[Edible Fungi Science] Cultural Legends of Lingzhi

Cultural legend of Lingzhi

Lingzhi spore powder has significant effects in regulating human functions, improving sleep, inhibiting tumors, improving blood lipid metabolism, and preventing and treating cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. However, the culture and legend of Lingzhi as an important medicinal fungus in my country are not well known to the world.

Lingzhi has a history of 7,000 years in China. From emperors and generals to Taoists who practice Taoism, and ordinary people, everyone regards Lingzhi as a symbol of wealth, good fortune, beauty, and good luck, and calls it a lucky grass, a fairy grass, and a resurrection grass.

The well-known plot of "The Legend of the White Snake": On the Mid-Autumn Festival, the couple invited the moon to drink and spend a good night together. The White Snake was overwhelmed by the wine and revealed her true form. Xu Xian was terrified and died suddenly. In order to save her husband, the White Snake and the Green Snake fought against the mountain guardian fairy boy to get the magic grass. Xu Xian survived after taking the thousand-year-old Ganoderma lucidum.

Shennong's Herbal Classic is considered to be the earliest pharmacological work in my country, and also the earliest pharmacological work that discusses Ganoderma lucidum. Ganoderma lucidum is listed as a top-grade medicine. The book describes the characteristics of Ganoderma lucidum, such as its shape, color, luster and lignification, and discusses in detail its classification, origin, smell and medicinal effects: "benefiting the heart and qi", "calming the spirit", "tonifying the liver and replenishing qi", "strengthening the tendons and bones", "beautifying the complexion", and taking it for a long time can make one "immortal". According to the theory of Yin and Yang and the Five Elements in traditional Chinese medicine, Wu Pu also divided Ganoderma lucidum into green ganoderma (dragon ganoderma), red ganoderma (red ganoderma), yellow ganoderma (gold ganoderma), black ganoderma (black ganoderma), white ganoderma (jade ganoderma) according to the five colors, and also included purple ganoderma (wood ganoderma), making a total of six ganoderma, "the red one is like coral, the white one is like blowing green feathers, the yellow one is like purple gold, and all of them are as bright as ice", and all of them can "be light and immortal if eaten for a long time, and prolong life like a god". These discussions on Ganoderma lucidum in Shennong's Herbal Classic have been revered as classics and cited by medical scientists of successive generations, and are still used today. The Yellow Emperor's Classic of Internal Medicine calls Ganoderma lucidum: "The king of herbs" and "the life-nourishing medicine."

Wang Chong's Lun Heng further revealed the growth conditions of Ganoderma lucidum: "Ganoderma lucidum grows in the soil, and the soil is harmonious and produces Ganoderma lucidum." These theories were revered as classics by subsequent medical practitioners and passed down from generation to generation, and are still used today.

In the "Han Wu Nei Chuan", it is said that Lingzhi is "the best medicine", "if you eat it, you will grow old later", and it is also said to be immortal. Especially in the Han and Wei dynasties, taking Lingzhi to prolong life became a social trend at that time. The efficacy of Lingzhi also gave people a sense of mystery, which made the ancients worship and believe in Lingzhi as a matter of course. Lingzhi's morphological characteristics are simple and elegant, and its wild quantity is small, which makes it more precious. The ancients described Lingzhi with superstitious colors. The many ring-shaped wheel patterns on the surface of the mushroom cap are called "ruizheng" or "qingyun", which are regarded as symbols of good luck. Lingzhi has become the embodiment of auspiciousness, reflecting the emperor's good governance and ethical morality. Therefore, from the emperor to the common people, Lingzhi was placed on the throne of auspiciousness.

It is said that during the Yuanfeng period of Emperor Wu of Han, the Ganquan Palace fell into disrepair and the rotten beams gave rise to Ganoderma lucidum. The ministers took the opportunity to sing praises to the emperor's merits, saying that the heaven and earth were moved, causing Ganoderma lucidum to be born in the palace. They wished good luck in everything and a long life to the emperor. The emperor was naturally delighted by the peace and prosperity, and issued an edict requiring the people to pay tribute to the court with Ganoderma lucidum every year.

Wang Anshi of the Song Dynasty described the situation of the court forcing the people to search for Ganoderma lucidum in his "Fu on Zhige". "Ministers searched far and wide, and farmers and old men climbed trees and shot arrows, and went to unpredictable places, streams and valleys, and often went to places where people could not go." This shows that the whole country was searching for Ganoderma lucidum, and there were "tens of thousands of people from all over the country reporting Ganoderma lucidum". It is recorded that Emperor Zhenzong of Song (1008) ordered the whole country to pay tribute to Ganoderma lucidum. Wang Qin paid 8,193 pieces of Ganoderma lucidum, and collected 3,800 pieces of Ganoderma lucidum from Mount Tai and sent them to the capital. Ding Wei presented 9,500 pieces of Ganoderma lucidum to Emperor Zhenzong of Song, and there was an endless stream of people transporting Ganoderma lucidum. It is extremely difficult to collect so many wild Ganoderma lucidum even with the developed transportation today. Huang Tingjian wrote to the court to suggest abolishing the rule of paying tribute to Ganoderma lucidum, which was a waste of money and labor and harmed the people, but it was of no avail, and the tribute continued.

The huge mural "Chao Yuan Tu" in the Yongle Palace of the Yuan Dynasty truly recorded the spectacular scene of ministers and palace maids offering Ganoderma lucidum as tribute.

In the fifth chapter of Flowers in the Mirror by Li Ruzhen of the Qing Dynasty, Shangguan Wan said, "Ganoderma lucidum is produced in famous mountains and is consumed by immortals. Because it blooms three times every year, it is also called Sanxiu."

Lingzhi, as a unique auspicious object in Chinese history, has a profound and wide-ranging influence. In ancient China, Lingzhi was regarded as an auspicious object and a symbol of spiritual belief or ethics. This was prevalent in Chinese feudal society and influenced neighboring Japan, Korea and Southeast Asia, and later spread to Western Europe and America. In the Encyclopedia of Mushrooms published in the UK in 1979, a picture selected from Ge Hong's Baopuzi was published on a huge wall board, reflecting the image of a man with a Lingzhi herb tied around his waist and looking relaxed and contented. Today, Lingzhi can be found in many ancient temples, ancient buildings, pavilions, classical costumes, traditional daily utensils, and a large number of unearthed cultural relics across the country. ( Wang Shurong, Zhang Yong, Li Qing , College of Food Science and Engineering, Shanxi Agricultural University )