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Cultural Reference · Formula

Biota Heart-Nourishing

Bǎi Zǐ Yǎng Xīn Wán

柏子养心丸

≈ 500 years · "Compilation of Bodily Benevolence" (1549)

Last reviewed: July 18, 2026

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A modern "yang-xin an-shen, zi-yin bu-shen" (nourish the heart and calm the spirit, enrich yin and tonify the kidney) formula standardized in the PRC Pharmacopoeia, the most widely sold "overworked heart-yin" formula in mainland China.

Cultural reference - how this formula has been discussed in Chinese medical tradition. Not medical advice.

Background & origin

Dating to the Ming-dynasty "Compilation of Bodily Benevolence" (《体仁汇编》, 1549) by Peng Yongguang (彭用光), the formula has been re-standardized in the PRC Pharmacopoeia as the modern Biota Heart-Nourishing preparation. In Japan, the related prescription appears as 柏子養心丸 (Hakushi-yōshin-gan) in Kracie (クラシエ) and other makers' OTC lines for "heart-yin deficiency" indications. In Korea, it is sold as 백자양심환 in the Kyungdong (경동) hanbang line. The formula is, in short, a Ming-era "calm-spirit" formula that has been re-expressed in dedicated Japanese and Korean product lines.

From the source text

This page is cultural documentation, not medical advice.

From the source text · 《体仁汇编》内·怔忡惊悸门·柏子养心丸条

Classical text

据《体仁汇编》：柏子养心丸，治心劳太过，神不守舍，合眼则梦，遗精不眠，心神恍惚。柏子仁、酸枣仁、当归、茯神、麦门冬、熟地黄、玄参、五味子、远志、人参、黄芪、甘草。

Modern Chinese rendering

本方用于"心劳太过、神不守舍"系列证候：心阴不足、心肾不交所致的失眠多梦、心悸易惊、健忘、遗精、精神恍惚、口干舌红。方以柏子仁、酸枣仁、五味子、远志、茯神养心安神、定志止遗为君；当归、熟地黄、麦门冬、玄参滋阴养血、补水制火为臣；佐以人参、黄芪补心气、益心阴；甘草调和诸药。整体上，是明代"养心安神 + 滋阴补肾"思路下"心肾同治、标本兼顾"代表方，临床用于"心阴虚、肾阴亦虚"之虚证失眠、心悸。

Editorial translation

This formula is used for "heart-overexertion with spirit unable to reside in its chamber" patterns: heart-yin deficiency with heart-kidney non-interaction causing insomnia with profuse dreams, palpitations with easy fright, poor memory, seminal emissions, mental confusion, dry mouth, and a red tongue. The Bǎi Zǐ Yǎng Xīn Wán uses Bǎi Zǐ Rén, Suān Zǎo Rén, Wǔ Wèi Zǐ, Yuǎn Zhì, and Fú Shén to nourish the heart, calm the spirit, settle the will, and stop seminal emissions as sovereign; Dāng Guī, Shú Dì Huáng, Mài Mén Dōng, and Xuán Shēn enrich yin, nourish blood, supplement water, and restrain fire as minister; Rén Shēn and Huáng Qí tonify heart qi and heart yin as assistants; Gān Cǎo harmonizes the formula. It is, in short, the Ming-dynasty representative formula for "heart-kidney simultaneous treatment, addressing both root and branch" of the "deficiency-type" sleep-disturbance register.

In tradition

In TCM framing, traditionally used in the context of "heart-yin deficiency with restless spirit", difficulty falling asleep, light or easily disturbed sleep, occasional palpitations, easy forgetting, mild anxiety, dry mouth and throat, and a red tongue with little coating. The formula pairs the classical Biota seed (Bǎi Zǐ Rén) idea with a more substantial qi-and-yin tonic base, making it a "deficiency-type" sleep aid. In Japan, related prescription appears as 柏子養心丸 (Hakushi-yōshin-gan) in Kracie and other makers' OTC lines, and in Korea as 백자양심환 in the Kyungdong (경동) hanbang line.

Formula composition

Monarch5

  • Biota seed (Bǎi Zǐ Rén / 柏子仁)
  • Poria (Fú Líng / 茯苓)
  • Sour jujube seed (Suān Zǎo Rén / 酸枣仁)
  • Polygala root (Yuǎn Zhì / 远志)
  • Schisandra fruit (Wǔ Wèi Zǐ / 五味子)

Minister1

  • Chinese angelica root (Dāng Guī / 当归)

Assistant6

  • Codonopsis root (Dǎng Shēn / 党参)
  • Honey-fried astragalus (Zhì Huáng Qí / 炙黄芪)
  • Chuanxiong rhizome (Chuān Xiōng / 川芎)
  • Cassia bark (Ròu Guì / 肉桂)
  • Pinellia ferment (Bàn Xià Qū / 半夏曲)
  • Cinnabar (Zhū Shā / 朱砂)

Envoy1

  • Honey-fried licorice (Zhì Gān Cǎo / 炙甘草)

International availability

Japan (Kampo)

  • KracieクラシエOTC柏子養心丸Hakushi-yōshin-gan

Korea (Hanbang)

  • Kyungdong경동OTC백자양심환Baekja-yangsim-hwan

Taiwan & Hong Kong

  • 順天堂OTC柏子養心丸Bai Zi Yang Xin Wan

Cautions & context

  • Not appropriate during acute illness with fever, TCM tradition warns against "tonifying during an external pathogen".
  • People taking sedative or hypnotic medications (benzodiazepines, z-drugs, antidepressants) should consult a clinician, the formula contains several calming herbs.
  • Persistent insomnia, palpitations, or memory issues should be evaluated by a clinician, TCM tonics are not a substitute for evaluation of cardiac, thyroid, or psychiatric causes.
  • Pregnant or breastfeeding people should consult a qualified practitioner before use.

Related formulas

Related concerns

Concern · stress

Stress & Mood

Everyday tension, low mood, irritability, the sense of being "wound up but tired". The cluster of complaints that brings many Chinese adults to the family 中成药 drawer before they ever see a doctor.

Read more →Topic

Concern · sleep

Sleep

Difficulty falling asleep, light sleep, dream-disturbed sleep, and the "tired but cannot switch off" pattern that follows overwork or worry.

Read more →Topic

Editorial note

Compiled from "Compilation of Bodily Benevolence" (1549).

Last reviewed: July 18, 2026

Three layers of evidence

Classical source

≈ 500 years · "Compilation of Bodily Benevolence" (1549)

Pharmacopoeia indication

"Tonify qi, nourish blood, calm the spirit. Used for heart qi cold deficiency: palpitations with easy fright, insomnia with frequent dreams, and poor memory."

Modern research status

As of 2026-07-18, a PubMed search using the formula name and the Latin / Korean / Japanese transliterations together with "systematic review" and "meta-analysis" did not identify a dedicated systematic review for this formula. Any clinical evidence that does exist is fragmented across small individual trials or covered in broad herbal-medicine umbrella reviews, which do not allow a per-formula evidence assessment; the absence of a dedicated SR is itself the relevant editorial fact here.

No systematic review identified on PubMed

Read our editorial method →

References

References reviewed on July 18, 2026 · PubMed search on 2026-07-18

  1. 01
    ClassicalPéng Yòngguāng (彭用光), 《体仁汇编》 (Tǐ Rén Huì Biān / Compilation of Bodily Benevolence), Ming-dynasty physician, preface dated 1548, the "fright-palpitation" (怔忡惊悸) section, the entry for Bǎi Zǐ Yǎng Xīn Wán (柏子养心丸), the representative "nourish heart and calm spirit + enrich yin and tonify kidney" formula of the "deficiency-type sleep-disturbance" register; editorial adaptation from 1548 preface edition, pending scholarly verification of exact textual wording.
  2. 02
    TextbookDuān Fùjīn (段富津) et al. (eds.), 《方剂学》 (Fāngjìxué / Science of Formulas), 2nd edition, Shanghai Scientific and Technical Publishers, 2011, the standard modern university-level formula textbook in mainland China, with Bǎi Zǐ Yǎng Xīn Wán analysed in the "calming formulas" (安神剂) chapter as a representative "heart-yin deficiency" formula, the canonical entry for the "deficiency-type sleep-disturbance" register.
  3. 03
    TextbookKracie (クラシエ) and other Japanese manufacturers, Hakushi-yōshin-gan (柏子養心丸) prescription family product documentation, Japan's OTC Kampo "heart-yin deficiency" product family derived from the late-Ming 《体仁汇编》 line, sold in Japanese drugstores for "deficiency-type" sleep and palpitations indications; mirrored in Korean hanbang 백자양심환 preparations in Kyungdong (경동) product line.
  4. 04
    PharmacopoeiaPharmacopoeia Commission of the PRC, 《中华人民共和国药典》 2020 edition, vol. 1 (Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó Yàodiǎn, Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China, 2020 ed., vol. 1), China Medical Science Press, 2020, the official national monograph for Bǎi Zǐ Yǎng Xīn Wán (丸 / 浓缩丸), "functional indication" reads "tonify qi, nourish blood, calm the spirit, used for heart qi cold deficiency: palpitations with easy fright, insomnia with frequent dreams, and poor memory".