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(From *Bencao Shiyi* [Supplement to Materia Medica])
[Indications] Hemorrhoids: Take the mouth of a cattail fan that has been used for twenty years, burn it to ash, and administer with water. Additionally, for women suffering from unbearable itching in the intestines after childbirth, place the cattail fan closely under the mattress where they lie.

(From *Bencao Shiyi* [Supplement to Materia Medica])
[Names] .
Li Shizhen stated: In ancient times, fans were made of feathers, hence the character contains the radical for feather (Yu). Later generations made fans from bamboo and paper, hence the character contains the radical for bamboo (Zhu). Yang Xiong's *Fangyan* states: East of Hangu Pass, it is called "Shan"; west of Hangu Pass, it is called "Shan". People in the east mostly make them from cattail (Pul), while those in Lingnan use palm leaf (Pu Kui).
[Indications] Ash from old cattail fans mixed with rice powder applied to the body stops sweating; older material is better. Bury cattail fans at the four corners under the pillars of a newly built house to prevent mosquitoes from entering (Li Canger). Burn to ash and take one qian with wine to stop night sweats, as well as metrorrhagia (Xue Beng) and continuous menstruation (Li Shizhen).

(From *Shennong Bencao Jing · Bie Lu*, Lower Grade)
[Names] Jian (Mat/Reed Mat). Tao Hongjing stated: Cattail mats are only used by boatmen, resembling sails made of cattail. Mats used in households are made from Juncus grass, whereas "Jian" is mostly made from cattail. Medical practitioners burn cattail mats for administration.
Meng Shen stated: Both mats (Xi) and reed mats (Jian) are sleeping implements; it is best if they have absorbed human qi, regardless of whether they are called Jian or Xi. In Qingzhou and Qizhou regions, people call cattail jian "cattail xi", also pronounced "Pu He", referring to the woven item as Jian. In Shannan and Jiangzuo regions, items woven on looms are called Xi, while thick, heavy layers beneath are called Jian.
Li Shizhen stated: Both Xi and Jian are woven from cattail and rice straw, differing in fineness. People in Wu region use dragon's whisker grass to make mats.
[Indications] Old cattail mat: Neutral. Indicated for muscle distension and malignant sores (Bie Lu). Used alone to break blood stasis. For injuries from falling from heights causing abdominal pain due to blood stasis, take long-used cattail mats, burn to ash, and administer two qian with wine. Alternatively, decoct Puhuang (Cattail Pollen), Danggui (Angelica Sinensis), Dahuang (Rhubarb), Chishao (Red Peony Root), and Pomiao (Mirabilite), mix with the decoction, and the blood will be expelled (Zhen Quan).
Strands from woven mats: Burn and grind, take two finger-pinches with wine to treat Huoluan (Cholera-like syndrome) with muscle cramps extending into the abdomen (Li Canger). Mats used by widows: Treat infant vomiting, diarrhea, and Huoluan by boiling seven strands and administering the juice (Li Canger).
[Attached Prescriptions] Three old prescriptions, three new prescriptions.
Huoluan with severe cramps nearing death: Take a handful of chopped old cattail mat, boil in one cup of sour rice water, and take warm (*Taiping Shenghui Fang*).
Dysuria: Mix 7 parts ash of cattail mat with 3 parts Huashi (Talcum), grind into powder. Administer one fangcun bi with water, three times daily (*Jingui Yaolue*).
Metrorrhagia (Blood rushing): Burn old cattail mats to ash, take two qian with wine (*Shengjin Fang*).
Wuse Danyou (Five-colored wandering carbuncle, often fatal): Burn cattail mats to ash, mix with egg white, and apply topically (*Qianjin Yifang*).
Non-healing abscesses/furuncles: Burn broken cattail mats to ash, mix with lard from the twelfth lunar month, and insert into the wound (*Qianjin Fang*).
Nocturnal enuresis: Burn the grass from the patient's own mat to ash, take with water, and recovery will be immediate (*Qianjin Fang*).