《葛仙翁肘後備急方》Vol. 4

This records several medicinal formulas used by Ge Hong (the Immortal Lord Ge) for treating sudden-onset ascites. In the initial stage of ascites, the patient's eyelids swell like old silkworms, with prominent pulsating veins in the head, cold inner thighs, and pitting edema in the calves that retains finger marks when pressed. When turning the abdomen, one can hear water sounds. Without prompt treatment, the whole body soon becomes swollen, with the abdomen distended to the point of immediate rebound when pressed—indicating a more severe condition.

Ge Hong believed this illness typically arises from bodily weakness, recovery from serious illness, chronic diarrhea, or women drinking water postpartum without proper digestion, leading to dysfunction of the Sanjiao (the three metabolic systems in Chinese medicine: upper, middle, and lower burners), obstructed urination, and gradual accumulation of fluids in the meridians.

He provided multiple treatment approaches: The first formula uses one sheng of stir-fried Tinglizi (Descurainiae Semen) pounded together with a live rooster to form pills the size of Wutong seeds. Begin with five pills per dose, gradually increasing to ten. During treatment, avoid salt and regularly consume red bean rice, red bean soup, and preferably snakehead fish.

Another formula combines one liang each of Fangfeng (Saposhnikoviae Radix), Gancao (Glycyrrhizae Radix), and Tinglizi, mixed with vinegar to form pills. Take three pills three times daily until the swelling subsides. There's also a honeyed pill formula with Xionghuang (Realgar), Shexiang (Moschus), and Gansui (Kansui Radix), starting with two pills and gradually increasing to four.

A distinctive method involves soaking Tinglizi in spring wine overnight, then drinking one small cup per dose. Alternatively, stir-fry Tinglizi with Xingren (Armeniacae Semen) until yellow and divide into ten doses. The text also records Hu Qia's mercury pill formula—boiling mercury continuously for three days and nights, then pounding it with other herbs sixty thousand times to form pills. Start with one pill daily, increasing by one each day.

Finally, a concentrated decoction of Ke tree bark (called "munu" by southerners, often used in shipbuilding) is formed into pills. After taking, urination occurs quickly, followed by a maintenance dose of three pills daily. Post-recovery, beef and mutton may be consumed for nourishment, but gradually.

This text records various medicinal formulas for treating edema:

The first formula uses equal parts of true storax (a precious aromatic resin), mercury, and white powder mixed with honey to form pills the size of beans. Take two pills daily in three divided doses. The treatment will induce diuresis—patients should control water intake and rest well. Storax may be omitted if unavailable.

The second method employs twenty ripe castor seeds: peel, grind, and mix with water to make 300ml of medicinal liquid. Take one dose in the morning, which should induce vomiting of retained fluids by noon. If incomplete, take thirty seeds after three days. Patients should restrict water and avoid salty foods during treatment.

The third prescription combines one liter of red beans with one white-feathered chicken, boiled in three pecks of water using normal cooking methods. Consume both the meat and broth.

The fourth approach uses a green-headed male duck boiled in five liters of water until reduced to one liter of concentrated broth. Drink slowly, then induce sweating by covering with thick quilts for enhanced effect.

The fifth method involves swallowing the yolks of ten swallow eggs directly.

The sixth treatment requires eating ten roasted toads daily.

For severe ascites (called "water gu" disease) characterized by abdominal distension, fluid sloshing sounds, and darkened skin: Take ninety peeled and cored croton seeds with sixty peeled and pointed apricot kernels, stir-fry until yellow, then pulverize. Take one mung-bean-sized dose with water, avoiding alcohol.

Alternative formulas include: Drinking a hen's-egg-sized portion of devil's fan grass juice for diuresis; or using hemp seed extract for water gu disease.

Boil thirty catties of cimi herb in three dan of water until reduced to one dan. Filter and concentrate into pills—take three to six soapberry-seed-sized pills to promote urination, followed by congee for recuperation.

Boil one handful of cogongrass roots with three liters of red beans in three liters of water until dry. Remove the roots and eat the beans to promote urination.

Boil ten catties each of sage and verbena in one dan of water until reduced to five dou. Concentrate and mix with rice flour to make pills—start with two pills, gradually increasing to four or five, while avoiding fatty and raw/cold foods.

For severe swelling: Boil one handful of white mulberry bark in two liters of water until reduced to five ge. Add powdered betel nuts from two large areca nuts, boil again, then mix with a small amount of red snow (a mineral medicine) before taking.

Other treatments include: Ox urine consumption, pokeberry root preparations, mutton soup with spices decoction, and similar formulas for treating edema.

The Emergency Formulas Behind the Elbow by Ge Xianweng records several practical prescriptions for treating edema. For cases where swelling appears on the skin without abdominal fluid accumulation, inducing sweating with diaphoretic herbs can bring relief, but care must be taken to avoid wind and cold exposure. If only abdominal distension occurs without improvement through purgatives, acupuncture may be applied two inches below the navel, inserting the needle several fen deep to drain the accumulated fluid until the swelling subsides.

Here are several effective formulas: The Military Minister's Hand-Collected Formulas by Li Jiang documents a universal edema remedy applicable regardless of disease duration. Take 30 grams each of knoxia root (Daji), Chinese angelica (Danggui), and tangerine peel (Jupi), finely chopped, and boil in 600 milliliters of water until reduced to 200 milliliters. Drink the decoction in one dose. After ingestion, copious watery discharge will occur—this is normal. Severe cases require no more than two doses for recovery, but dietary restrictions must be observed for a year to prevent relapse. This formula originates from Zhang Shangke.

The Arcane Essentials from the Imperial Library records a remedy for water qi (edema): Peel and dice white pokeberry root (Shanglu) into bean-sized pieces, take 30 grams, and boil in three liters of water until reduced to one liter. Once thoroughly softened, add millet to make porridge and consume on an empty stomach. Take once daily, avoiding diarrhea.

Another edema-relieving formula: Select a large carp, remove its head, tail, and bones, then simmer the flesh in two liters of water with 600 milliliters of adzuki beans (Chixiaodou) until reduced to 400 milliliters. Strain the broth through gauze and drink it hot in one dose (or split into two if excessive). Diarrhea will follow, and recovery occurs once the excess water is expelled.

For acute generalized edema: A case was recorded where swelling spread from the feet to the knees, then engulfed the entire body. Take high-quality bitter gourd pulp (Kuhulu), kneaded into bean-sized pellets, lightly wrap in flour, and boil briefly. Consume seven pellets on an empty stomach. By noon, profuse watery discharge will occur. Continue for three days. After swelling subsides, observe dietary restrictions for three years. Note: Only select bitter gourds without black spots and with fine, dense striations—otherwise, they may be toxic.

The Sagacious Benefaction Formulas includes a critical edema remedy: Finely chop 250 grams of badger meat (Huanrou) and cook with 150 grams of non-glutinous rice (Jingmi) in three liters of water, adding scallions, pepper, ginger, and fermented beans to make porridge. Another formula addresses severe edema with dyspnea preventing recumbency (though the original text omits specific ingredient details).

Here are several ancient medicinal formulas for treating water-retention disorders such as edema and dysuria:

The first method involves drying five mole crickets (an insect species), grinding them into powder, and taking 0.5 to 1 qian (approx. 1.5-3g) mixed with warm water before meals to promote diuresis effectively.

For life-threatening severe edema: Take one green-headed duck, slaughter and chop it conventionally, then cook with rice and seasonings into thick congee to consume on an empty stomach.

Another prescription for edema with abdominal distension: Remove feathers from a white duck, clean thoroughly, stuff its cavity with half a sheng (approx. 300ml) of rice plus ginger and Sichuan pepper, sew shut, then steam until fully cooked for consumption.

For bodily swelling with dyspnea: Crush Prunus japonica seeds, mix with wheat bran to make cakes for eating—this relieves constipation and regulates Qi (vital energy).

External treatments include: Boiling Phaseolus calcaratus in liquid extracted from mulberry branch ashes for empty-stomach consumption; or drinking 1 sheng (approx. 600ml) of yellow ox urine as diuretic (salt must be avoided during treatment).

Internal formulas: Decoction of 3 liang (approx. 112g) Atractylodes macrocephala with 5 liang (approx. 186g) Alisma plantago-aquatica treats subcardiac water retention; dried Lemna minor powder improves bladder Qi stagnation.

For critical edema cases: Pound Lepidium seeds mixed with Stephania tetrandra powder, blended with green-headed duck blood to form pills—take 5 to 10 pills depending on severity.

An alternative involves boiling Phaseolus calcaratus into thick liquid for foot soaking to prevent ascending edema. The text notes these formulas were recorded in Tang Dynasty Minister Li Jiang's medical texts with verified efficacy.

(Note: These ancient formulas involve animal-derived medicines and unconventional methods—modern application requires professional medical supervision.)

This passage describes several methods for treating sudden abdominal masses (known in Traditional Chinese Medicine as "zhēng jiǎ"). When this condition strikes, the abdomen becomes hard as stone with stabbing pain, causing incessant day-and-night crying. Without treatment, it can be fatal within a hundred days.

The first method: Take two jin of Achyranthes root (a Chinese medicinal herb), steep it in one dou of wine, seal the container and warm it in hot ashes until the medicinal properties infuse. Take five ge to one sheng per dose, adjusting according to individual tolerance. Physician Yao's family recipe considers this Achyranthes wine particularly effective.

Alternative recipe: Substitute Achyranthes with elderberry root (Sambucus williamsii) for enhanced efficacy.

Another approach: Pound large quantities of pokeberry root (Phytolacca), steam until warm, place on fresh cloth over the abdomen. Maintain continuous application day and night, ensuring the abdomen stays warm.

On the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, gather ten jin of hú (possibly bottle gourd or garlic), remove skin, combine with twelve-inch cinnamon bark and duck-egg-sized hearth earth (yellow clay from stove centers). Pound together with vinegar paste, apply on cloth. Typically effective within three applications.

Alternative treatment: Burn ash from hackberry wood, use ash water to brew one hu of rice wine. Begin with half-ge doses, gradually increasing to one or two sheng. Usually cured with one course. This ash is traditionally used for dyeing crimson fabrics.

Most abdominal masses develop gradually—when discovered suddenly at advanced stages, they become difficult to treat. These growths impair digestion, causing emaciation. While premium remedies like "Jade Vessel" or "Eight Toxins" formulas exist, we focus on accessible methods.

For instance: Harvest giant knotweed root (avoid specimens reflected in water), pound and decoct. Mix with five-six sheng of glutinous rice, apply by day while eating normally.

Or: Pound one sheng of knotweed root a thousand times, macerate in wine. Start with small doses thrice daily—this wine outperforms costly medicines.

Another formula: Combine one dan of silkworm excrement with mulberry wood ash, leach five times with water. Simmer with one-foot-long live softshell turtle until bones dissolve. Chop, decoct further, form into wutong-seed-sized pills. Take seven pills thrice daily.

Alternative preparation: Grind two liang of Aconitum ferox with three hundred Sichuan peppercorns, bind with egg white into hemp-seed pills. Begin with one pill, gradually increasing to three.

Final method: Take one large pig heart, split and remove blood, stuff with realgar, musk, etc..

Here are several ancient medicinal formulas and heat therapy methods for treating abdominal masses:

For treating epigastric masses (turtle-like masses): Take five musk pods (dangmenzi) and one hundred peeled raw croton seeds, simmer them in three liters of fine wine in a small bronze vessel until fully dissolved. Form into pills the size of hemp seeds, taking three pills per dose, three times daily. If the wine decoction fails to dissolve the ingredients, crush them and mix with honey to make more effective pills. Another formula uses half a jin of rhubarb powder, three liang of crude mirabilitite, and one jin of honey, simmered and formed into phoenix tree seed-sized pills—take ten pills per dose.

For treating cup-sized epigastric masses causing inability to eat: Simmer two liang of prepared pepperweed seeds, two liang of rhubarb, and four liang of euphorbia, then pulverize and sieve. Mix with honey and pound one thousand times to form phoenix tree seed-sized pills. Take two pills per dose, three times daily, gradually increasing dosage.

For treating qi stagnation below both ribs: Pulverize and sieve two liang of wolfbane root, one liang of inula flowers, and two liang of prepared aconite. Mix with honey to form phoenix tree seed-sized pills—start with two pills per dose, gradually increasing to three.

Heat therapy methods: Pour two liters of fish oil into a bronze vessel, heat with six or seven large fire sticks. When warm, cover the affected area with thick paper and apply the heated vessel continuously day and night, replenishing oil as needed. Alternatively, simmer three liters of chopped cornelian cherries with wine, wrap in cloth for hot compresses—replace when cool until the mass dissipates. Another method uses one liter of pounded yellow earth mixed with mashed garlic and vinegar to form a paste applied via cloth compress, replaced when dry.

For treating women with cup-sized masses below the navel causing amenorrhea: Though the original text is incomplete, the aforementioned methods may also apply to such conditions.

This passage records several ancient prescriptions and medical cases for treating abdominal masses (known as qi masses, fleshy concretions, etc.). In ancient times, abdominal masses were categorized as either treatable or untreatable, with those hard as stone upon palpation considered difficult to cure.

The first prescription uses dried lacquer (the desiccated sap of the lacquer tree) and fresh rehmannia juice to form pills, taken three pills at a time after meals, three times daily. The lacquer must first be decocted until it reaches a pill-forming consistency, with each pill sized like a phoenix tree seed.

Additional remedies are documented:

1. For chronic concretions in the heart and abdomen: A cinnabar-chicken droppings formula. Starve a rooster for three days, then feed it cinnabar-mixed rice. Collect and sun-dry the droppings, grind them into powder, and take with warm wine. Severe cases may double the dose, requiring multiple chickens for rotation.

2. For fish/meat stagnation forming concretions: A dog feces remedy. Burned dog feces are soaked in wine for two nights, filtered, and taken in divided doses to expel stagnated matter.

3. Verbena juice or ginger water can dissolve raw fish/meat accumulations.

4. White horse urine treats "meat concretion" (a morbid craving for meat), requiring three liters consumed on an empty stomach.

5. Pills made from equal parts turtle shell, chebulic myrobalan peel, and dried ginger treat concretion disorders.

Two notable case studies:

• A Song Emperor's palace maid suffered "hair concretion" with waist pain radiating to the heart. Physician Xu Wenbo induced vomiting with oil, expelling a three-foot hair-like object ending in a snake's head.
• The "Shengjin Formula" records using corydalis powder with roasted pork pancreas to treat peritonitis and qi masses.

Finally mentioned is a prescription (the 27th formula) for cold concretions and phlegm-fluid accumulations in the heart/abdomen, presenting as cold abdominal lumps, indigestion, rib-side distension, and watery sounds upon palpation.

These methods reflect ancient understandings of digestive system masses, often employing animal excreta, herbs, and special food combinations. Notably, some approaches (like animal feces medicinals) are no longer applicable in modern medicine.

Here are several medicinal formulas for treating food stagnation and phlegm retention, all prepared using common herbs in pill form.

The first prescription uses a large toad (Bufo gargarizans) skinned and gutted, then chopped and combined with mirabilite (a mineral medicine). Dosage is adjusted according to the patient's physique: robust individuals take one sheng, average build seven ge, and frail patients five ge, boiled in six sheng of water until reduced to four sheng. Take one sheng per dose, with another sheng if ineffective. After improvement, administer every nine to ten days.

Alternative formulas include: one with cornelian cherries and saltpeter decocted with ginger in wine; another with rhubarb and lepidium seed combined with mirabilite and honey into phoenix tree seed-sized pills (about soybean size), taking three to five after meals; and a honey pill made with euphorbia, aconite, and inula flowers taken before meals.

A notably effective "Central Commander Black Pill" excels against various phlegm accumulations. Containing croton seeds (destoned and peeled), platycodon root and other herbs pounded with honey, it's shaped into broad bean-sized pills. Take one to two pills depending on severity, followed by a hundred-day recuperation period.

Other formulas include fritillary bulb with platycodon, alum and croton; poria with cornelian cherry. For acute indigestion, rhubarb, poria, mirabilite with minimal croton is recommended, stopping upon improvement.

All prescriptions emphasize dosage adjustment based on response, ceasing when effective, and post-treatment recuperation. Most pills use honey binding, sized either like phoenix tree seeds (approximately soybean size) or broad beans as standard.

This text records several ancient medicinal formulas primarily used to treat common ailments such as cold syndromes, food stagnation, and phlegm retention.

The first is the Platycodon (Jiegeng) Pill formula: Use 4 parts platycodon root and cinnamon twigs (Guizhi) each, 8 parts croton seeds (Badou, shell removed), 5 parts apricot kernels (Xingren, skin removed), and 12 parts genkwa flower (Yuanhua). First stir-fry the genkwa flower until it turns purple, then grind the first three ingredients into powder. Pound the croton seeds and apricot kernels into a paste and mix thoroughly, pounding the mixture two thousand times to form pills the size of soybeans. Adults take one pill per dose, with a maximum of two or three pills. For infants experiencing convulsions ten days after birth, administer one or two millet-sized pills. Take when feeling unwell, with effects appearing after bowel movement.

The second is the Sulfur (Liuhuang) Pill, specifically for severe cold syndromes where patients require hot drinks and heavy clothing even in summer. Combine equal parts of sulfur, alum stone (Fanshi), dried ginger (Ganjiang), cornelian cherry (Zhuyu), cinnamon twigs, aconite (Wutou), monkshood (Fuzi), Sichuan pepper (Huajiao), ginseng (Renshen), asarum herb (Xixin), honeylocust pods (Zaojia), and angelica root (Danggui) – twelve ingredients in total – with honey to form pills the size of Chinese parasol tree seeds. Take three times daily, 10-20 pills per dose. For cold-type diarrhea, add halloysite (Chishizhi) and dragon bone (Longgu).

The third, the Night-Dew Pill, treats cold-type accumulations: Use 3 liang each of alum stone, dried ginger, cinnamon twigs, platycodon root, processed monkshood, and honeylocust pods. Grind into powder, sift, mix with honey to form pills, and take 10-15 pills with wine.

Supplementary formulas include:

1. For abdominal masses: Decoct 10 liang of rhubarb (Dahuang) with 3 sheng of vinegar and 2 spoonfuls of honey to form pills. Take 30 pills with ginger soup.

2. For epigastric masses (fuliang qi): Grind 2 liang of immature peaches (Taonu) into powder. Take 2 qian on empty stomach with warm wine.

3. For cold-type vomiting: Grind 5 liang of pinellia rhizome (Banxia) into powder. Mix 2 qian with flour to make noodles, seasoned with ginger vinegar.

4. For sudden headaches: Mix 4 parts stove-bottom ash, 3 parts monkshood, and 1 part cinnamon twigs as powder. Take with cold water. An alternative version omits cinnamon twigs.

5. External headache application: Grind equal parts sophora root (Kushen), cinnamon twigs, and pinellia rhizome into powder. Apply externally after mixing with vinegar.

These formulas emphasize dosage adjustment according to symptoms, with effectiveness measured by therapeutic responses (such as bowel movements). Most ingredients possess warming properties suitable for cold syndrome treatments.

This passage primarily discusses several medicinal formulas and therapeutic methods for treating headaches and vomiting caused by phlegm retention (phlegm-dampness stagnation) in the chest and diaphragm region.

When experiencing headaches, prepare a decoction using thirty dark plums (wumei), a three-finger pinch of salt, and three liters of wine, boiling it down to one liter. Strain and consume the entire dose at once to induce vomiting—relief follows after expulsion. This type of headache, termed "reversal headache" (jue toutong), arises from ascending phlegm-Qi in the chest and diaphragm and can be resolved through emesis.

A simpler method involves boiling two to three liters of thick rice congee, consuming it warm until vomiting occurs. Repeat the process several times. In severe cases, bile may be expelled, which is harmless and leads to swift recovery.

For conditions marked by excessive phlegm in the chest, headaches, loss of appetite, or phlegm obstruction after alcohol consumption, multiple formulas are provided:

1. Combine two liang of changshan (Dichroa root), one liang of licorice (gancao), one liang of pine mist (songluo), and twenty-one melon pedicles (guadi). Decoct in 1.5 liters each of wine and water until reduced to 1.5 liters. Take seven ge (approx. 210ml) initially to induce vomiting. If incomplete, divide the remainder into two doses. Follow with Pinellia (banxia) decoction for recuperation.

2. Boil one liang of alum (fanshi) in two liters of water until reduced to one liter. Add half a ge (approx. 15ml) of honey and consume in one dose. If vomiting doesn’t occur, drink a small amount of hot broth to assist.

3. Soak three liang each of asarum (duxiong) and pine mist (songluo) with thirty melon pedicles (guadi) in 1.2 liters of wine for two nights. Strain and take five ge (approx. 150ml) warm. If no vomiting, repeat once in the evening.

4. Crush one liang of melon pedicles (guadi) and four liang of red beans (chixiaodou), mix with three ge (approx. 90ml) of warm broth, and consume before resting. Repeat if vomiting doesn’t ensue.

5. Blend one liter each of hot and cold water to prepare "raw-cooked broth" (shengshu tang), then add three ge of salt. Drink to induce vomiting; if incomplete, take another two ge of the decoction.

Another method involves boiling four liang of changshan and half a liang of licorice in seven liters of water until reduced to three liters. Add half a liter of honey and consume one liter—honey may be omitted. Regularly using one of these formulas monthly can prevent phlegm retention. Additional complex prescriptions like "Xuanfu Five Beverages" (xuanfu wuyin) address chest oppression and shortness of breath.

Final recuperation formulas:

1. Boil two liang of licorice, three liang of poria (fuling), and fifty crushed apricot kernels (xingren) in 13 liters of water until reduced to six liters. Divide into five doses.

2. Simmer four liang of cinnamon twigs (guizhi), two liang of atractylodes (baizhu), two liang of licorice, and processed aconite (fuzi) in six liters of water (specific dosage instructions incomplete in the original text).

This passage discusses several medicinal formulas for treating diaphragmatic stagnation (qi and blood stasis in the chest-diaphragm region) and phlegm retention (pathological mucus formed by abnormal water metabolism in the body).

For chest-diaphragm stagnation, two formulas are presented: The first uses one liang (about 30g) of dried and powdered Veratrum nigrum mixed with half liang of peeled Croton seeds. First pound the Croton into paste, then add the Veratrum powder and mix thoroughly, blending with honey to form pills the size of hemp seeds. Take 1-3 pills per dose. The second is the Five Diaphragms Pill, combining ingredients like Ophiopogon root, licorice, Sichuan pepper, Polygala root, processed aconite, dried ginger, ginseng, cinnamon, and Asarum herb, formed into pellets the size of slingshot bullets. These are held in the mouth to slowly swallow the juices, three pills daily, mainly treating chest oppression, shortness of breath, and cold sensation in the heart region.

Additional phlegm-resolving formulas include: For phlegm syncope headache (headache caused by upward reversal of phlegm-dampness), boil ten smoked plums with salt and wine; for cold-phlegm nausea, take Piper longum powder before meals with congee; for copious phlegm with vomiting and chest fullness, use Magnolia bark coated with ginger juice, roasted yellow, then powdered and taken with congee.

The Qianjin Yifang (Supplement to Thousand Gold Prescriptions) mentions that chronic consumption of cold drinks weakens the spleen and stomach, causing food to transform into cold water that's vomited out. This can be treated with Halloysite Powder: crush one jin (about 500g) of halloysite clay, take one square-inch spoonful (an ancient measurement) per dose with wine, gradually increasing the dosage. After finishing one jin, the water vomiting will be completely cured. One phlegm-retention patient who had tried many ineffective medicines recovered using this formula.

These formulas emphasize slow absorption through sublingual administration or consumption with congee. Note that while named "Five Diaphragms," the pill actually corresponds to four types of diaphragm disorders (melancholy, qi, rage, and cold) - specific diagnosis requires consultation with more specialized medical texts.

Here are several ancient prescriptions for treating phlegm disorders and dizziness, primarily sourced from the Song Dynasty Daoist physician Ge Hong's Emergency Formulas to Keep Up One's Sleeve (Zhouhou Beiji Fang).

The first formula, called "Raw Rhinoceros Horn Pill": Take ten liang of chuanxiong rhizome (a Chinese medicinal herb), selecting compact small pieces, and soak them in rice-washing water for three days, changing the water daily. After slicing and sun-drying, grind into powder and divide into two portions. To each portion, add one fen each of musk and borneol, along with half a liang of raw rhinoceros horn. Boil honey with hot water and pound into pills the size of small marbles. Take one pill with tea or wine. For excessive phlegm, add half a liang of cinnabar; for chest congestion, add one fen of bezoar; for dizziness, add one fen of asarum root; for facial paralysis, add one fen of processed Arisaema rhizome.

Another prescription for chest congestion and phlegm: Use an unlimited amount of Pinellia tuber, soak overnight in sour water, then rinse five to seven times with warm water to remove the odor. After drying, pound into powder. Mix with water and flour to form cakes, dry them, then grind again. For every five liang of powder, add one qian of raw borneol, and mix with thick water to form pills the size of ginkgo seeds. Store in a gauze bag to dry in the shade. Take one pill each time with tea or mint broth.

For regulating the Three Burners' Qi (Sanjiao), the "Diaphragm-Relieving Pill": Use four liang of morning glory seeds (half raw, half processed), two liang of Gleditsia seeds coated with butter and ground into powder. Cook with ginger juice into paste and form pills the size of phoenix tree seeds. Take twenty pills per dose with schizonepeta broth.

For wind-phlegm headaches: Use an unlimited amount of chuanxiong rhizome, soak in clean water, slice, then sun-dry or roast before grinding into powder. Mix with honey to form small marble-sized pills, to be taken with tea or wine as needed.

For wind-phlegm disorders: Mix one fen of turmeric powder with ten fen of Veratrum powder. Take a small amount first mixed with a little water, then rinse the mouth and swallow the remainder with more water. Always eat something afterward to counteract the medicinal effects.

Simpler remedies include: Crush three terminalia fruits and take with wine for indigestion; or finely grind seven straight silkworms and take with ginger juice and warm water for wind-phlegm. These formulas meticulously document the preparation methods and administration techniques for each medicinal ingredient.

Here are several medicinal formulas and treatments for thoracic and diaphragmatic disorders:

The first method involves grinding radish seeds into powder. Take one spoonful mixed with warm water, which will induce phlegm expectoration shortly after ingestion. For stroke patients with paralysis, after vomiting, they should take laxatives followed by the harmonizing Qi and blood formula "Harmony Powder" (Heqi San) for complete recovery.

The Doumen Fang records a prescription for chest congestion with excessive phlegm: Wash and dry pinellia rhizome (Banxia), pound it into powder, mix with ginger juice to form cakes, wrap in damp paper, and roast over low heat until fragrant. Take one pellet-sized portion with half a qian of salt, decoct in two bowls of water until reduced to one bowl, and consume while hot. This remarkably effective formula relieves chest oppression, transforms phlegm, neutralizes toxins, and treats alcohol or food-related stomach injuries.

For sudden thoracic obstruction pain (chest bi syndrome): This condition causes chest rigidity with abrupt stabbing pain, muscular numbness, inability to bend forward, and such severe cutaneous sensitivity that even touching the chest skin becomes unbearable. Symptoms include chest tightness, shortness of breath, cough-induced referred pain, restlessness with sweating, and potentially life-threatening back-referred pain if untreated.

Therapeutic formulas include:

1. Combine realgar (Xionghuang) and croton seeds (Badou), pound and sieve into fine powder, forming mung bean-sized pills. Take one pill initially, increasing slightly if ineffective.

2. Pound immature bitter orange (Zhishi), taking one small spoonful thrice daily and once at night.

3. Slice one large trichosanthes fruit (Gualou) with half a sheng of macrostem onion bulbs (Xiebai), decoct in seven sheng of white wine until reduced to two sheng, divided into two doses. May add four liang of pinellia (pre-washed in hot water to remove mucus).

4. Decoct half a jin of tangerine peel (Jupi), four zhishi fruits, and half a jin fresh ginger in four sheng water until reduced to two sheng, taken in two doses.

5. Equal parts powdered zhishi and cinnamon bark (Rougui) taken with one spoonful of tangerine peel decoction, three times daily (Zhang Zhongjing's notably effective formula).

6. Combine equal parts rougui, aconite (Wutou), and dried ginger (Ganjiang); double portions of ginseng (Renshen), asarum herb (Xixin), and evodia fruit (Wuzhuyu); plus double portion of fritillary bulb (Beimu). Pound together with honey to form mung bean-sized pills—three pills thrice daily.

For recurrent cases, pound five jin of Chinese chive roots (Jiucaigen) to extract juice for consumption.

Additionally, Du Ren's appended formula: Remove pulp from large trichosanthes fruit, dry-fry and powder the seeds. Consume skin, seeds, and flour paste together to treat chest pain radiating to the back, heart/abdominal distension, Qi stagnation, and cough.

Here are Ge Hong's (the Immortal Lord Ge) various emergency prescriptions and therapies for sudden stomach discomforts such as vomiting, retching, and nausea.

For persistent sudden retching: Remove the egg white from raw eggs and swallow several yolks directly for recovery. Another method is to crush kudzu root, extract its juice, and drink about one liter. Alternatively, heat sugarcane juice and consume one liter, three times daily; or directly drink one liter of ginger juice. Another approach is to apply moxibustion (a traditional Chinese medicine therapy using mugwort) with seven cones (a unit of moxibustion measurement) at the Jianshi acupoint (an acupuncture point located between the two tendons on the inner wrist). Moxibustion at the Chize acupoint on the Heart Meridian is also effective. Additionally, boil two taels each of licorice and ginseng, along with four taels of ginger, in six liters of water until reduced to two liters, then divide into three doses.

For sudden vomiting accompanied by cold hands and feet: Boil half a catty of peeled and sliced ginger with four taels of crushed tangerine peel in seven liters of water until reduced to three liters. Remove the residue and drink one liter warm, three times daily. Another method is to break a stem of wild grapevine and collect the sap to drink one liter; using fresh kudzu vine is even more effective.

For persistent sudden hiccups: Drinking several liters of freshly drawn well water works well. Alternatively, press the acupoint between the eyebrows (Yintang acupoint) with fingers. Another method is to insert a皂荚刺 (Gleditsia sinensis thorn) about one fen (a traditional Chinese unit of length, approximately 0.33 cm) deep into the nostril to induce sneezing and stop hiccups. Holding one's breath while tilting the head back is another remedy. Additionally, boiling two liters of fermented black beans to extract the juice and drinking it, or consuming one liter of a decoction made from香苏 (a medicinal herb), is effective. Another option is to mix three liters of glutinous rice flour with well water and consume it. Roast one catty of loquat leaves after removing the fuzz, boil in one dou (a traditional Chinese unit of volume, approximately 10 liters) of water until reduced to three liters, and drink; reed rhizome has the same effect.

For vomiting easily after meals: Burn two taels of deer antler into ash, grind one tael of ginseng into powder, and take one fangcunqi (an ancient unit of measurement) per dose, three times daily.

For sudden nausea: Boil half a catty of Chinese chives, one tael of medicinal evodia, half a liter of fermented black beans, one ge (a traditional Chinese unit of volume, approximately 0.2 liters) of rice, four dates, two tangerine fruits, and a salt ball the size of a bullet in three liters of water until reduced to one and a half liters, then divide into three doses. A simpler method is to chew cardamom or betel nut frequently.

For stomach acid reflux and vomiting immediately after eating: Boil four taels of rhubarb and two taels of licorice in two liters of water until reduced to one and a half liters, then divide into two doses.

Here are several prescriptions for treating stomach discomfort, primarily addressing symptoms such as belching, acid reflux, heartburn, and vomiting after meals.

First prescription: Take one liang of ginseng, half a jin of evodia fruit, six liang of fresh ginger, and twelve jujubes. Boil them in six sheng of water until reduced to two sheng. Divide into two doses for consumption.

For persistent hiccups, wash and dry banxia (Pinellia rhizome), grind it into powder, and take one small spoonful—this will stop the hiccups immediately.

Another prescription: Six fen of dried ginger and four fen of processed aconite, mixed with vinegar to form pills the size of wutong seeds. Take three pills per dose, three times a day for effectiveness.

Additional prescriptions:

Zhang Zhongjing’s remedy for stomach qi rising and vomiting: Three sheng of banxia, three liang of ginseng, and one sheng of white honey. Boil in water while stirring 120 times until reduced to three and a half sheng. Take one sheng warm, twice daily. This prescription also treats phlegm retention in the chest and diaphragm.

Another remedy for vomiting, loss of appetite, dizziness, and palpitations: One sheng of banxia, half a jin of fresh ginger, and three liang of sliced poria. Boil in water and consume.

Qianjin Fang (Thousand Gold Prescriptions) records: To treat vomiting immediately after eating, grind millet into powder and mix with water to form wutong-seed-sized pills. Boil until soft, dip in vinegar, and swallow slowly. Wheat flour can substitute for millet.

Fresh ginger is an excellent remedy for vomiting. If dry heaving is accompanied by cold hands and feet, consume ginger.

For stomach distension, hardness, and inability to eat, with nausea in the chest: Finely slice eight liang of ginger and boil in water. Separately, wash five ge of banxia and boil in water. Mix the two decoctions and consume slowly.

For dry heaving: Drink a cup of goat’s milk on an empty stomach.

Doumen Fang for rebellious stomach qi: Take one large aconite and roast it on all sides over a brick. After cracking, soak it in ginger juice, then roast and soak repeatedly until dry. Finally, grind it into powder and take with rice water.

Jingyan Fang (Experience Prescriptions) for vomiting and regurgitation: One large aconite paired with one jin of fresh ginger, boiled until soft and taken with rice water.

Final prescription for continuous vomiting and inability to eat: Form into pills and take at specific times for efficacy.

This scripture records several ancient prescriptions for treating digestive disorders like vomiting and regurgitation, which I will explain one by one:

The first formula uses wulingzhi (a medicinal preparation of flying squirrel feces), selecting clean, high-quality specimens free of dirt or stones. Crush and sift into fine powder, then mix with dog bile to form pills the size of chicken heads. For administration, take one pill dissolved in hot ginger wine, consuming the decoction while extremely warm. Special note: prepare warm congee beforehand—after administering the medicine with the left hand (without allowing mouth rinsing), immediately feed a small amount of congee with the right hand.

The second formula, Bixia Dan, provides immediate relief for vomiting: take four liang of refined lead oxide (huangdan), sift it, and fry with half a sheng of high-quality rice vinegar in a medicine vessel until dry. Then calcine over charcoal fire until glowing red. After cooling, grind finely and form into firmiana seed-sized pills using millet porridge. Take seven pills swallowed whole with wine-infused decoction, not chewed.

Sun Simiao's dietary prohibition formula for vomiting: grind one white betel nut and one fen of roasted tangerine peel into powder, decoct in one bowl of water until reduced by half before consumption.

The Guangji Fang prescription for regurgitation preventing food intake: take two liang of chebulic myrobalan peel (remove pits), simmer into paste and powder, then mix with honey to form firmiana seed-sized pills. Take twenty pills on empty stomach twice daily.

The Shi Yi Xin Jing treatment for spleen-stomach deficiency with indigestion and vomiting: pound half a sheng of millet, mix with water to form firmiana seed-sized balls. After boiling, add slight salt and consume with broth on empty stomach.

The Jin Gui Yu Han Fang remedy for diaphragmatic obstruction with chest tightness and vexatious regurgitation: chop five liang of reed rhizomes, decoct in three large bowls of water until reduced to two bowls. Strain and drink warm without strict timing.

The Waitai Miyao records a remarkable anti-regurgitation formula: during Emperor Taizong's Zhenguan era (Tang Dynasty), when renowned physicians like Xu Fengyu failed to cure intractable cases, an imperial guard suggested donkey urine. Taking two ge at dawn reduced vomiting by half at mealtime; repeating the dose at dusk allowed porridge consumption at night without vomiting. Subsequently, five or six palace members with regurgitation were cured this way.

These prescriptions reflect ancient physicians' clinical experience with digestive disorders, employing animal-derived substances, minerals, and botanicals in various forms like pills and decoctions, each with specific administration methods. The donkey urine treatment particularly stands out, demonstrating traditional medicine's empirical character.

Ge Hong (the Immortal Master Ge) recorded several simple prescriptions for common acute conditions in his Emergency Formulas to Keep Up One's Sleeve:

Regarding medication precautions: This remedy contains mild toxicity and must not be overdosed. Optimal administration involves taking two ge (approximately 200ml) with warm boys' urine (considered medicinally valuable in ancient times). Severe cases may continue the treatment for seven consecutive days—this method has proven consistently effective in subsequent clinical practice.

For vomiting:

Crush three liang of hemp seeds, grind with water to extract juice, add a pinch of salt, and ingest immediately for swift relief. Li Jianyi (a Tang Dynasty official) achieved remarkable results using this formula.

For chronic cough:

1. Simmer half a ge (50ml) of ginger juice with one spoonful of honey until warm; take three consecutive doses for effect.

2. Pound four liang of fresh ginger, mix with two liang of basil leaves, 1.7 qian of ground Sichuan pepper, salt, and four liang of flour. Shape into flatbread, bake, and consume on an empty stomach—relief within three doses.

Modified version by Sun Shangyao (Tang physician): Soak two liang of dried tangerine peel, remove pith, decoct in one sheng of water until reduced to five ge, and drink hot. Adding one liang of stir-fried bitter orange enhances efficacy.

For acid reflux:

1. Blend seven sheng of sugarcane juice with one sheng of ginger juice; divide into three doses.

2. Crush four liang of betel nut and two liang of dried tangerine peel, take with honey water on an empty stomach (approx. 3g per dose).

Military Department's Manuscript records a heartburn remedy: Decoct one ge (100ml) of evodia fruit in three bowls of water until 70% remains—must be endured while drinking. One patient with stabbing stomach pain reported no recurrence for twenty years after this treatment.

For jaundice:

1. Pound five sheng of turnip seeds, sift into powder; take one dose (approx. 3g) thrice daily for ten days.

2. Secret formula: Burn human hair to ash; ingest one qian (3g) three times daily.

3. Crush fresh wheat sprouts (superior to barley) for juice; take three sheng total in 6–7 ge doses, 3–4 times daily—specifically for alcohol-induced jaundice.

4. Secret formula: Process hellebore until color changes, powder, and take 0.57 qian per dose. This induces mild vomiting but cures within several administrations.

(Note: Ancient measurements—1 ge ≈100ml, 1 sheng ≈200ml, 1 qian ≈3g; "square-inch seven" refers to a 70%-filled standard spoon.)

This text records several traditional remedies for treating jaundice (known in Chinese medicine as a condition marked by yellowing of the skin and whites of the eyes). The first prescription uses equal parts of adzuki beans, sorghum rice, and white chicken droppings, pounded and sifted into powder. Taken in three doses, it induces the expulsion of yellow fluids and specifically treats yellowing of the face and eyes.

Chinese medicine classifies jaundice into five types: general jaundice, grain jaundice (caused by improper diet), alcohol jaundice (from excessive drinking), female jaundice (related to women's physiology), and fatigue jaundice (triggered by overexertion). Among these, "yellow sweat syndrome" manifests as mild swelling of the limbs, chest tightness without sweating, and sweat the color of phellodendron bark. This condition arises when one encounters cold water immediately after heavy sweating.

One remedy involves heating one jin (≈500g) of lard and consuming it entirely in three daily doses, which induces diarrhea and subsequent relief. Another formula uses fifteen gardenia fruits, three trichosanthes seeds, and three fen (≈1.1g) of bitter sophora root, ground into powder. Two eggs are softened in vinegar, mixed with the powder, and formed into pills the size of phoenix tree seeds. Taking ten pills daily for five to six days reduces fever, with symptoms subsiding naturally if vomiting doesn't occur.

For another treatment: clean one yellow-feathered hen, stuff its cavity with three jin of fresh rehmannia root, tie securely, and steam in a copper vessel until thoroughly cooked. Extract and drink the juices. Alternatively, finely chop a handful of fresh cogongrass rhizomes, simmer with one jin of pork into a thick soup, and consume entirely. Taking one spoonful of burned oak bark ash three times daily is also effective.

Boil one chi (≈33cm) of licorice root, fifteen gardenias, and fifteen fen of phellodendron bark in four sheng (≈2.4L) of water until reduced to one and a half sheng. Divide into two doses—this also treats yellowing caused by warm pathogen diseases (exogenous febrile conditions). Simmer six liang (≈225g) of capillary wormwood in water until reduced to six sheng (≈3.6L), strain, add two liang of rhubarb and fourteen gardenias, then boil down to three sheng for three doses.

Boil one handful of ephedra in five sheng of wine until reduced to two and a half sheng. Drinking this entire induces sweating for recovery. For critical jaundice, immediately administer pounded trichosanthes root juice—one sheng per dose, up to three doses—until the patient sweats and passes yellow urine. Otherwise, continue medication.

Grain jaundice occurs after meals with dizziness, chest oppression, irritability, and yellowing—caused by sudden overeating after prolonged hunger, forcing stomach qi upward. Treat with four liang of capillary wormwood boiled in water (strained), adding two liang of rhubarb and seven gardenias, reduced to two sheng for three doses. Yellow urine indicates cure. Another method: grind three liang of bitter sophora root and one ge (≈20ml) of gentian into powder, mix with ox bile, and form phoenix-tree-seed-sized pills.

This passage primarily discusses several prescriptions for treating jaundice (a condition in Traditional Chinese Medicine characterized by yellowing of the skin and eyes), along with related symptoms and causes. Let me explain them one by one:

Regarding alcohol-induced jaundice (酒疸, caused by excessive drinking): Symptoms include mental restlessness with pain, swollen calves, yellow urine, and the appearance of red spots on the skin after drinking, accompanied by a sallow or dark complexion. This condition typically arises from exposure to wind or cold water while severely intoxicated. There are three treatment formulas: The first uses two liang of Astragalus root (黄芪) and one liang of Magnolia bark (木兰), ground into powder and taken with wine three times daily. The second combines one liang of Rhubarb (大黄), five Zhiqiao fruits (枳实), seven Gardenia seeds (栀子), and six ge of fermented soybeans (豆豉), boiled in six sheng of water until reduced to two sheng, divided into three doses. The third employs equal parts of Daphne genkwa flowers (芫花) and Zanthoxylum seeds (椒目), burned to ash, with half a qian taken once or twice daily.

For exhaustion-induced jaundice (女劳疸, caused by sexual overexertion): Symptoms include generalized and ocular yellowing, fever with chills, lower abdominal distension, and difficult urination. This results from sexual activity while physically overheated from overwork, followed by exposure to cold water. Two formulas are given: The first uses equal parts of Niter (消石) and Alum (矾石) powdered and taken with barley porridge three times daily until mild sweating occurs and yellow urine is discharged. The second involves a chicken-egg-sized ball of disheveled human hair (乱发) fried with half a jin of lard until fully melted, divided into two doses.

Additional jaundice treatments are appended: For instance, boiling willow branches into a concentrated decoction for oral use; crushing and taking morning glory seeds (蔓菁子) with well water at gradually increasing doses; combining equal parts of Polyporus (猪苓), Poria (茯苓), and Atractylodes (白术) as powdered formula taken with water; consuming steamed lily bulbs (百合) with honey; or taking Gentian root (秦艽) steeped in wine.

The text further classifies jaundice types: Alcohol-related cases are termed "alcohol-yellow" (酒黄); accidental ingestion of rodent feces may also cause yellowing; while exhaustion-induced jaundice often presents with phlegm accumulation, reddened eyes, and progressive emaciation.

This passage records several practical prescriptions from Ge Hong's (also known as Immortal Lord Ge) Emergency Formulas to Keep Up One's Sleeve for treating jaundice and lower back pain.

Regarding jaundice treatment: Cui Yuanliang's red nausea formula proves remarkably effective, emphasizing the use of fresh, high-quality Gentiana macrophylla (a Chinese medicinal herb). For jaundice symptoms (yellowing of skin and eyes, indigestion, abdominal distension with heat), take one small cup of warm lard in a single dose, three times daily until dry stool is expelled. Three other verified formulas include: first, boiling donkey head with minced ginger for consumption; second, decocting eastward-growing peach tree roots—after three to five days, the jaundice dissipates like thin clouds, though eye recovery is slowest, requiring a hundred days for full healing (drinking clear wine during this period aids efficacy); third, decocting Gentiana macrophylla with cow's milk, a secret formula from Xu Renze.

For lower back pain: the first method involves measuring a bamboo pole to the patient's navel height and applying moxibustion at the corresponding spinal position; the second uses powdered deer antler (or preferably velvet antler) taken with wine; the third involves roasting turtle shell, grinding it into powder for ingestion; the fourth combines cinnamon twigs, peony bark, and aconite with wine. Special note is made of lower back and spinal pain caused by kidney Qi (vital energy) deficiency—untreated, it may progress to hemiplegia, underscoring the need for prompt intervention. All prescriptions emphasize herb selection and administration methods, with some specifying dietary restrictions (e.g., avoiding hot noodles, pork, or fish).

This passage presents remedies for various types of lower back pain and hypochondriac pain (rib-side pain) from the ancient medical text Ge Xianweng's Emergency Formulas to Keep Up One's Sleeve. Here's a plain explanation:

For lower back pain:

If caused by kidney deficiency with cold invasion, manifesting as lumbar pain and impotence, use herbs like duhuo (Angelica pubescens), processed fuzi (aconite), and duzhong (Eucommia bark). Boil in water to make three sheng (ancient measurement) of decoction, taken in three doses on an empty stomach. Another pill formula combines ganqi (dried lacquer), bajitian (Morinda root), and niuxi (Achyranthes root) with honey to form pills—take twenty pills with wine for good effect.

For hypochondriac pain:

A simple method uses stir-fried soybeans cooked in wine until slightly charred—drink until mildly intoxicated for relief. Alternatively, apply a warm compress made from yuanhua (Daphne genkwa) and chrysanthemum flowers to the painful area. Moxibustion can also be applied—burn seven moxa cones (a unit of moxibustion) one cun above the coccyx.

For chronic recurring pain:

Pound dried rehmannia and licorice into powder, take with wine three times daily. Alternatively, collect summer cypress seeds in June/July, dry them, and ingest.

Specialized back pain treatments:

For sprain-related pain with blood stasis, apply crushed duzhong (Eucommia) with vinegar externally while moxibusting three cones at the heel. For acute sprains causing immobility, chew raw gegen (kudzu root) and swallow the juice. For chronic cold sensation like carrying coins at the waist, boil licorice and dried ginger for oral intake.

These methods emphasize combined internal-external approaches: oral formulas, topical applications, and moxibustion. Herb measurements use precise fen (ancient weight units), with detailed administration instructions including timing, frequency, and contraindications.

Here are several ancient medicinal formulas for treating back and waist pain. The first method involves measuring with a cord: place a cord horizontally between the breasts, then bend it laterally from the breast to the painful area under the ribs. Apply moxibustion (an acupuncture therapy using burning mugwort) thirty times below the bent cord to achieve healing.

For back and waist pain, take one jin (approx. 500g) of Eucommia bark (a Chinese herb), chop it finely, and steep it in two dou (approx. 20 liters) of wine for ten days. Take three ge (approx. 60ml) per dose. The "Thousand Gold Prescriptions" records a remedy for waist and leg pain: fry one sheng (approx. 1 liter) of fresh sesame until fragrant, then pound and sift it. Take one small sheng daily until consuming one dou total (approx. 10 liters) for complete recovery. It may be taken with wine, honey water, or broth.

The "Supplemental Thousand Gold Prescriptions" recommends for waist and knee pain: take any quantity of deer velvet antlers, coat with ghee, roast until purple, then grind into powder. Take one qian seven fen (approx. 5g) with warm wine. Another method: wash and dry one jin of Clematis root (a medicinal herb), soak in good wine for seven days, then grind and mix with flour paste to form pills the size of tung seeds. Take twenty pills with the infused wine.

For kidney deficiency and weak legs, eat fresh chestnuts—dry them in sunlight and consume over ten each morning, followed by pork kidney congee. Another formula: soak one liang (approx. 37g) each of Cuscuta seeds and Achyranthes root in a silver vessel with wine, ensuring the wine covers the herbs by one inch. After five days, dry and powder them, then mix with the original wine and a small amount of strong liquor to form phoenix tree seed-sized pills. Take twenty pills on an empty stomach with wine.

The "Arcane Essentials from the Imperial Library" suggests wrapping the painful area with heated yellow dog skin until warmth penetrates deeply—repeated use brings relief. The "Doumen Formulas" prescribe frying half a liang each of rhubarb and ginger until yellow, decocting in two bowls of water until dawn, then consuming the entire dose. By daybreak, blood clots will be expelled from the waist, stopping the pain. For heavy waist pain, take one qian of powdered betel nut with wine.

The "Master Mei's Formulas" advise for sudden incapacitating back pain: take one five-inch deer antler, burn until red-hot, then steep in two sheng of wine overnight before drinking.

Cui Yuanliang's Maritime Prescriptions records a treatment for wind-cold affliction of the lower back and legs: Take two taels of large rhubarb (a purgative herb) and cut it into chess-piece-sized chunks. Stir-fry with a small amount of ghee, being careful not to scorch it, as this would diminish its potency. Grind the fried rhubarb into a fine powder and sift. Each day on an empty stomach, boil three portions of water with two coin-sized slices of ginger until it reduces by half. Remove the ginger, then take two qian of the rhubarb powder and mix it with the remaining ginger decoction for consumption. After taking the medicine, one may experience the expulsion of cold-dampness and purulent waste. Discontinue use once symptoms resolve. Ancient physicians adjusted potent remedies according to the patient’s constitution—these were never fixed prescriptions.

The story of Yao Sengyuan, a renowned physician during the Liang Dynasty, illustrates this principle: Emperor Wu of Liang, suffering from fever, wished to use rhubarb. Physician Yao cautioned that rhubarb’s harsh properties made it unsuitable for the elderly, but the emperor ignored him and suffered from collapse as a result. Later, when Emperor Yuan developed abdominal and chest ailments, most physicians recommended gentle tonics. Only Yao, after pulse diagnosis, insisted that stagnant food accumulation required rhubarb for a cure. Today, some practitioners use a single harsh remedy for all ailments, exaggerating its efficacy if it happens to work while neglecting to reflect on its misuse—a widespread phenomenon requiring vigilance.

The Cultivation of Truth Formulas records a longevity recipe using dodder seeds (a kidney-tonifying herb): Soak one peck of dodder seeds in one peck of wine, repeatedly steeping and drying until the seeds absorb all the wine. Initially, take two qian twice daily with warm wine, followed by three to five spoonfuls of porridge to settle the medicine. After 21 days, increase the dose to three qian. Continuous use for seven years is said to make the skin radiant, reverse aging, cure wind-dampness in the waist and knees, and prolong life.

The thirty-third prescription treats consumptive fatigue with emaciation and weakness: Take a one-foot section of white mulberry root (the thornless variety) facing southeast, scrape off the outer bark, and either burn the inner white bark to ash or pound it into a paste. Take three spoonfuls with wine, then cover with blankets to induce sweating, three times daily. If wine is unavailable, rice water may substitute. This remedy targets old injuries or overexertion causing joint and skin pain or muscular cramps.

For a rapid insomnia remedy: The original text is missing here. According to Daoist medical practice, calming herbs like sour jujube seeds or arborvitae seeds would typically be used, possibly combined with daoyin exercises to regulate qi and blood.

This scripture primarily records several medicinal formulas and dietary therapies for treating consumptive fatigue (xulao), a condition characterized by physical weakness and Qi-blood deficiency resulting from prolonged exhaustion or post-illness recovery.

The first method involves external treatment: At night, apply freshly heated cloth to the eyes while alternating with steamed soybeans placed in cloth bags on the pillow. Replace the beans with warm ones as they cool, maintaining warmth throughout the night for rapid efficacy.

Several internal herbal formulas follow:

1. Licorice Decoction (Gancao Tang): Combine 60g licorice root, 90g cinnamon twigs, 120g peony root, 150g fresh ginger (or dried ginger if unavailable), and 14 jujube dates. Boil in 9 sheng (≈1.8L) of water until reduced to 3 sheng (≈600ml). Strain and add 240g maltose, dividing the dose into three portions. Prepare a fresh batch every other day. For severe Qi deficiency, add 60g astragalus root and 60g ginseng. Omit maltose if phlegm accumulation or diarrhea occurs.

2. Black Hen Soup (Wu Ci Ji Tang): Prepare a whole hen conventionally, stuff its cavity with 500g sliced fresh rehmannia root and 2 sheng (≈400ml) maltose, then steam tightly wrapped in a copper vessel. Steam for the duration required to cook 5 sheng (≈1L) of rice. Consume the meat and broth without salt, repeating this treatment three times monthly. This formula also effectively addresses night sweats.

3. Licorice-Atractylodes Decoction (Gancao Baizhu Tang): Combine 30g licorice, 120g atractylodes rhizome, 120g ophiopogon root, 60g oyster shell, 20 jujube dates, and 90g donkey-hide gelatin. Boil in 8 sheng (≈1.6L) water until reduced to 2 sheng (≈400ml), divided into two doses.

4. Astragalus-Wolfberry Decoction (Huangqi Gouqi Tang): Use 90g each of astragalus root, wolfberry root bark, and fresh ginger; 60g each of licorice, ophiopogon root, and cinnamon twigs; plus 3 ge (≈180ml) raw rice. Boil in 9 sheng (≈1.8L) water until reduced to 3 sheng (≈600ml), dividing into four doses.

5. Lamb Kidney Soup (Yang Shen Tang): Simmer one sliced lamb kidney with 1 sheng (≈200ml) atractylodes rhizome in 10 sheng (≈2L) water until reduced to 9 sheng (≈1.8L). Consume 1 sheng daily in two or three portions. During winter, this may be extended over two days with two daily servings.

Additional formulas mentioned include Center-Fortifying Decoction (Jianzhong Tang) and Kidney Essence Soup (Shen Li Tang). These therapies address chronic fatigue and post-illness recovery, targeting symptoms such as limb weakness, joint pain, shortness of breath, palpitations, lumbar pain, pale complexion, and poor appetite.

This passage records several traditional Chinese medicinal formulas and dietary therapies, primarily addressing symptoms like consumptive fatigue and kidney Qi (气) deficiency:

The first is the renowned Zhang Zhongjing's Eight-Ingredient Kidney Qi Pill formula: four taels of dried rehmannia root, two taels each of poria cocos, Chinese yam, cinnamon bark, moutan bark, and cornus fruit, plus one tael each of aconite and alisma rhizome. These ingredients are crushed and mixed with honey to form pills the size of sterculia seeds. Initially, take seven pills daily in three doses, gradually increasing to ten pills. This formula treats physical weakness, lumbar pain, and difficult urination. For long-term use, remove the aconite and add schisandra fruit to address severe wind-cold symptoms.

The second formula uses one sheng each of sophora root, coptis root, acorus calamus, plantago seeds, honeysuckle, and wolfberries, similarly prepared as honey pills.

Several powdered formulations are also recorded: one jin of atractylodes macrocephala with half a jin of cinnamon bark, plus four taels each of dried rehmannia, alisma rhizome, and poria cocos—pulverized and sifted before use. Alternatively, two jin of fresh rehmannia with one jin of wheat flour, stir-fried until dry then sifted, taken with wine.

Dietary therapies include:

1. Wolfberry Wine: Soak five sheng of fresh wolfberries in two dou of quality liquor for seven days, then strain and drink to replenish deficiency and strengthen the body.

2. Asparagus Root: Peeled and cored, then boiled with honey for consumption. Sun-dried and made into honey pills is even better, and can also be used for facial washing.

3. Sparrow Egg White: Combined with processed aconite powder and cuscuta seed powder to form pills, taken with wine to treat sexual dysfunction in both men and women.

4. White Dragon Bone and Polygala Root: Equal parts made into honey pills, taken with cold water to replenish Jing (精, essence) and strengthen Yang.

5. Oyster Shell Powder: For external application to treat night sweats.

6. Lamb Kidney and Cistanche Soup: Using one pair of lamb kidneys and one tael of cistanche deserticola, cooked with scallion whites and salt into a thick soup to treat physical weakness and lumbar-leg debility.

These formulas reflect ancient Chinese medicine's approach of combining herbal remedies with dietary therapy to regulate bodily functions, all targeting common deficiency patterns.

Here are several medicinal prescriptions for treating various ailments along with their methods of administration:

The first prescription treats physical weakness, lower abdominal coldness, premature graying of hair, and pain in the limbs. Take one jin of Psoralea seeds (Buguzhi), soak them in wine overnight and dry them, then stir-fry with one sheng of black sesame seeds until the seeds no longer crackle. Remove the sesame, grind the Psoralea into powder, mix with vinegar and flour paste to form pills the size of phoenix tree seeds. Take twenty pills each morning with warm wine or lightly salted water.

The second prescription, called "Solid Yang Elixir" (Guyang Dan), strengthens the kidneys and boosts yang energy. Soak two liang of Dodder seeds (Tusizi) in wine for ten days, wash with water, dry and grind into powder. Add one liang of honey-roasted Eucommia bark (Duzhong) crushed, then mix with yam powder and wine to form a paste, shaping into phoenix tree seed-sized pills. Take fifty pills on an empty stomach with wine.

The "Dietary Physician's Heart Mirror" records a yang-boosting, knee-warming prescription: Soak one jin of Epimedium (Yinyanghuo) in one dou of wine for three days before drinking.

The Imperial Pharmacy's prescription for rheumatic leg pain, weakness and excessive sweating: Burn alum to ashes and grind finely. Take one spoonful dissolved in boiling water to wash the affected area.

"Secret Essentials from the Imperial Library" documents a body-strengthening tonic: Roast deer antler glue (Lujiaojiao) until charred, crush and take one small spoonful with wine three times daily. It also records a prescription for bone-steaming fever (symptoms resembling tuberculosis): Crush 120 peach kernels with tips intact to make pills. Take at dawn with well water, then drink wine to mild intoxication according to one's capacity, followed by plenty of water. Repeat the dose every other day, abstaining from meat for one hundred days.

Regarding bone-steaming disease (a consumptive disorder with internal heat and external cold), symptoms include dry, dull skin, emaciated limbs, and swollen ankles. The treatment involves grinding gypsum (Shigao) to a milky consistency, taking one small spoonful with water twice daily until fever subsides.

Cui Yuanliang's "Overseas Prescriptions" records a bone-steaming treatment: Clarify five dou of children's urine, combine with five dou of Artemisia annua (Qinghao) harvested with seeds between August and September. Chop finely and decoct in a large pot over high heat until reduced to three dou. Remove dregs and thoroughly clean all utensils.

This passage records several traditional Chinese medical prescriptions and therapies for treating dietary disorders, all collected by Ge Hong (the Immortal Master Ge) as practical emergency remedies.

The first formula addresses spleen and stomach deficiency: Simmer the medicinal decoction over low heat until concentrated, then add ten pig bile sacs and continue simmering. After cooling, store the mixture in a porcelain jar. For administration, roast and crush licorice root, mix it with the medicinal liquid, and pound the mixture a thousand times to form pills. Take twenty pills on an empty stomach with congee, gradually increasing to thirty pills as needed.

For sudden food stagnation resembling cold damage (Shanghan) syndrome—where the patient lies listlessly for seven or eight days without recovery—moxibustion therapy can be applied: Locate the depressions on either side of the spine and apply seven moxa cones (a unit of moxibustion measurement) at each point to achieve a cure.

To treat chest and abdominal distension with vomiting caused by eating raw fish or meat, use a piece of crude mirabilite (a mineral medicine) the size of half an egg, combined with one liang of rhubarb, and decoct in two sheng of wine until reduced to one sheng. Drinking this will bring immediate relief. If crude mirabilite is unavailable, refined mirabilite can be substituted.

For abdominal pain and bloating due to consuming cold, raw food or exposure to cold, a physical therapy is recommended: Heat the ground, spread a thin straw mat over it, lie down, and cover with a blanket to induce sweating—recovery will be swift. For bloating from overeating, roast and grind wheat flour into powder, then take a small spoonful; barley flour works even better.

The final prescriptions target chronic indigestion and emaciation: One method involves extracting juice from ten jin of fresh rehmannia root, mixing it with three jin of wheat flour, drying the mixture in the sun, and taking the resulting powder after meals. Another combines roasted flour, malt, fermented soybeans, and apricot kernels, roasted and formed into pellets the size of slingshot bullets for consumption. There is also a formula combining rhubarb, peony root, and refined mirabilite. All these methods emphasize first regulating the spleen and stomach—the root of digestion—to resolve various dietary ailments.

Here are several medicinal formulas and dietary therapies for treating spleen-stomach deficiency and indigestion:

The first method involves simmering three jin of honey in a bronze vessel using a water bath until it forms pill-sized granules the size of wutong seeds. Take seven to ten pills per dose. Another formula combines one jin of fermentation starter (jiuqu), ten liang of dried ginger, one sheng of evodia fruit (wuzhuyu), and a handful of salt—pounded together and mixed with honey to form marble-sized pills. Consume three times daily.

For those particularly sensitive to cold, add three liang of dried ginger to the formula. For abdominal pain, include three liang of Chinese angelica root (danggui). For general debility, add two liang of licorice root (gancao). These formulas require prolonged conditioning for gradual effects, being especially suitable for post-partum fluid retention in the epigastrium, though they must be paired with diuretic treatments.

For spleen-stomach weakness with difficult digestion: Pound three sheng of hemp seeds with roasted soybeans, sift the mixture, and take one to two spoonfuls before meals, four to five times daily for optimal results.

For "grain fatigue syndrome" (indigestion disorder) caused by sleeping immediately after eating—manifesting as heavy limbs, drowsiness, and worsened postprandial symptoms: Dry-fry one sheng of barley malt, one liang of Sichuan pepper, and three liang of dried ginger, then grind into powder. Take one spoonful three to four times daily.

For dietary therapy, the "Swift Soup" from Heart Mirror of Food Medicine: Slice half a jin of crucian carp, blanch in boiling fermented soybean broth, then season with pepper, dried ginger, dill, and tangerine peel. Consume on an empty stomach. A Wenzhou folk remedy involves boiling white dried ginger until tender, baking it dry, grinding it into powder, and mixing with aged rice porridge to form wutong seed-sized pills. Take thirty to fifty pills for remarkable effects.

For rapid relief: Combine half an eggshell's volume of fresh ginger juice with a small amount of fresh rehmannia juice, one spoonful of honey, and three ge of water. Drink in one dose for immediate effect. For sudden spleen pain, dry-fry one liang each of evodia fruit and peach kernels until charred. Discard the evodia, peel and finely grind the peach kernels, then boil with three scallion whites. Divide into two doses taken with warm wine.

This text records several emergency remedies for sudden situations and methods of breath absorption (Fuqi) and grain avoidance (Bigu):

Regarding medicinal preparation, one method involves pounding two liang of fennel with four liang of ginger into a uniform mixture. Place this in a clean container covered with damp paper overnight, then alternately fry over gentle and strong heat in a silver or stone vessel (ancient decoction equipment) until golden brown. Grind into powder, mix with wine, and form into pills the size of phoenix tree seeds. Take ten to fifteen pills per dose, swallowed with tea or wine.

For chronic qi distension, another prescription recommends drinking one sheng of warm black ox urine on an empty stomach at dawn daily, discontinuing once the distension subsides.

Particular attention is given to survival methods during food deprivation: when trapped in famine or accidents, humans face death after days without eating. Though ancient medical texts rarely record Bigu techniques, these belong to the realm of spiritual cultivation. The specific method involves: keeping the mouth closed while stirring the tongue between upper and lower teeth, swallowing saliva—beginning with 360 swallows daily, increasing to a thousand with practice. After three to five days, temporary weakness occurs, followed by renewed vitality. If water is available but no container exists, cup water in the left hand while reciting the incantation "By the grace of the Cheng-Yuan officials..." (a Daoist exorcism mantra), then knock three times on the left hand with the right hand before drinking. Ideally, one should find pine or cypress leaves to chew, or consume washed white cogongrass roots. Alternatively, softened dried soybeans can be swallowed with water.

These methods apply to emergencies like mountain misadventures or cliff falls, emphasizing calm utilization of natural resources in dire circumstances. Common plants like pine needles and cogongrass roots, when properly used, can temporarily sustain life.

This text records several methods for coping with famine and practicing bigu (the Daoist fasting technique). Red beans boiled and ground into powder can sustain a person for ten days without hunger when consuming one to two liters. Wild-growing herbs like atractylodes (Baizhu), asparagus root (Tianmendong), dwarf lilyturf (Maimendong), Solomon's seal (Huangjing), fragrant Solomon's seal (Yuzhu), and fritillary bulb (Beimu) can be eaten either raw or cooked. Tree fungi and the white bark of sandalwood or elm trees can also serve as famine foods.

During years of severe famine when grain prices soar, one can take one peck of rice, wash it repeatedly, steam and sun-dry it a hundred times, then pound it into powder. Consuming one daily meal with water can sustain a person for thirty days. Complete fasting with this method allegedly enables lifelong abstinence from food while walking three hundred li daily. Another recipe involves soaking one peck of japonica rice in three liters of wine, drying it and repeating the process until the wine is fully absorbed. Eating small amounts with the soaking liquid when thirsty can last thirty days, while one hu and two pecks can sustain a year. There are also medicinal formulas like Shouzhong Pills.

These grain-based recipes are easily obtainable and prepared without violating the nature of cereals, maintaining physical strength. However, sudden complete reliance on medicinal substitutes may be intolerable for ordinary people, so consulting other grain-based recipes is recommended.

Supplementary recipes: The Sheng Hui Fang records an immortality fasting method where pine nuts are pounded into paste and taken with wine (three qian per dose, three times daily), eliminating hunger while drinking only water. After a hundred days, the body becomes light enough to walk five hundred li daily. Ye Ren Xian Hua describes how Master Fuhu boiled ten jin of pine resin five times to remove bitterness, mixed each jin with four liang of poria cocos powder, and took one daogui (ancient measuring spoon) with water at dawn to fast for a full year while prolonging life.

The Baopuzi records: During Emperor Cheng of Han's reign, hunters found a hairy naked person in Zhongnan Mountains who turned out to be a Qin palace maid. She escaped to the mountains after Qin's collapse and nearly starved until an elder taught her to eat pine and cypress leaves and fruits. Initially bitter, she later adapted, becoming free from hunger, cold, or heat—living from Qin to Han times (over 300 years).

This is the fourth volume of Emergency Formulas to Keep Up One's Sleeve (Zhouhou Beiji Fang) by Ge Hong, the renowned Daoist alchemist and physician revered as "Immortal Elder Ge." The work primarily compiles various emergency medical formulas and treatment methods, functioning much like a modern household first-aid manual. The title's phrase "keep up one's sleeve" (zhouhou) signifies portable knowledge ready for immediate use, while "emergency preparedness" (beiji) refers to handling sudden illnesses or injuries. Ge Hong distilled and systematized medical knowledge to empower ordinary people with self-treatment or lifesaving skills during critical situations.