Shen Collection, Upper Volume Radical: Grass (cǎo) 药 Kangxi Stroke Count: 21 Page 1065, Entry 47 Pronounced yue (entering tone). Shuowen Jiezi (Explanation of Characters): Refers to herbs that treat illness. Records of the Grand Historian (Shiji), Annals of the Three Sovereigns: Shennong tasted a hundred herbs, and only then did medicine begin. Commentary on the Emergency Relief Scroll (Jiji Pian): Herbs, wood, metals, stones, birds, beasts, insects, and fish that are capable of healing diseases are collectively referred to as medicine. Also, in the Materia Medica (Bencao), it refers to the peony. See the detailed entry under the character for peony. Also refers to medical treatment. Book of Odes (Shijing), Greater Odes: If evil deeds are many and the arrogance is great, it is incurable and difficult to correct. Zhuangzi, Heaven and Earth Chapter: The Yu tribe treated head sores. Also used as a surname. Comprehensive Treatise on Clans (Tongzhi Shizu Lue): The Yao clan. Their ancestral home originates from Henei. During the Later Han dynasty, there was a Nanyang Governor named Yao Song; during the Jin dynasty, there was a military commander named Yao Chong. Pronounced shuo (entering tone). Describes a blazing hot appearance. Qiu Chi, Rhapsody on Thinking of the Virtuous (Sixian Fu): The inner heart is scorched as if wounded. Pronounced lüe (entering tone). Zhang Heng, Rhapsody on the Southern Capital (Nandu Fu): Returning geese call and sand grouse fly; yellow rice and fresh fish are fine ingredients used to make shaoyao. Annotation: Shaoyao refers to the balancing of the five flavors. Here, the character is pronounced lüe. Xixi Congyu: Explanations of shaoyao refer to a condiment made from fish and meat. Han Tuizhi, Linked Verse Poem of Yancheng: Using five cauldrons to prepare the shaoyao. Additionally, difficult to obtain the elixir of eternal youth. The first character is pronounced lüe, the second character is pronounced yue; the two characters are pronounced differently. According to the ancient pronunciations of the Tang Rhymes (Tangyun Guyin), the medicine in medical treatment is pronounced in the departing tone, sounding like xiao. According to the Character Collection Supplement (Zihui Bu), it is the same as the character for a royal park. Li Zhengji states: The balustrade in a garden is called a yaolan; here the term is interchangeable, referring to an enclosure, not a railing for flowers. Book of Han (Hanshu), Annals of Emperor Xuan: Palace ponds and gardens that were not yet visited were lent to the poor. In all instances of the character for entering forbidden areas in the Book of Han, many are written with the grass radical; thus, the meaning of yaolan becomes even clearer.