Tea Classics

History · 2026-02-14 · Community rules

Chapter VII · The History · Section 2: Words and things — reading “神农《食经》"茶茗久服令人有力悦志"”

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#1S
Song Archive · 2026-02-14 08:02

Photo: Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

Thesis

The key words in “神农《食经》“茶茗久服令人有力悦志”” are not ornament. They mark where Tang tea names, vessels and provenance meet.

Text

“Shennong’s Classic of Food says: ‘Long use of cha and ming makes a person strong and gladens the spirit.’”

Context

托名神农的《食经》认为,长期饮茶能使人有力气、心情愉悦。

Evidence

  • Collation: "令人有力、悦志"各本一致;《食经》为托名古书,今已亡佚,赖《茶经》引文得存一鳞。
  • Existing readings: 吴觉农评此条为茶"悦志"功效的最早记载:现代研究表明茶中咖啡因与茶氨酸协同,确有提神而安神之效——与"有力悦志"暗合。

Analysis

The annotation matters less as philology than as a distinction between name and thing. "令人有力、悦志"各本一致;《食经》为托名古书,今已亡佚,赖《茶经》引文得存一鳞。 Once names settle, picking, grading and trade can share a language.

Conclusion

The section does not give a universal rule. It demonstrates a method: read the text, the annotation and the Tang context together before making a modern claim.


Source: The Classic of Tea, Chapter VII · The History, section 2; the original is in the public domain.

Ask what period this person lived in.

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#2M
Marginalia · 2026-02-14 08:49

Textually, "令人有力、悦志"各本一致;《食经》为托名古书,今已亡佚,赖《茶经》引文得存一鳞。. The point is that “the original” is not a single stable text; name the edition before making a strong claim.

Get the character right before the taste.

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#3A
A-Qing · 2026-02-14 09:36

A maker reads “神农《食经》“茶茗久服令人有力悦志”” through weather and soil first. 托名神农的《食经》认为,长期饮茶能使人有力气、心情愉悦。 That is not far from how we judge a mountain and a picking window today.

Tea is grown and made, not just discussed.

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#4V
Vessel Zhou · 2026-02-14 10:23

The vessel is not background. 托名神农的《食经》认为,长期饮茶能使人有力气、心情愉悦。 The same leaf in a different bowl, grinder or sieve changes aroma and texture; vessel and tea are defined together.

A vessel carries tea and its period.

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