By Yang Tianhui
(Song Dynasty, 1099 CE)
Translated by Heiner Fruehauf
National University of Natural Medicine, College of Classical Chinese Medicine
The following text represents the most detailed pre-modern description of the traditional cultivation of medicinal aconite in China. It was written more than 900 years ago by a Sichuanese official in charge of Zhangming County. Zhangming is situated in the location of today’s Jiangyou County, epicenter of the recent Sichuan earthquake, which has been identified by all ancient materia medica experts as the only place where genuine Chinese aconite should be sourced from.
Located near the foothills of the Himalayas, aconite has been cultivated in this very specific area of northern Sichuan since the Han dynasty 2,000 years ago. The wild aconite seedlings are traditionally collected from the surrounding hills and planted during the winter solstice in fields situated next to the Fujiang River. A combination of the region’s unique geography and mineral composition in the river water and soil appear to be responsible for the growth of aconite tubers that are 2-4 times larger, safer, and at the same time more potent than elsewhere. Only 10% of today’s aconite harvest is sourced from this region, but virtually all of China’s aconite is shipped here to receive the stamp “Genuine Jiangyou Fuzi” before going to market. Yang Tianhui’s vivid account bears witness that Zhangming/Jiangyou aconite has been the quality standard of medicinal aconite before the Song dynasty. At the same time, he paints a clear picture of the craftsmanship involved in cultivating medicinal Wutou, Fuzi, and Tianxiong.
50% of today’s genuine Jiangyou Fuzi production has been monopolized by a pharmaceutical consortium (producing aconite injection fluids for heart patients) sponsored by the Chinese government, 40% is bought by Japanese herb companies, and only the remaining 10% yield (from an area smaller than 60 acres) can be purchased from local growers. In addition to non-traditional processing techniques, this paucity of genuine Fuzi is the most important reason why the aconite presently available on the modern market produces is of non-medicinal grade quality and thus often produces side-effects. As evidenced by most texts containing ancient case studies, traditionally processed Fuzi from Jiangyou is not only safe to use for many chronic disorders, but is indispensable in classical Chinese herbalism as “The King of the 100 Herbs.”
illustration of Wolfsbane flowers (plant and flowers of the aconite root) found in a late 19th century book about herbs
Mianzhou (today’s Mianyang in Sichuan Province) is the ancient region formerly called Guanghan. Its land is divided into eight administrative districts, among which only the county of Zhangming (today’s Jiangyou) produces Fuzi. Zhangming consists of 20 townships, among which only Chishui, Lianshui, Huichang, and Changming are suitable for the cultivation of this particular crop. The total arable land in all four townships amounts to a bit more than 520 Qing (approximately 320 acres). 50% of this land is set aside to yield rice, 30% is used for beans and other staple crops, and only 20% is reserved for the cultivation of Fuzi. Combined production output for all 4 towns is 160,000 catties (10 tons) of Fuzi. The town of Chishui produces the most, followed by Lianshui, while Huichang and Changming yield only very small amounts.
In all 4 locations the peasants prepare the land for cultivation by clearing the fields at the appropriate time of year, then plant it with a jumbled mixture of dill (Anethum graveolens), shephard’s purse (Capsella bursa-pastoris) and wheat grass. Once these fertilizer crops have begun to sprout robustly, they are plowed under, leaves and roots and all, until the land looks clear again. Only then the aconite seedlings are planted. For each Mu of land 10 pieces of cattle are used, applying 50 Hu (approximately 450 gallons) of their dung as fertilizer. A 7 cun (9 inch) ridge in the field is called a Long, a 5 chi (1.5 yards) ridge is called a Fu. Once a field is fully prepared it consists of 20 Fu and 1,200 Long. Long measurements use the Fu ridges as landmark, their depth is the same. The rest of the land consists of ditches for drainage and irrigation. Once the spring sun has come out in full force and the Bi Constellation has emerged (during the 3rd month of spring: April), the Long and Fu ridges are being repaired in preparation for the rains that inundate the land at this time of year. Once the spring rains have passed, causing the crop stalks to grow tall, weeds are cultivated to form a protective ground cover around them, to keep the gradually intensifying rays of the sun out. The amount of labor required for this type of crop is thus 10 times the effort applied to other fields, yet the year’s yield is also ten-fold of what other crops bring in, possibly more.
Together, these 4 townships plant more than 1,000 Hu (approximately 9,000 gallons) of seedlings. The best seedlings come from the surrounding areas of Long’an, Longzhou, Qigui, Mumen, Qingdui, and Xiaoping. The seedlings are planted during the 11th month starting at the winter solstice, and the mature roots are harvested just before the end of fall in the 9th month of the year (October). The plant stalks look like wild growing Artemisia (Ai), but they appear more lusterful. Their leaves can be compared to Valerian (Dima), yet they are thicker. The flowers are purple, the leaves are yellow, and the stamens appear long, full, and round.
Fresh aconite root
The quality of the harvested root is entirely dependent on the care that has been taken in the process of cultivating the crop. Rich people always get the highest quality product, while poor people can rarely afford the highest grade. Sometimes the crop is harvested during the 7th month, yielding a product referred to as “Early Water” (Zaoshui), the roots of which are too small to fit snugly inside a closed fist—these represent a type of Fuzi that is not quite mature yet. Overall, the cultivation of Fuzi brings with it the fear of inferior quality, and is hard to bring to maturity. Sometimes the seedling looks good, but then the sprouts don’t prosper; or the sprouts prosper, but the root does not fill out; or it ferments and rots underground before the harvest; or it splits open and becomes deformed; or some creature erodes it. Therefore it is customary for the planters to make a sacrifice to the Heavenly Spirits before the harvest, or make gestures to the plant spirits.
The harvested product is processed by first fermenting it, using containers of wine that are placed in a sealed room. There, the roots are steeped for several months until they start to ferment and increase in size. Afterward, the roots are removed from their brine and exposed to the sun and wind until they are completely dry. When the roots first emerge from the wine, the largest pieces are as big as a man’s fist. After drying, they will shrink to a smaller size, producing a dried root around which an adult’s hand can close. It is rare to yield a root that reaches a weight of 1 liang (40g).
Altogether, there are 7 types of Fuzi products—all of them start from the same mother root, yet their final form is different. The transformation of the original seedling is called Wutou (Crow’s Head); in general, offsprings that sprout out side-ways from the Wutou are called Fuzi (Attached Offspring); if an even pair grows out to the left and right, it is called Lizi (Tripod Root); if one grows out that is particularly long, it is called Tianxiong (Heavenly Male); if one grows with a sharp point it is called Tianzhui (Heavenly Awl); if one grows out of the top of the root it is called Cezi (Sidelings); and those that grow all over the place are called Loulanzi (Offsprings from a Leaky Basket). All are linked to the main root like a child is connected to its mother, but since the name Fuzi has come to be valued the most among them, all of these are now called Fuzi while the other names have fallen into disuse.
If one plants a seedling that yields 6-7 offsprings, the harvested roots will be small. If one yields 2-3 offsprings, they will be larger. If one plants one that grows 1 offspring, it will be especially large—this is the norm. As for the shape of Fuzi, the ones that have few corners and can sit squat on an even surface are considered to be of the highest grade. So-called rat breast shaped roots with many corners are of 2nd best quality, and those that are uneven in shape, exhibit crumples or were injured during the cultivation process are of the lowest grade. As for color, the plants that have white flowers are considered to be best, those with rust color are 2nd, while those with blue-green flowers are deemed to be of lower quality. Tianxiong, Wutou, and Tianzhui all are considered superior when they are full in size, producing a root size that does not fit into a closed hand anymore. The Loulan and Cezi variety, in contrast, are generally considered not worth counting and are given to the beggars.
Overall there are only few people in Shu (Sichuan) that consume Fuzi regularly. Only the people of Shaanpu (today’s Shaanxi Province), Min (today’s Fujian Province), and Zhe (today’s Zhejiang Province) have made Fuzi consumption a regular habit. The traders in Shaanpu focus on bringing the lower grade to market, the ones in Min and Zhe tend to trade the medium grade, and the highest grade is generally sold to public officials (mandarins). The nobility has money and loves the extra-ordinary, and thus is generally satisfied with only the larger kind of roots. Some local fellow with a basic understanding of medicine once said: “The small roots should indeed be avoided, but every piece that weighs more than ½ liang (20g) is good, it is not necessary to seek out those rare ones that measure a full liang”–that just about sums it up.
The Shen Nong bencao jing once remarked: “Fuzi grows in the mountain valleys of Qianwei (today’s Leshan in Sichuan), as well as left of the Yangzi (the southern banks of the lower reaches of the Yangzi River), South of the Mountains (the regions south of Mt. Hu and Mt. Zhongnan), Mt. Song, and the region of Qi and Lu (today’s Shandong Province).” My research shows that there isn’t any Fuzi that grows in these areas. This is clearly a mistake. The classic further states: “If you harvest the crop in the spring you will get Wutou; in the winter, you will get Fuzi”—a major mistake, in my opinion. The text goes on: “Fuzi that exhibits eight corners is of the best quality; the corners are called Cezi.” This is an even bigger mistake, and completely different from what I learned in the course of my research. This is truly a case of “to believe only what is written in books is worse than having no books at all”! All the data above stems from my original field work.
Yang Tinahui: Notizen zu meinem Besuch im Fuzi Anbaugebiet in der Grafschaft Zhangming
Von Yang Tianhui
(Song Dynastie, 1099 n.u.Z.)
Übersetzt von Heiner Frühauf
National University of Natural Medicine, College of Classical Chinese Medicine
Deutsche Übersetzung Markus Goeke
Der folgende Text ist eine der detailliertesten prä-modernen Beschreibungen der traditionellen Kultivierung von medizinischem Aconitum in China. Er wurde vor mehr als 900 Jahren von einem für die Grafschaft Zhangming verantwortlichen Beamten aus Sichuan verfasst. Zhangming liegt im Gebiet des heutigen Bezirks Jiangyou, dem Epizentrum des jüngsten Erdbebens in Sichuan und wurde von allen antiken Gelehrten der Materia Medica als das einzige Gebiet betrachtet, aus dem echtes chinesisches Aconitum bezogen werden sollte.
Gelegen nahe der Ausläufer des Himalaja wurde Aconitum in diesem sehr speziellen Gebiet des nördlichen Sichuan seit der Han-Dynastie (vor 2000 Jahren) kultiviert. Die wild wachsenden Aconitumsämlinge wurden traditionell auf den umliegenden Hügeln gesammelt und während der Wintersonnenwende in Feldern nahe des Fujiang-Flusses angepflanzt. Eine Kombination aus der einzigartigen Geographie dieser Region und der mineralischen Verbindungen in Flusswasser und Böden scheint verantwortlich zu sein für das Wachstum von Aconitumknollen, die 2-4mal größer, sicherer und gleichzeitig wirksamer sind als anderswo. Nur 10% der heutigen Aconitumernte stammt aus dieser Region, aber praktisch das gesamte Aconitum Chinas wird hierher transportiert, um das Siegel „Echtes Jiangyou Fuzi“ zu erhalten bevor es auf den Markt kommt. Yang Tianhuis lebendige Darstellung ist ein Zeugnis dafür, dass Aconitum aus Zhangming/Jiangyou schon vor der Song-Dynastie als der Qualitätsstandard für medizinisches Aconitum gegolten hat. Gleichzeitig zeichnet er ein klares Bild der Kunstfertigkeit, mit der medizinisches Wutou, Fuzi und Tianxiong kultiviert worden waren.
Fünfzig Prozent der Produktion des echten Jiangyou Fuzi wurde durch ein pharmazeutisches Konsortium monopolisiert (es produziert Injektionsflüssigkeiten aus Aconitum für Herzpatienten), gesponsert von der chinesischen Regierung. Vierzig Prozent wird von japanischen Kräuterfirmen aufgekauft und nur die verbleibenden 10% des Ertrages (von einem Gebiet kleiner als 60 Morgen) kann von den lokalen Erzeugern erworben werden. Zusätzlich zu den nicht-traditionellen Verarbeitungstechniken ist diese geringe Menge an echtem Fuzi der wichtigste Grund dafür, dass das gegenwärtig auf dem modernen Markt erhältliche Aconitum von nicht-medizinischer Qualität ist und daher häufig Nebenwirkungen verursacht. Wie die meisten Texte belegen, die Fallstudien des Altertums enthalten, ist traditionell verarbeitetes Fuzi aus Jiangyou nicht nur sicher in der Verwendung bei vielen chronischen Erkrankungen, sondern als „Der König der 100 Kräuter“ für die klassische chinesische Kräuterheilkunde unentbehrlich.
Mianzhou (das heutige Mianyang in der Provinz Sichuan) ist die in der Antike ehemals Guanghan genannte Region. Ihr Gebiet ist in acht Verwaltungsbezirke eingeteilt, unter denen einzig in der Grafschaft Zhangming (dem heutigen Jiangzhou) Fuzi produziert wird. Zhangming besteht aus 20 Gemeinden von denen einzig Chishui, Lianshui, Huichang und Changming für den Anbau dieser speziellen Feldfrucht geeignet sind. Das Ackerland aller vier Gemeinden umfasst insgesamt etwas mehr als 520 Qing (etwa 320 Morgen). 50% dieses Landes wird für den Reisanbau abgezweigt, 30% wird für Bohnen und andere Grundnahrungsmittel verwendet und nur 20% sind für den Anbau von Fuzi reserviert. Die Gesamtproduktion aller 4 Gemeinden beträgt 160.000 Kätties (10 Tonnen) Fuzi [jährlich]. Die Gemeinde Chishui produziert am meisten, gefolgt von Lianshui, während Huichang und Changming nur sehr geringe Mengen zum Ertrag beisteuern.
In allen 4 Gemeinden bearbeiten die Bauern das für den Anbau vorgesehene Ackerland indem sie die Felder zur rechten Zeit des Jahres säubern und es dann mit einer durcheinander gewürfelten Mischung aus Dill (Anethum graveolens), Hirtentäschel (Capsella bursa-pastoris) und Weizengras bepflanzen. Haben diese Düngepflanzen kräftig zu sprießen begonnen, werden sie samt Blättern, Wurzeln und allem anderen untergepflügt bis der Acker wieder völlig gereinigt erscheint. Erst dann werden die Aconitumsämlinge gepflanzt. Für jedes Mu Land werden 10 Stück Vieh gebraucht, die 50 Hu (etwa 450 Gallonen) an Dung als Dünger liefern. Ein 7 Cun (9 Zoll) breiter Rain wird Long genannt, ein 5 Chi (ca. 1,5 m) breiter Rain wird als Fu bezeichnet. Ist ein Feld vollständig bestellt, besteht es aus 20 Fu und 1.200 Long. Für die Berechnung [der Anzahl] der Long [Querraine] wird Fu als Feldrain [Längsrain] verwendet. Die Tiefe beider Raine ist gleich. Der Rest des [Acker]Landes besteht aus Gräben zur Be- und Entwässerung. Hat die Frühlingssonne ihre volle Kraft erreicht und ist die Bi-Konstellation erschienen (während des Dritten Frühlingsmonats: April), werden die Long- und Fu-Raine repariert und gegen den Regen gesichert, der das Gebiet zu dieser Jahreszeit überschwemmt. Sind die Frühjahrsregen vorüber, die die Halme hoch aufschießen lassen, werden Kräuter und Gräser als schützende Bodendecker gepflanzt, um die schrittweise sich verstärkenden Sonnenstrahlen abzuhalten. Der für diese Feldfrucht notwendige Arbeitsaufwand liegt 10mal höher als für andere Feldfrüchte, gleichwohl entspricht der Jahresertrag ebenfalls dem Zehnfachen dessen, was andere Feldfrüchte einbringen, vielleicht sogar mehr.
Gemeinsam pflanzen diese 4 Gemeinden mehr als 1.000 Hu (etwa 9.000 Gallonen) Sämlinge an. Die besten Sämlinge stammen aus den nahe gelegenen Gebieten Long’an, Longzhou, Qigui, Mumen, Qingdui und Xiaoping. Die Sämlinge werden während des 11ten Monats gepflanzt, beginnend mit der Wintersonnenwende. Geerntet werden die reifen Wurzeln kurz vor Ende des Herbstes, im 9ten Monat des Jahres (Oktober). Die Pflanzenstängel sehen aus wie die von wild wachsendem Beifuß (Artemisia / Ai ), erscheinen aber glänzender. Ihre Blätter können mit denen von Baldrian (Valeriana / Dima) verglichen werden, obwohl sie fleischiger sind. Die Blüten sind violett, die Blätter sind gelb und der Stamm ist lang, gefüllt und rund.
Frisch Aconitum
Die Qualität der geernteten Wurzel hängt vollständig von der Pflege ab, die der Pflanze während des Anbauprozesses zu Teil wurde. Wohlhabende Personen erhalten immer Produkte höchster Qualität, während Arme sich die höchste Qualität kaum leisten können. Manchmal wird die Pflanze während des 7ten Monats geerntet, was zu einem Produkt führt, das „Frühes Wasser“ genannt wird und dessen Wurzeln zu klein sind, um sich gut in eine geschlossene Faust zu schmiegen – es handelt sich hierbei um eine Form von Fuzi, die noch nicht ganz reif ist. Insgesamt birgt der Anbau von Fuzi [immer] die Angst minderer Qualität in sich und es ist schwer, die Wurzel zu wirklicher Reife zu bringen. Manchmal sehen die Sämlinge gut aus, aber die Schösslinge gedeihen nicht; oder die Schösslinge gedeihen, aber es bildet sich keine Wurzel; oder sie [die Wurzel] gärt und verfault vor der Ernte im Boden; oder sie platzt auf und verformt sich; oder irgendwelche Lebewesen zerfressen sie. Es ist daher unter den Pflanzern üblich, den Himmlischen Geistern vor der Ernte ein Opfer zu bringen oder an die Geister der Pflanzen bestimmte Gesten und Gebärden zu richten.
Die Bearbeitung des geernteten Produktes beginnt zunächst mit seiner Fermentierung, wobei mit Wein gefüllte Gefäße verwendet werden, die in einem abgeschlossenen Raum untergebracht sind. Dort werden die Wurzeln für einige Monate eingeweicht, bis sie zu gären beginnen und an Größe zunehmen [aufschwemmen]. Danach werden die Wurzeln aus ihrer Lake genommen und Sonne und Wind ausgesetzt bis sie völlig durchgetrocknet sind. Nach Entnahme der Wurzeln aus der Weinlake haben die größten Stücke den Umfang einer männlichen Faust. Während des Trocknens schrumpfen sie zusammen und das Endprodukt passt in eine geschlossene Hand. Es ist selten, dass eine Wurzel das Gewicht von 1 Liang (40 Gramm) erreicht.
Insgesamt gibt es 7 Typen von Fuzi – alle entstammen derselben Mutterwurzel, gleichwohl ist ihre letztendliche Form unterschiedlich. Die Grundwurzel des ursprünglichen Sämlings wird Wutou (Krähenkopf) genannt. Im Allgemeinen werden die Nachkommen, die sich seitlich der Grundwurzel bilden Fuzi (angehängte Nachkommen) genannt. Treibt ein gleich großes Paar [dieser Seitenwurzeln] rechts und links aus, heißt es Lizi (Dreierwurzel). Treiben sie in besonderer Länge aus, nennt man dies Tianxiong (Himmlischer Mann). Bilden sich an ihnen harkige Spitzen, wird dies Tianzhui (himmlischer Pfriem, himmlische Ahle) genannt. Wachsen sie über den oberen Ansatz der Mutterwurzel hinaus, wird dies Cezi (Richtungsfalscher / indirekter Wuchs) genannt. Treiben sie in allen Richtungen aus, nennt man dies Loulanzi (Nachkommen eines undichten Korbes). Allesamt sind sie [aber] mit der Hauptwurzel verbunden, wie ein Kind mit seiner Mutter verbunden ist, doch da der Name Fuzi zum geschätztesten unter ihnen wurde, werden sie jetzt alle Fuzi genannt, während die anderen Bezeichnungen außer Gebrauch gekommen sind.
Pflanzt man einen Sämling, der 6-7 Nachkommen hervorbringt, werden die geernteten Wurzeln klein sein. Erhält man 2-3 Nachkommen, werden diese größer sein. Pflanzt man einen, der [nur] einen einzigen Nachkommen hat, so wird dieser besonders groß sein – das ist die Norm. Was die Form von Fuzi anlangt so werden diejenigen Wurzeln mit wenigen Ecken und Kanten und die ohne wegzurollen auf einer ebenen Oberfläche zu liegen vermögen als die höchste Qualität betrachtet. So genannte rattenbrustförmige Wurzeln mit vielen Ecken und Dellen stellen die zweitbeste Qualität dar und solche von missgebildeter Form, die bröckelig sind oder während des Anbauprozesses verletzt wurden bilden die niedrigste Qualitätsstufe. Was die Farbe angeht so werden Pflanzen mit weißen Blüten für die besten angesehen, solche mit Blüten von brandig-rostiger Farbe bilden die zweite und solche mit blaugrünen Blüten die unterste Qualität. Tianxiong, Wutou und Tianzhui hält man von höchster Qualität wenn sie vollste Größe aufweisen, sodass eine Wurzelknolle nicht mehr in einer geschlossenen Hand Platz findet. Im Gegensatz dazu werden Loulanzi und Cezi im Allgemeinen des Zählens für Unwert befunden und an die Bettler verteilt.
Zusammen genommen gibt es in Shu (Sichuan) nur wenig Volks, das Fuzi regelmäßig konsumiert. Einzig die Bevölkerung von Shaanpu (die heutige Provinz Shaanxi), die von Min (die heutige Provinz Fujian) und die von Zhe (heutige Provinz Zhejiang) haben die Verwendung von Fuzi zu einer regelmäßigen Gewohnheit gemacht. Die Händler in Shaanpu achten darauf, eher minderwertiges Fuzi auf den Markt zu bringen. In Min und Zhe neigt man dazu, nur mittelmäßiges Fuzi zu handeln und die höchste Qualität im Allgemeinen an die Staatsbeamten (Mandarine) zu verkaufen. Der Adelsstand besitzt Geld und liebt das Außergewöhnliche und ist daher in der Regel nur mit großen Wurzeln zufrieden. Ein medizinisch gebildeter Einwohner sagte [mir] einmal: „Die kleinen Wurzel sollten tatsächlich vermieden werden, jedoch ist jedes Stück, das mehr als ½ Ling (20 Gramm) wiegt gut. Es ist nicht notwendig, nur jene seltenen zu suchen, die ein volles Liang ausmachen.“ – Mehr ist dazu nicht zu sagen.
Das Shen Nong Bencao bemerkte einst: „ Fuzi wächst in den Tälern von Qianwei (dem heutigen Leshan in Sichuan), sowie links des Yangzi (an den südlichen Ufern der unteren Ausläufer des Yangzi-Flusses), im Süden des Berges Song (südlich der Berge Hu und Zhongnan) und in der Region Qi und Lu (der heutigen Provinz Shandong).“ Meine Forschungen zeigen, dass in diesen Gebieten überhaupt kein Fuzi wächst. Es handelt sich hier um einen klaren Fehler. Der Klassiker merkt weiter an: „Wenn die Feldfrucht im Frühling geerntet wird erhält man Wutou und im Winter erhält man Fuzi.“ – meiner Meinung nach ein riesiger Irrtum! Der Text setzt fort: „Fuzi, das acht Ecken aufweist ist von bester Qualität, die Ecken werden Cezi genannt.“ Dies ist ein noch viel größerer Irrtum und unterscheidet sich völlig von dem, was ich während meiner Forschungen gelernt habe. Dies ist wahrlich ein Fall davon, dass „Glaube in Bücherwissen übler sein kann, denn gar keine Bücher zu besitzen.“ Alle obigen Aufzeichnungen entstammen meiner eigenen Feldforschung.
Für mehr Information zu Aconitum und anderen Kräutern oder Rezepturen besuchen Sie www.classicalpearls.org.
© 2010 Heiner Frühauf
© 2010 Übersetzung Deutsche Markus Goeke
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Watch this video of Heiner Fruehauf touring an aconite (fuzi) processing facility in Jiangyou, the only location in China where the crop is grown and processed using traditional methods.
For more information about direct trade and sustainably sourced and processed fuzi (aconite), please visit classicalpearls.org. (Für mehr Information zu Aconitum und anderen Kräutern oder Rezepturen besuchen Sie classicalpearls.org)
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Dear Heiner,
I find this narration by Yang Tianhui very enlightening on different levels, thank you for bringing forth this excellent translation and material.
What strikes me most is the length and depth earlier scholars went into in order to distinguish true from false. I feel that this article is such a great contribution, bringing me and other practitioners closer to this truth. With this spirit in mind I want to add a bit and help promote this direction of research.
From Yang Tianhui going forward 500 years to Zhang Zhicong （1616—1674 AD） I see Zhang’s commentary on Fu Zi and Tian Xiong in Ben Cao Chong Yuan (Honourable Origins of Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing ) to be very much in line with Yang, and from this I conclude that throughout this period of Song and Ming (1100-1600 AD) the correct land cultivating medicinal grade Fu Zi is in Zhang Ming county, Chi Shui village etc. lower grade Fu Zi was available on the market throughout these centuries, and yet well educated scholars and doctors could tell the difference.
(find Zhang’s commentary here http://chineseclassics.org/ )
I am trying to find out if Zhang Ming was always the place of Fu Zi?
I looked back in time to Wang Tao (702-772 A.D.) and his famous work Wai Tai Mi Yao (Medical Secrets of an Official) in a chapter about the origins of different herbs, there is a citation from Qian Jin Yi Fang ( of Sun Simiao): There are 133 regions that herbs come from with a total of 519 different herbs. It goes on to state Mian Zhou produces Tian Xiong, Wu Tou, Fu Zi, Wu Hui, Ce Zi…… Long Zhou produces Ce Zi, Tian Xiong, Wu Tou, Wu Hui and Fu Zi.
Mian Zhou and Long Zhou, as mentioned in this article, surround today’s Jiang You.
In a chapter on preparation of herbs Wang Tao goes on to quote the Qian Jin Fang: Whenever using Tian Xiong, Fu Zi, Wu Tou, Wu Hui or Ce Zi in preparation of concoctions, pills and powders, these herbs are roasted in hot ashes until they crack open, the blackened skin peeled and then they are weighed. Only in Jiang Fu decoctions (ginger and Fu Zi type decoctions), ointments and medicated wines that the raw herb is used. Even so the skin is peeled first and then it is weighed. The correct way is to cleave it into seven or eight slices.
I found that in the 8th century AD the birth land of Fu Zi and its preparation is well documented.
(As a side note, this work by Wang Tao is especially important as the Jin Gui Yao Lue content (Prescriptions from the Golden Cabinet) resurface here for the first time in history since its disappearance from Wang Shuhe’s (265-316) version of the Shang Hanlun.)
I looked a century back in time to Sun Simiao (581–682) and Qian Jin Yi Fang the citation of Wang Tao conforms. Fu Zi, Tian Xiong, Wu Tou, Wu Hui and Ce Zi are produced in Mian Zhou and Long Zhou.
In my opinion, Yang Tianhui is seeking the truth and from his article I see his dedication to the research of facts. ” The classic further states: “If you harvest the crop in the spring you will get Wutou; in the winter, you will get Fuzi”—a major mistake, in my opinion.
Sun Simiao states: Wu Tou and Wu Hui are harvested in the first and second lunar months. If harvested in spring it is Wu Tou and if harvested in winter it is Fu Zi.
Yang disputes this statement as he knows that Fu Zi is not harvested in winter or spring, errors of the past need to be revised. He quotes Mencius: “to believe only what is written in books is worse than having no books at all”! (reference: The Complete Heart, Mencius commenting on the successful completion of the war of the Shu Jing).
I was looking earlier in history, Tao Hongjing (456─536 AD) in his arrangement of the Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing writes: Harvested in the 8th lunar month it is Fu Zi, while harvested in the spring it is Wu Tou.
He goes farther to say: Fu Zi is the master of the hundred herbs. It grows in Shan Gu and Guang Han (As in Yang’s statement – Mianzhou is the ancient region formerly called Guanghan.)….. it is harvested in the first 10 days of the 8th lunar month, with eight corners it is best. Whenever the three Jian are used (Fu Zi, Wu Tou and Tian Xiong) they are toasted in hot ashes until they crack open, but they should not be overly burnt. The herb is only used fresh in Jiang Fu decoction.
Wu Jin (3rd century AD) in Wu Jin Ben Cao states: Another name for Fu Zi is Lang 莨, in Shen Nong it is pungent, by Qi Bo and Lei Gong it is sweet and toxic, by Li it is bitter and toxic with great warmth, it grows in Guang Han and harvested in the 8th month, the skin is black and the flesh white.
Han dynasty, Wei Zhiji in his Ming Yi Bie Lu states: Fu Zi grows in eastern Guang Han, harvested in the 8th lunar month it is Fu Zi, while harvested in spring it is Wu Tou.
Fan Li (end of spring and autumn period 500- 400 BC) in Fan Zi Ji Ran states: Fu Zi grows in Wu Du in Shu蜀武都(today’s Mian Zhu in Sichuan四川绵竹, about 20 km southwest of today’s Jiang You).
The correct location where Fu Zi should come from I find it conclusive, but why is Fu Zi so important, why is it the greatest among the hundred herbs?. 《淮南子》缪称训云：天雄，乌喙，药之凶毒也，良医以活人。I think that Huai Nanzi (2nd century BC) puts it well: Tian Xiong and Wu Hui are fiercely toxic among herbs, the skilled doctor uses them to bring people back to life.
an evening well spent!
Yaron
Yaron,
Thank you much for your extremely relevant supplement to this article, illuminating the history of Fuzi cultivation in today’s Jiangyou region! Yang Tianhui’s travelogue clearly demonstrates how a few hundred acres of very specific farmland in northern Sichuan was regarded as the only “didao” (correct) place for the cultivation of medicinal aconite during the 11th century and beyond. Your notes increase the significance of this statement by revealing how the definitive link between “genuine aconite” and this specific area can be traced back much further, i.e. as far back as the early Han dynasty (note: the early text Fanzi jiran was almost certainly written during the 2nd century BC, not the 5th century BC).
The obvious question for us is to contemplate what, exactly, makes this region so special, causing the aconite produced here to distinguish itself from aconite grown elsewhere in China as the most powerful tool to vanquish serious disease, the “King of the 100 Herbs?”
Ancient texts describe this region as “possessing a particularly warm, even hot, soil that causes vegetation to grow early and wither late” (Fengsu tongyi). The age-old aconite fields of Jiangyou, moreover, are located along the banks of the Fujiang River that has deposited a mineral-rich layer of silt from the Tibetan highlands for millennia. The “purple clay” (zini) of this region has always been considered to be a local specialty, and was used for ancestral rituals during Han and pre-Han times. In addition, Jiangyou is situated at the foothills of the Himalayas, more precisely the meeting place of the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates. As a result, ancient observers attributed a particular yang power of the earth to this region; a power that, when concealed, has the ability to nourish everything abundantly at the surface, but will become extremely destructive when discharged explosively during an earthquake. We see these polar extremes mirrored in the healing (processed aconite) and killing (raw aconite) qualities attributed to the aconite root. Major earthquakes have been reported in the Jiangyou region since the early Han dynasty (Qian Han ji). Jiangyou was, of course, very near the epicenter of the great Chinese earthquake of 2008, which killed 70,000 people and caused great damage to the aconite fields and processing facilities.
All of these examples reveal the energetic quality of the Jiangyou region as yang within yin (or yin within yang, depending on the angle of symbolic classification): a red-hot power stored beneath the surface of the eternally clouded Sichuan sky and the lastingly moist Jiangyou earth. It is extremely significant in this context that one of the most ancient names for aconite is Jian 建 : “the builder,” or more precisely, “the maintainer of centralness.” In the language of the Yijing, Jian is a technical term for yang line(s), specifically those that stay below the surface, inside, at the center, in a state of pregnant storage (best evidenced by the trigram Kan/Water: one yang line sandwiched in the middle between two yin lines). Evocative of similar qualities, Jian was also the name of the “banner” formed by the stars of the Dipper, marking the center of the sky. Earth center tonification in Chinese medicine, moreover, has traditionally been called jian pi—restoring the yang power of the Spleen while simultaneously boosting its “central” (storage) quality. Several classical materia medica sources categorize aconite as a substance that primarily affects the earth systems of the body.
All of these sources, moreover, emphasize that aconite is not only extremely warming and drying in nature, but remind us of the herb’s now forgotten ability to keep energy concealed in the lower part of the body, the physical equivalent of “the Yellow Springs” (a Chinese euphemism for the underworld; the color yellow has always served as a traditional Chinese marker for “bundled light that is stored deep inside”). It is for this reason that the Fire Spirit School considers aconite to be such an effective remedy for anxiety, insomnia, and other symptoms indicative of upward yang-qi leakage.
It is most interesting in this context that the Western source for genuine medicinal aconite was the now forgotten place called Aconae near Heraclea Pontica (the modern-day city of Karadeniz Eregli in Turkey), hence the name aconite. It is here that the Greeks postulated their mythical entrance to the underworld–the European equivalent to Jiangyou, where the concentrated power of the Yellow Springs can be accessed from the surface.
Thank you again for a fun and fruitful conversation!
Wow! Thank you for the wonderful detailed translation and follow-up information that has been shared about this beautiful medicinal herb FuZi! I will never be able to look at FuZi with the same eyes again! This herb has always intrigued me but I had no idea about the extent of its intricacies in production. Inspiring to know about the classical ways of cultivation of this medicinal herb!
Heiner,
Thank you for the very interesting and educating discussion. As you accurately corrected Fan Zi Ji Ran should have been compiled in the western Han, judging by some names and herbs it mentions. The person Fan Li himself was in late Spring and autumn period. Aside from him being an advisor, successful businessman etc, after whom the work Fan Zi Ji Ran was named, was there an oral transmission in these 2-300 years down from him, maybe?
On a different note, I find your comments on the geographical aspects of Jiang You very beneficial for myself and they seem to require much contemplation.
The ancients said the art of medicine is the art of Yi 易 (Changes and transformations or symbolism representing these changes). As you accurately point out an ancient term used for aconite is Jian建 : “the builder,” or more precisely, “the maintainer of centralness.” In the language of the Yijing. So I am looking into Yi 易and want to expand a bit possibly into some uncharted water.
In the first hexagram of Qian (heaven) the Yijing states 乾：元亨，利貞。Which, excluding most commentaries, in my opinion means origin, progression, harmonious purity. Qian also states: 见龙在田 seeing the dragon in the field.
From origin to progression to harmonious purity explains, in my mind, the source of fuel our life gets every single day. The ancient said that our life comes from heaven. It is from this origin and progression that it must come. The Xiang Zhuan comments on the first line of Qian 象傳: 天行健，君子以自疆不息。Heaven movement builds健, the monarch puts in boundaries endlessly (also get stronger endlessly). In contrast Kun earth hexagram states 《易·坤卦》坤厚載物，德合无疆。Kun is broad and harbors things, virtue joins and no boundaries (no strength). It also states 《易·坤卦》君子以厚德載物。The monarch uses broadness virtue to harbor things.
I feel that ‘Heaven movement builds’ and ‘putting in boundaries (becoming strong)’, is our body’s life force and Jian 健, the building up of heaven movement in the body, is the focal point. The body harbors it, yet heaven movement builds健within these boundaries. In the hexagram Da You it states《易·大有》：其德刚健而文明，应乎天而时行，是以元亨 Its virtue is solidifying and building and with this presents traces of brightness, it conforms to heaven and so time allows movement, it is the origin and progression.
Qian hexagram states 《易·乾》：“见龙在田，天下文明。” Seeing the dragon in the field, and then all under heaven presents traces of brightness. The dragon (or heaven’s movement) in the field allows everything under heaven to present a state of life. This is Jian建 : “the builder,” as I understand it. What is aconite if not the dragon in the field! How much all this relates to the local place of Jiang You? As you describe, Heiner, very much so. “Ancient texts describe this region as “possessing a particularly warm, even hot, soil that causes vegetation to grow early and wither late”. Why does vegetation grow early and wither late? I think this is the dragon in the field. So if the medicinal Fu Zi gives life, why do we call it toxic?
In Shang Hanlun and Jin Gui Yao Lue Fu Zi is used in 34 prescriptions, Wu Tou in 3, Chuan Wu in 1. I think that there is a reason why this medicinal is frequently used in a medicine so close to Yi易.
On my past visit to Jiang You I had a great enlightenment to the meaning of Fu Zi and how it works. I wish to report this in order to benefit the research into this great herb. On this visit I tasted fresh raw Fu Zi, around 1-2 grams with the skin (the skin is the most toxic part and contains most Wu Tou alkaloids, the active toxic ingredient. This is why Zhongjing often instructs to peel the skin off and cut it into 8 slices). For about 10 minutes there was no reaction. I was thinking to myself: “strange! Raw Fu Zi and no reaction at all.” But then my tongue and mouth started feeling numb and few minutes later the throat began feeling somewhat constricted. At this point I was thinking to myself “am I some sort of suicidal fool?”, I was getting a little worried (please don’t try this at home). But then the I felt very strong heat going from the nose through the throat into the heart, at this point the throat did not feel constricted anymore, but rather a warm feeling spread in the chest cavity for about 20-30 minutes. The tongue remained numb for about 3 hours.
All of a sudden I understood how Fu Zi work, what does it mean heaven movement builds inside, what does the Neijing mean with: the heart is where spirit brightness appears, what is the spirit instrument and why does it connect to the heart., how does fire from heaven gets to kidney water to become original Yang etc, many questions all of a sudden cleared up. Sometime 1-2 grams of Fu Zi can go along way.
As Zhao Jun reported in a previous article, some local farmers from other regions of China consume their local Fu Zi like potatoes. Jiang You Fu Zi cannot be consumed like potatoes. Can potatoes bring the fire back to the heart? Can potatoes bring patients back to life?
I think, Heiner, that your description of Jiang You’s geographical features contain some of the secrets why this Fu Zi is such a great medicinal, but the answer may only come to me after some prolonged meditation. It was an awesome experience though, to touch the soil, smell the mountain air, dig out some Fu Zi roots and taste a small amount.
I just came back from a cocktail party with many Reproductive Endocrinologists from my area. Over a glass of wine I tried to explain to them why if they don’t use Fu Zi with their patients the IVFs will fail. I must say, some needed more then one glass of wine to swallow this one!
Yaron
This is great information. Thank you so much for sharing it together with the posts. Is there by any chance a copy of the commentary to the SNBCJ, the 本草經集注 by Tao Hongjing 陶弘景 somewhere on line. I noticed Dr. Seidman made reference to it in his first post, and if either of you could please direct me to a website where it can be found, I would really appreciate it. Thank you very much.
Sincerely,
Ernesto Berrios
Ernesto,
Tao Hongjing’s important commentary to the SNBCJ can be downloaded at http://www.zyy123.com/down/bencao/394.html
Yaron,
Thank you for your personal Fuzi tasting story, and your further musings on the very important relationship between hexagram 1 and the etymology of Fuzi — it is indeed the key to the understanding of the all-encompassing healing power contained in this herb.
Thanks to all involved in this conversation…this is such valuable information that it cannot be overstated. My question is how can one find information of this nature on other herbs mentioned in the SNBCJ? As someone who believes that we as practitioners of Chinese medicine in the United States (or anywhere outside of China, for that matter) are responsible for keeping this medicine alive and available to our communities. How long do we think it will be economically as well as environmentally beneficial to import our medicine from across the great water? Is it even now? I really liked what Dr. Seidman stated regarding the ancients and their understanding of the art of medicine as the art of Yi 易 (Changes and transformations or symbolism representing these changes). I’m curious how you feel about the realm of cultivating Chinese medicinal plants outside of China, especially with regard to the idea of changes.transformations within the medicine itself. True, they will not be the same as those grown in China…this brings to mind the idea of Terroir in Oenology. But we are also not Chinese, unless of course, one is.
With deep respect and sincere gratitude,
Antonio Barros, L.Ac.
Antonio, thank you much for your comments! Several thoughts spring to mind in response:
1) Personally, i am at this point not so terribly worried about importing and working with herbs from China. Everything in the world right now comes from somewhere else–German chamomile, for instance is grown in Egypt; everybody’s coffee comes from South America or Africa. I am a great fan of locally grown food, and the idea of utilizing locally grown herbs. During the last several years, i have been in contact with a consortium of organic farms in the United States that are committed to growing high quality Chinese herbs right here. They have found that about 50 of the 500 most commonly used herbs can be grown well over here, very often with outstanding results. However, these herbs cannot be grown in one place, but require vastly different American climate zones. In addition, they are presently much more expensive than their imported Chinese counterparts, especially if they need to be made into granules–most of the industrial size granular cookers are in China. Shipping the already expensive crude herb there, and then shipping the granules back would be forbidding. Most importantly, these small farms have extremely small yields and cannot guarantee a steady supply. In China, you have entire provinces that have been dedicated to the herb trade for millennia. They count by the ton where we count by the ounce. in my part-time clinic alone I am prescribing the equivalent of 100 pounds of crude herbs per week–I would never be able to get these kind of quantities from an American farm, and the logistics of growing the five of these herbs that would prosper in Oregon on my own land would be staggering (at least for this stuck-in-the-mud scholar who does not have any expertise in growing plants). However, i salute anyone who labors in this direction–including people trying to work out the equivalent energetics of Western and other types of local herbs.
2) Most important for me as an herbal practitioner who treats people with chronic disorders is the great amount of precision that classical Chinese medicine applies to the field of herbal prescriptions. While there is no question that Chinese herbs come from far away, and are not what they once used to be (due to fertilizers, pesticides, and other types of pollution, and the gradual abandonment of traditional growing and processing techniques), we do know the precise energetic mechanism of their working in the human body and mind. I probably have scores of super-potent herbs right here on my land in the Sandy River Gorge, but I have no books or oral transmissions about their effect that is anywhere near the level of detail of the classical Chinese herbs. Since I am not a sage like Shen Nong who “tasted the 100 poisons” and was able to differentiate exactly how to use them in medicine, I have to stick with the Chinese herbs for now–despite a standing mandate by at least two of my Daoist herb teachers from China to use local herbs whenever I can.
3) This last point appears to be especially true in the case of aconite, which in the Chinese materia medica always has had a particular requirement for specific locality (Jiangyou in Sichuan), even more so than the didao yaocai (genuine local) request attached to most other herbs. As explored higher up in this blog, this sense of locality for medicinal aconite seems to hold true not only for Chinese aconite (aconitum carmichaelii), but also for the Western type of medicinal aconite (aconitum napellus). I am sure if I would try to grow either of them in my back yard they would both bloom beautifully, but either of them would most likely be worthless as a long-term medicinal substance.
Antonio,
I think that your questions are very relevant. Thank you!
I also agree and support Heiner’s points, so allow me not to repeat them.
I would like to add that, at least in my opinion, consuming medicinals is different then eating locally grown food, which I am too in favor of. Medicinals incline off the center, food is in the center and this is why we can consume it all our life every single day.
Since medicinals are toxic and incline off the center in harvesting heaven and earth energies, therefore certain locations are better then others, and this why there is history of Di Dao Yao Cai in China. As mentioned before, the knowledge accumulated in China in this area is vast and detailed. For thousands of years a nation’s entire population consumed only these medicinals, and so this Di Dao information became apparent and exclusive in China. Yet in our modern era in the west, the use of CM medicinals is marginal compared to Western medicine. So how can we gather such Di Dao knowledge?
In addition, economics do play a great deal. When possible I buy Di Dao herbs of premium quality in prices that are expensive for China, but managable in the USA. If these herbs were grown here with such stringent Di Dao controls (which do not exist in the west at the moment) then the price would be out of reach for most practitioners.
I think that getting the best quality Di Dao herbs for the cheapest price is important for helping patients. (Don’t mistake, these are normally the most expensive on the market). Getting same quality Di Dao herbs for double the price doesn’t serve the patient. Medicine should help the patient. In this respect I don’t care if the best herb comes from China or Burma. I only care if it is the best herb for my patient.
In other words, the idea of locally grown is not relevant for medicinals only to food. I live in Connecticut, if a certain herb can only grow in the climate of Texas for example, there is nothing local about it 3000 miles away.
In a world so abusive on human life in many ways, it is our task to push our CM to great extreme of efficacy and truthfulness. This does require a change, a change for the better. Patients need our help today more then ever before. I believe that CM of antiquity is not good enough for the mess our modern life creates. However, the truth of the sages was non the less true, only that they may have not needed to push it as far as we need to today.
This is really where change is needed. Sadly, some believe that the wheel need to be reinvented, or that the wheels of the ancient vehicle need to be square instead of round. I think that the wheels of the vehicle should remain round, just the engine a little better, drive faster with less gas etc.
As for herbs, the way to find more about them comes from inner contemplation of the CM vehicle first. One should get close to the truth in understanding what the medicine should be like, and then when he uses the herbs they need to behave according to what one expects. If the herb behaves the way I thought it should, then this is Di Dao quality for me. If the herb doesn’t behave like I want it to, then it doesn’t matter where it grows, what Shen Nong says, how much it cost etc, its worthless or even worse harmful. Therefore the foundation for determining the quality of an herb is the quality of my knowledge.
regards
Yaron
Where is the drawing of Aconite, a more recent European depiction, from? Thanks!
I cannot remember exactly where the drawing is from. My best guess is that it originates from one of the illustrated materia medica on the mountain regions of Germany, Switzerland, and Austria by one of the following authors: Franz Eugen Koehler (1914) or Otto Wilhelm Thome (1885).
What an interesting discussion thread! I’ve just discovered it and cannot resist a comment. The concept of medicinal properties coming directly out of the earth, nurtured with careful stewardship — instead of being manufactured (reduced) subject to our limited comprehension – is still so new to our post-modern consciousness. While Heiner and others are correct in noting that our American farms producing Chinese herbs are few and small, and our capacity limited at present, this view neglects the larger processes at work including that of profound social change (which always starts small). These small farms — indeed the entire ecological agriculture movement including organics, biodynamics, permaculture, nature farming and the like — are the first steps toward restoring a relationship with nature that fractured under the weight of 500+ years of materialism in the West. The terroir considerations (I prefer that term to Di Dao) related to herb production tend to be fetishized by those with a commercial interest or simply pride of craftsmanship. These attitudes are found elsewhere in agriculture which, at its best, is the ultimate craft. The medicine comes out of the qualities of the physical setting — yes, true — but humans have the capacity to cooperate and compare the produce of different settings. We have evidence-based ways to find out if the “herb behaves as it should.” Further, each locality has the power to accept or reject those results based on a cooperative process of evaluation, to supply its own needs first and then to trade its surplus with other regions. To me, the most poignant part of the translated text was the comment that the rich people always get the highest quality product. We can avoid that eventuality by working toward a highly distributed, broad-based return to traditional medicine. It’s no accident that both the Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine and the organic movements took shape in the U.S. beginning about 1970, remained underground for decades and are now emergent. These movements are two expressions of right relationship with nature, working from the same model of health, using different language. The next stage of the process is imminent.
Jean: Thank you much for participating in our discussion, for your wise comment, and for the work that you do! I believe that your endeavor of creating a consortium of small American farms growing a certain portion of Chinese herbs locally, naturally and sustainably is absolutely praiseworthy, and in many ways more important than the theoretical work we do here on this site. Our profession needs the dedicated people at High Falls Gardens and other American farms who directly interact with the earth to seek local solutions for supplying the herbs we rely upon. The US grown herb samples you showed me several years ago were excellent in quality, and in some ways superior to herbs imported from China.
I understand your comment about terroir considerations, and how they can potentially be overrated. When seeking out herb locations in China, I often find myself favoring small farms that are not necessarily located in the classically designated spot (which is often not one single location to begin with). I agree that the care of the land and the love of traditional growing and processing techniques can more than make up for the benefits of place. In China, traditional locations are often treated like a label–a good example in the food department would be Longjing Dragon Well Tea from Hangzhou–and in recent years local peasants and businessmen have come to ride on this label (rather than the quality of the actual product). The resulting food/herb, therefore, often ends up being too expensive, treated excessively with pesticides, etc.
This particular post about aconite has been written from the perspective of a clinical practitioner who, along with my Shanghan and Fire Spirit School teachers, has used the Fuzi and Chuanwu and Tianxiong and Caowu varieties of this herb for a long time. The difference of utilizing traditionally processed aconite tubers from a small farm in Jiangyou has been nothing short of dramatic. It has solved the decade-long crisis that has severely handicapped our small community of Shanghan practitioners specializing in the treatment of severe and chronic/recalcitrant illnesses: aconite is often the lead herb in our prescriptions, but when aconite from other growing locations and from state-run companies that process with chemicals and modern machinery is used, we often observe severe side-effects. As a result, many of us have not used aconite at all in our prescriptions for many years. Now we are using it again, and along with our patients are extremely happy about this development. This blog, therefore, originated from the ardent desire to share my findings of the clinical benefits of traditional Jiangyou aconite with like-minded practitioners. The politics of global agriculture are definitely not my area of expertise, but the clinical use of aconite is one of the few areas I can speak about with confidence and integrity. If you ever locally grow and safely process an American aconite root that you think may qualify to be used as Fuzi/Chuanwu in a Chinese herbal prescription, I would be the first who would like to see it!