Yuan Zhi - 元志 - Radix Polygalae

Pharmaceutical Latin:	Radix Polygalae
Common English:	Chinese Senega Polygala Root Siberian Milk-Wort Root Thin-Leaf Milkwort

Category

Substances that Calm the Spirit

Properties

Taste	Temperature	Entering Meridians	Dosage
Bitter Acrid	Slightly Warm (Warm)	Heart Lung (Liver)	3-15g Tincture: 2-4ml

Actions And Indications

Actions	Indications/Syndromes
Calms the Spirit, sedates the Heart and clears the channel joining the Heart and Kidney	Insomnia, palpitations with anxiety, restlessness, and disorientation. Most effective for excessive brooding or pent-up emotions Lack of communication between the Heart and Kidneys
Clears the Lungs, Expels Phlegm, Opens the Orifices, Stops coughing	Phlegm Blocking the Heart Orifices with emotions and mental disorientation, spasms or seizures Phlegm Obstructing the Lungs with copious sputum, especially when it is difficult to expectorate Angina pectoris
Reduces abscesses and dissipates swellings	Boils, abscesses, sores and swollen, painful breasts (powdered and applied topically or taken with wine)

Contraindications, Incompatibilities And Herb/Drug Interactions

Major Combinations

Poria Pararadicis Fu Shen Sm. Zizyphi Spinosae Suan Zao Ren	Sm. Zizyphi Spinosae Suan Zao Ren Rz. Atractylodis Macrocephalae Bai Zhu Rx. Angelicae Sinensis Dang Gui	Rx. Ginseng Ren Shen Poria Fu Ling Rz. Acori Tatarinowii Shi Chang Pu
Irritability, disorientation, palpitations, anxiety and insomnia due to Heart Blood Deficiency or Qi Stagnation.	Palpitations and insomnia due to Qi Deficiency.	Forgetfulness. Calms the Spirit.
Rx. Astragali Huang Qi Rx. Angelicae Sinensis Dang Gui Arillus Longan Long Yan Rou	Rx. Curcumae Yu Jin Rz. Acori Tatarinowii Shi Chang Pu	Scorpio Quan Xie Rz. Pinelliae Preparatum Zhi Ban Xia Rz. Gastrodiae Tian Ma
Forgetfulness, palpitations and insomnia.	Disorientation due to Phlegm Blocking the Heart Orifices.	Seizures associated with Phlegm Blocking the Heart Orifices.
Bul. Fritillariae Cirrhosae Chuan Bei Mu Rz. Pinelliae Preparatum Zhi Ban Xia	Bul. Fritillariae Cirrhosae Chuan Bei Mu Sm. Armeniacae Xing Ren Fr. Trichosanthis Gua Lou	Sm. Raphani Lai Fu Zi Sm. Sinapis Bai Jie Zi Sm. Vaccariae Wang Bu Liu Xing
Wheezing and coughing due to Cold Phlegm.	Cough and wheezing due to Cold Phlegm that leads to viscous sputum that is difficult to expectorate.	Angina pectoris due to Cold-Phlegm and Blood Stasis.
Rice Wine	Sm. Zizyphi Spinosae Suan Zao Ren	Rx. Glycyrrhizae Gan Cao
Applied topically for early-stage sores.	Balances the contrasting, introverted and dispersing, extroverted manifestations of Spirit to ensure the proper balance of openness and sobriety.	Reduces the irritating effect of Yuan Zhi, to prevent nausea and vomiting.
Rx. Ginseng Ren Shen Rz. Acori Tatarinowii Shi Chang Pu Poria Fu Ling	Poria Pararadicis Fu Shen Dens Draconis Long Chi Or Poria Pararadicis Fu Shen Cinnabaris Zhu Sha	Rx. Ginseng Ren Shen Poria Fu Ling Fol. Ginkgo Bai Guo Ye Rz. Acori Tatarinowii Shi Chang Pu
Reduces ethanol-induced impairment of memory registration. Ameliorates scopolamine-induced memory registration deficit.	Insomnia, palpitations with anxiety, nocturnal emissions and spermatorrhea.	Forgetfulness, memory loss or inability to concentrate.
Rx. Curcumae Yu Jin Rz. Acori Tatarinowii Shi Chang Pu Concretio Silicea Bambusae Tian Zhu Huang Arisaema cum Bile Dan Nan Xing	Sm. Armeniacae Xing Ren Rx. Platycodi Jie Geng Rx. Glycyrrhizae Gan Cao
Disorientation and seizures.	Coughing with white sputum due to Cold.

Notes

1. It is used while tonifying Heart Qi, Yin, and Blood to nourish the Heart, dispel Phlegm and calm the mind.
2. It is frequently used for profound weakness and insomnia when both the Kidney and Heart are weak.
3. It helps with a range of sensory disorders.
4. It works well for insomnia or palpitations stemming from pent-up emotions.
5. It is reputed to benefit wisdom.
6. Honey-fried and used alone, it treats insomnia and excessive dreaming.
7. It may be taken internally as a powder with liquor, or made into a paste and applied externally for boils, abscesses, and sore, swollen, painful breasts caused by Phlegm Obstructing the channels and collaterals.
8. Yuan Zhi and Sm. Zizyphi Spinosae Suan Zao Ren both enter the Heart channel, calm the Spirit and treat palpitations with anxiety and insomnia. Yuan Zhi is acrid and dispersing, bitter and draining, and warm, which allows it to unblock, support Heart Yang and augment Heart Qi, restoring communication between the Heart and Kidneys and so strengthening resolve. It is better suited to palpitations and insomnia from lost Heart-Kidney communication accompanied by confusion, poor concentration and forgetfulness. Suan Zao Ren is sour, sweet and neutral. It nourishes Heart and Liver Blood and is better suited to Deficiency irritability and insomnia, where its sour, contracting nature generates Fluids and restrains excessive dispersal of the Spirit.
9. Yuan Zhi, Sm. Zizyphi Spinosae Suan Zao Ren and Sm. Platycladi Bai Zi Ren each enter the Heart channel, calm the Spirit and treat fright, palpitations and insomnia. Suan Zao Ren and Bai Zi Ren are sweet and neutral, nourish Heart Yin and Liver Blood, and are best for irritability and insomnia arising from Deficiency. Bai Zi Ren acts mainly on the Heart and moistens and lubricates the Intestines to relieve dry constipation, whereas Suan Zao Ren acts mainly on the Liver. It restrains and inhibits, astringing sweat and generating Fluids to treat thirst from damaged Fluids and heavy sweating from Deficiency. Yuan Zhi is acrid-dispersing, bitter-draining and warm so that it unblocks, supports Heart Yang and augments Heart Qi to restore harmonious communication between the Heart and Kidneys, calm the Spirit and strengthen resolve. It is better suited to palpitations and insomnia from lost communication between the Heart and the Kidneys accompanied by confusion, poor concentration and forgetfulness. It disperses Stagnation, expels Phlegm, reduces swellings and disperses sores, and it can be used for cough from Cold-Phlegm and for Cold Obstructing the Qi, which lets Phlegm and Dampness enter the collaterals and produce toxic swollen sores.
10. Yuan Zhi and Rz. Acori Tatarinowii Shi Chang Pu both enter the Heart, clear Phlegm and open the Orifices. Shi Chang Pu is acrid and warm and depends on its aromatic fragrance to open the Orifices, disseminate Qi and Dampness and expel Phlegm. Yuan Zhi expels Phlegm, calms the Spirit and augments the mind, using its bitterness to drain and descend Phlegm that rebels upward to the Heart. The two are often combined.
11. Processed Polygala Zhi Yuan Zhi is less drying and less numbing, a quality that irritates the throat. It calms the Spirit more strongly.
12. Honey-prepared Polygala Mi Zhi Yuan Zi is more effective at transforming Phlegm and stopping cough. It is the best choice for cough with copious Phlegm that is hard to expectorate.