《圖經衍義本草》Vol. 38

Illustrated Classic of Materia Medica with Extended Explanations, juan 38, Section Five

Compiled by Kou Zongshi, a Tongzhilang and official responsible for identifying medicinal materials in the Song dynasty

Revised by Xu Hong, an assistant instructor at the Imperial Medical Bureau and official responsible for identifying medicinal materials in the Song dynasty

Middle-Grade Items in the Rice and Grain Section

Beans

Raw soybeans taste sweet and are neutral in nature. Pounded and applied to sores and swellings (purulent lumps), they are said to help resolve them. Their boiled liquid can be drunk to counter ghost toxins and relieve pain. They also promote urination, reduce edema and abdominal distension, clear pathogenic heat and obstruction in the stomach, and treat internal injuries, lingering dribbling urination, and blood stasis. They can disperse accumulations and stagnation in the Five Organs, dispel internal cold, and counter aconite poisoning. Taken for a long time, they make the body feel heavy. Roasted and ground into powder, they taste sweet and can clear stomach heat, reduce swelling, relieve obstruction, aid digestion, and ease abdominal distension.

Raw soybeans grow on the plains and in marshes around Mount Tai and are gathered in the ninth month. They are incompatible with the Five Ginsengs and gentian; they combine well with Peucedanum, aconite, apricot kernels, and oyster shell.

The Illustrated Classic says: Both soybean sprouts and raw soybeans come from the plains and marshes around Mount Tai, though they are now found everywhere. “Yellow sprouts” are made by cultivating raw beans until they sprout, then drying them for use. Medical formula books also call them “yellow-sprout skins”; they are often used in prescriptions for women after childbirth.

Soybeans come in black and white varieties. Black beans are used medicinally, while white beans are not. The firm, small-grained kind is called “male bean” and is especially suitable for medicinal use. Soybeans are mild by nature, but different ways of processing them can produce many changes in their medicinal properties. The liquid from boiled beans is cool in nature: it can counter the toxicity of elixirs and mineral medicines, and can also neutralize various medicinal poisons. Tofu is cold in nature and can readily stir the flow of Qi. Roasted beans are hot. Beans soaked in liquor can treat wind disorders; fermented black beans are extremely cold; yellow sprouts and soy sauce are both neutral. When cattle eat soybeans, they become warm in nature; when horses eat them, they become cool. The medicinal nature of the same bean can therefore vary with how it is prepared and used. In general, soybeans are suitable as an adjunct to medicines, and they are especially effective against aconite poisoning.

Some Daoist formulas call for processing yellow sprouts and grinding them into powder. This is said to allow one to abstain from ordinary food and endure famine. However, eating too much can make the body feel heavy; after stopping, this effect gradually passes.

Chen Cangqi says: Roast soybeans until they give off black smoke, and while they are still smoking, plunge them while hot into liquor. This preparation can be used for wind impediment (numbness and pain caused by wind), sores and swellings, paralysis, lockjaw, and various wind disorders after childbirth. Eating half a liang raw after a meal can relieve distressing heat in the chest. It may also help with confusion and blurred vision caused by heat-wind, calm the spirit, and warm and strengthen the body. Long-term use is said to improve the complexion, restore its color when it has grown pale, dispel wind, and strengthen memory.

Eating boiled soybeans is cold in nature. It can cause heat within the body to leave through the urine, reduce swelling, and counter the distressing heat caused by elixirs and mineral medicines. Soybean liquid can also neutralize various medicinal poisons and reduce swelling. Roasted soybeans are extremely hot; boiled beans and fermented black beans are extremely cold; yellow sprouts and soy sauce are neutral. After cattle eat them, they are warm in nature; after horses eat them, they are cool. The same substance can have many different medicinal properties depending on how it is used.

Liu Yuxi and others cite the Shu region’s Bencao as saying: Boiling and eating black beans can treat edema caused by warm toxins.

Ri Huazi says: Black beans harmonize the Spleen and Stomach, promote the smooth movement of Qi, and unblock the meridians. They can also lessen the toxicity of mineral medicines and treat illnesses in oxen and horses caused by warm toxins.

Meng Shen says: Soybeans are cold in nature. Mash soybeans with cooked rice and apply the mixture to various toxic swellings to treat swelling of the genitals in men and women. Alternatively, wrap the medicine in cotton cloth and place it in the genitals to counteract the toxicity of many medicines.

A careful examination finds: Drinking the water in which soybeans have been boiled can dispel various toxic influences, clear heat and obstruction in the Stomach, and treat persistent dribbling in the intestines, blood in the urine, and similar conditions. Boiling soybeans in an alkaline solution made from ashes of mulberry wood can promote urination and treat fluid accumulation in the abdomen and distension.

The Dietary Therapy says: Soybeans are slightly cold in nature and may be used for windstroke, weakness in the legs and feet, and various postpartum disorders. Boiled with licorice and taken as a decoction, they can dispel many kinds of heat toxin and are effective for beriberi caused by wind toxin. Boiled soybeans can also treat heart pain, spasms of the sinews and vessels, knee pain, and abdominal distension, and can counteract the toxicity of monkshood and aconite.

The Inner Chapters of the Book of the Master Who Embraces Simplicity records: At his estate in Baipo, in the eastern capital, Chancellor Zhang Wenwei saw that a snake had eaten the four young of a pair of weasels. Deeply attached to each other, the male and female weasels loosened the earth outside the burrow, digging a pit just large enough to hold the snake’s head. When the snake came out, it indeed thrust its head into the pit. Unable to turn around easily, it was bitten through the waist by the weasels. They split open its belly and pulled out their four young. The young still had traces of life, so the weasels fetched bean leaves, chewed them, and applied them to the young. All four came back to life.

The Thousand Gold Pieces Formula says: To treat stiffness of the head and neck that prevents turning the head, steam one sheng of soybeans until their color changes, put them in a cloth bag, and use the bag as a pillow.

Another formula: For a fall from a height that splits the head and exposes the brain, or for windstroke that leaves the mouth unable to open, take one sheng of soybeans and dry-fry them until their raw smell is gone, without frying them too thoroughly. Grind them into powder and steam it. When the steam has dissipated, place the bean powder in a basin at the bottom of a steamer, pour in one sheng of wine, and collect the liquid as it passes through. Drink one sheng while warm, then cover yourself with a quilt and sweat. The mixture may also be applied to sores.

Another formula: To treat generalized edema, take one sheng of black beans and boil them in five sheng of water until three sheng remain. Strain out the beans, add five sheng of wine, and continue boiling until three sheng remain. Divide the liquid into three portions and drink them warm. If there is no improvement, prepare and take it again in the same way.

Another formula: To treat deviation of the mouth and eyes, dry-fry three sheng of soybean flour until golden brown, pour it into three sheng of wine, and collect the liquid as it passes through. Drink it all at once, once a day.

The Formulas from the Elbow says: To treat sudden windstroke that makes a person unable to speak, boil beans and collect the liquid, then reduce it until it is as thick as malt syrup and hold it in the mouth. Alternatively, boil the beans until the liquid is very thick and drink it; this works better.

Another formula: To treat being unable to fall asleep from dawn until night, in the evening heat a piece of new cloth over a fire and apply it to the eyes while steaming soybeans…

Put beans into a cloth bag to make a pillow. When the pillow cools, replace it with a warm one. It is said that keeping one’s head on warm beans throughout the night will bring immediate recovery. The symptoms are the same as those described above.

The Jingyan Fang says: To treat a child or adult whose teeth have failed to grow for many years, take thirty black beans and roast them in a fire made from cattle dung until the smoke ceases. Grind them finely into powder, add a little musk, and grind together until evenly mixed. First prick the place where the tooth has not grown with a needle until it bleeds, then rub a little of the powder on the affected area. Do not let the area be exposed to wind, and avoid sour or salty foods.

Another prescription: To treat abdominal distension and discomfort after sitting outdoors for a long time during the transition between autumn and summer, as if many stones were pressing inside the belly, take half a sheng of soybeans and eight fen of ginger. Boil them in two sheng of water until about one sheng of liquid remains, then drink it all at once. It is said this will bring recovery.

Another prescription: To treat red dysentery and pain below the navel, rub black beans and evodia seeds together, then swallow them. The remedy is said to be very effective.

The Shiyi Xin Jing says: To treat restlessness and mental confusion caused by wind toxin attacking the heart, take half a sheng of soybeans, rinse them clean, and boil them in two sheng of water until seven he remain. Strain out the beans and drink the liquid after a meal.

Another prescription: To treat weakness in the limbs, stiffness and numbness, dizziness, and disharmony of Qi and blood caused by postpartum wind deficiency, take one sheng of soybeans and roast them until hot and cooked. Put them into three sheng of wine, seal the container, and let them steep before drinking.

The Guangli Fang says: To treat an attack of beriberi that rises into the chest and causes distress and mental confusion, take one sheng of soybeans, add three sheng of water, and boil until concentrated. Drink half a sheng at once; if the symptoms do not ease, another dose may be taken.

The Shanghan Leiyao says: To prevent warm disease, fill a new cloth bag with two dou of soybeans and immerse it in a well overnight. Take it out and eat seven beans at a time. This is said to work well.

The Zimu Bilu says: To treat severe postpartum windstroke, whose symptoms may include a rigid back and clenched jaw, restlessness, heat and thirst, heaviness throughout the body and in the head, intensely itchy skin, vomiting, or a fixed stare. These are all classified as windstroke with postpartum deficiency heat. Take three sheng of soybeans and roast them until very well done, until they make no more sound as they roast. Put them into a container and pour in five sheng of wine. Drink it while hot; the medicated wine should yield about two sheng. After drinking it all, cover and warm the body so that it sweats lightly. Once the skin is moist, recovery is said to follow. After childbirth, a small amount may also be taken regularly to ward off wind and help disperse blood stasis.

Another prescription: To treat pox or smallpox in children, boil soybeans until cooked and drink the bean liquid. It is said to be effective.

Another prescription: To treat scalds and burns in children, boil soybeans in water and apply the bean liquid to the affected area. It is said to heal readily without leaving a mark.

The Yangshi Chanru says: To treat a pregnancy in which the expected number of months has not yet been reached, but the fetus has already died in the womb…

If you feel tightness and discomfort in the chest and are about to faint, take three sheng of soybeans, boil them in vinegar until reduced to a thick liquid measuring three sheng, and drink it all at once. The condition should improve immediately.

The Book of Childbirth says that if blood stasis or fluid retention remains after childbirth, one should take wine infused with beans. Take five sheng of black beans and roast them until they stop giving off smoke. Put them in a porcelain vessel, then pour in one dou of wine and use it to soak the beans.

The Yan Yi says that fresh soybeans come in three colors—green, brown, and black—and in different sizes. Large beans are produced in the Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Hunan, and Hubei regions; smaller ones come from elsewhere. Smaller soybeans are now considered more potent as medicine. Roasted soybeans can be pounded together with date flesh and made into a food resembling a bran cake, to serve as a substitute for grain. They can also be used to treat various postpartum conditions, including blood heat, windstroke, prickly heat, pain, stiffness in the back, locked jaws, irritability and fever, convulsions, thirst, severe swelling of the back, and vomiting.

For these symptoms, take five sheng of soybeans and wash them in rapidly flowing water. Then take one dou of unashed wine. Roast the beans until slightly warm, put them in a wine jar, and soak them in the wine for at least a day. Warm one sheng at a time before taking it, and continue until the condition improves. Those who do not usually drink wine should adjust the dose to suit their tolerance. For locked jaws, take an additional half jin of duhuo, pound it lightly, and soak it with the beans, increasing the wine to one dou and two sheng. Make a fresh batch each month to keep the wine from turning sour and spoiling. Soybeans may also be ground into tofu and eaten.

Adzuki Beans

Adzuki beans taste sweet and sour, have a neutral nature, and are non-toxic. They are used to treat edema and to draw pus and blood from abscesses. They may also be used for alternating chills and fever, internal heat with excessive thirst, diarrhea, difficulty urinating, vomiting, sudden-onset diarrhea, and abdominal fullness.

The Illustrated Canon says that adzuki beans were formerly listed under the same entry as soybeans, but Su Gong gave them a separate entry. They are now widely cultivated in the Jianghuai region. Prescriptions for fluid retention and beriberi often use adzuki beans. One method is to take five ge of adzuki beans, one bottle gourd, and one fen of ginger, all chopped; then take one root of shanglu, slice it, and boil everything together in water until the beans are cooked. When the soup has cooled to a suitable temperature, remove the gourd and ginger. On an empty stomach, chew the adzuki beans slowly while drinking all the broth. It is said that the swelling will then subside.

Wei Zhou’s Single-Ingredient Prescriptions records that edema beginning in the feet and spreading to the abdomen may be life-threatening. The prescription calls for one dou of adzuki beans, boiled until very soft. Take four or five sheng of the cooking liquid, warm it, and use it to soak the body from the knees down. If the swelling has already spread to the abdomen, eat only adzuki beans and no other food; this too may bring recovery.

The Treatise on the Nature of Medicinals says that adzuki beans taste sweet and can dispel heat toxins and abscesses, disperse lingering blood stasis, and relieve vexation. They may also be used for edema and swelling of the skin and flesh. They can be pounded and applied to the affected area…

Applying the medicinal juice to boils and swellings can treat them. When a child has acute jaundice or ulcerated sores, cool the juice and wash the affected area with it; improvement can be seen after no more than three washes. The medicinal material can also be ground into powder, mixed with egg white, and applied to boils caused by toxic heat to help them subside.

Tao Hongjing said that soybeans and small red beans are similar in size and shape, like scallions and Chinese chives. Soybeans that have been sprouted and then dried are called “yellow rolls.” They can be used as medicine or roasted and eaten. A decoction of soybeans is very effective for treating warm toxins and edema. There is also a white soybean that is not used medicinally. Small red beans have a medicinal nature that directs fluids downward; taking them for a long time can leave the body dry and depleted.

Chen Cangqi said that red small beans cooked and eaten with white mulberry root bark can treat painful obstruction and swelling caused by dampness. Cooked with tetrapanax pith, they can promote the downward movement of Qi. This prescription is called the “Qi-Expelling Pill.” Donkeys that eat it become light-footed, but people who eat it feel heavy in the body.

Rihua Zi said that red bean powder can ease vexing heat, clear toxic heat, expel pus, and nourish the blood vessels. Made into a sticky paste and applied to the affected area, it works very well. Red bean leaves are edible and can brighten the eyes.

Yuxi said that the Shu Materia Medica records: If you feel overheated after drinking alcohol, drink red bean juice and you will recover. The Dietary Therapy records: Red small beans cooked with carp until soft can treat beriberi and abdominal edema; other treatments are listed under “Fish.” Red small beans can also disperse Qi, ease vexing heat in the joints, and bring comfort to the chest. They can be used for frequent urination when the urine is greenish or reddish. If, after sudden severe diarrhea, the abdomen becomes distended and you cannot eat, boil red small beans and eat a serving; this should bring relief.

Sun Simiao said that eating red beans or white beans together with fermented fish can cause wasting thirst. Eating small bean paste with fermented fish can cause sores in the mouth.

The Handbook of Prescriptions for Emergencies records a method for warding off epidemic illness: Put fresh small red beans in a cloth bag and leave it in a well for three days. Then take them out and have the whole family eat them: men should take ten beans, women twenty. Another prescription treats intestinal hemorrhoids with persistent blood in the stool: Take one sheng of small red beans and five sheng of vinegar wine. Boil the beans until cooked, remove them and let them dry, then return them to the vinegar wine and boil until the liquid has evaporated. Grind the beans into powder and take one square-inch spoonful three times a day. Another prescription treats postnatal vexation in the heart and difficulty opening the eyes: Pound raw red small beans into powder and swallow one square-inch spoonful with water from a stream flowing eastward. If there is no improvement, take another dose.

The Essential Prescriptions for Emergencies records a prescription for inability to eat after childbirth accompanied by vexation and fullness in the heart: Take twenty-one small red beans, burn them to ash, sift the powder, and swallow it all at once with cold water. This is quite effective.

Grind red adzuki beans (small red beans, also called red beans) into powder and mix with water. Take one square-inch spoonful, an ancient measure for a small dose. Another formula treats swelling of the breasts in women that does not subside: grind equal amounts of red adzuki beans and mangcao, a poisonous medicinal plant, into powder, mix with vinegar, and apply it. It works well.

The Mirror of the Food Physician says: For swollen legs, when the swelling spreads upward to the abdomen and may become life-threatening, take one sheng of red adzuki beans and five sheng of water. Boil until the beans are very soft, then strain them out. When the liquid has cooled to a comfortable temperature, soak the feet in it; reheat the liquid when it cools.

The Effective Prescriptions says: For dysentery caused by undigested food, mix one ge of red adzuki beans with three liang of wax and take the whole dose at once; this will cure it. Another formula treats sudden bleeding from the bowels: crush one sheng of red adzuki beans, add three sheng of water, squeeze out the liquid, and drink it.

The Treasury of Childbirth says: For difficult labor, swallow seven raw red adzuki beans. If the unborn child is a girl, swallowing fourteen is preferable.

The Essential Secrets of Self-Cultivation says: For painful, difficult urination with a weak, interrupted flow, use only three he of red adzuki beans. Dry-roast them over low heat and grind them into powder. Chop a scallion that has been heated over a fire, then mix it into warm wine with the bean powder. Take two qian and seven fen at a time. This treats hot and bloody strangury in both men and women.

The Extended Discussion says: Red adzuki beans promote urination. Eating them over a long period can weaken the body, making a person dark, thin, and withered. People in the Guanzhong and Hebei regions, as well as eastern and western parts of the capital region, often eat red adzuki beans. Their flowers can relieve thirst after a hangover.

Soybean sprouts dried for medicinal use, called “yellow rolls,” taste sweet, are neutral in nature, and are non-toxic. They treat damp impediment—joint pain and numbness caused by pathogenic dampness—as well as cramping and tightness of the sinews and vessels, knee pain, and stagnation in the Five Viscera and Stomach Qi. They boost Qi, counteract toxins, fade dark spots, and nourish the skin and hair.

The Illustrated Classic of Materia Medica says: For details, see the entry on “soybeans.”

The Tang Commentary says: Soybeans sprouted and then dried are called “yellow rolls.” They are also used for dietary cultivation of health.

The Dietary Therapy says: Use the sprouts when they have grown to five fen. They can help women expel stagnant blood.

The Mirror of the Food Physician says: For long-standing wind-damp impediment, cramping and tightness of the sinews and vessels, and knee pain, this preparation can also clear stagnation in the Five Viscera and Stomach Qi, boost Qi, counteract toxins, fade black moles and facial spots, and nourish the skin and hair. Take one sheng of soybean yellow rolls, dry-roast them until fragrant, and grind them into powder. On an empty stomach, swallow one spoonful with warm wine.

Wine tastes bitter, sweet, and pungent. It is extremely hot in nature and toxic. It can strengthen the effects of medicines and drive out pathogenic influences.

Tao Yinju says: When the weather is bitterly cold and the sea freezes, only wine remains unfrozen. This shows that wine is hot in nature, more so than any other drink. Physicians often use wine to strengthen the effects of medicines. After drinking, people become physically tired and mentally dull; this is a sign of wine’s toxicity. In the past, three men set out on a journey at dawn and were all exposed to dew: one was strong, one was ill, and one died. The strong man drank wine, the ill man ate congee, and the man who died had traveled on an empty stomach. This account holds that wine drives away pathogenic influences more effectively than food.

The Tang-dynasty Bencao commentary says that there are different kinds of wine, including grape wine, sorghum and millet wine, polished-rice wine, millet wine, grain-yeast wine, and honey wine. Wine and sweet wine are generally brewed with grain yeast; grape wine, honey wine, and the like are made without adding grain yeast separately. Drinking grape wine can resolve phlegm and break up accumulations. Wines vary in strength and body, and only rice wine is suitable for medicinal use.

Ri Huazi says that wine can open and promote the blood vessels, strengthen the stomach and intestines, dispel wind, and regulate Qi.

Yu Xi says that, according to Chen Cangqi, besides its own effects, wine can drive away malign influences and foul odors, promote circulation in the blood vessels, strengthen the stomach and intestines, moisten the skin, and disperse stone Qi. It can also dispel sorrow, stir up anger, and make people speak freely and feel at ease. The Book of Documents says, “To make wine and sweet wine, use only grain yeast and niè”—sprouted grain used in brewing. Su Gong, however, lists grapes, honey, and other ingredients as materials for making wine. This confuses different kinds of drink and departs from the original meaning of “wine.” Such drinks are also unsuitable for medicinal use. In good wine, as brewing nears completion, the brew matures in response to changes in wind and dampness; this is a manifestation of Yin-Yang harmony.

It also says that sweet-wine lees taste salty, are warm in nature, and are non-toxic. They warm the middle burner, dispel cold, aid digestion, remove fishy odors, and counter the toxicity of herbs and vegetables, while helping stored foods resist spoilage. Kneading and washing objects with them can soften those objects. They also moisten the skin and regulate the internal organs. For children under three, medicinal ingredients may be ground with wine lees as the medium; this is said to be suitable for itchy wind rash and to stop vomiting. Wine lees can also be added when cooking fish and vegetables. Mix wine lees from the twelfth lunar month into porridge, cook, and eat.

The Food Therapy says that purple wine can be used for “horn-bow wind,” a condition involving spasms of the sinews and arched extension of the body. Ginger wine is used for hemiplegic wind and sudden illness attributed to an invasion by malign influences. Mulberry wine nourishes the Five Zang organs and benefits the ears and eyes. Scallion and fermented-soybean wine clears vexing heat and replenishes deficiency and fatigue. Honey wine is used for wind rash. Rehmannia, Achyranthes, tiger bone, Epimedium, various herbs, soybeans, burdock, and goji berries can also be added to wine for brewing; detailed methods appear in other formularies. Wine brewed from grape seeds is said to boost Qi, regulate the middle, stave off hunger, and strengthen resolve. Wine made with grape-vine juice is also beneficial, while wine made with dog-meat broth has a strongly nourishing effect.

The Waitai Miyao records a treatment for difficulty passing urine, or inability to urinate, accompanied by abdominal distension. Purgation may leave the patient weak and depleted; once depleted, the abdomen may become distended again, and hardly one person in ten survives. Finely chop mulberries and the inner bark of the mulberry tree, boil them repeatedly, and collect four dou of juice. Use it to brew four sheng of rice into wine. Take one sheng each time.

The Qianjin Fang records a method for giving up alcohol: put seven sheng of wine into a bottle, grind half a liang of cinnabar to a fine powder, and add it to the wine. Seal the bottle tightly and leave it in a pigsty for the pigs to jostle around. After seven days, drink the entire amount at once. Another formula is for deafness: take three sheng of wine and soak two sheng of crushed Vitex seeds in it for seven days, then strain out the herbs. The directions for taking it appear later in the original formula.

Long-term drinking may improve deafness that has lasted for thirty years.

The Experienced Prescriptions from Later Generations records a labor-inducing method attributed to the True Man Sun: heat an iron implement until red-hot, then briefly quench it in wine. Have the woman in labor drink the wine, and it will help the fetus emerge.

The Guangli Prescriptions records a treatment for snakebite: wash the wound with warm wine, changing the wash three times a day.

The Essentials of Cold Damage records a treatment for pain in the hands and feet caused by epidemic pestilential Qi, so severe that the limbs feel as if they are about to break off. Dig a pit three feet deep and just large enough to hold one foot. Build a fire in it until the pit is hot, then pour wine into it. Sit over the pit with your shoes on, and wrap your body tightly in clothing so the heat cannot escape.

The Extended Discussion on the Materia Medica says: The Spring and Autumn Annals of Lü Buwei records that Yidi made wine; the Strategies of the Warring States says that Yidi, daughter of the Emperor, made wine and presented it to Yu the Great. Yet wine is already named and recorded in the Materia Medica, which shows that Yidi did not invent it. The Plain Questions also says at the outset that the ancients “treated irregular living as normal and drank wine as though it were water.” This suggests that wine already existed in the time of the Yellow Emperor, and was not invented by Yidi.

Ancient prescriptions used several kinds of wine: strong wine, spring wine, wine and sacrificial meat distributed after offerings at the community altar, lees, white wine, clear wine, fine wine, excellent wine, grape wine, glutinous sorghum wine, rice wine, honey wine, wine made with ash, newly brewed wine made without ash, and rehmannia wine. Today there are glutinous rice wine, boiled wine, wine made with red bean yeast, wine made with aromatic medicinal yeast, deer-head wine, and lamb wine, among others. In the Jiangsu-Zhejiang region and in Hunan and Hubei, glutinous rice flour is also mixed with various medicines to make a wine starter known as “wine cakes.” Government distilleries also use various foreign wines. These differ from Chinese wines and should not be treated as the general standard.

Physicians today should choose wine for medicinal use according to the circumstances. Those who drink wine care only about its taste, not whether it is suitable for use in medicine. Yet long-term drinking has never been found to be free of illness. Wine can bring both benefit and harm, so how could one fail to use it cautiously?

Millet is salty in taste, slightly cold in nature, and non-toxic. It nourishes Kidney Qi and clears heat from the Stomach and Spleen. Aged millet is bitter in taste; it treats Stomach heat and wasting-thirst, and promotes urination.

The Illustrated Classic says: For details, see the entry on “green foxtail millet.”

Tao Hongjing says: The millet grown in Jiangdong and the western regions is of this kind, with grains finer than those of glutinous millet. When ripe, it is pounded to remove the husks and processed until white; some people also call it white glutinous millet. Aged millet means millet stored for three to five years; some people call it zi. Flour made from various grains and eaten as food helps ease vexation. Those who follow nourishing practices also use it as food.

The Tang Dynasty Materia Medica Commentary says: There are many kinds of millet, all with grains finer than those of the various glutinous millets. People in the north commonly eat millet; it is distinct from glutinous millet. Tao Hongjing says millet is also called white glutinous millet, and adds that some people call it…

Ci rice is millet rice; millet rice is also another name for ji millet (pronounced like “ji,” a type of glutinous millet). The liquid left from rinsing ci rice tastes sweet.

It can treat sudden fever, irritability, and thirst during an attack of cholera, the ancient term for acute gastrointestinal illness. Drinking several pints of rice-rinsing water quickly improves the condition. Even when the water has turned foul-smelling, it can relieve thirst. It is especially effective for wasting-thirst, a disorder marked by excessive drinking, urination, and thirst.

Rice and wheat flour taste sweet and bitter, are cold in nature, and are non-toxic. They can treat cold disorders in the middle burner, clear heat, relieve thirst, and ease vexation. Rice and wheat that have been steamed with mineral vapor, then toasted and ground into flour, are made into a food called qiu.

Chen Cangqi says: Rice flour can counter various poisons. For sudden illness attributed to being struck by a ghost, it can be mixed with water and taken. It can also treat pain in the abdomen caused by heat and nosebleeds; in both cases, boil it in water and drink it. Both polished rice and millet can be ground into flour. Millet that has been soaked too long and spoiled can harm the body.

He also says: Rice-rinsing water can treat cholera. Mix freshly ground rice with clean water, strain it, and drink the liquid. It can also treat cramping that spreads into the abdomen, with tight, contracted sinews and abdominal pain. People with a cold stomach should not eat much of it. Sour rice-rinsing water can be used to wash sores and scabies on the skin; taken internally, it can treat “five pheasant disease” and wasting-thirst. Sour rice-rinsing water that has settled can kill parasites and treat malignant sores. Boiled with the bark of the Chinese toon tree, also called wumu tree bark, it can treat wasting dysentery, an illness often seen in children and accompanied by emaciation and diarrhea.

The Qianjin Fang records: To treat food regurgitation, in which whatever is eaten is vomited back up, pound millet into flour, add water, and form pills the size of parasol tree seeds. Boil seven pills until soft, place them in vinegar, and swallow them slowly. Once food can be swallowed, the illness will be cured. Wheat flour can be used instead.

The Shiyi Xinjing records: To treat weakness of the spleen and stomach, indigestion, vomiting and food regurgitation, or inability to swallow even liquids, take half a sheng of millet, crush it, add water, and form pills the size of parasol tree seeds. Boil them, then add a little salt. On an empty stomach, swallow both the pills and their cooking liquid.

The Yao Hezhong Fang records: Seven days after an infant’s birth, to help the Grain Spirit, who oversees digestion and absorption, carry out its work and clear the intestines and stomach, grind millet finely and cook it into a thin porridge with the consistency of milk. Feed the infant half a millet husk’s worth each day.

The Chanbao Fang records: Toast ci rice flour until black, mix it with egg white into a paste, spread it on cloth, and apply it to a carbuncle or sore. Make a hole in the cloth so the toxic vapor from the sore can escape. Change the dressing frequently; this works very well.

The Yanyi says: Millet promotes urination and is therefore beneficial to the spleen and stomach.

Glutinous millet tastes sweet and is slightly cold in nature. It can ease alternating chills and fever, promote bowel movements, and treat lacquer dermatitis, a skin inflammation caused by contact with lacquer.

The Tujing says: For details, see the entry “Red Millet.”

Tao Hongjing says: People use this grain to brew wine and make sugar. It is rich, soft, and easy to digest. It is rarely used directly in prescriptions, serving mainly to be chewed and applied to lacquer dermatitis, or brewed into medicinal wine.

The Tang Ben Zhu says: The grain whose properties are described here refers to glutinous rice. Nowadays, in most places, it is called…

Su Nuo refers to glutinous sorghum; shu likewise means glutinous rice. In the north, people also often brew wine from millet and sorghum, though they yield less wine than broomcorn millet. Sorghum must have other effects, but the Bencao does not record them. Millet, broomcorn millet, foxtail millet, sorghum, non-glutinous rice, and glutinous rice all belong to the xian and shu categories. “Xian” is pronounced “xian.”

Rihua Zi says: Shu rice is non-toxic. For dog bites or frostbite, chew the rice and apply it to the affected area.

Yuxi, citing Yan Shigu’s “Correcting Errors and Customs,” says: What people today call shu resembles broomcorn millet, but its grains are smaller; it can also be used to brew wine. Meng Shen says: Shu rice is neutral in nature. It can dispel the toxic heat of sores and scabies, but it can also cause Qi in the five viscera to stagnate and stir up wind, so it should not be eaten regularly. People in the north often grow shu rice and use it in place of ordinary rice for brewing wine. Raw shu rice, pounded and mixed with egg white, works well as an application for toxic swellings. A decoction of shu rice roots can be used to wash and treat wind disorders. Another recipe for brewing wine calls for one dan of shu rice, three dou of yeast, one jin of rehmannia root, and one jin of mugwort, toasted until yellow. Brew the ingredients by the usual method; drinking the wine treats cramping and numbness in the muscles and bones.

The Shenghui Fang says: If you become ill after eating duck, with chest tightness, a flushed face, and loss of appetite, drink a medium-sized cup of shu rice liquid.

The Zhouhou Fang says: If, during pregnancy, you suddenly pass yellow fluid resembling glue or the juice of red beans, cut one liang each of shu rice and astragalus root into pieces. Add seven sheng of water and boil down to three sheng; then drink it.

The Shiyi Xinjing says: Shu rice is suitable for treating alternating chills and fever and diarrhea. It can also treat lacquer rash.

The Yanyi says: Shu rice is pale yellowish white just after pounding; if kept for a long time, it takes on the color of glutinous rice. It is unsuitable for cooking as rice because it is very sticky, but is suitable for brewing wine.

Non-glutinous rice tastes sweet with a slight bitterness and is non-toxic. Its main effects are to replenish the original Qi, relieve vexation, and stop diarrhea.

The Tujing says: For details, see the entry on “rice.”

Tao Hongjing says: Non-glutinous rice is the rice people eat every day. It comes in white and red varieties, and in different sizes, but all belong to the same category. The aged stored rice mentioned earlier also belongs to this category. It was once kept in reserve to supply soldiers, which is why it was called “lin.”

The Tang Ben Zhu says: In classical texts, soldiers’ provisions are called “lu lin”; “lin” means a granary. The “aged granary rice” mentioned earlier must be a mistaken rendering of the character lin; it actually refers to rice supplied to the military. Once stored for a long time, new military provisions become aged rice.

Rihua Zi says: Non-glutinous rice replenishes the middle burner, strengthens the muscles and bones, and regulates and nourishes the intestines and stomach.

Yuxi, citing the Shu Ben, says: Non-glutinous rice stops diarrhea, harmonizes stomach Qi, promotes the growth of flesh, and warms the spleen and stomach.

Meng Shen says: Japonica rice is neutral in nature. It can replenish strength, ease restlessness, and treat diarrhea. Red japonica rice has large, fragrant grains, but the original text says it “does not prevent water from stagnating,” a phrase whose meaning is unclear. Yellow or green japonica rice has plump grains. When soaked in water, it becomes fragrant and is beneficial to people. Newly harvested rice, when freshly cooked, can make Qi restless; rice stored for two years may also cause illness.

People in the Jiangnan region often store fire rice in granaries. Fire rice is suitable for eating; it warms the middle burner, replenishes strength, and nourishes the lower foundation. If the rice grains are scorched, their awns removed, and they are then pounded into aged rice for eating, they are less likely to cause illness.

The Waitai Miyao (a Tang-dynasty medical formulary) says: Dragon offspring grow on celery. If eaten, they turn into dragon offspring in the abdomen, so one must be cautious. Cook maltose, japonica rice, almonds, and a milk cake into porridge. Eat three sheng each day, divided into three doses, to vomit out the dragon offspring. It is said that the expelled dragon offspring have two heads. In the second year of the Kaihuang era, someone in Jiaqiao vomited out a dragon, confirming this claim. There are no restrictions on taking this prescription.

The Zhouhou Fang (an ancient medical formulary) says: In years of famine, when grain is expensive and there is nothing to eat, one may need medicinal food to survive. Take ten dou of japonica rice, soak it in three sheng of wine, then remove it and dry it in the sun before soaking it in wine again. Remove it and eat it gradually; when thirsty, drink wine. This can enable one to go without grain for thirty days. If one prepares one hu and three sheng, it can sustain a person without grain for a year.

Another prescription says: On the third day after a child is born, the bowels should be opened and the transformation of grain Qi supported. Cook crushed rice into a thick liquid, like cheese, and feed it to the child. Each mouthful should be about the size of one soybean; repeat this, giving about three soybeans’ worth each time. After twenty-one days, feeding may begin. Take care not to give the child miscellaneous medicines indiscriminately; a small amount of red snow may be given.

The Qianjin Fang (an ancient medical formulary) says: Granary rice is non-toxic.

The Bencao Yanyi says: White late-season japonica rice is best; early-ripening rice is inferior to late-season rice. Japonica rice is mild and balanced. It harmonizes the Five Viscera and replenishes Stomach Qi, and few things can surpass it in efficacy. However, rice that is even slightly undercooked cannot replenish the Spleen and Stomach; it is better when cooked thoroughly.

Millet

Green millet is sweet, slightly cold in nature, and non-toxic. It treats obstruction in the Stomach, internal heat, and wasting thirst. It also stops diarrhea and dysentery, promotes urination, replenishes strength, nourishes the Qi of the middle burner, and helps make the body light and prolong life.

Tao Hongjing says: Whatever is called “millet” belongs to the foxtail millet family; the varieties are distinguished by the color of their grain heads. Green millet is produced in the north and is now rarely seen in Jiangdong. The Fan Shengzhi Shu (an ancient agricultural treatise) says that millet is glutinous foxtail millet, but this is not how people use the term today. “Fan” is pronounced “fan.”

The Tang Bencao commentary says: The husks and ears of green millet are hairy, and the grains are green, with a faint green hue. They are finer than yellow and white millet. Its grains resemble green barley but are slightly coarser. In summer…

Among the varieties of liang millet, green liang is the coolest in nature. Its flavor is rather bland and its color unattractive, so it is less popular than yellow and white liang. White liang was once grown in small quantities because it ripens early and yields little. When made into malt sugar, it produces a pale, clear candy superior to that made from other grains.

The Rihuazi says: Green liang strengthens the Spleen and can treat seminal leakage. Mix it with vinegar, then steam and dry it one hundred times to make provisions that keep well.

Yuxi says that, according to Meng Shen, green liang rice should be soaked in ten dou of vinegar for three days, then repeatedly steamed and dried one hundred times before being carefully wrapped and stored. It is said that eating one portion before a long journey prevents hunger for ten days; eating another portion is said to prevent hunger for 490 days.

Another recipe calls for one sheng of rice and three jin of red stone fat, a mineral medicine. Soak them in just enough water to cover the ingredients and leave them in a warm place for two or three days. When a thin blue-white layer forms on the surface, pound the mixture into pills about the size of plums. Take three pills each day; it is said they will keep hunger at bay. A careful examination of the Lingbao Wufu Jing finds an account of white xian rice being steamed and dried nine times to make food for avoiding grain—a food used in Daoist fasting practice, in which ordinary meals are temporarily given up. The recipe here, however, uses green liang rice, and no other source for it has been found. Green liang rice is slightly cold in nature and is commonly boiled as a staple. Its texture is more astringent than that of yellow millet or white rice, and its properties are similar.

The Shiyi Xinjing says: Liang rice can treat obstruction in the Stomach and internal heat, relieve thirst, stop diarrhea, improve urination, strengthen the body, nourish and replenish it, reduce heaviness of the body, and prolong life. Simply cook the liang rice and eat it.

The Yanyi says: Of the three kinds of rice—green, yellow, and white liang—yellow liang is the most beneficial as food. Green and white liang are both slightly cool in nature; yellow liang is sweet and neutral. This is probably because it has received more of the Earth’s balanced nature. Today, around Xiluo, farmers mostly grow yellow and white liang. Both are especially good for cooking rice, though less suitable for other uses. Their grains are smaller and more pointed than those of other cereals, and their yields are low, so few people choose to grow them. White liang has a mild flavor.

Glutinous millet is sweet and warm in nature, and non-toxic. Its main effect is to boost Qi and strengthen the body’s center. Eating too much, however, can generate heat and make people restless.

Tao Hongjing says: Glutinous millet is grown in the Jingnan region and north of the Yangtze. Its seedlings resemble reeds and differ from those of foxtail millet; its grains are also larger. Much of what is called foxtail millet is actually glutinous millet. People nowadays also call glutinous foxtail millet “glutinous millet,” which is incorrect. The glutinous millet used by northerners to cook millet rice, and by Daoist practitioners to brew wine, is glutinous millet. There is also ji millet, which resembles glutinous millet but has especially large grains and is unsuitable for eating. It is said to bring on old ailments.

The Tang Bencao commentary says: There are several kinds of glutinous millet, already described separately above. Here, red glutinous millet and black glutinous millet are discussed together. They do not resemble reeds; though they look like foxtail millet, they are not foxtail millet.

Ji is the same as ji (millet); a detailed explanation follows later.

Yuxi says: According to Meng Shen, millet is cold in nature. For people with turtle-shaped abdominal masses—a kind of lump in the abdomen—take freshly harvested red millet, wash it, and drink one sheng of the liquid from washing the grain. After two or three doses, the condition will be cured.

I have carefully examined this and conclude that millet is cold in nature and slightly toxic, so it is not suitable for long-term use. Taken over a long period, it makes the five viscera feel dull and causes drowsiness. Daoist practitioners value it highly, believing it to be the best grain for brewing wine, better than other grains. Millet can be burned to ash and mixed with oil to make a paste for bruises caused by blows with a stick; this relieves pain and leaves no scar. Do not feed millet to young children, as it can impair their ability to walk. If fed to kittens or puppies, their feet may become bent and their gait crooked. This is because millet can slacken the sinews and bones and impede the flow of blood through the vessels.

The Dietary Therapy says: Eating millet with mallow can bring on stubborn illnesses. It is also unwise to eat dried meat stored in millet. The General Dietary Prohibitions says: Beef should not be eaten with millet or white liquor, or tapeworms may develop.

The Thousand Gold Remedies records that to treat pea-like sores caused by seasonal epidemic infection in people or livestock, boil millet stalks thoroughly and wash the affected area with the liquid. If stalks of ji are used instead, the sores will not heal. If the sores turn black, crushed garlic may also be applied, or dried rapeseed may be boiled and the area washed with the liquid.

The Handbook of Prescriptions for Emergencies records: To counter poisoning from accidentally eating a bitter gourd, boil millet or ji and drink several sheng of the liquid. It also says that to treat an area scalded by hot water or burned by fire before blisters have formed, fry equal amounts of millet and female qu, a type of ferment used in brewing or medicine, until scorched, then grind them and mix with egg white to make an application.

Red Millet

Red millet is bitter and slightly warm in nature, and non-toxic. It treats coughing and retching and cholera, stops diarrhea, clears heat, and relieves restlessness and thirst.

Tao Hongjing says: Red millet is also called red shu millet and grows in the north. It is sometimes cultivated east of the Yangtze, but the soil there does not suit it. It is often used in divine medicines. Black millet is also called ju and is used for brewing wine and for sacrifices.

Yuxi says: According to the Erya, ju is black millet, while pi is a variety with two grains in each husk. The commentary also cites the Classic of Poetry, “He sent down good seeds: ju and pi.” Li Xun says that black millet is also called ju millet, with “ju” as the general name for black millet. “Pi” refers to a variety of black millet with two grains in one husk, and thus has a separate name. It follows that both ju and pi belong to the black millet category. The commentary on the “Ritual Official for Wine” chapter of the Rites of Zhou says that wine brewed from ju is called ju wine, and that ju resembles black millet. The word “resembles” is used because black millet with one grain to a husk is the common form and serves as the standard type of ju. The variety with two grains in a husk is a special kind of ju, and so is described as “resembling ju.”

Black glutinous millet comes in two kinds: one has a single grain of rice inside each kernel, while the other has two. The latter can also be used to brew a drink. Another account says that piu is the same as pi, and cheng is also the same as pi; piu and cheng are simply terms used in different periods.

During the reign of Emperor He of the Han, black millet grew in Rencheng County. Some ears bore three or four kernels, each containing two grains of rice. The record says that the harvest amounted to three hu and eight dou of millet.

The Rihuazi says that red millet rice is warm in nature. It can regulate and lower the flow of Qi, relieve coughing, ease agitation and thirst, and reduce fever. It should not be eaten with honey or sunflower greens.

The Treatise on Essentials for Cold Damage records that if a man develops “yin exchange” after cold damage—a condition in traditional medicine in which illness is transmitted through intercourse with a woman during recovery—he should take three liang of millet, boil it into a thin gruel, mix it with wine, and drink it. Once he sweats, he will recover. The amount may be adjusted according to the person’s condition.

The Yanyi says that red millet has a red husk and yellow grain. It is suitable only for cooking into a thick gruel, not for making cooked rice, because it is so sticky that the grains cannot be separated. Eating it may also trigger wind disorders.

White liang rice is sweet in flavor, slightly cold in nature, and non-toxic. It is used to clear heat and strengthen Qi. Tao Hongjing says that white liang rice is found everywhere, but the variety produced in Xiangyang, called “Bamboo Root,” is the best. In summer, eating it cooked as millet rice can also clear heat.

The Thousand Gold Prescriptions records that when someone has cholera without vomiting, five he of white liang rice flour may be mixed with one sheng of water and taken at once, like porridge.

The Handbook of Prescriptions from the Elbow records that if warts suddenly appear on the hands or feet, liang rice flour should be fried in an iron pan until red, then applied to the affected area and mixed with the saliva of several people. Spread it on one cun thick, and the warts will shrink away.

Yellow liang rice is sweet in flavor, neutral in nature, and non-toxic. It is used to strengthen Qi, harmonize the middle burner, and stop diarrhea. Tao Hongjing says that yellow liang is produced around Qingzhou and Jizhou, but not where he lives. The Tang dynasty commentary says instead that yellow liang grows in Shu-Han and the two Zhejiang regions, where it is also cultivated. Its ears are large and its awns long; both its grain and rice are coarser than those of white liang. It yields less and does not withstand drought or flooding well, but it tastes fragrant and delicious, better than other liang rice. People call it “Bamboo Root Yellow.”

The Waitai Secret Essentials records that for sores on a child’s face that look as if they have been burned, one sheng of yellow liang rice should be ground into flour, mixed with honey water, and applied to the affected area until healed. Another prescription treats agitation caused by cholera: mix half a sheng of yellow liang rice flour with one and a half sheng of water, then strain it to make a drink like rice broth, and take it at once. Glutinous rice may be used instead.

The Handbook of Prescriptions from the Elbow records that after vomiting and diarrhea caused by cholera, intense thirst may follow, and drinking large amounts of water can be harmful. Boil five sheng of yellow liang rice in one dou of water until reduced to three sheng. Let it settle and drink the clear liquid in small amounts over time.

The Food Therapy Handbook records that yellow liang rice strengthens Qi, harmonizes the middle burner, and stops diarrhea and dysentery. If discomfort is caused by sleeping exposed to the wind, dampness, or cold, it can be prepared as food and eaten.

The Bingbu Shouji records: To treat a child’s red skin eruptions that persist despite prolonged treatment and spread upward, mix yellow rice flour with egg white and apply it to the affected area.

Germinated rice tastes bitter and is nontoxic. It is used to treat weakness and coldness of the Spleen and Stomach, and impeded movement of Qi; it can also clear heat.

Tao Hongjing says this rice is made by sprouting ordinary rice; it is not a separate, special kind of rice. Mixed with sweet rice fat and applied to the face, it can also leave the skin moist and smooth. Its warming effect, however, is weaker than that of malted barley.

Yuxi says that, according to the Rihuazi, germinated rice is warm in nature. It can relieve vexation, digest food stagnation, and stimulate the appetite. It is also called “yellow grain” and can be used to brew rice vinegar.

The Yanyi says germinated rice is the sprout of foxtail millet. It is now used in Gushen Powder, and its medicinal nature is warmer than that of malted barley.

Wheat tastes sweet and is slightly cold in nature; it is nontoxic. It is used to treat internal heat, restlessness with thirst, and a dry throat. It promotes urination and regulates Liver Qi, and may also be used for bleeding and vomiting blood. When wheat is made into fermenting starter, it is warm in nature and can aid digestion and treat dysentery. Wheat flour is also warm in nature, but it cannot clear heat or relieve vexation.

Tao Hongjing says that a decoction made from whole wheat is used to treat conditions involving internal heat. Once wheat is ground into flour, its medicinal nature becomes warm. Hulled barley, a kind of barley with its husk intact, is probably similar. People who practice dietary cultivation today are better off eating hulled barley than wheat flour, though either is more suitable than rice.

Chen Cangqi says wheat bran, the outer layer left after wheat is milled into flour, tastes sweet and is cold in nature; it is nontoxic. Cakes made from bran and dough can stop diarrhea and dysentery, regulate the Spleen and Stomach, clear internal heat, and strengthen the body. Bran may be steamed, placed in a cloth bag, and used as a hot compress on the lower back or legs of people or horses when these parts have been chilled and have lost sensation. Bran mixed with vinegar and steamed can also be applied to wounds or fractures to relieve pain and disperse blood stasis. Flour from the third milling is cooler because it contains more bran: the outer layer of wheat is cold in nature, while the inner part is warm.

Chen Cangqi also says wheat sprouts taste pungent and are cold in nature; they are nontoxic. They may be used for wine jaundice, a condition caused by drinking alcohol or by damp-heat and accompanied by yellowing of the eyes, as well as for yellow eyes. They can also counteract alcohol toxicity and sudden febrile illness. A black substance that grows on wheat sprouts is called “wheat slave.” It is used for vexing heat and can also counteract the toxicity of mineral medicines and the heat toxins of epidemic diseases.

He further says that flour tastes sweet and is warm in nature. It can replenish deficiency, increase physical strength, nourish the flesh, and strengthen the intestines and Stomach. However, it tends to cause stagnation and generate heat, and can slightly aggravate wind conditions.

Nü mian, also called “huanzi,” is, according to textual research, similar to yellow ferment. Yellow ferment is warm in nature; it can nourish the body and aid the digestion of various foods. In the north it is made from wheat, and in the south from polished rice, usually during the sixth or seventh lunar month. Su Song adds that ferment made from ground grain is called “yellow coat”; the grayish-green variety is considered the best.

The Waitai Miyao Fang records: To treat dysentery with pale, undigested stools, roast high-quality flour, grind it finely, and sift it. Take one square-inch spoonful (an ancient small measure, roughly a teaspoon) at a time, mixed into rice porridge.

This therapy is also said to cure illnesses that even many highly skilled physicians cannot treat.

The Qianjin Fang records a treatment for jaundice: crush wheat sprouts, squeeze out the juice, and drink six or seven he (a traditional measure). Drink it three or four times throughout the day and night. After three or four days, the illness will be cured.

The Jingyan Fang records a treatment for nosebleeds: mix flour paste with cold water and swallow it. The bleeding will stop at once.

The Bingbu Shouji records a treatment for vomiting and hiccups, which are repeated sounds caused by rebellious Qi: mix flour evenly with vinegar, roll it into pellets about the size of marbles, and make twenty or thirty. Boil the pellets in water. Prepare about two dou of fermented grain water, remove the boiled pellets, and put them into the liquid. Once the heat has faded slightly from their surface, swallow two or three while they are still hot, then stop as soon as the hiccups cease. If they have not stopped, gradually increase the amount to seven or eight pellets. If there is still no effect, repeat the treatment before dinner that evening.

The Yanyi says: boil wheat vigorously in water and drink the resulting broth. Alternatively, mix flour into a paste, add medicinal ingredients, and dilute it with water before taking it. It is said to cure people suffering from heatstroke, as well as horses with lung disease or a sudden fever, when mixed with water and given to drink. Chewed raw wheat becomes stringy and can also be used to catch birds or insects.

Barley tastes salty and is warm but slightly cool in nature. It is non-toxic. It mainly treats wasting-thirst, clears internal heat, replenishes primordial Qi, and harmonizes the Spleen and Stomach. Another account says that barley causes people to develop more internal heat. It is considered the finest of the grains, and honey can be used as an auxiliary remedy.

Tao Hongjing says: The naked barley used today is also called mou barley. It resembles hulled barley, but its husk is thinner.

The Tang Ben Zhu says: Barley grown in the Guanzhong region is qingke barley. It resembles wheat, but its grains are larger and its husk thicker, hence the name “large barley.” In fact, it does not much resemble hulled barley.

Barley flour is neutral in nature. It can regulate the Stomach, relieve thirst, aid digestion, and treat abdominal distention.

Yuxi says: According to the Yaoxing Lun, barley malt, meaning barley that has been sprouted, tastes sweet and is non-toxic when used medicinally. It digests accumulated food, dispels cold, and relieves distention and fullness in the chest and abdomen.

Chen Shiliang says: Barley replenishes deficiency, strengthens the blood vessels, improves the complexion, and nourishes the Five Zang organs, making people fond of grain. Eating it over a long period makes people plump, gives the complexion a fair glow, and smooths the skin. Barley flour is better than wheat flour because it does not cause dryness and heat. Another account says barley malt is slightly warm in nature; prolonged use damages Kidney Qi, so it should not be eaten in large quantities.

The Shenghui Fang records: If a pregnant woman wishes to terminate her pregnancy, take two liang of barley malt, add one and a half cups of water, and boil it down to one cup. Divide it into three portions and drink them warm.

The Bingbu Shouji Fang records a treatment for postpartum constipation accompanied by abdominal distention, shortness of breath, and restlessness whether sitting or lying down. The prescription passed from Fengfeng Fu Taichu to the Cui family is to take one he of barley malt powder mixed with wine. The bowels will move shortly afterward. Physician Cui said this remedy was highly effective.

The Yanyi says: Barley is neutral in nature and tends toward coolness. A person suffering from chan hou feng, a condition involving throat swelling and pain with difficulty breathing or swallowing, could not eat… The original text ends here.

Wheat flour can be mixed with water into a thin paste for people to swallow. Its smooth texture makes it easy to gulp down and helps support stomach Qi. During the hottest period of summer, the court once prepared wheat dishes and bestowed them on its officials.

Wheat bran can be fermented to make malt syrup. Qu (fermented grain starter) tastes sweet and is strongly warming. It can be used to regulate wind in the internal organs, harmonize the center and regulate Qi, stimulate the appetite, and aid digestion. It is also used for cholera, stagnation of Qi in the chest and diaphragm, upward surging of phlegm and Qi, distress, and masses. It can also tonify deficiency, dispel cold, clear obstructions in the digestive tract and difficulty swallowing food, and improve the complexion. Qu made in the sixth lunar month is considered better. Qu aged for a long time is suitable for medicinal use and should be dry-fried until fragrant before use.

When any of the six domestic animals—horse, ox, sheep, chicken, dog, or pig—develops abdominal swelling after eating rice, a decoction of qu may be poured down its throat in an emergency; it is said to relieve the swelling quickly. Qu is also recorded as being able to induce miscarriage and expel a “ghost fetus.” Shenqu (a medicinal fermentation starter made from several grains and herbs) is non-toxic. It aids the digestion of accumulated food, regulates masses caused by Qi, strengthens the Spleen, and warms the stomach.

The Thousand Gold Pieces Prescriptions says that after childbirth, if a woman faints, she may take one square-inch spoonful of powdered qu; if she does not improve, she should take another dose. The same work also records that when the lower abdomen is hard and swollen like a plate, the chest feels full and oppressed, and food can be eaten but not digested, one square-inch spoonful of powdered qu may be taken three times a day.

The Handbook of Prescriptions for Emergencies says that for red or white dysentery, watery stools, and undigested food, qu and millet may be cooked as a porridge. Take one square-inch spoonful four or five times a day, and the symptoms will stop. It also records that if, during pregnancy, the fetus suddenly becomes unsettled, causing lower back pain, forceful fetal movement that strikes the chest and heart, and persistent bleeding, take half a piece of raw qu, crush it, mix it with water, strain out the liquid, and drink three sheng.

Buckwheat tastes sweet, is neutral but somewhat cold in nature, and is non-toxic. It strengthens the stomach and intestines and increases strength. Eating it over a long period may bring on wind disorders and dizziness. Eating it with pork is said to cause heat-wind, making the eyebrows and beard fall out. Despite these claims, buckwheat is also said to relieve various illnesses, refine accumulated stagnation in the Five Zang organs, and restore the spirit. People who take mineral elixirs are suited to eating buckwheat rice.

To prepare buckwheat rice, steam the grain until the steam passes through it, then leave it in the intense sun until the hulls split. Pound off the hulls and cook the grain as rice. Buckwheat leaves can be eaten as a vegetable; they regulate Qi and clear the ears and eyes, but eating too many may cause mild diarrhea. Buckwheat stalks can be burned to ash, and the lye made from the ash can be used to wash sores on the six domestic animals or treat ailments of the hooves of donkeys and horses.

The Illustrated Canon says that the relevant material appears under the entry for “Wheat.” The Source of the Jade Mirror of the Elixir Chamber records that buckwheat ash can be used to prepare powder frost. The Handbook of Prescriptions from the Bureau of War records that for children with oil erysipelas and red, swollen skin, buckwheat flour mixed with vinegar can be applied as a poultice.

Hyacinth beans.

Hyacinth beans are sweet in flavor and slightly warm in nature. They can harmonize the Spleen and Stomach, direct rebellious Qi downward, and regulate Qi. The leaves can treat persistent vomiting and diarrhea caused by cholera. The character “bian” in the name is pronounced “bian.”

The Treatise on the Nature of Medicinals says that white hyacinth beans can also be used on their own to counteract poisons from various plants and trees. They may be chewed raw or taken as a decoction.

Tao Hongjing says that people often grow hyacinth beans beside fences, and that the pods are delicious when steamed. There is no fixed medicinal method for hyacinth beans: the beans are used as medicine, while the leaves can be used separately. People suffering from illnesses with alternating chills and fever should not eat them.

The Records of the Sun and Flower says that hyacinth beans are neutral in nature and non-toxic, and can nourish the five organs. The leaves can be crushed and applied to bites from snakes and insects.

The Materia Medica for Diet Therapy by Meng Shen, as cited by Su Yuxi, says that hyacinth beans can treat persistent vomiting and diarrhea caused by cholera. Grind the beans into powder and mix it with vinegar to help regulate Qi. If the limbs cramp after vomiting and diarrhea, take seven handfuls of hyacinth bean leaves, crush them, and soak them in a little vinegar. Drink the liquid; it is said to work quickly. Hyacinth beans can also be made into cakes, like mung beans.

The Extended Meaning says that hyacinth beans come in three varieties: black, white, and magpie-spotted. Each has a square white marking along the ridge of the bean. White hyacinth beans can be used to treat cholera-related muscle cramps.

Fermented soybean seasoning, made from fermented soybeans, is bitter in flavor, cold in nature, and non-toxic. It treats cold damage with headache, alternating chills and fever, miasmatic influences, severe toxins, restlessness and oppression in the chest, weakness with labored breathing, and pain and coldness in both legs. It can also counteract poisoning caused by the fetuses of livestock and by other toxic substances.

The Illustrated Classic says that a detailed account of fermented soybean seasoning appears under the entry for “yellow soybean sprouts.”

Tao Hongjing says that fermented soybean seasoning is an everyday food. In spring and summer, when the weather is unsettled, it works very well to steam or fry the seasoning, soak it in wine, and take it. Following Kang Bo’s method, first mix the seasoning with vinegar and wine, steam it, and dry it in the sun. Then mix it with sesame oil and steam and dry it again. Repeat this process three times, grind it into powder, and combine it with Sichuan pepper and dried ginger powder. This is better than the oil-coated fermented soybeans made today. People with foot ailments often soak the seasoning in wine and apply the soybean residue to their feet; this too is said to bring a cure. The finest fermented soybean seasoning comes from Xiangyang and Qiantang. It is richly aromatic, and the soybean hearts are especially good.

Chen Cangqi says that fermented soybean seasoning from Puzhou is salty in flavor and non-toxic. It can relieve vexing heat and heat toxins, regulate chills and fever and debility, harmonize the Middle Burner, promote sweating, open the joints, and remove fishy odors. It can also be used for nasal congestion caused by cold damage. Its preparation differs from that of other fermented soybean seasonings, and its flavor is strong. Shan Prefecture has a fermented soybean sauce that keeps for a year without spoiling and is particularly good at dispelling vexing heat. For medicinal use, however, it is inferior to the soybean hearts used today because it contains no salt.

The Records of the Sun and Flower says that fermented soybean seasoning can treat poisoning, gu poison, malaria, and steaming bone syndrome—a sensation of heat in the bones often seen in debilitating illness—as well as dog bites.

Meng Shen says that fermented soybean seasoning can treat chronic night sweats. The patient should take one liter of the seasoning and lightly fry it…

Soak three sheng of xiang (an aromatic herb) in clear wine for three days. Strain out the liquid and take it either cold or warm. If the illness has not yet cleared after taking it, prepare and take two or three more doses, then stop.

The Shenghui Fang treats sores in the mouth and on the tongue, and pain in the chest and diaphragm: Grind fermented soybeans that have been dry-fried until scorched into a fine powder, hold it in the mouth overnight, and the condition will be cured.

The Waitai Miyao Fang treats insect bites and stings: Take an appropriate amount of fermented soybeans. As soon as you feel a sting, chew them thoroughly and apply them to the wound. After a while, if you see a hairlike insect spine in the fermented soybeans, the wound is healing. If none appears, chew and apply more. Continue without interruption, day and night, until you see the spine.

The Qianjin Fang treats illness caused by alcohol: Boil half a sheng each of fermented soybeans and scallion whites in two sheng of water until reduced to one sheng, then drink it all at once.

Another prescription treats blood stasis and abdominal fullness after a beating: Boil one sheng of fermented soybeans in three sheng of water until it comes to a few boils, then drink in divided doses. If the condition has not cleared, take another dose.

The Zhouhou Fang treats loss of control over bending and straightening the limbs after windstroke: Boil three sheng of fermented soybeans in nine sheng of water until reduced to three sheng, then drink in three doses. It is also acceptable to prepare it twice a day, or to soak the fermented soybeans in wine and drink the liquid.

The Ge Shi Fang treats severe diarrhea, that is, dysentery with red and white discharge: Dry-fry fermented soybeans until lightly scorched, pound them, and take one he per dose, three times a day. This works very well. Another method is to dry-fry the fermented soybeans until scorched, pour one sheng of water over them, and collect the liquid. Let it cool before drinking. The liquid may instead be collected with wine; take it three times a day, and this is also effective.

The Meishi Fang treats an illness that persists after sweating therapy for cold damage. After three or four days of illness, the chest feels oppressed and distended, and there is a desire to vomit: Boil one sheng of fermented soybeans and one he of salt in four sheng of water until reduced to one and a half sheng. Drink in three doses; vomiting should follow.

The Shiyi Xinjing Fang treats cramping of the feet and knees and joint pain caused by wind toxin: Take five sheng of the central part of fermented soybeans, steam and sun-dry them nine times, then soak them overnight in one dou of wine. At dawn, drink slowly on an empty stomach, as desired.

Mung beans taste sweet, are cold in nature, and are non-toxic. They treat erysipelas, vexing heat, wind rash, and heat caused by taking medicines or mineral drugs, as well as bentun (the sensation of Qi surging upward from the abdomen into the chest). Grind raw mung beans and squeeze out the juice to drink, or cook and eat them. They can reduce swelling, regulate Qi, clear heat, and counter reactions caused by mineral drugs. Do not remove the skins when using them, or they may slightly obstruct the movement of Qi. This is probably because the skins are cold in nature while the bean flesh is neutral. Small, round, green mung beans are best. There is also a plant called “zhidou” whose seedlings resemble those of the mung bean. It treats cholera with vomiting and diarrhea: Pound the leaves, squeeze out the juice, add a little vinegar, and drink it warm. Its seeds can also regulate Qi.

The Rihua Zi says: Mung beans are cold in nature. They can replenish original Qi, clear heat toxin and wind disorders, and strengthen the stomach and intestines. Using mung beans as a pillow can brighten the eyes and treat wind-related head disorders and headaches.

Yuxi notes that according to Meng Shen in the Shiliao Bencao, mung beans are neutral in nature. They can be prepared as food in various ways, for example made into cakes and baked.

This food is very good to eat often. A careful note: it can nourish the body, harmonize the five viscera, calm the spirit, and keep the twelve channels flowing smoothly. It is an excellent food. People today often rub off its outer skin before eating it, which slightly diminishes its benefits. To nourish the body and improve illness, eat it with the skin on; it should not be peeled. It can also be ground to extract its juice, then boiled and drunk. This may be used to treat wasting-thirst (conditions involving excessive thirst, drinking, and urination), dispel wind-related swelling, strengthen the body, and moisten the skin and muscles. It can be eaten over a long period.

Lei Gong says: It can boost Qi (vital energy), brighten the eyes, and treat head wind (ailments caused by wind afflicting the head).

The fine bran clinging to the head of the pestle used to pound rice can be used when someone suddenly chokes and cannot swallow.

Tao Yinjü says: If someone suddenly chokes while eating and cannot swallow, scrape off some of this fine bran and hold it in the mouth; the obstruction will ease. This also relates to the principle of pounding. Things in the world often affect one another in this way. For this reason, this entry was moved here from the “Herbs” section.

The Shenghui Formula records: To treat obstruction of the throat and difficulty swallowing food caused by stagnant Qi between the chest and diaphragm, take the fine bran from the tip of a stone mill’s pounding pestle and mix it with honey to make pills about the size of a pellet. Suck one whenever needed and swallow the saliva that gathers in the mouth.

Bearded barley (barley with awns) tastes sweet, is slightly cold in nature, and is non-toxic. It is used to make the body feel light and to clear internal heat. Taken over a long period, it can give a person abundant strength and make the steps firm. When made into malt (nie), it is warm in nature and can aid digestion and harmonize the Spleen and Stomach.

Tao Yinjü says: This is the kind of barley horses eat today. Its medicinal nature should be hot, yet it is described as slightly cold. Perhaps this is because the barley has been ground into flour, which differs from eating it with the husk. People who take foods for health and longevity eat bearded barley together with ordinary barley, saying that this makes the body light and strong.

The Tang Materia Medica comments: Bearded barley is cold in nature. Tao Yinjü was wrong to say it is hot. His claim that its nature differs when ground into flour from when eaten with the husk likely arose because bearded barley was rarely seen in the Jiangdong region; his remarks were merely considered guesses.

White beans are neutral in nature and non-toxic. They can nourish the five viscera, strengthen the Qi of the center, and help the twelve channels flow. They harmonize the middle burner and warm the intestines and Stomach. Their leaves benefit the five viscera and direct Qi downward. The tender leaves can be cooked as a vegetable; they are also very good eaten raw and can be eaten often. (This is an added entry, based on Meng Shen and the Rihuazi.)

Sun the Perfected’s Food Taboos says: White beans taste salty and are a grain that nourishes the Kidneys. They are suitable for people with kidney illness and can also dispel ghostly Qi, a kind of uncanny influence described by the ancients.

Illustrated and Annotated Materia Medica, Scroll Thirty-Eight