Medicinals
tán xiāng / 檀香 / 檀香 / sandalwood
Latin pharmacognostic name: Santali Albi Lignum
Alternate English names:
Alternate Chinese names: 真檀 zhēn tán
Origin: Plant
Use: medicinal
Category: Qì-rectifying agents
Properties: Acrid; warm.
Channel entry: spleen, stomach, and lung channels.
Indications:
Moves qì and relieves pain, disperses cold and harmonizes the center: Cold pain in the chest and abdomen; cold pain in the stomach and stomach duct with vomiting and reduced food intake.
Dosage & Method:
Oral: 1–3g in decoctions, added at the end. Also used in powders and pills.
Warning:
Use with care in yīn vacuity with effulgent fire and in vomiting of blood (blood ejection) or nosebleed due to repletion heat.
Product Description:
Sandalwood comes in chunks of varying lengths, often prepared commercially in lumps 4 cm long, 1 cm wide and 2–5 mm thick. The color is a pale yellow-brown. The wood is solid and heavy but is easy to chop. It has a distinctive long-lasting smell. The decocting pieces are planed off slices.
Quality:
The best quality is heavy and hard, with a strong aroma.
Product Area:
India, Africa, Malaysia, Indonesia, Australia, cultivated in Guǎngdōng, Táiwān.
Etymology:
The name tán xiāng 檀香, literally ""sandal aroma,"" reflects the distinctive aroma of this product. The character 檀 is said to be derived from 亶 (shàn), meaning 善 (shàn), ""good,"" sandal being a good wood.