Shen Jie San (神解散) originates from “Wen Bing Tiao Bian” (温病条辨), an experiential formula by the renowned Qing Dynasty warm disease expert Wu Ju Tong (吴鞠通). The formula consists of: Bai Jiang Can (白僵蚕, Fried Silkworm) 1 qian (3g), Chan Tui (蝉蜕, Cicada Slough) 5 pieces, Shen Qu (神曲, Medicinal Fermented Mass) 3 qian (9g), Jin Yin Hua (金银花, Honeysuckle Flower) 2 qian (6g), Sheng Di Huang (生地黄, Rehmannia Root) 2 qian (6g), Mu Tong (木通, Akebia Stem), Che Qian Zi (车前子, Plantago Seed, fried and ground), Huang Qin (黄芩, Scutellaria), Huang Lian (黄连, Coptis), Huang Bai (黄柏, Phellodendron, salt-water fried), and Jie Geng (桔梗, Platycodon) each 1 qian (3g). Decoct in water and strain. Add an appropriate amount of Huang Jiu (黄酒, Yellow Wine) and 3 tablespoons of honey, mix well and take cold, three times a day. According to “Wen Bing Tiao Bian”, this formula “clears heat, dispels evil, detoxifies, and drains fire”, primarily treating warm diseases. Patients typically experience chills, heavy body, high fever, headache, weakness in limbs, widespread body aches, bitter mouth, dry throat, and fullness in the chest and abdomen. This is a complex post-infection symptom characterized by fever, fatigue, chills, along with limb soreness, heavy body, and gastrointestinal reactions such as bitter mouth, dry throat, and fullness in the chest and abdomen. The warm disease school considers this condition to belong to the damp-heat syndrome, where dampness and heat are mixed together, akin to oil and flour combined. Treatment should simultaneously clear heat and promote dampness drainage. The ingredients in this formula, including Chan Tui, Jin Yin Hua, Sheng Di, Huang Qin, Huang Lian, and Huang Bai, are all heat-clearing and detoxifying herbs that primarily clear heat and drain fire; Mu Tong and Che Qian Zi are diuretic herbs that primarily dispel dampness. The combination of dampness and heat inevitably produces phlegm; Bai Jiang Can helps to calm wind, stop spasms, and resolve phlegm and masses, while Jie Geng promotes lung function and relieves phlegm and pus. Both are primarily phlegm-dispelling. Shen Qu aids digestion and harmonizes the middle, alleviating fullness in the chest and abdomen. The combined use of these herbs can relieve various symptoms in patients. The formulation approach of this formula draws from the principles of Sheng Jiang San (升降散, Ascending and Descending Powder, composed of Bai Jiang Can, Chan Tui, Jiang Huang, and Da Huang) and Huang Lian Jie Du Tang (黄连解毒汤, Coptis Detoxifying Decoction, composed of Huang Lian, Huang Qin, Huang Bai, and Zhi Zi). Sheng Jiang San treats excess fire in the San Jiao (三焦, Three Burners) and various discomforts, while Huang Lian Jie Du Tang addresses excess fire in the San Jiao, severe heat, agitation, and symptoms of vomiting and diarrhea. Therefore, this formula primarily treats excess fire in the San Jiao, but with symptoms leaning towards damp-heat. These symptoms are generally associated with infectious diseases, and in the summer and autumn, food poisoning can also lead to fever, nausea, vomiting, and body aches. Such diseases can all be treated symptomatically with Shen Jie San.
