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Saponaria officinalis (Zaojia), also known as Zaojiao. One type is small like a pig's tooth; another type is long, plump, and rich in fat, which is of good quality; yet another type is long, thin, dry, and rough, which should not be used.

The flavor is pungent and slightly salty. The nature is warm, with slight toxicity. The aroma and flavor are both strong, floating and dispersing, belonging to Yang. It enters the Qi aspect of the Foot Jueyin Liver Meridian, as well as the Qi aspect of the Hand Taiyin Lung Meridian, Hand Yangming Large Intestine Meridian, and Foot Yangming Stomach Meridian. It can search out Liver Wind, drain Liver Qi, unblock joints, open phlegm secretions. It treats mouth locking caused by stroke, epilepsy caused by wind pathogen, and sudden death from ghost oppression or phlegm syncope due to heatstroke, qi stagnation, or evil invasion. (Grind into powder and insufflate into the nose.) It treats acute throat obstruction due to wind, swelling and pain due to blockage, sudden headache due to wind, brain dizziness, and dizziness due to wind-phlegm. Phlegm knot (treats cold pathogen in the lungs, where black phlegm is sticky and difficult to expectorate, causing wheezing and cough). Wheezing and cough (phlegmy cough with reverse flow, inability to lie down, grind into powder, make pills with honey). Chest and diaphragm fullness and stuffiness, severe cases forming masses, also phlegm-reversal vomiting. Eliminates wind-dampness swelling and distension, promotes urination and defecation for strangulation (inability to pass urine or stool), opens the stomach, and promotes Qi flow in the lungs and large intestine. (The smell of Saponaria officinalis induces sneezing instantly, just like a magnet attracting iron; perhaps this is the exit route for lung pathogens.) Treats leprosy, kills parasites, dissipates sores and swelling (decoct with wine to make a paste, apply to all types of swollen toxins to relieve pain). Treats wind-bi, removes dead skin and tinea, smoke fumigation for chronic dysentery and rectal prolapse. *Huoren Shu* uses Zaojia in Yindu Zhengqi San to guide medicine into the Jueyin Meridian.

Saponaria officinalis inherits Wood Qi and combines the properties of Fire and Metal. (Xu Yanchun) Saponaria officinalis belongs to Metal, its flavor is pungent, and its nature is drying. Metal overcomes Wood, dryness overcomes Wind, thus it enters the Jueyin Meridian to treat diseases of Wind-Wood. Its Qi is floating and dispersing; when insufflated or guided, it unblocks all orifices above and below. (Li Shizhen) Saponaria officinalis likes iron; upon encountering iron, new growth occurs, and iron tools corrode upon contact, possessing the ability to absorb iron essence. However, Zao is black, corresponding to Northern Water; Iron is one of the Five Metals, with a pungent and salty taste. Mother and son generate each other, silently resonating in this way. (Lu Bu Yuan) Heilong Gao treats nine types of throat obstruction (including acute throat obstruction, winding wind throat, knotted throat, etc.). Decoct until reduced to 1.5 dou, add half liang of Ginseng Radix et Rhizoma powder and one liang of Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma powder, decoct again until reduced to five sheng, remove dregs, add one sheng of non-fermented wine and two bi of Fu Mei (soot from the bottom of the cooking pot), decoct until thick like maltose, seal in a bottle, bury in the ground overnight. Dissolve one spoonful in warm wine each time, or sweep into the throat, stopping when foul saliva is expelled, then hold Licorice slices in the mouth. This formula follows the transformation of Wood-Metal Qi, thus using Qi-transforming methods for treatment. Moreover, its flavor is salty, being the source of fluids, making it suitable as the primary treatment for wind-stagnation and phlegm-secretion syndromes. Fu Mei is used to invigorate blood. Bai Fan (Alumen) in the following formula is used to separate phlegm-fluids below the diaphragm.

Xixian San treats sudden stroke with confusion resembling drunkenness, loss of bodily control, falling or not falling, drooling from the corner of the mouth. If not treated promptly, it becomes critical. This syndrome involves wind-phlegm surging upward and chest bi obstruction. Urgently use four sturdy, plump, non-bored stalks of Da Zaojia, removing the black skin, and one liang of Alumen, grind into powder. Use half qian each time; for severe cases, use three zhi, mixed with warm water and灌 (administered). Do not induce severe vomiting; only allow a slight expulsion of one to two sheng of thin, cold phlegm-saliva. Wait for the patient to regain consciousness before administering further medication. Do not induce immediate severe vomiting, fearing excessive dosage may harm the body.

For persistent brain dizziness, select non-bored Zaojia, remove skin and seeds, roast with honey, crush, add water. Take the concentrated juice, boil into a paste, insufflate into the nose, bite firmly on something in the mouth, stop when phlegm-saliva flows out.

For phlegm-wheezing and cough, take three long Zaojia, remove skin and seeds. Place ten grains of Crotonis Fructus prepared with sesame oil into one pod, ten grains of Pinelliae Rhizoma prepared with honey into another, and ten grains of Armeniacae Semen prepared with ginger juice into the third. Roast over fire until yellow, grind into powder. Use one zi amount each time, place in the palm of the hand, mix with ginger juice and take before sleep, with miraculous effect.

For phlegm knots in the chest, Diaotan Gao. Boil Pinelliae Rhizoma in vinegar, grind into powder, mix evenly with Zaojia paste, add a little Alumen, add persimmon pulp to make a paste, form pills the size of marbles. Hold in the mouth to dissolve slowly.

Wuxian Gao treats wind-epilepsy and various phlegms, extracting phlegm effectively. Take half jin of Da Zaojia, remove skin and seeds, coat with four liang of honey, roast thoroughly over slow fire, crush, soak in hot water for one shichen. Extract juice, boil over slow fire into paste, add a little Moschus, spread on double-layered cotton paper, dry in the sun, cut into paper flowers. Use three to four pieces each time, wash in a small cup of light grain water, blow the liquid into the nose using a tube, wait until phlegm-saliva flows out completely, eat one sesame cake, recovery occurs when phlegm is exhausted.

For chest and abdominal distension desiring weight loss, take Zhu Ya Zaojiao continuous length of one chi, roast over mild fire, remove skin and seeds, grind and sieve, make pills with honey the size of Sophora Seed. Eat two pieces of mutton first, drink three mouthfuls of meat juice, then swallow ten pills with the meat juice, stop when bowel movement is rapid and smooth. If feeling strong effects, take more. Stop if clear water is passed. For one month after recovery, avoid meat and greasy foods.

For strangulation of urination and defecation, roast Zaojia, remove skin and seeds, grind into powder, make pills with wine and wheat flour paste. Take Zaojia each time. Alternatively, burn Zaojia smoke in a bucket, sit on it to fumigate, which will promote unblocking.

For painful swelling of genital sores, use seven slices of Zhu Ya Zaojiao, roast until yellow, remove skin and fibrous strands, remove fire toxicity, grind into powder. Take five qian with warm wine on an empty stomach.

[Discussion] Saponaria officinalis trees do not bear fruit naturally. Drilling holes and pouring raw iron in, sealing with mud, causes pods to grow, indicating that the source of life and transformation for this tree lies in Metal. Disorders of Wind-Wood arise from the lack of transforming Qi. Wind-Wood is Yang, reaching its peak upwards, unable to transform via Yin. When Yang is excess, Yin follows. Thus, in stroke and throat obstruction syndromes, phlegm-saliva surges upward with the wind. In epilepsy, Liver Wind combines with Heart Fire, and phlegm-saliva accumulates in the Pericardium. This is Yang excess and Yin failing to transform. Similarly, wind-dampness causing chest and abdominal swelling and distension, and strangulation of urination and defecation, represent the exhaustion of Wind-Wood transformation. Only Saponaria officinalis inherits the pungency of Metal and the saltiness of Water (black Zao also corresponds to Water), enabling Wood to receive Metal's transforming Qi to move towards Water, allowing Wood's generating Qi to nurture endlessly. As stated, there is generation through transformation. (This is evident from harvesting in the ninth and tenth months.) Used against Wind-Wood lacking Metal transformation, such as Yang excess with Yin following upward, or Yang excess with Yin failing to transform, it can roughly reverse the transforming Qi and enrich the generating Qi. Compared to other wind-dispelling agents, it is vastly different. Why does it primarily treat phlegm-saliva? The answer is: Liver and Gallbladder are both reservoirs of fluid, and Wind rising from Liver-Gallbladder Qi is originally no different from Original Qi. Pathogenic Wind represents Yang excess and Yin deficiency, completely unlike the harmonious integration of Yin and Yang that forms Original Qi. When Qi is diseased, Fluids also become diseased. Furthermore, fluids transformed from postnatal food and drink lack True Qi to transform into Ying and Wei, gathering instead into phlegm-saliva. The accumulation of phlegm-saliva reverses to affect Qi, blocking ascending and descending transformations. Consequently, there are cases of Lung Qi stagnation with cough and upward rush; Lung and Stomach both injured with Qi rushing upward, wheezing, cough, irritability, palpitations, thick sticky sputum; cough, wheezing, chest and diaphragm stuffiness; chest and abdomen forming masses, fullness, pain seizing the heart from the flanks; phlegm-reversal vomiting, inability to eat; phlegm-syncope headache, wind-phlegm dizziness; wind-epilepsy, fright, vertigo, tidal convulsions, foaming at the mouth, collapsing unconsciousness. All these result from Qi disease affecting Fluids, and subsequently Fluid disease affecting Qi. Qi disease originating in Fluids starts in the Liver; Fluid disease affecting Qi returns to the Lung and Stomach. This pungent and salty flavor serves as the source of transformation for Wind-Wood and the source of Water-Fluids, representing congenital Qi transformation. Additionally, within the pungent and salty flavors lies sweetness; Wind-Wood takes the Middle Earth as its source of transformation, representing postnatal Qi transformation. Therefore, prescribing main formulas according to symptoms and assisting with Saponaria officinalis yields success without exception. Generally speaking, combining Haizang's "searching Liver Wind, draining Liver Qi," Rihua's "opening the stomach," and Linhu's "promoting Lung and Large Intestine Qi," this herb achieves the transformation of Original Qi through Wind. Some ask: This herb certainly treats phlegm-saliva caused by Wind pathogen, but what about conditions caused by Wind without phlegm-saliva involvement, such as hemi-cephalic wind, violent wind convulsions, wandering bi-like pain, and wind-constipation? Can it treat these too? I reply: Spirit in Heaven is Wind, on Earth is Wood, in the Zang organ is Liver. The master of Wind-Wood is Metal, and the source of transformation is Water. Pathogenic Wind arises from deficiency in the source of transformation. The *Neijing* theory of Six Qi states that for both excess and deficiency diseases, one must nourish the source of transformation. Since the source of transformation also involves Water and Earth, how could any Wind disorder remain unsettled? Know that this herb utilizes Wind transformation to convert into Qi transformation, not merely calming Wind statically. Observe that for surging wind-phlegm, its function is to descend; yet for chronic dysentery and rectal prolapse, it can ascend. Is this merely a static wind-calming function? When Qi transformation moves, Blood transformation also circulates freely. Thus, chest/abdominal swelling and wind-constipation of the large intestine can also demonstrate its effect on Blood transformation. Regarding treating toxin sores and leprosy/tinea, it goes without saying.

Saponaria officinalis is suitable for acute diseases with excess Qi; pregnant women should avoid it. If for sudden collapse resembling stroke, frequent use of Xixian San to induce vomiting may further deplete Body Fluids, leaving meridians without nourishment, leading to spasms and hemiplegia. Be cautious. (Xu Yanchun)

[Differentiation and Treatment] Harvest pods in the ninth and tenth months, dry in shade. Long pods disperse wind Qi; pig-tooth shaped ones treat dental accumulation. Both must be plump, oily, and non-bored. Remove skin and seeds, roast with lard or honey, or squeeze juice, or burn to ash, according to method. For treating wind and wind-phlegm, only roast mildly; do not roast long to avoid losing pungency.

Saponaria officinalis Seed
Flavor pungent, nature warm. Its kernel harmonizes blood and moistens intestines, treating wind-heat and deficiency constipation of the large intestine. Its nature becomes slippery when wet; slipperiness eliminates dryness and constipation. Treats scrofula, toxic sores, and tinea. The white flesh inside the seed enters Lung treatments; the yellow heart inside the seed (can drain Kidney Qi); chewing treats phlegm in the diaphragm and acid regurgitation. To dredge wind-heat stagnation in the Five Zang organs, roast seeds, pound off red skin, soak in water until soft, cook, and preserve in sugar for eating. For wind-pain in waist and legs, inability to walk, take 1200 Saponaria officinalis seeds, wash clean, fry with a little lard until fragrant, grind into powder, make pills with honey the size of Sophora seeds. Take thirty pills on an empty stomach with Tribulus Terrestris and Ziziphus Spinosa decoction. For deficiency constipation of the large intestine (wind patients, deficient patients, gout patients experiencing constipation or diarrhea), use the above formula, take up to one hundred pills, stop when bowel movement is achieved. For intestinal wind bleeding, take equal parts Saponaria officinalis Seed and Sophora Flower, stir-fry with sticky rice bran until fragrant, remove bran, grind into powder, take one qian with aged millet drink.

[Processing] Select round, hard, non-bored pods. Boil, peel off hard skin, take the two inner white fleshy parts, remove the yellow part (drains Kidney Qi). Cut with copper knife and dry.

Saponaria officinalis Wood Bark and Root Bark
Flavor pungent, nature warm. Treats wind-heat and phlegm-Qi, kills parasites. Zaojia Huatan Wan uses the white bark of Saponaria officinalis wood to treat labor-wind, stagnation in Heart and Spleen, excessive phlegm-saliva, discomfort in throat, thick sticky sputum, esophageal blockage, vomiting, loss of appetite, or occasional confusion. See detailed prescription in *Zhunsheng* under Phlegm-Fluid section.

Spine
Flavor pungent, nature warm. Sharp and penetrating directly to the disease site. Treats carbuncles, mastitis, leprosy, and malignant sores, kills parasites, expels placenta. For unruptured carbuncles and ulcers, Zao Ci can open orifices; for ruptured ones, it guides medicine to the sore site. It is a key herb for all malignant sores, tinea, and leprosy. For severe leprosy with blindness, falling eyebrows and hair, collapsed nasal bridge, incurable condition: An eccentric doctor's prescription uses three jin of Zao Ci (can expel wind-toxin from Ying-Blood), burn to ash, steam for one shichen, dry in sun, grind into powder. After meals, mix one bi with strong decoction of Rheum Palmatum and drink. Within ten days, eyebrows and hair regrow, skin becomes moist, vision clears. Adding Curcuma Aromatica and Pharbitis Seed creates Danxi Tongtian Zaizao San, claiming black worms appear after ingestion as verification (new worm mouths red, old worm mouths black). Thus, this herb is indeed a key remedy for leprosy. For postpartum milk stasis and toxic nodules, burn Zao Ci and Vitex Trifolia Fruit to charred state, equal parts grind into powder, take two qian with warm wine. For internal sores in intestines/organs untreatable by medicine, take unspecified amount of Zao Ci, decoct in one bowl of good wine until reduced to 70%, take warm, thick blood will exit via urine; if not drinking wine, water decoction is also acceptable. For swollen sores without head, burn Zao Ci to ash, take three qian with wine, chew three to five Malva Seeds, effectiveness indicated by sensation like needle prick in the area. Not suitable for already ulcerated carbuncles and ulcers.