Medicinals
lóng gǔ / 龙骨 / 龍骨 / dragon bone
Latin pharmacognostic name: Mastodi Ossis Fossilia
Alternate English names:
Alternate Chinese names: 化龙骨 huà lóng gǔ; 花龙骨 huā lóng gǔ
Origin: Animal
Use: medicinal
Category: Spirit-quieting agents / Heavy settling spirit-quieting agents
Properties: Sweet, astringent; balanced.
Channel entry: heart, liver, and kidney channels.
Indications:
- Settles fright and quiets the spirit: Disquieted heart spirit, heart palpitation, insomnia, fright wind and epilepsy, and mania and withdrawal.
- Calms the liver and subdues yáng: Ascendant hyperactivity of liver yáng, manifesting in dizziness or tinnitus, as well as vexation and agitation, and irascibility.
- Contracts and astringes: Seminal emission, seminal efflux, enuresis, frequent urination, flooding and spotting, vaginal discharge, spontaneous sweating due to exterior vacuity, and night sweating.
- Additional uses: Calcined lóng gǔ may be used externally to absorb dampness, close sores, and engender flesh. It is used to treat eczema or enduring ulcerated sores that fail to heal, for which it is generally combined with additional medicinals that close sores, resolve toxin, and absorb dampness.
Dosage & Method:
Oral: 15–30g in decoctions; it should be predecocted. For its astringing action or external applications, the calcined form should be used. For other indications, the raw form is preferred.
Warning:
Contraindicated in the presence of damp-heat and other repletion evils.
Product Description:
This is the fossilize bone of various mammals including rhinoceroses, antelopes, deer, pigs, and bovines. Distinction is made between flowery dragon bone
Quality:
Flowery dragon's bone with pronounced colored markings is the best.
Product Area:
Hénán, Héběi, Shānxī, Shǎnxī (Shaanxi), Shāndōng, Inner Mongolia, Húběi, Sìchuān, Yúnnán, Guǎngxī, and Qīnghǎi.
Etymology:
The name lóng gǔ龙骨, literally ""dragon bone,"" reflects a traditional explanation of this item's origin.
See also: