Introduction
"Essentials from the Golden Cabinet"
This page is cultural documentation, not medical advice.
Companion volume to the Shanghan Lun, also written by Zhang Zhongjing at the end of the Eastern Han dynasty. Focuses on internal miscellaneous diseases (杂病) rather than exterior cold damage.
The Jingui Yaolue (《金匮要略》) is the second half of Zhang Zhongjing's original Shang Han Za Bing Lun (《伤寒杂病论》), covering internal miscellaneous diseases. It is the textual source of formulas such as Shenqi Wan (肾气丸), which is the parent formula of both Jin Gui Shen Qi Wan and (eventually) Liuwei Dihuang Wan. For this encyclopedia, the text is foundational for understanding the family of "kidney-tonifying" formulas: Liuwei Dihuang Wan, Gui Fu Di Huang Wan, and Zhi Bai Di Huang Wan all descend from the Shenqi Wan of this book.
Historical background
Originally the second half of Zhang Zhongjing's Shang Han Za Bing Lun (《伤寒杂病论》), the Jingui Yaolue focuses on internal miscellaneous diseases (杂病), complementing the Shanghan Lun. The combined text was lost in the late Eastern Han wars and rediscovered in fragments. The Jingui portion was reconstructed into its present three-volume form by the Northern Song medical bureau under Lin Yi (林亿), drawing on a partial manuscript preserved by Wang Shuhe (王叔和). The text systematized the diagnosis of dozens of internal disease categories and preserved canonical formulas such as Shenqi Wan (肾气丸). It became required reading for the imperial medical examinations and the most cited reference on 内伤杂病 through the Ming and Qing, and remains a foundational text in modern TCM curricula.
Formulas recorded in this text· 5
Formula · Guì Zhī Fú Líng Wán
Cinnamon and Poria
桂枝茯苓丸
A gentle, five-ingredient formula from the Han dynasty, originally used for "masses below the waist" in women, and now one of the most commonly prescribed gynecological formulas in both Chinese and Japanese kampo practice.
Formula · Jīn Guì Shèn Qì Wán
Golden Cabinet Kidney Qi
金匮肾气丸
A "warm and tonify the kidney yang" formula from the Han dynasty, best understood as the six-ingredient Liuwei Dihuang Wan (Six Flavor Rehmanni) with cinnamon and aconite added back in to address the "yang" rather than the "yin" aspect.
Formula · Yīn Chén Wǔ Líng Wán
Yinchen Five-Ingredient Pills
茵陈五苓丸
A "qing-re li-shi, tui-huang" (clear heat, drain dampness, and reduce jaundice) formula from Zhang Zhongjing's "Essential Prescriptions of the Golden Cabinet" (c. 220 CE), the canonical "damp-heat jaundice" formula.
Formula · Huáng Qí Jiàn Zhōng Wán
Astragalus Construct Center Pills
黄芪建中丸
A "wen-zhong bu-xu, yi-qi jian-zhong" (warm the middle, tonify deficiency, augment qi, and build the center) formula from Zhang Zhongjing's "Essential Prescriptions of the Golden Cabinet" (c. 220 CE), the Astragalus-augmented form of Xiao Jian Zhong Tang.
Formula · Wēn Jīng Tāng Kē Lì
Warm the Menses Granules
温经汤颗粒
A "wen-jing san-han, yang-xue qu-yu" (warm the channels, disperse cold, nourish blood, dispel stasis) formula from Zhang Zhongjing's "Essential Prescriptions of the Golden Cabinet" (c. 220 CE), the canonical TCM "cold-stasis" gynecological formula.