《孫真人備急千金要方》Vol. 20

Prescriptions for Diseases of the Seven Orifices: Throat Disorders, Chapter Seven (Symptoms, Prescriptions, and Acupuncture)

Add one liang of apricot kernels to Minor Continuation of Life Decoction (the prescription appears earlier). Use it to treat sudden throat obstruction with inability to speak.

Crowwing Ointment

The throat is a place where the condition of the Spleen and Stomach can be observed. When the internal organs are hot, the throat swells and closes, and the breath and spirit become obstructed. This prescription may be taken:

Ten liang of crowwing (an herb, used fresh), three liang of cimicifuga, two liang each of antelope horn, tetrapanax pith, and peony root, one sheng of rose root (sliced), five he of fresh rehmannia root (sliced), two jin of pork fat, and six zhu of mugwort leaves (fresh is preferable).

Cut the nine ingredients into small pieces and wrap them in cotton cloth. Soak them overnight in one sheng of bitter wine (vinegar). Then place them in the pork fat and simmer over low heat until the vinegar has boiled away and the fat no longer makes a sizzling sound. Strain out the herbs and wrap the ointment in thin cotton cloth. Shape it into pills the size of apricot kernels, place one in the mouth, and swallow it slowly.

Prescription for Throat Swelling and Pain, with Wind Toxin Striking the Heart and Chest

One and a half sheng of fermented beans, two liang each of rhinoceros horn, blackberry lily, apricot kernels, and licorice, three liang of peony root, seven gardenia fruits, four liang of cimicifuga, and one and a half liang of antelope horn.

Cut the nine ingredients into small pieces. Add nine sheng of water and boil until reduced to three sheng. Strain out the herbs, add the fermented beans, and bring to a boil once. Take in three portions.

Prescription for Throat Swelling and Fullness in the Chest and Flanks

Apply one hundred moxa cones at the Chize point, located on the inner side of the elbow. The original text reads “one hundred tu”; here it is understood as “one hundred cones,” the usual measure in moxibustion.

Prescription for Difficulty Swallowing Water and Scrofulous Lumps Caused by Wind Toxin

Six liang each of cimicifuga and peony root, three liang each of blackberry lily, apricot kernels, sweetgum resin, kudzu root, and ephedra, and two liang of licorice.

Cut the eight ingredients into small pieces. Add eight sheng of water and boil until reduced to two and a half sheng. Take in three portions.

Another prescription: swallow two qian of henbane seed powder with water. It is highly effective.

Prescriptions for Throat Obstruction

Slowly swallow Vitex sap; it is effective.

Another prescription: burn a cow horn to ash, then take it with wine. It works well.

Another prescription: in the twelfth lunar month, burn a pig’s tail to ash, then take it with water. It works well.

Another prescription: hold chicken droppings’ white portion in the mouth.

Another remedy: Roast almonds until black, then hold them in the mouth; they may also be ground into powder and taken.

Another remedy: Peel a croton seed, thread a needle and thread through it, guide it into the throat, then pull it back out.

Another remedy: Take half a sheng of iris seeds and boil them in two sheng of water until reduced to one and a half sheng. Take the liquid.

Another remedy: Boil peach tree bark to extract its juice, and take three sheng.

Another remedy: Burn chaste tree wood, extract its juice, and take it. Alternatively, take a handful of chaste tree wood and boil it in three sheng of water until reduced to one sheng. Take it in three doses.

Another remedy: Prick the crease beside the nail of the little finger on each hand, drawing about as much blood as three soybeans. During treatment, take care to avoid alcohol, wheat foods, and poisonous substances.

Treating throat obstruction and toxic Qi

Throat obstruction refers to illnesses involving blockage, swelling, and pain in the throat. Take two liang of platycodon root and boil it in three sheng of water until reduced to one sheng. Take the whole dose at once.

Another remedy: Take two jin of fresh ginger, pound it, and extract the juice. Add five he of honey and simmer over low heat, stirring until blended. Take one he at a time, five times a day.

Another remedy: Break one aconite tuber into large pieces, coat them with honey, and roast until yellow. Hold a piece in the mouth and slowly swallow the juice. Once the sweetness has been swallowed, coat and roast another piece in the same way.

Another remedy: Peel a garlic clove and insert it into the ear or nostril. Replace it twice daily.

Treating throat obstruction and sudden inability to speak

Boil cinnamon twig juice down until concentrated, then take one sheng. Alternatively, grind cinnamon twig into powder, place it under the tongue, and swallow slowly; this works better.

Another remedy: Boil soybeans and hold the juice in the mouth. If soybeans are unavailable, fermented black beans may be used.

Another remedy: Mix half a sheng of human milk with five he of wine, and take it in two doses.

Another remedy: Burn the bamboo mat used for steaming rice to ash. Take a pinch between three fingers and swallow it with water.

Another remedy: Grind mustard seeds into powder, mix with water, and apply. Replace it when dry.

Another remedy: Stir-fry pokeweed root in bitter wine (vinegar) until thick. Apply it while warm.

Another remedy: Grind cinnamon bark to a lump the size of a date pit. Wrap it in cotton, place it under the tongue, and remove it after a short while.

Treating sudden swelling of the throat that prevents eating

Take a handful of chives, pound them, and apply them hot after frying. Replace them when they cool.

Another remedy: Hold good-quality vinegar in the mouth. This is also suitable for sores on the tongue and inside the mouth.

Treating sudden swelling of the uvula

The uvula is the small fleshy projection hanging at the back of the throat. Grind equal amounts of dried ginger and pinellia into powder, and place a small amount on the tongue each time.

Another remedy: Grind salt into powder. Use the tip of a chopstick to pick up a little, open the mouth, and apply it to the affected area five times daily.

Treating the uvula, polyps in the throat, and a swollen tongue

At sunrise, face the sun and open the mouth. Have a woman press the left side of her skirt against the patient’s crown and pat it seven times; this is said to bring a cure.

Another remedy: Boil sheep’s-foot herb and hold the juice in the mouth.

Another remedy: Mix salt with fermented black beans and apply. This works well.

Another remedy: Take the urine of a child aged four or five, add salt, and hold it in the mouth.

When throat obstruction (painful swelling or blockage of the throat) becomes severe, swelling the cheeks as well and causing shortness of breath, it is called “horse-throat obstruction.” It can be treated with the following methods.

Formula One: Take one bridle bit from a horse’s mouth. Add two sheng of water and boil until reduced to one sheng. Divide into three doses and take.

Formula Two: Take thirty-seven cocklebur seeds from a felt mat. Burn them to ash, grind to a powder, and swallow with water.

Formula Three: Take a handful of vervain roots, keeping away from places exposed to the wind. Cut off both ends, crush them, extract the juice, and drink it. This is said to work well.

Formula Four: Burn grain ergot (a fungus that grows on grain) to ash and swallow it with wine. It is said to take effect quickly.

Mother Ginger and Wine Formula: The throat passage is traversed by the Qi of the liver and gallbladder. When the organs are overheated, the throat passage becomes blocked and Qi is obstructed in turn; when the Qi of the bowel organs is cold, the throat passage is damaged and the voice becomes hoarse. This formula should bring relief.

Use two sheng of mother ginger juice, one sheng each of butter and ox marrow, one liang each of cinnamon bark and Sichuan pepper, one and a half liang of saposhnikovia root, and one liang and six zhu each of ligusticum root and pubescent angelica root. Grind the medicinal ingredients into powder and add them to the ginger juice. Cook until the powder is thoroughly moistened, then add the ox marrow, butter, and other ingredients and mix well. Simmer over low heat, bringing it to a boil three times and taking it off the heat three times. In the morning, mix two he of the medicinal paste into one sheng of warm, clear wine and swallow slowly. Take three doses during the day and one at night.

Another Formula: Use one liang each of salvia root, cimicifuga, realgar, apricot kernels, ghost’s drumstick, licorice, and blackberry lily, with half a liang of musk. Grind the eight ingredients into powder and mix with honey to make pills the size of Chinese parasol tree seeds. Take one pill at a time, gradually increasing to five pills, three times a day. They may also be taken with wine. This formula is said to work well for throat pain, loss of voice, and difficulty speaking.

Formula for Throat Injury and Unclear Speech: Use one sheng each of wine and butter, two and a half liang of dried ginger, ground into powder, and two liang each of tetrapanax pith, cinnamon bark, and sweet flag rhizome. Combine the six ingredients. Take one spoonful at a time, three times a day.

Another Formula: Use one sheng each of wine and butter, and ten liang of dried ginger powder. Mix two he of wine with one spoonful of butter and two spoonfuls of ginger powder, and take three times a day after meals. This formula is also used for lung pain.

Formula for Hoarseness, Throat Blockage, and Cough: Use six zhu of cinnamon bark and eighteen zhu of apricot kernels. Grind them into powder and mix with honey to make pills the size of an apricot kernel. Hold one in the mouth and slowly swallow the medicinal juices. Continue without interruption throughout the day and night.

Formula for Throat Pain, Qi Surging Upward, and Inability to Eat: The original text ends here.

Toast one sheng of hemp seeds until they turn black, then pour one sheng of wine over them and collect the juice. Take one sheng on an empty stomach, gradually increasing the dose to two sheng. Profuse sweating after taking it is desirable. Cover the body well and avoid exposure to cold drafts. This remedy is also suitable for women after childbirth and for men who have suffered a stroke. It is especially effective when the body arches backward and the jaws are clenched shut. Its effect is similar to that of Purple Decoction.

Remedy for sudden throat pain

Burn the fruit of the hanging tree to ash and powder it. Take one square-inch spoonful of the powder with water three times a day. (A square-inch spoonful is the amount held by an ancient measuring utensil for powdered medicine.)

Another remedy: Burn one bamboo rice steamer, grind the ash to powder, and take one square-inch spoonful with fermented rice water, an acidic liquid used in ancient times.

Remedy for sudden stroke with swelling of the throat and face

Pound almonds into a powder, mix them with an egg yolk, and pound until smooth. Apply the mixture to the swollen area. When it dries, replace it, repeating seven or eight times. If fluid seeps from the swelling, boil vinegar, mix it with Fulonggan (the clay from the heart of a stove), and apply it. Replace the dressing when it dries.

Remedy for “corpse throat”

Burn the cord from the toe of a shoe to ash and take it with warm water.

Another remedy: Take hemp seed oil; it is effective.

Remedy for an obstructed throat and to direct Qi downward

Use one liang each of blackberry lily, almonds, ginseng, aconite, and cassia bark. Grind the five ingredients into powder and use honey to form pills about the size of a finger. Hold one pill in the mouth and let it dissolve slowly before swallowing, so that the medicine continues to act on the throat.

Remedy for throat pain and itching, with difficulty spitting or swallowing, as though afflicted by gu poison

Hold a piece of fresh ginger in the mouth; recovery will follow after fifty days.

Another remedy: Wrap ephedra in blue cloth, set it alight, and place it in a bamboo tube so the smoke enters the throat.

Ear Disorders, Chapter Eight: Prescriptions

Remedy for kidney heat, stiffness and pain in the back, pus or blood flowing from the ear, or growths of flesh blocking the ear canal and preventing hearing

Use five liang each of magnetite, atractylodes, and oyster shell; one liang of licorice; one sheng each of scallion whites and fresh rehmannia juice; four liang of peony; fifteen jujubes; and six liang of fresh ophiopogon.

Cut up the nine ingredients, boil them in nine sheng of water, and reduce the liquid to three sheng. Divide it into three doses.

Remedy for kidney heat, a darkened complexion, abnormal eye whites, internal injury to kidney Qi, roaring tinnitus, shortness of breath, pain in the limbs, pain pulling through the lower back and spine, and yellow-red urine

Use five liang of atractylodes, six liang of ginger, four liang of scrophularia, two liang of water plantain, two sheng of chopped leaves of pale bamboo, three liang each of peony and poria, and one sheep kidney, prepared as for ordinary cooking.

Freshly harvested rehmannia root, sliced, one sheng.

Coarsely chop the nine ingredients above. Boil the sheep kidneys and bamboo leaves in two dou of water until reduced to one dou. Strain out the dregs and let the liquid settle until clear. Add the remaining ingredients and boil until three sheng of liquid remain. Divide into three doses. If the illness has not abated, take another dose after three days.

A prescription for kidney heat with pus and blood flowing from the ear without stopping, day or night

One carp brain; the intestines of one carp, cleaned and finely chopped; three jin of fermented carp; one sheng of black sesame seeds, toasted until fragrant.

First pound the black sesame seeds, then add the other ingredients and pound everything together until evenly mixed. Put the mixture in a vessel and warm it over low heat. Wrap it in cloth and apply it gently to the ear. After the time it takes to eat two meals, unwrap it: white worms will come out. Prepare another application in the same way. If both ears are discharging pus, use this dose on both ears; if only one ear is affected, divide the mixture into two doses. Recovery should follow after no more than three applications. Take care to avoid wind and cold.

A prescription for kidney deficiency and cold, pain in the lower back and spine, weakness of Yin and Yang, tinnitus, and dryness of the ears

Two sheng of fresh rehmannia root juice; one sheep kidney, roasted; one jin each of white atractylodes and malt; eight liang each of licorice, dried ginger, and Chinese wolfberry root bark; four liang each of cassia bark, Eucommia bark, and astragalus; three liang each of Chinese angelica and schisandra; three sheng each of white honey and fresh asparagus root juice.

First grind the medicinal ingredients into powder and put them in a basin. Take the juices of the first three ingredients and use them to mix and grind the powder. Warm the basin over low heat, continuing to grind while the mixture is warm. Then dry it in the sun, grinding it often until the powder no longer sticks to the sides of the basin. Take one square-inch spoonful, an ancient measure for medicinal powder, with wine, twice daily.

A prescription for deafness, tinnitus, and discharge from the ear, attributed to kidney cold and persisting without relief for ten or twenty years

Thirty jin of mulberry root and five dou of sliced sweet flag. Boil each separately in one shi of water until five dou of liquid remain. Strain out the dregs and let the liquids settle until clear. Separately, heat twenty jin of old iron until red-hot, then immerse it in five dou of water for three nights. Remove the iron and let the water settle until clear.

Combine the three liquids, making one shi and five dou in all. Add two shi of rice and two dou of wine starter, then brew the wine in the usual way. Once the wine is ready, seal it and leave it for a month. Then open it and draw off the clear wine. Pound three jin of lodestone, which attracts iron, into powder and soak it in the wine for three nights. After that, drink it day and night; when you feel slightly drunk, go to sleep. Stop taking it once you can hear other people speaking.

Another remedy: Take asparagus-root wine, made by fermenting or soaking the herb in wine, for one hundred consecutive days. It is said to bring a full recovery. The prescription appears in another volume.

Another remedy: Take a small amount of alum stone, mix it with the juice of fresh calamus root, and drip it into the ear.

Remedies for deafness caused by overexertion, Qi, wind, deficiency, toxins, or long illness, and for tinnitus

Take two liang each of Japanese cornelian cherry, dried ginger, morinda root, peony, Alisma rhizome, cassia bark, dodder seed, astragalus root, dried rehmannia root, polygala root, cnidium seed, dendrobium, Chinese angelica, asarum, cistanche, tree peony bark, ginseng, licorice, aconite, and poria; one liang of calamus; two sheep’s kidneys; and one and a half liang of saposhnikovia root.

Grind the twenty-three ingredients into powder and use honey to form pills the size of parasol-tree seeds. Take fifteen pills after meals, three times a day, gradually increasing to thirty or forty pills per dose, but no further. The original text holds that these ear ailments all arise from kidney deficiency, so this prescription nourishes the kidneys and helps the Nine Orifices—the eyes, ears, nose, mouth, and the two lower openings—function freely, allowing the illness to be cured.

Remedy for deafness

Take seven seeds each of croton and apricot kernel; two pieces of salt formed into printed shapes; a thick section of fresh rehmannia root, one and a half inches long; and a bundle of hair about the size of an egg, burned to ash.

Grind the five ingredients finely and sift them. Wrap the powder in thin cotton cloth and place it in the ear for one day and one night. If the ear is slightly injured, remove the packet and plug the ear with something. Once yellow fluid or pus drains from the ear and the treatment begins to take effect, do not insert the medicine again. If there is no injury, remove it after one night, wait for a while, then insert it again for one day and one night. Remove it as described above.

Another remedy:

Take five he (a measure) of castor seeds; three fen each of apricot kernel, calamus, magnetite, peach kernel, rock salt, and tetrapanax; one fen of croton; two fen of aconite; ten fen each of frankincense and pine resin; and eight fen of wax.

First pound the herbs and mineral medicines finely. Grind the other ingredients separately into a salve, then add the pine resin and wax. Pound everything together repeatedly, several thousand times, until it can be formed into pills. Take one pill the size of a date pit, wrap it in cotton cloth, and place it in the ear four or five times a day, turning and kneading it each time it is removed. Replace it after three or four days.

Another remedy:

Take four liang of magnetite; three liang each of asparagus root, Chinese wolfberry root bark, and ginger; and Japanese cornelian cherry, Chinese cucumber root, chaste-tree fruit, poria, calamus, Sichuan lovage, immature bitter orange, and white angelica. The original text breaks off here; the remaining quantities and preparation method are missing.

Take two liang each of dried tangerine peel and licorice root, and two sheng of bamboo sap. Chop these together with the other ingredients. Add eight sheng of water and simmer until reduced by half. Add more bamboo sap and continue simmering until two sheng and five ge of liquid remain. Divide into three doses. Take one dose every five days, for three doses in all. There is also an external powder, prepared according to the prescription below and placed in the ear.

Another prescription: four liang of magnetite, and two liang each of sweet flag rhizome, white amur corktree root, moutan root bark, Asiatic cornelian cherry fruit, Achyranthes root, and Chinese snake gourd root. Grind the seven ingredients into a fine powder and sift it. Wrap the powder in cotton cloth and place it in the ear, changing it once a day. At the same time, take “Great Three-Five-Seven Powder,” which is said to work well; its formula appears in another volume.

Another prescription: equal parts wax, pine resin, frankincense, castor beans, rock salt, and the ash of uncombed hair. Grind the six ingredients into a fine powder and form it into pills. Wrap a pill in cotton cloth and place it in the ear, replacing it frequently. Stop when the condition is cured.

Another prescription: fourteen croton seeds and half a liang of refined pine resin. Combine them to make pills the size of millet grains. Wrap a pill in cotton cloth and insert it into the ear with a hairpin, changing it once a day. If the pill hardens, soften it over a low flame until some liquid seeps out; this is said to work very well.

Another prescription: six zhu each of saposhnikovia root, sweet flag rhizome, asarum, aconite, and ligusticum rhizome (that is, Sichuan lovage), and the brains of two male carp. Chop the five herbs and simmer them with the fish brains. Let the liquid boil and cool three times, then add aromatic ointment and mix well. Strain out the solids. Once the liquid has cooled, put an amount the size of a date pit into the ear, then plug it with cotton. A prescription recorded in Collected Proven Remedies, Ancient and Modern for wind deafness and persistent ringing in the ears uses Chinese angelica in place of saposhnikovia and bai zhi in place of ligusticum.

Another prescription: Put carp brains in a bamboo tube and steam it over cooking rice until they melt, then drip the liquid into the ear.

Another prescription: equal parts sweet flag rhizome and aconite. Grind into a fine powder, mix with sesame oil, wrap in cotton cloth, and place in the ear. The Guangji Fang uses this prescription for sudden, severe ear pain; Cui’s prescription instead mixes the powder with sour wine (vinegar) before placing it in the ear.

Another prescription: Heat iron until red-hot, plunge it into wine, and then drink the wine. At the same time, place magnetite in the ear, changing it once a day. Remove it at night and put it back in the next morning.

Another prescription: one hundred castor beans, peeled, and fifteen Chinese dates, peeled and pitted. Pound them together and form pills the size of apricot kernels. Place a pill in the ear; this is said to cure the condition in twenty days.

Another remedy: Crush mustard seeds, mix them with the milk of a young boy, wrap the mixture in cotton cloth, and place it in the ear.

Another remedy: Take the tender shoots of bupleurum, crush them to extract the juice, and pour it into the ear twice. The condition will be cured.

Another remedy: Dig a pit large enough to hold about two liters of water, shaped like a cellar. Place burning charcoal in the pit and cover its opening with bricks. Make a small hole in the bricks, just large enough for the little finger. Set one liter of prepared Rehmannia over the hole, then cover it with a wooden basin. Seal the area around the bottom of the basin with mud so no vapor escapes. Bore a hole in the basin’s bottom, just large enough for a chopstick, and lay three layers of cloth over it. Hold the ear opening above the basin and let it steam for a while. If it feels stifling, move away a little. Then collect the yellow liquid, wrap salt in a strand of hair, and insert it into the ear. After two or three treatments, the effect is said to be remarkable.

Another remedy: Crush fermented soybeans into a cake and pack it into the ear. Take a piece of Rehmannia about five or six fen long, sharpen one end, and insert it into the ear until it is level with the bottom of the soybean cake. Cover the cake with a leaf of the Chinese catalpa tree, then make a hole about the size of a chopstick tip through the leaf and cake. Apply three cones of moxa over the hole, burning each cone completely.

Another remedy: Shape mud into a cake as thick as a wonton wrapper. Place it over the ear and seal the edges so no vapor escapes. Directly above the ear opening, pierce the mud cake with a grass stalk to make a small hole, then apply one hundred cones of moxa over the hole. Stop when the pain inside the ear becomes unbearable. Tilt the ear to let the yellow liquid drain out; once it has all drained, the condition will be cured. If the mud cake dries during moxibustion, replace it with a fresh one.

Another remedy: Soak two liters of crushed Vitex seeds in three liters of wine. After seven days, strain out the solids and drink the liquid according to your usual preference. It is said to cure deafness even when it has lasted for thirty years.

Another remedy: Cut a two-inch length of arrow shaft and place it in the ear. Surround it with dough to prevent air from escaping, then apply seven cones of moxa to the shaft.

Another remedy: Grind equal amounts of sulfur and realgar into powder. Wrap the powder in cotton cloth and place it in the ear. After a few days, you will be able to hear people speaking.

Another remedy: Wrap snake fat in cotton cloth and insert it into the ear. It is said to work very well.

Another remedy: Simmer aconite overnight over a low flame in strong vinegar. Then shave the aconite into a shape suitable for insertion into the ear, wrap it in cotton cloth, and place it in the ear. It is said to be effective for ear ailments.

Another remedy: Take the following twelve ingredients: alum, licorice, sweet flag, Chinese angelica, Chinese wild ginger, Saposhnikovia root, Sichuan lovage, dahurian angelica, cuttlebone, aconite, and Chinese honeylocust pod, half an ounce of each; and fourteen croton seeds. Slice the ingredients thinly and soak them overnight in three liters of vinegar. Add nine ge of undiluted chicken fat and simmer, bringing the mixture to a boil and cooling it three times. When the croton seeds have turned yellow and the ointment is ready, strain out the medicinal solids and stir in powdered realgar. Each time, take an amount of ointment the size of a jujube pit and drip it into the ear, then plug the ear with cotton.

“Change it three times a day.”

Another formula

Cinnamon heart (the central part of the cinnamon bark), eighteen zhu; wild kudzu, six zhu; chicken fat, five liang.

Chop the three ingredients and place them in a copper vessel. Simmer over a low flame, bring to a boil three times, then strain out the herbs. Seal the liquid for storage so that no air escapes. Use a reed tube to take a date-stone-sized portion of the ointment and warm it over a fire until lukewarm. Have the patient lie on their side, then pour the ointment into the ear. After ten days, earwax will come out on its own, in pieces about the size of a finger and one cun long. For deafness of long standing, continue for up to thirty days. Then wrap some of the ointment in hair and insert it deep into the ear, keeping its medicinal vapors from escaping. Remove it after five days. The Supplement to the Essential Prescriptions Worth a Thousand Gold Pieces says this formula can treat deafness lasting twenty years.

Formula for treating deafness and dry, hardened earwax that is difficult to remove

Crush a white-necked earthworm that has died of itself, and place it inside an onion leaf. Seal both ends with dough and steam it until thoroughly cooked, so that the earthworm liquefies. Take the juice and drip it into the ear, stopping when the ear is full. After only a few applications, the earwax will soften and be easy to pick out. Once healed, plug the ear with salt wrapped in hair. The Handbook of Prescriptions for Emergencies says this method treats small insects that have entered the ear, with immediate effect.

Another formula

Pour vinegar aged for three years into the ear; this works best. Alternatively, plug the ear with cotton. After about half a day, something will come out of the ear.

Red Ointment: Formula for treating deafness and toothache

Cinnamon heart, rhubarb, atractylodes, asarum, and Sichuan lovage, one liang each; dried ginger, two liang; salvia, five liang; Sichuan pepper, one sheng; croton seeds, ten; large aconite, two pieces.

Chop the ten ingredients and soak them overnight in two sheng of bitter wine (vinegar). Then add three jin of refined lard. Heat the mixture, bringing it to a boil three times and letting it cool three times. Once the medicine is ready, strain out the herbs. It can be taken internally or applied externally. To treat deafness, wrap a small amount of ointment in cotton and place it in the ear. For tooth pain caused by cold, apply the ointment between the teeth. It can be rubbed on for all kinds of pain. For an internal ailment, take a date-sized portion mixed with wine. For a sore throat, swallow a date-stone-sized portion.

Formula for treating sudden deafness

Asarum and calamus, six zhu each; apricot kernels and powdered fermentation starter, ten zhu each.

Mix and crush the four ingredients to make pills. If the pills dry out, add a little lard. Wrap a date-stone-sized pill in cotton and place it in the ear. Replace it once a day; once symptoms improve slightly, replace it every other day. Remove it at night and put it back in the morning.

Formula for treating deafness lasting thirty years

Soak thirty jin of old iron in seven dou of water for three nights, then remove the iron and take the soaking liquid…

Brew wine with seven dou of rice and flour, following the usual method. Once the wine is ready, grind one jin of magnetite (natural lodestone) into powder and soak it in the wine for three days. Then drink the wine until you become thoroughly drunk. Wrap the magnetite in cotton, place it in the ear, cover your head, and go to sleep. When you have sobered up, remove the magnetite. It is said that the ear ailment will then be cured.

Powder for deafness and pus in the ear

Take one liang of aconite, six zhu of limonite, and half a liang each of dragon’s hearth earth, dragon bone, soot from the bottom of a pot, and cuttlebone: six ingredients in all. Grind them into a fine powder. Each time, take an amount about the size of a soapbean seed, wrap it in cotton, and place it in the ear. Replace it once a day until the condition is cured. If it still has not healed and there are worms, add musk in an amount about the size of a soybean.

Formula for deafness, pus in the ear, and worms when the condition has resisted treatment for a long time

Take three he of vinegar and the intestines of one carp. Chop the intestines, mix them with the vinegar, and pound them together. Wrap the mixture in cloth and place it in the ear. After the time it takes to eat two meals, the ear should feel clogged and sore. If white worms are stuck to the medicine, remove it and clear away the worms, then insert a fresh portion. Stop once all the worms have been cleared. The removed medicine can be used again.

Another formula

First use rolled-up paper to wipe away the fluid in the ear. Then sprinkle powdered alum into the ear, followed by powdered rock salt. After the time it takes to eat one meal, get up. It is said that the condition will be cured after no more than two treatments.

Another formula

Pound cinnamon, mix it with carp brain, and place the mixture in the ear. It is said that three or four applications will cure the condition.

Formula for tinnitus and deafness

Take six zhu each of angelica, asarum, chuanxiong, saposhnikovia, aconite, and angelica dahurica: six ingredients in all. Grind them into a fine powder. Take eight liang of carp brain and simmer it with the powder, boiling and straining the mixture three times. Turn it into a paste and discard the medicinal residue. Each time, place an amount of paste about the size of a date pit into the ear. In the morning, plug the ear with cotton.

Formula for tinnitus and water in the ear

Take six zhu each of aconite and alum; twenty zhu of licorice; eighteen zhu each of tetrapanax, asarum, and cassia bark; one liang of sweet flag; and one and a half liang of angelica pubescens: nine ingredients in all. Grind them into a fine powder. Add half a he of white goose fat and mix in a little at a time. Take an amount about the size of a date pit, wrap it in cotton, and place it in the ear three times a day, mixing a fresh portion each time. Another version uses half a he of onion juice instead.

Formula for tinnitus like the sound of flowing water, which may lead to long-term deafness if left untreated

Dig up fresh aconite, a poisonous medicinal plant. While it is still moist, shave it to about the size of a date pit and place it in the ear. Replace it once a day. It is said that no more than three days of treatment will cure the condition. This formula is also used for itchy ears and sudden deafness, a term used in ancient times for certain types of sudden-onset hearing loss.

The terms dou, liang, zhu, and he are ancient units of volume and weight. “The size of a date pit” and “the size of a soapbean seed” compare the amount of medicine to familiar objects.

A prescription for treating ting’er (a condition in which pus drains from the ear):

Take equal amounts of alum, Coptis rhizome, cuttlebone, and red ochre. Grind them into a fine powder. Wrap the powder in cotton to make a pellet about the size of a jujube pit, and place it in the ear three times a day.

The Xiaopin Fang omits red ochre. Yao’s prescription adds one liang of dragon bone. The Qianjin Yifang gives the same prescription as Yao’s.

A prescription for treating ting’er with ear pain and discharge of pus and blood:

Take ash from the bottom of a cooking pot and apply a thin layer inside the ear three times a day. Whenever changing the dressing, first clear away the old ash with a fine-toothed comb, then apply fresh ash. Continue until healed.

A prescription for treating ting’er:

Pound peach kernels, wrap them in an old piece of red silk, and place them in the ear. Replace them three times a day until healed.

A prescription for treating “di’er,” the ear condition named in the original text:

Roast yellow alum, wrap it in cotton cloth, and place it in the ear. The condition should be cured within a day or two. Alternatively, blow the medicine into the ear through a reed tube. The Zhouhou Fang says this method can treat sudden swelling of the ear with pus discharge.

Prescriptions for treating various insects that have entered the ear:

Grind Sichuan pepper into a fine powder. Take a pinch, mix it with half a sheng of vinegar, and pour it into the ear. After walking twenty paces, the insect will come out.

Another prescription: Heat a peach leaf, roll it up, and plug the ear with it. The insect will come out at once.

Another prescription: Take grease from an axle hub and smear it inside the ear opening. The insect will come out on its own. The Zhouhou Fang records that this method is also used to treat ting’er with discharge of pus and blood.

Another prescription: Pour scallion juice into the ear, and the insect will come out. This can also be used to treat deafness.

A prescription for treating a centipede that has entered the ear:

Roast pork until fragrant and hold it beside the ear. The centipede will come out.

A prescription for treating a millipede that has entered the ear:

Roast sesame seeds, crush them, and put them in a Ge-cloth bag. Lie with the affected ear resting downward on the bag, and the millipede will come out.

Another prescription: Fill the ear with cow’s cream, and the insect will come out, apparently about half dissolved. If the insect has entered the abdomen, take one to two sheng of good cow’s cream on an empty stomach. It will dissolve into a yellow fluid and be expelled. If it has not all been expelled, continue taking the cream; the text says this works very well. The Qianjin Yifang reads “cow’s milk.”

A prescription for removing a foreign object lodged in the ear that cannot be taken out:

Unravel one end of a bowstring, coat it with glue, and insert it into the ear. Let the glue stick to the object, then pull it out slowly.

(The above prescriptions are recorded in juan 20 of the Sun Zhenren Beiji Qianjin Yaofang.)