Xuan Shen, “the black root”
Xuan Shen reads “the black root”, literally “dark ginseng”: the cut surface of the dried root is jet black, and the plant’s stem is a little reminiscent of ginseng’s. It is the root of Ningpo figwort, Scrophularia ningpoensis, a square-stemmed perennial that grows in ravines and along riverbanks in southern and eastern China. Its benchmark growing region is Zhejiang, above all Pan’an county, where it is counted among the “eight great herbs of Zhejiang”. It is harvested around the “Start of Winter”, when stems and leaves have withered. A good root is heavy, firm, waxy, glossy black as if oiled, and smells of burnt caramel.
Clearing and nourishing at once
In traditional Chinese medicine, Xuan Shen is cold, sweet, bitter and salty in flavour. The sweet nourishes and moistens, the bitter descends and clears, the salty leads it to the Kidney, the root of the Yin. The Ben Cao Zheng Yi defines it in a phrase: cold without being harsh, moistening without being greasy. It is associated with the Lung, the Stomach and the Kidney, whose Fluids suffer most when Heat settles in. Its singularity is this double movement: it clears Heat and at the same time restores the Fluids that Heat has dried up, where clearing alone would leave the Yin even more depleted.
Nourishing the Yin, clearing the throat
Its sap-filled root nourishes the Yin of the Kidney and the Lung, and brings down the Fire that rises when the Yin is lacking; Li Shizhen summed it up thus: nourish the Yin and bring down the Fire. Tradition credits it in particular with clearing the throat, whether the Heat comes from outside or from a lack of Yin. With raw rehmannia, it forms the great pair for cooling the Blood and nourishing the Yin; with isatis root, it protects the throat from drying out. Its cold nature suits it to times when Heat is clearly present. Modern research is taking a particular interest in harpagoside.
Key benefits
Nourished Yin & Restored Fluids
Sweet and moistening, it nourishes the Yin of the Kidney and the Lung and restores the moisture that Heat has dried up.
Cleared Heat & Coolness
Cold without being harsh, it clears Heat without exhausting the Yin.
Soothed & Moistened Throat
Tradition credits it with clearing the throat: it soothes it and protects it from drying out.
