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Traditional TCM Preparation Methods

Ⅸ-4Traditional MedicineHaerbinshinangang, HeilongjiangBatch 4 (2014)Extension Item

01 · Historical Records

The hereditary formula of loquat syrup (pipa lu) was first created in the late Qing dynasty; its founder, Liu Zhen, specialized in cough suppression and phlegm elimination, among other conditions.

02 · Core Techniques & Process

The formula consists of loquat leaf (pipaye), stemona root (baibu), cynanchum root and rhizome (baiqian), platycodon root (jiegeng), mulberry root bark (sangbaipi), and peppermint (bohe). Mulberry root bark (sangbaipi) is pungent and sweet in flavor and cold in nature; it readily enters the qi aspect of the lung, drains fire and promotes urination, removes phlegm and vents qi, and treats exuberant lung heat, cough, and asthma, among other conditions. Cynanchum root and rhizome (baiqian) is bitter in flavor and slightly cold in nature, its function specializing in directing qi downward; for exuberant fire and bound phlegm, it treats cough and retching. Stemona root (baibu) is sweet and bitter in flavor and slightly warm in nature; it can treat cold cough and vent lung heat. Platycodon root (jiegeng) is bitter in flavor and neutral in qi; it is a sovereign medicinal for lifting lung qi, and a medicinal that unblocks the diaphragm, benefits the lung, and treats cold-excess chest binding (jiexiong). Loquat leaf (pipaye) is bitter in flavor and neutral in qi; it drains lung heat and treats lung-heat fire cough, making it an important medicinal for clearing the lung, treating fire, and stopping cough. Combined, the above medicinals form the commonly used cough-relieving loquat syrup, which can treat lung-heat cough and asthma, clear phlegm and vent qi, serving as a root-treating prescription that drains fire and promotes urination. Loquat syrup has the functions of relieving cough, eliminating phlegm, and treating acute and chronic bronchitis, among others, and has a good therapeutic effect on chronic bronchitis in the elderly. This product has good efficacy, takes effect quickly, and has a long duration of action; after patients take it, it facilitates the passage of active ingredients through the body's semipermeable membranes, with rapid absorption and improved bioavailability. Loquat syrup is highly praised by patients in Northeast China; many patients with acute and chronic bronchitis, various colds and coughs, and asthma come to seek treatment and medicine attracted by its reputation. Loquat syrup has strong antibacterial and anti-inflammatory effects; in the early stages of illnesses such as tonsillitis and acute and chronic bronchitis, it can effectively suppress the condition and reduce the use of antibiotics, earning recognition from the general public.

A formula of six herbs

Six herbs: loquat leaf, fritillaria, cynanchum, platycodon, white mulberry bark and mint, each taking a share — draining fire and water, pushing qi downward, relieving cold cough, lifting lung qi and clearing lung heat.

Clearing lung heat to stop cough

The formula works at the root by clearing lung fire and draining water; without loquat leaf, the bitter, level-natured chief remedy for cough, the cough will not stop.

Recomposing the cough-loquat decoction

After studying the ancestral prescription, Liu Zhen's descendants recomposed the cough-loquat decoction, fixing which six herbs and in what proportion — the starting point of the remedy as it is made today.

Taking the syrup

Made as a syrup, the loquat remedy is small in volume and concentrated, easy to keep and take; after swallowing, its constituents cross the body's semipermeable membrane and act quickly over a long period.

03 · Regional Records & Related Items

Loquat syrup has been transmitted in Heilongjiang for over a century; today it is concentrated in the area of Nangang District, Harbin City, while the hereditary formula is widely used in nineteen cities and more than forty counties throughout the province. This medicine came from the hand of Liu Zhen in the late Qing dynasty, originally establishing itself through cough suppression and phlegm elimination; after Liu Zhen's descendants conducted in-depth research on the hereditary formula, they reformulated the cough-relieving loquat decoction, which became the basis for today's six-ingredient ready-made medicine. Heilongjiang has long winters, with wind-cold and dry pathogens pressing in, so those with cough and phlegm-wheezing are numerous year after year, giving a paste medicine that specifically targets these conditions a stable market; the old northern rules for boiling pastes — long hours of gentle-heat reduction, with honey as the base — were naturally adopted as well. Today Harbin Kanglong Pharmaceutical carries on this technique: the older generation tends the medicine pots, the young tend the filling lines, and a formula handed down from the countryside has been boiled through a hundred years of winter nights in the land beyond the pass.

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04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding

As a traditional Chinese medicine preparation method, loquat syrup traditional preparation has been transmitted in Heilongjiang Province for over a century; it is currently concentrated in Nangang District, Harbin City, and the hereditary formula of loquat syrup is widely used in 19 cities and more than 40 counties throughout Heilongjiang Province. Liu Zhen's descendants conducted in-depth research on the hereditary formula, reformulated the cough-relieving loquat decoction, and have passed this technique down from generation to generation to the present day. Loquat syrup traditional preparation was born among the people and exists because of their needs; it is an epitome of the development of traditional Chinese medicine culture and a precious cultural resource of the Chinese nation, holding definite value for the inheritance and continuation of China's traditional Chinese medicine culture.

05 · Associated Representative Bearers

Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:

06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography

  1. Traditional TCM Preparation Methods (Haerbinshinangang, Heilongjiang) · China ICH Official Project Archive

Sources

China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)

Read the official ihchina.cn record ↗

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