Figure/from the network
The seventh time in A Dream of Red Mansions mentioned that Baochai had the root of the disease, which was heat poison brought out from the womb. A beggar monk told Baochai "beyond the sea". This prescription is "Lengxiang Pill". Cold fragrant pills are made of 12 flowers, which are from Bai Mudan in spring, Bai Lianhua in summer, Bai Furong in autumn and Bai Meihua in winter. The following year, it was ground at the end of the vernal equinox, with 12 yuan each for rainy day, white dew and dew, first frost and light snow, and then blended with honey and white sugar to make Jackie Chan eye pills, which were put into an old porcelain jar and buried under the flower roots. At the onset, take a pill with Cortex Phellodendri 12.
Xue Baochai's illness is actually very mild.
What is Baochai's serious illness with such a complicated pharmaceutical method? In fact, this book also wrote: Zhou Rui's family asked Baochai what it was like when the disease broke out. Baochai said that she didn't think much, just coughed.
When Baoyu went to pear fragrance court for the eighth time, Baochai said that she was all right and sat on the kang sewing as if nothing had happened. There is also a hairpin flapping a butterfly, flapping "sweet sweat, delicate breath". Except for these three times, there is no other place to write about Baochai's illness.
It can be seen that Baochai's illness is not serious at all, nor is it a strange disease that is incurable in the world. What's more, such a prescription is complicated, and "waiting for ten years is not necessarily so clever" can be successful. If Baochai's illness is very serious, I'm afraid people will have died of illness as early as ten years before the medicine arrives.
Compared with Lin Daiyu, she is always too sick to get up in bed. Every spring and autumn, she will fall into an old illness. When she is ill, she often coughs, expectorates and sometimes hemoptysis. Even today, it is considered as a very serious disease. Lin Daiyu's illness is so serious and complicated that the medicine she uses is just ordinary medicine on the market.
"Cold fragrant pill" is not a human prescription, it comes from the celestial world.
There are more than 20 kinds of prescriptions mentioned in A Dream of Red Mansions. Except the most fascinating Leng Xiang pill, the rest can be found in the drug book. Although the names of a few drugs have no direct sources, their prescriptions and uses are also in line with family drugs.
Cold fragrant pills can't be found in human medical books, because cold fragrant pills are immortal prescriptions.
The fifth cycle of A Dream of Red Mansions tells us three things from the dreamland: "Thousand Red Caves", "Wan Yan's Same Cup" and "Let a Hundred Flowers Bloom".
Coincidentally, Zhi Yanzhai had a comment next to the drug introduction of Lengxiang Pill: "I know that I made seawater from Fangchunshan, and I was disturbed by the mashing of Guanghan Jade Rabbit, and I was cooked as a collaborator in the dreamland ethereal temple." Yes, it is clearly pointed out here that Lengxiang Pills, like Hongqiandong, Wanyan Cup and Fangqun Pulp, all come from dreamland.
Thoughts on introducing cold fragrant pills into seawater
It was first mentioned in a dream of red mansions that the crimson pearl fairy grass was cultivated into a female body. "Hungry people eat honey and green fruits, and thirsty people drink soup and sea water." Lin Daiyu is used to drinking seawater, while Xue Baochai is used to taking pills made of seawater. The fate of these two women is inseparable from the word "worry".
Seeing a lot of exaggerated statements, over-interpreting Lengxiang Pills, only using the materials they want to choose, analyzing Xue Baochai as a vicious and scheming woman who is keen on fame and fortune; Lin Daiyu is the liberation of the soul and is synonymous with truth, goodness and beauty.
However, Zhi Yanzhai has a clear evaluation of Lengxiang Pill: "Bitterness brings bitterness, even if you leave, you can feel at ease, so it is called Lengxiang Pill. It is also said that incense can be cold, and everything in the world cannot be cold. " Here, I cleverly commented on Xue Baochai.
In fact, both Chai and Dai have troubles, but one is congenital and the other is acquired. In fact, there is not much difference in their outlook on life and values. In particular, Zhifuzhai put forward the conclusion that "firewood and danger are far and near": "firewood and danger are closer than others in shape and scenery. The distance between the two is really close and you can't just look at it. "
The raw materials of "Lengxiang Pill" and the author's aesthetic ideal for Baochai.
A careful study of the making process of the four fairies in the dreamland described in the book reveals that they are made of exactly the same raw materials, in short, flowers and rootless water.
For Lengxiang Pills, Zhi Yanzhai has made it very clear in one sentence: "Who would have thought of taking flowers as medicine?" Don't ask if there is anything wrong. Just wait for the new and wonderful Wen Yue and our thoughts, and it will come out easily. "It clearly points out that everyone should not take Leng Xiang pills too seriously, just drink and have fun.
In fact, many ancient medical books have recorded the medicinal effects of flowers. Such as "Compendium of Materia Medica": "Color can benefit blood, fragrance can benefit qi, which is indescribable"; In China's historical materials, actually, eating flowers has been recorded for a long time. The ancients believed that flowers were the essence of plants, and many immortals ate them.
Eating flowers can preserve health, beauty beauty and prolong life; Later, "Songs of the South" opened up another use of flowers and plants: eating incense and drinking dew can show the pursuit of morality. "Li Sao" wrote: "Drink Magnolia dew in the morning and eat autumn chrysanthemum in England at night." Qu Yuan compared his abstinence by drinking dew and eating flowers.
Coincidentally, the place where Xue Baochai lived was named "Wu Hengyuan" by the author. The courtyard was full of herbs, and the image of herbs was endowed with noble personality since Chu Ci. Xue Baochai's name in the poetry club is "Heng"; Taking cold fragrant pills made of toilet water can show the author's admiration for Xue Baochai's fragrance and noble personality.
Metaphor of "Leng Xiang Pill"
Zhi Yanzhai pointed out that there are 1000 red tears in "A Thousand Red Cave", Wan Yan's sorrow in "Wan Yan's Cup" and a group of fragrant flowers' marrow; "Hong Qian", "Wan Yan" and "Fang Qun" all refer to the women in A Dream of Red Mansions, which implies the tragic fate of many women in the book. This kind of homophonic pun has existed since ancient times and is widely used in A Dream of Red Mansions.
The quadruplets "Thousand Red Cave", "Wan Yan Tongbei", "Fangqunjiang" and "Lengxiangwan" have a first-class relationship, and the author gives them the same meaning. However, Lengxiang Pill does not use homophonic pun, and its profound meaning lies in its production method.
First of all, the special number "twelve" means "days". Zuo zhuan. "Seven years of mourning for the public": "Zhou Wang also made a gift, but the number of things was only twelve, thinking that the number of days was also large." So "twelve" actually refers to the concepts of "thousand", "ten thousand" and "group".
Zhi Yanzhai specifically pointed out here: "Twelve characters are used to take care of twelve women." A dream of red mansions takes care of twelve women with "twelve"; Twelve women also refer to all "unlucky" women.
So this tells us that the "cold pill" that the monk lai tou gave Baochai was not only aimed at Baochai, but was extended to all the tragic women in the book by the author.
Let's take a look at these four kinds of flowers that make cold fragrant pills. Many people actually go through medical books and study the medicinal value of peony, lotus, hibiscus and plum blossom mechanically, which is actually misled. Cao Xueqin's purpose is not to give you a complete prescription for asthma.
As we all know, the twelve hairpin in A Dream of Red Mansions have their own representative flowers. Among them, peony flowers correspond to Xue Baochai; Lotus corresponds to Xiangling; Furong refers to Lin Daiyu and Qingwen; Plum blossoms refer to Li Wan and Miaoyu.
These four kinds of flowers are all colored with "white" in Lengxiang Pills, regardless of spring, summer, autumn and winter. In this way, all the year round, all the year round, white mourning is plain. Since ancient times, white has a specific cultural meaning and is a symbol of tragedy.
Four kinds of white flowers imply the fate of these women, which is actually the inevitable tragic fate of twelve women and the inevitable ultimate fate of all the "red-scented" women in A Dream of Red Mansions. The end is so clean on a white land.