Jade Windscreen Powder

The Yu Ping Feng San (“Jade Windscreen Powder that guards against Wind”) is a classical blend of remarkable elegance: three herbs only — Huang Qi (astragalus, in a large proportion), Bai Zhu (white atractylodes), Fang Feng (“screen against Wind”, siler root).

Its poetic name evokes a precious jade screen set against draughts — the plain image by which the tradition places it in the register of the Wei Qi, the defensive layer of the surface, for constitutions open to outside assaults.

Dating from the Dan Xi Xin Fa (1481), it is one of the most widely used blends in the modern pharmacopoeia.

The reference blend for firming up the Wei Qi of constitutions of deficient Qi that feel every draught, and whose surface no longer holds the Liquids (Jin Ye).

Traditionally used through the turn of the seasons, notably in autumn, and for constitutions where the Liquids (Jin Ye) escape at the surface too readily.

• Traditional preparation: 1 sachet in 500 ml of water, simmer for 25 to 30 minutes, strain and drink in 2 servings over the day
• Seasonal use: a tradition of use over 2 to 4 weeks in autumn (preparing for the cold season) or at the end of winter
• A blend from the Dan Xi Xin Fa: a tradition dating from 1481 — widely taken up in the modern pharmacopoeia for its documented use

To be used in moderation in cases of settled heat or of fullness from an acute outside attack (the blend secures the surface, which can hold the intruder in if it is already settled).

Ask a practitioner for advice so it can be matched to your constitution.