细辛
Xi Xin
Oddly, I could not find a translation for this herb, either the Chinese characters or the Pinyin. It is Asian Wild Ginger, the root and the herb, and also oddly it is on the FDA prohibited herbs list because it contains aristolochic acid which is toxic to people with Liver disease. The recommended dose is low -- 1 to 3 grams.
In Bensky, it is found in the Warm Herbs that Release the Exterior section. As a surface releasing herb, it is acrid (spicy).
Xi Xin travels to the Lung, Heart, and Kidney. According to some texts, it travels to all twelve channels.
Xi Xin is "vigorous," as you might expect something that is "wild" to be. It dispels wind, cold, and relieves pain; good for conditions such as headache, arthritis (Wind-Cold-Damp Bi Zheng / old injuries), and chest bi.
It also dispels exterior Wind-Cold symptoms such as headache and backache.
Xi Xin warms the lung and resolves phlegm and watery mucous with symptoms such as cough, asthma, and sputum.
And finally, Xi Xin opens the "sensory orifices" -- nasal congestion, loss of consciousness, mouth ulcers (note that it travels to the heart) -- it opens the collaterals and helps dispel blood stagnation and deficient headaches (shaoyin headaches).
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