Lily and Sweet Almond Soup，From *Proven Tea, Decoction, and Soup Recipes for Common Ailments*,Clears and moistens the lungs; relieves cough. Suitable for acute bronchitis of the dry-heat type.
being clearing and moistening in tendency, it is to be used with caution in those with deficiency-cold, cold-phlegm, or cold-dampness
Commentary
The formula is led by lily bulbs as the sovereign herb; of slightly cold nature and sweet flavor, entering the Lung, Heart, it chiefly nourishes yin, moistens the lung and calms the spirit, striking at the root of the condition. The ministerial support — almonds (nature warm, flavor bitter, channeled into the Lung, Large Intestine, descends lung qi and relieves cough and wheezing) — reinforces the sovereign’s main effect and coordinates the drug strength. Finished with granulated sugar, acting as the envoy to harmonize the various ingredients, the formula attains a regulated, neither-excess nor-deficient balance. Together the herbs converge on this action, in accord with the wind-cold pattern.