味苦温。主女子寒热。症瘕目闭。积聚。生山谷。
垩分五色。白善称材。浣衣雪洁。漫鼻风摧。缋开粉本。瓷重陶坯。蚩尤战罢。山聚余
灰。
苏颂曰。垩有五色。入药惟白者耳。名医曰。一名白善士。管子注。称材。材称其用也。
寇
宗曰。京师人用浣以衣。庄子。郢人垩漫其鼻。匠石运斤成风。尽垩而鼻不伤。陶弘景曰
。即今画家用者。苏轼诗。粉本遗墨开明窗。李时珍曰。用烧白瓷器坯者。周文璞诗。雕镌
若陶坯。拾遗记。黄帝除蚩尤。聚骨如岳。数年后骨白如灰。故有白垩之山。
味辛。微温。主黑子去 息肉。疽蚀疥搔。一名藜灰。生川泽。
炉拨三冬。寒灰沉质。火荻辉扬。燃藜烟密。 水沤丝。吹莩缦室。心地澄然。酒杯淋
溢。
杜甫诗。蛰龙三冬卧。鲍照诗。寒灰灭更燃。寇宗 曰。冬灰经三四月方撒炉。其灰力
燥体
重。抱朴子。火荻数千束。因猛风而燔之。陆云诗。厥辉愈扬。汉书传。刘向校书天禄阁。
有老人植青藜杖。吹杖端烟然。陶弘景曰。诸蒿藜积聚炼作之。性烈。荻灰尤烈。周礼注。
水沤丝。以灰所 水也。后汉书志。候气之法。布缇缦室中。每律各一。以葭莩灰抑其内
端。气至者灰去。李山甫诗。心地澄然一聚灰。苏轼诗。赵子饮酒如淋灰。一年十万八千杯
。
[Bai E (White Earth)]
Bitter, warm in nature. Primarily treats chills and fever in women, zheng zha (abdominal masses), closed eyes (blepharoptosis or visual impairment), and ji ju (accumulations of qi and blood stasis). Grows in mountain valleys.
White earth is divided into five colors, with the white variety being of the best quality, referred to as "Cai" (material suitable for use). It can be used to wash clothes until they are snow-white, and historically was applied to the nose to treat wind invasion (alluding to the story in Zhuangzi where a craftsman removed white earth from a man's nose without injury). It serves as the base sketch for painting (fen ben) and constitutes the heavy ceramic molds for pottery. Legend has it that after Chi You was defeated, mountains accumulated his remaining bone ash.
Su Song stated: White earth comes in five colors, but only the white variety is used in medicine. Famous physicians call it "Bai Shan Shi" (White Good Scholar). The commentary on Guan Zi explains "Cheng Cai" as meaning its utility meets standards. Kou Zongshi noted: People in the capital use it to wash clothes. Zhuangzi records: A person from Ying had white earth smeared on his nose; the craftsman Shi swung his axe with such skill that the wind removed all the earth without injuring the nose. Tao Hongjing stated: This is what painters use today. Su Shi's poem reads: "The original sketches and leftover ink are opened by the bright window." Li Shizhen stated: What is used are calcined white porcelain molds. Zhou Wenpu's poem reads: "Carving resembles ceramic molds." The Book of Lost Records states: After Huang Di defeated Chi You, bones were piled up like mountains; years later, the bones turned white like ash, hence the name "Mountain of White Earth."
[Dong Hui (Winter Ash)]
Pungent, slightly warm in nature. Primarily treats black moles, polyps, ju shi (ulcerative sores), and scabies/itching. Also known as Li Hui (Ash of Goosefoot/Legume plants). Grows in river marshes.
Stoking the furnace through three winters, cold ash settles with heavy texture; burning reeds causes light to rise, while igniting legumes produces dense smoke. Soaking silk in water, blowing the reed pipes fills the room (referring to the method of awaiting vital energy). The mind remains clear as a pile of ash; wine cups overflow when tipped.
Du Fu's poem reads: "Hibernating dragons lie dormant through the three winter months." Bao Zhao's poem reads: "Cold ash extinguished burns again." Kou Zongshi stated: Winter ash is not removed from the furnace until the third or fourth month; at this time, its potency is dry and its weight is substantial. Baopuzi records: Burning thousands of bundles of reeds using fierce winds. Lu Yun's poem reads: "Its brilliance shines even brighter." The History of Han records: When Liu Xiang was collating books in the Tianlu Pavilion, an old man appeared carrying a green goosefoot staff and blew smoke from its tip to provide light. Tao Hongjing stated: It is made by accumulating and refining various mugwort and legume plants; its nature is fierce, with reed ash being particularly fierce. The commentary on Rites of Zhou states: Soaking silk in water refers to soaking it in lye water. The Treatises of the Later Han record: The method for awaiting vital energy involves spreading silk gauze in a chamber; each pitch pipe is placed individually, blocked at the inner end with calamus husk ash; when the energy arrives, the ash disperses. Li Shanfu's poem reads: "The heart is clear as a single pile of ash." Su Shi's poem reads: "Zi drinks as if doused in ash, one hundred thousand eight hundred cups in a year."