{ "slug": "zuo-gui-wan", "names": { "pinyin": "Zuo Gui Wan", "chinese": "左归丸", "english": "Restore the Left Kidney Pill", "alternate": [ "Left-Restoring Pill", "Zuo Gui Yin (the decoction version)" ] }, "category": "tonify-yin", "source": { "text": "Jing Yue Quan Shu (Complete Works of Jing Yue)", "author": "Zhang Jie-bin", "dynasty": "Ming", "year": "1624" }, "summary": "A pure, rich Kidney yin and essence tonic with no draining herbs. For the deeper, older deficiency that Liu Wei is too light for: weak bones, loose teeth, dizziness, night sweats, dry mouth, and a worn-out feeling that is years old. Zhang Jie-bin wrote it for the person whose yin is truly spent.", "picture": "Liu Wei Di Huang Wan refills the tank and keeps it clean. Zuo Gui Wan only refills, and refills hard. It is for the person who needs every drop and has a stomach strong enough to take it.", "patterns": [ { "slug": "kidney-essence-deficiency", "role": "primary", "_links": { "self": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/pattern/kidney-essence-deficiency", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/pattern/kidney-essence-deficiency" } }, { "slug": "kidney-yin-deficiency", "role": "when Liu Wei is too light", "_links": { "self": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/pattern/kidney-yin-deficiency", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/pattern/kidney-yin-deficiency" } } ], "indications": [ "Weak bones, a sore low back and knees that feel hollow", "Loose teeth", "Dizziness and vertigo", "Night sweats and nocturnal emissions", "Dry mouth and throat", "Thin build, tired in a deep way", "Low fertility in a dry, thin person", "Slow recovery after a long illness" ], "signs": { "tongue": "Red with a peeled or absent coat.", "pulse": "Thin and rapid, or thin and weak." }, "ingredients": [ { "pinyin": "Shu Di Huang", "grams": "24", "role": "chief", "job": "Prepared rehmannia, in a large dose, refills Kidney yin and essence.", "herb_slug": "prepared-rehmannia-root", "english": "Prepared Rehmannia Root", "chinese": "熟地黄", "latin": "Radix Rehmanniae Praeparata", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/prepared-rehmannia-root", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/prepared-rehmannia-root" } }, { "pinyin": "Shan Yao", "grams": "12", "role": "deputy", "job": "Chinese yam steadies the Spleen and Kidney and holds essence.", "herb_slug": "common-yam-rhizome", "english": "Chinese Yam Rhizome", "chinese": "山药", "latin": "Rhizoma Dioscoreae", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/common-yam-rhizome", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/common-yam-rhizome" } }, { "pinyin": "Gou Qi Zi", "grams": "12", "role": "deputy", "job": "Goji nourishes Liver and Kidney yin.", "herb_slug": "fruit-of-chinese-wolfberry", "english": "Chinese Wolfberry Fruit", "chinese": "枸杞子", "latin": "Fructus Lycii", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/fruit-of-chinese-wolfberry", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/fruit-of-chinese-wolfberry" } }, { "pinyin": "Shan Zhu Yu", "grams": "12", "role": "deputy", "job": "Cornelian cherry holds the essence in.", "herb_slug": "asiatic-cornelian-cherry-fruit", "english": "Asiatic Cornelian Cherry Fruit", "chinese": "山茱萸", "latin": "Fructus Corni", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/asiatic-cornelian-cherry-fruit", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/asiatic-cornelian-cherry-fruit" } }, { "pinyin": "Niu Xi", "grams": "9", "role": "assistant", "job": "Achyranthes strengthens the low back and knees and guides the formula down.", "herb_slug": "root-of-twotooth-achyranthes-2", "english": "Niu Xi Root", "chinese": "牛膝", "latin": "Radix Achyranthis Bidentatae", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/root-of-twotooth-achyranthes-2", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/root-of-twotooth-achyranthes-2" } }, { "pinyin": "Tu Si Zi", "grams": "12", "role": "assistant", "job": "Cuscuta seed warms the Kidney gently so yin can be made.", "herb_slug": "dodder-seed", "english": "Dodder Seed", "chinese": "菟丝子", "latin": "Semen Cuscutae", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/dodder-seed", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/dodder-seed" } }, { "pinyin": "Lu Jiao Jiao", "grams": "12", "role": "assistant", "job": "Deer antler glue tonifies essence and blood and builds marrow.", "unlinked": true, "herb_slug": "gelatin-of-buckhorn", "english": "Deer Horn Gelatin", "chinese": "鹿角胶", "latin": "Cervi Cornus Colla", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/gelatin-of-buckhorn", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/gelatin-of-buckhorn" } }, { "pinyin": "Gui Ban Jiao", "grams": "12", "role": "assistant", "job": "Tortoise plastron glue builds deep yin and firms bones and teeth.", "herb_slug": "tortoise-plastron", "english": "Tortoise Plastron", "chinese": "龟板", "latin": "Plastrum Testudinis", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/tortoise-plastron", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/tortoise-plastron" } } ], "actions": [ "Enriches Kidney yin and fills the essence", "Benefits the marrow and strengthens bones" ], "how_it_works": "Rehmannia, goji, cornelian cherry, and yam fill the yin. Deer antler glue and tortoise shell glue fill the essence and marrow, the deep reserve that bones and teeth are built from. A little cuscuta warms the Kidney so it can turn the tonic into yin, on the principle that yin is best made with a touch of yang. There is no draining herb, which is why it is stronger than Liu Wei and also harder to digest.", "modifications": [ { "for": "Loose teeth as the main complaint", "add": [ "Gu Sui Bu" ], "note": "The bone mender firms the socket." }, { "for": "Heat signs: night sweats, hot palms", "add": [ "Zhi Mu", "Huang Bai" ], "note": "The cooling pair. Zhang Jie-bin himself advised adding them when fire was present." }, { "for": "Dry stools", "add": [ "Rou Cong Rong" ], "note": "Cistanche moistens the gut and tonifies the Kidney." } ], "cautions": [ "Very rich. It needs a working Spleen. Loose stools, bloating, or no appetite mean this formula is too heavy; start with Liu Wei Di Huang Wan.", "Contains animal products: deer antler glue and tortoise plastron glue.", "Not for a damp or phlegmy picture, or a thick tongue coat.", "Pause during an acute cold or flu.", "Pregnancy: use only under a qualified practitioner." ], "forms": [ "teapills", "granules", "decoction" ], "typical_dose": { "teapills": "8 pills, three times a day with warm water, the usual label dose", "decoction": "One bag a day in two doses, with the amounts above. The glues are melted into the strained decoction.", "course": "Three to six months. This is a long-course formula." }, "cousins": [ { "slug": "liu-wei-di-huang-wan", "difference": "Lighter and self-draining. The right place to start when you are not sure the stomach can take a pure tonic." }, { "slug": "you-gui-wan", "difference": "The mirror formula for the yang side: the same deep tonics with cinnamon, aconite, and eucommia for a cold, weak, pale person." }, { "slug": "da-bu-yin-wan", "difference": "A yin tonic with strong cooling herbs for heavy empty heat. Zuo Gui Wan fills; Da Bu Yin Wan fills and cools." } ], "commerce": { "store": "supplementsapothecary.com", "store_name": "Supplements Apothecary", "store_slug": "zuo-gui-wan", "store_url": "https://www.supplementsapothecary.com/supplement/zuo-gui-wan", "status": "planned", "label_check": "The box reads Zuo Gui Wan with the characters 左归丸. Eight ingredients including deer antler glue and tortoise plastron glue. Some vegetarian versions drop the glues; they are then a lighter formula." }, "conditions": [ "receding-gums", "toothache", "low-back-pain", "dizziness", "tinnitus", "infertility" ], "sources": [ { "title": "Bensky, Scheid, Ellis and Barolet, Chinese Herbal Medicine: Formulas and Strategies, 2nd edition", "note": "Composition, actions, indications, and cautions." }, { "title": "Zhang Jie-bin, Jing Yue Quan Shu, 1624", "note": "Source text." } ], "meta": { "status": "published", "last_updated": "2026-10-12", "reviewed_by": null }, "_links": { "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/formula/zuo-gui-wan", "self": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/formula/zuo-gui-wan", "index": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/formulas" } }