《圖經衍義本草》Vol. 28

Deer velvet is sweet and sour in taste, warm in nature, and has little or no toxicity. It is used chiefly to treat persistent menstrual bleeding, blood stasis, alternating chills and fever, and convulsions. It can replenish original Qi, strengthen resolve and physical strength, and is also used for aging teeth, wasting from deficiency, bouts of chills like those of malaria, aching limbs, pain in the lower back, frequent urination, nocturnal emissions, and blood in the urine. The text also records that it can disperse accumulated blood in the abdomen; ease stone strangury, in which stones cause painful or obstructed urination; and treat abscesses, swellings, and heat within the bones. It can help bones grow, calm the fetus, regulate the downward movement of Qi, and drive away ghosts and spirits. Deer velvet should not be placed near the genitals, as it may cause the penis to become limp. Long-term use is said to delay aging. The velvet is gathered in the fourth or fifth lunar month, when the deer’s antlers are about to shed and new velvet antlers have begun to grow. It is dried in the shade, and hemp flowers are used as an ingredient when preparing it.

Deer antler is salty in taste and nontoxic. It is used for malignant sores and abscesses, and can dispel malign influences and blood stasis in the genital area. It is also used for acute pain in the lower abdomen, lower back pain, fractures and injuries, and blood stasis, and is said to replenish original Qi. The antlers are usually gathered in the seventh lunar month, with duzhong bark as an ingredient.

Deer marrow is sweet in taste and warm in nature. It is used to treat internal injury in men and women, damage to the vessels and channels, painful spasms of the sinews and channels, and coughing with rebellious Qi; it is best taken mixed with wine. Deer kidney is neutral in nature and is said to replenish Kidney Qi. Deer meat is warm in nature and can replenish the Qi of the middle burner and strengthen the five viscera and physical strength. Raw deer meat can also be used for a twisted mouth and eyes: slice the meat thinly and apply it to the affected area.

The Illustrated Materia Medica says: The Divine Farmer’s Classic of Materia Medica does not record where deer velvet and antlers come from. Today, deer can be found in most places with mountains and forests. Velvet is gathered in the fourth lunar month, just as the antlers are about to emerge, and dried in the shade. Velvet shaped like a small purple eggplant is considered superior. Others say that eggplant-shaped velvet is too tender and its blood and Qi are not yet sufficient; antlers that branch out and resemble a saddle are more potent. Deer velvet should not be brought close to the nose to smell, as its odor is said to harm it. Deer antlers are gathered in the seventh lunar month. Those from old deer are firm and of good quality; after boiling, they are made into deer antler glue, which is even more effective as medicine. Today, physicians often prize the velvet and antlers of the elk, believing their medicinal power to be greater than that of deer velvet and antlers. However, the Divine Farmer’s Classic of Materia Medica has separate entries for elk fat and elk antlers, classifying them as inferior-grade substances.

Tao Hongjing, a Southern Dynasties materia medica scholar, says: Among wild animals, muntjac and deer can be eaten. Their raw meat has no gamey odor; they are not among the animals associated with the twelve zodiac signs, nor do they correspond to a direction in the Eight Trigrams. They can also warm and strengthen the body. For these reasons, Daoists permit them to be made into dried meat for offerings. As for other meats, although beef, mutton, chicken, and dog meat can nourish the body and build muscle, Daoists believe that using them to make offerings to the spirits of the dead brings misfortune, so they are not worth eating.

A Tang-dynasty commentary on the Materia Medica says: Deer antler velvet should be gathered in summer. If it is dried in the shade, it will usually lose its efficacy. Even when a small amount remains usable after drying, it may have developed a foul odor and be unsuitable for medicine. Drying it over a fire is better.

The tip of the deer antler is said to treat wasting-thirst (symptoms including excessive thirst and urination). It can be simmered into a medicinal glue, which is more effective when taken. The tendons in the antler may be used for overexertion and injury, helping to mend damaged tendons and bones. The bone may be used for deficiency fatigue, or steeped in wine to treat wind disorders and strengthen what is deficient. The marrow and fat in the antler are said to treat abscesses, swellings, and dead flesh, and to warm the middle burner, where the spleen and stomach are located.

Meng Shen says: Deer antler velvet can replenish original Qi, but one should not bring one’s nose close to smell it, because it contains tiny white worms invisible to the naked eye. If they enter the nose, they may cause what the ancients called “worm-ridden nose,” a condition in which worms develop inside the nose; even medicine may be unable to cure it.

Deer antler can be filed into powder and soaked in five sheng of white honey. Simmer it over a low flame until it changes slightly, then dry it in the sun, pound it, sift it, and take it. It is said to make the body light and agile, increase strength, strengthen the bone marrow, and help mend injuries. If a woman dreams of intercourse with a ghost, take a pinch of deer antler powder, about what can be lifted between three fingers, mix it with clear wine, and drink it. This is said to expel what is called “ghost essence.” If residual blood remains in a woman’s womb and her condition becomes critical, mix one square-inch spoonful of the powder with clear wine. Take it three times during the day and once at night; it is said to work very well.

Deer head meat can treat wasting-thirst and is also thought to ease dreams of strange beings at night. Deer hoof meat can treat pain in the feet and knees, while deer meat can replenish the Qi of the middle burner. Pound raw deer meat together with raw Sichuan pepper and apply it externally; this is said to treat a crooked mouth and eyes after a windstroke. If the affected side is the left, apply it to the right; if the right, apply it to the left. Remove it as soon as the distortion has visibly improved. Deer meat is suitable to eat after the ninth month and before the first month of the year.

Rihua Zi says: Deer antler velvet can strengthen what is deficient, fortify the tendons and bones, disperse stagnant blood, calm the fetus, and direct Qi downward. It can also treat the condition the ancients called “ghost essence.” Before use, roast it in butter. Deer antler can be used for sores, abscesses, and heat toxins. Grind it with vinegar into a liquid and apply it externally; this is said to treat seminal emission, blood in the urine, and dreams of intercourse with ghosts. Grind deer antler with water and take it to treat a child’s swollen tongue and white patches in the mouth. It can also be heated by roasting and applied as a compress for these conditions.

Deer marrow can treat weakness of the tendons and bones and vomiting. Simmer it with Rehmannia juice into a paste to replenish the bone marrow. Cook it with honey and take it; this is said to strengthen sexual potency and aid conception. Deer kidney can replenish the Qi of the middle burner, nourish the Five Viscera, and strengthen Yang Qi. It may be steeped in wine or cooked into porridge. Deer meat is non-toxic and can replenish Qi and nourish the Five Viscera. Raw deer meat applied externally may be used for hemiplegia after a windstroke: if the left side is affected, apply it to the right; if the right side is affected, apply it to the left. Deer head meat can treat vexation, fatigue, and excessive dreaming. Deer hoof can treat soreness and pain in the feet and knees. Deer blood mixed with wine and taken is said to treat lung wasting with bloody cough, as well as uterine bleeding and vaginal discharge in women.

Yuxi says: The Treatise on the Nature of Medicines records that deer antler velvet is bitter and pungent in nature and flavor. It mainly treats deficiency and cold in men’s lower back and kidneys, weakness in the feet and knees, and conditions such as dreaming at night of intercourse with ghosts and seminal emission.

When women experience uterine bleeding or bleeding that will not stop, the medicine may be charred, ground into powder, and taken on an empty stomach with warm wine. The dose is one cun and seven fen (an ancient unit for measuring powdered medicine; its precise equivalent varies among sources). This prescription is also used for red or white vaginal discharge, added to a powdered remedy.

Deer bone is sweet in flavor, slightly warm in nature, and non-toxic. Deer antler is warm in nature, mildly warm. Deer marrow is non-toxic.

Lei Gong says: To prepare deer antler velvet, first grind the “celestial cap” (here, a medicinal material used in traditional processing) into powder. Saw open the antler velvet and cut it into slices. Mix the powder with high-quality mutton fat, spread it over the slices, and roast them slowly over a low flame until they are yellow throughout and crisp. Then wrap them in a piece of deer hide and leave them on the roof overnight. The text says this allows the medicine’s “soul” to return to its proper place. The next day, dry-roast the slices over a low flame until crisp, then grind them into fine powder for later use. For every five liang of antler velvet, use three liang of mutton fat, roasting until the fat has been used up.

There is another method of preparation: soak the antler velvet for two days and one night in the natural juice of huangjing, then remove it, dry-roast it, and pound it finely. The text says this method is suitable for people who are prone to thirst.

Deer antler is more effective than elk antler for strengthening Yang. Choose antler that is yellow in color, dense and heavy in texture, and has well-formed tips. The text holds that deer eat numinous herbs and are therefore unlike ordinary deer. Among elk antlers, the finest are those with yellow hairs at the base of the tip, like golden threads, small side points, and a pale color. The Jianning Record says that deer frolic with roaming dragons, and this is why they grow such unusual antlers.

The Shenghui Formula records: To treat weakened Kidney Qi and deafness, take a pair of deer kidneys, remove the fatty membrane, and slice them. Add them to fermented black bean broth, along with two ge of polished rice, and cook into porridge. Season with the five flavors as usual and eat on an empty stomach. They may also be prepared as a soup or in wine.

The Wai Tai Mi Yao records: To treat “Kidney wasting” (an ancient term for a category of kidney disorders and related symptoms) and frequent urination, take one deer antler, roast it until charred black, then pound and sift it. Take it with wine, starting with one square cun spoonful (an ancient measure for powdered medicine) at a time and gradually increasing the dose to one qi and a half, according to the original measure.

The Baiyi Formula records: If a man or woman often dreams of having intercourse with ghosts and becomes mentally disoriented, take deer antler shavings in a three-finger pinch, twice a day, with wine. The Dietary Therapy gives the same account.

The Mei Master’s Formula records: For sudden lower back pain that makes it difficult to turn, take a piece of deer antler five cun long and pour two sheng of wine over it. Heat the antler until red-hot, place it in the wine, and leave it to soak overnight. Then drink the wine.

The Collected Notes of the Ministry of War records: When milk builds up in the breast, causing it to harden and approach suppuration, rub deer antler to obtain its white liquid and apply it to the affected area. Reapply when it dries, and do not touch the area with your hands. Someone may also suck out the yellow pus. The text says the hard swelling will usually disperse after about a day.

The Precious Formulas for Childbirth records: For sudden lower back pain during pregnancy, take a piece of deer antler cut to five cun in length…

Heat the deer antler until it is glowing red and thoroughly heated, then immerse it in a large sheng of wine. After the wine cools, heat the antler red again and soak it in the wine. Repeat this several times, then grind the antler finely. Take it on an empty stomach, mixed with wine, using one-seventh of a cun-square of antler powder each time.

The Yanyi says: Deer velvet is difficult to obtain. If a piece has no damage and has not bled, this often means its potency has already been exhausted, since the essence of the deer velvet lies in its blood. During the hunt, deer velvet is also often damaged by collisions.

To prepare deer velvet, first spread a thin layer of butter over its fine surface hairs, then quickly hold it over a strong flame so the hairs burn away. Without the butter, the flames may damage the velvet. Once the hairs are removed, warm it briefly over the fire; it is then ready for use as medicine. Some people today pass off musk deer velvet as deer velvet, so it should be identified carefully.

A deer head can also be used to brew wine, though a little scallion and pepper should be added when making the wine mash. Deer antler is prepared by a different method.

According to the Monthly Ordinances, Yang Qi first arises at the winter solstice, when the elk sheds its antlers; Yin Qi first arises at the summer solstice, when the deer sheds its antlers. The antlers of elk and deer fall in response to changes in Yin and Yang. Today, some people use elk velvet and deer velvet as though they were the same medicinal material; this is probably not appropriate.

It takes less than two months for elk or deer antlers to grow and become hard and fully formed. Large antlers weigh more than twenty jin and are hard as stone. It is said they can grow by several liang in a single day and night. No other kind of bone grows faster; even the fastest-growing plants cannot keep pace with them. Elk velvet is good at replenishing Yang, while deer velvet is good at replenishing Yin. When selecting deer velvet, do not choose one that is too tender. The better kind is four or five cun long, with tips red like agate. It must also be used together with other medicines to be effective.

White horse penis: Salty and sweet in flavor, neutral in nature, and non-toxic. It treats internal injury, interrupted pulse Qi, and erectile dysfunction. It strengthens the will, replenishes Qi and strength, promotes muscle growth, strengthens the body, and may aid fertility. It can also be used for childhood convulsions. Dry in the shade for one hundred days.

Horse eye: Treats convulsions, abdominal distension, and malaria. It should be taken from the animal after it has been killed.

Horse dewclaw: Treats fright caused by malign spirits, convulsions, and difficult labor. It wards off noxious influences, demonic poison, Gu poison, and inauspicious forces. It can also be used to stop nosebleeds and internal bleeding, and to treat tooth decay. It is found in the level marshes of Yunzhong Commandery.

White horse hoof: Treats vaginal discharge and white uterine bleeding in women.

Red horse hoof: Treats red uterine bleeding in women.

This medicine is used chiefly for childhood convulsions. A salve made from the horse’s forelock promotes hair growth. The horse’s mane treats uterine bleeding in women, when the blood varies in color between red and pale. Horse heart helps improve forgetfulness. Horse lung treats alternating chills and fever, as well as impotence in children. (Yu Xi and others, after examining the claim, concluded that “impotence” is not a childhood illness and that these two characters are probably erroneous.)

Horse meat tastes pungent and bitter and is cold in nature. It treats heat disorders and moves Qi downward; it also relaxes the sinews and vessels, strengthens the lower back and spine, builds physical strength, and bolsters resolve. It is said to make the body feel light and reduce hunger. Dried horse meat treats chills and fever, as well as flaccidity and impediment disorders. Horse dung, called “horse passage,” is slightly warm in nature. It treats uterine bleeding in women, thirst, vomiting, blood in the stool, nosebleeds, and bleeding from metal wounds, and can be used to stop bleeding. Horse skull treats excessive sleepiness, though there is also a claim that it makes it difficult to fall asleep. Horse urine tastes pungent and is slightly cold in nature. It treats wasting-thirst, breaks up abdominal masses, hard accumulations, and gathered lumps, and is also used for men’s hidden abdominal masses and accumulated hernias, as well as women’s abdominal masses. Collect the urine in a copper vessel and take it by mouth.

The Illustrated Classic says: The relevant passage appears under “Goat Horn.”

Chen Cangqi says: Horse meat and horse blood are slightly poisonous; after consuming them, drink fine wine to counteract the poison. Pregnant women should not eat horse, donkey, or mule meat. It is said that a mule’s gestation lasts twelve months. Soaking a horse skull in running water can ward off leeches; burying it in the south is said to benefit silkworm raising. The penis of a white horse should be collected when it is in rut and its sexual vigor is strong, as it is believed to be more effective then. Burn horse teeth to ash, mix the ash with saliva, spread it on red silk, and apply it to a swelling to draw out the root of the illness. Squeeze juice from horse dung and take it to induce vomiting or diarrhea in people with cold damage or seasonal epidemics; it is also used for postpartum disorders involving blood and Qi, and for epidemic illness. In severe cases, mix the medicine and take it warm. White horse dung or urine is considered preferable.

Yu Xi says: According to the Treatise on the Nature of Medicinals, the penis of a white horse is used as a medicinal guide. It tastes salty and treats impotence in men, making the penis firm and increasing its length. It is also considered an important medicine in sexual cultivation techniques. The Essential and Generally Useful Medicines records that the horse’s eye, suspended hoof, hoof shell, and forelock salve are neutral in nature, while horse skull is slightly cold.

Meng Shen also says: The penis of a white horse replenishes men’s Yin essence. Dry it in the shade, grind it to powder, and make pills with Poria and honey. Take forty pills twice a day on an empty stomach with wine; it is said to take effect after one hundred days. The horse’s suspended hoof treats convulsions; a red horse’s hoof wards off intermittent warm malaria. People with dysentery should not eat horse heart. Horse meat is slightly poisonous and must not be eaten with stored rice; the text says this can cause sudden illness, killing nine out of ten people. Eating it with ginger causes wheezing and coughing. Horse meat should be soaked and washed several times, then cooked until tender before eating.

When a patient’s boil is accompanied by pain like that of a stroke, heat donkey or horse dung by frying it and apply it as a hot compress to the sore. Apply the compress fifty times; the results are very good. If a man has not yet recovered, or resumes sexual intercourse as soon as he feels better, his illness may worsen and even become life-threatening. Take five sheng of white horse dung, squeeze out the liquid, and leave it overnight in a clean vessel. Take three he each time, once during the day and once at night.

According to the Rihuazi: Grind horse teeth with water and take the juice to treat convulsions and epilepsy. Horse meat should be eaten only when cooked. It is difficult to digest, so do not eat much. After a meal, it may be taken with wine. Before cooking horse meat, scrub it three to five times with clean water. Pregnant women and people with dysentery must not eat it. Do not eat it with cocklebur or ginger. Ash made from burned horsehair can stop bleeding and can be applied to malignant sores. A horse’s skull can be made into a pillow; sleeping on it can treat excessive sleepiness. Its ash can also be applied to sores on the head and ears. Horse urine can be used to wash sores on the head and ringworm-related bald patches.

A commentary in the Shu Bencao says: Tendons and flesh from any animal, if not collected in the twelfth month, should be dried over a fire.

Lei Gong says: Choose a healthy, young horse with a silver-colored coat; those obtained in spring are best. To prepare it, split it into seven pieces with a copper knife, mix them with fresh sheep’s blood, and steam them for half a day. Remove and dry them in the sun. Then rub off the outer skin and dried sheep’s blood with coarse cloth, chop finely, and use. Do not eat the flesh of a horse that has died on its own. Also avoid horse meat in the fifth month, lest it harm the spirit.

The Bingbu Shouji records: For malignant sores that have not healed for years, or sores that are painful, itchy, or ulcerated, grind horse dung and horse teeth into a fine powder and apply it to the affected area. Two or three applications will cure them. When Marshal Wu was in Shu, a sore appeared on his lower leg and itched unbearably. He recovered after using this method.

Liu Juanzi records: For blood stasis in the abdomen after a beating, burn a white horse’s hoof until it stops smoking, grind the ash into powder, and take one square-inch spoonful with wine three times during the day and once at night. This method also treats women’s blood disorders.

The base of a cow’s horn can treat obstructed blood stasis, pain, and vaginal discharge with bleeding in women. It may be burned before use. It tastes bitter and is non-toxic. Water buffalo horn can treat alternating chills and fever and headaches caused by seasonal epidemics.

Ox marrow nourishes the body and replenishes the bone marrow. Taken over a long period, it can prolong life. Marrow tastes sweet, is warm in nature, and is non-toxic. It is used to calm and nourish the Five Viscera, regulate the Triple Burner—the functions of the body’s upper, middle, and lower regions—warm and nourish the bone marrow, strengthen the body, mend injuries, boost Qi, stop diarrhea and dysentery, and treat wasting thirst. It may be taken with wine.

Ox bile can be made into pills. It tastes bitter and is extremely cold in nature. It clears heat in the chest and abdomen and relieves thirst and dry mouth; it also benefits eyesight. Ox heart treats forgetfulness.

The liver is said to improve eyesight; the kidneys can replenish Kidney Qi and increase Jing. Ox teeth are used to treat epilepsy in children. Beef is sweet in flavor, neutral in nature, and non-toxic. It can treat wasting-thirst, stop vomiting and diarrhea, regulate the middle burner, strengthen Qi, and nourish the Spleen and Stomach. Meat from an ox that has died on its own should not be eaten. Ox dung is cold in nature and can treat edema. Smear dung from an ox with an evil influence on the door. Dung stuck to a wall, when burned to ash, can treat fistulas caused by tuberculosis and malignant sores.

The urine of yellow cattle and bulls can treat edema, abdominal distension, and swelling of the feet, and promote urination.

The Illustrated Materia Medica says: For related information, see the entry on “Bezoar” in the previous volume.

The Treatise on the Nature of Medicinals says: The horn matrix of the yellow ox, burned to ash, is bitter and sweet in flavor, non-toxic, and astringent in nature. It can stop persistent uterine bleeding and red or white vaginal discharge in women, as well as cold dysentery and blood in the stool.

Water buffalo horn is neutral in nature. The gallbladder of the blue ox is bitter in flavor and non-toxic. It treats wasting-thirst and promotes the passage of urine and stool. In the twelfth lunar month, put one hundred black beans into a bull’s gallbladder. Remove them after one hundred days. Swallow fourteen beans each night after dinner to calm Liver Qi and improve eyesight. There is no limit to the number of black beans that may be soaked in the bile.

Tao Hongjing says: Yellow cattle are preferable for this purpose, though blue cattle are best; water buffalo may also be eaten. “Died on its own” here means death from an epidemic disease; the meat of such an ox is highly toxic. The intestines of the blue ox should not be eaten with dog meat or dog’s blood, or illness may result.

The Daily Materia Medica says: Water buffalo meat is cold in nature and slightly toxic. A decoction of water buffalo horn can treat toxic heat and high fever. The horn matrix, charred, can treat intestinal bleeding, dysentery, uterine bleeding, vaginal discharge, watery diarrhea, drooling, vomiting with regurgitation, and difficulty swallowing food. To induce vomiting, first rinse the mouth with water, then apply salt; this will bring it up. Yellow cattle meat is warm in nature and slightly toxic, and can strengthen the lower back and legs. In general, eating yellow cattle meat can readily trigger toxicity from medicines and cause old illnesses to recur; it is inferior to water buffalo meat. Only ox butter and milk are beneficial. Ox bone marrow is warm in nature and non-toxic. It can treat vomiting blood, nosebleeds, uterine bleeding, vaginal discharge, intestinal bleeding, and watery diarrhea; use it after burning it to ash.

Yuxi says: According to the Sichuan Materia Medica, the horn matrix of the sand ox is bitter in flavor, warm in nature, and non-toxic. It treats constipation, blood stasis, vaginal discharge, and uterine bleeding. Burn it to ash and take it with warm wine.

Meng Shen says: Mix equal amounts of black ox marrow, Rehmannia juice, and white honey, then simmer them into a paste and take it to treat emaciation. Dung from a black ox is best. When a child cries at night, take a piece of dried ox dung about the size of a palm and place it beneath the sleeping mat without the mother’s knowledge; this will keep both mother and child safe.

The Dietetic Therapy says: Ox tripe can treat wasting-thirst and wind dizziness, and strengthen the Five Viscera. Cook it in vinegar before eating.

Beef liver can treat dysentery. Beef kidney nourishes the kidney marrow, steadies the five organs, harmonizes the Three Burners (the upper, middle, and lower burners in Chinese medicine), and warms the spleen and stomach. Taken over a long period, it can prolong life. Take it with wine, or simmer it with Rehmannia root juice and white honey to make a paste; it can treat wasting and emaciation.

Sun the Realized One says: If boils develop in several places, burn cow dung to ash, mix it with egg white, and apply it to the affected areas. Replace it when it dries.

The Arcane Essentials from the Outer Terrace says: After a serious illness, when the body is weak and depleted and needs tonic support, take one sheng of milk from a five- to seven-year-old yellow cow and simmer it with four sheng of water until only one sheng remains. Drink it in small amounts, as one would to quench thirst; do not drink a large amount at once. Take it for ten consecutive days for a better effect.

The Handbook at the Elbow says: If wind-toxic beriberi, a leg and foot illness caused by pathogenic wind and dampness, has swollen so much that a finger’s indentation remains when pressed, drink cow’s urine frequently, two or three sheng each time, to promote urination; the swelling will gradually subside. Fresh urine collected in a copper vessel is best, though urine that is uniformly yellow may also be used.

Another prescription says: Before a boil or swelling has suppurated, apply wax from inside a cow’s ear to the affected area to cure it.

The Proven Prescriptions records a treatment for fistulous hemorrhoids, hemorrhoids that persist and form a fistula. Take one bull’s gallbladder and one hedgehog’s gallbladder, along with fifty wen’s worth of litharge powder and twenty wen’s worth of musk. Mix the hedgehog gallbladder juice with the powder and musk, put the mixture into the bull’s gallbladder, and hang it beneath the eaves for forty-nine days. Once the medicine is ready, form it as needed into pills the size of barley grains and have a fast messenger insert them into the sore. The expulsion of decayed matter afterward indicates that the medicine is working, and the opening will gradually close. Covering the inside of the sore once with raw dough will also cause decayed matter to be expelled.

The Secret Records of Sons and Mothers says: When Qi and blood surge upward, causing restlessness and fullness in the chest and pain in the heart, burn water buffalo horn to powder and take one square-inch spoonful with wine.

The Book of Childbirth says: In a difficult labor, take a single soybean-sized pellet from cow dung and break it in half. Write “father” on one half and “child” on the other, then join them together and swallow them with a little water; delivery will follow immediately.

The Extended Discussion says: The horn base, the bony part at the root of a horn, here refers to that of a yellow cow. Burn its tip to a black ash, retaining a little of its medicinal potency; it can treat women’s flooding and uterine bleeding, blood in the stool, and cold-type dysentery. The nose of a white water buffalo, dried or fresh, can treat facial deviation caused by hemiplegia: heat the nose over a fire and apply it as a compress to the unaffected side; the deviation will gradually return to normal.

Ram

Ram’s horn tastes salty and bitter, is warm and slightly cold in nature, and is non-toxic. It treats blindness with clear eyes, brightens vision, kills scabies mites, and stops cold-type diarrhea. It can ward off evil spirits, tigers, and wolves, calm fright and palpitations, and treat Qi stagnation between the joints, wind-related headaches, parasitic toxins, vomiting of blood, and lingering pain after childbirth.

The horn of the male goat can kill ghosts and demons and ward off tigers and wolves. Taken over a long period, it can calm the mind and spirit, replenish the original Qi, and make the body light and nimble. It grows in the mountain valleys around Hexi and may be gathered at any time of year. Keep it dry when using it, as moisture makes it toxic. Dodder seed, a medicinal herb, can serve as its envoy herb—that is, an ingredient added to help the other medicine exert its effects.

Sheep marrow tastes sweet, is warm in nature, and is nontoxic. It treats insufficiency of Yin energy in men and women caused by internal injury, and can also open the blood vessels and replenish the Qi of the channels. Take it with wine. The gallbladder of a black sheep treats blue blindness and benefits the eyes. Sheep lung replenishes the lungs and treats coughs; sheep heart treats grief and distress, as well as stagnant Qi in the chest and diaphragm; sheep kidney replenishes Kidney Qi and benefits essence and marrow. Sheep teeth treat childhood “sheep epilepsy,” a seizure disorder resembling epilepsy, as well as alternating chills and fever. They should be gathered on the third day of the third lunar month.

Sheep meat tastes sweet, is extremely hot in nature, and is nontoxic. It treats disorders such as obstructed Qi movement in the middle burner and failure of milk to flow. It can also treat wind disorders of the head, sweating, debility, and cold; replenish the Qi of the middle burner, strengthen the original Qi, calm the mind and spirit, and stop fright. Sheep bone is hot in nature and treats debility, internal cold, and emaciation. Sheep droppings, roasted over a fire, can treat childhood diarrhea, dysentery, intestinal rumbling, and convulsions.

The Illustrated Pharmacopoeia says: The horn of the male goat grows in the mountain valleys of Hexi. Today it is also found in Hedong, Shaanxi, and the prefectures and districts near the capital. This animal is the black male goat; the horns of other sheep are unsuitable for medicinal use. It may be gathered at any time of year, but must be kept dry, since moisture makes it toxic. Sheep teeth, bones, and the five viscera are all warm and balanced in nature and can be used to treat illness. Only sheep meat is extremely hot. People who have just recovered from an epidemic illness must not eat sheep meat for a hundred days, or the illness may recur or they may develop “bone steaming,” a sensation of heat within the bones often seen in consumptive disorders.

Sheep droppings are commonly used in medical prescriptions. Recently, some people have stuffed them into the belly of a crucian carp, sealed it in an earthenware pot, and burned it to ash. They then apply the ash to the beard and hair, reportedly with good results in promoting growth and turning the hair black. Sheep’s milk treats the threadlike symptoms that spread across the body after a spider bite; drinking the milk raw can cure them.

The previous section also recorded the penis, eyes, and hooves of a white horse; the suspended hoof of a white horse; the hooves, teeth, mane, head, fat, mane hair, heart, lungs, dried meat, skull, feces, and urine of a red horse; and the penis, gallbladder, heart, brain, teeth, and four hooves of a male dog, along with the blood of a white dog, dog meat, feces, and bones. The Divine Farmer’s Materia Medica records the indications for all these medicines. Only the white horse’s penis, horse eyes, and suspended hoof are specified as coming from the lakeside plains of Yunzhong; the origins of the other medicines are not given. Today, medical prescriptions commonly use horse dung and dog gall, while the rest are used less often, so they are mentioned here only in passing.

Tao Hongjing says: The horn of the male goat is not often used in prescriptions, while the other sheep medicines can all be used in decoctions. There are three or four kinds of sheep. The black one is the best, followed by…

Black sheep, nai-nou sheep, and hornless sheep raised in regions inhabited by northern minority peoples are fit only for eating. Their medicinal effects are inferior to those of sheep raised around the capital, though their milk and bone marrow are rich and delicious. Sheep liver should not be eaten with pork, plums, or small red beans; doing so can harm the heart and cause serious illness.

The Tang Bencao commentary says that the horns of blue rams are best for medicinal use; horns from other sheep are not used as medicine. Sheep gall can treat childhood malnutrition with abdominal distension. For outbreaks of hot-toxin sores and rashes, sheep gall may be mixed with vinegar and taken. Sheep lung can treat thirst and frequent urination; it works well when cooked with small red bean leaves. Sheep kidneys stewed with fat can effectively treat wasting weakness and dysentery. Garlic and sheep fat made into a condiment are said to treat abdominal masses and related disorders if one eats a sheng at a time. Eating mutton soon after recovering from a febrile illness can cause the fever to return and may even be fatal.

The Rihuazi says that ram’s horn can reduce fever and treat miasma from mountains and poison from streams; burning sheep horn can drive away snakes. A hole in a sheep’s heart is fatal. Sheep kidney can strengthen a deficient body, treat deafness and kidney weakness with diminished sexual vitality, enhance sexual potency, benefit the stomach, stop frequent urination, and treat debility with night sweats. Mutton can treat “brain wind,” a disorder attributed to wind entering the head, and severe wind disorders; it stimulates the appetite and strengthens the body. It can also cool the head and treat steaming-bone syndrome, heat in the brain, dizziness, blurred vision, and childhood convulsions. Sheep fat can treat wandering wind disorders and dark spots. Ash made by burning ram dung can treat swelling and pain inside the ear, and can also be applied to puncture wounds.

Yuxi says that according to the Yaoxing Lun, male goat horn can treat postpartum stagnant blood and agitation. Burn it to ash and take it with wine. It can also help make the body feel light and treat childhood convulsions. The text also says that blue goat horn is very cold in nature, while blue goat gall is neutral. Taking blue goat liver can brighten the eyes; applying its bile to the eyes can treat redness, white opacities, and tearing in the wind, and can also counteract insect poison.

The Wai Tai Mi Yao, quoting a formula by Cui, says that for a person with cold damage whose hands and feet hurt as though they are about to fall off, sheep dung can be boiled in water and the liquid administered. It is said to relieve the pain and treat seasonal epidemics. Heat and swelling of the scrotum and penis may also be treated by boiling sheep dung in water, adding phellodendron bark and other herbs, and washing the affected area; this also treats cold damage. Another formula in the Wai Tai Mi Yao treats childhood malnutrition with abdominal distension: mix the contents of two sheep gallbladders with fermented rice water and administer it into the anus. Pig gall may also be used.

The Qianjin Fang gives this treatment for bedwetting: fill a sheep’s stomach with water, tie both ends shut, and boil it until cooked. Remove the water and drink it all at once; this is said to cure the condition.

The Zhouhou Fang gives this treatment for numerous egg-shaped brown spots on the face: boil one male goat gallbladder in two sheng of wine until it bubbles three times, then rub the liquid onto the affected area three times a day. This is said to cure the condition.

The Shenghui Fang records a formula for wind disorders, suited to cases involving agitation and confusion, abdominal pain, and occasional faintness verging on collapse:

After the patient regains consciousness, take shavings of a billy goat’s horn, lightly stir-fry them, pound them, and sift them into a fine powder. At any time, mix one qian with warm wine and drink.

Another prescription: When sulfur suddenly flares up and causes oppression in the chest, take one he of sheep’s blood.

The Mei Shi Prescription says: This can be used when stagnant blood remaining after childbirth surges up into the heart and chest, or when postpartum bleeding will not stop and the woman becomes agitated and distressed, her face turns bluish, her body grows cold, and her breath is nearly gone. Drink one cup of fresh sheep’s blood. Take it two or three times; it is highly effective.

The Food Therapy Mirror records: A sheep’s head can be used for wind dizziness, emaciation, childhood convulsions, and the Five Taxations in adult men, as well as weakness in the hands and feet. Prepare and wash one sheep’s head in the usual way, steam it until cooked, cut it open, season it with the five flavors, and eat it. It also says that sheep’s kidneys can be used for kidney taxation and depletion of Jing and Qi. Take a pair of prepared sheep’s kidneys, remove the fat, and mince them finely. Put them in fermented soybean sauce, season with the five flavors, then add rice in the usual way to make a soup. They may also be cooked as porridge.

The Extended Materia Medica says: Billy goat’s horns come from the regions of Shaanxi and Hedong, where this breed is called the “geli sheep.” It is especially strong, with the longest and thickest fleece, and its horn can be used medicinally. For eating, however, a large white sheep without horns is preferable. Earlier materia medica texts did not record this; they simply left it out.

Around Huazhou there is also a kind of “sand-resting sheep.” Its ribs are slender, and it has horns resembling those of the billy goat, though it is shorter. It is suitable for cooking and is especially prized among sheep.

Zhang Zhongjing treated cold shan, abdominal pain and distention caused by cold congealing, with ginger and mutton soup, which often proved effective. A woman once gave birth during a cold month. Cold entered the birth canal, causing distention below the navel so severe that others did not dare even touch her. This was cold shan. The doctor prepared to treat her, believing it was stagnant blood and intending to use Dida Tang. Someone told her this treatment was unsuitable and that she could instead take Zhang Zhongjing’s mutton soup, using slightly less water than the recipe called for. After taking it twice, she recovered.

The penis of a male dog has a salty taste, a neutral nature, and is non-toxic. It is said to treat internal injury and impotence, strengthen and warm the penis, promote fertility, and treat vaginal discharge and twelve other ailments in women. It is also called “dog essence.” This medicine should be collected while the moon is rising, then dried in the shade for one hundred days.

Dog gall: Treats blurred vision, scabbed sores, and severe sores.

Dog heart: Treats disorders of Qi caused by worry and anger, and dispels evil influences.

Dog brain: Treats wind-related head pain and numbness, parasitic sores in the lower body, and nasal polyps.

Dog teeth: Treat epilepsy, alternating chills and fever, and sudden wind-related paralysis that impairs movement. They should be collected during the days of the dog days.

Dog skull: Can be used for metal-inflicted wounds, such as cuts from swords or other metal weapons, and helps stop bleeding.

The four paws of a dog: Boil them into a soup and drink it to promote the flow of breast milk.

Blood of a white dog: It has a salty taste and is non-toxic. It treats epileptic seizures.

Dog meat: It has a salty and sour taste and a warm nature. It is said to nourish the Five Viscera, replenish what has been damaged, lighten the body, and increase strength.

Bone found in feces treats alternating chills and fever, as well as convulsions in children.

The Illustrated Classic says: For details, see the entry on “male goat horn.”

Ri Huazi says: Dog penis treats severe depletion of Yang qi and sores on the female genitals. Dog gall treats bruising and blood stasis caused by falls or blows, as well as wounds from knives and arrows. Dog heart treats bites from rabid dogs, dispels malign influences and wind impediment, and also treats nosebleeds and diseases of the lower body. Dog teeth treat acute disorders in children caused by fright or disturbance from outside influences; burn them before using them as medicine. Dog skull, burned to ash and used, can also strengthen Yang; yellow ones are considered best. Dog blood nourishes the five viscera. Yellow dogs have a strong tonic effect, while dogs of other colors have a weaker one.

An ancient book says that Chinese yam is cool in nature and tonifying, while dog meat is warm in nature but not tonifying. Though this is said, eating dog meat over a long period is ultimately beneficial; however, its strong rank odor puts many people off.

Yuxi says: According to the General Materia Medica, dog gall, dog teeth, dog skull, and a dog’s four feet are neutral in nature, while the blood of a white dog is warm. According to the Treatise on Medicinal Properties, dog gall may also be used on its own. It is bitter and slightly toxic, and treats nasal congestion and polyps inside the nose. Dog skull burned to ash and ground into powder treats chronic diarrhea and consumptive dysentery, a form of dysentery with prolonged diarrhea. Fry it with dried ginger and henbane seeds until scorched and smoking, then make pills. Take ten pills on an empty stomach with rice water; this is highly effective.

Meng Shen says: Dog gall clears pus and fluid from the intestines. Pills made from the gall of a white dog, Chinese stephania stem, and cinnamon bark can make a person invisible; the gall of a blue dog is especially effective. Dog meat replenishes Yang qi, nourishes the blood vessels, strengthens the stomach and intestines, enriches the lower body, and replenishes Jing and marrow. Do not roast it, for this may bring on wasting-thirst disease; instead, cook it with seasonings and eat it on an empty stomach. Do not eat it with garlic, or it will severely harm the body. If the dog’s blood is drained, the meat’s effects are weakened and it can no longer be tonifying. Thin, weak dogs are often ill and are not suitable for eating.

The Sagely Beneficial Formulas says: To treat persistent red or white vaginal discharge in women, burn a dog’s head to ash and grind it into a fine powder. Take one qian and seven fen with warm wine on an empty stomach or before a meal each day.

The Arcane Essentials from the Imperial Library says: To treat saddle sores on a horse, burn dog teeth to ash and apply them mixed with vinegar. It also says to collect the feces of a male dog on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, burn them to ash, and apply them to the affected area for good results.

Yang’s Nurturing of Mother and Child says: Pregnant women should not eat dog meat, or the child may be unable to cry at birth.

Antelope

Antelope horn is salty and bitter in flavor, cold or slightly cold in nature, and non-toxic. It treats blurred vision and Qi deficiency, rouses Yin qi, dispels evil blood and downward-flowing disorders, and wards off gu poison, evil spirits, and inauspicious influences. It calms the mind, helping people sleep soundly without nightmares. It also treats chills and fever caused by cold damage and seasonal epidemics, as well as conditions caused by heat evil lodged in the skin or wind evil entering the body.

Antelope horn can be used to treat toxic influences lodged between the bones, invading pathogenic influences, frightening dreams, mania, disordered behavior, confused speech, and difficulty swallowing food. For conditions involving prolonged obstruction, it is said that taking it strengthens the sinews and bones, makes the body feel light, invigorates Yang, replenishes the original Qi, and benefits men’s physical functions.

Antelope horn is produced in the valleys of Shicheng Mountain and on Mount Huayin, and can be gathered throughout the year.

The Illustrated Classic of Materia Medica says: Antelope horn comes from the valleys of Shicheng Mountain and Mount Huayin. Today it is also found in the mountains of Qinzhou, Longzhou, Shu, Jinzhou, and Shangzhou. The Rong people—a historical term for peoples of the northwest—often capture antelopes and sell their horns. The antelope resembles a sheep, has bluish fur, and is fairly large. Its horns are one or two chi long, with ridges on the surface that resemble marks left by gripping them with the fingers. They are hard yet resilient. The horns used medicinally today are all of this kind.

Tao Hongjing says: Antelope horn is also found today in areas inhabited by minority peoples around Jianping and Yidu, as well as in the Western Regions. Antelopes usually have two horns; those with only one are considered better. The ridges on antelope horns form dense rings. There is another kind of mountain goat with exceptionally long horns, ridged on only one side, with sparse, coarse ridges; these horns are not suitable for medicine. The Erya calls this animal the “yuan sheep.” The Qiang and Yi peoples call it an antelope and say it is adept at climbing steep mountains; the short-horned animal is the mountain goat. Tao Hongjing says it is uncertain whether these accounts are accurate.

Chen Cangqi says: Antelope horn treats stream toxin—toxic influences associated with the damp heat of mountain streams—as well as fright palpitations, vexation, restless sleep, and malign Qi in the chest. Antelope meat can treat scrofula, or lumps in the neck, and can also be used for snakebites and malignant sores. Mountain goats, mountain donkeys, and antelopes look alike. If physicians rely only on what is said in the marketplace, they may mistake one medicinal substance for another and use the wrong ingredient in decoctions or pills.

Chen Cangqi also says that when antelopes sleep at night, they hang their horns from trees so they do not touch the ground. To select a horn, examine its curve: a true horn has a deep, sharp, tightly curved inner side, with marks from hanging on a tree; one without such marks is not genuine. Held near the ear, a genuine horn makes a crisp “ji-ji” sound. A clear ringing sound indicates a good horn. Tao Hongjing, however, considers the claim that antelopes have only one horn to be incorrect.

Yuxi says: The Treatise on the Nature of Medicinals considers antelope horn sweet in flavor and neutral in nature. It can treat various kinds of heat toxin, invading wind, sudden collapse caused by malign influences, and sudden collapse and confusion of consciousness caused by toxic wind. It is also used for vexation of the heart caused by blood stasis rising after childbirth. Burn the horn to powder and take it with wine. It can also be used for childhood convulsions and mountain miasma, a damp heat epidemic illness found in mountainous areas. Antelope horn disperses blood stasis; after being burned to ash, it can be used to treat obstruction that prevents swallowing.

Meng Shen says: People in the north often eat antelope meat. It is said that eating it in the south can help protect against harm from snakes and insects. Roast antelope horn together with schisandra, soak them in wine overnight, and drink the wine; this is said to treat tightening and rigidity of the sinews and bones, as well as windstroke. Antelope horn can also be used for sinew and vessel contractions after windstroke, and for conditions in which the muscles cling to the bones and cannot extend.

Grind the horn into juice and mix it with water, then apply it to swollen, painful areas and malignant sores; it works very well. It can also treat sudden heat and oppression: grind horn shavings into powder, mix them with a little honey, and swallow. This also treats dysentery caused by heat toxins and dysentery with blood.

Lei Gong (Lei Xiao, a legendary expert in preparing medicines) says: Another kind of medicinal horn is the divine sheep horn. It has twenty-four ridges, and a naturally formed “wood core” inside. Its power is immense, said to match the strength of a thousand oxen. When preparing it, do not separate the paired horns into single ones, or they will lose their medicinal efficacy. Keep them paired as they originally were, bind them with a cord, and file off the material little by little with an iron file, taking care not to expose it to the wind. Wrap the part left at the end in three layers of paper to prevent its medicinal potency from dissipating. After filing, pound it separately and sift it twice through a fine sieve in a sheltered place before adding it to a prescription. Old horns should be ground ten thousand times before use; they work better this way and are less likely to scrape the stomach and intestines.

The Formulas Worth a Thousand Gold Pieces says: To treat restlessness of the heart, clouded awareness, and sweating after childbirth, burn antelope horn to ash, then wash down one fangcunbi (an ancient small medicine spoon) with water flowing eastward. If the symptoms do not improve, take another dose.

The Handbook of Prescriptions for Emergencies says: To treat Qi and Blood surging upward, with restlessness and distension in the chest and abdomen, burn antelope horn or water-antelope horn to ash and wash down one fangcunbi with water.

The Secret Record of Mother and Child says: To treat pain in the chest and flanks, abdominal pain, and distension with heat, burn antelope horn to ash and wash down one fangcunbi with water.

The Expanded Materia Medica says: Nowadays, when selecting antelope horns, people choose those with hanging marks—the rings on the horn. Chen Cangqi recommended holding a horn to the ear and listening: one that makes a “ji-ji” sound was considered good. This was only a tentative suggestion, however, and had not been thoroughly tested. Other horns also make a “ji-ji” sound when held to the ear, so it is enough to rely on the presence of hanging marks. Yet many horns are counterfeit, so they must be examined carefully.

Rhinoceros horn: Bitter, sour, and salty in taste; cold or slightly cold in nature; non-toxic. It treats all kinds of poison, Gu poison, and miasmatic influences from evil spirits; counteracts the poisons of gouwen, zhen feathers, and snakes; and dispels malign influences, preventing confusion and nightmares. It also treats headaches, chills, and fever caused by Cold Damage and warm epidemics, as well as various toxic influences. Long-term use makes the body light and strong. It is produced in the mountain valleys of Yongchang and in Yizhou. Pine resin serves as its messenger herb. Avoid using it together with huanjun fungus or Thunder Ball (lewan).

The Illustrated Classic of Materia Medica says: Rhinoceros horn comes from the mountain valleys of Yongchang and from Yizhou. Today, the finest quality comes from the South China Sea region; that from Qian and Shu is of lesser quality. The rhinoceros resembles an ox, with a head like a pig’s, a large belly, short legs, and three hooves on each foot. Its coat is black, and it likes to eat thorny plants. Three hairs grow from each pore in its hide. It has one horn on its head, though some say it has two or three; accounts differ.

According to Guo Pu’s commentary on the Erya, rhinoceroses have three horns: one on the crown of the head, one on the forehead, and one on the nose. The nasal horn is called the “feeding horn”; it is small and not flattened. Some rhinoceroses have only one horn.

The Lingbiao luyi says that rhinoceroses have two horns: the one on the crown of the head is called the “si rhinoceros,” and the one on the nose is called the “Hu-cap rhinoceros” or “bull rhinoceros.” Some have hair on both horns and are called “woolly rhinoceroses.” People today often say that rhinoceroses have only one horn, but in fact there are many kinds. Their horns all bear fine lines, and people judge their value by how coarse or fine these lines are.

Among precious rhinoceros horns is a kind whose patterns resemble flowers and which is called “reaching heaven.” It is said that rhinoceroses with this kind of horn dislike their own reflections, often drink muddy water, and avoid seeing themselves. On horns with especially exquisite patterns, the lines can even be made out as various forms and objects. Some also say that the pattern called “reaching heaven” forms when the rhinoceros is ill, though the reason is unknown.

Rhinoceros horns also come in different forms, called “inverted insertion,” “upright insertion,” and “waist insertion,” among others. When the lines run continuously upward from the base of the horn, it is called “upright insertion”; when they run continuously from above the middle of the horn, it is called “waist insertion”; and when the lines break off at the middle and do not continue, it is called “drum insertion.” Their kinds are numerous and their forms unusual.

The Yaoxing lun says that bull rhinoceros horn is sweet in flavor and slightly toxic. It can drive away evil spirits and ghosts, dispel harmful influences and poisonous Qi, calm the mind and spirit, relieve intense heat, and dispel wind toxins. It can also treat sores on the back, abscesses, ulcers, and swellings, and make pus thin and watery. It is also used for epidemic illnesses that cause fever as hot as fire and oppressive agitation, and for delirious speech caused by poisonous Qi entering the heart.

Tao Hongjing says that rhinoceroses are found in the remote mountain regions of Wuling, Jiaozhou, Ningzhou, and elsewhere. They have two horns, of which the forehead horn is the better. There is also a kind called the “heaven-reaching rhinoceros,” whose horn has a white line running all the way to its tip; its effects are said to be exceptionally potent. Some say this is the same as the “water rhinoceros,” which lives in water. The “chicken-startling rhinoceros” mentioned in the Book of Han is said to frighten chickens so that they dare not peck at grain when it is placed among the grain; placed in a house, it also prevents crows and other birds from perching on the roof. Another account says that even when the heaven-reaching rhinoceros sleeps outdoors at night, dew does not wet it.

On this basis, Tao Hongjing concluded that all rhinoceros horn that has been processed has been steamed or boiled and is unsuitable for medicinal use; only raw rhinoceros horn is preferable. Even horn slices have already been boiled and roasted, to say nothing of rhinoceros horn powder. There is also a female rhinoceros whose horn is long and patterned like rhinoceros horn, but it is unsuitable for medicinal use.

Chen Cangqi says that rhinoceros meat can treat various forms of gu poison, as well as poison from snake and animal bites, though it is less effective than rhinoceros horn. The Bencao jing mentions the “heaven-reaching rhinoceros”; as for rhinoceroses, there are no separate kinds called water rhinoceroses and land rhinoceroses…

If distinguished by fineness and coarseness, the rhinoceros horn said to “reach Heaven” grows above the head, with a long, sharp tip. The tip is white and shines through like starlight, and it can release Qi outward. “Reaching Heaven” means that it can communicate with the spirits. It can also split the surface of the water and startle chickens, which is why it is called “Reaching Heaven.”

The Baopuzi says that the horn of the rhinoceros that reaches Heaven bears a white line like a silk thread. If rice is placed in it, chickens will be startled. When a genuine horn of this kind is carved into the shape of a fish and carried into water, the water parts to either side for three chi. Its nasal horn is also called the “servant horn” or the “feeding horn.”

The Rihuazi says that rhinoceros horn tastes sweet and pungent. It can treat distress in the heart, stop fright, calm the Five Organs, replenish debility and exhaustion, reduce fever, transform phlegm, and dispel miasma from mountains and toxic vapors from streams. It can also calm the Liver and brighten the eyes, and treat loss of voice caused by wind-stroke, as well as heat toxins, wind disorders, and epidemic illnesses that cause mania.

Yuxi says that the Erya describes the si as resembling an ox and having a single horn, while the rhinoceros resembles a pig and has three horns. It also says that the rhinoceros resembles both an elephant and a pig, and has three horns. Tao Hongjing, relying on the Erya, considered the claim that the rhinoceros has three horns mistaken. The text also says that the female is called si, though its shape is not the same. Which account is accurate remains uncertain.

Lei Gong says not to use servant rhinoceros, female rhinoceros, water rhinoceros affected by illness, lianzi rhinoceros, lower horns, or shallow-water rhinoceros. The best quality is black, with thick horn material and a surface marked by cracks and wrinkles yet glossy. To prepare it, first file the horn into small pieces and pound them finely in a mortar. Then grind them repeatedly in a bowl ten thousand times before using them as medicine. Pregnant women should not take it, lest it harm the fetus. Salt must especially be avoided when preparing rhinoceros horn.

The Shiliao says that this account concerns only mountain rhinoceroses; the author had never seen anyone obtain the horn of a water rhinoceros. The two kinds of horn have the same effects. Rhinoceros horn is cold in nature. It can be burned to ash, ground into powder, and taken with water to treat red dysentery. It can also treat sudden nausea and heart pain, as well as poisoning from food or medicines, heat toxins, wind-stroke affecting the sinews and bones, and distress caused by heart wind.

Rhinoceros horn can be ground with water to make a liquid for children to take, treating fright with fever; the nasal horn is especially effective. Rhinoceros meat is slightly warm in nature, sweet in taste, and nontoxic. Eating it can treat miasma, various toxins, and gu toxins, and drive away evil spirits. It is said that eating it before entering the mountains or forests can prevent one from losing the way. It can also treat intermittent fever with headache, hemorrhoids, and various forms of bloody dysentery. Eating too much can cause distress; if this happens, take a little musk mixed with water, and the distress will subside.

The Shenghui Fang records that raw rhinoceros horn can be used to treat vomiting and diarrhea caused by eating soup made with pheasant meat.

Take one square-inch-spoonful of the powder, mix it with freshly drawn water, and swallow it. It takes effect immediately.

The Waitai Miyao says: After taking too much medicine or being poisoned, if a person suffers from distress and feels close to death, burn rhinoceros horn to ash, mix one square-inch-spoonful with water, and take it.

The Qianjin Fang records: If the urine of an earwig, also called an earwig insect, touches the place where a person’s shadow falls, sores will appear on the body. The spots resemble millet grains, cluster together, ooze fluid, and cause pain. At times the body may suddenly become dry and prick with pain, as if pierced by needles or bitten by insects. Tiny sores then appear in clusters, shaped like the seeds of the dogwood plant. The skin around them turns red, while white pus forms in the center, each sore about the size of a millet or foxtail-millet grain. The skin also becomes taut, and the person feels cold all over and develops a high fever. In severe cases, the sores run together and spread to the lower back, flanks, and chest. At the onset of the illness, grind rhinoceros horn and apply it to the affected area to halt its progress.

In the Baopuzi, Master Zheng says: If you practice breath retention until you can gradually hold your breath for the time it takes to breathe a thousand times, and keep at it for a long time, you can live underwater for about a day. If you obtain a genuine “Heaven-Piercing Rhinoceros” horn more than three inches long, carve it into the shape of a fish and hold it in your mouth as you enter the water, the water will part around you, forming a space three feet square in which you can breathe. The horn’s red markings are as fine as threads and run from its base all the way to its tip. If rice is placed on the horn and then set on the ground, a flock of chickens will not dare peck at it; instead, they will flee in fright. For this reason, people in the south call it the “Chicken-Startling Rhinoceros.”

Thus, in places where insect poison is common, when eating at someone else’s home, you can stir the food with rhinoceros horn. If white foam rises on the food, it is poisonous; if no foam appears, it is not.

The Yanyi says: For medicinal use, choose a rhinoceros horn that is black and has not been soaked in hot water or boiled. This is called “raw rhinoceros horn.” Sichuan and southern rhinoceros horns have finer markings. Some black rhinoceros horns have prominent markings, while yellow rhinoceros horns have very few. All are inferior to rhinoceros horns from the Western Regions, whose raised markings show two clear, distinct lines along the horn.

When the markings on a rhinoceros horn are yellow on the outside and black within, this is called “regular penetration”; when they are black on the outside and yellow within, it is called “reverse penetration.” In general, black is considered the proper color, and horns with markings shaped like recognizable objects are more precious. For a horn to be called “Heaven-Piercing,” the markings must begin with distinct yellow and black colors, continue unbroken along the horn, and not flake away. Horns with smooth, lustrous markings are the finest. Deer antler is taken from the tip, and rhinoceros horn is likewise taken from the tip, because their concentrated, potent force gathers there. It is best to grind the tip of the horn into powder and take it; for decoctions or powders, grind it into fine shavings. Rhinoceros horns from the Western Regions are superior.

Tiger

Tiger bone can dispel evil influences, treat what was traditionally called “ghost-injection toxin”—an illness believed to be caused by malign spirits or contagious disease—and calm palpitations. It can also be used for malignant sores. For mouse-fistula, a condition akin to tuberculous lymph-node disease of the neck, tiger skull is especially effective. Tiger fat can be used to treat dog bites, and tiger claws to ward off malign spirits.

Tiger meat can relieve nausea and the urge to vomit, and can also replenish original Qi.

The Illustrated Classic says that the Basic Classic does not record where tiger bones, tiger eyes, and tiger claws come from. Today, tigers are found in most places with forests. For medicinal use, the skull and shinbones are considered the best tiger bones, especially those that are yellowish. Tiger eyes are often counterfeited, so only one obtained directly is genuine. Tiger claws, toe bones, and fur can be kept and tied around a child’s arm; they are said to ward off evil. Between the tiger’s ribs and at the tip of its tail are bones called “tiger might,” shaped like the character yi and about one or two inches long. The parts mentioned here are all considered best when taken from a male tiger. Animals such as deer and tigers are often killed by arrows coated with medicinal poison, so they should not be used as medicine: once the poison has soaked into the bones and flesh, they may still harm people.

The Collected Prescriptions compiled by Li Jiang, an official in the Ministry of War, gives a method for making tiger-bone wine to treat pain in the arms and lower legs. It is said to work regardless of how severe the condition is. Take two large liang of tiger shinbone, crush it and fry it until yellow; one large liang of antelope horn, ground into powder; and two large liang of freshly gathered peony root, finely sliced. Soak all three ingredients in wine made without ash: for seven days in spring and summer, and twice as long in autumn and winter. Drink one cup each morning on an empty stomach. In winter, if the wine is needed quickly, put it in a silver vessel and warm it by the stove; it can be used after two or three days.

Tao Hongjing says that popular prescription books claim eating tiger meat hot damages the teeth, and this is indeed true. A tiger’s head made into a pillow is said to ward off evil and prevent nightmares. Placed above a door, it wards off ghosts. Hanging a tiger’s nose above a door is said to bring the birth of a boy. Tiger bone used together with cinnabar and talismans can treat dysentery. Tiger whiskers can treat toothache, and tying a tiger claw around a child’s arm is said to ward off evil.

The Tang Commentary says that the Supplementary Records of Famous Physicians states: tiger dung can treat malignant sores; a tiger’s eye can treat mania; bones found in tiger dung, ground into powder, can treat burns; a tiger’s tooth can treat sores and fistulas on a man’s penis; and a tiger’s nose can treat mania as well as convulsions and epilepsy in children.

Chen Cangqi says that “tiger might” can give a person an imposing presence. Carrying it is suitable for someone about to take up an official post; for someone without office, carrying it may instead invite dislike. “Tiger might” refers to a bone beside the ribs, shaped like yi and about an inch long. It can be removed only by cutting through the flesh. A similar bone is found at the tip of the tiger’s tail, but it is not as good as the one beside the ribs. Tiger gall can treat convulsions and epilepsy in children. Tiger meat and skin can treat malaria. Water boiled with tiger bones can be used to bathe children to treat sores and scabies, demonic possession, convulsions, and epilepsy. Tiger dung can treat demonic influences. The light from a tiger’s eyes is said to frighten away evil beings, ward off evil, and calm the spirit.

According to legend, when a tiger sees at night, one eye shines while the other looks at things. Hunters shoot when the tiger’s eye is shining. As soon as the arrow hits, the light from its eye falls to the ground. Those who pick it up find that it resembles a white stone.

Ri Huazi says: Tiger meat tastes sour, is neutral in nature, and is non-toxic. It can treat malaria and calm the heart. Tiger eyes can be used to treat children’s night terrors, childhood malnutrition, and sudden illness believed in ancient times to result from a child being startled by external disturbances.

Lei Gong says: Before using a tiger’s eye, first ask the person who collected it where it came from. Tigers may be male or female, old or young. Only the eyes of a tiger that was killed may be used as medicine. A tiger that died on its own from poisoning must not be used, to avoid harming people. Before use, soak the eye overnight in fresh sheep’s blood, then remove it and dry it over a low fire. Grind it into powder, and set it aside until the other medicines are ready; then combine the tiger-eye powder with them.

Yuxi says: Medicines derived from tigers can be used for ghost or corpse influences—illnesses that ancient people believed were caused by evil spirits or corpse Qi—as well as malignant sores. A record on medicinal combinations states that tiger bone is neutral in nature.

The Treatise on the Nature of Medicines says: Tiger bone serves as an assistant ingredient and can counteract the poison of dog bites. It tastes pungent, is slightly warm in nature, and is non-toxic. It can treat stiffness and severe pain caused by wind evils invading the sinews and bones, difficulty bending and straightening the limbs, and wandering, shifting pains. It can also be used for abdominal pain attributed to corpse influences, warm malaria, and cold damage with warm disease.

Meng Shen says: After eating tiger meat, one may enter the mountains without fear, for tigers will be afraid on seeing them. Tiger meat can also ward off thirty-six kinds of spirits and demons. Tiger eyes can treat malaria, drive away evil influences, and be used for children’s feverish convulsions and unsettled Shen (spirit). Tiger gall can treat childhood malnutrition with dysentery and palpitations; grind it into powder and swallow it with water. A decoction of tiger bone can be used for a medicinal bath to dispel wind toxins from the joints. Tiger fat, inserted into the lower body, can treat the five types of hemorrhoids and bloody stools.

The Shenghui Formula records: To treat wandering joint disease—a condition involving joint pain—and unbearable pain throughout the joints, take one tiger skull, coat it with butter, and roast it until yellow. Crush it, place it in a silk bag, and soak it in two dou of clear wine for five nights. Drink an amount suited to the individual, warmed before use.

The Qianjin Wing records: To treat sores on the hands, feet, shoulders, or back, where patches of lesions appear in clusters, each about the size of a grain of rice, pale in color, and oozing fluid when scraped, mix tiger urine with horse urine. Dry the mixture in the sun and burn it to ash, then apply the ash to the affected area.

The Experienced Remedies Afterword records: To treat White Tiger Wind, an ancient term for a condition marked by shifting pain, with pain that moves from place to place and heat and swelling in both knees, take tiger shinbone coated with butter and roasted until black, together with one liang each of processed aconite with its skin and root tip removed. Grind them into powder. Take two qian at a time, mixed with warm wine; take another dose after seven days.

The Winning Gold Formula records: To treat intestinal hemorrhoids with fistulas and prolapse of the rectum, take two sections of tiger shinbone and roast them with two liang of honey until red-hot. Grind them into powder and form pills the size of Chinese parasol-tree seeds using steamed cake as a binder. Each morning, take twenty pills with warm wine. Make sure the bowels have been cleared the night before taking the medicine.

Zhang Wenzhong records: Long-lasting dysentery that does not resolve is called “intermittent dysentery.” Roast tiger bone until yellow and scorched, then grind it into powder. Take one square-inch spoonful at a time, washed down with a drink, for seven days.

Using tiger bone as medicine is said to help treat tightness of the sinews and channels, difficulty bending and stretching, and illnesses caused by pathogenic Wind, such as epilepsy, convulsions, and pain in the joints. “Wind follows the tiger,” as the ancients said: Wind belongs to Wood, while the tiger belongs to Metal. Since Metal restrains Wood, they said that Wind moves along with the tiger. When a tiger roars and the wind rises, this was explained as a natural principle.

Rabbit

Rabbit skull is neutral in nature and non-toxic. It can treat dizziness, headaches, and epilepsy. Rabbit bones can treat excess internal heat; rabbit brain can treat chilblains; and rabbit liver can treat blurred vision. Rabbit meat is pungent in flavor, neutral in nature, and non-toxic. It nourishes the Spleen and Stomach and replenishes Qi (vital energy).

The Illustrated Classic says that ancient books do not record which prefectures rabbits came from, but they are now found everywhere. Rabbit meat is a superior food. The book also says that rabbits have six or seven apertures and that young rabbits are born through the mouth. For this reason, it holds that pregnant women should not eat rabbit meat. Rabbit skull can treat dizziness, headaches, and epilepsy; rabbit brain can treat chilblains; rabbit liver can treat blurred vision; and rabbit meat can nourish the Spleen and Stomach and replenish Qi. Rabbit meat, however, is cold in nature. Eating too much can damage one’s original Qi, and it should not be eaten with chicken. Rabbit marrow and rabbit fat can treat deafness. A decoction of rabbit fur can be used to wash pea-pox sores, while its ashes can treat moxibustion sores. Rabbit fur and rabbit head, burned to ash and taken with wine, are said to help with difficult childbirth and the failure to expel the afterbirth.

The Treatise on the Nature of Medicinals says that rabbit bones are sweet in flavor. Rabbit meat made into a paste during the twelfth lunar month and eaten can treat pea-pox in children. During the twelfth lunar month, rabbit fur can be decocted and used to wash the affected area, or applied directly, to treat pea-pox.

Tao Hongjing says that rabbit meat made into soup is also beneficial to the body, but pregnant women should not eat it, as the text holds that it may cause the baby to be born with a cleft lip. Rabbit meat should not be eaten with white chicken, or the complexion may turn yellow; nor should it be eaten with otter meat, as this may cause an illness of the “wandering corpse” type.

The Tang Materia Medica Commentary says that rabbit fur and skin, burned together to ash and taken with wine, can effectively treat difficult childbirth, failure to expel the afterbirth, and conditions in which residual blood rushes to the heart and the abdomen swells as if the person were about to die. Rabbit head skin can treat the noxious qi of ghost possession lodged in the skin; rabbit fur can treat rat fistulas; and rabbit fat can treat deafness. Rabbit meat can relieve thirst and strengthen the Spleen. Eaten raw, it is said to suppress erysipelas.

Chen Cangqi says that rabbit meat is cold and neutral in nature. It clears heat and gently nourishes the Spleen and Stomach. Rabbit fur burned to ash can treat moxibustion sores that have resisted treatment for a long time. Rabbit bones can treat chronic scabies when ground with vinegar and applied to the affected area. Eating rabbit meat for a long time can make a person weak.

Rabbit meat can weaken a person’s Yang energy and make the complexion sallow. Eating it with fresh ginger can cause heart pain. A rabbit’s head can be used to induce labor. When a rabbit is about to give birth, burn its head to ash, grind it into powder, and swallow it with wine. Rabbits have five or six birth passages, and their young emerge through the mouth.

People who are pregnant today are advised to avoid rabbit meat. This is not because of a fear that the child will be born with a cleft lip; it is also related to the saying that rabbits give birth through the mouth.

Yuxi says: According to the Rihuazi, the rabbit’s head, including its fur and marrow, can be burned to ash and made into pills to induce labor, help expel the placenta, and treat postpartum blood stasis that does not discharge. Rabbit bones can treat sores, scabies, ringworm, and conditions called “thorn wind” and “ghost infestation,” among others.

Rabbit liver can brighten the eyes and replenish deficiency, and can treat dizziness and eye pain. Meng Shen says: Rabbit liver has an eye-brightening effect and can be made into pills with cassia seeds. Those who suffer an attack of Dan and mineral medicines—an internal heat condition caused by taking mineral drugs—with heat rising upward and making their vision dim or leaving them unable to see can also eat raw rabbit liver, prepared in the same way as sheep liver. The eighth through eleventh lunar months are suitable for eating it. Rabbit liver is particularly suitable for people taking Dan and mineral medicines. In general, rabbit meat harms Yang energy and obstructs the blood vessels.

The Essential Secrets from Beyond the Office (Waitai Miyao), in “Certain to Be Effective,” records a remedy for women’s vaginal discharge: burn rabbit skin until the smoke stops, pound it into powder, and swallow one square-inch spoonful—a traditional measure for powdered medicine—with wine. Continue until the condition is cured.

The “Labor-Inducing Elixir” in the Tested Remedies (Jingyan Fang): Take two rabbit heads from the twelfth lunar month. Remove the marrow from the heads, spread it on clean paper, and leave it in a well-ventilated place to dry. Take two liang of clear frankincense, pound it, and grind it finely with the dried rabbit marrow. Choose an auspicious day, and grind the medicine the day before. Once the stars appear at night, set out a table and arrange fruit, incense, and tea together. Keep everything clean, observe a fast, and burn incense. Facing north toward the Northern Emperor, bow and declare to the Celestial Master: “Your Daoist disciple, [name], has prepared this medicine to aid women in labor throughout the world. I pray that you send down your numinous power and protect this medicine, so that the women may give birth smoothly and enjoy peace and long life.” Bow again, wrap the medicine in paper, and leave it outdoors to receive the dew. The next day, before sunrise, mix the medicine with pork and form it into pills the size of a chicken’s head. Put them in a paper bag and hang it in a well-ventilated place. Take one pill with vinegar broth. If labor has not begun after a while, take another pill with cold wine; it is said that this will bring on the birth. The remedy is called the “Immortal Formula” and is reputed to be exceptionally effective.

The Universal Aid Formulary (Boji Fang) records a remedy for fetal restlessness and a tendency to miscarry: Take the marrow from one rabbit head from the twelfth lunar month and spread it evenly on paper. Once dry, cut the paper into small pieces and write the character “birth” on each one. When the pregnant woman feels labor pains, hold a piece of paper with the mother’s hairpin and burn it to ash over a lamp flame. Put the ash in a cup and take it mixed with clove wine.

The Golden Remedies (Shengjin Fang) records a remedy for scalp abscesses, back abscesses, deep-seated sores, hot boils, and malignant ulcers. The original text ends here, incomplete.

In the twelfth lunar month, finely chop a rabbit’s head and seal it in a bottle. Once the medicine is ready, spread it on cloth and apply it. The original text is damaged here, so the precise method of application is unknown. Cover the affected area thickly with the medicine and bind it in place. If there is pain and fever, apply the medicine; it is as cool as ice. Change the dressing frequently until the condition is cured.

The Collected Proven Remedies says: To treat hemorrhoids with persistent bleeding and pain, take an appropriate amount of “Moon-Viewing Sand” (rabbit droppings) and simmer it over low heat until yellow, then grind it into a fine powder. Each time, take two qian, add half a qian of frankincense, and drink it on an empty stomach mixed with warm wine. Take it three or four times a day, and the condition can be cured. “Moon-Viewing Sand” means rabbit droppings.

The Secret Record of Mother and Child says: To treat prolapse of the genital area after childbirth, burn a rabbit’s head to ash, grind it into powder, and apply it to the affected area.

The Master Who Embraces Simplicity says: Rabbits can live for a thousand years; when they reach five hundred years of age, their fur turns white. It also says that if rabbit’s blood is mixed with “Female Elixir” and swallowed, two divine women will come to serve you, and you will be able to command them.

The Amplified Meaning says: White-haired rabbits have received the Qi of Metal in abundance, and are especially effective as medicine. Rabbits are suitable for eating only in late autumn, when the Qi of Metal is plentiful; once spring and summer arrive, the flavor of their meat changes. The fur from a rabbit’s hind-leg joint can be used to feed eagles and hawks. After eating it, they will expel all the fat in their bellies by the next day, become ravenously hungry, and hunt and pursue prey with great speed. Rabbit meat must be seasoned with all five flavors when made into a sauce. If someone with pea-pox sores, a rash similar to smallpox, eats rabbit meat, it can greatly intensify the illness and may cause the sores to ulcerate and damage the body.

Civet

Civet meat is sweet in flavor, warm in nature, and non-toxic. It is used to treat pathogenic influences such as wind zhu, corpse zhu, and ghost zhu, as well as toxic Qi lodged in the skin that shifts and travels about like needle pricks. It also treats pain in the heart and abdomen that moves from place to place, as well as scrofula and malignant sores. The civet’s skull is especially useful. Civet meat treats various zhu disorders. A civet’s penis treats absent menstruation and swelling of a man’s scrotum; burn it to ash and take it with water flowing eastward.

The Illustrated Materia Medica says: The Classic of Materia Medica does not record where civet bones and meat come from; today they are found everywhere, and there are many varieties. Those with tiger-like markings on their bodies can be used medicinally, but those with cat-like markings are not suitable. In either case, use the skull. One of Hua Tuo’s prescriptions, “Civet Bone Powder,” treats corpse zhu. Civet meat can treat hemorrhoids and may be eaten as a stew or soup. In the south there is a kind of fragrant civet, which people prepare as raw meat slices in the same way that people in the north eat raw fox meat. Its smell is very fragrant, with a slight hint of musk. South of Yongzhou there is also a kind of wind civet, shaped like a rabbit but with a short body. It often lives in tall trees and can ride the wind from one tree to another. Its urine treats wind disorders, but is difficult to obtain; only after keeping one for a long time might a person be able to collect it.

Tao Hongjing says: There are many kinds of civets. The kind used here is the tiger civet; the cat civet is not used.

The bones of the li (a wildcat-like animal, also called a cat-li in ancient books) are difficult to identify, so it is best to catch one yourself for reliable identification. There is also a yellow li with a very foul smell; its meat can treat mouse fistula, a condition involving swollen, suppurating lymph nodes in the neck. The usual practice of cooking li meat into a soup and eating it is also beneficial.

The Tang Ben Zhu says: Ash made from li droppings can treat ghost malaria, an old name for certain intermittent fever disorders involving alternating chills and fever. It is especially effective when the attacks occur irregularly. Domestic cats may also be used.

Chen Cangqi says: The urine of the wind-li can treat various wind disorders. People keep wind-li and feed them fruit; their urine resembles milk and is difficult to obtain. The wind-li resembles a rabbit but has a shorter body. It lives in tall trees and can ride the wind from one tree to another. It is found south of Yongzhou.

Su Yuxi, citing the Yao Xing Lun, says: Li bone may be used as an assistant medicinal ingredient or on its own. Roasted li skull, ground into powder, can treat obstruction that makes swallowing food or water difficult.

Meng Shen says: Li bone can treat hemorrhoids and may be cooked into a meat soup and eaten, but it should not be eaten with alcohol. Burning the li’s head to ash and taking about 2.7 qian with wine can also treat hemorrhoids. Li bone ash can counteract poisoning from eating wild bird meat. Pills made from roasted li bone, musk, and realgar can treat hemorrhoids and fistulas. Ash from li droppings can treat ghost malaria.

The Ri Hua Zi says: Li bone can treat disorders caused by wandering pathogenic wind and malignant sores; the skull is best. Ash from li droppings can treat alternating chills and fever and malaria. Li meat can treat wandering wind and other disorders. Burning the li’s head to ash and taking it with wine can treat various wind disorders. The Shu Ben Cao records that li meat can treat mouse fistula.

The Wai Tai Mi Yao records: When hemorrhoids flare up and cause pain, eating li meat soup works well. Meat dried and eaten can bring relief in no more than three doses; this meat is said to be highly effective.

The Zhou Hou Fang records: For a painful, swollen mouse fistula that has ruptured and is discharging pus and blood, take a whole li, prepare it in the usual way, cook it into a soup, and eat it on an empty stomach.

The Zi Mu Mi Lu records: To treat “ghost licking” in children, an old term for certain abnormal skin symptoms, burn li droppings to ash, mix them with pig fat preserved in the twelfth lunar month, and apply the mixture to the affected area. The Qian Jin Fang gives the same account.

The Sheng Hui Fang records: To treat scrofula that has persisted for years and become swollen, hard, and painful, take the li’s head, feet, and bones, coat them with butter, and roast until yellow. Pound them and sift the powder. Take 1.7 qian each day on an empty stomach, mixed with rice gruel.

The Yan Yi says: Li bones resemble cat bones. Their coats have two kinds of markings: one resembles strings of coins, and the other resembles tiger stripes. Both kinds of li may be used medicinally. Li meat tastes much like fox meat. In Jiangxi there is a kind of ox-tail li, whose tail resembles an ox’s tail. People often eat it, but it is not known to have been used as medicine. Meng Shen says li bone can treat hemorrhoids.

It is eaten as a thick soup or meat stew. But how can bones be made into such a dish? Roast the bones, then prepare them with musk and realgar as pills to be taken. This is an effective treatment for hemorrhoids and fistulas.

Muntjac

Muntjac bone is slightly warm in nature and is used to treat debility and seminal emission. Muntjac meat is warm and can warm and nourish the body, benefiting the five viscera. Muntjac marrow strengthens the body and gives the complexion a healthy glow.

The Illustrated Materia Medica says: The Classic of the Materia Medica does not record where muntjac bone and meat come from. Today muntjacs are often seen in marshes and areas with sparse grass. Muntjac is also called jun, and there are many kinds; jun is a general name for these animals. Some have tusks and some do not, but both kinds are used in the same way medicinally. Muntjac tusks cannot bite. Cui Bao’s Record of Ancient and Modern Things says, “The muntjac has tusks but cannot bite; the deer has antlers but cannot butt.” This is what it means.

Muntjac meat eaten from the eighth month through the tenth month is better than mutton. Eaten from the twelfth month through the seventh month of the following year, however, it disturbs the Qi. Daoists use muntjac and deer meat as bai fu—white dried meat—for offerings or food, and say there are no restrictions on eating them. Tang dynasty medical formulas include muntjac-bone wine and a preparation of muntjac marrow, both remedies that nourish the lower burner. Muntjac brain is also used to make face cream.

The Rihuazi Materia Medica says: Muntjac meat is nontoxic. Muntjac bone replenishes debility, benefits essence and marrow, and gives the complexion a healthy glow. The area below the muntjac’s navel has a fragrant scent and can treat various kinds of debility.

Yuxi says: According to the Treatise on the Nature of Medicinals, muntjac bone is sweet in flavor and nontoxic.

The Essential Secrets from Beyond the Palace Library records: To treat a tumor, take muntjac or deer meat and cut it into thick slices. Warm the slices over a fire and apply them to the affected area. Use four slices at a time, replacing them four times. The treatment will disperse the painful swelling; once the pus drains, the condition will heal. If the swelling has not gone away, use fresh slices and continue warming and applying them. This is highly effective.

Leopard

Leopard meat is sour in flavor, neutral in nature, and nontoxic. It treats imbalance among the five viscera and severe injury, and can make the body nimble and strengthen physical energy. Taken over a long period, it benefits the body.

The Illustrated Materia Medica says: The Classic of the Materia Medica does not record where leopard meat comes from. Today leopards are occasionally seen around the Yellow River and Luo River regions, and in Tang and Ying prefectures. Leopard skulls can be burned to ash, which can be used to wash the hair and remove flaky dandruff. Leopard fat can be made into a hair-growth preparation: apply it in the morning, and hair will grow by evening.

On careful examination, there are several kinds of leopard. One is the red leopard, mentioned in the Book of Odes as “the red leopard and yellow bear.” Lu Ji explains that a leopard with a red tail and black spots on its body is called a red leopard. There is also the dark leopard. The Classic of Mountains and Seas records black tigers and black leopards on Youdu Mountain. There is also a white leopard.

Tao Hongjing says: Leopards are rarely seen, and few places can use them medicinally; only the leopard’s tail is prized. The Tang Materia Medica says: The tails of the Yin-Yang spirit leopard, and the leopard tails used in imperial carriages and ceremonial processions…

Leopard meat is honored as “true leopard,” but what is so valuable about the leopard’s tail is unclear, as is the basis for Tao Hongjing’s claim.

Rihua Zi says: Leopard meat is slightly toxic. It can strengthen the sinews and bones, increase resolve, and make a person brave and agile.

Liu Yuxi comments: Meng Shen says that eating leopard meat makes a person coarse and bold in temperament, but this feeling soon passes. Regular consumption makes one better able to withstand cold and heat. Leopard fat can be made into a hair-growth ointment: apply it in the morning, and hair will grow by evening. Burn the leopard’s skull to ash and pour water through it to collect the liquid; this can remove flaky scalp.

The Bencao Shiliao says: Leopard meat nourishes the body. Eating it strengthens the sinews and bones and makes one’s temperament rougher. This can be noticed soon after eating, but soon fades. In the long run, regular consumption will make a person bold and rough in spirit, while strengthening the sinews and bones and enabling one to withstand cold and heat. Eating leopard meat in the first lunar month harms the spirit.

Kou Zongshi’s Bencao Yanyi says: The leopard’s coat is reddish yellow, with black markings shaped like hollow copper coins arranged side by side. This animal is braver and more agile than a tiger, and so can nourish the five viscera, replenish deficiency and injury, and make the body nimble. There is also a kind of “earth leopard,” whose coat has no markings, whose color is not red, and whose body is small. It is a distinct species, not one that can turn into a tiger. The sages used it only as a comparison. I fear that physicians may not understand this, so I have recorded it here.

Ash made from the tip of an old writing brush is best when the brush is long worn out. It treats inability to urinate, frequent and difficult urination, swelling of the genitals, sudden fainting caused by contact with malign influences, rectal prolapse, and lingering dribbling after urination. Burn the brush tip to ash and swallow it with water. (This entry was first added by the Tang Bencao. It originally appeared in the section on herbs and has now been moved here.)

The Tujing Bencao says: For details, see the entry on “rabbit skull.”

Liu Yuxi comments: The Yaoxing Lun says that brush-tip ash is slightly cold in nature and may also be used on its own. If a man is unable to achieve an erection on his wedding night, take brush-tip ash with wine; it is effective. The brush should be an old writing brush worn down from use.

The Waitai Miyao records: For inability to urinate, frequent urination, and slight swelling, take one old brush tip that has been kept for a long time, burn it to ash, and mix it with water to drink.

The Shengjin Fang records the “Sacred and Wondrous Inch-Gold Powder” for inducing labor and treating difficult childbirth: Burn one worn-out brush tip to ash, grind it to a fine powder, and mix it with one cup of fresh lotus-root juice. Childbirth will soon follow. If the mother is weak or habitually suffers from cold illnesses, and there is concern that the lotus root’s cool nature may stir up cold, first place the juice in a silver vessel and warm it in a hot-water bath before giving it to her.

The Fang Wang Fang records: To treat a swollen, painful throat that prevents eating or drinking, take brush-tip ash with rice-washing water, one square-inch spoonful at a time.

The feces found in a calf’s navel treats sudden bleeding from the nine orifices. Burn it to a powder and take one square-inch spoonful at a time to stop the bleeding.

Seven: A newborn calf that has not yet eaten grass; a yellow calf is best.

Yao’s formula says: Bleeding from the nine orifices—the eyes, ears, nose, mouth, and the two lower openings—and from between the fingers and toes is caused by sudden fright. Take the dried feces from the umbilical cord of a newborn calf that has not yet eaten grass, burn them to ash, and mix the ash with water. Take one square-inch spoonful, an ancient measure for powdered medicine, four or five times a day, and the condition will be cured. Some say this formula is also effective for bleeding from the mouth and nose.

The civet cat, also called the civet, has a pungent taste and a warm nature, and is non-toxic. It treats sudden attacks of harmful influences, ghostly Qi, flying corpse afflictions, Gu poison, sudden pain in the chest and abdomen, and illnesses attributed to frenzied evil spirits. Its effects are similar to those of musk. Civet cats are found in the mountain valleys around the South Sea and resemble wildcats. They are said to be hermaphroditic; some also call them “ling-li.” The Record of Strange Things says that the civet possesses both sexes in one body. Remove its scent gland pouch, sprinkle it with wine, and dry it in the shade; its smell will resemble musk. If mixed with genuine musk, it is usually difficult to tell them apart, and its effects in use are also like those of musk.

Thunderstruck meat is non-toxic. It treats children’s nighttime fright and adults whose minds have become disordered after being startled. Dry the meat and give it to the patient to eat. This is the flesh of an animal struck by heavenly thunder.