凡使金银铜铁。只可浑安在药中。借气生药力而已。勿入药服。能消人脂。
气味辛平。生者有毒。主治镇精神。坚骨髓。利五脏邪气。疗小儿惊伤。镇心安魂魄。治风
痫失志。癫痫风热。上气咳嗽。伤寒肺损吐血。骨蒸劳极作渴。方书治中风振颤。惊狂谵妄。
消瘅。咽喉生疮。西方之行。性能制木。故疗肝胆风淫之病。（濒湖） 制木而为木之主。
即能镇心。心肝为子母之脏也。（仲淳） 入至宝丹。治中风不语。气绝中恶。蛊毒尸疰。
难产血晕等证。入牛黄清心丸。治诸风缓纵不随。语言謇涩。恍惚怔忡。痰涎壅塞。惊恐怕
怖。或喜怒无时。颠狂昏乱。入紫雪。治内外烦热。口舌生疮。狂叫呼走。瘴疫毒疠猝死。
温疟尸疰蛊毒。猝黄。小儿惊痫百病。（红雪治疗略同）金箔镇心丸。治小儿风壅痰热。惊
悸谵妄。心神不宁。磨细屑。挑开疔头没入。能拔疔根。作针针疔疮。纳药拔疔。
〔论〕 金具五行之一。人生得之以为肺。肺气固先入心。而还入肾。入心为火之妻。
入肾为水之母。以合水火之交。故别录首主镇精神。坚骨髓。而惊风癫痫上气之治。皆以其
禀肃杀之气。而受制者风木耳。所治诸证。乃风之淫气。然亦本于肺金之虚。致肝木侮其所
不胜。用金箔以助肺之虚。而肝木自平。非此味之治。功专于肝也。其治伤寒肺损而吐血者。
阳不能为阴之政。（元气为水中之火。经云。出地者阴中之阳。阳予之政。阴为之主。）而阴
无以自主也。然则
金禀中宫阴己之气。其性本刚。服之伤肌损骨。（服一二分则心腹剜痛肠胃如裂而毙。）
惟作箔入药。可为镇心安神之用。如并无惊邪外入者。更非金箔所宜。（仲淳） 凡用金箔
须辨出铜箔。（濒湖）
When using gold, silver, copper, or iron, they should only be placed whole within the medicinal decoction to borrow their qi (vital energy) to enhance the efficacy of the herbs; they should not be ingested directly as medicine. They can consume human body fat.
The flavor is acrid and the nature is neutral. Raw metal is toxic. Its main indications are to calm the spirit, strengthen the bone marrow, benefit the five zang organs by dispelling pathogenic qi, treat injuries from fright in children, settle the heart-mind, and anchor the hun and po souls. It treats wind-epilepsy, loss of willpower, epilepsy with wind-heat, rebellious qi with cough, tuberculosis-like consumption with lung damage causing hemoptysis due to cold-pathogen, and thirst arising from extreme bone-steaming consumption. Medical texts record its use for treating tremors in stroke, fright-manic delirium, wasting-thirst (xiao-dao), sores in the throat. As the element of the West, its property controls Wood; therefore, it treats diseases of wind-invasion affecting the Liver and Gallbladder. (Li Shizhen) By controlling Wood, it becomes the master of Wood, thus capable of calming the Heart. The Heart and Liver are mother-child organs. (Zhongchun)
It is added to Zhibao Dan (Precious Treasure Pill) to treat aphasia due to stroke, sudden collapse due to evil invasion, gu-poison, corpse-possession disease (shizhu), difficult labor with blood fainting, etc. It is added to Niuhuang Qingxin Wan (Calves' Calculus Clearing Heart Pill) to treat various wind syndromes resulting in flaccidity and inability to move limbs, slurred speech, mental confusion and palpitations, phlegm-saliva obstruction, fear and terror, or unpredictable joy and anger, mania and confusion. It is added to Zixue San (Purple Snow Powder) to treat internal and external vexation-heat, sores on the mouth and tongue, manic shouting and running about, sudden death from miasma-toxic pestilence, warm malaria, corpse-possession disease, gu-poison, acute jaundice, and hundred diseases of infantile wind-epilepsy. (Hongxue has similar therapeutic effects.) Jinbo Zhenxin Wan (Gold Foil Calming Heart Pill) treats wind-obstruction with phlegm-heat in children, palpitations and delirium, restless mind-shen. Ground into fine powder, applied after opening the head of a ding-boil (furuncle), it can extract the root of the boil. Made into needles to puncture boils, with medication inserted to draw out toxicity.
[Discussion] Metal constitutes one of the Five Elements. In humans, it forms the basis of the Lung. Lung qi, once consolidated, first enters the Heart, then returns to the Kidney. Entering the Heart, it acts as the wife of Fire; entering the Kidney, it acts as the mother of Water. This harmonizes the interaction between Water and Fire. Therefore, *Bencao Jing Jiu Yi* (Old Materia Medica) primarily states its ability to calm the spirit and strengthen the bone marrow. The treatments for wind-convulsions, epilepsy, and rebellious qi all rely on its endowment of a肃杀 (desolating/severe) qi, under which Wind-Wood is controlled. The various conditions treated are manifestations of excessive wind qi, but fundamentally stem from deficiency of Lung-Metal, leading to Liver-Wood insulting what it cannot overcome (i.e., Lung-Metal). Using gold foil assists the deficiency of Lung-Metal, thereby pacifying Liver-Wood naturally; it is not that this substance's efficacy is specialized solely for the Liver. Its treatment of hemoptysis due to lung damage from cold-pathogen addresses the situation where Yang cannot govern Yin. (Yuanqi is fire within water; the Classic says: "Yang within Yin emerging from the earth," giving governance to Yang, while Yin serves as the master.) Thus, Yin cannot govern itself. Gold endows the qi of Yin-Ji from the Central Palace; its nature is inherently rigid. Ingestion damages muscles and bones. (Ingesting one or two fen leads to excruciating pain in the heart and abdomen, intestines and stomach feeling like tearing apart, resulting in death.) Only when made into foil and added to medicine can it serve to calm the heart-mind and soothe the spirit. If there is no external pathogenic fright invading, it is even less suitable for gold foil. (Zhongchun) When using gold foil, one must distinguish it from copper foil. (Li Shizhen)