Original Link Guan Ju | Fu Kui
Guan guan ju (jū) jiu (jiū) on the islet in the river
Islet: a sandbank in the river.
Ju jiu: a kind of water bird.
Guan guan: describes the harmonious call of water birds.
Yao (yǎo) tiao (tiǎo) elegant lady, a gentleman’s fine match (hǎo) qiu (qiú)
Fine match: a sought-after mate.
Shu: means virtuous.
Yao tiao: describes a serene and beautiful appearance.
Cen (cēn) cha (cī) xing (xìng) vegetables, flowing left and right
Flow: means “to scoop.”
Xing vegetable: a kind of edible aquatic plant.
Cen chi: uneven in length.
Elegant lady, awake (wù) or asleep (mèi) seeking her
Wù: awake. Mèi: asleep.
Seeking but not obtaining, awake and asleep thinking intensely
“Thinking” implies a persistent contemplation in one’s mind, while “fu” (服) is a deeper layer of “thinking” affecting not only the mind but also the body. “Anything that affects both body and mind is called ‘fu’.” When thinking is deep, the whole body endures this feeling.
Si fu (思服): longing.
Leisurely and deeply, tossing and turning
Tossing and turning: describes insomnia.
Yōu zāi (悠哉): profound and enduring longing.
Cen chi xing vegetable, picking left and right
Elegant lady, qin and se harmonize with her
You (友): intimate, close.
Qin and se: musical instruments, used as verbs.
Cen chi xing vegetable, gathering (mào) left and right
Mào: same as “mo” (摸), meaning to feel for xing vegetables underwater.
Elegant lady, bell and drum enjoy with her
Le (乐): delight.
Xing vegetable: also known as Xingcai, a plant of the Gentian family, genus Nymphoides peltatum (Gmel.) O. Kuntze, a whole herb perennial aquatic herbaceous plant. The whole plant can be used medicinally, mainly treating ulcers, swellings, and heat stranguria. Additionally, Xing vegetable effectively inhibits algae growth.
Newly Revised Materia Medica says: “Fu Kui, sweet in taste, cold, non-toxic. It treats thirst, clears heat stranguria, and promotes urination. Grows in water, that is Xing vegetable. Also called Jie Yu, harvested in May.”
Classified Materia Medica says: “Fu Kui is Xing vegetable. Traditionally not recorded by region, said to grow in water; now found in ponds and marshes everywhere. Leaves similar to 芼 (another aquatic plant), stems astringent, roots very long, flowers yellow, flourishing abundantly in water. According to Erya, Xing is also called Jie Yu, and its leaf is called Fu. Guo Pu explained it grows in clusters in water, leaves round at the stem tips, lengths varying with water depth, eaten by people in Jiangdong. The ‘Uneven Xing vegetable’ in Classic of Poetry·Zhou Nan refers to this. Lu Ji summarizes: white stems, reddish-purple round leaves about one inch in diameter, floating on water, roots underwater, as big as hairpins, green on top and white below. Boiled white stems soaked in bitter wine become crispy and delicious, suitable for drinking with alcohol. Nowadays, people do not eat it, and it is rarely used in medicine.”
Pu Ji Fang: Fu Kui juice recipe
Use a bunch of Fu Kui, wash and boil in water. Separately cook two liters of millet until done, strain, take the juice, add to millet to make porridge, eat on an empty stomach.
Effect: Treats emaciation, coughing up blood, and chest distress.