Hehuanpi, also known as Hehunpi and Yehepi, is the bark of the plant Albizia julibrissin Durazz., which belongs to the Fabaceae family. It is collected in summer and autumn and dried in the sun.
[Processing Method] Take the original medicinal material, remove impurities, wash thoroughly, moisten, cut into threads or pieces, and dry.
[Characteristics of the medicinal slices] It is in the form of threads or pieces, with a gray-brown to gray-brown outer surface, slightly longitudinally wrinkled, some with shallow cracks, and densely covered with oval-shaped brown or reddish-brown transverse pores. The inner surface is light yellow-brown or yellow-white, smooth, and finely longitudinally striated. It is hard and brittle. The transverse section is light yellow-brown or yellow-white. It has a slight fragrance, a mild taste, a slight astringency, and a slight discomfort in the throat afterwards.
[Processing effect] Hehuanpi has a sweet and mild taste and is neutral in nature. It enters the Heart, Liver, and Lung meridians. It has the functions of resolving depression, calming the mind, promoting blood circulation, and reducing swelling. Processing makes the medicinal material clean, facilitates the dissolution of active ingredients, and is convenient for compounding and formulation. It is used for restlessness, depression, insomnia, and both internal and external abscesses and injuries. For example, when treating cough with slight fever, restlessness, fullness in the chest, and pain in the sternum, it is used in the Huanghun decoction for lung abscess (from "Bei Ji Qian Jin Fang") and the Hehuan drink for non-healing mouth ulcers caused by lung abscess (from "Jing Yue Quan Shu").
