Shennong

Shennong is a legendary Chinese ruler and culture hero credited with teaching agriculture, inventing tools, and discovering medicinal plants. He is also known as the Divine Farmer.

Huainanzi: A second-century BCE Chinese philosophical and political anthology compiled under the patronage of Liu An. Its account of ancient culture heroes helped shape traditions about Shennong.
Yan Emperor: A legendary Chinese ruler identified in some traditions with Shennong. This title links Shennong to fire, agriculture, and ancient rulership.
Shennong tasting herbs: A legend in which Shennong tests plants to identify their medicinal effects and dangers. This episode explains his association with medicinal plant knowledge.
Shennong worship: Ritual veneration of Shennong as a deity associated with agriculture and medicine. Worship turns his legendary expertise into an ongoing religious presence.
Classic of Mountains and Seas: A composite Chinese text describing mythic geography, peoples, creatures, and plants. Its traditions connect Shennong with the exploration of medicinal plants.
Divine Farmer: An English title for Shennong emphasizing his traditional role in teaching agriculture. The title expresses the agricultural expertise central to his legend.
Shennong's whip: A legendary tool said to reveal the properties of plants when Shennong used it to strike them. The whip gives a vivid form to the story of testing herbs.
Shennong Festival: A traditional observance honoring Shennong in communities that revere him as an agricultural deity. The festival expresses the continuing ceremonial importance of the Divine Farmer.
Shennong Ben Cao Jing: An early Chinese materia medica traditionally attributed to Shennong, preserved through later compilations. Its attribution turned the Divine Farmer into an authority on medicinal substances.
Agriculture in China: The cultivation of crops and raising of livestock across China's history. Shennong's legend explains agriculture as a gift of civilizing knowledge.

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