Ghost Herbs 3
little did you realize...
Today let’s continue the #ghostherbs series with one everybody uses and nobody suspects of having apotropaic properties: Mu Xiang, a.k.a. Aucklandia/Saussurea root, Costus root.
Modern TCM view of Mu Xiang
Let’s start with what everybody learned in materia medica class, the TCM-standard view of the herb. Here’s a summary of the properties, actions and indications of Mu Xiang paraphrased from the Bensky et al (2004) Materia Medica, pp 530-531
Pharmaceutical name: Aucklandiae lappae Radix
Properties: Acrid bitter warm
Enters GB LI SP ST TB
Actions: Promotes flow of qi, stops pain, strengthens SP, eliminates food stagnation
Indications: Primarily indicated for digestive disorders, bloating, distension, diarrhea, also dysentery if combined with cold bitter herbs like Huang Lian (Xiang Lian Wan). Frequently added to Spleen qi tonic formulas to improve digestion, for example Aucklandia and Amomum Six Gentlemen Decoction (Xiang Sha Liu Jun Zi Tang).
Pretty straightforward Regulate Qi category stuff. That’s mostly how we use it, throw a little bit in there to make the medicine go down.
Ancient view of Mu Xiang
From Sabine Wilms’ (2017) translation of Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing, p 54:
Muxiang
“wood fragrance”
Radix Aucklandiae lappae
Alternate name: mumi “wood honey”
Treats evil qi; wards off toxins, epidemics, (pathogenic) warmth, and demons; strengthens the will; and treats being drenched by rain and dew. Consumed over a long time, it staves off being awakened from your dreams by nightmares. Grows in mountain valleys.
So, a few things to unpack in this entry.
The first thing that we see is the herb’s ability to ward off exterior pathogens, including epidemics and Warm Disease pathogens, as well as demons. I’ve done most of my doctoral writing on Warm Diseases, specifically lurking pathogens, and I have seen (and treated) some examples that suggest that ghost diseases, demonic possessions, etc, and Warm diseases have some commonalities.
One of the features of Mu Xiang that makes it so useful in conventional practice as well as Warm diseases is its tropism for the Triple Burner. In a passage from Li Shi-zhen’s Ben Cao Gang Mu (Grand Materia Medica), translated by Bensky et al (2004), Mu Xiang is said to be
…of the Triple Burner qi level, raising and directing downward all of the qi. All pent-up constrained qi pertains to the Lungs [says Basic Questions], thus the reason for using it for upper burner qi stagnation is to drain metal constraint. All lack of transport of the middle qi pertains to the spleen...
Li Shi-zhen goes on to enumerate the usual middle Burner aspects we all learned. After he describes using it for lower Burner, i.e., Large Intestine, Bladder, and Liver problems, he writes:
thus the reason for using it for lower burner qi blockage is to unblock that which is plugged. (Bensky et al, 2004)
So Mu Xiang’s uses historically are not limited to the gastrointestinal applications we usually stick to today. Because it works on the qi dynamic (qi ji) of the Triple Burner, it can treat problems in any of the three Burners. Because it specifically enters the Yangming and Shaoyang channels as well as the Spleen, its action is especially focused on the Qi level, where a lot of lodged and lurking pathogens – which, when they become active, can produce some really weird, even ghostlike manifestations – will hang out, sometimes for years.
Cross-cultural and research views of Mu Xiang
Aucklandia lappa is also known in the literature as Saussurea lappa. It is a member of the thistle family, a perennial which grows to about 1 meter tall. It flourishes at altitudes of 2500-3500 meters. It is native to the Himalayan regions of India, Pakistan, Tibet and China, where it has nearly become extinct, and is on the CITES list of endangered species. The most common variety in use today is cultivated, largely in Yunnan or Sichuan provinces of China.
The medicinal part used is the root of the plant. It is a true example of cross-cultural Silk Road medicine. In Greco-Arabic medicine (Unani tibb) it is known as Qust (from where, presumably, it gets its common name of costus root). Its uses in Unani medicine are similar to its uses in Chinese medicine, though somewhat broader: Qust includes neurological applications like treating paralysis, tremors, and muscular dystrophy, as well as rheumatic complaints. These indications would expand the application of Mu Xiang in Chinese medicine to treating Wind-Damp obstruction, which makes sense, given its warm acrid and bitter properties; this may be related to the Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing’s reference to “being drenched by rain and dew.”
In Tibetan medicine Mu Xiang is used to treat inflammatory conditions of the lungs (recalling Li Shi-zhen’s comment on upper Burner metal constraint), as also as a brain stimulant and remedy for various digestive, liver, kidney and skin problems (Zahara, 2014). It is used in Indian Ayurvedic medicine for similar purposes (Zahara, 2014).
Through scientific research, Mu Xiang has been found to have neuroprotective, anti-spasmodic, anti-seizure, anti-cancer, anti-rheumatic, anti-inflammatory, hepatoprotective, anti-viral, anti-diarrheal, immunomodulating, hypoglycemic, hypolipidemic, and antiparasitic properties (Khan et al, 2013; Zahara et al 2014).
One more thought
The last bit I want to unpack here are two other applications in the Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing, namely strengthening the will and staving off being awakened by nightmares. When I read that Mu Xiang “strengthens the will”, I was reminded of Yuan Zhi (Radix Polygalae), which has the same function (Wilms, 2017, p61); it is a feature that people seem to remember about Yuan Zhi (likely because of the name, which Bensky translates as “profound will”) but have forgotten about Mu Xiang. Then it occurred to me that the two herbs are combined in Gui Pi Tang (Restore the Spleen Decoction), which is frequently used long-term to calm the Shen and aid in sleep. I always note to my students that in my experience patients for whom Gui Pi Tang is indicated really love their Gui Pi Tang. Could it be that Mu Xiang is doing more than just making the formula less cloying, that it is really helping to strengthen the will, staving off nightmares and warding off demons?
Note: this newsletter is for information purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Please seek the opinion of a health care professional for any specific medical issues you may have.
References
Bensky, D., Clavey, S., Stöger, E., & Gamble, A. (2004). Chinese herbal medicine: Materia medica (3rd ed.). Eastland Press.
Khan, M.A., Alam, A., & Husain, S. (2013). Qust (Saussurea lappa Clarke.) - a potent herb of unani medicine: A review. International Journal of Current Pharmaceutical Research, 5(4), 1-4.
Wilms, S. (2017). Shen Nong ben cao jing: The divine farmer’s classic of materia medica. Happy Goat Productions.
Zahara, K., Tabassum, S., Sabir, S., Arshad, M., Qureshi, R., Amjad, M. S., & Chaudhari, S. K. (2014). A review of therapeutic potential of Saussurea lappa-An endangered plant from Himalaya. Asian Pacific Journal of Tropical Medicine, 7S1, S60–S69. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1995-7645(14)60204-2