Library

[Odor and Flavor]
Sweet, neutral, toxic.

[Maintenance of Health / Indications]
It is a medicine for the Yangming channel. In surgery, dentistry, and other diseases, it is used for its ability to attack toxicity with toxicity and its insecticidal effect.

[Odor and Flavor]
Sweet, salty, neutral, non-toxic.

[Maintenance of Health / Indications]
Tonifies the five Zang organs. Makes the body plump, skin fair and lustrous. Treats redness, pain, and excessive tearing of the eyes. Resolves the toxicity of "single-liver beef" (beef not properly bled or processed). Taken with concentrated soybean ferment juice, it is extremely effective. Mixed with sparrow feces, it removes pterygium (fleshy growth) in the eyes. Benefits Qi. Treats emaciation and debility. Beautifies the skin, moistens hair. Dropped into eyes to stop tearing. But why does human milk have such great efficacy in treating eye diseases? The heart generates blood, the liver stores blood, and when the spleen receives blood, vision is possible. Generally, when water enters the meridians, blood is formed. It is also said that above it becomes milk, and below it becomes menstruation. Thus, we know that milk is blood. Using it to drop into the eyes is certainly appropriate. Blood belongs to Yin, so those with cold nature and cold internal organs should not consume dairy products like milk cakes, butter, or cheese in excess. Although these are cow or sheep milk, they still fall within the creation of Yin and Yang. For elderly people suffering from mouth ulcers who cannot eat, drinking warm human milk is very beneficial. Human milk has no fixed nature: if the person is peaceful and their diet is bland, the milk will be neutral; if the person is irritable, drinks alcohol, eats spicy food, or has fire-related illnesses, the milk will be hot. Whenever consuming milk, it must be drunk warm. If dried into powder for medicinal use, it is especially good.

[Odor and Flavor]
Sweet, salty, neutral, non-toxic.

[Maintenance of Health / Indications]
For sores, swellings, scabies, and tinea. For delirious speech at dawn (Wu Geng), frequent application and rubbing are effective. It can also brighten the eyes, reduce nebula (corneal opacity), and reduce swelling. Resolves the toxicity of Bixie powder and mercury.

(Also known as: Ming Mu Sha.)

[Odor and Flavor]
(Missing)

[Maintenance of Health / Indications]
For floating nebula in the eyes. For Lao Zhai (consumptive diseases like tuberculosis) and the five types of Gan syndrome (pediatric malnutrition/toxicity). For Gan sores and hemorrhoids. Kills parasites and resolves toxicity. For constipation and urinary retention, place one spoonful of rabbit feces in the umbilicus, drip cold water on it until it penetrates, and natural passage will occur. Also, for nebula after smallpox, stir-fry and grind it, mix with medicine, and take orally for easier recovery.

I have observed various books on herbal properties and never fail to sigh at their great efficacy, which can bring peace to the sick and longevity to the prematurely deceased. However, while Ben Cao (Materia Medica) books are detailed, they are often criticized for being too verbose; Xing Yao (Properties of Medicinals) books are concise but often too brief. Seeking a balance between verbosity and brevity is the reason why *Ben Cao Ze Yao* was written. My father-in-law, Mr. Jie Fan, studied diligently and wrote books. He meticulously explored all schools of thought, including the Hundred Schools of Thought and the arts of Yin-Yang and numerology, with a particular mastery of Qi-Huang (Traditional Chinese Medicine). Whenever he saw someone ill, he treated it as if it were his own body, striving to save them, even emptying his purse without hesitation. The number of people he saved and preserved was countless. Yet he felt that saving people with medicine only affected one village or town. He preferred to compile a manual so that everyone would know how to use medicines and the benefits of proper usage, thereby extending merit to the whole world. Thus, after reading, he took materials already recorded in various Ben Cao books to elucidate them. He dared not arrogantly add his own wisdom nor lightly record prescriptions. Instead, he precisely analyzed the cold and hot properties of each herb, what was suitable and what was contraindicated, compiled them into a volume, making it clear at a glance, hoping to help the world achieve benevolence and longevity. Because it took a long time, he did not dare to publish it lightly, showing his caution and respect. After his passing, his manuscripts filled carts. My brother-in-law, Xue Zhou, said that preserving the handiwork of our ancestor without promptly promoting it would lead to obscurity, which is not the heart of a filial child. So he searched the remaining manuscripts under the shelves. Among the many books found, *Ben Cao Ze Yao* was particularly urgent for the contemporary world. How could I not present it to my friends? Therefore, I had it printed and published, so that readers throughout the land might know the person through the book. This is indeed Xue Zhou's deep thought in praising his father's virtue. Ultimately, the merit of turning illness into health and premature death into longevity may well equal that of the herbs themselves. Thus, its benefit to the world is far from slight. When the book was completed, he asked me for a preface. Though unskilled, how dare I write a preface? However, duty forbids refusal. I humbly attach a few words: first, to express my father-in-law's intention to benefit things and save people; second, to show my brother-in-law's heart of continuing the will and narrating the deeds.
In the late spring of the Jiwei year of Kangxi, Xiao Changfu kowtows a hundred times to record this.