典藏书目

Bitter, sweet, neutral, cold, and greatly warm; toxic. It primarily treats chills and fever, rat abscesses (Shu Li), malignant sores, carbuncles and hemorrhoids, and necrotic tissue. It treats scabies and stone-like lesions, KT ulcers, eye pain, nasal polyps, severed tendons, broken bones, severe wind in all joints, accumulations, fixed masses, sudden evil qi, abdominal pain, ghostly affections (Gui Zhu), kills spermatozoa, repels evil ghosts, dispels pathogenic factors, hundred insects, toxic swellings, withstands five weapons, kills the venom of various snakes and vipers, resolves Veratrum nigrum toxicity, and beautifies the face. Refined and ingested, it lightens the body and achieves immortality. Administered as a pill, it flies into the human brain, surpasses ghosts and spirits, prolongs life and increases longevity, preserves the center from hunger. With copper, it can be transformed into gold. Another name is Huangshi Shi (Yellow Eating Stone). It grows in the valleys of Wudu and on the sunny slopes of Dunhuang Mountain; it can be harvested at any time. The methods for refining and consuming Realgar are all found in the "Immortal Classics"; transforming copper into gold also originates from the "Art of Yellow and White". Since the end of the Jin Dynasty, disturbances among the Di and Qiang peoples have occurred. Three or five taels of this substance command a price equal to gold. Pills are made using only the best quality Shihuang from Shimen and Shixing. Initially, at the beginning of the Qi dynasty, a small amount was obtained in Ping Market, Liangzhou. When brought to the capital, I first saw it at the residence of Chen, the Dianqian (Official Seal Keeper) of the envoy. Upon inspection, over ten pieces were recovered. People like Yi Fang did not know what this substance was; seeing it mixed with Pararealgar (Cishuang), some claimed it was Cinnabar. Wuhe Yu and others continued to seek it out. Thus, it gradually became available. The good quality pieces are the color of a rooster's comb, odorless, and solid. If black-spotted or soft and spongy, it is of poor quality. Wudu and the Di-Qiang region constitute Qiuchi. Dangchang also produces it, which is identical to Qiuchi but slightly inferior. Dunhuang is thousands of li west of Liangzhou; its produce has never been obtained, and Jiangdong does not know it, so what should be said? This medicine is most important and enters everywhere. [Respectful Note:] The Shihuang produced in Shimen is also Realgar, commonly known as Huangshi Shi. However, that from Shimen is the poorest quality. Those from Dangchang and Wudu are superior; they form blocks several inches square, clear and bright like a rooster's comb. Some use them as pillows; ingesting them repels evil. The green-black and hard varieties are not used medicinally. If burned, it volatilizes and becomes fine powder; treating sores and scabies with it is acceptable without objection. It is also said that the inferior variety is called Xunhuang (Fuming Yellow), used for fumigation to treat sores and scabies, hence the name; there is no other distinct Xunhuang. During the Zhenguan era, new deposits appeared in Dangzhou, yielding blocks several feet in size, but they were heavy and brittle, making it impossible to transport them intact.