Stories: The Death of Shen-Nong

Today, I am going tell you a story that is at least five thousand years old! This very story was passed down mouth-to-mouth through countless generations because written text wasn’t even a thing back then. Fact and fiction, myth and legends were all but mingled into human history. 

Artist's depiction of Shen-Nong. Take note of the tool on his hand. Source: Sohu.com

Long ago in ancient China during the Neolithic period, there lived a pioneering ruler called Shen-Nong (神农). His name literally translates as the God of farmers, and you can find many temples worshipping him in China, as well as parts of Asia where Chinese culture prevails. In fact, Shen-Nong is credited in Chinese history as the inventor of  the Lei-si (耒耜) ploughshare, and various primitive agricultural techniques such as  slash-and-burn farming. He was even claimed to have tamed dangerous wild boars to plough and fertilise his fields. Shen-Nong is no doubt one of the founders of China Chinese civilisation, and we can even find his trace in the very words the Chinese speak and write today. Look at his invention, Lei-si in the picture below. Can you see how this very shape is adapted into a word character, which was at first written on oracle bones, and later on paper (also a Chinese invention), and now displayed in front of your screen. If you know Chinese language, the radical (耒) gives meanings to everything related to farming, and it has its root from Shen-Nong.

Evolution of the Chinese character 耒.

One day, Shen-Nong was out farming and he realised that weeds and unknown plants started to grow on his fields. His people relied on hunting and farming to survive, but the year was especially harsh and they failed to find enough food. Some hungry villagers started to consume unknown plants out of hunger and they were poisoned. Disease and famine struck, people were dying one by one. Shen-Nong decided to move his entire clan to a more fertile piece of land. Along their arduous journey, Shen-Nong's clan came across countless plants and animals, many of which they’ve never seen. Shen-Nong was well armed with a powerful whip with godly powers. It was said snakes and tigers that threatened Shen-Nong’s people were struck by his magical whip, and that’s why the animals bear stripes and patterns as scars on their body today. However, Shen-Nong’s people still suffered from disease and most importantly hunger. They couldn’t resist to eat wild berries and fruits, often with fatal consequences. Heartbroken and determined, Shen-Nong vowed to help his people, and he volunteered to test on himself every single herb, berries and fruits they encountered. It was said that he alone tried at least 100 different species of herbs! Legend has it, many times Shen-Nong was poisoned but he always manage to find an antidote alongside a poisonous plant. After all, it was the result of his dangerous trial-and-error that safe-guarded his people. Seeds of various edible plants were also collected and cultivated for future use. Mind you, written text wasn’t invented during Shen-Nong’s times, and there's certain no camera to aid in plant identification. Every bit of life-saving knowledge had to be passed down verbally through generations. Some local accounts even claimed that Shen-Nong had a crystal transparent stomach, and one could see through whatever contents in his gut!

Through years of experiments and traveling (I suppose the people were nomadic), Shen-Nong eventually founded many fertile lands and great knowledge. As the founder of traditional Chinese medicine, Shen-Nong was said to have lived for about 120 years (3216 – 3077 BCE, unconfirmed). However, it is his death that was truly saddening and remarkable. One day, Shen-Nong was out in the field testing herbs as usual, and he found a climber with beautiful yellow flowers, and elongated pods with winged seeds. Excited by his new finding, Shen-Nong consumed the plant and waited for its effects. At last, the God of farmers would finally meet his match. Instantly, Shen-Nong felt great pain in his stomach, as if every inch of his intestines were breaking into pieces. The poison was extremely potent, and this time, no antidote was around, none worked. Shen-Nong suffered so much, he curled onto his belly, froze in pain, and took his last breathe. Legend has it, Shen-Nong’s body did not decompose, but turned into a stone figure, which preserved the contorted posture before his death. People were greatly saddened by Shen-Nong’s passing, and they worshiped him as a God, and this carried on until today. His killer, the so called 断肠草 or ‘Gut--break-grass’, was eventually identified as Gelsemium elegans (Gelsemiaceae). Even today, there is no antidote available for Gelseium poisoning, and we can only treat it symptomatically. In fact, considering the resemblance of Gelsemium’s toxin to strychnine, it is more than likely that Shen-Nong suffered similarly as strychnine poisoning. That means his symptoms before death all but real! 

Gelsemium sempervirens, the close relative of the heart break grass which killed Shen-Nong. The two species look very much alike, and they contain similar toxins.

Given that there were no written texts at Shen-Nong’s period, in addition to a lack of solid archaeological evidence, we cannot be sure of his real identity today. Perhaps some of you may find parts of Shen-Nong’s story ridiculous, or non-believable, but let me tell you this. Of all the stories I shared here, this is perhaps the most realistic, if not the most meaningful. In fact, many of the species Shen-Nong claimed to have encountered, including Gelsemium elegans are known to science. Some of them indeed produce medicinal effects like Shen-Nong claimed, and mind you, he did not have any scientific knowledge or equipment like I do today, and unlike you, he did not have Google! I argue that human civilisation owes its success to people like Shen-Nong. Without brave forefathers with sacrificial spirit, we wouldn’t even have the luxury to be here in relative health, peace and luxury. You don’t need to be a scientist like me to appreciate all the hard work behind our daily life. Thus, even if Shen-Nong is mostly legend, the idea and teaching behind his story are real and most valuable!

The altar of Shen-Nong, HuBei, China. Note that the ancient Chinese tend to picture Shen-Nong with the horn of a bull. This could be due to some kind of hat he was wearing? Source: Baidu.com

Next time, I will tell you my own stories in testing poisonous plants and animals, but unlike Shen-Nong, I have the luxury of a modern science. Even then, I too got poisoned but I survived to tell you a story another day.