Wiseman’s Chinese Medical Database

yè míng shā / 夜明砂 / 夜明砂 / bat's droppings

Latin pharmacognostic name: Vespertilionis Faeces

Alternate English names:

Alternate Chinese names: 天鼠屎 tiān shǔ shǐ; 黑砂星 hēi shā xīng

Origin: Plant

Use: medicinal

Category: Blood-Quickening Stasis-dispelling agents / Blood-quickening injury-healing agents

Properties: Acrid; cold; nontoxic*.

Channel entry: liver channel.

Indications:

Dispels stasis and disperses accumulations; clears the liver and brightens the eyes; disperses blood and disperses stagnation.

injury from knocks and falls; gān accumulation; red eyes; blood spillage in the white of the eye. Some sources include clear-eye blindness and sparrow blindness (night blindness); internal obstructions or external obstructions of the eye; scrofula.

Dosage & Method:

Oral: Used in pills and powder (3–9g). Topical: Grind to a powder and sprinkle on the affected area or apply mixed.

Quality:

Droppings that are light in weight, brown in color with shiny speckles, and free of earth, and that have no grittiness detectable by chewing are the best.

Product Area:

Southern China.