Herb

Chuanxiong (Sichuan Lovage)

川芎chuan xiong
1 sourceRhizoma Chuanxiong

Quickens the blood and moves qi, dispels wind to relieve headache, and frees the channels for gynecologic blood stasis.

Used in 7 formulas

Source

Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu)卷十四·草部·芳草类·芎䓖·主治（《本经》）

References
  • functions_en self-translated from 本草纲目 traditional_functions (public domain; the Chinese tf carries verbatim excerpt_hash citations). No modern work consulted.
  • WHO IST-TCM terminology-aligned for the English rendering.
  • public pharmacopoeia & botanical facts (public-domain reference facts; no proprietary modern source).
Traditional functions

Classical source text (Chinese) — English summary above.

传统中医记载：《本经》载芎䓖（川芎）主中风入脑头痛、寒痹筋挛缓急、金疮、妇人血闭无子；《别录》除脑中冷动、面上游风去来、温中内寒；大明谓补五劳、壮筋骨、调众脉、破癥结宿血、养新血；王好古谓搜肝气、补肝血、润肝燥；李时珍谓行气开郁。

Nature, flavor & meridians

Nature & flavor: 辛，温，无毒（《本经》芎䓖）；张元素谓性温、味辛苦、气厚味薄、浮而升、阳，少阳本经引经药，入手、足厥阴气分。·Meridians: 肝（足厥阴）, 心包（手厥阴）

Used in formulas
Citations
  • Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) · Li Shizhen · 卷十四·草部·芳草类·芎䓖（条目标题·《本经》上品）Cited from Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) for its classification.
  • Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) · Li Shizhen · 卷十四·草部·芳草类·芎䓖·释名Cited from Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) for its alternate names.
  • Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) · Li Shizhen · 卷十四·草部·芳草类·芎䓖·气味（《本经》）Cited from Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) for its nature & flavor.
  • Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) · Li Shizhen · 卷十四·草部·芳草类·芎䓖·气味（张元素·引经）Cited from Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) for its nature & flavor.
  • Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) · Li Shizhen · 卷十四·草部·芳草类·芎䓖·气味（张元素：入手、足厥阴气分）Cited from Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) for its meridian tropism.
  • Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) · Li Shizhen · 卷十四·草部·芳草类·芎䓖·主治（《本经》）Cited from Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) for its traditional functions.
  • Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) · Li Shizhen · 卷十四·草部·芳草类·芎䓖·主治（好古·时珍）Cited from Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) for its traditional functions.
  • Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) · Li Shizhen · 卷十四·草部·芳草类·芎䓖·气味（之才·为使畏）Cited from Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) for its safety notes.
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