In desperation he cut off his eyelids and flung them to the ground - where, of course they took root and a tea bush grew in that spot. Once upon a time, King Shen Nong, known as the father of agriculture and medicine, decreed that for health reasons, his subjects must boil water before drinking it. One day as Shen Nong sat in the shade of a tea tree, boiling water, a light breeze blew some of the tea leaves into the kettle of boiling water. When he drank the infusion he marveled at its delicious taste, and at once felt invigorated. Tea had been invented.
Tea gives vigor to the body, contentment to the mind, and determination of purpose'.
Although the famous ninth century Tea Master Lu Yu affirms that tea was discovered by Shen Nong, a king or emperor named Shen Nong probably never lived. In China's remote past, Shennong was the name of a primitive farming tribe. One clever unnamed Shennong chieftain is said to have invented plowing tools and discovered medicinal herbs, including tea. These achievements accorded him the status of a divinity, the name 'king or emperor' Shen Nong, and the title, 'Father of Tea'. Based on the medical book 'Pen Tsao', attributed to Shen Nung, there are references which credit tea with being 'good for tumors or abscesses that come about the head, or for ailments of the bladder.