Shennong is one of the Three Sovereigns of ancient Chinese lore. Also called the Divine Farmer, he's strongly associated with agriculture, herbs, natural medicine and animal husbandry. He introduces farm implements such as the plow.
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Shennong (神農), is a primordial god and teacher who uses his magic to help humans. His name translates to "Divine Farmer" or "Divine Husbandman". Shennong is born Jiang Shinian, a legendary Chinese ruler known as the first Yan Emperor.
He's deified and revered in both Chinese and Vietnamese folk religion. In Vietnamese he's known as Thần Nông. According to legend, Shennong lives from c. 2737 to 2697 BCE, parallel to the origin of Chinese medicine c. 5,000 years ago.
Recorded use of herbal medicine is scarce before The Shennong Herbal, a c. 4th century manual detailing use of medicinal herbs. Shennong is said to have a transparent stomach. He can see the actions of ingested substances as he experiments with healing.
The Huainanzi (before 139 BCE) tells how people are sickly, starved and diseased at first. Shennong researches agriculture and medicine, eating hundreds of plants and up to seventy poisons in one day.
A few medicinal plants in Chinese traditional healing include chamomile, dandelion, lemongrass, mugwort, mandrake, wolfsbane , ginger and lingzhi (reishi) mushroom. Some are toxic and must be used with care.
Shennong is sometimes seen as father of the Yellow Emperor and ancestor of the Chinese people. Also called Huang or Huangdi, the Yellow Emperor (c. 2697–2597 BCE) carries on the secrets of medicine, immortality and making gold, as in alchemy.
Along with the primordial duo of snake deities, creator goddess Nüwa (Nügua) and emperor god Fuxi (Fu Xi). Shennong is one of the Three Sovereigns. A group of ancient deities or deified rulers of prehistoric China, they create, teach and help early humans.
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Shennong teaches the ancient Chinese about agriculture and use of herbal medicine. He's credited with inventions including the hoe, plow and plowshare, and the axe. He introduces the use of cannabis.
He imparts knowledge about digging wells, agricultural irrigation and preserving stored seeds with boiled horse urine. He and Fuxi are both associated with trade, commerce, money and markets.
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Shennong is especially connected to the farmers' markets. He invents the Chinese agricultural calendar, in particular its division into 24 jieqi or solar terms.
He improves human understanding of taking pulse measurements, acupuncture, and moxibustion (medicinal burning of mugwort leaves). He establishes the harvest thanksgiving ceremony or zhaji (蜡祭) sacrificial rite.
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Ancient China's zhaji ceremony is a sacrifice of thanksgiving at the year's end. The Emperor leads 100 officials dressed in black, to bid farewell to the Earth God as the deity retires for winter.
Agriculture activities are suspended. Breaking of ground is forbidden, as the god needs to rest. Farmwork starts again in spring. Due to Yan Emperor myths; solar connection, slash-and-burn agriculture; or moxibustion, Shennong is a god of burning wind and fire.
After the Zhou dynasty (c. 1046 to 256 BC), Shennong is thought by some to exist within it. He takes the deified form of the mythical wise king Hou Ji, founder of the Zhou.
Shennong is among the most important divinities of Chinese and other Asian lore. Despite his strong magic and wealth of wisdom he also plays an understated role, often going out into the world as a peasant.