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Tan Xiang檀香

Santali Albi Lignum · Sandalwood · White Sandalwood Heartwood

Herbs that Regulate the Qi 理气药《名医别录》

Overview

The fragrant heartwood of the sandalwood tree, acrid and warm, entering the Spleen, Stomach, Heart and Lung. Its work is in the upper and middle burner: it moves qi, warms the middle and opens the appetite, and it is best known in chest painful obstruction, where the cold, tight, gripping chest pain of qi stagnation is eased — classically with Dan Shen and Sha Ren in Dan Shen Yin. Aromatic and volatile, it is added late to the decoction.

Nature & Flavor

Acrid · Warm

Channels

Spleen · Stomach · Heart · Lung

Typical Dosage

2–5 g in decoction
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Actions

3 core actions

  • Moves qi, warms the middleCold with qi stagnation in the chest and epigastrium: distension, a cold gripping ache, discomfort relieved by warmth.
  • Opens the appetite, stops painPoor appetite with epigastric pain and vomiting from cold in the Stomach.
  • Unblocks the chestChest painful obstruction with cold, tight chest pain — the classical pairing is with Dan Shen and Sha Ren.

In Formulas

Formulas containing Tan Xiang

Indications & Clinical Uses

  • Cold, distending pain of the chest and epigastrium
    - Chest painful obstruction with a gripping cold ache
    - Stomach cold with vomiting and poor appetite
    - Abdominal distension from qi stagnation

Western Medical Keywords

Searchable condition terms

AnginaFunctional dyspepsiaChest tightnessNausea

Contraindications

Cautions

Acrid, warm and drying: not for yin deficiency with rising fire, and not where heat is forcing the blood out (nosebleed, blood in the vomit). Chest pain is not a symptom to self-treat — new, worsening or exertional chest pain needs urgent medical assessment before any herbal prescription. Sourcing: Santalum album is under heavy harvesting pressure and its export is state-regulated in India, so buy plantation-grown wood with documentation; sandalwood is one of the most adulterated aromatics on the market. Do not decoct it long — the aroma is the medicine.

Contraindicated in pregnancy: Not a classical pregnancy prohibition, but it is warming and qi-moving — during pregnancy use only on the advice of the treating practitioner.

For licensed practitioners’ reference only

References

  1. Ming Yi Bie Lu《名医别录》(classical source, 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 regulate the qi.

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.