商州砂者,乃陶弘景所謂武都雄黄,非丹砂也。范成大桂海志 云:本草以辰砂爲上,宜砂次之。然宜州出砂處,與湖北 大牙山相連。 北爲辰砂,南爲宜砂,地脉不殊,無甚分别,老者亦出白石牀上。蘇頌乃 云,宜砂出土石間,非石牀所生,是未識此也。别有一種色紅質嫩者,名 土坑砂,乃土石間者,不甚耐火。邕州亦有砂,大者數十百兩,作塊黑

Chapter 9

401

暗,少墻壁,不堪入藥,惟以燒取水銀。頌云融州亦有,今融州無砂,乃 邕州之訛也。臞仙庚辛玉册云:丹砂石以五溪山峒中産者,得正南之氣爲 上。麻陽諸山與五溪相接者次之。雲南、波斯、西胡砂,並光潔可用。柳 州一種砂,全似辰砂,惟塊圓如皂角子,不入藥用。商州、黔州土丹砂, 宣、信州砂,皆内含毒氣及金銀銅鉛氣,不可服。張果丹砂要訣云:丹砂 者,萬靈之主,居之南方。或赤龍以建號,或朱鳥以爲名。上品生於辰、 錦州石穴,中品生於交、桂,下品生於衡、邵。名有數種,清濁體異,真 僞不同。辰、錦上品砂,生白石牀之上,十二枚爲一座,色如未開蓮花, 光明耀日。亦有九枚爲一座。七枚、五枚者次之。每座中有大者爲主,四 圍小者爲臣朝護,四面雜砂一二斗抱之。中有芙蓉頭成顆者,亦入上品。 又有如馬牙光明者,爲上品;白光若雲母,爲中品。又有紫靈砂,圓長似 笋而紅紫,爲上品;石片稜角生青光,爲下品。交、桂所出,但是座上及 打石得,形似芙蓉、頭面光明者,亦入上品。顆粒而通明者,爲中品。片 段不明澈者,爲下品。衡、邵所出雖是紫砂,得之砂石中者,亦下品也。 有溪砂,生溪州砂石之中;土砂,生土穴之中。土石相雜,故不入上品, 不可服餌。唐 李德裕黄冶論云:光明砂者,天地自然之寶,在石室之間, 生雪牀之上。如初生芙蓉,紅芭未拆。細者環拱,大者處中,有辰居之 象,有君臣之位,光明外徹。采之者,尋石脉而求,此造化之所鑄也。 【土宿真君曰】丹砂受青陽之氣,始生𨥥石,二百年成丹砂而青女孕,又 二百年而成鈆,又二百年成銀,又二百年復得太和之氣,化而爲金,故諸 金皆不若丹砂金爲上也。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Cinnabar grows in the mountain valleys of Fu ling. It is collected anytime. Its shiny color resembles that of muscovite. That which can be broken is good. When it is [ground to a] powder, it is called “genuine bright red [sand]/cinnabar.” [Tao] Hongjing: This is today’s zhu sha 朱砂, “bright red sand.” Vulgar physicians acquire realgar mixed with orpiment from Qiu chi in Wu du and name this “cinnabar.” To use this [for therapeutic purposes] is wrong. Fu ling lies at the border of Fu zhou, south of Ba jun. Today, [cinnabar] is no longer collected there. Instead, it originates in all the regions of the Man and the Yi in Wu ling and Xi chuan. All these [places] are located in the region of Ba. Hence [the cinnabar originating in there] is called “sand from Ba.” The classics of the hermits/immortals, too, [recommend to] use “sand from Yue.” This is [cinnabar] originating in Lin zhang in Guang zhou. [Cinnabar] from both these places is good. But those that are lustrous and clear like jade are best. Those reminiscent of muscovite pieces are called “mother of clouds/muscovite sand/cinnabar.” Those with a physical appearance resembling Chinese toona seeds and fluor spar, they are called “horse tooth sand/ cinnabar.” They are good, too. Those sized like small or big beans, and big pieces that are round and smooth, they are called “soybean sand/cinnabar.” Those broken to a

402

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

fine powder, they are called “powder sand/cinnabar.” These two kinds are crude and are not added to medication for [therapeutic] use. But they can be used for painting. [To obtain] cinnabar a pit several zhang deep is dug. Even though [different types of cinnabar] may originates in one identical prefecture and county, there may still be good and bad [kinds]. Where [cinnabar] is obtained from a water well, this is superior to [that obtained from] a fire well.373 In recipes of the immortals [recommending substances] for refinement by heat and ingestion, [cinnabar] is the most treasured substance to achieve longevity. [Su] Gong: Generally speaking, there are two kinds of cinnabar: soil sand/cinnabar and stone/mineral sand/cinnabar. The soil sand/cinnabar, in turn, includes lump sand/cinnabar and powder sand/cinnabar. Their physical body is heavy and their color is yellow-black. They are not suitable for painting. They are equally good for healing sores and jie-illness.374 But they must not be added to medication for the central and abdominal region. They can be heated and will release much mercury. Stone/mineral sand/cinnabar appears in more than ten grades. The top grade is the “brilliant shine sand/cinnabar.” It is said that only one kernel is present in one stone cave. Large ones resemble chicken eggs; small ones resemble dates and chestnuts. Their physical appearance is reminiscent of lotus [buds]. When they are broken, they resemble muscovite. They are of a brilliant shine and luster, and in a cave they grow on stone platforms. To obtain them and to wear them on the body serves to keep away the malign. They are the best. The next grade originates either from within stones/minerals or from within water. Lumps may be as big as a thumb, or as small as apricot seeds. Their shine has no flaws; they are called “horse tooth sand/cinnabar” and with another name “weightless sand/cinnabar.” They are equally well suited to be used as paint or as medication. The common people rarely have access to them. Mo ci,375 new well, separate well, water well, fire well, lotus, stone powder, stone heap, and bean powder kinds of cinnabar are all somewhat similar in their physical appearance. They can be used for medication and paint once the soil and the stones they are contaminated with are discarded. There is also a Yue sand/cinnabar. Big pieces reach the size of a fist; small ones are as big as chicken and duck eggs. Even though they are big, since they are contaminated with soil and stones, they are not as good as those that are fine and bright and clean. When the classic says “the name of the powder is genuine bright red [sand]/cinnabar,” then this is wrong. How could it be that the complete body and the powder of one identical item have two different names? [Lei] Xiao: [Bright red] sand/cinnabar exists in 100 kinds; it is impossible to discuss them one by one. There is the 373 A “fire well” is an outlet in the ground of natural gas that can be burned. 374 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely identifiable skin ailment. BCGM Dict Vol. I, 249. 375 Unidentifiable meaning.

Chapter 9

403

“wondrous sulphur sand/cinnabar,” about the size of a fist, sometimes weighing one yi. It has 14 surfaces, and these surfaces are like mirrors. On cloudy days with rain, a red suspension juice will be emitted on its mirror-like surfaces. There is a “plum-platycladus [seed] sand/cinnabar,” about the size of a plum. At night it emits light, sufficient to light up a room. There is a “white courtyard sand/cinnabar,” about the size of the emperor’s pearl, with small stars appearing on its surface. There are also a “spirit seat sand/cinnabar,” a “gold seat sand/cinnabar,” and a “jade seat sand/cinnabar.” They are ingested without having been processed in an elixir furnace, and will prolong one’s life to longevity. Next [in quality] are “white gold sand/cinnabar,” “clear water sand/cinnabar,” “sand/cinnbar formed by yin [qi],” “sand/cinnabar as bright as the celestial bodies,” “lotus sand/cinnabar,” “mirror surface sand/cinnabar,” “metal arrowhead sand/cinnabar,” “Cao’s powder sand/cinnabar,” “soil sand/cinnabar,” “golden star sand/cinnabar,” “flat surface sand/cinnabar,” and “spirit powder sand/cinnabar.” They cannot be discussed here in detail one by one. [Su] Song: Nowadays, [cinnabar] originates in Chen zhou, Yi zhou and Jie zhou, with “sand/ cinnabar from Chen [zhou]” being the best. It grows deep in the mountains between rocks, where local people collect it. They dig holes in the ground several tens of chi deep and then they first see its outcrop. These are white stones, called “cinnabar bed.” The cinnabar grows on these stones, and large pieces reach the size of a chicken egg. Small ones are as big as pomegranade seeds. They are shaped like Indian lotus flowers or like metal arrowheads. As long as they are attached to the “cinnabar bed” [stones] they are of a dark purple color that is shiny and clear like jade. When they are broken from their rock base, [the pieces] have flat wall-like surfaces. There are also some that look like muscovite when they are broken to pieces. They are the genuine Chen [zhou] sand/cinnabar. They are even better when they are not attached to stones. Beyond this [layer several tens of chi deep, further cinnabar pieces] are found among soil and stones that are washed in a pan. These [cinnabar pieces] have not grown on a “stone bed.” These should be very large pieces. When they are broken, the pieces, too, have flat wall-like surfaces. But they rarely are shaped like comparable items, and their color is a deep red. Hence their [medicinal] application does not equal that of Chen [zhou] sand/cinnabar. The fact is, they originate in between soil and rocks; they have not grown on the white stone bed. In Chun zhou and Rong zhou, near the region of Yi zhou, there is cinnabar, too. Hence the waters there are entirely red. Whenever there are smoke, fog or steam qi, they, too, are red-yellow, and the local people call them “cinnabar qi.” They are particularly able to cause miasmatic epidemics, and let the people suffer. Jie [zhou] sand/ cinnabar is of still an inferior quality. None of these may be added to medication. They can only serve as paint. The very best cinnabar is “brilliant sand/cinnabar.”

404

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Next is “chunk [cinnabar].” And next to this is “deer thicket [cinnabar].” [Cinnabar] below this quality is called “powder sand/cinnabar.” Only the “brilliant sand/cinnabar]” is added to medication. All the others are not resorted to. [Kou] Zongshi: Dan sha 丹砂 is nowadays called zhu sha 朱砂. Chen zhou sand/cinnabar mostly originates in caves in the region of the Man [people] and from the Jie liao caves and the Lao yao well near Jin zhou. This well is several tens of zhan deep and wide. [The people] first gather firewood in the well and burn it. Where the greenish rock walls burst open small niches appear, and in these niches the “white stone beds” are found. These stones resemble jade. Cinnabar grows on the “[white stone] beds.” Small [pieces] are as big as arrowheads. Large ones are of the size of lotus [buds]. Their shine is strong enough to be reflected. When they are ground, they are of a fresh red [color]. Large pieces of cinnabar clinging to the “[white stone] beds” weigh seven to eight liang, or even ten liang. [Cinnabar] from Huang zhou is shaped like metal arrowheads and is contaminated with stones. It is obtained from within soil, and cannot be compared with the [cinnabar discussed] here. [Chen] Cheng: Jin zhou and Shang zhou, too, bring forth a cinnabar variation. It is of a slightly yellow color and emits soil qi. It is added to medication in Shaan xi, He dong, He bei, Bian dong and Bian xi. In Chang an and Shu zhou they grind it and use is as a substitute for vermilion in the fabrication of lacquerware. Also, in recent years a variation of cinnabar has originated in Xin zhou. [Its pieces] are very big. They are shiny and have flat wall-like surfaces. To a certain degree they resemble [cinnabar] produced in Yi zhou, but they include the qi of arsenic, and when they are broken they often show the color of arsenic. When [Xin zhou cinnabar] is added to medication for [therapeutic] usage and exposed to [the heat of ] fire, it may kill one. It is often traded today on the markets of Zhe zhong. It is essential to closely examine it. [Li] Shizhen: Cinnabar from Chen and Jin is the best. Ma yang is the region of ancient Jin zhou. Good is “arrowhead sand/cinnabar.” That which is bound and not solid is “lung sand/cinnabar.” Fine [kinds] are “powder sand/cinnabar.” That of purple color that fails to dye paper is “old pit sand/cinnabar.” It occupies the top rank. That with a fresh color and dyes paper is “new pit sand/cinnabar.” It is next in quality. The cinnabar kinds from Xie zhou, Jin and Shang zhou, referred to by Su Song and Chen Cheng, they are the realgar from Wu du mentioned by Tao Hongjing. They are not cinnabar. Fan Chengda in his Gui hai zhi states: “The Ben cao considers Chen [zhou] sand/cinnabar as the best, followed by Yi [zhou] sand/cinnabar. However, the places in Yi zhou where cinnabar originates in are near Mount Da ya shan in Hu bei. In the North it is Chen [zhou] sand/cinnabar; in the South it is Yi [zhou] sand/cinnabar. The veins in the ground are identical: Hence there is no reason to distinguish between the two. Old [cinnabar], too, originates in ‘white stone beds’.” When Su

Chapter 9

405

Song states: “Yi [zhou] sand/cinnabar originates in among soil and stones, it has not grown on stone beds,” then he was unaware of these [facts]. There is an additional variation of red color and tender substance matter. It is called “soil pit sand/ cinnabar.” Now, [cinnabar] from between soil and rocks does not stand much fire. Yong zhou, too, has cinnabar. Large pieces weigh tens if not hundreds of liang. These pieces are of a black, dull color, they have few flat wall-like surfaces and they are not suitable for being added to medication. They only serve to be heated to obtain mercury. [Su] Song states that [cinnabar] is also found in Rong zhou. But there is no cinnabar in today’s Rong zhou. So, this is a writing error for Yong zhou. Quxian’s Geng xin yu ce states: “The cinnabar that is brought forth in the mountain caves of Wu xi and has obtained the qi of the true South is best. That from all the Ma yang mountains and from regions adjacent to Wu xi is second. All [kinds of ] cinnabar from Yun nan, Po si/Persia and Xi hu that are shiny and clean can be used [for therapeutic purposes]. A variation of cinnabar from Liu zhou that as a complete lump resembles Chen [zhou] cinnabar, while its pieces are round like gleditsia [seeds], is not added to medication for [therapeutic] use. Cinnabar from the soil of Shang zhou and Qian zhou, and from Yi and Xin zhou includes poison qi and the qi of gold, silver, copper and lead. It must not be ingested.” Zhang Gao in his Dan sha yao jue states: “Cinnabar is the head of the myriad miraculous [items]. It resides in the South. Some call it ‘red dragon’ others name it ‘red phoenix’. That of top rank grows in the rock caves of Chen and Jin zhou. That of middle rank grows in Jiao and Gui. That of lower rank grows in Heng and Shao. There are many names [of cinnabar], and the physical body differs in that it may be clear or turbid, genuine or fake. Top rank cinnabar from Chen and Jin grows on ‘white stone beds’. Twelve pieces form a seat, with a color resembling that of unopened Indian lotus flowers. They are shiny lustrous. There are also those [kinds] where nine pieces form a seat, followed by those of seven or five pieces. Each seat includes one large piece as its ruler. Small pieces surrounding it on all sides constitute minister, courtiers and guards. On four sides they are enclosed by one or two dou of contaminated sand/cinnabar. Those with a kernel in their center like an Indian lotus flower can also be counted among those of upper rank. There are also those of a radiance of horse teeth; they, too, are of top rank. Those of white shine like muscovite, are of middle rank. There is also a ‘purple miraculous sand/cinnabar’. Its round, lengthy shape reminds one of bamboo shoots of a red-purple color. It is of top rank. [Cinnabar] slaps with sharp edges and generating a greenish light are of low rank. Those from Jiao and Gui, that are obtained from the top of a seat and from breaking away stones, with their physical appearance resembling lotus [buds] and a shiny top and surface, they, too, are added to first rank. Those coming as transparent kernels are of middle rank. Slaps without

406

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

luster are of lower rank. Cinnabar from Heng and Shao may be purple, but if it is obtained from between sand and rocks, it, too, is of lower rank. There is a Xi [zhou] sand/cinnabar that grows among the sand and rocks of Xi zhou. And a soil sand/ cinnabar that grows in soil caves. It is contaminated with soil and stones, and therefore is not added to upper rank and must not be ingested.” Li Diyu of the Tang dynasty in his Huang ye lun states: “Brilliant sand/cinnabar is a natural gem of heaven and earth. It occurs in rooms of rock, and grows on beds of snow. It resembles lotus [buds] that have just come to life; with their red color not yet lost. Fine pieces form a devout ring; big ones are situated in the center. Like constellations of celestial bodies, they occupy positions of ruler and ministers, with their splendor reaching toward the outside. Those who collect them, they search for the veins in the rocks and follow them. This was forged by creation.” Tu su zhen jun: “Cinnabar has received greenish yang (i. e. spring) qi. At first, it grows as an ore. 200 years later it forms red sand/cinnabar and the greenish girl becomes pregnant.376 Another 200 years later it becomes lead. Another 200 years later it becomes silver. Another 200 years later it again receives the qi of the Great Harmony377 so that it transforms to gold. Hence of all the gold [kinds] there is none that reaches the superiority of cinnabar gold.” 【修治】【斅曰】凡修事朱砂,静室焚香齋沐後,取砂以香水浴過,拭 乾,碎搗之,鉢中更研三伏時。取一瓷鍋子,每朱砂一兩,同甘草二兩, 紫背天葵一鎰,五方草一鎰,着砂上,以東流水煮三伏時,勿令水闕。去 藥,以東流水淘净,乾熬。又研如粉,用小瓷瓶入青芝草、山鬚草半兩蓋 之,下十斤,火煅,從巳至子方歇,候冷取出,細研用。如要服,則以熬 蜜丸細麻子大,空腹服一丸。【時珍曰】今法惟取好砂研末,以流水飛三 次用。其末砂多雜石末、鐵屑,不堪入藥。又法:以絹袋盛砂,用蕎麥灰 淋汁,煮三伏時取出,流水浸洗過,研粉飛晒用。又丹砂以石膽、消石和 埋土中,可化爲水。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Lei] Xiao. For all pharmaceutical preparations of cinnabar, burn incense in a quiet room, purge body and mind, and wash your hair. Only then wash cinnabar clean with aromatic water, wipe it dry and grind and pound it. Repeatedly grind it in a mortar for three days and nights. Then give it into a porcelain bowl and for each liang of cinnabar place two liang of glycyrrhiza [root], one yi of purple back malva [herb] and one yi of purslane on top of the cinnabar to be boiled with eastward flowing water for three days and nights. Do not allow the water to be exhausted. Then remove the medication, rinse [the cinnabar] clean with eastward flowing water, dry it in the sun and grind it to a powder. Fill this into 376 The “greenish girl” is mentioned in the Huainan zi as the goddess of frost and snow. 377 “Great Harmony” is supposed to have been the origin of all items/being.

Chapter 9

407

a small porcelain bottle together with half a liang of ganoderma fungus and shan xu cao,378 and close the [bottle]. Calcine it above a fire fired with ten jin [of firewood], from si [hours, 09:00 – 10:59] to zi [hours, 23:00 – 00:59]. Wait for it to cool and remove [the cinnabar powder from the bottle]. Grind it even finer and then it is ready for [medicinal] applications. When it is to be ingested, form, with hot honey, pills the size of fine sesame seeds and ingest one on an empty stomach. [Li] Shizhen: Today’s method is to just obtain good cinnabar, grind it to a powder, process it with an aqueous sublimation three times and then apply it. Powder cinnabar is often contaminated with sand of stones and iron fragments, and is not suitable for being added to medication. Another method: Fill a silk pouch with cinnabar, and pour water through buckwheat ashes. Boil [the pouch in the resulting liquid] for three days and nights and remove [the cinnabar]. Cleanse it in running water, grind it to a powder, process this with sublimation, dry it in the sun and use it [for therapeutic purposes]. Also, when cinnabar, mixed with chalcanthite and nitrokalite, is buried in soil, it will transform to a watery liquid. 【氣味】甘,微寒,無毒。【普曰】神農:甘。岐伯:苦,有毒。扁鵲: 苦。李當之:大寒。【權曰】有大毒。【大明曰】凉,微毒。【之才曰】 惡慈石,畏鹹水,忌一切血。【時珍曰】丹砂,别録云無毒,岐伯、甄權 言有毒,似相矛盾。按何孟春餘冬録云:丹砂性寒而無毒,入火則熱而有 毒,能殺人,物性逐火而變。此説是也。丹砂之畏慈石、鹹水者,水克火 也。【斅曰】鐵遇神砂,如泥似粉。【土宿真君曰】丹砂用陰地厥、地骨 皮、車前草、馬鞭草、皂莢、石韋、决明、瞿麥、南星、白附子、烏頭、 三角酸、藕荷、桑椹、地榆、紫河車、地丁,皆可伏制。而金公以砂爲 子,有相生之道,可變化。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, slightly cold, nonpoisonous. [Wu] Pu: Shen nong: Sweet. Qi Bo: Bitter, poisonous. Bian Que: Bitter. Li Dangzhi: Very cold. [Zhen] Quan: Very poisonous. Da Ming: Cool, slightly poisonous. [Xu] Zhicai: [Ingested together,] it abhors magnetite and fears brine. [During a cinnabar therapy] all sorts of blood are to be avoided. [Li] Shizhen: Of cinnabar, the Bie lu states “nonpoisonous.” Qi Bo and Zhen Quan say: “poisonous.” They seem to contradict each other. Now, He Mengchun in his Yu dong lu states: “Cinnabar is of cold nature, and it is nonpoisonous. When it is given into fire, [its nature] becomes hot, it is poisonous, and can kill one. The nature of [this] item changes in correspondence with the impact of fire.” This statement is correct. That cinnabar fears magnetite and brine is because water overcomes fire. [Lei] Xiao: When iron meets with “divine sand”/cinnabar, it turns into something like mud, or resembles a powder. Tu su zhen jun: All the fol378 Shan xu cao 山鬚草, lit. “mountain whiskers herb.” Botanical identification uncertain.

408

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

lowing [substances] are able to check [the effects of ] cinnabar: Moonwort, lycium root bark, plantago herb, verbena, gleditsia [seed], pyrrosia [leaf ], cassia leaf, dianthus [herb], arisaema root, [Si chuan] aconitum [main tuber], aconitum [accessory tuber], Indian sorrel, Indian lotus leaves lying upon the water, mulberry fruit, sanguisorba root, paris root, and viola herb and root. Lead considers cinnabar to be its child. Based on the principle of mutual generation, [lead] is able to change and transform [cinnabar]. 【主治】身體五臟百病,養精神,安魂魄,益氣明目,殺精魅邪惡鬼。久 服通神明不老。能化爲汞。本經。通血脉,止煩滿消渴,益精神,悦澤人 面,除中惡腹痛,毒氣疥瘻諸瘡。輕身神仙。别録。鎮心,主尸疰抽風。 甄權。潤心肺,治瘡痂息肉,并塗之。大明。治驚癇,解胎毒痘毒,驅邪 瘧,能發汗。時珍。 Control. The hundreds of diseases affecting the [human] body and its five longterm depots. It nourishes essence and spirit. It pacifies the hun-soul and the po-soul. It boosts the qi and clears the eyes. It kills spirit seduction-specters379 and evil as well as malign demons. Ingested over a long time it frees the passage of spirit brilliance and prevents aging. It can be transformed to mercury. Ben jing. It frees the passage of blood through the vessels. It ends unrest, sensations of fullness and melting with thirst.380 It boosts essence and spirit. It makes one’s face appear happy and glossy. It ends abdominal pain resulting from being struck by the malign, and removes all types of sores, such as jie-illness381 and fistula, caused by poisonous qi. It takes the weight of the body and turns one into a spirit immortal. Bie lu. It presses down [the qi of ] the heart and controls corpse attachment illness382 with wind convulsions. Zhen Quan. To moistens heart and lung, and to cure sores with a crust and tumorous flesh growth, apply it [to the affected region]. Da Ming. It serves to cure fright epilepsy, resolves fetal poison and smallpox poison, and drives away evil [qi] malaria. It can cause sweating. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【保昇曰】朱砂法火,色赤而主心。【杲曰】丹砂純陰,納浮溜 之火而安神明,凡心熱者非此不能除。【好古曰】乃心經血分主藥,主命 門有餘。【青霞子曰】丹砂外包八石,内含金精。禀氣於甲,受氣於丙, 379 Jing mei 精魅, “spirit seduction-specter,” a notion of demonic pathogenic agents. BCGM Dict I, 265. 380 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict I, 567. 381 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely identifiable skin ailment. BCGM Dict Vol. I, 249. 382 Zhu 疰, also zhu 注, “attachment-illness,” “influx-illnesss,” reflects a notion of a foreign pathogenic agent, originally of demonic nature, having attached itself to the human organism. BCGM Dict I, 688-695.

Chapter 9

409

出胎見壬,結塊成庚,增光歸戊。陰陽升降,各本其原,自然不死。若以 氣衰血敗,體竭骨枯,八石之功,稍能添益。若欲長生久視,保命安神, 須餌丹砂。且丹石見火,悉成灰燼;丹砂伏火,化爲黄銀。能重能輕,能 神能靈,能黑能白,能暗能明。一斛人擎,力難升舉;萬斤遇火,輕速上 騰。鬼神尋求,莫知所在。【時珍曰】丹砂生於炎方,禀離火之氣而成, 體陽而性陰,故外顯丹色而内含真汞。其氣不熱而寒,離中有陰也。其味 不苦而甘,火中有土也。是以同遠志、龍骨之類,則養心氣;同當歸、丹 參之類,則養心血;同枸杞、地黄之類,則養腎;同厚朴、川椒之類,則 養脾;同南星、川烏之類,則祛風。可以明目,可以安胎,可以解毒,可 以發汗,隨佐使而見功,無所往而不可。夏子益奇疾方云:凡人自覺本形 作兩人,並行並卧,不辨真假者,離魂病也。用辰砂、人參、伏苓,濃煎 日飲,真者氣爽,假者化也。類編云:錢丕少卿夜多惡夢,通宵不寐,自 慮非吉。遇鄧州推官胡用之曰:昔常如此。有道士教戴辰砂如箭鏃者,涉 旬即驗,四五年不復有夢。因解髻中一絳囊遺之。即夕無夢,神魂安静。 道書謂丹砂辟惡安魂,觀此二事可徵矣。【抱朴子曰】臨沅縣 廖氏家,世 世壽考。後徙去,子孫多夭折。他人居其故宅,復多壽考。疑其井水赤, 乃掘之,得古人埋丹砂數十斛也。飲此水而得壽,况鍊服者乎。【頌曰】 鄭康成注周禮,以丹砂、石膽、雄黄、礜石、慈石爲五毒。古人惟以攻瘡 瘍,而本經以丹砂爲無毒,故多鍊治服食,鮮有不爲藥患者,豈五毒之説 勝乎?當以爲戒。【宗奭曰】朱砂鎮養心神,但宜生使。若鍊服,少有不 作疾者。一醫疾,服伏火者數粒,一旦大熱,數夕而斃。沈存中云:表兄 李善勝鍊朱砂爲丹,歲餘,沐砂再入鼎,誤遺一塊。其徒丸服之,遂發懵 冒,一夕而斃。夫生硃砂,初生小兒便可服。因火力所變,遂能殺人,不 可不謹。【陳文中曰】小兒初生,便服朱砂、輕粉、白蜜、黄連水,欲下 胎毒。此皆傷脾敗陽之藥。輕粉下痰損心,朱砂下涎損神,兒實者服之軟 弱,弱者服之易傷,變生諸病也。【時珍曰】葉石林避暑録載:林彦振、 謝任伯皆服伏火丹砂,俱病腦疽死。張杲醫説載:張慤服食丹砂,病中消 數年,發鬢疽而死。皆可爲服丹之戒。而周密野語載:臨川 周推官平生孱 弱,多服丹砂、烏、附藥,晚年發背疽。醫悉歸罪丹石,服解毒藥不效。 瘍醫老祝胗脉曰:此乃極陰證,正當多服伏火丹砂及三建湯。乃用小劑試 之,復作大劑,三日後用膏敷貼,半月而瘡平,凡服三建湯一百五十服。 此又與前諸説異。蓋人之臟腑禀受萬殊,在智者辨其陰陽脉證,不以先入 爲主。非妙入精微者,不能企此。 Explication. [Han] Baosheng: Cinnabar emulates fire. Its color is red and it controls the heart. [Li] Gao: Cinnabar is pure yin. Once it is impacted by the floating and swift nature of fire it will pacify one’s spirit brilliance. Heart heat can only be eliminated with this [substance]. [Wang] Haogu: This is a medication to control the heart conduit and blood section. It serves to control surplus at the Gate of Life.

410

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Qingxia zi: Cinnabar on the outside is wrapped by eight stones/minerals;383 inside it includes the essence of gold. It is endowed with the qi of jia 甲. It accepts the qi of bing 丙. Its fetal stage is visible in ren 壬. It forms nodes and lumps at geng 庚. It is enriched with light and returns to wu 戊.384 Yin and yang rise and descend. Each comes back to its origin, with no death occurring in nature. If the qi have waned, and the blood has decayed, if the body is exhausted and the bones are withered, the effects of the eight stones/minerals may help a little. If one wishes to live long and to see far into the distance, to guard life and to pacify the spirit, it is essential to consume cinnabar. Also, when ordinary elixir stones/minerals are exposed to fire they will burn completely to ashes. When cinnabar is exposed to fire, it will transform to yellow silver/mercury. It may be heavy or light, it may be of divine or magic [nature]. It may be black or white. It may be dull or brilliant. When a person holds as much as one hu [of cinnabar], with all his strength it will be difficult to lift it. When a myriad pounds [of cinnabar] are met by fire, it becomes light and swiftly surges up into the air, and even if demon spirits went in quest of it, they would be unable to locate its whereabouts. [Li] Shizhen: Cinnabar grows in regions with flaming fires. It forms endowed with the qi of li 離 fire. Its body is yang, while its nature is yin. Hence it displays a red color on the outside, and includes genuine mercury inside. Its qi are not hot, they are cold. That is, within the li 離 [fire] it has yin [qi]. Its flavor is not bitter, it is sweet. That is, within the [phase] fire there is [the phase] soil. Hence in combination with polygala [root] and dragon bones, it serves to nourish the heart qi. In combination with angelica root and salvia root, it nourishes the heart blood. In combination with lycium root bark and Chinese foxglove [rhizome], it nourishes the kidneys. In combination with magnolia bark and Sichuan pepper, it nourishes the spleen. In combination with arisaema root and Sichuan aconitum [main tuber], it drives out wind. It can clear the eyes, it can pacify the fetus, it can resolve poison, it can effuse sweat. If accompanied by assistants and guiding substances, its [therapeutic] effects reach everywhere. Xia Ziyi in his Qi ji fang states: “Whenever a person assumes his own physical appearance to be split into two persons, that walk together and lie down to sleep together, and when [that 383 The “eight stones/minerals” include: zhu sha 硃砂, cinnabar; xiong huang 雄黃, realgar; kong qing 空青, hollow malachite; liu huang 硫磺, sulphur; yun mu 雲母, muscovite/mica; rong yan 戎鹽, halite; xiao shi 硝石, nitrokalite, and ci huang 雌黃, orpiment. 384 Jia 甲 is the first of the Ten Heavenly Stems. It reflects wood. As cinnabar is endowed with its qi, it can burn. Bing 丙 is the third of the Ten Heavenly Stems. It reflects fire. As cinnabar has received its qi, it is able to cause/go through transformation. Ren 壬 is the ninth of the Ten Heavenly Stems. It signifies the appearance of mercury. Geng 壬 is the seventh of the Ten Heavenly Stems. It reflects the qi of metal and signifies here a hard and solid substance matter. Wu 戊 is the fifth of the Ten Heavenly Stems. It signifies here the return to a red appearance.

Chapter 9

411

person] is unable to distinguish between facts and fake, this is a disease of ‘a separated hun-soul’. [Patients] are to drink, every day, a viscous decoction of cinnabar, ginseng [root] and poria. The qi of facts will be strengthened, and those of fake will be transformed.” The Lei bian states: “Vice Minister Qian Pi at night had many malign dreams, and he was unable to sleep throughout the night. He was worried that [such dreams] might signal bad luck. Eventually, he met Hu Yongzhi, a prefectural judge in Deng zhou, who told him: ‘Long ago [I] continuously [suffered from] the same [problem]. Then a Daoist told me to wear on my body cinnabar shaped like metal arrowheads. After only ten days this proved effective. For four, five years now [I have had] no such dreams again’. Then he took a red bag from the tuft of hair on his head and handed it to [the Vice Minister to wear it himself ]. That night [the Vice Minister] had no dreams, his spirit and hun-soul were pacified and calm.” Daoist texts claim that cinnabar wards off the malign and pacifies the hun-soul. These two events may serve as evidence. Baopu zi: Members of the Liao family in Lin yuan enjoyed a long life, generation after generation. Later they moved somewhere else und many of their children and grandchildren succumbed to an early death. Other people moved into their old house and they, again, enjoyed a long life. They wondered why the water in their well was red and went to dig up its ground. There, people in ancient times had buried tens of hu of cinnabar. If longevity is obtained by drinking such water, how much more should this be true for ingesting [cinnabar] refined with heat? [Su] Song: When Zheng Kangcheng annotated the Zhou li, he identified cinnabar, chalcanthite, realgar, arsenolite and magnetite as the five poisons. In ancient times, the people used them only to attack sores and ulcers. Then the Ben jing identified cinnabar as nonpoisonous, and hence it was often refined with heat and processed to be ingested for food. Only rarely [people who ingested it] did not suffer because of such medication. Why should the statement [in the Ben jing] that [cinnabar] is nonpoisonous be accepted as superior? It is essential to be careful. [Kou] Zongshi: Cinnabar presses down and nourishes the spirit of the heart, but it is advisable to resort to it in its raw [unrefined] state. If ingested refined with heat, this will only rarely not cause an illness. A physician fell ill and ingested several grains of a “hidden fire” [medication]. The next morning he was very hot, and after several nights he died. Shen Cunzhong states: Li Shansheng, a male cousin, prepared an elixir by refining cinnabar with heat. After a year was over, he once again washed [the cinnabar] and gave it back into the cauldron, inadvertently missing one piece. One of his disciples took it, formed it to a pill and ingested it. He subsequently lost his consciousness and died within one night. That is, as long as cinnabar is unprocessed even a newborn child may ingest it. But when its strength is changed by the impact of fire, it is able to kill one. One must be careful. Chen

412

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Wenzhong: When a newborn child is given cinnabar, calomel, white honey and coptis [rhizome] to ingest, this is meant to have it discharge fetal poison. These are all pharmaceutical substances that harm the spleen and spoil the yang [qi]. Calomel serves to discharge phlegm and it injures the heart. Cinnabar serves to discharge saliva and it injures the spirit. When a child of solid [health] ingests it, it will become feeble. When a child of feeble [health] ingests it, it may easily be harmed and develop all types of diseases. [Li] Shizhen: Ye Shilin in his Bi shu lu has the following record. “Lin Yanzhen and Xie Renbo both ingested ‘hidden fire cinnabar’. Both fell ill with an impediment-illness385 in their brain and died.” Zhang Gao in his Yi shuo has the following record: “Zhang Que ingested cinnabar for food, and for several years he suffered from melting in his center. Eventually he developed an impediment-illness in his temples and died.” All these [records] may serve as warnings against an ingestion of cinnabar/elixirs. But then Zhou Mi in his Ye yu has recorded the following. “A prefectural judge Zhou in Lin chuan had been of frail health all his life. He frequently ingested cinnabar, and aconite root and aconitum [root tuber] as medication. In his old age he developed an impediment-illness on his back. All the physicians consulted blamed [his illness] on the cinnabar/elixir mineral and had him ingest medication to resolve poison, but none of them had an effect. Eventually, old Zhu, a physician specialized in ulcers, said: ‘This is an extreme yin condition. For a proper [treatment the patient] must eat much hidden fire cinnabar and the decoction for a threefold rebuilding’. Then he at first resorted to a small dose to test this, and later prepared a large dose. Three days later he applied an ointment to [the affected region]. After half a month, the sore was levelled. [The patient] had ingested altogether 150 doses of the ‘decoction for a threefold rebuilding’.” This account differs from all the records quoted above. The fact is, the long-term depots and short-term repositories of humans are endowed with [qi] and have received [qi] in a myriad different ways. It is essential that knowledgable [healers] when they examine the yin and yang [movements in the] vessels and further pathological signs do not cling to their first [findings] as a guideline [for a therapy]. Those who do not apply utmost sensibility will not be able to favorably end such [a case].

385 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277.

Chapter 9

413

【附方】舊八,新二十六。 Added Recipes. Eight of old. 26 newly [recorded] 服食丹砂。三皇真人鍊丹方:丹砂一斤,研末重篩,以醇酒沃之如泥狀。 盛以銅盤,置高閣上,勿令婦女見。燥則復以酒沃,令如泥,陰雨疾風則 藏之。盡酒三斗,乃曝之,三百日當紫色。齋戒沐浴七日,静室飯丸麻子 大,常以平旦向日吞三丸。一月三蟲出,半年諸病瘥,一年鬚髮黑,三年 神人至。太上玄變經。 To ingest cinnabar for food. A recipe of the Three Perfected Primordial Sovereigns: Grind one jin of cinnabar to a powder and repeatedly give it through a sieve. Let it soak in unmixed wine until it has turned into a mud-like mass, and fill this on a copper plate to be placed on an elevated shelf. Do not allow the women to see it. Once it has dried let it soak in wine again until it has turned into a mud, and store this at a shady place where it rains and where winds are swift. After three dou of wine are used up this way, dry it in the sun. After 300 days it will have assumed a purple color. Abstain from meat, wine etc. and bathe hair and body for seven days, and in a quiet room prepare [the cinnabar] with cooked rice to pills the size of hemp seeds. Then regularly in the early morning hours face the sun and swallow three pills. Within one month three bugs/worms will leave [the body]. After half a year, all types of diseases will have been cured. Within one year, beard and hair on the head will be black. After three years the status of a spirit man will have been reached. Tai shang xuan bian jing. 小神丹方。真丹末三斤,白蜜六斤,攪合日曝,至可丸,丸麻子大,每旦 服十丸。一年白髮反黑,齒落更生,身體潤澤,老翁成少。抱朴子内篇。 Small recipe for a divine cinnabar/elixir. Mix three jin of genuine cinnabar powder with six jin of white honey and dry this in the sun until pills can be formed. The pills are of the size of hemp seeds. Each morning ingest ten pills. Within one year white hair on the head will have turned black again, and where the teeth had fallen out, they grow anew. The entire body will be moistened, and old men will be young again. Baopu zi Nei pian. 明目輕身,去三尸,除瘡癩。美酒五升,浸朱砂五兩,五宿,日乾研末, 蜜丸小豆大。每服二十丸,白湯下,久服見效。衞生易簡方。 To clear the eyes and take the weight of the body. To remove the three corpse [bugs/ worms].386 To eliminate sores and repudiation-illness.387 Soak five liang of cinnabar 386 San shi 三尸, “three corpse [bugs/worms],” is an ancient notion of microorganisms that may have been acquired through contact with a corpse and cause various diseases. BCGM Dict I, 414. 387 Lai 癩, “repudiation-illness,” most likely including cases of leprosy. BCGM Dict I, 293

414

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

in five sheng of good wine for five days and nights. Dry it in the sun, grind it to a powder and form with honey pills the size of small beans. Each time ingest 20 pills, to be sent down with clear hot water. When this is ingested for a long time, the effects will become apparent. Wei sheng yi jian fang. 神注丹方。白伏苓四兩,糯米酒煮軟,竹刀切片,陰乾爲末,入朱砂末二 錢,以乳香水打糊丸梧子大,朱砂末二錢爲衣。陽日二丸,陰日一丸。要 秘精,新汲水下;要逆氣過精,温酒下。並空心。王好古醫壘元戎。 Recipe for the “cinnabar/elixir with a spirit attached to it.” Boil four liang of white poria in wine made from glutinous rice until it has become soft, and cut it with a bamboo knife into pieces. Dry them in the shade and [grind them to a] powder. Add two qian of cinnabar powder and prepare, with a paste obtained by dissolving frankincense in water, pills the size of wu seeds, to be coated with two qian of cinnabar powder. On yang days [ingest] two pills, on yin days one pill. If it is meant to constrain [one’s lust by decreasing] essence/sperm, send [the pills] down with newly drawn water. If it is meant to cause counterflow qi to increase the essence/sperm, send them down with warm wine. Always on an empty stomach. Wang Haogu, Yi lei yuan rong. 烏髭變白。小雌鷄二隻,只與烏油麻一件,同水飼之。放卵時,收取先放 者打竅,以朱砂末填入糊定,同衆卵抱出鷄,取出,其藥自然結實,研 粉,蒸餅和丸緑豆大。每酒下五七丸。不惟變白,亦且愈疾。張潞方。 When a black moustache has turned white. Feed to small hens nothing but black sesame seeds and water. When eggs are laid take the one laid first and bore a hole into it. Fill it with cinnabar powder and close it again with dough. Then have it hatched together with all the other eggs until chicks come out of them, and remove it. The medicated [egg] will have hardened and is ground to a powder to be prepared with steamed cakes to pills the size of mung beans. Each time send with wine down five to seven pills. They do not only [serve to blacken a moustache that has] turned white; they also serve to cure illnesses. Zhang lu fang. 小兒初生六日,解胎毒,温腸胃,壯氣血。朱砂豆大,細研,蜜一棗大, 調與吮之,一日令盡。姚和衆至寶方。 To resolve fetal poison of a newborn child of six days, to warm its intestines and stomach, and to strengthen its qi and blood. Grind cinnabar, the size of a soybean, to a fine [powder]. Mix it with honey, the size of a date, and [have the child] suck this. It should be used up within one day. Yao Hezhong, Zhi bao fang. 預解痘毒。初發時或未出時,以朱砂末半錢,蜜水調服。多者可少,少者 可無,重者可輕也。丹溪方。

Chapter 9

415

To preventively resolve smallpox poison. [Let the patient] either when [the smallpox] has just broken out or before it has broken out ingest half a qian of cinnabar powder mixed with honey and water. If many pox have erupted, this will keep their number small. If few have erupted, this can eliminate them all. Serious cases can be mitigated. Danxi fang. 初生兒驚。月内驚風欲死,朱砂磨新汲水塗五心,最驗。斗門方。 Fright of a newborn child. If it is affected by fright wind388 within its first month, coming close to death, apply cinnabar mixed with newly drawn water to the five “hearts.”389 Dou men fang. 小兒驚熱,夜卧多啼。朱砂半兩,牛黄一分,爲末。每服一字,犀角磨水 調下。普濟方。 Fright heat of children, when they cry a lot in bed during the night. [Grind] half a liang of cinnabar and one fen of cow bezoar to a powder. Each time [have the child] ingest one zi, to be sent down with water in which rhinoceros horn was rubbed. Pu ji fang. 急驚搐搦。丹砂半兩,天南星一個一兩重者,炮裂酒浸,大蠍三個,爲 末。每服一字,薄荷湯下。聖濟録。 Acute fright with convulsions. [Grind] half a liang of cinnabar, one arisaema [root] with a weight of one liang that has been roasted in a pan until it cracked open and was then soaked in wine, and three large scorpions to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest one zi, to be sent down with mint decoction. Sheng ji lu. 驚忤不語。打撲驚忤,血入心竅,不能言語。朱砂爲末,以雄猪心血和丸 麻子大,每棗湯下七丸。直指方。 Frightened by a hostility with an inability to speak. [Injury from a] blow with fright caused by the hostile, when blood has entered the heart aperture resulting in an inability to speak. [Grind] cinnabar to a powder, mix it with blood from the heart of a rooster and form pills the size of hemp seeds. Each time [let the patient] ingest seven pills with a date decoction. Zhi zhi fang.

388 Jing feng 驚風, “fright wind,” a condition of children characterised by jerking and arched back rigidity, eyeballs turned upward, and twitching hands and legs.BCGM Dict I, 261, also 238, 240. 389 The “five hearts” include the heart in the chest, the two “heart” centers of the palms and the two “heart” centers of the soles.

416

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

客忤卒死。真丹方寸匕,蜜三合和,灌之。肘後方。 Visited by the hostile with sudden death. Mix as much genuine cinnabar as is held on a square cun spoon with three ge of honey and forcefeed this [to the patient]. Zhou hou fang. 癲癇狂亂。歸神丹:治一切驚憂思慮多忘,及一切心氣不足,癲癇狂亂。 豶豬心二個,切,入大朱砂二兩、燈心三兩在内,麻扎,石器煮一伏時, 取砂爲末,以伏神末二兩,酒打薄糊丸梧子大。每服九丸至十五丸、至二 十五丸,麥門冬湯下。甚者,乳香人參湯下。百一選方。 Peak-illness390 with epilepsy, madness and confusion. The “elixir to cause the spirit to return.” It serves to cure all types of fright, sorrow, pondering and advanced forgetfulness, as well as all insufficiencies of heart qi, peak-illness with epilepsy, madness and confusion. Cut open two hearts of castrated boars and fill them with two liang of large cinnabar pieces and three liang of rushes. Wrap them with hemp and boil this in a stone vessel for one day and one night. Remove the cinnabar and [grind it to a] powder. Add two liang of poria powder and wine, knead this to a thin paste and form pills the size of wu seeds. Each time [let the patient] ingest from nine pills up to 15 pills, or even up to 25 pills, to be sent down with ophiopogon root decoction. In severe cases, to be sent down with a frankincense and ginseng [root] decoction. Bai yi xuan fang. 産後癲狂。敗血及邪氣入心,如見祟物,顛狂。用大辰砂一二錢,研細飛 過,用飲兒乳汁三四茶匙調濕,以紫項地龍一條入藥,滚三滚,刮净,去 地龍不用,入無灰酒一盞,分作三四次服。何氏方。 Peak-illness with madness following delivery. Spoiled blood and evil qi have entered the heart, resulting in peak-illness with madness as if [the patient] had seen an evil being. Grind one or two qian of large cinnabar pieces to a fine [powder], process it with sublimation, mix it with as much nursing mother’s milk drunk by a child as fills three to four tea spoons and add one earthworm with a purple neck. Let it wriggle in the medication three times and then scrape [the medication off ]. Set the earthworm free, it is of no further use. Fill [the medication] into a small cup of ashfree wine, and have [the patient] ingest this in three to four portions. He shi fang. 心虚遺精。猪心一個,批片相連,以飛過朱砂末摻入,線縛,白水煮熟食 之。唐瑶經驗方。 Heart depletion with involuntary loss of essence/sperm. Cut one heart of a pig into [two] pieces that remain united and fill it with cinnabar powder processed through 390 Dian 顛, “peak[-illness],” also 癲, vaguely defined mental derangement. BCGM Dict I, 124.

Chapter 9

417

sublimation. Bind it with a cotton thread, boil it in clear water until it is done and eat this. Tang Yao, Jing yan fang. 離魂異病。方見發明。 “Separated hun-soul,” a strange disease. For a recipe, see “Explication.” 夜多惡夢。方見發明。 Many malign dreams at night. For a recipe, see “Explication.” 男婦心痛。朱砂、明礬枯等分,爲末,沸湯調服。摘玄方。 Heart pain affecting males and females. [Grind] equal amounts of cinnabar and prepared alum to a powder, and [let the patient] ingest it mixed with boiled water. Zhai xuan fang. 心腹宿癥及卒得癥。朱砂研細,搜飯,以雄鷄一隻,餓二日,以飯飼之, 收糞曝燥爲末,温酒服方寸匕,日三服。服盡更作,愈乃止。外臺秘要。 Abiding concretion-illness and acute concretion-illness affecting the central and abdominal region. Grind cinnabar to a fine [powder], search for cooked rice and feed with it a rooster that has been left hungry for two days. Collect its excrements, dry them in the sun and grind them to a powder. Ingest with warm wine the amount held by a square cun spoon. To be ingested three times a day. Once the entire dose is used up, prepare it again. Stop [the treatment when the disease is] cured. Wai tai mi yao. 霍亂轉筋,身冷,心下微温者。朱砂研二兩,蠟三兩和丸,着火籠中熏 之,周圍厚覆,勿令烟洩,兼牀下着火,令腹微煖,良久當汗出而甦。外 臺秘要。 Cholera with twisted sinews, a cold body, and a slight sensation of warmth below the heart. Grind two liang of cinnabar [to a powder] and mix it with three liang of beeswax to prepare pills. Place them into a box over a fire to steam the [patient with the fumes]. Cover him thickly on all sides lest any fumes are lost. Also, light a fire [under the patient’s] bed to let him feel slightly warm in his abdomen. After a long time he will sweat and rise again. Wai tai mi yao. 辟瘴正陽。丹砂三兩,水飛。每服半錢,温蜜湯下。聖濟録。 To ward off miasma and correct the yang [qi]. Process three liang of cinnabar with aqueous sublimation and each time ingest half a qian, to be sent down with warm honey decoction. Sheng ji lu.

418

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

傷寒發汗。外臺秘要治傷寒時氣温疫,頭痛壯熱脉盛,始得一二日者,取 真丹一兩,水一斗,煮一升,頓服,覆被取汗。忌生血物。 Harm caused by cold, with sweating. The Wai tai mi yao [suggests to] cure harm caused by cold and warmth epidemics caused by seasonal qi, headache, strong heat and full vessels, when this has just begun for one or two days, as follows. Boil one liang of genuine cinnabar in one dou of water down to one sheng, and [let the patient] ingest this at once. He is to be covered to induce sweating. [During the therapy, the consumption of ] raw and bleeding items is forbidden. 肘後:用真丹末酒調,遍身塗之,向火坐,得汗愈。 The Zhou hou [recommends to] mix cinnabar powder with wine and apply this to the [patient’s] entire body. Then he is to sit facing a fire. Once he sweats he will be cured. 辟禳温疫。上品朱砂一兩,細研,蜜和丸麻子大,常以太歲日平旦,一家 大小勿食諸物,向東各吞三七丸,勿令近齒,永無温疫。外臺。 To ward off and avert warmth epidemics. Grind one liang of best quality cinnabar to a fine [powder] and mix it with honey to prepare pills the size of hemp seeds. Each year in the early morning of a day [associated with the star/spirit] tai sui 太歲, the entire family, old and young, must not eat anything. Each [member] is to face East and swallow three times seven pills that must not touch the teeth. They will never be affected by a warmth epidemic. Wai tai. 諸般吐血。朱砂、蛤粉等分,爲末,酒服二錢。 All types of blood vomiting. [Grind] equal amounts of cinnabar and clamshell powder to a powder and ingest with wine two qian. 又方:丹砂半兩,金薄四片,蚯蚓三條,同研,丸小豆大。每冷酒下二 丸。聖濟録。 Another recipe: Grind together half a liang of cinnabar, four thin gold foils and three earthworms [to a powder] to prepare pills the size of small beans. Each time send down with cold wine two pills. Sheng ji lu. 妊婦胎動。朱砂末一錢,和鷄子白三枚,攪匀頓服。胎死即出,未死即 安。普濟方。 A pregnant woman with a fetal movement [threatening miscarriage]. Evenly mix one qian of cinnabar powder with the egg white of three chicken eggs and [have the woman] ingest this as one dose. If the fetus has died, it will be released. If it has not yet died, it will be pacified. Pu ji fang.

Chapter 9

419

子死腹中不出。朱砂一兩,水煮數沸,爲末。酒服立出。十全博救方。 A dead fetus is not released from the abdomen. Boil one liang of cinnabar in water several times to bubbling and [grind it to a] powder. [Have the woman] ingest this and [the dead fetus] will be released immediately. Shi quan bo jiu fang. 目生障瞖。生辰砂一塊,日日擦之,自退。王居雲病此,用之如故。普濟 方。 Screens and shades developing on the eyes, Every day rub the [eyes] with a lump of unprocessed cinnabar, and they will recede. When Wang Juyun was affected by this disease, he applied this [therapy] and returned to a condition as before. Pu ji fang. 目膜息肉。丹砂一兩,五月五日研匀,銅器中以水漿一盞,臘水一盞,浸 七日,暴乾,銅刀刮下,再研瓶收。每點少許眦上。聖濟録。 Eye membrane and tumorous flesh growth. On the fifth day of the fifth month grind one liang of cinnabar to an even [powder]. Give it into a copper vessel with one bowl of watery starch and one bowl of water collected in the 12th month. Let [the cinnabar] soak in there for seven days and then dry it in the sun. Scrape [the cinnabar] with a copper knife off [the copper vessel], grind it again and store it in a bottle. Each time drip a small amount on the [affected] canthi. Sheng ji lu. 目生弩肉及珠管。真丹、貝母等分,爲末,點注,日三四度。肘後方。 Tumorous flesh-growth and a tube of pearls391 developing in the eyes. [Grind] equal amounts of genuine cinnabar and fritillaria [root] to a powder and drip this [into the affected eyes], up to three or four times a day. Zhou hou fang. 面上皯𪒟。鷄子一枚去黄,朱砂末一兩,入鷄子内封固,入白伏雌下,抱 至雛出,取塗面即去。不過五度,面白如玉。此乃陳朝張貴妃常用方,出 西王母枕中方。外臺秘要。 Dermal dark speckles on the face. Remove the yolk from a chicken egg, fill it with one liang of cinnabar and seal it tightly. Then let a white hen sit on it together with other eggs until they are hatched. Remove [the contents of the egg], apply them to [the patient’s] face and [the speckles] will disappear. After no more than five applications the face will be as white as jade. This is a recipe regularly used by the imperial concubine Zhang of the Chen dynasty. It originates in the Xu wang mu zhen zhong fang. Wai tai mi yao.

391 Zhu guan 珠管, “pearls in a tube,” a tumor-illness on the eye, with a crystal clear color reminiscent of pearls in a tube. BCGM Dict I, 691.

420

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

沙蜂叮螫。朱砂末,水塗之。摘玄方。 Sand wasp/bee sting. [Grind] cinnabar to a powder, [mix it with] water and apply this [to the affected region]. Zhai xuan fang. 木蛭瘡毒。南方多雨,有物曰木蛭,大類鼻涕,生於古木之上,聞人氣則 閃閃而動。人過其下,墮人體間,即立成瘡,久則遍體。惟以朱砂、麝香 塗之,即愈。張杲醫説。 Sores with poison caused by a wood leech. There is much rain in the South, and there are items called “wood leeches.” They roughly belong to the group of nasal mucus, and they grow on old trees. When they smell the qi of a human they sparkle and move. When that person passes by below them, they fall on his body and he will develop sores immediately. After a long time, they will have spread all over his body. This can be cured only by applying cinnabar und musk [to the affected region]. Zhang Gao, Yi shuo. 産後舌出不收。丹砂傅之,暗擲盆盎作墮地聲驚之,即自收。集簡。 When following delivery the tongue, that is stretched out, will not return [into the woman’s mouth again]. Apply cinnabar to it and secretly throw a basin on the ground to cause noise that will frighten [the patient]. [The tongue] will be drawn in again as a result. Ji jian. 09-02 水銀本經中品 Shui yin, FE Ben jing, middle rank. Mercury. 【釋名】汞别録、澒汞同、靈液綱目、姹女藥性。【時珍曰】其狀如水似 銀,故名水銀。澒者,流動貌。方術家以水銀和牛、羊、豕三脂杵成膏, 以通草爲炷,照於有金寶處,即知金銀銅鐵鈆、玉龜蛇妖怪,故謂之靈 液。【頌曰】廣雅:水銀謂之澒,丹竈家名汞,其字亦通用耳。 Explanation of Names. Gong 汞, Bie lu, identical to hong gong 澒汞 and ling ye 靈 液, “miraculous liquid,” Gang mu. Cha nü 姹女, “beautiful maiden,” Yao xing. [Li] Shizhen: It is shaped like water, shui 水, resembling silver, yin 銀. Hence its name “water and silver,” shui yin 水銀. Hong 澒 is its “manner of being on the move.” The recipe experts pestle mercury [in a mortar] with the three types of fat of oxen, sheep and pigs to a paste and use it with tetrapanax pith to form candles serving them to illuminate places where gold and treasures lie hidden. This helps them to know the whereabouts of gold, silver, copper, iron and lead, and of jade, tortoises, snakes and goblins, and hence [mercury] is called ling ye 靈液, “miraculous liquid.” [Su] Song:

Chapter 9

421

The Guang ya has: “Mercury is called hong 澒.” The experts operating elixir furnaces call it gong 汞. These characters are used interchangeably. 【集解】【别録曰】水銀生符陵平土,出於丹砂。【弘景曰】今水銀有生 熟。此云生符陵平土者,是出朱砂腹中。亦有别出沙地者,青白色,最 勝。出於丹砂者,是今燒粗末朱砂所得,色小白濁,不及生者。甚能消化 金銀,使成泥,人以鍍物是也。燒時飛着釜上灰,名汞粉,俗呼爲水銀 灰,最能去蝨。【恭曰】水銀出於朱砂,皆因熱氣,未聞朱砂腹中自出之 者。火燒飛取,人皆解法。南人蒸取之,得水銀雖少,而朱砂不損,但色 少變黑爾。【頌曰】今出秦州、商州、道州、邵武軍,而秦州乃來自西羌 界。經云出於丹砂者,乃是山石中采粗次朱砂,作爐,置砂於中,下承以 水,上覆以盆,器外加火煅養,則烟飛於上,水銀溜於下,其色小白濁。 陶氏言别出沙地者青白色,今不聞有此。西羌人亦云如此燒取,但其山 中所生極多,至於一山自拆裂,人采得砂石,皆大塊如升斗,碎之乃可燒 煅,故西來水銀極多於南方者。又取草汞法:用細葉馬齒莧乾之,十斤得 水銀八兩或十兩。先以槐木槌之,向日東作架晒之,三二日即乾。如經年 久,燒存性,盛入瓦甕内,封口,埋土坑中四十九日,取出自成矣。【時 珍曰】汞出於砂爲真汞。雷斅言有草汞。陶弘景言有沙地汞。淮南子言弱 土之氣生白礜石,礜石生白澒。蘇頌言陶説者不聞有之。按陳霆墨談云: 拂林國當日没之處,地有水銀海,周圍四五十里。國人取之,近海十里 許,掘坑井數十,乃使健夫駿馬,皆貼金薄,行近海邊。日照金光晃耀, 則水銀滚沸,如潮而來,其勢若粘裹。其人即回馬疾馳,水銀隨趕。若行 緩,則人馬俱撲滅也。人馬行速,則水銀勢遠力微,遇坑塹而溜積於中。 然後取之,用香草同煎,則成花銀,此與中國所産不同。按此説似與陶氏 沙地所出相合,又與陳藏器言人服水銀病拘攣,但炙金物熨之,則水銀必 出蝕金之説相符。蓋外番多丹砂,其液自流爲水銀,不獨鍊砂取出,信 矣。胡演丹藥秘訣云:取砂汞法,用瓷瓶盛朱砂,不拘多少,以紙封口, 香湯煮一伏時,取入水火鼎内,炭塞口,鐵盤蓋定。鑿地一孔,放盌一個 盛水,連盤覆鼎於盌上,鹽泥固縫,周圍加火煅之,待冷取出,汞自流入 盌矣。邕州溪峒燒取極易,以百兩爲一銚,銚之制似豬脬,外糊厚紙數 重,貯之即不走漏。若撒失在地,但以川椒末或茶末收之。或以真金及鍮 石引之即上。【嘉謨曰】取去汞之砂殻,名天流,可點化。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Mercury grows in the flat land of Fu ling, it evolves from cinnabar. [Tao] Hongjing: Today, mercury is available unprocessed and processed. The [mercury] said here [in the Bie lu] to be present in Fu ling, it evolves from within the abdomen of cinnabar. There is also another [variation] originating in sandy ground. It is of a greenish-white color and is the absolutely best. That which originates in cinnabar is the [mercury] obtained by heating a crude cinnabar

422

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

powder. Its color is somewhat white and turbid; it is not as good as unprocessed [mercury]. It is best suited for dissolving and transforming gold and silver to a mud used by the people to plate items. During the heating, ashes flying to the top of the cauldron are called “mercury powder.” A popular name is “mercury ashes.” They are best suited to eliminate lice. [Su] Gong: Mercury originates in cinnabar, and this is always stimulated by heat qi. I have never heard that it is spontaneously released from the abdomen of cinnabar. To obtain it through a sublimation caused by heating [cinnabar] with fire, such a method is understood by everyone. The Southerners obtain it by steaming [cinnabar]. The mercury obtained this way is of small amounts, but the cinnabar is not affected negatively, except for a slight change of its color toward black. [Su] Song: Nowadays, [mercury] originates in Qin zhou, Shang zhou, Dao zhou and Shao wu jun. That from Qin zhou comes from the border region of Xi qiang. The [mercury] said by the Classic to originate in cinnabar [is obtained as follows]. First collect coarse cinnabar from within mountain rocks. Build a furnace and place the cinnabar into it, with water as a receptacle underneath. On top [of the furnace] place a basin turned upside down, and outside this implement light a fire to have it calcined. This will cause fumes to rise, while the mercury glides down. Its color is slightly white and turbid. Mr. Tao [Hongjing] speaks of a separate [variation of mercury of ] greenish-white color originating in sandy ground, but nowadays this has not been heard of. The Xi qiang people also state that they obtain [mercury] by heating it this way. But there is very much [cinnabar] in their mountains. When one of these mountains cracks by itself, the people go there to collect cinnabar rocks. These are always big pieces, like a sheng or dou measure. They break them to pieces that can then be heated and calcined. Hence mercury entering [China] comes mostly from the West rather than from the South. The method to obtain “herb mercury” is as follows. Dry purslane with fine leaves in the sun. Out of ten jin one can obtain eight liang or ten liang of mercury. First pound them with a sophora japonica wood mallet. Then dry them on a rack facing the sun. After three or two days they will be dry. If it is supposed to last for years, heat it with its nature retained, fill it into an earthenware jar, seal its opening and bury it in a soil pit for 49 days. When it is then removed, it will be ready [for use]. [Li] Shizhen: Mercury originating in cinnabar is genuine mercury. Lei Xiao speaks of an “herbal mercury.” Tao Hongjing speaks of a “sandy ground mercury.” The Huai nan zi says: “The qi of weak soil generate white arsenolite, and arsenolite generates white mercury.” Su Song says: “[I] never heard of what Tao [Hongjing] said.” According to Chen Ting’s Mo tan, “in the country of Fu ling is a location abundantly exposed to sunshine, with a sea of mercury on its land. Its circumference measures 40 to 50 li. When the people of that country remove [mercury from it], they go about 10 li

Chapter 9

423

near that sea and dig out tens of pits or wells. Then they let healthy men ride their horses, all of them plated with thin gold foils, close to the margin of the [mercury] sea. Illuminated by the sun, the gold shine is dazzling. As a result the mercury boils to bubbling and approaches [the horses and their riders] like a wave, as if it intended to glue and wrap them. The riders then quickly let their horses return and the mercury follows them. If they were to move slowly, riders and horses would be extinguished. When riders and horses move quickly, the force of the mercury decreases the further it has moved away [from the sea]. Eventually it comes across the pits and moats and glides down into them to collect there. Then [the people] remove it and simmer it together with fragrant herbs to generate ‘flower silver’. This is different from the [mercury] produced in China.” This saying seems to agree with what Mr. Tao [Hongjing] says about [mercury] originating in a sandy ground. Also, it agrees with Chen Cangqi’s statement: “When humans ingest mercury and they suffer from cramps and contraction, the only way [to cure them] is to roast some gold item and press it hot [on the affected region]. This will cause the mercury to come out and erode the gold.” The fact is, in the outer foreign regions there is much cinnabar and it flows naturally and turns into mercury. [Mercury] is not obtained solely by a refinement of cinnabar with heat. This is true. Hu Yan in his Dan yao mi jue states: “The method to obtain mercury out of cinnabar is as follows. Fill a porcelain bottle with any amount of cinnabar and closely seal its opening with paper. Then boil it in a decoction of aromatic [herbs] for one day and one night, remove [the cinnabar from the bottle] and give it into a cauldron of [two compartments, one for] water [above] and [one for] fire [below]. Stuff the opening [of the cauldron] with charcoal and firmly cover it with an iron plate. Dig a hole in the ground and place a bowl filled with water in it, place the cauldron with its iron plate cover on top of the bowl [with the water] and tightly close the seams with salt mud. Then calcine it on all four sides with fire, and remove [the cauldron] after it has cooled down again. The mercury will have flowed into the bowl by itself. The removal with heat [of mercury] from the region of mountain streams and caves of Yong zhou is very easy. A kettle is filled with 100 liang, and the kettle is designed in the shape of a pig bladder. It is enclosed by pasting several layers of thick paper around it lest any [of its contents] leak during storage. If any [mercury] is spilled on the ground, it can only be collected with Sichuan pepper powder or tea leaves powder. Another method is to attract and raise it with genuine gold and arsenolite.” [Chen] Jiamo: “Cinnabar husks” remaining after mercury is removed are called “heaven’s flow.” It can serve to prepare [elixirs] for transformations [to hermits/immortals]. 【修治】【斅曰】凡使勿用草汞,并舊朱漆中者,經别藥制過者,在尸中 過者,半生半死者。其朱砂中水銀色微紅,收得後用壺蘆貯之,免遺失。

424

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

若先以紫背天葵并夜交藤自然汁二味同煮一伏時,其毒自退。若修十兩, 二汁各七鎰。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Lei] Xiao: For all [medicinal] applications, do not resort to herbal mercury, and also [ avoid mercury stored] in old red lacquer [containers], [mercury] that already has been processed for medicinal usage, [mercury] that has been with a corpse, and [mercury] that is half alive and half dead. Mercury of a slightly red color, obtained out of cinnabar, is to be stored in a bottle gourd to avoid losses because of leakage. If it is first boiled for one day and one night with the natural juice of purple back malva [herb] and polygonum [root], its poison will have faded as a result. For processing ten liang seven yi of each of the two juices are required. 【氣味】辛,寒,有毒。【權曰】有大毒。【大明曰】無毒。【之才曰】 畏慈石、砒霜。【宗奭曰】水銀得鈆則凝,得硫則結,倂棗肉研則散。别 法煅爲膩粉、粉霜,唾研之死蝨。銅得之則明,灌尸中則後腐,以金銀銅 鐵置其上則浮,得紫河車則伏,得川椒則收。可以勾金,可爲涌泉匱,蓋 藉死水銀之氣也。【土宿真君曰】荷葉、松葉、松脂、穀精草、萱草、 金星草、瓦松、夏枯草、忍冬、莨菪子、雁來紅、馬蹄香、獨脚蓮、水慈 姑,皆能制汞。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, cold, poisonous. [Zhen] Quan: Very poisonous. Da Ming: Nonpoisonous. [Xu] Zhicai: [Ingested together,] it fears magnetite and arsenic. [Kou] Zongshi: When mercury is brought together with lead, it coagulates. When it is brought together with sulphur, it forms nodes. Ground together with date pulp, it turns into a powder. Other methods are to calcine it to generate calomel and sublimated, purified calomel. Ground together with human saliva it serves to kill lice. Brought together with copper it gains in brilliance. When it is poured into a corpse, decomposition will be delayed. Gold, silver, copper and iron placed on top of mercury will float on it [rather than sink down into it]. When brought together with a dried human placenta, its [poison] will be subdued. When brought together with Sichuan pepper, it will shrink. It can amalgamate with gold, and it can be used for “gushing spring encasements” [designed to store longevity elixirs], as this is to make use of the qi of dead mercury. Tu su zhen jun: Lotus leaves, pine leaves, pine resine, eriocaulum flower, daylilies, phymatopsis herb, orostachys herb, prunella [fruit spike], lonicera herb, henbane seed, amaranthus [herb], asarum leaf, dysosma [root] and duckweed – they all are able to check [the poison of ] mercury. 【主治】疥瘻,痂瘍白秃,殺皮膚中蝨,墮胎,除熱,殺金銀銅錫毒。鎔 化還復爲丹,久服神仙不死,本經。以傅男子陰,陰消無氣。别録。利水 道,去熱毒。藏器。主天行熱疾,除風,安神鎮心,治惡瘡瘑疥,殺蟲,

Chapter 9

425

催生,下死胎。大明。治小兒驚熱涎潮。宗奭。鎮墜痰逆,嘔吐反胃。時 珍。 Control. jie-illness392 and fistula, crust ulcers and white baldness. It kills lice in the skin, causes abortion, removes heat, kills the poison of gold, silver, copper and tin. When smelted and transformed, it returns to the state of cinnabar-elixir. Ingested over a long time it lets one become a divine hermit/immortal who will never die. Ben jing. Applied to the male yin [(i. e., genital) organ], this organ will vanish for lack of qi. Bie lu. It opens the passage through water paths, and it removes heat poison. [Chen] Cangqi. It controls epidemic heat illnesses, removes wind, pacifies the spirit and presses down [the qi of ] the heart. It serves to cure malign sores, lair-illness393 and jie-illness. It kills worms/bugs, speeds up delivery, and helps to discharge a dead fetus. Da Ming. It serves to cure children with fright heat and floods of saliva. [Kou] Zongshi. It presses down phlegm and [qi] counterflow, vomiting and a turned over stomach. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【弘景曰】還復爲丹,事出仙經。酒和日暴,服之長生。【權 曰】水銀有大毒,朱砂中液也。乃還丹之元母,神仙不死之藥,能伏鍊 五金爲泥。【抱朴子曰】丹砂燒之成水銀,積變又還成丹砂,其去凡草 木遠矣,故能令人長生。金汞在九竅,則死人爲之不朽,况服食乎? 【藏器曰】水銀入耳能食人腦至盡,入肉令百節攣縮,倒陰絶陽。人患 瘡疥,多以水銀塗之。性滑重,直入肉,宜謹之。頭瘡切不可用,恐入 經絡,必緩筋骨,百藥不治也。【宗奭曰】水銀入藥,雖各有法,極須 審謹,有毒故也。婦人多服絶娠。今有水銀燒成丹砂,醫人不曉誤用, 不可不謹。唐 韓愈云:太學士李干遇方士柳泌,能燒水銀爲不死藥, 以鈆滿一鼎,按中爲空,實以水銀,蓋封四際,燒爲丹砂。服之下血, 四年病益急,乃死。余不知服食説自何世起,殺人不可計,而世慕尚之 益至,此其惑也。在文書所記、耳聞者不説,今直取目見,親與之游而 以藥敗者六七公,以爲世誡。工部尚書歸登,自説服水銀得病,有若燒 鐵杖自顛貫其下,摧而爲火,射竅節以出,狂痛呼號泣絶。其裀席得水 銀,發且止,唾血十數年以斃。殿中御史李虚中,疽發其背死。刑部尚 書李遜謂余曰:我爲藥誤。遂死。刑部侍郎李建,一旦無病死。工部尚 書孟簡,邀我於萬州,屏人曰:我得秘藥,不可獨不死,今遺子一器, 可用棗肉爲丸服之。别一年而病。後有人至,訊之,曰:前所服藥誕, 方且下之,下則平矣。病二歲卒。東川節度御史大夫盧坦,溺血,肉痛 不可忍,乞死。金吾將軍李道古,以柳泌得罪,食泌藥,五十死海上。 此皆可爲戒者也。蘄不死,乃速得死,謂之智,可不可也?五穀三牲, 392 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely identifiable skin ailment. BCGM Dict Vol. I, 249. 393 Guo [chuang] 瘑瘡, “lair-illness [sores],” a vaguely defined skin ailment associated with pain, itch and a gradual extension. BCGM Dict I, 203-204.

426

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

鹽醯果蔬,人所常御。人相厚勉,必曰强食。今惑者皆曰:五穀令人 夭,三牲皆殺人,當務减節。一筵之饌,禁忌十之二三。不信常道而務 鬼怪,臨死乃悔。後之好者又曰:彼死者皆不得其道也,我則不然。始 動,曰:藥動故病,病去藥行,乃不死矣。及且死又悔。嗚呼!可哀也 已。【時珍曰】水銀乃至陰之精,禀沉着之性。得凡火煅煉,則飛騰靈 變;得人氣熏蒸,則入骨鑽筋。絶陽蝕腦,陰毒之物無似之者。而大明 言其無毒,本經言其久服神仙,甄權言其還丹元母,抱朴子以爲長生之 藥。六朝以下貪生者服食,致成廢篤而喪厥軀,不知若干人矣。方士固 不足道,本草其可妄言哉!水銀但不可服食爾,而其治病之功,不可掩 也。同黑鈆結砂,則鎮墜痰涎;同硫黄結砂,則拯救危病。此乃應變之 兵,在用者能得肯綮而執其樞機焉爾。餘見鈆白霜及靈砂下。 Explication. [Tao] Hongjing: “[When smelted and transformed,] it returns to the state of cinnabar-elixir,” is based on the classics of hermits/immortals. Ingested mixed with wine and dried in the sun it extends one’s life. [Zhen] Quan: Mercury is very poisonous. It is a liquid inside of cinnabar. It is the primordial mother of a return to the state of cinnabar-elixir – a pharmaceutical substance [transforming one] to an hermit/immortal who will never die. It is able to make, through a refinement with heat, the five metals succumb as a mud. Baopu zi: When cinnabar is heated it becomes mercury. Through combined changes it can be made to cinnabar again, and this distances it greatly from herbs and woods. Hence it is able to extend human life. Gold and mercury in the nine orifices of a dead person will prevent its decomposition. How much more is this true for [living persons] who ingest it for food?! [Chen] Cangqi: When mercury enters one’s ears it will eat away this person’s entire brain. When it enters his flesh it will let all his sinews contract and shrink. It turns the yin [qi] upside down and cuts off the flow of yang [qi]. When people suffer from sores and jie-illness, they often apply mercury [to the affected region]. Its nature is smooth and heavy and hence it moves straight into the flesh. It should be applied only with great care. It must not be used for treating sores on the head lest it enter the conduits and network [vessels] and inevitably relax sinews and bones – [problems] none of the hundreds of medications are able to cure. [Kou] Zongshi: When mercury is added to medication, this is always based on some well-defined method. But utmost circumspection is required nevertheless because of its poison. When women ingest much of it, it will interrupt their [ability to become] pregnant. When nowadays mercury is heated to generate cinnabar, physicians who are not entirely familiar with it may make mistakes in its [therapeutic] application. One must be very careful. Han Yu of the Tang dynasty states: “Li Gan, a scholar at the Imperial Academy, met with Liu Mi, an expert of [longevity] recipes. He [claimed to be] able to heat mercury and prepare a pharmaceutical substance for eternal life.

Chapter 9

427

He filled a cauldron with lead. left an empty space in its center and filled it in with mercury. Then he sealed it on all four sides and heated it to prepare cinnabar. When [Li Gan] ingested it, he discharged blood. Within four years his disease turned ever more acute. Eventually he died. I have no idea where the talk about ingesting [cinnabar] for food may have come from. It has killed innumerable people, and yet more and more people like it. They are truly deluded. The records in books and what they hear about [such unfortunate outcomes] are not discussed. I have been a personal eyewitness. I have travelled to six or seven men who had been destroyed by such medication. They should serve as a warning for everyone. Gui Deng, Minister of Public Works, himself told of how he ingested mercury and fell ill. It was as if a hot iron cane had pierced him from the top of his head down. It broke in parts and caused a fire which eventually shot out of his orifices. He felt a maddening pain and screamed and was unable to weep. Mercury was found on his mat. Outbreaks [of his disease] alternated with periods of remission. For tens of years he spit saliva with blood until eventually he died. Li Xuzhong, Palace Censor, had an impediment-illness394 that broke out on his back, and he died. Li Xun, Minister of Justice, told me: ‘I mistakenly took [cinnabar] as a medication’. Then he died. Li Jian, Vice-Minister of Justice, died one morning without having been ill. Meng Jian, Minister of Commerce, invited me to Wan zhou and secretly informed me: ‘I have acquired a secret medication. It is impossible that I am the only one to gain eternal life. Here now I give you one package, and you may use date pulp to prepare pills and ingest them’. The next year he fell ill. Later someone came and told me about this. He said: ‘The medication [you] ingested some time ago was illusionary. Here is a recipe to discharge it. Once it is discharged, health will be restored’. [Meng Jian] died two years after he had fallen ill. Lu Tan, military commissioner in Dong chuan, discharged blood with his urine, and suffered from unbearable pain in his flesh. Eventually he died. Li Daogu, General of Jin wu, was accused because of [his dealings] with Liu Mi. He ate a secret medication and died, aged 54, at sea. All these cases should serve as warnings. [A saying is:] ‘When someone shielded from death soon dies, this is called wit’! Is this possible? The five types of grain and the three types of domestic animals, salt and vinegar, fruits and vegetables, they keep humans going. Nowadays, there are those who are misled, and they say: The five types of grain let humans die young. The three types of domestic animals kill humans. Their intake must be decreased. This way from an ordinary banquet, two or three elements out of ten are strictly forbidden. [Such persons] do not believe in the eternal WAY, and rather are engaged in demonic oddities. Only when they are close to dying, 394 Dian 顛, “peak[-illness],” also 癲, vaguely defined mental derangement. BCGM Dict I, 124.

428

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

they regret their doings. Fans [of such doings] surviving them say: ‘That they died is simply because they did not follow the right WAY. I am different’. When [the elixir] causes first reactions they say: ‘This reaction is a medicinal effect on my diseases. Once the diseases are eliminated, and the medication works, I will not have to die’. Only when they are about to die, they regret. Alas! This is truly saddening!” [Li] Shizhen: Mercury is the essence of utmost yin; it is endowed with a nature of sinking and adhering. When it is exposed to a fire for calcination and refinement, it flies upward and undergoes miraculous changes. When it is exposed to the steaming qi of humans, it enters their bones and pierces through their sinews. It cuts off the flow of yang [qi] and erodes the brain. Among all the items with yin poison, there is nothing that comes close to it. Still, Da Ming says it is nonpoisonous. The Ben jing says ingesting it for a long time lets one become a divine immortal. Zhen Quan says it is the primordial mother of a return to the cinnabar-elixir. And the Baopu zi identifies it as a medication to extend life. Those who since the six dynasties have been hungry for life and have ingested [such elixirs] for food, who were disabled as a result and eventually died, no one knows how many people these were. Of course, the experts of [immortality] recipes lack knowledge of the WAY, but how can it be that ben cao works include such absurd sayings! Mercury cannot be ingested for food, but its therapeutic effects must not be hidden. Cinnabar brought together with black lead and congealed to sand presses down phlegm and saliva. Cinnabar brought together with sulphur and congealed to sand offers emergency rescue from serious diseases. These are soldiers flexibly responding to changing requirements. When using them it is essential to get to the heart of the matter and to grasp the key to the problem at hand. For further details, see under lead acetate (08-11) and “miraculous sand” (09-06).

【附方】舊五,新二十四。 Added Recipes. Five of old. 24 newly [recorded] 初生不乳,咽中有噤物如麻豆許。用水銀米粒大與之,下咽即愈。聖惠方。 A newborn child does not suck because its throat is blocked by some item of the size of hemp seeds. Feed [the child] with mercury the size of rice grains. When it has moved down the throat, this is the cure. Sheng hui fang. 小兒癇疾。能壓一切熱,水銀小豆許,安琖中,沉湯内煮一食頃與服。勿 仰兒頭,恐入腦也。聖濟方。

Chapter 9

429

Peak-illness395 of children. It can press down all types of heat. Place mercury, about as much as a small bean, into a cup, boil it with water for as long as it takes to have a meal and have [the child] ingest this. Do not let the child’s head lie back and look upward lest [the medication] enter its brain. Sheng ji fang. 急驚墜涎。水銀半兩,生南星一兩,麝香半分,爲末,入石腦油同搗,和 丸緑豆大。每服一丸,薄荷湯下。 Acute fright with profuse drooling. [Grind] half a liang of mercury, one liang of unprocessed arisaema root, and half a fen of musk to a powder and pound all this with naphta [to a paste]. Form this to pills the size of mung beans. Each time [let the patient] ingest one pill, to be sent down with mint decoction. 失心風疾。水銀一兩,藕節八個,研成砂子,丸如芡子大,每服二丸,磨 刀水下,一二服。經驗方。 Loss-of-heart wind396 illness. Grind one liang of mercury with eight lotus root segments to a sand and form pills the size of qian seeds. Each time [let the patient] ingest two pills, to be sent down with water used to sharpen knives. To be ingested once or twice. Jing yan fang. 精魅鬼病。水銀一兩,漿水一升,炭火煎减三分。取水銀一豆許,神符裹 吞之,晚又服,一二日止。廣濟方。 Spirit seduction-specter397 demon disease. Boil one liang of mercury with one sheng of fermented water of foxtail millet over a charcoal fire down to three parts [of ten]. Remove about a soybean size amount of the mercury, wrap it in an exorcistic talisman and swallow this. To be ingested again at night. After one or two days [the disease] will end. Guang ji fang. 反胃吐食,水不能停。黑鈆、水銀各一錢半,結砂,舶硫黄五錢,官桂一 錢,爲末,每服六錢,一半米湯,一半自然薑汁,調作一處服。聖濟録。 Turned over stomach with vomiting of food, and an unending [urge to drink] water. Let one and a half qian each of black lead and mercury conglomerate to a sand, and [grind it together with] five qian of sulphur imported from overseas and cassia bark to a powder. Each time ingest six qian. To be ingested with a mixture of one half of water in which rice was washed and one half of unprocessed ginger juice. Sheng ji lu. 395 Dian 顛, “peak[-illness],” also 癲, vaguely defined mental derangement. BCGM Dict I, 124. 396 Shi xin feng 失心風, “loss of heart wind,” refers to mental ailments that are also referred to as “peak-illness.” BCGM Dict I, 457. 397 Jing mei 精魅, “spirit seduction-specter,” a notion of demonic pathogenic agents. BCGM Dict I, 265.

430

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

消渴煩熱。水銀一兩,鈆一兩,結砂,皂莢一挺酥炙,麝香一錢,爲末。 每服半錢,白湯下。聖濟録。 Melting with thirst,398 unrest and heat. Let one liang of mercury and one liang of lead conglomerate to a sand, and [grind it together with] one stick of gleditsia [bark], roasted in vinegar, and one qian of musk to a powder. Each time ingest half a qian, to be sent down with clear, hot water. Sheng ji lu. 膽熱衄衊,血上妄行。水銀、朱砂、麝香等分,爲末,每服半錢,新汲水 下。宣明方。 Gallbladder heat and nosebleed, with blood wildly moving upward. [Grind] equal amounts of mercury, cinnabar and musk to a powder. Each time ingest half a qian, to be sent down with newly drawn water. Xuan ming fang. 血汗不止。方同上。 Unending blood sweat. Recipe identical to the one above. 妊婦胎動,母欲死,子尚在,以此下之。水銀、朱砂各半兩,研膏,以牛 膝半兩,水五大盞,煎汁,入蜜調服半匙。聖惠方。 Moving of a fetus in a pregnant woman, with the mother close to dying. If the child is still present, this will serve to bring it down. Grind half a liang each of mercury and cinnabar to a paste and boil it with half a liang of achyranthes [root] in five large cups of water to obtain a juice. Add honey and [let the patient] ingest as much of this mixture as fills half a spoon. Sheng hui fang. 婦人難産。水銀二兩,先煮後服,立出。梅師方。 Women with difficult birth. First boil two liang of mercury and then have [the women] ingest it. [The child] will be released immediately. Mei shi fang. 胎死腹中,其母欲死。水銀二兩吞之,立出。梅師方。 A fetus has died in the abdomen, and the mother is about to die. Have her swallow two liang of mercury, and the [dead fetus] will be ejected immediately. Mei shi fang. 婦人斷産。水銀以麻油煎一日,空心服棗大一丸,永斷,不損人。婦人良 方。 Sterilization of women. Boil mercury with sesame oil for one day and have [the woman] ingest, on an empty stomach, one pill the size of a Chinese date. She will never again become pregnant. [This method] is not harmful. Fu ren liang fang.

398 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567.

Chapter 9

431

解金銀毒。水銀一兩,服之即出。千金方。 To resolve the poison of gold and silver. Ingest one liang of mercury and [the poison] will be ejected immediately. Qian jin fang. 誤吞金銀及鐶子、釵子。以汞半兩吞之,再服即出。聖惠方。 If one has inadvertently swallowed gold, silver, a metal ring or a hairpin. [Let the patient] swallow half a liang of mercury. After ingesting it a second time, [the foreign object] will be ejected. Sheng hui fang. 百蟲入耳。水銀豆許,傾入耳中,以耳向下,擊銅物數聲即出。能食人 腦,非急切勿用。聖濟録。 Any one of the hundreds of bugs/worms has entered an ear. Pour mercury, roughly as much as the size of a soybean, into the [affected ear], then turn the ear to face downward, strike against a copper item several times to generate sounds, and [the worm/bug] will come out. [The mercury] is able to eat away one’s brain; if this is not an urgent case, it must not be applied. Sheng ji lu. 頭上生蝨。水銀和蠟燭油揩之,一夜皆死。摘玄方。 Lice on the head. Rub the [affected region] with a mixture of mercury and candle oil. Within one night all [the lice] will have died. Zhai xuan fang. 腋下胡臭。水銀、胡粉等分,以面脂和,頻摻之。千金方。 Barbarian stench under the armpits. Mix equal amounts of mercury and lead carbonate with facial crème and repeatedly apply this [to the armpits]. Qian jin fang. 少年面皰。水銀、胡粉等分,研,臘豬脂和,夜塗旦拭,勿見水,三度 瘥。肘後方。 Facial blisters affecting one in his youth. Grind equal amounts of mercury and lead carbonate and mix this with lard collected in the 12th month. Apply this overnight [to the affected region] and wipe it away in the morning. Do not use water. After three applications a cure will be achieved. Zhou hou fang. 老小口瘡。水銀一分,黄連六分,水二升,煮五合,含之,日十次。普濟 方。 Oral sores of old and young persons alike. Boil one fen of mercury and six fen of coptis [rhizome] in two sheng of water down to five ge and [let the patient] hold this in his mouth, ten times a day. Pu ji fang.

432

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

白癜風痒。水銀數拭之,即消。千金方。 White patches wind399 with itch. Rub [the affected region] with mercury several times. This will dissolve [the patches]. Qian jin fang. 蟲癬瘙痒。水銀、胡粉等分,研傅。又水銀、蕪荑,和酥傅之。外臺秘要。 Bug xuan-illness400 with itch. Grind equal amounts of mercury and lead acetate [to a paste] and apply [this to the affected region]. Alternatively, mix mercury and elm seeds with butter and apply this [to the affected region]. Wai tai mi yao. 痔蟲作痒。水銀、棗膏各二兩同研,綿裹納下部,明日蟲出。梅師方。 Itch caused by piles with worms/bugs. Grind two liang each of mercury and date paste, wrap this in silk floss and insert it into the [patient’s] bottom part. The worms/ bugs will come out the next day. Mei shi fang. 惡肉毒瘡。一女年十四,腕軟處生物如黄豆大,半在肉中,紅紫色,痛 甚,諸藥不效。一方士以水銀四兩,白紙二張揉熟,蘸銀擦之,三日自落 而愈。李樓怪證方。 Sores with malign flesh poison. A girl of 14 years grew at a soft location of her wrist something as big as a soybean. One half was in her flesh, and it was of a red-purple color. It was very painful and all types of medication remained without effect. One specialist in [longevity] recipes took four liang of mercury. He rubbed two sheets of paper against each other until they had softened, dipped them into the mercury and wiped [the affected region]. After three days [the flesh growth] fell off as a result and [the girl] was cured. Li Lou, Gui zheng fang. 一切惡瘡。水銀、黄連、胡粉熬黄,各一兩,研匀傅之,乾則以唾調。肘 後方。 All types of malign sores. Grind one liang each of mercury, coptis [rhizome], and lead acetate, simmered to a yellow paste, to an even mixture and apply this [to the affected region]. Once it has dried, add human saliva [to moisten it again]. Zhou hou fang. 楊梅毒瘡。水銀、黑鈆各一錢結砂,黄丹一錢,乳香、没藥各五分,爲 末。以紙卷作小撚,染油點燈,日照瘡三次,七日見效。

399 Bai dian feng 白癜風, “white patches wind.” Vaguely defined skin ailment. BCGM Dict I, 46. 400 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591.

Chapter 9

433

Red bayberry poison sores.401 Have one qian each of mercury and black lead conglomerate to a sand and [grind it] with one qian of lead oxide, and five fen each of frankincense and myrrh to a powder. Then form with your fingers small paper rolls [to wrap the powder], dip them into oil and light them up to illuminate the sores three times a day. An effect will be obvious within seven days. 方廣附餘:用水銀、黑鈆結砂、銀朱各二錢,白花蛇一錢,爲末,作紙撚 七條,頭日用三條,自後日用一條,香油點燈于爐中,放被内熏之,勿透 風。頭上有瘡,連頭蓋之。 The Fu yu by Fang Guang: [Grind] two qian each of mercury and black lead, conglomerated to a sand, and vermilion (09-05) with one qian of little silver-banded krait to a powder and wrap it in seven paper rolls. On the first day use three rolls, on subsequent days one roll. Dip them in sesame oil and light them in a stove. Cover [the stove and the patient] and expose him to the fumes. He must not be exposed to wind. If the sores are on the head, cover also the head. 一方:水銀一錢二分,黑鈆、白錫各八分,共結砂,黄丹四分,朱砂六 分,爲末,分作十二紙撚,以香油浸燈盞内,點於小桶中。以被圍病人坐 之,以鼻細細吸烟,三日後口出惡物爲效。 Another recipe. Let one qian and two fen of mercury and eight fen each of black lead and white tin conglomerate to a sand, and [grind] it together with four fen of lead oxide and six fen of cinnabar to a powder. Divide it into twelve portions to be wrapped in paper rolls, dip them in sesame oil and light them in a small tub. Let the patient sit on this tub, covered on all sides to carefully inhale the fumes with his nose. After three days, he will release from his mouth some malign item, and this is [evidence of ] the effect. 痘後生瞖。水銀一錢,虢丹五錢,研作六丸,坩鍋糊定,火煅一日取出, 薄綿裹之。左瞖塞右耳,右瞖塞左耳,自然墜下。危氏方。 A shade in the eye developing following a smallpox disease. Grind one qian of mercury with five qian of cinnabar and form six pills. Give them into a crucible and firmly [close it with a] paste. Calcine [the crucible] with fire for one day and then remove [the pills]. Wrap them in thin silk floss and stuff them into the right ear if the shade is in the left eye, and into the left ear if it is in the right eye. [The shade] will drop down as a result. Wei shi fang.

401 Yang mei chuang 楊梅毒瘡, “red bayberry [poison] sores,” most likely including cases of syphilis. BCGM Dict I, 293, 294.

434

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

09-03 水銀粉宋嘉祐 Shui yin fen, FE Song, Jia you. Mercury powder. Calomel. 【釋名】汞粉、輕粉拾遺、峭粉日華、膩粉。【時珍曰】輕言其質,峭言 其狀,膩言其性。昔蕭史與秦穆公鍊飛雲丹,第一轉乃輕粉,即此。 Explanation of Names. Gong fen 汞粉, “mercury powder;” qing fen 輕粉, “light powder.” Shi yi. Qiao fen 峭粉, “angular powder,” Ri hua. Ni fen 膩粉, “greasy powder.” [Li] Shizhen: Qing 輕, “light,” refers to its substance matter. Qiao 峭, “angular,” refers to its shape. Ni 膩, “greasy,” refers to its nature. In antiquity, Xiao Shi and Duke Mu of Qin prepared through a refinement with heat the “elixir of flying clouds.” A first transformation resulted in a “light powder,” the [calomel discussed] here. 【修治】【時珍曰】升鍊輕粉法:用水銀一兩,白礬二兩,食鹽一兩,同 研不見星,鋪于鐵器内,以小烏盆覆之。篩竈灰,鹽水和,封固盆口。 以炭打二炷香取開,則粉升於盆上矣。其白如雪,輕盈可愛。一兩汞,可 升粉八錢。又法:水銀一兩,皂礬七錢,白鹽五錢,同研,如上升鍊。又 法:先以皂礬四兩,鹽一兩,焰硝五錢,共炒黄爲麴。水銀一兩,又麴二 兩,白礬二錢,研匀,如上升鍊。海客論云:諸礬不與水銀相合,而緑礬 和鹽能制水銀成粉,何也?蓋水銀者金之魂魄,緑礬者鐵之精華,二氣同 根,是以暫制成粉。無鹽則色不白。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Li] Shizhen: The method to prepare calomel by means of rising and heat refinement. Grind one liang of mercury, two liang of unprocessed alum and one liang of table salt so that no [mercury] “stars” remain visible. Give this into an iron vessel and cover it with an overturned small, black basin. Now pass the ashes from a furnace through a sieve, mix them with brine and [use this paste to] tightly seal the opening of the basin. Heat [the iron vessel] on a charcoal fire as long as it takes for two incense sticks to burn down, and open [the basin] again. A powder will have risen to the basin. It is as white as snow, and lovably graceful. From one liang of mercury, eight qian of powder may rise. Another method. Grind one liang of mercury with seven qian of melanterite and five qian of white salt and conduct the same sublimation (lit.: “rising and heat refinement”) as outlined above. Another method. First fry four liang of melanterite, one liang of salt and five qian of nitrokalite together until a yellow yeast has formed. Then grind one liang of mercury, two liang of the yeast, and two qian of unprocessed alum to an even mixture and conduct the same sublimation (lit.: “rising and heat refinement”) as outlined above. The Hai ke lun states: “Fan 礬, alum, cannot be brought together with mercury to generate a composite. But green fan 礬, melanterite, together with salt can check

Chapter 9

435

mercury and generate a powder. Why is this? The fact is, mercury constitutes both the hun-soul and the po-soul of metal. Melanterite is the essence splendor of iron. The qi of the two have the same root. Hence [the former] quickly checks [mercury] and generates a powder. If no salt is added, the color will not be white.” 【氣味】辛,冷,無毒。【大明曰】畏慈石、石黄、忌一切血,本出于丹 砂故也。【時珍曰】温燥有毒,升也,浮也。黄連、土伏苓、陳醬、黑 鈆、鐵漿,可制其毒。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, cold, nonpoisonous. Da Ming: [Ingested together,] it fears magnetite and realgar. [During its application] all types of blood are prohibited because it originates in cinnabar. [Li] Shizhen: Warm, dry, poisonous. It rises and floats. Coptis [rhizome], glabrous greenbrier rhizome, long kept meat sauce, black lead and iron broth/suspension can check its poison. 【主治】通大腸,轉小兒疳并瘰癧,殺瘡疥癬蟲及鼻上酒皶,風瘡瘙痒。 藏器。治痰涎積滯,水腫鼓脹,毒瘡。時珍。 Control. It frees the passage through the large intestine. It serves to reverse gan-illness402 of children and scrofula. It kills worms/bugs associated with sores, jie-illness403 and xuan-illness,404 and wine sediments405 on the nose. [It serves to cure] wind sores406 with itch. [Chen] Cangqi. It serves to cure accumulations and stagnations of phlegm and saliva, water swelling with drum-like distension, and poison sores. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【宗奭曰】水銀粉下膈涎并小兒涎潮瘛瘲藥多用。然不可常服及 過多,多則損人。若兼驚則危,須審之。蓋驚爲心氣不足,不可下。下之 裏虚,驚氣入心不可治。其人本虚,更須禁此,慎之至也。【劉完素曰】 銀粉能傷牙齒。蓋上下齒齦屬手足陽明之經,毒氣感於腸胃,而精神氣血 水穀既不勝其毒,則毒即循經上行,而至齒齦嫩薄之分爲害也。【時珍 曰】水銀乃至陰毒物,因火煅丹砂而出,加以鹽、礬鍊而爲輕粉,加以硫 黄升而爲銀朱,輕飛靈變,化純陰爲燥烈。其性走而不守,善劫痰涎,消 402 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188. 403 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely defined skin ailment. BCGM Dict I, 249. 404 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591. 405 Jiu zha 酒皶, “wined sediments,” refers to a swollen, red nose with papules presumably caused by excessively drinking wine. BCGM Dict I, 275. 406 Feng chuang 風瘡, “wind sores,” are festering and aching or itching papules brought forth by wind evil, moisture and heat. BCGM Dict I, 160.

436

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

積滯。故水腫風痰、濕熱毒瘡被劫,涎從齒齦而出,邪鬱爲之暫開,而 疾因之亦愈。若服之過劑,或不得法,則毒氣被蒸,竄入經絡筋骨,莫之 能出。痰涎既去,血液耗亡,筋失所養,營衞不從。變爲筋攣骨痛,發爲 癰腫疳漏,或手足皸裂,蟲癬頑痺,經年累月,遂成廢痼,其害無窮。觀 丹客升鍊水銀、輕粉,鼎器稍失固濟,鐵石撼透,况人之筋骨皮肉乎?陳 文中言輕粉下痰而損心氣,小兒不可輕用,傷脾敗陽,必變他證,初生尤 宜慎之。而演山氏謂小兒在胎,受母飲食熱毒之氣,畜在胸膈,故生下個 個發驚,宜三日之内與黄連去熱,膩粉散毒,又與人參朱砂蜜湯,解清心 肺,積毒既化,兒可免此患。二説不同,各有所見。一謂無胎毒者,不可 輕服;一謂有胎毒者,宜預解之。用者宜審。 Explication. [Kou] Zongshi: Calomel is an often used medication to discharge saliva from the diaphragm and waves of saliva together with convulsions of children. However, it must not be ingested regularly or in excessive dosages. Too much is harmful to a person. If [a child] in addition suffers from fright, [a treatment with calomel] is risky. One must carefully consider it. The fact is, fright is an insufficiency of heart qi. They must not be discharged even further. If there is such a discharge, an inner depletion results. The fright qi will enter the heart and [the resulting disease] cannot be cured. For persons who have a depletion already, this [treatment with calomel] is even more forbidden. Extreme caution is required. Liu Wansu: Calomel can harm the teeth. The fact is, the upper and the lower teeth are associated with the hand and foot yang brilliance conduits. When poison qi has affected the intestines and the stomach, and if the essence spirit, qi and blood, and water and grain [of that person] are unable to overcome the poison, then the poison will follow these conduits and move upward. When it has reached the teeth this powder, tender and delicate as it is, will cause their destruction. [Li] Shizhen: Mercury is a poisonous item of extreme yin [quality]. It is a product of a calcination of cinnabar with fire. Through a heat refinement with salt and alum it turns into calomel. When sulphur is added and it is made to rise it becomes vermilion. It is light and flies and undergoes miraculous changes. It transforms [a substance of ] pure yin to a dry and violent [substance]. Its nature is to run and not to be stationary. It is good at eliminating phlegm and saliva, and at dissolving accumulations and stagnations. Hence it removes water swelling and wind phlegm, moisture with heat and malign sores. [It ends] saliva coming out of the teeth and gums, quickly opens thickets of evil [qi], and associated illnesses will be cured, too. If it is ingested in an overdose, or not according to the correct method, the poison qi will be steamed and scurries into the conduits and network [vessels], the sinews and the bones, from where they will never come out again. When phlegm and saliva are gone and the blood liquid is lost, the sinews lose their nourishment, and the camp and guardian qi no longer

Chapter 9

437

follow [their paths]. Changes to sinew contraction and aching bones ensue, and this leads to outbreaks of obstruction-illness407 swelling, gan-illness408 and leakage. In some cases [patients suffer from] chapped hands and feet, xuan-illness409 caused by bugs/worms, persistent blockage, continuing for years and months until eventually disablement and an obstinacy-illness410 result. The harm is infinite. It has been observed when specialists of preparing [longevity] elixirs apply a heat refinement with sublimation involving mercury and calomel, if the pots and vessels used are not tightly sealed, iron and stone [implements] will be moved and penetrated. How much more should this apply to sinews and bones, skin and flesh of humans? Chen Wenzhong says: “Calomel serves to discharge phlegm and it hurts the heart qi. It must not be used lightly to cure children. It harms the spleen and destroys yang [qi] and inevitably causes changes to further signs of illness. Newborns in particular require caution.” On the other hand, Mr. Yanshan says: “As long as a child is in the uterus it receives the qi of heat poison of beverages and food consumed by its mother. [These qi] accumulate in its chest and diaphragm region and this is why all [children] after birth develop fright. It is advisable within three days to give them coptis [rhizome] to eliminate the heat and calomel to disperse the poison, and also to give them a decoction of ginseng [root], cinnabar and honey to resolve [heat poison] and cool heart and lung. Poison accumulations will be transformed and the child will be spared such suffering.” These two statements differ; each of them is based on its own perspective. One says that if [a child] is not affected by fetal poison, [calomel] must not be ingested lightly. The other says that if [a child] is affected by fetal poison, it is advisable to prevent [later suffering and by means of calomel] resolve this [poison]. Those who apply [calomel] should carefully examine [each case individually].

407 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641. 408 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188. 409 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591. 410 For various kinds of gu 痼, “obstinacy-illness,” see BCGM Dict I, 194.

438

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 【附方】舊三,新三十二。 Added Recipes. Three of old. 32 newly [recorded]

小兒初生。浴湯中入鹽少許,拭乾,以膩粉少許摩其身,既不畏風,又散 諸氣。全幼心鑑。 Newborns. Bathe them in clear hot water with a little salt added, wipe them dry, and rub their body with a small amount of calomel. This will eliminate all fear of their being struck by wind, and also disperses all types of [fetal poison] qi. Quan you xin jian. 初生鎖肚。證由胎中熱毒,結於肛門。兒生之後,閉而不通三日者,急令 婦人咂兒前後心、手足心并臍七處四五次,以輕粉半錢,蜜少許,温水化 開,時時與少許,以通爲度。全幼心鑑。 Locked belly of newborns. This is a pathological sign of [children] being struck by heat poison while they are still in the uterus, with nodular [heat poison] conglomeration [blocking] the anus. When after a child was born [the anus remains] closed and no flow [of fecal matter] occurs for three days, quickly let the woman suck seven regions of the child, i.e., the frontal and back heart region, the soles of hands and feet and the navel, four to five times. Also, [the child] should repeatedly be fed with small amounts of a solution of half a qian of calomel and honey in warm water until [the anus] opens. Quan you xin jian. 小兒涎喘服藥不退者。用無雄鷄子一個取清,入輕粉抄十錢拌和,銀器 盛,置湯瓶上蒸熟。三歲兒盡食,當吐痰或泄而愈。氣實者乃可用。演山 活幼口議。 Saliva panting of children that cannot be ended by having them ingest medication. Remove from an unfertilized chicken egg the clear contents and mix them with ten qian of calomel. Fill this into a silver vessel, place it on a bottle filled with hot water and have it steamed until done. When a three years old child has eaten this entirely it will either vomit phlegm or have an outflow, and is then cured. This [treatment] can only be applied to [children] with qi repletion. Yanshan, Huo you kou yi. 幼兒哯乳不止。服此立效。膩粉一錢,鹽豉七粒,去皮研匀,丸麻子大, 每服三丸,藿香湯下。活幼口議。 Unending vomiting of their nursing mother’s milk by infants. To let them ingest this will have an immediate effect. Grind one qian of calomel and seven salted fermented beans, peeled, to an evenly [mixed pulp] and form pills the size of hemp seeds. Each time [let the child] ingest three pills, to be sent down with agastache twig and leaf decoction. Huo you kou yi.

Chapter 9

439

小兒喫泥及䑋肚。用膩粉一分,沙糖和丸麻子大,空心米飲下一丸,良久 泄出泥土,瘥。經驗方。 Children who eat soil and have a bloated belly. Mix one fen of calomel with sugar, form pills the size of hemp seeds and [have the child] send down one pill on an empty stomach with a rice beverage. After quite a long time the soil will be released with an outflow, and this is the cure. Jing yan fang. 大小便閉,脹悶欲死,二三日則殺人。膩粉一錢,生麻油一合,相和,空 心服。聖惠方。 Blocked major (defecation) and minor (urination) relief, with bloating and heart-pressure bringing one close to death. This will kill a person within two or three days. Mix one qian of calomel with one ge of fresh sesame oil and ingest this on an empty stomach. Sheng hui fang. 大便壅結。膩粉半錢,沙糖一彈丸,研,丸梧子大。每服五丸,臨卧温水 下。又方:膩粉二錢,黄丹一錢,爲末,每米飲服一錢。普濟方。 Blocked major (defecation) relief, with nodular conglomeration. Grind half a qian of calomel and a piece of sugar the size of a bullet, and form pills the size of wu seeds. Each time [let the patient] ingest five pills, to be sent down with warm water when going to bed. Another recipe: [Grind] two qian of calomel and one qian of lead oxide to a powder and each time ingest, with a rice beverage, one qian. Pu ji fang. 血痢腹痛。膩粉五錢,定粉三錢,同研,水浸蒸餅心少許,和丸緑豆大, 每服七丸或十丸,艾一枚,水一盞,煎湯下。秘寶方。 Bloody free-flux illness411 with abdominal pain. Grind five qian of calomel and three qian of lead carbonate together, mix this with a small amount of steamed cake centers soaked in water to pills the size of mung beans and each time [let the patient] ingest seven or ten pills, to be sent down with a decoction of one common mugwort [leaf ] in one small cup of water. Mi bao fang. 消中嗜食。多因外傷癉熱,内積憂思,啖食鹹物及麪,致脾胃乾燥,飲食 倍常,不生肌肉,大便反堅,小便無度。輕粉一錢爲末,薑汁拌匀,長流 水下,齒浮是效。後服猪肚丸補之。危氏得效方。 Melting center with an urge to eat. This is often caused by an external harm by heat resulting in a solitary [heat] illness,412 with an internal accumulation of grief and pondering. [Patients] crave for salty food and noodles until their spleen and 411 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 412 Dan 癉, “solitary [heat] illness,” identical with re 熱, “heat.” BCGM Dict I, 118.

440

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

stomach have dried up. They drink and eat much more than normal but do not generate muscles and flesh. Their major (defecation) relief hardens, and their small (urination) relief is unlimited. [Grind] one qian of calomel to a powder, mix it with ginger juice and send it down with water that has flowed a long distance. When [the patient’s] teeth lose their stability, the effect has set in. After this [let the patient] ingest pig belly pills for supplementation. Wei shi de xiao fang. 一切虚風。不二散:用膩粉一兩,湯煎五度如麻脚,慢火焙乾,麝香半 兩,細研。每服一字,温水調下。孫用和秘寶方。 All types of wind that have availed themselves of a depletion. The “powder of which no second exists.” One liang of calomel, resembling the [greasy] tea grounds [collected on the bottom of a tea cup after the tea], has been brewed five times, over a slow fire until it has dried up. Add half a liang of musk and grind this to a fine [powder]. Each time ingest one zi, to be sent down mixed with warm water. Sun Yonghe, Mi bao fang. 水氣腫滿。汞粉一錢,烏鷄子去黄,盛粉,蒸餅包,蒸熟取出,苦葶藶炒 一錢,同蒸餅杵丸緑豆大,每車前湯下三五丸,日三服,神效。醫壘元戎。 Water qi causing swelling and a sensation of fullness. Remove the yolk from an egg of a black chicken and fill it with one qian of calomel. Wrap it in a steamed cake and steam it until done. Then remove it, pound it with one qian of roasted bitter pepperweed seeds and steamed cakes [to a pulp] and form pills the size of mung beans. Each time send down with a plantago [herb] decoction three to five pills. To be ingested three times a day. Divinely effective. Yi lei yuan rong. 痘瘡生瞖。輕粉、黄丹等分,爲末,左目患吹右耳,右目吹左耳,即退。 王氏痘疹方。 Smallpox sores generating shades in the eyes. [Grind] equal amounts of calomel and lead oxide to a powder. If the left is affected, blow it into the right ear. If the right eye is affected, blow it into the left ear. This will cause [the shades] to recede. Wang shi, Dou zhen fang. 女人面脂。太真紅玉膏:輕粉、滑石、杏仁去皮,等分,爲末,蒸過,入 腦、麝少許,以鷄子清調匀,洗面畢傅之,旬日後,色如紅玉。閨閣事宜。 Facial crème for women. The “red jade ointment of highest sincerety.” [Grind] equal amounts of calomel, talc and peeled apricot seeds to a powder, steam it, add small amounts of borneol and musk and mix this evenly with the clear contents of a chicken egg. Wash the face and apply this. After ten days, [the face] will have assumed the color of red jade. Gui ge shi yi.

Chapter 9

441

抓破面皮。生薑自然汁調輕粉末搽之,更無痕迹。救急方。 Scratched facial skin. Apply a mixture of an unprocessed juice of fresh ginger with calomel [to the affected region] and there will be no scars left. Jiu ji fang. 牙齒疼痛。輕粉一錢,大蒜一瓣,杵餅,安膈骨前陷中。先以銅錢隔了, 用蜆殻蓋定扎住,一宿愈。左疼安右,右疼安左。摘玄方。 Toothache. Pound one qian of calomel with one piece of garlic to a [paste], form a flat, round cake, place this into the depression in front of the diaphragm bone and cover it with a copper coin. This in turn is covered with a corbicula shell, that is fastened [lest it move away]. A cure will be achieved within one night. If the [tooth] ache is on the left, place [the cake] on the right side. If the [tooth]ache is on the right, place it on the left side. Zhai xuan fang. 風蟲牙疳,膿血有蟲。輕粉一錢,黄連一兩,爲末摻之。普濟方。 Dental gan-illness413 caused by wind and worms/bugs. With pus and blood including worms/bugs. [Grind] one qian of calomel and one liang of coptis [rhizome] to a powder and apply this [to the affected region]. Pu ji fang. 小兒耳爛。輕粉、棗子灰等分,研,油調傅。摘玄方。 Festering ears of children. Grind equal amounts of calomel and ashes of dates [to a powder] and apply it, mixed with oil, [to the affected region] Zhai xuan fang. 底耳腫痛,汁水不絶。輕粉一錢,麝香一分,爲末摻之。簡便方。 Painful swelling at the bottom of an ear, with a juice and watery liquid released continuously. [Grind] one qian of calomel and one fen of musk to a powder and apply this [to the affected region]. Jian bian fang. 爛弦風眼。膩粉末,口津和,點大眦,日二三次。聖惠方。 Wind eyes414 with festering [eyelid] rims. Mix calomel powder with human saliva and drip this into the outer canthus [of the affected eyes]. Two to three times a day. Sheng hui fang. 小兒頭瘡。葱汁調膩粉塗之。又方:鷄子黄炒出油,入麻油及膩粉末,傅 之。集簡方。

413 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188. 414 Feng yan 風眼, “wind eyes,” are red and festering canthi and eyelids brought about by harm caused to the eyes by heat. BCGM Dict I, 171.

442

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Sores on the head of children. Mix onion juice with calomel and apply this [to the affected region]. Another recipe. Roast egg yolk until it releases an oil. Add sesame oil and calomel powder, and apply this [to the affected region]. Ji jian fang. 小兒生癬。豬脂和輕粉抹之。直指方。 Xuan-illness415 of children. Apply a mixture of lard and calomel [to the affected region]. Zhi zhi fang. 牛皮惡癬。五更食炙牛肉一片,少刻以輕粉半錢,温酒調下。直指方。 Ox-hide xuan-illness. [In the early morning] at the fifth night watch eat a piece of roasted beef, and a little while later [ingest] half a qian of calomel, to be washed down mixed with warm wine. Zhi zhi fang. 楊梅瘡癬。嶺南衛生方用汞粉、大風子肉等分,爲末,塗之即愈。 Red bayberry sores416 and xuan-illness. The Ling nan wei sheng fang [recommends to grind] equal amounts of calomel and chaulmoogra fruit meat to a powder and apply this [to the affected region]. This will result in a cure. 醫方摘玄用輕粉二錢,杏仁四十二個去皮,洗瘡拭乾搽之,不過三次即 愈。乾則以鵝膽汁調。 The Yi fang zhai xuan [recommends to grind] two qian of calomel and 42 peeled apricot seeds and apply this to the sores after washing them and wiping them dry. After no more than three applications a cure will be achieved. When [the medication] has dried up, mix it with goose bile. 楊梅毒瘡。醫學統旨用輕粉一錢,雄黄、丹砂各二錢半,槐花炒、龜版炙 各一兩,爲末,糊丸梧子大,每服一錢,冷茶下,日二服,七日愈。 Red bayberry poison sores. The Yi xue tong zhi [recommends to grind] one qian of calomel, two and a half qian each of realgar and cinnabar, as well as one liang each of fried sophora japonica flower and roasted tortoise plastrons to a powder to form with dough pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest one qian, to be sent down with cold tea. To be ingested twice a day. A cure will be achieved within seven days. 楊誠經驗方用輕粉、胡桃仁、槐花炒研、紅棗肉各二錢,搗丸,分作三 服。初日鷄湯下,二日酒下,三日茶下,三日服盡,五日瘡乾,七日痂落。 Yang Cheng in his Jing yan fang [recommends to] pound two qian each of calomel, walnut kernels, sophora japonica flowers, roasted and ground, and red date meat [to 415 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591. 416 Yang mei chuang 楊梅毒瘡, “red bayberry [poison] sores,” most likely including cases of syphilis. BCGM Dict I, 293, 294.

Chapter 9

443

a pulp] and form pills, to be ingested in three portions. On the first day, they are to be ingested with chicken broth. On the second day, they are to be ingested with wine. On the third day, they are to be ingested with tea. On the third day, all [pills] are to be used up. On the fifth day, the sores will have dried. On the seventh day, the scabs will fall off. 一方:用豶豬腎一對,去膜批開,各摻輕粉一錢扎定,麻油二兩煠熟,頓 食,不破口腫牙。仍服金銀花藥。 Another recipe. Take a pair of kidneys of a castrated pig, fill each of them with one qian of calomel, bind them firmly, fry them in two liang of sesame oil and [let the patient] eat this all at once. This will not break open the mouth and cause swelling at the teeth. In addition [let the patient] ingest lonicera flower medication. 一方:用大鷄卵一個,去黄留白,入輕粉一錢攪匀,紙糊,飯上蒸熟食。 Another recipe. Remove out of a big chicken egg the yolk and retain the eggwhite. Add one qian of calomel and stir this to an even mixture. Paste paper around [to enclose it], steam it above cooked rice until done and eat this. 下疳陰瘡。輕粉末乾摻之,即結黶而愈。萬表積善堂方。 Gan-illness417 affecting the lower body parts and sores in the yin [(i. e., genital) region]. Apply dry calomel powder to the [affected region]. This will cause a formation of crusts, and this is the cure. Wan biao, Ji shan tang fang. 臁瘡不合。以虀汁温洗拭乾,用葱汁調輕粉傅之。 Shank sores that fail to close. Wash them with warm juice of minced pickles and wipe them dry again. Then apply a mixture of onion juice and calomel. 一方:輕粉五分,黄蠟一兩,以粉摻紙上,以蠟鋪之,縛在瘡上,黄水出 即愈。永類方。 Another recipe. [Required are] five fen of calomel and one liang of yellow beeswax. Spread the calomel on paper, cover it with beeswax and fasten [the paper] to the sores. Once a yellow watery liquid is released, a healing is achieved. Yong lei fang. 癰疽惡瘡,楊梅諸瘡。水銀一兩,朱砂、雄黄各二錢半,白礬、緑礬各二 兩半,研匀罐盛,燈盞蓋定,鹽泥固濟,文武火鍊升,罐口掃收。每以三 錢,入乳香、没藥各五分,洒太乙膏上貼之,絶效。名曰五寶霜。

417 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188.

444

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Malign sores associated with obstruction-illness and impediment-illness.418 All types of red bayberry sores.419 Grind one liang of mercury, two and a half qian each of cinnabar and realgar, and two and a half liang each of white alum and melanterite evenly and fill this into a jar. Cover [the jar] with a lamp bowl and seal this firmly with salt mud. Heat [the jar] with a slow fire first and then with a wild fire for a sublimation (lit.: heat refinement and rising). Brush [the resulting powder] from the opening of the jar and store it. For each application take three qian, add five fen each of frankincense and myrrh, give it on the “Tai yi ointment with wine”420 and apply [this to the affected region]. Definitely effective. It is called “frost of five gems.” 09-04 粉霜綱目 Fen shuang, FE Gang mu. Powder Frost, Sublimed, purified Calomel. 【釋名】水銀霜、白雪綱目、白靈砂。【時珍曰】以汞粉轉升成霜,故曰 粉霜。抱朴子云:白雪,粉霜也。以海鹵爲匱,蓋以土鼎,勿洩精華,七 日乃成。要足陽氣,不爲陰侵。惟薑、藕、地丁、河車可以煉之點化。在 仙爲玄壺,在人爲精原,在丹爲木精,在造化爲白雪,在天爲甘露。 Explanation of Names. Shui yin shuang 水銀霜, “mercury frost,” bai xue 白雪, “white snow,” Gang mu. Bai ling sha 白靈砂, “white miraculous sand.” [Li] Shizhen: This is a frost generated by a transformation, by means of sublimation, of calomel, gong fen 汞粉, “mercury powder.” Hence the name fen shuang 粉霜, “[mercury] powder frost.” The Baopu zi states: “‘White snow’ is [mercury] powder frost. Place it with sea salt into a box, and closely cover it with an earthenware container lest its essence splendor is released. After seven days [the product] is generated. It is important that it receives sufficient yang qi to guard it against being soaked with yin [qi]. Further heat refinement to achieve transformations is possible only with ginger, lotus rhizome, viola herb and root and human placenta. Pertaining to hermits/immortals [purified, sublimated calomel] is the ‘dark pot’. Pertaining to humans, it

418 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642. 419 Yang mei chuang 楊梅毒瘡, “red bayberry [poison] sores,” most likely including cases of syphilis. BCGM Dict I, 293, 294. 420 The ingredients of this ointment include: scrophularia [root], angelica [root], scraped bark of cassia, paeonie [root], rhubarb [root], unprocessed Chinese fox glove rhizome, sesame oil and lead oxide.

Chapter 9

445

is the ‘source of essence’. Pertaining to cinnabar-elixirs it is the ‘essence of wood’. Pertaining to creation, it is ‘white snow’. Pertaining to heaven, it is ‘sweet dew’.” 【修治】【時珍曰】升鍊法:用真汞粉一兩,入瓦罐内令匀。以燈盞仰蓋 罐口,鹽泥塗縫。先以小炭火鋪罐底四圍,以水濕紙,不住手在燈盞内 擦,勿令間斷。逐漸加火至罐頸,住火,冷定取出,即成霜如白蠟。按外 臺秘要載古方崔氏造水銀霜法云:用水銀十兩,石硫黄十兩,各以一鐺 熬之。良久銀熱黄消,急傾爲一鐺,少緩即不相入,仍急攪之。良久硫 成灰,銀不見,乃下伏龍肝末十兩,鹽末一兩,攪之。别以鹽末鋪鐺底一 分,入藥在上,又以鹽末蓋面一分,以瓦盆覆之,鹽土和泥塗縫,炭火煅 一伏時,先文後武,開盆掃下,凡一轉。後分舊土爲四分,以一分和霜, 入鹽末二兩,如前法飛之訖。又以土一分,鹽末二兩,和飛如前,凡四 轉。土盡更用新土。如此七轉,乃成霜用之。此法後人罕知。故附于此云。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Li] Shizhen: The method of sublimation (lit.: rising and heat refinement). Give one liang of genuine calomel into a pottery jar in way that it is evenly distributed. Close the opening of the jar with a lamp bowl with its face directed upward and close the seam [where the bowl borders on the jar] with salt mud. Then light a small charcoal fire on all sides at the bottom of the jar. Moisten a piece of paper and continuously wipe with your hand the inside of the lamp bowl. Do not interrupt this for any moment. Gradually increase the fire until it reaches the neck of the jar. Then end the fire, let [the jar] cool and remove [the bowl]. A frost will have been generated [on its bottom] resembling white beeswax. The Wai tai mi yao lists an ancient recipe with Mr. Cui’s method of generating mercury frost. It states: “Boil ten liang of mercury and ten liang of sulphur separately in two cookpots. After quite a long time when the mercury has got hot and the sulphur has dissolved, quickly pour them into one separate cookpot. If this were done slowly, they would not penetrate each other. Then stir [the mixture] forcefully and after a long time the sulphur will have become ashes, and the mercury will no longer be visible. Then add ten liang of ‘hidden dragon’s liver’ (soil from a hearth) and one liang of salt powder and stir this. Also, place one fen of salt powder on the bottom of another cookpot, place the medication on top of it and give one fen of salt powder on top [of the medication]. Close [the cookpot] with a pottery pot and seal the seams with salt mud. Calcine this with a charcoal fire for one day and one night. [The fire] should be slow at the beginning and strong later on. Eventually, open the pot and scrape off [the sublimated, purified calomel from its bottom]. This is the first of several processes to be completed. Later, divide the original [calomel] soil into four parts. Mix one part with the [sublimated, refined] calomel, add two liang of salt powder, and apply the same method as before to prepare a sublimation

446

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

product. Then take another part of the [original calomel] soil, add two liang of salt powder and apply the same sublimation method to this mixture as before. Altogether, this process is to be carried out four times. Once the [calomel] soil is used up, use new [calomel] soil. Procede like this seven times. This then will result in a [sublimated, purified] calomel that is ready to be used.” This method was known to only a few people in later times. Hence it is added here. 【氣味】辛,温,有毒。【時珍曰】畏蕎麥稈灰、硫黄。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, warm, poisonous. [Li] Shizhen: [Ingested together,] it fears buckwheat straw ashes and sulphur. 【主治】下痰涎,消積滯,利水,與輕粉同功。時珍。 Control. It serves to discharge phlegm and saliva, to dissolve accumulations and stagnations, and to free the passage of water. Its [therapeutic] potential is identical to that of calomel. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【元素曰】粉霜、輕粉,亦能潔净府,去膀胱中垢膩,既毒而損 齒,宜少用之。【時珍曰】其功過與輕粉同。 Explication. [Zhang] Yuansu: Sublimated, purified calomel and ordinary calomel are both able to cleanse the short-term repositories, and to eliminate filth and grease from within the urinary bladder. But it is poisonous and harms the teeth. Hence it is to be used only rarely. [Li] Shizhen: Its [therapeutic] potential and [possible] side effects are identical to those of ordinary calomel.

【附方】新六。 Added Recipes. Six newly [recorded] 小兒急驚,搐搦涎盛。粉霜二錢,白牽牛炒、輕粉各一錢,爲末,每服一 字,薄荷湯下,吐涎爲效。全嬰方。 Acute fright of children, with convulsions and profuse salivation. [Grind] two qian of sublimated, purified calomel with one qian each of fried morning glory seeds and ordinary calomel to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest one zi, to be sent down with mint decoction. Once [the child] vomits saliva, [the treatment is] effective. Quan ying fang. 小兒躁渴。粉霜一字,大兒半錢,蓮花湯調下。冬月用蓮肉。保幼大全。 Restlessness and thirst of children. Have them send down one zi of sublimated, purified calomel – children of a higher age take half a qian – with an Indian lotus flower decoction. During the winter months use an Indian lotus seed [decoction].

Chapter 9

447

風熱驚狂。神白丹:治傷寒積熱及風生驚搐,或如狂病,諸藥不效。粉霜 一兩,以白麪六錢,和作餅子,炙熟同研,輕粉半兩,鈆白霜二錢半,爲 末,滴水丸梧子大,每服十丸至十五丸,米飲下。宣明方。 Fright and madness caused by wind and heat. The “divine, white elixir.” It serves to cure harm caused by cold with heat accumulation and fright with convulsions caused by wind, in some cases resembling a madness disease, with all types of medication remaining without effect. Mix one liang of sublimated, purified calomel with six qian of white flour and prepare cakes. Roast them until they are done and grind them together with half a liang of ordinary calomel and two and a half qian of lead acetate to a powder. Drop some water on it and form pills the size of wu seeds. Each time [let the patient] ingest ten to 15 pills, to be sent down with a rice beverage. Xuan ming fang. 癍疹生瞖。粉霜八分,朱砂一錢,爲末。水調少許,傾入耳内。鴻飛集。 Macule-illness and papules421 causing the development of shades [in the eyes]. [Grind] eight fen of sublimated, purified calomel and one qian of cinnabar to a powder, mix it with a small amount of water and pour this into [the patient’s] ears. Hong fei ji. 腋下胡臭。粉霜、水銀等分,以面脂和塗之。聖濟録。 Barbarian stench under the armpits. Mix equal amounts of sublimated, purified calomel and mercury with facial crème and apply this [to the armpits]. Sheng ji lu. 楊梅惡瘡。粉霜一味搽之。集簡方。 Malign red bayberry sores.422 Apply nothing but sublimated, purified calomel [to the affected region]. Ji jian fang. 09-05 銀朱綱目 Yin zhu, FE Gang mu. Vermilion. 【釋名】猩紅、紫粉霜。【時珍曰】昔人謂水銀出於丹砂,鎔化還復爲朱 者,即此也。名亦由此。 Explanation of Names. Xing hong 猩紅, “orangutan red,” “scarlet”; ci fen shuang 紫 粉霜, “purple sublimated, purified calomel.” [Li] Shizhen: When the ancients said 421 Ban zhen 癍疹, “macule-illness and papules,” an eye affliction identical with smallpox sores. BCGM Dict I, 52. 422 Yang mei chuang 楊梅毒瘡, “red bayberry [poison] sores,” most likely including cases of syphilis. BCGM Dict I, 293, 294.

448

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

that mercury originates in cinnabar, and that if [mercury] is melted and returned to its bright-red [substance matter], then this is the item discussed here. Hence the name also reflects this. 【集解】【時珍曰】胡演丹藥秘訣云:升鍊銀朱,用石亭脂二斤,新鍋内 鎔化,次下水銀一斤,炒作青砂頭,炒不見星。研末罐盛,石版蓋住,鐵 線縛定,鹽泥固濟,大火煅之。待冷取出,貼罐者爲銀朱,貼口者爲丹 砂。今人多以黄丹及礬紅雜之,其色黄黯,宜辨之。真者謂之水華朱。每 水銀一斤,燒朱一十四兩八分,次朱三兩五錢。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: Hu Yan in his Dan yao mi jue states: “To prepare through sublimation (lit.: rising and heat refinement) vermilion, melt two jin of red sulphur in a new pot. Add one jin of mercury and fry this until a greenish sand has formed. Roast it until no more [mercury] stars are visible. Then grind it, fill it into a jar, cover it with a stone slab and fasten this securely with an iron wire. Tightly seal it with salt mud and calcine it with a strong fire. Wait until it has cooled down again and remove [the contents from within the jar]. The coating attached to the jar is vermilion; that attached to the [stone slab covering the] opening is cinnabar.” Nowadays, people often mix it with lead oxide and prepared alum. It is of a dark yellow color, and it is important to distinguish the one from the other. Genuine vermilion is called “bright redness of water splendor.” Each time from one jin of mercury, 14 liang, eight fen of “heated vermilion” and three liang, five qian of a secondary vermilion are obtained. 【氣味】辛,温,有毒。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, warm, poisonous. 【主治】破積滯,劫痰涎,散結胸,療疥癬惡瘡,殺蟲及虱,功同粉霜。 時珍。 Control. It breaks open accumulations and stagnations. It removes [blockages by] phlegm and saliva. It disperses a bound chest. It serves to heal jie-illness423 and xuan-illness424 associated with malign sores. It kills worms/bugs and lice. Its [therapeutic] potential is identical to that of sublimated, purified calomel. 【發明】【時珍曰】銀朱乃硫黄同汞升鍊而成,其性燥烈,亦能爛齦攣 筋,其功過與輕粉同也。今厨人往往以之染色供饌,宜去之。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: Vermilion is produced through a sublimation (lit.: rising and heat refinement) of sulphur together with mercury. Its nature is dry and violent. 423 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely defined skin ailments. BCGM Dict I, 249. 424 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591.

Chapter 9

449

It is able to let the gums rot and to contract the sinews. Its [therapeutic] potential and side effects are identical to those of calomel. Nowadays it is often used by cooks to offer colored meals. This should be abolished.

【附方】新二十。 Attached Recipes. 20 newly [recorded]. 小兒内釣,多啼。銀朱半錢,乳香、煨蒜各一錢,爲末,研丸黍米大。半 歲五丸,薄荷湯下。心鑑。 Children internally pulled up by a hook and crying a lot. [Grind] half a qian of vermilion and one qian each of frankincense and garlic, cooked over a slow fire, to a powder and form pills the size of glutinous millet. [A child of ] half a year is [to ingest] five pills, to be sent down with a mint decoction. Xin jian. 男女陰毒。銀朱、輕粉各一錢,用五日獨蒜一枚,搗和作餅,貼手心,男 左女右,兩手合定,放陰下,頃間氣回汗出即愈。但口中微有氣,即活。 唐瑶經驗方。 Yin poison affecting males and females. Pound one qian each of vermilion and calomel with a “five/fifth day“425 single clove garlic to form a cake. Attach this to the center of the palm of the left [hand] of males and of the right [hand] of females. Then let [the patients] join both their hands and move them down to below their yin (i. e., genital) region. After a short while, the qi will return, sweat is released and this is the cure. As long as there is a slight [movement of ] qi through the [patient’s] mouth, he/she will survive. Tang Yao, Jing yan fang. 痰氣結胸。鶴頂丹:不問陰陽虚實,妙過陷胸、瀉心等藥。用銀朱半兩, 明礬一兩,同碾。以熨斗盛火,瓦盞盛藥,鎔化,急刮搓丸,每服一錢, 真茶入薑汁少許服之。心上隱隱有聲,結胸自散。不動臟腑,不傷真氣, 明礬化痰,銀朱破積故也。曾世榮活幼心書。 Bound chest with phlegm qi. The “crown on the head of a crane elixir.” Regardless of whether it is a yin or yang [condition or a condition of ] depletion or repletion, it is much better than the “sunken chest” and “draining heart” medications. Grind together half a liang of vermilion and one liang of alum. Fill a flat iron with fire and fill a pottery vase with the medication to let it melt and transform. Then quickly scrape [the transformed coating] off and rub it with your hands to form pills. Each time [let the patient] ingest one qian, to be ingested with genuine tea to which was added a small amount of ginger juice. Above the heart, in the depth [of the chest] 425 The meaning of wu ri 五日 is not clear.

450

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

there will be sounds and this is the dispersion of the [phlegm qi causing a] bound chest. [This therapy] does not affect the long-term depots and short-term repositories, and it does not harm the true qi, because alum serves to transform phlegm and vermilion breaks open an accumulation. Zeng Shirong, Huo you xin shu. 正水腫病,大便利者。銀朱半兩,硫黄煅四兩,爲末,麪糊丸梧子大,每 飲下三十丸。普濟方。 Genuine water swelling disease, with a free flow of major (defecation) relief. [Grind] half a liang of vermilion and four liang of calcined sulphur to a powder and form with a flour-water paste pills the size of wu seeds. Each time send down with a beverage 30 pills. Pu ji fang. 咽喉疼痛。銀朱、海螵蛸末等分,吹之取涎。救急方。 Painful throat. Blow a mixture of equal amounts of vermilion and cuttlefish bone into the [throat] to remove saliva. Jiu ji fang. 火焰丹毒。銀朱調鷄子清塗之。李樓怪症方。 Cinnabar poisoning426 red like flaming. Apply vermilion mixed with the clear contents of a chicken egg to the [affected region]. Li Lou, Guai zheng fang. 湯火灼傷。銀朱研細,菜油調傅,二次愈。多能鄙事。 Burns and harm caused by scalding and fire. Grind vermilion to a fine [powder], mix it with vegetable oil and apply [this to the affected region]. Two applications will result in a cure. Duo neng bi shi. 疽瘡發背。銀朱、白礬等分,煎湯温洗,却用桑柴火遠遠炙之,日三次, 甚效。救急方。 Sores associated with an impediment-illness427 that has broken out on the back. Boil equal amounts of vermilion and alum and wash [the sores] with the resulting decoction. Then roast the [sores] from a distance with fire lit with mulberry wood. Three times a day. Very effective. Jiu ji fang. 魚臍丁瘡,四面赤,中央黑。銀朱,水和丸。每服一丸,温酒下。名走馬 丹。普濟方。

426 Dan du 丹毒, “cinnabar poison,” a skin ailment with red rashes. BCGM Dict I, 118 427 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277.

Chapter 9

451

Fish belly pin sores,428 with redness on all four sides and a black spot in the center. Form vermilion with water to pills. Each time ingest one pill, to be sent down with warm wine. This is called the “running horse elixir.” Pu ji fang. 楊梅毒瘡。銀朱、官香等分,爲末,以紙卷作撚,點燈置桶中,以鼻吸 烟,一日一作,七日愈。 Red bayberry poison sores.429 [Grind] equal amounts of vermilion and incense sticks to a powder, and fill it with your fingers into paper rolls. Light them like a lamp, place them into a bucket and have [the patient] inhale the fumes. To be performed once a day. A cure will be achieved after seven days. 又方:銀朱二錢,孩兒茶一錢,龍掛香一錢,皂角子一錢,爲末,如上法 用。 Another recipe. [Grind] two qian of vermilion, one qian of catechu, one qian of incense sticks, and one qian of gleditsia seeds to a powder, to be applied the same way as outlined above. 又方:銀朱、輕粉各一錢,黄蠟、清油各一兩,化開和收,以油紙攤貼, 瘡痂自脱也。 Another recipe. Dissolve one qian each of vermilion and calomel in one liang each of yellow beeswax and clear oil, and store [the resulting medication. When required] spread it on oil paper and attach it [to the affected region]. The sores and any crust will fall off as a result. 筋骨疼痛。猩紅三錢,枯礬四錢,爲末,作三紙撚。每旦以一撚蘸油點火 熏臍,被覆卧之,取汗。纂要奇方。 Painful sinews and bones. [Grind] three qian of vermilion and four qian of prepared alum to a powder and fill this into three paper rolls. Every morning dip one roll into oil, light it and fumigate [the patient’s] navel. The patient is to lie down covered until he sweats. Zuan yao qi fang. 日久頑瘡不收者。銀朱一錢,千年地下石灰五分,松香五錢,香油一兩, 爲末。化攤紙上貼之。應急良方。

428 Yu qi [ding] chuang 魚臍[丁]瘡, “fish belly [pin] sores,” resembling the long and narrow shape of a fish belly. BCGM Dict I, 650/651. 429 Yang mei chuang 楊梅毒瘡, “red bayberry [poison] sores,” most likely including cases of syphilis. BCGM Dict I, 293, 294.

452

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Stubborn sores that fail to close all day long. [Grind] one qian of vermilion, five fen of lime that has been underground for 1000 years,430 five qian of colophony and one liang of sesame oil to a powder, spread it on a piece of paper and apply this [to the affected region]. Ying ji liang fang. 臁瘡不歛。方同上。 Shank sores that fail to close. Recipe identical to the one above. 血風臁瘡。生脚股上,乃濕毒成風也。黄蠟一兩溶化,入銀朱一兩,攪攤 紙上,刺孔貼之。簡便方。 Blood wind431 associated with shank sores. They develop on legs and thighs, after moisture poison has generated wind. Melt one liang of yellow beeswax and add one liang of vermilion. Spread this on a piece of paper, pierce a hole [into the sores] and attach the [paper to it]. Jian bian fang. 黄水濕瘡。銀朱、鹽梅,和搗傅之。集玄方。 Moist sores releasing a yellow watery liquid. Pound vermilion together with salted plums to a paste and apply this [to the affected region]. Ji xuan fang. 癬瘡有蟲。銀朱、牛骨髓、桐油調搽。醫方摘要。 Xuan-illness432 sores with worms/bugs. Mix vermilion with ox bone marrow and vermicia oil and apply [this to the affected region]. Yi fang zhai yao.p 頭上生虱。銀朱浸醋,日日梳頭。包銀朱紙以盌覆燒之,茶清洗下烟子, 揉之,包頭一夜,至旦虱盡死。積德堂方。 Lice present on the head. Soak vermilion in vinegar and every day comb the hair [with a comb soaked in that liquid]. Cover paper that had been used to wrap vermilion with an overturned bowl, burn [the paper underneath of ] it. Wash the soot off [the bowl] and rub [the resulting liquid] on [the lice infested head]. Wrap the head for one night. The next morning all the lice will have died. Ji de tang fang.

430 “Lime that has been underground for 1000 years” refers to lime recovered from an ancient tomb. 431 Xue feng 血風, “blood wind,” results from an intrusion of wind evil qi into an unbalanced state of qi and blood, mostly in women, BCGM Dict I, 594. 432 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591.

Chapter 9

453

09-06 靈砂證類 Ling sha, FE Zheng lei. Miraculous sand. Sulphide of mercury. 【釋名】二氣砂。【慎微曰】茅亭客話載,以靈砂餌胡孫、鸚䳇、鼠、犬 等,變其心,輒會人言,丹之通爲靈者。【時珍曰】此以至陽鈎至陰,脱 陰反陽,故曰靈砂。 Explanation of Names. Er qi sha 二氣砂, “double qi sand.” [Tang] Shenwei: The Mao ting ke hua has the following record. “When one feeds it to macaques, parrots, rats/mice and dogs, this will change their mind and they will be able to speak the language of humans. This is an elixir enabling one to communicate with the miraculous.” [Li] Shizhen: This is an example of extreme yang restraining extreme yin. The yin is dropped and reverts to yang. Hence this is called “miraculous sand.” 【修治】【慎微曰】靈砂,用水銀一兩,硫黄六銖,細研炒作青砂頭,後 入水火既濟爐,抽之如束鍼紋者,成就也。【時珍曰】按胡演丹藥秘訣 云:升靈砂法:用新鍋安逍遥爐上,蜜揩鍋底,文火下燒,入硫黄二兩溶 化,投水銀半斤,以鐵匙急攪作青砂頭。如有焰起,噴醋解之。待汞不 見星,取出細研,盛入水火鼎内,鹽泥固濟,下以自然火升之,乾水十二 盞爲度,取出如束鍼紋者,成矣。庚辛玉册云:靈砂者,至神之物也。硫 汞制而成形,謂之丹基。奪天地造化之功,竊陰陽不測之妙。可以變化五 行,鍊成九還。其未升鼎者,謂之青金丹頭。已升鼎者,乃曰靈砂。靈砂 有三:以一伏時周天火而成者,謂之金鼎靈砂;以九度抽添用周天火而成 者,謂之九轉靈砂;以地數三十日炒煉而成者,謂之醫家老火靈砂。並宜 桑灰淋醋煮伏過用,乃良。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Tang] Shenwei: [To prepare] “miraculous sand,” grind one liang of mercury and six zhu of sulphur to a fine [powder], and fry it until a greenish sand has formed. Then give it into a furnace with equal chambers for water (above) and fire (below) and eventually remove from it a substance patterned like a bunch of needles. This is it. [Li] Shizhen: According to Hu Yan’s Dan yao mi jue, “the method to prepare ‘miraculous sand’ through sublimation is as follows. Take a new pot and place it on a free and unfettered furnace. Smear the bottom of the pot with honey and heat it from below with a mild fire. Add two liang of sulphur and let it melt. Drop half a jin of mercury [into the pot] and with an iron spoon vigorously stir [its contents] until a greenish sand has formed. When flames rise, spray them with vinegar to extinguish them. Once no more mercury ‘stars’ are discernable, remove [the contents from the pot] and grind them to a fine [powder]. Fill it into a furnace with equal chambers for water (above) and fire (below), seal it

454

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

closely with salt mud, and sublime it with a natural fire from below until 12 bowls of water are dried up. Now remove a substance patterned like a bunch of needles, and the [production of ‘miraculous sand’] is finished.” The Geng xin yu ce states: “‘Miraculous sand’ is an item of extreme divinity. It is prepared from sulphur and mercury, and is called ‘foundation of elixirs’. It has seized the [therapeutic] potential of the creation ruled by heaven and earth, and it has acquired the unfathomably wondrous nature of yin and yang. It is able to change and transform the five phases, and it has undergone nine turns in the course of a refinement with heat. That [in a process of sublimation] which has not risen in a tripod [but has remained at the bottom] is called ‘greenish gold elixir sand’. That which has risen is called ‘miraculous sand’. There are three kinds of ‘miraculous sand’. That which is generated within one day and one night with a natural fire is called ‘miraculous sand from a golden tripod’. That which is generated with a natural fire being extracted and added again nine times, it is called ‘miraculous sand of nine turns’. That which is generated through frying and heat refinement over 30 days, reflecting the number of the earth, is called ‘miraculous sand from a medical expert’s ongoing fire’. All kinds alike are to be boiled, and [their poison is to be] subdued in a decoction of mulberry twig ashes and vinegar prior to their [therapeutic] application. Only then they are good.” 【氣味】甘,温,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, warm, nonpoisonous. 【主治】五臟百病,養神安魂魄,益氣明目,通血脉,止煩滿,益精神, 殺精魅惡鬼氣。久服通神明,不老輕身神仙,令人心靈。慎微。主上盛下 虚,痰涎壅盛,頭旋吐逆,霍亂反胃,心腹冷痛,升降陰陽,既濟水火, 調和五臟,輔助元氣。研末,糯糊爲丸,棗湯服,最能鎮墜,神丹也。時 珍。 Control. The hundreds of diseases affecting the five long-term depots. It nourishes the spirit and pacifies the hun-soul and the po-soul. It boosts the qi and clears the eyes. It frees the passage through the blood vessels. It ends unrest and a feeling of fullness. It boosts the essence-spirit. It kills the qi of spirit seduction-specters433 and malign demons. Ingested over a long time, it lets one communicate with spirit-brilliance. It prevents aging, takes the weight of the body and turns one into a spirit-immortal. It lets the heart acquire miraculous abilities. [Tang] Shenwei. It controls abundance in the upper and depletion in the lower [body parts], obstruction caused by phlegm and saliva abundance. Vertigo with vomiting and [qi] counterflow. Cholera and turned over stomach. Cold pain in the central and abdominal 433 Jing mei 精魅, “spirit seduction-specter,” a notion of demonic pathogenic agents. BCGM Dict I, 265.

Chapter 9

455

region. [It stimulates] the rise and descend of yin [qi] and yang [qi], and it supports water and fire. It mediates among the five long-term depots and supports the original qi. Grind it to a powder, prepare with glutinous [cereals] a paste and form pills to be ingested with a decoction of Chinese dates. This is a divine elixir with an utmost ability to press down [counterflow qi]. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】硫黄,陽精也;水銀,陰精也。以之相配,夫婦之 道,純陰純陽,二體合璧。故能奪造化之妙,而升降陰陽,既濟水火,爲 扶危拯急之神丹,但不可久服爾。蘇東坡言:此藥治久患反胃及一切吐 逆,小兒驚吐,其效如神,有配合陰陽之妙故也。時珍常以陰陽水送之, 尤妙。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: Sulphur is the essence of yang. Mercury is the essence of yin. To combine the two is the WAY of husband and wife. Two bodies, one of pure yin and one of pure yang, are united to form a covenant. Hence it enables one to seize the wondrous potential of creation, and [it stimulates] the rise and descend of yin [qi] and yang [qi], supporting water and fire. It is a divine elixir assisting one in times of crisis and offering help where it is required urgently. Still, it must not be ingested for long. Su Dongpo says: “This medication serves to cure long-lasting suffering from a turned over stomach with all types of vomiting and counterflow [qi], as well as vomiting of children caused by fright. Its effects are divine because it combines the wondrous nature of yin and yang.” [Li] Shizhen has always sent it down with yin-yang water;434 this is particularly wondrous.

【附方】新七。 Added Recipes. Seven newly [recorded]. 伏熱吐瀉。陰陽丸:用硫黄半兩,水銀一錢,研黑,薑汁糊丸小豆大。三 歲三丸,冷水下。大人三四十丸。鄭氏小兒方。 Vomiting and outflow caused by hidden heat. The “yin yang pills.” Grind half a liang of sulphur and one qian of mercury until a black [mass has formed]. Form this with ginger juice and dough to pills the size of small beans and have [children of ] three years of age send down three pills with cold water. Adults [ingest] 30 to 40 pills. Zheng shi, Xiao er fang. 諸般吐逆。方同上。 All types of vomiting and counterflow [qi]. Recipe identical to the one above. 434 Yin yang water is a mixture of one half of cold water and one half of hot water boiled to bubbling.

456

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

霍亂吐逆。不問虚實冷熱,二氣散,一名青金丹。用水銀、硫黄等分,研 不見星。每服一字至半錢,生薑湯調下。錢氏小兒方。 Cholera with vomiting and counterflow [qi], regardless of whether it is a condition of depletion or repletion, of cold or heat. The “double qi powder,” also named “greenish gold elixir.” Grind equal amounts of mercury and sulphur until no more [mercury] “stars” are visible. Each time ingest one zi to half a qian, to be sent down mixed with fresh ginger decoction. Qian shi, Xiao er fang. 脾疼反胃。靈砂一兩,蚌粉一兩,同炒赤,丁香、胡椒各四十九粒,爲 末,自然薑汁煮,半夏粉糊丸梧子大,每薑湯下二十丸。普濟方。 Painful spleen and turned over stomach. [Grind] one liang of “miraculous sand” and one liang of fresh water clams, both fried together until they have turned red, with 49 grains each of clove and black pepper to a powder. Boil it in natural ginger juice and form with pinellia [root] powder and dough pills the size of wu seeds, with each time 20 pills to be sent down with ginger decoction. Pu ji fang. 冷氣心痛。靈砂三分,五靈脂一分,爲末,稀糊丸麻子大,每服二十丸, 食前石菖蒲、生薑湯下。直指方。 Heart pain caused by cold qi. [Grind] three fen of “miraculous sand” and one fen of flying squirrel droppings to a powder and form, with a watery dough, pills the size of hemp seeds. Each time ingest 20 pills, to be sent down before meals with a decoction of acorus [root] and fresh ginger. Zhi zhi fang. 九竅出血,因暴驚而得,其脉虚者。靈砂三十粒,人參湯下,三服愈。此 證不可錯認作血得熱則流,妄用凉藥誤事。楊仁齋直指方。 Bleeding out of the nine orifices, caused by a sudden fright, with a depleted [movement in the] vessels. Send down 30 grains of “miraculous sand” with a ginseng [root] decoction. A cure will be achieved after three ingestions. This pathological condition must not erroneously be identified as bleeding resulting from blood heat, and it would be wrong to apply cold medication. Yang Renzhai, Zhi zhi fang. 養正丹。又名交泰丹,乃寶林真人 谷伯陽方也。却邪輔正,助陽接真。 治元氣虧虚,陰邪交蕩,上盛下虚,氣不升降,呼吸不足,頭旋氣短,心 怯驚悸,虚煩狂言,盗汗,腹痛腰痛,反胃吐食,霍亂轉筋,欬逆。又治 中風涎潮,不省人事,陽氣欲脱,四肢厥冷。傷寒陰盛自汗,唇青脉沉。 婦人産後月候不匀,帶下腹痛。用黑盞一隻,入黑鉛溶汁,次下水銀,次 下朱砂末,炒不見星,少頃乃下硫黄末,急攪。有焰,洒醋解之。取出研 末,糯粉煮糊丸緑豆大。每服二十丸,鹽湯下。四味皆等分,此藥升降陰 陽,既濟心腎,神效不可具述。和劑局方。

Chapter 9

457

The “elixir to nourish the proper [qi ],” also named “elixir delivering contentment.” A recipe of Gu Boyang, the Perfect one from the Forest of Treasures. It eliminates evil [qi] and supports proper [qi]; it assists the yang, and connects with the true [qi]. It serves to cure deficiency and depletion of original qi, with yin qi wreaking havoc. Abundance above and depletion below. Failure of qi to rise and descend. Insufficient [qi] for breathing. Vertigo with shortness of [breath] qi. Heart timidity and fright palpitation. Depletion unrest and mad talking. Robber sweat.435 Abdominal pain and lower back pain. Turned over stomach and vomiting of food. Cholera with contorted sinews. Cough with counterflow [qi]. Also, it serves to cure being struck by wind and waves of saliva, with an inability to recognize other people, an impending loss of yang qi, and the four limbs cold with [their yang qi] receding. Harm caused by cold with yin [qi] abundance and spontaneous sweating, greenish lips and a deep [movement in the] vessels. Irregular menstruation of women after a delivery, with abdominal pain below the belt. Fill black lead into a small cup and melt it to obtain a juice. Then add mercury, and after this add cinnabar powder. Fry this until no more [mercury] “stars” are visible. Then, after a short while, add sulphur powder and stir all this vigorously. If there are flames, spray wine and/or vinegar on them to distinguish them. Remove [the contents of the cup] and dry them to a powder, boil them with glutinous rice powder to prepare a dough and form pills the size of mung beans. Each time ingest 20 pills, to be sent down with a salt decoction. The four substances should be of equal amounts. This medication [stimulates] rise and descend of yin and yang [qi], and it supports heart and kidneys. It’s divine effects are more than can be told with words. He ji ju fang. 09-07 本經中品 Xiong huang, FE Ben jing, middle rank. Realgar. Arsenic disulphide. 【釋名】黄金石本經、石黄唐本、熏黄。【普曰】雄黄生山之陽,是丹之 雄,所以名雄黄也。【恭曰】出石門者名石黄,亦是雄黄,而通名黄金 石,石門者爲劣爾。惡者名熏黄,止用熏瘡疥,故名之。【藏器曰】今人 敲取石黄中精明者爲雄黄,外黑者爲熏黄。雄黄燒之不臭,熏黄燒之則 臭,以此分别。【權曰】雄黄,金之苗也。故南方近金冶處時有之,但不 及西來者真好爾。【宗奭曰】非金苗也。有金窟處無雄黄。【時珍曰】雄 黄入點化黄金用,故名黄金石,非金苗也。 435 Dao han 盗汗, “robber sweat,” a profuse sweating during sleep that ends when one wakes up. BCGM Dict I, 122.

458

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Explanation of Names. Huang jin shi 黄金石, “yellow gold stone/mineral,” Ben jing. Shi huang 石黄, “yellow from Shi [men],” Tang ben. Xun huang 熏黄, “fumes yellow.” [Wu] Pu: Realgar grows on the yang side of mountains. It is a male elixir. Hence it is called xiong huang 雄黄, “male yellow.” Su] Gong: That originating in Shi men 石門 is called shi huang 石黄, “yellow from Shi [men].” It is also called “male yellow,” xiong huang 雄黄, with the most popular name being huang jin shi 黄金石, “yellow gold stone/mineral.” [Realgar] from Shi men is of inferior quality. That of bad quality is named xun huang 熏黄, “fumes yellow.” It is used for nothing but to expose sores and jie-illness436 to its fumes. Hence this name. [Chen] Cangqi: Nowadays, the people crush “stone/mineral yellow” and remove from its interior the essence bright part that is the “male yellow” [realgar]. The black part surrounding it on the outside is the “fumes yellow” [realgar]. When “male yellow” [realgar] is heated, it develops no odor. When “fumes yellow” [realgar] is heated, it develops an odor. This is how the two are distinguished. [Zhen] Quan: Realgar is the shoot of gold. Hence in the South it is often found at places where gold is processed. However, it is not as genuine and good as [realgar] coming from the West. [Kou] Zongshi: [Realgar] is not the shoot of gold. There is no realgar where gold occurs in caves. [Li] Shizhen: Realgar is used in processes to transform yellow gold. Hence it is called “yellow gold stone/mineral.” It is not the shoot of gold. 【集解】【别録曰】雄黄生武都山谷、燉煌山之陽,采無時。【弘景曰】 武都,氐羌也,是爲仇池。宕昌亦有之,小劣。燉煌在凉州西數千里,近 來紛擾,皆用石門、始興石黄之好者耳。凉州黄好者作鷄冠色,不臭而堅 實。其黯黑及虚軟者,不好也。【恭曰】宕昌、武都者爲佳,塊方數寸, 明澈如鷄冠,或以爲枕,服之辟惡。其青黑堅者,不入藥用。貞觀年中, 以宕州新出有得方數尺者,但重脆不可全致之耳。【禹錫曰】水經注云: 黄水出零陵縣西北,連巫山溪,出雄黄,頗有神異。常以冬月祭祀,鑿石 深數丈,方采得之,故溪水取名焉。又抱朴子云:雄黄當得武都山所出 者,純而無雜,其赤如鷄冠,光明曄曄者,乃可用。其但純黄似雌黄色、 無光者,不任作仙藥,可合理病藥耳。【頌曰】今階州即古武都,山中有 之。形塊如丹砂,明澈不夾石,其色如鷄冠者真。有青黑色而堅者名熏 黄,有形色似真而氣臭者名臭黄,並不入服食,只可療瘡疥。其臭以醋洗 之便去,足以亂真,尤宜辨。又階州接西戎界,出一種水窟雄黄,生于山 岩中有水流處。其石名青煙石、白鮮石。雄黄出其中,其塊大者如胡桃, 小者如粟豆,上有孔竅,其色深紅而微紫,體極輕虚而功用更勝,丹竈家 尤貴重之。【時珍曰】武都水窟雄黄,北人以充丹砂,但研細色帶黄爾。 丹房鑑源云:雄黄千年化爲黄金。武都者上,西番次之。鐵色者上,鷄冠 次之。以沉水銀脚鐵末上拭了,旋有黄衣生者爲真。一云:驗之可以㶸 436 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely identifiable skin ailment. BCGM Dict Vol. I, 249.

Chapter 9

459

蟲,死者爲真。細嚼,口中含湯不臭辣者次之。【斅曰】凡使勿用:臭 黄,氣臭;黑雞黄,色如烏鷄頭;夾膩黄,一重黄,一重石。並不堪用。 真雄黄,似鷓鴣鳥肝色者爲上。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Realgar grows in the mountain valleys of Wu du, and on the yang side of Mount Dun huang. It is collected anytime. [Tao] Hongjing: Wu du is the region of the Di and the Qiang [people]. [The place where it occurs] is Chou chi. There is also [realgar] in Dang chang, but of low occurrence and inferior quality. Dun huang lies several thousand miles west of Liang zhou, and there was turmoil there recently. So, it is always the good quality of realgar from Shi men and from Shi xing that is resorted to. Good realgar from Liang zhou is red like a cock’s comb; it has no odor and is hard and solid. Dark and black specimens as well as those that are hollow and pliable, they are not good. [Su] Gong: [Realgar] from Dang chang and Wu du is excellent. These are rectangular pieces of several cun. They are as lustrous as a cock’s comb. Some people use them as pillows; ingesting them serves to ward off the malign. Greenish, black and hard specimens are not added to medication. During the zhen guan reign period (627 – 649), in Dang zhou a piece of several chi was discovered. But it was heavy and brittle and could not be transported in one piece. [Zhang] Yuxi: The Shui jing zhu states: “The [river] Yellow Water springs in the North-West of Ling ling xian. It combines the mountain streams of Mount Wu shan, and the realgar brought forth by it is of a divinely special nature. [The people] there perform sacrificial rituals in winter. Then they dig holes into the stones/rocks several zhang deep where they obtain it. Hence it is named after the mountain stream waters.” Also, the Baopu zi states: “Realgar should be the one brought forth by the mountains of Wu du. It is pure and has no flaws. When its redness is that of a cock’s comb, brilliant and lustrous, then it can be used. If it is of purely yellow color, reminiscent of orpiment, and does not shine, it is not suited for preparing hermit/immortal medication. It may be combined with medication serving to cure diseases.” [Su] Song: Nowadays [realgar] occurs in the mountains of Jie zhou, the ancient Wu du. It appears in pieces like cinnabar. Its luster is different from [ordinary] stones/minerals, and those pieces with the color of a cock’s comb are genuine. Those that are hard and of a greenish, black color, they are named “fumes yellow.” Those that from their physical appearance resemble genuine [realgar] but have an odorous qi, they are called “odorous yellow.” Neither of these must be used for ingestion as food; they only serve to heal sores and jie-illness. The odor can be completely eliminated by washing them with vinegar. With this it is even more necessary to distinguish them from genuine [realgar]. Also, where Jie zhou borders on the territory of the Xi Rong, a “water cave realgar” is brought forth. It grows in the cliffs where water flows from within the mountains. Such stones/

460

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

minerals are called “greenish smoke stones/minerals,” and “white freshness stones/ minerals.” The realgar brought forth there comes in big pieces the size of walnuts and in small pieces the size of millet seeds. There are holes on their surface and their color is deep red and slightly purple. Their physical body is extremely light and hollow, and their [therapeutic] potential is superior. The experts operating [longevity] elixir furnaces value them highly. [Li] Shizhen: The people in the North use realgar from Wu du as a substitute for cinnabar. However, when it is ground to a fine [powder] its color has some yellow. The Dan fang jian yuan states: “After 1000 years, realgar transforms to yellow gold. That from Wu du is best; that from the Western foreign lands is of secondary quality. Those with the color of iron are best, [those with the color of ] a cock’s comb are of secondary quality. If one rubs the surface of iron with the sediments generated by [a mixture in water of realgar and] mercury, and if then a yellow coating appears [on the iron], this is genuine ware. Elsewhere it is stated: [Whether it is fake or genuine] can be tested by [heating it and] exposing worms/bugs [to its fumes]. When they die, it is genuine [realgar]. [Realgar] that when finely chewed with its juice held in the mouth fails to develop an odor and has no peppery flavor, is of secondary quality.” [Lei] Xiao: Whenever [realgar] is to be applied [in medical therapy], the following variations must not be used. Odorous yellow [realgar] with odorous qi. Black chicken yellow [realgar] with a color like the head of black chicken. Enclosing grease yellow [realgar], with one layer yellow [realgar] and one layer stone/rock. None of them is suitable for [therapeutic] usage. [Realgar] with a color reminiscent of that of the Chinese francolin is best. 【修治】【斅曰】每雄黄三兩,以甘草、紫背天葵、地膽、碧稜花各五 兩,細剉,東流水入坩鍋中,煮三伏時,漉出,搗如粉,水飛,澄去黑 者,晒乾再研用。其内有劫鐵石,又號赴矢黄,能劫于鐵,並不入藥用。 【思邈曰】凡服食,用武都雄黄,須油煎九日九夜,乃可入藥。不爾有 毒,慎勿生用。【時珍曰】一法:用米醋入蘿蔔汁煮乾用良。【抱朴子 曰】餌法:或以蒸煮,或以消石化爲水,或以猪脂裹蒸之于赤土下,或以 松脂和之,或以三物鍊之,引之如布,白如冰。服之令人長生,除百病, 殺三蟲。伏火者,可點銅成金,變銀成金。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Lei] Xiao: Each time give three liang of realgar together with five liang each of finely cut glycyrrhiza [root], purple back malva [herb], elephantopus [herb] and bi leng hua437 and water flowing eastward into a crucible and boil this for three days and three nights. Filter this to remove [the liquid] and pound [the rest] to a powder. This is to be processed with aqueous sublimation and then the black dregs that have settled on the bottom are to be removed. Dry them 437 Bi leng hua 碧稜花, lit: “bluish cube flower.” Botanical identification unclear.

Chapter 9

461

in the sun and grind them anew for [therapeutic] use. When it includes “plundering iron stones/minerals,” also called “[stones/minerals] hastening to miss out on yellow,” it may have plundered iron and must not be added to medication. [Sun] Simiao: Whenever [realgar] is ingested for food, realgar from Wu du is to be used. It must be boiled in oil for nine days and nine nights, and only then it can be added to medication. If it is not [prepared] this way it is poisonous. One must be careful not to use raw [realgar]. [Li] Shizhen: Another method. Boil [realgar] with rice vinegar and radish root juice until all the liquid has dried. It may then be used [for therapeutic purposes] and is good. The Baopu zi states: “Methods [to prepare realgar for ingestion as] food. It may be steamed and boiled. It may be transformed with nitrokalite to a watery liquid. It may be steamed, wrapped in lard, and covered by red soil. It may be mixed with colophony. It may be refined with heat together with the three substances [mentioned above]. It may be stretched like a piece of cloth and being white like ice. When this is ingested, it lets one live long, eliminates the hundreds of diseases, and kills the three types of worms/bugs. With hidden heat it lets gold be formed out of copper, and it lets silver change to gold.” 【氣味】苦,平、寒,有毒。【别録曰】甘,大温。【權曰】辛,有大 毒。【大明曰】微毒。【土宿真君曰】南星、地黄、萵苣、五加皮、紫河 車、地榆、五葉藤、黄芩、白芷、當歸、地錦、鵝腸草、鷄腸草、苦參、 鵝不食草、圓桑、猬脂,皆可制雄黄。 Qi and Flavor. Bitter, balanced, poisonous. Bie lu: Sweet, very warm. [Zhen] Quan: Acrid, very poisonous. Da Ming: Slightly poisonous. Tu su zhen jun: All the following substances are able to check [the effects of ] realgar: Arisaema root, Chinese foxglove [rhizome], lactuca [herb], acanthopanax [root bark], dried human placenta, sanguisorba root, wu ye teng,438 scutellaria root, angelica [root], euphorbia [herb], stellaria aquatica herb, trigonotis herb, sophora [root], small centipeda [herb], yuan sang,439 and hedgehog fat. 【主治】寒熱,鼠瘻惡瘡,疽痔死𦠄,殺精物惡鬼,邪氣百蟲毒,勝五 兵。鍊食之,輕身神仙。本經。療疥蟲𧏾瘡,目痛,鼻中息肉,及絶筋破 骨,百節中大風,積聚癖氣,中惡腹痛,鬼疰,殺諸蛇虺毒,解藜蘆毒, 悦澤人面。餌服之者,皆飛入腦中,勝鬼神,延年益壽,保中不饑。得銅 可作金。别録。主疥癬風邪,癲癇嵐瘴,一切蟲獸傷。大明。搜肝氣,瀉 肝風,消涎積。好古。治瘧疾寒熱,伏暑泄痢,酒飲成癖,驚癇,頭風眩 運,化腹中瘀血,殺勞蟲疳蟲。時珍。 438 Wu ye teng 五葉藤, lit. “five leaves vine.” Botanical identification unclear. 439 Yuan sang 圓桑, lit. “circular mulberry.” Botanical identification unclear.

462

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Control. Alternating cold and heat sensations. Mouse fistula440 and malign sores. impediment-illness,441 piles, and dead muscles. It kills essence items and malign demons, evil qi and the poison of the hundreds of worms/bugs. It [helps to] overcome [wounds caused by] the five types of weapons. Refined with heat and consumed it takes the weight of the body and lets one become a spirit immortal. Ben jing. It serves to heal jie-illness442 with worms/bugs and sores with hidden worms/ bugs, painful eyes, tumorous flesh growths in the nose, and severed sinews as well as broken bones. The hundreds of joints severely struck by wind, accumulations and aggregation-illness qi, being struck by the malign with abdominal pain, demon attachment illness.443 It kills the poison of all types of poisonous snakes and it resolves the poison of veratrum [root]. It makes the face appear happy and lustrous. When it is ingested for food, it flies into the brain and helps to overcome demons and spirits. It extends the years [of life] and boosts longevity. It protects the center and prevents hunger. Matched with copper it can become gold. Bie lu. It controls jie-illness, xuan-illness,444 and wind evil, peak-illness445 with epilepsy and miasma, as well as all types of harm caused by bugs/worms and domestic animals. Da Ming. It collects the liver qi, drains liver wind, and dissolves accumulations of saliva. [Wang] Haogu: It serves to cure malaria illness with alternating cold and heat sensations. Hidden summerheat with outflow and free-flux illness.446 Aggregation-illness caused by drinking wine. Fright epilepsy. Head wind447 with dizziness and [brain] movement. It transforms stagnant blood in the abdomen. It kills exhaustion bugs/worms and gan-illness448 bugs/worms. [Li] Shizhen. 440 Shu lou 鼠瘻, “mouse fistula,” identical with lou li 瘰癧, “scrofula with pervasion-illness.” BCGM Dict I, 466. 441 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277. 442 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely identifiable skin ailment. BCGM Dict Vol. I, 249. 443 Zhu 疰, also zhu 注, “attachment-illness,” “influx-illnesss,” reflects a notion of a foreign pathogenic agent, originally of demonic nature, having attached itself to the human organism. BCGM Dict I, 688-695. 444 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely defined skin ailment. BCGM Dict I, 249. 445 Dian 顛, “peak[-illness],” also 癲, vaguely defined mental derangement. BCGM Dict I, 124. 446 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 447 Tou feng 頭風, “head wind,” is wind evil attacking the head followed by pain, or dizziness, or itching. BCGM Dict I, 509. 448 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188.

Chapter 9

463

【發明】【權曰】雄黄能殺百毒,辟百邪,殺蠱毒。人佩之,鬼神不敢 近。入山林,虎狼伏。涉川水,毒物不敢傷。【抱朴子曰】帶雄黄入山 林,即不畏蛇。若蛇中人,以少許傅之,登時愈。吴楚之地,暑濕鬱蒸, 多毒蟲及射工、沙虱之類,但以雄黄、大蒜等分,合搗一丸佩之。或已中 者,塗之亦良。【宗奭曰】焚之,蛇皆遠去。治蛇咬方,見五靈脂下。唐 書云:甄立言究習方書,爲太常丞。有尼年六十餘,患心腹鼓脹,身體羸 瘦已二年。立言胗之,曰:腹内有蟲,當是誤食髮而然。令餌雄黄一劑, 須臾吐出一蛇,如拇指,無目,燒之猶有髮氣,乃愈。又明皇雜録云:有 黄門奉使交 廣回。太醫周顧曰:此人腹中有蛟龍。上驚,問黄門有疾否? 曰:臣馳馬大庾嶺,熱困且渴,遂飲澗水,竟腹中堅痞如石。周遂以消 石、雄黄煮服之。立吐一物,長數寸,大如指,視之鱗甲皆具。此皆殺蠱 毒之驗也。【頌曰】雄黄治瘡瘍尚矣。周禮:瘍醫,療瘍以五毒攻之。鄭 康成注云:今醫方有五毒之藥,作之,合黄堥,置石膽、丹砂、雄黄、礜 石、慈石其中,燒之三日三夜,其烟上着,鷄羽掃取以注瘡,惡肉破骨則 盡出也。楊億筆記載:楊嵎少時,有瘍生于頰,連齒輔車,外腫若覆甌, 内潰出膿血,痛楚難忍,百療彌年不瘥。人令依鄭法燒藥注之,少頃,朽 骨連牙潰出,遂愈。信古方攻病之速也。黄堥,音武,即今有蓋瓦合也。 【時珍曰】五毒藥,范汪東陽方變爲飛黄散,治緩疽惡瘡,蝕惡肉。其法 取瓦盆一個,安雌黄于中,丹砂居南。慈石居北,曾青居東,白石英居 西,礜石居上,石膏次之,鍾乳居下,雄黄覆之,雲母布於下,各二兩, 末。以一盆蓋之,羊毛泥固濟,作三隅竈,以陳葦燒一日,取其飛黄用 之。夫雄黄乃治瘡殺毒要藥也,而入肝經氣分,故肝風肝氣、驚癇痰涎、 頭痛眩運、暑瘧泄痢、積聚諸病,用之有殊功。又能化血爲水。而方士乃 鍊治服餌,神異其説,被其毒者多矣。按洪邁夷堅志云:虞雍公 允文感暑 痢,連月不瘥。忽夢至一處,見一人如仙官,延之坐。壁間有藥方,其辭 云:暑毒在脾,濕氣連脚,不泄則痢,不痢則瘧。獨鍊雄黄,蒸餅和藥。 别作治療,醫家大錯。公依方,用雄黄水飛九度,竹筒盛,蒸七次,研 末,蒸餅和丸梧子大。每甘草湯下七丸,日三服。果愈。太平廣記載成都 劉無名服雄黄長生之説,方士言耳,不可信。 Explication. [Zhen] Quan: Realgar is able to kill the hundreds of poisons, to ward off the hundreds of evils, and to kill the poison of gu.449 When a person wears it on his garments, demon spirits will not dare to approach him. When he enters a forest, tigers and wolves will go into hiding. When he wades through river water, poisonous beings will not dare to harm him. Baopu zi: When [a person] wears realgar on 449 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).”

464

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

his garments and enters a forest, he must not be afraid of snakes. When a person is struck by a snake, he is to apply a small amount [of realgar] to the [location of the bite], and he will be cured immediately. In the regions of Wu and Chu, summerheat and moisture cause a steaming atmosphere, and there are many poisonous worms/bugs, archers,450 and sand lice. [To protect oneself ] all that is necessary is to pound equal amounts of realgar and large garlic cloves [to a pulp], form one pill and wear it on the garments. If he was struck already, to apply this [pulp] to the [affected region] will be good, too. [Kou] Zongshi: Burn it and all snakes will move far away. For recipes to cure snake bites, see under “flying squirrel excrements.” (4823) The Tang shu states: “Zhen Liyan, an expert in recipe literature and officer for ceremonial affairs, had [as his patient] a nun of more than 60 years. She suffered from drum-like bloating of her central and abdominal region, with her body being affected by emaciation for two years already. [Zhen] Liyan examined her and said: ‘There are worms/bugs in her abdomen. This is so because she must have eaten hair by mistake’. He had her consume a remedy with realgar and after a short while she vomited a snake. It resembled a thumb and had no eyes. When it was burned, it smelled like the qi of [burned] hair. [The nun] was cured.” Also, the Ming huang za lu states: “An Imperial Gatekeeper had returned from an official mission to Jiao and Guang and the Imperial physician Zhou Gu said: ‘This person has in his abdomen a flood dragon (43-03)’. The Emperor was scared and asked the Imperial Gatekeeper whether he felt ill or not. He responded: ‘Your subordinate rode a horse in the Da yu ling mountain range. I felt distressed by the heat and was thirsty. Hence I drank water from a mountain rivulet. A little later I had a feeling of a hard obstacle-illness451 in my abdomen, as if there were a stone’. Zhou [Gu] then had him ingest a decoction of nitrokalite and realgar, and he immediately vomited some creature. It was several cun long, and as big as a thumb. A close inspection showed that it was fully covered by scales.” All these [cases] are evidence of [the potential of realgar] to kill the poison of gu.452 [Su] Song: Realgar is a valuable substance to cure sores and ulcers. The Zhou li [states:] “Ulcer physicians heal ulcers by attacking them with the five poisons.” Zheng Kangcheng in his comment states: “The recipes of today’s 450 She gong du 射工毒, also: she wang du 射罔毒, reflects an ancient notion of bugs that live in waters and shoot their poison at humans, causing disease. BCGM Dict I, 432. 451 Pi 痞, “obstacle-illness,” a feeling of uncomfortable fullness and distension. BCGM Dict I, 371. 452 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191.

Chapter 9

465

physicians include a medication with five poisons. To prepare it give chalcanthite, cinnabar, realgar, arsenolite and magnetite into a yellow earthenware pot, and heat them for three days and three nights. The smoke rises and attaches itself [as a kind of soot to the lid of the pot]. Scrape it off with a chicken feather and apply it [to cure] sores, malign flesh, and broken bones.” Yang Yi in his personal notes recorded the following. “In his youth, Yang Yu developed an ulcer on his cheek, involving his teeth, cheekbones and gums. On the outside a swelling appeared like a bowl turned upside down. Inside it festered with pus and excreted blood. The pain was hard to bear. Hundreds of cures for several years brought no cure. Eventually, someone let him treat this according to Zheng [Kangcheng’s] method of heating [five poisons] to prepare a medication. After a short while, the decayed bone and the adjacent teeth were excreted, and this brought the cure. This is trustworthy evidence of the speedy [successes] reached by attacking diseases with ancient recipes.” Huang wu 黄堥, read wu 武, “yellow earthenware pot,” is today’s earthenware pot with a cover. [Li] Shizhen: A “medication with five poisons” is referred to in Fan Wang’s Dong yang fang with a changed [name and indication] as the “powder with the flying realgar.” It serves to cure chronic impediment-illness453 and malign sores, as well as erosions of malign flesh. The method to prepare it is as follows. Take a pottery basin and place orpiment into its center, then cinnabar south of it, magnetite north of it, malachite east of it, quartz west of it and arsenolite on top of it, followed by gypsum [to be placed on top again of the yu shi]. Stalactite is placed underneath [the orpiment]. All this is covered with realgar and lies on a layer of muscovite. Each of the ingredients is entered as a powder, weighing two liang. [The basin] is to be covered with a second basin, and the rims are tightly sealed with a mud with sheep hair. Now build a triangular furnace, [place the two basins on top of it] and burn in it long kept reed stems for one day. Then remove the “flying realgar” [from the inside of the upper basin], and it may be used [for therapeutic purposes]. Now, realgar is an important medication to cure sores and to kill poison; it enters the qi section of the liver conduit. Hence it is resorted to with remarkable therapeutic successes for all types of diseases such as liver wind and liver qi, fright epilepsy with phlegm and saliva [blockages], headache and dizziness with vertigo, summerheat malaria and outflow with free-flux illness,454 as well as accumulations. Also, it is able to transform blood into water. But the recipe masters propagate the effects of

453 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277. 454 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

466

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

ingesting it after a heat refinement as miraculous, and as a result there are many cases of people being poisoned by it. According to Hong Mai in his Yi jian zhi, “Yu Yunwen, Duke of Yong, was affected by a summerheat free-flux illness, and he was not cured for several months. Then all of a sudden in a dream he went somewhere where he saw a person who looked like an hermit/immortal. [That person] invited him to sit down with him. On a wall a pharmaceutical recipe was written, stating: ‘Summerheat poison is in the spleen. Moisture qi affect the legs. If they are not discharged, this will result in free-flux illness. If there is no free-flux illness, it will result in malaria. The only way [to cure this] is to mix realgar and steamed cakes to a medication. If a physician conducts a different therapy, he commits a big mistake’. The Duke followed the advice of the recipe. He processed realgar with aqueous sublimation nine times and filled it into a bamboo tube. This he steamed seven times, and then he ground it to a powder and mixed it with steamed cakes to prepare pills the size of wu seeds. For each application he sent down seven pills with a glycyrrhiza [root] decoction, with three ingestions a day. Eventually he was cured.” The Tai ping guang ji has a record of Liu Wuming from Cheng du ingesting realgar and achieving longevity. Such sayings of recipe masters are not trustworthy.

【附方】舊十三,新四十九。 Added Recipes. 13 o fold. 49 newly [recorded]. 卒中邪魔。雄黄末吹鼻中。集驗方。 Suddenly being struck by evil goblins. Blow realgar powder into the [patient’s] nose. Ji yan fang. 鬼擊成病,腹中煩滿欲絶。雄黄粉酒服一刀圭,日三服,化血爲水也。孫 真人千金方。 Diseases caused by a demon attack, with unrest, a feeling of fullness in the abdomen and [the flow of qi] threatened to be cut. [Let the patient] ingest with wine as much realgar as is held by a knife-shaped tablet of jade. To be ingested three times a day. This is a transformation of blood into water. Sun zhenren, Qian jin fang.

Chapter 9

467

辟禳魘魔。以雄黄帶頭上,或以棗許繫左腋下,終身不魘。張文仲方。 To ward off goblins and monsters. Carry some realgar on top of your head. Or hold as much as a Chinese date underneath the armpits and you will be spared of goblins for your entire life. Zhang Wenzhong fang. 家有邪氣。用真雄黄三錢,水一盌,以東南桃枝咒洒滿屋,則絶迹。勿令 婦女見知。集簡方。 Evil qi in a house. Give three qian of realgar into a bowl of water, recite an exorcistic prayer and with peach twigs that have grown toward the South-East spray [the liquid] throughout the entire house. This will eliminate all traces [of the evil qi]. Do not allow women to observe and get to know this. Ji jian fang. 女人病邪。女人與邪物交通,獨言獨笑,悲思恍惚者。雄黄一兩,松脂二 兩,溶化,以虎爪攪之,丸如彈子。夜燒于籠中,令女坐其上,以被蒙 之,露頭在外,不過三劑自斷。仍以雄黄、人參、防風、五味子等分爲 末,每旦井水服方寸匕,取愈。肘後方。 Women with a disease involving the evil. When women communicate with evil beings, talk to themselves and laugh at themselves, are saddened and ponder and are absent-minded. Melt one liang of realgar with two liang of colophony and stir this with a tiger claw. Then form pills the size of a bullet. At night, burn them in a box, have the woman sit on it, with her entire body covered, except for her head that remains outside. After no more than three applications, she will desist [from her strange behavior]. Also, [grind] equal amounts of realgar, ginseng [root], saposhnikovia root and schisandra [fruit] to a powder and every morning at dawn have her ingest with water from a well as much as is held by a square cun spoon. This will result in a cure. Zhou hou fang. 小丹服法。雄黄、柏子仁各二斤,松脂煉過十斤,合搗爲丸,每旦北向服 五丸。百日後拘魂制魄,與神人交見。太上玄變經。 The method of how to ingest a minor elixir. Two jin each of realgar and platycladus seed kernels and ten jin of colophony refined with heat are pounded together to form pills. Every morning at dawn, facing north, ingest five pills. 100 days later, the hun-soul will be restrained and the po-soul will be checked, and a visible exchange with spirit-persons will be reached. Tai shang xuan bian jing. 轉女爲男。婦人覺有妊,以雄黄一兩,絳囊盛之,養胎,轉女成男,取陽 精之全于地産也。千金方。 To turn a female into a male. When a woman senses that she is pregnant fill a deepred pouch with one liang of realgar. When this is used to nourish the fetus, this will

468

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

turn a female into a male. This is to avail oneself of yang essence entirely brought forth by the earth. Qian jin fang. 小兒諸癇。雄黄、朱砂等分爲末,每服一錢,豬心血入虀水調下。直指方。 All types of epilepsy of children. [Grind] equal amounts of realgar and cinnabar to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest one qian, to be sent down mixed with blood from a pig’s heart and the water left after preparing preserved vegetables. Zhi zhi fang. 骨蒸發熱。雄黄末一兩,入小便一升,研如粉,乃取黄理石一枚,方圓一 尺者,炭火燒之三食頃,濃淋汁于石上。置薄氈于上,患人脱衣坐之,衣 被圍住,勿令洩氣,三五度瘥。外臺秘要。 Bone steaming with heat effusion. Give one liang of realgar powder into one sheng of urine and grind it there to a powder. Then take a piece of yellow mineral gypsum with a circumference of one chi and heat it above a charcoal fire for as long as it takes to have three meals. Pour the thick [realgar in urine] juice over [the gypsum piece]. Place a thin felt blanket above it and let the patient sit on it with all his clothes taken off. His clothes and the blanket should completely cover him lest any qi can leak. After three to five such applications, a cure will be achieved. Wai tai mi yao. 傷寒欬逆。服藥無效,雄黄二錢,酒一盞,煎七分,乘熱嗅其氣,即止。 活人書。 Harm caused by cold with cough and counterflow [qi]. When ingesting medications has remained without effect. Boil two qian of realgar in one cup of wine down to seventy percent and [let the patient] smell the qi as long as they are hot. This will end [the disease]. Huo ren shu. 傷寒狐惑,蟲蝕下部,痛痒不止。雄黄半兩,燒于瓶中,熏其下部。聖惠 方。 Harm caused by cold. Fox and delusion.455 When worms/bugs cause erosion in the lower (i. e., genital) body parts, with unending pain and itch. Heat half a liang of realgar in a bottle and expose the lower body parts to the fumes. Sheng hui fang. 偏頭風病。至靈散:用雄黄、細辛等分爲末,每以一字吹鼻,左痛吹右, 右痛吹左。博濟方。

455 Hu huo 狐惑,“fox and delusion.” A condition of putrid flesh and festering ulcers in the throat and private parts brought forth by moisture, heat and bug poison. BCGM Dict I, 220.

Chapter 9

469

Unilateral head wind456 disease. The “most miraculous powder.” [Grind] equal amounts of realgar and asarum heteropoides root to a powder. Each time blow one zi into [the patient’s] nose. If the pain is on the left, blow it into the right [nostril]; if the pain is on the right, blow it into the left [nostril]. Bo ji fang. 五尸注病。發則痛變無常,昏恍沉重,纏結臟腑,上衝心脇,即身中尸鬼 接引爲害也。雄黄、大蒜各一兩,杵丸彈子大,每熱酒服一丸。肘後方。 The five types of “corpse [qi] influx” diseases. When they break out, the [locations of the] pain change and are nowhere permanently. This goes along with severe clouding and absent-mindedness, inflicting the long-term depots and short-term repositories. [These qi] rush upward against heart and flanks. These are corpse-demons attracted by the human body where they cause destruction. Pound one liang each of realgar and large garlic cloves [to a pulp] and form pills the size of bullets. Each time ingest with hot wine one pill. Zhou hou fang. 腹脇痞塊。雄黄一兩,白礬一兩,爲末,麵糊調膏攤貼,即見功效。未效 再貼,待大便數百斤之狀乃愈,秘方也。集玄方。 Obstinacy-illness457 lumps in abdomen and flanks. [Grind] one liang of realgar and one liang of white alum to a powder. Mix it with wheat flour to prepare a paste and apply this to [the affected region]. The effect will be obvious. If there is no effect, apply it a second time. Once [the patient] defecates feces seemingly weighing hundreds of jin, his cure is achieved. A secret recipe. Ji xuan fang. 脇下痃癖及傷飲食。煮黄丸:用雄黄一兩,巴豆五錢,同研,入白麪二 兩,滴水爲丸梧子大,每服二十四丸,漿水煮三十沸,入冷漿水沉冷吞 下,以利爲度,如神。保命集。 String-illness458 with aggregation-illness below the flanks. The “pills with boiled realgar.” Grind one liang of realgar together with five qian of croton [seeds]. Add two liang of white flour, drip some water into it and prepare pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest 24 pills. Boil them in fermented water of foxtail millet 30 times to bubbling, then add cold fermented water of foxtail millet to cool it down and swallow the pills until a free flow [of defecation] results. This is divinely [effective]. Bao ming ji.

456 Tou feng 頭風, “head wind,” is wind evil attacking the head followed by pain, or dizziness, or itching. BCGM Dict I, 509. 457 For various kinds of gu 痼, “obstinacy-illness,” see BCGM Dict I, 194. 458 Xuan 痃, “string-illness,” is a condition of acute pain located in the abdomen to the left and right of the umbilicus. BCGM Dict I, 581,

470

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

飲酒成癖。酒癥丸:治飲酒過度,頭旋惡心嘔吐,及酒積停于胃間,遇飲 即吐,久而成癖。雄黄皂角子大六個,巴豆連皮油十五個,蠍稍十五個, 同研,入白麪五兩半,滴水丸豌豆大,將乾,入麩内炒香。將一粒放水試 之,浮則取起收之。每服二丸,温酒下。和劑局方。 Aggregation-illness caused by wine drinking. The “pills for wine concretion-illness.” It serves to cure [the results of ] excessive wine drinking, with vertigo, nausea and vomiting. The wine has accumulated and stagnates in the stomach. When it meets with [more wine] drunk, it causes vomiting. After a long time, this results in an aggregation-illness. Grind six pieces of realgar the size of gleditsia seeds, 15 croton [seeds], including their peel and oil, and 15 scorpion pincers, add five and a half liang of white flour, drip some water into this and prepare pills the size of garden pea seeds. When they have dried add wheat bran and roast them until they develop a fragrance. Then give one kernel into water to test it. When it floats on the surface all the others may be removed for storage. Each time ingest two pills, to be sent down with warm wine. He ji ju fang. 髮癥飲油。有飲油五升以來方快者,不爾則病,此是髮入于胃,氣血裹 之,化爲蟲也。雄黄半兩爲末,水調服之,蟲自出。夏子益奇疾方。 A concretion-illness caused by hair, with [an urge to] drink oil. There are cases of people finding pleasure in drinking up to five sheng of oil, because they fall ill if they do not drink that much. In the present case, human hair from the head has found its way into the stomach where it combines itself with qi and blood, with an eventual transformation to worms/bugs. [Grind] half a liang of realgar to a powder and ingest it mixed with water. The worms/bugs will be released as a result. Xia Ziyi, Qi ji fang. 癥瘕積聚。去三尸,益氣延年却老。雄黄二兩爲末,水飛九度,入新竹筒 内,以蒸餅一塊塞口,蒸七度,用好粉脂一兩,和丸緑豆大。每服七丸, 酒下,日三服。千金方。 Concretion-illness, congregation-illness, accumulation and collection. To remove the three corpse [qi], boost the qi, extend the years [of life] and prevent aging, [grind] two liang of realgar to a powder, and process it with aqueous sublimation nine times. Then fill it into a new bamboo tube, and close the opening with a piece of steamed cake. This then is steamed seven times. Mix [the realgar powder] with one liang of good quality ceruse/basic lead carbonate and form pills the size of mung beans. Each time ingest seven pills, to be sent down with wine. To be ingested three times a day. Qian jin fang.

Chapter 9

471

小腹痛滿,不得小便。雄黄末蜜丸,塞陰孔中。傷寒類要。 A painful feeling of fullness in the lower abdomen, with an inability to urinate. Form pills with realgar and honey, and insert them into the opening of the yin [(i. e. genital) member]. Shang han lei yao. 陰腫如斗,痛不可忍。雄黄、礬石各二兩,甘草一尺,水五升,煮二升, 浸之。肘後方。 Swelling of the yin [(i. e. genital) member] to the [size of a] dou measure, with an unbearable pain. Boil two liang each of realgar and alum and a chi-long piece of glycyrrhiza [root] in five sheng of water down to two sheng and soak [the affected member] in it. Zhou hou fang. 中飲食毒。雄黄、青黛等分,爲末,每服二錢,新汲水下。鄧筆峰方。 Being struck by poison in a beverage or food. [Grind] equal amounts of realgar and natural indigo to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest two qian, to be sent down with newly drawn water. Deng Bifeng fang. 蟲毒蠱毒。雄黄、生礬等分,端午日研化,蠟丸梧子大。每服七丸,念藥 王菩薩七遍,熟水下。蘇東坡良方。 Worm/bug poison. Gu poison.459 Grind equal amounts of realgar and unprocessed alum [to a powder], dissolve it in honey and form pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest seven pills, to be sent down with boiled water, and recite [the name of ] the God of Medicine Buddha seven times. Sun Dongpo liang fang. 結陰便血。雄黄不拘多少,入棗内,線繫定,煎湯。用鉛一兩化汁,傾入 湯内同煮,自早至晚,不住添沸湯,取出爲末,共棗杵,和丸梧子大。每 服三十丸,煎黑鈆湯空心下,只三服止。普濟方。 Bound yin [qi] resulting in defecation/urination with blood. Give any amount of realgar into a Chinese date and fasten it firmly. Then boil it in hot water. Melt one liang of lead and pour it into the hot water and continue boiling them together. This is to last from the early morning to the evening, and the boiling with bubbling of the hot liquid must never stop. Then remove [the date with the realgar] and pound [the realgar] together with the date to eventually form pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest 30 pills, to be sent down on an empty stomach with a black lead decoction. After only three ingestions [the disease] will end. Pu ji fang. 459 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191.

472

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

暑毒泄痢。方見發明下。 Outflow with free-flux illness460 caused by summerheat poison. For recipes, see under “Explication.” 中風舌强。正舌散:用雄黄、荆芥穗等分,爲末。豆淋酒服二錢。衞生寶 鑑。 Being struck by wind, with a stiff tongue. The “powder to correct the tongue.” [Grind] equal amounts of realgar and schizonepeta [spikes] to a powder and [let the patient] ingest, with wine prepared with black soybean seeds, two qian. Wei sheng bao jian. 破傷中風。雄黄、白芷等分,爲末。酒煎灌之,即甦。邵真人經驗方。 Open wounds struck by wind. [Grind] equal amounts of realgar and angelica [root] to a powder and forcefeed this boiled in wine [to the patient]. This will let him regain consciousness. Shao zhenren, Jing yan fang. 風狗咬傷。雄黄五錢,麝香二錢,爲末,酒下,作二服。救急良方。 Harm caused by the bite of a rabid dog. [Grind] five qian of realgar and two qian of musk to a powder, to be sent down with wine, in two ingestions. Jiu ji liang fang. 百蟲入耳。雄黄燒撚熏之,自出。十便良方。 When any of the hundreds of worms/bugs have entered one’s ears. Hold heated realgar to fumigate [the affected ear. The worms/bugs] will leave it as a result. Shi bian liang fang. 馬汗入瘡。雄黄、白礬各一錢,烏梅三個,巴豆一個,合研,以油調半錢 傅之良。經驗方。 When the sweat of a horse has entered a sore/wound. Grind together one qian each of realgar and white alum, three smoked plums and one croton seed, mix half a liang with oil and apply this [to the affected region]. Good. Jing yan fang. 蜘蛛傷人。雄黄末傅之。朝野僉載。 Harm caused to a person by [the bites of ] spiders. Apply realgar powder to the [affected region]. Chao ye qian zai. 金瘡内漏。雄黄半豆大,納之,仍以小便服五錢,血皆化爲水。肘後方。 Wounds caused by metal objects/weapons with internal leakage [of blood]. Insert a piece of realgar the size of half a soybean into [the wound] and also [let the patient]

460 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

Chapter 9

473

ingest five qian of [boys’] urine. All the blood will be transformed to water. Zhou hou fang. 杖瘡腫痛。雄黄二分,密陀僧一分,研末。水調傅之,極妙。救急方。 Wounds caused by flogging with painful swelling. Grind two fen of realgar with one fen of litharge to a powder and apply it, mixed with water, to the [affected region]. Extremely wondrous. Jiu ji fang. 中藥箭毒。雄黄末傅之,沸汁出愈。外臺秘要。 Being struck by the poison of a medicated arrow. Apply realgar powder to the [affected region]. When a bubbling juice is released, [the patient] will be cured. Wai tai mi yao. 解藜蘆毒。水服雄黄末一錢。外臺。 To resolve the poison of veratrum [root]. Ingest with water one qian of realgar powder. Wai tai. 小兒痘疔。雄黄一錢,紫草三錢,爲末,胭脂汁調。先以銀簪挑破,搽之 極妙。痘疹證治。 Smallpox and pin-illness461 of children. [Grind] one qian of realgar and three qian of arnebia [herb] to a powder and mix it with liquid rouge. Then first pierce [the affected region] open with a silver hairpin and [after this] apply [the medication] there. Extremely wondrous. Dou zhen zheng zhi. 白秃頭瘡。雄黄、豬膽汁和傅之。聖濟録。 White baldness and head sores. Mix realgar and a pig’s bile and apply this to the [affected region]. Sheng ji lu. 眉毛脱落。雄黄末一兩,醋和塗之。聖濟録。 Loss of the hair of eyebrows. Mix one liang of realgar powder and vinegar and apply this to the [affected region]. Sheng ji lu. 筋肉化蟲。有蟲如蟹走于皮下,作聲如小兒啼,爲筋肉之化。雄黄、雷丸 各一兩爲末,摻豬肉上炙熟,喫盡自安。夏氏奇疾方。 Sinew and flesh transforming to worms/bugs. When worms/bugs run like crabs underneath the skin and make sounds like wailing children, then this is a transformation of sinews and flesh. Xia shi qi ji fang. 461 Ding 丁, “pin[-illness],” also ding 疔, “pin-illness,” refers to a deep-reaching and festering hardness in a tissue, eventually rising above the skin like a pinhead. BCGM Dict I, 127129.

474

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

風痒如蟲。成煉雄黄、松脂等分,研末,蜜丸梧子大,每飲下十丸,日三 服,百日愈。忌酒肉鹽豉。千金方。 For wind itch as if there were worms/bugs. Grind equal amounts of realgar, refined with heat, and colophony to a powder and form with honey pills the size of wu seeds. Each time send down with a beverage ten pills. To be ingested three times a day. A cure will be achieved after 100 days. [During the treatment] wine, meat and salted fermented soybeans are prohibited. Qian jin fang. 丁瘡惡毒。千金方:刺四邊及中心,以雄黄末傅之,神驗。 Pin[-illness]462 sores with a malign poison. The Qian jin fang [recommends]: Pierce [the affected region] on all four sides and in its center and apply realgar powder there. Proved to be divinely effective. 積德堂方:用雄黄、蟾酥各五分,爲末,葱、蜜搗丸小米大,以針刺破瘡 頂,插入,甚妙。 The Ji de tang fang [recommends]: [Grind] five fen each of realgar and toad venom to a powder. Pound it with onions and honey [to a pulp] and form pills the size of small rice grains. Then pierce with a needle into the peak of the sore to break it open and insert [the pills there]. Very wondrous. 廣東惡瘡。雄黄一錢半,杏仁三十粒去皮,輕粉一錢,爲末,洗净,以雄豬 膽汁調上,二三日即愈。百發百中,天下第一方。出武定侯府内。積德堂 方。 Malign Guang dong sores.463 [Grind] one and a half qian of realgar, 30 peeled apricot seeds and one qian of calomel to a powder. Wash [the affected region] clean and apply [the powder] mixed with bile juice of a male pig to it. A cure will be achieved within two or three days. This is the best recipe in the world; applied one hundred times it will be effective one hundred times. It originates in the palace of the Lord of Wu ding. Ji de tang fang. 蛇纏惡瘡。雄黄末,醋調傅之。普濟方。 Malign sores resulting from a snake winding itself [around a limb]. Mix realgar powder with vinegar and apply it to the [affected region]. Pu ji fang.

462 Ding 丁, “pin[-illness],” also ding 疔, “pin-illness,” refers to a deep-reaching and festering hardness in a tissue, eventually rising above the skin like a pinhead. BCGM Dict I, 127129. 463 Guang dong 廣東 sores are red bayberry sores, i.e., syphilitic sores.

Chapter 9

475

纏喉風痺。雄黄磨新汲水一盞服,取吐、下愈。續十全方。 Throat constricting wind blockage.464 [Let the patient] ingest realgar rubbed [to dissolve] in one small cup of newly drawn water to stimulate vomiting and discharge. This will cure him. Xu shi quan fang. 風熱痛。用雄黄、乾薑各等分,爲末,㗜鼻,左痛㗜右,右痛㗜左。 Painful wind and heat. [Grind] equal amounts of realgar and dried ginger to a powder and blow it into the [patient’s] nose. If the pain is on the left side, [let the patient] inhale it into the right [nostril]; if the pain is on the right side, [let the patient] inhale it into the left [nostril]. 牙齒蟲痛。雄黄末,和棗肉丸,塞孔中。類要。 Toothache caused by worms/bugs. Prepare pills from realgar powder and the meat of Chinese dates, and insert them into the [dental] cavities. Lei yao. 走馬牙疳,臭爛出血。雄黄豆大七粒,每粒以淮棗去核包之,鐵線串,于 燈上燒化爲末,每以少許摻之,去涎,以愈爲度。全幼心鑑。 Running horse dental gan-illness,465 with a malodorous festering and bleeding. Take seven realgar kernels as big as soybeans and insert each of these kernels into one Chinese date the pit of which is removed. Thread [the dates] on an iron wire, hang them over a lamp fire to burn them until they have transformed [to ashes and grind them] to a powder. Each time apply a small amount to the [affected region]. This serves to eliminate [excessive] saliva. [Continue this therapy] until a healing is achieved. Quan you xin jian. 小兒牙疳。雄黄一錢,銅緑二錢,爲末貼之。陳氏小兒方。 Dental gan-illness466 of children. [Grind] one qian of realgar and two qian of verdigris to a powder and apply this to the [affected region]. Chen shi xiao er fang. 疳蟲蝕齒。雄黄、葶藶等分,研末,臘猪膽和,以槐枝點之。金匱方。 Gan-illness associated with dental erosion caused by worms/bugs. Grind equal amounts of realgar and pepperweed seeds to a powder, mix it with a pig’s bile from the 12th month, and apply this with a sophora japonica tree twig to the [affected region]. Jin kui fang. 464 Feng bi 風痺, “wind blockage,” diseases resulting mostly from an intrusion of wind evil. BCGM Dict I, 158. 465 Zou ma ya gan 走馬牙疳, “running horse dental gan-illness,” a dental illness that develops abruptly and turns into a serious condition. BCGM Dict I, 704. 466 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188.

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

476

耳出臭膿。雄黄、雌黄、硫黄等分爲末,吹之。聖濟方。 Ears releasing malodorous pus. [Grind] equal amounts of realgar, orpiment and sulphur to a powder and blow this [into the affected ears]. Sheng ji fang. 臁瘡日久。雄黄二錢,陳艾五錢,青布捲作大撚。燒烟熏之,熱水流出, 數次愈。筆峰雜興。 Shank sores having lasted for days. Use a greenish piece of fabric to form a large roll to wrap two qian of realgar and five qian of long kept common mugwort [leaves]. Burn this and fumigate [the affected region] with the smoke. This will cause a release of hot water. A cure will be achieved after several [such applications]. Bifeng, Za xing. 鼻準赤色。雄黄、硫黄各五錢,水粉二錢,用頭生乳汁調傅,不過三五次 愈。攝生衆妙方。 Red nose. Mix five qian each of realgar and sulphur and two qian of lead carbonate with a nursing mother’s milk for her first child and apply this to the [affected region]. A cure will be achieved after no more than three to five [applications]. She sheng zhong miao fang. 09-07-01 熏黄。Xun huang. Fumes yellow. Realgar. 【主治】惡瘡疥癬,殺蟲虱,和諸藥熏嗽。 Control. Malign sores, jie-illness467, xuan-illness.468 It kills worms/bugs and lice. Mixed with all types of medication it serves to fumigate cough. 【附方】新五。 Added Recipes. Five newly [recorded]. 小便不通。熏黄末豆許,内孔中,良。崔氏方。 Blocked urination. Insert a piece of “fumes yellow” (realgar) into the hole [where the urine is to be released]. Good. Cui shi fang. 卅年呷嗽。熏黄、木香、莨菪子等分爲末,羊脂塗青紙上,以末鋪之,竹 筒燒烟,吸之。崔氏方。 Creaking cough having lasted for 30 years. [Grind] equal amounts of “fumes yellow” (realgar), saussurea [root], and henbane seeds to a powder. Spread sheep fat on 467 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely defined skin ailment. BCGM Dict I, 249. 468 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591.

Chapter 9

477

greenish paper and cover it with the powder. [Fill this into a] bamboo tube, burn it and [let the patient] inhale the smoke. Cui shi fang. 欬嗽熏法。熏黄一兩,以蠟紙調捲作筒十枚,燒烟吸嚥,取吐止。一日一 熏,惟食白粥,七日後以羊肉羹補之。千金方。 A fumigation method for cough. Form ten tubes by wrapping one liang of “fumes yellow” (realgar) in oil paper, burn them and [let the patient] inhale the smoke. End [the treatment] when he vomits. One fumigation to be administered per day. [Let the patient] eat nothing but white gruel, to be supplemented after seven days with a thick mutton soup. Qian jin fang. 水腫上氣,欬嗽腹脹。熏黄一兩,款冬花二分,熟艾一分,以蠟紙鋪艾, 洒二末于上,荻管卷成筒,燒烟,吸嚥三十口則瘥。三日盡一劑,百日斷 鹽、醋。外臺秘要。 Water swelling with rising qi, associated with cough and abdominal bloating. Cover wax paper with one fen of processed common mugwort [leaves] and sprinkle two powders of one liang of “fumes yellow” (realgar) and two fen of tussilago flower on it. Roll [the paper] and insert it into a reed tube. Burn this and [let the patient] inhale the smoke 30 times. This will achieve his cure. One such preparation is to be used up within three days. [The patient] is to abstain from salt and vinegar for 100 days. Wai tai mi yao. 手足甲疽。熏黄、蛇皮等分爲末,以泔洗净,割去甲入肉處,傅之,一頃 痛定,神效。近效方。 Nail impediment-illness469 affecting hands and feet. [Grind] equal amounts of “fumes yellow” (realgar) and snake skin to a powder. Wash the [affected region] clean with water in which rice was washed, Cut off the [affected] nails where they had entered the flesh, and apply [the powder] there. The pain will end after a short while. Divinely effective. Jin xiao fang. 09-08 雌黄本經中品 Ci huang, FE Ben jing, middle rank. Orpiment. Arsenic trisulphide. 【釋名】䂳七火切。【時珍曰】生山之陰,故曰雌黄。土宿本草云:陽石 氣未足者爲雌,已足者爲雄,相距五百年而結爲石。造化有夫婦之道,故 曰雌雄。 469 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277.

478

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Explanation of Names. Cuo 䂳, split reading qi 七 and huo 火. [Li] Shizhen. It grows on the yin/shady [side] of mountains. Hence it is called ci huang 雌黄, “female yellow.” The Tu su ben cao states: “As long as the yang qi of stones/minerals are insufficient, these are female [stones/minerals]. Once they are sufficient, they are males. It is with a difference of 500 years that [female stones/minerals acquire sufficient additional yang qi] to conglomerate to [male] stones/minerals. Creation is based on the WAY of husband and wife. Hence one speaks of ci 雌, ‘female [yellow]’ (i. e., realgar) and xiong 雄, ‘male [yellow]’ (i. e., orpiment).” 【集解】【别録曰】雌黄生武都山谷,與雄黄同山生。其陰山有金,金精 熏則生雌黄。采無時。【弘景曰】今雌黄出武都 仇池者,謂之武都仇池 黄,色小赤。出扶南 林邑者,謂之崑崙黄,色如金,而似雲母甲錯,畫 家所重。既有雌雄之名,又同山之陰陽,合藥便當以武都爲勝。仙經無單 服法,惟以合丹砂、雄黄飛鍊爲丹爾。金精是雌黄,銅精是空青,而服空 青反勝于雌黄,其義難了。【斅曰】雌黄一塊重四兩,拆開得千重,軟如 爛金者佳。其夾石及黑如鐵色者,不可用。【時珍曰】按獨孤滔丹房鑑源 云:背陰者,雌黄也。溜成者,即黑色輕乾,如焦錫塊。臭黄作者,硬而 無衣。試法:但于甲上磨之,上色者好。又燒熨斗底,以雌劃之,如赤黄 線一道者好。舶上來如噀血者上,湘南者次之,青者尤佳。葉子者爲上, 造化黄金,非此不成。亦能柔五金,乾汞,轉硫黄,伏粉霜。又云,雄黄 變鐵,雌黄變錫。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: “Female yellow,” orpiment, grows in the mountain valleys of Wu du. It is brought forth by the same mountains as “male yellow,” realgar. There is gold on the yin/shady side of the mountains. The fumes of the essence of the gold generate orpiment. It is collected anytime. [Tao] Hongjing: Nowadays orpiment originating in Chou chi in Wu du is called “Wu du Chou chi yellow.” It is of a weak red color. That originating in Lin ba in Fu nan is called “Kun lun yellow.” Its color is reminiscent of gold. It resembles the scaly and uneven appearance of muscovite and is valued by painters. The designations ci 雌, “female [yellow]” (for orpiment), and xiong 雄, “male [yellow]” (for realgar) reflect their presence on the yin and yang [sides of ] mountains. For an admixture to medication, it is best to resort to [orpiment] from Wu du. The classics of the hermits/immortals list no method of ingesting [orpiment] as a single substance. It is only [mentioned] in combinations with cinnabar and realgar serving to prepare, with sublimation (lit.: flying heat refinement), elixirs. The “essence of gold” is orpiment. The “essence of copper” is malachite. Still, to ingest malachite is superior to [ingesting] orpiment. The underlying rationale, though, is difficult to comprehend. [Lei] Xiao: Pieces of orpiment weighing four liang can be broken up into a thousand layers. Those that

Chapter 9

479

are as pliable as gold are good. Those [pieces] that include stones and are of black color like iron, they must not be used [for therapeutic purposes]. [Li] Shizhen: According to Dugu Tao’s Dan fang jian yuan, “those found on the yin/shady side are orpiment. Those generated out of a gentle flow, they are of black color, light, and dry, resembling pieces of scorched tin. Those made from ‘odorous yellow’, are hard and lack a coating. A method to test [which is which is as follows]. Simply rub it on a [finger] nail. That which leaves its color on [the nail] is good. Or, heat the bottom of a flat iron and make a drawing there with orpiment. If a path appears resembling a red-yellow line, this is good [orpiment]. Imported [orpiment] from overseas is like spit blood. That from Xian nang is second to it. Greenish [orpiment] is especially good. That with layers like leaves is top. When gold is created, this would not be possible if it were not for [orpiment]. In addition, it is capable of softening the five metals, of drying mercury, of reverting sulphur, and of suppressing calomel.” It is also said: “Realgar changes to become iron; orpiment changes to tin.” 【修治】【斅曰】凡修事,勿令婦人、鷄、犬、新犯淫人、有患人、不男 人、非形人,及曾是刑獄臭穢之地;犯之則雌黄黑如鐵色,不堪用也,反 損人壽。每四兩,用天碧枝、和陽草、粟遂子草各五兩,入瓷鍋中煮三伏 時,其色如金汁一垛在鍋底下。用東流水猛投于中,如此淘三度,去水拭 乾,臼中搗篩,研如塵用。又曰:雌得芹花,立便成庾。 470芹花一名立起 草,形如芍藥,煮雌能住火也。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Lei] Xiao: For all preparation acitivities, avoid the following: Women, chicken, dogs, persons who have just excessively engaged in sex, patients, non-male persons,471 persons with an odd physical appearance, as well as places where an imprisonment has taken place, and that are malodorous and filthy. If such taboos are violated, the orpiment will be as black as iron, and cannot be used [for longevity purposes]. On the contrary, it will be harmful to one’s longevity. For each preparation, give four liang [of orpiment] together with five liang each of tian bi twigs, he yang herb and li sui472 seeds into a porcelain pot and boil this for three days and three nights. Eventually, a pile with a color like gold juice forms on the bottom of the pot. Vehemently pour water flowing toward the East into [the pot] to rinse [the pile on the bottom] and repeat this three times. Then discard the water 470 The character yu 庾 is a writing error for geng 庚, meaning here bian geng 变更, “to change,” “to transform.” An ancient Chinese name for “chemistry” is geng dao 庚道, “the DAO of transformation.“ 471 See BCGM 52-37: “The five [types of apparent males] who are not males are the following: Heaven [type], bullock [type], leakage [type], coward [type] and change [type].” 472 These are terms used by ancient alchemists. There meaning remains unknown. For tian bi 天碧 see BCGM 18-01-01.

480

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

and wipe [the pile on the bottom] dry. Pound it in a mortar [to a powder] to be given through a sieve, and grind it to a dust that is then ready for use. It is also said: When orpiment is processed with qin hua,473 this generates a transformed product. Qin hua also has an alternative name: “the herb that lets one rise immediately.” Its physical appearance is that of peonies. Boiled orpiment is capable of stopping fire. 【氣味】辛,平,有毒。【别録曰】大寒。不入湯用。【土宿真君曰】芎 藭、地黄、獨帚、益母、羊不食草、地榆、皮、瓦松、冬瓜汁,皆可制 伏。又雌見鉛及胡粉則黑。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, balanced, poisonous. Bie lu: Very cold. It must not be resorted to for decoctions. Tu su zhen jun: Ligusticum [root], Chinese foxglove [rhizome], kochia [fruit], leonurus seed, rhododendron [flower], sanguisorba root, acanthopanax [root bark], orostachys herb and winter melon juice – all these [substances] are capable of checking and subduing [the strength/poison of orpiment]. Also, when orpiment is exposed to lead and lead carbonate, it will turn black. 【主治】惡瘡頭秃痂疥,殺毒蟲虱,身痒邪氣諸毒。鍊之久服,輕身增年 不老。本經。蝕鼻中息肉,下部𧏾瘡,身面白駁,散皮膚死𦠄及恍惚邪 氣,殺蜂蛇毒。久服令人腦滿。别録。治冷痰勞嗽,血氣蟲積,心腹痛, 癲癇,解毒。時珍。 Control. Malign sores, baldness on the head, crusts with jie-illness. It kills poisonous worms/bugs and lice, body itch, evil qi and all types of poison. Refined with heat and ingested over a long time it takes the weight of the body, adds years [of life] and prevents aging. Ben jing. Erosions and tumorous flesh growths in the nose. Hidden worms/bugs sores in the lower body parts, white spots on body and face. It disperses dead muscles in the skin and [serves to cure] absent-mindedness with evil qi. It kills the poison of wasps/bees and snakes. Ingested over a long time, it extends the limits of one’s brain. Bie lu. It serves to cure cold phlegm and exhaustion cough, accumulations of blood, qi and worms/bugs, central and abdominal pain, as well as peak-illness474 and epilepsy. It resolves poison. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【保昇曰】雌黄法土,故色黄而主脾。【時珍曰】雌黄、雄黄同 産,但以山陽山陰受氣不同分别。故服食家重雄黄,取其得純陽之精也, 雌黄則兼有陰氣故爾。若夫治病,則二黄之功亦仿佛,大要皆取其温中、 搜肝殺蟲、解毒祛邪焉爾。

473 A name used by ancient alchemists. Its meaning remains unknown. 474 Dian 顛, “peak[-illness],” also 癲, vaguely defined mental derangement. BCGM Dict I, 124.

Chapter 9

481

Explication. [Han] Baosheng: Orpiment corresponds to [the phase] soil. Hence its color is yellow and it controls the spleen. [Li] Shizhen: Orpiment and realgar have the same origin, but they differ because the one has received the qi of the yang (i. e., sunny) side of the mountains, and the other has received the yi of the yin/shady side of the mountains. Hence the experts in ingesting [elixirs] for food value realgar, availing themselves of its essence of pure yang. Orpiment in addition [to yang qi] also includes yin qi. When it comes to curing disease, the two “yellows” (i. e., realgar and orpiment) have the same potential. Generally speaking, one resorts to their ability to warm the center, collect the [qi of the] liver, kill worms/bugs, resolve poison and eliminate evil.

【附方】舊七,新五。 Added Recipes. Seven of old. Five newly [recorded]. 反胃吐食。雌黄一分,甘草生半分,爲末,飯丸梧子大,以五葉草、糯米 煎湯,每服四丸。聖濟録。 Turned over stomach with vomiting of food. [Grind] one fen of orpiment and half a fen of unprocessed glycyrrhiza [root] to a powder and form, with cooked rice, pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest, with a decoction of common heron bill herb and glutinous rice, four pills. Sheng ji lu. 停痰在胃,喘息不通,呼吸欲絶。雌黄一兩,雄黄一錢,爲末,化蠟丸彈 子大。每服一丸,半夜時投熱糯米粥中食之。濟生方。 Stagnant phlegm in the stomach, with blocked breathing, and respiration about to be cut off. [Grind] one liang of orpiment and one liang of realgar to a powder and form, with melted beeswax, pills the size of bullets. Each time ingest one pill, to be eaten with a hot gruel of glutinous rice at midnight. Ji sheng fang. 心痛吐水,不下飲食,發止不定。雌黄二兩,醋二斤,慢火煎成膏,用乾 蒸餅和丸梧子大,每服七丸,薑湯下。聖惠方。 Heart pain and vomiting of water. An inability to down beverages and food, with irregular outbreaks and remissions. Boil two liang of orpiment and two jin of vinegar over a slow fire until a paste has formed. Mix it with dry steamed cakes and form pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest seven pills, to be sent down with ginger decoction. Sheng hui fang.

482

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

婦人久冷,血氣攻心,痛不止。以葉子雌黄二兩,細研,醋一升,煎濃, 和丸小豆大,每服十五丸,醋湯下。聖惠方。 Women affected by cold for a long time, with blood and qi attacking the heart causing unending pain. Grind two liang of thin orpiment plates to a fine [powder] and boil it in one sheng of vinegar to a viscous paste to be formed to pills the size of small beans. Each time [let the patient] ingest 15 pills, to be sent down with a vinegar decoction. Sheng hui fang. 小腹痛滿。天行病,小腹滿,不得小便。雌黄末蜜丸,納尿孔中,入半 寸。肘後方。 Pain and a feeling of fullness in the abdomen. Epidemic disease of a feeling of fullness in the lower abdomen with an inability to urinate. Prepare pills with orpiment powder and honey, and insert them into the hole where the urine is supposed to be released, half a cun deep. Zhou hou fang. 癲癇瘛瘲,眼暗嚼舌。雌黄、黄丹炒各一兩,爲末,入麝香少許,以牛乳 汁半升熬成膏,和杵千下,丸麻子大。每温水服三五丸。直指方。 Peak-illness475 with epilepsy and clonic spasms, dim vision and tongue chewing. [Grind] one liang each of orpiment and roasted minium to a powder, add a small amount of musk, and simmer this with half a sheng of cow milk until a paste has formed. Pound it 1000 times and form pills the size of hemp seeds. Each time [let the patient] ingest with warm water three to five pills. Zhi zhi fang. 肺勞欬嗽。雌黄一兩,入瓦合内,不固濟,坐地上,以灰培之,厚二寸。 以炭一斤簇定,頂火煅,三分去一,退火出毒,爲末,蟾酥和丸粟米大。 每日空心杏仁湯下三丸。斗門方。 Lung exhaustion with cough. Fill one liang of orpiment into a pot made of baked clay and do not close it. Place it on the ground and cover it with a two cun thick layer of ashes. Fix the top of it with one jin of charcoal, light it and calcinate [the pot] until one third [of the charcoal] is used up. Then withdraw the fire and let the [heat] poison leave. Grind [the contents of the pot] to a powder, mix it with toadcake and form pills the size of millet grains. Each time send down on an empty stomach three pills with a decoction of apricot seeds. Dou men fang. 久嗽暴嗽。金粟丸:用葉子雌黄一兩,研,以紙筋泥固濟小合子一個,令 乾,盛藥,水調赤石脂封口,更以泥封,待乾,架在地上,炭火十斤簇 煅。候火消三分之一,去火候冷取出,當如鏡面,光明紅色。鉢内細研, 蒸餅丸粟米大。每服三丸、五丸,甘草水服。服後睡良久。勝金方。 475 Dian 顛, “peak[-illness],” also 癲, vaguely defined mental derangement. BCGM Dict I, 124.

Chapter 9

483

Chronic cough; acute cough. The “golden millet pills.” Grind one liang of thin orpiment plates [to a powder]. Seal with paper sludge a small box, let it dry and fill it with the medication [powder]. Close [the box] with a mixture of red halloysite and water, and seal it again with mud. Wait until it has dried and place it on the ground. Then calcine it with ten jin of a charcoal fire until one third of the [charcoal] is used up. Remove the fire, wait until [the medication] has cooled down and take it out. It will look like the face of a mirror with a shiny, red color. Grind it to a fine [powder] in an earthenware bowl and form with steamed cakes pills the size of millet grains. Each time [let the patient] ingest three pills or five pills, to be ingested with water in which glycyrrhiza [root] was cooked. Having ingested them [the patient] will sleep soundly for a long time. Sheng jin fang. 腎消尿數。乾薑半兩,以鹽四錢炒黄成顆,雌黄一兩半,爲末,蒸餅和丸 緑豆大,每服十丸至三十丸,空心鹽湯下。聖濟録。 Kidney melting with frequent urination. Grind half a liang of dried ginger, roasted with four qian of salt until it has turned into yellow pieces, and one and a half liang of orpiment to a powder, and prepare, with steamed cakes, pills the size of mung beans. Each time ingest ten to 30 pills. To be sent down on an empty stomach with a salt decoction. Sheng ji lu. 小便不禁。顆塊雌黄一兩半研,乾薑半兩、鹽四錢,同炒薑色黄,爲末, 水和蒸餅丸緑豆大,每服十丸至二十丸,空心鹽湯下之。經驗方。 Uncontrollable urination. Grind one and a half liang of orpiment pieces, ground [to a powder], half a liang of dried ginger and four qian of salt, roasted together until the ginger has assumed a yellow color, to a powder and form with water and steamed cakes pills the size of mung beans. Each time ingest ten to 20 pills, to be sent down on an empty stomach with a salt decoction. Jing yan fang. 烏癩蟲瘡。雌黄粉,醋和鷄子黄調,塗之。聖惠方。 Black repudiation-illness;476 sores caused by worms/bugs. Mix orpiment powder with vinegar and the yolk of chicken eggs and apply this to the [affected region]. Sheng hui fang. 牛皮頑癬。雌黄末,入輕粉,和豬膏傅之。直指方。 Stubborn ox hide xuan-illness.477 Add some calomel to orpiment powder, mix it with lard and apply this to the [affected region]. Zhi zhi fang. 476 Lai 癩, “repudiation-illness,” most likely including cases of leprosy. BCGM Dict I, 293. 477 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591.

484

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

09-09 石膏本經中品 Shi gao, FE Ben jing, middle rank. Gypsum, calcium sulphate. 【釋名】細理石别録、寒水石綱目。【震亨曰】火煅,細研醋調,封丹 竈,其固密甚於脂膏。此蓋兼質與能而得名,正與石脂同意。【時珍曰】 其文理細密,故名細理石。其性大寒如水,故名寒水石,與凝水石同名異 物。 Explanation of Names. Xi li shi 細理石, “finely structured stone/mineral,” Bie lu. Han shui shi 寒水石, “cold water stone/mineral,” Gang mu. [Zhu] Zhenheng: When it is calcined with fire, finely ground, mixed with vinegar and used to seal up an elixir furnace, its ability to achieve a tight closure is superior to that of fat. The name, then, is based on both its substance matter and its functions. The meaning is the same as that underlying [the name] shi zhi 石脂, “stone fat,” halloysite. [Li] Shizhen: The structures of its line design, wen li 文理, are very fine, xi 細, and narrow. Hence [gypsum] is called “finely structured stone/mineral,” xi li shi 細理石. Its nature is very cold, han 寒, like that of water, shui 水. Hence its name “cold water stone/mineral,” han shui shi 寒水石. This is the same [rationale of a] name as that underlying ning shui shi 凝水石, “coagulated water stone/mineral,”, but the items differ. 【集解】【别録曰】石膏生齊山山谷及齊 盧山、魯 蒙山,采無時。細理 白澤者良,黄者令人淋。【弘景曰】二郡之山,即青州、徐州也。今出錢 塘縣,皆在地中,雨後時時自出,取之如棋子,白澈最佳。彭城者亦好。 近道多有而大塊,用之不及彼也。仙經不須此。【恭曰】石膏、方解石大 體相似,而以未破爲異。今市人皆以方解代石膏,未見有真石膏也。石膏 生於石旁。其方解不因石而生,端然獨處,大者如升,小者如拳,或在土 中,或生溪水,其上皮隨土及水苔色,破之方解,大者方尺。今人以此爲 石膏,療風去熱雖同,而解肌發汗不如真者。【大明曰】石膏通亮,理如 雲母者上。又名方解石。【斅曰】凡使勿用方解石。方解雖白不透明,其 性燥。若石膏則出剡州 茗山縣 義情山,其色瑩净如水精,性良善也。【頌 曰】石膏今汾、孟、虢、耀州,興元府亦有之。生于山石上,色至瑩白, 與方解石肌理形段剛柔絶相類。今難得真者。用時惟以破之皆作方稜者, 爲方解石。今石膏中時時有瑩澈可愛有縱理而不方解者,或以爲石膏,然 據本草又似長石。或又謂青石間往往有白脉貫徹類肉之膏肪者爲石膏,此 又本草所謂理石也。不知石膏定是何物?今且依市人用方解石爾。【閻孝 忠曰】南方以寒水石爲石膏,以石膏爲寒水石,正與汴京相反,乃大誤 也。石膏潔白堅硬,有墻壁。寒水石則軟爛,以手可碎,外微青黑,中有 細文。又一種堅白全類石膏,而敲之成方者,名方解石也。【承曰】陶言

Chapter 9

485

錢塘山中雨後時自出。今錢塘人鑿山取之甚多,搗作齒藥貨用,浙人呼爲 寒水石,入藥最勝他處者。【宗奭曰】石膏紛辯不决,未悉厥理。本草只 言生齊山、盧山、蒙山,細理白澤者良,即知他處者非石膏也。【震亨 曰】本草藥之命名,多有意義,或以色,或以形,或以氣,或以質,或以 味,或以能,或以時是也。石膏固濟丹爐,苟非有膏,豈能爲用?此蓋兼 質與能而得名。昔人以方解爲石膏,誤矣。石膏味甘而辛,本陽明經藥, 陽明主肌肉。其甘也,能緩脾益氣,止渴去火。其辛也,能解肌出汗,上 行至頭,又入手太陰、手少陽。彼方解石止有體重質堅性寒而已,求其有 膏而可爲三經之主治者焉在哉?【時珍曰】石膏有軟、硬二種。軟石膏, 大塊生於石中,作層如壓扁米糕形,每層厚數寸。有紅白二色,紅者不可 服,白者潔净,細文短密如束針,正如凝成白蠟狀,鬆軟易碎,燒之即白 爛如粉。其中明潔,色帶微青而文長細如白絲者,名理石也。與軟石膏乃 一物二種,碎之則形色如一,不可辨矣。硬石膏,作塊而生,直理起稜, 如馬齒堅白,擊之則段段横解,光亮如雲母、白石英,有墻壁,燒之亦易 散,仍硬,不作粉。其似硬石膏成塊,擊之塊塊方解,墻壁光明者,名方 解石也,燒之則姹散亦不爛。與硬石膏乃一類二種,碎之則形色如一,不 可辨矣。自陶弘景、蘇恭、大明、雷斅、蘇頌、閻孝忠皆以硬者爲石膏, 軟者爲寒水石。至朱震亨始斷然以軟者爲石膏,而後人遵用有驗,千古之 惑始明矣。蓋昔人所謂寒水石者,即軟石膏也。所謂硬石膏者,乃長石 也。石膏、理石、長石、方解石四種,性氣皆寒,俱能去大熱結氣。但石 膏又能解肌發汗爲異爾。理石即石膏之類,長石即方解之類,俱可代用, 各從其類也。今人以石膏收豆腐,乃昔人所不知。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Gypsum grows in the valleys of Mount Qi shan, and also of Mount Lu shan in Qi and Mount Meng in Lu. It is collected anytime. [Gypsum] with a fine structure and white glossiness is good. Yellow [gypsum] causes [urine] dripping. [Tao] Hongjing: The mountains in the two prefectures [where gypsum is collected] are in Qing zhou and in Xu zhou. Nowadays [gypsum] originates in Qian tang xian. It is always in the ground and comes to the open after rainfalls. When it is removed, that which resembles chess pieces, white and shiny, is the best. [Gypsum] from Peng cheng is good, too. There is much in the vicinity, and the pieces are big. Still, when used [for medical purposes] it is not as good as that from elsewhere. The classics of the hermits/immortals do not approve of it. [Su] Gong: Gypsum and calcite, fang jie shi 方解石, “stone/mineral that splits into rectangular pieces,” are more or less similar, but they differ als long as they have not been broken open. Today, the people on the market always substitute calcite for gypsum. I have never seen genuine gypsum [on the market]. Gypsum grows at sites close to rocks, while calcite grows independently of rocks. Pieces [of gypsum] are found isolated at separate locations, with large ones as big as a sheng measure, and

486

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

small ones as big as a fist. They may be present in the soil or they grow in the water of mountain streams. The color of their outer coating changes corresponding to the soil or the water they are found in. When calcite is broken, large pieces are as big as a square chi. Today, the people consider them to be gypsum. They are identical [with gypsum] as far as their potential to heal wind and to remove heat are concerned, but they are not as good as genuine [gypsum] when it comes to [their ability to] relax muscles and cause sweating. Da Ming: Gypsum that is bright throughout and has structures like muscovite is best. It is also called fang jie shi 方解石, “stone/mineral that splits into rectangular pieces,” calcite. [Lei] Xiao: For all applications [of gypsum], never resort to calcite. Calcite may be white but it is not shiny and its nature is dry. The gypsum originating in Mount Yi qing in Ming shan xian, Tan zhou, is of a transparent, clear color like crystal. Its nature is good and well-suited [for therapeutic purposes]. [Su] Song: Gypsum is nowadays found in Fen, Meng, Guo and Yao zhou, and also in Xing yuan fu. It grows on mountain rocks, and its color is transparent white. It is very closely related to calcite in its structure, physical appearance and hardness. Genuine [gypsum] is difficult to obtain today. When it is at hand for use and is broken to pieces shaped like prisms, then it is calcite. Nowadays, among [wares sold as] gypsum one often finds those that are lovely transparent and shiny, that have longitudinal structures and are not calcite. Some believe that they are gypsum, but according to the Ben cao this is anhydrite. Some say that among greenish rocks one often finds [a mineral] penetrated by white veins just like layers of fat in meat and that this is gypsum. Again, this is what the Ben cao names li shi 理石, “structured stone/mineral,” (i. e., mineral gypsum). You do not know which item may be identified as gypsum? Nowadays, it is the calcite used by the people on the markets. Yan Xiaozong: In the South, they assume calcite to be gypsum, and they consider gypsum to be calcite. This is exactly opposite to the usage in Bian jing, and it is a great mistake. Gypsum is of a pure white color, it is hard and it has flat, wall-like surfaces. “Cold water stone/mineral” is soft and pappy, and can be broken with one’s fingers. Outside it is somewhat greenish-black; inside it has fine lines. There is yet another variety that is hard, completely white and similar to gypsum. If it is struck it breaks into squares. It is called fang jie shi 方解石, “stone/mineral that splits into rectangular pieces.” [Chen] Cheng: Tao [Hongjing] says that in the mountains of Qian tang it comes to the open by itself after rainfalls. Nowadays the people in Qian tang mostly dig mines into the mountains to obtain it. They pound it to tooth-like pieces and sell it as a medicinal ware. The people in Zhe call it “cold water stone/mineral.” Added to medication it is by far superior to that obtained from other places. [Kou] Zongshi: How to identify gypsum is controversial. No clear-cut criteria are available. All the Ben cao says is that [the gypsum] from Mount

Chapter 9

487

Qi shan, Mount Lu shan and Mount Meng shan with a finely structed [line design], and that is white and glossy, is good. From this it is obvious that [stones/ minerals] from other places are not gypsum. [Zhu] Zhenheng: The names of pharmaceutical substances in the Ben cao are mostly very meaningful. They may reflect [an item’s] color, its physical appearance, its qi, its substance matter, its flavor, its [therapeutic] potential, or its [gathering] time. When gypsum, shi gao, serves to firmly seal an elixir furnace, if it were not a paste, gao 膏, how could it be used for such a purpose? This is an example of a name of a [substance] reflecting both its substance matter and its potential. When in ancient times the people held calcite for gypsum, that was a mistake. The flavor of gypsum is sweet and acrid. Basically it is a medication associated with the yang brilliance conduit. The yang brilliance [sector] controls muscles and flesh. As [gypsum] is sweet, it can slow down the spleen and boost the qi. It ends thirst and eliminates fire. As it is acrid, it can relax muscles and stimulate sweating. It ascends to the head and it enters the hand major yin as well as the hand minor yang [conduits]. Calcite, in contrast, is just of a heavy substance matter, it is hard, and its nature is cold, and that is it. How could it be a paste and be in control of cures in three conduits? [Li] Shizhen: Gypsum exists in two kinds: soft and hard. Soft gypsum, these are large pieces growing in rocks. They form layers similar to squeezed rice cakes, with each layer being several cun thick. They are found in two colors, red and white. Red specimens must not be ingested. White [gypsum] is pure and has a fine and narrow line design like bundles of needles. It is reminiscent of congealed white beeswax. It is soft and easily broken to pieces. When it is heated/burned, it turns into a white pappy powder. [Gypsum] that is shiny and clean, with a color that includes some greenish, and with a long and fine line design like white silk threads, this is named “structured stone/mineral,” li shi 理石, (mineral gypsum). That is, among the one item of soft gypsum one finds two kinds. When they are broken to pieces, their physical appearances and their colors are identical, and cannot be distinguished. Hard gypsum grows in pieces. It has straight structures and rising edges. It is as hard and as white as the teeth of horses. When struck, it will break into horizontal sections. They are shiny like muscovite and quartz. They have flat, wall-like surfaces, and when heated/burned they, too, easily disperse [to pieces]. But these are hard [pieces], they do not form a powder. As the hard gypsum apparently forms pieces, which when struck divide into square plates, and because their wall-like flat surfaces are shiny, they are named “stones/minerals with rectangular layers.” When they are heated they disperse beautifully and do not become pappy. That is, among the one item of hard gypsum one finds two kinds. When broken to pieces, their physical appearances and their colors are identical. They cannot be distinguished. Since Tao Hongjing, Su Gong, Da

488

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Ming, Lei Xiao, Su Song and Yan Xiaozhong, everyone has identified hard [gypsum] as gypsum, and soft [gypsum] as “cold water stone/mineral.” Zhu Zhenheng was the first to identify soft [gypsum] as gypsum, and when later on people followed him and used it [for therapeutic purposes], it proved effective. Hence [genuine gypsum] is soft gypsum. The so-called hard gypsum is chang shi 長石, “lengthy stone/mineral.” Shi gao 石膏, “stone/mineral paste,” gypsum, li shi 理石, “structured stone/mineral,” mineral gypsum, chang shi 長石, “lengthy stone/mineral,” and fang jie shi 方解石, “stone/mineral that splits into rectangular pieces,” these four variets do all have a nature of cold qi, and they all are capable of eliminating bound qi caused by great heat. But gypsum, in addition and for a difference, can relax muscles and stimulate sweating. Li shi 理石, “structured stone/mineral,” mineral gypsum, is of the same group as gypsum. Chang shi 長石, “lengthy stone/mineral,” is of the same group as fang jie [shi] 方解[石], “stone/mineral with rectangular layers.” They may serve as substitutes, and this is always based on their group correspondences. Nowadays, the people use gypsum to preserve bean curd. This was unknown to the people in ancient times. 【修治】【斅曰】凡使,石臼中搗成粉,羅過,生甘草水飛過,澄晒篩研 用。【時珍曰】古法惟打碎如豆大,絹包入湯煮之。近人因其性寒,火煅 過用,或糖拌炒過,則不妨脾胃。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Lei] Xiao: For all [therapeutic] applications, grind [gypsum] in a stone mortar to a powder, pass it through net, prepare it by means of an aqueous sublimation with water in which unprocessed glycyrrhiza [root] was cooked, let the dregs settle, dry them in the sun, pass them through a sieve and grind them to be used. [Li] Shizhen: Ancient recipes only had [gypsum] crushed to pieces the size of beans. These were wrapped in silk and given into hot water to be boiled. More recently, because of its cold nature, the people have calcined [gypsum] over a fire before they made use of it. Or they fried it mixed with sugar lest it harm the functions of spleen and stomach. 【氣味】辛,微寒,無毒。【别録曰】甘,大寒。【好古曰】入足陽明、 手太陰、少陽經氣分。【之才曰】鷄子爲之使。惡莽草、巴豆、馬目毒 公。畏鐵。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, slightly cold, nonpoisonous. Bie lu: Sweet, very cold. [Wang] Haogu: It enters the qi section through the foot yang brilliance, the hand major yin and the minor yang conduits. [Xu] Zhicai: Chicken eggs serve as guiding substances. [Ingested together, gypsum] abhors illiceum [leaf ], croton [seeds] and dysosma root. It fears iron.

Chapter 9

489

【主治】中風寒熱,心下逆氣驚喘,口乾舌焦,不能息,腹中堅痛,除邪 鬼,産乳金瘡。本經。除時氣頭痛身熱,三膲大熱,皮膚熱,腸胃中結 氣,解𦠄發汗,止消渴,煩逆腹脹,暴氣喘息,咽熱。亦可作浴湯。别 録。治傷寒頭痛如裂,壯熱皮如火燥。和葱煎茶,去頭痛。甄權。治天行 熱狂,頭風旋,下乳,揩齒益齒。大明。除胃熱肺熱,散陰邪,緩脾益 氣。李杲。止陽明經頭痛,發熱惡寒,日晡潮熱,大渴引飲,中暑潮熱, 牙痛。元素。 Control. Wind stroke and alternating cold and heat sensations. Counterflow qi below the heart and fright with panting. Dry mouth and scorched tongue. Inability to breath. Painful hardness in the abdomen. It eliminates evil demons. [It serves to cure illnesses associated with] delivery and breast-feeding, as well as wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. Ben jing. It eliminates headache and body heat caused by seasonal qi, with massive heat present in the Triple Burner, heat in the skin, and bound qi478 in the intestines and the stomach. It relaxes muscles and stimulates sweating. It ends melting with thirst,479 unrest with [qi] counterflow and abdominal bloating, panting and breathing marked by violent qi, and throat heat. It also serves to prepare hot water for bathing. Bie lu. It serves to cure headache as if [the head] were bursting, associated with harm caused by cold, and a strong heat as if the skin were dried by fire. Boil [gypsum] mixed with onions and tea leaves to end the headache. Zhen Quan. It serves to cure epidemic heat, madness, head wind480 and vertigo. It lets down a nursing mother’s milk. Rubbed on the teeth, it boosts the teeth. Da Ming. It eliminates stomach heat and lung heat. It disperses yin evil. It slows down the spleen and boosts the qi. Li Gao. It ends headache associated with the yang brilliance conduit, with an effusion of heat and an aversion to cold, and heat waves in the late afternoon, massive thirst with an urge to drink, heat waves caused by being struck by summerheat, and toothache. [Zhang] Yuansu. 【發明】【成無己曰】風,陽邪也;寒,陰邪也。風喜傷陽,寒喜傷陰。 營衞陰陽,爲風寒所傷,則非輕劑所能獨散。必須輕重之劑同散之,乃得 陰陽之邪俱去,營衞之氣俱和。是以大青龍湯,以石膏爲使。石膏乃重 劑,而又專達肌表也。又云:熱淫所勝,佐以苦甘。知母、石膏之苦甘以 散熱。【元素曰】石膏性寒,味辛而淡,氣味俱薄,體重而沉,降也,陰 也,乃陽明經大寒之藥。善治本經頭痛牙痛,止消渴、中暑、潮熱。然能 478 Jie qi 結氣, “bound qi,” refers to pathological qi halting and congealing at any place in the human body. BCGM Dict I, 240. 479 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567. 480 Tou feng 頭風, “head wind,” is wind evil attacking the head followed by pain, or dizziness, or itching. BCGM Dict I, 509.

490

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

寒胃,令人不食,非腹有極熱者,不宜輕用。又陽明經中熱,發熱惡寒, 燥熱,日晡潮熱,肌肉壯熱,小便濁赤,大渴引飲,自汗,苦頭痛之藥, 仲景用白虎湯是也。若無以上諸證,勿服之。多有血虚發熱象白虎證,及 脾胃虚勞,形體病證,初得之時,與此證同。醫者不識而誤用之,不可勝 救也。【杲曰】石膏,足陽明藥也。故仲景治傷寒陽明證,身熱、目痛、 鼻乾、不得卧。身以前,胃之經也。胸前,肺之室也。邪在陽明,肺受火 制,故用辛寒以清肺氣,所以有白虎之名。又治三膲皮膚大熱,入手少陽 也。凡病脉數不退者,宜用之。胃弱者,不可用。【宗奭曰】孫兆言,四 月以後天氣熱時,宜用白虎。但四方氣候不齊,歲中運氣不一,亦宜兩 審。其説甚雅。【時珍曰】東垣 李氏云,立夏前多服白虎湯者,令人小 便不禁,此乃降令太過也。陽明津液不能上輸于肺,肺之清氣亦復下降故 爾。初虞世古今録驗方,治諸蒸病有五蒸湯,亦是白虎加人參、伏苓、地 黄、葛根,因病加减。王燾外臺秘要治骨蒸勞熱久嗽,用石膏文如束鍼者 一斤,粉甘草一兩,細研如麪,日以水調三四服。言其無毒有大益,乃養 命上藥,不可忽其賤而疑其寒。名醫録言,睦州 楊寺丞女,病骨蒸内熱外 寒,衆醫不瘥,處州 吴醫用此方而體遂凉。愚謂此皆少壯肺胃火盛,能食 而病者言也。若衰暮及氣虚血虚胃弱者,恐非所宜。廣濟 林訓導年五十, 病痰嗽發熱。或令單服石膏藥至一斤許,遂不能食,而欬益頻,病益甚, 遂至不起。此蓋用藥者之瞀瞀也,石膏何與焉。楊士瀛云:石膏煅過,最 能收瘡暈,不至爛肌。按劉跂錢乙傳云:宗室子病嘔泄,醫用温藥加喘。 乙曰:病本中熱,奈何以剛劑燥之,將不得前後溲,宜與石膏湯。宗室與 醫皆不信。後二日果來召。乙曰:仍石膏湯證也。竟如言而愈。又按古方 所用寒水石,是凝水石;唐 宋以來諸方所用寒水石,即今之石膏也,故寒 水石諸方多附于後。近人又以長石、方解石爲寒水石,不可不辨之。 Explication. Cheng Wuji: Wind is a yang evil. Cold is a yin evil. Wind prefers to cause harm to yang; cold prefers to cause harm to yin. When camp [qi] and guardian [qi], as they are yin [qi] and yang [qi, respectively], are harmed by wind and cold, then it will be impossible to simply disperse them with some light [medicinal] preparation. They must be dispersed with light and heavy preparations at the same time, and this way both yin and yang evil [qi] can be removed together, so that both camp and guardian qi return to harmony. Hence the “major greenish dragon decoction”481 is administered with gypsum as a guiding substance. Gypsum is a heavy preparation that specifically advances to the outer muscle region. It is also stated: In the case of excessive heat, [medication] is to be assisted by bitter and sweet [flavors]. The bitter and sweet [flavors] of anemarrhena [root] and gypsum serve to disperse heat. [Zhang] Yuansu: The nature of gypsum is cold. Its flavor is acrid and bland. 481 Ingredients include: Ephedra [herb], cinnamomum cassia twigs; glycyrrhiza root, bitter apricot seeds, fresh ginger and gypsum.

Chapter 9

491

Both its qi and its flavor are weak, but its physical body is heavy and sinks into the depth. To descend is a yin [quality]. [Gypsum] is a medication for massive cold in the yang brilliance conduit, and it is well suited for curing headache and toothache associated with this conduit. It ends melting with thirst,482 being struck by summerheat and heat waves. But it is also able to cool the stomach and prevent one from eating. If these are not cases of extreme abdominal heat, it must not be used lightly. It is also a medication for the yang brilliance conduit being struck by heat, with heat effusion and an aversion to cold, dryness and heat, heat waves in the late afternoon, strong heat affecting the muscles and the flesh, turbid and red urin, massive thirst with an urge to drink, spontaneous sweating, and suffering from headache, as made use of by [Zhang] Zhongjing in his “white tiger decoction.”483 The disease signs of spleen and stomach depletion exhaustion affecting the body in their early stages are identical to the signs listed above. When physicians are not knowledgable and erroneously use the [white tiger decoction], it will be impossible to rescue [a patient]. [Li] Gao: Gypsyum is a medication associated with the foot yang brilliance [conduit]. Hence [it is recommended by Zhang] Zhongjing for curing disease signs of harm caused by cold affecting the yang brilliance [conduit], such as body heat, painful eyes, dry nose and inability to sleep. The front of the body is where the conduit of the stomach is located. The front of the chest, this is the lung chamber. When evil [qi] are present in the yang brilliance [conduit], the lung is affected by a heat impact and hence [substances, like gypsum, with] acrid [flavor] and cold [qi] serve to cool the lung qi. Hence [the decoction with gypsum recommended by Zhang Zhongjing] is called “white tiger.” It also serves to cure massive heat in the Triple Burner and the skin that has entered the hand minor yang [conduit]. It is advisable to use it for all diseases with a frequent [movement in the] vessels that fails to recede. It must not be resorted to for [treating patients with] a weak stomach. [Kou] Zongshi: Sun Zhao says: “When after the fourth month the heavenly qi are hot, it is advisable to resort to the white tiger [decoction]. However, the climates in the four cardinal directions differ, and in the course of a year, the [five] periods and [six] qi are not identical. Hence these two [factors] are to be examined, too.” This statement [by Sun Zhao] is very much to the point. [Li] Shizhen: Mr. Li Dongyuan states: If one, prior to the solar term Summer Begins (May 5) ingests much “white tiger decoction,” this will cause that person to suffer from uncontrollable urination, as this has too strong a downward discharging effect, because the yang brilliance fluids are unable to rise to the lung and the clear lung qi, in turn, are stimulated 482 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567. 483 Ingredients include: Gypsum, anemarrhena root, glycyrrhiza root and nonglutinous rice.

492

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

to descend. Chu Yushi in his Gu jin lu yan fang [recommends to] cure all types of steaming heat disease with the “decoction for five types of steaming heat.” This is a “white tiger decoction” with ginseng [root], poria, Chinese foxglove [rhizome] and pueraria root added if such modification is required by the individual illness. Wang Tao in his Wai tai mi yao [recommends to] “cure bone steaming with exhaustion heat and long-lasting cough [as follows]. Finely grind one jin of gypsum with a line design resembling a bundle of needles and one liang of powder-rich glycyrrhiza [root] to a powder like flour and [let the patient] ingest it three to four times a day mixed with water.” He says: “This is without poison but with major benefit; it is a superior medication nourishing life. It must not be overlooked because it is so cheap, and its cold [nature] must not be doubted.” The Ming yi lu says: “In Mu zhou, the daughter of Yang Shicheng suffered from bone steaming with internal heat and a sensation of cold outside. No physician was able to cure her. Eventually a physician Wu of Chu zhou applied this recipe and her body cooled down as a result.” My remark on this is: [Such a therapy] is applicable to young and strong patients whose lung and stomach are filled with fire, and who can still eat. If they are weak and nearing the end of life, with qi depletion, blood depletion and a weak stomach, for them, I fear, it is not advisable. In Guang ji, Lin Xundao, aged 50, suffered from phlegm cough with heat effusion. Someone let him ingest about one jin of gypsum as a single substance medication. As a result, he was unable to eat, and his cough increased. His disease worsened and eventually he was unable to rise. This is an example of blindness of those who apply medication. There is no reason to blame the gypsum. Yang Shiying states: “When gypsum is calcined, it is very much able to decrease the [reddish] halo surrounding sores/wounds and to prevent the muscles from rotting.” According to Liu Qi’s Qian Yi zhuan, “a prince of the imperial clan suffered from vomiting and outflow. When a physician advised to use a warm medication, he suffered from panting in addition. [Qian] Yi said: ‘The basis of his disease is central heat. How could anyone resort to a preparation only serving to dry him?! He will no longer be able to defecate and urinate’. Neither the family nor the physician believed him. Two days later he was summoned to come. [Qian] Yi said: ‘This is a disease sign [to be cured with] gypsum’. Eventually they did as he said and [the patient] was cured.” Also, the “cold water stone/mineral” used in ancient recipes is the “congealed water stone/mineral.” The “cold water stone/mineral” often resorted to in all types of recipes since the Tang and the Song dynasties is today’s gypsum. Hence all types of recipes with “cold water stone/mineral” are added here below. Today, the people assume “lengthy stone/mineral” and “stone/mineral that splits into rectangular pieces” to be “cold water stone/mineral.” It is essential to distinguish among them.

Chapter 9

493

【附方】舊四,新二十五。 Added Recipes. Four of old. 25 newly [recorded]. 傷寒發狂,踰垣上屋。寒水石二錢,黄連一錢,爲末。煎甘草冷服,名鵲 石散。本事方。 Harm caused by cold with an outbreak of madness. [Patients] climbing on walls and mounting the roof of a house. [Grind] two qian of gypsum and one qian of coptis [rhizome] to a powder. Boil it with glycyrrhiza [root] and [let the patient] ingest this cold. This is called “the powder with a magpie stone/mineral.” Ben shi fang. 風熱心躁,口乾狂言,渾身壯熱。寒水石半斤,燒半日,净地坑内盆合, 四面濕土擁起,經宿取出,入甘草末、天竺黄各二兩,龍腦二分,糯米糕 丸彈子大,蜜水磨下。集驗方。 Heart restlessness caused by wind and heat, with a dry mouth and mad talking, and strong heat affecting the entire body. Heat half a jin of gypsum for half a day and place it, in a box, into a clean pit dug in the ground. Cover it on all four sides with moist soil. After one night, remove it and add two liang each of glycyrrhiza [root] powder and tabashee, and two fen of borneol, and form with glutinous rice pills the size of bullets, to be ingested rubbed in honey water. Ji jian fang. 解中諸毒。方同上。 To resolve all types of poisoning. Recipe identical to the one above. 乳石發渴。寒水石一塊含之,以瘥爲度。聖濟録。 Thirst resulting from stalactite mineral [poison]. Hold one piece of gypsum in the mouth until a healing is achieved. Sheng ji lu. 男女陰毒。寒水石不拘多少爲末,用兩餾飯搗丸栗子大,日乾,每用一 丸,炭火煅紅燒研,以滚酒調服,飲葱醋湯投之,得汗愈。蔡氏經驗必用 方。 Males and females affected by yin poison. [Grind] any amount of gypsum to a powder, grind it together with rice steamed twice and form pills the size of chestnuts. Dry them under the sun and each time use one pill. Calcine them over a charcoal fire until they are red, burn them and grind [the residue to a powder] to be ingested mixed with boiling wine. Send it down by drinking a decoction prepared with onions and vinegar. Once [the patient] sweats, a cure is achieved. Cai shi, Jing yan bi yong fang.

494

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

小兒丹毒。寒水石末一兩,和水塗之。集玄方。 Cinnabar poison484 affecting children. Apply one liang of gypsum mixed with water to the [affected region]. Ji xuan fang. 小兒身熱。石膏一兩,青黛一錢,爲末,糕糊丸龍眼大,每服一丸,燈心 湯化下。普濟方。 Body heat of children. [Grind] one liang of gypsum and one qian of natural indigo to a powder and form, with steamed cakes, pills the size of dimocarpus fruit]. Each time [let the patient] ingest one pill, to be sent down dissolved in a decoction of rushes. Pu ji fang. 骨蒸勞病。外寒内熱,附骨而蒸也。其根在五臟六腑之中,必因患後得 之。骨肉日消,飲食無味,或皮燥而無光。蒸盛之時,四肢漸細,足趺腫 起。石膏十兩,研如乳粉,水和服方寸匕,日再,以身凉爲度。外臺秘要。 The disease of bone steaming and exhaustion. With a sensation of cold on the outside and of heat inside, and a steaming heat adjacent to bones. The root lies in the five long-term depots and six short-term repositories. This [disease] must have been acquired as a follow-up to some suffering [from another disease]. The flesh dissolves daily, beverages and food are tasteless. Or the skin is dry and has no luster. At times of a maximum of steaming, the four limbs are increasingly emaciated, with swelling rising on the insteps of the feet. Grind ten liang of gypsum to something like a milk powder and [let the patient] ingest mixed with water the amount held by a square cun spoon. Twice a day, until the body has cooled Wai tai mi yao. 熱盛喘嗽。石膏二兩,甘草炙半兩,爲末,每服三錢,生薑、蜜調下。普 濟方。 Maximum heat with panting and cough. [Grind] two liang of gypsum and half a liang of roasted glycyrrhiza [root] to a powder. Each time ingest three qian, to be sent down mixed with fresh ginger and honey. Pu ji fang. 痰熱喘嗽,痰涌如泉。石膏、寒水石各五錢,爲末,每人參湯服三錢。保 命集。 Panting and cough with phlegm and heat, with phlegm gushing as if there were a spring. [Grind] five qian each of gypsum and “cold water stone/mineral,” to a powder. Each time ingest with a ginseng [root] decoction three qian. Bao ming ji.

484 Dan du 丹毒, “cinnabar poison,” a skin ailment with red rashes. BCGM Dict I, 118

Chapter 9

495

食積痰火。瀉肺火胃火,白石膏火煅,出火毒,半斤,爲末,醋糊丸梧子 大,每服四五十丸,白湯下。丹溪方。 Food accumulation and phlegm fire. To drain the lung fire and the stomach fire, [grind] half a jin of white gypsum, calcined in fire and with the fire poison left, to a powder and form, with vinegar and dough, pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest 40 to 50 pills, to be sent down with clear hot water. Dan xi fang. 胃火牙疼。好軟石膏一兩,火煅,淡酒淬過,爲末,入防風、荆芥、細 辛、白芷485五分,爲末,日用揩牙,甚效。保壽堂方。 Stomach fire and toothache. Calcine one liang of good quality soft gypsum in a fire, dip it into thin wine and [grind it to a] powder. Add five fen [each] of saposhnikovia root, schizonepeta [spike], asarum heteropoides root and angelica [root] and grind [all this together to a] powder. Use this to daily rub the teeth. Very effective. Bao ming tang fang. 老人風熱,内熱,目赤頭痛,視不見物。石膏三兩,竹葉五十片,沙糖一 兩,粳米三合,水三大盞,煎石膏、竹葉,去滓,取二盞,煮粥入糖食。 養老方。 Affection of old persons by wind and heat, with internal heat, red eyes and headache, and an inability to see items clearly. [Required are] three liang of gypsum, 50 bamboo leaves, one liang of sugar and three ge of glutinous rice. Boil the gypsum and the bamboo leaves in as much water als fills three large cups and remove the dregs. Take as much as fills two cups [of the liquid, add the glutinous rice] and boil this to a congee to be consumed with the sugar. Yang lao fang. 風邪眼寒。乃風入頭,係敗血凝滯,不能上下流通,故風寒客之而眼寒 也。石膏煅二兩,川芎二兩,甘草炙半兩,爲末,每服一錢,葱白、茶湯 調下,日二服。宣明方。 A sensation of cold in the eyes caused by wind evil. When wind has entered the head, the tie [of the eyes to the brain] is damaged and the blood has congealed and stagnates, unable to flow upward or downward. Hence wind and cold visit the [eyes] and the eyes have a sensation of cold. [Grind] two liang of calcined gypsum, two liang of ligusticum [root[ and half a liang of roasted glycyrrhiza [root] to a powder and each time ingest one qian, to be sent down mixed with a decoction of onions and tea [leaves]. To be ingested twice a day. Xuan ming fang.

485 Following 白芷 the character ge各, “each,” appears to be missing.

496

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

頭風涕淚,疼痛不已,方同上。 Head wind486 with sneezing and tears and unending pain. Recipe identical to the one above. 鼻衄頭痛,心煩。石膏、牡蠣各一兩,爲末,每新汲水服二錢,并滴鼻 内。普濟方。 Nosebleed and headache, with heart unrest. [Grind] one liang each of gypsum and oyster shells to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest with newly drawn water two qian. Also, drip [the liquid] into [the patient’s] nose. Pu ji fang. 筋骨疼痛因風熱者。石膏三錢,飛羅麪七錢,爲末,水和煅紅,冷定,滚 酒化服,被蓋取汗,連服三日,即除根。筆峰雜興。 When sinews and bones ache because of wind and heat. [Grind] three qian of gypsum and seven qian of wheat flour from outside the sifter to a powder, mix it with water and calcine it until it is red. Wait until it has cooled to form a stable mass, boil it in wine to have it dissolved and [let the patient] ingest this. [The patient] is to be covered with a quilt to let him sweat. [The medication] is to be ingested for three consecutive days. This will eliminate the root [of the disease]. Bifeng, Za xing. 雀目夜昏,百治不效。石膏末每服一錢,猪肝一片薄批,摻藥在上纏定, 沙瓶煮熟,切食之,一日一服。明目方。 Sparrow eyes and night blindness, with hundreds of therapies remaining without an effect. [Have] the patient ingest one qian of gypsum powder. Cut a pig’s liver into thin slices and apply the [gypsum powder] medication to them. Then wrap them firmly with a string and boil them in a pottery vase until done. Cut them and eat all of them within one single day. Ming mu fang. 濕温多汗,妄言煩渴。石膏、炙甘草等分爲末,每服二錢匕,漿水調下。 龐安時傷寒論。 Moist warmth with profuse sweating, mad talking, unrest and thirst. [Grind] equal amounts of gypsum and roasted glycyrrhiza [root] to a powder. Each time ingest the amount held by two qian spoons, to be sent down mixed with fermented water of foxtail millet. Pang Anshi, Shang han lun. 小便卒數,非淋,令人瘦。石膏半斤搗碎,水一斗,煮五升,每服五合。 肘後方。

486 Tou feng 頭風, “head wind,” is wind evil attacking the head followed by pain, or dizziness, or itching. BCGM Dict I, 509.

Chapter 9

497

Sudden onset of frequent urination. This is not a case of dripping [urine]; it leads to one’s emaciation. Pound half a jin of gypsum to pieces and boil them in one dou of water down to five sheng. Each time ingest five ge. Zhou hou fang. 小兒吐瀉。黄色者,傷熱也。玉露散:用石膏、寒水石各五錢,生甘草二 錢半,爲末,滚湯調服一錢。錢乙小兒方。 Vomiting and outflow of children. When they have assumed a yellow color, this is a case of harm caused by heat. The “jade and dew powder.” [Grind] five qian each of gypsum and “cold water stone/mineral,” and two and a half qian of unprocessed glycyrrhiza [root] to a powder, boil it in clear water and [let the patient] ingest one qian of the decoction. Qian Yi, Xiao er fang. 水瀉腹鳴如雷有火者。石膏火煅,倉米飯和丸梧子大,黄丹爲衣,米飲下 二十丸。不二服,效。李樓奇方。 Watery outflow with thunderclap-like sounds in the intestines, and the presence of fire. Calcine gypsum with fire and mix it with cooked rice from a granary to form pills the size of wu seeds, with a minium coating. 20 pills are to be sent down with a rice beverage. One single ingestion will result in an effect. Li Lou qi fang. 乳汁不下。石膏三兩,水二升,煮三沸,三日飲盡,妙。子母秘録。 When a nursing mother’s milk sap fails to be discharged. Boil three liang of gypsum in two sheng of water three times to bubbling and [have the woman] drink all of it within three days. Wondrous. Zi mu mi lu. 婦人乳癰。一醉膏:用石膏煅紅,出火毒,研,每服三錢,温酒下,添酒 盡醉。睡覺,再進一服。陳日華經驗方。 Breast obstruction-illness487 of women. The “paste of a single intoxification.” Calcine gypsum until it has turned red. Wait for the fire poison to leave. Grind [it to a powder] and [have the woman] each time ingest three qian, to be sent down with warm wine. [In addition, have the woman] drink as much boiled wine as is required until she is intoxicated and falls asleep. Once she has woken up again, have her ingest this [medication] once more. Chen Rihua, Jing yan fang. 油傷火灼,痛不可忍。石膏末傅之,良。梅師方。 Harm caused by [hot] oil, and burns by fire, with an unbearable pain. Apply gypsum powder to the [affected region]. Good. Mei shi fang.

487 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641.

498

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

金瘡出血。寒水石、瀝青等分,爲末,乾摻,勿經水。積德堂方。 Bleeding wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. [Grind] equal amounts of gypsum and bitumen to a powder, dry it and apply this [to the affected region]. Do not expose [the wound] to water. Ji de tang fang. 刀瘡傷濕,潰爛不生肌。寒水石煅一兩,黄丹二錢,爲末,洗敷。甚者加 龍骨一錢,孩兒茶一錢。積德堂方。 A wound caused by a knife, now harmed by moisture. It festers and fails to grow muscles. [Grind] one liang of calcined gypsum and two qian of minium to a powder. Wash [the affected region] and apply [the powder]. In severe cases, add one qian of dragon bones and one qian of catechu. Ji de tang fang. 瘡口不歛。生肌肉,止疼痛,去惡水。寒水石燒赤,研,二兩,黄丹半 兩,爲末,摻之。名紅玉散。和劑局方。 Failure of an open wound to close. This serves to generate muscle flesh, ends pain and removes malign water. [Grind] two liang of gypsum, heated until it has turned red and ground, and half a liang of minium to a powder and apply this to the [affected region]. This is called “red jade powder.” He ji ju fang. 口瘡咽痛,上膈有熱。寒水石煅三兩,朱砂三錢半,腦子半字,爲末摻 之。三因方。 Oral sores and painful throat, with heat above the diaphragm region. [Grind] three liang of calcined gypsum, three and a half qian of cinnabar and half a zi of camphora to a powder and apply this to the [affected region]. San yin fang.

【附録】 Appendix 09-09-A01 玉火石。Yu huo shi. Jade fire stone 【頌曰】密州九仙山東南隅地中,出一種石,青白而脆,擊之内有火,謂 之玉火石。彼醫用之。其味甘、微辛,温。療傷寒發汗,止頭目昏眩痛, 功與石膏等,土人以當石膏用之。 [Su] Song: From within the earth of the south-eastern slope of Mount Jiu xian shan in Mi zhou, a variety of stones originates that is greenish-white and brittle. When it is struck, fire [is released from] inside. It is called Jade fire stone. The physicians there use it. Its flavor is sweet and slightly acrid, and [its qi are] warm. It serves to

Chapter 9

499

heal harm caused by cold with sweating, and it ends painful clouding with dizziness affecting the head and the eyes. Its [therapeutic] potential is identical to that of gypsum. The local people use it instead of gypsum. 09-09-A02 龍石膏。Long shi gao. Dragon stone paste. Variety of gypsum. 【别録 有名未用曰】無毒,主消渴,益壽。生杜陵,如鐵脂中黄。 Bie lu, section “known by name but out of use:” Nonpoisonous. It controls melting with thirst.488 It boosts longevity. That originating in Du ling resembles the yellow [substance] inside of iron fat.489 09-10 理石本經中品 Li shi, FE Ben jing, middle rank. Structured stone. Fibrous gypsum. Alabaster. Calcium sulphate anhydrite. 【釋名】肌石别録、立制石本經。【時珍曰】理石即石膏之順理而微硬有 肌者,故曰理石、肌石。【弘景曰】仙經時須,呼爲長理石。石膽一名立 制,今此又名立制,疑必相亂。 Explanation of Names. Ji shi 肌石, “stone with a muscle [structure],” Bie lu. Li zhi shi 立制石, Ben jing. [Li] Shizhen: “Structured stone” is a variety of gypsum that has muscle[-like], ji 肌, parallel structures, li 理, and minimal hardness. Hence it is called “structured stone,” li shi 理石 and “stone with a muscle [structure],” ji shi 肌石. [Tao] Hongjing: The classics of the hermits/immortals every now and then require [its use], and they call it the “stone with lengthy structures,” chang li shi 長 理石. An alternative name of chalcanthite, shi dan 石膽, is li zhi 立制. Nowadays, the [substance li shi 理石] is also called li zhi 立制. This may have led to some confusion. 【集解】【别録曰】理石如石膏,順理而細,生漢中山谷及盧山,采無 時。【弘景曰】漢中屬梁州,盧山屬青州。今出寧州。俗用亦稀。【恭 曰】此石夾兩石間如石脉,打用之,或在土中重叠而生。皮正赤,肉白, 作鍼理文,全不似石膏。市人或刮削去皮,以代寒水石,并以當礜石,並 是假僞。今盧山亦無此物,見出襄州西汎水側。【宗奭曰】理石如長石。 但理石如石膏,順理而細。其非順理而細者,爲長石。療體亦不相遠。 488 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567. 489 Iron fat: An unidentifiable, yellow substance.

500

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【時珍曰】理石即石膏中之長文細直如絲而明潔,色帶微青者。唐人謂石 膏爲寒水石,長石爲石膏,故蘇恭言其不似石膏也。此石與軟石膏一類二 色,亦可通用,詳石膏下。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Fibrous gypsum, li shi 理石, like gypsum, shi gao 石膏, has parallel structures, but they are finer. It grows in the mountain valleys of Han zhong and of Mount Lu shan. It is collected anytime. [Tao] Hongjing: Han zhong belongs to Liang zhou. Mount Lu shan belongs to Qing zhou. Nowadays, fibrous gypsum originates in Ning zhou. It is used only rarely [for therapeutic purposes]. [Su] Gong: This stone/mineral is situated between two [layers of other] stones/minerals, like stone/mineral vessels, and to prepare it for [therapeutic] use it is struck [out of its environment]. Or it grows in the soil in repeated layers. It has a genuinely red skin and a white meat with a line design of needle-like structures. It does not resemble gypsum at all. Some of the market traders remove its skin and substitute [fibrous gypsum] for “cold water stones/minerals”/gypsum, and also for arsenolite. In both cases, these are fakes. Nowadays, this item is no longer present in Mount Lu shan. It occurs west of Xiang zhou, at the side of the river Fan shui. [Kou] Zongshi: Li shi 理石 resembles chang shi 長石. However, li shi 理石 [also] resembles gypsum but with finer parallel structures. That which does not have such fine parallel structures is chang shi 長石. In their therapeutic potentials, [these substances] are not distant from each other. [Li] Shizhen: Li shi 理石 is among the [kinds of ] gypsum. It has a lengthy, fine and straight line design, like silk threads, and is shiny and clean. Its color includes some slight greenish tones. The people of Tang times called gypsum “cold water stone/mineral,” and they called chang shi 長 石 “gypsum.” This is why Su Gong said that it does not resemble gypsum at all. This stone/mineral is identical to soft gypsum, but their colors differ. Still, they can be used as mutual substitutes in all respects. For details, see under “gypsum.” 【氣味】甘,寒,無毒。【别録曰】大寒。【之才曰】滑石爲之使,惡麻 黄。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, cold, nonpoisonous. Bie lu: Very cold. [Xu] Zhicai: Talc serves as its guiding substance. [Ingested together,] it abhors ephedra [herb]. 【主治】身熱,利胃解煩,益精明目,破積聚,去三蟲。本經。除營衞中 去來大熱結熱,解煩毒,止消渴及中風痿痺。别録。漬酒服,療癖,令人 肥悦。蘇恭。 Control. Body heat. It frees the passage through the stomach and resolves unrest. It boosts the essence/sperm and clears the eyes. It breaks open accumulations and collections, and eliminates the three types of worms/bugs. Ben jing. It removes massive

Chapter 9

501

heat and bound heat490 coming and going with the camp [qi] and the guardian [qi]. It resolves unrest and poison, ends melting with thirst491 and being struck by wind resulting in dysfunction and blockage. Bie lu. Ingested saturated with wine it heals aggregation-illness, and lets one become fat and appear happy. Su Gong.

【附録】 Appendix 09-10-A01 白肌石。Bai ji shi. White muscles stone. 【别録 有名未用曰】味辛,無毒。主强筋骨,止渴不飢,陰熱不足。一名 肌石,一名洞石,生廣 卷山青石間。【時珍曰】按此即理石也,其形名氣 味主療皆同。 Bie lu, section: “Known by name but not in use”: Acrid flavor. Nonpoisonous. It controls strengthening of sinews and bones. It ends thirst and prevents hunger. [It serves to cure] heat in the yin [section] with insufficient [yin qi]. Alternative name: ji shi 肌石, “muscle stone,” and dong shi 洞石, “cave stone.” It grows between greenish stones/minerals on Mount Juan shan in Guang. [Li] Shizhen: In view of this, it is “structured stone,” li shi 理石 (fibrous gypsum). Its physical appearance, qi and flavor, control and healing [potential] are all identical. 09-11. 長石本經中品 Chang shi, FE Ben jing, middle rank. Lengthy stone. Feldspar. Anhydrite. 【釋名】方石本經、直石别録、土石别録、硬石膏綱目。 Explanation of Names. Fang shi 方石, “rectangular stone/mineral,” Ben jing. Zhi shi 直石, “straight stone/mineral,” Bie lu. Tu shi 土石, “soil stone/mineral,” Bie lu. Ying shi gao 硬石膏, “hard gypsum,” Gang mu. 【集解】【别録曰】長石,理如馬齒,方而潤澤,玉色。生長子山谷及太 山、臨淄,采無時。【弘景曰】長子縣屬上黨,臨淄縣屬青州。俗方、仙 490 Jie re 結熱, “bound heat,” refers to repletion evil brought about by heat that has intruded into the body where it blocks the qi mechanism or coagulates with other types of evil qi. BCGM Dict I, 252. 491 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567.

502

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

經並無用此者。【恭曰】此石狀同石膏而厚大,縱理而長,文似馬齒。今 均州 遼坂山有之,土人以爲理石。【頌曰】今惟潞州有之,如蘇恭所説。 按本經理石、長石二物,味效亦别。又云:理石似石膏,順理而細。陶隱 居言,亦呼爲長理石。今靈寶丹用長理石爲一物。醫家相承用者,乃似石 膏,與今潞州所出長石無異,而諸郡無復出理石者,醫方亦不見單用,往 往呼長石爲長理石。【時珍曰】長石即俗呼硬石膏者,狀似軟石膏而塊不 扁,性堅硬潔白,有粗理,起齒稜,擊之則片片横碎,光瑩如雲母、白石 英,亦有墻壁似方解石,但不作方塊爾。燒之亦不粉爛而易散。方解燒之 亦然,但姹聲爲異爾。昔人以此爲石膏,又以爲方解,今人以此爲寒水 石,皆誤矣。但與方解乃一類二種,故亦名方石,氣味功力相同,通用無 妨。唐 宋諸方所用石膏,多是此石,昔醫亦以取效,則亦可與石膏通用, 但不可解肌發汗耳。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: The structures of anhydrite’s [line design] resemble the teeth of horses. [Pieces of anhydrite] are rectangular and have a moist glossiness, with the color of jade. They are present in the valleys of Mount Chang zi, as well as in Mount Tai shan and Lin zi. They are collected anytime. [Tao] Hongjing: Chang zi xian belongs to Shang dang. Lin zi xian belongs to Qing zhou. This item is used neither in common recipes nor in the classics of hermits/immortals. [Su] Gong: This stone/mineral’s shape is identical to that of gypsum, but it is thicker and bigger, has longitudinal structures and is lengthy. The line design resembles the teeth of horses. Nowadays, anhydrite occurs on Mount Liao ban in Xun zhou. The local people consider it to be li shi 理石, fibrous gypsum. [Su] Song: Nowadays it occurs only in Lu zhou, just as Su Gong has said. According to the Ben jing, li shi 理石, fibrous gypsum, and chang shi 長石, anhydrite, are two different items, with their flavors and [therapeutic] effects differing, too. It is also stated: Li shi 理石, fibrous gypsum, is similar to gypsum, but has finer parallel structures. Tao Yinju says: “It is also called “stone/mineral with lengthy structures,” chang li shi 長理石.” Today, fibrous gypsum is the only substance required for the “miraculous treasure elixir,” and the physicians resort to it, one after another. It is similar to gypsum, and it is not different from the anhydrite nowadays originating in Lu zhou. Since no region whatsoever brings forth fibrous gypsum, it does not appear in medical recipes as a single substance any longer. Often anhydrite is called fibrous gypsum. [Li] Shizhen: Anhydrite is commonly called “hard gypsum.” Its shape resembles that of soft gypsum, but its pieces are not flat. By its nature it is hard and clean-white. It has a rough structure, with edges rising like teeth. When struck, they break to many horizontal pieces with a shine and luster like muscovite or quartz. Also, they have wall-like flat surfaces resembling “rectangular layers stones/minerals,” calcite, but [when broken] they do not form rectangular pieces. Also, when heated they

Chapter 9

503

do not form a pappy powder that disperses easily. Calcite, when heated, reacts the same way, but the sounds they make differ. The ancient people held it to be gypsum, and they also held it to be calcite. Nowadays, the people assume [anhydrite] to be “cold water stone/mineral.” All these assumptions are erroneous. [Anhydrite] and calcite belong to the same group, but are two kinds. Hence [anhydrite] is also called “rectangular stone/mineral.” Their flavors and [therapeutic] potentials are identical; they penetrate everywhere and are hindered nowhere. During the Tang and Song dynasties, the “gypsum” [recommended for] use in all types of recipes was mostly this stone/mineral [anhydrite] and when ancient physicians resorted to it it had a [therapeutic] effect. Hence, it, too, can be used like gypsum in all regards but it is unable to relax muscles and stimulate sweating. 【氣味】辛、苦,寒,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, bitter, cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】身熱,胃中結氣,四肢寒厥,利小便,通血脉,明目去瞖眇,下 三蟲,殺蠱毒。久服不饑。本經。止消渴,下氣,除脇肋肺間邪氣。别録。 Control. Body heat. Bound qi492 in the stomach. The four limbs being cold with [yang qi] recession. It frees the passage of urine, penetrates the blood vessels, clears the eyes and removes shades, discharges the three types of worms/bugs and kills the poison of gu.493 Ingested over a long time it lets one not become hungry. Ben jing. It ends melting with thirst,494 discharges qi, and removes evil qi situated in the region of flanks, ribs and lung. Bie lu.

492 Jie qi 結氣, “bound qi,” refers to pathological qi halting and congealing at any place in the human body. BCGM Dict I, 240. 493 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191. 494 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567.

504

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

09-12. 方解石别録下品 Fang jie shi, FE Bie lu, lower rank. Stone/mineral splitting into rectangular pieces. Calcspar. Chalk. Calcite. 【釋名】黄石。【志曰】敲破,塊塊方解,故以爲名。 Explanation of Names. Huang shi 黄石, “yellow stone/mineral.” [Ma] Zhi: When [calcite] is struck, it splits, jie 解, into many rectangular pieces, fang 方. Hence its name [fang jie shi 方解石, “stone/mineral that splits into rectangular pieces.”] 【集解】【别録曰】方解石生方山,采無時。【弘景曰】本經長石一名方 石,療體相似,疑即此也。【恭曰】此物大體與石膏相似,不附石而生, 端然獨處。大者如升,小者如拳,甚大者方尺。或在土中,或生溪水,其 上皮隨土及水苔色,破之方解。今人以爲石膏用,療風去熱雖同,而解肌 發汗不及也。【志曰】今沙州 大鳥山出者佳。【頌曰】方解石本草言生方 山。陶隱居疑與長石爲一物,蘇恭云療熱不减石膏。若然,似可通用,但 主頭風不及石膏也。其肌理形段剛柔皆同,但以附石不附石爲言,豈得功 力頓異?如雌黄、雄黄亦有端然獨處者,亦有附石生者,不聞别有名號, 功力相異也。【時珍曰】方解石與硬石膏相似,皆光潔如白石英,但以敲 之段段片碎者爲硬石膏,塊塊方稜者爲方解石,蓋一類二種,亦可通用。 唐 宋諸方皆以此爲石膏,今人又以爲寒水石,雖俱不是,而其性寒治熱之 功,大扺不相遠,惟解肌發汗不能如硬石膏爲異耳。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Calcite grows in Mount Fang shan. It is collected anytime. [Tao] Hongjing: The “lengthy stone/mineral” listed in the Ben jing is also named fang shi 方石, “rectangular stone/mineral.” Its therapeutic potential and physical body is similar [to calcite, fang jie shi 方解石, the “stone/mineral that splits into rectangular pieces.”] Perhaps this is [the item] discussed here. [Su] Gong: This item [calcite] is more or less similar to gypsum. It grows independent of rocks. It occurs in solitary deposits. Large pieces reach the size of a sheng measure; small ones are as big as a fist. Very large pieces reach the size of a square chi. [Calcite] may be found in the soil or in the water of mountain streams. Its outer skin is a coating acquiring the color of the soil or water [it occurs in]. When it is struck, it splits into rectangular pieces. Nowadays the people use it instead of gypsum. Its potential to heal wind and to remove heat is identical [with that of gypsum], but it does not reach [the strength of gypsum] when it comes to relax muscles and to stimulate sweating. [Ma] Zhi: Nowadays [calcite] originating in Mount Da wu shan in Sha zhou is good. [Su] Song: The Ben cao says calcite “grows in Mount Fang shan.” Tao Yinju wonders whether it is the same item as anhydrite. Su Gong states: “[The potential of calcite to] cure heat is not inferior to gypsum.” Apparently, [calcite and

Chapter 9

505

gypsum] can be used interchangeably. Only in its control of head wind495 [calcite] does not come close to gypsum. Their muscle-like structures, their physical appearance, and their hardness and softness are identical, but when it comes to their being found attached to rocks and being present independent of rocks, how could this be responsible for different therapeutic potentials? For example, orpiment and realgar may also be found independent [of rocks] and attached to rocks, but it has never been heard of that [because of this] they were given different names and that their [therapeutic] potentials differed. [Li] Shizhen: Calcite and hard gypsum are similar. Both are shiny and clean like quartz. However, when breaking them results in flat slices, then this is hard gypsum, and when it results in rectangular blocks, then this is calcite. The fact is, these are two kinds within one identical group, and hence they can be used interchangeably. All the recipes of the Tang and Song eras considered [calcite] to be gypsum. Nowadays the people consider it to be “cold water stone/mineral” gypsum. Although they were all wrong, in their cold nature and their potential to heal heat they do not differ greatly. The only difference is that [calcite] does not have the same ability to relax muscles and to stimulate sweating as hard gypsum. 【氣味】苦、辛,大寒,無毒。【之才曰】惡巴豆。 Qi and Flavor. Bitter, acrid, very cold, nonpoisonous. [Xu] Zhicai: [Ingested together,] it abhors croton [seeds]. 【主治】胸中留熱結氣,黄疸,通血脉,去蠱毒。别録。 Control. Stagnant heat and bound qi496 in the chest. Yellow dan-illness.497 It penetrates the blood vessels. It removes gu poison.498 Bie lu.

495 Tou feng 頭風, “head wind,” is wind evil attacking the head followed by pain, or dizziness, or itching. BCGM Dict I, 509. 496 Jie qi 結氣, “bound qi,” refers to pathological qi halting and congealing at any place in the human body. BCGM Dict I, 240. 497 Huang dan 黄疸, most likely including cases of jaundice. BCGM Dict I, 225. 498 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191.

506

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

09-13 滑石本經上品 Hua shi, FE Ben jing. Upper rank. Talc. Soapstone. Smooth stone/mineral. 【釋名】畫石衍義、液石别録、膋石音遼、脱石音奪、冷石弘景、番石别 録、共石。【宗奭曰】滑石今謂之畫石,因其軟滑可寫畫也。【時珍曰】 滑石性滑利竅,其質又滑膩,故以名之。表畫家用刷紙代粉,最白膩。膋 乃脂膏也,因以名縣。脱乃肉無骨也。此物取滑膩,無硬者爲良,故有諸 名。 Explanation of Names. Hua shi 畫石, “stone/mineral for painting.” Yan yi. Ye shi 液 石, “stone/mineral with liquid,” Bie lu. Liao shi 膋石, read liao 遼, “greasy stone/ mineral. Duo shi 脱石, read duo 奪, “stone/mineral without bones.” Leng shi 冷石, “cold stone/mineral,” [Tao] Hongjing. Po shi 番石, “silvery white stone/mineral,” Bie lu. Gong shi 共石. [Kou] Zongshi: Hua shi 滑石 is nowadays called hua shi 畫石, “paint stone/mineral,” because its soft smoothness lends itself to writing and painting. [Li] Shizhen: The nature of talc is smooth and it opens orifices. Its substance matter, too, is smooth and greasy, hence its name. Specialists in mounting paintings brush it on paper as a powder. [This makes the paper] very white and greasy. Liao 膋 means “fat,” “paste.” Hence the county is named after it. Duo 脱 is meat without bones. Of this item it is best to pick those that are smooth and greasy and lack hardness. Hence all these names. 【集解】【别録曰】滑石生赭陽山谷及太山之陰,或掖北 白山,或卷山, 采無時。【弘景曰】滑石色正白,仙經用之爲泥。今出湘州、始安郡諸 處。初取軟如泥,久漸堅强,人多以作塚中明器物。赭陽屬南陽,掖縣屬 青州 東萊,卷縣屬司州 滎陽。又有冷石,小青黄,並冷利,能熨油污衣 物。【恭曰】此石所在皆有。嶺南 始安出者,白如凝脂,極軟滑。出掖 縣者,理粗質青有黑點,惟可爲器,不堪入藥。齊州 南山 神通寺南谷亦 大有,色青白不佳,而滑膩則勝。【藏器曰】始安、掖縣所出二石,形質 既異,所用又殊。始安者軟滑而白,宜入藥。東萊者硬濇而青,乃作器石 也。【斅曰】凡使有多般。其白滑石如方解石,色似冰白,畫石上有白膩 文者,真也。烏滑石似瑿,畫石上有青白膩文,入用亦妙。緑滑石性寒有 毒,不入藥用。黄滑石似金、顆顆圓,畫石上有青黑色者,勿用,殺人。 冷滑石青蒼色,畫石上作白膩文,亦勿用之。【頌曰】今道、永、萊、濠 州皆有之。凡二種。道、永州出者白滑如凝脂。南越志云:膋城縣出膋 石,即滑石也。土人以爲燒器,烹魚食,是也。萊、濠州出者理粗質青, 有黑點,亦謂之斑石。二種皆可作器,甚精好。初出軟柔,彼人就穴中制 作,用力殊少也。本草所載土地皆是北方,而今醫家所用白色者,自南方

Chapter 9

507

來。或云沂州所出甚白佳,與本草所云太山之陰相合,而彼土不取爲藥。 今濠州所供青滑石,云性寒無毒,主心氣濇滯,與本經大同小異。又張勃 吴録 地理志及大康地記云:鬱林州 布山縣 馬湖、馬嶺山皆有虺,甚毒殺 人,有冷石可以解之。石色赤黑,味苦,屑之着瘡中,并以切齒,立蘇, 一名切齒石。今人多用冷石作粉,治疿瘡,或云即滑石也,但味之甘苦不 同耳。【時珍曰】滑石,廣之桂林各巴及猺峒中皆出之,即古之始安也。 白黑二種,功皆相似。山東 蓬萊縣 桂府村所出者亦佳,故醫方有桂府滑 石,與桂林者同稱也。今人亦以刻圖書,不甚堅牢。滑石之根爲不灰木。 滑石中有光明黄子爲石腦芝。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Talc grows in the mountain valleys of Zhe yang, and on the yin/shady side of Mount Tai shan. Also, in Mount Bai shan of Ye bei, and in Mount Juan shan. It is collected anytime. [Tao] Hongjing: Talc is of a pure white color. The classics of the hermits/immortals use it as a mud. Nowadays, it originates in all places in Xiang zhou and Shi an commandary. When it has just been collected it is soft like mud. Within an extended period of time it gradually hardens. The people often use it to fabricate shiny utensils for tombs. Zhe yang belongs to Nan yang. Ye xian belongs to Dong lai in Qing zhou. Juan xian belongs to Xing yang in Si zhou. There is also a “cold stone/mineral.” These are slightly greenish-yellow [stones/minerals] that are of cold [nature] and at the same time free [the passage of defecation/ urination]. It can be used to exert hot pressure on clothes and items [to clean them when they are] soiled by oil. [Su] Gong: This stone/mineral grows everywhere. That which originates in Shi an in Ling nan is white like clean fat. It is extremely soft and smooth. That which originates in Ye xian has a crudely structured substance matter of greenish [color] with some black dots. It can only be used to make utensils. It is not suitable for being added to medication. [Talc] also occurs in large amounts in the valley south of the Shen tong temple on Mount Nan shan in Qi zhou. Its color is not good, as it is greenish-white, but its smoothness and greasy substance are unsurpassed. [Chen] Cangqi: The two [kinds talc] stone/mineral originating in Shi an and from Ye xian differ in their physical appearance and substance matter, and their usages differ too. [Talc] from Shi an is soft, smooth and white, and it is suitable for being added to medication. [Talc] from Dong lai is hard and rough and greenish. It is a stone/mineral that serves to produce utensils. [Lei] Xiao: For all usages there are many kinds. Those that are white and smooth stones/minerals like calcite, with a color as white as ice, and that leave a greenish-white greasy line when used to draw on a stone, they are genuine. Then there is a black talc, resembling black amber-jade stone. When used to draw on a stone, it leaves a greenish-white greasy line, and when it is added [to a medication for therapeutic] purposes, it is wondrous, too. Green talc is by nature cold and poisonous. It must not be added to medication [for therapeutic]

508

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

usage. Yellow talc resembles gold. These are round kernels that leave a greenish-black [line] when used to draw on a stone. It must not be used [for therapeutic purposes]; it kills one. Cold talc is of greenish-ashen color. When used to draw on a stone, it creates a white, greasy line. It, too, must not be used [for therapeutic purposes]. [Su] Song: Nowadays [talc] can be found everywhere in Dao, Yong, Lai and Hao zhou. All in all there are two kinds. [Talc] originating in Dao and Yong zhou is white and smooth like congealed fat. The Nan Yue zhi states: “The ‘greasy stone/mineral’, liao shi 膋石, originating in Liao cheng xian is talc. The locals use it to produce utensils for heating, such as [utensils for] boiling fish and meals.” [Talc] originating in Lai and Hao zhou is of a crudely structured greenish substance matter. It has black dots and is also called “speckled stone/mineral.” Both these kinds are suitable for preparing utensils of very fine and good quality. In the beginning, when they have just been removed, they are soft and are processed by the locals in the mountain caves where only minimal strength is required. The locations mentioned in the Ben cao are all in the North, but the white [talc] used by physicians today comes from the South. Some state that the very white [talc] originating in Yi zhou is good, and comparable to the one from the yin/shady side of Mount Tai shan referred to in the Ben cao. But the locals do not use it as a medication. The greenish talc spplied by Hao zhou today is said to have a cold nature and to be nonpoisonous. It controls a rough or stagnating passage of heart qi and is basically identical to the one mentioned in the Ben cao. Furthermore, Zhang Bo in his Wu lu di li zhi and in his Da kang di ji states: “In Lake Ma hu and on Mount Ma ling in Bu shan xian, Yu lin zhou, there are snakes that are extremely poisonous and kill humans. Their [poison] can be resolved with ‘cold stone’. The color of this stone/ mineral is red-black; its flavor is bitter. When scraps [of ‘cold stone’] are applied to such a [snake bite] wound, and at the same time are rubbed on [the patient’s] teeth, he will be brought back to life immediately. It is also named ‘stone/mineral to be rubbed on the teeth’.” Nowadays, the people often use “cold stone” to prepare a powder to cure seething rashes. Some say that this is talc, but their sweet and bitter flavors are not identical. [Li] Shizhen: Talc is brought forth by all the regions close to Gui lin in Guang and from within the Yao caves. It is the ancient Shi an. The [therapeutic] potentials of white and black kinds are similar. [The talc] originating in Gui fu cun in Peng lai xian in Shan dong is good, too. Hence in medical recipes, Gui fu talc is mentioned together with that from Gui lin. Nowadays the people also use it to carve maps and texts into it, but it is not hard enough for such purposes. The root of talc is asbestos. The shiny, yellow seeds contained in talc are shi nao zhi. 【修治】【斅斅曰】凡用白滑石,先以刀刮净研粉,以牡丹皮同煮一伏 時。去牡丹皮,取滑石,以東流水淘過,晒乾用。

Chapter 9

509

Pharmaceutical Preparation. Whenever talc is about to be used [for therapeutic purposes], first scrape it clean with a knife and grind it to a powder. Then boil it together with tree peony bark for one day and one night, discard the peony bark, remove the talc and rinse it with water flowing eastward. Eventually dry it in the sun and it will be ready for [therapeutic] usage. 【氣味】甘,寒,無毒。【别録曰】大寒。【之才曰】石韋爲之使,惡曾 青,制雄黄。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, cold, nonpoisonous. The Bie lu states: Very cold. [Xu] Zhicai: Pyrrosia [leaf ] serves as its guiding substance. [Ingested together,] it abhors malachite, and it checks [realgar. 【主治】身熱洩澼,女子乳難,癃閉,利小便,蕩胃中積聚寒熱,益精 氣。久服輕身,耐飢長年。本經。通九竅六腑津液,去留結,止渴,令人 利中。别録。燥濕,分水道,實大腸,化食毒,行積滯,逐凝血,解燥 渴,補脾胃,降心火,偏主石淋爲要藥。震亨。療黄疸,水腫脚氣,吐血 衄血,金瘡血出,諸瘡腫毒。時珍。 Control. Body heat and [intestinal] flush. Women with difficulties to let down a nursing mother’s milk. Protuberance-illness499 with closure. It frees the passage of urine. It washes away accumulations of cold and heat [qi] from the stomach. It boosts essence qi. Ingested over a long time, it takes the weight of the body, helps to endure hunger and prolongs the years [of life]. Ben jing. It frees the passage of body fluids through the nine orifices and six short-term repositories. It removes stagnating bound [qi],500 ends thirst and is beneficial for one’s center. Bie lu. It dries moisture, enters specifically the water paths, fills the large intestine, transforms food poison, moves accumulations and stagnations, drives out congealed blood, resolves dryness with thirst, supplements spleen and stomach, brings down heart fire, and is also an important medication for controlling stone dripping [urination]. [Zhu] Zhenheng. It serves to heal yellow dan-illness,501 water swelling and leg qi, blood vomiting and nosebleed, bleeding wounds caused by metal objects/weapons, and all types of sores and swelling with poison. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【頌曰】古方治淋瀝,多單使滑石。又與石韋同搗末,飲服刀 圭,更駃。又主石淋,取十二分研粉,分作兩服,水調下。煩熱定,即停 後服。【權曰】滑石療五淋,主産難,服其末。又末與丹參、蜜、豬脂 499 [Qi] long [氣]癃, “[qi] protuberance-illness,” with an inability to pass urine and a feeling of distension and fullness in the lower abdomen and urinary bladder. BCGM Dict I, 385. 500 Jie qi 結氣, “bound qi,” refers to pathological qi halting and congealing at any place in the human body. BCGM Dict I, 240. 501 Huang dan 黄疸, most likely including cases of jaundice. BCGM Dict I, 225.

510

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

爲膏,入其月即空心酒下彈丸大,臨産倍服,令胎滑易生,除煩熱心躁。 【元素曰】滑石氣温味甘,治前陰竅濇不利,性沉重,能泄上氣令下行, 故曰滑則利竅,不與諸淡滲藥同。【好古曰】入足太陽經,滑能利竅,以 通水道,爲至燥之劑。豬苓湯用滑石、阿膠,同爲滑劑以利水道;葱、 豉、生薑同煎,去滓澄清以解利。淡味滲洩爲陽,故解表利小便也。若小 便自利者,不宜用。【時珍曰】滑石利竅,不獨小便也。上能利毛腠之 竅,下能利精溺之竅。蓋甘淡之味,先入于胃,滲走經絡,遊溢津氣,上 輸于肺,下通膀胱。肺主皮毛,爲水之上源。膀胱司津液,氣化則能出。 故滑石上能發表,下利水道,爲蕩熱燥濕之劑。發表是蕩上中之熱,利水 道是蕩中下之熱;發表是燥上中之濕,利水道是燥中下之濕。熱散則三焦 寧而表裏和,濕去則闌門通而陰陽利。劉河間之用益原散,通治表裏上下 諸病,蓋是此意,但未發出耳。 Explication. [Su] Song: When ancient recipes [recommend to] cure dripping [urine], they often resort to talc as a single substance. Or they [recommend to] grind it together with pyrrosia [leaf ] to a powder and [let the patient] ingest with a liquid as much as is held by a knife-shaped jade tablet. [This way, an effect will be obvious] even faster. Also, for controlling stone dripping, grind 12 fen to a powder and ingest it divided into two portions, to be sent down mixed with water. Once the [accompanying] unrest and heat are settled, end the ingestion. [Zhen] Quan. Talc serves to cure the five types of dripping [urine].502 To control difficult deliveries [have the woman] ingest it as a powder. Also prepare the powder together with salvia root, honey and lard to a paste, and have [a woman once she has] entered the month [of her child’s birth] send down on an empty stomach a piece the size of a bullet. When the delivery is imminent, have her ingest twice as much. This will let the child be born smoothly and easily. It eliminates unrest, heat and heart restlessness. [Zhang] Yuansu. Talc has warm qi and a sweet flavor. It serves to cure rough and impeded passages through the front yin (i. e., urinary) orifice. As by its nature it is heavy and sinks down, it is able to cause qi that have risen to descend and flow off. Hence it is said “softness frees the passage through the orifices.” This is different from all types of light, seeping medications. [Wang] Haogu: It enters the foot major yang conduits. As it is smooth, it is able to free the passage through the orifices. It serves to penetrate the water paths; it is a preparation of extreme dryness. The “decoction with agaric”503 is a smooth preparation, including talc and ass-hide glue, to free the passage through the water paths. Boiled together with onions, fermented beans and fresh ginger, with the dregs removed, [talc] serves to 502 Wu lin 五淋, the “five types of dripping urine,” include: qi lin 氣淋 (“qi dripping”), xue lin 血淋 (“blood dripping”), shi lin 石淋, (“stone dripping”), gao lin 膏淋(“pasty dripping”), and lao lin 勞淋 (“exhaustion dripping”). BCGM Dict I, 541. 503 Ingredients include: Agaric, poria, alisma [tuber], ass-hide glue and talc.

Chapter 9

511

resolve and open [blocked passages]. Bland flavor and seeping are yang [attributes], hence they serve to resolve the exterior and free the passage of urine. Once the [passage of ] urine is freed, it must not be used any longer. [Li] Shizhen: Talc frees the passage through [all] the orifices, not only through those of urination. Above it is able to free the passage through the interstices of hair. Below it can open the passages of the orifices for essence/sperm and urine. The fact is, sweet and bland flavor first enter the stomach, from there they seep into the conduits and network [vessels] where they reach and boost body fluids and qi. They move them upward to the lung, and they penetrate the urinary bladder below. The lung controls the skin and the hair; it is the upper spring of water. The urinary bladder is responsible for body fluids; once the qi have transformed there, [the body fluids] can be released. Hence talc above can open the exterior, and below it frees the passage through the water paths. It is a medication to eliminate heat and to dry up moisture. To open the exterior is to eliminate heat from the upper and central [body parts]. To open the passage through the water paths is to eliminate heat from the central and lower [body parts]. Once the heat is dispersed, the Triple Burner will be in peace and the exterior and the interior will be in harmoy. Once the moisture is removed, the anus will be passable and the passage of yin and yang [qi] will be freed. The “powder to benefit the origin” by Liu Hejian serves to cure all types of diseases affecting the exterior and interior, the upper and the lower [body parts]. This is based exactly on this meaning, but he has not made this explicit [in his writings].

【附方】舊六,新一十二。 Added Recipes. Six of old. 12 newly [recorded]. 益元散。又名天水散、太白散、六一散。解中暑傷寒疫癘,飢飽勞損,憂 愁思慮,驚恐悲怒,傳染并汗後遺熱勞復諸疾。兼解兩感傷寒,百藥酒食 邪熱毒。治五勞七傷,一切虚損,内傷陰痿,驚悸健忘,癇瘛煩滿,短氣 痰嗽,肌肉疼痛,腹脹悶痛,淋閟濇痛,服石石淋。療身熱嘔吐泄瀉,腸 澼下痢赤白。除煩熱,胸中積聚寒熱。止渴,消畜水。婦人産後損液,血 虚陰虚熱甚,催生下乳。治吹乳乳癰,牙瘡齒疳。此藥大養脾腎之氣,通 九竅六腑,去留結,益精氣,壯筋骨,和氣,通經脉,消水穀,保真元, 明耳目,安魂定魄,强志輕身,駐顔益壽,耐勞役飢渴,乃神驗之仙藥 也。白滑石水飛過六兩,粉甘草一兩,爲末,每服三錢,蜜少許,温水調 下。實熱用新汲水下,解利用葱豉湯下,通乳用豬肉麪湯調下,催生用香 油漿下。凡難産或死胎不下,皆由風熱燥濇,結滯緊歛,不能舒緩故也。 此藥力至,則結滯頓開而瘥矣。劉河間傷寒直格。

512

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

The “powder to boost the original [qi].” Also named “powder of heavenly water,” “powder of great [talc] whiteness,” “six [parts of talc] and one [part of glycyrrhiza [root] powder.” It resolves being struck by summerheat, harm caused by cold, and epidemic diseases, [harm caused by] hunger and overeating, and exhaustion injury, grief and pondering, fright and rage, as well as all illnesses transmitted [from other patients], and those associated with left-over heat,504 or recurring because of exhaustion. It further resolves double affection by harm caused by cold and poisoning resulting from any of the hundreds of medications, from wine, food, evil [qi] and heat. It serves to cure the five types of exhaustion and seven types of harm, as well as all types of depletion injuries, interior harm and yin (i. e., genital) dysfunction, fright palpitation and forgetfulness, epilepsy with spasms, unrest and a sensation of fullness, shortness of [breath] qi and phlegm cough, painful muscles and flesh, abdominal distension and painful heart-pressure, dripping [urine] resulting from blockage, with a rough and painful [passage of urine], and stone dripping [of urine] following an ingestion of mineral [elixirs]. It serves to heal body heat, vomiting and outflow, as well as intestinal flush and a red and white discharge with free-flux illness.505 It eliminates unrest with heat, as well as accumulations and aggregations in the chest of cold and heat [qi]. It ends thirst and dissolves stagnating water. [It serves to cure] women with loss of body fluids following delivery, associated with blood depletion, yin [qi] depletion, and extreme heat. It speeds up birth and lets down a nursing mother’s milk. It serves to cure inflated breast506 and breast obstruction-illness,507 dental sores and dental gan-illness.508 This medication massively nourishes the qi of the liver and of the kidneys. It penetrates the nine orifices and the six short-term repositories. It removes stagnating and bound [qi],509 boosts essence qi, strengthens sinews and bones, harmonizes the qi, penetrates conduits and [blood] vessels, dissolves water and grain [i. e., beverages and food], protects the true original [qi], clears the ears and the eyes, pacifies the hun-soul and stabilizes 504 Yi re, 遺熱, “left-over heat,” is identical with liu re 留熱, “abiding heat.” BCGM Dict I, 630, 321. 505 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 506 Chui nai 吹奶, also chui ru 吹乳, “inflated breast.” A condition of blocked milk after birth, with the breasts turning red and swelling. BCGM Dict I, 101. 507 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641. 508 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188. 509 Jie qi 結氣, “bound qi,” refers to pathological qi halting and congealing at any place in the human body. BCGM Dict I, 240.

Chapter 9

513

the po-soul, strengthens the mind and takes the weight of the body, stabilizes the complexion and boosts longevity, helps to endure hardship and to cope with hunger and thirst – it is a medication of hermits/immortals that has proved to be divinely effective! [Grind] six liang of talc, refined through aqueous sublimation, and one liang of powder-rich glycyrrhiza [root] to a powder. Each time ingest three qian, to be sent down mixed with honey and warm water. In the case of repletion heat, send it down with newly drawn water. If it is meant to resolve [poison, etc.] and to free a passage, send it down with a decoction of onions and fermented beans. If it is meant to free the passage of a nursing mother’s milk, send it down mixed with a pork and noodles decoction. If it is meant to speed up a birth, [have the woman] send it down with a mixture of the viscous type of sesame oil. Whenever a delivery is difficult and if a dead fetus fails to be discharged, this is always caused by dryness and a rough [passage] associated with wind and heat, and bound and stagnating [qi] as well as tightened [passage ways] so that a relaxed [delivery] free of any tensions is impossible. Once the strength of this medication reaches [the affected region] it will open the bound and stagnating [qi] and this is the cure. Liu Hejian, Shang han zhi ge. 膈上煩熱多渴。利九竅。滑石二兩搗,水三大琖,煎二盞,去滓,入粳米 煮粥食。聖惠方。 Unrest and heat above the diaphragm, with much thirst. To open the passage through the nine orifices. Boil two liang of pounded talc in three large cups of water down to two small cups. Remove the dregs, add [to the liquid] non-glutinous rice and boil this to a congree to be eaten [by the patient]. Sheng hui fang. 女勞黄疸。日晡發熱惡寒,小腹急,大便溏黑,額黑。滑石、石膏等分, 研末,大麥汁服方寸匕,日三,小便大利愈,腹滿者難治。千金方。 Yellow dan-illness510 after an exhaustion with women, with an effusion of heat and an aversion to cold in the afternoon, tensions in the lower abdomen, viscous, black defecation, and a black complexion on the forehead. Grind equal amounts of talc and gypsum to a powder and [let the patient] ingest with barley juice as much as is held by a square cun spoon, three times a day. This will result in a massive flow of urine, and this is the cure. If [the patient] has a feeling of abdominal fullness, such cases are difficult to cure. Qian jin fang. 傷寒衄血。滑石末,飯丸梧子大。每服十丸,微嚼破,新水嚥下,立止。 湯晦叔云:鼻衄乃當汗不汗所致。其血紫黑時,不以多少,不可止之,且 服温和藥,調其營衞。待血鮮時,急服此藥止之也。本事方。

510 Huang dan 黄疸, most likely including cases of jaundice. BCGM Dict I, 225.

514

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Harm caused by cold and nosebleed. Prepare with talc powder and cooked rice pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest ten pills. Chew them to slightly open them and send them down with newly drawn water. [The nosebleed] will end immediately. Tang Huishu states: Nosebleed is caused when [the body] should sweat but fails to sweat. When the blood is purple-black, regardless of the amount [of medication one is to ingest], it cannot be stopped. Rather ingest warming and harmonizing medication to regulate the camp and guardian [qi], wait for the blood to assume a fresh [color] and then quickly ingest this medication to end [the nosebleed]. Ben shi fang. 乳石發動,煩熱煩渴。滑石粉半兩,水一盞,絞白汁,頓服。聖惠方。 Outbreak [of poisoning] following the ingestion of stalactite minerals, with unrest heat and unrest thirst. Soak half a liang of talc powder in one cup of water, squeeze it to obtain a white juice and ingest this as one dose. Sheng hui fang. 暴得吐逆不下食。生滑石末二錢匕,温水服,仍以細麪半盞押定。寇氏衍 義。 Sudden vomiting with counterflow [qi] and an inability to have food move down [in the body]. [Let the patient] ingest with warm water as much unprocessed talc powder as is held by a two qian spoon. In addition let him [ingest] half a cup of fine noodles to stabilize [the qi]. Kou shi, Yan yi. 氣壅關格不通,小便淋結,臍下妨悶兼痛。滑石粉一兩,水調服。廣利方。 Qi obstruction, and blocked gates that are impassable; dripping and bound urination, sealed [gullet] and heart pressure with pain below the navel. [Let the patient] ingest one liang of talc powder mixed with water. Guang li fang. 小便不通。滑石末一升,以車前汁和,塗臍之四畔,方四寸,乾即易之。 冬月水和。楊氏産乳。 Blocked urination. Mix one sheng of talc powder with plantago [herb] juice and apply this to a four cun square around the [patient’s] navel. Replace it [with a moist application] once it has dried. In winter mix it with water [instead of plantain herb juice]. Yang shi chan ru. 婦人轉脬。因過忍小便而致。滑石末,葱湯服二錢。聖惠方。 Contorted bladder of women. This results from excessive restraint of urination. [Let the patient] ingest two qian of talc powder with an onion decoction. Sheng hui fang.

Chapter 9

515

妊娠子淋,不得小便。滑石末水和,泥臍下二寸。外臺秘要。 Dripping urination of pregnant women, with an impossibility to freely relieve themselves. Mix talc with water and apply the mud two cun below the navel. Wai tai mi yao. 伏暑水泄。白龍丸:滑石火煅過一兩,硫黄四錢,爲末,麪糊丸緑豆大, 每用淡薑湯隨大小服。普濟方。 Watery outflow associated with hidden summerheat. The “white dragon pills.” [Grind] one liang of calcined talc and four liang of sulphur to a powder and with a flour-water paste form pills the size of mung beans. Each time [let the patient] ingest with a bland ginger decoction a quantity in accordance with the [patient’s] age. Pu ji fang. 伏暑吐泄。或吐,或泄,或瘧,小便赤,煩渴。玉液散:用桂府滑石燒四 兩,藿香一錢,丁香一錢。爲末。米湯服二錢。普濟方。 Vomiting and outflow associated with hidden summerheat. [Patients] may vomit, they may have outflow, or malaria, with their urine assuming a red color, and with unrest and thirst. The “jade liquid powder.” [Grind] four liang of heated talc from Gui fu, one qian of agastache twig and leaf and one qian of cloves to a powder and [let the patient] ingest with a rice decoction two qian. Pu ji fang. 霍亂及瘧。方同上。 Cholera and malaria. Recipe identical to the one above. 痘瘡狂亂,循衣摸牀,大熱引飲。用益原散,加朱砂二錢,冰片三分,麝 香一分,每燈草湯下二三服。王氏痘疹方。 Smallpox sores accompanied by madness and confusion, with [the patient’s] hands following [the seams of his] garments and stroking his bedding, and with massive heat and a yearning for something to drink. Take the “powder to boost the original [qi]” and add two qian of cinnabar, three fen of borneol, and one fen of musk. Each time [let the patient] ingest this two or three times, to be sent down with a decoction of rushes. Wang shi, Dou zhen fang. 風毒熱瘡,遍身出黄水。桂府滑石末傅之,次日愈。先以虎杖、豌豆、甘 草等分,煎湯,洗後乃搽。普濟方。 Wind poison associated with heat sores, with a yellow watery liquid released from all over the body. Apply talc powder from Gui fu to the [affected region] and a cure will be achieved the next day. But first wash [the affected region] clean with a decoction of equal amounts of bushy knotweed [herb], peas and glycyrrhiza [root], and only then apply [the talc powder]. Pu ji fang.

516

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

陰下濕汗。滑石一兩,石膏煅半兩,枯白礬少許,研摻之。集簡方。 Moisture and sweating below the yin [(i. e., genital) region]. Grind one liang of talc, half a liang of calcined gypsum and a small amount of processed alum and apply this to the [affected region]. Ji jian fang. 脚指縫爛。方同上。 Festering cracks affecting the toes. Recipe identical to the one above. 杖瘡腫痛。滑石、赤石脂、大黄等分爲末,茶湯洗净,貼。趙氏經驗方。 Sores/wounds caused by flogging with painful swelling [Grind] equal amounts of talc, red halloysite and rhubarb root to a powder, wash [the affected region] clean with a tea leaf decoction and apply [the powder there]. Zhao shi jing yan fang. 熱毒怪病。目赤鼻脹,大喘,渾身出斑,毛髮如鐵,乃因中熱毒氣結于下 焦。用滑石、白礬各一兩,爲末,作一服。水三盌,煎减半,不住飲之。 夏子益奇病方。 Strange diseases associated with heat poison. The eyes are red and the nose is bloated. Patients pant massively and macules appear all over their body. Their hair on the body and on the head is as [stiff as] iron. This is because [the patient] was struck by heat poison resulting in bound qi511 in the Lower Burner. [Grind] one liang each of talc and alum to a powder and [let the patient] ingest this in one dose. Also, let him drink in one draft a decoction of three bowls of water boiled down to one half. Xia Ziyi, Qi bing fang. 09-14 不灰木宋開寶 Bu hui mu, FE Song, Kai bao. Asbestos. Wood that does not burn to ashes. 【釋名】無灰木見下。 Explanation of Names. Wu hui mu 無灰木, “wood that does not burn to ashes.” See below. 【集解】【頌曰】不灰木出上黨,今澤、潞山中皆有之,蓋石類也。其色 白如爛木,燒之不然,以此得名。或云滑石之根也,出滑石處皆有之。采 無時。【藏器曰】要燒成灰,但斫破,以牛乳煮了,黄牛糞燒之,即成 灰。【時珍曰】不灰木有木、石二種。石類者其體堅重,或以紙裹,蘸石 腦油然燈,徹夜不成灰,人多用作小刀靶。開山圖云:徐無山出不灰之 511 Jie qi 結氣, “bound qi,” refers to pathological qi halting and congealing at any place in the human body. BCGM Dict I, 240.

Chapter 9

517

木,生火之石。山在今順天府 玉田縣東北。庚辛玉册云:不灰木,陰石 也。生西南蠻夷中,黎州、茂州者好,形如針文全若木,燒之無烟。此皆 言石者也。伏琛齊地記云:東武城有勝火木,其木經野火燒之不滅,謂之 不灰木。楊慎丹鉛録云:太平寰宇記云,不灰木俗多爲鋌子,燒之成炭而 不灰,出膠州。其葉如蒲草,今人束以爲燎,謂之萬年火把。此皆言木者 也。時珍常得此火把,乃草葉束成,而中夾松脂之類,一夜僅燒一二寸耳。 Collected Explanations. [Su] Song: Asbestos originates in Shang dang. Nowadays it can be found everywhere in the mountains of Ze and Lu. The fact is, it belongs to the group of stones/minerals. Its color is white like that of decayed wood. When it is heated, it does not burn [to ashes]. Hence its name. Some say that it is the root of talc, because it occurs at all the places where talc originates in. It is collected anytime. [Chen] Cangqi: If one intends to burn it to ashes, the only way is to break it to small pices, boil them with cow milk and burn them with the dung of yellow oxen to generate ashes. [Li] Shizhen. There are two kinds of “the wood that does not burn to ashes,” asbestos: a wood and a stone/mineral [variety]. The stone/mineral types have a heavy body. When they are wrapped with paper, dipped into petroleum, and lighted, they burn all night without generating ashes. The people often use them to prepare knife handles. The Kai shan tu states: “The asbestos originating in Mount Xu wu shan is a flint stone.” This mountain is located in the North-East of Yu tian xian in today’s Shun tian fu. The Geng xin yu ce states: “Asbestos is a yin stone/mineral. It grows in the South-West, in the regions of the Man and Yi [tribes]. That from Li zhou and Mao zhou is good. Its physical appearance shows a needle line design, and looks entirely like wood. When heated/burned it does not develop smoke.” All these [kinds] are called “stones/minerals.” Fu Chen’s Qi di ji states: “In Dong wu cheng there is a ‘wood that conquers fire’. When this wood is exposed to a wild fire, it will not burn and be eliminated. It is called ‘wood without ashes’.” Yang Shen in his Dan qian lu states: “The Tai ping huan yu ji states: ‘Asbestos is often shaped like metal shafts. When heated/burned it forms charcoal but no ashes. It originates in Jiao zhou. It has lobes like cattail. The people bind them together to be lighted and they call them torches for a myriad years’.” All these [kinds] are called “wood.” [I, Li] Shizhen, have often obtained such torches. They are formed by binding herbal leaves together with colophony enclosed in their center. In the course of one night they burn down one or two cun.

518

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 【附録】 Appendix

09-14-A01 松石。Song shi. Pine stone. 【頌曰】今處州出一種松石,如松幹而實石也。或云松久化爲石。人多取 飾山亭及琢爲枕。雖不入藥,與不灰相類,故附之。 [Su] Song: Nowadays a “pine stone” originates in Chu zhou. It resembles a pine trunk but is, in fact, a stone. Some say that pines over a long time transform to stones. The people often take it to prepare decorative items, such as mountain pavilions and they may carve it to pillows. Even though it is not added to medication, it nevertheless belongs to the group of asbestos. Hence it is added here. 【氣味】甘,大寒,無毒。【獨孤滔曰】煮汞,結草砂,煅三黄,匱五金。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, very cold, nonpoisonous. Dugu Tao: It serves to boil mercury, to bind [the effects of certain] herbs and sand, to calcine the three [substances realgar, orpiment and sulphur with the character] “yellow” [in their names], and it may be used to prepare an encasement for processing the five metals.512 【主治】熱疿瘡,和棗葉、石灰爲粉,傅之。開寶。除煩熱陽厥。時珍。 Control. For heat with seething rashes, [grind asbestos with] date leaves and lime to a powder and apply this to the [affected region]. Kai bao. It eliminates unrest with heat and yang [qi] recession. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】不灰木性寒,而同諸熱藥治陰毒。劉河間宣明方,治 陽絶心腹痞痛,金針丸中亦用服之。蓋寒熱並用,所以調停陰陽也。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: The nature of asbestos is cold, and it serves together with all types of heat medication to cure yin poison. Liu Hejian in his Xuan ming fang [recommends to] cure cut off yang [qi] in heart and abdomen with a painful obstacle-illness.513 It is also used for ingestion in the “golden needle pills.” The fact is, [these medications] use [substances of ] cold and hot [nature] together to mediate between yin and yang [inequalities]. 512 The three substances with the character “yellow” in their names, san huang 三黃, include sulphur, liu huang 硫黃, realgar, xiong huang 雄黃, and orpiment, ci huang 雌黃. The “five types of metals”, wu jin 五金, may refer to the entirety of metals and minerals, or to the five core metals/minerals as include gold, silver, copper, iron and tin. Kui 匱, “encasement,” is a method used by ancient Chinese alchemists whereby certain substances are used to prepare a sheath or coffer, gui 櫃, surrounding one or more substances that are to be modified to eventually become a longevity elixir. 513 Pi 痞, “obstacle-illness,” a feeling of uncomfortable fullness and distension. BCGM Dict I, 371.

Chapter 9

519

【附方】新四。 Added Recipes. Four newly [recorded]. 肺熱欬嗽卧時盛者。不灰木一兩半,太陰玄精石二兩,甘草炙半兩,貝母 一兩半,天南星,白礬水煮過半兩,爲末,每服半錢,薑湯下。聖濟録。 Lung heat with coughing which is aggrevated when going to bed. [Grind] one and a half liang of asbestos, two liang of maximum yin selenite, half a liang of roasted glycyrrhiza [root], one and a half liang of fritillaria [root], [half a liang of ] arisaema [root] and half a liang of boiled alum to a powder and [let the patient] each time ingest half a qian, to be sent down with a ginger decoction. Sheng hui fang. 咽喉腫痛,五心煩熱。不灰木以牛糞燒赤四兩,太陰玄精石煅赤四兩,真 珠一錢,爲末,糯米粥丸芡子大,每服一丸,以生地黄汁、粟米泔研化 服,日二次。聖濟録。 Painful swelling of the throat, with the five centers (i. e., the heart, the palms of the hands and the palms of the feet) affected by unrest with heat. [Grind] four liang of asbestos heated with ox dung until it has turned red, four liang of maximum yin selenite calcined until it has turned red, and one qian of genuine pearls to a powder and form it with a glutinous rice congee to pills the size of qian seeds. Each time ingest one pill, to be ingested ground and dissolved in a mixture of fresh Chinese foxglove [rhizome] juice and water in which millet was washed. Twice a day. Sheng ji lu. 霍亂煩滿,氣逆腹脹,手足厥冷。不灰木、陽起石煅、阿魏各半兩,巴豆 去心,杏仁去皮,各二十五個,爲末,粟飯丸櫻桃大,穿一孔,每服一 丸,燈上燒烟盡,研,米薑湯下,以利爲度。聖濟録。 Cholera with unrest and a feeling of fullness, with qi counterflow and abdominal distension, and hands and feet being cold because of [yang qi] recession. [Grind] half a liang each of asbestos, calcined actinolite, and asafetida, together with 25 pieces each of croton [seeds], with their hearts discarded, and apricot seeds, with their skin discarded, to a powder and form with cooked millet pills the size of cherries. Pierce a hole into one [such pill]. Each time ingest one pill, heated over a lamp fire until all smoke is exhausted and ground [to a powder], and send it down with a decoction of rice and ginger until a positive effect is achieved. Sheng ji lu. 陰毒腹痛。回陽丹:用不灰木煅、牡蠣煅、高良薑炒、川烏頭炮、白芍藥 各一錢,爲末,入麝香少許,每用一錢,男用女唾調塗外腎,女用男唾調 塗乳上,得汗即愈。玉機微義。

520

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Abdominal pain caused by yin poison. The “elixir to bring back yang [qi].” [Grind] one qian each of asbestos, calcined oyster shells, fried galanga [root], Sichuan aconitum [main tuber], fried in a pan, and white paeonia [root] to a powder, add a little musk and for each application use one qian. For [treating] males mix it with the saliva of a woman and apply it to his testicles. For [treating] females, mix it with the saliva of a man and apply it to her breast. Once [the patient] sweats, a cure will have been achieved. Yu ji wei yi. 09-15 五色石脂本經上品 Wu se shi zhi, FE Ben jing. Upper rank. Stone fat of five colors. Halloysite. Silicous clays. Complex aluminum silicates. 【校正】併入五種石脂。 Editorial Correction. Five kinds of “stone fat”/halloysite are entered here [into one entry]. 【釋名】【時珍曰】膏之凝者曰脂。此物性粘,固濟爐鼎甚良,蓋兼體用 而言也。 Explanation of Names. [Li] Shizhen: A congealed paste is called zhi 脂, “fat.” The present item has a sticky nature and it is extremely good when used to firmly seal furnaces and cooking vessels. That is, this designation combines references to its physical substance matter and to its usage. 【集解】【别録曰】五色石脂生南山之陽山谷中。又曰:青石脂生齊區山 及海涯。黄石脂生嵩高山,色如鶯雛。黑石脂生潁川 陽城。白石脂生太 山之陰。赤石脂生濟南、射陽,又太山之陰。並采無時。【普曰】五色石 脂一名五色符。青符生南山或海涯。黄符生嵩山,色如㹠腦雁雛。黑符生 洛西山空地。白符生少室、天婁山或太山。赤符生少室或太山,色絳,滑 如脂。【弘景曰】今俗惟用赤石、白石二脂。好者出吴郡,亦出武陵、建 平、義陽。義陽者出𨞚縣界東八十里,狀如㹠腦。赤者鮮紅可愛,隨采復 生。餘三色石脂無正用,但黑石脂入畫用耳。【恭曰】義陽即申州,所出 乃桃花石,非石脂也。白石脂今出慈州諸山,勝於餘處者。赤石脂今出虢 州 盧氏縣、澤州 陵川縣,又慈州 吕鄉縣、宜州諸山亦有,並色理鮮膩爲 佳。二脂太山不聞有之,舊出蘇州、餘杭山,今不收采。【承曰】今蘇州 見貢赤白二石脂,但入藥不甚佳。惟延州山中所出最良,揭兩石中取之。 【頌曰】白石脂、赤石脂,今惟潞州出之,潞與慈州相近也。【宗奭曰】 赤、白石脂四方皆有,以理膩粘舌綴唇者爲上。

Chapter 9

521

Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Stone fat of five colors/halloysite grows in the mountain valleys on the yang/sunny side of Mount Nan shan. It is also said: Greenish stone fat grows in the mountain regions and at the seaside of Qi. Yellow stone fat grows on the highest mountains. Black stone fat grows in Yang cheng, in Ying chuan. White stone fat grows on the yin/shady side of Mount Tai shan. Red stone fat grows in Ji nan and She yang, and also on the yin/shady side of Mount Tai shan. All of them are collected anytime. [Wu] Pu: Stone fat of five colors is also called “tally of five colors.” The greenish tally [variety] grows on Mount Nan shan or at the seaside. The yellow tally grows on Mount Song shan. Its color resembles that of a piglet’s brain or the fledglings of wild geese. The black tally grows in the open spaces of Mount Luo xi shan. The white tally grows on [Mount] Shao shi, Mount Tian lou and on Mount Tai shan. The red tally grows on [Mount] Shao shi and Mount Tai shan. It is of a deep-red color and smooth like fat. [Tao] Hongjing: Nowadays only red [stone/mineral] fat and white [stone/mineral] fat are in common use. [Halloysite] of good quality originates in Wu jun, and also from Wu ling, Jian ping and Yi yang. [Halloysite] from Yi yang is from 80 miles east of the border of Meng xian; it is shaped like the brain of piglets. Red [halloysite] has a lovely, fresh red color. Once it is collected, it grows anew. The remaining three color kinds are not normally used [for therapeutic purposes]. Only black [halloysite] is resorted to by painters. [Su] Gong: Yi yang is Shen zhou. The item originating in there is the “peach blossom stone”/marmor (09-16), it is not “stone fat” (i. e., halloysite). White stone fat nowadays originates in all the mountains of Ci zhou. It is better than that from other locations. Red stone fat nowadays originates in Lu shi xian in Guo zhou and from Ling chuan xian in Ze zhou. Also, it occurs in Lü xiang xian in Ce zhou and in all the mountains of Yi zhou. From all these places those specimens are good that in color and structure equal a brightly shining fat. It has not been heard of that the two [white and red kinds of stone/mineral] fat are found on Mount Tai shan. In earlier times, they originated in Mount Yu hang shan in Su zhou, but they are not collected there today. [Chen] Cheng. Nowadays, Su zhou submits as a tribute the two red and white [stone/mineral] fat kinds. But they are not very good for being added to medication. The only one really good variety is that originating in the mountains of Yan zhou. It is enclosed by other minerals and needs to be brought to light first to collect it [for further use]. [Su] Song: White stone fat and red stone fat nowadays originate only from Lu zhou. Lu [zhou] and Ci zhou lie close to each other. [Kou] Zongshi: Red and white stone fat are present everywhere in the four cardinal directions. Those with a greasy structure, that stick to the tongue and attach themselves to the lips, they are best.

522

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【修治】【斅曰】凡使赤脂,研如粉,新汲水飛過三度,晒乾用。【時珍 曰】亦有火煅水飛者。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Lei] Xiao: For all [medicinal] applications of red [stone] fat, grind it to a powder, subject it three times to aqueous sublimation, and dry it in the sun before making use of it. [Li] Shizhen: It it also subjected to calcination before an aqueous sublimation. 【氣味】五種石脂,並甘、平。【大明曰】並温,無毒。畏黄芩、大黄、 官桂。 Qi and Flavor. The five stone fat kinds are all sweet and balanced. Da Ming: They are all warm and nonpoisonous. [Ingested together,] they fear scutellaria root, rhubarb root and unscraped bark of cinnamom. 【主治】黄疸,洩痢腸澼膿血,陰蝕下血赤白,邪氣癰腫,疽痔惡瘡,頭 瘍疥瘙。久服補髓益氣,肥健不饑,輕身延年。五石脂各隨五色,補五 臟。本經。治洩痢,血崩帶下,吐血衄血,濇精淋瀝,除煩,療驚悸,壯 筋骨,補虚損。久服悦色。治瘡癤痔漏,排膿。大明。 Control. Yellow dan-illness.514 Outflow and free-flux illness515 and intestinal flush with pus and blood. Discharge of blood and red and white [liquids] from erosions affecting the yin [(i. e., genital) region]. Evil qi causing obstruction-illness516 with swelling, impediment-illness517and piles associated with malign sores. Head ulcers, jie-illness518 and itch. Ingested over a long time, [the five kinds of halloysite] supplement marrow and boost the qi. [Halloysite] makes one strong and eliminates hunger. It frees the body of its weight and extends the years [of life]. Each of the five [kinds] of stone fat serves to supplement one of the five long-term depots corresponding to its color. Ben jing. [Halloysite] serves to cure outflow with free-flux illness,519 blood collapse520 with discharge from below the belt [of women], vomiting of blood and nosebleed, rough [passage of ] essence/sperm and dripping [urine]. It eliminates unrest, heals fright palpitation, strengthens sinews and bones, and sup514 Huang dan 黄疸, most likely including cases of jaundice. BCGM Dict I, 225. 515 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 516 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to a vaguely distinguished obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641/642. 517 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277. 518 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely identifiable skin ailment. BCGM Dict Vol. I, 249. 519 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 520 Xue beng 血崩, “blood collapse,” is excessive vaginal bleeding. BCGM Dict I, 594.

Chapter 9

523

plements in the case of depletion injury. Ingested over a long time, it lets one have a happy complexion. It serves to cure sores and pimples, and leaking piles, and to discharge pus. Da Ming. 09-15-01 青石脂。Qing shi zhi. Greenish stone fat. Greenish halloysite. 【氣味】酸,平,無毒。【普曰】青符:神農:甘。雷公:酸,無毒。桐 君:辛,無毒。李當之:小寒。 Qi and Flavor. Sour, balanced, nonpoisonous. [Wu] Pu: As for the greenish tally, Shen nong: Sweet. Lei gong: Sour, nonpoisonous. Tong jun: acrid, nonpoisonous. Li Dangzhi: Slightly cold. 【主治】養肝膽氣,明目,療黄疸,洩痢腸澼,女子帶下百病,及疽痔惡 瘡。久服補髓益氣,不饑延年。别録。 Control. [Halloysite] nourishes the qi of the liver and gallbladder. It clears the eyes. It serves to heal yellow dan-illness,521 outflow with free-flux illness522 and intestinal flush, the hundreds of diseases of women below the belt, and also malign sores associated with impediment-illness523 and piles. Ingested over a long time, it serves to supplement marrow and boosts the qi. It prevents hunger and extends the years [of life]. Bie lu. 09-15-02 黄石脂。Huang shi zhi. Yellow stone fat. Yellow halloysite. 【氣味】苦,平,無毒。【普曰】黄符:雷公:苦。李當之:小寒。【之 才曰】曾青爲之使,惡細辛,畏蜚蠊、黄連、甘草。【斅曰】服之忌卵味。 Qi and Flavor. Bitter, balanced, nonpoisonous. [Wu] Pu: As for yellow halloysite, Lei gong: Bitter. Li Dangzhi: Slightly cold. [Xu] Zhicai: Lamellar malachite serves as its guiding substance. [Ingested together,] it abhors asarum heteropoides root and fears cockroaches, coptis [rhizome] and glycyrrhiza [root]. [Lei] Xiao: While this is ingested, eggs are prohibited.

521 Huang dan 黄疸, most likely including cases of jaundice. BCGM Dict I, 225. 522 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 523 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277.

524

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【主治】養脾氣,安五臟,調中。大人小兒洩痢腸澼下膿血,去白蟲,除 黄疸癰疽蟲。久服輕身延年。别録。 Control. It nourishes the spleen qi, pacifies the five long-term depots, and regulates the center. [It serves to cure] outflow with free-flux illness524 of adults and children alike, intestinal flush and discharge of pus and blood. It removes the hundreds of worms/bugs and eliminates yellow dan-illness,525 and obstruction-illness and impediment-illness526 associated with worms/bugs. Ingested over a long period, it takes the weight of the body and extends the years [of life]. Bie lu. 09-15-03 黑石脂。Hei shi zhi. Black stone fat. Black halloysite. 【别録曰】一名石墨,一名石涅。【時珍曰】此乃石脂之黑者,亦可爲 墨,其性粘舌,與石炭不同。南人謂之畫眉石。許氏説文云:黛,畫眉石 也。 Bie lu: Alternative name: Shi mo 石墨, “stone ink;” alternative name shi nie 石涅, “stone sludge.” [Li] Shizhen: This is the black variety of stone fat. It can also serve as ink. By its nature it sticks to the tongue; it differs from coal. The people in the South call it “eyebrow liner stone.” Xu Shi in his Shuo wen states: “Dai 黛 is [the black pigment] used to line eyebrows.” 【氣味】鹹,平,無毒。【普曰】黑符:桐君:甘,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, balanced, nonpoisonous. [Wu] Pu: As for the black tally, Tong jun: Sweet, nonpoisonous. 【主治】養腎氣,强陰,主陰蝕瘡,止腸澼洩痢,療口瘡咽痛。久服益 氣,不饑延年。别録。 Control. It nourishes the kidney qi, stiffens the yin [(i. e., genital) member], controls erosion sores in the yin [(i. e., genital) region], ends intestinal flush and outflow with free-flux illness, and serves to heal oral sores and painful throat. Ingested over a long period, it boosts the qi, prevents hunger and extends the years [of life]. Bie lu.

524 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 525 Huang dan 黄疸, most likely including cases of jaundice. BCGM Dict I, 225. 526 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642.

Chapter 9

525

09-15-04 白石脂。Bai shi zhi. White stone fat. White halloysite. 【氣味】甘、酸,平,無毒。【普曰】白符,一名隨。岐伯、雷公:酸, 無毒。桐君:甘,無毒。扁鵲:辛。李當之:小寒。【權曰】甘、辛。【 杲曰】温。【之才曰】得厚朴,米汁飲,止便膿。燕屎爲之使,惡松脂, 畏黄芩。【頌曰】畏黄連、甘草、飛廉、馬目毒公。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, sour, balanced, nonpoisonous. [Wu] Pu: As for white tally, an alternative name is sui 隨. Qi Bo, Lei gong: Sour, nonpoisonous. Tong jun: Sweet, nonpoisonous. Bian Que: Acrid. Li Dangzhi: Slightly cold. [Zhen] Quan: Sweet, acrid. [Li] Gao: Warm. [Xu] Zhicai: Drunk together with magnolia bark and water in which rice was cooked, it ends urination/defecation with pus. Droppings of swallows serve as its guiding substance. [Ingested together,] it abhors colophony, and it fears scutellaria root. [Su] Song: [Ingested together,] it fears coptis [rhizome], glycyrrhiza [root], carduus [root] and dysosma [root]. 【主治】養肺氣,厚腸,補骨髓,療五臟驚悸不足,心下煩,止腹痛下 水,小腸澼熱,溏便膿血,女子崩中漏下赤白沃,排癰疽瘡痔。久服安心 不饑,輕身長年。别録。濇大腸。甄權。 Control. It nourishes the lung qi, adds to the thickness of the intestines, supplements bone marrow, and serves to heal [qi] insufficiency in the five long-term depots associated with fright palpitation, as well as unrest below the heart. It ends abdominal pain and discharges water, [it serves to cure] small intestinal flush with heat, viscous urination/defecation with pus and blood, and collapsing center527 of women with leaking discharge of red and white foam. It forces sores and piles associated with obstruction-illness and impediment-illness528 to open. Ingested over a long time it pacifies the heart and prevents hunger. It takes the weight of the body and extends the years [of life]. Bie lu. It roughens [the passages through] the large intestine. Zhen Quan.

527 Beng zhong 崩中, “collapsing center,” excessive vaginal bleeding outside of a menstruation period. BCGM Dict I, 58. 528 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642.

526

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 【附方】舊四,新二。 Added Recipes. Four of old. Two newly [recorded].

小兒水痢,形羸,不勝湯藥。白石脂半兩研粉,和白粥空肚食之。子母秘 録。 Watery free-flux illness529 of children, with an emaciation that cannot be overcome by decoction medication. Grind half a liang of white halloysite to a powder and [have the child] eat this with a white rice congee on an empty abdomen. Zi mu mi lu. 小兒滑泄。白龍丸:白石脂、白龍骨等分爲末,水丸黍米大,每量大小, 木瓜、紫蘇湯下。全幼心鑑。 Smooth outflow of children. The “white dragon pills.” [Grind] equal amounts of white halloysite and white dragon bones to a powder and form pills the size of millet grains, to be sent down with a decoction of chaenomeles fruit and perilla [herb], with the amount corresponding to the age [of the child]. Quan you xin jian. 久泄久痢。白石脂、乾薑等分,研,百沸湯和麪爲稀糊搜之,併手丸梧子 大,每米飲下三十丸。斗門方。 Long-lasting outflow; long-lasting free-flux illness. Grind equal amounts of white halloysite and dried ginger [to a powder], give it into a mixture of bubbling hot water and noodle dough and form with your hands pills the size of wu seeds. Each time [let the patient] send down with a rice beverage 30 pills. Dou men fang. 兒臍汁出赤腫。白石脂末熬温,撲之,日三度,勿揭動。韋宙獨行方。 A liquid released by a child’s navel, accompanied by redness and swelling. Simmer white halloysite to a warm paste, and apply it to the [affected region]. Three times a day. Do not take off [an earlier application]. Wei zhou, Du xing fang. 兒臍血出,多啼。方同上。寇氏衍義。 Bleeding from a child’s navel, with much wailing [of the patient]. Recipe identical to the one above. Kou shi, Yan yi. 粉滓面䵟。白石脂六兩,白歛十二兩,爲末,鷄子白和,夜塗旦洗。聖濟 録。 Facial dregs and facial gloom. [Grind] six liang of white halloysite and 12 liang of ampelopsis [root] to a powder, mix it with egg white, apply this to the [affected region] at night, and wash it off in the morning. Sheng ji lu. 529 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

Chapter 9

527

09-15-05 赤石脂。Chi shi zhi. Red stone fat. Red halloysite. 【氣味】甘、酸、辛,大温,無毒。【普曰】赤符:神農、雷公:甘。黄 帝、扁鵲:無毒。李當之:小寒。【之才曰】畏芫花,惡大黄、松脂。【 頌曰】古人亦單服食,云發則心痛,飲熱酒不解。用綿裹葱、豉,煮水飲 之。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, sour, acrid, very warm, nonpoisonous. [Wu] Pu: As for red tally, Shen nong and Lei gong: Sweet. Bian Que: Nonpoisonous. Li Dangzhi: Slightly cold. [Xu] Zhicai: [Ingested together,] it fears daphne [flower] and abhors rhubarb root and colophony. [Su] Song: People in ancient times ingested [this substance] alone for food, and it is said that it caused heart pain that could not be resolved by drinking hot wine. Rather, they boiled [red halloysite] wrapped in silk floss together with onions and fermented beans, and drank this. 【主治】養心氣,明目益精,療腹痛腸澼,下痢赤白,小便利,及癰疽瘡 痔,女子崩中漏下,産難,胞衣不出。久服補髓,好顔色,益智不饑,輕 身延年。别録。補五臟虚乏。甄權。補心血,生肌肉,厚腸胃,除水濕, 收脱肛。時珍。 Control. It nourishes the heart qi, clears the eyes, boosts essence/sperm, heals abdominal pain and intestinal flush, red and white discharge with free-flux illness530 and free [uncontrolled] flow of urine, as well as sores associated with obstruction-illness and impediment-illness531 and piles, collapsing center532 of women with a leaking discharge, difficult delivery, and failure of the placenta to be released. Ingested over a long time, it serves to supplement the marrow, improves the complexion, boosts intelligence and prevents hunger, takes the weight of the body and extends the years [of life]. Bie lu. It supplements depletion and exhaustion of the five longterm depots. Zhen Quan. It supplements the blood in the heart, generates muscles and flesh, makes the walls of the intestines and the stomach thicker, eliminates water and moisture, and retracts a prolapsed anus. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【弘景曰】五色石脂,本經療體亦相似,别録分條具載,今俗惟 用赤、白二脂斷下痢耳。【元素曰】赤、白石脂俱甘、酸,陽中之陰, 530 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 531 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642. 532 Beng zhong 崩中, “collapsing center,” excessive vaginal bleeding outside of a menstruation period. BCGM Dict I, 58.

528

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

固脱。【杲曰】降也,陽中陰也。其用有二:固腸胃有收歛之能,下胎衣 無推蕩之峻。【好古曰】濇可去脱,石脂爲收歛之劑,赤入丙,白入庚。 【時珍曰】五石脂皆手足陽明藥也。其味甘,其氣温,其體重,其性濇。 濇而重,故能收濕止血而固下;甘而温,故能益氣生肌而調中。中者,腸 胃肌肉,驚悸黄疸是也;下者,腸澼泄痢,崩帶失精是也。五種主療,大 扺相同。故本經不分條目,但云各隨五色補五臟。别録雖分五種,而性味 主治亦不甚相遠,但以五味配五色爲異,亦是强分爾。赤白二種,一入氣 分,一入血分。故時用尚之。張仲景用桃花湯治下痢便膿血。取赤石脂之 重濇,入下焦血分而固脱;乾薑之辛温,暖下焦氣分而補虚;粳米之甘 温,佐石脂、乾薑而潤腸胃也。 Explication. [Tao] Hongjing: According to the Ben jing, the five differently colored kinds of halloysite are similar in their curative [potential] and physical substance. The Bie lu has devoted a separate entry to each of them. Nowadays only the two kinds of red and white halloysite are used for ending discharge with free-flux illness.533 [Zhang] Yuansu: Red and white halloysite are both sweet, sour and yin in yang. They solidify what is affected by evanescence. [Li] Gao: It sinks. It is yin in yang. It has two usages. [First,] with its ability to gather and collect, it solidifies the intestines and the stomach. [Second,] it serves to discharge the placenta without pushing it out the hard way. [Wang] Haogu: With its ability to roughen [a passage] it eliminates emanescences. Halloysite is a [therapeutic] preparation that gathers and collects. Red [halloysite] enters the heart; white [halloysite] enters the lung. [Li] Shizhen: All the five kinds of halloysite are medications associated with the hand and foot yang brilliance [conduits]. Their flavor is sweet, and their qi are warm. Their physical substance is heavy, and their nature is roughening. As they are roughening and heavy, they are able to gather moisture, to stop bleeding and to solidify where there is discharge. As they are sweet and warm, they are able to boost the qi, generate muscles and regulate the center. The “center” comprises the intestines, the stomach and flesh, fright palpitation and jaundice. “Discharge” is intestinal flush and outflow with free-flux illness, collapsing belt534 and loss of essence/semen. Control [over illness] and curative [potential] of the five kinds [of halloysite] are identical. Hence the Ben jing has not devoted separate entries to them. All it states is that they serve to supplement one of the five long-term depots in accordance with their [corresponding] color. The Bie lu treats the five kinds [of halloysite] separately, but in terms of their nature, flavor, control and curative [potential] they are not far apart from each other. The only difference lies in the association of the five substances 533 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 534 Beng dai 崩帶, "collapsing belt," a combined designation of beng zhong 崩中, "collapsing center," and dai xia 帶下, "discharge from below the belt." BCGM Dict I, 58

Chapter 9

529

with their respective colors, which is a forced distinction. Of the two red and white kinds, one enters the qi section, the other enters the blood section. Hence they are often preferred for use. Zhang Zhongjing [recommended to] use the “decoction with peach blossoms” to cure discharge with free-flux illness and (defecation/urination) relief with pus and blood. This [decoction] makes use of red halloysite’s heavy weight and roughening nature that lets it enter the blood section of the Lower Burner and solidify what is affected by emanescence. The acrid [flavor] and warm [nature] of dried ginger serve to warm the qi section of the Lower Burner and to supplement depletions. The sweet [flavor] and warm [nature] of non-glutinous rice assists the halloysite and the dried ginger and moistens the intestines and the stomach.

【附方】舊五,新七。 Added Recipes. Five of old. Seven newly [recorded]. 小兒疳瀉。赤石脂末,米飲調服半錢,立瘥。加京芎等分,更妙。斗門方。 Gan-illness535 with outflow of children. [Let the patient] ingest half a qian of red halloysite mixed with water in which rice was cooked and this will result in an immediate cure. With an identical amount of ligustiucm [root] added, [the effects will be] even more wondrous. Dou men fang. 大腸寒滑,小便精出。赤石脂、乾薑各一兩,胡椒半兩,爲末,醋糊丸梧 子大,每空心米飲下五七十丸。有人病此,熱藥服至一斗二升,不效。或 教服此,終四劑而息。寇氏衍義。 Smooth [passage through the] large intestine resulting from cold, with a release of urine and essence/sperm. [Grind] one liang each of red halloysite and dried ginger with half a liang of black pepper to a powder and form with vinegar and flour pills the size of wu seeds. Each time [let the patient] ingest on an empty stomach with a rice beverage 50 to 70 pills. Once there was a person who suffered from this disease. He ingested of a hot medication as much as one dou and two sheng, without an effect. Then someone taught him to ingest this [medication] and a cure was achieved after [ingesting] no more than four preparations. Kou shi, Yan yi.

535 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188.

530

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

赤白下痢。赤石脂末,飲服一錢。普濟方。 Red and white discharge with free-flux illness.536 Ingest with a beverage one qian of red halloysite powder. Pu ji fang. 冷痢腹痛,下白凍如魚腦。桃花丸:赤石脂煅,乾薑炮,等分爲末,蒸餅 和丸,量大小服,日三服。和劑局方。 Cold free-flux illness with abdominal pain and a discharge of white matter resembling fish brain. The “pills with peach blossoms.” [Grind] equal amounts of red halloysite, calcined, and dried ginger, roasted in a pan, to a powder and form with steamed cakes pills. The amount to be ingested is to be adapted to the [patient’s] age/weight. To be ingested three times a day. He ji ju fang. 老人氣痢虚冷。赤石脂五兩水飛,白麪六兩,水煮熟,入葱、醬作臛,空 心食,三四次即愈。養老方。 Free-flux illness of [intestinal flatus] qi of old people with depletion and a feeling of cold. Boil five liang of red halloysite, processed with aqueous sublimation, and six liang of white flour in water until done. Add onions and meat sauce to prepare a broth and [let the patient] eat this on an empty stomach. After three to four times a cure will be achieved. Yang lao fang. 傷寒下痢,便膿血不止。桃花湯主之。赤石脂一斤,一半全用,一半末 用,乾薑一兩,粳米半升,水七升,煮米熟去滓,每服七合。内末方寸 匕,日三服,愈乃止。張仲景方。 Harm caused by cold and discharge with free-flux illness, and unending (defecation/urination) relief with pus and blood. This is controlled by the “decoction with peach blossoms.” Boil one jin of red halloysite, one half complete, one half as powder, and one liang of dried ginger and half a sheng of nonglutinous rice in seven sheng of water until the rice is done and remove the dregs. Each time [let the patient] ingest seven ge. Add [halloysite] powder as much as is held by a square cun spoon, to be ingested three times a day. End the [treatment] once [the patient] is cured. Zhang Zhongjing fang. 痢後脱肛。赤石脂、伏龍肝爲末,傅之。一加白礬。錢氏小兒方。 Anal prolapse following a free-flux illness. [Grind] red halloysite and soil from a furnace to a powder and apply this to the [affected region]. Another [recipe] adds alum. Qian shi, Xiao er fang. 反胃吐食。絶好赤石脂爲末,蜜丸梧子大,每空腹薑湯下一二十丸。先以 巴豆仁一枚,勿令破,以津吞之,後乃服藥。聖惠方。 536 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

Chapter 9

531

Turned over stomach with vomiting of food. [Grind] top quality red halloysite to a powder and form with honey pills the size of wu seeds. Each time [let the patient] send down on an empty stomach ten to twenty pills with a ginger decoction. But before this, [the patient] is to swallow with his [saliva body] liquid one croton seed that must not be broken open. Only then he is to ingest the medication. Sheng hui fang. 痰飲吐水無時節者。其原因冷飲過度,遂令脾胃氣弱,不能消化飲食。飲 食入胃,皆變成冷水,反吐不停,赤石脂散主之。赤石脂一斤,搗篩,服 方寸匕,酒飲自任,稍加至三匕。服盡一斤,則終身不吐痰水,又不下 痢。補五藏,令人肥健。有人痰飲,服諸藥不效,用此遂愈。千金翼方。 Phlegm rheum537 with every now and then a vomiting of water, caused by an excessive drinking of cold beverages resulting in weakened spleen and stomach qi so that beverages and food can no longer be digested. When beverages and food have entered the stomach, they change to become cold water, resulting in an unending vomiting. The “powder with red halloysite” serves to control this. Pound one jin of red halloysite through a sieve and [let the patient] ingest the amount held by a square cun spoon, drinking it with as much wine as he wishes. Slowly increase the amount to as much as is held by three such spoons. Once one jin of [red halloysite] is used up, [the patient] will never again, for his entire life, vomit phlegm and water, and he will never again be affected by discharge with free-flux illness.538 It supplements the five long-term depots and lets one become fat and strong. There was a man who suffered from phlegm-rheum. He ingested medication but it remained without effect. Eventually he resorted to this [medication] and was cured. Qian jin yi fang. 心痛徹背。赤石脂、乾薑、蜀椒各四分,附子炮二分,烏頭炮一分,爲 末,蜜丸梧子大,先食服一丸。不知,稍增之。張仲景金匱方。 Heart pain extending into one’s back. [Grind] four fen each of red halloysite, dried ginger and Sichuan pepper, two fen of aconitum [accessory tuber], roasted in a pan, and one fen of aconitum [main tuber], roasted in a pan, to a powder and form with honey pills the size of wu seeds. First eat prior to a meal one pill. If it remains without effect, slowly increase [the amount]. Zhang Zhongjing, Jin kui fang.

537 Tan yin 痰飲, “phlegm rheum,” refers to pathological products that have accumulated in the body and that are excreted in the process of changes affecting the depots and palaces. They may block the passage of qi and blood and thereby become pathogenic factors. BCGM Dict I, 498. 538 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

532

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

經水過多。赤石脂、破故紙各一兩,爲末。每服二錢,米飲下。普濟方。 Excessive menstruation. [Grind] one liang each of red halloysite and psoralea fruit to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest two qian, to be sent down with a rice beverage. Pu ji fang. 小便不禁。赤石脂煅,牡蠣煅,各三兩,鹽一兩,爲末,糊丸梧子大,每 鹽湯下十五丸。普濟方。 Uncontrollable flow of urine. [Grind] three liang each of red halloysite, calcined, and oyster shells, calcined, with one liang of salt to a powder and form with flour pills the size of wu seeds. Each time send down with a salt decoction 15 pills. Pu ji fang. 09-16 桃花石唐本草 Tao hua shi, FE Tang ben cao. Peach blossom stone/mineral. Marmor (red and white). Calcium carbonate. 【集解】【恭曰】桃花石出申州 鍾山縣,似赤石脂,但舐之不着舌者是 也。【珣曰】其狀亦似紫石英,色若桃花,光潤而重,目之可愛。【頌 曰】今信州有之,形塊似赤石脂、紫石英輩,采無時。陶弘景言赤石脂出 義陽者,狀如㹠腦,鮮紅可愛。蘇恭非之,云是桃花石,久服肥人。今土 人以療痢,功用亦不相遠。【宗奭曰】桃花石有赤、白二等,有赤地淡白 點如桃花片者,有淡白地赤點如桃花片者。人往往鎸磨爲器用,人亦罕服 之。【時珍曰】此即赤白石脂之不粘舌、堅而有花點者,非别一物也,故 其氣味功用皆同石脂。昔張仲景治痢用赤石脂名桃花湯,和劑局方治冷痢 有桃花丸,皆即此物耳。 Collected Explanations. [Su] Gong: Marmor originates in Zhong shan xian in Shen zhou. It looks like red stone fat, but when one licks it it does not stick to the tongue. [Li] Xun: Its shape is reminiscent of that of fluor spar, and its color is that of peach blossoms. It is shiny and glossy, and heavy. Its appearance is easy on the eyes. [Su] Song: Nowadays it occurs in Xin zhou. The physical appearance of its pieces is similar to that of red stone fat, and of fluor spar. It is collected anytime. Tao Hongjing says: Red stone fat originates in Yi yang and is shaped like the brain of a piglet, with a lovely fresh red color. Su Gong contradicts him, stating: These are “peach blossom stones.” Ingested over a long time they let one become fat. Nowadays, the locals use them for healing free-flux illness.539 Their [therapeutic] potentials are not far apart from each other. [Kou] Zongshi. Peach blossom stone occurs in two kinds, red and white. There are those with a red ground and pale-white dots resembling 539 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

Chapter 9

533

peach blossom petals. And there are those with a pale white ground and black dots resembling peach blossom petals. The people often use them to carve and rub utensils, but occasionally they are also ingested by the people. [Li] Shizhen: This is red and white stone fat that does not stick to the tongue. It is hard and has dots like blossoms. It is not an item different from red halloysite. Hence its qi and flavor and [therapeutic] potential are identical to those of halloysite. In antiquity, Zhang Zhongjing cured free-flux illness with red halloysite and named it “peach blossom decoction.” The He ji ju fang [recommends to] cure free-flux illness caused by cold with the “pills with peach blossoms.” All these are the item discussed here. 【氣味】甘,温,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, warm, nonpoisonous. 【主治】大腸中冷膿血痢。久服令人肥悦能食。唐本。 Control. Cold in the large intestine with pus and bloody free-flux illness. Ingested over a long time, it lets a person become fat and happy and be able to eat. Tang ben. 09-17 爐甘石綱目 Lu gan shi, FE Gang mu. Sweet stone from a furnace. Calamine. Zincspar. 【釋名】爐先生。【土宿真君曰】此物點化爲神藥絶妙,九天三清俱尊之 曰爐先生,非小藥也。【時珍曰】爐火所重,其味甘,故名。 Explanation of Names. Lu xian sheng 爐先生, “Mr. Furnace.” Tu su zhen jun: This item is transformed in alchemical processes to a divine medication of decidedly wondrous [effects]. In the nine heavens and three clarities it is reveredly called “Mr. Furnace.” This is not an insignificant medication! [Li] Shizhen: [Those who use] fire in a furnace [to prepare longevity elixirs], they hold it in high esteem. Its flavor is sweet. Hence its name. 【集解】【時珍曰】爐甘石所在坑冶處皆有,川蜀、湘東最多,而太原、 澤州、陽城、高平、靈丘、融縣及雲南者爲勝,金銀之苗也。其塊大小不 一,狀似羊腦,鬆如石脂,亦粘舌。産于金坑者,其色微黄,爲上。産於 銀坑者,其色白,或帶青,或帶緑,或粉紅。赤銅得之,即變爲黄,今之 黄銅,皆此物點化也。造化指南云:爐甘石受黄金、白銀之氣熏陶,三 十年方能結成。以大穢浸及砒煮過,皆可點化,不减三黄。崔昉外丹本草 云:用銅一斤,爐甘石一斤,鍊之即成鍮石一斤半。非石中物取出乎?真 鍮石生波斯,如黄金,燒之赤而不黑。

534

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: Locations to prepare calamine are found everywhere at the mines and foundries, most often in Chuan shu and Xiang dong. That from Tai yuan, Ze zhou, Yang cheng, Gao ping, Ling qiu, Yong xian and Yun nan is best. It is the outcrop of gold and silver. The size of its pieces varies. They are shaped like a sheep brain, and soft like halloysite. They, too, stick to the tongue. Those kinds originating in gold pits are of a slightly yellow color. They are the best. Those kinds originating in silver pits are of white color, sometimes with some greenish or green traces, or pink. When they are brought together with red copper, they change to assume a yellow color. Today’s yellow copper is always a transformation by means of an alchemical processing of these items. The Zao hua zhi nan states: “When calamine is exposed to the qi of yellow gold and white silver in a pottery jar for 30 years, it will become [a divine medication]. Soaked in manure and heated with arsenic it is transformed [to a medication] that is not inferior to the ‘three [substances realgar, orpiment and sulphur that have in their names the character] yellow’.” Cui Fang in his Wai dan ben cao states: “When one jin of copper and one jin of calamine are refined with heat, they become one jin and a half of brass. Then, [brass] is not an item obtained from within rocks?” Genuine brass grows in Po si (Persia). It looks like yellow gold. When heated it turns red, not black. 【修治】【時珍曰】凡用爐甘石,以炭火煅紅,童子小便淬七次,水洗 净,研粉,水飛過,晒用。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Li] Shizhen: For all applications of calamine, calcine it with a charcoal fire until it has assumed a red color, dip it into boys’ urine seven times, wash it clean, grind it to a powder, process it with aqueous sublimation and dry it in the sun before using it [for therapeutic purposes]. 【氣味】甘,温,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, warm, nonpoisonous. 【主治】止血,消腫毒,生肌,明目去瞖退赤,收濕除爛。同龍腦點,治 目中一切諸病。時珍。 Control. It ends bleeding, dissolves swelling with poison, generates muscles, clears the eyes, removes shades [from the eyes], removes redness [from the eyes], withdraws moisture and eliminates festering. Dripped [into the eyes] together with borneol it serves to cure all types of ailments affecting the eyes. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】爐甘石,陽明經藥也。受金銀之氣,故治目病爲要 藥。時珍常用爐甘石煅淬、海螵蛸、硼砂各一兩,爲細末,以點諸目病, 甚妙。入朱砂五錢,則性不粘也。

Chapter 9

535

Explication. [Li] Shizhen: Calamine is a medication for the yang brilliance conduits. It has acquired the qi of gold and silver. Hence it is an important medication to cure eye diseases. [I, Li] Shizhen regularly use one liang each of calamine, calcined and dipped [into boys’ urine], cuttlefish bone and borax, [have them ground to] a fine powder, to be dripped into the eyes for all types of diseases with very wondrous [effects]. When five qian of cinnabar are added, it will lose its sticky nature.

【附方】新十五。 Added Recipes. 15 newly [recorded]. 目暴赤腫。爐甘石火煅尿淬,風化消等分,爲末,新水化一粟點之。御藥 院方。 Eyes suddenly afflicted by redness and swelling. [Grind] equal amounts of calamine, calcined over a fire and dipped into urine, and mirabilite to a powder. Dissolve as much as the size of a millet seed in newly drawn water and drip this [into the affected eyes]. Yu yao yuan fang. 諸般翳膜。爐甘石、青礬、朴消等分,爲末,每用一字,沸湯化開,温 洗,日三次。宣明方。 All types of shades and membranes [developing in the eyes]. [Grind] equal amounts of calamine, greenish alum and mirabilite to a powder. Each time dissolve one zi in hot water boiled to bubbling and wash [the affected eyes] with the warm [liquid]. Three times a day. Xuan ming fang. 一切目疾。真爐甘石半斤,用黄連四兩,剉豆大,銀石器内,水二盌,煮 二伏時,去黄連,爲末,入片腦二錢半,研匀罐收。每點少許,頻用取效。 All types of ailments of the eyes. Boil half a jin of genuine calamine with four liang of coptis [rhizome], cut into pieces the size of beans, in a silver or stone vessel in two bowls of water for two days and two nights. Then remove the coptis [rhizome] and [grind the calamine] to a powder. Add two and a half qian of borneol, grind this evenly [to a powder] and store it in a small vase. Each time drip a small amount [into the affected eyes]. Repeated applications will be effective. 又方:爐甘石煅一錢,盆消一錢,爲末,熱湯泡洗。 Another recipe. [Grind] one qian of calcined calamine and one qian of mirabilite to a powder, soak them in hot water and [use the liquid to] wash [the affected eyes]. 目中諸病。石連光明散:治眼中五輪八廓諸證,神效。爐甘石半斤,取如 羊腦、鴨頭色者,以桑柴灰一斗,火煅赤研末,用雅州黄連各四兩,切

536

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

片,煎水浸石,澄取粉,晒乾。用鉛粉二定,以二連水540浸過,炒之。雄黄 研末。每用甘石、鉛粉各三分,雄黄一分,片腦半分,研匀,點眼甚妙。 張氏方。 All types of ailments in the eyes. The “powder with calamine and coptis [rhizome].” It serves to cure all types of illness signs in the five wheels/spheres and eight boundaries [of the eyes]541 with divine effects. Calcine with fire until it has assumed a red color and grind to a powder half a jin of calamine – select specimens colored like a sheep brain or the head of a duck – with one dou of ashes of mulberry firewood. Then cut four liang of coptis [rhizome] from Yao zhou into pieces, boil them [in water] and add the calamine to soak [in the liquid]. Filter the liquid, remove the powder and dry it in the sun. Also, soak two ding of lead carbonate in the [huang] lian water and fry it. Grind realgar to a powder. For each application use three fen each of the calamine and of the lead carbonate, one fen of the realgar and half a fen of the borneol and grind them evenly [to a powder] to be dripped into the [affected] eyes. Very wondrous. Zhang shi fang. 目暗昏花。爐甘石火煅、童尿淬七次,代赭石火煅醋淬七次,黄丹水飛, 各四兩,爲末。白沙蜜半斤,以銅鐺鍊去白沫,更添清水五六盌,熬沸下 藥,文武火熬至一盌,滴水不散,以夾紙濾入瓷器收之,頻點日用。衞生 易簡方。 Dim vision and clouding with flowery vision. [Grind] four liang each of calamine, calcined over a fire and dipped into boys’ urine seven times, hematite, calcined over a fire and dipped into vinegar seven times, and lead oxide, processed with aqueous sublimation, to a powder. Also, refine with heat in a copper vessel half a jin of white granulated honey and remove the white foam. Add five to six bowls of clear water, heat this until bubbling and add the medication. Simmer this with a mild fire first and a more violent fire afterwards down to one bowl to generate a paste. Water dripped into it must no longer disperse. Filter [the paste] through two layers of paper into a porcelain vessel for storage. Drip it [into the affected eyes] several times a day. Wei sheng yi jian fang. 爛弦風眼。劉長春方:治風眼流淚,爛弦。白爐甘石四兩,火煅童尿淬七 次,地上出毒三日,細研。每用椒湯洗目後,臨卧點三四次,次早以茶湯 洗去,甚妙。 540 As there is only one pharmaceutical substance with the character lian 連 in its name, i.e., coptis [rhizome] 黃連, the phrase 二連水 may be an ancient error for 黃連水. 541 For the concepts of the wu lun ba kuo 五輪八廓, “the five wheels/spheres and eight boundaries,” in historical Chinese ophthalmology, see Jürgen Kovacs and Paul U. Unschuld, Essential Subtleties on the Silver Sea. The Yin hai jing wei: A Chinese Classic on Ophthalmology. Univ. of California Press, Berkeley, Los Angeles, London, 1998, 134-137.

Chapter 9

537

Wind eyes542 with festering [eyelid] rims. Recipe of Liu Changchun: It serves to cure wind eyes with tearflow and festering [eyelid] rims. Calcine over a fire four liang of white calamine and dip it into boys’ urine seven times. Then let it remain on the ground for three days to release its poison and grind it to a fine [powder]. Each time when going to bed, after washing [the eyes] with [sichuan] pepper decoction, drip [the powder into the affected eyes] three to four times. The next morning wash it off with a decoction of tea [leaves]. Very wondrous. 又方:爐甘石一斤火煅,黄連四兩煎水淬七次,爲末,入片腦,每用點目。 Alternative Recipe. [Grind] one jin of calamine, calcined over a fire, and four liang of coptis [rhizome], boiled in water and dipped [into boys’s urine] seven times, to a powder, add borneol and for each [therapeutic] application drip it into the [affected] eyes. 宣明眼科方:用爐甘石、石膏各一錢,海螵蛸三分,爲末,入片腦、麝香 各少許,收點。 Xuan ming yan ke fang: [Grind] one qian each of calamine and gypsum and three cuttlefish bones to a powder, add small amounts each of borneol and musk and store this for dripping [into the affected eyes]. 衞生易簡方用爐甘石二兩,以黄連一兩煎水,入童尿半盞再熬,下朴消一 兩又熬成。以火煅石淬七次,洗净爲末,入密陀僧末一兩研匀,收點之。 The Wei sheng yi jian fang [recommends to] boil two liang of calamine and one liang of coptis [rhizome] in water, add half a small cup of boys’ urine and simmer this anew. Then add one liang of mirabilite and simmer this again. Calcine the calamine over fire and dip it [into boys’ urine] seven times, wash it clean and [grind it to a] powder. Add one liang of litharge and grind it evenly [to a powder]. Store this and drip it [into the affected eyes when needed]. 聤耳出汁。爐甘石、礬石各二錢,臙脂半錢,麝香少許,爲末,繳净吹 之。普濟方。 Purulent ears releasing a liquid. [Grind] two qian each of calamine and alum, half a qian of rouge and a small amount of musk to a powder. Clean [the affected ear] and blow the [powder into it]. Pu ji fang.

542 Feng yan 風眼, “wind eyes,” are red and festering canthi and eyelids brought about by harm caused to the eyes by heat. BCGM Dict I, 171.

538

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

齒疏陷物。爐甘石煅、寒水石等分,爲末,每用少許擦牙,忌用刷牙,久 久自密。集玄方。 Dental scarcity with sunken in matter. [Grind] equal amounts of calcined calamine and calcite to a powder. Each time rub a small amount on the teeth, but do not use it to brush the teeth. After a very long time, [the teeth] will move closer together again. Ji xuan fang. 漏瘡不合。童尿制爐甘石、牡蠣粉,外塞之。内服滋補藥。雜病治例。 Leaking sores that fail to close. Use calamine processed with boys’ urine and oyster shell powder to close [the open sores] from the outside. Internally ingest nourishing and supplementing medication. Za bing zhi li. 下疳陰瘡。爐甘石火煅醋淬五次一兩,孩兒茶三錢,爲末,麻油調傅,立 愈。通妙邵真人方。 Gan-illness543 affecting the lower [body part] with sores in the yin [(i. e., genital) region]. [Grind] one liang of calamine, calcined over a fire and dripped into vinegar seven times, and three qian of catechu to a powder and apply this, mixed with sesame oil, to the [affected region]. Immediately effective. Tongmiao Shao zhenren fang. 陰汗濕痒。爐甘石一分,真蚌粉半分,研粉撲之。直指方。 Sweating in the yin [(i. e. genital) region] with moisture and itch. Grind one fen of calamine and half a fen of genuine clamshell powder to a powder and apply this to the [affected region]. Zhi zhi fang.

09-18 井泉石宋嘉祐 Jing quan shi, Song, Jia you. Stones from wells and springs. 【釋名】【時珍曰】性寒如井泉,故名。 Explanation of Names. [Li] Shizhen: Their nature is cold, like [water from] wells and springs. Hence the name. 【集解】【禹錫曰】井泉石,近道處處有之,以出饒陽郡者爲勝。生田野 中間,穿地深丈餘得之。形如土色,圓方長短大小不等,内實而外圓,重 543 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188.

Chapter 9

539

重相叠,采無時。又一種如薑石者,時人多指爲井泉石,非是。【頌曰】 深州城西二十里,劇家村出之。 Collected Explanations. [Zhang] Yuxi: Stones from wells and springs are found everywhere. Those from Rao yang jun are best. They develop in the fields in the wilderness. They are obtained by digging a zhang or deeper into the ground. Their physical appearance has the color of soil, and they may be round or rectangular, long or short, large or small. They may be solid internally and round outside; and they may be piled in layers above each other. They are collected anytime. There is one variety reminiscent of “ginger stones.” (gravel, 10-28). Occasionally the people identify them as stones from wells and springs, but that is wrong. [Su] Song: They originate in Ju jia cun, 20 li east of Shen zhou city. 【修治】【禹錫曰】凡用,細研水飛過。不爾,令人淋。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Zhang] Yuxi: For all applications, grind them to a fine [powder] and process them through aqueous sublimation. If this is not done, they will cause [urinary] dripping. 【氣味】甘,大寒,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, very cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】諸熱,解心臟熱結。熱嗽,小兒熱疳,雀目青盲,眼赤腫痛,消 腫毒。得决明、菊花,療小兒眼疳生翳膜。 得大黄、巵子,治眼瞼腫赤。 嘉祐。 Control. All types of heat. They resolve bound [qi]544 because of heat in the heart depot. Heat cough. Heat gan-illness545 of children. Sparrow eyes and green blindness. Red, swollen and painful eyes. Combined with cassia tora seeds and chrysanthemum, they serve to heal gan-illness affecting the eyes of children, with shades and membranes. Combined with rhubarb root and zhi zi, they serve to cure swelling and redness of eyelids. Jia you.

544 Jie qi 結氣, “bound qi,” refers to pathological qi halting and congealing at any place in the human body. BCGM Dict I, 240. 545 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188.

540

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 【附方】新四。 Added Recipes. Four newly [recorded].

膀胱熱閉,小便不快。井泉石、海金沙、車前子、滑石各一兩,爲末,每 服二錢,蜜湯下。聖濟録。 Closure of the urinary bladder caused by heat, with urine failing to pass quickly. [Grind] one liang each of stones from wells and springs, lygodium spores, plantago seeds, and talc to a powder. Each time ingest two qian, to be sent down with a honey decoction. Sheng ji lu. 風毒赤目。井泉石半兩,井中苔焙半兩、穀精草一兩,豉焙一合,爲末, 每服二錢,空心井華水服。聖濟録。 Red eyes caused by wind and poison. [Grind] half a liang of stones from wells and springs, half a liang of baked mosses from within a well, one liang of eriocaulum flower and one ge of fermented soybeans to a powder. Each time ingest two qian. To be ingested on an empty stomach with the first water drawn from a well in the morning. Sheng ji lu. 産後搐搦。俗名鷄爪風。舒筋散:用井泉石四兩另研,天麻酒浸、木香各 一兩,人參、川芎、官桂、丁香各半兩,爲末,每服三錢,大豆淋酒調 下,出汗即愈。宣明方。 Convulsions following a delivery. This is commonly called “chicken claw wind.” The “powder to relax the sinews.” Grind four liang of stones from wells and springs, already ground separately, one liang each of gastrodia [tuber], soaked in wine, and aucklandia [root], and half a liang each of ginseng [root], ligusticum [root], cassia bark and cloves to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest three qian, to be sent down mixed with wine prepared from black soybeans. Once [the patient] sweats, she will be cured. Xuan ming fang. 痤疿瘙痒。井泉石生三兩,寒水石煅四兩,腦子半錢,爲末撲之。聖濟録。 Acne with seething rash and itch. [Grind] three liang of stones from wells and springs, four liang of calcined calcite and half a liang of camphora to a powder and apply this to the [affected region]. Sheng ji lu.

Chapter 9

541

09-19 無名異宋開寶 Wu ming yi, FE Kai bao. Pyrolusite. Manganese dioxide. 【釋名】【時珍曰】無名異,廋詞也。 Explanation of Names. [Li] Shizhen: Wu ming yi 無名異, “nameless alian,” is a pseudonym. 【集解】【志曰】無名異出大食國,生於石上,狀如黑石炭。番人以油鍊 如黳石,嚼之如餳。【頌曰】今廣州山石中及宜州南八里龍濟山中亦有 之。黑褐色,大者如彈丸,小者如墨石子,采無時。【斅曰】無名異形似 石炭,味别。【時珍曰】生川、廣深山中,而桂林極多,一包數百枚,小 黑石子也,似蛇黄而色黑,近處山中亦時有之。用以煮蟹,殺腥氣。煎煉 桐油,收水氣。塗剪剪燈,則燈自斷也。 Collected Explanations. [Ma] Zhi: Pyrolusite originates in the country Da shi; it grows on rocks. It is shaped like black charcoal. The foreigners refine it with oil and heat to something like yi stone which, when chewed, tastes like malt-sugar. [Su] Song: Nowadays it is present everywhere in the mountain rocks of Guang zhou, and on Mount Long ji, eight li south of Yi zhou. It is of black-brown color. Large pieces are of the size of bullets; small ones are of the size of ink pebbles. They are collected anytime. [Lei] Xiao: The physical appearance of pyrolusite resembles that of coal, but the flavor is different. [Li] Shizhen: [Pyrolusite] grows deep in the mountains of Chuan and Guang, and there is especially much in Gui lin. One location encompasses several hundred pieces; these are small, black pebbles. They look like limonite, but are black. In mountains nearby, too, they are found occasionally. They serve to boil crabs to kill their fishy qi. When boiled together with vermicia oil, [pyrolusite] absorbs its water qi. When it is smeared on scissors and these scissors are used to cut a lamp wick, the lamp wick will be [easily] severed as a result. 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。【頌曰】鹹,寒。伏硫黄。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. [Su] Song: Salty, cold. It subdues [the effects of ] sulphur. 【主治】金瘡折傷内損,止痛,生肌肉。開寶。消腫毒癰疽,醋摩傅之。 蘇頌。收濕氣。時珍。 Control. Wounds caused by metal objects/weapons, fracture harm and internal injuries. It ends pain. It stimulates the growth of muscles and flesh. Kai bao. It dissolves

542

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

swelling with poison associated with obstruction-illness and impediment-illness.546 Rub it with vinegar and apply the [resulting liquid to the affected region]. Su Song. It collects moisture qi. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】按雷斅炮炙論 序云:無名止楚,截指而似去甲毛。崔 昉外丹本草云:無名異,陽石也。昔人見山鷄被網損其足,脱去,御一石 摩其損處,遂愈而去。乃取其石理傷折,大效,人因傳之。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: According to the Preface to Lei Xiao’s Pao zhi lun, “pyrolusite ends pain. When a finger is severed, this will feel just like a removal of a nail or hair.” Cui Fang in his Wai dan ben cao states: “Pyrolusite is a yang stone. In ancient times, someone saw a chicken that was caught in a net with its foot hurt. It managed to free itself and rubbed the [injured] foot on a stone whereupon [the foot] was cured and [the chicken was able to] leave. [That person] took that stone and applied it to cure fractures with great success. Hence the people have passed this [method] on.”

【附方】新十。 Added Recipes. Ten newly [recorded]. 打傷腫痛。無名異爲末,酒服,趕下四肢之末,血皆散矣。集驗方。 Swelling and pain caused by a blow. [Grind] pyrolusite to a powder and ingest it with wine. Apply a massage toward the ends of the four limbs. This will disperse all the blood. Ji yan fang. 損傷接骨。無名異、甜瓜子各一兩,乳香、没藥各一錢,爲末,每服五 錢,熱酒調服,小兒三錢。服畢,以黄米粥塗紙上,摻左顧牡蠣末裹之, 竹篦夾住。多能鄙事。 For reconnecting [fractured] bones associated with an injury. [Grind] one liang each of pyrolusite and muskmelon seeds and one qian each of frankincense and myrrh to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest five qian. To be ingested mixed with hot wine. Children [ingest] three qian. After [the patient] has ingested [the medication], apply yellow millet gruel to paper, apply powder of oysters with left-winding spirals to [the gruel], wrap [the paper] around [the injured bones] and fasten it with bamboo strips. Duo neng bi shi.

546 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642.

Chapter 9

543

臨杖預服。無名異末,臨時温服三五錢,則杖不甚痛,亦不甚傷。談埜翁 試效方。 Precautionary ingestion when facing a flogging. Ingest with warm [water] three to five qian of pyrolusite shortly prior to [a flogging] and the flogging will not be very painful. Also, it will not cause severe harm. Tan Yeweng shi xiao fang. 赤瘤丹毒。無名異末,葱汁調塗立消。簡便方。 Red tumor and cinnabar poison.547 Apply pyrolusite powder mixed with onion juice to the [affected region. The tumor] will be dissolved immediately. Jian bian fang. 痔漏腫痛。無名異炭火煅紅,米醋淬七次,爲細末,以温水洗瘡,綿裹筯 頭填末入瘡口,數次愈。簡便方。 Leaking piles with painful swelling. [Grind] pyrolusite, calcined over fire until it has turned red and dipped into rice vinegar seven times, to a fine powder. Wash the sores with warm water. Wrap the tip of a chopstick with silk floss and use this to insert the powder into the open sores. A cure will be achieved after several applications. Jian bian fang. 天泡濕瘡。無名異末,井華水調服之。普濟方。 Moist celestial blister sores. Ingest pyrolusite powder mixed with the first water drawn from a well in the morning. Pu ji fang. 臁瘡潰爛。無名異、虢丹細研,清油調搽,濕則乾搽之。濟急方。 Festering shank sores. Grind pyrolusite and cinnabar to a fine powder, mix it with clear oil and apply this to the [affected region]. When [the affected region] is moist, apply the [powder] dry [without the oil]. Ji ji fang. 股陰𤷍癧。無名異二錢,麝香一字,研,酒半盌,午後空腹服,立效。多 能鄙事。 Scrofula pervasion-illness affecting the thighs and the yin [(i. e., genital) region]. Grind two qian of pyrolusite and one zi of musk [to a powder] and ingest it with half a bowl of wine on an empty abdomen after noon. Immediately effective. Duo neng bi shi. 拳毛倒睫。無名異末,紙卷作撚,點燈吹殺熏之,睫自起。保命集。 Inverted eyelashes. Prepare rolls of paper wrapped around pyrolusite. Ignite them over a lamp fire, blow out [the flame] and expose [the affected eyes] to the fumes. The eyelashes will straighten up again as a result. Bao ming ji. 547 Dan du 丹毒, “cinnabar poison,” a skin ailment with red rashes. BCGM Dict I, 118

544

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

消渴引飲。無名異一兩,黄連二兩,爲末,蒸餅丸緑豆大,每服百丸,以 茄根、蠶繭煎湯送下。聖濟録。 Melting with thirst548 and an urge to drink. [Grind] one liang of pyrolusite and two liang of coptis [rhizome] to a powder and form with steamed cakes pills the size of mung beans. Each time ingest 100 pills, to be sent down with a decoction of eggplant root and silk cocoon. Sheng ji lu. 脚氣痛楚。無名異末,化牛皮膠調塗之,頻换。衞生易簡方。 Leg qi with pain. Mix pyrolusite powder with dissolved ox hide glue and apply this to the [affected region]. Renew [the application] frequently. Wei sheng yi jian fang. 09-20 蜜栗子綱目 Mi li zi, FE Gang mu. A kind of limestone. Calcium carbonate. 【集解】【時珍曰】蜜栗子生川、廣、江、浙金坑中,狀如蛇黄而有刺, 上有金線纏之,色紫褐,亦無名異之類也。丹爐家采作五金匱藥,制三黄。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: Mi li zi grows in gold pits in Chuan, Guang, Jiang and Zhe. It is shaped like limonite, but has thorns. Gold threads wind on its surface; it is of purple-brown color. It belongs to the same group as pyrolusite. Experts who prepare elixirs in furnaces collect it to prepare encasements consisting of any of the five types of metals as pharmaceutical substances to check the [effects of ] the three [substances with the character] “yellow” [in their names].549 【主治】金瘡折傷,有效。時珍。 Control. Wounds and fractures caused by metal objects/weapons. Effective. [Li] Shizhen.

548 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567. 549 The three substances with the character “yellow” in their names, san huang 三黃, include sulphur, liu huang 硫黃, realgar, xiong huang 雄黃, and orpiment, ci huang 雌黃. The “five types of metals”, wu jin 五金, may refer to the entirety of metals and minerals, or to the five core metals/minerals as include gold, silver, copper, iron and tin. Kui 匱, “encasement,” is a method used by ancient Chinese alchemists whereby certain substances are used to prepare a sheath or coffer, gui 櫃, surrounding one or more substances that are to be modified to eventually become a longevity elixir

Chapter 9

545

09-21 石鍾乳本經上品 Shi zhong ru, FE Ben jing, upper rank. Stalactite. Calcium carbonate. 【釋名】留公乳别録、虚中吴普、蘆石别録、鵝管石綱目、夏石别録、黄 石砂藥性。【時珍曰】石之津氣,鍾聚成乳,滴溜成石,故名石鍾乳。蘆 與鵝管,象其空中之狀也。 Explanation of Names. Liu gong ru 留公乳, Bie lu. Xu zhong 虚中, “hollow center,” Wu Pu. Lu shi 蘆石, “reed stone,” Bie lu. E guan shi 鵝管石, “goose feather quill stone,” Gang mu. Xia shi 夏石, “summer stone,” Bie lu. Huang shi sha 黄石砂, “yellow stone sand,” Yao xing. [Li] Shizhen: The fluid qi of stones concentrate, zhong 鍾, and collect to form “teats,” ru 乳. As they drip down they become stones, shi 石. Hence their name: shi zhong ru 石鍾乳, “teats of collected stone [fluids].” Lu 蘆, “reed,” and e guan 鵝管, “goose feather quill,” are to reflect their shape with a hollow center. 【集解】【别録曰】石鍾乳生少室山谷及太山,采無時。【普曰】生太山 山谷陰處岸下,溜汁所成,如乳汁,黄白色,空中相通,二月三月采,陰 乾。【弘景曰】第一出始興,而江陵及東境名山石洞亦皆有。惟通中輕薄 如鵝翎管,碎之如爪甲,中無雁齒、光明者爲善。長挺乃有一二尺者。色 黄,以苦酒洗刷則白。仙經少用,而俗方所重。【恭曰】第一始興,其 次廣、連、澧、朗、郴等州者,雖厚而光潤可愛,餌之並佳。今峽州、青 溪、房州三洞出者,亞于始興。自餘非其土地,不可輕服。多發淋渴,止 可搗篩,白練裹之,合諸藥草浸酒服之。陶云有一二尺者,謬説也。【思 邈曰】乳石必須土地清白光潤,羅紋、鳥翮、蟬翼一切皆成,白者可用。 其非土地者,慎勿服之,殺人甚於鴆毒。【志曰】别本注云:凡乳生於 深洞幽穴,皆龍蛇潜伏,或龍蛇毒氣,或洞口陰陽不均,或通風氣,雁齒 濇,或黄或赤,乳無潤澤,或煎鍊火色不調,一煎已後不易水,則生火 毒,服即令人發淋。又乳有三種:石乳者,其山洞純石,以石津相滋,陰 陽交備,蟬翼紋成,其性温;竹乳者,其山洞遍生小竹,以竹津相滋,乳 如竹 狀,其性平;茅山之乳者,其山有土石相雜,遍生茅草,以茅津相滋 爲乳,乳色稍黑而滑潤,其性微寒。一種之中,有上中下色,皆以光澤爲 好。餘處亦有,不可輕信。【炳曰】如蟬翅者上,爪甲者次,鵝管者下。 明白而薄者可服。【頌曰】今道州 江華縣及連、英、韶、階、峽州山中皆 有之。生嵓穴陰處,溜山液而成,空中相通,長者六七寸,如鵝翎管狀, 色白微紅。唐 李补阙鍊乳法云:取韶州鍾乳,無問厚薄,但令顔色明净 光澤者,即堪入鍊,惟黄、赤二色不任用。柳宗元書亦云:取其色之美而 已,不必惟土之信。是此藥所重,惟在明白者,不必如上所説數種也。 今醫家但以鵝管中空者爲最。又本經中品載殷孽云:鍾乳根也。孔公孽,

546

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

殷孽根也。石花、石牀並與殷孽同。又有石腦,亦種乳之類。凡此五種, 醫家亦復稀用,但用鍾乳爾。【時珍曰】按范成大桂海志所説甚詳明。云 桂林接宜、融山洞穴中,鍾乳甚多。仰視石脉涌起處,即有乳牀,白如玉 雪,石液融結成者。乳牀下垂,如倒數峰小山,峰端漸鋭且長如冰柱,柱 端輕薄中空如鵝翎。乳水滴瀝不已,且滴且凝,此乳之最精者,以竹管仰 承取之。鍊治家又以鵝管之端,尤輕明如雲母爪甲者爲勝。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Stalactites grow in the valleys of Mount Shao shi shan and at Mount Tai shan. They are collected anytime. [Wu] Pu: They develop below the cliffs at shady places in the valleys of Mount Tai shan. They are formed by dripping juice, similar to milk juice. They are of yellow-white color and hollow inside. They are collected in the second and third months, to be dried in the shade. [Tao] Hongjing: The number one [quality of stalactites] originates in Shi xing, but they are present also in Jiang ling and in the stone caverns of the famous mountains in the East. Only those are good that are as hollow, light and thin as goose feather quills, that are as brittle as claws, have no wild geese teeth[-like surface] inside, and that are shiny. Long ones reach a length of one to two chi. They are of yellow color and when they are washed with wine and scrubbed, they turn white. They are rarely resorted to in the classics of the hermits/immortals, but they are highly valued in common recipes. [Su] Gong: Number one [quality originates in] Shi xing. Those of secondary [quality] originate in Guang, Lian, Li, Lang and Chen. They are thick, but they are of a lovely glossiness and can all be ingested. Those nowadays originating in the three caves of Xia zhou, Qing xi and Fang zhou are inferior to those from Shi xing. All the others that do not come from these regions must not be ingested lightly. They often cause dripping [urine] and thirst. All that is possible is to pound them through a sieve and wrap them in white silk. This is then soaked together with all types of medication herbs in wine, and [the wine] is then ingested. When Tao [Hongjing] states that [stalactites] reach a length of one to two chi, he is wrong. [Sun] Simiao: Stalactites must [come from the right] place, they must be clear white and of shiny glossiness, and with a net-like line design, like bird feathers or cicada wings. If they are white, they can be used [for therapeutic purposes]. Those that do not [come from the right] place must be handled carefully and cannot be ingested. They are more deadly for humans then the poison of the (legendary) zhen 鴆 bird. [Ma] Zhi: A commentary in another volume states: To all stalactites developing in deep caves and dark holes the following applies. These are locations where dragons and snakes lie hidden and they may be affected by poison qi of dragons and snakes or by an unbalanced presence of yin and yang [qi] at the opening of a cave, or by a wind draught passing through. They may be rough like wild goose teeth, or they are yellow or red, and the milk [stone] lacks glossiness, or after being refined over

Chapter 9

547

fire their color may be unequal. If after a first boiling the water is not exchanged, fire poison is generated and when ingested lets one have dripping [urine]. Also, there are three kinds of stalactites. [First,] “stone teat” stalactites. [They develop] where there are only stones in mountain caves and [the “stone teats”] are nourished by the fluids of these stones. [“Stone teat” stalactites] are alternately equipped with yin and yang [qi] and have a line design like cicada wings. Their nature is warm. [Second,] “bamboo teat” stalactites. When small bamboo grows all over in mountain caves [the “bamboo teat” stalactites] are nourished by the fluid of these bamboo growths. These stalactites are shaped like bamboo. Their nature is balanced. [Third,] the “spear mountain teat” stalactites. [They develop] where on mountains soil and stones are interspersed, and imperata herbs grow everywhere. These stalactites are nourished by the fluid of imperata herb. Their color is slightly black and glossy. Their nature is slightly cold. Within each of these kinds there are top, middle and inferior color grades. All [stalactites] with a glossy appearance are good. There are claims that [stalactites] are present in other places, too, but they must not be trusted lightly. [Xiao] Bing: Those [with a structure] resembling cicada wings are best. Those [with a structure] reminiscent of claws and nails are of secondary rank. Those resembling goose feather quills are of low rank. Those that are shiny white and thin can be ingested. [Su] Song Nowadays [stalactites] are found in Jiang hua xian of Dao zhou, and in the mountains of Lian, Ying, Shao, Jie and Xia. They develop in yin/shady locations in rock caves and are formed by liquids dripping in the mountains. They are hollow inside and their length reaches six to seven cun. They are shaped like goose feather quills, and their color is white to slightly red. The Tang writer Li Buque in his Lian ru fa states: “Stalactites obtained from Shao zhou, no matter whether they are thick or thin, as long as their color is shiny, clean and glossy, they are suitable for a refinement. Only those of the two colors yellow and red are not suitable for such applications.” Liu Zongyuan, too, in his writings states: “The only criterion that counts is their color; [their quality] does not depend on the soil [they originate in].” That is, the value of this medication lies solely in its shiny white [color]. It is wrong that there are numerous kinds, as the statements quoted above suggest. Today’s physicians consider only those as best that resemble goose feather quills and are hollow. Also, the Ben jing in its section “middle rank” lists yin nie (09-23), stating: “It is the root of stalactites. Kong gong nie (09-22) is the root of yin nie.” Shi hua (09-23-02) and shi chuang (09-23-01) are identical to yin nie. Furthermore, there is shi nao (0925). It, too, belongs to the same group as stalactites. Physician rarely make use of any of these five kinds. They only resort to zhong ru 鍾乳, “stalactites.” [Li] Shizhen: The statements by Fan Chengda in his Gui hai zhi are very detailed and clear. He states: “There are many stalactites in the caves of Mount Yi and Mount Rong near Guilin.

548

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

When you look upward you see locations where stone veins protrude. These are the ‘teat beds’. They are as white as jade and snow, and they are formed by the liquids of melting stones. The ‘teat beds’ hang down from above like numerous inverted peaks of small mountains. The tips of these peaks are gradually pointed and long, like icicles. The tips of the columns are thin and hollow like goose feather quills. The water from these teats drips continuously, and parts of it drop down, others congeal. These are the finest stalactites. They are removed by reaching up with a bamboo tube to take hold of them. Experts in refining with heat [substances to produce longevity elixirs] consider those to be the best that resemble goose feather quills and are as light and shiny like muscovite and claws.” 【修治】【斅曰】凡使勿用頭粗厚并尾大者,爲孔公石,不用。色黑及經 大火驚過,并久在地上收者,曾經藥物制者,並不得用。須要鮮明、薄而 有光潤者,似鵝翎筒子爲上,有長五六寸者。凡修事法:鍾乳八兩,用沈 香、零陵香、藿香、甘松、白茅各一兩,水煮過,再煮汁,方用煮乳,一 伏時漉出。以甘草、紫背天葵各二兩同煮,漉出拭乾,緩火焙之,入臼杵 粉,篩過入鉢中。令有力少壯者二三人不住研,三日三夜勿歇。然後以水 飛澄過,絹籠於日中晒乾,入鉢再研二萬遍,乃以瓷盒收之。【慎微曰】 太清經鍊鍾乳法:取好細末置金銀器中,瓦一片密蓋,勿令洩氣,蒸之, 自然化作水也。李補闕鍊乳法見後。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Lei] Xiao: For all [therapeutic] applications, one must not use those with a crude, thick tip and a large “tail.” These are the kong gong stones. Those, too, must not be used that are black and have been “frightened” by a large fire, that have been stored on the ground for a long time, or that have been processed as a medication before. It is essential to select as top [quality] those with a fresh and shiny appearance, that are thin and glossy and resemble goose feather quills. They may be five to six cun long. For all pharmaceutical preparations, the following method applies. Boil one liang each of aquilaria [wood], fragrant loosestrife [herb], agastache twig and leaf, nardostachys [root] and imperata [root] in water. Then boil again the juice only [without the herbs], give eight liang of stalactites into it and boil this for one day and one night. Filter it [to remove the stalactites], add two liang each of glycyrrhiza [root] and purple back malva [herb], boil [the stalactites together with these two substances], filter [this to again remove the stalactites], and wipe them dry. Bake them over a small fire, give them into a mortar, grind them to a powder, pass it through a sieve and store it in an earthen bowl. The grinding is to be done by two or three strong, young able-bodied men, for three days and three nights without pause. Then process the powder with aqueous sublimation, pass it through thin silk into a basket and dry it in the sun. Give it into an earthen bowl, grind it

Chapter 9

549

again 20 000 times and store [the resulting powder] in a porcelain jar. [Tang] Shenwei: The method to refine with heat stalactites according to the Tai qing jing is as follows. Take a very fine powder and give it into a gold or silver container covered by a tile so that no qi may be released. Steam [the container] and [its contents] will transform to a water by themselves. For the method to refine with heat stalactites [recommended] by Li Buque, see below. 【氣味】甘,温,無毒。【普曰】神農:辛。桐君、黄帝、醫和:甘。扁 鵲:甘,無毒。【權曰】有大毒。【之才曰】蛇牀爲之使。惡牡丹、玄 石、。畏紫石英、蘘草。忌羊血。【時珍曰】相感志云:服乳石,忌參、 术,犯者多死。【土宿真君曰】鍾乳産於陽洞之内,陽氣所結,伏之可柔 五金。麥門冬、獨蒜、韭實、胡葱、胡荽、猫兒眼草,皆可伏之。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, warm, nonpoisonous. [Wu] Pu: As for Shen nong: Acrid; Tong jun, Huang di, Physician He: Sweet; Bian Que: Sweet, nonpoisonous. [Zhen] Quan: Very poisonous. [Xu] Zhicai: Cnidium [seed] serves as its guiding substance. [Ingested together,] it abhors paeonia root bark and magnetic as well as non-magnetic iron oxide (10-02, 10-03). It fears fluor spar and Japanese ginger [leaf ]. [During a treatment with stalactites] sheep blood is forbidden. [Li] Shizhen: The Xiang gan zhi states: During [a treatment with] stalactites, ginseng [root] and atractylodes [rhizome] are forbidden. Those who violate [this taboo] often die. Tu su zhen jun: Stalactites develop in yang caves; they are conglomerations of yang qi. When their [fire/poison effects are] subdued, they can serve to soften the five types of metals. Ophiopogon root, single clove garlic, Chinese chives, shallots, small centipeda [herb] and sun spurge are all able to subdue them. 【主治】欬逆上氣,明目益精,安五臟,通百節,利九竅,下乳汁。本 經。益氣,補虚損,療脚弱疼冷,下焦傷竭,强陰。久服延年益壽,好顔 色,不老,令人有子。不鍊服之,令人淋。别録。主泄精寒嗽,壯元氣, 益陽事,通聲。甄權。補五勞七傷。大明。補髓,治消渴引飲。青霞子。 Control. Cough with counterflow, [i. e.,] rising qi. [Stalactites] clear the eyes and boost the essence/sperm. They pacify the five long-term depots. They penetrate the hundreds of joints. Theý open the passage through the nine orifices. They serve to let down a nursing mother’s milk sap. Ben jing. They boost the qi, supplement depletion injuries, and heal weak, painful and cold legs, as well as harm and exhaustion affecting the Lower Burner. They strengthen the yin [(i. e. genital) potential]. Ingested over a long time, they extend one’s years [of life] and boost longevity. They improve the complexion, prevent aging and let one have children. If one ingests them without prior refinement by heat, they cause [urinary] dripping. Bie lu. They control uncontrolled outflow of essence/sperm and cough caused by cold. They strengthen

550

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

the original qi, boost the yang (i. e., sexual) activity, and free one’s voice. Zhen Quan. They supplement situations of five types of exhaustion and seven types of harm. Da Ming. They boost the marrow and serve to cure melting with thirst,550 with an urge to drink. Qingxia zi. 【發明】【慎微曰】柳宗元與崔連州書云:草木之生也依於土,有居山之 陰陽,或近木,或附石,其性移焉。况石鍾乳直産於石,石之精粗疏密, 尋尺特異,而穴之上下,土之厚薄,石之高下不可知,則其依而産者,固 不一性。然由其精密而出者,則油然而清,炯然而輝,其竅滑以夷,其肌 廉以微。食之使人榮華温柔,其氣宣流,生胃通腸,壽考康寧。其粗疏而 下者,則奔突結澀,乍大乍小,色如枯骨,或類死灰,淹顇不發,叢齒積 纇,重濁頑璞。食之使人偃蹇壅鬱,泄火生風,戟喉痒肺,幽關不聰,心 煩喜怒,肝舉氣剛,不能平和。故君子慎取其色之美,而不必惟土之信, 以求其至精,凡爲此也。【震亨曰】石鍾乳爲慓悍之劑。内經云:石藥之 氣悍,仁哉言也。凡藥氣之偏者,可用於暫而不可久,夫石藥又偏之甚者 也。自唐時太平日久,膏粱之家惑於方士服食致長生之説,以石藥體厚氣 厚,習以成俗,迨宋至今,猶未已也。斯民何辜,受此氣悍之禍而莫之能 救,哀哉!本草讚其久服延年之功,柳子厚又從而述美之,予不得不深言 也。【時珍曰】石鍾乳乃陽明經氣分藥也,其氣慓疾,令陽氣暴充,飲食 倍進,而形體壯盛。昧者得此自慶,益肆淫泆,精氣暗損,石氣獨存,孤 陽愈熾。久之營衞不從,發爲淋渴,變爲癰疽。是果乳石之過耶?抑人之 自取耶?凡人陽明氣衰,用此合諸藥以救其衰,疾平則止,夫何不可?五 穀五肉久嗜不已,猶有偏絶之弊,况石藥乎?種樹書云:凡果樹作穴, 納鍾乳末少許固密,則子多而味美。納少許於老樹根皮間,則樹復茂。 信然,則鍾乳益氣、令人有子之説,亦可類推。但恐嗜欲者未獲其福,而 先受其禍也。然有禀賦異常之人,又不可執一而論。張杲醫説載:武帥雷 世賢多侍妾,常餌砂、母、鍾乳,日夜煎鍊,以濟其欲。其妾父苦寒泄不 嗜食,求丹十粒服之,即覺臍腹如火,少焉熱狂,投井中,救出,遍身發 紫泡,數日而死。而世賢服餌千計,了無病惱,異哉!沈括筆談載:夏英 公性豪侈,而禀賦異於人。纔睡即身冷而僵如死者,常服仙茅、鍾乳、硫 黄,莫知紀極。每晨以鍾乳粉入粥食之。有小吏竊食,遂發疽死。此與終 身服附子無恙者,同一例也。沈括又云:醫之爲術,苟非得之于心,未見 能臻其妙也。如服鍾乳,當終身忌术,术能動鍾乳也。然有藥勢不能蒸, 須要其動而激發者。正如火少必借風氣鼓之而後發,火盛則鼓之反爲害。 此自然之理也。凡服諸藥,皆宜倣此。又十便良方云:凡服乳人,服乳三 日,即三日補之;服乳十日,即十日補之。欲飽食,以牛、羊、麞、鹿等 骨煎汁,任意作羹食之。勿食倉米、臭肉,及犯房事。一月後精氣滿盛, 550 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567.

Chapter 9

551

百脉流通,身體覺熱,遶臍肉起,此爲得力。可稍近房事,不得頻數,令 藥氣頓竭,彌更害人,戒之慎之。名之爲乳,以其狀人之乳也。與神丹相 配,與凡石迥殊,故乳稱石。語云:上士服石服其精,下士服石服其滓。 滓之與精,其力遠也。此説雖明快,然須真病命門火衰者宜之,否則當審。 Explication. [Tang] Shenwei: Liu Zongyuan in his Yu Cui Lian zhou shu states: “Herbs and trees rely on the soil they grow in; they may exist on the yin/shady or yang/sunny side of mountains, either close to trees or adjacent to rocks, and their nature differs accordingly. How much more does this apply to stalactites that directly develop from stones. Whether these stones are fine or rough, porous or dense, and what their different sizes are, whether the caves are located above or below, whether the soil is thick or thin, and what heights the stones have reached, all this is unknown, and it is therefore that [the stalactites] that develop relying on these [different facets] are not of one identical nature. That is, those originating in fine and dense [stones], they may be oily and clear, shiny and lustrous. Their apertures are smooth and their muscles are fine. Those who eat them will appear flourishing, gentle and soft. Their qi will flow smoothly. They will generate stomach [qi] and the passage through their intestines will remain open. They will enjoy a healthy and peaceful long life. [Stalactites hanging] down from rough and porous [stones] appear like hasty, unsmooth congregations. Some are big, some are small. Their color is that of withered bones, sometimes reminding one of dead ashes, submerged and haggard, unable to open up again. Their surface is like a thicket of assembled teeth. They are heavy, turbid and resemble uncut jade. Those who eat them will be disabled and obstructed. They will have their fire let out and generate winds. In their throat [those who have ingested them] will feel a stabbing sensation; in their lung they will feel an itch. They will be dull and lose their faculty of hearing. They will be affected by heart unrest and a tendency to anger. Their liver qi will be raised and indomitable. They cannot live in peace and harmony. Hence, when the gentleman carefully selects [stalactites] on the basis of their color’s beauty, rather than solely trusting the soil [they originate in], he searches for the most exquisite specimens, and this is because of these [facts].” [Zhu] Zhenheng: Stalactites are fierce and violent preparations. The Nei jing states: “The qi of mineral drugs are fierce.” This is a most reliable statement! All medications with unilaterally pronounced qi must be used only temporarily, not for a long time. Now, [the qi of ] mineral drugs are particularly unilaterally pronounced. Since the long-lasting era of great peace during the Tang times, families able to afford rich food are misled by sayings of recipe masters that to eat [such medication] for food will guarantee a long life. A tradition became popular to assume that the dense physical body of mineral drugs also meant density of their qi. [This tradition] has continued through the Song and has not ended to

552

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

this day. How could the people be blamed? They meet the disaster resulting from the fierceness of these qi, and there is no way to rescue them. So sad! The Ben cao praises their potential of “extending the years [of life] by ingesting them over long periods of time,” and Liu Zihou follows [the Ben cao] and relates how much he is pleased by them. Hence I had to make this encompassing statement here. [Li] Shizhen: Stalactites are a medication for the qi section of the yang brilliance conduits. Their qi are fierce and swift; they cause a sudden surge of yang qi. [Persons ingesting them] will increase their intake of beverages and food, and their physical appearance will be strong and vigorous. When people without understanding obtain such results, they will congratulate themselves. Their lust is boosted and their licentiousness will be excessive. This damages their own hidden supplies of essence qi, and eventually they solely have to rely on the qi of the stalactites, with their yang qi alone flaming up ever stronger. After a long time, their camp and guardian qi no longer follow. They develop dripping [urine] and thirst, and this changes to obstruction-illness and impediment-illness.551 Is this the fault of stalactites? Or was it not called for by these people themselves? Whenever someone experiences a weakness of yang brilliance qi and resorts to this [drug] together with all types of further medication to relieve him of this weakness, and when he ends the [therapy] once the disease is cured, why should this not be allowed? When one is addicted to any of the five types of grain or five types of meat without restraint, this, too, will result in harm caused by onesidedness, and how much more is this true for mineral drugs?! The Zhong shu shu states: “When a small amount of stalactite powder is given into the hole in the ground where fruit trees are planted, and [this hole] is then tightly closed, [the tree] will bear many fruits and their flavor will be delicious. If a small amount is inserted into the bark of the roots of old trees, these trees will flourish again.” This is true, and sayings that stalactites boost the qi and let one have children may be inferred from this. However, it is to be feared that those who become addicted to [stalactites to increase their] lust rather than enjoy their benefits will first experience their disastrous effects. Still, there are people with unusual endowments, and a sweeping judgment is inappropriate. Zhang Gao in his Yi shuo has the following record. “Lei Shixian, a military commander, had many concubines. He regularly ingested elixirs prepared from cinnabar, muscovite and stalactites. They were boiled and refined with heat day and night to help him carry out his lust. When the father of one of the concubines suffered from outflow caused by cold and lost appetite, he requested to obtain ten grains of [the commander’s] elixir and ingested them. He 551 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642.

Chapter 9

553

sensed a feeling of fire in his navel and abdomen. Within a short moment he became hot and mad and threw himself into a well. When he was rescued and removed [from the well] his entire body was covered by purple blisters, and he died within several days. But [Lei] Shixian had consumed a thousand dosages [of this same elixir] and he never experienced any discomfort. This is truly remarkable!” Shen Kua in his Bi tan has the following record. “Duke Xia of Ying was a man of extraordinary powers and extravagant nature. His natural endowment differed from that of ordinary people. When he fell asleep, his body became cold and stiff as if he had died. He regularly consumed curculigo [root], stalactites and sulphur, without ever noting down how much. Every morning he had stalactites added to his gruel. Once an official of low rank stole [his stalactites] and consumed them. As a result, he developed an impediment-illness552 and died.” This is identical to the example of someone who ingested aconitum [accessory tuber] all his life and never suffered from any ailment. Shen Kua also states: “The wondrous potential of the art of medicine can be attained only by those who devote to it their innermost attention. For example, those who ingest stalactites must abstain from atractylodes [rhizome] for their entire life because atractylodes [rhizome] is able to excite [the potential of ] stalactites. But it happens that the force of a medication fails to steam and then it is essential to stimulate such an excitement. This is just like when there is a small fire that will blaze only after the wind qi of a bellows have agitated it. If a fire is strong in the first place, to use a bellows, contrary to one’s intentions, will result in harm. This is a principle in nature. Whenever medication is ingested, this [principle] is to be observed.” Also, the Shi bian lian fang states: “For all people who ingest stalactites [the following applies]. When stalactites are ingested for three days, a supplementing [medication is to be ingested] the following three days. When stalactites are ingested for ten days, a supplementing [medication is to be ingested] the following ten days. If [such persons] wish to eat to repletion, the bones of oxen, sheep, roebucks or deer should be boiled to obtain a juice and they ought to consume as much as they like of a thick soup [prepared from this juice]. They must not eat rice from a granary, malodorous meat, and engage in sexual intercourse. A month later, their essence/sperm qi will abound again. The hundreds of [blood] vessels will be freely passable. Their body will feel hot, flesh will rise around their umbilicus and their strength will be restored. They may resume sexual intercourse, but not too often. When the qi of a medication is fully exhausted this will harm one. Beware and be careful! [Stalactites] are named ru 乳, ‘teat’, because they are shaped like the teats, ru 乳, of humans. When [stalactites, shi zhong ru 石鍾乳] are combined with ‘divine 552 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277.

554

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

elixirs’, they are vastly different from all other ordinary stones. Hence these stones, shi 石, are called ‘teats’, ru 乳. A saying goes: ‘When a scholar of upper rank ingests mineral [drugs], he ingests their essence. When scholars of an inferior rank ingest mineral [drugs], they ingest their dregs’. The strengths of the dregs and of the essence lie far apart from each other.” This saying may be straightforward. Still, it only applies to those who suffer from a real disease associated with a weakness of fire in their Gate of Life. If this is not the case one must be most careful [in his decisions to ingest stalactites or not].

【附方】新十一。 Added Recipes. Eleven newly [recorded]. 李補闕服乳法。主五勞七傷,欬逆上氣,治寒嗽,通音聲,明目益精, 安五臟,通百節,利九竅,下乳汁,益氣,補虚損,療脚弱疼冷,下焦 傷竭,强陰。久服延年益壽不老,令人有子。取韶州鍾乳,無問厚薄,但 顔色明净光澤者即堪入鍊,惟黄赤二色不任用。置於金銀器中,大鐺着 水,沉器煮之,令如魚眼沸,水减即添。乳少三日三夜,乳多七日七夜, 候乾,色變黄白即熟。如疑生,更煮滿十日最佳。取出,去水,更以清水 煮半日,其水色清不變即止,乳無毒矣。入瓷鉢中,玉槌着水研之。覺乾 濇,即添水,常令如稀米泔狀。研至四五日,揩之光膩,如書中白魚,便 以水洗之。不隨水落者即熟,落者更研,乃澄取暴乾。每用一錢半,温酒 空腹調下,兼和丸散用。其煮乳黄濁水,切勿服。服之損人咽喉,傷肺, 令人頭痛,或下利不止。其有犯者,但食猪肉解之。孫真人千金方。 Li Buque’s method of ingesting stalactites. They serve to control the five types of exhaustion and seven types of harm, and cough with countermovement of rising qi. They serve to cure cough caused by cold, and free the passage of one’s voice. They clear the eyes, boost essence/sperm, pacify the five long-term depots, free the passage through the hundreds of joints, open the nine orifices, let down a nursing mother’s milk sap, boost the qi, and supplement in the case of depletion injury. They serve to heal painful weakness of legs with cold, and harm caused to the Lower Burner associated with thirst. They stiffen the yin [(i. e., genital) member of males]. Ingested over an extended period of time, they extend the years [of life], boost longevity and prevent aging. They let one have children. Take stalactites from Shao zhou, regardless of whether they are thick or thin. They simply need to have a shiny, clear and glossy color to be suitable for a refinement with heat. Only those of the two colors yellow and red must not be used. Place them into a gold or silver vessel and fill it with water. Heat the vessel to boil the water until bubbles form resembling fish eyes. When the water is reduced, add [new water]. In the case of only small

Chapter 9

555

amounts of stalactites, [continue the boiling] for three days and three nights. In the case of large amounts, [continue it] for seven days and seven nights until the water has dried up. When the color [of the stalactites] has changed to yellow-white they are done. If you are not sure [whether they are done] continue the boiling for a total length of ten days, and this will yield the best results. Remove [the stalactites from the vessel] and discard any remaining water. Then boil them again in clear water for half a day. Once the color of the water remains clear and does not change, end [the boiling]. The stalactites are no longer poisonous now. Then give them into a porcelain or earthenware bowl, add a little water and pound them with a jade pestle. Whenever they appear dry and rough, add some water until it looks like water in which rice was washed. Continue the grinding for four to five days, wipe [the powder] until it is shiny and greasy, just like white fish described in literature, and then wash it with water. If the powder does not flow away with the water, it is done. If it flows away [with the water] it is to be ground again. Eventually the dregs are dried in the sun. Each time ingest one and a half qian, to be sent down mixed with warm wine on an empty abdomen. At the same time [the stalactites] are to be used as pills and powder. The yellow turbid water left after boiling stalactites must not be ingested. Ingesting it injures one’s throat, harms the lung and causes headache. In some cases it causes unending discharge with free-flux illness.553 Those who have violated this prohibition need to eat pork to resolve [the poison of that water]. Sun zhenren, Qian jin fang. 鍾乳煎。治風虚勞損,腰脚無力,補益强壯。用鍾乳粉鍊成者三兩,以夾 練袋盛之,牛乳一大升,煎减三之一,去袋飲乳,分二服,日一作。不吐 不利,虚冷人微溏無苦。一袋可煮三十度,即力盡,别作袋。每煎訖,須 濯净,令通氣。其滓和麪餵鷄,生子食之。此崔尚書方也。孫真人千金翼。 Stalactite decoction. It serves to cure depletion and exhaustion injury caused by wind and loss of strength in the lower back and legs. It supplements, boosts, and strengthens. Fill a double-layered silk bag with three liang of stalactite powder refined with heat. Add one large sheng of cow milk and boil this down to one third. Remove the bag and drink the milk, divided into two portions, in the course of one day. This will not cause vomiting and free-flux illness. People affected by depletion and cold will have slightly viscous bowel movements, but they will not suffer from it. One such bag can be boiled 30 times until its strength is exhausted. Then a new bag is to be prepared. After each boiling it is to be washed clean to remain permeable for the qi [of the stalactites]. The dregs are mixed with flour and fed to chicken. Eat their eggs. This is a recipe of Minister Cui. Sun zhenren, Qian jin yi. 553 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

556

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

鍾乳酒。安五臟,通百節,利九竅,主風虚,補下膲,益精明目。鍾乳鍊 成粉五兩,以夾練袋盛之,清酒六升,瓶封,湯内煮减三之二,取出添 滿,封七日,日飲三合。忌房事、葱、豉、生食、硬食。外臺秘要。 Stalactite wine. It pacifies the five long-term depots, frees the passage through the hundreds of joints, opens the nine orifices, controls depletion associated with wind, supplements the Lower Burner, boosts essence/sperm and clears the eyes. Fill a double-layered silk bag with five liang of stalactite powder refined with heat, add six sheng of clear wine and give this into a jar that is then closely sealed. Boil [the jar with the wine] in water down to two thirds, remove [the jar] and add [wine] to fill it up again. Keep it sealed for seven days and [let the patient] drink three ge a day. [During such a therapy] sexual intercourse is forbidden, and also onions, fermented beans, raw food and hard food. Wai tai mi yao. 鍾乳丸。治丈夫衰老,陽絶肢冷,少氣减食,腰疼脚痺,下氣消食,和中 長肌。鍾乳粉二兩,兔絲子酒浸焙、石斛各一兩,吴茱萸湯泡七次炒半 兩,爲末,煉蜜和丸梧子大。每服七丸,空心温酒或米湯下,日二服。服 訖行數百步,覺胸口熱,稍定,即食乾飯、豆醬。忌食粗臭惡食及聞尸穢 等氣。初服七日,勿爲陽事,過七日乃可行,不宜傷多。服過半劑,覺有 功,乃續服。此曹公卓方也。和劑局方。 Stalactite pills. They serve to cure weakness and aging of husbands, when their yang [path] is cut off and their limbs are cold, when they have diminished qi and eat less, with pain in the lower back and blockage in the legs. They serve to discharge qi and digest food. They harmonize the center and serve to grow muscles. Grind two liang of stalactite powder, one liang each of dodder, soaked in wine and baked over a slow fire, and dendrobium [stem], and half a liang of evodia [fruit], boiled in water seven times and fried, to a powder, to be formed with refined honey to pills the size of wu seeds. Each time [let the patient] ingest seven pills, on an empty stomach, to be sent down with warm wine or a rice decoction. To be ingested twice a day. After an ingestion, he is to walk several hundred steps until he feels a sensation of heat in the chest and the mouth. After a short pause he is to eat dry rice and pickled meat sauce. He is forbidden to eat rough, malodorous and bad food, as well as to smell the foul odor of corpses and other such qi. In the beginning, while he ingests [stalactite pills] for the first seven days, he must abstain from sexual intercourse. Once these seven days have passed, he may resume it but should not overdo it to avoid being harmed. When after having ingested half [of the pills] he notices that his strength has returned, he is still to continue ingesting them. This is a recipe of Cao Gongzhuo. He ji ju fang.

Chapter 9

557

元氣虚寒。方見陽起石下。 Depletion of original qi with cold. For recipes see the entry on yang qi shi (10-01). 一切勞嗽,胸膈痞滿。焚香透膈散:用鵝管石、雄黄、佛耳草、款冬花等 分,爲末。每用一錢,安香爐上焚之,以筒吸烟入喉中,一日二次。宣明 方。 All types of exhaustion cough, with an obstacle-illness554 and a feeling of fullness in the chest and diaphragm region. The “powder to burn incense and open barriers.” [Grind] equal amounts of stalactites, realgar, gnaphalium herb and tussilago [flower] to a powder. Each time take one qian of it and light it on an incense burner. Then use a tube to blow the fumes into the [patient’s] throat, twice a day. Xuan ming fang. 肺虚喘急,連綿不息。生鍾乳粉光明者五兩,蠟三兩化,和飯甑内蒸熟, 研丸梧子大。每温水下一丸。聖濟録。 Lung depletion with continuous, unending hectic panting, Dissolve five liang of raw, shiny stalactite powder in three liang of beeswax and steam this in a rice steamer until done. Grind [it to a powder] and form pills the size of wu seeds. Each time send down with warm water one pill. Sheng ji lu. 吐血損肺。鍊成鍾乳粉,每服二錢,糯米湯下,立止。十便良方。 Vomiting of blood associated with an injured lung. [Let the patient] each time ingest two qian of refined stalactite powder, to be sent down with a decoction of glutinous rice. [The vomiting] will end immediately. Shi bian liang fang. 大腸冷滑不止。鍾乳粉一兩,肉豆寇煨半兩,爲末,煮棗肉丸梧子大。每 服七十丸,空心米飲下。濟生方。 Coldness in the large intestine resulting in an unending smooth [passage of defecation]. [Grind] one liang of stalactite powder and half a liang of nutmeg, cooked over a slow fire, to a powder and form with boiled date meat pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest 70 pills, on an empty stomach, to be sent down with a rice beverage. Ji sheng fang. 乳汁不通。氣少血衰,脉濇不行,故乳少也。鍊成鍾乳粉二錢,濃煎漏蘆 湯調下。或與通草等分爲末,米飲服方寸匕,日三次。外臺秘要。 Blocked milk sap passage. The qi are diminished and the blood is weakened. Hence there is little milk. Two qian of stalactite powder, refined with heat, are to be sent down mixed with a viscous decoction of stemmacantha [herb / root]. Or [grind the stalactite powder] together with an equal amount of tetrapanax pith to a powder 554 Pi 痞, “obstacle-illness,” a feeling of uncomfortable fullness and distension. BCGM Dict I, 371.

558

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

and [let the patient] ingest, with a rice beverage, the amount held by a square cun spoon, three times a day. Wai tai mi yao. 精滑不禁,大府溏泄,手足厥冷,方見陽起石下。 Smooth, uncontrollable passage of essence/sperm, a viscous outflow from the large intestine, and cold hands and feet because of ceasing [yang qi]. For recipes see the entry of yang qi shi (10-01). 09-22 孔公孽本經中品 Kong gong nie, FE Ben jing, middle rank. Kong gong nie. Seedling hollow throughout. The central part of stalactites, between their “base” and their “teats.” 【釋名】孔公石綱目、通石。【時珍曰】孔竅空通,附垂于石,如木之芽 孽,故曰孔公孽,而俗訛爲孔公爾。【恭曰】此孽次于鍾乳,狀如牛羊 角,中有孔通,故名通石。别録誤以此爲殷孽之根,而俗猶呼爲孔公孽是 也。 Explanation of Names. Kong gong shi 孔公石, Gang mu. Tong shi 通石. [Li] Shizhen: It has an open, kong 孔, mouth, is hollow and hangs down from rocks, like the seedlings of trees. Hence the name kong gong nie 孔公孽, commonly often misspelled as kong gong 孔公.555 [Su] Gong: [Kong gong] nie are secondary to stalactites. They are shaped like the horns of oxen or goats, and they are hollow throughout, kong tong 孔通, inside. Hence the character tong 通 in their name. The Bie lu erroneously identifies them as the roots of yin nie 殷孽 (09-23). Their correct and commonly used name is kong gong nie 孔公孽. 【集解】【别録曰】孔公孽,殷孽根也。青黄色,生梁山山谷。【弘景 曰】梁山屬馮翊郡,此即今鍾乳牀也。亦出始興,皆大塊,打破之。凡鍾 乳之類有三種,同一體。從石室上汁溜積久盤結者,爲鍾乳牀,即孔公孽 也。其以次小巃嵸者爲殷孽,大如牛羊角,長一二尺,今人呼此爲孔公孽 也。殷孽復溜,輕好者爲鍾乳。雖同一類,而療體各異,貴賤懸殊。三種 同根,而所生各處,當是隨其土地爲勝爾。【保昇曰】鍾乳之類凡五種: 鍾乳、殷孽、孔公孽、石牀、石花也。雖同一體,而主療各異。【頌曰】 孔公孽、殷孽既是鍾乳同生,則有孽處皆當有乳,今不聞有之。豈用之既 寡,則采者亦稀乎?抑時人不知孽中有乳,不盡采乎?不能盡究也。【恭 555 Kong gong 孔公 is an alternative designation of Kong zi 孔子, Confucius. No Chinese commentator has commented on a possible relationship between the name of Confucius and the naming of stalactites.

Chapter 9

559

曰】孔公孽次于鍾乳,别録誤以爲殷孽之根。殷孽即孔公孽之根,俗人乃 以孔公孽爲殷孽。陶氏依之,以孔公孽爲鍾乳牀,非矣。【時珍曰】以薑 石、通石二名推之,則似附石生而粗者,爲殷孽。接殷孽而生,以漸空通 者,爲孔公孽。接孔公孽而生者,爲鍾乳。當從蘇恭之説爲優。蓋殷孽如 人之乳根,孔公孽如乳房,鍾乳如乳頭也。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Kong gong nie are the roots of yin nie. They are of greenish-yellow color and they grow in the mountain valleys of Mount Liang shan. [Tao] Hongjing: Mount Liang shan belongs to Feng yi jun. These kong gong nie are shaped like today’s stalactites, and they also originates in Shi xing. These are always large pieces that are to be crushed. The group of stalactites consists of altogether three kinds with one identical physical body. Conglomerations that have formed in the course of long periods of time as accumulations of sap dripping down from rock chambers above, and constituting the base of stalactites, they are the kong gong nie. Small peaks closely attached to them are the yin nie. They are as big as the horns of oxen and goats, with a length of one to two chi. They are nowadays called kong gong nie by the people. When the yin nie receive further trickling [stone sap from above, they develop into] fine and good specimens, that are the stalactites. Even though [these five] form one group, their therapeutic potentials are all different, and their values are not the same. These three kinds have one identical root, but which is the best depends upon the soil and ground they develop on. [Han] Baosheng: There are altogether five kinds of stalactites: Zhong ru, yin nie, kong gong nie, shi zhuang and shi hua. Even though they form one group, their therapeutic potentials are all different. [Su] Song: Kong gong nie and yin nie grow together with stalactites. Hence wherever [kong gong nie and yin] nie are present, stalactites should be found, too. Nowadays, though, this is not heard of. Is it because they are rarely used that those who collect them are only a few? Maybe the people of today do not know that among [kong gong nie and yin] nie stalactites are present, too, and hence fail to collect all of them. This cannot be investigated thoroughly. [Su] Gong: Kong gong nie is inferior to stalactites. The Bie lu wrongly states that it is the root of yin nie. Yin nie is the root of Kong gong nie. The common people identify Kong gong nie as yin nie. Mr. Tao [Hongjing] follows them and assumes kong gong nie to be the base of stalactites. This is wrong. [Li] Shizhen: Starting from the two names jiang shi 薑石 and tong shi 通石 to solve this issue, those that grow adjacent to rocks and are coarse, they are yin nie. Those that grow from yin nie and gradually develop to a hollow tube, they are kong gong nie. Those that grow from kong gong nie, they are stalactites. One ought to follow the statement by Su Gong as it is excellent.The fact is, yin nie is shaped like the root of a human breast. Kong gong nie is the milk chamber. The stalactites are the teats of the breast.

560

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【氣味】辛,温,無毒。【普曰】神農:辛。岐伯:鹹。扁鵲:酸,無 毒。【大明曰】甘,煖。【權曰】甘,有小毒。【之才曰】木蘭爲之使, 惡細辛、术,忌羊血。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, warm, nonpoisonous. [Wu] Pu: Shen nong: Acrid. Qi Bo: Salty. Bian Que: Sour, nonpoisonous. Da Ming: Sweet, genial. [Zhen] Quan: Sweet, slightly poisonous. [Xu] Zhicai: Indigo herb serves as its guiding substance. [Ingested together,] it abhors asarum heteropoides root and atractylodes [rhizome]. Sheep blood is forbidden [to be ingested at the same time]. 【主治】傷食不化,邪結氣惡,瘡疽瘻痔,利九竅,下乳汁。本經。男子 陰瘡,女子陰蝕,及傷食病,常欲眠睡。别録。主腰冷膝痺毒氣,能使喉 聲圓亮。甄權。輕身充肌。青霞子。 Control. Harm caused by food that fails to be digested. Bound evil qi malignity. Sores, impediment-illness,556 fistulas and piles. It opens the nine orifices. It lets down a nursing mother’s milk sap. Ben jing. Sores in the yin [(i. e., genital) region] of males; erosion in the yin [(i. e., genital) region] of females, as well as diseases resulting from harm caused by food, with a continuous desire to sleep. Bie lu. It controls cold in the lower back and blockage of the knees, associated with poison qi. It makes one’s voice clearly understandable. Zhen Quan. It frees the body of its weight and adds to its muscles. Qingxia zi. 【發明】【弘景曰】二孽不堪丸散,止可水煮湯,并酒漬飲之,甚療脚弱 脚氣。 Explication. [Tao] Hongjing: The two [kong gong nie and yin] nie are not suitable for making pills and powder. They can just be boiled in water and soaked in wine to [have patients] drink [the resulting liquids]. They are very much able to heal weakness of legs, and leg qi.

【附方】新一。 Added Recipes. One newly [recorded]. 風氣脚弱。孔公孽二斤,石斛五兩,酒二斗,浸服。肘後方。 Weakness of the legs caused by wind qi. Soak two jin of kong gong nie and five liang of dendrobium [stem] in two dou of wine and ingest this. Zhou hou fang.

556 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277.

Chapter 9

561

09-23 殷孽本經中品 Yin nie, FE Ben jing, middle rank. Yin nie. Hidden seedlings. Base of stalactites. 【釋名】薑石。【時珍曰】殷,隱也。生于石上,隱然如木之孽也。【恭 曰】此即孔公孽根也,盤結如薑,故名薑石。俗人乃以孔公孽爲之,誤 矣。詳孔公孽下。 Explanation of Names. Jiang shi 薑石, “ginger stone.” [Li] Shizhen: Yin 殷 is yin 隱, “hidden.” [Yin nie] grows on stones, hidden, yin 隱, like the seedlings, nie 孽, of trees. [Su] Gong: This is the root of kong gong nie 孔公孽. These are coiled conglomerations, like ginger, jiang 薑. Hence the name jiang shi 薑石, “ginger stone.” The common people consider kong gong nie to be [yin nie]. That is wrong. For details, see unter kong gong nie 孔公孽 (09-22). 【集解】【别録曰】殷孽,鍾乳根也。生趙國山谷,又梁山及南海,采無 時。【弘景曰】趙國屬冀州。亦出始興。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Yin nie are the base of stalactites. They grow in the mountain valleys of Zhao guo, and also on Mount Liang shan and in Nan hai. They are collected anytime. [Tao] Hongjing: Zhao guo belongs to Ji zhou. They also originate in Shi xing. 【氣味】辛,温,無毒。【之才曰】惡防己,畏术。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, warm, nonpoisonous. [Xu] Zhicai: [Ingested together,] they abhor stephania [root], and they fear atractylodes [rhizome]. 【主治】爛傷瘀血,洩痢寒熱,鼠瘻,癥瘕結氣,脚冷疼弱。本經。熏筋 骨弱并痔瘻,及下乳汁。别録。 Control. Festering injuries and stagnant blood. Outflow and free-flux illness,557with alternating cold and heat sensations. Mouse fistula.558 Concretion-illness and conglomeration-illness, and bound qi.559 Painful weakness of legs with cold. Ben jing. They serve to steam weak sinews and bones, as well as piles fistula. Also, they let down a nursing mother’s milk sap. Bie lu. 【發明】見孔公孽下。 Explication. See under kong gong nie (09-22). 557 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 558 Shu lou 鼠瘻, “mouse fistula,” identical with lou li 瘰癧, “scrofula with pervasion-illness.” BCGM Dict I, 466. 559 Jie qi 結氣, “bound qi,” refers to pathological qi halting and congealing at any place in the human body. BCGM Dict I, 240.

562

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 【附録】 Appendix.

09-23-A01 石牀唐本草。Shi chuang, FE Tang ben cao. Stone base. Stalacmite. 【恭曰】味甘,温,無毒。酒漬服,與殷孽同功。一名乳牀,一名逆石, 一名石笋。生鍾乳堂中,采無時。鍾乳水滴下凝積,生如笋狀,久漸與上 乳相接爲柱也。陶謂孔公孽爲乳牀,非也。殷孽、孔公孽在上,石牀、石 花在下,性體雖同,上下有别。 [Su] Gong: Flavor sweet; warm, nonpoisonous. Soaked in wine and ingested, its [therapeutic] potential is identical to that of yin nie. Alternative name ru chuang 乳 牀, “base of stalactites.” Alternative name ni shi 逆石, “stone growing contrary to [stalactites].” Alternative name shi sun 石笋, “bamboo shoot of stone.” It grows in stalactite halls. It is collected anytime. When water trickles down from stalactites it congeals and accumulates below. It grows like a bamboo shoot and after a long time it connects with the stalactites from above, forming one column. Tao [Hongjing] refers to kong gong nie as “base of stalactites.” He is wrong. Yin nie and kong gong nie are above. Shi chuang 石牀, “stone base,” and shi hua 石花, “stone flower,” are below. They are identical in terms of nature and physical body, but they differ in that [the first two hang down from] above, while [the latter two grow from] below. 09-23-A02 石花唐本草。Shi hua, FE Tang ben cao. Stone flower. Stalacmite. 【恭曰】味甘,温,無毒。主腰脚風冷,漬酒服,與殷孽同功。一名乳 花。生乳穴堂中,乳水滴石上,散如霜雪者。三月、九月采之。【大明 曰】壯筋骨,助陽道。【宗奭曰】石花白色,圓如覆大馬杓,上有百十 枝,每枝各槎牙分歧如鹿角。上有細文起,以指撩之,錚錚然有聲。其體 甚脆,不禁觸擊。多生海中石上,世方難得,家中曾得一本。本條所注皆 非是。【時珍曰】石花是鍾乳滴于石上迸散,日久積成如花者。蘇恭所説 甚明。寇宗奭所説乃是海中石梅、石柏之類,亦名石花,不入藥用,非本 草石花,正自誤矣。 [Su] Gong: Flavor sweet, warm, nonpoisonous. It controls lower back and legs affected by wind and cold. If ingested saturated in wine its [therapeutic] potential is identical with that of yin nie 殷孽. An alternative name is ru hua 乳花 "stalactite flower.” It grows in stalactite cave chambers. When stalactite water drips from the rocks down it spreads [on the ground] like frost and snow. It is collected in the

Chapter 9

563

third and ninth month. Da Ming: It strengthens sinews and bones. It boosts the yang path (i. e., male sexual strength). [Kou] Zongshi: Stalacmites are of white color; they are round like an upturned large ladle. On its surface are tens, if not hundreds of branches, and each branch in turn has tooth-shaped twigs resembling deer horn. On their surface a fine line design rises. If felt by the fingers, they emit a high-pitched sound. Their physical body is very brittle; it must not be struck. They often grow on stones in the sea. They are difficult to obtain for commonly used recipes. In my home I once had obtained one. All comments in this entry are false. [Li] Shizhen: Stalacmites drip down from stalactites and gradually spread [on the ground]. After many days [the liquid] has accumulated and assumes a shape like flowers. Su Gong’s statement is quite clear. Kou Zongshi speaks of items like shi mei 石梅, “stone plums / petrified plums,” and 石柏, “stone platycladus [twigs] / petrified platycladus [twigs]”560 in the sea. They, too, are called “stone flowers,” but they are not added to medication. They are not the “stone flowers” mentioned in the Ben cao. This error is corrected here. 09-23-A03 石骨 Shi gu. Stone bone. 【恭曰】石骨,服之力勝鍾乳,似骨,如玉堅潤,生五石脂中。 [Su] Gong: Stone bones. When ingested, their strength exceeds that of stalactites. They look like bones, and they are as hard and glossy like jade. They grow among the five kinds of halloysite. 09-24 土殷孽别録下品 Tu yin nie, FE Bie lu, lower rank. Soil [cave] stalactite. A particular kind gained from the roof of soil caves. 【釋名】土乳唐本。【志曰】此則土脂液也。生於土穴,狀如殷孽,故名。 Explanation of Names. Tu ru 土乳, “soil teat,” Tang ben. [Ma] Zhi: This is [formed by] the fat liquid of soil, tu 土. It grows in soil caves, and is shaped like yin nie 殷 孽. Hence the name. 【集解】【别録曰】生高山厓上之陰,色白如脂,采無時。【弘景曰】此 猶似鍾乳、孔公孽之類,故亦有孽名,但在厓上爾,今不知用。【恭曰】 此即土乳也。出渭州 鄣縣 三交驛西北坡平地土窟中,見有六十餘坎,昔人 采處。土人云:服之亦同鍾乳而不發熱。陶及本草云生厓上,非也。【時 560 Possibly the skeletons of coral-type animals.

564

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

珍曰】此即鍾乳之生於山厓土中者,南方名山多有之。人亦掘爲石山,貨 之充玩,不知其爲土鍾乳也。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: [Tu yin nie] grow on the yin/shady side of cliffs of high mountains. Their color is white, like fat. They are collected anytime. [Tao] Hongjing: They seem to belong to the same group as stalactites and kong gong nie 孔 公孽. Hence, they, too, are named nie 孽. However, they are found on cliffs, and they are not known and resorted to today. [Su] Gong: These are “soil teats/soil stalactites.” They originate in a cave in the soil of the flatlands at the north-western slope of San jiao yi, Zhang xian, in Wei zhou. More than 60 pits exist there. These are the locations where they were collected by the people in ancient times. The locals state: To ingest them has the same effects as ingesting stalactites, except that they do not stimulate heat. Tao [Hongjing] and the Ben cao state that they grow on cliffs. They are wrong. [Li] Shizhen: These are stalactites that grow in the soil of mountain cliffs. They are often found on the famous mountains in the South. The people dig them up to form landscapes, and they sell them as toys. They do not know that these are soil stalactites. 【氣味】鹹,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】婦人陰蝕,大熱乾痂。别録。 Control. Erosion in the yin [(i. e., genital) region] of females. Strong heat and dry crusts. Bie lu. 09-25 石腦别録中品 Shi nao, FE Bie lu, middle rank. Stone brain. Globular masses of haematite or other minerals containing loose nodules. 【釋名】石飴餅别録、石芝綱目、化公石。【時珍曰】其狀如結腦,故 名。昔有化公服此,又名化公石。 Explanation of Names. Shi yi bing 石飴餅, “sugar cake of stone,” Bie lu. Shi zhi 石芝, “stone fungus,” Gang mu. Hua gong shi 化公石, “Hua gong’s stone.” [Li] Shizhen: It looks like a bound brain, nao 腦. Hence the name. In ancient times, Hua gong 化 公 ingested it. Hence it is also named “Hua gong’s stone,” Hua gong shi 化公石。 【集解】【别録曰】石腦生名山土中,采無時。【弘景曰】此石亦鍾乳之 類,形如曾青而白色,黑斑而軟,易破。今茅山東及西平山並有之,鑿土 龕取出。【恭曰】出徐州 宋里山,初在爛石中,入土一丈以下得之,大

Chapter 9

565

如鷄卵,或如棗許,觸着即散如麪,黄白色。土人號爲握雪礜石,云服之 長生。【保昇曰】蘇恭引握雪礜石爲注,非矣。【時珍曰】按抱朴子内篇 云:石腦芝生滑石中,亦如石中黄子狀,但不皆有耳。打破大滑石千計, 乃可得一枚。初破之,在石中五色光明而自得,服一升得長生,乃石芝 也。别録所謂石腦及諸仙服食,當是此物也。蘇恭所説本是石腦,而又以 注握雪礜石,誤矣。握雪乃石上之液,與此不同。見後本條。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: “Stone brain” grows in the soil of famous mountains. It is collected anytime. [Tao] Hongjing: This stone, too, belongs to the same group as stalactites. Its physical appearance resembles that of lamellar malachite, but it is white with black dots. It is soft and easy to break. Nowadays, it occurs both on Mount Mao shan and Mount Xi ping. Holes are dug in the soil to obtain it. [Su] Gong: It originates in Mount Song li shan in Xu zhou and basically occurs amidst decayed rocks. One has to enter the soil as deep as one zhang to obtain it. Large pieces are of the size of chicken eggs, others resemble the size of dates. When [“stone brains”] are touched, they disperse like flour. They are of yellow-white color. The locals call them wo xue yu shi 握雪礜石, “yu stones holding snow” (10-16). They state that ingesting them prolongs life. [Han] Baosheng: Su Gong’s reference to the wo xue yu shi 握雪礜石, “yu stones holding snow,” in his comment is wrong. [Li] Shizhen: According to the Baopu zi, Nei pian, “‘stone brain fungus’561 grows inside of talc, and it is shaped similar to the shi zhong huang zi 石中黄子(10-17). But it is not found in all [deposits of talc]. About a thousand pieces of talc need to be crushed to obtain one piece [of ‘stone brain fungus’]. Initially, when removed after breaking open [the talc, ‘stone brain fungus’] shines in all five colors. To ingest one sheng serves to lengthen one’s life.” This “stone [brain] fungus” may be the item referred to in the Bie lu as “stone brain” that is ingested for food by all the hermits/immortals. Su Gong says that this is “stone brain,” and in his comment he identifies it as wo xue yu shi 握雪礜石. This is wrong. Wo xue 握雪 is a liquid found on stones. This is something different from the item discussed here. For an entry devoted to [wo xue yu shi 握雪礜石], see further below (10-16). 【氣味】甘,温,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, warm, nonpoisonous. 【主治】風寒虚損,腰脚疼痺,安五臟,益氣。别録。 Control. Depletion injury associated with wind and cold. Painful blockage of lower back and legs. It pacifies the five long-term depots and boosts the qi. Bie lu. 561 Zhi 芝, “ganoderma fungus,” is often identified in translations as the mysterious Indian “soma.”

566

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【發明】【弘景曰】俗方不見用,仙經有劉君導仙散用之。又真誥云:李 整采服,療風痹虚損,而得長生。【恭曰】隋時化公所服,亦名石腦。 【時珍曰】真誥載姜伯真在大横山服石腦,時時使人身熱而不渴,即此。 Explication. [Tao] Hongjing: In common recipes it is not seen as resorted to. The classics of hermits/immortals list a “powder by Liu Jun to guide hermits/immortals” using it. Also, the Zhen gao states that Li Zheng collected and ingested it to heal a blockage caused by wind and a depletion injury and was able to live a long life. [Su] Gong: During the Sui era it was ingested by Hua gong. It is also named “stone brain.” [Li] Shizhen: The Zhen gao records that Jiang Bozhen while he stayed on Mount Da heng shan ingested “stone brain.” It constantly provided his body with heat and he still did not feel thirsty. This is the item [discussed here].

09-26 石髓拾遺 Shi sui, FE Shi yi. Stone marrow. Calc-sinter of nodular form. 【集解】【藏器曰】石髓生臨海 華蓋山石窟。土人采取,澄淘如泥,作丸 如彈子,有白有黄彌佳。【時珍曰】按列仙傳言,卬疏煮石髓服,即鍾乳 也。仙經云:神山五百年一開,石髓出,服之長生。王列入山見石裂,得 髓食之,因撮少許與嵇康,化爲青石。北史云:龜兹國北大山中,有如膏 者,流出成川,行數里入地,狀如醍醐,服之齒髮更生,病人服之皆愈。 方鎮編年録云:高展爲并州判官,一日見砌間沫出,以手撮塗老吏面,皺 皮頓改,如少年色。展以爲神藥,問承天道士。道士曰:此名地脂,食之 不死。乃發砌,無所見。此數説皆近石髓也。 Collected Explanations. [Chen] Cangqi: “Stone marrow” grows in rock caves of Hua gai in Lin hai. The local people collect it. They wash out the dregs in a pan and keep the mud to form pills the size of bullets. White ones and yellow ones are good. [Li] Shizhen: According to the Lie xian zhuan, “Ang Shu boiled ‘stone marrow’ and ingested [the resulting liquid].” These were stalactites. The classics of the hermits/immortals state: “A divine mountain opens once within 500 years to release ‘stone marrow’. When this is ingested, it prolongs one’s life. Wang Lie once entered the mountains and saw a crack in the rocks. He obtained ‘marrow’ from it and consumed it. He also gave a small amount to Ji Kang, but it transformed to a greenish stone.” The Bei shi states: “In the large mountains north of Gui ci guo, there is a type of paste that flows out [of the mountains] and forms rivers that enter the ground again after several li. It is shaped like finest cream. To ingest it lets teeth and hair grow. All patients who ingest it are cured of their diseases.” The Fang zhen

Chapter 9

567

bian nian lu states: “Gao Zhan served as judge in Bing zhou. One day he witnessed foam coming out from between bricks. With his hand he applied it to the face of an old official, and all the wrinkles in his face were revised immediately. [Gao] Zhan thought it was a divine medication and asked the Daoist Master Cheng tian about it. The Daoist replied: This is called ‘earth fat’. To consume it lets one not die. [The judge] had the bricks opened up, but there was nothing to be seen.” All these statements are related to “stone marrow.” 【氣味】甘,温,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, warm, nonpoisonous. 【主治】寒熱,羸瘦,無顔色,積聚,心腹脹滿,食飲不消,皮膚枯槁, 小便數疾,癖塊,腹内腸鳴,下痢,腰脚疼冷,性壅,宜寒瘦人。藏器。 Control. Alternating cold and heat sensations. Emaciation. Lack of complexion. Accumulations. Distention and a feeling of fullness in the region of heart and abdomen. Failure to digest food and beverages. Withering skin. Frequent and urgent urination. Aggregation-illness lumps. Intestinal sounds in the abdomen. Discharge with free-flux illness.562 Painful cold in the lower back and the legs. By its nature it serves to obstruct. It is suitable for emaciated persons with cold. [Chen] Cangqi. 09-27 石腦油 宋嘉祐 Shi nao you, FE Song, Jia you. Petroleum. 【校正】併入拾遺 石漆。 Editorial Correction. “Stone lacquer” listed separately in the Shi yi is included in the present entry. 【釋名】石油綱目、石漆拾遺、猛火油、雄黄油、硫黄油綱目。 Explanation of Names. Shi you 石油, “stone/mineral oil,” Gang mu. Shi qi 石漆, “stone/mineral lacquer,” Shi yi. Meng huo you 猛火油, “fierce fire oil,” xiong huang you 雄黄油, “realgar oil,” liu huang you 硫黄油, “sulphur oil,” Gang mu. 【集解】【禹錫曰】石腦油宜以瓷器貯之。不可近金銀器,雖至完密,直 爾透過。道家多用,俗方不甚須。【宗奭曰】真者難收,多滲蝕器物。入 藥最少。燒鍊家研生砒入油,再研如膏,入坩鍋内,瓦蓋置火上,俟油泣 盡出之,又研,又入油,又上火鍊之,砒即伏矣。【時珍曰】石油所出不 一,出陝之肅州、鄜州、延州、延長,及雲南之緬甸,廣之南雄者,自石 562 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

568

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

岩流出,與泉水相雜,汪汪而出,肥如肉汁。土人以草挹入缶中,黑色頗 似淳漆,作雄硫氣。土人多以然燈,甚明,得水愈熾,不可入食。其烟甚 濃。沈存中宦西時,掃其煤作墨,光黑如漆,勝于松烟。張華博物志載: 延壽縣南山石泉注爲溝,其水有脂。挹取着器中,始黄後黑如凝膏,然之 極明,謂之石漆。段成式酉陽雜俎載:高奴縣有石脂水,膩浮水上如漆。 采以膏車及然燈。康譽之昨夢録載:猛火油出高麗東,日烘石熱所出液 也,惟真琉璃器可貯之。入水涓滴,烈焰遽發,餘力入水,魚鼈皆死。邊 人用以禦敵。此數説皆石腦油也。國朝正德末年,嘉州開鹽井,偶得油 水,可以照夜,其光加倍。沃之以水則焰彌甚,撲之以灰則滅。作雄硫 氣,土人呼爲雄黄油,亦曰硫黄油。近復開出數井,官司主之。此亦石 油,但出于井爾。蓋皆地産雄、硫、石脂諸石,源脉相通,故有此物。王 冰謂龍火得濕而焰,遇水而燔,光焰詣天,物窮方止,正是此類,皆陰火 也。 Collected Explanations. [Zhang] Yuxi: Petroleum is to be stored in porcelain vessels; it must not be brought into contact with gold and silver vessels. Even if [such vessels] are tightly closed, [the petroleum] will leak nevertheless. Daoists often use it; in common recipes it is recommended only rarely. [Kou] Zongshi: Genuine [petroleum] is difficult to store. It often erodes and seeps through containers. It is only very rarely added to medication. Experts in refining substances with heat add ground, raw arsenic to petroleum and then grind it again to obtain a paste. They give it into a crucible, close it with a tile and place it on a fire. When the oil has completely gone, they take [the arsenic] out, grind it again, add petroleum again and refine it with heat again. This serves to eliminate the [poison of the] arsenic. [Li] Shizhen: Stone/mineral oil does not originate in only one place. It originates in Su zhou, Fu zhou, Yan zhou and Yan chang in Shaan [xi] and in Mian dian in Yun nan. [Petroleum originating] in Nan xiong in Guang flows out of rocks and is mixed with spring water. It is released like tears welling up, and it is as viscous as gravy. The local people use straw ladles to fill it into amphora-like jars. With its black color it looks like pure lacquer; its qi [smell] like realgar and sulphur. The local people often use it to light lamps that are very shiny, and when water is added it flames even stronger. It cannot be added to food. Its smoke is very thick. When Shen Cunzhong served as an official in the West, he collected the soot and used it as ink. It was shiny and black, and even better than that made of [the soot resulting from] pine fumes. Zhang Hua in his Bo wu zhi records: “Mount Nan shan of Yan shou xian has a spring in its rocks and the water flowing from it forms a ditch. Its water contains fat. [The locals] scoop it up and store it in vessels. At first it is yellow; later it turns black like a lacquer paste. When they light it, it is extremely bright. They call it ‘stone/mineral lacquer’.” Duan Chengshi in his You yang za ju records:

Chapter 9

569

“In Gao nu xian is a water with stone fat. It is greasy and floats on the surface of the water like lacquer. It is collected to lubricate wheels and to light lamps.” Kang Yuzhi in his Zuo meng lu records: “Petroleum originates in eastern Gao li. When the sun warms the rocks it is heated and flows off as a liquid. It can be held only in vessels made of pure opaque glass. When only small drops are dripped into water, fierce flaming results. Its remaining strength enters the water and kills all fish and turtles. The people living at the borders use it to protect themselves against enemies.” All these several records refer to petroleum. At the end of the zheng de reign period (1506 – 1521) of our current dynasty, when salt wells were opened in Jia zhou, occasionally an oily water was found that could be used as fuel to increase the light [of ordinary lamps]. When they were treated with water, their flames became even stronger. They could be extinguished only by covering them with dust. Because it releases [odor] qi of realgar and sulphur, the locals call [petroleum] realgar oil and they also call it sulphur oil. In recent times several such wells have been opened, and they are under government control. This, too, is petroleum, but it originates in wells. The fact is, all these different types of stones/minerals, such as realgar, sulphur and petroleum, are produced in the ground, and the veins they originate in are interconnected, and this is why such items exist. Wang Bing says: “When dragon fire is treated with moisture it will flame up. When it is treated with water it will burn. These flames reach heaven. They end only when the item [fueling them] is used up.” This is truly related to the [item discussed] here. All these are yin fires.

【附録】 Appendix 09-27-A01 地溲。Di sou. Earth urine. Chalybeate deposit. Mineralized water from hot or cold springs containing iron and hydrogen sulphide. 【時珍曰】溝澗流水,及引水灌田之次,多有之。形狀如油,又如泥,色 如黄金,甚腥烈。冬月收取,以柔鐵,燒赤投之,二三次,剛可切玉。 [Li] Shizhen: It is often found in ravines with flowing water and also in water used to irrigate fields. It is shaped like oil, or like mud, and is of the color of yellow gold. It has a fierce, fishy smell. It is collected for storage during the winter months. Soft iron is heated until it is red and tossed [into the di sou] two or three times. [The iron] will be hardened and can be used to cut jade.

570

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【氣味】辛,苦,有毒。【獨孤滔曰】化銅,制砒。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, bitter, poisonous. Dugu Tao: It serves to transform copper, and checks [the poison of ] arsenic. 【主治】小兒驚風,化涎,可和諸藥作丸散。嘉祐。塗瘡癬蟲癩,治鍼箭 入肉藥中用之。時珍。 Control. Fright wind563 of children. It transforms saliva. It can be mixed with all types of medication to form pills and powders. Jia you. To be applied to sores with xuan-illness,564 worms/bugs and repudiation-illness.565 It is used in medication to cure [wounds caused] by needles and arrows that have entered the flesh. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】石油氣味與雄、硫同,故殺蟲治瘡。其性走竄,諸器 皆滲,惟瓷器、琉璃不漏。故錢乙治小兒驚熱膈實,嘔吐痰涎,銀液丸 中,用和水銀、輕粉、龍腦、蠍尾、白附子諸藥爲丸,不但取其化痰,亦 取其能透經絡、走關竅也。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: The qi of petroleum are identical to those of realgar and sulphur. Hence [petroleum] serves to kill worms/bugs and to cure sores. Its nature is to run and scurry. It seeps through all types of vessels, but does not leak from porcelain vessels and opaque glass. Hence Qian Yi in his “pills with silver liquid” to cure fright heat and repletion in the diaphragm region, as well as vomiting of phlegm and saliva, combines it with mercury, calomel, borneol, scorpion tail and aconitum [accessory tuber] to prepare pills. They are meant not only to transform phlegm. They also resort to [petroleum’s] ability to pass through conduits and network [vessels] and to penetrate blocked orifices. 09-28 石炭綱目 Shi tan, FE Gang mu. Coal. 【釋名】煤炭、石墨、鐵炭、烏金石綱目、焦石。 Explanation of Names. Mei tan 煤炭, shi mo 石墨, “stone/mineral ink,” tie tan 鐵炭, “iron coal,” wu jin shi 烏金石, “black gold stone/mineral,” Gang mu 綱目. Jiao shi 焦 563 Jing feng 驚風, “fright wind,” a condition of children characterised by jerking and arched back rigidity, eyeballs turned upward, and twitching hands and legs.BCGM Dict I, 261, also 238, 240. 564 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591. 565 Lai 癩, “repudiation-illness,” most likely including cases of leprosy. BCGM Dict I, 293.

Chapter 9

571

石, “burning stone/mineral.” [Li] Shizhen: Shi tan 石炭, “stone/mineral coal,” is wu jin shi 烏金石, “black gold stone/mineral.” Because in high antiquity it was used to write characters, it was called “stone/mineral ink,” shi mo 石墨. Nowadays [coal] is commonly called mei tan 煤炭. The pronunciation of [the characters] mei 煤 and mo 墨 is quite similar. The Shi yi ji says that “jiao shi 焦石, ‘burning stone/mineral’, resembles tan 炭, ‘coal’.” The Ling biao lu says: “In Kang zhou ‘burning stone/mineral caves’ exist.” This is the item discussed here. 【集解】【時珍曰】石炭南北諸山産處亦多,昔人不用,故識之者少。酉 陽雜俎云:無勞縣出石墨,爨之彌年不消。夷堅志云:彰德 南郭村井中 産石墨。宜陽縣有石墨山。汧陽縣有石墨洞。燕之西山,楚之荆州、興國 州,江西之廬山、袁州、豐城、贛州,皆産石炭,可以炊爨。並此石也。 又有一種石墨,舐之粘舌,可書字、畫眉,名畫眉石者,即黑石脂也。見 石脂下。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: There are many places in all the mountains in the South and in the North where coal is produced. In ancient times, the people did not use it. Hence there were only few who knew of it. Nowadays, the people use it as an alternative to firewood for cooking meals and for forging iron. It greatly benefits the people. The locals dig caves into the mountains. They enter them horizontally ten or more zhang deep to remove [coal]. Some of it appears as large stone-like and shiny pieces, or it comes dispersed like coal powder. It always releases sulphur qi that can be resolved by sprinkling wine on [the coal]. For an application in a medication hard stone-like pieces are to be used. In the past, people said that “the black soil in Yi ling is the ashes remaining after a pillage.” This [soil] is [coal] powder. The Xiao jing yuan shen qi states: “When a king’s virtue extends to the mountains, the black elixir will be released there.” The Shui jing says: “Coal can be used for writing. It is difficult, to burn it completely. The qi of its fumes strike humans.” The You yang za ju states: “The coal originating in Wu lao xian, when used for cooking, will not disappear within one year.” The Yi jian zhi states: “In Nan guo cun of Zhang de coal is produced in a well. In Yi yang xian is a coal mountain. In Qian yang xian is a coal pit. In the mountains west of Yan, in Jing zhou and Xing guo zhou of Chu, and on Mount Lu shan as well as in Yuan zhou, Feng cheng and Gan zhou of Jiang xi, in all these places coal is produced that can be used for cooking meals.” This is the stone/ mineral discussed here. There is also a variety of coal that sticks to the tongue. It can be used to write characters and to draw eyebrows. It is called “stone/mineral for drawing eyebrows.” This is black halloysite. See under “halloysite.” (09-15)

572

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 【附録】 Appendix

09-28-A01 然石。Ran shi. Burning stone/mineral. Flint. 【時珍曰】曹叔雅異物志云:豫章有石,黄色而理疏,以水灌之便熱,可 以烹鼎,冷則再灌。張華謂之然石。高安亦有之。 [Li] Shizhen: Cao Shuya in his Yi wu zhi states: “In Yu zhang stones/minerals are found that are of yellow color, and that have a powdery structure. When water is poured on them, they will become hot and can serve to cook meals in a vessel. When they have cooled, water may once again be poured on them. These are the ‘burning stones/minerals’ referred to by Zhang Hua. They are also found in Gao an.” 【氣味】甘、辛,温,有毒。【時珍曰】人有中煤氣毒者,昏瞀至死,惟 飲冷水即解。【獨孤滔曰】去錫暈,制三黄、硇砂、消石。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, acrid, warm, poisonous. [Li] Shizhen: When humans are struck by the poison of coal qi, they experience clouding with dim vision and come close to dying. They only need to drink cold water to resolve this. Dugu Tao: It serves to remove impurities of tin, and checks [the effects of ] the three [substances realgar, orpiment and sulphur that have in their names the character] “yellow,” sal ammoniac, and nitrokalite. 【主治】婦人血氣痛及諸瘡毒,金瘡出血,小兒痰癇。時珍。 Control. Pain of women caused by blood and qi, and all types of sores with poison. Bleeding wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. Phlegm epilepsy of children. [Li] Shizhen.

【附方】新五。 Added Recipes. Five newly [recorded]. 金瘡出血。急以石炭末厚傅之。瘡深不宜速合者,加滑石。醫學集成。 Bleeding wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. Quickly cover them with a thick layer of coal powder. If the wounds are deep and will not close soon, add talc. Yi xue ji cheng. 誤吞金銀及錢,在腹中不下者。光明石炭一杏核大,硫黄一皂子大,爲 末,酒下。普濟方。

Chapter 9

573

Inadvertently having swallowed gold, silver or iron, that remain in the abdomen and fail to be discharged. [Grind] a piece of shiny coal, as big as an almond, and a piece of sulphur, as big as a gleditsia seed, to a powder to be sent down with wine. Pu ji fang. 腹中積滯。烏金石即鐵炭也,三兩,自然銅爲末,醋熬一兩,當歸一兩, 大黄童尿浸晒一兩,爲末,每服二錢,紅花酒十盞,童尿半盞,同調,食 前服,日二服。張子和儒門事親。 Accumulation and sluggishness in the abdomen. [Grind] three liang of “black gold stone/mineral,” i. e., coal, one liang of pyrite, ground to powder and boiled in vinegar, one liang of angelica root, and one liang of rhubarb root, soaked in boys’ urine and dried in the sun, to a powder. Each time ingest two qian, mixed with ten small cups of safflower wine and half a small cup of boys’ urine. To be ingested prior to meals. To be ingested twice a day. Zhang Zihe, Ru men shi qin. 月經不通。巴豆去油,如緑豆大三丸,以烏金石末一錢,調湯送下,即 通。衞生易簡方。 Blocked menstruation. Remove the oil of croton [seeds] and form three pills the size of mung beans. Mix them with coal powder and send them down with hot water. [The passage of menstruation] will be freed. Wei sheng yi jian fang. 産後兒枕刺痛。黑白散:用烏金石燒酒淬七次,寒水石煅爲末,等分,每 用粥飲服一錢半,即止,未止再服。潔古保命集。 Pain, following delivery, because of an unborn infant’s blood headrest remains in its mother’s uterus. The “black and white powder.” [Let the patient] ingest one and a half qian of coal, sprinkled with brandy seven times, and calcite, calcined and ground to a powder, with a gruel beverage, and [the pain] will end. If [after one ingestion] it has not come to an end, ingest this again. [Zhang] Jiegu, Bao mingji.

574

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

09-29 石灰本經中品 Shi hui, FE Ben jing, middle rank. Limestone. Calcium carbonate. Lime. Calcium oxide. 【釋名】石堊弘景、堊灰本經、希灰别録、鍛石日華、白虎綱目、礦灰綱 目。 Explanation of Names. Shi e 石堊, “stone/mineral chalk,” [Tao] Hongjing. E hui 堊灰, “chalk lime,” Ben jing. Xi hui 希灰, “uncommon lime,” Bie lu. Duan shi 鍛石, “calcined stone/mineral,” Rihua. Bai hu 白虎, “white tiger,” Gang mu. Kuang hui 礦 灰, “mined lime,” Gang mu. 【集解】【别録曰】石灰生中山川谷。【弘景曰】近山生石,青白色,作 竈燒竟,以水沃之,即熱蒸而解。俗名石堊。【頌曰】所在近山處皆有 之,燒青石爲灰也。又名石鍛。有風化、水化二種:風化者,取鍛了石置 風中自解,此爲有力;水化者,以水沃之,熱蒸而解,其力差劣。【時珍 曰】今人作窰燒之,一層柴或煤炭一層在下,上累青石,自下發火,層層 自焚而散。入藥惟用風化,不夾石者良。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Lime grows in the river valleys of Zhong shan. [Tao] Hongjing: In mountains nearby a stone of greenish-white color grows that can be completely burned in a furnace. When water is splashed on it, a hot steam is created and [the stone] disintegrates. It is commonly called “stone/mineral chalk.” [Su] Song: It occurs in all mountains nearby. Heat the greenish stones to make lime. It is also called shi duan 石鍛, “stone/mineral calcined.” There are two kinds: wind transformed [lime] and water transformed [lime]. For wind transformed [lime], expose the calcined stone/mineral to wind and it will disintegrate by itself. This lets it be powerful. For water transformed [lime], irrigate it with water. This will generate hot steam and then it disintegrates. This [variety] is a little weaker. [Li] Shizhen: Nowadays the people produce lime with heat in a brick kiln. They place a layer of firewood or a layer of coal underneath, and on top of this they place the greenish stone/mineral. Then they light a fire from below. The layers will burn one after another until eventually [the stone/mineral] disperses into a powder. For medication only the wind transformed [lime] is resorted to. That which no longer includes [unrefined stone/mineral] is good. 【氣味】辛,温,有毒。【大明曰】甘,無毒。【獨孤滔曰】伏雄黄、硫 黄、硇砂,去錫暈。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, warm, poisonous. Da Ming: Sweet, nonpoisonous. Dugu Tao: It subdues realgar, sulphur, and sal ammoniac. It serves to remove impurities from tin.

Chapter 9

575

【主治】疽瘍疥瘙,熱氣惡瘡,癩疾死肌墮眉,殺痔蟲,去黑子息肉。本 經。療髓骨疽。别録。治瘑疥,蝕惡肉。止金瘡血,甚良。甄權。生肌長 肉,止血,白癜癧瘍,瘢疵痔瘻,癭贅疣子,婦人粉刺,産後陰不能合。 解酒酸,治酒毒,暖水臟,治氣。大明。墮胎。保昇。散血定痛,止水瀉 血痢,白帶白淫,收脱肛陰挺,消積聚結核,貼口喎,黑鬚髮。時珍。 Control. Impediment-illness566 with ulcers; jie-illness567 with itch. Heat qi and malign sores. Repudiation-illness568 with dead muscles and eyebrows falling off. It kills piles worms/bugs, and removes black spots and tumorous flesh growths. Ben jing. It serves to heal marrow and bones affected by impediment-illness Bie lu. It serves to cure lair-illness569 and jie-illness, erosion and malign flesh. It ends bleeding of wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. Very good. Zhen Quan. It stimulates the growth of muscles and flesh. It ends bleeding and [serves to cure] white patches-illness, pervasion-illness570 with wind, scars, blemishes and piles fistula, goiter redundancy571 and warts, flour thorns/acne of women, and when following delivery the yin (i. e., birth canal) fails to close. It resolves the sour flavor of wine, and serves to cure wine poisoning. It warms the water long-term depot and cures qi. Da Ming. It causes abortion. [Han] Baosheng. It disperses blood and stabilizes pain. It ends water outflow and bloody free-flux illness,572 white [discharge from below the] belt and white overflow.573 It retracts a prolapsed anus and protruding testicles. It dissolves accumulations and collections, and nodular kernels. It is pasted on a wry mouth and serves to blacken beard and hair. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【弘景曰】石灰性至烈,人以度酒飲之,則腹痛下利。古今多以 構塚,用捍水而辟蟲。故古塚中水洗諸瘡,皆即瘥。【恭曰】别録及今人 用療金瘡,止血大效。若五月五日采繁縷、葛葉、鹿活草、槲葉、芍藥、 566 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277. 567 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely identifiable skin ailment. BCGM Dict Vol. I, 249. 568 Lai 癩, “repudiation-illness,” most likely including cases of leprosy. BCGM Dict I, 293. 569 Guo [chuang] 瘑瘡, “lair-illness [sores],” a vaguely defined skin ailment associated with pain, itch and a gradual extension. BCGM Dict I, 203-204. 570 Li 癧, “pervasion illness,” identical with luo li 瘰癧, “scrofula pervasion-illness.” When two or more connected swellings of the size of plum or date kernels appear either on the neck or in the armpits, or somewhere else on the body. BCGM Dict I, 329. 571 For ying zui 癭贅, “goiter redundancy,” and further goiter conditions, BCGM Dict I, 641. 572 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 573 Bai yin 白淫, “white overflow,” refers to white mucus excreted from the urinary tract/ genital region as a result of excessive sexual intercourse or unfulfilled desires. BCGM Dict I, 49.

576

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

地黄葉、蒼耳葉、青蒿葉,合石灰搗爲團如鷄卵,暴乾,末,以療瘡生 肌,大妙神騐。【權曰】止金瘡血,和鷄子白、敗船茹,甚良。不入湯 飲。【頌曰】古方多用合百草團末,治金瘡殊勝。今醫家或以臘月黄牛膽 汁搜和,納入膽中風乾研用,更勝草藥者。古方以諸草雜石灰熬煎,點疣 痣黑子,丹竈家亦用之。【時珍曰】石灰,止血神品也。但不可着水,着 水即爛肉。 Explication. [Tao] Hongjing: The nature of lime is extremely fierce. When humans drink it with wine, they will be affected by abdominal pain and discharge with freeflux [illness]. Throughout history, [lime] has often been used to build tombs as it serves to guard them against water and keeps away worms/bugs. Hence the water from within old tombs is used to wash all types of sores, and a healing is achieved everytime. [Su] Gong: The Bie lu and the people of today use it to heal wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. It ends bleeding and is very effective. If in the fifth month on the fifth day one collects stellaria [herb], pueraria leaves,carpesium [herb], daimyo oak leaves, paeonia [root], Chinese foxglove [rhizome], xanthium leaves and artemisia leaves, grinds them together with lime to form a ball the size of a chicken egg, dries it in the sun, [grinds it to a] powder and uses it to heal sores and to stimulate the growth of muscles, this is very wondrously and divinely effective. [Zhen] Quan: It ends the bleeding of wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. [For this purpose] mix it with egg white and rotten bamboo [shavings] used to seal a boat. Very good. It must not be added to decoctions that are to be drunk. [Su] Song: In ancient recipes it was often used mixed with any of the hundreds of herbs to prepare a ball and [grind this to a] powder, and it was resorted to with great success to cure wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. Today, some physicians mix it with the bile, collected in the 12th month, of a yellow ox, stuff it into the gall bladder, dry it in wind, grind it [to a powder] and use it [for therapeutic purposes]. This way it is even more effective than herbal medication. Ancient recipes [recommended] to simmer and boil lime with all types of herbs and to drop this on warts, moles and black spots. Experts in preparing elixirs in a furnace also resort to it. [Li] Shizhen: Lime is a divine substance to stop bleeding. But it must not come into contact with water. If it comes into contact with water it will erode one’s flesh.

Chapter 9

577

【附方】舊十四,新三十二。 Added Recipes. 14 of old. 32 newly [recorded]. 人落水死。裹石灰納下部中,水出盡即活。千金方。 When a person has died of drowning. Wrap lime [in a piece of fabric/silk floss] and insert it into the [patient’s anus, i. e.,] lower body section. Once all the water is released, he will come back to life. Qian jin fang. 痰厥氣絶心頭尚温者。千年石灰一合,水一盞,煎滚去清水,再用一盞煎 極滚,澄清灌之,少頃痰下自甦。集玄方。 Cut off [breath] qi associated with phlegm recession,574 as long as heart and head are still warm. Boil one ge of a thousand years old lime in one cup of water to bubbling. Filter it and discard the clear water. Add another cup [of water] to the lime, boil it again to an extreme, filter it and forcefeed the clear liquid [to the patient]. After a short moment, the phlegm will descend and [the patient] regains his consciousness. Ji xuan fang. 中風口喎。新石灰醋炒,調如泥塗之,左塗右,右塗左,立便牽正。寇氏 衍義。 Struck by wind with wryness of the mouth. Fry new lime in vinegar, mix it [with water] to form a paste and apply this to [the affected region]. If [the wryness has affected] the left, apply [the paste] to the right. If [the wryness has affected] the right, apply [the paste] to the left. The [mouth] will be set straight again immediately. Kou shi, Yan yi. 風牙腫痛。二年石灰、細辛等分,研,搽即止。普濟方。 Swollen and aching teeth caused by wind. Grind equal amounts of lime, two years old, and asarum heteropoides root [to a powder]. Apply this to [the affected region], and [the pain] will end. Pu ji fang. 蟲牙作痛。礦灰,沙糖和,塞孔中。普濟方。 Toothache caused by worms/bugs. Mix mineral lime with sugar and stuff this into the cavities [in the affected teeth]. Pu ji fang.

574 Tan jue 痰厥, “phlegm recession.” Various ailments thought to be associated with blocked or abounding phlegm. BCGM Dict I, 493.

578

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

風蟲牙痛。百年陳石灰爲末四兩,蜂蜜三兩,和匀,鹽泥固濟,火煅一 日,研末,擦牙神效。名神仙失笑散。張三丰方。 Toothache caused by wind and worms/bugs. Evenly mix four liang of lime, withered for one hundred years and ground to a powder, and three liang of honey. Seal this [in a vessel] closely with brine mud and calcine it over a fire for one day. Then grind it to a powder and rub this on the teeth. Divinely effective. This is called the “powder letting spirits and hermits/immortals smile.” A recipe of Zhang Sanfeng. 乾霍亂病。千年石灰,沙糖水調服二錢,或淡醋湯亦可。名落盞湯。摘玄 方。 Dry cholera disease. Mix a thousand years old lime with sugar water and [let the patient] ingest two qian. It is also possible [to mix it] with a bland vinegar decoction. It is called “decoction from a cup left behind.” Zhai xuan fang. 偏墜氣痛。陳石灰炒、五倍子、山巵子等分,爲末,麪和醋調,敷之,一 夜即消。醫方摘要。 Unilateral drop [of testicles] with qi pain. [Grind] equal amounts of long stored lime, fried, Sumac gallnuts and mountain gardenia [fruit] to a powder, mix it with flour and vinegar and apply this to the [affected region. The problem] will be solved within one night. Yi fang zhai yao. 婦人血氣。方見獸部 猪血下。 Female [disorders] associated with blood and qi. For recipes, see the under “pig blood” (50-01) in the section “animals.” 産後血渴不煩者。新石灰一兩,黄丹半錢,渴時漿水調服一錢。名桃花 散。張潔古活法機要。 Bleeding and thirst following delivery, in the absence of unrest. When [the patient] is thirsty have her ingest one liang of new lime and half a liang of minium mixed with fermented water of foxtail millet. This is called “peach blossom powder.” Zhang Jiegu, Huo fa ji yao. 白帶白淫。風化石灰一兩,白伏苓三兩,爲末,糊丸梧子大,每服二三十 丸,空心米飲下,絶妙。集玄方。 White [discharge from below the] belt]; white overflow.575 [Grind] one liang of wind transformed lime and three liang of white poria to a powder to be formed, with flour, to pills the size of wu seeds. Each time [let the patient] ingest 20 to 30 575 Bai yin 白淫, “white overflow,” refers to white mucus excreted from the urinary tract/ genital region as a result of excessive sexual intercourse or unfulfilled desires. BCGM Dict I, 49.

Chapter 9

579

pills, to be sent down, on an empty stomach, with water in which rice was cooked. Definitely wondrous. Ji xuan fang. 水瀉不止。方同上。 Incessant watery outflow. Recipe identical to the one above. 酒積下痢。石灰五兩,水和作團,黄泥包,煅一日夜,去泥爲末,醋糊丸 梧子大,每服三十丸,薑湯空心下。摘玄方。 Discharge with free-flux illness576 associated with accumulations of wine. Form five liang of lime with water to a ball. Enclose it with loess mud and calcine this for one day and one night. Then discard the mud and grind [the lime] to a powder, to be formed with vinegar and flour to pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest 30 pills, to be sent down, on an empty stomach, with a ginger decoction. Zhai xuan fang. 血痢十年。石灰三升熬黄,水一斗投之,澄清,一服一升,日三服。崔知 悌方。 Bloody free-flux illness lasting for ten years. Dry-fry three sheng of lime until it has turned yellow and give it into one dou of water. Wait for [the lime to have] settled and [let the patient] ingest a dose of one sheng of the clear liquid, three times a day. Recipe of Cui Zhiti. 虚冷脱肛。石灰燒熱,故帛裹坐,冷即易之。聖惠方。 Prolapsed anus associated with depletion and cold. Heat lime until it is hot, wrap it in old silk and [let the patient] sit on it. When it has cooled, exchange it [for a hot one]. Sheng hui fang. 産門不閉。産後陰道不閉,或陰脱出。石灰一斗熬黄,以水二斗投之,澄 清熏。肘後方。 Failure of the birth gate to close. When after a delivery the yin path fails to close, or in the case of a yin (i. e., uterus) prolapse, roast one dou of lime until it has turned yellow and give it into two dou of water. Wait for the dregs to have settled, and steam [the affected region] with the clear liquid. Zhou hou fang. 腹脇積塊。風化石灰半斤,瓦器炒極熱,入大黄末一兩,炒紅,取起,入 桂末半兩,略燒,入米醋和成膏,攤絹上貼之。内服消塊藥,甚效。丹溪 心法。 Accumulation lumps in the abdomen and the flanks. Fry half a jin of wind transformed lime in an earthenware vessel until it is very hot. Add one liang of rhubarb root powder and fry this until it has turned red. Lift it from [the fire] and add half a 576 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

580

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

liang of cassia powder. Slightly heat this, add rice vinegar and mix this to generate a paste. Spread [the paste] on tough, thin silk and paste this [on the affected region]. Internally [let the patient] ingest a medication to dissolve lumps. Very effective. Dan xi xin fa. 瘧疾寒熱,一日一發或二三發,或三日一發。古城石灰二錢,頭垢、五靈 脂各一錢,研末,飯丸皂子大,每服一丸,五更無根水下,即止。集玄方。 Malaria illness with alternating cold and heat sensations. With one outbreak or two or three outbreaks a day, or one outbreak every third day. Grind two qian of lime from an old city wall, and one qian each of dandruff and squirrel droppings to a powder and form, with cooked rice, pills the size of gleditsia seeds. Each time ingest one pill. Ingest it, before dawn, with “water without roots,”577 and [the malaria outbreaks] will end. Ji xuan fang. 老小暴嗽。石灰一兩,蛤粉四錢,爲末,蒸餅丸豌豆大,焙乾。每服三十 丸。温虀汁下。普濟方。 Old and young persons affected by a violent cough. [Grind] one liang of lime and four qian of clamshells to a powder, prepare with steamed cakes pills the size of garden peas and roast them until they are dry. Each time [let the patient] ingest 30 pills, to be sent down with warm juice of minced pickles. Pu ji fang. 卒暴吐血。石灰于刀頭上燒,研,井水下二錢。普濟方。 Sudden affliction with violent vomiting of blood. Heat lime on the tip of the blade of a knife, grind it [to a powder] and send down with well water two qian. Pu ji fang. 髮落不止,乃肺有勞熱,瘙痒。用石灰三升,水拌炒焦。酒三斗浸之。每 服三合,常令酒氣相接,則新髮更生,神驗。千金方。 Unending hair loss. When the lung is affected by exhaustion heat. With itch. Roast three sheng of lime in water until it is scorched. Then soak it in three dou of wine. Each time [let the patient] ingest three ge [of the liquid] to let him continuously interact with wine qi, and new hair will grow. Proved to be divinely effective. Qian jin fang. 染髮烏鬚。礦灰一兩,水化開,七日,用鉛粉一兩研匀,好醋調搽,油紙 包一夜。先以皂角水洗净乃用。集玄方。 To dye hair and blacken the beard. One liang of mineral lime is left in water to transform for seven days. Grind one liang of lead carbonate. Mix [the lime and the lead carbonate] with good vinegar and apply this [to the hair or beard to be dyed]. 577 Wu gen shui 無根谁, "water without roots," is water emerging from the brick wall of a well that has not been let free yet into [into the bottom of the well. See also 05-015

Chapter 9

581

Wrap [the head or beard] with oil paper for one night. Before such an application, wash [the hair and the beard] clean with gleditsia water. Ji xuan fang. 身面疣目。苦酒漬石灰,六七日,取汁頻滴之,自落。千金方。 Wart eyes on the body and the face. Soak lime in bitter wine for six or seven days. Take the juice, frequently drip it on [the affected region] and [the warts] will fall off as a result. Qian jin fang. 面黶疣痣。水調礦灰一盞,好糯米全者,半插灰中,半在灰外,經宿米色 變如水精。先以針微撥動,點少許于上,經半日汁出,剔去藥,不得着 水,二日而愈也。集玄方。 Facial warts and moles. Take one small cup filled with lime mixed with water and good, polished nonglutinous rice that has not been crushed. Insert one half [of the rice] into the center of the lime, and place the other half around it. After one night the color of the rice will change to resemble crystal. First use a needle to slightly poke [the warts and moles]. Then drip [the medication] on them. After half a day they will release a liquid. Remove the medication [from the warts and moles] and see to it that they do not come into contact with water. A cure will be achieved after two days. Ji xuan fang. 疣痣留贅。石灰一兩,用桑灰淋汁熬成膏,刺破點之。普濟方。 Troublesome, long-lasting warts and moles. Boil one liang of lime in the juice obtained by pouring water over mulberry ashes. Pierce open [the warts and moles] and drip [the liquid] on them. Pu ji fang. 癰疽瘀肉。石灰半斤,蕎麥稭灰半斤,淋汁煎成霜,密封,每以針畫破塗 之,自腐。普濟方。 Obstruction-illness and impediment-illness.578 Excessive flesh. Soak half a jin of lime and half a jin of buckwheat straw in water, boil the juice and make a frost to be stored tightly sealed. Each time pierce [the affected region] with a needle to open it and apply [the frost]. [The excessive flesh] will rot away as a result. Pu ji fang. 疔瘡惡腫。石灰、半夏等分,研末,傅之。普濟方。 Pin-illness579 and malign swelling. Grind equal amounts of lime and pinellia [root] to a powder and apply this to the [affected region]. Pu ji fang. 578 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642. 579 Ding 丁, “pin[-illness],” also ding 疔, “pin-illness,” refers to a deep-reaching and festering hardness in a tissue, eventually rising above the skin like a pinhead. BCGM Dict I, 127-129.

582

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

腦上癰癤。石灰入飯内搗爛,合之。李樓奇方。 Pimples on the head associated with an obstruction-illness.580 Add lime to cooked rice and pound this to a pulp to be applied to the [affected region]. Li Lou qi fang. 痰核紅腫,寒熱,狀如瘰癧。石灰火煅爲末,以白果肉同搗,貼之,蜜調 亦可。活人心統。 Phlegm pit with a red swelling and alternating cold and heat sensations, similar to scrofula with pervasion-illness. Grind lime, calcined over a fire, to a powder, pound it together with the meat of gingko fruit and apply this to the [affected region]. It is also possible to mix it with honey. Huo ren xin tong. 痄腮腫痛。醋調石灰傅之。簡便方。 Mumps with painful swelling. Apply lime mixed with vinegar to the [affected region]. Jian bian fang. 多年惡瘡。多年石灰研末,鷄子清和成塊,煅過再研,薑汁調傅。救急方。 Malign sores that have lasted for years. Grind lime that is many years old to a powder, mix it with chicken egg white and form lumps. Calcine them and grind them again [to a powder] to be applied mixed with ginger juice to the [affected region]. Jiu ji fang. 瘻瘡不合。古冢中石灰厚傅之。千金方。 Fistula sores that fail to close. Cover them with a thick layer of lime from an ancient tomb. Qian jin fang. 痔瘡有蟲。古石灰、川烏頭炮,等分,爲末,燒飯丸梧子大,每服二三十 丸,白服下581。活法機要。 Piles sores with worms/bugs. [Grind] equal amounts of ancient lime and roasted Sichuan aconitum [main tuber] to a powder and prepare with heated rice pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest 20 to 30 pills, to be ingested and sent down with clear [water]. Huo fa ji yao.

580 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642. 581 The Bao ming ji, ch. 下, advises “to ingest [this recipe] before meals with wine or a rice beverage,” 食前酒或米飲下.

Chapter 9

583

疥瘡有蟲。石灰淋汁,洗之數次。孫真人方。 Jie-illness582 sores with worms/bugs. [Soak] lime [in water and] filter it [to obtain] the juice and wash with it [the affected region] several times. Recipe of Sun zhenren. 血風濕瘡。千年陳石灰研搽,痛即止,瘡即愈,神效。蘭氏方。 Blood wind583 associated with moisture sores. Grind lime withered for a thousand years [to a powder] and apply this to the [affected region]. The pain will end immediately and the sores will be cured. Divinely effective. Recipe of Mr. Lan.584 火焰丹毒。醋和石灰塗之,或同青靛塗。摘玄方。 Flaming red cinnabar poison.585 Apply lime mixed with vinegar to the [affected region]. Or apply it mixed with indigo. Zhai xuan fang. 卒發風𤺋。醋漿和石灰塗之,隨手滅。元希聲侍郎秘方也。外臺秘要。 Sudden eruptions of wind papules. Apply a vinegar suspension mixed with lime to the [affected region] and they will disappear immediately. This is a secret recipe of Assistant Minister Yuan Xisheng. Wai tai mi yao. 夏月疿疱。石灰煅一兩,蛤粉二兩,甘草一兩,研,撲之。集玄方。 Seething rash blisters during summer months. Grind one liang of lime, two liang of clamshell powder and one liang of glycyrrhiza [root to a powder] and apply it [to the affected region]. Ji xuan fang. 湯火傷灼。年久石灰傅之,或加油調。肘後方。 Scalding and burns caused by hot water and fire. Apply lime that is a couple of years old to the [affected region], or mix it with oil. Zhou hou fang. 杖瘡腫痛。新石灰,麻油調搽,甚妙。集簡方。 Sores caused by flogging, with a painful swelling. Mix new lime with sesame oil and apply [this to the affected region]. Very wondrous. Ji jian fang. 刀刃金瘡。石灰裹之,定痛止血,又速愈。瘡深不宜速合者,入少滑石傅 之。肘後方。 582 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely identifiable skin ailment. BCGM Dict Vol. I, 249. 583 Xue feng 血風, “blood wind,” results from an intrusion of wind evil qi into an unbalanced state of qi and blood, mostly in women, BCGM Dict I, 594. 584 Lan 蘭 may be an erroneous writing of Lin 藺, based on BCGM ch. 1 where the list of books quoted, 引據古今醫家書目, includes a Lin shi jing yan fang 藺氏經驗方”。 585 Dan du 丹毒, “cinnabar poison,” a skin ailment with red rashes. BCGM Dict I, 118

584

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Wounds caused by knives and other metal objects/weapons. Cover them with lime to fix the pain and end the bleeding, and to quickly achieve a cure. In the case of deep wounds that fail to close quickly, apply [the lime] with a little talc added. Zhou hou fang. 誤吞金銀或錢,在腹内不下。石灰,硫黄一皂子大,同研爲末,酒調服 之。孫用和秘寶方。 Inadvertently having swallowed gold or silver or cash that remain in the abdomen and fail to be discharged. Grind lime and sulphur, the size of gleditsia seeds, together to a powder and ingest this mixed with wine. Sun Yonghe, Mi bao fang. 馬汗入瘡。石灰傅之。摘玄方。 When the sweat of a horse has entered a wound. Apply lime to it. Zhai xuan fang. 螻蛄咬人。醋和石灰塗之。聖惠方。 Humans bitten by mole crickets. Apply lime mixed with vinegar to the [affected region]. Sheng hui fang. 蚯蚓咬人,其毒如大風,眉鬚皆落。以石灰水浸之,良。經驗方。 Humans bitten by earthworms, with a poisoning similar to that of massive wind586 and a loss of eyebrows and beard hair. Soak the [affected region] in lime water. Good. Jing yan fang. 09-29-01 古墓中石灰。Gu mu zhong shi hui. Lime from an old tomb. 名地龍骨。 [Alternative] name: Earth dragon bones. 【主治】頑瘡瘻瘡,膿水淋漓,歛諸瘡口。棺下者尤佳。時珍。 Control. Stubborn sores. Fistula sores with an outpour of pus and water. It pulls the edges of sores/wounds together. [Li] Shizhen.

586 Da feng 大風, “massive wind,” may refer to sores caused by a massive intrusion of wind evil and also to conditions of leprosy. BCGM Dict I, 111.

Chapter 9

585

09-29-02 艌船油石灰。Nian chuan you shi hui. Oil-lime putty used for caulking boats. 名水龍骨。 [Alternative] name: Water dragon bones. 【主治】金瘡跌撲傷損,破皮出血,及諸瘡瘻,止血殺蟲。時珍。 Control. Wounds caused by metal objects/weapons, and harm and injuries caused by falls and blows, with the skin broken open and bleeding, and all types of sores and fistula. It ends bleeding and kills worms/bugs. [Li] Shizhen.

【附方】新三。 Added Recipes. Three newly [recorded]. 軟癤不愈。爛船底油石灰,研末,油調傅之。胡氏方。 Soft pimples that fail to heal. Grind oil-lime putty from the bottom of a decayed boat to a powder, mix it with oil and apply this to the [affected region]. Recipe of Mr. Hu. 下體癬瘡。艌船灰、牛糞,燒烟熏之,一日一次,即安。醫方摘玄。 Xuan-illness587 in the lower body parts. Burn lime used for caulking boats and ox dung, and steam the [affected region] with the resulting fumes. Once a day, and [the condition] will be pacified. Yi fang zhai xuan. 血風臁瘡。船上舊油灰,將泥作釜,火煅過研末,入輕粉少許,苦茶洗净 傅之。忌食發物。邵真人經騐方。 Blood wind588 associated with shank sores. Give old lime putty from a boat into a cauldron made of mud, calcine it with fire and grind it to a powder. Then add a small amount of calomel. Wash [the affected part] with bitter tea and apply [the powder] to it. [During this therapy] it is forbidden to eat items that cause an effusion. Shao zhenren, Jing yan fang.

587 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591. 588 Xue feng 血風, “blood wind,” results from an intrusion of wind evil qi into an unbalanced state of qi and blood, mostly in women, BCGM Dict I, 594.

586

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

09-30 石麪綱目 Shi mian, FE Gang mu. Stone flour. Dolomite powder. Carbonate of lime and magnesia. 【集解】【時珍曰】石麪不常生,亦瑞物也。或曰饑荒則生之。唐玄宗 天 寶三載,武威 番禾縣醴泉涌出,石化爲麪,貧民取食之。憲宗 元和四年, 山西 雲、蔚、代三州山谷間,石化爲麪,人取食之。宋真宗 祥符五年四 月,慈州民飢,鄉寧縣山生石脂如麪,可作餅餌。仁宗 嘉祐七年三月,彭 城地生麪;五月,鍾離縣地生麪。哲宗 元豐三年五月,青州 臨朐、益都石 皆化麪,人取食之。搜集於此,以備食者考求云。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: “Stone flour” does not evolve continuously. It is one of the auspicious signs. Some say that it grows in times of famine. During the third year of the tian bao reign period (742 – 756) under [Emperor] Xuan zong of the Tang, sweet wine poured out from a spring in Fan he xian of Wu wei, and stones transformed to flour. Poor people took it and consumed it. During the fourth year of the reign period yuan he (806 – 820) of [Emperor] Xian zong, in the river valleys of the three zhou of Yun, Wei and Dai of Shan xi stones transformed to flour. The people took it and consumed it. In the fourth month of the fifth year of the reign period xiang fu (1008 – 1116) under [Emperor] Zhen zong of the Song, the people in Ci zhou suffered from famine. In the mountains of Ning xiang xian a “stone fat”/halloysite like flour grew that could be prepared to cakes. In the third month of the seventh year of the reign period jia you (1056 – 1063) of [Emperor] Ren zong, flour evolved in the earth at Peng cheng. In the fifth month, flour evolved in the earth of Zhong li xian. In the fifth month of the third year of the reign period yuan feng (1078 – 1085) of [Emperor] Zhe zong in Lin qu and Yi du of Qing zhou stones transformed to flour. The people took it and consumed it. These [reports] are brought together here to serve as references for those who seek to prepare food [in times of need]. 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】益氣調中,食之止饑。時珍。 Control. It boosts the qi and regulates the center. Its intake ends hunger. [Li] Shizhen.

Chapter 9

587

09-31 浮石日華 Fu shi, FE Rihua. Floating stone/mineral. Pumice. Porous lava. 【校正】併入拾遺 水花。 Editorial Correction. “Water blossom” listed separately in the Shi yi is included in the present entry. 【釋名】海石綱目、水花。 Explanation of Names. Hai shi 海石, “ocean stone/mineral,” Gang mu. Shui hua 水 花, “water blossom.” 【集解】【時珍曰】浮石乃江海間細沙、水沫凝聚,日久結成者。狀如水 沫及鍾乳石,有細孔如蛀窠,白色,體虚而輕。今皮作家用磨皮垢甚妙。 海中者味鹹,入藥更良。【抱朴子云】燒泥爲瓦,燔木爲炭,水沫爲浮 石,此皆去其柔脆,變爲堅剛也。交州記云海中有浮石,輕虚可以磨脚, 煮水飲之止渴,即此也。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: Pumice is a coagulation product of fine sand and water foam found in rivers and the sea. It forms over long times day after day. It is shaped like water foam and also like stalactites, and has many holes as if these were the nests of moths. It is of white color, with a hollow and light weight physical body. Nowadays it is used with wondrous results by specialists producing leather to scour hides and eliminate their filthy parts. [Pumice] from the sea has a salty flavor and is even better [than that from a river] when added to medication. The Baopu zi states: “To burn mud results in tiles. To char wood results in charcoal. Water foam becomes pumice. In all these cases, something soft and brittle is changed to become something firm and hard.” When the Jiao zhou ji states: “There is a floating stone/ mineral in the sea. It is of light weight and hollow and can serve to rub the legs. Water in which it was boiled is drunk to end thirst,” then this is [the item discussed] here. 【氣味】鹹,平,無毒。【時珍曰】不寒。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, balanced, nonpoisonous. [Li] Shizhen: Not cold. 【主治】煮汁飲,止渴,治淋,殺野獸毒。大明。止欬。弘景。去目瞖。 宗奭。清金降火,消積塊,化老痰。震亨。消瘤癭結核疝氣,下氣,消瘡 腫。時珍。 Control. Boiled [in water] and the juice drunk serves to stop thirst, to cure dripping [urine] and to kill the poison of wild animals. Da Ming. It ends thirst. [Tao] Hong-

588

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

jing. It removes eye shades. [Kou] Zongshi. It cools metal [i. e., the kidneys] and causes fire to descend. It dissolves accumulation lumps and transforms old phlegm. [Zhu] Zhenheng. It serves to dissolve tumorous goiter, nodular kernels and elevation-illness qi.589 It discharges qi. It dissolves sores with swelling. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【藏器曰】水花主遠行無水,止渴,和苦栝樓爲丸,每旦服二十 丸,永無渴也。【震亨曰】海石治老痰積塊,鹹能軟堅也。【時珍曰】浮 石乃水沫結成,色白而體輕,其質玲瓏,肺之象也。氣味鹹寒,潤下之用 也。故入肺除上焦痰熱,止欬嗽而軟堅。清其上源,故又治諸淋。按余琰 席上腐談云:肝屬木,當浮而反沈,肺屬金,當沈而反浮,何也?肝實而 肺虚也。故石入水則沈,而南海有浮水之石。木入水則浮,而南海有沈水 之香。虚實之反如此。 Collected Explanations. [Chen] Cangqi: Pumice controls [the effects of ] travelling long distances without water; it quenches the thirst. Mix it with bitter trichosanthes [fruit] to form pills and each morning ingest 20 pills. You will never be thirsty again. [Zhu] Zhenheng: Pumice serves to cure accumulation lumps of old phlegm. Its salty [nature] softens hardness. [Li] Shizhen: Pumice forms out of water foam. It is of white color and has a light physical body. Its substance matter is very fine, reflecting the image of the lungs. Its qi and flavor are salty and cold, and it is used to moisten the lower [body part]. Hence it enters the lung and removes phlegm and heat from the upper burner. It ends cough and softens hardness. It clears/cools the [lung, i. e., the] upper source [of water]. Hence it also serves to cure all types of dripping [urine]. According to Yu Yan’s Xi shang fu tan, the liver is associated with [the phase] wood. It should float on the surface but, on the contrary, it sinks into the depth. The lung is associated with [the phase] metal. It should sink into the depth but, on the contrary, floats on the surface. Why is this so? The liver is solid and the lung is hollow. Hence when a stone is given into water it will sink into the depth, but in the Nan hai there are stones that float on the surface. When wood is given into water it will float on the surface, but in the Nan hai they have aromatic [wood] that sinks in water into the depth. Such are [behaviors] of hollow and solid [items] that are contrary to normal.

589 Shan 疝, “elevation-illness,” and shan qi 疝氣, “elevation illness-qi.” A notion of a foreign item that has entered the scrotum, causes pain and may ascend and descend. BCGM Dict I, 419.

Chapter 9

589

【附方】新十二。 Added Recipes. Twelve newly [recorded]. 欬嗽不止。浮石末湯服,或蜜丸服。肘後方。 Unending cough. Ingest a decoction of pumice powder, or ingest it as pills formed with honey. Zhou hou fang. 消渴引飲。本事方:浮石、舶上青黛等分,麝香少許,爲末,温湯服一錢。 Melting with thirst,590 with an urge to drink. Ben shi fang: [Grind] equal parts of pumice, imported indigo and a small amount of musk to a powder and ingest with warm boiled water one qian. 又方:白浮石、蛤粉、蟬殻等分,爲末,鯽魚膽汁七個,調服三錢,神效。 Another recipe: [Grind] equal amounts of white pumice, clamshell powder and cicada slough to a powder, mix it with seven pieces of the bile of crucian carps and ingest three qian of it. Divinely effective. 血淋砂淋,小便濇痛。用黄爛浮石爲末,每服二錢,生甘草煎湯調服。直 指方。 Dripping [urine] with blood; dripping [urine] with sand, with a painful, rough urination. [Grind] pumice that is yellow and has decayed to a powder. Each time ingest two qian. To be ingested mixed with a decoction of unprocessed glycyrrhiza [root]. Zhi zhi fang. 石淋破血。浮石滿一手,爲末,以水三升,酢一升,和煮二升,澄清,每 服一升。傳信適用方。 Dripping [urine] with stones, and bleeding caused by an injury. [Grind] a handful of pumice to a powder and boil it with three sheng of water and one sheng of vinegar down to two sheng. Wait for the dregs to settle and each time ingest of the clear liquid one sheng. Chuan xin shi yong fang. 小腸疝氣,莖縮囊腫者。直指方用浮石爲末,每服二錢,木通、赤伏苓、 麥門冬煎湯調下。 Small intestinal elevation-illness qi, 591 with a penis shrinkage and a scrotum swelling. The Zhi zhi fang [recommends to] ingest every time two qian of pumice powder, to be sent down mixed with a decoction of akebia [herb], red poria and ophiopogon root. 590 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567. 591 Shan 疝, “elevation-illness,” and shan qi 疝氣, “elevation illness-qi.” A notion of a foreign item that has entered the scrotum, causes pain and may ascend and descend. BCGM Dict I, 419.

590

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

丹溪方:用海石、香附等分,爲末,每服二錢,薑汁調下。 A recipe of [Zhu] Danxi: [Grind] equal amounts of pumice powder and xiang fu. Each time ingest two qian. To be sent down mixed with ginger juice. 頭核腦痺。頭枕後生痰核,正者爲腦,側者爲痺。用輕虚白浮石燒存性, 爲末,入輕粉少許,麻油調,掃塗之。勿用手按,即漲。或加焙乾黄牛糞 尤好。亦治頭𤷍。直指方。 A pit at the head may be a brain [pit] or a blockage [pit]. When the back of one’s head has developed a phlegm pit, if it is in the center, this is called “brain [pit].” It if is to the sides, this is called “blockage [pit].” Burn light weight, hollow, white pumice with its nature retained and [grind it to a] powder. Add a small amount of calomel, mix it with sesame oil and apply this to the [affected region]. Do not press it with your hand lest it might swell. Some [authors recommend to] add the dung of yellow oxen baked over a slow fire until it has dried. It may also serve to cure ulcers on one’s head. Zhi zhi fang. 底耳有膿。海浮石一兩,没藥一錢,麝香一字,爲末,繳净吹之。普濟方。 Pus present at the base of an ear. [Grind] one liang of pumice, one qian of myrrh and one zi of musk to a powder. Clean [the ear] and blow the [powder] into it. Pu ji fang. 疳瘡不愈。海浮石燒紅、醋淬數次二兩,金銀花一兩,爲末,每服二錢 半,水煎服。病在上食後,在下食前。一年者,半年愈。儒門事親。 Gan-illness592 sores that fail to heal. [Grind] two liang of pumice, heated until it has turned red and dipped into vinegar several times, and one liang of lonicera flowers to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest two and a half qian, to be ingested boiled with water. When the disease is in the upper [part of the body, ingest the medication] after meals. When it is in the lower [part of the body], prior to meals. If [the disease] has lasted for one year, a cure will be achieved within half a year. Ru men shi qin. 疔瘡發背。白浮石半兩,没藥二錢半,爲末,醋糊丸梧子大,每服六七 丸,臨卧,冷酒下。普濟方。 Pin-illness593 sores effusion on the back. [Grind] half a liang of white pumice and two and a half qian of myrrh to a powder to be formed with a vinegar paste to pills 592 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188. 593 Ding 丁, “pin[-illness],” also ding 疔, “pin-illness,” refers to a deep-reaching and festering hardness in a tissue, eventually rising above the skin like a pinhead. BCGM Dict I, 127-129.

Chapter 9

591

the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest six or seven pills at the time you go to lie down, to be sent down with cold wine. Pu ji fang. 諸般惡瘡。方同上。 All types of malign sores. Recipe identical to the one above.

【附録】 Appendix. 09-31-A01 暈石拾遺。Yun shi, FE Shi yi. Stone/mineral with a halo. 【藏器曰】生海底,狀如薑石,紫褐色,極緊似石,是鹹水結成,自然生 暈。味鹹,寒,無毒。主石淋,磨汁飲之,亦燒赤,投酒中飲。 [Chen] Cangqi: It grows on the bottom of the sea and is shaped like ginger or stones. Its color is purple-brown and [its substance matter] is extremely dense, similar to stones. It is formed out of brine, and naturally develops a halo. Its flavor is salty, [its nature is] cold and it is nonpoisonous. To control dripping [urine] with stones rub it [in water] and drink the resulting juice. It is also possible to heat it until it has turned red, toss it into wine and drink [the liquid]. 09-32 石芝綱目 Shi zhi, FE Gang mu. Stone/mineral zhi. Stone fungus. 【集解】【葛洪曰】芝有石、木、草、菌、肉五類,各近百種。道家有石 芝圖。石芝者,石象芝也。生于海隅名山島嶼之涯有積石處。其狀如肉, 有頭尾四足如生物,附於大石。赤者如珊瑚,白者如截肪,黑者如澤漆, 青者如翠羽,黄者如紫金,皆光明洞徹。大者十餘斤,小者三四斤,須齋 祭取之,搗末服。其類有七明九光芝,生臨水高山石厓之間。狀如盤盌, 不過徑尺,有莖連綴之,起三四寸。有七孔者名七明,九孔者名九光。光 皆如星,百步内夜見其光。常以秋分伺之,搗服方寸匕,入口則翕然身 熱,五味甘美。得盡一斤,長生不老,可以夜視也。玉脂芝,生于有玉之 山。玉膏流出,百千年凝而成芝。有鳥獸之形,色無常彩,多似玄玉、蒼 玉及水精。得而末之,以無心草汁和之,須臾成水。服至一升,長生也。 石蜜芝生少室石户中。有深谷不可過,但望見石蜜從石户上入石偃蓋中, 良久輒有一滴。得服一升,長生不老也。石桂芝生石穴中,有枝條似桂樹

592

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

而實石也。高尺許,光明而味辛。【時珍曰】神仙之説,渺茫不知有無。 然其所述之物,則非無也。貴州 普定分司署内有假山,山間有樹,根幹枝 條皆石,而中有葉如榴,裊裊茂翠,開花似桂微黄。嘉靖丁巳,僉事焦希 程賦詩紀之,以比康干斷松化石之事,而不知其名。時珍按圖及抱朴子之 説,此乃石桂芝也。海邊有石梅,枝幹横斜,石柏,葉如側柏,亦是石桂 之類云。 Collected Explanations. Ge Hong: The zhi are divided into five groups: mineral [zhi], wooden [zhi], herbal [zhi], fungus [zhi] and meat [zhi]. Each of these [groups] includes close to one hundred kinds. The Daoists possess a “drawing of stone zhi.” Stone zhi are zhi reflecting the image of stones/minerals. They grow at locations of stone/mineral accumulations on famous mountains in coastal areas and at the margins of islands. They are shaped like meat. They have a head, a tail and four feet like living beings, and are attached to large stones. Red ones resemble corals. White ones resemble pieces cut from lard. Black ones resemble moist lacquer. Greenish ones resemble the kingfisher’s feathers. Yellow ones resemble purple gold. All of them are shiny and transparent. Large specimens may weigh more than ten jin. Small ones weigh three to four jin. To gather them it is essential to perform sacrifices and abstain from wine, meat, etc. They are ingested ground to a powder. The group [of stone/mineral zhi] includes “sevenfold brightness” and “ninefold shine” kinds of zhi. They grow in the rock cliffs of tall mountains adjacent to the water. They are shaped like plates or bowls, with a diameter not longer than one chi. They are interconnected by stems rising three to four cun above the ground. Those with seven holes are called “sevenfold brightness.” Those with nine holes are called “ninefold shine.” Their shine is like that of stars; this is a shine that can be seen at night from a distance of one hundred steps. [The people] always at Autumn Equinox avail themselves of it. They grind it [to a powder] and ingest as much as is held by a square cun spoon. Once it has entered the mouth it will let one feel very comfortable and the body turns hot. All the five flavors will taste sweet and delicious. If one were to obtain an entire jin it would grant longevity and prevent aging. Also, one would be able to see at night. “Jade fat zhi” grows on mountains with jade. A jade paste flows out of them and in the course of hundreds times thousands of years it coagulates and forms zhi. It assumes the physical appearance of fowl or quadrupeds, with no ordinary color. Often it resembles a dark jade, a grey jade or crystals. When after it was obtained it is ground to a powder and mixed with juice of gnaphalium herb, it will turn into a watery liquid. To ingest one sheng lets one enjoy longevity. “Stone honey zhi” grows in the stone gates of [Mount] Shao shi. There are deep, impassable valleys where all one can see is a “stone honey” that extends from above the stone gates into the stones. After a very long time a drop may develop. If one

Chapter 9

593

were to obtain and ingest one sheng, this would grant longevity and prevent aging. “Stone cassia zhi” grows in stone caves. It has branches and twigs like cassia trees, but is of solid stone. It reaches a height of more than one chi. It is shiny and has an acrid flavor. [Li] Shizhen: The stories of the spirit-immortals are too vague to know whether they are based on facts or not. However, the items they describe do certainly exist. In an artificial mountain range in the seat of the administration in Pu ding, Gui zhou, there is a tree between the mountains with roots, stem, branches and twigs all of stone, and amidst it are leaves resembling those of pomegranates that are curled upward and are of a luxuriant emerald green. When their blossoms open they resemble those of cassia trees, but are slightly yellow. During the year ding si of the jia jing reign period (1522 – 1566), the commissioner Jiao Xicheng recorded in one of his poems an event when a pine felled by Kang Gan transformed to a stone, but he did not know its name. [My, Li] Shizhen’s, comment, based on illustrations and the sayings in the Baopu zi, is that this was a “stone cassia zhi.” At the seaside are “stone plums” with slanting branches and trunks, and “stone cypresses” with leaves resembling those of the oriental arborvitae. They too belong to the group of “stone cassia [zhi].” 【主治】諸芝搗末,或化水服,令人輕身,長生不老。葛洪。 Control. All types of zhi ingested either ground to a powder or dissolved in water let one lose the weight of the body, extend life and prevent aging. Ge Hong.

本草綱目 Ben cao gang mu, 石部目録 Section stones/minerals, Contents 第十卷 Chapter 10 石之四石類下三十九種 Stones/minerals IV, Group of stones/minerals, 2nd, 39 kinds. 10-01 Yang qi shi 陽起石, actinolite, FE Ben jing 本經 10-02 Ci shi 慈石, magnetite, FE Ben jing 本經 10-03 Xuan shi 玄石, non-magnetic iron oxide, FE Bie lu 别録 10-04 Dai zhe shi 代赭石, iron oxide, FE Ben jing 本經 10-05 Yu yu liang 禹餘粮, limonite, FE Ben jing 本經 10-06 Tai yi yu liang 太一餘粮, brown hematite, FE Ben jing 本經 10-07 Shi zhong huang zi 石中黄子, ferric oxide, FE Tang ben 唐本 10-08 Kong qing 空青, malachite, FE Ben jing 本經 10-09 Ceng qing 曾青, “lamellar malachite.” FE Ben jing 本經 10-10 Lü qing 緑青, malachite, FE Ben jing 本經 10-11 Bian qing 扁青, flat malachite. FE Ben jing 本經 10-12 Bai qing 白青, white malachite. FE Ben jing 本經 Appendix 附錄 10-12-A01 Lü fu qing 緑膚青 10-12-A02 碧石青附 Bluish-green stone/mineral malachite. 10-13 Shi dan 石膽, chalcanthite, FE Ben jing 本經. This is dan fan 膽礬 10-14 Yu shi 礜石, arsenolite, FE Ben jing 本經 10-15 Te sheng yu shi 特生礜石, colored arsenolite, FE Bie lu 别録 10-16 Wo xue yu shi 握雪礜石, yellowish-white arsenolite, FE Tang ben 唐本 10-17 Pi shi 砒石, arsenic, FE Kai bao 開寶 10-18 Tu huang 土黄, “soil yellow.” FE Gang mu 綱目 10-19 Jin xing shi 金星石, biotite, FE Jia you 嘉祐

Chapter 10

595

Appendix 附錄 10-19-A01 金石, gold/metal stone/mineral. 10-20 Po suo shi 婆娑石, unidentifiable, FE Kai bao 開寶 10-21 Meng shi 礞石, micacious schist, FE Jia you 嘉祐 10-22 Hua ru shi 花乳石, dolomite, FE Jia you 嘉祐 10-23 Bai yang shi 白羊石, “stone/mineral from [Mount] Bai yang.” FE Tu jing 圖經 10-24 Jin ya shi 金牙石, iron pyrite, FE Bie lu 别録 10-25 Jin gang shi 金剛石, diamond, FE Gang mu 綱目 10-26 Bian shi 砭石, “stone probe.” FE Gang mu 綱目 Appendix 附錄 10-26-A0 Shi nu 石砮, stone arrowtip. 10-27 Yue di shi 越砥石, whetstone from Yue, FE Bie lu 别録. This is ma dao shi 磨刀石, whetstone. 10-28 Jiang shi 薑石, gravel, FE Tang ben 唐本 10-29 Mai fan shi 麥飯石, porphyry, FE Tu jing 圖經 10-30 Shui zhong bai shi 水中白石, riverbed pebbles, FE Shi yi 拾遺 10-31 He sha 河砂, “river sand, FE Shi yi 拾遺 10-32 Shao shang sha 杓上砂, “sand on a [rice] ladle/spoon.” FE Gang mu 綱目 10-33 Shi yan 石燕, spirifer fossil, FE Tang ben 唐本 10-34 Shi xie 石蟹, crab fossil, FE Kai bao 開寶 10-35 Shi she 石蛇, ammonite, FE Tu jing 圖經 10-36 Shi can 石蠶, coral stone fragment, FE Kai bao 開寶 10-37 Shi bie 石鼈, septarian nodule, FE Gang mu 綱目 10-38 she huang 蛇黄, iron pyrite; limonite, FE Tang ben 唐本 10-39 Pi li zhen 霹靂碪, meteorite, FE Shi yi 拾遺 10-40 Lei mo 雷墨, meteorite, FE Gang mu 綱目 右附方舊二十五,新九十五。 Recipes added to the entries above: 25 of old. 95 newly [recorded].

596

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

本草綱目 Ben cao gang mu 石部 Section Stones/Minerals 第十卷 Chapter 10 石之四石類下三十九種 Stones/Minerals IV, Group of Stones/Minerals, 2nd, 39 kinds. 10-01 陽起石本經中品 Yang qi shi, FE Ben jing, middle rank. The stone/mineral that lets the yang rise. Actinolite. Silicate of lime and magnesia. 【釋名】羊起石别録、白石本經、石生。【時珍曰】以能命名。 Explanation of Names. Yang qi shi 羊起石, “stone/mineral that lets the sheep rise,” Bie lu. Bai shi 白石, “white stone/mineral,” Ben jing. Shi sheng 石生. [Li] Shizhen: The names are based on the [therapeutic] potential [of this item]. 【集解】【别録曰】陽起石生齊山山谷及琅琊或雲山,雲母根也。采無 時。【普曰】生太山。【弘景曰】此所出與雲母同,而甚似雲母,但厚異 爾。今用乃出益州,與礬石同處,色小黄黑。但礬石、雲母根未知何者 是?俗用乃稀,仙經服之。【恭曰】此石以白色肌理似殷孽,仍夾帶雲母 滋潤者爲良,故本經一名白石。今用純黑如炭者,誤矣。雲母之黑者名雲 膽,服之損人,則黑陽起石亦必惡矣。今齊山在齊州西北,無陽起石。石 乃在齊山西北六七里盧山出之。本經雲山或盧字訛也。太山、沂州惟有黑 者,白者獨出齊州。【珣曰】太山所出黄者絶佳,邢州 鵲山出白者亦好。 【頌曰】今惟出齊州,他處不復有。齊州惟一土山,石出其中,彼人謂之 陽起山。其山常有温暖氣,雖盛冬大雪徧境,獨此山無積白,蓋石氣熏蒸 使然也。山惟一穴,官中常禁閉。至初冬則州發丁夫,遣人監取。歲月積 久,其穴益深,鑱鑿他石,得之甚難。以白色明瑩若狼牙者爲上,亦有挾

Chapter 10

597

他石作塊者不堪。每歲采擇上供之餘,州中貨之,不爾無由得也。貨者雖 多而精好者亦難得。舊説是雲母根,其中猶帶雲母,今不復見此矣。古方 服食不見用者,今補下藥多使之。【時珍曰】今以雲頭雨脚、輕鬆如狼牙 者爲佳,其鋪茸茁角者不佳。建平王典術乃云黄白而赤重厚者佳,雲母之 根也。庚辛玉册云:陽起,陽石也。齊州 揀金山出者勝,其尖似箭鏃者力 强,如狗牙者力微,置大雪中倏然没者爲真。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Actinolite grows in the mountain valleys of Mount Qi shan, and also in Lang ya and on Mount Yun shan. It is the root of muscovite. It is collected anytime. [Wu] Pu: It grows on Mount Tai shan. [Tao] Hongjing: It originates in the same places as muscovite, and it is very similar to muscovite, except that it is thicker. [Actinolite] in use today originates in Yi zhou, from the same places as alum. It is of slightly yellow-black color. However, it is not yet understood whether it is the root of alum or muscovite. It is rarely used by common [physicians]. The classics of hermits/immortals [recommend to] ingest it. [Su] Gong: This stone/mineral with its white color and muscle structure resembles yin nie 殷 孽 (09-23). When it includes layers of muscovite and is moist, it is good. In ancient ben cao works it was always called “white stone/mineral.” When nowadays purely black kinds resembling coal are used, that is wrong. Black kinds of muscovite are called yun dan 雲膽; to ingest them is harmful. Hence black kinds of actinolite are to be avoided. Today, there is no actinolite on Mount Qi shan, north-west of Qi zhou. Actinolite originates in Mount Lu, six, seven li north-west of Mount Qi shan. References in the Ben jing to a Mount Yun shan may be an erroneous writing of the character Lu 盧. Mount Tai shan and Yi zhou have only black [kinds]. White [kinds] solely originate in Qi zhou. [Li] Xun: Yellow [kinds] originating in Mount Tai shan are definitely fine. Those originating in Mount Que in Xing zhou are good, too. [Su] Song: Nowadays [actinolite] originates in Qi zhou only. It is not found at other places any longer. In Qi zhou there is only one hill out of which this stone/ mineral originates. The locals call it “Mount Yang qi shan.” This mountain is always surrounded by a warm qi. Even when winter is strongest and much snow covers all the regions around it, only this mountain remains free of white accumulations. The fact is, the qi steaming from this stone/mineral cause it to be this way. The mountain has only one cave [where actinolite is collected], and access to it is regularly forbidden by the authorities. At the beginning of winter, the zhou [administration] sends laborers there and also orders personel to supervise them. As the months and years have passed, the cave has become ever deeper, and [the actinolite] is excavated with other stones/minerals so that to obtain it is very difficult. That is best which is of

598

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

white color and shiny and lustrous, resembling the teeth of wolves.594 There are also kinds forming lumps that include other stones/minerals. They are not suitable [for therapeutic use]. Every year [actinolite] of best quality is selected to be submitted [to the court] as tribute. The remaining parts are marketed in the zhou. There is no other possibility to obtain it. Even though it is traded in large quantities, [actinolite of ] good quality is difficult to obtain. In former times it was said to be “the root of muscovite,” as it bears within it muscovite. But this is no longer seen so. In ancient recipes [recommending substances to be] ingested for food, it was not seen to be used. Nowadays, it is often resorted to for medication aimed at supplementing the lower [body parts]. [Li] Shizhen: Nowadays, those [kinds] are fine that are covered by fine hair or fibers, and that are light and pliable like the teeth of wolves. Those covered as if these were deer antlers are not fine. Jian ping wang in his Dian shu states: “Those of yellow-whitish red color, and that are thick, are fine. They are the root of muscovite.” The Geng xin yu ce states: “Actinolite (lit. “[the stone/mineral that] lets the yang rise”) is a yang stone/mineral. That originating in Mount Jian jin shan of Qi zhou is superior. That with pointed ends resembling metal arrowheads is strong. When [the pointed ends] resemble the teeth of dogs, the strength is weak. When it is placed on massive snow and sinks down into it immediately, it is genuine.” 【修治】【大明曰】凡入藥燒後水煅用之,凝白者佳。【時珍曰】凡用火 煅赤,酒淬七次,研細水飛過,日乾。亦有用燒酒浸過,同樟腦入鑵升 煉,取粉用者。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. Da Ming: Whenever it is to be added to medication, heat it, process it with water, and calcine it before resorting to it. When it congeals and assumes a white color, it is fine. [Li] Shizhen: For all usages, calcine it with fire until it is red, dip it in wine seven times, grind it to a fine [powder], process it with aqueous sublimation and let it dry in the sun. It is also possible to soak it in brandy, give it together with camphora into a jar, process it with heat through sublimation, and than use the resulting powder [for therapeutic ends]. 【氣味】鹹,微温,無毒。【普曰】神農、扁鵲:酸,無毒。桐君、雷 公、岐伯:鹹,無毒。李當之:小寒。【權曰】甘,平。【之才曰】桑螵 蛸爲之使,惡澤瀉、菌桂、雷丸、石葵、蛇蜕皮,畏兔絲子,忌羊血,不 入湯。

594 It is not clear whether this reference to “the teeth of wolves”, lang ya 狼牙, is meant to refer to the teeth of the animal wolve or to the root of a plant named “teeth of wolves”, lang ya 狼牙 (17-05), because its roots are described as resembling the “teeth of wolves.”

Chapter 10

599

Qi and Flavor. Salty, slightly warm, nonpoisonous. [Wu] Pu: Shen nong, Bian Que: Sour, nonpoisonous. Tong jun, Lei gong, Qi Bo: Salty, nonpoisonous. Li Dangzhi: Slightly cold. [Zhen] Quan: Sweet, balanced. [Xu] Zhicai: Mantis eggshell serves as its guiding substance. [Ingested together,] it abhors alisma [tuber], cassia bark, stone-like omphalia, stone malva595 and snake slough. It fears cuscuta [seed]. [During a treatment with actinolite to consume] sheep blood is forbidden. It must not be added to hot water. 【主治】崩中漏下,破子臟中血,癥瘕結氣,寒熱腹痛,無子,陰痿不 起,補不足。本經。療男子莖頭寒,陰下濕痒,去臭汗,消水腫。久服 不飢,令人有子。别録。補腎氣精乏,腰疼膝冷濕痺,子宫久冷,冷癥寒 瘕,止月水不定。甄權。治帶下,温疫冷氣,補五勞七傷。大明。補命門 不足。好古。散諸熱腫。時珍。 Control. Collapsing center596 and leaking discharge. It breaks open blood [accumulations] in the womb, concretion-illness and conglomeration-illness with bound qi,597 [serves to cure] alternating cold and heat sensations with abdominal pain, childlessness and dysfunction of the yin [(i. e., male genital) member] when it fails to rise, and supplements insufficiencies. Ben jing. It serves to heal cold in the glans penis, and moisture with itch below the yin [(i. e., male genital) member]. It serves to eliminate malodorous sweat and dissolves water swelling. Ingested over a long time it prevents hunger, and it lets one have children. Bie lu. It supplements the kidney qi and exhausted essence/sperm. [It serves to cure] lower back pain, cold knees associated with moisture and blockage, long-term cold of the womb, with cold-concretion-illness and cold conglomeration-illness. It ends irregular menstruation. [Zhen] Quan. It serves to cure [women’s diseases] below the belt, warmth epidemics and cold qi. It supplements in the case of any of the five types of exhaustion and seven types of harm. Da Ming. It supplements insufficiencies affecting the gate of life. [Wang] Haogu. It serves to disperse all types of swelling associated with heat. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【宗奭曰】男子婦人下部虚冷,腎氣乏絶,子臟久寒者,須水飛 用之。凡石藥冷熱皆有毒,亦宜斟酌。【時珍曰】陽起石,右腎命門氣分 藥也,下焦虚寒者宜用之,然亦非久服之物。張子和儒門事親云:喉痺, 相火急速之病也。相火,龍火也,宜以火逐之。一男子病纏喉風腫,表裏 595 Shi kui 石葵, “stone malva,” a substance of unclear identity. 596 Beng zhong 崩中, “collapsing center,” excessive vaginal bleeding outside of a menstruation period. BCGM Dict I, 58. 597 Jie qi 結氣, “bound qi,” refers to pathological qi halting and congealing at any place in the human body. BCGM Dict I, 240.

600

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

皆作,藥不能下。以凉藥灌入鼻中,下十餘行。外以陽起石燒赤、伏龍肝 等分,細末,日以新汲水調掃百遍。三日熱始退,腫始消。此亦從治之道 也。 Explication. [Kou] Zongshi: For depletion cold in the lower [body] parts of males and females, exhaustion and cut off flow of kidney qi, and long-term cold in the womb, it is advisable to use it after aqueous sublimation. All mineral drugs, be they cold or hot, are poisonous. Hence [their application] is to be carefully considered. [Li] Shizhen: Actinolite is a medication specifically for the qi section of the right kidney, that is, the gate of life, and it is suitable for use in the case of a depletion cold affecting the Lower Burner. Still, this is not an item that is to be ingested over a long period of time. Zhang Zihe in his Ru men shi qin states: “Throat closure is a disease of rapidly acting minister fire. The minister fire is ‘dragon fire’. It is to be expelled with fire. There was a male who suffered from a constricted throat with a wind swelling, affecting him both outside and inside. He was unable to swallow a medication. Hence a cold medication was forcibly inserted into his nose, more than ten times. For an external application, actinolite was heated until it had turned red and was [ground to] a fine powder with an equal amount of soil from a furnace. This was mixed with newly drawn water and was then applied [to the affected region] a hundred times. After three days, the heat began to recede, and the swelling began to dissolve.” This is another example of the WAY of a cure conforming with [the nature of the disease].

【附方】新三。 Added Recipes. Three newly [recorded]. 丹毒腫痒。陽起石煅研,新水調塗。儒門事親。 Cinnabar poison598 with swelling and itch. Apply actinolite, calcined and ground [to a powder], mixed with newly drawn water to the [affected region]. Ru men shi qin. 元氣虚寒,精滑不禁,大腑溏泄,手足厥冷。陽起石煅研、鍾乳粉各等 分,酒煮附子末同麪糊丸梧子大,每空心米飲服五十丸,以愈爲度。濟生 方。 Original qi depletion with cold. A smooth and uncontrollable release of essence/ sperm. Viscous outflow from the large intestine. Recession cold affecting hands and feet. Boil equal amounts of actinolite, calcined and ground [to a powder], and stalactite powder in wine and prepare, with aconitum [accessory tuber] powder and 598 Dan du 丹毒, “cinnabar poison,” a skin ailment with red rashes. BCGM Dict I, 118

Chapter 10

601

a flour-water paste pills the size of wu seeds. Each time on an empty stomach ingest with a rice beverage 50 pills until a healing is achieved. Ji sheng fang. 陰痿陰汗。陽起石煅爲末,每服二錢,鹽酒下。普濟方。 Dysfunction of the yin [(i. e., male genital) member]; sweating in the yin [(i. e., genital) region]. Each time ingest two qian of actinolite, calcined and [ground to a] powder. To be sent down with salted wine. Pu ji fang. 10-02 慈石本經中品 Ci shi, FE Ben jing, middle rank. Magnetite. Iron oxide. 【釋名】玄石本經、處石别録、㶸鐵石衍義、吸鍼石。【藏器曰】慈石取 鐵,如慈母之招子,故名。【時珍曰】石之不慈者,不能引鐵,謂之玄 石,而别録復出玄石于後。 Explanation of Names. Xuan shi 玄石, “dark stone/mineral,” Ben jing. Chu shi 處石, “a stone/mineral that directs others,” Bie lu. Xie tie shi 㶸鐵石, “a stone/mineral with the potential of a blazing fire,” Yan yi. Xi zhen shi 吸鍼石, “stone/mineral that draws in needles.” [Chen] Cangqi: Magnetite, ci shi 慈石 (lit.: “loving stone/mineral”) attracts iron, just like a loving mother, ci mu 慈母, attracts her children. Hence the name. [Li] Shizhen: Those stones/minerals that are without “love”, ci 慈, and cannot attract iron, they are called xuan shi 玄石, “dark/mysterious stones/minerals.” The Bie lu has devoted an extra entry to xuan shi 玄石 herafter. 【集解】【别録曰】慈石生太山川谷及慈山山陰,有鐵處則生其陽。采無 時。【弘景曰】今南方亦有好者。能懸吸鐵,虚連三爲佳。仙經丹房黄白 術中多用之。【藏器曰】出相州北山。【頌曰】今磁州、徐州及南海傍山 中皆有之。慈州者歲貢最佳,能吸鐵虚連數十鐵,或一二斤刀器,回轉不 落者尤良。采無時。其石中有孔,孔中有黄赤色,其上有細毛,功用更 勝。按南州異物志云:漲海崎頭水淺而多慈石,徼外大舟以鐵葉固之者, 至此皆不得過。以此言之,海南所出尤多也。【斅曰】凡使勿誤用玄中石 并中麻石。此二石俱似慈石,只是吸鐵不得。而中麻石心有赤,皮粗,是 鐵山石也。誤服令人生惡瘡,不可療。真慈石一片,四面吸鐵一斤者,此 名延年沙。四面只吸鐵八兩者,名續采石。四面吸五兩者,名慈石。【宗 奭曰】慈石其毛輕紫,石上頗濇,可吸連鐵,俗謂之㶸鐵石。其玄石即慈 石之黑色者,慈磨針鋒,則能指南,然常偏東,不全南也。其法取新纊中 獨縷,以半芥子許蠟綴于針腰,無風處垂之,則鍼常指南。以鍼横貫燈 心,浮水上,亦指南。然常偏丙位,蓋丙爲大火,庚辛受其制,物理相感

602

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

爾。【土宿真君曰】鐵受太陽之氣,始生之初石産焉。一百五十年而成慈 石,又二百年孕而成鐵。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Magnetite grows in the river valleys of Mount Tai shan, and on the yin/shady side of Mount Ci shan. On locations where iron is present, it grows on the yang/sunny side. [Tao] Hongjing: Nowadays, good [magnetite] is also found in the South. It is able to attract iron; it is good when it can attract three [pieces of iron/needles] in a row. In the classics of hermits/immortals it is often used as part of the [Daoist] “yellow [gold] and white [silver] techniques.” [Chen] Cangqi: [Magnetite] originates in the mountains in the North of Xiang zhou. [Su] Song: Nowadays [magnetite] can be found everywhere in Ci zhou, Xu zhou and in the mountains close to Nan hai. That originating in Ci zhou is excellent and is sent as an annual tribute [to the court]. It is able to attract ten pieces of iron linked to each other, or knives and utensils weighing one to two jin. When [the attracted iron pieces] fail to fall down even though they are shaken, [the magnetite] is of especially good quality. It is collected anytime. When this stone/mineral has holes, with the color in these holes being yellow-red, and when on its surface it has fine hair, then its [therapeutic] potential and usage are exceptional. According to the Nan zhou yi wu zhi, “the water around island reefs in the South Sea is shallow and there is much magnetite [on the bottom of the sea]. If it so happens that a ship from abroad, fortified with iron plates, nears this region, it will be unable to pass it.” That is to say, [magnetite] originates in Hai nan in especially large quantities. [Lei] Xiao: Whenever [magnetite] is to be used, do not erroneously resort to xuan zhong shi 玄中石 and zhong ma shi 中麻石. Both these stones/minerals resemble magnetite, but they lack the potential to attract iron. Zhong ma shi 中麻石 is red in its center, and its skin is rough. These are stones/minerals from mountains with iron. If they are erroneously ingested, they let one develop malign sores that are incurable. A piece of genuine magnetite that can attract one jin of iron on all four sides is called “sand to extend the years [of life].” If it is able to attract eight liang of iron on all four sides, it is called “the stone/mineral that collects by joining end to end.” Those [kinds of magnetite] attracting five liang on all four sides, they are called “loving stone/mineral.” [Kou] Zongshi: Magnetite has a light, purple-colored fur. The surface of the stone/mineral is quite rough. It can attract iron [pieces] endto-end, and is commonly called “the stone/mineral with the potential of blazing fire.” The “dark stone/mineral” is a black colored [variety of ] magnetite. If the tip of a needle is sharpened with magnetite, it will point to the South, with a permanent inclination to the East. It does not perfectly point to the South. The method [to use such a needle is as follows]: Use a single thread of a new silk tissue and suspend with it, at a place where there is no wind, a needle that has been pierced, to its middle,

Chapter 10

603

through a piece of beeswax the size of half a mustard seed [where the silk thread is to be fastened]. The needle will then continuously point to the South. When a [magnetized] needle is horizontally placed on rushes that are let to float on water, it will point to the South, too. Still, it will always be diverted to a bing 丙 position. The fact, is bing 丙 is “massive fire” exerting its control on geng 庚and xin 辛. This is the principle of items mutually affecting each other. Tu su zhen jun: When iron receives the qi of major yang/the sun, in a first phase of growth it evolves as a stone/ mineral. Within 150 years it becomes magnetite. After further 200 years of gestation it becomes iron. 【脩治】【斅曰】凡修事一斤,用五花皮一鎰,地榆一鎰,故綿十五兩, 三件並剉。于石上槌碎作二三十塊。將石入瓷瓶中,下草藥,以東流水煮 三日夜,漉出拭乾,布裹再槌細,乃碾如塵,水飛過,再碾用。【宗奭 曰】入藥須火燒醋淬,研末水飛。或醋煮三日夜。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Lei] Xiao. For a pharmaceutical preparation of one jin [of magnetite] always use [the following substances]. One yi of acanthopanax [root bark]. One yi of sanguisorba root. 15 liang of old silk floss. Cut all these three items and pound them on a stone to obtain 20 to 30 pieces. Insert the magnetite into a porcelain jar, add the herbal medication, and boil this in water flowing eastward for three days and nights. Then filter the liquid and dry [the dregs]. Wrap them in a piece of cloth and repeatedly pound them to a fine [powder]. This is further ground until it is a fine dust. Process it with aqueous sublimation, and grind it again, before using [it for therapeutic purposes]. [Kou] Zongshi: To add [magnetite] to medication, it is essential to heat it over a fire, then dip it into vinegar, grind it to a powder and process it with aqueous sublimation. Or boil it in vinegar for three days and nights. 【氣味】辛,寒,無毒。【權曰】鹹,有小毒。【大明曰】甘、濇,平。 【藏器曰】性温,云寒誤也。【之才曰】柴胡爲之使,殺鐵毒,消金,惡 牡丹、莽草,畏黄石脂。【獨孤滔曰】伏丹砂,養汞,去銅暈。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, cold, nonpoisonous. [Zhen] Quan: Salty, slightly poisonous. Da Ming: Sweet, rough, balanced. [Chen] Cangqi: Slightly warm. When it is said to be “cold,” that is an error. [Xu] Zhicai: Bupleurum [root] serves as its guiding substance. It kills the poison of iron, dissolves gold, and [ingested together,] it abhors paeonia root bark and illiceum [leaf ] and fears yellow halloysite. Dugu Tao: It subdues cinnabar and eliminates impurities of copper. 【主治】周痺風濕,肢節中痛,不可持物,洗洗酸消,除大熱煩滿及耳 聾。本經。養腎臟,强骨氣,益精除煩,通關節,消癰腫,鼠瘻頸核,喉

604

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

痛,小兒驚癇。鍊水飲之,亦令人有子。别録。補男子腎虚風虚。身强, 腰中不利,加而用之。甄權。治筋骨羸弱,補五勞七傷,眼昏,除煩躁。 小兒誤吞鍼鐵等,即研細末,以筋肉莫令斷,與末同吞,下之。大明。明 目聰耳,止金瘡血。時珍。 Control. Blockage affecting the entire body, caused by wind and moisture, with pain in the joints and an inability to lift any item. Carefully rinse it to dissolve its sour flavor, and it will eliminate massive heat, unrest, a feeling of fullness and deafness. Ben jing. It nourishes the kidney long-term depot. It strengthens the qi of the bones. It boosts essence/sperm and eliminates unrest. It opens the passage through the joints. It dissolves swelling associated with an obstruction-illness.599 [It serves to cure] mouse fistula600 and kernels developing in one’s neck, painful throat, and fright epilepsy of children. Refined with heat and drunk with water it also lets one have children. Bie lu. It supplements kidney depletion of males, and wind depletion. For stiffness of the body and an immobility of the lower back, use it as an additive [to the respective medication]. Zhen Quan. It serves to cure emaciation and weakness of sinews and bones and to supplement in the case of the five types of exhaustion and seven types of harm. Dimmed vision. It eliminates unrest and restlessness. When a child inadvertently has swallowed a needle or other such iron items, grind [magnetite] to a fine powder, and let [the child] swallow [the magnetite powder] together with meat prepared without severing it from its sinews. This will cause [the needle or other iron item] to be discharged. Da Ming. It clears the eyes and sharpens the ears. It ends bleeding of wounds caused by metal objects/ weapons. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【宗奭曰】養腎氣,填精髓,腎虚耳聾目昏者皆用之。【藏器 曰】重可去怯,慈石、鐵粉之類是也。【時珍曰】慈石法水,色黑而入 腎,故治腎家諸病而通耳明目。一士子頻病目,漸覺昏暗生翳。時珍用東 垣羌活勝風湯加减法與服,而以磁硃丸佐之。兩月遂如故。蓋慈石入腎, 鎮養真精,使神水不外移。朱砂入心,鎮養心血,使邪火不上侵。而佐以 神麴,消化滯氣,生熟並用,温養脾胃發生之氣,乃道家黄婆媒合嬰姹之 理,制方者宜窺造化之奥乎。方見孫真人千金方神麴丸,但云明目,百歲 可讀細書,而未發出藥微義也,孰謂古方不可治今病耶。獨孤滔云:慈石 乃堅頑之物,無融化之氣,止可假其氣服食,不可久服渣滓,必有大患。 夫藥以治病,中病則止。砒、硇猶可餌服,何獨慈石不可服耶?慈石既鍊 599 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641. 600Shu lou 鼠瘻, “mouse fistula,” identical with lou li 瘰癧, “scrofula with pervasion-illness.” BCGM Dict I, 466.

Chapter 10

605

末,亦匪堅頑物,惟在用者能得病情而中的爾。淮南萬畢術云:慈石懸 井,亡人自歸。註云:以亡人衣裹慈石懸于井中,逃人自反也。 Explication. [Kou] Zongshi: It nourishes the kidney qi and fills essense/sperm and marrow. For kidney depletion, deafness and dimmed vision it can be used all alike. [Chen] Cangqi: [Substances of ] heavy weight serve to eliminate timidity. Magnetite and iron powder belong to the group [of such substances]. [Li] Shizhen: Magnetite corresponds to water. It is of black color and enters the kidneys. Hence it serves to cure all types of diseases affecting the kidneys, opens the ears and clears the eyes. Once an official repeatedly suffered from an eye disease. He gradually felt his vision dimmed by the growth of shades. [I, Li] Shizhen let him ingest [Li] Dongyuan’s “decoction to nourish life and overcome wind,” modified by adding and omitting ingredients [in accordance with the requirements of the individual case], and I assisted [this medication] with “the pills with magnetite and cinnabar.” After two months [his eyes] had returned to their normal condition. The fact is, magnetite enters the kidneys where it guards and nourishes the genuine [qi] and essence/ sperm. It prevents the loss of “divine water” [from inside the eyes] to the outside. Cinnabar enters the heart. It guards and nourishes the blood in the heart, and prevents evil fire from ascending and intruding [into the heart]. Assisted by medicated leaven, it dissolves and transforms stagnant qi. It can be used raw or processed with heat, and warms and nourishes the qi generated and emitted by spleen and stomach. This is based on the Daoist principle of “matching the old woman that has turned yellow with the infant in its beauty.” Those who work out recipes should take a close look at these mysteries of creation. For the recipe, see in Sun zhenren’s Qian jin fang the “pills with medicated leaven.” All it says is that “it clears the eyes enabling one even at the age of a hundred years to read texts with small writing.” But the subtle idea behind this medication remained undisclosed. Who says that today’s diseases cannot be cured with the recipes of antiquity? Dugu Tao states: “Magnetite is a hard and durable item. Its qi cannot be [made use of by] melting and transformation. All that is possible is to avail oneself of its qi by ingesting it as food. However, its dregs must not be ingested over a long time as this inevitably leads to massive suffering.” That is, when diseases are treated with a medication, once the disease was struck, [the treatment] is to end. Arsenic and sal ammoniac can be ingested as a pastry, why should only magnetite not be ingested this way? When magnetite is refined with heat and [ground to a] powder, it no longer is a hard and durable item. All that is important is to use it in accordance with the nature of the disease, and this way [the disease] will be struck. The Huai nan wan bi shu states: “Hang magnetite above the well and run-away persons will return as a result.” A commentary states: “Hang

606

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

magnetite wrapped in the garments of a run-away person in a well, and the fugitive will return as a result.”

【附方】舊三,新一十二。 Added Recipes. Three of old. 12 newly [recorded]. 耳卒聾閉。㶸鐵石半錢,入病耳内,鐵砂末入不病耳内,自然通透。直指 方。 Sudden closure of an ear with deafness. Insert half a qian of magnetite into the affected ear and [insert] iron powder into the ear not affected by the disease. [The closure] will be opened as a result. Zhi zhi fang. 腎虚耳聾。真慈石一豆大,穿山甲燒存性研一字,新綿裹了塞耳内,口含 生鐵一塊,覺耳中如風雨聲即通。濟生方。 Deafness associated with kidney depletion. Wrap a piece of magnetite the size of a bean and pangolin scales, burned with their nature retained and ground [to a powder], in new silk floss and insert this into the [affected] ear. Also, hold a piece of pig iron in the mouth. Once you hear sounds like wind and rain in the ear, it will be opened again. Ji sheng fang. 老人耳聾。慈石一斤搗末,水淘去赤汁,綿裹之,猪腎一具,細切,以水 五斤煮石,取二斤,入腎,下鹽豉作羹食之。米煮粥食亦可。養老方。 Deafness of old persons. Grind one pound of magnetite to powder, wash it with water in a pan, discard the red juice, and wrap [the dregs] in silk floss. Cut one pork kidney into fine slices. Boil the magnetite in five jin of water, take two jin, add the kidney [slices] and salted fermented beans, prepare a congee and [let the patient] eat this. It is also possible to eat it as a congee boiled with rice. Yang lao fang. 老人虚損,風濕,腰肢痺痛。慈石三十兩,白石英二十兩,搥碎甕盛,水 二斗浸于露地,每日取水作粥食,經年氣力强盛,顔如童子。養老方。 Depletion injury of old persons, associated with wind and dampness, and painful blockage affecting the lower back and the limbs. Crush 30 liang of magnetite and 20 liang of quartz to pieces and fill them into a jar. Then let them soak in two dou of water in the open. Each day take the water to prepare a congee to be eaten. After a year, one’s strength will be boosted and the qi will be plenty. The complexion will be that of a boy. Yang lao fang.

Chapter 10

607

陽事不起。慈石五斤研,清酒漬二七日,每服三合,日三夜一。千金。 The yang affair (i. e., the penis) fails to rise. Grind five jin of magnetite [to a powder] and soak it in clear wine for two times seven days. Each time ingest three ge [of the liquid], three times a day, once a night. Qian jin. 眼昏内障。慈朱丸:治神水寬大漸散,昏如霧露中行,漸覩空花,物成 二體,久則光不收,及内障,神水淡緑、淡白色者。真慈石火煅醋淬七次 二兩,朱砂一兩,神麴生用三兩,爲末。更以神麴末一兩煮糊,加蜜丸梧 子大,每服二十丸,空心飯湯下。服後俯視不見,仰視微見星月,此其效 也。亦治心火乘金、水衰反制之病。久病累發者服之,永不更作。倪維德 原機啓微集。 Dimmed vision of the eyes with an internal screen. The “pills with magnetite and cinnabar.” They serve to cure massive, gradual dispersion of the “divine water” [from inside the eyes]. The vision of the eyes is dimmed as if one were walking in dense fog. Gradually flowers appear in the void, and one single item creates two bodies. After a long time, no light will be received, and an inner screen [has developed]. The “divine water” [inside the eyes] will be of a weak green or weak white color. [Grind] two liang of genuine magnetite, calcined over fire and dipped into vinegar seven times, one liang of cinnabar and three liang of fresh medicated leaven to a powder. Also, boil one liang of medicated leaven to obtain a paste, and add honey [to the leaven and the powder] to form pills the size of wu seeds. Each time [let the patient] ingest 20 pills, on an empty stomach, to be sent down with a rice decoction. When after ingesting [the pills the patient] looks down and sees nothing, but looks up and faintly sees the stars and the moon, then this is an effect [of this treatment]. It also serves to cure metal (i. e. the lung) having been availed of by the fire of the heart; with water (i. e., the kidneys) weakened, contrary to ordinary conditions of control. When this [medication] is ingested, even diseases of continuous outbreaks will never be active again. Ni Weide, Yuan ji qi wei ji. 小兒驚癇。慈石鍊水飲之。聖濟録。 Fright epilepsy of children. Refine magnetite in water with heat and [let the patient] drink [the liquid]. Sheng ji fang. 子宫不收,名瘣疾,痛不可忍。慈石丸:用慈石酒浸煅,研末,米糊丸梧 子大,每卧時滑石湯下四十丸。次早用慈石散,米湯服二錢。散用慈石酒 浸半兩,鐵粉二錢半,當歸五錢,爲末。 Failure of a [prolapsed] uterus to be drawn in, called “demonic illness,” with unbearable pain. The “pills with magnetite.” Soak magnetite in wine, calcine it and grind it to a powder. Form, with rice paste, pills the size of wu seeds. [Let the patient] every

608

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

time she goes to bed send down 40 pills with a talc decoction. The next morning let her ingest two qian of a “magnetite powder” with a rice decoction. To prepare this powder [grind] half a liang of magnetite soaked in wine, two and a half qian of iron powder and five qian of angelica root to a powder. 大腸脱肛。直指方:慈石半兩,火煅醋淬七次,爲末。每空心米飲服一錢。 Anal prolapse of the large intestine. Zhi zhi fang: [Grind] half a liang of magnetite, calcined over a fire and dipped into vinegar seven times, to a powder and [let the patient] ingest each time on an empty stomach one qian with a rice beverage. 簡便方用慈石末,麪糊調塗顖上,入後洗去。 The Jian bian fang [recommends to] mix magnetite powder with flour-water paste and smear it on the top [of the patient’s] skull. After [the prolapsed intestine] has entered [the abdomen again] wash it off. 金瘡腸出。納入,以慈石、滑石各三兩爲末,米飲服方寸匕,日再。劉涓 子鬼遺方。 Wounds caused by metal objects/weapons, with the intestines having come out [of the abdomen]. Stuff them [back] into [the abdomen] and [let the patient] ingest with a rice beverage the amount held by a square cun spoon of a powder ground from three liang each of magnetite and talc. Liu Junzi gui yi fang. 金瘡血出。慈石末傅之,止痛斷血。千金方。 Bleeding wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. Apply magnetite powder to them. This stops the pain and ends the bleeding. Qian jin fang. 誤吞鍼鐵。真慈石棗核大,鑽孔線穿吞,拽之立出。錢相公篋中方。 Erroneously having swallowed a needle or a piece of iron. Bore a hole into a piece of genuine magnetite the size of a date kernel, pass a cotton thread through it and swallow this. Then pull it out again and [the needle or piece of iron] will come out immediately. Qian xiang gong, Qie zhong fang. 丁腫熱毒。慈石末,酢和封之,拔根立出。外臺秘要。 Pin[-illness]601 swelling with heat and poison. Mix magnetite powder with vinegar and seal [the affected region] with it. This will uproot [the pin-illness] immediately. Wai tai mi yao.

601 Ding 丁, “pin[-illness],” also ding 疔, “pin-illness,” refers to a deep-reaching and festering hardness in a tissue, eventually rising above the skin like a pinhead. BCGM Dict I, 127129

Chapter 10

609

諸般腫毒。吸鐵石三錢,金銀藤四兩,黄丹八兩,香油斤,如常熬膏,貼 之。乾坤秘韞。 All types of swelling with poison. Take three qian of magnetite, four liang of honeysuckle stems, eight liang of minium and [one] jin of sesame oil and simmer them as usual to a paste to be applied to the [affected region]. Qian kun mi yun. 10-02-A01 磁石毛。Ci shi mao. Magnetite fur. 【氣味】鹹,温,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, warm, nonpoisonous. 【主治】補絶傷,益陽道,止小便白數,治腰脚,去瘡瘻,長肌膚,令人 有子,宜入酒。【藏器曰】本經言石不言毛,毛、石功狀殊也。 Control. It supplements [in the case of ] harm associated with [qi flow] interruption. It boosts the yang path (i. e., male sexual strength). It ends frequent passage of white/colorless urine. It serves to cure [illnesses affecting] the lower back and the legs. It eliminates sores and fistula, stimulates the growth of muscles and skin and lets one have children. It ought to be given into wine. [Chen] Cangqi: The Ben jing speaks of “[magnetite] stone/mineral]” rather than of “[magnetite] fur.” [Magnetite] fur and [magnetite] stone/mineral differ both in their [therapeutic] potential and their shape. 10-03 玄石别録中品 Xuan shi, FE Bie lu, middle rank. Dark stone/mineral. Non-magnetic iron oxide. 【釋名】玄水石别録、處石。【時珍曰】玄以色名。 Explanation of Names. Xuan shui shi 玄水石, “dark water stone/mineral,” Bie lu. Chu shi 處石, “a stone/mineral that directs others.” [Li] Shizhen: It is called “dark [water stone/mineral]” because of its color. 【集解】【别録曰】玄石生太山之陽,山陰有銅。銅者雌,鐵者雄。【弘 景曰】本經慈石一名玄石。别録又出玄石,一名處石。名既同,療體又相 似,而寒温、銅鐵畏惡有異。俗方不用,亦無識者,不知與磁石相類否。【 恭曰】此物鐵液也。慈石中有細孔,孔中黄赤色,初破好者能拾鐵吸鐵602。 602 The Zheng lei, ch. 4, entry xuan shi 玄石, quotes a Tang ben commentary: “It links ten needles, or one jin of iron, and it may turn a knife around,” lian yi zhen, yi jin tie. Dao yi bei hui zhuan 連十針、一斤鐵。刀亦被廻轉。

610

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

其無孔而光澤純黑者,玄石也,不能拾,療體亦劣于慈石。【頌曰】今北番 以慈石作禮物,其塊多光澤,吸鐵無力,疑即此玄石也。醫方罕用。【時珍 曰】慈石生山之陰有鐵處,玄石生山之陽有銅處,雖形相似,性則不同,故 玄石不能吸鐵。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Dark stone/mineral grows on the yang/sunny side of Mount Tai shan. Copper occurs on the yin/shady side of the mountain. Copper is female. Iron is male. [Tao] Hongjing: In the Ben jing, magnetite is also called “dark stone/mineral.” The Bie lu also refers to “dark stone/mineral” with an alternative name chu shi 處石, “a stone/mineral that directs others.” The names [of these substances] are identical, and their therapeutic [potential] as well as their physical body are quite similar, too. However, they differ in their cold and warm [nature], and with regard to what they fear and abhor [when ingested together with] copper and iron. In recipes of common physicians, [“dark stone/mineral”] is not used, and there is nobody who is familiar with it. It is not even known whether it belongs to the same group as magnetite, or not. [Su] Gong: This item is liquid iron. Magnetite has fine holes. The color inside of these holes is yellow-red. When [magnetite of ] good quality has just been broken open, it picks up iron, and it absorbs iron. Those without holes and with a purely black gloss, they are “dark stones/minerals.” They are unable to pick up [iron] and their therapeutic effects are inferior to those of magnetite. [Su] Song: Nowadays, in the foreign lands in the North, magnetite serves as a gift. Its pieces are often glossy, and they lack the strength to attract iron. Presumably this is “dark stone/mineral.” It is rarely resorted to in medical recipes. [Li] Shizhen: Magnetite grows on the yin/shady side of mountains at places where iron occurs. Dark stone/mineral grows on the yang/sunny side of mountains at places where copper occurs. Even though their physical appearances are similar, their nature is not identical. Hence dark stone/mineral is unable to attract iron. 【氣味】鹹,温,無毒。【之才曰】惡松脂、柏實、菌桂。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, warm, nonpoisonous. [Xu] Zhicai: [Ingested together,] it abhors colophony, cypress fruit, and osmanthus [flower]. 【主治】大人小兒驚癇,女子絶孕,小腹冷痛,少精身重。服之令人有 子。别録。 Control. Fright epilepsy of adults and children. It ends a woman’s pregnancy. [It cures] cold and pain in one’s abdomen, diminished essence/sperm and a heavy body. Ingesting it lets one have children. Bie lu.

Chapter 10

611

10-04 代赭石本經下品 Dai zhe shi, FE Ben jing, lower rank. Reddish-brown stone/mineral from Dai. Hematite. Iron oxide. 【釋名】須丸本經、血師别録、土朱綱目、鐵朱。【别録曰】出代郡者名 代赭,出姑幕者名須丸。【時珍曰】赭,赤色也。代,即雁門也。今俗呼 爲土朱、鐵朱。管子云:山上有赭,其下有鐵。鐵朱之名或緣此,不獨因 其形色也。 Explanation of Names. Xu wan 須丸, “turnip pills,” Ben jing. Xue shi 血師, “blood division,” Bie lu. Tu zhi 土朱, “soil red,” Gang mu. Tie zhu 鐵朱, “iron red.” Bie lu: When it originates in Dai jun it is called dai zhe 代赭, “Dai red.” When it originates in Gu mu it is named xu wan 須丸. [Li] Shizhen: Zhe 赭 is the color red. Dai 代 is Yan men. Nowadays, [hematite] is commonly called tu zhu 土朱 and tie zhu 鐵 朱. The Guan zi states: “When there is hematite on a mountain, there will be iron underneath.” This is the origin of [hematite] being named “iron red.” [The name] is based not only on its physical appearance and color. 【集解】【别録曰】代赭生齊國山谷,赤紅青色,如雞冠有澤,染爪甲不 渝者良。采無時。【弘景曰】是代郡城門下赤土也。江東久絶,俗用乃 疏,而爲仙方之要,與戎鹽、鹵鹹皆是急須。【恭曰】此石多從代州來, 云山中采得,非城門下土也。今齊州 亭山出赤石,其色有赤紅青者。其赤 者亦如雞冠且潤澤,土人惟采以丹楹柱,而紫色且暗,與代州出者相似, 古來用之。今靈州 鳴沙縣界河北,平地掘深四五尺得者,皮上赤滑,中 紫如雞肝,大勝齊、代所出者。【頌曰】今河東、京東山中亦有之。古方 紫丸治小兒用代赭,云無真,以左顧牡蠣代使,乃知真者難得。今醫家所 用,多擇取大塊,其上文頭有如浮漚丁者爲勝,謂之丁頭代赭。北山經 云:少陽之山,中多美赭。西山經云:石脆之山,灌水出焉。中有流赭, 以塗牛馬無病。郭璞注云:赭,赤土也。今人以塗牛角,云辟惡。【時珍 曰】赭石處處山中有之,以西北出者爲良。宋時虔州歲貢萬斤。崔昉外丹 本草云:代赭,陽石也。與太乙餘粮並生山峽中。研之作朱色,可點書, 又可罨金益色赤。張華以赤土拭寶劍,倍益精明,即此也。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Hematite grows in the mountain valleys of the country of Qi. It is of a glossy, red-greenish color similar to the combs of cocks. When [hematite is used to] dye nails and does not change [its color], it is good. It is collected anytime. [Tao] Hongjing: This is red soil from below the city gates of Dai jun. [Supplies] from Jiang dong have been cut off for a long time. It is only rarely used by common [physicians], but it is considered essential in the recipes for becoming an hermit/immortal. Together with halite, salt from the region of the

612

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Rong, and bittern salt, lu xian 鹵鹹, it is required in emergency [medication]. [Su] Gong: This stone/mineral comes mostly from Dai zhou. It is said to be collected in the mountains, not from the soil below a city gate. Nowadays, a red stone/mineral originates in Mount Ting shan in Qi zhou. Its color is red-greenish. This red is similar to the red of cockscombs, and it is glossy. The local people gather it to paint the columns of their halls. With its dark purple color it is similar to [hematite] originating in Dai zhou. It has been used since ancient times. Nowadays, [hematite] is undug from a depth of four to five chi in the plains of a region north of a river in Ming sha xian, in Ling zhou, with a red and smooth surface, and a purple interior, reminiscent of [the color of ] a chicken liver. It is by far superior to [hematite] originating in Qi [zhou] and Dai [zhou]. [Su] Song: Nowadays, [hematite] is also found in the mountain valleys of Jing dong and He dong. Ancient recipes of “purple pills” [with an advice to] use hematite to cure children state that “if no genuine [hematite] is available, it can be substituted with oyster shells with leftward spirals.” Obviously, genuine [hematite] was difficult to obtain. When physicians of today make use of it, they mostly select large pieces with a surface of solid nail [head] bulges on top of it as superior, and they call it “nail head hematite.” The Bei shan jing states: “Much beautiful hematite is found in the mountains of Shao yan.” The Xi shan jing states: “Where the Guan shui [river] leaves the mountains of Shi cui, hematite flows with [the water]. It is applied to oxen and horses to prevent disease.” Guo Pu in a comment states: “Hematite is a red soil.” Nowadays, the people apply it to the horns of oxen. It is said to keep away the malign. [Li] Shizhen: Hematite occurs in the mountains everywhere, with that originated from the North-West being good. During the Song era, Qian zhou submitted 10 000 jin a year as tribute [to the court]. Cui Fang in his Wai dan ben cao states: “Hematite is a yang stone/mineral. It grows in mountain valleys together with ‘Tai yi’s leftover provisions’ (10-06). When it is ground it becomes a cinnabar-red color that can be used for painting. It can also be used to deepen the red color of gold.” When Zhang Hua “used red soil to wipe his double-edged sword, boosting its sagacity,” it was the [hematite discussed] here. 【脩治】【斅曰】凡使研細,以臘水重重飛過,水面上有赤色如薄雲者去 之。乃用細茶脚湯煮一伏時,取出又研一萬匝。以净鐵鐺燒赤,下白蜜蠟 一兩,待化,投新汲水冲之,再煮一二十沸,取出晒乾用。【時珍曰】今 人惟煅赤,以醋淬三次或七次,研,水飛過用,取其相制,并爲肝經血分 引用也。相感志云:代赭以酒醋煮之,插鐵釘于内,扇之成汁。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Lei] Xiao: For all applications [of hematite], grind it to a fine [powder] and repeatedly process it with sublimation using water collected in the 12th month. Once a thin cloud of red color has formed on the surface of the

Chapter 10

613

water, it may be removed. Then boil it with a decoction of fine tea grounds for one day and one night, remove it [from the liquid] and grind it 10 000 times. Next heat it in a clean iron pan until it has assumed a red color, add one liang of white beeswax and wait until it has transformed [into the wax]. Pour newly drawn water into [the pan] and boil it again ten or 20 times to bubbling. Remove it, dry it in the sun and it is ready to be used. [Li] Shizhen: Nowadays, the people only calcine it until it has turned red. They dip it into vinegar, three or seven times. They grind it [to a powder] and process it with aqueous sublimation. Then it is ready to be used. Availing oneself of its ability to check other [substances], it is used together with them to affect the blood section of the liver conduits. The Xiang gan zhi states: “Boil hematite in wine and vinegar. Insert an iron nail into it, and stir it up to generate a juice.” 【氣味】苦寒,無毒。【别録曰】甘。【權曰】甘,平。【之才曰】畏天 雄、附子。乾薑爲之使。 Qi and Flavor. Bitter, cold, nonpoisonous. Bie lu: Sweet. [Zhen] Quan: Sweet, balanced. [Xu] Zhicai: [Ingested together,] it fears aconitum [root tuber] and aconitum [accessory tuber]. Dried ginger serves as its guiding substance. 【主治】鬼疰賊風蠱毒,殺精物惡鬼,腹中毒邪氣,女子赤沃漏下。本 經。帶下百病,産難胞不出,墮胎,養血氣,除五臟血脉中熱,血痺血 瘀,大人小兒驚氣入腹,及陰痿不起。别録。安胎建脾,止反胃吐血鼻 衄,月經不止,腸風痔瘻,瀉痢脱精,遺溺夜多,小兒驚癇疳疾,金瘡長 肉,辟鬼魅。大明。 Control. Demon attachment illness,603 robber wind,604 gu poison.605 It kills essence beings and malign demons, as well as abdominal poison and evil qi. Profuse leakage of red liquid of women. Ben jing. The hundreds of diseases below the belt. Difficult delivery and failure to release the placenta. It causes abortion. It nourishes blood and qi. It eliminates heat from within the five long-term depots and blood vessels, blood blockage and stagnant blood. Fright qi of adults and children that have entered the abdomen. Failure of the yin [(i. e., genital) member] to rise. Bie lu. 603 Zhu 疰, also zhu 注, “attachment-illness,” “influx-illnesss,” reflects a notion of a foreign pathogenic agent, originally of demonic nature, having attached itself to the human organism. BCGM Dict I, 688-695. 604 Zei feng 賊風, “robber wind.” Various pathological conditions caused by qi that has invaded the human organism from outside. BCGM Dict I 667. 605 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191.

614

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

It pacifies the embryo and strengthens the spleen. It ends vomiting of blood and nosebleed associated with a turned over stomach, unending menstruation, intestinal wind and piles fistula, outflow with free-flux illness606 and [uncontrolled] loss of essence/sperm. Frequent loss of urine during the night. Fright epilepsy and gan-illness607 of children. [It serves to cure] wounds caused by metal objects/weapons and stimulates the growth of flesh. It keeps away demons and goblins. Da Ming. 【發明】【好古曰】代赭入手少陰、足厥陰經。怯則氣浮,重所以鎮之。 代赭之重,以鎮虚逆。故張仲景治傷寒汗吐下後心下痞鞕,噫氣不除者, 旋覆代赭湯主之。用旋覆花三兩,代赭石一兩,人參二兩,生薑五兩,甘 草三兩,半夏半斤,大棗十二枚。水一斗,煮六升,去滓,再煎三升,温 服一升,日三服。【時珍曰】代赭乃肝與包絡二經血分藥也,故所主治皆 二經血分之病。昔有小兒瀉後眼上,三日不乳,目黄如金,氣將絶。有名 醫曰:此慢肝驚風也,宜治肝。用水飛代赭石末,每服半錢,冬瓜仁煎湯 調下,果愈。 Explication. [Wang] Haogu: Hematite enters the hand minor yin and foot ceasing yin conduits. In the case of timidity one’s qi float and they are to be pressed down with something of heavy weight. The weight of hematite serves to press down [qi] countermovement associated with a state of depletion. Hence Zhang Zhongjing resorted to the “decoction with inula japonica flower and hematite” to control a condition when following a cure of harm caused by cold by means of sweating, vomiting and discharge a lump developed below the heart, and [patients suffered from] unending belching. He [recommended to] use [the following substances]. Three liang of inula japonica flower, one liang of hematite, two liang of ginseng [root], five liang of fresh ginger, three liang of glycyrrhiza [root], half a jin of pinellia [root] and twelve large dates. [These substances] are to be boiled in one dou of water down to six sheng. Remove the dregs and boil [the liquid] down to three sheng. [Let the patient] ingest one sheng. To be ingested three times a day. [Li] Shizhen: Hematite is a medication associated with the two conduits of the liver and the [heart] enclosing network. Hence the diseases it controls are all those of the blood section of these two conduits. Once there was a child that following an outflow had its eyes turned upward. For three days it did not suck its nursing mother’s milk, and its eyes assumed a yellow color like gold. Eventually its [flow of ] qi was about to be cut off.

606 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 607 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188.

Chapter 10

615

A famous physician said: This is a case of a slow liver fright wind. 608 A cure must be focused on the liver. He [had the child] each time ingest a dose of half a quian of hematite powder, processed with aqueous sublimation, and sent down with a decoction of winter melon kernels. As a result, a cure was achieved.

【附方】舊二,新一十四。 Added Recipes. Two of old. 14 newly [recorded]. 哮呷有聲,卧睡不得。土朱末,米醋調,時時進一二服。普濟方。 Heavy and noisy breathing, with an inability to lie down and sleep. Mix hematite powder with rice vinegar and have [the patient] ingest it once or twice whenever a need arises. Pu ji fang. 傷寒無汗。代赭石、乾薑等分爲末,熱醋調塗兩手心,合掌握定,夾于大 腿内側,温覆汗出乃愈。傷寒藴要。 Harm caused by cold without sweating. [Grind] equal amounts of hematite and dried ginger to a powder, mix it with hot vinegar and apply it to the [patient’s] palms of both hands. [Let him] lay his hands firmly together and place them between the inner sides of his thighs. Cover [the patient] warmly. Once he sweats a healing is achieved. Shang han yun yao. 嬰兒瘧疾,無計可施。代赭石五枚煅紅醋淬,朱砂五分,砒霜一豆大,同 以紙包七重,打濕煨乾,入麝香少許爲末。香油調一字,塗鼻尖上及眉 心、四肢,神應。保幼大全。 Malaria illness of children, with all attempts [at curing it] having remained unsuccessful. Wrap together in seven layers of paper five pieces of hematite, calcined until they have turned red and dipped into vinegar, five fen of cinnabar and as much arsenic as equals the size of a bean. Pound this to remove the moisture and bake it over a small fire. Then add a little musk and [grind it to a] powder. Mix it with one zi of sesame oil and apply it to the tip of the nose, the eyebrows and the four limbs. Divine reactions. Bao you da quan. 急慢驚風。弔眼撮口,搐搦不定。代赭石火燒醋淬十次,細研水飛,日 乾,每服一錢,或半錢,煎真金湯調下,連進三服。兒脚脛上有赤斑,即 是驚氣已出,病當安也。無斑點者不可治。直指方。

608 Jing feng 驚風, “fright wind,” a condition of children characterised by jerking and arched back rigidity, eyeballs turned upward, and twitching hands and legs.BCGM Dict I, 261, also 238, 240.

616

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Acute and chronic fright wind,609 with hauled eyes, pursed mouth and convulsions that cannot be stabilized. Heat hematite over a fire and dip it into vinegar ten times. Then grind it to a fine [powder], process it with aqueous sublimation and dry it in the sun. Each time [let the patient] ingest one qian, or half a qian, to be sent down mixed with a genuine gold decoction. To be ingested three times in a row. As soon as red macules develop on the legs and shins of the child, the fright qi are released and the disease is pacified. If no such macule dots appear, the disease is incurable. Zhi zhi fang. 慢肝驚風。方見發明。 Chronic liver fright wind. For a recipe, see “Explication.” 小腸疝氣。代赭石火煅醋淬,爲末,每白湯服二錢。壽域方。 Small intestinal elevation qi.610 [Grind] hematite, calcined over fire and dipped into vinegar, to a powder and each time ingest, with clear, boiled water, two qian. Shou yu fang. 腸風下血。血師一兩,火煅,米醋淬,盡醋一升,搗羅如麪,每服一錢, 白湯下。斗門。 Blood discharge associated with intestinal wind. Calcine one liang of hematite over fire and dip it into rice vinegar, [and repeat this] until one sheng of vinegar is used up. Then pound it through a sieve to achieve [a powder as fine as] flour. Each time ingest one qian, to be sent down with clear, boiled water. Dou men. 吐血衄血。方同。 Vomiting of blood and nosebleed. Recipe identical [with the one above]. 墮胎下血不止。代赭石末一錢,生地黄汁半盞調,日三五次,以瘥爲度。 聖濟録。 Unending bleeding following an artificial or spontaneous abortion. Mix one qian of hematite powder with half a cup of fresh Chinese foxglove [rhizome] juice, and [let the patient ingest this] three to five times a day until a healing is achieved. Sheng ji lu.

609 Jing feng 驚風, “fright wind,” a condition of children characterised by jerking and arched back rigidity, eyeballs turned upward, and twitching hands and legs.BCGM Dict I, 261, also 238, 240. 610 Shan 疝, “elevation-illness,” and shan qi 疝氣, “elevation illness-qi.” A notion of a foreign item that has entered the scrotum, causes pain and may ascend and descend. BCGM Dict I, 419.

Chapter 10

617

婦人血崩。赭石火煅醋淬七次,爲末,白湯服二錢。普濟方。 Blood collapse611 of woman. [Grind] hematite, calcined over a fire and dipped into vinegar seven times, to a powder and [let the patient] ingest with clear, boiled water two qian. Pu ji fang. 赤眼腫閉。土朱二分,石膏一分,爲末,新汲水調傅眼頭尾及太陽穴。直 指方。 Red eyes, closed by a swelling. [Grind] two fen of hematite and one fen of gypsum to a powder and apply it, mixed with newly drawn water, to head and tail (i. e., the two corners) of the eyes, as well as the tai yang [acupuncture needle insertion] holes [on both sides of the head]. Zhi zhi fang. 喉痺腫痛。紫朱煮汁飲。普濟方。 Throat closure with a painful swelling. Boil hematite [in water] and [let the patient] drink the juice. Pu ji fang. 牙宣有𧏾。土朱、荆芥同研,揩之三日。普濟方。 Tooth exposure with hidden worms. Grind hematite and schizonepeta [spikes] together [to a powder] and apply this [to the affected teeth] for three days. Pu ji fang. 諸丹熱毒。土朱、青黛各二錢,滑石、荆芥各一錢,爲末,每服一錢半, 蜜水調下,仍外傅之。直指方。 All types of cinnabar poison612 with heat. [Grind] two qian each of hematite and indigo and one qian each of talc and schizonepeta [spikes] to a powder and each time ingest one and a half qian, to be sent down mixed with honey water. In addition apply this externally. Zhi zhi fang. 一切瘡癤。土朱、虢丹、牛皮膠等分,爲末,好酒一盌冲之,澄清服,以 渣傅之,乾再上。朱氏集驗方。 All types of sores with pimples. [Grind] equal amounts of hematite, lead oxide and ox hide glue to a powder. Pour one cup of good wine over it, wait for the dregs to settle and ingest the clear liquid. Apply the dregs to the [affected region]. Once they have dried, apply them again. Zhi shi, Ji yan fang. 百合病發,已汗下復發者。百合七個擘破,泉水浸一宿,赭一兩,滑石三 兩,泉水二鍾,煎一鍾,入百合汁,再煎,一鍾温服。傷寒藴要。

611 Xue beng 血崩, “blood collapse,” is excessive vaginal bleeding. BCGM Dict I, 594. 612 Dan du 丹毒, “cinnabar poison,” a skin ailment with red rashes. BCGM Dict I, 118

618

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Outbreaks of the disease of the one hundred convergences613, recurring after [a therapy of ] sweating and discharge [has remained without success]. Break open seven lily bulbs and let them soak in spring water for one night. Boil one liang of hematite and three liang of talc in two cups of spring water down to one cup. Add the lily bulb juice and boil it again. Ingest one zhong warm. Shang han yun yao.

【附録】 Appendix 玄黄石。 Xuan huang shi. Dark-yellow stone/mineral. Hematite. Iron oxide. 【藏器曰】出淄川、北海山谷土石中,如赤土、代赭之類,土人以當朱, 呼爲赤石,一名零陵,恐是代赭之類。味甘,平、温,無毒。主驚恐,身 熱邪氣,鎮心。久服令人眼明悦澤。【時珍曰】此亦他方代赭耳,故其功 效不甚相遠也。 [Chen] Cangqi: It originates in the soil and rocks in the mountain valleys of Zi chuan and Bei hai. It resembles red soil (07-03) and is a type of hematite. The local people consider it to be cinnabar and the call it chi shi 赤石, “red stone/mineral.” An alternative name is ling ling 零陵, “odd mount.” Presumably, this is a type of hematite. Its flavor is sweet. It is balanced, warm and nonpoisonous. It controls fright and fear, and body heat with evil qi. It calms the heart. Ingested over a long time, it clears the eyes and lets [one’s face] appear happy and glossy. [Li] Shizhen: This is something used elsewhere instead of hematite. Hence its [therapeutic] potential is not very different [from that of hematite]. 10-05 禹餘粮本經上品 Yu yu liang, FE Ben jing, upper rank. Leftover provisions of Yu. Limonite. Hydrated ferric oxide. 【釋名】白餘粮。【時珍曰】石中有細粉如麪,故曰餘粮,俗呼爲太一禹 餘粮。見太一下。【承曰】會稽山中出者甚多。彼人云昔大禹會稽于此, 餘粮者本爲此爾。 Explanation of Names. Bai yu liang 白餘粮, “white leftover provisions.” [Li] Shizhen: This is a fine powder within stones/minerals resembling flour. Hence it 613 Bai he bing 百合病, “disease of a hundred convergences.” A condition of a mental disease that may appear in many different combinations of symptoms. BCGM Dict I, 46.

Chapter 10

619

is called “leftover provision.” It is commonly called the “Great Unity’s and Yu’s leftover provisions,” Tai yi Yu yu liang 太一禹餘粮. See under “Tai yi 太一.” [Chen] Cheng: Very much of it originates in Mount Hui ji. The local people say that in ancient times the Great Yu gave a banquet there and that the leftover provisions form the basis of this [stone/mineral]. 【集解】【别録曰】禹餘粮生東海池澤,及山島中或池澤中。【弘景曰】 今多出東陽,形如鵝鴨卵,外有殻重叠,中有黄細末如蒲黄,無沙者佳。 近年茅山鑿地大得之,極精好,狀如牛黄,重重甲錯。其佳處乃紫色靡靡 如麪,嚼之無復磣,仙經服食用之。南人又呼平澤中一種藤,葉如菝葜, 根作塊有節,似菝葜而色赤,根形似薯蕷,謂爲禹餘粮,此與生池澤者復 有仿佛。或疑今石即是太一也。【頌曰】今惟澤州、潞州有之。舊説形如 鵝鴨卵,外有殻。今圖上者全是山石之形,都不作卵狀,與舊説小異。采 無時。張華博物志言:扶海洲上有蒒草,其實食之如大麥,名自然穀,亦 名禹餘粮,世傅禹治水棄其所餘食于江中而爲藥。則蒒草與此異物同名, 抑與生池澤者同種乎?【時珍曰】禹餘糧乃石中黄粉,生于池澤;其生山 谷者,爲太一餘粮。本文明白。陶引藤生禹餘粮,蘇引草生禹餘粮,雖名 同而實不同,殊爲迂遠。詳太一餘糧下。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Yu’s Limonite grows in the ponds and marshlands of Dong hai, and also in some ponds and marshlands on islands. [Tao] Hongjing: Nowadays, [limonite] mostly originates in Dong yang. It is shaped like goose or duck eggs. On the outside it has a shell of several layers. Inside it has a fine, yellow powder, resembling cattail pollen. If it does not include sand, it is fine. In recent years large quantities of an extremely fine quality are obtained from mines on Mount Mao shan. It is shaped like cow-bezoar, with several layers of interlocking shells. Its best part is the [powder] of purple color that can be blown away like flour. When it is chewed, it does not cause a gritty sensation. The classics of hermits/immortals [recommend it to] be used for ingestion as food. The people in the South call a type of vine [“Yu’s leftover provisions”]. It has leaves resembling those of smilax [root]. Its roots are lumps with nodular intersections, resembling those of smilax [root], but of red color. The physical appearance of its roots is like that of dioscorea root. They call it “Yu’s leftover provisions.” It is very similar to [the limonite] growing in ponds and marshlands. Some wonder whether it is today’s “Great Unity’s [leftover provisions].” [Su] Song: Nowadays, [limonite] occurs only in Ze zhou and Lu zhou. In ancient descriptions its physical appearance is compared with that of goose and duck eggs, with an external shell. Nowadays it is depicted in illustrations always with the physical appearance of a stone/mineral, never shaped like eggs. That is a small difference to older descriptions. It is collected anytime. Zhang

620

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Hua in his Bo wu zhi says: “In Fu hai zhou carex sedge is found. When its fruits are eaten, they [taste] like barley. It is called ‘natural grain’. It is also named ‘Yu’s leftover provisions’.” Legend has it that when Yu regulated the waters he discarded his leftover provisions into the river where they became a medication. That is, carex sedge and [limonite] are different items with the same name. Or maybe it is the same variety as that growing in ponds and marshlands? [Li] Shizhen: Limonite/ Yu’s leftover provisions is a yellow powder found inside stones/minerals. It grows in ponds and marshlands. That which grows in mountain valleys is “Great Unity’s leftover provisions.” The original text is clear about this. Tao [Hongjing] referred to “Yu’s leftover provisions” growing as a vine. Su [Song] referred to “Yu’s leftover provisions” growing as an herb. The names may be identical, but the items are not. They are very different! For details, see under “leftover provisions of Great Unity.” 【修治】【弘景曰】凡用,細研水洮,取汁澄之,勿令有沙土也。【斅 曰】見太一下。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Tao] Hongjing: For all applications, clean it with water. Wait for the dregs to settle and take the [clear] juice. It must not [be polluted] with sand or soil. [Lei] Xiao: See under “Tai yi 太一.” 【氣味】甘,寒,無毒。【别録曰】平。【權曰】鹹。【之才曰】牡丹爲 之使。伏五金,制三黄。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, cold, nonpoisonous. Bie lu: Balanced. [Zhen] Quan: Salty. [Xu] Zhicai: Paeonia root bark serves as its guiding substance. It subdues the five types of metal, and controls the three [substances realgar, orpiment and sulphur bearing in their name the character] “yellow.”614 【主治】欬逆,寒熱煩滿,下赤白,血閉癥瘕,大熱。鍊餌服之,不飢輕 身延年。本經。療小腹痛結煩疼。别録。主崩中。甄權。治邪氣及骨節 疼,四肢不仁,痔瘻等疾。久服耐寒暑。大明。催生,固大腸。時珍。 Control. Cough with [qi] counterflow. Alternating cold and heat sensations, with unrest and a feeling of fullness. Red and white discharge. Blood closure with concretion-illness and conglomeration-illness. Ingested refined with heat, it prevents hunger, relieves the body of its weight and extends the years [of life]. Ben jing. It serves to heal pain in the lower abdomen, and pain with unrest caused by bound

614 The three substances with the character “yellow” in their names, san huang 三黃, include sulphur, liu huang 硫黃, realgar, xiong huang 雄黃, and orpiment, ci huang 雌黃.

Chapter 10

621

qi.615 Bie lu. It controls a collapsing center.616 Zhen Quan. It serves to cure evil qi and painful bones and joints, numbness in the four limbs and illnesses such as piles fistula. Ingested over a long time, it lets one endure cold and summerheat. Da Ming. It speeds up the birth and stabilizes the large intestine. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【成無己曰】重可去怯,禹餘粮之重,爲鎮固之劑。【時珍曰】 禹餘粮手足陽明血分重劑也。其性濇,故主下焦前後諸病。李知先詩曰: 下焦有病人難會,須用餘粮、赤石脂。抱朴子云:禹餘粮丸日再服,三日 後令人多氣力,負擔遠行,身輕不極。其方藥多不録。 Explication. Cheng Wuyi: [Substances of ] heavy weight serve to eliminate timidity. Because of its weight limonite is a preparation that serves to press down and stabilize. [Li] Shizhen: Limonite is a heavy preparation associated with the blood section of the hand and foot yang brilliance [conduits]. By its nature it is astringent. Hence it controls all types of diseases in front and behind the Lower Burner. Li Zhixian in a poem states: “Diseases in the Lower Burner are difficult to come by for humans. One must make use of limonite and red halloysite.” The Baopu zi states: “To ingest [one] pill with limonite twice every day will increase the strength of qi within three days. When [someone who has ingested these pills] takes a load and walks a long distance, his body will not feel its weight and he will not be exhausted.” This recipe is rarely recorded [in recipe literature].

【附方】舊三,新六。 Added Recipes. Three of old. Six newly [recorded]. 大腸欬嗽,欬則遺矢者。赤石脂禹餘粮湯主之。方同下。潔古家珍。 Cough associated with the large intestine. When [the patient] coughs he will defecate at the same time. This is controlled by a decoction of red halloysite and limonite. For an identical recipe, see below. Jie gu jia zhen. 冷勞腸泄不止。神效太一丹:禹餘粮四兩,火煅醋淬,烏頭一兩,冷水浸 一夜,去皮臍焙,爲末,醋糊丸梧子大,每食前温水下五丸。聖惠方。 Unending intestinal outflow associated with cold and exhaustion. “Divinely effective elixir of Great Unity.” [Grind] four liang of limonite, calcined over a fire and dipped into vinegar, and one liang of aconitum [root tuber], soaked in cold water for one night, with peel and umbilicus removed, and baked over a slow fire, to a powder. 615 Jie qi 結氣, “bound qi,” refers to pathological qi halting and congealing at any place in the human body. BCGM Dict I, 240. 616 Beng zhong 崩中, “collapsing center,” excessive vaginal bleeding outside of a menstruation period. BCGM Dict I, 58.

622

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Form with a vinegar paste pills the size of wu seeds. Each time send down before meals with warm water five pills. Sheng hui fang. 傷寒下痢不止,心下痞鞕,利在下焦者。赤石脂禹餘粮湯主之。赤石脂、 禹餘粮各一斤,並碎之,水六升,煮取二升,去滓,分再服。仲景傷寒論 要。 Unending discharge with free-flux illness617 associated with harm caused by cold, with a hardening below the heart and the free flow situated in the Lower Burner. This is controlled by a decoction of red halloysite and limonite. Break one jin each of red halloysite and limonite to pieces and boil them in six sheng of water down to two sheng. Discard the dregs and ingest [the liquid] divided into two portions. [Zhang] Zhongjing, Shang han lun yao. 赤白帶下。禹餘粮火煅醋淬,乾薑等分,赤下乾薑减半,爲末,空心服二 錢匕。勝金方。 Red and white discharge from below the belt. [Grind] equal amounts of limonite, calcined over a fire and dipped into vinegar, and dried ginger – in the case of [only] red discharge reduce the dried ginger to one half – to a powder and [let the patient] ingest on an empty stomach the amount held by a two qian spoon. Sheng jin fang. 崩中漏下,青黄赤白,使人無子。禹餘粮煅研,赤石脂煅研,牡蠣煅研, 烏賊骨,伏龍肝炒,桂心,等分爲末,温酒服方寸匕,日二服。忌葱、 蒜。張文仲備急方。 Collapsing center618 with leaking discharge, colored greenish, yellow, red or white, letting one have no children. [Grind] equal amounts of limonite, calcined and ground, halloysite, calcined and ground, oyster shells, calcined and ground, sepia bones, soil from a furnace, fried, and shaved cinnamom bark to a powder and [let the patient] ingest with warm wine the amount held by a square cun spoon. To be ingested twice a day. [During this treatment] onions and garlic are forbidden. Zhang Wenzhong, Bei ji fang. 育腸氣痛,婦人少腹痛。禹餘粮爲末,每米飲服二錢,日二服,極效。衞 生易簡方。 Painful birth intestine qi, painful lower abdomen of women. [Grind] limonite to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest with a rice beverage two qian. To be ingested twice a day. Extremely effective. Wei sheng yi jian fang. 617 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 618 Beng zhong 崩中, “collapsing center,” excessive vaginal bleeding outside of a menstruation period. BCGM Dict I, 58.

Chapter 10

623

産後煩躁。禹餘粮一枚,狀如酸餡者,入地埋一半緊築,炭灰一斤煅之。 濕土罨一宿,打破,去外面石,取裏面細者研,水淘五七度,日乾,再研 萬遍。用甘草湯服二錢,一服立效。經驗方。 Unrest and restlessness following delivery. Bury one half of a piece of limonite, shaped like a sour steamed stuffed bun, in the ground [with the second half remaining above the ground] and batter it firmly. Then calcine it with one jin of charcoal. Cover it with moist soil for one night and then break it open. Remove the stone[like layer] from the outside and take the fine [powder-like] substance that is inside. Grind it and wash it in a pan five to seven times. Then dry it in the sun, and grind it again 10 000 times. [Let the patient] ingest with a glycyrrhiza [root] decoction two qian. One ingestion will show an immediate effect. Jing yan fang. 身面瘢痕。禹餘粮、半夏等分,爲末,雞子黄和傅。先以布拭赤,勿見 風,日三。十日,十年者亦滅。聖濟録。 Scars on the body and the face. [Grind] equal amounts of limonite and pinellia [root] to a powder. Mix it with egg yolk and apply this to [the scars]. Before this, rub [the scars] with a cloth until they turn red. They must not be exposed to wind. Three [applications] a day. [Scars] of ten days and ten years alike will be removed. Sheng ji lu. 大風癘疾,眉髮墮落,遍身頑痺。禹餘粮二斤,白礬一斤,青鹽一斤,爲 末。罐子固濟,炭火一秤煅之,從辰至戌。候冷研粉,埋土中三日取出。 每一兩,入九蒸九暴炒熟胡麻末三兩。每服二錢,荆芥茶下,日二服。聖 惠方。 Massive wind619 epidemic illness, with loss of eyebrows and hair, and the entire body being affected by numbness. [Grind] two jin of limonite, one jin of alum and one jin of greenish salt to a powder. Give it into a pottery jar, close it firmly and calcine it with one cheng of charcoal for 24 hours. Wait until it has cooled down and grind it to a powder. Then bury it in soil for three days and remove it again. For each application use one liang and add three liang of sesame powder that has been steamed nine times and violently fried nine times until done. Each time [let the patient] ingest two qian, to be sent down with schizonepeta tea. To be ingested twice a day. Sheng hui fang.

619 Da feng 大風, “massive wind,” may refer to sores caused by a massive intrusion of wind evil and also to conditions of leprosy. BCGM Dict I, 111.

624

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

10-06 太一餘粮本經上品 Tai yi yu liang, FE Ben jing, upper rank. Leftover provisions of Great Unity. Tai yi’s leftover provisions. Brown hematite. Ferric oxide. 【釋名】石腦、本經。禹哀。吴普。【藏器曰】太一者,道之宗源。太者 大也,一者道也。大道之師,即理化神君,禹之師也。師嘗服之,故有太 一之名。張司空云:還魂石中黄子,鬼物禽獸守之,不可妄得。會稽有地 名蓼,出餘粮。土人掘之,以物請買,所請有數,依數必得。此猶有神, 豈非太一乎? Explanation of Names. Shi nao 石腦, “stone brain,” Ben jing. Yu ai 禹哀, “Yu’s grief,” Wu Pu. [Chen] Cangqi: Tai yi 太一, the Great Unity, is the revered origin of the Dao. Tai 太 means da 大‚ “great,” yi 一, “one,” is the Dao. The teacher of the great Dao was the Divine Lord, the [master of ] transformation. The Divine Lord was the teacher of Yu. The teacher regularly ingested the leftover provisions of Great Unity. Thus the designation [tai yi yu liang includes the expression] “Great Unity.” Zhang si kong states: “The yellow seeds in the stone that let the hun-soul return are guarded by demons, fowl and animals. It is impossible to acquire them easily. In Kuai ji a place is called Liao, and ‘leftover provisions’ originates in there. The local people unearth it and offer to sell it as a commodity. There are numerous requests, and as numerous as they are, they must be met. So, there seems to be a spirit involved. Could this not be Tai yi?” 【集解】【别録曰】太一餘粮生太山山谷,九月采。【普曰】生太山。上 有甲,甲中有白,白中有黄,如雞子黄色。采無時。【弘景曰】本草有太 一餘粮、禹餘粮兩種,治體相同。而今世惟有禹餘粮,不復識太一。登真 隱訣:長生四鎮丸云,太一禹餘粮,定六府,鎮五臟。合其二名,莫辨何 者的是?今人亦總呼爲太一禹餘粮。有人于銅官采空青于石坎,大得黄 赤色石,極似今之餘粮,而色過赤好,疑此是太一也。彼人呼爲雌黄,塗 物正如雄色。【恭曰】太一餘粮及禹餘粮,乃一物而以精粗爲名爾。其殻 若瓷,方圓不定。初在殻中未凝結,猶是黄水,名石中黄子。久凝乃有數 色,或青或白,或赤或黄。年多變赤,因赤漸紫。紫及赤者,俱名太一。 其諸色通謂禹餘粮。今太山不見采得,而會稽、王屋、澤、潞州諸山皆 有。陶云黄赤色,疑是太一。然無殻裹,殊非的稱。【斅曰】凡使,勿誤 用石中黄并卵石黄,二石真相似。其石中黄向裏赤黑黄,味淡微跙。卵石 黄味酸。箇箇如卵,内有子一塊,不堪用。若誤餌之,令人腸乾。太一餘 粮看即如石,輕敲便碎如粉,兼重重如葉子雌黄也。【宗奭曰】太一餘 粮,是用其殻也,故入藥須火燒醋淬。石中黄是殻中乾者及細末者。石 中黄水,是未成餘粮黄濁水也。【時珍曰】按别録言,禹餘粮生東海池澤

Chapter 10

625

及山島,太一餘粮生太山山谷,石中黄出餘粮處有之,乃殻中未成餘粮黄 濁水也。據此則三者一物也。生于池澤者爲禹餘粮,生于山谷者爲太一餘 粮,其中水黄濁者爲石中黄水,其凝結如粉者爲餘粮,凝乾如石者爲石中 黄。其説本明,而注者臆度,反致義晦。晉 宋以來,不分山谷、池澤所 産,故通呼爲太一禹餘粮。而蘇恭復以紫赤色者爲太一,諸色爲禹餘粮。 皆由未加詳究本文也。寇宗奭及醫方乃用石殻爲禹餘粮,殊不察未成餘粮 黄濁水之文也。其殻粗頑不入藥。庚辛玉册云:太一禹餘粮,陰石也,所 在有之。片片層叠,深紫色。中有黄土,名曰石黄。其性最熱,冬月有餘 粮處,其雪先消。雲林石譜云:鼎州 祈閣山出石,石中有黄土,目之爲太 一餘粮。色紫黑,礧塊大小圓扁,外多粘綴碎石,滌去黄土,即空虚可貯 水爲硯滴。丹方鑑源云:五色餘粮及石中黄,皆可乾汞,出金色。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: The “leftover provision of Great Unity” grows in the mountain valleys of Mount Tai shan. It is collected in the ninth month. [Wu] Pu: It grows on Mount Tai shan. On top it has a shell. Inside of this shell it is white. Inside of the white part it is as yellow as the color of egg yolk. It is collected anytime. [Tao] Hongjing: The Ben cao lists two kinds, “leftover provisions of Great Unity,” and “leftover provisions of Yu.” Their therapeutic [potential] and physical body are identical. Still, nowadays only the “leftover provisions of Yu” are available; the “[leftover provisions of ] Great Unity” are no longer known. Deng zhen yin jue: The [prescription of the] “pills extending life by a fourfold calming down” states: “‘Leftover provisions of Great Unity and Yu’ stabilize the six short-term repositories and calm down the five long-term depots.” As [this statement] combines the two names [of Yu and Great Unity] it is impossible to distinguish which is which. Nowadays the people, too, summarily speak of “leftover provisions of Great Unity and Yu.” There was a man who collected malachite from a stone/mineral pit in Tong guan. He obtained a large amount of stones/minerals of yellow-red color, very much like today’s “leftover provisions,” but the color was of an even better red. These may have been “[leftover provisions of ] Great Unity.” The people there call it “female yellow,” (orpiment). When it is applied [as paint] on items, it assumes the true color of “male [yellow]” (realgar). [Su] Gong: “Leftover provisions of Great Unity” and “leftover provisions of Yu” are one identical item, with their [different] names reflecting their [different degrees of ] being coarse or fine. Their shell is like porcelain. They may be formed as square or round [pieces]. In the beginning, the contents of the shell have not coagulated to a bound substance yet; they are like yellow water. It is called “yellow seeds in a stone/mineral.” In the course of a long time [the yellow water] coagulates and assumes various colors. It may be greenish or white, red or yellow. After many years [the color] changes to red, and from red it gradually changes to purple. Both the purple and the red [kinds] are called “[leftover provisions of ] Great Unity.”

626

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

The [kinds of ] all the other colors are called “leftover provisions of Yu.” Nowadays, it is no longer seen obtained from Mount Tai shan, whereas it is still found in all the mountains of Kuai ji, Wang wu, Ze and Lu zhou. Tao [Hongjing] states that the color is yellow-red. Presumably he referred to “[leftover provisions of ] Great Unity.” But he does not mention an outer shell and so his statement is quite wrong. [Lei] Xiao: For all applications, one must not erroneously use shi zhong huang, “the yellow in a stone/mineral,” (10-07) and luan shi huang, “the yellow in an egg.” These two stones/minerals are very similar [to “leftover provisions of Great Unity].” Shi zhong huang toward its interior is red, black and yellow. Its flavor is bland and weak. The flavor of luan shi huang is sour, and each piece resembles an egg. Inside it has a seed-like piece and it is not to be used [for therapeutic purposes]. It if is erroneously ingested, it causes dryness in that person’s intestines. The “leftover provisions of Great Unity” looks like stones/minerals. It is of light weight, and when struck it easily disperses like a powder. It resembles orpiment consisting of many leaf-like layers. [Kou] Zongshi: Of the “leftover provisions of Great Unity,” the shells are used. Hence, when it is to be added to medication, it must be heated over a fire and dipped into vinegar. Shi zhong huang is the dry and fine powder inside the shells of stones/minerals. The yellow water inside of stones/minerals is a yellow, turbid water that has not yet become “leftover provisions.” [Li] Shizhen: According to the Bie lu, the “‘leftover provisions of Yu’ grows in the ponds and marshlands and on the islands of Dong hai. The ‘leftover provisions of Great Unity’ grows in the mountain valleys of Mount Tai shan. Shi zhong huang originates in the locations of ‘leftover provisions [of Yu and Great Unity]’. It is the yellow, turbid water inside of the shells that has not yet formed “‘leftover provisions’.” That is, all three are one and the same item. Those growing in ponds and marshlands are the “leftover provisions of Yu.” Those growing in mountain valleys are the “leftover provisions of Great Unity.” The water inside of them is the “yellow water inside of stones/minerals.” When it has coagulated and bound to form something like a powder, it is “leftover provisions.” If it has coagulated and dried to form something like a stone/mineral, it is shi zhong huang, “the yellow inside stones/minerals.” The original statements are quite clear, but later commentators have added their own views and contrary to [what they intended] the meaning was obscured. Ever since the Jin and Song [dynasties], no difference was made between [“leftover provisions”] brought forth in mountain valleys and in ponds and marshlands. Hence they were all alike called “leftover provisions of Great Unity and Yu.” Then Su Gong identified [“leftover provisions”] of purple color as “[leftover provisions of ] Great Unity,” and those of all other colors as “leftover provisions of Yu.” All of this came up because the original text was not studied carefully. Kou Zongshi and medical recipes [recommend to] use the shells of [these]

Chapter 10

627

stones/minerals as “leftover provisions of Yu.” They certainly have failed to consult the text on the yellow, turbid water that has not formed “leftover provisions” yet. These shells are coarse and tough and are not added to medication. The Geng xin yu ce states: “The ‘leftover provisions of Great Unity and Yu’ is a yin stone/mineral. It can be found everywhere. It consists of several layers, one upon the other, and is of a deep purple color. Inside it has a yellow soil that is called shi huang 石黄, ‘stone yellow’. By its nature it is very hot. In winter, locations of ‘leftover provisions’ are the first where the snow melts.” The Yun lin shi pu states: “In Ding zhou, a stone/mineral originates in Mount Qi ge shan, and inside of this stone/mineral is a yellow soil. It is regarded to be ‘leftover provisions of Great Unity’. It is of purple-black color, and consists of pearl-like pieces, some big, some small, some round, some flat. On its outside many crushed stones are stuck. When the yellow soil [inside of it] is washed off, it is hollow, may be filled with water and serves as a small container for adding water to an inkstone.” The Dan fang jian yuan states: “Both ‘leftover provisions’ in five colors and shi zhong huang 石中黄 can be used to dry mercury and to release the color of gold [on other items].” 【修治】【斅曰】凡修事,用黑豆五合,黄精五合,水二斗,煮取五升。 置瓷鍋中,下餘粮四兩煮之。旋添,汁盡爲度,其藥氣自然香如新米,搗 了,又研一萬杵,方用。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Lei] Xiao: For all preparations, boil five ge of black soybean seeds and five ge of polygonatum [root] in two dou of water down to five sheng. Pour [the liquid] into a porcelain pot, add four liang of “leftover provisions” and boil this. [Initially, the liquid] is to be increased [in the porcelain pot] gradually. Continue until all the liquid has dried up. The fragrance of the qi of the medication is now reminiscent of new rice. Pound it, grind it again 10 000 times and it may be used [for therapeutic purposes]. 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。【普曰】神農、岐伯、雷公:甘,平。李當之: 小寒。扁鵲:甘,無毒。【之才曰】杜仲爲之使。畏貝母、菖蒲、鐵落。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. [Wu] Pu: Shen nong, Qi Bo, Lei gong: Sweet, balanced. Li Dangzhi: Slightly cold. Bian Que: Sweet, nonpoisonous. [Xu] Zhicai: Eucommia [bark] serves as its guiding substance. [Ingested together,] it fears fritillaria [root], acorus [root] and iron fragments. 【主治】欬逆上氣,癥瘕血閉漏下,除邪氣,肢節不利。久服耐寒暑不 飢,輕身飛行千里,神仙。本經。治大飽絶力身重。别録。益脾,安臟 氣。雷斅。定六腑,鎮五臟。弘景。

628

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Control. Cough with rising qi. Concretion-illness, conglomeration-illness, [menstrual] blood blockage, leaking discharge. It eliminates malign qi, and immobility of the joints of the limbs. Ingested over a long period of time, it lets one endure cold and summerheat and prevents hunger. It relieves the body of its weight, enables one to fly for 1000 li and lets one become a spirit-immortal. Ben jing. It stabilizes the six short-term repositories and calms down the five long-term depots. [Tao] Hongjing. 【發明】【時珍曰】禹餘粮、太一餘粮、石中黄水,性味功用皆同,但入 藥有精粗之等爾。故服食家以黄水爲上,太一次之,禹餘粮又次之。列仙 傳言巴戎 赤斧上華山,餌禹餘粮,即此。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: The nature, the flavor, the [therapeutic] potential and the usage of the “leftover provisions of Yu,” the “leftover provisions of Great Unity,” and the “yellow water in stones/minerals” are all identical. However, when they are added to medication, they are ranked according to their fine or coarse [substance matter]. Hence the experts of ingesting [elixirs] for food consider the “yellow water [in stones/minerals]” as the best, followed by “[leftover provisions of ] Great Unity,” that is followed again by “Yu’s leftover provisions.” When the Lie xian chuan says “Chifu of Ba rong climbed Mount Hua shan and consumed Yu’s leftover provisions,” then this refers to the [item discussed] here. 10-07 石中黄子唐本草 Shi zhong huang zi, FE Tang ben cao. Yellow seeds in stones/minerals. Conglomerate masses of ferric oxide. 【釋名】【宗奭曰】子當作水。既云黄濁水,焉得名子? Explanation of Names. [Kou] Zongshi: [The character] zi 子 should be shui 水, “water.” That is to say: “Yellow, turbid water [in stones/minerals].” How could anybody name this “seeds”, zi 子? 【集解】【恭曰】此禹餘粮殻中未成餘粮黄濁水也。出餘粮處有之。【頌 曰】今惟河中府 中條山谷出之。其石形如麪劑,紫黑色。石皮内黄色者, 謂之中黄。葛洪抱朴子云:石中黄子所在有之,沁水山尤多。在大石中, 其石常潤濕不燥。打其石有數十重,見之赤黄溶溶,如雞子之在殻中也。 即當未堅時飲之。不爾,便漸堅凝如石,不中服也。破一石中,多者有一 升,少者數合,可頓服之。【機曰】石中乾者及細末者,當名餘粮,不當 名石中黄。詳本文未成餘粮四字可見。【時珍曰】餘粮乃石中已凝細粉 也,石中黄則堅凝如石者也。石中黄水則未凝者也。故雷斅云,用餘粮勿 用石中黄,是矣。

Chapter 10

629

Collected Explanations. [Su] Gong: This is the yellow, turbid water inside the shells of “leftover provisions of Yu” that has not formed “leftover provisions” yet. It occurs at locations where “leftover provisions” originates in. [Su] Song: Nowadays it originates only in the valleys of Mount Zhong tiao shan in He nan fu. The physical appearance of this stone/mineral resembles a dough preparation; it is of a purple-black color. The yellow matter inside the outer skin of the stone/mineral is called “central yellow.” Ge Hong in his Baopu zi states: It occurs at locations of “yellow seeds in stones/minerals” and there is especially much of it in the mountains of Qin shui. It is present in large stones/minerals and these stones/minerals often appear moist, rather than dry. When these stones/minerals are broken open, several layers are found that appear as a red-yellow solution, similar to the contents inside the shells of chicken eggs. [The liquid] must be drunk before it gets hard. Otherwise it gradually hardens and coagulates to something like a stone that cannot be ingested. When a stone/mineral is broken open, there may be as much as one sheng [of liquid] inside of it, or at least several ge that may be drunk at once. [Wang] Ji: The dry contents in the stone/mineral and the fine powder, they ought to be called “leftover provisions.” They should not be called “yellow in the stones/minerals.” For details see the original text where the four characters “not have formed leftover provisions” appear. [Li] Shizhen: “Leftover provisions” is the fine powder in the stones/minerals that has coagulated. The “yellow in the stones/minerals” is a hard coagulation product similar to a stone. The “yellow water in the stones/minerals” is [the liquid] that has not yet coagulated. Hence Lei Xiao states: “Use leftover provisions, do not use the yellow in the stone/mineral.” That is correct. 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】久服輕身延年不老。唐本。 Control. Ingested over a long time it relieves the body of its weight, extends the years [of life] and prevents aging. Tang ben.

630

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

10-08 空青本經上品 Kong qing, FE Ben jing, upper rank. Hollow malachite. Malachite, a large, hollow variety. Basic copper carbonate. 【釋名】楊梅青。【時珍曰】空言質,青言色,楊梅言似也。 Explanation of Names. Yang mei qing 楊梅青, “red bayberry malachite.” [Li] Shizhen: Kong 空, “hollow,” refers to its substance matter. Qing 青, “greenish/malachite,” refers to its color. Yang mei 楊梅, “red bayberry,” refers to its similarity with [red bayberries]. 【集解】【别録曰】空青生益州山谷,及越嶲山有銅處。銅精熏則生空 青,其腹中空。三月中采,亦無時。能化銅鐵鉛錫作金。【弘景曰】越嶲 屬益州。益州諸郡無復有,恐久不采之故也。今出銅官者色最鮮深,出 始興者弗如。凉州 西平郡有空青山亦甚多。今空青但圓實如鐵珠無空腹 者,皆鑿土石中取之,而以合丹,成則化鉛爲金。諸石藥中,惟此最貴。 醫方乃稀用之,而多充畫色,殊爲可惜。【恭曰】出銅處兼有諸青,但空 青爲難得。今出蔚州、蘭州、宣州、梓州。宣州者最好,塊段細,時有腹 中空者。蔚州、蘭州者片塊大,色極深,無空腹者。陶氏所謂圓實如鐵珠 者,乃白青也。【大明曰】空青大者如鷄子,小者如相思子,其青厚如 荔枝殻,其内有漿,酸甜。【藏器曰】銅之精華,大者即空緑,次即空 青也。【頌曰】今饒、信州亦時有之,狀若楊梅,故名楊梅青。其腹中 空、破之有漿者,絶難得。【宗奭曰】真宗常詔取空青中有水者,久而方 得。其楊梅青,信州穴山而取,極難得,治翳極有功,中亦或有水者, 用與空青同,第有優劣爾。【時珍曰】張果玉洞要訣云:空青似楊梅, 受赤金之精,甲乙陰靈之氣,近泉而生,久而含潤。新從坎中出,鑽破中 有水,久即乾如珠,金星燦燦。庚辛玉册云:空青,陰石也。産上饒,似 鍾乳者佳,大片含紫色有光采。次出蜀 嚴道及北代山,生金坎中,生生 不已,故青爲之丹。有如拳大及卵形者,中空有水如油,治盲立效。出銅 坑者亦佳,堪畫。又有楊梅青、石青,皆是一體,而氣有精粗。點化以曾 青爲上,空青次之,楊梅青又次之。造化指南云:銅得紫陽之氣而生緑, 緑二百年而生石緑,銅始生其中焉。曾、空二青,則石緑之得道者,均謂 之鑛。又二百年得青陽之氣,化爲鍮石。觀此諸説,則空青有金坑、銅坑 二種,或大如拳、卵,小如豆粒,或成片塊,或若楊梅。雖有精粗之異, 皆以有漿爲上,不空無漿者爲下也。方家以藥塗銅物生青,刮下僞作空青 者,終是銅青,非石緑之得道者也。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Hollow malachite grows in the mountain valleys of Yi zhou, and also on Mount Yue xi shan where copper occurs. Hollow malachite is generated by steaming copper. It is hollow inside. It is collected in the third month,

Chapter 10

631

or at anytime. It can be used to transform copper, iron, lead and tin to gold. [Tao] Hongjing: Yue xi belongs to Yi zhou. It is no longer found in the prefectures of Yi zhou, and the reason may be that it has not been collected there for a long time. Nowadays, [hollow malachite] originating in Tong guan has the deepest color; that originating in Shi xing does not come close to it. In Xi ping jun of Liang zhou, too, hollow malachite occurs in the mountains in large quantities. Nowadays, it only [appears in pieces that are] round and solid like iron beads; there is no hollow [malachite]. It is always dug up and removed from within soil and rocks. It is used to prepare elixirs, and as such it serves to transform lead to gold. Among all mineral medications, this is the only most expensive one. It is rarely used in medical recipes; it mostly serves as paint. This is very sad. [Su] Gong: Where copper occurs, all the various malachite minerals are found, too. Only hollow malachite is difficult to obtain. Nowadays, it originates in Wei zhou, Lan zhou, Xuan zhou and Zi zhou. That from Xuan zhou is the very best. It is available in small pieces, and often enough they are hollow. [Malachite] from Wei zhou and Lan zhou forms intensely colored, large, flat pieces that are not hollow. Mr. Tao [Hongjing] mentions a variety of round and solid [pieces] resembling iron beads. This is white malachite. Da Ming: Hollow malachite pieces may be as large as chicken eggs, or as small as rosary peas. They are of greenish color and have a thick [shell] like the peel of litchis, and inside of them is a viscous juice of sour-sweet flavor. [Chen] Cangqi: [Malachite] is the essence splendor of copper. Large pieces are malachite, kong lü 空緑 (10-10), smaller ones are hollow malachite, kong qing 空青. [Su] Song: Nowadays, [a variety of malachite] is occasionally found in Rao and Xin zhou, too. It is shaped like red bayberries, and hence it is called “red bayberry malachite.” Hollow specimens that when broken open have a viscous juice inside are extremely difficult to obtain. [Kou] Zongshi: [Emperor] Zhen zong once issued an edict to collect [for him] hollow malachite with water inside. It took a long time to obtain it. Red bayberry malachite is collected from mountain caves in Xin zhou, it is extremely difficult to obtain. It is extremely effective in the treatment of eye shades. Sometimes it has water inside. Its usage is identical to that of hollow malachite. The quality may differ. [Li] Shizhen: Zhang Gao in his Yu dong yao jue states: “Hollow malachite resembles red bayberries. It is endowed with the essence of red gold and the moonlight qi of spring. It grows close to springs. After a long time it includes moisture. When it has just come out of a mine and is broken open, it includes water. After a long time, [the water] dries up and assumes the shape of beads that are as brilliant as Venus.” The Geng xin yu ce states: “Hollow malachite is a yin stone/mineral, originating in Shang rao. That which resembles stalactites is good. Large pieces are of purple, lustrous color. The next [lower quality] originates in Yan da in Shu and from Mount Bei dai

632

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

shan. It grows in gold mines, and its growth never ends. Hence [hollow] malachite is prepared to elixirs. It may be as big as a fist and it may be shaped like an egg. In its hollow space inside it has a watery liquid like oil that is immediately effective when used to cure blindness. [Malachite] originating in copper mines is good, too. It may be used for painting. In addition there is red bayberry malachite and stone/mineral malachite. All these have the same physical body; their qi may be fine or coarse. For alchemical transformation [to longevity elixirs], lamellar malachite is best. Hollow malachite is next, followed again by red bayberry malachite.” The Zao hua zhi nan states: “When copper is endowed with the qi of purple yang it turns green. This green [substance] after 200 years evolves into shi lü 石緑, malachite. Among them, copper is the first to grow. Lamellar malachite and hollow malachite appear when malachite is endowed with their DAO. All these substances alike are called ‘minerals.’ When they are exposed to the qi of greenish yang for another 200 years, they transform to brass.” In view of all these statements, there are two kinds of malachite. That from gold mines and that from copper mines. They may be as big as a fist or an egg, or as small as a bean. They may form flat pieces or resemble red bayberries. Even though they may differ in terms of having a fine or coarse [surface], those containing a viscous juice are always the best. Those that are not hollow and have no viscous juice inside are of inferior value. Recipe experts apply a medication on copper items to let them develop a greenish [coating]. They scrape it off and falsely declare it to be malachite. But this is always verdigris. It has not been endowed with the Dao of malachite. 【氣味】甘、酸,寒,無毒。【别録曰】大寒。【權曰】畏兔絲子。酒浸 醋拌制過,乃可變化。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, sour, cold, nonpoisonous. Bie lu: Very cold. [Zhen] Quan: [Ingested together,] it fears cuscuta [seeds]. Once it has been processed by being soaked in wine and exposed to vinegar, it will have changed and transformed [to a longevity elixir]. 【主治】青盲耳聾,明目,利九竅,通血脉,養精神,益肝氣。久服輕身 延年。本經。療目赤痛,去膚翳,止淚出,利水道,下乳汁,通關節,破 堅積。令人不忘,志高神仙。别録。治頭風,鎮肝。瞳人破者,得再見 物。甄權。鑽孔取漿,點多年青盲内障翳膜,養精氣。其殻摩翳。大明。 中風口喎不正,以豆許含嚥,甚效。時珍,出范汪方。 Control. Green blindness and deafness. It clears the eyes, opens the passage through the nine orifices, frees the passage through the blood vessels, nourishes the essence spirit and boosts the liver qi. Ingested over a long time, it relieves the body of its weight and extends the years [of life]. Ben jing. It serves to cure red and painful

Chapter 10

633

eyes. It removes dermal shades, ends tearflow, opens the passage through the water paths, lets down a nursing mother’s milk sap, frees the passage through the joints and breaks open hardenings and accumulations. It prevents forgetfulness, and raises one’s awareness to that of spirit-hermits/immortals. Bie lu. It serves to cure head wind620 and guards the liver. In the case of a broken pupil, it enables one to once again see things. Zhen Quan. Bore a hole into it to remove the sap and drip this into eyes that have been affected for many years already by green blindness, an internal screen and a shade membrane. It nourishes one’s essence qi. Its outer shell serves to rub [eye] shades. Da Ming. In the case of being struck by wind, with a wry mouth that fails to return to its proper position, [let the patient] hold an amount the size of a bean in his mouth and swallow [the resulting liquid]. Very effective. [Li] Shizhen, quoted from Fan Wang fang. 【發明】【保昇曰】空青法木,故色青而主肝。【頌曰】治眼翳障爲最要 之藥。【時珍曰】東方甲乙,是生肝膽,其氣之清者爲肝血,其精英爲膽 汁,開竅于目,而五臟之英皆因而注之爲神。膽汁充則目明,汁减則目 昏。銅亦青陽之氣所生,其氣之清者爲緑,猶肝血也;其精英爲空青之 漿,猶膽汁也。其爲治目神藥,蓋亦以類相感應耳。石中空者,埋土中三 五日,自有漿水。 Explication. [Han] Baosheng: Hollow malachite corresponds to wood. Hence its color is greenish and it controls the liver. [Su] Song: It is a most important medication to cure eye shades and screens. [Li] Shizhen: The East is [associated with the celestial stems] jia and yi; it lets the liver and the gall bladder grow. Its clear qi constitute the liver blood. Its essence splendor constitutes the gall liquid. Its orifices are the eyes. Hence all the splendor that flows into the five long-term depots constitutes their splendor. When the bile is plentiful, the eyes are clear. When it is diminished, the eyesight is dimmed. Copper, too, evolves from greenish yang qi. Those of its qi that are clear, they are green, just like the liver blood. Its essence splendor is a suspension of malachite, just like bile. It is a divine medication for curing the eyes because of [the principle of ] items within one group affecting each other. If the stones/minerals are empty inside, bury them in the soil for three to five days and a viscous liquid will appear.

620 Tou feng 頭風, “head wind,” is wind evil attacking the head followed by pain, or dizziness, or itching. BCGM Dict I, 509.

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

634

【附方】舊二,新三。 Added Recipes. Two of old. Three newly [recorded]. 眼目䀮䀮不明。空青少許,漬露一宿,點之。千金方。 Blurred vision. Let a small amount of hollow malachite soak in dew for one night and drip [the liquid into the affected eye]. Qian jin fang. 黑翳覆瞳。空青、礬石燒各一兩,貝子四枚,研細,日點。聖濟録。 Black shades covering the pupils. Grind one liang each of hollow malachite, burned alum and four cyprae shells to a fine [powder] and drip this [into the affected eyes] daily. Sheng ji lu. 膚翳昏暗。空青二錢,蕤仁去皮一兩,片腦三錢,細研,日點。聖濟録。 Dim vision because of a membrane shade. Grind two qian of hollow malachite, one liang of prinsepia kernels and three qian of borneol to a fine [powder] and drip this [into the affected eyes] daily. Sheng ji lu. 一切目疾。雀目、赤目、青盲、内外障翳、風眼用此,覺目中凉冷爲驗。 楊梅青洗净,胡黄連洗,各二錢半;槐芽,日未出時勿語采之,入青竹筒 内,垂于天、月二德方,候乾,勿見雞犬,爲末,一錢半。爲末,入龍腦 一字密收。每卧時,漱口仰頭,吹一字入兩鼻内便睡,隔夜便用。聖濟録。 All types of eye illnesses. It is used for sparrow eyes, red eyes, green blindness, inner and outer obstructive shades, and wind eyes.621 As soon as [the patient] senses cold in his eyes, it has proven effective. Insert two and a half qian each of red bayberry malachite, washed clean, and picrorhiza [rhizome], washed, with sophora japonica flower buds, silently collected before sunrise, into a greenish bamboo tube. Hang [the tube] at a place where it is exposed to the virtues of both the [daylight] sky and the moon. Wait until it has dried and [grind it to a] powder without showing it to chicken or dogs. Take one and a half qian and add one zi of borneol. Store this in a tightly sealed container. Every night at bed time, [let the patient] rinse his mouth and raise his head. Then blow one zi into his nose and he will sleep immediately. Apply this every second night. Sheng ji lu. 中風口喎。見主治。 Wry mouth caused by being struck by wind. See under “Control.”

621 Feng yan 風眼, “wind eyes,” are red and festering canthi and eyelids brought about by harm caused to the eyes by heat. BCGM Dict I, 171.

Chapter 10

635

10-09 曾青本經上品 Ceng qing, FE Ben jing, upper rank. Lamellar malachite. Stratified variety of malachite. Basic copper carbonate. 【釋名】【時珍曰】曾,音層。其青層層而生,故名。或云其生從實至 空,從空至層,故曰曾青也。 Explanation of Names. [Li] Shizhen: Ceng 曾 is read ceng 層. Its greenish [color], qing 青, grows layer after layer, ceng ceng 層層. Hence the name. Some say: “It grows from solid to hollow, and from hollow to layers, ceng 層.” Hence the name ceng qing 曾青. 【集解】【别録曰】曾青生蜀中山谷及越嶲。采無時。能化金銅。【普 曰】生蜀郡石山。其山有銅處,曾青出其陽。青者銅之精。【弘景曰】舊 説與空青同山,療體亦相似。今銅官更無曾青,惟出始興。形累累如黄連 相綴,色理相類空青,甚難得而貴,仙經少用之。化金之事,法同空青。 【恭曰】出蔚州者好,鄂州者次之,餘州並不任用。【時珍曰】但出銅 處,年古即生。形如黄連相綴,又如蚯蚓屎,方稜,色深如波斯青黛,層 層而生,打之如金聲者爲真。造化指南云:層青生銅礦中,乃石緑之得道 者。肌膚得東方正色,可以合鍊大丹,點化與三黄齊驅。衡山記云:山有 層青岡,出層青,可合仙藥。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Lamellar malachite grows in the mountain valleys of Shu and in Yue xi. It is collected anytime. It is able to transform gold and copper. [Wu] Pu: It grows in the rocky mountains of Shu jun. These mountains have sites where copper occurs. Lamellar malachite originates in the yang/sunny [side of these mountains]. Malachites are the essence of copper. [Tao] Hongjing: In ancient records it is said that [lamellar malachite] occurs in the same mountains as hollow malachite. Their therapeutic [potential] and their physical body are similar. Nowadays, there is no more lamellar malachite left in Tong guan. It originates only in Shi xin. Its physical appearance is a string of pearls, like a sequence of coptis [rhizomes]. Its color and its material structure are similar to those of hollow malachite. It is very difficult to obtain and it is expensive. The classics of the hermits/immortals rarely resort to it. That it transforms gold is based on the same principle as [the effects of ] hollow malachite. [Su] Gong: [Lamellar malachite] originating in Wei zhou is good. That from E zhou comes next. All those [kinds] from other zhou must not be used [for therapeutic purposes]. [Li] Shizhen: It originates only in places where copper occurs. When [copper] turns old [lamellar malachite] grows. Its physical appearance resembles a sequence of coptis [rhizomes], and it also looks like earthworm excrements. It has edges and its color is as intense as that of Persian indigo.

636

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

It grows layer after layer, and it is genuine if when struck it sounds like gold/metal. The Zao hua zhi nan states: “Lamellar malachite grows within copper minerals. It is malachite that has been exposed to the DAO. Once its skin has obtained the true color of the East, it can be used for preparing with heat a major elixir. Through alchemical transformation and together with the three [substances realgar, orpiment and sulphur that have in their names the character] ‘yellow’, it lets one’s talents and strength be equivalent to one’s intentions.” The Heng shan ji states: “The mountain has a lamellar malachite ridge. Lamellar malachite originates in there; it can be used to prepare a medication used by hermits/immortals.” 【修治】【斅曰】凡使勿用夾石及銅青。每一兩要紫背天葵、甘草、青芝 草三件,乾濕各一鎰,細剉,放瓷堝内,安青于中。東流水二鎰,緩緩煮 之,五晝夜,勿令水火失時。取出以東流水浴過,研乳如粉用。 Pharmacedutical Preparation. [Lei] Xiao: For all applications, do not use that which is held by other stones/minerals and verdigris. For each [preparation] of one liang [lamellar malachite proceed as follows]. Purple back malva [herb], glycyrrhiza [root] and ganoderma fungus, one yi of all three substances with their moisture dried, are cut to fine pieces and given into a porcelain crucible. Place the lamellar malachite into the center and heat this slowly with two yi of water that has flowed to the East for five days and nights. See to it that neither the water dries up nor the fire goes out. Remove [the lamellar malachite from the crucible], wash it water flowing to the East, grind it to a powder and use [it for therapeutic purposes]. 【氣味】酸。小寒,無毒。【之才曰】畏兔絲子。【獨孤滔云】曾青住火 成膏,可結汞,制丹砂,蓋含金氣所生也。須酒醋漬煮用。【葛洪曰】曾 青塗鐵,色赤如銅。 Qi and Flavor. Sour, slightly cold, nonpoisonous. [Xu] Zhicai: [Ingested together,] it fears cuscuta [seeds]. Dugu Tao states: Lamellar malachite exposed to fire can be made to a paste that is able to bind mercury and to check cinnabar. The fact is, it has grown including gold qi. It must be soaked and boiled in wine and vinegar prior to being used [for therapeutic purposes]. Ge Hong: When lamellar malachite is applied to iron, the latter will assume a color reminiscent of copper. 【主治】目痛,止淚出,風痺,利關節,通九竅,破癥堅積聚。久服輕身 不老。本經。養肝膽,除寒熱,殺白蟲,療頭風腦中寒,止煩渴,補不 足,盛陰氣。别録。 Control. Painful eyes. It ends tearflow and wind blockage.622 It opens the passage through the joints. It frees the passage through the nine orifices. It breaks open con622 Feng bi 風痺, “wind blockage,” diseases resulting mostly from an intrusion of

Chapter 10

637

cretion-illness hardness, accumulations and collections. Ingested over a long time, it relieves the body of its weight and prevents aging. Ben jing. It serves to nourish liver and gallbladder. It eliminates alternating cold and heat sensations. It kills white worms/bugs. It serves to heal head wind623 with cold in one’s brain. It ends unrest and thirst, supplements insufficiencies and boosts yin qi. Bie lu. 【發明】【時珍曰】曾青治目,義同空青。古方辟邪太乙神精丹用之,扁 鵲治積聚留飲有層青丸,並見古今録驗方,藥多不録。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: Lamellar malachite serves to cure the eyes. This is based on the same idea as [the application of ] tong qing/malachite. In ancient recipes it was used for preparing the “divine essence elixir of Great Unity to ward off evil.” Bian Que used “pills with lamellar malachite” to cure accumulations with stagnating rheum. For all this consult the Gu jin lu yan fang. This medication has not been recorded often [in recipe literature].

【附方】新三。 Added Recipes. Three newly [recorded]. 班瘡入目不退者。曾青一錢,丹砂二錢,爲末,蠐螬五枚,搗汁和點。聖 濟録。 Macule sores that have entered the eyes and fail to recede. [Grind] one qian of lamellar malachite and two qian of cinnabar to a powder. Pound five grubs to a juice, mix [it with the powder] and drip this into the [affected eyes]. Sheng ji lu. 風熱目病。曾青散:治一切風熱毒氣上攻,目赤或爛,怕日羞明,隱濇眵 淚,或痒或痛。曾青四兩,蔓荆子二兩,白薑炮、防風各一兩,爲末,每 以少許搐鼻中,立有功效。和劑局方。 Eye disease caused by wind and heat. The “powder with lamellar malachite.” It serves to cure all types of wind, heat and poison qi having risen to attack [the eyes]. The eyes are red or fester. They are shy of the sun and avoid light. They feel rough inside and tears flow, sometimes with an itch, sometimes with pain. [Grind] four liang of lamellar malachite, two liang of vitex [fruit], white ginger, roasted in a pan, and saposhnikovia root to a powder. Each time insert a small amount into the [patient’s] nose. This will have an immediate effect. He ji ju fang. 耳内惡瘡。曾青五錢,雄黄七錢半,黄芩二錢五分,爲末,傅之。衞生寶 鑒。 623 Tou feng 頭風, “head wind,” is wind evil attacking the head followed by pain, or dizziness, or itching. BCGM Dict I, 509.

638

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Malign sores in the ears. [Grind] five qian of lamellar malachite, seven and a half qian of realgar, and two qian and five fen of scutellaria root to a powder and apply this to [the affected region]. Wei sheng bao jian. 10-10 緑青本經624上品 Lü qing, FE Ben jing, upper rank. Malachite. Fine, granular variety. Basic copper carbonate. 【釋名】石緑唐本、大緑綱目。 Explanation of Names. Shi lü 石緑, “stone/mineral green,” Tang ben. Da lü 大緑, “great green,” Gang mu. 【集解】【别録曰】緑青生山之陰穴中,色青白。【弘景曰】此即用畫緑 色者,亦出空青中,相挾帶。今畫工呼爲碧青,而呼空青作緑青,正相反 矣。【恭曰】緑青即扁青也,畫工呼爲石緑。其碧青即白青也,不入畫 用。【頌曰】舊不著所出州土,但云生山之陰穴中。次空青條上云,生益 州山谷及越嶲山有銅處,此物當是生其山之陰爾。今出韶州、信州。其色 青白,畫工用爲緑色者。極有大塊,其中青白花文可愛,信州人琢爲腰帶 器物及婦人服飾。其入藥,當用顆塊如乳香者佳。【宗奭曰】其色黑緑色 者佳。【時珍曰】石緑,陰石也。生銅坑中,乃銅之祖氣也。銅得紫陽之 氣而生緑,緑久則成石,謂之石緑。而銅生於中,與空青、曾青同一根源 也。今人呼爲大緑。范成大桂海志云:石緑,銅之苗也,出廣西 右江有銅 處。生石中,質如石者,名石緑。一種脆爛如碎土者,名泥緑,品最下。 大明會典云:青緑石礦一斤,淘净緑一十一兩四錢。暗色緑石礦一斤,淘 净緑一十兩八錢。硇砂一斤,燒造硇砂緑一十五兩五錢。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Malachite grows in shady mountain caves. Its color is greenish-white. [Tao] Hongjing: This [item] is used by painters as green color. It too originates in hollow malachite. The two exist closely connected. Today, the painters call it “bluish-green malachite,” and they call hollow malachite “greenish malachite.” It should be exactly the other way round. [Su] Gong: Green malachite is flat malachite. The painters call it “stone green.” The “bluish-green malachite” is white malachite. It is not used for painting. [Su] Song: In the ancient [Bie lu] the zhou and the locality where it originates in are not mentioned. It simply states: “It grows in shady mountain caves.” In the following entry on hollow malachite it states: “It grows in mountain valleys of Yi zhou and on Mount Yue xi shan at places where copper occurs.” So, this item must grow on the yin/shady side of these 624 According to Zheng lei, ch. 3, lü qing 緑青, was first listed in the Bie lu. The reference here to the Ben jing is erroneous.

Chapter 10

639

mountains. Nowadays it originates in Shao zhou and Xin zhou. Its color is greenish-white. Painters use it as green color. It is available in extremely large pieces with an amiable greenish-white floral design inside. The people in Xin zhou carve it for items to be applied to their belts and for jewelry for women. For use as medication, pieces the size of frankincense are fine. [Kou] Zongshi: Those of a black-green color are fine. [Li] Shizhen: Malachite is a yin stone/mineral. It grows in copper mines. In fact, it is the ancestral qi of copper. When copper is endowed with the qi of purple yang it grows a green. The green after a long time becomes a stone/mineral which is called “stone green.” Copper grows amidst it. It has the same origin as hollow malachite and lamellar malachite. Nowadays the people call it “great green.” Fan Chengda in his Gui hai zhi states: “Stone green/malachite is the outgrowth of copper. It originates in You jiang in Guang xi, in locations where copper occurs. As it grows amidst stones/minerals, and as its substance resembles stones/minerals, it is called ‘stone green’. A variety that is amorph and decayed as if soil had been crushed is called ‘mud green’. It is of a very low rank.” The Da Ming hui dian states: “One jin of greenish malachite ore will yield 11 liang, four qian of pure [stone] green/malachite. One jin of dark colored malachite ore will yield 18 liang, eight qian of pure [stone] green/malachite. One jin of sal ammoniac heated will yield 15 liang, five qian of a sal ammoniac-malachite [compound].” 【氣味】【時珍曰】有小毒。 Qi and Flavor. [Li] Shizhen: Slightly poisonous. 【主治】益氣,止洩痢,療鼽鼻。别録。吐風痰甚效。蘇頌。 Control. It boosts the qi. It ends outflow and free-flux illness.625 It heals nosebleed. Bie lu. For [having a patient] vomit wind phlegm, it is very effective. Su Song. 【發明】【頌曰】今醫家多用吐風痰。其法揀上色精好者研篩,水飛再 研。如風痰眩悶,取二三錢同生龍腦三四豆許研匀,以生薄荷汁合酒温調 服之。偃卧須臾,涎自口角流出乃愈。不嘔吐,其功速于他藥,今人用之 比比皆效,故著之。【宗奭曰】同硇砂作吐上涎藥,驗則驗矣,亦能損 心。【時珍曰】痰在上宜吐之,在下宜利之,亦須觀人之虚實强弱而察其 脉,乃可投之。初虞世有金虎、碧霞之戒,正此意也。金虎丹治風痰,用 天雄、膩粉諸藥者。 Explication. [Su] Song: Today’s physicians often use it to [have patients] vomit wind phlegm. The method [to apply it is as follows]. Select [malachite] of top quality with a fine and good color, grind it [to a powder] and pass it through a sieve. Then process it with aqueous sublimation and grind it again. If the wind phlegm goes 625 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

640

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

along with dizziness and heart-pressure, grind two or three qian [of the malachite powder] together with three or four bean-size pieces of borneol, and [let the patient] ingest it mixed with fresh mint juice and warm wine. Let [the patient] lie flat on his back for a short while until saliva will flow from the corners of his mouth, and he will be cured. This is achieved without vomiting. The effects [of this therapy] are faster than those of other medication. Nowadays, the people resort to it often, always with good results. Hence it is recorded [here]. [Kou] Zongshi: When it is prepared with sal ammoniac as a medication to [have patients] vomit or let saliva rise, then it is truly effective. But it can also harm the heart. [Li] Shizhen: When phlegm has risen, it is to be eliminated by means of vomiting. When it is in the lower [body parts], it is to be eliminated by means of defecation. Also, it is essential to first consider a patient’s condition of depletion or repletion, of strength or weakness and to study [the movement in] his vessels and only then let him ingest [this medication]. When Chu Yushi warns against the “golden tiger [elixir]” and the “bluish-green cloud glow [elixir],” then this is based on the same idea. The “golden tiger elixir” serves to cure wind phlegm. It uses such medication as aconitum [root tuber] and calomel. 【附方】新四。 Added Recipes. Four newly [recorded]. 急驚昏迷,不省人事。石緑四兩,輕粉一錢,爲末,薄荷汁入酒調一字 服,取吐。全嬰方。 Acute fright with clouding and confusion. [Patients] fail to recognize their environment. [Grind] four liang of malachite and one qian of calomel to a powder. [Let the patient] ingest one zi mixed with mint juice and wine to let him vomit. Quan ying fang. 風痰迷悶。碧霞丹:用石緑十兩,烏頭尖、附子尖、蠍稍各七十箇,爲 末,糊丸芡子大,每服一丸,薄荷汁入酒半合化下,須臾吐出痰涎。和劑 局方。 Wind phlegm with confusion and heart-pressure. The “elixir of bluish-green cloud glow.” [Grind] ten liang of malachite and 70 pieces each of Sichuan aconitum [main tuber] tips, aconitum [accessory tuber] tips and scorpion pincers to a powder to prepare with dough pills the size of qian seeds. Each time [let the patient] ingest one pill, to be sent down dissolved in a mixture of mint juice and half a ge of wine. After a short time, he will vomit to release phlegm and saliva. He ji ju fang. 小兒疳瘡。腎疳、鼻疳、頭瘡、耳瘡久不瘥者。石緑、白芷等分爲末。先 以甘草水洗瘡,拭净傅之,一日愈。集玄方。

Chapter 10

641

Gan-illness626 sores of children. Kidney gan-illness, nose gan-illness, head sores, ear sores that have not been cured for a long time. [Grind] equal amounts of malachite and angelica [root] to a powder. First wash the sores with water in which glycyrrhiza [root] was cooked. Then wipe them clean and apply the [powder]. A cure will be achieved within one day. Ji xuan fang. 腋下胡臭。石緑三錢,輕粉一錢,濃醋調塗,五次斷根。集玄方。 Barbarian stench under the armpits. Mix three qian of malachite and one qian of calomel with viscous vinegar and apply this [to the armpits]. After five [applications] the root [of the stench] will be cut. Ji xuan fang. 10-11 扁青本經上品 Bian qing, FE Ben jing, upper rank. Flat malachite. 1. Copper carbonate. 2. Cobalt oxide. 【釋名】石青綱目、大青。【時珍曰】扁以形名。 Explanation of Names. Shi qing 石青, “stone/mineral malachite,” Gang mu. Da qing 大青, “Major malachite.” [Li] Shizhen: It is named bian 扁, “flat,” because of its physical appearance. 【集解】【别録曰】扁青生朱厓山谷、武都、朱提,采無時。【弘景曰】 朱提,音殊匙,在南海中。仙經、俗方都無用者。【普曰】生蜀郡。【恭 曰】此即緑青也。朱厓已南及林邑、扶南舶上來者,形塊大如拳,其色又 青,腹中亦時有空者。武昌者,片塊小而色更佳。簡州、梓州者,形扁作 片而色淺。【時珍曰】蘇恭言即緑青者,非也,今之石青是矣。繪畫家用 之,其色青翠不渝,俗呼爲大青,楚、蜀諸處亦有之。而今貨石青者,有 天青、大青、西夷回回青、佛頭青,種種不同,而回青尤貴。本草所載扁 青、層青、碧青、白青,皆其類耳。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Flat malachite grows in the mountain valleys of Zhu ya, and also in Wu du and Shu shi. It is collected anytime. [Tao] Hongjing: Shu shi 朱提 is read shu shi 殊匙. It is located in Nan hai. Neither the classics of hermits/ immortals nor common recipes make [medicinal] use of it. [Wu] Pu: It grows in Shu jun. [Su] Gong: This is “green malachite.” That originating south of Zhu ya and imported from Lin yi and Fu nan comes in pieces the size of fists. Its color is greenish, and occasionally [the pieces] are hollow. That originating in Wu chang consists of small, flat pieces with an even finer color. That from Jian zhou and Zi zhou con626 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188.

642

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

sists of flat, lightly colored pieces. [Li] Shizhen: When Su Gong says “this is green malachite,” he is wrong. It is today’s “stone malachite.” Painters use it. Its color is greenish-emerald green, and does not fade. It is commonly called “major malachite.” It is also found everywhere in Chu and Shu. The “stone malachite” on the market today includes “heaven’s malachite,” “major malachite,” “muslim malachite of the Yi people in the West,” and “Buddha’s head malachite.” All these are different kinds, with the “muslim malachite” being especially expensive. The “flat malachite,” “lamellar malachite,” “bluish-green malachite” and “white malachite” listed in the Ben cao, they all belong to this same group. 【氣味】甘,平,無毒。【普曰】神農、雷公:小寒,無毒 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. [Wu] Pu: Shen nong, Lei gong: Slightly cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】目痛明目,折跌癰腫,金瘡不瘳,破積聚,解毒氣,利精神。久 服輕身不老。本經。去寒熱風痺,及丈夫莖中百病,益精。别録。治丈夫 内絶,令人有子。吴普。吐風痰癲癇,平肝。時珍。 Control. Painful eyes. It clears the eyes. [It serves to cure] obstruction-illness627 swelling associated with fractures and falls, and wounds caused by metal objects/ weapons that fail to heal. It breaks open accumulations and collections, resolves poison qi and frees the passage of the essence spirit. Ingested over a long time, it relieves the body of its weight and prevents aging. Ben jing. It eliminates alternating cold and heat sensations, and wind blockage,628 as well as the hundreds of diseases in the penis of males. It boosts essence/sperm. Bie lu. It serves to cure internal cut off of [the essence/sperm of ] males, and lets one have children. [Wu] Pu. It lets [patients] vomit wind phlegm, and [serves to cure] peak-illness629 and epilepsy. [Li] Shizhen.

627 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641. 628 Feng bi 風痺, “wind blockage,” diseases resulting mostly from an intrusion of wind evil. BCGM Dict I, 158. 629 Dian 顛, “peak[-illness],” also 癲, vaguely defined mental derangement. BCGM Dict I, 124.

Chapter 10

643

【附方】新一。 Added Recipes. One newly [recorded]. 頑痰不化。石青一兩,石緑半兩,並水飛爲末,麴糊丸緑豆大,每服十 丸,温水下。吐去痰一二盌,不損人。瑞竹堂方。 Stubborn phlegm that fails to transform. Process both one liang of flat malachite and half a liang of malachite with aqueous sublimation and [grind them to a] powder to be formed with flour to pills the size of mung beans. Each time ingest ten pills, to be sent down with warm water. This will [let the patient] vomit one or two bowls of phlegm without harming him. Rui zhu tang fang. 10-12 白青本經上品 Bai qing, FE Ben jing, upper rank. White malachite. Copper carbonate. 【釋名】碧青唐本、魚目青。 Explanation of Names. Bi qing 碧青, “bluish-green malachite,” Tang ben. Yu mu qing 魚目青, “fish eye malachite.” 【集解】【别録曰】白青生豫章山谷,采無時。可消爲銅劍,辟五兵。 【弘景曰】醫方不用,市無賣者,仙經三十六水方中時有須處。銅劍之 法,在九元子術中。【恭曰】此即陶氏所云空青,圓如鐵珠色白而腹不空 者是也。研之色白如碧,亦謂之碧青,不入畫用。無空青時亦用之,名 魚目青,以形似魚目故也。今出簡州、梓州者好。【時珍曰】此即石青之 屬,色深者爲石青,淡者爲碧青也。今繪彩家亦用。范子計然云:白青出 弘農、豫章、新淦,青色者善。淮南萬畢術云:白青得鐵,即化爲銅也。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: White malachite grows in the mountain valleys of Yu zhang. It is collected anytime. Dissolved it can be used in the manufacturing of copper swords. It serves to ward off the five weapons. [Tao] Hongjing: It is not resorted to in medical recipes, and it is not sold on the market. In the classics of hermits/immortals it occasionally appears in the recipes for the 36 waters. The method to manufacture copper swords is part of the technique of Jiuyuan zi, the “Master of the Nine Origins.” [Su] Gong: This is the item described by Mr. Tao [Hongjing] as “hollow malachite, round like iron beads, of white color and not hollow inside.” When it is ground, its color is white, resembling a bluish-green [semi-precious stone]; it is also called “bluish-green malachite.” It is not used for painting. If no hollow malachite is available, it, too, may be used [as a substitute]. It is called “fish eye malachite” because its physical appearance is reminiscent of fish eyes. Nowa-

644

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

days, that which originates in Jian zhou and Ze zhou is good. [Li] Shizhen: This item belongs to the group of stone/mineral malachites. When the color is intense it is “stone/mineral malachite.” When the color is light, it is “bluish-green malachite.” Today’s painters use it. [The records of ] Fan zi and Ji ran state: White malachite originates in Hong nong, Yu zhang and Xin gang. That with a greenish color is good. The Huai nan Wan bi shu states: “When white malachite is processed with iron it will transform to copper.” 【氣味】甘、酸、鹹,平,無毒。【普曰】神農:甘,平。雷公:鹹,無 毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, sour, salty, balanced, nonpoisonous. [Wu] Pu: Shen nong: Sweet, balanced. Lei gong: Salty, nonpoisonous. 【主治】明目,利九竅,耳聾,心下邪氣,令人吐,殺諸毒三蟲。久服通 神明輕身。本經。 Control. It clears the eyes and frees the passage through the nine orifices. [It serves to cure] deafness and [removes] evil qi from below the heart. It lets one vomit. It kills all poisons and the three worms/bugs. Ingested over a long time, it frees one’s spirit brilliance and relieves the body of its weight. Ben jing.

【附録】 Appendix 10-12-A01 緑膚青。Lü fu qing. Green skin malachite. 【别録曰】味辛、鹹,平,無毒。主蟲毒及蛇菜肉諸毒惡瘡。不可久服, 令人瘦。一名推青,一名推石。生益州山谷。【弘景曰】俗方、仙經無 用,人亦不識。 Bie lu: Flavor acrid, salty, balanced, nonpoisonous. It controls worm/bug poison and malign sores caused by all types of poison of snakes, vegetables and meat. It must not be ingested for a long time lest it cause emaciation. Alternative name: Tui qing 推青; alternative name tui shi 推石. It grows in the mountain valleys of Yi zhou. [Tao] Hongjing: It is not used in common recipes and it is not [recommended in] the classics of hermits/immortals. The people simply do not know it.

Chapter 10

645

10-12-A02 碧石青。Bi shi qing. Bluish-green stone/mineral malachite. 【别録曰】味甘,無毒。主明目益精,去白癬,延年。 Bie lu: Flavor: Sweet, nonpoisonous. Control: It clears the eyes and boosts essence/ sperm. It eliminates white xuan-illness630 and extends the years [of life]. 10-13 石膽本經上品 Shi dan, FE Ben jing, upper rank. Stone bile. Chalcanthite. Water soluble copper sulphate. 【釋名】膽礬綱目、黑石本经、畢石本經、君石當之、銅勒吴普、立制 石。【時珍曰】膽以色味命名,俗因其似礬,呼爲膽礬。 Explanation of Names. Dan fan 膽礬, “bile alum,” Gang mu. Hei shi 黑石, “black stone/mineral,” Ben jing. Bi shi 畢石, “Final stone/mineral,” Ben jing. Jun shi 君石, “the lord’s stone/mineral,” [Li] Dangzhi. Tong le 銅勒, Wu Pu. Li zhi shi 立制石. [Li] Shizhen: The name dan 膽, “bile,” refers to its color and flavor. It is commonly called dan fan 膽礬, “bile alum,” because it resembles alum, fan 礬. 【集解】【别録曰】石膽生秦州 羌道山谷大石間,或羌里 句青山。二月 庚子、辛丑日采。其爲石也,青色多白文,易破,狀似空青。能化鐵爲銅, 合成金銀。【弘景曰】仙經時用,俗方甚少,此藥殆絶。今人時有采者, 其色青緑,狀如琉璃而有白文,易破折。梁州、信都無復有,俗乃以青色礬 當之,殊無仿佛。【恭曰】此物出銅處有之,形似曾青,兼緑相間,味極酸 苦,磨鐵作銅色,此是真者。出蒲州 虞郷縣 東亭谷窟及薛集窟中,有塊 如雞卵者爲真。陶云似琉璃者,乃絳礬也,比來人亦以充之。又以醋揉青礬 爲之,並僞矣。【頌曰】今惟信州 鉛山縣有之。生於銅坑中,采得煎鍊而 成。又有自然生者,尤爲珍貴。並深碧色。今南方醫人多使之。又著其説 云:石膽最上出蒲州,大者如拳,小者如桃栗,擊之縱横解,皆成叠文,色 青,見風久則緑,擊破,其中亦青。其次出上饒、曲江銅坑間者,粒細有 廉稜,如釵股米粒。本草言僞者以醋揉青礬爲之,全不然。但取粗惡石膽, 合消石銷溜而成之。塊大色淺,渾渾無脉理,擊之則碎無廉稜者是也。亦 有挾石者,乃削取石膽牀,溜造時投消石中,及凝則相着也。【時珍曰】石 膽出蒲州山穴中,鴨觜色者爲上,俗呼膽礬;出羌里者,色少黑次之;信州 者又次之。此物乃生于石,其經煎鍊者,即多僞也。但以火燒之成汁者,必 僞也。塗于鐵及銅上燒之紅者,真也。又以銅器盛水,投少許入中,及不青 碧,數日不異者,真也。玉洞要訣云:石膽,陽石也。出嵩岳及蒲州中條 630 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591.

646

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

山。禀靈石異氣,形如瑟瑟,其性流通,精感入石,能化五金,變化無窮。 沈括筆談載:鉛山有苦泉,流爲澗,挹水熬之,則成膽礬。所熬之釜,久亦 化爲銅也。此乃煎熬作僞,非真石膽也,不可入藥。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Chalcanthite grows in the mountain valleys of Qiang dao in Qin zhou, among the big rocks, and also in Qiang li, on Mount Ju qing shan. It is collected in the second month, on geng zi 庚子 and xin chou 辛丑 days. This is a stone/mineral of greenish color with a white line design. It is easily broken open, and its shape is similar to that of hollow malachite. It can be used to transform iron to copper, and to compound gold and silver. [Tao] Hongjing: The classics of hermits/immortals occasionally make use of it and in common recipes it is [recommended] very seldom. It is an outdated medication. The people today sometimes collect it. Its color is greenish to green. It is shaped like opaque glass with a white line design, and it is easily broken. In Liang zhou and Xin dou it is no longer present, and it is commonly replaced by alum of greenish color, but this is definitely something very different. [Su] Gong: This item originates in locations where copper is present. Its physical appearance resembles that of lamellar malachite, with some green interspersed. Its flavor is extremely sour and bitter. When it is rubbed against iron and assumes the color of copper, it is genuine [chalcanthite]. When that originating in the Dong ting gu cave and in the Xue ji cave in Yu qing xian of Pu zhou comes in pieces like chicken eggs, it is genuine. That of which Tao [Hongjing] states that it resembles opaque glass, is prepared alum. Some people arrive here to offer it instead [of chalcanthite], or they soften greenish alum with vinegar. All these are fake products. [Su] Song: Today, [chalcanthite] occurs only in Qian shan xian of Xin zhou. It grows in copper mines. It is collected there and processed with boiling to prepare it [for further use]. Some of it grows naturally and is especially expensive. All [kinds] are of bluish-green color. Nowadays, the physicians in the South often apply it. Also, someone has recorded the following statement: Chalcanthite of top quality originates in Pu zhou. Pieces may be as large as fists. Small pieces are of the size of walnuts or chestnuts. When they are struck, they break into horizontal and vertical layers, with all of them showing multiple line design. They are of greenish color which changes to green when they are exposed to wind. When they are struck open, their interior is red, too. [Chalcanthite of ] an inferior quality originates in the copper mines in Shang rao and Qu jiang. These are fine grains with distinct edges, or hairpin-type rice grains. According to the Ben cao, fake [chalanthide] is prepared by softening greenish alum with vinegar. But this is not so today. They take coarse and bad quality chalcanthite and melt it with nitrokalite to prepare [what is to appear like good quality chalcanthite]. [Such fake chalcanthite appears as] big pieces with a light color. Their surface is muddy and lacks a

Chapter 10

647

vessel structure. When it is struck and breaks into pieces that have no distinct edges, then this is [fake chalcanthite]. There is also [chalcanthite] that is attached to rocks. [To produce chalcanthite, the people] cut and remove the [rocks forming the] base of chalcanthite. They process [the mineral by heating it] with water to which they add nitrokalite. When this coagulates it attaches itself [to the walls of the crucible]. [Li] Shizhen: Chalcanthite originates in mountain caves in Pu zhou. That colored like a duck’s beak is best. It is commonly called “bile alum.” That which originates in Qiang li and is of a slightly black color is inferior to it. That from Xin zhou is even more inferior. This item grows on rocks. That which is refined with heat and boiling is often fake. But when it turns into a juice when heated with fire, it is definitely fake. When it is applied to iron and copper and turns red when heated, it is genuine. Also, [to test whether it is fake or genuine] fill a copper vessel with water and give a small amount [of the item in question] into it. If it does not assume a greenish-bluish-green color and if it does not alter its appearance for several days, it is genuine. The Yu dong yao jue states: “Chalcanthite is a yang stone/mineral. It originates in Song yue and in Mount Zhong tiao shan in Pu zhou. It is endowed with the abnormal qi of numinous stones/minerals, and its physical appearance is as if something were twisted. By nature it flows and opens passages, and its essence feelings enter stones. It is able to transform gold/metals, and cause unlimited change and transformation.” Shen Kua in his Bi tan records: “On Mount Qian shan is a spring of bitter [water] that flows into a ravine. [The local people] scoop up the water and boil it to produce chalcanthite. The cauldrons used for boiling [the water], they, too, after a long time become copper.” Actually, this is faked [chalcanthite] prepared by boiling; it is not genuine chalcanthite. It must not be added to medication. 【氣味】酸、辛,寒,有毒。【普曰】神農:酸,小寒。李當之:大寒。 桐君:辛,有毒。扁鵲:苦,無毒。【大明曰】酸、濇,無毒。【權曰】 有大毒。【之才曰】水英爲之使。畏牡桂、菌桂、芫花、辛夷、白微。 Qi and Flavor. Sour, acrid, cold, poisonous. [Wu] Pu: Shen nong: Sour, slightly cold. Li Dangzhi: Very cold. Tong jun: Acrid, poisonous. Bian Que: Bitter, nonpoisonous. Da Ming: Sour, astringent, nonpoisonous. [Zhen] Quan: Very poisonous. [Xu] Zhicai: Oenanthe herb serves as its guiding substance. [Ingested together,] it fears unscraped bark of old cinnamom trees, osmanthus [bark], daphne [flower], magnolia flower and cynanchum [root]. 【主治】明目目痛,金瘡,諸癇痙,女子陰蝕痛,石淋寒熱,崩中下血, 諸邪毒氣,令人有子。鍊餌服之,不老。久服,增壽神仙。本經。散癥 積,欬逆上氣,及鼠瘻惡瘡。别録。治蟲牙,鼻内息肉。大明。帶下赤 白,面黄,女子臟急。蘇恭。入吐風痰藥最快。蘇頌。

648

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Control. It clears the eyes and [serves to cure] pain in the eyes, wounds inflicted by metal objects, all types of epilepsy and spasm, painful erosion in the female yin [(i. e., genital) region, urinary] stone dripping, and alternating cold and heat sensations, collapsing center631 with a discharge of blood, and all types of evil and poison qi. It helps people to have children. Ingested processed with heat, it prevents aging. Ingested over a long time, it extends longevity and [lets one become] a spirit-hermit/immortal. Ben jing. It disperses concretion-illness accumulations and [serves to cure] cough with a countermovement of rising qi, and also mouse fistula632 and malign sores. Bie lu. It serves to cure worm/bug teeth and tumorous flesh growth in the nose. Da Ming. Red and white discharge from below the belt, when the face has turned yellow and cramps affect the female womb. Su Gong. Added to medication [to let a patient] vomit wind phlegm, [its effects are] very fast. Su Song. 【發明】【時珍曰】石膽氣寒,味酸而辛,入少陽膽經。其性收歛上行, 能涌風熱痰涎,發散風木相火,又能殺蟲,故治咽喉口齒瘡毒有奇功也。 周密齊東野語云:密過南浦,有老醫授治喉痺極速垂死方:用真鴨觜膽礬 末,醋調灌之,大吐膠痰數升,即瘥。臨汀一老兵妻苦此,絶水粒三日 矣,如法用之即瘥。屢用無不立驗,神方也。又周必大陰德録云:治蠱脹 及水腫秘方,有用蒲州、信州膽礬明亮如翠琉璃似鴨觜者,米醋煮,以君 臣之藥服之,勝于鐵砂、鐵蛾。蓋膽礬乃銅之精液,味辛酸,入肝膽制脾 鬼故也。安城 魏清臣腫科黑丸子,消腫甚妙,不傳,即用此者。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: The qi of chalcanthite are cold; its flavor is sour and acrid. [Qi and flavor] enter the minor yang gallbladder conduits. By its nature [chalcanthite] is astringent and moves upward, and it is able to free the passage of phlegm and saliva caused by wind and heat. It disperses minister fire of wood/the liver excited by wind, and it is also able to kill worms/bugs. Hence in the treatment of sores with poison affecting the throat, the mouth and the teeth, it is used with extraordinary success. Zhou Mi in his Qi dong ye yu states: “When [I, Zhou] Mi passed through Nan pu, an old physician gave me a ‘recipe to cure moribund [patients affected by] throat closure.’ [It advises to] forcefeed [to the patient] genuine duck beak chalcanthite powder mixed with vinegar. This lets [the patient] vomit several sheng of glue-like phlegm, and he will be cured. In Lin ting the wife of an old soldier suffered from this [ailment]. She had not consumed water or [rice] grains for three days already. When [I] applied [to her the medication] as required she was cured. [I have] used it many times, and never without a good result. It is a divine recipe.” 631 Beng zhong 崩中, “collapsing center,” excessive vaginal bleeding outside of a menstruation period. BCGM Dict I, 58. 632 Shu lou 鼠瘻, “mouse fistula,” identical with lou li 瘰癧, “scrofula with pervasion-illness.” BCGM Dict I, 466.

Chapter 10

649

Also, Zhou Bida in his Yin de lu states: “The ‘secret recipe to cure bloating caused by gu633 and bloating caused by water’ [advises] to boil in rice vinegar chalcanthite from Pu zhou or Xin zhou shiny like emerald green opaque glass or a duck beak and to ingest it in a combination with ruler and minister drugs. Its effects are superior to those of iron sand and iron moths/fragments.” The fact is, chalcanthite is the essence liquid of copper. Its acrid-sour flavor enters the liver and the gallbladder and checks liver demons. Wei Qingchen of An cheng, a specialist in the discipline of swelling, [used] “black pills” with an extremely wondrous ability to dissolve swelling. It has not been transmitted. It [recommended to] use the [item discussed] here. 【附方】舊五,新一十五。 Added Recipes. Five of old. 15 newly [recorded]. 老小風痰。膽礬末一錢,小兒一字,温醋湯調下,立吐出涎,便醒。譚氏 小兒方。 Wind phlegm affecting old and young [patients]. [Let the patient] send down, mixed with warm vinegar and hot water, one qian of chalcanthite – for children: one zi only. Immediately this will let them vomit to release saliva. They will soon regain consciousness. Tan shi xiao er fang. 女人頭運。天地轉動,名曰心眩,非血風也。膽子礬一兩,細研,用胡餅 劑子一箇,按平一指厚,以篦子勒成骰子,大塊勿界斷,于瓦上焙乾,每 服一骰子,爲末,燈心竹茹湯調下。許學士本事方。 Vertigo of women. When heaven and earth seem to revolve around them, this is called “heart dizziness.” This is not blood wind.634 Grind one liang of chalcanthite to a fine [powder]. Press black sesame dough required for cakes to a flat layer, about one finger thick, and cut it with a fine-toothed comb into dice. This way the individual large pieces are cut but they remain linked at the bottom. Spread them on a tile and bake them over a slow fire until they have dried. For each application [grind] one dice to a powder and send it down mixed with a decoction of common rushes and bamboo shavings. Xu xue shi, Ben shi fang. 喉痺喉風。二聖散:用鴨觜膽礬二錢半,白僵蠶炒五錢,研,每以少許吹 之,吐涎。濟生方。 633 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191. 634 Xue feng 血風, “blood wind,” results from an intrusion of wind evil qi into an unbalanced state of qi and blood, mostly in women, BCGM Dict I, 594.

650

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Throat closure and throat wind. The “powder of the two sages.” Grind two and a half qian of duck beak chalchanthite and five qian of roasted, white stiff silkworms [to a powder]. Each time blow a small amount [into the patient’s throat]. He will vomit saliva. Ji sheng fang. 齒痛及落。研細石膽,以人乳和膏擦之,日三四次,止痛,復生齒,百日 後復故乃止。每日以新汲水漱净。王燾外臺秘要。 Toothache and loss [of teeth]. Grind chalcanthite to a fine [powder], mix it with human milk to obtain a paste and apply this [to the affected region], three to four times a day. This will end the pain and lets new teeth grow. When after one hundred days the original condition is restored, end [the treatment]. Cleanse [the teeth] every day with newly drawn water. Wang Tao, Wai tai mi yao. 口舌生瘡,衆療不差。膽礬半兩,入銀鍋内火煅赤,出毒一夜,細研,每 以少許傅之,吐去酸涎水,二三次瘥。勝金方。 Mouth and tongue develop sores, with all types of therapies remaining without effect. Calcine half a liang of chalcanthite in a silver bowl with fire until it has turned red. Then let the fire poison leave for one night and grind it to a fine [powder]. Each time apply a small amount [to the affected region] and [the patient] will vomit, emitting sour saliva. After two or three times a cure will be achieved. Sheng jin fang. 走馬牙疳。北棗一枚去核,入鴨觜膽礬,紙包煅赤,出火毒,研末傅之, 追涎。楊起簡便方。 Running horse dental gan-illness.635 Remove the pit of one northern date and insert duck beak chalcanthite into it. Wrap it in paper and calcine it until it has turned red. Wait for the fire poison to have left, grind it to a powder and apply this to [the affected region]. This will drive out saliva. Yang Qi, Jian bian fang. 小兒齒疳。鴨觜膽礬一錢,匙上煅紅,麝香少許,研匀,傅齦上,立效。 活幼口議。 Dental gan-illness of children. Calcine one qian of duck beak chalcanthite on a spoon until it has turned red, grind it with a small amount of musk to an evenly mixed [powder] and apply this to the [affected] teeth. Immediately successful. Huo you kou yi.

635 Zou ma ya gan 走馬牙疳, “running horse dental gan-illness,” a dental illness that develops abruptly and turns into a serious condition. BCGM Dict I, 704.

Chapter 10

651

小兒鼻疳蝕爛。膽礬燒烟盡,研末摻之,一二日愈。集簡方。 Gan-illness636 of children affecting the nose, with a festering erosion. Heat chalcanthite until no more fumes rise, grind it to a powder and apply it to [the affected region]. A cure will be achieved after one or two days. Ji jian fang. 風眼赤爛。膽礬三錢,燒研,泡湯日洗。明目經驗方。 Red and festering eyes caused by wind. Heat three qian of chalcanthite and grind it [to a powder]. Soak it in hot water and wash [the affected eyes with it] every day. Ming mu jing yan fang. 百蟲入耳。膽礬末和醋灌之,即出。千金方。 When any of the hundreds of worms/bugs have entered the ears. Insert chalcanthite mixed with vinegar [into the affected ears] and they will come out. Qian jin fang. 風犬咬毒。膽礬末傅之,立愈。濟急方。 Mad dog bite with poison. Apply chalcanthite powder to [the affected region]. A cure will be achieved immediately. Ji ji fang. 一切諸毒。膽子礬末,糯米糊丸如雞頭子大,以朱砂爲衣,仍以朱砂養 之,冷水化一丸服,立愈。勝金方。 All types of poison. Use chalcanthite powder and a paste of polished glutinous rice to prepare pills the size of euryale seeds, coated with cinnabar. [During storage continuously] repeat the coating with cinnabar to protect them against decay. [At the time of their application] dissolve one pill in cold water and [let the patient] ingest this. A cure will be achieved immediately. Sheng jin fang. 挑生蠱毒,胸口痛者,膽礬二錢,茶清泡服,即吐出。嶺南衞生方。 Gu poisoning637 to take one’s life, with painful chest and mouth. Soak two qian of chalcanthite in tea and ingest it. This will [cause the poison to be] released by vomiting. Ling nan wei sheng fang. 腋下胡臭。膽礬半生半熟,入膩粉少許,爲末,每用半錢,以自然薑汁調 塗,十分熱痛乃止。數日一用,以愈爲度。黎居士簡易方。 636 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188. 637 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191.

652

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Barbarian stench under the armpits. Add a small amount of calomel to chalcanthite, half of which is unprocessed and the other half of which is processed with heat, and [grind this to a] powder. Each time mix half a qian with natural ginger juice and apply this to [the armpits]. When they feel extremely hot and painful, end [the application]. Continue this for several days, once a day, until a healing is achieved. Li Jushi, Jian yi fang. 赤白癜風。膽礬、牡蠣粉各半兩,生研,醋調,摩之。聖濟録。 Red and white patches wind.638 Grind half a liang each of chalcanthite and oyster shell powder [to a powder], mix it with vinegar and rub this [on the affected region]. Sheng ji lu. 甲疽腫痛。石膽一兩,燒烟盡,研末,傅之,不過四五度瘥。梅師方。 Impediment-illness639 affecting the nails, with swelling and pain. Heat one liang of chalcanthite until no more fumes rise, grind it to a powder and apply this to [the affected region]. A cure will be achieved after no more than four or five applications. Mei shi fang. 痔瘡熱腫。鴨觜青膽礬煅研,蜜水調傅,可以消脱。直指方。 Piles sores with heat and swelling. Mix greenish duck beak chalcanthite, calcined and ground [to a powder], with honey water and apply this to [the affected region]. This will dissolve the prolapse. Zhi zhi fang. 腫毒不破。膽礬、雀屎各少許,點之。直指方。 Swelling with poison that has not broken open yet. Drip a mixture of equally small amounts of chalcanthite and sparrow droppings on [the affected region]. Zhi zhi fang. 楊梅毒瘡。醋調膽礬末搽之。痛甚者,加乳香、没藥。出惡水,一二上即 乾。 Red bayberry poison sores.640 Apply chalcanthite powder mixed with vinegar to them. When the pain is severe, add frankincense and myrrh. This will cause malign water to be released. After one or two applications [the sores] will have dried up. 638 Bai dian feng 白癜風, “white patches wind. ” Vaguely defined skin ailment. BCGM Dict I, 46. 639 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277. 640 Yang mei chuang 楊梅毒瘡, “red bayberry [poison] sores,” most likely including cases of syphilis. BCGM Dict I, 293, 294.

Chapter 10

653

又方:膽礬、白礬、水銀各三錢半,研不見星,入香油、津唾各少許, 和匀。坐帳内,取藥塗兩足心,以兩手心對足心摩擦,良久再塗再擦,盡 即卧。汗出,或大便去垢,口出穢涎爲驗。每一次,强者用四錢,弱者二 錢,連用三日。外服疏風散,并澡洗。劉氏經驗方。 Alternative recipe. Grind three and a half qian each of chalcanthite, white alum and mercury [to a powder] until no more [mercury] stars remain visible. Add equally small amounts of sesame oil and [human] saliva, and mix it evenly. [Let the patient] sit on a bed. Apply the medication to the soles of his two feet and let him firmly rub the soles of his feet with the palms of his hands for a long time, alternately applying [more of the paste to the soles] and rubbing them. Once [all the paste] is used up, let him lie down. He will sweat, or discard filth through defecation. His mouth will emit a dirty saliva, and this is the cure. For each application, strong [patients] use four qian, weak [patients use] two qian, for three days in a row. In addition, they are to ingest a “powder to scatter wind”641 and to bathe [in a liquid application of this powder]. Liu shi jing yan fang. 10-14 礜石本經下品 Yu shi, FE Ben jing, lower rank. Arsenolite. Arsenic trioxide. 【釋名】白礜石、太白石别録、立制石本經、青介石、固羊石本經、石鹽 别録、澤乳吴普、鼠鄉吴普。【時珍曰】礜義不解。許氏説文云:礜,毒 石也。西山經云:皋塗之山,有白石,其名曰礜,可以毒鼠。郭璞注云: 鼠食則死,蠶食而肥,則鼠鄉之意以此。 Explanation of Names. Bai yu shi 白礜石, tai bai shi 太白石, Bie lu. Li zhi shi 立制 石, Ben jing. Qing jie shi 青介石, Gu yang shi 固羊石, Ben jing. Shi yan 石鹽, Bie lu. Ze ru 澤乳, Wu Pu. Shu xiang 鼠鄉, “parish of mice/rats,” Wu Pu. [Li] Shizhen: The meaning of [the character] yu 礜 cannot be explained. Xu shi in his Shuo wen states: Yu 礜 is a poisonous stone/mineral. The Xi shan jing states: “On Mount Gao tu a white stone/mineral occurs. It is named yu 礜 and can be used to poison mice/ rats.” Guo Pu commented: “When mice/rats eat it, they die. When silkworms eat it, they become fat.” This provides [the name] shu xiang 鼠鄉, “parish of mice/rats,” with some meaning. 641 The “powder to scatter wind” includes the following substances: mint, notopterygium [root], angelica sinensis [root], schizonepeta [spike], pueraria root, phellodendron bark, sophora [root], arctium seed, gardenia fruit, polygonum [root], ginseng [root], white, stiff silkworms, saposhnikovia root, dictamnus root bark, coptis [rhizome], vitex fruit, forsythia fruit, gastrodia [tuber], yellow vetch, Chinese clematis, astragalus [herb], complete scorpions, angelica [root], glycyrrhiza root, epimedium [herb].

654

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【集解】【别録曰】礜石生漢中山谷及少室,采無時。【當之曰】或生少 室,或生魏興,十二月采。【弘景曰】今蜀漢亦有,而好者出南康 南野 溪及彭城界中、洛陽城南塹。又湘東 新寧及零陵皆有。白礜石,能柔金。 以黄泥包,炭火燒之,一日一夕則解,可用。丹房及黄白術多用之。【恭 曰】此石能拒火,久燒但解散,不可脱其堅。今市人乃取潔白理石當之, 燒即爲灰也。今漢川 武當 西遼坂名礜石谷,即是真出處。少室有粒細 理,不如漢中者。【頌曰】今潞州、階州亦有之。【時珍曰】詳見特生礜 石下。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Arsenolite grows in the mountain valleys of Han zhong, and in Shao shi. It is collected anytime. [Li] Dangzhi: Some grows in Shao shi, some grows in Wei xing. It is collected in the twelfth month. [Tao] Hongjing: Today it is present in Shu han, too. [Arsenolite of ] good quality originates in the border region of Nan ye xi in Nan kang and Peng cheng, and in the moat south of Luo yang cheng. It is also found in Xin ning and Ling ling of Xiang dong. White arsenolite is able to soften gold/metals. Wrapped in yellow mud and heated with charcoal fire for one day and one night it will disintegrate and can then be used [for therapeutic purposes]. [Su] Gong: This stone/mineral can resist fire. When it is heated for a long time it will disintegrate but its hardness cannot be reduced. Today, the market people use spotlessly white mineral gypsum as a substitute. When it is heated it burns to ashes. Today in Xi liao ban in Wu dang of Han chuan is a valley named arsenolite valley. This is the origin of genuine arsenolite. [That from] Shao shi comes as finely structured grains. It is not as good as that from Han zhong. [Su] Song: Today it occurs in Lu zhou and Jie zhou, too. [Li] Shizhen: For details see the entry on te sheng yu shi 特生礜石 (10-15). 【氣味】辛,大熱,有毒。【别録曰】甘,生温、熟熱。【普曰】神農、 岐伯:辛,有毒。桐君、黄帝:甘,有毒。【權曰】甘,有小毒。鉛丹爲 之使。惡羊血,不入湯。【之才曰】得火良。棘針爲之使。惡馬目毒公、 鶩屎、虎掌、細辛,畏水。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, very hot, poisonous. Bie lu: Sweet, unprocessed: warm; processed: hot. [Wu] Pu: Shen nong, Qi Bo: Acrid, poisonous. Tong jun, Huang Di: Sweet, poisonous. [Zhen] Quan: Sweet, slightly poisonous. Minium serves as its guiding substance. [Ingested together,] it abhors sheep blood. It cannot be prepared as a decoction. [Xu] Zhicai: An exposure to fire benefits [its effects]. Zizyphus [twig] serves as its guiding substance. [Ingested together,] it abhors common dysosma [root], duck excrements, arisaema [root] and asarum heteropoides root. It fears water. 【主治】寒熱鼠瘻,蝕死肌,風痺,腹中堅癖邪氣。本經。除熱明目,下 氣,除膈中熱,止消渴,益肝氣,破積聚,痼冷腹痛,去鼻中息肉,久服

Chapter 10

655

令人筋攣。火鍊百日,服一刀圭。不鍊服,則殺人及百獸。别録。除胸膈 間積氣,去冷濕風痺、瘙痒積年者。甄權。 Control. Alternating cold and heat sensations. Mouse fistula.642 Dead muscles affected by erosion. Wind blockage.643 Hard aggregation-illness of evil qi in the abdomen. Ben jing. It eliminates heat and clears the eyes. It serves to discharge qi. It removes heat from the diaphragm region. It ends melting with thirst.644 It boosts the liver qi. It breaks open accumulations and collections. [It serves to cure] obstinacy illness cold645 with abdominal pain and removes tumorous flesh growth from within the nose. Ingested over a long time it lets one’s sinews contract. To process it with heat over a fire for one hundred days and ingest as much as is held by a knife shaped jade tablet, is good. Ingested without processing it with heat first will kill a person and the hundreds of animals. Bie lu. It eliminates accumulated qi from within the chest and the diaphragm region. It removes a blockage caused by cold, moisture and wind, as well as itch that has accumulated over years. Zhen Quan. 【發明】【弘景曰】常取生礜石納水,令水不冰,如此則生者性亦大熱 矣。【張仲景云】生用,破人心肝。【恭曰】此藥攻擊積冷之病爲良。 若以餘物代之,療病無效,正爲此也。【宗奭曰】治久積及久病腹冷有 功,直須慎用,其毒不可試也。【時珍曰】礜石性氣與砒石相近,蓋亦其 類也。古方礜石、礬石常相渾混書,蓋二字相似,故誤耳。然礬石性寒無 毒,礜石性熱有毒,不可不審。陸農師云:礜石之力,十倍鍾乳。按洪容 齋隨筆云:王子敬静息貼言礜石深是可疑。凡喜散者輒發癰,蓋散者,寒 食散也,古人多服之,中有礜石,性熱有毒,故云深可疑也。劉表在荆 州,與王粲登鄣山,見一岡不生百草。粲曰:此必古冢,其人在世服生礜 石,熱不出外,故草木焦滅。表掘之,果有礜石滿塋。又今洛水不冰, 下亦有礜,古人謂之温洛是也。取此石安甕中,水亦不冰。文鸛伏卵,取 石置巢中,以助温氣,其性如此,豈可服?予兄文安公鎮金陵,秋暑减 食。醫者湯三益教服礜石丸。已而飲啖日進,遂加意服之。越十月而毒 作,衄血斗餘。自是數數不止,竟至精液皆竭而死。時珍竊謂洪文安之 病,未必是礜石毒發。蓋亦因其健啖自恃,厚味房勞,縱恣無忌,以致精 642 Shu lou 鼠瘻, “mouse fistula,” identical with lou li 瘰癧, “scrofula with pervasion-illness.” BCGM Dict I, 466. 643 Feng bi 風痺, “wind blockage,” diseases resulting mostly from an intrusion of wind evil. BCGM Dict I, 158. 644 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567. 645 Gu leng 痼冷, “obstinacy-illness cold,” a condition cold evil abiding deep in the body for an extended period of time. BCGM Dict I, 195

656

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

竭而死。夫因减食而服石,食既進則病去,藥當止矣。而猶服之不已,恃 藥妄作,是果藥之罪歟? Explication. [Tao] Hongjing: [I] have repeatedly placed yu shi into water. When the water turned cold it did not freeze. That is, unprocessed yu shi by its nature is very hot. Zhang Zhongjing states: Applied unprocessed it breaks one’s heart and liver. [Su] Gong: This medication is good at attacking diseases of accumulated cold. When other drugs are resorted to to replace it, therapies of such diseases will remain without effect, for this very reason. [Kou] Zongshi: It is effective when used to cure long-lasting accumulations and long-lasting diseases of abdominal cold. But it is to be applied with great caution. Its poison is too strong to be tested. [Li] Shizhen: The nature and the qi of yu shi and arsenic are similar. The fact is, they are of one group. In ancient recipes yu shi 礜石and fan shi 礬石 were often confused in writing. The fact is, the two characters are very similar and hence such errors happened. However, alum is by nature cold and nonpoisonous. Yu shi is by nature hot and poisonous. One must be careful! Lu Nongshi states: “The strength of yu shi is tenfold that of stalactites.” According to the Hong Rongzhi sui bi, Wang Zijing in his Jing xi tie says: ‘[The benefits of ] yu shi can be profoundly doubted. All those who habitually ingest the “cold food powder” often develop obstruction-illness’.646 The fact is, the ‘powder’ is the ‘cold food powder’ that was often consumed by the ancients. It contains yu shi with its hot nature and poison. Hence [Wang Zijing] states ‘can be profoundly doubted’. When Liu Biao in Jing zhou climbed Mount Zhang shan with Wang Can, he saw a ridge of a hill without any herbal growth. [Wang] Can told him: This must be the site of an old tomb. During his life, the person [buried] there ate unprocessed yu shi. The heat has not left to the outside. Hence herbs and trees are scorched and wiped out. [Liu] Biao had [the tomb] dug open, and [eventually they saw that] the grave was filled with yu shi. Also, nowadays the Luo shui river does not freeze. Underneath of it yu shi is present. Hence the ancients called it ‘warm Luo’. When this stone/mineral is given into a jar with water, the water will not freeze. When [the bird] wen guan 文鸛 hatches its eggs, it picks up such stones/minerals and places them into its nest to assist its own warm qi. With such a nature how could one want to ingest [yu shi]? My elder brother Wen’an gong, stationed in Jin ling, during hot weather in autumn lost his appetite. Tang Sanyi, a physician, advised him to ingest pills with yu shi. Then he drank and ate every day, and satisfied [by the effects of the medication] he decided to ingest ever more. After ten months the poison began to work. Through nosebleed he lost more than one dou of blood. This happened again and again, and did not end. Eventually, he 646 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641.

Chapter 10

657

had lost all his essence liquid and died.” [I, Li] Shizhen, venture to say that Hong Wen’an’s disease was not necessarily caused by the poison of yu shi alone. The fact is, it was also caused by his forceful eating habits. He loved rich food and he exhausted himself with sexual intercourse. He indulged in his pleasures without restraint until eventually his essence/sperm was used up and he died. Now, he ingested [yu] shi because he had lost his appetite. Once he began to eat again, his disease was gone. This was the moment when he should have stopped to take this medication. Still, he continued to ingest it without end. For his presumptious lifestyle he relied on this medication. So how could [his death] be the fault of this medication?

【附方】新一。 Added Recipes. One newly [recorded]. 風冷脚氣。白礜石煅二斤,酒三斗,漬三日,稍稍飲之。肘後方。 Leg qi caused by wind and cold. Soak two jin of white yu shi in three dou of wine for three days and drink [the liquid] in small portions. Zhou hou fang. 10-15 特生礜石别録下品 Te sheng yu shi, FE Bie lu, lower rank. Independently growing arsenolite. Colored asenolite. 【釋名】蒼礜石、蒼石别録、鼠毒。【恭曰】特生礜石,一名蒼礜石。梁 州礜石亦有青者,漢中人亦以毒鼠,不入方用。【宗奭曰】礜石、特生礜 石止是一物,但以特生、不特生爲異耳。所謂特生者,不附着他石爲特 爾,今用者絶少。【時珍曰】礜石有蒼、白二種,而蒼者多特生,故此云 一名蒼礜石,則别録蒼石係重出矣。其功療皆相同,今併爲一。 Explanation of Names. Cang yu shi 蒼礜石, “grey arsenolit;” cang shi 蒼石, “grey stone/mineral,” Bie lu. Shu du 鼠毒, “mice/rat poison.” [Su] Gong: Te sheng yu shi 特生礜石, “independently growing arsenolite,” is also named cang yu shi 蒼礜石, “grey arsenolite.” Yu shi from Liang zhou includes greenish kinds. The people in Han zhong use it to poison mice/rats. They do not add it to medication. [Kou] Zongshi: Yu shi 礜石 and te sheng yu shi 特生礜石 are one and the same item. Their only difference is whether they grow independently, te sheng 特生, or not, bu te sheng 不特生. When it is said “they grow independently,” te sheng 特生, their “independence” is that they are not attached to other stones/minerals. Nowadays, [independently growing yu shi] is used very seldom. [Li] Shizhen: Arsenolite occurs in two kinds: grey and white, with the grey variety growing mostly independent [from

658

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

other stones/minerals]. Hence it is stated here: “alternative name: grey arsenolite.” That is, the “grey arsenolite” mentioned in the Bie lu [in a separate entry] is given there a redundant record. The curative effects of both are identical. Here now they are combined in one entry. 【集解】【别録曰】特生礜石一名蒼礜石,生西域,采無時。又曰:蒼石 生西域,采無時。【弘景曰】舊説鸛巢中者佳。鸛常入水冷,故取以壅卵 令熱。今不可得。惟出漢中者,其外形紫赤色,内白如霜,中央有臼,狀 形如齒者佳。又出荆州 新城郡 房陵縣縹白色者爲好。亦先以黄土包燒一 日,亦可納斧孔中燒之,合玉壺諸丸。仙經不言特生,止是白礜石耳。 【恭曰】陶説中如齒臼形者正是。今出梁州,北馬道戍澗中亦有之。形 塊小于白礜石,而肌粒大數倍,乃如小豆許。其白礜粒細如粟米耳。今房 陵、漢川、均州、荆州與白礜石同處,有色青者,是也。【宗奭曰】博物 志言,鸛伏卵,取礜石入巢助暖,方家得此石乃真。陶氏以注特生礜石, 則二石是一物明矣。但屢檢鸛巢無此石,况礜石焉得處處有之?若鸛入水 冷故取此石,則鸕鷀之類皆食于水,亦自然生化繁息。此則乃俗士之言, 未嘗究其實而窮其理也。【時珍曰】礜石有數種,白礜石、蒼礜石、紫礜 石、紅皮礜石、桃花礜石、金星礜石、銀星礜石、特生礜石俱是一物,但 以形色立名。其性皆熱毒,並可毒鼠制汞,惟蒼、白二色入藥用。諸礜生 于山,則草木不生,霜雪不積;生于水則水不冰凍,或有温泉,其氣之熱 可知矣。庚辛玉册云:礜,陽石也,生山谷水中,濯出似礬,有文理横截 在中者爲佳。伏火,制砂汞。其狀頗與方解石相似,但投水不冰者爲真。 其出金穴中者,名握雪礜石。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Independently growing arsenolite is also named “grey arsenolite.” It grows in the western regions and is collected anytime. It is also said: Grey arsenolite grows in the western regions; it is collected anytime. [Tao] Hongjing: In old records it is said that [arsenolite recovered] from the nests of storks is fine. Storks often enter cold water. Hence they pick up [arsenolite] to cover and heat their eggs. Nowadays [arsenolite from the nests of storks] is no longer available. It solely originates in Han zhong. That with an external appearance of purple-red color, with a white inside like frost and in its center with an indenture as if there were teeth, is fine. Also, that is good that originates in Xin cheng jun and Fang ling xian in Jing zhou and is of a pale white color. One either wraps it in yellow soil/loess and heats it for one day, or one inserts it into the hole of an axe and heats it there. It is compounded [with other substances to prepare] all types of “pills for the jade flask.”647 The classics of hermits/immortals do not refer to independently growing [arsenolite]; they only speak of white arsenolite. [Su] Gong: Tao [Hongjing’s] 647 “Jade flask” is a Daoist term that refers to the human body.

Chapter 10

659

reference to a physical appearance of a tooth-like indenture is correct. Nowadays, it is also found in Liang zhou and in the ravine adjacent to the garrison of northern Ma dao. These are pieces that are smaller than white arsenolite. But the [crystal] grains pervading it like muscles are several times bigger, like small beans, while the [crystal] grains of white arsenolite are as fine as millet. Nowadays, [independently growing arsenolite] of greenish color occurs at the same locations as white arsenolite in Fang ling, Han chuan, Jun zhou and Jing zhou. [Kou] Zongshi: The Bo wu zhi says: “When storks hatch their eggs they pick arsenolite and bring them into their nests to support their own warmth. Recipe experts accept only such arsenolite as genuine.” From Mr. Tao [Hongjing’s] comment on independently growing arsenolite it is clear that the two arsenolite kinds [i. e., independently growing and not independently growing arsenolite] are in fact one identical item. However, the nests of storks have been searched time and again, and such arsenolite was never found. Also, if arsenolite were available from these [nests], should it not be available everywhere? Now, if storks pick up these stones/minerals because they enter cold water, how about such birds as cormorants? They all feed in the waters and by themselves they proliferate with ample offspring. These are stories told by common men. There has never been an examination whether these are facts, and there has never been research on their underlying principles. [Li] Shizhen: Arsenolite appears in numerous kinds: white arsenolite, grey arsenolite, purple arsenolite, red skin arsenolite, peach blossom arsenolite, golden star arsenolite, silver star arsenolite, and independently growing arsenolite – they all are one identical item. By their nature all of them are hot and poisonous, and they all alike can poison mice/rats and check mercury. Only grey and white [arsenolite] are added to medication. All types of arsenolite grow in mountains [and on these mountains] herbs and trees do not grow, and frost and snow do not accumulate. When [arsenolite] grows in a water, this water will not freeze. Sometimes there are warm springs that are obviously endowed with the hot qi [of arsenolite]. The Geng xin yu ce states: “Arsenolite is a yang stone/mineral. It grows in mountain valleys and waters. When it is washed clean it is similar to alum. That with horizontal line structures in the center is fine. It subdues fire and checks cinnabar and mercury. Its shape is somewhat similar to that of the ‘stone/mineral that splits into rectangular pieces’. Still, when it is tossed into water and the [water] does not freeze, it is genuine [arsenolite]. [Arsenolite] originating in gold/metal caves is called ‘arsenolite that holds the snow’.” 【氣味】甘,温有毒。【之才曰】火鍊之良,畏水。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, warm, poisonous. [Xu] Zhicai: [Independently growing arsenolite] is good when it has been processed over a fire. It fears water.

660

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【主治】明目利耳,腹内絶寒,破堅結及鼠瘻,殺百蟲惡獸。久服延年。 别録。蒼石:主寒熱下氣瘻蝕,殺禽獸。别録。 Control. It clears the eyes and opens the ears. It curtails abdominal cold. It breaks open hard nodes and mouse fistula.648 It kills the hundreds of worms/bugs and malign animals. Ingested over a long time it extends the years [of life]. Bie lu. Grey arsenolite: It controls alternating cold and heat sensations, discharges qi, [cures] fistula and erosions, and kills birds and animals. Bie lu. 【發明】【時珍曰】别録言,礜石久服令人筋攣,特生礜石久服延年。丹 書亦云,礜石化爲水,能伏水銀,鍊入長生藥。此皆方士謬説也,與服砒 石、汞長生之義同,其死而無悔者乎? Explication. [Li] Shizhen: The Bie lu says: “To ingest arsenolite for a long time causes sinew cramps. To ingest independently growing arsenolite for a long time extends the years [of one’s life].” The Dan shu, too, states: “When arsenolite is transformed to water it is able to subdue mercury; following a refinement with heat it may be added to longevity medication.” All these are false sayings of recipe masters; they agree with the idea underlying the use of arsenic and mercury for pronlonging life. If [the people resorting to such measures] die, how can one not regret it? 10-16 握雪礜石唐本草 Wo xue yu shi, FE Tang ben cao. Arsenolite that holds the snow. Yellowish-white arsenolite. Arsenic trioxide. 【集解】【恭曰】握雪礜石出徐州 宋里山。入土丈餘,於爛土石間得之。 細散如麪,黄白色。土人號爲握雪礜石,一名化公 649石,一名石腦,云服 之長生。【時珍曰】謹按獨孤滔丹房鑑源云:握雪礜石出曲灘澤。盛寒時 有髓生于石上,可采。一分結汞十兩。又按:南宫從岣嶁神書云:石液, 即丹礬之脂液也。此石出襄陽曲灘澤中,或在山,或在木,色白而粗糯。 至冬月有脂液出其上,旦則見,日而伏。當于日未出時,以銅刀刮置器 内,火煅通赤,取出,楮汁爲丸,其液沾處便如鐵色。以液一銖,制水銀 四兩,器中火之立乾。但此液亦不多得,乃神理所惜,采時須用白鷄、清 酒祭之。此石華山、嵩山皆出,而有脂液者,惟此曲灘。又熊太古冀越集 亦言:丹山礬十兩,可乾汞十兩。此乃人格物之精,發天地之秘也。據三 書所引,則握雪礜石乃石之液,非土中石腦也。蘇恭所説,自是石腦。其 説與别録及陶弘景所注石腦相合,不當復注于此。又按:諸書或作礜石, 648 Shu lou 鼠瘻, “mouse fistula,” identical with lou li 瘰癧, “scrofula with pervasion-illness.” BCGM Dict I, 466. 649 Gong 公 stands here for the homophone gong 汞, “mercury.”

Chapter 10

661

或作礬石,未知孰是。古書二字每每訛混。以理推之,似是礬石。礜石有 毒,礬石無毒故也。 Collected Explanations. [Su] Gong: “Arsenolite that holds the snow” originates in Mount Song li shan in Xu zhou. [The people] enter the soil more than a zhang deep and obtain it there from among decayed soil and rocks. It is finely dispersed like flour, and of yellow white color. The local people call it “arsenolite that holds the snow.” Another name is “the stone that transforms mercury.” Still another name is “stone brain.” They say to ingest it will extend one’s life. [Li] Shizhen: According to Dugu Tao’s Dan fang jian yuan, “the ‘arsenolite that holds the snow’ originates in the marshlands of Qu tang. During very cold times a marrow grows on the stones and can be collected. One fen of it binds ten liang of mercury.” Also, according to Nan Gongcong’s Gou lou shen shu, “‘stone/mineral liquid’ is the liquid fat of dan fan 丹礬. This stone/mineral originates in the marshlands Qu tang650 in Xiang yang. These may be mountains or woods. Its color is white, and its substance is crude and glutinous. During winter months a fat liquid appears on its surface; it is visible at daybreak and disappears under the sun. [The people] scratch it off with a copper knife and store it in a vessel before the sun has risen. They calcine it over a fire until it has turned red and with paper mulberry juice prepare pills. Any location touched by this liquid will assume the color of iron. With one zhu of this liquid four liang of mercury can be checked. When [this mixture] is heated with fire in a vessel it will be dry immediately. However, this liquid is not available in large quantities. It is held in high regard even by spirits. When it is collected, sacrifices with white chicken and clear wine are to be performed. This stone/mineral originates in both Mount Hua shan and Mount Song shan. But that which has the fat liquid occurs only at Qu tang.” Also, Xiong Taigu in his Ji Yue ji says: “With ten liang of dan shan fan 丹山 礬 it is possible to dry ten liang of mercury. This is an example of the human spirit aiming at studying the principles underlying all items and thereby to disclose the secrets between heaven and earth.” Based on the quotes from these three texts, it is obvious that “arsenolite that holds the snow” is a liquid released by a stone/mineral. It is not the “stone/mineral brain” found in the soil. Hence, Su Gong’s reference is to “stone/mineral brain.” It agrees with the comments in the Bie lu and by Tao Hongjing on “stone/mineral brain.” They must not be repeated here. Also, all texts write either yu shi 礜石 or fan shi 礬石, and it is unknown what they mean. In ancient texts these two characters were all to often mixed up. Deducted rationally, they seem to refer to fan shi 礬石, alum. Because yu shi is poisonous, alum is not poisonous.

650 A place named Qu tang 曲灘 could not be identified.

662

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【氣味】甘,温,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, warm, nonpoisonous. 【主治】痼冷積聚,輕身延年。多食令人熱。唐本。治大風瘡。時珍。 Obstinacy-illness cold651 accumulations and collections. It relieves the body of its weight and extends the years [of life]. Consumed in large amounts it lets one become hot. Tang ben. It serves to cure massive wind652 sores. [Li] Shizhen. 10-17 砒石宋開寶 Pi shi, FE Song, Kai bao. Arsenic. Arsenic trioxide. 【釋名】信石、人言綱目。生者名砒黄,鍊者名砒霜。【時珍曰】砒,性 猛如貔,故名。惟出信州,故人呼爲信石,而又隱信字爲人言。 Explanation of Names. Xin shi 信石, “stone/mineral from Xin;” ren yan 人言, Gang mu. As long as it is raw, it is called pi huang 砒黄, “arsenic yellow;” once it is refined with heat, it is called pi shuang 砒霜, “arsenic frost.” [Li] Shizhen: Pi 砒 [huang and pi shuang] are by nature as ferocious as [the mythical bear-like animal] pi 貔. Hence the name. It originates only in Xin zhou. Hence the people call it “Xin stone/mineral,” xin shi 信石. The character xin 信 is also concealed by [splitting it up into the two characters] ren yan 人言. 【集解】【頌曰】砒霜不著所出郡縣,今近銅山處亦有之,惟信州者佳。 其塊有甚大者,色如鵝子黄,明澈不雜。此類本處自是難得之物,一兩大 塊真者,人競珍之,不啻于金。古服食方中亦載用之,必得此類,乃可入 藥。其市肆所畜片如細屑,亦夾土石,入藥服之,爲害不淺。【承曰】 信州 玉山有砒井,官中封禁甚嚴。生不夾石者,色赤甚于雄黄,以冷水 磨,解熱毒,近火即殺人,所謂不啻金價者此也。今市貨者,取山中夾砂 石者,燒烟飛作白霜,乃碎屑而芒刺,其傷火多者,塊大而微黄,所謂如 鵝子色明澈者此也。古方並不入藥,惟燒煉丹石家用之。近人多以治瘧, 但以瘧本傷暑,而此物生者能解熱毒也。今俗醫不究其理,即以所燒霜服 之,必大吐下,因此幸有安者,遂爲所損極多,不可不慎。初燒霜時,人 在上風十餘丈外立,下風所近草木皆死。又以和飯毒鼠,死鼠猫犬食之亦 死,毒過于射罔遠矣。衡山所出一種,力差劣于信州者。【宗奭曰】今 651 Gu leng 痼冷, “obstinacy-illness cold,” a condition cold evil abiding deep in the body for an extended period of time. BCGM Dict I, 195 652 Da feng 大風, “massive wind,” may refer to sores caused by a massive intrusion of wind evil and also to conditions of leprosy. BCGM Dict I, 111.

Chapter 10

663

信鑿坑井下取之。其坑常封鎖,坑中有濁緑水,先絞水盡,然後下鑿取。 生砒謂之砒黄,色如牛肉,或有淡白路,謂石非石,謂土非土。磨酒飲, 治癖積氣。見火便有毒,不可造次服也。取法:將生砒就置火上,以器覆 之,令烟上飛,着器凝結。纍然下垂如乳尖者入藥爲勝,平短者次之,大 塊乃是下等,片如細屑者極下也。【時珍曰】此乃錫之苗,故新錫器盛酒 日久能殺人者,爲有砒毒也。生砒黄以赤色者爲良,熟砒霜以白色者爲良。 Collected Explanations. [Su] Song: [Ancient] records do not specify the prefectures and counties arsenic originates in. Today it is also found at mountain locations where copper is mined. But only [arsenic] from Xin zhou is fine. Its pieces are very big, and their color is that of goose egg yolk, clear and without flaws. This is an item that is hard to obtain even at its places of origin. A piece of one liang is highly valued by the people, no less than gold. Ancient recipes [recommending substances] to be ingested for food have also recorded its use. It must be of this quality, and can then be added to medication. On the markets they sell [arsenic] in pieces resembling thin slices with soil and stone impurities. When they are added to medication and ingested [by patients], the harm they cause will not be minor. [Chen] Cheng: On Mount Yu shan in Xin zhou is an arsenic well. It is strictly shielded off by the authorities. [Arsenic] grows there without any stone/mineral impurities, and its color is red, even more so than that of realgar. [Ingested] ground in cold water it resolves heat poison. [Ingested] after being exposed to fire, it will kill one. It is one of those “with a value no less than gold.” Those who trade [arsenic] on the markets today take from the mountains that with stone/mineral impurities. They heat it and by means of sublimation they produce a white frost. These are small crumbs and needles. When the fire is excessive, the pieces will be big and slightly yellow. They are those that are said to be “colored like goose egg [yolk] and clear.” In ancient recipes [arsenic of this quality] was never added to medication. It was used only by those experts who heat and refine it for use as elixirs. Nowadays, the people often use it to cure malaria. However, malaria basically is a harm caused by summerheat, and this item, as long as it is unprocessed, is capable of resolving heat poison. Today’s common physicians do not investigate such underlying principles. Hence when [this substance] is prepared with heat to a frost and then ingested, [patients] inevitably will be affected by massive vomiting and discharge. There are some who happily recover after such [a therapy], but those who will be harmed are many more. One must be careful! In the beginning, when the [arsenic] frost is prepared with heat [sublimation], the persons [engaged in this process] will take a position more than ten zhang away in the direction where the wind comes from. In the direction where the wind blows, all herbs and trees will die. Also, they mix it with rice to poison rats/mice. When a cat or a dog eats the dead rats/mice, they will die too.

664

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

The poison [of arsenic] is much more violent than that of the “archer.”653 A variety originating in Mount Heng is less powerful than [arsenic] from Xin zhou. [Kou] Zongshi: Nowadays it is obtained in Xin from pits dug into the ground. These pits are often sealed off and closed. In the pits is a turbid, green water. It is to be removed completely before one may dig further to obtain [the arsenic]. Unprocessed arsenic is called “arsenic yellow.” Its color is that of beef. It may include white stripes. It is said to be a stone/mineral, but it is not a stone/mineral. It is said to be soil, but it is not soil. Rubbed in wine and [the liquid] drunk serves to cure aggregation-illness accumulation of qi. When it is exposed to fire it will be poisonous immediately, and must not be ingested impetuously. The method to obtain [arsenic yellow]: Place unprocessed arsenic above fire and cover it with a vessel. Allow the fumes to rise and to congeal once they touch the vessel [cover]. Those that hang down one next to another like tips of stalactites are the best to be added to medication. Those that are flat and short are of secondary value. Large pieces are of lower quality; fine slices are of lowest grade. [Li] Shizhen: This [substance] is the seedling of tin. Hence when new tin vessels have held wine for as long as a day, it can kill a human, because this is the poison of arsenic. Raw arsenic yellow with a red color is good. Processed arsenic frost with a white color is good. 【修治】【斅曰】凡使用,以小瓷瓶盛,後入紫背天葵、石龍芮二味,火 煅從巳至申,便用甘草水浸,從申至子,出拭乾,入瓶再煅,别研三萬下 用。【時珍曰】草家皆言生砒輕見火則毒甚,而雷氏治法用火煅,今所用 多是飛鍊者,蓋皆欲求速效,不惜其毒也,曷若用生者爲愈乎? Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Lei] Xiao: For all [medicinal]} applications, place [the raw arsenic] into a small porcelain jar and add the two substances purple back malva [herb] and ranunculus sceleratus [herb]. Calcine it with fire from the si hours (09:00 – 10:59) to the shen hours (15:00 – 16:59), and then soak it in water in which glycyrrhiza [root] was cooked from the shen hours (15:00 – 16:59) to the zi hours (23:00 – 00:59). Remove it and wipe it dry. Give it into a jar and calcine it again. Then grind it three times ten thousand times before making [therapeutic] use of it. [Li] Shizhen: The [Ben] cao specialists say that “when arsenic is only slightly exposed to fire it will be extremely poisonous.” But Mr. Lei [Xiao]’s method [of pharmaceutical preparation] “uses fire to calcine it.” Those who resort to it today, they mostly use heat sublimation. The fact is, they all are interested in a quick effect; they do not care about toxicity. Would it not be better to use it unprocessed? 653 She wang du 射罔[毒], “archer’s [poison],” is identical with she gong 射工[毒], “archer’ [poison],” and reflects an ancient notion of bugs that live in waters and shoot their poison at humans, causing disease. BCGM Dict I, 432.

Chapter 10

665

【氣味】苦、酸,暖,有毒。【時珍曰】辛、酸,大熱,有大毒。【大明 曰】畏緑豆、冷水、醋。入藥醋煮殺毒用。【土宿真君曰】砒石用草制, 鍊出金花成汁,化銅乾汞。青鹽、鶴頂草、消石、蒜、水蓼、常山、益 母、獨帚、木律、菖蒲、三角酸、鵝不食草、波稜、萵苣,皆能伏砒。 Qi and Flavor. Bitter, sour, warm, poisonous. [Li] Shizhen: Acrid, sour, very hot, very poisonous. Da Ming: [Ingested together,] it fears mung beans, cold water and vinegar. It is added to medication and boiled in vinegar to kill its poison before it is used [for therapeutic purposes]. Tu su zhen jun: When [the strength of ] arsenic is checked by heating it [in water] with herbs, a juice is generated with golden streaks forming on its surface. It will transform copper and dries mercury. Halite, chenopodium herb, nitrokalite, garlic, water pepper, dichroa [root], leonurus seed, kochia [fruit], poplar resin, acorus [root], Indian sorrel, small centipeda [herb], spinacia [herb], lactuca [herb]– all these are able to subdue [the effects of ] arsenic. 【主治】砒黄:治瘧疾腎氣,帶之辟蚤虱。大明。冷水磨服,解熱毒,治 痰壅。陳承。磨服,治癖積氣。宗奭。除𪖙喘積痢,爛肉,蝕瘀腐瘰癧。 時珍。砒霜:療諸瘧,風痰在胸膈,可作吐藥。不可久服,傷人。開寶。 治婦人血氣衝心痛,落胎。大明。蝕癰疽敗肉,枯痔,殺蟲,殺人及禽 獸。時珍。 Control. Arsenic yellow: It serves to cure malaria illness and kidney qi [disorders]. Carried on one’s body it wards off lice. Da Ming. Rubbed in cold water and [the liquid] ingested resolves heat poison and serves to cure phlegm obstruction. Chen Cheng. Rubbed [in cold water and the liquid] ingested serves to cure aggregation-illness accumulations of qi. [Kou] Zongshi. It removes snoring, panting and accumulation with free-flux illness,654 decayed flesh, erosion with stagnant [blood], festering and scrofula with pervasion-illness. [Li] Shizhen. Arsenic frost: It serves to heal all types of malaria, and wind phlegm in the chest and the diaphragm region, and can serve as emetic. It must not be ingested for long lest it harm one. Kai bao. It serves to cure women whose blood and qi rush against their heart, causing pain. It causes abortion. Da Ming. Erosion with obstruction-illness and impediment-illness,655 and decayed flesh. It dries piles. It kills worms/bugs. It kills humans, and birds and animals. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【宗奭曰】砒霜瘧家用,或過劑,則吐瀉兼作,須煎緑豆汁兼冷 水飲之。【劉純曰】瘧丹多用砒霜大毒之藥。本草謂主諸瘧風痰在胸膈, 654 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 655 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642.

666

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

可作吐藥。蓋以性之至烈,大能燥痰也。雖有燥痰之功,大傷胃氣,脾胃 虚者,切宜戒之。【時珍曰】砒乃大熱大毒之藥,而砒霜之毒尤烈。鼠雀 食少許即死,猫犬食鼠雀亦殆,人服至一錢許亦死。雖鉤吻、射罔之力, 不過如此,而宋人著本草不甚言其毒,何哉?此亦古者礜石之一種也。若 得酒及燒酒,則腐爛腸胃,頃刻殺人,雖緑豆冷水亦難解矣。今之收瓶酒 者,往往以砒烟熏瓶,則酒不壞,其亦嗜利不仁者哉!飲酒潜受其毒者, 徒歸咎於酒耳。此物不入湯飲,惟入丹丸。凡痰瘧及𪖙喘用此,真有劫病 立地之效。但須冷水吞之,不可飲食杯勺之物,静卧一日或一夜,亦不作 吐。少物引發,即作吐也。其燥烈純熱之性,與燒酒、焰消同氣,寒疾濕 痰被其劫而怫鬱頓開故也。今烟火家用少許,則爆聲更大,急烈之性可知 矣。此藥亦止宜于山野藜藿之人。若嗜酒膏粱者,非其所宜,疾亦再作, 不慎口慾故爾。凡頭瘡及諸瘡見血者,不可用此。其毒入經必殺人。李樓 奇方云:一婦病心痛數年不愈。一醫用人言半分,茶末一分,白湯調下, 吐瘀血一塊而愈。得日華子治婦人血氣心痛之旨乎? Explication. [Kou] Zongshi: Arsenic frost is used by malaria specialists. Sometimes they overdose it and this causes vomiting and free flow at the same time. In such cases it is imperative to [let the patient] drink the juice obtained by boiling mung beans together with cold water. Liu Chun: Elixirs for malaria often use the very poisonous medication arsenic frost. The Ben cao says it controls all types of malaria and wind phlegm in the chest and diaphragm region. Also, it can serve as an emetic. The fact is, since its nature is extremely violent, it is quite capable of drying phlegm. But even though it can dry phlegm, it massively harms the stomach qi. Those [patients] with a spleen and stomach depletion must abstain from it. [Li] Shizhen: This is a medication of massive heat and of massive poison. And the poison of arsenic frost is especially violent. When rats/mice and sparrows eat only a small amount of it, they will die immediately. When cats and dogs eat these rats/mice and sparrows, they, too, will perish. Humans consuming up to one qian will die, too. Even the strength of [the poison of ] yellow jessamine and she wang656 does not exceed the [strength of this poison]. Still, in their Ben cao works, Song authors did not say much about this poison; how could this be? This [substance] was considered by the ancients a variety of arsenolite, yu shi 礜石. When it is ingested with wine or brandy, it will erode the intestines and the stomach and kill a person within a short time. Even mung beans and cold water will hardly be able to resolve [such poison]. Nowadays, those [merchants] who store wine in bottles often resort to the fumes of arsenic to fumigate the bottles. This way the wine will not spoil. This is yet another example 656 She wang du 射罔[毒], “archer’s poison,” is identical with she gong 射工[毒], “archer’s [poison],” and reflects an ancient notion of bugs that live in waters and shoot their poison at humans, causing disease. BCGM Dict I, 432.

Chapter 10

667

of profit greed without an attitude of humaneness! Those who drink this wine and without realizing it are affected by the poison [of the arsenic], they blame it solely on the wine. This item is not to be drunk as a decoction; it is only added to elixir pills. Whenever it is used for phlegm malaria and snoring as well as panting, it is genuinely effective in curing the disease right away. But it must be swallowed with cold water, and neither a cup of beverages nor a spoon of food are to be consumed at the same time. [Patients] are to quietly lie down for one day or one night, and they must not be stimulated to vomit. Even small amounts [of beverages and food] will lead to outbursts and result in vomiting. Its very dry and hot nature is based on the same qi as that of brandy and nitrokalite. Hence it serves to eliminate illnesses associated with moisture and phlegm and to open pent-up qi associated with anger. Nowadays, specialists producing fireworks add small amounts of [arsenic] and the sound of the explosions will be even louder. All of this is evidence of the extremely violent nature [of arsenic]. It is a medication that is suitable only for persons living in the mountains and in the wilderness and eating lamb’s-quarters and the leaves of pulse plants. It is not suitable for those who love to drink wine and to eat fat meat and fine grain. Their illnesses might break out again if they do not discipline their appetite. For all types of sores on the head and sores that are bleeding it must not be used lest its poison enter the conduits and kill that person. The Li Lou qi fang states: “A woman suffered from pain in her heart for several years and could not be cured. A physician resorted to half a fen of arsenic and one fen of tea powder and had her send [these two substances] down mixed with clear, boiled water. She vomited a clot of stagnant blood and was cured.” Maybe this was based on an advice by Rihua zi on “how to cure women with pain in the heart caused by blood and qi”?

【附方】舊五,新十。 Added Recipes. Five of old. Ten newly [recorded]. 中風痰壅,四肢不收,昏憒若醉。砒霜如緑豆大,研,新汲水調下少許, 以熱水投之,大吐即愈。未吐再服。聖惠方。 Struck by wind, with phlegm obstruction. The four limbs cannot be drawn in and [patients are] muddle-headed as if drunk. Grind a piece of arsenic frost, the size of a green bean, and [let the patient] send it down mixed with newly drawn water. Then he is to drink hot water on top of this. He will vomit massively, and be cured. If he does not vomit, let him ingest [the medication] again. Sheng hui fang.

668

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

寒熱痁疾。孫貞宗657秘寶方用信砒二兩研粉,寒水石三兩别搗末。用生鐵銚 一箇,鋪石末,後鋪砒在上,又以石末蓋之。厚盞覆定,醋糊紙條密封十 餘重,炭火一斤煅之。待紙條黑時取出,候冷,刮琖上砒末乳細,粟米飯 丸緑豆大,辰砂爲衣。每用三四丸,小兒一二丸,發日早以臘茶清下,一 日不得食熱物。男人患,女人着藥入口中;女人患,男人着藥入口中。 Malaria illness with alternating cold and heat sensations. Sun Zhenzong in his Mi bao fang [recommends to proceed as follows]. Grind two liang of arsenic to a powder and separately grind three liang of calcite to a powder. Then take a new iron kettle and spread a layer of calcite powder in it. Spread a layer of arsenic powder on it, and cover it with another layer of the calcite powder. Then firmly close [the kettle] with a thick cup and tightly seal it with ten layers of vinegar-paste paper. Calcine this with the fire of one jin of charcoal. Once the paper has turned black remove [the kettle from the fire], wait until it has cooled down, scrape the arsenic powder from the [inside of the] cup and grind it in a mortar to a fine [powder]. Prepare with millet and/or cooked rice pills the size of mung beans and coat them with cinnabar. Each time use three to four pills; children one or two pills. On a day of an outbreak [of malaria let the patient] send it down early in the morning with cool tea gathered in the twelfth month.658 He must not consume any hot item for the entire day. If the patient is a male, a woman is to place the medication into his mouth. If the patient is a woman, a male is to place the medication into her mouth. 本事方用人言一錢,緑豆末一兩,爲末,無根井水丸緑豆大,黄丹爲衣, 陰乾。發日五更冷水下五七丸。 The Ben shi fang [recommends to proceed as follows]. [Grind] one qian of arsenic and one liang of green bean powder to a powder and prepare with “well water without roots” 659 pills the size of mung beans, to be coated with minium and to be dried in the shade. On the day of an outbreak [let the patient] send down in the early morning with cold water five to seven pills. 衞生寶鑑一剪金:用人言醋煮、硫黄、緑豆等分,爲末。每一豆許,用紅 絹包之,采絲扎定。每剪下一粒,新汲水空心吞下,治瘧聖藥也。 The Wei sheng bao jian [recommends a medication called] “a cut from gold.” [Grind] equal amounts of arsenic, boiled in vinegar, sulphur and mung beans to a powder. 657 The following recipe is listed in Zheng lei ch. 5, entry pi shuang 砒霜, as designed by Sun Shangyao 孫尚藥, i. e., Sun Yonghe 孫用和. Hence the name Zhenzong 貞宗 is erroneous. 658 La tea, la cha 臘茶, lit: “tea of the 12th month,” mentioned by Ouyang Xiu and Shen Kua during the Song era. As it is colored like melted wax it is also called la cha 蠟茶, “wax tea.” 659 Wu gen shui 無根谁, “water without roots,” is water emerging from the brick wall of a well that has not een let free yet into [into the bottom of the well. See also 05-015.

Chapter 10

669

Each time wrap as much as equals one bean in red silk and firmly tie it with a silk thread. For each application, cut from it one kernel and [let the patient] swallow it, to be sent down on an empty stomach with newly drawn water. This is a sage-like medication to cure malaria. 醫壘元戎九轉靈砂丹:用砒霜、黄丹、紫河車各一錢,爲末,雄黑豆一百 粒,水浸一夜,研泥,和丸梧子、緑豆、黍米三樣大。每服一二十丸,發 日五更向東,無根水下。紫河車、緑豆、黑豆,皆解砒毒也。 The Yi lei yuan rong [recommends the] “elixir with magic sand for nine turnarounds.” [Grind] one qian each of arsenic frost, minium, and human placenta to a powder and let it soak together with 100 kernels of black soybeans in water for one night. Then grind it to a pulp and form pills in three different sizes: the size of wu seeds, of mung beans and of millet. Each time on the day of an outbreak [let the patient] ingest [in accordance with his age] ten to 20 pills [of the small, medium or large size] in the early morning and facing East, to be sent down with “water without roots.” Human placenta, mung beans and soybeans are all capable of resolving the poison of arsenic. 本草權度不二散:用砒一錢,麪二兩,和匀,香油一斤煎黄色,以草紙壓 去油,入茶三兩,爲末。每服一錢,發日早冷茶下。 The Ben cao quan du [recommends the] “powder of which there is no second.” Evenly mix one qian of arsenic and two liang of flour and fry [this mixture] in one jin of sesame oil until it has acquired a yellow color. Then wrap it in coarse paper and squeeze it to remove the oil. Add three liang of tea and [grind it to] a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest one qian. On the day of an outbreak to be sent down with cold tea in the early morning. 一切積痢。砒霜、黄丹等分,蠟和收,旋丸緑豆大。每米飲下三丸。普濟 方。 All types of accumulation free-flux illness.660 Mix equal amounts of arsenic frost and minium with beeswax to form pills the size of mung beans. Each time send down with a rice beverage three pills. Pu ji fang. 休息下痢,經一二年不瘥,羸瘦衰弱。砒霜成塊者爲末、黄蠟各半兩,化 蠟入砒,以柳條攪,焦則换,至七條,取起收之。每旋丸梧子大,冷水送 下。小兒,黍米大。和劑局方。 Dormant discharge with free-flux illness [that is active from time to time] and has not been cured for one or two years, associated with emaciation and weakness. [Re660 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

670

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

quired are] half a liang each of arsenic frost pieces ground to a powder and yellow beeswax. Melt the beeswax, add the arsenic and stir it with a willow twig. Once [the twig] is scorched, replace it [with a new one]. Continue until seven twigs [are scorched] and store [the mixture]. For each application form pills the size of wu seeds and [let the patient] send them down with cold water. For children, the size [of the pills should be that of ] millet grains. He ji ju fang. 脾疼腰痛。即上方,用冷水下。 Painful spleen and lower back pain. The recipe is the same as above; to be sent down with cold water. 婦人血氣心痛。方見發明下。 Painful heart of women caused by blood and qi. For a recipe, see under “Explication.” 走馬牙疳。惡瘡,砒石、銅緑等分,爲末,攤紙上貼之,其效如神。 Running horse dental gan-illness.661 If this is associated with malign sores, [grind] equal amounts of arsenic and verdigris to a powder, spread it on a piece of paper and attach this [to the affected region]. The effect is divine. 又方:砒霜半兩,醋調如糊,盌内盛,待乾刮下。用粟米大,綿裹安齒 縫,來日取出,有蟲自死。久患者不過三日即愈。普濟方。 Another recipe. Mix half a liang of arsenic frost with vinegar to generate a paste, fill it into a bowl, wait until it has dried and scrape it off. Wrap a piece the size of a millet grain in silk floss, place it on the seams of the [affected] teeth and remove it the next day again. If there were worms/bugs involved, they will have died. Patients who have suffered for a long time will be cured within three days. Pu ji fang. 項上瘰癧。信州砒黄研末,濃墨汁丸梧子大,銚内炒乾,竹筒盛之。每用 針破,將藥半丸貼之,自落,蝕盡爲度。靈苑方。 Scrofula on the neck. Grind arsenic yellow from Xinzhou to a powder and form with thick ink liquid pills the size of wu seeds. Heat them in a kettle until they have dried and fill them into a bamboo tube. For each application, pierce [the scrofula] open with a needle and attach half a pill of the medication to it. [The scrofula] will fall off as a result. Continue until all erosions are removed. Ling yuan fang.

661 Zou ma ya gan 走馬牙疳, “running horse dental gan-illness,” a dental illness that develops abruptly and turns into a serious condition. BCGM Dict I, 704.

Chapter 10

671

痰喘𪖙䶎。方見穀部 豉下。 Panting and snoring associated with phlegm. For a recipe, see unter “fermented beans” in the section “grain.” 一切漏瘡有孔。用信石,新瓦火煅,研末,以津調少許於紙撚上,插入, 蝕去惡管。漏多勿齊上。最妙。急救易方。 All types of leaking sores with holes. Calcine with fire arsenic on a new tile, and grind it to a powder. Mix a small amount with [saliva] fluid, apply it to a piece of paper and form rolls. Insert them into the erosion to remove the malign tubes. If there are many leaking sores, do not apply [this treatment] to all of them at the same time. Ji jiu yi fang. 10-18 土黄綱目 Tu huang, FE Gang mu. Soil yellow. A composition of crude arsenic trioxide, ammonium chloride, momordica seeds, croton seeds, petroleum and momordica seed oil. 【修治】【時珍曰】用砒石二兩,木鱉子仁、巴豆仁各半兩,硇砂二錢, 爲末,用木鼈子油、石腦油和成一塊,油裹,埋土坑内,四十九日取出, 劈作小塊,甆器收用。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Li] Shizhen: [Grind] two liang of arsenic, half a liang each of momordica seeds and croton [seeds], and two qian of sal ammoniac to a powder. Form this together with momordica seed oil and petroleum to a lump, wrap it in oil [paper] and bury it in a pit in the soil. Remove it after 49 days and cut it into small pieces to be stored in a porcelain vessel for later use. 【氣味】辛、酸,熱,有毒。【獨孤滔曰】土黄制雄黄。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, sour, hot, nonpoisonous. Dugu Tao: Tu huang checks [the effects of ] realgar. 【主治】枯瘤贅痔,乳食瘻癧并諸瘡惡肉。時珍。 Control. It dries up tumors and tumorous piles. [Ground to a powder] it eats away scrofula pervasion-illness and all types of sores with malign flesh. [Li] Shizhen.

672

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 10-19 金星石宋嘉祐 銀星石 Jin xing shi, FE Song, Jia you. Yin xing shi.

Golden sparkles stone/mineral. Silver sparkles stone/mineral. Biotite. Golden or brown mica. 【集解】【頌曰】金星石、銀星石並出濠州、并州,采無時。二石主療大 體相似。【宗奭曰】二石治大風疾,别有法,須燒用之。金星石生於蒼石 内,外有金色麩片,銀星石有銀色麩片。又一種深青色堅潤,中有金色 如麩片者,不入藥用。工人碾爲器,或婦人首飾用。【時珍曰】金星有數 種。蘇頌所説二石,武當山亦有之。或云金星出膠東,銀星出雁門,蓋亦 礞石之類也。寇宗奭所説二石治大風者,今考聖惠方 大風門,皆作金星礜 石、銀星礜石,則似是礜石之類。丹房鑑源 礜石篇中,亦載二石名,似與 蘇説者不同。且金星、銀星無毒,主熱涎血病。礜石則有毒,主風癩疾。 觀此,則金星、銀星入藥,各有二種矣。又歙州硯石,亦有金星、銀星 者。璚州亦出金星石,皆可作硯。翡翠石能屑金,亦名金星石。此皆名同 物異也。劉河間宣明方點眼藥方中用金精石、銀精石,不知即此金星、銀 星否也。 Collected Explanations. [Su] Song: Jin xing shi and yin xing shi originate in Hao zhou and Bing zhou. The are collected anytime. The curative [potentials] of both stones/minerals are similar. [Kou] Zongshi: These two stones/minerals serve to cure massive wind662 illness. [For their pharmaceutical preparation] specific methods are available. They must be heated before they are used [for therapeutic purposes]. Jin xing shi grows inside of “grey stones/minerals” (10-15); on its outside it has gold colored bran fragments. Yin xing shi has silver colored bran fragments [on its outside]. Another variety is of deep greenish color. It is hard and moist, and inside of it it has elements of gold color like bran fragments. It is not added to medication for therapeutic use. Workers prepare vessels from it, and the women use it as personal ornaments. [Li] Shizhen: There are several kinds of jin xing shi. The two stones/ minerals mentioned by Su Song are also present on Mount Wu dang shan. Some say jin xing [shi] originates in Liao dong, and yin xing [shi] originates in Yan men. The fact is, they, too, belong to the group of meng shi 礞石, micacious schist, (10-21). As for Kou Zongshi’s statement that “the two stones/minerals serve to cure massive wind,” we have examined the Sheng hui fang, section “Massive Wind.” It always speaks of jin xing yu shi 金星礜石 and yin xing yu shi 銀星礜石. That is, they seem to belong to the group of yu shi 礜石. The chapter Yu shi pian 礜石篇 in the Dan 662 Da feng 大風, “massive wind,” may refer to sores caused by a massive intrusion of wind evil and also to conditions of leprosy. BCGM Dict I, 111.

Chapter 10

673

fang jian yuan, too, mentions the names of these two stones/minerals. These [records in the Sheng hui fang and the Dan fang jian yuan] seem to differ from Su [Song’s] statements. Also, “jin xing [shi] and yin xing [shi] are nonpoisonous. They serve to control heat illnesses affecting saliva and blood. Yu shi, in contrast, is poisonous. It serves to control wind and repudiation-illness663.” Seen from this perspective, there are two kinds each of jin xing [shi] and yin xing [shi] that are added to medication. Also, the ink stones of She zhou may consist of jin xing [shi] and yin xing [shi]. Qiong zhou, too, produces jin xing shi that may be prepared to ink stones. With jadeite one can break gold to fragments; it is also called jin xing shi. The names are all identical, but the substances referred to differ. Liu Hejian in his Xuan ming fang in recipes with eye drops [recommends to] “use jin jing shi 金精石 and yin jing shi 銀精石.” I do not know whether these [substances] are identical to jin xing [shi] 金 星[石] and yin xing [shi] 銀星[石]. 【氣味】甘,寒,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, cold, nonpoisonous 【主治】脾肺壅毒及肺損吐血嗽血,下熱涎,解衆毒。嘉祐。水磨少許 服,鎮心神不寧,亦治骨哽。時珍。 Control. Spleen and lung obstruction by poison and lung injury with vomiting of blood and blood cough. It discharges heat and saliva, and resolves all types of poison. Jia you. To ingest a small amount obtained by rubbing [jin xing shi] on a stone will calm down an unsettled heart spirit. It also serves to cure choking on a bone. [Li] Shizhen.

【附方】新二。 Added Recipes. Two newly [recorded]. 吐血嗽血肺損者。金星石、銀星石、玄精石、不灰木、羊起石、雲母石等 分。用坩鍋一箇,鋪冬月水牛糞一二寸,鋪藥一層,鋪灰二寸,又藥一 層,重重如此,以灰蓋之,鹽泥固濟。用炭一秤,火煅一日夜,埋土中一 夜,取出藥塊,去灰爲末。每一兩入龍腦、麝香各半錢,阿膠二錢半炒。 每服一錢,糯米湯下,日三服。聖惠方。 Blood vomiting, blood cough associated with an injured lung. [Required are] equal amounts of jin xing shi, yin xing shi, selenite, asbestos, actinolite and muscovite. Take a crucible and spread on its bottom a one to two cun thick layer of water buffalo dung collected during winter months. Then add a layer of the pharmaceutical sub663 Lai 癩, “repudiation-illness,” most likely including cases of leprosy. BCGM Dict I, 293.

674

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

stances, and on top of it a two cun thick layer of ashes. Then add another layer of the pharmaceutical substances and continue like this several times. Eventually this is covered with ashes and [the cauldron is] tightly sealed with salt mud. Calcine it with the fire of one cheng of charcoal for one day and one night, bury it in soil for one night and remove the pieces of the pharmaceutical substances. Discard the ashes and [grind the rest to a] powder. For each [therapeutic application] add to one liang [of the powder] half a qian each of borneol and musk and two and a half qian of ass-hide glue, and fry this. Each time [let the patient] ingest one qian, to be sent down with a glutinous rice decoction. To be ingested three times a day. Sheng hui fang. 大風蟲瘡。有五色蟲取下。諸石丸:用金星礜石、銀星礜石、雲母石、禹 餘粮石、滑石、陽起石、慈石、凝水石、密陀僧、自然銅、龍涎石等分, 搗碎瓶盛,鹽泥固濟之。炭火十斤,煅過爲末,醋糊丸小豆大。每服十五 丸,白花蛇酒下,一日三服,以愈爲度。太平聖惠方。 Sores caused by massive wind664 and the presence of worms/bugs. To remove and discharge worms/bugs in all five colors. The pills with all types of stones/minerals. Required are equal amounts of jin xing shi, yin xing shi, muscovite, limonite, talc, actinolite, magnetite, calcite, litharge, natural copper/pyrite, and long xian shi (11A20). Crush [these substances] and fill them into a jar. Tightly close it with salt mud. Calcine it with the fire of ten jin of charcoal and [grind it to a] powder. With vinegar paste form pills the size of small beans. Each time ingest 15 pills, to be sent down with wine made from the little silver-banded krait; three times a day until a healing is achieved. Tai ping sheng hui fang.

【附録】 Appendix 10-19-A01 金石拾遺。 Jin shi, FE Shi yi. Gold/metal stone/mineral. 【藏器曰】味甘,温,無毒。 主久羸瘦,不能食,無顔色,補腰脚冷,令 人健壯,益陽,有暴熱脱髮,飛鍊服之。生五臺山 清凉寺,石中金屑,作 赤褐色也。 664 Da feng 大風, “massive wind,” may refer to sores caused by a massive intrusion of wind evil and also to conditions of leprosy. BCGM Dict I, 111.

Chapter 10

675

[Chen] Cangqi: Flavor: sweet, warm, nonpoisonous. Controls long-lasting emaciation, complete loss of appetite, and loss of complexion. It supplements in the case of cold affecting lower back and legs and makes one strong. It boosts the yang [path (i. e., male sexual potency)]. In the case of violent heat causing loss of hair, ingest it after a sublimation refinement with heat. It grows at Qing liang si on Mount Wu tai shan as a metal layer of red-brown color within rocks. 10-20 婆娑石宋開寶 Po suo shi, FE Song, Kai bao. Green pebbles of foreign origin. Unidentifiable. 【釋名】摩挲石。【時珍曰】姚西溪叢話云:舶船過産石山下,愛其石, 以手捫之,故曰摩挲。不知然否? Explanation of Names. Mo suo shi 摩挲石, “caressed stone/mineral.” [Li] Shizhen: Yao Xixi in his Cong hua states: When [I] passed on a ship by the mountains where this stone/mineral is produced, I so loved it that I laid [my] hands on it. Hence it is called “caressed [stone/mineral].” It is unclear whether this is true. 【集解】【志曰】婆娑石生南海,胡人采得之。其石緑色,無班點,有金 星,磨成乳汁者爲上。又有豆班石,雖亦解毒,而功力不及。復有鄂緑, 有文理,磨鐵成銅色,人多以此爲之,非真也。驗法,以水磨點雞冠熱 血,當化成水是也。【宗奭曰】石如淡色石緑,間微有金星者佳。又有豆 班石,亦如此石,但有黑班點,無金星。【頌曰】胡人尤珍貴之,以金裝 飾作指彄帶之。每欲食及食罷,輒含吮數次以防毒。今人有得指面許塊, 則價直百金也。【時珍曰】庚辛玉册云:摩挲石,陽石也。出三佛齊。海 南有山,五色聳峙,其石有光焰。其水下滚如箭,船過其下,人以刀斧擊 取。燒之作硫黄氣。以形如黄龍齒而堅重者爲佳。匱五金,伏三黄,制鉛 汞。 Collected Explanations. [Ma] Zhi: Po suo shi grows in Nan hai. The Hu people gather it. This stone/mineral is of green color. It has no spots but golden sparkles. Those [kinds] that when ground form a milky sap are best. In addition, there is a “bean marks stone/mineral.” It, too, resolves poison but its strength is insufficient. There is also a [stone/mineral variety called] “green from E.” It has a line design structure and when it is rubbed against iron, it leaves marks of the color of copper. The people often consider it to be this [po suo shi], but this is not true. A method to test [whether it is genuine po suo shi is as follows]. Grind [the substances in question] in water and drop hot blood from a cockscomb into [the liquid]. When [the blood] is transformed to water immediately, this is proof [that the substance is

676

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

genuine]. [Kou] Zongshi: This stone/mineral has a pale color similar to malachite. Those [kinds] with some slight gold sparkles in between are fine. There is also a “bean marks stone/mineral.” It resembles this stone/mineral but has black marks and dots and no gold sparkles. [Su] Song: The Hu people highly value it. Together with gold ornaments they wear it as finger rings. Whenever they are about to eat or have eaten, they take it into the mouth and suck it several times to avoid being poisoned. When nowadays someone obtains a piece as big as a fingertip, its worth is that of a hundred pieces of gold. [Li] Shizhen: The Geng xin yu ce states: “Mo suo shi is a yang stone/mineral. It originates in San fo qi. In Nan hai is a mountain with a peak in all five colors. The stones/minerals there are lustrous. Water descends from them like bundled arrows. When ships pass by it, the people on board use knives and axes to strike it and remove [some pieces]. When they are heated they develop sulphur qi. Those [specimens] with a physical appearance similar to yellow dragon teeth, and that are hard and heavy, are fine. They are used to encase the five metals, to subdue the [fire and other poisons of the] three [substances realgar, orpiment and sulphur bearing in their names the character] “yellow”665, and to check [the effects of lead and mercury].” 【氣味】甘、淡,寒,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, bland, cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】解一切藥毒,瘴疫熱悶頭痛。開寶。 Control. It resolves all medication poisons, miasmatic epidemics and heat with heart-pressure. Kai bao. 10-21 礞石宋嘉祐 Meng shi, FE Song, Jia you. Micacious schist. 【釋名】青礞石。【時珍曰】其色濛濛然,故名。 Explanation of Names. Qing meng shi 青礞石, “greenish meng shi.” [Li] Shizhen: It has a “misty,” meng meng 濛濛, color. Hence its name. 【集解】【時珍曰】礞石,江北諸山往往有之,以旴山出者爲佳。有青、 白二種,以青者爲佳。堅細而青黑,打開中有白星點,煅後則星黄如麩 金。其無星點者,不入藥用。通城縣一山産之,工人以爲器物。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: Micacious schist is frequently encountered in all the mountains of Jiang bei, with that from Mount Xu shan being especially 665 These are xiong huang 雄黄, realgar, ci huang 雌黄, orpiment, liu huang 硫磺, sulphur.

Chapter 10

677

fine. It appears in two kinds, greenish and white, with greenish [micacious schist] being especially fine. Its substance is hard and fine with a greenish-black [appearance]. When it is struck open it has white sparkling dots inside. When calcined, these dots assume a yellow color such as gold that is been struck and broken into bran-like pieces. [Micacious schist] without sparkling dots is not added to medication. [Meng shi] from the one mountain of Tong cheng xian is prepared by workers to utensils. 【修治】【時珍曰】用大坩鍋一箇,以礞石四兩打碎,入消石四兩拌匀。 炭火十五斤簇定,煅至消盡,其石色如金爲度。取出研末,水飛去消毒, 晒乾用。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Li] Shizhen: Break four liang of micacious schist into pieces and fill them into a large crucible. Add four liang of nitrokalite and mix [the two substances] evenly. Calcine [the crucible] over a charcoal fire of 15 jin until all the nitrokalite has vanished and the micacious schist has assumed the color of gold. Remove it [from the crucible] and grind it to a powder. Then eliminate the poison of the nitrokalite by an aqueous sublimation process. Dry [the fine powder] in the sun and use it [for therapeutic purposes]. 【氣味】甘、鹹,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, salty, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】食積不消,留滯臟腑,宿食癥塊久不瘥。小兒食積羸瘦,婦人積 年食癥,攻刺心腹。得巴豆、硇砂、大黄、荆三稜作丸服良。嘉祐。治積 痰驚癇,欬嗽喘急。時珍。 Control. Accumulations of food that fails to be dissolved and stagnates in the longterm depots and short-term repositories. Food staying [in the body] over night causing concretion-illness with lumps that resist a cure and have attacked heart and abdomen causing a piercing [pain]. To ingest pills prepared from croton [seeds], sal ammoniac, rhubarb root and river bulrush stem tuber is good. Jia you. It serves to cure phlegm accumulations and fright epilepsy, as well as cough and hectic pant breathing. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】青礞石氣平味鹹,其性下行,陰也,沉也,乃厥陰之 藥。肝經風木太過,來制脾土,氣不運化,積滯生痰,壅塞上中二焦,變 生風熱諸病,故宜此藥重墜。制以消石,其性疏快,使木平氣下,而痰積 通利,諸證自除。汤衡嬰孩寶書言,礞石乃治驚利痰之聖藥。吐痰在水 上,以石末糝之,痰即隨水而下,則其沉墜之性可知。然止可用之救急, 氣弱脾虚者,不宜久服。楊士瀛謂其功能利痰,而性非胃家所好。如慢驚

678

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

之類,皆宜佐以木香。而王隱君則謂痰爲百病,不論虚實寒熱,概用滚痰 丸通治百病,豈理也哉。朱丹溪言:一老人忽病目盲,乃大虚證,一醫與 礞石藥服之,至夜而死。吁!此乃盲醫虚虚之過,礞石豈殺人者乎?况目 盲之病,與礞石並不相干。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: Greenish micacious schist has balanced qi and a salty flavor. By its nature it moves downward. It is a yin [substance]; it sinks into the depth. Hence it is a medication for the ceasing yin [region]. If wind in the liver vessels lets “wood” be excessive, it arrives in the spleen where it checks the “soil.” [As a result, the spleen] is unable to further move and transform qi. [The qi] accumulate, stagnate and generate phlegm, blocking the upper two [sections of the Triple] Burner. This causes all types of heat and wind diseases. Hence the weight of this medication is required to bring down [these accumulations]. [Its effects are] checked with nitrokalite. By its nature it is very fast. It serves to balance wood and to discharge qi. And it lets phlegm accumulations move on in a free flow. This way, all illness signs will be eliminated. Tang Heng in his Ying hai bao shu says: “Micacious schist is a sage-like medication to cure fright and to open the flow of phlegm. If one spits phlegm into water and it remains floating on the surface, add micacious schist powder to it and the phlegm will sink down with the water. From this its nature of sinking into the depth may be known. However, it is to be used only for emergency rescues. Persons with weak qi and a depleted spleen should not ingest it for long.” Yang Shiying says: “It is capable of freeing the flow of phlegm. But by its nature it is not suitable for the stomach. For [illnesses] such as slow fright, one should always put aucklandia [root] at its side.” When Wang Yinjun says that “phlegm is associated with all the hundreds of diseases, regardless of whether these are cases of depletion or repletion, cold or heat,” and that “pills serving to eliminate phlegm are capable of curing all the hundreds of diseases,” what principle could underlie [such a claim]? Zhu Danxi says: “There was an old man who suddenly suffered from a loss of eyesight. This is a condition of extreme depletion. A physician gave him micacious schist as a medication and had him ingest it. The following night he died. Oh! This was the mistake of a physician who blindly added depletion to what was depleted already. How could meng shi be blamed for killing that person? Besides, a disease with a loss of eyesight is not to be fought with meng shi!”

Chapter 10

679

【附方】新四。 Added Recipes. Four newly [recorded]. 滚痰丸。通治痰爲百病,惟水瀉、雙娠者不可服。礞石、焰硝各二兩,煅 過研飛,晒乾,一兩,大黄酒蒸八兩,黄芩酒洗八兩,沉香五錢。爲末, 水丸梧子大,常服一二十丸,欲利大便則服一二百丸,温水下。王隱君養 生主論。 The “pills to eliminate phlegm.” They serve to cure all the hundreds of diseases associated with phlegm. Only [patients with a] watery outflow and [women with a] twin pregnancy must not ingest them. Calcine, grind, process by means of sublimation and eventually dry in the sun two liang each of micacious schist and of nitrokalite. [Grind] one liang [of this powder] together with eight liang of rhubarb root, steamed with wine, eight liang of scutellaria root, washed in wine, and five qian of aquilaria [wood] to a powder and with water form pills the size of wu seeds. [Let the patient] regularly ingest ten to 20 pills. If one intends to let him develop a free flow of defecation, he is to ingest 100 to 200 pills, to be sent down with water water. Wang Yinjun, Yang sheng zhu lun. 一切積病。金寶神丹:治一切虚冷久積,滑泄久痢,癖塊,血刺心腹,下 痢,及婦人崩中漏下。青礞石半斤爲末,消石末二兩,坩鍋内鋪頭蓋底, 按實。炭火二十斤,煅過取出,入赤石脂末二兩,滴水丸芡子大。候乾, 入坩鍋内,小火煅紅,收之。每服一丸至二三丸,空心温水下,少食壓 之。久病瀉痢,加至五七丸。楊氏家藏方。 All types of accumulation diseases. The “divine elixir of golden jewels.” It serves to cure all types of long-term accumulations associated with depletion and cold, slippery outflow and long-lasting free-flux illness.666 [It removes] aggregation-illness lumps, blood piercing heart and abdomen, discharge with free-flux illness and [cures] women with collapsing center667 and leaking discharge. [Grind] half a jin of greenish micacious schist to a powder and fill it with two liang of nitrokalite powder into a crucible. [The crucible] is to be filled from bottom to the brim. Press [the powder] firmly and calcine it with a charcoal fire of 20 jin. Then remove [the substance from the crucible]. Add two liang of red halloysite and with water prepare pills the size of qian seeds. Once they have dried, fill them into the crucible, calcine them over a mild fire until they have assumed a red color and store them. For each application [let the patient] ingest one pill, or up to two or three pills, to be sent down on an empty stomach with warm water. Then let him eat a little rice to press 666 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 667 Beng zhong 崩中, “collapsing center,” excessive vaginal bleeding outside of a menstruation period. BCGM Dict I, 58.

680

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

down [the medication]. If it is a case of chronic outflow and free-flux illness, increase the dose to five or seven pills. Yang shi jia cang fang. 急慢驚風。奪命散:治急慢驚風,痰涎壅塞咽喉,命在須臾,服此墜下風 痰,乃治驚利痰之聖藥也。真礞石一兩,焰硝一兩,同煅過爲末,每服半 錢或一錢。急驚痰熱者,薄荷自然汁入生蜜調下。慢驚脾虚者,木香湯入 熟蜜調下。亦或雪糕丸緑豆大,每服二三丸。湯氏嬰孩寶書。 Acute or slow fright wind.668 The “powder to regain control over one’s life.” It serves to cure acute and slow fright wind, with phlegm and saliva obstructions blocking the throat. When life is about to end, [let the patient] ingest this to send down wind and phlegm. It is a sage-like medication to cure fright and to free the flow of phlegm. Calcine together one liang of genuine micacious schist and one liang of nitrokalite and then [grind the substances to a] powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest half a qian or one qian. In the case of acute fright with phlegm and heat, [let the patient] send it down with a mixture of the natural juice of mint and fresh honey. In the case of slow fright and spleen depletion, [let the patient] send it down with a mixture of aucklandia [root] decoction and cooked honey. An alternative is to form with rice cakes pills the size of mung beans and each time [let the patient] ingest two or three pills. Tang shi, Ying hai bao shu. 小兒急驚。青礞石磨水服。衞生方。 Acute fright of children. Rub greenish micacious schist in water and [let the patient] ingest [the liquid]. Wei sheng fang. 10-22 花乳石宋嘉祐 Hua ru shi, FE Song, Jia you. Dolomite. Double carbonate of magnesium and calcium. 【釋名】花蕊石。【宗奭曰】黄石中間有淡白點,以此得花之名。圖經作 花蕊石,是取其色黄也。 Explanation of Names. Hua rui shi 花蕊石, “Flower pistil stone/mineral.” [Kou] Zongshi: Inside of this yellow stone/mineral are pale white dots. Because of them [this stone/mineral] was given the name of a flower. The Tu jing writes hua rui shi 花蕊石, “flower pistil stone/mineral” to reflect its yellow color. 【集解】【禹錫曰】花乳石出陝、華諸郡。色正黄,形之大小方圓無定。 【頌曰】出陝州 閿鄉,體至堅重,色如硫黄,形塊有極大者,陝西人鐫爲 668 Jing feng 驚風, “fright wind,” a condition of children characterised by jerking and arched back rigidity, eyeballs turned upward, and twitching hands and legs.BCGM Dict I, 261, also 238, 240.

Chapter 10

681

器用,采無時。【時珍曰】玉册云:花乳石,陰石也。生代州山谷中,有 五色,可代丹砂匱藥。蜀中汶山、彭縣亦有之。 Collected Explanations. [Zhang] Yuxi: Dolomite originates in all the prefectures of Shaan and Hua. Its color is a proper yellow and its physical appearance assumes no fixed shape; it may be large and small, rectangular and round. [Su] Song: It originates in Wen xiang in Shaan zhou. Its physical body is extremely hard and heavy, and its color is that of sulphur. Its physical appearance is one of very large pieces. The people in Shaan xi engrave it for a usage as utensils. It is collected anytime. [Li] Shizhen: The Yu ce states: “Dolomite is a yin stone/mineral. It grows in the mountain valleys of Dai zhou. It may appear in any of the five colors and can serve as a substitute for cinnabar to be resorted to as a pharmaceutical substance used for the encasement [of substances to be modified for therapeutic purposes].669 It is also found in Mount Wen shan and in Peng xian in Shu.” 【脩治】【時珍曰】凡入丸散,以罐固濟,頂火煅過,出火毒,研細水飛 晒乾用。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Li] Shizhen: Whenever [meng shi] is to be added to pills and powders, give it first into a pot that is to be closed tightly to be calcined with fire from above. Then wait for the fire poison to have left, grind it to a fine [powder], process it with an aqueous sublimation, dry it in the sun and use it [for therapeutic purposes]. 【氣味】酸、濇,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sour, astringent, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】金瘡出血,刮末傅之即合,仍不作膿。又療婦人血運惡血。嘉 祐。治一切失血,傷損内漏,目瞖。時珍。 Control. Bleeding wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. Scrape it to obtain a powder, apply this [to the wounds] and they will close. Also, they will not fester. In addition it serves to heal blood[-induced brain] movements of women, with the presence of malign blood. Jia you. It serves to cure any blood loss, internal leakage [of blood] in the case of injuries, and eye shades. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【頌曰】花蕊石古方未有用者。近世以合硫黄同煅研末,傅金 瘡,其效如神。人有倉卒中金刃,不及煅治者,但刮末傅之亦效。【時珍 曰】花蕊石舊無氣味。今嘗試之,其氣平,其味濇而酸,蓋厥陰經血分藥 也。其功專于止血,能使血化爲水,酸以收之也。而又能下死胎,落胞 669 Kui 匱, “encasement,” is a method used by ancient Chinese alchemists whereby certain substances are used to prepare a sheath or coffer, gui 櫃, surrounding one or more substances that are to be modified to eventually become a longevity elixir.

682

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

衣,去惡血,惡血化則胎與胞無阻滯之患矣。東垣所謂胞衣不出,濇劑可 以下之,故赤石脂亦能下胞胎,與此同義。葛可久治吐血出升斗有花蕊石 散,和劑局方治諸血及損傷金瘡胎産有花蕊石散,皆云能化血爲水。則此 石之功,蓋非尋常草木之比也。 Explication. [Su] Song: Ophiocalcite was not [recommended for therapeutic] use in ancient recipes. In more recent times, it has been calcined and ground together with sulphur to be applied to wounds caused by metal objects/weapons, with divine effects. If someone is wounded by suddenly being struck by a metal object/weapon or knife, and if there is no time to cure it with calcined [ophiocalcite and sulphur], scrape a powder [from a piece of ophiocalcite] and apply it to [the wound]. This will be effective, too. [Li] Shizhen: Ancient [records of ] ophiocalcite did not specify its qi and flavor. Now it has been tasted. Its qi are balanced; its flavor is astringent and sour. That is, it is a medication for the blood section of the ceasing yin conduits. It is particularly able to stop bleeding and it is capable of transforming blood to water because it is sour and astringent. Also, it is able to cause a dead fetus to be discharged, to send the placenta down and to eliminate malign blood. Once the malign blood is transformed [to water] there will be no more suffering from blocked [discharge of a dead] fetus and a placenta. As [Li] Dongyuan says, “when the placenta fails to be released, astringent preparations will serve to discharge it.” Hence, that red halloysite, too, is able to discharge placenta and fetus, this is based on the same idea. Ge Kejiu [recommends to] use a powder with ophiocalcite to cure spitting of as much blood as might fill a sheng or a dou measure. The He ji ju fang [recommends to] cure all types of bleeding and [especially bleeding associated with] injuries/harm caused by metal objects/weapons as well as by a birth process with a powder with ophiocalcite. In all cases [ophiocalcite] is able to transform blood to water. The fact is, the [therapeutic] potential of this stone/mineral is different from that of ordinary herbs and trees.

【附方】新五。 Added Recipes. Five newly [recorded]. 花蕊石散。治五内崩損,噴血出斗升,用此治之。花蕊石煅存性,研如 粉。以童子小便一鐘,男入酒一半,女入醋一半,煎温,食後調服三錢, 甚者五錢。能使瘀血化爲黄水,後以獨參湯補之。葛可久十藥神書。 Ophiocalcite powder. To cure the five types of inner collapse and injury, with as much blood gushing out as might fill a dou or a sheng measure, this is to be used for a cure. Calcine ophiocalcite with its nature retained and grind it to a powder. Take one cup of boys’ urine and half that amount of wine for male [patients] and half that

Chapter 10

683

amount of vinegar for female [patients]. Fry [the liquid] with mild heat, and [let the patient] ingest after meals three qian, in serious cases five qian, [of the ophiocalcite powder] mixed with [this liquid]. [This medication] is able to transform stagnant blood to yellow water. Afterwards, [let the patient ingest] a decoction of only ginseng [root] for supplementation. Ge Kejiu, Shi yao shen shu. 花蕊石散。治一切金刃箭鏃傷及打撲傷損,狗咬至死者,急以藥摻傷處, 其血化爲黄水,再摻便活,更不疼痛。如内損血入臟腑,煎童子小便,入 酒少許,熱調一錢服,立效。畜牲扺傷,腸出不損者,急納入,桑白皮線 縫之,摻藥,血止立活。婦人産後敗血不盡,血運,惡血奔心,胎死腹 中,胎衣不下,至死,但心頭温暖者,急以童子小便調服一錢,取下惡物 如豬肝,終身不患血風血氣。若膈上有血,化爲黄水,即時吐出,或隨小 便出,甚效。硫黄四兩,花蕊石一兩,並爲粗末拌匀,以膠泥固濟,日 乾,瓦罐一箇盛之,泥封口,焙乾,安在四方磚上,磚上書八卦五行字。 用炭一秤簇匝,從巳午時自下生火,煅至炭消,冷定取出,爲細末,瓶收 用。和劑局方。 Powder with ophiocalcite. To cure all types of harm caused by metal objects, swords/ knives and arrowheads, as well as injuries resulting from blows, and dog bites that may prove to be fatal, quickly apply this medication to the harmed region. The blood will transform to yellow water. Then apply [the powder] once more and [the patient] will come to life again. He will feel no more pain. If because of internal harm blood has entered the long-term depots and short-term repositories, fry boys’ urine, add a little wine and [let the patient] ingest one qian [of powder] mixed with the hot liquid. This will be immediately effective. If [a patient] was struck by any of the domestic animals with his intestines coming out [of his abdomen], if they are not injured quickly insert them back [into the abdomen] and sew up [the wound] with a thread made from the root-bark of white mulberry. Then apply this medication. The bleeding will end and [the patient] will come to life again immediately. Whenever a woman following delivery has lost blood, suffers from blood-induced vertigo or from malign blood rushing against her heart, or when a fetus has died in the abdomen, or if the placenta fails to be discharged and [the woman] is close to dying, with warmth left only above [that woman’s] heart, quickly have her ingest one qian [of the powder] mixed with boys’ urine. This will let her discharge some malign item resembling a pig’s liver, and she will for her entire life never again suffer from blood wind670 or [diseases associated with] blood and qi. If there is blood above the diaphragm, it will be transformed to yellow water, to be thrown up in time. Or it will be released with the urine. A very effective [medication, to be 670 Xue feng 血風, “blood wind,” results from an intrusion of wind evil qi into an unbalanced state of qi and blood, mostly in women, BCGM Dict I, 594.

684

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

prepared as follows]. [Grind] four liang of sulphur with one liang of ophiocalcite to a crude powder mixture. Firmly enclose [the powder] with clay and let it dry in the sun. Then fill it into a ceramic pot and seal the opening with mud. Dry it over a fire, place it on a rectangular brick and write the characters of the eight trigrams and five phases on the brick. Pile one cheng of charcoal around [the brick] and ignite it to burn from the morning until the afternoon. Calcine [the medication] until all the charcoal is used up. Wait until it has cooled down, remove it [out of the ceramic pot] and [grind it] to a fine powder, to be stored in a jar for later use. He ji ju fang. 金瘡出血。方見主治。 Bleeding wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. For a recipe, see under “Control.” 多年障翳。花蕊石水飛焙、防風、川芎藭、甘菊花、白附子、牛蒡子各一 兩,甘草炙半兩,爲末,每服半錢,臘茶下。衞生家寶方。 An obstructive shade that has lasted for many years. [Grind] one liang each of ophiocalcite, processed with aqueous sublimation and baked over a slow fire, saposhnikovia root, Sichuan ligusticum [root], sweet chrysanthemum flower, aconitum [accessory tuber] and arctium seed and half a liang of glycyrrhiza [root], roasted, to a powder. Each time ingest half a qian, to be sent down with la tea.671 Wei sheng jia bao fang. 脚縫出水。好黄丹,入花乳石末,摻之。談野翁試效方。 Bleeding cracks on one’s legs. Apply good quality minium mixed with ophiocalcite powder to the [affected region]. Tan Yeweng, Shi xiao fang. 10-23 白羊石宋圖經 Bai yang shi, FE Song, Tu jing. Stone/mineral from [Mount] Bai yang. White sheep stone/mineral. 【集解】【頌曰】生兖州 白羊山,春中掘地采之,以白瑩者爲良。又有黑 羊石,生兖州宫山之西,亦春中掘地采之,以黑色、有墻壁、光瑩者爲上。 Collected Explanations. [Su] Song: It grows on Mount Bai yang of Yan zhou. It is collected in spring by digging into the ground. White, lustrous specimens are good. There is also a hei yang shi,“black sheep stone mineral”; it grows to the West of Mount Gong shan of Yan zhou. It, too, is collected in spring by digging into the 671 La tea, la cha 臘茶, lit: “tea of the 12th month,” mentioned by Ouyang Xiu and Shen Kua during the Song era. As it is colored like melted wax it is also called la cha 蠟茶, “wax tea.”

Chapter 10

685

ground. Specimens that are of black color, have wall-like surfaces and are lustrous are best. 【氣味】淡,生凉、熟熱,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Bland. Unprocessed cool. Processed hot. Nonpoisonous. 【主治】解藥毒。黑羊石同。蘇頌。 Control. It resolves the poisons of medications; it is identical to hei yang shi. Su Song. 10-24 金牙石别録下品 Jin ya shi, FE Bie lu, lower rank. Stone/mineral from the Jin ya [rapids]. Gold teeth stone/mineral. Iron pyrite, ferric sulphide. 【釋名】黄牙石。【時珍曰】象形。 Explanation of Names. Huang ya shi 黄牙石, “yellow teeth stone/mineral.” [Li] Shizhen: [The name] reflects its physical appearance. 【集解】【别録曰】金牙生蜀郡,如金色者良。【弘景曰】今出蜀漢,似 粗金,大如棋子而方。又有銅牙亦相似,但外黑,内色小淺,不入藥用。 【恭曰】金牙離本處,入土水中,久皆黑色,不可謂之銅牙也。此出漢中 金牙湍,湍兩岸石間打出者,内即金色,岸摧入水,久者皆黑。近南山溪 谷、茂州、維州亦有,勝于漢中者。【頌曰】今雍州亦有之。【時珍曰】 崔昉本草云:金牙石,陽石也。生川、陝山中,似蜜栗子,有金點形者 妙。聖濟經治癘風大方中,用金牙石、銀牙石。銀牙恐即金牙石之白色者 爾,方書並無言及者,姑闕之。 Collected Explanations. “Gold teeth” [stones/minerals] grow in Shu jun. Those with the color of gold are good. [Tao] Hongjun: Today, they originate in Shu han. They look like coarse gold. They are as big as board game pieces and rectangular. There is also a “copper teeth” [stone/mineral] that is quite similar, except for that it is black on the outside and only lightly colored inside. It is not added to medication. [Su] Gong: When “gold teeth” [stones/minerals] are removed from the place of origin and given into soil and water, after a long time they will assume a black color. Nevertheless, they must not be called “copper teeth” [stones/minerals]. [“Gold teeth stones/minerals”] originate in the “gold teeth rapids” ( Jin ya tuan) of Han zhong and they are struck from the rocks on both sides of the rapids. They are of gold color inside. Where the river banks break off and fall into the water, [the “gold teeth stones/minerals”] will turn black after a long time. [“Gold teeth stones/minerals”]

686

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

are also found near the mountain river valleys of Nan shan, in Mao zhou and in Wei zhou. They are superior to those from Han zhong. [Su] Song: Nowadays they are also found in Yong zhou. [Li] Shizhen: The Cui Fang ben cao states: “‘Goold teeth stones/minerals’ are yang stones/minerals. They grow in the mountains of Chuan and Shaan, and they resemble mi li zi (09-20). Those with golden spots on their physical appearance are wondrous.” The Sheng ji jing in its “grand recipe to cure epidemics wind” resorts to “gold teeth stones/minerals” and “silver teeth stones/minerals.” “Silver teeth stones/minerals” may be a white variety of “gold teeth stones/ minerals.” They are not mentioned anywhere else in recipe texts. Hence they are not listed here. 【修治】【大明曰】入藥,燒赤去粗汁乃用。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. Da Ming: To add it to medication, heat it until it has turned red, remove its coarse parts and juice [that may have been released] and then it may be used. 【氣味】鹹,平,無毒。【大明曰】甘,平。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, balanced, nonpoisonous. Da Ming: Sweet, balanced. 【主治】鬼疰毒蠱諸疰。别録。治一切冷風氣,筋骨攣急,腰脚不遂, 燒,浸酒服。甄權。煖腰膝,補水臟,驚悸,小兒驚癇。大明。 Control. Demon attachment illness. All types of poison and gu672 attachment illnesses.673 Bie lu. To cure all types of [ailments associated with] cold wind qi, contortion and cramps of sinews and bones, when lower back and legs fail to follow [one’s will], heat [“gold teeth stones/minerals”], soak them in wine and ingest [the wine]. Zhen Quan. It warms the lower back and the knees, supplements the water longterm depot, [and serves to cure] fright palpitation and fright epilepsy of children. Da Ming. 【發明】【弘景曰】金牙惟酒、散及五疰丸用之,餘方少用。【頌曰】葛 洪肘後方,治風毒厥,有大小金牙酒,但浸其汁飲之。孫思邈千金方治風 毒及鬼疰、南方瘴氣、傳尸等,各有大小金牙散之類是也。小金牙酒主風 疰百病,虚勞濕冷,緩弱不仁,不能行步,近人用之多效。故著其法云: 672 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191. 673 Zhu 疰, also zhu 注, “attachment-illness,” “influx-illnesss,” reflects a notion of a foreign pathogenic agent, originally of demonic nature, having attached itself to the human organism. BCGM Dict I, 688-695.

Chapter 10

687

金牙、細辛、莽草、防風、地膚子、地黄、附子、茵蕷、續斷、蜀椒、蒴 藋根各四兩,獨活一斤,十二物。金牙搗末,别盛練囊,餘皆薄切,同入 一大囊,以清酒四兩漬之,密器泥口,四宿酒成。温服二合,日二次,取 效。 Explication. [Tao] Hongjing: “Gold teeth [stones/minerals]” are resorted to only for preparing [medicinal] wines, [medicinal powders] and for the “pills for the five types of attachment illness.674” In other recipes they are rarely resorted to. [Su] Song: Ge Hong in his Zhou hou fang [among his recommendations to] cure ceasing [qi] caused by wind poison lists a “major” and a “minor wine with gold teeth [stones/ minerals].” [Patients are advised] to drink the juice in which [“gold teeth stones/ minerals”] have been soaked. In his Qian jin fang, Sun Simiao similarly lists a “major” and a “minor powder with gold teeth [stones/minerals]” to cure wind poison and demon attachment illness, southern miasma qi, and corpse [evil] transmission. The “minor gold teeth [stone/mineral] wine” controls the hundreds of diseases associated with wind and attachment illness, depletion exhaustion and moisture with cold, slack and weak [hands and feet] that have lost sensitivity, and an inability to walk. It is often successfully resorted to by the people in recent times. Hence the method of its preparation is recorded here as follows. Required are twelve substances: Four liang each of “gold teeth [stones/minerals],” asarum heteropoides root, illiceum [leaf ], saposhnikovia root, kochia [fruit], Chinese foxglove [rhizome], aconitum [accessory tuber], skimmia [herb], dipsacus [root], Chinese pepper from Si chuan and sambucus [herb and root], as well as one jin of angelica biserrata [root]. Pound the “gold teeth [stones/minerals] to a powder and fill it into a separate silk pouch. Cut all the other substances into thin slices and give them together with [the silk pouch] into a large pouch. This is to be soaked in four liang of clear wine. The vessel [with the wine and the pouch] is to be tightly sealed with mud. After four days the wine is ready. [Let the patients] ingest two ge of it warm, twice a day, until an effect is reached.

674 Zhu 疰, also zhu 注, “attachment-illness,” “influx-illnesss,” reflects a notion of a foreign pathogenic agent, originally of demonic nature, having attached itself to the human organism. BCGM Dict I, 688-695.

688

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 10-25 金剛石綱目 Jin gang shi, FE Gang mu.

Diamond.

【釋名】金剛鑽。【時珍曰】其砂可以鑽玉補瓷,故謂之鑽。 Explanation of Names. Jin gang zuan 金剛鑽, “metal and steel borer.” [Li] Shizhen: With its sand one can drill through jade and repair porcelain. Hence it is called zuan 鑽, “borer.” 【集解】【時珍曰】金剛石出西番、天竺諸國。葛洪抱朴子云:扶南出金 剛,生水底石上,如鍾乳狀,體似紫石英,可以刻玉。人没水取之,雖鐵 椎擊之亦不能傷。惟羚羊角扣之,則漼然冰泮。丹房鑑源云:紫背鉛能碎 金剛鑽。周密齊東野語云:玉人攻玉,以恒河之砂,以金剛鑽鏤之,其形 如鼠矢,青黑色如石如鐵。相傳出西域及回紇高山頂上,鷹隼粘帶食入 腹中,遺糞于河北砂磧間,未知然否。玄中記云:大秦國出金剛,一名削 玉刀,大者長尺許,小者如稻黍,着環中,可以刻玉。觀此則金剛有甚大 者,番僧以充佛牙是也。欲辨真僞,但燒赤淬醋中,如故不酥碎者爲真。 若覺鈍,則煅赤,冷定即鋭也。故西方以金剛喻佛性,羚羊角喻煩惱。十 洲記載西海流砂有昆吾石,治之則劍如鐵675,光明如水精,割玉如泥,此亦 金剛之大者也。又獸有貘及囓鐵、狡兔,皆能食鐵,其糞俱可爲兵切玉, 詳見獸部 貘下。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: Diamonds originate in all the countries of the Western regions and Tian zhu. Ge Hong in his Baopu zi states: “The diamonds originating in Fu nan grow on rocks on the bottom of waters. Their physical body resembles that of fluor spar, and it can be used to cut jade. The people dive into the waters to obtain them. To strike them with an iron mallet, this will not do any harm to them. Only when they are knocked at with an antelope horn they break like ice.” The Dan fang jian yuan states: “Purple-back lead can break a diamond to pieces.” Zhou Mi in his Qi dong ye yu states: “When the jade workers modify jade they use the sand from the river Ganges to carve [the jade] with diamonds. The physical appearance [of this diamond sand] is that of rat/mouse droppings. It is of greenish-black color and resembles both stones and iron. Tradition has it that eagles living on the top of the high mountains of Xi yu and Hui he ingest them while they feed, and that they drop them with their excrements on the sandy deserts at the northern section of the river. It is not known whether this is so.” The Xuan zhong ji 675 The phrase zhi zhi ze jian ru tie 治之則劍如鐵 may be a corrupt version of the original wording quoted in Tai ping yu lan ch. 813, entry tie 鐵, “iron,” from Shi zhou ji 十洲記: zhi qi shi cheng tie zuo jian 治其石成鐵作劍, “This stone/mineral can be prepared to iron to make swords.”

Chapter 10

689

states: “The diamonds originating in Da qin guo are also called ‘jade knives.’ Large ones reach a length of more than one chi. Small ones resemble millet or rice grains. When [one such piece] is attached to a ring it may serve to cut jade.” Seen from this, there are some very large diamonds. They are identified by foreign monks as teeth of Buddha. To distinguish genuine ones from fakes, one only needs to heat them until they have assumed a red color and dip them into vinegar. If they keep the same appearance as those not dipped into vinegar, they are genuine. If [a diamond] appears to have become blunt, calcine it until it has assumed a red color, let it cool and it will be sharp again. Hence the [people in the] West regard diamonds as analogous to the nature of Buddha, and they regard the antelope horns as analogous to unrest. The Shi zhou ji records that “in the floating sands of the Xi hai a kun wu stone/mineral exists that can be made to swords, just like iron. It is as brilliant as crystal, and it cuts through jade as if it were mud.” These, too, are large diamonds. Also, among the animals are tapirs and “crafty hares/rabbits” that gnaw on iron. They all can eat iron. Their excrements can be made into weapons that are able to cut jade. For details see under “tapir” (51-04) in the section “animals”. 【主治】磨水塗湯火傷。作釵環服佩,辟邪惡毒氣。時珍。 Control. Rub [diamonds] in water and apply [the liquid] to harm caused by scalding or fire. Processed into hairpins and rings they keep away evil, malign and poisonous qi. [Li] Shizhen. 10-26 砭石音邊綱目 Bian shi, read bian, FE Gang mu. Stone probe. 【釋名】鍼石。 Explanation of Names. Zhen shi 鍼石, “needle stone/mineral.” 【集解】【時珍曰】案東山經云:高氏之山,鳧麗之山,皆多鐵 676石。郭 璞注云:可爲砭鍼也。素問 異法方宜論云:東方之域,魚鹽之地,海濱 傍水,其病爲瘡瘍,其治宜砭石,故砭石亦從東方來。王冰注云:砭石如 玉,可以爲鍼。蓋古者以石爲鍼,季世以鍼代石,今人又以瓷鍼刺病,亦 砭之遺意也。但砭石無識者,豈即石砮之屬爲之歟。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: According to the Dong shan jing, in the mountains of Gao shi and in the mountains of Fu li there are many iron stones/ 676 The Shan hai jing 山海經, juan 4,, Dong shan jing 東山經, writes zhen 箴, “needle,” “probe,” instead of tie 鐵, “iron.”

690

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

minerals. In his comment, Guo Pu states: They can be made into pointed stone needles. The Su wen, in its treatise Yi fa fang yi lun, states: “The region of the East, the land of fish and salt, where beaches border on the water. Their diseases are sores and abscesses. For their treatment, stone probes are suitable. Hence it is for sure that stone probes originated in the East.” Wang Bing in his comment states: “Stone probes are like jade; they can be made into needles.” The fact is, the ancients used stones to make needles. Over time, metal needles have replaced stone [needles]. Today, the people use porcelain needles to pierce diseases. This is still based on the old idea underlying the use of stone probes. But given that nobody knows for sure what these “stone probes” were like, it may well be that they served as arrowtips.

【附録】 Appendix 10-20-A01 石砮。Shi nu. Stone arrowtip. 【時珍曰】石砮出肅慎。國人以枯木爲矢,青石爲鏃,施毒,中人即死。 石生山中。禹貢荆州、梁州皆貢砮,即此石也。又南方藤州以青石爲刀 劍,如銅鐵,婦人用作環玦。琉璃國人墾田,以石爲刀,長尺餘。皆此類 也。 [Li] Shizhen: Stone arrowtips originate in Su shen. The people there use the wood of dead trees to make arrows, and they use greenish stones to make arrowheads. They apply poison [to these arrowheads] and anyone struck by them dies. These stones grow in the mountains. “The arrowtips supplied by Jing zhou and Liang zhou,” as mentioned in the Yu gong [section of the Book of History], are made from this stone. Also, in the South, in Teng zhou, they use greenish stones to make knives and swords, as if these were copper and iron. The women use them to make rings. When the people of Liu li guo cultivate their fields, they use these stones to make ploughshares of a length of more than one chi. All these are of that same group. 【主治】刺百病癰腫。 Control. It is used to pierce obstruction-illness677 swelling associated with any of the hundreds of diseases.

677 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641.

Chapter 10

691

10-27 越砥别録中品 Yue di, FE Bie lu, middle rank. Whetstone from Yue. 【釋名】磨刀石藏器、羊肝石綱目、礪石。【時珍曰】尚書:荆州厥貢砥 礪。注云:砥以細密爲名,礪以粗糲爲稱。俗稱者爲羊肝石,因形色也。 【弘景曰】越砥,今細礪石也。出臨平。 Explanation of Names. Mo dao shi 磨刀石, “whetstone,” [Chen] Cangqi. Yang gan shi 羊肝石, “sheep liver stone,” Gang mu. Li shi 礪石, “grindstone.” [Li] Shizhen: The Shang shu [states]: “Jing zhou submitted whetstones as tribute [to the court].” A commentary states: “Whetstones, di 砥, are named so because of their fine substance matter. Grindstones, li 礪, are named so because of their coarse/unpolished, cu li 粗糲, substance matter.” Their common name is “sheep liver stone” because of their physical appearance and color. [Tao] Hongjing: Yue whetstones, Yue di 越砥, are today’s fine grindstones. They originate in Lin ping. 【氣味】甘,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, nonpoisonous. 【主治】目盲,止痛,除熱瘙。本經。磨汁點目,除障翳。燒赤投酒飲, 破血瘕痛。藏器。 Control. Blindness. They end pain. They eliminate itch caused by heat. Ben jing. The liquid obtained by grinding [metal in water] is dripped into the eyes to remove obstructive shades. To drink wine into which [a coarse whetstone] was dropped that had been heated until it had assumed a red color will remove painful blood conglomeration-illness. [Chen] Cangqi. 10-27-01 礪石。Li shi. Coarse grindstone. 【主治】破宿血,下石淋,除結瘕,伏鬼物惡氣,燒赤投酒中飲之。人言 蹋之患帶下,未知所由。藏器。 Control. To break open residual blood, to discharge [urinary] stone dripping, to remove nodular conglomeration-illness and to bring down demonic items and malign qi, drink wine into which [a grindstone] was dropped that had been heated until it had assumed a red color.

692

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

10-27-02 磨刀垽。Mo dao yin. Sediment obtained when sharpening knives. 一名龍白泉粉。 Alternative name: “powder from the white spring of dragons.” 【主治】傅蠼螋尿瘡,有效。藏器。塗瘰癧結核。時珍。 Control. An effective [medication] to be applied to sores resulting from the urine of earwigs. [Chen] Cangqi. To be applied to nodular kernels of scrofula. [Li] Shizhen. 10-28 薑石唐本草 Jiang shi, FE Tang ben cao. Ginger stone. Gravel. Calcium carbonate concretion. 【釋名】𥓌礰石。【時珍曰】薑石以形名。或作礓礫。邵伯温云:天有至 戾,地有至幽,石類得之,則爲礓礫是也。俗作𥓌礰。 Explanation of Names. Qiang li shi 𥓌礰石. [Li] Shizhen: “Ginger stone” is named so because of its physical appearance. An alternative writing is jiang li 礓礫, “gravel.” Shao Bowen states: “Heaven’s extreme self-will, and the earth’s extreme unfathomability are gathered in these stones/minerals.” This is a reference to gravel. A common writing is qiang li 𥓌礰. 【集解】【恭曰】薑石所在有之,生土石間,狀如薑,有五種,以色白而 爛不磣者良,齊州歷城東者好,采無時。【宗奭曰】所在皆有,須不見日 色旋取,微白者佳。 Collected Explanations. [Su] Gong: “Ginger stones” are found everywhere. They grow between soil and rocks. They are shaped like ginger, and there are five kinds. Those that are white and pappy without flaws are fine. Those from east of Li cheng in Qi zhou are good. They are collected anytime. [Kou] Zongshi: [“Ginger stones”] are found everywhere. They are to be collected at a time when they will not be exposed to the sun. Those of a slightly white [color] are fine. 【氣味】鹹,寒,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, cold, nonpoisonous.

Chapter 10

693

【主治】熱豌豆瘡,丁毒等腫。唐本。 Control. Pea sores caused by heat. Swelling associated with pin[-illness]678 and other such poison. Tang ben.

【附方】舊二,新三。 Added Recipes. Two of old. Three newly [registered]. 丁毒腫痛。白薑石末,和雞子清傅之,乾即易,丁自出,神效。崔氏方。 Painful swelling associated with pin[-illness] poison. Apply “ginger stone” powder mixed with egg white to [the affected region]. When it has dried replace it [with a fresh application]. The pin will come out as a result. Divinely effective. Cui shi fang. 乳癰腫大。如盌腫痛,方同上。外臺秘要。 Breast obstruction-illness679 with a massive swelling. A painful swelling resembling a bowl. Recipe identical to the one above. Wai tai mi yao. 産後脹衝,氣噎。𥓌礰石、代赭石等分,爲末,醋糊丸梧子大。每服三五 十丸,醋湯下。潔古保命集。 Distension following delivery with [qi] rushing [upward] causing a qi gullet occlusion. [Grind] equal amounts of “ginger stone” (10-28) and iron oxide to a powder and prepare with vinegar and dough pills the size of wu seeds. Each time [let the patient] ingest 30 to 50 pills, to be sent down with a vinegar decoction. [Zhang] Jiegu, Bao ming ji. 通身水腫。薑石燒赤,納黑牛尿中,熱服,日飲一升。千金方。 Water swelling all over the body. Heat “ginger stones” until they have assumed a red color, give them into the urine of a black ox and [let the patient] ingest the hot [liquid]. He is to drink one sheng per day. Qian jin fang.

678 Ding 丁, “pin[-illness],” also ding 疔, “pin-illness,” refers to a deep-reaching and festering hardness in a tissue, eventually rising above the skin like a pinhead. BCGM Dict I, 127129. 679 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641.

694

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

10-29 麥飯石宋圖經 Mai fan shi, FE Song, Tu jing. Wheat meal stone. Porphyry. 【釋名】【時珍曰】象形。 Explanation of Names. [Li] Shizhen: [The name is to] reflect the physical appearance [of this substance]. 【集解】【時珍曰】李迅云:麥飯石處處山溪中有之。其石大小不等,或 如拳,或如鵝卵,或如盞,或如餅,大略狀如握聚一團麥飯,有粒點如豆 如米,其色黄白,但於溪間麻石中尋有此狀者即是。古方云,曾作磨者 佳,誤矣。此石不可作磨。若無此石,但以舊麪磨近齒處石代之,取其有 麥性故耳。 Collected Explanation. [Li] Shizhen: Li Xun states: “‘Wheat meal stones’ are found everywhere in mountain rivers. The size of these stones varies. Some are as big as a fist, others are as big as a goose egg. Or they may resemble a small cup, or a flat cake. In general, they are shaped like a portion of wheat meal, interspersed with grains that may be as big as beans or rice. Their color is yellow-white. If in the rivers among the coarse rocks [small stones] of this shape are found, then these are ‘wheat meal stones’. An ancient recipe states that those that have been used for grinding are fine, but that is wrong. These stones cannot be used for grinding. If no such stone is available, it can be substituted with the ‘teeth’ of a stone mortar used to grind wheat. The reason is that they have come to possess the nature of wheat.” 【氣味】甘,温,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, warm, nonpoisonous. 【主治】一切癰疽發背。時珍。 Control. All types of obstruction-illnesses and impediment-illness680 effusing [as ulcers] on the back. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【頌曰】大凡石類多主癰疽。世傳麥飯石膏,治發背瘡甚效,乃 中岳山人 吕子華秘方。裴員外啗之以名第,河南尹脅之以重刑,吕寧絶 榮望,守死不傳其方。取此石碎如棋子,炭火燒赤,投米醋中浸之,如此 十次,研末篩細,入乳鉢内,用數人更碾五七日,要細膩如麪,四兩。鹿 角一具,要生取連腦骨者,其自脱者不堪用,每二三寸截之,炭火燒令烟 680 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642.

Chapter 10

695

盡即止,爲末研細,二兩。白斂生研末,二兩。用三年米醋入銀石器内, 煎令魚目沸,旋旋入藥在内,竹杖子不住攪,熬一二時久,稀稠得所,傾 在盆内,待冷以紙蓋收,勿令塵入。用時,以鵝翎拂膏,于腫上四圍赤處 盡塗之,中留錢大洩氣。如未有膿即内消,已作頭即撮小,已潰即排膿如 湍水。若病久肌肉爛落,見出筋骨者,即塗細布上帖之,乾即易,逐日瘡 口收斂。但中隔不穴者,即無不瘥。已潰者,用時先以猪蹄湯洗去膿血, 故帛挹乾,乃用藥。其瘡切忌手觸動,嫩肉仍不可以口氣吹風,及腋氣、 月經、有孕人見之,合藥亦忌此等。初時一日一洗一换,十日後二日一 换。此藥要極細方有效。若不細,塗之即極痛也。此方孫真人千金月令已 有之,但不及此詳悉耳。又北齊 馬嗣明治楊遵彦背瘡,取粗黄石如鵝卵 大者,猛火燒赤,納濃醋中,當有屑落醋中,再燒再淬,石至盡,取屑日 乾,擣篩極細末,和醋塗之,立愈。劉禹錫傳信方謂之鍊石法,用傅瘡腫 無不驗。 Explication. [Su] Song: Most types of stones/minerals control obstruction-illness and impediment-illness.681 Throughout the times a “wheat meal stone paste” has been used to cure sores effusing on the back with great success. This is a recipe of Zhongqiu shanren, i. e., Lü Zihua. Pei Yuanwai tried [to obtain his recipe] by luring him with fame and an academic position. The governor of He nan tried to force him [to deliver his recipe by threatening him] with severe punishment. But Lü [Zihua] resented glory and career and preferred to die rather than to give away his recipe. [The preparation of this paste is a follows.] Break these [“wheat meal”] stones into pieces as big as those used in a board game. Heat them with a charcoal fire until they have turned red. Drop them into rice vinegar to let them soak there. Do this ten times. Eventually grind them to a powder and pass it through a fine sieve. Give it into a mortar and have several persons grind it for five to seven days until it has become as fine and greasy as flour. [This is the main ingredient, of which] four liang [are required. A second ingredient is] a fresh deer horn removed [from the head of a deer] with pieces of the [deer’s] skull still attached to it. [Deer horns] that have fallen off by themselves cannot be used. Cut it into pieces of two to three cun length and heat them over a charcoal fire until they will no longer release any smoke. Then grind them to a fine powder. Two liang [are required. A third ingredient is] raw/ unprocessed bai lian ground to a powder. Two liang. Fill rice vinegar that has been stored for three years into a silver vessel and fry it until it boils with fish eye bubbles. Then pour the [three] pharmaceutical substances into it, stir [the mixture] continuously with a bamboo stick and simmer it for one or two hours. When it starts to 681 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642.

696

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

become viscous pour it into a basin. Wait until it has cooled down, with [the basin] covered with paper lest dust might enter it. When it is to be used [for therapeutic purposes], take the paste up with a goose feather and completely cover all four and reddish sides of the swelling. In the center leave a region as big as a coin free so that [evil] qi may be released there. If [the swelling] is without pus, it will dissolve internally. If there is already a tip [of pus] it will gradually decrease in size. If it has begun to fester, the pus will be pushed out like gushing water. In the case the disease has lasted for a long time already, with muscles and flesh having begun to rot and to fall off, and with sinews and bones becoming visible, apply [the paste] to a piece of fine cloth that is then to be placed [on the affected region]. Once it has dried, it is to be replaced [with a fresh application]. The opening of the sore will close increasingly over the next few days. However, if the center remains closed and no hole opens [to release the pus], a cure will be impossible. When it has begun to fester, prior to applying [the paste] wash off the pus and the blood with a pig trotter decoction. Wipe [the affected region] dry with some old silk and then apply the medication. Do not touch the sore with your hands, and do not blow your qi on the delicate flesh [of the sore]. Also, while preparing this medication stay away from persons releasing [malodorous] qi from their armpits, from [women having their] monthly period and from those who are pregnant. In the beginning, wash [the affected region] and replace [the medication with a fresh application] once per day. After ten days, replace [the medication] once every second day. The pharmaceutical substances [used to prepare this paste] must be ground to an extremely fine [powder] for the recipe to be effective. If they are not [ground to] a fine [powder], the application [of the paste] will cause extreme pain. This recipe was listed in Sun zhenren’s Qian jin yue ling already, but not as detailed as it is recorded here. Also, Ma Siming of Bei Qi once cured Yang Zunyan who had developed a sore on his back. He resorted to a coarse yellow [“wheat meal”] stone the size of goose eggs, heated it on a strong fire until it had turned red, and gave it into dense vinegar. This caused some scraps to descend in the vinegar. He then heated [the stone] again and dipped it [into the vinegar] again until the entire stone was used up. He then removed the scraps [from the vinegar], dried them in the sun, ground them and sieved them to obtain a very fine powder. This he mixed with vinegar and applied it [to the affected region], with an immediate effect. Liu Yuxin in his Chuan xin fang has specified this method to refine, with heat, [“wheat meal”] stones. When [this medication] is applied to sores and swelling, it will be always effective.

Chapter 10

697

10-30 水中白石拾遺 Shui zhong bai shi, FE Shi yi. White stone in water. Riverbed pebbles. 【集解】【時珍曰】此石處處溪澗中有之。大者如雞子,小者如指頂,有 黑白二色,入藥用白小者。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: This stone can be found everywhere in mountain streams. Large ones are as big as chicken eggs; small ones are as big as fingertips. They may be of two colors, black and white. For medicinal applications use small, white ones. 【主治】食魚鱠多,脹滿成瘕,痛悶,日漸羸弱。取數十枚燒赤,投五升 水中七徧,熱飲。如此三五度,當利出瘕也。又燒淬水中,納鹽三合,洗 風瘙癮疹。藏器。治背上忽腫如盤,不識名者。取一二盌,燒熱投水中, 頻洗之,立瘥。蘇頌。 Control. Overeating of minced fish, with bloating and a sensation of fullness resulting in a conglomeration-illness, with pain and heart-pressure. Patients lose weight day after day and are weakened. Heat several tens [of such stones] until they have turned red and give them into five sheng of water seven times. Drink the hot [liquid]. Once this has been continued three to five times, a free-flux [defecation will serve to] release the conglomeration-illness. Also, they may be heated and dropped into water to which are then added three ge of salt. [Use the liquid to] wash [regions affected by] wind itch and dormant papules. [Chen] Cangqi. It serves to cure sudden swelling, the size of a bowl, on the back, that cannot be named. Take one or two cups [of these stones], heat them until they are hot and give them into water. [Use this water] to repeatedly wash [the affected region]. Immediately effective. Su Song. 【發明】【時珍曰】昔人有煮石爲糧法,即用此石也。其法用胡葱汁或地 榆根等煮之,即熟如芋,謂之石羹。抱朴子云:洛陽道士董威辟穀方:用 防風、莧子、甘草之屬十許種爲散,先服三方寸匕,乃吞石子如雀卵十二 枚。足百日,不食,氣力顔色如故。欲食,則飲葵湯,下去石子。又有赤 龍血、青龍膏,皆可煮石。又有引石散,投方寸匕,可煮白石子一斗,立 熟如芋,可食。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: The ancients had a method to boil stones to [substitute them for] food. These were the stones listed here. The method [went like this]. Boil [the stones] with shallot juice or with sanguisorba root. Once they are done, they are [as soft as] taro. [The resulting food] is called “stone gruel.” The Baopu zi states: “The Daoist Dong Wei of Luo yang had [the following] recipe to avoid cereals. [Grind]

698

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

ten or more [substances] like saposhnikovia root, amaranthus seeds and glycyrrhiza [root] to a powder. First ingest the amount held by three square cun spoons. Then swallow twelve such stones as big as sparrow eggs and you will be stuffed for 100 days without eating anything. Your qi strength and your complexion will remain unchanged. If you are hungry, drink a mallow seed decoction. This will cause a discharge of the stones. Also, there are ‘red dragon blood’ and ‘greenish dragon paste’. They all can be used for boiling the stones. Furthermore, there is a ‘powder guiding the stones’. Give as much as is held by a square cun spoon into water to boil one dou of white stones. They will be immediately done, resembling taro, and can be eaten.” 10-31 河砂拾遺 He sha, FE Shi yi. Riverbed sand. 【釋名】砂,小石也。字從少石,會意。 Explanation of Names. Sha 砂 are small stones. The character [sha 砂] is a combination of the meanings of shao 少, “little,” and shi 石, “stone.” 【主治】石淋,取細白沙三升炒熱,以酒三升淋汁,服一合,日再服。又 主絞腸沙痛,炒赤,冷水淬之,澄清,服一二合。時珍。風濕頑痺不仁, 筋骨攣縮,冷風癱緩,血脉斷絶。六月取河砂,烈日暴令極熱,伏坐其 中,冷即易之。取熱徹通汗,隨病用藥。切忌風冷勞役。藏器。 Control. For [urinary] stone dripping, fry three sheng of fine, white [riverbed] sand [stones] until they are hot and soak them in three sheng of wine. Ingest one ge [of the liquid]. To be ingested twice a day. Also, to control a twisting pain with cramps affecting the intestines, fry them until they are red, dip them into cold water, wait for the dregs to have settled and ingest one to two ge [of the clear liquid]. [Li] Shizhen. Numbness and loss of sensitivy caused by wind and moisture, with contractions affecting sinews and bones. Paralysis caused by cold and wind, with the movement of blood in the vessels interrupted. Remove sand from a river in the sixth month and expose it to a burning sun until it has become very hot. [Let the patient] lie prostrate or sit in [the sand]. When it has cooled down, replace it with [hot sand again]. Keep up the heat until [the patient] sweats all over his body, and in addition apply medication suitable for his disease. He must not be exposed to wind, cold and exhaustion. [Chen] Cangqi.

Chapter 10

699

【附方】新一。 Added Recipes. One newly [recorded]. 人溺水死。白沙炒,覆死人面上下,惟露七孔,冷濕即易。千金。 A person has died by drowning. Fry white sand [from a riverbed] and cover the dead person’s face from top to bottom, leaving only the seven orifices uncovered. When the sand has cooled down and turns moist, replace it [with hot, dry sand]. Qian jin. 10-32 杓上砂綱目 Shao shang sha, FE Gang mu. Sand on a [rice] ladle/spoon. 【集解】【時珍曰】此淘米杓也。有木杓、瓢杓,皆可用。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: This is [sand from] a ladle used for washing rice. It may be a wooden ladle, or a ladle made from a gourd. They can all be used. 【主治】面上風粟,或青或黄赤,隱暗澀痛,及人唇上生瘡者,本家杓上 刮去唇砂一二粒,即安。又婦人吹乳,取砂七枚,温酒送下,更以炊帚枝 通乳孔。此皆莫解其理。時珍。 Control. For facial wind millet [skin papules] that may be greenish or yellow-red, or that remain invisible with a rough [skin] and pain, and for sores growing on the lips, scrape and remove from a ladle of the [patient’s] family’s household one or two grains of sand, and he will be in peace. Also, for inflated breast682 of women, take seven grains [of sand] and have her send them down with warm wine. Or use a twig from a pot-scouring brush to open holes in her breast. The principles underlying all these [interventions] are not known. [Li] Shizhen. 10-33 石燕唐本草 Shi yan, FE Tang ben cao. Stone swallow. Spirifer fossil. 【集解】【李勣曰】石燕出零陵。【恭曰】永州 祁陽縣西北一十里有土 岡上,掘深丈餘取之。形似蚶而小,堅重如石也。俗云因雷雨則自石穴中 出,隨雨飛墮者,妄也。【頌曰】祁陽縣江畔沙灘上有之。或云生洞中, 凝僵似石者佳,采無時。【宗奭曰】石燕如蜆蛤之狀,色如土,堅重如 682 Chui nai 吹奶, also chui ru 吹乳, “inflated breast.” A condition of blocked milk after birth, with the breasts turning red and swelling. BCGM Dict I, 101.

700

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

石。既無羽翼,焉能飛出?其言近妄。【時珍曰】石燕有二:一種是此, 乃石類也,狀類燕而有文,圓大者爲雄,長小者爲雌。一種是鍾乳穴中石 燕,似蝙蝠者,食乳汁,能飛,乃禽類也,見禽部。禽石燕食乳,食之補 助,與鍾乳同功,故方書助陽藥多用之。俗人不知,往往用此石爲助陽 藥,刊于方册,誤矣。 Collected Explanations. Li Ji: Stone swallows originate in Ling ling. [Su] Gong: Ten li northwest of Qi yang xian in Yong zhou [stone swallows] are obtained by digging several zhang deep into the soil of a hill ridge there. Their physical appearance resembles that of blood clams (46-14), but they are smaller. They are hard and heavy like stones. A popular saying is that they are released from stone caves during thunder and rain, and that they fly with the rain and then drop down. That is nonsense. [Su] Song: They are found on the sandy beaches of the river banks of Qi yang xian. Some say that they grow in caves. Those that have become stiff like stones are fine. They are collected anytime. [Kou] Zongshi: Stone swallows are shaped like corbiculas and clams. Their color is that of soil; they are hard and heavy like stones. As they lack wings, how could they have come out [of the caves] flying? Such sayings border on nonsense. [Li] Shizhen: There are two [kinds of ] stone swallows. One variety is the one discussed here. It belongs to the group of stones. Its shape resembles that of swallows and it has a line design. Those that are round and big are males; those that are lengthy and small are females. Another variety are the stone swallows in stalactite caves. They resemble bats. They eat the juice [dripping] from the stalactites and they can fly. They belong to the group of birds. [For details] see the section “birds.” As bird type stone swallows eat stalactites, to eat them has supplementary effects, identical to those of stalactites. Hence they are often resorted to in recipe texts as medication for supporting yang [qi]. The common people are unaware [of the existence of these two kinds]. They often use these stones [indiscriminately] as medication for supporting yang [qi], and this is printed in recipe books. It is a mistake. 【氣味】甘,凉,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, cool, nonpoisonous. 【主治】淋疾,煮汁飲之。婦人難産,兩手各把一枚,立驗。唐本。療眼 目障瞖,諸般淋瀝,久患消渴,臟腑頻瀉,腸風痔瘻,年久不瘥,面色虚 黄,飲食無味。婦人月水湛濁,赤白帶下多年者,每日磨汁飲之。一枚用 三日,以此爲準。亦可爲末,水飛過,每日服半錢至一錢,米飲服。至一 月,諸疾悉平。時珍。 Control. For [urinary] dripping illness, boil them and drink the resulting juice. Women with difficult birth hold one of them in each hand and this will take effect

Chapter 10

701

immediately. Tang ben. They serve to heal obstructive shades in the eyes, all types of [urinary] dripping, long-lasting suffering from melting with thirst,683 recurrent outflow from the long-term depots and short-term repositories and intestinal wind with piles fistula that have not been cured for years. Also, [for patients] with a yellow complexion signaling depletion, who sense no flavor when they eat and drink, and for women with a copious and muddy menstruation liquid and who have experienced a red and white [outflow] from below the belt for many years. They should rub [stone swallows in water] each day and drink the resulting juice. The usage of one such [stone swallow] will last for three days. This should be the standard dosage. They can also be [ground to] a powder, processed with aqueous sublimation. Half a qian to one qian is to be ingested each day, to be ingested together with a rice beverage. Within one month all such illnesses will have been cured. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】石燕性凉,乃利竅行濕熱之物。宋人修本草,以食鍾 乳禽石燕混收入此石燕下。故世俗誤傳此石能助陽,不知其正相反也。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: Stone swallows are by nature cold. They are items that free the passage through the orifices and stimulate the movement [out of the body] of moisture and heat. When during the Song authors rearranged the Ben cao, they indiscriminately added those bird type stone swallows that feed on stalactites to the entry of the stone swallows discussed here. Hence an erroneous tradition has been continued through the ages insisting that these stones are capable of supporting yang [qi]. It remained unknown that exactly the opposite is the case.

【附方】舊三,新七。 Added Recipes. Three of old; seven newly [recorded]. 傷寒尿濇,小腹脹滿。石燕爲末,葱白湯調半錢,脹通爲度。聖惠方。 Harm caused by cold with rough urination, lower abdominal distension and a sensation of fullness. [Grind] stone swallows to a powder and [ingest] half a qian mixed with an onion decoction until the distension [is eliminated and a smooth] flow [of urine is restored]. Sheng hui fang. 小便淋痛。石燕子七枚,搗黍米大,新桑根白皮三兩剉,拌匀,分作七 帖,每帖用水一盞,煎七分,空心、午前各一服。簡要濟衆方。 Painful urinary dripping. Pound seven stone swallows to pieces as big as millet or rice grains and mix them evenly with three liang of new white bark from a mulberry tree root, cut into small pieces. Divide [the mixture] into seven portions. Boil each 683 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567.

702

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

dose separately in a cup of water down to 7 parts [out of ten] and [let the patient] ingest each time, on an empty stomach and prior to noon, one such dose. Jian yao ji chong fang. 血淋心煩。石燕子、商陸、赤小豆、紅花等分,爲末。每服一錢,葱白湯 調下。聖惠方。 [Urinary] dripping with blood and heart unrest. [Grind] equal amounts of stone swallows, phytolacca [root], red mung beans and safflower to a powder. Each time ingest one qian, to be sent down mixed with an onion decoction. Sheng hui fang. 久年腸風。石燕磨水,常服勿歇。靈苑方。 Intestinal wind lasting for years. Rub stone swallows in water and drink [the resulting liquid] regularly without interruption. Ling yuan fang. 赤白帶下,多年不止。石燕一枚,磨水服,立效。徐氏家傳方。 Red and white discharge from below the belt that has not ended for many years. Rub one stone swallow in water and ingest [the resulting liquid]. Immediately effective. Xu shi jia chuan fang. 襁褓吐乳,欬嗽久不愈。石燕子爲末,以蜜調少許,塗唇上,日三五次。 衞生寶鑑。 Spitting of milk of a newborn, with a long-lasting cough that cannot be healed. [Grind] stone swallows to a powder, mix it with a small amount of honey and apply it to [the child’s] lips. Three to five times a day. Wei sheng bao jian. 拳毛倒睫。石燕子一雌一雄,磨水點搽眼。先以鑷子摘去拳毛,乃點藥, 後以黄連水洗之。乾坤生意。 Inverted eyelashes. Rub one female and one male stone swallow in water and drip [the resulting liquid] into the [affected] eye. First pick up the inverted eyelash with a pair of tweezers and then drip the medication. Finally wash the [affected eye] with coptis [rhizome] water. Qian kun sheng yi. 牢牙止痛。石燕三對,火燒醋淬七次,青鹽、乳香各一兩,細辛半兩,爲 末。揩之,荆芥湯漱口。 To stabilize the teeth and end pain. Heat three pairs of [female and male] stone swallows over a fire and dip them into vinegar seven times. Then [grind them] together with one liang each of halite and frankincense and half a liang of asarum heteropoides root to a powder. Rub [this powder] on the [teeth] and rinse the mouth with a schizonepeta [spike] decoction.

Chapter 10

703

一方去乳香、細辛,加麝香。 Another recipe leaves out the frankincense and the asarum heteropoides root and adds musk instead. 齒疏不堅。石燕子五對,火煅米醋淬七次,爲末,青鹽、麝香各少許,研 匀。日用揩牙後,以温酒漱嚥之。元遺山方。 Teeth that are positioned distant from each other and are not firm. Calcine seven pairs of [female and male] stone swallows over a fire, dip them into rice vinegar seven times and [grind them to] a powder. Then grind [this powder] together with small amounts each of halite and musk to an even mixture. Every day after rubbing it on the teeth rinse them with warm wine and swallow the [wine with the powder]. Yuan Yishan fang. 服石發動。石燕子七箇,打碎,水三升,煮二升,頻頻淋洗,以瘥爲度。 聖濟方。 Excitement resulting from an ingestion of a stone/mineral [medication]. Strike seven stone swallows to pieces and boil them in three sheng of water down to two sheng. Again and again pour this over [the patient] until he feels cured. Sheng ji fang. 10-34 石蟹宋開寶 Shi xie, FE Song, Kai bao. Stone crabs. Crab fossil. 【集解】【志曰】石蟹生南海,云是尋常蟹爾,年月深久,水沫相着,因 化成石,每遇海潮即飄出。又有一種,入洞穴年深者亦然。皆細研水飛, 入諸藥相助用之。【頌曰】近海州郡皆有之。體質石也,而都與蟹相似, 但有泥與粗石相着爾。【時珍曰】按顧玠海槎録云:崖州 榆林港内半里 許,土極細膩,最寒,但蟹入則不能運動,片時成石矣。人獲之名石蟹, 置之几案,云能明目也。復有石鰕似鰕,出海邊。石魚似魚,出湘山縣 石 魚山,並不入藥用。一統志言,鳳翔 汧陽縣西有山魚隴,掘地破石得之, 云可辟蠹也。 Collected Explanations. [Ma] Zhi: Stone crabs grow in the Nan hai. It is said that they are ordinary crabs that in the course of many years because of constant contact with the foam in the water are transformed and become stones. Whenever there is a high tide they are released [on the beach] by the waves. There is another variety [of crabs] that undergo the same process after they have entered a cave. Both kinds are to be ground to a fine [powder] that is then subjected to aqueous sublimation. They are added to all types of medication to support [their effects]. [Su] Song: They

704

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

are found in all the zhou and prefectures adjacent to the sea. The substance of their physical body is that of stones, but they always resemble crabs. However, there are mud or coarse stones attached to them. [Li] Shizhen: According to Gu Jie’s Hai cuo lu, “in a distance of a little more than half a li from the harbor of Yu lin in Ya zhou, the soil is extremely fine and greasy. It is very cold. When crabs enter it they are unable to move further on. A short time later they become stones. The people collect them and name them ‘stone swallows’. They place them on a table, stating that they can clear the eyes.” There are also stone shrimps resembling shrimps; they originate in the seaside. Stone fish resemble fish. They originate in Mount Shi yu in Xiang shan xian. All these are not added to medications. The Yi tong zhi says: “In Feng xiang, in Qian yang xian, is a [place called] Shan yu long where [the people] dig into the earth and break rocks to obtain these [stone crabs]. It is said that they can keep away moths.” 【氣味】鹹,寒,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】青盲目淫,膚瞖丁瞖,漆瘡。開寶。解一切藥毒并蠱毒,天行熱 疾,催生落胎,療血運,並熱水磨服。大明。醋摩傅癰腫。熟水磨服,解 金石毒。蘇頌。 Control. Green blindness and excess skin [affecting the eyes]. Skin films covering the eye and films [reaching deep into the eye like a] pin. Lacquer sores. Kai bao. They resolve all types of medication poison and gu poison,684 as well as epidemic heat illness. To expedite birth and stimulate the descend of the fetus, and to heal blood induced [brain] movements, rub them in hot water and [let the woman] ingest [the resulting liquid]. Da Ming. Rub them in vinegar and apply [the resulting liquid] to swellings associated with obstruction-illness.685 To ingest the [liquid resulting from] rubbing them in boiled water resolves the poison of metals and stones/minerals. Su Song.

684 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191. 685 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641.

Chapter 10

705

【附方】新一。 Attached Recipes. One newly [recorded]. 喉痺腫痛。石蟹磨水飲,并塗喉外。聖濟録。 Swollen and painful blocked throat. Rub stone crabs in water and drink [the resulting liquid]. At the same time, rub it from outside on the throat. Sheng ji lu. 10-35 石蛇宋圖經 Shi she, FE Song, Tu jing. Stone snake. Ammonite. 【集解】【頌曰】石蛇出南海水旁山石間,其形盤屈如蛇,無首尾,内 空,紅紫色,以左盤者良。又似車螺,不知何物所化。大扺與石蟹同類, 功用亦相近。【宗奭曰】石蛇色如古墻上土,盤結如查梨大,空中,兩頭 巨細一等。不與石蟹同類。蟹則真蟹所化,蛇非真蛇。今人用之絶少。【 時珍曰】按姚寬西溪叢話云:南恩州海邊有石山觜,每蟹過之則化爲石, 蛇過亦然。此説不知果否?若然,則石蛇亦真蛇所化矣。 Collected Explanations. [Su] Song: Stone snakes originate in the rocks of the mountains adjacent to the water of the Nan hai. Their physical appearance is coiled like snakes, with neither head nor tail. They are hollow inside, and of red-purple color. Those coiling to the left are good. There are also wheel-shaped snails but it is unknown from what items they have transformed. Generally speaking, they belong to the group of stone crabs. Their [therapeutic] potentials are similar. [Kou] Zongshi: The color of stone snakes is that of soil on an old wall, and their coils are as big as pears. They are hollow inside, and their two ends are of equal size. They do not belong to the group of stone crabs. [Stone] crabs are transformations of genuine crabs. [Stone] snakes are not [transformations of ] genuine snakes. The people of today rarely use them. [Li] Shizhen: According to Yao Kuan’s Xi xi cong hua, “in Nan en zhou by the seaside the mountain rocks form a protrusion. Whenever crabs pass by it they will transform to stones. The same happens to snakes.” It remains to be seen whether this statement is true. If it is, then stone snakes, too, are transformed real snakes. 【氣味】鹹,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】解金石毒。蘇頌。 Control. It resolves the poison of metals and minerals. Su Song.

706

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

10-36 石蠶宋開寶 Shi can, FE Song, Kai bao. Stone silk worm. Coral stone fragment. 【釋名】石僵蠶綱目。 Explanation of Names. Shi jiang can 石僵蠶, “stone stiff silk worm,” Gang mu. 【集解】【志曰】石蠶生海岸石旁,狀如蠶,其實石也。 Collected Explanations. [Ma] Zhi: Stone silk worms grow on rocks at the seashore. They are shaped like silk worms, but in fact they are stones. 【氣味】苦,熱,無毒。【藥訣曰】苦,熱,有毒。【獨孤滔曰】制丹砂。 Qi and Flavor. Bitter, hot, nonpoisonous. Yao jue: Bitter, hot, poisonous. Dugu Tao: It checks [the effects of ] cinnabar. 【主治】金瘡,止血生肌。破石淋血結,磨服,當下碎石。開寶。 Control. Wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. It ends bleeding and stimulates the growth of muscles. It breaks open [urinary] stone dripping with blood knots. Ingested ground it will cause the discharge of stone fragments. Kai bao. 10-37 石鼈綱目 Shi bie, FE Gang mu. Stone turtle. Septarian nodule. 【集解】【時珍曰】石鼈生海邊,形狀大小儼如䗪蟲,蓋亦化成者。䗪蟲 俗名土鼈。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: Stone turtles grow at the seaside. Their physical appearance, shape and size resemble those of ground beetles. That is, they, too, are the results of a transformation. Ground beetles are commonly called “soil turtles.” 【氣味】甘,凉,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, cool, nonpoisonous. 【主治】淋疾血病,磨水服。時珍。 Control. For [urinary] dripping illness and blood diseases, rub [the substance] in water and ingest [the liquid]. [Li] Shizhen.

Chapter 10

707

10-38 蛇黄唐本草 She huang, FE Tang ben cao. Snake yellow/bezoar. 1. Nodular iron pyrites, ferric sulphide. 2. Limonite, ferric oxide. 【集解】【恭曰】蛇黄出嶺南,蛇腹中得之,圓重如錫,黄黑青雜色。 【志曰】蛇黄多赤色,有吐出者,野人或得之。【頌曰】今越州、信州亦 有之。今醫所用,云是蛇冬蟄時所含土,到春發蟄吐之而去,大如彈丸, 堅如石,外黄内黑色,二月采之。與舊説不同,未知孰是。【時珍曰】蛇 黄生腹中,正如牛黄之意。世人因其難得,遂以蛇含石代之,以其同出於 蛇故爾。廣西平南縣有蛇黄岡,土人九月掘下七八尺,始得蛇黄,大者如 雞子,小者如彈丸,其色紫。庚辛玉册云:蛇含自是一種石,云蛇入蟄 時,含土一塊,起蟄時化作黄石,不稽之言也。有人掘蛇窟尋之,並無此 説。 Collected Explanations. [Su] Gong: Snake yellow originates in Ling nan. It is obtained from within the abdomen of snakes. It is round and heavy like tin. It may be of a mixed yellow, black and greenish color. [Ma] Zhi: Snake yellow is mostly of red color. Specimens that are thrown up [by snakes] are occasionally found by people in the wilderness. [Su] Song: Nowadays, it is also found in Yue zhou and Xin zhou. That used by physicians today is said to be soil held by snakes [in their abdomen] in winter during hibernation. By the time of spring when they come out of hibernation, they throw it up and leave it behind. It is of the size of a bullet, and it is hard like a stone. Externally it is of yellow color; internally it is of black color. It is collected in the second month. This is different from past records and it is not known what is correct. [Li] Shizhen: That snake yellow grows in the abdomen [of a snake] is the same idea as that cow yellow/cow bezoar [grows in the abdomen of cows]. Because [snake yellow] is difficult to obtain, the people substitute it with “stones held by snakes,” as they, too, originate in snakes. In Guang xi, in Ping nan xian, is a “snake yellow ridge.” In the ninth month, the local people there dig seven to eight chi deep to obtain snake yellow. Large specimens are as big as chicken eggs. Small ones reach the size of bullets. They are of purple color. The Geng xin yu ce states: “The ‘[stones] held by snakes’ are a variety of stones. It is said, when snakes enter hibernation, they hold [in their abdomen] a piece of soil. When they come out of hibernation, [this stone] has transformed to a yellow stone. But this is an unfounded statement. There are people who have dug out snake caves in search of these [stones], but there has never been a record that [these stones] were found.”

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

708

【脩治】【大明曰】入藥,燒赤醋淬三四次,研末水飛用。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. Da Ming: To add [snake yellow] to medication, heat it until it has become red and dip it into vinegar three to four times. Then grind it to a powder, process it with aqueous sublimation and make use of it. 【氣味】冷,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】心痛疰忤,石淋,小兒驚癇,婦人産難,以水煮研服汁。唐本。 鎮心。大明。磨汁,塗腫毒。時珍。 Control. For heart pain with attachment illness686 and [being visited by] hostility, [urinary] stone dripping, fright epilepsy of children and difficult delivery of women, boil [snake yellow] in water, grind it [in the water to a powder] and ingest the juice. Tang ben. It calms the heart. Da Ming. Grind it [in water to obtain a] juice and apply this to a swelling with poison. [Li] Shizhen.

【附方】新六。 Added Recipes. Six newly [recorded]. 暗風癇疾。忽然仆地,不知人事,良久方醒。蛇黄,火煅醋淬七次,爲 末,每調酒服二錢,數服愈。年深者亦效。危氏得效方。 Dim-vision wind and epilepsy illness, with [patients] suddenly falling to the ground, not recognizing persons or anything else, and regaining their consciousness only after a long time. Calcine snake yellow over a fire and dip it into vinegar seven times. Then [grind it to] a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest, mixed with wine, two qian. A cure will be achieved after several ingestions. [This recipe] is effective even if [the disease] has lasted for years. Wei shi, De xiao fang. 驚風癇疳。神穴丹:治急驚風、癇疾、天弔、疳熱等證。用紫色蛇黄四兩 煅過,獖猪屎二兩小者泥固煅過,鐵粉一兩,朱砂半兩,麝香一錢,爲 末,糯粉糊丸芡子大,漆盤晒乾。看之每丸有一小穴,故名神穴丹。每服 一丸,薄荷酒化下,立甦。疳熱,冷水化下。靈苑方。

686 Zhu 疰, also zhu 注, “attachment-illness,” “influx-illnesss,” reflects a notion of a foreign pathogenic agent, originally of demonic nature, having attached itself to the human organism. BCGM Dict I, 688-695.

Chapter 10

709

Fright wind,687 epilepsy, gan-illness.688 The “divine cave elixir.” It serves to cure fright wind, epilepsy illness, being hauled by heaven,689 gan-illness with heat, and other such conditions. [Grind] to a powder four liang of calcined purple colored snake yellow, two liang of the excrements of a castrated pig, with small pieces firmly wrapped with mud and calcined, one liang of iron powder, half a liang of cinnabar and one qian of musk. Prepare [this powder] with glutinous rice powder paste to pills the size of qian seeds and dry them on a lacquer plate in the sun. When one inspects them, each pill has a small cave. Hence they are called “divine cave elixir.” Each time [let the patient] ingest one pill, to be sent down dissolved in mint wine, and he will come to life again at once. For gan-illness with heat, have [the pills] sent down dissolved in cold water. Ling yuan fang. 小兒項軟因風虚者。蛇含石一塊,煅七次,醋淬七次研,鬱金等分,爲 末,入麝香少許,白米飯丸龍眼大。每服一丸,薄荷湯化服,一日一服。 活幼全書。 Soft neck of children caused by wind and depletion. Calcine one “stone held by a snake” seven times, dip it into vinegar seven times and grind [it to a powder]. Then [grind it] together with an equal amount of turmeric [root] to a powder, add a small amount of musk and prepare with white cooked rice pills the size of dimocarpus [fruit]. Each time [let the patient] ingest one pill, to be ingested dissolved in a mint decoction. One ingestion a day. Huo you quan shu. 瘴瘧鬼瘧,食瘧。蛇含石末一兩,信石末一兩,研匀,入水火鼎内,上以 盞蓋,六一泥固濟,煅至藥升在盞,刮下爲末,米糕糊丸緑豆大,雄黄爲 衣。每服一丸,黑豆研水,五更送下。摘玄方。 Miasmatic malaria, demon malaria, food malaria. Grind to an equal mixture one liang of “stone held by a snake” powder and one liang of arsenic powder. Give it into a cauldron used in water-fire processing, and close it with a small cup. Firmly seal it with earthworm excrements. Then calcine [the cauldron] until the medication has risen to the small cup. Scrape it off, [grind it to] a powder and prepare, with rice cake paste, pills the size of mung beans, to be coated with realgar. Each time [let the 687 Jing feng 驚風, “fright wind,” a condition of children characterised by jerking and arched back rigidity, eyeballs turned upward, and twitching hands and legs.BCGM Dict I, 261, also 238, 240. 688 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188. 689 Tian diao 天弔, “hauled by heaven,” serves to reflect the arched back rigidity of infant patients affected by jing feng 驚風, “fright wind.” Hence the two terms are often combined to tian diao jing feng 天弔驚風, “hauled by heaven fright wind.” BCGM Dict I, 502.

710

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

patient] ingest one pill to be sent down in the early morning with water in which black beans have been ground. Zhai xuan fang. 血痢不止。蛇含石二枚,火煅醋淬,研末。每服三錢。米飲下。普濟方。 Bloody free-flux illness690 that does not end. Calcine two “stones held by a snake” over a fire and dip them into vinegar. Then grind them to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest three qian, to be sent down with a rice beverage. Pu ji fang. 腸風下血,脱肛。蛇黄二顆,火煅醋淬七次,爲末,每服三錢,陳米飲 下。普濟方。 Intestinal wind with discharge of blood and anal prolapse. Calcine two pieces of snake yellow over a fire, dip them into vinegar seven times and [grind them] to a powder. Each time ingest three qian, to be sent down with a long kept rice beverage. Pu ji fang. 10-39 霹靂碪拾遺 Pi li zhen, FE Shi yi. Thunderbolt anvil. Meteorite. 【釋名】雷楔。【時珍曰】舊作針及屑,誤矣。 Explanation of Names. Lei xie 雷楔, “thunderclap peg.” [Li] Shizhen: In the old days [the characters zhen 碪 and xie 楔] were written zhen 針 and xie 屑. That was wrong. 【集解】【藏器曰】此物伺候震處,掘地三尺得之。其形非一,有似斧刀 者,剉刀者,有安二孔者。一云出雷州,并河東山澤間。因雷震後得者。 多似斧,色青黑斑文,至硬如玉。或言是人間石造,納與天曹,不知事 實。【時珍曰】按雷書云:雷斧如斧,銅鐵爲之。雷碪似碪,乃石也,紫 黑色。雷鎚重數斤,雷鑽長尺餘,皆如鋼鐵,雷神以劈物擊物者。雷環如 玉環,乃雷神所珮遺落者。雷珠乃神龍所含遺下者,夜光滿室。又博物志 云:人間往往見細石形如小斧,名霹靂斧,一名霹靂楔。玄中記云,玉門 之西有一國,山上立廟,國人年年出鑽,以給雷用。此謬言也。雷雖陰陽 二氣激薄有聲,實有神物司之,故亦隨萬物啓蟄,斧鑽碪鎚皆實物也。若 曰在天成象,在地成形,如星隕爲石。則雨金石、雨粟麥、雨毛血及諸異 物者,亦在地成形者乎?必太虚中有神物使然也。陳時蘇紹雷鎚重九斤。 宋時沈括于震木之下得雷楔,似斧而無孔。鬼神之道幽微,誠不可究極。 Collected Explanations. [Chen] Cangqi: For this item, wait until a [thunderbolt] has struck somewhere and dig there three chi deep to obtain it. It occurs in different 690 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

Chapter 10

711

physical appearances. It may resemble the blade of an axe or the blade of a file, and there are those with two holes. Elsewhere it is said that it originates in Lei zhou, and in the mountains and marshlands of He dong. Those found after a thunderclap has struck often resemble an axe. They are greenish-black and have spots and a line design. They are as hard as jade. It is also said that they are made from stone by humans as an offering to the administrators in heaven. It is unclear whether this is so indeed. [Li] Shizhen: According to the Lei shu, “thunderclap axes resemble axes and are made of copper and iron. Thunderclap anvils resemble anvils and consist of stone. They are of purple-black color. Thunderclap hammers weigh several jin. Thunderclap borers are more than one chi long. They all resemble [utensils made from] steel and iron. They serve the thunderclap god to cut apart items and hit items. Thunderclap rings resemble jade rings. They are ornaments inadvertently lost and dropped by the thunderclap god. Thunderclap pearls are the ones held in the mouth by spirit dragons that have fallen [on the ground]. By night they shine and illuminate a room.” Also, the Bo wu zhi states: “Among humans fine stones are observed frequently that are shaped like a small axe. They are called thunderclap axe; another name is thunderbolt peg.” The Xuan zhong ji states: “West of Yu men is a country with a monastery on a mountain. Every year the inhabitants of that country release borers and give them to the thunderclap [god] for his use.” This is an erroneous saying. Thunderclap is a sound caused by the clash of yin and yang qi but this is controlled by gods. Hence it commences and ends just like all the other myriad items. Axes, borers, anvils and mallets are all real items. It is said that these are images in heaven that assume a physical appearance once they have reached the earth. Just like stars that have fallen [from the sky on the earth] and become stones. Now, when it rains metals and stones, when it rains millet and wheat, when it rains hair and blood, and all types of strange items, is it that they, too, assume a physical appearance when they are on the earth? Somewhere in the great void there must be some god who is responsible for all this. During Chen times, Su Shao obtained a thunderclap mallet weighing nine jin. During Song times, Shen Kuo found a thunderclap peg under a tree struck by [a thunderbolt]. It resembled an axe but had no holes. The WAY of demons and spirits is obscure and invisible. It really cannot be investigated to its very end. 【主治】無毒。主大驚失心,恍惚不識人,并石淋,磨汁服,亦煮服。作 枕,除魔夢不祥。藏器。刮末服,主瘵疾,殺勞蟲,下蠱毒,止洩泄。置 箱簀間,不生蛀蟲。諸雷物珮之,安神定志,治驚邪之疾。時珍,出雷書。 Control. Nonpoisonous. It controls massive fright and a loss of heart [qi], with absentmindedness and an inability to recognize persons. To end [urinary] stone

712

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

dripping rub it [in water] and ingest the resulting juice. It is also possible to boil [it in water] and to ingest [the liquid]. When prepared as a pillow, it keeps away inauspicious nightmares. [Chen] Cangqi. A powder scraped from it controls consumption illness, kills exhaustion worms/bugs, serves to discharge gu poison691 and ends outflow. If placed into a chest between bedding it prevents the growth of moths and worms/bugs. All thunderclap items [listed above] when worn as ornaments serve to pacify the spirit, to stabilize the mind and to cure illnesses associated with fright evil. [Li] Shizhen, quoted from Lei shu. 10-40 雷墨綱目 Lei mo, FE Gang mu. Thunderclap ink. 【集解】【時珍曰】按雷書云:凡雷書木石,謂木札,入二三分,青黄 色。或云:雄黄、青黛、丹砂合成,以雷楔書之。或云蓬萊山石脂所書。 雷州每雷雨大作,飛下如沙石,大者如塊,小者如指,堅硬如石,黑色光 艷至重。劉恂嶺表録云:雷州驟雨後,人于野中得石如黳石,謂之雷公 墨,扣之錚然,光瑩可愛。又李肇國史補云:雷州多雷,秋則伏蟄,狀如 彘,人掘取食之。觀此,則雷果有物矣。 Collected Explanations. [Li] Shizhen: According to the Lei shu, “all wood and stone [tablets] written with thunderclap [ink] are called ‘wooden slabs’. [The ink] enters them two or three fen deep; it is of greenish-black color. It is also said: [Thunderclap ink] is made from realgar, indigo and cinnabar and a thunderclap peg is used to write with this [ink]. Elsewhere it is said: It is written with halloysite from the mountains of Peng lai. In Lei zhou whenever a strong thunderclap and rain occur items like sand stones fly [in the air] and fall down [on the ground]. These may be large chunks or small pieces as big as a finger. They are hard like a stone. They are of black color, release a beautiful light and are very heavy.” Liu Xun in his Ling biao lu states: “In Lei zhou, after a heavy shower the people in the wilderness find stones resembling black stones. They call them ‘the thunderclap lord’s ink’. When knocked they release a sound of metal, and their luster is lovely.” Also, Li Zhao in his Guo shi states: “In Lei zhou there are many thunderclaps. In autumn, [the thunderclaps] hide and go into hibernation, shaped like pigs. The people dig them up and eat them.” Seen from this, thunderclaps truly include tangible items. 691 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191.

Chapter 10

713

【主治】小兒驚癇,邪魅諸病,以桃符湯磨服即安。時珍。 Control. Fright epilepsy of children. All types of diseases associated with evil goblins. Grind [thunderclap ink] with a decoction prepared from peach wood talismans and [the patient] will be in peace. [Li] Shizhen.

本草綱目 Ben cao gang mu 石部目録 Section Stones/Minerals, Contents 第十一卷 Chapter 11 石之五鹵石類二十種 Stones/Minerals V, Group of Salt Stones/Minerals, 20 kinds 附録二十七種 Appendix: 27 kinds Shi yan 食鹽, edible salt, FE Bie lu 别録 Rong yan 戎鹽, crystal salt, FE Ben jing 本經 Guang ming yan 光明鹽, lustrous salt. FE Tang ben 唐本 Lu yan 鹵鹹, bittern salt, FE Ben jing 本經 Ning shui shi 凝水石, calcite, FE Ben jing 本經. This is han shui shi 寒水石. 11-06 Xuan jing shi 玄精石, selenite, FE Kai bao 開寶 11-07 Lü yan 緑鹽, verdigris, FE Tang ben 唐本 11-08 Yan yao 鹽藥, Glauber salt, FE Shi yi 拾遺 Appendix 附錄 11-08-A01 Xuan shi 懸石, hanging stone/mineral. 11-09 Po xiao 朴消, mirabilite, FE Ben jing 本經 11-10 Xuan ming fen 玄明粉, thenardite, FE Yao xing 藥性 11-11 Xiao shi 消石, nitrokalite, FE Ben jing 本經. This is yan xiao 焰消. 11-12 Nao sha 硇砂, sal ammoniac, FE Tang ben 唐本 11-13 Peng sha 蓬砂, borax, FE Rihua 日華 Appendix 附錄 11-13-A01 Te peng sha 特蓬殺 11-14 Shi liu huang 石流黄, natural yellow sulphur, FE Ben jing 本經 11-15 Shi liu chi 石流赤, amorphous red sulphur, FE Bie lu 别録 11-01 11-02 11-03 11-04 11-05

Chapter 11

715

11-16 Shi liu qing 石流青, amorphous greenish sulphur. Bie lu 别録 Appendix 附錄 11-16-A01 Liu huang xiang 流黄香, fragrant sulphur. 11-17 Fan shi 礬石, alum, FE Ben jing 本經 11-18 Lü fan 緑礬, melanterite, FE Rihua 日華 11-19 Huang fan 黄礬, yellow iron alum, FE Gang mu 綱目 11-20 Tang bing nei yan 湯瓶内鹼, a substance formed on the inside wall of containers used for boiling water, FE Gang mu 綱目 Appendix 附錄 11-A01 Shi pi 石脾, stone/mineral spleen. 11-A02 Shi fei 石肺, stone/mineral lung. 11-A03 Shi gan 石肝, stone/mineral liver. 11-A04 Shi shen 石腎, stone/mineral kidneys. 11-A05 Zi shi hua 紫石華, purple stone/mineral splendor. 11-A06 Bai shi hua 白石華, white stone/mineral splendor. 11-A07 Huang shi hua 黄石華, yellow stone/mineral splendor. 11-A08 Hei shi 黑石華, black stone/mineral splendor. 11-A09 Ling shi 陵石, hill stone/mineral. 11-A10 Zong shi 終石, end stone/mineral. 11-A11 Feng shi 封石, mound stone/mineral. 11-A12 Sui shi 遂石, trough stone. 11-A13 Wu yu shi 五羽石, five feathers stone/mineral. 11-A14 Zi jia shi 紫佳石, purple beauty stone/mineral. 11-A15 Huo yao 火藥, gunpowder. 11-A16 Shi qi 石耆 11-A17 Ma gan shi 馬肝石, horse liver stone/mineral. 11-A18 Zhu ya shi 猪牙石, pig tooth stone/mineral. 11-A19 Bi xia shi 碧霞石, bluish cloud stone/mineral. 11-A20 Long xian shi 龍涎石, dragon saliva stone/mineral. 11-A21 Qian guang shi 鈆光石, lead luster stone/mineral. 11-A22 Tai yang shi 太陽石, major yang stone/mineral. 11-A23 Duo ti ya 朶梯牙 11-A24 Bai shi zi shi 白獅子石, white lion stone/mineral. 11-A25 Zhen zhai da shi 鎮宅大石, big stone guarding the house. 11-A26 Shen dan 神丹, divine elixir. 11-A27 Yan yao 烟藥, pharmaceutical substance generating fumes.

716

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

右附方舊二十五,新九十五。 Recipes added to the entries above: 102 of old. 249 newly [recorded].

本草綱目 Ben cao gang mu 石部目録 Section Stones/Minerals 第十一卷 Chapter 11 石之五鹵石類二十種 Stones/Minerals V, Group of Salt Stones/M1inerals, 20 kinds 附録二十七種 Appendix: 27 kinds 11-01 食鹽别録中品 Shi yan, FE Bie lu, middle rank. Edible salt. Cooking salt. Sodium chloride. 【校正】【志曰】元在米部,今移入此。【時珍曰】併入本經 大鹽。 Editorial Correction. [Ma] Zhi: Originally, [salt] was listed in the section “rice.” Now it has been moved here. [Li] Shizhen: Crude salt, listed [separately] in the Ben jing, is included here. 【釋名】鹺音磋。【時珍曰】鹽字象器中煎鹵之形。禮記:鹽曰鹹鹺。爾 雅云:天生曰鹵,人生曰鹽。許慎説文云:鹽,鹹也。東方謂之斥,西方 謂之鹵,河東謂之鹹。黄帝之臣宿沙氏,初煮海水爲鹽。本經大鹽,即今 解池顆鹽也。别録重出食鹽,今併爲一。方士呼鹽爲海砂。 Explanation of Names. Cuo 鹺, read cuo 磋. [Li] Shizhen: The character yan 鹽 is to reflect the physical appearance of the cooking of salt in vessels. In the Li ji, yan 鹽, “salt,” is called xian cuo 鹹鹺. The Er ya states: “Naturally grown salt is called lu 鹵, ‘bittern.’ That produced by man is called yan 鹽, ‘salt’.” Xu Shen in his Shuo wen states: “Yan 鹽 is xian 鹹. In the East they call it chi 斥; in the West they call it lu

Chapter 11

717

鹵; in He dong they call it xian 鹹. Su Sha shi, an official under the Yellow Thearch, was the first to boil sea water to make salt.” The “crude salt,” da yan 大鹽, mentioned in the Ben jing is the salt nowadays obtained from ponds. The Bie lu had listed it separately as shi yan 食鹽, “edible salt.” Here now both [kinds] are brought together. The recipe experts call salt hai sha 海砂, “sea sand.” 【集解】【别録曰】大鹽出邯鄲及河東池澤。【恭曰】大鹽即河東印鹽 也,人之常食者,形粗于食鹽。【弘景曰】有東海鹽、北海鹽、南海鹽、 河東鹽池、梁 益鹽井、西羌山鹽、胡中樹鹽,色類不同,以河東者爲勝。 東海鹽、官鹽白,草粒細,北海鹽黄,草粒粗。以作魚鮓及鹹葅,乃言北 勝,而藏繭必用鹽官者。蜀中鹽小淡,廣州鹽鹹苦,不知其爲療體復有優 劣否。【藏器曰】四海之内何處無之,惟西南諸夷稍少,人皆燒竹及木鹽 當之。【頌曰】并州末鹽,乃刮碱煎鍊者,不甚佳,所謂鹵鹹是也。大鹽 生河東池澤,粗于末鹽,即今解鹽也。解州、安邑兩池取鹽,於池旁耕 地,沃以池水,每得南風急,則宿夕成鹽滿畦,彼人謂之種鹽,最爲精 好。東海、北海、南海鹽者,今滄、密、楚、秀、温、台、明、泉、福、 廣、瓊、化諸州,煮海水作之,謂之澤鹽,醫方謂之海鹽。海邊掘坑, 上布竹木,覆以蓬茅,積沙于上。每潮汐衝沙,由鹵鹹淋于坑中。水退則 以火炬照之,鹵氣衝火皆滅。因取海鹵貯盤中煎之,頃刻而就。其煮鹽之 器,漢謂之牢盆,今或鼓鐵爲之。南海人編竹爲之,上下周以蜃灰,横丈 深尺,平底,置于竈背,謂之鹽盤。梁 益鹽井者,今歸州及四川諸郡皆 有鹽井,汲其水以煎作鹽,如煮海法。又濱州有土鹽,煎鍊草土而成,其 色最粗黑,不堪入藥。通、泰、海州並有停户,刮鹹煎鹽輸官,如并州末 鹽之類,而味更優,以供給江 湖,極爲饒衍。【時珍曰】鹽品甚多。海鹽 取海鹵煎鍊而成,今遼 冀、山東、兩淮、閩 浙、廣 南所出是也。井鹽取 井鹵煎鍊而成,今四川、雲南所出是也。池鹽出河東 安邑、西夏 靈州, 今惟解州種之。疏鹵地爲畦隴,而塹圍之。引清水注入,久則色赤。待夏 秋南風大起,則一夜結成,謂之鹽南風。如南風不起,則鹽失利。亦忌濁 水淤澱鹽脉也。海豐、深州者,亦引海水入池晒成。并州、河北所出,皆 鹻鹽也,刮取鹻土,煎鍊而成。階、成、鳳州所出,皆崖鹽也,生于土崖 之間,狀如白礬,亦名生鹽。此五種皆食鹽也。上供國課,下濟民用。海 鹽、井鹽、鹻鹽三者出于人,池鹽、崖鹽二者出于天。周禮云:鹽人掌鹽 之政令。祭祀供其苦鹽、散鹽;賓客供其形鹽;王之膳羞,供其飴鹽。苦 鹽,即顆鹽也,出于池,其鹽爲顆,未鍊治,其味鹹苦。散鹽,即末鹽, 出于海及井,并煮鹻而成者,其鹽皆散末也。形鹽,即印鹽,或以鹽刻作 虎形也。或云積鹵所結,其形如虎也。飴鹽,以飴拌成者。或云生于戎 地,味甜而美也。此外又有崖鹽生于山崖,戎鹽生于土中,傘子鹽生于 井,石鹽生于石,木鹽生于樹,蓬鹽生于草。造化生物之妙,誠難殫知也。

718

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Crude salt originates in the ponds and marshlands of Han dan and He dong. [Su] Gong: Crude salt is the cube693 salt of He dong. That which is regularly consumed by humans is of a cruder physical appearance than edible salt. [Tao] Hongjing: [Salt kinds] include Dong hai salt, Bei hai salt, Nan hai salt, He dong pond salt, well salt from from Liang and Yi; mountain salt from Xi qiang and tree salt from the Hu territory. Their colors differ. [Salt] from He dong is considered superior. Salt from Dong hai, a white salt under government control, has fine natural grains. The salt from Bei hai is yellow. Its natural grains are crude. To prepare minced fish and salty vegetables, the [salt] from the North is said to be superior. To preserve silk cocoons, one must use salt under government control. The salt in Shu is slightly tasteless. Salt from Guang zhou is salty and bitter. It is not known whether there are any quality differences in their curative potentials. [Chen] Cangqi: [Salt] can be found everywhere; it is rare only in all the tribal regions of the South-West. All the people there burn bamboo and wood to obtain their salt. [Su] Song: Salt powder from Bing zhou is obtained by scraping and boiling soda. It is not very good. It is the so-called “bittern salt.” Crude salt grows in the ponds and marshlands of He dong. It is cruder than salt powder. It is today’s Xie yan, “salt from Xie [zhou].” To obtain salt from the ponds of Xie zhou and An yi, [the people] plough the fields next to these ponds. Then they flood them with water from the ponds. When strong winds blow from the South, salt forms overnight and covers the fields. The people there call this “to plant salt.” It is exceptionally fine and good. The salt from Dong hai, Bei hai and Nan hai is nowadays obtained by boiling sea water from all the zhou of Cang, Chu, Xiu, Wen, Tai, Ming, Quan, Fu, Guang, Qiong and Hua. It is called “marshland salt,” but in medical recipes it is named “sea salt.” [Sea salt is produced as follows. The people] dig a pit next to the sea and cover it with bamboo and wood which in turn is covered with grass. This then is covered with sand. When by night the tide rushes into the sand, the brine salt drips into the pit. Once the [sea] water retreats, [the people] light up [the contents of the pit] with a torch and the qi rising from the brine will extinguish its fire. Then they fill the sea brine into large flat pans and boil them. [The salt] will be ready within a short time. The utensils employed to boil salt were called “solid basins” during the Han. Nowadays they are made from iron. The people at Nan hai construct such [utensils to boil brine] by making bamboo frames that are covered above and below with clam shell powder. They are [several] zhang long and [several] chi deep, with a flat bottom. They are placed on a furnace and [the people] call them “salt pans.” As for the salt wells of Liang and Yi, nowadays all the prefectures of Gui zhou and Si 693 Yin 印 is an ancient term for a hexahedron. It may have been chosen to reflect the physical appearance of large salt grains/cubes.

Chapter 11

719

chuan have salt wells. Water is drawn from these [wells] and boiled to produce salt. This is similar to the method of boiling sea [water]. Also, in Bin zhou is a “soil salt.” It is produced by boiling and refining with heat herbs and soil. It is of a very unrefined black color, and it cannot be added to medication. In Tong [zhou], Tai [zhou] and Hai zhou private firms exist that scrape and boil salt and then deliver it to the authorities. It is of the same type as the powder salt from Bing zhou, but its flavor is even better. It is distributed all over the country and it is available in large quantities. [Li] Shizhen: There are very many salt products. To obtain sea salt, brine from the sea is boiled. This is [the salt] originating in Liao, Ji, Shan dong, Liang huai, Min, Zhe, Guang and Nan. To obtain well salt, the brine from a well is boiled. This is [the salt] nowadays originating in Si chuan and Yun nan. Pond salt originates in He dong, An yi, Xi Xia and Ling zhou. Nowadays it is “planted” only in Xie zhou. Take a field on ground that is rich in brine and dig a moat all around it. Then lead water into it. After a long time it will assume a red color. Wait until strong winds come up in summer and fall and within one night [the salt] will have formed. It is called “southern wind salt.” If no southern winds rise, the salt will be lost. Also one must see to it that no turbid water causes sediments in the salt veins. In Hai feng and Shen zhou, too, they lead sea water into ponds and have it dry in the sun. [The salt] originating in Bing zhou and He bei is always soda. To obtain it, [the people] scrape saline soil [from the ground] and boil it. [The salt] originating in Xie, Cheng and Feng zhou is always cliff salt. It grows in the soil of cliffs and is shaped like alum. It is also called “raw/native salt.” All these five kinds are edible salt. They are submitted as levy to the authorities above and to the people for their use below. The three kinds of sea salt, well salt and soda are produced by humans. The two kinds of pond salt and cliff salt are produced by heaven. The Zhou li states: “The salt man serves to administer salt according to government decrees. For sacrifices he supplies bitter salt and dispersed salt. For visitors he supplies ‘lump salt’. For the special delicacies of the king he supplies ‘sugar-sweet salt’.” “Bitter salt” is pellet salt. It originates in ponds. This salt forms lumps and has not been refined yet. Its flavor is salty-bitter. Dispersed salt is “powder salt.” It originates in the sea and in wells. To obtain it, [water] from both [sources] is boiled. The resulting salt always appears dispersed as a powder. “Formed salt” is cube salt. Sometimes this salt is carved to assume the form of a tiger. Others say this is brine that has crystallized as nodes formed like tigers. “Sugar-sweet salt” is made by mixing [salt] with malt sugar. Some say that it grows in the Rong region with a flavor that is sweet and delicious. In addition, there is “cliff salt” growing in mountain cliffs, “Rong salt” growing in the soil, “parasol salt” growing in wells, “rock salt” growing in rocks, “wood salt” growing in trees, and

720

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

“leafy salt” growing in herbs. The wondrous nature of how creation generates items is truly difficult to exhaust and comprehend. 【修治】【時珍曰】凡鹽,人多以礬、消、灰、石之類雜之。入藥須以水 化,澄去脚滓,煎鍊白色乃良。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Li] Shizhen: People often mix salt with items such as alum, nitrokalite, ashes and stones. When [salt] is added to medication, it is to be dissolved in water. When [the water] has become clear, the dregs are to be removed by filtering it. Eventually [the water] is boiled and this refinement with heat results in white [salt] that is good. 11-01-01 大鹽。Da yan. Crude salt. 【氣味】甘、鹹,寒,無毒。【别録曰】食鹽鹹,温,無毒。多食傷肺, 喜欬。【權曰】有小毒。【時珍曰】鹹、微辛,寒,無毒。【保昇曰】多 食令人失色膚黑,損筋力。【之才曰】漏蘆爲之使。【斅曰】敝簞淡鹵, 烏賊骨亦淡鹵。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, salty, cold, nonpoisonous. Bie lu: Edible salt is salty, warm and nonpoisonous. To eat much [salt] will harm the lung, resulting in a tendency to cough. [Zhen] Quan: Slightly poisonous. [Li] Shizhen: Salty, slightly acrid, cold, nonpoisonous. [Han] Baosheng: To each much [salt] causes a loss of complexion with the skin assuming a black color. It injures the strength of sinews. [Xu] Zhicai: Stemmacantha [herb / root] serves as its guiding substance. [Lei] Xiao: A worn-out bamboo steamer serves to diminish the flavor of brine. Cuttlefish bone, too, serves to diminish the flavor of brine. 【主治】腸胃結熱喘逆,胸中病,令人吐。本經。傷寒寒熱,吐胸中痰 癖,止心腹卒痛,殺鬼蠱邪疰毒氣,下部𧏾瘡,堅肌骨。别録。除風邪, 吐下惡物,殺蟲,去皮膚風毒。調和臟腑,消宿物,令人壯健。藏器。助 水臟,及霍亂,心痛,金瘡,明目,止風淚邪氣,一切蟲傷,瘡腫,火灼 瘡,長肉補皮膚,通大小便,療疝氣,滋五味。大明。空心揩齒,吐水洗 目,夜見小字。甄權。解毒,凉血潤燥,定痛止痒,吐一切時氣風熱、痰 飲關格諸病。時珍。 Control. Bound heat694 in the intestines and the stomach, with panting and cough. Diseases in the chest causing vomiting. Ben jing. Harm caused by cold with alter694 Jie re 結熱, “bound heat,” refers to repletion evil brought about by heat that has intruded into the body where it blocks the qi mechanism or coagulates with other types of evil qi. BCGM Dict I, 252.

Chapter 11

721

nating cold and heat sensations. Vomiting because of a phlegm aggregation-illness in the chest. It ends sudden pain in the heart and abdomen. It kills demons and gu695 associated with evil attachment illness696 and poison qi. [It serves to cure] hidden-worm sores in the lower [body] part. It hardens muscles and bones. Bie lu. It eliminates wind evil, causes vomiting, lets one discharge malign items and kills worms/bugs. It removes wind poison from the skin. It harmonizes the long-term depots and short-term repositories. It dissolves items stagnating [in the body] overnight. It lets one be strong. [Chen] Cangqi. It supports the water long-term depot and [serves to cure] cholera, heart pain and wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. It clears the eyes. It ends wind tearflow associated with evil qi, all types of harm caused by bugs/worms and sores with swelling, as well as sores caused by burning. It lets flesh grow and supplements the skin. It frees defecation and urination. It serves to heal elevation-illness697 qi. It strengthens the five flavors. Da Ming. To rub the teeth [with salt] while the stomach is empty, to spit out the resulting water and to use it to wash the eyes, this will enable one to read even small characters at night. Zhen Quan. It resolves poison. It cools the blood and moistens. It fixes pain and ends itching. It lets one vomit all types of seasonal qi associated with wind and heat, as well as all diseases of phlegm rheum,698 blockage and repulsion.699 [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【弘景曰】五味之中,惟此不可缺。西北方人食不耐鹹,而多壽 少病好顔色 ; 東南方人食絶欲鹹,而少壽多病,便是損人傷肺之效。然 以浸魚肉則能經久不敗,以沾布帛則易致朽爛,所施各有所宜也。【宗奭 曰】素問云:鹹走血。故東方食魚鹽之人多黑色,走血之驗可知。病喘嗽 人及水腫者,宜全禁之。北狄用以淹尸,取其不壞也。其燒剥金銀鎔汁作 695 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191. 696 Zhu 疰, also zhu 注, “attachment-illness,” “influx-illnesss,” reflects a notion of a foreign pathogenic agent, originally of demonic nature, having attached itself to the human organism. BCGM Dict I, 688-695. 697 Shan 疝, “elevation-illness,” and shan qi 疝氣, “elevation illness-qi.” A notion of a foreign item that has entered the scrotum, causes pain and may ascend and descend. BCGM Dict I, 419. 698 Tan yin 痰飲, “phlegm rheum,” refers to pathological products that have accumulated in the body and that are excreted in the process of changes affecting the depots and palaces. They may block the passage of qi and blood and thereby become pathogenic factors. BCGM Dict I, 498. 699 Guan ge, 關格 “blockage and repulsion.” A condition of an inability to pass stools and urine resulting from an irregularity of the qi dynamics in the organism. This may be accompanied by vomiting. BCGM Dict I, 198.

722

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

藥,仍須解州大鹽爲佳。【時珍曰】洪範 “ 水曰潤下作鹹 ” ,素問曰 “ 水生鹹 ” ,此鹽之根源也。夫水周流于天地之間,潤下之性無所不在, 其味作鹹,凝結爲鹽,亦無所不在。在人則血脉應之。鹽之氣味鹹腥,人 之血亦鹹腥。鹹走血,血病無多食鹹,多食則脉凝泣而變色,從其類也。 煎鹽者用皂角收之,故鹽之味微辛。辛走肺,鹹走腎。喘嗽水腫消渴者, 鹽爲大忌。或引痰吐,或泣血脉,或助水邪故也。然鹽爲百病之主,百病 無不用之。故服補腎藥用鹽湯者,鹹歸腎,引藥氣入本臟也。補心藥用炒 鹽者,心苦虚,以鹹補之也。補脾藥用炒鹽者,虚則補其母,脾乃心之子 也。治積聚結核用之者,鹽能耎堅也。諸癰疽眼目及血病用之者,鹹走血 也。諸風熱病用之者,寒勝熱也。大小便病用之者,鹹能潤下也。骨病齒 病用之者,腎主骨,鹹入骨也。吐藥用之者,鹹引水聚也。能收豆腐,與 此同義。諸蠱及蟲傷用之者,取其解毒也。【頌曰】唐 柳柳州纂救三死方 云:元和十一年十月,得霍亂,上不可吐,下不可利,出冷汗三大斗許, 氣即絶。河南 房偉傳此方,入口即吐,絶氣復通。其法用鹽一大匙,熬令 黄,童子小便一升,合和温服,少頃吐下即愈也。 敬啟 Explication. [Tao] Hongjing: Among the five flavors, this is the only one that is indispensable. The people in the North-West do not like to eat salty food, and they often live long lives, rarely suffer from diseases and have a good complexion. The people in the South-East very much like to eat salty food. Their lifespan is short and they often suffer from diseases because [consumption of much salt] has a damaging effect on the lung. Now, fish and meat soaked [with salt] will not rot for a long time, while cotton and silk textiles steeped [in a salt] liquid will easily decay. That is, the salt is to be used where it is suitable. [Kou] Zongshi: The Su wen states: “The salty [flavor] moves to the blood.” Hence the people in the East who eat fish with salt often have a black complexion. From this it is obvious that [salt] moves to the blood. Persons who pant and cough, and those with water swelling should avoid [salty food] entirely. The Bei di [people] soak their corpses [in brine] to prevent their decomposition. When gold and silver are to be dissolved to prepare a medication it is helpful to add crude salt from Xie zhou. [Li] Shizhen: The Hong fan says: “Water moistens, moves downward and generates a salty flavor.” The Su wen says: “Water generates salty flavor. It is the source and origin of salt.” Now, water flows everywhere between heaven and earth and with its nature of moistening and moving downward there is nothing it fails to reach. Its flavor is salty, and when it congeals it binds to form salt, which, too, can be found everywhere. In man, the blood and the [movement in the] vessels react to it. The qi and the flavor of salt are salty and fishy. The blood of man, too, is salty and [smells] fishy. Salty [flavor] moves to the blood. In the case of a blood disease one must not eat much salty food. If one

Chapter 11

723

eats much [salty food], the [movement in the] vessels congeals and turns rough, and [the blood] changes its color. This is because they are of one group. When [brine is] boiled, gleditsia [seed] is added to preserve it. Hence salt has a slightly bitter flavor. A bitter flavor moves to the lung. Salty flavor moves to the kidneys. For all [patients suffering from] panting, cough, water swelling and melting with thirst,700 salt is strictly to be avoided because it may cause vomiting of phlegm, it may cause a rough passage of blood in the vessels, and it may support a [pre-existing] water evil. Still, salt serves to control all the hundreds of diseases, and there is no [treatment of ] diseases it is not resorted to. Hence when medication to supplement the kidneys is to be ingested, a salt decoction is used. Salty flavor turns to the kidneys, and it guides the qi of a medication to its specific long-term depot. For medication to supplement the heart, fried salt is resorted to. When the heart suffers from depletion, salty [flavor] serves to supplement [its qi]. For medication to supplement the spleen, fried salt is resorted to. In the case of a [spleen] depletion, supplement [the qi of ] the mother. The spleen is the child of the heart. When it is used to cure accumulations and collections forming nodular kernels the reason is that salt can soften what is hard. When [salt] is used [to cure] obstruction-illness and impediment-illness,701 [ailments of ] the eyes and blood diseases, this is so because salty [flavor] moves to the blood. When it is used [to cure] all types of wind and heat diseases, this is so because cold overcomes heat. When it is used for diseases affecting the major (defecation) and minor (urination) relief, this is so because salty [flavor] is able to moisten and move downward. When it is used for diseases affecting the bones and diseases affecting the teeth, this is so because the kidneys control the bones and salty [flavor] enters the bones. When it is used in medication meant to induce vomiting, this is so because salty [flavor] serves to attract and collect water. [Salt] is able to preserve bean curd, and this is based on the same meaning. When it is used [to cure] harm caused by all types of gu702 and worms/bugs, one makes use of its ability to resolve poison. [Su] Song: The Jiu san si fang compiled by Liu Liuzhou during the Tang states: “In the tenth month of the eleventh year of the yuan he reign period 700 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567. 701 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642. 702 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191.

724

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

(806 – 820) cholera broke out. [Patients] were unable to vomit above and there was no free-flow below. Rather they released as much cold sweat as could have filled more than three large dou measures. Eventually, their qi [flow] was interrupted. In He nan, Fan Wei offered the recipe [given in detail] below. Once it had entered the mouth [of the patients] they vomited, and the interrupted qi resumed their passage. The method to [prepare this medication is as follows]. Heat one large spoonful of salt until it turns yellow, mix it with one sheng of boys’ urine and [let the patients] ingest it warm. After a short while they will vomit [above] and discharge [below], and this is the cure.”

【附方】舊四十二,新二十七。 Added Recipes. 42 of old. 27 newly [recorded]. 鍊鹽黑丸。崔中丞鍊鹽黑丸方:鹽末一升,納粗瓷瓶中,實築泥頭,初以 塘火燒,漸漸加炭火,勿令瓶破。候赤徹,鹽如水汁,即去火,待凝,破 瓶取出。豉一升熬煎,桃仁一兩和麩炒熟,巴豆二兩去心膜,紙中炒令油 出,須生熟得所,熟即少力,生又損人。四物搗匀,入蜜和丸梧子大,每 服三丸,平旦時服。天行時氣,豉汁及茶下。心痛,酒下,入口便止。血 痢,飲下,初變水痢,後便止。鬼瘧,茶飲下。骨蒸,蜜湯下。忌久冷漿 水。合藥久則稍加之。凡服藥後吐利,勿怪。吐利若多,服黄連汁止之。 或遇殺藥人,藥久不動者,更服一兩丸。藥後忌口二三日。其藥臘月合 之,瓷瓶密封,勿令洩氣。一劑可救百人。或在道途,或在村落,無藥可 求,但用此藥一刀圭,即敵大黄、朴消數兩,曾用有效。小兒、女子不可 服,被攪作也。劉禹錫傳信方。 The “black pills of salt refined with heat.” The recipe of the “black pills of salt refined with heat” of the Vice Censor-in-chief Cui [is as follows]. Fill one sheng of powdered salt into a wide porcelain jar and close the top firmly with mud. At first heat it with a water bath. Gradually add a charcoal fire and see to it that the jar does not break. Once it is red throughout and the salt has become a watery juice, remove the fire. Wait until it has congealed again, break the jar and remove its contents. Also, boil one sheng of fermented beans. Fry one liang of peach kernels with wheat bran until they are done. Discard the heart and peel of croton [seeds], wrap them in paper and fry them until oil is released [through the paper]. They must be between raw and done. If they are done, their strength is diminished. If they remain raw, they harm one. These four items are ground together, and then honey is added to form pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest three pills. To be ingested in the early morning hours. In the case of epidemic seasonal qi, send [the pills] down with the juice of fermented soybeans and tea. In the case of heart pain, send them

Chapter 11

725

down with wine. Once they have entered one’s mouth, [the heart pain] will end. For bloody free-flux illness703 send them down with a [rice] beverage. [The bloody freeflux illness] will change to a watery free-flux illness first, and then end altogether. For demon malaria, send them down with a tea beverage. For bone steaming, send them down with a honey decoction. [During this treatment the intake of ] long kept and cold fermented water of foxtail millet is prohibited. If this medication had been prepared a long time ago, slightly increase the dosage. Whenever a vomiting and a free flow set in after an ingestion of this medication, one must not be irritated. If the vomiting and the free flow are excessive, ingest coptis [rhizome] juice to stop them. If one comes across someone who [by his nature] kills [the effects of ] this medication, and therefore this medication does not show an effect on him for a long time, he should ingest one or two pills more than usual. After taking this medication, observe food taboos for two or three days. This medication is prepared during the twelfth month. Store it in a porcelain jar that is to be sealed tightly lest its qi leak. One preparation can serve to rescue 100 persons. When you are on the road or in a village where no medication can be ordered, use only the amount of this medication held by one knife-shaped jade tablet and it will be equivalent to [the therapeutic potential of ] several liang of rhubarb root and mirabilite. It has been used and proven effective. Children and women must not ingest it. It might cause them problems. Liu Yuxin, Chuan xin fang. 卒中尸遁。其狀腹脹,氣急冲心,或塊起,或牽腰脊者是。服鹽湯取吐。 孫真人方。 Being suddenly struck by hidden corpse [qi].704 This [disease] manifests itself as abdominal distension, hectic qi rushing against the heart, or the emergence of lumps, or [a pain] pulling on the lower back and the spine. Ingest a salt decoction to induce vomiting. Sun zhenren fang. 尸疰鬼疰,下部蝕瘡。炒鹽布裹,坐熨之。藥性論。 Corpse [qi] attachment illness,705 demon attachment-illness. Erosion sores in the lower [body] parts. Fry salt and wrap it in cloth. [Let the patient] sit on it as a hot compress. Yao xing lun.

703 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 704 Fu shi [qi] 伏尸[氣], “hidden corpse [qi],” refers to a chronic condition of heart pain and hectic panting. BCGM Dict I, 177. 705 Zhu 疰, also zhu 注, “attachment-illness,” “influx-illnesss,” reflects a notion of a foreign pathogenic agent, originally of demonic nature, having attached itself to the human organism. BCGM Dict I, 688-695.

726

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

鬼擊中惡。鹽一盞,水二盞,和服,以冷水噀之,即甦。救急方。 Demon attack. Being struck by the malign. [Let the patient] ingest a mixture of one small cup of salt and two small cups of water, and spurt cold water on him. This will bring him back to life. Jiu ji fang. 中惡心痛。或連腰臍,鹽如雞子大,青布裹,燒赤,納酒中,頓服,當吐 惡物愈。甄權藥性論。 Being struck by the malign, with heart pain. When it involves the lower back and the navel, wrap one piece of salt, as big as a chicken egg, in a piece of greenish fabric, heat it until it has turned red, give it into wine and [let the patient] ingest it all at once. He will vomit malign items and be cured. Zhen Quan, Yao xing lun. 中風腹痛。鹽半斤,熬水乾,着口中,飲熱湯二升,得吐愈。肘後方。 Being struck by wind, with abdominal pain. Simmer half a jin of salt in water until it has dried. [Let the patient] hold it in his mouth and drink two sheng of hot water. Once he vomits he will be cured. Zhou hou fang. 脱陽虚證。四肢厥冷,不省人事,或小腹緊痛,冷汗氣喘,炒鹽熨臍下氣 海,取煖。救急方。 Collapse because of a yang depletion condition, with the four limbs being cold because of [yang qi] recession, and [patients] being unable to recognize their environment. If this is associated with a tightening pain in the lower abdomen, cold sweat and qi panting, fry salt and put it as a hot compress on the “sea of qi” below the navel to keep it warm. Jiu ji fang. 心腹脹堅。痛悶欲死,鹽五合,水一升,煎服。吐下即定,不吐更服。梅 師方。 Swelling and hardening of heart and abdomen. If the pain and the heart-pressure are such that one wishes to die, [let the patient] ingest five ge of salt boiled in one sheng of water. Once he vomits and discharges [this illness] will be settled. If he fails to vomit, let him ingest [the medication] again. Mei shi fang. 腹脹氣滿。黑鹽,酒服六銖。後魏書。 Abdominal swelling with qi and a sensation of fullness. Ingest with wine six zhu of black salt. Hou Wei shu. 酒肉過多。脹滿不快,用鹽花搽牙,温水漱下二三次,即如湯沃雪也。簡 便方。 Excessive consumption of wine and meat. In the case of a swelling and a sensation of fullness, rub the teeth with a pinch of salt, rinse [the mouth] with warm water,

Chapter 11

727

and swallow it two or three times. [This has the effect] of pouring hot water into the snow. Jian bian fang. 乾霍亂病。上不得吐,下不得利,方見發明。 Dry cholera disease, with an inability to vomit above and no free flow below. For a recipe see “Explication.” 霍亂腹痛。炒鹽一包,熨其心腹,令氣透,又以一包熨其背。救急方。 Cholera with abdominal pain. Fry salt and give it into a bag that is to be pressed on [the patient’s] heart and abdomen to let its qi seep [into the patient]. In addition, place one such hot compress on his back. Jiu ji fang. 霍亂轉筋,欲死氣絶,腹有暖氣者,以鹽填臍中,灸鹽上七壯,即甦。救 急方。 Cholera with contorted sinews, with [the patient] nearing death and his qi [flow] being cut off. If there are still warm qi in his abdomen, stuff [black] salt into his navel and cauterize it with seven cones of moxa. This will let him come back to life. Jiu ji fang. 肝虚轉筋。肝臟氣虚,風冷摶于筋,遍體轉筋入腹不可忍。熱湯三斗,入 鹽半斤,稍熱漬之。聖惠方。 Liver depletion with contorted sinews. The liver long-term depot is depleted. Wind and cold strike against the sinews. The entire body’s sinews are contorted and an unbearable [pain] enters the abdomen. Give half a jin of salt into three dou of hot water. Once the heat [of the water] has decreased a bit, steep the [affected body parts] in it. Sheng hui fang. 一切脚氣。鹽三升,蒸熱分裹,近壁,以脚踏之,令脚心熱。又和槐白皮 蒸之,尤良,夜夜用之。食療本草。 All types of leg qi.706 Steam three sheng of salt until they are hot and wrap them in separate bags. Place them near a wall and [let the patient] step with his feet on them. This will let the soles of his feet turn hot. Also, if [the crude salt] is steamed with white sophora japonica bark, this will be especially good. To be applied every night. Shi liao ben cao. 脚氣疼痛。每夜用鹽擦腿膝至足甲,淹少時,以熱湯泡洗。有一人病此, 曾用驗。救急方。 706 Jiao qi 脚氣, “leg qi,” refers to painful and weak legs. They may be swollen, or dried up and emaciated. In serious cases the functioning of the heart and spleen is impaired. BCGM Dict I, 248.

728

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Painful leg qi. Every night rub [the patient’s] legs and knees down to the nails of his feet with salt, let it exert its effects for a little while, and then soak and wash [the affected parts]. Once a person was afflicted with this disease, he used this recipe and it proved to be effective. Jiu ji fang. 胸中痰飲。傷寒、熱病、瘧疾須吐者,並以鹽湯吐之。外臺秘要。 Phlegm rheum707 in the chest. For [patients suffering from] harm caused by cold, heat disease, and malaria illness that must be stimulated to vomit, [have them ingest a crude] salt decoction to let them vomit. Wai tai mi yao. 病後脇脹。天行病後,兩脇脹滿,熬鹽熨之。外臺秘要方。 Distension of the flanks following a disease. When following an epidemic both flanks are swollen and there is a sensation of fullness, simmer salt and press it hot [on the affected region]. Wai tai mi yao fang. 妊娠心痛不可忍。鹽燒赤,酒服一撮。産寶。 Unbearable heart pain during pregnancy. Heat salt until it has turned red and [let the woman] ingest a pinch of it with wine. Chan bao. 妊婦逆生。鹽摩産婦腹,并塗兒足底,仍急爪搔之。千金方。 A pregnancy ending in a breech birth. Rub the abdomen of the woman giving birth with salt and apply it also to the soles of the child’s feet. In addition scratch them violently with your [finger] nails. Qian jin fang. 婦人陰痛。青布裹鹽,熨之。藥性論。 Painful yin [(i. e., genital) region] of women. Wrap salt into a piece of greenish fabric and press it hot [on the affected region]. Yao xing lun. 小兒疝氣,并内弔腎氣。以葛袋盛鹽,于户口懸之,父母用手撚抖盡,即 愈。日華子本草。 Children with elevation-illness qi,708 and at the same time kidney qi hauled internally. Fill a bag made from grass-cloth with salt and hang it above the door. Let

707 Tan yin 痰飲, “phlegm rheum,” refers to pathological products that have accumulated in the body and that are excreted in the process of changes affecting the depots and palaces. They may block the passage of qi and blood and thereby become pathogenic factors. BCGM Dict I, 498. 708 Tan yin 痰飲, “phlegm rheum,” refers to pathological products that have accumulated in the body and that are excreted in the process of changes affecting the depots and palaces. They may block the passage of qi and blood and thereby become pathogenic factors. BCGM Dict I, 498.

Chapter 11

729

[the child’s] father and mother shake [the bag] with their hands until all [the salt] is dispersed. This will cure [the child]. Rihua zi ben cao. 小兒不尿。安鹽于臍中,以艾灸之。藥性論。 Failure of children to urinate. Place salt on their navel and cauterize it with common mugwort [leaves]. Yao xing lun. 小便不通。濕紙包白鹽,燒過,吹少許入尿孔中,立通。普濟方。 Blocked urination. Wrap white salt in wet paper, heat it and blow a small amount into the urine opening. Its passage will be freed immediately. Pu ji fang. 氣淋臍痛。鹽和醋服之。廣利方。 Dripping urine with navel pain caused by qi. Ingest salt mixed with vinegar. Guang li fang. 二便不通。鹽和苦酒傅臍中,乾即易。仍以鹽汁灌肛内,并内用紙裹鹽, 投水中飲之。家藏方。 Blocked urination and defecation. Apply a mixture of salt and bitter wine to the [patient’s] navel. Once it has dried, replace it [with a moist mixture]. In addition, pour salt liquid into the [patient’s] anus. Further, for internal use wrap salt in paper, give it into water and [let the patient] drink the [liquid]. Jia cang fang. 漏精白濁。雪白鹽一兩,并築緊固濟,煅一日,出火毒,白茯苓、山藥各 一兩,爲末,棗肉和蜜丸梧子大,每棗湯下三十丸。蓋甘以濟鹹,脾腎兩 得也。直指方。 Leaking white, turbid essence/sperm. [Give] one liang of snow-white salt [into a container]. Pound it firmly and seal it tightly. Calcine it for one day and [wait for] the fire poison to leave. Then [grind the salt together with] one liang each of white poria and dioscorea [root] to a powder. Mix it with date pulp and honey to form pills the size of wu seeds. Each time send down with a date decoction 30 pills. The fact is, sweet [flavor] is used here to support salty [flavor]. This benefits both the spleen and the kidney. Zhi zhi fang. 下痢肛痛不可忍者。熬鹽包坐熨之。肘後方。 Discharge with free-flux illness709 and an unbearably painful anus. Simmer salt, wrap it in a bag and press it hot on [the affected region]. Zhou hou fang.

709 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

730

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

血痢不止。白鹽紙包燒研,調粥喫,三四次即止也。救急方。 Unending bloody free-flux illness. Wrap white salt in paper, heat it and grind it. Eat [the powder] mixed with a porridge three to four times and [the illness] will end. Jiu ji fang. 中蠱吐血,或下血如肝。鹽一升,苦酒一升,煎化頓服,得吐即愈,乃支 太醫方也。小品方。 Vomiting of blood because one was struck by gu.710 In some cases blood resembling a liver is discharged. Boil and dissolve one sheng of salt in one sheng of bitter wine and [let the patient] ingest this all at once. Once he vomits, he will be cured. This is a recipe of the Imperial Physician Zhi. Xiao pin fang. 金瘡血出甚多。若血冷則殺人。宜炒鹽三撮,酒調服之。梅師方。 Excessively bleeding wounds caused by metal objects/weapons. If the blood is cold, this will kill that person. It is advisable to [let the patient] ingest three pinches of fried salt mixed with wine. Mei shi fang. 金瘡中風。煎鹽令熱,以匙抄,瀝取水,熱瀉瘡上,冷更着,一日勿住, 取瘥,大效。肘後方。 A wound caused by metal objects/weapons that is struck by wind. Fry salt in a pan until it is red, take it up with a spoon, drip water on it, and let it flow hot on the wound. Once [the salt] has cooled down, heat it again. Continue this for one day without pause. This will result in a cure. Very effective. Zhou hou fang. 小兒撮口。鹽豉搗貼臍上,灸之。子母秘録。 Pursed mouth of children. Pound salt and fermented soybeans and apply [the resulting pulp] to the [child’s] navel. Then cauterize it. Zi mu mi lu. 病笑不休。滄鹽煅赤,研,入河水煎沸,啜之,探吐熱痰數升,即愈。素 問曰:神有餘,笑不休。神,心火也,火得風則焰,笑之象也。一婦病此 半年,張子和用此方,遂愈。儒門事親。 The disease of unending laughing. Calcine salt from Cang until it is hot, grind it, give it into water from a river and boil this until it bubbles. [Let the patient] sip this. He will be stimulated to vomit several sheng of hot phlegm. Then he will be cured. Su wen: “When the spirit has a surplus, laughing will not end.” The “spirit” [referred 710 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191.

Chapter 11

731

to here] is the fire in the heart. When fire is exposed to wind it will blaze. Externally this shows as laughing. A woman suffered from this disease for half a year. Zhang Zihe applied this recipe and she was cured. Ru men shi qin. 飲酒不醉。凡飲酒,先食鹽一匕,則後飲必倍。肘後方。 To drink wine and remain unintoxicated. Whenever one drinks wine, he should first consume a spoonful of salt. He will then be able to drink twice as much. Zhou hou fang. 明目堅齒,去瞖,大利老眼。海鹽以百沸湯泡散,清汁于銀石器内,熬取 雪白鹽花,新瓦器盛,每早揩牙漱水,以大指甲點水洗目,閉坐良久,乃 洗面。名洞視千里法,極神妙。永類鈐方。 To clear the eyes, harden the teeth, remove eye shades and exert a very beneficial effect on the eyes of the elderly. Soak sea salt in water that has been heated to boiling a hundred times until it has dispersed. Pour the clear liquid into a silver or stone vessel and boil it until a small amount of snow-white salt powder has formed. Fill this into a new jar. Every morning [the patient is to] rub his teeth with it and then rinse them with water. He is to dip his thumb nail into water and to wash the eyes with it. Then he is to close [his eyes] and remain sitting for a long time. Then he is to wash his face. This is called the “method to see through a tube into a distance of a thousand li.” It is most divinely effective. Yong lei qian fang. 風熱牙痛。槐枝煎濃湯二盌,入鹽一斤,煮乾炒研,日用揩牙,以水洗 目。唐瑶經驗方。 Toothache because of wind and heat. Add one jin of salt to two bowls of a viscous sophora japonica twig decoction and boil this until the liquid has dried. Fry [the residue] and grind it [to a powder] that is to be used to rub the teeth every day. Also wash the eyes with water [to which the powder was added]. Tang Yao jing yan fang. 齒𧏾齒動。鹽半兩,皂莢兩挺,同燒赤,研,夜夜揩齒,一月後並瘥,其 齒牢固。食療本草。 Teeth with hidden worms and instable teeth. Heat half a liang of salt and two gleditsia [bark] sticks until they are hot, grind [them to a powder and use it to] rub the teeth every night. After one month a complete cure will have been achieved and the teeth will be firm and stable again. Shi liao ben cao. 齒齦宣露。每旦噙鹽,熱水含百遍,五日後齒即牢。千金方。 Exposed roots of teeth. Every morning hold salt in your mouth and keep it there with hot water one hundred times. After five days the teeth will be stable. Qian jin fang.

732

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

齒疼出血。每夜鹽末厚封齗上,有汁瀝盡乃卧。其汁出時,叩齒勿住。不 過十夜,疼血皆止。忌猪魚油菜等。極驗。肘後方。 Painful, bleeding teeth. Every evening seal the gums with a thick layer of salt. Once all the liquid has trickled out from them, go to sleep. While the liquid is released, continuously knock against the teeth. After no more than ten nights the pain and the bleeding will have come to an end. [During this treatment] pork, fish, oil and vegetables are forbidden. Very effective. Zhou hou fang. 喉中生肉。綿裹筯頭,拄鹽揩之,日五六度。孫真人方。 A growth of flesh in the throat. Wrap the tip of a chopstick with silk, dip it in salt and rub [the flesh growth] with it for five to six days. Sun zhen ren fang. 帝鍾喉風,垂長半寸。煅食鹽頻點之,即消。聖惠方。 Throat wind affecting the uvula, with an extension hanging down half a cun. Calcine table salt and repeatedly dip it on [the affected region]. This will let it dissolve. Sheng hui fang. 風病耳鳴。鹽五升蒸熱,以耳枕之,冷復易之。肘後方。 The disease of sounds in the ears caused by wind. Steam five sheng of salt until it is hot and rest with the [affected] ear on it. Once [the salt] has cooled, replace it [with hot salt]. Zhou hou fang. 耳卒疼痛。方同上。 Sudden ear pain. Recipe identical to the one above. 目中淚出。鹽點目中,冷水洗數次,瘥。范汪方。 Tearflow from the eyes. Drip salt into the [affected] eyes and rinse them with cold water several times. This will result in a cure. Fan Wang fang. 目中浮瞖遮睛。白鹽生研少許,頻點屢效,小兒亦宜。直指方。 Floating eye shades covering the eyeball. Grind a small amount of raw white salt and repeatedly drip it into [the affected eyes]. This has shown to be effective again and again. It is also suitable for children. Zhi zhi fang. 小兒目瞖,或來或去,漸大侵睛。雪白鹽少許,燈心蘸點,日三五次。不 痛不礙,屢用有效。活幼口議。 Eye shades of children, that come and go, and that may gradually increase to infringe upon the eyeballs. Dip common rushes into a small amount of snow-white salt and then dip this [into the affected eyes], three to five times a day. This is neither painful nor does it obstruct anything. It was always used successfully. Huo you kou yi.

Chapter 11

733

塵物眯目。以少鹽并豉置水中,視之立出。孫真人方。 When dust has got into one’s eyes. Give a small amount of salt and fermented soybeans into water and let the patient look at it. [The foreign bodies] will come out immediately. Sun zhen ren fang. 酒皶赤鼻。白鹽常擦之,妙。直指方。 Wine sediments711 causing a red nose. Continuously rub it with white salt. Wondrous. Zhi zhi fang. 口鼻急疳,蝕爛腐臭,斗子鹽、白麪等分,爲末,每以吹之。普濟方。 Mouth and nose suddenly affected by a gan-illness,712 with festering erosions and a bad stench. [Grind] equal amounts of Shan xi salt and white flour to a powder. Each time blow it [into the affected mouth and nose]. Pu ji fang. 面上惡瘡五色者。鹽湯浸綿搨瘡上,五六度即瘥。藥性論。 Malign sores of all five colors covering the face. Soak a piece of silk fabric in a salt decoction and use it to rub the surface of the sores. After five to six applications a cure will be achieved. Yao xing lun. 體如蟲行,風熱也。鹽一斗,水一石,煎湯浴之,三四次。亦療一切風 氣。外臺秘要。 [A sensation] as if worms/bugs were moving in one’s body. This is caused by wind and heat. Boil one dou of salt in one dan of water and [let the patient] bathe in it, three to four times. It also serves to heal all types of [diseases caused by] wind qi. Wai tai mi yao. 瘡癬痛痒初生者。嚼鹽頻擦之,妙。千金翼。 Xuan-illness713 sores with pain and itch in an initial stage. Chew salt and repeatedly apply it [to the affected region]. Wondrous. Qian jin yi. 手足心毒,風氣毒腫。鹽末、椒末等分,酢和傅之,立瘥。肘後方。 The palms of the hands and the soles of the feet affected by poison. Poison swelling caused by wind qi. Mix equal amounts of salt powder and Chinese prickly ash 711 Jiu zha 酒皶, “wind sediments,” refers to a swollen, red nose with papules presumably caused by excessively drinking wine. BCGM Dict I, 275. 712 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188. 713 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591.

734

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

powder with vinegar and apply this [to the affected region]. A cure will be achieved immediately. Zhou hou fang. 手足疣目。鹽傅上,以舌714舐之,不過二度,瘥。肘後方。 Warts developing on hands and feet. Apply salt to them and then lick them with your tongue. A cure will be achieved after no more than two applications. Zhou hou fang. 熱病生𧏾,下部有瘡。熬鹽熨之,不過三次。梅師方。 When a heat disease has generated hidden worms/bugs causing sores in the lower (i. e., genital) body parts. Fry salt and press it hot [on the affected region]. No more than three [applications required]. Mei shi fang. 一切漏瘡。故布裹鹽,燒赤爲末,每服一錢。外臺秘要。 All types of leaking sores. Wrap salt in an old piece of cloth, heat it until it is red and [grind it to] a powder. Each time ingest one qian. Wai tai mi yao. 臁瘡經年。鹽中黑泥,晒研搽之。永類方。 Shank sores that have lasted for years. Dry black mud from a salt [field], grind it [to a powder] and rub this [on the affected region]. Yong lei fang. 蠼螋尿瘡。鹽湯浸綿,搨瘡上。食療本草。 Sores caused by the urine of earwigs. Soak a piece of silk fabric in a salt decoction and rub the surface of the sores with it. Shi liao ben cao. 蜈蚣咬人。嚼鹽塗之,或鹽湯浸之,妙。梅師方。 When a centipede has bitten one. Chew salt and apply it [to the location of the bite], or soak it in a salt decoction. Wondrous. Mei shi fang. 蚯蚓咬毒,形如大風,眉鬢皆落。惟濃煎鹽湯,浸身數遍即愈。浙西軍將 張韶病此,每夕蚯蚓鳴于體,一僧用此方而安。蚓畏鹽也。經驗方。 Earthworm bite with poison, with a physical appearance resembling that of massive wind.715 Eyebrows and hair on the temples have all fallen off. The only way to cure this is to boil salt to prepare a viscous decoction and to immerse the entire body in it several times. Zhang Shao, a general from Zhe xi, had this illness. Every evening 714 Zheng lei, ch. 4, quotes this recipe from the Ge shi fang as recorded in Zhou hou fang and in Yi xin fang. Instead of yi she shi zhi 以舌舐之 it has ling niu shi zhi 令牛舐之, “let an ox lick it.” This may be the original wording. 715 Da feng 大風, “massive wind,” may refer to sores caused by a massive intrusion of wind evil and also to conditions of leprosy. BCGM Dict I, 111.

Chapter 11

735

the sounds of earthworms were heard in his body. A monk resorted to this recipe and he was healed. This is because earthworms fear salt. Jing yan fang. 蜂蠆叮螫。嚼鹽塗之。千金方。 Bee/wasp and scorpion stings. Chew salt and apply it [to the affected region]. Qian jin fang. 解黄蠅毒。烏蒙山峽多小黄蠅,生毒蛇鱗中,嚙人初無所覺,漸痒爲瘡。 勿搔,但以冷水沃之,擦鹽少許,即不爲瘡。方輿勝覽。 To dissolve the poison of yellow flies. In the valleys of Mount Wu meng shan are many yellow flies that live in the scales of poisonous snakes. When they gnaw on humans, at first nothing is felt. Slow by slow an itch develops, eventually resulting in sores. Do not scratch [the itching regions]. Only rinse them with cold water and apply small amounts of salt to them. This will prevent the formation of sores. Fang yu sheng lan. 毒蛇傷螫。嚼鹽塗之,灸三壯,仍嚼鹽塗之。徐伯玉方。 Harm caused by the bite of a poisonous snake. Chew salt and apply it [to the affected region]. Then cauterize it with three cones of moxa, again chew salt and apply it there. Xu Boyu fang. 虱出怪病。臨卧渾身虱出,約至五升,隨至血肉俱壞,每宿漸多,痛痒不 可言狀,惟喫水,卧牀晝夜號哭,舌尖出血不止,身齒俱黑,唇動鼻開。 但飲鹽醋湯十數日即安。夏子益奇疾方。 Strange disease caused by lice. One lies in bed and lice appear all over his body, as many as five sheng. Eventually, his blood and his flesh are all damaged. The number [of lice] increases every night, resulting in indescribable pain and itch. [Patients can] only drink water. They lie in bed all day and night wailing. The tip of their tongue bleeds without end. The body and the teeth have all turned black. The lips move and the nose is open. The only way to cure this is to [let the patient] drink a salt and vinegar decoction for several tens of days. Xia Ziyi, Qi ji fang. 解狼毒毒。鹽汁飲之。千金方。 To dissolve the poison of wolfsbane [root]. [Let the patient] drink a salt liquid. Qian jin fang. 藥箭毒氣。鹽貼瘡上,灸三十壯,良。集驗方。 Poison qi resulting from medicated arrows. Apply salt to the wound and cauterize it with 30 moxa cones. Good. Ji yan fang.

736

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

救溺水死。以大凳卧之,後足放高,用鹽擦臍中,待水自流出,切勿倒提 出水。救急方。 To save someone who drowned in water. Put that [person] on a big bench with his behind and legs raised. Then rub salt into his navel until the water flows out of him. Do not hold [this person] upside down to release the water. Jiu ji fang. 潰癰作痒。以鹽摩其四圍,即止。外科精義。 An obstruction-illness716 that has burst open and causes an itch. Rub all four sides [of the opening] with salt and [the ailment] will end. Wai ke jing yi. 11-02 戎鹽本經下品 Rong yan, FE Ben jing. Lower rank. Salt from the Rong. Crystal salt. Sodium chloride. 【釋名】胡鹽别録、羌鹽日華、青鹽綱目、秃登鹽唐本、陰土鹽。【大明 曰】西番所食者,故號戎鹽、羌鹽。【恭曰】戎鹽,即胡鹽也。沙州名秃 登鹽,廓州名爲陰土鹽,生河岸山坂之陰土石間,故名。 Explanation of Names. Hu yan 胡鹽, “salt from the Hu region,” Bie lu. Qiang yan 羌 鹽, “salt from the region of the Qiang,” Rihua. Qing yan 青鹽, “greenish salt,” Gang mu. Tu deng yan 秃登鹽, Tang ben. Yin tu yan 陰土鹽, “shady soil salt.” Da Ming: It is consumed in the foreign countries of the West. Hence it is called Rong yan 戎鹽, “salt from the region of the Rong,” and Qiang yan 羌鹽, “salt from the region of the Qiang.” [Su] Gong: Rong yan is Hu yan, “salt from the Hu region.” In Sha zhou it is called tu deng yan 秃登鹽. In Kuo zhou it is called yin tu yan 陰土鹽. It grows on the slopes of river banks amidst soil and rocks in the shade. 【集解】【别録曰】戎鹽生胡鹽山及西羌北地、酒泉 福禄城東南角。北海 青,南海赤。十月采。【當之曰】戎鹽味苦臭,是海潮水澆山石,經久鹽 凝着石,取之北海者青,南海者赤。【弘景曰】史書言虜中鹽有九種:白 鹽、食鹽,常食者;黑鹽,主腹脹氣滿;胡鹽,主耳聾目痛;柔鹽,主馬 脊瘡。又有赤鹽、駁鹽、臭鹽、馬齒鹽四種,並不入食。馬齒即大鹽,黑 鹽疑是鹵鹹,柔鹽疑是戎鹽,而此戎鹽又名胡鹽,二三相亂。今戎鹽虜中 甚有,從凉州來,亦從燉煌來。其形作塊片,或如雞鴨卵,或如菱米,色 紫白,味不甚鹹,口嘗氣臭正如毈雞子臭者乃真。又河南鹽池泥中自有凝 鹽如石片,打破皆方,青黑色,善療馬脊瘡,又疑此是戎鹽。又巴東 朐 䏰縣北崖有鹽井,鹽水自凝,生繖子鹽,方一二寸,中央突張如繖形,亦 716 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641.

Chapter 11

737

有方如石膏、博棋者。【恭曰】戎鹽即胡鹽,生河崖山坂之陰土石間,大 小不常,堅白似石,燒之不鳴烢也。【宗奭曰】戎鹽成垜,裁之如枕,細 白,味甘鹹。【頌曰】陶氏所説九種,今人不能遍識。醫家治眼及補下藥 多用青鹽,恐即戎鹽也。本草云:北海青,南海赤。今青鹽從西羌來者, 形塊方稜,明瑩而青黑色,最奇。北海來者,作大塊而不光瑩,又多孔 竅,若蜂窠狀,色亦淺于西鹽,彼人謂之鹽枕,入藥差劣。北胡又有一種 鹽,作片屑,如碎白石,彼人亦謂之青鹽,緘封于匣,與鹽枕并作禮贄, 不知是何色類。【時珍曰】本草戎鹽云,北海青,南海赤,而諸注乃用白 鹽,似與本文不合。按凉州異物志云:姜賴之墟,今稱龍城。剛鹵千里, 蒺藜之形。其下有鹽,累棋而生。出于胡國,故名戎鹽。贊云:鹽山二 岳,二色爲質。赤者如丹,黑者如漆。小大從意,鏤之爲物。作獸辟惡, 佩之爲吉。或稱戎鹽,可以療疾。此説與本草本方相合,亦惟赤、黑二 色,不言白者。蓋白者乃光明鹽,而青鹽、赤鹽則戎鹽也。故西凉記云: 青鹽池出鹽,正方半寸,其形如石,甚甜美。真臘記云:山間有石,味勝 于鹽,可琢爲器。梁杰公傳言,交河之間,掘磧下數尺,有紫鹽,如紅 如紫,色鮮而甘。其下丈許,有瑿珀。北户録亦言,張掖池中出桃花鹽, 色如桃花,隨月盈縮。今寧夏近凉州地,鹽井所出青鹽,四方皎潔如石。 山丹衛即張掖地,有池産紅鹽,紅色。此二鹽,即戎鹽之青、赤二色者。 醫方但用青鹽,而不用紅鹽,不知二鹽皆名戎鹽也。所謂南海、北海者, 指西海之南北而言,非炎方之南海也。張果玉洞要訣云:赤戎鹽出西戎, 禀自然水土之氣,結而成質。其地水土之氣黄赤,故鹽亦隨土氣而生。味 淡于石鹽,力能伏陽精。但于火中燒汁紅赤,凝定色轉益者,即真也。亦 名絳鹽。抱朴子書有作赤鹽法。又嶺南一種紅鹽,乃染成者,皆非真紅鹽 也。又丹房鑑源云:蠻鹽可伏雌雄,紅鹽爲上。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Rong salt, Rong yan 戎鹽, grows on Mount Hu yan shan, in the Northern region of Xi qiang and in the South-Eastern corner of Fu lu cheng in Jiu quan. It is greenish [when it originates] in Bei hai, and red [when it originates] in Nan hai. It is collected in the tenth month. [Li] Dangzhi: Rong salt is of bitter taste and has a foul smell. Where the tides of the sea moisten the mountain rocks [of the coastline], after a long time salt congeals attached to the rocks. That collected from [the rocks of ] Bei hai is greenish; that from [the rocks of ] Nan hai is red. [Tao] Hongjing: Historical writings say: “The salt from Lu zhong occurs in nine kinds.” Of these, white salt and table salt are those regularly eaten. Black salt controls abdominal distension and a sensation of fullness with qi. Hu yan/salt controls deafness and pain in the ears. “Soft salt” controls sores on the back of horses. In addition, there are the four kinds of “red salt,” “spattled salt,” “malodorous salt” and “horse tooth salt.” None of them is added to food. Horse tooth [salt] is crude salt. “Black salt” may be [crystallized] bittern. “Soft salt” may be Rong salt, with this

738

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Rong salt also being called Hu yan/salt. These two or three are often confused with each other. Nowadays, much Rong salt occurs in Lu zhong; it comes from Liang zhou and also from Dun huang. Its physical appearance is that of blocks and of thin pieces, sometimes resembling chicken or duck eggs, sometimes resembling water chestnuts. Its color is purple-white, and its flavor is not overly salty. If it develops, when tasted in the mouth, a malodorous qi just like the malodorous [stench] of rotten chicken eggs, then it is genuine. Also, in the mud in the salt pools of He nan a type of salt occurs that has congealed like stone slabs. When it is struck it breaks into rectangular pieces of a greenish-black color. It is especially suited for curing sores on the back of horses. This, too, may be Rong salt. Furthermore, on the cliffs north of Qu run xian in Ba dong is a salt well. Brine congeals there and forms “umbrella salt.” These are rectangular [pieces] of one or two cun. In their center they have an extension sticking out so that they resemble the shape of an umbrella. Some pieces are rectangular like gypsum and board game pieces. [Su] Gong: Rong salt is Hu yan/salt. It grows between the soil and the rocks on river cliffs and the yin/shady side slope of mountains. It may be of large or small size, and is hard and white like a stone. When it is heated, it does not emit a cracking sound. [Kou] Zongshi: Rong salt forms heaps. It can be cut like a pillow. It is fine and white, with a sweet-salty flavor. [Su] Song: The nine kinds mentioned by Mr. Tao [Hongjing] are not distinguished by the people today. When physicians cure [ailments of the] eyes and when they [prescribe] medication to supplement the lower [body part], they often resort to “greenish salt;” presumably this is Rong salt. The Ben cao states: [Rong salt] from Bei hai is greenish; that from Nan hai is red. The greenish salt coming from Xi qiang today has a physical appearance of square blocks. It is lustrous and of greenish-black color. It is very special. That from Bei hai forms large blocks but is not lustrous. Also, it has many holes, like a bee’s/wasp’s nest. Its color, too, is weaker than that of salt from the West. The people there call it “salt pillow.” When added to medication, it is of inferior quality. In Bei hu is yet another variety of salt, forming slices and scraps, just like a white stone broken to pieces. The people there call it “greenish salt,” too. Sealed in a small box it serves together with “salt pillows” as a gift. But its color and which group [of salts] it belongs to are not known. [Li] Shizhen: The [entry on] Rong salt in the Ben cao states: “In Bei hai it is greenish; in Nan hai it is red.” But all [later] commentaries refer to a “white salt.” This seems to be not in agreement with the original text. According to the Liang zhou yi wu zhi, “the ruins of Jiang lai are nowadays called Long cheng. Hard bittern [covers the ground over] a thousand li; its physical appearance is that of tribulus [herb]. Underneath it is salt. It grows like a string of board game pieces. It originates from Hu guo; hence it is called ‘salt from the region of the Rong’.” A eulogy states: “The salt mountain has two peaks.

Chapter 11

739

Two colors have formed their substance. A red one is like cinnabar. A black one is like lacquer. [The people] select small or large [pieces] following their liking and cut them to [various] items. They form them as animals to ward off the malign and wear them on their garments as auspicious signs. Some say, Rong salt is able to heal illness.” Such statements agree with the original recipes recorded in the Ben cao in that they, too, refer only to the two colors red and black, and do not mention a white [variety]. The fact is, the white [variety] is “shiny salt,” while “greenish salt” and “red salt” are Rong salt. Hence the Xi liang ji states: “The salt originating in the Rong salt ponds consists of rectangular pieces of half a cun. Its physical appearance is that of stones, and it is very sweet and delicious.” The Zhen la ji states: “In the mountains is a stone/mineral with a flavor superior to that of salt. It can be cut to form utensils.” The Liang Jie gong zhuan says: “In Jiao he, [people] dig into sandbanks several chi deep. There is a ‘purple salt,’ that may be red or purple. Its color is very bright, and [its flavor is] sweet. More than a zhang further below is black amber-jade.” The Bei hu lu, too, says: “A ‘peach blossom salt’ originates in a pond in Zhang ye. Its color is that of peach blossoms, and it extends and shrinks in the course of the months.” The Rong salt originating nowadays in a salt well in Ning xia near Liang zhou is rectangular and shiny like a stone. In Shan dan wei, which is on the Zhang ye territory, a “red salt” is brought forth from a pond; it is of red color. These two salt [kinds] are the greenish and red [kinds] of Rong salt. Medical recipes resort to “greenish salt” only; they do not make use of the “red salt.” They are not aware of the fact that both these salt [kinds] are called “salt from the region of the Rong.” The so called Nan hai and Bei hai are the [regions] south and north of Xi hai. This is not the Nan hai of the hot South. Zhang Guo in his Yu dong yao jue states: “Red salt from the region of the Rong originates in the western [region of the] Rong. It is endowed with the qi of natural water and soil that have have bound together to form tangible substance matter. The qi of the water and soil of that area are yellow-red. Hence the salt, too, grows in accordance with the qi of that soil. Its flavor is weaker than that of stone salt. Its strength is capable of subduing yang essence. It is genuine only if when heated in a fire a red juice develops that when it coagulates again will have an even deeper color. It is also called ‘crimson red salt’.” The Baopu zi describes the method of how to prepare “red salt.” Also, there is a variety of “red salt” in Ling nan that is dyed. All these [kinds] are not genuine “red salt.” Also, the Dan fang jing yuan states: “The salt from the region of the Man can subdue [the effects of ] male [yellow, (i. e., realgar)] and female [yellow, (i. e., orpiment)]; ‘red salt’ is the best.”

740

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【氣味】鹹,寒,無毒。【宗奭曰】甘、鹹。【大明曰】平。【獨孤滔 曰】戎鹽,赤、黑二色,能累卵,乾汞,制丹砂。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, cold, nonpoisonous. [Kou] Zongshi: Sweet, salty. Da Ming: Balanced. Dugu Tao: Rong salt appears in two colors: red and black. It is crispy, serves to dry mercury and checks [the potential of ] cinnabar. 【主治】明目目痛,益氣,堅肌骨,去毒蠱。本經。心腹痛,溺血吐血, 齒舌血出。别録。助水臟,益精氣,除五臟癥結,心腹積聚,痛瘡疥癬。 大明。解芫青、斑蝥毒。時珍。 Control. It clears the eyes and [serves to cure] painful eyes. It boosts the qi, strengthens muscles and bones and removes gu poison.717 Ben jing. It [serves to cure] heart and abdominal pain, urination with blood and vomiting with blood, as well as bleeding teeth and tongue. Bie lu. It assists the water long-term depot, boosts essence/sperm qi, removes concretion-illness nodes from the five long-term depots, accumulations and collections, as well as painful sores, jie-illness718 and xuan-illness.719 Da Ming. It resolves the poison of lytta bugs720 and blister beetles/mylabris. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【宗奭曰】戎鹽甘鹹,功在却血,入腎,治目中瘀赤濇昏。【時 珍曰】戎鹽功同食鹽,不經煎鍊,而味鹹帶甘,入藥似勝。周禮 注云,飴 鹽味甜,即戎鹽,不知果否?或云以飴拌鹽也。。【時珍曰】戎鹽功同食 鹽,不經煎鍊,而味鹹帶甘,入藥似勝。周禮 注云,飴鹽味甜,即戎鹽, 不知果否?或云以飴拌鹽也。 Explication. [Kou] Zongshi: Rong salt is sweet and salty. Its [therapeutic] potential is to discard [residual] blood. It enters the kidneys, and serves to cure eyes that are red, rough and dimmed because of residual blood. [Li] Shizhen: The [therapeutic] potential of Rong salt is identical to that of edible salt. As long as it has not been boiled and refined in water with heat its flavor is salty but carries a sweet note. When added to medication it is superior [to edible salt]. A commentary to the Zhou li states: “The flavor of sugar-sweet salt is sweet.” This may have been a reference to 717 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191. 718 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely defined skin ailment. BCGM Dict I, 249. 719 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591. 720 Lytta caraganae Pallas.

Chapter 11

741

Rong salt, but this is not clear. Some say that this is salt to which sugar has been added.

【附方】新六。 Added Recipes. Six newly [recorded]. 小便不通。戎鹽湯:用戎鹽彈丸大一枚,伏苓半斤,白术二兩,水煎,服 之。仲景金匱方。 Blocked urination. Decoction with halite: One piece of Rong salt the size of a bullet, half a jin of poria and two liang of atractylodes [rhizome] are boiled in water. [Let the patient] ingest the [resulting liquid]. [Zhang] Zhongjing, Jin kui fang. 風熱牙痛。青鹽一斤,槐枝半斤,水四盌,煎汁二盌,煮鹽至乾,炒研, 日用揩牙洗目。唐氏經驗方。 Toothache caused by wind and heat. One jin of Rong salt and half a jin of sophora japonica twigs are boiled in four bowls of water down to a juice of two bowls. Then heat this further until the salt is dry. Fry it, grind it and [use the resulting powder to] rub the teeth and [as a watery solution to] rinse the eyes every day. Tang shi, Jing yan fang. 牢牙明目。青鹽二兩,白鹽四兩,川椒四兩,煎汁拌鹽炒乾,日用揩牙洗 目,永無齒疾目疾。通變要法。 To strengthen the teeth and clear the eyes. Boil two liang of Rong salt, four liang of “white salt,” and four liang of Sichuan pepper [in water] to generate a juice. Add salt and fry this until it has dried. [Grind it and use the resulting powder to] rub the teeth and [as a watery solution to] rinse the eyes every day. You will never suffer from a dental illness and from ailments of the eyes again. Tong bian yao fa. 風眼爛弦。戎鹽化水,點之。普濟方。 Festering [eyelid] rims caused by wind. Dissolve Rong salt in water and drip the [resulting liquid into the affected eyes]. Pu ji fang. 痔瘡漏瘡。白礬四兩,青鹽四兩,爲末,猪尿脬一個盛之,陰乾,每服五 錢,空心温水下。趙氏經驗方。 Piles sores; leaking sores. [Grind] four liang of white alum and four liang of Rong salt to a powder. Fill it into a urinary bladder of a pig and let it dry in the shade. Each time ingest five qian, to be sent down on an empty stomach with warm water. Zhao shi jing yan fang.

742

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 11-03 光明鹽唐本草 Guang ming yan, FE Tang ben cao.

Lustrous salt. 【釋名】石鹽唐本、聖石蜀本、水晶鹽綱目。【時珍曰】雷斅炮炙論序 云:聖石開盲,明目而如雲離日。則光明者,乃兼形色與功而名也。 Explanation of Names. Shi yan 石鹽, “stone salt.” Tang ben. Sheng shi 聖石, “the stone of sages,” Shu ben. Shui chang yan 水晶鹽, “crystal salt,” Gang mu. [Li] Shizhen: Lei Xiao in his preface to the Pao zhi lun states: “The ‘stone of sages’ opens blind eyes. It clears the eyes as if clouds had been moved away from in front of the sun.” That is, it is called “lustrous [salt]” because of the color of its physical appearance and because of its [therapeutic] potential. 【集解】【恭曰】光明鹽生鹽州 五原,鹽池下鑿取之。大者如升,皆正 方光徹。【頌曰】今階州出一種石鹽,生山石中,不由煎鍊,自然成鹽, 色甚明瑩,彼人甚貴之,云即光明鹽也。【時珍曰】石鹽有山産、水産二 種。山産者即厓鹽也,一名生鹽,生山厓之間,狀如白礬,出于階、成、 陵、鳳、永康諸處。水産者生池底,狀如水晶、石英,出西域諸處。吴録 云:天竺有新淘,水味甘美,下有石鹽。白如水晶。又波斯出自然白鹽, 如細石子。金幼孜北征録云:北虜有鹽海子,出白鹽,瑩潔如水晶。又有 鹽池鹽,色或青或白,軍士采食之。此皆水産者也。梁四公傳云:高昌 國 燒羊山出鹽,大者如斗狀,白如玉。月望收者,其文理粗,明澈如冰; 非月望收者,其文理密。金樓子云:胡中白鹽,産于崖,映月光明洞澈如 水晶。胡人以供國厨,名君王鹽,亦名玉華鹽。此則山産者也。皆自然之 鹽,所謂天成者也。益州記云:汶山有鹹石,以水漬而煎之成鹽。此亦石 鹽之類,而稍不同者。 Collected Explanations. [Su] Gong: “Lustrous salt” originates in Wu yuan of Yan zhou. It is obtained by digging into the bottom of salt ponds. Large pieces reach the size of one sheng. They are all rectangular and lustrous. [Su] Song: Nowadays a variety of stone salt originates in Xie zhou. It grows in mountain rocks. It is not obtained by boiling and refining it with heat; it is a salt that has formed naturally. Its color is very shiny and lustrous. The people there highly value it. They say that it is a “lustrous salt.” [Li] Shizhen: There are two kinds of stone salt: that produced out of a mountain, and that produced out of water. That produced out of a mountain is “cliff salt.” Another name is “crude salt.” It grows in mountains and cliffs, and it is shaped like white alum. It originates everywhere in Xie, Cheng, Ling, Feng and Yong kang. That produced out of water grows on the bottom of [salt] ponds. It is shaped like rock crystal and quartz. It originates everywhere in Xi yu. Wu Lu states:

Chapter 11

743

In India is [a pond named] Xin tao. Its water is of sweet and delicious flavor. Below it is stone salt. It is as white as rock crystal. Also, natural, white salt originates in Po se; it resembles fine stones. Jin Youzi in his Bei zheng lu states: “In Northern Lu is a salt sea. A white salt originates in it that is as lustrous as rock crystal. Also, there is salt pond salt. Its color is greenish or white. The troops collect and consume it.” All these are produced out of water. The Liang si gong zhuan states: “In Gao chang guo salt originates in Mount Shao yang shan with pieces as big as a dou measure. It is as white as jade. When it is collected under a full moon, it has a crude line design structure and is as shiny as ice. When it is collected at times other than full moon, it has a fine structure of line design.” The Jin lou zi states: “The white salt from the Hu [region] is obtained from cliffs. Held against the moon it is as shiny and transparent as rock crystal. The Hu people supply with it the kitchen of their state [rulers]. It is called ‘salt of Lords and Kings’. Another name is ‘jade splendor salt’.” This is produced from within mountains. All these are natural salts. They are said to be “generated by heaven.” The Yi zhou jun states: “On Mount Wen shan is a salty stone. When it is soaked in water and boiled, it turns into salt.” It, too, belongs to the group of stone salts, but is slightly different. 【氣味】鹹、甘,平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】頭痛諸風,目赤痛,多眵淚。唐本。 Control. Headache associated with all types of wind. Red, painful eyes with profuse tearflow. Tang ben. 【發明】【時珍曰】光明鹽得清明之氣,鹽之至精者也,故入頭風眼目諸 藥尤良。其他功同戎鹽,而力差次之。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: “Lustrous salt” is endowed with clear and clarifying qi. It is the finest [salt] and hence is especially good when added to all types of medication for head wind721 and [ailments of ] the eyes. Its further [therapeutic] potential is identical to that of salt from the region of the Rong, with its strength being inferior.

721 Tou feng 頭風, “head wind,” is wind evil attacking the head followed by pain, or dizziness, or itching. BCGM Dict I, 509.

744

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

11-04 鹵鹹本經下品 Lu jian, FE Ben jing. Lower rank. Native lake salt. Bittern salt. Efflorescence of sodium chloride mixed with other soluble salts. 【釋名】鹵鹽、寒石吴普、石鹼補遺。【時珍曰】鹹音有二:音咸者,潤 下之味;音减者,鹽土之名,後人作鹼、作鹻是矣。許慎説文云:鹵,西 方鹹地也。故字從西省文,象鹽形。東方謂之斥,西方謂之鹵,河東謂之 鹹。傳云兑爲澤,其於地也爲剛鹵,亦西方之義。 Explanation of Names. Lu yan 鹵鹽, “bittern salt,” han shi 寒石, “cold stone,” Wu Pu. Shi jian 石鹼, Bu yi. [Li] Shizhen: [The character] 鹹 may be read in two different ways. When it is read xian 咸 it refers to a flavor that moistens and stimulates a downward movement. When it is read jian 减, it is the name of a saline soil. This is [the item] called by people in later times jian 鹼 and also jian 鹻. Xu Shen in his Shuo wen states: “Lu 鹵 is a saline earth from the West. Hence the character [lu 鹵] is an abbreviated version of [the character] xi 西 to reflect the appearance of [the character] yan 鹽, ‘salt.’ In the East, it is called chi 斥; in the West it is called lu 鹵. In He dong they call it jian 鹹.” A commentary states: “[The 58th Yi jing hexagram] dui 兑 reflects water as collected in a marsh. On the ground it is hard bittern.” This, too, refers to the Western meaning [of lu 鹵].” 【集解】【别録曰】鹵鹹生河東池澤。【弘景曰】今俗不復見鹵鹹,疑是 黑鹽。又云:是煎鹽釜下凝滓。二説未詳。【恭曰】鹵鹹生河東,河東鹽 不釜煎,明非凝滓。又疑是黑鹽,皆不然。此是鹼土也,今人熟皮用之, 于鹼地掘取。【頌曰】并州人刮鹹煎鍊,不甚佳,即鹵鹹也。【機曰】鹵 鹹,即鹵水也。【時珍曰】説文既言鹵、鹹皆斥地之名,則謂凝滓及鹵水 之説皆非矣。鹵鹽與鹵鹼不同。山西諸州平野,及太谷、榆次高亢處,秋 間皆生鹵,望之如水,近之如積雪。土人刮而熬之爲鹽,微有蒼黄色者, 即鹵鹽也。爾雅所謂天生曰鹵,人生曰鹽者是矣。凡鹽未經滴去苦水, 則不堪食,苦水即鹵水也。鹵水之下,澄鹽凝結如石者,即鹵鹹也。丹溪 所謂石鹼者,乃灰鹼也,見土類。吴普本草謂鹵鹹一名鹵鹽者,指鹵水之 鹽,非鹵地之鹽也,不妨同名。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Native lake salt grows in the ponds and marshes of He dong. [Tao] Hongjing: “Native lake salt is no longer commonly seen; [the substance sold under this name] may be ‘black salt’.” It is also said: “These are the congealed dregs found on the bottom of cauldrons used to boil salt.” Both these two statements are not clear. [Su] Gong: Native lake salt grows in He dong. The salt in He dong is not boiled in cauldrons. Hence it is clear that it does not consist of con-

Chapter 11

745

gealed dregs. It has also been guessed that it is “black salt.” All these assumptions are wrong. This is saline soil. Today the people use it to process salt. It is obtained in that it is dug out from a saline ground. [Su] Song: The people in Bing zhu scrape jian 鹹,“bittern,” [from the ground] and boil it to refine it with heat. [The resulting quality] is not very good. Actually, this is lu xian 鹵鹹, “native lake salt.” [Wang] Ji: Lu xian 鹵鹹 is lu shui 鹵水, “brine.” [Li] Shizhen: The Shuo wen refers to both lu 鹵 and jian 鹹 as “names of saline earth, chi di 斥地.” That is to say, all statements that these are congealed dregs or brine are incorrect. Lu yan 鹵鹽, “bittern salt,” and lu jian 鹵鹼, “native lake salt,” are not identical. In the wilderness plains of all the zhou of Shan xi, and also in high-lying regions of Tai gu and Yu ci, bittern grows during autumn. If one looks at it from afar, it seems to be water. If one comes close to it, it resembles accumulations of snow. The local people scratch it [from the ground] and boil it to produce salt. When it has a slightly grey-yellow color, it is lu yan 鹵鹽, “bittern salt.” The saying in the Er ya: “When it is natural, it is called lu 鹵; when it is man made it is called yan 鹽,” is correct. As long as the bitter water in salt has not been removed yet, it cannot be eaten. This bitter water is lu shui 鹵水, “brine.” Underneath the brine, salt has settled that has congealed to a stone-like layer. This is lu xian 鹵鹹, “native lake salt.” When [Zhu] Danxi speaks of shi jian 石鹼, this is hui jian 灰鹼, “ash bittern.” See [the entry shi jian 石鹼 (07-61) in] the group of “soils.” When the Wu Pu ben cao says “lu jian 鹵鹹, alternative name lu yan 鹵鹽,” this is a reference to the salt of brine, not to the salt of bittern. They bear the same name. 【氣味】苦,寒,無毒。【别録曰】苦、鹹,寒。【獨孤滔曰】鹵鹽制四 黄,作銲藥。同硇砂罨鐵,一時即軟。 Qi and Flavor. Bitter, cold, nonpoisonous. Bie lu: Bitter, salty, cold. Dugu Tao: Lu yan checks the [effects of ] the four [substances bearing the character] “yellow” [in their names]. It is a medication used for firmly connecting/soldering [items]. If together with sal ammoniac it is used to attenuate iron, [the iron] will become soft immediately. 【主治】大熱消渴狂煩,除邪及下蠱毒,柔肌膚。本經。去五臟腸胃留熱 結氣,心下堅,食已嘔逆,喘滿,明目目痛。别録。 Control. Massive heat, melting with thirst,722 madness and unrest. It eliminates evil [qi] and serves to discharge the poison of gu.723 It softens muscles and skin. Ben jing. 722 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567. 723 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed

746

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

It removes from the five long-term depots, the intestines and the stomach residual heat and bound qi724 and hardness below the heart. It cures vomiting following meals and panting with a sensation of fullness. It clears the eyes and [serves to cure] painful eyes. Bie lu.

【附方】新二。 Added Recipes. Two newly [recorded]. 風熱赤眼,虚腫濇痛。鹵鹻一升,青梅二十七箇,古錢二十一文,新瓶 盛,密封,湯中煮一炊時,三日後取點,日三五度。聖惠方。 Red eyes associated with wind and heat, depletion swelling, roughness and pain. Fill one sheng of native lake salt, 27 greenish plums and eleven old coins into a new jar, seal it firmly and boil it in hot water for as long as it takes to consume a meal. Three days later remove [the contents from the jar] and drip them [into the affected eyes]. Three to five times a day. Sheng hui fang. 齒腐齦爛。不拘大人小兒,用上好鹹土,熱湯淋取汁,石器熬乾刮下,入 麝香少許研,摻之。宣明方。 Tooth decay and festering gums. Regardless of whether adults or children are affected, use good saline soil, pour hot water on it and take the [resulting] juice. Boil it in a stoneware vessel until it has dried and scrape off [the residue substance]. Add a small amount of musk, grind [it to a powder], and apply this [to the affected region]. Xuan ming fang. 11-05 凝水石本經中品 Ning shui shi, FE Ben jing, middle rank. The stone that congeals water. 1. Calcite, calcarious spar. 2. Crystalline calcium sulphate. 【釋名】白水石本經、寒水石、凌水石别録、鹽精石、泥精、鹽枕綱目、 鹽根。【時珍曰】拆片投水中,與水同色,其水凝動。又可夏月研末,煮 湯入瓶,倒懸井底,即成凌冰,故有凝水、白水、寒水、凌水諸名。生于 積鹽之下,故有鹽精以下諸名。石膏亦有寒水之名,與此不同。

to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191. 724 Jie qi 結氣, “bound qi,” refers to pathological qi halting and congealing at any place in the human body. BCGM Dict I, 240.

Chapter 11

747

Explanation of Names. Bai shui shi 白水石, “stone making water white,” Ben jing. Han shui shi 寒水石, “stone that cools water;” ling shui shi 凌水石, “stone that freezes water,” Bie lu. Yan jing shi 鹽精石, “salt essence stone,” ni jing 泥精, “mud essence,” yan chen 鹽枕, “salt pillow,” Gang mu. Yan gen 鹽根, “salt base.” [Li] Shizhen: When broken to pieces and tossed into water, its color is that of water, and the water will congeal. Also, it is possible to grind it to a powder during the summer months, boil it in water, give it into a bottle and hang it upside down into a well, lowered down to its bottom. [The liquid] will freeze to ice. Hence it has all these names such as ning shui 凝水, “[substance] congealing water,” bai shui 白水, “[substance] making water white,” han shui 寒水, “[substance] cooling water,” and ling shui 凌水, “[substance] freezing water.” As it grows underneath of salt accumulations, it has names such as yan jing 鹽精, “salt essence,” etc. Gypsum, too, is called han shui 寒水, but this is different from the [item discussed] here. 【集解】【别録曰】凝水石,色如雲母可析者,鹽之精也。生常山山谷、 中水縣及邯鄲。【弘景曰】常山即恒山,屬并州。中水屬河間。邯鄲屬趙 郡。此處地皆鹹鹵,故云鹽精,而碎之亦似朴消。此石末置水中,夏月能 爲冰者佳。【時珍曰】别録言凝水,鹽之精也。陶氏亦云鹵地所生,碎之 似朴消。范子計然云出河東。河東,鹵地也。獨孤滔丹房鑑源云:鹽精出 鹽池,狀如水精。據此諸説,則凝水即鹽精石也,一名泥精。昔人謂之鹽 枕,今人謂之鹽根。生於鹵地積鹽之下,精液滲入土中,年久至泉。結而 成石。大塊有齒稜,如馬牙消。清瑩如水精,亦有帶青黑色者。皆至暑月 回潤,入水浸久亦化。陶氏注戎鹽,謂鹽池泥中自有凝鹽如石片,打破皆 方而色青黑者,即此也。蘇頌注玄精石謂解池有鹽精石,味更鹹苦,乃 玄精之類,又注食鹽謂鹽枕作精塊,有孔竅,若蜂窠,可緘封爲禮贄者, 皆此物也。唐宋諸醫不識此石,而以石膏、方解石爲注,誤矣。今正之于 下。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Calcite that has a color like muscovite and can break [into smaller pieces] is the essence of salt. It grows in the mountain valleys of Mount Chang shan, in Zhong shui xian and in Han dan. [Tao] Hongjing: Mount Chang shan is Mount Heng shan; it belongs to Bing zhou. Zhong shui belongs to He jian. Han dan belongs to Zhao jun. All these are locations where bittern crystal occurs; hence it is called “the essence of salt.” When it is broken to pieces, it also resembles mirabilite. When this stone is placed into water and during the summer months turns it into ice, it is fine. [Li] Shizhen: When the Bie lu speaks of a “[stone/mineral] that freezes water,” this is the essence of salt. Mr. Tao [Hongjing], too, states that it grows in bittern regions and that broken to pieces, it resembles mirabilite. The Fan zi ji ran states: “It originates in He

748

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

dong. He dong is a bittern region.” Dugu Tao in his Dan fang jian yuan states: “Salt essence originates from salt ponds. It is shaped like crystal.” Given all these sayings, calcite is the “salt essence stone.” An alternative name is “mud essence.” The ancients named it “salt pillow.” The people today call it “salt base.” It grows in bittern regions below salt accumulations. Essence liquid has seeped into the soil and after years it reaches the subterranean water. There it congeals and forms stones. Large pieces have tooth-like edges, similar to ma ya xiao 馬牙消 (11-09-3). It is as clear and lustrous as crystal. Some kinds are of a greenish-black color. All kinds attract moisture during the months of summerheat. Soaked in water for an extended period of time they will dissolve. When in his comment on halite, Mr. Tao [Hongjing] says: “In the mud of salt ponds a congealed salt occurs resembling stone slices. Struck to pieces they are all rectangular and of greenish-black color,” then this is the [calcite discussed] here. Su Song in his comment on selenite says: “In the [salt lake of ] Xie chi is a salt essence stone. Its flavor is especially salty and bitter. It belongs to the group of selenite.” Also, when in his comment on table salt, he says: “Salt pillows appear as fine pieces. They have holes like a bee’s/ wasp’s nest. They can be wrapped and sealed to be given away as gifts,” then all these [substances] are the [calcite discussed] here. None of the physicians of the Tang and Song eras knew this stone. They erroneously identified it as gypsum and calcspar. This is corrected below. 【正誤】【恭曰】凝水石有縱理、横理兩種,色清明者爲上。或云縱理爲 寒水石,横理爲凝水石。今出同州 韓城,色青横理如雲母爲良;出澄州 者,斜理文色白爲劣也。【頌曰】今河東 汾、隰州及德順軍亦有之,三 月采。又有一種冷油石,全與此相類,但投沸油鐺中,油即冷者是也。此 石性冷有毒,誤服令人腰以下不能舉。【宗奭曰】凝水石文理通徹,人或 磨刻爲枕,以備暑月之用。入藥須燒過。或市人末入輕粉以亂真,不可不 察。陶氏言夏月能爲冰者佳,如此則舉世不能得矣。【閻孝忠曰】石膏潔 白堅硬,有墻壁。寒水石軟爛,可以手碎,外微青黑,中有細文。【王隱 君曰】寒水石堅白晶潔,狀若明礬、蓬砂之質。或有碎之,粒粒大小皆四 方,故又名方解石,今人謂之硬石膏者是也。【時珍曰】寒水石有二:一 是軟石膏,一是凝水石。惟陶弘景所注,是凝水之寒水石,與本文相合。 蘇恭、蘇頌、寇宗奭、閻孝忠四家所説,皆是軟石膏之寒水石。王隱君所 説,則是方解石。諸家不詳本文鹽精之説,不得其説,遂以石膏、方解石 指爲寒水石。唐 宋以來相承其誤,通以二石爲用,而鹽精之寒水絶不知 用,此千載之誤也。石膏之誤近千載,朱震亨氏始明。凝水之誤,非時珍 深察,恐終于絶響矣。

Chapter 11

749

Correction of Errors. [Su] Gong: Calcite occurs in two kinds. One with a vertical [line design] pattern, and one with a horizontal [line design] pattern. Those [pieces] with a clear and transparent color are best. It is also said that those with a vertical [line design] structure are the “stones that cool water,” while those with a horizontal [line design] structure are the “stones that freeze water.” Nowadays those originating in Han cheng of Tong zhou with a greenish color and a horizontal [line design] structure resembling muscovite are good. Those originating in Deng zhou with a slanting [line design] structure and of white color are inferior. [Su] Song: Nowadays [calcite] is also found in Fen [zhou] and Xian zhou of He dong, and in De shun jun. It is collected in the third month. There is yet another variety, a “stone that cools oil.” It is of the same group as the [calcite discussed] here. A simple [test is]: When it is tossed into a pan with boiling oil, and the oil becomes cold, then it is this [substance]. This stone is of cold nature and it is poisonous. If ingested by mistake, it stiffens a person’s body from the lower back down. [Kou] Zongshi: Calcite is completely permeated by its line design structure. Some people carve it to a pillow for use during the summerheat months. When it is to be added to medication, it must be heated first. Some market traders add calomel to its powder, thereby polluting the genuine [substance]. One must examine it. Mr. Tao [Hongjing] says that [calcite] is fine when in the summer months it [lets water] freeze to ice. If this were the case, to obtain it one would search throughout the world in vain. Yan Xiaozhong: Gypsum is spotlessly white and hard, and has wall-like surfaces. Calcite is soft and pappy, and can be broken to pieces with the hands. On the outside it is slightly greenish-black; inside it has a fine line design. Wang Yinjun: Calcite is hard and white and crystal-clear. Its shape resembles the substance matter of alum and borax. When broken to pieces, these are all rectangular cubes of various sizes. Hence it, too, is called “stone that splits into rectangular pieces.” Nowadays, it is [the substance] called “hard gypsum” by the people. [Li] Shizhen: There are two calcite kinds. One is “soft gypsum.” The other is the “stone that freezes water.” Only Tao Hongjing’s comment on the “stone that cools water” as a “[stone] that freezes water” is congruent with the original text. The statements by the four authors Su Gong, Su Song, Kou Zongshi and Yan Xiaozhong refer to “soft gypsum” as a “[stone] that freezes water.” Wang Yinjun’s statement is on the “stone that splits into rectangular pieces.” All these authors did not know clearly what is meant by the “essence of salt” in the original text. They did not understand it. Hence they identified gypsum and the “stone that splits into rectangular pieces” as “the stone that cools water.” The [authors of the] Tang and Song eras took this error over, one from another, and they used these two stones interchangeably. They were completely ignorant of the use of “salt essence” as the “[stone] that cools water.” This is an error that has lasted for a

750

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

thousand years! Gypsum was erroneously referred to for almost a thousand years; Zhu Zhenheng was the first to clarify this. If the errors concerning the “[stone] that freezes water” had not been thoroughly examined by [me, Li] Shizhen, they might have persisted to the end of the world. 【脩治】【斅曰】凡使,須用生薑自然汁煮乾,研粉用。每十兩,用薑汁 一鎰也。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Lei] Xiao: For all [therapeutic] applications it must be boiled with the natural juice of fresh ginger until [the juice and the calcite] have dried. It is then ground to a powder and ready for use. Each time [ingest] ten liang, [to be sent down] with one yi of ginger juice. 【氣味】辛,寒,無毒。【别録曰】甘,大寒。【普曰】神農:辛。岐 伯、醫和、扁鵲:甘,無毒。李當之:大寒。【時珍曰】辛、鹹。【之才 曰】解巴豆毒,畏地榆。【獨孤滔曰】制丹砂,伏玄精。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, cold, nonpoisonous. Bie lu: Sweet, very cold. [Wu] Pu: Shen nong: Acrid; Qi Bo, Yi he, Bian Que: Sweet, nonpoisonous. Li Dang zhi: Very cold. [Li] Shizhen: Acrid, salty. [Xu] Zhicai: It resolves the poison of croton [seeds]; [ingested together,] it fears sanguisorba root. Dugu Tao: It checks [the effects of ] cinnabar; it subdues [the effects of ] selenite. 【主治】身熱,腹中積聚邪氣,皮中如火燒,煩滿,水飲之。久服不飢。 本經。除時氣熱盛,五臟伏熱,胃中熱,止渴,水腫,小腹痺。别録。壓 丹石毒風,解傷寒勞復。甄權。治小便白,内痺,凉血降火,止牙疼,堅 牙明目。時珍。 Control. For body heat, abdominal accumulations and collections of evil qi, [a sensation] in the skin as if a fire were burning, and unrest and a feeling of fullness, drink it with water. An ingestion over a long time will prevent hunger. Ben jing. It eliminates extreme heat resulting from seasonal qi, hidden heat in the five longterm depots, and heat in the stomach. It ends thirst, water swelling, and blockage in the lower abdomen. Bie lu. It suppresses poison wind of elixir minerals and resolves recurrent harm caused by cold because of exhaustion. Zhen Quan. It serves to cure a release of white urine and internal blockage. It cools the blood and causes a [risen] fire to descend. It ends toothache, hardens the teeth and clears the eyes. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】凝水石禀積陰之氣而成,其氣大寒,其味辛鹹,入腎 走血除熱之功,同于諸鹽。古方所用寒水石是此石,唐 宋諸方寒水石是石 膏,近方寒水石則是長石、方解石,俱附各條之下,用者詳之。

Chapter 11

751

Explication. [Li] Shizhen: Calcite is generated endowed with accumulated yin qi. Its qi are very cold. Its flavor is acrid-salty. Its [therapeutic] potential of entering the kidneys, moving toward the blood and eliminating heat is identical to that of all salts. The “stone that cools water” [recommended for] use in ancient recipes is the stone [discussed] here. The “cold water stone” [resorted to] in all the recipes of the Tang and Song is gypsum. The “cold water stone” [recommended in] recipes of recent times is feldspar/anhydrite and calcspar, both of which are listed in an appendix following this entry. Those who make use of them, will find details there.

【附方】舊二,新二。 Added Recipes. Two of old. Two newly [recorded]. 男女轉脬,不得小便。寒水石二兩,滑石一兩,葵子一合,爲末,水一 斗,煮五升,時服一升,即利。永類方。 Contorted bladder of males and females, with an inability to urinate. [Grind] two liang of calcite, one liang of talc and one ge of malva seeds to a powder to be boiled in one dou of water down to five sheng. [Let the patients] ingest one sheng at a time, and [the passage of urine] will be freed. Yong lei fang. 牙齦出血,有竅。寒水石粉三兩,朱砂二錢,甘草,腦子一字,爲末,乾 摻。普濟方。 Bleeding dental gums, with holes. [Grind] three liang of calcite powder, two qian of cinnabar, glycyrrhiza [root], and one zi of camphora to a powder and rub it dry [on the affected region]. Pu ji fang. 湯火傷灼。寒水石燒研傅之。衞生易簡方。 Harm associated with scalding by boiling water and fire. Heat calcite, grind it [to a powder] and apply it [to the affected region]. Wei sheng yi jian fang. 小兒丹毒,皮膚熱赤。寒水石半兩,白土一分,爲末,米醋調塗之。經驗 方。 Children affected by cinnabar poison,725 with a hot and red skin. [Grind] four liang of calcite and one fen of kaolin to a powder, mix it with rice vinegar and apply this [to the affected region]. Jing yan fang.

725 Dan du 丹毒, “cinnabar poison,” a skin ailment with red rashes. BCGM Dict I, 118

752

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

11-06 玄精石宋開寶 Xuan jing shi, FE Song, Kai bao. Selenite. Calcium sulphate. 【釋名】太乙玄精石、陰精石綱目、玄英石。【時珍曰】此石乃鹹鹵至陰 之精凝結而成,故有諸名。 Explanation of Names. Tai yi xuan jing shi 太乙玄精石, “Tai yi’s dark essence stone,” yin jing shi 陰精石, “yin essence stone,” “Gang mu. Xuan ying shi 玄英石, “dark splendor stone.” [Li] Shizhen: This stone forms when the utmost yin essence of bittern congeals. Hence all its names. 【集解】【頌曰】玄精石出解州 解池,及通、泰州積鹽倉中亦有之。其色 青白、龜背者佳,采無時。又解池有鹽精石,味更鹹苦,亦玄精之類也。 【恭曰】近地亦有之,色亦青白,片大不佳。【時珍曰】玄精是鹹鹵津液 流滲入土,年久結成石片,片狀如龜背之形。蒲、解出者,其色青白通 徹。蜀中赤鹽之液所結者,色稍紅光。沈存中筆談云:太陰玄精生解州鹽 澤之鹵,溝渠土内得之。大者如杏葉,小者如魚鱗,悉皆尖角端正,如龜 甲狀。其裙襴小堕,其前則下剡,其後則上剡,正如穿山甲相揜之處,前 是龜甲,更無異也。色緑而瑩徹,叩之則直理而坼,瑩如明鑑,折處亦六 角,如柳葉大。燒過則悉解折,薄如柳葉,片片相離,白如霜雪,平潔可 愛。此乃禀積陰之氣凝結,故皆六角。今天下所用玄精,乃絳州山中所出 絳石,非玄精也。 Collected Explanations. [Su] Song: Selenite originates in Xie chi of Xie zhou. It is also found in the salt warehouses of Tong [zhou] and Tai zhou. That with a greenish-white color [resembling a] turtle back is fine. It is collected any time. Also, in Xie chi is a “salt essence stone” with a flavor even more salty and bitter. It, too, belongs to the group of selenite. [Su] Gong: It occurs also in regions nearby. And the color [here, too,] is greenish-white. But these are large pieces, and they are not good. [Li] Shizhen: Selenite consists of stone pieces that have formed in the course of many years from bittern liquid that has seeped into the soil. The physical appearance of these pieces resembles that of the back of turtles. [Selenite] originating in Pu and Xie [zhou] is of a greenish-white and dark color. That which has formed in Shu zhong from the liquid of red salt is of a slightly red and shiny color. Shen Cunzhong in his Bi tan states: Selenite grows in the bittern of salt marshes in Xie zhou. It is obtained from the soil in ditches. Large pieces resemble peach leaves. Small ones resemble fish scales. They all have pointed edges standing upright, resembling the shape of turtle carapaces. They wear a “garment” that is slightly oblique. At its top it is sharply pointed downward; at its lower edge it is sharply pointed upward.

Chapter 11

753

This is similar to the overlapping of the scales of a pangolin. At their front they have a turtle carapace726, which is not at all strange. They are of greenish, dark color. When knocked against, [selenite] breaks along straight structures. It is as lustrous as a shiny mirror. The pieces resulting from breaking [selenite], too, have six edges. They are as big as willow leaves. When heated they all break apart to pieces as thin as willow leaves. These slices separate from each other; they are as white as frost and snow, with a lovely surface that is flat and clean. These are coagulations endowed with yin qi. Hence they all have six edges. The selenite used everywhere nowadays is “Jiang [zhou] stone” originating in the mountains of Jiang zhou. It is not [genuine] selenite. 【氣味】鹹,温,無毒。【時珍曰】甘、鹹,寒。【獨孤滔曰】制硫黄、 丹砂。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, warm, nonpoisonous. [Li] Shizhen: Sweet, salty, cold. Dugu Tao: It checks [the effects of ] sulphur and cinnabar. 【主治】除風冷邪氣,濕痺,益精氣,婦人痼冷漏下,心腹積聚冷氣,止 頭痛,解肌。開寶。主陰證傷寒,指甲面色青黑,心下脹滿結硬,煩渴, 虚汗不止,或時狂言,四肢逆冷,咽喉不利腫痛,脉沉細而疾,宜佐他藥 服之。又合他藥,塗大風瘡。宗奭。 Control. It serves to eliminate evil qi of wind and cold, and blockage resulting from moisture. It boosts the essence qi. [It controls] obstinacy-illness cold727 of women with a leaking discharge, and cold qi accumulations and collections in heart and abdomen. It ends headache, and loosens muscles. Kai bao. It controls yin conditions associated with harm caused by cold, when fingernails and face have assumed a greenish-black color. Distension, a feeling of fullness and hardenings below the heart. Unrest with thirst. Unending depletion sweating. In some cases with mad talking, cold counterflow in the four extremities, a swollen and painful blocked throat, a deep, fine and rapid [movement in the] vessels. [For all these cases] it is appropriate to ingest [selenite] as an adjuvant to other medication. Also, it is combined with other medication to be applied to massiv wind728 sores. [Kou] Zongshi. 【發明】【頌曰】古方不見用,近世補藥及傷寒多用之。其著者,治傷寒 正陽丹出汗也。【時珍曰】玄精石禀太陰之精,與鹽同性,其氣寒而不 726 The original text of the Meng xi bi tan has quan shi gui jia全是龜甲, “This is entirely identical to a turtle carapace,” instead of qian shi gui jia 前是龜甲. 727 Gu leng 痼冷, “obstinacy-illness cold,” a condition cold evil abiding deep in the body for an extended period of time. BCGM Dict I, 195 728 Da feng 大風, “massive wind,” may refer to sores caused by a massive intrusion of wind evil and also to conditions of leprosy. BCGM Dict I, 111.

754

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

温,其味甘鹹而降,同硫黄、消石治上盛下虚,救陰助陽,有扶危拯逆之 功。故鐵甕 申先生來復丹用之,正取其寒,以配消、硫之熱也。開寶本草 言其性温,誤矣。 Explication. [Su] Song: It is not seen in ancient recipes [recommended for therapeutic] use. In recent times it is frequently resorted to as a supplementing medication and for harm caused by cold. Best known is its use in the “elixir to rectify the yang” to induce sweating when curing a harm caused by cold. [Li] Shizhen: Selenite is endowed with the essence of major yin. Its nature is identical to that of salt. Its qi are cold, not warm. Its flavor is sweet and salty, and [by its nature it is] descending. In the same way as sulphur and nitrokalite, it serves to cure conditions of abundance above and depletion below, to rescue yin and assist yang. It has the potential of supporting one in times of distress and of rescuing one in situations where something has gone wrong. Hence, when Mr. Shen from Tie weng resorted to it for his “restitution elixir,” he used its cold [nature] to match the heat of nitrokalite and sulphur. The Kai bao ben cao declares its nature as “warm.” That is wrong.

【附方】舊一,新八。 Added Recipes. One of old. Eight newly [recorded]. 正陽丹。治傷寒三日,頭痛壯熱,四肢不利。太陰玄精石、消石、硫黄各 二兩,硇砂一兩,細研,入瓷瓶固濟。以火半斤,周一寸㶸之,約近半 日,候藥青紫色,住火。待冷取出,用臘月雪水拌匀,入鑵子中,屋後北 陰下陰乾。又入地埋二七日,取出細研,麪糊和丸雞頭子大。先用熱水浴 後,以艾湯研下一丸,以衣蓋,汗出爲瘥。圖經本草。 The “elixir to rectify yang [qi].” It serves to cure harm caused by cold that has lasted for three days, with headache, strong heat and an inability to freely move the four extremities. Grind two liang each of selenite, nitrokalite and sulphur with one liang of sal ammoniac to a fine [powder], give it into a porcelain jar, seal it firmly and closely surround it with a one cun thick [wall of ] half a jin of [charcoal] to heat it from all sides for half a day until the medication has assumed a greenish-purple color. Then extinguish the fire, wait until [the medication] has cooled and remove it [from the jar]. Mix it with water from the snow of a winter month, give it into another jar and let it dry in the shade on the northern, yin side behind the house. Then bury it in the ground for two times seven days. Remove it, grind it to a fine [powder] and prepare with a flour paste pills the size of euryale seeds. First bathe [the patient] with hot water, then let him send down one pill ground in a common mugwort [leaf ] decoction and cover him. Once he sweats he will be cured. Tu jing ben cao.

Chapter 11

755

小兒風熱。挾風藴熱,體熱。太陰玄精石一兩,石膏七錢半,龍腦半兩, 爲末,每服半錢,新汲水下。普濟方。 Children affected by wind and heat. They embrace wind and accumulate heat. The body is hot. [Grind] one liang of selenite, seven and a half qian of gypsum and half a liang of borneol to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest half a qian, to be sent down with freshly drawn water. Pu ji fang. 肺熱欬嗽。方見不灰木下。 Lung heat with cough. For recipes see under “asbestos.” (09-14). 冷熱霍亂。分利陰陽。玄精石、半夏各一兩,流黄三錢,爲末,麪糊丸梧 子大,每服飲服三十丸。指南方。 Cholera with [alternating sensations of ] cold and heat. [A cure is meant to] separately free the flow of yin and yang [qi]. [Grind] one liang each of selenite and pinellia [root] together with three qian of sulphur to a powder and prepare it with a flour paste to pills the size of wu seeds. Each time [let the patient] ingest with a beverage 30 pills. Zhi nan fang. 頭風腦痛。玄精石末,入羊膽中陰乾,水調一字,吹鼻中,立止。千金方。 Head wind729 with brain pain. Give selenite powder into sheep bile and let it dry in the shade. Mix it with one zi of water and blow this into [the patient’s] nose. The [ailment] will end immediately. Qian jin fang. 目赤澀痛。玄精石半兩,黄蘗炙一兩,爲末,點之,良。普濟方。 Red eyes with painful roughness. [Grind] half a liang of selenite and one liang of roasted phellodendron [bark] to a powder and drip this [into the affected eyes]. Good. Pu ji fang. 赤目失明,内外障瞖。太陰玄精石陰陽火煅、石决明各一兩,蕤仁、黄連 各二兩,羊子肝七箇,竹刀切晒,爲末,粟米飯丸梧子大,每卧時茶服二 十丸。服至七日,烙頂心以助藥力,一月見效。宋丞相言:黄典史病此, 夢神傳此方,愈。朱氏集驗方。 Red eyes and loss of clear vision, with internal and external shades and screens. [Grind] one liang each of selenite, calcined with alternating yin and yang fires, and abalone shells, two liang each of prinsepia kernels and coptis [rhizome] together with seven sheep livers, cut into pieces with a bamboo knife and dried in the sun, to a powder and prepare with cooked millet pills the size of wu seeds. For each [application let the patient] at bedtime ingest with tea 20 pills. He is to ingest this for 729 Tou feng 頭風, “head wind,” is wind evil attacking the head followed by pain, or dizziness, or itching. BCGM Dict I, 509.

756

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

seven days. Then in addition apply heat to the top of his head to assist the strength of the medication. An effect will be apparent after one month. Grand Councilor Song says: When clerk Huang suffered from this disease, he dreamed that a spirit gave him this recipe, and he was cured. Zhu shi, Ji yan fang. 目生赤脉。玄精石一兩,甘草半兩,爲末,每服一錢,小兒半錢,竹葉煎 湯調下。總微論。 Red vessels growing in the eyes. [Grind] one liang of selenite and half a liang of glycyrrhiza [root] to a powder. Each time ingest one qian. Children half a qian. To be sent down mixed with a bamboo leaf decoction. Zong wei lun. 重舌涎出,水漿不入。太陰玄精石二兩,牛黄、朱砂、龍腦各一分,爲 末。以鈹針舌上去血,鹽湯漱口,摻末嚥津,神效。聖惠方。 Doubled tongue730 with salivation, when [the patient] is unable to consume water or broths. [Grind] two liang of selenite and one fen each of cow bezoar, cinnabar and borneol to a powder. Pierce the surface of the tongue to let blood, [let the patient] rinse his mouth with a salt decoction, rub [the affected region] with the powder and [let the patient] swallow the resulting liquid. Divinely effective. Sheng hui fang. 11-07 緑鹽唐本草 Lü yan, FE Tang ben cao. Green salt. Verdigris. Persian zingar. Basic copper acetate. 【釋名】鹽緑、石緑綱目。 Explanation of Names. Yan lü 鹽緑, “salt green,” shi lü 石緑, “stone/mineral green,” Gang mu. 【集解】【恭曰】緑鹽出焉耆國,水中石中下取之,狀若扁青、空青,爲眼 藥之要。今人以光明鹽、硇砂、赤銅屑,釀之爲塊,緑色,以充之。【珣 曰】出波斯國,生石上,舶上將來,謂之石緑,裝色久而不變。中國以銅、 醋造者,不堪入藥,色亦不久。【時珍曰】方家言波斯緑鹽色青,陰雨中乾 而不濕者爲真。又造鹽緑法:用熟銅器盛取漿水一升,投青鹽一兩在内,浸 七日取出,即緑色。以物刮末,入漿水再浸一七或二七,取出。此非真緑鹽 也。 Collected Explanations. [Su] Gong: Verdigris originates in Yan qi guo. It is obtained from below stones in a water. It is shaped like flat malachite and hollow malachite, and it is an important medication for the eyes. Today the people use 730 Chong she 重舌, “doubled tongue.” A growth under the tongue, mostly in children, similar to a second tongue. BCGM Dict I, 92.

Chapter 11

757

“lustrous salt” (11-03), sal ammoniac and red copper crumbs to form lumps of green color and pretend [this to be verdigris]. [Li] Xun: It originates in Po si guo/Persia where it grows on stones. It is brought here on ships. They call it “stone green.” It is equipped with a color that does not change over a long time. The [verdigris] prepared in China out of copper and vinegar must not be added to medication. Also, its color does not last long. [Li] Shizhen: The recipe experts say that verdigris from Po si that is of greenish color and remains dry and fails to accept moisture at times of overcast and rain is genuine. Another method to prepare verdigris [is as follows]. Fill one sheng of fermented water of foxtail millet into a wrought copper container, add one liang of halite, let it soak for seven days and remove it again. A green color will have [emerged on the inside of the container]. Take some item to scrape it off as a powder, give it into fermented water of foxtail millet and let it soak there for another seven or two times seven days. Then remove it. This is not genuine verdigris! 【氣味】鹹、苦、辛、平,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, bitter, acrid, balanced, nonpoisonous. 【主治】目赤淚出,膚瞖眵暗。唐本。點目,明目消瞖。療小兒無辜疳 氣。李珣。 Control. Red eyes with tearflow, a skin shade and dimmed vision. Tang ben. Dripped into the eyes it clears eyesight and dissolves shades. It serves to heal children with the “innocent” type of gan-illness.731 Li Xun. 【附方】新二。 Additional Recipes. Two newly [recorded]. 胎赤眼痛。鹽緑一分,蜜半兩,于蚌蛤内相和。每夜卧時漿水洗目,炙熱 點之,能斷根。聖濟録。 Painful fetal red eyes. Mix in a clam shell one fen of verdigris with half a liang of honey. Every night at bedtime rinse the [affected] eyes with fermented water of foxtail millet, roast [the verdigris-honey mixture] until it is hot and drip it [into the affected eyes]. This will sever the root [of the problem]. Sheng ji lu. 目暗赤澀,多淚。鹽緑一錢,蕤仁去皮一錢,熟研,入好酥一錢,研匀, 每夜點一麻子。聖惠方。 Red and rough eyes with dimmed vision and profuse tearflow. Grind one qian of verdigris with one qian of prinsepia kernels until a hot [powder has formed]. Give it 731 Wu gu gan 無辜疳, “innocent gan-illness,” is a gan-illness accompanied by scrofula affecting the head and the neck. BCGM Dict I, 537.

758

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

into one quian of good butter and grind this to an even [mixture]. Every night drip as much of it as the size of a sesame seed [into the affected eyes]. Sheng hui fang. 11-08 鹽藥拾遺 Yan yao, FE Shi yi. Salt medication. Glauber salt. Sodium sulphate. 【集解】【藏器曰】生海西南 雷、羅諸州山谷。似芒消,末細,入口極 冷。南人少有服者,恐極冷,入腹傷人,宜慎之。 Collected Explanations. [Chen] Cangqi: It grows in the mountain valleys of all the zhou of Lei and Luo in the Hai xi nan region. It resembles mirabilite and is a fine powder that causes an extremely cold sensation in the mouth. The people in the South only rarely ingest it because they are afraid that its extremely cold nature might cause harm when it enters the abdomen. It must be handled with great care. 【氣味】鹹,冷,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】眼赤眦爛風赤,細研,水和點之。又水研服,去熱煩痰滿頭痛, 明目鎮心。又主蛇虺惡蟲毒,藥箭鏃毒,疥癬癰腫瘰癧,並摩傅之,甚者 水化服之。又解獨自草箭毒。藏器。 Control. For red eyes, festering canthi and redness caused by wind, grind it to a fine [powder], mix it with water and drip it [into the affected eyes]. Also, ground in water and [the resulting liquid] ingested, it removes heat, unrest, phlegm, [sensations of ] fullness and headache. It clears the eyes and calms the heart. Also, it controls the poison of venomous snakes and malign worms/bugs, and the poison of medicated arrowheads. For jie-illness732 and xuan-illness,733 swelling associated with an obstruction-illness734 and scrofula apply it [to the affected region]. For severe cases, ingest it dissolved in water. Also, it resolves the poison of arrow[heads medicated with] aconite.735 [Chen] Cangqi.

732 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely defined skin ailment. BCGM Dict I, 249. 733 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591. 734 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641. 735 Du zi cao 獨自草 is possibly an ancient erroneous writing of du bai cao 獨白草, aconitum tuber root-

Chapter 11

759

【附録】 Appendix 11-08-A01 懸石。Xuan shi. Hanging stone/mineral. 【保昇曰】人若常服鍊石者,至殁,冢中生懸石,若芒消,其冷如雪,殺 火毒。 [Han] Baosheng: When persons have ingested over an extended period of time stones refined with heat, they may die. Hanging stones that have grown in a tomb, resembling mirabilite, are as cold as snow. They kill the poison of fire. 11-09 朴消本經上品 Po xiao, FE Ben jing, upper rank. Crude solver. Mirabilite. Crude Glauber salt. Sodium sulphate. 【校正】併入别録 芒消、嘉祐 馬牙消。 Editorial Correction. Mang xiao listed separately in the Bie lu and ma ya xiao listed separately in the Jia you are included in the present entry. 【釋名】消石朴别録、鹽消綱目、皮消。【志曰】消是本體之名,石乃堅白 之號,朴者未化之義也。以其芒消、英消皆從此出,故曰消石朴也。【時 珍曰】此物見水即消,又能消化諸物,故謂之消。生于鹽鹵之地,狀似末 鹽,凡牛馬諸皮須此治熟,故今俗有鹽消、皮消之稱。煎鍊入盆,凝結在 下,粗朴者爲朴消,在上有芒者爲芒消,有牙者爲馬牙消。神農本經止有 朴消、消石,名醫别録復出芒消,宋嘉祐本草又出馬牙消。蓋不知消石即 是火消,朴消即是芒消、馬牙消,一物有精粗之異爾。諸説不識此,遂致 紛紜也。今併芒消、牙消于一云。 Explanation of Names. Xiao shi po 消石朴 “crude [variety] of the stone solver,” Bie lu. Yan xiao 鹽消, “salt solver,” Gang mu. Pi xiao 皮消, “solver [used to tan] hide.” [Ma] Zhi: Xiao 消, “solver,” is the name of the item itself. Shi 石, “stone,” is to designate its hardness and white color. Po 朴 means “crude; not transformed [through refinement] yet.” Both mang xiao 芒消, “solver with awns,” and ying xiao 英消, “splendor/quartz solver,” originate in it. Hence it is [also] named 消石朴, “crude [variety] of the stone solver.” [Li] Shizhen: When this item is exposed to water it will dissolve, xiao 消, and it is able to dissolve, xiao hua 消化, all types of other items. Hence it is named xiao 消, “solver.” It grows on bittern land, and it is shaped like powdered salt. It is required to tan the hides of oxen and horses. Hence nowadays

760

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

it is commonly called yan xiao 鹽消, “salt solver,” and pi xiao 皮消, “solver [used to tan] hide.” When it is heated and filled into a tub it will congeal on its bottom. When it has formed crude, po 朴, pieces, it is po xiao 朴消. When it has awns on its surface, it is mang xiao 芒消. When it has teeth, it is ma ya xiao 馬牙消, “solver with horse teeth.” The Shen nong ben jing lists only po xiao 朴消 and xiao shi 消石, “solver stone.” The Ming yi bie lu also lists mang xiao 芒消. The Song era Jia you ben cao in addition lists ma ya xiao 馬牙消. The fact is, it was not known that xiao shi 消石 is huo xiao 火消, “xiao/solver with a fire [nature],” while pu xiao 朴消 is mang xiao 芒消 and ma ya xiao 馬牙消. These are [kinds of ] one identical item that differ in terms of being fine or crude. None of the authors knew this and this is why such confusion occurred. Here now mang xiao 芒消 and ya xiao 牙消 are listed combined [with po xiao 朴消]. 【集解】【别録曰】朴消生益州山谷有鹹水之陽,采無時。色青白者佳, 黄者傷人,赤者殺人。又曰:芒消,生于朴消。【斅曰】朴消中鍊出,形 似麥芒,號曰芒消。【志曰】以暖水淋朴消,取汁鍊之,令减半,投于盆 中,經宿乃有細芒生,故謂之芒消也。又有英消者,其狀若白石英,作四 五稜,瑩澈可愛,主療與芒消同,亦出于朴消,其煎鍊自别有法,亦呼爲 馬牙消。【宗奭曰】朴消是初采得一煎而成者,未經再鍊,故曰朴消。可 以熟生牛馬皮,及治金銀有僞。芒消是朴消淋汁再鍊者。【時珍曰】消有 三品:生西蜀者,俗呼川消,最勝;生河東者,俗呼鹽消,次之;生河北 青、齊者,俗呼土消。皆生于斥鹵之地,彼人刮掃煎汁,經宿結成,狀如 末鹽,猶有沙土猥雜,其色黄白,故别録云:朴消黄者傷人,赤者殺人。 須再以水煎化,澄去滓脚,入蘿蔔數枚同煮熟,去蘿蔔,傾入盆中,經宿則 結成白消,如冰如蠟,故俗呼爲盆消。齊、衞之消則底多而上面生細芒如 鋒,别録所謂芒消者是也。川、晉之消則底少,而上面生牙如圭角,作六 稜,縱横玲瓏,洞澈可愛,嘉祐本草所謂馬牙消者是也。狀如白石英,又 名英消。二消之底,則通名朴消也。取芒消、英消,再三以蘿蔔煎鍊去鹹 味,即爲甜消。以二消置之風日中吹去水氣,則輕白如粉,即爲風化消。 以朴消、芒消、英消同甘草煎過,鼎罐升煅,則爲玄明粉。陶弘景及唐 宋 諸人皆不知諸消是一物,但有精粗之異,因名迷實,謬猜亂度,殊無指 歸。詳見消石正誤下。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Mirabilite grows on the sunny side in the mountain valleys of Yi zhou, in saline waters. It is collected any time. That with a greenish-white color is fine. When it is yellow it harms one. When it is red it kills one. It is also said: Mang xiao evolves from po xiao. [Lei] Xiao: Mang xiao is generated through refinement with heat out of po xiao. Its physical appearance resembles that of wheat awns, mang 芒. [Hence] it is called mang xiao 芒消. [Ma] Zhi: [To prepare

Chapter 11

761

mang xiao] pour warm water on po xiao. Collect the liquid and refine it with heat down to one half. Give this into a tub. After one night it will have grown awns. Hence it is called mang xiao. In addition there is ying xiao 英消. Its shape is reminiscent of quartz, bai shi ying 白石英. It forms [cubes] with four or five edges, and is of a lovely clear luster. Its therapeutic potential is identical to that of mang xiao 芒 消, and it, too, is produced out of po xiao 朴消. There is yet another method to prepare it through a refinement with heat, and [the resulting substance] is also called ma ya xiao 馬牙消. [Kou] Zongshi: Po xiao is the first product resulting from a [refinement with] boiling. It has not undergone a second refinement yet, and hence it is called po xiao 朴消, “crude solver.” It can be used to tan the raw hide of oxen and horses. It also serves to process fake gold and silver. Mang xiao is obtained by a second refinement of po xiao by pouring hot liquid on it. [Li] Shizhen: [The substance] xiao 消 is present in three ranks. That which grows in Xi Shu is commonly called chuan xiao 川消, “[Si] chuan solver.” It is the very best. That which grows in He dong is commonly called yan xiao 鹽消, “salt solver.” It comes next. That which grows in Qing and Qi in He bei is commonly called tu xiao 土消. “soil solver.” All of them grow on bittern ground. The local people scratch, sweep and boil it to obtain a juice. It will congeal overnight and is shaped like powdered salt. Still, it is mixed with sand and soil and it is of a yellow-white color. Hence the Bie lu states: “Yellow po xiao harms one. Red [po xiao] kills one.” It must be boiled repeatedly in water to transform it. When it has been left to become clear, the dregs are to be discarded. Then it is boiled with several pieces of radish until done, the radish is removed and [the liquid] is given into a tub. Overnight it will congeal to become “white solver,” bai xiao 白消, resembling ice or beeswax. Hence it is commonly called pen xiao 盆 消, “tub solver.” Xiao 消 from Qi and Wei has much of its base [substance] and on its surface it grows fine awns like needles. That is the one called “awn solver,” mang xiao 芒消, in the Bie lu. Xiao from Chuan and Jin has only little of its base [substance]. On its surface teeth grow like the edges of the ceremonial jade tablet. These are [cubes] with six edges, with an embossed design both vertical and horizontal, and a lovely translucency. This is the “horse teeth solver,” ma ya xiao 馬牙 消, mentioned in the Jia you ben cao. It is shaped like quartz, bai shi ying 白石英, and it is also called ying xiao 英消, “splendor/quartz solver.” The base [substance] of these two kinds of xiao 消 is po xiao 朴消. If mang xiao and ying xiao are refined again three times by boiling them with radish the salty flavor is removed and this is then tian xiao 甜消, “sweet solver.” When the two types of xiao 消 are placed at a windy and sunny location, their water qi will be blown away and this results in a light, white powder-like substance, which is “wind transformed solver,” feng hua xiao 風化消. When po xiao, mang xiao and ying xiao are first boiled together with

762

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

glycyrrhiza [root], and are then calcined in a cauldron, this results in xuan ming fen 玄明粉. (11-10) Neither Tao Hongjing nor all the people of the Tang and Song eras knew that all the xiao 消 are identical items that differ only in terms of their fine or crude [substance matter]. Hence the [different] names obfuscated the facts, and errors and guesses caused utter confusion without a clear direction. For details see the entry on nitrokalite, xiao shi 消石 (11-11), “Correction of Errors.” 11-09-01 朴消本經。Po xiao FE Ben jing. Crude solver. Mirabilite. Crude Glauber salt. Sodium sulphate. 【氣味】苦,寒,無毒。【别録曰】苦、辛,大寒,無毒。鍊白如銀,能 寒能熱,能滑能濇,能辛能鹹能酸,入地千年不變。【權曰】苦、鹹,有 小毒。【時珍曰】别録所列神化之説,乃消石之功。詳見消石下。【之才 曰】石韋爲之使,惡麥句薑。【張從正曰】畏三稜。 Qi and Flavor. Bitter, cold, nonpoisonous. Bie lu: Bitter, acrid, very cold, nonpoisonous. When it is refined with heat and has become as white as silver, it can be cold and it can be hot, it can be smooth and it can be rough, it can be acrid, it can be salty, and it can be sour. If it remains in the ground for a thousand years, it will not undergo any change. [Zhen] Quan: Bitter, salty, slightly poisonous. [Li] Shizhen: The sayings on the divine transformations [of this substance] as listed in the Bie lu, they actually reflect the potentials of nitrokalite. For details, see the entry on nitrokalite, xiao shi 消石 (11-11). [Xu] Zhicai: Pyrrosia [leaf ] serves as its guiding substance. [Ingested together,] it abhors carpesium [herb]. Zhang Congzheng: [Ingested together,] it fears river bulrush stem tuber. 【主治】百病,除寒熱邪氣,逐六腑積聚,結固留癖。能化七十二種石。 鍊餌服之,輕身神仙。本經。胃中食飲熱結,破留血閉,絶停痰痞滿,推 陳致新。别録。療熱脹,養胃消穀。皇甫謐。治腹脹,大小便不通。女子 月候不通。甄權。通泄五臟百病及癥結,治天行熱疾,頭痛,消腫毒,排 膿,潤毛髮。大明。 Control. The hundreds of diseases. It eliminates evil qi associated with [alternating sensations of ] cold and heat, and it removes from the six long-term depots accumulations and collections, as well as bound and stubborn abiding aggregation-illness.736 It is able to transform 72 kinds of stones. Ingested as a [medication] or a [longevity] diet refined with heat it relieves the body of its weight and [lets one become] a

736 Liu pi 留癖, “abiding aggregation-illness,” is a difficult to cure swelling resulting from rheum remaining in the body, collecting and dispersing at irregular intervals. BCGM Dict I, 320.

Chapter 11

763

spirit immortal. Ben jing. Heat nodes737 of food and beverages in the stomach. It breaks through blockages caused by stagnating blood and opens blockages, obstacle-illness738 and fullness associated with halting phlegm. It pushes back what is old and lets arrive what is new. Bie lu. It serves to heal distension associated with heat. It nourishes the stomach and dissolves grain. Huangfu Mi. It serves to cure abdominal distension, blockage of the major (defecation) and minor (urination) relief, and blocked menstruation. Zhen Quan. It opens the passage and frees the flow through the five long-term depots associated with the hundreds of diseases, and concretion-illness nodes. It serves to cure epidemic heat illnesses and headache. It dissolves poison associated with a swelling, drives out pus and moistens the hair on the body and on the head. Da Ming. 11-09-02 芒消别録。Mang xiao, FE Bie lu. Awn solver. Mirabilite. 【氣味】辛、苦,大寒,無毒。【權曰】鹹,有小毒。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, bitter, very cold, nonpoisonous. [Zhen] Quan: Salty, slightly poisonous. 【主治】五臟積聚,久熱胃閉,除邪氣,破留血,腹中痰實結搏,通經 脉,利大小便及月水,破五淋,推陳致新。别録。下瘰癧黄疸病,時疾壅 熱,能散惡血,墮胎。傅漆瘡。甄權。 Control. Accumulations and collections in the five long-term depots. Stomach closure associated with long-lasting heat. It eliminates evil qi and breaks through residual blood. It strikes against phlegm repletion nodes in the abdomen and opens the passage through the conduits and vessels. It frees the flow of the major (defecation) and minor (urination) relief and of menstruation. It breaks through [blockages to free urination in the case of ] the five kinds of dripping. It pushes back what is old and lets arrive what is new. Bie lu. It serves to discharge scrofula with pervasion-illness, yellow dan disease739 and seasonal illness with blocked up heat. It can disperse malign blood and causes abortion. It is applied to sores caused by [the qi of ] lacquer. Zhen Quan.

737 Re jie 熱結, “heat nodes,” BCGM Dicti I, 400, identical with jie re, “bound heat.” BCGM Dict I, 252. 738 Pi 痞, “obstacle-illness,” a feeling of uncomfortable fullness and distension. BCGM Dict I, 371. 739 Huang dan 黄疸, most likely including cases of jaundice. BCGM Dict I, 225.

764

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

11-09-03 馬牙消宋嘉祐。Ma ya xiao Song, Jia you. Horse teeth solver. Mirabilite. 【氣味】甘,大寒,無毒。【時珍曰】鹹、微甘。即英消也。 Qi and Flavor. Sweet, very cold, nonpoisonous. [Li] Shizhen: Salty, slightly sweet. This is ying xiao. 【主治】除五臟積熱伏氣。甄權。末篩,點眼赤,去赤腫障瞖濇淚痛,亦 入點眼藥中用。大明。功同芒消。時珍。 Control. It removes from the five long-term depots hidden accumulations of heat qi. Zhen Quan. [Grind it to a] powder, give it through a sieve and drip it into red eyes. It will remove redness and swelling, shades and screens, roughness, tearflow and pain. It is also resorted to as an additive to medication dripped into the eyes. Da Ming. Its [therapeutic] functions are identical to those of mirabilite. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【成無己曰】内經云:鹹味下泄爲陰。又云:鹹以耎之。熱淫于 内,治以鹹寒。氣堅者以鹹耎之,熱盛者以寒消之。故張仲景大陷胸湯、 大承氣湯、調胃承氣湯皆用芒消,以軟堅去實熱,結不至堅者不可用也。 【好古曰】本草云朴消味辛,是辛以潤腎燥也。今人不用辛字,只用鹹 字,鹹能耎堅也。其義皆是。本草言芒消利小便而墮胎,然傷寒妊娠可下 者用此,兼大黄引之,直入大腸,潤燥耎堅瀉熱,而母子俱安。經云有故 無殞,亦無殞也,此之謂歟。以在下言之,則便溺俱陰;以前後言之,則 前氣後血;以腎言之,總主大小便難。溺濇秘結,俱爲水少火盛。經云熱 淫于内,治以鹹寒,佐之以苦,故用芒消、大黄相須爲使也。【元素曰】 芒消氣薄味厚,沈而降,陰也。其用有三:去實熱,一也;滌腸中宿垢, 二也;破堅積熱塊,三也。孕婦惟三四月及七八月不可用,餘皆無妨。 【宗奭曰】朴消是初得一煎而成者,其味酷濇,所以力緊急而不和,治食 鱠不消,以此蕩逐之。芒消是朴消淋過鍊成,故其性和緩,故今多用治傷 寒。【時珍曰】朴消澄下,消之粗者也,其質重濁。芒消、牙消結于上, 消之精者也,其質清明。甜消、風化消,則又芒消、牙消之去氣味而甘緩 輕爽者也。故朴消止可施于鹵莽之人及傅塗之藥。若湯散服餌,必須芒 消、牙消爲佳。張仲景傷寒論只用芒消,不用朴消,正此義也。消禀太陰 之精,水之子也。氣寒味鹹,走血而潤下,蕩滌三膲腸胃實熱陽强之病, 乃折治火邪藥也。唐時臘日賜群臣紫雪、紅雪、碧雪,皆用此消鍊成者, 通治積熱諸病有神效,貴在用者中的爾。 Explication. Cheng Wuji: The Nei jing states: “Salty flavor causes discharge with outflow and is yin.” It also states: “[Consume] salty [flavor] to soften it.” When heat is present in excess internally, cure it with salty [flavor] and cold. When qi have hardened, use salty [flavor] to soften them. In the case of abounding heat, use cold

Chapter 11

765

to dissolve it. This is why Zhang Zhongjing in his “major decoction to sink into the chest,” in his “major decoction to uphold the qi,” and in his “decoction to adjust the stomach and uphold the qi” always resorted to mang xiao to soften hardness and to remove heat repletion. For nodes that have not hardened yet it must not be used. [Wang] Haogu: When the Ben cao states: “The flavor of po xiao is acrid,” this is “acrid [flavor] is used to moisten kidney dryness.” Today, the people do no longer use the character for “acrid.” They only write “salty.” [When the Ben cao states:] “Salty [flavor] can soften hardness,” the underlying meaning is always to the point. The Ben cao states that “mang xiao frees the flow of urine and causes abortion.” However, it can be used when a discharge is required [in the treatment of ] pregnant women suffering from harm caused by cold. With rhubarb root as its guiding substance it enters straight into the large intestine where it moistens dryness, softens hardness and lets heat flow off freely. Both mother and child will be safe. The Classic states: “If there is a reason [such as a hardening, the mother] will not be harmed and [the child] will not be harmed either.” This is what is meant here. And to talk about this in view of the lower [body part], defecation and urination are both yin [activities]. To talk about this in view of one’s front and back [sections], the qi are in the front and the blood is in the back [section]. To talk about this in terms of the kidneys, they are in overall control of major (defecation) and minor (urination) relief and distress. When urination is rough and [defecation] is constipated, this is always associated with an insufficiency of water and an abundance of fire. The Classic states: “When heat is excessive internally, cure it with salty [flavor] and cold, to be assisted by bitter [flavor].” This is why mang xiao and rhubarb root are used. They require each other as guiding substances. [Zhang] Yuansu: The qi of mang xiao are weak while its flavor is strong. It sinks into the depth and causes [evil qi] to descend; it is yin. Its usages are three. It removes repletion heat. That is the first. It washes out of the intestines dirt that has remained there overnight. That is the second. It breaks through hard accumulations and heat lumps. That is the third. Women must not use it during the third and fourth month and during the seventh and eighth month of a pregnancy. [An intake of mang xiao] during all the other months will do no harm. [Kou] Zongshi: Po xiao is obtained through an initial boiling. Its flavor is very astringent. Hence its [therapeutic] strength is aggressive and by no means harmonizing. To cure failure to digest food, this [substance] is resorted to to eliminate it by washing it out. Mang xiao is generated by pouring [hot water] on po xiao. Hence it has a gentle nature, and this is why nowadays it is often used to cure harm caused by cold. [Li] Shizhen: [During a refinement with heat in water] po xiao 朴消 sinks down; it constitutes the crude [variety of ] xiao 消. Its substance matter is heavy and turbid. Mang xiao 芒消 and ya xiao 牙消 congeal above. They constitute the fine

766

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

[kinds of ] xiao 消. Their substance matter is clear and shiny. Tian xiao 甜消 and feng hua xiao 風化消, in turn, are generated by removing the qi and flavor of mang xiao 芒消 and ya xiao 牙消. Hence they are sweet, unexcited, light and clear. This is why po xiao can be used as a medication only to treat uncouth and hot-headed persons, and for external application. When a decoction or a powder are required to be ingested as [medication or] special [longevity] diet, mang xiao and ya xiao are fine. Zhang Zhongjing in his Shang han lun only uses mang xiao; he does not use po xiao. The underlying meaning is exactly the one discussed here. Xiao 消 is endowed with the essence of major yin; it is a child of water. Its qi are cold and its flavor is salty. It rushes to the blood, and moistens and discharges. It washes away diseases of repletion heat and yang strength affecting the Triple Burner, the intestines and the stomach. That is, it is a medication that breaks and cures fire evil. During the Tang dynasty, on winter days [the Emperor] bestowed on his ministers [medications called] “purple snow,” “red snow” and “bluish-green snow.” They all had been prepared by using this xiao 消 and refining it with heat. They served to cure all types of diseases of accumulated heat, with divine effects. They were considered of highest value among their users.

【附方】舊十七,新一十五。 Added Recipes. 17 of old. 15 newly [recorded]. 紫雪。療傷寒温瘧,一切積熱煩熱,狂昜叫走,瘴疫毒癘,卒死脚氣,五 尸五疰,心腹諸疾,㽲刺切痛,解諸熱毒,邪熱發黄,蠱毒鬼魅,野道熱 毒,小兒驚癇百病。黄金一百兩,石膏、寒水石、滑石、慈石各三斤,搗 碎,水一斛,煮四斗,去滓。入犀角屑、羚羊角、青木香、沉香各五兩, 玄參洗焙、升麻各一斤,甘草炒八兩,丁香一兩,入前汁中煮取一斗五 升,去滓。入鍊朴消十斤,消石三十二兩,於藥汁中,微火煎之,柳木 不住攪,至水氣欲盡,傾木盆中,待欲凝,入麝香一兩二錢半,朱砂末三 兩,攪匀,收之。每服一二錢,凉水服,臨時加减,甚者一兩。和劑局方。 Purple snow. It serves to heal harm caused by cold and warmth malaria. All types of accumulated heat with unrest and heat. Madness with a tendency to shout and run. Miasmatic epidemics and poison epidemic. Sudden death and leg qi.740 The five types of corpse [qi] and the five types of attachment illness.741 All types of illnesses 740 Jiao qi 脚氣, “leg qi,” refers to painful and weak legs. They may be swollen, or dried up and emaciated. In serious cases the functioning of the heart and spleen is impaired. BCGM Dict I, 248. 741 Zhu 疰, also zhu 注, “attachment-illness,” “influx-illnesss,” reflects a notion of a foreign pathogenic agent, originally of demonic nature, having attached itself to the human organism. BCGM Dict I, 688-695.

Chapter 11

767

in heart and abdomen. Flatulent painful piercing and cutting pain. Fright epilepsy and the hundreds diseases of children. Pound to pieces 100 liang of gold and three jin each of gypsum, calcite, talc and magnetite, and boil them in one hu of water down to four dou. Discard the dregs. Add five liang each of rhinoceros horn crumbs, antelope horn, aucklandia [root] and aquilaria [wood], one jin each of scrophularia [root], washed and baked over a small fire, and cimicifuga [rhizome], eight liang of fried glycyrrhiza [root] and one liang of cloves to the aforementioned juice, boil it down to one dou and five sheng and discard the dregs. Add ten jin of mirabilite, refined with heat, and 32 liang of nitrokalite to the medicinal juice and boil it on a weak fire. Stir the liquid with a stick of willow wood until all the water qi have left. Stick a piece of wood into the tub and wait until [the liquid] has congealed. Then add one liang and two and a half qian of musk and three liang of cinnabar powder, stir this until an even mixture is achieved and store [the resulting medication for later use]. Each time ingest one or two qian, to be ingested with cold water. Increase or decrease [the dosage in accordance with the requirements] when the time has come. In severe cases it may amount to one qian. He ji ju fang. 紅雪。治煩熱,消宿食,解酒毒,開三焦,利五臟,除毒熱,破積滯。治 傷寒狂躁,胃爛發斑,温瘴脚氣,黄疸頭痛,目昏鼻塞,口瘡喉痺,重舌 腸癰等病。用川朴消十斤鍊去滓,羚羊角屑、黄芩、升麻各三兩,人參、 赤芍藥、檳榔、枳殻麩炒、生甘草、淡竹葉、木香各二兩,木通、巵子、 葛根、桑白皮、大青、藍葉各一兩半,蘇枋木六兩,並剉片。水二斗五 升,煎至九升,去滓,濾過,煎沸。下消,不住手攪,待水氣將盡,傾入 器中。欲凝,下朱砂一兩,麝香半兩,經宿成雪。每服一二錢,新汲水調 下。欲行,則熱湯化服一兩。和劑方。 Red snow. It serves to cure unrest with heat. It dissolves food that has remained [in the body] overnight. It resolves the poison of wine. It opens the Triple Burner. It frees the passage through the five long-term depots. It eliminates poison heat. It breaks open accumulations and sluggishness. It serves to cure harm caused by cold and madness with restlessness, stomach festering and the appearance of macula, warmth miasma and leg qi,742 yellow dan-illness743 and headache, dimmed vision and stuffed nose, oral sores and blocked throat, a doubled tongue744 and intestinal

742 Jiao qi 脚氣, “leg qi,” refers to painful and weak legs. They may be swollen, or dried up and emaciated. In serious cases the functioning of the heart and spleen is impaired. BCGM Dict I, 248. 743 Huang dan 黄疸, most likely including cases of jaundice. BCGM Dict I, 225. 744 Chong she 重舌, “doubled tongue.” A growth under the tongue, mostly in children, similar to a second tongue. BCGM Dict I, 92.

768

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

obstruction-illness,745 all such diseases. [To prepare “red snow,” the following substances are] to be used. [Si] chuan po xiao, ten jin refined with heat and the dregs discarded, three liang each of antelope horn crumbs, scutellaria root and cimicifuga [rhizome]. Two liang each of ginseng [root], paeonia [root], areca [nut], fried bitter orange, fresh glycyrrhiza [root], bamboo leaves and aucklandia [root]. One liang and a half of akebia [herb], gardenia [fruit], pueraria root, white mulberry root bark, malachite, Chinese indigo plant leaves.746 Six liang of sappan wood. Cut all these substances to slices, boil them in two dou and five sheng of water down to nine sheng, discard the dregs, give [the liquid] through a sieve and boil it to bubbling. The xiao 消/mirabilite will fall down. Stir it with your hand without pause until almost all the water qi have left, and put a piece of wood into the vessel to test whether [the liquid] has congealed. Then add one liang of cinnabar and half a liang of musk and wait for one night until the “[red] snow” has formed. Each time ingest one to two qian, to be sent down mixed with freshly drawn water. If a passage [of loose bowel movement] is intended, ingest one liang dissolved in hot water. He ji fang. 碧雪。治一切積熱,天行時疾,發狂昏憒,或咽喉腫塞,口舌生瘡,心中 煩燥,或大小便不通,胃火諸病。朴消、芒消、馬牙消、消石、石膏水 飛、寒水石水飛各一斤,以甘草一斤,煎水五升,入諸藥同煎,不住手 攪,令消鎔得所,入青黛一斤,和匀,傾盆内,經宿結成雪,爲末。每含 嚥,或吹之,或水調服二三錢。欲通利,則熱水服一兩。和劑局方。 Bluish-green snow. It serves to cure all types of accumulated heat, epidemic, seasonal illnesses, madness with muddle-headedness, or with swelling and blockage of the throat, sores developing in the mouth and on the tongue, unrest and restlessness in the heart, or with blocked major (defecation) and minor (urination) relief and stomach fire, all such diseases. [Prepare] one jin each of po xiao, mang xiao, ma ya xiao, nitrokalite and gypsum, processed with aqueous sublimation, and calcite, processed with aqueous sublimation, and one jin of glycyrrhiza [root]. Boil five sheng of water, add all these pharmaceutical substances and boil them together. Stir [the liquid] without pause until all [substances] have dissolved. Add one jin of indigo and pour the mixture into another tub where overnight it will congeal to form “[bluish-green] snow” that is then [ground to a] powder. Each time hold it in the mouth and swallow [the resulting liquid]. Or blow it [into the mouth and the nos-

745 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641. 746 Both da qing 大青 and lan ye 藍葉 refer to Chinese indigo plant leaves. Da qing 大青 also refers to azurite. Which of the two possible meanings applies here remains uncertain.

Chapter 11

769

trils]. Or ingest, mixed with water, two or three qian. If a free flow [of defecation] is intended, ingest with hot water one liang. He ji ju fang. 凉膈驅積。王旻山人甘露飲:治熱壅,凉胸膈,驅積滯。蜀芒消末一大 斤,用蜜十二兩,冬加一兩,和匀,入新竹筒内,半筒已上即止,不得令 滿。却入炊甑中,令有藥處在飯内,其虚處出其上,蒸之。候飯熟取出, 綿濾入瓷鉢中,竹篦攪勿停手,待凝,收入瓷盒。每卧時含半匙,漸漸嚥 之。如要通轉,即多服之。劉禹錫傳信方。 To cool the diaphragm region and disperse accumulations. The Hermit Wang Min’s “sweet dew beverage.” It serves to cure heat obstruction, cools chest and diaphragm region, and disperses accumulations and sluggishness. Prepare an even mixture of one generous jin of Si chuan mang xiao and twelve liang of honey – add one additional liang during winter times – and fill it into a new bamboo tube so that more than half of the tube will be filled. It must not be filled entirely. Then place [the tube] into a rice steamer, so that the medication is situated in the middle of the rice and reaches above it. Steam it and once the rice is done remove [the tube]. Now filter the [contents of the tube] through a silk fabric into an earthen bowl, continuously stir [the resulting liquid] with a bamboo comb until it has congealed and finally store it in a porcelain box. For each [application, let the patient] at bedtime hold half a spoonful in his mouth and little by little swallow the [resulting liquid]. If a more drastic [defecation] is required, increase the dose ingested. Liu Yuxin, Chuan xin fang. 乳石發動,煩悶。芒消,蜜水調服一錢,日三服。聖惠方。 Outbreak [of poisoning] following the ingestion of stalactite minerals, with unrest and heart-pressure. Ingest one qian of mang xiao mixed with honey water. To be ingested three times a day. Sheng hui fang 骨蒸熱病。芒消末,水服方寸匕,日二,神良。千金方。 Bone steaming and heat disease. Ingest with water the amount of mang xiao held by a square cun spoon. Twice a day. Divinely good. Qian jin fang. 腹中痞塊。皮消一兩,獨蒜一箇,大黄末八分,搗作餅,帖于患處,以消 爲度。邵氏經驗方。 Obstacle-illness747 lumps in the abdomen. Pound one liang of pi xiao mirabilite, one piece single clove garlic and eight fen of rhubarb root powder [to a pulp] and prepare a cake that is to be placed on the affected region for as long as it takes [for the lumps] to dissolve. Shao shi, Jing yan fang. 747 Pi 痞, “obstacle-illness,” a feeling of uncomfortable fullness and distension. BCGM Dict I, 371.

770

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

食物過飽,不消,遂成痞膈。馬牙消一兩,吴茱萸半斤,煎汁投消,乘熱 服之。良久未轉,更進一服,立效。竇群在常州,此方得效也。經驗方。 When following overeating food is not digested and this results in an obstacle-illness [blocking the] diaphragm. Boil half a jin of evodia [fruit] and give one liang of ma yao xiao mirabilite into the resulting juice. This is to be ingested while it is hot. If even after an extended period of time no defecation results, ingest one additional dose. This will have an immediate effect. Dou Qun in Chang zhou applied this recipe with success. Jing yan fang. 關格不通。大小便閉,脹欲死,兩三日則殺人。芒消三兩,泡湯一升服, 取吐即通。百一方。 Blocked passage. When major (defecation) and minor (urination) relief are blocked, resulting in an [abdominal] bloating making one wish to die, that person will be killed within two or three days. Dissolve three liang of mang xiao mirabilite in one sheng of bubbling hot water and [let the patient] ingest this. Once he vomits the passage [of defecation and urination] will be freed. Bai yi fang. 小便不通。白花散:用芒消三錢,茴香酒下。簡要濟衆方。 Blocked urination. The “white blossom powder.” [Let the patient] send down with fennel wine three qian of mang xiao mirabilite. Jian yao ji zhong fang. 時氣頭痛。朴消末二兩,生油調塗頂上。聖惠方。 Headache caused by seasonal qi. Mix two liang of po xiao mirabilite powder with fresh oil and apply this to the top of the head. Sheng hui fang. 赤眼腫痛。朴消置豆腐上蒸化,取汁收點。簡便方。 Red eyes with a painful swelling. Place po xiao mirabilite on bean curd and steam this until it has transformed [to a liquid]. Store the liquid and drip [it into affected eyes when needed]. Jian bian fang. 風眼赤爛。明净皮消一盞,水二盌,煎化,露一夜,濾净澄清,朝夕洗 目。三日其紅即消,雖半世者亦愈也。楊誠經驗方。 Redness and festering of eyes caused by wind. Boil one small cup of clear, clean pi xiao mirabilite in one bowl of water until it has dissolved. Let it rest under the open sky for one night, pass it through a sieve to obtain a clear liquid and use this to rinse the eyes in the morning and at night. Within three days the redness will have dissolved. Even if [this ailment] has lasted for half a lifetime, it will be cured nevertheless. Yang Cheng, Jing yan fang.

Chapter 11

771

退瞖明目。白龍散:用馬牙消光净者,厚紙裹實,安在懷内,着肉,養一 百二十日,研粉,入少龍腦。不計年歲深遠,眼生瞖膜,遠視不明,但瞳 人不破散者,並宜日點之。經驗方。 To push back shades and clear the eyes. The “white dragon powder.” Firmly wrap shiny and clean ma ya xiao mirabilite in thick paper and place it on the [patient’s] bosom, close to his flesh, for 120 days. Then grind it to a powder and add a small amount of borneol. Regardless of whether this has lasted for many years or not, when the eyes have developed a shade membrane and vision into a distance is unclear, with only the pupil not broken or dispersed yet, it is suitable to drip this [powder into the affecte eyes] every day. Jing yan fang. 諸眼障瞖。牙消十兩,湯泡汁,厚紙濾過,瓦器熬乾,置地上一夜,入飛 炒黄丹一兩,麝香半分,再羅過,入腦子,日點。濟急仙方。 All types of screens and shades in the eyes. [Dissolve] ten liang of ya xiao mirabilite in bubbling hot water, filter the resulting liquid through thick paper and simmer it in an earthen container until [the liquid] has dried. Place [the resulting powder] on the ground for one night and add one liang of minium, processed with sublimation and fried, and half a fen of musk. Spread this out [on the ground for one night] again, add camphora and drip this [into the affected eyes] every day. Ji ji xian fang. 逐月洗眼。芒消六錢,水一盞六分,澄清。依法洗目,至一年,眼如童子 也。正月初三,二月初八,三月初四,四月初四,五月初五,六月初四, 七月初三,八月初,九月十三,十月十三,十一月十六,十二月初五日。 聖惠方。 To rinse the eyes month after month. [Dissolve] six qian of mang xiao mirabilite in one small cup and six fen of water to obtain a clear liquid. When the eyes are rinsed [with this liquid] in accordance with the method [listed below], within one year the eyes will be those of a boy. [The rinsing is to be performed] in the first month on the third day, in the second month on the eighth day, in the third month on the fourth day. In the fourth month on the fourth day, in the fifth month on the fifth day, in the sixth month on the fourth day, in the seventh month on the third day, in the eighth month on the first day, in the ninth month on the 13th day, in the tenth month on the 13th day, in the eleventh month on the 16th day, and in the twelfth month on the fifth day. Sheng hui fang. 牙齒疼痛。皂莢濃漿,同朴消煎化,淋于石上,待成霜,擦之。普濟方。 Toothache. Boil po xiao mirabilite in a viscous juice of gleditsia [seed] until it has dissolved, drip [the liquid] on a stone and wait for it to turn into a frost. Rub this [on the affected teeth]. Pu ji fang.

772

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

食蟹齦腫。朴消傅之,即消。普濟方。 When the gums swell following a consumption of crabs. Apply po xiao mirabilite to them and [the swelling will] dissolve. Pu ji fang. 喉痺腫痛。外臺用朴消一兩,細細含咽,立效。或加丹砂一錢。氣塞不 通,加生甘草末二錢半,吹之。 Blocked throat with a painful swelling. The Wai tai [recommends to] hold a very fine powder of one liang of po xiao mirabilite in the mouth and swallow [the resulting liquid]. This will be immediately effective. It is also possible to add one qian of cinnabar. If the passage of qi is blocked, add two and a half qian of fresh glycyrrhiza [root] powder, and blow it [into the patient’s mouth/throat]. 小兒重舌。馬牙消塗于舌上下,日三。姚和衆。 A doubled tongue748 of children. Apply ma ya xiao mirabilite to the upper and the lower side of the tongue, three times a day. Yao Hezhong. 口舌生瘡。朴消含之良。孫真人方。 Sores developing in the mouth and on the tongue. Hold po xiao mirabilite in the mouth. Good. Sun zhenren fang. 小兒鵝口。馬牙消擦舌上,日五度。簡要濟衆。 Goose-mouth749 of children. Apply ma ya xiao mirabilite to the tongue, up to five times a day. Jian yao ji zhong. 豌豆毒瘡。未成膿者。猪膽汁和芒消末塗之。梅師。 Pea-size poison swelling that has not begun to fester yet. Mix pig bile and mang xiao mirabilite and apply this [to the affected region]. Mei shi. 代指腫痛。芒消煎湯漬之。聖惠方。 Finger replacement750 with a painful swelling. Boil mang xiao mirabilite and soak [the affected finger] in the hot liquid. Sheng hui fang.

748 Chong she 重舌, “doubled tongue.” A growth under the tongue, mostly in children, similar to a second tongue. BCGM Dict I, 92. 749 E kou 鵝口, “goose mouth,” refers to a white layer covering the mucous membranes and top of the tongue in a child’s mouth making it resemble a goose-mouth. BCGM Dict I, 141. 750 Dai zhi 代指, “painful finger replacement.” A condition of sores developing at the margins of one’s fingernails with the edges being inflamed, swollen and painful. BCGM Dict I, 117.

Chapter 11

773

火焰丹毒。水調芒消末塗之。梅師。 Flaming cinnabar posion.751 Mix mang xiao mirabilite powder with water and apply this [to the affected region]. Mei shi. 一切風疹。水煮芒消湯拭之。梅師。 All types of wind papules. Boil mang xiao mirabilite in water and wipe [the affected region] with the hot liquid. Mei shi. 漆瘡作痒。芒消湯塗之。千金。 Itching sores caused by lacquer [qi]. Apply a hot mang xiao mirabilite solution to [the affected region]. Qian jin. 灸瘡飛蝶。因艾灸火瘡痂退落,瘡内鮮肉片子飛如蝶狀,騰空飛去,痛不 可言,是血肉俱熱,怪病也。用朴消、大黄各半兩,爲末。水調下,微利 即愈。夏子益奇疾方。 Sores resulting from cauterization, with butterflies flying. When following a moxibustion treatment the scabs of the sores caused by the fire fall off and bright slices of flesh grow in these sores that fly away like butterflies. They soar into the air and fly away, and the pain associated with this cannot be put in words. It is a strange disease with both blood and flesh affected by heat. [Grind] half a liang of po xiao mirabilite and rhubarb root to a powder, and send it down mixed with water. When a slight free flow [of defecation] results, this will be the cure. Xia Ziyi, Qi ji fang. 婦人難産。芒消末二錢,童子小便温服,無不效者。信效方。 Women with difficult birth. [Let the patient] ingest two qian of mang xiao mirabilite powder with warm boys’ urine. No such application will remain without effect. Xin xiao fang. 死胎不下。方同上。 A dead fetus that fails to be discharged. Recipe identical to the one above. 豐城 曾尉有猫孕五子,一子已生,四子死腹中,用此灌之即下。又治一牛 亦下。信效方。 Commandant Zeng of Feng cheng had a cat that was pregnant with five kitten. One kitten was born, the remaining four died in the [cat’s] abdomen. He forcefed this [medication to the cat and the four dead kitten were] discharged. He also treated a cow this way, and [its dead calf ] was discharged, too. Xin xiao fang.

751 Huo yan dan du 火焰丹毒, “flaming cinnabar poison,” a skin ailment. BCGM Dict I, 235.

774

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

女人紥足。脱骨湯:用杏仁一錢,桑白皮四錢,水五盌,新瓶煎三盌,入 朴消五錢,乳香一錢,封口煎化。置足于上,先熏後洗。三日一作,十餘 次後,軟若束綿也。閨閣事宜。 To facilitate the binding of a girl’s feet. The “decoction to soften bones.” Boil one qian of bitter apricot seeds and four qian of the root bark of white mulberry in five bowls of water in a new jar down to three bowls. Add five qian of po xiao mirabilite and one qian of frankincense, close the [jar’s] opening and boil it until [all substances] are transformed [into a liquid]. Place [the girl’s] foot on [the jar], steam it first and then wash it. Do this once in three days. After more than ten such applications, [the bones] will have become as soft as a bundle of silk floss. Gui ge shi yi. 11-09-04 風化消。Feng hua xiao. Wind transformed solver. 【修治】【時珍曰】以芒消于風日中消盡水氣,自成輕飄白粉也。或以瓷 瓶盛,挂簷下,待消滲出瓶外,刮下收之。别有甜瓜盛消滲出刮收者,或 黄牯牛膽收消刮取,皆非甜消也。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Li] Shizhen: Expose mang xiao mirabilite to wind and sunlight and this will let all its water qi vanish. As a result, a light, floating white powder is generated. Or fill [mang xiao mirabilite] into a porcelain jar, hang it under the eaves and wait for [a liquid] to seep out of the jar [and crystallize] on its outside. Scrape it off from [the jar’s outside] and store it [for an application when needed]. Another method is to fill a muskmelon fruit with mirabilite, let [the liquid] seep out and scrape [the crystals] off to store [them for later use]. Or fill the gall bladder of a yellow bull with mirabilite, and scratch [the crystals from its outside. The resulting powder] is not tian xiao mirabilite. 【主治】上焦風熱,小兒驚熱膈痰,清肺解暑。以人乳和塗,去眼瞼赤 腫,及頭面暴熱腫痛。煎黄連,點赤目。時珍。 Control. Upper Burner affected by wind and heat. Fright heat and diaphragm phlegm of children. It clears the lung and resolves summerheat. Applied mixed with human milk it removes redness and swelling of eyelids, as well as painful swelling of one’s head and face associated with violent heat. Boil it together with coptis [rhizome] and drip [the liquid] into the red eyes. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】風化消甘緩輕浮,故治上焦心肺痰熱,而不泄利。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: Feng hua xiao mirabilite is sweet, unhurried, light and floating. Hence it serves to cure phlegm and heat in the Upper Burner, the heart and the lung without causing free-flow [defecation].

Chapter 11

775

11-10 玄明粉藥性 Xuan ming fen, FE Yao xing. Lustrous powder. Thenardite Purified Glauber salt. 【釋名】白龍粉。【時珍曰】玄,水之色也;明,瑩澈也。御藥院方謂之 白龍粉。 Explanation of Names. Bai long fen 白龍粉, “white dragon powder.” [Li] Shizhen: Xuan 玄 is the “dark” color of water. Ming 明 is “clear.” The Yu yao yuan fang calls it bai long fen 白龍粉, “white dragon powder.” 【修治】【時珍曰】製法:用白净朴消十斤,長流水一石,煎化去滓,星 月下露一夜,去水取消。每一斗,用蘿蔔一斤切片,同煮熟,濾净,再露 一夜取出。每消一斤,用甘草一兩,同煎去滓,再露一夜取出。以大沙罐 一個,築實盛之,鹽泥固濟厚半寸,不蓋口,置爐中,以炭火十斤,從文 至武煅之。待沸定,以瓦一片蓋口,仍前固濟,再以十五斤頂火煅之。放 冷一伏時,取出,隔紙安地上,盆覆三日出火毒,研末。每一斤,入生甘 草末一兩,炙甘草末一兩,和匀,瓶收用。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Li] Shizhen: The method to prepare it [is as follows]. Dissolve ten jin of white, clear po xiao mirabilite in one dan of boiling water that has flowed over a long distance, and discard the dregs. Let [the liquid] rest under the open sky with stars and moon for one night, discard the water and keep the xiao 消 mirabilite. For each dou [of xiao 消 mirabilite] cut one jin of radish into fine slices, boil [the mirabilite and the radish] together, pass [the resulting liquid] through a sieve [to obtain a] clear [liquid] and let this rest once again under the open sky for one night. Remove [the resulting powder] and fill a large pottery jar, with [its contents] firmly pressed. Cover [the mirabilite] with a half a cun thick layer of salt mud. Do not close its opening. Place [the jar] into a furnace and calcine it with ten jin of charcoal fire, gradually proceding from a mild [fire] to a strong [fire]. Once [the contents] bubble, cover the opening with a tile, firmly close it and calcine it again with a top flame fired by 15 jin [of charcoal]. Take [the jar out of the furnace] and let it cool for one day and one night. Then remove [the contents] and place them on the ground, separated by a sheet of paper. Cover them with a basin for three days until the fire poison has left. Then grind them to a powder. For each jin add one liang of fresh glycyrrhiza [root] and one liang of fried glycyrrhiza [root], and prepare an even mixture. This is then stored in a jar for [later] use.

776

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【氣味】辛、甘,冷,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Acrid, sweet, cold, nonpoisonous. 【主治】心熱煩躁,并五臟宿滯癥結。甄權。明目,退膈上虚熱,消腫 毒。大明。 Control. Heart heat with unrest and restlessness, and also conglomeration-illness nodes associated with sluggish [food that has remained] in the five long-term depots overnight. Zhen Quan. It clears the eyes and removes depletion heat from above the diaphragm. It serves to dissolve swelling with poison. Da Ming. 【發明】【杲曰】玄明粉,沉也,陰也。其用有二:去胃中之實熱,蕩腸 中之宿垢。大扺用此以代盆消耳。【玄明粉傳曰】唐明皇帝聞終南山道士 劉玄真服食多壽,乃詔而問之。玄真曰:臣按仙經,修鍊朴消,號玄明 粉,止服此方,遂無病長生。其藥無滓性温,陰中有陽,能除一百二十種 疾。生餌尚能救急難性命,何况修鍊長服。益精壯氣,助陽證陰。不拘丈 夫婦人,幼稚襁褓。不問四時冷熱。一切熱毒風冷,痃癖氣脹滿,五勞七 傷,骨蒸傳尸,頭痛煩熱,五内氣塞,大小腸不通,三焦熱淋,疰忤,欬 嗽嘔逆,口苦舌乾,咽喉閉塞,驚悸健忘,營衞不調,中酒中鱠,飲食過 度,腰膝冷痛,手足酸痺,久冷久熱,四肢壅塞,背膊拘急,目昏眩運, 久視無力,腸風痔病,血澼不調,婦人産後,小兒疳氣,陰毒傷寒,表裏 疫癘。此藥久服,令人悦澤。開關建脾,駐顔明目,輕身延壽,功效不可 具載。但用一兩,分爲十二服,臨時酌量加减。似覺壅熱傷寒,頭痛鼻 塞,四肢不舉,飲食不下,煩悶氣脹,須通瀉求安者,即看年紀高下,用 藥二錢半或半兩,以桃花煎湯下爲使,最上。次用葱湯下。如未通,以沸 湯投之即效。或食諸魚藕菜飲食、諸毒藥,用葱白湯調服二錢,毒物立泄 下。若女人身懷六甲,長服安胎,生子亦無瘡腫疾病。若要微暢不閉塞, 但長服之,稍稍得力,朝服夕應,不搜刮人五臟,怡怡自泰。其藥初服 時,每日空腹,酒飲茶湯任下二錢匕,良久更下三錢匕。七日内常微泄利 黄黑水涎沫等,此是搜淘諸疾根本出去,勿用畏之。七日後漸知腹内暖, 消食下氣。長服除故養新,氣血日安。用大麻子湯下爲使,惟忌苦參。 詳載太陰經中。【好古曰】玄明粉治陰毒一句,非伏陽在内不可用。若 用治真陰毒,殺人甚速。【震亨曰】玄明粉火煅而成,其性當温。曰長服 久服,輕身固胎,駐顔益壽,大能補益,豈理也哉?予親見一二朋友,不 信予言而亡,故書以爲戒。【時珍曰】神農本草言朴消鍊餌服之,輕身神 仙,蓋方士竄入之言。後人因此製爲玄明粉。煅鍊多徧,佐以甘草,去其 鹹寒之毒。遇有三焦腸胃實熱積滯,少年氣壯者,量與服之,亦有速效。 若脾胃虚冷及陰虚火動者服之,是速其咎矣。 Explication. [Li] Gao: Xuan ming fen sinks into the depth; it is yin. It has two usages. It removes out of the stomach repletion heat, and it washes out of the intes-

Chapter 11

777

tines an abiding dirt. Generally speaking, it is used as a substitute for pen xiao 盆消 mirabilite. Xuan ming fen zhuan: When Tang emperor Ming huang was told that on Moung Zong nan shan a Daoist named Liu Xuanzhen had ingested [elixirs] for food and enjoyed a long life, he summoned him to the court and asked him about this. [Liu] Xuanzhen said: “[I, your] subordinate, have prepared by means of a refinement with heat and following the [records in the] classics of the hermits/ immortals po xiao mirabilite. [The resulting substance] is called xuan ming fen 玄 明粉. Ever since I have ingested this recipe and nothing else, I have never suffered from a disease and I enjoy longevity. This medication has no impurities and it is of a warm nature. It is the yang in the yin, and it is able to eliminate 120 kinds of disease. Consumed unprocessed it is also able to save the life [of patients] in critically difficult situations. How much more [can it achieve] when ingested refined with heat over a long time. It boosts essence/sperm and strengthens the qi. It assists the yang and ascertains the yin. Regardless of whether males or females, children or babies are concerned, and regardless of which of the four seasons it is and whether it is [a time of ] cold or heat, [this substance cures] all [of the following diseases]. Heat poison and wind cold. String-illness752 and aggregation-illness qi with distension and a feeling of fullness. The five types of exhaustion and the seven types of harm. Bone steaming and corpse [qi] transmission. Headache and unrest with heat. The five internal blockages of qi. Blocked passage through the large and small intestines. [urinary] dripping because of heat in the Triple Burner. Attachment illness753 and [demon] hostility. Coughing and vomiting with counterflow. A bitter taste in the mouth and a dry tongue. Closed throat. Fright palpitation and forgetfulness. Disharmony between camp and guardian [qi]. Being struck by [excessive consumption of ] wine. Being struck by [excessive consumption of ] minced fish. Excessive consumption of beverages and food. Painful cold affecting lower back and knees. A feeling in the hands and feet of soreness caused by blockage. A long-lasting cold, and a long-lasting heat. Obstruction affecting the four extremities. Cramp affecting back and arms. Dimmed vision and dizziness. Loss of strength after viewing for a long time. Intestinal wind and piles disease. Blood flush out of control. [Conditions] of women following birth. Children affected by gan-illness754 qi. Yin poison 752 Xuan 痃, “string-illness,” is a condition of acute pain located in the abdomen to the left and right of the umbilicus. BCGM Dict I, 581, 753 Zhu 疰, also zhu 注, “attachment-illness,” “influx-illnesss,” reflects a notion of a foreign pathogenic agent, originally of demonic nature, having attached itself to the human organism. BCGM Dict I, 688-695. 754 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188.

778

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

variety of harm caused by cold. External and internal affection by epidemics. When this medication is ingested over a long time, it lets one be happy and have a glossy appearance. It opens the orifices and strengthens the spleen. It maintains a [youthful] complexion and clears the eyes. It relieves the body of its weight and extends [the years of life to] longevity. It is impossible to list all of its potentials and effects. It is enough to divide one liang of it into twelve portions. They may be increased or decreased in accordance with temporary requirements. In the case of heat obstruction and harm caused by cold, headache and stuffed nose, with an inability to raise the four limbs and to drink and eat, in the case of unrest and heart-pressure and qicaused distension, when a [medication] is required to open [the passageways] for a free flow [of defecation] and to regain peace, then taking into regard [the patient’s] age use two and a half qian, or half a liang, of this [xuan ming fen] medication and have it sent down with a peach flower decoction as guiding substance. This is best. Another possibility is to send it down with an onion decoction. If the passage [of defecation] remains closed, give [the xuan ming fen] into bubbling hot water and this will be effective. Also, for [problems resulting from] a consumption of all types of fish, of lotus roots and vegetables, of beverages and food, as well as all types of poisonous medication, ingest two qian [of xuan ming fen] mixed with an onion decoction, and the poisonous items will be discharged immediately. If a pregnant woman ingests it for a long time, this will pacify her fetus, and after her child is born, she will not be affected by sores, swelling, illness and disease. If a smooth [defecation] is asked for, one simply ingests it for a long time. Slow by slow it will gain strength. Ingested in the morning, it will show its effects in the evening. It does not plunder one’s five long-term depots; its effects are mild and pleasant. At the beginning of an ingestion of this medication, every morning on an empty stomach the amount held by a two qian spoon is to be sent down with either a wine beverage or a tea decoction. Over an extended period of time, this dosage may be modified to ingesting the amount held by a three qian spoon. Within seven days a mild free flow of a yellow-black watery foam will recur regularly, and this is how the roots of all illnesses are washed out and eliminated. This is nothing to worry about. After seven days [patients] will feel a gradual warming up in their abdomen. Food will be dissolved and [intestinal] qi will be discharged. An ingestion over a long time will eliminate the old and nourish the new; qi and blood will be in peace every day. To send it down, a hemp seed decoction will serve as a guiding substance. The only item prohibited [during such a treatment] is sophora [root].” Further details are recorded in the Tai yin jing. [Wang] Haogu: The statement that xuan ming fen serves to cure yin poison must not be applied in clinical practice if it is not a condition of an internally subdued yang. If [xuan ming fen] is used to cure a genuine yin poison,

Chapter 11

779

it will very quickly kill that person. [Zhu] Zhenheng: Xuan ming fen is a product of fire calcination. Hence its nature is warm. When it is said “ingested over an extended period of time, ingested over a long time it will relieve the body of its weight and stabilize a fetus, it will maintain a [youthful] complexion and boost longevity, and it can massively supplement and boost [the qi],” on what principle could this be based? I have seen one or two close friends who did not believe my words and perished. Hence I have recorded this here to serve as a warning. [Li] Shizhen: The Shen nong ben cao says that “an intake of heat refined po xiao mirabilite as a special diet serves to relieve the body of its weight and to make one a spirit immortal.” The fact is, this statement is a later addition inserted by recipe masters, and it is because of this [statement] that the people in later times have prepared xuan ming fen. If it is profoundly refined with heat through calcination and assisted by glycyrrhiza [root] its poison of a salty cold will be eliminated. If one encounters a case of heat repletion, accumulation and sluggishness affecting Triple Burner, intestines and stomach of a young person with a strong qi constitution, he is to ingest it, [with the dosage] measured [in accordance with his condition]. This results in quick effects. However, if [a patient] ingests this [medication] when his spleen and stomach are affected by depletion cold, and if his condition is one of yin depletion and excited fire, he will be punished right away.

【附方】新三。 Added Recipes. Three newly [recorded]. 熱厥氣痛。玄明粉三錢,熱童尿調下。集簡方。 Painful heat because of [yin] qi recession. Send three qian of xuan ming fen down mixed with hot boys’ urine. Ji jian fang. 傷寒發狂。玄明粉二錢,朱砂一錢,末之,冷水服。傷寒藴要。 Harm caused by cold with fits of madness. Grind two qian of xuan ming fen and one qian of cinnabar to a powder and ingest it with cold water. Shang han yun yao. 鼻血不止。玄明粉二錢,水服。聖濟。 Unending nosebleed. Ingest two qian of xuan ming fen with water. Sheng ji.

780

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

11-11 消石本經上品 Xiao shi, FE Ben jing, upper rank. Nitrokalite. Saltpetre. Potassium nitrate. 【釋名】芒消别録、苦消甄權、焰消土宿、火消綱目、地霜蜀本、生消宋 本、北帝玄珠。【志曰】以其消化諸石,故名消石。初煎鍊時有細芒,而 狀若朴消,故有芒消之號。不與朴消及别録芒消同類。【宗奭曰】消石是 再煎鍊時取去芒消凝結在下者,精英既去,但餘滓如石而已。入藥功力亦 緩,惟能發烟火。【權曰】芒消一作苦消,言其味苦也。【時珍曰】消 石,丹爐家用制五金八石,銀工家用化金銀,兵家用作烽燧火藥,得火即 焰起,故有諸名。狐剛子粉圖謂之北帝玄珠。開寶本草重出生消、芒消, 今併爲一,並詳下文。 Explanation of Names. Mang xiao 芒消, “awn solver,” Bie lu. Ku xiao 苦消, “bitter solver,” Zhen Quan. Yan xiao 焰消, “blazing solver,” Tu su. Huo xiao 火消, “fire solver,” Gang mu. Di shuang 地霜, “ground frost,” Shu ben. Sheng xiao 生消, “fresh solver,” Song ben. Bei di xuan zhu 北帝玄珠, “dark pearl of the Northern Thearch.” [Ma] Zhi: As it is able to dissolve, xiao hua 消化, all types of stones/minerals, shi 石, it is called “stone/mineral solver,” xiao shi 消石. When it is boiled for a refinement with heat, in the beginning it develops some fine awns, mang 芒, and its shape resembles that of po xiao 朴消 mirabilite. Hence it is also called mang xiao 芒消, “solver with awns.” But it does not belong to the same group as po xiao 朴消 mirabilite and the mang xiao 芒消 mirabilite mentioned in the Bie lu. [Kou] Zongshi: Nitrokalite congeals on the bottom when mang xiao 芒消 mirabilite is produced by heat refinement through boiling. The fine and lustrous [elements] are removed [for later use]; the remaining dregs resembling stones are discarded. When added to medication, its potential is rather mild. It can be used only to create smoke and fire. [Zhen] Quan: Mang xiao 芒消 is also written ku xiao 苦消, “bitter solver;” that is to say, its flavor is bitter. [Li] Shizhen: The experts of elixirs and furnaces resort to nitrokalite to check [the effects of ] the five metals and eight stones/minerals. Silversmiths use it to transform gold and silver. Military experts use it for gunpowder and to light fire on beacon towers. When it is lit its flames rise. Hence all these names. Hu gang zi in his Fen tu names it “dark pearl of the Northern Thearch.” The Kai bao ben cao has separate entries for sheng xiao 生消 and mang xiao 芒消. Here now they are brought together into one entry. For details on all of them, see the text below. 【集解】【别録曰】消石生益州山谷及武都、隴西、西羌,采無時。【弘 景曰】消石療病與朴消相似,仙經用此消化諸石,今無真識此者。或云與 朴消同山,所以朴消一名消石朴也。又云一名芒消。今芒消乃是煉朴消作

Chapter 11

781

之,並未覈研其驗。有人得一種物,色與朴消大同小異,朏朏如握鹽雪, 不冰,燒之紫青烟起,云是真消石也。今宕昌以北諸山有鹹土處皆有之。 【志曰】此即地霜也。所在山澤,冬月地上有霜,掃取以水淋汁,後乃煎 鍊而成,狀如釵脚,好者長五分以來。陶説多端,蓋由不的識之故也。 【又曰】生消生茂州西山岩石間,形塊大小不定,色青白,采無時。【時 珍曰】一消石,諸鹵地皆産之,而河北 慶陽諸縣及蜀中尤多。秋冬間遍 地生白,掃取煎煉而成。貨者苟且,多不潔净,須再以水煎化,傾盆中, 一夜結成,澄在下者,狀如朴消,又名生消,謂鍊過生出之消也。結在上 者,或有鋒芒如芒消,或有圭稜如馬牙消,故消石亦有芒消、牙消之名, 與朴消之芒、牙同稱,而水火之性則異也。崔昉外丹本草云:消石,陰石 也。此非石類,乃鹹鹵煎成,今呼焰消。河北 商城及懷、衛界,沿河人 家,刮鹵淋汁煉就,與朴消小異,南地不産也。昇玄子伏汞圖云:消石生 烏場國,其色青白,用白石英炙熱點上,便消入石中者爲真。其石出處, 氣極穢惡,飛鳥不能過其上。人或單衣過之,身上諸蟲悉化爲水。能消金 石爲水,服之長生。以形若鵝管者佳。謹按昇玄子所説,似與今之消石不 同。而姚寬西溪叢話以其説爲真正消石。豈外國所産與中國異耶?抑别一 種耶?當俟博物者訂正。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Nitrokalite grows in the mountain valleys of Yi zhou and in Wu du, Long xi and Xi jiang. It is collected any time. [Tao] Hongjing: Nitrokalite heals disease in much the same way as po xiao mirabilite. In the classics of the hermits/immortals it is used to dissolve and transform all types of stones/ minerals. But nowadays there is nobody who is familiar with this. Some say it occurs on the same mountains as po xiao mirabilite. Hence po xiao 朴消 is also called xiao shi po 消石朴. They also state that its alternative name is mang xiao 芒消. Nowadays mang xiao is prepared by heat refinement from po xiao. Its effects have not been examined yet. Once someone obtained an item that appeared very similar to po xiao. It was shiny as if he had held salt or snow in his hand, but it was not cold. When he lit it, purple-greenish fumes rose. It was said: This is genuine nitrokalite. Nowadays it occurs in all the mountains with saline earth north of Dang chang. [Ma] Zhi: This is di shuang 地霜, “ground frost.” Where it occurs, on marshlands in the mountains, a frost appears on the ground during winter months. It is swept together and soaked in water. Then it is refined with heat by boiling [the liquid], and is ready [for medicinal use]. It is shaped like the handles of hairpins, with good ones reaching a length of five fen. Tao [Hongjing’s] sayings are rather disparate for the simple reason that he was not familiar with it. It is also said to originate in the rocks of the mountains west of Mao zhou, where it is present in pieces of different size. Its color is greenish-white. It is collected any time. [Li] Shizhen: Nitrokalite is brought forth by all types of bittern ground, and especially much occurs in He

782

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

bei in all the counties of Qing yang, and also in Shu zhong. During autumn and winter, the entire ground is covered white. [Nitrokalite] is prepared by collecting [this white cover] and by refining it with heat by means of boiling. The item traded is imperfect; it is often polluted with impurities. Hence it must be boiled again in water to transform it. [The liquid] is poured into a tub and [the nitrokalite] will congeal and form overnight. The dregs collecting on the bottom are shaped like po xiao 朴消. It is also called sheng xiao 生消; that is to say, it is a “solvent,” xiao 消, that has just “emerged,” sheng chu 生出, from a preparation with heat. Those parts congealing on top [of the liquid] sometimes have pointed awns, mang 芒, like mang xiao 芒消, or they appear as elongated tablets with edges resembling ma ya xiao 馬 牙消, “horse teeth xiao/mirabilite.” This is why nitrokalite is also called mang xiao 芒消, “awn xiao,” and ya xiao 牙消, “teeth xiao.” [Nitrokalite is identical to po xiao mirabilite] in terms of their names mang 芒 and ya 牙. But they differ in terms of their water and fire nature. Cui Fang in his Wai dan ben cao states: “Nitrokalite is a yin stone/mineral. But it is definitely not part of the group of stones/minerals. It is produced by boiling bittern, and nowadays it is called yan xiao 焰消, ‘blazing xiao/ solvent.’ In He bei, in Shang cheng and at the border between Huai and Wei, the people living along the river scrape bittern [from the ground], soak and refine it with heat and produce something not very different from po xiao. It is not produced in the southern regions.” Sheng Xuanzi in his Fu gong tu states: “Nitrokalite grows in Wu chang guo. Its color is greenish-white. Fry a piece of quartz until it is hot and drip it on [nitrokalite]. If [the quartz] immediately dissolves and penetrates the nitrokalite, it is genuine [nitrokalite]. The qi of the places where nitrokalite originates in is extremely polluted and malign. Birds are unable to fly above them. When persons with only a single garment pass by them, all worms/bugs on their body will be transformed to water. [Nitrokalite] is able to dissolve metals and stones to water. Ingesting it gives one longevity. Pieces with a physical appearance of goose quills are fine.” Now, what Sheng Xuanzi says does not seem to agree with the nitrokalite of today. But Yao Kuan, in his Xi xi cong hua, considers [Sheng Xuanzi’s] record as describing the genuine nitrokalite. How could it be that a foreign product differs from [nitrokalite produced in] China? Perhaps they are different kinds? This is up to the scientists to decide and find the correct answer. 【正誤】【弘景曰】神農本經無芒消,只有消石,一名芒消。名醫别録乃 出芒消,療與消石同,疑即消石也。舊出寧州,黄白粒大,味極辛苦。 今醫家多用煮煉作者,色全白,粒細而味不甚烈。皇甫士安言:無朴消 可用消石。消石生山之陰,鹽之膽也。取石脾與消石以水煮之,一斛得 三斗,正白如雪,以水投中即消,故名消石。其味苦,無毒,主消渴熱 中,止煩滿,三月采于赤山。朴消者,亦生山之陰,有鹽鹹苦之水,則朴

Chapter 11

783

消生于其陽。其味苦,無毒,其色黄白,主療熱,腹中飽脹,養胃消穀, 去邪氣,亦得水而消,其療與消石小異。按如此説,是取芒消合煮,更 成爲真消石,但不知石脾是何物也?以朴消作芒消者,用煖湯淋汁煮之, 着木盆中,經宿即成矣。今益州人復鍊礬石作消石,絶柔白,而味猶是礬 爾。【又曰】朴消今出益州北部汶山郡 西川、蠶陵二縣界,生山厓上, 色多青白,亦雜黑斑。土人擇取白軟者,以當消石用之,當燒令汁沸出, 狀如礬石也。【藏器曰】石脾、芒消、消石,並出西戎鹵地,鹹水結成。 【恭曰】朴消有縱理、縵理二種,用之無别。其白軟者,朴消苗也,虚軟 少力。鍊爲消石,所得不多,以當消石,功力大劣也。【又曰】消石即是 芒消,朴消一名消石朴。今煉粗惡朴消,取汁煎作芒消,即是消石。别録 復出芒消,誤矣。晉 宋古方,多用消石,少用芒消;近代諸醫,但用芒 消,尠言消石。理既明白,不合重出。【頌曰】舊説朴消、芒消、消石三 物同種。初采得苗,以水淋汁煎成者爲朴消,一名消石朴。又煉朴消或地 霜而成堅白如石者,爲消石,一名芒消。又取朴消淋汁鍊煎結成有細芒 者,爲芒消。雖一體異名,而修煉之法既殊,則主治之功亦别。然本經所 載,疑是二種。今醫方所用,亦不能究。但以未鍊成塊,微青色者爲朴 消。鍊成盆中有芒者,爲芒消,亦謂之盆消。芒消之底澄凝者,爲消石 朴。消力緊,芒消次之,消石更緩。未知孰是?蘇恭言:晉 宋古方,多用 消石,少用芒消。按張仲景傷寒論,承氣、陷胸皆用芒消。葛洪肘後方, 傷寒時氣亦多用芒消,惟治食鱠不化,云無朴消,用芒消代之。是晉 宋 以前通用朴消、芒消矣。胡洽方十棗湯用芒消,大五飲丸用消石,並云無 消石以此言之,朴消、消石爲精,芒消爲粗,故陶氏引皇甫士安之言爲 證,是消石當時已難得其真,故方書通以相代矣。用芒消。是梁 隋間通 用芒消、消石矣。又古方金石凌法,用朴消、消石、芒消、馬牙消四種相 參,次第下之。方出唐世,不知當時如何分别也。又南方醫人著消説云: 本草有朴消、消石、芒消,而無馬牙消。諸家所注,三種竟無斷决。或言 芒消、消石是一物,不合重出。或言煎鍊朴消,經宿盆中有細芒爲芒消。 或言馬牙消自是一物。今諸消之體各異,理亦易明,而惑乃如此。朴消味 苦而微鹹,出蜀郡者瑩白如冰雪,内地者小黑,皆蘇脆易碎,風吹之則結 霜,泯泯如粉,熬之烊沸,亦可鎔鑄。以水合甘草、猪膽煮至减半,投大 盆中,又下凝水石屑,同漬一宿,則凝結如白石英者,芒消也。掃地霜 煎鍊而成,試竹上如解鹽,而味辛苦,燒之成焰都盡者,消石也,能化金 石,又性畏火,而能制諸石使拒火,亦天地之神物也。牙消即是芒消也。 又有生消,不因煮鍊而成,亦出蜀道,類朴消而小堅也。其論雖辨,然與 古人所説殊别,亦未可全信也。【好古曰】消石者,消之總名也。但不經 火者,謂之生消、朴消;經火者,謂之芒消、盆消。【時珍曰】諸消自晉 唐以來,諸家皆執名而猜,都無定見。惟馬志開寶本草,以消石爲地霜鍊 成,而芒消、馬牙消是朴消鍊出者,一言足破諸家之惑矣。諸家蓋因消石

784

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

一名芒消,朴消一名消石朴之名相混,遂致費辨不决。而不知消有水火二 種,形質雖同,性氣迥别也。惟神農本經朴消、消石二條爲正。其别録芒 消、嘉祐馬牙消、開寶生消,俱係多出,今並歸併之。神農所列朴消,即 水消也,有二種。煎鍊結出細消、結出馬牙者爲牙消,其凝底成塊者通爲 朴消,其氣味皆鹹而寒。神農所列消石,即火消也,亦有二種。煎鍊結出 細芒者亦名芒消,結出馬牙者亦名牙消,又名生消。其凝底成塊者,其爲 消石,其氣味皆辛苦而大温。二消皆有芒消、牙消之稱,故古方有相代之 説。自唐 宋以下,所用芒消、牙消,皆是水消也。南醫所辨雖明,而以凝 水石、猪膽煎成者爲芒消,則誤矣。今通正其誤。其石脾,一名消石者, 造成假消石也。見後石脾下。 Correction of Errors. [Tao] Hongjing: The Shen nong ben jing does not have an entry mang xiao 芒消, it only lists xiao shi 消石, nitrokalite, and gives as an alternative name mang xiao 芒消. The Ming yi bie lu is the first to mention mang xiao 芒消, [stating that] its therapeutic potential is identical to that of xiao shi 消石. Presumably [the substance referred to] is xiao shi 消石/nitrokalite. In former times it originated in Ning zhou. These were [pieces] of yellow-white color and of the size of small grains, with an extremely acrid, bitter flavor. [Nitrokalite] used by physicians often today after a refinement with heat is entirely white. These are fine grains and their flavor is not very strong. Huangfu Shi’an says: “If po xiao 朴消 is not available, xiao shi 消石 may be resorted to. Nitrokalite grows on the yin/shady side of mountains. It is the ‘guts’ of salt. When nitrokalite is boiled together with shi pi 石脾 (11-A01) in one hu of water down to three dou, it will become purely white, like snow, and when water is poured on it, it will dissolve, xiao 消. Hence it is called xiao shi 消石, ‘the stone/mineral that dissolves.’ Its flavor is bitter, and it is nonpoisonous. It controls melting with thirst755 and inner heat. It ends unrest and sensations of fullness. It is collected on Mount Chi shan in the third month. Po xiao 朴消, too, grows on the yin/shady side of mountains. Where there is water with a salty and bitter flavor, po xiao grows on their yang/sunny side. Its flavor is bitter and it is nonpoisonous. Its color is yellow-white. It controls heat and abdominal distension following overeating. It nourishes the stomach, dissolves grain and removes evil qi. It, too, dissolves when it is exposed to water. Its therapeutic potential is only slightly different from that of nitrokalite.” Now, based on this statement, when [shi pi 石脾] is boiled together with mang xiao, [the latter] is modified to become genuine nitrokalite. But it is unknown what kind of substance shi pi 石脾 is. To prepare mang xiao out of po xiao, pour warm water on it and then boil it. Give [this liquid] into a wooden tub, leave it there and [mang xiao] will have formed overnight. Nowadays, 755 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567.

Chapter 11

785

the people in Yi zhou refine alum with heat to prepare nitrokalite. [Their product] is very soft and white, and its flavor remains to be that of alum. It is also said, po xiao 朴消 nowadays originates in the border region of the two counties of Xi chuan and Can ling of Wen shan jun in the northern part of Yi zhou. It grows on the mountain cliffs and is often of a greenish-white color, sometimes interspersed with black dots. The local people choose and remove those [pieces] that are white and soft and use them instead of nitrokalite. It needs to be heated to have it emit a bubbling liquid, and then it is shaped like alum. [Chen] Cangqi: Shi pi 石脾, mang xiao 芒消 and xiao shi 消石, they all originate in the bittern earth of Xi rong, and they form when brine congeals. [Su] Gong: Po xiao 朴消 occurs in two kinds. One has a vertical [line design] structure; the other has no clearly distinguishable [line design] structure. Their usages are not different. Those pieces which are white and soft, they are “po xiao seedlings.” They are hollow, soft and of weak [therapeutic] strength. When they are refined with heat to produce nitrokalite, the outcome is small. If it is used as a substitute for nitrokalite, its [therapeutic] effects are very deficient. It is also said, xiao shi 消石 is mang xiao 芒消, and an alternative name of po xiao 朴消 is xiao shi po 消石朴. When nowadays raw and malign po xiao 芒消 is dissolved to a liquid and this liquid is boiled to produce mang xiao 芒消, then this is actually xiao shi 消 石. When the Bie lu listed mang xiao in a separate entry, that was an error. The ancient recipes of the Jin and Song eras frequently resort to xiao shi 消石, they rarely [recommend to] use mang xiao 芒消. In recent times, all physicians only use mang xiao 芒消, and only few of them refer to xiao shi 消石. The underlying principle is obvious and [mang xiao 芒消] should not have been listed separately. [Su] Song: In old statements the three items po xiao 朴消, mang xiao 芒消 and xiao shi 消石 were regarded as identical kinds. At first they are collected as seedlings. Water is poured over them, they are boiled and this results in a product named po xiao 朴消, also named xiao shi po 消石朴. When po xiao 朴消 or di shuang 地霜 are further refined with heat, resulting in a substance that is hard and white like a stone, then this is xiao shi 消石, also called mang xiao 芒消. Furthermore, if po xiao 朴消 is soaked in water and refined with heat by boiling it so that it congeals and develops fine awns, then this is mang xiao 芒消. These are identical substances, but their names differ. As the methods of their preparation differ, [the diseases] they control and serve to cure differ, too. However, the records in the Ben jing may refer to two kinds. When today’s physicians use them in their recipes, they, too, are unable to make a [correct] distinction. They simply consider those pieces that have not been refined with heat yet and are of a slightly greenish color to be po xiao 朴消. And they consider those that are refined with heat and that have grown awns in a tub to be mang xiao 芒消. They also call the latter pen xiao 盆消, “tub solvent.” The dregs congealing on the

786

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

bottom of the mang xiao 芒消 [tub] are xiao shi po 消石朴. The [therapeutic] strength of [po 朴] xiao 消 is intense. That of mang xiao 芒消 is second to it. That of xiao shi 消石 is even milder. It is not known who is right. Su Gong says: “The ancient recipes of the Jin and Song eras frequently resort to xiao shi 消石, they rarely [recommend to] use mang xiao 芒消.” Zhang Zhongjing in his Shang han lun, in his [recipes aimed at] “upholding the qi” and “sinking into the chest” always uses mang xiao 芒消. Ge Hong, in his Zhou hou fang, for harm caused by cold and [diseases caused by] seasonal qi often resorts to mang xiao 芒消. Only when he cures “failing digestion of minced fish,” he states that “if po xiao 朴消 is not available, mang xiao 芒消 is to be used as a substitute.” That is, prior to the Jin and Song eras, po xiao 朴 消 and mang xiao 芒消 were used interchangeably. In the Hu Qia fang, the [recipe of the] “decoction with ten Chinese dates” uses mang xiao 芒消, the [recipe of the] “major pills for the five rheums” uses xiao shi 消石, and for both it is stated: “If xiao shi 消石 is not available, use mang xiao 芒消.” That is, during the Liang and the Sui era, mang xiao 芒消 and xiao shi 消石 were used interchangeably. That is to say, po xiao 朴消 and xiao shi 消石 are fine [substances]; mang xiao 芒消 is a coarse [substance]. Hence Mr. Tao [Hongjing] quotes Huangfu Shi’an as proof that at that time genuine xiao shi 消石 already was difficult to obtain. Hence all recipe books referred to substitutes instead. In ancient recipes advising on the “method to crystallize gold and stones,” [it is recommended] “to use one after another the four kinds of po xiao 朴消, xiao shi 消石, mang xiao 芒消 and ma ya xiao 馬牙消.” These recipes originated in the Tang era, but it is not known how, at that time, [these four substances] might have been distinguished. Also in an explanation of nitrokalite written by a physician in the South it is stated: “The Ben cao lists po xiao 朴消, xiao shi 消石 and mang xiao 芒消, it does not include ma ya xiao 馬牙消.” In comments [written in later times] no author provided clear definitions. Some said that mang xiao 芒消 and xiao shi 消石 are one and the same item and that they need not be listed separately. Others said, when po xiao 朴消 is refined with heat by boiling and then, left in a tub overnight, grows fine awns, this is mang xiao 芒消. Still others say that ma ya xiao 馬牙消 is a separate item of its own. Today, the physical bodies of all the xiao differ, and the reason is easy to understand. Still, there exist all these erroneous views. The flavor of po xiao 朴消 is bitter and slightly salty. That originating in Shu jun is shiny and white like ice and snow. That originating in the inner territories consists of small, black [items]. They all are crispy and can easily be broken to pieces. When exposed to wind they congeal to a frost and are volatile like a powder. When exposed to heat, they melt and boil. They can also be used for purposes of melting and casting. Boil them in water together with glycyrrhiza [root] and pig bile down to one half, give this into a large tub, add calcite crumbs and let

Chapter 11

787

this soak together for one night. [In the meantime, the liquid] will congeal to something like quartz, and this is mang xiao f芒消. Sweep “ground frost” [from the ground], refine it with heat by boiling it, and test the product on a piece of bamboo as if this were to examine salt. When its flavor is acrid-bitter and when heated it flares up and vanishes entirely, then it is xiao shi 消石, nitrokalite. It can transform metals and stones/minerals. By its nature it fears fire but it can be used to process all types of stones/minerals to become fire resistant. It is another of the divine items between heaven and earth. Ya xiao 牙消 is mang xiao 芒消. In addition, there is sheng xiao 生消. It is not generated by means of a refinement with heat. It, too, originates in Shu dao. It is related to po xiao 朴消, but appears in small, hard [pieces]. This discourse is differentiating, but it differs from the statement of ancient authors. Hence it is not entirely trustworthy. [Wang] Haogu: Xiao shi 消石 is a common designation of all xiao 消. However, before it is exposed to fire it is called sheng xiao 生消, “fresh xiao,” and po xiao 朴消, “raw xiao.” After it has been treated with fire, it is called mang xiao 芒消, “xiao that has grown awns,” and pen xiao 盆消, “xiao from a tub.” [Li] Shizhen: Since Jin and Tang times, all authors have given names to all the [kinds of ] xiao, and they have guessed [what they might be]. None of them offered a definite view. Only Ma Zhi in the Kai bao ben cao stated that xiao shi 消石 is the product of a refinement with heat of “frost found on the earth,” di shuang 消石, while mang xiao 芒消 and ma ya xiao 馬牙消 result from a refinement with heat of po xiao 朴消. This is the only statement that is sufficient to bring down the unfounded opinions of all the other authors. The fact is, all the other authors have confused [these substances] because xiao shi 消石 is also named mang xiao 芒 消, and po xiao 朴消 is also named xiao shi po 消石朴. Hence they all wasted their time on a differentiation and did not reach a final decision nevertheless. They did not know that xiao 消 appears in two kinds, one water [variety] and one fire [variety]. The physical appearance and the substance matter [of these two kinds] are identical, but their nature and their qi are widely different. Only the Shen nong ben jing offered a correct [distinction] in its two entries on po xiao 朴消 and xiao shi 消 石. The mang xiao listed in the Bie lu, the ma ya xiao listed in the Jia you and the sheng xiao listed in the Kai bao, they are all related but were listed to increase [the number of kinds]. Here now they are combined again in one [entry]. The po xiao 朴 消 listed by Shen nong is a “water xiao.” It occurs in two kinds. That which following a heat refinement by means of boiling congeals and grows fine awns, and that congeals further to develop “horse teeth,” is ya xiao 牙消. That which condenses on the bottom [of the tub where xiao is boiled] and forms pieces there, is always po xiao 朴消. The qi of both [kinds] are salty and cold. The xiao shi 消石 listed by Shen nong is a “fire xiao.” It, too, occurs in two kinds. That which following a heat refine-

788

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

ment by means of boiling congeals and grows fine awns, is also called mang xiao 芒 消. And that which congeals further to develop “horse teeth,” is also called ya xiao 牙消. It is also called sheng xiao 生消. That which condenses on the bottom to pieces, that is xiao shi 消石. The qi of both [these kinds] are acrid-bitter and very warm. Both [the water and the fire varities of ] xiao have the names mang xiao 芒消 and ya xiao 牙消. Hence they were mixed up in ancient recipes. Ever since the Tang and the Song eras, all the mang xiao 芒消 and the ya xiao 牙消 in use actually were “water xiao.” The distinction offered by that physician from the South was quite clear, but he was wrong when he stated that by boiling calcite with pig bile mang xiao 芒消 is generated. Here now all these errors are corrected. Shi pi 石脾, also named xiao shi 消石, is artificially produced fake nitrokalite. See below under “shi pi 石脾.” (11-A01) 【脩治】【大明曰】真消石,柳枝湯煎三周時,如湯少,即加熱者,伏火 即止。【斅曰】凡使消石,先研如粉,用雞腸菜、柏子仁共二十五個,和 作一處,丸如小帝珠子,以瓷瓶子于五斤火中煅赤,投消石四兩于瓶内, 連投藥丸入瓶,自然伏火也。【抱朴子曰】能消柔五金,化七十二石爲 水。制之須用地蓮子、猪牙皂角、苦參、南星、巴豆、漢防己、晚蠶砂。 【時珍曰】溶化,投甘草入内,即伏火。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. Da Ming: Boil genuine nitrokalite in a willow branch decoction for three days and nights. When the water has decreased, add hot [water]. Stop when the fire [nature of nitrokalite] is subdued. [Lei] Xiao: For all applications of nitrokalite, first grind it to a fine powder. Also gather altogether 25 specimens of small centipeda herb and platycladus seed kernels and form pills the size of xiao di zhu zi.756 Then calcine a porcelain jar with a five jin fire until it is red, give four liang of the nitrokalite into the jar and also the pills. This will subdue the fire [nature of the nitrokalite]. Baopu zi: [Nitrokalite] can dissolve and soften the five metals and it is able to transform the 72 [kinds of ] stones/minerals to water. To check its [potential and prepare it for therapeutic applications, the following substances] are required. Di lian zi,757 small gleditsia pods, sophora [root], arisaema root, croton seed, stephania [root] and silkworm feces. [Li] Shizhen: Dissolve it [in water] and give glycyrrhiza [root] into [the resulting liquid]. This will subdue the fire [nature of the nitrokalite].

756 Di zhu zi 帝珠子, lit: “small emperor’s pearls seed.” Unclear. Possibly identical with the semen of Coix lacryma-jobi. (L.) Lam., occcasionally referred to as yi zhu zi 意珠子. 757 Di lian zi 地蓮子, a Daoist designation of an unidentifiable substance.

Chapter 11

789

11-11-01 消石。Xiao shi. Nitrokalite. 【氣味】苦,寒,無毒。【别録曰】辛,大寒,無毒。【普曰】神農: 苦。扁鵲:甘。【權曰】鹹,有小毒。【時珍曰】辛、苦、微鹹,有小 毒,陰中之陽也。得陳皮,性疏爽。【之才曰】火爲之使。惡苦參、苦 菜。畏女菀、杏仁、竹葉。 Qi and Flavor. Bitter, cold, nonpoisonous. Bie lu: Acrid, very cold, nonpoisonous. [Wu] Pu: Shen nong: Bitter. Bian Que: Sweet. [Zhen] Quan: Salty, slightly poisonous. [Li] Shizhen: Acrid, bitter, slightly salty, slightly poisonous. It is a yang in yin [substance]. Brought into contact with tangerine peels, its nature will weaken. [Xu] Zhicai: Fire serves as its guide. [Ingested together,] it abhors sophora [root] and “bitter green,” and it fears turczaniowia herb, bitter apricot seeds and bamboo leaves. 【主治】五臟積熱,胃脹閉,滌去蓄結飲食,推陳致新,除邪氣。鍊之如 膏,久服輕身。本經。療五臟十二經脉中百二十疾,暴傷寒,腹中大熱, 止煩滿消渴,利小便,及瘻蝕瘡。天地至神之物,能化七十二種石。别 録。破積散堅,治腹脹,破血,下瘰癧,瀉得根出。甄權。含嚥,治喉 閉。大明。治伏暑傷冷,霍亂吐利,五種淋疾,女勞黑疸,心腸㽲痛,赤 眼,頭痛牙痛。時珍。 Control. Accumulated heat in the five long-term depots. Stomach distension and blockage. It washes out congealed beverages and food. It pushes back what is old and lets arrive what is new. It eliminates evil qi. Refined with heat to a paste-like substance and ingested for an extended period of time it relieves the body of its weight. Ben jing. It heals 120 illnesses in the five long-term depots and twelve conduit vessels, sudden harm caused by cold and massive heat in the abdomen. It ends unrest, a sensation of fullness and melting with thirst.758 It frees the passage of urine, and [serves to cure] fistula, erosions and sores. It is a most divine item between heaven and earth. It can transform 72 kinds of stones/minerals. Bie lu. It breaks open accumulations and disperses hardenings. It serves to cure abdominal distension, breaks open blood [concretions], and serves to discharge in the case of scrofula with pervasion-illness. With a free-flow [discharge] the root [of the disease] will be expelled. Zhen Quan. Held in the mouth and [the resulting liquid] swallowed, it serves to cure throat blockage. Da Ming. It serves to cure subdued summerheat associated with harm caused by cold, cholera with vomiting and free flow, the five

758 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567.

790

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

types of [urinary] dripping illness, black dan-illness759 following a [sexual] exhaustion with women, flatulent pain affecting the heart and abdominal region, red eyes, headache and toothache. [Li] Shizhen. 11-11-02 生消。Sheng xiao. Native nitrokalite. 【氣味】苦,大寒,無毒。【時珍曰】辛、苦、大温,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Bitter, very cold, nonpoisonous. [Li] Shizhen: Acrid, bitter, very warm, nonpoisonous. 【主治】風熱癲癇,小兒驚邪瘛瘲,風眩頭痛,肺壅耳聾,口瘡喉痺咽 塞,牙頷腫痛,目赤熱,多眵淚。開寶。 Control. Peak-illness760 with epilepsy caused by wind and associated with heat. Fright evil of children associated with clonic spasms. Wind dizziness and headache. Lung obstruction, deafness. Mouth sores, throat blockage with obstructed swallowing. Painful, swollen gums. Red and hot eyes, with much secretion and tearflow. Kai bao. 【發明】【土宿真君曰】消石感海鹵之氣所産,乃天地至神之物,能寒能 熱,能滑能濇,能辛能苦,能酸能鹹。入地千年,其色不變。七十二石, 化而爲水。制服草木,柔潤五金,制煉八石,雖大丹亦不捨此也。【時珍 曰】土宿所説,乃消石神化之妙。别録列于朴消之下,誤矣。朴消屬水, 味鹹而氣寒,其性下走,不能上升,陰中之陰也。故惟蕩滌腸胃積滯, 折治三焦邪火。消石屬火,味辛帶苦微鹹,而氣大温,其性上升,水中之 火也。故能破積散堅,治諸熱病,升散三焦火鬱,調和臟腑虚寒。與硫黄 同用,則配類二氣,均調陰陽,有升降水火之功,治冷熱緩急之病。煅制 礞石,則除積滯痰飲。蓋硫黄之性煖而利,其性下行;消石之性暖而散, 其性上行。礞石之性寒而下,消石之性暖而上。一升一降,一陰一陽,此 制方之妙也。今兵家造烽火銃機等物,用消石者,直入雲漢,其性升可知 矣。雷公炮炙論 序云腦痛欲死,鼻投消末,是亦取其上升辛散,乃從治之 義。本經言其寒,别録言其大寒,正與龍腦性寒之誤相似。凡辛苦物未有 大寒者,况此物得火則焰生,與樟腦、火酒之性同,安有性寒、大寒之理 哉?史記 倉公傳云:菑川王 美人懷子不乳,來召淳于意。意往,飲以莨 菪藥一撮,以酒飲之,旋乳。意復診其脉躁,躁者有餘病,即飲以消石一 劑,出血豆比五六枚而安。此去自結之驗也。 759 Hei dan 黑疸, “black dan-illnes,” a long-lasting yellow dan-illness, huang dan 黄疸, where the yellow complexion has darkened. BCGM Dict I, 214. See also below, p. 795, for a description of its signs. 760 Dian 顛, “peak[-illness],” also 癲, vaguely defined mental derangement. BCGM Dict I, 124.

Chapter 11

791

Explication. Tu su zhen jun: Nitrokalite is brought forth affected by the bittern of the sea; it is a most divine item between heaven and earth. It can be cold and it can be hot. It can be smooth and it can be rough. It can be acrid and it can be bitter. It can be sour and it can be salty. Even after it has entered the earth for a thousand years, its color will not change. It transforms 72 kinds of stones/minerals to water. It checks, when they are to be ingested, [the effects] of herbs and trees. It softens and moistens the five metals. It checks, when they are to be refined with heat, [the effects] of the eight stones/minerals. Even major elixirs cannot escape its strength. [Li] Shizhen: Tu su describes the wondrous potential of nitrokalite to produce divine transformations. The Bie lu lists it in the entry on po xiao 朴消, mirabilite. That is a mistake. Po xiao 朴消, mirabilite, is associated with water. Its flavor is salty and its qi are cold. By its nature it causes discharge with a rapid movement. It is unable to rise. It is a yin in yin [substance]. Hence it is able only to wash out accumulations and sluggishness from the intestines and the stomach, and to eliminate fire from the Triple Burner. Xiao shi 消石, nitrokalite, is a substance associated with fire. Its flavor is acrid, with a bitter and slightly salty note. Its qi are very warm, and by its nature it rises. It is fire within water. Hence it is able break open accumulations and to disperse hardenings, to cure all types of heat diseases, to rise and disperse pent-up fire, and to regulate and harmonize the long-term depots and short-term repositories in the case of depletion cold. Its usage is identical to that of sulphur. It adjusts the two qi in that it regulates both yin and yang, and it has the potential of the rising of fire and the descending of water, so that it serves to cure diseases of cold and heat, those of slow and others of rapid progress. Being calcined together with meng shi 礞石, chlorite-schist, to check [its effects], it eliminates accumulation, sluggishness and phlegm rheum.761 The fact is, sulphur by its nature is warm and opens passageways. By its nature it moves downward. Nitrokalite by its nature is warm and disperses. By its nature it rises. Chlorite-schist by its nature is cold and causes discharge; nitrokalite by its nature is warm and rises. One causes an upward movement; one causes a downward movement; one is yin; one is yang. This is the wondrous [art] of preparing recipes. When nowadays the military uses nitrokalite for beacon fire and [as ammunition] for pistols, [the nitrokalite] penetrates straight into the Milky Way. From this it is obvious that its nature is to rise. The preface to the Lei gong pao zhi lun states: “In the case of brain pain so severe that one wishes to die, insert xiao 消 powder into the [patient’s] nose.” [Such advise,] too, resorts to its nature of rising, and to its potential to disperse, based on its acrid [flavor]. 761 Tan yin 痰飲, “phlegm rheum,” refers to pathological products that have accumulated in the body and that are excreted in the process of changes affecting the depots and palaces. They may block the passage of qi and blood and thereby become pathogenic factors. BCGM Dict I, 498.

792

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

This is the meaning of a cure conforming with [the nature of the disease]. The Ben jing says [nitrokalite] is cold. The Bie lu says: “It is very cold.” This is similar to the description of borneol as being of cold nature. No acrid and bitter item is very cold. Also, this item [i. e., nitrokalite] when lit bursts in flames. Its nature is identical to that of camphora and brandy. How could its nature be cold, or even very cold. The Shi ji in its “Biography of Cang gong” states: “A concubine of the King of Zi chuan failed to produce milk for her newborn baby. Chunyu Yi was called to the court. After his arrival [Chunyu] Yi had her ingest with wine a pinch of a henbane seed medication, and this let her produce milk. Then [Chunyu] Yi examined [the movement in her] vessels which appeared restless. Such restless [movement in the vessels] indicates that there is yet another disease. Hence he had her ingest a nitrokalite preparation whereupon she defecated five or six bean-size blood [clots] and [her restlessness] was calmed down.” This is proof of [the ability of nitrokalite] to remove spontaneous coagulations.

【附方】新十四。 Added Recipes. 14 newly [recorded]. 頭痛欲死。消石末吹鼻内,即愈。炮炙論。 Headache so severe that one wishes to die. Blow nitrokalite powder into the [patient’s] nose and he will be cured. Pao zhi lun. 諸心腹痛。焰消、雄黄各一錢,研細末,每點少許入眦内。名火龍丹。集 玄方。 All types of heart and abdominal pain. Grind one qian each of nitrokalite and realgar to a fine powder. Each time drip a small amount into the canthi [of the patient’s eyes]. This [medication] is called “fire dragon elixir.” Ji xuan fang. 腰腹諸痛。方同上。 All types of lower back and abdominal pain. Recipe identical to the one above. 赤眼腫痛。消石末,卧時,以銅筯點黍米大入目眦。至旦,以鹽水洗去 之。聖惠方。 Red eyes with a painful swelling. At bedtime insert with a copper stick the amount of a millet grain of nitrokalite powder into the canthi of the [patient’s] eyes. The next morning wash it away with salt water. Sheng hui fang. 眼目障瞖。男女内外障瞖,或三五箇月不見效者,一點復明。好焰消一 兩,銅器鎔化,入飛過黄丹二分,片腦二分,銅匙急抄入罐内,收之。每

Chapter 11

793

點少許,其效如神。兖州 朱秀才忽不見物,朝夕拜天,因夢神傳此方,點 之而愈。張三丰仙方。 Eye shades and screens. When internal and external shades and screens [in the eyes] of males and females are treated without effect for three to five months, if [this medication is] dripped [into the eyes only] once, they will be clear again. Melt and transform in a copper vessel one liang of good quality nitrokalite, add two fen of minium, processed with sublimation, and two fen of borneo, and quickly ladle [the liquid] with a copper spoon into an earthenware jar where it is to be stored [for later use]. For each [application] drip a small amount [into the affected eyes]; the effects will be divine. Cultivated Talent Zhu of Yan zhou suddenly did not see anything. From morning to evening he prayed to heaven. Then in his dreams a spirit gave him this recipe. He had [the medication] dripped [into his eyes] and was cured. Zhang Sanfeng xian fang. 風熱喉痺及纏喉風病。玉鑰匙:用焰消一兩半,白僵蠶一錢,硼砂半兩, 腦子一字,爲末,吹之。三因方。 Throat blockage caused by wind and heat, and throat-constricting wind disease. The “jade key” [to open the throat]: [Grind] one liang and a half of nitrokalite, one qian of white stiff silkworms, half a liang of borax and one zi of camphora to a powder. This is to be blown [into the patient’s throat]. San yin fang. 重舌鵝口。竹瀝同焰消點之。普濟方。 Doubled tongue762 and goose-mouth.763 Drip nitrokalite together with bamboo stem juice [on the affected region]. Pu ji fang. 伏暑瀉痢,及腸風下血,或酒毒下血,一服見效,遠年者不過三服。消 石、舶上硫黄各一兩,白礬半兩、滑石半兩,飛麪四兩,爲末,滴水丸梧 子大,每新汲水下三五十丸。名甘露丸。普濟方。 Hidden sumerheat causing outflow and free-flow illness, associated with intestinal wind and a discharge of blood, or a discharge of blood following a wine intoxication. One dose ingested will prove to be effective. Even cases that have lasted for many years will not require more than three ingestions. [Grind] one liang of nitrokalite and of imported sulphur, half a liang of alum, half a liang of talc and four liang of wheat flour to a powder. Drip water into it and prepare pills the size of wu seeds. 762 Chong she 重舌, “doubled tongue.” A growth under the tongue, mostly in children, similar to a second tongue. BCGM Dict I, 92. 763 E kou 鵝口, “goose mouth,” refers to a white layer covering the mucous membranes and top of the tongue in a child’s mouth making it resemble a goose-mouth. BCGM Dict I, 141.

794

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Each time ingest with newly drawn water 30 to 50 pills. They are called, “sweet dew pills.” Pu ji fang. 五種淋疾。勞淋、血淋、熱淋、氣淋、石淋及小便不通至甚者。透格散: 用消石一兩,不夾泥土雪白者,生研爲末,每服二錢,各依湯使。勞淋, 勞倦虚損,小便不出,小腹急痛,葵子末煎湯下,通後便須服補虚丸散。 血淋,小便不出,時下血,疼痛滿急;熱淋,小便熱,赤色,臍下急痛, 並用冷水調下。氣淋,小腹滿急,尿後常有餘瀝,木通煎湯下。石淋,莖 内痛,尿不能出,内引小腹膨脹急痛,尿下砂石,令人悶絶,將藥末先入 銚内,隔紙炒至紙焦爲度,再研,用温水調下。小便不通,小麥湯下,卒 患諸淋,只以冷水下。並空心,調藥使消如水,乃服之。沈存中靈苑方。 The five types of [urinary] dripping illness. Exhaustion dripping, blood dripping, heat dripping, qi dripping, and stone dripping, as well as extreme cases of blocked urination. The “powder to break through barriers:” Grind one liang of fresh nitrokalite, that has no mud or soil impurities and is snow white, to a powder and for each [application] ingest two qian, to be guided by a specific decoction in agreement with [the nature of the dripping to be cured]. For exhaustion dripping, when [the patient] is exhausted and suffers from a depletion injury with no urine released whatsoever and a tense pain in the lower abdomen, [the powder] is to be sent down with a malva seed powder decoction. Once the passage [of urine] is opened again, [the patient] is to ingest pills or powders to supplement his depletion. For blood dripping, with no urine being released whatsoever, but an occasional discharge of blood, with pain, a sensation of fullness and tension, and also for heat dripping, when the urine is hot and of red color, with a tense pain below the navel, send [the powder] down mixed with cold water. For qi dripping with a sensation of fullness and tension in the lower abdomen and continued trickling following urination, send [the powder] down with an akebia [herb] decoction. For stone dripping, with pain in the penis and an inability to release urine, causing a bloating of the lower abdomen with tension and pain, or with a release of sand, with the urine causing heart-pressure and [the flow of qi threatened to be] cut off, give the medication powder into a kettle separated by a sheet of paper and fry [the kettle] until the paper is scorched. Then grind [the powder] again and have [the patient] send it down mixed with warm water. If urination is blocked, send it down with a wheat decoction. For all cases of [urinary] dripping with a sudden onset, simply send [the powder] down with cold water. In any case, the medication is to be ingested on an empty stomach, with the nitrokalite in the mixture dissolved as clear as water. Shen Cunren, Ling yuan fang

Chapter 11

795

蛟龍癥病。方見雄黄發明下。 Flood dragon conglomeration disease.764 For a recipe, see the entry on realgar, “Explication.” 服石發瘡,疼不可忍。用紙圈圍之,中心填消石令滿,以匙抄水淋之,覺 不熱痛,即止。兵部手集。 Sores developing following the ingestion of stone/mineral [longevity elixirs], with an unbearable pain. Build a ring of paper around [the sores] and fill the open center with nitrokalite. Then use a spoon to drip water on [the nitrokalite]. Once [the patient] no longer feels heat or pain, end [the treatment]. Bing bu shou ji. 發背初起。惡寒嗇嗇,或已生瘡腫隱疹。消石三兩,暖水一升,泡化,青 布摺三重,濕搨赤處,熱即换,頻易取瘥。外臺秘要。 Effusion on the back in its initial stage, with an aversion to cold and shivering, or when sores have developed with a swelling and dormant papules. Boil three liang of nitrokalite in one sheng of warm water until it has transformed. Fold a piece of greenish cloth into three layers, [soak it in the cooled down liquid] and place it moist on the red region. When it has become hot, replace it [with a cold cloth]. After repeated replacements a cure will be achieved. Wai tai mi yao. 女勞黑疸。仲景曰:黄家日晡發熱,反惡寒,此爲女勞得之。膀胱急,少 腹滿,身盡黄,額上黑,足下熱,因作黑疸。腹脹如水,大便黑,時溏, 非水也。腹滿者難治。消石、礬石燒等分,爲末。以大麥粥汁和服方寸 匕,日三。病隨大小便去,小便黄,大便黑,是其候也。金匱。 Black dan-illness765 following a [sexual] exhaustion with women. [Zhang] Zhongjing: If someone with a yellow [complexion] develops heat in the late afternoon and, contrary to what would be normal, has an aversion to cold, this is the result of a [sexual] exhaustion with women. His urinary bladder is tense, in his lower abdomen he has a sensation of fullness, his entire body is yellow, his forehead is black, and below his feet he is hot. Hence this is “black dan-illness.” His abdomen is bloated as if filled with water, his fecal matter is black and at times viscous, but this is not a water [swelling]. Those [patients] with a sensation of fullness in their abdomen are difficult to cure. Heat equal amounts of nitrokalite and alum, grind them to a powder, mix it with a liquid barley gruel and [let the patient] ingest the amount held by a square cun spoon. Three times a day. The disease will vanish together with 764 Jiao long bing 蛟龍病, “flood dragon disease,” a condition with blue hands, abdominal fulness and unearable pain. BCGM Dict I, 248. 765 Hei dan 黑疸, “black dan-illness.” BCGM Dict I, 214. See the following characterization of illness signs.

796

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

the passage of fecal matter and urine. When the urine is yellow and the fecal matter is black, this is evidence [of the effects of this medication]. Jin kui. 手足不遂。大風及丹石熱風不遂。用消石一兩,生烏麻油二斤,置鐺中, 以土墼蓋口,紙泥固濟,火煎。初時氣腥,熟則氣香,更以生麻油二升, 合煎得所,收不津器中。服時坐室中,重作小紙屋,然火于内,服一大 合,發汗,力壯者日二服。三七日,頭面疱瘡皆减也,然必以火爲使。波 羅門僧方。 Hands and feet do not follow [one’s intensions]. They do not follow [one’s intensions] because of massive wind766 and because of heat and wind associated with [an ingestion of longevity] elixir stones/minerals. Give one liang of nitrokalite and two jin of fresh, black sesame oil into a container and cover its opening with a brick made of unfired soil. Seal it firmly with paper and mud. Then boil it over a fire. In the beginning, foul qi will be emitted. Once [the liquid] has become hot, they will be fragrant. Then add another two sheng of fresh sesame oil, and boil this again. Store [the resulting liquid] in a dry vessel. When [a patient] is about to ingest [the liquid], let him sit in a room within which a second room was made of paper. Light a fire in it and [let the patient] ingest one generous ge [of the liquid]. This will induce sweating. If he is strong, [the liquid] is to be ingested twice a day, for three times seven days. This will diminish all blisters and sores on his head and face. However, fire is required as [the medication’s] guide. Boluomen seng fang. 11-12 硇砂硇音鐃唐本草 Nao sha, Nao 硇 read nao 鐃, FE Tang ben cao. Sal ammoniac. Ammonium chloride. 【釋名】䃩砂音硇、狄鹽日華、北庭砂四聲、氣砂圖經、透骨將軍土宿。 【時珍曰】硇砂性毒,服之使人硇亂,故曰硇砂。狄人以當鹽食。土宿本 草云:硇性透物,五金藉之以爲先鋒,故號爲透骨將軍。【炳曰】生北庭 者爲上,人呼爲北庭砂。 Explanation of Names. Nao sha 䃩砂, read nao 硇; di yan 狄鹽, “salt from the region of the Di,” Rihua. Bei ting sha 北庭砂, “sand from Bei ting,” Si sheng. Qi sha 氣砂, “qi sand,” Tu jing. Tou gu jiang jun 透骨將軍, the “general who penetrates bones,” Tu su. [Li] Shizhen: Nao shao by its nature is poisonous. To ingest it lets one’s brain be chaotic. This is why it is called nao sha 硇砂, “brain sand.” The Di people consume it instead of salt. The Tu su ben cao states: “Nao [sha] by its nature penetrates items. 766 Da feng 大風, “massive wind,” may refer to sores caused by a massive intrusion of wind evil and also to conditions of leprosy. BCGM Dict I, 111.

Chapter 11

797

With its help, the five metals may be formed to have sharp edges. Hence it is called Tou gu jiang jun 透骨將軍, the ‘general who penetrates bones’.” [Xiao] Bing: “That from Bei ting is best. The people call it Bei ting sha 北庭砂, ‘sand from Bei ting’.” 【集解】【恭曰】硇砂出西戎,形如牙消,光净者良。【頌曰】今西凉夏 國及河東、陝西近邊州郡亦有之。然西戎來者顆塊光明,大者有如拳,重 三五兩,小者如指面,入藥最緊。邊界出者,雜碎如麻豆粒,又夾沙石, 用之須水飛,澄去土石訖,亦無力,彼人謂之氣砂。【時珍曰】硇砂亦消 石之類,乃鹵液所結,出于青海,與月華相射而生,附鹽而成質,虜人采 取淋鍊而成。狀如鹽塊,以白净者爲良。其性至透,用黝罐盛,懸火上則 常乾,或加乾薑同收亦良。若近冷及得濕,即化爲水,或滲失也。一統志 云:臨洮、蘭縣有洞出硇砂。張匡鄴行程記云:高昌 北庭山中,常有烟氣 涌起而無雲霧,至夕光焰若炬火,照見禽鼠皆赤色,謂之火焰山。采硇砂 者,乘木屐取之,若皮底即焦矣。北庭即今西域火州也。 Collected Explanations. [Su] Gong: Sal ammoniac originates in Xi rong. Its physical appearance resembles that of ya xiao 牙消, “teeth solver/mirabilite.” That which is shiny and clean is fine. [Su] Gong: Nowadays it is also found in Xi liang and Xia guo, and in the zhou and prefectures close to He dong and Shaan xi. But pieces from Xi rong are shiny and clear, with large pieces having the size of fists and weighing three to five liang. Small pieces resemble a finger tip. They are the ones sought to be added to medication. Those from the border regions are pieces of various sizes like hemp seeds or beans, and they include sand and stones. Before they can be used they must be processed with an aqueous sublimation so that all the dregs, consisting of soil and stones, can be eliminated. Also, they have no strength. The people there call them “qi sand.” [Li] Shizhen: Sal ammoniac belongs to the group of nitrokalite. It is a congealed bittern liquid. It originates in Qing hai. When [bittern liquid] is hit by moonlight [sal ammoniac] grows. It attaches itself to salt and becomes a solid substance matter. The Lu people collect it, pour [hot water on it] to refine it with heat and when it has formed it is shaped like salt. That which is white and clean is good. By its nature it is extremely penetrating. Fill it into a dark earthenware pot and hang it above a fire to keep it dry. Or add dry ginger to it for storage; this is good, too. Once it is exposed to cold and moisture it will transform to water, or [its qi] will evaporate and are lost. The Yi tong zhi states: “Sal ammoniac originates in caves in Lin tiao, in Lan xian.” Zhang Kuangye in his Xing cheng ju states: “In Gao chang, from within Mount Bei ting shan, fumes qi rise continuously but they are neither clouds nor fog. By night they shine and flame up like torches. All birds and rats/mice met by their light assume a red color; it is called ‘flaming mountain’. Those who collect sal ammoniac, they wear wooden shoes when they gather it. If

798

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

their shoes had leather soles, they would be scorched.” Bei ting is today’s Huo zhou in Xi yu. 【修治】【宗奭曰】凡用須水飛過,去塵穢,入瓷器中,重湯煮乾,則殺 其毒。【時珍曰】今時人多用水飛净,醋煮乾如霜,刮下用之。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Kou] Zongshi: For all [therapeutic] uses it must be processed with an aqueous sublimation to remove its impure parts. Then it is filled into a porcelain vessel where it is boiled in a hot water bath until it has dried. This will kill its poison. [Li] Shizhen: Nowadays, the people often clean it with an aqueous sublimation. They boil it in vinegar until it is dry like frost. Then they scrape it off and it can be used. 【氣味】鹹、苦、辛,温,有毒。【恭曰】不宜多服。柔金銀,可爲銲 藥。【權曰】酸、鹹、有大毒。能消五金八石,腐壞人腸胃。生食之,化 人心爲血。中其毒者,生緑豆研汁,飲一二升解之。畏漿水,忌羊血。【 大明曰】辛、酸,暖,無毒。畏一切酸。凡脩治,用黄丹、石灰作櫃, 煅赤使用,並無毒。世人自疑爛肉,而人被刀刃所傷,以之罨傅,當時 生痂。【藏器曰】其性大熱,服之有暴熱,損髮,云温者誤也。【抱朴子 曰】伏硇藥甚多:牡蠣、海螵蛸、晚蠶砂、羊𩩅骨、河豚魚膠、魚腥草、 蘿蔔、獨帚、卷柏、羊蹄、商陸、冬瓜、羊躑躅、蒼耳、烏梅。【斅曰】 硇遇赤鬚,汞留金鼎。 Qi and Flavor. Salty, bitter, acrid, warm, poisonous. [Su] Gong: It is not suitable to be taken in large quantities. It softens gold and silver. It can serve as a substance used in firmly connecting/soldering [items]. [Zhen] Quan: Sour, salty, very poisonous. It can dissolve the five metals and eight stones/minerals, and it destroys one’s intestines and stomach. Consumed raw it will transform the heart to blood. Those struck by its poison grind fresh mung beans to obtain their juice and drink one or two sheng to resolve it. [Ingested together,] it fears fermented water of foxtail millet. [During a treatment with sal ammoniac an ingestion of ] sheep blood is to be avoided. Da Ming: Acrid, sour, warm, nonpoisonous. [Ingested together,] it fears everything that is sour. For all pharmaceutical preparations [proceed as follows]. Make a box out of lead oxide and lime, [fill sal ammoniac into it and] calcine it until it is red. Then it can be used and will be nonpoisonous. It is commonly held that it destroys one’s flesh. However, when someone was harmed by a cut with a knife or sword, if [sal ammoniac] is applied to fully cover [the wound] scabs will grow immediately. [Chen] Cangqi: By its nature it is very hot. To ingest it results in a sudden sensation of heat. It damages the hair. When someone states that it is warm, that is a mistake. Baopu zi: There are very many [substances that are able] to subdue [the effects of ] sal ammoniac: Oyster shells, cuttlefish bones, silkworm feces, sheep tibia bones,

Chapter 11

799

globefish glue, houttuyina [herb and root], radish, kochia [fruit], selaginella [herb], rumex [root], phytolacca [root], winter melon, rhododendron [flower], xanthium stem and leaves, and smoked plums. [Lei] Xiao: When sal ammoniac is brought together with rushes, mercury will remain in a golden crucible. 【主治】積聚,破結血,止痛下氣,療欬嗽宿冷,去惡肉,生好肌,爛 胎。亦入驢馬藥用。唐本。主婦人丈夫羸瘦積病,血氣不調,腸鳴,食飲 不消,腰脚痛冷,痃癖痰飲,喉中結氣,反胃吐水,令人能食肥健。藏 器。除冷病。大益陽事。甄權。補水臟,煖子宫,消瘀血,宿食不消,食 肉飽脹,夜多小便,丈夫腰胯酸重,四肢不任,婦人血氣心疼,氣塊痃 癖及血崩帶下,惡瘡息肉。傅金瘡生肉。大明。去目瞖弩肉。宗奭。消肉 積。好古。治噎膈癥瘕,積痢骨哽,除痣黶疣贅。時珍。 Control. Accumulations and collections. It breaks through bound blood. It ends pain and discharges qi. It serves to heal cough and abiding cold. It eliminates malign flesh and lets good muscles grow. It destroys a fetus. It is also used as a veterinary medication for donkeys and horses. Tang ben. It controls accumulation diseases associated with emaciation of women and men, disharmony of blood and qi, intestinal sounds, failure to digest food and beverages, painful cold affecting lower back and legs, string-illness767 with aggregation-illness, bound qi768 in the throat, turned over stomach and vomiting of water. It lets one consume fat [meals] and gain strength. [Chen] Cangqi. It eliminates cold diseases. It massively boosts the yang affairs [i. e., male sexual potential]. Zhen Quan. It supplements the water long-term depot. It warms the womb. It dissolves stagnating blood and abiding food that fails to be digested, and [serves to cure abdominal] bloating because of overeating of meat, and increased urination during the night. [Further,] in males a sensation of soreness and heaviness in the lower back and hips, and a loss of sensation in the four limbs, and in women heart pain caused by blood and qi, string-illness769 and aggregation-illness associated with qi lumps as well as blood collapse770 from below the belt, malign sores and tumorous flesh growths. Applied to wounds caused by metal objects/weapons it generates flesh. Da Ming. It removes eye screens and tumorous flesh growths. [Kou] Zongshi. It dissolves accumulations of flesh. [Wang] Haogu. It serves to cure gullet occlusion and concretion-illness and aggregation illness, ac767 Xuan 痃, “string-illness,” is a condition of acute pain located in the abdomen to the left and right of the umbilicus. BCGM Dict I, 581. 768 Jie qi 結氣, “bound qi,” refers to pathological qi halting and congealing at any place in the human body. BCGM Dict I, 240. 769 Xuan 痃, “string-illness,” is a condition of acute pain located in the abdomen to the left and right of the umbilicus. BCGM Dict I, 581, 770 Xue beng 血崩, “blood collapse,” is excessive vaginal bleeding. BCGM Dict I, 594.

800

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

cumulation free-flux illness,771 and choking on bones. It eliminates black moles and wart redundancies. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【藏器曰】一飛爲酸砂,二飛爲伏翼,三飛爲定精,色如鵝兒 黄。入諸補藥爲丸,服之有暴熱。【頌曰】此藥近出唐世,而方書著古人 單服一味伏火作丸子,亦有兼硫黄、馬牙消輩合餌者,不知方出何時,殊 非古法。此物本攻積聚,熱而有毒,多服腐壞人腸胃,生用又能化人心爲 血,固非平居可餌者。而西土人用淹肉炙以當鹽,食之無害,蓋積習之 久,自不毒也。【宗奭曰】金銀有僞,投硇砂鍋中,僞物盡消化,况人腹 中有久積,豈不腐潰?【元素曰】硇砂破堅癖,不可獨用,須入群隊藥中 用之。【時珍曰】硇砂大熱有毒之物,噎膈反胃積塊内癥之病,用之則有 神功。蓋此疾皆起于七情飲食所致,痰氣鬱結,遂成有形,妨礙道路,吐 食痛脹,非此物化消,豈能去之?其性善爛金銀銅錫,庖人煮硬肉,入硇 砂少許即爛,可以類推矣。所謂化人心爲血者,亦甚言其不可多服爾。張 果玉洞要訣云:北庭砂秉陰石之氣,含陽毒之精,能化五金八石,去穢益 陽,其功甚著,力並硫黄。獨孤滔丹房鑑源云:硇砂性有大毒,爲五金之 賊,有沉冷之疾,則可服之,疾减便止,多服則成擁塞癰腫。二説甚明, 而唐 宋醫方乃有單服之法,蓋欲得其助陽以縱欲,而不虞其損陰以發禍 也。其方唐慎微已收附本草後,今亦存之。以備考者知警。 Explication. [Chen] Cangqi: Following a first sublimation it becomes “sour sand.” Following a second sublimation it becomes “subdued wings.” Following a third sublimation it becomes “stable essence.” Its color is the yellow of ducklings. It is added to all types of supplementing medication to be prepared as pills. When it is ingested it generates a sudden sensation of heat. [Su] Song: This medication has only recently come from the Tang era. In recipe books it is recorded that the ancients ingested one single substance with subdued fire, prepared to pills. It is also recorded that it has been consumed as a delicacy together with sulphur and ma yao xiao 馬 牙消/mirabilite. But it is not known from what time such recipes date. They were certainly not based on an ancient [therapeutic] method. This item basically serves to attack accumulations and concretions, associated with heat and poison. Ingested in large amounts it destroys one’s intestines and stomach, and used raw/unprocessed it can also turn a human heart into blood. So it’s definitely not something that you can eat every day as a delicacy! The people in the Western territories cover roasted meat with it instead of using salt. When this is eaten it does not cause any harm. This is because they have become used to it over a long period of time. Hence they are not poisoned. [Kou] Zongshi: When sal ammoniac is given together with fake gold and silver into a cauldron, the fake items will dissolve completely. How much 771 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

Chapter 11

801

more does this apply to accumulations in a person’s abdomen that have been there for a long time? Why should not they be rotted? [Zhang] Yuansu: Sal ammoniac breaks through hardenings and aggregation-illness. It must not be used as a single substance. To be used [for therapeutic purposes] it is to be added to a collective of further medication substances. [Li] Shizhen: Sal ammoniac is an item of great heat and poison. When it is used for diseases such as gullet occlusion, accumulation lumps, and internal concretion-illness, its application will have divine effects. The fact is, all these illnesses originate in one of the seven emotions, in beverages and food, with pent-up phlegm qi and nodes. They subsequently assume a physical appearance that blocks passageways, resulting in vomiting of food and painful distension. If [sal ammoniac] were not available to transform and dissolve [these blocks] which other [substance could be resorted to] to eliminate them? By its nature it is perfectly able to soften gold, silver, copper and tin. When a cook intends to boil hard meat, he will add a small amount of sal ammoniac and it will soften. From this one may conclude on its other abilities. When it is said that it transforms a human heart to blood, this is just to emphasize that it must not be ingested in large amounts. Zhang Gao in his Yu dong yao jue states: “Sal ammoniac holds the qi of yin stones/minerals and it includes the essence of yang poison. It is able to transform the five metals and the eight stones/minerals, to eliminate filth and to boost the yang [qi]. Its effects are very obvious; its strength is equal to that of sulphur.” Dugu Tao in his Dan fang jian yuan states: “By its nature, sal ammoniac is very poisonous. It is the enemy of the five metals. For illnesses of a deep-seated cold, it can be ingested. Once the illness decreases, stop [ingesting] it immediately. Ingested in large amounts it causes congestion and swelling associated with an obstruction-illness772.” These two statements are quite clear. Still, in medical recipes of the Tang and Song eras one also finds an approach to ingest it as a single substance. The fact is, this was to avail oneself of its potential to assist the yang [qi, i. e., male sexuality] to freely follow one’s lust, without concern for the harm done to the yin [qi] and subsequent calamities. This recipe has already been added by Tang Shenwei to his Ben cao work. It is also preserved here, so that it may be consulted as a warning.

772 Xuan 痃, “string-illness,” is a condition of acute pain located in the abdomen to the left and right of the umbilicus. BCGM Dict I, 581.

802

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 【附方】舊四,新二十四。 Added Recipes. Four of old. 24 newly [recorded].

服食法。硇砂丸:硇砂不計多少,入罐子内,上面更坐罐子一箇,紙筋白 土上下通泥了,晒乾。上面罐子内盛水,以蒼耳乾葉爲末,鋪頭蓋底,以 火燒之。火盡旋添火,水盡旋添水。從辰初起至戌一伏時,住火勿動,次 日取出,研,米醋麪糊和丸梧子大。每服四五丸,温酒或米飲下,並無 忌。久服進食無痰。經驗方。 The method to ingest [sal ammoniac] as food. The “sal ammoniac pills:” Fill any quantity of sal ammoniac into an earthenware pot and place a second earthenware pot on top of it. Join the upper and lower parts with paper cords and white soil to achieve a complete seal. Then fill the upper pot with water. [To begin with, grind] dry pueraria leaves to a powder and place a layer on the bottom and a layer on top [of the sal ammoniac in the lower pot]. Then heat it with a fire. When the fire has gone out, add new fire[wood]. When the water has left, add new water. This is to continue for an entire day from the chen 辰 hours (07:00 – 08:59) to the xu 戌 hours (19:00 – 20:59). When the fire has ended, do not move [the pots], and remove [sal ammoniac from the lower pot] only the next day. Grind it [to a powder] and with rice vinegar and dough prepare pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest four or five pills, to be sent down with warm wine or a rice beverage. There is nothing to be avoided [while ingesting them]. Ingested over a long time, they let one consume food without the generation of phlegm. Jing yan fang. 元臟虚冷,氣攻臍腹疼痛。用硇砂一兩,以纖霞草末二兩和匀,用小砂罐 不固濟,慢火燒赤,乃入硇在罐内,不蓋口,加頂火一秤,待火盡爐寒取 出。用川烏頭去皮臍,生研末二兩,和匀,湯浸蒸餅丸梧子大,每服三 丸,木香湯、醋湯任下,日一服。陳巽方。 Depletion cold affecting the original long-term depot (i. e., the kidneys), with navel and abdomen in pain because of a qi attack. Prepare an even mixture of one liang of sal ammoniac and two liang of xian xia cao773 powder. Then heat a small earthenware pot, without sealing it, above a slow fire until it has turned red and fill the sal ammoniac [mixture] into the pot. Do not close its opening. Add a top fire lit with one cheng [of charcoal], wait until the fire has gone out and the furnace has cooled down, and remove [the contents from the pot]. Grind two liang of unprocessed Sichuan aconitum [main tuber], with the skin and the navel removed, to a powder, and evenly mix it [with the contents of the pot]. Then prepare with steamed cakes that are soaked in hot water pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest three pills, 773 Xian xia cao 纎霞草一, an unidentifiable herb.

Chapter 11

803

to be sent down with an aucklandia [root] decoction, or a vinegar decoction. To be ingested once per day. Chen Xun fang. 腎臟積冷。氣攻心腹疼痛,面青足冷。硇砂二兩,桃仁一兩去皮,酒一小 盞,煎硇十餘沸,去砂石,入桃仁泥,旋旋煎成膏,蒸餅和丸梧子大,每 熱酒下二十丸。聖惠方。 Accumulation of cold in the kidney long-term depot. Painful heart and abdomen caused by a qi attack, with the face assuming a greenish complexion and cold feet. [Required are] two liang of sal ammoniac, one liang of peach seeds with their skin removed, and a small cup of wine. Boil the sal ammoniac to bubbling ten times, and remove all sand and stones. Add the peach seeds [ground to a] pulp, and boil this slowly until a paste has formed. This is to be prepared with steamed cakes to pills the size of wu seeds. Each time [ingest] 20 pills, to be sent down with hot wine. Sheng hui fang. 積年氣塊,臍腹痛疼。硇砂醋煮二兩,木瓜三枚切,須去瓤,入硇在内, 盌盛,于日中晒至瓜爛,研匀,以米醋五升,煎如稀餳,密收。用時旋以 附子末和丸梧子大,熱酒化下一丸。聖惠方。 Qi lumps that have formed in the course of years, with navel and abdominal pain. Boil two liang of sal ammoniac in vinegar, cut open three chaenomeles fruits, remove the internal pulp and fill them with the sal ammoniac. Put them into a bowl and expose them to the baking heat of the sun until the chaenomeles fruits have rotted. Then grind them to prepare an even mass and boil it in five sheng of rice vinegar until it resembles a thin solution of malt-sugar. Keep it stored firmly sealed. When it is to be used [for therapeutic purposes] prepare with aconitum [accessory tuber] powder pills the size of wu seeds and send down, dissolved in hot water, one pill. Sheng hui fang. 痃癖癥塊。硇砂丸:治痃癖癥塊,煖水臟,殺三蟲,婦人血氣,子宫冷。 臘月收桑條灰,淋去苦汁,日乾。每硇砂一兩,用水三兩,以水化硇,拌 灰,乾濕得所。以瓶盛灰半寸,入硇于内,以灰填蓋固濟,文武火煅赤, 冷定取出,研。以箕鋪紙三重,安藥于上,以熱水淋之,直待硇味盡即 止。以鉢盛汁,于熱灰火中養之,常令魚眼沸,待汁乾入瓶,再煅一食 頃,取出重研,以粟飯和丸緑豆大。每空心,酒下五丸,病去即止。聖惠 方。 String-illness,774 aggregation-illness, concretion-illness lumps. The “sal ammoniac pills:” They serve to cure string-illness, aggregation-illness and concretion-illness 774 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641.

804

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

lumps. They warm the water long-term depot (i. e., the kidneys). They kill the three types of worms/bugs. They [serve to cure illnesses of ] women caused by blood and qi, and a cold womb. Drip [hot water] over ashes of mulberry wood collected during the 12th month to remove their bitter juice and dry them in the sun. For each [preparation of sal ammoniac pills] transform one liang of sal ammoniac in three liang of water to a liquid and add enough [dried mulberry twig] ashes to generate a mixture that is between dry and moist. Then fill a jar with further ashes to build a layer of one half cun, add the sal ammoniac [mixture with the ashes] and cover it with additional ashes. Tightly seal the jar and calcine it, first with a mild then with a strong fire, until it has turned red. When it has cooled down again, remove [the contents] and grind [them to a powder]. Spread three layers of paper into a winnow basket and place the medication on top of it. Then pour hot water on it until the sal ammoniac has completely disappeared. Fill the juice into an earthen bowl and heat it with a fire nourished by hot ashes so that fish-eye bubbles appear. Once the juice has dried completely, fill it into a jar and calcine it again for as long as it takes to consume a meal. Remove [the contents] and grind them again [to a powder]. Prepare with cooked millet pills the size of mung beans. Each time send down on an empty stomach five pills. Stop [the treatment] when the disease is eliminated. Sheng hui fang. 噎膈反胃。鄧才雜興方用北庭砂二錢,水和蕎麥麪包之,煅焦,待冷,取 中間濕者,焙乾一錢,入檳榔二錢,丁香二箇,研匀。每服七厘,燒酒送 下,日三服,愈即止。後喫白粥半月,仍服助胃丸藥。 Gullet occlusion and turned over stomach. Deng Cai in his Za xing fang [recommends to] use two qian of sal ammoniac from Bei ting. Wrap them in dough prepared from a mixture of buckwheat and water. Calcine this until it is scorched, wait until it has cooled down and remove those parts from within its center that are still moist. Bake it until it has dried and grind one qian of it with two qian of areca [nut] and two cloves to an evenly mixed [powder]. Each time [let the patient] ingest seven li, to be sent down with brandy. To be ingested three times a day. Stop [the treatment] when a healing is achieved. Then [let the patient] eat a white rice porridge for half a month, and also let him take pills as a medicine to support the stomach. 孫天仁集效方用北庭砂二兩:一兩,用人言末一兩,同入罐内,文武火升 三炷香,取出,燈盞上末;一兩,以黄丹末一兩,同入罐内,如上法升 過,取末。用桑灰霜一兩,研匀。每服三分,燒酒下,愈即止。 Sun Tianren in his Ji xiao fang [recommends to] use two liang of sal ammoniac from Bei ting [and proceed as follows]. Fill one liang of it with one liang of arsenic

Chapter 11

805

into a jar. Heat it first with a mild and then with a strong fire for as long as three incense sticks require to burn down. Then remove [the contents] and [grind them] over an uncovered oil lamp to a powder. Give the second liang [of sal ammoniac from Bei ting] together with one liang of minium into a jar, [calcine and grind it] in the same way as [the jar mentioned] above. Grind [both] powders with one liang of mulberry twig ashes frost to an evenly mixed [powder]. Each time ingest three fen, to be sent down with brandy. Stop [the treatment] when a healing is achieved. 又方:平胃散各一錢,入硇砂、生薑各五分,爲末。沸湯點服二錢,當吐 出黑物如石,屢驗。 Another recipe. Add to one qian of the “powder to balance the stomach”775 five fen each of sal ammoniac and fresh ginger and [grind this to] a powder. Drip it into boiling hot water and [let the patient] ingest two qian. He will vomit black items resembling stones. This has proven effective several times. 一切積痢。靈砂丹:用硇砂、朱砂各二錢半,爲末,用黄蠟半兩,巴豆仁 三七粒去膜,同入石器内,重湯煮一伏時,候豆紫色爲度。去二七粒,止 將一七粒同二砂研匀,溶蠟和收。每旋丸緑豆大,或三丸、五丸,淡薑湯 下。本事方。 All types of accumulation free-flux illness.776 The “miraculous sand (09-06) elixir:” [Grind] two and a half qian each of sal ammoniac and cinnabar to a powder. Give this together with half a liang of yellow beeswax and three times seven croton [seeds], with their external membrane removed, into a stone vessel. Boil it in a hot water bath for one full day and night until the croton [seeds] have assumed a purple color. Remove two times seven of the [croton] seeds and grind them to a fine [powder]. Mix it with melted beeswax and store it [for later use]. For each application, prepare pills the size of mung beans, and send down either three pills or five pills with a bland ginger decoction. Ben shi fang. 月水不通。臍腹積聚疼痛,硇砂一兩,皂莢五挺,去皮子,剉爲末,以頭 醋一大盞,熬膏,入陳橘皮末三兩,搗三百杵,丸梧子大,每温酒下五 丸。聖惠方。 Blocked menstruation. For painful accumulations and collections in the navel and abdominal region, simmer one liang of sal ammoniac and five Chinese honeylocust fruits, with their skin removed and grated into powder, in a large bowl of top quality vinegar to a paste. Add three liang of tangerine peel. Pound this 300 times. Prepare 775 Ingredients of the “powder to balance the stomach” include: magnolia bark, ginger juice, tangerine peels, glycyrrhiza [root], atractylodes [rhizome], fresh ginger, and Chinese dates. 776 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

806

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

pills the size of wu seeds. Each time [let the patient] send down with warm wine five pills. Sheng hui fang. 死胎不下。硇砂、當歸各半兩,爲末,分作二服,温酒調下。如人行五 里,再一服。瑞竹堂方。 Failure to discharge a dead fetus. [Grind] half a liang each of sal ammoniac and angelica root to a powder and [let the woman] ingest it divided into two portions. The first portion is to be sent down mixed with warm wine. The second portion is to be ingested after the time it takes one to walk five li. Rui zhu tang fang. 喉痺口噤。硇砂、馬牙消等分,研匀,點之。聖濟方。 Throat closure and clenched jaw. Grind equal amounts of sal ammoniac and mirabilite to an evenly mixed [powder] and drip this [into the affected region]. Sheng ji fang. 懸癰卒腫。硇砂半兩,綿裹含之,嚥津即安。聖惠方。 Suspended obstruction illness with a sudden swelling. Wrap half a liang of sal ammoniac in a piece of silk and hold this in the mouth. Swallow the resulting liquid and [the illness] will be cured. Sheng hui fang. 牙齒腫痛。老鼠一箇去皮,以硇砂淹擦,三日肉爛化盡,取骨,瓦上焙 乾,爲末,入樟腦一錢,蟾酥二分,每以少許點牙根上,立止。孫氏集效 方。 Toothache with a swelling. Skin one rat/mouse and generously cover it with sal ammoniac. Within three days its meat will have rotted entirely. Remove the bones and slowly bake them on a tile until the are dry. [Grind them to] a powder. Add one qian of camphora and two fen of toad venom. For each [application] drip a small amount on the root of the affected teeth and [the pain] will end immediately. Sun shi, Ji xiao fang. 偏頭風痛。硇砂末一分,水潤豉心一分,搗丸皂子大,綿包露出一頭,隨 左右内鼻中,立效。聖惠方。 Hemilateral painful head wind.777 Pound one fen of sal ammoniac powder and one fen of moistened hearts of fermented beans [to a pulp and prepare] pills the size of gleditsia seeds. Wrap them in silk floss, leaving one end open, and stuff them into the left or right nostril depending on [which side of the head is affected]. Immediately effective. Sheng hui fang. 777 Tou feng 頭風, “head wind,” is wind evil attacking the head followed by pain, or dizziness, or itching. BCGM Dict I, 509.

Chapter 11

807

損目生瘀,赤肉弩出不退。杏仁百箇,蒸熟去皮尖研,濾取净汁,入硇砂 末一錢,水煮化,日點一二次,自落。普濟方。 Injured eye with stagnant [blood]. Red tumorous flesh growth that fails to recede. Steam 100 apricot kernels until they are done, remove their skin and ends and grind [them to a powder. Soak and] filter it to obtain a clear juice. Add one qian of sal ammoniac and boil it in water to let it fully transform. Drip [the resulting liquid into the affected eye] once or twice a day. [The flesh growth] will fall off as a result. Pu ji fang. 鼻中息肉。硇砂點之,即落。白飛霞方。 Tumorous flesh growths in the nose. Drip sal ammoniac on them and they will fall off. Bai Feixia fang. 鼻中毛出。晝夜可長一二尺,漸漸粗圓如繩,痛不可忍,摘去復生,此因 食猪羊血過多致生。用乳香、硇砂各一兩爲末,飯丸梧子大,每空心臨卧 各服十丸,水下,自然退落。夏子益奇疾方。 Hair coming out of the nose, with a growth of one to two chi during day and night. Gradually [the hair] becomes coarse and round like a rope, with an unbearable pain. Once it is removed it will grow again. Such a growth is stimulated by an excessive consumption of pig and sheep blood. [Grind] one liang each of frankincense and sal ammoniac to a powder and prepare with cooked rice pills the size of wu seeds. Each time on an empty stomach ingest ten pills at bedtime, to be sent down with water. As a result [the hair] will recede and fall off. Xia Ziqi qi fang. 魚骨哽咽。硇砂少許,嚼嚥立下。外臺秘要。 Choking on a fish bone. Chew a small amount of sal ammoniac and swallow [the resulting liquid. The fish bone] will be moved down immediately. Wai tai mi yao. 蚰蜒入耳。硇砂、膽礬等分爲末,每吹一字,蟲化爲水。聖濟録。 A centipede has entered one’s ear. [Grind] equal amounts of sal ammoniac and chalanthite to a powder. Each time blow one zi [into the affected ear]. The worm/ bug will be transformed to water. Sheng ji lu. 割甲侵肉久不瘥。硇砂、礬石爲末,裹之,以瘥爲度。外臺秘要。 Flesh deeply injured while cutting the nails, with no recovery. [Grind] sal ammoniac and alum to a powder and wrap [the injured finger] with it until a healing is achieved. Wai tai mi yao.

808

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

蠍蠆叮螫。水調硇砂塗之,立愈。千金方。 Scorpion sting. Mix sal ammoniac with water and apply it [to the affected region]. A healing will be achieved immediately. Qian jin fang. 代指腫痛。唾和白硇砂,以麪作盌子,套指入内,一日瘥。千金方。 Finger replacement778 with a painful swelling. Mix human saliva with white sal ammoniac and form with dough a basin. Insert your finger so that it is completely enclosed and healing is achieved within a day. Qian jin fang. 面上疣目。硇砂、硼砂、鐵鏽、麝香等分,研,搽三次自落。集效方。 Warts on the face. Grind equal amounts of sal ammoniac, borax, iron rust and musk [to a powder]. Apply this [to the warts] three times and they will fall off as a result. Ji xiao fang. 疔瘡腫毒。好硇砂、雄黄等分研,以銀篦挑破瘡口,擠去惡血,安藥一豆 入内,紙花貼住即效。毒氣入腹嘔吐者,服護心散。瑞竹堂方。 Pin-illness779 sores with swelling and poison. Grind equal amounts of good sal ammoniac and realgar [to a powder] and with a double-edged fine-tooth comb break open the sore. Squeeze it to remove malign blood, insert a soybean-size amount of the medication into [the opening] and cover it with a paper flower. This will result in the desired effect. When the poison qi has entered the abdomen, causing [the patient] to vomit, let him ingest the “powder to shield the heart/stomach.”780 Rui zhu tang fang. 疝氣卵腫,脹痛不可忍。念珠丸:用硇砂、乳香各二錢,黄蠟一兩,研溶 和丸,分作一百單八丸。以綿縫,露一夜,次日取出,蛤粉爲衣。每用一 丸,乳香湯吞下,日二服,取效。本事方。 Elevation-illness qi781 and swollen testicles, with an unbearably painful bloating. The “rosary pills.” Grind two qian each of sal ammoniac and frankincense [to a powder], dissolve it in one liang of yellow beeswax and prepare 108 pills. Leave them wrapped in silk floss in the open for one night, remove them and coat them with clamshell 778 Dai zhi 代指, “painful finger replacement.” A condition of sores developing at the margins of one’s fingernails with the edges being inflamed, swollen and painful. BCGM Dict I, 117. 779 Ding 丁, “pin[-illness],” also ding 疔, “pin-illness,” refers to a deep-reaching and festering hardness in a tissue, eventually rising above the skin like a pinhead. BCGM Dict I, 127129. 780 The ingredients of this powder are mung beans, prepared glycyrrhiza [root] and cinnabar. 781 Shan 疝, “elevation-illness,” and shan qi 疝氣, “elevation illness-qi.” A notion of a foreign item that has entered the scrotum, causes pain and may ascend and descend. BCGM Dict I, 419.

Chapter 11

809

powder. Each time use one pill, to be swallowed with a frankincense decoction. To be ingested twice a day until an effect is achieved. Ben shi fang. 諸勞久嗽。方見獸部下。 All types of exhaustion associated with long-lasting cough. For recipes see “animal section.” 11-13 蓬砂日華 Peng sha, FE Ri hua. Borax. Sodium borate. 【釋名】鵬砂日華、盆砂。【時珍曰】名義未解。一作硼砂。或云:鍊出 盆中結成,爲之盆砂,如盆消之義也。 Explanation of Names. Peng sha 鵬砂, “roc bird sand,” Rihua. Pen sha 盆砂, “tub sand.” [Li] Shizhen: The meaning of these names is not clear. It is also written peng sha 硼砂. It is said: [Borax] is generated through a refinement with heat in a “tub,” pen 盆, whereby a “tub sand,” pen sha 盆砂, is formed. This is comparable to the meaning of the name “xiao/solvent from a tub,” pen xiao 盆消. 【集解】【頌曰】硼砂出南海,其狀甚光瑩,亦有極大塊者。諸方稀用, 可銲金銀。【宗奭曰】南番者,色重褐,其味和,入藥其效速。西戎者, 其色白,其味焦,入藥其功緩。【時珍曰】硼砂生西南番,有黄白二種。 西者白如明礬,南者黄如桃膠,皆是鍊結成,如硇砂之類。西者柔物去 垢,殺五金,與消石同功,與砒石相得也。 Collected Explanations. [Su] Song: Borax originates in Nan hai. It has a very shiny, lustrous appearance, and it may be found in extremely large pieces. In recipes it is rarely resorted to; it can be used to firmly connect gold and silver. [Kou] Zongshi: [Borax] from Nan fan is dark brown and has an agreeable flavor. Added to medication it exerts fast effects. That from Xi rong is of white color and has a scorched flavor. Added to medication its effects are slow. [Li] Shizhen: Borax grows in Xi nan fan. It occurs in two kinds, yellow and white. That from the West is white like alum. That from the South is yellow like peach resin. Both [kinds] are produced by means of a refinement with heat, similar to the various types of sal ammoniac. That from the West softens items and removes dirt. It kills the five metals and has the same [therapeutic] potential as nitrokalite. When brought together with arsenic, its effects are strengthened.

810

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【氣味】苦、辛,暖,無毒。【頌曰】温、平。【時珍曰】甘、微鹹, 凉,無毒。【獨孤滔曰】制汞,啞銅,結砂子。【土宿真君曰】知母、鵝 不食草、蕓薹、紫蘇、甑帶、何首烏皆能伏硼砂。同砒石煅過,有變化。 Qi and Flavor. Bitter, acrid, warm, nonpoisonous. [Su] Song: Warm, balanced. [Li] Shizhen: Sweet, slightly salty, cool, nonpoisonous. Dugu Tao: It checks [the effects of ] mercury. It darkens the shine of copper. It conglomerates to sand. Tu su zhen jun: Anemarrhena root, small centipeda [herb], oil rape, perilla, cattail mat in a steamer and polygonum [root] are able to subdue [the effects of ] borax. Calcined with arsenic it undergoes change and transformation. 【主治】消痰止嗽,破瘕結喉痺。大明。上焦痰熱,生津液,去口氣,消 障瞖,除噎膈反胃,積塊結瘀肉,陰㿉,骨哽,惡瘡及口齒諸病。時珍。 Control. It dissolves phlegm and ends cough. It breaks through conglomeration-illness and nodular [collections, associated with] throat blockage. Da Ming. [It serves to cure] phlegm heat in the Upper Burner. It generates body liquids, removes [malodorous] mouth qi, dissolves eye shades and screens, and eliminates gullet occlusion and turned over stomach, as well as accumulations, nodular [collections] and excess flesh. [It serves to cure] yin (i. e., scrotal) prominence-illness,782 choking on a bone, malign sores and all types of diseases affecting the mouth and the teeth. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【頌曰】今醫家用硼砂治咽喉,最爲要切。【宗奭曰】含化嚥 津,治喉中腫痛,膈上痰熱。初覺便治,不能成喉痺,亦緩取效可也。【 時珍曰】硼砂,味甘微鹹而氣凉,色白而質輕,故能去胸膈上焦之熱。素 問云熱淫于内,治以鹹寒,以甘緩之是也。其性能柔五金而去垢膩,故治 噎膈積聚、骨哽結核、惡肉陰㿉用之者,取其柔物也;治痰熱、眼目障瞖 用之者,取其去垢也。洪邁夷堅志云:鄱陽 汪友良,因食誤吞一骨,哽 于咽中,百計不下。恍惚夢一朱衣人曰:惟南蓬砂最妙。遂取一塊含化嚥 汁,脱然而失。此軟堅之徵也。日華言其苦辛暖,誤矣。 Explication. [Su] Song: The physicians of today use borax to cure [diseases of ] the throat; it is indispensable. [Kou] Zongshi: To hold it in the mouth and to swallow the [resulting] liquid serves to cure painful swelling in the throat, and phlegm heat above the diaphragm. When a treatment is initiated at the earliest moment of one’s feeling [such illnesses], it will not cause a throat blockage; it will have mild effects. [Li] Shizhen: The flavor of borax is sweet and slightly salty, and its qi are cold. Its color is white and its substance matter is of light weight. Hence it is able to elem782 Yin tui 陰㿉, “yin prominence-illness,” refers to local swelling and pain affecting a male’s private parts. BCGM Dict I, 637.

Chapter 11

811

inate heat from the Upper Burner in the chest and diaphragm region. The Su wen correctly states: “If heat has encroached upon the interior, this is cured with salty [flavor] and cold [qi]. Use sweet [flavor] to relax it.”783 By its nature it is able to soften the five metals and to remove dirt. Hence when it is resorted to to cure gullet occlusion, accumulation and collection, choking on bones and nodular kernels, malign flesh and yin (i. e., scrotal) prominence-illness,784 one makes use of its ability to soften items. When it is resorted to to cure phlegm heat and shades and screens in the eyes, one makes use of its ability to remove dirt. Hong Mai in his Yi jian zhi states: “Wang Youliang of Bo yang inadvertently swallowed a bone that got stuck in his throat. A hundred plans were made, but they failed to send it down. Then he dreamed of a person in a red dress telling him: Only southern borax will exert a wondrous effect. Hence he obtained a piece, held it in his mouth and swallowed the resulting liquid. [The bone] vanished without causing him any further problems.” This is proof of [borax’ potential of ] softening hardenings. When Rihua says: “It is bitter, acrid and warm,” he is wrong. 【附方】新十四。 鼻血不止。硼砂一錢,水服立止。集簡方。 Unending nosebleed. Ingest one qian of borax with water, and it will stop immediately. Ji jian fang. 勞瘵有蟲。硼砂、硇砂、兔屎等分爲末,蜜丸梧子大,每服七丸,生甘草 一分,新水一鍾,揉汁送下。自朔至望,五更時,令病人勿言,服之。乾 坤秘韞。 Exhaustion consumption with worms/bugs. [Grind] equal amounts of borax, sal ammoniac and hare/rabbit droppings to a powder and prepare with honey pills the size of wu seeds. Each time [let the patient] ingest seven pills. They are to be rubbed together with one fen of fresh glycyrrhiza [root] in one cup of fresh water, and the resulting juice is used to send them down. To be ingested from the first to the 15th day of the month, in the early morning. The patient must not speak a word. Qian kun mi yun.

783 This is not an exact quote. Su wen 74 has: “If wind has encroached upon the interior, … use sweet [flavor] to relax it. If heat has encroached upon the interor, this is cured with salty [flavor] and cold [qi].“ 784 Yin tui 陰㿉, “yin prominence-illness,” refers to local swelling and pain affecting a male’s private parts. BCGM Dict I, 637.

812

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

木舌腫强。硼砂末,生薑片蘸揩,少時即消。普濟方。 Swollen, stiff wooden tongue.785 Dip a piece of fresh ginger into borax and wipe [the tongue] with it. [The swelling] will have dissolved within a short time. Pu ji fang. 咽喉穀賊,腫痛。蓬砂、牙消等分爲末,蜜和半錢,含嚥。直指方。 Grain intrusion786 into the throat, with a painful swelling. [Grind] equal amounts of borax and ya xiao/mirabilite to a powder. Mix half a qian of it with honey. Hold this in the mouth and swallow [the resulting liquid]. Zhi zhi fang. 咽喉腫痛。破棺丹:用蓬砂、白梅等分,搗丸芡子大,每噙化一丸。經驗 方。 Painful swelling in the throat. The “elixir breaking a coffin:” Pound equal amounts of borax and pickled plums [to a paste] and prepare pills the size of qian seeds. Each time hold one pill in the mouth and [swallow the liquid resulting from its] transformation. Jing yan fang. 喉痺牙疳。盆砂末吹,並擦之。集簡方。 Throat blockage and dental gan-illness.787 Blow borax powder [into the affected throat] and also rub [the teeth] with it. Ji jian fang. 骨哽在咽。方見發明。 Choking in the throat on a bone. For a recipe, see “Explication.” 小兒陰㿉,腫大不消。硼砂一分,水研塗之,大有效。集玄方。 Yin (i. e., scrotal) prominence-illness788 of children, with a large swelling that fails to dissolve. Rub one fen of borax in water and apply it [to the affected region]. Very effective. Ji xuan fang. 飲酒不醉。先服盆砂二錢,妙。相感志。 To avoid intoxication when drinking wine. First ingest two qian of borax. Wondrous. Xiang gan zhi. 785 Mu she 木舌, “wooden tongue,” indicates a massively swollen tongue, filling the entire oral cavity, accompanied by a wood-like hardening. BCGM Dict I, 344. 786 Gu zei 穀賊, “grain intrusion.” A condition of swelling and pain in the gullet resulting from an inadvertent ingestion of awns or spikes of cereals. BCGM Dict I, 196. 787 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188. 788 Yin tui 陰㿉, “yin prominence-illness,” refers to local swelling and pain affecting a male’s private parts.

Chapter 11

813

飲食毒物。鵬砂四兩,甘草四兩,真香油一斤,瓶内浸之。遇有毒者,服 油一小盞。久浸尤佳。瑞竹堂經驗方。 Poisonous beverages and food. Soak four liang of borax and four liang of glycyrrhiza [root] in one jin of genuine sesame oil in a jar. Once you are affected by poisonous [beverages and food] ingest a small cup of the oil. The longer the soaking has lasted, the better [the effects]. Rui zhu tang jing yan fang. 一切惡瘡。方同上。 All types of malign sores. Recipe identical to the one above. 弩肉瘀突。南鵬砂黄色者一錢,片腦少許,研末,燈草蘸點之。直指方。 Tumorous flesh growth with stagnating [blood] protrusion. Grind one qian of yellow southern borax and a small amount of borneol to a powder and drip this with a piece of common rushes on [the affected region]. Zhi zhi fang. 【附録】 Appendix 11-13-A01 特蓬殺789拾遺。Te peng sha, FE Shi yi. Special borax 【藏器曰】味苦,寒,無毒。主折傷内損瘀血煩悶欲死者,酒消服之。南 人毒箭中人及深山大蝮中人,速將病者頂上十字剺之,出血水,藥末傅 之,並傅傷處,當上下出黄水數升,則悶解。俚人重之,以竹筒盛帶于 腰,以防毒箭。亦主惡瘡、熱毒、癰腫、赤白遊風、瘻蝕等瘡,並水和傅 之。出賀州山内石上,似碎石,硇砂之類。 [Chen] Cangqi: Flavor bitter, cold, nonpoisonous. To control fracture harm, internal injuries, residual blood, unrest and heart-pressure to the extent that one wishes to die, [patients are to] ingest it dissolved in wine. If someone was struck by a poison arrow of the Southerners or by a large venomous snake deep in the mountains, cut with a knife a cross into the skin on the top of the patient’s head, let blood flow out and apply a powder of this medication to it. Also, apply [the medication] to the location harmed. This will cause a release of several sheng of yellow water from above and below, and the heart-pressure will be resolved. The common people highly value it. They fill a bamboo tube with it and carry it on their waist to prevent 789 According to the table of contents preceding this juan, two items should be discussed in an appendix following the entry on borax, i. e., te peng sha 特蓬殺 and shi yao 石藥. However, this appendix does not include a text associated with te peng sha 特蓬殺 and it fails to mention the name shi yao 石藥.

814

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

being harmed by poison arrows. Also, to control malign sores, heat poison, obstruction-illness790 swelling, red and white roaming wind,791 as well as sores such as fistula and erosion, mix it with water and apply it [to the affected region]. It originates in He zhou where it occurs on rocks in the mountains. It resembles broken stones and sal ammoniac. 11-14 石硫黄本經中品 Shi liu huang, FE Ben jing, middle rank. Sulphur. Natural yellow sulphur. 【釋名】硫黄吴普、黄硇砂藥性、黄牙、陽侯綱目、將軍。【時珍曰】硫 黄秉純陽火石之精氣而結成,性質通流,色賦中黄,故名流黄。含其猛 毒,爲七十二石之將,故藥品中號爲將軍。外家謂之陽侯,亦曰黄牙,又 曰黄硇砂。 Explanation of Names. Liu huang 硫黄, Wu Pu. Huang nao sha 黄硇砂, “yellow sal ammoniac,” Yao xing. Huang ya 黄牙, “yellow teeth,” yang hou 陽侯, “yang lord,” Gang mu. Jiang jun 將軍, “general.” [Li] Shizhen: Sulphur forms endowed with the essence qi of pure yang fire stones. By its nature its substance matter is able to both penetrate and flow, liu 流. It has a yellow, huang 黄, color throughout. Hence its name liu huang 流黄, “flowing yellow.” It includes a violent poison and acts as a general among the 72 types of stones/minerals. Hence among medications it is assigned the rank of “general,” jiang jun 將軍. The experts of external [alchemy] call it “yang lord,” yang hou 陽侯, and also “yellow teeth,” huang ya 黄牙. They also speak of “yellow sal ammoniac,” huang nao sha 黄硇砂。 【集解】【别録曰】石流黄生東海 牧羊山谷中,及太山、河西山,礬石液 也。【普曰】或生易陽,或生河西,或五色。黄是潘水石液也。燒令有紫 焰,八月、九月采。【弘景曰】東海郡屬北徐州,而箕山亦有。今第一出 扶南 林邑,色如鵝子初出殻者,名崑崙黄。次出外國。從蜀中來,色深而 煌煌。此云礬石液。今南方則無礬石,恐不必爾。【珣曰】廣州記云:生 崑崙國及波斯國西方明之境,顆塊瑩净,不夾石者良。蜀中 雅州亦出之, 光膩甚好,功力不及舶上來者。【頌曰】今惟出南海諸番。嶺外州郡或有 而不甚佳。鵝黄者名崑崙黄,赤色者名石亭脂,青色者名冬結石,半白半 黑者名神驚石,並不堪入藥。又有一種水流黄,出廣南及資州,溪澗水中 790 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641. 791 You feng 遊風, “roaming wind,” Roaming and sudden pain and itching brought about by wind evil. BCGM Dict I, 645.

Chapter 11

815

流出,以茅收取熬出,號真珠黄,氣腥臭。止入瘡藥,亦可煎鍊成汁,以 模寫作器,亦如鵝子黄色。【時珍曰】凡産石流黄之處,必有温泉,作流 黄氣。魏書云:悦盤國有火山,山旁皆焦溶,流數十里乃凝堅,即石流黄 也。張華博物志云:西域硫黄出且彌山。去高昌八百里,有山高數十丈, 晝則孔中狀如煙,夜則如燈光。庚辛玉册云:流黄有二種。石流黄,生南 海 琉球山中;土流黄,生于廣南。以嚼之無聲者爲佳,舶上倭流黄亦佳。 今人用配消石作烽燧烟火,爲軍中要物。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Sulphur grows in the valleys of Mount Mu yang in Donghai, and on Mount Tai shan and Mount He xi shan. It is an alum liquid. [Wu] Pu: It grows in Yi yang and in He xi, and it may appear in any of the five colors. Yellow [sulphur] is a mineral liquid from Pan shui. When heated it releases purple fumes. It is collected in the eighth and ninth month. [Tao] Hongjing: It is also found in Bei xu zhou which belongs to the Dong hai prefecture, and also on Mount Qi shan. Today, the best quality originates in Lin yi, in Fu nan. Its color is that of goslings that have just left their shell. It is called “Kun lun yellow.” Next in quality is [sulphur] imported from abroad. [Sulphur] coming from Shu zhong is of a deep and brilliant [yellow] color; it is called “alum liquid.” Nowadays, there is no alum in the South; hence this is not necessarily correct. [Li] Xun: The Guang zhou ji states: “It grows in the Western regions of Kun lun guo and in western Po si guo/Persia.”792 It comes as shiny chunks, and does not include stone impurities. It also originates in Ya zhou of Shu zhong, where it is shiny, greasy and very good. However, its [therapeutic] potential is not equal to that of imported [sulphur]. [Su] Song: Nowadays it originates only in all the foreign lands of Nan hai. It is sometimes found in the zhou and prefectures of Ling wai, but is not very fine. [Sulphur] as yellow as goslings is called “Kun lun yellow.” That of red color is called “red pavillion fat.” That of greenish color is called “stone condensing in winter.” That which is half white and half black is called “spirit fright stone.” None of them is added to medication. There is yet another variety, the “water sulphur.” It originates in Guang nan and Zi zhou where it is taken out of the flowing water of mountain rivulets. It is retrieved [from the water] by boiling it with couch grass. It is called “genuine pearl yellow.” Its qi are fishy and malodorous. It is used only for medication intended to cure sores, and it can also be refined with heat to generate a juice. It is made to utensils for creating design patterns. It, too, is as yellow as goslings. [Li] Shizhen: All places where sulphur is brought forth inevitably also have warm springs generating sulphur qi. The Wei shu states: “In Yue ban guo is a volcano. Once the slopes of 792 The original quote in Li Xun’s Hai yao ben cao is: 生昆侖日脚下, “it grows in the region of sunset behind the mountains of Kun lun.” Li Shizhen changed ri jiao 日脚, “sunset behind the mountains,” to 波斯國西方明, “where the [sun] light is seen [last] in the West of Po si/Persia.”

816

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

this mountain burned and melted and flowed down tens of li before they congealed and hardened. This was sulphur.” Zhang Hua in his Bo wu zhi states: “The sulphur from western regions originates in Mount Qie mi shan, which is 800 li away from Gao chang. There are mountains there that are tens of zhang high. During daytime it appeares as if smoke came out of their holes; during the night it looks as if there were lamplights.” The Gen xin yu ce states: “There are two kinds of sulphur. Stone sulphur grows in the mountains of Liu qiu in Nan hai. Soil sulphur grows in Guang nan. That is fine which does not release sounds when it is chewed. That imported from Japan is fine, too. Today, the people combine it with nitrokalite to make smoke and fire on beacon towers. It is an important item for the military.” 【修治】【斅曰】凡使勿用青赤色及半白半青、半赤半黑者。自有黄色, 内瑩凈似物命者,貴也。凡用四兩,先以龍尾蒿自然汁一鎰,東流水三 鎰,紫背天葵汁一鎰,粟遂子莖汁一鎰,四件合之,攪令匀。入坩鍋内, 用六乙泥固濟底下,將流黄碎之,入鍋中,以前汁旋旋添入,火煮汁盡爲 度。再以百部末十兩,柳蚛末二斤,一簇草二斤,細剉,以東流水同流黄 煮二伏時。取出,去諸藥,用熟甘草湯洗了,入鉢研二萬匝用。【時珍 曰】凡用流黄,入丸散用,須以蘿蔔剜空,入流在内,合定,稻糠火煨 熟,去其臭氣。以紫背浮萍同煮過,消其火毒。以皂莢湯淘之,去其黑 漿。一法:打碎,以絹袋盛,用無灰酒煮三伏時用。又消石能化流爲水, 以竹筒盛流埋馬糞中一月亦成水,名流黄液。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. [Lei] Xiao: For all [medicinal] applications, do not use greenish and red [sulphur], and also half white, half greenish, and half red, half black [kinds]. Only those are precious that are of yellow color and that inside are lustrous and clean as if they were items endowed with life. For each [preparation] take four liang [of such yellow sulphur]. First evenly mix one yi of the natural juice of long wei hao,793 three yi of water flowing eastward, one yi of the juice of purple back malva [herb], and one yi of the juice of stems of su sui zi.794 Firmly seal the bottom of a crucible with six-and-yi-mud.795 Break the sulphur into small pieces and give them into the crucible. Slowly add the aforementioned juice and heat [the crucible] above a fire until all the juice has vanished. Then boil ten liang of stemona 793 Long wei hao 龍尾蒿, botanically unidentifiable herb. 794 Su sui zi 粟遂子, botanically unidentifiable herb. 795 Liu yi ni 六乙泥, “six-and-yi-mud,” is an alternative name of earthworm dung. It is also a preparation used by ancient alchemists to seal a crucible lest the qi of an elixir seep out. A recipe reads: “Mix ten jin each of realgar water (xiong huang shui 雄黄水), alum water (fan shi shui 矾石水), halite (rong yan 戎鹽), bittern salt (lu yan 鹵鹽], alum (fan shi 矾 石), oyster shells ( mu li 牡蠣), red stone fat (chi shi zhi 赤石脂), talc (hua shi 滑石) and lead carbonate (hu fen 胡粉) to prepare the six-and-yi-mud.”

Chapter 11

817

[root] powder, two jin of willow tree moth powder, and two jin of yi zu cao,796 finely cut, together with water flowing eastward and the sulphur for two full days. Remove [the sulphur] and discard all the remaining pharmaceutical substances. Wash [the sulphur] with a decoction of prepared glycyrrhiza [root], give it into an earthen bowl, grind it 20 000 times in a circle, and [store it for later] use. [Li] Shizhen: For all usages of sulphur in pills and powders, carve a hollow space into a radish and fill the sulphur into it. Firmly close it and slowly cook it above a rice chaff fire until it is done. This will remove its malodorous qi. After being cooked with purple back duck meat, its fire poison is resolved. Then wash it in a gleditsia [seed] decoction and discard the black sauce. Another method: Break [the sulphur] into small pieces, fill them into a silk bag and boil this in ash-free wine for three full days to [prepare the sulphur for medicinal] use. Also, nitrokalite is able to transform sulphur to water. Further, fill a bamboo tube with sulphur and bury it in horse dung for one month. This will also transform it to water. It is called “sulphur liquid.” 【氣味】酸,温,有毒。【别録曰】大熱。【普曰】神農、黄帝、雷公: 鹹,有毒。醫和、扁鵲:苦、無毒。【權曰】有大毒,以黑錫煎湯解之, 及食冷猪血。【珣曰】人能制伏歸本色,服之能除百病。如有發動,宜猪 肉、鴨羹、餘甘子湯並解之。【葛洪曰】四黄惟陽侯爲尊,金石煅煉者不 可用,惟草木制伏者堪入藥用。桑灰、益母、紫荷、波薐、天鹽、桑白 皮、地骨皮、車前、馬鞭草、黄蘗、烏首烏、石葦、蕎麥、獨帚、地榆、 蛇牀、兔絲、蓖麻、蠶砂,或灰或汁,皆可伏之。【之才曰】曾青爲之 使,畏細辛、飛廉、朴消、鐵、醋。【玄壽先生曰】硫是礬之液,礬是鐵 之精,慈石是鐵之母。故鐵砂、慈石制伏流黄,立成紫粉。【獨孤滔曰】 流能乾汞,見五金而黑,得水銀則色赤也。 Qi and Flavor. Sour, warm, poisonous. Bie lu: Very hot. [Wu] Pu: Shen nong, Huang di, Lei gong: Salty, poisonous. Yi He, Bian Que: Bitter, nonpoisonous. [Zhen] Quan: Very poisonous. When it is boiled with lead [the poison] is resolved. Also, [the poison is resolved] when it is consumed together with cold pig blood. [Li] Xun: One can check and subdue [its poisonous effects] and reduce it to its original characteristics. Ingesting such [a preparation] enables one to eliminate all the hundreds of diseases. All [undesired] effects will be resolved by pork, duck meat soup and a phyllanthus fruit decoction. Ge Hong: Among the four [substances with the character] “yellow” [in their name], sulphur is the only one venerated. It must not be used calcined and smelted with metals and minerals. Only after [its effects] are checked and subdued with herbs and wooden substances, it may be added to medication. Either the ashes or the juice of the following substances are able to subdue 796 Yi zu cao 一簇草, a Daoist designation of a botanically unidentifiable herb.

818

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

the [undesired effects of sulphur]: Mulberry ashes, motherwort fruit, purple lotus leaves, spinacia [herb], celestial salt,797 mulberry [root bark], lycium root bark, plantago [herb], verbena, phellodendron bark, wu shou wu,798 pyrrosia [leaf ], buckwheat, kochia [fruit], sanguisorba root, cnidium seed, cuscuta [seed], castor, and silkworm feces. [Xu] Zhicai: Malachite serves as its guiding substance. [Ingested together,] it fears asarum heteropoides root, carduus [root], po xiao mirabilite, iron and vinegar. The Gentleman of Mysterious Longevity: Sulphur is liquid alum. Alum is the essence of iron. Magnetide is the mother of iron. Hence, iron sand and magnetide are able to check and subdue sulphur and let it immediately become a purple powder. Dugu Tao: Sulphur can dry mercury. When the five metals are exposed to it, they turn black. When it is brought into contact with mercury it assumes a red color. 【主治】婦人陰蝕,疽痔惡血,堅筋骨,除頭秃。能化金銀銅鐵奇物。本 經。療心腹積聚,邪氣在脇,欬逆上氣,脚冷疼弱無力,及鼻衄,惡瘡, 下部𧏾瘡,止血,殺疥蟲。别録。治婦人血結。吴普。下氣,治腰腎久 冷,除冷風頑痺,寒熱。生用治疥癬,鍊服主虚損泄精。甄權。壯陽道, 補筋骨勞損,風勞氣,止嗽,殺臟蟲邪魅。大明。長肌膚,益氣力,老人 風秘,並宜鍊服。李珣。主虚寒久痢,滑泄霍亂,補命門不足,陽氣暴 絶,陰毒傷寒,小兒慢驚。時珍。 Control. Erosion in the yin (i. e., genital region) of females, impediment-illness,799 piles and malign blood. It hardens sinews and bones. It removes baldness. It is able to transform gold, silver, copper, iron and some strange items. Ben jing. It serves to heal accumulations and collections in the heart and abdominal region, cold aggregation-illness of evil qi in the flanks, cough with counterflow of rising qi, cold, painful and weak legs, as well as nosebleed, malign sores, and hidden worm/bug sores in the lower parts [of the body]. It serves to cure long-lasting cold affecting the lower back and the kidneys, and removes cold wind associated with stubborn blockage, and alternating cold and heat sensations. Applied raw it serves to cure jie-illness800 and xuan-illness,801 Ingested refined with heat it controls depletion injury and free797 A white, salt-like powder found on the leaves of Chinese gall nut trees, yan fu zi 鹽麩子. 798 Wu shou wu 烏首烏 was changed to he shou wu 何首烏 in the Jiangxi edition. However, since this is a quote from the work of Ge Hong (283-343), wu shou wu 烏首烏 is an unlikely writing error. He shou wu 何首烏 was introduced into Chinese materia medica by Li Ao only during the Tang dynasty. 799 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277. 800 Jie-illness 疥癬, vaguely defined skin ailment. BCGM Dict I, 249. 801 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591.

Chapter 11

819

flow of essence/sperm. Zhen Quan. It boosts the yang path (i. e., male sexuality) and supplements sinews and bones affected by exhaustion injury, as well as wind exhaustion qi. It ends cough and kills worms/bugs and evil goblins in the long-term depots. Da Ming. To extend muscles and skin, to boost the strength of qi, and [to cure] wind closure802 of old persons it is advisable to ingest [sulphur] refined with heat. Li Xun. It controls depletion cold with a long-lasting free-flux illness,803 and smooth outflow cholera. It boosts insufficient gate of life [qi], and [serves to cure] a sudden cut off of the flow of yang qi. [It controls] harm caused by cold associated with yin poison, as well as chronic fright of children. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【弘景曰】俗方用治脚弱及痼冷甚效。仙經頗用之,所化奇物, 並是黄白術及合丹法。【頌曰】古方未有服餌流黄者。本經所用,止于治 瘡蝕,攻積聚、冷氣脚弱等,而近世遂火鍊治爲常服丸散。觀其冶鍊服 食之法,殊無本源,非若乳石之有論議節度。故服之其效雖緊,而其患 更速,可不戒之?土流黄辛熱腥臭,止可治疥殺蟲,不可服。【宗奭曰】 今人治下元虚冷,元氣將絶,久患寒泄,脾胃虚弱,垂命欲盡,服之無不 效。中病當便已,不可盡劑。世人蓋知用而爲福,而不知其爲禍,此物 損益兼行故也。如病勢危急,可加丸數服,少則不效,仍加附子、乾薑、 桂。【好古曰】如太白丹、來復丹,皆用流黄佐以消石,至陽佐以至陰, 與仲景白通湯佐以人尿、猪膽汁大意相同。所以治内傷生冷、外冒暑熱、 霍亂諸病,能去格拒之寒,兼有伏陽,不得不爾。如無伏陽,只是陰證, 更不必以陰藥佐之,何也?流黄亦號將軍,功能破邪歸正,返滯還清, 挺出陽精,消陰化魄。【時珍曰】流黄秉純陽之精,賦大熱之性,能補命 門真火不足,且其性雖熱而疏利大腸,又與躁濇者不同,蓋亦救危妙藥 也。但鍊制久服,則有偏勝之害。况服食者,又皆假此縱欲,自速其咎, 于藥何責焉?按孫升談圃云:流黄,神仙藥也。每歲三伏日餌百粒,去臟 腑積滯有驗。但流黄伏生于石下,陽氣溶液凝結而就,其性大熱,火鍊服 之,多發背疽。方勺泊宅編云:金液丹乃流黄鍊成,純陽之物,有痼冷者 所宜。今夏至人多服之,反爲大患。韓退之作文戒服食,而晚年服硫黄而 死,可不戒乎?夏英公有冷病,服流黄、鍾乳,莫之紀極,竟以壽終,此 其禀受與人異也。洪邁夷堅志云:唐與正亦知醫,能以意治疾。吴巡檢病 不得溲,卧則微通,立則不能涓滴,遍用通利藥不效。唐問其平日自制黑 錫丹常服,因悟曰:此必結砂時,硫飛去,鉛不死。鉛砂入膀胱,卧則偏 重猶可溲,立則正塞水道,故不通。取金液丹三百粒,分爲十服,煎瞿麥 湯下。鉛得流氣則化,累累水道下,病遂愈。流之化鉛,載在經方,苟無 通變,豈能臻妙?類編云:仁和縣一吏,早衰,齒落不已。一道人令以生 802 Feng bi 風秘, “wind closure,” identical with bian bi 便秘, “constipation,” brought about by intestinal and stomach dryness and a depletion of body liquids. BCGM Dict I, 158. 803 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

820

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

硫黄入猪臟中煮熟搗丸,或入蒸餅丸梧子大,隨意服之。飲啖倍常,步履 輕捷,年踰九十,猶康健。後醉食牛血,遂洞泄如金水,尪悴而死。内醫 官管範云:猪肪能制硫黄,此用猪臟尤妙。王樞使亦常服之。 Explication. [Tao] Hongjing: It is used in vulgar recipes with great success to cure weak legs and obstinacy-illness cold.804 In the classics of hermits/immortals it is said “to be used to transform strange items,” and it is associated with the “yellow (gold) and white (silver) arts” and with methods to prepare [longevity] elixirs. [Su] Song: The intake of sulphur as a special diet is not suggested in ancient recipes. Its use [recommended] in the Ben jing is limited to curing sores and erosion, and to attack accumulation and collection, cold qi and leg weakness. But in more recent times it is regularly ingested following a refinement with fire for curative purposes as pills and powders. All the methods to prepare [sulphur] through a refinement with heat and to ingest it instead of ordinary meals lack a thorough foundation. This is different from [the intake of ] stalactites which is based on good reason and follows certain restrictions. Hence, to ingest [sulphur] may exert definite effects, but a suffering will follow even faster. Should one not be cautious? Soil sulphur is acrid, hot and fishy malodorous, It only serves, [applied externally,] to cure jie-illness805 and to kill worms/bugs. It must not be ingested. [Kou] Zongshi: Nowadays the people ingest it, always successfully, to cure depletion cold affecting the original [qi] in the lower [body parts], an imminent interruption [of the flow] of the original qi, long-lasting suffering from cold outflow, and depletion weakness of spleen and stomach, with life about to end. Once the disease is struck, the [therapy] must end immediately, and a [prescribed] dose must not be ingested entirely. The fact is, the common people know about the blessings associated with the use of [sulphur]; but they are not aware of its disastrous consequences. This is so because this item combines injury and benefit. When the strength of a disease has reached a dangerous state and is acute, it may be added to pills and several of them may be ingested. If only a small number [of pills is taken], this will remain without effects. Also, add aconitum [accessory tuber], dried ginger and cinnamom bark. [Wang] Haogu: For example, the “major white elixir” and the “elixir to [let life] return,” they both use sulphur assisted by nitrokalite. That is, extreme yang is assisted by extreme yin. This is identical to the most impressive idea underlying [Zhang] Zhongjing’s “penetrating decoction with onions” that is assisted by human urine and pig bile. Hence, to cure internal harm caused by fresh and cold [food], external adverse affects by summerheat and hot [items], and cholera, all such diseases, [sulphur] is able to cure barriers caused by 804 Gu leng 痼冷, “obstinacy-illness cold,” a condition cold evil abiding deep in the body for an extended period of time. BCGM Dict I, 195. 805 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely identifiable skin ailment. BCGM Dict Vol. I, 249.

Chapter 11

821

cold, and if at the same time [this is a condition of ] subdued yang, this will be [the treatment] of choice. However, if there is no subdued yang, and if [the patient] only has signs of a yin [condition], this must not be further supported by yin medication! Why? Because sulphur is also called “general.” It is able to break down evil [qi] and let the proper [qi] return; to push out sluggishness and let clarity come back. It stimulates a release of yang essence, dissolves yin [qi] and transforms the po-soul. [Li] Shizhen: Sulphur is the essence of pure yang; it is endowed with a nature of massive heat. It is able to supplement insufficient genuine fire in the gate of life. In addition, even though by its nature it is hot, it nevertheless is able to free the passage through the large intestine, and it differs from [substances with] drying and roughening [effects]. Hence, it, too, is a wondrous medication for rescuing one in critical situations. Still, if ingested refined with heat, and with its [effects] checked, it causes harm of a one-sided excess. How much more will those who ingest it instead of proper meals, and who rely on it to give in to their [sexual] desires, speed up their demise! How could this be blamed on the medication?! According to the Sun Sheng tan pu, “sulphur is a divine medication of hermits/immortals. If one each year during the three ten-day periods of the hottest season consumes as food one hundred [sulphur] kernels, it has proven effective to eliminate from the long-term depots and short-term repositories accumulations and sluggishness. However, sulphur grows hidden underneath rocks. It is generated by yang qi that have melted to a liquid and later congealed again. It is of a very hot nature. If ingested following a refinement with heat over a fire, it often causes outbreaks of impediment-illness806 on the back.” Fang Shao in his Bo zhai bian states: “The ‘gold liquid elixir’ is prepared, by means of a refinement with heat, from sulphur. It is an item of pure yang. It is suitable for [a condition of ] stubborn cold.” Nowadays, the people often ingest it at the time of Summer Solstice, and contrary to their expectations, it causes massive suffering. Han Tui wrote an essay to warn against ingesting [elixirs] instead of ordinary meals. But in his late years he ingested sulphur and died. Is this not a warning?! Duke Xia of Ying suffered from a cold disease. He never stopped to ingest sulphur and stalactites, and he lived a long life. This is just to show that the endowments of humans differ. Hong Mai in his Yi jian zhi states: “Tang Yuzheng also knew medicine and when he cured an illness this was based on thoughtful consideration. Wu Xunjian suffered from an inability to urinate. Lying, he urinated a small amount; standing, he could not even let go of a tiny drop. All kinds of medication designed to clear the passage [of his urine] remained without effect. He told Tang [Yuzheng] that he himself every day prepared a ‘black tin elixir’ and continously ingested it. [Tang 806 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277.

822

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Yuzheng] then understood [the problem] and said: This must be as follows. When [the elixir is prepared with heat and] the sand congeals, the sulphur flies away and the lead remains present. The lead sand enters the bladder. When you lie down the heavy weight [of the lead] moves to one side [of the bladder] and this allows urination. When you stand, [the lead sand] fully blocks the waterway, and hence the [urine] cannot pass. He then took 300 pills of the ‘golden liquid elixir’ and separated them into ten doses to be sent down with a dianthus [herb] decoction. Once the lead was affected by the sulphur qi it transformed [to a liquid] and was gradually discharged through the waterway. As a result, the disease was cured. The faculty of sulphur to transform lead is recorded in the recipes of the classic scriptures. But if one does not understand how to adapt that faculty to a real situation, how could such miraculous effects be achieved?” The Lei bian states: “A clerk in Ren he xian decayed early in his life and lost all his teeth. A Daoist ordered unprepared sulphur to be filled into a pig’s stomach, to boil it until done, grind it [to a pulp] and prepare pills. And he also had [the sulphur] stuffed into steamed cakes and prepared pills the size of wu seeds. [The patient] ingested them just as he wished. He then drank and ate more than usual and he was able to walk easily and quickly. When he turned 90, he was still healthy. Later he drank wine to intoxication and consumed ox blood. As a result he developed an outflow resembling golden water. He was crippled, turned haggard and died. The imperial physician Guan Fan stated: Pig fat can check sulphur. Here now [the sulphur was stuffed into] a pig’s stomach. This was even more wondrous! Military Affairs Commissioner Wang also regularly ingested it.”

【附方】舊八,新四十一。 Added Recipes. Eight of old. 41 newly [recorded]. 硫黄盃。此盃配合造化,調理陰陽,奪天地冲和之氣,乃水火既濟之方。 不冷不熱,不緩不急,有延年却老之功,脱胎换骨之妙。大能清上實下, 升降陰陽。通九竅,殺九蟲,除夢泄,悦容顔,解頭風,開胸膈,化痰 涎,明耳目,潤肌膚,添精髓,蠲疝墜。又治婦人血海枯寒,赤白帶下。 其法用瓷盌以胡桃擦過,用無砂石流黄生溶成汁,入明礬少許,則塵垢悉 浮,以杖掠去,綿濾過,再入盌溶化,傾入盃内,盪成盃,取出,埋土中 一夜,木賊打光用之。欲紅入朱砂,欲青則入葡萄,研匀同煮成。每用熱 酒二盃,清早空心温服,則百病皆除,無出此方也。 The “sulphur cup.” This cup comprises natural creation. It regulates yin and yang. It captures the vigorous and the harmonious qi between heaven and earth. This is a recipe combining the benefits of water and fire. It is neither cold nor hot, neither slow nor hectic. It has the faculty of extending life and eliminating aging. Its won-

Chapter 11

823

drous [effects] let one be reborn. It is massively able to clear the upper and to fill the lower [body parts], to send down and let descend yin and yang [qi]. It penetrates the nine orifices, kills the nine types of worms/bugs, ends outflow [of essence/sperm] while dreaming, lets one have a happy complexion, resolves head wind,807 opens the chest and the diaphragm, transforms phlegm and saliva, clears the ears and the eyes, moistens muscles and skin, boosts essence and marrow, and cancels elevation-illness808 and descent [of testicles]. Also, it serves to cure withering and cold affecting the sea of blood of women, and red and white discharge from below the belt. The method [to prepare it is as follows]. Wipe [the inside of ] a porcelain bowl with walnuts. Then melt to a juice sulphur that is free of sand and stone impurities. Add a small amount of alum. Remove all the dirt floating on the surface with a stick, and filter [the liquid] through a piece of silk. Then melt it again in a bowl and pour it into a cup. Shake it [to wet the entire inner surface] where it congeals and assumes the shape of the cup. Remove it and bury it in soil for one night. Then polish it with scouring rush. If it shall be red, add cinnabar. If it shall be greenish, add grapes. Grind [the drug] with [these items], boil them and [the medication] is ready made. Each time fill two cups with hot wine and ingest it warm in the early morning on an empty stomach. As a result, all the hundreds of diseases will be eliminated. There is nothing that could surpass this recipe. 紫霞盃。葉石林水雲録云:用流黄袋盛,懸罐内,以紫背浮萍同水煮之 數十沸取出,候乾研末。十兩,用珍珠、琥珀、乳香、雄黄、朱砂、羊 起石、赤石脂、片腦、紫粉、白芷、甘松、三柰、木香、血竭、没藥、韶 腦、安息香各一錢,麝香七分,金薄二十片,爲末,入銅杓中,慢火溶 化。以好樣酒盃一箇,周圍以粉紙包裹,中開一孔,傾硫入内,旋轉令 匀,投冷水中取出。每旦盛酒飲二三盃,功同上方。昔中書劉景輝因遘勞 瘵,于太白山中遇一老仙,親授是方,服之果愈。人能清心寡欲而服此, 仙緣可到也。 The “purple morning glow cup.” Ye Shilin in his Shui yun lu states: Fill sulphur into a bag and hang it into a jar. Boil it to bubbling several tens of times with purple back ducksmeat and water, and then take it out again. Wait until it has dried and grind it to a powder. [Grind] ten liang of it to a powder with one qian each of genuine pearls, amber, frankincense, orpiment, cinnabar, actinolite, red halloysite, borneol, prepared calomel, angelica [root], nardostachys [root], Kaempheria [rhizome], auck807 Tou feng 頭風, “head wind,” is wind evil attacking the head followed by pain, or dizziness, or itching. BCGM Dict I, 509. 808 Shan 疝, “elevation-illness,” and shan qi 疝氣, “elevation illness-qi.” A notion of a foreign item that has entered the scrotum, causes pain and may ascend and descend. BCGM Dict I, 419.

824

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

landia [root], dragon blood, myrrh, camphora, benzoin, and musk and 20 pieces of gold foil. Give [the powder] into a copper ladle and heat it with a slow fire to let it melt and transform. Take a nicely shaped wine cup, wrap it with rice paper all around, leaving only an opening in the middle. Now pour the [liquid] sulphur into it and rotate it to let it evenly [wet the surface]. Then toss [the cup] into cold water and remove [the hardened form from within the cup]. Every morning fill it with wine and drink two or three cups. The [therapeutic] potential is identical to that of the previous recipe. Once Liu Jinghui, official in the Secretariat, unexpectedly suffered from exhaustion consumption. On Mount Tai bai he met an old hermit/ immortal who gave him this recipe. He ingested it and was cured. When someone is able to clear his heart and suppress his desires and ingests this [medication], he can almost achieve the status of a hermit/immortal. 金液丹。固真氣,暖丹田,堅筋骨,壯陽道。除久寒痼冷,補勞傷虚損。 治男子腰腎久冷,心腹積聚,脇下冷痛,腹中諸蟲,失精遺尿,形羸力 劣,腰膝痛弱,冷風頑痺,上氣衄血,欬逆寒熱,霍亂轉筋,虚滑下利。 又治痔瘻濕𧏾生瘡,下血不止,及婦人血結寒熱,陰蝕疽痔等。用石流 黄十兩研细,用瓷盒盛,以水和赤石脂封口,鹽泥固濟,日乾。地内先埋 一小罐,盛水令滿,安盒在内,用泥固濟。慢火養七日七夜,候足,加頂 火一斤煅,俟冷取出研末。每一兩,用蒸餅一兩,水浸爲丸如梧子大。每 服三十丸至百丸,空心米飲服。又治傷寒身冷脉微,或吐或利,或自汗不 止,或小便不禁,併宜服之,得身熱脉出爲度。惠民和劑局方。 The “golden liquid elixir.” It solidifies the genuine qi. It warms the cinnabar field. It strengthens sinews and bones. It boosts the yang path (i. e., male sexuality). It removes long lasting obstinacy-illness cold809 with a sensation of cold. It supplements exhaustion harm and depletion injury. It serves to cure long-lasting cold affecting the lower back and the kidneys, accumulations and collections in the heart and abdominal region, cold pain below the flanks, all types of worms/bugs in the abdomen, loss of essence/sperm and involuntary urination, emaciation of the physical appearance and weakened strength, painful weakness affecting the lower back and the knees, cold wind and stubborn blockage, rising qi with nosebleed, cough and [qi] countermovement with alternating cold and heat sensations, cholera and contorted sinews, as well as smooth discharge and free-flow with a condition of depletion. Also, it serves to cure piles fistula with moisture and hidden worms/bugs causing sores, unending discharge of blood, bound blood with alternating cold and

809 Gu leng 痼冷, “obstinacy-illness cold,” a condition cold evil abiding deep in the body for an extended period of time. BCGM Dict I, 195

Chapter 11

825

heat sensations, erosions in the yin [(i. e., genital) region], impediment-illness,810 and piles. Grind ten liang of stone/mineral sulphur to a fine [powder] and fill it into a porcelain box. Prepare a mixture of water and red halloysite and seal the opening [of the box] with it. Then firmly enclose [the entire box] with salt mud. Let it dry under the sun. First bury in the ground a small jar, filled with water. Place the box into it and firmly seal it with mud. Heat it with a slow fire for seven days and seven nights. Then add one jin of fire on top [of the jar] and calcine it. Wait for it to cool, remove [the contents] and grind them to a powder. Each time soak one liang [of this powder] and one liang of steamed cakes in water and prepare pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest between 30 and 100 pills, to be ingested on an empty stomach with a rice beverage. Also, to cure harm caused by cold, with a cold body and a weak [movement in the] vessels, sometimes associated with vomiting, sometimes with a free-flow, or with an unending spontaneous sweating, or with uncontrolled urination, for all these conditions it is advisable to ingest this [elixir] until the body has become hot and the [movement in the] vessels has reappeared. Hui min he ji ju fang. 煖益腰膝。王方平通靈玉粉散:治腰膝,煖水臟,益顔色,其功不可具 載。流黄半斤,桑柴灰五斗,淋取汁,煮三伏時。以鐵匙抄于火上試之, 伏火即止。候乾,以大火煅之。如未伏更煮,以伏爲度。煅了研末。穿地 坑一尺二寸,投水于中,待水清,取和硫末,坩鍋内煎如膏。鐵錢抄出, 細研,飯丸麻子大。每空心鹽湯下十丸,極有效驗。鄉人王昭遂服之,年 九十,顔貌如童子,力倍常人。杜光庭玉函方。 To warm and boost lower back and knees. “Wang Fangping’s jade powder corresponding with the numinous:” It serves to cure lower back and knees, warms the water long-term depot, and boosts the complexion. Its [therapeutic] faculties are innumerable. Pour [hot water] on one jin of sulphur and five dou of mulberry wood ashes and take the juice. Boil it for three full days. To test it, hold it with an iron spoon above the fire. If it subdues the fire end [the boiling]. Wait until it has dried and calcine it with a strong fire. If [the fire] is not subdued boil it again until [it is able to] subdue [the fire]. Following the calcination, grind it to a powder. Dig a pit into the earth, one chi and two cun deep, and pour water into it. Wait until the water has cleared. Remove it and mix it with the sulphur powder. Give it into a crucible and boil it until it has turned into a paste. Remove it with an iron coin and grind it to a fine [powder]. Prepare with cooked rice pills the size of hemp seeds. Each time on an empty stomach send down ten pills with a salt decoction. It is extremely 810 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277.

826

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

effective. Wang Zhao, a fellow villager, ingested it. When he turned 90 his complexion and his appearance were those of a boy. His strength was several times that of ordinary people. Du Guangting, Yu han fang. 風毒脚氣痺弱。流黄末三兩,牛乳五升,煮沸入水,煎至三升,每服三合。 Wind poison leg qi,811 with blockage and weakness. Boil three liang of sulphur powder in five sheng of cow milk. When it bubbles add water. Boil it down to three sheng. Each time ingest three ge. 又法:牛乳三升,煎一升半,以五合調硫黄末一兩服,厚蓋取汗,勿見 風。未汗再服,將息調理數日,更服。北人用此多效。亦可煎爲丸服。肘 後方。 Another recipe. Boil three sheng of cow milk down to one sheng and a half. Blend five ge [of the milk] with one liang of sulphur powder and [let the patient] ingest this. Cover him with a thick blanket to induce sweating, and see to it that he is not exposed to wind. If he fails to sweat, let him ingest [the medication] again. Let him rest to recuperate for several days, before he ingests another [dose]. The people in the North have successfully used [this medication] many times. It is also possible to boil it and ingest it as pills. Zhou hou fang. 陰證傷寒,極冷厥逆,煩躁腹痛,無脉危甚者。舶上流黄爲末,艾湯服三 錢,就得睡,汗出而愈。本事方。 Harm caused by cold with yin signs, when a very critical condition has emerged with a sensation of extreme cold, recession and countermovement, unrest, restlessness and abdominal pain, and no [movement palpable in the] vessels. Grind sulphur imported from overseas to a powder and [let the patient] ingest with a common mugwort [leaf ] decoction three qian. Then let him sleep. Once he sweats he will be cured. Ben shi fang. 陰陽二毒。黑龍丹:用舶上流黄一兩,柳木搥研二三日,巴豆一兩,和 殻,計箇數,用二升鐺子一口,將硫鋪底,安豆于上,以釅米醋半斤澆 之,盞子緊合定,醋紙固縫,頻以醋潤之。文武火熬,候豆作聲,可一半 爲度,急將鐺子離火,便入臼中搗細。再以醋兩茶脚洗鐺中藥入臼,旋下 蒸餅搗丸鷄頭子大。若是陰毒,用椒四十九粒,葱白二莖,水一盞,煎六 分。熱吞下一丸。陽毒,用豆豉四十九粒,葱白一莖,水一盞,煎同前, 吞下不得嚼破。經五六日方可服之。若未傳入,或未及日數,不可拘制。 有孕婦人吐瀉,亦可服。博濟方。 811 Jiao qi 脚氣, “leg qi,” refers to painful and weak legs. They may be swollen, or dried up and emaciated. In serious cases the functioning of the heart and spleen is impaired. BCGM Dict I, 248.

Chapter 11

827

For both yin and yang poison.812 The “black dragon elixir:” Grind with a willow wood pestle one liang of sulphur imported from overseas for two to three days. Take one liang of croton [seeds] with their shells, and count their number. Then take a shallow pan of two sheng and cover the bottom with the sulphur. Place the croton [seeds] on top of it. Add half a jin of a strong rice vinegar and heat it. Place a cup [above the pan] and with vinegar and paper firmly seal it. Repeatedly moisten it with vinegar. Simmer it with a mild fire first and with a strong fire later on. Wait until at least half of the croton [seeds] have [opened with a cracking] sound and quickly remove the pan from the fire. Give [its contents] into a mortar and pound it to a fine [pulp]. Again use vinegar and two portions of tea ground to wash the medication in the pan and give it into the mortar. Pound it together with steamed cakes and prepare pills the size of euryale seeds. If this is a case of yin poison, boil 49 pepper grains and two onion stalks in one small cup of water down to 60% and [let the patient] swallow one pill with this hot [liquid]. If it is a case of yang poison,813 boil 49 fermented soybeans with one onion stalk in one small cup of water and proceed the same way as described above. [The pill] is sent down without chewing and breaking it open. After five, six days it can be ingested again. If [the first dose] has not shown an effect, and if the required number of days [prior to a second ingestion] has not passed yet, do not resort to it again. When a pregnant woman vomits and has outflow, she may ingest it, too. Bo ji fang. 一切冷氣,積塊作痛。流黄、焰消各四兩結砂,青皮、陳皮各四兩,爲 末,糊丸梧子大,每空心米飲下三十丸。鮑氏方。 All kinds of cold qi that have accumulated to chunks and cause pain. [Grind] four liang each of sulphur and nitrokalite, congealed to sand, and four liang each of unripe tangerine peel and [ripe] tangerine peel to a powder and prepare with dough pills the size of wu seeds. Each time send down 30 pills on an empty stomach with a rice beverage. Bao shi fang. 元臟久冷,腹痛虚泄,裏急。玉粉丹:用生流黄五兩,青鹽一兩,細研, 以蒸餅丸緑豆大,每服五丸,空心熱酒下,以食壓之。經驗方。 Cold that has affected the kidneys for a long time, with abdominal pain, depletion and outflow, and internal spasm. The “jade powder elixir:” Grind five liang of fresh sulphur and one liang of halite to a fine [powder] and prepare with steamed cakes pills the size of mung beans. Each time ingest five pills, to be sent down on an 812 Yin yang [er] du 陰陽[二]毒, “yin and yang poison.” Harm caused by cold resulting in a flourishing of only yang qi and a diminution of yin qi.” BCGM Dict I, 639. 813 Yang du 陽毒, “yang poison,” is harm caused by cold resulting in a flourishing of yang qi and a diminution of yin qi. BCGM Dict I, 616.

828

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

empty stomach with hot wine. In addition consume a meal to press it down. Jing yan fang. 元臟冷泄,腹痛虚極。硫黄一兩,黄蠟化丸梧子大,每服五丸,新汲水 下。一加青鹽二錢,蒸餅和丸,酒下。普濟方。 Cold kidneys with outflow, with abdominal pain and an extreme depletion. Transform one liang of sulphur in yellow beeswax and prepare pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest five pills, to be sent down with newly drawn water. Another [recipe] adds two qian of halite, mixes it with steamed cakes to prepare pills and has them sent down with wine. Pu ji fang. 氣虚暴泄,日夜三二十行,腹痛不止。夏月路行,備急最妙。朝真丹:用 流黄二兩,枯礬半兩,研細。水浸蒸餅丸梧子大,朱砂爲衣,每服十五丸 至二十丸,温水下,鹽湯任下。孫尚藥秘寶方。 Qi depletion with a sudden outflow, 20 to 30 times during day and night, with unending abdominal pain. This is a wondrous [medication] during the summer months for urgent cases on the way. The “elixir facing the true [qi].” Grind two liang of sulphur and half a liang of alum to a fine [powder] and prepare with steamed cakes soaked in water pills the size of wu seeds, to be coated with cinnabar. Each time ingest 15 to 20 pills, to be sent down with warm water, or to be sent down with a salt decoction as preferred. Sun Shangyao, Mi bao fang. 伏暑傷冷,二氣交錯,中脘痞結,或泄或嘔,或霍亂厥逆。二氣丹:流 黄、消石等分研末,石器炒成沙814,再研,糯米糊丸梧子大,每服四十丸, 新井水下。濟生方。 Hidden summerheat and harm caused by cold, with the two qi [of heat and cold] intermingling, causing obstacle-illness815 nodes in the central [stomach] duct, sometimes with outflow, sometimes with vomiting, sometimes with cholera and recession with counterflow. The “elixir for two [kinds of ] qi.” Grind equal amounts of sulphur and nitrokalite to a powder, fry it in a stoneware vessel to let it congeal to sand, grind it again and prepare with a glutinous rice paste pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest 40 pills, to be sent down with fresh water from a well. Ji sheng fang.

814 Ji shen fang, “section all kinds of summerheat,” Zhu shu men 諸暑門, has the original wording of Shi qi chao cheng sha 石器炒成沙: “fry it in a silver or stoneware vessel with a mild [first] and violent fire [later] until it has assumed the color of goose yellow,” Yu yin shi qi nei wen wu huo shang chao ling e huang se 於銀石器内文武火上炒令鵝黄色. 815 Pi 痞, “obstacle-illness,” a feeling of uncomfortable fullness and distension. BCGM Dict I, 371.

Chapter 11

829

傷暑吐瀉。流黄、滑石等分爲末,每服一錢,米飲下,即止。救急良方。 Vomiting and outflow associated with harm caused by summerheat. [Grind] equal amounts of sulphur and talc to a powder. Each time ingest one qian, to be sent down with a rice beverage. This will end [the disease]. Jiu ji liang fang. 霍亂吐瀉。流黄一兩,胡椒五錢,爲末,黄蠟一兩化,丸皂子大,每凉水 下一丸。聖濟録。 Cholera with vomiting and outflow. [Grind] one liang of sulphur and five qian of black pepper to a powder. Transform it in one liang of yellow beeswax and form pills the size of gleditsia seeds. Each time ingest with cold water one pill. Sheng ji lu. 小兒吐瀉。不拘冷熱,驚吐反胃,一切吐利,諸治不效者。二氣散:用流 黄半兩,水銀二錢半,研不見星。每服一字至半錢,生薑水調下,其吐立 止。或同炒結砂爲丸,方見靈砂下。錢氏小兒方。 Vomiting and outflow of children, regardless of whether this is because of cold or heat; also: vomiting because of fright and turned over stomach, and all types of vomiting and free-flow when all therapies have remained unsuccessful. The “powder for the two qi:” Grind half a liang of sulphur and two and a half qian of mercury to an even mixture without any [mercury] sparkles visible any longer. Each time [let the patient] ingest from one zi up to half a qian, to be sent down mixed with fresh ginger and water. The vomiting will end immediately. Or fry [all ingredients] together to let them conglomerate to a sand and prepare pills. For this recipe, see [the entry] “miraculous sand” (09-06). 反胃嘔吐。方見水銀。 Turned over stomach and vomiting. For a recipe, see [the entry] “mercury” (09-02). 脾虚下白。脾胃虚冷,停水滯氣,凝成白涕下出。舶上流黄一兩研末,炒 麪一分同研,滴冷熱水丸梧子大,每米湯下五十丸。楊子建護命方。 Spleen depletion and white discharge. Spleen and stomach depletion cold, with stagnating water and sluggish qi congealing to a white mucus that is then discharged. Grind one liang of sulphur imported from overseas to a powder. Then grind it together with one fen of fried wheat flour. Drip cold and hot water [on the powder] and prepare pills the size of wu seeds. Each time send down with a rice decoction 50 pills. Yang Zijian, Hu ming fang.

830

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

下痢虚寒。流黄半兩,蓖麻仁七箇,爲末,填臍中,以衣隔,熱湯熨之, 止乃已。仁存方。 Discharge with free-flux illness816 associated with depletion cold. [Grind] half a liang of sulphur and seven castor kernels to a powder. Place it on the [patient’s] navel, cover it with a garment and exert pressure on it with hot water. Stop [the treatment] once [the discharge] ends. Rencun fang. 協熱下痢赤白。用流黄、蛤粉等分,爲末,糊丸梧子大,每服十五丸,米 飲下。指南方。 Heat associated with a red and white discharge and free-flux illness. [Grind] equal amounts of sulphur and clam shells to a powder and prepare with a paste pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest 15 pills, to be sent down with a rice beverage. Zhi nan fang. 腸風下血。方見鯽魚。 Intestinal wind with blood discharge. For a recipe, see [the entry] “crucian carp” (44-18). 老人冷秘,風秘或泄瀉。煖元臟,除積冷,温脾胃,進飲食,治心腹一切 痃癖冷氣。流黄柳木槌研細,半夏湯泡七次焙研,等分,生薑自然汁調蒸 餅,和杵百下,丸梧子大,每服十五丸至二十丸,空心温酒或薑湯下,婦 人醋湯下。和劑局方。 Cold constipation, wind constipation, sometimes with outflow, of old persons. [This recipe serves to] warm the kidneys. It removes cold accumulations, warms the spleen and the stomach, supports the intake of beverages and food, and serves to cure all types of string-illness817 and aggregation-illness associated with cold qi affecting heart and abdomen. Mix equal amounts of sulphur. ground with a willow wood pestle to a fine [powder], and pinellia [root], boiled to bubbling seven times, baked over a slow fire and ground, with steamed cakes mixed with the juice of fresh ginger, and pound this with a pestle one hundred times. Prepare pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest 15 to 20 pills, to be sent down on an empty stomach with warm wine or ginger decoction. Women send it down with a vinegar decoction. He ji ju fang. 久瘧不止。鮑氏方:用硫黄、朱砂等分,爲末,每服二錢,臘茶清,發日 五更服。當日或大作,或不作,皆其效也。寒多倍硫,熱多倍砂。 816 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 817 Xuan 痃, “string-illness,” is a condition of acute pain located in the abdomen to the left and right of the umbilicus. BCGM Dict I, 581,

Chapter 11

831

Long-lasting and unending malaria. Bao shi fang: [Grind] equal amounts of sulphur and cinnabar to a powder. Each time, on the day of an [expected] outbreak, [let the patient] ingest two qian with clear la tea818 in the early morning. If on that same day a massive outbreak occurs, or no outbreak at all, this is evidence of the effects [of this recipe]. If [the patient] senses increased cold, double [the amount of ] sulphur. If he senses increased heat, double [the amount of ] cinnabar. 朱氏方用硫黄、臘茶,等分爲末。發日早冷水服二錢,服效。寒多加硫, 熱多加茶。 Zhu shi fang [recommends to grind] equal amounts of sulphur and la tea819 to a powder and [let the patient] on the day of an [expected] outbreak ingest with cold water two qian in the early morning. To be ingested [for as long as it takes] to show an effect. If [the patient] senses increased cold, add sulphur. If he senses increased heat, add tea. 酒鼈氣鼈。嗜酒任氣,血凝于氣,則爲氣鼈。嗜酒痼冷,敗血入酒,則爲 血鼈。摇頭掉尾,大者如鼈,小者如錢。上侵人喉,下蝕人肛,或附脇 背,或隱腸腹。用生流黄末,老酒調下,常服之。直指方。 Wine turtle; qi turtle. When someone indulges in wine and gives in to his emotions, blood coagulates to qi, and “qi turtles” form. When someone indulges in wine and is affected by obstinacy-illness cold,820 and when his decayed blood is entered by the wine, “wine turtles” form. They shake their heads and wag their tails. Large ones resemble turtles; small ones are like coins. They rise to enter the throat, or they descend and cause erosion in the anus. Or they attach themselves to the ribs and to the spine, or they hide in the intestines in the abdomen. Raw sulphur powder sent down mixed with old wine is to be ingested continuously. Zhi zhi fang. 欬逆打呃。流黄燒烟,嗅之立止。醫方摘要。 Cough with counterflow and hiccough. Heat sulphur and inhale the fumes. [Cough and hiccough] will end immediately. Yi fang zhai yao. 頭痛頭風。如神丹:光明流黄、消石各一兩,細研,水丸芡子大。空心嚼 一丸,茶下。普濟方。

818 La tea, la cha 臘茶, lit: “tea of the 12th month,” mentioned by Ouyang Xiu and Shen Kua during the Song era. As it is colored like melted wax it is also called la cha 蠟茶, “wax tea.“ 819 La tea, la cha 臘茶, lit: “tea of the 12th month,” mentioned by Ouyang Xiu and Shen Kua during the Song era. As it is colored like melted wax it is also called la cha 蠟茶, “wax tea.“ 820 Gu leng 痼冷, “obstinacy-illness cold,” a condition cold evil abiding deep in the body for an extended period of time. BCGM Dict I, 195

832

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Headache and head wind.821 The “elixir comparable to a spirit:” Grind one liang each of sulphur and nitrokalite to a fine [powder] and form with water pills the size of qian seeds. On an empty stomach chew one pill and send it down with tea. Pu ji fang. 腎虚頭痛。聖惠方用流黄一兩,胡粉半两,爲末,飯丸梧子大。痛時冷水 服五丸,即止。´ Kidney depletion with headache. The Sheng hui fang [recommends to grind] one liang of sulphur and half a liang of lead carbonate to a powder, to prepare with cooked rice pills the size of wu seeds. When the headache breaks out ingest with cold water five pills, and it will end. 本事方用硫黄末、食鹽等分,水調生麪糊丸梧子大,每薄荷茶下五丸。 The Ben shi fang [recommends] to mix equal amounts of sulphur and edible salt with water and fresh wheat paste to prepare pills the size of wu seeds. Each time send down with a mint tea five pills. 普濟方用生流黄六錢,烏藥四錢,爲末,蒸餅丸梧子大,每服三五丸,食 後茶清下。 The Pu ji fang [recommends to grind] six qian of unprocessed sulphur and four qian of lindera [root] to a powder and to prepare with steamed cakes pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest three to five pills, to be sent down after meals with clear tea. 鼻上作痛。上品流黄末,冷水調搽。澹寮方。 Pain on the nose. Mix top quality sulphur powder with cold water and apply [this to the affected region]. Dan liao fang. 酒皶赤鼻。生流黄半兩,杏仁二錢,輕粉一錢,夜夜擦之。 Wine sediments822 and red nose. [Mix] half a liang of raw sulphur, two qian of apricot seeds and one qian of calomel and apply this [to the affected region] night after night. 瑞竹堂方用舶上流黄、雞心檳榔等分,片腦少許,爲末,絹包,日日擦 之。加蓖麻油更妙。 The Rui zhu tang fang [recommends to grind] equal amounts of imported sulphur and dried areca [nut], add a small amount of borneol, wrap this in silk and rub [the 821 Tou feng 頭風, “head wind,” is wind evil attacking the head followed by pain, or dizziness, or itching. BCGM Dict I, 509. 822 Jiu zha 酒皶, “wind sediments,” refers to a swollen, red nose with papules presumably caused by excessively drinking wine. BCGM Dict I, 275.

Chapter 11

833

affected region with it] every day. If castor bean oil is added, [its effects] will be even more wondrous. 鼻面紫風,乃風熱上攻陽明經絡。亦治風刺癮疹。舶上流黄、白礬枯,等 分爲末,每以黄丹少許,以津液和塗之,一月見效。宣明方。 Purple nose-and-face-wind. This results when wind and heat rise to attack the yang brilliance conduits and network [vessels]. [This recipe] also serves to cure wind thorns823 and hidden papules. [Grind] equal amounts of imported sulphur and prepared alum to a powder. Each time mix it with a small amount of minium and [human] body liquid and apply this [to the affected region]. An effect will be apparent within one month. Xuan ming fang. 身面疣目。蠟紙卷硫黄末少許,點之824,焠之有聲,目去825。普濟方。 Warts eyes developing on the body and the face. Wrap a small amount of sulphur powder in wax paper, [light it] and touch [the warts] with it. When they are tempered they will make sounds, and the [warts] eyes vanish. Pu ji fang. 癧瘍風病,白色成片。以布拭,醋摩流黄、附子塗之,或流黄、白礬擦 之。集驗方。 Pervasion-illness with ulcers wind, forming white color plaques. Wipe them clean with a piece of cloth. Rub sulphur and aconitum [accessory tuber] in vinegar and apply the [resulting liquid to the affected region]. Or, rub it with [a mixture of ] sulphur and alum. Ji yan fang. 小兒聤耳。流黄末和蠟作挺插之,日二易。千金方。 Festering ears of children. Mix sulphur powder and beeswax and prepare a stick to be inserted [into the affected ears]. Replace it twice a day. Qian jin fang. 小兒口瘡糜爛。生流黄水調,塗手心足心,效即洗去。危氏得效方。 Rotting rice-gruel sores in the mouth of children. Mix raw sulphur with water and apply this to [the child’s] palms and foot soles. Once an effect is achieved, wash it off. Wei shi, De xiao fang. 823 Feng ci 風刺, “wind thorns,” BCGM Dict I, 160, identical with fen ci 粉刺, “flour thorns,” acne. Papules rising in the face like thorns. If squeezed they release a white flour-like powder. BCGM Dict I, 157. 824 Pu ji fang, ch. 51, section Mian ti you mu 面體疣目, “warts in the face and on the body,” instead of simply writing dian zhi 點之 has yi huo shao dian you mu shang 以火燒點疣目 上, “light it with fire and touch the surface of the warts.” 825 Instead of mu qu 目去, “the [warts] eyes vanish,” the Pu ji fang writes: bian bo que, yi qu gen ye. 便撥却,已去根也, “then use a finger to poke [the wart] aside and completely remove its root.”

834

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

耳卒聲閉。流黄、雄黄等分研末,綿裹塞耳,數日即聞人語也。千金方。 Sudden deafness. Grind equal amounts of sulphur and realgar to a powder. Wrap it in silk and insert it into the ears. After several days [the patient] will hear other people’s words again. Qian jin fang. 諸瘡弩肉,如蛇出數寸。流黄末一兩,肉上薄之,即縮。聖惠方。 All types of sores with tumorous flesh growth, as if a snake had protruded for several cun. Apply one liang of sulphur to the flesh and it will shrink. Sheng hui fang. 癰疽不合。石流黄粉,以筯蘸插入孔中,以瘥爲度。外臺秘要。 Obstruction-illness and impediment-illness826 [ulcers] that fail to close. Dip a chopstick into stone sulphur powder and insert it into the [ulcer] hole until a cure is achieved. Wai tai mi yao. 一切惡瘡。真君妙神散:用好硫黄三兩,蕎麥粉二兩,爲末,井水和,捏 作小餅,日乾收之。臨用細研,新汲水調傅之。痛者即不痛,不痛則即痛 而愈。坦仙皆效方。 All types of malign sores. The “true Lord’s wondrous and divine powder:” [Grind] three liang of good sulphur and two liang of buckwheat powder to a powder, mix it with water from a well and prepare small cakes. Dry them in the sun and store them. When [the time for a treatment] has come, grind them to a fine [powder], mix it with newly drawn water and apply it [to the affected region]. Where there was pain, there will be no pain. Where there was no pain, there will be pain, and this is the cure. Tan xian jie xiao fang. 疥瘡有蟲。流黄末,以雞子煎香油調搽,極效。救急良方。 Jie-illness827 sores with worms/bugs. Boil sulphur powder with a chicken egg and mix this with sesame oil to apply [it to the affected region]. Extremely effective. Jiu ji liang fang. 頑癬不愈。傾過銀有蓋罐子,入流黄一兩溶化,取起冷定打開,取流同蓋 研末,搽之。孫氏集效方。 Stubborn xuan-illness828 that has not been cured. Give one liang of sulphur into a jar with a cover from which [liquid] silver had been poured out, and melt and trans826 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642. 827 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely identifiable skin ailment. BCGM Dict Vol. I, 249. 828 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591.

Chapter 11

835

form it. After it has cooled down and has turned into a hard substance, remove it and break it to pieces. Then grind the sulphur together with the cover to a powder and apply this [to the affected region]. Sun shi ji xiao fang. 癘風有蟲。流黄末酒調少許,飲汁。或加大風子油更好。直指方。 Epidemic wind with worms/bugs. Mix sulphur powder with a small amount of wine and drink the [resulting] juice. Or, add chaulmoogra seed oil, and it will be even better. Zhi zhi fang. 女子陰瘡。流黄末傅之,瘥乃止。肘後方。 Sores in the yin [(i. e., genital) region] of women. Apply sulphur powder to the [affected region]. End [this treatment] once a cure is achieved. Zhou hou fang. 玉門寬冷。流黄煎水頻洗。心傳方。 Widened and cold jade gate/vagina. Boil sulphur in water and repeatedly wash [the affected region]. Xin chuan fang. 小兒夜啼。流黄二錢半,鉛丹二兩,研匀,瓶固煅過,埋土中七日取出, 飯丸黍米大,每服二丸,冷水下。普濟方。 Children crying during the night. Grind two and a half qian of sulphur and two liang of minium to an even [powder, fill it into] a jar, seal it firmly and calcine it. Then bury it in the ground for seven days and remove it again to prepare with cooked rice pills the size of millet seeds. Each time [let the patient] ingest two pills, to be sent down with cold water. Pu ji fang. 陰濕瘡疱。流黄傅之,日三。梅師方。 Moist sores and blisters in the yin [(i. e., genital) region]. Apply sulphur to them. Three times a day. Mei shi fang. 11-15 石流赤别録 Shi liu chi, FE Bie lu. Sulphur. Amorphous red sulphur. 有名未用 Known by name but not in use. 【釋名】石亭脂圖經、石流丹弘景、石流芝。 Explanation of Names. Shi ting zhi 石亭脂, “stone pavilion fat,” Tu jing. Shi liu dan 石流丹, “flowing cinnabar-red of stones,” [Tao] Hongjing. Shi liu zhi 石流芝.

836

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【集解】【别録曰】理如石耆,生山石間。【普曰】生羌道山谷。【時珍 曰】此即流黄之多赤者,名石亭脂。而近世通呼流黄爲石亭脂,亦未考此 也。按抱朴子云:石流丹,石之赤精,石流黄之類也。浸溢于涯岸之間, 其濡濕者可丸服,堅結者可散服。五岳皆有,而箕山爲多。許由、巢父服 之,即石流芝是矣。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Its texture pattern resembles that of shi qi (11-A16). It grows between mountain rocks. [Wu] Pu: It grows in the mountain valleys of Qiang dao. [Li] Shizhen: This is a variety of sulphur that is mostly red. It is called “stone pavilion fat.” When today the people always speak of sulphur as “stone pavilion fat,” they have not examined this [difference]. According to Baopu zi, “shi liu dan 石流丹 is the red essence of stones/minerals. It belongs to the group of stone sulphur. It occurs immersed with water in the shore line cliffs. Moist [shi liu chi] can be ingested as pills. Hard and bound [shi liu chi 石流赤] can be ingested as powder. It occurs in all of the five mountain ranges, with especially much found in Mount Qi shan. [The substance] Xu You and Chao Fu ingested is shi liu chi 石流芝.” 【氣味】苦,温,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Bitter, warm, nonpoisonous. 【主治】婦人帶下,止血。輕身長年。别録。壯陽除冷,治瘡殺蟲,功同 流黄。時珍。 Control. [Diseases] below the belt of women. It ends bleeding. It relieves the body of its weight and extends the years [of life]. Bie lu. It strengthens the yang and removes cold. It serves to cure sores and kills worms/bugs. Its [therapeutic] potential is identical to that of sulphur. [Li] Shizhen.

【附方】新二。 Added Recipes. Two newly [recorded]. 赤鼻作痛。紫色石亭脂,紅色次之,黄色勿用,研末,冷水調搽,半月絶 根。聖濟録。 Painful, red nose. Grind purple “stone pavilion fat,” that of red color is of secondary quality, that of yellow color must not be used, to a powder, mix it with cold water and apply this [to the affected region]. The root [of the problem] will be severed within half a month. Sheng ji lu.

Chapter 11

837

風濕脚氣。石亭脂生用一兩,川烏頭生一兩,無名異二兩,爲末,葱白自 然汁和丸梧子大,每服一錢,空心淡茶、生葱吞下,日一服。瑞竹堂方。 Leg qi829 caused by wind and moisture. [Grind] one liang of raw “stone pavilion fat,” one liang of raw Sichuan aconitum [main tuber], and two liang of pyrolusite to a powder. Mix it with the natural juice of onions and prepare pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest one qian, on an empty stomach, to be swallowed with bland tea and a fresh onion. To be ingested once a day. Rui zhu tang fang.

11-16 石流青别録 Shi liu qing, FE Bie lu. Sulphur. Amorphous greenish sulphur. 有名未用 Known by name but not in use. 【釋名】冬結石。【别録曰】生武都山石間,青白色,故名。【時珍曰】 此流黄之多青色者。蘇頌圖經言石亭脂、冬結石並不堪入藥,未深考此也。 Explanation of Names. Deng jie shi 冬結石, “stone/mineral congealed in winter.” Bie lu: It grows among the rocks of Mount Wu du. It is of a greenish-white color. Hence the name. [Li] Shizhen: This is a variety of sulphur that is mostly greenish. Su Song in the Tu jing says that the “stone pavilion fat” and the “stone congealed in winter” are not suitable for adding them to medication. This has not been researched yet. 【氣味】酸,温,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sour, warm, nonpoisonous. 【主治】療洩,益肝氣,明目。輕身長年。别録。治瘡殺蟲,功同流黄。 時珍。 Control. It serves to heal outflow, boosts the liver qi and clears the eyes. It relieves the body of its weight and extends the years [of life]. Bie lu. It serves to cure sores and kills worms/bugs. Its [therapeutic] potential is identical to that of sulphur. [Li] Shizhen.

829 Jiao qi 脚氣, “leg qi,” refers to painful and weak legs. They may be swollen, or dried up and emaciated. In serious cases the functioning of the heart and spleen is impaired. BCGM Dict I, 248.

838

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 【附録】 Appendix.

11-16-A01 流黄香。Liu huang xiang, FE Shi yi 拾遺。 Flowing yellow aroma. Fragrant sulphur. 【藏器曰】味辛,温,無毒。去惡氣,殺蟲。似流黄而香。云出都昆國, 在扶南南三千里。 [Chen] Cangqi: Flavor acrid, warm, nonpoisonous. It removes malign qi and kills worms/bugs. It resembles sulphur but has a fragrant [smell]. It is said to originate in Dou kun guo. This is 3000 li south of Fu nan. 11-17 礬石本經上品 Fan shi, FE Ben jing, upper rank. Alum. Potash. 【校正】併入海藥 波斯礬、嘉祐 柳絮礬。 Editorial Correction. Po si fan listed separately in the Hai yao and liu xu fan listed separately in the Jia you are included in the present entry. 【釋名】涅石綱目、羽涅本经、羽澤别録。煅枯者名巴石,輕白者名柳絮 礬。【時珍曰】礬者,燔也。燔石而成也。山海經云:女牀之山,其陰多 涅石。郭璞注云:礬石也。楚人名涅石,秦人名爲羽涅。 Explanation of Names. Nie shi 涅石, “stone used for dyeing,” Gang mu. Yu nie 羽涅, “feather dye,” Ben jing. Yu ze 羽澤, “feather moistener,” Bie lu. Calcined and dried [alum] is called ba shi 巴石, “stone from Ba.” Light weight, white [alum] is called liu xu fan 柳絮礬, “willow catkin alum.” [Li] Shizhen: [The character] fan 礬 is fan 燔, “to burn.” It is composed of [the two characters] fan 燔, “to burn,” and shi 石, “stone.” The Shan hai jing states: “On the yin/shady side of Mount Nü chuang there are many stones used for dyeing.” Guo Pu in his comment states: “This is fan shi 礬 石, alum. The people of Chu call it nie shi 涅石, ‘stone used for dyeing’. The people of Qin call it yu nie 羽涅, ‘feather moistener’.” 【集解】【别録曰】礬石生河西山谷,及隴西 武都、石門,采無時。能 使鐵爲銅。【弘景曰】今出益州北部西川,從河西來。色青白,生者,名 馬齒礬。鍊成純白,名白礬,蜀人以當消石。其黄黑者名雞屎礬,不入藥 用,惟堪鍍作以合熟銅,投苦酒中,塗鐵皆作銅色。外雖銅色,内質不 變。【恭曰】礬石有五種:白礬多入藥用;青、黑二礬,療疳及瘡;黄礬 亦療瘡生肉,兼染皮;絳礬本來緑色,燒之乃赤,故名絳礬。【頌曰】礬

Chapter 11

839

石初生皆石也,采得燒碎煎鍊,乃成礬也。凡有五種,其色各異,白礬、 黄礬、緑礬、黑礬、絳礬也。今白礬出晉州、慈州、無爲軍,入藥及染人 所用甚多。黄礬丹竈家所須,亦入藥。黑礬惟出西戎,亦謂之皂礬,染鬚 鬢藥用之,亦染皮用。緑礬入咽喉口齒藥及染色。絳礬燒之則赤,今亦稀 見。又有礬精、礬胡蝶、巴石、柳絮礬,皆是白礬也。鍊白礬時,候其極 沸,盤心有濺溢,如物飛出,以鐵匕接之,作蟲形者,礬蝴蝶也。但成塊 光瑩如水精者,礬精也。二者入藥,力緊于常礬。其煎鍊而成,輕虚如綿 絮者,柳絮礬。其燒汁至盡,色白如雪者,謂之巴石。【珣曰】波斯、大 秦所出白礬,色白而瑩净,内有束針文,入丹竈家,功力逾于河西、石門 者。近日文州諸番往往有之。波斯又出金線礬,打破内有金線文者爲上, 多入燒鍊家用。【時珍曰】礬石析而辨之,不止于五種也。白礬,方士 謂之白君,出晉地者上,青州、吴中者次之。潔白者爲雪礬。光明者爲明 礬,亦名雲母礬。文如束針,狀如粉撲者,爲波斯白礬。並入藥爲良。黑 礬,鈆礬也,出晉地。其狀如黑泥者,爲崑崙礬。其狀如赤石脂有金星 者,爲鐵礬。其狀如紫石英,火引之成金線,畫刀上即紫赤色者,爲波斯 紫礬。並不入服餌藥,惟丹竈及瘡家用之。緑礬、絳礬、黄礬俱見本條。 其雜色者,則有鷄屎礬、鴨屎礬、鷄毛礬、粥礬,皆下品,亦入外丹家用。 Collected Explanations. Bie lu: Alum grows in the mountain valleys of He xi, and also in Wu du and Shi men of Long xi. It is collected any time. It can make iron to copper. [Tao] Hongjing: Nowadays, it originates in Xi chuang, north of Yi zhou, and it comes from He xi. It is of greenish-white color. Unprocessed [alum] is called “horse tooth alum.” When it is refined with heat and has assumed a pure white color, it is called “white alum.” The people of Shu use it instead of nitrokalite. Yellow-black [alum] is called “chicken droppings alum.” It is not added to medication. It is used only for plating copper. When it is put into bitter wine and [the resulting liquid] is applied to iron, [the iron] will assume the color of copper. Even though on the outside it has the color of copper, the inner substance matter remains unchanged. [Su] Gong: There are five kinds of alum. White alum is often added to medication. The two types of greenish and black alum serve to heal gan-illness830 sores. Yellow alum, too, serves to heal sores, and it stimulates the growth of flesh. At the same time, it serves to tan hides. Alum of crimson color originally is of green color. When it is heated, it assumes a red color. Hence it is called “crimson alum.” [Su] Song: Alum in the beginning grows like any other stone/mineral. It is collected, heated, broken to pieces, boiled and refined with heat, and then becomes alum. Overall, it comes in five kinds, all of which have their own color. These include white alum, yellow alum, green alum, black alum and crimson alum. Nowadays, white alum originates in Jin 830 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188.

840

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

zhou, Ci zhou and Wu wei jun. It is often used as an additive to medication and by dyers. Yellow alum is required by the experts operating furnaces to make elixirs. It, too, is added to medication. Black alum originates only in Xi rong. It is also called “ink-black alum.” It is used to dye beards and hair on the head. It is also used to tan hides. Green alum is added to medication for [ailments affecting the throat, the mouth and the teeth], and to dye. When crimson alum is heated it turns red. It is rarely seen these days. There are also “alum essence,” “butterfly alum,” “stone from Ba,” and “willow catkin alum.” They all are kinds of white alum. When white alum is refined with heat, wait for the moment of its extreme bubbling. It will spurt out of the middle of the pan as if something were flying away. Collect these [items] on an iron spoon, and they will assume the physical appearance of worms/bugs/insects. These are “alum butterflies.” Those forming shiny, lustrous chunks like crystals, they are the “alum essence.” When these two [kinds] are added to medication, their strength exceeds that of ordinary alum. [Alum] that after a refinement with heat is of light weight and hollow like a silk wadding is “willow catkin alum.” [Alum] heated until all its inner liquid has vanished, and that is as white as snow, is “stone from Ba.” [Li] Xun: The white alum originating in Po si and Da qin is of white color, lustrous and clean. Inside it has a line design like a bundle of needles. The experts operating furnaces add it to [longevity] elixirs, and its [therapeutic] potential exceeds that of [alum] from He xi and Shi men. Nowadays it can be found everywhere in Wen zhou. In addition, a “golden thread alum” originates in Po si. That is best which when broken to pieces shows a golden thread line design in its interior. It is often used by alchemists. [Li] Shizhen: When alum broken to pieces is differentiated, there are more than five kinds. White alum is called “white lord” by the recipe experts; that originating in the Jin region is best, followed by that from Qing zhou and Wu zhong. That which is spotlessly white is “snow alum.” That which is shiny and bright is “bright alum.” It is also called “mother of clouds alum.” It has a line design reminiscent of bundled needles. When it is shaped like a powder puff, it is “white alum from Po si.” All these are good medicinal substances. Black alum is “lead alum.” It originates in Jin. When it is shaped like black mud, it is “Kun lun alum.” When it is shaped like red halloysite and has golden dots, it is called “iron alum.” When it is shaped like fluor spar and, when exposed to a fire, develops golden streaks, and when used to draw something on a blade leaves a purple-red color there, this is “purple alum from Po si.” None of them is suitable for ingestion as a special diet or as medication. They are used only by the experts operating furnaces to prepare [longevity] elixirs, and by the experts for the treatment of sores. For green fan, crimson fan and yellow fan, see the following entry (11-18). Those with mixed colors are “chicken droppings fan,” “duck droppings fan,” “chicken feather fan,” and

Chapter 11

841

“gruel fan.” They are all of low rank, and they are not even used by alchemists for [longevity] elixirs. 【修治】【斅曰】凡使白礬石,以瓷瓶盛,于火中煅,令内外通赤。用鉗 揭起蓋,旋安石蜂巢入内燒之。每十兩用巢六兩,燒盡爲度。取出放冷, 研粉,以紙裹,安五寸深土坑中一宿,取用。又法:取光明如水晶,酸、 鹹、濇味全者,研粉,以瓷瓶用六一泥泥之,待乾,入粉三升在内,旋旋 入五方草、紫背天葵各自然汁一鎰,待汁乾,蓋了瓶口,更泥上下,用 火一百斤煅之。從巳至未,去火取出,其色如銀,研如輕粉用之。【時珍 曰】今人但煅乾汁用,謂之枯礬,不煅者爲生礬。若入服食,須循法度。 按九鼎神丹秘訣鍊礬石入服食法:用新桑合槃一具。于密室净掃,以火燒 地令熱,洒水于上,或洒苦酒于上,乃布白礬于地上,以槃覆之,四面以 灰擁定。一日夜,其石精皆飛于槃上,掃取收上。未盡者,更如前法,數 遍乃止,此爲礬精。若欲作水,即以掃下礬精一斤,納三年苦酒一斗中清 之,號曰礬華,百日彌佳。若急用之,七日亦可。 Pharmaceutical Preparation. For all applications of alum, fill it into a porcelain jar and calcine it with fire until it is red throughout, inside and outside. Lift the cover with a pair of pincers, add “stone bee/wasp nest” (39-06) and heat it again. For each ten liang [of alum] use six liang of “[stone bee/wasp] nest.” The heating is to end when all [the “stone bee/wasp nest”] is burned. Remove [the alum from the jar], let it cool and grind it to a powder. Wrap it in paper and place it into a five cun deep soil pit for one night. Remove it and it can be used. Another method: Grind shiny, bright [alum] resembling crystal that is sour, salty and astringent to a powder. Now paste a porcelain jar with earthworm excrements and wait until [they] have dried. Insert three sheng of the [alum] powder into the [jar] and while rotating it add one yi of the natural juice of both purslane and purple back malva [herb]. [Heat it over a fire] until all the juice has dried, close the opening of the jar and add further [earthworm] excrements to cover it above and below. Calcine it with a fire lit with 100 jin [of firewood] from si 巳 (9:00 – 10:59) in the morning until wei 未 (13:00 – 14:59) in the afternoon. Remove the fire and take [the alum] out [of the jar]. It will have assumed the color of silver. When ground [to a powder] it resembles calomel, it can be used. [Li] Shizhen: Nowadays the people simply calcine it to dry its internal liquid before they use it. They call this “dried fan.” As long as it has not been calcined, they call it “raw fan.” If it is to be ingested [as medication] or consumed [as a longevity diet], it must be prepared in accordance with certain rules. According to the Jiu ding shen dan mi jue, the method to refine with heat alum for ingesting it [as medication] and for consuming it [as a longevity diet] is as follows. Prepare a tray from new mulberry wood. Sweep clean a tightly closed room. Light a fire on the ground to

842

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

heat it. Spray water on it, or spray bitter wine on it. Then spread white alum on the ground and cover it with the [wooden] tray. Firmly enclose it with ashes on all four sides. After one day and one night, all the essence of the [alum] mineral will have flown up to the tray. Sweep it from there and store it [for later use]. If this process has remained incomplete, apply the same method as before. This may be stopped after several times. [The resulting substance] is “alum essence.” If it is to become a watery liquid, give one jin of the alum essence swept [from the tray] into one dou of bitter wine stored for three years to soak. [The resulting liquid] is called “alum splendor.” If [the soaking] has lasted for 100 days, it is fine. For urgent needs, seven days are possible, too. 【氣味】酸,寒,無毒。【普曰】神農、岐伯:酸。久服傷人骨。扁鵲: 鹹。雷公:酸,無毒。【權曰】濇。凉,有小毒。【之才曰】甘草爲之 使,惡牡蠣,畏麻黄。【獨孤滔曰】紅心灰藋制礬。 Qi and Flavor. Sour, cold, nonpoisonous. [Wu] Pu: Shen nong, Qi Bo: Sour. Ingested over a long time it will harm the bones of humans. Bian Que: Salty. Lei gong: Sour, nonpoisonous. [Zhen] Quan: Astringent, cold, slightly poisonous. [Xu] Zhicai: Glycyrrhiza [root] serves as its guiding substance. [Ingested together,] it abhors oyster shells, and it fears ephedra [herb]. Dugu Tao: Small goosefoot with red buds checks [the potential of ] alum. 【主治】寒熱,洩痢白沃,陰蝕惡瘡,目痛,堅骨齒。鍊餌服之,輕身不 老增年。本經。除固熱在骨髓,去鼻中息肉。别録。除風去熱,消痰止 渴,煖水臟,治中風失音。和桃仁、葱湯浴,可出汗。大明。生含嚥津, 治急喉痺。療鼻衄齆鼻,鼠漏瘰癧疥癬。甄權。枯礬貼嵌甲,牙縫中血出 如衄。宗奭。吐下痰涎飲澼,燥濕解毒追涎,止血定痛,食惡肉,生好 肉,治癰疽疔腫惡瘡,癲癇,疸疾,通大小便,口齒眼目諸病,虎犬蛇蠍 百蟲傷。時珍。 Control. Alternating cold and heat sensations. Outflow and free-flux illness831 with white foam. Yin [(i. e., genital) region] erosions and malign sores. Painful eyes. It hardens bones and teeth. Ingested as a special diet following a refinement with heat, it will relieve the body of its weight, prevent aging and extend the years [of life]. Ben jing. It removes obstinate heat from the bones and their marrow. It removes tumorous flesh growths from the nose. Bie lu. It removes wind and eliminates heat. It dissolves phlegm and ends thirst. It warms the kidneys and serves to cure a loss of voice when one was struck by wind. Prepared with peach seeds and onions as a decoction for bathing, it can induce sweating. Da Ming. Held raw in the mouth and the [resulting] liquid swallowed serves to cure acute throat blockage. It serves 831 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

Chapter 11

843

to heal nosebleed and stuffed nose, mouse fistula,832 scrofula, jie-illness and xuan-illness.833 Zhen Quan. Dried alum is applied to embedded nails, and to the seams of teeth releasing blood similar to nosebleed. [Kou] Zongshi. It causes vomiting and discharge [to remove] phlegm, saliva and rheum flush. It dries moisture, resolves poison and eliminates saliva. It ends bleeding and settles pain. It eats up malign flesh and stimulates the growth of good flesh. It serves to cure swelling associated with obstruction-illness, impediment-illness834 and pin-illness835 and malign sores, peak-illness836 and epilepsy, and jaundice ailments. It frees the passage of major (defecation) and minor (urination) relief, and [serves to heal] all diseases affecting the mouth, the teeth and the eyes, as well as harm caused by tigers, dogs, snakes, scorpions and the hundreds of worms/bugs. [Li] Shizhen. 11-17-01 波斯白礬海藥。Po si bai fan,FE Hai yao. White alum from Po si. 【氣味】酸、濇,温,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sour, astringent, warm, nonpoisonous. 【主治】赤白漏下,陰蝕,洩痢,瘡疥,解一切毒蛇蟲等,去目赤暴腫, 齒痛,火鍊之良。李珣。 Control. Red and white leakage and discharge. Yin [(i. e., genital) region] erosions, outflow and free-flux illness.837 Sores and jie-illness.838 When it is refined with heat, it is good at resolving all types of snake and worm/bug poison, and at removing from the eyes redness and sudden swelling, and toothache. Li Xun.

832 Shu lou 鼠瘻, “mouse fistula,” identical with lou li 瘰癧, “scrofula with pervasion-illness.” BCGM Dict I, 466. 833 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely identifiable skin ailment. BCGM Dict Vol. I, 249. 834 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642. 835 Ding 丁, “pin[-illness],” also ding 疔, “pin-illness,” refers to a deep-reaching and festering hardness in a tissue, eventually rising above the skin like a pinhead. BCGM Dict I, 127129. 836 Dian 顛, “peak[-illness],” also 癲, vaguely defined mental derangement. BCGM Dict I, 124. 837 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 838 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely identifiable skin ailment. BCGM Dict Vol. I, 249.

844

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

11-17-02 柳絮礬嘉祐。Liu xu fan, FE Jia you. Willow catkin alum. 【氣味】同礬石。 Qi and Flavor. Identical to alum. 【主治】消痰止渴,潤心肺。大明。 Control. It dissolves phlegm, ends thirst and moistens heart and lung. Da Ming. 【發明】【弘景曰】俗中合藥,火熬令燥,以療齒痛,多則壞齒,即傷骨 之證也。而經云堅骨齒,誠爲可疑。【宗奭曰】不可多服,損心肺,却水 故也。水化書紙上,乾則水不能濡,故知其性却水也。治膈下涎藥多用 者,此意爾。【時珍曰】礬石之用有四。吐利風熱之痰涎,取其酸苦涌泄 也。治諸血痛、脱肛、陰挺、瘡瘍,取其酸濇而收也。治痰飲、泄痢、崩 帶、風眼,取其收而燥濕也。治喉痺、癰疽、中蠱、蛇蟲傷螫,取其解毒 也。按李迅癰疽方云:凡人病癰疽發背,不問老少,皆宜服黄礬丸。服至 一兩以上,無不作效。最止疼痛,不動臟腑,活人不可勝數。用明亮白礬 一兩生研,以好黄蠟七錢溶化,和丸梧子大。每服十丸,漸加至二十丸, 熟水送下。如未破則内消,已破即便合。如服金石發瘡者,引以白礬末一 二匙,温酒調下,亦三五服見效。有人遍身生瘡,狀如蛇頭,服此亦效。 諸方俱稱奇效,但一日中服近百粒則有力。此藥不惟止痛生肌,能防毒氣 内攻,護膜止瀉,托裏化膿之功甚大,服至半斤尤佳。不可欺其淺近,要 知白礬大能解毒也。今人名爲蠟礬丸,用之委有效驗。 Explication. [Tao] Hongjing: There is a common habit of preparing [alum] to a medication by stewing it over fire to dry it. This is then applied to heal toothache. However, if applied in large doses it will destroy the teeth. That is evidence of its potential to harm bones. When the classic finds that it “hardens bones and teeth,” this can be doubted. [Kou] Zongshi: It must not be ingested in large quantities lest it harm heart and lung. When it is transformed in water and used to write on paper, the dried [writing] will not be moistened by water. From this it can be known that by its nature it repels water. Its frequent use as a medication to cure saliva present below the diaphragm is based on this idea. [Li] Shizhen: Alum is used for four purposes. [First,] to remove, by means of vomiting and free-flux, phlegm and saliva generated by wind and heat. This [is a therapy availing itself of alum’s] sour and bitter flavor that causes a surging and outflow. [Second,] to cure all kinds of painful bleeding, anal prolapse, collapse from [below] the belt [of women] and wind eyes,839 one makes use of its ability to collect and to dry moisture. [Third,] to cure throat 839 Feng yan 風眼, “wind eyes,” are red and festering canthi and eyelids brought about by harm caused to the eyes by heat. BCGM Dict I, 171.

Chapter 11

845

blockage, obstruction-illness and impediment-illness,840 being struck by gu,841 and harm by stings/bites of snakes and worms/bugs, one resorts to its ability to resolve poison. [Fourth,] according to Li Xun’s Yong ju fang, “whenever someone suffers on his back from outbreaks of obstruction-illness and impediment-illness,842 regardless of whether [the patient] is old or young, it is always advisable to ingest yellow alum pills. When one liang or more [of these pills] are ingested, they will always have the desired effect. They are very much able to end pain without exciting the long-term depots and short-term repositories. They have brought people back to life innumerable times. Grind one liang of raw, bright and shiny, white alum [to a powder] and transform it by melting it with seven qian of good yellow beeswax to prepare pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest ten pills, and slowly increase the dose to 20 pills, to be sent down with boiled water. If [at the onset of the treatment the obstruction-illness and the impediment-illness] had not broken open yet, they will dissolve internally. If they had broken open already, this will facilitate their closure. When sores result from an ingestion of metals and minerals, guide [the metals and minerals] with one or two spoonfuls of white alum, to be sent down mixed with warm wine. This, too, will show the desired effects after three to five ingestions. There was someone who had developed sores, resembling snake heads, all over his body. He ingested this and for this, too, it proved effective. All these recipes are said to be extraordinarily effective. But within a single day next to 100 pills are to be ingested to let them show their strength. This medication serves not only to end pain and stimulate the growth of muscles, it can also prevent internal attacks of poison qi. It protects membranes and ends outflow. Its potential of guarding the interior and of transforming pus is outstanding. To ingest up to half a jin is particularly fine. One should not be deceived by the fact that [these pills are] cheap and available nearby. It should be realized that white alum is very much able to resolve poison.” Today the people call them “beeswax and alum pills.” Their use has definitely proven effective. 840 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642. 841 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191. 842 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642.

846

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 【附方】舊二十六,新六十。 Added Recipes. 26 of old. 60 newly [recorded].

中風痰厥,四肢不收,氣閉膈塞者。白礬一兩,牙皂角五錢,爲末,每服 一錢,温水調下,吐痰爲度。陳師古方。 Being struck by wind with phlegm recession.843 When the four limbs cannot be contracted, with closed qi [passage] and blocked diaphragm. [Grind] one liang of white alum and five qian of small gleditsia seeds to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest one qian, to be sent down mixed with warm water until he vomits phlegm. Chen Shigu fang. 胸中痰澼,頭痛不欲食。礬石一兩,水二升,煮一升,納蜜半合,頓服。 須臾大吐。未吐,飲少熱湯引之。外臺秘要。 Phlegm flush in the chest, with headache and a loss of appetite. Boil one liang of alum in two sheng of water down to one sheng. Give half a ge of honey [into the liquid] and ingest it all at once. After a short moment this will result in massive vomiting. If the vomiting fails, stimulate it by drinking a little hot water. Wai tai mi yao. 風痰癇病。化痰丸:生白礬一兩,細茶五錢,爲末,鍊蜜丸如梧子大。一 歲十丸,茶湯下。大人五十丸。久服,痰自大便中出,斷病根。鄧筆峰雜 興。 Epilepsy disease caused by wind and phlegm. The “pills to transform phlegm:” [Grind] one liang of unprocessed white alum and five qian of finely cut tea leaves to a powder and prepare with honey, refined with heat, pills the size of wu seeds. For each of his years [of life let the patient] send down with tea ten pills. Adults ingest 50 pills. When [these pills] are ingested over a long period of time, the phlegm will be discharged through defecation. This serves to sever the root of the disease. Deng Bifeng za xing. 小兒胎寒,躽啼發癇。白礬煅半日,棗肉丸黍米大,每乳下一丸,愈乃 止,去痰良。保幼大全。 When a child while being a fetus was affected by cold, with its chest and abdomen bent forward, and with crying and epilepsy fits, calcine alum for half a day and prepare with Chinese date meat pills the size of millet grains. Each time [let the child] send down with its nursing mother’s milk one pill. Stop [the treatment] when it is cured. This is a good [medication] for eliminating phlegm. Bao you da quan.

843 Tan jue 痰厥, “phlegm recession.” Various ailments thought to be associated with blocked or abounding phlegm. BCGM Dict I, 493.

Chapter 11

847

産後不語。胡氏孤鳳散:用生白礬末一錢,熟水調下。婦人良方。 For loss of voice following delivery. Mr. Hu’s “solitary phoenix powder:” [Let the patient] send down one qian of unprocessed white alum mixed with boiled water. Fu ren liang fang. 牙關緊急不開者。白礬、鹽化844等分,搽之,涎出自開。集簡方。 Lockjaw that fails to open. Rub equal amounts of alum and salt on the [affected region]. Once saliva is released, [the mouth] will open. Ji jian fang. 走馬喉痺。用生白礬末塗于綿針上,按于喉中,立破。綿針者,用榆條上 以綿纏作棗大也。儒門事親方。 Running horse throat blockage. Apply unprocessed white alum to a silk floss needle swab and insert it into the [blocked] throat. It will open immediately. To prepare a silk floss needle swab, wind silk floss around the tip of an elm twig until it has reached the size of a Chinese date. Ru men shi qin fang. 喉癰乳蛾。濟生帳帶散:用礬三錢,針銚内溶化,入劈開巴豆三粒,煎乾 去豆,研礬用之,入喉立愈。甚者,以醋調灌之。亦名通關散。 Throat obstruction-illness845 by nipple moths.846 The “life saving curtain and belt powder:” Melt and transform in a kettle three qian of alum. Add three croton [seeds] that are broken open and boil this until [the liquid] has dried. Remove the croton [seeds] and grind the alum. It is then ready to be used. When it is inserted into the throat [the disease] will be cured immediately. In severe cases, forcefeed it [to the patient] mixed with vinegar. [This medication] is also called, the “powder opening barriers.” 法制烏龍膽:用白礬末盛入猪膽中,風乾研末。每吹一錢入喉,取涎出妙。 “Black dragon gall bladder prepared according to the rules.” Fill white alum powder into a pig’s gall bladder, let it dry in the wind and grind it to a powder. Each time blow one qian into the [affected] throat. This will stimulate the release of saliva, and is wondrous.

844 Yan hua 鹽化 presumably should be yan hua 鹽花, “a pinch of salt,” as specified in recipes further below. 845 Yong 癰, “obstruction-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 641. 846 Ru e 乳蛾, “nipple moth,” most likely including cases of acute tonsillitis. BCGM Dict I, 410.

848

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

咽喉穀賊,腫痛。生礬石末少少點腫處,吐涎,以痒爲度。聖惠方。 Throat harmed by bugs,847 with a painful swelling. Drip small amounts of alum powder on the location of the swelling until [the patient] vomits saliva and feels an itch. Sheng hui fang. 風熱喉痛。白礬半斤,研末化水,新磚一片,浸透取晒,又浸又晒,至水 乾,入糞厠中浸一月,取洗,安陰處,待霜出掃收,每服半錢,水下。普 濟方。 Painful throat caused by wind and heat. Grind half a jin of white alum to a powder and transform it to water. Soak a new brick [in this liquid], remove it and dry it in the sun. Soak it again and dry it again until all the water has [been absorbed and] dried. Then place [the brick] into a cesspool to soak there for one month. Remove it and wash it. Place it at a shady location and wait for a frost to come out [of the brick]. Sweep this off and store it [for later use]. Each time ingest half a qian, to be sent down with water. Pu ji fang. 懸癰垂長,咽中煩悶。白礬燒灰、鹽花等分,爲末,筯頭頻點藥在上,去 涎。孫用和秘寶方。 Uvula extending long [into the throat], with unrest and heart-pressure. [Grind] equal amounts of white alum burned to ashes and a pinch of salt to a powder. Dip the tip of a chopstick into [this powder] and apply it to [the affected region]. This will remove saliva. Sun Yonghe, Mi bao fang. 小兒舌膜。初生小兒有白膜皮裹舌,或遍舌根,可以指甲刮破令血出,以 燒礬末半緑豆許傅之。若不摘去,其兒必啞。姚和衆至寶方。 A membrane on the tongue of children. When the tongue of newborn children is enclosed by a white membrane skin, in some cases covering the entire tongue and its root, one may scratch it open with a fingernail to release blood and then apply burned alum powder, as much as the size of a mung been, to it. If [the membrane] is not peeled off, the child will be mute. Yao Hezhong, Zhi bao fang. 牙齒腫痛。白礬一兩燒灰,大露蜂房一兩微炙,爲散,每用二錢,水煎含 漱去涎。簡要濟衆方。 Toothache with swelling. [Grind] one liang of white alum, burned to ashes, and one liang of large dew bee/wasp nests (39-06), slightly fried, to a powder. Each time boil two qian of water, hold [the liquid] in the mouth, rinse it and [spit out to] remove the saliva. Jian yao ji chong fang. 847 Gu zei 穀賊, “grain intrusion.” A condition of swelling and pain in the gullet resulting from an inadvertent ingestion of awns or spikes of cereals. BCGM Dict I, 196.

Chapter 11

849

患齒碎壞欲盡者。常以綿裹礬石含嚼,吐去汁。肘後方。 For a suffering from broken and decayed teeth, with a perspective of losing all of them. Regularly hold alum wrapped in a silk fabric in the mouth and munch it. Spit out the resulting juice. Zhou hou fang. 齒齗血出不止。礬石一兩燒,水三升,煮一升,含漱。千金方。 Unending bleeding from the gums. Boil one liang of burned alum in three sheng of water down to one sheng. Hold it in the mouth to rinse [the affected region]. Qian jin fang. 木舌腫强。白礬、桂心等分,爲末,安舌下。聖惠方。 Swollen, stiff wooden tongue.848 [Grind] equal amounts of alum and cassia bark to a powder and place it below the tongue. Sheng hui fang. 太陰口瘡。生甘草二寸,白礬一粟大,噙之,嚥津。活法機要。 A sore on the outlet of the major yin [conduit]. Hold a piece of fresh glycyrrhiza [root] of two cun length and a piece of alum the size of a millet grain in the mouth and swallow the [resulting] fluid. Huo fa ji yao. 口舌生瘡,下虚上壅。定斋方:用白礬泡湯濯足。張子和方:用白礬末、 黄丹水飛炒,等分,研,擦之。 Sores developing in the mouth and on the tongue, with depletion below and obstruction above. Ding zhai fang: Prepare a decoction of white alum and wash [the patient’s] feet with it. Zhang Zihe’s recipe: Grind equal amounts of white alum powder and minium, prepared through aqueous sublimation, and apply [the resulting powder to the affected region]. 小兒鵝口,滿口白爛。枯礬一錢,朱砂二分,爲末,每以少許傅之,日三 次,神驗。普濟方。 Goose-mouth849 of children, with the mouth filled with white, rotting lesions. [Grind] one qian of dried alum and two fen of cinnabar [to a powder]. Each time apply a small amount [to the affected region], three times a day. Divinely effective. Pu ji fang. 小兒舌瘡,飲乳不得。白礬如雞子大,置醋中,塗兒足底,二七遍愈。千 金方。 848 Mu she 木舌, “wooden tongue,” indicates a massively swollen tongue, filling the entire oral cavity, accompanied by a wood-like hardening. BCGM Dict I, 344. 849 E kou 鵝口, “goose mouth,” refers to a white layer covering the mucous membranes and top of the tongue in a child’s mouth making it resemble a goose-mouth. BCGM Dict I, 141.

850

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Sores on a child’s tongue making it impossible to drink its nursing mother’s milk. Place a piece of white alum, as big as a chicken egg, into vinegar and apply [the resulting liquid] to the child’s foot soles. Two times seven times, and it will be cured. Qian jin fang. 口中氣臭。明礬入麝香,爲末,擦牙上。生生編。 Malodorous qi released from within the mouth. Add musk to alum and [grind it to] a powder. Apply this to the teeth. Sheng sheng bian. 衄血不止。枯礬末吹之,妙。聖濟録。 Unending nosebleed. Blow dried alum into [the nostrils]. Wondrous. Sheng ji lu. 鼻中息肉。千金用礬燒末,猪脂和,綿裹塞之,數日息肉隨藥出。 Tumorous flesh growths in the nose. The Qian jin [recommends to] mix burned alum powder and lard, wrap it in silk and insert this into [the affected nostrils]. After several days the tumorous flesh growths can be removed together with the medication. 一方用明礬一兩,蓖麻仁七箇,鹽梅肉五箇,麝香一字,杵丸,錦裹塞 之,化水自下也。 Another recipe. Pound one liang of alum, seven castor beans, five salted plums and one zi of musk [to a pulp and] prepare pills. Insert them wrapped in silk [into the affected nostrils]. [The flesh growths] will transform to water and are discharged as a result. 眉毛脱落。白礬十兩燒研,蒸餅丸梧子大,每空心温水下七丸,日加一 丸,至四十丸,日减一丸,周而復始,以愈爲度。聖濟録。 When eyebrow hair falls down. Each time prepare ten liang of burned and ground alum with steamed cakes to pills the size of wu seeds and send down with warm water on an empty stomach seven pills. Increase the dose by one pill per day until a dose of 40 pills. Then decrease the dose by one pill per day and begin again when the circle is completed until a cure is achieved. Sheng ji lu. 發斑怪證。有人眼赤鼻張,大喘,渾身出斑,毛髮如銅鐵,乃熱毒氣結于 下焦也。白礬、滑石各一兩爲末,作一服。水三盌,煎减半,不住服,盡 即安。夏子益奇疾方。 Queer condition of macula appearance. The eyes are red and the nose is dilated. [The patient] suffers from massive panting. He develops macula all over his body. His body hair and the hair on his head appear as if they were of copper or iron. This

Chapter 11

851

is a case of hot poison qi congealing in the Lower Burner. [Grind] one liang each of white alum and talc to a powder and ingest it as one dose. Boil [the powder] in three bowls of water down to one half, and ingest this all at once without pause. Once all of it is consumed, a cure is achieved. Xia Ziyi, Qi ji fang. 目瞖弩肉。白礬石納黍米大入目,令淚出,日日用之,惡汁去盡,其疾日 减。外臺秘要。 Shades and tumorous flesh growths in the eyes. Insert a piece of white alum, as big as a millet seed, into the [affected] eyes to stimulate tearflow. Apply this treatment day after day until all the malign juice is eliminated. The illness will decrease in severity every day. Wai tai mi yao. 目生白膜。礬石一升,水四合,銅器中煎半合,入少蜜調之,以綿濾過, 每日點三四度。姚和衆延齡至寶方。 A white membrane develops in the eyes. Boil one sheng of alum in four ge of water in a copper vessel down to half a ge. Add a small amount of honey and pass this through a silk sieve. Each time drip the resulting mixture three or four times [into the affected eyes]. Yao Hechong, Yan ling zhi bao fang. 赤目風腫。甘草水磨明礬傅眼胞上效,或用枯礬頻擦眉心。集簡方。 Swollen, red eyes caused by wind. Rub alum in water in which glycyrrhiza [root] was cooked and apply this to the eyes. Effective. Or repeatedly apply dried alum to the region between the eyebrows. Ji jian fang. 爛弦風眼。白礬煅一兩,銅青三錢,研末,湯泡澄清,點洗。永類方。 Wind eyes850 with festering [eylid] rims. Grind one liang of calcined white alum and three qian of verdigris to a powder. Boil it and wait until the dregs have settled. Drip [the clear liquid into the affected eyes] and wash them [with this liquid]. Yong lei fang. 聤耳出汁。枯礬一兩,鉛丹炒一錢,爲末,日吹之。聖濟録。 Festering ears releasing a liquid. [Grind] one liang of dried alum and one qian of fried minium to a powder and blow this [into the affected ears] every day. Sheng ji lu.

850 Feng yan 風眼, “wind eyes,” are red and festering canthi and eyelids brought about by harm caused to the eyes by heat. BCGM Dict I, 171.

852

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

卒死壯熱。礬石半斤,水一斗半,煮湯浸脚及踝,即得甦也。肘後方。 Sudden death with strong heat. Boil half a jin of alum in one dou and a half of water and soak [the patient’s] legs and ankles in the hot water. This will bring him back to life. Zhou hou fang. 脚氣衝心。白礬三兩,水一斗五升,煎沸浸洗。千金方。 Leg qi851 rushing against the heart. Boil three liang of white alum in one dou and five sheng of water to bubbling. Soak [the affected feet in the resulting liquid and use it to] wash them. Qian jin fang. 風濕膝痛。脚氣風濕,虚汗少力,多痛及陰汗,燒礬末一匙頭,投沸湯, 淋洗痛處。御藥院方。 Painful knees caused by wind and moisture. Leg qi caused by wind and moisture, with depletion sweating and loss of strength, much pain and sweating in the yin [(i. e., genital) region]. Give as much burned alum as fills the tip of a spoon into boiling water. Drip [the resulting solution] on the painful region and use it to wash it. Yu yao yuan fang. 黄腫水腫。推車丸:用明礬二兩,青礬一兩,白麪半斤,同炒令赤,以醋 煮米粉糊爲丸,棗湯下三十丸。濟急方。 Yellow bloating, water swelling. The “pills that push a car”: Fry a mixture of two liang of alum, one liang of melanterite and half a jin of wheat flour until it has turned red and prepare, with rice powder boiled in vinegar, pills. Send down with a Chinese date decoction 30 pills. Ji ji fang. 女勞黄疸。黄家日晡發熱而反惡寒,膀胱急,少腹滿,目盡黄,額上黑, 足下熱,因作黑疸。其腹脹如水狀,大便必黑,時溏,此女勞之病,非水 也。自大勞大熱,交接後入水所致,腹滿者難治。用礬石燒、消石熬黄等 分,爲散,以大麥粥汁和服方寸匕,日三服。病從大小便去,小便正黄, 大便正黑,是其候也。張仲景金匱方。 Yellow dan-illness852 caused by an exhaustion with women. These persons have a yellow [complexion]. In the afternoon they develop heat and, contrary to normal, have an aversion to cold. Their urinary bladder is tense. They have a sensation of fullness in the lower abdomen. Their eyes are entirely yellow. The forehead is black, the soles of the feet are hot. This then develops into a black dan-illness. The abdomen appears bloated as if it were filled with water. The fecal matter is definitely black, 851 Jiao qi 脚氣, “leg qi,” refers to painful and weak legs. They may be swollen, or dried up and emaciated. In serious cases the functioning of the heart and spleen is impaired. BCGM Dict I, 248. 852 Huang dan 黄疸, most likely including cases of jaundice. BCGM Dict I, 225.

Chapter 11

853

and at times loose. This is the disease “[sexual] exhaustion with women.” It is not a water [disease]. It is caused by massive exhaustion and massive heat when [that man] following intercourse has entered a water. Patients with a sensation of fullness in their abdomen are difficult to cure. [Grind] equal amounts of burned alum and nitrokalite, simmered until it has turned yellow, to a powder. Mix it with a barley gruel juice and ingest the amount held by a square cun spoon. To be ingested three times a day. The disease will vanish together with the release of fecal matter and urine. Once the urine is properly yellow and the fecal matter is properly black, this is evidence [of the effects of the treatment]. Zhang Zhongjing, Jin kui fang. 婦人黄疸。經水不調,房事觸犯所致。白礬、黄蠟各半兩,陳橘皮三錢, 爲末,化蠟丸梧子大,每服五十丸,以滋血湯或調經湯下。濟陰方。 Yellow dan-illness853 of women. Irregular menstruation caused by abnormal sexual activity. [Grind] half a liang each of white alum and yellow beeswax with three qian of tangerine peels to a powder. Transform it in beeswax to pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest 50 pills, to be sent down either with the “decoction to nourish blood” or with the “decoction to regulate menstruation.” 婦人白沃。經水不利,子臟堅僻,中有乾血,下白物。用礬石二分燒,杏 仁一分,研匀,煉蜜丸棗核大,納入腸中,日一易之。張仲景金匱方。 Women discharging white foam. Irregular menstruation. The womb is hard and has assumed a slanted position. It is filled with dried blood, and a discharge of white items results. Grind two fen of burned alum and one fen of bitter apricot seeds to an evenly [mixed powder] and prepare with heat refined honey pills the size of Chinese date seeds. Insert [a pill] into [the patient’s birth] intestine, to be replaced [with a new pill] once a day. Zhang Zhongjing, Jin kui fang. 婦人陰脱作痒。礬石燒研,空心酒服方寸匕,日三。千金翼。 Prolapse from a woman’s yin [(i. e., genital) region] with an itch. Grind burned alum [to a powder] and let her ingest with wine on an empty stomach the amount held by a square cun spoon. Three times a day. Qian jin yi. 男婦遺尿。枯白礬、牡蠣粉等分,爲末,每服方寸匕,温酒下,日三服。 余居士選奇方。 Uncontrolled urination of males and women. [Grind] equal amounts of dried alum and oyster shell powder to a powder. Each time ingest the amount held by a square cun spoon. To be sent down with warm wine. To be ingested three times a day. Yu Jushi, Xuan qi fang. 853 Huang dan 黄疸, most likely including cases of jaundice. BCGM Dict I, 225.

854

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

二便不通。白礬末填滿臍中,以新汲水滴之,覺冷透腹内,即自然通。臍 平者,以紙圍環之。經驗方。 Blockage of both [major/defecation and minor/urination] relief. Fill the navel with alum powder and drip newly drawn water on it. This will cause a sensation of cold penetrating the abdomen. As a result, [the passage of defecation and urination] will be opened. If the navel is on one level [with the surrounding abdomen], encircle it with paper [to hold the powder]. Jing yan fang. 霍亂吐瀉。枯白礬末一錢,百沸湯調下。華佗危病方。 Cholera with vomiting and outflow. Send down one qian of dried, white alum in hot water, boiled to bubbling a hundred times. Hua Tuo, Wei bing fang. 伏暑泄瀉。玉華丹:白礬煅,爲末,醋糊爲丸,量大小,用木瓜湯下。經 驗方。 Outflow caused by hidden summerheat. The “jade splendor elixir:” [Grind] calcined alum to a powder and prepare with vinegar and dough pills, the size varying with the [individual requirements], to be sent down with a chaenomeles fruit decoction. Jing yan fang. 老人泄瀉不止。枯白礬一兩,訶黎勒煨七錢半,爲末,米飲服二錢,取 愈。太平聖惠方。 Unending outflow of old persons. [Grind] one liang of dried, white alum and seven and a half qian of terminalia fruit, cooked over a slow fire, to a powder. [Let the patient] ingest two qian with a rice beverage. This will result in a cure. Tai ping sheng hui fang. 赤白痢下。白礬飛過爲末,好醋、飛羅麪爲丸梧子大,赤痢甘草湯,白痢 乾薑湯下。生生方。 Red and white free-flux illness854 discharge. [Grind] white alum, processed with sublimation, to a powder and prepare with good vinegar and finest flour pills the size of wu seeds. In the case of red free-flux illness, send them down with a glycyrrhiza [root] decoction. In the case of white free-flux illness, send them down with a dried ginger decoction. Sheng sheng fang. 氣痢不止。巴石丸:取白礬一大斤,以炭火净地燒令汁盡,其色如雪,謂 之巴石。取一兩研末,熟猪肝作丸梧子大。空腹,量人加减。水牛肝更 佳。如素食人,以蒸餅爲丸。或云白礬中青黑者,名巴石。劉禹錫傳信方。

854 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

Chapter 11

855

Unending qi free-flux illness.855 The “pills with Ba stone:” Burn one generous jin of white alum on a clean ground over a charcoal fire until all its [internal] liquid has vanished. Its color will then be like that of snow. This is the so-called “Ba stone.” Grind one liang to a powder and with boiled lard prepare pills the size of wu seeds [to be ingested] on an empty abdomen with the dose increased and decreased in accordance with the [age and individual requirements of the sick] person. If [the powder is boiled] with ox bile, this is even better. For vegetarians prepare pills with steamed cakes. It is also said that the greenish-black kinds of white alum are called “Ba stone.” Liu Yuxin, Chuan xin fang. 冷勞泄痢,食少,諸藥不效。白礬三兩燒,羊肝一具去脂,釅醋三升煮 爛,擂泥和丸梧子大,每服二十丸,米飲下,早夜各一服。普濟方。 Outflow caused by cold exhaustion. [Patients] eat little and all types of medication have remained without effect. Boil three liang of burned, white alum and one sheep liver, with the fat removed, in three sheng of thick vinegar to a pappy mass. Pound this to a pulp and prepare pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest 20 pills, to be sent down with a rice beverage. To be ingested once in the early morning and at night. Pu ji fang. 泄瀉下痢。白龍丹:用明礬枯過爲末,飛羅麪醋打糊丸梧子大,每服二三 十丸,白痢薑湯下,赤痢甘草湯、泄瀉米湯下。經驗方。 Outflow and discharge with free-flux illness. The “white dragon elixir:” Prepare dried alum powder and finest wheat flour to pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest 20 to 30 pills. In the case of white free-flux illness they are too be sent down with a ginger decoction. In the case of red free-flux illness they are to be sent down with a glycyrrhiza [root] decoction. In the case of outflow they are to be sent down with a rice decoction. Jing yan fang. 瘧疾寒熱。即上方,用東南桃心七箇,煎湯下。 Malaria illness with alternating sensations of cold and heat. The same recipe as above, but to be sent down with a decoction of seven seeds from peaches collected from the south-eastern side [of the tree]. 反胃嘔吐。白礬、流黄各二兩,銚内燒過,入朱砂一分,爲末,麪糊丸小 豆大,每薑湯下十五丸。 Turned over stomach with vomiting. Give two liang each of white alum and sulphur into a kettle and heat them. Then add one fen of cinnabar and [grind this to a]

855 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311.

856

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

powder. With a flour paste form pills the size of small beans. Each time send down with a ginger decoction 15 pills. 又方:白礬枯三兩,蒸餅丸梧子大。每空心米飲服十五丸。普濟方。 Another recipe. Form three liang of white alum with steamed cakes to pills the size of wu seeds. Each time on an empty stomach ingest with a rice beverage 15 pills. Pu ji fang. 化痰治嗽。明礬二兩,生參末一兩,苦醋二升,熬爲膏子,以油紙包收, 旋丸豌豆大,每用一丸,放舌下,其嗽立止,痰即消。 To transform phlegm and cure cough. Simmer two liang of alum and one liang of fresh ginseng [root] powder in two sheng of bitter vinegar to a paste. Place it underneath the tongue and the cough will end immediately. The phlegm will be dissolved. 定西侯方:只用明礬末,醋糊丸梧子大,每睡時茶下二三十丸。 Ding Xihou fang: Use nothing but alum powder and vinegar and flour to prepare pills the size of wu seeds. Always at bedtime send down with tea 20 to 30 pills. 摘要用明礬半生半燒,山巵子炒黑,等分爲末,薑汁糊爲丸,如上服。 The Zhai yao [recommends to grind] equal amounts of alum, half raw, half burned, and mountain gardenia [fruit], roasted until it has turned black, to a powder, to be prepared to pills with ginger juice. To be ingested in the same manner as the previous recipe. 雜興方用白明礬、建茶等分,爲末,糊丸服。 The Za xing fang [recommends to grind] equal amounts of white alum and tea from Jian to a powder and prepare it with a paste to pills that are to be ingested. 諸心氣痛。儒門事親方用生礬一皂子大,醋一盞,煎七分服,立止。 All types of heart qi pain. The Ru men shi qin [recommends to] boil one piece of raw alum, the size of a gleditsia seed, in one small cup of vinegar down to 70% and to ingest this. [The pain] will end immediately. 邵真人方用明礬一兩燒,朱砂一錢,金薄三個,爲末,每服一錢半,空心 白湯下。 The Shao zhenren fang [recommends to grind] one liang of burned alum, one qian of cinnabar and three gold foils to a powder. Each time ingest one and a half qian, to be sent down on an empty stomach with clear hot water.

Chapter 11

857

中諸蠱毒。晉礬、建茶等分,爲末,新汲水調下二錢,瀉吐即效。未吐再 服。濟生方。 Being struck by any type of gu poison.856 [Grind] equal amounts of alum from Jin and tea leaves from Jian to a powder and [let the patient] send down two qian mixed with newly drawn water. Once he has outflow and vomits, the effect is obvious. If [the patient] fails to vomit, let him ingest [the medication] again. Ji sheng fang. 蛇蟲諸毒。毒蛇、射工、沙虱等傷人,口噤目黑,手足直,毒氣入腹。白 礬、甘草等分,爲末。冷水服二錢。瑞竹堂方。 All types of snake and worm/bug poison. When poisonous snakes, the archer857 or sand lice have harmed one, with lockjaw and blackened vision, hands and feet stretched out straight, and the poison qi having entered the abdomen, [grind] equal amounts of alum and glycyrrhiza [root] to a powder and [let the patient] ingest with cold water two qian. Rui zhu tang fang. 驢馬汗毒所傷瘡痛。白礬飛過,黄丹炒紫,等分,貼之。王氏博濟方。 Painful sores harmed by the poison of donkey and horse sweat. Apply equal amounts of alum, processed with sublimation, and fried minium to [the affected region]. Wang shi, Bo ji fang. 虎犬傷人。礬末納入裹之,止痛尤妙。肘後方。 Harm caused to one by tigers and dogs. Insert alum powder into [the wound] and bandage it. [The recipe] is particularly wondrous when it is used to end pain. Zhou hou fang. 蛇咬蠍螫。燒刀矛頭令赤,置白礬于上,汁出熱滴之,立瘥,此神驗之方 也。貞元十三年,有兩僧流南方,到鄧州,俱爲蛇囓,令用此法便瘥,更 無他苦。劉禹錫傳信方。 Snake bite and scorpion sting. Heat the tip of a sword or spear until it has turned red and place alum on it. Once its internal juice is released drip it on [the location of the bite] to achieve an immediate cure. This is a divinely effective recipe. In the 13th year of the zhen yuan reign period (785 – 805) two monks travelled in the South. When they reached Dengzhou, both were bitten by a snake. They had this method 856 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191. 857 She gong du 射工毒,,”the archer’s poison,” also: she wang du 射罔毒, reflects an ancient notion of bugs that live in waters and shoot their poison at humans, causing disease. BCGM Dict I, 432.

858

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

applied and were cured immediately, without any secondary suffering. Liu Yuxi, Chuan xin fang. 壁鏡毒人必死。白礬塗之。太平廣記。 When one is poisoned by uroctea bugs, and death is imminent, apply white alum [to the affected region]. Tai ping guang ji. 刀斧金瘡。白礬、黄丹等分,爲末,傅之最妙。救急方。 Wounds caused by metal objects/weapons, such as swords and axes. [Grind] equal amounts of white alum and minium to a powder and apply this [to the wounds]. Very wondrous. Jiu ji fang. 折傷止痛。白礬末一匙,泡湯一盌,帕蘸乘熱熨傷處。少時痛止,然後排 整筋骨,點藥。靈苑方。 To stop pain of fracture harm. Boil a spoonful of alum powder in a bowl of water, dip a handkerchief into the hot liquid and press it on the harmed region. After a short while the pain will end. Then readjust the [affected] sinews and bones, and apply [suitable] medication. Ling yuan fang. 漆瘡作痒。白礬湯拭之。千金方。 Itching sores caused by lacquer. Wipe them with an alum decoction. Qian jin fang. 牛皮癬瘡。石榴皮蘸明礬末抹之。切勿用醋,即蟲沉下。直指方。 Ox hide xuan-illness858 sores. Dip pomegranade bark into alum powder and rub [the affected region] with it. Do not resort to vinegar lest the worms/bugs enter deeply. Zhi zhi fang. 小兒風𤺋作痒。白礬燒投熱酒中,馬尾揾酒塗之。子母秘録。 Itching wind rashes of children. Toss white alum into hot wine. Wipe [the affected region] with a horse’s tail and apply the [medicated] wine to it. Zi mu mi lu. 小兒臍腫,出汁不止。白礬燒灰傅之。聖惠方。 Swollen navel of children, releasing a juice without end. Apply the ashes of burned alum to it. Sheng hui fang. 乾濕頭瘡。白礬半生半煅,酒調塗上。生生編。 Dry and moist sores on the head. Mix white alum, one half raw, one half calcined, with wine and apply this to the [affected region]. Sheng sheng bian. 858 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591.

Chapter 11

859

身面瘊子。白礬、地膚子等分,煎水,頻洗之。多能鄙事。 Warts on the body and the face. Boil equal amounts of white alum and kochia [fruit] in water and repeatedly wash [the affected regions] with it. Duo neng bi shi. 腋下胡臭。礬石絹袋盛之,常粉腋下,甚妙。許堯臣方。 Barbarian stench under the armpits. Fill a silk pouch with alum and repeatedly powder the region under the armpits with it. Very wondrous. Xu Raochen fang. 魚口瘡毒。白礬枯研,寒食麪糊調,傅上即消。救急良方。 Fish mouth sores poison. Dry white alum and grind it [to a powder]. Mix it with [steamed cakes prepared from] flour [to be consumed] during the “cold food” [festival]859 and apply it to the [affected region. The sores] will dissolve. Jiu ji liang fang. 陰瘡作臼。取高昌白礬、麻仁等分,研末,猪脂和膏,先以槐白皮煎湯洗 過,塗之,外以楸葉貼上,不過三度愈。葛洪肘後方。 Sores in the yin [(i. e., genital) region] forming an indentation. Grind equal amounts of alum from Gao chang and hemp seeds to a powder and with lard form a paste. First wash [the affected region] with a decoction of white sophora japonica bark, and apply [the paste] to it. Then cover [the paste] with catalpa leaves. A cure will be achieved after no more than three such applications. Ge Hong, Zhou hou fang. 足瘡生蟲。南方地卑濕,人多患足瘡,歲久生蟲如蛭,乃風毒攻注而然。 用牛或羊或豬肚,去糞不洗,研如泥,看瘡大小,入煅過泥礬半兩。已上 研匀,塗帛上貼之。須臾痒入心,徐徐連帛取下,火上炙之。蟲出,絲髮 馬尾千萬,或青白赤黑,以湯洗之。三日一作,不過數次,蟲盡瘡愈。南 宫從岣嶁神書。 Sores on the feet generating worms/bugs. In the South, where the ground is low-lying and moist, the people often suffer from foot sores. After many years they generate worms/bugs resembling leeches. This is so because wind poison has attacked and settled there. Take the stomach of an ox, a sheep or a pig. Remove the excrements but do no wash it. Grind it to a pulp. Take as much as the size of the sores, calcine it and add half a liang of alum. Grind this to an evenly mixed [powder], spread it on a piece of silk and apply this to [the sores]. After a short while [the patient] will feel an itch reaching right into his heart. Gently remove the silk and roast it above a 859 This is the festival honoring Jie Zitui 介子推 who had served King Wen of the State of Jin, 5th c. BCE. Eventually he withdrew with his mother to the forests. King Wen summoned him to his court to show his gratitude. When Jie Zitui refused to appear, the king had the forest set on fire to force him to leave his abode. Jie and his mother died in the fire in 476 BCE. The king ordered that no fires were allowed on that day in future, and food was to be consumed cold. Hence the name of that day, han shi 寒食, “cold food.” BCGM Dict III, 224-225.

860

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

fire. The worms will come out of it, [and they will look like] a thousand or a myriad of silk threads forming a horse tail. They may be greenish, white, red or black. Then wash the [affected region] with hot water. Do this once every third day. After several applications all the worms/bugs will have vanished and the sores will be cured. Nan Gongcong, Gu lou shen shu. 嵌甲作瘡。足趾甲入肉作瘡,不可覆靴。礬石燒灰傅之,蝕惡肉,生好 肉。細細割去甲角,旬日取愈,此方神效。肘後方。 Sores resulting from embedded nails. When toenails intrude into the flesh and cause sores, making it impossible to wear boots. Burn alum to ashes and apply them to [the affected region]. This will erode the malign flesh and stimulate the growth of good flesh. Carefully cut out the corners of the nails, and within ten days/a short period of time a cure will be achieved. This recipe is divinely effective. Zhou hou fang. 雞眼肉刺。枯礬、黄丹、朴消等分,爲末,搽之。次日浴二三次,即愈。 多能鄙事。 Chicken eye/corn and flesh thorn. [Grind] equal amounts of dried alum, minium and nitrokalite to a powder and rub this on [the affected region]. The following day wash it two or three times and a cure will be achieved. Duo neng bi shi. 冷瘡成漏。明礬半生半飛,飛者生肉,生者追膿,五靈脂水飛,各半錢, 爲末。以皮紙裁條,唾和末作小撚子,香油捏濕,于末拖過,剪作大小 撚,安入漏,早安午换。候膿出盡後,有些小血出,方得乾水。住藥,自 然生肉痊好。普濟方。 Sores caused by cold that have begun to leak. [Grind] half a qian each of alum, one half raw, one half processed with sublimation – with the sublimated [alum] serving to generate new flesh, and the raw [alum] removing the pus – and squirrel droppings to a powder. Cut tough paper into small stripes. Mix the powder with saliva. Form [the paper] to small rolls. Knead them with your fingers in sesame oil until they are wet and then absorb with them the powder [mixed with the saliva]. Cut the rolls into pieces of varying sizes and insert them into the leaking [fistula]. Placed there in the morning, they are replaced [with a new roll] at noon. Once all the pus is eliminated, a little blood will be released. Eventually all watery liquid will have dried. Now end the application of the medication. Flesh will grow by itself and the ailment will be cured. Pu ji fang.

Chapter 11

861

魚睛丁瘡。枯礬末,寒食麪糊調貼,消腫無膿。崔氏方。 Pin-illness860 sores resembling fish eyes. Mix dried alum powder with [steamed cakes prepared from] flour [to be consumed] during the “cold food” [festival]861 and apply this to [the affected region. This will dissolve the swelling and eliminate the pus. Cui shi fang. 丁瘡腫毒。雪白礬末五錢,葱白煨熟,搗和丸梧子大,每服二錢五分,以 酒送下,未效再服。久病、孕婦不可服。衞生寶鑑。 Pin-illness sores with swelling and poison. Grind a mixture of five qian of snowwhite alum powder and onion stalks, cooked over a slow fire until done, and form pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest two qian and five fen, to be sent down with wine. If no effect shows, ingest [the same dose] again. Patients with a chronic disease and pregnant women must not ingest [this medication]. Wei sheng bao jian. 癰疽腫毒。方見前發明下。 Obstruction-illness and impediment-illness862 with swelling and poison. For a recipe, see “Explication.” 陰汗濕痒。枯礬撲之。又泡湯沃洗。御藥院方。 Sweating, moisture and itch in the yin [(i. e., genital) region]. Apply dried alum to [the affected region]. In addition, boil [the alum] in water and wash [the affected region] with it. Yu yao yuan fang. 交接勞復,卵腫,或縮入,腹痛欲絶。礬石一分,消三分,大麥粥清服方 寸匕,日三服,熱毒從二便出也。肘後方。 Recurrence [of a disease] because of exhaustion during sexual intercourse, with a swelling of the testicles, or their shrinkage and withdrawel [into the abdomen], and abdominal pain letting one wish to die. Prepare a barley gruel from one part of 860 Ding 丁, “pin[-illness],” also ding 疔, “pin-illness,” refers to a deep-reaching and festering hardness in a tissue, eventually rising above the skin like a pinhead. BCGM Dict I, 127129. 861 This is the festival honoring Jie Zitui 介子推 who had served King Wen of the State of Jin, 5th c. BCE. Eventually he withdrew with his mother to the forests. King Wen summoned him to his court to show his gratitude. When Jie Zitui refused to appear, the king had the forest set on fire to force him to leave his abode. Jie and his mother died in the fire in 476 BCE. The king ordered that no fires were allowed on that day in future, and food was to be consumed cold. Hence the name of that day, han shi 寒食, “cold food.” BCGM Dict III, 224-225. 862 Yong ju 癰疽, “obstruction-illness, impediment-illness.” refers to two vaguely distinguished obstructions/impediments of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the obstruction may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 642.

862

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

alum and three parts of nitrokalite and ingest as much as is held by a one square cun spoon. To be ingested three times a day. The heat poison will be released with both [urination and defecation] relief. Zhou hou fang. 女人陰痛。礬石三分炒,甘草末半分,綿裹導之,取瘥。肘後百一方。 Painful yin [(i. e., genital) region] of women. Wrap three fen of fried alum and half a fen of glycyrrhiza [root] powder in silk and insert it [into the vagina]. This will result in a cure. Zhou hou bai yi fang. 丁腫惡瘡。二仙散:用生礬、黄丹,臨時等分,以三稜針刺血,待盡傅 之。不過三上,决愈。乃太醫李管勾方。衞生寶鑑。 Pin-illness863 swelling with malign sores. The “powder of the two hermits/immortals:” Open [the swelling] when the time [for a treatment] has come with a triangular needle to let blood. Once all the blood has left apply [a mixture of ] equal amounts of raw alum and minium [to the affected region]. A cure will be achieved after no more than three applications. This is a recipe of the Imperial Physician Li Guangou. Wei sheng bao jian. 蟲蛇獸毒及蠱毒。生明礬、明雄黄等分,于端午日研末,黄蠟和丸梧子 大,每服七丸,念藥王菩薩七遍,熟水送下。東坡良方。 Worm/bug, snake, animal poison and gu poison.864 Grind equal amounts of raw alum and realgar on the fifth day of the fifth month to a powder and with yellow beeswax form pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest seven pills and recite “Medicine King Buddha” seven times. To be sent down with boiled water. Dongpo liang fang. 11-18 緑礬日華 Lü fan, FE Rihua. Green vitriol. Melanterite. Ferrous sulphate. 【釋名】皂礬綱目、青礬煅赤者名絳礬唐本、礬紅。【時珍曰】緑礬可以 染皂色,故謂之皂礬。又黑礬亦名皂礬,不堪服食,惟瘡家用之。煅赤者 俗名礬紅,以别朱紅也。 863 Ding 丁, “pin[-illness],” also ding 疔, “pin-illness,” refers to a deep-reaching and festering hardness in a tissue, eventually rising above the skin like a pinhead. BCGM Dict I, 127129. 864 Gu 蠱 is an ancient conceptualization of diseases traced to a magic pathogenic agent. Originally it was assumed to be a most poisonous bug, the only creature in a closed jar surviving competition with hundreds of other poisonous bugs. This bug was believed to be instrumentalized by greedy persons to appropriate the belongings of others. The resulting disease was termed gu du 蠱毒, “gu poison(ing).” BCGM Dict I, 191.

Chapter 11

863

Explanation of Names. Zao fan 皂礬, “ink-black fan,” Gang mu. Qing fan 青礬, “greenish fan,” that has been calcined until it turns red is called jiang fan 絳礬, “deep red/crimson fan,” Tang ben. Fan hong 礬紅, “fan red.” [Li] Shizhen: With green fan one can dye [fabrics] ink-black, zao 皂. Hence it is also called zao fan 皂礬, “inkblack fan.” Hei fan 黑礬, “black fan,” too, is called zao fan 皂礬, “ink-black fan.” It cannot be ingested or consumed; it is resorted to only by specialists [treating] sores. [Green fan] calcined until it turns red is commonly called fan hong 礬紅, “fan red,” to be distinguished from zhu hong 朱紅, “vermilion.”。 【集解】【頌曰】緑礬出隰州 温泉縣、池州 銅陵縣,並煎礬處生焉。初生 皆石也,煎煉乃成。其形似朴消而緑色,取置鐵板上,聚炭燒之,礬沸流 出,色赤如金汁者是真也。沸定時,汁盡則色如黄丹。又有皂莢礬,或云 即緑礬也。【恭曰】 緑礬新出窟未見風者,正如琉璃色,人以爲石膽。燒 之赤色,故名絳礬。出瓜州者良。【時珍曰】緑礬晉地、河内、西安、沙 州皆出之,狀如焰消。其中揀出深青瑩净者,即爲青礬。煅過變赤,則爲 絳礬。入圬墁及漆匠家多用之。然貨者亦雜以沙土爲塊。昔人往往以青礬 爲石膽,誤矣。 Collected Explanations. [Su] Song: Melanterite originates in Wen qian xian of Xi zhou, and in Tong ling xian of Chi zhou. It grows at the same places as fried fan. In the beginning, it grows like any stone/mineral. It is through a process of refinement with heat that [melanterite] is generated. Its physical appearance resembles that of po xiao 朴消/mirabilite, but it is of green color. When genuine [melanterite] is placed on an iron plate and this is heated with a pile of charcoal, it will bubble and a liquid flows off assuming a red color like golden juice. When the bubbling has ended, and all the juice has vanished, it assumes a color reminiscent of minium. Also, there is gleditsia seed fan 皂莢礬, and some say that it is green fan. [Su] Gong: When melanterite has just left the mine and has not been exposed to wind yet, its color is perfectly that of opaque glass. The people regard it as chalanthite. When it is heated it assumes a red color. Hence it is called “deep-red/crimson fan.” That originating in Gua zhou is good. [Li] Shizhen: Melanterite originates in the territory of Jin, and also in He nei, Xi an and Sha zhou. It is shaped like nitrokalite. A deep greenish, lustrous and clean variety is qing fan 青礬, “greenish fan.” That which turns red when calcined is jiang fan 絳礬, “deep-red/crimson fan.” It is added to wall plaster and it is often used by lacquer workers. However, when it is sold on the market, imerchants mix it with sand and soil to earn more money. The ancients often regarded qing fan 青礬, “greenish fan,” as chalanthite. They were wrong. 【氣味】酸,凉,無毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sour, cool, nonpoisonous.

864

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

【主治】疳及諸瘡。蘇恭。喉痺,蟲牙,口瘡,惡瘡,疥癬。釀鯽魚燒灰 服,療腸風瀉血。大明。消積滯,燥脾濕,化痰涎,除脹滿黄腫瘧利,風 眼口齒諸病。時珍。 Control. Gan-illness865 and all other types of sores. Su Gong: Throat blockage, tooth worms/bugs, mouth sores, malign sores, jie-illness866 and xuan-illness.867 Ferment crucian carps [with melanterite], burn this and ingest the ashes. This serves to heal intestinal wind and outflow with blood. Da Ming. It serves to dissolve accumulations and sluggishness. It dries spleen moisture. It transforms phlegm and saliva. It removes distension, a sensation of fullness, yellow swelling, malaria and free flow, wind eyes868 and all types of diseases affecting the mouth and the teeth. [Li] Shizhen. 【發明】【時珍曰】緑礬酸涌濇收,燥濕解毒化涎之功與白礬同,而力差 緩。按張三丰仙傳方載伐木丸云:此方乃上清金蓬頭祖師所傳。治脾土衰 弱,肝木氣盛,木來剋土,病心腹中滿,或黄腫如土色,服此能助土益 元。用蒼术二斤,米泔水浸二宿,同黄酒麪麴四兩炒赤色,皂礬一斤,醋 拌晒乾,入瓶火煅,爲末,醋糊丸梧子大。每服三四十丸,好酒、米湯任 下,日二三服。時珍常869以此方加平胃散,治一賤役中滿腹脹,果有效驗。 蓋此礬色緑味酸,燒之則赤,既能入血分伐木,又能燥濕化涎,利小便, 消食積,故脹滿黄腫瘧痢疳疾方往往用之,其源則自張仲景用礬石、消石 治女勞黄疸方中變化而來。【頌曰】劉禹錫傳信方治喉痺,用皂莢礬,入 好米醋同研含之,嚥汁立瘥。此方出于李謨,甚奇妙。皂莢礬,即緑礬也。 Explication. [Li] Shizhen: Green fan is sour and hence it is gushing; it is astringent and hence it is collecting. Its potential to dry moisture, resolve poison and transform saliva is identical to that of white fan/alum. But its strength is inferior and slower. According to the “pills to fell wood” recorded in Zhang Sanfeng’s Xian chuan fang, this is a recipe transmitted by Founder Jin Pengtou of the Highest Purity. It serves to cure weakness in the spleen, [i. e., the long-term depot associated with the phase] soil accompanied by abounding qi in the liver, [i. e., the long-term depot associated 865 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188. 866 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely defined skin ailments. BCGM Dict I, 249. 867 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591. 868 Feng yan 風眼, “wind eyes,” are red and festering canthi and eyelids brought about by harm caused to the eyes by heat. BCGM Dict I, 171. 869 From the meaning of this passage, instead of chang 常 one might expect here nowadays the character chang 嘗, “to try,” “once.” However, in antiquity the two characters chang 常 and chang 嘗 were used interchangeably.

Chapter 11

865

with the phase] wood. When wood arrives to overcome soil, the resulting disease is a sensation of fullness in heart and abdomen, sometimes with a yellow swelling assuming the color of soil. To ingest these [pills] can support the soil and boost the original [qi]. Soak two jin of atractylodes [rhizome] for two days and nights in water which was used to wash rice. Then fry it together with distiller’s yeast of yellow wine until it has assumed a red color. Add one jin of melanterite, and vinegar, and dry it in the sun. It is then filled into a jar, calcined over a fire, and [ground to] a powder. Each time ingest 30 to 40 pills, to be sent down at will with good wine or rice decoction. To be ingested two or three times a day. [I, Li] Shizhen, have regularly used this recipe together with the “powder to level the stomach”870 to cure my servants when they sensed fullness in their center, with abdominal distension. It was effective. The fact is, this variety of fan is of green color and of sour flavor. When it is heated it turns red. Hence it is able to enter the blood section and to fell wood, and it is also able to dry moisture and transform saliva, to free the flow of urine, and to dissolve accumulations of food. Hence it is often used in recipes for distension, fullness, yellow swelling, malaria and free-flux illness,871 as well as gan-illness.872 The origin of this [recipe] lies in Zhang Zhongjing’s “recipe to cure [sexual] exhaustion with women resulting in dan-illness873” with alum and nitrokalite that has been modified and transformed in the course of time. [Su] Song: Liu Yuxi in his Chuan xin fang [recommends to] “cure throat blockage [as follows]. Add melanterite to good rice vinegar, grind it and hold the [resulting liquid] in the mouth. Swallow the juice and a cure will be achieved immediately”. This recipe is from Li Mo. It is very special and wondrous. Gleditsia seed fan 皂莢礬 is green fan/melanterite.

870 Ingredients of the “powder to balance the stomach” include: magnolia bark, ginger juice, tangerine peels, glycyrrhiza [root], atractylodes [rhizome], fresh ginger, and Chinese dates. 871 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 872 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188. 873 Huang dan 黄疸, most likely including cases of jaundice. BCGM Dict I, 225.

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

866

【附方】舊一,新一十九。 Added Recipes. One of old. 19 newly [recorded].874 重舌木舌。皂礬二錢,鐵上燒紅,研,摻之。陸氏積德堂方。 Doubled tongue,875 wooden tongue.876 Heat [melanterite] on iron until it has turned red, grind it and apply [the resulting powder] to [the affected region]. Lu shi, Ji de tang fang. 喉風腫閉。皂礬一斤,米醋三斤拌,晒乾,末,吹之。痰涎出盡,用良薑 末少許,入茶内漱口,嚥之即愈。孫氏集效方。 Swollen and closed throat caused by wind. Mix one jin of ink-black fan/melanterite and three jin of rice vinegar, and dry it in the sun. [Grind it to a] powder and blow it [into the patient’s throat]. Once all the phlegm and saliva have left [the mouth], give a small amount of good ginger powder into tea and [let the patient] rinse his mouth. When he swallows [the liquid] he will be cured. Sun si ji xiao fang. 眼暴赤爛。紅棗五斤,入緑礬在内,火煨熟,以河水、井水各一盌,桃、 柳心各七個,煎稠,每點少許入眦上。摘玄方。 The eyes have suddenly turned red and fester. Give melanterite into five jin of red Chinese dates and cook them over a slow fire until done. Boil them with one bowl each of river water and well water and seven finest twig tips with tender leaves of peach and willow trees. Boil this to a thick paste and each time drip a small amount on the canthi. Zhai xuan fang. 爛弦風眼。青礬火煅出毒,細研,泡湯,澄清,點洗。永類方。 Festering [eyelid] rims and wind eyes.877 Calcine melanterite over a fire to release its poison. Grind it to a fine [powder], boil it in water, wait for the dregs to have settled, drip [some of the clear liquid into the affected eye] and wash it [with that liquid]. Yong lei fang. 倒睫拳毛。方同上。 Inverted eyelashes, with the hair contracted like a fist. Recipe identical to the one above. 874 The number of recipes listed below amounts to 39. 875 Chong she 重舌, “doubled tongue.” A growth under the tongue, mostly in children, similar to a second tongue. BCGM Dict I, 92. 876 Mu she 木舌, “wooden tongue,” indicates a massively swollen tongue, filling the entire oral cavity, accompanied by a wood-like hardening. BCGM Dict I, 344. 877 Feng yan 風眼, “wind eyes,” are red and festering canthi and eyelids brought about by harm caused to the eyes by heat. BCGM Dict I, 171.

Chapter 11

867

瘧疾寒熱。礬紅、獨蒜頭煨,等分,搗丸芡子大,每白湯嚼下一丸,端午 日合之。普濟方。 Malaria illness with alternating cold and heat sensations. Pound equal amounts of melanterite and the tips of single clove garlic, cooked over a slow fire, and form [with the resulting pulp] pills the size of qian seeds. Each time swallow, with clear, boiled water, one pill. Prepare the [pills] on the fifth day of the fifth month. Pu ji fang. 少陰瘧疾,嘔吐。緑礬一錢,乾薑炮,半夏薑制各半兩,爲末,每服半 錢,發日早以醋湯下。聖濟録。 Minor yin malaria illness, with vomiting. [Grind] one qian of melanterite and half a liang each of roasted, dry ginger and pinellia [root], processed with ginger to check its effects, to a powder. Each time [let the patient] ingest half a qian, to be sent down with a vinegar decoction on the day of an outbreak, early in the morning. Sheng ji lu. 翻胃吐食。白麪二斤半,蒸作大饅頭一箇,頭上開口,剜空,將皂礬填 滿,以新瓦圍注,鹽泥封固,穵土窑安放。文武火燒一日夜,取出研末, 棗肉爲丸梧子大,每服二十丸,空心酒、湯任下。忌酒色。醫方摘要。 Turned over stomach with vomiting of food. Steam two jin and a half of white flour/dough to prepare a large bun. Open a hole on its top and cut out the interior to create a hollow space. Fill it with ink-black fan/melanterite and hold it between [two] new tiles. Firmly seal them with salt mud and place this into a pit dug in the soil. Heat this with a mild fire first and a strong fire later for one day and one night. Then remove it and grind it to a powder to be prepared with Chinese date meat to pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest 20 pills, to be sent down on an empty stomach at will with wine or boiled water. [During the treatment] wine and sexual intercourse are forbidden. Yi fang zhai yao. 大便不通。皂礬一錢,巴霜二箇,同研,入雞子内攪匀,封頭,濕紙裹, 煨熟食之,酒下,即通。集玄方。 Blocked defecation. Grind together one qian of ink-black fan/melanterite and defatted croton seed powder. Insert this into a chicken egg and stir it to generate an even [mixture]. Then seal the opening, wrap [the egg] in moist paper and cook it over a slow fire until done. Eat this and send it down with wine. This will free [the passage of defecation]. Ji xuan fang. 腸風下血。積年不止,虚弱甚者,一服取效。緑礬四兩,入砂鍋内,新瓦 蓋定,鹽泥固濟,煅赤取出,入青鹽、生流黄各一兩,研匀。再入鍋中固 濟,煅赤取出,去火毒,研。入熟附子末一兩,粟米粥糊丸梧子大,每空 心米飲、温酒任下三十丸。永類方。

868

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Intestinal wind and discharge with blood. When this has lasted for years without end, resulting in severe depletion and weakness, one dose will be effective. Fill four liang of melanterite into an earthenware pot, cover it with a new tile, seal it firmly with salt mud, calcine it until it has turned red, and remove [the contents]. Add one liang each of greenish salt and raw sulphur and grind this to an evenly [mixed powder]. Fill this into the pot again, seal it firmly, calcine it until it has turned red and remove [the contents]. Let the fire poison vanish and grind [the residue to a powder]. Add one liang of aconitum [accessory tuber] powder and prepare with a congee of millet pills the size of wu seeds. Each time send down at will with a rice beverage or warm wine 30 pills. Yong lei fang. 婦人血崩。青礬二兩,輕粉一錢,爲末,水丸梧子大,每服二三十丸,新 汲水下。摘玄方。 Blood collapse of women.878 [Grind] two liang of melanterite and one qian of calomel to a powder and prepare with water pills the size of wu seeds. Each time [let the patient] ingest 20 to 30 pills, to be sent down with newly drawn water. Zhai xuan fang. 血證黄腫。緑礬四兩,百草霜一升,炒麪半升,爲末,沙糖和丸梧子大, 每服三四十丸,食後薑湯下。鄭時舉所傳。 Yellow swelling with a blood condition. [Grind] four liang of melanterite, one sheng of soot removed from a chimney after burning grass and half a sheng of fried wheat flour to a powder to be prepared with sugar to pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest 30 to 40 pills, to be sent down with a ginger decoction after meals. [Recipe] transmitted by Zheng Shiju. 又方:小麥淘净一斤,皂礬半斤,同炒黄爲末,黑棗肉半斤搗匀,米醋打 糊丸梧子大,每薑湯下八九十丸,一日三服。簡便方。 Another recipe. Fry one jin of wheat, washed with water, and half a jin of ink-black melanterite until they have assumed a yellow color, and [grind this to] a powder. Pound it with half a jin of black Chinese date meat to an evenly [mixed pulp] to be prepared with rice vinegar to pills the size of wu seeds. Each time send down with a ginger decoction 80 to 90 pills. To be ingested three times a day. Jian bian fang. 脾病黄腫。青礬四兩,煅成赤珠子,當歸四兩,酒酻浸七日焙,百草霜三 兩,爲末,以浸藥酒打糊丸梧子大,每服五丸至七丸,温水下。一月後黄 去立效,此方祖傳七世。

878 Xue beng 血崩, “blood collapse,” is excessive vaginal bleeding. BCGM Dict I, 594.

Chapter 11

869

Spleen disease with a yellow swelling. [Grind] four liang of melanterite, calcined to red pearls, four liang of angelica [root], soaked in wine for seven days and then baked over a slow fire, and three liang of soot removed from a chimney after burning grass to a powder. Let it soak in wine and prepare pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest five to seven pills, to be sent down with warm water. After one month the yellow [swelling] will disappear and a cure will be achieved immediately. This recipe has been transmitted by ancestors over seven generations. 又方:緑礬四兩,百草霜、五倍子各一兩,木香二錢,爲末,酒煎飛麪丸 梧子大,每空心酒下五丸。 Another recipe. [Grind] four liang of melanterite, one liang each of soot removed from a chimney after burning grass, one liang of Chinese sumac gallnuts and two qian of aucklandia [root] to a powder. Fry this in wine and prepare with finest flour pills the size of wu seeds. Each time on an empty stomach send down with wine five pills. 又方:平胃散四兩,青礬二兩,爲末,醋糊丸,米飲下,或加烏沉湯四 兩,酒糊丸亦可。潔古活法機要。 Another recipe. [Grind] four liang of the “powder to level the stomach”879 and two liang of melanterite to a powder and prepare with vinegar pills to be sent down with a rice beverage. Or add four liang of the “decoction with lindera [root] and aquilaria [wood]” and prepare with wine pills. This is possible, too. Jiegu huo fa ji yao. 酒黄水腫,黄腫積病。青礬半斤,醋一大盞,和匀,瓦盆内煅乾爲度;平 胃散、烏藥順氣散各半兩,爲末,醋煮糊丸梧子大,每酒或薑湯下二三十 丸。不忌口,加鍋灰。趙原陽真人濟急方。 Yellow water swelling caused by alcohol. An accumulation disease with yellow swelling. Evenly mix half a jin of melanterite and one large cup of vinegar and calcine it in an earthenware pot until the liquid has dried. [Grind] half a liang each of the “powder to level the stomach” and the “powder with lindera [root] to arrange the flow of qi” to a powder, boil it in vinegar to form a paste and prepare pills the size of wu seeds- Each time send down with wine or with a ginger decoction 20 to 30 pills. There are no prohibitions on oral [food intake during the treatment.] Add ashes from a cauldron. Zhao Yuanyang zhen ren, Ji ji fang. 食勞黄病,身目俱黄。青礬鍋内安炭煅赤,米醋拌爲末,棗肉和丸梧子 大,每服二三十丸,食後薑湯下。救急方。 879 Ingredients of the “powder to balance the stomach” include: magnolia bark, ginger juice, tangerine peels, glycyrrhiza [root], atractylodes [rhizome], fresh ginger, and Chinese dates.

870

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Jaundice caused by food and/or exhaustion, with both body and eyes having assumed a yellow color. Calcine melanterite in a cauldron on a charcoal [fire] until it has turned red. Mix it with vinegar and prepare a powder. Mix [the powder] with Chinese date meat and form pills the size of wu seeds. Each time ingest 20 to 30 pills, to be sent down following meals with a ginger decoction. Jiu ji fang. 腹中食積。緑礬二兩研,米醋一大盌,瓷器煎之,柳條攪成膏,入赤脚烏 一兩研,丸緑豆大,每空心温酒下五丸。聖惠方。 Food accumulation in the abdomen. Grind two liang of melanterite and boil it with one large bowl of vinegar in a porcelain vessel. Stir it with a willow tree until a paste has formed. Add one liang of chi jiao wu880 and grind this. Prepare pills the size of munk beans. Each time send down on an empty stomach with warm wine five pills. Sheng hui fang. 疳蟲食土及生物。研緑礬末,猪膽汁丸緑豆大。每米飲下五七丸。保幼大 全。 [Children suffering from] gan-illness881 worms/bugs and eating soil and raw items. Grind melanterite to a powder and form with pig bile pills the size of munk beans. Each time [let the child] send down with a rice beverage 50 pills. Bao you da quan. 小兒疳氣不可療者。緑礬煅赤,醋淬三次,爲末,棗肉和丸緑豆大,每服 十丸,温水下,日三。集驗方。 Gan-illness qi of children who could not be healed. Calcine melanterite until it has turned red, dip it three times into vinegar and [grind it to a] powder. Mix it with Chinese date meat and form pills the size of munk beans. Each time [let the child] ingest ten pills, to be sent down with warm water, three times a day. Ji yan fang. 走馬疳瘡。緑礬入鍋内,炭火煅紅,以醋拌匀,如此三次,爲末,入麝香 少許,温漿水漱净,摻之。談野翁試效方。 Running horse gan-illness882 sores. Give melanterite into a cauldron and calcine it above a charcoal fire until it has turned red. Evenly mix it with vinegar. Do this altogether three times and [then grind the melanterite] to a powder. Add a small 880 Chi jiao wu 赤脚烏, lit.: “barefoot/red leg crow.” Unidentifiable substance. 881 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188. 882 Zou ma gan 走馬疳, “running horse gan-illness,” BCGM Dict I, 703, is identical with zou ma ya gan 走馬牙疳, “running horse dental gan-illness.” A condition starting abruptly and immediately turning into a serious festering decay of teeth and gums. BCGM Dict I, 704.

Chapter 11

871

amount of musk, clean [the affected region] with warm fermented water of foxtail millet and apply the [powder to it]. Tan Yeweng, Shi xiao fang. 白秃頭瘡。皂礬、楝樹子,燒研,搽之。普濟方。 Baldness and head sores. Heat melanterite and chinaberry seeds and grind them [to a powder] to be applied [to the affected region]. Pu ji fang. 小兒頭瘡。絳礬一兩,淡豉一兩,炒黑,膩粉二錢,研匀,以桑灰湯洗 净,摻之良。 Head sores of children. Grind one liang of melanterite, one liang of bland fermented soybeans, fried until they have turned black, and two qian of calomel to an evenly [mixed powder]. Wash [the head of the child] clean with a mulberry wood ashes decoction and apply [the powder to it]. Good. 小兒甜瘡。大棗去核,填入緑礬,燒存性,研,貼之。拔萃方。 Sweet sores883 of children. Remove the pit of a large Chinese date and fill it with melanterite. Heat it with its nature retained, grind it and apply [the resulting powder to the affected region]. Ba cui fang. 耳生爛瘡。棗子去核,包青礬煅,研,香油調傅之。摘玄方。 Festering sores developing in the ears. Remove the pit of a Chinese date, fill it with melanterite and calcine it. Grind [it to a powder], mix it with sesame oil and apply this [to the affected region]. Zhai xuan fang. 蚰蜒入耳。水調緑礬,灌之。普濟方。 A centipede has invaded an ear. Mix water with melanterite and pour it [into the affected ear]. Pu ji fang. 蛆入耳中。緑礬摻之,即化爲水。摘玄方。 A maggot has invaded an ear. Apply melanterite to it and it will transform to water. Zhai xuan fang. 瘡中生蛆。緑礬末摻貼,即化爲水。摘玄方。 When maggots grow in sores. Apply melanterite powder to [the affected region] and they will transform to water. Zhai xuan fang.

883 Tian chuang 甜瘡, “sweet sores,” develop on the head, face and ears mostly of children with seeping liquid and itching that cannot be cured for an extended period of time. BCGM Dict I, 502.

872

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

湯火傷灼。皂礬和凉水澆之,其疼即止,腫亦消。楊誠經驗方。 Burns caused by hot water and fire. Pour a mixture of melanterite and cool water on [the affected region] and the pain will end. A swelling, too, will be dissolved. Yang Cheng, Jing yan fang. 癬瘡作痒。螺螄十四箇,槿樹皮末一兩,入盌内蒸熟,入礬紅三錢搗匀, 搽之。孫氏集效方。 Itch caused by xuan-illness884 sores. Give 14 spiral shells and one liang of shrubalthea tree bark into a bowl and steam them until done. Add three qian of melanterite and pound it to an even [mixture] that is to be applied [to the affected region]. Sun shi jia xiao fang. 甲疽延爛。崔氏方治甲疽,或因割甲傷肌,或因甲長侵肉,遂成瘡腫,黄 水浸淫相染,五指俱爛,漸上脚趺,泡漿四邊起,如火燒瘡,日夜倍增, 醫不能療。緑礬石五兩,燒至汁盡,研末,色如黄丹,收之。每以鹽湯洗 拭,用末厚傅之,以軟帛纏裹,當日即汁斷瘡乾。每日一遍,鹽湯洗濯有 膿處使净,傅,其痂乾處不須近。但有急痛,即塗酥少許令潤。五日即覺 上痂起,依前洗傅。十日痂漸剥盡,軟處或更生白膿泡,即擦破傅之,自 然瘥也。张侍郎病此,卧經六十日,京醫並處方無效,得此法如神。王燾 外臺秘要。 Nail impediment-illness885 with a prolonged festering. A recipe by Mr. Cui to cure nail impediment-illness. This may be due to inadvertent injury to the muscles / tissue when cutting nails or prolonged growth of nails that invade the flesh, resulting in sores and swelling and permeation with yellow water. All five toes fester, and this gradually increases to affect the instep and the legs. Blisters filled with starchy water rise everywhere and resemble wounds caused by burns. This gets heavier every day and every night and physicians can not cure it. Heat five liang of melanterite until all its liquid has left and grind it to a powder. Its color will be that of minium. Store it [for later use]. For each application, wash [the affected region] with a salt decoction, apply a thick layer of the powder and bandage it with a soft silk fabric. On the same day, the [secretion of ] juice will be interrupted and the sores will be dry. Do this once every day. Wash the purulent locations with a salt decoction to remove the pus and then apply [the powder to them. The powder] must not be brought into contact with dried crusts. Only if there is some acute pain, apply a small amount 884 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591. 885 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277.

Chapter 11

873

of butter to them to moisten them. Within five days, a crust has developed on [the sores]. Wash them and apply [the powder to them] as before. Within ten days, all the crusts will have peeled off. The soft regions may develop white blisters with pus again. Rub them until they break open and apply [the powder to them]. This will result in a cure. When Assistant Minister Zhang suffered from this disease, he lied down for 60 days. All the recipes resorted to by the physicians in the capital remained without effect. When he finally came to this method, it was divinely [effective]. Wang Dao, Wai tai mi yao. 婦人甲疽。婦人趾甲内生瘡,惡肉突出,久不 愈,名臭田螺。用皂礬日晒 夜露,每以一兩,煎湯浸洗。仍以礬末一兩,加雄黄二錢,硫黄一錢,乳 香、没藥各一錢,研匀,搽之。醫方摘要。 Nail impediment-illness886 of women. When sores develop inside of toenails and malign flesh protrudes, and a cure is impossible for a long time, this is called “malodorous field snail.” Dry melanterite in the sun and leave it in the open for one night. For each application boil one liang in water and wash [the affected region with it]. Then grind to an even [mixture] one liang of melanterite powder, two qian of realgar, one qian of sulphur and one qian each of frankincense and myrrh, and apply this [to the affected region]. Yi fang zhai yao. 塗染白髮。緑礬、薄荷、烏頭等分爲末,以鐵漿水浸,日染之。相感志。 For dyeing white hair. [Grind] equal amounts of melanterite, mint and aconitum [root tuber] to a powder, soak it in an iron broth/suspension and use this to dye [the hair] every day. Xiang gan zhi. 腋下胡氣。緑礬半生半煅,爲末,入少輕粉,以半錢,浴後薑汁調搽,候 十分熱痛乃止。〇仁齋直指方。 Barbarian [malodorous] qi from under the armpits. [Grind] melanterite, one half raw, one half calcined, to a powder. Add a small amount of calomel. After washing [the affected armpits] mix one half qian [of the powder] with ginger juice and apply [it to the armpit] until it is very hot and painful. Then end [the application]. Renzhai, Zhi zhi fang.

886 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277.

874

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

11-19 黄礬綱目 Huang fan, FE Gang mu. Yellow [iron] alum. Fibroferrite. 【集解】【恭曰】黄礬,丹竈家所須,亦入染皮用。【時珍曰】黄礬出陝 西 瓜州、沙州及舶上來者爲上,黄色,狀如胡桐淚。人于緑礬中揀出黄色 者充之,非真也。波斯出者,打破中有金絲文,謂之金線礬,磨刀劍顯花 文。丹房鑑源云:五色山脂,吴黄礬也。 Collected Explanations. [Su] Gong: Fibroferrite is required by specialists operating furnaces to produce [longevity] elixirs. It is also used for tanning hides. [Li] Shizhen: Fibroferrite originating in Guao zhou and Sha zhou of Shaan xi and that imported from overseas are best. They are of yellow color, and they are shaped like poplar resin. When people pick from green fan (melanterite) those parts that are yellow and sell them as [yellow fan (fibroferrite)], this is not genuine [yellow fan. Yellow fan] originating in Po si has a golden thread line design inside when broken open. It is called “golden string fan.” When it is used to rub a knife or sword blade, a variegated line design results. The Dan fang jian yuan states: “The mountain fat of all five colors is yellow fan from Wu.” 【氣味】酸、濇,鹹,有毒。 Qi and Flavor. Sour, astringent, salty, poisonous. 【主治】療瘡生肉。蘇恭。野雞瘻痔,惡瘡疥癬。李珣。治陽明風熱牙 疼。李杲。 Control. It cures sores and lets flesh grow. Su Gong. Piles fistula, malign sores, jie-illness,887 xuan-illness.888 Li Xun. It serves to cure toothache caused by wind and heat in the yang brilliance [conduits]. Li Gao.

【附方】新五。 Added Recipes. Five newly [recorded]. 聤耳出汁。黄礬二兩燒枯,綿裹二錢塞之。聖惠方。 Festering ears releasing liquid. Heat two liang of fibroferrite until they have dried, wrap two qian into a piece of silk fabric and stuff this [into the affected ear]. Sheng hui fang. 887 Jie-illness 疥, vaguely defined skin ailment. BCGM Dict I, 249. 888 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591.

Chapter 11

875

婦人頰瘡,每年頻發。水銀一兩半,以猪脂揉擦,令消盡,入黄礬石末二 兩,胡粉一兩,再加猪脂和令如泥。洗瘡净,塗之,别以胡粉塗膏上。此 甘家秘方也。肘後方。 Sores on the cheeks of women, continuously effusing every year. Rub lard into one liang and a half of mercury until it has completedly dissolved. Then add two liang of fibroferrite stone/mineral powder and one liang of lead carbonate. Add lard again until the resulting mixture forms a mud. Then wash the sores, apply the [mixture to them] and in addition apply lead carbonate to that paste. This is a secret recipe of the Gan family. Zhou hou fang. 身上瘢痕。黄礬石燒令汁盡,胡粉炒令黄,各八分,細研,以臘月猪脂和 研如泥。以生布揩令痛,乃塗藥五度。取鷹糞、白燕窠中草燒灰,等分, 和人乳塗之。其瘢自滅,肉平如故。崔元亮海上集驗方。 Wound scars on the body. Grind eight fen each of fibroferrite, heated until all its liquid has vanished, and lead carbonate, fried until it has turned yellow, to a fine [powder], mix it with lard obtained in the 12th month, and grind this to a mud. Wipe [the scars] with a new piece of cloth until they ache and apply the medication to them five times. Mix goshawk droppings and herbs from the nests of white swallows, burned to ashes, with nursing mother’s milk and apply this [to the affected region]. The scars will vanish as a result, and the flesh will be as flat as before. Cui Yuanliang, Hai shang ji yan fang. 急疳蝕齒。黄礬、青礬各半錢,白礬燒一錢,麝香一分,爲末,傅之,吐 涎。聖惠方。 Acute gan-illness889 with tooth erosion. [Grind] half a qian each of yellow fan (fibroferrite) and greenish fan (melanterite) and one qian of white fan (alum) to a powder and apply it [to the affected region to stimulate] spitting of saliva. Sheng hui fang. 妬精陰瘡。黄礬、青礬、麝香等分,爲末,傅之,不過三度。千金方。 Sores in the yin [(i. e., genital) region] caused by a jealousy spirit. [Grind] equal amounts of yellow fan (fibroferrite), greenish fan (melanterite) and musk to a powder and apply it [to the affected region], no more than three times. Qian jin fang.

889 Gan 疳, “gan-illness,” also: “sweets-illness,” involves several complaints that affect children and adults, with causes and conditions too different to fall into a known disease category. BCGM Dict I, 180-188.

876

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

11-20 湯瓶内鹼綱目 Tang bing nei yan, FE Gang mu. A substance formed on the inside wall of containers used for boiling water. 【集解】【時珍曰】此煎湯瓶内澄結成水鹼,如細砂者也。 These are incrustations of dregs that have formed in a flask used to boil water. They are like fine sand. 【主治】止消渴,以一兩爲末,粟米燒飯丸梧子大,每人參湯下二十丸。 又小兒口瘡,卧時以醋調末,書十字兩足心,驗。時珍。 Control. To end melting with thirst, [grind] one liang to a powder and prepare with heated millet and cooked rice pills the size of wu seeds. Each time send down with a ginseng [root] decoction 20 pills. Also, for mouth sores of children, mix the powder with vinegar and, when they go to bed, write the character shi 十 on the soles of both their feet. Effective. [Li] Shizhen.

【附方】新二。 Added Recipes. Two newly [recorded] 消渴引飲。湯瓶内鹼、葛根、水萍焙等分。每服五錢,水煎服。 Melting with thirst890 and an urge to drink. [Mix] equal amounts of the substance formed on the inside wall of containers used for boiling water, pueraria root and duckweed, baked over a small fire. Each time ingest five qian. To be ingested boiled with water. 又方:湯瓶内鹼、菝葜根炒各一兩,烏梅連核二兩焙,爲散。每服二錢, 水一盞,石器煎七分,温呷,日一服。聖濟録。 Another recipe. [Grind] one liang each of the substance formed on the inside wall of containers used for boiling water, smilax [root], fried, and smoked plums with their pits, to a powder. Each time ingest two qian boiled in a cup of water in a stoneware vessel down to 70%. To be sipped warm. To be ingested once a day. Sheng ji lu.

890 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567.

Chapter 11

877

【附録】諸石 Appendix: Various Stones/Minerals. 二十七種 27 kinds. 【時珍曰】别録 有名未用諸石及諸家所列而不詳,難以類附者,通附于此 云。 [Li] Shizhen: All types of stones/minerals that were listed in the Bie lu as “being known by name but no longer in use” and those that have been listed by all types of authors without providing details and that are difficult to categorize are added here. 11-A01 石脾。 Shi pi. Stone/mineral spleen. 【别録 有名未用曰】味甘,無毒。主胃中寒熱,益氣,令人有子。一名胃 石,一名膏石,一名消石。生隐蕃山谷石間,黑如大豆,有赤文,色微黄 而輕薄如棋子,采無時。【弘景曰】皇甫士安言消石,取石脾與消石以水 煮之,一斛得三斗,正白如雪,以水投中即消,故名消石。按此説,是取 消石合煮成爲真消石,不知石脾是何物?本草有石脾、石肺,人無識者。 【藏器曰】石脾生西戎鹵地,鹹水結成者。【時珍曰】石脾乃生成者,陶 氏所説是造成者。按九鼎神丹經云:石脾乃陰陽結氣,五鹽之精,因礬而 成,峨嵋山多有之。俗無識者,故古人作成代用。其法用白礬、戎鹽各一 斤爲末,取苦參水二升,鐺中煮五沸,下二物煎减半,去滓熬乾,色白如 雪,此爲石脾也。用石脾、朴消、芒消各一斤爲末,苦參水二斗,銅鐺煎 十沸,入三物煮减半,去滓煎,着器中,冷水漬一夜,即成消石。可化諸 石爲水,此與焰消之消石不同,皆非真也。 Bie lu, [section] “known by name but no longer in use:” Flavor sweet, nonpoisonous. It controls stomachs struck by cold and heat, boosts the qi and lets one have children. Alternative name: stomach stone/mineral. Alternative name: pasty stone/ mineral. Alternative name: dissolving stone/mineral. It grows amidst the rocks in the valleys of Mount Yin fan shan. It is black like soybeans, and has a red line design. Its color is slightly yellow and it comes in light and small pieces, similar to pieces used in board games. It is collected any time. [Tao] Hongjing: In his description of nitrokalite, Huangfu Shi’an [writes as follows]. “Boil stone/mineral spleen together with nitrokalite in one hu of water to obtain three dou. [The resulting substance will be] as purely white as snow. When it is thrown into water,

878

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

it will dissolve. Hence it is named ‘dissolving stone/mineral’ (nitrokalite).” That is to say, [stone/mineral spleen] is boiled together with nitrokalite to obtain genuine nitrokalite. But it is unknown what kind of an item “stone/mineral spleen” is. The Ben cao lists “stone/mineral spleen” and “stone lung.” They are completely unknown to anyone. [Chen] Cangqi: Stone spleen grows in the saline ground of Xi rong. It is produced when brine solidifies. [Li] Shizhen: Stone spleen is a natural product, while Mr. Tao [Hongjing] says it is an artificial product. According to the Jiu ding shen dan jing, “stone spleen is solidified yin and yang qi. It is the essence of the five types of salt. Its generation is based on fan. Plenty of it is present on Mount E mei shan. Since this was unknown, the ancients produced it artificially to substitute [the natural product]. The method [of production is as follows]. [Grind] one jin each of white fan (alum) and halite to a powder. Boil two sheng of sophora [root] water in a kettle five times to bubbling. Add the [powder of ] the two items and boil the liquid down to one half. Remove the dregs and simmer [the liquid] until it is dry. The color [of the residue] is as white as snow. This is ‘stone/mineral spleen’. [Grind] one jin each of stone/mineral spleen, po xiao mirabilite and mang xiao mirabilite to a powder. Boil two dou of sophora [root] water in a copper kettle ten times to bubbling. Add the [powder of ] the three items and boil the liquid down to one half. Remove the dregs and boil [the liquid. A residue] will attach itself to the inside of the vessel. Soak it in cold water for one night, and nitrokalite will have generated. It is able to transform all types of stones/minerals to water.” This is different from the “blazing xiao” nitrokalite. Neither of them is genuine [nitrokalite]. 11-A02 石肺。 Shi fei. Stone/mineral lung. 【别録曰】味辛,無毒。主癘欬寒久痿,益氣明目。生水中,狀如覆肺, 黑澤有赤文,出水即乾。【弘景曰】今浮石亦療欬,似肺而不黑澤,非此 也。 Bie lu: Flavor acrid, nonpoisonous. It controls epidemic cough with cold and long-lasting dysfunction. It boosts the qi and clears the eyes. It grows in water and is shaped like an overturned lung. It is black and moist and has a red line design. When it is taken out of the water, it is dry. [Tao] Hongjing: Nowadays, “floating stone/mineral” serves to heal cough, too. It looks like a lung, but it is neither black nor moist, and hence it is not the [item discussed] here.

Chapter 11

879

11-A03 石肝。 Shi gan. Stone/mineral liver. 【别録曰】味酸,無毒。主身痒,令人色美。生常山,色如肝。 Bie lu: Flavor sour, nonpoisonous. It controls body itch, and lets one have a beautiful complexion. It grows on Mount Chang shan; its color is like that of a liver. 11-A04 石腎。 Shi shen. Stone/mineral kidneys. 【别録曰】味鹹,無毒。主洩痢,色白如珠。 Bie lu: Flavor salty, nonpoisonous. It controls outflow and free-flux illness.891 Its color is white, like that of pearls. 11-A05 紫石華。 Zi shi hua. Purple stone/mineral splendor. 【别録曰】味甘,平,無毒。主渴,去小腸熱。一名茈石華。生中牛山 陰。采無時。 Bie lu: Flavor sweet, balanced, nonpoisonous. It controls thirst and eliminates heat from the small intestine. Alternative name: “water chestnut stone/mineral splendor.” It grows on the yin/shady side of mountains in Zhong niu. It is collected any time. 11-A06 白石華。 Bai shi hua. White stone/mineral splendor. 【别録曰】味辛,無毒。主癉消渴,膀胱熱。生液北郷 北邑山,采無時。 Bie lu: Flavor acrid, nonpoisonous. It controls solitary[-heat-]illness,892 melting with thirst,893 and heat in the urinary bladder. It grows on Mount Bei yi in Ye bei xiang. It is collected any time. 891 Li 痢, “free-flux illness,” a diarrhea-type ailment. BCGM Dict I, 311. 892 Dan 癉, “solitary [heat] illness,” identical with re 熱, “heat.” BCGM Dict I, 118. 893 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567.

880

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 11-A07 黄石華。 Huang shi hua.

Yellow stone/mineral splendor. 【别録曰】味甘,無毒。主陰痿,消渴,膈中熱。去百毒。生液北山,黄 色,采無時。 Bie lu: Flavor sweet, nonpoisonous. It controls dysfunction of the yin [(i. e., genital) member], melting with thirst and heat in the diaphragm region. It eliminates the hundreds of poisons. It grows on Mount Ye bei. It is of yellow color. It is collected any time. 11-A08 黑石華。 Hei shi hua. Black stone/mineral splendor. 【别録曰】味甘、無毒。主陰痿,消渴,去熱,療月水不利。生弗其勞山 陰石間,采無時。 Bie lu: Flavor sweet, nonpoisonous. It controls yin (i. e., genital) dysfunction and melting with thirst. It removes heat and heals blocked menstruation. It grows between the rocks on the yin/shady side of Mount Fu qi lao. It is collected any time. 11-A09 陵石。 Ling shi. Hill stone/mineral. 【别録曰】味甘,無毒。主益氣耐寒,輕身長年。生華山,其形薄澤。【 時珍曰】按聖濟録云:汗後耳聾,用陵石,有竅如銀眼者,爲末,每服一 錢,冷水下。 Bie lu: Flavor sweet, nonpoisonous. It controls boosting of qi and lets one endure cold. It relieves the body of its weight and extends the years [of life]. It grows on Mount Hua shan. Its physical appearance is that of thin, moist plates. [Li] Shizhen: According to the Sheng ji lu, “when the ears are deaf following an episode of sweating, [grind] ‘hill stone/mineral’ with holes like silver eyes to a powder and each time ingest one qian, to be sent down with cold water.”

Chapter 11

881

11-A10 終石。 Zhong shi. End stone/mineral. 【别録曰】味辛,無毒。主陰痿痺,小便難,益精氣。生陵陰,采無時。 Bie lu: Flavor acrid, nonpoisonous. It controls yin (i. e., genital) dysfunction and blockage and difficult urination. It boosts the essence/sperm qi. It grows on the yin/ shady side of hills. It is collected any time. 11-A11 封石。 Feng shi. Mound stone/mineral. 【别録曰】味甘、無毒。主消渴熱中,女子疽蝕。生常山及少室,采無 時。【時珍曰】虎尾之山、游戲之山、嬰侯之山、豐山、服山,多封石, 即此。 Bie lu: Flavor sweet, nonpoisonous. It controls melting with thirst,894 heat in the center and impediment-illness895 with erosion of women. It grows on Mount Chang shan and in Shao shi. It is collected any time. [Li] Shizhen: Much of this mound stone/mineral occurs on the mountains of Hu wei, You xi and Ying hou, and on Mount Feng shan and Mount Fu shan. 11-A12 遂石。 Sui shi. 【别録曰】味甘,無毒。主消渴傷中,益氣。生太山陰,采無時。 Bie lu: Flavor sweet, nonpoisonous. It controls melting with thirst896 and harm caused to the center. It boosts the qi. It grows on the yin/shady side of Mount Tai shan. It is collected any time.

894 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567. 895 Ju 疽, “impediment-illness,” refers to an obstruction of vessels or other ducts inside the body. Qi rushing against the impediment may cause a local swelling and eventually break through the surface to cause an abscess. BCGM Dict I, 277. 896 Xiao ke 消渴, “melting with thirst,” most likely including cases of diabetes. BCGM Dict Vol I, 567.

882

The Ben Cao Gang Mu 11-A13 五羽石。 Wu yu shi.

Five feathers stone/mineral. 【别録曰】主輕身長年。一名金黄,生海水中蓬葭山中,黄如金。 Bie lu: It controls relieving the body of its weight and extending the years [of life]. Alternative name: “gold yellow.” It grows in Mount Peng xia shan [on an island] in the sea. It is as yellow as gold. 11-A14 紫佳石。 Zi jia shi. Purple beauty stone/mineral. 【别録曰】味酸,無毒。主痺,血氣。一名赤英,一名石血。生邯鄲,石 如爵茈,二月采。【弘景曰】三十六水方呼爲紫賀石。 Bie lu: Flavor sour, nonpoisonous. It controls blockage, and blood and qi. Alternative name: Red splendor. Alternative name: Stone/mineral blood. It grows in Han dan. This stone/mineral is reminiscent of jue ci.897 It is collected in the second month. [Tao] Hongjing: The San shi liu shui fang calls it “purple gift stone/mineral.” 11-A15 火藥綱目。 Huo yao, FE Gang mu. Pharmaceutical substance to generate fire. Gunpowder. 【時珍曰】味辛、酸,有小毒。主瘡癬,殺蟲,辟濕氣温疫。乃焰消、硫 黄、杉木炭所合,以爲烽燧銃機諸藥者。 [Li] Shizhen: Flavor acrid, sour, slightly poisonous. It controls sores and xuan-illness.898 It kills worms/bugs. It serves to ward off moisture qi and warmth epidemics. Mixed with nitrokalite, sulphur and Chinese fir charcoal it is made to all types of pharmaceutical substances required to light the fire on beacon towers and for gun [ammunition].

897 Jue ci 爵茈, an unidentifiable substance. 898 Xuan-illness 癬, skin illness with itching, release of liquid and shedding of scabs. BCGM Dict I, 591.

Chapter 11

883

11-A16 石耆。 Shi qi. 【别録曰】味甘,無毒。主欬逆氣。生石間,色赤如鐵脂,四月采。 Bie lu: Flavor sweet, nonpoisonous. It controls cough and counterflow of qi. It grows amidst rocks. Its color is red like iron fat.899 It is collected in the fourth month. 11-A17 馬肝石綱目。 Ma gan shi, FE Gang mu. Horse liver stone/mineral. 【時珍曰】按郭憲洞冥記云:郅支國進馬肝石百片,青黑如馬肝,以金函 盛水銀養之。用拭白髮,應手皆黑。云和九轉丹吞一粒,彌年不飢。亦可 作硯。 [Li] Shizhen: According to Guo Xian’s Dong ming ji, “the country Zhi zhi guo once submitted one hundred plates of ‘horse liver stone/mineral’. It is greenish-black, like a horse liver. It is stored in a gold box filled with mercury. When white hair is wiped with it, it will turn black immediately. It is said that if one grain is swallowed together with the ‘nine revolutions elixir’, one will not be hungry for an entire year. It can also be used to prepare inkstones.” 11-A18 猪牙石綱目。 Zhu ya shi, FE Gang mu. Pig tooth stone/mineral. 【時珍曰】明目去瞖。出西番,文理如象牙,棗紅色。 [Li] Shizhen: It clears the eyes and removes eye shades. It originates in Xi fan. It has a line design structure similar to ivory. Its color is date red. 11-A19 碧霞石綱目。 Bi xia shi, FE Gang mu. Bluish cloud glow stone/mineral. 【時珍曰】明目,去瞖障。 [Li] Shizhen: It clears the eyes, and removes eye shades and screens. 899 Tie zhi 鐵脂, “iron fat,” an unidentifiable substance.

884

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

11-A20 龍涎石綱目。 Long xian shi, FE Gang mu. Dragon saliva stone/mineral. 【時珍曰】主大風癘瘡。出齊州。一名龍仙石。 [Li] Shizhen: It controls the sores caused by massive wind900 epidemics. It originates in Qi zhou. Alternative name: “dragon hermit/immortal stone/mineral.” 11-A21 鈆光石綱目。 Qian guang shi, FE Gang mu. Lead luster stone/mineral. 【時珍曰】主哽骨。 [Li] Shizhen: It controls choking on a bone. 11-A22 太陽石綱目。 Tai yang shi, FE Gang mu. Major yang stone/mineral. 【時珍曰】劉守真宣明方治遠年近日一切目疾方,用太陽石、太陰石、碧 霞石、豬牙石、河洛石、寒水石、紫石英、代赭石、菩薩石、金精石、銀 精石、禹餘石、礬礦石、雲母石、爐甘石、井泉石、陽起石、滑石、烏賊 骨、青鹽、銅青各一兩,硇砂半兩,蜜陀僧一兩,鵬砂三錢,乳香二錢, 麝香、腦子各一錢,輕粉一錢半,黄丹四兩,各爲末,熊膽一斤,白砂蜜 二斤,井華水九盌,同熬至四盌,點水内不散爲度,濾净收點。此方所用 太陽石、太陰等石,多無考證,姑附以此。 [Li] Shizhen: Liu Shouzhen in his Xuan ming fang [lists the following] recipe to cure all eye afflictions regardless of whether they have lasted for many years or have begun only recently. [Grind] one liang each of “major yang stone/mineral,” “major yin stone/mineral,” “bluish cloud glow stone/mineral,” “pig tooth stone/mineral,” he luo stone/mineral, “cold water stone/mineral,” fluor spar, hematite, “Buddha’s stone/ mineral” (08-42), “gold essence stone/mineral” (10-19), “silver essence stone/mineral” (10-19), “leftover provisions of Yu” stone/mineral, alum mineral, muscovite, calamine, stones from wells and springs (09-18), actinolite, talc, sepia bones, halite and verdigris, half a liang of sal ammoniac, one liang of litharge, three qian of borax, two qian of frankincense, one qian each of musk and camphora, one and a half qian 900Da feng 大風, “massive wind,” may refer to sores caused by a massive intrusion of wind evil and also to conditions of leprosy. BCGM Dict I, 111.

Chapter 11

885

of calomel and four liang of minium to a powder, and boil it together with one jin of bear bile and two jin of white sand honey in nine bowls of the first water drawn from a well in the morning down to four bowls, that is, until it has reached a viscosity where water dripped into it will no longer disperse. Filter it to obtain a clear liquid and store it to be dripped [into an affected eye when required]. The “major yang stone/mineral,” the “major yin stone/mineral” and others resorted to in this recipe have mostly not been researched and identified. The listing here is tentative. 11-A23 朶梯牙綱目。 Duo ti ya, FE Gang mu. 【時珍曰】周憲王普濟方眼科去瞖,用水飛朶梯牙,火煅大海螺,碗糖 霜,爲末,日點。又方:用可鐵刺一錢,阿飛勇一錢,李子樹膠四錢,白 雪粉八錢,爲末,雞子白調作錠,每以乳女兒汁磨點之。又方:安咱蘆, 出回回地面,黑丁香即蠟糞,各爲末,日點。所謂朶梯牙、盌糖霜、安咱 蘆、可鐵刺、阿飛勇,皆不知何物也。附録于此以俟。 [Li] Shizhen: Zhou Xian wang in his Pu ji fang, [section] ophthalmology, [lists the following recipe] to eliminate eye shades. [Grind] duo ti ya, processed by means of aqueous sublimation, large sea snails/spiral shells, calcined over a fire, and wan tang shuang to a powder that is to be dripped [into the affected eyes] daily. Another recipe: [Grind] one qian of ke tie ci, one qian of e fei yong, four qian of plum tree resin and eight qian of tin powder to a powder. Mix it with egg white and form ingot-shaped tablets. For each [application] rub [these tablets] in a nursing mother’s milk for a girl and drip the [resulting liquid into the affected eyes]. Another recipe. [Grind] each of the following [substances] to a powder and drip it [into the affected eyes] daily: an zan lu, originating in the Muslim regions, black cloves, i. e., wax candle droppings, and cuttlebones. The substances named duo ti ya, wan tang shuang, an zan lu, ke tie ci and a fei yong are all unknown. They are added and recorded here waiting for [further clarification]. 11-A24 白獅子石拾遺。 Bai shi zi shi, FE Shi yi. White lion stone/mineral. 【藏器曰】主白虎病,江東人呼爲歷節風是也。置此于病者前自愈,亦厭 伏之意也。白虎,糞神名,狀如猫。掃糞置門下,令人病此。療法:以雞 子揩病人痛處,咒願,送于糞堆之頭上,勿反顧。

886

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

[Chen] Cangqi: It controls the “white tiger disease,” called “pervading joints wind” by the people in Jiang dong. Place [this stone/mineral] in front of a patient, and he will be cured. This, too, is based on the concept of forcing down [the agent causing the disease]. “White tiger” is the name of the god of excrements. It is shaped like a cat. When excrements are swept together to be disposed in front of the gate [of a house], the people [residing there] will get this [disease]. The method to heal [it is as follows]. Rub the aching region of the patient with an egg. Recite an incantation voicing your desire and place [the egg] on top of the heap of excrements. [Leave it and] do not look back. 11-A25 鎮宅大石拾遺。 Zhen zhai da shi, FE Shi yi. Big stone guarding the house. 【藏器曰】主災異不起。荆楚歲時記:十二月暮日,掘宅四角,各埋一大 石爲鎮宅。又鴻寶萬畢術云:埋丸石于宅四隅,槌桃核七枚,則鬼無能殃 也。 [Chen] Cangqi: It controls disasters and prevents mishaps. Jing chu sui shi ji: “On the final day of the 12th month dig [a hole] at the four corners of the house and bury a big stone there to guard the house.” Also, the Hong bao wan bi shu states: “Bury pebble stones at the four corners of the house together with seven peach kernels, and demons will not be able to cause misfortune.” 11-A26 神丹拾遺。 Shen dan, FE Shi yi. Divine elixir. 【藏器曰】味辛,温,有小毒。主萬病有寒温。飛金石及諸藥合成,服之 長生神仙。 [Chen] Cangqi: Flavor acrid, warm, slightly poisonous. Controls a myriad diseases with cold and warmth [sensations]. If a preparation [of “divine elixir”] with fei jin shi901 and all types of medication is ingested, it will let one live long and turn into a spirit hermit/immortal.

901 Fei jin shi 飛金石, lit.: “flying gold/metal stone.” Unidentifiable substance.

Chapter 11

887

11-A27 烟藥拾遺。 Yan yao, FE Shi yi. Pharmaceutical substance generating fumes. 【藏器曰】味辛,温,有毒。主瘰癧,五痔瘻,癭瘤,瘡根惡腫。乃石 黄、空青、桂心並四兩,乾薑一兩,爲末,置鐵片上燒之。以猪脂塗盌覆 之,待藥飛上,如此五度。隨瘡大小,以鼠屎大納孔中,麪封之,三度根 出也。無孔,針破納之。 [Chen] Cangqi: Flavor acrid, warm, nonpoisonous. It controls scrofula, the five types of piles fistula, goiter tumors, the base of sores and malign swelling. [Grind] four liang each of red orpiment, malachite and cassia bark, and one liang of dried ginger to a powder. Place [the powder] on a piece of iron and heat it. Then apply lard to [the inside of ] a bowl, [turn it over] and cover the [powder]. Wait for the medication to fly upward [and attach itself to the lard]. Do this five times. Then insert some [of the lard with the medication] into the holes [of the sores], depending on their size, [the quantity of the lard] may be equivalent to the droppings of mice/ rats, and seal them with flour. After three such applications, the root will come out. If there are no holes, open one with a needle and insert there.

Appendix

5. Weights and measures

5.1 Measures of capacity 1 zhong 鍾, 663 liters, equal to 64 dou 斗 Also: size of a winecup, or small jug. 1 hu 斛, “bushel,” 107. 37 liters, equal to 10 dou 斗 1 dan 石, “bushel,” equal to 1 hu 斛 1 dou斗, “peck,” 10.74 liters, equal to 10 sheng 升 1 sheng 升, “pint,” 1.07 liters, equal to 10 ge 合 1 ge 合, equal to 0.11 liters

5.2 Measures of weight 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

cheng 秤, 7.5 kg, equal to 15 jin 斤 jin 斤, “catty,” 500 grams, equal to 16 liang 兩, liang 兩, “ounce,” 31.25 gram, equal to 10 qian 錢 qian 錢, 3.13 grams, equal to 10 fen 分 fen 分, 0.31 grams, equal to 10 li 厘 li 厘, 0.031 grams, the thousandth part of a liang 兩 yi 鎰, equal to 20 or 24 liang 兩 dan 石, “picul,” 60 kg, equal to 120 jin 斤

Appendix

889

1 zhu 銖, “scruple,” 1.3 grams, one 24th part of a liang 兩, equal to 100 grains of millet 1 zi 字, the weight of a quarter of a copper coin covered with the powder of a pharmaceutical substance

5.3 Measures of length 1 1 1 1 1

li 里, equal to 1800 chi 尺 zhang 丈, “stave,” equal to 10 chi 尺 li 厘, the thousandth part of a chi 尺 chi 尺, “foot,” equal to 10 cun 寸 cun 寸, “inch,” varying over time between 0.9 and 1.2 Western inches

5.4 Measures of the size of pills zao seed, zao zi 皂子, the size of gleditsia seeds soy bean, dou 豆 the size of a soy beans qian seed, qian zi 芡子, the size of Euryale ferox Salisb. seeds mung bean, lü dou 緑豆, the size of Vigna radiata L. Wilczek beans wu seed, wu zi 梧子, the size of Firmiana platanifolia (L.f.) Marsili seeds bullet, dan zi 彈子, the size of a firearm bullet hemp seed, ma zi 麻子, the size of Cannabis sativa L. seeds white soy bean, bai dou 白豆, Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp. var. cylindrica (L.) Ohashi seeds

890

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

6. Pharmaceutical Substances of Plant Origin mentioned in BCGM ch. 5 – 11 in passing

By Ulrike Unschuld

Note: 1. The earlier a text has been written, the less certain can be today’s botanical identification of a substance. 2. The botanical species given in the following list may not include all species possibly covered by a Chinese plant name. Here only the most common identifications are provided as a first hint at the nature of a pharmaceutical substance referred to in a recipe or elsewhere. 3. Wherever available, the Zhong hua ben cao’s 中华本草, Shanghai 1999, identification of botanical substances was adopted as authoritative. 4. All recipes that require medication with wine relate to low-alcohol rice wine. A Acanthopanax [root bark]. Wu jia 五加 Acanthopanax gracilistylus W.W. Smith Achyranthes [root]. Niu xi 牛膝 Achyranthes bidentata Bl. Aconitum [accessory tuber]. Fu zi 附子 Aconitum carmichaeli Debx. Aconitum [root tuber]. Tian xiong 天雄 Aconitum carmichaeli Debx. Acorus [root]. Chang pu 菖蒲 Acorus gramineus Ait. (M. Br.) Adenophora [root]. Ji ni 薺苨 Adenophora trachelioides Maxim.

Appendix Agastache twig and leaf. Huo xiang 藿香 Agastache rugosa (Fisch. et Mey.) O. Ktze. Ailanthus [bark]. Chu 樗 Ailanthus altissima (Mill.) Swingle Akebia [herb]. Mu tong 木通 Akebia quinata (Thunb.) Decne Alisma [root]. Ze xie 澤瀉 Alisma orientalis [Sam.] Juzep. Allium seed. Jiu 韭 Allium tuberosum Rottl. ex Spreng. Amaranthus [herb]. Yan lai hong 雁來紅 Amaranthus tricolor L. Amaranthus seed. Xian zi 莧子 Amaranthus tricolor L. Ampelopsis [root]. Bai lian 白歛 Ampelopsis japonica (Thunb.) Makino. Anemarrhena root. Zhi mu 知母 Anemarrhena asphodeloides Bunge. Angelica [root]. Bai zhi 白芷 Angelica dahurica (Fisch. ex Hoffm.) Benth. et Hook f. ex Franch. et Sav. cv. Angelica [root]. Dang gui 當歸 Angelica sinensis (Oliv.) Diels. Angelica biserrata [root]. Du huo 獨活 Angelica biserrata (Shan et Yuan) . Aquilaria [wood]. Chen xiang 沉香 Aquilaria agallocha (Lour.) Roxb. Arctium seed. Niu bang zi 牛蒡子 Arctium lappa L. Arisaema [root]. Tian nan xing 天南星, hu zhang 虎掌 Arisaema thunbergii Bl. Arnebia [herb]. Zi cao 紫草 Arnebia euchroma (Royle) Johnst. Artemisia herb. Qing hao 青蒿 Artemisia carvifolia Buch.-Ham. ex Roxb. Asafetida. E wei 阿魏 Resin of Ferula assa foetida L.

891

892

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Asarum heteropoides root. Xi xin 細辛 Asarum heteropoides Fr. Schmidt var. manshuricum (Maxim.) Kitag. Asiatic pennywort. Di qian 地錢 Centella asiatica (L.) Urban Atractylodes [rhizome]. Cang zhu 蒼术 Atractylodes lancea Thunb. Aucklandia root. Mu xiang 木香, qing mu xiang 青木香 Aucklandia lappa Decne B Bamboo leaf. [Dan] zhu ye [淡]竹葉 Lopatherum gracile Brongn. Bitter green. Ku cai 苦菜 Sonchus oleraceus L. Bitter orange. Zhi ke 枳殻 Citrus aurantium L. Black pepper. Hu jiao 胡椒 Piper nigrum L. Buckwheat. Qiao mai 蕎麥 Fagopyrum esculentum Moench Bupleurum [root]. Chai hu 柴胡 Bupleurum chinense D.C. Bushy knotweed root. Hu zhang 虎杖 Polygonum cuspidatum Sieb et Zucc. C Carduus root. Fei lian 飛廉 Carduus crispus L. Carpesium [herb]. Mai ju jiang 麥句薑 Carpesium abrotanoides L. Cassia, cinnamomum cassia bark. Gui 桂, guan gui 官桂 Unscraped bark from smaller younger branches of Cinnamom-tree Unscraped bark of old cinnamom trees, gui xin 桂心; mu gui 牡桂 Cinnamomum cassia Presl. Cassia tora seed. Jue ming, 诀明 Cassia obtusifolia L.

Appendix

893

Castor. Bi ma 蓖麻 Ricinus communis L. Catalpa leaf. Qiu 楸 Catalpa bungei C.A. Mey. Catechu. Hai er cha 孩兒茶 Prepared from Acacia catechu (L.f.) Celosia flower. Ji guan 鷄冠 Celosia cristata L. Chaenomeles fruit. Mu gua 木瓜 Chaenomeles speciosa (Sweet) Nakai Charred trachycarpus [stipule fiber]. Zong hui 椶灰 Trachycarpus fortunei (Hook) H. Endl. Chinese chives. Jiu shi 韭實 Allium tuberosum Rottl. ex Spreng. Chinese dates. Zao 棗 Zizyphus jujuba Mill. Chinese foxglove [rhizome]. Di huang 地黄 Rehmannia glutinosa (Gaertn.) Libosch. ex Fisch et Mey. Chinese indigo plant [leaf ]. Lan [ye] 藍[葉], da qing 大青 1. Liao lan 蓼藍, Polygonum tinctorium Lour. 2. Song lan 菘藍, Isatis indigofera L. 3. Ma lan 馬藍, Baphicacanthus cusia (Nees) Bremek 4. Mu lan 木藍, Indigofera tinctoria L. Chinese pepper. Hua jiao 花椒 Zanthoxylum amatum DC. Chinese pepper from Si chuan. Shu jiao 蜀椒 Zanthoxylum bungeanum Maxim. Chinese sumac gallnut. Wu bei zi 五倍子 Galls produced by Schlechtendalia chinensis on leaves of Rhus javanica L. and other spec. Cimicifuga [rhizome]. Sheng ma 升麻 Cimicifuga foetida L. Cloves. Ding xiang 丁香 Flower buds of Syzygium aromaticum (L.) Merr. et Perry Cnidium [seed]. She chuang 蛇牀 Cnidium monnieri (L.) Cusson Common bletilla [root]. Bai ji 白及 Bletilla striata (Thunb.) Reichb.f.

894

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Common heron bill herb. Wu ye cao 五葉草 Erodium stephanianum Willd. Common mugwort leaf. Ai 艾 Artemisia argyi Lèvl. et Vant. Coptis rhizome. Huang lian 黄連 Coptis chinensis Franch. Croton [seed]. Ba dou 巴豆 Croton tiglium L. Curculigo [root]. Xian mao 仙茅 Curculigo orchioides Baertn. Cuscuta [seed]. Tu si zi 兔絲子 Cuscuta chinensis Lam. Cymbopogon [herb]. Mao xiang 茅香 Cymbopogon citratus (D C.) Stapf. Cynanchum [herb]. Xu chang qing 徐長卿 Cynanchum paniculatum (Bunge) Kitag. Cynanchum [root]. Bai wei 白微 Cynanchum atratum Bunge Cyperus [root]. Xiang fu 香附 Cyperus rotundus D Daimyo oak leaf. Hu ye 槲葉 Quercus dentata Thunb. Daphne [flower]. Yuan hua 芫花 Daphne genkwa Sieb. et Zucc. Dendrobium [stem]. Shi hu 石斛 Dendrobium nobile Lindl. Dichroa [leaf ]. Shu qi 蜀漆 Dichroa febrifuga Lour. Dichroa [root]. Chang shan 常山, heng shan 恒山 Dichroa febrifuga Lour. Dimocarpus [fruit]. Long yan 龍眼 Dimocarpus longan Lour. Dioscorea [root]. Shu yu 薯蕷, shan yao 山藥 Dioscorea opposita Thunb.

Appendix

895

Dipsacus root. Xu duan 續斷 Dipsacus asperoides C.Y.Cheng et T.M. Ai. Dragon blood. Xue jie 血竭 Resin of Qi lin jie 骐麟竭 Daemonorops draco Bl. Ducksmeat. Fu ping 浮萍 Spirodela polyrhiza (L.) Schleid. Duckweed. Shui ping 水萍 Sagittaria trifolia L. var. sinensis (Sims.) Makino. Dysosma [root]. Ma mu du gong 馬目毒公, du jiao lian 莨菪 Dysosma versipellis (Hance) M. Cheng E Elephantopus [herb]. Di dan 地膽[草] Elephantopu scaber L. Ephedra [herb]. Ma huang 麻黄 Ephedra sinica Stapf Epimedium [herb]. Xian li pi 仙霊脾 Epimedium brevicornum Maxim. Eriocaulum flower. Gu jing cao 谷精草 Eriocaulum buergerianum Koern. Eucommia [bark]. Du zhong 杜仲 Eucommia ulmoides Oliv. Euphorbia [herb]. Di jin 地錦 Euphorbia humifusa Willd. Evodia [fruit]. Wu zhu yu 吴茱萸 Evodia rutaecarpa ( Juss.) Benth. F Ferment prepared from Chinese nutgall and tea leaves. Bai yao jian 百藥煎 Nut-galls, wu bei zi 五倍子, and tea leaves. Fermented water of foxtail millet. Suan jiang 酸漿 Vinegar made by fermentation of Setaria italica (L.) P. Beauv. / milletlike grains. Firmiana seed. Wu tong 梧桐子 Firmiana platanifolia (L.f.) Marsili

896

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

“Flat bamboo” root. Bian zhu gen 扁竹根 Belamcanda chinesis (L.) DC. Forsythia fruit. Lian qiao 連翹 Forsythia suspensa (Thunb.) Vahl. Forsythia herb. Zi lian qiao cao 紫連翹草 Forsythia suspensa (Thunb.) Vahl. Forsythia [root]. Lian yao 連軺 Forsythia suspensa (Thunb.) Vahl. Fragrant loosestrife herb. Xun cao 薰草, Ling ling xiang 零陵香 Ocimum basilicum L. Fritillaria [root]. Bei mu 貝母 Fritillaria unibracteata Hsiao et K.C. Hsia G Galanga [root]. Gao liang jiang 高良薑 Alpinia officinarum Hance. Ganoderma fungus. Zhi 芝, qing zhi 青芝 Ganoderma lucidum ssp. Gardenia [fruit]. Zhi zi 巵子 Gardenia jasminoides Ellis. Gastrodia [tuber]. Tian ma 天麻 Gastrodia elata Bl. Ginger. Jiang 薑 Zingiber officinale Rosc. Ginseng [root]. Ren shen 人參 Panax ginseng C. A. Meyer Gleditsia [pod/seed], [bark]. Zao jiao 皂角, zao jia 皂莢 Gleditsia sinensis Lam. Glycyrrhiza [root]. Gan cao 甘草 Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch. Gnaphalium herb. Fo er cao 佛耳草, wu xin cao 無心草 Gnaphalium affine D. Don Grapes. Pu tao 葡萄 Vitis vinifera L. Grass-cloth (kudzu). Ge 葛 Pueraria lobata (Willd.) Ohwi

Appendix H Henbane. Lang dang 莨菪 Hyoscyamus niger F. W. Schmidt Houttuynia [herb and root]. Yu xing cao 魚腥草 Houttuynia cordata Thunb. Hydrocotyle [herb]. [Shi] hu sui [石]胡荽, e bu shi cao 鵝不食草 Hydrocotyle sibthorpioides Lam. I Illiceum [leaf ]. Mang cao 莽草. Illiceum lanceolatum A. C. Smith Imperata [root]. Bai mao 白茅 Imperata cylindrica (L.) Beauv. var. major Indian lotus flower. Lian hua 蓮花 Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn. Indian lotus leaves lying upon the water. Ou he 藕荷 Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn. Indian lotus seed. Lian rou 蓮肉 Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn. Indian sorrel. San jiao suan 三角酸. Oxalis corniculata L. Inula japonica flower. Xuan fu hua 旋覆花 Inula japonica Thunb. J Japanese ginger [leaf ]. Rang cao 蘘草 Zingiber mioga (Thunb.) Rosc. K Kaempheria [rhizome]. San nai 三柰 Kaempferia galanga L. Kansui [root]. Gan sui 甘遂 Euphorbia kansui T. N. Liou ex T.P. Wang

897

898

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Kochia [fruit]. Du zhou 獨帚, di fu zi 地膚子 Kochia scoparia [L.] Schrad. L Lactuca [herb]. Wo ju 萵苣 Lactuca sativa L. Lamb’s quarters. Li 藜, he ding cao 鶴頂草 Chenopodium album L. Leonurus seeds. Yi mu 益母 Leonurus japonicus Houtt. Ligusticum [root]. Xiong qiong 芎藭, chuan xiong 川芎, jing xiong 京芎 Ligusticum chuanxiong Hort. Lindera [root]. Wu yao 烏藥 Lindera aggregata (Sims.) Kosterm. Lonicera herb. Ren dong 忍冬 Lonicera japonica Thunb. Lonicera flower. Jin yin hua 金銀花 Lonicera japonica Thunb. Lycium root bark. Di gu pi 地骨皮 Lycium barbarum L. Lygodium spores. Hai jin sha 海金沙 Lygodium japonicum (Thunb.) Sw. M Maclura [wood]. Zhe 柘 Maclura tricuspidata Carr. Madder. Qian 茜. Rubia cordifolia L. Malva herb. Tian kui 天葵, kui cai 葵菜 Malva parviflora L. Magnolia flower. Xin yi 辛夷 Magnolia biondii Pamp. Magnolia bark. Hou po 厚朴 Magnolia officinalis Rehd. et Wils. Mint. Bo he 薄荷 Mentha canadensis L.

Appendix Momordica seed. Mu bie zi 木鼈子 Momordica cochinchinensis (Lour.) Spreng. Moonwort. Yin di jue 陰地厥 Scerpteridium ternatum (Thunb.) Lyon Morning glory seed. Bai qian niu 白牵牛 Ipomoea nil (L.) Roth. Mulberry fruit. Sang shen 桑椹 Morus alba L. N Nardostachys [root]. Gan song 甘松 Nardostachys chinensis Batal. Notopterygium [root]. Qiang huo 羌活 Notopterygium incisum Ting ex H.T.Chang Nutmeg. Rou dou kou 肉豆寇 Myristica fragrans Houtt. O Oenanthe herb. Shui ying 水英 Oenanthe javanica (BI.) DC. Oil rape. Yun tai 蕓薹 Brassica campestris L. var. oleifera DC. Onion. Cong 葱, cong bai 葱白 Allium fistulosum L. Ophiopogon root. Mai men dong 麥門冬 Ophiopogon japonicus (L.f.) Ker-Gawl. Orostachys herb. Wa song 瓦松 Orostachys fimbriatus (Turcz.) Breger Osmanthus [flower/bark]. Jun gui 菌桂 Osmanthus fragrans Lour., Cinnamomum cassia Presl. P Paeonia [root]. [Bai] shao yao [白]芍藥 Paeonia lactiflora Pall.

899

900

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Paeonia [root]. Chi shao yao 赤芍藥 Paeonia veitchii Lynch. Paeonia root bark. Mu dan 牡丹 Paeonia suffruticosa Andr. Peas. Wan dou 豌豆 Pisum sativum L. Pepper. Jiao 椒 Zanthoxylum amatum DC. Perilla [herb]. Zi su 紫蘇 Perilla frutescens (L.) Britt. Perilla fruit. [Zi] su zi [紫] 蘇紫 Perilla frutescens (L.) Britt. Perilla leaf. Zi su ye 紫蘇葉 Perilla frutescens (L.) Britt. Phellodendron bark. Huang bo 黄蘗 Phellodendron amurense Ruppr. Phymatopsis herb. Jin xing cao 金星草 Phymatopsis griffithiana (Hook.) J. Smith Phytolacca [root]. Shang lu 商陸 Phytolacca acinosa Roxb. Pickled plums. Bai mei 白梅 Green plums, mei 梅, pickled in brine and dried. Picrorhiza [rhizome]. Hu huang lian 胡黄連 Picrorhiza scrophulariiflora Pennell. Pinellia [root]. Ban xia 半夏 Pinellia ternata (Thunb.) Breit. Plantago herb/root/seed. Che qian cao 車前草, 車前子 Plantago asiatica L. Platycladus [tree]. Bai 柏 Platycladus orientalis (L.) Franco Platycladus twig. Bai zhi 柏枝 Platycladus orientalis (L.) Franco Platycladus leaf. Bai ye 柏葉 Platycladus orientalis (L.) Franco Platycladus seed kernel. Bai zi ren 柏子仁 Platycladus orientalis (L.) Franco Platycodon [root]. Jie geng 桔梗 Platycodon grandiflorus ( Jacq.) A. DC.

Appendix Polygala [root]. Yuan zhi 遠志 Polygala tenuifolia Willd. Polygonum [root]. He shou wu 何首烏, ye jiao teng 夜交藤 Polygonum multiflorum Thunb. Polygonatum [root]. Huang jing 黄精 Polygonatum sibiricum Delar. ex Redoute Polyporus sclerotium. Zhu ling 猪苓 Polyporus umbellatus (Pers.) Fr. Poplar resin. Hu tong lei 胡桐淚, mu lü 木律 Populus euphratica Oliv. Poria. Fu ling 茯苓 Sclerotium of Poria cocos (Schw.) Wolf Prunella [fruit spike]. Xia ku cao 夏枯草 Prunella vulgaris L. Pueraria root. Ge gen 葛根 Pueraria lobata (Willd.) Ohwi Purslane. Ma chi xian 馬齒莧, wu fang cao 五方草 Portulaca oleracea L. Pyrrosia [leaf ]. Shi wei 石韋, 石葦 Pyrrosia lingua (Thunb.) Farw. R Ranunculus sceleratus [herb]. Shi long rui 石龍芮 Ranunculus sceleratus L. Rhododendron [flower]. Yang zhi zhu 羊躑躅, yang bu shi cao 羊不食草 Rhododendron molle (Bl.) G.Don Rhubarb root. Da huang 大黄 Rheum palmatum L. River bulrush stem tuber. Jing san leng 荆三稜 Scirpus Yagara Ohwi Rumex [root]. Yang ti 羊蹄 Rumex japonicus Houtt. Rush. Chi xu 赤鬚, Deng cao 燈草 Juncus effusus L.

901

902

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

S Sambucus [herb and root]. Shuo diao 蒴藋 Sambucus chinensis Lindl. Sanguisorba root. Di yu 地榆 Sanguisorba officinalis L. Saposhnikovia root. Fang feng 防風 Saposhnikovia divaricata (Turcz.) Saussurea root. Mu xiang 木香 Saussurea costus (Falc.) Lipsch. Schisandra seed. Wu wei zi 五味子 Schisandra chinensis Turcz. Baill. Schizonepeta [spike]. Jing jie 荆芥 Schizonepeta multifida (L.) Briq. Scouring rush. Mu zei 木賊 Hippochaete hiemale (L.) Borher Scrophularia [root]. Xuan shen 玄参 Scrophularia ningpoensis Hemsl. Scutellaria root. Huang qin 黄芩 Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi Selaginella [herb]. Juan bai 卷柏 Selaginella involvens Spr. Senecio herb. Wu dian cao 無顛草 Senecio nicaensis Miq. Sesame oil. Xiang you 香油, ma you 麻油, hu ma you 胡麻油 Sesamum indicum L. Shallot. Hu cong 胡葱 Allium ascalonicum L. Shrubalthea tree [bark]. Jin shu 槿樹 Hibiscus syriacus L. Sichuan aconitum [main tuber]. Chuan wu tou 川烏頭 Aconitum carmichaeli Debx. Sichuan pepper. Chuan jiao 川椒, shu jiao 蜀椒 Zanthoxylum amatum DC. Skimmia [herb]. Yin yu 茵蕷 Skimmia reevesiana Fort. Small centipeda herb. [Shi] hu sui [石]胡荽, e bu shi cao 鵝不食草, ji chang cai 雞 腸菜, ji chang cao 鷄腸草 Centipeda minima (L.) A. Br. et Ascher.

Appendix (Hydrocotyle sibthorpioides Lam.) (Trigonotis peduncularis (Trevir.) Benth. Ex Hemsl.) Small gleditsia [seed]. Zhu ya zao jia 豬牙皂莢 Gleditsia sinensis Lam. Smilax [root]. Ba qi 菝葜 Smilax china L. Solanum [herb]. Long kui 龍葵 Solanum nigrum L. Sophora [root]. Ku shen 苦參 Sophora flavescens Ait. Sophora japonica [tree bark]. Huai 槐 Sophora japonica L. Spinacia [herb]. Bo leng 波稜, 波薐 Spinacia oleracea L. Stellaria aquatica herb. E chang cao 鵝腸草 Stellaria aquatica L. Stellaria media [herb]. Fan lü 繁縷 Stellaria media (L.) Cry. Stemmacantha [herb/root]. Lou lu 漏蘆 Stemmacantha uniflorum (L.) Dittrich Stemona [root]. Bai bu 百部 Stemona sessilifolia Miq. Stephania [root]. Fang ji 防己, han fang ji 漢防己 Stephania tetandra S. Moore Sun spurge. Mao er yan cao 猫兒眼草 Euphorbia helioscopa L. T Terminalia fruit. He li le 訶黎勒, he zi 訶子 Terminalia chebula Retz. Tetrapanax pith. Tong cao 通草 Tetrapanax papyriferus Hook. Tribulus [herb]. Ji li 蒺藜 Tribulus terrestris L. Trichosanthes [fruit]. Gua lou 瓜樓 Trichosanthes kirilowii Maxim. Trigonotis herb. Ji chang cao 鷄腸草 Trigonotis peduncularis (Trevir.) Benth. Ex Hemsl.

903

904

The Ben Cao Gang Mu

Turczaniowia herb. Nü wan 女菀 Turczaninowia fastigiata (Fisch.) DC. Turmeric [root]. Yu jin 鬱金 Curcuma longa L. Tussilago flower. Kuan dong hua 款冬花 Tussilago farfara L. U Ulmus fruit. Wu yi 蕪荑 Ulmus macrocarpa Hance. V Veratrum [root]. Li lu 藜蘆 Veratrum niger L. Verbena. Ma bian cao 馬鞭草. Verbena officinalis L. Vermicia oil. Tong you 桐油 Vermicia fordii (Hemsl.) Airy-Shaw Viola herb and root. [Zi hua] di ding [紫花]地丁 Viola philipica Cav. Vitex [fruit]. Man jing 蔓荆 Vitex trifolia L. var. simplicifolia Cham. Vitex negundo [fruit]. Mu jing 牡荆 Vitex negundo L. var. cannabifolia (Sieb.et Zucc.) Hand.-Mazz. W Walnut. Hu tao 胡桃 Juglans regia L. Water chestnut. Ling mi 菱米 Trapa bispinosa Roxb. Water pepper. Shui liao 水蓼 Polygonum hydropiper L. Wintersweet. La mei 臘梅 Chimonanthes praecox (L.) Link. Wolfsbane [root]. Lang du 狼毒 Stellaria chamaejasme L.

Appendix X Xanthium [stem and leaves]. Cang er [ye] 蒼耳[葉] Xanthium sibiricum Patr. et Widd. Xylosma [bark]. Zuo [mu] 柞[木], Xylosma congestum (Lour.) Merr. Y Yellow jessamine. Gou wen 鉤吻 Gelsemium elegans Gardn. et Champ.

905