The Broad Use of Guì Zhī Fú Líng Wán

^{This is post #9 in the WPC blog.  Click here to visit the blog homepage.}

As a follow-up to the last post, I want to show the broad-ranging application of Guì Zhī Fú Líng Wán. In my book on this formula, I have translated over fifty cases for which it was used, almost always modified. Here is a short list of diseases successfully treated with it taken from these case studies:

Below are a couple of interesting case studies with illuminating discussions: 

Case 1: Inability to Walk

Dr. Huáng Huáng: An 82-year-old man could suddenly walk from his childhood home to the outdoor market and back again! This made his whole family so happy! 10 years previously, he had a massive hemorrhage in his lung when a pulmonary alveolus burst. Then, he got repeated lung infections. Daily, he felt right-side chest pain, shortness of breath with movement, back pain, and leg weakness, so walking about was quite difficult. He was also constipated. The X-ray showed a soft tissue mass in his lower right lung. There was also accumulated fluid in his chest cavity on the right side. I gave him the following formula:

He took this for only one week, and the effect was apparent. I also felt overjoyed.  

In recent years, I have used Guì Zhī Fú Líng Wán successfully for lung disease again and again. This lung disease is most often very long-term and chronic, or it is a cough from chronic obstructive pulmonary emphysema, idiopathic pulmonary hypertension, diabetic bleeding of the lungs, bronchitis, or constitutional heart disease. Although the diseases are not the same, the condition of congealed blood is common to them all. The manifestation is as above: a dark facial complexion, purple, dark lips, shortness of breath with movement, and chest pain. Below, there may be constipation, back pain, superficial edema of lower legs, cramping of leg muscles, cold legs with scaling, and flakey, dark skin. 

This kind of case is often incomprehensible for students. From the point of view of the Jīn Guì Yào Lüè, it is challenging to see the connection between Guì Zhī Fú Líng Wán and lung disease. The classics talk about it in a very sketchy, brief way, saying, "Among women with a history of concretions, if there is no menstruation for 3 months (i.e., the woman is 3 months pregnant) when dripping of blood begins without stopping, there is fetal movement above the umbilicus." Abiding by the ancient methods, later generations use Guì Zhī Fú Líng Wán to discharge an expired fetus, scatter myomas, and stop the dripping of blood. For the most part, the scope is within the gynecology clinic. However, looking far and wide, from China to other countries, the clinical application of Guì Zhī Fú Líng Wán has expanded enormously. There are opportunities to use this formula within many departments, such as respiratory, cardiac, hematology, neurology, dermatology, andrology, and surgery. As a matter of fact, this is not only true for Guì Zhī Fú Líng Wán. It is like this for many classical formulas. Understanding this in the movement toward using classical formulas for countless modern applications is extremely important. To learn the classic formula application, one must read the classics and not be a stickler for the original text. The physician of the Qing dynasty named Lu Zhen said it well, "Whenever reading Zhòng Jǐng's text, not only should you know his method of determining the pattern from the placing of the words and sentences, but you should moreover participate in his method for living from the place that has no words and sentences" As for the method of determining the pattern, this is the established experience and customs; As for this method of life, this is the law to be discovered and the principles of dealing with problems. From the perspective of the classic formulas masters, (when) reading the classics, (one must) be proficient in the original text concerning the formulas and formula presentation to restore health to the whole body." In terms of the skills of classic formulas, when reading the classic text, it is only when one is adept at the formula patterns of the classic formulas from the original classic text that one can progress to complete recovery. It is like a paleontologist who can create a whole dinosaur from one fossilized bone.  The formula pattern described in the classic text is accurate.  However, it is not the whole picture.  If you say that the formula pattern is like an iceberg, then the formula pattern described in the classic text is like a little rivulet of water from the iceberg.  It is just a fraction of the whole.  

Case 2: Itching of the Shoulder and Back

Mr. Tan, age 15, was a student. He came in for his first visit on August 8, 2012

The patient had suffered from an itchy rash on his shoulders and back. During the last half year, it gradually became denser. Sweating made the itching increase. He had gone to several hospitals' dermatology departments, but the diagnosis was unclear. He took internal medicines and applied external salves, but they had no effect. His urination, bowels, appetite, and sleep were all fine.  

Check-up: He was covered with millet-sized pimples from his shoulders to his back. The pimples were engorged with blood but faded with pressure. The skin between the papules was normal compared to the dense area on his shoulders and back, which were big, thick, and red.  

Mr. Tan was thin and tall. His face was yellow and dark with little luster. His muscles were tight. His right pulse was thin. His tongue was pure red, and he had thick white, turbid moss. He had a habit of eating stimulating junk food from a small shop beside his school. I advised him to avoid spicy foods and fishy-smelling foods. I gave him Chai Hu Gui Zhi Tang with Guì Zhī Fú Líng Wán modified.  

Second visit: September 22

Mr. Tan broke into a sweat that was stronger than before. While he was sweating, the itching was extreme. Looking at his back, there were 2-3 new rash areas on his shoulder and back. The color was red and slightly pale. His pulse was wiry and thin, and his tongue was pure red. The moss was white and greasy but already thinner. I gave him Chai Hu Gui Zhi Tang with Guì Zhī Fú Líng Wán and Sheng Jiang San.  

I gave him ten packages.

Third visit: October 3

The itching significantly decreased. The shoulder and back rash waned by more than half. The color changed to a dark pale. The tongue was deep red with sticky wet moss. The pulse was even. I gave him nine packages of the protective formula.

Fourth visit: October 12. The rash was gone, and there was just some pigmentation left. There was no itching. The tongue was deep red with thin white, moist moss. The pulse was even. 

Discussion:

1. From the point of view of the patient's continence, if the patient's appearance is sluggish without any bright wittiness and the illness is chronic, consider that this is a Chai Hu body type.
2. When sweating makes the itching worse; this is a Lian Qiao pattern.
3. At the first visit, the patient's tongue had thick, white, sticky, turbid moss. This indicates an internal pattern of damp turbidity, so several herbs from San Ren Tang were added. After the moss was thinner, then consider the junk food he ate with pepper oil and roasted meats. This is why I use Sheng Jiang San Xiao San to scatter static toxins.  

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