INDEX

abdominal bloating, 116, 206n55
abscesses, 48, 119, 122, 135
aconite: access to, 200n21; antidotes for, 42; cezi, 47, 50, 95–96; in Chinese pharmacy today, 47–48, 173; cost of, 49, 193n48; effects on the body, 39, 206n46; in Greek pharmacy, 8; heating power of, 49; jin, 47, 192n39; in Han sources, 48–50; as lord of the hundred drugs, 8, 36, 47, 184n22; magical power of, 48, 193n44; mubiezi, 50; as name of demon, 65; names for, 47, 95–96; Obringer’s study, 7, 191n65; as political metaphor, 38; processing of, 47, 50–52, 57; source locations of, 96; as Tang local tribute, 91; tianxiong, 47, 48fig., 49, 50, 95–96, 107; toxicity of, 47; use in formulas, 48–49, 72, 107, 114–15, 119, 121, 136, 191n65; use in murders, 39, 49–50, 86; varieties of, 36, 47, 48fig., 50, 95; wuhui, 47, 48, 49, 50, 95–96, 107, 193n43; wutou, 47, 48fig., 50, 86, 95–96. See also fuzi
active ingredient, 57
acupuncture, 6, 83, 98, 108
acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL), 173
agitation (dong), 165
Ai, Emperor of Eastern Jin, 153
alchemy: in antiquity, 150, 212n16; cost of, 151, 154, 157–58, 212n18; Daoism and, 13–14, 31, 51, 148, 213n33; during the Era of Division, 51, 213n33, 214n57; in Europe, 14; jars and utensils for, 155, 158, 159fig.; and medicine, 149, 164–65, 167; minerals used in, 5, 148, 151, 154–55, 156; outer (waidan) and inner (neidan), 148, 166, 212n5; perception of du in, 148–49, 152–53, 156–57, 159–61; preparation of elixirs, 154– 55; scholarship on, 148; Sun Simiao and, 110, 111, 119, 167, 216n89; in Tang, 157–59; Tao Hongjing and, 31, 154– 57, 166, 167, 213n37, 214n46; texts on, 151, 156, 158–59, 213n29, 213nn37–38, 214n57; and transcendence, 5–6, 36, 149–50, 166, 208n14. See also elixirs; transcendence
alcohol (jiu): as du-possessing drug, 37; in gu poison, 71; immoderate consumption of, 133–34; laced with zhen feathers, 37, 159; use in activating drugs, 119, 133–34, 136, 139; use in drug preparation, 44, 45, 50, 161; use in making counterfeit drugs, 54; use in monasteries, 102
amethyst, 135, 138, 142, 156
An Lushan, 132
An Lushan Rebellion, 9, 103, 170, 199n2
ancient Greece, 7–8, 25, 41, 190n61
angelica (danggui), 54, 89, 114
animal-derived drugs, 33fig., 34, 36–37, 87, 89–91, 93, 135; bezoar, bovine, 36, 45, 89, 91, 119, 201n38; musk, 89; zhen bird feathers, 36–37, 86, 144, 191n71. See also snakes
anmo (therapeutic exercise), 65, 67, 83
antidotes, 3, 37, 42, 45, 161, 184n20
aphrodisiacs, 137
Arcane Essentials from the Imperial Library (Waitai miyao fang; Wang Tao), 123–24, 137, 170, 186n46, 210n60
arisaema (huzhang), 119
aristolochia (mutong), 174, 216n14
Arnold, David, 7
arsenic: in chemotherapy, 173; compounds of, 35; pishuang (refined arsenic), 50, 194n56, 216n13; poisoning, 137, 210n48; tonic and aphrodisiac effects, 137; trioxide, 173, 194n56, 216n13; use in alchemy, 148; use in medicine, 35. See also arsenolite; orpiment; realgar
arsenolite (yushi), 134, 137, 138, 142–43, 210n41, 210n47
artemisia (qinghao), 173
asarum, 54, 114; from Huayin, 53, 194n70
asbestos (buhui mu), 158, 160
Assorted Collection of Formulas from the Four Seas (Sihai leiju fang), 108
Ayurvedic healing, 7

badou (bean from Ba/croton), 36, 41, 42, 47, 72, 119
Bai Juyi, 171
Baopuzi neipian (Inner Chapters of the Master Who Embraces the Unhewn; Ge Hong), 151–53, 162–63
barbarian powder (hufen), 45, 192n23
bat droppings, 33fig., 34
Beiji qianjin yaofang. See Essential Formulas Worth a Thousand in Gold for Emergencies
bencao, meaning and translation of, 25. See also materia medica
Bencao jing jizhu. See Collected Annotations on the Classic of Materia Medica
bezoar, bovine (niuhuang), 36, 45, 89, 91, 119; counterfeits of, 201n38
Bian Que, 112
biomedicine: contrasted with Chinese medicine, 4, 40, 172; incorporating classical Chinese pharmacological knowledge, 173
black magic, 73, 197n58, 198n67
blister beetles, 89, 91
boa gallbladder (ranshe dan), 89–91
body: cultivation of, 153, 157, 166; and drug effectiveness, 45–46; effects of elixirs on, 162, 163–67, 169, 215n85; effects of minerals on, 138–39; in functional model of disease, 79; political associations of, 43; purification of, 165; in religious and medical traditions, 13–15; in shijie, 162–64, 167; transformation of, 14, 27, 151, 162, 169, 208n14; viscera, 189n45, 215n84; vitality of, 5, 49, 67, 127, 136
Book of Documents (Shangshu), 87, 215n83
Book of Odes (Shijing), 46, 187n7, 192n34
Buddhism: alcohol consumption, 102; dissemination of medical knowledge, 202n61; grottos, 98, 202n61; healing techniques, 30, 68, 111, 205n25; influence on medical ethics, 111, 121; and material culture, 14; prohibitions, 102; scriptures, 12, 98, 100, 102; transmission from India, 184n14, 190n60; wards of recuperation in monasteries, 200n14. See also Buddhist monks; Dunhuang
Buddhist monks, 101, 107, 120, 131, 140, 142, 208n16, 210n61

cancer, 173, 174
cannabis (mafen), 37, 191n9; U.S. marijuana use, 174
Cao Xi, Formulas That Disperse Cold-Food Powder (Jie Hanshi San fang), 141
cats: cat demon, 72, 73–75, 76–78; domestic and wild, 75; li, 74; magic, 75
centipedes: gu and, 70, 72, 73; with red heads and legs, 54, 195n75
Chao Yuanfang, 65–67, 70–72, 74, 199n80. See also On the Origins and Symptoms of All Illnesses
chemotherapy, 173
Chen Cangqi, Supplement to Materia Medica (Bencao shiyi), 72–73
Chen Yanzhi, Formulas of the Lesser Grade (Xiaopin fang), 108–9, 112, 138–39, 142, 210n49, 210n60
Chinese medicine: changing landscape of, 169–70; classical, 184n24; Era of Division, 9, 10; globalization of, 172; Han dynasty, 10; as holistic, 4; periodization of, 9; reinvention of, in the twentieth century, 11, 40, 172, 173–74; Song dynasty, 11, 103–4; Sui and Tang, 9–11
Chinese modernity, 184n27
chong. See vermin; worms
Chu Cheng, 46
Chunyu Yi, 134–35
cinnabar: in Chinese pharmacy today, 173; as material of great demand, 156; and mercury, 160; as one of five minerals, during Han, 134; as tribute drug, 89; use in alchemy, 150, 151, 154, 155, 160; use in medicine, 5, 160; varieties of, during Tang, 158, 159fig.
cinnamon (gui), 48, 121, 193n50, 207n78
Classic of Changes (Yijing): and divination, 194n58; “Gnawing and Chewing,” 23; on gu, 69–70, 197n40; mentions of du, 22–23, 187n18
Classic of Transcendents, 162–63
clay, 134, 138, 142, 209n28
climate change, 68
clove swellings (dingzhong), 118–19
cocklebur (cang’er), 118–19
cold damage (shanghan) disorders, 108, 193n45, 196n34; caused by incorrect administration of Five-Stone Powder, 141; treatments for, 49, 100, 135, 136
Cold-Food Powder (Hanshi San), 128, 132, 135, 136, 140, 141, 143. See also Five-Stone Powder
Collected Annotations on the Classic of Materia Medica (Bencao jing jizhu; Tao Hongjing): on arsenolite, 137, 138; authorship and historical background, 30–32; cinnabar and mercury in, 160; commentaries of Tao Hongjing, 32–34, 33fig., 93, 98, 186n46, 189n56; conventions of, followed in Newly Revised Materia Medica, 93; on counterfeit drugs, 54; demonic etiology in, 196n16; on difficulty of obtaining ingredients, 156; on dosage control, 41; drug combinations based on seven dispositions, 44–45; on drug effectiveness related to individual traits, 46; drug grouping by natural category, 34–35, 190n60; on drug preparation, 31, 47, 53; drug specialists in, 54; “enlarged book,” 34; on inappropriate drugs for decoctions, 45; list of antidotes, 42, 45; need for revision cited in Tang, 81, 93; potent drugs in, 35–37; as reorganization of Divine Farmer’s Classic, 31–32, 34; seventh-century manuscript fragment, 32–34, 33fig.; sources for, 192n18; specialization of pharmaceutical activity, 53–55, 57–58; specification of du status, 30, 32–34, 33fig., 35–36, 189n46, 189n53, 190n61; Tao’s preface to, 31–32, 53. See also Divine Farmer’s Classic; Tao Hongjing
Collected Efficacious Formulas, 108, 109, 204n17
commentary writing: conventions, 12– 13, 32, 93, 98, 123; Tang, 93, 98, 100; by Tao Hongjing, 32–34, 33fig., 186n46, 189n56
compound medicines, 41, 67, 174, 214n46. See also drug combination
Comprehensive Institutions (Tongdian), 88, 90map
Confucian ideology, 129, 133, 190n60
contagious disorders: caused by demons, 62, 63, 64, 68; through dead bodies, 63, 64; in On the Origins and Symptoms, 66–67, 68–69; varieties of, 196n34
cooling therapies, 29, 49, 116, 140–41, 166, 193n49, 210n47
cosmology, 23, 28, 38, 129, 148, 190n60
counterfeit drugs, 36, 54, 91, 201n38
creams, 83, 199n7
croton (badou), 36, 41, 42, 47, 72, 119

dan. See elixirs
Dao, 23, 38, 151, 207n74. See also Daoism
Daohong (Buddhist monk), 208n16, 210n61; Formulas for Dispersing the Powder by Duo Treatment (Jiesan duizhi fang), 142
Daoism: and alchemy, 13–14, 31, 51, 148, 213n33; cosmology, 38, 190n60; and demonic sources of illness, 62, 64– 65, 68; healing techniques, 30, 64– 65, 68; ideas of nonaction, 130; life cultivation, 94, 202n51, 205n25; and pharmacology, 13–14, 31, 167, 169; ritual, 51, 65, 68, 190n60; Shangqing (Highest Clarity) sect, 157; Sun Simiao and, 109–10, 111; Taiqing (Great Clarity) sect, 213n33; Tao Hongjing and, 31, 154, 157; Tianshi Dao (Way of the Celestial Masters), 64. See also alchemy
Daowu, Emperor of Northern Wei, 132, 153, 208n18
daoyin (guiding and pulling), 66
decoctions: inappropriate drugs for, 45; for alleviating bodily disturbance, 142; Spleen-Warming, 121; use of, specified in Tang ordinance, 84, 85
deficiency (xu) and repleteness (shi), 46, 192n29
Deleuze, Gilles, and Félix Guattari, “drug assemblage,” 57, 195n83
delusion (huo), sickness of, 69, 71
Demon Statutes of Nüqing (Nüqing guilü), 196n15
demonic infestation (guizhu): in Divine Farmer’s Classic, 63; and epidemics, 64–65, 68–69; formulas for, 67–68; meaning of the term, 63; modern scholars’ approaches to, 195n7; in On the Origins and Symptoms, 66–67; origins of, 64; symptoms of, 63–64, 66–67
demons: cat demon, 72, 73–75, 76–78; as cause of illness, 61–62, 64–65, 79; in Daoism, 64–65, 68; qi of, 66–67, 199n80. See also demonic infestation
Deng Yue, 162
Derrida, Jacques, 184n16
Dezong, Emperor of Tang, 97
diarrhea: from arsenic poisoning, 210n48; cold, 121; from gu poison, 72; hot, 115, 119, 121; from ingesting elixirs, 164, 165, 166, 167; as malfunction of the Spleen, 207n77; treatment for, 131
Dioscorides, De Materia Medica, 8, 25
divination, 26, 51, 53, 69–70, 110, 194n58, 197n40, 204n4
Divine Farmer’s Classic of Materia Medica (Shennong bencao jing): alternative names of drugs in, 95; authorship and historical background, 26–27; bencao in title of, 25; changes in Tang manuscripts, 100; cited in Essential Formulas, 112, 113; classification of drugs in, 28–29, 37, 43, 159, 188–89n44; and Collected Annotations, 31–32, 33fig., 34–35; commentaries to, 31–32, 189n46; on demonic infestation, 63; Divine Farmer, 25–26; on dosage control, 41, 161; drugs for different categories of disorders, 62–63; on drying herbs, 47; du status in, 30, 189n46; on gu poison, 63, 69; on methods of delivering drugs, 45; mineral drugs in, 134, 135; preface, 27–28, 30, 41, 62– 63, 189n46; preservation of content, 188n40, 189–90n57; principle of opposites, 49; properties of drugs in, 29–30; seven dispositions in, 43–44; on uses of cocklebur, 118. See also Collected Annotations on the Classic of Materia Medica
dizziness, 39, 47, 49, 165, 206n46
dormant heat (fure), 127–28
dosage control, 39, 41–42, 45, 48, 56, 114–15, 141, 144; of elixirs, 161, 163
dragon illness (jiaolong bing), 116–17, 206n55
dragon’s bone (longgu), 45, 192n22
drug abuse, 175
drug classification: in Collected Annotations, 34–37, 190n60; in Divine Farmer’s Classic, 28–29, 37, 43, 188–89n44; lords, ministers, and assistants, 43; in Newly Revised Materia Medica, 93
drug combination, 42–46; with dosage control, 41; formulas of Sun Simiao, 105, 113, 114–15, 119, 121–22; lords, ministers, and assistants, 43; performed by Palace Drug Service in Tang, 84; seven dispositions and, 43–45; in Xu Zhicai’s Drug Correspondences from Lord Thunder, 55. See also compound medicines
Drug Correspondences (Yaodui), 192n18
drug processing: aconite, 47–52; as aspect of drug materiality, 56–57; drying herbs, 47; paozhi, 46–47; raw and cooked drugs, 46; terms for, 46, 192n31; Treatise on Drug Processing, 50–52, 54, 194n57
drug substitution, 54, 96–97, 100–101, 104, 137, 142–43, 156, 174, 203n75
drugs: counterfeit, 54, 91, 201n38; delivery methods, 45; harvesting of, 52, 53–54, 55–56, 87–89; identification of, 190n62; lay knowledge of, 96–97; locations of origin, 87–91, 90map, 156; markets, 54–55, 88, 156; meanings of the English word, 174, 216–17n15; names of, 95–96; plant-based drugs, 36; prices of, 36, 49, 52, 156, 157– 58, 193n48; properties of, 29–30; sellers of, 52, 53–55, 85–86; smuggling, 55, 156. See also animal-derived drugs; elixirs; herbs; medicines; minerals
du: ancient pronunciation of, 187n16; as benchmark for classifying medicines, 4, 20, 28–29, 37, 188–89n44; changing meaning of, 20–23, 37, 187n16; concept of, in alchemy, 148–49, 152–53, 156–57, 159–61; connection to herbs, 22; drugs without, 28, 29; in Explaining Characters, 20–21; fiery poison (huodu), 163; as food poisoning, 23; as “govern,” 23, 187n18; paradox of, 20, 37, 156–57, 164, 166, 175–76; as potency, 6–7, 20, 28, 37, 93, 148–49, 152, 168–69; specification of status of drugs with regard to, 30, 32, 33fig., 34, 35–36, 189n46, 189n53, 190n61; as thickness, 20–21, 22, 37, 187n5; translation of, 15; used of speech, 19, 25, 37, 188n28; used to describe the power of virtue, 23; written graphs, 21, 22fig., 187n6. See also poisons
Duan Yi, 52
Dugu Tuo, 73–74, 75–76
Dunhuang: manuscripts copied elsewhere, 102; manuscripts of Newly Revised Materia Medica, 93–94, 98– 101, 99fig.; medical manuscripts from, 10, 12, 98; pothi manuscripts, 98–102, 99fig.; practice of medicine in, 101–2, 104
dunjia (evading stems), 194n58
duyao (potent drugs), 19; ancient meanings of, 23–24. See also du
dysosma (guijiu), 91, 97, 136

east-flowing water (dongliu shui), 51, 155
efficacy: as artifact of copying, 116, 122, 206n51; confirmed by bodily sensations, 49, 115, 164–65, 206n46, 215n85; confirmed by personal experience, 11, 13, 105, 115, 117–20, 169; confirmed by self-healing, 117–19; confirmed by word of mouth, 116–17; without discernible reason, 105, 120–21; and jingyan, 106; in medical cases of Essential Formulas, 116–20, 123; of remedies inappropriate for nobles, 122; in titles of texts, 108
elixirs: in antiquity, 150; bodily effects of, 162, 163–66, 169, 215n85; cinnabar and mercury in, 160–61; colors of, 156, 166, 214n46; compounding of, 51, 154–55, 158, 159fig., 214n46; for curing illness, 164–65; dangers of, 148, 152–53, 159–60, 161–62, 212n8; dosage, 161, 163, 165; with du, 152–53, 156–57, 163–64, 166, 215n80; effects on qi, 151–52; in Ge Hong’s Inner Chapters, 151–53, 162–63; ingested by emperors, 153; misgivings about taking, 164, 215n80; poisoning by, 147–48, 163, 166, 171, 214n47; Reverted Elixir in Nine Cycles, 154–56; in Tang, 157–62; testing on criminals, 153; for transcendence, 147–48, 156–57, 161–64, 166–67, 169, 208n14, 215n80; use of term, 149; and virtuous conduct, 153
emperor, medicines for, 83–85, 88–91, 90fig., 132, 148, 150, 153–54, 208n18, 214n46
epidemics, 62, 64–65, 68, 79, 196n34
Era of Division: accounts of potent drugs, 20, 37–38; alchemy, 51, 212n16, 213n33, 214n57; cats in, 75; Five-Stone Powder in, 130, 131, 133, 137, 141; gu in, 70; healers in, 209n39, 210n61; hereditary medicine in, 9, 55, 83, 107–8, 170; Treatise on Drug Processing, 50, 54; as unorthodox, 202n48. See also Collected Annotations on the Classic of Materia Medica
Erya (Approaching Correctness), 95, 96
Essential Formulas Worth a Thousand in Gold for Emergencies (Beiji qianjin yaofang; Sun Simiao): accounts of epidemics, 68; audience of, 113–14; complex and single-ingredient formulas in, 113, 114, 205n37; criteria for inclusion of formulas, 115; editions of, 205n29; efficacious remedies in, 13, 106–7, 114–19, 120–22; on Five-Stone Powder, 139, 143–44; formulas to treat demonic disorders, 67; formulas to treat gu poisoning, 72; incorporation of medical cases, 106, 109, 116–21, 122–23; organization and content, 111, 114; preface, 110, 111–12, 113, 205n30; private transmission of, 113; and relationship between text and experience, 122–24; reliance on classical sources, 112–13, 205n35; self-healing narratives, 117–19; sources of formulas, 115, 206n47; theoretical framework, 112–13; title of, 112; use of du-possessing substances, 67, 68, 119
Essential Synopsis of the Golden Cabinet (Jingui yaolüe), 135, 136, 143
etiology: in Daoism, 64–65; demonic sources of illness, 61–62, 63–64; illnesses caused by gu, 62, 69–70; ontological and functional models, 79, 199n80. See also On the Origins and Symptoms of All Illnesses
experimenta texts, 123

fa (to shoot an arrow/activate), 138, 139
Fan Ka-wai, 10, 198n76, 202n47
Fan Wang, Formulary of Fan, 31, 189n49
Fang Boyu, 127, 138, 139
fangshi, 53, 57, 64, 147, 150, 194n67, 213n33
fangshu (formula books). See formula books
fangshu (methods and arts), 26
feces, 113, 122
five exhaustions and seven injuries, 143, 211n65
five pungent vegetables (wuxin), 102, 203n78
five-phase system, 29, 112, 134, 135, 138
Five-Stone Powder (Wushi San): activation, 138–39; and bodily emanation of heat, 137–39; compared to opium, 128, 145, 211n74; compared with elixirs, 166, 167, 208n14; composition, 134, 135–36, 138, 142–43; Daohong’s duo treatment, 142; debates of physicians and scholars, 128, 140–44, 145; and eccentric behavior, 130, 132, 133–34, 136; medicinal uses and benefits, 131, 143, 211n67; names for, 128, 140, 143; negative effects, 128, 131–32, 134–35, 144–46; origin stories, 129, 136; precursors, 134–37; proper administration, 136, 138–39, 140–41, 145–46, 208n18; Sun Simiao’s formula, 142–43; used for enhancing life and illuminating the mind, 129, 131, 143
flavor, 29, 33fig., 84, 102
food poisoning, 23, 70, 107
foods: as category of drugs, 35, 36, 93; du possessing, 37; overconsumption, 42; poisoning from, 23, 70, 107, 187n16; preparation of in Rites of Zhou, 23, 82; as remedies, 113, 116–17; as tribute items, 88. See also vegetables
foot qi, 92, 117, 119, 195n7, 201n41
formula books (fangshu): dissemination of, 97; efficacy phrases in, 116, 122, 206n51; of the Era of Division, 107– 8, 116; formulas to counter poisons, 184n20; of Ge Hong, 63–64, 152; genre of, 13, 106, 123–24; Han period, 27, 107; in medical education, 108– 9; of Sui and Tang, 108–9; of Sun Simiao, 111; for use in emergencies, 112, 113, 152, 205n37. See also Arcane Essentials from the Imperial Library; Essential Formulas Worth a Thousand in Gold for Emergencies; Formulas of the Lesser Grade
Formulas for Emergencies to Keep at Hand (Zhouhou beiji fang; Ge Hong), 63–64, 152
Formulas for Widespread Aid (Guangji fang), 97
Formulas for Widespread Benefit (Guangli fang), 97
Formulas in the Jade Case (Yuhan fang; Ge Hong), 152
Formulas of the Lesser Grade (Xiaopin fang; Chen Yanzhi), 108–9, 112, 138–39, 142, 210n49, 210n60
fruits, 24, 34, 93, 98, 150
fu (an invasive plant), 21, 187n7
funerals and mourning, 64, 130, 133, 134
fuzi (attached offspring), 4, 36, 47, 49, 95–96, 190n64; as “lord of the hundred drugs,” 8, 36, 184n22; as name of demon, 65. See also aconite

Gan Zizhen, 118, 120, 206n62, 207n64
Gaozong, Emperor of Tang, 81, 92, 110
Gates Office (Mensi), 84, 85, 200n15
Ge Hong: on alcohol and Five-Stone Powder, 133–34; death of, 162; Formulas for Emergencies to Keep at Hand, 63–64, 152; Formulas in the Jade Case, 152; Inner Chapters of the Master Who Embraces the Unhewn, 151–53, 162–63; medical texts, 107, 152; writings on alchemy, 150–51, 166– 67, 213n39
gelsemium (gouwen/yege), 36, 44, 86, 94–95, 143, 203n75
Gibbs, Frederick, 8
ginger, 45, 114, 121, 142, 193n50, 207n78
ginseng (renshen), 45, 89, 114, 121, 142, 207n78; Korean, 194n69; from Shangdang, 53, 194n69
gold, 150, 151, 214n57, 215n68
government-commissioned texts, 13, 62, 65, 81–82, 92, 94, 97, 103–4, 111, 216n14
Granny Rong of Qizhou, 118, 207n64
grasses, 21, 22, 25, 94
grave-quelling writs (zhenmu wen), 64
Great Powder (Dasan), 128. See also Five-Stone Powder
great wind (dafeng), 117, 136, 206n58
gu: associated with delusion, 69, 71; associated with seductive power of women, 69–70, 71, 197n40; associated with worms and animals, 70, 71–72, 74–75; cat-demon, 72, 73–75, 77–78; flying, 71, 72; illnesses caused by, 62, 71–72, 119; linked to witchcraft, 73–78, 79–80; meaning of term, 69–70, 71; political responses to, 62, 73, 76–77, 79–80; remedies for, 72– 73, 89, 119; southern linkage, 77; and transformation, 70, 71, 74–75; wild-path, 72, 198n67; in Zuo Commentary, 69–70
Gu Yanwu, 172
gui (demon). See demonic infestation; demons

hallucinogens, 36, 37, 42, 174, 191n9
Han Kang, 52, 53
Han Yu, 171, 211n64
He Xun, 133
He Yan: execution of, 130, 208n7; and Five-Stone Powder, 129, 136; and Mysterious Learning, 129–30; negative portrayal of, 131, 136; notoriety for sexual indulgence, 136, 137
heart, 48, 136, 140, 163, 164; demonic illness in, 61, 66, 74; as organ in Chinese medicine, 29, 43, 209n28
henbane (langdang zi), 36, 42
herbs: contrasted with minerals, 138, 151; cultivation of, in the capitals, 86– 87; as drug classification, 93, 190n60; drying of, 47; du-possessing, 22, 36, 44, 89, 94, 97, 118, 119, 136, 172, 196n15, 203n75; in Five-Stone Powder, 136, 142; grasses, 21, 22, 25, 94; knowledge of, in the Han, 22; in the imperial collection, 89; as natural remedies, 40; paired with minerals, 142; tonics, 89; transplantation of, 87, 203n73. See also aconite
hereditary medicine, 9, 30, 83, 107–8, 120, 140, 170
Hinrichs, TJ, 103
homeopathy, 198–99n77
hot and cold maladies, 49, 62, 193n49
hou (thickness), 20–21, 22, 29, 37, 187n5
Hua Tuo, 112
Huan, Emperor of Han, 52
Huangdi neijing. See Yellow Emperor’s Inner Classic
Huangfu Mi, 131–33, 136, 140–41, 142, 146, 209n20
huangjing (yellow essence/polygonatum), 94–95, 202n51
Huiyi (Buddhist monk), 131, 140, 210n59
Huiyuan (Buddhist monk), 208n16
hunting, use of poisons in, 21, 27, 187n9
Huo Xian, 39

illnesses: contagious, 63–64, 68–69, 196n34; dragon illness, 116–17, 206n55; foot qi, 92, 117, 119, 195n7, 201n41; gu-induced, 71–72, 119; hereditary, 64; malignant stroke, 66–67; ontological and functional models of, 79, 199n80; wind-induced, 49, 107, 117, 119, 120, 132, 136, 165, 206n58. See also cold damage disorders; contagious disorders; demonic infestation; epidemics; etiology
immortality, 13–14, 83; use of poisons to achieve, 5fig., 5–6; as xian, 149–50. See also elixirs; longevity; transcendence
Imperial Medical Office (Taiyi Shu): departments of, 65, 68, 83; drug collection through tribute system, 87; education in, 86–87, 92, 108; establishment of, 103; medicinal garden, 86–87; personnel, 65, 85, 200n14; in producing Newly Revised Materia Medica, 92
incantation, 14, 25, 30, 65, 68, 70, 78, 83, 107, 111
India, 7, 75, 99, 184n14, 190n60
ingesting water (fushui), 111, 205n25
Instructions on Elixirs (Danjue), 156, 213n45
Instructions on the Scripture of the Divine Elixirs of the Nine Tripods of the Yellow Emperor (Huangdi jiuding shendan jingjue), 159–61, 162
Iwamoto Atsushi, 101, 189n56, 202n49

Jade Chapters (Yupian), 21, 22fig.
Ji Han, 131
Ji Zixun, 52
Jin Shao, 136, 209n39
jingfang (classical formulas), 27, 107
Jingming (virtuous nun), 119
jingyan (experience), 106, 204nn3–4
Jingzhi (Buddhist monk), 120
Jīvaka, 184n14
Johns, Claire, “efficacy phrases,” 116, 122, 206n51

kalinite (fanshi), 135, 137, 138, 155, 210n47
Khottal rhino horn (guduo xi), 198n76
Kidneys, 29, 137, 209n28, 211n65
Kong Zhiyue, 93
Kyōu Shōku Collection, fragment of Newly Revised Materia Medica, 201n46

Laozi, 23, 38, 207n74
lay practices, 96–97. See also local medical practices
lead, 148, 158, 161
legal codes, 9, 11, 58, 80, 82, 84–86, 199–200n11, 201n40
Lei Xiao, 50
Li Bai, 158
Li Baozhen, 147–48
Li Shaojun, 150
Li Shouli, 158
Li Ziyu, 61
life cultivation: in Divine Farmer’s Classic, 28–29; by Ge Hong, 151, 153; by ingesting huangjing, 94, 202n51; by ingesting stalactite, 144, 171; by medicines in imperial collection, 89; by Sun Simiao, 110, 111, 204n20. See also longevity; vitality
Liu Bang, 19
Liu Ling, 133
Liu Yuxi, 3, 170
Liu Zongyuan, 171
Liver, 29, 43, 174, 209n28
local medical practices, 12, 82, 101–2, 104, 169. See also lay practices
local tribute (tugong), 88, 200–201n30
longevity: drugs for, 4–5, 28–29, 188–89n44; and immortality, 149, 150; by ingesting water, 205n25; Sun Simiao’s cultivation of, 110, 204n20. See also life cultivation
Lord Thunder (Leigong), 26; Drug Correspondences from Lord Thunder, 55–56; Treatise on Drug Processing from Lord Thunder, 50–52, 54, 194n57
Lu Xun, 130
Lungs, 29, 43, 142, 165, 209n28
Lunheng (Discourses Weighed in the Balance; Wang Chong), “Speaking of Poison,” 25
Luofu, Mount, 151, 162

magical arts: black magic, 73–75, 197n58, 198n67; of fangshi, 26, 52–53, 57, 213n33
malaria, 89, 173
male genital disorders, 49
malignant stroke (zhong’e), 66–67
managing drugs: in Collected Annotations, 53–54; by fangshi, 53, 57; Five-Stone Powder, 128, 138–39, 140–41, 146, 166, 167. See also dosage control; drug combination; drug processing
manuscript culture, 12, 97, 104, 203n84
Maoshan, 31, 154, 155, 157, 213n35
marijuana, 174. See also cannabis
materia medica (bencao): commentary conventions of, 12–13, 32, 93, 98, 100, 123, 186n46; du-based classification of drugs, 28–29, 159; European, 25; extant texts, 189–90n57; genre of, 12– 13, 27; government-commissioned, 13, 81–82, 92; grouping of drugs, 34–35, 93, 190n60; with illustrations, 48fig.; importance in formulas, 108–9, 111; in medical education, 92, 108; preservation of lost texts in later commentaries, 34, 189–90n57; specialists awaiting edicts, 26; specification of preferred locations for drugs, 87; term for, 25. See also Collected Annotations on the Classic of Materia Medica; Divine Farmer’s Classic of Materia Medica; Newly Revised Materia Medica; Supplement to Materia Medica
Materia Medica of Wu Pu (Wu Pu bencao), 189n53
materiality: of drugs, 6, 12, 29–30, 57, 139, 169, 175; of elixirs, 151, 167; study of, 6
Mawangdui: formulas including aconite, 48, 49, 50; medical manuscripts, 10, 26, 107
measurement systems, 41–42, 161, 215n71, 215n78
medical bureaucracy: described in Rites of Zhou, 23, 82, 134; Han period, 82– 83; Sui and Tang, 83–84, 103, 120
medical cases (yi’an): of Chunyu Yi, 134– 35; in early modern period, 206n57; in Essential Formulas, 106, 109, 116–21, 122–23; European observatio, 123; evolution of, 204n6
medical education, 84, 86–87, 92, 98, 101, 108, 114
medical emergencies: antidotes for, 42; Chen Yanzhi’s formulas for, 108; Ge Hong’s formulas for, 63–64, 152, 211n2; Sun Simiao’s formulas for, 67, 112, 113, 120–21, 122, 123–24, 205n37
medical writings: attention to efficacy, 106–7; dissemination of, 97; from Dunhuang and Turfan, 10, 12, 98; of the Era of Division, 9; genres of, 12–13; Han dynasty, 25–27; influence of political thought, 43, 93–94; from Han tombs, 26–27, 48–49; medieval Europe, 185n40, 206n51; by physicians in the fifth and sixth centuries, 55–56, 57–58; and printing technology in Song, 12, 103–4; of scholar-officials, 92, 123–24, 170–72; system of correspondence in, 79. See also formula books; materia medica
medicinal garden (yaoyuan), 86–87, 102–3
medicine and politics: in avoiding political burdens, 52, 132–33; engagement of scholar-officials, 170–72; engagement of the state, 11, 68–69, 93–94, 103–4; in philosophical texts, 38. See also state role in medicine
medicines: bodily effects of, 138–39, 164–65; compound, 41, 67, 174; definition of, 6–7, 175; materiality of, 6, 12, 29–30, 57, 139; negligence in preparation of, 85; range of, 3–4; tasting of, for the emperor, 83, 84, 85, 103; transformations of, 6–7, 39–40, 56– 57; as tribute items, 87–91. See also animal-derived drugs; drugs; herbs; minerals
medieval period, definition of, 9, 184–85n27
mercury (shuiyin): and cinnabar, 160; as medicine, 35, 173, 214n63; preparation of, 158, 160–61; as tribute drug, 89, 91; use in alchemy, 148, 155, 160, 166. See also cinnabar
Miao people, 80
minerals: access to, 155–56, 157–58; associated with five colors, 134, 135, 209n28; detoxification of, 119, 160–61; as drug classification, 34, 93; du possessing, 35–36; for enhancing vitality and nourishing the body, 5, 117, 131, 144, 171; nature of, 138–39; paired with herbs, 142; as tribute drugs, 89; used in alchemy, 14, 31, 36, 148, 151, 154–55; used to cure illness, 135–36, 143, 164–65, 167, 173. See also arsenic; cinnabar; Five-Stone Powder; mercury; sulfur
miracle tales, 61, 204n4
monasteries: Buddhist, 101–2, 200n14; medieval European, 185n40
morality, cultivation of, 64, 150, 153
moxibustion, 111
mulberry trees, mantis eggshells on, 54, 194n74
murder, 36, 39, 49–50, 76, 85–86, 103, 132
mushrooms, 29, 150
musk (shexiang), 89

Naitō hypothesis, 11, 185n38
Nanyue kingdom, 135, 209n32
Nappi, Carla, 183n9
natural categories, 34–35, 38, 93, 190n60
nature, 40
Needham, Joseph, 148
Newly Revised Materia Medica (Xinxiu bencao): authors of, 92; compared with Nuremberg Pharmacopoeia, 201n40; compilation of, 81, 92, 94; criticism of lay practices, 96–97; dissemination of, 97–98; drug categorization, 93; endorsements and corrections of Tao Hongjing, 93, 94–96; extant copies and fragments, 93–94, 98–101, 201n46, 202n49; as government-commissioned, 13, 81– 82, 92, 103; morphology and source locations of drugs, 94–95; organization and content, 92–93; preface, 93– 94, 96, 98, 201n46; preserved in Song materia medica texts, 201n46; standardization of drug names, 95–96; substitution in local editions, 100–101, 203n75; Sun Simiao and, 110, 111; value of classical knowledge in, 95, 96. See also P. 3822
niuhuang (bezoar, bovine), 36, 45, 89, 91, 119; counterfeits of, 201n38
nourishing life (yangsheng), 29, 131, 144. See also life cultivation; longevity

Obringer, Frédéric, 7, 191n65
On the Origins and Symptoms of All Illnesses (Zhubing yuanhou lun; Chao Yuanfang), 62, 65–67, 68–69, 70–72, 74, 137, 199n80, 210n61
opioid medications, 175
opium: compared to Five-Stone Powder, 128, 145, 211n74; in Greek pharmacy, 8
Ordinances of the Tiansheng Era (Tiansheng ling), 84, 199–200n11
“Ordinances on Curing Illness” (Yiji ling), 84–85, 86, 92, 200n21
orpiment (cihuang), 7, 45, 119, 155, 183n13
overdoses, 42, 153, 161–62, 175

P. 3822, 98–102, 99fig.
pain: induced by elixirs, 163–65, 167, 169; induced by Five-Stone Powder, 128, 131, 132–33, 137, 139, 142; symptom of abnormal circulation of qi, 215n85; symptom of cat-demon attack, 74; symptom of demonic infestation, 61, 63, 66; treatments for, 48, 49, 91, 118, 175
Palace Drug Service (Shangyao Ju), 83– 85, 92, 103, 110
palace maids, 85, 200n14
paozhi (roast and broil), 46–47, 192n31. See also drug processing
Paracelsus, 41
pastes, 45, 118–19, 121, 122, 131
patient voice, 117, 206n57
pediatrics, 83, 107, 115
Pei Xiu, 138
pepper of Sichuan (shujiao), 91, 114, 115, 193n50
perfected (zhenren), 109–10, 157
Persia, minerals from, 158
pharmaceutical techniques, 39–40, 46, 47, 50, 168. See also dosage control; drug combination; drug processing
pharmacology: for achieving longevity, 4–5; ancient Greek, 7–8, 41, 190n61; classification of drugs, 28–29, 34, 93, 190n60; compared to Western pharmacology, 7–8, 25, 57, 146, 174–75; and Daoism, 13–14, 31, 157, 161, 169, 190n60; Han dynasty, 25–27; Indian, 7, 184n14, 190n60; late imperial, 171–72; local practice of, 101–2; measurement of doses, 41–42, 161, 215n71; in the medieval period, 10–11; prominence of poisons, 4–6; specialization in, 10, 53–56, 57, 82. See also drugs; materia medica; medicines
Pharmacy in the Secretariat of the Heir Apparent (Yaozang Ju), 84, 92, 199n9
pharmakon, 7–8, 184n16
physicians: ancient, 69–70, 112, 205n35; court, 39, 119–20, 208n18; and drug suppliers, 53–54, 56; of the Han, 134–35; hereditary, 55, 107–8, 109, 170, 208n1; laws and regulations regarding, 85; and patient voice, 117, 206n57; who discuss Five-Stone Powder, 129, 131, 136, 139, 140, 143, 211n67; who treat lesions, 24, 134. See also Chao Yuanfang; hereditary medicine; Sun Simiao; Zhang Zhongjing
pinellia (banxia): in drug combinations, 44, 45; as medicine, 36, 119, 114–15; preparation of, 47
pishuang (refined arsenic), 50, 194n56, 216n13
poisons: absolute, 8; antidotes for, 3, 37, 42, 45, 161, 184n20; in European and Chinese pharmacy, 7–8; in food, 23; hallucinogens, 36, 37, 42, 174, 191n9; in India, 7; means of eliminating, in alchemy, 160–61; as medicines, 3, 4–6, 5fig., 39–40; regulation of, 85– 86, 174, 200n21; sellers and buyers of, 86; as Tang tribute drugs, 89–91; two dimensions of use in classical Chinese medicine, 5fig.; use of term, 15; used as aphrodisiacs, 137; used against demons and vermin, 62, 78–79; used in deliberate killings, 36, 39, 49– 50, 85–86, 103; used in hunting, 21, 187n9; used in political persuasion, 170, 172. See also du
Pomata, Gianna, 13, 123
potency: of elixirs, 148–49, 152–53; meaning of du, 6, 15, 20, 28, 37; of words, 25. See also du
pothi manuscripts, 98–102, 99fig.
Pregadio, Fabrizio, 148, 213n38
pregnancy and gynecological disorders, 114–15, 206n43
principle of opposites, 49, 113, 193n49
principle of resonance, 120
principle of similarity, 72–73, 198–99n77
printing technology, 11, 12, 97, 103–4
private transmission, 113–14
purging, 36, 67, 72, 79, 147, 165, 167, 198–99n77. See also vomiting

qi: and contagion, 63, 196n34; defensive (wei), 152; as degree of heat of drugs, 29–30; demonic, 66–67, 71, 199n80; drugs to enhance, 28, 29, 48, 134; of elixirs, 165; exhaustion of, 163; as explanation of gu, 71; foot qi, 92, 117, 119, 195n7, 201n41; in inner alchemy, 166; malignant, 135; of minerals, 138–39; in functional model of illness, 67, 79, 112, 199n80; nourishing (rong), 152; and nourishing the body, 24, 111; and pain, 215n85; potent qi (duqi), 159–60; “six qi,” 69; southern, 25; of Spleen, 207n77; and sudden turmoil (huoluan), 119
Qie Yin, 154
Qin Chengzu, 129, 131, 140, 210n59
Qin Shi Huang, 150
qiqing (seven dispositions), 43–45. See also drug combination
quartz (bai shiying), 138, 142, 155
quiet chamber (jingshi), 64

realgar (xionghuang): access to, 156, 157–58; discovered in tomb of Zhao Mo, 135; need to detoxify, 119; as one of five minerals, during Han, 134; use for eliminating vermin and demons, 72; use in alchemy, 154, 155
recluses and hermits, 31, 52, 53, 57, 110, 133, 154
Record from the Stone Wall of the Great Clarity (Taiqing shibi ji; Master Chuze), 164–65, 171, 215n85, 216n89
religion and medicine, 13–14, 30–31, 64–65, 111, 167. See also Buddhism; Daoism
Rites of Zhou (Zhouli), 23–24, 82, 134, 190n60
Ruan Ji, 133

sal ammoniac (naosha), 89, 91, 215n68
scallions (cong), 44, 100–101, 102, 142, 203n78
scholar-officials: in alchemy, 158; engagement in medicine, in late Tang, 9–10, 170–72; and formula books, 112, 123–24; in making Newly Revised Materia Medica, 92; personal experience of healing, 207n84; as shizu, 113; who discuss Five-Stone Powder, 128, 136, 140
sepulchral plaints (zhongsong), 64
Seven Worthies of the Bamboo Grove (Zhulin Qixian), 130, 133
sexual activity, 46, 69, 129
shamans, 25, 64, 73, 77, 78, 152
Shang Zhijun, 188n40
Shangqing (Highest Clarity), 157
Shennong (Divine Farmer), 25–26
Shennong bencao jing. See Divine Farmer’s Classic of Materia Medica
Shiji (Historical records), 19, 135
shijie (corpse deliverance), 162–64, 167
Shishuo xinyu (New account of the tales of the world), 129
shu (ripe), 23, 187n16
Shuanggudui, 27, 193n44
Shuowen jiezi (Explaining characters; Xu Shen): on du, 20–22; on gu and chong, 70, 197n41; on paozhi, 46; variants of du, 22fig.
side effects, 4, 8, 128, 146
silk, 26, 49, 193n48
Silk Road, 12, 89, 158. See also Dunhuang
silver, 88, 148, 214n57, 215n68
sinister way (zuodao), 73, 197n58
Sivin, Nathan, 148, 185n31
Six Ministries of the Tang (Tang liudian), 83, 84, 86
skin rashes, 117–18
snakes: antidotes for poison of, 37, 45; as demons, 63, 70, 75; etymology of du, 21, 22fig.; gallbladder of, 36, 89– 91, 173; gu of, 71, 72, 73; horn of, 198n76; and metamorphosis, 162; poisoning by, 205n37; as treatment for gu poisoning, 72, 73
sorcery, 73, 76–77, 198n67. See also witchcraft
south, the: aristocrats of, 30, 83, 107, 109; Daoist movements in, 64, 157, 213n35; drugs from, 36, 42, 89–91, 95, 96, 97, 151; gu of, 70, 77, 80; medical and alchemical texts from, 30–31, 170; northern view of, 77; qi of, 25; shamanism and sorcery in, 25, 77, 80; substitute drugs in, 53, 54, 156. See also Ge Hong; Tao Hongjing
southeastern region: Daoist movement of Shangqing, 157, 163; drugs from, 96, 97; Ge Hong, 150; gu of, 70; medicine and alchemy in, 170; Tao Hongjing, 31, 94, 154, 155. See also Maoshan
southwestern region: Daoist movement of Tianshi Dao, 64; drugs from, 4, 36, 42, 88–89, 96; gu of, 80
soybeans, 44, 45
Spirit of Stones (Shishen), 135
Spleen, 29, 121, 165, 207n77, 209n28
stalactite (zhongru), 54, 121, 137, 138, 142, 144, 171
state role in medicine: fighting epidemics, 62, 68–69; formula books in medical education, 108–9; government-commissioned texts, 13, 65, 81–82, 92, 93–94, 103, 108; legal codes, 85–86; medical institutions, 82–85, 103; in medieval Europe, 185n40; Northern Song, 11, 103–4; Tang collection of drugs, 88–91. See also medicine and politics
Strickmann, Michel, 214n46
Su Jing, 81, 92, 170. See also Newly Revised Materia Medica
sudden turmoil (huoluan), 119
Sui dynasty: commission of medical texts, 65, 108; medical institutions, 68–69, 103; popularity of daoyin, 66; rise and fall of, 76–77; suppression of gu witchcraft, 62, 76. See also On the Origins and Symptoms of All Illnesses
sulfur (shi liuhuang): discovered in tomb of Zhao Mo, 135; Han Yu and, 171, 211n64; as potent medicine, 5, 35; use in alchemy, 148; use in Five-Stone Powder, 138, 142–43
Sun Jichang, 147–48
Sun Liang, 163
Sun Simiao: alchemical practice by, 110, 111, 119, 167, 185n31, 216n89; biography of, 110–11, 204n20; cases treated by, 117–21; connections to the court, 110–11, 113–14; criticism of court physicians, 119–20; deification of, 109–10; on Five-Stone Powder, 139, 142– 44, 145, 211n67; on Jin Shao, 209n39; as King of Medicines, 11, 109–10; knowledge of Daoist and Buddhist teachings, 111; medical ethics of, 111, 121; on medicines, 3, 184n14; reliance on efficacy to select remedies, 115, 120–21, 122; remedies for demonic illnesses, 67–68; remedies for gu poisoning, 72; treatment of patients of different social origins, 121–22; on use of stalactite, 144. See also Essential Formulas Worth a Thousand in Gold for Emergencies
Sun Xing, 110, 204n20
Supplement to Formulas Worth a Thousand in Gold (Qianjin yifang; Sun Simiao), 111, 142, 209n38
Supplement to Materia Medica (Bencao shiyi; Chen Cangqi), 72–73
swellings: “clove swellings,” 118–19; drugs for, 36, 94; and etymology of du, 21; formulas for, 114, 119; sickness of red-swelling, 65; treated in Imperial Medical Office, 83
Systematic Materia Medica (Bencao gangmu; Li Shizhen), 4, 172

Taibai, Mount, 111
Tang Code (Tanglü), 77, 85; “Use of Poisons to Poison People,” 85–86
Tang dynasty: alchemy in, 157–58; commission of medical texts, 81–82, 92–94; dissemination of medical knowledge, 97–98; extolled in preface to Newly Revised Materia Medica, 93–94, 202nn47–48; imperial collection of drugs, 88–91; medical institutions, 83–85; rise and fall of, 9–10, 81, 103, 170, 199n2; scholar-officials’ engagement in medicine, 123–24, 170–71; suppression of gu witchcraft, 77. See also state role in medicine
Tang-Song transition, 11, 185n37
Tao Hongjing: account of, in Newly Revised Materia Medica, 93; on arsenolite, 137, 138; biography and family, 31, 154; on bodily effects of elixirs, 163–64; categorization of drugs, 34, 190n60; commentaries in Collected Annotations, 32, 33fig., 34, 186n46, 189n56; connections with court, 154; corrections of, in Newly Revised Materia Medica, 94–96; Daoist practice, 31, 94, 154, 157; Declarations of the Perfected, 163, 164, 167, 190n60; on demonic illness, 196n16; on dosage control, 41–42; on drug combination, 44–46; on drug processing, 47; on Five-Stone Powder, 141, 208n14; formula books ascribed to, 107–8; formulation of Shangqing sect, 157; and the number seven, 190n60; practice of alchemy, 154–57, 213n37, 214n46; preface to Collected Annotations, 31–32, 53; on specialization of pharmaceutical activity, 53–55. See also Collected Annotations on the Classic of Materia Medica
temporary death (zansi), 156–57, 161–62
Ten Thousand Things (Wanwu), 26–27, 193n44
text and practice, 105–7; in Collected Efficacious Formulas, 109; Song period, 207n84; in Sun Simiao’s Essential Formulas, 105, 109, 112–13, 120–21, 122–23, 205n37
Tianshi Dao (Way of the Celestial Masters), 64
Tibetan empire, 100, 101
toads: gu of, 71, 73; venom of, 173
tonics: aconite, 48, 49; alchemical compounds, 214n46; arsenic, 137; Five-Stone Powder, 136, 143, 145; meaning of elixir, 149; for “nourishing life,” 29; stalactite, 144; in imperial collection of drugs, 89; in Rites of Zhou, 24
toxicity: of aconite, 47; of arsenic, 137, 210n48; in Chinese and Greek pharmacy, 7–8; derivation of the word, 187n9
toxicology, 7, 8, 173
transcendence (xian): arts of, in Han bibliography, 27; through corpse deliverance, 162–63; through elixirs, 147–48, 151, 156–57, 162–64, 166–67, 169, 208n14, 215n80; during Han, 150; through ingesting water, 205n25; through inner alchemy, 166, 212n5; through practices of Shangqing, 157; through purification of the body, 165; and temporary death, 156–57, 161–62; use of term, 149–50, 212n11
transformation: of the body, 4–5, 14, 27, 151, 162, 208n14; between cinnabar and mercury, 160; gu and, 70, 74–75; of medical knowledge in local communities, 98–102, 104; of medicines, 6, 15, 183n9; of poisons into medicines, 6–7, 39–40, 56–57, 174; three aspects of, 168–69; of yin and yang forces, 38. See also transcendence
Treatise on Cold Damage and Miscellaneous Disorders (Shanghan zabing lun), 12
Treatise on Drug Processing from Lord Thunder (Leigong paozhi lun), 50– 52, 54, 194n57
tribute system: history of, 87; local tribute (tugong), 88, 200–201n30, 201n31; as means of drug collection, 82, 87– 91, 90map, 93, 103; referred to in the Newly Revised Materia Medica, 94
triple jiao, 165, 215n84
Tu Youyou, 173
Turfan: manuscript fragment of Collected Annotations, 32–34, 33fig.; medical texts from, 10, 12

ulcers: and etymology of du, 21; drugs for, 97; induced by Five-Stone Powder, 128, 130, 131, 135, 139; symptom of swellings, 118, 119

vegetables: as category in materia medica texts, 34, 93, 98; five pungent vegetables, 102, 203n78; included in the manuscript of P. 3822, 100–102
verdigris, 151, 152
vermilion poisoning (dandu), 118
vermin: association with gu, 69, 70, 71– 72, 73, 79; flying, 69, 70; purging of, 68, 72, 89, 165, 167; and the south, 77; and wind, 70, 197n41. See also worms
vinegar, 54, 118, 161
viscera: definition of, 189n45; five viscera, 134, 138, 209n28; six palace-viscera, 215n84
vitality: loss of, 49, 63, 67, 138; medicine for, 5, 114, 121, 127, 136, 137
vomiting: caused by arsenic poisoning, 210n48; caused by demons, 65; drugs that induce, 62, 67, 164–65, 167; from drug substitutes, 97; remedies for, 131, 166. See also purging

Wang Bi, 129
Wang Chong, 25, 188n28
Wang Shuhe, 112
Wang Tao, Arcane Essentials from the Imperial Library, 123–24, 137, 170, 186n46, 210n60
Wang Xizhi, 131
ward for the sick (huanfang), 85, 200n14
ward of recuperation (bingfang), 200n14
warming drugs, 29, 36, 49, 62, 101, 113, 136, 138–39, 193n50, 210n48
Wei Boyang, 215n80
weight systems, 41–42
Wen, Emperor of Sui, 73–74
Wenxuan, Emperor of Northern Qi, 153
Western medicine: colonial project of, 40; etiological models in, 79; pharmacology, 7–8, 57; poisons in, 7–8, 190n61; side effects in, 4, 8, 128, 146. See also biomedicine
wild-path witchcraft, 72, 198n67
wind-induced disorders, 49, 107, 117, 119, 120, 132, 136, 165, 206n58
witchcraft: cat-demon, 73–75; gu, 73– 78; Sui-Tang suppression of, 76–77, 198n67. See also gu; sorcery
wolfsbane, 8. See also aconite
worms: as bodily effects of elixirs, 164; as category of drugs, 190n60; as cause of illness, 62, 216n86; and gu, 69, 70, 71; purging of, 68, 72, 89, 165, 167; and wind, 70, 197n41. See also vermin
writing medium: bamboo and wooden slips, 27, 32; manuscript culture, 12, 97, 104, 203n84; paper, 32, 98–100; pothi manuscript, 98–102, 99fig.; printing technology, 11, 12, 97, 103–4; silk, 26
Wu, Emperor of Han, 73, 150
Wu, Emperor of Liang, 154, 214n46
Wu, Emperor of Western Jin, 132–33
Wu, Empress of Tang, 75
Wuwei, medical formulas excavated from, 48–49, 50, 107

Xinxiu bencao. See Newly Revised Materia Medica
xionghuang. See realgar
Xu, Empress of Han, 39
Xu Ani, 74, 77–78
Xu family, 107–8, 115, 127, 208n1
Xu Sibo, 127, 208n1
Xu Zhicai, Drug Correspondences from Lord Thunder (Leigong yaodui), 55–56
Xuanxue (Mysterious Learning), 129–30
Xuanzong, Emperor of Tang, 97, 158

Yan, Master, 50
yang drugs, 25, 72, 161, 215n68
Yang Su, 74, 75–76, 77
Yang Xiu, 76, 198n68
yao (drug): character for, 22; duyao (potent drugs), 19, 23–25; range of meanings through history, 174, 216–17n15; term used for elixirs, 149
Yao Sengyuan, 109, 211n67
Yellow Emperor, 26, 50
Yellow Emperor’s Inner Classic (Huangdi neijing): association of organs with political offices, 43; canonical work of Chinese medicine, 9, 12; emphasis on preventive medicine, 29; functional model of illness, 67, 79; nourishing and defensive qi in, 152; quoted in Sun Simiao’s Essential Formulas, 112; use of duyao, 24, 188n25
yi du gong du (use poison to attack poison), 78–79, 198nn76–77
yin zhen zhi ke (drinking zhen to quench thirst), 37, 191n70
yin-yang framework: association of potency with yang, 25, 72; in explaining power of drugs, 94–95; mutual transformation, 38; in Sun Simiao’s Essential Formulas, 112; yang drugs, 72, 161, 215n68
Yu Jiaxi, 136
Yu Yan, 187n5
Yu Zhengxie, 211n74

Zhang Tingdong, 173
Zhang Yuanyou, 153–54
Zhang Zhongjing, 107, 108, 112
Zhao Mo, 135
zhen bird feathers (zhenniao mao), 36–37, 144, 191n71
zhen-bird poison (zhendu), 86, 159
Zheng Xuan, commentary to Rites of Zhou, 134, 190n60
Zheng Yin, 151, 212n18
Zhenglei bencao (Materia medica prepared for emergency), 48fig., 189n57, 194n57
Zhibin (Buddhist monk), 208n16
Zhou Ziliang, 214n47
Zhuangzi, 38, 207n74
Zhubing yuanhou lun. See On the Origins and Symptoms of All Illnesses
Zuozhuan (Zuo commentary), 69–70, 197n40

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