恤患救灾。圣贤仙佛之同念。继志述事。仁人孝子之苦心。炎帝尝草木于太古之年。为
民
除疾。扁鹊饮上池于长桑之手。用此尊生。洞察乎温寒平热之原。精辨其君臣佐使之义。盖
用
之得当。则可转危而为安。处置乖方。则反易治而为乱。若非深知物性则必骤发误人。所以
素问灵枢犹待潜心之后。本草纲目实居格物之先。惟吾老友蒋介繁先生。积学有年。号称博
物。游艺之暇。爰及方书。志在活人。不惜研精殚智。心期济世。屡经博考周咨。聿着成书
。未谋剞劂。
令子雪洲。英才粹质。早岁执经。壮志惠心。频年问字。父书能读。何止万轴牙签。先
志可承
。只此一编药石。公之当世。功在内经脉诀之先。珍作家藏。事属问安尝药之首。仁亦溥矣
。孝孰大焉。
时康熙己未暮春。
白沙友人陈启贞顿首拜书。
一、本草分玉石草木上中下诸品。其药性即注于各味之下。此遵前贤所定寒热温平四种。
以
类求之即得。
二、本草药味颇多。此择必用要药凡三百五十六种。其怪异难购者。不复赘及。
三、各药先定气味主治并及恶畏反忌。以防忽略。
四、诸家论药语简当可采。用药君佐互重。有裨医学。今用之不察者俱附药品主治之下。
五、药稍僻者。其出产形貌制法收法。必注其下。
六、是书先人博涉群典。用意良苦。未及刻之身前。寰内闻而购之不得。浣亟出绣梓。
一以
完先人仁寿之怀。一以慰同人饥渴之望。
七、亲友面同较订。受益良多。敬藉芳名。用垂不朽。
八、是书悉出先人手订。浣不敢增减一字。
蒋浣敬识。
体恤病患、救济灾荒，这是圣贤、仙人和佛陀共同的念头。继承先人的志向并述说其事迹，是仁人孝子的一片苦心。炎帝在远古时代亲自品尝各种草木，是为了替百姓消除疾病；扁鹊从长桑君那里喝到“上池之水”，从而能够尊重生命、洞察寒热平温的病理本源，精妙辨析药物中君臣佐使的配合意义。大概用药得当，就可以转危为安；如果处置失当，就会把容易治疗的病变成难以处理的乱局。如果不是深知药物的性质，就一定会仓促误用而伤害他人。所以，《素问》和《灵枢》还需要潜心研读之后才能掌握，《本草纲目》实际上处于探究事物原理（格物）的前列。
只有我的老朋友蒋介繁先生，积累学问多年，号称博学多识。他在研习六艺之余，关注方书医籍，立志救活世人，不惜钻研精深、耗尽智慧，心中期望济世救人。经过多次广泛考察和咨询，终于著成此书，但还没来得及刻印出版。
他的儿子蒋雪洲，才华出众、品质纯粹，年少时便执经问学，壮志凌云且心怀仁慈，多年来向父亲请教医学知识。他不仅能读懂父亲的书籍，数量何止万卷，更能继承先人的遗志。这一部关于药物的著作，公开于世，功效在于经络脉诀之前；若作为家藏珍宝，则是侍奉父母、询问安康、尝试药物（尝药以知亲疾）的首要之事。仁爱可谓广博，孝顺还有比这更大的吗？
时间是康熙己未年暮春。
白沙友人陈启贞叩首敬书。
一、本草将玉石、草木分为上、中、下各品。其药性直接注在各味药之下，这是遵循前贤确定的寒、热、温、平四种属性，按类别查找即可得到。
二、本草药味很多，这里只选择必用的重要药物共三百五十六种。那些怪异难买的药物，不再赘述。
三、每种药先确定气味、主治功效以及恶、畏、反、忌等配伍禁忌，以防忽略。
四、各家论述药物的语言简明恰当且可采纳的，特别是关于用药时君药、佐药互相轻重关系的讨论，对医学有益。现在将这些不察之处都附在药品主治之下。
五、对于稍偏僻的药物，其产地、形状、外貌、炮制方法和收存方法，必须注在下面。
六、这本书是前人广泛涉猎群书所作，用意良苦。在他生前未能来得及刻印，世间听闻却买不到。浣（作者自称）急忙出资绣版刊刻。一来完成前人仁寿的心愿，二来慰藉同道中人饥渴般的求知愿望。
七、亲友当面共同校对订正，受益良多。恭敬地借重他们的芳名，用以流传不朽。
八、这本书完全出自先人手定，浣不敢增减一字。
蒋浣恭敬记识。
To show compassion for the sick and relieve disasters is a shared aspiration of sages, immortals, and Buddhas. To inherit the will of one's ancestors and elaborate upon their deeds is the painstaking effort of benevolent people and filial sons. In ancient times, Shennong (the Divine Farmer) tasted various herbs to eliminate diseases for the people; Bian Que drank "water from an upper pool" obtained from Changsang Jun, thereby respecting life, gaining insight into the origins of cold, heat, neutrality, and warmth, and meticulously distinguishing the principles of sovereign, minister, assistant, and courier roles in herbal prescriptions. Generally, if drugs are used appropriately, critical conditions can be turned into safety; if handled improperly, easily treatable conditions may become chaotic and difficult. Without a deep understanding of drug properties, hasty errors harming patients are inevitable. Therefore, while *Suwen* (Plain Questions) and *Lingshu* (Spiritual Pivot) require profound study to master, *Bencao Gangmu* (Compendium of Materia Medica) actually precedes the investigation of things (Gewu).
My old friend, Mr. Jiang Jiefan, has accumulated learning for many years and is renowned for his broad knowledge. During his leisure from studying the arts, he turned his attention to medical formularies, aspiring to save lives. He spared no effort in refining his research and exhausting his wisdom, with the hope of benefiting the world. After extensive investigation and consultation, he finally completed this book but did not have it printed.
His son, Xuezhou, possesses outstanding talent and pure character. In his early years, he held classics to ask questions, harboring lofty ambitions and a benevolent heart. For many years, he sought instruction from his father. His father's books were readable by him, numbering more than ten thousand volumes. He could inherit his predecessor's will. This single compilation on medicines, when made public, offers benefits prior to the understanding of meridians and pulse diagnoses; kept as a family treasure, it serves as the primary act of asking after parents' health and tasting medicine (to discern their ailments). Benevolence is thus extensive; what greater filial piety exists?
In the late spring of the Jiwei year of the Kangxi reign.
Chen Qizhen, a friend from Baisha, bows and writes respectfully.
1. Materia medica classifies minerals, stones, plants, and trees into superior, middle, and inferior grades. Their medicinal properties are noted under each substance, following the four categories of cold, hot, warm, and neutral established by former sages, allowing for easy retrieval by category.
2. There are numerous medicinal substances in materia medica. Here, only 356 essential and necessary drugs are selected. Strange or hard-to-obtain items are not repeated.
3. For each drug, its flavor, therapeutic indications, and contraindications (such as aversions, fears, incompatibilities, and prohibitions) are determined first to prevent oversight.
4. Concise and valuable discussions on drugs from various schools, particularly regarding the relative weights of sovereign and assistant herbs, are beneficial to medicine. These insights are attached below the therapeutic indications of the respective drugs.
5. For slightly obscure drugs, their places of origin, morphology, preparation methods, and storage techniques must be annotated below.
6. This book was compiled by my predecessor through extensive reading of various classics, with sincere intentions. Before his death, it remained unprinted, and although known throughout the realm, it could not be purchased. I hurriedly funded its engraving and printing. This aims to fulfill my predecessor's wish for benevolence and longevity, and to satisfy the eager desire for knowledge among colleagues.
7. Relatives and friends proofread and corrected the text together, deriving much benefit. I respectfully list their names to ensure immortality.
8. This book was entirely edited by my predecessor's hand. I dare not add or delete a single word.
Jiang Huan respectfully records.