When the body feels heavy and slow

A heavy body from the morning, heavy limbs, sluggish digestion, fatigue that increases in damp weather, a sense of moving in slow motion… In TCM, these signs may be associated with lingering Dampness. The Spleen, responsible for transforming and transporting the Fluids, no longer keeps them circulating, and they accumulate. According to tradition, Dampness in turn blocks the Qi, and blocked Qi lets Dampness settle in: a circle that the formula seeks to break.

Wu Pi Yin is linked to the Hua Shi Zhong Zang Jing (《华氏中藏经》), attributed to the famous physician Hua Tuo (华佗), at the end of the Eastern Han. The attribution remains uncertain: the text that has come down to us was probably compiled under the Song. The formula also appears, under the Ming, in the Zheng Zhi Zhun Sheng (《证治准绳》) by Wang Kentang (王肯堂). Its distinctive feature lies in its ingredients: only barks and peels, which tradition says are oriented towards the surface of the body.

When Qi circulates, the Fluids circulate

The formula works on three levels. Above, mulberry root bark descends Lung Qi, which tradition regards as the upper source of the Fluids. In the middle, tangerine peel sets the Qi of the centre moving again. Below, poria skin supports the Spleen, while ginger peel directs the whole towards the surface. It is a constant saying of the tradition: when Qi circulates, the Fluids circulate.

Helps transform Dampness: Sweet and bland, poria skin supports the Spleen, which in TCM is responsible for transforming Dampness, without weakening it.

Supports the flow of Qi: Tangerine peel, pungent and warm, moves the Qi of the centre, and mulberry root bark descends that of the Lung: the Qi regains its movement, from top to bottom.

Helps restore a feeling of lightness: Slightly cool, ginger peel disperses towards the surface what lingers, and completes the action of the three other peels for a less heavy body.