https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/A4PeQB2Vq1CW8xtc-5KQOA
Everyone is welcome to share their experiences with the medicine in the replies to facilitate other students’ searching and learning
388. Zi He Che (Purple River Vehicle)
To tonify Qi, ginseng is the crown; to tonify essence, Zi He Che is the crown.
I often tell patients that Zi He Che powder tastes very good, but most of the time patients cannot tolerate it. Those who react strongly may even vomit. Every time this happens, I can’t help but reflect—either I’m somewhat abnormal, or the patients are somewhat finicky, or both.
I might really be a bit abnormal. Since childhood, I have wanted to try everything. As an adult, I have regarded “fearlessness” as my primary “Daoist heart.” When encountering things that ordinary people find hard to swallow, I actually get excited (´๑•ω•๑`).
Back to Zi He Che, I would describe its taste as fresh, delicious, and mellow, though most people might find it fishy and smelly.
Whether taken dry as a lozenge or dissolved in some water, one can clearly feel the energy “sink” into the dantian. When others say they can’t feel it, I suspect they are hiding their inability to feel it.
Zi He Che directly supplements the purest terrestrial essence. After eating it and having a good sleep, if no “against-the-heart” words or deeds occur that day, it is even possible to reconnect with the celestial essence (even ordinary people can). Friends who understand fetal breathing know how profound this is. Just with this one herb, it reflects the benevolence of heaven that leaves ordinary mortals the “Zi He Che” to guide between the Yin and Yang realms, allowing everyone to “play another round” without reincarnation.
Currently, Zi He Che costs only 4-8 RMB per gram, at an absolutely low price. Those lacking essence can take about 20 grams daily, mindlessly consuming a kilo, and then observe the results (ideally taken with Lizhong Decoction; if you want convenience, plain water is fine unless the body is weak to a certain extent, as Zi He Che can dissolve and melt in the mouth).
Main effects: tonify terrestrial essence; secondary effects: tonify the five organs, replenish Qi and blood, repair damage.
Previously in a pulse diagnosis class, I discussed a method using Zi He Che as the guide to treat ankylosing spondylitis, which I won’t elaborate here. When the course is public early next year, interested friends can take a look.
PS: Let me talk about celestial, terrestrial, and human essence. Celestial essence, connected to the source energy for reception, is now commonly used synonymously with innate primary essence, but originally only includes celestial essence; terrestrial essence is accumulated through postnatal diet and digestion—good eating and sleeping generate it, but many people convert it into human essence, which is a bottomless pit. Moreover, if one fails to lie still and rest during the Zi or Wu hours of the day, that day’s terrestrial essence is wasted, so most people don’t even have enough terrestrial essence; human essence is the visible and tangible “essence” generated from sexual interaction between men and women—women have it too. The details are not appropriate to explain here; a paper to be published next year covers this: “Epistemological Foundations of the Traditional Chinese Medicine Concept of Form, Qi, and Spirit in Life.”
Weather and terrestrial Qi are the gaseous forms of celestial and terrestrial essence, while human Qi is slightly different, being respiratory Qi. Actually, these concepts are not very meaningful; older generations liked to use the phrase “heaven, earth, and human” because the concept of “primary essence and primary Qi” has been widely misused, causing many misunderstandings. To reduce confusion, this terminology has been revived.
389. Yin Yang Huo (Epimedium)
The taste is somewhat similar to senna leaf and a bit like loquat leaf; its base is a tea fragrance with a slight bitterness.
About 3 seconds after drinking, a slight warmth begins to appear on the back, with the hottest spot located between the Shenzhu and Shendao acupoints, forming a diamond shape together with the bilateral Gaohuang points; about 5 minutes later, the heat on the back gradually dissipates, penetrating forward to the Jiangong point, establishing a connection with the right kidney; about 10 minutes later, the right kidney connects to the left kidney; about 15 minutes later, energy is infused forward into the dantian, which feels slightly warm, gradually infusing energy into the ineffable.
The entire route is rather winding, like the childhood game of reflecting light with mirrors. Once the energy reaches the dantian, as the starting point of the Yuan Four Branches (the innate four meridians: Ren, Du, Chong, and Dai), the warming and smoothing naturally also promotes the circulation of all meridians throughout the body, exerting effects such as warming yang and transforming dampness, moistening the intestines and promoting bowel movements, and strengthening the waist and knees—not limited to enhancing yang.
Effects: warm the Du meridian, warm the Gaohuang points, warm the kidneys and abdomen, assist yang, and warm and smooth the meridians.