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Zhi Zi 1 \pd324.bmp\
Zhi Zi 2 \pd325.bmp\

Bitter, cold, very cold, non-toxic. Mainly treats evil qi in the five zang organs, hot qi in the stomach, facial redness and alcohol-induced facial flushing, rhinophyma (redness and telangiectasia of the nose), white leprosy-like lesions, red leprosy sores, treats red, hot, and painful eyes, excessive heat in the chest, heart, large intestine, and small intestine, mental restlessness, and hot qi in the stomach. Also known as Mu Dan, also known as Yue Tao. Grows in the river valleys of Nanyang. Fruits are harvested in September and sun-dried.

Tao Hongjing says: It can resolve Yu Zhi poison. It grows everywhere. There are also two or three varieties with slight differences; those with seven ridges are considered superior. They should be harvested after frost. Nowadays, they are mostly used for dyeing and rarely for medicinal purposes. Yu Zhi refers to Rhododendron molle (Yang Zhi Zhu). Ministers Yuxi et al. carefully note according to *Yao Xing Lun* (Treatise on Medicinal Properties): Shan Zhi Zi (Mountain Gardenia) kills insect toxins. Removes toxic wind-heat, benefits the five types of strangury, mainly treats Zhong E (sudden illness caused by foul qi), promotes urination, resolves the five types of jaundice, brightens the eyes, treats epidemic diseases, clears heat and relieves thirst and dry mouth, and treats red and swollen eyes.

*TU JING* says: Zhi Zi grows in the river valleys of Nanyang. Now it is found in southern regions and various prefectures of Western Shu. The plant is seven or eight chi high. Leaves resemble those of plum trees but are denser and harder, also resembling leaves of *Butea monosperma*. In February and March, white flowers appear, all with six petals, very fragrant. Folklore says this is the Zhan Fu from the Western Regions (Jasminum grandiflorum). Fruits form in summer and autumn, resembling Che Zi (Terminalia chebula). Green when raw, yellow when ripe, with deep red kernels inside. Harvested in September and sun-dried. People in the south compete to plant it for profit. *Huo Zhi Zhuan* states: Possessing a thousand stones of Zhi and Qian is comparable to having a state of a thousand chariots, indicating substantial profits. There are also two or three varieties here; the medicinal one is Shan Zhi Zi, also called Yue Tao in medical texts. Those with thin skin and small, round shape, featuring seven to nine ridges, are best. Those that are large and long are used for dyeing. Also called Fu Shi Zhi Zi, which is unsuitable for medicinal use. Zhang Zhongjing's *Shang Han Lun* (Treatise on Cold Damage) and various famous doctors throughout history treat jaundice using a decoction of four ingredients: Zhi Zi, Yin Chen, Xiang Chi, and Gan Cao. It is also used to treat recurrence of illness due to overexertion after a major disease, using decoctions of Zhi Zi and Rat Droppings, resulting in mild purgation and recovery. There are too many formulas to list completely. Zhi Zi also treats bloody dysentery complicated by toxic heat flowing downward. Ge Gen (Kudzu Root) powder taken orally cures immediately. For recurrences after severe epidemic diseases due to fatigue, boil ten fruits, drink the juice, cover warmly until sweating occurs for recovery. If complicated by food stagnation, add Da Huang (Rhubarb), boil separately, mix near completion, and drink; mild purgation leads to improvement.

Lei Gong says: When using, do not use large grains, called Fu Shi Zhi Zi, which lack efficacy. One must select those the size of a sparrow's brain and possessing nine longitudinal red lines, which are superior. When preparing, first remove the skin and filaments, take the kernel, soak in Licorice water overnight, drain, bake dry, grind into a fine powder like gold dust, and use. *Shi Liao Ben Cao* says: Treats aphonia, purple eczema, jaundice, and accumulated heat with mental agitation. Another formula: Treats lower gastrointestinal bleeding. Burn Zhi Zi kernels to ash, mix with water to make a dose of one qian bi, administer according to patient size and condition. *Qian Jin Fang*: Treats unblistered fire burns. Mix Zhi Zi ash with sesame oil and apply thickly; thicker application is better. For blisters formed, burn white sugar to ash, sprinkle powder on the lesion to dry it, leading to cure.

*Zhou Hou Fang*: Treats cholera with abdominal distension and pain, fullness, shortness of breath, inability to vomit or purge, or muscle cramps. Burn fourteen Zhi Zi fruits, grind to powder, mix with warm water and take.

Mei Shi Fang: Treats erysipelas (fire carbuncle). Crush and mix with water for topical application. Another formula: Treats lower bleeding due to toxic heat, or triggered by food. Take thirty fruits, break them, add three sheng of water, decoct to one sheng, strain, and drink. Another formula: Treats new recovery from febrile disease, occurring after waking early or overeating. Take ten fruits, add three sheng of water, decoct to one sheng, strain, and take warm. Lie down to induce slight sweating. If food is not digested, add three liang of Da Huang. Another formula: Treats sexual activity triggering symptoms after recovery from cold damage, causing extreme desire, inability to open eyes, and inability to speak. Take thirty Zhi Zi fruits, add three sheng of water, decoct to one sheng, and take. Another formula: Treats dog bites. Burn Zhi Zi peel to ash, mix with equal parts Yan Liu Huang (Stalagmite Sulfur), grind to powder, apply to the wound twice or thrice daily until cured. *Bo Ji Fang*: Treats disharmony of cold and hot qi, loss of appetite, or stabbing abdominal pain. Equal parts Shan Zhi Zi and Chuan Wu Tou (Aconite). Grind raw to powder, make pills with wine paste the size of wutong seeds. Take fifteen pills per dose, washed down with decoction of stir-fried ginger. For lower abdominal qi pain, wash down with stir-fried fennel, scallion, and wine, twenty pills. *Bing Bu Shou Ji*: Treats unbearable headache caused by excessive phlegm-wind. Mix Zhi Zi powder with honey, apply thickly to the tongue; vomiting stops the pain. *Sheng Jin Fang*: Treats labor dysentery in women. Burn any amount to ash, fine powder. Take one spoonful mixed with warm water on an empty stomach; severe cases may require up to five doses. Sun Shang Yao: Treats increased irritability after dysentery following cold damage, with hardness upon pressing the epigastrium, indicating deficiency vexation. Take fourteen Zhi Zi fruits, break them, add four he of Chi Xiao Dou (Fermented Soybeans). Add four sheng of water to these two ingredients, decoct Zhi Zi to obtain two and a half sheng, add Chi Xiao Dou, decoct further to obtain one sheng, strain, divide into two doses. If vomiting occurs, stop taking the remainder. Do not take if there is pus in vomit; recover only after pus is exhausted. *Gu Jin Lu Yan*: Wang Qin San treats gastric jaundice with excessive eating and drinking preference; Zhi Zi fruit is the main ingredient. *Dan Fang Jing Yuan* describes Zhi Zi as softening metal.

*Yan Yi* says: Zhi Zi, Zhang Zhongjing uses it to treat deficiency vexation and insomnia after sweating, vomiting, or purging. If severe, the patient tosses and turns, feeling deeply uncomfortable in the chest; Zhi Zi Chi Tang (Gardenia and Fermented Soybean Decoction) treats this. Because it is deficiency, Da Huang is not used, as there is cold toxicity. Although Zhi Zi is cold and non-toxic, treating hot qi in the stomach, since blood and body fluids have been depleted, leaving organs without nourishment and generating internal deficiency heat, this herb is indispensable for clearing it, as recorded in Zhang Zhongjing's *Shang Han Lun*. It also treats retained heat in the Heart channel, dark and scanty urination. Use peeled Shan Zhi Zi fire-roasted, Da Huang, Lian Qiao, and roasted Gan Cao in equal parts, grind to powder. Decoct three or two qian bi in water; administration is invariably effective.