On April 3, 2024, on the eve of the Qingming Festival, the monks of Shaolin Temple happily went out of the slope and went to the mountain next to the permanent hospital to pick fresh leaves of Eucommia ulmoides to prepare excellent raw materials for making Shaolin Eucommia ulmoides leaf tea.
At the beginning of 2021, Shaolin Temple called on good believers to "plant a piece of green water and green mountains, and harvest immeasurable merits and blessings" to build Shaolin Meritorious Forest. Under the leadership of Abbot Shi Yongxin, the Shaolin monks have long insisted on planting trees and protecting the forest. In the past three years, the barren Shaolin Temple back mountain, rows of eucommia trees are full of greenery, not only for the cultivation of good faith and good fortune, but also for the Shaolin monks to provide an important place for daily work and practice.
Songshan is one of the "Five Mountains", the plant resources in the mountain are extremely rich, and there are more than 1,000 kinds of medicinal plants. Eucommia is one of them. Eucommia ulmoides is warm, sweet, slightly pungent, and belongs to the liver and kidney. In terms of traditional Chinese medicine efficacy, both Eucommia ulmoides leaves and Eucommia ulmoides have the effects of nourishing the liver and kidneys, strengthening muscles and bones, lowering blood pressure, nourishing, and relieving pain. Among the ancient Shaolin prescriptions that have been handed down in Shaolin Pharmacy to this day, there are many records of prescriptions for treating low back pain with Eucommia ulmoides.
According to Abbot Shi Yongxin, the saplings of Eucommia ulmoides planted in the Shaolin Merit Forest are carefully selected and have strong adaptability. Eucommia ulmoides tree is a rare and endangered second-class protected plant unique to the mainland, widely planted eucommia tree, not only can play a role in greening, beautifying the environment, its bark can be used in medicine, young leaves can be made into tea, in helping the temple to achieve self-nourishment at the same time, Shaolin Pharmacy made eucommia leaf tea, can also be associated with the public, benefit more sentient beings. (Contributed by Shaolin Temple)
[Editor in charge: Liang Commission for Discipline Inspection]