菱仁 Water Caltrop

Original, read line by line 東醫寶鑑 · Tangaek — Decoctions vol. 2

1. 性平一云冷, 味甘, 無毒.

   Its nature is neutral, though one account calls it cold; its taste is sweet and it is non-toxic.

2. 主安中. 補五藏.

   It governs the settling of the middle. It supplements the five viscera.

3. 生水中, 葉浮水上, 其花黃白色.

   It grows in water, its leaves float on the surface, and its flowers are yellowish white.

4. 實有二種, 一者四角, 一者兩角.

   The fruit comes in two kinds: one with four horns, one with two.

   HomiclubWater caltrop is an annual aquatic plant that spreads its diamond-shaped leaves over ponds and marshes like a mat. The spikes on its fruit are why English named it after the caltrop, the four-pointed iron spur.

5. 水果中, 此物最冷, 不可多食. 令人腹脹, 飮薑酒, 卽消.

   Among fruits of the water this one is the coldest, so it should not be eaten in quantity. It makes the belly distend, and drinking ginger wine dissolves that at once.

6. 煮熟, 取仁作粉, 極白滑, 宜人. 一名芰實. 《本草》

   Boil it, take the kernel, and grind it into flour: it is exceedingly white and smooth, and suits people well. It is also called giseil (芰實). 《Boncho (本草)》

7. 菱芡皆水物, 菱寒而芡煖者, 菱花開背日, 芡花開向日故也. 《入門》

   Water caltrop and geom (芡, fox nut) are both creatures of the water; the reason caltrop is cold while fox nut is warm is that the caltrop flower opens with its back to the sun and the fox nut flower opens facing it. 《Immun (入門)》

   Homiclub芡 is geomin, the seed of the prickly waterlily. The text pairs the two because both are plants of standing water.