Bark of Shrubalthea — Classic Formulas
Mu Jin Pi · Cortex Hibisci
Primary Actions
- Clears damp-heat from the intestines - used for dysenteric diarrhea and lingering damp-heat bowel disorders when heat, mucus, and tenesmus are present but a harsh purgative is unnecessary.
- Kills parasites and relieves itching - a classic choice for scabies, tinea, vaginal itching, and damp skin lesions, especially when used externally as a wash or soak.
- Dries dampness and addresses lower-burner discharge - used for leukorrhea and genital itching when damp-heat creates irritating secretions or localized inflammation.
- Resolves hemorrhoidal or perineal damp-heat irritation - later practice extends Mu Jin Pi to hot, swollen, itchy lesions around the anal or vulvar region.
Classic Formulas
- Mu Jin Pi wash preparations (木槿皮洗方) - traditional decocted washes for scabies, damp itching, tinea, and genital irritation, often combined with other bitter antipruritic herbs.
- Regional damp-heat intestinal prescriptions combine Mu Jin Pi with Qin Pi, Huang Bai, or Ku Shen for dysentery and leukorrhea rather than relying on one universally canonical early formula.
- Later folk prescriptions also use powdered or wine-processed bark externally for hemorrhoids, itching skin eruptions, and chronic moist lesions.
Classical Text References
- Later materia medica and teaching compendia describe Mu Jin Pi as a cool, bitter-sweet bark that kills parasites, stops itching, and clears damp-heat from both the intestines and lower burner.
- The herb is more prominent in regional and practical dermatologic-gynecologic tradition than in the earliest Shang Han Lun formula canon, which explains the relative scarcity of famous named classical prescriptions.
- Traditional usage repeatedly stresses the value of external washing methods, especially for fungal, parasitic, or moist itching lesions.