气味甘寒平，有小毒。主治下热气，益阴精，令人面悦好，明目。久服轻身耐老。
（《本经》翘根生嵩高平泽，二月八月采，陶隐居曰∶方药不用，人无识者。王好古曰∶
此
即连翘根也。张仲景治伤寒瘀热在里，身色发黄，用麻黄连轺赤小豆汤。注云∶连轺即连翘
根。今从之。）
气味辛，微温，有小毒。主治胸胁痛如刀刺，腹满，肠鸣幽幽，惊恐悸气。
（桔梗近道处处有之，二三月生苗，叶如杏叶而有毛，茎如笔管，紫赤色，高尺余，夏
开小
花紫碧色，秋后结实。其根外白中黄有心，味辛而苦；若无心味甜者，荠 也。）
桔梗根色黄白，叶毛，味辛，禀太阴金土之气化。味苦性温，花茎紫赤，又禀少阴火热
之气
化。主治胸胁痛如刀刺者，桔梗辛散温行，能治上焦之胸痛，而旁行于胁，复能治少阳之胁
痛而上达于胸也。腹满，肠鸣幽幽者，腹中寒则满，肠中寒则鸣。腹者土也，肠者金也。桔
梗禀火土金相生之气化，能以火而温腹满之土寒，更能以火而温肠鸣之金寒也。惊恐悸气，
少阴病也。心虚则惊，肾虚则恐，心肾皆虚则悸。桔梗得少阴之火化，故治惊恐悸气。
愚按∶梗桔治少阳之胁痛，上焦之胸痹，中焦之肠鸣，下焦之腹满。又，惊则气上，恐
则气
下，悸则动中，是桔梗为气分之药，上中下皆可治也。张元素不参经义，谓桔梗乃舟楫之药
，载诸药而不沉。今人熟念在口，终身不忘。夫以元素杜撰之言为是，则《本经》几可废矣
。医门豪杰之士，阐明神农之《本经》，轩岐之《灵》《素》，仲祖之《论》《略》，则千
百方书，皆为糟粕。设未能也，必为方书所囿，而蒙蔽一生矣，可畏哉。
[Jiegeng]
Taste: Sweet, Cold, Neutral; slightly toxic.
Indications: Treats heat qi in the lower jiao (lower burner), benefits yin essence, makes the face lustrous and beautiful, brightens the eyes. Long-term use leads to a light body and resistance to aging.
(Note from *Shennong Bencao Jing*: Qiaogen grows in the plains and marshes of Mount Song. Harvested in February or August. Tao Hongjing said: It is not used in prescriptions, and people do not recognize it. Wang Haogu said: This is the root of Lianqiao (Forsythiae Fructus). Zhang Zhongjing treated shanghan (cold damage) with stagnant heat in the interior, causing yellowing of the skin, using Mahuang Lianyao Chixiaodou Tang. The annotation states: Lianyao is the root of Lianqiao. We follow this view.)
Taste: Pungent, Slightly Warm; slightly toxic.
Indications: Treats stabbing pain in the chest and hypochondrium, abdominal fullness, low-pitched borborygmi (intestinal rumbling), fright, palpitations, and chaotic qi.
(Jiegeng is found everywhere nearby. Seedlings emerge in February and March. Leaves resemble apricot leaves but are hairy. Stems resemble pen tubes, purple-red in color, over one chi tall. Small flowers bloom in summer, purple-blue in color. Fruits form after autumn. The root is white on the outside and yellow inside with a pith, tasting pungent and bitter; if without pith and sweet-tasting, it is Jie (Shepherd's Purse root).)
Jiegeng roots are yellowish-white, leaves are hairy, taste is pungent, inheriting the qi transformation of Taiyin Lung and Spleen (Metal and Earth). Taste is bitter, nature is warm, flower stems are purple-red, inheriting the qi transformation of Shaoyin Heart and Kidney (Fire).
It treats stabbing pain in the chest and hypochondrium because Jiegeng’s pungency disperses and warmth moves, treating upper jiao chest bi (obstruction) and extending laterally to the hypochondrium, while also treating Shaoyang hypochondriac pain reaching upward to the chest.
Abdominal fullness and low-pitched borborygmi occur because cold in the abdomen causes fullness, and cold in the intestines causes rumbling. The abdomen belongs to Earth, and the intestines belong to Metal. Jiegeng inherits the generative qi transformation of Fire generating Earth and Earth generating Metal. It can warm the Earth-cold of abdominal fullness with Fire, and further warm the Metal-cold of borborygmi with Fire.
Fright, palpitations, and chaotic qi belong to Shaoyin disease. Deficiency of the Heart leads to fright, deficiency of the Kidney leads to fear, and deficiency of both Heart and Kidney leads to palpitations. Jiegeng obtains the Fire transformation of Shaoyin, thus treating fright, palpitations, and chaotic qi.
My Commentary: Jiegeng treats Shaoyang hypochondriac pain, upper jiao chest bi, middle jiao borborygmi, and lower jiao abdominal fullness. Furthermore, fright causes qi to ascend, fear causes qi to descend, and palpitations cause disturbance in the center. Thus, Jiegeng is a herb for regulating the qi aspect, effective in the upper, middle, and lower jiao.
Zhang Yuansu, without consulting classical principles, claimed that Jiegeng is a "boat and oar" herb, carrying other herbs upward and preventing them from sinking. People today memorize this and never forget. If Zhang Yuansu’s fabricated words are considered correct, then the *Shennong Bencao Jing* could almost be discarded. Heroes in the medical field who elucidate Shennong’s *Bencao Jing*, Huangdi and Qibo’s *Lingshu* and *Suwen*, and Zhang Zhongjing’s *Shanghan Lun* and *Jingui Yaolue*, will find that thousands of prescription books become dregs. If one fails to do so, one will surely be confined by these prescription books and blinded for life. Is this not terrifying?