Chapter 8 Section 5 Development of Medicinal Animals and Plants Research

The study of medicinal plants and animals is an important part of traditional biology in ancient my country.Many of the plants and animals mentioned in are medicinal.There are 66 kinds of medicinal animals and 51 kinds of medicinal plants recorded.Although this book is not a specialized medical book, it has become a pioneering work on the study of medicinal animals and plants in my country because the content involves the treatment of epidemic diseases at that time. It is the earliest and most complete specialized book on Materia Medica in my country. It is generally believed that it was written in the Western Han Dynasty (1st century BC), and the name "Shen Nong" is just a pretext. The term "Materia Medica" was first seen in "Hanshu Pingdi Ji". In ancient times, medicines were called Materia Medica because ancient medicines were mainly plants (grasses). "Materia Medica" is the original description of medicinal plants, similar to the current medicinal flora and fauna.The original book has long been lost, and the current book is compiled from other books by later generations.There are 365 kinds of medicines recorded in the book, including grass, grain, rice, fruit, wood, insect, fish, livestock, gold and stone, etc.According to their effects on the human body, they are divided into upper, middle and lower grades. There are 120 kinds of top grades, non-toxic, nourishing and strong medicines, which can be taken for a long time, such as ginseng, licorice, wolfberry, jujube, donkey-hide gelatin, tortoise shell, etc.; 120 kinds of middle grades , non-toxic or poisonous, play the role of suppressing disease and tonifying deficiency, such as angelica, huangcen, ephedra, magnolia officinalis, lily, plum fruit, honeycomb, etc.; 125 kinds of lower grades, poisonous, not long-lasting, can remove cold and heat, break accumulation, such as Euphorbia, kansui, aconitum, croton, peach kernel, earthworm, etc.The classification order of each product is jade as the first, followed by vegetation, insects, fruits and vegetables, and rice food at the end. The reason is that those who do not eat often are respected and placed in the front;This classification is obviously artificial.However, from the details of each product, it is still distinguished according to the natural attributes of medicinal animals and plants, and the inorganic substances are placed in front, and the organic substances are placed in the back.

A concise introduction is given to each medicinal plant and animal.Explaining pharmacological properties, main functions, growth environment and aliases, etc., not only created a style for later herbal works, but also provided an applied classification method with certain reference value for taxonomy. After its publication, it spread widely.However, with the development of the times and the in-depth study of medicinal animals and plants, the types of new drugs have gradually increased, and the efficacy of the original drugs has also changed.For example, in the bamboo slips of the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-88 AD) unearthed in Wuwei, Gansu, 20 of the nearly 100 species of medicinal animals and plants recorded were missing; The 365 kinds of medicines in the "Bielu of Famous Doctors" written by myself were combined into "Shen Nong's Materia Medica Collection", which recorded a total of 730 kinds of medicinal animals and plants, which not only increased the types, but also made more detailed identification of animals and plants.For example, there are two kinds of Atractylodes macrocephala, the leaves of Atractylodes macrocephala are large and hairy, and the roots are sweet and less balm;The distinction is very clear.It is also pointed out that the origin of medicinal plants and the harvest time are closely related to the curative effect. For example, ephedra is most effective in autumn, which shows that the physiology of plants is related to the regional climate.More importantly: In terms of classification, "Shen Nong's Materia Medica" is classified according to the function of the medicine itself, changing the three products into seven categories including jade, grass, wood, insects, animals, fruits and vegetables, and rice.For example, medicinal plants are divided into five categories: grass, tree, fruit, vegetable, and rice food according to their morphology or application. This is a major development in the classification of animals and plants. "Shen Nong's Materia Medica Collected Notes Preface" also classifies drugs according to their common efficacy.More than 80 kinds of "general medicines for various diseases" are listed, which is convenient and practical.These new classification and arrangement methods also have a great influence on later generations.For example, "Xinxiu Materia Medica" in the Tang Dynasty (AD 659), Song Dynasty "Revisiting Classics and History Zhenglei Materia Medica" (about 1086-1093 AD), and "Materia Medica Collection Essentials" in the Ming Dynasty (AD 1505). Classification methods, as long as thousands of years.Until, there is a major change.

Following the "Compendium of Materia Medica", in the fourth year of Xianqing Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty (659 A.D.), he compiled and promulgated my country's first pharmacopoeia "Xinxiu Materia Medica" (also the earliest herbal code in the world).The book is divided into three parts: "Materia Medica", "Pictures of Medicine", and "Pictures of Classics", with a total of 54 volumes.There are 850 kinds of medicinal animals and plants recorded, 114 more than "Shen Nong's Materia Medica Collection".There is a special train "Picture of Medicine", which has special significance.The classification method has not changed much.The original book has been lost, and now only fragments remain.

From the Tang Dynasty to the Song Dynasty, due to the changes of the times, the development of society, the advancement of medicine and the increasing complexity of medicines, the original herbal medicine could no longer meet the needs of the time.Song Renzong decided to revise "Jiayou Supplementary Notes on Shennong's Materia Medica" (1062 AD).Su Song and others participated in the revision of the book.Su Song (AD 1017-1101) was a native of Fujian. He was born in a family of scholars in the prosperous period of the Northern Song Dynasty.In view of the fact that "Xinxiu Materia Medica" has diagrams and scriptures in addition to the text part, and the diagrams can record shapes and colors, make it easy for people to understand, and the diagnosis and prescriptions are well-founded, so he suggested not to compose the diagrams, and obtained the approval of the emperor, AD 1061 It was compiled and promulgated at the same time as "Jiayou Materia Medica" the following year.This map-based book on herbal medicine concentratedly reflected the actual situation of drug use in the country at that time, and also reflected the level and achievements of natural history at that time.

The compilation of "Tujing Materia Medica" was ordered by the government in all counties and counties across the country to map all the medicines produced, regardless of animals, plants and minerals, and indicate the flowering and fruiting of plants, harvest season and functions (imported foreign medicines) , to ask customs authorities and businessmen to identify the source).And send one or two pieces or one or two samples to Kyoto for drawing purposes.At that time (1058 A.D.), 150 states and counties across the country quickly submitted nearly a thousand drafts of this book, together with corresponding specimens and text descriptions, to Beijing. Su Song was in charge of the overall compilation of the book. , to describe the shape of plant stems, leaves, flowers and fruits in detail, to pursue the origin of text descriptions, to keep two explanations for different statements in the materials, and not to record those that cannot be explained.The source of this book is extremely rich, and the writing attitude is also very serious.In fact, this is a national census of medicinal plants and animals. (Figure 9)

There are 21 volumes in the "Tu Jing Materia Medica", and there are 780 kinds of medicines in the existing ancient books, of which 103 are newly added.Under the names of 635 kinds of medicines, 933 sketches are attached to describe the types and forms of plants.Most of the pictures are realistic pictures with vivid images and rich pictures and texts.For example, many pictures of grass department, wood department, vegetable department and rice valley department can be used as the basis for identifying plants to families, genus and even species.In particular, 103 kinds of medicinal plants that have never been described in the previous generation of herbal works are included, which enriches the content of herbal science.

"Tujing Materia Medica" divides the medicinal animals and plants into the grass department, wood department, animal department, insect fish department, fruit department, vegetable department, and rice department.In the grass department and the wood department, it is divided into upper, middle and lower grades.Basically adopted the classification method of "Shen Nong's Materia Medica Collection".The morphological description of medicinal plants is generally in the order of seedling, stem, leaf, flower, fruit, fruit, and root. The description of calyx, ovary, fruit, and seed is very detailed, using some relatively stable terms. Describe the special form of a plant.For example, the stems of plants are divided into twining stems (Cuscuta), climbing stems (Mabia), stolons (Trustus terrestris), and erect stems (Alisma terrestris) according to different growth states; Knee), clumped leaves (Chuanxiong [xiongxiong]), whorled leaves (Pianiflorus chinensis), etc.The description of plant growth and development is even more exciting.For example, describe Achyranthes bidentata: "spring-growing seedlings, stems two or three feet high, blue-purple, with joints, like crane knees, and achyranthes knees, so it is named. The leaf tips are round like spoons, facing each other. Flowers grow on the joints Make spikes. Autumn fruit is very thin.” It clearly points out that the hyssopia joints are enlarged in knee shape, the leaves are opposite, and the spikes and other basic characteristics can be identified as Achyranthes bidentata in the family Amaranthus [xian].In addition, according to the similar characteristics of several plants in the book, they are arranged together (for example, Anemarrhena, Fritillaria, Lily are arranged together, Galangal, Turmeric, Red Cardamom, and White Cardamom are arranged together), which also means Improved understanding of plant natural taxa relationships.This is a great inspiration for future works.When Su Song wrote "Tu Jing Materia Medica", he adopted a scientific attitude that "naturalists should also stick to the facts", which made the content of natural history in Materia Medica more obvious and contributed to the development of ancient biology.

The original work of "Tu Jing Materia Medica" has been lost, and now there is only a series, and most of the pictures are preserved in the existing "Revisiting Zheng He Jing Shi Zheng Lei Materia Medica" (AD 1116).Japanese scientists commented: "Su Song's Tujing Materia Medica has reached the highest level in the world."