『Dongui Bogam-Internal Bodily Elements(동의보감-내경편』 Ⅰ. Body(신형 身形)
Written By Jun Heo(許浚, 1539~1615), Translated by Namil Kim, Wung Seok Cha et al., Published by Ministry of Health & Welfare (Korea)
① A simple prescription is medicine with a single herb in the form of a pill, powder, or decoction. Take 2 don if it is taken in the form of a pill, and take 5 don if it is taken in decoction.
② There are 23 kinds in total.
Polygonati Rhizoma 黃精
If one takes this for a long time, the body feels lighter, the face gets younger, and the person does not get old and does not get hungry. The root, stem, flower, and seed are all edible. Take the root, wash away the bitter taste in cold water, use the Nine method, which is a process of steaming and drying for nine cycles; also dry it in the shade, pound it into powder, and mix it in clean water everyday to take. Do not eat with Mume Fructus.[B045]
Acori Gramineri Rhizoma 菖蒲
① It makes the body feel lighter, keeps one young and ensures a long life. Soak the root in rice-washed water for one night and dry it under the sun, and grind it into powder. Add porridge of glutinous rice and boiled honey to mix it and make pills to a size of the seed of the foxglove tree. Take it anytime with wine or porridge; take 30 pills in the morning and 20 pills in the evening.[B045]
② The method of making Acori Gramineri Rhizoma (石菖蒲) wine is as follows: Add 5 mal of glutinous rice to the juice of root of Acori Gramineri Rhizoma (石菖蒲). Steam it and add 5 geun of soft yeast and mix it well. Ferment it in the usual way of making wine and let it sink. When the water floating above is taken for a long time, it enables one to have a thoroughly bright spirit and ensures a long life.[B146]
Chrysanthemi Flos 甘菊花
① It makes the body feel lighter, keeps one young, and ensures a long life. All of the sprouts, leaves, roots, and flowers are all edible. Dry the herb in the shade, pound it into powder, and take it with wine or make pills with honey and take it for a long time.[B045]
② The method of making Chrysanthemi Flos wine is as follows: Add 1 seom of water to 5 doe of Chrysanthemi Flos, Rehmanniae Radix Crudus (生地黃), and Lycii Radicis Cortex (地骨皮) and decoct until the mixture decreases to about 5 mal, then add 5 mal of glutinous rice and steam again. When the mixture seems cooked, add soft yeast and mix well, and put it in a jar. When the wine is feremented, let it sink and take the top layer of water, and warm it before taking. It makes the sinews and bones strong, tonifies the bone marrow, and makes life longer. White ones are more effective.[B146]
Asparagi Tuber 天門冬
① When taken for a long time, it makes the body feel lighter, keeps one young, and ensures a long life. Dig the root and remove the peel and core, pound it into powder and mix it with wine before taking. Also, pound the raw one and extract the juice, boil down into an ointment and mix 1~2 spoonfuls of ointment with wine. Ganshi from the area of Taiyuan during Han Dynasty took Asparagi Tuber (天門冬) and lived 300 years.[B045]
② The method of making Asparagi Tuber (天門冬) wine is as follows: dig the root, pound it and extract 2 mal of juice, add 2 mal of glutinous rice and mix it with yeast and ferment it in the usual way of fermenting wine. Drink the clear fluid. Also, dried Asparagi Tuber (天門冬) can be grinded to make wine. Do not take it with carp.[B146]
Rehmanniae Radix Crudus (Terra) 地黃
① When taken for a long time, it keeps one young and ensures a long life. Dig the roots, wash them, and pound it to extract the juice. Boil down the juice, add honey, and boil down again; make pills to a size of the seed of the foxglove tree. Take 30 pills a day with wine, 3 times a day on an empty stomach. Avoid green onion, onion, and radish when taking the medicine and do not put it in a steel dish.[B045]
② The method of making Rehmanniae Radix Crudus (生地黃) wine is as follows: add 1 mal of glutinous rice that had been washed 100 times and 3 geun of Rehmanniae Radix Crudus (生地黃) that has been cut into thin pieces. Steam them together, mix it in white yeast, and ferment the mixture; drink the clear fluid.[B146]
Atractylodis Rhizoma 朮
① When taken for a long time in the form of decoction or powder, it makes the body feel lighter and ensures a long life. It is also called “the essence of the mountains”. It is said in the Shennong’s Materia Medica (神農藥經): “One must always take ‘the essence of the mountains’ to live long.” Dig the root and soak it in rice-washed water. Remove the black peel. Stir-fry and pound 1 geun to make into powder and add 8 nyang of steamed Poria Sclerotium (白茯苓), mix it with honey, and make into pills. Also, extract the juice and decoct to take with wine or boil down to make into pills. Avoid peaches, plums, meat of the sparrow, clams, green onions, and radishes when taking this medicine.[B045]
② When one takes an Immortals’ Atractylodes Decoction (仙朮湯), it ensures a long life, makes the sight better, face younger,
body lighter, and keeps one young. Grind 19.2 nyang of Atractylodis Rhizoma (蒼朮), 6 doe of Zizyphi Fructus, 2.4 nyang of Armeniacae Semen, 5 don of Zingiberis Rhizoma (wrapped in paper and roasted), 5 nyang of Glycyrrhizae Radix (甘草) (roasted), and 10 nyang of Bovis Omasum (白鹽). Mix every 2 don of these herbs with boiled water and drink carefully on an empty stomach.
Cuscutae Semen 兎絲子
When taken for a long time, it makes the sight better, the body lighter, and ensures a long life. Soak in wine, dry under the sun, and steam; repeat this process 9 times. Pound this into powder and mix 2 don of the powder in warm wine twice a day to drink on an empty stomach.[B045]
Multae Flores 百草花
Used in all kinds of diseases and enables one to become a hermit. Collect all kinds of flowers from the forest, dry them in the shade, and pound them into powder. Mix the powder in wine to drink. Also, decoct the mixture of flowers to make wine.[B045]
Polygoni Multiflori Radix 何首烏
① When taken for a long time, it blackens the hair, tonifies the essence and marrow, ensures a long life and keeps one young. Avoid green onions, garlic, radishes, and fish without scales. Do not keep in a steel dish.[B045]
② Soak the roots in rice-washed water, remove the peels and cut to thin pieces. Soak well in black bean juice and dry under the shade well. Mix it again with licorice juice and dry under the sun, then pound it into powder. Mix 2 don of powder in wine to take. Also, making pills with honey is possible.
③ Pills made with this herb lengthen life. Soak 1 geun of Polygoni Multiflori Radix (何首烏) in rice-washed water and dry it under the sun. Cut into thin pieces. Mix the pieces with milk of a mother who just gave birth to a first child and dry under the sun once or twice. Pound it into powder, mix the powder with jujube, and make pills to a size of the seed of the foxglove tree. Take 20 pills at first, increase the dose to 10 more pills every day, but do not exceed 100 pills. Take the pills with warm wine or salty water on an empty stomach. One must not take only this unless one is yang-deficient.
