Food Herbal - Imperial Manuscript

Author: Lu He (Ming Dynasty)
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2000-08-01
Features: Shiyong Bencao (Food Materia Medica) is a court pharmacopeia from the Ming Dynasty, compiled around 1550 AD. The original ancient text is now preserved in the National Library and is currently the only complete surviving copy worldwide. The complete set consists of four volumes, approximately 600 pages, and nearly 50,000 words. Written by Lu He of the Ming Dynasty, it records the illustrations and descriptions of over 380 edible and medicinal plants and animals commonly used by ancient Chinese people during the Ming Dynasty. It elaborates on the health benefits and pharmacological effects of food ingredients, and is renowned as a famous pharmacopeia in traditional Chinese medicine culture, alongside the later-composed Bencao Gangmu (Comprehensive Materia Medica), which was published about fifty years later. The book is divided into sixteen sections and sixty-two categories, totaling over 1,740 species. The preface includes Jiuhuang Yepu (Wild Food Spectrum), which supplements the 60 species of wild vegetables compiled by Wang Pan of the Ming Dynasty with an additional 60 types of grass and plant foods, renaming it Jiuhuang Yepu.
Volumes 1–4, the Shui Bu (Water Section), cover 91 types of water, including ordinary water, underground water, famous springs, and poisonous water, as well as extensive collection of hydrological data. It provides detailed records of the medicinal properties of various types of water, which is one of the book's distinctive features.
Volumes 5–21 cover the Gu, Cai, Guo, Lin, Jie, Shechong, Qin, Shou, Wei, Cao, Mu, Huo, Jin, Yushi, and Tu sections, respectively. The final volume compiles dietary theories, toxic foods, methods for treating food-related issues, Sun Zhen's monthly health maintenance practices, and cures for gu (a type of venomous disease).
The book extensively gathers information on dietary regulation, nourishment, and food remedies from various historical medical texts, historical records, local gazettes, and anecdotal literature. It includes wild vegetables and herbs suitable for consumption, famine relief, and treating illnesses. Each food is described in detail, including its taste, toxicity, origin, efficacy, conditions it treats, usage methods, and empirical prescriptions, with some accompanied by comments or annotations by Yao Shi. The content is rich, the explanations are thorough, and the book is highly practical, making it a valuable reference.