A "jie-biao tiao-ying-wei" (release the exterior and harmonize ying and wei) formula from Zhang Zhongjing's "Treatise on Cold Damage" (c. 200 CE), the canonical opening "tai-yang" stage formula.
Cultural reference - how this formula has been discussed in Chinese medical tradition. Not medical advice.
Background & origin
Compiled by Zhang Zhongjing in the "Treatise on Cold Damage" (《伤寒论》) around 200 CE as the canonical "tai-yang stage" opening formula, it has been continuously in use for nearly two thousand years. In Japan, it is sold as 桂枝湯 (けいしとう / Keishi-tō) by Tsumura (ツムラ), Kracie (クラシエ), and Kotaro (小太郎) and is one of the most commonly discussed "first-stage" kampo formulas. In Korea, it appears as 계지탕 (Gyegi-tang) in Kyungdong's (경동) standard hanbang line. The formula is, in short, one of the most cross-culturally reproduced Chinese formulas in the entire East Asian canon.
From the source text
This page is cultural documentation, not medical advice.
From the source text · 卷二·辨太阳病脉证并治上·第 12 条
Classical text
太阳中风，阳浮而阴弱，阳浮者热自发，阴弱者汗自出，啬啬恶寒，淅淅恶风，翕翕发热，鼻鸣干呕者，桂枝汤主之。
Modern Chinese rendering
用于太阳中风证：脉象阳浮而阴弱，阳浮则发热自生，阴弱则汗液自出，症见畏缩样怕冷、淅淅然恶风、翕翕然发热、鼻息鸣响而干呕者。这是"调和营卫"思路的开端条文，"汗出恶风"是太阳中风的代表性症候。
Editorial translation
Used in the pattern of "taiyang wind-strike": the pulse is floating at the yang level and weak at the yin level, floating yang means heat arises of itself, weak yin means sweat issues of itself, the patient shows huddled-up aversion to cold, shuddering aversion to wind, feather-warmth fever, nasal sounds and dry retching. This is the opening clause of the "harmonize ying and wei" line of reasoning, with "sweating and aversion to wind" as the representative sign of the "taiyang wind-strike" pattern.
In tradition
In TCM framing, traditionally used in the context of an "exterior" condition at the "tai-yang" stage, aversion to wind, mild fever, slight chills, stiffness of the neck, and absence of sweating (or mild sweating). It is the canonical opening-stage formula and is one of the most discussed prescriptions in Chinese medicine education. In Japan, it is sold as 桂枝湯 (Keishi-tō) by Tsumura, Kracie, and Kotaro, and in Korea as 계지탕 (Gyegi-tang) by Kyungdong, the formula is one of the most cross-culturally reproduced in the entire East Asian TCM canon.
Formula composition
Monarch1
- Cinnamon twig (Guì Zhī / 桂枝) — releases the exterior, warms the channels
Minister1
- White peony root (Bái Sháo / 白芍) — nourishes blood, astringes yin
Assistant2
- Ginger (Shēng Jiāng / 生姜) — warms the middle, assists cinnamon twig
- Chinese date (Dà Zǎo / 大枣) — nourishes the middle, harmonizes
Envoy1
- Honey-fried licorice (Zhì Gān Cǎo / 炙甘草) — harmonizes ying and wei
International availability
Cautions & context
- Not appropriate for active "heat" conditions with high fever and severe sore throat in TCM framing, the formula is described as "warming and harmonizing" rather than "clearing heat".
- Pregnant women should use only with qualified guidance, the formula is considered "warm" and "moving" in TCM pregnancy guidance.
- Symptoms that worsen rapidly, or that include chest pain, severe headache, or confusion, should be evaluated by a clinician, TCM self-care is not a substitute for evaluation of acute infections.
- People on anticoagulant therapy (warfarin, aspirin) should consult a clinician before high-dose or long-term use, cinnamon twig is considered to affect blood circulation in TCM framing.
Related formulas
Other formulas from this text· "Treatise on Cold Damage"
Other formulas by this contributor· Zhang Zhongjing
Related concerns
Concern · immune
Immune Support
The everyday language of "wanting to stay well", a sense of being run down, the change of seasons, occasional mouth ulcers, the slow recovery after a cold.
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.
Editorial note
Compiled from "Treatise on Cold Damage" (200).
Last reviewed: July 18, 2026
Three layers of evidence
Classical source
≈ 1800 years · "Treatise on Cold Damage" (200)
Pharmacopoeia indication
"Release the muscle-layer and exterior, harmonize the construction and defense. Used for external wind invasion: headache with fever, nasal congestion with dry retching, sweating with aversion to wind, or diarrhea, or unresolved fever."
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.
References
References reviewed on July 18, 2026 · PubMed search on 2026-07-18
- 01ClassicalZhang Zhongjing, 《伤寒论》 (Shānghán Lùn / Treatise on Cold Damage), Eastern Han dynasty, c. 200 CE, the canonical "taiyang" opening clause, with the base formula appearing in clause 12 of the "taiyang" section.
- 02TextbookDuan Fuqin (段富津) et al. (eds.), 《方剂学》 (Fāngjìxué / Textbook of Formulas), Shanghai Scientific and Technical Publishers, 1995, the standard modern university-level formula textbook in mainland China, with Gui Zhi Tang analysed as the representative "harmonize ying and wei" formula and the opening prescription of the textbook.
- 03PharmacopoeiaChinese Pharmacopoeia Commission, 《中华人民共和国药典》 2020 年版一部 (Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó Yàodiǎn, Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China, 2020 Edition, Vol. I), China Medical Science Press, 2020, the official monograph for Gui Zhi Tang / Gui Zhi Ke Li dosage forms.