Bi Cheng Qie荜澄茄
Litseae Fructus · Litsea Fruit · Mountain Spicy Tree Fruit
Overview
A small peppery fruit that warms a cold middle burner, sends rebellious qi downward and reaches the lower burner to settle cold in the bladder. Acrid and warm, it enters the Spleen, Stomach, Kidney and Bladder channels, and its scope is narrower than Hua Jiao or Gan Jiang — it is chosen when cold and qi stagnation are knotted together and the pain is distending rather than boring. One naming point matters at the counter: the drug the Song materia medica traded under this name was cubeb pepper (Piper cubeba), while the official Chinese drug today is the fruit of Litsea cubeba.
Nature & Flavor
Acrid · WarmChannels
Spleen · Stomach · Kidney · BladderTypical Dosage
1.5–3 g in decoctionActions
3 core actions
- Warms the middle, disperses coldCold epigastric and abdominal pain that eases with warmth and a hot drink, vomiting of thin clear fluid, poor appetite with a bland taste in the mouth.
- Moves qi, stops painDistending pain of the epigastrium and flanks where cold has slowed the qi; cold shan pain dragging into the groin, usually with Xiao Hui Xiang or Wu Yao.
- Warms the Kidney, disperses lower-burner coldFrequent pale urination and cloudy urine attributed to cold in the lower burner.
In Formulas
Formulas containing Bi Cheng Qie
No published formula lists this herb yet — the library is growing.
Indications & Clinical Uses
- Cold epigastric and abdominal pain with vomiting of clear fluid
- Distending pain of the epigastrium and flanks from cold with qi stagnation
- Cold shan pain radiating to the groin
- Frequent, clear or cloudy urination from lower-burner cold
Western Medical Keywords
Searchable condition terms
Contraindications
Cautions
Acrid, warm and drying — not for yin deficiency with heat signs, and not for any true-heat pattern. The pharmacopoeia range is deliberately small (1–3 g); larger doses are not standard practice. Because the same Chinese name has covered two different plants, confirm that what is dispensed is Litsea cubeba fruit and not cubeb pepper.
Contraindicated in pregnancy: No classical prohibition in pregnancy, but this is a warming, qi-moving herb — use during pregnancy only on the advice of the treating practitioner.
For licensed practitioners’ reference only
References
- 《开宝本草》 and 《海药本草》 both carry a drug under this name; the plant source differs from the modern one (classical sources, public domain).
2. Bensky, Clavey & Stöger. Chinese Herbal Medicine: Materia Medica, 3rd ed.
3. 《中华人民共和国药典》(2020 edition).
4. 《中药学》(新世纪第二版), chapter on herbs that warm the interior.
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.