Tianma and Silver Carp Head Soup，From *Proven Tea, Decoction, and Soup Recipes for Common Ailments*,Dispels wind and cold; unblocks meridians and activates collaterals. Suitable for cervical spondylosis of the bi syndrome type
the whole decoction leans warm; use with caution in those with yin deficiency and internal heat or lingering excess heat; those who are robust with internal accumulated heat are not suited to this formula
Commentary
The formula is led by tianma as the sovereign herb; neutral in nature and sweet in flavor, with Liver tropism, it chiefly calms the liver, extinguishes wind, and unblocks the meridians, striking at the root of the condition. These are joined ministerially by silver carp head (of warm nature and sweet flavor, entering the Spleen, Stomach, warms the middle, tonifies qi, and promotes diuresis), and ginger (nature warm, flavor pungent, channeled into the Lung, Spleen, Stomach, disperses cold, relieves cough and harmonizes the stomach), reinforcing the sovereign’s main effect. Finished with scallions, harmonizing the stomach and supporting dietary nourishment, and cooking wine, acting as the envoy to harmonize the various ingredients, the formula attains a regulated, neither-excess nor-deficient balance. Viewed as a whole, the formula addresses the kidney deficiency with wind-damp presentation, treating both root and branch.