澤瀉湯Zé Xiè Tāng
Alisma Decoction
治心下有支飲, 其人苦冒眩者, 主之。
A treatment for propping rheum below the heart, where the person suffers from veiling dizziness, (this formula) rules it.
澤瀉（五兩） 白朮（二兩 ）
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zé xiè
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澤瀉
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15g
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bái zhú
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白朮
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6g
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上二味, 以水二升, 煮取一升, 分溫再服。
Simmer the two ingredients above in 400 ml, until reduced to 200 ml. Divide and take heated in two doses.
Song 歌曰:
清陽之位飲邪乘, 眩冒頻頻苦不勝; 澤五為君朮二兩, 補脾制水有奇能。
The location of clear yáng has been overwhelmed by the presence of pathogenic rheum, causing (one to) suffer from frequent veiling dizziness which is difficult to endure; fifteen grams of the sovereign zé xiè and six of bái zhú, have the special ability of supplementing the spleen and controlling water.
Commentary by Lín Lǐfēng[1] 受業林禮豐按:
心者, 陽中之陽。 頭者, 諸陽之會。 人之有陽氣, 猶天之有日也。 天以日而光明, 猶人之陽氣會於頭而目能明視也。 夫心下有支飲, 則飲邪上蒙於心, 心陽被遏不能上會於巔, 故有頭冒目眩之病。 仲師特下一“苦”字, 是水陰之氣\\盪漾於內, 而冒眩之苦有莫可言傳者, 故主澤瀉陽。 蓋澤瀉氣味甘寒, 生於水中, 得水陰之氣而能利水, 一莖直上, 能從下而上, 同氣相求, 領水陰之氣以下走, 然猶恐水氣下而復上, 故用白朮之甘溫, 崇土制水者以諸之, 猶治水者之必筑堤防也。 古聖用方之妙, 有如此者; 今人反以澤瀉利水伐腎, 多服傷目之說疑之。 其說創於宋元諸醫, 而李時珍、 張景岳、 李士材、 汪讱庵輩和之, 貽害至今弗熄。 然天下人信李時珍之《本草》者, 殆未讀《神農本草經》耶? 余先業師《神農本經小注》最詳, 願業斯道者, 三復之而後可。
The heart is yáng within yáng; the head is the gathering place of all yáng. Humans have yáng qì, as heaven has the sun. Heaven, by means of the sun is bright, as such human\’s yang qì gathers in the head and eyes providing bright vision. When there is propping rheum below the heart, water rheum will ascend and cloud the heart obstructing heart yáng, which is (then) unable to gather at the top of the head, causing dizziness and dizzy vision. Master Zhòng used the following character “苦” (kǔ) to convey the suffering of dizziness, (resulting from) the qì of water yīn agitating and flowing into the interior. This is ruled by zé xiè tāng. The qì and flavor of zé xiè tāng is sweet and cold, and since it grows in water, where it obtains the qi (of water yīn), it is able to disinhibit water. (Similar to the way) the stalk ascends vertically it can (help) bring the qì together from the bottom to the top and guide the qì of water yīn in its downward movement. However (with) fear of water rising again after it has descended, sweet and warm bái zhú is used so earth can restrain the various forms of water so while still treating water, an embankment is built. The ancient sages were very clever in using formulas like these.
People nowadays, are administering copious amounts of zé xièto disinhibit water and quell the kidneys, which damages the objective (of this) doctrine and (creates) doubt (of its effectiveness). This doctrine began with the physicians of the Sóng[2]and Yuàn[3]dynasties, as well as contemporaries such as Lǐ Shízhēn[4], Zhāng Jǐngyuè[5], Lǐ Shìcái[6], and Wāng Rènān[7], who have left a legacy, which has yet to die even to the present day. Even though people of the world trust the words of Lǐ Shízhēn’s Běn Cǎo, why have almost (none of them) read the Shén Nóng Běn Cǎo Jīng? My passed masters’ copy of the classic was annotated with extreme detail, and it is my hope that one follows this way in their course of study, repeatedly returning to (the classic).
People nowadays, are administering copious amounts of zé xièto disinhibit water and quell the kidneys, which damages the objective (of this) doctrine and (creates) doubt (of its effectiveness). This doctrine began with the physicians of the Sóng[2]and Yuàn[3]dynasties, as well as contemporaries such as Lǐ Shízhēn[4], Zhāng Jǐngyuè[5], Lǐ Shìcái[6], and Wāng Rènān[7], who have left a legacy, which has yet to die even to the present day. Even though people of the world trust the words of Lǐ Shízhēn’s Běn Cǎo, why have almost (none of them) read the Shén Nóng Běn Cǎo Jīng? My passed masters’ copy of the classic was annotated with extreme detail, and it is my hope that one follows this way in their course of study, repeatedly returning to (the classic).
[1] Lín Lǐfēng was believed to be a student of Chén Xiūyuán. The characters 受業can be translated as ‘to receive instructions’, ‘to study’, ‘to learn from a master’, or as a first pronoun as ‘I’, or ‘your student’, often used as a title by a teachers’ disciple. I have opted to translate this as the latter, but in the interest of keeping the translation clean, have left is as commentary by Lín Lǐfēng, as opposed to ‘Commentary by I (your student) Lín Lǐfēng’.
[2] Sòng Dynasty (960–1179 A.D.)
[3] Yuán (Mongol) Dynasty (1260–1368 A.D.)
[4] Lǐ Shízhēn (1518-1593), Míng botanist and pharmacologist, as well as the author of the Compendium of medical herbs 本草綱目
[5]Late Míng dynasty physician who wrote several books including the ‘Rectification of the Materia Medica’本草正
[6] Míng dynasty phyisician who wrote several books including the ‘Essential Knowledge from the Inner Classic’內經知要
[7] Wāng Áng (1615-1694), Late Míng and early Qīng dynasty physician who wrote the ‘Essentials of the Materia Medica’ 本草備要
Eran Even, Ph.D., Dr. TCM. 