Herb

Anemarrhena Rhizome

知母zhi mu
1 sourceRhizoma Anemarrhenae

Clears heat and drains fire, enriches yin and moistens dryness, and relieves wasting-thirst and bone-steaming heat.

Used in 7 formulas

Source

Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu)卷十二·草部·山草类·知母·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》载知母主消渴热中、除邪气、肢体浮肿、下水、补不足、益气；《别录》疗伤寒久疟烦热、胁下邪气；张元素谓凉心去热、治阳明火热、泻膀胱肾经火；王好古谓泻肺火、滋肾水、治命门相火有余。

Nature, flavor & meridians

Nature & flavor: 苦，寒，无毒（《本经》）；大明谓苦、甘；张元素谓气寒、味大辛苦、沉而降、阴，肾经本药，入足阳明、手太阴经气分。·Meridians: 肾, 胃（足阳明）, 肺（手太阴）

Used in formulas
Citations
  • Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) · Li Shizhen · 卷十二·草部·山草类·知母（条目标题·《本经》中品）Cited from Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) for its classification.
  • Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) · Li Shizhen · 卷十二·草部·山草类·知母·释名Cited from Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) for its alternate names.
  • Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) · Li Shizhen · 卷十二·草部·山草类·知母·气味（《本经》·大明·元素）Cited from Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) for its nature & flavor.
  • Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) · Li Shizhen · 卷十二·草部·山草类·知母·气味（元素：肾经本药，入足阳明、手太阴经气分）Cited from Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) for its meridian tropism.
  • Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) · Li Shizhen · 卷十二·草部·山草类·知母·主治（《本经》）Cited from Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) for its traditional functions.
  • Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) · Li Shizhen · 卷十二·草部·山草类·知母·主治（好古）Cited from Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) for its traditional functions.
  • Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) · Li Shizhen · 卷十二·草部·山草类·知母·气味（时珍·得黄檗酒良/伏盐蓬砂）Cited from Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) for its safety notes.