The famous Taoist priest of the Qing Dynasty, the 11th generation master of the Longmen sect of Quanzhen Dao: Liu Yiming, styled Wuyuanzi, also known as Supu Sanren, was a prominent figure in the field of Neidan (internal alchemy) and a renowned physician from Pingyang, Shanxi.
Liu Yiming was skilled in utilizing external alchemical techniques and equipment to prepare medicinal elixirs, and he authored several medical texts including “Eye Disease Enlightenment,” “Miscellaneous Epidemic Diseases Treatment,” “Experience of Miscellaneous Formulas,” and “Experience of Unique Formulas.”
“Experience of Unique Formulas” is a comprehensive work that combines diseases with formulas for internal and external medicine, as well as gynecology and pediatrics. It includes famous formulas from previous renowned physicians as well as Liu Yiming’s own effective prescriptions.
For different diseases, when the same pathogenesis occurs, the treatment method is the same; while for the same disease, if the pathogenesis differs, the treatment methods vary. This represents a concrete application and innovation of the famous physicians’ formulas from previous generations, characterized by simplicity, convenience, effectiveness, and affordability, and it still holds significant application value today.
The formula for treating soft foot plague (also known as damp plague) from “Experience of Unique Formulas”:
Symptoms: Clear diarrhea, swollen feet that are difficult to move.
Recommended: Cang Zhu Bai Hu Wan, which is Bai Hu Tang (White Tiger Decoction) plus Cang Zhu (Atractylodes).
Bai Hu Tang was first described in the “Shang Han Lun” (Treatise on Cold Damage) by the medical sage Zhang Zhongjing. In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), “Bai Hu” refers to the western metal deity, corresponding to the cool and dry air of autumn. Named for its rapid heat-clearing effect, it sweeps away the heat and dampness of summer, akin to the arrival of the cool and dry breath of autumn on the earth.
Composition: Shi Gao (Gypsum) (50g), Zhi Mu (Anemarrhena) (18g), Zhi Gan Cao (Honey-fried Licorice) (6g), Geng Mi (Polished Rice) (9g)
The main ingredient, Shi Gao, is a cold and pungent herb that specifically clears the real heat from the lungs and stomach, generates fluids, quenches thirst, and alleviates restlessness.
Assisted by Zhi Mu, which is bitter and cold, it helps Shi Gao clear real heat and nourishes the yin fluids damaged by the heat evil.
With Gan Cao and Geng Mi, it not only tonifies the spleen and benefits the stomach to generate fluids but also prevents Shi Gao and Zhi Mu’s extreme cold from harming the body.
The combination of these four herbs significantly enhances the heat-clearing and fluid-generating effects, primarily treating external wind-cold, transformation into heat, or damp-heat evils entering the lungs and stomach. It also provides considerable protection to the body.
This means that after the high fever subsides, the body is relaxed and comfortable, akin to the gentle sound of spring water flowing. It is no wonder that modern pharmacological studies indicate that Bai Hu Tang not only reduces fever but also enhances the body’s immunity.
What is the soft foot plague treated by Bai Hu Tang plus Cang Zhu?
Soft foot plague corresponds to what Western medicine refers to as poliomyelitis. The term soft foot plague originates from “Distinguishing Epidemic Diseases,” stating, “When the epidemic first arises, if there is pain and soreness in the legs, it is due to the stagnation of the Taiyang meridian… If it is accompanied by weakness, it is damp-heat, commonly known as soft foot plague.” It is also known as damp-heat atrophy, epidemic atrophy, or infantile paralysis.
This condition occurs when the summer damp evil invades through the mouth and nose, enters the muscles, obstructs the meridians, or when heat injures the yin fluids, causing the tendons to lose nourishment, leading to weakness and inability to move. The main manifestations include pale stools, muscle weakness, and over time, muscle atrophy, resulting in difficulty walking.
This is why treating soft foot plague requires first using Bai Hu Tang to clear heat and dampness.
Adding Cang Zhu, which is bitter, warm, and pungent, activates the spleen, stomach, and liver meridians, dries dampness, transforms turbidity, and alleviates pain. It is suitable for damp obstruction in the middle jiao, and its aromatic properties strengthen the spleen to harmonize the spleen and stomach. It is also applicable for wind-damp bi syndrome and damp-heat bi pain, paired with Shi Gao and Zhi Mu to clear heat and drain fire, beneficial for muscle atrophy and difficulty walking.
Thus, Bai Hu Tang plus Cang Zhu, which clears heat, transforms dampness, and alleviates bi syndrome, has become a well-known formula for treating damp-warm diseases, namely soft foot plague. It is not only included in “Experience of Unique Formulas” but also recorded in many other medical texts such as “Pujizhengliang.”
Reminder: Due to individual differences in health conditions, the formulas provided in this article should be adjusted according to the reader’s situation, and it is recommended to seek guidance from a professional physician.
(Images sourced from the internet; please contact for removal if there are any copyright issues.)
Scan to follow me!
