Library

Mugwort Leaf (Ai Ye), bitter in taste, warm in nature, is yang within yin, and non-toxic. The world generally considers Qiai (Qingdao Mugwort) to be the best. However, wild mugwort is superior to Qiai. This is because Qiai is a "nine-ox grass," resembling mugwort but not true mugwort; its fragrance is stronger than that of mugwort, yet its therapeutic efficacy is far inferior to that of wild mugwort. It enters the Spleen, Kidney, and Lung meridians. It dispels cold qi and drives out damp-bi (painful obstruction due to wind-cold-dampness), alleviates pain, and warms the Guanyuan (CV 4) acupoint. It can stop fetal leakage (vaginal bleeding during pregnancy), calm fetal restlessness, regulate menstruation, enable conception in the uterus, and moxibustion on meridian acupoints can cure hundreds of diseases. Alas, it is lamentable that people abandon what is near for what is distant, and cheap for expensive.

Someone asked: Regarding Mugwort Leaf, why choose wild mugwort over Qiai? Predecessors have discussed this, but did not explain why wild mugwort is superior to Qiai. Qiai grows through cultivation, whereas wild mugwort grows naturally in the wild, obtaining the supreme yang qi of heaven and earth. Thus, it can expel evil spirits and ward off pathogenic factors, dispel cold, and scatter dampness. Its efficacy truly surpasses that of Qiai; why abandon this for that? "For a disease of ten years, seek three-year-old mugwort" generally refers to wild mugwort, not Qiai. Wild mugwort is indeed miraculous; when I first began wearing hats, my shoulders suffered from wind-pain, and using wild mugwort cured me.

Sanguisorba Root (Di Yu), bitter and sour in taste, slightly cold in nature, is yang within yin, and non-toxic. It stops leukorrhea with blood (red discharge), metrorrhagia (uterine bleeding), and continuous menstruation in women; eliminates pediatric malnutrition fever (gan heat); stops dysentery due to heat; expels stasis; treats intestinal wind bleeding; and heals metal wounds (trauma caused by sharp instruments). However, it only treats heat patterns, not cold patterns. Individuals with deficiency-cold constitutions should not lightly use Di Yu, a herb that cools blood. For blood-heat conditions, raw Di Yu to cool blood is appropriate. Yet, if blood is hot, it tends to move recklessly; if it moves recklessly, there is a risk of loss. If blood is cold, it congeals; if it congeals, there is a risk of stagnation. Overusing Di Yu to cool blood transforms heat into cold, causing yin-cold to knot in the intestines and stomach, leading to abdominal pain, and conversely causing metrorrhagia and lower tract bleeding that cannot be stopped. One might mistakenly think the dose of Di Yu was too low and add more blood-cooling herbs, resulting in death from heat exhaustion. This is truly lamentable!

Someone asked: Di Yu has miraculous effects on treating blood disorders of the Large Intestine; can it be used for both acute and chronic conditions? The answer is no. If the Large Intestine has fire (heat), it is suitable for both acute and chronic cases; if there is no fire, it is contraindicated for both. This describes the general rule. If the Large Intestine had fire previously but not subsequently, it was suitable before but not now; if it lacked fire for a long time but temporarily has fire, it should have been avoided previously but is not contraindicated temporarily. This describes the variable application. Examining the general rules and variables to determine applicability applies not only to the use of Di Yu alone.

Someone asked: Di Yu cools blood in the Large Intestine; single-use often shows efficacy, but combined with other herbs, it often fails. Why? Using a single herb allows for focused efficacy and rapid effect. Combining it with other herbs may cause constraints. If the other herbs used all enter the Large Intestine meridian, they harmonize between cold and heat and assist qi and blood, achieving rapid results and robust health. However, if the other herbs do not all enter the Large Intestine meridian, their indications differ, and their actions conflict vertically and horizontally, making efficacy impossible. Thus, medication values purity over complexity, whether used singly or in combination.

Some doubt how Di Yu, which cools blood, can stop bleeding. They do not know that Di Yu also tonifies blood. If it merely cooled blood, bleeding could not be stopped abruptly. Because it cools blood while simultaneously tonifying blood, even single-use can succeed.