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[Di Long Teng]
Taste: Bitter. Toxicity: Non-toxic. Indications: Mainly treats wind-blood conditions leading to emaciation and aging, various cold sensations in the abdomen, waist, and legs; where food fails to transform into muscle and flesh. It is taken after being soaked in wine. Habitat: Grows in Tianmu Mountain. Morphology: Twisted and coiled like a dragon, hence the name Di Long Teng (Earth Dragon Vine). Growth habit: Climbs around trees, resembling something born from a dragon. It is quite similar to this plant, with only minor differences. It is also found in the Wu region.

Indications: Treats scorpion stings; placing it horizontally on a well mouth leads to immediate cure. When carbonized, it treats metal weapon wounds. Scraped powder applied to sores stops bleeding and promotes tissue regeneration. Wearing it wards off evil spirits and malevolent entities.

(Added during Jiyou year from *Bencao Yan Yi*)

\Ba Dou\pd352.bmp
Taste: Pungent. Nature: Warm when raw, Cold when cooked. Toxicity: Highly toxic. Indications: Treats shanghan (cold damage) and wen nue (warm malaria) with alternating chills and fever; breaks up zheng zha (masses), accumulations, hard deposits, retained fluids, tan pi (phlegm-stasis); treats da fu shui zhang (abdominal distension with fluid retention); purges the five zang and six fu organs; opens blockages; promotes urination and defecation; removes necrotic tissue; expels gui du (ghost toxins), gu zhu (infectious diseases), and other pathogenic factors; kills parasites and fish; treats amenorrhea in women; causes abortion of malformed fetuses; treats suppurating wounds from metal injuries; does not harm male genital function; detoxifies ban mao (Mylabris) poison. It can be processed and ingested to benefit blood vessels, improve complexion, and produce miraculous effects as if communicating with spirits. Alias: Ba Jiao (Ba Pepper). Habitat: Grows in valleys of Ba Commandery. Harvest time: August, dried in shade. Preparation: Remove the heart and skin before use. Interactions: Guided by Yuan Hua (Genkwa Flos); adverse reaction with E Cao; inhibited by Da Huang (Rhei Radix et Rhizoma), Huang Lian (Coptidis Rhizoma), Li Lu (Veratri Rhizoma).

Tao Hongjing states: Originates from Ba Commandery. Resembles soybeans; has strong purgative effects; fresh ones are superior. Before weighing, remove the heart and skin. Then roast until yellow-black, grind separately into a paste, and mix into pills or powders. Daoist methods: There is a processing method for ingestion said to lead to immortality. If a person swallows one seed, they may feel like dying. However, rats eating it gain thirty jin in weight over three years, showing that substances have mutual tolerance properties. Tang Ben Zhu states: The tree is over one zhang high. Leaves resemble cherry leaves, slightly reddish at the tips; leaves gradually wither in December, fall completely by April, regrow in May, flower in July, fruit in August, mature in September, harvested in October. Three seeds share one pedicel, each enclosed in a shell. Those from Meizhou and Jiazhou are of good quality. Current research based on Chen Cangqi's *Bencao*: Ba Dou treats zheng pi qi (masses and qi stagnation), pi man (fullness), abdominal accumulations, cold qi-blood masses, undigested food, phlegm-fluid vomiting. Select large, dark green/black seeds. Take one seed daily on an empty stomach, remove the shell without breaking the white membrane, split into two pieces (ensure no edges are damaged), swallow with water. After a while, intense heat arises in the abdomen, followed by expulsion of foul matter. Although diarrhea occurs, weakness does not ensue; long-term use prevents further diarrhea. Discard seeds where the white membrane is broken. Grows in the South. Trees are thick as a human embrace, very tall, exceeding one zhang. Ministers Yu Xi et al., according to *Yao Xing Lun*: Ba Dou acts as a guiding herb. For poisoning, antidote with Coptis juice or soybean juice. Contraindications: Reeds, sauces, fermented soybeans, cold water. Fire-processing is beneficial. Detoxifies Mylabris and snake venoms. Breaks up heart/abdominal qi masses; treats ten types of edema, flaccidity-obstruction, abdominal distension; induces abortion. Ri Huazi states: Unblocks all diseases, drains stagnation, dispels wind, tonifies fatigue, strengthens spleen, opens appetite, resolves phlegm, breaks blood stasis, discharges pus, reduces swelling/toxins, kills intestinal worms, treats malignant sores, polyps, scabies, and carbuncles. For pill/powder preparation, boiling five times with water changes is better than roasting. Remove the heart membrane.

*Tujing* states: Ba Dou originates from Ba Commandery valleys. Now found in Jiazhou, Meizhou, Rongzhou. Trees are one to two zhang high. Leaves resemble cherry leaves but are thicker and larger; initially green, turning yellow-red; wither in December, regrow in February, old leaves fall in April, new leaves emerge simultaneously, flowers form spikes, pale yellow. Fruits appear in May-June in pods, green initially, ripening to yellow in August, resembling white cardamom, falling naturally for harvest. One pod has three valves, each containing one seed, totaling three seeds per pod. Those from Rongzhou have longitudinal ridges on the shell, raised like lines, one to three lines. Locals call them Jin Xian Ba Dou (Golden Line Ba Bean), considered the highest grade, rare elsewhere.

Lei Gong states: Carefully distinguish Ba, Dou, and Gang Zi to avoid fatal errors. "Ba" seeds are small, tight, and yellow; "Dou" seeds have three棱s (angles) and are black; "Gang Zi" seeds are small, date-pit shaped, pointed at both ends. Use Ba and Dou; do not use Gang Zi. Processing: Crush seeds, boil with sesame oil and wine, grind into paste. For every liang processed, use seven he of wine and seven he of sesame oil. *Shenghui Fang*: Treats facial paralysis. Seven Ba Dou seeds, peeled and ground. Apply left hand palm, right hand palm. Hold warm water near palms. Once corrected, wash off medicine and frequently pull the middle finger. Another formula: Treats toothache. Roast one Ba Dou seed until yellow-cooked, peel, place inside a hollowed garlic clove (cut top as lid), wrap in cotton, insert into affected ear. *Waitai Miyao* (Wen Zhong's formula): Treats Shui Gu (water蛊) characterized by large shaking abdomen with fluid sounds and black skin. Ninety Ba Dou seeds (remove heart/skin, roast yellow), sixty Almond seeds (remove skin/tips, roast yellow). Grind into pills size of small beans. Take one pill with water until purged. Avoid alcohol. *Qianjin Fang*: Treats wind-itch hives in adults/children, mental confusion. Two liang Ba Dou, crushed, boiled in seven sheng water to yield three sheng. Dip cloth and wipe body. Another formula: Treats cold-phlegm/undigested food, chronic drinking without digestion, severe constipation. One sheng Ba Dou kernel, five sheng clear wine, boiled for three days/nights, ground fine, reduced with wine over low fire into pills size of broad beans. Take one pill with water. To induce vomiting, take two pills. Another formula: Treats Hou Bi (throat obstruction) in near-death state. Peel Ba Dou, thread through throat, pull out. *Qianjin Yi Fang*: Treats infantile edema, limb swelling, and hives. Fifty peeled/de-heartened Ba Dou seeds, boiled in two sheng water to yield one sheng. Dip cotton in decoction and wipe. *Jingyan Fang* (Zhuan Xie): Treats Qi Li (gas dysentery). One liang Ba Dou, peeled/de-heartened, roasted and finely ground. Mix with cooked pork liver into pills. Take with rice water on empty stomach, adjust dose. Beef liver is better. Vegetarians use steamed bun pills. Another formula: Treats sudden deafness. One Ba Dou seed, wrapped in wax, pierced with needle, inserted into ear. Another formula: Treats embedded arrowheads. Lightly roast Ba Dou, grind with dung beetles, apply to wound. Pain subsides, slight itching endures until unbearable, then shake arrowhead to extract immediately. Xiahou Dan stated: Obtained this formula in Runzhou. After arrow extraction, quickly apply Sheng Ji Gao (flesh-generating ointment). Others say it also treats sores. Dan later used it in Hongzhou for a landlord's wife with back sore; cured. *Sheng Jin*: Treats Hou Bi (throat closure) and Chan Hou Feng (strangling throat wind). Two Ba Dou seeds, paper cone inserted into nose, cut ends, shell pierced with needle, placed in nostril; cures after prolonged use. *Shiquan Fang*: Treats Scabies. Ten Ba Dou seeds, fire-roasted yellow, peeled/grinded to powder. Add small amount of butter and Nifen (calamine/bismuth subcarbonate), grind uniform. Scratch skin, apply with bamboo stick. Avoid eyes and genitals. If splashed on genitals, apply Huang Dan (lead tetroxide). *Chuyu Fang*: Secret efficacy for drug toxicity. Ba Dou (peeled, non-oily) and Ma Ya Xiao (Natrii Sulfas) in equal parts, ground to paste. Dissolve in cold water (size of bullet), ingest to cure. *Prime Minister Jia*: Advanced *Niu Jing* (Cow Classic). For sudden cattle epidemic with head-shaking/flank-beating: Two peeled Ba Dou seeds, powdered, mixed with two liang raw oil, diluted grain water灌 (irrigated/given orally) to cure.