By Eric Brand

This weekend we have a fantastic special on Wang Qing-Ren’s “Zhu Yu Tang” family of formulas for blood stasis. The “Zhu Yu Tang” (Stasis-Expelling Decoctions) formula family is one of the most important groups of formulas for treating blood stasis in Chinese medicine. The entire formula family is loosely based on Tao Hong Si Wu Tang (Peach Kernel and Carthamus Four Agents Decoction), and includes the commonly used formulas Xue Fu Zhu Yu Tang (House of Blood Stasis-Expelling Decoction), Shao Fu Zhu Yu Tang (Lesser Abdomen Stasis-Expelling Decoction), Ge Xia Zhu Yu Tang (Infradiaphragmatic Stasis-Expelling Decoction), Tong Qiao Huo Xue Tang (Orifice-Freeing Blood-Quickening Decoction), and Shen Tong Zhu Yu Tang (Generalized Pain Stasis-Expelling Decoction).

Wang Qing-Ren’s theories on blood stasis were recorded in the Qing dynasty text Yi Lin Gai Cuo (“Correcting Errors in the Forest of Medicine”), which is one of the many pre-modern texts that Blue Poppy has translated into English. Wang’s book offers a fascinating opportunity to see the evolution of Chinese medicine because it was published in 1830 CE just prior to the widespread arrival of biomedicine. Wang is primarily notable for two things- his text describes dissection and includes a focus on anatomy that had been largely undeveloped since the time of the Nei Jing over 1600 years before, and it has a heavy emphasis on blood stasis, which has since come to be recognized as a prevalent factor in many different chronic diseases.

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While Wang’s book has some notable errors in terms of anatomy, he nonetheless had a revolutionary approach that stirred discussion and controversy. With over 40 Chinese editions of his book published between 1830 and 1950, Wang’s book was the most widely reprinted Chinese medical work of that particular time period. His formulas for treating blood stasis ended up becoming standard prescriptions in fields such as gynecology and rheumatology, and his qi-supplementing and blood-moving formula Bu Yang Huan Wu Tang (Yang-Supplementing Five-Returning Decoction) has evolved to become one of the key formulas for stroke patients in the modern day. Despite the controversial nature of his anatomical studies, Wang created some incredibly effective formulas that have never been surpassed, and his book has inspired an entire genre of modern Chinese medical texts that focus on blood stasis. Blue Poppy’s translation of Wang Qing Ren’s book Yi Lin Gai Cuo is available this weekend for a special discount on our website.

Wang Qing-Ren’s “Zhu Yu Tang” formulas are often described based on a region of the body. For example, Xue Fu Zhu Yu Tang is associated with blood stasis in the chest while Ge Xia Zhu Yu Tang is associated with stasis (and lumps) below the diaphragm. Tong Qiao Huo Xue Tang is associated with blood stasis in the head, and Shao Fu Zhu Yu Tang is associated with blood stasis in the lesser abdomen. Shen Tong Zhu Yu Tang is associated with the entire body.

However, it is important to look beyond these generalizations of body regions when looking at the Zhu Yu Tang formulas. I used to teach some formulas classes at PCOM in San Diego, and the students often were too quick to memorize the body regions without understanding the special characteristics of the formulas themselves. Shen Tong Zhu Yu Tang combines the quickening the blood with treating wind-damp, and is most commonly used for impediment (bi) pain. Shao Fu Zhu Yu Tang is warming and is key for combining the principles of expelling cold and quickening the blood. Ge Xia Zhu Yu Tang is excellent for pain as well as abdominal masses, and its ability to treat pain makes it incredibly important in gynecology. The wide ranging applications of Ge Xia Zhu Yu Tang can be underutilized if one purely associates it with the area below the diaphragm and fails to see the unique niche it has in gynecology. Shao Fu Zhu Yu Tang is also a major formula in gynecology that is excellent for pain (in this case, pain with cold and blood stasis).

The mother formula, Xue Fu Zhu Yu Tang, has a wide range of applications because it contains the essence of Si Ni San (Counterflow Cold Powder) and Tao Hong Si Wu Tang (Peach Kernel and Carthamus Four Agents Decoction). This gives it a good ability to regulate qi while quickening the blood, and it has Si Ni San’s fundamental tendency to course liver qi while regulating upbearing and downbearing. Xue Fu Zhu Yu Tang is important for a wide range of conditions spanning from gynecology to cardiology, and it occupies an important niche in formula theory. (As an aside, I remember translating a research paper for one of my teachers at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital in Taiwan that focused on Xue Fu Zhu Yu Tang for liver cirrhosis. The results were very promising.)

This weekend only, we have a special discount available on these formulas here at the Blue Poppy website. We have Wang Qing-Ren’s formulas available in both Blue Poppy gelcaps and Great Nature tablets, and Wang Qing-Ren’s Yi Lin Gai Cuo (Correcting Errors in the Forest of Medicine) text is on sale too. Check it out!