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Shennong Bencao Jing, also known as Shennong Bencao, abbreviated as Bencao Jing or Benjing, is a material medica work. "Shennong" is its attributed author, but the actual compiler is unknown. The book summarizes many medicinal experiences from the Warring States period and was continuously transcribed and supplemented by medical practitioners during the Qin and Han dynasties. The original text was lost in the early Tang Dynasty, and its contents are scattered in Jingshi Zhenglei Beiji Bencao. There are several extant compiled versions, among which the versions compiled by Sun Xingyan and Sun Fengyi from the Qing Dynasty are more widely circulated. The version compiled by the Japanese scholar Mori Tatsuyuki is more detailed in its??. Modern scholar Ma Jixing has a compiled and restored version of Shennong Bencao Jing.

Shennong Bencao Jing is generally a three-volume work, with an additional "Preface and Examples" section, which serves as a general introduction to pharmacology. The three volumes each discuss medicinal substances classified into upper, middle, and lower grades. Each medicinal substance is described in sequence, including its name, properties, indications, aliases, and growing environment. It is the earliest extant specialized pharmacological work in China, with rich content reflecting the achievements of pharmacology before the Eastern Han Dynasty. Specific manifestations include:

1. The introduction of the three-grade classification of medicinal substances: Benjing records 365 medicinal substances, including 252 plant-based, 67 animal-based, and 46 mineral-based substances. The classification of medicinal substances into upper, middle, and lower grades is proposed. "The upper grade consists of 120 substances as the monarch, primarily for nourishing life," "the middle grade consists of 120 substances as the minister, primarily for nourishing nature," and "the lower grade consists of 125 substances as the assistant, primarily for treating diseases." "The three grades together total 365 substances."
2. Discussion of the basic theories of Chinese materia medica:
   1. Discussion of the principles of "monarch, minister, assistant, and envoy" in the combination of medicinals.
   2. Introduction of the "seven emotions and harmonies" of medicinal substances, including single action, mutual reinforcement, mutual assistance, mutual restraint, antagonism, mutual inhibition, and mutual suppression, which are the seven types of medicinal combinations and their appropriate or inappropriate uses.
   3. Discussion of the properties, flavors, and methods of collection and processing of medicinal substances: pointing out the five flavors (sour, salty, sweet, bitter, pungent), four properties (cold, hot, warm, cool), toxicity, non-toxicity, and the processing and dosage forms of medicinal substances.
   4. Introduction of the principles of medicinal use, requirements for medicinal use based on etiology and disease location, and methods of administration.
3. Detailed records of the efficacy and indications of medicinal substances: The book records over 170 diseases from internal, external, pediatric, throat and ear, dental, and eye specialties. In terms of medicinal value, the vast majority of substances in the book have high clinical efficacy, such as Ginseng and Astragalus for replenishing Qi, Chinese Angelica and Rehmannia for replenishing blood, Ephedra and Cinnamon Twig for relieving the exterior, Mirabilite and Rhubarb Rhizoma for purging, Aconite Lateral Root and Evodia Fruit for dispelling cold, and Coptis Rhizome and Gypsum for clearing heat, which are still in use today.

Shennong Bencao Jing is a classic pharmacological work in China, not only laying the foundation for ancient Chinese pharmacology but also having a profound impact on the development of pharmacology in later generations. Later medical scholars continuously supplemented its content, forming numerous materia medica works. Shennong Bencao Jing remains a valuable early Chinese medicinal literature worthy of in-depth study.