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A Tradition from Erxian Tang: Two Immortals Decoction?

Epimedium brevicornum herb Horny Goat Weed icariin Epimedium leaf Extract Epimedium brevicornum Maxim.Epimedium sagittatum CAS 489-32-7 photo picture image The Two Immortals Decoction has an intriguing name. Who are these immortals? And, why is the formula named after them?

 Two (er = two) of the formula ingredients in the six herb formula Erxian Tang have xian in their names: curculigo (xianmao) and epimedium (xianlingpi), explaining, most simply, how the formula got its title. There are other formulas named in this way, such as Erdong Tang, comprised of ophiopogon (maimendong) and asparagus (tianmendong). But, in that case, the name is not so interesting: dong (= winter) was used in the name for ophiopogon because the plant doesn't wither in winter; it was used in the name for asparagus because of the similarity of its uses to that of ophiopogon. In the case of curculigo and epimedium, the common term xian (= immortal) applies to an important part of Chinese culture.

 Xianmao was named in the Bencao Gangmu (by Li Shizhen; 1596) as one of the herbs believed to contribute to immortality. This property was described as making the body lighter when taken over a period of time (the mao portion of the name refers to the spear shaped leaves). Xianlingpi alludes to the immortals' intelligent nature (pi refers to the spleen, which is, according to the Chinese, the source of wisdom); this name appears to have been a popular designation for the herb that was originally called yinyanghuo (which describes it as an aphrodisiac).

 The Taoists who undertook the effort to become immortals were thought to become lighter and lighter, until they could float up into the clouds. This, and other changes, was brought about by their meditations in seclusion and their ingestion of elixirs prepared in secret. The Chinese character for xian (immortal) is the combination of man and mountain: it refers to the mountain dwelling Taoists.
 Epimedium Extract.Horny Goat Weed Extract.Icariin.CAS.NO:489-32-7.M.F.C33H40O15.Epimedium brevicornum Maxim Extract.Icariine,Epimedium sagittatum,Epimedium Leaf Extract.Epimedium extract powder,Epimedium Alcohol Water Extract.icariin photo picture image

 Around 100 B.C., a poem about attaining immortality, the ode Yuan Yu (Journey to Remoteness, or Roaming the Universe) was written. It depicts the transition to immortality thus:

 Having heard the precious teaching, I departed,
 And swiftly prepared to start on my journey.
 I met the feathered ones at Cinnabar Hill,
 I tarried in the ancient Land of Deathlessness.
 In the morning, I washed my hair in the Hot Springs of Sunrise,
 In the evening, I dried myself where the suns perch.
 I sipped the subtle potion of the Flying Springs,
 And held in my bosom the radiant metallous jade.
 My pallid countenance flushed with brilliant color,
 Purified, my jing began to grow stronger;
 My corporeal parts dissolved to a soft suppleness,
 And my spirit grew lissome and eager for movement.

 The writer then describes clinging to a cloud and riding aloft on it, to "the very spheres of the storied heavens" where he entered the court of the Supreme Ruler (Heavenly Emperor), and entered the precincts of the Great Beginning. The various stops along the way, at Cinnabar Hill, Land of Deathlessness, Hot Springs of Sunrise, etc., are the meditational goalposts of his efforts at cultivating his qi and jing. The potion of the Flying Springs is his alchemical, possibly herbal, concoction of immortality; the jade was his amulet of spiritual freedom. Though he started out pallid, his complexion became radiant, and his jing (essence) was supplemented. Then his physical weight dropped away, allowing his spirit to roam free. The removal of corporeal weight is one of the signs that immortality is at hand and is mentioned frequently in the Shennong Bencao Jing as a property of herbs. Epimedium, listed in that text, was not included among the herbs that caused the body to become light, but it apparently gained a reputation as valuable for the immortals at some later date. But, even in the ancient text, it was noted the epimedium boosts the qi and strengthens the will, important contributors to the path to immortality.

 Stories of the immortals date back to around 400 B.C. and continued until the 20th century, though their heyday was during the period from the Han Dynasty up to the first part of the Tang Dynasty. The early Chinese Emperors were quite interested in gaining this immortality; lacking the time and discipline to pursue the Taoist mental and physical exercises, they supported the study and development of elixirs that they could take. After the 8th Century A.D., there was more emphasis on down-to-earth practicality and only a few Taoists still spent time seeking immortality.

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last edit date:30th,April.2009.