The building was dimly lit with weak lanterns, and the natural light was filtered by elaborately carved wooden screens, doors and shutters. The railings and stairways were also made of this satiny black wood, which was laden with traditional Vietnamese characters and pictures.
This sign above means long life.
And this symbol stands for happiness, according to my tour guide.The place basically felt like a shrine to these two old farts below: the founders of Vietnamese medicine.
I believe on the left is Tuệ Tĩnh, born in 1330, and the other guy is Hai Thuong Lang Ong Le Huu Trac, who lived in the 1700s and wrote a 66-volume encyclopedia of traditional Vietnamese medicine. Vietnamese medicine is a distinct practice from Chinese medicine, although it's heavily influenced by it.
Traditional Vietnamese medicine uses a lot of aromatic herbs, mushrooms (I'll get to this below), acupuncture, manipulation of Qi energy, and a sprinkling of superstition, like putting turtle stones underneath a stairway's first step, which is supposed to carry you through a long, leisurely-paced life.
Animals of all sizes and temperaments can get bottled up in alcohol and stored in these jars above, my tour guide explained. The museum had a long row of statues depicting the many animals used for medicine, like leopards, deers, snakes, buffalo, elephants -- a number of which I believe are long gone now.
This was a family tree of sorts of the top 500 best Vietnamese doctors of all time. For some reason, there was a blind man being helped by a little boy at the center of the carving. I could not understand the tour guide's explanation.
Okay, coming up is a hugely important mushroom in Vietnamese medicine: Lingzhi (hence the size of the picture).
Here it is in tea form.
It's the Mushroom of Immortality, the herb of spiritual potency, and can be used to treat cancer and other diseases. I had a small cup at the museum and it tasted delicious. I will bring some back for the family so we can all be tumor free for a while. And anyone else who wants some, let me know!
Hi Becks, we have a ton of these mushrooms in Maine. They are called Reishi and are equally well-known for their medicinal qualitles! We should llok for some and make tea out of them come spring! Mum
ReplyDeleteHi Mum -- Heavens, why are we not eating them and drinking Reishi tea all the time? I guess I won't load up on the Lingzhi tea here! Very exciting we can find them in Maine.
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