Ganoderma? Reishi? Lingzhi?

Reishi (Ganoderma Lucidum), commonly known as Ling Zhi in Chinese, is a herbal mushroom known to have miraculous health benefits. It is a basidiomycete, lamellaless fungus belonging to the family of polyporaceae.

In nature, it grows in densely wooded mountain of high humidity and dim lighting. It is rarely found since it flourishes mainly on the dried trunks of dead plum, guercus serrata or pasonia trees. Out of 10,000 such aged trees, perhaps 2 or 3 will have reishi growth, therefore it is very scarce indeed. The spores of reishi have such tough outer husks t hat germination is next to impossible and this accounts for its rarity.

For over 2,000 years Reishi has been used in Japan and China for over 2,000 years and thus making it the oldest mushroom known to have been used as medicine. Since ancient times, the Reishi mushroom was reserved for emperors and royalties. It has been revered as nature’s rarest and most beneficial herb. In the Superior category of Shen Nung Ben Cao Jing, the oldest and most famous medical text on Oriental herbal medicine, red Reishi is ranked as the number one herb, ahead of ginseng, because of its following qualities:

1. It is a non-toxic and can be taken daily without producing ANY side effects.
   
2. When it is taken regularly, it is able to restore the body to its natural and optimum state, enabling all organs to function normally.
3. Immune modulator - regulates and fine tunes the immune system
   

One of the interesting ancient Chinese cultures was that in old days when one discovered reishi, it had to be kept a secret even from one's closest relative and there was big celebration upon fruitful return. The herballous history of reishi had long been documented in the oldest Chinese pharmacopoeia written in about the first or second century B.C.. In it reishi had been recorded as having the most extensive and effective healing powers. It is because of this recognition that there is diligent research for methods of reishi cultivation feasible for commercial producitons.

At 1972, the cultivation of reishi became successful and as a result, what was once only attainable by the privileged is now readily made available to everyone. A number of countries are now conducing sophisticated research in reishi, hoping to further the practice and science of medicine.