The Spacetime Distribution of the 360 Medicines of the Shennong Bencao Jing

Finally, we use visualization to approach the Shennong Bencao Jing again: the natures and flavors of more than three hundred medicines are extracted and placed within Five-Phase space and five-qi patterns. Materia medica thereby becomes not merely a collection of passages but an analyzable spacetime distribution map.

Once materia-medica nature/flavor and Zhang Zhicong’s interpretive labels are plotted, distribution trends across nature/flavor, zang-fu, Three Yin and Three Yang, and the six excesses become visible.

Placing each medicine within a 360-position Heaven-round/Earth-square scheme is a long-term goal for turning materia-medica passages back into derivable spacetime coordinates.

The five flavors can be placed in east, south, west, north, and center, while each flavor can be further divided by the five qi—cold, cool, neutral, warm, and hot. Such a plot makes distribution tendencies visible; for example, hot within bitter can provisionally be called “Fire within Fire.” We also stress, however, that the nature/flavor assignments of the Bencao Jing are not the same thing as the Five-Phase nested “drug essence” system of the Fuxingjue and must not be directly conflated.

Going further, if Zhang Zhicong’s interpretations of more than two hundred medicines are labeled by Yin-Yang, zang-fu, upper/middle/lower, Five Phases, five zang/six fu, inner/outer, Three Yin and Three Yang, and six excesses, one can see distribution tendencies: more Yang-oriented medicines, more five-zang than six-fu associations, stronger representation of inner layers such as sinews, bones, and muscles, Taiyang prominent among the Three Yang, Shaoyin prominent among the Three Yin, and wind, cold, and dampness prominent among the six excesses.