Shennong's Herbal Classic (Treasure Edition)

Author: Gu Guanwang (Qing)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-01-01
Features: Shen Nong's Herbal (also known as Ben Cao), one of the Four Great Classical Works of Traditional Chinese Medicine, is also China's earliest specialized pharmacological monograph. Shen Nong's Herbal was compiled before the Eastern Han Dynasty, representing a comprehensive summary of the then-profound achievements in pharmacological knowledge by pharmacologists of the Warring States and Qin-Han periods through the collection and organization of existing knowledge. This book consists of one volume of Xu Lu (Preface Record), three volumes of the main text, and includes 365 medicinal substances in total: 252 plant medicines, 67 animal medicines, and 46 mineral medicines. It also categorizes these medicines into three grades—upper, middle, and lower—based on the original criteria of "poisonous" and "non-poisonous." The book provides concise explanations for each medicinal substance regarding its properties, production origin, synonyms, and primary therapeutic indications. The Xu Lu briefly introduces fundamental theories of Chinese pharmacology, such as "principal, deputy, assistant, and envoy herbs" (jun, chen, zuo, shi), "seven interactions" (qi qing), "four qualities" (si qi), and "five flavors" (wu wei). It also covers knowledge on the collection time of herbs, processing methods, storage, dosage forms, medication principles, and administration techniques. This is a mature pharmacological monograph that laid the cornerstone of Chinese pharmacology and has had a profound influence on later generations.