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Chapter 27 of 33
神农本草经
Overall Paraphrase
This section organizes the 17 medicinal entries from the "Wood (Lower Grade)" category of Shennong's Classic of the Materia Medica. The original text follows an entry-based format, and each entry is paraphrased below in the original order. All "indications" below are records of ancient experiential knowledge, intended solely for traditional cultural study and not as a basis for modern medication use.
Badoʊ (Croton) 🌿
Taste: pungent; nature: warm. The ancients held that it primarily treated cold damage, malarial fevers, and alternating chills and fever; it could break up accumulations and masses (abdominal lumps), hard accumulations, retained fluids (stagnant water-humor), and phlegm-abdomen, and eliminate abdominal distension with edema; it could flush the five viscera and six bowels, open blockages, and unblock the passage of water and grain, removing putrid and filthy substances; it was also used for what the ancients called "ghost toxins" and "gu-infection" evil toxins, and could kill insects and fish. Also known as Bashu; grows in mountain valleys. Later commentary adds: another name is Bashu, grows in Ba Commandery, harvested in the eighth month, dried in the shade, with the core and skin removed.
Shujiao (Zanthoxylum, i.e., Sichuan pepper) 🌿
Taste: pungent; nature: warm. The ancients held that it primarily treated cough with qi counterflow caused by pathogenic qi, could warm the center, expel dead flesh from the bones, joints, and skin, treat cold-damp painful impediment, and direct qi downward. It is also recorded that prolonged use could prevent the hair from turning white, lighten the body, and prolong life. Grows in mountain valleys. Later commentary adds: other names are Bajiao and Tangyi; grows in Wudu and Ba Commandery; the fruits are harvested in the eighth month and dried in the shade.
Zaojia (Honey locust fruit) 🌿
Taste: pungent, salty; nature: warm. It treats wind-impediment, dead flesh, pathogenic qi, wind-type headache with tearing eyes; it can unblock the nine orifices and expel what were called "spirit-essence things." Grows in mountain valleys. Later commentary adds: grows in Yong Prefecture and Luzou County; those shaped like pig's teeth are superior; harvested in the ninth and tenth months, dried in the shade.
Liuhua (Willow flower/catkin) 🌿
Taste: bitter; nature: cold. It primarily treats wind-edema with jaundice and blackened complexion due to facial heat. Also called Liuxu (willow catkin). Its leaves can treat horse mange and scabbed sores; the fruit primarily treats ulcerated swelling and expels pus and blood; the seed juice can relieve thirst. Grows in marshes and river lands. Later commentary adds: grows in Langya.
Lianshi (Chinaberry fruit) 🌿
Taste: bitter; nature: cold. It primarily treats warm pestilence and cold damage, severe heat with mania and agitation; kills the three worms; treats scabies and sores; and promotes urination and water passage. Grows in mountain valleys. Later commentary adds: grows in Jingshan.
Yuliren (Bush cherry kernel) 🌿
Taste: sour; nature: neutral. It primarily treats great abdominal edema, facial facial and limb swelling, and promotes urination and water passage. Its root primarily treats gum swelling and dental caries. Also known as Jueli. Grows in mountain valleys. Later commentary adds: other names are Chexiali and Di; the root is harvested in the fifth and sixth months.
Mangcao (Illicium lanceolatum) 🌿
Taste: pungent; nature: warm. It primarily treats wind-type head abscesses and swelling, breast abscesses, and abdominal masses from hernia; eliminates bound qi and scabies with itching; and kills insects and fish. Grows in mountain valleys. Later commentary adds: another name is Chuncao; grows in Shanggu and Yuanju; leaves harvested in the fifth month, dried in the shade; it is also said it can be used to poison fish.
Leiwan (Omphalia) 🌿
Taste: bitter; nature: cold. It primarily kills the three worms, expels toxic qi, and clears heat from the stomach; the ancients held it benefits men but not women; it can be made into a rubbing ointment, and is said to eliminate the hundred diseases of children. Grows in mountain valleys. Later commentary adds: other names are Leishi and Leishi; grows in the soil of Shicheng and Hanzhong; the root is harvested in the eighth month and dried in the sun.
Tongye (Paulownia leaf) 🌿
Taste: bitter; nature: cold. It primarily treats malignant erosion and sores on the genitals; treats the five kinds of hemorrhoids; kills the three worms. Its flowers can be applied to pig sores; feeding pigs can make them three times fatter. Grows in mountain valleys. Later commentary adds: grows in Tongbai Mountain.
Zibaipi (Catalpa bark) 🌿
Taste: bitter; nature: cold. It primarily treats heat conditions and eliminates the three worms. Its leaves, pounded and applied to pig sores, can make the pigs three times fatter when fed. Grows in mountain valleys. Later commentary adds: grows in Henei.
Shinan (Photinia serrulata) 🌿
Taste: pungent, bitter. It primarily nourishes kidney qi, treats internal injury and yin decline, and benefits the sinews, bones, skin, and hair. Its fruit can kill gu toxins, break up accumulations, and expel wind-impediment. Also known as Guimu. Grows in mountain valleys. Later commentary adds: grows in Huayin; fruits harvested in the second and fourth months, dried in the shade.
Huanghuan (Cladrastis root) 🌿
Taste: bitter; nature: neutral. It primarily treats gu toxins, ghost-infection, ghost-spirits, and pathogenic qi in the viscera; eliminates cough with counterflow and chills and fever. Also known as Lingquan and Dajiu. Grows in mountain valleys. Later commentary adds: grows in Shu Commandery; root harvested in the third month, dried in the shade; Shen Kuo held this to be wisteria.
Soushu (Deutzia) 🌿
Taste: pungent; nature: cold. It primarily treats heat in the body's skin, eliminates pathogenic qi, stops enuresis, and can be used as bathing water. Grows in mountain valleys, fields, and old ruins and mounds. Later commentary adds: another name is Jugu; grown on Neng'er Mountain; harvested in the fourth month.
Shuli (Rhamnus davurica) 🌿
The original text does not record the taste or nature. It primarily treats chills and fever, scrofula, and sores. Grows in fields. Later commentary adds: other names are Niuli and Shuzi, etc.; can be harvested at any time.
Yaoshigen (Medicinal seed root) 🌿
Taste: pungent; nature: warm. It primarily treats pathogenic qi, various impediments with pain and soreness and aching, can reunite severed sinews, and supplement the marrow. Also known as Lianmu. Grows in mountain valleys. Later commentary adds: grows in Shu Commandery; harvested at any time.
Luanhua (Koelreuteria flower) 🌿
Taste: bitter; nature: cold. It primarily treats eye pain with tearing, canthus damage, and reduces eye swelling. Grows in mountain valleys and river plains. Later commentary adds: grows in Hanzhong; harvested in the fifth month.
Manjiao (Wild pepper) 🌿
Taste: bitter; nature: warm. It primarily treats wind-cold-damp impediment, joint pain, eliminates cold qi of the four limbs, and knee pain. Also known as Jiajiao. Grows in mountain valleys and among the mounds of fields and cemeteries. Later commentary adds: other names are Zhujiao, Zhijiao, and Goujiao; grows in Yunzhong; the stems and roots are harvested, boiled, and used to brew wine.
The above Wood Lower Grade totals 17 varieties; the old edition listed 18, with Yuanhua now moved to the Herbs section.
The "Lower Grade" position within the three-grade classification:
Shennong's Classic of the Materia Medica classifies medicinals into upper, middle, and lower grades. Lower-grade medicinals mostly "attack pathogenic evil" and "treat disease"; their properties are harsh and fierce, many being toxic, and they should not be taken long-term. The Wood Lower Grade section of this passage precisely embodies this idea: badou, mangcao, leiwan, huanghuan, and others are mostly used for attacking hard accumulations, expelling water, killing worms, and breaking up masses.
Two main lines: pungent-warm and bitter-cold:
The tastes and natures of substances in this section can roughly be divided into two categories.
First, the pungent-warm category — such as badou, shujiao, mangcao, yaoshigen, and manjiao — mostly move and scatter, disperse cold, expel dampness, and break bindings;
Second, the bitter-cold category — such as liuhua, lianshi, leiwan, tongye, zibaipi, and luanhua — mostly clear heat, dry dampness, kill worms, and promote flow.
This embodies the foundational logic: cold conditions are warmed, heat conditions are cooled, and excess conditions are drained.
"Unblocking as the method" in attacking evil:
Badou "opens blockages" and "unblocks the water-grain pathway"; yuliren "promotes urination and water passage"; zaojia "unblocks the nine orifices" — all demonstrate that lower-grade medicinals often expel pathogenic qi by way of sweating, vomiting, purging, and promoting diuresis. The ancients held that stubborn edema, accumulations, and painful impediments could only be resolved through intense, driving power.
Indications concentrated in stubborn, acute, and severe conditions:
Common indications in this section include edema, accumulations, impediment pain, worm accumulations, ulcers and sores, and gu toxins. In ancient times, these largely belonged to difficult, acute, and severe illnesses; therefore, the sharp and fierce lower-grade medicinals were selected, reflecting the approach of "using powerful medicine for powerful illness."
Most are harsh and toxic — not to be used lightly:
Modern research confirms that some lower-grade medicinals indeed contain toxic or strongly active components. For example, badou contains croton oil, and oral ingestion can induce violent diarrhea — stringent processing and dose control are essential; mangcao and huanghuan are toxic, now seldom used or only applied externally; leiwan contains proteolytic enzymes with some effect on certain parasites, yet the ancient use as a "rubbing ointment" or for "eliminating the hundred diseases of children" lacks modern evidence.
Expressions like "killing ghosts, toxins, gu-infection, and evil things" belong to ancient, simple concepts:
Terms such as "ghost toxins," "gu-infection," and "ghost-spirits" serve as the ancients' basic framework for contagious, psychiatric, and stubborn diseases; they should not be taken literally as superstition. Modern medicine offers far more precise etiological explanations.
Claims of "prolonged use lightens the body and extends life" or "fattening pigs threefold" are not to be applied:
The idea that shujiao "with prolonged use prevents hair from turning white, lightens the body, and extends life" reflects ancient aspirations toward longevity and should not be turned into a modern regimen; "fattening pigs threefold" belongs to hyperbolic veterinary reporting. These points warrant rational scrutiny.
Questions of identity and textual transmission:
For instance, shujiao is indeed Zanthoxylum; mangcao should not be confused with star anise, as strict discrimination is required to prevent accidental poisoning; huanghuan is possibly a kind of wisteria and remains contested. These points all remind us that, when studying the materia medica, one must consult modern botanical and pharmaceutical knowledge for accurate identification.
Related concepts:
Three-grade classification, four natures and five tastes, unblocking as the method, sweat-vomit-purgation methods, paozhi processing, worm accumulation, gu-toxin as an ancient disease category.
Further reading:
The preface of Shennong's Classic of the Materia Medica on the three grades and seven-condition mutual compatibility; the wood-related entries in Compendium of Materia Medica; formulations using badou in Treatise on Cold Damage and Essentials from the Golden Cabinet, such as Sanwu Beiji Wan and Jiegeng Baisan (for theoretical study only, never to be self-compounded); later common-era material research on leiwan, shujiao, and other plants.
Bu-gua reminder: This content is based on classical Chinese medical texts and is intended solely for traditional cultural study; nothing herein constitutes a medical diagnosis, medication direction, or treatment recommendation. Should you feel unwell, seek clinical care in a timely manner.