Wang’er Cinnabar，From *Su-Shen’s Effective Formulas*, Volume 6.，
Wang’er Cinnabar
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Formulas Name : Wang’er Cinnabar
Chinese Name : 王(亻儿)丹砂
Drug Formulation
Bright Cinnabar 28 liang, Licorice 2 da liang, Polygala 2 da liang (with the core removed), Areca Nut 2 da liang, Terminalia chebula Bark 2 da liang, Cinnamon Bark 8 da liang (crushed).
Source
From *Su-Shen’s Effective Formulas*, Volume 6.
Processing
Coarsely chop the four ingredients—including licorice root—and place them in a large cauldron (2 da dou capacity). Place the cinnabar in a fine cloth bag and suspend it inside the cauldron. Add water and the herbs, then simmer over a charcoal fire. On the first day and night, use “yin” fire until the water surface ripples; on the second day and night, use “yang” fire until the water boils with “fish-eye” bubbles; on the third day and night, use “wood” fire until the water boils with frothy bubbles;On the fourth day and night, use “Fire-Fire” heat until the water boils vigorously; on the fifth day and night, use “Earth-Fire” heat until it simmers gently; on the sixth day and night, use “Metal-Fire” heat until the boil alternates between slow and rapid; on the seventh day and night, use “Water-Fire” heat to maintain a gentle, steady boil. Prepare two clay cauldrons in advance, keep them filled with warm water, and use this water to replenish the decoction. Whenever the water in the cauldrons runs low, immediately add warm water, ensuring the level never drops below two dou.On the seventh day, remove the cinnabar and steam it in a silver box. First, spread 1 liang of crushed cinnamon bark in the box, then evenly distribute the cinnabar, and cover it with the remaining 1 liang of cinnamon bark. Place the box in a steamer; first spread a 3-cun-thick layer of glutinous rice, then place the box on top, and cover it with another layer of glutinous rice, also about 3 cun thick. Steam it over a fire fueled by mulberry wood.Replace the glutinous rice and cinnamon every 5 days. The steamer lid should be made of rattan or bamboo; otherwise, the contents may fall into the pot during prolonged steaming. Cut a small hole in the side of the steamer at the bottom and keep it filled with warm water; use a small bamboo tube to top up the water in the pot, ensuring the water level does not drop.On days 1–5, use “spring fire,” as when cooking rice, including at night; on days 2–5, use “summer fire,” including at night, with a fiercer heat than when cooking rice; on days 3–5, use “autumn fire,” similar to cooking rice, alternating between slow and fast, including at night; on days 4–5, use “winter fire,” including at night, with a gentler heat than when cooking rice.Following the mutual generation of the Five Elements, use gentle and vigorous fires to assist the process. Once the medicine is complete, remove the cinnabar and grind it in a strong man’s mortar with a jade pestle; it should not crumble but become as fine as powder or flour, at which point it is ready for consumption. Boil it with millet to form pills the size of a paulownia seed.
Instructions for Use
Take one pill before each meal, three times daily. Twenty liang of refined cinnabar constitutes one course of treatment. After completing the full two-year course, refine and take three liang every ten years, again beginning on the first day of the first lunar month and continuing for three months until finished. Since three liang are required every ten years, do not prepare them incrementally; instead, refine the entire amount at once, store one course of treatment, and take it as needed.
Copyright: Excerpt from From *Su-Shen’s Effective Formulas*, Volume 6., Copyright belongs to the Original Author and all original sources, This article was shared by DeDe on August 31, 2026, Please credit the source and include a link to the original article when reposting.
Terminology Proofreading: [Cheng Bo] | August 31, 2026 Reviewed by: [Wang Zhongxiang, Associate Chief TCM Physician (China)] | August 31, 2026
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Wang’er Cinnabar