《孫真人備急千金要方》Vol. 5

Essential Formulas Worth a Thousand in Gold for Emergencies by Master Sun, fascicle five (the original text gives the fascicle number as “seven”)

Collated by Lin Yi and others, who served as Gentleman of Court Service of the Song, Junior Director of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, and Collation Editor of the Imperial Library

Formulas for Women

Chapter Five: Lochia Formulas

Dried Rehmannia Decoction: Used when lochia does not fully discharge after childbirth. It also treats various conditions and strengthens a weakened body.

Three liang of dried Rehmannia root, two liang of Chuanxiong rhizome, two liang of cinnamon bark, two liang of Astragalus root, two liang of Chinese angelica root, one liang of ginseng, one liang of Saposhnikovia root, one liang of poria, one liang of Asarum, one liang of peony root, and one liang of licorice root.

Cut the eleven ingredients into pieces. Decoction in one dou of water until three sheng remain, then strain out the herbs. Divide into three doses: take two during the day and one at night.

Peach Kernel Decoction: Used for alternating chills and fever after childbirth, when lochia does not fully discharge.

Five liang of peach kernels, two sheng of evodia fruit, three liang of Astragalus root, three liang of Chinese angelica root, three liang of peony root, eight liang of fresh ginger, eight liang of clarified butter refined repeatedly, and eight liang of bupleurum root.

Cut the eight ingredients into pieces. Decoction in one dou of wine and two sheng of water until three sheng remain, then strain out the herbs and let the liquid cool to a suitable temperature. Take one sheng before meals, three times a day.

Patrinia Decoction: Used when lochia does not fully discharge after childbirth, with persistent abdominal pain, cramping pain in the lower abdomen that extends to the back and waist, and lack of strength.

Two liang of patrinia, two liang of Chinese angelica root, two liang of fresh Rehmannia root, one and a half liang of licorice root, three liang of fresh ginger, one liang of peony root, and ten jujubes.

Cut the seven ingredients into pieces. Decoction in nine sheng of water until three sheng remain, then strain out the herbs. Divide into three doses and take three times a day. Even someone so weak as to seem near death can improve after taking it.

Licorice Decoction: Used when stagnant blood remains after delivery and Qi and blood surge upward into the chest and heart, causing cold hands and feet, dry lips, abdominal distention, and shortness of breath.

Three liang of licorice root, three liang of peony root, three liang of cinnamon bark, three liang of donkey-hide gelatin, and four liang of rhubarb.

Cut the five ingredients into pieces. Decoction in one dou of flowing water from the east until three sheng remain, then strain out the herbs and add the donkey-hide gelatin, stirring until it melts. Divide into three doses. After taking the decoction, the complexion will improve. Finish the three sheng within a day and a night; one to two sheng of lochial blood will then be discharged from the abdomen, and the symptoms will improve. Afterward, recuperate as someone who has just given birth should.

Rhubarb Decoction: A formula for treating lochia—the blood and discharge expelled after childbirth—that has not been fully discharged.

Use three liang each of rhubarb, Chinese angelica, licorice, ginger, tree peony, and peony, and one sheng of Evodia. Cut the seven ingredients into small pieces and decoct them in one dou of water. Reduce the liquid to four sheng and strain out the dregs. Divide into four doses and take them over the course of one day. If two liang of ginseng are added, the formula is called “Ginseng and Rhubarb Decoction.”

Bupleurum Decoction: A formula for treating lochia that has not been fully discharged after childbirth, accompanied by alternating chills and fever.

Use eight liang each of bupleurum and ginger, fifty peach kernels, three liang each of Chinese angelica, astragalus, and peony, and two sheng of Evodia. Cut the seven ingredients into small pieces and decoct them in one dou and three sheng of water. Reduce the liquid to three sheng and strain out the dregs. Take one sheng before meals, three times a day. The Supplement to the Formulas Worth a Thousand Gold records that the decoction is made in one dou of clear wine.

Cattail Pollen Decoction: A formula for lingering ailments after childbirth. It may be used when stagnant blood remains and does not clear, causing abdominal distension, shortness of breath, inability to eat, Qi surging upward into the area between the chest and ribs, frequent distress and discomfort, fullness in the chest and abdomen, pain in the hands and feet, and heat trapped in the stomach.

Use half a liang of cattail pollen, one liang each of rhubarb, mirabilite, licorice, and skullcap, and thirty jujubes. Cut the six ingredients into small pieces and decoct them in five sheng of water. Reduce the liquid to one sheng. Take it in the early morning, then check the bowel movements at midday. If purging continues without stopping, drink half a cup of cold rice gruel to stop it. If there is no purging, take a small amount of hot drink to help induce it. For a person who is physically weak, use half the dose. The Supplement to the Formulas Worth a Thousand Gold calls this formula “Rhubarb Decoction” and omits the mirabilite.

Copper Mirror Nose Decoction: A formula for lingering ailments after childbirth, such as lochia that has not fully cleared, illness caused by accumulated stagnant blood, and Qi and blood congealing and causing pain in the chest and abdomen.

Use eighteen zhu of copper mirror nose, burned to ash and ground into powder; two and a half liang of rhubarb; two liang each of peony, dried rehmannia, Sichuan lovage, dry lacquer, and mirabilite; one egg sized piece of tangled hair, burned to ash; and thirty jujubes. Cut the first nine ingredients into small pieces and decoct them in seven sheng of water. Reduce the liquid to two sheng and two ge, and strain out the dregs. Add the hair ash and copper mirror nose powder, then divide into three doses.

Small Copper Mirror Nose Decoction: For the same conditions as above.

Use ten zhu of copper mirror nose, burned to ash and ground into powder; rhubarb, licorice…

The closing portion of the preceding prescription: Take two liang each of the above-mentioned scutellaria root, mirabilite (a purgative), and dried rehmannia root, and add fifty peach kernels, making seven ingredients in all (other ingredients appear earlier in the text). Crush them, then simmer them in six sheng of wine until reduced to three sheng. Strain out the dregs and add powdered mirror knob—the ground button of an ancient mirror, used in antiquity as a medicinal aid to ward off evil and treat illness. Take the mixture in three doses. This prescription can also treat “corpse invasion” (dunshi, a category of illness described in antiquity in which sudden distending pain strikes the chest and abdomen), pain in the chest and abdomen, and thirty-six kinds of corpse illness.

Gardenia Decoction: Treats cases after childbirth in which the place from which the infant emerged is left empty, bleeding does not stop, and the lower abdomen has cramping pain. Take thirty gardenia fruits and boil them in one dou of water until reduced to six sheng. Add two liang each of Chinese angelica root and peony root, five he of honey, five liang of fresh ginger, and one liang of sheep fat. Simmer again in the gardenia liquid until reduced to two sheng. Take in three doses, three times a day.

Fresh Rehmannia Decoction: Treats cases three to seven days after childbirth when residual stagnant blood in the abdomen has not been expelled, causing cramping pain, a distended and rigid abdomen, and difficulty breathing. Take five liang of fresh rehmannia root; three liang of fresh ginger; and one and a half liang each of rhubarb, peony root, poria, asarum, cassia bark, Chinese angelica root, licorice root, and scutellaria root, along with twenty jujubes, making eleven ingredients in all. Crush them, add eight sheng of water, and boil until reduced to two and a half sheng. Strain out the dregs and take in three doses, three times a day.

Rhubarb and Dry Lacquer Decoction: Treats cutting pain caused by stagnant blood in the abdomen after childbirth. Take two liang each of rhubarb, dry lacquer, dried rehmannia root, cassia bark, and dried ginger, making five ingredients in all. Crush them, add three sheng of water and five sheng of clear wine, and boil until reduced to three sheng. Strain out the dregs and drink one sheng warm; the stagnant blood will then be expelled. If the condition has not resolved, drink another sheng the next morning. Finish the three doses; there is no case this will fail to cure.

Hempseed Wine: Treats stagnant blood that is not expelled after childbirth. Crush five sheng of hempseeds and soak them overnight in one dou of wine. The next morning, strain out the dregs and drink one sheng warm before eating. If it has no effect, drink another sheng at night. Stop when there is no vomiting or diarrhea. Abstain from sexual intercourse for one month, and follow the same care and recuperation as after childbirth.

Cimicifuga Decoction: Treats lochia—the turbid, stagnant blood discharged after childbirth—that does not clear. In some cases it persists for a month and a half, six months, or even a year. Take three liang of cimicifuga root, add five sheng of clear wine, and boil until reduced to two sheng. Strain out the dregs and take in two doses. Vomiting or passing foul matter afterward is nothing to be alarmed about; it is a sign that the medicine is working well.

Another prescription treats lochia that is not fully expelled after childbirth, causing stabbing, cramping pain in the abdomen that is difficult to bear. Take three liang each of rhubarb, scutellaria root, and peach kernels as the principal ingredients.

Cinnamon heartwood (bark from near the root of the cinnamon tree), licorice, and Chinese angelica, two liang each; peony root, four liang; fresh rehmannia root, six liang.

Chop the ingredients and boil them in nine sheng of water. Reduce the liquid to two and a half sheng, then strain out the herbs. Divide the decoction into three doses and take before meals.

A formula for persistent bleeding after childbirth

Take equal amounts of exposed hornet’s nest (the honeycomb) and baichuanru (aquatic plants or debris attached to an old boat), and burn them to ash. Take one fangcunbi measure of the ash—a small ancient spoon used to measure medicinal powder—and swallow it with breast milk or rice water once daily for seven consecutive days.

Another formula

Rhubarb, three liang; mirabilite, one liang; peach kernels, leeches, and gadflies, thirty of each; licorice and Chinese angelica, two liang each; and forty ground beetles.

Chop the ingredients, add three sheng of water and two sheng of wine, and boil them together. Reduce the liquid to three sheng, strain out the herbs, and divide it into three doses. The original text says that stagnant blood should be expelled after taking it.

Another formula

Cinnamon heartwood and grub larvae, two liang each; trichosanthes root and moutan root bark, three liang each; fermented black soybeans, one sheng.

Chop the ingredients and boil them in eight sheng of water. Reduce the liquid to three sheng, strain out the herbs, and divide it into three doses.

A formula for persistent bleeding after childbirth

Take three liang of dried sweet flag, soak it in five sheng of clear wine, then boil it down to three sheng. Divide the liquid into two doses. The original text says the bleeding should stop after taking it.

A formula for lingering postpartum stagnant blood and general discomfort

Take twenty liang of elder, breaking it into pieces about the size of counting rods. Boil it in one dou of water and reduce the liquid to three sheng. Divide it into three doses, taking each dose at an interval about as long as it takes a person to walk ten li. Porridge may be eaten while taking the medicine. The original text says that more frequent urination or the expulsion of stagnant blood indicates improvement. The herb may be boiled three times.

A formula for lingering postpartum lochia, restlessness, and abdominal pain

Burn antelope horn to ash and scrape off three liang. Take two liang of peony root and stir-fry until yellow. Take one liang of immature bitter orange, chop it, and stir-fry until yellow.

Grind the three ingredients into a fine powder and sift it. Boil the powder in water to make a decoction. Take one fangcunbi measure twice daily, gradually increasing to two measures per dose.

Another formula

Burn deer antler to ash, crush it, and sift it. Boil it in fermented black soybean liquid and take one fangcunbi measure twice daily, gradually increasing to two measures per dose. If fermented black soybeans are unavailable, boil it in clear water instead.

Another formula

Pound fresh lotus root and extract its juice. Drink two sheng. The original text says it works very well.

Another prescription: Take one sheng of fresh Rehmannia juice and three he of wine. Mix well, warm, and drink in one dose.

Another prescription: Pound adzuki beans into a fine powder and take one square-inch spoonful—an ancient measure for medicines, roughly a teaspoonful—mixed with running water from the east. If the illness has not cleared, take another dose.

Prescriptions for Treating Painful Blood Masses After Childbirth

Take one jin of old iron; a scale weight, axe, or iron pestle may also be used. Heat it in a charcoal fire until red-hot, then place it in five sheng of wine. Drink the wine in small amounts, a little at a time. The text says this prescription is remarkably effective.

Prescriptions for Treating Women’s Blood Masses, Various Accumulations, and Pain

Used for women’s blood masses, accumulations in the chest and abdomen, and pain in the breasts and other areas. Symptoms include a hard, distended lower abdomen, distending pain that extends to the navel, pain in the lower back, difficulty urinating, and difficulty passing stool. There may also be food stagnation, abdominal distension, painful abscesses and sores, lingering cold with internal heat, and pathogenic Qi in the upper stomach.

Pinellia, one liang and six zhu; gypsum, Veratrum, Chinese starwort, and cistanche, eighteen zhu each; cassia bark and dried ginger, one liang each; monkshood, half a liang; croton seeds, sixty (ground into a paste).

Grind the nine ingredients into a fine powder and mix with honey to form pills the size of small beans. Take two pills three times a day. This prescription is also used to treat men’s hernias.

Prescriptions for Treating Painful Blood Masses in Women

Dried ginger and cuttlefish bone, one liang each.

Grind the two ingredients into a fine powder and sift. Take one square-inch spoonful with wine three times a day.

Another prescription: Grind cassia bark into a fine powder and take one square-inch spoonful with warm wine three times a day.

Diarrhea, Section Six (Prescriptions)

Glue and Wax Decoction

Treats dysentery of any color occurring within three days after childbirth.

Donkey-hide gelatin and phellodendron bark, one liang each; wax, three pieces, each about the size of a game piece; Chinese angelica, one and a half liang; coptis, two liang; aged granary rice, one sheng.

Cut the six ingredients into pieces. Boil the rice in eight sheng of water until small bubbles like crab’s eyes appear on the surface, then remove the rice. Add the medicines and simmer until two sheng of liquid remain. Strain out the dregs, add the gelatin and wax, and divide the decoction into four doses. Take all four within one day.

Cassia and Honey Decoction

Treats diarrhea caused by lingering postpartum cold, with symptoms including stools containing pus and blood, red and white coloration mixed together, more than ten episodes of diarrhea a day, abdominal pain, and frequent bloody stools.

Cassia bark and licorice, two liang each; dried ginger, two liang; aconite, one liang; honey, one sheng; Chinese angelica, three liang; red halloysite, ten liang.

The original text ends here; the subsequent preparation and directions for use are missing.

Coarsely chop the seven ingredients listed above. Add six sheng of water and boil until three sheng remain. Strain out the dregs, add one liang of honey, and boil for one or two more rounds. Divide into three doses and take three times a day.

Decoction for treating red and white vaginal discharge after childbirth, with cramping abdominal pain

Five liang each of peony root and dried rehmannia root; two liang each of licorice, donkey-hide gelatin, mugwort leaves, and Chinese angelica root.

Coarsely chop the six ingredients listed above. Add seven sheng of water and boil until two and a half sheng remain. Strain out the dregs, add the donkey-hide gelatin and let it melt, then divide into three doses.

Formula for treating prolonged red and white dysentery after childbirth, with swelling of the body and face

One sheng each of lightly stir-fried soybeans, wheat, and cattail pollen; half a sheng of evodia fruit.

Add nine sheng of water to the four ingredients and boil until three sheng remain. Strain out the dregs and divide into three doses. This formula is highly effective. Alternatively, add five sheng of water and one dou of wine, boil until four sheng remain, and divide into four doses.

Formula for treating red and white dysentery after childbirth, with stabbing pain in the chest and abdomen

One liang of Chinese chive bulb, two liang of Chinese angelica root, three liang of sour pomegranate rind, four liang of great burnet root, and five he of polished rice.

Coarsely chop the five ingredients listed above. Add six sheng of water and boil until two and a half sheng remain. Strain out the dregs and divide into three doses. The Bixiao Formula adds one liang of magnolia bark, and one and a half liang each of donkey-hide gelatin, ginseng, licorice, and coptis.

Chinese Angelica Decoction: Formula for treating red and white dysentery after childbirth, with abdominal pain

Three liang each of Chinese angelica root and dragon bone; two liang each of dried ginger and atractylodes; two and a half liang of ligusticum; one liang each of licorice, processed white mugwort, and aconite.

Coarsely chop the eight ingredients listed above. Add six sheng of water and boil until two sheng remain. Strain out the dregs and divide into three doses, to be taken over the course of one day.

Baitouweng Decoction: Formula for treating postpartum diarrhea and dysentery with extreme bodily weakness

Two liang each of Chinese pulsatilla root, donkey-hide gelatin, ash bark, coptis, and licorice; three liang of phellodendron bark.

Coarsely chop the six ingredients listed above. Add seven sheng of water and boil until two and a half sheng remain. Strain out the dregs, add the donkey-hide gelatin and let it melt, then divide into three doses and take three times a day.

Turtle Shell Decoction: Formula for treating diarrhea, dysentery, and vaginal discharge after getting up too soon after childbirth and being exposed to wind and cold

A palm-sized turtle shell, Chinese angelica root, coptis…

Two ounces each of dried ginger and Huangbo (Phellodendron bark, one foot long and three inches wide).

Cut the five ingredients into small pieces and boil them in seven sheng of water until three sheng remain. Strain out the dregs and divide the decoction into three doses, taking three doses a day. The Qianjin Yifang adds one ounce of Bai Tou Weng.

Dragon Bone Pills: Used to treat postpartum weakness with aversion to cold, bleeding, and undigested food in the stool, with continual bowel movements day and night. Also used to treat persistent postpartum discharge.

Four ounces of dragon bone; two ounces each of dried ginger, licorice, and cinnamon bark.

Grind the four ingredients into powder and mix with honey to make pills. Take twenty pills with warm wine, three times a day. Each pill should be about the size of a Chinese parasol tree seed. Another formula adds two ounces each of ginseng and dried Rehmannia root.

Donkey-Hide Gelatin Pills: Used to treat postpartum weakness with aversion to cold, unceasing watery diarrhea, and cramping pain in the heart and abdomen, accompanied by persistent diarrhea.

Four ounces of donkey-hide gelatin; two ounces each of ginseng, licorice, dragon bone, cinnamon bark, dried Rehmannia root, white atractylodes, coptis, Chinese angelica, and aconite.

Grind the ten ingredients into powder and make pills with honey, each about the size of a Chinese parasol tree seed. Take twenty pills with warm wine, three times a day.

Zelan Decoction: Used to treat lingering postpartum conditions, such as diarrhea after exposure to cold, discharge of frozen pus-like material, urgent bowel movements, distension and pain in the chest and flanks, coughing, vomiting blood, alternating chills and fever, dark yellow urine, and constipation.

Twenty-four zhu each of zelan and gypsum; eighteen zhu each of Chinese angelica, licorice, and magnolia bark; thirty zhu of polygala root; fifteen zhu each of ligusticum root and Sichuan lovage; twelve zhu each of dried ginger, ginseng, platycodon root, and dried Rehmannia root; nine zhu each of white atractylodes, Sichuan pepper, angelica dahurica, arborvitae seed, saposhnikovia root, Asiatic cornelian cherry, and asarum; half a sheng each of mulberry root bark and hemp seed.

Cut the twenty-one ingredients into small pieces. First boil the mulberry root bark in one dou and five sheng of water until seven and a half sheng remain, then strain. Add the other ingredients and continue boiling until three and a half sheng remain. Strain out the dregs and divide into three doses.

Dried Rehmannia Decoction: Used to treat postpartum diarrhea.

Two ounces of dried Rehmannia root; one ounce each of Bai Tou Weng and coptis; one square cun of beeswax; one piece of donkey-hide gelatin, about the size of a palm.

Coarsely chop the five ingredients above. Simmer them in five sheng of water until two and a half sheng remain, then strain out the dregs. Add gelatin and wax, and heat until they melt. Divide into three doses and take three times a day. (The Qianjin Yifang uses one liang of dried ginger.)

Rehmannia Decoction: A formula for treating sudden chills and fever, and diarrhea after childbirth.

Five liang of fresh rehmannia root; one liang each of licorice, coptis, and cinnamon bark; twenty jujubes; two liang of halloysite; and two sheng of light bamboo leaves (another version reads “bamboo skin”).

Coarsely chop the seven ingredients. First simmer the bamboo leaves in one dou of water until seven sheng remain, then strain out the dregs. Add the other ingredients and simmer until two and a half sheng remain. Divide into three doses and take three times a day.

Blue-Green Pill: A formula for treating diarrhea after childbirth.

Blue-green plant material (stir-fried), aconite, ghost-plant root, and Sichuan pepper, one and a half liang each; magnolia bark, donkey-hide gelatin, licorice, mugwort leaf, dragon bone, coptis, and Chinese angelica, two liang each; phellodendron bark, poria, and ginseng, one liang each.

Grind the fourteen ingredients into a fine powder and mix with honey to make pills the size of parasol-tree seeds. Take twenty pills at a time on an empty stomach, washed down with a drink. Another formula uses four liang of halloysite.

Halloysite Pill: A formula for treating weakness, chills, and diarrhea after childbirth.

Three liang of halloysite; two liang each of Chinese angelica, atractylodes, coptis, dried ginger, ash bark, and licorice; one liang each of Sichuan pepper and aconite.

Grind the nine ingredients into a fine powder and use honey to make pills the size of parasol-tree seeds. Take twenty pills with wine, three times a day. (The Qianjin Yifang gives the ingredients as a powder, to be taken on an empty stomach with a drink, one fangcunbi measure at a time—the name of an ancient small measuring spoon for medicine.)

Red Powder: A formula for treating diarrhea after childbirth.

Three liang each of halloysite and hematite, and one liang of cinnamon bark.

Grind and sift the three ingredients into a fine powder. Take one fangcunbi measure at a time with wine, three times a day. Recovery may be expected after thirty days.

Black Powder: A formula for treating diarrhea after childbirth.

One liang each of ephedra, Chinese cypress fern, and cinnamon bark; three liang each of licorice and dry lacquer; and two liang of asarum.

Grind and sift the six ingredients into a fine powder. Take five pinches at a time with wine, twice a day. Recovery may be expected after five days. Taking it with wheat porridge is better.

Yellow Powder: A formula for treating diarrhea after childbirth.

Take two liang of Coptis root, and one liang each of baical skullcap root, ground beetle, and dried Rehmannia root. Grind the four ingredients into a coarse powder and take it with wine, one square cun spoonful at a time, three times daily. Taking it for thirty days will bring recovery.

Dragon Bone Powder: A formula for postpartum dysentery

Take one and a half liang each of multicolored dragon bone, hematite, red halloysite, the root bark of amur cork tree (honey-roasted until charred), and mugwort leaf, along with two liang of Coptis root. Grind the six ingredients into a coarse powder. Take one square cun spoonful at a time, three times daily.

Seventh: Dribbling urination and thirst (formulas)

Trichosanthes Decoction: A formula for frequent urination with thirst after childbirth

Take two liang each of Trichosanthes root, ophiopogon root, licorice, and Coptis root; three liang each of ginseng and ginger; fifteen jujubes; and twenty mantis egg cases. Cut the eight ingredients into pieces, decoct them in seven sheng of water, and reduce the liquid to two and a half sheng. Divide into three doses.

Another formula: For unquenchable thirst after childbirth

Take four liang of Trichosanthes root; three liang each of ginseng and ophiopogon root; two liang of dried Rehmannia root; twenty jujubes; and five liang of Chinese snake gourd root. The Cui family formula omits licorice and uses reed root in place of Chinese snake gourd root. Cut the seven ingredients into pieces, decoct them in one dou and two sheng of water, and reduce the liquid to six sheng. Divide into six doses.

Chicken Gizzard Membrane Decoction: A formula for frequent urination after childbirth

Take two or three chicken gizzards, three chicken intestines (washed clean), two liang each of dried Rehmannia root, Chinese angelica root, and licorice; four liang of ephedra; three liang each of magnolia bark and ginseng; five liang of ginger; and twenty jujubes. Cut the ten ingredients into pieces. First decoct the gizzards, intestines, and jujubes in one dou of water, reducing it to seven sheng; strain out the solids. Add the remaining ingredients and continue decocting until three and a half sheng remain. Divide into three doses.

A formula for women whose Qi binds and develops into dribbling urination: urination draws pain through the lower abdomen, and the pain may extend upward. Sometimes there is blood in the urine; at other times, the urine resembles bean liquid or malt syrup. Each attack is so agonizing that the person feels close to death. She cannot gain weight despite eating, and her face and eyes turn sallow. Even a highly skilled physician cannot cure this illness.

Bèi chǐ (four pieces, roasted and ground to a powder), kuí zǐ (one sheng), gypsum (five liang, crushed), and talc (two liang, ground to a powder).

First, decoct the kuí zǐ and gypsum in seven sheng of water until two sheng remain, then strain out the dregs. Add the powdered bèi chǐ, powdered talc, and one he of pig fat, and continue boiling for three rolling boils. Divide into three doses and take three times a day. If the illness has not resolved, prepare and take the formula again in the same way.

Shíwéi Decoction: Treats sudden onset of urinary dribbling after childbirth, including qi lin, blood lin, and stone lin.

Shíwéi, huángqín, tōngcǎo, and gāncǎo, two liang each; yú pí, five liang; dàzǎo, thirty fruits; kuí zǐ, two sheng; báizhú (the Chǎnbǎo text substitutes sháoyào); and shēngjiāng, three liang each.

Coarsely chop the nine ingredients. Decoction in eight sheng of water until one and a half sheng remain. Divide into three doses. The Jíyàn Fāng omits gāncǎo and shēngjiāng; the Cuī Shì Fāng is the same as this formula; the Chǎnbǎo omits shēngjiāng and dàzǎo.

Kuí Root Decoction: Treats scanty, dribbling, and painful urination after childbirth.

Kuí root, two liang; chēqiánzǐ, one sheng; hair, burned to ash; dàhuáng, guìxīn, and talc, one liang each; tōngcǎo, three liang; shēngjiāng, six liang; and seven he of dōngguā liàn, juiced.

Coarsely chop the nine ingredients. Decoction in seven sheng of water until two and a half sheng remain. Divide into three doses. The Qiānjīn Yìfāng omits dōngguā liàn.

Máogēn Decoction: Treats urinary dribbling after childbirth.

Báimáo root, one jin; qúmài and fúlíng, four liang each; dìmài and rénshēn, two liang each; shēngjiāng, three liang; táojiāo and gāncǎo, one liang each; and one hundred lǐyú teeth.

Coarsely chop the nine ingredients. Decoction in one dou of water until two and a half sheng remain. Divide into three doses.

Talc Powder: Treats urinary dribbling after childbirth.

Talc, five liang; tōngcǎo, chēqiánzǐ, and kuí zǐ, four liang each.

Grind the four ingredients into a fine powder and sift. Take one square-inch spoonful of the medicine, washed down with sour rice-washing water. Begin with one square-inch spoonful per dose and gradually increase to two.

Bamboo Leaf Decoction: Treats thirst due to deficiency and lack of strength after childbirth.

Bamboo leaves, three sheng; shēngjiāng and bànxià, three liang each. The text ends here; the remaining ingredients and instructions for decocting and taking the formula are not recorded.

Use fourteen jujubes, five ge of wheat, and one liang each of licorice, poria, and ginseng, along with five liang of Ophiopogon. First roughly chop the jujubes and the other ingredients. Boil the bamboo leaves and wheat in nine sheng of water until seven sheng remain, then strain out the dregs. Add the remaining ingredients and continue boiling until two and a half sheng remain. Take five he each time, three times a day, with one more dose at night.

Miscellaneous Treatments, Chapter Eight (Methods for Treating Various Illnesses)

A formula for treating women who, from overexertion or improper eating, develop fullness and distension in the upper stomach, vomiting, heaviness in the head with pulling pains, and reddish-yellow urine; it is also used to move Qi downward:

Half a liang each of aconite, Scutellaria root, and croton; three liang of pinellia; eight liang of rhubarb; one and a half liang of Rong salt; eighteen zhu each of ground beetle, cassia bark, and Sophora root; and one liang each of ginseng and saltpeter.

Grind these eleven ingredients into a fine powder. Mix with honey and the bile of a green ox, pound thirty thousand times, and form pills the size of parasol tree seeds. Fast the night before taking the medicine. Swallow five pills with wine, then lie quietly. After a while, the medicine will induce diarrhea. If the discharge is yellow, the ancients considered this a buildup in the lower abdomen; if green, they considered it a hernia; if white, internal wind; if watery, retained fluid; if green and like the juice of gruel, pathogenic Qi in the upper chest and diaphragm; if it resembles the blood of rotting flesh, an injury; if bright red like blood, residual illness from a breast condition; and if it resembles something that bites and stings like a worm, a parasitic disease. The medicine may cause thirst; rice gruel can be drunk. When hunger comes, eat butter or thin gruel. After three days, switch to warm foods and choose rich, substantial meals. The text says that after thirty days of taking it, recovery may be expected.

This formula is also called “Aconite Pills for Breaking Up Accumulations.” It is used for accumulations in the heart and abdomen, stagnant Qi causing distension and discomfort in the chest and abdomen, hernias, abdominal masses, internal injury with blood stasis, lingering illness after childbirth or breastfeeding, and various forms of deficiency and debility.

Bamboo Shavings Decoction: A formula for treating women’s bleeding through sweat, vomiting blood, blood in the urine, or blood in the stool.

Two sheng of bamboo shavings; one liang each of ginseng, peony, platycodon, Sichuan lovage, Chinese angelica, licorice, and cassia bark; and four liang of dried Rehmannia root.

Roughly chop these nine ingredients. Boil them in one dou of water until three sheng remain, then divide into three doses.

A formula for treating women who have suffered from wind illness since childhood, with headaches and blurred vision:

Two liang each of Nanmu, also called lithospermum in another account, asarum, male aconite, and Japanese yew; four liang each of Chinese yam, Saposhnikovia root, cyrtomium, pubescent angelica, and Ligusticum.

Dried ginger and Japanese cornel fruit (three liang each).

Coarsely chop the eleven herbs listed above and soak them in three dou of wine for five days. At first, drink two he per dose, three times a day, then gradually increase the amount.

A formula for women who, after taking sulfur pills, suddenly develop a headache and a chill in the neck that comes and goes; who also feel vexed heat in the chest and heart region, itching and pain around the brows and outer corners of the eyes, sometimes with sores, a dry throat, and pain and itching in the limbs:

Trichosanthes root, Ophiopogon, and gentian (three liang each), rhubarb (two liang), apricot kernels (two sheng), and snake gourd root (eight liang).

Grind the six herbs into powder and use honey to form pills the size of Chinese parasol tree seeds. Take ten pills with water per dose, three times a day, then gradually increase the amount.

A formula for women with masses in the abdomen that flare up at regular intervals, as if there were three to five masses, making watery sounds and causing difficulty sleeping and eating, along with frequent distress and vexation:

Three sheng of morning glory seeds, prepared and sifted into a fine powder. Take once every seven days, one square-inch spoonful per dose (an ancient measure for medicines, about one small spoonful). After taking it thirty times, one may take one liang of fine-quality sulfur.

A formula for women who suddenly have intercourse with ghosts:

Two liang of pine resin and one liang of realgar, ground into powder.

First melt the pine resin, then add the realgar powder and stir thoroughly with a tiger’s claw to prepare the medicine. Take a lump about the size of an egg yolk for each use. At night, when the patient is going to bed, place the medicine in a fumigation cage (a cage used for fumigating clothes or for warmth) and burn it. Have the patient climb onto the cage and cover her body with a quilt, leaving only her head exposed. Take care not to let her body become overheated or the medicinal fumes escape.

Magnolia Bark Decoction: A formula for women with fatigue and damage in the lower burner, with deficiency and cold, weakened bladder and kidney Qi, and white fluid discharged together with urine.

Take magnolia bark the size of a palm and four cun long. Boil it in five sheng of wine until it has boiled twice, then strain out the herb. Take cinnamon one chi long, grind it into powder, and stir it into the liquid. Let it stand overnight. The patient should abstain from food overnight and drink the entire preparation the following morning.

Warming the Channels Decoction: A formula for women with lower abdominal pain.

Poria (six liang), snake gourd root and peony (three liang each), and coix seed (half a jin).

Coarsely chop the four herbs and soak them overnight in three sheng of wine. The next morning, add seven sheng of water and boil until two sheng remain. Divide into two doses.

Pinellia and Magnolia Bark Decoction: A formula for women with distention and fullness in the chest, hardness below the pit of the heart, and a sensation in the throat as if a piece of roasted meat were stuck there, which cannot be spat out or swallowed.

The source text ends here and does not yet list the ingredients.

Cut the five ingredients—pinellia tuber, magnolia bark, poria, fresh ginger, and perilla leaf—into pieces. Boil them in seven sheng of water and reduce the liquid to four sheng. Divide it into four doses: take three during the day and one at night. If the condition has not improved, the entire amount may be taken at once. Another version omits perilla leaf and fresh ginger.

A prescription for women’s Qi disorders

Drink black ox urine once each morning. Stop when the illness has cleared.

Kelp Pills: for a hidden Qi disorder in a woman’s chest

Grind twenty ingredients—kelp, seaweed, peony, cinnamon bark, white quartz, coltsfoot flower, mulberry root bark, ginseng, arborvitae seeds, poria, stalactite, aster root, licorice, dried ginger, Evodia fruit, schisandra berries, asarum, apricot kernels, tangerine peel, and perilla seeds—into a fine powder. Mix with honey and form pills the size of wutong seeds. Take twenty pills with wine twice daily, gradually increasing to forty pills.

A prescription for women troubled without cause by sorrow and anger, with tightness in the chest and labored breathing

Grind twelve ingredients—peony, talc, coptis rhizome, gypsum, Cornus fruit, hogfennel root, rhubarb, ophiopogon root, asarum, fresh ginger, pinellia tuber, and cinnamon bark—into a fine powder. Mix with honey and form pills the size of wutong seeds. Take twenty pills with wine, gradually increasing to thirty pills, three times daily.

A prescription for preventing childbirth in women

Burn a piece of old silkworm-breeding paper, one chi square, to ash. Take it with wine. After taking it, a person will be unable to bear children for the rest of her life.

Another version: Fry mercury in oil continuously for a full day without stopping. Take it on an empty stomach and eat one date. It is said to prevent childbirth permanently without harming the body.

A prescription for wasting and exhaustion, inability to conceive after childbirth, coldness in the vagina with discharge, a uterine opening (cervical opening) that has been blocked for years without recovery, and bodily coldness

Only the names of the ingredients are given here: saposhnikovia root, platycodon root, ginseng, calamus, pinellia tuber, red sage root, magnolia bark, dried ginger, and aster root. The original text provides no further dosages or preparation method.

Du Huo, Qin Jiao, and Bai Lian, eighteen zhu each; Niu Xi and Sha Shen, half an ounce each. Grind the fourteen ingredients listed above into a powder, mix with white honey, and form pills the size of small beans. Take fifteen pills after meals, three times a day. If they have no effect, increase the dose to twenty pills. Stop taking them during pregnancy.

Do not take this medicine while your husband is away. Wait until you have taken it for seven days before having intercourse.

Wu Jia Wine: For postpartum emaciation and coldness of the vaginal opening

Wu Jia Pi, Gou Qi Zi, She Chuang Zi, and Du Zhong, one sheng each; Ru Chuang, half a jin; dried Di Huang and Dan Shen, two ounces each; dried ginger, three ounces; and Tian Men Dong, four ounces. Cut the nine ingredients into small pieces, place them in a silk bag, and soak the bag in three dou of wine for three nights. Take five he each time, twice a day, gradually increasing the dose to ten he. This is considered more effective.

Formula for postpartum closure of the uterine opening, with stagnant blood gathering in the abdomen and forming masses, attributed to deficiency and cold in the organs

Dry lacquer, half a jin; fresh Di Huang juice, three sheng; fresh Niu Xi juice, one jin. First pound the dry lacquer into a fine powder. Add it to the medicinal juices and stir well, then simmer over low heat. Form pills the size of Chinese parasol tree seeds. Take three pills with wine, twice a day. If you feel pain in the abdomen, take them after meals.

For postpartum exhaustion and injury, when the vaginal opening remains open and cannot close

Sulfur, four ounces; Wu Zhu Yu, one and a half ounces; Tu Si Zi, one ounce and six zhu; She Chuang Zi, one ounce. Grind the four ingredients into a powder. Take two square-inch spoonfuls and boil them in one sheng of water. Use the liquid to wash the vaginal opening twice a day.

For postpartum vaginal laxity that prevents closure

Roast one dou of lime until it is hot enough to set grass alight, then throw it into two dou of water. Once the liquid has cooled to a suitable temperature, sit in it and soak for a while. Replace the liquid and continue soaking, following the usual procedure. The original text says: “This formula has already proved effective. It is a method not passed down in the Qian Jin.”

Huang Qin Powder: For uterine prolapse in women

Huang Qin, hedgehog skin, and Dang Gui, half an ounce each; Shao Yao, one ounce; oyster shell and bamboo skin, two and a half ounces each; one fox penis. The Qian Jin Yi version gives “pine bark” instead. Grind the seven ingredients into a fine powder. Take one square-inch spoonful three times a day. Avoid lifting heavy objects, sexual activity, and raw or cold foods.

Sulfur Powder: For the same condition.

Sulfur and bones of the black-zé fish, half an ounce each; schisandra berries, three zhu.

Grind these three ingredients into powder and sift it, then apply it to the affected area. Apply it three times a day for better results.

Danggui Powder, for the same conditions described above.

Chinese angelica root and baikal skullcap root, two ounces each; hedgehog skin, half an ounce; oyster shell, two and a half ounces; peony root, one ounce and six zhu.

Grind these five ingredients into powder and sift it. Take with wine, one square-inch spoonful each time (an ancient measure for medicinal powder, roughly a spoonful). Take three times a day. Avoid lifting heavy objects. The original text also has the two characters “zhong liang” here; their meaning is unclear, and they may be incomplete or erroneous.

A prescription for postpartum vaginal prolapse:

Take one sheng of cnidium seeds, wrap them in cloth, warm the bundle, and apply it to the affected area. This method is also used for vaginal pain after childbirth.

Another prescription: Burn human feces to ash and grind it into powder. Take with wine, one square-inch spoonful each time, three times a day.

Another prescription: Burn the end of the handle of an old broom to ash. Take with wine, one square-inch spoonful each time.

Another prescription: Take five turtle heads, burn and grind them into powder, and take with fresh well water drawn at dawn, one square-inch spoonful each time, three times a day.

Another prescription:

Chinese honey locust pod, half an ounce; pinellia tuber, rhubarb, and asarum, eighteen zhu each; cnidium seeds, three zhu.

Grind these five ingredients into powder and sift it. Put the powder into a thin silk pouch about as thick as a finger, and insert it into the vagina. Replace it twice a day; it is said to bring a cure.

Another prescription:

Evodia fruit and Sichuan pepper, one sheng each; Rong salt (an ancient kind of salt), about the size of an egg.

Fry the three ingredients separately until they change color, then grind them into powder. Wrap the powder in cotton to make a bundle about half the size of an egg, and insert it into the vagina. Replace it once a day; it is said to cure the condition in twenty days.

A prescription for prolapse of the vagina or anus in women:

Melt sheep fat and let it cool until warm, then apply it to the affected area. Take an appropriate amount of iron filings and spread them over the fat, mixing the two evenly. Warm a cloth over a fire and apply it as a warm compress to the anus, gradually pushing the prolapsed part back in. Then grind magnetite into powder and take it with wine, one square-inch spoonful each time, three times a day.

A prescription for protrusion or prolapse of the vagina:

Sichuan pepper (omitted in the Guangji Fang), aconite, and bletilla rhizome, half an ounce each.

Grind these three ingredients into powder. Take one square-inch spoonful at a time, wrap it in cotton, and insert it about three inches into the vagina. Remove and replace it when the abdomen begins to feel warm. Use once a day, then insert it again the following day. It is said to bring a cure in seven days.

Danggui Wash Decoction, for postpartum vaginal swelling and pain caused by wind and cold affecting the organs:

Chinese angelica root, pubescent angelica root, dahurian angelica root, and great burnet root, three ounces each; Patrinia herb (omitted in the Jinkui Fang) and alum, two ounces each.

The original text ends here; the rest of the prescription is not recorded.

Decoct the six ingredients listed on the right in one and a half dou of water, reducing the liquid to five sheng. When it has cooled to a comfortable temperature, gently wash the genital area. Do this three times a day.

Another prescription: Pound peach kernels into a paste and apply it to the affected area. This works well. Apply it three times a day.

Moxibustion: For absent menstruation, running-piglet qi—a condition in which one feels qi surging upward from the abdomen—or infertility, apply thirty moxa cones to each of the Sì Mǎn points. These points lie on either side of the Dantian, each one and a half cun away. The Dantian is two cun below the navel.

For uterine prolapse in women, apply three hundred moxa cones at the center of the navel. Then apply fifty cones to the Shēn Jiāo point, divided into three sessions. Shēn Jiāo lies at the center of the transverse crease below the navel. You may also apply fifty cones to the point on the back directly opposite the navel; fifty cones to the Yù Quán point, divided into three sessions; and then twenty cones to the Lóng Mén point, divided into three sessions. Lóng Mén lies below Yù Quán, at the junction between the inside and outside of the vaginal opening. This point is low-lying, and acupuncture and moxibustion are no longer practiced there.

For a woman whose uterus has descended and protrudes through the vagina, apply moxibustion three cun to the side of Yù Quán. Use a number of cones equal to her age, divided into three sessions.

For coldness, swelling, and pain in the genital area, apply thirty moxa cones to the Guī Lái point, divided into three sessions. Guī Lái lies five cun to the side of Yù Quán.

For sterilization, apply two moxa cones one cun above the right ankle. This will render the person infertile.

Essential Formulas Worth a Thousand in Gold for Emergencies by Master Sun (Sun Zhenren), juan five.