Homiclub

Tangaek — Decoctions · Herbs

甘遂 Gamsu (감수)

Gamsu is the dried tuber of a spurge-family plant. Red-skinned and white inside, it runs in a string of beads, and dense, heavy pieces were rated best. It is poisonous, so it was browned with wheat bran and the amount carefully weighed. The Donguibogam lists it in the herb section marked 【唐】, imported.

Original, read line by line 東醫寶鑑 · Tangaek — Decoctions vol. 3

  1. 性寒, 味苦甘, 有毒. 能瀉十二種水疾, 治面目浮腫, 心腹脹滿, 利水穀道.

    Its nature is cold, its taste bitter and sweet, and it is toxic. It can purge the twelve kinds of water disorder, treats swelling of the face and eyes and fullness and distension of the chest and abdomen, and frees the water and grain passages.

    HomiclubGamsu is the dried tuberous root of a spurge-family plant. Spurges share the trait of bleeding a white, milky sap when their stems are cut, and the text likewise records that it is toxic.

  2. 皮赤肉白, 作連珠, 實重者良. 二月採根, 陰乾.

    Its skin is red and its flesh white, shaped like a string of beads, and those that are solid and heavy are good. The root is dug in the second month and dried in the shade.

  3. 此藥專於行水, 攻決爲用, 量用之. 《本草》

    This medicine is devoted to moving water, its use lying in attacking and breaching, so the dose must be measured carefully. 《Boncho (本草)》

  4. 此藥可以通水, 而其氣直透達所結處, 麩炒用之. 《入門》

    This medicine can free water, and its qi drives straight through to wherever the binding lies; it is parched with wheat bran for use. 《Immun (入門)》

Herbs — more entries

See all in this section →

This is a cultural and historical record from a classical text, not a claim about any food’s effects. Nothing here is a health supplement or intended to prevent or treat disease. Consult a medical professional about health concerns. · Text: Korean Medicine Classics DB · Reading: Homiclub