Wen Jing Tang温经汤
Warm the Menses Decoction
Ingredients12 herbs
Indications
Deficiency cold of the Chong and Ren vessels with stasis lodged in the lower abdomen. Because the blood is both congealed by cold and insufficient in quantity, warming alone would scorch it and nourishing alone would not move it — the formula does both in one prescription.
Clinical Manifestations
- Persistent spotting or irregular bleeding with dark clotted flow
- Menstrual pain that eases with warmth
- Periods that come early, late or not at all in a cold-deficient woman
- Cold lower abdomen with long-standing infertility
- Low-grade evening fever with hot palms and dry lips
Health Categories
Modern Applications
Common adjustments
- Cold congelation with severe abdominal pain — increase Wu Zhu Yu 吴茱萸 and Gui Zhi 桂枝, or add Ai Ye 艾叶
- Heavy or unremitting bleeding — keep E Jiao 阿胶 at full weight and add charred stanching herbs per pattern; the retail forms without E Jiao are weaker here
- Stabbing pain and clots predominant — add Tao Ren 桃仁 and Hong Hua 红花
- No deficiency heat or dryness above — reduce Mai Men Dong 麦门冬 and Mu Dan Pi 牡丹皮
Contraindications
Not for bleeding driven by heat in the blood or by damp-heat in the lower burner — the acrid warm chiefs would accelerate it. Its richer ingredients also sit badly on a Spleen that is already damp, with poor appetite and loose stools.
For licensed practitioners’ reference only — not a self-treatment guide.
Pregnancy
Not a pregnancy formula. Chuan Xiong and Mu Dan Pi move blood and Wu Zhu Yu is acrid and hot, all of which are held back once pregnancy is established. Its classical use is to warm a cold womb before conception; stop at a confirmed pregnancy and let the treating practitioner prescribe again.
Related Formulas
References
Source Jin Gui Yao Lue 《金匮要略》 · Eastern Han
「曾经半产，瘀血在少腹不去……当以温经汤主之。」
- Classical source (public domain), cited in the source-quote section.
2. Scheid, Bensky, Ellis & Barolet. Chinese Herbal Medicine: Formulas & Strategies, 2nd ed. — composition & dosage cross-checked.
3. 《方剂学》（全国中医药行业高等教育规划教材）— pattern analysis cross-checked.
Professional reference notice. Entries are scholarly references for licensed TCM practitioners and students — not medical advice, and not a recommendation to self-prescribe. Chinese herbal formulas should be used under the guidance of a qualified practitioner. Content is an original editorial compilation by Cura x Cura, cross-checked against the cited references.