Knowledge Accumulation and Dissemination of Exotic Medical Herbs in the Tang-Song Period: Focus on Li Xun Haiyaobencao(海藥本草)
Authors:   HUFS Institute of History and Culture, Choi Hae Byoul 
Published: March 2023

This study is about Haiyaobencao(海藥本草) by Li Xun (907-965), a unique book on medicinal herbs in the history of Chinese herbal medicine and explore how the knowledge of Haiyao(海藥) brought in from abroad or from the southern region around the 10th century was accumulated and disseminated in later periods.
When the contents of Haiyaobencao examined closely, its characteristics as a ‘regional’ medicinal herb book stand out. First, in terms of the description method, unlike the characteristics seen in the previous so-called traditional medicinal herb books, the origin of the herb is mentioned first, and an emphasis was placed on clarifying the herb’s origin. Moreover, various references were cited while introducing related information. Most of the references cited were geography(地志) and natural history(博物志) of the south. All of these points show the characteristics of Haiyaobencao as a regional medicinal herb book. Haiyaobencao is significant because the knowledge of herbal medicine from scattered regions is gathered together in it.
The significance of Haiyaobencao is very clear in terms of accumulation and expansion of Chinese herbal knowledge. First, about 10 kinds of herbs listed in Haiyaobencao are those that are not observed in previous medicinal herb books. In addition, 6 kinds of herbs were already mentioned in Bencaoshiyi(本草拾遺) in the 8th century, but later the author of Zhengleibencao(證類本草) specified Haiyaobencao as the original source. Additionally, when a total of 19 types of herbs including these are included in Bencaogangmu(本草綱目), Haiyaobencao is specified as the original source. Clearly, Haiyaobencao played an important role in introducing the new herbs of the region and disseminating it after being included in the authoritative medical herb book on a national scale.
Haiyaobencao also supplemented related knowledge by citing various references in the area of production and efficacy of Haiyao which was already widely known. This supplementary knowledge also includes various historical facts and anecdotes related to herbs. Almost all of the supplemented knowledge is converged into Zhengleibencao and Bencaogangmu. This is the part where we can confirm the significance of Haiyaobencao in the accumulation and dissemination of knowledge on exotic medical herbs abroad or in the south.
In conclusion, Haiyaobencao, which collected overseas and southern herbal knowledge during the pre-Five Dynasties period, has characteristics which are different from existing traditional medicinal herb books, as it addresses 'regional' knowledge. It holds various local literature records that have been handed down sporadically and systematized as herbal knowledge. Moreover, the results were later included in Zhengleibencao, a nationwide medicinal herb book during the Song Period. In addition, it is included in Bencaogangmu, which can be called a compilation of herbal medicine in China. Through this, the influence of the regional medicinal herb book of the southern author during the Five Dynasties period on the formation of the ‘imperial’ herbology thereafter can be explored.