Shen nung biography of abraham

He also pioneered markets for farmers to engage in trade.

Shen nung biography of abraham

Shen Nong ruled without formal laws, fostering complete harmony in his kingdom where war was unheard of. Descriptions by "the Tillers," a group of Chinese scholars from the third and second centuries B. Despite the usual disdain for manual labor by emperors, Shen Nong and his wife were depicted engaging in fieldwork in the narratives. In some interpretations of this myth, after teaching the villagers basic agricultural skills, Shennong noticed that because the villagers were converting massive amounts of land to farmland so quickly that the soil was beginning to lose its strength.

Because of his experiments on hundreds of plants, Shennong realized that fire helped to purify the soil. Soon thereafter, Shennong taught his students how to clear their fields using fire, earning Shennong the name Yan Di, the Emperor of Fire. As the father of traditional Chinese medicine, Shennong is also responsible for discovering tea in BC. During his experiments with plants and herbs, burnt tea leaves from the tips of twigs were carried into the air and landed in a pot of hot water.

Entranced by the unique aroma, Shennong tasted the brew and wondered at its powers. Soon Shennong began to test various teas as antidotes to poison and recorded seventy poisons that tea could counteract. He also is credited with the creation of acupuncture, and of burning herbs such as mugwort upon the body to draw out bile and secretions.

Shennong eventually died due to his research into plants, antidotes, and poisons. In one of his tests, he ate a poisonous yellow flower from a local weed. Before he had an opportunity to drink his special antidote tea, his intestines ruptured, killing him instantly. Shennong is the patron god of farmers and traditional Chinese medicine.

While his temples are few in major metropolitan areas, it is common to find his artwork, statues and shrines throughout rural China. Pigs and sheep are offered in sacrifice to honor Shennong, and also fireworks and incense are used in his temples, especially on lunar April 26, his birthday. In Hubei province, a nature preserve bears his name in honor — Shennongia.

Known as an area for outstanding beauty and filled with an abundance and rare plants, it is not hard to imagine Shennong taking a quiet walk among its many trails and sampling its many plants. As the lifegiving creator of agriculture, Shennong is recognized as helping China transform from a loose society of hunter-gatherers to a powerful agrarian empire.

He usually dresses in a simple robe made from leaves and foliage, sporting long hair and an overgrown beard, and is often depicted in his signature pose—sitting while munching on a branch. Shennong is said to be the progeny of a beautiful princess and a dragon, though the names of his parents are not clear. Shennong is also believed to be the father or ancestor of Huangdi.

Shennong also helped humans transition from a miserable diet of clams, meat, and fruit to a diet based on grains and vegetables. Through his self-administered herbal tests, he discovered tea—one of the most important plants in Chinese culture. It was clear that there was something special about Shennong since the day he was born. The most obvious sign?

He was born with two horns upon his head and a transparent stomach. Shennong gained the ability to talk within three days of his birth and could plow entire fields by himself by the age of three. As Shennong grew older, he realized that most of the people in his village were sickly, weak, or starving and soon came to the conclusion that it was because they subsisted on a poor, scavenged diet of clams, fruit, and the occasional bit of meat.

Chinese theology Chinese gods and immortals Chinese mythology Chinese astrology Chinese zodiac Chinese creation myth Chinese spiritual world concepts Model humanity: Xian Zhenren Wen and wu. Institutions and temples. Internal traditions. Major cultural forms Chinese ancestral religion Chinese communal deity religion Chinese food therapy Chinese geomancy Chinese mother goddess worship Northeast China folk religion Traditional Chinese medicine Qigong Main philosophical traditions: Confucianism state rites Taoism Other schools Moism Ritual traditions: Folk ritual masters' orders Jitong mediumship Nuo folk religion Chinese shamanism Devotional traditions: Mazuism Ong Yah worship Zhenkong, "Void of Truth".

Related religions. Popular culture [ edit ]. Places [ edit ]. Gallery [ edit ]. Shennong holding tea leaves, by Hasegawa Nobukata , early 17th century, Japan. See also [ edit ]. References [ edit ]. Citations [ edit ]. Readings in Classical Chinese Philosophy 2nd ed. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company. ISBN OCLC University of Oregon.

Retrieved Translated by Milan, A. Broadway, New York: Canongate Books. In Loewe, Michael; Shaughnessy, Edward eds. The Cambridge History of Ancient China. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. S2CID New York: Harry N. University of Iowa.