《孫真人備急千金要方》Vol. 65

After receiving a physical body, people should take care to preserve it. If they fail to nurture it properly, all kinds of illnesses may arise. As the seasons change, the Qi of Yin and Yang shifts in turn, interacting and surging against one another. Sudden gales, dense fog, severe cold, or intense heat often occur at such times. If people do not avoid these conditions in time and are caught by abrupt changes in the weather, pathogenic Qi may invade the body, damage the skin, and flow into the channels. It may block the skin’s pores and texture, causing the Qi that circulates within and protects the body to stagnate. When the Qi of Yin and Yang can no longer flow freely or disperse, the result may be carbuncles, deep sores, malignant ulcers, and various swellings.

If a ding swelling is not recognized early, it can often cause sudden death. By the time someone looks for a remedy after it has flared up, the patient may already be beyond help. Those who understand how to preserve life should therefore learn to recognize such illnesses early, so that they can respond promptly when sores appear.

To treat a ding swelling, insert a needle into the very center of the sore and pierce until the pain is pronounced. Then prick around it more than ten times to let the stagnant blood flow out. Apply medicine afterward, so that its medicinal force can enter the sore through the needle holes. This brings better results; if the medicine cannot reach inside the sore, treatment is unlikely to work.

Ding swellings also often occur inside the mouth, such as on the inner cheek or tongue. A red-black, bead-like swelling that causes severe pain extending to the heart is a sign of this illness. It is said to arise when cold toxins from autumn and winter remain in the skin for a long time and later transform. Without immediate treatment, the root of the illness will deepen day and night and spread into several channels. When it flares up, it feels as if an arrow has pierced the body, leaving the person unable to move. If the patient is not careful about diet and does not abstain from sexual relations, death may come quickly. If the illness has not healed after five or six days, and the patient sees flashes of fire, becomes mentally clouded, suffers from a dry mouth, and feels restless, death may be imminent.

The first type is called “hemp-seed ding.” The sore is raised, with a tip about the size of a grain of millet. It is slightly black, reddish around the edges, and often itchy. Avoid eating hemp seeds, wearing hemp clothing, or walking through hemp fields.

The second type is called “stone ding.” The skin and flesh are fused together; the sore is dark black, like a black bean, and very hard. A needle cannot pierce it, and it aches faintly. Avoid places with rubble, tiles, bricks, and stones.

The third type is called “male ding.” The head of the sore has a black spot, its edges are raised, and blisters form on its surface. Yellowish fluid flows from the blisters. The opening is about the size of a coin hole, and the sore is raised in shape. Avoid sexual relations.

The fourth is called “female ingot lesion”: the head of the sore gradually turns yellow, sinks inward, and darkens. It resembles a sore that has been cauterized. Blisters form around it and contain fluid; the center is sunken and red, about the size of a copper coin. Sexual intercourse is forbidden.

The fifth is called “fire lesion”: it looks like a burn from boiling water or fire. The head of the sore turns black and forms a dark scab; blisters form around it, like red millet grains. Avoid fire and anything heated or cauterizing.

The sixth is called “rotting lesion”: it is slightly black and bears white scars. Once the sore breaks down, pus and fluid seep out, and the affected area is about the size of a spoon’s bowl. Avoid very hot food and contact with rotting cloth or similar objects.

The seventh is called “thirty-six lesions”: the head of each sore is black and raised, shaped like a black bean, with redness and swelling around it. One appears on the first day, two on the second, three on the third, and so on, increasing until there are thirty-six. Once all thirty-six have appeared, medicine cannot cure the condition; if fewer than thirty-six have appeared, it can still be treated. Commonly, this is called “black pustules.” Avoid anger and the accumulation of sorrow and resentment.

The eighth is called “snake-eye lesion”: the head of the sore is black, and the skin over it is raised. It is shaped like a small bean and resembles a snake’s eye; the affected area is hard. Avoid being watched by malicious eyes, being seen by jealous people, and contact with poison.

The ninth is called “salt-skin lesion”: the affected area is about the size of a spoon’s bowl, red around the edges, with small raised black spots like millet grains. Avoid salty foods.

The tenth is called “water-washed lesion”: the affected area is about the size of a copper coin or its hole. The head of the sore is white on the outside and black within; it oozes fluid and is hard inside. Avoid drinking rice gruel, washing in water, or crossing a river.

The eleventh is called “sickle lesion”: the affected area is about as wide as a leaf of Chinese chive, roughly one inch long. The flesh on the left side turns black, as if burned. Avoid puncturing it with a needle and avoid being cut by a sickle, knife, or other iron blade. This sore can be treated with medicine.

The twelfth is called “floating-bubble lesion”: the sore is somewhat curved and round, with a slightly uneven edge. It is elongated and shaped like a Chinese chive leaf. It is yellow inside and black outside. Puncturing the black part causes no pain, but puncturing the yellow part does.

The thirteenth is called “ox-tether lesion”: a blister rises on the flesh and cannot be burst even when pinched by hand.

When these thirteen kinds of sores first develop, they usually itch before they hurt, and the patient first feels cold and then feverish. After the fever subsides, the chills are often severe; the limbs also feel heavy, and there may be headache, palpitations, and blurred vision. In especially severe cases, vomiting occurs; cases with vomiting are harder to treat. The “hemp-seed lesion” is the exception: from beginning to end, its only symptom is itching. None of the prohibitions listed in the text may be violated, or the condition will be difficult to treat. The “floating-bubble lesion” and “ox-tether lesion,” however, have no prohibitions.

Even if the illness is left untreated, it will not be fatal. Its symptoms are alternating chills and fever, as with other ding sores.

This formula treats all kinds of ding sores, and almost never fails. To tell whether the illness arose from violating a taboo, look for a stiff back and intense, unbearable pain at the sore.

Formula for Treating Thirteen Kinds of Ding Sores

Use the above-mentioned goji. Goji has four names: in spring it is called “Heavenly Essence,” in summer “goji,” in autumn “Aging Reversed,” and in winter “Earth Bone.” In the third month of spring, gather the leaves on a Jian day; in the third month of summer, gather the branches on a Jian day; in the third month of autumn, gather the berries on a Jian day; and in the third month of winter, gather the roots on a Jian day. “Jian day” is a term from traditional methods of choosing auspicious dates.

When a Jian day first occurs in each season, gather the branches, leaves, berries, and roots respectively. Combine these four ingredients and dry them in the sun. The formula works better if prepared at noon on the fifth day of the fifth month. If the ingredients cannot be gathered according to these instructions, even just one of them may be used.

Take a piece of red silk and wrap the medicine in it, using just enough silk to hold it. Separately, grind to powder a quantity of tangled hair the size of an egg, bezoar the size of a parasol tree seed, twenty-seven hooked thorns, and seven grains of adzuki bean. First spread the tangled hair in a thin layer over the red silk, then spread the other powdered ingredients on top. Dry it in the sun, roll the silk into a bundle, and tie it tightly with the hair, crossing the ties like a Chinese character for “ten.” Place it in a brazier and heat it over a fierce fire until it boils. Once the boiling stops, let it dry on its own, then scrape off the medicine, grind it to powder, and sift it through fine silk.

One square-inch spoonful (an ancient unit measured with a medicine spoon) is one dose. Grind and sift the four goji ingredients together. Take two portions and mix them with one portion of the previously prepared powder, making three portions in all. Mix well and divide into two doses. Take one dose with wine in the morning on an empty stomach, twice daily.

Formula of the Old Woman Rong of Qizhou

This formula treats all ding swellings.

Oyster shell (nine liang, using the softer pieces), stalactite, goji root bark (two liang each), white quartz (one liang), balloon flower root (one and a half liang), and white limestone (one jin, using the soft, yellow pieces).

Crush each of the six ingredients separately and sift through fine silk, then mix them together. First take nine sheng of Fulonggan (the earth from the center of a stove), grind it to powder, and add one dou and two sheng of clear wine. Stir well, let it settle, and take two sheng of the clear liquid from the top to mix with the powdered ingredients. Shape the mixture into medicinal cakes six fen in diameter and two fen thick.

Leave the cloudy wine sediment in the basin, and place the medicinal cakes in a steamer above it. Cover the basin with a sheet of paper, then seal it with mud so that the vapors from the wine can steam the cakes. Stir the mixture repeatedly as it steams to release the vapor. After half a day, once the cakes are dry, place them in an earthenware jar, separating each layer with a sheet of paper…

First spread the medicine out in layers, taking care not to let the ingredients stick together. Seal it tightly with clay and leave it for twenty-one days.

When the medicine is dry, store it in a paper bag in a dry place. To use it, insert a needle into the center of the sore and pierce deeply, down to its root. Pierce the area around the sore as well, allowing the blood to flow out. Then scrape off a small amount of the medicine with a knife—about the size of a soybean—and apply it to the sore.

For patients whose condition is severe and who feel lethargic, apply the medicine three or four times during the day and another three or four times at night. For those with milder symptoms, apply it once or twice a day. In severe cases, the root of the sore will rot and come away after two days of treatment; in milder cases, this will happen within half a day to a day. Watch for the surface of the sore to bulge, as this indicates that its root is coming away. Even after the root has rotted and become exposed, do not stop the treatment; continue applying the medicine. This medicine is said to be relatively mild and to help new flesh grow over the sore. If the illness is in the mouth, throat, chest, or abdomen, abnormal swelling will usually also appear on the body’s surface. If you feel unwell with alternating sensations of cold and heat and suspect this illness, mix the medicine with a beverage or clear water and take a dose about the size of two apricot kernels, three or four times over the course of a day and night. It is said that this will make the affected area disperse and rot on its own, or allow the root of the illness to be picked out, bringing recovery. Even if the root is not expelled, the patient will recover. Observe the patient’s mental state to see whether they feel clear-headed.

The best time to prepare this medicine is the fifth day of the fifth month; the seventh day of the seventh month is the next best. The ninth day of the ninth month and the La Day in the twelfth month are also suitable. If the medicine is urgently needed, it may be prepared on other days, though these are not as auspicious. Keep the preparation clean, burn incense, and avoid contact with anything unclean. Do not let mourners, people with physical disabilities, women who have recently given birth, or domestic animals such as livestock, chickens, and dogs see the preparation.

When suffering from this illness, abstain from sexual intercourse and avoid eating pork, beef, chicken, fish, raw Chinese chives, scallions, garlic, rapeseed, cilantro, mallow, alcohol, vinegar, wheat-based foods, and similar items. If the illness flares up after these prohibitions have been broken, mix the medicine with a decoction of goji root and take it; the specific prescription appears below. The two prescriptions recorded here originally came from the same lineage. After considering them, knowledgeable scholars judged that the latter prescription was the genuine original.

Zhao Rao’s Prescription

Twenty-five liang of ginger stone, ten liang of oyster shell (seven liang in the Cui family prescription), three liang of poria, and four liang of goji root bark.

Pound and sift each of the four ingredients separately, then mix them thoroughly. First take six sheng of fresh goji roots, cut with their bark, and boil them in one dou and a half of water. When the liquid has reduced to five sheng, strain out the dregs. Add two sheng of dog feces (the Cui family prescription says to use dog urine), stir well, and let the mixture stand until it settles. Take the clear liquid from the top and combine it with the medicinal powder described above. Pound thoroughly, shape into medicinal cakes, and leave them in a shaded place to dry. The patient should use a double-edged needle to pierce straight into the very center of the sore…

After the pain has completely subsided, pull out the needle, scrape off some of the medicinal powder, and quickly pack it into the wound cavity. Do not let the wound rest; then spread powder over the entire opening. The wound will immediately swell outward. Use a needle to lift out the root of the sore. In more serious cases, this may take half a day or longer. If the sore has already broken down and no root can be lifted out, it will heal on its own, so there is no need to worry.

When the illness is inside the body, the corresponding area on the outside will swell, and the person will usually also feel chills and fever. If you suspect that a sore has formed inside the body, scrape some medicinal powder into half a cup of water, measure out five pills’ worth, each the size of a tung-tree seed, mix them in, and take the medicine three times a day and three times a night. The swollen sore will then subside on its own. If the root of the sore needs to be expelled, after taking the medicine for a day, use a chicken feather to probe the throat and induce vomiting; the root will come out with the vomit. Even if it does not, the root will break down on its own. For sores on the body’s surface, apply the medicine three times a day and three times a night as well. After the root has come out, continue applying the medicine without stopping. New flesh will then grow, making the sore easier to heal.

If the illness flares up after one has violated various prohibitions, take three sheng of goji root with its bark, chop it, and boil it in five sheng of water until reduced to two sheng. Strain out the herbs. Then take one qian and seven fen of the medicinal powder, mix it into one cup of goji juice, and drink it two or three times a day. It is better to drink goji juice on its own as well. You can also mix goji juice with white dog dung and drink the liquid; this is even more effective. Drink it immediately after mixing; there is no need to wait for it to dry. “White dog dung” here means the lime-colored feces a dog passes after eating bones.

If preparing the medicine in advance, it is especially efficacious to make it on the fifth day of the fifth month, the seventh day of the seventh month, the ninth day of the ninth month, or the La day in the twelfth month. If someone suddenly develops a sore throat, with chills and fever that come and go, this is the illness in question and should be treated at once with this medicine. A sore throat accompanied by chills and fever without any apparent cause is also this illness. Taking the medicine as described above will bring a rapid recovery. The two prescriptions given before and after belong to the same type of treatment and are used in the same way. They also treat carbuncles and deep abscesses—pus-filled sores between the skin and muscles—and work very well.

Prescriptions for treating ding sores, a type of furuncle, and noting that one must avoid seeing hemp pollen, since seeing it is said to cause death:

Take equal amounts of sesame, ash from a burned candlewick, and iron filings scraped from an iron needle. Grind them into a fine powder, mix with vinegar, and apply to the affected area.

Another prescription: Take three parts lime and two parts purslane. Pound them together, mix with egg white, and apply to the affected area.

Another prescription: Pierce the swollen sore around its edges and in the center with a needle, then apply realgar powder. The text says that this works immediately and is highly efficacious; another version says to apply yellow earth instead.

Another prescription: Take soil freshly dug from a rat hole, mix it with a child’s urine, and apply it to the affected area.

Another prescription: Scrape rust from iron and grind it into powder. Mix it with human breast milk and apply it to the affected area; it will soon take effect.

Another prescription: Grind the flowers of the small red bean plant into powder and apply it; the sore will heal.

Another prescription: Take the pointed part of human feces and apply it to the affected area; the sore will soon heal.

Another prescription: Place one Four Spirits Pill (the name of a formula) on the furuncle overnight, and its root will be drawn out.

Prescriptions for treating various furuncles

Take any one of the roots, stems, seedlings, or seeds of cocklebur. Burn it to ash, then mix it with vinegar and the liquid that settles out of rice-washing water to make a paste, and apply it to the affected area. Replace the paste whenever it dries, up to ten times; the root of the sore will then be drawn out. This remedy works very well. In the fourth year of the Zhenguan era, a furuncle suddenly appeared at the corner of my mouth. I asked Gan Zizhen’s mother to apply a plaster, but after ten days it still had not healed. I then treated it with this prescription, and it cleared up. Since then, I have often prepared this medicine to help people, and it has never failed to work. I have therefore recorded it especially to pass on to later generations. There are roughly a thousand prescriptions for treating furuncles; even the prescription of Rong Lao of Qizhou is not as good as this one. Its ingredients are easy to obtain, and it can readily be prepared at any time.

Another prescription: Drink one dou of iron solution (an iron-containing liquid) at a time; the sore will soon heal.

Another prescription: Mix flour with twelfth-month pork fat, apply the mixture over the affected area, and it will heal.

Another prescription: Take one sheng of tribulus seeds, burn them to ash, mix with strong vinegar, and apply as a seal; the sore will heal overnight. (You can also lance the head of the sore before applying it for better results.)

Another prescription: Take the kernels from soap-nut seeds, grind them into powder, and apply it; the sore will heal within five days.

Han Guang of Yushan’s prescription (a formula passed down by Han Guang): Han Guang treated furuncles. In the early years of the Zhenguan era, Governor Xu of Quzhou obtained this prescription.

Burn one dan of mugwort to ash and put it in a bamboo tube. Pour water through it to collect the liquid, then take one liang of the liquid and mix it with lime to make a paste the consistency of batter. Prick into the sore with a needle; when the prick reaches the point of pain, immediately dab on the medicinal paste. Apply it three times, and the root of the sore will be drawn out on its own. The remedy is remarkably effective. During the Zhenguan era, it was used to treat more than thirty people, all of whom recovered, so this prescription was recorded.

Fish-navel furuncle: It resembles a sore just pricked with a heated needle, red around the edges and black in the center. It may be pricked with a needle. If the prick causes little pain, the condition may be fatal and must be treated. The prescription is as follows:

Take equal amounts of ash from a fish head burned in the twelfth month and ash from burned hair. Mix them with runny chicken droppings and apply. This sore is dangerous as soon as it appears and may cause immediate death. (The Waitai Miyao omits the hair ash and instead mixes the ingredients with egg white to make an application.)

Another prescription: Apply malt syrup made for the Cold Food Festival; it works well. Alternatively, burn hard malt syrup to ash, spread it on, and secure it with a dressing; the sore will heal.

Prescription for treating fish-navel sores: The head of the sore is white, and the swelling is unbearably painful.

First prick several holes around the sore with a needle. Crush white lettuce (a kind of lettuce), squeeze out the juice, and drip it into the holes.

Another remedy: Apply otter droppings to the sore. It works very well.

Remedies for Treating Red-Root Ding Sores

Stir-fry white powder until it turns black. Mix it with honey and apply it to the sore. It works very well.

Another remedy: Take earth from a freshly dug rat hole, mix it with water, and spread it over the sore. Replace it with fresh earth whenever it becomes warm.

Another remedy: Grind horse teeth into powder, mix with pig fat from the twelfth lunar month, and apply it. The root of the sore will be drawn out. The horse teeth may also be burned to ash and used.

Remedies for Treating Rebellious Ding Sores

Take equal amounts of turnip root and iron scale (rust).

Mix and crush the two ingredients. Make an opening in the sore with a large needle, then shave the turnip root to the size of a needle tip. First dip its tip in the rust and insert it into the opening. Then apply the crushed medicine over it to seal the opening, and cover it with a square of red silk one cun on each side. Replace the medicine once pus begins to drain. After a short while, the root of the sore will be drawn out, and it will then heal. Avoid greasy foods, raw or cold foods, vinegar, slippery or greasy foods, the five pungent foods, stale and foul-smelling foods, and sticky foods.

Another remedy: Prick the head and the area around the sore so that the pus drains fully. Crush the yellow part of a raw chestnut and apply it, then surround it with flour to keep the ointment from leaking out. Leave it on from morning until noon, and the root of the sore will be drawn out.

Another remedy: Surround the opening with flour as described above, then prick the sore repeatedly with a needle. Boil vinegar in a copper vessel and pour it into the ring of flour, filling it to about the capacity of one cup. Replace the vinegar when it cools. After replacing it three times, the root of the sore will come out.

Another remedy: Take a piece of shed snake skin about the size of an egg. Boil it in four sheng of water, bringing it to a boil three or four times. Strain out the dregs and drink it all at once; this will cure the condition.

Another remedy: Burn shed snake skin to ash, mix it with egg white, and apply it. This will cure the condition.

Another remedy: Crush cocklebur shoots and squeeze out the juice. Drink one to two sheng, and apply the dregs to the affected area. This will cure the condition.

Another remedy: Apply moxibustion five finger-widths behind the wrist crease on the palm side. Men should be treated on the left hand, women on the right. Apply seven moxa cones; this will cure the condition. This moxibustion method has been used and proven effective. Although there are many moxibustion methods for treating ding swellings, this one is especially reliable and remarkably effective.

Essential Prescriptions Worth a Thousand Gold for Emergencies by Master Sun (Sun Simiao), fascicle 65