Dietary Contraindications

original: "Yinshi Jinji." This section lists foods that should not be eaten while taking specific medicines, as well as general dietary rules to prevent worsening a disease.

Li Dongyuan’s General Rules for Prescribing According to Symptoms

original: "Li Dongyuan Suizheng Yongyao Fanlie." Li Dongyuan (1180–1251) was one of the four great masters of medicine in the Jin-Yuan period, famous for emphasizing the role of the spleen and stomach in health.

Chen Zangqi’s General Rules for Prescribing for Various Deficiencies

original: "Chen Zangqi Zhuxu Yongyao Fanlie." Chen Zangqi was a Tang dynasty official and physician known for his "Supplement to the Materia Medica." This section provides guidelines for treating "deficiency" (xu)—a state where the body's vital energy or fluids are depleted.

Zhang Zihe’s Three Methods: Diaphoresis, Emesis, and Purgation

original: "Zhang Zihe Han Tu Xia San Fa." Zhang Zihe (c. 1156–1228) led the "Attack and Purge" school of medicine. He believed that pathogens must be forcefully driven out of the body through sweating (diaphoresis), vomiting (emesis), or bowel movements (purgation).

The Eight Essentials, Six Failures, and Six Untreatable Conditions of Disease

original: "Bing you Bayao, Liushi, Liubuzhi." A framework for diagnosis and medical ethics. The "Eight Essentials" often refer to the principles of Yin, Yang, Interior, Exterior, Cold, Heat, Deficiency, and Excess. The "Six Failures" and "Untreatable Conditions" warn physicians about cases where medicine may fail due to the patient's lifestyle or the advanced stage of the illness.

Medicinal Pairings, Seasonal Objects, and Categories of Substances

original: "Yaodui Suiwu Yaopin." This likely refers to the "Yao Dui" (Medicinal Pairings), an ancient manual attributed to Lei Gong that explains how two drugs work together. "Seasonal objects" refers to harvesting materials at the correct time of year.

for the Divine Farmer’s Classic of Materia Medica
original: "Shennong Bencao Jing Mulu." This honors the oldest known Chinese pharmaceutical text, attributed to the mythical Emperor Shennong (the Divine Farmer).

Old Table of Contents for the Song Dynasty Materia Medica

original: "Song Bencao Jiu Mulu." Li Shizhen includes the structure of the Materia Medica as it existed during the Song Dynasty (960–1279) to show how medical knowledge has evolved and been re-organized over the centuries.