1. Dayuan Yin from "Wenyi Lun"

1. Dayuan Yin from "Wenyi Lun"

[Composition] Areca nut 6 grams, magnolia bark 3 grams, cardamom 2 grams, anemarrhena 3 grams, peony 3 grams, scutellaria 3 grams, licorice 1.5 grams.

[Administration] Decoct in water and take orally.

[Indications] Malaria pathogens lie dormant in the membrane origin.

[Symptoms] Alternating chills and fever, frequent attacks, chest and flank discomfort, restlessness and nausea, heavy head as if wrapped, taut and rapid pulse, greasy tongue coating like accumulated powder.

[Functions] Open the membrane origin, dispel impurities, and transform turbid substances.

[Formula Analysis] Malaria pathogens are the evil forces of epidemic disease. Wu Youke believed: "Epidemic diseases are caused by the harmful qi of heaven and earth... They enter through the mouth and nose, lodging neither in the internal organs nor in the meridians, but rather in the subcutaneous tissue, not far from the surface, close to the stomach—this is the boundary between the exterior and interior, known in the Inner Canon as 'transversely connecting the membrane origin.'" This indicates that epidemic pathogens reside in the membrane origin, which lies in the semi-exterior, semi-interior region, thus causing the aforementioned symptoms. When pathogens reside in the semi-exterior, semi-interior region, alternating chills and fever occur, along with frequent attacks, chest and flank discomfort, restlessness and nausea, and a taut, rapid pulse. Epidemic pathogens often carry warm, turbid qi, resulting in a heavy head as if wrapped and a greasy tongue coating like accumulated powder. In this formula, cardamom and areca nut disperse qi and break up stagnation, while magnolia bark descends qi and transforms phlegm. These three herbs open up qi stagnation and disperse damp-turbidity, directly reaching the membrane origin to defeat the pathogenic qi and swiftly drive it out, making them the primary agents. Since epidemic pathogens are inherently hot, scutellaria is bitter and cold, clearing the heat in the semi-exterior, semi-interior region as a supporting agent. Hot qi easily harms yin, so anemarrhena nourishes yin, and white peony consolidates yin, together providing complementary treatment. Licorice harmonizes all the herbs and serves as a guiding agent.

[Clinical Modifications]

① If there is flank pain and deafness, along with chills, fever, and bitterness in the mouth due to excessive heat in the Shaoyang meridian, add 3 grams of bupleurum to this formula; if there is lower back and neck pain due to excessive heat in the Taiyang meridian, add 3 grams of qianghuo; if there is eye pain, eyebrow pain, orbital pain, or nasal dryness and insomnia due to excessive heat in the Yangming meridian, add 3 grams of gan ge.

② If this formula omits anemarrhena and peony, adding bupleurum, zhishi, green peel, platycodon, and lotus leaf stem results in a formula specifically for treating damp-phlegm obstructing the diaphragm, causing chest and diaphragm fullness, restlessness, dizziness, sticky mouth, unsatisfactory cough, intermittent malaria attacks, and coarse tongue coating like accumulated powder. (From "Popular Shanghan Lun")

[References]

① Areca nut can eliminate and grind away latent pathogens, serving as a dispersing and unblocking agent, while also removing the miasma of Lingnan; magnolia bark breaks down the stagnant qi; cardamom has a strong, pungent aroma that eliminates lingering pathogens. Together, these three herbs work synergistically to reach the nest of the pathogen, defeating it and swiftly driving it out of the membrane origin, thus achieving the purpose of "opening the membrane origin." (From "Wenyi Lun")

② The membrane origin is also called the "muyuan," referring to the space between the pleura and the diaphragm. According to "Suwen·Jutong Lun": "Cold qi invades the space between the intestines and the stomach, beneath the membrane origin." Wang Bing's commentary states: "The 'membrane' refers to the membrane between the diaphragm; the 'origin' refers to the origin of the diaphragm." (From "Brief Chinese Medicine Dictionary")

③ Using Dayuan Yin to treat an acute fever case: a 30-year-old male patient had been experiencing fever without sweat for six days, accompanied by body aches, fatigue, mild cough, worsening at night, with a body temperature of 39°C, both pulses soft and slow, red tongue, and yellow, greasy tongue coating. After administering two doses of Dayuan Yin with added ingredients, the fever subsided and his condition improved. (From "Gansu: Selected Materials on Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine," September 1980)

[Commentary] This formula is suitable for malaria, influenza, and other diseases.