Huang lian tang
huang lian 9 ban xia 12 gui zhi 9 ren shen 6 gan jiang 9 da zao 9 zhi gan cao 9
In cold damage, there is heat in the chest, evils in the stomach, with abdominal pain, and desire to vomit, huang lian tang governs.
This is a vertical harmonizing formula. It tonifies tai yin and clears damp in yang ming. It started with a loss of yang qi which in turn causes an accumulation of dampness which in turn heats up from the warmth from the ministerial fire.
There is doubt if this is a Zhang Ji formula but it does have a classic structure.
Huang lian, Coptidis rhizome is bitter draining of heat in the ministerial and imperial fire. It is bitter draining of heat in the heart and san jiao. It is bitter draining of heat and dampness in the stomach domain.
Huang lian clears the secondary heat in yang ming that was caused after spleen dampness was infused with the stagnant ministerial fire. Bitter, cold and clears excessive heat affecting the heart. Enters the heart channel to calm the heart and arrest vexation. Clears yang ming stomach heat to pacify the stomach and promote sound sleep, for when the stomach is not at peace, the heart is not calm.
Ban xia, Pinelliae rhizoma is pungent dispersing of the liver blood and the ministerial fire in the san jiao. It is pungent dispersing of the cold and dampness in the stomach domain, spleen and lung. It transforms tai yin damp phlegm generated from excessive and stagnant cold dampness and counteracts nausea and adverse flow.
Combined with gan jiang it dries and transforms excessive internal dampness.
Transforms spleen damp heat stagnation and harmonizes the stomach and dries dampness and phlegm
The spleen is considered the source of phlegm and the lung the storage of phlegm. Ban xia dries tai yin spleen dampness which is the source of lung phlegm. Transforms and dries tai yin damp phlegm generated from excessive and stagnant cold dampness and counteracts nausea and adverse flow.
Gui zhi, Cinnamomi cassiae ramulus is pungent sweet and warm dispersing of the imperial and ministerial fire. It warms and tonifies the shao yin and jue yin. In doing so it warms and tonifies the whole body.
Gui zhi warms the heart yang together with zhi gan cao to restore function.
Ren shen, Ginseng radix is sweet tonifying and nourishing of the spleen, lungs, heart, and kidney. It nourishes yin fluids and therefore is the foremost qi and yin tonic.
Ren shen tonifies qi and strengthens the middle to prevent damage from purging herbs by mildly moistening. Tonifies spleen qi and treats deficiency and is often combined with bai zhu to treat excessive dampness.
Gan jiang, Zingiberis rhizoma, dried is warm (or hot) pungent and astringent. Gan jiang is the main herb to warm the tai yin level and treat excessive dampness by introducing yang ming dryness in tai yin dampness.
Gan jiang warms tai yin spleen and the interior and dispels cold and anchors warming herbs like gui zhi inward with its stagnant heat.
Zhi gan cao, Glycyrrhizae radix prep is sweet tonifying and nourishing of all organs but especially the heart.
Zhi gan cao is sweet and mildly warm tonifying and nourishing of yin fluids. It nourishes yin fluids in the tai yin and shao yin. It calms wind in the jue yin.