Hawthorn (shan zha)

Hawthorn (shan zha) , Crataegi, Fructus (1 pound bag). The part of the hawthorn berry that used is the fruit. A legend has it that: "a boy was left alone with his stepmother while his father was away. The stepmother resented the child and wanted to kill him - but without being found out. She devised a novel plan. She would feed him only on half-cooked rice and he would die of indigestion. After a few weeks of putting her plan into action, it seemed to be working and the boy grew thin and complained of stomach pains. Then, while he was out in the mountains, he picked some berries from a tree. Finding them delicious, he returned every day to eat more and grew strong and healthy. The wicked stepmother could not understand what had gone wrong and was so afraid that the child was being protected by a god that she gave up her evil plan altogether." (The Ancient and Healing Art of Chinese Herbalism, 1998)