Chinese Legendary Origins of Tea

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Chinese Legendary Origins of Tea

Emperor Sheng Nung (The Divine Healer) Circa 2737 B.C.E.

The origins of tea as handed down to us from Chinese sources date back to approximately the year 2737 B.C.E. However, the earliest historically reliable source is contained in a Chinese dictionary dated to about 350 C.E. The years between those two dates contain a few possibly authentic references to tea and many, many more possible references which cannot be documented. The present Chinese name for tea “Ch’a” only came into general usage somewhere between 600 C.E. and 700 C.E. Before this time, the Chinese used the names of several other plants and shrubs in their writings of tea. Notably, “T’u” was the most used until the time of the T’ang dynasty, 620-907 C.E., when “t’u” reverted to its original meaning of “sow thistle” and Ch’a came into common use. The Chinese characters representing “Ch’a” and “T'u” are very similar in construction, consequently any attempt to trace the early actual verified history of tea bogs down in this one character. We simply do not know to which plant the ancient records refer.

The Chinese, contrary to the West, have solved the thorny issue. They simply attribute the discovery of tea and its use as a beverage to a legendary emperor whose name was Shen Nung, who was called “The Divine Healer.” Numerous other medicinal plants were attributed to this legendary emperor also and so the logic is flawless.

In Emperor Shen Nung's Medical Book or “Pen ts’ao”, he references the following: “Bitter t’u is called ch’a, hsuan, and yu. It grows in winter in the valleys by the streams, and on the hills of Ichow (in the province of Szechwan), and does not perish in severe winter. It is gathered on the third day of the third month (in April) and then dried.” Another reference suggests that the tea leaf is “good for tumors or abscesses that come about the head, or for ailments of the bladder. It dissipates heat caused by the phlegm’s, or inflammations of the chest. It quenches thirst. It lessens the desire for sleep. It gladdens and cheers the heart.” The “Pen ts’ao” or “Medical Book” of this emperor, “The Divine Healer” Shen Nung, has been offered throughout history as proof of the great antiquity of tea. And to most people this may seem proof positive and nothing more is needed. But, alas, this enchanting myth (and that is all that it is) must be dispelled. Emperor Shen Nung’s Medical Book or the “Pen ts’ao” was not actually written in its earliest form until the beginning of the Han dynasty, 25-221 C.E., and the reference to tea was not added until after the seventh century when the word “ch’a” came into use. This was three thousand four hundred years after the time of this fabled emperor who is credited with authoring the book.

See also: Confucian Legend, Gan Lu Legend, Earliest Credible Mention of Tea

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