Tonic Formulas: Shenxian Yanshou Dan and Shenxun Xunlao Wan

Shenxian Yanshou Dan comes from Lu Fu Jin Fang (Forbidden Formulas of the Lu Princely Household). It consists of Hanliancao (eclipta, juice taken and dried into an extract) 250 g, Buguzhi (psoralea, stir-fried fragrant and powdered) 500 g, Wujiapi (acanthopanax, soaked in wine for one day and night, dried), Chifuling (red poria, soaked in human or cow milk), Shengdihuang (raw rehmannia, soaked in wine for one day and night, juice taken and dried into an extract), Dazao (jujubes, peeled and cooked), and Shengjiang (fresh ginger) each 1 kg (juice taken and dried into an extract); Duzhong (eucommia, peeled, stir-fried to remove the silk, powdered) and Hetaoren (walnut kernels, peeled) each 250 g; Chuanxiong (Sichuan lovage) and Gouqizi (goji berries, stem removed, wine-soaked) each 120 g; Moshizi (gallnuts) and Fengmi (honey, refined and aged) each 60 g; and Xixin (asarum) 30 g. The dosages above are all converted to modern proportions.

Preparation: except for the walnut kernels, jujubes, and honey, powder each medicinal finely; cook the walnut kernels, jujubes, and honey as an excipient, and together make small honey pills the size of a parasol-tree seed (about the size of a soybean). Take 30-50 pills each time, washed down with wine or salt soup. Avoid radish while taking this medicine.

This formula supplements the kidney and boosts essence, activates blood and unblocks the collaterals. Taken over time it blackens the hair and prolongs life, hence the name "Divine Immortal's Life-Extending Pill." It treats the five strains and seven injuries, withered complexion, emaciated body, female infertility, diminished spirit in men, limb paralysis, difficulty walking, and tendon-and-bone pain.

Shenxian Yanshou Dan is made of many tonifying Chinese medicinals. Eclipta, raw rehmannia, and goji enrich kidney yin; psoralea, acanthopanax, eucommia, and walnut kernels supplement the kidney and strengthen the bones; red poria fortifies the spleen and calms the spirit; Sichuan lovage activates blood and unblocks the vessels; asarum warms the channels and disperses cold (the author suggests replacing asarum with rougui/cinnamon, because asarum is toxic and long-term use has carcinogenic side effects); gallnuts astringe the intestines to stop diarrhea and, together with honey, serve as the pill excipient; ginger and jujube harmonize the spleen and stomach. Combined, the medicinals supplement both kidney yin and kidney yang, while fortifying the spleen and nourishing blood; taken long-term they prolong life.

Shenxian Xunlao Wan comes from Shou Qin Yang Lao Xin Shu (A New Book on Caring for and Nourishing the Elderly); in Yi Xue Ru Men (Introduction to Medicine) it is also called Shenxian Bula Wan. It consists of Shengdihuang (raw rehmannia) and Shudihuang (processed rehmannia) each 150 g, Niuxi (achyranthes) 150 g (wine-soaked, powdered), Dadou (large black soybean) 270 g (raw), Ganshanyao (dioscorea/wild yam) 150 g, Chishouwu and Baishouwu (red and white fleeceflower root) each 300 g, Roucongrong (cistanche) 150 g, Gouqizi (goji) 150 g, and Gaoben (ligusticum) 300 g (washed). These dosages have also been converted to modern amounts.

Preparation: steam the fleeceflower root in a steamer and sun-dry it—steam in the morning, sun at sunrise, leave out at night to dew—repeating the steam-sun-dew cycle nine times, then roast dry; powder it together with the other medicinals. With wine paste, make pills the size of a parasol-tree seed. Take 50 pills each time on an empty stomach with warm wine or salt soup. This formula supplements the liver and kidney, moisturizes the skin and blackens the hair; taken long-term it also prolongs life. Avoid radish while taking it.

In Shenxian Xunlao Wan, fleeceflower root, rehmannia, achyranthes, goji, black soybean, and cistanche are all kidney-supplementing, bone-strengthening medicinals; rehmannia, achyranthes, black soybean, fleeceflower, and cistanche also moisten the intestines and free the stool, so this formula suits elderly, frail patients with difficult defecation.

Both formulas above are also suitable for cancer patients who, after radiotherapy, chemotherapy, or other treatment, or in late-stage disease, are weak and depleted of strength. But cancer patients should not take them with wine, because alcohol is a carcinogen and readily worsens the patient's condition.