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(From *Bencao Shiyi* [Supplement to Materia Medica])
Fish with eyelids on their eyes kill upon consumption. Fish whose eyes can open and close kill upon consumption. Fish with inverted gills kill upon consumption. Fish with white bead-like structures in the brain kill upon consumption. Fish without gills kill upon consumption. Fish with asymmetrical eyes kill upon consumption. Fish with connected scales kill upon consumption. White [fish] kill upon consumption. Fish with the character "Dan" (Cinnabar) pattern on the belly kill upon consumption. Large fish are toxic; consumption kills.

Li Shizhen said: Among the Jie Chong (animals with shells/carapaces), there are three hundred and sixty species, and the turtle is their leader. The turtle is perhaps the most spiritual among shell-bearing animals. In the *Rites of Zhou*, the official *Bieren* collects these creatures according to the season: offering soft-shelled turtles and clams in spring, and tortoises and fish in autumn. Offering turtle meat for sacrifices was not abandoned even in sage eras as part of dietary provisions, let alone its use as a medicinal substance.
In Tang and Song dynasty materia medica, turtles were mixed into the insect and fish sections. Now, they are separated into the Jie (Shell) section. There are forty-six species in total, divided into two categories: Turtles and Soft-shelled Turtles; Clams and Mussels.
*Shennong Bencao Jing* records eight species (annotated by Tao Hongjing of Liang). *Mingyi Bielu* [Record of Famous Physicians] records five species (annotated by Tao Hongjing of Liang). *Tang Bencao* [Tang Materia Medica] records two species (by Su Gong of Tang). *Bencao Shiyi* [Supplement to Materia Medica] records ten species. *Shu Bencao* [Shu Materia Medica] records one species (by Han Baosheng of Former Shu). *Kaibao Bencao* [Kaibao Materia Medica] records two species (by Ma Zhi of Song). *Jiayou Bencao* [Jiayou Materia Medica] records eight species. *Zhenghe Bencao* [Zhenghe Materia Medica] records one species (by Su Song of Song). *Bencao Mengquan* [Comprehensive Sayings on Materia Medica] records one species (by Chen Jiamo of Ming). *Bencao Gangmu* [Compendium of Materia Medica] records six species (by Li Shizhen of Ming).
Appendix notes: Wu Pu's *Wu Pu Bencao* [Wu Pu's Materia Medica]; Li Dangzhi's *Yaolu* [Record of Medicinals]; Lei Xiao's *Paozhilun* [Discourse on Processing]; Xu Zhicai's *Yadui* [Drug Pairs] of Qi; Zhen Quan's *Yaoxing* [Medicinal Properties] of Tang; Sun Simiao's *Qianjin Fang* [Essential Prescriptions Worth a Thousand Gold]; Meng Shen and Zhang Ding's *Shiliao* [Dietary Therapy] of Tang; Yang Sunzhi's *Shanfan* [Abridging the Superfluous]; Xiao Bing's *Sisheng Bencao* [Four Tones Materia Medica]; Chen Shiliang's *Shixing Bencao* [Dietary Nature Materia Medica] of Southern Tang; *Tangye Bencao* [Decoction Materia Medica]; Wu Rui's *Riyong Bencao* [Daily Use Materia Medica]; Zhu Zhenheng's *Buyi* [Supplement]; Wang Ying's *Shiwu Bencao* [Food Materia Medica] of Ming; Ning Yuan's *Shijian Bencao* [Food Inspection Materia Medica] of Ming; Wang Ji's *Huibian Bencao* [Compilation Materia Medica] of Ming.

(Turtle and Soft-shelled Turtle Category: Seventeen Species)

(From *Shennong Bencao Jing*, Upper Grade)
[Names] Xuan Yi Du You (Black-robed Inspector).
Li Shizhen said: According to Xu Shen's *Shuowen Jiezi*: The turtle's head is similar to that of a snake. Therefore, the character 'Gui' (Turtle) has 'Ta' (It/Snake) at the top, and the bottom depicts the shape of the shell, feet, and tail. 'Ta' is the ancient character for 'She' (Snake). Furthermore, *Erya* states there are ten types of turtles. Guo Pu's annotations follow the text but lack clarity. Names such as Mountain Turtle, Marsh Turtle, and Water Turtle are derived from the habitats where common turtles are found. Those large, over one chi in size, living in water are called Bao Gui (Treasure Turtle) or Cai Gui. Those in mountains are called Ling Gui (Spiritual Turtle); both are national treasures that do not transform. When reaching hundreds or thousands of years of age, they exhibit five colors and vary in size unpredictably. Those in water are called Shen Gui (Divine Turtle). Those in mountains are called Shi Gui (Divination Turtle); both are sages among turtles. Huo Gui (Fire Turtle) lives in hot lands, like the Fire Mouse. She Gui (Swallowing Turtle) eats snakes. Wen Gui (Patterned Turtle) refers to Eretmochelys imbricata (Hawksbill). Later generations did not distinguish between mountain, marsh, water, and fire types, generally calling small ones Divine Turtles, and only those from water with old shells were noted, leading annotators to use the term Shen Gui. However, Shen Gui are rare; today, taking various water turtles suffices.
[Collection and Explanation] Li Shizhen said: Among the three hundred and sixty shell-bearing creatures, the Shen Gui is the leader. The turtle's form corresponds to the Li trigram, with its spirit residing in Kan. The convex back with patterns mimics Heaven; the flat base with lines mimics Earth. It faces Yin and backs Yang, with a snake-like head and dragon-like neck. It has external bone/shell and internal flesh, intestines attached to the head, capable of governing the Ren Mai (Conception Vessel). Broad shoulders and large waist, oviparous and embracing during mating, it breathes through its ears. Male and female tails interlock, similar to snakes. Some claim large-waisted turtles have no males; this is false. People now distinguish sex by the plastron. Turtles emerge from hibernation and shed shells in spring and summer, hiding in burrows and practicing Daoist exercises in autumn and winter, hence their spirituality and longevity. *Nanyue Zhi* says: The Divine Turtle is fist-sized, golden-colored, with saw-toothed edges on the carapace, sharp claws, and can climb trees to eat cicadas. *Baopuzi* says: A thousand-year-old spiritual turtle possesses all five colors, jade-like and stone-like. Its transformations are unfathomable, varying in size. Some swim on lotus leaves, others hide under clusters of yarrow. Zhang Shinan's *Zhi Guilun* [Discussion on Testing Turtles] says: Old turtles become divine; at eight hundred years, they shrink to the size of a coin. In summer, they roam in fragrant lotuses; in winter, they hide in lotus rhizomes. Their respiration emits black smoke-like gas within the lotus heart, clearly visible. If seen, do not startle it; quietly inhale through an oil tube, and it cannot escape.
Some say: Turtles crouch upon hearing iron sounds and die from mosquito bites. Smearing eyes with sesame oil prevents sinking in water. Boiling in old mulberry branches makes them rot easily. These are methods to subdue them.
Gui Jia (Turtle Shell)
[Names] Shen Wu (*Shennong Bencao Jing*), Bai Gui Ban (Defective Turtle Plate).
Li Shizhen said: These are obscure names.
[Collection and Explanation] *Mingyi Bielu* says: Turtle shell is produced in the ponds, marshes, and lakes of the South Sea. Collection time is unrestricted. Do not allow it to get damp; dampness renders it toxic.
Tao Hongjing said: Using Shen Gui from water, those one chi two cun long are best. The plastron can be used for divination, the carapace for medicine, and also in elixir formulas. It should be taken by roasting live turtles.
Han Baosheng said: Turtles from Huzhou, Jiangzhou, and Jiaozhou have white, thick bones with clear colors, best for divination and medicine.
Da Ming says: Small divination turtles with ten drill marks on the belly are named Bai Gui Ban, good for medicine.
Su Song says: They are now found everywhere in rivers and lakes. For medicine, Shen Gui must be used. On the Shen Gui plate, the area directly below the heart, transparent in four directions and amber-colored, is best. Turtles with square heads, short legs, round shells, and white plates are Yang Turtles. Those with pointed heads, long legs, elongated shells, and yellow plates are Yin Turtles. Yin persons should use Yang turtles, and Yang persons should use Yin turtles. Modern physicians do not distinguish thus.
Li Shizhen said: Ancients collected turtles in autumn and slaughtered them in spring. Today, collectors gather hundreds, saw off the shells alive, and eat the meat. These turtles have titles like King, Minister, and General, distinguished by patterns on the belly and back. The central vertical line on the carapace is called Qian Li (Thousand Li). If the first horizontal ridge on the head has diagonal lines connecting to Qian Li on both sides, it is the Turtle King. Other turtles lack this. Divination for emperors uses Kings, civil officials Ministers, military officers Generals, following hierarchy. This aligns with *Yi Li* stating Emperors' shells are 1.2 chi, feudal lords 8 cun, great ministers 6 cun, and scholars/commoners 4 cun, which is reasonable. If Tian Shen Gui and Bao Gui are rare, medicine should follow this standard. *Rihua Bencao* uses small divination turtle shells, likely for convenience. Also, *Shennong Bencao Jing* warns against dampness. The name [Bai Gui Ban] implies both upper and lower shells were used. *Rihua Bencao* started using only the plate, which later became the norm.
[Correction of Errors]
Wu Qiu said: Ancients used Bai Gui Ban to tonify Yin, borrowing its Qi. Today, people use drilled or boiled ones, losing their nature and Qi. Only those naturally fallen and dead from wind in mountains are best; those self-dying in fields/pools are next; those beaten by humans are worst.
Li Shizhen said: Tao used roasted live turtles, and *Rihua* used heavily burned ones, believing in their spiritual vitality. "Bai" (Defective/Rotten) refers to being old and worn from drilling/burning. Wu misunderstood, preferring naturally dead, dried shells, claiming burning loses nature; this is wrong. Even naturally dead ones are likely mountain turtles. Pedants creating distinctions mislead the world. I correct this based on facts.
[Processing] Saw off the four edges, grind clean on stone, stir-fry with ash, smear with butter, and roast until yellow. Alternatively, process with wine, vinegar, lard, or calcine to ash.
[Properties and Flavor] Sweet, neutral, toxic. Zhen Quan said: Non-toxic.
Li Shizhen said: *Shennong Bencao Jing* says damp ones are toxic, implying dry ones are non-toxic.
Xu Zhicai said: Adverse with Sand Shen (Adenophora), Blatta orientalis (Cockroach); fears dog gallbladder and lean silver.
[Indications] Gui Jia (Turtle Shell): Treats leukorrhea (red and white discharge), breaks masses and accumulations, malaria. Five hemorrhoids, genital ulcers, damp bi syndrome, heaviness and weakness of limbs. Long-term use lightens the body and reduces hunger (*Shennong Bencao Jing*). Treats fright and anger qi, abdominal pain, inability to stand long, cold-heat in bones, relapse of cold damage after labor, or death-like state from hunger with cold-heat. Made into decoction, effective. Long-term use boosts Qi and intelligence, promotes appetite. Calcined ash treats stubborn infantile scalp sores and female genital sores (*Mingyi Bielu*). Gui Niao (Turtle Urine): Mainly treats [missing text] fatigue, weakness of limbs (Zhu Zhenheng). Treats [missing text]. Calcined ash applied to [missing ulcer] (Li Shizhen).
[Elucidation]
The turtle is a Yin entity, born from Northern Qi, thus tonifying Yin, treating blood disorders, and treating consumptive diseases.
Li Shizhen said: Turtles and deer are spiritual and long-lived. The turtle hides its head inward, connecting to the Ren Mai. Thus, its shell tonifies Heart, Kidney, and Blood, all nourishing Yin. The deer turns its nose backward, connecting to the Du Mai (Governing Vessel). Thus, its horn tonifies Mingmen (Gate of Vitality), Essence, and Qi, all nourishing Yang. This is the profound mystery of natural principles and the skill of divine craftsmanship. Observing the indications for turtle shell, all belong to Yin deficiency and blood weakness, which can be understood intuitively. See also Bie Jia (Soft-shelled Turtle Shell).
[Prescriptions] Two old, twelve new.
Buyin Wan (Tonify Yin Pill): Danxi Formula: Gui Xiajia (Turtle lower shell, wine-processed) and Shu Dihuang (Prepared Rehmannia Root, nine-steamed nine-sunned) each 6 liang; Huangbai (Phellodendron Bark, salt-water soaked and fried) and Zhimu (Anemarrhena Rhizome, wine-fried) each 4 liang. Grind to powder in stone mortar, mix with pig spinal cord, pill like wu-tzu seeds. Take 100 pills on an empty stomach with warm wine. Alternate formula: Remove Dihuag, add Wuweizi (Schisandra Berry, fried) 1 liang.
Persistent Malaria: Calcine Gui Ban (Turtle plate) to retain properties, grind to powder. Take with wine, one fang-cun bi (*Haishang Mingfang*).
Stagnant Knots: Gui Xiajia (wine-processed) 5 liang, Cebaiye (Biota Tops, fried) 1.5 liang, Xiangfu (Cyperus Rhizome, soaked in child's urine and fried) 3 liang. Grind to powder, bind with wine paste.
Postpartum Dysentery: One Gui Jia, vinegar-processed to powder. Take 1 qian with rice water, twice daily (*Jingyan Fang*).
Difficult Labor/Delivery: *Milu*: Calcine Gui Jia to powder, take with wine, one fang-cun bi.
Short women with unyielding pubic symphysis: One dry turtle shell (butter-processed), one handful of human hair (calcined to ash), Chuanxiong and Danggui each 1 liang. Weigh 7 qian, decoct in water. After walking about five li, take another dose. Delivers both living and dead fetus.
Early-stage Swelling and Toxicity: One Bai Gui Ban, calcined and ground. Take 4 qian with wine (*Xiaoshan*).
Female Breast Abscess: Same as above.
Infantile Scalp Sores: Apply Gui Jia calcined ash (*Shenghui Fang*).
Moon-eroded Ear Sore: Same as above.
Sores around Mouth: Same as above.
Rotting/Foul Ulcer: Take shell from one live Gui, vinegar-roast yellow, calcine to retain properties, remove fire heat. Add Qingfen (Calomel) and Shexiang (Musk). Clean with scallion soup, apply (*Jiujifang*).
Human Bite Wound: One piece each of Gui Ban bone and Bie Dubone (Soft-shelled turtle belly bone), calcined and ground. Mix with oil, apply (Ye Shi *Zhaixuan*).
Pig Bite Wound: Gui Ban calcined and ground. Mix with sesame oil, apply (Ye Shi *Zhaixuan*).
Gui Rou (Turtle Meat)
[Properties and Flavor] Sweet, sour, warm, non-toxic.
Tao Hongjing said: Making soup is greatly tonifying, but it is spiritual; do not kill lightly. Many records exist, not detailed here.
Sun Simiao said: Do not eat on Liu Jia days or in the twelfth lunar month; damages spirit and Qi. Do not eat with pork, colocasia, melon, or amaranth; harmful.
[Indications] Brewed into wine, treats severe wind-induced spasms and limb contracture. Or chronic flaccid paralysis, all heal (Su Song). Boiled and eaten, removes damp-bi and wind-bi, body swelling, and fractures ([Author missing]).
[Elucidation] Li Shizhen said: *Zhou Chu Fengtu Ji* says: In Jiangnan, on the fifth day of the fifth month, fat turtles are boiled with salt, fermented soybeans, garlic, and polygonum, named [Missing Name]. This embodies the principle of Yin inside and Yang outside.
[Prescriptions] One old, six new.
Heat-type Damp-Bi, Internal Agitated Heat: Boil Gui Rou with Wuweizi. Mild diarrhea indicates efficacy (*Puji Fang*).
Bone and Sinew Pain: One black turtle, divided into four legs. Use one leg per dose with Tianhuafen, Gouqizi each 1.2 qian, Xionghuang 0.5 qian, Shexiang 0.5 qian, Huaihua 3 qian. Decoct in one bowl of water (*Zuoya Qifang*).
Ten-Year Cough or Twenty-Year Incurable Cough: Three live Gui, prepare as food. Brew with 4 sheng of sorghum rice as usual, cook thoroughly, drink completely, never recurs. Another formula: Place one live Gui in a Kan (water) pit, induce urination into it, soak for three days, calcine and grind. Mix with one sheng of pure wine into a paste like dry rice, take at once. Profuse vomiting occurs, cough bag expelled, then cured. Halve dose for children ([Book Missing]).
Dysentery and Bloody Stool: Gui Rou, mix with sugar water. Mix with pepper, roast and boil to eat. Overdose stops [diarrhea].
Consumptive Disease with Blood Loss: Boil field turtle meat, mix with scallion, pepper, sauce, oil, and cook/eat. Tonifies Yin, descends fire, treats consumptive blood loss, hemoptysis, cold-heat cough. Repeatedly effective (Wu [Name Missing]).
Chronic Hemorrhoids and Fistulas: Two or three field turtles, boil meat, mix with fennel, scallion, sauce, eat regularly. Repeatedly effective. Avoid grain dregs, vinegar, and other hot foods (*Bianmin Shiliao*).
Gui Xue (Turtle Blood)
[Properties and Flavor] Salty, cold, non-toxic.
[Indications] Apply to prolapsed rectum (Zhen Quan). Treat contusions and injuries, drink with wine, and apply mashed fresh turtle meat (Li Shizhen).
Gui Danzhi (Turtle Gallbladder Juice)
[Properties and Flavor] Bitter, cold, non-toxic.
[Indications] Post-smallpox eye swelling lasting a month, instill drops, effective (Li Shizhen).
Gui Niao (Turtle Urine)
[Collection] Su Song said: According to Sun Guangxian's *Beimeng Suoyan*: Turtles are jealous and mate with snakes.
Illuminate it. Seeing its shadow, the turtle becomes aroused and urinates. Collect immediately. Another method: Heat a paper wick, touch the cloaca, inducing urination, though slightly slower.
Li Shizhen said: Today, people prick the nose with pig bristle or pine needle to induce urination, which seems simpler.
[Indications] Instill in ear, treat deafness (Zangqi). Instill under tongue, treat adult stroke aphasia and infantile convulsive mutism. Rub chest/back, treat Gui Xiong (Turtle Chest) and Gui Bei (Turtle Back) (Li Shizhen).
[Elucidation] Li Shizhen said: Turtle urine penetrates orifices and bones, thus treating aphasia, deafness, turtle back, and dyeing beard/hair. According to *Gulou Shenshu*: Turtle urine grinds porcelain...
[Prescriptions] One old, two new.
Infantile Turtle Back: Rub chest and back with turtle urine; heals over time (Sun Taoren).
Stroke Aphasia: Instill a few drops of black turtle urine under the tongue; miraculous (*Shouyu*).
Premature Graying of Beard/Hair: Mix turtle urine with fine leech powder, rub daily, turns black. Powder must be fine (Tan Yeweng Formula).