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Knowledge baseHerbs

Zi Bei Chi紫贝

Concha Mauritiae/CypraeaeCowry Shell

Also known asConcha Mauritiae Arabicae · Arabic Cowry Shell

Category
Herbs that calm the Spirit
Nature
neutral
Taste
salty
Channels entered
Liver
Secondary channels
Heart, Spleen
Dosage
6–15 g

Actions & indications

Calms the Liver, anchors Yang and sedates fright (calms the *Shen) and Calms convulsions.*
  • Liver Yang Rising or Deranged Heart Yang with dizziness, vertigo, palpitations and insomnia
  • Mania due to fevers
Clears the Liver, cools Heat and brightens the eyes
  • Red, swollen eyes with superficial visual obstruction, macula in children, cataracts, nebulae
  • Toxic heat, purulent Blood, dysentery
Promotes diuresis
Edema, leg Qi, hematuria, urinary retention

Contraindications

Use with caution in patients with weak digestion.

Combinations

Notes

  • Harvested in summer, the shell is freed from its muscle tissue, rinsed thoroughly, and sun-dried.
  • Should be crushed prior to decoction.
  • It addresses superficial visual obstruction caused by Toxic Heat, childhood spots and rashes that endanger the eyes, and night terrors that disrupt sleep.
  • The white portions are held to enter the Qi level, while the purple portions enter the Blood level.
  • It opens and clears the water passages, expels toxins, and directs Blood downward.
  • It is applied to clear urinary blockage, edema, leg Qi, macular rashes, childhood superficial visual obstruction, and toxicity of all kinds.
  • It softens hardness.
  • Used topically as eye drops for superficial visual obstruction.
  • Both Zi Bei Chi and Fossilia Dentis Mastodi Long Chi enter the Liver channel to calm the Liver, anchor Yang, and settle fright; Zi Bei Chi, being neutral in nature, is more effective at anchoring Yang and brightening the eyes, whereas Long Chi is heavier and more astringent, making it better suited to calming and quieting while also stabilizing and binding.
  • The calcined form, Calcined Cowry Shell Duan Zi Bei Chi, is prepared for use as eye drops.
  • Alternative names include Bei Ci and Zi Bei.

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